cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A metabolomic analysis of the sex‐dependent Hispanic Paradox

In Mexican Americans, metabolic conditions, such as obesity and type 2 diabetes (T2DM), are not necessarily associated with an increase in mortality; this is the so-called Hispanic paradox. In this cross-sectional analysis, we used a metabolomic analysis to look at the mechanisms behind the Hispanic paradox. To do this, we examined dietary intake and body mass index (BMI; kg/m2) in men and women and their effects on serum metabolomic fingerprints in 70 Mexican Americans (26 men, 44 women). Although having different BMI values, the participants had many similar anthropometric and biochemical parameters, such as systolic and diastolic blood pressure, total cholesterol, and LDL cholesterol, which supported the paradox in these subjects. Plasma metabolomic phenotypes were measured using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). A two-way ANOVA assessing sex, BMI, and the metabolome revealed 23 significant metabolites, such as 2-pyrrolidinone (p = 0.007), TMAO (p = 0.014), 2-aminoadipic acid (p = 0.019), and kynurenine (p = 0.032). Pathway and enrichment analyses discovered several significant metabolic pathways between men and women, including lysine degradation, tyrosine metabolism, and branch-chained amino acid (BCAA) degradation and biosynthesis. A log-transformed OPLS-DA model was employed and demonstrated a difference due to BMI in the metabolomes of both sexes. When stratified for caloric intake ( 2200 kcal/d), a separate OPLS-DA model showed clear separation in men, while females remained relatively unchanged. After accounting for caloric intake and BMI status, the female metabolome showed substantial resistance to alteration. Therefore, we provide a better understanding of the Mexican-American metabolome, which may help demonstrate how this population—particularly women—possesses a longer life expectancy despite several comorbidities, and reveal the underlying mechanisms of the Hispanic paradox.
On the Number of Faces and Radii of Cells Induced by Gaussian Spherical Tessellations

Abstract We study a geometric property related to spherical hyperplane tessellations in R d . We first consider a fixed x on the Euclidean sphere and tessellations with M ≫ d hyperplanes passing through the origin having normal vectors distributed according to a Gaussian distribution. We show that with high probability there exists a subset of the hyperplanes whose cardinality is on the order of d log ⁡ ( d ) log ⁡ ( M ) such that the radius of the cell containing x induced by these hyperplanes is bounded above by, up to constants, d log ⁡ ( d ) log ⁡ ( M ) / M . We extend this result to hold for all cells in the tessellation with high probability. Up to logarithmic terms, this upper bound matches the previously established lower bound of Goyal et al. (1998) [6] .
Bandwidth Cost of Code Conversions in Distributed Storage: Fundamental Limits and Optimal Constructions

In distributed storage systems, an [ $n, k$ ] code encodes $k$ message symbols into $n$ codeword symbols which are then stored on $n$ nodes in the system. Recent work has shown that significant savings in storage space can be obtained by tuning $n$ and $k$ to variations in device failure rates. Such tuning necessitates code conversion: the process of converting data encoded under an [ $n^{I}, k^{I}$ ] code to its equivalent under an [ $n^{F}, k^{F}$ ] code. The default approach for code conversion places significant burden on system resources. Convertible codes are a recently proposed class of codes for enabling resource-efficient conversions. Existing work on convertible codes has focused on minimizing access cost, i.e., the number of nodes accessed during conversion. Bandwidth, which corresponds to the amount of data read and transferred, is another important resource to optimize during conversions. In this paper, we initiate the study on the fundamental limits on conversion bandwidth and present constructions for conversion-bandwidth optimal convertible codes. First, we model the code conversion problem using information flow graphs with variable capacity edges. Second, focusing on MDS codes and an important subclass of convertible codes, we derive a lower bound on conversion bandwidth. The derived bound shows that conversion bandwidth can be significantly reduced even in regimes where access cost of conversion cannot be reduced. Third, we present an explicit construction for MDS convertible codes which match this lower bound and are thus conversion-bandwidth optimal.
Algorithms for the Line-Constrained Disk Coverage and Related Problems.

Given a set P of n points and a set S of m weighted disks in the plane, the disk coverage problem asks for a subset of disks of minimum total weight that cover all points of P. The problem is NP-hard. In this paper, we consider a line-constrained version in which all disks are centered on a line L (while points of P can be anywhere in the plane). We present an \(O((m+n)\log (m+n)+\kappa \log m)\) time algorithm for the problem, where \(\kappa \) is the number of pairs of disks that intersect. For the unit-disk case where all disks have the same radius, the running time can be reduced to \(O((n+m)\log (m+n))\). In addition, we solve in \(O((m+n)\log (m+n))\) time the \(L_{\infty }\) and \(L_1\) cases of the problem, in which the disks are squares and diamonds, respectively. Using our techniques, we further solve two other geometric coverage problems. Given in the plane a set P of n points and a set S of n weighted half-planes, we solve in \(O(n^4\log n)\) time the problem of finding a subset of half-planes to cover P so that their total weight is minimized. This improves the previous best algorithm of \(O(n^5)\) time by almost a linear factor. If all half-planes are lower ones, our algorithm runs in \(O(n^2\log n)\) time, which improves the previous best algorithm of \(O(n^4)\) time by almost a quadratic factor.
Accurate prediction and measurement of vibronic branching ratios for laser cooling linear polyatomic molecules.

