cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Hydrate Characterization Research Overview

Gas hydrate research has been focused primarily on the development of a basic understanding of hydrate formation and dissociation in the laboratory, as well as in the field. Laboratory research on gas hydrates characterized the physical system, which focused on creating methane hydrates samples, tetrahydrofuran (THF) hydrate samples, consolidated rock samples, frost base mixtures, water/ice-base mixtures, and water-base mixtures. Laboratory work produced measurements of sonic velocity and electrical resistivity of hydrates. As work progressed, areas, such as the Gulf of Mexico and the Guatemala Trench, where gas hydrates are likely to occur were identified, and specific high potential areas were targeted for detailed investigation. The testing of samples and recovered cores from such areas provided information for detection of hydrate formations in the natural environment. Natural gas hydrate samples have been tested for thermal properties, dissociation properties, fracture mechanics, and optical properties. Acoustical properties were investigated both in the laboratory and, as possible, in the field. Sonic velocity and electrical resistivity measurements will continue to be obtained. These activities have been undertaken in hydrate deposits on Alaska`s North Slope, the Gulf of Mexico and the US East coast offshore, as well as other gas hydrate target areas.
The Role of Numbers and Statistics within Conversation Analysis

In this article, I discuss the role of numbers and statistics within Conversation Analysis (hereafter CA). Due to space limitations, I do not review CA (see Heritage, 1984). Furthermore, I do not f...
Eurasia: What is it? Is it?

Abstract Does the former Soviet space have any historico-regional significance, or is it really no more than an area occupied by an imperial aspirant, taking advantage of the weakness of European and Asian powers following the First World War? The author argues that the term “Eurasia” is merely a convenient way of referring to what had been Soviet territory. Recent history has seen attempts to endow it with a larger civilizational significance, but these attempts are rooted in Russian myth-making. Those areas which understand themselves as European and are part of historical Christendom will return to the “democratic,” consumer culture of Europe as rapidly as they can. The nationalities and small nations of the Caucasus and central Asia, predominantly Islamic, are becoming part of the “Middle East,” as it is commonly understood in contemporary geopolitical discourse. Portions of what had been the eastern and southern parts of the Soviet Union are drifting into the orbit of China, and even India may exert a certain influence. The methods used by non-Soviet and Soviet scholars alike to study the Soviet Union are almost entirely irrelevant to contemporary scholarship.
Novel high-performance liquid chromatographic and solid-phase extraction methods for quantitating methadone and its metabolite in spiked human urine.

Abstract A novel solid-phase extraction (SPE) method and HPLC method were developed for the determination of methadone and its metabolite from spiked human urine. For sample cleanup, a spiked urine sample was pretreated with phosphoric acid followed by a well-thought-out SPE method using a 10-mg Oasis HLB 96-well extraction plate. In this SPE method, the concentration of methanol as well as the pH are optimized to preferentially isolate the analytes of interest from the sample matrix. Low elution volumes (200 μl) are achieved; this eliminates evaporation and reconstitution of the sample solution. Recoveries from human urine matrix were greater than 91% with RSD values less than 4.5%. For the HPLC analysis, the separation was obtained using a SymmetryShield RP18 column with a mobile phase of 0.1% TFA–methanol (60:40, v/v). Good peak shapes were obtained without the need of addition of any competing reagent to the mobile phase. Additionally, significant signal-to-noise enrichment was achieved by diluting the final SPE eluates four-fold with water.
Subsociality and Female Reproductive Success in a Mycophagous Thrips: An Observational and Experimental Analysis

Oviparous females of the haplodiploid, facultatively viviparous thrips Elaphrothrips tuberculatus(Thysanoptera: Phlaeothripidae) guard their eggs against female conspecifics and other egg predators. The intensity of maternal defense increases with clutch size. Field and laboratory observations indicate that cannibalism by females is an important selective pressure favoring maternal care. Experimental removals of guarding females showed that egg guarding substantially increases egg survivorship and that the survivorship of undefended eggs is higher in the absence of nonguarding female conspecifics than in their presence. The fecundity of viviparous females increases with the number of eggs cannibalized. The reproductive success of oviparous females increases with body size and local food density and decreases with local density of breeding females. Social behavior may not have advanced beyond maternal care in Elaphrothrips tuberculatusbecause, relative to Hymenoptera, capabilities for helping relatives are few or nonexistent, and the causes of variation in female reproductive success are not influenced easily by cooperation among females.
Compliant Foil Journal Bearing Performance at Alternate Pressures and Temperatures

