cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The Uncoupled State of the Human Formyl Peptide Receptor

AbstractThe formyl peptide receptor (FPR) has been widely used to study the kinetics of the interaction between ligand, receptor and G protein with real-time fluorescence methods. Because the wild type receptor rapidly signals, and is then desensitized and internalized once occupied by ligand, it has been difficult to study the uncoupled receptor form. We have examined a mutant form of the FPR expressed in U937 cells that does not bind G protein and is thus ideal to study the uncoupled form of the FPR in the intact cell. Using kinetic flow cytometry, we have measured the dissociation kinetics of a fluorescent ligand from this mutant in intact. permeabilized and fixed cells. We observed a novel uncoupled receptor form in the intact cell with a dramatically reduced off-rate (-0.02 s-1) from LR in a broken cell preparation (∼0.2 s-1). Both receptor forms are retained in the presence of formaldehyde. We also observed this novel receptor form coexisting with the LRG complex when the wild type receptor is fixed...
The Role of the Electronic Spreadsheet in Small Firm Planning

Microcomputer technology and spreadsheet software are widely available to small businesses and offer the small firm owner a means of planning more effectively and efficiently. A survey of the planning practices of electronic spreadsheet owners reveals a gap between ownership of the planning tools and their effective use. The study shows the importance of preplanning the purchase of software, of motivation to plan, and of tailoring planning systems to the goal orientation of the firm in order to effectively use the electronic spreadsheet as a small business planning tool.
RADIATION-INDUCED SOLID STATE POLYMERIZATION

The literature on radiation-induced solid state polymerization has been increasing exponentially in the last five years. Major advances have been made in retention of crystalline morphology during polymerization, in stereospecific polymerization, in modification of reactivity ratios in copolymerization and in molecular weight control of the product. However, at the present time, no commercial products have resulted from the study of radiation-induced solid state polymerization. Chemically induced polymerization techniques have been keeping abreast of this explosive development in the solid state polymerization field and have up to this time precluded the use in industry of solid state polymerization. The major potential at the present time appears to be in the area of producing fibers without additional processing.
The solubility characteristics of SV 40 tumor antigen.

Abstract The solubility characteristics of SV40 tumor (T) antigen were investigated. Cell nuclei were isolated from cover glass cultures of SV 40-infected or transformed cells by detergent treatment. When treated in a buffered isotonic sucrose solution, the isolated nuclei contained typical SV40 T antigen by immunofluorescence. If the detergent was dissolved in an isotonic electrolyte solution containing 0.15 M monovalent cations (K+), the T antigen was extracted from the nuclei. Complement fixation tests demonstrated that the various solutions had no deleterious effects on the antigenicity of T antigen. Under identical conditions, the SV 40 capsid (V) antigen was not extracted from infected cell nuclei. These solubility characteristics place SV40 T antigen in the class of “loosely bound” nuclear proteins which includes non-histone proteins that appear to have cell regulatory functions. This supports the suggestion that the biological function of T antigen may be regulatory in nature.
Glycosaminoglycan in articular cartilage: in vivo assessment with delayed Gd(DTPA)(2-)-enhanced MR imaging.

PURPOSE: To investigate the feasibility of applying magnetic resonance (MR) imaging with use of an anionic compound, Gd(DTPA)2- (gadolinium diethylenetriamine-pentaacetic acid), for measuring glycosaminoglycan concentration in human cartilage in clinical studies. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Penetration of Gd(DTPA)2- into cartilage was monitored through sequential T1-calculated images obtained after intraarticular (n = 2) or intravenous (n = 2) injection. T1-weighted and T1-calculated image series were then obtained in seven volunteers (nine knees) after penetration of Gd-(DTPA)2- into cartilage. If T1 was heterogeneous on Gd(DTPA)(2-)-enhanced images, images were also obtained after penetration of the cartilage with the nonionic contrast agent, gadoteridol. RESULTS: Gd(DTPA)2- penetrated cartilage from the articular surface after intraarticular injection and from both the articular surface and the subchondral bone after intravenous injection. The latter resulted in shorter overall penetration time. T1 values o...
Can we talk the same language in reporting soil tests and plant analysis? 1

Abstract Some problem areas connected with soil testing and with reporting soil test and plant analysis results are explored, A uniform system for reporting soil test results is suggested as a step towards further standardization of soil test methods within and among states. Four categories are suggested as a common terminology for soil test and plant analysis results. These are: deficient, probable response, adequate and excessive.
Analysis of a microwave cavity detector coupled to a noisy amplifier

Abstract In a class of detectors for light pseudocscalar particles, a microwave cavity traps photons produced by the interaction of the particles with a strong magnetic field. The cavity strongly influences the signal and noise properties of the amplifier coupled to its output. We present the theory of a noisy amplifier coupled to a microwave cavity, along with experimental data for a cryogenic GaAsFET amplifier. The signal-to-noise ratio of the cavity-amplifier system is determined, and applications to the measurement of amplifier parameters are discussed.
Long-term memory for speaker's voice and source location.