We report a generally applicable computational and experimental approach to determine vibronic branching ratios in linear polyatomic molecules to the 10−5 level, including for nominally symmetry-forbidden transitions. These methods are demonstrated in CaOH and YbOH, showing approximately two orders of magnitude improved sensitivity compared with the previous state of the art. Knowledge of branching ratios at this level is needed for the successful deep laser cooling of a broad range of molecular species.
Limit points of Nathanson's Lambda sequences

We consider the set \(A_{n}=\displaystyle \cup _{j=0}^{\infty }\{\varepsilon _{j}(n)\cdot n^j:\varepsilon _{j}(n)\in \{0,\pm 1,\pm 2,\ldots ,\pm \lfloor {{n}/{2}}\rfloor \}\} \). Let \(\mathscr {S}_{\mathscr {A}}= \bigcup _{a \in \mathscr {A} } A_{a}\) where \(\mathscr {A}\subseteq \mathbb {N}\). We denote by \(\lambda _{\mathscr {A}}(h)\) the smallest positive integer that can be represented as a sum of h, and no less than h, elements in \(\mathscr {S}_{\mathscr {A}}\). Nathanson studied the properties of the \(\lambda _\mathscr {A}(h)\)-sequence and posed the problem of finding the values of \(\lambda _\mathscr {A}(h)\). When \(\mathscr {A}=\{2,i\}\), we represent \(\lambda _{\mathscr {A}}(h)\) by \(\lambda _{2,i}(h)\). Only the values \(\lambda _{2,3}(1)=1\), \(\lambda _{2,3}(2)=5\), \(\lambda _{2,3}(3)=21\) and \(\lambda _{2,3}(4)=150\) are known. In this paper, we extend this result. For odd \(i>1\) and \(h\in \{1,2,3\}\), we find an extensive set of values for \(\lambda _{2,i}(h)\). Furthermore, for fixed \(h\in \{1,2,3\}\), we find certain values of \(\lambda _{2,i}(h)\) that occur infinitely many times as i runs over the odd integers bigger than 1. We call these numbers the limit points of Nathanson’s lambda sequences.
Statistical Learning for Accurate and Interpretable Battery Lifetime Prediction

Data-driven methods for battery lifetime prediction are attracting increasing attention for applications in which the degradation mechanisms are poorly understood and suitable training sets are available. However, while advanced machine learning and deep learning methods promise high performance with minimal data preprocessing, simpler linear models with engineered features often achieve comparable performance, especially for small training sets, while also providing physical and statistical interpretability. In this work, we use a previously published dataset to develop simple, accurate, and interpretable data-driven models for battery lifetime prediction. We first present the "capacity matrix" concept as a compact representation of battery electrochemical cycling data, along with a series of feature representations. We then create a number of univariate and multivariate models, many of which achieve comparable performance to the highest-performing models previously published for this dataset; thus, our work can serve as a comprehensive benchmarking study for this dataset. These models also provide insights into the degradation of these cells. Our approaches can be used both to quickly train models for a new battery cycling dataset and to benchmark the performance of more advanced machine learning methods.
Convergence of graph Laplacian with kNN self-tuned kernels

Kernelized Gram matrix $W$ constructed from data points $\{x_i\}_{i=1}^N$ as $W_{ij}= k_0( \frac{ \| x_i - x_j \|^2} {\sigma^2} )$ is widely used in graph-based geometric data analysis and unsupervised learning. An important question is how to choose the kernel bandwidth $\sigma$, and a common practice called self-tuned kernel adaptively sets a $\sigma_i$ at each point $x_i$ by the $k$-nearest neighbor (kNN) distance. When $x_i$'s are sampled from a $d$-dimensional manifold embedded in a possibly high-dimensional space, unlike with fixed-bandwidth kernels, theoretical results of graph Laplacian convergence with self-tuned kernels have been incomplete. This paper proves the convergence of graph Laplacian operator $L_N$ to manifold (weighted-)Laplacian for a new family of kNN self-tuned kernels $W^{(\alpha)}_{ij} = k_0( \frac{ \| x_i - x_j \|^2}{ \epsilon \hat{\rho}(x_i) \hat{\rho}(x_j)})/\hat{\rho}(x_i)^\alpha \hat{\rho}(x_j)^\alpha$, where $\hat{\rho}$ is the estimated bandwidth function {by kNN}, and the limiting operator is also parametrized by $\alpha$. When $\alpha = 1$, the limiting operator is the weighted manifold Laplacian $\Delta_p$. Specifically, we prove the point-wise convergence of $L_N f $ and convergence of the graph Dirichlet form with rates. Our analysis is based on first establishing a $C^0$ consistency for $\hat{\rho}$ which bounds the relative estimation error $|\hat{\rho} - \bar{\rho}|/\bar{\rho}$ uniformly with high probability, where $\bar{\rho} = p^{-1/d}$, and $p$ is the data density function. Our theoretical results reveal the advantage of self-tuned kernel over fixed-bandwidth kernel via smaller variance error in low-density regions. In the algorithm, no prior knowledge of $d$ or data density is needed. The theoretical results are supported by numerical experiments on simulated data and hand-written digit image data.
Hyperbolic Equivariants of Rational Maps

