cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Experimental observations of boric acid precipitation scenarios

Abstract During a Loss of Coolant Accident (LOCA) in Light Water Reactors (LWR), borated water is injected into the core through the safety injection system. The continuous vaporization of the water from the core may increase the concentration of boric acid in the core that, under certain conditions may reach the solubility limit and precipitate. This includes scenarios where the liquid water supply to the core is affected by possible blockages due to debris accumulation. Questions have been raised on the effects of the precipitate in the core on the flow behavior, including the possibility of additional blockages produced by precipitate accumulation. A simple experimental facility was constructed to perform experimental observations of the behavior of borated water under the combined effects of the boiling and the boric acid precipitation (BAP). The facility consists of a transparent polycarbonate vertical pipe where forty-five heated rods have been installed to supply the power to the water to reach the saturation temperature, and maintain a desired boil-off rate. The layout and geometry of the experimental apparatus were conceived to emulate a simplified core of a Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR). Experimental observations have been conducted under two different conditions. Preliminary tests were conducted to observe the behavior of the water and the boric acid precipitate during a boil-off scenario without borated water addition (decreasing water level). During the main test runs, borated water was constantly injected from the top of the test section to maintain a constant mixture level in the test section. Both tests assumed no flow from the bottom of the test section which may be the case of PWR LOCA scenarios in presence of debris-generated core blockage. The observations performed with a set of cameras installed around the test section showed interesting effects of the vapor bubbles on the boric acid precipitate migration and accumulation in the test section. The results may help addressing some basic questions regarding the effect of the precipitation of boric acid during core blockage LOCA scenarios and, provide the basis for further experimental and computational analysis required to resolve the BAP issue as part of the Generic Safety Issue 191.
The “liquid biopsy” in non-small cell lung cancer—not quite ready for prime time use

Biopsy of a tumor site has long been the gold standard for the diagnosis of malignancy. Advanced sequencing technology has enabled us to study the molecular changes driving a particular cancer. As we move towards the molecular era of medicine, repeat tumor biopsies are often obtained to assess for development of resistance, which has both prognostic and therapeutic implications. However, the logistics of obtaining repeat tumor biopsies are complicated—many patients with advanced malignancies are unable or unwilling to undergo another invasive procedure and the skillset and personnel required for these procedures are often time consuming, expensive, and leads to delay in care. Furthermore, it is known that tumors develop heterogeneity over time and disease sites and therefore one biopsy may not provide a complete picture of the tumoral landscape.
The new hot rods of the physics world

Particle accelerators are the largest pieces of equipment that physicists have to help them unravel nature's secrets. Take the 27 km circumference of the Large Hadron Collider under construction at CERN in Geneva or the 3 km linear accelerator at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center in the US. These machines accelerate particles to energies above 1010 eV and then collide them to explore fundamental questions in high-energy physics.
In-Use NOx Emissions from Diesel and Liquefied Natural Gas Refuse Trucks Equipped with SCR and TWC, Respectively.

The California Air Resources Board (ARB) and the City of Sacramento undertook this study to characterize the in-use emissions from model year (MY) 2010 or newer diesel, liquefied natural gas (LNG), and hydraulic hybrid diesel engines during real-world refuse truck operation. Emissions from five trucks, two diesels equipped with selective catalytic reduction (SCR), two LNG’s equipped with three-way catalyst (TWC), and one hydraulic hybrid diesel equipped with SCR, were measured using a portable emissions measurement system (PEMS) in the Sacramento area. Results showed that the brake-specific NOx emissions for the LNG trucks equipped with the TWC catalyst were lowest of all the technologies tested. Results also showed that the brake specific NOx emissions from the conventional diesel engines were significantly higher despite the exhaust temperature being high enough for proper SCR function. Like diesel engines, the brake specific NOx emissions from the hydraulic hybrid diesel also exceeded certification alt...
Degree of Participation in Related Areas by Men Physical Education Majors in Five of the Illinois State Universities

Abstract This study was conducted to determine the feasibility of measuring degrees of participation of physical education majors in areas closely related to their profession. Areas selected were intercollegiate and intramural sports and professional activities. Five universities in Illinois provided the basic information pertinent to the study involving 683 majors. An analysis of the information indicated a highly questionable degree of participation. The greatest amount of participation was in intercollegiate and intramural sports. The least amount of participation was in professional club activity and participation in the work of the state and national physical education organizations.
Are You Lying: Validating the Time-Location of Outdoor Images

