cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A C++ infrastructure for automatic introduction and translation of OpenMP directives

In this paper we describe a C++ infrastructure for source-to-source translation. Wedemonstrate the translation of a serial program with high-level abstractions to a lower-level parallel program in two separate phases. In the first phase OpenMP directives are introduced, driven by the semantics of high-level abstractions. Then the OpenMP directives are translated to a C++ program that explicitly creates and manages parallelism according to the specified directives. Both phases are implemented using the same mechanisms in our infrastructure.
Variable selection in linear models

Variable selection in linear models is essential for improved inference and interpretation, an activity which has become even more critical for high dimensional data. In this article, we provide a ...
Conservation of a dual-start motif in P22 lysis gene regulation.

Gene 13 of bacteriophage P22 is functionally equivalent to lambda lysis gene S. Gene S codes for two products, the polypeptides S105 and S107, produced from translational initiation events at the third and first codon, respectively. We have shown that the two polypeptides have opposing functions in lysis: S105 is the lethal lysis effector, and S107 acts as an inhibitor of lysis (U. Blasi, K. Nam, D. Hartz, L. Gold, and R. Young, EMBO J. 11:3501-3510, 1989). Gene 13 has a 108-codon reading frame and its product begins with a similar motif: Met-1-Lys-2-Lys-3-Met-4. Here, we present in vivo and in vitro evidence for the expression of a 13(108) and a 13(105) product and show that the lambda lysis control mechanisms is evolutionarily conserved in phage P22. In this case 13(108), like S107 in lambda, functions as the inhibitor of the lysis effector 13(105). Although the DNA sequences upstream of the S and 13 gene starts showed less homology, the same structural characteristics, i.e., stem-loop structures immediately upstream and about 10 codons downstream of the start region, were present in both reading frames. Using in vitro mutagenesis and toeprinting, we show that the upstream stem-loop structures of genes 13 and S, containing the Shine-Dalgarno sequence for initiations at Met-1, are interchangeable. Moreover, our data indicate that the stability of the secondary structures present in the translational initiation regions of genes S and 13 is set to create a particular ratio of initiation events at Met-1 and Met-3 or Met-4. The ratio of effector to inhibitor was much higher in P22 than in lambda. We propose that this reflects less transcriptional readthrough at the late terminator t(R) and suggests that the dual-start motif in genes 13 and S may be important for establishment of maintenance of the lysogenic state.
Relationship Compatibility, Compatible Matches, and Compatibility Matching

Many leading Internet dating sites claim to be able to find compatible matches for singles, and that they use principles from Relationship Science to generate their matching algorithms. In this article, I first discuss how ―relationship compatibility‖ has been studied in Relationship Science. It is generally not directly studied, but inferred from related constructs, including satisfaction, commitment, and endurance of the relationship. Second, I discuss three principles that are referred to in Relationship Science as defining a pair being a ―compatible match.‖ These principles are similarity, complementarity, and matching (on same level of socially desirable characteristics, regardless of whether they are the same or different between partners). In the final section, I discuss what aspects of science are being used at the Internet dating sites to create compatible matches.
Control of a Six-Degree-of-Freedom Industrial Manipulator Modeled with Seven Link and Joint Flexibility Components

A new controller design is proposed for manipulators modeled with joint and link compliances. First, a nonlinear feedforward and a PID state feedback components are employed in the controller, and manipulator dynamics is converted into error-driven system dynamic equations. Then, the error-driven dynamic equations are stabilised by using the second method of Lyapunov. Special structure of the Lyapunov matrix equation is exploited and an explicit solution to this equation is presented. Our analysis also shows that controller performance can be enhanced through the modulation of this solution. The proposed controller is numerically implemented on the model of a six-degree-of-freedom Cincinnati Milacron T3-776 industrial manipulator which is modeled with three joint and four link flexibilities. The simulations show satisfactory path tracking and oscillation rejection properties.
LIF measurements of oxygen concentration gradients along flat and wavy air-water interfaces

Instantaneous spatially-varying measurements of concentration gradients occurring during aeration for flat, stagnant air-water interfaces and for interfaces with mechanically-generated waves are presented. Measurements were obtained in a laboratory wave tank using a laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) technique that images planar oxygen concentration fields near air-water interfaces. Pulsed nitrogen laser light focused to a thin sheet induces the fluorescence of pyrene butyric acid (in micromolar concentration) in deoxygenated water. The PBA fluorescence is quenched by dissolved oxygen. A high-resolution CCD camera images in two dimensions the intensities of the fluorescence field, providing spatial measurements of oxygen concentration with magnification of 7 μm per pixel. The concentration fields, gradients, and boundary layer thicknesses along the flat and wavy air-water interfaces are quantified and compared to previous measurements associated with sheared gas-liquid interfaces and with wind-generated waves.
8-Chloroadenosine Sensitivity in Renal Cell Carcinoma Is Associated with AMPK Activation and mTOR Pathway Inhibition