Let $K$ denote either $\mathbb{R}$ or $\mathbb{C}$. In this article, we introduce two new equivariants associated to a rational map $f\in K(z)$. These objects naturally live on a real hyperbolic space, and carry information about the action of $f$ on $\mathbb{P}^1(K)$. When $K=\mathbb{C}$ we relate the asymptotic behavior of these equivariants to the conformal barycenter of the measure of maximal entropy. We also give a complete description of these objects for rational maps of degree $d=1$. The constructions in this article are based on work of Rumely in the context of rational maps over non-Archimedean fields; similarities between the two theories are highlighted throughout the article.
Using Machine Learning and Data Mining to Leverage Community Knowledge for the Engineering of Stable Metal-Organic Frameworks

Although the tailored metal active sites and porous architectures of MOFs hold great promise for engineering challenges ranging from gas separations to catalysis, a lack of understanding of how to improve their stability limits their use in practice. To overcome this limitation, we extract thousands of published reports of the key aspects of MOF stability necessary for their practical application: the ability to withstand high temperatures without degrading and the capacity to be activated by removal of solvent molecules. From nearly 4000 manuscripts, we use natural language processing and image analysis to obtain over 2000 solvent-removal stability measures and 3000 thermal degradation temperatures. We analyze the relationships between stability properties and the chemical and geometric structures in this set to identify limits of prior heuristics derived from smaller sets of MOFs. By training predictive machine learning (ML, i.e., Gaussian process and artificial neural network) models to encode the structure-property relationships with graph- and pore-structure-based representations, we are able to make predictions of stability orders of magnitude faster than conventional physics-based modeling or experiment. Interpretation of important features in ML models provides insights that we use to identify strategies to engineer increased stability into typically unstable 3d-transition-metal-containing MOFs that are frequently targeted for catalytic applications. We expect our approach to accelerate the time to discovery of stable, practical MOF materials for a wide range of applications.
Airflow-Inertial Odometry for Resilient State Estimation on Multirotors

We present a dead reckoning strategy for increased resilience to position estimation failures on multirotors, using only data from a low-cost IMU and novel, bio-inspired airflow sensors. The goal is challenging, since low-cost IMUs are subject to large noise and drift, while 3D airflow sensing is made difficult by the interference caused by the propellers and by the wind. Our approach relies on a deep-learning strategy to interpret the measurements of the bio-inspired sensors, a map of the wind speed to compensate for position-dependent wind, and a filter to fuse the information and generate a pose and velocity estimate. Our results show that the approach reduces the drift with respect to IMU-only dead reckoning by up to an order of magnitude over 30 seconds after a position sensor failure in non-windy environments, and it can compensate for the challenging effects of turbulent, and spatially varying wind.
A common methodological phylogenomics framework for intra-patient heteroplasmies to infer SARS-CoV-2 sublineages and tumor clones

Background All diseases containing genetic material undergo genetic evolution and give rise to heterogeneity including cancer and infection. Although these illnesses are biologically very different, the ability for phylogenetic retrodiction based on the genomic reads is common between them and thus tree-based principles and assumptions are shared. Just as the different frequencies of tumor genomic variants presupposes the existence of multiple tumor clones and provides a handle to computationally infer them, we postulate that the different variant frequencies in viral reads offers the means to infer multiple co-infecting sublineages. Results We present a common methodological framework to infer the phylogenomics from genomic data, be it reads of SARS-CoV-2 of multiple COVID-19 patients or bulk DNAseq of the tumor of a cancer patient. We describe the Concerti computational framework for inferring phylogenies in each of the two scenarios.To demonstrate the accuracy of the method, we reproduce some known results in both scenarios. We also make some additional discoveries. Conclusions Concerti successfully extracts and integrates information from multi-point samples, enabling the discovery of clinically plausible phylogenetic trees that capture the heterogeneity known to exist both spatially and temporally. These models can have direct therapeutic implications by highlighting "birth" of clones that may harbor resistance mechanisms to treatment, "death" of subclones with drug targets, and acquisition of functionally pertinent mutations in clones that may have seemed clinically irrelevant. Specifically in this paper we uncover new potential parallel mutations in the evolution of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. In the context of cancer, we identify new clones harboring resistant mutations to therapy.
Rail Geometry and Euler Angles

In railroad vehicle dynamics, Euler angles are often used to describe the track geometry (track centerline and rail space curves). The tangent and curvature vectors as well as local geometric properties such as the curvature and torsion can be expressed in terms of Euler angles. Some of the local geometric properties and Euler angles can be related to measured parameters that are often used to define the track geometry. The Euler angles employed, however, define a coordinate system that may differ from the Frenet frame used in the classical differential geometry. The relationship between the track frame used in railroad vehicle dynamics and the Frenet frame used in the theory of curves is developed in this paper and is used to shed light on some of the formulas and identities used in the geometric description in railroad vehicle dynamics. The conditions under which the two frames (track and Frenet) become equivalent are presented and used to obtain expressions for the curvature and torsion in terms of Euler angles and their derivatives with respect to the arc length.
Supracellular organization confers directionality and mechanical potency to migrating pairs of cardiopharyngeal progenitor cells.