An experimental test program has been conducted to determine the highly loaded performance of current generation gas foil bearings at alternate pressures and temperatures. Typically foil bearing performance has been reported at temperatures relevant to turbomachinery applications but only at an ambient pressure of one atmosphere. This dearth of data at alternate pressures has motivated the current test program. Two facilities were used in the test program, the ambient pressure rig and the high pressure rig. The test program utilized a 35 mm diameter by 27 mm long foil journal bearing having an uncoated Inconel X-750 top foil running against a shaft with a PS304 coated journal. Load capacity tests were conducted at 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18, and 21 krpm at temperatures from 25 to 500 C and at pressures from 0.1 to 2.5 atmospheres. Results show an increase in load capacity with increased ambient pressure and a reduction in load capacity with increased ambient temperature. Below one-half atmosphere of ambient pressure a dramatic loss of load capacity is experienced. Additional lightly loaded foil bearing performance in nitrogen at 25 C and up to 48 atmospheres of ambient pressure has also been reported. In the lightly loaded region of operation the power loss increases for increasing pressure at a fixed load. Knowledge of foil bearing performance at operating conditions found within potential machine applications will reduce program development risk of future foil bearing supported turbomachines.
Sudden unexpected death associated with HHV-6 in an adolescent with tuberous sclerosis

Abstract A 14-year-old female with tuberous sclerosis and history of seizures was found dead in bed at home 3 days after she had been assessed as doing well at a routine neurology clinic appointment. She had been treated with an antiepileptic drug, felbamate, for 36 months and had been seizure-free except for one seizure episode 5 months before death. Postmortem examination revealed cerebral edema, with uncal and tonsillar herniation, and pulmonary edema, consistent with seizure-induced apnea. Multiple microglial nodules with mature perivascular lymphocytic cuffing and diffuse infiltrates were identified around subependymal tuberous sclerosis giant cell nodules. Immunostaining and electron microscopy revealed human herpesvirus-6–infected macrophages, astrocytes, lymphocytes, and endothelial cells in the subependymal tuberous sclerosis lesions and choroid plexus. Subacute human herpesvirus-6 encephalitis is postulated to have precipitated a seizure and thus sudden unexpected death in epilepsy in this otherwise stable adolescent patient.
Design Optimization of a Wearable Artificial Pump-Lung Device With Computational Modeling

The heart-lung machine has been commonly used to replace or supplement the functions of both the heart and lung in the open heart surgery and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). Although ECMO devices are efficient on respiratory support, this traditional system consists of multiple components and is bulky. Furthermore, ECMO devices are associated with clinical complications as well as the necessity of being confined to the bed. To eliminate these, we aimed to design and develop a wearable artificial pump lung (APL) device.Copyright © 2010 by ASME
Indocyanine green angiography in the diagnosis of retinal arterial macroaneurysms associated with submacular and preretinal hemorrhages: a case series.

Abstract PURPOSE: To report the use of indocyanine green angiography in the diagnosis of retinal arterial macroaneurysms associated with preretinal and subretinal hemorrhage. METHODS: Retrospective case series. Indocyanine green angiograms of five consecutive patients with dense preretinal, intraretinal, and subretinal hemorrhages in which the cause of hemorrhage was still in question after clinical evaluation and fluorescein angiography. RESULTS: In five eyes of five patients, indocyanine green angiography demonstrated acquired retinal arterial macroaneurysms as the cause of hemorrhage. Each diagnosis was confirmed after the hemorrhages spontaneously resolved or were surgically removed. CONCLUSIONS: Indocyanine green angiography is useful in the diagnosis of acquired retinal arterial macroaneurysms when fluorescein angiography is inconclusive because of preretinal, intraretinal, or subretinal hemorrhage. Establishing the diagnosis of retinal arterial macroaneurysm can influence the management of patients with submacular and premacular hemorrhage.
NMR lineshapes of the solid hydrogen quadrupolar glass

Abstract It is proposed that the low-lying excitations of solid hydrogen in the quadrupolar glass state may be described in terms of a distribution of “effective spin-one quadrupoles”. This model provides a qualitative explanation for the temperature dependence of NMR lineshapes, and of the low temperature specific heat.
Binding of histone H1 to DNA is described by an allosteric model.

Equilibrium binding data were analyzed to characterize the interaction of the linker histone H1° with unmodified T4 phage DNA. Data were cast into the Scatchard-type plot described by McGhee and von Hippel and fit to their eponymous model for nonspecific binding of ligand to DNA. The data were not fit by the simple McGhee–von Hippel model, nor fit satisfactorily by the inclusion of a cooperativity parameter. Instead, the interaction appeared to be well described by Crothers' allosteric model, in which the higher affinity of the protein for one conformational form of the DNA drives an allosteric transition of the DNA to the conformational form with higher affinity (form 2). At 214 mM Na+, the observed affinity K for an isolated site on unmodified T4 bacteriophage DNA in the form 2 conformation is 4.5 × 107M−1. The binding constant for an isolated site on DNA in the conformation with lower affinity, form 1, appears to be about 10-fold lower. Binding affinity is dependent on ion concentration: the magnitude of K is about 10-fold higher at 14 mM (5.9 × 108M−1 for form 2 DNA) than at 214 mM Na+ concentration. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Biopolymers, 2005
Pancreas transplantation in humans with diabetes mellitus.

