cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Experiential exposure to texting and walking in virtual reality: a randomized trial to reduce distracted pedestrian behavior

Abstract Background Distracted pedestrian behavior is a significant public health concern, as research suggests distracted pedestrians have significantly higher risk of injury compared to fully attentive pedestrians. Despite this, efforts to reduce distracted pedestrian behavior are scant. Objective Using a repeated measures experimental research design, we implemented a behavioral intervention to reduce distracted pedestrian behavior in the high-risk environment of an urban college campus and simultaneously monitored behavior on a control urban college campus not exposed to the intervention. We had two primary aims: reduce perceived vulnerability to injury among individual pedestrians and reduce distracted pedestrian behavior in the environment through a change in community-based norms. Methods The hallmark of the behavioral intervention was a week-long opportunity for community members to experience personally the risks of distracted pedestrian behavior by attempting to cross a virtual pedestrian environment street while text-messaging. This was supplemented by traditional and social marketing and publicity through various campus partners. A sample of 219 individuals completed self-report surveys about perceived vulnerability to distracted pedestrian injury before experiencing the distracted virtual street-crossing and again after 2 weeks and 5 months. Observational assessment of distracted pedestrian behavior was conducted at a busy intersection on the campus as well as at a control campus not exposed to the intervention at baseline, post-intervention, 10 weeks, and 6 months. Results The intervention achieved mixed results. Individuals exposed to texting within a simulated pedestrian environment reported changes in their intentions to cross streets while distracted and in perceived vulnerability to risk while crossing streets, but we did not witness evidence of changed community norms based on observed rates of distracted pedestrian behavior before and after the intervention compared to a control campus not exposed to the intervention. Discussion The intervention created some change in self-reported intentions and thoughts but did not create significant behavior change on the campus exposed to it. Further efforts to develop interventions that will yield a reduction in distracted pedestrian behavior are needed.
Facilitating Research Consultations Using Cloud Services: Experiences, Preferences, and Best Practices

The increasing complexity of the information ecosystem means that research consultations are increasingly important to meeting library users' needs. Yet librarians struggle to balance escalating demands on their time. How can we embrace this expanded role and maintain accessibility to users while balancing competing demands on our time? One tool that allows us to better navigate this shifting landscape is Google Appointment Calendar, part of Google Apps for Education. It makes it easier than ever for students to book a consultation with a librarian, while at the same time allowing the librarian to better control their schedule. Our research suggests that both students and librarians felt it was a useful, efficient system.
Supporting Responsive Cohabitation Between Virtual Interfaces and Physical Objects on Everyday Surfaces

Systems for providing mixed physical-virtual interaction on desktop surfaces have been proposed for decades, though no such systems have achieved widespread use. One major factor contributing to this lack of acceptance may be that these systems are not designed for the variety and complexity of actual work surfaces, which are often in flux and cluttered with physical objects. In this paper, we use an elicitation study and interviews to synthesize a list of ten interactive behaviors that desk-bound, digital interfaces should implement to support responsive cohabitation with physical objects. As a proof of concept, we implemented these interactive behaviors in a working augmented desk system, demonstrating their imminent feasibility.
Uranium mobility across annual growth rings in three deciduous tree species.

Abstract Black walnut (Juglans nigra), slippery elm (Ulmus rubra), and white ash (Fraxinus americana) trees were evaluated as potential archives of past uranium (U) contamination. Like other metals, U mobility in annual growth rings of trees is dependent on the tree species. Uranium concentrations and isotopic compositions (masses 234, 235, 236, and 238) were analyzed by thermal ionization mass spectrometry to test the efficacy of using tree rings to retroactively monitor U pollution from the FFMPC, a U purification facility operating from 1951 to 1989. This study found non-natural U (depleted U and detectable 236U) in growth rings of all three tree species that pre-dated the start of operations at FFMPC and compositional trends that did not correspond with known contamination events. Therefore, the annual growth rings of these tree species cannot be used to reliably monitor the chronology of U contamination.
Effect of Fineness Modulus and Uniformity Coefficient on the Complex Modulus Function of Asphalt Concrete

Different material attributes such as mix volumetrics, aggregate gradations, and binder characteristics are the factors affecting viscoelastic material functions of asphalt concrete. In this study, the effects of aggregate gradation on the complex modulus function of asphalt concrete are determined. The two distinct properties of the aggregate blend considered in this study are the fineness modulus and the uniformity coefficient. A total of 54, plant produced, asphalt concrete mixtures with asphalt binders having various performance grades and sources were collected from the manufacturing plants. The asphalt-aggregate mixtures were then compacted, cored, and sawed to cylindrical specimens. Three cylindrical specimens from each of the asphalt-aggregate mixtures were prepared and tested in the laboratory for complex or dynamic modulus. After that, average mastercurves of complex modulus and phase angle were generated by applying time-temperature superposition principle. Study showed that the complex modulus function of asphalt concrete is significantly related to the fineness modulus and uniformity coefficient of the aggregate blends used in the asphalt-aggregate mixture.Copyright © 2017 by ASME
CINPA1 binds directly to constitutive androstane receptor and inhibits its activity

