cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Risk preferences on the space of quantile functions

We propose a novel approach to quantification of risk preferences on the space of nondecreasing functions. When applied to law invariant risk preferences among random variables, it compares their quantile functions. The axioms on quantile functions impose relations among comonotonic random variables. We infer the existence of a numerical representation of the preference relation in the form of a quantile-based measure of risk. Using conjugate duality theory by pairing the Banach space of bounded functions with the space of finitely additive measures on a suitable algebra $$\varSigma $$ Σ , we develop a variational representation of the quantile-based measures of risk. Furthermore, we introduce a notion of risk aversion based on quantile functions, which enables us to derive an analogue of Kusuoka representation of coherent law-invariant measures of risk.
The comparison of energy expenditure in the obese and lean

Abstract It has been shown that different persons vary in regards to energy output at rest and while walking at various speeds. Many factors cause these variations; such as, physical stature, age, weight, and physical condition. Lean persons expend less energy and can outperform the obese. After training a person becomes more physically fit and will burn less calories than previously doing a given task. An obese person tolerates his weight better than a lean person carrying a load to give him a total weight equal to that of the obese. Studies were performed with the calorimeter, which has proven to be a handy apparatus for obtaining accurate rapid results on energy expenditure. It also has been a valuable educational tool for both patient and phsician in regard to energy problems.
Taxation and Economic Growth

The effects of vorious tax policies on economic growth are recx amined on the basis of the recently developed endogenous growth therory The assertion of Henry George that the structure of taxation is more important than the level of taxation in explaining economic growth is elaborated and verified Annual data for Taiwan from 1954 to 1986 shows that the aggregate tax rate does not have significant effect on the long run growth rates of private ouptup, consumption and production factor inputs This result is due to the poostivie effect of consumption taxation offsetting the negative effect of factor taxation on economic growth
A comparison of normally achieving, mildly retarded, and learning disabled students on a perceptually based oddity task

The oddity performance of mildly mentally retarded (MMR), learning disabled (LD) and normally achieving (NA) 6-through 8-year-old grade school students was compared in two-group (NA vs. MMR and NA vs. LD) and three-group (NA vs. MMR vs. LD) contrasts. The oddity arrays displayed on each card consisted of single or multiple letter-groups (1,2, ... 7 letters per group). Regardless of the number of letters per group, the odd array differed from the other two by one letter. Performance differences between the NA and LD groups were minimal, while both groups performed at significantly higher levels than the MMR group. The two-group contrasts indicated that failure level, one of two dependent measures examined, could accurately identify 84% of the MMR sample, and 97% of the NA group. The second measure, level of first error, enabled the isolation of a small subgroup of LD students from their chronological NA peers. Demonstrated cognitive differences in the competencies of the two handicapped groups on this as well as other tasks, raised questions about the advisability of a combined classification and/or educational setting for these two mildly impaired groups.
Possible cause for an improbable earthquake: The 1997 Mw 4.9 southern Alabama earthquake and hydrocarbon recovery

Circumstantial and physical evidence indicates that the 1997 Mw 4.9 earthquake in southern Alabama may have been related to hydrocarbon recovery. Epicenters of this earthquake and its aftershocks were located within a few kilometers of active oil and gas extraction wells and two pressurized injection wells. Main shock and aftershock focal depths (2–6 km) are within a few kilometers of the injection and withdrawal depths. Strain accumulation at geologic rates sufficient to cause rupture at these shallow focal depths is not likely. A paucity of prior seismicity is difficult to reconcile with the occurrence of an earthquake of Mw 4.9 and a magnitude-frequency relationship usually assumed for natural earthquakes. The normal-fault main-shock mechanism is consistent with reactivation of preexisting faults in the regional tectonic stress field. If the earthquake were purely tectonic, however, the question arises as to why it occurred on only the small fraction of a large, regional fault system coinciding with active hydrocarbon recovery. No obvious temporal correlation is apparent between the earthquakes and recovery activities. Although thus far little can be said quantitatively about the physical processes that may have caused the 1997 sequence, a plausible explanation involves the poroelastic response of the crust to extraction of hydrocarbons.
Radiation damage in vanadium

Abstract Transmission electron microscopy has been used to study the microstructure of neutron irradiated single crystal vanadium. These observations revealed the presence of small defect clusters which, upon annealing, grew into resolvable dislocation loops, analyzed as interstitial in nature. The radiation-induced clusters and loops were stabilized during annealing by interaction with impurity precipitates. Damage shells, ascribed to transmutation reactions, were found surrounding certain particles believed to contain boron.
Anonymity and group antisocial behavior.

Summary According to the anonymity explanation of group antisocial behavior, group membership facilitates antisocial behavior because individuals feel more anonymous in groups than alone. This explanation was tested under three hypotheses: (a) group membership facilitates antisocial behavior, (b) group membership causes feelings of anonymity, and (c) anonymity facilitates antisocial behavior. Sixteen men and 10 women from an introductory personality course at Western Illinois University were asked to state how willing they were to engage in an antisocial behavior (carrying a sign reading, “masturbation is fun”) under four conditions: alone, undisguised; alone, disguised; in a group, undisguised; and in a group, disguised. Ss were more willing to carry the signs in groups than alone and disguised than undisguised. They also stated that they felt that they would be more anonymous in a group than alone and disguised than undisguised. All differences were statistically significant. Support was thus found for ...
The importance of beta-adrenergic receptors in immune regulation: a link between neuroendocrine and immune system.

