cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Monoamine transmitter release induced by tetrahydro-β-carboline perfused in hippocampus of the unrestrained rat

Guide cannulae for unilateral push-pull perfusion were implanted stereotaxically to rest just dorsal to the hippocampus of the rat. On recovery, a tissue site in the hippocampus was double-labelled with a 1.0 microliter volume of [14C]-5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) and [3H]-norepinephrine (NE). Then the site was perfused by means of push-pull cannulae at a rate of 25 microliters/min with an osmotically-balanced CSF. When tetrahydro-beta-carboline (THBC) was added to the CSF perfusate in a concentration of 0.5-5.0 micrograms/125 microliters, the pattern of efflux of both of the monoamines exhibited an increase in release which was either immediate or delayed depending on the concentration and site of the hippocampal perfusion. Further, if the interval of a sequence of repeated perfusions was less than one day, the efflux of either [3H]-NE or [14C]-5-HT was attenuated. The addition of chlordiazepoxide to the CSF perfusate in a dose of 1.6 microgram/1.0 microliter did not affect the resting efflux of either of the monoamines, but did tend to reduce the THBC-induced release. A morphological "mapping" showed that the anatomical sites of perfusion in the hippocampus were homologous to those within which THBC injected locally induces anxiety-like behavior in the rat. Thus, it is envisaged that this beta-carboline serves to alter the behavior of the animal by a differential shift in the synaptic activity of monoamines within neurons of this limbic system structure which is implicated in emotional responses.
Dimethyl disulfide: an attractant pheromone in hamster vaginal secretion.

Dimethyl disulfide, isolated from estrous hamster vaginal secretion and identified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, is an attractant for male hamsters.
A variant Klinefelter syndrome patient with an XXY/XX/XY karyotype studied by GTG-banding and fluorescence in situ hybridization.

Klinefelter syndrome is the first human sex chromosomal abnormality to be reported. The majority of Klinefelter syndrome patients have the XXY karyotype. Approximately 15% of Klinefelter patients, however, are mosaics with variable phenotypes. Among the variant Klinefelter genotypes are such karyotypes as XY/XXY and XX/XXY. The variation in phenotypes most likely depends on the number of abnormal cells and their location in body tissues. In this paper we report the case of a 42-year-old patient with Klinefelter syndrome and a rare variant mosaic XXY/XX karyotype initially identified by GTG-banding. This was confirmed by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) using a dual-color X/Y probe. The patient presented with erectile dysfunction and few other physical findings. Thus, this case illustrates a rare variant of Klinefelter syndrome with a relatively mild phenotype. It also illustrates the utility of FISH as an adjunct to conventional cytogenetics in assessing the chromosome copy number in each cell line of a mosaic. In our case, FISH also detected the presence of a small population of cells with the XY karyotype not previously detected in the initial 30-cell GTG-banding analysis. Thus, through a combination of GTG-banding and FISH, the patient was determined to be an XXY/XX/XY mosaic. Given that most individuals with Klinefelter syndrome are infertile, and that these individuals may wish to reproduce with the aid of modern reproductive technology, such as testicular fine needle aspiration and intracytoplasmic sperm injection, it is important that accurate estimation of the frequency of abnormal cells be obtained for accurate risk estimation and genetic counseling, as recent studies in patients with mosaic Klinefelter syndrome revealed that germ cells with sex chromosomal abnormalities were nevertheless capable of completing meiosis.
Computation vs knowledge in materials innovation

The title above reflects a statement by David McCullough, who said, ”Information is a wonderful thing, but it is not knowledge. You wouldn’t be educated if you managed to memorize the entire encyclopedia. You would be weird” [1]. Paralleling this theme, the theoretical physicist, Volker Heine, once said, ”How often have I read a paper about a piece of computational physics which finishes with the words ’and we obtain good agreement with experiment.’ If you know the answer from experiment, I want to cry, why are you wasting so much time calculating it?” Why indeed?
Hydrodynamic Investigations of a Dielectrophoretically Trapped and Agitated Microparticle

Understanding the fluid dynamics of a particle in suspension is important for a complete investigation of many hydrodynamic phenomena, including microfluidic models. Dielectrophoresis (DEP) is a technique that can translate and trap particles through induced polarization when in the presence of non-uniform electric fields. Here, DEP has been used to capture and suspend a single 10.1 μm diameter spherical particle in a microfluidic channel. Procedures and results for controlled, oscillatory dielectrophoretic agitation of the suspended particle are shown. Hydrodynamic investigations are discussed including the incorporation of micron-resolution particle image velocimetry (μPIV).Copyright © 2009 by ASME
Model of a plausible learning scheme for CA3 Hippocampus

