cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Tumor retention of 5-fluorouracil following irradiation observed using 19F nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy

Abstract Purpose : The combination of 5-fluorouracil (5FU) and radiation results in improved tumor control in a variety of gastrointestinal cancers. We propose the enhancement is related to radiation potentiating the antitumor effects of 5FU. To better understand the mechanisms of the 5FU-radiation interaction, 19F nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy experiments were performed to observed the tumor clearance and metabolism of 5FU. Methods and Materials : Experiments were performed on 10 3–6-week-old female (Nu/Nu) athymic nude mice. Flank tumors measuring approximately 1.0 cm in diameter 3 weeks following a subcutaneous injection of 1 × 106 human colon adenocarcinoma (HT-29) cells were studiedd. In our first group, all animals received an intravenous bolus injection of 5FU (100 mg/kg) immediately before spectroscopic analysis. Animals in the second group were first treated with a single tumor radiation dose of 10 Gy just before the 5FU injection and subsequent spectroscopy. Spectroscopic analysis was performed with a 2.0-T NMR spectroscopy system. Results : The tumor retention of 5FU was prolonged in animals receiving radiation before the drug infusion. The tumor clearance rate of the 5FU for nonirradiated animals was 0.0178 ± 0.0082/min vs. 0.0055 ± 0.0027/min for irradiated animals, reflecting a threefold reduction in drug clearance in the irradiated tumors. The difference was significant at p Conclusion : Our preliminary experiments suggest the enhanced cytotoxicity seen with concurrent 5FU and radiation is related to prolonged tumor retention of 5FU induced by radiation. This is consistent with the hypothesis that radiation is potentiating the cytotoxic effects of 5FU.
Assessing a Satellite-Era Perspective of the Global Water Cycle

Abstract The capability of a global data compilation, largely satellite based, is assessed to depict the global atmospheric water cycle’s mean state and variability. Monthly global precipitation estimates from the Global Precipitation Climatology Project (GPCP) and the Climate Prediction Center (CPC) Merged Analysis of Precipitation (CMAP) span from 1979 to 1999. Monthly global Special Sensor Microwave Imager (SSM/I)-based bulk aerodynamic ocean evaporation estimates span from June 1987 to December 1999. Global terrestrial evapotranspiration rates are estimated over a multidecade period (1975–99) using a global land model simulation forced by bias-corrected reanalysis data. Monthly total precipitable water (TPW) from the NASA Global Water Vapor Project (NVAP) spans from 1988 to 1999. The averaged annual global precipitation (P) and evaporation (E) estimates are out of balance by 5% or 24 000 (metric) gigatons (Gton) of water, which exceeds the uncertainty of global mean annual precipitation (∼±1%). For an...
Printed pages vs. web pages: the documentation dilemma

This paper, which may interest any professional staff members who work with documentation and/or web development and design, or who offer help desk support, will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of both paper and on-line documentation. It will also discuss several specific examples of the documentation that the Division of the Chief Information Officer (formerly known as Computing & Information Services) currently makes available to Rensselaer's users, both in hardcopy and on-line format.
The Use of Functional and Adaptive Criteria in Phylogenetic Systematics

SYNOPSIS. The controversy over whether functional data can contribute to phylogenetic inference has grown in recent years. Steps can be taken toward its resolution if the relevance of functional data is judged for each component of phylogenetic analysis. These components are (1)recognizing of basic taxa (species or supraspecific taxa), (2) formulating hypotheses of homology followed by character analysis, (3) evaluating character phylogeny, (4) formulating phylogenetic hypotheses, and (5) evaluating alternative phylogenetic hypotheses. It can be shown that functional data do not play a necessary or unique role in any of these components of phylogenetic analysis. Arguments to the contrary have failed to provide a rigorous, repeatable methodto incorporate functional data; proponents of a functional approach to phylogenetic reconstruction rely too often on subjective, authoritarian argumentation. Students of functional evolutionary morphology frequently have failed to understand the kinds of information necessary to study or apply the causal process of adaptation via natural selection. This information, required by the very nature of the theory itself, includes knowing the pattern of heredity of the phenotypic characters being studied, relating intrapopulational phenotypic variability to variation in fitness, and knowing a sufficient amount about population structure to specify the components of natural selection. Studies within functional evolutionary morphology are not designed to satisfy these requirements. Functional evolutionary morphology uses the concepts of adaptation and natural selection axiomatically, and thus such studies contribute nothing to our understanding of the evolutionary process because hypotheses about that process are not being evaluated. This also suggests that, if functional evolutionary morphology wishes to engage in analyses of the evolutionary dynamics of the phenotype, a reorientation of its research strategy and goals will be necessary.
Validation of satellite‐derived precipitation measurements

