cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Contribution of dislocation line tension and the density of the solute atmosphere to the yield point in strain aged ingot iron

Abstract An investigation was made of the 77°K yielding behavior of ingot iron specimens that had been prestrained and aged while under stress at 303°K. It was observed that the presence of a yield point at 303°K after a strain aging treatment does not result in a yield point at 77°K until the strain aging treatment is prolonged so as to result in an increase in the 303°K yield point of about 20 per cent. The sharpness and magnitude of the yield point at both 303°K and 77°K increased with an increase in the aging time and or an increase in the stress which was maintained upon the specimen during the aging treatment. The observations of the effect of the aging time and aging stress are discussed in terms of the contribution of the dislocation line tension and solute atmosphere density along the dislocation.
Effect of test frequency and water content on localized crack-tip heating in nylon-6,6

Abstract : Fatigue crack propagation (FCP) tests were conducted on nylon 66 specimens equilibrated over a range of moisture levels and test frequencies to determine the crack growth rates and the crack-tip temperatures as a function of water content. Frequency-sensitivity was correlated with the amount of crack-tip heating taking place, with crack-tip temperature being found to depend strongly on the estimated loss compliance, D', of the material. The frequency-sensitivity of FCP in nylon was seen also to be affected by mean stress, suggesting that creep processes are often significant in FCP of nylon. (Author)
Helix 11 Dynamics Is Critical for Constitutive Androstane Receptor Activity

The constitutive androstane receptor (CAR) transactivation can occur in the absence of exogenous ligand and this activity is enhanced by agonists TCPOBOP and meclizine. We use biophysical and cell-based assays to show that increased activity of CAR(TCPOBOP) relative to CAR(meclizine) corresponds to a higher affinity of CAR(TCPOBOP) for the steroid receptor coactivator-1. Additionally, steady-state fluorescence spectra suggest conformational differences between CAR(TCPOBOP):RXR and CAR(meclizine):RXR. Hydrogen/deuterium exchange (HDX) data indicate that the CAR activation function 2 (AF-2) is more stable in CAR(TCPOBOP):RXR and CAR(meclizine):RXR than in CAR:RXR. HDX kinetics also show significant differences between CAR(TCPOBOP):RXR and CAR(meclizine):RXR. Unlike CAR(meclizine):RXR, CAR(TCPOBOP):RXR shows a higher overall stabilization that extends into RXR. We identify residues 339–345 in CAR as an allosteric regulatory site with a greater magnitude reduction in exchange kinetics in CAR(TCPOBOP):RXR than CAR(meclizine):RXR. Accordingly, assays with mutations on CAR at leucine-340 and leucine-343 confirm this region as an important determinant of CAR activity.
Glucose production and glycogen cycle enzyme activities in avian liver explants: Procedural optimization

Abstract 1. 1. There are few studies which both describe the in vitro regulation of glycogen metabolism in nonmammalian animals and list methods to optimize assay conditions for these studies. 2. 2. A mechanical tissue chopper was used to obtain 25 65 mg liver explants from 14- to 28-day old domestic turkeys to determine assay conditions (substrates, buffers, time), regulators (metals, salts and hormones) and points of endogenous regulation of glycogenolysis (protein phosphorylation and enzyme activity). 3. 3. High- and low-bicarbonate-based buffers (Earle's balanced salts, EBSS and Hanks' balanced salts, HBSS, respectively) were used to determine buffer effects. 4. 4. Glucose release into the incubation environment was greater in HBSS than EBSS. Adding HEPES to further buffer conditions did not change release rates. Adding bicarbonate to HBSS resulted in release rates similar to EBSS. 5. 5. Calcium increased glycogenolysis in the presence or absence of equimolar concentrations of EGTA; potassium had no effect. 6. 6. Porcine insulin (100 ng/ml) did not inhibit glycogenolysis; however, glucose release was increased by dibutyryl cyclic AMP. A noted catecholamine-induced increase in in vitro glycogenolysis and phosphorylase activity indicates that points of regulation are under phosphorylation-dephosphorylation regulation.
Seroquel (ICI 204,636) restores prepulse inhibition of acoustic startle in apomorphine-treated rats: Similarities to clozapine

Seroquel (ICI 204,636) is a mixed D2/5HT2 antagonist with a preclinical profile suggestive of potential antipsychotic efficacy. We compared seroquel to clozapine in an animal model of sensorimotor gating deficits in shizophrenic patients. Like schizophrenic patients, rats treated with apomophrine (APO) exhibit deficits in prepulse inhibition (PPI) of acoustic startle. The ability of antipsychotics to restore PPI in APO-treated rats correlates (Rs=0.991) with their clinical potency. Seroquel and clozapine both restore PPI in APO-treated rats. Seroquel's restoration of PPI in apomorphine-treated rats follows simple monotonic ascending dose-response properties, and is not accompanied by consistent changes in startle reflex amplitude. Seroquel's profile in this PPI model mimics that of other antipsychotics.
Computational fluid dynamics simulation and redesign of a screw conveyor reactor