There is ample evidence that mammalian Hippocampus, defined as ammon's horn sectors 1 through 4, can learn. In particular, sector CA3 is presumed able to learn to produce a wide range of appropriate output patterns in response to extrinsic inputs arriving over the mossy fiber, temporo-ammonic, septo-hippocampal, and commissural systems. The neuroanatomy and neurophysiology of CA3 have been studied extensively, but the information conveyed by its signals and the way its circuit actions represent decisionary and memory functions remain elusive. Several roles have been posited for the Hippocampus in the guidance of animal behavior, but they are not inter-related in any clear way, and seem separated by several levels of abstraction from the circuit actions which actually embody decisionary and memory functions. We present a plastic circuit model of the CA3 sector and discuss its computer simulation as a caricature of developmental and neurophysiological processes. In particular, we concentrate on plausible ways in which excitatory and inhibitory interneurons can learn to properly influence articulate pyramidal cell output patterns under the guidance of only diffuse positive or negative reinforcement. Statistical learning in interneuronal-to-pyramidal synapses is posited to occur in one cell cluster after another until the overall circuit matures. A kind of intra-pyramidal Markovian learning is also posited and simulated, with quite remarkable results. A list of critical assumptions each of which is testable in principle is given, so the model can be thoroughly tested. The effect of each assumption is documented by computer simulation data.
Finite Element Modeling Applied to Nuclear Fuel Pellet Fabrication

Particulate material consolidation is used for fabrication of conventional nuclear fuel pellets. In this instance, enriched UO2 powder blended with possible additives and lubricants is fed into a die cavity, uniaxial compacted to green condition using opposing motion punches, and subsequently sintered to near theoretical density. The rate of green pellet fabrication is very high with hundreds of pellets per minute compacted using multi-cavity die pressing. For predictable and desired in-reactor fissile performance, the quality of fabricated fuel pellets must be extremely high with effectively 0-defects desired. Therefore, thorough understanding of the powder compaction process is required to achieve high quality, 0-defect green UO2 pellets.To facilitate process understanding, process development, and aide the processing into pellet of new fissile materials, finite element modeling has been applied to the closed die compaction of UO2 powders. Specifically, the Drucker-Prager Cap model for pressure dependent materials has been applied to model closed die compaction of UO2 powder and die ejection of the green pellet. [1] The model developed was calibrated using available data for a well studied ceramic particulate material such as Al2O3. [2] Using this model, the affect of materials properties on the resultant stress and density distribution of the green pellet were analyzed and results are presented. Additionally, in an attempt to better understand green pellet flaw generation, UO2 powder compaction and green pellet die ejection have been modeled with various anomalies (voids, foreign material, etc.) contained in the loose powder. Affects of these anomalies on green pellet flaws is also presented.Copyright © 2012 by ASME
On the Path to Becoming “Highly Qualified”: New Teachers Talk about the Relevancy of Social Foundations

Educational policy debates around the definitions of, and prescriptions for, the development of qualified teachers have long ignored the role that social foundations can play in equipping new teachers for their roles in urban classrooms (Butin, 2005a; 2005b; Cochran-Smith, 2004; Sirotnik, 1990). This article examines the voices of a set of urban teachers who have used their social foundations course to “think through” the urban educational terrain. Findings from these iterations indicate three themes for how new teachers articulate the relevancy of social foundations. Both prospective and practicing new teachers argue that social foundations not only informs their thinking about the work of teaching and their understandings of the context of that work in urban schools, but it facilitates decision making around issues of practice. The most important finding is that teachers say it is social foundations coursework that helps them to place themselves within current debates about what defines a “highly qualif...
Health-Related Quality of Life and Behaviors Risky to Health among Adults Aged 18–24 Years in Secondary or Higher Education—United States, 2003–2005

Abstract Purpose To identify the demographic characteristics and behaviors risky to health contributing to health-related quality of life (HRQOL), defined as the perceived physical or mental health over time. Methods Information on students aged 18–24 years from the aggregated Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System survey (BRFSS) 2003, 2004, and 2005 data for the 50 states and District of Columbia was studied. Selected HRQOL measures, health care access, behaviors risky to health (i.e., leisure-time physical activity or exercise, cigarette smoking, binge drinking, and indicators of risky sex behaviors), and selected health conditions were analyzed. Results Overall, students aged 18–24 years reported more mentally unhealthy days than physically unhealthy days. Compared with students in secondary education, younger graduate students reported better mental health, self-rated health, and fewer behaviors risky to health. Regardless of educational level, reported physically or mentally unhealthy days differed by selected demographic characteristics, health care access, behaviors risky to health, and health conditions. Conclusions Behaviors risky to health and their associations with mental health should be recognized and addressed in any health prevention or intervention program for student populations. Public health professionals should promote evidence-based health promotion programs to prevent young adults from initiating risky behaviors, continue to promote risk-reduction and cessation skills to those engaged in these behaviors, and incorporate mental health promotion into risk-reduction intervention programs.
Propagation Delays Across Cardiac Gap Junctions and their Reflection in Extracellular Potentials: A Simulation Study