Photos have been commonly used in our society to convey information, and the associated contextual information (i.e., the capture time and location) is a key part of what a photo conveys. However, the contextual information can be easily tampered or falsely claimed by forgers to achieve malicious goals, e.g., creating fear among the general public or distorting public opinions. Thus, this paper aims at verifying the capture time and location using the content of the photos only. Motivated by how the ancients estimate the time of the day by shadows, we designed algorithms based on projective geometry to estimate the sun position by leveraging shadows in the image. Meanwhile, we compute the sun position by applying astronomical algorithms according to the claimed capture time and location. By comparing the two estimations of the sun position, we are able to validate the consistency of the capture time and location, and hence the time-location of the photos. Experimental results show that our algorithms can estimate sun position and detect the inconsistency caused by falsified time, date, and latitude of location. By choosing the thresholds to be \(9.2^\circ \) and \(4.8^\circ \) for the sun position distance and altitude angle distance respectively, our framework can correctly identify 91.1% of the positive samples, with 7.7% error in identifying the negative samples. Note that we assume that the photos contain at least one vertical object and its shadow. Nevertheless, we believe this work serves as the first and important attempt in verifying the consistency of the contextual information only using the content of the photos.
Proactive use of eltrombopag before the onset of clinical bleeding in two children with immune thrombocytopenia and lifestyle restrictions

Key Clinical Message Children with immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) are often managed using a watch-and-wait approach to avoid conventional treatment that may be poorly tolerated. However, in some patients, this approach may lead to lifestyle restrictions due to risk of injury-related bleeding. Eltrombopag is a well-tolerated new option that may help these children.
Self-Organization of Connectivity and Geographical Routing in Large-Scale Sensor Networks

A large-scale sensor network (LSSN) is formed when a very large number of sensor nodes with short-range communication capabilities are deployed randomly over an extended region. The random distribution of nodes in an LSSN leads to regions of varying density, which means that if all nodes have an identical transmission radius, the effective connectivity would vary over the system. This leads to inefficiency in energy usage (in regions of unnecessarily high connectivity) and the danger of partitioning (in regions of low node density). In this paper, we propose a technique for adapting a node’s transmission radius based on a node’s local information. Through localized coordination and self-organization, nodes try to attain fairly uniform connectivity in the system to aid in efficient data messaging in the system. We study the benefits of network adaptation by incorporating it into an adaptive geographical routing algorithm called corridor routing. We present simulation results showing significant improvement in performance over routing algorithms that do not use network adaptation. We also propose and study several scenarios for network adaptation in the presence of node failures, and explore the effect of parameter variation.
Design and COMSOL simulation of koch snowflake dipole fractal antennas

This paper highlights the design and simulation of Koch snowflake half-wave dipole antennas for RFID (radio frequency identification) use. The fractal antennas are designed to be compact as well as multi-band use at UHF (ultra high frequency) and microwave frequencies. The first three iterations of the Koch snowflake were designed and simulated through COMSOL. Each antenna was designed for the UHF band and an analysis of the second band is given in the paper. Each antenna was simulated as a copper wires with varying, decreasing widths and 1 mm thickness. The reduction of the physical length and the multi-band capabilities of the fractal antennas are presented. The antenna's physical length decreases while the height increases after every iteration and has a return loss of at least 10 dB. Every antenna will be more compact by using less physical length than its previous iteration. Also, in order to model an antenna that has resonance at 860–960 MHz and 2.4–2.48 GHz, common RFID ranges, the inclusion of a substrate with the fractal antennas are presented in this paper.
Reprogramming immune proteins as therapeutics using molecular engineering

Fundamental advances in the field of biomolecular engineering present researchers with the unprecedented opportunity to apply molecular design strategies to modify naturally occurring proteins and generate new molecules for targeted disease therapy. In particular, the development of immunotherapeutics such as cytokine-based and antibody-based drugs has been empowered by evolving technologies and insights from protein engineering. In this review, we highlight specific examples that demonstrate the growing influence of biomolecular engineering on the discovery and design of immunotherapeutics, with particular emphasis on three strategies in biologics development: (1) Cytokine engineering, (2) Cytokine-targeted antibody design, and (3) Fine-tuning the disease-targeting mechanisms of antibody drugs. These strategies have already yielded significant success in the clinic and promise to continue informing and improving the drug development landscape.
Locationing and Timing Synchronization Services in Ambient Intelligence Networks

Awareness of space and time is an essential component of our daily living experience. Hence, any ambient intelligence environment must have a sense of location and time built into it. This information, however, needs to be provided with a minimum of infrastructural overhead. In addition, there services should come with low energy consumption, robustness to changing environmental conditions, and adapt themselves to dynamically varying networks. This chapter presents a set of algorithms for the localization and synchronization of sensor network services, developed with the above design principles in mind. For the first service, localization, several existing localization methods are evaluated. The trade-off between accuracy and overhead (in terms of density, infrastructure and ranging needs) is discussed. For the second service, synchronization, it is demonstrated that accuracy can be sacrificed for gains in energy efficiency. The algorithm starts by constructing a spanning tree across the network. Once the spanning tree structure is constructed, nodes perform pair-wise synchronization along the edges of this tree. The tree-structure reduces the number of pair-wise synchronizations that need to be performed and is thus energy-efficient. The tree can be constructed in a centralized (reference node initiated) or distributed (sensor node initiated) fashion. Simulation results for the different variants of the synchronization algorithm are presented. The chapter is concluded with a number of reflections and perspectives.
Augmentation of Parasitoids, Predators, and Beneficial Herbivores