One hundred and twenty-eight subjects tried to recall 20 simple sentences that for some subjects were presented in two different voices or were presented from two loudspeakers on different sides of the room. In addition, some subjects were instructed to remember not only the sentences, but also their voice and location attributes. Intentional instructions for location resulted in poorer recall of the sentences, but intentional instructions for voice did not. The voice attribute seemed to be automatically coded under both intentional and incidental instructions for remembering the attribute, whereas the location attribute seemed to require cognitive processing in addition to that required for encoding the meaning of the sentence. A test for clustering by voice in recall was done to determine if the evidence for automatic ceding of voice was merely an artifact resulting from better recall because of organization. However, no clustering was found. The ideas that speaker’s voice and sentence meaning were processed in parallel by different hemispheres of the brain and that the connotation of the voice influenced the meaning of each sentence were offered as two possible explanations of the results.
Influence of population on the classification of ECG-VCG's using linear regression techniques

Abstract This paper describes the influence of different populations on statistical multivariate classification rules and classification results where the word ‘population’ refers only to the frequency of diagnoses to be expected, the so-called prior probabilities. Using linear regression as a multivariate classification technique and six groups consisting of five pathological conditions and normals as test data, it has been shown: 1. (a) That the population influences to a great extent the selection of the best ECG-VCG measurements for the classification rule. 2. (b) That a mismatch of the populations in the learning and test sets can considerably decrease the number of correct classifications. 3. (c) That a certain correction of the mismatch can be achieved when the prior probabilities in the learning and test sets are known. Further, the paper discusses the change of prior probabilities over the years at the Variety Club Heart Hospital in the University of Minnesota and its effect on the performance of the classification algorithm which has been used.
The Impact of Risk Communication on the Acceptance of Irradiated Food

This study uses a quasi-experimental design to assess the impact of pro- and anti-food irradiation messages on consumer opinions. The data came from a panel study of 223 adults in Minneapolis, Minn...
Prognostic value of a normal exercise myocardial perfusion imaging study in patients with angiographically significant coronary artery disease

Abstract The benign outcome of patients with a normal exercise thallium-201 myocardial perfusion study in a general population presenting for evaluation has been well established.1 The prevalence of significant coronary artery disease (CAD) in such a group of patients with normal thallium-201 imaging is presumably very low. Very few reports involving normal thallium-201 studies have included patients with angiographically significant CAD and none have systematically evaluated the prognostic value of thallium-201 imaging in this subgroup. Whether normal thallium-201 studies would have the same benign predictive value in patients with angiographically significant CAD is consequently unknown. We therefore studied the outcome of patients with normal exercise thallium-201 studies who had significant angiographic CAD established at cardiac catheterization.
An Improved Triggering Method for a High Power Cycloconverter-Induction Motor Drive

A triggering method is discussed which is specifically designed for a traction drive consisting of a high-frequency alternator, a phase-controlled cycloconverter, and an induction motor. Because the motor operates with controlled slip the power-factor characteristics are known, and this is utilized to obtain cycloconverter simplification and to optimize machine sizes. Specific advantages over a conventional phase-controlled cycloconverter are 1) significantly higher alternator power factor, and 2) elimination of interphase reactors and current polarity sensing circuitry. Test results are described for a single cycloconverter-induction motor drive operating from a 420-Hz alternator in both motoring and electrical braking and for two drives operating in parallel from the same alternator. Motor efficiencies are within 1.5 percent of the sine-wave efficiencies and the alternator power factor varies from 0.78 to 0.84 over the motor speed range at full power. Electrical braking was achieved into grid resistors connected to the motor without requiring ``real'' power from the alternator. Operation of the two parallel drives from one alternator was successful despite severe alternator voltage distortion.
Magnesium chloride supported high‐mileage catalysts for olefin polymerization. I. Chemical composition and oxidation states of titanium

The chemical composition of a MgCl2-supported, high-mileage catalyst has been determined at every stage of its preparation. Ball milling of MgCl2 with ethyl benzoate (EB) resulted in the incorporation of 95% of the EB present to give MgCl2·EB0.15. A mild reaction with a half-mole equivalent of p-cresol (PC) at 50°C for 1 h resulted in near quantitative retention of p-cresol by the support. The composition is now approximately MgCl2·EB0.15P0.5. Addition of an amount of AlEt3 corresponding to half-mole equivalent of p-cresol liberated one mole of ethane per mole of p-cresol, thus signaling quantitative reaction between the two components. The support contains on the average one ethyl group per Al. Further reaction with TiCl4 resulted in the incorporation of titanium of approximately 8, 38, and 54% in the oxidation states of +2, +3, and +4, respectively. The ratio of Al to Ti in the catalyst lies in the range of 0.5–1.0. Only 19% of all the Ti+3 species in the catalyst can be observed by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR); these are attributable to isolated Ti+3 complexes. The remaining EPR silent Ti+3 species are believed to be bridged to another Ti+3 by Cl ligands. The total Cl content is equal to the sum of 2 × Mg + 3 × Al + 3.5 × Ti. Most of the p-cresol moiety apparently disappeared from the support, leaving much of ethyl benzoate in the catalyst. Activation with AlEt3/methyl-p-toluate complex reduces 90% of the Ti+4 in the catalyst to lower oxidation states. The ester apparently moderates the alkylating power of AlEt3 to avoid excessive formation of divalent titanium sites. There appears to be a constant fraction of 1/4–1/5 of the titanium which is isolated and the remainder is in bridged clusters independent of the oxidation states of titanium.
Feasibility Study of a Radial Inflow Compressor

