cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Deposition of coarse aerosols from turbulent flow

Abstract Experiments are reported for the deposition of Lycopodium spores (30·9 μm dia.), Ragweed pollen (19·5 μm dia.), Pecan pollen (48·5 μm dia.) and Polystyrene spheres (32 μm dia.) on the inner walls of circular tubes under fully developed turbulent flow. Both tube diameter and air velocity were independently varied with inside tube diameters ranging from 1·3 to 4·4 cm and tube Reynolds numbers from 4 × 103 to 6 × 104. Perfect sticking over the entire measured range was obtained with a wall coating mixture of 75 per cent paraffin oil and 25 per cent petroleum jelly. Because typical precautions to prevent rebound are ineffective, these are the first extensive measurements which, at the same time, correspond to both perfect sticking and particle stopping distances, which exceed the distance from the wall to the periphery of the turbulent core, i.e. S + = 0·9τu ∗2 /ν > 30 . Our Lycopodium data, which were checked by independent methods for reliability, are in some disagreement with earlier data even where perfect sticking occurred for both. Both our data and the selected data of others agree well with a little-used expression of Friedlander (1954) which has here been modified to eliminate certain theoretical inconsistencies. This implies that core diffusion with free flight as the final transport step satisfactorily correlates data for both large and small S+.
From Apartheid to Liberation: Calvinism and the Shaping of Ethical Belief in South Africa

Abstract Arguing against prevailing social-scientific analyses which trace the sources and nature of ethical beliefs in South Africa purely to material, economic and/or political factors, this essay asserts the comparable significance of religious belief in shaping South African morals. By means of an outline of Afrikaner history and a comparison of Dutch Calvinism in its various contemporary forms (white and black, pro- and anti-apartheid), the essay explores the applicability and effectiveness of a Weberian approach to the understanding of a society's ethical convictions.
Variations of maternal support to children’s early literacy development in Chinese and American Indian families: Implications for early childhood educators

This paper presents a study that aims to help early childhood educators understand the cultural context in early language and literacy development. It examines how mothers in Chinese and American Indian families support their young children’s emergent literacy development during everyday interactions. Twenty mother-child dyads in each cultural community participated in the study. The results of the study indicate that Chinese and American Indian mothers differed greatly in the ways they supported their children in early literacy. The Chinese mothers tended to privilege print-based literacy interactions more than the American Indian mothers. The American Indian mothers tended to privilege the literacy interactions that were based on oral narratives of life and personal experiences. Moreover, the mothers in the two communities emphasized and supported different aspects of their children’s early literacy development. The Chinese mothers tended to support their children in explicit, event-specific and elaborative ways. In contrast, the American Indian mothers tended to support their children in implicit and contextual ways. This study suggests that early childhood educators must understand the specific meanings of early literacy in different cultural contexts to maximize the learning potential of every child in the early childhood education settings.
Regulation of inflammatory vascular damage.

The acute inflammatory response is comprised of an elaborate cascade of mediators that control an ordered sequence of events resulting in the recruitment of neutrophils to the site of infection or injury. Microvascular injury occurring during acute inflammation often results in increased vascular permeability and microvascular haemorrhage. Damage to vascular endothelial cells, basement membrane, and matrix components results from both neutrophil-dependent and neutrophil-independent mechanisms and is also dependent on the organ/tissue source of the endothelial cells. Neutrophil-mediated injury of endothelial cells involves a complex cascade in which products from both cell types affect the cytotoxic outcome. It is also clear that the acute inflammatory response is carefully regulated by the endogenous gene expression of both pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory mediators. Control of acute inflammation seems to relate to activation of the transcription factor NFκB. To appreciate the interrelationship between multiple contributing factors of inflammatory vascular injury, one must first have an understanding of the inflammatory mediator cascades which bring about the recruitment of neutrophils to the site of inflammation. In this review it is discussed how inflammatory mediators, as well as the products of activated neutrophils, affect the outcome of the acute inflammatory response. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Asymptomatic irregular cardiac rhythm.

Scenario: This is a rhythm strip of lead V5 from a 24-hour Holter study of a patient who is scheduled for elective orthopedic surgery. He is a physically fit 24-yearold white male with no medical history. The Holter study was performed because during his preoperative evaluation he was noted to have an irregular pulse rate. A regular feature of the American Journal of Critical Care, the ECG Puzzler addresses electrocardiogram (ECG) interpretation for clinical practice. To send an eLetter or to contribute to an online discussion about this article, visit www.ajcconline.org and click “Respond to This Article” on either the full-text or PDF view of the article. We welcome letters regarding this feature.
Prevention of fuel rod ballooning in nuclear power plants

Abstract Possible means of eliminating ballooning as a mode of failure of fuel rods due to overheating are described. Ballooning tends to block cooling passages and hence render energency cooling inoperative. Means proposed involve altering the shape of the yield locus so that the plastic strain increment vector lies in the axial rather than the circumferential direction of the fuel rod. Proposed changes in yield locus are accomplished by texturing of the zirconium cladding or by grooving or by wrapping the fuel rod.
Sespe Formation--Example of Arid Climate Redbed: ABSTRACT

