cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Bandwidth-satisfied multicast services in large-scale MANETs

Recent routing/multicast protocols in large-scale mobile ad-hoc networks (MANETs) adopt two-tier infrastructures by selecting backbone hosts (BHs) in order to avoid the inefficiency of the flooding. Further, previous MANET quality-of-service (QoS) routing/multicasting protocols determined bandwidth-satisfied routes for QoS applications. However, they suffer from two bandwidth-violation problems. In this paper, a novel algorithm that can avoid the two problems is proposed and integrated with the two-tier infrastructures to construct bandwidth-satisfied multicast trees for QoS applications in large-scale MANETs.
Caprine arthritis-encephalitis virus-infected goats can generate human immunodeficiency virus-gp120 cross-reactive antibodies

Lentiviruses display surprisingly disparate clinical manifestations in their specific hosts, share complex genetic structures, and exhibit extensive diversity, particularly in their envelope genes. The envelope protein, gp135, of caprine arthritis-encephalitis virus (CAEV) has minimal primary sequence homology to gp120, the envelope protein of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Nevertheless, they bear certain similarities in that they both possess five variable regions, both are heavily glycosylated, and both share short sequence motifs. We establish a further relationship and demonstrate that some goats, infected with CAEV, possess gp135-specific antibodies which cross-react with gp120 from several HIV strains, provided the protein is expressed in insect cells. We show that, although the cross-reactivity of these immunoglobulins depends on the level of glycosylation, nevertheless, some antibodies recognize the protein epitopes on gp120, at least some of which are linear in character. Further characterization of this unexpected cross-reaction will define its potential therapeutic utility.
Using queue statistics in beamforming for ALOHA

We address the problem of receiver design for the uplink of a WLAN network from a stability viewpoint. We propose a cross layer approach that incorporates the users' buffer statistics for the design of smart antennas employed by the base station/access point. In particular, we consider slotted ALOHA as the MAC protocol and we propose a linear MMSE front-end that utilizes the probability of a users' queue being empty in its design. We compare the performance of the proposed MMSE front-end with the best adaptive front-end for the two user case and show that under certain conditions the proposed front-end is close to optimal.
Periodicity of extinction and recolonization of the West Indian topshell Cittarium pica in the Quaternary of Bermuda (Gastropoda: Trochoidea)

Hermit-crab transported shells of the West Indian top shell Cittarium pica occur in numerous terrestrial fossil deposits on Bermuda, which is the most remote outpost of this Caribbean species. Cittarium is so far known only from deposits of interglacial ages corresponding to marine isotope stages (MIS) 11, 9, 5e, and 1 (Holocene). In at least the cases of MIS 11 and 5e, Cittarium appears at the very beginning of the interglacial. The species is definitely absent from well-stratified cave deposits of the last glacial (MIS 4–2). It is hypothesized that colder sea-surface temperatures (SSTs) during glacial periods caused Cittarium to be extirpated on Bermuda, and that it has made at least four independent colonizations of the island in the past 400 000 years. Because of the limited larval life of Cittarium, the window for colonization may be a very narrow period at the onset of interglacials when the SST has risen sufficiently to make Bermuda habitable but the velocity of the Gulf Stream is still sufficiently rapid to transport viable larvae from the Bahamas. © 2013 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2013, 110, 235–243.
Containing Kassindja: detention, gendered threats and border control in the United States

AbstractIn 1996, the USA issued a landmark decision to grant political asylum to a young woman, Fauziya Kassindja, due to the threat of forced genital circumcision. The case, Matter of Kasinga, is now a cornerstone in the area of law known as ‘gender-based asylum.’ While the legal victory occurred during a watershed moment for women’s human rights, it also spawned considerable critique for reproducing colonial tropes of third-world women, cultural backwardness, and narratives of rescue. This article offers another perspective by examining key phases of the case that predate the final decision. I demonstrate how logics of containment shaped the case trajectory and outcome. Initially, the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) sought to contain Kassindja as a bogus asylum seeker through detention. However, once a powerful advocacy campaign exposed the violence of detention, the INS shifted their containment strategies to safeguarding the legal paradigm and circumscribing its legacy as a precedent-sett...
DATA MINING: A BRIEF INTRODUCTION

Data mining may be regarded as the process of discovering insightful and predictive models from massive data. It is the art of extracting useful information from large amounts of data. It combines traditional data analysis with sophisticated algorithms for processing large amount of data. It is an interdisciplinary field merging concepts from database systems, statistics, machine learning, computing, information theory, and pattern recognition. It has the real potential of becoming part of electrical engineering education. The main objective of this paper is to provide a brief introduction to data mining.
Using software metrics to control firmware evolution

