cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
CO2 and the world energy system: the role of nuclear power

Abstract The greenhouse effect, and other transnational and global environment, health and safety issues, require energy system planning on an international scale. Consideration of equity between nations and regions, particularly between the industrialized and developing countries, is an essential ingredient. For the immediate future, the next several decades at least, fossil fuels will remain the predominant energy sources. More efficient use of energy seems to be the only feasible strategy for the near to mid-term to provide growing energy services for the world economy while moderating the increasing demand for fossil fuels. In the longer term, nonfossil sources are essential for a sustainable world energy system, and nuclear power can play an important, if not dominant, role. The challenge is to design and implement a safe and economic nuclear power world enterprise which is socially acceptable and is complimentary to other nonfossil sources. The elements of such an enterprise seem clear and include: much safer reactors, preferably passively safe, which can be deployed at various scales; development of economic resource extension technologies; effective and permanent waste management strategies; and strengthened safeguards against diversion of nuclear materials to weapons. All of these elements can best be developed as cooperative international efforts. In the process, institutional improvements are equally as important as technological improvements; the two must proceed hand-in-hand.
A Strategic Approach to Designing FPSO Vessel Power Generation Systems

A design process is proposed as a strategic approach for designing FPSO vessels power generation systems. The design process is formulated based on analyses of both offshore-based and land-based power generation system design issues, and with the belief that the design process is both effective and efficient if it treats as many of the relevant economic and project engineering issues as possible. A design process framework and a power generation systems design problem are described and discussed.
Mathematical programming formulation and optimum design of robot control system

Abstract Mathematical programming formulation for nonlinear optimal robot control has been attempted using geometric programming. The objective is to minimise the error subject to stability and torque constraints. In particular, the condensation approach of geometric programming along with Persaval's theorem has been used for modeling. The relationships of sampling time versus the proportional gain (K p ), integral gain (K i ), and the derivative gain (K v ) are studied. The control parameters (K p , K v , K i ) decrease with time before it becomes flat. The stability and torque constraints effect the control gains substantially and uniquely. It is also concluded that geometric programming is an efficient mathematical technique for the nonlinear control of robotic system.
A diiron(IV) complex that cleaves strong C-H and O-H bonds.

The controlled cleavage of strong C–H bonds such as those of methane poses a significant and industrially important challenge for chemists. In nature, methane is oxidized to methanol by soluble methane monooxygenase via a diiron(iv) intermediate called Q. However, the only two reported diiron(iv) complexes have activities towards C–H bonds that fall far short of the activity of this biological catalyst. In this paper, we model the chemistry of MMO-Q by generating an oxo-bridged diiron(iv) complex by electrochemical oxidation. This species is a more effective oxidant. It can attack C–H bonds as strong as 100 kcal mol−1 and reacts with cyclohexane 100- to 1,000-fold faster than mononuclear FeIV=O complexes of closely related ligands. Strikingly, this species can also cleave the strong O–H bonds of methanol and t-butanol instead of their weaker C–H bonds, representing the first example of O–H bond activation for iron complexes. Carbon–hydrogen bonds are strong and stable, rarely succumbing to the activation attempts of chemists. Certain bacteria are able to metabolize methane using a diiron-centred enzyme, but synthetic analogues have had much less reactivity. Now, an oxo-bridged diiron complex has been shown to have extremely high activity towards C–H bonds.
Relationships among uterine growth, ornithine decarboxylase activity and polyamine levels: studies with estradiol and antiestrogens.

We have examined the effects of estradiol (E2) and antiestrogen (AE) on ornithine decarboxylase (ODC) activity and uterine polyamine concentrations as an aid to understanding the dissimilar effects of E2 and AE on uterine growth. ODC activity rises rapidly from very low levels in immature (day 20–23) rat uteri, showing two markedly (~ 500-fold) increased peaks of activity at 5 h and 16 h after E2 (2 μg) injection. After AE (50 μg CI628 or U23469) treatment, the temporal increase in ODC activity is slow and only one major peak is found at 24 h. Daily injections of E2 over a 3-day period evoke continued stimulation of uterine ODC activity; however, the same daily treatment regimen with AE results in stimulation of ODC activity only during the first day. After pretreatment with AE, E2 can still elicit the early (5 h) peak of ODC activity, but the later (16 h) peak of ODC activity is blocked. Quantitation of uterine polyamines by high performance liquid chromatography reveals a 1.5–2-fold increase in the concentration of spermidine after 1 day of E2 or AE exposure, with little change in putrescine or spermine levels. After 3 days of E2, AE, or E2 plus AE treatment, spermidine concentrations are elevated 2–2.5-fold and spermine concentrations are elevated 1.5-fold. Putrescine concentrations are unchanged. Hence, regardless of the different degree to which the uterus is stimulated to grow in response to E2 and/or AE, there are corresponding changes in uterine ODC activity, such that polyamine concentrations are elevated to a similar extent in the E2- or AE-treated uterus.
Constrained Coding for the Deep-Space Optical Channel