National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) designed a shrinking-bed reactor to maintain a constant bulk packing density of cellulosic biomass. The high solid-to-liquid ratio in the pretreatment process allows a high sugar yield and avoids the need to flush large volumes of solution through the reactor. To scale up the shrinking-bed reactor, NREL investigated a pilot-scale screw conveyor reactor in which an interrupted flight between screws was employed to mimic the “shrinking-bed” effect. In the experiments with the screw conveyor reactor, overmixing and uneven flow occurred. These phenomena produce negative effects on biomass hydrolysis. The flow behavior inside the reactor was analyzed to allow redesign of the screw to achieve adequate mixing and even flow. In the present study, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) was utilized to simulate the fluid flow in the porous media, and a new screw design was proposed. CFD analysis performed on the redesigned reactor indicated that an even flow pattern was achieved.
The Fumigant Potential of GC-10033 Against Stored-Product Insects

Because of the need for new fumigants to control insects that attack food commodities, the research at the Stored-Product Insects Research and Development Laboratory, Savannah, Ga., includes evaluation of promising new chemicals as potential fumigants. Candidate fumigants are routinely tested against insects in space, and those showing biological effectiveness comparable to carbon tetrachloride or methyl bromide are further tested against insects in grain. Candidate fumigants showing grain-penetrating qualities at 27°C are studied also at lower temperatures, and methods for detecting their residues on food commodities and for measuring their concentrations in air are investigated. In recent years, relatively few new chemicals have been available for testing as candidate fumigants against insects in food commodities and, in general, most of those evaluated in this program and found effective against insects in space did not penetrate the grain mass to kill insects concealed in interkernel spaces.
Requirements for DNA unpairing during displacement synthesis by HIV-1 reverse transcriptase.

DNA displacement synthesis by reverse transcriptase during retroviral replication is required for the production of the linear precursor to integration. The sensitivity of unpaired thymines to KMnO4 oxidation was used to probe for the extent of DNA melting by human immunodeficiency virus, type 1 (HIV-1) reverse transcriptase in front of the primer terminus in model oligonucleotide-based displacement constructs. Unpairing of the two base pairs downstream of the primer (+1 and +2 positions) requires the presence of the next correct dNTP, indicating that DNA melting only occurs after the formation of the ternary complex with the enzyme tightly clamped around the DNA. The amount or extent of DNA melting is not significantly affected by the length of the already-displaced strand or the base composition of the DNA beyond the +2 position. The F61W mutant form of HIV-1 reverse transcriptase, which is partially impaired for displacement synthesis, exhibits a reduction in the amount of melting at the +1 and +2 positions. These results demonstrate the importance of the observed melting to displacement synthesis and suggest that the unpairing reaction is mediated by an intimate association between the fingers region of the enzyme and the DNA in the closed clamp conformation of the protein.
Friction and Wear Transitions in Carbons (Temperature and Stress Analysis)

In this paper, the friction and wear behavior of a carbon composite is studied. Friction tests were performed under constant friction mode. The power inputs were increased gradually to study their effects on friction transition at ambient air environment. Friction surfaces were examined using various macro and nanoscopic techniques to understand the evolution of friction transition. Structural changes of friction film have been observed from graphitic allotropic form to amorphous type structure. This sudden change leads to an increase of the coefficient of friction. It seems that the inter-laminar shearing, disruption of the film and sample cracking might cause the friction transition. Analysis from stress field simulation shows that cracks were more likely to occur at the trailing edge of the sample at the end of transition. This study shows that any type of failure (mechanical or thermal fatigue) of the friction film or bulk material is sufficient to generate friction and wear instabilities. Presented a...
A quantitative cytochemical study of the DNA content of neurons of rat cerebellar cortex.

— Measurements of nuclear DNA content with quantitative cytochemical methods for determining amounts in single nuclei reveal tetraploid quantities of DNA in cerebellar Purkinje neurons of the rat, or twice the amount of nuclear DNA of rat somatic cells in general. The findings suggest that tetraploidy is probably a universal phenomenon among rat Purkinje cells. Granule and basket cells have a diploid DNA content.
Cosmological implications of the Wilkinson microwave anisotropy probe first-year results

Abstract The Wilkinson microwave anisotropy probe (WMAP) team has recently analyzed and released the first-year data. We will review the implications for cosmology of these results. The highlight is that the flat LCDM model with only six cosmological parameters fits not only WMAP data remarkably well, but also a host of other astronomical observations. We also present the results of the joint likelihood analysis of WMAP data with small scales CMB experiments (ACBAR, CBI) and large-scale structure surveys (2dFGRS and Lyman α forest power spectra). The data and supplementary information can be found on the experiment website at http://lambda.gsfc.nasa.gov .
Tracking black holes in numerical relativity

