cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Effect of Direct Plasma Treatment and the Applicatiion of Plasma Activated Water on Soybean Development

The direct plasma treatment of soybeans and the use of plasma activated water for irrigation are examples of innovative and sustainable plasma-based initiatives with potentially significant socio-economic impacts. Preliminary results have shown that such treatments affect water absorption, germination, and root development, among other physiological traits of plants. Additional biological effects due to the plasma-generated reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (RONS) are also possible. In this work, atmospheric pressure plasmas were used to treat seeds and water. In the direct seed treatment, discharges were sustained in a packed bed reactor (PBR) in which seed aggregate acts as the packing material. The PBR was also set up in two dimensions to allow optical access to study discharge propagation through the matrix of seeds. The discharge was formed using nanosecond, high voltage pulses, and various feedstock gases to assess sensitivity to the production of RONS. Characterization of reactants and their effects were investigated using a fast-camera and spectroscopy setup on the $2\mathrm{d}$ apparatus. Contact angle measurements were also performed on the plasma treated seeds. In the indirect treatment, water was exposed to DBD-type plasmas. Hydrogen peroxide, nitrate and nitrite concentration along with pH of the treated water were measured as a function of operating condition. The associated effects on seeds were quantified as a function of the relative densities of these species. Changes in peak voltage, frequency, feedstock gas, and water chemistry induced by the plasma was related to the soybean plant's physiological development.
SU-D-BRA-03: What Image Features Are Useful for Tumor Segmentation in Multi-Modal Images?

Purpose: We hypothesize that derived image features will improve accuracy of segmenting gross tumor volume (GTV) using (semi-)automatic methods when compared with raw intensities. Features from multi-modal images, however, require more CPU time and memory, for extraction, training and classification. In this study, we examine what image features are useful for segmenting GTV in multi-modal images. Methods: Eight cases of high grade brain tumor from MICCAI 2013 for brain tumor segmentation competition were examined. In each case, images of co-registered four MRI modalities: Flair, T1, T1 contrast and T2, as well as the ground truth are provided in the data set. Three cases were used for probing important features and the other five cases were for evaluation of segmentations with the selected features. Besides original image intensity, additional 7 candidate features were extracted: minimum, maximum, gradient, entropy, spot, ripple and edge, resulting in a 32-D (4 x 8) feature vector for each voxel. For selecting important features, a random forest with 100 decision trees was trained using 32-D features from the 3 probing cases. The top ranked features reported by the random forest were selected and used in a Conditional Random Fields (CRF) based semi-automatic method we previously developed to segment the 5 testing cases. Dice coefficent metric to the ground truth are reported and compared to intensity-only segmentation using the same segmentation method. Results: The feature selection random forest ranked intensity, minimum, maximum and entropy the most important features across all 4 MRI modalities. With the selected features (16-D), the CRF segmentation of 5 test cases yielded Dice coefficent 0.847±0.114 (mean±1SD), significantly better (p =0.016) than the Dice coefficient 0.797±0.135 of intensity-only (4-D) CRF segmentation. Conclusion: Multi-modal image features selected by a machine learning method can improve the accuracy of brain tumor segmentation significantly when compared with intensity-only features. Research supported by Varian Medical System
Accelerated Test Methods for Reliability Prediction

Perusal of quality- and reliability-engineering literature indicates some confusion over the meaning of accelerated life testing (ALT), highly accelerated life testing (HALT), highly accelerated stress screening (HASS), and highly accelerated stress auditing (HASA). In addition, there is a significant conflict between testing as part of an iterative process of finding and removing defects and testing as a means of estimating or predicting product reliability. We review the basics of these testing methods and describe how they relate to statistical methods for estimation and prediction of reliability and reliability growth. We also outline potential synergies to help reconcile statistical and engineering approaches to accelerated testing, resulting in better product quality at lower cost.
Testing of Digital Systems

From the Publisher: As the complexity of modern digital systems increases, so does the need for ever more rigorous testing at all levels, from individual chips up to complete system architectures. This book is the most comprehensive introduction available to the range of techniques and tools used in digital testing. It covers every key topic, including fault simulation, CMOS testing, design for testability, and built-in self test. Aimed at graduate students of electrical and computer engineering, the book is also the most up-to-date reference on the market for practicing engineers.
Pregnancy and heart disease

Abstract An analysis of the life cardiac histories of 49 women with organic heart disease who delivered from 1 to 22 children (average 4.9 pregnancies) as compared with the histories of 41 nulliparous women with similar cardiac lesions revealed that there was little or no difference in the known duration of the heart condition, in the ages at the onset of myocardial failure, or in the ages at death. The heart lesions were recognized earlier in the parous women, mainly because of the pregnancies. In women with compensated rheumatic heart disease, pregnancy may be undertaken without any added risk. However, it is suggested that women with compensated heart disease be advised to marry early and bear children before the age of 25, if they desire a minimum of risk. In this way, also, they can have a longer period in which to raise their children. Women with heart disease die early because of the natural evolution of the cardiac disturbance and not because of the childbearing.
JavaBeans and Software Architecture