This paper is a feasibility study of the radial inflow compressor. The goal was to study theoretically the flow in such a compressor. The blade loadings have been computed for various pressure ratios and the optimum loading is presented. The rotor efficiency of such a compressor is lower than that encountered in a similar pressure ratio radial outflow impeller. The efficiency in the diffuser is slightly higher for the radial inflow compressor, with an axial relative flow discharge. This combination leads to an efficiency between 70 to 75 percent for a 3:1 pressure ratio compressor stage. This agrees favorably with two-stage radial outlfow compressor in which the two compressors are close together for axial compactness. Thus the radial inflow configuration could give comparable efficiencies when paired with a radial outlfow compressor and more axial compactness. This makes the radial inflow compressor worth considering for use in small auxiliary power units.Copyright © 1972 by ASME
A HYPOTHALAMIC FOLLICLE STIMULATING HORMONE-RELEASING FACTOR.

FSH activity in 1.5 ml of rat plasma was evaluated by a new sensitive mouse uterine weight method devised by the authors. No FSH activity was found in 1.5 ml of plasma from normal females, but it was readily determined in 1.5 ml plasma from chronically ovariectomized female rats. Treatment of ovariectomized females with single, subcutaneous doses of 50 ∧g estradiol benzoate and 25 mg progesterone significantly lowered plasma FSH activity on measurement 3 days later. Ten min after the intravenous injection of a crude acidic extract of 2 rat stalk-median eminences, a significant elevation in plasma FSH occurred in the ovariectomized, estrogen, progesterone-blocked rats, whereas cerebral cortical extract was without effect on plasma FSH in these animals. Furthermore, stalkmedian eminence extract failed to alter plasma FSH in hypophysectomized rats. The extract was also ineffective when injected directly into the immature test mice for 3 days. These results indicate that contamination of the extracts with FSH...
The Social Meaning of Industrialization in the United States: Determinants of the Scope of Coverage Under Wage and Hour Standards Legislation, 1900-1970

Two perspectives prevail in the literature on the meaning and characteristics of work in the tertiary sector—Daniel Bell's “post-industrial” model and Harry Braverman's “monopoly capital” model. In this paper, the applicability of these frameworks for understanding variations in employee coverage under wage and hour standards legislation between 1900 and 1970 is examined. Additional factors believed to determine coverage are also explored. The results accord with the monopoly capital model; while demographic group, region, and industry of the employee all account for variations in coverage, industry is consistently the strongest determinant of initial coverage under these laws. Variations in coverage by industry, however, decline over time. Coverage under these laws was initially restricted to employees engaged in industrial work, narrowly defined. Gradually, as it was realized that all work in an industrial society occurs in a similar environment—one formerly associated only with traditional blue-collar jobs—these laws were extended to employees in the tertiary and primary sectors.
A survey of data smoothing for linear and nonlinear dynamic systems

A survey of the field of data smoothing for lumped-parameter, linear and nonlinear, dynamic systems is presented. The survey beings with the work of Kepler and Gauss, proceeds through that of Kolmogorov and Wiener, and concludes with the studies of numerous researchers during the past 10-12 years. The purpose of the survey is to place in perspective the development of the field of data smoothing relative to the broader area of estimation theory of which it is a part.
Neutrophil and monocyte recruitment by PECAM, CD99, and other molecules via the LBRC

The recruitment of specific leukocyte subtypes to the site of tissue injury is the cornerstone of inflammation and disease progression. This process has become an intense area of research because it presents several possible steps against which disease-specific therapies could be targeted. Leukocytes are recruited out of the blood stream by a series of events that include their capture, rolling, activation, and migration along the endothelium. In the last step, the leukocytes squeeze between adjacent endothelial cells to gain access to the inflamed tissue through a process referred to as transendothelial migration (TEM). Although many of the molecules, such as PECAM and CD99, that regulate these sequential steps have been identified, much less is understood regarding how they work together to coordinate the complex intercellular communications and dramatic shape changes that take place between the endothelial cells and leukocytes. Several of the endothelial cell proteins that function in TEM are localized to the lateral border recycling compartment (LBRC), an interconnected reticulum of membrane that recycles selectively to the endothelial borders. The recruitment of the LBRC to surround the migrating leukocyte is required for efficient TEM. This review will focus on the proteins and mechanisms that mediate TEM and specifically how the LBRC functions in the context of these molecular interactions and membrane movements.
Lifestyle intervention can prevent weight gain during menopause: results from a 5-year randomized clinical trial.