Examination of sedimentological aspects of the Sespe Formation, a late eocene to early Miocene redbed unit of southern California, indicates that the formation was deposited under generally arid conditions. Evidence for this interpretation includes: (1) presence of arid-climate sedimentary features; (2) absence of intense weathering products among the detrital mineral suite, including the feldspars, ferro-magnesium minerals, iron oxides, and clay minerals; and (3) presence of an evaporite mineralogical suite including gypsum, borate minerals, and "corrensite," and abnormal formation-water content. Although at variance with earlier interpretations based on scanty faunal remains and the primary detrital model of redbed sedimentation, arid conditions of Sespe deposition can be reconciled readily into a consistent regional climatic picture. End_of_Article - Last_Page 527------------
Assessment of Exercise Intensity Formulas By Use of Ventilatory Threshold

Guidelines for training heart rate (HR) during aerobic exercise are often determined by predictive formulas. Measurement of the heart rate at ventilatory threshold (VT) by expired gas analysis provides a direct index of the upper limits of conditioning intensity. We evaluated 115 nonsmoking, healthy adults with measurement of peak oxygen uptake to classify groups as low- (n = 45), average-(n = 45), and high (n = 25) -fitness. Heart rate at VT was compared with the approximate midpoint (77 percent) of recommended training intensity as estimated by the Karvonen equation, predicted maximal (220–;age), and measured maximal HR formulas. No significant difference among the various HR formulas at 77 percent and HR at VT were found for high-fitness individuals. Among the low-and average-fitness groups, the Karvonen formula at 77 percent was significantly higher (p
Dilinoleoylphosphatidylcholine decreases acetaldehyde-induced TNF-α generation in Kupffer cells of ethanol-fed rats

Abstract We previously reported that dilinoleoylphosphatidylcholine (DLPC) decreases lipopolysaccharide-induced TNF-α generation by Kupffer cells of ethanol-fed rats by blocking p38, ERK1/2, and NF-κB activation. Here we show that DLPC also decreases TNF-α induction by acetaldehyde, a toxic metabolite released by ethanol oxidation. Acetaldehyde induces TNF-α generation with a maximal effect at 200 μM and activates p38 and ERK1/2; the latter in turn activates NF-κB. This effect is augmented in Kupffer cells of ethanol-fed rats, with upregulation of cytochrome P4502E1 by ethanol. DLPC decreases TNF-α generation by blocking p38, ERK1/2, and NF-κB activation. Likewise, SB203580, which abolishes p38 activation, and PD098059, which abrogates ERK1/2 and NF-κB activation, diminish TNF-α generation. Since increased TNF-α generation plays a pathogenic role in alcoholic liver disease, the DLPC action on Kupffer cells may explain, in part, its beneficial effects on liver cell injury after ethanol consumption.
Thermal analysis of reactions and transformations in the solid state. I. Experimental evaluation of published kinetic methods using thermogravimetry

Abstract A review of the non-isothermal mathematical models used to study the kinetics of reactions and transformations in the solid state is presented and their deficiencies discussed. An experimental evaluation of the new tabular method introduced by Gyulai and Greenhow is presented. Thermograms of several compounds of different sample size were obtained at different heating rates and analyzed by the Gyulai—Greenhow technique. The analysis showed a wide variation for the enthalpy calculated by this technique, as a function of the sample size and the heating rate ratios. For example, the calculated enthalpy of desolvation for the tertiary butanol solvate of methyl prednisolone obtained from different runs using the same heating rate but different sample sizes, yielded values between 16 and 95 kcal/mole. Variation in the heating rate ratios also affected the results. The enthalpy of theophylline varied between 17 and 39.6 kcal/mole with different heating rate ratios. Similar differences were found with calcium oxalate samples.
Climate change: tropical flip-flop connections.

A long climatic record shows that episodic wet periods in northeastern Brazil are linked to distant climate anomalies. The ocean–atmosphere system can evidently undergo rapid and global reorganization.
Prolonged effects of repeated cocaine on medial prefrontal cortex dopamine response to cocaine and a stressful predatory odor challenge in rats

The present study examined the effects of seven daily saline (1 ml/kg, i.p.) or cocaine injections (15 mg/kg, i.p.) on extracellular dopamine levels in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) after challenge with cocaine or stressful predatory odor presentation given 1 week (early withdrawal) or 3 weeks later (late withdrawal). Cocaine challenge at early withdrawal produced an increase in dopamine levels that was temporally shifted so that maximal levels of dopamine were significantly higher and attained 20 min earlier in the cocaine-pretreated group (maximal levels of saline controls=378% increase, cocaine=494% increase above baseline). Cocaine challenge at late withdrawal produced a similar effect on the temporal shift of maximal dopamine levels, with a significantly higher maximal percent increase of dopamine in cocaine-pretreated rats (saline-pretreated=420% increase, cocaine-pretreated=515% increase). Challenge with TMT, a predatory odor from fox that produces a stress response in rats, produced a maximal 75-200% increase in basal dopamine levels in both groups at both early and late withdrawal times. As with cocaine challenge, daily cocaine produced a leftward shift in the time at which maximal dopamine levels were attained in response to TMT. Cocaine-pretreated animals demonstrated maximal dopamine levels 40-80 min after TMT removal, while saline-pretreated rats showed maximal levels 100-140 min after TMT removal. These results suggest that there are long-term changes in the mPFC dopamine response to subsequent challenge with cocaine as well as a stressful predatory odor. The altered response of mPFC dopamine after repeated daily cocaine may impact relapse to drug-seeking or drug-taking behavior.
Suicidal ideation among sexual minority veterans: results from the 2005-2010 Massachusetts behavioral risk factor surveillance survey

