cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Benefits of High Resolution PM2.5 Prediction using Satellite MAIAC AOD and Land Use Regression for Exposure Assessment: California Examples.

This study estimated annual average ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5) concentrations at 1 km resolution using satellite Multi-Angle Implementation of Atmospheric Correction (MAIAC) aerosol op...
Predicting cost-effective carbon fiber precursors: Unraveling the functionalities of oxygen and nitrogen-containing groups during carbonization from ReaxFF simulations

Abstract Blends of polyacrylonitrile (PAN) and poly(p-phenylene-2,6-benzobisoxazole) (PBO) as precursors may offer an opportunity to reduce the cost of carbon fiber (CF) production. The all-carbon ring formations and volatile gas production during the heating and carbonization for 9 PAN/PBO blend precursors with varying mixing ratios are studied via the ReaxFF reactive molecular dynamics simulations. Evolutions of oxygen-containing (O-containing) and nitrogen-containing (N-containing) groups are detailed, in order to reveal the reaction mechanisms of the O and N-based CF precursors. Particularly, the O-containing groups are identified to be more efficient for initiating the carbonization, whereas N-containing groups are far longer retained in the graphitic materials and play a key role in capturing and converting carbon radical species into the graphitic networks. Additionally, the PAN/PBO blend precursor with a mole ratio of 1:1 is compared with the pre-oxidized PAN, PAN, and PBO. It is found that the PAN/PBO blends could be a promising alternative for the cost-effective PAN-based CF precursors, since they can decrease the cost of the CF production by means of: (a) eliminating the pre-oxidation process, (b) having considerable all-carbon ring formations within a short period, and (c) having a relatively fast conversion rate, reaching 95% 6-membered carbon ring formation.
A Decade of Working with the Working Crowd

In this contribution to the Media-N special issue, “Humans Are Underrated: Art & Labor in the Amazon Economy,” I narrate creative projects that disrupt or interfere with the Mechanical Turk platform. My place as an artist and employer in the elastic workforce since 2008 has given me a close and nuanced view of life online in the virtual workplace. The jobs I have created on the platform ask workers to perform athletic events, create videos, meditate, and talk back to Jeff Bezos. The materials I collect from the workers are integrated into art works that amplify the visibility of the workers and their unique voices. This article shows how those “underrated” humans in the Amazon economy are creative, thoughtful, and intelligent.
Effect of Immediate Feedback on Math Achievement at the High School Level

We examine the use of computer-based learning in the classroom and the effect of immediate feedback on student performance. Since it is well known in educational research that it is possible to observe a “Matthew Effect” in which the rich get richer, we wanted to see if feedback was useful for low prior knowledge students, as defined by students whose pretest score was at or below the median. In this counterbalanced randomized controlled trial, 243 tenth and eleventh grade mathematics students were exposed to one of two conditions, as we measured their learning from: 1) immediate feedback (where the computer told them correctness and they could also ask for hints) or 2) practice only (where they received feedback only after taking a posttest). Results suggest that immediate feedback from computer-based learning tasks benefit both high and low prior knowledge students, with low prior knowledge students exhibiting greater gains. The implications of these findings support further investigation into the use of computer-based learning tasks that provide immediate feedback.
Understanding In-Situ Use of Commonly Available Navigation Technologies by People with Visual Impairments

Despite the large body of work in accessibility concerning the design of novel navigation technologies, little is known about commonly available technologies that people with visual impairments currently use for navigation. We address this gap with a qualitative study consisting of interviews with 23 people with visual impairments, ten of whom also participated in a follow-up diary study. We develop the idea of complementarity first introduced by Williams et al. [53] and find that in addition to using apps to complement mobility aids, technologies and apps complemented each other and filled in for the gaps inherent in one another. Furthermore, the complementarity between apps and other apps/aids was primarily the result of the differences in information and modalities in which this information is communicated by apps, technology and mobility aids. We propose design recommendations to enhance this complementarity and guide the development of improved navigation experiences for people with visual impairments.
Associations between lifetime stress exposure, race, and first-birth intendedness in the United States:

This study examined how lifetime stress exposure and race are associated with first-birth intendedness, and whether these associations differ based on stress exposure timing. Greater lifetime stress exposure was related to increased first-birth intendedness for black women but was unrelated or even associated with decreased first-birth intendedness for white women, depending on stress exposure timing. These effects were robust while controlling for age, partner status, household income, and education, and they differed based on the timing of participants' stress exposure. These data thus provide evidence that first-birth intendedness is influenced by both lifetime stress exposure and race in the United States.
A Resonant Dual Extended LC-tank Dickson Converter with 50% Two-Phase Operation at Odd Conversion Ratios