Propagation Delays and Extracellular Potentials. There is increasing evidence that the complex microscopic structure of the myocardium (distribution of cell-to-cell connections) plays an important role in determining propagation of excitation in cardiac muscle. To study this phenomenon, extracellular potentials must be measured with microscopic spatial resolution in cardiac tissue. In this article, the relationships between propagation delays across cardiac gap junctions and extracellular potential waveforms are analyzed using a one-dimensional model of a propagating action potential, for different degrees of cellular coupling. The central question addressed by this study is whether propagation discontinuities at the cellular level can be detected by microscopic resolution extracellular potential measurements, and whether the discrete junctional propagation delay can be measured by extracellular electrodes. Results demonstrate that the discontinuous nature of propagation at the cellular level is reflected as nonuniformities in the local (microscopic) conduction velocity measured by extracellular electrodes with microscopic resolution (interelectrode distance of 50 μm); the degree of nonuniformities in the microscopic velocity is amplified as a result of decreased cellular coupling. These observations are in agreement with recent experimental findings. Propagation time between the middle regions of adjacent cells can be estimated accurately from extracellular potentials at these sites. In contrast, two extracellular electrodes positioned at opposite ends of the gap junction (electrode spacing of 5 μm) cannot detect or measure the propagation delay across the junction. This limitation results from the fact that extracellular potentials do not reflect only the localized underlying electrical sources on such a microscopic scale. As cells become less coupled, irregularities appear in the unipolar extracellular potential waveforms. The simulations relate these irregularities to depolarization of individual cells in the fiber. Under the condition of reduced cellular coupling, the depolarization events of neighboring cells are sufficiently separated in time to appear as separate events in the extracellular waveforms.
Locally finite varieties

In this paper we present a new and useful criterion for a variety to be locally finite. Many examples are given to justify the effectiveness of the criterion.
Development and treatment of astigmatism-related amblyopia.

Blur induced by uncorrected astigmatism during early development can result in amblyopia, as evidenced by reduced best-corrected vision relative to normal, in measures of grating acuity, vernier acuity, contrast sensitivity across a range of spatial frequencies, recognition acuity, and stereoacuity. In addition, uncorrected astigmatism during early development can result in meridional amblyopia (MA), or best-corrected visual deficits that are greater for, or are present only for, specific stimulus orientations. Astigmatism-related amblyopia can be successfully treated with optical correction in children as old as school age, but the amblyopia may not be completely eliminated with optical treatment alone, and the age at which optical treatment is most effective has yet to be determined. Future research on determining the period of susceptibility of the visual system to negative effects of uncorrected astigmatism and exploration of alternative or complimentary treatment methods, in addition to optical correction, are warranted.
Contour integration in peripheral vision reduces gradually with eccentricity.

Abstract Hess and Dakin [Nature 390 (1997) 602; Vision Res. 39 (1999) 947] reported that normally-sighted subjects using peripheral vision (beyond 10°) were unable to detect paths of alternating-phase Gabors embedded within randomly positioned Gabors, but could detect same-phase paths. This result led them to propose a “fundamental difference” between central and peripheral visual processing. While we were able to replicate many of their results, our normally-sighted observers could detect alternating-phase paths beyond 10°. We found that path detection decreased monotonically as a function of eccentricity (0°–30°) for both alternating-phase and same-phase stimuli. As with most visual functions the more difficult path detection condition (alternating-phase) declined slightly faster. The results for the normally-sighted observers could not be explained by poor fixation. Three people with substantial central vision loss (i.e. they can only use peripheral vision) could see both same- and alternating-phase stimuli with eccentric viewing of 13°–17°. Therefore central and peripheral vision appear to use similar visual mechanisms to perform the task, there being no fundamental difference.
Catastrophic injuries among young athletes

While very rare, catastrophic injuries in youth sports have a major impact on athletes and their families when they do occur. This article reviews and summarises the sparse research on direct catastrophic injuries in youth sports, a direct catastrophic sports injury being defined as a sport injury that resulted from participation in the skills of the sport, and resulted in a fatality or in a non-fatal brain or spinal cord injury, or skull or spinal fracture. While an electronic database search was completed to assemble the articles reviewed here, much of the data come from the National Center for Catastrophic Injury Research at the University of North Carolina, which has the most extensive and complete data set on this issue. This article reviews and summarises what is known about the rate of occurrence of these injuries in various youth sports, the risk factors for these injuries, injury mechanisms and what can be done to prevent them in various youth sports.
Brucella attenuation and relevance to vaccine properties

Abstract Brucellosis is a zoonotic disease caused by Gram negative, facultative intracellular bacteria. The genus includes six species, the major three being Brucella melitensis , B. abortus and B. suis. These three species cause abortions in their primary livestock hosts resulting in major economic losses worldwide. Although attenuated live vaccine strains have been derived from the three important species and used extensively, there have been adverse side-effects. To study the virulence properties of Brucella , we targeted intracellular survival genes using macrophage survival and mouse virulence. We first evaluated the method using B. abortus 2308 wild type strain. Brucella genes were randomly inactivated following electroporation with a DNA construct that included a transposon element associated with antibiotic resistance marker. Transformed clones were then screened for survival in mice or in monocyte-derived macrophages, and were compared with the parental wild type strain. Clones showing reduced survival in the mouse or the macrophage model, respectively, were considered deleted in an essential virulence gene. In an alternative approach the B. melitensis vaccine strain Rev.1 has been compared to its wild type prototype strain, B. melitensis 16M. The study included 2-D gel analysis of the protein profiles of these strains reveal similar patterns when grown under normal growth conditions. Electron microscopic comparison has shown, however, that strain Rev.1 changes its ultrastructural morphology according to the surrounding environmental conditions.
The Class V Myosin Myo2p Is Required for Fus2p Transport and Actin Polarization during the Yeast Mating Response

