cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Uyenognathus, a new conodont genus from the Frasnian (Late Devonian) of southeastern Alaska

(2004). Uyenognathus, a new conodont genus from the Frasnian (Late Devonian) of southeastern Alaska. Alcheringa: An Australasian Journal of Palaeontology: Vol. 28, No. 2, pp. 431-432.
Applying EGO to large dimensional optimizations: a wideband fragmented patch example

Efficient Global Optimization (EGO) minimizes expensive cost function evaluations by correlating evaluated parameter sets and respective solutions to model the optimization space. For optimizations requiring destructive testing or lengthy simulations, this computational overhead represents a desirable tradeoff. However, the inspection of the predictor space to determine the next evaluation point can be a time-intensive operation. Although DACE predictor evaluation may be conducted for limited parameters by exhaustive sampling, this method is not extendable to large dimensions. We apply EGO here to the 11-dimensional optimization of a wide-band fragmented patch antenna and present an alternative genetic algorithm approach for selecting the next evaluation point. We compare results achieved with EGO on this optimization problem to previous results achieved with a genetic algorithm.
Low yields of SO2 from dimethyl sulfide oxidation in the marine boundary layer

Sulfur dioxide and dimethyl sulfide were determined in the marine boundary layer of the northeast Pacific Ocean west of Seattle, Washington. The mean DMS and SO2 concentrations were 75 and 28 pptv, respectively. During periods of high DMS levels (180 pptv) we found that SO2 levels remained low (25 pptv) and statistically the same as periods of low DMS. Sulfur dioxide showed no observable diurnal variation indicating that nonphotochemically driven losses to aerosol and other surfaces cannot explain the low SO2 levels observed. We conclude that a low efficiency of conversion of DMS to SO2 is the most likely explanation for the low SO2 levels. Implications of the low yield of SO2 in terms of the kinetics of oxidation of DMS are discussed.
Assessment of Protein-tyrosine Phosphatase 1B Substrate Specificity Using “Inverse Alanine Scanning”

Abstract An “inverse alanine scanning” peptide library approach has been developed to assess the substrate specificity of protein-tyrosine phosphatases (PTPases). In this method each Ala moiety in the parent peptide, Ac-AAAApYAAAA-NH2, is separately and sequentially replaced by the 19 non-Ala amino acids to generate a library of 153 well defined peptides. The relatively small number of peptides allows the acquisition of explicit kinetic data for all library members, thereby furnishing information about the contribution of individual amino acids with respect to substrate properties. The approach was applied to protein-tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PTP1B) as a first example, and the highly potent peptide substrate Ac-ELEFpYMDYE-NH2 (kcat/K m2.2 ± 0.05 × 107 m −1s−1) has been identified. More importantly, several heretofore unknown features of the substrate specificity of PTP1B were revealed. This includes the ability of PTP1B to accommodate acidic, aromatic, and hydrophobic residues at the −1 position, a strong nonpreference for Lys and Arg residues in any position, and the first evidence that residues well beyond the +1 position contribute to substrate efficacy.
1149 ALTERED Na, K ATPase IN SPONGY DEGENERATION (CANAVAN'S DISEASE)

Spongy degeneration (SD) of Van Bogaert and Bertrand in infancy is characterized by white matter edema and splitting of myelin at the major dense line. The cause of myelin breakdown in this disorder is believed to be secondary to the edema. Na, K ATPase activity was studied in 3 SD brains since inhibition of this enzyme is associated with edema. Na, K ATPase activity in homogenates from frontal cortex was reduced 35-60% in SD brains compared to leukodystrophic and non-neurological controls. The decreased enzymatic activity in SD was not due to altered affinity for either the activating cations Na and K or for the substrate ATP. Measurements of ouabain binding indicated that SD brain had approximately 2X the number of enzyme sites per mg membrane protein as compared with controls. The ATPase per enzyme site (molecular specific activity) in SD cortex was only 29-50% that of controls. In the single sample of SD kidney available, ATPase activity was normal. These data suggest that an attenuation in the brain specific form of NA, K ATPase may be related to the pathogenesis of intralamellar myelin edema in SD. (Supported in part by USPHS grants HD 05515 and HD 04147)
THE FINE STRUCTURE OF GIARDIA MURIS

