cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Mechanism of Zinc Sulphate Prophylaxis in Experimental Poliomyelitis

We have previously reported1 that the application of 1% zinc sulphate to the olfactory mucosa of monkeys affords protection against poliomyelitis virus inoculated intranasally one or more months later. The basis of this protection is not yet understood. Nasal mucous membranes removed a week or more after treatment generally present a normal appearance. Recently, however, we have studied membranes removed several hours to several days after treatment with varying concentrations of zinc sulphate solution.With a little experience it is possible to remove olfactory mucosa, olfactory nerve filaments and olfactory bulbs, of both sides, all in one piece. These have been embedded and sectioned tangentially. Such sections afford the orientation necessary for a satisfactory study of the olfactory mucosa and related structures and within limits allow comparison of treated and untreated sides.Our observations show that by the end of the first day, there may be a marked acute inflammation, associated with some desquam...
Impairment of Vision in a Mouse Model of Usher Syndrome Type III.

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to obtain an Usher syndrome type III mouse model with retinal phenotype. METHODS Speed congenic method was used to obtain Clrn1 exon 1 knockout (Clrn1-/-) and Clrn1N48K knockin (Clrn1N48K/N48K) mice under A/J background. To study the retinal functions of these mice, we measured scotopic and photopic ERG responses. To observe if there are any structural abnormalities, we conducted light and transmission electron microscopy of fixed retinal specimens. RESULTS In 3-month-old Clrn1-/- mice, scotopic b-wave amplitude was reduced by more than 25% at the light intensities from -2.2 to 0.38 log cd·s/m2, but scotopic a-wave amplitudes were comparable to those of age-matched wild type mice at all the light intensities tested. In 9-month-old Clrn1-/- mice, scotopic b-wave amplitudes were further reduced by more than 35%, and scotopic a-wave amplitude also showed a small decline as compared with wild type mice. Photopic ERG responses were comparable between Clrn1-/- and wild type mice. Those electrophysiological defects were not associated with a loss of rods. In Clrn1N48K/N48K mice, both a- and b-wave amplitudes were not discernable from those of wild type mice aged up to 10 months. CONCLUSIONS Mutations that are Clrn1-/- biallelic cause visual defects when placed under A/J background. The absence of apparent rod degeneration suggests that the observed phenotype is due to functional defects, and not due to loss of rods. Biallelic Clrn1N48K/N48K mutations did not cause discernible visual defects, suggesting that Clrn1- allele is more severely dysfunctional than ClrnN48K allele.
Sequence and functional similarity between a yeast ribosomal protein and the Escherichia coli S5 ram protein

Abstract The accurate and efficient translation of proteins is of fundamental importance to both bacteria and higher organisms. Most of our knowledge about the control of translational fidelity comes from studies of Escherichia coli. In particular, ram (ribosomal ambiguity) mutations in structural genes of E. coli ribosomal proteins S4 and S5 have been shown to increase translational error frequencies. We describe the first sequence of a ribosomal protein gene that affects translational ambiguity in a eucaryote. We show that the yeast omnipotent suppressor SUP44 encodes the yeast ribosomal protein S4. The gene exists as a single copy without an intron. The SUP44 protein is 26% identical (54% similar) to the well-characterized E. coli S5 ram protein. SUP44 is also 59% identical (78% similar) to mouse protein LLrep3, whose function was previously unknown (D.L. Heller, K.M. Gianda, and L. Leinwand, Mol. Cell. Biol. 8:2797-2803, 1988). The SUP44 suppressor mutation occurs near a region of the protein that corresponds to the known positions of alterations in E. coli S5 ram mutations. This is the first ribosomal protein whose function and sequence have been shown to be conserved between procaryotes and eucaryotes.
Bile Duct Stones: Making the Radiologic Diagnosis

Bile duct stones are concretions of bile components that originate in the gallbladder as gallstones (cholelithiasis) and that are present in the biliary tree at the time of discovery. Most gall stones, if small enough, will pass through the cystic duct and the common bile duct (CBD) into the duodenum. Choledocholithiasis refers to stones in the common bile duct. These stones may lodge in the CBD and become impacted, thereby causing a blockage of the duct. Making the diagnosis of bile duct stones begins with a basic understanding of the biliary anatomy. Diagnosis by imaging can be made with a variety of modalities, most often by ultrasound (US), computed tomography (CT), or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and its cholangiographic adaptation (MRCP). Each modality has its relative advantages and shortcomings, and knowledge of the indirect and direct findings of choledocholithiasis, of the differential diagnosis of biliary dilatation and relative strengths of each imaging modality allows for accurate radiological diagnosis. However, one must be aware of the pitfalls of each modality to avoid misdiagnosis.
Study of Quality Standards on A Medical Herb in Pieces of Radix Astragall