When natural enemies are absent, occur too late, or in numbers too small to provide effective pest control, releases may be made of reared natural enemies. This process is called augmentation and may be conducted either as a private commercial business or a government-provided service. Augmentation of natural enemies is practical in circumstances where permanent colonization of suitably adapted natural enemies is not feasible, for example, in protected culture or where existing natural enemies are not sufficiently effective. In the latter case, it may be appropriate to secure new species or strains of natural enemies from the pest’s homeland and permanently colonize these species. However, where such efforts are not productive in resolving the pest problem, augmentative liberations of natural enemies may be undertaken to supplement the action of existing natural enemies. A spectrum exists from releases which are meant only to inoculate the crop with the natural enemy (with most control being provided later by offspring of released organisms), termed inoculative augmentation, to those releases in which all control is expected to be exerted by the released organisms themselves, with little or no contribution by their offspring, a procedure termed inundative augmentation. Both large organisms such as hymenopteran and dipteran parasitoids, predacious arthropods, and herbivorous arthropods and small organisms such as plant or arthropod pathogens, plant disease antagonists, and arthropod-attacking nematodes can be augmented. In this chapter, we consider the augmentation of large organisms. In Chapter 11 we discuss the augmentation of small organisms.
MODERN HUMANS, EMERGENCE OF

The evolution of humans during the last ca. 300 000 years is currently explained by two competing models: the ‘out of Africa’ as based on the genetic evidence (mainly the mtDNA), the available fossil, such as Omo-Kibish, Herto, Skhul and Qafzeh, and a wealth of archaeological evidence, often related to the Moustrian industries. The second suggests a ‘multi-regional continuity’ accounted by the same fossils, and supported by the particular lithic industries of East Asia that demonstrate continuity during the entire Pleistocene. The Upper Paleolithic revolution in North Africa and Western Eurasia, rich in technological innovations and systematic appearance of art objects (mainly in the Franco-Cantabrian region), was also the time when Neanderthals became extinct. The complex process of population dispersals across most of the Old World and the cultural variability as reflected in the various geographic regions is briefly described.
A Preliminary Study of Compiler Transformations for Graph Applications on the Emu System

Unlike dense linear algebra applications, graph applications typically suffer from poor performance because of 1) inefficient utilization of memory systems through random memory accesses to graph data, and 2) overhead of executing atomic operations. Hence, there is a rapid growth in improving both software and hardware platforms to address the above challenges. One such improvement in the hardware platform is a realization of the Emu system, a thread migratory and near-memory processor. In the Emu system, a thread responsible for computation on a datum is automatically migrated over to a node where the data resides without any intervention from the programmer. The idea of thread migrations is very well suited to graph applications as memory accesses of the applications are irregular. However, thread migrations can hurt the performance of graph applications if overhead from the migrations dominates benefits achieved through the migrations.In this preliminary study, we explore two high-level compiler optimizations, i.e., loop fusion and edge flipping, and one low-level compiler transformation leveraging hardware support for remote atomic updates to address overheads arising from thread migration, creation, synchronization, and atomic operations. We performed a preliminary evaluation of these compiler transformations by manually applying them on three graph applications over a set of RMAT graphs from Graph500.---Conductance, Bellman-Ford's algorithm for the single-source shortest path problem, and Triangle Counting. Our evaluation targeted a single node of the Emu hardware prototype, and has shown an overall geometric mean reduction of 22.08% in thread migrations.
Abstract 3021: The role of survivin splice variants in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma Gemcitabine resistance

Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a highly lethal disease with poor prognosis and an increased chemoresistance. Dysfunction in alternative splicing has been associated with chemoresistance in many cancers. Alternative splicing of survivin mRNA generates six splicing isoforms some of which are associated with cancer progression and chemoresistance. Survivin is a member of the inhibitors of apoptosis (IAPs) family and a cell cycle-associated oncoprotein overexpressed in almost all cancers. Interestingly, some of these survivin splice variants are proapoptotic (2α and 2β) while others are antiapoptotic (survivin, Δex3, 3α and 3β). It has been reported that increased levels of survivin 2β and 3β play a role in chemoresistance in ovarian cancers and other tumors, but this has not been studied in pancreatic cancer. Our recent RT-qPCR data also show an overexpression of all survivin splice variants in chemoresistant PDAC cell lines compared to the chemo-sensitive cell line. We, therefore, hypothesize that increased expression of survivin splice variants 2β and 3β contribute to chemo-resistance in PDAC. To test this hypothesis, we repeatedly selected the resistant cells from the normally chemosensitive MiaPaca2 cell line after exposure to gemcitabine. We then assessed the levels of survivin splice variants in the new cell line (gemcitabine-resistant MiaPaca2). Using the Alamar blue assay, we confirmed that Panc1 and gemcitabine-resistant MiaPaca2 are more resistant to gemcitabine compared to MiaPaca2 cells. We also observed a statistically significant overexpression of survivin 2β and 3β in gemcitabine-resistant cell lines compared to the more sensitive MiaPaca2 cells. To further test our hypothesis, we will knockdown survivin 2β and 3β in Panc1 and gemcitabine-resistant MiaPaca2, and/or overexpress these splice variants in MiaPaca2 cells then assess response to gemcitabine. The outcomes of this study might create new biomarkers for predicting the clinical outcomes of gemcitabine treatment and generate new therapeutic targets for pancreatic cancer. Note: This abstract was not presented at the meeting. Citation Format: Janviere Kabagwira, Amber Gonda, Mei Li Kwong. The role of survivin splice variants in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma Gemcitabine resistance [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2019; 2019 Mar 29-Apr 3; Atlanta, GA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2019;79(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 3021.
Comparing the Effects of Annotation Type on Machine Learning Detection Performance