The adenosine analog 8-chloroadenosine has been shown to deplete ATP and inhibit tumor growth in hematological malignancies as well as in lung and breast cancer cell lines. We investigated effects of 8-chloroadenosine on clear cell (cc) renal cell carcinoma (RCC) cell lines. 8-chloroadenosine was effective against ccRCC cell viability in vitro, with IC50 ranging from 2 μM in the most sensitive CAKI-1 to 36 μM in the most resistant RXF-393. Proteomic analysis by reverse-phase protein array revealed that 8-chloroadenosine treatment leads to inhibition of the mTOR pathway. In time-course experiments, 8-chloroadenosine treatment rapidly activated AMPK, measured by AMPK and ACC phosphorylation, and subsequently caused dephosphorylation of p70S6K and ribosomal protein RPS6 in the sensitive cell lines. However, in the resistant cell lines, AMPK activity and the mTOR pathway were unaffected by the treatment. We also noted that the resistant cell lines had elevated basal levels of phospho RPS6 and AKT. Inhibition of PI3K pathway enhanced the efficacy of 8-chloroadenosine across all cell lines. Our observations indicate that 8-chloroadenosine activity is associated with inhibition of the mTOR pathway, and that phospho RPS6 and PI3K pathway activation status may determine resistance. Among solid tumors, RCC is one of the few susceptible to mTOR inhibition. We thus infer that 8-chloroadenosine may be effective in RCC by activating AMPK and inhibiting the mTOR pathway.
Performance modeling of deterministic transport computations

In this work we present a performance model that encompasses the key characteristics of a Sn transport application using unstructured meshes. Sn transport is an important part of the ASCI workload. This builds on previous analysis which has been done for the case of structured meshes. The performance modeling of an unstructured grid application presents a number of complexities and subtleties that do not arise for structured grids. The resulting analytical model is parametric using basic system performance characteristics (latency, bandwidth, MFLOPS rate etc), and application characteristics (mesh size etc). It is validated on a large HP AlphaServer system showing high accuracy. The model compares favorably to a trace based modeling approach which is specific to a single mesh/processor mapping situation. The model is used to give insight into the achievable performance on possible future processing systems containing thousands of processors.
Replicating semantic connections made by visual readers for a scanning system for nonvisual readers

When scanning through a text document for the answer to a question, visual readers are able to quickly locate text within the document related to the answer while simultaneously getting a general sense of the document's content. For nonvisual readers, however, this poses a challenge, especially when the relevant text is spread out or worded in a way that can't be searched for directly. Our goal is to make the scanning experience quicker for nonvisual readers by giving them an experience similar to that of visual readers. To do this we first determined what visual scanners focused on by using an eye-tracker while they scanned for answers to complex questions. Resulting data revealed that text with loose semantic connections to the question are important. This paper reports on our efforts to develop a method that automatically replicates the connections made by visual scanners. Ultimately, our goal is a system that replicates the visual scanning experience, allowing nonvisual readers to quickly glean information in a manner similar to how visual readers glean information when scanning. This work stems from work with students who are nonvisual readers and is aimed at making their school experience more equitable with students who scan visually.
Circuit Development of Piezoelectric Energy Harvesting Device for Recharging Solid-State Batteries

Piezoelectric devices have been widely used as a means of transforming ambient vibrations into electrical energy that can be stored and used to power other devices. This type of power generation devices can provide a convenient alternative to traditional power sources used to operate certain types of sensors/actuators, MEMS devices, and microprocessor units. However, the amount of energy produced by these devices is in many cases far too small to directly power an electrical device. Therefore, much of the research into power harvesting has focused on methods of accumulating the energy until a sufficient amount is present, allowing the intended electronics to be powered.Due to the tiny amount of harvestable power from a single device, it is critical to collect vibration energy efficiently. Many research groups have developed various methods to operate the harvesting devices at their resonant frequencies for maximal amount of energy. Different techniques of conversion circuits are also investigated for efficient transformation from mechanical vibration to electrical energy. However, efforts have not been made to the analysis of array configuration of energy harvesting elements. Poor combination of piezoelectric elements, such as phase difference, cannot guarantee the increasing amount of harvested energy. To realize a piezoelectric energy-harvesting device with higher volume energy density, the energy conversion efficiencies of different array configurations were investigated. In the present study, various combinations of piezoelectric elements were analyzed to achieve higher volume energy density. A charging circuit for solid-state batteries with planned energy harvesting strategy was also proposed. With the planned harvesting strategy, the required charging time can be estimated. Thus, the applicable applications can be clearly identified.In this paper, optimal combination of piezoelectric cantilevers and different modes of charging methods were investigated. The results provide a means of choosing the piezoelectric device to be used and estimate the amount of time required to recharge a specific capacity solid-state battery.Copyright © 2012 by ASME
1,25,26-trihydroxyvitamin D3: Isolation, identification, and biological activity