We investigate methods of coding for a channel subject to a large dead-time constraint, i.e., a constraint on the minimum spacing between transmitted pulses, with the deep-space optical channel as the motivating example. Several constrained codes designed to satisfy the dead-time constraint are considered and compared on the basis of throughput, complexity, and decoded error-rate. The performance of an iteratively decoded serial concatenation of a modulation code with an outer code is evaluated and shown to provide significant gains over Reed-Solomon concatenated with Pulse Position Modulation.
One Border, Two Transitions : Mexican Migration to the United States as a Two-Way Process

This article employs a unique logit model developed by Yamaguchi to study Mexican migration to the United States. The model contains interaction terms between the previous year's migration decision and key explanatory variables. This innovation allows for the differential measurement of the variables' influence on the Mexico-to-U.S. and the U.S.-to-Mexico transitions. Migration is found to be a persistent phenomenon for its participants. Legal residents of the United States and persons with more dependent children are inclined either to remain in the United States or to participate in migration year after year. Female migrants are less likely to return to Mexico, whereas married migrants tend to follow a year of migration with 1 or more years spent entirely in Mexico. Surprisingly, macroeconomic indicators of expected wage differentials between the two countries explain little of migration behavior.
Focal ischemia in rats causes time-dependent expression of c-fos protein immunoreactivity in widespread regions of ipsilateral cortex.

c-Fos protein expression was examined in brain by immunohistochemistry following permanent middle cerebral artery (MCA) occlusion above the rhinal fissure and ipsilateral common carotid artery (CCA) occlusion in Long-Evans rats. In sham-operated animals, c-fos protein-like immunoreactivity (CFPLI) was confined to neuronal nuclei of the hypothalamus and was not present in other regions including cerebral cortex. In the core territory of the MCA, CFPLI was not detected when examined at 15 and 30 min, 1, 4 and 8 h and 1, 2, 4 and 7 days after occlusion. Focal ischemia induced two temporal and spatial patterns of CFPLI. At 1 h, c-fos protein was expressed in the nuclei of many neurons in layers II-V of the ipsilateral cortex both immediately adjacent to and remote from the ischemic territory. Within regions outside the MCA territory (e.g. cingulate gyrus and piriform cortices), CFPLI in these neurons peaked at 2-4 h and was undetectable after 2 days. Neurons in the zone immediately surrounding the ischemic core within MCA territory also expressed CFPLI, but in contrast, continued to express c-fos up to 4 days after ischemia. Immunoreactivity surrounding the ischemic core was found in neuronal nuclei predominantly, although from 1 to 4 days, CFPLI was found in perikarya and dendrites as well. MK-801 (3 mg/kg, i.p., 30 min prior to occlusion) completely blocked the early c-fos protein induction in all regions but expression within neurons surrounding the ischemic core was present 1 day after a single injection.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Inflammatory Cell Infiltrates in Acute and Chronic Thoracic Aortic Dissection

Background: Thoracic aortic dissection (TAD) is a highly lethal cardiovascular disease. Injury to the intima and media allows pulsatile blood to enter the media, leading to dissection formation. Inflammatory cells then infiltrate the site of aortic injury to clear dead cells and damaged tissue. This excessive inflammation may play a role in aneurysm formation after dissection. Methods: Using immunohistochemistry, we compared aortic tissues from patients with acute TAD (n = 11), patients with chronic TAD (n = 35), and donor controls (n = 20) for the presence of CD68+ macrophages, neutrophils, mast cells, and CD3+ T lymphocytes. Results: Tissue samples from patients with acute or chronic TAD generally had significantly more inflammatory cells in both the medial and adventitial layers than did the control samples. In tissues from patients with acute TAD, the adventitia had more of the inflammatory cells studied than did the media. The pattern of increase in inflammatory cells was similar in chronic and acute TAD tissues, except for macrophages, which were seen more frequently in the adventitial layer of acute TAD tissue than in the adventitia of chronic TAD tissue. Conclusions: The inflammatory cell content of both acute and chronic TAD tissue was significantly different from that of control tissue. However, the inflammatory cell profile of aneurysmal chronic TAD was similar to that of acute TAD. This may reflect a sustained injury response that contributes to medial degeneration and aneurysm formation.
Evidence of pairing and its role in the recombinative desorption of hydrogen from the Si(100)-2×1 surface

A scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy study of the recombinative desorption of hydrogen from the Si(100)-2\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}1 surface is presented. Initially at room temperature, hydrogen atoms singly occupy the Si dimer units while at higher temperatures (\ensuremath{\sim}630 K) these atoms tend to pair up. This pairing phenomenon is due to a \ensuremath{\pi}-bonding interaction which favors pairing individual dangling bonds on the dimer units. Following desorption from the saturated surface, pairs of dangling bonds are found loaalized on the Si dimer units. The significance of these paired-dangling-bond sites is d)scussed in ligh* of the desorption model recently proposed by Sinniah et al.
Relativity, heat and «fictious» forces

The conventional formulation of the transformation laws for certain thermodynamic quantities has been questioned by several authors. Their objection is based on a particular force that arises in the conventional picture whenever a heat transfer is observed in a frame other than the rest frame. The claim is made that this force is fictitious and hence should be disregarded when computing the mechanical work. In this paper we show that if a suitable mechanical model of heat is adopted this force becomes quite understandable in mechanical terms and thus perhaps not so fictitious after all.
On the cytology and cytochemistry of the opossum's bronchial glands.