Context: Menopausal-related weight gain and increased waist circumference have major cardiovascular health implications for older women. The efficacy of a dietary and physical activity lifestyle intervention to prevent weight gain and elevations in cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors from the peri- to postmenopause is unknown.Objective: To report the 54-month results of a lifestyle dietary and physical activity program on weight, body composition, physical activity, diet, and other CVD risk factors.Design: Data are from a 5-year randomized clinical trial known as the Women’s Healthy Lifestyle Project, conducted from 1992 to 1999.Participants: 535 healthy, premenopausal women ages 44 to 50 at study entry enrolled into the trial.Intervention: Participants were randomly assigned to either a lifestyle intervention group receiving a 5-year behavioral dietary and physical activity program or to an assessment-only control group. The lifestyle intervention group was given modest weight loss goals (5–15 lb, or approximately 2.3–6.8 kg) to prevent subsequent gain above baseline weight by the end of the trial. To achieve weight loss and lower low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels, intervention participants followed an eating pattern consisting of 1,300 kcal/day (25% total fat, 7% saturated fat, 100 mg of dietary cholesterol) and increased their physical activity expenditure (1,000–1,500 kcal/week).Main Outcome Measures: Regarding weight gain prevention, 55% (136/246) of intervention participants were at or below baseline weight compared with 26% (68/261) of controls after 4.5 years, χ(2, N = 507) = 45.0, p < .001. The mean weight change in the intervention group was 0.1 kg below baseline (SD = 5.2 kg) compared with an average gain of 2.4 kg (SD = 4.9 kg) observed in the control group. Waist circumference also significantly decreased more in the intervention group compared with controls (M = −2.9 cm, SD = 5.3 vs. M = −0.5 cm, SD = 5.6, p < .001). Moreover, participants in the lifestyle intervention group were consistently more physically active and reported eating fewer calories and less fat than controls. Long-term adherence to physical activity and a low-fat eating pattern was associated with better weight maintenance.Conclusions: In healthy women, weight gain and increased waist circumference during the peri- to postmenopause can be prevented with a long-term lifestyle dietary and physical activity intervention.
Familial interstitial lung disease and new insights on molecular biology and pathogenesis

Abstract Familial idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis is defined as interstitial fibrosis affecting two or more family members, and constitutes 2–20% of all cases of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. Investigation of the genetics of familial idiopathic interstitial fibrosis will hopefully provide insight into pathogenesis as well as provide potential targets for therapy. Telomerase mutations, mutations of surfactant genes and mutations of MUC5B have been most commonly reported. However, 80% of familial cases remain without an identifiable mutation, and pathogenesis remains poorly understood. A shift away from an inflammatory driven pathogenesis to one of abnormal wound healing has occurred, with injury to alveolar epithelium and aberrant fibroproliferation likely underlying the process. Such aberrant wound healing likely occurs in a background of genetic predisposition and exposure to environmental stressors. An additional theory of traction related injury has also been proposed.
Endogenous zoning: an integrated econometric–GIS approach

Recent studies of zoning have treated zoning as endogenous, based on externality, fiscal, and exclusionary motives. This paper presents an alternative approach for examining the determinants of zoning regulations. Specifically, this paper utilizes a model that asserts the wealth maximizing objective of households when voting on zoning regulations, and empirical implemented using spatially referenced zoning and census data from a geographical information system (GIS). Results indicate that the spatial pattern of neighbouring land uses does significantly affect both the choice of zoning regulations as well as the median value of owner–occupied housing given these precursory zoning choices.
Evidence for differential regulation of corticotropin-releasing factor and vasopressin immunoreactivities in parvocellular neurosecretory and autonomic-related projections of the paraventricular nucleus

A combined retrograde transport-immunohistochemical method was used to compare the numbers of corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) and vasopressin-immunoreactive neurons in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (PVH) that could be retrogradely labeled after tracer injections in the dorsomedial medulla or the spinal cord in untreated, colchicine-treated, and adrenalectomized (ADX) male rats. In untreated animals, very few CRF-stained cells were retrogradely labeled after tracer injections in either target, while a modest number, comparable to that seen in previous studies, of vasopressinergic cells were found to project to one or both structures. Animals pretreated with colchicine, a non-specific inhibitor of axonal transport, displayed CRF immunoreactivity in a small percentage of retrogradely labeled neurons in the PVH; the number of retrogradely labeled vasopressin-immunoreactive cells was comparable to that seen in untreated rats. Despite the fact that ADX animals displayed enhanced immunostaining for both peptides in the parvocellular division of the PVH, the number of retrogradely labeled cells stained for each peptide was similar to that seen in controls. The results establish that CRF is contained within the long descending projections of the PVH, and are consistent with the view that adrenal steroid withdrawal preferentially enhances the expression of CRF and vasopressin in parvocellular neurosecretory neurons.
Myelination and the development of function in immature pyramidal tract