Abstract A polar metabolite of vitamin D3 has been produced in vitro from either 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 incubated with kidney homogenate from vitamin D-supplemented chickens or from 25,26-dihydroxyvitamin D3 incubated with vitamin D-deficient chicken kidney homogenate. This compound was isolated in pure form and identified as 1,25,26-trihydroxyvitamin D3 by ultraviolet absorption spectrophotometry and mass spectrometry. Furthermore, its periodate cleavage product comigrates with synthetic 1α-hydroxy-25-keto-27-norvitamin D3 on high-performance liquid chromatography. The 1,25,26-trihydroxyvitamin D3 is 0.1-0.01 as active as 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 in the stimulation of intestinal calcium transport and bone calcium mobilization.
Logic with Truth Values in a Linearly Ordered Heyting Algebra

It is known that the theorems of the intuitionist predicate calculus are exactly those formulas which are valid in every Heyting algebra (that is, pseudo-Boolean algebra). The simplest kind of Heyting algebra is a linearly ordered set. This paper concerns the question of determining all formulas which are valid in every linearly ordered Heyting algebra. The question is of interest because it is a particularly simple case intermediate between the intuitionist and classical logics. Also the interpretation of implication is such that in general there exists no nondiscrete Hausdorff topology for which this operation is continuous.
What do scaffold proteins really do

Scaffold proteins play an important role in coordinating signal transduction cascades. However, their exact mechanism of action and the ultimate effect they have on the signal output remain unclear. Ferrell discusses how computer simulations have provided insight into the multiple possible functions that scaffold proteins may have. What remains is to test the predictions in real cells to determine what difference the presence of a scaffold really makes in the output of a signaling pathway.
GPU-enabled FREALIGN: Accelerating single particle 3D reconstruction and refinement in Fourier space on graphics processors

Among all the factors that determine the resolution of a 3D reconstruction by single particle electron cryo-microscopy (cryoEM), the number of particle images used in the dataset plays a major role. More images generally yield better resolution, assuming the imaged protein complex is conformationally and compositionally homogeneous. To facilitate processing of very large datasets, we modified the computer program, FREALIGN, to execute the computationally most intensive procedures on Graphics Processing Units (GPUs). Using the modified program, the execution speed increased between 10 and 240-fold depending on the task performed by FREALIGN. Here we report the steps necessary to parallelize critical FREALIGN subroutines and evaluate its performance on computers with multiple GPUs.
High-level language facilities for low-level services

EZ is a language-based programming environment that offers the services provided separately by programming languages and operating systems in traditional environments. These services are provided as facilities of a high-level string processing language with a 'persistent' memory in which values exist indefinitely or until changed. In EZ, strings and associative tables provide traditional file and directory services. This paper concentrates on the use of EZ procedures and their activations, which, like other values, have indefinite lifetimes. In EZ, the low-level aspects of procedure execution, such as activation record creation, references to local variables, and access to state information, are accessible via high-level language constructs. As a result, traditionally distinct services can be provided by a single service in the EZ environment. Furthermore, such services can be written in EZ itself. An editor/debugger that illustrates the details of this approach is described.
Physical activity counseling in primary care and patient well-being: Do patients benefit?

Background: Promoting physical activity is an important public health strategy for long-term reductions in incidence or severity of clinical disease. Benefits to health-related quality of life (HRQL) and subjective well-being may be as important and take less time to accrue.Purpose:We examined the HRQL benefits of a social-cognitive-theory-based intervention of the Activity Counseling Trial (ACT), both directly in terms of changes in physical fitness and indirectly from increased self-efficacy associated with the intervention.Methods: In ACT, 395 female and 479 male inactive patients ages 35 to 75 years were randomized to one of: physician advice, advice plus behavioral counseling during primary care visits, or advice plus behavioral counseling that also included telephone contact and behavioral classes. Participants were assessed at baseline, 6 months, and 24 months. HRQL was assessed as perceived quality of life, perceived stress, depression, and general health. Satisfaction with function and appearance, self-efficacy, and social support were also assessed.Results: At 24 months women who received counseling or assistance had significant reductions in daily stress and improvements in satisfaction with body function compared to those receiving advice only. Men had reductions in daily stress across all treatment arms. These results mirrored V02max changes observed per group. Change in barriers self-efficacy was significantly associated with reductions in daily stress at 24 months.Conclusions: Patient benefit from ACT intervention was mediated by enhanced cardiorespiratory fitness and by barriers self-efficacy.
Performance evaluation for text processing of noisy inputs

We investigate the problem of evaluating the performance of text processing algorithms on inputs that contain errors as a result of optical character recognition. A new hierarchical paradigm is proposed based on approximate string matching, allowing each stage in the processing pipeline to be tested, the error effects analyzed, and possible solutions suggested.
The ins and outs of inflammatory cells in atheromata.

