cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A knowledge-based simulation environment for the early design of multichip modules

Abstract A knowledge-based simulation environment is developed to facilitate the early design of Multichip Modules (MCMs). Electrical system performance measures such as module clock frequency, etc. are predicted and analyzed for different interconnect and packaging technologies. Performance-limiting factors such as power dissipation, coupled noise, and simultaneous switching noise are also included in this work. CMOS based MCMs for workstation applications are used to demonstrate the feasibility of the system in development.
Generating the 4-connected and strongly 4-connected triangulations on the torus and projective plane

The triangulations of the torus can be generated from a set of 21 minimal triangulations by vertex splitting. We show that if we never create a 3-valent vertex when we split them we generate the 4-connected triangulations. In addition if we never create two adjacent 4-valent vertexes then we generate the strongly 4-connected triangulations.
A simple method for obtaining feasible computational models for the time-current characteristics of industrial power-system protective devices

Abstract Some results of recent investigations concerning the development of feasible computational techniques for modeling the time-current characteristics of commercial and industrial power-system protective devices (in particular, the molded-case circuit breaker) are presented. The unique problems encountered in developing a feasible mathematical model for the trip characteristics of the thermomechanical breaker are addressed, and extensions to other, more easily modeled, protective devices are discussed. An associated algorithm for curve-fitting, indexing, and storing the resulting time-current data is described. The techniques applied therein should prove especially attractive to small utilities and consulting firms with minicomputer or time-sharing capability which are planning the development of a computer-aided protective-device coordination package.
The Assessment of Sentencing Choices through Triangulation: A Response to Walker

According to public opinion polls published in England and the United States, citizens believe that their courts are too lenient on criminal offenders. These responses to the polls suggest that if members of the lay public were to sit as judges, sentence severity would increase. But suppose that the opinions expressed in polls are based on inaccurate impressions of the offenders that courts sentence or the sentences that offenders receive. As Doob and Roberts have shown,2 respondents in public opinion polls often picture a hypothetical offender who is more deviant, powerful, and dangerous than the average offender who appears in court. If the polls tap opinions based on misinformation, how would the public actually respond if they had the responsibility of making sentencing decisions in actual cases?
Swelling-activated organic osmolyte efflux: a new role for anion channels.

Efflux of intracellular electrolytes and small organic solutes termed organic osmolytes is a universal response to cell swelling. While volume-activated ion efflux pathways have been studied extensively, relatively little was known until recently about the mechanisms and regulation of organic osmolyte release. An accumulating body of evidence, however, now indicates that structurally dissimilar organic osmolytes are lost from cells via a swelling-activated anion channel. We have termed this channel VSOAC for volume-sensitive organic osmolyte-anion channel. The purpose of this review is to summarize our current understanding of VSOAC and the process of volume regulatory organic osmolyte efflux.
Characterization of a mechanism to inhibit ovarian follicle activation

Objective To demonstrate that a small molecule can induce the transcription factor Foxo3 in the ovary and lead to inhibition of follicle activation. Design Cell culture, organ culture, and animal studies. Setting University-based laboratory. Animal(s) 23 female C57BL/6 mice. Intervention(s) Human ovary cells and mouse ovaries in culture treated with 2-deoxyglucose (2-DG) to mimic glucose deprivation, and mice intraperitoneally injected with 100 mg/kg, 300 mg/kg, or 600 mg/kg 2-DG daily for 2 weeks. Main Outcome Measure(s) In cell and organ culture, Foxo3 expression analyzed by quantitative reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR); in treated animals, expression of genes regulated by nutrient deprivation (Foxo3, ATF4, GRP78, CHOP, ASNS, c-Myc) measured in brain, kidney, and ovary by qRT-PCR; and ovarian follicles histologically classified and counted. Result(s) Foxo3 expression is induced by 2-DG at both the mRNA and protein level in human ovarian cell culture, possibly through ATF4-dependent gene regulation. Foxo3 expression is also induced by 2-DG in ovarian organ culture. Treatment of mice with 100 mg/kg 2-DG resulted in a 2.6 fold induction of Foxo3 in the ovary and a 58% decrease in type 3a primary follicles. Conclusion(s) Expression of Foxo3 is induced by nutrient deprivation in cell culture, organ culture, and in vivo. In mice, 2-DG treatment results in an inhibition of primordial follicle activation. These data indicate that Foxo3 induction by 2-DG may be useful for fertility preservation.
Radio frequency gas breakdown and micro/nano-plasma formation in high-power evanescent-mode cavity resonators

