cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Stimulatory and inhibitory effects of amino acids on the development of hamster eight-cell embryos in vitro.

Amino acids were added to a simple medium (TALP) in an effort to enhance the development of hamster eightcell embryos in vitro. The addition of 1.0 mM glutamine to TALP medium markedly increased the percentage of embryos reaching the blastocyst stage. The addition of groups of 4 or 20 amino acids to TALP + glutamine medium produced differential effects, some groups inhibiting development while others stimulated it. The beneficial effect of glutamine was on the eight-cell to morula transition as well as on blastocyst formation, while the effects of the other 20 amino acids studied were only on blastocyst development. This study represents further progress made in identifying the culture requirements for growth of hamster preimplantation embryos in vitro.
Enhanced Sensitivity to Variation of m(e)/m(p) in molecular spectra.

We propose new experiments with high sensitivity to a possible variation of the electron-to-proton mass ratio $\ensuremath{\mu}\ensuremath{\equiv}{m}_{e}/{m}_{p}$. We consider a nearly degenerate pair of molecular vibrational levels, each associated with a different electronic potential. With respect to a change in $\ensuremath{\mu}$, the change in the splitting between such levels can be large both on an absolute scale and relative to the splitting. We demonstrate the existence of such pairs of states in ${\mathrm{Cs}}_{2}$, where the narrow spectral lines achievable with ultracold molecules make the system promising for future searches for small variations in $\ensuremath{\mu}$.
Arterial considerations in renal transplantation

Of 20 renal transplants performed during a one-year period, 9 (45 per cent) required some deviation from the usual arterial anastomosis for reasons of anomaly, size disparity, intrinsic disease, or previous operative procedure. The alternative techniques are described and the literature on arterial considerations in renal transplantation reviewed.
Chronic Cough Due to Gastroesophageal Reflux. Clinical, Diagnostic, and Pathogenetic Aspects

Background Gastroesophageal reflux (GER) is a common cause of chronic cough. Moreover, chronic cough can be the sole presenting manifestation of GER disease (GERD). It has been suggested recently that GER most often causes chronic cough by stimulating the distal esophagus. To gain further diagnostic and pathophysiologic knowledge, we prospectively evaluated a group of patients with chronic cough likely to be due to GER with extensive gastrointestinal and respiratory studies and then observed their response to antireflux therapy. Methods We prospectively characterized 12 subjects whose chronic cough was likely to be due to GER by chest radiographs, barium esophagography, 24-h esophageal pH monitoring (EPM) with probes in the distal and proximal esophagus, esophagoscopy, and bronchoscopy. Then, prior to instituting antireflux therapy, we objectively counted coughs during the distal esophageal infusion of 0.1 N HCl or 0.9 percent saline solution administered in a randomized, double-blind, standardized fashion ( ie , Bernstein acid-perfusion test). Results Gastroesophageal reflux was determined to cause cough in all subjects based on disappearance of cough with antireflux therapy. It was clinically “silent” in 75 percent. The EPM was the test most frequently abnormal (sensitivity, 92 percent). Distal esophageal data revealed that 10 of 12 subjects had GER-induced coughs (12±12) while only 7 of 12 had an abnormal esophageal pH conventional parameter ( eg , percent time pH Conclusions There is a clinical profile that prospectively predicts which patients have chronic cough due to GER. The cough was most likely due to stimulation of the distal esophagus, not aspiration. Intraesophageal acid is unlikely to be the sole mediator in gastric juice causing the cough. While EPM is the single most helpful diagnostic test, conventionally utilized diagnostic indices of GERD can be misleadingly normal; observing GER-induced coughs is more frequently helpful.
Laser Ranging System with 1-cm Resolution

A laser ranging system has been developed in which an image converter tube equipped with deflection plates is used to make a precise measurement of the fractional amount by which the time of flight of the ranging pulse exceeds an integral multiple N of the period of a stable oscillator. The value of N is determined in an auxiliary measurement. In short-range tests with a laboratory breadboard version of the system, time-of-flight uncertainties of about 45 psec were observed. The corresponding uncertainty in a range measurement is smaller than 7 mm.
CHEMOKINE RECEPTORS AND HIV-1 : AN ATTRACTIVE PAIR ?