The COSPAR-sponsored International Workshop on the Validation of Satellite-Derived Precipitation Measurements for the Global Precipitation Climatology Project was held in Washington, D.C., November 17–21, 1986. The objective of the workshop, which was attended by researchers from 13 countries, was to develop a plan for validating large-scale estimates of monthly rainfall amounts from geostationary satellite observations, a combination of polar satellite observations and ground-based rain gage measurements, for 200 km×200 km areas. This objective directly supports the Global Precipitation Climatology Project (GPCP) goal of producing a 10-year data set, starting in 1987, of global rainfall estimates for use by the World Climate Research Program (WCRP). The major source of data will be estimates of rainfall amounts for 200 km×200 km areas derived from threshold infrared histograms of geostationary satellite observations.
The Cry Was Unity: Communists and African Americans, 1917-36

The Communist Party was the only political movement on the left in the late 1920s and 1930s to place racial justice and equality at the top of its agenda and to seek, and ultimately win, sympathy among African Americans. This historic effort to fuse red and black offers a rich vein of experience and constitutes the theme of The Cry Was Unity. Utilizing for the first time materials related to African Americans from the Moscow archives of the Communist Inter-national (Comintern), The Cry Was Unity traces the trajectory of the black-red relationship from the end of World War I to the tumultuous 1930s. From the just-recovered transcript of the pivotal debate on African Americans at the 6th Comintern Congress in 1928, the book assesses the impact of the Congress's declaration that blacks in the rural South constituted a nation within a nation, entitled to the right of self-determination. Despite the theory's serious flaws, it fused the black struggle for freedom and revolutionary content and demanded that white labor recognize blacks as indispensable allies. As the Great Depression unfolded, the Communists launched intensive campaigns against lynching, evictions, and discrimination in jobs and relief and opened within their own ranks a searing assault on racism. While the Party was never able to win a majority of white workers to the struggle for Negro rights, or to achieve the unqualified support of the black majority, it helped to lay the foundations for the freedom struggle of the 1950s and 1960s. The Cry Was Unity underscores the successes and failures of the Communist-led left and the ways in which it fought against racism and inequality. This struggle comprises an important missing page that needs to be returned to the nation's history. Mark Solomon, an emeritus professor at Simmons College, is the author of Red and Black: Communism and Afro-Americans, 1929-1935, Death Waltz to Armageddon: E. P. Thompson and the Peace Movement, and Stopping World War II (with Michael Myerson).
Hormonal and pharmacologic regulation of sodium absorption in rabbit cecum in vitro.

The rabbit cecum is a moderately tight epithelium with amiloride-resistant but phenamilsensitive electrogenic Na absorption. We performed flux and electrical studies under short-circuit conditionsin vitro to further characterize the mechanisms of ion transport in cecum in normal and animals pretreated with methylprednisolone (MP) and deoxycorticosterone acetate (DOCA). MP treatment increased Na absorption and decreased tissue conductance. In contrast, DOCA increasedIsc but did not significantly alter Na or Cl fluxes. Amiloride analogs with primary specificity for Na channel and Na/H exchanger both inhibitedIsc and Na absorption. Ethacrynic acid, but not bumetanide, inhibitedIsc. Nystatin and amphotericin B increasedIsc. We conclude that: (1) Steroids have a differential effect on cecal ion transport; methylprednisolone increases Na absorption, but DOCA does not. (2) The response to amiloride analogs is different from other electrogenic transport systems, suggesting a distinct mechanism of Na transport in cecum. (3) The effect of ethacrynic acid was unexpected, suggesting an inhibitory response on an alternate transport system. (4) The effects of polyene antibiotics are similar to those found in other tight epithelia. Electrogenic Na absorption in rabbit cecum represents a distinct transport system, significantly different from Na absorptive mechanisms in other segments of the gut.
Changes in plant metabolism associated with phytoalexin production

The activity of phenylalanine deaminase, the initial enzyme in the phenylalanine-topisatin pathway was increased by approximately 10 times when spore suspensions ofMonilinia fructicola were applied in excised pea (Pisum sativum) pods. Actidione was effective in inhibiting this increase in enzyme activity. Actidione also inhibited the increase in conversion of L-phenylalanine-u.l.-14C to pisatin and the increase in protein synthesis inM. fructicola treated pea tissue. Actinomycin D did not inhibit protein synthesis in excised pods and functioned as a stimulator rather than an inhibitor of the induction process.
Properties of the seismic nucleation phase

Abstract Near-source observations show that earthquakes begin abruptly at the P-wave arrival, but that this beginning is weak, with a low moment rate relative to the rest of the main shock. We term this initial phase of low moment rate the seismic nucleation phase. We have observed the seismic nucleation phase for a set of 48 earthquakes ranging in magnitude from 1.1–8.1 The size and duration of the seismic nucleation phase scale with the total seismic moment of the earthquake, suggesting that the process responsible for the seismic nucleation phase carries information about the eventual size of the earthquake. The seismic nucleation phase is characteristically followed by quadratic growth in the moment rate, consistent with self-similar rupture at constant stress drop. In this paper we quantify the properties of the seismic nucleation phase and offer several possible explanations for it.
Latest Neoproterozoic basin inversion of the Beardmore Group, central Transantarctic Mountains, Antarctica