Mating yeast cells remove their cell walls and fuse their plasma membranes in a spatially restricted cell contact region. Cell wall removal is dependent on Fus2p, an amphiphysin-associated Rho-GEF homolog. As mating cells polarize, Fus2p-GFP localizes to the tip of the mating projection, where cell fusion will occur, and to cytoplasmic puncta, which show rapid movement toward the tip. Movement requires polymerized actin, whereas tip localization is dependent on both actin and a membrane protein, Fus1p. Here, we show that Fus2p-GFP movement is specifically dependent on Myo2p, a type V myosin, and not on Myo4p, another type V myosin, or Myo3p and Myo5p, type I myosins. Fus2p-GFP tip localization and actin polarization in shmoos are also dependent on Myo2p. A temperature-sensitive tropomyosin mutation and Myo2p alleles that specifically disrupt vesicle binding caused rapid loss of actin patch organization, indicating that transport is required to maintain actin polarity. Mutant shmoos lost actin polarity more rapidly than mitotic cells, suggesting that the maintenance of cell polarity in shmoos is more sensitive to perturbation. The different velocities, differential sensitivity to mutation and lack of colocalization suggest that Fus2p and Sec4p, another Myo2p cargo associated with exocytotic vesicles, reside predominantly on different cellular organelles.
Blue Lasers Based on II-VI Semiconductor Heterostructures

Properties of blue laser diodes based on ZnSe-related II-VI semiconductor heterostructures are reported. At 77 K, continuous-wave (cw) operation has been achieved for lasers emitting at wavelengths as short as 470.4 nm (2.635 eV), while pulsed laser emission has been observed up to ∼200 K, for samples with uncoated facets. Measured turn-on voltages for stimulated emission at 77 K were as low as 12 V for some of the laser diodes due to improved ohmic contacts. For some particular devices, differential quantum efficiencies as high as 36% per (uncoated) facet have been obtained at 77 K.
Finalism in Darwinian and Lamarckian Evolution: Lessons from Epigenetics and Developmental Biology

Finalist (teleological) implications have been described for both Darwinian and Lamarckian theories, even though finalism appears to be more commonly associated with Lamarckism. Biologists have focused on finding final causes to explain evolutionary novelties through, for example, applying the “what for?” question to address experimental observations. Now epigenetics, together with developmental biology, may allow us to focus on the efficient causes leading to evolutionary change, asking the “how?” question, considering environmental influences as inducers of genomic change. This is a whole under-studied dimension in evolutionary studies. In this paper, I discuss how epigenetics and developmental biology can help integrate two important ways in which the environment affects evolution: through inducing or through restricting the emergence of new phenotypes. I also discuss which aspects of both theories should be reconsidered in the face of current knowledge in epigenetics and where the emphasis of evolutionary experiments should be placed. Important goals of evolution related epigenetic studies should be: (i) to experimentally consider the separation among the origin of characters in a lineage and its further fixation, in order to address these processes in a proper dimension, (ii) to build the cause-effect relation between the factors inducing epigenetic changes and consequent changes in population parameters, and (iii) to consider that the arising of new characters is modulated by physiological and developmental constraints, and that this process is not related to a purpose or focused to solve an ecological, physiological or evolutionary challenge.
Effect of lysine modification on the stability and cellular binding of human amyloidogenic light chains

AL amyloidosis is characterized by the pathologic deposition as fibrils of monoclonal light chains (i.e., Bence Jones proteins [BJPs]) in particular organs and tissues. This phenomenon has been attributed to the presence in amyloidogenic proteins of particular amino acids that cause these molecules to become unstable, as well as post-translational modifications and, in regard to the latter, we have investigated the effect of biotinylation of lysyl residues on cell binding. We utilized an experimental system designed to test if BJPs obtained from patients with AL amyloidosis or, as a control, multiple myeloma (MM), bound human fibroblasts and renal epithelial cells. As documented by fluorescence microscopy and ELISA, the amyloidogenic BJPs, as compared with MM components, bound preferentially and this reactivity increased significantly after chemical modification of their lysyl residues with sulfo-NHS-biotin. Further, based on tryptophan fluorescence and circular dichroism data, it was apparent that their conformation was altered, which we hypothesize exposed a binding site not accessible on the native protein. The results of our studies indicate that post-translational structural modifications of pathologic light chains can enhance their capacity for cellular interaction and thus may contribute to the pathogenesis of AL amyloidosis and multiple myeloma.
A design full of holes: functional nanofilm-coated microdomains in alginate hydrogels