This work addresses and solves the problem of generically tracking black hole event horizons in computational simulation of black hole interactions. Solutions of the hyperbolic eikonal equation, solved on a curved spacetime manifold containing black hole sources, are employed in development of a robust tracking method capable of continuously monitoring arbitrary changes of topology in the event horizon, as well as arbitrary numbers of gravitational sources. The method makes use of continuous families of level set viscosity solutions of the eikonal equation with identification of the black hole event horizon obtained by the signature feature of discontinuity formation in the eikonal's solution. The method is employed in the analysis of the event horizon for the asymmetric merger in a binary black hole system. In this first such three dimensional analysis, we establish both qualitative and quantitative physics for the asymmetric collision; including: 1. Bounds on the topology of the throat connecting the holes following merger, 2. Time of merger, and 3. Continuous accounting for the surface of section areas of the black hole sources.
Vasoactive Intestinal Peptide Mediation of Development and Functions of T Lymphocytes

The first phase in investigating neural regulation of immunity has delineated anatomical connections, shared mediators and receptors for mediators with distinctive effects, and the immune functional consequences of altering relevant neural activities. Vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) and pituitary adenylyl cyclase-activating peptide (PACAP) are represented prominently in immune organs. They have potent novel effects on many aspects of immunity, are derived from and serve as autacoids in some sets of immune cells, and they participate in both physiological and pathological immune responses. The present phase of neuroimmune research has begun to elucidate the genetic determinants of expression and functions of neuromediators in immunity. Our evolving understanding of the novel mechanisms for adaptation and specificity in the VIP/PACAP neuroimmune network suggests the importance of immunoselective transcriptional control of expression of VIP/PACAP receptors in T cells, a dominant role for numerous cytokines, and the critical involvement of small subsets of VIP-/PACAP-responsive thymocytes and T cells.
Transient stress wave propagation in one-dimensional micropolar bodies

Certain types of structures and materials, such as engineered multi-scale systems and comminuted zones in failed ceramics, may be modeled using continuum theories incorporating additional kinematic degrees of freedom beyond the scope of classical continuum theories. If such material systems are to be subjected to high strain rate loads, such as those resulting from ballistic impact or blast, it will be necessary to develop models capable of describing transient stress wave propagation through these media. Such a model is formulated, solved, and applied to the impact between two bodies and to a two-layer bar or strip subjected to an instantaneously applied stress. Results from these examples suggest that the model parameters, and therefore constitutive properties and geometries, may be tuned to reduce and control the transmission of stress through these bodies.
New subspace methods for ATR

In ATR applications, each feature is a convolution of an image with a filter. It is important to use most discriminant features to produce compact representations. We propose two novel subspace methods for dimension reduction to address limitations associated with Fukunaga-Koontz Transform (FKT). The first method, Scatter-FKT, assumes that target is more homogeneous, while clutter can be anything other than target and anywhere. Thus, instead of estimating a clutter covariance matrix, Scatter-FKT computes a clutter scatter matrix that measures the spread of clutter from the target mean. We choose dimensions along which the difference in variation between target and clutter is most pronounced. When the target follows a Gaussian distribution, Scatter-FKT can be viewed as a generalization of FKT. The second method, Optimal Bayesian Subspace, is derived from the optimal Bayesian classifier. It selects dimensions such that the minimum Bayes error rate can be achieved. When both target and clutter follow Gaussian distributions, OBS computes optimal subspace representations. We compare our methods against FKT using character image as well as IR data.
Deoxyribonueleie Acid Synthesis or Turn-over in Non-dividing Pollen Cells of Pine

INVESTIGATIONS of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) formation in vivo have shown that synthesis and replication are completed before separation of chromosomes begins. DNA synthesis, as measured by staining, incorporation of phosphorus-32, or radioactive nucleotide precursors, has generally been thought not to occur in cells unless they are preparing to divide1. Research leading to such conclusions has used developing angiosperm pollen cells (microspores) of Lilium2 and Tradescantia3 or bacteria and animal tissues4.
Bipolar cells in the mudpuppy retina use an excitatory amino acid neurotransmitter.

The bipolar cells of the vertebrate retina are the principal neuronal elements which transmit photoreceptor activity from the outer to the inner retina1. An important function of the bipolars is to segregate photoreceptor input into independent ON and OFF channels2,3 which are subserved, respectively, by the depolarizing and hyperpolarizing bipolar subtypes4–7. Ultra-structural8,9 and physiological10 observations suggest that chemical neurotransmission is the predominant means of bipolar input to the inner retina. Both ON and OFF bipolars apparently release excitatory transmitters11–13. Histological studies with cytotoxic agents14–16 and physiological studies17,18 indicate that third-order neurones have excitatory amino acid receptors. In ON–OFF amacrine and ganglion cells, which receive input from both bipolars12,19, ON and OFF excitation have a similar ionic basis20, suggesting that the same transmitter may be released by both types of bipolars. We have now found that (±)cis-2,3-piperidine dicarboxylic acid (PDA)21, a new excitatory amino acid antagonist, blocks bipolar input to the inner retina and thus suggests that an excitatory amino acid is a bipolar cell transmitter.
Modelling and Simulation of Motility in Actomyosin Systems

ABSTRACT We present a model mechanism for simulating the diffusive motion and fluctuations inherent in myofibrillar sarcomere and its subunits at the molecular level. The model couples Langevin dyn...
Are lipids or proteins the target of general anaesthetic action

Abstract Is the site of general anaesthesia protein or lipid in an excitable membrane? Answers have been sought by comparing anaesthetic potency in vivo with that in some model system, but unfortunately this can often generate false correlations. These might be avoided by a more critical choice of anaesthetics. The enzyme luciferase, the only protein model to challenge the supremacy of the currently widely held lipid hypothesis, has now been shown to satisfy one important pharmacological criterion. It can account for the cut-off in potency that occurs upon ascending an homologous series of alcohols or alkanes 1 .
Ethical issues in mental health background checks for firearm ownership.