This paper describes a resonant Dickson-based topology that achieves complete soft-charging with two-phase operation and a convenient 50% duty cycle at all odd conversion ratios. A brief analysis is presented that shows how the resonant switching frequency can be calculated as a function of inductor and capacitor values. One solution sets all capacitors and both inductors equal, and results in switching devices experiencing a constant blocking voltage that is largely independent of load and fly capacitor voltage ripple. The requirement for capacitor matching and subsequent low capacitance density C0G dielectrics is compensated by a weakly bounded voltage swing: no switching devices are present on intermediary nodes connecting L and C elements allowing for very large voltage ripple and highly effective utilization of each fly capacitor’s energy density. A discrete 1:5 prototype validates the proposed topology with measured waveforms illustrating 50% two-phase operation and a load-independent maximum blocking voltage across switching devices. An output power of 129 W with a 94% peak efficiency was measured for an input voltage of 20 V. Measuring 11.45 mm × 12.95 mm × 2.8 mm, this prototype achieves a very high power density of 311 kW/liter (5,096 W/inch3) despite the use of diodes for simplicity and 66% of the converter’s volume being comprised of PCB and free space.
The role of the HBCU pipeline in diversifying the STEM workforce: Training the next generation of drug delivery researchers

Abstract Training the next generation of diverse drug delivery researchers is critical as there is a myriad of challenges that must be solved in the field. HBCUs have been and will continue to remain key factors in training significant numbers of diverse STEM graduates that enter a talented pool of potential drug delivery researchers. Several factors, both structural and psychosocial, play a role in preparing future African American researchers. In this review, strengths and weaknesses of the HBCU STEM pipeline are examined as well as current partnerships that better position HBCUs to recruit, train, and retain diverse researchers in drug delivery.
Progenitor-intrinsic Metabolic Sensing Promotes Hematopoietic Homeostasis

Summary Hematopoietic homeostasis is maintained by stem and progenitor cells in part by extrinsic feedback cues triggered by mature cell loss. We demonstrate a different mechanism by which hematopoietic progenitors intrinsically anticipate and prevent the loss of mature progeny through metabolic switches. We examined hematopoiesis in mice conditionally deficient in long-chain fatty acid oxidation (carnitine palmitoyltransferase 2, Cpt2), glutaminolysis (glutaminase, Gls), or mitochondrial pyruvate import (mitochondrial pyruvate carrier 2, Mpc2). While genetic ablation of Cpt2 or Gls minimally impacted most blood lineages, deletion of Mpc2 led to a sharp decline in mature myeloid cells. However, MPC2-deficient myeloid cells rapidly recovered due to a transient increase in myeloid progenitor proliferation. Competitive bone marrow chimera and stable isotope tracing experiments demonstrated that this proliferative burst was intrinsic to MPC2-deficient progenitors and accompanied by a metabolic switch to glutaminolysis. Thus, hematopoietic progenitors intrinsically adjust to metabolic perturbations independently of feedback from downstream mature cells to maintain homeostasis.
Objectively measured teacher and preschooler vocalizations: Phonemic diversity is associated with language abilities.

Over half of US children are enrolled in preschools, where the quantity and quality of language input from teachers are likely to affect children's language development. Leveraging repeated objective measurements, we examined the rate per minute and phonemic diversity of child and teacher speech-related vocalizations in preschool classrooms and their association with children's end-of-year receptive and expressive language abilities measured with the Preschool Language Scales (PLS-5). Phonemic diversity was computed as the number of unique consonants and vowels in a speech-related vocalization. We observed three successive cohorts of 2.5-3.5-year-old children enrolled in an oral language classroom that included children with and without hearing loss (N=29, 16 girls, 14 Hispanic). Vocalization data were collected using child-worn audio recorders over 34 observations spanning three successive school years, yielding 21.53 mean hours of audio recording per child. The rate of teacher vocalizations positively predicted the rate of children's speech-related vocalizations while the phonemic diversity of teacher vocalizations positively predicted the phonemic diversity of children's speech-related vocalizations. The phonemic diversity of children's speech-related vocalizations was a stronger predictor of end-of-year language abilities than the rate of children's speech-related vocalizations. Mediation analyses indicated that the phonemic diversity of teacher vocalizations was associated with children's receptive and expressive language abilities to the extent that it influenced the phonemic diversity of children's own speech-related vocalizations. The results suggest that qualitatively richer language input expands the phonemic diversity of children's speech, which in turn is associated with language abilities. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Resource use efficiency in cotton production in Palwal district of Haryana

This paper examines productivity, profitability and resource use efficiency of cotton production in Palwal district of Haryana (India). The study is based on primary data collected from a total of 120 farmers selected randomly using two-stage sampling and data related to agricultural year 2017–18. Analytical tools like farm business analysis and production function approach is applied to summarise data. Results have revealed that large farms were more productive and earned higher profit from cotton production than small and medium farms. The regression results have shown that factors like human labour, phosphatic fertilizer, farm machinery and zinc had positive and significant impacts on cotton yield. The MVP of human labour, and phosphatic fertilizer were greater than unity indicating underutilization. However, other resources were applied in excess and suggested to utilize optimally to improve the yield of cotton.
Endovascular Biopsy of Vertebrobasilar Aneurysm in Patient With Polyarteritis Nodosa