The implications of the discovery of the HIV-1 coreceptors are numerous and exciting. First, with these coreceptors in hand, studies on the mechanism of entry of HIV-1 will be greatly facilitated. For entry to occur, the virus must bind to the cell and then undergo a series of conformational changes postulated to be triggered by the receptor. As mentioned above, CD4 can induce some conformational changes in HIV-1 Env, but these are insufficient for entry. Possible roles for the coreceptors in promoting fusion include inducing further changes in Env either by direct interaction or indirectly by association with CD4, binding Env to orient the protein correctly with respect to the membrane to allow fusion, or possibly inducing chemokine signaling (involving Ca2+ influx), which may be required to depolarize or somehow destabilize the membrane so that fusion can occur.The ways in which chemokines interfere with fusion and infection can also be addressed. Do HIV-1 Env and chemokines directly compete for receptor, or is the coreceptor down-regulated in response to chemokine overexpression, making it unavailable for the virus? Is there genetic polymorphism in the CC-CKR receptors that could account for the relative insensitivity of some individuals to HIV-1 infection? If the polymorphic receptors function less efficiently for both HIV-1 entry and chemokine stimulation, one might expect observed viral resistance and increased levels of chemokines. Also, the chemokine receptors and/or chemokine levels might determine the viral burden and thus the rate of disease progression in infected individuals. The discovery of chemokine receptors as cofactors may also lead to development of new therapeutic strategies aimed at blocking the viral access to the receptor using small molecule inhibitors instead of chemokines.The role of the coreceptors in HIV-1 pathogenesis can also be analyzed. Inappropriate signaling, mediated by direct interaction of HIV-1 envelope and the coreceptor, could contribute to pathogenesis of the virus. In addition, a number of chemokine receptor homologs have been identified in DNA viruses, including human cytomegalovirus and Herpes saimiri (a close relative of the Kaposi sarcoma–associated herpes virus). It is interesting to speculate that interaction of HIV-1 with these receptors could be involved in pathogenesis by these viruses that are associated with HIV-1 infection.Finally, identification of factors (CD4 and fusin or CC-CKR5) sufficient for HIV-1 entry may allow development of a small animal model for HIV-1 infection in which viral replication could be studied and therapeutic interventions might be tested.
Generation of Optical Spatiotemporal Solitons

Solitons have been studied in many areas of science over the last two decades. Multi-dimensional solitons include stationary waves that are confined in two transverse spatial dimensions as well as spatio-temporal solitons (STS). STS are theoretically unstable in third-order nonlinear media, but solutions can be stabilized if the nonlinearity is saturable.
Instructional Complexity and the Science to Constrain It

Science and technology have had enormous impact on many areas of human endeavor but surprisingly little effect on education. Many large-scale field trials of science-based innovations in education have yielded scant evidence of improvement in student learning ( 1 , 2 ), although a few have reliable positive outcomes ( 3 , 4 ). Education involves many important issues, such as cultural questions of values, but we focus on instructional decision-making in the context of determined instructional goals and suggests ways to manage instructional complexity.
-Oxoglutarate carboxylation in liver mitochondria from normal, alloxan diabetic and streptozotocin diabetic rats

SummaryRat liver mitochondria, incubated in media containing 4 mM ATP, 10 mM MgCl2, 6.7 mM Pi 13.3 mM TEA, 6.7 mM α-oxoglutarate, and 20 mM HCO3-, oxidized α-oxoglutarate through the tricarboxylic acid cycle and utilized a portion of the reducing equivalents produced by this oxidation to drive α-oxoglutarate to citrate via reductive carboxylation. Streptozotocin and alloxan diabetes increased the rates of oxidation and citrate accumulation. L-Octanoylcarnitine inhibited both α-oxoglutarate oxidation and carboxylation. Insulin, glucagon, and dibutyryl cyclic AMP, added in vitro, did not affect α-oxoglutarate oxidation or carboxylation.
TDP-43 toxicity in yeast

The budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae is an emerging tool for investigating the molecular pathways that underpin several human neurodegenerative disorders associated with protein misfolding. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a devastating adult onset neurodegenerative disease primarily affecting motor neurons. The protein TDP-43 has recently been demonstrated to play an important role in the disease, however, the mechanisms by which TDP-43 contributes to pathogenesis are unclear. To explore the mechanistic details that result in aberrant accumulation of TDP-43 and to discover potential strategies for therapeutic intervention, we employed a yeast TDP-43 proteinopathy model system. These studies allowed us to determine the regions of TDP-43 required for aggregation and toxicity and to define the effects of ALS-linked mutant forms of TDP-43. We have also been able to harness the power of yeast genetics to identify potent modifiers of TDP-43 toxicity using high-throughput yeast genetic screens. Here, we describe the methods and approaches that we have used in order to gain insight into TDP-43 biology and its role in disease. These approaches are readily adaptable to other neurodegenerative disease proteins.
Synthesis and characterization of boron-doped carbons

Abstract Two methods have been employed to prepare boron-doped carbon materials. One method utilized ion implantation to dope the surface region of vitreous carbon with up to 12 atomic % boron. The other method used CVD to prepare ~ 1–2 micron thick carbon coatings with various boron contents (0 to 15 atomic %). The quantitative compositional analysis of these materials was performed with the electron microprobe and ion microprobe. Graphitization and redistribution of the boron, due to heat treatment, was examined with SIMS depth profiling and X-ray diffraction. Primarily, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) was used to characterize the bonding state of boron before and after heat treatment and oxidation. It was found that boron could accommodate as many as five different chemical structures in the CVD carbon films. Some of these were identified as mixed BO and BC species (e.g., , and one corresponded to the BC3 type of bonding reported by Kaner. Most interestingly, oxidation caused boron segregation at the surface and shifted the bonding environment of these boron atoms to lower binding energy (less local electron density).
Breast nodules as the initial site of relapse in childhood leukemia