This study demonstrates the successful manufacture and functional characterization of alginate hydrogels containing a variety of encapsulates within polyelectrolyte multilayer-coated micropores. These microporous alginate (MPA) hydrogels are prepared via one-step internal ionotropic gelation of the alginate using polyelectrolyte multilayer-coated CaCO3 microspheres along with the weak acid glucono-δ-lactone. Here, successful encapsulation of a model macromolecule and fluorescent nanoparticles within microcapsules—distributed throughout the larger alginate hydrogel—is confirmed with confocal microscopy, while the porous morphology of the MPA hydrogels is examined with scanning electron microscopy. Hydrogels constructed with uncoated CaCO3 microspheres release their contents into the surrounding environment, while those constructed with polyelectrolyte multilayer-coated CaCO3 microspheres retain the materials within the pores. MPA hydrogels containing the model enzyme glucose oxidase retained activity and are capable of reacting with small molecules from the external environment. The ability to encapsulate an assortment of functional materials within a moldable, biocompatible alginate matrix gives this approach great flexibility and potential in a wide variety of biomedical applications.
Modeling the annual costs of postmenopausal prevention therapy: raloxifene, alendronate, or estrogen-progestin therapy.

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the annual cost and outcome impacts attributable to raloxifene, alendronate, and estrogen-progestin therapy as prevention therapies among postmenopausal women over the first 7 years of hormone replacement therapy (HRT). METHODS: A budget-impact model was devised to compare the costs, benefits, and costs per event avoided for various postmenopausal therapies (raloxifene, alendronate, or estrogen-progestin combination therapy), compared to no intervention, taking into account the persistency rates. Net costs are direct medical costs attributable to treatments relative to no intervention. Net benefits are defined as the number of events avoided as a result of therapy. The main outcome measures are annual total net costs, net benefits, and costs per event avoided compared to no intervention among postmenopausal white women with intact uteri and normal baseline risks for osteoporotic hip or vertebral fractures, fatal or nonfatal myocardial infarction, and breast cancer. Data and model assumptions are based on clinical trial data and published retrospective studies. RESULTS: The average annual net cost of therapy declines after the first year of therapy for all interventions, primarily due to discontinuation, and continues to decline over time due to savings in medical costs for events avoided. Net events avoided are greater for raloxifene than alendronate, but HRT use results in net harm. The cost per event avoided is lower for raloxifene than alendronate. Improved persistence improves the cost-effectiveness for both interventions. Sensitivity analyses indicate the model results are most sensitive to the assumed impact of raloxifene on coronary heart disease and breast cancer risk. Alendronate as a prevention intervention is dominated by raloxifene under almost all model scenarios. CONCLUSION: The annual cost of long-term postmenopausal prevention therapy is highest during the first few years of therapy. Long-term prevention does not provide a return on investment in fewer than 3 years, but savings in medical costs partially offset intervention costs after 2 years. For postmenopausal women, pharmacologic interventions with multiple prevention benefits tend to be more cost effective than interventions with a single source of health benefit.
U.S. Debt and Deficits: Time to Reverse the Trend

This article provides a primer on budget deficits from the creation of the federal government. Today federal government spending is 24% of GDP (compared with its historical average of 8.8%), fuelling debt of historic levels. The only effective way to reduce debt levels is to cut entitlement programmes and then set a tax rate sufficient, over the course of the business cycle, to fund government spending.
T1 mapping of the myocardium: intra-individual assessment of post-contrast T1 time evolution and extracellular volume fraction at 3T for Gd-DTPA and Gd-BOPTA.

Myocardial T1 relaxation time (T1 time) and extracellular volume fraction (ECV) are altered in patients with diffuse myocardial fibrosis. The purpose of this study was to perform an intra-individual assessment of normal T1 time and ECV for two different contrast agents. A modified Look-Locker Inversion Recovery (MOLLI) sequence was acquired at 3 T in 24 healthy subjects (8 men; 28 ± 6 years) at mid-ventricular short axis pre-contrast and every 5 min between 5-45 min after injection of a bolus of 0.15 mmol/kg gadopentetate dimeglumine (Gd-DTPA; Magnevist®) (exam 1) and 0.1 mmol/kg gadobenate dimeglumine (Gd-BOPTA; Multihance®) (exam 2) during two separate scanning sessions. T1 times were measured in myocardium and blood on generated T1 maps. ECVs were calculated as . Mean pre-contrast T1 relaxation times for myocardium and blood were similar for both the first and second CMR exam (p > 0.5). Overall mean post-contrast myocardial T1 time was 15 ± 2 ms (2.5 ± 0.7%) shorter for Gd-DTPA at 0.15 mmol/kg compared to Gd-BOPTA at 0.1 mmol/kg (p 0.05). Between 5 and 45 minutes after contrast injection, mean ECV values increased linearly with time for both contrast agents from 0.27 ± 0.03 to 0.30 ± 0.03 (p < 0.0001). Mean ECV values were slightly higher (by 0.01, p < 0.05) for Gd-DTPA compared to Gd-BOPTA. Inter-individual variation of ECV was higher (CV 8.7% [exam 1, Gd-DTPA] and 9.4% [exam 2, Gd-BOPTA], respectively) compared to variation of pre-contrast myocardial T1 relaxation time (CV 4.5% [exam 1] and 3.0% [exam 2], respectively). ECV with Gd-DTPA was highly correlated to ECV by Gd-BOPTA (r = 0.803; p < 0.0001). In comparison to pre-contrast myocardial T1 relaxation time, variation in ECV values of normal subjects is larger. However, absolute differences in ECV between Gd-DTPA and Gd-BOPTA were small and rank correlation was high. There is a small and linear increase in ECV over time, therefore ideally images should be acquired at the same delay after contrast injection.
Stochastic Neighbor Compression