Abstract The functional properties of immature pyramidal tract neurons were investigated in kittens 3 days to 5 weeks of age. Pyramidal tract neurons were identified and activated by antidromic stimulation of their axons in the medullary pyramid. Antidromically evoked responses in neurons of sensorimotor cortex were found already in the youngest animals. However, these responses fatigued rapidly. Two effects were seen on repetitive stimulation. During the first postnatal week there was a progressive decrease in amplitude of extracellularly recorded unit spikes at stimulus rates of 10/sec or higher. In the older kittens, conduction block occurred in the axon during repetitive stimulation above 20–30/sec. This effect was seen consistently up to age 3 weeks, and it was present in some of the units recorded at age 5 weeks. Axons with conduction velocities below 2 m/sec, which presumably were unmyelinated, showed conduction block on repetitive stimulation at low rates. Axons with conduction velocities above 3m/sec were able to conduct volleys at 40/sec and higher. The results suggest that myelination increases the ability of central axons to fire repetitively.
Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol impairs visual recognition memory but not discrimination learning in rhesus monkeys.

The effects of orally administered delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) were evaluated on two different learning abilities in monkeys. Visual recognition memory, known to depend on limbic system integrity, was tested by means of delayed nonmatching-to-sample and found to be significantly impaired by acute administration of 2 and 4 mg/kg THC given 1 or 2 h prior to testing. Performance was significantly impaired throughout a 21-day period of repeated administration of 4 mg/kg THC and also during a 3–5 day period that began 7–10 days after the last dose of THC. By contrast, 24-h concurrent discrimination learning, a task that monkeys with limbic lesions can perform normally, was not impaired by THC, even following doses as high as 16 mg/kg. These results suggest that THC interferes with recognition memory more than discrimination learning, possibly reflecting a selective action of THC on limbic mechanisms.
Localizing transcriptional regulatory elements at the mouse Dlk1 locus.

Much effort has focused recently on determining the mechanisms that control the allele-specific expression of genes subject to genomic imprinting, yet imprinting regulation is only one aspect of configuring appropriate expression of these genes. Imprinting control mechanisms must interact with those regulating the tissue-specific expression pattern of each imprinted gene in a cluster. Proper expression of the imprinted Delta-like 1 (Dlk1) - Maternally expressed gene 3 (Meg3) gene pair is required for normal fetal development in mammals, yet the mechanisms that control tissue-specific expression of these genes are unknown. We have used a combination of in vivo and in vitro expression assays to localize cis-regulatory elements that may regulate Dlk1 expression in the mouse embryo. A bacterial artificial chromosome transgene encompassing the Dlk1 gene and 77 kb of flanking sequence conferred expression in most endogenous Dlk1-expressing tissues. In combination with previous transgenic data, these experiments localize the majority of Dlk1 cis-regulatory elements to a 41 kb region upstream of the gene. Cross-species sequence conservation was used to further define potential regulatory elements, several of which functioned as enhancers in a luciferase expression assay. Two of these elements were able to drive expression of a lacZ reporter transgene in Dlk1-expressing tissues in the mouse embryo. The sequence proximal to Dlk1 therefore contains at least two discrete regions that may regulate tissue-specificity of Dlk1 expression.
A logical model for growth and differentiation in multi-celled organisms

This paper is an attempt to provide a logical model for the process of growth and differentiation in a multi-cellular organism. More specifically it is intended to show how genetic information relating to macroscopic structure and coded in the form of a logical tree could be progressively embodied in the organism as it develops by repeated division from a single cell. The aim is to establish biological analogies rather than mathematical interest, and reproduction, adaption, and the coordinating action of hormones are discussed within the general logical framework.
Reverse mathematics and marriage problems with unique solutions

We analyze the logical strength of theorems on marriage problems with unique solutions using the techniques of reverse mathematics, restricting our attention to problems in which each boy knows only finitely many girls. In general, these marriage theorems assert that if a marriage problem has a unique solution then there is a way to enumerate the boys so that for every m, the first m boys know exactly m girls. The strength of each theorem depends on whether the underlying marriage problem is finite, infinite, or bounded.
The effects of iron fertilization on carbon sequestration in the Southern Ocean

An unresolved issue in ocean and climate sciences is whether changes to the surface ocean input of the micronutrient iron can alter the flux of carbon to the deep ocean. During the Southern Ocean Iron Experiment, we measured an increase in the flux of particulate carbon from the surface mixed layer, as well as changes in particle cycling below the iron-fertilized patch. The flux of carbon was similar in magnitude to that of natural blooms in the Southern Ocean and thus small relative to global carbon budgets and proposed geoengineering plans to sequester atmospheric carbon dioxide in the deep sea.
Blends of polystyrene and poly(n-butyl methacrylate) mediated by perfluorocarbon end groups