Giardia is a noninvasive intestinal zooflagellate. This electron microscope study demonstrates the fine structure of the trophozoite of Giardia muris in the lumen of the duodenum of the mouse as it appears after combined glutaraldehyde and acrolein fixation and osmium tetroxide postfixation. Giardia muris is of teardrop shape, rounded anteriorly, with a convex dorsal surface and a concave ventral one. The anterior two-thirds of the ventral surface is modified to form an adhesive disc. The adhesive disc is divided into 2 lobes whose medial surfaces form the median groove. The marginal grooves are the spaces between the lateral crests of the adhesive disc and a protruding portion of the peripheral cytoplasm. The organism has 2 nuclei, 1 dorsal to each lobe of the adhesive disc. Between the anterior poles of the nuclei, basal bodies give rise to 8 paired flagella. The median body, unique to Giardia, is situated between the posterior poles of the nuclei. The cytoplasm contains 300-A granules that resemble particulate glycogen, 150- to 200-A granules that resemble ribosomes, and fusiform clefts. The dorsal portion of the cell periphery is occupied by a linear array of flattened vacuoles, some of which contain clusters of dense particles. The ventrolateral cytoplasm is composed of regularly packed coarse and fine filaments which extend as a striated flange around the adhesive disc. The adhesive disc is composed of a layer of microtubules which are joined to the cytoplasm by regularly spaced fibrous ribbons. The plasma membrane covers the ventral and lateral surfaces of the disc. The median body consists of an oval aggregate of curved microtubules. Microtubules extend ventrally from the median body to lie alongside the caudal flagella. The intracytoplasmic portions of the caudal, lateral, and anterior flagella course considerable distances, accompanied by hollow filaments adjacent to their outer doublets. The intracytoplasmic portions of the anterior flagella are accompanied also by finely granular rodlike bodies. No structures identifiable as mitochondria, smooth endoplasmic reticulum, the Golgi complex, lysosomes, or axostyles are recognized.
Categorizing web queries

Over the past ten years, the user base for the World Wide Web (WWW) has grown over 400% [1]. This increased user base has naturally led to an enormous amount of data available for users to search. Corporations, such as Google, often store user search records and there are many concerns, as well as positive aspects, for how search records may be used. One aspect in particular, categorizing web queries, presents several challenges. This paper will discuss the challenging aspects of categorizing web queries, review previous categorical research, and conclude with a method for tackling one of the challenging aspects.
Reply to “final note” by Benoit Mandelbrot

Dr. Mandelbrot's original objections (1959) to using the Yule process to explain the phenomena of word frequencies were refuted in Simon (1960) , and are now mostly abandoned. The present “Reply” refutes the almost entirely new arguments introduced by Dr. Mandelbrot in his “Final Note,” and demonstrates again the adequacy of the models in 1955.
A Focus on Asthma and Individual Health Plans A Survey of Texas Schools

A survey was conducted to assess asthma and the implementation of individual health plans for asthma (IHPA), also known as asthma action plans, in Texas schools. Most of the respondents (91.7%) were school nurses. Forty-four percent of respondents indicated that their school district maintained a written policy requiring implementation of IHPA for students with asthma, while 61.5% implemented IHPA for students with asthma. More than 93% of respondents from school districts with written policies indicated that IHPA were implemented for students with asthma. However, only 36.6% of respondents from school districts without written policies indicated that IHPA were implemented. More than 38% of respondents indicated that asthma education was not provided at their school. Texas schools should be encouraged to adopt written policies requiring implementation of IHPA for all students with asthma, and school nurses should be encouraged to implement asthma education in their schools.
Coupled-cavity diode lasers

Various applications of coupled-cavity configuration in controlling diode laser properties are reviewed. Coupling to a second cavity gives an additional degree of freedom that can be used to control the diode laser behavior. Two broad categories of coupled-cavity diode lasers can be defined: external-cavity and monolithic, depending whether the second cavity is discrete or monolithically integrated with the laser. Both schemes can be applied in a variety of applications, including longitudinal-mode control, transverse-mode control, wavelength tuning, static and dynamic linewidth control, mode locking, and optical bistability.© (1993) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Does Women's Body Appreciation Differ by Sexual Orientation? A Brief Report

Sexual minority identification may affect women's experiences of body image; however, existing research has solely compared lesbian and heterosexual women. The purpose of this exploratory study is to examine differences in body appreciation among women who identify as heterosexual, bisexual, and other sexual minorities were found. Findings from analysis of covariance revealed significant differences in body appreciation between sexual minority and heterosexual women while controlling for demographic characteristics, and no significant differences in body appreciation between bisexual women and other sexual minority women were found. Findings suggest body appreciation may be affected by sexual orientation, but further research with more diverse samples is warranted.
Method of multifrequency excitation for creating pseudopure states for NMR quantum computing

An alternative method of preparing pseudopure states for NMR quantum computing is presented. The method involves population transfer by the use of a multifrequency excitation pulse. The system studied was a spin-7/2 nucleus ${(}^{133}\mathrm{Cs})$ in a liquid-crystalline environment. It is shown that all eight pseudopure quantum states for this three-qubit system can be prepared by using only 1\char21{}3 pulses, while the intensities of the relevant peaks increase by a factor of up to 4 compared to the equilibrium NMR spectrum. A comparison of the intensity enhancement by population transfer for quadrupolar nuclei and that for coupled spin-1/2 systems is given.
Cumulative experience with pediatric living related liver transplantation