Two children with acute monoblastic leukemia in remission developed breast nodules that were the initial sites of disease relapse. Shortly after the appearance of disease in this site, the children developed marrow recurrence and, despite additional treatment, rapidly deteriorated and died from pancytopenia-related complications. The importance of careful breast examination is stressed as part of the surveillance physical examination for children with monoblastic leukemia.
Resolution, quantification and confirmation of betamethasone and dexamethasone in equine plasma by liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry

This method describes the simultaneous separation, identification, quantification and confirmation of betamethasone (BTM) and dexamethasone (DXM) in equine plasma by liquid chromatography (LC) integrated with multidimensional tandem mass spectrometry. Analytes were directly extracted from equine plasma by methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE). The residues were reconstituted with sample solvent. LC separation of the analytes was performed on a Hypercarb column using acetonitrile/water/formic acid (95:5:0.5, v/v/v) as the mobile phase. Sample screening, quantification and confirmation were performed in multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) mode. The method was linear over the concentration range of 0.1-75 ng/mL for both analytes. Limit of detection (LOD) was 50 pg/mL and that of quantification (LOQ) was 100 pg/mL for both analytes. The limit of confirmation (LOC) for the presence of BTM or DXM by MRM was 0.5 ng/mL. The intra-and inter-day precisions expressed as coefficient of variation (CV) for quantification of DXM and BTM from 0.1 to 50 ng/mL were less than 7% and the accuracy was in the range of 97-105%. This method is capable of distinguishing BTM from DXM when both analytes are simultaneously present in equine plasma. Measurement uncertainty for both analytes was estimated at less than 16%. The method is rapid, specific, selective, sensitive, simple and reliable. The importance of this method is its usefulness in directly identifying and differentiating BTM from DXM without derivatization.
Circadian rhythms in Neurospora crassa: the role of mitochondria.

Energy metabolism and mitochondria have been discussed with respect to their role in the circadian rhythm mechanism for some time. Numerous examples of inhibitors that affect the mitochondria of plants and animals and microorganisms are known, which cause large phase shifts in the rhythms of these organisms. Analogous studies on the role of mitochondria in the Neurospora circadian rhythm mechanism have also been reported and summarized. This communication differs from previous studies on other organisms in that it will focus on two lines of evidence derived from studies on Neurospora strains carrying mutations affecting the mitochondria, (a) Strains whose growth rate is resistant to oligomycin (olit) owing to an altered protein in the F0 sector of the mitochondrial ATPase, showed no phase shifts when pulsed with oligomycin. Control strains (oli8) showed large phase shifts when pulsed with oligomycin. This indicates that the phase-shifting effect of oligomycin is due to the direct inhibition of the mitocho...
Bribery as an Organizational Response to Conflicting Environmental Expectations

This article develops a conceptualization of bribery activity in organizational relationships at the international level. Utilizing a coalitional viewpoint of organizational interaction across markets, this paper proposes that international exchange environments are dimensioned by two critical factors: environmental constraints formed by cultural expectations and management capability to resolve incongruent exchange demands on the international marketing organization. These factors are proposed as determinants of a model of bribery behavior comprising four international exchange environments. Bribery activity in each environment is examined as a form of “side payment substitution” for unresolvable demands, representing a rational response to conflicting payment requirements and expectations.
Applications of charge-coupled and charge-injection devices in analytical spectroscopy

The latest generation of solid-state arrays, including charge-coupled devices and charge injection devices, holds great promise for revolutionizing spectrochemical methods of analysis. However, successful application of these new technologies will require more than substituting new detectors for old. Different optical system configurations and operational approaches are considered and their impact on a number of spectroscopic techniques are discussed. Specific examples for efficiently employing x-y array detectors, including aberration corrected holographic grating, crossed interferometric dispersive and echelle spectrometers, are discussed. Present and future trends for applying array detector technology to advanced spectroscopic analysis are considered.© (1991) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
The effect of imagery on the waveshape of the visual evoked response.