Structural and age relationships in Beardmore Group rocks in the central Transantarctic Mountains of Antarctica indicate that they experienced a single deformation in latest Neoproterozoic to early Paleozoic time. New structural data contrast with earlier suggestions that Beardmore rocks record two orogenic deformations, one of the early Paleozoic Ross orogeny and a distinct earlier tectonic event of presumed Neoproterozoic age referred to as the Beardmore orogeny. In the Nimrod Glacier area, Beardmore metasedimentary rocks contain only a single set of geometrically related regional structures associated with the development of upright, large- and small-scale flexural-slip folds. Deformation of Beardmore strata involved west directed contraction of modest regional strain at relatively high crustal levels. Existing ages of detrital zircons from the Cobham and Goldie formations constrain Beardmore Group deposition to be younger than ∼600 Ma. This is significantly younger than previous age estimates and suggests that Beardmore deposition may be closely linked to a latest Neoproterozoic East Antarctic rift margin. The lack of structural evidence for polyphase deformation and the relatively young depositional age for the Beardmore Group thus raises the question of a temporally and/or technically unique Beardmore orogeny. Here I suggest that Beardmore shortening may be related to tectonic inversion of East Antarctic marginal-basin strata because of localized compression during proto-Pacific seafloor spreading. Basin inversion is but one stage in a protracted Ross tectonic cycle of rifting, tectonic inversion, subduction initiation, and development of a mature convergent continental margin during latest Neoproterozoic and early Paleozoic time. The term “Beardmore orogeny” has little meaning as an event of orogenic status, and it should be abandoned. Recognition of this latest Neoproterozoic history reinforces the view that the broader Ross orogeny was not a single event but rather was a long-lived postrifting tectonic process along the East Antarctic margin of Gondwanaland.
Full-wave exact integral solutions of a current carrying loop in a general half-space

The full-wave exact integral solutions of a current carrying loop immersed in a general half-space is presented. The result is an eigenfunction reflection coefficient that is perfectly symmetric with respect to the interchange of the half-space mediums, which is in contrast to the traditional form of Sommerfeld's original solution for the current loop above earth.
Strand bias influences the mechanism of gene editing directed by single-stranded DNA oligonucleotides

Gene editing directed by modified single-stranded DNA oligonucleotides has been used to alter a single base pair in a variety of biological systems. It is likely that gene editing is facilitated by the direct incorporation of the oligonucleotides via replication and/or by direct conversion, most likely through the DNA mismatch repair pathway. The phenomenon of strand bias, however, as well as its importance to the gene editing reaction itself, has yet to be elucidated in terms of mechanism. We have taken a reductionist approach by using a genetic readout in Eschericha coli and a plasmid-based selectable system to evaluate the influence of strand bias on the mechanism of gene editing. We show that oligonucleotides (ODNs) designed to anneal to the lagging strand generate 100-fold greater ‘editing’ efficiency than ‘those that anneal to’ the leading strand. The majority of editing events (~70%) occur by the incorporation of the ODN during replication within the lagging strand. Conversely, ODNs that anneal to the leading strand generate fewer editing events although this event may follow either the incorporation or direct conversion pathway. In general, the influence of DNA replication is independent of which ODN is used suggesting that the importance of strand bias is a reflection of the underlying mechanism used to carry out gene editing.
The Romance and Power of Breastfeeding

: The romantic qualities of the breastfeeding relationship include elemental physicality, intensity, and transience. The paper explores the implications of nursing in terms of a woman's sexuality, competence and power, and offers breastfeeding as an economic model of a renewable resource.
Performance of two male broiler breeder strains raised and maintained on various constant photoschedules.

Abstract The purpose of the present study was to examine the interaction of constant photoschedules and genetic background on performance of male broiler breeders. Day-old cockerels from two BW strains were placed on litter floors in light-controlled chambers. Light treatments (LT) (60 lx) consisted of 2, 4, 8, 16, and 24 h light/day. At 9 wk of age, birds were individually caged and evaluated biweekly for semen production. Venous blood samples were collected at 16, 32, 48, and 64 wk of age. Data for testes weight, histology, and morphometry were obtained at 64 wk. Age at first semen production showed a cubic response in the levels of LT with earliest semen production from 4 and 8 h light (187.0 and 188.2 days, respectively). The BW was linear in the levels of LT within week; average BW was generally greater for birds on short LT than for birds on longer LT. Semen concentration was also linear in the levels of LT with in week; increased semen concentration occurred with short LT. Changes in semen weight and spermatozoa count per ejaculate across the levels of LT differed for strain. A larger percentage of males produced semen in the ≤8h LT than in the 16 or 24 h LT. Plasma testosterone was lower at 16 wk compared with later ages, and a positive linear relationship existed between testosterone level and hours of light There was a cubic LT effect for testes weight per BW with larger values for ≤8 h LT compared with 16 or 24 h LT.
Maintaining Good Hearing: Calorie Restriction, Sirt3, and Glutathione