Objective To supply a reference to establish the quality standards on a new medical herb in pieces of Radix Astragall.Methods Inspecting the appearance,general subjects(water content,total ash,sour insoluble ash) on different types of new medical herb in pieces of Radix Astragall and using HPLC to determine the content of Astragaloside IV.Results The linear range of ferulic acid was 0.70~5.60 μg and its relativity was very well,r=0.999 1.Regression equation: C=0.671 3A-3.699 5.The average recovery was 96.17%,RSD=1.72%.Conclusion The quality of this new medical herb in pieces of Radix Astragall is quite stable.
Some complements to Brouwer’s fixed point theorem

The sets which can be the fixed points of a continuous function or a homeomorphism ofB n are investigated.
68 Examining the role of supportive adults in violence exposure among male youth in urban environments

Statement of purpose Adult connexion has demonstrated a protective effect on multiple adolescent health outcomes. We examine how the nature of relationships with adults impacts violence exposure. Methods/approach 283 adolescent males in Philadelphia, ages 10–24, were enrolled via household random-digit dial and interviewed in person. Relationships with key family members were divided into supportive, unsupportive, and mixed, as defined by youth. Reported violence involvement and violence witnessing scores were created using 17 self-reported items, and dichotomized using natural breakpoints. Logistic regressions examined how relationships with adult family members corresponded to violence involvement and witnessing violence. Results Median participant age was 18 and 98% were African American. 68% of youth identified at least one supportive adult family member including mothers (60%), fathers (27%), and maternal grandmothers (15%). 33% of youth reported high violence involvement, 30% reported high violence witnessing, and 17% reported both. Youth who reported at least one supportive adult had significantly decreased odds of violence involvement (OR = 0.38; 95% CI = 0.23–0.65) and violence witnessing (OR = 0.49; 95% CI = 0.29–0.83). Compared to youth with unsupportive maternal relationships, those with supportive relationships had decreased odds of violence involvement (OR = 0.17; 95% CI = 0.05–0.57). Having a supportive paternal relationship trended towards decreased odds of violence involvement (OR = 0.47, 95% CI = 0.10–2.31), but was relatively uncommon. Findings adjusted for age were consistent. Conclusions Supportive family connexion is strongly associated with decreased odds of violence exposure and violence witnessing. Youth who characterised supportive maternal relationships had significantly less violence involvement; those who characterised supportive paternal relationships also trended towards less violence involvement. Significance and contributions Next studies should fully evaluate the impact of supportive fathers, investigate causal mechanisms underlying the observed relationships, and identify opportunities to bolster family connexion that may reduce adolescent violence exposure.
Entrepreneurial Activities in Post-Soviet Societies Impacts of Social Psychological Characteristics

This article focuses on the impacts of locus of control and self-esteem on the likelihood that young adults in post-Soviet societies en gage in entrepreneurial activities. Despite the especially high level of un certainty and risk associated with entrepreneurship in transitional societ ies, the literature has largely neglected the role of social psychological char acteristics of undertaking entrepreneurial activities in such societies. In lo gistic regression analyses of longitudinal data on samples of secondary school graduates in five former regions of the Soviet Union, we find that social psychological characteristics at ages seventeen to eighteen (measured in 1983-84) have effects on entrepreneurial activities in transitional societies a decade or more later when individuals are young adults. Three different measures of entrepreneurial activities (owning a business or firm, self-em ployment, and the mix of entrepreneurial activities) are examined. The re sults suggest that greater self-esteem at ages seventeen to eighteen increases the likelihood that a young adult has engaged in some form of entrepreneur
Mimicking Ribosomal Vectorial Unfolding of RNA Pseudoknot in a Protein Channel

Pseudoknots are a fundamental RNA tertiary structure found in almost all classes of RNAs. They not only play a key role in diverse biological mechanisms, but also provide an excellent model for understanding RNA folding/unfolding processes involved in their functions. Molecular force spectroscopic approaches such as optical tweezers can track the pseudoknot's unfolding intermediate states by pulling the molecule from both 5’ and 3’-ends, but the pseudoknot unfolding kinetic pathway may be different from that in vivo, which proceeds in the translation direction from the 5’ to 3’ end. Here we developed a ribosome-mimicking, nanopore pulling assay for dissecting the vectorial unfolding mechanism of pseudoknots. The unfolding pathway of pseudoknot in the nanopore, either from the 5’ to 3’ end or in the reverse direction, can be controlled by a DNA lead that is attached to the pseudoknot at the 5’ or 3’ ends. The different nanopore conductance between DNA and RNA translocation serves as a marker for the position and structure of the unfolding RNA in the pore. With this design, we identify that the pseudoknot unfolding is a two-step, multi-state, metal ion-regulated process, and along different pathways dependent on the pulling direction. Notably, the unfolding in both directions are rate-limited by the unzipping of the first helix domain, which is Helix-1 in the 5’→3’ direction and Helix-2 in the 3’→5’ direction, suggesting that the initial unfolding step in either pulling direction needs to overcome an energy barrier contributed by the non-canonical triplex base-pairs and coaxial stacking interactions for the tertiary structure stabilization. These findings provide new insights into RNA vectorial unfolding mechanism. Potentially, the nanopore assay could be adapted to study different pseudoknots and riboswitches, shedding light on their biological functions including frameshifting and anti-virus drug design.
Decoupled, Unconditionally Stable, Higher Order Discretizations for MHD Flow Simulation