Unterschiede der Wellenformen, welche beim Menschen auftreten, wenn in kurzen Lichtstrahlen verschiedene geometrische Formen oder auch Worter in das Gesichtsfeld eingeschoben werden, konnen auch dann in manchen Versuchspersonen erscheinen, wenn eine solche Person versucht, sich ahnliche Reize vorzustellen oder zu halluzinieren. Dabei kommt es durchaus nicht darauf an, welche geometrischen Formen im Gesichtsfeld tatsachlich vorhanden sind.
Hydrology of limestone terrane in Schoharie County, New York

During the summer of 1946 the writer studied the ground-water resources of Schoharie County, New York, as a part of the program of ground-water investigation being carried on in cooperation between the United States Geological Survey and the New York State Water Power and Control Commission. Because the outcrop belt of Devonian and Upper Silurian carbonate rocks is wider in Schoharie County than in other parts of the State, the effects of solution on these formations is better displayed here than elsewhere. The conditions described below probably apply on a smaller scale to the areas to the west, where the upper formations are cut out by an unconformity, and to the east in the Helderberg area, where similar effects have been described by Goldring [see “References” at end of paper, 1935]. However, it is probable that solution in the limestones in the Hudson Valley is not comparable because of the folded condition of the rocks.
Vesicle Trafficking and Cell Surface Membrane Patchiness

Membrane proteins and lipids often appear to be distributed in patches on the cell surface. These patches are often assumed to be membrane domains, arising from specific molecular associations. However, a computer simulation (Gheber and Edidin, 1999) shows that membrane patchiness may result from a combination of vesicle trafficking and dynamic barriers to lateral mobility. The simulation predicts that the steady-state patches of proteins and lipids seen on the cell surface will decay if vesicle trafficking is inhibited. To test this prediction, we compared the apparent sizes and intensities of patches of class I HLA molecules, integral membrane proteins, before and after inhibiting endocytic vesicle traffic from the cell surface, either by incubation in hypertonic medium or by expression of a dominant-negative mutant dynamin. As predicted by the simulation, the apparent sizes of HLA patches increased, whereas their intensities decreased after endocytosis and vesicle trafficking were inhibited.
A technique for chromosome study of human bone marrow fibroblast-like cells☆

Abstract 1. 1. A technique for chromosome analysis of fibroblast-like cells from human bone marrow tissue cultures is presented. 2. 2. This technique may also be applied to the study of skin fibroblasts from skin explants.
The δ-opioid receptor antagonist naltrindole prevents sensitization to the conditioned rewarding effects of cocaine

A conditioned place preference paradigm was used to determine whether: (i) prior exposure to cocaine results in an enhancement of its rewarding effects, and (ii) the delta-opioid receptor antagonist naltrindole can prevent the development of this response. Rats received daily injections of saline or cocaine (10.0 mg/kg i.p.) for 5 days in the colony room. Additional animals received naltrindole (0.03-0.3 mg/kg s.c.), lithium chloride (20 mg/kg s.c.) or vehicle prior to i.p. injections. Conditioning sessions (2 drug; 2 vehicle) commenced 3 days later. Cocaine (1.0-10.0 mg/kg) was ineffective as a conditioning stimulus in saline pre-exposed rats. In cocaine pre-exposed animals, however, doses of 5.0 and 10.0 mg/kg cocaine resulted in significant drug-induced place preferences. Significant cocaine-induced place preferences were also observed in animals which had received lithium chloride with the cocaine treatment regimen. In animals which had received naltrindole together with the chronic cocaine treatment regimen, cocaine failed to produce a conditioned response. These data demonstrate that the repeated administration of cocaine results in an enhancement of its rewarding effects (e.g. sensitization) and that this phenomenon is prevented by a delta-opioid receptor antagonist. Furthermore, the finding that naltrindole does not modify the acute rewarding effects of cocaine suggests a specific role of delta-opioid receptors in the sensitization process.
Signalling mechanisms in progesterone-neurotransmitter interactions

The current and expanded view of transcriptional regulation by the steroid/thyroid superfamily of nuclear transcription factors integrates not only the hormone-dependent but also the hormone-independent cellular signaling mechanisms in physiology and reproduction. This effort has vastly been aided by the identification of steroid hormone receptors as transcriptional mediators of a variety of ligands, whose transcriptional response is dependent upon cross-talk with distinct signal transduction pathways, their recruitment of coregulators, alteration of chromatin structure and identification of specific interactive motifs within the receptors themselves. This review will provide a framework for the current concepts in the field of steroid hormone action as exemplified by our studies on progesterone receptor in female sexual behavior.
Constraints on GUTS with Coleman-Weinberg symmetry breaking

Abstract A popular assumption introduced by Coleman and Weinberg is that the elementary Higgs scalars of a gauge theory are massless at the tree level; the symmetry breakdown is then entirely due to quantum radiative corrections. In grand unified theories (GUTS), this assumption becomes particularly attractive. Many GUTS have “intermediate” mass scales [scales of symmetry breaking between baryon number generation and SU(2) × U(1) breaking], and it is attractive to apply the Coleman-Weinberg assumption to all stages of symmetry breaking after baryon number generation. In this paper, it is shown that most such GUTS are phenomenologically unacceptable. The reason is that as the universe cools, at each scale of symmetry breaking there will be a phase transition; if the symmetry is broken a la Coleman-Weinberg, this transition is strongly first order and thus generates entropy, decreasing the previously generated baryon number to entropy ratio by a large, and perhaps unacceptable amount. The entropy generated in a general intermediate mass scale transition is calculated, and the severe constraints that any Coleman-Weinberg-type GUT with intermediate mass scales must satisfy (in order to avoid excessive entropy generation) are found. Turning to specific models, it is shown that all intermediate mass scale transitions associated with SO(10) do not satisfy these constraints; the Coleman-Weinberg form of these transitions is inconsistent with cosmological observations and is thus phenomenologically unacceptable.
Ionic composition and distribution in saline seeps of southwestern North Dakota, U.S.A.