Suicide is a public health problem disproportionately associated with some demographic characteristics (e.g., sexual orientation, veteran status). Analyses of the Massachusetts Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey data revealed that more lesbian, gay, and bisexual (i.e., sexual minority) veterans reported suicidal ideation compared with heterosexual veterans. Decreased social and emotional support contributed to explaining the association between sexual minority status and suicidal ideation. More research is needed about suicide risk among sexual minority veterans; they might be a population for outreach and intervention by the Veterans Health Administration.
Scenario-based resilience assessment framework for critical infrastructure systems: Case study for seismic resilience of seaports

Abstract A number of metrics in the past have been proposed and numerically implemented to assess the overall performance of large systems during natural disasters and their recovery in the aftermath of the events. Among such performance measures, resilience is a reliable metric. This paper proposes a probabilistic framework for scenario-based resilience assessment of infrastructure systems. The method accounts for uncertainties in the process including the correlation of the earthquake intensity measures, fragility assessment of structural components, estimation of repair requirements, the repair process, and finally the service demands. The proposed method is applied to a hypothetical seaport terminal and the system level performance of the seaport is assessed using various performance metrics. Results of this analysis have shown that medium to large seismic events may significantly disrupt the operation of seaports right after the event and the recovery process may take months. The proposed framework will enable port stakeholders to systematically assess the most-likely performance of the system during expected future earthquake events.
Correlation energy of the ground state of C

Carbon ground state correlation energy calculation, emphasizing assessment of truncation error sources
Changes in Rhodopseudomonas sphaeroides isoaccepting phenylalanyl-tRNA species during transitions from chemoheterotrophic to photoheterotrophic growth

A new iso-accepting tRNAphe from extracts of chemoheterotrophic and photoheterotrophic cells of Rhodopseudomonas sphaeroides has been identified by both BDEAE cellulose and RPC-5 chromatography. Rechromatography of each of the tRNAphe species in either the acylated or deacylated state shows that they migrate as single homogeneous peaks. In steady-state chemoheterotrophic cultures of R. sphaeroides tRNA I–II phe account for 25–30% of the total phenylalanine accepting activity while in steadystate photoheterotrophic cultures tRNA I–II phe account for no more than 10% of the total phenylalanine accepting activity. During the transition from chemoheterotrophic to photoheterotrophic growth conditions the levels of tRNA I–II phe fall in an exponential manner during the first half of the intracytoplasmic membrane induction period. tRNA I phe then remains at a level 10% that of its steady-state chemoheterotrophic level as long as photoheterotrophic growth conditions remain. tRNA II phe , after dropping to 10% of its former chemoheterotrophic level then returns to a level 50% that of its chemoheterotrophic level as long as photoheterotrophic growth conditions remain.
Theory of the Sputtering Process

The mathematical methods of neutron diffusion theory are applied to the problem of cathode sputtering. The state of all particles not in thermal equilibrium with the lattice can be described by a gas-like model in which the atoms move with constant mean free path. Collisions are assumed to occur only with "fixed" lattice atoms, but binding energies are neglected. The distribution functions exhibit finite discontinuities in the energy which approximate the behavior of the correct functions. The sputtering ratio is determined by integration over the velocity direction and also over energy, thus averaging out the approximation. The resulting expression for the sputtering ratio depends upon four atomic parameters of the system. In principle all are measurable, but only the mass ratio is known with precision at the present time. The theoretical curve is fitted to the experimental data which are available for eight ion-metal combinations. The curve is found to be very sensitive to the choice of fitting parameters, and the parameters exhibit considerable internal consistency. The theory indicates certain areas of experimental research which should add to present understanding of the process.
Imaging modalities for cervical myelopathy: Medical decision making and surgical outcomes