We propose, analyze, and test a new MHD discretization which decouples the system into two Oseen problems at each timestep yet maintains unconditional stability with respect to the time step size, is optimally accurate in space, and behaves like second order in time in practice. The proposed method chooses a parameter $$\theta \in [0,1]$$źź[0,1], dependent on the viscosity $$\nu $$ź and magnetic diffusivity $$\nu _m$$źm, so that the explicit treatment of certain viscous terms does not cause instabilities, and gives temporal accuracy $$O(\Delta t^2 + (1-\theta )|\nu -\nu _m|\Delta t)$$O(Δt2+(1-ź)|ź-źm|Δt). In practice, $$\nu $$ź and $$\nu _m$$źm are small, and so the method behaves like second order. When $$\theta =1$$ź=1, the method reduces to a linearized BDF2 method, but it has been proven by Li and Trenchea that such a method is stable only in the uncommon case of $$\frac{1}{2}< \frac{\nu }{\nu _m} < 2$$12<źźm<2. For the proposed method, stability and convergence are rigorously proven for appropriately chosen $$\theta $$ź, and several numerical tests are provided that confirm the theory and show the method provides excellent accuracy in cases where usual BDF2 is unstable.
Constraints on Arctic Atmospheric Chlorine Production through Measurements and Simulations of Cl2 and ClO.

During springtime, unique halogen chemistry involving chlorine and bromine atoms controls the prevalence of volatile organic compounds, ozone, and mercury in the Arctic lower troposphere. In situ measurements of the chlorine monoxide radical, ClO, and its precursor, Cl2, along with BrO and Br2, were conducted using chemical ionization mass spectrometry (CIMS) during the Bromine, Ozone, and Mercury Experiment (BROMEX) near Barrow, Alaska, in March 2012. To our knowledge, these data represent the first ClO measurements made using CIMS. A maximum daytime ClO concentration of 28 ppt was observed following an early morning peak of 75 ppt of Cl2. A zero-dimensional photochemistry model was constrained to Cl2 observations and used to simulate ClO during a 7-day period of the field campaign. The model simulates ClO within the measurement uncertainty, and the model results highlight the importance of chlorine chemistry participation in bromine radical cycling, as well as the dependence of halogen chemistry on NOx ...
Fast converging MPPT control of photovoltaic systems under partial shading conditions

A novel high performance control to track the maximum power point (MPP) of a photovoltaic (PV) module under rapidly fluctuating operating conditions like irradiation change and partial shading has been developed. A DC-DC boost converter is selected as the Power Conditioning Unit (P.C.U) to coordinate the operating point of the system with the maximum power point of the PV array. The proposed algorithm uses a scanning technique to measure the maximum power delivering capacity of the panel and the proposed control makes the system to operate at the MPP, even under rapidly changing operating conditions. The algorithm is simple to implement and easy to execute with high tracking efficiency. The proposed method is successfully implemented, analyzed and verified in Mat-lab/Simulink software. The results obtained for rapid change in irradiation conditions verify that the proposed MPPT control provides an efficient tracking within 15ms. The results also verify that the proposed control algorithm guarantees convergence to the global MPP even under partial shading.
A metal-ceramic coaxial cable Fabry-Pérot microwave interferometer for monitoring fluid dielectric constant

Abstract A metal-ceramic coaxial cable Fabry-Perot interferometer (MCCC-FPI) has been developed as a new microwave sensor and demonstrated for fast and reliably measuring and continuously monitoring dielectric constants for pure and mixed liquids. The sensor only requires a simple reference scan of the interferogram for the FPI with its sensing chamber filled with air or under vacuum to determine the actual inter-reflector length. The sensor is validated by measuring room temperature dielectric constant ( e r ) at high frequencies around 1.4–4.7 GHz for three vegetable oils (corn, sesame, and olive), the synthetic Mobil ® -1 engine oil, and mixtures containing sesame oil and water. The sensor has been also successfully demonstrated for determining e r values for the Mobil-1 oil at various temperatures and for the well-dispersed sesame oil-water mixtures of different compositions. The Bottcher’s model of effective medium theory is shown to be better suited for predicting the e r of the sesame oil-water mixture than the Maxwell-Garnett and Bruggeman equations of spherical solutions.
Communities of mourning: negotiating identity and difference in Old Delhi

In this article, I examine how Old Delhi’s Shias construct community across religious and sectarian lines to live with others in contemporary India. I focus on the Islamic month of Muharram, when Shias ritually mourn the death of Imam Husain and his companions at the Battle of Karbala. Often a period marked by sectarian violence and tension in South Asia, here I focus on everyday attempts to bridge difference, diffuse tensions, and enable broader understandings of community amongst Old Delhi’s Muslims, and between Muslims and Hindus. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork conducted amongst diverse groups of Muslims residing in Old Delhi, I examine how religious practices and narratives during and immediately after Muharram, provide an arena for new ways of positioning Shias in Old Delhi, and in India today. I argue that Shii rituals and narratives during Muharram, while marking religious and sectarian distinctions, simultaneously enable forms of identity that challenge exclusionary constructions of community a...
Supporting the Social Lives of Secondary Students with Severe Disabilities: Considerations for Effective Intervention.

