cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Effects of Electrode Configurations and Injected Current Intensity on the Electrical Field of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation: A Simulation Study *

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a non-invasive brain stimulation technology that modulates the excitability of the brain by delivering weak electric currents to the brain via scalp electrodes. Electrode configuration and injected current intensity are two important parameters in the tDCS design. This simulation study examined three commercially available electrode configurations, i.e. conventional low definition rectangular pad, high-definition Disc, and high-definition 4 x 1 with different electrode distances and different injected current intensity. Simulation results show that increasing the injected current intensity of HD-tDCS mainly increases the electrical field strength for all configurations. Both Disc and 4 x 1 high definition tDCS (HD-tDCS) have better focality than the conventional low-definition rectangular pad. Increasing the inter-electrode distance in HD-tDCS enlarges the electrical field strength and the depth of stimulation but reduces the focality. In motor rehabilitation, a trade-off needs to be made in the tDCS design to allow the electrical field reaching the white matter to facilitate the usage of the cortico-spinal tract without influencing other undesirable regions in the brain.
Teaching Video NeuroImages: Atypical Abnormal Eye Movements in PNPO-Related Epilepsy.

A full-term female neonate developed focal motor seizures at 1 hour of life, followed by paroxysmal nonepileptic abnormal eye–head movements on day 5 (video 1). CSF revealed mild hypoglycorrhachia, borderline low CSF:serum glucose, and low pyridoxal-5′-phosphate (P5P). Genetic testing showed compound heterozygous mutations in the pyridoxamine 5′-phosphate oxidase ( PNPO ) gene consistent with P5P-dependent epilepsy. Aberrant gaze saccades with head jerks are classically described in GLUT-1 deficiency,1 though not described in other conditions with associated hypoglycorrhachia. PNPO-associated epilepsy has been associated with abnormal eye movements2 and should be considered when neonates present with seizures and aberrant saccades with coordinated head movements.
Assessment of critical thinking in pharmacy students

Objective. To determine whether changes occur over 1 academic year in pharmacy students' critical thinking skills and disposition to think critically. Methods. First, second, third, and fourth-year pharmacy students completed the California Critical Thinking Skills Test (CCTST) and the California Critical Thinking Disposition Inventory (CCTDI) at the beginning and end of 1 academic year. Results. One hundred thirty-seven students completed the study. No significant changes occurred over the year in total scores on either instrument. However, scores in 3 of 12 subscale scores changed significantly and several significant correlations were found. Conclusion. Pharmacy students' scores on 2 critical thinking instruments showed no major improvements over 1 academic year but most scores were above average. Some areas of possible weakness were identified. Additional studies comparing scores over a longer period of time (eg, admission to graduation) are needed.
N-3 Polyunsaturated fatty acid ethyl esters decrease the invasion, but not the proliferation, of human colorectal cancer cells via a PI3K-dependent mechanism in vitro.

Abstract N-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) ethyl esters have been approved by the FDA for the treatment of dyslipidemia and are promising cancer therapeutics. The study objectives were to determine if and how n-3 PUFA ethyl esters affected the proliferation and invasion of colorectal cancer cells. SW620 and HCT-116 parental and HCT-116 mutant cells isogenic for constitutively active PI3K were treated with free or ethyl esterified n-3 PUFAs and counted 72 h later. Cells were also administered n-3 PUFA ethyl esters to determine if these compounds decreased invasion through Boyden chambers and PI3K activity via western blot analysis of phosphorylated Akt. Free and n-3 PUFA ethyl esters decreased the proliferation of all cell lines. The invasion and Akt phosphorylation of both parental cell lines was decreased following treatment but this did not occur in mutant cells. The ability of n-3 PUFA ethyl esters to decrease proliferation and invasion in vitro indicates these compounds may be effective in vivo.
Leading in the eye of a storm: how one team of administrators exercised disaster resilience

Global climate change threatens university campuses around the world. However, prior research suggests that universities around the globe tend to prioritize preventing further climate change rather than developing plans to address the effects of ongoing, irreversible climate change. Further, scholarship on climate change and disaster resilience tends to focus on national and municipal government efforts to respond to crisis and often overlooks universities. In this paper, we build on prior literature by addressing the following research question: How can a team of administrators support organizational resilience to respond to natural disasters? Drawing on a framework from management literature, we performed a basic qualitative inquiry study to consider whether a university’s response to a hurricane demonstrated resilience or rigidity. We found that university administrators exercised resilience by taking time to communicate and process information, using material resources, and focusing on extending emotional or relational resources. Our study provides one example of how a university can learn from prior crises and exercise resilience when faced with new threats. We offer recommendations for future research, including examining how organizational resilience occurs at multiple levels of an organization and how organizational resilience may vary when universities encounter different types of crises.
Effect of added gadolinium oxide on the thermal air oxidation of uranium dioxide