Abstract Purpose: This study reports the authors' cumulative experience with pediatric living related orthotopic liver transplantation. Methods: The charts of all patients who received living-related liver transplantation to study complications of transplant surgery, immunosuppression, rejection, and overall survival rate were reviewed retrospectively. Results: Between November 1992 and October 1998, 30 children underwent living-related liver transplantation. Patients were between the ages of 3 months and 7 years of age (mean, 28 months). All received left lateral segmental living-related transplants. At the time of transplant, 14 of 30 patients were listed as United Network of Organ Sharing (UNOS) status 3, 11 were listed as UNOS status 2B, and 5 were listed as UNOS status 1. Indications for transplant included biliary atresia (n = 21), α-1-antitrypsin deficiency (n = 2), hepatitis C (n = 2), giant cell hepatitis (n = 2), hepatoblastoma (n = 1), valproic acid toxicity (n = 1), and hemangioendothelioma (n = 1). All donors were parents except for one uncle. There were no major donor complications. Minor complications included wound infection (n = 4), ventral hernia (n = 2), postoperative gastric dysmotility (n = 2), and 1 case of central line-related pneumothorax (n = 1). All but 4 recipients received primary tacrolimus immunosuppressive regimens, and the other 4 underwent conversion from cyclosporine. Initial tacrolimus therapy was begun at 0.15 mg/kg/dose PO/NG every 12 hours. Concomitant immunosuppression included methylprednisolone and mycophenolate mofetil. Fifty-three percent of patients experienced at least 1 episode of rejection, and 27% experienced multiple episodes. Immediate postoperative complications included primary nonfunction (n = 2), vascular thrombosis (n = 3), biliary leaks (n = 3), and infections (n = 17). Two patients (n = 2) required retransplantation. Complications of immunosuppressive therapy included persistent systemic hypertension (n = 6), renal tubular acidosis (n = 3), short-term hyperglycemia (n = 2), neurotoxicity (n = 2), nephrotoxicity (n = 2), food allergies (n = 8), and posttransplant lymphoproliferative disease (n = 4). All patients with PTLD were treated with immunosuppression reduction or withdrawal. Two of 4 had disease progression requiring chemotherapy. The majority of complications were treated with dose adjustments. There were 4 early deaths (13%): 1 of primary nonfunction, 2 of sepsis, and 1 of arrhythmia and renal failure. There was 1 late death of recurrent disease. Twenty-five patients (83%) are alive at 3 months to 6 years post-transplant. Conclusion: Living-related orthotopic liver transplantation is an effective intervention for pediatric patients with end-stage disease. J Pediatr Surg 35:9-12. Copyright © 2000 by W.B. Saunders Company.
Atomic (scanning) force microscopy in cardiovascular research.

Atomic Force Microscopy. The promise of atomic (scanning) force microscopy (AFM) for cardiovascular research is enormous. The AFM images by using a sharp cantilever tip to sense the repulsive and attractive forces between the tip and the sample surface. The force of interaction is kept constant while raster scanning, resulting in images of the surface contours with molecular and, on hard inorganic surfaces, even atomic resolution. Movement of the cantilever in the Z plane is detected by a laser beam reflected off the cantilever to a photodiode system, a piezotube allows an X and Y raster, and a three-dimensional image results. Its capabilities include: (1) the three-dimensional imaging of membranes and biomolecules with molecular and submolecular resolution; (2) such imaging not only of dry specimens but of specimens in a physiologic solution, thereby allowing the investigation of dynamic processes in both viable biomolecules and living cells; (3) the sensing of charge and intermolecular interaction forces; (4) the chemical or biochemical modification of the cantilever tip, which allows the identification of specific structures and the measurement of specific interactions (e.g., a ligand-receptor interaction); (5) nanometer control of the position and force of the cantilever, which, in turn, allows the physical manipulation of biomolecules, the dissection of biological structures (e.g., the separation of one gap junctional hemichannel from its neighbor, thereby revealing normally inaccessible surfaces), the delivery of ligands, drugs, or other materials to specific locations, and the precise measurement of interacting forces at specific sites; and (6) the modification of the apparatus by adding complementary methodologies (e.g., magnetic resonance imaging, fluorescence microscopy, confocal microscopy, and perhaps electrophysiology). AFM, however, is only now being applied to biological research, many technical and methodologic problems exist, and a number of them are considered in this review. Little work has been done in cardiovascular research, and the purpose of this review is to introduce this new and exciting approach to investigation.
Continuum Shape Sensitivity Analysis of Cracks in Functionally Graded Materials

This paper presents two new methods for conducting a continuum shape sensitivity analysis of a crack in an isotropic, linear-elastic functionally graded material. These methods involve the material derivative concept from continuum mechanics, domain integral representation of interaction integrals, known as the M-integral, and direct differentiation. Unlike virtual crack extension techniques, no mesh perturbation is needed to calculate the sensitivity of stress-intensity factors. Since the governing variational equation is differentiated prior to the process of discretization, the resulting sensitivity equations are independent of approximate numerical techniques, such as the meshless method, finite element method, boundary element method, or others. Three numerical examples are presented to calculate the first-order derivative of the stress-intensity factors. The results show that first-order sensitivities of stress intensity factors obtained using the proposed method are in excellent agreement with the reference solutions obtained using the finite-difference method for the structural and crack geometries considered in this study.Copyright © 2004 by ASME
Biological oceanography: Some phytoplankton like it hot