I have been working on HP LaserJet firmware as it has evolved for over the last ten years. During that time functionality has been reused, ported and leveraged across over two dozen laser printers ranging from personal home printers to office, network and color printers. New features continue to be added, such as new font technologies, higher resolutions, disk file systems, additional printing languages, different I/O protocols, copier features and color. During this ten years the size of the firmware has grown 10X in size. I'd like to share two things with you that I have found very important in measuring software. (1) gather metrics; and (2) use them! Either of these alone isn't very useful, although often done. I have seen cases in which people measure, but don't use the metrics or actually try to make decisions on subjective opinions without any data.
Genetic tests of rapid parallel speciation of flightless birds from an extant volant ancestor

Prior to the extinction wave that followed the human colonization of Oceania, flightless rails (Aves: Rallidae) were among the largest radiations of island birds, and perhaps the most species-rich example of convergent evolution in vertebrates. Insular flightless species are thought to have evolved from extant, volant species that colonized from continental sources and rapidly followed parallel adaptive pathways to flightlessness. The present study provides the first test of this model of speciation using genetic data sampled throughout the range of a putative ancestral species. Mitochondrial control region sequences from 71 individuals of the Gallirallus philippensis species complex reveal essentially no geographic structure within archipelagos and only weak structure among archipelagos, with no major genetic breaks except for birds sampled in the Philippines. Demographic tests of coalescent models support a recent rapid expansion into Oceania (including Australia) out of the Philippines approximately 20 000 years ago. The estimated coalescence of G. philippensis mitochondrial alleles approximately 33 000 years ago closely corresponds to the expansion of humans into the archipelagoes of Near Oceania, suggesting that humans may have facilitated its colonization by exterminating flightless competitors and clearing lowland forests. Phylogenetic analyses that included all G. philippensis haplotypes and samples from 11 single-island endemic flightless species of Gallirallus indicate that G. philippensis is polyphyletic, but is not the ancestor of most of its flightless congeners, as previously thought. Nuclear gene sequences (β-actin inron 3) suggest that G. philippensis polyphyly is at least partly due to hybridization. The flightless condition evolves in rails before reproductive isolation is complete. © 2009 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2009, 96, 601–616.
Low-Contrast Imaging

The evolution of electro-optical sensors has caused a quiet revolution in the imaging of low-contrast objects. In a practical sense, even the term "low-contrast" has required redefinition, since contrast ratios such as 1.6:1, which was the official "low-contrast" for photographic systems, no longer qualify as "low" for electro-optical systems which, by means of precise D.C. level background subtraction, can operate in the domain of contrast ratios around 1.01:1 and below. Since a contrast ratio such as 1.01:1 is below the contrast resolution threshold of the eye, the invisible can literally be made visible. This paper reports upon some of the fundamental constraints placed by nature on the development of such low-contrast imaging systems. It further describes the evolution of the specifications for an advanced technology Time Delay and Integration (TD I ) type of area imagery Charge Coupled Device (CCD) which is being developed to meet present and future needs for this type of electro-optical sensor system.© (1977) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Atomic-based calculations of two-detector Doppler-broadening spectra

We present a simplified approach for calculating Doppler-broadening spectra based purely on atomic calculations. This approach avoids the need for detailed atomic positions, and can provide the characteristic Doppler-broadening momentum spectra for any element. We demonstrate the power of this method by comparing theory and experiment for a number of elemental metals and alkali halides. In the alkali halides, the annihilation appears to be entirely with halide electrons.
Transfusion of 1 and 2 units of red blood cells is associated with increased morbidity and mortality.

Background This study examined the relationship between transfusion of 1 or 2 units of red blood cells (RBCs) and the risk of morbidity and mortality after isolated on-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). Methods A total of 22,785 consecutive patients underwent isolated on-pump CABG between January 1, 2008, and December 31, 2011 in Michigan. We excluded 5,950 patients who received three or more RBC units. Twenty-one preoperative variables significantly associated with transfusion by univariate analysis were included in a logistic regression model predicting transfusion, and propensity scores were calculated. Transfusion and the propensity score covariate were included in additional logistic regression models predicting mortality and each of 11 postoperative outcomes. Results Operative mortality for the study cohort of 16,835 patients was 0.8% overall, 0.5% for the 10,884 patients with no transfusion, and 1.3% for the 5,951 patients who received transfusion of 1 or 2 units (odds ratio 2.44; confidence interval 1.74 to 3.42; p p = 0.005). Of the 11 postoperative outcomes studied, all but sternal wound infection and need for dialysis were also significantly associated with transfusion. Conclusions Transfusion of as little as 1 or 2 units of RBCs is common and is significantly associated with increased morbidity and mortality after on-pump CABG. The relationship persists after adjustment for preoperative risk factors. These results suggest that aggressive attempts at blood conservation and avoidance of even small amounts of RBC transfusion may improve outcomes after CABG.
Giving and Getting: Charitable Activity and Public Assistance