Our knowledge of autoimmunity and autoimmune diseases has been advanced in the past decades. Receptors present on the immune cells may potentially regulate the immune system, among them, beta-adrenergic receptors are of special interest. As neurotransmitter receptors which are also present on lymphocytes, beta-adrenergic receptors play an important role as the linkage of two important systems, neuroendocrine and immune systems. Here I summarize several lines of evidence of the importance of the beta-adrenergic receptors in immune regulation.
Discovery and Development of the G-rich Oligonucleotide AS1411 as a Novel Treatment for Cancer

Certain guanine-rich (G-rich) DNA and RNA molecules can associate intermolecularly or intramolecularly to form four stranded or "quadruplex" structures, which have unusual biophysical and biological properties. Several synthetic G-rich quadruplex-forming oligodeoxynucleotides have recently been investigated as therapeutic agents for various human diseases. We refer to these biologically active G-rich oligonucleotides as aptamers because their activities arise from binding to protein targets via shape-specific recognition (analogous to antibody-antigen binding). As therapeutic agents, the G-rich aptamers may have some advantages over monoclonal antibodies and other oligonucleotide-based approaches. For example, quadruplex oligonucleotides are non-immunogenic, heat stable and they have increased resistance to serum nucleases and enhanced cellular uptake compared to unstructured sequences. In this review, we describe the characteristics and activities of G-rich oligonucleotides. We also give a personal perspective on the discovery and development of AS1411, an antiproliferative G-rich phosphodiester oligonucleotide that is currently being tested as an anticancer agent in Phase II clinical trials. This molecule functions as an aptamer to nucleolin, a multifunctional protein that is highly expressed by cancer cells, both intracellularly and on the cell surface. Thus, the serendipitous discovery of the G-rich oligonucleotides also led to the identification of nucleolin as a new molecular target for cancer therapy.
Role of incentive level, number of choices, and type of task in children's probability learning

Abstract Two experiments are reported which attempt to clarify earlier differences in results which have appeared in the literature. Experiment 1 included both two- and three-choice conditions in a probability learning task in which children guessed which of two (or three) milk bottles contained a prize. High (trinkets and toys) and low (knowledge of results) incentive conditions were also included. Some support was provided for the previous finding that in this task incentives of high value produce more frequent choice of the high probability alternative than do incentives of lower value. Experiment 2, in which a button-pressing task was used with either two or three choices available, provided evidence of marginal significance of an incentive effect in the opposite direction to that found in Exp. 1. In both experiments, fewer choices of the high probability alternative occurred in the three-choice task than in the two-choice task. Large task differences were also found, with the milk bottle task resulting in fewer choices of the high probability alternative than did the button-pressing task. The relevance of these findings to other studies is discussed.
Stereospecific interaction of opiate narcotics in binding of 3H-dihydromorphine to membranes of rat brain

Abstract Membranes from homogenates of corpus striatum bound 3H-dihydromorphine in a saturable fashion with a Km value of 1 × 10−9M. The binding of 3H-dihydromorphine to the membranes was reduced to about 10% by 10−7M levorphanol but not by 10−7M dextrorphan. The binding of 3H-dihydromorphine became less sensitive to 10−7M levorphanol when the concentration of 3H-dihydromorphine was greater than 2 × 10−9M. Other opiate narcotics, e.g. morphine and l -methadone, were as effective as levorphanol in competition for the binding 3H-dihydromorphine with ED50 values of 2–4 × 10−9M. d -Methadone and dextrorphan were about 1/50 and 1/2000 as effective as their respective levo-isomers. The opiate antagonist, naloxone, also competed effectively for the binding sites with an ED50 value of 3.3 × 10−9M. Substances like acetylcholine, choline, serotonin, norepinephrine and dopamine were ineffective. Only ionophores specific for divalent cations stimulated the binding of 3H-dihydromorphine suggesting that some endogenous divalent cations may be inhibitory to the binding of the opiate narcotic. The receptors of 3H-dihydromorphine probably exist in the membranes of nerve endings and have a density of 6 × 1012 sites per g in corpus striatum. We conclude that the described technique can successfully detect the opiate narcotic receptors in the central nervous system without the usual method of displacement.
Three-dimensional analysis of patterns of skin displacement over the equine radius.