Abstract Based on studies indicating that addition of soluble oxides to UO2 increased resistance of UO2 to oxidation to U3O8, PNNL investigated the effects of doping UO2 with several soluble lanthanide oxides and zirconium oxide on stabilizing UO2. PNNL reports here on how 0 to 10 wt% Gd2O3 content affected UO2’s resistance to thermally induced air oxidation, reaction kinetics, and kinetic mechanisms as measured using differential scanning calorimetry and simultaneous thermogravimetric/differential thermal analysis. These studies found that 1) oxidation of UO2 proceeded via at least three steps rather than the commonly reported two, 2) increasing Gd content did not delay the oxidation onset temperature to U3O7/U4O9 but slowed this oxidation and delayed onset of the second oxidation to U3O8, 3) neat UO2’s first oxidation step at 325°C proceeded via 1st Order or Phase Boundary mechanisms rather than reported Diffusion and transitioned to Nucleation & Growth while the 2nd step proceeded via Nucleation & Growth and overlapped and transitioned to Phase Boundary rather than strictly the reported Nucleation & Growth, and 4) the kinetic mechanisms for the two oxidations depended on Gd content with the 1st proceeding via often overlapping Phase Boundary, Nucleation & Growth, and Diffusion mechanisms and the 2nd proceeding via often overlapping Nucleation & Growth, Phase Boundary, 1st and 2nd Order Chemical, and Diffusion.
Evaluation of the Hardening Behavior and Precipitation Kinetics of Precipitation Hardened 13-8+Mo Stainless Steel Using Avrami Relationships and a Global Fitting Procedure

The purpose of the current investigation was to demonstrate the utility of the Avrami relationships and a global fitting procedure by applying it to precipitation hardened (PH) 13-8+Mo stainless steel (SS) hardness datasets taken from literature and calculating overall activation energies (QO) and growth constants (k1 and n′) for precipitation in this system. Additionally, this work evaluated assumptions concerning the significance of heat treatment hold times relative to heating and cooling cycles for short, welding-like, heat treatments using an additivity rule-based model. Data from four sources were evaluated using the global fitting procedure. These sources incorporated a significant range of PH 13-8+Mo SS chemical compositions, included both cast and wrought material, several solution treatment conditions, and a range of aging procedures. The method was applied to each dataset individually as well as all datasets combined and activation energies and growth constants were determined. All fits produced using this technique provided reasonable 1:1 correlations between measured and calculated hardness values. Application of this method to individual datasets produced k1 values between 1.7e3 sec–n′ and 2.0e5sec–n′, n′ values between 0.40 and 0.57, and QO values between 150 kJ/mol and 199 kJ/mol. Application of this method to all the datasets combined produced k1, n′, and QO values of 8.7e4 sec–n′, 0.38, and 234 kJ/mol, respectively. All values were in good agreement with values from literature for either lattice diffusion or dislocation pipe diffusion of the precipitating elements in PH 13-8+Mo SS. Further characterization is required to determine whether these values represent a fundamental significance. However, it was demonstrated that the global fitting procedure provides a reasonable and practical approximation of the hardening behavior for numerous PH 13-8+Mo SS datasets that have been exposed to a range of processing and heat treatment conditions.
Matters of Birth and Death in the Russian Orthodox Church and Ecumenical Patriarchate's Social Documents:

In a span of twenty years, two of the autocephalous churches of the Orthodox Christian world released documents addressing the social realities of contemporary life: the Russian Orthodox Church's B...
The apparent need for better communication between clinicians and patients regarding elevated blood pressure among United States emerging adults.

Objectives:To examine the discrepancy between 'told' and screened blood pressure (BP) category, and the association between body composition and told BP category. Methods: Between 08/2019-03/2020 college students (n = 1057) were asked what category they had previously been told their BP falls into prior to having their BP and body composition (waist circumference, body mass index (BMI), and body fat percentage) objectively assessed. Results: A disproportionate number (>80%) who were told that they had normal BP were categorized as having elevated BP. Men told they had borderline/high BP had less favorable body compositions than those told they had low/normal BP. Less favorable body composition was associated with increased likelihood of men being told that they had borderline/high BP. Conclusions: Better BP screening policies and procedures would ensure healthcare providers discuss elevated BP with emerging adults regardless of body composition and avoid missing opportunities to delivery of early and cost-effective interventions.
SU‐E‐T‐738: The Limit of Detectability and Resolution of a Cylindrical Diode Array Phantom for VMAT and SRS Quality Assurance