For adolescents with severe disabilities, efforts to enhance the social dimensions of schooling are widely advocated, yet rarely implemented. The peer interactions and relationships so critical to school success and individual well-being can be elusive for many students with intellectual disability, autism, and multiple disabilities. This article highlights promising approaches for enhancing the social lives of secondary students with severe disabilities. The author presents five areas of intervention for secondary schools: student-related factors, peer-related factors, support-related factors, opportunity-related factors, and context-related factors. Attention then turns to how various peer-mediated approaches—peer support arrangements, peer network interventions, and peer partner programs—can be drawn upon to address one or more of these important factors. Recommendations are offered for (a) implementing multicomponent interventions, (b) addressing fidelity in the context of individualized interventions...
Cognitive perspectives on opinion dynamics: the role of knowledge in consensus formation, opinion divergence, and group polarization

Two phenomena that are central to simulation research on opinion dynamics are opinion divergence—the result that individuals interacting in a group do not always collapse to a single viewpoint, and group polarization—the result that average group opinions can become more extreme after discussions than they were to begin with. Standard approaches to modeling these dynamics have typically assumed that agents have an influence bound, such that individuals ignore opinions that differ from theirs by more than some threshold, and thus converge to distinct groups that remain uninfluenced by other distinct beliefs. Additionally, models have attempted to account for group polarization either by assuming the existence of recalcitrant extremists, who draw others to their view without being influenced by them, or negative reaction—movement in opinion space away from those they disagree with. Yet these assumptions are not well supported by existing social/cognitive theory and data, and insofar as there are data, it is often mixed. Moreover, an alternative cognitive assumption is able to produce both of these phenomena: the need for consistency within a set of related beliefs. Via simulation, we show that assumptions about knowledge or belief spaces and conceptual coherence naturally produce both convergence to distinct groups and group polarization, providing an alternative cognitively grounded mechanism for these phenomena.
Automated segmentation of cardiac adipose tissue in Dixon magnetic resonance images

Objective: Increasing evidence suggests a strong link between excess cardiac adipose tissue (CAT) and the risk of a cardiovascular event. Multi-echo Dixon magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), providing fat-only and water-only images, is a useful tool for quantification but requires the segmentation of CAT from a large number of images. The intent of this study was to evaluate an automated technique for CAT segmentation from Dixon MRI by comparing the contours identified by the automated algorithm to those manually traced by an observer. Methods: An automated segmentation algorithm, based on optimal thresholds and custom morphological processing, was applied to the registered fat-only and water-only images to identify CAT in the volume scans. CAT contours in 446 images, from 10 MRI scans, were selected for validation analysis. Cross-sectional area (CSA) and volume were computed and compared using Bland-Altman analysis. In addition, Hausdorff distance and Dice Similarity Coefficient (DSC) were used for assessment. Results: Linear regression analysis yielded correlation of R 2 = 0.381 for CSA and R 2 = 0.879 for volume. When compared to the observer, the computer algorithm under-estimated CSA by 27.5 ± 40.0% and volume by 26.4 ± 10.4%. The average bidirectional Hausdorff distance was 26.2 ± 16.0 mm while the average unidirectional Hausdorff distances were 24.5 ± 15.7 mm and 12.4 ± 11.7 mm. The average DSC was 0.561 ± 0.100. The time required for manual tracing was 15.84 ± 3.73 min and the time required for the computer algorithm was 2.81 ± 0.12 min. Conclusions: This study provided a technique, faster and less tedious than manual tracing ( p < 0.00001), for quantification of CAT in Dixon MRI data, demonstrating feasibility of this approach for cardiac risk stratification.
Embarrassment of riches in the measurement of humility: A critical review of 22 measures

Less than ten years ago, humility science seemed stuck with intractable measurement problems. Due to theoretical innovations, measures have proliferated in recent years. Humility science now faces ...
A Framework for Manipulating Deformable Linear Objects by Coherent Point Drift

Manipulation of deformable linear objects is a challenging task for robots. These objects have infinite-dimensional configuration space and are computational-expensive to model, making it difficult for real-time tracking, planning and control. To deal with these challenges, a uniform framework that includes state estimation, task planning, and trajectory planning is proposed in this letter based on the concept of coherent point drift (CPD). A real-time observer is proposed to estimate the states of deformable objects from the perceived point clouds. An online task planner is then developed to recognize the manipulation step according to the state estimation result. For trajectory planning, human operators first train robots example trajectories given several object states. In the test stage, a new feasible trajectory can be autonomously generated by a smooth transformation from training scenarios to test scenarios. A series of rope manipulation experiments on a dual-arm robotic platform are performed to validate the effectiveness of the proposed methods.
Expanding travel medicine in the 21st century to address the health needs of the world's migrants.