Summary Reasons for performing study: Surface markers are usually used to track bone movement. However, skin movement related to the bone has a large effect on the analysis of skeletal kinematics. A 2-dimensional (2D) skin displacement correction model has been successfully developed, but no 3D skin displacement model exists. Objectives: To develop a 3-dimensional (3D) skin displacement model for the equine radial segment during trot. Methods: The 3D trajectories of 6 skin-based markers and a bone-fixed triad were captured at trot in 4 horses. Skin displacements in the bone-based coordinate system were calculated using a singular-value decomposition method. The truncated Fourier series models were developed for the skin displacements using a generalised cross-validatory spline. Results: Mean ± s.d. of peak skin displacement of the 3 markers on the proximal radius as percentage of radial length was 10.7 ± 0.5, 4.6 ± 1.5 and 14.5 ± 2.9% in x, y and z direction, respectively. For the 3 markers on the distal radius, the equivalent displacements were 4.7 ± 0.6, 1.7 ± 0.8 and 7.3 ± 1.8% in x, y and z direction, respectively. Conclusions: The 3D skin displacement model for correction of skin marker motion over the equine radius relative to the bone can be established using a truncated Fourier series, which has previously been used successfully to develop 2D models. Potential relevance: This method of determining 3D skin displacement correction needs to be extended to the entire fore- and hindlimbs to provide a more sensitive measure of kinematic analysis. Accurate descriptions of the 3D motions of the limb segments and interactions between adjacent segments at the joints are necessary for understanding of the mechanics of different gaits and the gait aberrations that manifest as lameness.
Incidence rates for alcohol dependence among adults: prospective data from the Baltimore Epidemiologic Catchment Area Follow-Up Survey, 1981-1996.

Objective: Using prospectively gathered data, we assessed cumulative incidence of alcohol dependence using the Diagnostic Interview Schedule (DIS) based on criteria from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Revised Third Edition (DSM-III-R). Method: Probability samples of area residents were selected by census tracts and households in five communities of the Epidemiologic Catchment Area Survey program. The baseline interview for the Baltimore site was completed in 1981, and between 1993 and 1996 the original Baltimore site cohort was traced. After excluding individuals with current or prior history of alcohol dependence at the time of the baseline interview, we identified a cohort of 1,642 individuals who were at risk for alcohol dependence. Person-years of risk were calculated, cumulative incidence obtained, and survival analyses completed. Results: Several principal findings that confirm some from studies of shorter follow-up intervals are as follows: (1) incidence of alcohol depen...
Control of dopamine extracellular concentration in rat striatum by impulse flow and uptake

Abstract Advances in measurement techniques have enabled the extracellular concentration of dopamine to be monitored inside striatal structures during transient electrical stimulation of the medial forebrain bundle. The observed concentration changes can be accounted for by a mathematical model as a function of the frequency employed and the stimulus duration. Overflow curves can be described by 3 kinetic parameters: the concentration of dopamine released per stimulus pulse, and the K m and V max of uptake. In terms of this model, the kinetics of overflow during stimulation is found to be identical in the nucleus accumbens and caudate nucleus with the exception that the V max for uptake is lower in the former region. Maximal uptake is also found to be lower in animals with partial lesions of dopamine neurons. Measured concentrations vary with stimulation frequency from 10 to 60 Hz in a manner that can be predicted by the model. Competitive uptake inhibitors have their primary effect on overflow in the limit of low stimulus frequencies. In contrast, D 2 antagonists, which increase the concentration of dopamine released per stimulus pulse, have a moderate effect in low and high frequency ranges, but cause a significant maximal increase in extracellular dopamine concentrations at a mid-range frequency. Both calculated response and experimental findings indicate that in the caudate nucleus, the upper frequency for observable uptake inhibition and the characteristic maximum frequency for the receptormediated response occur at higher values than in the nucleus accumbens. The model appears to be useful for predicting dopamine extracellular concentrations over a wide range of conditions, and its predictions may be valid when extended to more physiological situations.
The glutamate uptake inhibitor L-trans-2,4-pyrrolidine dicarboxylate is neurotoxic in neonatal rat brain.

High-affinity glutamate uptake (HAGU) transporters rapidly remove released glutamate from the synaptic cleft. If HAGU is suppressed, neurotoxic concentrations of excitatory amino acids may accumulate. To seek further evidence in support of the neurotoxicity of endogenous glutamate in the developing brain, we assessed the neurotoxicity of the selective HAGU inhibitorl-trans-2,4-pyrrolidine dicarboxylate (L-PDC) in postnatal day 7 (PND 7) rats. The hippocampus of PND 7 rats is susceptible to EAA agonist-mediated injury; features of injury include atrophy and neuronal loss. Since HAGU is energy-dependent, we hypothesized that moderate hypoxia would increasel-PDC-mediated injury by further suppressing HAGU.l-PDC was stereotaxically injected into dorsolateral hippocampus of PND 7 rats (568 nmol,n=20). Prior to return to the dam, rats were divided into two groups, one of which was subjected to moderate hypoxia (3 h, FiO2=0.08) (n=11; 2 died acutely). On PND 12, hippocampal neuropathology was assessed by a blinded observer using a five-point scale and also by measuring hippocampal cross-sectional areas with computerized image analysis. Three brains were excluded from analysis, since markedly asymmetric tissue sectioning precluded valid side-to-side comparison of hippocampal areas. Injection ofl-PDC alone elicited focal pyramidal cell loss (6/7); in the (l-PDC + hypoxia) group, injury was significantly increased (median scores:l-PDC=2; [l=PDC + hypoxia]=3.5;p 85%; at the same concentration,l-PDC did not displace [3H]glutamate from NMDA- or AMPA-sensitive hippocampal binding sites. These results support the hypothesis that increased synaptic accumulation of endogenous excitatory amino acid neurotransmitters may produce hippocampal injury in perinatal rodents.
Escherichia coli MutS,L modulate RuvAB-dependent branch migration between diverged DNA.