Phytoplankton drive productivity in the global ocean, but are sensitive to changes in temperature. Research now demonstrates how phytoplankton cells respond to an increase in seawater temperature and uses this knowledge to predict the resultant impacts on global marine biogeochemistry.
Renal hemodynamic effects of a selected calcium antagonist

Abstract Calcium antagonists are unique antihypertensive drugs that appear to exert selective blood pressure-lowering and possibly renal hemodynamic and functional effects in hypertensive patients and animals. There is evidence for inhibition of tubular sodium reabsorption and renal vasodilatation when certain of these agents are given by acute intravenous or intrarenal arterial administration. These renal effects have been observed to occur either independently or together. Both natriuresis and diuresis have been found to occur with these drugs. In the deoxycorticosterone-salt hypertensive dog, chronically administered diltiazem reduces blood pressure, transiently increases renal blood flow and increases urine volume. Administered either acutely or chronically to these hypertensive dogs, diltiazem depresses renal vascular reactivity. Pressor and renal vasoconstrictor responses to angiotensin II and norepinephrine are attenuated to a similar degree. The chronic blood pressure-lowering effect of diltiazem is most likely a function of depressed vascular reactivity; however, actions at other sites cannot be ruled out based on our experiments. Post-prandial renal vasodilatation readily occurs in the conscious instrumented dog, and although this response is blocked by the acute administration of a calcium antagonist, the response is unaltered during the chronic administration of diltiazem.
The inequivalence of self-reports of Type A behavior: Differential relationships of the Jenkins Activity Survey and the Framingham cale with affect, stress, and control

The Jenkins Activity Survey (JAS) and the Framingham Type A Scale (FTAS) have been found to have different psychological correlates. The JAS is typically unrelated to anxiety, while the FTAS is consistently correlated with trait anxiety. The present study of 200 male and female college students clarifies further the psychological heterogeneity of these measures. Enhanced motivation to control the environment has been suggested as an underlying psychological component of Type A behavior (Glass, 1977). Dysphoric emotions and the perception of more environmental stresses, on the other hand, are typical of neuroticism or negative affectivity (Watson & Clark, 1984). Although the results indicate that the JAS and FTAS are highly correlated, the JAS is more closely related to control motivation than is the FTAS. Further, compared to the JAS, the FTAS is more closely correlated with dysphoric emotions and perceived daily stresses. Thus, the results indicate that the JAS is closely correlated with core psychological components of the Type A pattern, while the FTAS has a relatively unique association with general emotional distress. Such differences may account for the fact that these measures are related to different disease end points.
Post-Type Support Spacers for Compressed Gas-Insulated Cables

The flashover performance of post-type support spacers for concentric compressed gas-insulated transmission lines was investigated. The experiments were made with SF6 gas at 4.4 atm. abs. and low frequency AC voltage in the EHV range. Nine cast epoxy spacers with metal inserts at each end shaped to produce different electric field distributions along the solid-gas interface were tested. The results show that flashover voltage is controlled by the electric field distribution and is inversely proportional to the stress enhancement in the gas. This conclusion is shown to be consistent with ionization-initiated breakdown at a certain stress limit about 300 kV/cm in these studies. The better designed spacers were limited by sparkover of the radial gas-gap at 1300 kV peak and not by surface flashover at the insulator.
Three Mexican Crafts

THE purpose of these reports is to call attention to three important crafts now practiced in Oaxaca, 250 miles southeast of Mexico City. Pottery making, weaving, and jewelry making are all significant in the economy of Mexico. In the Oaxaca region the products of these crafts are essential in the lives of the large Indian population. The methods used, in many instances, may be comparable to those practiced by past generations of craftsmen.
Reconstructing mandibular defects using autologous tissue-engineered tooth and bone constructs.

Purpose Current strategies for jaw reconstruction require multiple operations to replace bone and teeth. To improve on these methods, we investigated simultaneous mandibular and tooth reconstruction, using a Yucatan minipig model. Materials and Methods Tooth and bone constructs were prepared from third molar tooth tissue and iliac-crest bone marrow-derived osteoblasts isolated from, and implanted back into, the same pig as an autologous reconstruction. Implants were harvested after 12 and 20 weeks and evaluated by x-ray, ultrahigh-resolution volume computed tomographic (VCT), histological, and immunohistochemical analyses. Results Small tooth structures were identified, and consisted of organized dentin, enamel, pulp, and periodontal ligament tissues, surrounded by new bone. No dental tissues formed in implants without tooth-bud cells, and bone regeneration was observed to a limited extent. Immunohistochemical analyses using tooth-specific and bone-specific antibodies confirmed the identity of regenerated tissues. Conclusions This pilot study supports the feasibility of tissue-engineering approaches for coordinated autologous tooth and mandible reconstruction, and provides a basis for future improvement of this technique for eventual clinical use in humans.
CYPROHEPTADINE METABOLITES INHIBIT PROINSULIN AND INSULIN BIOSYNTHESIS AND INSULIN RELEASE IN ISOLATED RAT PANCREATIC ISLETS