The constitutive androstane receptor (CAR) and pregnane X receptor (PXR) are xenobiotic sensors that regulate the expression of drug-metabolizing enzymes and efflux transporters. CAR activation promotes drug elimination, thereby reducing therapeutic effectiveness, or causes adverse drug effects via toxic metabolites. CAR inhibitors could be used to attenuate these adverse drug effects. CAR and PXR share ligands and target genes, confounding the understanding of the regulation of receptor-specific activity. We previously identified a small-molecule inhibitor, CINPA1, that inhibits CAR (without activating PXR at lower concentrations) by altering CAR-coregulator interactions and reducing CAR recruitment to DNA response elements of regulated genes. However, solid evidence was not presented for the direct binding of CINPA1 to CAR. In this study, we demonstrate direct interaction of CINPA1 with the CAR ligand-binding domain (CAR-LBD) and identify key residues involved in such interactions through a combination of biophysical and computational methods. We found that CINPA1 resides in the ligand-binding pocket to stabilize the CAR-LBD in a more rigid, less fluid state. Molecular dynamics simulations, together with our previously reported docking model, enabled us to predict which CAR residues were critical for interactions with CINPA1. The importance of these residues for CINPA1 binding were then validated by directed mutations and testing the mutant CAR proteins in transcription reporter and coregulatory interaction assays. We demonstrated strong hydrogen bonding of CINPA1 with N165 and H203 and identified other residues involved in hydrophobic contacts with CINPA1. Overall, our data confirm that CINPA1 directly binds to CAR.
Global cancer prevention

The past few decades have produced significant improvement and advances in health, economic development and growth, and standards of living on a global scale. Major achievements in global health have produced greater life expectancy, enhanced maternal and child health, and reduced the spread and impact of infectious diseases. Yet major barriers to human health and development persist, with noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) now the major cause of death and disability (World Health Organization, The global burden of disease: 2004 update. World Health Organization, Geneva, 2008a). Noncommunicable diseases, including cancer, now account for more than half of all global mortality (Beaglehole et al., Lancet 377:1438–1447, 2011a) and are an increasing burden on the health and wealth of countries regardless of income or level of development. Some of the same social and economic changes that have heralded improvement and advances have also resulted in the risk factors for NCDs becoming widespread.
Latissimus Dorsi Tendon Transfer

Massive, irreparable rotator cuff tears represent a small but important clinical problem. Chronic debilitating pain, dysfunction, and weakness in the setting of an irreparable rotator cuff tear may be an indication for a latissimus dorsi tendon transfer to the greater tuberosity to restore forward elevation and external rotation to the shoulder. This procedure should be performed in young, active, highly motivated patients with subscapularis and deltoid competency and without significant superior humeral head migration or glenohumeral arthritis. The anatomy of the axilla and chest wall must be respected to avoid neurovascular injury and denervation of the muscle during latissimus tendon harvest and transfer. Superior outcomes are achieved in male patients who experience pain relief and gains in forward elevation and external rotation motion and strength. Adherence to patient indications as well as contraindications is important, as is management of postoperative expectations and appropriate rehabilitation. The latissimus dorsi tendon transfer is an appropriate surgical procedure to provide improved motion and strength in some patients with massive, irreparable posterosuperior rotator cuff tears.
Outliers in Microarray Data Analysis

This paper presents a broad survey of analysis methods that have been found useful in the detection and treatment of outliers, or “anomalous data points,” that often arise in large datasets. One source of these data anomalies is method outliers like “gross measurement errors” that are of no inherent biological interest, but a second source is biological outliers, which may be of considerable interest, for example as diagnostics for diseases or other important phenomena. This paper presents a simple illustration of the influence of outliers on microarray data analysis, considers the practical aspects of outlier detection, and briefly describes a number of results from the literature on outlier-resistant analysis methods. Most of the references discussed in this survey are not drawn from the microarray data analysis literature, but rather from the more general robust statistics literature, to provide a useful “cross-fertilization” of ideas.
Leaving some behind: the growing gap in precision medicine for minority populations.