Cervical myelopathy describes the pathologic condition of spinal cord compression within the cervical spine resulting in dysfunction of spinal cord functions. This may manifest as an alteration of gait, loss offine motor skills of the hands and arms, or in more advanced cases, with alteration of normal bowel and bladder control. 1 The most common clinical scenario occurs in a patient with spondylotic changes with multilevel disc degeneration of the cervical spine (cervical spondylotic myelopathy, CSM). Other pathologic processes may include large cervical disc herniations, ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament (OPLL), ossification of the yellow ligament (OYL), or primary or malignant tumors of the spine. Diagnostic imaging tests include plain radiographs (typically AP, lateral, flexion, and extension views), computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and myelography with and without CT. Each type of imaging modality offers unique information, thus frequently mandating the use of several tests to gather the necessary clinical information to make appropriate treatment decisions. Three-dimensional imaging techniques such as CT scans and MRI have greatly expanded our understanding of cervicalmyelopathy.Theuseofthesediagnostictoolscontinuesto enhance our understanding of the pathoanatomy. Positive and negative prognostic indicators are emerging from the increasing detail seen with current imaging techniques. Nurick’s natural history study has demonstrated the stepwise decline in function which is seen in untreated cervical spondylotic myelopathy. 2 Identification of risk factors which impact surgical and nonoperative treatment will give the clinician the ability to best counsel and advise patients with cervical myelopathy. Advanced age at the time of diagnosis, longer duration of myelopathy symptoms, multiple levels of spinal cord compression, and severity of spinal cord compression are all associated with diminished recovery potential following spinal cord decompression. 3-7 Each type of imaging study provides a component of information which is then combined with the patient’s history and physical examination to determine the treatment plan. Plain radiographs along with at least one form of three-dimensional imaging (CT, CT myelogram, or MRI) represent the essential basic information that is required before consideration of surgical intervention.
The role of chloride in O2 evolution by thylakoids from salt-tolerant higher plants

(1) Thylakoids isolated from leaves of two salt-tolerant higher plant species were found to require high (greater than 250 mM) concentrations of Cl− for maximal rates of photosynthetic O2 evolution and maximum variable chlorophyll a fluorescence yield. These activities were also tolerant to extremely high (2–3 M) salt concentrations. Their pH dependence was markedly different in the absence and presence of sufficient salt levels. (2) When Cl− was provided as CaCl2, as opposed to MgCl2, KCl or NaCl, higher rates of O2 evolution were obtained, suggesting that Ca2+ has an important role in Photosystem II reactions. (3) The site of Cl− action was located on the electron donor side of Photosystem II. (4) O2 evolution in the presence of optimal Cl− concentrations showed a pH dependence closely matched by that of 35Cl-NMR line broadening, which is indicative of Cl− binding. This pH-dependent 35Cl-NMR line-width broadening was not altered significantly by treatment of the thylakoids with EDTA; it was, however, abolished by heat treatment. (5) Only anions with similar ionic radii (Br−, NO−3) were effective in replacing Cl−. Small anions such as F− and OH− were inhibitory; larger ions had no effect. The inhibition by F− is due, at least in part, to displacement of Cl−. The selectivity is attributed to a combination of steric and ionic field effects. (6) It is proposed that Cl− facilitates Photosystem II electron transport by reversible ionic binding to the O2-evolving complex itself or to the thylakoid membrane in close proximity to it.
Applied Experimental Psychology

La psychologie experimentale appliquee est une experimentation psychologique explicitement orientee vers des preeoccupations pratiques. Ces recherches suscitent actuellement un grand interet. On recense dans cet article les domaines qui ont ete abordes recemment par les recherches experimentales appliquees: certains d'entre eux sont explores depuis longtemps. Quelques observations sont faites a propos des impulsions technologiques et demographiques en faveur des travaux d'application. Applied experimental psychology is defined as psychological experimentation explicitly addressed to practical concerns. Interest in such research appears to be high at present. Problem areas that have been addressed recently by applied experimental research, some of which have been areas of interest for a long time, are noted. Some observations are made regarding technological and demographic stimuli for applied work.
Be like water: suggestions for handling undesirable hardware outcomes in personal informatics fieldwork

Research in personal informatics (PI) depends heavily upon reliable hardware solutions. Unless they are developing the hardware themselves, PI researchers frequently find themselves at the mercy of hardware manufacturers. While working on EMPIRE, a sociotechnical system designed to help motivate people to reduce their electricity consumption, I have been shown repeatedly that I am not immune to this less-than-desirable outcome. In this paper, I will describe the numerous hardware-related roadblocks we encountered, explain how we handled (and continue to handle) these obstacles, and present suggestions to help PI researchers to be like water and adapt to challenging hardware-related problems that often come with PI fieldwork.
Regional Impacts of a U.S. Hog Slaughter Plant Closing: The Thorn Apple Valley Case

As the 1998 U.S. hog market collapse unfolded, Thorn Apple Valley ceased hog slaughter operations at its Detroit, Michigan plant. We examine the impacts on Michigan live hog prices relative to Eastern Corn Belt hog prices. Results indicate that Michigan producers' relative price advantage diminished after the closure as procurement competition changed. As the impacts of the 1998 hog market collapse were absorbed, Michigan producers' relative price advantage became consistently negative. Examination of Michigan's market hog production distribution indicates postclosure shifts away from production in areas geographically near to Thorn Apple Valley and growth in counties geographically closer to alternative packers.
Inferring the concentration of anthropogenic carbon in the ocean from tracers