Java has emerged as a popular programming language and platform for Web applications. JavaBeans defines the software component model in the Java programming language that is used for creating reusable, coarse-grained components. Beans are used in numerous complementary technologies including Enterprise JavaBeans, Java Abstract Windowing Toolkit, Java Database Connectivity, JavaMail, and Java Management Extensions to create software components. Beans provide a hybrid of object-oriented and loosely coupled architectural styles, where the interaction between components is in the form of both events and method calls. This chapter focuses on the support for component technology in Java, specifically in the form of JavaBeans and its technology variants that fulfil the needs of Web application development. The chapter also discusses the role of JavaBeans and its technology variants in architecture-based software development. Keywords: Enterprise JavaBeans; Java Abstract Windowing Toolkit (AWT); Java Database Connectivity (JDBC); Javamail; Java Management Extensions (JMX); software component model; web application development
Malignancy risk associated with the EBUS-FNA diagnostic categories nondiagnostic, benign, atypical, suspicious for malignancy, and malignant for mediastinal lymph node aspirate specimens

Introduction Endobronchial ultrasonography-guided transbronchial fine-needle aspiration (EBUS-TBFNA) is used for preoperative staging of primary lung carcinomas. Published sensitivity and specificity are up to 86% and 100%, respectively. Diagnostic categories used by many cytopathologists are nondiagnostic, benign, atypical, suspicious, and malignant. Little information exists about the risk of malignancy associated with each of these categories. Materials and methods Records of the Department of Pathology at the University of Utah were searched for all EBUS-TBFNAs of mediastinal and pulmonary hilar lymph nodes. Only cases with surgical follow-up were included in this study. For each diagnostic category (nondiagnostic, benign, atypical, suspicious, and malignant), the percentage of cases proven to be malignant was calculated following correlation of cytologic and surgical diagnoses. Positive and negative predictive values were calculated. For calculation of accuracy statistics, atypical cases were considered benign and suspicious cases were classified as malignant. Results For this study, 136 EBUS-TBFNAs of lymph nodes were obtained with adequate surgical follow-up. Risk of malignancy for nondiagnostic specimens was 42%, benign specimens 32%, atypical specimens 40%, suspicious specimens 83%, and malignant specimens 84%. Positive predictive value was 84%, and negative predictive value was 68%. Conclusions The categories stratified malignancy risk ranging from a low of 32% for benign to 84% for malignant. The categories suspicious and malignant had similar malignancy risks. Atypical aspirates had a higher malignancy risk than benign aspirates did. Nondiagnostic aspirates had a malignancy risk similar to that of atypical aspirates. This scoring system may aid in treatment planning and patient counselling.
Secure resource provisioning across multiple domains

Network resource provisioning is an important technique for infrastructure providers (infra-providers) because it enables them to utilize their facilities with high efficiency. However, to fully satisfy user requests it is probably necessary to use facilities across multiple domains, for which the conventional resource provisioning methods are unsuitable for the multiple domains because they require unrevealed information from infra-providers. The competitive relationships among infra-providers make it difficult for them to reveal their information to the infra-providers. In this paper, we propose a framework and method for resource provisioning across multiple domains that uses infra-providers' confidential information without exposing it to other infra-providers. To preserve the confidentiality of the infra-providers' information, we propose a cooperative framework using multiparty computation (MPC). However, although MPC provides confidentiality it also brings about nearly intractable computational overhead. Therefore, we pick out values that are locally commutable in each domain and essential for resource provisioning. By using MPC only for these values, our proposed method achieves both tractable MPC overhead and good quality provisioning while preserving information secrecy. Evaluation results show that the computational overhead is tractable and that the average utility fee is at least on the same level as that of the conventional methods.
Barriers and facilitators of suicide risk assessment in emergency departments: a qualitative study of provider perspectives.

Abstract Objective To understand emergency department (ED) providers’ perspectives regarding the barriers and facilitators of suicide risk assessment and to use these perspectives to inform recommendations for best practices in ED suicide risk assessment. Methods Ninety-two ED providers from two hospital systems in a Midwestern state responded to open-ended questions via an online survey that assessed their perspectives on the barriers and facilitators to assess suicide risk as well as their preferred assessment methods. Responses were analyzed using an inductive thematic analysis approach. Results Qualitative analysis yielded six themes that impact suicide risk assessment. Time, privacy, collaboration and consultation with other professionals and integration of a standard screening protocol in routine care exemplified environmental and systemic themes. Patient engagement/participation in assessment and providers’ approach to communicating with patients and other providers also impacted the effectiveness of suicide risk assessment efforts. Conclusion The findings inform feasible suicide risk assessment practices in EDs. Appropriately utilizing a collaborative, multidisciplinary approach to assess suicide-related concerns appears to be a promising approach to ameliorate the burden placed on ED providers and facilitate optimal patient care. Recommendations for clinical care, education, quality improvement and research are offered.
Spontaneous Activity of Morphologically Identified Ganglion Cells in the Developing Ferret Retina