The age of genomic medicine is upon us with constant new discoveries linking genes and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) to disease risk or drug response. Many of these advances are moving towards clinical application, with the most recent example being genotype-guided clopidogrel prescribing. A recent clinical trial showed that individuals carrying variants in CYP2C19 (a liver enzyme that converts the prodrug clopidogrel into its active metabolite) suffered a higher incidence of adverse events when prescribed clopidogrel than those without variants, or those with variants prescribed an alternative medication. These findings add weight to using genotyping when selecting antiplatelet therapy [1]. But the open question remains - are all US populations benefiting from these advances? As highlighted in several reviews as well as by the National Institutes of Health, minorities are under-represented in all aspects of biomedical research, but specifically in genomic studies [2]. This has led to a growing divide in how we study disease processes and drug response versus how these findings are implemented within the general population. Currently, medical centers around the country interested in adopting clinical implementation of pharmacogenomics, use guidance from the Clinical Pharmacogenetics Implementation Consortium (CPIC) [3]. CPIC provides recommendations on which SNPs should be used clinically based of the current literature. So as the medical centers build genotyping platforms for clinical pharmacogenomics, the vast majority of SNPs included on these platforms will represent genetic variation relevant to people of Europeans-ancestry. Is it too late and can we close the gap in precision medicine?
Intra-Individual Variability in Vagal Control Is Associated With Response Inhibition Under Stress.

Dynamic intra-individual variability (IIV) in cardiac vagal control across multiple situations is believed to contribute to adaptive cognition under stress; however, a dearth of research has empirically tested this notion. To this end, we examined 25 U.S. Army Soldiers (all male, Mean Age= 30.73, SD = 7.71) whose high-frequency heart rate variability (HF-HRV) was measured during a resting baseline and during three conditions of a shooting task (training, low stress, high stress). Response inhibition was measured as the correct rejection of friendly targets during the low and high stress conditions. We tested the association between the standard deviation of HF-HRV across all four task conditions (IIV in vagal control) and changes in response inhibition between low and high stress. Greater differences in vagal control between conditions (larger IIV) were associated with higher tonic vagal control during rest, and stronger stress-related decreases in response inhibition. These results suggest that flexibility in vagal control is supported by tonic vagal control, but this flexibility also uniquely relates to adaptive cognition under stress. Findings are consistent with neurobehavioral and dynamical systems theories of vagal function.
A Case for Online Traffic Simulation: Systematic Procedure to Calibrate Car-Following Models Using Vehicle Data

Online microsimulation modeling is a congestion mitigation strategy that is gaining traction in the transportation sector. The key limitations to the deployment of this strategy are the availability of data for model calibration and the existence of vetted and transparent methodologies to calibrate models using trajectory-level data. The promise of connected vehicle (CV) data is a solution to the former problem. In this paper, a sample from the second Strategic Highway Research Program's Naturalistic Driving Study (NDS) is used as a surrogate for CV data. A systematic procedure for car-following model (CFM) calibration using trajectory-level data is presented. A case study was developed to illustrate the importance of calibrating microsimulation models using current traffic data. Four CFMs are calibrated and validated using high and low speed trips. Results indicate that behavior varies with speed and better calibration results are achieved when segmenting the data. Finally, validation efforts indicate that calibrated model parameters outperform literature parameters; this underscores the importance of calibrating models with appropriate data.
Effect of early locomotor training on evoked potentials and structural organization of visual cortex dendrites of rats during ontogeny.

The effect of early locomotor training (running in a squirrel cage from an age of 1 month for 3–6 months) on evoked potentials of the rat visual cortex during ontogeny was investigated. It was established that intensified proprioceptive afferentation causes a statistically significant reduction of both the latent periods and the recovery cycles of excitability of primary responses of the visual cortex to paired light flashes, whereupon the increase in functional activity is more pronounced with respect to the indices of the excitability recovery cycle than with respect to the latent periods or primary responses. The indicated functional changes correlate with the quantitative increase in the density of dendritic spines on neurons of the visual cortex of both layer V, which are primarily the integrative-triggering apparatus of the cortex, and of the complex of layers II + III, which are primarily associative with respect to their functional significance.
Fault reconstruction using sliding mode observer for LTI systems: A survey

This paper presents a survey of sliding mode observer design for linear time invariant systems (both state space systems model and descriptor systems model). Sliding mode observer is used because of its intense robustness property. Theory and design principles for fault detection and reconstruction are also discussed in this paper. In both (state space system and descriptor system model) fault reconstruction is achieved by using discontinuous injection signal, which causes the system trajectories to move into the sliding manifold.
Genomic reorganization underlies LMNA-associated cardiomyopathies

Mutations in LMNA result in dilated cardiomyopathy through disruption of chromatin organization, methylation, and aberrant gene expression.
Sensory sensitivity in autism mostly depends on contextual predictions

A signal detection theory was elaborated in order to account for three types of sensory sensitivity (subjective, behavioral and neural) in neurotypical individuals and in autism. Here, we argue that the predictive coding framework could better account for the atypical pattern of sensory sensitivity in autism. We review the idea that sensory sensitivity should be considered as mostly depending on contextual predictions and that these account for the heterogeneous pattern of neural responses.
Improved word recognition for observers with age-related maculopathies using compensation filters

A method for improving word recognition for people with age-related maculopathies, which cause a loss of central vision, is discussed. It is found that the use of individualized compensation filters based on an person's normalized contrast sensitivity function can improve word recognition for people with age-related maculopathies. It is shown that 27-70 pct more magnification is needed for unfiltered words compared to filtered words. The improvement in word recognition is positively correlated with the severity of vision loss.
Preliminary Measurement Considerations in Clinical Neuropsychological Assessment

As the name implies, clinical neuropsychology draws from more than just one discipline. Looking at the name alone, however, gives a somewhat simplified view because more than just simply neurology and psychology comprise modern clinical neuropsychological practice. Current influences include behavioral therapy and assessment, internal medicine, rehabilitation, endocrinology, aphasiology, and public health, among others. Other sources of influence exist because clinical neuropsychology exists in a context of social and cultural variables. The development of clinical neuropsychological assessment techniques is influenced by referral, and to an increasing extent, reimbursement sources. The rise of managed care has affected the amount of time allowed for a neuropsychological evaluation as well as the procedures allowed. When the clinical neuropsychologist is given precertification for time periods less than he or she would like to use, the question faced is whether to truncate the evaluation using shorter procedures or to absorb the cost of nonreimbursed time. More focused instruments requiring less time become more heavily used. When the managed care reviewer denies certain tests as not being covered, the clinical neuropsychologist must either find an acceptable alternative or absorb the cost once again. There is a clear need to educate managed care professionals, and research regarding reliability and validity becomes even more important.
Assessment of setup uncertainty in hypofractionated liver radiation therapy with a breath-hold technique using automatic image registration–based image guidance

Target localization in radiation therapy is affected by numerous sources of uncertainty. Despite measures to minimize the breathing motion, the treatment of hypofractionated liver radiation therapy is further challenged by residual uncertainty coming from involuntary organ motion and daily changes in the shape and location of abdominal organs. To address the residual uncertainty, clinics implement image-guided radiation therapy at varying levels of soft-tissue contrast. This study utilized the treatment records from the patients that have received hypofractionated liver radiation therapy using in-room computed tomography (CT) imaging to assess the setup uncertainty and to estimate the appropriate planning treatment volume (PTV) margins in the absence of in-room CT imaging. We collected 917 pre-treatment daily in-room CT images from 69 patients who received hypofractionated radiation therapy to the liver with the inspiration breath-hold technique. For each treatment, the daily CT was initially aligned to the planning CT based on the shape of the liver automatically using a CT-CT alignment software. After the initial alignment, manual shift corrections were determined by visual inspection of the two images, and the corrections were applied to shift the patient to the physician-approved treatment position. Considering the final alignment as the gold-standard setup, systematic and random uncertainties in the automatic alignment were quantified, and the uncertainties were used to calculate the PTV margins. The median discrepancy between the final and automatic alignment was 1.1 mm (0–24.3 mm), and 38% of treated fractions required manual corrections of ≥3 mm. The systematic uncertainty was 1.5 mm in the anterior-posterior (AP) direction, 1.1 mm in the left-right (LR) direction, and 2.4 mm in the superior-inferior (SI) direction. The random uncertainty was 2.2 mm in the AP, 1.9 mm in the LR, and 2.2 mm in the SI direction. The PTV margins recommended to be used in the absence of in-room CT imaging were 5.3 mm in the AP, 3.5 mm in the LR, and 5.1 mm in the SI direction. Manual shift correction based on soft-tissue alignment is substantial in the treatment of the abdominal region. In-room CT can reduce PTV margin by up to 5 mm, which may be especially beneficial for dose escalation and normal tissue sparing in hypofractionated liver radiation therapy.
Extreme Reactions: Radical Right Mobilization in Eastern Europe

Focusing on the rising support for the populist right in Eastern Europe, this book examines how anger and resentment towards minorities is being utilized in politics. Bustikova details the process by which the acquisition of political power and demand for rights by ascendant minority groups precipitates a backlash of mobilization from the radical right. However, this book also argues that prejudice against minorities is not a sentiment exclusive to right-wing voters and is not the root cause of increasing support for the radical right. Rather, this study reveals variation in how minorities are accommodated by the government and explains the electoral successes and failures of radical right parties. By examining the capitalization on these feelings of discontent towards politically assertive minorities and with the governmental policies that yield to their demands, Bustikova exposes volatile, zeitgeist-dependent conditions under which once fringe right-wing parties have risen to prominent but precarious positions of power.
Service and Outreach: a Multicultural and International Dimension

The authors believe, with Benjamin Barber, that service to the neighborhood and to the nation are not the gift of altruists, but rather the duty of free men and women whose freedom is itself wholly dependent on the assumptions of political responsibilities (Barber 1992). Given the global world in which we live, however, we add the importance of international service to that of the neighborhood and nation. The authors, both professors at the University of Colorado-Boulder when this article was written, have spent considerabletime in Africa and on other continents, working with schools and universities on the improvement of instruction in mathematics and other curricular areas. They detail some of those experiences, along with information about the University’s nationally recognized service-learning program, the International and National Volunteer Service and Training (INVST) program. Service-learning and volunteer activities have been part of our pedagogical repertoire for over three decades, and during that time we have been impressed by the impact of these multicultural and international experiences on not only ourselves, but also our students. Classroom learning has its place, but for powerful transforming learning, nothing has compared to the impact of these experiences on the life and learning of our students. In recent years, studentshave participated in “alternative spring breaks,” in addition to other international service-learning experiences.
Development of polyoxymethylene passive sampler for assessing air concentrations of PCBs at a confined disposal facility (CDF).

Abstract In this study, 76 μm polyoxymethylene (POM) strips were evaluated as a passive air sampler (PAS) for monitoring the volatile emissions from dredged material placed in confined disposal facilities (CDF). Laboratory evaluations were used to assess the uptake kinetics, average equilibrium time, and estimate the POM-air partition coefficients (KPOM-A) of 16 PCB congeners. The uptake kinetics defined the effective averaging time for air sampling and ranged from about a week for dichlorobiphenyls to 2 weeks or more for tetra- and pentachlorobiphenyls at ∼20 °C under internal mass transfer resistance control which was applicable for Log KPOM-A
Male-mediated maturation in a wild primate

In humans, a controversial hypothesis suggests that father absence promotes early puberty in daughters. Data from rodents confirm females accelerate maturation with exposure to novel males (“Vandenbergh effect”) and delay it with exposure to male relatives. Here, we report the first case of male-mediated maturation in a wild primate, geladas (Theropithecus gelada). Females were more likely to mature after a change in the reproductive male: some matured earlier than expected (Vandenbergh effect) and some later (due to father presence). Novel males stimulated a surge in estrogens for all immature females - even females too young to mature. Although male-mediated puberty accelerated first births, the effect was modest, suggesting that alternative scenarios, such as co-evolution with the Bruce effect (male-mediated fetal loss) may explain this phenomenon.One Sentence Summary Novel males induce an estrogen surge, male-mediated puberty, and a head-start on reproduction for immature female geladas.Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest.View Full Text
The wisdom trial is based on faulty reasoning and has major design and execution problems

To evaluate the design and plan of execution of the “WISDOM” trial. The rationale and reasoning behind the WISDOM Trial were reviewed and analyzed. The published parameters of the trial were reviewed. The study is based on a failed understanding of the available data about breast cancer screening and is based on faulty assumptions, false reasoning, a scientifically unsupportable study design, ignoring advances in screening, a questionable endpoint, the likely lacking of power to answer the primary question, and support by insurance companies whose primary goal is almost certainly to reduce their costs. A major part of the premise is that there is a “debate” about the efficacy of screening. WISDOM ignores the fact that the “debate” has been manufactured and is not science-based. The results of the WISDOM Trial may be misleading.
Mg Refining & Marketing, Inc. (A)

This case presents the situation that resulted in the disastrous derivative losses Metallgesellschaft experienced. It presents the basic strategy that MGRM implemented and describes how MGRM decided to hedge the risks. One nice feature about this situation is that the marketing strategy created a risk that needed to be hedged. This provides a good framework to discuss how marketing or production decisions create risks that can be hedged in financial markets. The key is that business decisions create the risks, not financial decisions. In this context, students can assess the risks created by the marketing strategy and then evaluate how effective the hedging strategy was in dealing with those risks. Excerpt UVA-F-1227 Rev. Nov. 15, 2010 MG REFINING & MARKETING, INC. (A) In 1993, Metallgesellschaft A. G. was the 14th largest corporation in Germany: a large conglomerate with more than 251 subsidiaries representing interests in metals, mining, and engineering. Sales in 1992 were over (German deutschemarks) DEM26 billion ([U.S. dollars] USD$ 16 billion), and assets totaled about DEM17.8 billion (USD10 billion). Only about 35% of Metallgesellschaft shares were freely traded. The remaining 65% were held by seven institutional investors: the Emir of Kuwait, Dresden Bank, Deutsche Bank, Allianz, Daimler-Benz, the Australian Mutual Provident Society, and MIM Holdings Ltd. of Australia. Metallgesellschaft's U.S. oil trading subsidiary was MG Refining & Marketing, Inc., (MGRM). In 1989, as part of a plan to develop an integrated oil business in the United States, MGRM acquired a 49% interest in Castle Energy. Castle was a U.S. oil exploration firm, which, with MGRM's help, developed an oil refinery capacity. The refinery capacity was centered on two refineries: a 77,000-barrel-per-day plant in Lawrenceville, Illinois, and a 49,500-barrel-per-day refinery in Santa Fe Springs, California. In addition to the equity position, MGRM had long-term agreements (about 10 years) with Castle to buy and market all the refined products from these two refineries. These takeoff agreements provided guaranteed margins for Castle over prevailing market prices. For MGRM, they guaranteed a supply of refined products, but the prices they paid were still subject to market conditions, since they paid Castle the market price plus some margin. . . .
Regional Educational Technology Assistance Initiative—Phase II

AbstractThe Regional Educational Technology Assistance (RETA) Initiative began as a way to establish a network of educators throughout New Mexico to assist school districts with technology planning and implementation. The RETA program emphasized statewide professional-development peer workshops that focused on curriculum integration rather than technological mechanics and mastery of software. The RETA Initiative met and, in many cases, exceeded expectations. Teacher participants reported increased use of e-mail, a shift from teaching about computers to using computers as an integral part of learning, more collaboration with peers, adaptation of workshop models for use in their own classrooms, and sharing of the workshop ideas. Pre- and postinitiative surveys were conducted, and a set of open-ended questions were used for supportive qualitative data.
Molecular Genetics of Yeast Ion Transport

Publisher Summary This chapter reviews the molecular genetics of yeast ion transport. The H+-ATPase is the principal electrogenic ion pump in the plasma membranes of fungi. The electrochemical energy of this gradient drives the import of nutrients and other ions. Besides providing the energy for nutrient uptake, the proton pump also controls the intracellular pH. Through the electrogenic pumping of protons, the plasma membrane ATPase plays both regulatory and energetic roles in yeast cell biology. The transmembrane domains of the H+-ATPase serve two primary functions: (1) they anchor the transporters to the plasma membrane and (2) they form the polar pathway that protons take in their journey across the membrane. Several of the more highly conserved amino acids located within the putative transmembrane domains of the pump have been mutationally altered to assess their roles in proton transport. Pro 335 is completely conserved among all of the P-type ATPases and resides in the middle of the transmembrane segment that itself is the most highly conserved among these ion pumps.
Orientation of the deo Genes and the serB Locus in Salmonella typhimurium

In Salmonella typhimurium, the order of the deo genes with respect to the serB locus has been determined as deoC-deoA-deoB-deoD-serB-thr.
Crystal and molecular structures of selected organic and organometallic compounds and an algorithm for empirical absorption correction

Cr(CO)/sub 5/(SCMe/sub 2/) crystallizes in the monoclinic space group P2/sub 1//a with a = 10.468(8), b = 11.879(5), c = 9.575(6) A, and ..beta.. = 108.14(9)/sup 0/, with an octahedral coordination around the chromium atom. PSN/sub 3/C/sub 6/H/sub 12/ crystallizes in the monoclinic space group P2/sub 1//n with a = 10.896(1), b = 11.443(1), c = 7.288(1) A, and ..beta.. = 104.45(1)/sup 0/. Each of the five-membered rings in this structure contains a carbon atom which is puckered toward the sulfur and out of the nearly planar arrays of the remaining ring atoms. (RhO/sub 4/N/sub 4/C/sub 48/H/sub 56/)/sup +/(BC/sub 24/H/sub 20/)/sup -/.1.5NC/sub 2/H/sub 3/ crystallizes in the triclinic space group P1 with a = 17.355(8), b = 21.135(10), c = 10.757(5) A, ..cap alpha.. = 101.29(5), ..beta.. = 98.36(5), and ..gamma.. = 113.92(4)/sup 0/. Each Rh cation complex is a monomer. MoP/sub 2/O/sub 10/C/sub 16/H/sub 22/ crystallizes in the monoclinic space group P2/sub 1//c with a = 12.220(3), b = 9.963(2), c = 20.150(6) A, and ..beta.. = 103.01(3)/sup 0/. The molybdenum atom occupies the axial position of the six-membered ring of each of the two phosphorinane ligands. An empirical absorption correction program was written.
A dynamic request dispatching system for IT service management

IT service delivery becomes an increasingly challenging business as customers demand improved quality of service while providers are driven to reduce the cost of delivery. While effective service delivery requires advances in many areas including workload management and workforce optimization, in this paper we focus on service request dispatching decision-making. Specifically, we propose an implemenation of a dynamic request dispatching system that continually adjusts the priority of service requests considering both (static) contractual service attainment targets and (dynamic) attainment levels achieved.
Psychological considerations for women in sports

In this article, we have tried to provide a context in which to understand the complexities of the psychological experience of being female and being an athlete. To this end, we have included general information about the socialization process, as well as a more detailed discussion of sports socialization and the impact of external influences (such as the media and role models) on the activities of young women. Information about the psychological characteristics of women athletes was provided as were brief descriptions of a number of issues common to the experience of athletes in general and the female athlete in particular. This is an exciting time for women in sports; laws are changing, opportunities have become available, and women are discovering their athletic potential. The women athlete also has choices that were not available to previous generations. It is a time of discovery as we learn what the female athlete is capable of accomplishing. "We" includes all of us, as coaches, parents, friends, the media, treating professionals, fans, and young athletes themselves. In some ways, what we learn about women athletes will be similar to what is expected in male athletics; however, the female athlete will bring a whole new set of attributes and stylistic differences to sport. It will be important not to limit her with our expectations; rather, we must encourage her to excel to her fullest capabilities.
The EOS SAR mission: a new approach

The goal of the Earth Observing System synthetic aperture radar (EOS SAR) program is to help develop the modeling and observational capabilities to predict and monitor terrestrial and oceanic processes that are either causing global change or resulting from global change. Specifically, the EOS SAR will provide important geophysical products to the EOS data set to improve our understanding of the state and functioning of the Earth system. The strategy for the EOS SAR program is to define the instrument requirements based on required input to geophysical algorithms, provide the processing capability and algorithms to generate such products on the required spatial (global) and temporal (3-5 days) scales, and to provide the spaceborne instrumentation with international partnerships. Initially this partnership has been with Germany; currently broader international partnerships are being explored. >
The occurrence of coronal holes during the sunspot cycle

Abstract In order to learn the nature of coronal holes for a long period, magnetic disturbances represented by the geomagnetic index C9 (though proxy for coronal holes) for the period from 1884 to 2002 are examined, selecting only those that recur every 27 days during at least six solar rotation periods and separating the rising and declining phases, and also distinguishing one and two coronal holes in one solar rotation. It was found that the occurrence of coronal holes per year (N) during both the rising and the declining phases tends to be more frequent for greater numbers of the peak value of sunspots (R) in each sunspot cycle. The frequency per year is about twice as large for the declining phase as for the rising phase. The N–R relationship is 0.0080R+0.302 for the rising phase and 0.0152R+0.203 for the declining phase.
Counsellor presence: bridging the gap between wisdom and new knowledge

ABSTRACT Presence is the counsellor's way of being with clients as distinguished from the application of technique and it involves a meeting between counsellor and client. Presence fits intuitively in the realm of the therapeutic relationship and master therapists from different therapeutic traditions have described how their presence with clients contributes to the success of counselling, yet the topic is virtually absent from the research literature. We examine the reasons for this disparity, provide a critical examination of the literature on the therapeutic relationship and on presence, and suggest that emerging scientific paradigms offer new strategies for studying such complex, holistic phenomena as presence.
Resilient Modulus Models for Compacted Cohesive Soils

Three-parameter models have been used to represent the effects of confining and shear stresses on the value of resilient modulus. A new generation of such models allows better characterization of the variation of resilient modulus at low deviator stress. These models can be extended to incorporate the effects of soil type, soil structure, and the soil physical state (combination of molding water content and dry unit weight) by relating the three parameters to explanatory variables consisting of common soil parameters. A simple methodology was applied to the results of 78 resilient modulus tests on low- and high-plasticity silts from the island of Oahu, Hawaii, to optimize the choice of explanatory variables. Then, the nonlinear ordinary least-squares method was used to estimate the model parameters. The results indicate that the new generation models not only provide a better fit than the older models, but they also provide a reasonable fit to the data that can capture the effects of stress state, soil type, soil structure, and the soil physical state quite effectively.
Minimax principles for convex eigenvalue problems

Abstract Positive solutions of the nonlinear eigenvalue problem Au = σu for a forced, convex, isotone, compact operator on a partially ordered locally convex topological vector space E are considered. Denote by σ ∗ the infimum of the set of σ for which the equation has a solution u in the positive cone K of E. σ ∗ is characterized as the saddle value of a functional JA determined by A and defined on the Cartesian product of K and its dual K ∗ .
The development of tact: Children's strategies for delivering bad news

Abstract Developmental and individual differences in tactfulness were assessed on a role-playing task requiring children to give negative feedback to peers. Subjects were learning disabled and nondisabled children in the first through fourth grades. Analyses indicated that third and fourth graders were more tactful than first and second graders, and that nondisabled children were more tactful than learning disabled children. The implications of these findings for children's peer relationships are discussed.
Serotonin-like immunoreactivity in the retina of the clawed frog Xenopus laevis

Using an antiserum directed against serotonin, we have studied the morphology and distribution of serotonin-containing and serotonin-accumulating neurons in the retina ofXenopus laevis. Endogenous serotonin-like immunoreactivity was found in two classes of amacrine cell, one class of bipolar cell and a few centrifugal fibres. Kainic acid-induced depletion of serotonin, under various conditions, enabled us to determine the distribution of stained bipolars, amacrine cells and centrifugal fibres within the meshwork of serotonin-like immunoreactivity-labelled processes. Kainic acid-induced release of serotonin by bipolar cells is calcium dependent. Stimulation of release by kainic acid as well as the fact that all serotonin-like immunoreactive bipolar cells ramify in sublayer 1 of the inner plexiform layer suggest that serotonergic bipolars are OFF centre cells. Release of serotonin from amacrine cells is largely calcium independent. Serotonin-containing amacrines send primary dendrites into layer 1 of the inner plexiform layer; short off-shoots from the primary dendrites descend into sublayers 3–5 in which they ramify into a fine network. Serotonergic amacrines have an uneven distribution in theXenopus retina. Their highest density occurs in the posterolateral quadrant, whereas large portions of the anteromedial quadrant lack serotonin-like immunoreactivity altogether. The uneven distribution of serotonin-containing elements in theXenopus retina with its peak falling onto the retinal area which generates binocular vision, suggests its involvement in binocular perception.
Fullerene incorporation in DNQ Novolak photoresist for increasing plasma etch resistance