[1] We present a technique to infer concentrations of anthropogenic carbon in the ocean from observable tracers and illustrate the technique using synthetic data from a simple model. In contrast to several recent studies, the technique makes no assumptions about transport being dominated by bulk advection and does not require separation of the small anthropogenic signal from the large and variable natural carbon cycle. Mixing is included naturally and implicitly by using observable tracers in combination to estimate the distributions of transit times from the surface to interior points. The time-varying signal of anthropogenic carbon in surface waters is propagated directly into the interior by the transit time distributions (TTDs) without having to consider background natural carbon. The TTD technique provides estimates of anthropogenic carbon, as simulated directly in the model, that are more accurate than techniques relying on single tracer “ages” (e.g., CFC age) to represent transport. In general, the TTD technique works best when at least two tracers are used in combination, and the tracers have significantly different timescales in either their surface temporal variation or radioactive decay. Possibilities are a CFC or CCl4 in combination with natural Δ14C or 39Ar. However, even for a CFC alone the TTD technique results in less bias for anthropogenic carbon estimates than use of a CFC age.
An Overview of the Design and Verification Subsystem of the Engineering Design System

The Engineering Design System is the base for design automation in IBM. Its newest addition is the design and verification subsystem (DAV). DAV has been designed to meet the future demands of very large scale integration (VLSI) for designer productivity and design correctness.
Green tea polyphenol treatment is chondroprotective, anti-inflammatory and palliative in a mouse posttraumatic osteoarthritis model

Following publication of the original article [1], the authors reported an error in Figs. 2C and 5C.
Improving Consumer Health Literacy with Information Technology

Before the Internet became popular as a device for distributing and sharing information, people turned to friends, books, and their doctors when they had medi-cal questions. Today, many more options exist (Figure 1). Hundreds of Web sites provide health information and opportunities for interaction among patients, doc-tors, and caregivers. Estimates differ, but all surveys show that millions of people search online for health information. A Pew survey estimates that 80% of adult Internet users, about 93 million Americans, searched online for at least one of 16 major health topics (Fox & Fallows, 2003). Baker, Wagner, Signer, and Bundorf (2003) estimate that 20% of the U.S. population uses the Internet to find health information. A larger proportion (71%) of older people (50 to 64 years old) compared to 53% of younger people (18 to 29 years old) turn to the Internet for health information (Fox & Rainie, 2002). Although there is a digital divide, use of information technology is not simply decided by race or social class. Safran (2003) found that Medicaid families, who are believed not to use these new technologies, accessed their online Baby CareLink from the hospital, work, library, or other public access points. Gustafson et al. (2002) point out that poverty is the prime indicator for lack of technology use.The problem we address in this chapter is consum-ers’ lack of understanding of the available information. This is extremely important since for at least a third of these consumers, the information affects decisions about their health, health care, and visits to a health care provider (Baker et al., 2003). Warner and Procac-cino (2004) found a much higher percentage in his interviews with women; more than 80% responded that the information they found online affected their decisions about treatments.
Social network analysis of mating patterns in American black bears (Ursus americanus).

Nonrandom mating can structure populations and has important implications for population-level processes. Investigating how and why mating deviates from random is important for understanding evolutionary processes as well as informing conservation and management. Prior to the implementation of parentage analyses, understanding mating patterns in solitary, elusive species like bears was virtually impossible. Here, we capitalize on a long-term genetic data set collected from black bears (Ursus americanus) (N = 2422) in the Northern Lower Peninsula (NLP) of Michigan, USA. We identified mated pairs using parentage analysis and applied logistic regression (selection) models that controlled for features of the social network, to quantify the effects of individual characteristics, and spatial and population demographic factors on mating dynamics. Logistic regression models revealed that black bear mating was associated with spatial proximity of mates, male age, the time a pair had coexisted, local population density and relatedness. Mated pairs were more likely to contain older males. On average, bears tended to mate with nearby individuals to whom they were related, which does not support the existence of kin recognition in black bears. Pairwise relatedness was especially high for mated pairs containing young males. Restricted dispersal and high male turnover from intensive harvest mortality of NLP black bears are probably the underlying factors associated with younger male bears mating more often with female relatives. Our findings illustrate how harvest has the potential to disrupt the social structure of game species, which warrants further attention for conservation and management.
Developing target reliability for novel structures: the case of the Mobile Offshore Base☆

Reliability-based design criteria are usually calibrated to existing structures (of the same class) having a history of successful service. However, as the offshore industry continues to witness innovations, some novel structures clearly exceed the scope of existing design standards. A reliability-based design is attractive in such cases, but the calibration exercise is not feasible and target reliabilities need to be derived from more fundamental considerations. This paper describes a general risk-based methodology for identifying significant limit states and deriving corresponding target reliabilities for such novel structures. Reliabilities of various existing structures and available analytical methods for determining target reliabilities are reviewed. Careful consideration is given to failure consequences, both tangible and intangible, and reliabilities of intact as well as damaged structures are considered. The methodology is illustrated with the US Navy's Mobile Offshore Base concept, which is a unique offshore structure in terms of function and size, and for which no precedence or industry standard exists.
Plan B and the German Catholic Bishops

Germany's Catholic bishops recently ruled that levonorgestrel emergency contraception (EC) was acceptable for prevention of pregnancy in the case of rape. The ruling represents a significant change in Catholic doctrine that has been opposed to most forms of birth control. In their ruling the bishops cited a lack of evidence that levonorgestrel EC acts as an abortifacient. This case serves as a reminder of the need for bioethics to be based on current scientific literature as well as articles of faith and morals.
Adult Learning and the Emotional Self in Virtual Online Contexts.