Background and Purpose: Management of unruptured intracranial aneurysms remains controversial. Decisions to treat are heavily informed by estimated risk of bleeding. However, these estimates are imprecise, and better methods for stratifying risk or tailoring treatment strategy are badly needed. Here, we demonstrate an initial proof-of-principle concept for endovascular biopsy to identify key molecular pathways and gene expression changes associated with aneurysm formation. We couple this technique with single cell RNA sequencing (scRNAseq) to develop a roadmap of the pathogenic changes of a dolichoectatic vertebrobasilar aneurysm in a polyarteritis nodosa patient. Methods: Endovascular biopsy and fluorescence activated cell sorting was used to isolate viable endothelial cells (ECs) using established techniques. scRNAseq was then performed on 24 aneurysmal ECs and 23 patient-matched non-aneurysmal ECs. An integrated panel of bioinformatic tools was applied to determine differential gene expression, enriched signaling pathways, and cell subpopulations hypothesized to drive disease pathogenesis. Results: We identify a subset of 7 (29%) aneurysm-specific ECs with a distinct gene expression signature not found in patient-matched control ECs. Gene set enrichment analysis identified these ECs to have increased expression of genes regulating leukocyte-endothelial cell adhesion, major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I, T cell receptor recycling, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) response, and interferon gamma signaling. Histopathologic analysis of a different intracranial aneurysm that was later resected yielded a diagnosis of polyarteritis nodosa and positive staining for TNFα. Conclusions: We demonstrate feasibility of applying scRNAseq to endovascular biopsy samples and identify a subpopulation of endothelial cells associated with cerebral aneurysm in polyarteritis nodosa. Endovascular biopsy may be a safe method for deriving insight into disease pathogenesis and tailoring personalized treatment approaches to intracranial aneurysms.
Argument Explanation Complementarity and the Structure of Informal Reasoning

Abstract: Argument and explanation are distinct forms of reasoning with an underappreciated complementary relationship. In this essay I define these terms precisely, identify the mischief that results from conflating them, elucidate their complementary relationship and employ this relationship to provide a fruitful approach to analyzing the logical structure of the common editorial. Keywords: argument, evidence, explanation, cause, complementarity, editorial.
Electron transfer reactions and associated conformational changes: Electrochemical reduction of trans- 1,2-diiodocyclohexane

Abstract The preparation of trans-1,2-diiodocyclohexane by reaction of cyclohexene and iodine has been characterized. Equilibrium favors the diiodide in chloroform or cyclohexene but dissociation occurs in dimethylformamide (DMF). Solutions in cyclohexene were introduced into cold DMF for study in the latter solvent. 1H and 13C NMR were used to confirm that the trans isomer is formed and to obtain relative populations of the conformers with axial iodines (aa) and equatorial iodines (ee). The ratio of concentrations of aa to ee is 4.0 in DMF at −55° C. Platinum microdisc electrodes were used to investigate the electrochemical reduction by cyclic voltammetry. At low temperatures and high scan rates in DMF solvent, the reduction peak for trans-1,2-diiodocyclohexane splits into two peaks. The peak appearing at less negative potential was assigned to the reduction of aa and the second peak to ee. Digital simulations were fit to the background-corrected voltammograms to obtain the conformational equilibrium and rate constants for temperatures in the range of 0 to −40° C.
On NIST's Proposed Digital Signature Standard

The proposal by NIST/NSA of a digital signature standard has some positive aspects, but is marred by serious flaws. Most notably, it is not sufficiently secure for a standard and seems vulnerable to “trapdoors.”
Conscientious Objectors Behind the Counter: Statutory Defenses to Tort Liability for Failure to Dispense Contraceptives

The United States Food and Drug Administration's decisions in the past decade to approve both RU-486 and Plan B have created crises of conscience for some religious pharmacists. RU-486 induces abortion in the first trimester of pregnancy without surgical intervention and Plan B is a two-pill "emergency contraceptive" regimen that may have abortifacient properties.4 Some religious pharmacists prefer not to dispense the drugs because their religious scruples forbid them from participating in abortions. Some also object to dispensing daily oral contraceptives on the same basis.
Founding Cryptography on Oblivious Transfer --- Efficiently

We present a simple and efficient compiler for transforming secure multi-party computation (MPC) protocols that enjoy security only with an honest majority into MPC protocols that guarantee security with no honest majority, in the oblivious-transfer (OT) hybrid model. Our technique works by combining a secure protocol in the honest majority setting with a protocol achieving only security against semi-honestparties in the setting of no honest majority. Applying our compiler to variants of protocols from the literature, we get several applications for secure two-party computation and for MPC with no honest majority. These include: Constant-rate two-party computation in the OT-hybrid model. We obtain a statistically UC-secure two-party protocol in the OT-hybrid model that can evaluate a general circuit Cof size sand depth dwith a total communication complexity of O(s) + poly(k, d, log s) and O(d) rounds. The above result generalizes to a constant number of parties. Extending OTs in the malicious model. We obtain a computationally efficient protocol for generating many string OTs from few string OTs with only a constant amortized communication overheadcompared to the total length of the string OTs. Black-box constructions for constant-round MPC with no honest majority. We obtain general computationally UC-secure MPC protocols in the OT-hybrid model that use only a constant number of rounds, and only make a black-boxaccess to a pseudorandom generator. This gives the first constant-round protocols for three or more parties that only make a black-box use of cryptographic primitives (and avoid expensive zero-knowledge proofs).
Folate: A Key to Optimal Pregnancy Outcome