Federal law has prohibited the purchase and possession of firearms on the basis of mental health for nearly 50 years. The current background check system is limited by its vague policies, nonmandatory reporting standards, and low cooperation of individual states with the national background check registry. In January 2013, the Obama administration began an effort to reduce gun violence, which included proposed reform to mental health reporting standards and to the national background check system. However, there is much debate over whether people with mental illness should be included in background check databases or if their inclusion is counterproductive to the treatment of mental illness and the prevention of gun violence. The literature suggests that mental illness is not a reliable predictor of violence, rather a history of violence and current threats of violence are the best predictors of future violence. This article discusses the ethical considerations of mental health background checks for firearm ownership, with particular regard to the differing confidentiality policies of mental health professionals across states and the potential ramifications of a national mental health registry on patients' well-being. We propose that gun control regulations should implement empirically supported predictors of violence and that national inconsistencies in policies regarding confidentiality and "duty to warn" should be resolved. Language: en
First operation of an FEL in same-cell energy recovery mode

The driver for Jefferson Lab's kW-level infrared free-electron laser (FEL) is a superconducting, recirculating accelerator that recovers 75% of the electron-beam power and converts it to radio frequency power. As reported in FEL'98, the accelerator operated ''straight-ahead'' to deliver 38 MeV, 1.1 mA cw current for lasing at wavelengths in the vicinity of 5 microns. The waste beam was sent directly to a dump, bypassing the recirculation loop. Stable operation at up to 311 W cw was achieved in this mode. The machine has now recirculated cw average current up to 4.6 mA and has lased cw with energy recovery up to 1,720 W output at 3.1 microns. This is the first FEL to ever operate in the ''same-cell'' energy recovery mode. Energy recovery offers several advantages (reduced RF power and dramatically reduced radio-nuclide production at the dump) and several challenges will be described. The authors have observed heating effects in the mirrors which will be described. They will also report on the additional performance measurements of the FEL that have been performed and connect those measurements to standard models.
Spontaneous and induced chromosomal aberrations and gene mutations in human lymphoblasts: mitomycin C, methylnitrosourea, and ethylnitrosourea

The concentration-dependent mutagenic, clastogenic, and cytocidal activities of mitomycin C (MC), methylnitrosourea (MNU), and ethylnitrosourea (ENU) were measured in the human lymphoblast cell line TK6. For treatments resulting in fewer than 2 lethal hits, MNU, ENU, and MC gave rise to apparently linear dose-response curves for gene mutations (hgprt and tk genes) as well as for chromosomal aberrations. The numbers of induced mutants at the tk and hgprt loci were similar between the two loci for each compound. However, the ratio of mutagenic activity relative to the clastogenic activity (aberrations/cell) was lowest for mitomycin C, intermediate for methylnitrosourea, and highest for ethylnitrosourea. These results confirm in human cells the general observation that the processes of mutagenesis and clastogenesis are nonidentical: compounds vary independently in their mutagenic and clastogenic potentials.
Wave functions and energies of shallow acceptor states in germanium

Abstract Approximate wave functions and energies of shallow acceptor states in germanium have been obtained by solving the effective mass equations in the limit of very strong spin-orbit coupling. The variational approach used by Schechter was followed, but with more general trial functions that allow a more complete calculation of the energy spectrum of the acceptor. The new trial functions are constructed from terms with the angular dependence derived by Schechter, each multiplied by an arbitrary radial function. The variational procedure leads to systems of differential equations for the radial functions and energies of the states. Degenerate wave functions for a given acceptor level transform as a basis for a Γ 6 , Γ 7 or Γ 8 irreducible representation of the double tetrahedral group. Energies and wave functions were obtained for the ground state, which has Γ 8 symmetry and envelope functions with even parity, and for the first excited state having the same symmetry and parity. Energies and wave functions were also obtained for excited states with Γ 6 , Γ 7 and Γ 8 symmetries and envelopes with odd parity. States with Γ 6 or Γ 7 symmetry and envelope functions with even parity were not considered. The resulting energies show fair agreement with the experimental energies. As the new trial functions are quite flexible, it appears that the remaining discrepancy may be due to the inadequacy of the effective mass approximation.
Virtual character performance from speech