Microwave gas breakdown may limit power handling in antennas and RF resonators that store electromagnetic energy in micro/nano-gaps. In this paper, we review the numerical modeling and experimental validation of RF gas breakdown in evanescent-mode cavity resonators. This type of resonator stores the majority of its electric field energy in a micron-sized gap. High RF power-induced gas breakdown may degrade its performance by shifting the resonant frequency and/or increasing its insertion loss by eroding the micron-size-gap forming electrodes. Both static and tunable resonators are studied by RF plasma simulation techniques and the results are experimentally validated by high power measurements.
Intracellular dyes mask immunoreactivity of hippocampal interneurons

The results of several studies have suggested that local circuit neurons, or interneurons, of area CA1 of hippocampus use gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) as their neurotransmitter. However, when these cells were labelled by intracellular dye injection, and examined immunocytochemically with antisera raised against GABA, none of the interneurons were immunoreactive. Numerous non-injected interneurons in the same tissue section were clearly immunoreactive. These results suggest that intracellular dyes interfere with immunocytochemical staining of hippocampal interneurons.
A grain structure based statistical simulation of electromigration damage in chip level interconnect lines

Abstract Reliability assessment of chip level interconnects is based on accelerated testing at a higher temperature and a larger current density than expected in service conditions. The critical parameters needed to extrapolate accelerated test data to service conditions are the activation energy, Q, and the current density exponent, n. Although current density exponents and activation energies are well known for the elemental processes (like void nucleation due to electromigration (EM) generated stress), there is no consensus on which apparent activation energy or current density exponent values would be applicable in reliability estimates for realistic line structures. Here, we first review our EM simulation tool. We then apply the EM simulation tool to statistical life time analysis of realistic-like line structures generated by a Monte-Carlo algorithm. For a given grain structure distribution, the stress evolution along the line is simulated, letting voids nucleate at the sites where the stress exceeds a critical level, and the nucleated voids are then allowed to grow till the largest one reaches the preset critical size, resulting in a ‘failure’ of the particular line. By repeating this process for various current densities and temperatures, it becomes possible to extract the apparent activation energies and current density exponents from the simulation data.
Focal Peak Activities in Spread of Interictal-Ictal Discharges in Epilepsy with Beamformer MEG: Evidence for an Epileptic Network?

Noninvasive studies to predict regions of seizure onset are important to choose grid locations for subsequent invasive cortical recordings prior to resective surgery for patients with medically intractable epilepsy. The neurosurgeon needs to know both the seizure onset zone (SOZ) and the region of immediate cortical spread to determine the epileptogenic zone (EZ) to be resected. The immediate zone of spread may be immediately adjacent, on a nearby gyrus, in a different lobe, and sometimes even in the contralateral cerebral hemisphere. We reviewed consecutive simultaneous EEG/MEG recordings on 162 children with medically intractable epilepsy. We analyzed the MEG signals in the bandwidth 20-70 Hz with a beamformer algorithm, synthetic aperture magnetometry (SAM), at a 2.5 mm voxel spacing throughout the brain (virtual sensor locations) with the kurtosis statistic (g2) to determine presence of excess kurtosis ( ) consistent with intermittent increased high frequency spikiness of the background. The MEG time series was reconstructed (virtual sensor signals) at each of these virtual sensor locations (VSLs). The VS signals were further examined with a relative peak amplitude spike detection algorithm. The time of VS spike detection was compared to the simultaneous EEG and MEG sensor signals for the presence of conventional epileptiform spike morphology in the latter signals. The time of VS spike detection was compared across VSLs to determine earliest and last VSL to show a VS spike. Seven subjects showed delay in activation across VS locations detectable on visual examination. We compared the VS locations that showed earliest and later VS spikes with the locations on intracranial grid locations by electrocorticography (ECoG) that showed spikes and both onset and spread of seizures. We compared completeness of resection of VS locations to postoperative outcome. The VS locations for spike onset and spread were similar to locations for ictal onset and spread by ECoG.
A Social Learning Approach to Strategic Management: Toward a Theoretical Foundation

Repeated calls have been made for a general theory of strategic management that will enhance research, teaching, and application of subject matter in the area. This paper presents a social learning theory of strategic management (SLTSM) that encompasses earlier attempts to explain strategic management and offers a distinctive conceptual framework. SLTSM links the interdependent elements of executive cognition, stimulus and consequence environments, and strategic behaviors, through reciprocal determinism, providing a unique perspective on strategic management.
Multiple Influences of Semantic Memory on Sentence Processing: Distinct Effects of Semantic Relatedness on Violations of Real-World Event/State Knowledge and Animacy Selection Restrictions.