Physiological and pathological morphogenetic events involve a wide array of collective movements, suggesting that multicellular arrangements confer biochemical and biomechanical properties contributing to tissue scale organization. The Ciona cardiopharyngeal progenitors provide the simplest model of collective cell migration, with cohesive bilateral cell pairs polarized along the leader-trailer migration path while moving between the ventral epidermis and trunk endoderm. We use the Cellular Potts Model to computationally probe the distributions of forces consistent with shapes and collective polarity of migrating cell pairs. Combining computational modeling, confocal microscopy, and molecular perturbations, we identify cardiopharyngeal progenitors as the simplest cell collective maintaining supracellular polarity with differential distributions of protrusive forces, cell-matrix adhesion, and myosin-based retraction forces along the leader-trailer axis. 4D simulations and experimental observations suggest that cell-cell communication helps establish a hierarchy to align collective polarity with the direction of migration, as observed with three or more cells in silico and in vivo. Our approach reveals emerging properties of the migrating collective: cell pairs are more persistent, migrating longer distances, and presumably with higher accuracy. Simulations suggest that cell pairs can overcome mechanical resistance of the trunk endoderm more effectively when they are polarized collectively. We propose that polarized supracellular organization of cardiopharyngeal progenitors confers emergent physical properties that determine mechanical interactions with their environment during morphogenesis.
Use of Orthogonal Decomposition of Data-Based Excitation Processes for Nonstationary Response of Nonlinear Systems

The topic of stochastic response of dynamic systems has been an area of considerable interest for some time in the analysis of risk and structural reliability. A substantial reference list of work in this area can be found in au][4]. The authors, in previous work au][3, 6], have developed a method which can analyze the response of linear multi-degree-of-freedom systems to completely general data-based nonstationary excitations in a highly efficient and analytical form. This was demonstrated with successful application to a model structure subjected to an ensemble of ground-motion recordings from the 1994 Northridge (California) Earthquake. The authors have now extended this work to nonlinear system response by using equivalent hnearization techniques au][7]. This paper summarizes the extension to the analysis of nonhnear systems, and explores the range of application of the technique.
Impaired myogenic responses of the Af-Art contributes to chronic kidney disease in Milan Normotensive rats

We have recently reported that the development of glomerular injury, proteinuria and chronic kidney disease (CKD) in Dahl Salt Sensitive and Fawn Hooded Hypertensive rats are associated with an imp...
Quantum analysis of states near a separatrix

Quantum modifications of classical chaos have been of great interest in recent years. This interest ls due in part to a basic contradiction. In certain classical systems the existence of chaos, as defined, for example, by the lack of existence of isolating integrals, can be proven. In contrast, such chaos does not exist in bounded quantum systems, in which quastpertodictty is easily shown. This may not mean that quantum systems are not chaotic, but only that the correct definition of quantum chaos is not yet known. Indeed, the search for the correct definition of quantum chaos is the thrust of much of recent research. As examples we mention the work on the relationship of the sensitivity t,2 and distribution of eigenvalues to nonseparabiltty 3-5. Along these lines, the idea ts that a quantum analysis of classical ly chaotic systems should reveal the nature of quantum chaos. It is furthermore expected that such a connection wil l most likely be revealed tn the study of states of large quantum number, i.e., In the semiclassical limit. The semlclasslcal limit by itself has also been an area of much recent study. Examples of such work include that of Berry concerning the relation of the quantum adiabatic phase 6 to the previously known classical adiabatic phase 7 and the consequence of tunneling 8 on the quantum adiabatic theorem 9,10. We note also the burgeoning literature on wavepacket evolution and coherent states I !-!6. Finally, we mention the use of adiabatic switching coupled with classical calculations to obtain quantum spectra 17, i 8. In classical systems, chaos f irst appears near separatrtces of integrable systems as they are perturbed. In part this is due to the exponential separation of ne~'-separatrtx orbits. Given the previous introduction, we are, therefore, motivated to study the quantum mechanics of states near a separatrix in the semiclassical limit. Our result is that quantum mechanics drastically modifies the system even in the limit of very large quantum number, N ~10 7. The reason is that the classical excitation frequency, the orbit frequency, vanishes for orbits with energy E equal to the separatrtx energy E x. In contrast, the quantum excitation frequency, the frequency separation
Metabolic consequences of dietary 2,3-dichloro-1,4-naphthoquinone (CNQ) in the rat. Alteration in anti-oxidant enzyme activities.

Abstract Dietary exposure of rats to a high concentration of 2,3-dichloro-1,4-naphthoquinone (CNQ) (2 g/kg diet) for 60 days altered cardiac mitochondrial function and activities of anti-oxidant enzymes in hepatic and cardiac tissue. CNQ moderately depressed the cardiac mitochondrial respiratory control ratio (RCR) to 85% of control; this was exacerbated to 60% of control in animals fed α-tocopheroldeficient diets. Dietary CNQ increased hepatic Superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase activities and increased cardiac SOD activity, but depressed cardiac glutathione reductase and hepatic glutathione peroxidase activities. These effects are consistent with previous in vitro findings that CNQ induces oxidative stress. No significant differences in heart weight or body weight were observed in rats fed CNQ as compared to untreated controls.
NEW DEVELOPMENTS IN MATERIALS FOR MOLTEN-SALT REACTORS.