We demonstrate a method for generating a 3D virtual character performance from the audio signal by inferring the acoustic and semantic properties of the utterance. Through a prosodic analysis of the acoustic signal, we perform an analysis for stress and pitch, relate it to the spoken words and identify the agitation state. Our rule-based system performs a shallow analysis of the utterance text to determine its semantic, pragmatic and rhetorical content. Based on these analyses, the system generates facial expressions and behaviors including head movements, eye saccades, gestures, blinks and gazes. Our technique is able to synthesize the performance and generate novel gesture animations based on coarticulation with other closely scheduled animations. Because our method utilizes semantics in addition to prosody, we are able to generate virtual character performances that are more appropriate than methods that use only prosody. We perform a study that shows that our technique outperforms methods that use prosody alone.
Concept for a real-time structured database query language (RT-SQL)

Abstract Real-time database management systems have become a hot topic in the research and development community of late (Fort94a, Grah93, WCPP93). In addition there has been a movement in the standards community to examine and develop extensions to existing and proposed query languages to support real-time (Fish94, Fort94, Fort94a, FS94, Gord94). This paper examines the state of research into real-time database management systems in the areas of database structuring, transaction structuring, transaction processing, concurrency control, recovery and real-time transaction scheduling. We then extend the findings and trends of this work into the high level specification of data definition language, data manipulation language and data control language extensions for the standard SQL2 and emerging SQL3 database query languages.
A flexible 128 channel silicon strip detector instrumentation integrated circuit with sparse data readout

A full-custom CMOS integrated circuit for silicon strip detector systems has been designed, fabricated, and tested. The circuit contains 128 parallel data-acquisition channels and considerable peripheral circuitry. Each channel consists of a low-noise, low-power, charge-sensitive amplifier, a multistage autobalanced comparator, an analog multiplexer, nearest-neighbor logic, priority-search logic, and a share of a position-encoding read-only memory. The analog system can substract both detector pedestal and leakage current on a channel-by-channel basis. A key feature of this design is the inclusion of on-chip sparse read-out circuitry, which allows efficient management of low-occupancy events. Designed for use at the Collider Detector Facility (CDF) at Fermilab, the circuit is suitable for large-scale silicon detector systems requiring a large, dense array of fast, low-power electronics. >
Nature of the parasitic chemistry during AlGaInN OMVPE

Using in situ laser light scattering, we have observed gas-phase nanoparticles formed during AlN, GaN and InN OMVPE. The response of the scattering intensity to a wide range of conditions indicates that the AlN parasitic chemistry is considerably different from the corresponding GaN and InN chemistry. A simple CVD particle-growth mechanism is introduced that can qualitatively explain the observed particle size and yields a strong residence time dependence. We also used FTIR to directly examine the reactivity of the metalorganic precursors with NH{sub 3} in the 25-300 C range. For trimethylaluminum/NH{sub 3} mixtures a facile CH{sub 4} elimination reaction is observed, which also produces gas-phase aminodimethylalane, i.e. Al(CH{sub 3}){sub 2}NH{sub 2}. For trimethylgallium and trimethylindium the dominant reaction is reversible adduct formation. All of the results indicate that the AlN particle-nucleation mechanism is predominately of a concerted nature, while the GaN and InN particle-nucleation mechanisms involve homogeneous pyrolysis and radical chemistry.
Further studies of exponential branching rates in reflected-shock heated, nonstoichiometric H2COO2 systems

More thorough measurements are made of exponentially growing chemiluminescence, viewed end-on, during branched-chain ignition of H 2 CO O 2 Ar mixtures in reflected shock waves, to try to resolve residual questions from earlier studies by this and related techniques. Systematic variations of spectral bandpass, gas composition, and gas pressure have been made for particular H 2 :O 2 ratios and temperature spans. At H 2 :O 2 = 1/3, with CO present, exponential time constants, * , for the CO O chemiluminescence are independent of spectral bandpass over the 300–600 nm range; with CO absent, there is appreciable H 2 O 2 system ultraviolet chemiluminescence at λ > 340 nm, whose presence voids some earlier interpretations predicated on dominance of the OH A 2 Σ + → X 2 Π spectrum. At H 2 :O 2 = 0.1, * of CO O chemiluminescence exhioits a small and unaccountable variation with extent of dilution of H 2 CO O 2 mixtures in noble gas. This effect, diminished but perceptible also at H 2 :O 2 = 1/3, clouds kinetic interpretation of * in lean mixtures, but of itself does not reconcile disagreements with infrared and with incident shock CO-O exponential rates. The dilution effect is not found at H 2 :O 2 = 10, where new measurements up to T = 2400 K are made and pooled with previous rich * results to determine, for H + O 2 → k a O H + O , 1250 T 2500 K , the expression: k a = 1.22 X 10 17 T − 0.907 exp ⁡ ( − 8369 / T ) c m 3 mole − 1 sec ⁡ − 1 .
Catalytically activated palladium@platinum nanowires for accelerated hydrogen gas detection.