Pancreas transplantation, when successful, is a reproducibly effective method to normalize glycemia without the use of exogenous insulin treatment in patients with diabetes mellitus. Success rates for combined pancreas and kidney transplantation are ∼70%, and patient survival rates are ∼90% 1 yr postoperatively. Metabolic benefits of this procedure include normalization of levels of fasting plasma glucose and HbA1C. Glucose-induced insulin secretion and intravenous glucose tolerance are normalized. Improvements are also observed in glucose recovery after insulin-induced hypoglycemia and in glucagon secretion during hypoglycemia. Pancreas transplantation is also associated with normalization of kidney structure and both motor and sensory nerve function. However, no benefits have been observed with regard to pancreatic polypeptide secretion, kidney function, and the retinal pathology of diabetes mellitus. Pancreas transplantation has reached a point in its history where the operative technique and its ancillary medical therapy have been optimized. Improvement in the rates of success, morbidity, and mortality will probably depend on improvement in immunosuppressive drugs and the physical condition of the recipients themselves. The time is at hand when we need to carefully consider whether it is ethical and advisable to make pancreas transplantation available to individuals who have fewer chronic complications of diabetes mellitus. Future studies of pancreas transplantation must incorporate more rigid experimental controls than have been used in the past to better assess the relative merits of this procedure.
Regular weights and the Johnson scheme

This work addresses existence of weighted coherent configurations (cc’s) in the special case of the Johnson schemes,J(n, k). Many examples of weighted cc’s occur in the context of a permutation representation of a group which affords the cc. We determine the ranks of the weighted Johnson schemes which arise in this “group case” in connection with the alternating groupA n . The association schemeJ(n, 2) has rank 3, with the triangular graphT(n) as one of its graphs. Conditions on feasible parameters for regular, full rank weights onT(n) are established. We describe two infinite families of such feasible parameters.
Behavior Therapy for Tourette's Syndrome and Chronic Tic Disorder: A Web-Based Video Illustration of Treatment Components.

Abstract Tic disorders have traditionally been conceptualized as neurobiological conditions and consequently within the purview of neurologists. In the last few decades, however, a number of psychosocial treatments have been developed and tested. To date, a behavioral treatment called Habit Reversal Training (HRT) has garnered the most empirical support as an efficacious treatment for tic disorders. HRT is a multicomponent, short-term, behavioral intervention. The purpose of this paper is to provide a brief overview of the behavioral treatment of tic disorders including a detailed description of the core components of HRT: awareness training and competing response training. We will also review function-based assessment and treatment strategies, which have been emphasized in more recent behavioral approaches. The accompanying videos demonstrate aspects of these clinical techniques.
Context-dependent sensitization to ethanol in zebrafish (Danio rerio)

One of the most robust and readily measurable effects of moderate doses of ethanol on zebrafish behavior is locomotor hyperactivity. Two experiments were designed to examine the effects of repeated exposures to ethanol on ethanol-induced locomotor hyperactivity, and to determine whether these effects are context-dependent. Adult, wild-type zebrafish were given repeated exposure to ethanol in the presence of one contextual stimulus (A), while exposed to water in the presence of a second contextual stimulus (B). Exposure to ethanol consistently induced locomotor hyperactivity. After repeated exposures, animals tested with ethanol in the ethanol-paired context (A) showed sensitization of locomotor activity. When tested with ethanol in the unpaired context (B), however, sensitization was not observed. When tested in the absence of ethanol, there were no differences in responding to the paired and unpaired stimuli. This is the first demonstration of ethanol-induced locomotor sensitization in zebrafish. Moreover, this sensitization was context-specific, indicating that learning can modify drug-induced behaviors in zebrafish.
Effect of the cooper minimum on charged particle ionization

Abstract The energy distribution of electrons produced by 1 MeV proton impact ionization on Ne, Ar, H 2 , N 2 , and C 2 H 6 has been measured at 130°. The curves show similar shapes with the exception of Ar due to a Cooper minimum in the 3p → ϵd channel.
First photon-shutter development for APS insertion device beamline front ends

One of the most critical components on the Advanced Photon Source (APS) insertion device (ID) beamline front ends is the first photon shutter. It operates in two modes to fully intercept the high total power and high-heat-flux ID photon beam in seconds (normal mode) or in less than 100 ms (emergency fast mode). It is designed to operate in ultra high vacuum (UHV). The design incorporates a multi-channel rectangular bar, bent in a `hockey stick' configuration, with two-point suspension. The flanged end is an articulated bellows with rolling hinges. The actuation end is a spring-assisted, pneumatic fail-safe flexural pivot type. The coolant (water) channels incorporate brazed copper foam to enhance the heat transfer, a tube technology particular to the APS. The design development, and material aspects, as well as the extensive thermal and vibrational analyses in support of the design, are presented in this paper.
Development of New Neuromuscular Blocking Agents