Macrophage accumulation characterizes the formation of atherosclerotic plaques. Recent work in Nature Immunology (van Gils et al., 2012) demonstrates that the neuroimmune guidance cue netrin-1 can retain macrophages in atherosclerotic lesions, thus promoting atherosclerosis.
Fast Quantification of Proton Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopic Imaging with Artificial Neural Networks

Abstract Accurate quantification of the MRSI-observed regional distribution of metabolites involves relatively long processing times. This is particularly true in dealing with large amount of data that is typically acquired in multi-center clinical studies. To significantly shorten the processing time, an artificial neural network (ANN)-based approach was explored for quantifying the phase corrected (as opposed to magnitude) spectra. Specifically, in these studies radial basis function neural network (RBFNN) was used. This method was tested on simulated and normal human brain data acquired at 3T. The N -acetyl aspartate (NAA)/creatine (Cr), choline (Cho)/Cr, glutamate + glutamine (Glx)/Cr, and myo-inositol (mI)/Cr ratios in normal subjects were compared with the line fitting (LF) technique and jMRUI-AMARES analysis, and published values. The average NAA/Cr, Cho/Cr, Glx/Cr and mI/Cr ratios in normal controls were found to be 1.58 ± 0.13, 0.9 ± 0.08, 0.7 ± 0.17 and 0.42 ± 0.07, respectively. The corresponding ratios using the LF and jMRUI-AMARES methods were 1.6 ± 0.11, 0.95 ± 0.08, 0.78 ± 0.18, 0.49 ± 0.1 and 1.61 ± 0.15, 0.78 ± 0.07, 0.61 ± 0.18, 0.42 ± 0.13, respectively. These results agree with those published in literature. Bland–Altman analysis indicated an excellent agreement and minimal bias between the results obtained with RBFNN and other methods. The computational time for the current method was 15 s compared to approximately 10 min for the LF-based analysis.
Culture fluorescence characteristics and its metabolic significance in batch cultures of Clostridium acetobutylicum

Qualitative characteristics of changes in culture fluorescence during batch growth ofClostridium acetobutylicum [ATCC 824] have been determined. A solventogenic phase culture shows higher changes in normalized fluorescence levels per unit change in cell concentration compared with an acidogenic phase culture. This suggests that during solvent formation intracellular NADH levels are higher than in the acidogenic phase and that NADH availability may influence the onset of solventogenesis.
The secondary structure of staphylococcal enterotoxins A, B and C.

Abstract The circular dichroism (CD) of staphylococcal enterotoxins A, B and C was measured. The CD of enterotoxins B and C were almost identical from 250 to 320 nm, but differed from the CD of enterotoxin A. The spectrum of enterotoxin A in this wavelength region contained the same bands with respect to both location and sign, but with significant differences in intensity. The CD spectra of enterotoxins B and C were also much more alike from 190 to 250 nm. Although all three enterotoxins had a major negative extremum at 215–218 nm, its magnitude was equal in enterotoxins B and C, but was substantially decreased in enterotoxin A. The secondary structure of the enterotoxins contained little α-helix as analyzed with CD models. A secondary structure of enterotoxin B computed from a scheme based on a joint prediction histogram of five separate methods, placed 29 residues in α-helices, 71 in β-pleated sheets, 88 in β-turns and 55 in aperiodic conformation.
The Other Davos? [AP-S Turnstile]

There is no fruitful science without interdisciplinarity. When you want to be a narrow-minded nerd, leave science and seek employment in a post office!
Treating jealousy as a system dynamic in recovering alcoholic families: An application of the social network model of recovery

Jealousy often interferes with the recovery process for alcoholic families. Recovery for such families requires that external boundaries shift from rigid and closed to open and more permeable. Jealousy often erupts as families struggle with shifting boundaries. When jealousy is recognized as a system dynamic, necessary to the process of recovery, it is manageable. The key to the treatment of jealousy in recovering families is recognizing the crucial role of boundaries in both the development and recovery processes.
Incorporating causal structure and exogenous information with probabilistic models: With special reference to choice, gravity, migration, and Markov chains

Several methods of analyzing the parameters of the Semi‐Markov model and incorporating exogeneous information about its states are presented. Regression analysis of parameter estimates and doubly stochastic processes are discussed. Theoretical models for the structure of transition matrices, based on Luce's theory of choice behavior, are derived. Gravity models of varying specificity, useful in the study of migration, are special cases. Maximum likelihood procedures for estimating parameters, with fully operational numerical methods for solution of the likelihood equations, are given. Thus the integration of probabilistic models with theoretical and empirical analysis of causal structure, called for in the previous article, is carried out.
Membrane Potentials and Contractile Events of Hypertrophied Rat Cardiac Muscle