Platinum (Pt)-modified palladium (Pd) nanowires (or Pd@Pt nanowires) are prepared with controlled Pt coverage. These Pd@Pt nanowires are used as resistive gas sensors for the detection of hydrogen gas in air, and the influence of the Pt surface layer is assessed. Pd nanowires with dimensions of 40 nm (h) × 100 nm (w) × 50 μm (l) are first prepared using lithographically patterned nanowire electrodeposition. A thin Pt surface layer is electrodeposited conformally onto a Pd nanowire at coverages, θPt, of 0.10 monolayer (ML), 1.0 ML, and 10 ML. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy coupled with scanning electron microscopy and electrochemical measurements is consistent with a layer-by-layer deposition mode for Pt on the Pd nanowire surface. The resistance of a single Pd@Pt nanowire is measured during the exposure of these nanowires to pulses of hydrogen gas in air at concentrations ranging from 0.05 to 5.0 vol %. Both Pd nanowires and Pd@Pt nanowires show a prompt and reversible increase in resistance upon exposu...
Effects of postnatal lead acetate exposure on activity and emotionality in developing laboratory rats

At 21 days of age three groups of female hooded rats were exposed to lead at concentrations of 0 ppm, 25 ppm, or 50 ppm provided ad lib in the acetate form for 35 days in the drinking water. No significant differences were found in food consumption, lead acetate or water con sumption, and weight gain. When subjects were tested in an open-field task, no significant differences were found in either the duration or frequency of grooming or rearing behavior, or the number of squares traversed. However, significant differences in emotionality were observed. Subjects receiving 50 ppm lead acetate exhibited markedly greater emotionality when compared with subjects receiving either 25 ppm lead acetate or 0 ppm lead acetate. The results appear to indicate that postnatal lead exposure may affect some elements of emotional behavior, while having little effect on activity.
Identification of a short form of ubiquitin-specific protease 3 that is a repressor of rat glutathione S-transferase gene expression

The transcription rate and protein expression from both GSTA2 (glutathione S-transferase A2) and albumin genes decrease in rat liver after IL-6 (interleukin 6) plus DEX (dexamethasone) treatment of primary hepatocytes or after LPS (lipopolysaccharide)-induced acute-phase response in animals. The down-regulation is associated with the induced expression of a nuclear protein (termed IL6DEX-NP for IL-6/DEX-induced nuclear protein) that binds to a specific site on the promoter of GSTA2, leading to a decrease in transcriptional activity. IL6DEX-NP is not similar to other transcription factors, and, for identification, we functionally cloned it from a rat liver library using a yeast one-hybrid screen based on DNA-binding activity. The cloned sequence was a truncated form of USP3 (ubiquitin-specific protease 3) and the truncated USP3 protein in a yeast extract bound to DNA containing the IL6DEX-NP recognition sequence. Using 5'- and 3'-RACE (rapid amplification of cDNA ends), the complete sequence of USP3 was found in liver from LPS-treated rats. However, using Western blot analysis, only truncated forms of USP3 could be identified in nuclear extracts from LPS-treated rat livers. A GSTA2 promoter-reporter gene plasmid and USP3-expressing plasmids were transfected into rat hepatoma cells. Expression of the short form of USP3, but not the full-length protein, abolished expression from the reporter gene. Chromatin immunoprecipitation localized USP3 to the GSTA2 promoter in rat hepatocytes in vivo. We believe that the short form of USP3 is IL6DEX-NP and that it may play an important role in the negative regulation of proteins during the acute-phase response.
Lymphocyte Activation in Cutaneous T-Cell Lymphoma

Cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL) is a neoplasm of CD4+ T cells that includes mycosis fungoides and its leukemic variant, Sezary syndrome. The phenotype of CTCL cells and their predilection for localizing in the skin and regional lymph nodes indicate that CTCL is a neoplasm of mature, memory helper T cells belonging to the skin-associated lymphoid tissue. Experimental evidence suggests that the mechanisms of lymphocyte activation in CTCL may involve both T-cell receptor-dependent and -independent pathways. Furthermore, recent studies of the consequences of this activation have yielded several important findings. First, a dominant T-cell clone is generally present in CTCL specimens, including the earliest histologically diagnosable cutaneous patch lesions. Second, some cases of apparent chronic dermatitis harbor dominant T-cell clones. Such cases, known as “clonal dermatitis,” have been observed to develop into overt CTCL. This suggests that patients with clonal dermatitis may be at increased risk for subsequent CTCL. Third, diseases associated with CTCL, such as lymphomatoid papu-losis, large-cell lymphoma, and Hodgkin disease, arise as subclones of the original CTCL tumor and thereby share its clone-specific T-cell receptor gene rearrangements. Development of these secondary lymphoproliferative disorders appears to involve somatic mutations leading to deregulation of lymphoid activation/proliferation pathways. Fourth, CD8+ tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes present within lesions of CD4+ CTCL express a phenotype consistent with activated, major histocompatibility complex-restricted, cytotoxic T-cell differentiation. They tend to be more plentiful in early-stage disease and their proportion appears to correlate positively with improved survival, suggesting that they may exert an anti-tumor host response. J Invest Dermatol 105:105S–109S, 1995
Steroid Hormone Modulation of Hippocampal Dependent Spatial Memory