Reducing calorie intake extends the lifespan of a variety of experimental models and delays progression of age-related hearing loss (AHL). AHL is a common feature of aging and is characterized by age-related decline of hearing associated with loss of sensory hair cells, spiral ganglion neurons, and/or stria vascularis degeneration in the cochlea. Sirtuins are a family of NAD(+)-dependent enzymes that regulate lifespan in lower organisms and have emerged as broad regulators of cellular fate. Our recent study indicated that mitochondrial Sirt3, a member of the sirtuin family, mediates the anti-aging effects of calorie restriction (CR) on AHL in mice. Interestingly, we also found that weight loss alone may not be sufficient for maintaining normal hearing. How does CR slow the progression of AHL through regulation of Sirt3? Here we review the evidence that during CR, Sirt3 slows the progression of AHL by promoting the glutathione-mediated mitochondrial antioxidant defense system in mice. A significant reduction in food consumption in one's daily life may not be a desirable and realistic option for most people. Therefore, identification/discovery of compounds that induce the activation of SIRT3 or glutathione reductase, or that increase mitochondrial glutathione levels has potential for maintaining good hearing through mimicking the anti-aging effects of CR in human inner ear cells.
The Limits of Medial Femoral Condyle Corticoperiosteal Flaps

Purpose The medial femoral condyle (MFC) vascularized corticoperiosteal flap has been well described for the treatment of nonunion with minimal bone loss. Recent applications of this donor site as a corticocancellous flap for large intercalary defects bring into question the vascular territory of bone supplied by the descending genicular artery (DGA). This study's purpose is to delineate the proximal extent of periosteal blood supply of the medial column of the femur provided by the DGA system. Methods In 18 cadaveric specimens, the DGA was isolated, measured, and cannulated. Using subtraction techniques of fluoroscopic angiography, the vascular network and proximal-most extent of periosteal perfusion were recorded using radiopaque contrast dye. Results The DGA branched from the superficial femoral artery 14.2 ± 2.4 cm proximal to the joint line of the knee. The length of the vascular pedicle to its attachment onto the periosteum was 7.7 ± 2.2 cm. All specimens demonstrated a filigree of periosteal vessels dominated by a transverse and a longitudinal branch at the level of the condyle. Proximal perfusion was consistently noted by a large, longitudinal medial metaphyseal periosteal artery. The medial metaphyseal periosteal artery demonstrated that the proximal-most perfusion of the DGA was 13.7 ± 1.3 cm proximal to the joint line. Average femur length was 47.1 ± 3.1 cm. The DGA provided perfusion of 29% ± 2% of the total length of the medial femur. Conclusions The DGA provides a large and reliable region of periosteal perfusion, suggesting that corticocancellous MFC harvest might provide the benefits of vascularized bone for large, intercalary nonunion defects conventionally treated with fibula flaps. Clinical relevance Harvest of MFC osseous flaps extending up to 13.7 cm proximal to the joint line can be perfused from the DGA pedicle. The MFC donor site might, therefore, be a reliable option for vascularized reconstruction of larger bone defects.
Editorial: status of childhood obesity research internationally.

Obesity is the major nutrition-related health problem in the Western world (Ogden et al. 2006) and is a growing international problem (Popkin 2008). Obesity among children substantially increases t...
Selection for in vivo regulators of bacterial virulence

We devised a noninvasive genetic selection strategy to identify positive regulators of bacterial virulence genes during actual infection of an intact animal host. This strategy combines random mutagenesis with a switch-like reporter of transcription that confers antibiotic resistance in the off state and sensitivity in the on state. Application of this technology to the human intestinal pathogen Vibrio cholerae identified several regulators of cholera toxin and a central virulence gene regulator that are operative during infection. These regulators function in chemotaxis, signaling pathways, transport across the cell envelope, biosynthesis, and adherence. We show that phenotypes that appear genetically independent in cell culture become interrelated in the host milieu.
Spectrophotometric determination of rare earth metals with 1-(2-pyridylazo)-2-naphthol

Abstract 1-(2-Pyridylazo)-2-naphthol (PAN) reacts very sensitively with rare earth metals to form a deep red precipitate in alkaline solution; this can be extracted with ether, except in the case of lanthanum, cerium and scandium. Absorption maxima occur at 530 and 560 mμ. Traces of rare earth metals may be determined in the presence of many foreign metals.
Independence of the isotropy convention for the one-way light speed in relativity