Folate is a water-soluble vitamin required for cell division and normal growth. Studies have definitively shown that when the synthetic form of the vitamin, folic acid, is taken during the periconceptional period, there is a significant reduction in risk for neural tube defects (NTDs) and findings have been translated into public health policy to increase intake through supplementation and fortification. Few women adhere to the recommendations to take folic acid supplements primarily because they have not been advised to do so by their health care provider. Restricted folate intake during pregnancy has also been associated with poor pregnancy outcomes including preterm delivery, low infant birth weight, and fetal growth retardation. Clinicians and health care practitioners have a unique opportunity to improve pregnancy outcome by providing advice to their patients who may become pregnant to take daily folic acid supplements, consume folic acid-fortified foods including ready-to-eat breakfast cereals, and to consume concentrated sources of natural dietary folate including dark green leafy vegetables, orange juice, nuts, and dried peas. It is imperative that all health care providers that work with women of childbearing age (including pregnant women) become knowledgeable about folate’s key role in reproduction and deliver the message that folate is a unique key to optimizing reproductive outcome.
Shifting Signifiers of Otherness: The 2002 “DC Snipers” in the U.S. Press

U.S. news coverage of crime or terrorism perpetrators belonging to “Other” identity groups tends to focus on single, salient signifiers of race, religion, and immigration status. This mixed-method data analysis of coverage of the 2002 DC sniper shooting spree in the Washington Post and Seattle Times presents a theoretical case study of multiple and layered Other identities. Signifiers of blackness, Muslim identity, immigrant identity, and veteran status were all present in newspaper portrayals of Muhammad and Malvo, and journalists appeared to vacillate between them. Thus, in the absence of a single, salient form of Other identity, the use of shifting signifiers reflected newspapers' confusion about Muhammad and Malvo's identity, as well as the uncategorizable nature of the crime itself.
Comparison of simple and rapid methods for identifying enterococci intrinsically resistant to vancomycin

Three different methodologies, reduction of litmus milk (LM) and acidification of arabinose (ARA), acidification of methyl-alpha-D-glucopyranoside (MGP), and rapid motility (RM), for differentiating isolates of Enterococcus casseliflavus and Enterococcus gallinarum (intrinsically vancomycin-resistant enterococci [IVRE]) from Enterococcus faecalis and Enterococcus faecium were evaluated. All 33 isolates of E. faecalis tested reduced LM within 4 h and were negative in all other tests, while the 53 isolates of E. faecium were ARA positive only. In contrast, 45 of 46 (98%) IVRE isolates examined (26 E. casseliflavus and 20 E. gallinarum isolates) acidified MGP, 41 of 46 (89%) were LM and ARA positive, and 45 of 46 (98%) were RM positive. Acidification of MGP was therefore the single most useful test for differentiating IVRE from vancomycin-resistant E. faecium and E. faecalis; however, a combination of LM-ARA and RM testing enabled the correct designation of organisms without the need for overnight incubation.
Effects of a National Cholesterol Education Program Step II Diet on apolipoprotein A-IV metabolism within triacylglycerol-rich lipoproteins and plasma

BACKGROUND Apolipoprotein (apo) A-IV is a major component of triacylglycerol-rich lipoprotein (TRL) apolipoproteins. OBJECTIVE We investigated the effects of dietary saturated fat and cholesterol restriction on the metabolism of TRL and plasma apo A-IV. DESIGN We assessed TRL and plasma apo A-IV kinetics in 16 and 4 subjects, respectively, consuming an average US (baseline) diet for 6 wk and a National Cholesterol Education Program Step II diet for 24 wk, respectively. At the end of each diet period, all subjects received a primed, constant infusion of deuterated leucine for 15 h with hourly feeding. Ratios of stable-isotope tracer to tracee were measured by using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, and kinetic data were modeled by using SAAM II. RESULTS Mean apo A-IV concentrations during the isotope infusion period were 6.9 +/- 2.6 mg/L in TRL and 2.2 +/- 3.2 mg/L in plasma with the baseline diet; these values were 37.7% (P < 0.001) and 19.4% (P < 0.01) lower with the Step II diet. Similar changes were observed in the fasting state between the 2 diets. The mean apo A-IV secretion rate decreased significantly from baseline by 59.6% in TRLs and by 40.2% in plasma. Significant correlations were observed between TRL apo A-IV concentrations and the secretion rate (r = 0.94, P < 0.001) and between TRL apo A-IV pool size and TRL-cholesterol concentrations (r = 0.48, P < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS Our data indicate that the National Cholesterol Education Program Step II diet significantly decreases TRL and plasma apo A-IV concentrations compared with the average US diet and that this decrease is due to a decreased secretion rate.
Tract-based spatial statistics analysis of diffusion-tensor imaging data in pediatric- and adult-onset multiple sclerosis.