Whole-cell patch-clamp recordings were made from morphologically identified ganglion cells in the intact retina of developing ferrets. As early as 3 d after birth, all ganglion cells exhibited bursts of spontaneous activity, with the interval between bursts gradually decreasing with maturity. By 2 weeks after birth, ganglion cells could be morphologically differentiated into three major classes (α, β, and γ), and at this time each cell class was characterized by a distinct pattern of spontaneous activity. Dual patch-clamp recordings from pairs of neighboring cells revealed that cells of all morphological classes burst in a coordinated manner, regardless of cell type. These observations suggest that a common mechanism underlies the bursting patterns exhibited by all ganglion cell classes, and that class-specific firing patterns emerge coincident with retinal ganglion cell morphological differentiation.
Semiclassical Calculation of Elastic H + -He Differential Scattering Cross Sections

Elastic differential cross sections for proton-helium scattering are calculated in the semi-classical approximation for two assumed interaction potentials. Both potentials are of the form $V(r;A,B,C)=(\frac{2}{r}){e}^{\frac{\ensuremath{-}r}{A}}[1+\frac{r}{A}+\frac{1}{2}{r}^{2}(\frac{1}{{A}^{2}}\ensuremath{-}\frac{U}{B})]\ensuremath{-}U{[1+\frac{r}{B}+{(\frac{r}{C})}^{2}+\frac{2U{r}^{4}}{\ensuremath{\alpha}}]}^{\ensuremath{-}1},$ where $U$ is the difference between the ground-state energies of He and ${\mathrm{Li}}^{+}$ (4.373 11 hartree) and $\ensuremath{\alpha}$ is the polarizability of He (1.3835 ${\mathrm{bohr}}^{3}$). The first potential ${V}_{M}\ensuremath{\equiv}V(r;0.423,0.483,0.441)$ fits the He-${\mathrm{H}}^{+}$ ground-state energies which Michels has calculated. The second, ${V}_{W}\ensuremath{\equiv}V(r;0.442,0.505,0.451)$, is similar to ${V}_{M}$ except that its minimum is decreased by 10% to agree with the value obtained by Wolniewicz. The cross sections for these two potentials are shown for protons incident at energies $T$ of 7, 19, 58, and 116 eV in the laboratory frame and for scattering angles, at each energy, out to the rainbow angle ${\ensuremath{\theta}}_{R}$. ${\ensuremath{\theta}}_{R}$ is given in center-of-mass coordinates by the expression ${\ensuremath{\theta}}_{R}T\ensuremath{\cong}0.1$ rad hartree. As the collision energy decreases, the cross sections develop oscillatory structure not present in the classical cross sections. This structure and the rainbow angle are sensitive to the choice of potential, which suggests that measurements of ${\mathrm{H}}^{+}$-He cross sections may be used to test the suitability of, e.g., the Born-Oppenheimer potential for scattering phenomena. It is also suggested that many-body calculations of these cross sections would allow, by comparison with the present results, an evaluation of the potential scattering model.
Immunolocalization of phospholipase C isoforms in rat kidney.

Immunolocalization of phospholipase C isoforms in rat kidney. Background Phospholipase C (PLC) is an important factor in signal transduction because this enzyme is activated by several hormones and growth factors. Eight PLC isoforms have been described raising the possibility that different cells express a single isoform or activate specific isoforms in different cells. Therefore, the goal of this study was to determine which PLC isoforms are expressed in specific regions of rat kidney. Methods Western blot analysis was performed in microdissected nephron segments of rat kidney, while immunohistochemical analysis was performed on whole rat kidney slices using PLC isoform-specific antibodies. Results All three families of PLC isoforms (β, γ, and δ) were present throughout the cortical and medullary regions of the kidney. Only the PLC-β1 isoform was observed in the brush border of the proximal tubule, but all isoforms were present in glomeruli and in the cytoplasm of tubular epithelial cells. In addition, only the PLC-γ1 isoform was expressed in the internal elastic lamina of the renal artery, while vasa recta expressed PLC-β1 most intensely. Medullary thick ascending limbs showed an intense level of expression of all three isoforms. Conclusion Multiple PLC isoforms are present in glomeruli, renal tubules, and renal vasculature in vivo , but with some segment-specific differences. These findings suggest that the response of a specific cell is not determined by expression of only one PLC isoform, with the exception of the brush border of the proximal tubule and the renal arteries. Instead, the presence of multiple PLC isoforms in specific regions of the kidney suggests that hormonal regulation in vivo involves mechanisms beyond cell-specific isoforms of PLC.
CO poisoning of PtTiO2: Methylcyclopropane hydrogenolysis on a highly dispersed catalyst