The convention that the one-way velocity of light is isotropic is shown to be independent of the postulates of relativity in a globally Minkowskian continuum, but not in a continuum which is only locally Minkowskian.
The nature of the limitations of second law determinations of solution thermodynamics

Abstract The unreliability of the entropy and heat of mixing of solutions deduced solely from free energy measurements results from systematic errors in the data and the lack of information on the temperature dependence of the heat of mixing. If one could predict the entropy in the high temperature limit then one needs to solve only one of these problems. The temperature dependence of the heat of mixing cannot be satisfactorily deduced from the free energy and must be measured calorimetrically. The finite sensitivity of the free energy measurements which has previously been blamed as the origin of this problem is not necessarily an important factor.
Tacit Knowledge and Strategic Decision Making

Tacit knowledge is not easily recognized or acknowledged, but it can be a key factor in enhancing the quality of strategic decisions made by the top management team. A working definition of tacit knowledge is the work-related practical know-how that is acquired through direct experience and instrumental in achieving goals important to the holder. The study provides an integration of the cognitive and strategic literatures to show that tacit knowledge is accessible and how it plays an integral role in the context of strategic decision making. The authors propose that better decisions will occur when tacit knowledge is employed overtly during strategy sessions. Among other methods, the use of guided mental imagery seems to provide the simultaneous benefits of explicating tacit knowledge as well as enhancing the socialization process necessary for its transfer among team members.
Comparing the fault detection effectiveness of n-way and random test suites

Software testing plays a critical role in the timely delivery of high-quality software systems. Despite the important role that testing plays, little is known about the fault detection effectiveness of many testing techniques. We investigate "n-way" test suites created using a common greedy algorithm for use in combinatorial testing. A controlled study is designed and executed to compare the fault detection effectiveness of n-way and random test suites. Combinatorial testing is conducted on target systems that have been injected with software faults. The results are that there is no significant difference in the fault detection effectiveness of n-way and random test suites for the applications studied. Analysis of the random test suite finds that they are very similar to n-way test suites from the perspective of the number of test data combinations covered. This result concurs with other hypothetical results that indicate little difference between n-way and random test suites. While we do not expect this result to apply in all combinatorial testing situations, we believe the result will lead to the design of better combinatorial test suites.
Genetic Alterations and Modeling of Cardiovascular Physiology

Animal models have provided invaluable tools in improving our understanding of cardiac physiology and the mechanisms underlying heart disease. Until recently, available models were generated by surgical or pharmacological interventions or were the result of random genetic events, which made it difficult to establish a direct relationship between structural changes and functional alterations (1). However, the advancements in our ability to genetically manipulate the mammalian genome through transgenesis and gene targeting have provided important insights into thein vivo structure-function relation and interaction of specific gene products. Furthermore, genetically altered animals offer unique opportunities to identify genes that are causative for certain diseases, to evaluate molecular mechanisms responsible for the development and progression of diseases, and finally, to test new therapeutic strategies (2). In this regard, the mouse has emerged as the premier mammalian model system since it allows precise manipulation of its genome, has a short gestation period and its genetics and development have been well characterized (3). Initially, the small size of the murine heart was a challenging and limiting factor in the physiological and pathophysiological evaluation of phenotypic cardiac alterations. However, advances in “microphysiology” provided us with various techniques to assess cardiac function in an integrative approach from the cellular to the intact animal levels (4).
Nucleon-Dirac potentials from quark models

Nucleon-Dirac potentials are calculated from two-body-quark--one-boson-exchange potentials in the limit where the projectile nucleon is taken to be pointlike. Effective NN\ifmmode\bar\else\textasciimacron\fi{} pair effects in this model originate from the single-qq\ifmmode\bar\else\textasciimacron\fi{}-pair mechanism.
Epidemiology of Age-Dependence in Sleep-Disordered Breathing in Old Age: The Bay Area Sleep Cohort

Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) is highly prevalent in elderly populations and is thought to reflect, at least in part, age dependence. Several studies suggest that SDB in elderly populations may hold different functional outcomes relative to SDB in middle-aged populations. Risk factors for SDB specific for the elderly remain uncertain. This article examines changes in SDB, body weight, and pulmonary function in 103 individuals over an average interval of 7 years to determine whether changes in these measures covary.
Phylogenetic positions of Lithophyllum incrustans and Titanoderma pustulatum (Corallinaceae, Rhodophyta) based on 18S rRNA gene sequence analyses, with a revised classification of the Lithophylloideae

