cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Productivity and food value of Amaranthus cruentus under non-lethal salt stress.

Experiments were carried out to analyze the effects of increasing salinity stress on growth, photosynthesis, and carbon allocation in the crop plant Amaranthus. Plants were germinated and grown in Hoagland's solution with NaCl concentrations of 0 to 1.0 percent. The limits of total salinity in the plant growth medium are investigated. For Amaranthus cruentus, germination, vegetative growth, flowering, seed development and yield were normal at salinities from 0 to 0.2 percent. Inhibition of these phases increased from o.2 to 0.4 percent salinity and was total above 0.5 percent with 1 percent salinity was lethal to all developmental phases. Onset of growth phases were not affected by salinity. Plants could not be adapted by gradually increasing salinity over days or weeks. Water uptake increased, while photosynthetic CO2 uptake decreased with increasing salinity on a dry weight basis during vegetative growth. Protein levels were unchanged with increasing salinity. Leaf starch levels were lower at salinities of 0.5 percent and above, while stem starch levels were not affected by these salinities. The evidence supports salt inhibition arising frm changes in primary biochemical processes rather than from effects on water relations. While not addressing the toxic effects of specific ions, it suggests that moderate salinity per se need not be a problem in space systems.
Rescue of synthetic analogs of genome RNA of human parainfluenza virus type 3.

Abstract A simple system that allows expression and packaging of a foreign gene by human parainfluenza virus type 3 (HPIV-3) has been described. First, a cDNA was constructed to encode an internally deleted version of HPIV-3 genome RNA. The viral genes were replaced with a negative sense copy of the bacterial chloramphenicol acetyl transferase (CAT) reporter gene. In vitro run-off transcription with T7 RNA polymerase synthesized an 870 nucleotide RNA that contained the antisense coding region of the CAT gene flanked by the transcription regulatory sequences and the 3′ and 5′ end extracistronic sequences of the HPIV-3 genome. When introduced into cells that are infected with HPIV-3, this RNA was amplified and the reporter gene was expressed, as measured by the CAT activity in the cell extract. Furthermore, the synthetic RNA was packaged into infectious virions. The addition of two extra nucleotides at the 5′ end of the parental trailer region decreased the CAT activity by more than 90%, suggesting a requirement for the intact 5′-regulatory domain in the viral replicative cycle. Interestingly, the addition of one extra nucleotide to the 3′ end totally abolished the CAT activity indicating that an exact 3′ terminus is critical in this process.
Fast computation of DFT of 2-D data with symmetry about two diagonals

A fast algorithm to compute the DFT of a diagonally symmetric 2-D array is presented. The algorithm is developed employing the techniques of the multidimensional Winograd Fourier transform algorithm. First, the derivation of the algorithm is presented for quadrantally symmetric 2-D data of size N*N, where N is a prime number. Then a method of converting diagonally symmetric 2-D data and its transform into quadrantally symmetric data and its transform is derived. This is then used to develop the fast symmetry-based algorithm for the DFT of diagonally symmetric data. The new algorithm reduces the required number of multiplications and additions by about 70% for quadrantally or diagonally symmetric 2-D data. >
Cross-layer path computation for dynamic traffic grooming: in mesh WDM optical networks

Traffic grooming in wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) optical networks is an operation to consolidate multiple low-speed traffic streams onto high-speed lightpaths. Traffic grooming of dynamic traffic over a dynamic logical topology, where lightpaths (logical links) are dynamically set up and torn down, is called dynamic traffic grooming, where a major task is to find a path (a list of adjacent lightpaths) in the dynamic logical topology to carry an incoming call. Dynamic traffic grooming is a significant issue in WDM optical networks due to the customer's need of the "bandwidth-on-demand" service. This paper studies path computation in dynamic traffic grooming, using various link cost functions. We propose a path computation approach utilizing the resource usage information in both logical and physical layers. We have evaluated the performance of this cross layer path computation approach, compared with the approach using the resource usage information in the logical layer only. The numerical results show that the cross layer path computation approach can achieve 10% - 20% lower blocking probability.
Modeling Free Energies of Solvation in Olive Oil

Olive oil partition coefficients are useful for modeling the bioavailability of drug-like compounds. We have recently developed an accurate solvation model called SM8 for aqueous and organic solvents (Marenich, A. V.; Olson, R. M.; Kelly, C. P.; Cramer, C. J.; Truhlar, D. G. J. Chem. Theory Comput. 2007, 3, 2011) and a temperature-dependent solvation model called SM8T for aqueous solution (Chamberlin, A. C.; Cramer, C. J.; Truhlar, D. G. J. Phys. Chem. B 2008, 112, 3024). Here we describe an extension of SM8T to predict air−olive oil and water−olive oil partitioning for drug-like solutes as functions of temperature. We also describe the database of experimental partition coefficients used to parametrize the model; this database includes 371 entries for 304 compounds spanning the 291−310 K temperature range.
Preventing Violence and Terrorism and Promoting Positive Relations Between Dutch and Muslim Communities in Amsterdam