The differences in poisoning of methylcyclopropane hydrogenolysis by carbon monoxide are investigated here for PtTiO2 in both the “normal” and “strong metal-support interaction” (SMSI) states. High-dispersion PtTiO2 (“normal”) appears slightly more susceptible to carbon monoxide poisoning than comparable PtSiO2 or PtAl2O3 catalysts (Onal, I., and Butt, J. B., J. Chem. Soc. Faraday Trans. 178, 1887, 1982; and Damiani, D. E., and Butt, J. B., J. Catal.94, 203, 1985). The SMSI PtTiO2 catalyst is less active than normal material for the hydrogenolysis, but apparently more resistant to poisoning. Tolerance to CO for the SMSI material would appear to be the result of capacity of the support for CO uptake under these conditions, but the interpretation of all results depends upon how one defines the turnover frequency of the SMSI catalyst.
Free phase angle of the single-Q state in chromium

Abstract Movement of the single-Q itinerant-electron antiferromagnet state in chromium does not relax when it occurs in the plane perpendicular to Q, for perfect and imperfect crystals. A free phase angle exists for the macroscopic condensate wave function. Coherent interference effects involving spin currents between two condensates are possible at least in principle.
Initial tests of a prototype MRI-compatible PET imager

Abstract Multi-modality imaging is rapidly becoming a valuable tool in the diagnosis of disease and in the development of new drugs. Functional images produced with PET fused with anatomical structure images created by MRI, will allow the correlation of form with function. Our group (a collaboration of West Virginia University and Jefferson Lab) is developing a system to acquire MRI and PET images contemporaneously. The prototype device consists of two opposed detector heads, operating in coincidence mode with an active FOV of 5×5×4 cm3. Each MRI–PET detector module consists of an array of LSO detector elements (2.5×2.5×15 mm3) coupled through a long fiber optic light guide to a single Hamamatsu flat panel PSPMT. The fiber optic light guide is made of a glued assembly of 2 mm diameter acrylic fibers with a total length of 2.5 m. The use of a light guides allows the PSPMTs to be positioned outside the bore of the 3 T General Electric MRI scanner used in the tests. Photon attenuation in the light guides resulted in an energy resolution of ∼60% FWHM, interaction of the magnetic field with PSPMT further reduced energy resolution to ∼85% FWHM. Despite this effect, excellent multi-plane PET and MRI images of a simple disk phantom were acquired simultaneously. Future work includes improved light guides, optimized magnetic shielding for the PSPMTs, construction of specialized coils to permit high-resolution MRI imaging, and use of the system to perform simultaneous PET and MRI or MR-spectroscopy .
SPATIAL SYMMETRY IN THE NUCLEAR SHELL MODEL

We propose a classification scheme for $\mathrm{jj}$-coupled nuclear-shell-model wave functions which is based on spatial-symmetry considerations. The wave functions are determined by diagonalizing the Majorana operator, each wave function being labeled by the corresponding eigenvalue. We assume that among the states with quantum numbers ${j}^{n}\mathrm{TJ}$ the one with the largest Majorana eigenvalue lies lowest in energy, and these maximum-symmetry wave functions are used in calculations of beta-decay transitions and magnetic moments for nuclei in the $1{f}_{\frac{7}{2}}$ shell. The beta-decay results are considerably better than those obtained with seniority wave functions or with the wave functions derived by Lawson using Elliott's generating procedure. They also compare very favorably with the results of McCullen, Bayman, and Zamick based on an interaction calculation which uses an empirically determined two-body potential. The magnetic-moment calculations are somewhat less successful; except for the seniority scheme, the other theories usually give better results.
Faculty recommendations for web tools: Implications for course management systems

AGAP ANALYSIS OF WEB TOOLS in Engineering was undertaken as one part of the Digital Library Network for Engineering and Technology (DLNET) grant funded by NSF (DUE-0085849). DLNET represents a Web portal and an online review process to archive quality knowledge objects in Engineering and Technology disciplines. The gap analysis coincided with the development of DLNET to identify Web tools that faculty or students might use to help process information in the portal. Products of a two-phase online Delphi process with a panel of 65 Engineering and Technology faculty include: 51 tool suggestions rank-ordered by need, categorized in ten groups, and sub-ranked by faculty in four Engineering disciplines. Gaps between desired tool features and actual tool features currently available in online course management systems were identified to aid in improved software systems. Recommendations are provided for new tools. Faculty ratings suggest a preference for instructor-centered tools consistent with previous studies of course management systems. Findings imply new tool systems better aligned with pedagogical strategies are needed, as well as innovative models of faculty peer-to-peer support in order to move from standard tool use to student-centered tool use.
A new high-Tc superconducting Tl-Pb-Ca-Sr-Cu-O system

Abstract A new family of high-Tc superconducting material in the Tl-Pb-Ca-Sr-Cu-O system has been synthesized. Multiple phases with two-step superconducting transitions around 110 K and 80 K were observed resistively and magnetically. The 80 K phase has been tentatively identified to be (Tl, Pb)2Sr2CuOy by X-ray diffraction analysis. This material appears to have a relatively high flux pinning.
Tremulous Characteristics of the Vacuous Jaw Movements Induced by Pilocarpine and Ventrolateral Striatal Dopamine Depletions