Recent studies show that the adult CNS is capable of considerable re-structuring and re-growth, a property previously thought limited to the developmental period. Hormones play an important role in many of these plastic processes, and the hippocampus, as a target for all the major classes of steroid hormones, undergoes considerable remodeling. Since it is critical for mediating tasks requiring spatial memory, the hippocampus can serve as an important model for understanding not only the mechanisms underlying plasticity of brain circuits but also how these changes impact on a higher order function, spatial memory. In this review, the effects of steroid hormones on hippocampal remodeling are discussed, and the ability of estradiol to enhance spatial memory as well as the ability of both excessive or diminished corticosteroid levels to impair spatial memory are described. The neural mechanisms for these effects, as well as previous and current contributions of McEwen and colleagues to this expanding area of research, are discussed.
Collocation for an integral equation arising in duct acoustics

A mathematical model is developed to describe the effect of aircraft-engine inlet geometry on the reflected and radiated acoustic field without flow, as studied experimentally using a spinning-mode synthesizer by Silcox (1983). The acoustic pressure in the inlet interior and exterior is modeled by a pure cylindrical azimuthal mode for the Helmholtz equation with hardwall boundary and by the Helmholtz equation and the radiation condition at infinity, respectively. The analytical approach to the solution of the resulting boundary-value problem and the program implementation are explained; numerical results are presented in tables and graphs; and the uniqueness of the problem is demonstrated.
Anti-Semitism As a Response to Perceived Jewish Power: The Cases of Bulgaria and Romania before the Holocaust

We empirically examine variation in anti-Semitic acts and attitudes in Romania and Bulgaria before the Holocaust. In Romania, where Jews comprised a large proportion of the middle class and were associated with the leadership of the communist party, anti-Semitism increased when economic conditions worsened. Further, Romanian anti-Semitism increased when the size of the Jewish population increased, but only at times when the leftist parties were gaining strength. These findings did not replicate for Bulgaria, where Jews were neither holders of significant wealth nor associated with the leadership of the communist left. The theoretical implications for anti-Semitism and for structural accounts of prejudice are discussed.
Misperceptions about Norm Misperceptions: Descriptive, Injunctive, and Affective ‘Social Norming’ Efforts to Change Health Behaviors

We have known for a long time that people are often motivated to conform to the wishes of groups. Such peer influence can shape human behavior through the creation of social norms, and the frequency of some health behaviors (e.g., alcohol use) may depend on the perception of these norms. We discuss the influence of perceived social norms, especially normative misperceptions on health behaviors. We then describe social norms campaigns that are intended to reduce risky health behaviors by ‘debiasing’ perceptions of behavioral norms, and we point out practical problems and faulty theoretical assumptions of such interventions. A better alternative might be to develop interventions that debias misperceptions of injunctive norms or affective norms, although such alternatives have not yet been adequately tested. Still, we present the theoretical grounding for these different approaches and preliminary data suggesting that they could be successful in reducing risky health behaviors.
Selective molecular recognition of arginine by anionic salt bridge formation with bis-phosphate crown ethers: implications for gas phase peptide acidity from adduct dissociation

Arginine forms a stable noncovalent anionic salt bridge complex with DP (a crown ether which contains two endocyclic dialkylhydrogenphosphate esters). Abundant adduct formation with DP is observed for complexes with arginine, YAKR, HPPGFSPFR, AAKRKAA, RR, RPPGFSPFR, RYLGYL, RGDS, and YGGFMRGL in electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) experiments. DFT calculations predict a hydrogen bonded salt bridge structure with a protonated guanidinium flanked by two deprotonated phosphates to be the lowest energy structure. Dissociation of DP/peptide adducts reveals that, in general, the relative gas phase acidity of a peptide is dependent on peptide length, with longer peptides being more acidic. In particular, peptides that are six residues or more in length can stabilize the deprotonated C-terminus by extensive hydrogen bonding with the peptide backbone. Dissociation of DP/peptide complexes often yields the deprotonated peptide, allowing for the facile formation of anionic peptides that otherwise would be difficult to generate in high abundance. Although DP has a preference for binding to arginine residues in peptides, DP is also observed to form less abundant complexes with peptides containing multiple lysines. Lys-Xxx-Lys and Lys-Lys sequences form low abundance anionic adducts with DP. For example, KKKK exclusively forms a double adduct with one net negative charge on the complex.
Phenomenological equations of state for the quark-gluon plasma

Two phenomenological models describing an $\mathrm{SU}(N)$ quark-gluon plasma are presented. The first is obtained from high temperature expansions of the free energy of a massive gluon, while the second is derived by demanding color neutrality over a certain length scale. Each model has a single free parameter, exhibits behavior similar to lattice simulations over the range ${T}_{d}\ensuremath{-}{5T}_{d},$ and has the correct blackbody behavior for large temperatures. The $N=2$ deconfinement transition is second order in both models, while $N=3, 4,$ and $5$ are first order. Both models appear to have a smooth large-N limit. For $Ng~4,$ it is shown that the trace of the Polyakov loop is insufficient to characterize the phase structure; the free energy is best described using the eigenvalues of the Polyakov loop. In both models, the confined phase is characterized by a mutual repulsion of Polyakov loop eigenvalues that makes the Polyakov loop expectation value zero. In the deconfined phase, the rotation of the eigenvalues in the complex plane towards $1$ is responsible for the approach to the blackbody limit over the range ${T}_{d}\ensuremath{-}{5T}_{d}.$ The addition of massless quarks in $\mathrm{SU}(3)$ breaks $Z(3)$ symmetry weakly and eliminates the deconfining phase transition. In contrast, a first-order phase transition persists with sufficiently heavy quarks.
Flux measurements of volatile organic compounds from an urban landscape