This study assesses the extent to which welfare recipients engage in giving money and time to charitable causes. Using the 2003 Center on Philanthropy Panel Study data, this study examines the effects of public assistance—holding constant earned income and demographic traits—on two major types of charitable activities: charitable giving and volunteering. Using a Tobit specification, as appropriate for this type of data, the authors use a creative differencing strategy in an attempt to overcome sticky issues of selection bias. Evidence is found that public assistance receipt tends to suppress monetary donations but may increase volunteer time.
Simultaneous Structure and Control Optimization of Tensegrities

This paper concerns optimization of prestress of a tensegrity structure to achieve the optimal mixed dynamic and control performance. A linearized dynamic model of the structure is derived. The force density variables that parameterize prestress of the structure appear linearly in the model. The feasible region of these parameters is defined in terms of the extreme directions of the prestress cone. Several properties of the problem are established inside the feasible region of the parameters. The problem is solved using a gradient method that provides a monotonic decrease of the objective function inside the feasible region. A numerical example of a cantilevered planar tensegrity beam is shown.
Effects of dextromethorphan on regional cerebral blood flow in focal cerebral ischemia.

Dextromethorphan (DM), a noncompetitive NMDA antagonist, has been demonstrated to reduce ischemic neuronal damage and edema, but DM's influence on cerebral blood flow has not been extensively studied. In this investigation, it is shown that DM has significant effects on regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) patterns in a rabbit model of focal cerebral ischemia. rCBF was measured using radioactive microspheres following a 1 h permanent occlusion of the left internal carotid, anterior cerebral, and middle cerebral arteries in rabbits. Somatosensory evoked potentials (SEPs) were used to assess the degree of ischemia; only animals where SEPs were completely abolished were used for a frequency distribution analysis of rCBF. It was found that there were significantly more regions with lower flows in animals treated with normal saline (NS) (n = 7) compared to animals treated with DM (n = 7) (p < 0.05, ipsilateral left side; p < 0.001, contralateral right side). The frequency distribution medians were 27.5 ml 100 g...
Toward cultural transformation comprehensive approaches to conflict resolution

(1997). Toward cultural transformation comprehensive approaches to conflict resolution. Theory Into Practice: Vol. 36, Teaching Conflict Resolution: Prepration for Pluralism, pp. 46-52.
PELAS-program error-locating assistant system

Error localization in program debugging is the process of identifying program statements which cause incorrect behavior. A prototype of the error localization assistant system which guides a programmer during debugging of Pascal programs is described. The system is interactive: it queries the programmer for the correctness of the program behavior and uses answers to focus the programmer's attention on an erroneous part of the program (in particular, it can localize a faulty statement). The system differs from previous approaches in that it makes use of the knowledge of program structure, which is derived automatically. The knowledge of program structure is represented by the dependence network which is used by the error-locating reasoning mechanism to guide the construction, evaluation, and modification of hypothesis of possible causes of the error. Backtracking reasoning has been implemented in the reasoning mechanism. >
Adiposity of elderly women and its relationship with self-reported and observed physical performance.

Background and Purpose: There is a societal trend toward increasing obesity and a natural tendency for physical performance to decrease with age. Our purpose was to describe the adiposity of elderly women participating in a health screening and to determine the relationship between their adiposity and both observed and self-reported physical performance. Methods: Subjects were 104 communitydwelling elderly women (74.9 ± 7.5 years). Their adiposity was described using body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, and waist to hip ratio. Physical performance was characterized using timed sit-to-stand, unilateral standing, 25-foot walk and the Physical Functioning subscale of the SF-36. Habitual activity was summarized as the number of daily hours patients estimated they spent moving about on their feet. Results: The majority of women had excessive adiposity. Greater adiposity was associated with worse physical performance. Both Pearson correlations and multiple regression revealed BMI to be significantly predictive of all physical performance measures. Age added to the explanation of walking time and unilateral stance time. Time moving about contributed to the explanation of self-reported physical functioning. Conclusions: Adiposity should be documented as part of the physical therapist examination of elderly women. It may be an appropriate target of intervention if physical performance is limited.
Characterization of HMBP-2, a DNA-Binding Protein That Binds to HIV-1 LTR When only One of the Three Sp1 Sites Is Methylated.

HIV-1 methylation binding protein-1 (HMBP-1) (formerly called HMBP) is a protein found in human cell nuclei that binds with enhanced affinity to a fragment of the HIV-1 long terminal repeat sequence (LTR) containing three Sp1 sites when all three sites are methylated. HMBP-2 is another protein present in the nuclei of human T helper lymphocytes and HeLa cells that binds to the HIV-1 LTR. HMBP-2 binds preferentially to the same region of the HIV-1 LTR as does HMBP-1, but HMBP-2 binds best when only one of the three Sp1 sites is methylated. HMBP-2 can be separated from HMBP-1 chromatographically, and dimethyl sulfate (DMS) methylation interference analysis indicates that their binding sites are not identical. HMBP-2 represents a novel protein factor capable of binding to a partially methylated region of the HIV-1 LTR.
Growth of L1210 mouse leukemia cells in vitro.