Abstract Structurally well-defined C4F9, C7F15, C10F21 and C13F27 end-functionalized polystyrene (RF-PS) and polybutylmethacrylate (RF-PBMA) were prepared by Atom Transfer Radical Polymerization using RF–tagged initiators. Blends (1/1 wt/wt) of these polymers were studied by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), optical transmittance(OT), electron microscopy (TEM) and optical transmittance (OT). The RF-PS/RF-PBMA blends having molecular weights of 20,000 and C7F15 or larger end groups, were optically transparent. The AFM micrographs show crater, necklace and other RF mediated morphologies typically at the submicron scale. TEM images of the corresponding blends show assembly of elongated domains with sizes in the micron or nanometer scales depending on MW and RF size. Thus, above about 3 wt percent RF content only microphases (m) are observed while below 1.8 wt percent only macrophases (M) are seen. A semi-quantitative “phase diagram” of the blends shows that lower MWs and longer RF groups improve phase compatibilities.
Comparison of automatic atherosclerosis identification methods on MR imagery

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) provides excellent soft tissue contrast enabling the non-invasive visualization of soft lissue diseases. The quantification of tissues distinguishable in MR images significantly increases the diagnostic information available to physicians. New 3-D display workstations are available that can also make use of the tissue characteristics to generate clinically useful views of a patient. While simple tissue selection methods work with computed tomography (CT) images these same methods usually do not work with MR images. Several feasibility studies of tissue classification methods have been performed on MR images but few comparative studies of these methods have been published and little work is available on the best statistical model of tissues in MIRI. We have developed a novel method for the identification and quantification of soft tissues from MRI atherosclerosis in particular. This project is part of our work on the development of tissue characterization and identification tools to facilitate soft tissue disease diagnosis and evaluation utilizing MR imagery. Several supervised pattern recognition methods were investigated for tissue identification in MR images such as a Fisher linear discriminant and a minimum distance to the means classifier. For tissue in vivo adequate histology can be difficult to collect. We used cluster analysis methods to generate the necessary training information. ISODATA was modified to use hierarchical stopping rules to determine the true number of tissues in the images. This new method was© (1990) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
How Does an Industry Thrive More From Exporting? A Theoretical Analysis of the Learning-by-Exporting Effect with Innovation and Asymmetric Demand

This paper introduces asymmetric demand into an open-economy model. Domestic industries exhibit different export capabilities, and the export market attaches different preferences to them. My model shows how exports influence the market structure and productivity growth. If an industry exports more, the firms within the industry would face a higher domestic-market but lower export-market entry threshold. The industry can exhibit a significant learning-by-exporting effect; that is, its exports can significantly increase productivity growth, only when its innovation expenditure is sufficiently high.
Assessing ecological risk in watersheds: A case study of problem formulation in the Big Darby Creek watershed, Ohio, USA

The Big Darby Creek watershed, a highly valued ecosystem in central Ohio, USA, threatened by intensive agriculture and suburban encroachment, served as an example of how case specifics can be applied to refine and direct the planning and problem formulation stage of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's ecological risk assessment framework. Big Darby Creek was selected as one of five national pilot risk assessments designed to provide specific examples of how to perform an ecological risk assessment and, at the same time, to refine and improve the assessment process. The case study demonstrates how characteristics of the watershed were used to give direction to the components of establishing goals, identifying and characterizing the resource and threats to it, selecting appropriate assessment endpoints, and developing conceptual models. The hypotheses generated in the conceptual model describe expected relationships and interactions between the ecosystem at risk, identified potential stressors, and ecological effects and set the groundwork for the analysis phase that follows problem formulation.
Pulsatile growth hormone release in normal women during the menstrual cycle

Objective We sought to characterize pulsatile growth hormone (GH) release in normal women during the menstrual cycle and to document possible relationships between such characteristics and concentrations of 17 beta-oestradiol and progesterone. Subjects Fifteen women with ostensibly normal menstrual function were studied during the early follicular phase, 15 during the late follicular phase and 15 during the mid-luteal phase of the menstrual cycle. Design The phase of the menstrual cycle having been documented, blood samples were obtained from each woman every 10 minutes for 24 hours. Measurements Serum GH was measured in each sample by immunoradiometric assay. Pulsatile GH release was appraised utilizing the objective, statistically-based pulse detection algorithm Cluster. Results The mean (+/- SEM) integrated serum GH concentration (mU/l min) in late follicular phase women (5335 +/- 848) was higher than that observed in early follicular phase women (3156 +/- 322; P = 0.032). The integrated GH concentration calculated for mid-luteal phase women (3853 +/- 788) was intermediate between but not statistically different from that observed in early follicular (P = 0.48) and late follicular (P = 0.14) phase women. No differences in GH pulse frequency (pulses/24 hours) were found among early follicular (8.27 +/- 0.55), late follicular (7.93 +/- 0.91) or mid-luteal (8.47 +/- 0.66) phase women. Mean maximal GH pulse amplitude (mU/l) was higher in late follicular phase (8.93 +/- 1.00) than early follicular phase (5.74 +/- 0.67; P = 0.008) and mid-luteal phase (5.76 +/- 0.74; P = 0.008) women. Similarly, incremental GH pulse amplitude (mU/l) was higher in late follicular phase (7.33 +/- 0.83) than early follicular phase (4.68 +/- 0.58; P = 0.005) and mid-luteal phase (4.36 +/- 0.39; P = 0.002) women. No differences in mean pulse widths or in the interpeak valley mean GH concentrations were found among the groups. Multiple regression of each pulse parameter against serum concentrations of testosterone, 17 beta-oestradiol and progesterone revealed a significant (P = 0.045) positive correlation between maximum GH pulse amplitude and oestradiol and a significant (P = 0.04) negative correlation between maximal GH pulse amplitude and progesterone (r = 0.41). Conclusion These results suggest that late follicular phase concentrations of oestradiol may enhance circulating GH via an amplitude-modulated rather than a frequency-modulated effect on the endogenous GH pulse. Progesterone may blunt this oestrogen-associated effect, thus resulting in the observed mid-luteal phase concentrations of GH. Whether these gonadal hormones act primarily at the hypothalamus and/or anterior pituitary gland remains to be clarified, but the present observations indicate that pulsatile GH release throughout the normal menstrual cycle is significantly amplitude regulated.
Insulin glargine versus intermediate-acting insulin as the basal component of multiple daily injection regimens for adolescents with type 1 diabetes mellitus.