Background: White matter (WM) microstructure may vary significantly in pediatric-onset (PO) and adult-onset (AO) patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), a difference that could be explained by the effects of an inherent plasticity in the affected pediatric brains early in the disease, and a phenomenon that does not occur later in life. This hypothesis would support the observation that disease progression is much slower in POMS compared to AOMS patients. Objectives: To examine WM microstructure in the brain of adults with POMS and AOMS, using tract based spatial statistics (TBSS) analysis of diffusion-ten- sor imaging (DTI). Methods: Adults with relapsing-remitting (RR) POMS, who were diagnosed before age of 18 years (n ¼ 16), were compared with age-matched (AOA, n ¼ 23) and disease duration-matched (AOD, n ¼ 22) RR patients who developed MS after the age of 18 years. Scans were analyzed using the FSL software package (Oxford, UK) and statistics were performed using TBSS to evaluate WM micro- structure between groups based on the mean fractional anisotropy (FA) values obtained from the DTI. Results: Widespread cortical and deep WM area differences characterized by increased FA values were seen in the AOAMS compared with POMS group (P < 0.05, TFCE corrected). Significantly increased FA values of posterior WM areas were detected in the AODMS compared with POMS group (P < 0.05, TFCE corrected). Conclusion: Increased FA values in WM areas of the AOMS compared with the POMS patients suggest that diffuse WM microstructure changes are more attributable to age of onset than a sim- ple function of disease duration and age. Hum Brain Mapp 00:000-000, 2012. V C 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Interstate Recognition of Parentage in a Time of Disharmony: Same-Sex Parent Families and Beyond

In a number of recent cases, litigants have argued that states have the authority to disregard prior parentage adjudications when those determinations violate the forum's law and policy on lesbian and gay parenting. The Article offers two contributions to the analysis of these interstate parentage cases. The first contribution is doctrinal. Drawing upon recent legal scholarship about interstate recognition of adoption judgments, the Article demonstrates that other forms of parentage adjudications, including those made in the context of otherwise modifiable orders such as child custody and support orders, are entitled to exacting respect under the Full Faith and Credit Clause. The second contribution is normative. Thus far, the scholarship on these interstate parentage cases has been limited largely to consideration of their implications for other same-sex parent families. Lesbian and gay parenting is not, however, the only area of parentage law where the states have adopted widely divergent rules based on moral or policy concerns. To the contrary, parentage has become an increasingly contested area of law. This Article seeks to fill the gap in the literature by considering the potential ripple effects of these same-sex parent cases in two other areas of parentage law - surrogacy and paternity disestablishment.
Affinity chromatography of thrombin.

Bovine thrombin (EC 3.4.4.13) has been purified by adsorption onto p-chlorobenzylamido-e-aminocaproyl agarose, the ligand having been covalently bound to agarose by the cyanogen bromide technique. Thrombin was eluted from the adsorbant with 1.0 M benzamidine and was recovered by gel filtration through Sephadex G-25 at high ionic strength to prevent matrix interaction. Both yield and purity of the thrombin purified by the affinity technique were facilitated by prior removal of contaminant inhibitors and esterases from commercial preparations by the carboxylic acid resin procedure. Affinity chromatography of the resin-purified thrombin with the substituted agarose resulted in a final product containing 2500 N.I.H. clotting units per mg protein.
Deterministic representation of chaos with application to turbulence

Chaotic motions of nonlinear dynamical systems are decomposed into mean components and fluctuations. The approach is based upon the concept that the fluctuations driven by the instability of the original (unperturbed) motion grow until a new stable state is approached. The Reynolds-type equations written for continuous as well as for finite-degrees-of-freedom dynamical systems are closed by using this stabilization principle. The theory is applied to conservative systems, to strange attractors and to turbulent motions.
A LysM and SH3-Domain Containing Region of the Listeria monocytogenes p60 Protein Stimulates Accessory Cells to Promote Activation of Host NK Cells

Listeria monocytogenes (Lm) infection induces rapid and robust activation of host natural killer (NK) cells. Here we define a region of the abundantly secreted Lm endopeptidase, p60, that potently but indirectly stimulates NK cell activation in vitro and in vivo. Lm expression of p60 resulted in increased IFNγ production by naive NK cells co-cultured with treated dendritic cells (DCs). Moreover, recombinant p60 protein stimulated activation of naive NK cells when co-cultured with TLR or cytokine primed DCs in the absence of Lm. Intact p60 protein weakly digested bacterial peptidoglycan (PGN), but neither muropeptide recognition by RIP2 nor the catalytic activity of p60 was required for NK cell activation. Rather, the immune stimulating activity mapped to an N-terminal region of p60, termed L1S. Treatment of DCs with a recombinant L1S polypeptide stimulated them to activate naive NK cells in a cell culture model. Further, L1S treatment activated NK cells in vivo and increased host resistance to infection with Francisella tularensis live vaccine strain (LVS). These studies demonstrate an immune stimulating function for a bacterial LysM domain-containing polypeptide and suggest that recombinant versions of L1S or other p60 derivatives can be used to promote NK cell activation in therapeutic contexts.
Aldehyde dehydrogenase activity allows reliable EPC enumeration in stored peripheral blood samples