We present Stochastic Neighbor Compression (SNC), an algorithm to compress a dataset for the purpose of k-nearest neighbor (kNN) classification. Given training data, SNC learns a much smaller synthetic data set, that minimizes the stochastic 1-nearest neighbor classification error on the training data. This approach has several appealing properties: due to its small size, the compressed set speeds up kNN testing drastically (up to several orders of magnitude, in our experiments); it makes the kNN classifier substantially more robust to label noise; on 4 of 7 data sets it yields lower test error than kNN on the entire training set, even at compression ratios as low as 2%; finally, the SNC compression leads to impressive speed ups over kNN even when kNN and SNC are both used with ball-tree data structures, hashing, and LMNN dimensionality reduction--demonstrating that it is complementary to existing state-of-the-art algorithms to speed up kNN classification and leads to substantial further improvements.
Intraguild predation may facilitate coexistence of native and non-native fish

Summary 1. Although largely ignored, coexistence of native species with non-native species is the rule rather than the exception in the contemporary world. Therefore, understanding the mechanisms that facilitate coexistence of native species with non-native invasive species is critical in implementing effective management strategies to conserve native biodiversity. 2. We conducted field mesocosm experiments to study reciprocal predation between an invasive fish species (Western mosquitofish Gambusia affinis) and an endangered fish species (Mohave tui chub Siphateles bicolor mohavensis). Additional predation vulnerability modelling was conducted to assess the vulnerability of a given prey population to predation by a gapesize limited predator population. 3. Adult mosquitofish reduced Mohave tui chub recruitment through predation on tui chub larvae. Reciprocally, adult tui chubs limited the population growth of mosquitofish through predation on adult mosquitofish, providing evidence for intraguild predation (IGP). Mohave tui chub predation on adult mosquitofish was apparently gape-size limited and larger female mosquitofish avoided tui chub predation. 4. Vulnerability modelling provided additional information on gape-size limited reciprocal predation between these two fish species and insights on the effects of such IGP on persistence of Mohave tui chub in the presence of invasive mosquitofish. 5. Synthesis and applications. Our results collectively show size-structured intraguild predation (IGP) between a native endangered fish and an invasive fish species, which may facilitate coexistence of these species. Invasive species often prey on native species, thus IGP may be a common but neglected phenomenon for invaded systems. Therefore, understanding the complex interactions among native and non-native species in the whole-ecosystem context may help conservation practitioners identify novel management strategies. This may be especially necessary when natural, uninvaded habitats for native species become increasingly scarce due to alterations resulting from multiple forms of human impact.
Temperature sensitivity of 1300-nm InGaAsN quantum-well lasers

The temperature sensitivity of metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD)-grown highly strained (/spl Delta//spl alpha///spl alpha//spl sim/2.7%) In/sub 0.4/Ga/sub 0.6/Asand In/sub 0.4/Ga/sub 0.6/As/sub 0.995/N/sub 0.005/ quantum-well (QW) active lasers, with lasing wavelength of 1.185 and 1.295 /spl mu/m, respectively, is analyzed in terms of measured fundamental device parameters. From our analysis, the lower To values for the InGaAsN QW lasers can be explained in terms of the temperature dependence of the current injection efficiency, presumably due to increased carrier leakage in the InGaAsN QW lasers.
The New Medicare Prescription-Drug Legislation

In terms of dollars, the number of people affected, and the political stakes involved, the Medicare prescription-drug bill is the most important health care legislation passed by Congress since the enactment of Medicare and Medicaid in 1965. The six-month roller-coaster ride taken by the legislation made its passage all the more dramatic and surprising. The legislation had very good prospects when a compromise was reached in the Senate, and Senator Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) threw his support behind a Republican bill; it seemed in need of life support when the House passed a bill too conservative for most liberals and moderates . . .
The Nitrogen Budget of a Shallow Lake (Großer Müggelsee, Berlin)