The contribution of drug metabolites to cyproheptadine (CPH)-induced alterations in endocrine pancreatic β-cells was investigated by examining the inhibitory activity of CPH and its biotransformation products, desmethylcyproheptadine (DMCPH), CPH-epoxide and DMCPH-epoxide, on hormone biosynthesis and secretion in pancreatic islets isolated from 50-day-old rats. Measurement of (pro)insulin (proinsulin and insulin) synthesis using incorporation of 3H-leucine showed that DMCPH-epoxide, DMCPH and CPH-epoxide were 22, 10 and 4 times, respectively, more potent than CPH in inhibiting hormone synthesis. The biosynthesis of (pro)insulin was also inhibited by CPH and DMCPH-epoxide in islets isolated from 21-day-old rat fetuses. The inhibitory action of CPH and its metabolites was apparently specific for (pro)insulin, and the synthesis of other islet proteins was not affected. Other experiments showed the metabolites of CPH were active in inhibiting glucose-stimulated insulin secretion but were less potent than the parent drug in producing this effect. CPH and its structurally related metabolites, therefore, have differential inhibitory activities on insulin synthesis and release. The observation that CPH metabolites have higher potency than CPH to inhibit (pro)insulin synthesis, when considered with published reports on the disposition of the drug in rats, indicate that CPH metabolites, particularly DMCPH-epoxide, are primarily responsible for the insulin depletion observed when the parent compound is given to fetal and adult animals.
The Ecology of Invertebrates in Great Lakes Coastal Wetlands: Current Knowledge and Research Needs

This review summarizes the comparatively sparse information on the community structure, population dynamics, secondary productivity, and trophic relationships of invertebrates in coastal wetlands of the Laurentian Great Lakes. Community structure is discussed in terms of separate but interrelated communities comprising the zooplankton, zoobenthos, epiphytic invertebrates, and neuston. The composition and dynamics of these communities are controlled by a complex set of interacting and continuously changing biotic and abiotic factors. Much additional research is required before a fundamental understanding of invertebrate ecology in Great Lakes coastal wetlands can be achieved. Particular research needs include elucidation of geographic differences in community structure and dynamics within and among wetlands of the same and contrasting types; the influence of micro- and macro-habitat differences and environmental stresses on invertebrate communities; the contribution of invertebrates to energy and materials flow in wetland food webs; the interactions of wetland invertebrates with the adjoining lake biota; the role of invertebrates in nutrient and pollutant transformations and cycling within the wetlands; the impact of changing land uses in wetland watersheds and of wetland alteration on the invertebrate communities, and the consequential impacts of these changes on the ecology of the lakes; and the impact on wetland invertebrate communities of predation pressure and competition from exotic species.
The Serine Protease Inhibitors TLCK and TPCK React with the RB-Binding Core of HPV-18 E7 Protein and Abolish Its RB-Binding Capability

The human papillomaviruses associated with cervical cancer (e.g., HPV-16 and HPV-18) express an E7 oncoprotein which mediates the immortalization of primary genital keratinocytes and the transformation of rodent cells. The 105-amino-acid HPV-18 E7 protein contains two zinc fingers as well as a conserved amino-terminal motif (Rb-binding core) which binds and alters the interactions of the retinoblastoma susceptibility gene product (Rb). We report here that two serine protease inhibitors, tosyl-L-lysine chloromethyl ketone (TLCK) and tosyl-L-phenylalanine chloromethyl ketone (TPCK), reacted with and generated an altered form of the HPV-18 E7 protein. Chemical modification of the E7 protein was initially observed during its extraction and immunoprecipitation from mammalian cells but could also be detected using E7 protein expressed in vitro by reticulocyte lysates. More importantly, TLCK and TPCK were able to modify E7 protein in live keratinocytes following their addition to the culture medium. Site-specific mutagenesis demonstrated that the E7 Rb-binding core (Leu-X-Cys-X-Glu) contained a cysteine residue which was essential for this modification and that the TLCK/TPCK-dependent alteration of the E7 protein abolished its ability to bind Rb. These studies indicate that the E7 protein can be inactivated by a specific class of protease inhibitors and that such reagents may be useful for pharmacologically regulating E7 function in vivo. In addition, these results demonstrate that care must be taken when applying these commonly used protease inhibitors in experiments evaluating E7/cellular protein interactions.
Factor Market Dynamics and the Incidence of Taxes and Subsidies

We extend work on payroll tax incidence by recognizing that labor markets adjust slowly because of the slow adjustment of both labor demand and supply to their equilibrium values. We modify the basic model of the incidence of payroll taxes with variable factor supply to include dynamic adjustments. We find that, under reasonable assumptions about the magnitudes of the lags in adjustment, it takes several years before half of the distance to a new equilibrium in wages and employment is reached. Thus, even if payroll taxes are borne by labor in the long run, a large part of any increase in the tax will be borne by capital for some time. For purposes of policy, the effects of payroll tax increases must be analyzed as if part of their effect is on profits, regardless of the long-run distribution of the burden.
Pharmacodynamics of (−)-β-2′,3′-Dideoxy-3′-Thiacytidine in Chronically Virus-Infected Woodchucks Compared to Its Pharmacodynamics in Humans