Vacuous jaw movements induced by the muscarinic agonist pilocarpine and striatal dopamine depletions were examined using a slow motion videotape system. With this procedure, rats were videotaped in a Plexiglas tube so that the profile of the head region could be seen. Vacuous jaw movements were analyzed by examining the tape at 1/6 normal speed. An observer recorded each jaw movement using a computer, and the computer program re-calculated the temporal characteristics of jaw movement responses back to normal speed. The interresponse time was recorded for each jaw movement, and each jaw movement interresponse time was assigned to a 50 ms wide time bin. Thus, the distribution of interresponse times could be used to analyze the temporal characteristics of jaw movement responses. In the first experiment, rats were administered saline vehicle, 1.0 mg/kg and 2.0 mg/kg pilocarpine. The rats were videotaped 10-15 min after injection, and the data were analyzed as described above. Pilocarpine induced very high levels of vacuous jaw movements, and the vast majority of all movements occurred in "bursts" with interresponse times of 1.0 s or less. Analysis of the interresponse time distributions showed that most of the jaw movements were within the 150-350 ms range. The modal jaw movement interresponse time was in the 150-200 ms range, which corresponds to a local frequency of 5-6.66 Hz. In the second experiment, the neurotoxic agent 6-hydroxydopamine was injected directly into the ventrolateral striatum in order to produce a local dopamine depletion. The dopamine-depleted rats were observed for jaw movements 7 days after surgery. The overall level of jaw movement activity resulting from dopamine-depletion was much lower than that produced by pilocarpine. There was a significant inverse correlation between ventrolateral striatal dopamine levels and total number of vacuous jaw movements. Videotape analysis indicated that the temporal characteristics of jaw movements induced by dopamine depletions were similar to those shown with pilocarpine. These experiments indicate that vacuous jaw movements induced by pilocarpine and striatal dopamine depletion occur in a frequency range similar to that shown in parkinsonian tremor.
HIV-1 Genetic Diversity Surveillance in the United States

Few systematic efforts have been made to characterize the prevalence of HIV types, HIV-1 groups, and HIV-1 group M subtypes within a specified geographic area, and few US studies like the one by Sides et al. [1] in this issue of the Journal of Infectious Diseases have been published. Their findings are important: they demonstrate a 95% prevalence of non-B HIV1 subtypes; a predominance of subtypes C, A, and CRF02_AG/Al; and a substantial diversity of subtypes among the 87 HIV-infected African-born individuals in
Low Power Trellis Decoder with Overscaled Supply Voltage

This paper is interested in applying voltage over-scaling (VOS) to reduce trellis decoder energy consumption, where the key issue is how to minimize the decoding performance degradation due to VOS-induced errors. Based on the fact that the integrity of different bits in the trellis state metric has (largely) different effect on the overall trellis decoding performance, we proposed an importance-aware clock skew scheduling technique that assigns those more important bits with longer timing slacks and hence better immunity to VOS-induced errors. This will provide system-level tolerance to VOS-induced errors in trellis decoders. With Viterbi and Max-Log-MAP decoders as test vehicles, we demonstrated that about 30% energy savings on trellis state metric computation can be realized with negligible decoding performance degradation.
Mouse muscle denervation increases expression of an α7 nicotinic receptor with unusual pharmacology

Neuronal nicotinic α7 subunits have been found in chick and rat skeletal muscle during development and denervation. In the present study, reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction was used to detect α7 subunit mRNA in denervated mouse muscle. To determine whether the α7 subunit forms functional nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) in muscle, choline was used to induce a membrane depolarization because choline has been considered a specific agonist of α7-containing (α7*) nAChRs. We found, however, that choline (3–10 mm) also weakly activates muscle nAChRs. After inhibiting muscle nAChRs with a specific muscle nAChR inhibitor, α-conotoxin GI (αCTxGI), choline was used to activate the α7* nAChRs on muscle selectively. Four weeks after denervation, rapid application of choline (10 mm) elicited a substantial depolarization in the presence of αCTxGI (0.1 µm). This component of the depolarization was never present in denervated muscles obtained from mutant mice lacking the α7 subunit (i.e. α7-null mice). The depolarization component that is resistant to αCTxGI was antagonized by pancuronium (3–10 µm) and by a 4-oxystilbene derivative (F3, 0.1–0.5 µm) at concentrations considered highly specific for α7* nAChRs. Another selective α7 antagonist, methyllycaconitine (0.05–5 µm), did not strongly inhibit this choline-induced depolarization. Furthermore, the choline-sensitive nAChRs showed little desensitization over 10 s of application with choline (10–30 mm). These results indicate that functional α7* nAChRs are significantly present on denervated muscle, and that these receptors display unusual functional and pharmacological characteristics.
Management of recurrent stress urinary incontinence after failed midurethral sling: a survey of members of the International Urogynecological Association (IUGA)

Introduction and hypothesis Synthetic midurethral slings (MUS) have gained popularity in the management of stress urinary incontinence (SUI), due to their efficacy and minimally invasive nature. As there are no robust data to guide management of persistent or recurrent SUI after failed MUS, the aim of this study was to evaluate the management of these cases among IUGA members.
Simultaneous single-cell recording and microdialysis within the same brain site in freely behaving rats: a novel neurobiological method.