The numerous compound acinar, mixed, bronchial glands of the opossum's lungs collectively provide a large surface for secretion. The secretory materials are made by two types of cells located in the acini and smaller ducts. Mucus is produced by mucous cells that are similar to those found elsewhere. A fluid of unknown composition appears to be secreted by hydrotic cells. The acini are encircled by myoepithelium and the larger ducts are lined by morphologically unspecialized cells. The hydrotic cell, a type of “special serous cell,” is cytologically the most interesting of the elements present. It is not appreciably basophilic and lacks secretion granules, but it is rich in glycogen and contains many mitochondria with high succinoxidase activity. The basal surface is divided into irregular compartments by grooves, some of which are occupied by processes from stellate myoepithelial cells. The apical surface is villous and extends far down the sides of the cell as intercellular canaliculi. This surface has adenosine triphosphatase activity and is contacted by the agranular reticulum and numerous small vesicles in the subjacent cytoplasm. The bronchial glands are classified in the discussion, and special features of the hydrotic cells are compared with those possessed by other types of cells that engage in ion-segregation or ion-secretion. The glands are thought to assist in temperature regulation.
Using stable nitrogen‐isotopes to study weaning behavior in past populations

Abstract Several different methods have been used to explore weaning behavior in past populations, including demographic profiles, non‐specific osteological indicators of stress, and bone chemistry studies. Stable nitrogen‐isotope ratios of prehistoric bone proteins provide an especially useful method for reconstructing the weaning patterns of archaeological populations. A demographic measure of fertility (the D30+/D5+ ratio) is compared with age‐related changes in stable nitrogen‐isotope ratios for human burials from one historic cemetery and two prehistoric ones. The stable nitrogen‐isotope ratios show that each population had a characteristic and distinctive combination of weaning time and rate, and that neither the timing nor tempo of weaning was clearly correlated with the demographic measure of fertility. These results demonstrate the feasibility of using stable nitrogen‐isotope ratios to compare weaning patterns and fertility in past populations. This example also shows that the relationship betwee...
Effects of cis- and trans-unsaturated lipids on an interdigitated membrane

The effects of adding cis- and trans-unsaturated lipid to a fully interdigitated membrane were examined using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and X-ray diffraction. A monofluorinated analog of 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DPPC) was used as the interdigitated lipid. The single fluorine atom on the end of the sn-2 chain allows 1-palmitoyl-2-(16-fluoropalmitoyl)sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (F-DPPC) to spontaneously form the interdigitated gel phase (LβI) below the main transition temperature (Tm). The cis 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DOPC) and equivalent trans lipid 1,2-dielaidoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DEPC) are strongly disfavored to form the LβI phase. Wide-angle X-ray scattering (WAXS) data demonstrate that the unsaturated lipids progressively disrupt the intermolecular packing at higher concentrations. Small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) data show that as the ratio of unsaturated lipid increases, the amount of interdigitated lipid decreases. The cis isomer is more disruptive and inhibits interdigitation more effectively than the trans isomer.
Truth in Concentration in the Land of 80/20 Laws

Among the more prominent truisms in marketing are 80/20 type laws, e.g., 20 percent of the customers account for 80 percent of the purchases. These kinds of statistics indicate a certain degree of concentration in customer purchases; i.e., the extent to which a large portion of the product's total purchases are made by a small fraction of all customers. Such concentration levels, suggesting that markets can be segmented in various ways, are often reported in basic marketing texts. We show that a meaningful interpretation of these concentration statistics is not nearly as easy or immediate as it is to compute them. The key factors influencing the degree of apparent concentration in purchases are reviewed, and we present a modeling approach for estimating the true level of relevant concentration among customers.
The Extracellular Domain of La Crosse Virus G1 Forms Oligomers and Undergoes pH-Dependent Conformational Changes

Abstract The La Crosse virus G1 glycoprotein plays a critical role in virus binding to susceptible cells and in the subsequent fusion of viral and cellular membranes. A soluble form of the G1 glycoprotein (sG1) prepared in a recombinant baculovirus system mimics the cell-binding pattern of La Crosse virus and inhibits La Crosse virus infection (A. Pekosz et al., Virology 214, 339–348, 1995), presumably by competing for a cellular receptor, a finding that implies that sG1 can perform some functions absent G2, the smaller of the two bunyavirus glycoproteins. We have performed experiments to determine whether sG1 is present as an oligomer and whether it undergoes the conformational changes associated with fusion (F. Gonzalez-Scarano, Virology 140, 209–216, 1985). Our results indicate that both sG1 and native G1 undergo similar changes in conformation after exposure to an acidic environment, as detected by reactivity with monoclonal antibodies. Furthermore, using chemical cross-linking, both proteins were detected as oligomers (most likely dimers). Sucrose density gradient analysis of sG1 verified that it was present in monomeric and oligomeric forms. These results demonstrate that the isolated G1 glycoprotein can undergo a pH-dependent change in conformation in the absence of its transmembrane and cytoplasmic tail domains and that the extracellular portion of the glycoprotein can oligomerize.
Features of a Smad3 MH1-DNA Complex ROLES OF WATER AND ZINC IN DNA BINDING