Abstract Saline seeps, a common problem in the Northern Great Plains, were studied at four sites in southwestern North Dakota. Saturation extracts within seeps were dominated by sodium, magnesium, and sulfate. Where present, gypsum controlled calcium concentrations. Ionic distributions within and around seeps were influenced by precipitation and re-solution reactions, freeze-thaw phenomena, and ion pairing. Ion pairing reduced Ca2+ and Mg2+ activities to a greater extent than Na+, resulting in elevated SAR levels in seeps and surrounding soils. Dryland salinity resulted in a form of desertification around seep areas.
A note on the description of surface roughness using fractal dimension

Self-affine fractals are useful models of the surfaces of rock fractures. The scaling properties of these surfaces are described by two parameters, the fractal dimension and the crossover length. Two methods for estimating the fractal dimension of a profile of a rough surface are compared, the divider method and the spectral method. It is shown that the two methods yield the same results, if the horizontal resolution at which the profile is measured is smaller than the crossover length. However, for resolutions greater than the crossover length, the divider method always gives a fractal dimension close to 1. To guide future work, the crossover length is estimated for typical joint surfaces and for the San Andreas fault. Additionally, a simple method is proposed to obtain the correct fractal dimension without prior knowledge of the crossover length. copyright American Geophysical Union 1987
THE RELATION OF ENVIRONMENT TO DISEASE IN PLANTS

In plant pathological studies I believe the time has come when we should put relatively less stress upon the parasite as an independent organism and relatively more on the disease. As the first step in this, I would urge increased attention to the relation of environment to disease-inception and development. Correlated with this should be more work upon the physiology of parasitism with critical inquiry into the influence of environment upon fungous life cycle and infection. For a generation past, pathologists have concentrated attention upon the parasite. Has not the germ theory of disease in its simplest conception"germs" synonymous with disease-so filled the mind and satisfied the imagination of public and practitioner that it has been natural for even the investigator, who should see more deeply into his problem, to be influenced by the popular measure of his responsibilities? Has it not often been temptingly easier to find and name a new fungus than to probe patiently into the behavior of one long known? When the potatoes show scab or scurf and the grower asks "why," have we not been too prone to ease our mind, and perhaps mislead his, by pronouncing some of our modem mystic words "Actinomyces," "Rhizoctonia"? When we so frequently must face the fact, with these and many other diseases, that, comparing field with field and season with season, the loss following like initial infection may vary widely-perhaps even from nothing to total-then we must agree that naming the parasite is only a first step in explaining disease-occurrence. In thus urging increased attention to environment as influencing disease, I may lead you to a wrong inference. I am not here to urge that a majority of our workers make specific environmental problems matters of major concern. When started, these require persistent application which not all can give, and the methods are not simple and direct. Probably the chief responsibility should be left with a relatively limited number of men in a still more limited number of institutions. With increasing definiteness of purpose let us follow our biological instincts for "division of labor," especi-
Surface-oriented low-parasitic Mott diode for EHF mixer applications

The design and fabrication of a novel air-bridged, low-parasitic Mott diode is described. The devices were fabricated on epitaxial layers grown by MBE on SI undoped LEC substrates. Measurements on the diode at DC and RF showed that the zero bias capacitance was 0.025 pF, the parasitic capacitance 0.007 pF and the series resistance was approximately 10 ?. Diode pairs were incorporated into monolithic single balanced mixers which exhibited a conversion loss of 6 dB at 30 GHz with a 1 GHz IF.
Knowledge refinement based on the discovery of unexpected patterns in data mining

In prior work, we provided methods that generate unexpected patterns with respect to managerial intuition by eliciting managers' beliefs about the domain and using these beliefs to seed the search for unexpected patterns in data. Unexpected patterns discovered in this manner represent contradictions or "holes" in domain knowledge which need to be resolved. Given a belief and a set of unexpected patterns, the motivation behind knowledge refinement is that the belief can be made stronger by refining the belief based on the discovered patterns. In this paper we address the problem of incorporating the discovered contradictions into the belief system based on a formal logic approach. Specifically, we present a framework for refinement based on a generic knowledge refinement strategy, describe abstract properties of refinement algorithms that can be used to compare specific instantiations and then describe and compare two specific refinement algorithms based on this framework.
Decreased atropine toxicity in rats chronically exposed to cold.