[1] Direct measurements of volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions that include all sources in urban areas are a missing requirement to evaluate emission inventories and constrain current photochemical modelling practices. Here we demonstrate the use of micrometeorological techniques coupled with fast-response sensors to measure urban VOC fluxes from a neighbourhood of Mexico City, where the spatial variability of surface cover and roughness is high. Fluxes of olefins, methanol, acetone, toluene and C2-benzenes were measured and compared with the local gridded emissions inventory. VOC fluxes exhibited a clear diurnal pattern with a strong relationship to vehicular traffic. Recent photochemical modelling results suggest that VOC emissions are significantly underestimated in Mexico City, but for the olefin class, toluene, C2-benzenes, and acetone fluxes measured in this work, the results show general agreement with the gridded emissions inventory. While these measurements do not address the full suite of VOC emissions, the comparison with the inventory suggests that other explanations may be needed to explain the photochemical modelling results.
Effect of Bariatric Surgery on the Metabolic Syndrome: A Population-Based, Long-term Controlled Study

OBJECTIVE To assess the effect of weight loss by bariatric surgery on the prevalence of the metabolic syndrome (MetS) and to examine predictors of MetS resolution. PATIENTS AND METHODS We performed a population-based, retrospective study of patients evaluated for bariatric surgery between January 1, 1990, and December 31, 2003, who had MetS as defined by the American Heart Association/National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (increased triglycerides, low high-density lipoprotein, increased blood pressure, increased fasting glucose, and a measure of obesity). Of these patients, 180 underwent Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, and 157 were assessed in a weight-reduction program but did not undergo surgery. We determined the change in MetS prevalence and used logistic regression models to determine predictors of MetS resolution. Mean follow-up was 3.4 years. RESULTS In the surgical group, all MetS components improved, and medication use decreased. Nonsurgical patients showed improvements in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels. After bariatric surgery, the number of patients with MetS decreased from 156 (87%) of 180 patients to 53 (29%); of the 157 nonsurgical patients, MetS prevalence decreased from 133 patients (85%) to 117 (75%). A relative risk reduction of 0.59 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.48-0.67; P P P =.003). CONCLUSION Roux-en-Y gastric bypass induces considerable and persistent improvement in MetS prevalence. Our results suggest that reversibility of MetS depends more on the amount of excess weight lost than on other parameters.
Modeling the urban land market: The case of Japan

Abstract Two sets of negative exponential functions, one for urban residential density and the second for land price, are estimated. The parameters of these functions are then employed in an econometric model of land use and urban form in 71 Japanese cities. Several variables are determined, including average land price, gross population density, housing size, and population.
Aortoiliac Dissection Due to Aortic Cannulation

Abstract A case of acute aortoiliac dissection due to cannulation of the ascending aorta for extracorporeal circulation is reported. Although this patient was proved to have cystic medial necrosis, the exact cause of the dissection is not known. It is suggested that insertion of the cannula perpendicular to the aorta with penetration of all aortic layers may help to minimize this problem. Other patients with dissection of the ascending aorta are reviewed, and the central role of cystic medial necrosis as a causative factor is stressed.
Time-series analysis in cyclic stratigraphy: An example from the Cretaceous of the Southern Alps, Italy

The importance of time-series analysis in cyclic stratigraphy is evaluated by comparing three different methods (adaptive multiple taper spectral analysis, auto-/cross-correlation analysis, cova functions) applied to stratigraphic time series from the Early Cretaceous Cismon section in northern Italy. Carbonate content and magnetic susceptibility vary in a quasi-cyclic fashion in this pelagic limestone section and are almost perfectly negatively correlated. The spectral technique requires a high degree of preprocessing of the original data (interpolation and resampling at a regular interval, filtering, inversion) which introduces smoothing and rounding errors. The statistical correlation analysis also requires evenly and (for cross-correlation) correspondingly spaced series. The geostatistical cova functions (a generalization of the cross-variogram) prove to be the most versatile and robust of the methods compared. Cova functions can be calculated from unevenly and noncor-respondingly spaced time series without any preprocessing. This method also retains relatively more of the signal if noise and extreme outliers obscure the picture. The periodicities detected in the Cismon time series fall in the range of Milankovitch cycles. Cycle periods of 45 cm and 80 cm likely correspond to dominant precession and obliquity cycles. Due to the inaccuracy of the Cretaceous time scale periods cannot be matched exactly yet, but cycle ratios are close to expected ratios so that there is great potential for future cyclostratigraphic work to contribute to a substantial improvement of the geologic time scale.