Increased understanding of structure–activity relationships has allowed the development of neuromuscular blocking compounds and reversal agents that are unique and offer pharmacokinetic and dynamic improvements over their predecessors. Compounds have been developed that have a short duration of effect, a rapid clearance and a decrease in adverse effects. The fumarates comprise one of the series of compounds that have resulted from this research. These compounds are inactivated through a mechanism that is completely new for neuromuscular blocking agents—that of cysteine adduction. The work has also led to the development of alternative ways to enhance recovery of neuromuscular function. Sugammadex encapsulates steroidal neuromuscular blocking compounds making them unable to interact with the acetylcholine receptor and reversing their effect within minutes. Recovery from gantacurium- or CW002-induced neuromuscular block can be shortened by administration of l-cysteine. These new neuromuscular blocking and reversal agents allow for maintenance of an adequate depth of neuromuscular block intraoperatively and almost immediate recovery of neuromuscular function, a sensible goal as the risks of residual neuromuscular block are increasingly appreciated.
Mother, Can I Trust the Government-Sustained Financial Deepening - A Political Institutions' View

Only a minority of countries have succeeded in establishing a developed financial system, despite widespread financial liberalization. Confronted with this finding, the “political institutions view” claims that sustained financial deepening is most likely to take place in institutional environments where governments effectively impose constraints on their own powers in order to create trust. This paper identifies over 200 post-1960 episodes of accelerations in financial development in a large cross-section of countries. We find that the likelihood of an acceleration leading to sustained financial development increases greatly in environments that have high-quality political institutions.
Modernization in the People's Republic of China: The Politicization of the Elderly

The rapid modernization in the People's Republic of China (PRC) allows us to identify some of the principles that underlie the changes in State-managed economies and their affects on the elderly. Modernization theory predicts that traditionally high status of the elderly declines with industrialization. This theory's difficulties can be overcome by using the variables of the "state" and the political economy by developing a model of "bureaucratic politics" and the "state" which explains "how" the status of the elderly changes through the interplay of competing interests within the society and thus may "increase" or "decrease" as the society modernizes. This research is based on data collected in the PRC between 1981-1986. Since 1978 there have been three major reform efforts; each has consequences for the elderly: (1) economic, (2) bureaucratic, and (3) population. In order to achieve them, programming for elderly is occurring: (1) retirement pensions and medical care, (2) homes for the aged, and (3) special activities to use the "left over energy" of the elderly. The future importance of the elderly in China will depend on their consequences for (1) the developing economy, (2) the bureaucratic politics of the Party and the State, and (3) other agendas of the State the implicate the elderly.
Bottom-Up Construction and 2:1 Balance Refinement of Linear Octrees in Parallel

In this article, we propose new parallel algorithms for the construction and 2:1 balance refinement of large linear octrees on distributed memory machines. Such octrees are used in many problems in computational science and engineering, e.g., object representation, image analysis, unstructured meshing, finite elements, adaptive mesh refinement, and N-body simulations. Fixed-size scalability and isogranular analysis of the algorithms using an MPI-based parallel implementation was performed on a variety of input data and demonstrated good scalability for different processor counts (1 to 1024 processors) on the Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center's TCS-1 AlphaServer. The results are consistent for different data distributions. Octrees with over a billion octants were constructed and balanced in less than a minute on 1024 processors. Like other existing algorithms for constructing and balancing octrees, our algorithms have $\mathcal{O}(N\log N)$ work and $\mathcal{O}(N)$ storage complexity. Under reasonable assumptions on the distribution of octants and the work per octant, the parallel time complexity is $\mathcal{O}(\frac{N}{n_p}\log(\frac{N}{n_p})+n_p\log n_p)$, where $N$ is the size of the final linear octree and $n_p$ is the number of processors.
Critical Storytelling and Diabolical Dialectics: Alexander Kluge and the Devil's Blind Spots

Does dialectical method induce clairvoyance or blindness? Alexander Kluge's Die Lucke, die der Teufel last probes this question by exploring the theoretical interests of the Frankfurt School on literary terrain. In his experimental storytelling, Kluge suggestively and playfully deploys the devil as an unlikely ally of enlightenment. This enables him to redress the relationship of enlightenment to contingency and its blind spots as well as investigate the spaces of human action at the beginning of the twenty-first century. A diabolical dialectics of the kind found in Kluge's short prose texts proves adequate to the spatiotemporal complexities of the new century's power constellations. In his transformation and expansion of the lessons of his Frankfurt teachers, Kluge reorganizes the architecture of Frankfurt School dialectics along spatial coordinates. This article demonstrates Kluge's narrative spatialization of dialectics by addressing Die Lucke, die der Teufel last's strategic constellations of devil ta...
Neuronal chemistry and functional organization in the primate visual system

Beginning with the first step of visual processing and proceeding outward from that point, the neurons involved in different aspects of vision are distinct. Stated simply, neurons doing different things look different. They often display distinct morphological features and they usually express different molecules. In addition, neurons that perform a common function usually aggregate together to form recognizable layers or compartments that can be studied in isolation because they are neurochemically distinct. Here is found, then, a junction of two major domains in neuroscience research, as discovery of molecular diversity among neurons is exploited to study organization and function of the primate visual system.
Manifest Anxiety and Transfer of Complex Learning