Abstract Environmental conditioning to cold has been shown to alter the toxicity of atropine sulfate in rats when it is administered by an intraperitoneal, but not by an intravenous route. Rats exposed to 5°C for 49 days tolerate twice the amount of atropine sulfate tolerated by rats exposed to 5° for only 1 day. This tolerance parallels the slower absorption of the drug from the peritoneal cavity compared with the absorption rates for acutely cold-exposed rats, or rats maintained at 25°. Although excretion of drug into the urine and bile is not higher for the chronic cold animal, its tissue concentrations are somewhat lower. This suggests that the cold-acclimated rat decreases the toxicity of atropine by limiting absorption rather than by increasing excretion.
Coefficients of Correlation and Concordance for Sets of Triads Judgments

Coefficients of correlation and concordance are defined for profiles consisting of ensembles of partially ordered sets by extending Kendall's rank order correlation (tau) and Kendall's coefficient of concordance (W) to cases where Ss are asked to rank order, or to choose among, the given alternatives in multiple sets (ensembles) of items. Computational versions of each formula are given for the case of triad judgment ensembles.
Immigration and public assistance participation: Dispelling the myth of dependency☆

Abstract This paper addresses the important but relatively understudied problem of immigrants' use of transfer payments. First we document gross differentials in the propensity of natives and immigrants to receive public assistance income (which includes AFDC, General Assistance, and Supplemental Security Income) using 1980 census data. Descriptive tabulations revealed considerable variation among whites, blacks, Hispanics, and Asians in poverty rates, household income, and public assistance usage. In 1980, Asian and Hispanic immigrants had higher, and white and black immigrants had lower, rates of public assistance recipiency compared to their native counterparts. Multivariate logit regression analyses, however, revealed that immigrants were considerably less likely than (statistically) comparable natives to receive public assistance income. Also, except for Vietnam era Indochinese refugees, allegations that recent immigrants have a higher probability than earlier arrivals to receive public assistance income were unsupported. Our findings therefore challenge the popular notion that immigrants are welfare prone, and that an amnesty program necessarily will increase the public assistance case load.
An assessment of computer technology in U.S. local governments

Abstract This paper presents a broad, current assessment of the use and impacts of computers and electronic data processing in the larger municipal and county governments of the United States. It is based on extensive data gathered by a major research project which has involved both case-studies in forty cities and a large census survey of urban local governments in cities with greater than 50,000 population and counties with greater than 100,000 population. Three general themes arc explored: (1) the current ‘state-of-the-art’ of computer technology in local government, including general profiles of the governments using EDP, the characteristic administrative arrangements for providing the EDP function, and the types of uses to which EDP has been applied; (2) the impact of computers on local governments, particularly in the areas of operational performance, coordination and control, and local planning; and (3) critical issues currently facing local government in the effective utilization of EDP, including development and management of computer technology, technology transfer and privacy protection.
Modeling Social Norms and Social Influence in Obesity

The worldwide increase in obesity has led to changes in what is considered “normal” or desirable weight, especially among populations at higher risk. We show that social norms are key to understanding the obesity epidemic and that social influence mechanisms provide a necessary linkage between individual obesity-related behaviors and population-level characteristics. Because influence mechanisms cannot be directly observed, we show how three complex systems tools may be used to gain insights into observed epidemiologic patterns: social network analysis, agent-based modeling, and systems dynamics modeling. However, simulation and mathematical modeling approaches raise questions regarding acceptance of findings, especially among policy makers. Nevertheless, we point to modeling successes in obesity and other fields, including the NIH-funded National Collaborative on Childhood Obesity Research (NCCOR) Envision project.
Autophagy Is an Essential Component of Drosophila Immunity against Vesicular Stomatitis Virus

Intrinsic innate immune mechanisms are the first line of defense against pathogens and exist to control infection autonomously in infected cells. Here, we showed that autophagy, an intrinsic mechanism that can degrade cytoplasmic components, played a direct antiviral role against the mammalian viral pathogen vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) in the model organism Drosophila. We found that the surface glycoprotein, VSV-G, was likely the pathogen-associated molecular pattern (PAMP) that initiated this cell-autonomous response. Once activated, autophagy decreased viral replication, and repression of autophagy led to increased viral replication and pathogenesis in cells and animals. Lastly, we showed that the antiviral response was controlled by the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)-Akt-signaling pathway, which normally regulates autophagy in response to nutrient availability. Altogether, these data uncover an intrinsic antiviral program that links viral recognition to the evolutionarily conserved nutrient-signaling and autophagy pathways.
Formymethionyl transfer ribonucleic acid transformylase: the specific interaction of the enzyme with its transfer ribonucleic acid substrate.