Purpose: To determine the limit of detectability and resolution of a cylindrical QA phantom for quality assurance of VMAT and SRS procedures in small field sizes. Methods: Eight different square field sizes were delivered onto a cylindrical QA phantom with 1386 diodes at gantry angles of 0, 90, 180 and 270 degrees, using a 6 MV beam at a maximum dose rate of 600 MU/min on a dedicated stereotactic linear accelerator with 2.5mm and 5mm leaves. After verifying pass rates of normal square field sizes, errors were introduced into the quality-assurance analysis, including an expansion of the field size by 1 mm for all jaws on all sides, an expansion of the field size by 1 mm on one side of the X and Y jaws,MLC errors, and a table shift by 1 mm vertically and longitudinally at 270 and 90 degrees and a table shift of 1mm laterally and longitudinally for angles of 0 and 180 degrees. Treatment planning system calculated dose distributions for measured square field size dose data was imported into the QA phantom software and compared against a treatment planning system calculated 3D dose distribution. Percent pass rates were computed using gamma analysis with 2mm/2% analysis criteria with a background threshold value of 30%. Results: QA software comparison between measured fields and treatment planning system calculations indicate that the passing rate of square fields decreases significantly when errors are induced in the quality assurance analysis. Adding two opposing MLC leaves on opposing sides of each square field in the treatment planning system produced a 31.2% average difference from normally measured square field sizes compared between the treatment planning system and what was measured by the QA software. Conclusion: This work indicates the potential for detecting errors in VMAT quality assurance in small field sizes using a cylindrical QA phantom.
Architecture and debugging of digital signal processing software in a high frequency MIL-STD-188-110A Single Tone receiver

The MIL-STD-188-110A Single Tone high frequency modem is used by the United States military everyday as a beyond line-of-sight radio. Typically, beyond line-of-sight military radios use satellites for reflection. Satellite time is in high demand, and since there are a finite number of satellites in orbit, it makes over-the-air time expensive. The Single Tone high frequency modem offers a reliable alternative by using the ionosphere, rather than a satellite, for reflection. The ionosphere adds unique channel effects, causing the signal processing software to be more complex and harder to debug than radios which use satellites. Before being placed into production, the MIL-STD-188-110A Single Tone high frequency modem is placed under comprehensive performance tests. These tests are meant to fully verify all aspects of the software and to impose all possible channel effects such as additive white Gaussian noise, doppler shift, terminal clock differences, frequency and time dispersion. When a test fails, debugging the software can be tedious and time consuming. The two major steps to quick and successful debugging are understanding and isolation. The engineer must understand the channel model and receive path in order to correlate a test failure with a specific section of software. After the channel model and receive path are understood, timing patterns of bit errors and test failures caused by individual channel effects help the engineer isolate the software defect. This thesis compiles the necessary information to understand a generalized receive path and provides a framework for isolating a software defect.
La limpieza de sangre de Jesús en "Las órdenes militares" de Calderón de la Barca: aspectos teológicos, políticos y de la representación

It is a study of the controversy between Calderon and the Inquisition after the representation in 1662 of his play The military orders. The auto dramatizes the admission process to a military order questioning Jesus’ purity of blood on account of his mother being Jewish. It includes objections of both gentiles and Jews to Christ divinity, as well as theological arguments on the then controversial subject of Mary’s immaculate conception. In the study, censored texts unavailable in other editions are examined based on Walburg’s edition. Since the autos were used as tools for preaching the gospel, its theological arguments had to agree with the official doctrine of the Church. Even though objections to Jesus entering the order were presented by evil allegorical characters, such as Guilt, inquisitors thought it could cause scandal among unlearned audience. More than church and state conflicts, the play represents important ideological and racial conflicts present in Spanish Baroque society as a source of the controversy.
Reconfigurable Multicore Server Processors for Low Power Operation

With power becoming a key design constraint, particularly in server machines, emerging architectures need to leverage reconfigurable techniques to provide an energy optimal system. The need for a single chip solution to fit all needs in a warehouse sized server is important for designers. This allows for simpler design, ease of programmability, and part reuse in all segments of the server. A reconfigurable design would allow a single chip to operate efficiently in all aspects of a server providing both single thread performance for tasks requiring it, and efficient parallel processing helping to reduce power consumption. In this paper we explore the possibility of a reconfigurable server part and discuss the benefits and open questions still surrounding these techniques.
Testing for resistive open defects in FPGAs

This paper presents a new technique for detecting resistive open defects in FPGAs. This technique is based on the reconfigurability feature of FPGAs. Using this technique, the delay of a defective path is increased several times more than the delay of the fault-free path, resulting in a higher resolution in detectability of resistive open defects in FPGAs, even at lower tester speed. Various detailed SPICE simulations are performed to validate this method. Also, a test configuration generation scheme is presented for the entire FPGA.
Influence of DNA sequence on the formation of non-B right-handed helices in oligopurine.oligopyrimidine inserts in plasmids.