The most prominent machine learning (ML) methods in use today are supervised, meaning they require groundtruth labeling of the data on which they are trained. Annotating data is arduous and expensive. Additionally, data sets for image object detection may be annotated by drawing polygons, drawing bounding boxes, or providing single points on targets. Selection of annotation technique is a tradeoff between time to annotate and accuracy of the annotation. When annotating a dataset for machine object recognition algorithms, researchers may not know the most advantageous method of annotation for their experiments. This paper evaluates the performance tradeoffs of three alternative methods of annotating imagery for use in ML. A neural network was trained using the different types of annotations and compares the detection accuracy of and differences between the resultant models. In addition to the accuracy, cost is analyzed for each of the models and respective datasets.
Functional Status as Measured by Geriatric Assessment Predicts Inferior Survival in Older Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation Recipients.

ABSTRACT Allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (alloHCT) has been increasingly offered to older adults with hematologic malignancies. However, optimal methods to determine fitness for alloHCT have yet to be defined. We evaluated the ability of a comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA) to predict post-alloHCT outcomes in a single-center prospective cohort study of patients age 50 years and older. Outcomes included overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS), and nonrelapse mortality (NRM). A total of 148 patients were included, with a median age of 62 years (range, 50 to 76 years). In multivariate regression analysis, several CGA measures of functional status were predictive of post-alloHCT outcomes, after adjusting for traditional prognostic factors. Any deficit in instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) was associated with inferior OS (hazard ratio [HR], 1.81, 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.07 to 3.08; P = .03) and PFS (HR, 1.85; 95% CI, 1.15 to 2.99; P = .01). A Medical Outcomes Study Physical Health scale (MOS-PH) score
Interconnects Over 100 GHz [From the Guest Editors' Desk]

The three articles in this special section review modern developments in interconnects and packaging for frequencies above 100 GHz. In the last several years, useful systems operating at such frequencies have become feasible because of the cost reductions brought about by semiconductor device development, especially in silicon. But, for useable systems, there must also be advances in the packaging of such devices and in the means of coupling signals from the package to the transport medium. The medium of interest is free space for imaging or dielectric waveguides for interconnect.
Thermal perturbation of NMR properties in small polar and non-polar molecules

Water is an important constituent in an abundant number of chemical systems; however, its presence complicates the analysis of in situ 1H MAS NMR investigations due to water's ease of solidification and vaporization, the large changes in mobility, affinity for hydrogen bonding interactions, etc., that are reflected by dramatic changes in temperature-dependent chemical shielding. To understand the evolution of the signatures of water and other small molecules in complex environments, this work explores the thermally-perturbed NMR properties of water in detail by in situ MAS NMR over a wide temperature range. Our results substantially extend the previously published temperature-dependent 1H and 17O chemical shifts, linewidths, and spin-lattice relaxation times over a much wider range of temperatures and with significantly enhanced thermal resolution. The following major results are obtained: Hydrogen bonding is clearly shown to weaken at elevated temperatures in both 1H and 17O spectra, reflected by an increase in chemical shielding. At low temperatures, transient tetrahedral domains of H-bonding networks are evidenced and the observation of the transition between solid ice and liquid is made with quantitative considerations to the phase change. The 1H chemical shift properties in other small polar and non-polar molecules have also been described over a range of temperatures, showing the dramatic effect hydrogen bonding perturbation on polar species. Gas phase species are observed and chemical exchange between gas and liquid phases is shown to play an important role on the observed NMR shifts. The results disclosed herein lay the foundation for a clear interpretation of complex systems during the increasingly popular in situ NMR characterization at elevated temperatures and pressures for studying chemical systems.
The reporting quality of randomized controlled trials and experimental animal studies for urethroplasty.