Abstract The interaction of purified methionyl-transfer RNA transformylase with tRNA fMet was studied with the use of sucrose gradient centrifugation. The ionic conditions for stability of the enzyme during prolonged centrifugation were determined as well as those for the recovery of a tRNA-enzyme complex. A stable complex of transformylase and Met-tRNA fMet with an S 20,W value of 5.5 s was identified. Formyl-Met-tRNA fMet could substitute for Met-tRNA fMet but neither non-acylated tRNA fMet nor the aminoacyl forms of a series of other tRNA's formed a stable complex with the transformylase. Approximately 1 molecule of Met-tRNA fMet or fMet-tRNA fMet was bound to 1 molecule of transformylase. The effects of variation in temperature, pH, divalent ion concentration and ionic strength were studied on complex formation. In the pH range of 5.0 to 6.0, there was an apparent increased efficiency of binding of the enzyme to fMet-tRNA fMet which was due to aggregation of enzyme to enzyme-tRNA complexes. A similar effect was observed at low ionic strengths. The stable complex formation of transformylase and the acyl-tRNA fMet species affords a means of studying the recognition portion of the over-all transformylase reaction.
Arteriovenous malformation rupture and pregnancy: is it a risk or are we risk averse?

n this issue ofWORLD NEUROSURGERY, Agarwal et al. discuss the relative risk of arteriovenous malformation (AVM) I rupture during pregnancy as well as the treatment options available to this patient population. This timely article completes a triad of publications that have also addressed cavernous malformation and aneurysm rupture during pregnancy (1, 2). As neurosurgeons, we have all encountered the young couple seeking to pursue pregnancy in the setting of preexisting, maternal cerebral disease. Most troubling is the absence of Level 1 evidence on which we have to draw in counseling these patients. The fear of litigation and, more importantly, maternal and fetal injury are weighty concerns that influence this decisionmaking process.
Clinical significance of peripheral blood Epstein–Barr viral load monitoring using polymerase chain reaction in renal transplant recipients

PTLD is a complication of EBV infection. We examined the efficacy of EBV-PCR monitoring to detect early replication in an attempt to prevent EBV-associated PTLD. Blood EBV levels in 156 renal transplant recipients (58 children) from three institutions over nine yr were retrospectively analyzed. Patients who were asymptomatic and at high risk for PTLD were monitored for EBV infection by PCR or serology followed by PCR at the time of EBV seropositivity. More children than adults had positive EBV-PCR (12/58 vs. 2/98, p < 0.001). Adults remained asymptomatic and viremia resolved post-therapy. 3/12 EBV-PCR positive children developed PTLD (3/12 children vs. 0/2 adults, p = NS). Two out of three with PTLD were initially monitored by serology, and later by PCR. PTLD resolved post-therapy in all three patients. The remaining 9/12 EBV-PCR positive children stayed asymptomatic. None of the children and adults with negative EBV-PCR developed PTLD. EBV-PCR monitoring in high-risk renal transplant recipients, especially in children, may allow early diagnosis and intervention, and therefore may help in preventing EBV-associated PTLD.
Characteristics of the time-optimal control of flexible structures with damping

The time-optimal control of flexible structures with damping is considered. We formulate the general time-optimal control problem for single-axis flexible structures, and an analytical result is given for a lower bound on the number of control switches for the one-bending-mode case. Numerical solutions and simulations are presented to show several interesting trends of the time-optimal control switch times as the frequencies and dampings of the flexible modes are varied. >
To Count or Not to Count: A Surgical Misadventure

An instrument or other surgical item left in the patient is a rare and yet devastating and preventable complication of surgery. Estimates based on claims data suggest the incidence of a retained foreign body to be between 1 in 9000 and 1 in 19,000 operations. The current approach in prevention has been to use the Association of periOperative Registered Nurses' manual counting method. While working at a large academic medical center, a sentinel event occurred where a patient left the operating room with a retained malleable retractor. This article will present the social, cultural, and systems issues that predisposed to that event, the lessons learned, and a summary of evidence concerning these incidents.
Pride: peer-to-peer reputation infrastructure for decentralized environments

Peer-to-peer (P2P) networks use the fundamental assumption that the nodes in the network will cooperate and will not cheat. In the absence of any common goals shared by the nodes of a peer-to-peer network, external motivation to cooperate and be trustworthy is mandated. Digital Reputations can be used to inject trust among the nodes of a network. This paper presents PRIDE, a reputation system for decentralized peer-to-peer networks. PRIDE uses self-certification a scheme for identification of peers using digital certificates similar to SDSI certificates, an elicitation-storage protocol for exchange of recommendations and IP Based Safeguard (IBS) to mitigate a peer's vulnerability to 'liar farms.
Application of the Three-Segment Variable Structure Systems

The theory of Variable Structure Systems (VSS) is extended to three-segment VSS. This is an effective means to insensitize a system to parameter variations and disturbances. The sliding mode region is extended and the response can start and stay on the sliding mode from the initial to final running time. Example are given to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed method. Analysis shows the superiority, of three-segment VSS over the conventional one-segment VSS.
Cellular Immune Responses and Viral Diversity in Individuals Treated during Acute and Early HIV-1 Infection