Many Western European countries have seen increasing tension between local communities and immigrant groups, especially Muslims, with mutual grievances. These tensions have been more apparent and stronger since 9/11/2001. Intensified by further terrorist attacks, the war on terror, and the fear of terrorism, negative attitudes toward Muslim populations have been increasing. While relevant to many European countries, this article focuses on the conditions and relationships between groups in the Netherlands, particularly in Amsterdam. Drawing on past work on the roots and prevention of violence and reconciliation between groups and on field experience, the article offers proposals to prevent violence and support for terrorism and foster positive group relations, such as humanizing other groups, dialogue and other practices to promote inclusive in the place of destructive ideologies, psychological healing from past woundedness, promoting pluralism, contact between groups, and the exploration of shared histor...
Acute diaphragmatic hernia from blunt trauma in children

Abstract A child with an acute traumatic rupture of the diaphragm is presented who underwent successful transabdominal repair. Problems in diagnosis and management are discussed together with a brief survey of the literature concerning this rare entity.
Performance and hot-electron reliability of deep-submicron MOSFET's

A study of the performance and hot-electron reliability of submicron n-channel MOSFET's is presented. Well-established hot-electron-based physical models are adequate in explaining the general behaviors of the drain, substrate, and gate currents of these devices. These results suggest that the basic physics is rather well-understood and the design criteria developed for micron-size devices can be extended to cover their deep-submicron counterparts. Hot-electron studies reveal a channel-length dependence in device degradation. This phenomenon together with gate-induced drain leakage current [1] will impose an upper limit on the supply voltage and a lower limit on the gate oxide thickness. Based on device degradation results alone, the power supply voltage for a quarter-micron device with oxide thickness of 86 A should be limited to 2.5 V if no degradation-resistant structure is used.
Monetary policy games with broad money targets a linear quadratic control analysis of the U.S. and Japan

Abstract This paper compares the different outcomes, from noncooperative and cooperative equilibria, when the Federal Reserve and the Bank of Japan follow monetary policies based on broad money-supply targets. The analysis is an application of stochastic linear quadratic control methods, and combines vector-autoregressive models with forward-looking efficient market models for asset prices. The results indicate that the use of broad money targets bring significant welfare gains to both countries, in terms of reduced volatility of nominal income, broad money, exchange rates, and asset prices. However, there appears to be little difference between cooperative and noncooperative monetary policy arrangements.
Successful Immunization of an Allogeneic Bone Marrow Transplant Recipient with Live, Attenuated Yellow Fever Vaccine

Vaccination against yellow fever is effective, but available live virus vaccines are not recommended for use in immunocompromised or elderly patients. We report the successful and uneventful immunization of a 62-year-old man with a history of allogeneic bone marrow transplant and discuss evidence for this recommendation.
Human deltex is a conserved regulator of Notch signalling

A fundamental cell-fate control mechanism regulating multicellular development is defined by the Notch-signalling pathway1. Developmental and genetic studies of wild type and activated Notch-receptor expression in diverse organisms suggest that Notch plays a general role in development by governing the ability of undifferentiated precursor cells to respond to specific signals1,2. Notch signalling has been conserved throughout evolution and controls the differentiation of a broad spectrum of cell types during development1–3. Genetic studies in Drosophila have led to the identification of several components of the Notch pathway1. Two of the positive regulators of the pathway are encoded by the suppressor of hairless [Su(H)] and deltex (dx) genes5–8. Drosophila dx encodes a ubiquitous, novel cyto-plasmic protein of unknown biochemical function9. We have cloned a human deltex homologue and characterized it in parallel with its Drosophila counterpart in biochemical assays to assess deltex function. Both human and Drosophila deltex bind to Notch across species and carry putative SH3-binding domains. Using the yeast interaction trap system, we find that Drosophila and human deltex bind to the human SH3-domain containing protein Grb2 (ref. 10). Results from two different reporter assays allow us for the first time to associate deltex with Notch-dependent transcriptional events. We present evidence linking deltex to the modulation of basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcription factor activity.
Secretin modulation of behavioral and physiological functions in the rat

The effect of secretin on behavioral and physiological functions in the rat was investigated. Secretin injected intracerebroventricularly (ICV) significantly increased defecation and decreased novel-object approaches in rats. The peptide showed no significant effects on stereotypic behavior (gnawing, grooming and rearing), open-field locomotor activity however was significantly decreased, an effect that was probably due to a decreased propensity for the rats to initiate locomotor responses. In addition, secretin showed significant effects on respiration rate in anesthetized rats. When the peptide was injected in the lateral ventricle a decrease in respiration rate occurred, but when the brain was perfused from the lateral ventricle to the cisterna magna increases in respiration rate occurred. These data, combined with the facts that secretin and secretin receptors have been identified in the brain indicate that secretin may play a neurotransmitter or neuroregulator role in the central nervous system.
Development and applications of a standard visual index