Operating experience with the Molten-Salt Reactor Experiment (MSRE) has demonstrated the excellent compatibility of the graphite-Hastelloy-N-fluoride salt system at 650°C. Several improvements in m...
Exploring GnuGo's evaluation function with a SVM

While computers have defeated the best human players in many classic board games, progress in Go remains elusive. The large branching factor in the game makes traditional adversarial search intractable while the complex interaction of stones makes it difficult to assign a reliable evaluation function. This is why most existing programs rely on hand-tuned heuristics and pattern matching techniques. Yet none of these solutions perform better than an amateur player. Our work introduces a composite approach, aiming to integrate the strengths of the proved heuristic algorithms, the AI-based learning techniques, and the knowledge derived from expert games. Specifically, this paper presents an application of the Support Vector Machine (SVM) for training the GnuGo evaluation function.
Spatial Variations in Channel Morphology at Segment and Reach Scales, Middle Fork John Day River, Northeastern Oregon

Like many montane rivers in the western U. S., the Middle Fork of the John Day River is characterized by alternating narrowand wide-valley segments. Although the river has a low gradient (generally < 0.01) alluvial channel, changes in valley width exert a clear infl uence on channel morphology. A spatial hierarchical model of channel morphology was applied to the Middle Fork to understand reach-level and segment-level patterns of morphologic variation. Channel unit data for a 55-km long section of the mainstem channel and detailed profi les at segment transitions where the valley width widens or narrows sharply were used in the analysis. Wide-valley segments, where not signifi cantly modifi ed by human activities, have higher sinuosity, 80% more pool area, and pools up to 40% deeper, on average, than narrow-valley segments. Going downstream from a wide-valley segment to a narrow-valley segment, channel morphology changes relatively abruptly from pool-riffl e morphology, coarse pebble bed-material, and a gradient of less than 0.005, to plane bed morphology, cobble bed material, and a gradient of 0.005 to 0.010. Within one wide-valley segment, distinct reaches were delineated based on channel pattern and valley position. The more sinuous mid-valley reaches have several times more pool area, and pools more than 25% deeper, than the less sinuous valley-edge reaches. Segment-level differences appear to be related primarily to long term geologic controls, but these differences have been modifi ed by human impacts. Observed reach-level differences are related to both geomorphic controls and human impacts. In this montane setting, the hierarchical spatial model is a useful way of analyzing and understanding spatial patterns of channel morphology and aquatic habitat.
A fuel economic model predictive control strategy for a group of connected vehicles in urban roads

The advancements in communication, sensing, and computing has enabled the development of connected vehicle systems where improved decision and control strategies are enabled with the aid of information exchange within the vehicular system. In this paper, we consider a connected vehicle system and develop fuel economic control strategies for a group of vehicles in congested urban road conditions. We exploit the Signal Phase and Timing (SPAT) information from the traffic lights and utilize model predictive control with a modified cost to reduce stopping at red lights and improve the fuel economy for a group of vehicles. The simulation results indicate the improvement in group performance for our proposed method.
Low Temperature Combustion Using Nitrogen Enrichment to Mitigate NOx From Large Bore Natural Gas Fueled Engines

Low Temperature Combustion (LTC) is identified as one of the pathways to meet the mandatory ultra low NOx emissions levels set by regulatory agencies. This phenomenon can be realized by utilizing various advanced combustion control strategies. The present work discusses nitrogen enrichment using an Air Separation Membrane (ASM) as a better alternative to the mature Exhaust Gas Re-circulation (EGR) technique currently in use. A 70% NOx reduction was realized with a moderate 2% nitrogen enrichment while maintaining power density and simultaneously improving Fuel Conversion Efficiency (FCE). The maximum acceptable Nitrogen Enriched Air (NEA) in a single cylinder spark ignited natural gas engine was investigated in this paper. Any enrichment beyond this level degraded engine performance both in terms of power density and FCE, and unburned hydrocarbon (UHC) emissions. The effect of ignition timing was also studied with and without N2 enrichment. Finally, lean burn versus stoichiometric operation utilizing NEA was compared. Analysis showed that lean burn operation along with NEA is one of the effective pathways for realizing better FCE and lower NOx emissions.Copyright © 2008 by UChicago Argonne LLC, Operator of Argonne National Laboratory
Nurturing hostile environments: the problem of school violence.