To assess the reporting quality of randomized controlled trials and experimental animal studies examining urethroplasty in reconstructive urological surgery literature. We performed a comprehensive literature search to identify all urethroplasty-related RCTs examining humans as well as animal models. We used the Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT) and the Animals in Research: Reporting in vivo Experiments (ARRIVE) guidelines to assess reporting quality. Two reviewers performed data abstraction independently and in duplicate. We then generated descriptive statistics including CONSORT (0–25) and ARRIVE (0–20) summary scores using the median and interquartile range. Twenty studies were ultimately included; 14 randomized controlled trials and 6 experimental animal studies. All studies were two-armed, parallel group studies. Median sample sizes (and interquartile range) of the human and animal studies were 48.5 (31.8–53.8) and 18 (15.3–27.5), respectively. The median CONSORT and ARRIVE scores were 10.0 (8.75–12.63) and 7.97 (6.79–8.64), respectively. Human randomized controlled trials did not consistently report the method of allocation concealment (6/14; 42.9%), blinding (2/14; 14.3%), or discuss the generalizability of the results (6/14; 42.9%). Animal studies infrequently reported why a given animal model was used (1/6; 16.7%), how they were allocated to groups (0/6; 0%) or what the experimental primary and secondary outcomes were (0/6; 0%). Urethroplasty literature is marked by a paucity of both randomized controlled trials and experimental design animal studies. The existing studies are inconsistently reported and are therefore of uncertain methodological quality.
Freudian glitch: mind the technology gap

As Covid-19 forced psychoanalysts, psychotherapists and many other healthcare practitioners to use online platforms, internet connectivity took on new meaning. While bothersome for both patient and...
Association of Flu specific and SARS-CoV-2 specific CD4 T cell responses in SARS-CoV-2 infected asymptomatic heath care workers.

Influenza vaccination is widely advocated to avoid infection with influenza virus, a serious respiratory pathogen, and this was greatly emphasized during the raging COVID-19 epidemic. We conducted a study for baseline Flu specific immunity in a group of health care workers with documented past SARs-CoV-2 infection (designated COVID+) with mild or no symptoms and compared them with a control group that had not been infected with SARS CoV-2 (COVID-). Concurrently, we examined flu and SARS-CoV-2 specific T cell responses using the AIM (activation induced molecules) assay by flow cytometry. All COVID+ and 40% COVID- participants exhibited AIM responses to SARS-CoV-2 peptides, but only COVID+ were positive for SARs-CoV-2 antibody. Influenza HIN1 antigen specific CD4 T cells were found in 92% COVID+ and 76% COVID- participants and exhibited a strong direct correlation with SARS-CoV-2 specific CD4 T cells. This observation suggests that influenza specific T cell immunity may impact immune responses to SARS-CoV-2.
On the Road: The Challenges and Benefits of Agency Research

The importance of researcher-practitioner collaborations is at the core of Edward J. Latessa’s work. He has been at the forefront of this domain by creating and disseminating evidence-based tools a...
Synthesis of nanosized zirconium diboride powder via oxide-borohydride solid-state reaction

Abstract A novel solid-state reaction was investigated to achieve nanosized ZrB2 particles using ZrO2 and NaBH4 as starting materials, which were dry mixed and thermally treated at increasing temperatures and B:Zr molar ratio to get a complete oxide to boride conversion. X-ray diffraction analysis showed that the reaction was completed after 30 min at 900 °C. Field-emission scanning microscopy revealed ZrB2 particles with dimensions around 100 nm. In this paper for the first time we propose the oxide-borohydride system as an alternative to synthesize metal borides to chemical and borothermic reactions.
Metabolism of Acetone to Isopropyl Alcohol in Rats and Humans

Isopropyl alcohol and acetone have been detected in autopsy blood samples of individuals not previously exposed to these compounds. Since some of these individuals had a history of diabetes mellitus, it has been suggested that in these cases, reduction of acetone to isopropyl alcohol might be a metabolic pathway for its production. This hypothesis was investigated in a study of normal and diabetic rats. Acute administration of acetone resulted in measureable levels of isopropyl alcohol in blood. Metabolism of acetone to isopropyl alcohol was different in normal and diabetic animals. Blood levels of isopropanol reached a maximum at the second highest dose in normal rats, but there was a two-phase response in diabetic rats. In a second series of experiments, acetone was administered on alternate days for a week. In spite of this chronie administration (and persistence of high blood acetone), there was no enhancement of acetone metabolism to isopropyl alcohol. These experiments indicate that high levels of blood acetone could result in transformation to isopropyl alcohol.
The Political Economy of War Finance

What explains the variation in how states finance war? Why are some wars financed by high levels of taxation while others are financed solely via borrowing? Under what conditions do states resort to non conventional means of war finance such as coercive savings plans? Using a new dataset of interstate war financing strategy from 1945 to 2001, I argue that five variables explain how states finance wars: optimism by political decision makers regarding the conflict, the experience of war finance in previous wars, the existence of a balance of payments problem, the bureaucratic capacity to extract resources from society and public opinion regarding the conflict. Using both quantitative analysis and illustrative historical examples, my paper shows that there is enormous variation in how states finance wars, an issue with tremendous implications for international politics. This study has implications for helping us understand the dynamics of war, the ability of a state translate domestic resources into military power especially in times of economic constraint, and the relationship between state and society.
Spectrophotometric determination of chromium as the chromium-peroxo-4-(2-pyridylazo)resorcinol complex