Abstract Cell cultures of the L1210 (V) mouse leukemia have been isolated and maintained in vitro with parallel lines in vivo . Two of these cultures studied in some detail differed from one another in respect to morphology, growth rates and sensitivity to amethopterin, 6-mercaptopurine and 5-fluorouracil. The response of these cell-culture lines to drugs in vitro was a direct reflection of their growth rates in vitro . The two cell cultures were hypotetraploid and each possessed a subtelocentric chromosome characteristic of L1210 (V). The cell culture lines have retained their specificity for the DBA/2 mouse.
White matter abnormalities revealed by diffusion tensor imaging in non-demented and demented HIV+ patients

HIV associated dementia (HAD) is the most advanced stage of central nervous system disease caused by HIV infection. Previous studies have demonstrated that patients with HAD exhibit greater cerebral and basal ganglia atrophy than non-demented HIV+ (HND) patients. However, the extent to which white matter is affected in HAD patients compared to HND patients remains elusive. This study is designed to address the potential white matter abnormalities through the utilization of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) in both HND and HAD patients. DTI and T1-weighted images were acquired from 18 healthy controls, 21 HND and 8 HAD patients. T1 image-based registration was performed to 1) parcellate the whole brain white matter into major white matter regions, including frontal, parietal, temporal and occipital white matter, corpus callosum and internal capsule for statistical comparisons of the mean DTI values, and 2) warp all DTI parametric images towards the common template space for voxel-based analysis. The statistical comparisons were performed with four DTI parameters including fractional anisotropy (FA), mean (MD), axial (AD), and radial (RD) diffusivities. With Whitney U tests on the mean DTI values, both HND and HAD demonstrated significant differences from the healthy control in multiple white matter regions. In addition, HAD patients exhibited significantly elevated MD and RD in the parietal white matter when compared to HND patients. In the voxel-based analysis, widespread abnormal regions were identified for both HND and HAD patients, although a much larger abnormal volume was observed in HAD patients for all four DTI parameters. Furthermore, both region of interest (ROI) based and voxel-based analyses revealed that RD was affected to a much greater extent than AD by HIV infection, which may suggest that demyelination is the prominent disease progression in white matter.
WENO-enhanced gas-kinetic scheme for direct simulations of compressible transition and turbulence

The recently developed Gas Kinetic Method (GKM) for computing fluid flow is enhanced with advanced reconstruction (interpolation) schemes to enable direct simulations of highly compressible transition and turbulence fields. Variants of Weighted Essentially Non-Oscillatory (WENO) reconstruction schemes of different orders of accuracy are implemented and examined along with more elementary van Leer method. The competing schemes are evaluated for their accuracy, efficiency and numerical stability. The computed results are compared against the Rapid Distortion Theory for the case of compressible shear turbulence and 'pressure-released' Burgers solution. In the case of decaying isotropic turbulence, the efficacy of the reconstruction schemes is evaluated by comparison against a 'gold standard' high-resolution simulation. The capabilities of the reconstruction schemes to capture linear, non-linear, pressure-released and viscous flow physics as well as solenoidal and dilatational features of the flow fields are established in isolation and combination. The most suitable WENO variant for integration with GKM is identified. Another important outcome of the study is the finding that temperature-interpolation is superior to energy-interpolation in avoiding negative temperatures arising due to the Gibbs phenomenon. Overall, this work advances the applicability of kinetic theory based GKM to a wider range of high Mach number flow physics.
Reduction of nitrogenase Fe protein from Azotobacter vinelandii by dithionite: quantitative and qualitative effects of nucleotides, temperature, pH and reaction buffer.

Abstract Oxidized Fe protein from Azotobacter vinelandii (Av20) was reduced by dithionite (DT) in the absence and presence of nucleotides, over the temperature range 10–40 °C, over the pH range 7–8, and in various buffers—inorganic phosphate, TES, HEPES, and Tris. The reduction of each species of Fe protein—Av20, Av20(MgATP)2, and Av20(MgADP)2—was resolved into at least three exponential phases, with relative amplitudes of each phase varying over the range of experimental conditions, suggesting a dynamic population shift of kinetically distinct species. The rapid phase of Av20 reduction predominated at low temperature and pH, and in Tris buffer; rapid Av20(MgATP)2 reduction was favored at high temperature and pH, and in phosphate buffer; and Av20(MgADP)2 reduction was favored under more physiologically relevant conditions of 20 °C, pH 7.5, and in phosphate buffer. The rates of reduction of Fe protein species did not change with buffer, but temperature and pH do have an effect on the rates. With the appropriate constants, an empirically derived equation estimates the rate of Fe protein reduction at any temperature and pH within the limits 10–40 °C and pH 7–8, for a given species of Fe protein, and a given phase of the reaction. At 23.0 °C and pH 7.4, the rate of the dominant phase of Av20 reduction is 1.9×108 M−1 s−1. Under the same conditions, the rates of the two dominant phases of Av20(MgATP)2 reduction are 1.2×106 and 1.5×105 M−1 s−1; and the rate of the dominant phase of Av20(MgADP)2 reduction is 3.5×106 in M−1 s−1. Thermodynamic activation parameters for each phase of reduction were calculated. No breaks in the Arrhenius plots for any Fe protein species were observed.
Ecthyma Gangrenosum and Neutropenia in a Previously Healthy Child