Objectives To compare long-acting insulin glargine (Lantus) with intermediate-acting insulin (neutral protamine Hagedorn [NPH]/Lente) when used as the basal component of a multiple daily injection (MDI) regimen with prandial insulin lispro (Humalog) in adolescents with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM). Study design This was an active-controlled, randomized, open-label, sex-stratified, 2-arm, parallel-group comparison of once-daily insulin glargine with twice-daily NPH/Lente in an MDI regimen. Changes in glycated hemoglobin A1C (A1C), occurrence of hypoglycemia, and adverse events were assessed in 175 patients (age 9 to 17 years) with T1DM. Results The overall mean change in A1C from baseline to week 24 was similar in the 2 groups: insulin glargine (n = 76), −0.25% ± 0.14%; NPH/Lente (n = 81), 0.05% ± 0.13% ( P = .1725). However, an analysis of covariance, adjusting for baseline A1C, revealed a strong study arm effect on the slopes of the regression lines, indicating that the reduction in A1C was significantly greater with insulin glargine in those patients with higher baseline A1C values. The rate of confirmed glucose values P = .0298). No differences in the rate of severe hypoglycemia ( P = .1814) or the occurrence of glucose levels P = .82) or P = .32) were found between the 2 groups. Conclusions Insulin glargine is well tolerated in MDI regimens for pediatric patients with T1DM and may be more efficacious than NPH/Lente in those with elevated A1C.
Amorphous Silicon Microbolometer Technology

Highly sensitive hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) microbolometer arrays have been developed that take advantage of the high temperature coefficient of resistance (TCR) of aSi:H and its relatively high optical absorption coefficient. TCR is an important design parameter and depends on material properties such as doping concentration. Ultra-thin (∼2000 A) aSiNx:H/a-Si:H/ a-SiNx:H membranes with low thermal mass suspended over silicon readout integrated circuits are built using RF plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) and surface micromachining techniques. The IR absorptance of the bolometer detectors is enhanced by using quarter-wave resonant cavity structures and thin-film metal absorber layers. To ensure high thermal isolation the microbolometer arrays are vacuum packaged using wafer level vacuum packaging. Imaging applications include a 120×160 a-Si:H bolometer pixel array IR camera operating at ambient temperature. Non-imaging applications are multi-channel detectors for gas sensing systems.
Vulnerability of Infrastructure Systems: Macroscopic Analysis of Critical Disruptions on Road Networks

AbstractNetworked infrastructures serve as essential backbones of society. In particular, road transportation networks have a principal role in people’s everyday lives because they facilitate physical connectivity. External factors, such as disasters and failures, may degrade the performance of road networks. For example, severe flooding may disrupt a large area of a network, leading to cancellations and delay of several trips over the network. In addition, the collapse of a bridge could render certain nodes and links ineffective, thereby affecting traffic flow conditions. The authors formalized and developed a computational framework to assess vulnerability of road networks due to critical artificial or natural disruptions. The framework is built upon recent developments in interdisciplinary domains, such as network science, computational science, and transportation engineering. Using the proposed framework for the Greater Philadelphia road network, the network was divided into several high-critical, med...
Understanding the Relationship Between Instability in Child Care and Instability in Employment for Families With Subsidized Care

Through the federal child care funding and unspent Temporary Assistance to Needy Families funds, states provide subsidies for child care to some employed parents who are income-eligible. Subsidies cannot alter labor market conditions or stabilize low-wage jobs, but they can stabilize child care arrangements. With stable child care, policy makers hope parents’ workforce participation will be more stable. While researchers agree there is a strong relationship between stability in child care and stability in employment, how they are related is not clear. What drives instability in child care and instability in employment, and does instability in one arena affect the other? How might subsidies affect stability in either arena? Using data from in-depth interviews with 44 parents who received child care subsidies in Oregon, we explore the nuanced and often complex relationship between child care stability and employment stability and the effect of subsidies on that stability.
Newborn factors in maternal-infant transmission of pediatric HIV infection.