We aimed to determine whether semantic relatedness between an incoming word and its preceding context can override expectations based on two types of stored knowledge: real-world knowledge about the specific events and states conveyed by a verb, and the verb’s broader selection restrictions on the animacy of its argument. We recorded event-related potentials on post-verbal Agent arguments as participants read and made plausibility judgments about passive English sentences. The N400 evoked by incoming animate Agent arguments that violated expectations based on real-world event/state knowledge, was strongly attenuated when they were semantically related to the context. In contrast, semantic relatedness did not modulate the N400 evoked by inanimate Agent arguments that violated the preceding verb’s animacy selection restrictions. These findings suggest that, under these task and experimental conditions, semantic relatedness can facilitate processing of post-verbal animate arguments that violate specific expectations based on real-world event/state knowledge, but only when the semantic features of these arguments match the coarser-grained animacy restrictions of the verb. Animacy selection restriction violations also evoked a P600 effect, which was not modulated by semantic relatedness, suggesting that it was triggered by propositional impossibility. Together, these data indicate that the brain distinguishes between real-world event/state knowledge and animacy-based selection restrictions during online processing.
Information rates and capacities for Ising models

We are formulating and analyzing information theory problems in the context of random field theory. In addition to developing a rather general theory of sources and channels whose inputs and/or outputs are realizations of random fields [1], we have considered several specific problems.
The N = 2 super-Kac-Moody algebra and the WZW-model in (2,0) superspace

The N = 2 super-Kac-Moody algebra is defined as the algebra corresponding to an N = 2 superloop group. Using the method of coadjoint orbits, which is explained, an action is derived which has the N = 2 super-Kac-Moody algebra as its Poisson bracket algebra and is invariant under the N = 2 superloop group. It is invariant under N = 2 superconformal transformations. This action is thus the generalization of the WZW model to (2,0) superspace. We study the relation to the known WZW model in (1,0) superspace after imposing a constraint on the (2,0) superfield.
Self-serving bias and actor–observer differences in organizations: An empirical analysis.

Self-serving attributional bias is the tendency for a subordinate to attribute personal (internal) cause for successful performance but to assign cause for failures to external factors. The actor-observed difference in attribution is the tendency for concerned observers (managers) of a subordinate's performance to attribute cause for the performance to factors internal to the subordinate, in direct opposition to the subordinate's external attribution for the same performance. This research investigated both phenomena. Twenty-four experienced managers served as manager/subjects in simulated appraisal situations. Subjects with prior work experience served as subordinate/subjects. Each manager participated in four separate simulated performance appraisals, under differing conditions of objective performance and work history, for a total of 96 interactions. The results revealed a strong self-serving bias on the part of subordinates. The results also strongly supported the notion of an actor-observer difference in performance attribution. Subordinates tended to attribute more externally and managers tended to attribute more internally (to the subordinate), regardless of performance level. The research also served to delineate and articulate the relationship between self-serving bias and actor-observer differences.
Astrocytes selectively enhance N-type calcium current in hippocampal neurons.

Astrocytes influence neuronal development, synapse formation, and synaptic transmission, partly through affecting neuronal calcium signals. In order to elucidate the extent to which astrocytes modulate neuronal voltage-gated calcium cur- rents, we performed a whole-cell patch clamp analysis of neurons in astrocyte-deplete and astrocyte-enriched conditions. We demonstrate that hippocampal neurons in an astrocyte-enriched environment show augmentation of voltage-gated calcium current at 1-3 days in vitro. Further study in pairs of adjacent neurons showed that the augmen- tation in calcium current was dependent on direct contact with the astrocyte. Pharma- cological analysis demonstrated the augmentation is selective for the N-type calcium current, although immunochemical labeling of the 1B subunit of the N-type calcium channel was unchanged. These findings show that astrocytes regulate neuronal voltage- gated calcium currents in a contact-dependent manner. The specificity of the effect for the N-type calcium current at early days in culture has special significance regarding the role of astrocytes in hippocampal synaptogenesis. GLIA 41:128 -136, 2003. © 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Adventures in Supercomputing: A K-12 program in computing and computational science

The primary goal of the Adventures in Supercomputing activity is to capture and cultivate the interest of minority and disadvantaged elementary through high school students in science, mathematics, and computing. The program consists of five major components: (1) a summer institute for teacher enhancement and curriculum material development; (2) a fully supported classroom computing environment in participating schools; (3) summer research positions in high-performance computing for selected teachers from the program; (4) collaboration with the Colleges of Education in each laboratory's local university; and (5) an in-depth and ongoing assessment for both formative and summative evaluation of the program. These components will be extended to lower-grade levels over the course of the five-year activity. >
Mps1 phosphorylation sites regulate the function of centrin 2 in centriole assembly.