The pharmacodynamics of (−)-β-2′,3′-dideoxy-3′-thiacytidine (3TC) was studied in chronically woodchuck hepatitis virus-infected woodchucks and compared to that in previous studies in hepatitis B virus (HBV)-infected humans. Net depletion rates of serum virus DNA in woodchucks receiving 3TC were modeled as a sum of an exponentially declining virus input and a first-order elimination. Preceding shoulders and pseudo-first-order virus half-lives in serum ranged from 1 to 7 days and were dose dependent. Higher plasma 3TC concentrations were needed in woodchucks for virus depletion similar to that attained in humans. Human HBV depletion curves from a previous clinical study with 3TC (≥100 mg per day) were described by a biexponential relationship. The average half-life value in humans, normalized to fraction of area under the serum virus load-time curve, was similar to the average half-life value observed in woodchucks given the highest 3TC dose (2.4 and 2.0 days, respectively). On cessation of therapy, virus load rebounds in woodchucks were dose dependent and resembled posttherapy virus “flares” reported to occur in humans. The estimates of drug exposures that could lead to optimal antiviral effects presented indicate that 3TC should not be underdosed and compliance should be monitored. The study of chronically infected woodchucks may prove useful for optimizing drug regimens for hepadnavirus infections.
Cochromatic Number and the Genus of a Graph

The cochromatic number of a graph G, denoted by z(G), is the minimum number of subsets into which the vertex set of G can be partitioned so that each sbuset induces an empty or a complete subgraph of G. In this paper we introduce the problem of determining for a surface S, z(S), which is the maximum cochromatic number among all graphs G that embed in S. Some general bounds are obtained; for example, it is shown that if S is orientable of genus at least one, or if S is nonorientable of genus at least four, then z(S) is nonorientable of genus at least four, then z(S)≤χ(S). Here χ(S) denotes the chromatic number S. Exact results are obtained for the sphere, the Klein bottle, and for S. It is conjectured that z(S) is equal to the maximum n for which the graph Gn = K1 ∪ K2 ∪ … ∪ Kn embeds in S.
Diagnosis and Management of Immune Thrombocytopenia in the Era of Thrombopoietin Mimetics

The recognition of that patients with Immune Thrombocytopenia (ITP) have functional thrombopoietin deficiency and decreased platelet production due to immune-mediated megakaryocytic injury has challenged the traditional view of this disease as predominantly a disorder of antibody-mediated platelet destruction. The therapy of chronic refractory ITP has been transformed by the approval of the thrombopoietin minetics, romiplostim and eltrombopag, which have shown remarkable efficacy in randomized trials. The use of these agents earlier in the disease course after failure of corticosteroid therapy remains controversial. In this article, we review the current data on the efficacy and safety of thrombopoietin receptor agonists and discuss other therapies as well as diagnostic work up of ITP.
Generalized gradient vector flow external forces for active contours

Active contours, or snakes, are used extensively in computer vision and image processing applications, particularly to locate object boundaries. A new type of external force for active contours, called gradient vector flow (GVF) was introduced recently to address problems associated with initialization and poor convergence to boundary concavities. GVF is computed as a di⁄usion of the gradient vectors of a gray-level or binary edge map derived from the image. In this paper, we generalize the GVF formulation to include two spatially varying weighting functions. This improves active contour convergence to long, thin boundary indentations, while maintaining other desirable properties of GVF, such as an extended capture range. The original GVF is a special case of this new generalized GVF (GGVF) model. An error analysis for active contour results on simulated test images is also presented. ( 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
Why Education Must Be Multicultural: Addressing a Few Misperceptions With Counterarguments

The United States is considered the land of immigrants and cultural diversity, and our nation’s ever changing demographics attests to this. Yearly, our nation and schools become more racially and l...
Exploring epistasis in candidate genes for rheumatoid arthritis

The identification of susceptibility genes for common, chronic disease presents great challenges. The development of novel statistical and computational methodologies to help identify these genes is an area of great necessity. Much research is ongoing and the Genetic Analysis Workshop (GAW) is a venue for the dissemination and comparison of many of these methods. GAW15 included real data sets to look for disease susceptibility genes for rheumatoid arthritis (RA). RA is a complex, chronic inflammatory disease with several replicated disease genes, but much of the genetic variation in the phenotype remains unexplained. We applied two computational methods, namely multifactor dimensionality reduction (MDR) and grammatical evolution neural networks (GENN), to three data sets from GAW15. While these analytic methods were applied with the intention of detecting of multilocus models of association, both methods identified a strong single locus effect of a single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in PTPN22 that is significantly associated with RA. This SNP has previously been associated with RA in several other published studies. These results demonstrate that both MDR and GENN are capable of identifying a single-locus main effect, in addition to multilocus models of association. This is the first published comparison of the two methods. Because GENN employs an evolutionary computation search strategy in comparison to the exhaustive search strategy of MDR, it is encouraging that the two methods produced similar results. This comparison should be extended in future studies with both simulated and real data.
Advances in understanding the molecular basis of FXTAS