Abstract This study was initiated to reexamine phylogenetic relationships among coralline algae having secondary pit connections and lacking cell fusions. Nuclear small-subunit ribosomal RNA (18S rRNA) gene sequences were determined for the nongeniculate species Lithophyllum incrustans Philippi and Titanoderma pustulatum (Lamouroux) Nageli and aligned with 18S rRNA sequences for 35 other coralline species. Parsimony and maximum likelihood analyses of these data yielded congruent trees in which four major lineages were resolved. In these trees, geniculate and nongeniculate species having secondary pit connections and lacking cell fusions formed a well-supported clade within the Corallinaceae. Within this clade, the geniculate genera Amphiroa and Lithothrix do not form a monophyletic group. Results suggest that the genicula of Amphiroa and Lithothrix are probably not homologous; these genera are more closely related to nongeniculate species than they are to one another. A close relationship inferred between...
Ecology of Estuarine Bacteria Capable of Causing Human Disease: A Review

Certain bacteria indigenous to estuaries are capable of acting as opportunistic pathogens of humans. While it is sometimes difficult to prove that a given bacterium is a bona fide inhabitant of the estuary from which it was isolated, it is even more difficult to describe the niche of that bacterial species. This statement applies to all estuarine bacteria, including opportunistic human pathogens. On the other hand, much has been learned about the pathogenic attributes of bacteria that cause human disease, including genetic control mechanisms for virulence factors. The focus of this review is to put into perspective current knowledge of the ecology of those estuarine bacteria that can inhabit both estuaries and humans. Particular attention is paid to those attributes that allow these bacteria to exist in and move between estuaries and the human body. Genera covered includeAcinetobacter, Aeromonas, Clostridium, Enterobacter, Flavobacterium, Klebsiella, Legionella, Listeria, Plesiomonas, Pseudomonas, andVibrio, and the conclusion reached is that much remains to be learned about the estuarine ecology of these important bacteria.
Orthogonal array approach to gradient based yield optimization

A method of yield gradient estimation is proposed. It is based on the orthogonal array approach to the design of experiments. The method is related to the G. Taguchi (1987) philosophy of off-line quality control but is much more efficient. The method is applied to stochastic approximation based parametric yield optimization. Several test and circuit examples are presented. >
Bayesian and "Anti-Bayesian" Biases in Sensory Integration for Action and Perception in the Size-Weight Illusion

Which is heavier: a pound of lead or a pound of feathers? This classic trick question belies a simple but surprising truth: when lifted, the pound of lead feels heavier—a phenomenon known as the size–weight illusion. To estimate the weight of an object, our CNS combines two imperfect sources of information: a prior expectation, based on the object's appearance, and direct sensory information from lifting it. Bayes' theorem (or Bayes' law) defines the statistically optimal way to combine multiple information sources for maximally accurate estimation. Here we asked whether the mechanisms for combining these information sources produce statistically optimal weight estimates for both perceptions and actions. We first studied the ability of subjects to hold one hand steady when the other removed an object from it, under conditions in which sensory information about the object's weight sometimes conflicted with prior expectations based on its size. Since the ability to steady the supporting hand depends on the generation of a motor command that accounts for lift timing and object weight, hand motion can be used to gauge biases in weight estimation by the motor system. We found that these motor system weight estimates reflected the integration of prior expectations with real-time proprioceptive information in a Bayesian, statistically optimal fashion that discounted unexpected sensory information. This produces a motor size–weight illusion that consistently biases weight estimates toward prior expectations. In contrast, when subjects compared the weights of two objects, their perceptions defied Bayes' law, exaggerating the value of unexpected sensory information. This produces a perceptual size–weight illusion that biases weight perceptions away from prior expectations. We term this effect “anti-Bayesian” because the bias is opposite that seen in Bayesian integration. Our findings suggest that two fundamentally different strategies for the integration of prior expectations with sensory information coexist in the nervous system for weight estimation.
An empirical study of process knowledge: coherence as a static process property

This paper presents our research experiences studying process knowledge with qualitative and quantitative methods. Informed by related arguments, we present two hypotheses that are tested using a between subjects experimental design. The first hypothesis concerns the accuracy of software process elicitation, which we characterize as the human perception of error between description and performance of a process. The second hypothesis explores the detection of subtle differences in process articulation using latent semantic analysis, a computational technique for measuring patterns in written discourse. The results of our analyses are compared along with discussion of theoretical implications. We define a new type of process property, Coherence, which represents a measure of relatedness in process knowledge. Results also indicate that Coherence may be increased with the use of a conceptual model. Future research is guided by experimental and industrial application. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
An integrated approach to process monitoring and data analysis

The authors describe two architectures: the Automated Process Monitoring (APROM) System, which examines a large combination of trend charts and shows the symptoms of problems to the engineers by sending a high level message and a chart when a process variable is out of control; and the Interactive Data Extraction and Analysis (IDEA) System, which provides a simple menu interface to get a block of data from a local, or remote host database. Once the user receives the right data block, the user can interactively exercise many options of plots and statistical data analysis functions. An application is described by a profile which can be modified easily by users. >
A novel interface for device diagnostics using speech recognition, augmented reality visualization, and 3D audio auralization