This study examines the interaction betweenEscherichia coli MutS,L and E. coli RuvAB during E. coli RecA-promoted strand exchange. RuvAB is a branch migration complex that stimulates heterologous strand exchange. Previous studies indicate that RuvAB increases the rate at which heteroduplex products are formed by RecA, that RuvA and RuvB are required for this stimulation, and that RuvAB does not stimulate homologous strand exchange. This study indicates that MutS,L inhibit the formation of full-length heteroduplex DNA between M13-fd DNA in the presence of RuvAB, such that less than 2% of the linear substrate is converted to product. Inhibition depends on the time at which MutS,L are added to the reaction and is strongest when MutS,L are added during initiation. The kinetics of the strand exchange reaction suggest that MutS,L directly inhibit RuvAB-dependent branch migration in the absence of RecA. The inhibition requires the formation of base-base mismatches and ATP utilization; no effect on RuvAB-promoted strand exchange is seen if an ATP-deficient mutant of MutS (MutS501) is included in the reaction instead of wild-type MutS. These results are consistent with a role for MutS,L in maintaining genomic stability and replication fidelity.
Firm value and optimal cash level: evidence from Pakistan

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between firm value and cash holdings for the period 2003-2008. This study seeks to find if there are costs and benefits associated with holding too much or too little cash, then an optimal cash level exists where marginal benefits are offset by their costs. If this optimal point exists, then firm value will be maximized at that point and deviation from it will affect the firm value negatively. Design/methodology/approach – Optimal cash level between firm value and cash holding is determined by investigating the concave relationship. If concave relationship exists then a residual term is included in the equation to see how deviations from the optimal level affect firm value. A two-step generalized method of moments (GMM) estimator is used in estimating all results. GMM controls for unobserved firm heterogeneity and endogeneity problems. Findings – Results showed that a concave relationship exists between firm value and cash holdings, wh...
Action of diethylpropanediol and diethylbutanediol on isolated sciatic nerve and ileum.

Summary1. The action of 2,2-diethyl 1, 3-propanediol (DEP), a central nervous system depressant with anticonvulsant activity and 2,2-diethyl 1,4-butanediol (DEB), a central nervous system stimulant with convulsant action have been compared on isolated synapses and axons. 2. Both compounds caused an elevation of rheobase of desheathed rat sciatic nerve at a concentration of 4 mM/1 and no concentration tested caused an increase in excitability. Similarly, the treatment with each of these drugs of nerves rendered hyperexcit-able with calcium ion deprivation showed only a depressant action 3. Experiments on isolated rabbit intestine showed that both compounds acted only as depressants. At 1 mM/1 there was a depression of ganglionic transmission. 4. When the compounds were tested on simple reflex arcs in low spinal cats, DEP was depressant and DEB stimulatory.
Differential expression of isozymes in relation to organogenesis in two closely related species

Two closely related species of Gentianaceae were established in tissue culture and transferred to a regeneration medium containing 2,4-D. Even though the age of cultures and all the environmental conditions were identical, only one of them expressed a clear morphogenic potential, and the differences are expressive in the isozyme banding patterns observed for creatine phosphokinase, lactate dehydrogenase and indoleacetaldehyde dehydrogenase. No differences in alkaline phosphatase isozymes were detected.
Phonation threshold pressure measurements during phonation by airflow interruption

Objective/Hypothesis: Most methods to measure phonation threshold pressure (PTP) are clinically impractical because they are invasive. This report concerns an airflow interruption system developed to allow noninvasive estimation of (PTP) at different levels of vocal intensity. An estimation of PTP was made for normal subjects with normal larynges and no voice complaints and for individuals who had dysphonia associated with vocal polyps to compare the estimated minimal pressure across the glottis that was required to sustain phonation in the two conditions. Study Design: This was a methodological study designed to measure an unanticipated PTP from a subject. Methods: Subjects sustained a constant tone and the airflow was directed into a section of pipe with an airtight mask over the mouth and nose. The airflow, intramask pressure, and intensity of the acoustic output were recorded. A PTP was predicted from a difference between an estimate of the subglottal pressure and the vocal tract pressure at the point that phonation ceased after interruption of airflow. Eleven control subjects and 13 patients with vocal fold polyps were studied. In each population there were eight men and five women. The individuals in the group with vocal fold polyps averaged 39 years of age, and the control subject group averaged 49 years of age. Normal subjects produced a steady vowel lal at 75, 80, and 85 dB. Patients with polyps were unable to sustain phonation at these levels but were able to produce phonation at 65, 70, and 75 dB. The validity of the system was tested using a laryngeal model and in a patient with a normal larynx and voice who had a tracheotomy (placed for sleep apnea syndrome) which allowed direct measurement of subglottal pressure. Results : The measured mean PTP levels (with standard deviation [SD]) for the control subjects were 2.38 (1.273), 2.67 (1.879), and 2.98 (2.23) cm H 2 O at 75, 80, and 85 dB, respectively. The measured mean PTP levels (with SD) for the patients with polyps were 4.79 (2.67), 5.85 (2.34), and 7.37 (3.26) cm H 2 O at 75, 80, and 85 dB, respectively. The differences in mean PTP between groups at 75, 80, and 85 dB were significant at P = .013, P = .017, and P = .010, respectively. Conclusions : The estimations of PTP for patients with vocal fold polyps were significantly higher than for the control subjects at three phonation levels.
High-performance liquid chromatography of chromatin histones