Fragile X-associated tremor/ataxia syndrome (FXTAS) is an adult-onset neurodegenerative disorder among carriers of premutation expansions (55–200 CGG repeats) of the fragile X mental retardation 1 (FMR1) gene. The clinical features of FXTAS, as well as other forms of clinical involvement in carriers without FXTAS, are thought to arise from a toxic gain of function of transcriptionally active FMR1 containing expanded CGG repeats. Although the precise mechanisms involved in rCGG toxicity are unknown, here we discuss the latest advances and models that contribute to the understanding of the molecular basis of FXTAS, and the emerging view of FXTAS as the end-stage of a process that begins in early development.
The Importance of Sterically Hindered Shear in Determining the Sensitivity of Explosive Crystals

Sterically hindered shear in a plane shock wave in an explosive crystal is shown to be important in determining the shock sensitivity of pentaerythritol tetranitrate and nitromethane. The steric hindrance is analyzed at the intermolecular level in the unit cell, and compared to the experimental evidence.
Transcultural Theory and Black Males

Non-American readers perceive canonical American texts differently than do Americans. This is especially true in the Chinese and Indian perceptions of African American texts from the 1960s. Some big-name critics I have been reading over the past few years assert that "theory" as an area of English studies is dead - pointless in its own solipsism - or "ended," as Jonathan Culler and others have written. Houston Baker, in his latest book "Betrayal," seems to express that, while theory is not dead, it is pointless unless it embraces key current social issues. Baker, as an original member of the New Black Aesthetic Critics, should be expected to posit a humanistic center to his theories; to his credit, he has not changed that opinion in fifty years. Indeed, the positing of the human and human concerns at the core of original and New Black Aesthetic Criticism is one of the key reasons this school of criticism was shunned by Yale and its Structuralism at the same time (early 1970s). English studies were not only controlled and garrisoned by Anglophiles and Francophiles, they were desperate from 1965 (J. L. Austin's Speech Act theory) to 1979 (the high water years of Structuralism (especially Giroud) and Deconstruction (especially Foucault)) to turn itself into an algorithm so that it could compete with its affiliates in the hard and applied sciences for funding. To say that academic theory failed miserably in its attempt to become relevant and funded by a government that could not spell "deconstruction," much less understand the theories, is telling only the more obvious part of our last fifty years of theory in the Academy.
Understanding sentences in varying contexts.

The present study tested Huttenlocher & Weiner's (1971) hypothesis concerning the role of grammatical function in sentence comprehension. Children arranged objects to correspond to descriptions of transitive relations in two tasks. The patterns of object placements provided evidence of how children understood the various sentence forms. Contrary to Huttenlocher & Weiner's hypothesis, grammatical function was not a critical factor in object placements. This was true based on the group data or individual-based analyses. Two factors were important: logical function and order of mention of the items in the sentence. Whether an item was grammatical subject or grammatical object did not affect subjects' choices. The order of mention effects resulted from inattention to sentence meaning prior to the initial choices on certain trials. If the logical relations in a sentence were understood prior to the response, only logical function influenced subjects' responses.
Cluster-C/sup */: understanding the performance limits

Data parallel languages are gaining interest as it becomes clear that they support a wider range of computation than previously believed. With improved network technology, it is now feasible to build data parallel supercomputers using traditional RISC-based workstations connected by a highspeed network. The paper presents an in-depth look at the communication behavior of nine C/sup */ programs (J.L. Frankel, 1991). It also compares the performance of these programs on both a cluster of 8 HP 720 workstations and a 32 node (128 Vector Unit) CM-5. The result is that under some conditions, the cluster is faster on an absolute scale, and that on a relative, per-node scale, the cluster delivers superior performance in all cases. >
Gimenez, R., T. Gimenez, and K. A. May. 2008. Technical Large Animal Emergency Rescue. Wiley-Blackwell, Ames, Iowa, 409 pp. ISBN 13: 978-0-8138-1998-3, price (hardbound), $124.99

R. Gimenez, T. Gimenez, K. A. May. 2008. Technical Large Animal Emergency Rescue. Wiley-Blackwell, Ames, Iowa, 409 pp. ISBN 13: 978-0-8138-1998-3, price (hardbound), $124.99. Reports of natural disasters, war, and other catastrophic events largely focus on human suffering. In recent years, individuals and organizations have organized to assure that animals also are cared for in disasters. Viewers are gripped by televised images of animals in distress and large animals often have more powerful impacts than small. In his short story Shooting an Elephant , George Orwell (2003) states, “Somehow it seems worse to kill a large animal.” Now there is a resource for those who wish to help large animals in danger. The authors define technical large animal emergency rescue (TLAER) on page ix as “removal of a large animal from a hazardous environment without causing injury or death to the animal victim or to the rescuers.” Further, the authors emphasize that …
Novel Randomized Feature Selection Algorithms