Although school violence directly affects the overall health and well-being of children and adolescents, clear priorities have not been identified for dealing with the problem. Horrific events such as the 1999 Columbine High School shooting in Littleton, Colo, and recent shootings at Virginia Tech have focused the nation on high-profile, media-worthy school violence to the detriment of addressing everyday forms of violence in schools. Policies that have been developed to reduce school violence have mixed reviews. To raise the consciousness of healthcare professionals, educators, legislators, and the general public, the most salient issues are discussed. Language: en
Alcohol‐free diphenyl oxide disulfonate middle‐phase microemulsion systems

Diphenyl oxide disulfonate (DPDS) surfactants were successfully used to formulate Winsor Type III middlephase microemulsion systems with tetrachloroethylene (PCE) and decane. To our knowledge this is the first time that monochain DPDS surfactant phenyloxide monohexadecyl disulfonate surfactant (C16MADS) and commercially available DOWFAX 8390 were found to form middle-phase microemulsion systems with oils. Hydrophobic dioctyl sodium sulfosuccinate (Aerosol OT) was also used as a cosurfactant to lower the systems' hydropholic-liphophilic balance. Two organic acids (hydrophobic octanoic acid and hydrophilic l-tartaric acid) were used in place of the alcohol to formulate middle-phase microemulsion. The middle-phase microemulsion systems dramatically increased organic solubility when compared to micellar DPDS surfactant systems. Winsor Type I systems near the Type I–III boundary produced “super” solubilization for hydrophobic oils. Findings from this study enable us to improve DPDS solubilization enhancement of hydrophobic compounds.
Domain Analysis of Protein P30 in Mycoplasma pneumoniae Cytadherence and Gliding Motility

The cell wall-less prokaryote Mycoplasma pneumoniae causes bronchitis and atypical pneumonia in humans. Mycoplasma attachment and gliding motility are required for colonization of the respiratory epithelium and are mediated largely by a differentiated terminal organelle. P30 is a membrane protein at the distal end of the terminal organelle and is required for cytadherence and gliding motility, but little is known about the functional role of its specific domains. In the current study, domain deletion and substitution derivatives of P30 were engineered and introduced into a P30 null mutant by transposon delivery to assess their ability to rescue P30 function. Domain deletions involving the extracellular region of P30 severely impacted protein stability and adherence and gliding function, as well as the capacity to stabilize terminal organelle protein P65. Amino acid substitutions in the transmembrane domain revealed specific residues uniquely required for P30 stability and function, perhaps to establish correct topography in the membrane for effective alignment with binding partners. Deletions within the predicted cytoplasmic domain did not affect P30 localization or its capacity to stabilize P65 but markedly impaired gliding motility and cytadherence. The larger of two cytoplasmic domain deletions also appeared to remove the P30 signal peptide processing site, suggesting a larger leader peptide than expected. We propose that the P30 cytoplasmic domain may be required to link P30 to the terminal organelle core, to enable the P30 extracellular domain to achieve a functional conformation, or perhaps both.
Semiquantitative analysis of biological materials by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry

Abstract Semiquantitative analysis with accuracy of ±30 to 50% is a valuable tool for rapid screening of samples prior to quantitative determination of trace metals. In this study semiquantitative analysis software available with commercial inductively coupled plasma–mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) instrumentation is applied for rapid multielemental analysis, and the accuracy and precision of this semiquantitative analysis approach is evaluated with biological certified reference materials. Samples were prepared by high-pressure, high-temperature nitric acid vapor-phase digestion. For most elements the measured semiquantitative results are in the range of the certified values. With appropriate analyte solution dilution, the measured concentrations of the major elements (e.g., Ca) also agree with certified values. The accuracy is within ±10% for 28 element determinations that include 16 individual elements (Ag, As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Mo, Ni, Pb, Rb, Sb, Sr, Tl, and Zn) and ±20% for 54 element determinations that include three more elements (Mg, V, and U) in eight certified reference materials including water. The method precision is 11 ± 11% (relative standard deviation, n = 65).
Plasmodium yoelii: efficient in vitro invasion and complete development of sporozoites in mouse hepatic cell lines.

Abstract Mota, M. M. and Rodriguez, A. 2000. Plasmodium yoelii: Efficient in vitro invasion and complete development of sporozoites in mouse hepatic cell lines. Experimental Parasitology96, 257–259.
Community competence: A positive approach to needs assessment

A procedure was developed for assessing residents' perceptions of community functioning. A questionnaire, derived from Cottrell's work in the area of community competence and elaborated upon by community workers and researchers, was constructed and field tested in five rural communities. In a telephone interview, 433 residents were surveyed. Responses were analyzed to determine which items discriminated among the communities and to what extent they represented Cottrell's original model. Representing six of Cottrell's eight conditions of competence, 14 items were judged to discriminate among the communities (analysis of variance, F-test, maximum p = .008). A factor analysis of the 14 items revealed four factors that were labeled Democratic Participation Style, Crime, Resource Adequacy and Use, and Decision-Making Interactions. The factors are consistent with Cottrell's model and explain 35% of the variance. These findings are discussed in relation to current community research and methodological constraints.
Direct Observation of Sulfur Radicals as Reaction Media in Lithium Sulfur Batteries