Abstract We present a method for performing intracerebral microdialysis in freely behaving rats while recording the firing of neurons within the dialysis site. Studying hippocampal theta cells and complex-spike cells with this technique, it has been found that: (1) when the microdialysis fluid contained only artificial cerebrospinal fluid, both types of neurons displayed normal electrical activity, (2) the simultaneous single-cell recording/microdialysis procedure could be readily performed for as long as 3 days, and (3) inclusion of drugs into the microdialysis fluid, at appropriate concentrations, caused clear changes in firing pattern. For example, microdialysis with 1% lidocaine completely abolished, whereas that with 50 mM K+ markedly increased, the neuronal electrical activity. These cellular changes developed without apparent EEG or behavioral manifestations and were reversible. In some of the experiments, the extracellular concentrations of glutamate and aspartate in the recording/dialysis site were also measured. The described method allows the extracellular environment of recorded brain cells to be manipulated by drugs delivered through the microdialysis probe and simultaneously allows determination of the neurochemical composition of that environment over a remarkably long period of time and in intact, physiologically functioning, neural networks. Such studies will provide new insights into the molecular basis of neuronal activity in the brain in the context of behavior, including learning.
The Panda that grew

Abstract China, the Panda, ranks among the world's fastest growing economies. Describing that growth, identifying and quantifying its causes, and examining international competitiveness, a growth corollary, on the assumption that China is structurally similar to a sample of 121 countries, are the purposes of this paper. The inquiry presents economic statistics, including those on convergence, by half decade from the prereform years through the Asian currency crisis. It then sketches a model that links growth to determinants that include total factor productivity (TFP). After estimating parameters it quantifies the growth contributions from the separate causes. On international competitiveness, it studies China's historical record and projects competitiveness into the near term. The paper closes with policy implications.
Optics of turbid estuarine waters: Approximations and applications

Abstract An analysis of the radiative transfer equation is presented which is applicable for the case of angle-independent, exponentially decreasing irradiance. The results indicate that for reflectance ratios less than 10%, the extinction coefficient of downwelling irradiance is due to particle absorption and the fraction of particle scattering that is not directly forward scattered. The equations for extinction coefficient and reflectance ratio are compared to numerical solutions and other approximations. Solar angle dependence is derived from the quasi-single scattering approximation. Application of these equations to a large data set from the San Francisco Bay Estuary yields estimates of the optical properties of the particles as functions of the concentration of non-volatile suspended solids, algal chlorophyll and suspended detritus. The predictive value of the regression equations are tested using an independent data set. The methods developed appear to be well suited for the development of relationships between optical properties and particle characteristics and concentrations.
An implementation of a code generator specification language for table driven code generators

This paper discusses an implementation of Glanville's code generator generator for producing a code generator for a production Pascal compiler on an Amdahl 470.We successfully replaced the hand written code generator of an existing compiler with one which was produced automatically from a formal specification. This paper first outlines Glanville's original scheme, then describes extensions which were necessary for generating code for a production compiler.
ON THE NEED FOR REVISION OF THE TAXONOMY OF EUCHEUMA (RHODOPHYTA) IN FLORIDA AND THE CARIBBEAN SEA1,2

Examination of the morphology and anatomy of the Florida species of Eucheuma revealed the presence of two distinct groups of plants. One group, represented by E. isiforme (C. Agardh) J. Agardh, E. nudum J. Agardh and an entity previously referred to as the “Bahia Honda form,” is characterized by terete axes, dense medullae, and stalked cystocarps containing a central fusion cell. The second group, represented by E. gelidium (J. Agardh) J. Agardh, E. acanthodadum (Harvey) J. Agardh and E. echinocarpum Areschough, is characterized by flattened axes, loose medullae, and embedded cystocarps containing a small-celled, central sterile tissue. As the first step in circumscribing the genus Eucheuma in Florida and the Caribbean Sea, it is suggested that members of the latter group he removed from the genus due to their anomalous cystocarp construction.
Freeze dehydration by microwave energy: Part I. Theoretical investigation

A general unsteady state analysis is employed to derive a mathematical model of a freeze-drying process using microwave heating. The model takes into account the variations of the transport and dielectric properties in the sample with both time and location as a function of temperature and pressure. The variations of the properties are described by functionals which have been derived from literature data and are built into the model. The mathematical model is used to simulate the freeze drying of beef meat with microwave energy at 2450 MHz. The simulation shows that drying rates are essentially a function of the microwave power input. The model also shows that the total pressure and the partial pressure of water vapor in the vacuum chamber directly affect the sample temperature during dehydration. The simulation shows, in particular, that, an optimal microwave freeze-drying operation corresponds to an operation near corona and overheating/melting conditions.
Campylobacter detection in commercial turkeys