We show that while Centrin2 is dispensable for centriole assembly, it is an Mps1 substrate that stimulates canonical and aberrant centriole assembly by two different Mps1-dependent mechanisms, HsSa...
Tamoxifen improves cholinergically modulated cognitive performance in postmenopausal women.

Tamoxifen (TMX) is a selective estrogen receptor modulator that is used as an estrogen receptor antagonist for the treatment and prevention of breast cancer. Whether TMX has antagonist activities in the human brain is less clear and its effects on cognitive function have not been experimentally explored. This study examined how TMX affected cognitive performance in older women using a model of anticholinergic drug-induced cognitive dysfunction. Twenty-one postmenopausal women were administered 20 mg of oral TMX or placebo for 3 months. Participants then took part in five drug challenges using the anticholinergic antinicotinic agent mecamylamine (MECA) and antimuscarinic agent scopolamine (SCOP) and were tested on a comprehensive battery including tasks of attention and psychomotor function, verbal episodic memory, and spatial navigation. After a 3-month placebo washout, participants were then crossed over to the alternate treatment and repeated the drug challenges after 3 months. Compared with placebo treatment, TMX significantly attenuated the impairment from cholinergic blockade on tasks of verbal episodic memory and spatial navigation, but effects on attentional/psychomotor tasks were more variable. Analysis by APOE genotype showed that APO ɛ4+ women showed a greater beneficial effect of TMX on reversing the cholinergic impairment than APO ɛ4− women on most tasks. This study provides evidence that TMX may act as an estrogen-like agonist to enhance cholinergic system activity and hippocampally mediated learning.
Work in cancer survivors: a model for practice and research

Introduction As with other illnesses, several variables can impact the transition back to the workplace, long-term work productivity, or job retention among cancer survivors. We developed a model related to work and cancer based in part on the general area of work disability and the specific literature on cancer survivors and work. Methods A systematic search of the literature on work and cancer was conducted to determine whether an evidence base existed to support the proposed model. Results Forty-five papers met the review criteria. The percentage of studies that addressed modifiable categories included in the proposed model was: health and well-being (20%), symptoms (16%), function (24%), work demands (9%), work environment (18%), and policy, procedures, and economic factors (16%). Return to work was the most common work outcome studied although problems with productivity and retention are reported in the general cancer and work literature. Wide variationin definitionof cancer survivor was reportedand breast cancer survivors were studied most often. Each of the categories in the model has some empirical support. Discussion The model considers the health, functional status in relation to demands, work environment, and policy, procedures, and financial factors. The model allows the clinician and survivor to consider factors that can be addressed by the health care provider, survivor, and workplace. Implications for Cancer Survivors .T his model provides a framework to aid in conceptualizing problems related to work.
Perforin and lymphocyte-mediated cytolysis.

We have discussed in the previous sections the recent progress made toward elucidating the regulatory mechanism of perforin gene transcription and the domain structure of the perforin molecule. It appears that the expression of perforin is, at least partially, controlled at the transcription level through the interaction between killer cell-specific cis- and trans- acting factors. One of such cognate pairs, NF-P motif (an EBS-homologous motif) and NF-P2 (a killer cell-specific DNA-binding protein), has been described. The regulatory mechanism of gene transcription, however, is likely to involve multiple factors which act in a coordinated fashion to bring about the most efficient expression of perforin limited strictly to activated killer lymphocytes. Through studies using synthetic peptides and recombinant perforins, it has been suggested that the N-terminal region of the perforin molecule is an important, though not the only, domain responsible for the lytic activity. Further studies are warranted to elucidate the role(s) of other potential amphiphilic structures located in the central portion of the perforin molecule in the overall pore-forming activity. The molecular basis underlying the resistance of killer lymphocytes to perforin-mediated lysis still remains an open question. Preliminary results, however, suggest that the surface protein(s) restricted to killer cells may account for their self-protection against perforin. Based on recent studies using perforin-deficient mice, the involvement of perforin in lymphocyte-mediated cytolysis both in vivo and in vitro has been confirmed. Two functional roles, a direct (lytic) and an indirect (endocytosis enhancer; conduit), both of which may contribute critically to the cell-killing event can be attributed to perforin. The fact that lymphocytes may also employ perforin-independent killing mechanism(s), e.g. Fas-dependent pathway, is beyond the scope of this review. There is, nevertheless, no doubt that these alternative cytolytic mechanisms may also play important roles in immune effector and/or regulatory responses associated with killer lymphocytes. Obviously, we are still a long way from concluding on the functional relevance of each individual cytolytic mechanism seen in different physiopathological situations. Suffice it to say, however, that a wealth of information on lymphocyte-mediated killing has already emerged through the multidisciplinary efforts conducted in our and other laboratories that promise to further dissect this complicated event in the years to come.
Muon cooling in the RFOFO ring cooler