Lithium sulfur (Li-S) battery has been regaining tremendous interest in recent years because of its attractive attributes such as highgravimetric energy, low cost and environmental benignity. However, it is still not conclusively known how polysulﬁde ring/chainparticipates in the whole cycling and whether the discharge and charge processes follow the same pathway. Herein, we demonstratethedirectobservationofsulfurradicalsbyusinginsituelectronparamagneticresonance(EPR)technique.Basedontheconcentrationchangesofsulfurradicalsatdifferentpotentialsandtheelectrochemicalcharacteristicsofthecell,itisrevealedthatthechemicalandelectrochemical reactions in Li-S cell are driving each other to proceed through sulfur radicals, leading to two completely differentreaction pathways during discharge and charge. The proposed radical mechanism may provide new perspectives to investigate theinteractions between sulfur species and the electrolyte, inspiring novel strategies to develop Li-S battery technology.© 2015 The Electrochemical Society. [DOI: 10.1149/2.0851503jes] All rights reserved.Manuscript submitted November 17, 2014; revised manuscript received December 31, 2014. Published January 9, 2015.
A study of the effectiveness of mercurial diuretics in treatment of cardiac decompensation

Abstract This study has been conducted on 62 decompensated cardiacs who were subjected to diuresis with four mercurial diuretics. Studies on weight loss and days required to return to dry weight revealed a small difference between meralluride, mercaptomerin, mercumatilin and merethoxylline, which was not significant, indicating that these drugs may be used interchangeably. The serum electrolytes of these patients revealed no significant difference from those of other hospital patients. Following diuresis with mercurials to dry weight, no clinically significant differences were noted in the sodium serum levels, except in the case of mercuhydrin where there was a statistically significant decrease in the serum sodium level. This was not within the pathologic range nor did it result in hyponatremia except in two cases noted in patients with far-advanced congestive failure, cor bovinum and myocardial degeneration. Two cases of medicamentosa dermatitis with thiomerin were also found which responded promptly to withdrawal of the mercurial and substitution of a non-mercurial diuretic. It is felt that the low sodium syndrome cannot be related to any one mercurial diuretic but rather to the method in which the diuretic is used in the treatment of congestive failure.
Quaternary geology of the upper sabinal River Valley, Uvalde and Bandera counties, Texas

Controlled by a local base level of downfaulted Edwards and Comanche Peak limestone, and aided by landsliding in Glen Rose marl, the Sabinal River and its tributaries have developed a large valley in the Edwards Plateau. Extensive soil-covered pediments that cut Glen Rose bedrock and Pleistocene terrace gravels are present along each side of the valley. Six alluvial deposits of late Pleistocene and Holocene age were recognized in the upper Sabinal River valley. The Holocene series is represented by three deposits. The oldest of these exhibits a Stage II calcic horizon and appears to have been deposited before ca. 5000 yr B.P. The Pleistocene deposits have a calcrete zone (calcic Stage IV and III horizon) in the upper 3-4 m. The Holocene alluviums, locally beveled by stream action, parallel the river's course and contain Archaic and younger artifacts, which in central Texas range in age from about 8000-350 yr B.P. One of the Holocene deposits (Q2) is correlated with the Georgetown and Fort Hood alluviums of the Cowhouse Creek at Fort Hood, which range in age from 11,000 yr B.P. to 5200 yr B.P., with the Wilson-Leonard terrace site in the Lampasas Cut Plain that ranges from about 11,000 to 5000 yr B.P., and with Unit E of Blum and Valastro (1989) in the Pedernales River valley, ranging from 10,550 to 7150 yr B.P. Modern climate in the valley is drought-prone, and fluctuates from semiarid to dry subhumid. Paleoclimate has ranged from much drier during the Middle Holocene to much cooler and wetter during the Late Pleistocene.
Source Seeking With Very Slow or Drifting Sensors

Slow sensors arise in many applications, including sensing chemical concentrations in tracking of contaminant plumes. Slow sensors are often the cause of poor performance and a potential cause of instability. In this paper, we design a modified extremum seeking scheme to account and exploit slow sensor dynamics. We also consider the worst case, which is sensor dynamics governed by a pure integrator. We provide stability results for several distinct variations of an extremum seeking scheme for one-dimensional optimization. Then we develop a design for source seeking in a plane using a fully actuated vehicle, prove its closed-loop convergence, and present simulation results. We use metal oxide microhotplate gas sensors as a real world example of slow sensor dynamics, model the sensor based on experimental data, and employ the identified sensor model in our source seeking simulations.
Identification of Extracellular DNase-producing Bacterial Populations on Catfish Fillets during Refrigerated Storage

Food spoilage is a major problem faced by consumers across the globe. As an enzyme that degrades DNA, DNase production on fish tissue seemed likely to aid in fish spoilage. Based on physical characteristics, bacteria producing extracellular DNase were isolated on selective media. 16S rDNA sequences were obtained identifying isolates as bacteria belonging to Aeromonas spp., Serratia spp., Shewanella spp., and Rahnella spp. Aeromonas spp. were the predominant bacteria isolated in this study; this statistically suggests that Aeromonas spp. are dominant in DNase-producing bacterial populations on catfish tissue. Results obtained in this study suggest that extracellular DNase-producing bacteria play a large role in catfish spoilage and support the need for further research on the role of Aeromonas spp. in fish spoilage. Rahnella spp. was isolated from catfish fillets in this study and identified, for the first time, as DNase producing bacteria.
Single-stage adenosine tilt testing in patients with unexplained syncope.