The ternary complex chromium-peroxo-PAR exhibits an apparent molar absorptivity of 6280 l mol−1 cm−1 when extracted into ethyl acetate from 0.1 M sulfuric acid solution. Beer's law is followed for solutions containing up to 6.0 μg Cr ml−1. Conditions for optimum color formation, complex composition, effects of diverse ions, and application to the determination of chromium in steels are described.
DNA probes using fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET): designs and applications.

Fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) is widely used in biomedical research as a reporter method. Oligonucleotides with a DNA backbone and one or several chromophore tags have found multiple applications as FRET probes. They are especially advantageous for the real-time monitoring of biochemical reactions and in vivo studies. This paper reviews the design and applications of various DNA-based probes that use FRET. The approaches used in the design of new DNA FRET probes are discussed.
Modulation and adherence of intestinal mucus by commensal bacteria and the pathogen C. difficile

Gut pathogens initially encounter the host at the gastrointestinal (GI) mucus layer making its regulation a crucial aspect of gut health. Few studies have addressed bacteria-mucus adherence or mucu...
Syntrophic Degradation of Lactate in Methanogenic Co-cultures

Author(s): Meyer, Birte | Abstract: In environments where the amount of the inorganic electron acceptors (oxygen, nitrate, sulfate, sulfur oroxidized metal ions (Fe3+;Mn4+) is insufficient for complete breakdown of organic matter, methane is formed as the major reduced end product. In such methanogenic environments organic acids are degraded by syntrophic associations of fermenting, acetogenic bacteria (e.g., sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) as "secondary fermenters") and methanogenic archaea. In these consortia, the conversion of lactate to acetate, CO2 and methane depends on the cooperating activities of both metabolically distinct microbial groups that are tightly linked by the need to maintain the exchanged metabolites (hydrogenandformate) at very low concentrations.
Teach For America and the Dangers of Deficit Thinking

This article details the findings of a thematic analysis of Teach for America’s (TFA) website in an attempt to add to the growing body of literature documenting the harmful effects of deficit thinking. The paper begins with a general description of the current U.S. education reform landscape, followed by a brief review of literature focused on ways deficit thinking maintains asymmetrical relations of dominance. Next, I describe my commitment to postcritical ethnography and how my positionality informed the production of the deficit theme, followed by ways that TFA implicitly and explicitly pathologizes the communities, families, and students who experience its corps members. After problematizing the savior mentality identified in my research, I conclude with a discussion of implications for students, families, and the communities where TFA teachers are placed, arguing that the organization is not necessarily the answer to the structures of inequality that persist in this country’s schools; rather, it works to perpetuate these structures through its adoption of harmful deficit models. I suggest students may be better served by educators who are able to locate and teach to their strengths.
The Dynamic Two Phase Commitment (D2PC) Protocol

Since the Two Phase Commitment (2PC) protocol is an essential component for Distributed Transaction Processing, needed in the commit process of each distributed transaction, a substantial effort has been invested in optimizing its performance. The Dynamic Two Phase Commitment (D2PC) protocol is an enhancement of the common (static) Tree Two Phase Commitment (T2PC) protocols. Unlike T2PC, with D2PC the commit coordinator is dynamically determined by racing READY (YES vote) messages, on a per transaction basis, rather than being fixed, predetermined. As a result, the protocol commits each transaction participant in minimum possible time, allowing early release of locked resources. This result is true for the various existing variants of T2PC. D2PC subsumes several T2PC optimizations that have been proposed earlier.
Assignment of Skin Notation for Threshold Limit Values Chemicals Based on Acute Dermal Toxicity

Abstract The skin notation with a threshold limit value (TLV) indicates that significant quantities of the chemical may be absorbed through that route to produce unwanted systemic effects. The relationship between the dermal LD50 for a given chemical and the occurrence of skin irritation in the TLV was examined. An association was found, but it was weak. We suggest that all chemicals found to have LD50 values lower than 1000 mg/kg be initially assigned a skin notation until more definitive work proves otherwise. Further, effects that can be produced following repeated dermal exposures using reasonable dose concentrations need to be evaluated for the purpose of a skin notation. Extrapolation of dermal effects following information from other routes of administration needs to be carefully considered, particularly when the absorption and distribution of the chemical following various routes (including dermal) are known. Kennedy, G.L., Jr.; Brock, W.J.; Banerjee, A.K.: Assignment of Skin Notation for Threshol...
Platelet collagen adhesion characterization of collagen glucosyltransferase of plasma membranes of human blood platelets