HIGHLIGHT The body of knowledge needed to effectively practice travel medicine has expanded since the 1990s, as migrants begin to comprise an increasing proportion of the world's population. We describe the unique needs of migrants and provide resources available to migration health practitioners. As the number of the world's migrants grows, collaboration across disciplines is key to achieving high-quality migration health practices.
Deterministic models of Li-ion battery aging: It is a matter of scale

Abstract Due to the increasing interest on the Li-ion battery aging studies among researchers, there are numerous battery degradation models presented in literature. However, they are either focused on a single technology, form factor or scale. This can be challenging for researchers that typically have to bridge multiple technologies and are interested in crossing multiple scales, from material-level, to cell and module/pack level. This paper explores the models presented for Li-ion battery degradation in different scales from the material level to the application level. In each scale, the main aging variables are summarized, the mathematical presentation of models are analyzed and the merits and disadvantages of each scale is discussed. This review aims at bringing together methods and results for multiple technologies, form factors for the most common Li-ion battery technologies.
Prenatal metformin exposure or organic cation transporter 3 knock-out curbs social interaction preference in male mice.

Abstract Poorly managed gestational diabetes can lead to severe complications for mother and child including fetal overgrowth, neonatal hypoglycemia and increased autism risk. Use of metformin to control it is relatively new and promising. Yet safety concerns regarding gestational metformin use remain, as its long-term effects in offspring are unclear. In light of beneficial findings with metformin for adult mouse social behavior, we hypothesized gestational metformin treatment might also promote offspring sociability. To test this, metformin was administered to non-diabetic, lean C57BL/6 J female mice at mating, with treatment discontinued at birth or wean. Male offspring exposed to metformin through birth lost social interaction preference relative to controls by time in chambers, but not by sniffing measures. Further, prenatal metformin exposure appeared to enhance social novelty preference only in females. However due to unbalanced litters and lack of statistical power, firm establishment of any sex-dependency of metformin’s effects on sociability was not possible. Since organic cation transporter 3 (OCT3) transports metformin and is dense in placenta, social preferences of OCT3 knock-out males were measured. Relative to wild-type, OCT3 knock-outs had reduced interaction preference. Our data indicate gestational metformin exposure under non-diabetic conditions, or lack of OCT3, can impair social behavior in male C57BL6/J mice. Since OCT3 transports serotonin and tryptophan, impaired placental OCT3 function is one common mechanism that could persistently impact central serotonin systems and social behavior. Yet no gross alterations in serotonergic function were evident by measure of serotonin transporter density in OCT3, or serotonin turnover in metformin-exposed offspring brains. Mechanisms underlying the behavioral outcomes, and if with gestational diabetes the same would occur, remain unclear. Metformin’s impacts on placental transporters and serotonin metabolism or AMPK activity in fetal brain need further investigation to clarify benefits and risks to offspring sociability from use of metformin to treat gestational diabetes.
Prion Protein Antagonists Rescue Alzheimer's Amyloid-β-Related Cognitive Deficits.

Recent studies revealed that cellular prion protein on neurons bind Alzheimer’s amyloid-β oligomers, causing neurotoxic effects. A new article in Cell Reports by Gunther and colleagues (Cell Rep. 2019; 26:145–158) shows that an orally administered cellular prion protein antagonist can rescue synaptic and cognitive deficits in Alzheimer’s mice overexpressing amyloid-β.
Bio-Inspired Design of a Gliding-Walking Multi-Modal Robot

Versatile multi-modal robots are advantageous for their wider operational environments. By taking design principles from observation of Pteromyini, commonly known as the flying squirrel, which shows balanced performances in both aerial and terrestrial locomotion, a novel robotic platform with the ability of gliding and walking is designed. The flexible membrane and gliding method of Pteromyini have been applied to the robot design. The legs of the robot were optimized to perform with regulated motor torques in both walking and gliding. The robot glided with an average gliding ratio of 1.88 and controlled its angle-of-attack for slowing down to land safely. The robot was able to walk utilizing different gait patterns. These results demonstrated our robot's balanced multi-modal locomotion of gliding and walking.
r/science: Challenges and Opportunities in Online Science Communication

Online discussion websites, such as Reddit's r/science forum, have the potential to foster science communication between researchers and the general public. However, little is known about who participates, what is discussed, and whether such websites are successful in achieving meaningful science discussions. To find out, we conducted a mixed-methods study analyzing 11,859 r/science posts and conducting interviews with 18 community members. Our results show that r/science facilitates rich information exchange and that the comments section provides a unique science communication document that guides engagement with scientific research. However, this community-sourced science communication comes largely from a knowledgeable public. We conclude with design suggestions for a number of critical problems that we uncovered: addressing the problem of topic newsworthiness and balancing broader participation and rigor.
Phonological recoding as a universal process