AbstractPrevious studies indicate that cardiac hypertrophy is associated with altered mechanical properties including prolonged contraction times and mechanical refractory periods and exaggerated aftercontractions in isolated rat papillary muscle preparations. The present study was designed to ascertain whether changes in transmembrane potentials accompany the altered mechanical properties. Responses of papillary muscles from hypertrophied hearts of deoxycorticosterone acetate-treated Wistar Kyoto (WKY) rats were compared to those of nonhypertrophied, sham-treated WKYs. Muscles connected to a force transducer in a bathing chamber containing a 27° oxygenated physiological salt solution were subjected to field stimulation and isometric tension measured. Intracellular microelectrodes were used to measure transmembrane potentials of single impaled cells. When compared to nonhypertrophied controls, the hypertrophied preparations had (1) longer action potentials and contraction times, (2) longer electrical and ...
Prediction of recovery factor and Reynolds' analogy for compressible turbulent flow

References 1 Ortega, J. M. and Rheinboldt, W. C., Iterative Solution of Nonlinear Equations in Several Variables, Academic Press, New York, 1970. Richtmyer, R. D., and Morton, K. W., Difference Methods of Initial Value Problems, 2nd ed., Interscience Publishers, New York, 1967. Oden, J. T., Finite Elements of Nonlinear Continua, McGrawHill, New York, 1972. Fujii, H., "Finite Element Schemes: Stability and Convergence," Advances in Computational Methods in Structural Mechanics and Design, edited by J. T. Oden, R. W. Clough, and Y. Yamamoto, UAH Press, Huntsville, Ala., 1972, pp. 201-218. Lax, P. D. and Wendroff, B., "Systems of Conservation Laws," Communications on Pure and Applied Mathematics, Vol. 13,No.2, May 1960, p. 217-237. Lax, P. D. and Wendroff, B., "On Stability of Difference Schemes," Communications on Pure and Applied Mathematics, Vol. 15,No.4, Nov. 1962, pp. 363-371.
Solvent Effects on the Self-Association of Formic Acid in Carbon Dioxide and Ethane

The association of formic acid in both carbon dioxide and ethane at 298−318 K and 48−100 bar has been studied using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The equilibrium constant, K, between dimer and monomer of the formic acid was obtained by examination of the carbonyl stretching band for formic acid. The concentrations of formic acid studied ranged from 1.0 to 8.4 mmol/L. In general, the results show that an increase in density causes an increase in the concentration of the formic acid monomer, which results in a decrease in K. The dimerization constant is significantly higher in ethane than in carbon dioxide. This result is a consequence of an enhanced interaction between formic acid (solute) and carbon dioxide (solvent) compared to the interaction between formic acid (solute) and ethane (solvent). Furthermore, the modified lattice-fluid hydrogen-bonding model (MLFHB) has been used to interpret the effects of density on the K. The influence of the carbon dioxide and ethane solvents on the eq...
Polymer nanocomposites: A small part of the story

Polymer nanocomposites are polymer matrix composites in which the fillers are less than 100 nm in at least one dimension. These composites have exhibited extraordinarily interesting properties. A defining feature of polymer nanocomposites is that the small size of the fillers leads to a dramatic increase in interfacial area as compared to traditional composites. This interfacial area creates a significant volume fraction of interfacial polymer with properties different from the bulk polymer even at low loadings. The properties and structure of this interfacial region are not yet known quantitatively, presenting a challenge both for controlling and predicting the properties of polymer nanocomposites. This paper provides a brief overview of polymer nanocomposites with emphasis on the impact of the interfacial region.
Athetosis Increases Resting Metabolic Rate in Adults with Cerebral Palsy

Abstract Objectives To determine whether resting metabolic rate (RMR) is higher or lower in adults with cerebral palsy compared with the RMR of control subjects and to further examine physical characteristics of cerebral palsy that might affect RMR. Design Twenty-one adults with cerebral palsy (9 women, 12 men) were compared with 50 control subjects (25 men, 25 women) within the same age range (18 through 50 years). The following measurements were made: RMR by indirect calorimetry, anthropometries, body composition, and habitual physical activity patterns. The study was conducted at the University of Vermont General Clinical Research Center and the Ball State University Human Performance Laboratory. Statistical analyses Mean values±standard deviations, t tests, Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients, analysis of covariance, and stepwise multiple correlation regression analysis were used to examine the relationships among variables of interest. Results No significant differences were found in body weight, body mass index, fat mass, percentage body fat, and measured RMR between the two groups. The subjects with cerebral palsy were significantly shorter, had less fat-free mass, and expended fewer kilocalories in leisure time activities than the control subjects. After statistical adjustment for differences in fat-free mass, the subjects with cerebral palsy had a 14% ( P R =.83, P Conclusions The increased energy requirements of adults with cerebral palsy can be partially explained by athetotic movements. In this sample, the presence of athetosis increased RMR by an average of 524 kcal/day. JAm Diet Assoc. 1995; 95:145-148 .
Student perceptions of the effectiveness of education in the responsible conduct of research