A method is described for the rapid analysis of histones by high-performance liquid chromatography on reversed-phase muBondapak columns, containing either octadecylsilane (C18) or cyanopropylsilane (CN) bonded to silica particles packed in either steel columns or Radial-Pak cartridges. A linear gradient progressing from water-acetonitrile (80:20) to water-acetonitrile (40:60) and increasing in acetonitrile concentration at the rate of 10%/h was used to elute the histones at a flow-rate of 1 ml/min for steel columns or 2 ml/min for Radial-Pak cartridges. Two conditions were found to be necessary to achieve histone fractionation: (1) silylation of the active silanol groups on the silica matrix, and (2) 0.1-0.3% trifluoroacetic acid in the eluting solvent. More than 95% of the total [3H]lysine-labeled protein applied to the CN column was eluted. The histone fractions were identified by their electrophoretic mobilities in both acid-urea and Triton DF-16 polyacrylamide gels. Histones were eluted from the columns in the following order: H1, H2B, (LHP)H2A, (MHP)H2A, H4, (LHP)H3, and (MHP)H3 (where LHP and MHP refer to the less-hydrophobic and more-hydrophobic histone variants). Phosphorylated and acetylated histone molecules were not separated from their unmodified parent molecules. The volatile nature of the water-acetonitrile-trifluoroacetic acid eluting solvent facilitated recovery of salt-free histones from the fractions by direct lyophilization of the column effluents. The best resolution of histone fractions was obtained with the Radial-Pak muBondapak C18 cartridge using 0.3% TFA. However, for analytical studies, the best detection was obtained by using the muBondapak CN steel column. Poorer resolution was obtained by using the non-silica based PRP-1 reversed-phase column, containing a polystyrene-divinylbenzene resin under the same conditions.
Strength properties of coors AD995 alumina in the shocked state

An investigation of the strength of AD995 alumina in the shocked state was assessed over the stress range of 26-120 GPa. Velocity interferometry was used to measure loading, unloading, reloading and cyclic loading profiles from the initial shocked state. These results show that alumina retains considerable strength at pressures exceeding 120 GPa. An important observation, as with some metals, is that there is a substantial increase in strength during reloading and a well-defined elastic behavior is observed. The unloading and reloading technique described also yields data to estimate a dynamic shock hydrostat, i.e., the mean pressure compression curve.
Comparison by motion analysis of non-operative versus operative treatment of Achilles tendon ruptures

Sign. Pair 1 Cli 1–cli 2 0.17568 1.08991 0.12670 0.170 0.501 0.000 Pair 2 Cli 1 dominant–cli 2 dominant 0.10811 1.02154 0.16794 0.524 0.550 0.000 Pair 3 Cli 1 non-dominant–cli 2 non-dominant 0.24324 1.16441 0.19143 0.212 0.451 0.002 Pair 4 Dominant–non-dominant −0.35135 0.88870 0.14610 0.021 higher (more lax) than cli 2, though not significantly. Finally, the dominant and non-dominant hand (pair 4, scores of cli 1 and 2 added) were compared and a significant difference was found. The non-dominant hand scored more lax than the dominant hand. Significant correlations are found between the scores of cli 1 and 2 (pairs 1–3). The dominant hands from both clinicians were added, this score was compared with the other tests and no significant (Cli versus Mayo) or very low correlations (Cli versus Beighton (0.37), Cli versus GE (0.43)) were found. Between the other tests only low correlations were found: Beighton versus Mayo (0.49), GE versus Mayo (0.57), GE versus Beighton (0.63). 6. Discussion Both clinicians scored the same level of wrist laxity while using their own techniques. Because cli 1 scored (not significantly) higher than cli 2 in all the tests, it may be assumed cli 1 has a higher reference point at this specific population. The difference found between the dominant and non-dominant hand was in contrast with earlier results [6]. A possible reason can be because the muscles strength and tension is likely higher in the dominant hand, the wrist becomes stiffer. The clinical judgment had no or very low correlation with any of the other methods. Correlations, though low, were found between the other methods. Assuming the clinicians estimation of wrist joint laxity is correct, the other methods are not capable of quantifying what they define as wrist joint laxity. Creating a standardized and more detailed scale for clinicians to score the level of wrist joint laxity seems to be the best option for reaching an objective measurement tool. Also, the clinicians test the wrist by translating the hand dorsal and palmar, a measurement device that simulates this movement may be more successful in determining the level of laxity.
Reversal of the antinociceptive effects of intrathecally administered serotonin in the rat by a selective 5-HT3 receptor antagonist