A phonological confusion task was employed to explore whether or not beginning readers of Chinese activate phonological codes while reading Chinese characters. Twenty first graders and twenty third graders read phonologically similar and dissimilar character strings. Following the presentation of each string, they were required to identify the characters from among a set of recognition items. Three major findings indicated that subjects used phonological codes while reading Chinese characters: (1) Subjects recognized fewer phonologically similar characters than phonologically dissimilar ones; (2) The phonological confusion effect varied with degree of phonological similarity among the characters read. Characters having the same rhyme and same tone (SRST) were recognized less accurately than characters of the same rhyme but different tones (SRDT), which in turn were recognized less accurately than characters of different rhymes and different tones (DRDT); (3) Silent reading and oral reading resulted in similar patterns of phonological confusion, indicating that similar codes were activated during the two reading conditions.
An Innovations Approach to Smoothing and Model Error Estimation

Abstract This paper advances an approach to estimate by means of optimal smoothing the model errors inherent in a state space model. Formulas are developed to compute the model error estimates and the related estimation error covariance. Factorization of the estimate covariance is achieved using a forward/backward smoothing process and a forward innovations. The error covariance is factored using backward/forward smoothing and a backward innovations. It is established that the model error vector is related to a composite innovations vector formed by the forward and backward innovations processes by means of a rotation operation in a suitably defined function space.
The Importance of Coding and Billing

Appropriate coding and billing for services performed are a critical endeavor for any successful urological practice. While proper coding and billing may be given little attention in urology graduate medical education, it is critical to the success of any urological practice. A solid grasp of the fundamentals of this topic combined with a commitment to pursue ongoing education should allow a urologist to obtain proper reimbursement for work done and minimize the risk of committing fraud and abuse.
The catastrophic disruptions of asteroids: History, features, new constraints and interpretations

Abstract Asteroid families were discovered by Kiyotsugu Hirayama in 1918; affirming that collisions play a dominant role in the evolution of the main asteroid belt. And the evolution of asteroids evolution is inexorably linked to the history of the inner solar system. The collisions and dynamical processes divert objects into near-Earth space. And the collisions grind the asteroid population into increasingly smaller bodies. The most severe impacts, the “catastrophic disruptions” (CD), “destroy” an asteroid. The first detailed studies of the collisional processes that shape that evolution began in the 1960’s. Little was known of the conditions for CD events. Then in 1985, the early pioneers of those studies organized a workshop to bring together a variety of persons that could contribute to the question of the CD thresholds. Those workshops have been repeated every few years, the 9th CD9 workshop was just completed. This is a review and interpretation of the history of the theories and models of a “catastrophic disruption” (CD) of target asteroids.
Chapter 48 – Excitotoxicity and Stroke

Brain cell damage induced by excessive exposure to the excitatory neurotransmitter glutamate, excitotoxicity, has long been implicated in the pathophysiology of hypoxic-ischemic brain damage. Although initial efforts to reduce excitotoxic neuronal death in human stroke by blocking N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptors failed, subsequent advances in understanding ischemic excitotoxicity suggest ways to develop more effective countermeasures. Emerging dimensions for refining the therapeutic use of NMDA antagonists in stroke include a sharpening of temporal and spatial delivery (earlier, briefer use in areas of greater ischemia), preferential targeting of synaptic NR2B receptor subtypes, dialing in use- or pH-dependence, and the concurrent administration of antiapoptotic agents. Additionally or alternatively, ischemic excitotoxicity might be reduced by measures aimed at improving intracellular ionic homeostasis; normalizing intracellular calcium, potassium, or free zinc; or blocking downstream injury pathways, including the generation of nitric oxide and other free radicals.
Public guns, private violence: The association of city-level firearm availability and intimate partner homicide in the United States.

Abstract This city-level study examines the association of federally licensed firearm dealers (FFLs) and measures of illegal firearm availability with the risk of intimate partner homicide. Annual data for a sample of 286 large cities in the United States were collected for the years 2010–2019, incorporating city-level information on the number of gun-perpetrated homicides, the rate of licensed firearm dealers, and guns reported lost or stolen. All data were compiled and analyzed in 2020. Negative binomial models were used to assess the relation of firearm availability and gun homicide by intimate partners, in comparison to gun homicide between non-intimates. Results indicate that a higher rate of licensed firearm dealers was associated with a higher risk of intimate partner homicide, although more pronounced in states with lower-than-average existing gun ownership. This association was robust to different analytical methods and alternate ways of capturing illegal guns. A supplementary analysis using unique data from The Trace further supports the argument that FFL presence is a risk factor for intimate partner firearm homicide specifically, but not necessarily firearm homicide characterized by other motives.
The positive association between physical activity and alcohol use in African American adults.