Background Interest in the biology of endogenous progenitor cells (EPCs) continues to grow as evidence of their role in vascular repair mounts. EPC enumeration requires specialized laboratory techniques and is performed immediately after sample acquisition, limiting the clinical contexts in which EPC enumeration can be performed and the ability to increase sample sizes through multi-center participation. Methods We compared the numbers of EPCs enumerated in samples processed immediately after acquisition (n = 36) with EPCs enumerated in specimens stored for 24 hours or after cryopreservation of mononuclear cells (MNC) using two EPC identification strategies: cell surface marker expression (CD133/CD34) and aldehyde dehydrogenase activity (ALDHbr cells). Results EPCs assessed in fresh samples correlated with EPCs enumerated after whole blood storage (r = 0.699 for CD133+CD34+ cells, r = 0.880 for ALDHbr cells, P < 0.005 and P < 0.0001, respectively) or mononuclear cryopreservation (r = 0.590 for CD133+CD34+ cells, r = 0.894 for ALDHbr cells, P < 0.0001 for each); however, correlation based on assessment of ALDHbr cells was higher (P < 0.0003 for comparison of correlation coefficients). Initial results from a multi-site clinical trial suggest that EPC enumeration after mononuclear cell cryopreservation is feasible. Conclusion EPC analysis based on ALDH activity is reproducible, even after extended whole blood storage or MNC cryopreservation.
Visual dominance in the cross-modal kinesthetic to kinesthetic plus visual feedback condition.

Summary.-In previous studies subjects who have learned a positioning response with kinesthetic feedback tended to make greater errors when visual feedback was provided during later trials. These subjects have always performed with both kinesthetic and visual feedback available. This study determined whether subjects with only visual feedback would produce errors similar to those who received kinesthetic plus visual feedback. Blindfolded subjects learned to move a handle to a criterion location with knowledge of results following each trial. Subjects then were assigned to one of three experimental groups, with only kinesthetic feedback, with kinesthetic plus visual feedback, or with only visual feedback. Subjects had 9 trials without knowledge of results in these feedback conditions. When visual feedback was available, subjects tended to make longer response errors. This finding replicates previous studies. Also, the similarity of performances from the conditions with visual feedback indicated the dominance of visual information in the condition with kinesthetic plus visual feedback. One issue in the study of human movement is the nature of the representation of movement information. That is, how is movement-produced feedback encoded and stored in memory? In investigating this question, various experimental procedures have been developed to test specific predictions from theories of motor learning and motor memory. For example, Laabs (1973, 1974) proposed separate codes for the storage of distance and location information based on results from studies that manipulated movement information by changing starting locations between presentation and recall trials. Diewert ( 1975) extended these concepts by using interpolated tasks that would produce visual or kinesthetic interference to examine memory codes for movement information. Other procedures including switch-limb procedures (Larish & Stelmach, 1982; Wallace, 1977) and cross-modal procedures (ConnoUy & Jones, 1970; Diewert, 1975, 1977; Diewert & Stelmach, 1977; Pick, 1974) have also been introduced to examine this question. One application of the cross-ffiodal procedure has been to determine the characteristics of kinesthetic information about location that was encoded during motor-skill learning. In an initial experiment, Reeve and Cone ( 1980) manipulated both the limb used and the feedback available following learning trials in the kinesthetic modality. Although subjects who switched limbs were able to maintain response accuracy during performance trials without knowledge of results, subjects who were provided visual feedback tended to overshoot the
Boosting learning-by-teaching in virtual tutoring

Research has shown that students tend to engage in quality learning when they are asked to teach (i.e., learning-by-teaching). In this study, a web-based tutoring environment has been developed to enhance the learning of college students by their teaching others: the Virtual Tutee System (VTS). In the VTS, students take the role of tutor and teach a virtual character about what they learn from readings. The design of the VTS has been refined through several iterations of formative evaluation. The current study explored whether the recent improvements made in the VTS augmented the learning-by-teaching effects. The VTS was evaluated with regard to its' effects on students' reading engagement and reading performance. Results indicated that students were behaviorally and cognitively engaged in reading with use of the VTS. Also, the study found a significant improvement in students' emotional engagement in reading after using the VTS. Limited support was found for enhancement of reading performance with repeated use of the VTS. Implications of the study findings are discussed, and suggestions for future research are provided. A Virtual Tutee System (VTS) promoted a substantial degree of perusing when completing the reading assignments.The VTS prompted students to engage in deep reading and learning such as reflection, analysis, and elaboration.Students reported greater enjoyment and less boredom and anger with the reading tasks after using the VTS.Use of the VTS exemplifies the potential practice of changing required, undesirable tasks to autonomous, pleasant ones.
Engineering Features of Three Power Locomotives