Abstract The ability of the highly selective 5-HT 3 receptor antagonist ICS 205–930 (3α-tropanyl-1H-indole-3-carboxylic acid ester) to block the increase in tail flick (TFL) and hot plate latencies (HPL) produced by intrathecally (i.t.) administered serotonin (5-HT) was examined in pargyline pretreated rats. ICS 205–930 (0.1 μg, i.t.) blocked the ability of 5-HT (200 μg) to increase TFL and HPL. Significant hyperalgesia, as measured by a decrease in TFL and HPL compared to saline controls, also resulted from either the coadministration of ICS 205–930 (10 μg) and 5-HT (200 μg) or from ICS 205–930 (100 μg) alone. These data suggest an important role for 5-HT 3 receptors in modulating spinal nociceptive responses.
Resource Management and Contingencies in Aerospace Concurrent Engineering

significant concern in designing complex systems implementing new technologies is that while knowledge about the system is acquired incrementally, substantial financial commitments, even make-or-break decisions, must be made upfront, essentially in the unknown. One practice that helps in dealing with this dichotomy is the smart embedding of contingencies and margins in the design to serve as buffers against surprises. This issue presents itself in full force in the aerospace industry, where unprecedented systems are formulated and committed to as a matter of routine. As more and more aerospace mission concepts are generated by concurrent design laboratories, it is imperative that such laboratories apply well thought-out contingency and margin structures to their designs. The first part of this publication provides an overview of resource management techniques and standards used in the aerospace industry. That is followed by a thought provoking treatise on margin policies. The expose presents the actual flight telemetry data recorded by the thermal discipline during several recent NASA Goddard Space Flight Center missions. The margins actually achieved in flight are compared against pre-flight predictions, and the appropriateness and the ramifications of having designed with rigid margins to bounding stacked worst case conditions are assessed. The second half of the paper examines the particular issues associated with the application of contingencies and margins in the concurrent engineering environment. In closure, a discipline-by-discipline disclosure of the contingency and margin policies in use at the Integrated Design Center at NASA s Goddard Space Flight Center is made.
In vitro Binding of Radioiodinated Human Follicle-Stimulating Hormone to Reptilian and Avian Gonads: Radioligand Studies with Mammalian Hormones

Human FSH iodinated with the aid of lactoperoxidase (12 5I-hFSH) was used to study gonadotropin binding to a variety of reptilian and avian gonadal tissues; gonads were examined from five species of turtle (Chrysemys, Pseudemys. Chelydra, Trionyx and Chelonia), a snake (Thamnophis), a lizard (Anolis) and two birds (chicken and duck). All gonadal tissues, including testes and ovaries and isolated corpora lutea from a turtle, showed high affinity, saturable, specific binding of the 1 25 l-hFSH. The binding was dependent on tissue concentration, time and temperature; full inhibition curves were obtained with concentrations of unlabeled hFSH ranging from ca. 6-1200 ng/ml (s1010 to i0� M). Maximal binding of I 25 l-hFSH varied from 5 to 30 percent of the total labeled ligand; it was highest in lizard and snake testes and lowest in bird testes (these values are comparable to those obtained with mammalian gonadal tissues). Nongonadal tissues-thyroid, liver and spleen-from snakes and turtles did not show specific binding. Radioligand binding analyses with a variety of purified pituitary hormones from four mammalian species revealed that competition for binding of 1 2 5 I-hFSH by reptilian gonadal tissues was associated with a high degree of hormonal specificity. High concentrations of growth hormone, prolactin and thyrotropin had no appreciable effect; whereas, FSH of ovine, bovine, rat and human origin all inhibited the binding of 125 I-hFSH at relatively low concentrations. These preparations of FSH ranged in potency from 0.2-3 times that of a highly purified hFSH reference preparation. The binding of I 25 I-hFSH to turtle and avian tissues and porcine granulosa cells was also highly specific for FSH; the potency of LH from the four mammalian sources was usually <0.1 percent of the homologous FSH. However, all preparations of LH showed appreciable activity in inhibiting the binding of I 25 l-hFSH to snake and lizard tissues. Some preparations of LH, especially bovine, were almost as potent as the homologous FSH in inhibiting 1 2 5 I-hFSH binding to snake testes. These results suggest that mammalian FSH and LH may act at the same binding sites in some reptilian tissues, and that the hormonal specificity of reptilian binding sites varies among species.
The association between cue-reactivity in the precuneus and level of dependence on nicotine and alcohol.