Abstract African Americans have highest incidence and mortality from obesity-related cancers. Physical activity (PA), minimal alcohol use, and maintaining a low body mass index (BMI) are important cancer prevention behaviors, though there is little research on how these behaviors are associated with one another in African Americans. The purpose of this study is to assess the relationship between PA, alcohol use, and BMI using secondary data from an African American cohort recruited from Houston-area churches. Self-administered questionnaires measured self-reported PA, alcohol use, height, weight, and sociodemographic factors. Univariate and multivariable analyses assessed the relation between PA, alcohol use, BMI, controlling for covariates. Participants (N = 1009) were mostly female (77%), employed (72%), and college graduates (55%). Most (53%) reported both light-to-moderate alcohol use & moderate-to-high levels of PA. There was a statistically significant positive linear association between PA and alcohol use (Pearson’s r = 0.15, p 2 drinks/day men, >1 drink/day women), as compared to an abstainer (Adjusted OR = 1.03, 95%CI 1.01–1.06). There was a statistically significant inverse association between PA and BMI, but no statistically significant association between alcohol use and BMI. In this sample of African Americans, PA and alcohol use were positively associated, mirroring results among Non-Hispanic Whites. However, alcohol use and BMI were not statistically significantly associated. Cancer and obesity prevention for African Americans should stress PA promotion while emphasizing messaging to curtail any associated increases in alcohol use.
A CONUS-scale study of wildfire and evapotranspiration: spatial and temporal response and controlling factors

Abstract Evapotranspiration (ET) accounts for a substantial portion of regional water budgets in much of the southeast and fire-prone western United States (US). Even small changes in ET rates can translate to meaningful shifts in runoff patterns and makes forecasting the direction and magnitude of wildfire-induced ET alteration of critical importance. We use 1 km ET estimates from the operational Simplified Surface Energy Balance (SSEBop) product for the conterminous US (CONUS) to evaluate post-fire ET and evaporation ratio (ET/P) shifts in the first five post-fire years in approximately 5,500 unique fires. Pixels with similar ET/P responses to fire are grouped through k-means clustering and the resultant cluster distribution is explored over space and time. The largest changes in post-fire ET/P are observed in the southwestern CONUS where first-year ratios are reduced by 50 to 90% and pre-fire ratios are rarely recovered by post-fire year five. Regional and intra-fire ET/P response variability is also highest in the western CONUS where climatic, topographic, and ecologic gradients are steep. Post-fire ET/P modifications are small to negligible in the east-southeast CONUS, and 18% of all pixels analyzed exhibit small to moderate increases in post-fire year one ET/P. A comparison of burned and unburned pixel pairs confirms the role of fire in the shifts but also indicates a high degree of background variability in the ET and precipitation data. Although the biggest percent ET/P reductions occur in shrub/scrub landscapes in much of the west, the biggest magnitude ET changes often occur in evergreen forests. Higher burn severities are consistently correlated with greater post-fire ET/P reductions, while relationships between post-fire ET/P shifts and numerous other landscape attributes (e.g., pre-fire vegetation type) vary in both direction and magnitude in different parts of the CONUS. Further work should be conducted to refine controlling relationships within more homogeneous sub-regions.
Photosynthesis in the Higher Plant Vicia faba: II. THE NON-CALVIN CYCLE ORIGIN OF ACETATE AND ITS METABOLIC RELATIONSHIP TO THE PHOTOSYNTHETIC ORIGIN OF FORMATE

Abstract The photosynthetic generation of formate from 14CO2 and an anomalous isotope distribution in the acetate fragment of citrate (i.e. citrate C-1,2) are not compatible with the singular functioning of the Calvin cycle and related processes in the higher plant Vicia faba. Studies of other higher plants have shown that alanine is metabolically related to 3-phosphoglyceric acid by a distinctive isotope distribution in which C1 ≥ C2 = C3; the reasonable assumption has been that these 3-carbon metabolites constitute the major precursors of the tricarboxylic acid cycle during photosynthesis. Inhibitor studies, kinetic studies, and labeled formate assimilation studies demonstrate that formate, rather than alanine, is the precursor carbon source of the methylene carbon atom of acetate; serine is tentatively proposed to be the key 3-carbon precursor of the organic acids. Evidence for a direct reduction of CO2 to formate is based upon (a) the seasonal fixation of as much as 65% of the 14CO2 into formate under arsenite-inhibited conditions of photosynthesis; (b) the specific and mutual competition between CO2 and formate for assimilation; (c) the predominant refixation of respiratory 14CO2 from [U-14C]glutamate or [1,5-14C]citrate into formate as opposed to Calvin cycle refixation; (d) the observation that Calvin-type CO2 fixation but not formate synthesis is inhibited by arsenate or arsenite. A mechanism of de novo formate synthesis is postulated, and a function of formate utilization for the synthesis of organic acids in this higher plant is proposed.
Inter- and intramolecular cross-linking in tyrosinase-treated tropocollagen.

Abstract Tropocollagen solutions treated with mushroom tyrosinase developed a yellow-brown color and showed a large increase in viscosity. Spectral and fluorescence studies revealed the oxidation of tyrosine residues in collagen. Viscosity, sedimentation, and polarimetric studies showed that tyrosinase action on collagen resulted in inter- and intramolecular cross-linking of tropocollagen molecules. Protease treatment abolished most of the sites of tyrosinase action in tropocollagen. The results suggest that tyrosine residues in collagen are integral parts of the tropocollagen primary structure and that they are mainly located on protease-susceptible peptide appendages (telopeptides) so strategically located that they play important roles in intermolecular interactions.
Removal of duvatrienediols from the surface of tobacco leaves increases their susceptibility to blue mold