Three-power locomotives capable of operating from an external distribution system or on internal power are in use by the New York Central and the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroads. In one case the supply voltage is 600 volts direct current and in the other 3,000 volts direct current. The authors discuss the characteristics of this new type of locomotive and its equipment, as well as the methods of calculating the capacity and characteristics required for the service. The coordination of the diesel engine, generator, battery, and motor equipment has been carefully worked out to insure successful operation of the complete unit.
On the least-time suboptimal feedback problem in Lp-space

Abstract A design procedure developed in this paper leads to a feedback suboptimal, least time control system which is assumed to operate in the presence of small disturbances. The approach is based on the L-problem in functional analysis and the control signal is assumed to be bounded in its norm associated with L p -space. Computer simulation results are included to demonstrate the effectiveness of the technique.
A place for alien species in ecosystem restoration

Blanket condemnation of alien species in restoration efforts is counterproductive. Where their presence does not unduly threaten surrounding ecosystems, alien species can be tolerated or even used to good advantage, if they provide essential ecological or socioeconomic services. By speeding restoration or making it more effective, non-native species can provide economic and ecological payoffs. Risk is always an issue when alien species are involved, but greater risk taking is warranted where environmental conditions have been severely modified through human activity than where reassembly of a biological community is the sole goal of restoration.
AT THE INTERFACE: DYNAMIC INTERACTIONS OF EXPLICIT AND IMPLICIT LANGUAGE KNOWLEDGE

This paper considers how implicit and explicit knowledge are dissociable but cooperative. It reviews various psychological and neurobiological processes by which explicit knowledge of form-meaning associations impacts upon implicit language learning. The interface is dynamic: It happens transiently during conscious processing, but the influence upon implicit cognition endures thereafter. The primary conscious involvement in SLA is the explicit learning involved in the initial registration of pattern recognizers for constructions that are then tuned and integrated into the system by implicit learning during subsequent input processing. Neural systems in the prefrontal cortex involved in working memory provide attentional selection, perceptual integration, and the unification of consciousness. Neural systems in the hippocampus then bind these disparate cortical representations into unitary episodic representations. These are the mechanisms by which Schmidt's (1990) noticing helps solve Quine's (1960) problem of referential indeterminacy. Explicit memories can also guide the conscious building of novel linguistic utterances through processes of analogy. Formulas, slot-and-frame patterns, drills, and declarative pedagogical grammar rules all contribute to the conscious creation of utterances whose subsequent usage promotes implicit learning and proceduralization. Flawed output can prompt focused feedback by way of recasts that present learners with psycholinguistic data ready for explicit analysis. Other processes of acquisition from output include differentiation, analysis, and preemption. These processes of conscious construction in working memory underpin relationships between individual differences in working memory capacities and language learning aptitude.Thanks to Rod Ellis for first suggesting that I try to write this and to the staff and students at Department of Applied Language Studies and Linguistics University of Auckland (2003), the TESOL Program Temple University Japan (2003), the Chester Language Development Reading Group, and the LOT winter school (2004) for helping me think it through. I am particularly grateful to Michel Paradis, Michael Swan, Karen Roehr, Anne Feryok, and Tamar Keren-Portnoy for pointing their giant biological cameras of consciousness at a prior draft, and for sharing their awareness with me in kindly and constructive fashion. I have learned a lot from it.
Management of advanced squamous cell carcinomas of the maxillary sinus

From 1970 to 1988, 41 cases of advanced maxillary sinus cancers were treated at the University of Kansas Medical Center. Local control for the 37 evaluable patients was achieved in 21 (57%). Local control by radiation therapy alone was achieved in ten of 19 (53%) patients compared with eight of 14 (57%) treated with a combination of surgery and radiation therapy. A dose greater than 6500 cGy correlated with better local control in patients treated with radiation therapy alone. Neck node failure occurred in three of 35 (8%) patients when not electively treated. Neck metastasis either at presentation or at a later stage reduced survival. The overall absolute survival for the entire group at 5 years was 35%. A combination of preoperative radiation therapy and surgery is recommended for patients with advanced-stage maxillary sinus cancer. Radiation therapy is an equally good alternative for those who are not surgical candidates or refuse surgery.
Basement membrane and human epidermal differentiation in vitro

To test the role of basement membrane in differentiation of human epidermis reconstituted on human dermis, we prepared dermis with and without basement membrane and cultured epidermal cells on these two dermal substrata. The absence of basement membrane components was confirmed by immunofluorescence staining for laminin and type IV collagen and by electron microscopy. A high degree of differentiation of reconstituted epidermis did not require basement membrane as shown by the development of basal, spinous, and granular cell layers, and synthesis of 58 and 65-67 kDa keratins when epidermis was attached directly to dermis. On the other hand, we found that the basement membrane regulated the adhesive interaction between the epidermis and dermis. On dermis with basement membrane, attached epidermal cells formed hemidesmosomes and mechanically stable bonding. In the absence of basement membrane, the epidermal cells did not form hemidesmosomes, and bonding between the epidermis and dermis was unstable. Moreover, dermis from which the basement membrane was removed was reorganized by the epidermal cell layer.
Personal, environmental, and social predictors of camp staff burnout