a b s t r a c t Background: Given numerous reports implicating involvement of the precuneus in cue-reactivity paradigms, the goal of this investigation was to examine the relationship between activation of the precuneus in response to drug cues and measures of subjective craving and severity of dependence in volunteers who were comorbid for alcohol and nicotine abuse. Methods: Forty research participants, who all reported heavy drinking and daily smoking, were recruited (15 women; 70% Caucasian; mean age = 31.2 years) for a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) session involving a cigarette video-cues task and an alcohol taste-cues task. Mean precuneus activation from both tasks during cue presentation was subjected to bivariate correlation analyses with indices of dependence severity and subjective craving. Results: Precuneus activation in the contrast of Cigarette Cues vs. Control Cues was positively correlated with scores on the Fagerstrom Test of Nicotine Dependence (r = 0.389, p = 0.016), and activation in the Alcohol Cues vs. Control Cues contrast was positively correlated with Alcohol Dependence Scale scores (r = 0.338, p = 0.038). No correlations with subjective craving were observed (ps > 0.05). Conclusions: These findings indicate that the precuneus is involved in cue reactivity for both cigarettes and alcohol, and that this involvement is moderated by severity of drug dependence. The precuneus may be a cortical locus for neuroplastic changes related to drug dependence. © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.
An Opportunistic Cross-Layer Protocol for Multi-Channel Wireless Networks

In this paper, we propose a new multi-hop forwarding scheme for wireless multi-hop networks, denoted Multi-Channel Extremely Opportunistic Routing (MCExOR), that efficiently exploits radio channel characteristics and makes use of multiple RF channels. MCExOR reduces the overall number of transmissions in wireless multi-hop networks by opportunistically skipping nodes in a packet's forwarding path. The use of multiple non overlapping RF channels contributes to the reduction of overall interference. In contrast to other approaches MCExOR only needs one RF transceiver per device. We present algorithms for route discovery and packet forwarding. In contrast to other multi-channel protocols the packet forwarding is decoupled from route discovery. Therefore, both protocols have low complexity and can be addressed separately. With the help of simulations we show that MCExOR significantly outperforms traditional protocols like AODV through the simultaneous use of multiple RF channels and its opportunistic behaviour. With the increasing number of RF channels the overall throughput increases superproportionally. MCExOR with 2 RF channels surpasses AODV by an average of 140%. Unlike other multi channel approaches even a single packet flow can benefit from the existence of multiple channels.
Diffraction of a Pulse by a Resistive Half-Plane. II. Oblique Indicence

The three-dimensional problem, which arises when a plane pulse is incident obliquely at the edge of a resistive half-plane is discussed, and the relations between this case and that of normal incidence (described in part I) are given.
4,4′‐Diaminoazobenzene

4,4′-Diaminoazobenzene reactant: 29.0 g. (0.19 mole) of p-aminoacetanilide intermediate: 4,4′-bis(acetamido)azobenzene product: 4,4′-diaminoazobenzene Keywords: coupling; oxidation, miscellaneous
A simple approach to error probability with binary signaling over generalized fading channels with maximal ratio combining and noisy channel estimates

In this letter, we study the performance of binary signaling on generalized fading channels with maximal ratio combining (MRC) and imperfect channel estimates. With the assumption of the channel estimate being corrupted by a complex Gaussian random variable, an expression for the average probability of error is provided in the form of a simple single integral which involves the moment generating function of the normalized signal-to-noise ratio corresponding to the case of ideal MRC. Various examples are given to illustrate the usefulness of the derived expression under various fading conditions with different distributions, and with a possible correlation between the diversity branches.
Rapid Solidification of Metastable Materials

There are numerous processing methods available for the fabrication of rapidly–solidified metastable alloys. Examples include splat quenching, melt–spinning, surface melting and quenching, melt atomization and solidification, and deposition by sputtering and evaporation. Experimental aspects of each of these fabrication methods will be discussed. These include solidification and quench rate, process control, and final product morphology and microstructure. Some properties of an amorphous alloy prepared by several of these processing methods will be discussed.
BACTERIA-ASSIMILABLE ORGANIC COMPOUNDS, PHOSPHATE, AND ENHANCED GROWTH OF BACTERIA-ASSOCIATED BLUE-GREEN ALGAE1

SUMMARY The complexities of algal physiology and nutrition make it likely that diverse and often substantial nutrient limitations will be required to control eutrophication in different situations. In defense of a policy exemplified by the generalization “phosphorus is the primary limiting nutrient in most lakes,” Schindler of the Canadian Freshwater Institute has misquotated the work of Lange. Key points of Lange's conclusions are properly quoted, and the reader is cautioned against an oversimplification of a single approach to algal control.
Effects of Attention on the Strength of Lexical Influences on Speech Perception: Behavioral Experiments and Computational Mechanisms.