A systematic study was conducted on seven recombinant plasmids harboring synthetic inserts which had all purines on one strand and all pyrimidines on the complementary strand (Pur.Pyr). The inserts ranged in G+C content from 100% [G19.C19] to 0% [A20.T20] with intermediate contents at 66% [(TCC)8.(GGA)8], 50% [(CT)12.(AG)12 and (TTCC)6.(GGAA)6], 33% [(TTC)8.(GAA)8], and 25% [(GAAA)6.(TTTC)6]. The specific reactions at the base pair level of these inserts with enzymatic (S1 and P1 nucleases) and chemical (bromoacetaldehyde, OsO4, diethyl pyrocarbonate, and dimethyl sulfate) probes were evaluated as influenced by pH, negative supercoiling, and ionic strength (NaCl). Supercoil-induced relaxation studies using two-dimensional gels also provided important conformational information. We conclude that the five inserts with 66-25% G+C adopt a non-B right-handed conformation which is stabilized by negative supercoiling. Low pH (pH values 4.5-5.0) tends to stabilize this structure but is not essential for its formation. Surprisingly, an end bias of reactivity from the center toward the 5'-end of the purine strand of these inserts was generally found for the enzymatic and chemical probes which was irrespective of the orientation of the insert in the pRW790 vector. An intramolecular triple-stranded model for the unusual structure of the insert accounts most favorably for these observations. Unexpectedly, the A20.T20 insert seems to remain in an orthodox right-handed B-conformation under all conditions tested. The G19.C19 insert does adopt a non-B right-handed structure as for the five inserts with 66-25% G+C, but the pattern of reactivities and hence its conformation is different.
Contradicciones y conflictos en la alborada: el caso del testimonio de Yolanda Colom

Este trabajo es un analisis de Mujeres en la alborada (1992), testimonio de Yolanda Colom. La autora, perteneciente a la clase media alta guatemalteca, toma partido por la Revolucion y relata sus experiencias como guerrillera entre 1973 y 1978. A pesar de que han pasado mas de 40 anos de los episodios relatados en esta obra, el hecho de que el libro lleve cuatro ediciones (la ultima en 2013), es prueba de la actual validez de aquella lucha por una sociedad mas justa. Se analiza este texto como testimonio femenino y se situa a la autora en la larga tradicion del ensayo en Guatemala y dentro de la tradicion mas reciente del genero testimonio en Centroamerica.
NMR Study of Slow Atomic Motion in Sr8Ga16Ge30 Clathrate

The clathrates feature large cages of silicon, germanium, or tin, with guest atoms in the cage centers. ${\mathrm{Sr}}_{8}{\mathrm{Ga}}_{16}{\mathrm{Ge}}_{30}$ clathrate is interesting because of its thermoelectric efficiency, and its glasslike thermal conductivity at low temperatures, indicating Sr atom hopping within the cages. We measured $^{71}\mathrm{Ga}$ NMR with a 9 T superconducting spectrometer down to 1.9 K. Knight shift and ${T}_{1}$ results are consistent with low density metallic behavior. The lineshapes exhibit changes consistent with motional narrowing at low temperatures, and this indicates unusually slow hopping rates. Fitting these line shape changes yielded an activation energy of about 7 K. To further investigate this behavior, we made a series of measurements using the Carr-Purcell-Meiboom-Gill NMR sequence. Fitting the results to a hopping model yielded an activation energy of 4.6 K, consistent with the line shape result. We can understand all of our observations in terms of nonresonant atomic tunneling between asymmetric sites within the cages, in the presence of disorder.
Long‐Range Electron Transfer in Biology

Electron‐transfer processes are vital elements of energy transduction pathways in living cells. A unique synergy between theory and experiment has produced an extraordinarily detailed understanding of the factors that regulate this ‘current of life’. Studies of Ru‐modified proteins have provided insights into the distance‐ and driving‐force dependences of intraprotein electron transfer rates. Electron transfer across protein–protein interfaces has been probed both in solution and in structurally characterized crystals. It is now clear that electrons tunnel between sites in biological redox chains, and that protein structures tune thermodynamic properties and electronic coupling interactions to facilitate these reactions. This research has produced an experimentally validated, electron tunneling timetable that predicts the time required for an electron to transfer across a specified distance in a protein. Many of the electron tunneling rates measured in cytochrome c oxidase and photosynthetic reaction centers agree well with timetable predictions, indicating that the natural reactions are highly optimized, both in terms of thermodynamics and electronic coupling.
Minimal design of sandwich axisymmetric plates obeying Mises criterion

Abstract A method for solving the non-linear problem of minimum volume design of sandwich axisymmetric plates obeying the Mises criterion is presented; it is a version of the statical method in which use is made of techniques of the calculus of variations. These techniques are extended for application to the case of unbounded minimal solutions. Several specific examples are worked out for loadings in which the applied forces point to the same direction and support is provided at the inner and outer edges only. It is shown that the characteristic features of the minimal designs are independent of other peculiarities of such loadings, when the plate is supported at one edge only. The results of the paper are compared to those of similar cases of plates obeying the Tresca criterion.
Learning from Production Test Data: Correlation Exploration and Feature Engineering

The huge amount of test data of a modern chip produced during manufacturing test could be mined for valuable information about the device under test (DUT), far more than the pass/fail information of each test item. Exploring the hidden correlations and patterns in the test data allows better understanding of the DUT and could therefore lead to test cost reduction or test quality improvement. There are several known types of correlations embedded in the test data: spatial correlations, inter-test-item correlations, and temporal correlations, each of which may involve a large number of data dimensions. Deriving and selecting the most relevant features for a specific application is critical for designing an effective and efficient mining solution. This paper provides an overview of recent research efforts on correlation exploration and development of a framework of feature engineering for learning from production test data.
Association of hepatic lipase with proteoglycans stimulates the production of proteoglycans in vivo and in vitro