The rapid growth of online collaborative learning presents emotional challenges to students and adult educators. This chapter discusses two of these issues: epistemic and identity challenge.
Electrolyte Solvation and Ionic Association: Cyclic Carbonate and Ester-LiTFSI and -LiPF6 Mixtures

Phase diagrams have been prepared for cyclic carbonate and ester mixtures with LiTFSI and LiPF6. A Raman analysis of the mixtures enables the determination of the degree of solvation of the Li+ cations. Key insight into the link between solvent structure and solvation is obtained. It was discovered that the solvent polarity parameters are poor indicators of the molecular-level solvation interactions.
Including hints in training neural nets

The aim of a neural net is to partition the data space into near optimal decision regions. Learning such a partitioning solely from examples has proven to be a very hard problem (Blum and Rivest 1988; Judd 1988). To remedy this, we use the idea of supplying hints to the network as discussed by Abu-Mostafa (1990). Hints reduce the solution space, and as a consequence speed up the learning process. The minimum Hamming distance between the patterns serves as the hint. Next, it is shown how to learn such a hint and how to incorporate it into the learning algorithm. Modifications in the net structure and its operation are suggested, which allow for a better generalization. The sensitivity to errors in such a hint is studied through some simulations.
Positive time-frequency distributions via maximum entropy deconvolution of the evolutionary spectrum

The relationship between Priestley's definition of the evolutionary densities (TFDs) is explored, and a synthesis method is presented. As defined by Priestley, the ES is not a member of the Cohen-Posch class of TFDs. However, it is shown that by choosing a unit-energy normalization for the envelope function of Priestley's formulation, the energetic ES thus obtained is a member of the Cohen-Posch class of TFDs; this normalization differs from that chosen by Priestley. A method is then presented to obtain an estimate of the energetic ES. This method employs maximum entropy deconvolution of the spectrogram, which is itself a blurred version of the ES. Because the energetic ES is everywhere nonnegative and yields the correct marginal densities, it is a legitimate, joint time-frequency energy density of the signal, unlike the Wigner and other bilinear distributions that go negative. >
Nonlinear and Linear Evolution of Initial Forecast Errors

Abstract The hypothesis that the short-time evolution of forecast errors originating from initial data uncertainties can be approximated by linear model solutions is investigated using a realistic prognostic model. A tangent linear limited-area model based on a state of the art mesoscale numerical forecast model is developed. The linearization is performed with respect to a temporally and spatially varying basic state. The basic state fields are produced by the nonlinear model using observed data. The tangent model solutions and the error fields based on the nonlinear integrations are compared. The results demonstrate that the initial error evolution is well represented by the tangent model for periods of 1–1.5 days duration. The linear model solutions based on the time-independent basic state are also good approximations of the real-error evolutions, providing the prognostic fields are not changing rapidly in time. The application of the linear model for estimating appropriate initial perturbation for th...
Ωm from the Temperature-Redshift Distribution of EMSS Clusters of Galaxies

We constrain Ωm through a maximum likelihood analysis of temperatures and redshifts of the high-redshift clusters from the Extended Medium-Sensitivity Survey (EMSS). We simultaneously fit the low-redshift Markevitch sample (an all-sky sample from ROSAT with z = 0.04-0.09), a moderate redshift EMSS sample from Henry (nine clusters with z = 0.3-0.4), and a more distant EMSS sample (five clusters with z = 0.5-0.83 from Donahue et al.) finding best-fit values of Ωm = 0.45 ± 0.1 for an open universe and Ωm = 0.27 ± 0.1 for a flat universe. We individually analyze the effects of our governing assumptions, including the evolution and dispersion of the cluster luminosity-temperature relation, the evolution and dispersion of the cluster mass-temperature relation, the choice of low-redshift cluster sample, and the accuracy of the standard Press-Schechter formalism. We examine whether the existence of the massive distant cluster MS 1054-0321 skews our results, and we find its effect to be small. From our maximum likelihood analysis we conclude that our results are not very sensitive to our assumptions, and bootstrap analysis shows that our results are not sensitive to the current temperature measurement uncertainties. The systematic uncertainties are ~±0.1, and Ωm = 1 universes are ruled out at greater than 99.7% (3 σ) confidence.
Selective renal dopamine-1 receptor stimulation in man.