Burnout refers to a loss of productivity due to emotional exhaustion and depersonalization which is common in occupations requiring high levels of personal interaction. Much work has been done to elucidate predictors of burnout in the fields of education, psychology, and social work. While informative, these studies do not directly apply to the unique context of summer camp employment. This study was designed to address the dearth of empirical research on burnout in the camping context. A total of 124 staff at four camps completed surveys before beginning their summer work and again before their last week of work. Results indicate that staff exhibit significant declines in well-being and high levels of burnout over the course of the summer. Key preventers of burnout include feeling valued, time off, appropriate expectations, reflection, and group cohesion. Implications for youth development professionals are discussed regarding these findings and those of previous studies.
British Politics and Social Policy during the Second World War

This article sets out to examine the relationship between party politics and social reform in the Second World War. The issue of government policy towards reform was raised initially by Richard Titmuss, who argued in his official history of social policy that the experience of total war and the arrival of Churchill's coalition in 1940 led to a fundamentally new attitude on welfare issues. The exposure of widespread social deprivation, Titmuss claimed, made central government fully conscious for the first time of the need for reconstruction; the reforms subsequently proposed or enacted by the coalition were therefore an important prelude to the introduction of a ‘welfare state’ by the post-war Labour administration. These claims have not been borne out by more recent studies of individual wartime policies, but as a general guide to social reform in the period the ideas of Richard Titmuss have never been entirely displaced. In fact the significance of wartime policy, and its close relationship with post-war reform, has been reaffirmed in the most comprehensive study of British politics during the war – Paul Addison's The road to 1945. For Addison, the influence of Labour ministers in the coalition made the government the most radical since Asquith's Liberal administration in the Edwardian period. The war, he notes, clearly placed on the agenda the major items of the post-war welfare state: social security for all, a national health service, full employment policies, improved education and housing, and a new system, of family allowances.
Gingival Degerming by Povidone-Iodine Irrigation: Bacteremia Reduction in Extraction Procedures

Of 32 patients prepared preoperatively by gingival sulcal irrigation and rinsing with a povidone-iodine mouthwash, bacteremia occurred in 28%. Bacteremia occurred in 56% of those treated with a placebo solution. The difference was statistically significant. Fourteen patients in the test group and two patients in the control group showed reduced or no bacterial growth after rinsing and irrigation. Local degerming in the sulci was also significantly greater in the group using the povidone-iodine mouthwash than in the control group.
Zoom quadrupole focusing systems producing an image of an object

The main difference between quadrupole and axisymmetric charge particle beam focusing systems is that quadrupole systems do not produce a regular image of an object like axisymmetric systems. Because of the special symmetry in geometry and electric or magnetic fields along the axis, only the Russian quadruplet (RQ) can produce an image, however, for each geometry and given maximum field gradient of the RQ, the number of experimentally attainable focal distances in one system is limited to one or two. A new quadrupole focusing system with the same symmetry as the RQ is now under development at the Louisiana Accelerator Center that produces an image and has the possibility to vary the focal distance over a wide range by changing the excitation of the middle lenses. As a result, the magnification may be changed from 10−3 to 10+3 so that this versatile design can be adapted for several applications of high-energy focusing ion beam (HEFIB) systems, including nuclear nanoprobe, scanning microscope or transmission microscope. The configuration of this lens system consists of six quadrupole lenses and although these lenses can be combined either as magnetic (RMS) or electrostatic (RES) sextuplets, the Louisiana Accelerator Center is presently constructing an RMS system due to operational requirements. The zoom capability of the RMS is numerically investigated and the smallest beam spot size and appropriate optimal parameters of the RMS are presented for different emittances and compared with the corresponding parameters of the RQ.
Evaluation of the Triad Method for Dynamic Edge Detection

A new approach to dynamic edge detection uses the order of passage over a triad of equidistant detectors to compute the direction and velocity of a translating edge. The paper examines a parallel architecture for extracting low and intermediate level intrinsic images from moving objects starting with this low complexity operator. The approach is entirely parallel and based on non-quantitative logic processing.
Risk analysis in loss prevention research

Conventional risk management models identify risks, assess the probability of their occurrence and potential impact, and then implement steps to reduce the risk or the impact of the risk. Although almost all retailers implement measures to try to eliminate or reduce theft (the end step of risk management), we know little about how many undertake systematic risk assessments of loss to guide solutions and the methods that they may use to do so. This study presents the results of a survey of 22 diverse retail companies about their LP/AP risk management process, including the types of risk data collected, types of risk assessment and analyses conducted, and how these data are used in management decisions.