Abstract A standard visual index appropriate for characterizing visibility through uniform hazes, is defined in terms of either of the traditional metrics: visual range or extinction coefficient. This index was designed to be linear with respect to perceived visual changes over its entire range in a way that is analogous to the decibel scale for sound. Neither visual range nor extinction coefficient have this useful property, which has resulted in their misuse for some applications. By assuming the availability of sensitive scenic targets at every distance, it can be demonstrated that any specific fractional change in extinction coefficient (or visual range) is equally perceptible regardless of baseline visibility conditions. The new index is defined so that its scale, which is expressed in deciview (dv), is linear with respect to fractional changes in extinction coefficient, bexv as 10 In(bext/0.01 km−1 ), where extinction coefficient is expressed in km−1. A I dv change is about a 10% change in extinction coefficient, which is a small but perceptible scenic change under many circumstances. Since the deciview scale is near zero for a pristine atmosphere (dv=0 for Rayleigh conditions at about 1.8 km elevation) and increases as visibility is degraded, it measures perceived haziness. Use of the deciview scale in visibility perception and benefits research will promote improved study design and more appropriate use of results. It should also allow the visibility consequences of alternative air pollutionrelated decisions to be more easily presented and evaluated.
Calorimeter prediction based on multiple exponentials

Calorimetry allows very precise measurements of nuclear material to be carried out, but it also requires relatively long measurement times to do so. The ability to accurately predict the equilibrium response of a calorimeter would significantly reduce the amount of time required for calorimetric assays. An algorithm has been developed that is effective at predicting the equilibrium response. This multi-exponential prediction algorithm is based on an iterative technique using commercial fitting routines that fit a constant plus a variable number of exponential terms to calorimeter data. Details of the implementation and the results of trials on a large number of calorimeter data sets will be presented.
Wegener's granulomatosis involving the breast: Report of three cases and review of the literature

Three cases of necrotizing granulomatous vasculitis of the Wegener's type involving the breast are described. In each, the presumed diagnosis was localized or metastatic carcinoma. The breast lesion and other manifestations of Wegener's granulomatosis developed concomitantly in one patient, and the breast lesion appeared several months before classic pulmonary symptoms in another. In the third patient, not only were her upper and lower airway symptoms explained only in retrospect, but even the significance of the breast biopsy findings was clarified only after other aspects of Wegener's granulomatosis developed. All patients ultimately demonstrated a good response to corticosteroids and cyclophosphamide therapy. Wegener's granulomatosis is a rare lesion affecting the breast but should nonetheless be considered in the evaluation of any breast mass.
On the Use of Two-Dimensional Incompressible Flow to Study Secondary Eyewall Formation in Tropical Cyclones

Abstract Previous studies have offered hypotheses for the mechanisms that lead to secondary eyewall formation in tropical cyclones by using two-dimensional incompressible flow. Those studies represented the convection-induced vorticity field as either large but weak vortices that are the same sign as the tropical cyclone core or as purely asymmetric vorticity perturbations that are an order of magnitude weaker than the core. However, both observations and full-physics simulations of tropical cyclones indicate that the convection-induced vorticity field should also include clusters of small vorticity dipoles whose magnitude is comparable to that of the high-vorticity core. Results of numerical simulations indicate that the interaction between the tropical cyclone core vortex and the convection-induced small vorticity dipoles of considerable strength in two-dimensional flow does not lead to coherent concentric vorticity ring formation. The axisymmetrization process under the simplification of two-dimensiona...
Differential Regulation of Natriuresis by 20-Hydroxyeicosatetraenoic Acid in Human Salt-Sensitive Versus Salt-Resistant Hypertension

Background— Twenty-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (20-HETE) is a cytochrome P450 metabolite of arachidonic acid that produces vasoconstriction and inhibition of renal tubular sodium transport. In Dahl rats, a 20-HETE deficiency plays a role in salt-sensitive (SS) hypertension. In humans, there are no data on regulation of 20-HETE by salt intake or on a role for this compound in SS hypertension. Methods and Results— Thirteen salt-resistant (SR) and 13 SS hypertensive subjects had urine 20-HETE excretion measured during salt-loading and depletion. In all patients, 20-HETE was 66.6% higher in the salt-replete (1.75±0.25 μg/h) than in the salt-depleted state (1.05±0.16, P<0.003). There was no difference in 20-HETE excretion between SR and SS patients in either state of salt balance. In SR patients, sodium excretion during salt-loading correlated with 20-HETE (r=0.61, P<0.03) but not with blood pressure. In contrast, in SS patients, sodium excretion did not correlate with 20-HETE but did correlate with blood pre...
A simplified stability test for 1-D discrete systems

Abstract This paper shows that the stability tests for 1-D discrete systems using the transformation p=(z+z−1) and properties of Chebyshev polynomials developed previously can be directly obtained from the z-domain continued fraction expansion based on the functions (z+1) and (z−1+1) on an alternate basis. Furthermore, it is shown that the root distribution of a polynomial with real coefficient can be determined by the same algorithm.
Rotational Fine Structure in the Dimer Spectrum of HF