Abstract Dipping leaf strips of greenhouse or field-grown tobacco ( Nicotiana tabacum L., cv. Ky-14) plants into acetone for 1 s, prior to inoculation with sporangia of Peronospora tabacina Adam, increased their susceptibility to blue mold. Disease severity and sporangial production on leaf discs from acetone-treated leaves were markedly increased compared to those on discs from untreated leaves. Treatment with acetone also decreased variation in susceptibility of leaves from plants of various ages. Disease severity on discs obtained from attached leaves which were dipped in acetone for 1 s was three times greater up to 15 days after dipping than on discs from leaves that were not dipped. TLC and GLC analyses of the acetone extracts indicated that 95% or more of the major cuticular diterpenoids, α- and β-4,8,13-duvatriene-1,3-diols (DVT), were removed from the surface by dipping for 1 s. These compounds had not reappeared on the leaf surface 15 days after leaves were dipped in acetone for 1 s. Aqueous suspensions of the acetone-soluble constituents as well as authentic DVT, inhibited sporangial germination of P. tabacina (ED 100 = 25 ppm) and the antifungal activity was accounted for by DVT. When DVT was removed from a leaf surface and added back to the same leaf strip, the resistance of the leaf tissue was restored. As tobacco plants aged, their susceptibility to blue mold decreased and the quantity of DVT on the leaf surface increased. The data support a role for DVT in the resistance of tobacco against blue mold.
Specific Endonuclease R Fragments of Bacteriophage φX174 Deoxyribonucleic Acid

The restriction enzyme from Hemophilus influenzae, endonuclease R, cleaves φX174 replicative-form deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) into at least 13 specific limit fragments. The molecular weights of 12 of the fragments have been estimated by gel electrophoresis and electron microscopy. Using the genetic assay for small fragments of φX DNA, we have shown that we can salvage markers from the endonuclease R φX-RF fragments.
Behavioral fever in anuran amphibian larvae

Abstract Following intraperitoneal injection with killed gram-negative bacteria, Aeromonas hydrophila , tadpoles of Rana catesbeiana and of R . pipiens showed significant mean increases in preferred temperature of 2.6°C and 2.7°C, respectively, in an electronic thermoregulatory shuttlebox device. This “behavioral fever” is similar to elevations in preferred temperature previously demonstrated for fishes, reptiles and mammals, although both normal and febrile thermal preferenda vary among vertebrates.
Frost-Seeding Legumes into Established Switchgrass: Forage Yield and Botanical Composition of the Stratified Canopy

Grasses need adequate N for optimum herbage yield. Legumes could be grown in mixed swards with switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) to provide symbiotic N and replace the need for N fertilization, extend the growing season because C₃ species begin growth earlier and continue growth later into the growing season, and increase dry matter (DM) yield. The objective of this field study on a Webster-Nicollet soil (fine-loamy, mixed, mesic, Typic Haplaquoll-Aquic Hapludoll) at Ames, IA, was to compare herbage DM yield and botanical composition for legume-renovated switchgrass with that of N-fertilized switchgrass. Five inoculated forage legumes and a legume mixture were frost-seeded into an excellent stand of established ‘Cave-in-Rock’ switchgrass in mid-March of 1991 and 1992. Grass-legume DM yield was compared with N fertilization (0, 60, 120, and 240 kg ha⁻¹) in the seeding year (YR 1) and the second year (YR 2). Harvested samples were separated into grass and legume components, and further divided into upper and basal canopy. Nitrogen fertilization provided greatest upper and basal canopy yields in both June and July of YR 1. By June YR 2, legume renovation increased upper-canopy yields more than for 240 N. Upper-canopy YR 2 yields of grass-legume mixtures seeded in 1991 remained greater than for 240 N in July, and were similar to 120 N in August. During a wetter and cooler than normal summer, YR 2 yields of upper-canopy grass-legume mixtures seeded in 1992 were similar to 60 and 120 N by July, and similar to both unfertilized and N-fertilized switchgrass by August. We concluded that yields of legume-renovated switchgrass were generally greater than for mid to high levels of N fertilization during YR 2. Because of relatively low herbage production during YR 1, producers should consider frost-seeding legumes into only part of existing switchgrass pastures, while fertilizing the remaining nonrenovated pasture with N to maintain high forage supply and pasture productivity. Joint contribution of Iowa State Univ. and the U.S. Dairy Forage Res. Ctr. of the USDA-ARS. Journal Paper no. J-16125 of the Iowa Agric. and Home Econ. Exp. Stn., Ames, IA. Project no. 2899. Supported in part by the Leopold Ctr. for Sustainable Agriculture.
WebSphere Portal 6.1: an agile development success story

Agile software development techniques are promising to deliver software faster, in better quality, and at a lower cost. Most examples relate to small, co-located teams working on a completely new project, with no legacy. This article focuses on applying Agile methods to a world-wide project with hundreds of developers delivering a market-leading product.
Emergent Inquiry: Using Children's Literature To Ask Hard Questions about Gender Bias.

(1999). Emergent Inquiry: Using Children's Literature to Ask Hard Questions about Gender Bias. Childhood Education: Vol. 76, No. 2, pp. 88-91.