In a previous study (Sassenrath, 1963) Ss who were high or low on the Manifest Anxiety Scale (MAS) and also on the Test Anxiety Questionnaire (TAQ) were compared on concept learning without awareness (LWA) in a 2 MAS by 2 TAQ factorial design in the craining and "transfer" periods. In the training period Low TAQ Groups ( a ) require fewer trials to criterion, ( b ) fixate less on correct responses prior to awareness and (c ) show more accelerated LWA than High TAQ Groups. In the test or "transfer" period Low TAQ and High MAS Groups require significantly fewer trials to criterion than High TAQ and Low MAS Groups. However, the results during "transfer" are very pronounced for the TAQ but unpronounced for the MAS. This previous srudy ( a ) found only the one result due to MAS, ( b ) assumed from even earlier studies (Sassenrath, 1959, 1962) that transfer of learning would occur, and ( c ) selected Ss on the basis of their TAQ as well as MAS scores. Therefore, it appears that another atrack should be made on the influence of MAS as a drive (D) on transfer when a partially correct learning set is dominant at the end of the initial training period. As before (Sassenrath, 1963), the theoretical analysis indicates that in training the low MAS Ss should require fewer trials to criterion, while in rransfer the high MAS Ss should require fewer trials to criterion. Method.-The MAS was administered along with the TAQ in a counterbalanced design to 77 men and 125 women who were upperclassmen and graduate students in ed~~cation at the University of California, Berkeley. Three groups of 20 Ss each were selected as low ( 1-5), medium (12-14) or high (21-38) scorers on the MAS. The TAQ scores for these three groups ranged from 0 to 23, 3 to 31, and 14 to 30, respectively. Ten Ss in each of the three MAS groups were given initial craining on a task while the remainder were not. All 60 Ss were then given the transfer task. Thus the experiment was a 3 MAS by 2 training (experimental and control) treatments factorial design in the transfer period. A complete description of the tasks, procedure, and instructions may be found in the previous srudy (Sassenrath, 1963). Re~z4lts.-In the training period the mean numbers of blocks of trials to at least a partially correct verbalization of the concept were 7.2, 6.5 and 9.3, respectively, for the low, medium and high MAS groups. An analysis of variance indicates that the means are not significantly different (I: = 1.24, df = 2/27,
A novel mutation in myelin-deficient mice results in unstable myelin basic protein gene transcripts

Mice homozygous for the myelin-deficient (mld) mutation have an unusual phenotype in which the gene encoding myelin basic protein (MBP) is expressed at low levels and on an abnormal developmental schedule. In this report we describe the organization of the mld MBP locus, which results in this alteration of MBP expression. The mld MBP locus consists of two tandem MBP genes, with the upstream gene containing an inversion of its 3' region. We also demonstrate that although there are low steady-state levels of MBP RNA in mld mice, the mld MBP locus is transcribed at a rate comparable to that of the wild-type MBP gene, indicating that the MBP transcripts are abnormally unstable.
Salinity tolerance and salt gland excretion efficiency of bermudagrass turf cultivars

Need for salt tolerant turfgrasses is increasing due to government mandates requiring use of low quality, secondary water sources for turfgrass irrigation. Objectives of this study were to determine the range in salinity tolerance among modern Cynodon spp. (bermudagrass) turf cultivars, determine if leaf salt gland excretion is an important salinity tolerance mechanism in bermudagrass, and if salinity tolerance is associated with the rate, or efficiency of leaf salt gland excretion. Salinity responses of thirty five bermudagrass turf cultivars [Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers, and C. dactylon X Cynodon transvaalensis (Burtt-Davey)] were determined by exposing plants to five salinity levels (0, 15, 30, 45, and 60 dS m -1 ). Salinity tolerance among cultivars was determined by shoot dry weight reduction relative to control plants and by percent green leaf canopy area (GLCA). Salinity resulting in 50% reduction in shoot dry weight (SW50) ranged from 26 to 40 dS m -1 , indicating a wide range in salinity tolerance within this genus. Salt glands were present on both abaxial and adaxial leaf surfaces of all cultivars. Salinity tolerance was negatively correlated with leaf tissue Na + concentration and positively correlated with leaf salt gland Na + excretion rate, indicating that salinity tolerance in bermudagrasses is associated with shoot saline ion exclusion and to leaf salt gland excretion efficiency.
Stieltjes‐integral approximations to elementary dispersion relations

Variational calculations in Hilbert space and theorems from the Tchebycheff-Stieltjes-Markoff moment theory are employed in the construction of Stieltjes-integral approximations to a number of elementary dispersion relations. Appropriate derivatives of the Stieltjes integrating functions provide convergent estimates for the absorptive and dispersive conjugate functions in their nonanalytic regions on the real axis, where the dispersion relations are of particular interest. Illustrative applications are given in the cases of the Kramers-Kronig-Heisenberg dispersion formula, the closely related wave number-dependent dielectric response function, a dispersion relation that arises in connection with lattice vibrations and the thermodynamic properties of crystals, and the Schwinger-Baker formula for the elastic-scattering Fredholm determinant.
Protecting human subjects and preserving academic freedom: Prospects at the University of Chicago