HL is synthesized in hepatocytes and functions while bound to heparan sulfate proteoglycans (HSPGs) in sinusoidal endothelial cells. The HL-mediated uptake of lipoprotein requires cell-surface HSPG. The present study tested whether HL plays a role in the production of HSPG. The production of HSPG in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells was determined by measuring the incorporation of (35)SO(4) into PGs. HL-producing HL-CHO cells showed approximately 30% more cellular PG than did wild-type (WT) cells. In contrast, PG production in cells producing a membrane-anchored HL-glycophosphatidylinositol (GPI) that was not bound to HSPG was virtually identical to that in WT cells. When purified HL was added to the WT- or HL-GPI cells, PG production increased significantly to a level similar to that of the HL-secreting cells, suggesting that the binding of HL to HSPG triggered the increased HSPG production. Heparin reduced PG production in HL-producing cells, confirming that PG production is stimulated only when HL is present as a ligand for HSPG. Real-time PCR and Northern blots demonstrated that PG production was significantly reduced in animals lacking HL. Together, these data suggest that the binding of HL to PG on the cell surface exerts a positive feedback on cellular PG production.
Evidence of traveling external Rossby waves in the ECMWF analyses

Abstract Ten years of global tropospheric data from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts analyses were used to obtain a climatology of quasi-stationary waves and transient normal-mode Rossby waves. The data were split up into a mean annual cycle, reflecting the forced fields, and a transient part, containing the traveling waves. Data were then projected onto Hough normal modes, yielding a mean annual behavior of the quasi-stationary fields and time series of expansion coefficients for the transient waves. The latter were analyzed by a space-time spectral method independently for each of the four seasons. The Hough normal modes with low zonal wavenumber and low meridional index show clear peaks in the power spectra at theoretically predicted frequencies. Some modes have a strong seasonality.
Characterizing Gene Expression during Lens Formation in Xenopus laevis : Evaluating the Model for Embryonic Lens Induction

Few directed searches have been undertaken to identify the genes involved in vertebrate lens formation. In the frog Xenopus, the larval cornea can undergo a process of transdifferentiation to form a new lens once the original lens is removed. Based on preliminary evidence, we have shown that this process shares many elements of a common molecular/genetic pathway to that involved in embryonic lens development. A subtracted cDNA library, enriched for genes expressed during cornea-lens transdifferentiation, was prepared. The similarities/identities of specific clones isolated from the subtracted cDNA library define an expression profile of cells undergoing cornea-lens transdifferentiation ("lens regeneration") and corneal wound healing (the latter representing a consequence of the surgery required to trigger transdifferentiation). Screens were undertaken to search for genes expressed during both transdifferentiation and embryonic lens development. Significantly, new genes were recovered that are also expressed during embryonic lens development. The expression of these genes, as well as others known to be expressed during embryonic development in Xenopus, can be correlated with different periods of embryonic lens induction and development, in an attempt to define these events in a molecular context. This information is considered in light of our current working model of embryonic lens induction, in which specific tissue properties and phases of induction have been previously defined in an experimental context. Expression data reveal the existence of further levels of complexity in this process and suggests that individual phases of lens induction and specific tissue properties are not strictly characterized or defined by expression of individual genes.
The inverse Laplace transform of an exact analytical solution for a BVP in groundwater theory

Abstract A boundary coupled system of parabolic partial differential equations for the drawdown of head in a leaky aquifer-aquitard system is considered. These equations, with boundary conditions, make use of the usual Darcy's law for saturated flow. One of the main points is that the problem, if rigorously adhered to, involves an inhomogeneous ordinary differential equation (ODE), which, when solved, must then be inverted from the Laplace transform domain to the real variable time. The exact form of this ODE is then obtained, and the inversion of the Green's function resulting in the analytical expression is shown. Although there are numerical procedures for this inversion, effort has been made to maintain closed form analytical expressions. The main result is the demonstration that the usual Bromwich integral is equivalent to a specific real integral in a real variable, which is further expressed as a quickly converging series.
Reply to ``Comment on the gauging of Dirac-Kähler fermions on lattices.''

We show that the geometrical gauging on cubic lattices introduced by Jourjine, Aratyn, and Zimerman can be extended to any cubic or simplicial complex and that it is not equivalent to the naive gauging.
Similar immune response to nonlethal infection with herpes simplex virus-1 in sensitive (BALB/c) and resistant (C57BL/6) strains of mice.