Ecthyma gangrenosum is the cutaneous manifestation of pseudomonas infection in patients with sepsis. A previously healthy 7-month-old girl who developed ecthyma gangrenosum without apparent inciting factors became neutropenic secondary to autoimmune neutropenia 2 months after initial presentation. She was treated with appropriate surgical and medical intervention and was discharged in stable condition only to die suddenly 2 days after discharge.
Vascular origin of a soluble truncated form of the hepatocyte growth factor receptor (c-met)

Hepatocyte growth factor (scatter factor) is an angiogenic growth factor that binds to its cellular transmembrane receptor, c-met. Both HGF and c-met are expressed by vascular smooth muscle and endothelial cells, where HGF may exert autocrine and paracrine effects. We have found that human aortic smooth muscle cells (HASMCs) and human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) release a soluble, truncated form of c-met. Receptor shedding was induced by treatment of the cells with phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) and by the ligand, HGF. Shedding was inhibited by cycloheximide, a metalloproteinase inhibitor, and protein kinase C inhibitors. The soluble form of c-met was able to bind HGF, although with reduced affinity (K d ≈10 nmol/L) compared with the membrane bound receptor. Conditioned medium containing soluble c-met inhibited the induction of Akt phosphorylation by HGF in HUVECs. The soluble truncated form of c-met was detectable in the plasma of 5 healthy volunteers. The shedding of c-met may represent a novel mechanism for regulating the mitogenic, motogenic, and morphogenic effects of hepatocyte growth factor.
Phaseotoxin A: an antimetabolite from Pseudomonas phaseolicola.

Abstract Phaseotoxin, the exotoxin of the bean pathogen Pseudomonas phaseolicola , has been resolved into four biologically active fractions by DEAE cellulose chromatography. Phaseotoxin A, the toxin in the first fraction decomposed to give glutamic acid and inorganic orthophosphate only, and was chromatographically identical with synthetic N-phosphoglutamic acid. Like phaseotoxin A, the synthetic compound inhibits ornithine carbamoyltransferase and induces chlorosis in bean leaves. To our knowledge this is the first report of occurrence of an N-phosphorylated primary amine in nature.
Climate Impact of Increasing Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide

The global temperature rose by 0.2°C between the middle 19609s and 1980, yielding a warming of 0.4°C in the past century. This temperature increase is consistent with the calculated greenhouse effect due to measured increases of atmospheric carbon dioxide. Variations of volcanic aerosols and possibly solar luminosity appear to be primary causes of observed fluctuations about the mean trend of increasing temperature. It is shown that the anthropogenic carbon dioxide warming should emerge from the noise level of natural climate variability by the end of the century, and there is a high probability of warming in the 19809s. Potential effects on climate in the 21st century include the creation of drought-prone regions in North America and central Asia as part of a shifting of climatic zones, erosion of the West Antarctic ice sheet with a consequent worldwide rise in sea level, and opening of the fabled Northwest Passage.
Alcohol abuse and HIV infection have additive effects on frontal cortex function as measured by auditory evoked potential P3A latency

Both alcohol and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection have been shown to produce central nervous system (CNS) morbidity in frontal brain regions. The degree to which the CNS morbidity in HIV infection, as it affects frontal cortex function, may be preferentially increased by alcohol abuse was examined using the auditory P3A evoked potential. The P3A indexes an orienting response, maximal over frontal cortex that occurs when novel nontarget stimuli are presented in the midst of a target detection paradigm. Four groups of subjects were compared: HIV+ alcohol abusers, HIV+ light/nondrinkers, HIV− alcohol abusers, and HIV− light/non-drinkers. The alcohol abuser and light/nondrinker HIV+ groups were matched on percent CD4 lymphocytes, insuring that the results reflected specific CNS effects and were not a result of differences between the groups in the degree of systemic immune suppression. Alcohol abuse and HIV infection had at least additive effects on P3A latency, consistent with alcohol abuse worsening the effect of HIV disease on frontal cortex function. Post-hoc analyses suggested that concomitant alcohol abuse results in the effects of HIV infection on P3A latency becoming manifest earlier in the HIV disease process.
The role of nutrient broth supplementation in UV mutagenesis of E. coli