Factors affecting maternal-infant transmission (MIT) can be conveniently divided into 5 categories: (1) maternal factors (e.g. maternal immunologic status, anti-retroviral treatment), (2) virologic factors (e.g. viral load, strain, tissue tropism and resistance), (3) obstetric factors (e.g. traumatic delivery, chorioamnionitis, C-section), (4) fetal factors (e.g. prematurity, coinfection, twinning) and (5) infant factors (e.g. immune status, drugs, nutrition). Several of these factors (e.g., prematurity, maternal medication) can be classified as both maternal and fetal, and some factors (e.g. nutrition) include both fetal and neonatal period. This review focuses on the following six fetal/infant factors : (1) timing of transmission, (2) prematurity, (3) fetal and neonatal nutrition, (4) neonatal GI function, (5) breastfeeding, and (6) the maturity of infant's immune system. Ways in which these factors may influence both the rate of MIT and the progression of the disease in the infant are discussed.
Latent topic feedback for information retrieval

We consider the problem of a user navigating an unfamiliar corpus of text documents where document metadata is limited or unavailable, the domain is specialized, and the user base is small. These challenging conditions may hold, for example, within an organization such as a business or government agency. We propose to augment standard keyword search with user feedback on latent topics. These topics are automatically learned from the corpus in an unsupervised manner and presented alongside search results. User feedback is then used to reformulate the original query, resulting in improved information retrieval performance in our experiments.
Common Gynecologic Problems in Prepubertal Girls

1. Naomi F. Sugar, MD* 2. Elinor A. Graham, MD, MPH† 1. *Clinical Associate Professor, Department of Pediatrics, Division of General Pediatrics, University of Washington, Seattle, Wash 2. †Associate Professor, Department of Pediatrics, Division of General Pediatrics, University of Washington, Seattle, Wash After completing this article, readers should be able to: 1. Describe techniques to perform an adequate and gentle genital examination in a school-age girl. 2. Discuss the differential diagnosis for vaginal bleeding in the prepubertal girl. 3. Identify a strategy to diagnose and treat vaginitis in the prepubertal child. Assessing gynecologic symptoms and signs in prepubertal children can be a challenge for pediatricians. Adult pelvic examinations are a standard part of medical school education, and learning objectives for the American Board of Pediatrics emphasize knowledge of adolescent gynecology. Pediatric practice standards recommend routine external examinations for girls of all ages at health supervision examinations. Unfortunately, pediatricians often lack training in examination techniques, determination of normal findings, and gynecologic pathology of infants and prepubertal children. In the past decade, a high level of concern for child sexual abuse and emphasis on the sentinel role of pediatricians in recognizing abnormalities due to child abuse paradoxically has left pediatricians and other child health clinicians more anxious and uncomfortable in performing these examinations. However, although child sexual abuse is common, it rarely is diagnosed primarily by physical complaints. It is much more likely that a girl who is brought to the physician because of genital symptoms has either normal variant findings or a nontraumatic disorder. (1) The aim of this article is to review normal anatomy and physiology in infants and prepubertal children, emphasizing developmental changes, normal variants, and the differential diagnosis for common signs and symptoms. ### Infant and Toddler The newborn girl is affected by maternal estrogens that cross the placenta. Breast buds are usual, and a milky discharge from the nipples is not uncommon. Like her mother, the neonate may develop mastitis. Vaginal discharge is common in newborns, as are long hymenal tags that frequently are visible, extending outside the vestibule. The vaginal epithelium also demonstrates the estrogen …
A full-rate, full-diversity four-antenna quasi-orthogonal space-time block code

We present a complex, full-rate quasi-orthogonal space-time block code for four transmit antennas. Using carefully tailored constellation phase rotations, we show that this code achieves full diversity for specialized PSK-based constellations. The optimal receiver for the new code decouples the symbol detection problem into pairs of symbols, thus greatly reducing complexity. Finally, we present and compare performance of the new code with several other codes in the literature. The new code is shown to perform as well as the best known code of its class.
Neutral and cationic phosphoramide adducts of silicon tetrachloride: synthesis and characterization of their solution and solid-state structures.

The solution and solid-state structures of hexamethylphosphoramide (HMPA) adducts of tetrachlorosilane (SiCl 4 ) are discussed. In solution, the meridional and facial isomers of the hexa-coordinate cationic complex 3HMPA·SiCl 3 + Cl - (2) predominate at all HMPA concentrations, and are in equilibrium with the hexa-coordinate neutral trans- and cis-2HMPA·SiCl 4 complexes (1), as well as the penta-coordinate cationic cis-2HMPA·SiCl 3 + Cl - (3). Single crystal X-ray analyses are reported for the ionized mer-3HMPA·SiCl 3 + HCl 2 - and the neutral trans-2HMPA·SiCl 4 complexes.