The performance of the ring described here compares favorably with the linear cooling channel used in the second U.S. Neutrino Factory Study [ref.1]. The 6D phase space density of an idealized ring is increased by a factor of 238, compared with the linear channel's factor of only 15. The simulations make use of fully realistic magnetic fields, and include absorber and rf cavity windows, and empty lattice cells for injection/extraction.
Enterprise support system architecture: integrating DSS, EIS, and simulation technologies

Increased globalisation and environmental complexity has put pressure on managers to sense and gather critical information used by strategic decision-makers within organisations. The complexity and unpredictability of global environment has made it necessary for top executives and strategic managers to give greater attention to information and simulation technologies which enable them to access information on business processes at all organisational levels and predict the outcome of their decisions regarding strategic process improvements. In this paper, we consolidate on previous research and offer a model that integrates information and simulation technologies and improves the impact of the managerial decisions on strategic business process improvements.
Gastric Residual Volume and Aspiration in Critically Ill Patients Receiving Gastric Feedings

Background The helpfulness of bedside assessment of gastric residual volume in the prediction of aspiration has been questioned, as has the volume that signals increased risk of aspiration.
Laser-Induced Thermo-Desorption of Perfluoropolyether Lubricant from the Surface of a Heat-Assisted Magnetic Recording Disk: Lubricant Evaporation and Diffusion

Heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) storage technology will thermally stress the lubricant film typically applied to the storage disk surface. Different lubricant loss and morphology change mechanisms have been hypothesized to occur during information writing. A loss to of the lubricant film will dramatically affect its overall mechanical and chemical performance of the head–disk interface, decreasing its reliability and its durability. Thus an all optical pump–probe method was used to study the effect of fast thermal transients (106 K/s) on a lubricant film on HAMR media. Thermal transients (Bhushan and Cheng in J Appl Phys 81:5390, 1997) with peak temperatures above the HAMR media Curie temperature (T c) were found to remove by evaporation the lubricant within the heated region creating a lubricant depression in the otherwise continuous film. No accumulation of lubricant volume was observed to take place in the cooler regions of the thermal spot, indicating that thermocapillary shear stress is not an important mechanism of lubricant thickness change with the optical spot size used (65 μm). The onset of lubricant loss was observed to begin at approximately 610 K and was totally removed at 823 K. The change in depth of the lubricant depression with time showed that no structural terms contributed to the disjoining pressure for the lubricant thickness range studied. From this change, the diffusion coefficient of the lubricant on the carbon overcoat surface was determined to be 1 × 10−13 m2/s by fitting Fick’s second law to the normalized lubricant thickness. The importance of these observations on the operating HAMR head–disk interface is discussed.
Thread-specific heaps for multi-threaded programs

Garbage collection for a multi-threaded program typically involves either stopping all threads while doing the collection or involves copious amounts of synchronization between threads. However, a lot of data is only ever visible to a single thread, and such data should ideally be collected without involving other threads.Given an escape analysis, a memory management system may allocate thread-specific data in thread-specific heaps and allocate shared data in a shared heap. Garbage collection of data in a thread-specific heaps can be done independent of other threads and of data in their thread-specific heaps. For multi-threaded programs, thread-specific heaps allow reduced garbage collection latency for active threads. On multi-processor computers, thread-specific heaps allow concurrent garbage collection of different thread-specific heaps with minimal synchronization overhead.We present an escape analysis and a sample memory management system using thread-specific heaps.
Spiritual Wellness, Holistic Health, and the Practice of Health Education

Abstract The current practice of health education often fails to harmonize with the multidimensional, dynamic, and functional nature of health as generally defined within our profession. As a stepchild of the medical and public health professions, we have inherited a preoccupation with physical health as the most worthy outcome measure for most of our programs. Yet other dimensions of health seem equally important and even essential to the overall well-being of program participants. There exists an opportunity for health educators to move toward models of health promotion that more fully appreciate the interconnectedness of various dimensions of health and that promote them evenhandedly. This article argues that spiritual health is an underlying dimension that contributes to social and emotional health, which in turn provide motivation for health behavior changes that determine physical and intellectual health. To the degree attained, physical and intellectual health become tools for realizing the purpose...
Brain organization in a reptile lacking sex chromosomes: effects of gonadectomy and exogenous testosterone.