Responsible conduct of research (RCR) courses are widely taught, but little is known about the purposes or effectiveness of such courses. As one way to assess the purposes of these courses, students were surveyed about their perspectives after recent completion of one of eleven different research ethics courses at ten different institutions. Participants (undergraduate and graduate students, post-doctoral fellows and faculty, staff and researchers) enrolled in RCR courses in spring and fall of 2003 received a voluntary, anonymous survey from their instructors at the completion of the course. Responses were received from 268 participants. Seventy-seven percent of open-ended responses listed specific kinds of information learned; only a few respondents talked about changes in skills or attitudes. The perception that courses did more to provide information than to foster skills or attitudes was verified in quantitative responses (P<0.0001). Over 75% of the respondents specifically noted that courses were useful in preparing them to recognize, avoid, and respond to research misconduct. The two principal findings of this multi-institutional study are that respondents reported: (1) a wide variety of positive outcomes for research ethics courses, but that (2) the impact on knowledge was greater than that for changes in skills or attitudes.
Peer Effects in Urban Schools: Assessing the Impact of Classroom Composition on Student Achievement

This study evaluates the effects of classroom peers on standardized testing achievement for all third- and fourth-grade students in the Philadelphia School District over 6 school years. With a comp...
Exothermic oxidations in supercritical CO2: effects of pressure-tunable heat capacity on adiabatic temperature rise and parametric sensitivity

Abstract Many oxidation reactions, including H 2 combustion with O 2 , have been shown to admit the phenomenon of parametric sensitivity. Given its inertness to oxidation and non-flammable nature, supercritical CO 2 ( sc CO 2 ) is a desirable solvent for performing oxidations. Further, for oxidations that employ H 2 O 2 as an oxidant, the use of sc CO 2 as a solvent has been suggested for producing H 2 O 2 in situ by reacting H 2 and O 2 . Another significant, and as yet not fully understood, advantage of using sc CO 2 is the ability to exploit its liquid-like heat capacity, which exhibits a maximum in the near-critical region (1.01–1.2 T c and 0.9–2.0 P c ). It is shown in this modeling study that by performing an oxidation reaction in sc CO 2 , the temperature rise accompanying the highly exothermic reaction can be effectively controlled. To demonstrate this concept, we simulated the maximum temperature rise ( Δ T ad ) for H 2 combustion with O 2 in CO 2 in a constant-pressure adiabatic reactor, at feed temperatures ranging from 300 to 400 K and reactor pressures from 1 to 150 bar . At a feed temperature of 308.2 K , a five-fold reduction in Δ T ad value (from 209 to 42 K ) is predicted by tuning the operating pressure from 1 to 90 bar . In contrast, the Δ T ad in N 2 medium is relatively insensitive in the 1– 90 bar pressure range and is six times greater (roughly 270 K ) compared to the value predicted with CO 2 medium at 90 bar . Further, the values of β (the dimensionless temperature rise parameter) may also be sensitively tuned with pressure in the near-critical region such that parametric sensitivity is minimized. These results indicate that the liquid-like heat capacities of sc CO 2 may be exploited to control the adiabatic temperature rise and to ameliorate parametric sensitivity during exothermic reactions, a problem of fundamental and practical significance.
Decagonal Al3Pd phase formation in lateral and conventional thin film Al/Pd diffusion couples

We show that the decagonal Al3Pd phase can be formed by solid state reaction in lateral and conventional thin film couples of Al and Pd. The metastable decagonal phase forms after the initial growth of the Al3Pd2 compound.
ENDOR Structural Characterization of a Catalytically Competent Acylenzyme Reaction Intermediate of Wild-Type TEM-1 β-Lactamase Confirms Glutamate-166 as the Base Catalyst†

The catalytically competent active-site structure of a true acylenzyme reaction intermediate of TEM-1 β-lactamase formed with the kinetically specific spin-labeled substrate 6-N-(2,2,5,5-tetramethy...
Human papillomavirus 16 and 18 expression in conjunctival intraepithelial neoplasia.

Abstract Objective To evaluate conjunctival intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) and normal conjunctiva for the presence of human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA and for expression (as detected by the presence of mRNA) of the HPV E6 region. Design Prospective, case-controlled study. Participants Ten consecutive patients who underwent CIN excision by one surgeon (CLK) and five age-matched control subjects who underwent retinal detachment repair at the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute. Methods A reverse transcriptase in situ polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique was used to search for the presence of HPV mRNA in CIN specimens from 10 consecutive patients who underwent CIN excision by one surgeon (CLK) at Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, as well as in clinically uninvolved conjunctival specimens from the same eyes of these patients. In addition, conjunctival specimens from five control subjects (age-matched to five of the cases), who had no clinically identifiable conjunctival disease and who underwent retinal detachment repair at the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, were analyzed in a similar manner. The clinical diagnoses of CIN and normal conjunctiva were confirmed histopathologically in all cases by an ocular pathologist, who was masked as to the patients' clinical diagnoses, and the PCR testing was performed by an investigator (GJN) who was masked as to the clinical diagnoses. Results HPV 16 DNA and mRNA were present in five CIN specimens, and HPV 18 DNA and mRNA were present in the other five CIN specimens; neither HPV 16 or 18 DNA nor mRNA were detected in any of the control specimens or in any of the clinically uninvolved conjunctival specimens ( P Conclusions HPV 16 or 18 DNA and mRNA corresponding to the E6 region were detected in all CIN specimens examined. HPV 16 or 18 DNA or mRNA was not present in any of the control or uninvolved conjunctival specimens. The consistency of the current findings with those reported for human cervical malignant lesions, and the fact that the protein encoded by the E6 region of HPV 16 and 18 has been shown to form a complex with the protein encoded by the host tumor suppressor gene p53, provide strong evidence for an etiologic role of HPV in the development of CIN.
Short-term impact of a robot-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy 'mini-residency' experience on postgraduate urologists' practice patterns