The Smad family of proteins mediates transforming growth factor-β signaling from cell membrane to the nucleus. In the nucleus, Smads serve as transcription factors by directly binding to specific DNA sequences and regulating the expression of ligand-response genes. A previous structural analysis, at 2.8-A resolution, revealed a novel DNA-binding mode for the Smad MH1 domain but did not allow accurate assignment of the fines features of protein-DNA interactions. The crystal structure of a Smad3 MH1 domain bound to a palindromic DNA sequence, determined at 2.4-A resolution, reveals a surprisingly important role for water molecules. The asymmetric placement of the DNA-binding motif (a conserved 11-residue β-hairpin) in the major groove of DNA is buttressed by seven well ordered water molecules. These water molecules make specific hydrogen bonds to the DNA bases, the DNA phosphate backbones, and several critical Smad3 residues. In addition, the MH1 domain is found to contain a bound zinc atom using four invariant residues among Smad proteins, three cysteines and one histidine. Removal of the zinc atom results in compromised DNA binding activity. These results define the Smad MH1 domain as a zinc-coordinating module that exhibits unique DNA binding properties.
Chern-Simons theory in the Schrödinger representation

Abstract We quantize the (2 + 1)-dimensional Chern-Simons theory in the functional Schrodinger representation. The realization of gauge transformations on states involves a 1-cocycle. We determine this cocycle; we show how solving the Gauss law constraint in the non-Abelian theory requires quantizing the parameter that normalizes the action; we trivialize the 1-cocycle with a spatially non-local cochain related to a 2-dimensional fermion determinant and we find the physical states that satisfy the Gauss law constraint. The quantum holonomy of physical states involves a contribution that is missed when the constraint is solved before quantization. We compute this quantity for the Abelian theory in Minkowski space, where it exhibits an interesting group theoretic structure. (In a note added in proof the corresponding non-Abelian computation is presented.) Also we consider coupling to external sources and offer yet another derivation of the anomalous statistics and spin of the charge and flux carrying particles —a calculation which is especially simple in the functional Schrodinger representation.
Super-resolution processing for multi-functional LPI waveforms

Super-resolution (SR) is a radar processing technique closely related to the pulse compression (or correlation receiver). There are many super-resolution algorithms developed for the improved range resolution and reduced sidelobe contaminations. Traditionally, the waveforms used for the SR have been either phase-coding (such as LKP3 code, Barker code) or the frequency modulation (chirp, or nonlinear frequency modulation). There are, however, an important class of waveforms which are either random in nature (such as random noise waveform), or randomly modulated for multiple function operations (such as the ADS-B radar signals in [1]). These waveforms have the advantages of low-probability-of-intercept (LPI). If the existing SR techniques can be applied to these waveforms, there will be much more flexibility for using these waveforms in actual sensing missions. Also, SR usually has great advantage that the final output (as estimation of ground truth) is largely independent of the waveform. Such benefits are attractive to many important primary radar applications. In this paper the general introduction of the SR algorithms are provided first, and some implementation considerations are discussed. The selected algorithms are applied to the typical LPI waveforms, and the results are discussed. It is observed that SR algorithms can be reliably used for LPI waveforms, on the other hand, practical considerations should be kept in mind in order to obtain the optimal estimation results.
Antioxidative/Antimicrobial Effects and TBARS in Aerobically Refrigerated Beef as Related to Microbial Growth

Ground beef muscle-pretreated (PT) with 60 ppm chlortetracycline/0.2% potassium sorbate or nonpretreated (NPT)-was mixed with sodium lactate (3%), ascorbate (0.05%), tripolyphosphate (0.5%), citrate (0.5%), or water only and aerobically refrigerated for 0–18 days. More TBA-reactive substances (TBARS) were accumulated in PT than in NPT samples. Only lactate was antimicrobial and resulted in higher TBARS in the NPT. Ascorbate and citrate resulted in lower TBARS in both PT and NPT meat. TBARS correlated with 18:2 fatty acid losses only in microbially controlled (PT) samples. Ascorbate and citrate reduced overall off-odor scores in the PT and discoloration in both NPT and PT samples.
Thermostabile Polyester-Block-Copolymere