The regions of absorption recently reported by D. F. Smith and ascribed to the HF dimer have been re-examined with a vacuum grating spectrometer. It has been observed that these regions resolve into fine structure. The results of this investigation are given in this paper.
Aging in the acellular slime moldDidymium iridis: Temperature and nutritional effects

Abstract The temperature limits for the growth of Hon 1 strain Didymium iridis plasmodia are 14 to 26° C and within these limits there is a general trend of decreased life span with increased temperature. However, nutritional variations consisting of changes in the bacterial associate and in the amount and kind of grain supplied have no significant effect upon life span.
Asymptotic tests and monte carlo studies associated with the multiplicative interaction model

Several authors have proposed approximations to percentage points required for testing certain hypotheses associated with the multiplicative interaction model. Alternative approximations based on the asymptotic joint distribution of the characteristic roots of a noncentral Wishart matrix are proposed in this paper. The type I error rates of the resulting tests and the existing procedures are then compared using Monte Carlo methods.
Process Tomography: An Option for the Enhancement of Packed Vapor−Liquid Contactor Model Development

A multitude of packed vapor−liquid contactor mass-transfer and hydraulic models exist in the literature. With few exceptions, the development of these models has been based on a very limited understanding of the microscale hydraulic phenomena inside the contacting column. Recently, the use of X-ray tomography has been shown to be an effective technique for imaging flow patterns in multiphase contactors. This paper describes the potential benefits that X-ray tomography analysis can bring to the understanding and modeling of the vapor−liquid contacting process. The technology has significant potential for enhancing the prediction of both mass-transfer efficiency and packing pressure drop of commercial packed columns.
Efficient interpreter optimizations for the JVM

The Java virtual machine is a popular target for many language implementers. Due to the unusually poor performance of hosted interpreters, many programming language implementers resort to implementing a custom compiler that emits Java bytecode instead. We studied performance of these hosted interpreters targeting the JVM and identified common bottlenecks preventing their efficient execution. First, similar to interpreters written in C/C++, instruction dispatch is expensive on the JVM. Second, Java's array semantics dictate expensive runtime exception checks, which negatively affect array performance essential to interpreters.We present two optimizations targeting these bottlenecks and show that the performance of the optimized interpreters increases dramatically: we report speedups by a factor of up to 2.45 over the Jython interpreter, and 3.57 over the Rhino interpreter respectively. Furthermore, the performance attained through our optimizations is comparable with custom compiler performance. We provide an easily accessible annotation-based interface to enable our optimizations. Thus, interpreter implementers can expect substantial performance boosts in a matter of hours of implementation effort.
A Field Study on the Influence of Verticillium dahliae and Pratylenchus penetrans on Gas Exchange of Potato.

ABSTRACT Field experiments were conducted for three consecutive years to study the effects of low populations of Verticillium dahliae and Pratylenchus penetrans on leaf gas exchange of Russet Burbank potato. Treatments were P. penetrans, V. dahliae, the combination of the nematode with the fungus, and a no-pathogen control. Gas exchange was measured nondestructively on young, fully expanded, asymptomatic leaves one to three times per week starting the ninth week after planting. Infection with either pathogen alone had little or no effect on leaf gas exchange parameters. However, co-infection by both pathogens resulted in reduced leaf light use efficiency (mole of CO2 fixed per mole of photon), lower leaf stomatal conductance, lower leaf water use efficiency (mole of CO2 fixed per mole of water used), and increased intercellular CO2 compared with the no-pathogen control. These effects, additive relative to the impact of each pathogen alone, were first observed 9 weeks after inoculation in the first 2 years...
Experimental and numerical investigation of large-bore engines port discharge coefficients

AbstractThis paper describes experimental and numerical investigations of the discharge coefficients from the ports in large-bore two-stroke cycle engines. The literature includes some information on the discharge coefficients from very small ports. The literature was found not to include data collected from very large ports, such as in Cooper, Clark, and Worthington two-stroke cycle engines.The methodology used was to conduct experimental tests and numerical simulations. In the experiments, a flow bench was designed to determine experimentally the discharge coefficients of three primary large-bore engine ports. The obtained data show that there is a considerable difference between the discharge coefficients of the three primary engines used in the natural gas industry. Furthermore, the data substantially differ from the thin-walled discharge coefficient data of the small-port engines reported in the literature.The numerical model was employed to study the effects of the pressure ratio across the Worthing...
An extended capability architecture to enforce dynamic access control policies