Abstract Previous investigations have demonstrated a strain-associated differential susceptibility to herpes simplex virus-1 (HSV-1) infection in mice; C57BL/6 mice are more resistant to infection than BALB/c mice. Despite considerable research dealing with the immune response to HSV-1, relatively little attention has been paid to differences in immune responses between strains with different sensitivities to the virus. Here we report that immune responses (i.e., cytokine profiles, CTL activity, serum antibody, and natural killer cell activity) following footpad infection with a sublethal dose of HSV-1 do not substantially differ between the two strains. It is notable that C57BL/6 mice are also more resistant than BALB/c mice to other pathogens, including Leishmania , and this resistance is associated with a predominant TH1 response in C57BL/6 mice versus a predominant TH2 response in BALB/c mice. However, unlike several other pathogens, the increased susceptibility to HSV-1 infection of BALB/c mice, compared to C57BL/6 mice, does not appear to involve an obvious difference in the TH1 vs TH2 dominance of the immune response to this virus.
Oxidation of sulfur compounds III: The photolysis of (CH3S)2 in the presence of O2

Abstract The photo-oxidation of (CH 3 S) 2 at 253.7 nm and 296 K was studied in both the absence and presence of nitrogen, and the quantum yield of SO 2 formation was measured. For O 2 pressures of 200 Torr or less we looked for, but could not find, CH 3 SOH, CH 3 SO 3 H and (CH 3 SO) 2 . CH 3 SO 2 H may be a minor product. At high O 2 pressures (200 Torr or more) and [(CH 3 S) 2 ] ≈ 9.5 Torr we found a number of product mass spectral peaks at m/e values of 104, 114, 126, 140, 148, 154, 167 and 174. Except for the peak at m/e 126, which presumably is from (CH 3 SO) 2 , the peaks were not identified. The photolysis of (CH 2 S) 2 produces CH 3 S radicals exclusively. They add to O 2 with a rate coefficient between 5 × 10 −18 and 1 × 10 −13 cm 3 s −1 . The adduct does not decompose to give SO 2 but can either rearrange and ultimately re-form (CH 3 S) 2 or can add further to O 2 : with k 2b / k 3 = 110 +- 24 Torr. The CH 3 SO 4 adduct can either decompose to give SO 2 , presumably via. or be removed by collision with (CH 3 S) 2 and ultimately give high molecular weight products: with k 8 / k 7 = 1.02 ± 0.19 Torr −1 . At total pressures below 50 Torr, SO 2 is produced in additional reactions which increase in importance with increasing absorbed intensity.
An AIDS-related cytotoxic autoantibody reacts with a specific antigen on stimulated CD4+ T cells.

Patients with the acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) and AIDS-related conditons are known to have abnormalities of T cell subpopulations, including a decreased helper/inducer (bearing the CD4 antigen) to suppressor/cytotoxic (bearing the CDS antigen) T cell ratio and decreased absolute numbers of T cells with the CD4+ phenotype1,2. Infection of T cells with a retrovirus, termed human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), is thought to be important in these abnormalities3–5. HIV infection alone does not adequately explain the CD4+ T-cell abnormalities seen in AIDS, however, and the nature of T-cell destruction in this disease remains poorly characterized6. Here we describe an AIDS-related serum autoantibody that reacts with an antigen of relative molecular mass 18,000 (Mr 18K) restricted to lectin-stimulated or HIV-infected CD4+ T cells. The antibody also suppresses proliferation of CD4+ T cells in vitro and induces cytotoxicity of these cells in the presence of complement. Its role in the development of AIDS merits attention.
Nonlinear Dynamics of Slender Rods

The nonlinear equations of motion of a rod undergoing small strains and moderate elastic rotations are derived. The derivation uses a variational approach and the equations of motion are obtained by applying Lagrange's equations. The results of a recently developed "principal curvature transformation" are employed to account for the structural aspects. Generalized coordinates are also used to establish an efficient analysis method. By a direct perturbation of the nonlinear equations of motion, the relations governing the small vibrations of a rod superimposed on finite static deformations are obtained. The theory is validated by comparing its results with experimental results available in the literature. Good agreement is obtained. In addition, the influences of nonlinear effects on such vibrations are pointed out and discussed.
On the Role of Mechanics in Chronic Lung Disease

Progressive airflow obstruction is a classical hallmark of chronic lung disease, affecting more than one fourth of the adult population. As the disease progresses, the inner layer of the airway wall grows, folds inwards, and narrows the lumen. The critical failure conditions for airway folding have been studied intensely for idealized circular cross-sections. However, the role of airway branching during this process is unknown. Here, we show that the geometry of the bronchial tree plays a crucial role in chronic airway obstruction and that critical failure conditions vary significantly along a branching airway segment. We perform systematic parametric studies for varying airway cross-sections using a computational model for mucosal thickening based on the theory of finite growth. Our simulations indicate that smaller airways are at a higher risk of narrowing than larger airways and that regions away from a branch narrow more drastically than regions close to a branch. These results agree with clinical observations and could help explain the underlying mechanisms of progressive airway obstruction. Understanding growth-induced instabilities in constrained geometries has immediate biomedical applications beyond asthma and chronic bronchitis in the diagnostics and treatment of chronic gastritis, obstructive sleep apnea and breast cancer.
Reduced Heart Rate Variability Is Associated With Increased Arterial Stiffness in Youth With Type 1 Diabetes The SEARCH CVD study