Introduction: We previously have shown that a 3-minute single-stage adenosine tilt test has a diagnostic yield comparable to a two-stage protocol consisting of a 30-minute drug-free tilt followed by a 15-minute isoproterenol tilt. In this study, we sought to further define the clinical utility of adenosine tilt testing in patients with unexplained syncope by prospectively evaluating test specificity and determining predictors of a positive test response. Methods and Results: The specificity of single-stage adenosine tilt testing was determined using 30 control subjects. To determine the diagnostic yield of this protocol, adenosine tilts were performed in 129 patients with unexplained syncope. The adenosine tilt test protocol had high specificity (100%) but a low overall diagnostic yield (18%). However, the yield was affected significantly by age. In patients ≤40 years of age, the tilt test was positive in 15 (41%) of 37 patients, which was significantly greater than the yield in patients between the ages of 41 and 64 years (6/41 patients [15%], P = 0.012) and those ≥65 years of age (2/41 patients [5%], P < 0.0001). Conclusion: These data support single-stage adenosine tilt testing in patients ≤40 years of age because the diagnostic yield of the test is maximal in this group and the test can be completed in ≤3 minutes. Conversely, the diagnostic yield of adenosine tilt testing in patients >40 years of age is low, suggesting that the clinical utility of this protocol is limited in these patients. (J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol, Vol. 15, pp. 1-4, June 2004)
Cell cycle correlated genes dictate the prognostic power of breast cancer gene lists

Numerous gene lists or "classifiers" have been derived from global gene expression data that assign breast cancers to good and poor prognosis groups. A remarkable feature of these molecular signatures is that they have few genes in common, prompting speculation that they may use distinct genes to measure the same pathophysiological process(es), such as proliferation. However, this supposition has not been rigorously tested. If gene-based classifiers function by measuring a minimal number of cellular processes, we hypothesized that the informative genes for these processes could be identified and the data sets could be adjusted for the predictive contributions of those genes. Such adjustment would then attenuate the predictive function of any signature measuring that same process.
Environmental Commitment among the States: Integrating Alternative Approaches to State Environmental Policy

This article examines variation in state commitment to protecting the natural environment. We contribute to theoretical and empirical research in this area in two primary ways. First, our dependent variable consists of a general measure of state commitment to the environment. Second, we develop a causal model that integrates six major explanatory approaches to state environmental policy. Our results show that states with liberal public opinion, strong environmental interest groups, liberal legislatures, and professionalized legislatures are the most committed to environmental protection. States' manufacturing interests and economic resources play a relatively minor role, and states' environmental conditions and the influence of the federal government play virtually no role in explaining variation in general state commitment to environmental protection.
Production and characterization of monoclonal antibodies against excretory-secretory products of Fasciola hepatica

Four monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) (9.49, 24.27, 46.71 and 179.57) were produced against Fasciola hepatica excretory-secretory products. Isotype analysis revealed the antibodies to be IgM, IgG3, IgG1, and IgM. In immunoblot assays, the mAbs recognized different antigenic polypeptides migrating between 29 and 180 kDa. Specificity of the mAbs was evaluated by ELISA against antigens of Fascioloides magna, Anoplocephala magna, Stichorchis subtriquetrus, Haemonchus contortus, sheep liver extract (SLE), bovine liver extract (BLE), bovine serum albumin (BSA), bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV), and Madin-Darby bovine kidney (MDBK) cells. Monoclonals 9.49 and 24.27 were specific, and reacted only with Fasciola hepatica antigens. However, mAb 46.71 cross-reacted with antigens of Fascioloides magna, A. magna, Stichorchis subtriquetrus, and H. contortus but not with SLE, BLE, BSA, BVDV or MDBK cells. Monoclonal antibody 179.57 cross-reacted with Fascioloides magna, A. magna, S. subtriquetrus, H. contortus, SLE, and BLE, but not with BSA, BVDV, or MDBK cells.
Acute Renal Failure Associated With Ioxaglate, a Low-Osmolality Radiocontrast Agent

Iodinated radiocontrast agents may cause acute renal failure, particularly in patients with preexisting renal failure, heart failure, or diabetes. The low-osmolality contrast agents cause less hypersensitivity, but substantial nephrotoxicity has not been noted. We report three high-risk patients who developed acute renal failure after one of these new agents, ioxaglate, was administered for coronary arteriography and ventriculography. The renal failure was severe: two of the patients required dialysis. We could find no previously reported cases of acute renal failure associated with ioxaglate. Despite their theoretical advantages, the low-osmolality contrast agents may cause acute renal failure in patients who are at risk and should be used with the same precautions as the conventional agents.
Radioenzymatic assay of plasma adrenaline and noradrenaline: evidence for a catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) inhibiting factor associated with essential hypertension.

During the evaluation of a modified radioenzymatic determination of plasma adrenaline and noradrenaline, it has been found that there exists a highly significant (p < 0.001) negative correlation between the amount of radioactivity incorporated in the internal standard added to plasma and the period during which the plasma had been stored at −25°C, but only in plasma from patients with essential hypertension. Plasma from normotensive persons exhibits a complete lack of correlation between these factors. The consequences of the hypertension-associated COMT-inhibiting factor for the assays' specifications are discussed and data are presented for comparison with a recently described uremia-associated COMT-inhibitor (Demassieux et al, Clin Chim Acta 115, 377–391; 1981).