Routine maintenance and error diagnostics of technical devices can be greatly enhanced by applying multimedia technology. The Rockwell Science Center is developing a system which can indicate maintenance instructions or diagnosis results for a device directly into the view of the user by utilizing augmented reality and multimedia techniques. The system can overlay 3D rendered objects, animations, and text annotations onto the live video image of a known object, captured by a movable camera. The status of device components can be queried by the user through a speech recognition system. The response is given as an animation of the relevant device module, overlaid onto the real object into the user's view, and/or as auditory cues using spatialized 3D audio. The position of the user/camera relative to the device is tracked by a computer vision based tracking system. The diagnostics system also allows the user to leave spoken annotations attached to device modules for other users to retrieve. The system is implemented on a distributed network of PCs, utilizing standard commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) components.
Leakage in nano-scale technologies: mechanisms, impact and design considerations

The high leakage current in nano-meter regimes is becoming a significant portion of power dissipation in CMOS circuits as threshold voltage, channel length, and gate oxide thickness are scaled. Consequently, the identification of different leakage components is very important for estimation and reduction of leakage. Moreover, the increasing statistical variation in the process parameters has led to significant variation in the transistor leakage current across and within different dies. Designing with the worst case leakage may cause excessive guard-banding, resulting in a lower performance. This paper explores various intrinsic leakage mechanisms including weak inversion, gate-oxide tunneling and junction leakage etc. Various circuit level techniques to reduce leakage energy and their design trade-off are discussed. We also explore process variation compensating techniques to reduce delay and leakage spread, while meeting power constraint and yield.
Freshwater discharges drive high levels of methylmercury in Arctic marine biota

Elevated levels of neurotoxic methylmercury in Arctic food-webs pose health risks for indigenous populations that consume large quantities of marine mammals and fish. Estuaries provide critical hunting and fishing territory for these populations, and, until recently, benthic sediment was thought to be the main methylmercury source for coastal fish. New hydroelectric developments are being proposed in many northern ecosystems, and the ecological impacts of this industry relative to accelerating climate changes are poorly characterized. Here we evaluate the competing impacts of climate-driven changes in northern ecosystems and reservoir flooding on methylmercury production and bioaccumulation through a case study of a stratified sub-Arctic estuarine fjord in Labrador, Canada. Methylmercury bioaccumulation in zooplankton is higher than in midlatitude ecosystems. Direct measurements and modeling show that currently the largest methylmercury source is production in oxic surface seawater. Water-column methylation is highest in stratified surface waters near the river mouth because of the stimulating effects of terrestrial organic matter on methylating microbes. We attribute enhanced biomagnification in plankton to a thin layer of marine snow widely observed in stratified systems that concentrates microbial methylation and multiple trophic levels of zooplankton in a vertically restricted zone. Large freshwater inputs and the extensive Arctic Ocean continental shelf mean these processes are likely widespread and will be enhanced by future increases in water-column stratification, exacerbating high biological methylmercury concentrations. Soil flooding experiments indicate that near-term changes expected from reservoir creation will increase methylmercury inputs to the estuary by 25–200%, overwhelming climate-driven changes over the next decade.
Efficacy of urease inhibitor to reduce ammonia emission from poultry houses

SUMMARY As the poultry industry has grown, so have concerns about the environmental management aspects of these industries, including air and water quality. Poultry operations continue to expand and are large contributors to farm income. There is increased concern related to ammonia emission from poultry operations. Various abatement methods, including dietary manipulation, chemical amendment of litter, and improvement in ventilation system management have been used to control ammonia concentrations from livestock facilities, but these methods are perceived to be too expensive, to impair bird growth, or to add to pollution in some other form. Alternative strategies include reduction of ammonia emissions by arresting N in the litter. An alternative approach to decrease ammonia emissions in poultry facilities is to block the enzyme activity in the litter because ammonia is the by-product of a 5-step enzymatic degradation of uric acid. Our preliminary study with layer feces, which were allowed to accumulate on a layer of broiler litter, indicated that a commercially available urease inhibitor resulted in a significant reduction in equilibrium ammonia concentration over time. Based on the results of the preliminary experiment, further studies were conducted to study the effect of the urease inhibitor on broiler litter and layer feces directly. The results showed that the urease inhibitor did not have any effect on equilibrium ammonia concentration when applied to drier broiler litter. The reduced moisture content in the broiler litter may have inhibited urease inhibitor activity. With layer feces, urease inhibitor reduced equilibrium ammonia concentration. The effect of the first application lasted for 1 wk, after which the equilibrium ammonia concentration in the treated trays rebounded to exceed that of the control trays. Upon a second application of urease inhibitor, the effect lasted for 14 d. The difference in the effect of the urease inhibitor on equilibrium ammonia concentration upon first and second application could have been influenced by a change in manure characteristics over time. Layer manure is a dynamic environment with continued change; therefore, more research is warranted in the area of stored layer manure.
Flux Pinning Associated with Y2BaCuO5 Precipitates in Melt-Processed YBa2Cu3Ox