OBJECTIVE Reduced heart rate variability (HRV) and increased arterial stiffness (AS) are both present in youth with type 1 diabetes. However, it is unclear whether they are associated and whether their association is independent of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS The SEARCH Cardiovascular Disease (SEARCH CVD) study explored the cross-sectional relationships between HRV and several measures of AS in youth with ( n = 344) and without ( n = 171) type 1 diabetes. The SphygmoCor device (AtCor Medical, Sydney, Australia) was used to measure HRV using SD of normal R-R interval (SDNN), as well as AS, using pulse wave velocity in the carotid to femoral segment (PWV-trunk) and augmentation index adjusted to a heart rate of 75 bpm (AIx75). Brachial distensibility (BrachD), another index of AS, was measured with a DynaPulse instrument (Pulse Metric, San Diego, CA). Multiple linear regression analyses explored the associations between HRV and each of the three AS measures, after adjusting for demographic characteristics and traditional CVD risk factors (blood pressure, lipids, obesity, microalbuminuria, and smoking) separately, for youth with and without type 1 diabetes. RESULTS Among youth with type 1 diabetes, lower SDNN was associated with peripheral AS (lower BrachD, P = 0.01; r 2 = 0.30) and central AS (higher PVW-trunk, P < 0.0001; r 2 = 0.37; and higher AIx75, P = 0.007; r 2 = 0.08). These associations were attenuated with adjustment for CVD risk factors, but remained statistically significant for BrachD and PWV-trunk. While a similar association between HRV and BrachD was present in control youth, lower HRV was not associated with increased central AS or with AIx75. CONCLUSIONS Longitudinal studies are needed to understand the pathways responsible for these associations.
A new player in Pol II pausing

Transcriptional control plays a primary role in gene expression and can be exerted at multiple levels of the transcription process, such as RNA polymerase recruitment and promoter-proximal pausing. A recent report published in The EMBO Journal (Li and Gilmour, 2013) provides new insights into the regulation of a large class of paused genes through the identification of a novel transcription factor (TF; Motif 1 binding protein, M1BP) that binds to promoters of paused genes and controls their expression.
Braess' paradox: Some new insights

This paper examines some properties of the well-known Braess' paradox of traffic flow, in the context of the classical network configuration used by Braess. The paper shows that whether Braess' paradox does or does not occur depends on the conditions of the problem; namely, the link congestion function parameters and the demand for travel. In particular, this paper shows that for a given network with a given set of link congestion functions, Braess' paradox occurs only if the total demand for travel falls within a certain intermediate range of values (the bounds of which are dependent on the link congestion function parameters). The paper also shows that, depending on the problem parameters, adding a new link might not lead to a reduction in total system travel time, even if users are charged the marginal cost of traveling. On the other hand, there are ranges of values for the problem parameters for which the new link reduces total system travel time, as long as marginal cost pricing is implemented.
Numerical studies of the effects of jet-induced mixing on liquid-vapor interface condensation

Numerical solutions of jet-induced mixing in a partially full cryogenic tank are presented. An axisymmetric laminar jet is discharged from the central part of the tank bottom toward the liquid-vapor interface. Liquid is withdrawn at the same volume flow rate from the outer part of the tank. The jet is at a temperature lower than the interface, which is maintained at a certain saturation temperature. The interface is assumed to be flat and shear-free and the condensation-induced velocity is assumed to be negligibly small compared with radial interface velocity. Finite-difference method is used to solve the nondimensional form of steady state continuity, momentum, and energy equations. Calculations are conducted for jet Reynolds numbers ranging from 150 to 600 and Prandtl numbers ranging from 0.85 to 2.65. The effects of above stated parameters on the condensation Nusselt and Stanton numbers which characterize the steady-state interface condensation process are investigated. Detailed analysis to gain a better understanding of the fundamentals of fluid mixing and interface condensation is performed.
Mobile unattended ground sensors

In this paper, we highlight several robotic and sensor related technologies that will enhance military operations in the 21st century. Aspects of these technologies will have mission impact in both urban environments and rural settings. We describe technologies to aid humans in intelligence, threat warning, surveillance, reconnaissance, and target strike operations.© (1997) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Onsager's principle: A unifying bio-theme

A hitherto obscure thermodynamic principle proposed by Lars Onsager in 1931 (Phys. Rev. 37, 405) serves as a parsimonious explanation for consistencies in the rates at which biochemical events occur, consistencies not explained by existing thermodynamic laws. It also provides an underlying rationale for the observation that thermodynamic systems, including living systems, are relentlessly opportunistic with respect to increasing entropy. These consistencies and this opportunism form a broadly unifying theme for biological phenomena from molecular to organismic and evolutionary levels.
Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Competence Constructs: Two-Stage Multi-Item Scale Development and Validation*