The nitrogen budget of Lake Gr. Muggelsee (mean depth 4.85 m, area 7.12 km2) was calculated from weekly measurements of nitrogen transformations from 1978 to 1984. Common mass balances for nitrogen were completed by determination of dinitrogen fixation in order to calculate denitrification as residual budget component and resolved for distinct seasonal periods. N sedimentation was calculated from internal P balance. Influence of flushing rate on loss processes were analysed by comparison of years with very different runoff. Time series analyses and multiple comparison show a relation of hydraulic flow, nitrate load, in-lake nitrate and N elimination to the seasonal cycle of irradiance. Denitrification is the most important loss process and exceeds the effect of sedimentation. Other in- and outputs (precipitation, swimmers, volatilization) are rather stochastic and of lower quantitative importance. Nitrate leaching from the catchment and turbulent mixing within the lake are discussed as determining factors of in-lake nitrogen fluxes.
Do Substantia Nigra Dopaminergic Neurons Differentiate Between Reward and Punishment

The activity of dopaminergic neurons are thought to be increased by stimuli that predict reward and decreased by stimuli that predict aversive outcomes. Recent work by Matsumoto and Hikosaka challenges this model by asserting that stimuli associated with either rewarding or aversive outcomes increase the activity of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta.
DNS of Thermal Turbulent Boundary Layers Subject to External Pressure Gradient

A new approach for simulating realistic turbulent information at the entrance of a computational domain, which considers a spatially evolving turbulent thermal boundary layer, is presented. According to the method proposed by Lund et al. [1], turbulent velocity data is predicted from an auxiliary simulator located prior to the principal domain; which generates inflow conditions by rescaling the velocity profile at a downstream location, called recycle plane, and re-injecting it at the inlet of the principal domain. The objectives of this paper are two fold. Firstly, the rescaling-recycling method is extended to thermal boundary layers in incompressible turbulent flows subjected to streamwise pressure gradients by means of a multi-scale approach. Secondly, the use of a test plane enables us to dynamically compute the necessary parameters during the rescaling process without considering any empirical correlation. Thirdly, the auxiliary simulator is eliminated and the rescalingrecycling process is done at each time step in the principal domain. The latter eliminates problems associated with auxiliary-principal domain synchronization and saves considerable computational resources. Thus, Direct Numerical Simulations (DNS) of thermal spatially evolving boundary layers at zero (ZPG), favorable (FPG) and adverse (APG) pressure gradients are performed. The range for the momentum thickness Reynolds number, Re, is around 300-3000 in the cases considered. To the best of our understanding, the DNS at Re ~ 3000 represents the evolving thermal boundary layer at the highest Reynolds number in the turbulence community. Isothermal walls are considered for the thermal field and the molecular Prandtl number is 0.71. A major benefit of the proposed dynamic multi-scale approach is that the length of the computational domain is significantly reduced, up to 14 times in some cases. Moreover, the predicted skin friction coefficient and Stanton number show fairly good agreement with empirical correlations, experimental and numerical data from the literature. The effects of the Reynolds number and streamwise adverse pressure gradient on flow and thermal parameters are also explored and visualized. Additionally, the location of the maximum thermal fluctuations in outer coordinates moves closer to the wall as the Reynolds number increases. It was confirmed that the principal effects of adverse pressure gradient on the flow were the appearance of peaks, particularly on streamwise velocity fluctuations, in the outer region. Nomenclature p C = Specific heat Pr = Prandtl number w q = Heat flux at wall  Re = Momentum thickness Reynolds number
Improved Sensitivity and Noise in Magneto-Electric Magnetic Field Sensors by Use of Modulated AC Magnetostriction

A magnetic field sensor based on the nonlinear nature of the magnetostrictive response of a magneto-electric (ME) heterostructure has two orders of magnitude improvement in sensitivity and signal-to-noise ratio compared with a conventional dc-biased configuration. The sensor consists of a longitudinally magnetized and transversely poled lamination of iron-cobalt-boron (Metglas) and lead zirconate titanate (PZT). The ac-modulated sensor has enhanced environmental noise immunity and does not require a dc magnetic bias field. Combined, these advantages hold promise for the development of miniature ME sensor elements for applications with size and weight limitations.
Addition, suppression, and inhibition in the electrophoretic deposition of nanocrystal mixture films for CdSe nanocrystals with γ-Fe2O3 and Au nanocrystals

Electrophoretic deposition from mixtures of CdSe and A-Fe2O3 nanocrystals forms identical films on the positive and negative electrodes composed of both types of nanocrystals. In contrast, the electrophoretic deposition from mixtures of CdSe and Au nanocrystals forms films composed of only CdSe nanocrystals, and these films form only on the positive electrode. As the density of charged Au dots is decreased below that of charged CdSe dots, the suppression of CdSe dot film formation on the negative electrode lessens, and films composed of CdSe nanocrystals form on both electrodes.
Geographic Window Sizes Applied to Remote Sensing Sea Surface Temperature Front Detection