Capability has been widely used as a fundamental mechanism for access control in distributed systems. When an object manager receives a capability from a user process for accessing an object, it verifies the genuineness of the capability and checks whether the access request is allowed with the access rights placed on the capability. Capabilities have been recognized to be more suitable than centralized access control lists for object protection in a distributed system because of several obvious reasons. However, most existing capability based systems can only enforce static access control policies, which means all the access privileges a user possesses for an object are fully represented by a capability and will not change due to object access. These capability systems cannot be used to enforce dynamic access control policies, required by many complex applications, in which each authorization may depend upon a user's access history and/or an object's history of being accessed. The paper proposes an extended capability architecture to enforce dynamic access control policies both effectively and efficiently. The key issue is how to capture the dynamic access information in both capabilities and object managers while avoiding main disadvantages of centralized access control lists. A number of frequently desired security policies are used to demonstrate the power and flexibility of the proposed architecture. The problems regarding capability management including propagation, revocation, and distribution of capabilities are also discussed.
Detailed Analysis of Clinicopathologic Factors Demonstrate Distinct Difference in Outcome and Prognostic Factors Between Surgically Treated HPV-Positive and Negative Oropharyngeal Cancer.

Background Oropharyngeal cancers (OPC) secondary to human papillomavirus (HPV) infections likely represent a completely different disease compared with conventional head and neck cancers. Our objective was to analyze a surgically treated cohort to determine predictors of outcome in HPV-positive versus HPV-negative patients.
Serial measurement of Epstein-Barr viral load in peripheral blood in pediatric liver transplant recipients during treatment for posttransplant lymphoproliferative disease

Background. Few data are available describing the natural history of the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) viral load after the diagnosis of EBV-associated posttransplant lymphoproliferative disease (PTLD). Accordingly, we prospectively followed the EBV viral load after the diagnosis of EBV/PTLD in seven pediatric orthotopic liver transplant recipients. Methods. EBV viral loads were serially measured by quantitative competitive polymerase chain reaction of the peripheral blood from pediatric patients with PTLD and correlated with the clinical course of these children. Viral loads >200 genome copies/10 5 peripheral blood lymphocytes were considered consistent with an increased risk of PTLD. Viral loads 200 were considered evidence of virologic rebound.' Results. The mean EBV viral load at the time of diagnosis of PTLD was 1029. All patients cleared their EBV viral load during the treatment of PTLD; patient and graft survival in this series was 100%. The mean time to clearance of EBV from the peripheral blood (18.8 days) was similar to the mean time to onset of first rejection (13.8 days). EBV viral load at the time of diagnosis of rejection after PTLD was always 200 was noted in five of seven patients a median of 3.5 months (range 2.3-13 months) after the diagnosis of EBV/PTLD. However, none of these children has had any evidence of PTLD recurrence. Conclusions. Clearance of the EBV viral load from the peripheral blood seems to correlate with restoration of the host's immune response as noted both by the regression of the PTLD and the onset of rejection. Late rebound of the EBV viral load is common and does not seem to predict disease recurrence.
Of mice, men and nanoparticle biocoronas: are in vitro to in vivo correlations and interspecies extrapolations realistic?

A great deal of research on the potential bio­ logical effects and biodistribution of nano­ materials in humans are inferred from in vitro cell culture studies or in vivo rodent models. A common theme emerging in predicting nanoparticle biological effects is the role of the protein corona. However, to link these data to what occurs in humans requires the use of extrapolation techniques that take into account species­specific physiology, such as the basal metabolic rate that drives most biodis­ tribution and elimination processes. Forma­ tion and stabilization of nanoparticle protein coronas are independent of these physiological rates, making simple extrapolations theoreti­ cally problematic. Similarly, if nanoparticle biocorona complexes determine in vivo bio­ distribution, how does one extrapolate in vitro cell culture data, where coronas may be fun­ damentally different or even absent, to in vivo data, where they are deterministic. Currently, simple extrapolation strategies used in phar­ macology and toxicology studies cannot com­ pensate for these processes. The development of mechanistic physiologically based pharma­ cokinetic models could incorporate these pro­ cesses if appropriate data were available. These issues have not been adequately considered by the nanomedicine or nanotoxicology commu­ nity, and are even ignored in current risk assess­ ment paradigms, yet are crucial for making biologically meaningful extrapolations. Recent research has made the formation of nanoparticle protein coronas an essen­ tial component in describing nanoparticle biodistribution in the body [1–3]. This has long been recognized to occur with particle opsonization and has been a major factor driving pharmaceutical strategies to avoid this process (e.g., PEGylation) [4]. However, the latest studies have described a more complex
Causality in Political Networks

Investigations of American politics have increasingly turned to analyses of political networks to understand public opinion, voting behavior, the diffusion of policy ideas, bill sponsorship in the legislature, interest group coalitions and influence, party factions, institutional development, and other empirical phenomena. While the association between political networks and political behavior is well established, clear causal inferences are often difficult to make. This article consists of five independent essays that address practical problems in making causal inferences from studies of political networks. They consider egocentric studies of national probability samples, sociocentric studies of political communities, measurement error in elite surveys, field experiments on networks, and triangulating on causal processes.
Spatial and Temporal Dynamics of Mitochondrial Membrane Permeability Waves during Apoptosis