Magnetization measurements were performed on melt-processed samples prepared by various processing techniques. Fine Y2BaCuO5 precipitates (~100 A) were observed by transmission electron microscopy in the samples prepared by melt-processed-meltgrowth and solid-liquid-melt-growth techniques. These precipitates were not observed in samples prepared by conventional melt-texturing techniques. Critical current density, Jc, depended on final microstructure; a larger magnetic hysteresis was always associated with the presence of the fine precipitates. However, the flux-pinning strengths of these precipitates decreased at higher temperatures.
How Do Faith-Based Organizations Compare to Secular Providers? Nonprofit Directors' and Poor Women's Assessments of FBOs

ABSTRACT Over the last decade, policy-makers have pushed faith-based organizations (FBOs) to increase their role in providing services to welfare-reliant and low-income families. Using data from qualitative research, I detail how poor women and nonprofit directors serving poor individuals in Philadelphia have conflicting understandings of FBOs. A substantial proportion of secular nonprofit directors question whether FBOs have the capacity to provide the range of services poor women need. Furthermore, nonprofit directors largely focused on how FBOs differ from other types of social service providers in four main areas: (1) individualized, caring treatment of clients, (2) religiosity in service delivery, (3) connections to the community, and (4) professionalization. Interviews with the poor women, however, counter many of the nonprofit directors' assumptions and reveal that these women experience FBOs and secular nonprofits in similar ways. These findings not only suggest discontinuity among nonprofit direc...
Thermoforming shrinkage prediction

Most thermoforming product development processes rely on costly and time-consuming forming trials to determine the adequacy of the mold and process. In this paper, an analytical method is developed for shrinkage predictions on the basis of a visco-elastic constitutive material model with initial conditions from a commercial thermoforming simulation. The theoretical analysis has been developed to accommodate different sets of materials, process conditions, and mold geometry. The shrinkage model consists of a transient thermal analysis for temperature solution; a stretching phase analysis for inflation-induced stress estimation; a post-contact analysis for thermal stress and relaxation; and a post-molding strain analysis based on stress solution. The shrinkage prediction analysis has been developed and validated with a complex geometry thermoforming application. The results indicate that the shrinkage estimates provided by the analysis were within the objective tolerances of 0.1%, as measured in terms of absolute prediction error of part dimensions.
Exploring the Importance of Reading Programs for Kindergartners with Disabilities in Mainstream Classrooms

This study's purpose was to explore the effectiveness and feasibility of phonological awareness (PA) training with and without a beginning decoding component for kindergartners with disabilities in mainstream classrooms. Nineteen general educators, who taught at least one student with a disability, were assigned randomly within their schools to three groups: control, PA training, or PA training with beginning decoding instruction. Teachers in the two treatment groups conducted the treatments for about 20 weeks. Pre- and posttreatment data were collected on 25 children with disabilities. Statistical analyses indicated that the group of students with special needs participating in PA training with beginning decoding instruction did better than the other two groups. However, many children, including many of those in the most effective treatment, did not improve their reading skills.
Diurnal expression of functional and clock-related genes throughout the rat HPA axis: system-wide shifts in response to a restricted feeding schedule.

The diurnal rhythm of glucocorticoid secretion depends on the suprachiasmatic (SCN) and dorsomedial (putative food-entrainable oscillator; FEO) nuclei of the hypothalamus, two brain regions critica...
Distributed random signal detection with multibit sensor decisions

Distributed detection of weak random signals in additive, possibly non-Gaussian, noise is considered for cases with multibit sensor decisions. Signal-to-noise ratios are assumed unknown and the signals at the different sensors may be statistically dependent. Analytical expressions are provided that describe the best way to fuse the quantized observations for cases with any given number of sensors. The best schemes for originally quantizing the observations at each sensor are also studied for the case of an asymptotically large number of sensors. These schemes are shown to minimize the mean-squared error between the best weak-signal test statistic based on unquantized observations and the best weak-signal test statistic based on quantized observations. Analytical expressions describing optimum sensor quantizers are provided. The approach used to obtain these expressions insures these sensor quantizers give good performance for cases with a finite number of sensors. A novel iterative technique to search for optimum sensor quantizers efficiently is described. Numerical solutions are presented, some of which involve cases where the best schemes for independent signal observations are shown to be suboptimum.
Historical Review of the Development of Brain Hypothermia

Morbidity and mortality following acute trauma to the brain are often the result of fulminating, severe cerebral edema. Any procedure that could reduce the magnitude of edema would facilitate the management of such injuries. Hypothermia is known to decrease the volume of normal brain and to protect against infarction following permanent interruption of major vascular channels. This study was undertaken to determine the effect of hypothermia on the pathogenesis of experimental brain injury and, in particular, the effect of reduction of temperature on the size of a pathologically swollen brain.