1. Frequency of Campylobacter detection was monitored in three flocks of turkeys. The effect of week of production was evaluated for hens in flocks 1 and 2, and the effect of week, gender and litter (fresh or used) was assessed for flock 3. 2. Gastrointestinal tracts, poult box liners, drinkers and faecal droppings were sampled. Conventional microbiological procedures were used to isolate and identify the presence of Campylobacter. Campylobacter latex agglutination tests were used for confirmation. 3. Peak colonisation occurred at approximately 3 weeks of production. Frequency of Campylobacter isolation from bird sources paralleled isolation from waterers. Frequency of detection from birds placed on used litter was lower than detection from birds placed on fresh litter (2% vs 58%). Gender did not affect frequency of detection. 4. Minimising peak colonisation at 3 weeks and managing litter are opportunities to reduce the occurrence of this organism in turkeys.
The National Writing Project, Teachers' Writing Lives, and Student Achievement in Writing

Abstract This survey research on National Writing Project (NWP) teachers and comparison teachers (N = 35) in a southeastern state found that the NWP teachers wrote more than the comparison teachers did and that the participating teachers' writing was associated with students' achievement in writing. The pattern of the impact of writing life on achievement was different among the NWP teachers than it was among the comparison teachers: NWP teachers who wrote had students whose achievement in writing increased significantly, whereas comparison teachers and NWP teachers who wrote less did not. This finding of an interaction effect between NWP affiliation and teachers' writing life in association with student achievement suggests that the writing by teachers central to NWP professional development may combine with the two other core elements of the NWP's programs across its 198 sites (demonstrations of practices for teaching writing and professional reading and study) to improve student achievement in writing....
Reconstructing science teacher education within communities of learners

This article is based on a paper which received the “Innovation in Teaching Science Teachers” Award at the 1993 annual meeting of the Association for the Education of Teachers in Science.
Hardware-rooted trust for secure key management and transient trust

We propose minimalist new hardware additions to a microprocessor chip that protect cryptographic keys in portable computing devices which are used in the field but owned by a central authority. Our authority-mode architecture has trust rooted in two critical secrets: a Device Root Key and a Storage Root Hash, initialized in the device by the trusted authority. Our architecture protects trusted software, bound to the device, which can use the root secrets to protect other sensitive information for many different usage scenarios. We describe a detailed usage scenario for crisis response, where first responders are given transient access to third-party sensitive information which can be securely accessed during a crisis and reliably revoked after the crisis is over.We leverage the Concealed Execution Mode of our earlier user-mode SP (Secret-Protecting) architecture to protect trusted code and its execution [1]. We call our new architecture authority-mode SP since it shares the same architectural lineage and the goal of minimalist hardware roots of trust. However, we completely change the key management hardware and software to enable new remote trust mechanisms that user-mode SP cannot support. In our new architecture, trust is built on top of the shared root key which binds together the secrets, policy and trusted software on the device. As a result, the authority-mode SP architecture can be used to provide significant new functionality including transient access to secrets with reliable revocation mechanisms, controlled transitive support for policy-controlled secrets belonging to different organizations, and remote attestation and secure communications with the authority.
Effects of radio-frequency current on critical fields for magnetization reversal in spin-torque devices

The application of radio-frequency (rf) currents in spin-torque devices allows control of magnetization reversal through frequency of the rf current. Using this effect, the impact of the rf currents on switching fields of nanostructured metallic spin valves has been investigated. The rf current injection was observed to change the critical field for free-layer magnetization reversal when the intrinsic spin-transfer-induced dynamics are frequency locked with the injected rf. Experimental results are presented by mapping the switching contour plot, and are compared with simulations in the context of macrospin models of spin transfer in metallic-spin-valve structures. Differences between this effect and the effect of rf currents on direct-current-induced magnetization reversal are highlighted by considering the role of a magnetization dispersion in the two sweep methods, which allows insights for device applications assisted by rf currents.
Introduced ungulate herbivore alters soil processes after fire

Ungulate herbivory can have profound effects on ecosystem processes by altering organic inputs of leaves and roots as well as changing soil physical and chemical properties. These effects may be especially important when the herbivore is an introduced species. Utilizing large mammal exclosures to prevent access by introduced elk at multiple sites along a fire chronosequence, we examined the effects of elk herbivory and fire on soil microbial activity and nutrient availability. Using time since fire as a co-variate and herbivore exclosures, paired with areas outside of the exclosures, we hypothesized that reductions in plant biomass due to herbivory would reduce organic inputs to soils and impact soil microbial activities and nutrient storage. We found three major patterns: (1) when elk were excluded, surface mineral soils had higher soil organic carbon (C), total nitrogen (N), microbial N pools, and increased extra-cellular enzyme activity of a C-acquiring enzyme across a gradient of time since fire. (2) When introduced elk are present, the activity of some extracellular enzymes as well as NO3 − availability are enhanced in the soil but the post-fire patterns described above with respect to nutrient accrual over time are delayed. (3) Herbivory by an introduced ungulate upsets the trajectory of ecosystem “recovery” after wildfire and delays soil C and N dynamics by an estimated 14.5–21 years, respectively. These results suggest that introduced, browsing herbivores significantly decelerate ecosystem processes but herbivory by exotics may also result in unpredictability in specific soil responses.
New high-resolution 2-deoxyglucose method featuring double labeling and automated data collection