Die vorliegende Arbeit befast sich mit der Entwicklung von segmentierten thermoplastischen Polyester-Elastomeren mit hoher Bestandigkeit gegen thermische Alterung. Die wichtigsten Vertreter dieser Polymerklasse sind die im Umesterungsverfahren aus Dimethylterephthalat, Polytetramethylenoxidglykol (Mol.-Gew. 1 000) und 1,4-Butandiol erhaltlichen Polyatherester. Trotz der leichten Oxydierbarkeit der aliphatischen Polyathersegmente lassen sich diese Copolymeren durch Zugabe von geeigneten Antioxydantien, insbesondere aromatischen sekundaren Aminen, hinreichend stabilisieren. Eine wesentliche Verbesserung der langfristigen Thermostabilitat der Polyatherester kann durch die zusatzliche Verwendung von Costabilisatoren, die die aufweisen, erzielt werden. Die Wirkungsweise der Costabilisatoren beruht auf deren Fahigkeit, den im Verlauf des oxydativen Abbaus gebildeten Formaldehyd chemisch abzufangen und dessen weitere Oxydation zur Ameisensaure zu verhindern. Dadurch wird sowohl die chemische Deaktivierung des Amin-Antioxydans durch Reaktion mit der gebildeten Saure als auch die Acidolyse des Polymeren stark zuruckgedrangt. Neuartige thermoplastische Polyester-Elastomere, die ein verzweigtes C36-Kohlenwasserstoff-Weichsegment aufweisen, werden durch die Verwendung von gesattigter dimerer Fettsaure als Ausgangsmaterial anstelle von Polyalkylenoxidglykolen erhalten. Die resultierenden Copolyester besitzen ein ahnliches Gesamteigenschaftsbild wie die Polyatherester, zeichnen sich jedoch durch eine wesentlich hohere Bestandigkeit gegen oxydativen Abbau aus. This paper describes the development of segmented thermoplastic polyester elastomers exhibiting superior heat aging characteristics. The most important members of this polymer class are the polyether esters which are obtained by transesterification of dimethyl terephthalate, poly(tetramethylene oxide glycol) (mol. wt. 1 000) and 1,4-butanediol. In spite of the poor oxidative stability of the aliphatic polyether segments, these copolymers can be effectively stabilized by the addition of suitable antioxidants, especially aromatic secondary amines. A significant improvement of the longterm thermostability of polyether esters is achieved by the additional use of costabilizers containing the . The latter prevent the formation of formic acid by functioning as scavengers for formaldehyde which is formed as an intermediate during the oxidative degradation. This reduces significantly chemical deactivation of the amine antioxidant by reaction with formic acid as well as acid-induced polymer cleavage. Novel thermoplastic polyester elastomers containing a branched C36-hydrocarbon soft segment are obtained from dimer acid as starting material instead of poly(alkylene oxide glycol). The resulting copolyesters possess similar overall properties as the polyether esters, but exhibit much greater resistance toward oxidative degradation.
A comparison of anion concentration in surficial groundwater sampled from two types of water quality monitoring wells

Groundwater sampling for monitoring the presence and concentration of contaminants can be done using either depth integrated monitoring wells (MW) or depth specific multi-level sampling (MLS) wells. Depth specific multi-level sampling wells (MLS) are cost-effective, easy to install, and provide very detailed information about the vertical gradient in contaminant concentration. In contrast the MW sampling provides information on the presence of contaminant over large representative area. This study was conducted in two 33 ha blocks of a commercial citrus grove (Valencia orange trees on rough lemon rootstock) in a well drained Ashtabula fine sand (hyperthermic, uncoated, Typic Quartzipsamments). The depth to surficial groundwater at monitoring locations varied from 1.4 to 5.6 m, and the lateral groundwater flow rate was approximately 0.08 m d−1. Anions were measured in groundwater sampled at 3-week intervals from four pair of MW and MLS in each of the two blocks. Since the screened portion of the MW in this...
On a singular Sturm-Liouville problem in the theory of molecular vibrations

In this paper, we study the angular part of the internal amplitude function of a diatomic molecule under an angular potential function depending only on cos θ and which is an entire even function on R. For the equation $$ \frac{1}{\sin \theta}\frac{{\rm d}}{{\rm d}\theta }\left(\sin\,\theta\frac {{\rm d}\psi} {{\rm d}\theta}\right) + \left(\lambda - V(\cos\,\theta ) - \frac{m^{2}}{\sin^{2}\,\theta}\right)\psi = 0, $$ we obtain a formula for the eigenvalues and we determine the corresponding eigenfunctions
N-acetyl cysteine protects against ionizing radiation-induced DNA damage but not against cell killing in yeast and mammals.

Abstract Ionizing radiation (IR) induces DNA strand breaks leading to cell death or deleterious genome rearrangements. In the present study, we examined the role of N-acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC), a clinically proven safe agent, for it's ability to protect against γ-ray-induced DNA strand breaks and/or DNA deletions in yeast and mammals. In the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, DNA deletions were scored by reversion to histidine prototrophy. Human lymphoblastoid cells were examined for the frequency of γ-H2AX foci formation, indicative of DNA double strand break formation. DNA strand breaks were also measured in mouse peripheral blood by the alkaline comet assay. In yeast, NAC reduced the frequency of IR-induced DNA deletions. However, NAC did not protect against cell death. NAC also reduced γ-H2AX foci formation in human lymphoblastoid cells but had no protective effect in the colony survival assay. NAC administration via drinking water fully protected against DNA strand breaks in mice whole-body irradiated with 1 Gy but not with 4 Gy. NAC treatment in the absence of irradiation was not genotoxic. These data suggest that, given the safety and efficacy of NAC in humans, NAC may be useful in radiation therapy to prevent radiation-mediated genotoxicity, but does not interfere with efficient cancer cell killing.
Rapidly progressive glomerulonephritis and monoclonal gammopathy