Abstract Postirradiation expression of UV-induced reversion is examined to understand the different yields of E. coli revertants on agar media unsupplemented, supplemented with a small amount of the required amino acid, or supplemented with nutrient broth. Protein synthesis is determined in irradiated cells incubating on these three media by observing the incorporation of [ 3 H]proline. Nutrient broth supplementation is known to yield a large number of suppresor-containing revertants which does not develop with supplementation of a small amount of the required amino acid. However, the rates of protein synthesis in cells on these two media are found to be similar. Consequently the rate of protein synthesis per se does not seem responsible for enhance expression of suppressor-containing revertants. An empirical model is proposed to realte nutrient broth enhancement to mutation frequency decline and finalization of GC to AT transitions.
Routing of two Unmanned Aerial Vehicles with communication constraints

A novel GPS denied routing problem for UAVs is described, where two UAVs cooperatively navigate through an array of non-communicating Unattended Ground Sensors (UGS). Contact with UGS is strictly maintained, which allows the UGS act as beacons for relative navigation eliminating the need for dead reckoning. This problem is referred to as the Communication Constrained UAV Routing Problem (CCURP). To solve the CCURP, shortest paths between targets are computed by means of a graph transformation. Given the shortest paths between targets, two solution methods are presented. The first is a 15 over 2-approximation algorithm. The second method poses the CCURP as an one-in-a-set Traveling Salesman Problem (TSP), which can then be solved using known methods by transforming the problem into a regular asymmetric TSP. Computational results corroborating the performance bounds in this article are also presented.
Quantitative Resistance to Bean dwarf mosaic virus in Common Bean Is Associated with the Bct Gene for Resistance to Beet curly top virus

The dominant resistance gene, Bct, in common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) confers qualitative resistance to Beet curly top virus, a leafhopper-transmitted geminivirus in the genus Curtovirus. To determine whether this gene confers resistance to other geminiviruses, bean plants of a recombinant inbred population were sap-inoculated with Bean dwarf mosaic virus (BDMV), a whitefly-transmitted bipartite begomovirus in the genus Begomovirus. Results indicated that Bct (or tightly linked gene) is associated with quantitative resistance to BDMV; thus, the Bct locus is associated with resistance to a bean-infecting begomovirus and curtovirus. The difference in the nature of the resistance to these geminiviruses may indicate a role for minor genes in begomovirus resistance or differences in the virus-host interaction. The Bct locus, whether it acts alone or represents a cluster of tightly linked genes, will be useful in breeding for broad-spectrum begomovirus resistance in common bean.
Examining Design Tool Use in Engineering Curriculum: A Case Study

This case study observes the effect of design tool use in engineering courses on subsequent uses of design tools. Students gain a familiarity with design tools as they use them in early engineering classes, and will traditionally implement similar methods to seek future design solutions. Problems arise because design tools are often used inappropriately, which may or may not lead to productive outcomes. Understanding how design tools are incorporated into engineering curriculum will reveal how that particular method was selected, the background information given to the student to facilitate tool use, and the benefit gained from using the specific tool in the given case. This information is valuable to the evaluation of the engineering curriculum of which few performance metrics exist. This case study utilizes a design team enrolled in a capstone design course to collect data on the use of design tools throughout their curriculum. Trends are revealed that relate how the tool use is implemented, how the instruction is delivered to the student, and the beneficial application of those to the given design project. These trends directly apply to the intellectual growth of the student as well as the topical coverage and implementation by the engineering department. Using this information, the engineering curriculum can improve its delivery of design instruction. It can be assumed that by improving the curriculum, the quality of the students will follow; yielding engineers who can study better and conduct design projects with intentional precision.© 2008 ASME
Measuring social capital among youth: applications in environmental education

Although critiqued for circular reasoning and lack of definitional and analytic clarity, social capital has garnered widespread interest in two areas relevant to environmental education (EE): the impact of family and community-level social capital on positive youth development and of community-level social capital in fostering collective action to manage natural resources. Although EE is normally considered for its value relative to environmental outcomes or natural capital, intergenerational, community, and other approaches to EE may also foster social capital. Drawing on Putnam’s definition of social capital, which emphasizes civic engagement, we developed and tested for reliability a survey to measure cognitive and structural attributes of social capital among youth. We conclude that although several attributes of our instrument are useful for use with youth aged 10–18 years in EE contexts, much more work needs to be done on conceptualizing and developing measures of social capital that are relevant to...
Correction of Blood Drug Levels for Changes Over the Day

A graph-based method is presented to compensate for the influence of variations in drug dosage schedules and blood sampling times upon the blood concentrations of drugs whose elimination half-life is between 7 and 48 hours. This method permits the clinician to interpret blood drug levels drawn at nonstandard times, and to correct blood drug levels for how the daily dose was divided. This method is expected to improve the convenience of monitoring blood drug levels.
The treatment of lateral T1 and T2 squamous cell carcinomas of the vulva confined to the labium majus or minus.