A new approach to high-resolution 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2DG) emulsion-autoradiography which combines improved retention of 2DG labeling, staining with immunohistochemical and other specific markers, and automated data collection and analysis of local silver grain and stain densities is described. The Durham et al. (J. Neurosci. 1:519–526, '81) procedure for fixation of 2DG with periodate-lysine-paraformaldehyde (PLP, McLean and Nakane: J. Histochem. Cytochem. 22:1077–1083, '74) was adapted to increase retained label roughly tenfold. Phenobarbital anesthesia is induced 45 minutes after 2DG injection. Barbiturate anesthesia increases brain glycogen (Nelson et al.: J. Neurochem. 15:1271–1279, '68) and presumably increases the incorporation of intracellular 2DG from 2DG-6P into brain glycogen and other molecules (Nelson et al.: J. Neurochem. 43:949–956, '84; Pentreath et al.: Neuroscience 7:759–767, '82). Iodoacetate is added to cold fixative to prevent glycogen breakdown (Cammermeyer and Fenton: Histochemistry 76:339–356, '82). This high-resolution 2DG protocol is directly compatible with many other neuroanatomical techniques. We demonstrate 2DG emulsion autoradiography combined with cytochrome oxidase (CO) histochemistry, markers for axonal pathway tracing, plastic embedding for semithin sections, and immunohistochemical staining for glutamate decarboxylase (GAD). The method should be compatible with antibodies for other antigens and with other neuroanatomical stains. To collect the data directly from microscope slides, a computer-controlled microscope was integrated with image-processing software to eliminate the need for manual counting and scoring of autoradiograms. Regions of interest are scanned automatically at high resolution to map regional labeling and/or stain density. There is excellent correspondence between computer-enhanced two-dimensional maps of the data and the original autoradiograms. Automated counts for five specimens were compared to counts of labeled cells by trained observer. The correlation between the two sets of measurements is high (r =. 93). Automated data collection has been generalized to measure regional stain densities on the autoradiographed sections for direct comparison with silver grain density. The method is extremely flexible, especially since new image-processing strategies can be developed in software to extract the desired information from materials labeled by other methods (e.g., HRP). The combination of experimental and data collection strategies generates two- or three-dimensional “maps” of 2DG labeling, histochemical stain, etc., over a brain area of interest and allows direct comparison of these different maps. To our knowledge this is the first report of quantitative reconstructions of 2DG labeling patterns on the basis of large and systematically scanned data samples from emulsion autoradiograms.
Predicting offshore temperatures in Monterey Bay based on coastal observations using linear forecast models

Abstract The linear systems approach is used to forecast offshore near-surface and subsurface temperatures in Monterey Bay and further offshore based on coastal sea surface temperatures (SSTs) at Pacific Grove. SST from Pacific Grove provided the input to the system and the forecast parameters or outputs were temperature at 1 m and 100 m at the M1 buoy located 20 km from Pacific Grove near the center of Monterey Bay, and temperature at 1 m at the M2 buoy located 55 km from Pacific Grove. To forecast temperatures at the M1 and M2 buoys, Box-Jenkins, State-Space, ARX, and ARMAX models were employed. Model formulation, implementation, forecasting procedures, and methods of evaluation are presented. Seven and 30-day forecasts were routinely made for the daily observations although other forecast horizons were employed. For all models and variables, RMS differences between the forecasts and the observations increased rapidly between 1 and 15 days. Beyond about 30 days, RMS differences tended to remain almost constant with increasing forecast horizon. Overall, model forecasts were best for temperature at 100 m at the M1 buoy, due to the fact that temperature is well conserved at depth. Differences in performance between the models were small but the ARMAX model often produced forecasts that were slightly better than the rest, a result that we attribute to a more complete specification of the noise. Although the Box-Jenkins and State-Space models have the potential to produce better forecasts, because more terms must be specified to implement them, the opportunity to produce less-than-optimal results is also greater. Finally, because of seasonal changes in the circulation of Monterey Bay, it is possible that causality was violated, upon occasion, placing certain constraints on the results. Models based on the linear systems approach, where they can be implemented, could serve as a useful adjunct to hydrodynamic ocean circulation models by providing additional information for model initialization, evaluation, and data assimilation. Using the same approach, operational forecasts of the coastal circulation could be made by including forecast winds and the predicted tides as inputs, and CODAR-observed surface currents as the output. In a less glamorous but still useful role, they could be used to fill significant gaps in offshore records where data continuity and quality are important.