Introduction To assist practising urologists acquire and incorporate robot-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy (RALP) into their practice, a 5 day mini-residency (M-R) programme with a mentor, preceptor and potential proctor experience was established at the University of California, Irvine, Yamanouchi Center for Urological Education. The follow-up results from the initial 21 RALP M-R participants are presented. Methods Between September 2003 and September 2004, 21 urologists from six states and four countries underwent a RALP M-R. Each participant underwent 1:2 teacher:attendee instruction over a 5 day period, which included inanimate model skills training, animal/cadaver laboratory skills training and operating room observation experience. Participants were also offered a proctoring experience at their hospital if they so desired. A questionnaire survey was mailed 1-14 months (mean 7.2 months) following completion of the mini-residency and these results were tabulated and reviewed. Results A 100% response rate was achieved from the mailed questionnaires. The mean M-R participant age was 43 years (range 33-55 years). One-third of the M-R participants were practising in an academic environment. Most of the participants (55%) had no fellowship training. Of those with fellowship training (45%), three (15%) were in laparoscopy and three (15%) were in oncology; 25% of the participants were in large (>6 physicians), 25% in small (2-6 physicians) and 15% in solo practices; 70% of the participants were located in an urban setting. The majority of the participants (80%) had laparoscopic experience during residency training and had performed 20-60 laparoscopic cases prior to attending the M-R programme. Within 7.2 months after M-R (range 1-14 months), 95% of the participants were practising robot-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy and 25% of the RALP M-R participants had also performed robotic-assisted laparoscopic pyeloplasty. Of the M-R participants, 38% availed themselves of the preceptor/proctor component of the programme; among these, 100% reported that they were performing RALP vs. only 92% of the MR participants who did not have a proctor experience. The 5 day length of the M-R was considered to be of satisfactory duration by 90% of the participants, while 1 participant considered it too brief and 1 considered it too long. All but one of the participants rated the M-R as a very or extremely valuable experience. All the M-R participants indicated that they would recommend this training programme to a colleague. Conclusions A 5 day intensive RALP M-R course seems to encourage postgraduate urologists, already familiar with laparoscopy, to successfully incorporate robotic surgery into their practice. The take rate, or the percentage of participants performing robotic-assisted surgery within 14 months after M-R, was 95%. Continued follow-up will ultimately determine the long-term effectiveness of this 1 week intensive training programme for postgraduate urologists.
Polystyrene diffusion in semidilute solutions and in swollen networks of polydimethylsiloxane

Abstract We present a comparison of the diffusion coefficient of tracer polystyrene molecules in semidilute solutions and in gels of polydimethylsiloxane in tetrahydrofuran. We show that, in the regime where the size of the probe molecule is comparable to the correlation length of the host medium, the diffusion coefficient of the probe polystyrene is independent of the presence of crosslinks in the network and is well correlated with the polydimethylsiloxane concentration.
In-Plane Magnetodrag between Dilute Two-Dimensional Systems

We performed in-plane magnetodrag measurements on dilute double layer two-dimensional hole systems, at in-plane magnetic fields that suppress the apparent metallic behavior, and to fields well above those required to fully spin polarize the system. When compared to the single layer magnetoresistance, the magnetodrag exhibits exactly the same qualitative behavior. In addition, we have found that the enhancement to the drag from the in-plane field exhibits a strong maximum when both layer densities are matched.
Food of juvenile American shad,Alosa sapidissima, juvenile blueback herring,Alosa aestivalis, and pumpkinseed,Lepomis gibbosus, in the Connecticut River below Holyoke Dam, Massachusetts

Despite·a paucity of available prey, little feeding competition occurred between juvenile American shad,Alosa sapidissima, juvenile blueback herring,Alosa aestivalis, and pumpkinseed,Lepomis gibbosus, in the Connecticut River below Holyoke Dam. Pumpkinseed differed from clupeids in pronounced selection for chironomid larvae, and bottom feeding. Feeding conflicts between the twoAlosa species were reduced by: 1) more opportunistic feeding by shad; 2) differential selection for cladoceran prey; 3) higher utilization of copepods by herring.
Urinary amino acid excretion in phenylketonuric, hyperphenylalaninemic, and normal patients.