In mammals, males and females differ both genetically and hormonally, making it difficult to assess the relative contributions of genetic constitution and fetal environment in the process of sexual differentiation. Many reptiles lack sex chromosomes, relying instead on the temperature of incubation to determine sex. In the leopard gecko (Eublepharis macularius), an incubation temperature of 26°C produces all females, whereas 32.5°C results in mostly males. Incubation temperature is the primary determinant of differences both within and between the sexes in growth, physiology, and sociosexual behavior, as well as the volume and metabolic capacity of specific brain nuclei. To determine if incubation temperature organizes the brain directly rather than via gonadal sex hormones, the gonads of male and female leopard geckos from the two incubation temperatures were removed and, in some instances, animals were given exogenous testosterone. In vertebrates with sex chromosomes, the size of sexually dimorphic nuclei are sensitive to hormone levels in adulthood, but in all species studied to date, these changes are restricted to the male. Therefore, after behavior tests, morphometrics of certain limbic and nonlimbic brain areas were determined. Because nervous system tissue depends on oxidative metabolism for energy production and the level of cytochrome oxidase activity is coupled to the functional level of neuronal activity, cytochrome oxidase histochemistry also was performed on the same brains. Hormonal manipulation had little effect on the volume of the preoptic area or ventromedial hypothalamus in geckos from the all-female incubation temperature, but significantly influenced the volumes of these brain areas in males and females from the male-biased incubation temperature. A similar relationship was found for cytochrome oxidase activity of the anterior hypothalamus, amygdala, dorsal ventricular ridge, and septum. The only sex difference observed was found in the ventromedial hypothalamus; males showed no significant changes in cytochrome oxidase activity with hormonal manipulation, but females from both incubation temperatures were affected similarly. The results indicate that incubation temperature organizes the brain directly rather than via hormones arising from its sex-determining function. This is the first demonstration in a vertebrate that factors other than steroid hormones can modify the organization and functional activity of sexually differentiated brain areas.
Small mammal and plant community responses to mechanical disturbance and rest in Wyoming big sagebrush grassland.

Our aim in this study was to evaluate short-term (2 years) responses of several attributes of small mammal populations (species richness, abundance, diversity, and similarity) and plant community dynamics (species richness, canopy cover, above-ground biomass production, and diversity) to the mechanical disturbance associated with interseeding. Small mammal live trapping and vegetation sampling were conducted in 2004 and 2005 on replicated 1 ha study plots in a native Wyoming big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata Nutt ssp. wyomingensis Beetle & Young)-grassland that were: 1) mechanically disturbed in April 2003 and rested from grazing during the study (mechanical); 2) rested from grazing (rested); and 3) moderately grazed by cattle (grazed). Deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus), northern grasshopper mouse (Onychomys leucogaster), and sagebrush vole (Lemmiscus curtatus) were the primary small mammal species captured during 7776 trap nights in 2004 and 2005. Small mammal diversity was greater for the mechanical ...
Chondroitin Sulfate Proteoglycan and Tenascin in the Wounded Adult Mouse Neostriatum In Vitro: Dopamine Neuron Attachment and Process Outgrowth

Extracellular matrix (ECM) molecules, including chondroitin-4 or chondroitin-6 sulfate proteoglycans (CSPGs) and tenascin, are upregulated in and around wounds and transplants to the adult CNS. In the present study, striatal wounds from adult mice were used in a novel in vitro paradigm to assess the effects of these wound-associated molecules on embryonic dopamine cell attachment and neurite outgrowth. Light and electron microscopic immunocytochemistry studies have shown that astroglial scar constituents persist in cultured explants for at least 1 week in vitro, and despite the loss of neurons from adult striatal explants, there is a retention of certain structural features suggesting that the wound explant-neuron coplant is a viable model for analysis of graft-scar interactions. Explants from the wounded striatum taken at different times after a penetrating injury in vivo were used as substrates for embryonic ventral mesencephalon neurons that were plated on their surfaces. Dopamine cell attachment is increased significantly in relation to the expression of both CSPG and tenascin. The increase in neuronal attachment in this paradigm, however, is accompanied by a postlesion survival time-dependent significant decrease in neuritic growth from these cells. In vitro ECM antibody treatment suggests that CSPG may be responsible for heightened dopamine cell attachment and that tenascin simultaneously may support cell attachment while inhibiting neurite growth. The present study offers a new approach for the in vitro analysis of cell and molecular interactions after brain injury and brain grafting, in essence acting as a nigrostriatal transplant-in-a-dish.
Regulation of fatty acid oxidation of the heart by MCD and ACC during contractile stimulation

We tested the hypothesis that the level of malonyl-CoA, as well as the corresponding rate of total fatty acid oxidation of the heart, is regulated by the opposing actions of acetyl-CoA carboxylase ...
Ethical dilemmas in choosing a healthful diet: Vote with your fork!