Within the terms of the federal regulatory scheme requiring institutional review board (IRB) oversight of federally funded research with human subjects, projects that are not federally funded are not mandated for IRB review. Eighty percent of social-science projects at the University of Chicago are not federally funded. This article is a critique of the overextension of federal regulations by university and college administrators and provides some suggestions for reform.
The erosion of reaction-bonded SiC

Abstract The impact erosion of commercial reaction-bonded SiC by angular Al2O3 particles was investigated at room temperature over a range of median particle sizes (23–270 μm), velocities (54–151 m s−1) and impact angles (10–90°) by weight loss measurements and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The weight loss curves show a transient of increasing rate prior to achieving steady state. Current theories do not predict the result that the steady state erosion rate ΔW is given by ΔW = R0.7–0.95v2.0–2.5 where R is the impacting particle radius and v is the velocity. The steady state surface morphology changes from a mesa-like structure, where the mesas are protrusions of large SiC regions surrounded by valleys of a fine-grained intergranular mixed SiC-Si region, to a more uniform structure as the Al2O3 particle size increases. This is a geometrical effect reflecting the microstructural scale. The particle size dependence of ΔW does not show a break when the surface morphology undergoes this transition, which suggests that the net erosion rate may be a simple volume average of the component rates. The SEM micrographs and the angular dependence of ΔW suggest that plasticity occurs although the damage is predominantly brittle fracture. The steady state erosion rates for the smallest particles are anomalously low, which may be attributed to either threshold or microstructural effects.
[3H]methoxytetrabenazine: A high specific activity ligand for estimating monoaminergic neuronal integrity

The properties as well as the distribution of high specific activity alpha-[O-methyl-3H]methyoxytetrabenazine binding to the synaptic vesicular monoamine transporter were studied autoradiographically in rat brain sections. Saturation analysis revealed [3H]methoxytetrabenazine interaction with a homogeneous population of striatal sites (Hill coefficient 1.00 +/- 0.05), with an apparent equilibrium dissociation binding constant of 3.9 +/- 0.4 nM and a maximal binding capacity of 1.2 +/- 0.1 fmol/micrograms protein. Highest levels of [3H]methoxytetrabenazine binding sites were observed in regions richly innervated by the monoamine systems. In the presence of 1 microM concentrations of a variety of competing drugs, only reserpine significantly inhibited [3H]methoxytetrabenazine binding. The presynaptic nigrostriatal location of [3H]methoxytetrabenazine binding was demonstrated by unilateral lesion of the median forebrain bundle with 6-hydroxydopamine. The resulting decrease of striatal [3H]methoxytetrabenazine binding showed an excellent correlation with tyrosine hydroxylase-positive neuron density in the substantia nigra pars compacta (r2 = 0.96; P < 0.001). The present studies demonstrate that in vitro [3H]methoxytetrabenazine binding is a reliable, quantitative marker of the synaptic vesicular monoamine transporter. Further, it is indicated that [3H]methoxytetrabenazine binding provides an accurate assessment of monoamine neuronal losses and may thus be of great value in future studies of neurodegenerative diseases.
SUXAMETHONIUM-INDUCED PORCINE MALIGNANT HYPERTHERMIA

SUMMARY Metabolic, haemodynamic and neuroendocrine responses to suxamethonium (SCh) were measured in five normal swine and five swine susceptible to malignant hyperthermia (MH), to compare the responses with those previously reported for halothane. Following SCh, the onset of MH was sooner and more abrupt than following halothane. The maximal changes in aerobic metabolism and body temperature were similar, while the changes in lactate, potassium, hydrogen ion and catecholamine concentrations were smaller than those observed following halothane. These results are discussed in terms of the action of chemical depolarizing drugs such as suxamethonium and acetylcholine. The propagated muscle action potentials produce an increase in the free intracellular calcium concentration which may be self-regenerative, but which may become uncontrollable because of the peculiarities of MH that effect the calcium pump or storage areas.
An "Old" Religion in "New Order" Indonesia: Notes on Ethnicity and Religious Affiliation

This paper examines the relationship between state-controlled religious modernization and the construction of identity among Ngaju Dayaks, a rainforest people of Central Kalimantan, Indonesian Borneo. In 1980, Indonesia's Ministry of Religion recognized Ngaju indigenous religion, known as Kaharingan, as a variety of Hinduism. Thus, whereas in the past beliefs and practices associated with Kaharingan were deemed custom (adat), they are now considered religion (agama). The paper suggests that the reclassification of Kaharingan as religion has important implications for the negotiation of ethnic identity. Although most Ngaju have converted to world religions, a vocal and increasingly powerful minority now claim primordial status for Hindu Kaharingan as a constituent of Ngaju ethnicity. The paper concludes that the role of religion in ethnicity will continue to be contested, even as the peoples of this region seek to construct and portray themselves in a manner that will facilitate their participation in identity politics at both the local and national levels
Reduced-complexity extended Min-sum check node processing for non-binary LDPC decoding