The effects of lexical context on phonological processing are pervasive and there have been indications that such effects may be modulated by attention. However, attentional modulation in speech processing is neither well documented nor well understood. Experiment 1 demonstrated attentional modulation of lexical facilitation of speech sound recognition when task and critical stimuli were identical across attention conditions. We propose modulation of lexical activation as a neurophysiologically plausible computational mechanism that can account for this type of modulation. Contrary to the claims of critics, this mechanism can account for attentional modulation without violating the principle of interactive processing. Simulations of the interactive TRACE model extended to include two different ways of modulating lexical activation showed that each can account for attentional modulation of lexical feedback effects. Experiment 2 tested conflicting predictions from the two implementations and provided evidence that is consistent with bias input as the mechanism of attentional control of lexical activation.
The Balance of Textual Power

Nationalism and the Genealogical Imagination: Oral History and Textual Authority in Tribal Jordan. Andrew Shryock. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1997. 359 pp.
Model-Driven Performance Analysis of Reconfigurable Conveyor Systems Used in Material Handling Applications

Reconfigurable conveyors are increasingly being adopted in multiple industrial sectors for their immense flexibility in adapting to new products and product lines. Before modifying the layout of the conveyor system for the new product line, however, engineers and layout planners must be able to answer many questions about the system, such as maximum sustainable rate of flow of goods, prioritization among goods, and tolerances of failures. Any analysis capability that provides answers to these questions must account for both the physical and cyber artifacts of the reconfigurable system all at once. Moreover, the same system should enable the stakeholders to seamlessly change the layouts and be able to analyze the pros and cons of the layouts. This paper addresses these challenges by presenting a model-driven analysis tool that provides three important capabilities. First, a domain-specific modeling language provides the stakeholders with intuitive artifacts to model conveyor layouts. Second, an analysis engine embedded within the model-driven tool provides an accurate simulation of the modeled conveyor system accounting for both the physical and cyber issues. Third, generative capabilities within the tool help to automate the analysis process. The merits of our model-driven analysis tool are evaluated in the context of an example conveyor topology.
QoS negotiation in real-time systems and its application to automated flight control

We propose a model for quality-of-service (QoS) negotiation in building real-time services to meet both predictability and graceful degradation requirements. QoS negotiation is shown to (i) outperform conventional "binary" admission control schemes (either guaranteeing the required QoS or rejecting the service request), and (ii) achieve higher application-perceived system utility. We incorporated the proposed QoS-negotiation model into an example real-time middleware service, called RTPOOL, which manages a distributed pool of shared computing resources (processors) to guarantee timeliness QoS for real-time applications. The efficacy and power of QoS negotiation are demonstrated for an automated flight control system implemented on a network of PCs running RT-POOL. This system is used to fly an F-16 fighter aircraft modeled using the Aerial Combat (ACM) F-16 Flight Simulator. Experimental results indicate that QoS negotiation, while maintaining real-time guarantees, enables graceful QoS degradation under conditions in which traditional schedulability analysis and admission control schemes fail.
The importance of contextual factors and age in association with anxiety and depression in Black breast cancer patients.

Objectives Limited research exists on correlates of psychosocial distress in Black breast cancer patients. The goals of the study were to describe the prevalence of distress (anxiety and depression) in Black women with breast cancer and to examine the influence of demographic, clinical, contextual (e.g., self-efficacy, medical mistrust), and process of care factors (e.g., patient satisfaction) on women's level of anxiety and depression. Methods Eighty-two Black women diagnosed with invasive non-metastatic breast cancer were interviewed by phone. Collected data included demographic, clinical, contextual, and process of care factors. Bivariate correlations were used to examine relationships between those variables. Multiple linear regressions were used to examine predictors of anxiety and depression. Results About one-third of the women (32%) met cut-off thresholds for distress. Medical mistrust and positive attitude had significant influences on anxiety levels, whereas age and positive attitude were determinants of levels of depression. Participants with higher medical mistrust reported more anxiety (r = .379; p < .001) and depression (r = .337; p = .002), whereas women with higher self-efficacy reported less anxiety (r = −.401; p < .001) and depression (r = −.427; p < .001). Age was inversely related to both anxiety and depression (r = −.224; r = −.296, respectively; p < .05). Conclusions Findings support national recommendations for routine distress screening in the delivery of cancer care particularly in younger Black patients. Interventions targeted to boost self-efficacy or reduce medical mistrust through enhanced patient–provider interactions may decrease psychological distress. Psychosocial needs of younger patients warrant particular attention. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Implementation of an HPV-Vaccination Program

Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection can lead to the development of cervical cancer, the second most common cancer-related cause of death in women in the world. The availability of HPV vaccines provides a new and exciting opportunity for cervical cancer prevention. Currently available phase II and III trial data suggest that HPV vaccines are highly effective in preventing infection with HPV-16 and -18, the two types responsible for approximately 70% of cervical cancers worldwide. In order to determine how best to successfully implement a vaccination program, there are a number of factors that need to be considered in addition to vaccine efficacy. These include the choice of a disease endpoint, the duration of vaccine efficacy, the HPV types included in the vaccine, vaccine costs, vaccine coverage, and how the availability of an effective vaccination program may affect screening for those countries that have a successful screening program in place. For settings in which screening is already in place, there will need to be a careful consideration of new approaches to screening, including screening less frequently and using new screening tests or strategies. For settings that have a high burden of cervical cancer but that have not implemented screening, additional trial and registry data that not only confirm the initial results showing high efficacy but also show significant reductions in pre-cancer, and ultimately cancer, will provide reassurance that a decision to implement an HPV vaccination program is sound.