Change in the permeability of the mitochondrial membrane to proteins (cytochrome c and Smac) and protons is a critical step in apoptosis. Although the time from the induction of apoptosis to the change of mitochondrial permeability is variable over a period of hours, the release of proteins is an “all or none” phenomenon that is completed in an individual cell within minutes. Here, using single-cell fluorescence microscopy, we show that the release of cytochrome c from a single mitochondrion occurs in a single step. However, this increased permeability of the outer membrane to cytochrome c propagates throughout the cell as a slower, spatially coordinated wave. The permeability of the outer membrane to Smac propagates with the same spatial pattern but lagging in time. This is followed by a wave of increased permeability of the inner membrane to protons. Only afterward do the mitochondria fission. The spatial dependence of the permeability wave was inhibited by thapsigargin, an inhibitor of the endoplasmic reticulum calcium pumps, but buffering cytosolic calcium had no effect. These results show that the trigger for apoptosis is spatially localized, initiating at one or only a few mitochondria preceding the loss of mitochondrial energetics, and the subsequent temporal propagation of mitochondrial membrane permeability is calcium-dependent.
Time-dependent changes in cocaine-seeking behavior and extracellular dopamine levels in the amygdala during cocaine withdrawal

Cocaine and cocaine-associated cues elicit craving in addicts and reinstate cocaine-seeking behavior in rats. Craving and cocaine-seeking behavior may be mediated by withdrawal-induced changes in dopamine (DA) neurotransmission in the amygdala. To examine whether there are concomittant changes in cocaine-seeking behavior and extracellular DA levels during withdrawal, experimental rats were trained to self-administer cocaine (0.75 mg/kg IV). After 14 daily 3-hour training sessions, animals underwent either a 1-day, 1-week, or 1-month withdrawal period. Extracellular DA levels were assessed during baseline, extinction, cue reinstatement, and cocaine (15 mg/kg IP) reinstatement of cocaine-seeking behavior (i.e., defined as the difference in nonreinforced lever presses on an active minus inactive lever). Cocaine-seeking behavior became more intense during the course of cocaine withdrawal. Additionally, basal and cocaine-induced extracellular DA levels were enhanced after the 1-month withdrawal period. We suggest that the former may reflect a persistent elevation in tonic extracellular DA levels in the amygdala, whereas the latter may reflect a persistent elevation in phasic extracellular DA levels.
Network Coding in Cooperative Communications: Friend or Foe?

A major benefit of employing network coding (NC) in cooperative communications (CCs) is its ability to reduce time-slot overhead. Such approach is called network-coded CC (or NC-CC). Most of the existing works have mainly focused on exploiting this benefit without considering its potential adverse effect. In this paper, we show that NC may not always benefit CC. We substantiate this important finding with two important scenarios: employing analog network coding (ANC) in amplify-and-forward (AF) CC, and digital network coding (DNC) in decode-and-forward (DF) CC. For both scenarios, we introduce the important concept of network coding noise (NC noise). We analyze the origin of this noise via a careful study of signal aggregation at a relay node and signal extraction at a destination node. We derive a closed-form expression for NC noise at each destination node and show that the existence of NC noise could diminish the advantage of NC in CC. Our results shed new light on how to use NC in CC most effectively.
Calculation of Nonlinear Optical Damage from Space-time-tailored Pulses in Dielectrics

Control of the time duration of a laser pulse as it focuses spatially in a material provides a means for delaying the onset of nonlinear effects during propagation. We investigate simultaneous space-time focusing (SSTF) of femtosecond radially-chirped annular pulses in Kerr dielectrics. The energy and temporal chirp of pulses incident upon a grating-grating-lens system are varied in simulations that solve the unidirectional pulse propagation equation. This system is modeled by inserting transformations that act on the electric field obtained from propagation from one component to the next. The propagation is coupled to the time evolution of the free charge density as a function of space. The resulting “ionization tracks” are taken as a metric for predicting material modification and/or damage in bulk fused silica. As expected from linear-optical considerations, the temporal pre-chirp determines the overall pulse duration as the focusing annulus closes. We find in addition that, for a given pulse energy, the temporal pre-chirp also determines the on-axis intensity distribution as energy collapses onto the propagation axis. This effect determines how the local ionization-induced decrease in refractive index shifts energy in time relative to energy arriving on-axis from the spatially collapsing beam. The magnitude of the pre-chirp can thus control the spatial structure of ionization that may lead to material modification and/or damage.
Constructive Controversy: Theory, Research, Practice

1. Need for constructive controversy? 2. The nature of constructive controversy 3. Theory of constructive controversy 4. The processes of constructive controversy and concurrence seeking 5. The outcomes of constructive controversy 6. Conditions mediating the effects of constructive controversy 7. Constructive controversy and decision making 8. Constructive controversy in education 9. Constructive controversy and political discourse in democracies 10. Constructive controversy, creativity, and innovation 11. Constructive controversy and building and maintaining peace 12. Conclusions.
Correlation Force Spectroscopy