This paper defines and operationalizes eight ERP competence constructs. We define ERP competence as a portfolio of managerial, technical and organizational skills and expertise posited as antecedents to improved business performance occurring after an ERP system is operational and functionally stable. To improve responses to changes in markets and products, manufacturers are increasingly adopting ERP systems. However, anecdotal accounts indicate that the realization of ERP's potential benefits is rare. Because of its pervasive influence on manufacturing and business performance, the need for scientifically developed and tested multi-item scales pertaining to ERP competence is highly relevant to manufacturing strategy research. We follow a two-stage normative process of scale development. First, we identify a portfolio of eight generic constructs that are hypothesized to be associated with successful ERP adoption. Each construct is then operationalized as a multi-item measurement scale by applying a manual item sorting technique iteratively to independent panels of expert judges until tentative reliability and validity is established. Second, we further refine and validate the multi-item scales using survey data from 79 North American manufacturing users of ERP systems.
Cyclo-oxygenase inhibitor and interferon-γ act synergistically to reduce melanoma growth and improve survival in a murine model

In a murine model of melanoma, combined treatment with interferon-γ plus a COX-2 inhibitor was maximally effective in reducing tumour growth and improving survival. This improvement in anti-tumour activity correlated with alterations in arginine metabolism within the tumour-associated macrophage in favour of increased nitric oxide production.
MR arthrography of the shoulder: rethinking traditional imaging procedures to meet the technical requirements of MR imaging guidance.

The purpose of this study was to determine the feasibility of and the appropriate technique for performance of MR imaging-guided arthrography of the shoulder.Thirty-eight MR imaging-guided glenohumeral joint punctures were performed using an open C-arm scanner with a vertically oriented magnetic field, adapted for interventional procedures. Two different approaches to the shoulder were used: a modification of the traditional anterior approach (seven procedures), and an anterosuperior approach (31 procedures) mimicking the anterior arthroscopy portal. The average procedure duration was determined. A retrospective review of needle mediolateral and anterioposterior position was determined for the anterosuperior approaches.Average procedure duration was 21 min for the anterior approach and 12 min for the anterosuperior approach. Subjectively, needle conspicuity was minimal with the anterior approach, contributing to prolonged imaging times. Needle visualization was much improved with the anterosuperior approa...
Decision aggregation in distributed classification by a transductive extension of maximum entropy/improved iterative scaling

In many ensemble classification paradigms, the function which combines local/base classifier decisions is learned in a supervised fashion. Such methods require common labeled training examples across the classifier ensemble. However, in some scenarios, where an ensemble solution is necessitated, common labeled data may not exist: (i) legacy/proprietary classifiers, and (ii) spatially distributed and/or multiple modality sensors. In such cases, it is standard to apply fixed (untrained) decision aggregation such as voting, averaging, or naive Bayes rules. In recent work, an alternative transductive learning strategy was proposed. There, decisions on test samples were chosen aiming to satisfy constraints measured by each local classifier. This approach was shown to reliably correct for class prior mismatch and to robustly account for classifier dependencies. Significant gains in accuracy over fixed aggregation rules were demonstrated. There are two main limitations of that work. First, feasibility of the constraints was not guaranteed. Second, heuristic learning was applied. Here, we overcome these problems via a transductive extension of maximum entropy/improved iterative scaling for aggregation in distributed classification. This method is shown to achieve improved decision accuracy over the earlier transductive approach and fixed rules on a number of UC Irvine datasets.
Work organization and occupational health: Perspectives from Latinos employed on crop and horse breeding farms

BACKGROUND: Agriculture is hazardous and increasingly dependent on Latino workers, a vulnerable population. However, little research has studied how work organization influences Latino farmworker health. METHODS: Using a work organization framework, this cross-sectional study describes and compares the work organization and occupational health characteristics of a sample of Latino crop (n = 49) and horse production (n = 54) workers in Kentucky. RESULTS: Crop workers experienced more physical demands, work-related and environmental stressors, and musculoskeletal and ill-health symptoms. Significantly more crop workers indicated work-related illness or missed work due to work-related illness/injury, though one-fourth of both groups reported work-related injury in the past year. A majority of both groups cited exposure to toxic chemicals, a minority of whom received training on their use. CONCLUSION: Further surveillance is needed to understand the rate and precursors of illness/injury in these populations, as is research on the relationship between supervisory practices, psychosocial stressors, and occupational health. Am. J. Ind. Med. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Language: en
Aluminum metallization for flat-panel displays using ion-beam-assisted physical vapor deposition

Failures in aluminum interconnects in display control devices are often caused by the formation of hillocks during postdeposition annealing. Ion-beam-assisted deposition was used to create a (110) out-of-plane texture in aluminum films to suppress hillocking. X-ray diffraction was used to quantify the (110)/(111) out-of-plane texture ratio, and scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy were used to characterize the surface topology. Results show that no hillocks were observed on (110)-textured aluminum films following annealing for 30 min at 450 °C. Following annealing, the resistivity of the films made by ion-beam-assisted deposition recovered to within a factor of 2 of the physical-vapor-deposition films. Results show that ion-beam-assisted deposition can effectiv09ely modify the aluminum out-of-plane texture in such a way that hillock suppression can be achieved without significant change in resistivity.