Abstract A glucosyltransferase which transfers glucose specifically from UDPG to incomplete heterosaccharide chains of collagen has been purified 20-fold in platelet plasma membranes isolated by the gycerol-lysis technique. The enzyme is inactive with other acceptors and the collagen-dependent activity is about 5 time greater than the endogeneous activity in the presence of collagen. The enzyme has a pH optimum (5.7) and metal requirement (15mM Mn 2+ ) similar to that of enzymes with the same activity isolated from other sources (HeLa cells, fibroblasts, kidney cortex) and is activated to about one-fifth by Ca 2+ , Mg 2+ , and CO 2+ . The enzyme is inhibited by aspirin, glucosamine, sylcosamine, sulfhydryl-blocking reagents and is product-inhibited by UDP; a similar range of inhibition is shown in platelet:cologen adhesion in which the enzyme may play a major role.
In vitro comparison of multinucleated giant cell formation from human umbilical cord and adult peripheral blood mononuclear phagocytes.

In Vitro Comparison of Multinucleated Giant Cell Formation from Human Umbilical Cord and Adult Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Phagocytes
Collective excitation in the crystalline nucleus model

In this paper we describe the mass dependence of the giant dipole resonance energy in terms of the crystalline model of the nucleus in which the α-particle is the basic unit. The experimental energies can be well reproduced for all nuclei heavier than the He nucleus. Because the success of the model depends on the correct counting of the relevant degrees of freedom, this result strongly suggests that four-particle correlations are an important aspect of the nuclear wave function.
Eosinophilia in Wegener's Granulomatosis

Significant eosinophilia is a prominent feature in Churg-Strauss syndrome but has only rarely been described in Wegener's granulomatosis (WG). We describe two Wegener's granulomatosis patients with > 30% eosinophilia on their initial presentations. Other etiologies that could account for their eosinophilia were excluded. Both patients had pulmonary alveolar hemorrhage, sinusitis, arthritis, high-titer cytoplasmic antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies (cANCA), and proteinase-3 antibodies, but no evidence of renal disease. Herein we discuss eosinophilia, the differential diagnosis of pulmonary infiltrates and eosinophilia, the role of cANCA in vasculitis and autoimmune disease, compare Wegener's granulomatosis and Churg-Strauss syndrome, and review possible pathogenic mechanisms.
Transtracheal aspiration and infusion in the horse

Transtracheal access enables researchers to obtain diagnostic samples from or infuse materials into the lower respiratory tract. This column describes transtracheal aspiration and infusion of horses.
Force feedback textual and graphic displays for the blind

Using the force feedback technology, which has been used in video games for years, prototypes of touchable online Braille generator and touchable online graphical display have been developed for visually impaired or blind users. Without expensive devices, these prototypes let blind people access information on the web by touching the output Braille displays or by scrolling over tactile graphical displays with a force feedback mouse. User studies have been conducted with visually impaired people and the data collected provide valuable information about the optimal conditions for these prototype force feedback displays, such as how strong the force should be and how big the Braille dots should appear. The end product of this research will enable visually impaired people to enjoy information on the web, including images, more freely.
MMPI vulnerability indicators for schizophrenia and attention deficit disorder: UCLA family study of biological parents of offspring with childhood-onset schizophrenia or ADHD

Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) scores were examined for 50 parents of children with an onset of schizophrenia prior to 14 years of age, 153 parents of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and 168 parents of community comparison children. The parents were participants in the UCLA Family Study. The mean scores on all standard MMPI scales were within normal limits for all three groups of participants. Parents of schizophrenia probands were significantly higher on scale Sc than parents of community comparison children. Previous research has shown that scale Sc may be associated with a genetic liability to developing schizophrenia. Thus, scale Sc shows promise as an indicator of a heightened risk for the development of schizophrenia. The parents of the ADHD probands were significantly higher on standard clinical scale Pd than community comparison parents. Mothers of both schizophrenia and ADHD probands shared some personality indicators of stress reactivity. Although this study, like all non-adoptee family studies, cannot disentangle genetic effects on the development of these personality characteristics from environmental effects, we speculate that the emotional distress resulting in higher levels of the MMPI characteristics seen in the patients' mothers reflects the impact of raising a psychiatrically ill offspring.
L'apport des modèles murins à la compréhension de la phénylcétonurie humaine

La phenylcetonurie est une maladie hereditaire qui resulte d'un defaut d'activite de l'enzyme phenylalanine hydroxylase. Cette maladie metabolique, une des toutes premieres dont le caractere hereditaire fut demontre chez l'homme, a ete etudiee de maniere tres approfondie au cours du demi-siecle passe [10] et les lignes qui suivent resument ce qui etait connu avant qu'un bon modele animal ne devienne disponible.
Results of molecular diagnostic assays targeting feline herpesvirus-1 and feline calicivirus in adult cats administered modified live vaccines