Abstract Objective. To determine the pattern of lymph node metastases, recurrence rate, and survival of patients with lateral T1 and T2 squamous cell cancer (SCC) of the vulva treated by radical vulvectomy or hemivulvectomy and inguinal lymphadenectomy. Methods. An institutional review was performed to identify lateral T1 and T2 SCC of the vulva confined to the labium majus and minus. Results. Sixty-one patients with lateral T1 and 61 patients with lateral T2 SCC of the vulva were treated from 1963 to 2003. Radical vulvectomy (RV) was performed in 60 patients, and radical hemivulvectomy (RHV) in 62 patients. Seven of 61 patients (11%) with T1 lesions had ipsilateral superficial inguinal lymph node (SIL) metastases, but none had deep inguinal lymph (DIL) node metastases. Nineteen of 61 patients (31%) with T2 lesions had ipsilateral SIL metastases, and 8 had ipsilateral DIL metastases. No patient had contralateral SIL or DIL metastases. Six patients (10%) with T1 lesions and seven patients (11%) with T2 lesions developed recurrence to the ipsilateral vulva and were treated by re-excision. All patients are alive with no evidence of disease 10–195 months after treatment. One patient with T1 and three patients with T2 SCC developed distant recurrence and died of disease (DOD) 10–15 months after surgery. Disease-free survival of patients with T1 lesions was 98% at 2 years and 98% at 5 years, and with T2 lesions was 95% at 2 years and 93% at 5 years. Local or distant recurrence was not more common in patients treated by RHV than in those treated by RV. Conclusion. Lateral T1 and T2 squamous cell cancers of the vulva spread to the ipsilateral inguinal lymph nodes and can be treated effectively with RHV and ipsilateral SIL dissection. Deep inguinal lymphadenectomy is indicated only when the SIL are positive.
An artery-specific fluorescent dye for studying neurovascular coupling

We demonstrate that Alexa Fluor 633 hydrazide (Alexa Fluor 633) selectively labels neocortical arteries and arterioles by binding to elastin fibers. We measured sensory stimulus-evoked arteriole dilation dynamics in mouse, rat and cat visual cortex using Alexa Fluor 633 together with neuronal activity using calcium indicators or blood flow using fluorescein dextran. Arteriole dilation decreased fluorescence recorded from immediately underlying neurons, representing a potential artifact during neuronal functional imaging experiments.
Experimental Studies on Protein Folding in the Presence of the Hsp70 Chaperone System

The Hsp70 chaperone system (including DnaK, DnaJ and GrpE in bacteria) plays a vital role in preventing aggregation and assisting protein folding. While a lot of the chaperone biochemistry has already been worked out, very little is know about the interaction of DnaK and DnaJ with substrates. So far, such interaction had only been probed with small peptide or protein substrates incapable of independent/efficient refolding. This paucity of information has precluded studies on the competition between inter-molecular binding and intra-molecular folding. Such competition is important for cell viability because the accessibility of DnaK to substrate binding is modulated by the intrinsic rates of substrate folding/unfolding and by the substrate's thermodynamic stability.We developed a computational kinetic model to predict the interaction of protein substrates exhibiting two-state folding behavior with DnaK, DnaJ and GrpE. We found that, under physiological conditions, only proteins that fold slowly and/or have moderate thermodynamic stability are predicted to bind chaperones during their folding cycle.Experimental protein folding kinetics followed by stopped-flow in the presence and absence of the Hsp70 chaperone system shows good agreement with the predictions by the computational model. Furthermore, gel filtration and reverse phase chromatography data further support the stopped-flow results by providing evidence for DnaK-DnaJ-substrate interactions at equilibrium. This result is in agreement with the predictions of the computational model. In summary, the combination of experiments and computational predictions developed in this work is a powerful tool to help unveiling the relations between protein folding and chaperone binding.
Observation of quantum noise effects in a resistively shunted Josephson junction

Abstract The measured spectral density of voltage noise in current-biased resistively shunted Josephson junctions in which quantum corrections to the noise are expected to be important is found to be in excellent agreement with theoretical predictions. The contribution at the measurement frequency of zero point fluctuations mixed down from frequencies near the Josephson frequency is clearly demonstrated.
Probing High Parton Densities at Low-x in d+Au Collisions at PHENIX Using the New Forward and Backward Muon Piston Calorimeters

Abstract The new forward Muon Piston Calorimeters allow PHENIX to explore low- x parton distributions in d+Au collisions with hopes of observing gluon saturation. We present a two-particle azimuthal Δ ϕ correlation measurement made between a mid-rapidity particle (| η 1 | 0.35 ) and a forward π 0 ( 3.1 η 2 3.9 ) wherein we compare correlation widths in d+Au to p+p and compute I d A .
Electric Field Control of Surface Oxygen Dynamics and its Effect on the Atomic Scale Structure and Morphology of a Growing Ultrathin Oxide Film

Controlled manipulation of oxide microstructure and morphology is critical to achieve the desired chemical activity in a variety of applications involving nanoscale metal oxides. The kinetics of su...
Protein-protein docking using region-based 3D Zernike descriptors