A case of rapidly progressive glomerulonephritis associated with nephrotic syndrome, hematuria, and edema is reported. Monoclonal IgG-lambda was found in the serum and urine. Renal biopsy revealed diffuse proliferative glomerulonephritis with crescent formation. Immunofluorescent study revealed IgG and lambda in a focal segmental distribution. Subepithelial humps were found on electron microscopic examination. A spectacular feature of the deposits was the presence of organized linear fibrils within the humps. Similar fibrils were found in the mesangium and urinary space. Renal function deteriorated rapidly, necessitating hemodialysis in eight months. In addition to the present case, 24 cases of glomerulonephritis associated with "benign" monoclonal gammopathy reported since 1970 are reviewed, and the potential causal relationship between monoclonal gammopathy and glomerular involvement is stressed.
Natural conditions on the spectra of operators

Natural conditions are imposed on spectra of products and sums of operators. This results in characterizations of positive operators, Hermitian operators, compact operators, and unitary operators. Here are two main results: If S is an operator and the spectrum of ST consists of nonnegative real numbers for all invertible positive operators [noninvertible positive operators] T, then S is a positive operator. If S is an operator and the spectrum of ST is countable for all invertible operators [noninvertible operators] T, then S is a compact operator. The first half of the paper is primarily concerned with operators on finite-dimensional spaces, and the second half with operators on infinite-dimensional Hilbert spaces.
Maternal interactive style across contexts: Relations to emotional, behavioral and physiological regulation during toddlerhood.

Sixty-five mothers and their 24-month-old toddlers were observed in a series of laboratory procedures designed to assess relations between maternal interactive style and emotional, behavioral and physiological regulation. Emotional regulation was assessed by examining the child’s behaviors (aggression, distraction, object focus) when confronted by three emotion-eliciting tasks. Behavioral regulation was measured by examining children’s ability to comply to maternal requests and to inhibit behavior during a delay task. Physiological regulation was derived from children’s cardiac vagal tone responses to emotionally-arousing situations. Maternal interactive style was assessed by examining mothers’ strategies for child behavior management (negative controlling, positive guidance) during three mother-child tasks. Maternal behavior was related to regulation in each of the three domains. Negative maternal behavior was related to poor physiological regulation, less adaptive emotion regulation, and noncompliant behavior. Positive maternal behavior was correlated with compliance, but not with any of the physiological or emotional measures. These findings are discussed in terms of the adaptive value of self-regulation in early development, and the importance of identifying the causal relations between maternal behavior and child regulation.
Emotional intelligence and relationship quality among couples

To assess whether emotional intelligence (EI) is related to self-assessed relationship quality, an ability test of EI and measures of relationship quality were administered to 86 heterosexual couples in a university setting. Results indicated that female partners were significantly higher in EI than male partners and that EI scores were uncorrelated within couples. Two 2 � 2 multiple analyses of variance (performed separately for positive and negative outcomes) assessed how relationship quality measures differed across four different types of couples (high-EI female/high-EI male, low-EI female/low-EI male, etc.). As predicted, couples with both partners low on EI tended to have the lowest scores on depth, support, and positive relationship quality and the highest scores on conflict and negative relationship quality. Counter to our hypotheses, couples with both partners high on EI did not consistently have higher scores on positive outcomes and lower scores on negative outcomes than couples with one high-EI partner.
Inhibitory Effects of Volatile Fatty Acids and Low pH on the Multiplication of Enteric Pathogens In Vitro in Caecal Contents of Mice

The inhibitory effect of volatile fatty acids (VFA) and low pH on the multiplication of Shigella sonnei 3SR and enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli 2SR (ETEC 2SR) in caecal contents of mice was determined. Multiplication rates and population sizes of both pathogens were greater in contents obtained from streptomycin treated mice at pH 6.94 containing 78.32 μeq total VFA per gram than in contents from untreated conventional mice at pH 6.66 containing 109.11 μeq total VFA per gram. When contents from streptomycin treated mice were adjusted to pH 6.66 and to contain 109.11 μeq total VFA per gram, values observed in contents from untreated mice, the multiplication rates and population sizes of both pathogens were lower in the adjusted contents than in unadjusted contents. Lowering the pH alone without VFA addition did not influence the multiplication of ETEC 2SR but caused a moderate decrease in the multiplication rate and population sizes of S. sonnei 3SR. These effects, however, were not as pronounced as when VFA were also added. Conversely, neutralisation of VFA present in caecal contents from untreated mice by increasing the pH from 6.66 to 7.50 reversed inhibition. Growth curves of both S. sonnei 3SR and ETEC 2SR in contents at high pH were almost identical to curves obtained when the organisms were multiplying in contents from streptomycin treated mice. The results provide strong evidence that the combined effects of high concentrations of VFA and low pH in caecal contents of conventional mice are important determinants of colonisation resistance against enteric pathogens in mice. Keywords: Volatile fatty acids; pH; Enteric pathogens; Caecal contents; Mice.
Trends in Utilization of Vocal Fold Injection Procedures