In this pilot study, 12 adult, gang-housed cats that were known to be previously exposed (n=12) to feline herpesvirus-1 (FHV-1) and/or vaccinated against (n=2) feline calicivirus (FCV) and FHV-1 were randomly assigned to one of two groups of six cats each. Nasal and pharyngeal samples were collected from each cat on days -7, -3, and 0 prior to vaccination and on days 3, 7, 10, 14, 17, 21, and 28 after vaccination with an FHV-1, FCV, and panleukopenia (FVRCP) vaccine developed for intranasal (six cats) or parenteral (six cats) use. FHV-1 DNA was amplified from 1/12 cats (1/69 samples; 1.4%) prior to vaccination and 2/12 cats after vaccination (2/154 samples; 1.3%). FCV RNA was amplified from 2/12 cats (2/69 samples; 2.9%) prior to vaccination and 7/12 cats (12/154 samples; 7.8%) after vaccination. Positive molecular diagnostic assay results for FHV-1 and FCV were uncommon prior to or after vaccination in these cats.
Low-Loss Plasmonic Titanium Nitride Strip Waveguides

In this work we report low-loss insulator-metal-insulator plasmonic interconnects using the CMOS-compatible material titanium nitride. The mode profile shows the characteristic exponential decay of the plasmonic regime, with propagation losses as low as 0.79 dB/mm.
Immunochemistry of sperm-whale myoglobin--XX. Accurate delineation of the single reactive region in sequence 80-103 by immunochemical studies of synthetic peptides.

Abstract Previous work from this laboratory on the antigenic structure of myoglobin (Mb) has shown that an antigenic reactive region exists within, but may not include all of, sequence 86–102 of Mb. Also, recently we have reported evidence that this reactive region is centered around histidine-97 and lysine-98. The present communication present independent evidence aimed at the accurate delineation of the reactive region by studying the immunochemistry of synthetic peptides corresponding to various parts of the region. Four peptides corresponding to sequence 92–100, 93–100, 94–100 and 93–99 were synthesized, exhaustively purified and characterized. The immunochemical interactions of the peptides were studied with four different antisera to Mb. With the antisera studied here, the presence or absence of Ser-92, His-93 or Pro-100 did not infleunce the immunochemical reactivity of the peptides. The reactive region, therefore, occupies the sequence 94–99 accurately. This is a small (six residue) surface location on the corner between helices F and G in native Mb.
Structural biology: molecular machinery in action.

Nuclear magnetic resonance is the best way to study motion in proteins, but it could be applied only to small systems. This limitation has been overcome to reveal the dynamics of a large protein complex.
Dynamic experiment using IMPULSE at the Advanced Photon Source

The ability to examine the dynamic response of materials at extreme conditions requires diagnostics that can provide real-time, in situ, spatially resolved measurements at the appropriate length scale. Recent advances in synchrotron sources and diagnostics coupled to dynamic loading platforms are transforming the dynamic compression field to allow for such investigations. In the current work, recent experimental efforts on the IMPULSE (IMPact System for ULtrafast Synchrotron Experiments) capability at the Advanced Photon Source (Argonne, IL) will be highlighted to describe its development and use to examine phenomena including jet-formation in metals, compaction, crack formation and propagation, and material strength and failure. These experimental results have relied in part on: 1) the development of a robust optically multiplexed intensified detector configuration to obtain the first shock movies and 2) gun system improvements to better synchronize the impact event with the 80-ps width X-ray bunch. The IMPULSE capability is expected to continue to reveal novel phenomena for materials subjected to high strain rate loading while developing the required knowledge base to ensure success for future facilities including the Dynamic Compression Sector at the Advanced Photon Source and LANL's MaRIE.
Influx of neutrophils into the walls of large epicardial coronary arteries in response to ischemia/reperfusion.

BACKGROUNDThere are several clinical situations in which large epicardial coronary arteries are deprived of blood flow, such as occurs when an obstructing thrombus or embolus lodges within a vessel or during coronary dissection. There is little information concerning the effect of flow deprivation on large epicardial coronary arteries.METHODS AND RESULTSWe studied a model in which a segment of a large epicardial coronary artery was deprived of blood flow using both proximal and distal clamps for 3 hours followed by reperfusion. On examination by light microscopy of cross sections of the arteries, 19 +/- 6 neutrophils were present in the intima of ischemic/reperfused vessels, whereas only a mean of 4 +/- 3 (SEM) were present in the intima of nonischemic vessels (p less than 0.02). On average, there were 17 +/- 9 neutrophils just under the elastic lamina in ischemic/reperfused vessels versus none in the nonischemic vessels (p less than 0.05); there were 16 +/- 10 neutrophils present within the media of isch...
Longitudinal statistical models for loss of sound surfaces

– Longitudinal data of 50-yr-old men, followed for 10 yr, were analyzed to identify variables which may be associated with healthy tooth surface loss. Three types of longitudinal models were used, arriving at similar conclusions. Predictors of sound tooth surface loss with aging included pocket depth, mobility, and recession.