Protein-protein interactions are a pivotal component of many biological processes and mediate a variety of functions. Knowing the tertiary structure of a protein complex is therefore essential for understanding the interaction mechanism. However, experimental techniques to solve the structure of the complex are often found to be difficult. To this end, computational protein-protein docking approaches can provide a useful alternative to address this issue. Prediction of docking conformations relies on methods that effectively capture shape features of the participating proteins while giving due consideration to conformational changes that may occur. We present a novel protein docking algorithm based on the use of 3D Zernike descriptors as regional features of molecular shape. The key motivation of using these descriptors is their invariance to transformation, in addition to a compact representation of local surface shape characteristics. Docking decoys are generated using geometric hashing, which are then ranked by a scoring function that incorporates a buried surface area and a novel geometric complementarity term based on normals associated with the 3D Zernike shape description. Our docking algorithm was tested on both bound and unbound cases in the ZDOCK benchmark 2.0 dataset. In 74% of the bound docking predictions, our method was able to find a near-native solution (interface C-α RMSD ≤ 2.5 A) within the top 1000 ranks. For unbound docking, among the 60 complexes for which our algorithm returned at least one hit, 60% of the cases were ranked within the top 2000. Comparison with existing shape-based docking algorithms shows that our method has a better performance than the others in unbound docking while remaining competitive for bound docking cases. We show for the first time that the 3D Zernike descriptors are adept in capturing shape complementarity at the protein-protein interface and useful for protein docking prediction. Rigorous benchmark studies show that our docking approach has a superior performance compared to existing methods.
Cultural Orientation as a Protective Factor against Tobacco and Marijuana Smoking for African American Young Women.

The present study examined cultural orientation as a protective factor against tobacco and marijuana smoking for African American young women (ages 18 to 25). African American college students (N=145) from a predominantly White university were administered subscales from the African American Acculturation Scale-Revised (AAAS-R); the shortened Individualism/Collectivism (INDCOL) Scale; a Tobacco and Drug Use Survey; and a background survey. Multiple logistic regression was conducted using cultural orientation variables as predictors and smoking status (i.e., tobacco and marijuana) as the criterion. It was expected that young women who endorsed traditional African American cultural characteristics (i.e., religious beliefs, health, family values, and socialization) and were collectivistic in their community (i.e., cultural interdependency) and familial (i.e., familial interdependency) interactions would be less likely to smoke. Results show that traditional religious beliefs and practice was protective against tobacco smoking for this sample of young women. Familial interdependency (e.g., supportive exchanges between friends, and consultation and sharing with parents), and traditional religious beliefs and practices surfaced as protective factors against marijuana smoking. Traditional health beliefs and practices was a risk factor for both tobacco and marijuana smoking. The implications signal the need for smoking prevention and cessation programs to focus on interpersonal factors which may strengthen African American young women’s religious and familial bonding.
Broad Area Graded Barrier Quantum Well Heterostructure Lasers By Metalorganic Chemical Vapor Deposition For High Power Applications

Graded barrier quantum well (GBQW) heterostructure broad area lasers are capable of high power pulsed and cw operation. In this paper, we describe some of the design issues involving broad area graded barrier quantum well heterostructure lasers grown by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition including the effect of junction heating in cw devices and the effect of various buffer layer structures on laser characteristics. We also outline some high power laser diode results for uncoated broad area devices.
Voltammetric detection of 5-hydroxytryptamine release in the rat brain.

5-Hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) is an important molecule in the brain that is implicated in mood and emotional processes. In vivo, its dynamic release and uptake kinetics are poorly understood due to a lack of analytical techniques for its rapid measurement. Whereas fast-scan cyclic voltammetry with carbon fiber microelectrodes is used frequently to monitor subsecond dopamine release in freely moving and anesthetized rats, the electrooxidation of 5-HT forms products that quickly polymerize and irreversibly coat the carbon electrode surface. Previously described modifications of the electrochemical waveform allow stable and sensitive 5-HT measurements in mammalian tissue slice preparations and in the brain of fruit fly larvae. For in vivo applications in mammals, however, the problem of electrode deterioration persists. We identify the root of this problem to be fouling by extracellular metabolites such as 5-hydoxyindole acetic acid (5-HIAA), which is present in 200−1000 times the concentration of 5-HT and disp...
The Role of Imagery in the Production of Written Definitions

The effect of word concreteness and imagery on the production of written definitions was investigated using procedures designed to produce more generalizable results than previous investigations. A random sample of words was drawn from the Paivio, Yuille, and Madigan (1968) norms, and college undergraduates were presented with a randomly selected, randomly ordered set of 12 words drawn from the original random sample. Regression analyses revealed that after controlling for other factors, concrete, highly imageable words promoted the use of imagery in writing, which in turn led to the production of better definitions.