Dietary guidelines for health promotion and disease prevention in the USA recommend a consumption pattern based largely on grains, fruit and vegetables, with smaller amounts of meat and dairy foods, and even smaller amounts of foods high in fat and sugar. Such diets are demonstrably health promoting, but following them raises ethical issues related to the role of nutritionists in advising the public about healthful dietary choices, as well as to the role of the food industry in food production and marketing. In the USA a shift towards a more plant-based diet would affect the economic interests of producers of food commodities, food products and meals prepared outside the home; it would also affect the environment, food prices, trade with other countries (developing as well as industrialized) and relationships among the food industry, government agencies (domestic and international) and food and nutrition professionals. In a free-market economy any dietary choice has consequences for food producers. Thus, considerations of ethical dilemmas in choosing healthful diets suggest that food choices are political acts that offer opportunities for all parties concerned to examine the consequences of such choices and 'vote with forks'.
The Lure of the Slant and the Banality of the Conservative

Forecast bias is associated with lower short-term returns. However, bias is not equivalent to optimism when information-biased analysts exhibit processing errors. Late-tenure and early-forecasting analysts are incentivized to be strategically optimistic. Using the timing variables for identification, this paper finds that for upward revisions, a 1% increase in analyst optimism results in a 12 basis-point greater two-day return. Under normal conditions, the overpriced (underpriced) stocks covered by late-tenure (early-tenure) analysts do (do not) experience a price correction; the under-reaction engenders an analyst-optimism portfolio alpha of 62 basis points per month. The findings suggest that asset prices increase with strategic optimism.
Task-Specific Ionic Liquids for Electrochemical Applications

This chapter systematically discusses the physicochemical properties of task-specific ionic liquids (ILs) carrying various functional groups, and their unique electrochemical applications. Major types of task-specific ILs include ether/thioether- and hydroxyl/thiol-functionalized, carboxylate-functionalized, amine-functionalized, nitrile-functionalized, zwitterionic type, polymerized, other cation-functionalized, and anion-functionalized ILs and deep eutectic solvents (DES). These examples represent the “designable” nature of ILs and their high potentials in chemical processes particularly in electrochemical fields.
Supradetachment basin evolution during continental extension: The Aegean province of western Anatolia, Turkey

We present a detailed structural and stratigraphic record of a Neogene–Quaternary supradetachment sedimentary succession in the Aegean extensional province of western Anatolia, and we compare its tectonic features and evolution to those of other well-documented supradetachment basins around the world. The sedimentary fill of the Alasehir basin records the uplift and exhumation of a core complex in the footwall of a detachment fault within the Central Menderes Massif. Accumulation of footwall-derived clastic sediments in this basin started ca. 20 Ma, shortly after the initiation of the approximately E-W–trending Alasehir detachment and its shear zone, and continued until ca. 2 Ma. Major sedimentary facies types include fluvial and alluvial-fan deposits, debris-flow and mass-flow deposits, and locally developed lacustrine rocks. These sedimentary units were accumulated largely in distal depocenters within the extending basin, as the low-angle (15°–28°) detachment faulting created little accommodation space near the basin margins while producing high back-shed topography in the uplifted Menderes core complex. The drainage system was dominated mainly by extension-parallel transverse streams during the main phases of basin evolution. Extension-parallel, scissor (hinge) faulting produced differential uplift and subsidence in the adjacent fault blocks, changed the direction of sediment transport and drainage patterns over short distances, and resulted in the local uplift of the older basin strata. These processes led to the development of subbasins with lateral variations in basement topography, strata thickness, and sedimentary facies distribution, and generated a segmented basin architecture. High-angle synthetic and antithetic faults that formed extensively after 3 Ma caused back-tilting of the sedimentary strata, formation of half grabens with their own axial drainage systems, and development of angular unconformities. With the onset of this crustal-scale block faulting, the detachment fault ceased to operate, and the Quaternary Gediz graben started to develop at the northern end of the Alasehir supradetachment basin. Our comparative evaluation of select basins shows a maximum sediment thickness of 3 km, average extension rates of 6 to 8–9 mm yr −1 , and accumulation rates of 0.1–0.2 mm yr −1 (uncorrected for compaction) in supradetachment basins in general. The rates and amounts of extension, the geometry of detachment faulting, the rates of footwall uplift, and the kinematics and interplay of different fault systems are the most important factors controlling three-dimensional structural architecture and evolution of supradetachment basins.
Phase diagram of the N=2 Kazakov-Migdal model.