The selective dopamine-1 (DA-1) receptor agonist, fenoldopam, was studied during intravenous administration to ten normal male subjects on a diet of 150 mEq sodium and 60 mEq potassium per day to determine the mechanism of dopamine-induced natriuresis. During DA-1 receptor stimulation, urine flow rate and renal plasma flow manifested a biphasic increase. Urine flow rate increased from a control of 13 ± 1 to 17 ± 1.2 ml/min and again to a peak of 16 ± 1. Renal plasma flow increased from 344 ± 39 to 481 ± 44 ml/min and then to 497 ± 38. Sodium excretion (UNa V) and fractional sodium excretion (FENa) demonstrated a sustained increase. UNa V rose from a control of 0.21 ± 0.03 to 0.32 ± 0.05 mEq/min. FENa rose from a control of 1.6 ± 0.1 to 2.7 ± 0.6%. Fenoldopam did not alter glomerular filtraion rate.The association of changes in renal plasma flow and in UNa V and FENa demonstrate in man that DA-1 receptor stimulation causes natriuresis by direct renal tubular action. The renal tubular effect appears to be a...
Patients and doctors--evolution of a relationship.

The relationship between patients and doctors is at the core of medical ethics, anchoring many important debates in the field. Over the past several decades, this relationship has evolved along three axes — as it is defined in clinical care, research, and society.
Temporal evolution and variability of dissolved inorganic nitrogen in beach pore water revealed using radon residence times.

We coupled measurements of beach pore water residence time, determined using the radioisotopic tracer 222Rn, with dissolved carbon and nitrogen chemistry to identify the temporal evolution and variability of dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) concentrations in beach pore water along the Santa Barbara, California coastline. Pore water dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and total dissolved nitrogen (TDN) ratios (DOC:TDN) were negative exponentially correlated with residence time. Mean pore water residence times were positively correlated with tidal amplitudes, and ranged from 4.4 to 6.4 days. We used this range in mean residence times to model radon residence time distributions (RTDs), and integrated them with modeled DIN vs residence time relationships (DIN-temporal evolution, or DIN-te curves) to derive volume-weighted mean (VWM) DIN concentrations. We observed 1.2-fold and 5.2-fold differences (20% and 420% increases) in VWM DIN concentrations over the range in modeled RTDs and DIN-te curves, respectively, a...
Twenty-four Hours of Sleep, Sedentary Behavior, and Physical Activity with Nine Wearable Devices.

AB Getting enough sleep, exercising, and limiting sedentary activities can greatly contribute to disease prevention and overall health and longevity. Measuring the full 24-h activity cycle-sleep, sedentary behavior (SED), light-intensity physical activity (LPA), and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA)-may now be feasible using small wearable devices. Purpose: This study compared nine devices for accuracy in a 24-h activity measurement. Methods: Adults (n = 40, 47% male) wore nine devices for 24 h: ActiGraph GT3X+, activPAL, Fitbit One, GENEactiv, Jawbone Up, LUMOback, Nike Fuelband, Omron pedometer, and Z-Machine. Comparisons (with standards) were made for total sleep time (Z-machine), time spent in SED (activPAL), LPA (GT3X+), MVPA (GT3X+), and steps (Omron). Analysis included mean absolute percent error, equivalence testing, and Bland-Altman plots. Results: Error rates ranged from 8.1% to 16.9% for sleep, 9.5% to 65.8% for SED, 19.7% to 28.0% for LPA, 51.8% to 92% for MVPA, and 14.1% to 29.9% for steps. Equivalence testing indicated that only two comparisons were significantly equivalent to standards: the LUMOback for SED and the GT3X+ for sleep. Bland-Altman plots indicated GT3X+ had the closest measurement for sleep, LUMOback for SED, GENEactiv for LPA, Fitbit for MVPA, and GT3X+ for steps. Conclusions: Currently, no device accurately captures activity data across the entire 24-h day, but the future of activity measurement should aim for accurate 24-h measurement as a goal. Researchers should continue to select measurement devices on the basis of their primary outcomes of interest.
Lethality in mice infected with recombinant vaccinia virus expressing hepatitis C virus core protein.