Office-based vocal fold injections have become increasingly popular over the past 15 years. Examination of trends in procedure coding for vocal fold injections in the United States from 2000 to 2012 was undertaken to see if they reflect this shift. The US Part B Medicare claims database was queried from 2000 through 2012 for multiple Current Procedural Terminology codes. Over the period studied, the number of nonoperative laryngoscopic injections (31513, 31570) and operative medialization laryngoplasties (31588) remained constant. Operative vocal fold injection (31571) demonstrated marked linear growth over the 12-year study period, from 744 procedures in 2000 to 4788 in 2012-an increase >640%. The dramatic increased incidence in the use of code 31571 reflects an increasing share of vocal fold injections being performed in the operating room and not in an office setting, running counter to the prevailing trend toward awake, office-based injection procedures.
Health Disparities and Violence Against Women: Why and How Cultural and Societal Influences Matter

This article encourages readers to consider the cultural and societal influences that impact health and health disparities among women survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV). Health consequences caused by IPV are widely documented and broadly discussed. Connections between health disparities and IPV are also discussed as related to women of color. Cultural factors and societal influences are identified to provide the reader with greater awareness of how these issues intersect with and impact IPV. Finally, the implications for scientific research and practice are discussed to include considerations for stronger assessment tools, greater collaboration and community participation, determination of best practices, requirement of cultural competence, mandated accountability, encouragement of mentorship, increased funding for research, increased advocacy, and increased culturally competent media and health promotion campaigns.
The Relationship of Preparation for Future Care to Depression and Anxiety in Older Primary Care Patients at 2-Year Follow-up

Background Preparation for future care needs has been hypothesized to help older adults adjust to inevitable life and health transitions and thereby decrease the likelihood of developing depression or anxiety. Methods A total of 190 primary care patients aged 65 years or more completed semistructured research interviews and mail-back surveys at study intake and 2 years later. Interviews included the Structured Clinical Interview for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition , the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, Clinical Anxiety Scale and a measure of preparation for future care. Multiple regression analyses were used to determine the independent association of preparation for future care at intake with depression and anxiety severity at 2-year follow-up. Results Patients who had made more concrete plans at intake were less likely to meet criteria for depression diagnosis at follow-up. They also had lower anxiety severity scores. Patients who had avoided thinking about future care needs had greater depression symptom severity at follow-up. Findings were independent of potential confounds, including illness burden. Conclusions Failure to prepare for future care is a novel putative risk marker for depression and anxiety in older adulthood. Clinicians should be aware that the lack of care planning and frank avoidance may pose a risk for depression and anxiety older their patients. Future research should explore the mechanisms of care planning's effects on subsequent mood.
Uncertainty in the reconstruction of ancestral character states and limitations on the use of phylogenetic comparative methods.

Phylogenetic approaches to the study of comparative data have a long history in the field of animal behaviour (e.g. Lorenz 1941; Greene & Burghardt 1978; Gittleman 1981). However, since the publication in 1991 of Brooks & McLennan’s Phylogeny, Ecology and Behavior and Harvey & Pagel’s The Comparative Method in Evolutionary Biology, there has been a huge increase in the use of phylogenetic methods in comparative studies. Indeed, a comparative study would be unpublishable in most journals today if it did not incorporate phylogenetic methods of analysis, or at least a discussion of phylogenetic relationships. Welcome as this development is, the time has come for a critical reappraisal of phylogenetic methods for the analysis of comparative data (Ricklefs & Starck 1996; Price 1997; Cunningham et al. 1998). A variety of methods have now been published and one might wonder how much an analysis is affected by the choice of method. More generally, given that the use of phylogenetic methods now appears to be standard practice, one might also wonder whether situations exist in which phylogenetic methods are unnecessary or even inappropriate.
Barrier-breaking performance for industrial problems on the CRAY C916

Nine applications, including third-party codes, were submitted to the Gordon Bell Prize committee showing the CRAY C916 supercomputer providing record-breaking time to solution for industrial problems in several disciplines. Performance was obtained by balancing raw hardware speed; effective use of large, real, shared memory; compiler vectorization and autotasking; hand optimization; asynchronous I/O techniques; and new algorithms. The highest GFLOPS performance for the submissions was 11.1 GFLOPS out of a peak advertised performance of 16 GFLOPS for the CRAY C916 system. One program achieved a 15.45 speedup from the compiler with just two hand-inserted directives to scope variables properly for the mathematical library. New I/O techniques hide tens of gigabytes of I/O behind parallel computations. Finally, new iterative solver algorithms have demonstrated times to solution on 1 CPU as high as 70 times faster than the best direct solvers.
Ethnic Variation in Hypertension Among Premenopausal and Perimenopausal Women: Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation

Data are sparse regarding hypertension prevalence, treatment, and control among some ethnic groups of American women. Furthermore, the effects of ethnicity on hypertension, independent of other factors that vary with ethnicity, are poorly understood. We examined the prevalence of hypertension (defined as systolic > or =140 or diastolic > or =90 mm Hg or receiving treatment), treatment, and control (to <140/<90 mm Hg) in a multiethnic study of premenopausal and perimenopausal women. Stepwise multivariable logistic regression was used to select covariates associated with hypertension. Among 3292 women, 46.9% were white, 28.3% were black, 8.7% were Hispanic, 7.6% were Chinese, and 8.5% were Japanese. Among these 5 ethnic groups, respectively, there was substantial variation in prevalence of normal blood pressure levels (<120/<80 mm Hg; 59.9%, 35.4%, 16.8%, 67.2%, and 63.7%) and hypertension (14.5%, 38.1%, 27.6%, 12.8%, and 11.0%). After multivariable adjustment, hypertension prevalence was 2 to 3x higher among black and Hispanic women but similar among Chinese and Japanese women compared with white women. Among hypertensive participants, prevalence of antihypertensive treatment was highest among blacks (58.9%) and whites (55.2%) and lowest among Chinese (34.4%). Prevalence of control to goal blood pressure levels was highest among whites (43.0%) and Japanese (38.7%) and markedly lower among Hispanic women (11.4%). Compared with whites, black and Hispanic women have significantly higher prevalence of hypertension independent of other factors, whereas Chinese and Japanese women have similar prevalence. Treatment and control rates vary considerably across ethnicities. Greater efforts must be made to improve hypertension awareness, treatment, and control in all middle-aged women, particularly those in ethnic minority groups.
Upregulation of Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme 2 After Myocardial Infarction by Blockade of Angiotensin II Receptors

We investigated in Lewis normotensive rats the effect of coronary artery ligation on the expression of cardiac angiotensin-converting enzymes (ACE and ACE 2) and angiotensin II type-1 receptors (AT...
Epizootic Neoplasms in Fishes From a Lake Polluted by Copper Mining Wastes

Examination of fishes from Torch Lake, Houghton County, Mich., revealed epizootic neoplasms of several types in two closely related species. Saugers, Stizostedion canadense, and walleyes, Stizostedion vitreum, were commonly affected with hepatocellular carcinomas, dermal ossifying fibromas, and perivisceral masses resembling mesotheliomas that were usually associated with the mesenteric capsule of the spleen. Saugers were 100% affected with liver neoplasms. Histopathologic and ultrastructural aspects of the neoplasms are described. Torch Lake has been used as a repository for copper mining waste to the extent that an estimated 20% of the original volume has been filled in by these materials. Several direct and indirect etiologic roles for the mine waste as causative agents of the fish tumors are discussed.
Evaluating the Integration of Contiguous Discontinuous Markets

This paper applies the concepts of structural models of markets, market integration, and market discontinuity to show that discontinuous markets alter the integration characteristics of continuous markets. When analyzing systems of contiguous markets, some of which are discontinuous, it appears that the continuous markets are less well integrated when the discontinuous markets are operating than when they are not operating.
The effects of download delay on performance and end-user satisfaction in an Internet tutorial

The present study investigated the effects of a variable unique to Internet-based learning; download delay of instructional materials. A simulated online teaching tool was created to measure the effects of download delay of images on test performance, time spent on the material, end-user satisfaction, and perceived effectiveness. Overall, download delay of instructional material had mixed effects on all four dependent variables. The results from this study appear to be the first empirical evidence that the effects of download delay are not linear, rather they are moderated by academic experience of the subject and difficulty of the material.
Assessing the impact of planted forests on the global forest economy

Background: Planted forests are increasingly important in world forestry, natural resources conservation, and climate change policies. There is great interest in their potential for carbon sequestration and conservation of natural forests while they remain an essential source of fuelwood and industrial roundwood. Methods: A method was developed for estimating the importance of planted forests in the global forestry sector. This was based on calculation of a global economic equilibrium with or without planted forests, using an adaptation of the Global Forest Products Model (GFPM) to simulate wood production in seven regions representing a total of 180 countries. The GFPM was then used to calculate production, consumption, trading balance, and price of forest products in 2009. Results: The utilisation of planted forests was estimated to reduce prices of forest products by 24 - 37%, and those of manufactured products by 4 - 14%, depending on the level of processing. World production of fuelwood was 4% greater due to the utilisation of planted forests, and industrial roundwood production was 14% higher. Conclusions: Although an increase in the level of consumption of end products was noted for all regions, production was sometimes lower if the effect of reduced prices was greater than the effect of the increase in wood supply. Nevertheless, the gain in global financial benefit to consumers far exceeded the loss of producer profits, leading to an estimated net gain of US$10,000 ha -1 in net present value at 2009 prices. Furthermore, planted forests reduced roundwood harvesting from natural forests by 26%, thereby contributing to ecological benefits such as carbon sequestration and biodiversity conservation.