The urinary excretion of amino acids was examined in phenylketonuric patients on and off low-phenylalanine diets, in hyperphenylalaninemic individuals, and in normal children. In phenylketonuric persons off diets, the pattern of amino acid excretion suggested competitive inhibition of reabsorption of amino acids by the high filtered load of phenylalanine. Hyperphenylalaninemic patients had a generalized aminoaciduria, prompting the hypothesis that they are phenylketonuric individuals who are protected by their increased urinary excretion of phenylalanine.
Object-motion sensitivity loss due to motion in the peripheral visual field

The effect of peripheral-field movement on detection of object motion was investigated in two experiments. In each experiment, 24 subjects judged the movement of targets while elements in the subject’s peripheral visual field were moving and while they were stationary. Targets were stationary or were moving at speeds between 6.2 and 23.1 minutes of visual arc per second. Target locations were to the left or right of (Experiment 1), or above or below (Experiment 2), a central fixation stimulus. Peripheral-field condition, direction of target movement, and speed of target movement significantly affected motion detection. The interaction between direction of target movement and speed of target movement was found to be significant in the analyses of both experiments. Target location was found to be a significant factor in Experiment 2, and sensitivity differences were found between horizontal and vertical target movement. The decrease in sensitivity due to peripheral-field motion did not depend upon subjects’ experiencing vection.
Transient neuronal inhibition reveals opposing roles of indirect and direct pathways in sensitization

The roles of striatopallidal (indirect) and striatonigral (direct) pathway neurons in regulating behavior is of great interest. Ferguson et al. selectively and transiently disrupt either one pathway or the other. They find that disrupting striatopallidal neuronal activity facilitated behavioral sensitization, whereas disrupting striatonigral neurons impaired its persistence.
Quality and the 2010 Census

The U.S. Census Bureau has a long tradition of evaluating the results of its censuses. This paper presents evaluation results from the 2010 Census, comparing them to earlier results. The paper discusses net coverage at the national and state level, as well as by age, sex, race, and ethnic group. It discusses components of error, including estimated number missed and counted in error. It also presents data on whole-person and item imputation.
Genomic context of paralogous recombination hotspots mediating recurrent NF1 region microdeletion

Recombination between paralogs that flank the NF1 gene at 17q11.2 typically results in a 1.5-Mb microdeletion that includes NF1 and at least 13 other genes. We show that the principal sequences responsible are two 51-kb blocks with 97.5% sequence identity (NF1REP-P1-51 and NF1REP-M-51). These blocks belong to a complex group of paralogs with three components on 17q11.2 and another on 19p13.13. Breakpoint sequencing of deleted chromosomes from multiple patients revealed two paralogous recombination hot spots within the 51-kb blocks. Lack of sequence similarity between these sites failed to suggest or corroborate any putative cis-acting recombinogenic motifs. However, the NF1REPs showed relatively high alignment mismatch between recombining paralogs, and we note that the NF1REP hot spots were regions of good alignment bordered by relatively large alignment gaps. Statistical tests for gene conversion detected a single significant tract of perfect match between the NF1REPs that was 700 bp long and coincided with PRS2, the predominant recombination hot spot. Tracts of perfect match occurring by chance may contribute to breakpoint localization, but our result suggests that perfect tracts at recombination hot spots may be a result of gene conversion at sites at which preferential pairing occurs for other, as-yet-unknown reasons. © 2004 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Three-dimensional compressible convection at low prandtl numbers

Numerical simulations are used to study fully compressible thermal convection at large Rayleigh numbers. Results are presented from a sequence of three-dimensional simulations that reveal a transition from gradually-evolving laminar convection to nearly turbulent convection as the Prandtl number is reduced from a value of unity to one-tenth. The convective flows form irregular cellular patterns near the upper surface, possesing a network of fast downflow at cell peripheries and gentler upflow at cell centers. At greater depths the curving sheets of downflow collapse into plumes which may twist and possess substantial vertical vorticity. For the lowest Prandtl number, the convection near the bottom of the layer appears to be turbulent, yet the rapidly varying small-scale flow structure there is accompanied by more ordered sites of wavering upflow, with the latter able to penetrate all the way to the upper boundary. Thus a significant component of the flow is able to extend over multiple density scale heights, in contrast to what is argued in formulating mixing-length models for stellar convection. Results are also shown from two-dimensional simulations carried out with very high spatial resolution, which reveal that supersonic convection with fluttering shock systems can be realized.
Classical relativistic particles

The concept of Lorentz-invariant classical elementary particle is made precise and it is found that there are exactly two families: (0) the well-known free point-particles distinguished only by their masses and (+) a family with eight-dimensional phase space whose members are distinguished either by their mass or their positive spin.