Abstract The effects of using a geographic window size with an existing edge-detection technique for the detection of thermal fronts in sea surface temperature (SST) imagery are investigated. The size of a geographic window is not constant but instead is determined by the correlation of the data surrounding the window's central point. Using this approach instead of a fixed window size, the investigation windows are optimized for the whole image, providing more reliable detection of edges within the windows. The new algorithm was run on several SST images from southern Lake Michigan and compared to runs of the original algorithm and a modification of the original algorithm optimized for this region. The results show that the geographic window improves edge detection most in the nearshore regions and to a lesser extent in the offshore regions.
The results of analysis of business market of bakery firm

In the article the results of analysis of marketing milieu are summed up. The marketing milieu concerns bakery products and their largest producer in South Bohemian region, the bakery ,,Pekast", Ltd. The way how to obtain primary information about business market was marketing research in Ceske Budějovice 95 respondents provided information and the distribution network of the firm ,,Pekast, Ltd was mapped in details - and also its competitive milieu. Worked out data enabled to define the position of the firm ,,Pekast", Ltd at the market, its competitive abilities and possibilities of further development of services toward to the customers. The results of marketing research are used in forming the marketing aims of this firm.
A Method of Clearing Face Fly Puparia for Sex Determination Without Affecting Survival and Development

A method was developed to clear puparia of Musca autumnalis De Geer, for sex determination. Results of testing more than a dozen chemical agents showed that dipping 6-day-old face fly pupae in 0.1% detergent Joy for 20 minutes was a satisfactory procedure. The puparia were cleared sufficiently to allow easy recognition of the sexes with the naked eye. The dipping did not adversely affect the survival rate of treated pupae or the longevity and fecundity of adult flies which emerged from these pupae. Sexual dimorphism was manifest in the compound eyes and adjacent areas.
Biofunctionalization of α-zirconium phosphate nanosheets: toward rational control of enzyme loading, affinities, activities and structure retention.

Controlling the properties of enzymes bound to solid surfaces in a rational manner is a grand challenge. Here we show that preadsorption of cationized bovine serum albumin (cBSA) to α-Zr(IV) phosphate (α-ZrP) nanosheets promotes enzyme binding in a predictable manner, and surprisingly, the enzyme binding is linearly proportional to the number of residues present in the enzyme or its volume, providing a powerful, new predictable tool. The cBSA loaded α-ZrP (denoted as bZrP) was tested for the binding of pepsin, glucose oxidase (GOX), tyrosinase, catalase, myoglobin and laccase where the number of residues increased from the lowest value of ∼153 to the highest value of 2024. Loading depended linearly on the number of residues, rather than enzyme charge or its isoelectric point. No such correlation was seen for the binding of these enzymes to α-ZrP nanosheets without the preadsorption of cBSA, under similar conditions of pH and buffer. Enzyme binding to bZrP was supported by centrifugation studies, powder X-...
Case report of tracheobronchial squamous cell carcinoma treated with radiation therapy and concurrent chemotherapy

a Department of Radiation Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts b Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts c Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts d Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Newton-Wellesley Hospital, Newton, Massachusetts e Division of Thoracic Surgery, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts
Alkali metal cation interactions with 15-crown-5 in the gas phase: revisited.

Quantitative interactions of the alkali metal cations with the cyclic 15-crown-5 polyether ligand (15C5) are studied. In this work, Rb+(15C5) and Cs+(15C5) complexes are formed using electrospray ionization and studied using threshold collision-induced dissociation with xenon in a guided ion beam tandem mass spectrometer. The energy-dependent cross sections thus obtained are interpreted to yield bond dissociation energies (BDEs) using an analysis that includes consideration of unimolecular decay rates, internal energy of the reactant ions, and multiple ion–neutral collisions. 0 K BDEs of 175.0 ± 9.7 and 159.4 ± 9.6 kJ/mol, respectively, are determined and exceed those previously measured [J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1999, 121, 417−423] by 68 and 57 kJ/mol, respectively, consistent with the hypothesis proposed there that excited conformers had been studied. Because the analysis techniques have advanced since this early study, we also reanalyze the published data for the Na+(15C5) and K+(15C5) systems to ensure a sel...
Apprenticeship in Learning Design for Literature Courses.

This essay explains how research in Physics education by Eric Mazur, arguing from the pedagogic deficiencies of instruction through lectures, has been applied successfully in a thorough revision of two undergraduate courses in English, one on John Milton and another on William Shakespeare.
An Empirical Analysis of Factors Influencing Student Reactions to Ethical Advertising Dilemmas: Educational Experiencel Work Experience, Ethical Philosophy, and Demographics

Many consider the term “advertising ethics” an oxymoron. The implied deficiency in business and advertising ethics has prompted the AACSB to include ethics as an important topic for discussion in most business courses. However, many question the efficacy of teaching ethics in the business and advertising curricula. The purpose of this research is to examine the relationships that exist between ethical behavioral intentions and seven characteristics. The characteristics include college major and emphasis, gender, advertising experience, perception of the importance of ethics and the impact of ethics on success, and feelings regarding the ethical standards of future employers.