The main advantage of correlation force spectroscopy (CFS) over atomic force microscopy (AFM) is that the thermal noise in the cross-correlation between two cantilevers (CFS design) is much smaller than the thermal noise in the autocorrelation of a single cantilever (AFM design). In this chapter, this is examined experimentally.
Book Review: The Ethic of Modern Legal Ethics

Wolfram's Modern Legal Ethics offers a systematic moral and legal analysis of nearly every aspect of lawyer conduct.
Exaggerated carbohydrate-induced calciuria in the remaining kidney of transplant donors

Exaggerated carbohydrate-induced calciuria in the remaining kidney of transplant donors. Calcium excretion by the remaining kidney of transplant donors must double in order to maintain homeostasis, assuming that calcium accession from gut and bone is unaltered following unilateral nephrectomy. We have performed clearance studies on 12 donors and six normal subjects in order to characterize the pattern of calcium excretion by the remaining donor kidney as compared to normals, and to determine if an alteration in the calciuric response to carbohydrate ingestion occurs in this setting. Urinary calcium excretion in the remaining donor kidney exceeded that of one kidney in normals by approximately two-fold. Increased excretion was due to an increase in filtered load of calcium associated with an increase in fractional excretion. A similar increase in the rates of magnesium, phosphate, sodium and potassium excretion was also observed in donor kidneys. Following ingestion of 150 g of glucose, the maximum absolute increment in the rate of donor kidney calcium excretion was 108% greater than that observed in each kidney of normals. Also, there was an associated accentuation of the normal carbohydrate-induced effect upon magnesium and potassium excretion. Thus, the remaining kidney of transplant donors maintains homeostasis by doubling solute excretion. In addition, the observed exaggerated effect of carbohydrate ingestion on calcium as well as magnesium and potassium excretion is suggestive of altered metabolic activity within adapted nephrons of the remaining donor kidney.
Cycles of Queen Size and Abundance in a Population of Vespula maculifrons (Hymenoptera: Vespidae)

Annual counts of eastern yellowjacket, Vespula maculifrons (Buysson), colonies in a Delaware woodlot in 1965–82 exhibited a statistically significant, 2-yr cycle of abundance. In 1976–80 the mean size of queen cells also exhibited an apparent 2-yr cycle. When queen cell size was up, colony abundance was down and vice versa. This is the first quantitative evidence of variation in a queen characteristic that may be linked to the familiar cycles of yellowjacket abundance.
Bioactivity-guided isolation and purification of α-glucosidase inhibitor, 6-O-D-glycosides, from Tinta Cão grape pomace.

Bioactivity-guided fractionation methods were used to identify and purify active components in Tinta Cao grape pomace extract (GPE) that inhibit intestinal α-glucosidases. One active α-glucosidase inhibitor and one new natural product determined as 6-O-(p-coumaroyl)-D-glucopyranoside and methyl 6-O-(p-coumaroyl)-β-D-galactopyranoside, respectively, were isolated from GPE that were previously shown to potently inhibit α-glucosidase. Analysis of the relationship between structures and activity suggested that C1-OH of saccharide moiety in phenolic glycosides is necessary for this potent inhibition of intestinal α-glucosidases for the potential development of a novel anti-hyperglycaemic dietary supplement.
New Pneumococcal Carriage Acquired in Association with Acute Respiratory Infection Is Prone to Cause Otitis Media

For considering vaccine-prevention of pneumococcal acute otitis media (PncAOM), relationships between pneumococcal carriage, respiratory infection and PncAOM need to be understood. We analyzed nasopharyngeal samples collected from 329 unvaccinated Finnish children aged 2–24 months at scheduled visits and at visits during respiratory infection in 1994–97. We assessed temporal associations of respiratory infection with pneumococcal acquisition and whether PncAOM hazard depends on the relative timing of acquisition and the infection onset. The data comprised 607 person-years of risk-time for acquisition, 245 person-months of concurrent respiratory infection and carriage, and 119 episodes of PncAOM. The acquisition hazard was 3-fold in the month preceding respiratory sickness (hazard ratio, HR 3.5, 90% credible interval CI 2.9, 4.1) as compared to acquisition in healthy children. Moreover, the PncAOM hazard was markedly higher (HR 3.7, 90% CI 2.4, 5.3) during the first month of carriage acquired around the acute phase of respiratory infection (between 1 month before and 1 week after the sickness onset), as compared to carriage acquired later during sickness. The high proportion (76%) of PncAOM events occurring within 1 month of acquisition was due to frequent acquisition being associated with respiratory infection as well as the susceptibility of such acquisition to cause otitis media.
Intravaginal environment. I. A. lethal factor.