Non-binary low-density parity-check (NB-LDPC) codes can achieve higher coding gain than binary LDPC codes when the code length is moderate at the cost of higher complexity. One major step of NB-LDPC decoding is check node processing. Previously, iterative forward-backward approaches are employed to implement this step. However, the storage of the intermediate results of the forward and backward computations requires large memory. In this paper, a novel check node processing scheme and corresponding VLSI architectures are proposed for the extended Min-sum NB-LDPC decoding. The proposed scheme only stores a limited number of sorted variable-to-check messages. Then the check-to-variable messages for different variable node are generated independently. For a (837, 726) NB-LDPC code over GF(25), the proposed architecture only requires 64% of the area of the previous design with the same throughput and error-correcting performance.
BM stem cells and cardiac repair: Where do we stand in 2004?

Adult BM stem cells are being investigated for their potential to regenerate injured tissues by a process referred to as plasticity or transdifferentiation. Although data supporting stem cell plasticity is extensive, a controversy has emerged based on findings that propose cell-cell fusion as a more appropriate interpretation for this phenomenon. A major focus of this controversy is the claim that acutely infarcted myocardium in adult hearts can be regenerated by BM stem cells. Many researchers consider the adult heart to be a post-mitotic organ, whereas others believe that a low level of cardiomyocyte renewal occurs throughout life. If renewal occurs, it may be in response to cardiac stem cell activity or to stem cells that migrate from distant tissues. Post-mortem microscopic analysis of experimentally induced myocardial infarctions in several rodent models suggests that cardiomyocyte renewal is achieved by stem cells that infiltrate the damaged tissue. For a better understanding of the possible involvement of stem cells in myocardial regeneration, it is important to develop appropriate technologies to monitor myocardial repair over time with an emphasis on large animal models. Studies on non-human primate, swine and canine models of acute myocardial infarctions would enable investigators to utilize clinical quality cell-delivery devices, track labeled donor cells after precision transplantation and utilize non-invasive imaging for functional assays over time with clinical accuracy. In addition, if stem cell plasticity is to reach the next level of acceptance, it is important to identify the environmental cues needed for stem cell trafficking and to define the genetic and cellular mechanisms that initiate transdifferentiation. Only then will it be possible to determine if, and to what extent, BM stem cells are involved in myocardial regeneration and to begin to regulate precisely tissue repair.
Modeling Space–Time Dynamics of Aerosols Using Satellite Data and Atmospheric Transport Model Output

Kernel-based models for space–time data offer a flexible and descriptive framework for studying atmospheric processes. Nonstationary and anisotropic covariance structures can be readily accommodated by allowing kernel parameters to vary over space and time. In addition, dimension reduction strategies make model fitting computationally feasible for large datasets. Fitting these models to data derived from instruments onboard satellites, which often contain significant amounts of missingness due to cloud cover and retrieval errors, can be difficult. In this paper, we propose to overcome the challenges of missing satellite-derived data by supplementing an analysis with output from a computer model, which contains valuable information about the space–time dependence structure of the process of interest. We illustrate our approach through a case study of aerosol optical depth across mainland Southeast Asia. We include a cross-validation study to assess the strengths and weaknesses of our approach.
The association of LDL receptor activity, LDL cholesterol level, and clinical course in homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia.

Patients with homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia (FH), reveal a marked heterogeneity in plasma cholesterol levels, response to diet as well as drug treatment, and clinical course. Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) receptor activities were assessed by the rate of 14C-oleate cholesteryl ester biosynthesis in fibroblasts from 13 FH homozygotes in tissue culture. The receptor activity of the individual patients was highly correlated with initial pretreatment plasma cholesterol and LDL cholesterol levels (P less than .001, r = -0.89). In addition, the LDL receptor activity was positively correlated with the age of onset of angina based on the Cox model (P less than .035, likelihood ratio = 6.71). An association was also noted between LDL receptor activity and cholesterol reduction with drugs. These data provide direct evidence for the correlation between the heterogeneity of the LDL receptor and the expression of the clinical manifestations of homozygous FH. The determination of pretreatment plasma cholesterol level and LDL receptor activity in patients with homozygous FH provide useful parameters on which to base predictions of the clinical progression of cardiovascular disease. These parameters may also influence the selection of a program for diet and drug therapy. Patients with markedly elevated plasma cholesterol levels and very low LDL receptor activity should be considered to be candidates for multiple drug therapy, and portacaval shunt, and/or periodic plasma exchanges.
On the accuracy of the finite element method plus time relaxation

If u denotes a local, spatial average of u, then u' = u — u is the associated fluctuation. Consider a time relaxation term added to the usual finite element method. The simplest case for the model advection equation u t +a · ∇u = (x, t) is (u h,t + a · ∇u h ,v h )+χ(u' h ,v' h )=(f(x,t),v h ). We analyze the error in this and (more importantly) higher order extensions and show that the added time relaxation term not only suppresses excess energy in marginally resolved scales but also increases the accuracy of the resulting finite element approximation.
Cannulation of the bovine ampullary and isthmic oviduct.