Immune responses induced during the early stages of chronic viral infections are thought to influence disease outcome. Using HIV as a model, we examined virus-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs), T helper cells, and viral genetic diversity in relation to duration of infection and subsequent response to antiviral therapy. Individuals with acute HIV-1 infection treated before seroconversion had weaker CTL responses directed at fewer epitopes than persons who were treated after seroconversion. However, treatment-induced control of viremia was associated with the development of strong T helper cell responses in both groups. After 1 yr of antiviral treatment initiated in acute or early infection, all epitope-specific CTL responses persisted despite undetectable viral loads. The breadth and magnitude of CTL responses remained significantly less in treated acute infection than in treated chronic infection, but viral diversity was also significantly less with immediate therapy. We conclude that early treatment of acute HIV infection leads to a more narrowly directed CTL response, stronger T helper cell responses, and a less diverse virus population. Given the need for T helper cells to maintain effective CTL responses and the ability of virus diversification to accommodate immune escape, we hypothesize that early therapy of primary infection may be beneficial despite induction of less robust CTL responses. These data also provide rationale for therapeutic immunization aimed at broadening CTL responses in treated primary HIV infection.
BioPAX support in CellDesigner

Motivation: BioPAX is a standard language for representing and exchanging models of biological processes at the molecular and cellular levels. It is widely used by different pathway databases and genomics data analysis software. Currently, the primary source of BioPAX data is direct exports from the curated pathway databases. It is still uncommon for wet-lab biologists to share and exchange pathway knowledge using BioPAX. Instead, pathways are usually represented as informal diagrams in the literature. In order to encourage formal representation of pathways, we describe a software package that allows users to create pathway diagrams using CellDesigner, a user-friendly graphical pathway-editing tool and save the pathway data in BioPAX Level 3 format. Availability: The plug-in is freely available and can be downloaded at ftp://ftp.pantherdb.org/CellDesigner/plugins/BioPAX/ Contact: huaiyumi@usc.edu Supplementary Information:Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Characterization of Failed First-Stage Turbine Blade Cooling Passage of Gas Turbine Engine

The cooling passages of the first-stage high-pressure turbine blades of gas turbine engines are located and drilled at the manufacturing stage. The external wall thickness is a critical blade strength parameter and has to be inspected accurately and regularly when blades are routed through repair work shops. This paper investigates a case of two blades from two different blade sets that experienced cooling passage failure during repair, after serving less than 20,000 operating hours. The investigation covered material microstructure, hardness condition, and material thickness residual assessment, using an ultrasonic nondestructive technique between the first cooling passage and the external blade surface. It was concluded that the first cooling passage was inappropriately drilled during manufacturing.
Mobility measurements with a standard contact resistance pattern

The standard test pattern used for planar-contact resistance measurements yields values for normalized contact resistance, contact resistivity, and semiconductor sheet resistance. Application of a perpendicular magnetic field yields additional data, including bulk semiconductor mobility and sheet carrier concentration, and also the mobility of the material under the contact. This new technique is applied to a GaAs implanted layer designed for metal-semiconductor field-effect transistor (MESFET) applications. One advantage of the method is that a separate Hall-effect measurement is no longer necessary.
Optimization of an implantable volume conduction antenna

As implantable devices become increasingly sophisticated, there is a strong need for developing a wireless data communication channel between these devices and external computers. This important problem has been studied and an antenna is being designed based on the volume conduction of biological tissues. Closed-form equation and finite element analyses were performed for the case of brain implantation using a spherical volume conduction model of the head. Finite element proofs of concept in 2D and 3D demonstrated the influence of epoxy and a volume conductor reflector on volume currents, exhibiting changes in the far field as controlled by the near field. A 3D finite element analysis showed an increased signal transduction of 35% as compared to the 3D analytical analysis, which was not able to simulate the epoxy. The optimum angle of inclination is shallower than what was intuitively thought, indicating that the antenna elements destructively interfere with the generated surface voltages, requiring the antenna elements to be rotated away from each other.
Adolescent aggression and social cognition in the context of personality: impulsivity as a moderator of predictions from social information processing.

This study asked how individual differences in social cognition and personality interact in predicting later aggressive behavior. It was hypothesized that the relationship between immediate response evaluations in social information processing (SIP) and later aggressive behavior would be moderated by impulsivity. In particular, the immediate positive evaluations of aggressive responses would be more strongly related to later aggressive behavior for high-impulsive than for low-impulsive individuals, because high-impulsive children would be less likely to integrate peripheral information and consider long-term future consequences of their actions. Participants were 585 adolescents (52% male) and their mothers and teachers from the longitudinal Child Development Project. Structural equation modeling indicated that teacher-reported impulsivity at ages 11–13 moderated the association between adolescents' endorsement of aggressive responses in hypothetical, ambiguous situations and subsequent mother-reported aggressive behavior. Specifically, positive endorsement of aggressive responses at age 13 was significantly related to later aggressive behavior (age 14–17) for participants with high and medium levels of impulsivity, but this association was not significant for participants with low levels of impulsivity. This study provides evidence of personality variables as potential moderators of the link between SIP and behavior. Aggr. Behav. 34:511–520, 2008. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc.