cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Synuclein-γ (SNCG) expression in ovarian cancer is associated with high-risk clinicopathologic disease

Synuclein gamma (SNCG) expression is associated with advanced disease and chemoresistance in multiple solid tumors. Our goal was to determine if SNCG protein expression in ovarian cancer was correlated with clinicopathologic variables and patient outcomes. Tissue microarrays from primary tumors of 357 ovarian, fallopian tube, and primary peritoneal cancer patients, who underwent primary surgery at Roswell Park Cancer Institute between 1995 and 2007, were immunohistochemically stained for SNCG. A pathologist blinded to patient data scored tumors as positive if ≥10 % of the sample stained for SNCG. Medical records were reviewed for clinicopathologic and demographic variables. Between the positive and negative groups, Wilcoxon rank-sum test was used to compare the median ages and Fisher’s exact test was used to compare groups in categorical variables. Cox proportional hazard models examined associations between SNCG and overall and progression-free survival. The median follow-up was 36 months, median overall survival was 39 months, and median progression-free survival was 18 months. SNCG presence was associated with clinical variables of serous histology, grade 3 disease, suboptimal debulking, ascites at surgery, FIGO stage III-IV cancer, or initial CA-125 level >485. There was no significant difference in overall survival (HR 1.06 95 % CI 0.81–1.39 P 0.69) or progression-free survival (HR 1.16 95 % CI 0.89–1.50 P 0.28) for patients with or without SNCG expression. SNCG expression in ovarian cancer is frequent in patients with high-risk features, but it does not correlate with chemotherapy response, overall survival, or progression-free survival.
Head and Neck Brachytherapy

Brachytherapy is a standard, safe, and effective treatment for head and neck cancer. It is used alone (monotherapy) in early lip, buccal, and oral cavity cancer to preserve cosmesis, structure, and function or it is given postoperatively in cases with close or positive surgical margins. It is usually combined with external beam radiation therapy for advanced oral cavity, oropharynx, or nasopharynx cancers. It is also indicated in previously irradiated patients to salvage local or regional recurrences. The highly targeted (conformal) radiation dose reduces injury and side effects (morbidity) to vital structures and organs. The dose may be delivered continuously (low dose rate or LDR), in hourly pulses (pulsed dose rate or PDR), or more commonly, in a short series of once or twice daily treatments (high dose rate or HDR).
Inter-dialect dispersal is common in the Puget Sound white-crowned sparrow

Dispersal in birds can have an important influence on the genetic structure of populations by affecting gene flow. In birds that learn their songs, dispersal can affect the ability of male birds to share songs in song dialects and may influence mate attraction. We used Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) trace element analysis on the body feathers of birds to assess dispersal among four song dialects. We found that (1) most males had a feather element profile typical of only one dialect location; (2) males singing non-local (‘foreign’) dialects in a focal population often learned their foreign songs outside the dialect; and (3) females often dispersed among dialects. We estimated 5% dispersal per year by yearling males between the site of moulting and breeding. Our estimate is consistent with genetic estimates of widespread gene flow between dialects in this subspecies of the white-crowned sparrow.
A structural survey of the binary transition metal phosphides and arsenides of the d-block elements

Abstract This article presents a comprehensive review of the structures of the known structurally characterized transition metal (M) pnictide (E = P, As) compounds. These compounds are being widely studied for a range of important applications including magnetic materials, magnetocaloric effects, electric conductivity, and superconductivity in addition to high catalytic activities for reactions such as hydrodesulfurization, hydrodenitrogenation, and water splitting. A number of the MxEy combinations are found in mineral form, including meteorites. There is tremendous diversity in this class of compounds, with examples from early to late transition metals being observed having metal to main group element ratios (M:E) ranging from 7.5:1 to 1:10. The review covers 231 M:E stoichiometries crystallizing in 289 different crystal lattices. Compounds with high phosphorus or arsenic content show interesting catenated structures ranging from simple En units (E = 2–4), pyramidal P(P)3 groups, and P6 rings to more complex branched chains, ribbons and 2-dimensional networks.
Diagnostic Performance of Margin Features in Thyroid Nodules in Prediction of Malignancy

OBJECTIVE. The purpose of this study was to evaluate thyroid nodule margins for specific morphologic features and determine the diagnostic performance of these features in differentiating papillary carcinoma from benign thyroid nodules. MATERIALS AND METHODS. Nodules measuring 1–3 cm in largest diameter that had been evaluated with high-resolution ultrasound (12–18 MHz) and ultrasound-guided biopsy with definitive pathologic diagnosis were analyzed. Three blinded board-certified readers evaluated high-resolution images of each nodule for jagged edges, lobulated borders, and curved borders along their margins. Reader interpretations were correlated with the pathologic diagnosis to determine the diagnostic performance of each feature. A board-certified pathologist analyzed 10 randomly selected nodules with jagged edges by slide review to evaluate for structural correlation with the imaging finding. RESULTS. The diagnostic performance of jagged edges in papillary carcinoma of the thyroid was 67.4% sensitive ...
Hydrodynamics govern the pre-fusion docking time of synaptic vesicles.

Synaptic vesicle fusion is a crucial step in the neurotransmission process. Neurotransmitter-filled vesicles are pre-docked at the synapse by the mediation of ribbon structures and SNARE proteins at the ribbon synapses. An electrical impulse triggers the fusion process of pre-docked vesicles, leading to the formation of a fusion pore and subsequently resulting in the release of neurotransmitter into the synaptic cleft. In this study, a continuum model of lipid membrane along with lubrication theory is used to determine the traverse time of the synaptic vesicle under the influence of hydrodynamic forces. We find that the traverse time is strongly dependent on how fast the driving force decays or grows with closure of the gap between the vesicle and the plasma membrane. If the correct behaviour is chosen, the traverse time obtained is of the order of a few hundred milliseconds and lies within the experimentally obtained value of approximately 250 ms (Zenisek D, Steyer JA, Almers W. 2000 Nature 406 , 849–854 (doi:10.1038/35022500)). We hypothesize that there are two different force behaviours, which complies with the experimental findings of pre-fusion docking of synaptic vesicles at the ribbon synapses. The common theme in the proposed force models is that the driving force has to very rapidly increase or decrease with the amount of clamping.
Biological Hotspots and Endangered Ecosystems

More than any other attribute, except perhaps pure aesthetics, discovery is what makes natural history so irresistible to naturalists. Given its impressive biodiversity, the South holds many rewards for professional and amateur naturalists who take the time to explore their backyards and beyond. The South has been traveled extensively by botanists, zoologists, and other naturalists for centuries, yet every year species new to science are discovered here. Whereas some new species are “split” from previously recognized taxa on the basis of newly discovered differences, other new species are completely new in the sense of never having been recorded before. These are usually narrow endemics discovered in a place that no previous naturalist with sufficient taxonomic expertise had explored intensively.
Conservation of the immunoglobulin C lambda 5 gene in the Mus gene.

Abstract A gene encoding the lambda 5 light chain constant region was isolated from a genomic library from the SPE mouse strain (C lambda 5S). SPE is an inbred wild mouse strain belonging to the Mus 3 or Mus spretus group that has been genetically isolated from Mus 1 (the group to which laboratory mice belong) for a period of 1-3 million years. The sequence of the C lambda 5S gene shows strong homology to C lambda 5 of (C57BL/6J x DBA/2)F1 both in the coding region (98% identity) and in the 5'- and 3'-flanking regions (98 and 95% identity, respectively). Sequence comparison of C lambda 5 genes with C lambda 1 of BALB/c shows only few substitutions in the C lambda 5 coding regions and suggests that the three genes have a common ancestor. These data indicate that the C lambda 5 gene has evolved under strong selective pressure and probably encodes a functional gene product. The conservation of the C lambda 5 gene in various Mus species was observed by high stringency Southern blot analyses using a C lambda 5S probe on DNA sample from members of four different groups of wild mice. All the laboratory and wild mouse strains tested, including those with amplified sets of C lambda 1 and C lambda 2 hybridizing sequences, showed only single C lambda 5 hybridizing fragments. Little variation in size of restriction fragments detected with the C lambda 5 probe was seen in the different Mus species suggesting a high degree of conservation.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
327. Shedding of the placental glycocalyx in response to ischemia and hypoxia

Introduction Placental ischemia appears to be a central causative factor in the maternal symptoms of preeclampsia. The maternal/fetal interface in the placenta is covered in a meshwork resembling the endothelial glycocalyx; consisting of proteoglycans like Syndecan-1 (SDC-1). This glycocalyx is essential for preventing immune cell adherence, and shed glycocalyx fragments are pro-inflammatory. Objective/Hypothesis We hypothesize that hypoxia/ischemia will cause degradation and shedding of the placental glycocalyx. Methods Placental ischemia was studied using the rodent RUPP model, which induces placental ischemia from GD14–19. Acute hypoxia utilized culture BeWo trophoblasts exposed at 8% or 1% oxygen for 24 h to simulate the normal or ischemic placenta respectively. SDC-1 was measured via western blot in placenta and by commercial ELISA in cell culture. Results RUPP rats showed a significant decrease in placental syndecan-1 compared to sham controls (100 ± 33% vs 67 ± 17%, p Discussion Placental ischemia and acute hypoxia both contribute to trophoblast shedding of the placental glycocalyx in a manner dependent on heparanase, MMP activity, and oxidative stress.
Salvianolic acid B as an anti-emphysema agent I: In vitro stimulation of lung cell proliferation and migration, and protection against lung cell death, and in vivo lung STAT3 activation and VEGF elevation.

Abstract Emphysema causes progressive and life-threatening alveolar structural destruction/loss, yet remains irreversible and incurable to date. Impaired vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) signaling has been proposed as a new pathogenic mechanism, and if so, VEGF recovery may enable reversal of emphysema. Thus, we hypothesized that salvianolic acid B (Sal-B), a polyphenol in traditional Chinese herbal danshen , is an alveolar structural recovery agent for emphysema by virtue of VEGF stimulation/elevation via activation of Janus kinase 2 (JAK2) and signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3), as stimulating lung cell proliferation and migration, and protecting against lung cell death. Using in vitro human lung microvascular endothelial (HMVEC-L) and alveolar epithelial (A549) cell systems, Sal-B was examined for 1) stimulation of cell proliferation by the MTT and BrdU assays; 2) promotion of cell migration by the scratch wound closure assay; 3) protection against emphysema-like induced cell death by the trypan blue exclusion and flow cytometry assays; and 4) mechanistic involvement of JAK2/STAT3/VEGF in these activities. Sal-B was also spray-dosed to the lungs of healthy rats for two weeks to verify the lung's STAT3 activation and VEGF elevation by western blot , as well as the absence of functional and morphological abnormalities. All the in vitro cell-based activities were concentration-dependent. At 25 μM, Sal-B 1) stimulated cell proliferation by 1.4–2.6-fold; 2) promoted migratory cell wound closure by 1.5–1.7-fold; and 3) protected against cell death induced with H2O2 (oxidative stress) and SU5416 (VEGF receptor blockade) by 49–86%. JAK2 and STAT3 inhibitors and VEGF receptor antagonist each opposed these Sal-B's activities by over 65%, suggesting the mechanistic involvement of JAK2/STAT3 activation and VEGF stimulation/elevation. In rats, Sal-B at 0.2 mg/kg enabled 1.9 and 1.5-fold increased STAT3 phosphorylation and VEGF elevation in the lungs, respectively, while causing no functional and morphological abnormalities. Hence, Sal-B was projected to be a new class of anti-emphysema agent capable of reversing alveolar structural destruction/loss via JAK2/STAT3/VEGF-dependent stimulation of lung cell proliferation and migration, and inhibition of induced lung cell death.
Can the Backlash Against Voter ID Laws Activate Minority Voters? Experimental Evidence Examining Voter Mobilization Through Psychological Reactance

Research on the participatory consequences of electoral reforms that increase voting costs largely ignores how the perception that those efforts’ purpose is to disenfranchise certain individuals may affect turnout. Leveraging psychological reactance theory, I test whether invoking that perception activates African Americans (who disproportionately bear those higher costs). A survey experiment shows that framing the most prevalent ballot access restriction, voter identification laws, as designed to keep Blacks from voting increases reactance among this group, reduces their support for ID laws, and raises the perceived threat to their franchise. However, three field experiments on African American registrants find that this message fails to mobilize subjects in general and provide at best limited evidence that this argument spurs elderly Black participation. The results signal that emphasizing the perception that increased voting costs are designed to reduce turnout can alter attitudes but may not ultimately change behavior (i.e., the decision to vote).
Management Considerations for Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor-Induced Enterocolitis Based on Management of Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Background Immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy has significantly improved the outcomes of various advanced malignancies that were deemed unruly prior to its invention. Immune-mediated diarrhea and enterocolitis are among the most frequently encountered adverse events of immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy. Given the increasing use of these therapies in the treatment of an ever-growing number of malignancies, providing appropriate treatment for such adverse effects has become crucial. Methods In this review, we summarize the current body of evidence concerning the management of immune-mediated diarrhea and enterocolitis. Additionally, management of immune-mediated diarrhea and enterocolitis is likened to that of inflammatory bowel disease, given the resemblance between both entities in pathogenesis and clinical features. Reviewing the literature raised several points regarding this devastating toxicity that still need further investigation by future efforts. Results Endoscopic and histologic evaluation is pivotal in the assessment of immune-mediated diarrhea and enterocolitis and provides vital information regarding the severity of the disease to guide treatment. Corticosteroids are the main therapy for immune-mediated diarrhea and enterocolitis, with infliximab and vedolizumab as second-line agents. Recently, fecal microbiota transplantation has emerged as a treatment option for immune-mediated diarrhea and enterocolitis that is refractory to corticosteroids. Restarting immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy after resolution of immune-mediated diarrhea and enterocolitis carries a risk of recurrence that is mostly controllable with current immune-suppressive treatment. Conclusions Lastly, we propose a management algorithm for immune-mediated diarrhea and enterocolitis. Prospective research, preferably as collaborative efforts from oncology and gastroenterology specialists, is needed to refine the management of immune-mediated diarrhea and enterocolitis.
Acceptability and Impact of Office-Based Resistance Exercise Breaks:

Background:Breaking up sedentary behavior with standing or walking can decrease discomfort, fatigue, and sleepiness. However, less is known about acceptability and impact of resistance exercise bre...
The importance of free digoxin serum levels after digoxin poisoning.

Dear editor,Digoxin is a cardioactive drug with a narrow therapeutic window. Severe intoxication may require urgent treatment. The clinical picture is represented by dangerous dysrhythmias and the ...
Oxidation and Mechanical Damage in a Unidirectional SiC/Si 3 N 4 Composite at Elevated Temperature

The results of a study on the high-temperature damage mechanisms in a unidirectional Nicalon fiber-reinforced reaction-bonded silicon nitride (RBSN) composite are presented in this paper. The microstructure of the as-manufactured and tested specimens were characterized using a variety of techniques including: X-ray diffraction; optical, scanning, and transmission microscopy; and dilatometry. Single-edge notch specimens under three-point bend loading were tested under a constant displacement-rate condition as well as under a sustained loading condition at 1000°C in air. The load-line displacement was used as the in situ indicator of damage accumulation. The fracture surface and the damage zone around the main crack were characterized in the fractured specimens to investigate the high-temperature fracture mechanisms. Under constant displacement rate, the composite showed extensive nonlinear load versus displacement behavior, indicating that the presence of the fiber has indeed toughened the composite. Cracks propagated nominally along the notch plane, though some delaminations were also observed. The substantial bulk oxidation occurred even at test temperatures as low as 800°C and resulted in significant changes in the dimension of the composite specimens. The fiber pullout, fracture surface morphology, and delamination were all strongly influenced by the high-temperature oxidation.
Hirabayashi: The Biggest Lie of the Greatest Generation

This Article presents newly discovered archival evidence demonstrating that government lawyers told a crucial lie to the United States Supreme Court in the case of Hirabayashi v. United States, 320 U.S. 81 (1943), which upheld the constitutionality of a racial curfew imposed on Japanese Americans in World War II. While the government's submissions in Hirabayashi maintained that the curfew was a constitutional response to the serious threat of a Japanese invasion of the West Coast, new archival findings make clear that military officials foresaw no Japanese invasion and were planning for no such thing at the time they ordered mass action against Japanese Americans. Even more disturbingly, the archival record demonstrates that at the time that Justice Department lawyers filed their brief in Hirabayashi emphasizing a threatened invasion, they knew this emphasis was false.The Article seeks to understand what might have led otherwise ethical Justice Department lawyers to present such a big and consequential lie, suggesting that the then-prevalent racial schema of the "Oriental" as an invading horde may have overpowered the lawyers' evaluation of the facts. And perhaps more importantly, the Article demonstrates that the Hirabayashi decision - which has never been repudiated in the way that the more famous Korematsu decision has been, and which remains a potent precedent for race-conscious national security measures - deserves to be installed in the Supreme Court's Hall of Shame, alongside Korematsu, Dred Scott, and the Court's other biggest mistakes.
Recovery of Palladium VIA a Vitrification Process

The Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) has developed a process to recover, decontaminate, and reuse Pd from a radioactive waste (referred to as Pd/K) resulting from the tritium production process. The feasibility of efficiently recovering Pd was demonstrated through a series of tests based on the use of a simple additive followed by thermal processing and mechanical separation. More specifically, 10 mole borax (Na 2 B 4 O 7 • 10H 2 O) was added to deuterium-cycled Pd/K material on a 1:1 mass basis and heated at 1575°C for 4 hours. The diatomaceous earth reacts with the borax to produce a borosilicate glass product. At temperature, the Pd melts and coalesces to form an ingot which settles to the bottom of the crucible due to density differences. After cooling, the glass can be mechanically fractured and the Pd ingot separated and recovered. Based on the initial weight of Pd/K material used, the weights of the recovered Pd ingots, and assuming the Pd/K was 40 - 50% Pd by weight, it was estimated that approximately 95 - 99% of the Pd was recovered. The recovered Pd was determined to be substantially free of deuterium after isotopic exchange with high purity protium meeting programmatic objectives.
Economic History, Quantitative: United States

The term ‘cliometrics’ was coined in the 1950s, referring to a self-conscious movement to revolutionize economic history by incorporating quantitative methods and explicit models into the study of past phenomena. The new approach swept to dominance between 1955 and 1975. Subsequently, economic historians began a return to older interests in institutions, culture, and technology. Prominent figures argued that the study of well-established market systems constituted a narrow approach, not well chosen to support a distinctively historical contribution to economics. Although the renewed interest in institutions is a return to earlier terrain, the new incarnation is firmly lodged within the parent discipline of economics.
Developing the Promise of Nutrigenomics through Complete Science and International Collaborations

Food is economically available to 4 billion of the world's 6 billion people, a situation that resulted from dramatically improved methods for producing, storing, and distributing food on a mass scale during the last 100 years. Nevertheless, almost 2 billion people are malnourished through either over-consumption of fats and calories or lack of adequate calories and micronutrients. Malnourishment results in chronic diseases, immune dysfunction, and early death. Analyzing and understanding gene - nutrient interactions is therefore a necessary step for designing and producing foods for maintaining the health of populations and individuals. Nutrigenomics is the study of how constituents of the diet interact with genes, and their products, to alter phenotype and conversely, how genes and their products metabolize these constituents into nutrients, antinutrients, and bioactive compounds. However, defining causal gene X nutrient interactions involved in maintaining optimum health are more challenging because of the (i) chemical complexity of food, (ii) genetic heterogeneity of humans, and (iii) the complexity of physiological responses to nutrient intakes in health and disease. Three significant developments will allow progress in nutrition and nutrigenomics: the development of high throughput omic (genomic, transcriptomic, proteomic, and metabolomic) technologies, improved experimental designs, and the development of research collaborations to study complex biological processes. The practical applications of nutrigenomics are the possibility of delivering the right micronutrients in the optimum amount to the food insecure and developing novel foods which are more nutritious, flavourful, storable, and health promoting than many of the products manufactured today.
Biorhythms of the pregnant uterus (Macaca mulatta)

Abstract Twelve rhesus monkeys confined to restraining chairs and maintained in a controlled environment were used to explore the existence and effect of biorhythms in the dynamics of the uterus during the last half of pregnancy. Spontaneous uterine activity, aortic blood pressure, and uterine artery blood flow were monitored continuously for periods of five to 25 days. During a 24 hour period, the variation in hourly average values of all measured functions occurred in repetitive and predictable patterns conforming to highly significant Fourier curves that were entrained by the light-dark cycle. Highest amniotic fluid and blood pressure values were recorded during the periods of light. Amplitudes of the sine curves calculated from intra-amniotic pressure data ranged from 1.8 to 59.4 per cent of the 24 hour mean, and in eight animals, they were positively correlated with blood pressure changes. In general, highest hourly average uterine artery blood flow rates occurred during the periods of darkness when intra-amniotic fluid pressures were minimal. The differences between minimal and maximal average flow rates ranged from 17.0 to 63.6 per cent of mean daily flow and were inversely correlated to amniotic fluid pressure changes. Disparities observed in the chronology and amplitude of the 24 hour periodic functions recorded for intra-amniotic pressure, blood pressure, and uterine blood flow indicate these biorhythms are modulated by factors in addition to those engendered by physiological pressure-flow relationships. The existence of these circadian rhythms should be considered when studying the kinetics and kinematics of the pregnant primate uterus.
Rate-determining Step of Flap Endonuclease 1 (FEN1) Reflects a Kinetic Bias against Long Flaps and Trinucleotide Repeat Sequences.

Flap endonuclease 1 (FEN1) is a structure-specific nuclease responsible for removing 5′-flaps formed during Okazaki fragment maturation and long patch base excision repair. In this work, we use rapid quench flow techniques to examine the rates of 5′-flap removal on DNA substrates of varying length and sequence. Of particular interest are flaps containing trinucleotide repeats (TNR), which have been proposed to affect FEN1 activity and cause genetic instability. We report that FEN1 processes substrates containing flaps of 30 nucleotides or fewer at comparable single-turnover rates. However, for flaps longer than 30 nucleotides, FEN1 kinetically discriminates substrates based on flap length and flap sequence. In particular, FEN1 removes flaps containing TNR sequences at a rate slower than mixed sequence flaps of the same length. Furthermore, multiple-turnover kinetic analysis reveals that the rate-determining step of FEN1 switches as a function of flap length from product release to chemistry (or a step prior to chemistry). These results provide a kinetic perspective on the role of FEN1 in DNA replication and repair and contribute to our understanding of FEN1 in mediating genetic instability of TNR sequences.
Approximate reachability for linear systems

We describe new techniques to construct, and subsequently refine, over-approximations of the reachability sets for linear dynamical systems. Our approach extracts information from real eigenvectors and more generally, from certain vectors in the primary decomposition, to generate suitable invariants of the system and can be used in conjunction with other reachability computation methods. We also describe experimental results from using this technique inside the qualitative abstraction tool [18], where it helps to generate refined abstractions of hybrid systems with linear continuous dynamics. We illustrate this on a collision-avoidance example from automobile cruise control problem, which was handled completely automatically by our tool.
Singular Perturbation Methodology in Control Systems

This book presents the twin topics of singular perturbation methods and time scale analysis to problems in systems and control. The heart of the book is the singularly perturbed optimal control systems, which are notorious for demanding excessive computational costs. The book addresses both continuous control systems (described by differential equations) and discrete control systems (characterised by difference equations).
Loop-tree implementation of the adaptive integral method (AIM) for numerically stable EM modeling from low to multi-GHz frequencies

The adaptive integral method (AIM) is implemented in conjunction with the loop-tree decomposition of the method of moments approximation of the electric field integral equation. The representation of the current in terms of its solenoidal and irrotational components allows for accurate, broadband electromagnetic simulation without any low-frequency numerical instability problems, while the O(NlogN) complexity and O(N) storage of the conventional AIM algorithm are preserved to provide high computational efficiency. The proposed implementation is numerically validated through its application to the electromagnetic analysis of a microstrip corporate-fed patch antenna array.
Computational discovery for nonlinear classifiers

The author describes an approach to computer-aided discovery of nonlinear classifiers and cluster finders for complex distributions of multidimensional data. Special attention is given to the discovery and selection of features for piecewise linear classifiers and large-scale tree classifiers. The feature discovery mechanisms are in the form of networks of three types of elements: feature selectors (FSs), feature expanders (FEs), and trainable linear arrays (TLAs). The FSs are built on selection techniques such as relaxed branch-and-bound and genetic selectors. Each FE produces an advanced set of features from a primitive set, using mating and mutation processes of genetic algorithms in combination with algebraic operations. Each TLA transforms a set of features into another set via a set of trainable linear weights. The output of the network of FSs, FEs and TLAs is a set of discovered features of a parallel nonlinear classifier. The network discovers these features by combining algebraic transformations, hill climbing, and genetic search. >
Team Training for Global Virtual Teams: Strategies for Success

With the increase in distributed teams in organizations and the globalization of consumer markets, teams are becoming more diversified to cope with changing environments. Many teams have members that exist in varying locations both within a country and within different countries. Because of this, the team members are communicating through various virtual mediums, such as email, instant messaging, and video- and tele-conferencing software. These global, virtual teams (GVTs) face unique challenges, particularly when it comes to team training. This chapter considers the impact of virtuality on the communication across team members, how trust develops in the team, the cohesion among members, and team cognition in GVTs. It also explores the effects of culture on team communication, how leadership develops in these teams, the need for conflict management, and issues with the development of collective identity in GVTs. Different team training methodologies and strategies to mitigate these effects, such as team coordination and adaptation training, event-based approach to training, cross-training, team leadership and development training, and guided team self-correction training, are explored. Specific recommendations to developing and applying these team training methods to GVTs are provided.
Characterization of DNA Structures by Circular Dichroism

Circular dichroism (CD) of nucleic acids is commonly used to provide a signature for a given secondary structure. CD is particularly powerful for monitoring structural changes resulting from changes in environmental conditions such as temperature, ionic strength, and pH. A number of commercially available instruments are available for the measurement of CD spectra. Since the details of instrumental operation differ for each machine, this unit provides a descriptive guide, rather than a strict protocol. It describes considerations that the experimentalist will face when attempting to examine nucleic acid structures by CD spectropolarimetry. Specific details are also given for cell filling and cleaning, and for instrumental calibration. Finally, several examples of CD spectra are given to provide useful reference points for a variety of nucleic acid structures, ranging from single-stranded to triplex and quadruplex forms.
Viscous Flow Computations for Compressor/Combustor Diffuser Design to Allow Air Extraction for IGCC Systems

A computational procedure based on the solution of fully elliptic Navier-Stokes equations on a body-fitted non-orthogonal grid was used to obtain flow fields in annular diffusers with a suction slot at the inner and outer walls. The turbulence effects were simulated by high Reynolds number form of the k-e model. The calculation method was used to modify an industrial gas turbine (GE MS · 7001F) compressor/combustor annular diffuser to allow extraction of compressed airflow for coal gasification in simplified IGCC Systems. The air for gasification was extracted through a suction slot on the outer wall of the diffuser which was curved to improve the overall performance and to avoid flow separation; both of these insured by providing accelerated flow through the suction slot and nearly constant wall pressure downstream of the slot. Suction slot and outer wall geometries to result in the above conditions were determined by a trial and error procedure. The diffuser’s performance was further improved by extracting 6% of the compressed air through a slot at the inner wall, kept straight due to structural constraints. The resulting diffuser arrangement was relatively insensitive to the upstream disturbances.Copyright © 1991 by ASME
Psychophysiological Reactivity to Abuse-Related Stimuli in Sexually Revictimized Women

Prior research shows discrepant findings in relation to psychophysiological reactivity to threat in women with histories of sexual victimization. Women ages 18 to 22 (N = 123) with histories of sexual abuse were categorized into child sexual abuse (CSA), adult sexual victimization, revictimization, or nonvictimization groups. Low- and high-frequency heart rate variability were measured at baseline and during an Emotional Stroop task of abuse-related words. Revictimized women showed a significant decrease from baseline to task in both parasympathetic and sympathetic measures when compared to the CSA group. The CSA group demonstrated chronic sympathetic activation at both baseline and task, relative to the revictimization group. Groups did not differ on performance (i.e., reaction time) on the Emotional Stroop task (i.e., more threatening stimuli, slower performance). Cardiovascular responses reported might point to biological reactivity patterns needed for women with a history of sexual abuse to cope with ...
Pre-Earthquake Multi-Objective Probabilistic Retrofit Optimization of Bridge Networks Based on Sustainability

Planning retrofit actions on bridge networks under tight budget constraints is a challenging process. Because of the uncertainties associated with this process, a probabilistic approach is necessary. In this paper, a probabilistic methodology to establish optimum pre-earthquake retrofit plans for bridge networks based on sustainability is developed. A multicriteria optimization problem is formulated to find the optimum timing of retrofit actions for bridges within a network. The sustainability of a bridge network and the total cost of retrofit actions are considered as conflicting criteria. The sustainability is quantified in terms of the expected economic losses. The uncertainties associated with seismic hazard and structural vulnerability are considered. The methodology is illustrated on an existing bridge network. Genetic algorithms are used to solve the multicriteria optimization problem. The effects of deterioration on bridge seismic performance are considered. The effects of the time horizon on the Pareto optimal solutions are also investigated.
The Advantages of Continuous Measurements over Pass/Fail Data

This article provides a justification for continuous measurements being more informative than pass/fail data. Namely, more information is provided for the same sample size or a smaller sample size is required for the same information. In the article, inference of the conformance probability, the probability of measurements meeting specifications, is considered. It is shown that continuous measurements provide dramatic advantages, especially when the conformance probability is high.
Can pollution severity affect diatom succession in streams and could it matter for stream assessments

While the succession of benthic diatoms on scoured substrata has been widely studied to better understand community recovery from high flow disturbances, how anthropogenic stressors affect this common and dynamic process has received little attention; yet, it could have consequences for bioassessment and subsequent management decisions. Our objectives were to examine if the severity of acid mine drainage (AMD), a stressor of common concern in several countries, affected patterns of community development, diversity, and stream assessment outcomes (based on diatom metrics and indices) when diatoms are sampled during succession. In southeastern Ohio (USA), we deployed unglazed ceramic tiles in three streams along an AMD-impact gradient and in a control stream with no upstream AMD sources, and we sampled diatoms on days 5, 12, 19, 26, and 33. Diatom diversity decreased as AMD severity increased. In more severely AMD-impacted streams, diatom succession was simplified with less community turnover during the 33-...
Work softening in stoichiometric spinel (MgAl2O4)

Abstract Czochralski-grown single crystals of stoiehiometric spinel (MgAl2O4) have been deformed at 1780–1980°C along several different directions. Crystals deformed parallel to [111], [112], and [123] slip on the {111} 01 system, while {101} 01 slip is observed for the specimens deformed parallel to 001. There is thus little plastic anisotropy between these two systems. Work softening occurs at large strains (γ = 0·015) for both types of specimens; the resolved steady-state flow stress for the specimens with {111} slip planes is independent of the number of slip systems being activated and is 7sim;50% higher than for {101} slip planes. Dislocation structures on the primary and cross-slip planes have been studied as a function of strain for specimens deformed at 1800°C. At small strains (σ ∼0·005), a high density of long straight edge dislocations belonging to the expected primary slip system is observed. At higher strains (γ ∼0·01), a random three-dimensional dislocation network has evolved, correspondin...
Microstructure Evolution of ZrO2‐(Fe2O3, Al2O3) Materials Synthesized with Solution Precursors

Aqueous Zr-nitrate solutions containing appropriate amounts of Fe(NO3)3·6H2O and Al(NO3)3·6H2O were used to synthesize ZrO2-Fe2O3 compositions (up to 40 mol% Fe2O3) and one ZrO2-Al2O3-Fe2O3 composition. An amorphous phase was produced after pyrolysis, which subsequently crystallized to a single-phase Zr(Fe)O2 solid solution (or Zr(Fe,Al)O2 ss) that appeared cubic by X-ray diffraction, but tetragonal (c/a→ 1) by electron diffraction. The crystallization temperature increased with Fe2O3 content. At higher temperatures, the single phase partitioned to two phases, tetragonal-ZrO2+γ-Fe2O3. The γ- to α-Fe2O3 transformation occurred at still higher temperatures to produce a two-phase microstructure composed of two interpenetrating phases (ZrO2+α-Fe2O3), each with equiaxed grains. This microstructure was relatively stable to grain coarsening, even to temperatures just below the apparent eutectic temperature. With the exception of the lower transition temperatures and the equiaxed grains observed for both phases, these observations are similar to that previously reported for the ZrO2-Al2O3 system. The microstructure development reported here is another example for the synthesis via solution processing that involves diffusion-limited crystallization. Namely, a two-phase material can be produced where the grain size of each can be very small, and can be prevented from growing rapidly at high temperatures due to the constraint of each phase on one another.
Diapause, quiescence, and moisture in the egg of the western corn rootworm, Diabrotica virgifera

Abstract The egg of the western corn rootworm, Diabrotica virgifera , must absorb water to complete post-diapause embryogenesis. When held at 25°C and 96% relative humidity, post-diapause eggs underwent some development and then became quiescent. When quiescence was terminated by contact with moisture, the average time to hatch was 13 days. Post-diapause eggs that remained quiescent because of exposure to chill (5°C) required an average of 20 days to hatch. The rate of diapause development was not affected by exposure to 96% r.h. Eggs held at 5°C in contact with moisture took up only negligible amounts of water, and if they completed diapause at 5°C, they began water uptake some six days after they were placed at 25°C. Over a period of several days, egg weight increased from about 42 μg to about 70 μg. Eggs that completed diapause at 25°C and 96% r.h. took up significant water within 24 hr of moistening. Water uptake is apparently a post-diapause event in D. virgifera , and quiescence caused by low moisture (96% r.h.) is a dormancy separate from diapause.
A radioassay of enzymes catalyzing the glucosylation and sulfation steps of glucosinolate biosynthesis in Brassica species

A new method for assaying the enzymes uridine diphosphoglucose (UDPglucose):thiohydroximate glucosyltransferase and 3'-phosphoadenosine-5'-phosphosulfate:desulfoglucosinolate sulfotransferase has been designed. The assay system is based on the separation of nonionic [14C]desulfobenzylglucosinolate from anionic [14C]UDPglucose and anionic [14C]benzylglucosinolate, respectively, by differential adsorption to DEAE-ion-exchange disks. The procedure eliminates elaborate chromatographic techniques. The method was used to measure both enzymes in several Brassica spp. In addition, sulfotransferase activity was monitored during partial purification from seedlings of Brassica napus (cv Westar).
Manufacturing Visions of Society and History in Textbooks.

Interviews with personnel involved in designing secondary-school social-science textbooks and the findings of previous research in the sociology of work in mass media organizations, reveal three, often complementary, domains of control that influence textbook visual content : (a) industrial - the meaning, relevance and historical or social significance of an image directed through captioning and accuracy guidelines; (b) commercial - marketing pressures that make aesthetic appeal of great importance to the textbook's production success; and (c) social - interest groups that influence the visual components of the textbook, but because of space limitations the game is zero-sum. This study finds that, in all, the textbook vision of society is homogenized and sanitized to reduce the risk of controversy
Formation of Carotenoid Neutral Radicals in Photosystem II

β-carotene radicals produced in the hexagonal pores of the molecular sieve Cu(II)-MCM-41 were studied by ENDOR and visible/near IR spectroscopies. ENDOR studies showed that neutral radicals of β-carotene were produced in humid air under ambient fluorescent light. The maximum absorption wavelengths of the neutral radicals were measured and were additionally predicted by using time-dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) calculations. An absorption peak at 750 nm, assigned to the neutral radical with a proton loss from the 4(4') position of the β-carotene radical cation in Cu(II)-MCM-41, was also observed in photosystem II (PS II) samples using near-IR spectroscopy after illumination at 20 K. This peak was previously unassigned in PS II samples. The intensity of the absorption peak at 750 nm relative to the absorption of chlorophyll radical cations and β-carotene radical cations increased with increasing pH of the PS II sample, providing further evidence that the absorption peak is due to the deprotonation of the β-carotene radical cation. Based on a consideration of possible proton acceptors that are adjacent to β-carotene molecules in photosystem II, as modeled in the X-ray crystal structure of Guskov et al. Nat. Struct. Mol. Biol. 2009, 16, 334-342, an electron-transfer pathway from a β-carotene molecule with an adjacent proton acceptor to P680•+ is proposed.
Creating Unit-Based Patient Safety Walk-Rounds in a Pediatric Emergency Department

We describe how a new program of unit-based patient safety walk-rounds (PSW), where staff participate in quality improvement monitoring and discuss patient safety issues, was developed and conducted, share our tools, and report preliminary results. Over the first 9 months, 20 unit-based PSW involving 99 staff members occurred, including 30% on weekends, 40% during the evening, and 25% during the overnight shifts. Several systems issues were identified using 6 quality improvement tools and acted upon including creation of educational programs, collaboration with multiple departments external to the emergency department, changes in computerized physician order sets, and institution of multidisciplinary bedside rounds. The number of medication “near-miss” incident reports during this period increased by 44% compared with the 24 months before beginning this program. Through unit-based PSW, clinical, administrative, and ancillary support staff have successfully worked together to improve safety and quality of care and awareness of patient safety in a children's hospital emergency department.
Standards versus guidelines for designing user interface software

Abstract There are significant differences between designing hardware and software for the user interface to computer–based information systems. Formal standards may improve hardware design but may prove ineffective for aiding software design. Our present knowledge supports development of flexible design guidelines for user interface software, but does not justify imposition of standards. Effective application of guidelines will require a process of translation into system–specific design rules, and/or future incorporation into computer–based design algorithms.