Procedures were developed in the bovine for cannulating the ampulla and isthmus regions of the same oviduct. A total of 21 dual cannulation procedures were performed with an average patency of 103 ± 16 days for the ampulla and 73 ± 14 days for the isthmus. The major cause of catheter failure was avulsion. Daily fluid flow around estrus for the ampulla averaged 1.04 mL, but only 0.50 mL for the isthmus. Volumes were about half the estrus values during the luteal phase. Catheter materials used in the study were evaluated to determine their ion diffusion properties. These studies indicated that diffusion of 24Na was negligible.
NeuroD1 and Mash1 temporally regulate GnRH receptor gene expression in immortalized mouse gonadotrope cells

Abstract Accurate spatial and temporal expression of gonadotrope-specific genes, such as the gonadotropin-releasing hormone receptor (GnRHR) gene, is critical for gonadotrope maturation. Herein, we show that a specific E-box in the mouse GnRHR promoter binds two group A basic-helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcription factors. Mutation of this E-box decreases expression in mouse gonadotrope-derived αT3-1 and LβT2 cell lines. Microarray and western blots show that the bHLH transcription factor NeuroD1 is strongly expressed in the gonadotrope progenitor, αT3-1, whereas Mash1 is strongly expressed in the more mature gonadotrope, LβT2. Over-expression of NeuroD1 or Mash1 increases expression of the GnRHR gene or a multimer of the E-box and this increase is lost upon mutation of the E-box. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays reveal that the GnRHR E-box binds NeuroD1 from αT3-1 cells, but binds Mash1 from LβT2 cells. The sequential binding of different members of the group A bHLH transcription factor family to mouse GnRHR E-box 3 as the gonadotrope differentiates may represent a mechanism necessary for proper spatial and temporal expression of the GnRHR during gonadotrope development.
Modelling of reactive sputtering processes involving two separated metallic targets

Abstract A theoretical model is presented in order to predict general behaviours and properties of the reactive sputtering process implementing two separated metallic targets in a reactive atmosphere. Taking into account gas kinetic theory, geometrical characteristics of the device and from simple physical and chemical assumptions, the proposed theoretical development is capable of describing evolutions of some process parameters such as reactive gas partial pressure. Some relationships between reactive gas flow rate, gas pressure and sputtering rate coming from each target have been established. Theoretical results determined with this model have been compared with experimental measurements obtained for the titanium–chromium–oxygen system. It is pointed out the proposed model is quite convenient to predict whole behaviours of the multitarget reactive sputtering process. The ‘characteristic function’ has also been calculated leading on some original and interesting theoretical results: a new way to remove totally or to modulate the size and the position of the instability phenomena of the reactive method.
Effective interaction between two giant spheres suspended in a size polydisperse hard-sphere fluid

Analytic expressions for the Laplace transform of the interaction energy and force between two exceedingly large hard spheres at infinite dilution in a polydisperse hard-sphere suspending fluid are presented. The equations are based on the Percus–Yevick approximation for the many-component suspending fluid, supplemented by the hypernetted chain approximation for the correlation function of the suspended spheres. By applying the Derjaguin approximation, the energy and force results for two spheres are related to the energy per unit area and the disjoining pressure between two flat walls suspended in a polydisperse fluid. Numerical results for the representative Schultz distributions of the diameters of the species comprising the suspending fluid are presented and discussed.
What the Brownstones Say: Surveying Place in Brooklyn

: [in focus, place, Brooklyn, redevelopment project, Atlantic Yards, community, urban anthropology]
Organic light emitting diodes using poly(phenylenevinylene) doped with perylenediimide electron acceptors

The performance of organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs) based on BEH-PPV(1,4-bis(2-ethylhexyloxy)phenylenevinylene) doped with a perylenediimide (PDI) electron acceptor is reported. The turn on voltage and emission intensity are dependent on doping level, cathode material and polymer thickness.
Maize transposable element Ds is differentially spliced from primary transcripts in endosperm and suspension cells.

The process by which transposable elements are spliced from the host gene transcripts remains poorly understood. We previously reported that a maize transposable element Ds (dissociation) and a copy of its host site duplication are perfectly spliced from the shrunken-2 transcript in the endosperm. Here, we have monitored splicing of the Ds element and its flanking Sh2 sequence following transient expression in maize suspension cells. The pattern of Ds splicing in suspension cells differs dramatically from that in the endosperm. In contrast to splicing in the endosperm, Ds in suspension cells was completely spliced from the transcripts using multiple donor and acceptor splice sites outside the element. In addition, noncanonical splice sites were utilized in suspension cells. Our results indicate that this difference in splicing is due to the context of Ds placement in the construct and/or to tissue specific differences in splicing.