We have determined the phase diagram of the simplest version of a lattice model recently introduced by Kazakov and Migdal. Denoting by ${\mathit{m}}_{0}$ and \ensuremath{\lambda} the mass and the coupling of the scalar field in the model, we find a line of first-order phase transitions in the (${\mathit{m}}_{0}$,\ensuremath{\lambda}) plane ending in a critical point where \ensuremath{\lambda} is nonzero. Kazakov and Migdal speculate that their model of scalar field theory could induce QCD. Our work indicates that there is no continuum limit except at the critical end point. Whether or not a nontrivial continuum limit exists, there requires a careful study of the renormalization-group properties of the model.
Young children’s identities becoming: Exploring agency in the creation of multimodal literacies:

This cross-case qualitative study draws on poststructural notions of identity to explore the relationship between multimodal literacies of young children and their becoming identities. Although res...
Post-grouting Technique for Bored Pile Tip and Its Engineering Application

The vetical bearing capacity of single bored pile could not meet the needs of design and specification,so the post-grouting technique for bored pile tip would be used for treatment according to actual situation in order to improve the bearing capacity of pile tip and pile side.With the researches on the enhancement mechanism and construction technology of post-grouting technique for bored pile,and combined with the site test results,the bearing performances of six piles of Shenyang Shengshi Chang'an project are tested, the four of them are post-grouting for the pile tip and the other two are no post-grouting.According to the results of the static loading tests,it is showed that the vertical ultimate bearing capacity of single grouting pile could increase more than 50% that of no post-grouting.
An Improved Method of Water Extraction Based on TM Image

For time consuming,low accuracy and weak versatility of the existing methods of water extraction based on TM image, this paper combined principal component analysis( PCA) with the modified normalized difference water index( MNDWI) which was modified by Hanqiu Xu to construct a false color composite image which could separate water from others easily,realizing water extraction based on TM image by analyzing the spectral characteristics of water in the false color image and establishing a water extraction model. By comparing the efficiency of this extracting water method with MNDWI,( TM2 + TM3)-( TM4 + TM5) and NWI which were applied in the urbar and mountain areas of Taiyuan respectively. The results showed that the proposed method could extract water body of TM image more rapidly and efficiently,with an accuracy up to 95. 57%. In addition,this method did not require a manual selection threshold,reaching the research requirements of high automation.
Disruption of Network Synchrony and Cognitive Dysfunction After Traumatic Brain Injury.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a heterogeneous disorder with many factors contributing to a spectrum of severity, leading to cognitive dysfunction that may last for many years after injury. Injury to axons in the white matter, which are preferentially vulnerable to biomechanical forces, is prevalent in many TBIs. Unlike focal injury to a discrete brain region, axonal injury is fundamentally an injury to the substrate by which networks of the brain communicate with one another. The brain is envisioned as a series of dynamic, interconnected networks that communicate via long axonal conduits termed the “connectome”. Ensembles of neurons communicate via these pathways and encode information within and between brain regions in ways that are timing dependent. Our central hypothesis is that traumatic injury to axons may disrupt the exquisite timing of neuronal communication within and between brain networks, and that this may underlie aspects of post-TBI cognitive dysfunction. With a better understanding of how highly interconnected networks of neurons communicate with one another in important cognitive regions such as the limbic system, and how disruption of this communication occurs during injury, we can identify new therapeutic targets to restore lost function. This requires the tools of systems neuroscience, including electrophysiological analysis of ensemble neuronal activity and circuitry changes in awake animals after TBI, as well as computational modeling of the effects of TBI on these networks. As more is revealed about how inter-regional neuronal interactions are disrupted, treatments directly targeting these dysfunctional pathways using neuromodulation can be developed.
US Stem Cell Research Policy

Since James A. Thomson and colleagues reported the isolation of pluripotent stem cells from human embryos in 1998, stem cell research has seldom been out of US headlines. Because isolating embryonic stem cells involves destroying embryos, some groups and individuals have opposed some or all of the research on moral grounds. This opposition has been translated into a number of policies and laws, including at a federal level. From 2001 until 2009, much embryonic stem cell research was ineligible for federal funding. In 2009, federal funding rules were relaxed somewhat, although research still may not use cells taken from embryos created for research purposes, including by cloning. Despite these restrictions, embryonic stem cell research has progressed in the USA using monies supplied by individual donors, charitable organizations, and states. After briefly discussing ethical and policy issues in adult and fetal stem cell research, this chapter will survey policy issues in embryonic stem cell research. I begin with a brief history of federal funding policies, which are compared with regulation strategies adopted in other nations active in the research, before considering oversight, donor, and commercialization issues that arise as the research moves forward.
Out-of-season timeshare exchange

ABSTRACTA high-season (premium) timeshare owner requesting her annual floating usage reservation at her home timeshare resort is seeking to reserve a time period that falls within the low season of ownership, in order to attend a family wedding. The reservation staff advises the high-season owner that the time period she requested does not correspond with the product that she purchased. The owner reports that she understands this fact and insists on being able to downgrade herself this year.