Incorporating fullerene into DNQ novolak resist provides a 60 percent reduction in the ECR plasma etch rate in a hydrogen/argon plasma. The reduction in plasma etch rate was also accompanied by a 5 degree(s)C increase in the pattern flow temperature. Plasma etch resistance was added to the photoresist after pattern exposure. Fullerene incorporation was accomplished by pattern development in a C 60 /tetra-methyl ammonium hydroxide (TMAH) solution.
American Civil War: Part I

(2004). American Civil War: Part I. Journal of Investigative Surgery: Vol. 17, No. 3, pp. 115-117.
Near- and Mid-Infrared Photometry of the Pleiades and a New List of Substellar Candidate Members

We make use of new near- and mid-IR photometry of the Pleiades cluster in order to help identify proposed cluster members. We also use the new photometry with previously published photometry to define the single-star main-sequence locus at the age of the Pleiades in a variety of color-magnitude planes. The new near- and mid-IR photometry extend effectively 2 mag deeper than the 2MASS All-Sky Point Source catalog, and hence allow us to select a new set of candidate very low-mass and substellar mass members of the Pleiades in the central square degree of the cluster. We identify 42 new candidate members fainter than K_s = 14 (corresponding to 0.1 M_☉). These candidate members should eventually allow a better estimate of the cluster mass function to be made down to of order 0.04 M_☉. We also use new IRAC data, in particular the images obtained at 8 μm, in order to comment briefly on interstellar dust in and near the Pleiades. We confirm, as expected, that—with one exception—a sample of low-mass stars recently identified as having 24 μm excesses due to debris disks do not have significant excesses at IRAC wavelengths. However, evidence is also presented that several of the Pleiades high-mass stars are found to be impacting with local condensations of the molecular cloud that is passing through the Pleiades at the current epoch.
Gender Influences the Initial Impact of Subarachnoid Hemorrhage: An Experimental Investigation

Aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) carries high early patient mortality. More women than men suffer from SAH and the average age of female SAH survivors is greater than that of male survivors; however, the overall mortality and neurological outcomes are not better in males despite their younger age. This pattern suggests the possibility of gender differences in the severity of initial impact and/or in subsequent pathophysiology. We explored gender differences in survival and pathophysiology following subarachnoid hemorrhage induced in age-matched male and female rats by endovascular puncture. Intracranial pressure (ICP), cerebral blood flow (CBF), blood pressure (BP) and cerebral perfusion pressure (CPP) were recorded at and after induction of SAH. Animals were sacrificed 3 hours after lesion and studied for subarachnoid hematoma size, vascular pathology (collagen and endothelium immunostaining), inflammation (platelet and neutrophil immunostaining), and cell death (TUNEL assay). In a second cohort, 24-hour survival was determined. Subarachnoid hematoma, post-hemorrhage ICP peak, BP elevation, reduction in CPP, intraluminal platelet aggregation and neutrophil accumulation, loss of vascular collagen, and neuronal and non-neuronal cell death were greater in male than in female rats. Hematoma size did not correlate with the number of apoptotic cells, platelet aggregates or neutrophil. The ICP peak correlated with hematoma size and with number of apoptotic cells but not with platelet aggregates and neutrophil number. This suggests that the intensity of ICP rise at SAH influences the severity of apoptosis but not of inflammation. Mortality was markedly greater in males than females. Our data demonstrate that in rats gender influences the initial impact of SAH causing greater bleed and early injury in males as compared to females.
Robust creation of implicit surfaces from polygonal meshes

Implicit surfaces are used for a number of tasks in computer graphics, including modeling soft or organic objects, morphing, collision detection, and constructive solid geometry. Although operating on implicit surfaces is usually straightforward, creating them is not. We introduce a practical method for creating implicit surfaces from polygonal models that produces high-quality results for complex surfaces. Whereas much previous work in implicit surfaces has been done with primitives such as "blobbies," we use implicit surfaces based on a variational interpolation technique (the three-dimensional generalization of thin-plate interpolation). Given a polygonal mesh, we convert the data to a volumetric representation to use as a guide for creating the implicit surface iteratively. We begin by seeding the surface with a number of constraint points through which the surface must pass. Iteratively, additional constraints are added; the resulting surfaces are evaluated, and the errors guide the placement of subsequent constraints. We have applied our method successfully to a variety of polygonal meshes and consider it to be robust.