OBJECTIVE To establish a mouse model of HCV core expression and investigate the toxicity of HCV core protein or the possible pathogenic effects. METHODS A series of vaccinia viral expression vectors were engineered to express 5' portion of HCV genes including 5' non-translated region (NTR), core protein, and portion of the E1 gene. These HCV sequences were fused to a luciferase reporter gene and inserted into a vaccinia virus expression vector (pSC11) adjacent to the vaccinia virus promoter, p7.5. The recombinant DNA constructs were packed into infectious recombinant chimeric viruses. The expression of HCV core protein was examined in cultured cells after infection with these viruses. Death of the infected mice was investigated by specific correlation to the expression of HCV core protein and its expression levels. RESULTS The recombinant virus (VNCE-LUA) expressed HCV core protein and an envelopeluciferase fusion protein in cultured cells. When Balb/c mice were inoculated intraperitoneally with more than 10(7) pfu per mouse of VNCE-LUA, death occurred immediately. The mortality was dependent on the amount of VNCE-LUA virus inoculated. All mice inoculated with 3 x 10(8) pfu of VNCE-LUA died within 4 days of infection and 50% of mice inoculated with 3 x 10(7) pfu of VNCE-LUA died within 7 days of infection. No death occurred in mice inoculated with 3 x 10(8) pfu of a control recombinant vaccinia virus, which expressed luciferase but not the HCV core and envelope proteins. Deletion of core sequences from VNCE-LUA rapidly reduced the mortality of infected mice whereas deletion of envelope sequence did not. SCID mice infected with VNCE-LUA died 2-3 days after infection, suggesting that the HCV-core induced mortality is not dependent on host T- or B-cell responses to core protein. CONCLUSIONS HCV core protein can be lethal to mice when expressed in vivo and this specific lethality is independent of T-cells or B-cells. The findings and model itself provide a useful tool for further investigation on potential pathological effects as well as the potential toxicity of the HCV core protein.
Myosin II Facilitates Ligand Discrimination during T Cell Activation

The importance of T cell receptor (TCR) mechano-transduction in T cell signaling is highlighted by recent studies showing that T cells can sense and generate force through the interaction between the TCR and peptide major histocompatibility complex (pMHC). In this study, we investigate the multifaceted role of non-muscle myosin II in TCR mechano-transduction, focusing on ligand discrimination. Using structure illumination microscopy (SIM), we analyze actomyosin arc structures at the immunological synapse with surfaces coated with either strong agonist OVA:H2Kb or weak agonist G4:H2Kb for OT1 T cells. We find that stimulation of T cells with weak agonist resulted disorganized actomyosin arcs, while strong agonist coated stimulation resulted in highly organized actomyosin arcs. As expected, this ligand-dependent actomyosin arc organization is disrupted upon inhibition of myosin II using para-nitro-blebbistatin. Consistent with previous studies, the frequencies of T-APC conjugation as well as the phosphorylation level of early signaling molecules like Src, Zap-70, and LAT are attenuated upon myosin II inhibition. These data highlight the importance of actomyosin activity in T cell activation triggered by a highly potent ligand. Together, our results suggest an important role for myosin II in TCR mechano-transduction in ligand discrimination which highlights the biophysical connection between intracellular to membrane-associated cellular components.
Reactor production of carrier-free Manganese-54 from natural iron

Abstract A dependable method for the production of millicurie quantities of carrier-free Mn 54 , which does not utilize enriched Fe 54 , has been described. The most abundant source of fast neutrons in the ORR was in a partial-fuel-element. In such a facility, an extrapolated maximum production of 15 mc of Mn 54 /g of natural iron was obtained for a 22-day irradiation in the ORR.
Interrelationships among length of stay in a domestic violence shelter, help received, and outcomes achieved

Survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV) have a variety of reasons for turning to domestic violence shelter programs. Some are seeking temporary respite and immediate safety while others are seeking longer term assistance to heal from their trauma and begin new lives. In line with these differing needs, some survivors only stay in shelter for a few days, while others may need to stay for months or even years. The current study involved secondary data analysis of an 8-state study that collected information from survivors shortly after they arrived in shelter and shortly before exit. The relationships between length of shelter stay and survivors' needs, help received, and outcomes achieved were examined. As hypothesized, length of stay was related to the number of needs reported by survivors at shelter entry, as well as the type of needs identified. Length of stay did not relate to outcomes achieved nor overall satisfaction with help received, supporting the argument that many shelter staff work from an empowering, survivor-driven philosophy to meet the myriad needs of shelter residents, and that the help they provide leads to positive outcomes. These findings substantiate the assertion that domestic violence shelters are critical resources that address far more than immediate safety needs of IPV survivors. (PsycINFO Database Record
Au–Cu2−xSe heterogeneous nanocrystals for efficient photothermal heating for cancer therapy

In this study, we show that Au–Cu2−xSe heterogeneous nanocrystals have great promise for use in photothermal therapy (PTT). Ligand-stabilized heterogeneous gold–copper selenide (Au–Cu2−xSe) hybrid nanocrystals were synthesized by a colloidal gold seed-mediated method. The nanocrystals exhibit broad localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) across visible and near-infrared (NIR) wavelengths, arising from interactions between the two nanocrystal domains. After a ligand-exchange process, the NCs readily disperse in water while retaining their LSPR absorbance. Upon illumination with a 980 nm laser, the Au–Cu2−xSe nanocrystals produced significant photothermal heating with a photothermal transduction efficiency comparable to that of larger gold nanostructures that have been widely studied for PTT. In vitro photothermal heating of Au–Cu2−xSe nanocrystals in the presence of human cervical cancer cells caused cell ablation after 10 min laser irradiation. Cell viability assays demonstrated that the hybrid nanocrystals are biocompatible at doses needed for photothermal therapy. Overall, these heterogeneous nanocrystals provide the NIR PTT efficacy of larger gold nanorods in a much smaller overall nanostructure that may have advantages with respect to biodistribution and clearance.