Feature selection is the problem of identifying a subset of the most relevant features in the context of model construction. This problem has been well studied and plays a vital role in machine learning. In this paper we present three randomized algorithms for feature selection. They are generic in nature and can be applied for any learning algorithm. Proposed algorithms can be thought of as a random walk in the space of all possible subsets of the features. We demonstrate the generality of our approaches using three different applications. The simulation results show that our feature selection algorithms outperforms some of the best known algorithms existing in the current literature.
10 – Vibration Analysis of One-Degree-of-Freedom Systems

The chapter presents the equation of motion, damping status, and characteristic roots for one-degree-of-freedom (1-DOF) vibrating systems. It provides a toolbox having a function forcedvib for computing the forced response of a 1-DOF system. The argument Load_Spec of function forcedvib is a vector specifying an external load. In dynamic analysis and control of mechanical systems, the step response of an underdamped system is often characterized by maximum overshoot, rise time, and settling time. When a step load is applied to an underdamped system, function forcedvib automatically displays the information of maximum overshoot, rise time, and settling time. The information of those parameters is also retrievable by typing systinfo in the MATLAB command window. For a given natural frequency, wn and damping ratio zeta, the maximum overshoot, rise time, and settling time of step response can be computed by—» stepcharact (wn, zeta)—where stepcharact is a function from the Toolbox.
High Throughput Preparation of Large Area Transparent Electrodes Using Non-Functionalized Graphene Nanoribbons

Transparent conducting films were prepared by using non-functionalized, non-oxidized graphene nanoribbons. Two different dispersion methods were compared. The produced films show sheet resistance as low as 800 Ω/sq when the transmittance at 550 nm is 78%. The performance of the films were close to the entry level for transparent electrode applications and is comparable to those of graphitized chemically converted graphene films, but in this case, no high temperature annealing step was required, thereby rendering this a technique suitable for use on thermally sensitive materials.
Soaring aspirations: lessons from my mentors and colleagues: the Weisenfeld award.

I am greatly honored to be the 2013 recipient of the Mildred Weisenfeld Award. I want to thank Martin Wax, MD, for his most kind and generous introduction. I had the great pleasure of actually meeting Mildred Weisenfeld on one occasion, and I was very impressed with her passion, dedication, focus, and advocacy. She was a special person. I believe, at least I hope, that I share these same values with her, and I wanted to use this lecture as a means of transmitting my values and passion to the audience in what will, therefore, be a nontraditional lecture. My impression, perhaps faulty, was that the Weisenfeld award was a ‘‘broader’’ award that could, in fact, reflect achievement in multiple disciplines and that of overall excellence in ophthalmology. Certainly if this were a pure scientific award, Dr Wax would be much more deserving of it than me! So, I hope the audience will indulge me in transmitting in this lecture what I believe to be very important lessons learned over my entire career from my mentors and colleagues, and also my soaring aspirations for the future that are ongoing and still intact.
Safety Characteristics of the Li4Ti5O12/LiMn2O4 Li-Ion Battery

Li4+xTi4O12 and Li1-yMn2O4 materials have been respectively prepared by a chemical lithiation of Li4Ti4O12 in the presence of an excess of butylithium (LiC4H9) in hexane solution and chemical delithiation of LiMn2O4 spinel using NO2BF4 oxidizer in an acetonitrile medium. The thermal gravimetric results show that Li1-yMn2O4 releases oxygen starting from 200°C with an overall oxygen loss of 6 wt% at 500 °C, whereas Li4+xTi4O12 gains oxygen starting from 200 °C with an overall oxygen gain of 4 wt % at 500 °C. The reactivity of the Li4+xTi4O12 and Li1-yMn2O4 powders in the presence of electrolytes was investigated by a differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) between room temperature and 375°C, and compared to a lithiated graphite in the case of the Li4+xTi4O12 negative electrode material.
Response of heart rate, oxygen consumption, and arterial blood pressure to graded exercise in dogs.

SummaryIn dogs performing graded exercise on a treadmill, there was a reproducible relationship between heart rate and oxygen consumption in the same dog. This relationship was linear up to moderately severe grades of work. Arterial blood pressure likewise increased with the severity of the exercise but the relationship was less direct. No decrease in arterial pressure was noted at the start of exercise or when the work load was suddenly increased during a continuous run.
An Exploration of Deception Detection Are Groups More Effective Than Individuals

Deception is a pervasive problem often found in human behavior. This study investigates why past deception studies have found groups perform no better than individuals in detection using time-interaction-performance theory which suggests teams are not immediately effective. Only after establishing relational links is potential reached. Established groups spend less time building relational links and instead focus on task-oriented activities more effectively. We sought to determine whether groups with prior history of interaction outperform individuals in deception detection. First, participants were randomly assigned to an individual or ad hoc group role. Later, additional preexisting work groups were recruited. Participants were instructed to identify deception in online video interviews. The experiment tested theoretical explanations regarding cohesion, interaction, and satisfaction as components of relational links and relationships to deception detection. Results indicated that groups which exhibited ...