A study of the intravaginal factor lethal to human spermatozoa was conducted by using a sample of lethal factor study group of 17 couples with persistently negative Sims-Huhner test (the test was negative when postcoital examination of the ovulatory cervical mucus indicated a total absence of spermatozoa or if present were immobile). The procedure involved isolating the lethal factor was described in detail. In 15 couples the factor was found in the female partners intravaginal environment while in the 2 couples remaining the factor was found in the female partners ovulatory cervical mucus. The biochemical definition of the lethal factor has not been definitely established yet. Further research is in order to shed more light on the lethal factor from the conceptive and contraceptive points of view.
Growth-to-Moral-Maturity/Soul-Growth Defence

Two variants of what might be called the ‘soul-growth defence’ are discussed in this chapter: Keith Yandell’s growth-to-moral-maturity defence, because he offers it as a specification of the GGD, and John Hick’s soul-growth defence, because his account of it is the locus classicus of this defence. The focus of the former is narrower, at least the terminology suggests a more limiting domain, viz., moral growth or maturity, whereas Hick’s defence includes the moral, spiritual, and intellectual dimensions.
Recent damaging events on alluvial fans along a stretch of the Tyrrhenian coast of Calabria (southern Italy)

Debris flow and flood phenomena constitute the main natural hazards on alluvial fans. These processes, often occurring during intense rainfall events, may put many communities living on fan surfaces at high risk. This article focuses on an area along the Tyrrhenian coast of Calabria (southern Italy) where a set of mountain front alluvial fans has developed on the narrow coastal plain. This area has been heavily exploited, and tourism constitutes an important source of income. Rainfall events occurring in 2009, 2010 and 2011, albeit not significantly intense, induced debris flows endangering the population and damaging private property and infrastructures. The analysis highlighted that in the study area the risk due to debris flow and the vulnerability of the area have increased as a consequence of both the reactivation of construction processes in the alluvial fan feeder basin and the intense development of human activities in the same areas. The construction of protection facilities and the loss of the historical accounts of past catastrophic events have encouraged this development. Given the characteristics of the study area, the choice and design of the most appropriate measures need particular attention.
Regulation of Vertebrate Left-Right Axis Development by Calcium

Publisher Summary Vertebrates exhibit an extensive asymmetry of the internal organs with respect to the left–right axis that is established during embryogenesis and persists in the mature organism. In several vertebrate models, calcium has been found to play an essential role in left–right patterning. This chapter discusses the conserved and divergent mechanisms regulating left–right axis development in vertebrate model organisms, and describes the role of calcium at different steps in this process. Calcium levels have been proposed to modulate dynein-regulated microtubule sliding, and thereby affect the waveform of Clamydomonas flagella and the motility of sea-urchin sperm flagella. Since CaMKII is known to be an important component of calcium signaling in zebrafish left right (LR) development, it is possible that CaMKII directly or indirectly regulates dynein activity in KV cilia. Alternatively, proper calcium homeostasis and signaling might be required for the biogenesis of ultrastructurally normal motile KV cilia. Studies indicate that it is possible that increased intracellular calcium might stimulate production of a currently unknown left-sided determinant, or enhance the activity of a particular signaling pathway. Given the ease of forward and reverse genetic techniques in the zebrafish, it is likely to serve as an excellent model for future studies aiming to tease out the intermediates between asymmetric calcium and asymmetric gene expression, and also between calcium signaling and cilia motility.
Lagrangian Relaxation for Flow Shop Scheduling

Job shop scheduling encompasses combinatorial problems of extraordinary difficulty. The special structure of a flow shop, in which the machines can be ordered in series, offers some advantages. Employing the disjunctive graph as a model of a flow shop, we proceed to formulate a mixed integer model for the problem of minimizing the makespan. By decomposing the model into unlinked one-machine sequencings without due dates, Lagrangian relaxation introduces subproblems amenable to the greedy algorithm. Moreover, since the subproblems do not have the integrality property, the Lagrangian bound can be stronger than the LP bound.
Alpha-defensin—novel synovial fluid biomarker for the diagnosis of periprosthetic joint infection

Periprosthetic joint infection (PJI) continues to be a significant complication after total joint arthroplasty. Diagnosis of PJI can be challenging and elusive in the absence of a gold standard. This purpose of this article is to review the current evidence on the utility of serum and synovial fluid biomarkers to help aid in the diagnosis of PJI with focusing on synovial fluid alpha-defensin. Articles and data for this review were identified by searches of PubMed and Ovid MEDLINE up to June 1, 2016. In addition, we manually reviewed the bibliographies of the retrieved articles for additional citations for references from relevant articles on the diagnosis of PJI. Serum biomarkers can be elevated in various inflammatory conditions. Synovial fluid biomarkers are more accurate for the diagnosis of PJI compared to serum biomarkers. Based on current available data, alpha-defensin is the most promising synovial fluid biomarker for the diagnosis of PJI and is commercially available. Synovial fluid alpha-defensin could enhance our ability to identify PJI and incorporate into the diagnostic algorithm in the future. Large-scale studies are needed to provide more data for its significance for the diagnosis of PJI.