cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Blood acetaldehyde fluctuates markedly during bovine estrous cycle

Abstract Our interest in the study of volatile sexual pheromones given off by cows as they enter estrus caused us to use blood head-space gas chromatography (HSCG) to monitor changes of volatile compounds during 18 complete estrous cycles of five adult cows. We observed several distinct components in the chromatographic profile, but only one component changed in concentration with the stage of the estrous cycle. Analysis of 164 blood samples revealed that the size of the peak representing this compound varied widely during the cycle and among cows. However, all cows typically showed a similar qualitative pattern of a rise and then a fall in peak area just prior to or at the time of standing estrus (the day when cows will stand still for mounting). This peak of interest eluted from the chromatographic column in less than 3 min at room temperature. Thus, we knew that the molecule was small and highly volatile. This was confirmed by preliminary mass spectral analysis, which suggested some candidate compounds. Spiking of blood samples with small amounts of these candidate compounds revealed that acetaldehyde co-eluted with our peak of interest. To collect sufficient quantity of this compound for mass spectral identification, we tested various ways to increase head space concentration. Best results occurred by adding potassium carbonate to the blood and heating it for 30 min at 90°C. This head-space gas was then derivatized by bubbling it through an acidified solution of 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine. Mass spectral analysis of the derivatized product confirmed that our compound of interest was acetaldehyde. We suggest that sexual hormones regulate the metabolic production of acetaldehyde. Estrus and ovulation could potentially be predicted by nondashinvasive monitoring levels of acetaldehyde in body fluids such as saliva, milk, sweat or even breath.
Multiple Steps Determine the Overall Rate of the Reduction of 5α-Dihydrotestosterone Catalyzed by Human Type 3 3α-Hydroxysteroid Dehydrogenase: Implications for the Elimination of Androgens†

Human type 3 3α-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase, or aldo-keto reductase (AKR) 1C2, eliminates the androgen signal in human prostate by reducing 5α-dihydrotestosterone (DHT, potent androgen) to form 3α-androstanediol (inactive androgen), thereby depriving the androgen receptor of its ligand. The kcat for the NADPH-dependent reduction of DHT catalyzed by AKR1C2 is 0.033 s-1. We employed transient kinetics and kinetic isotope effects to dissect the contribution of discrete steps to this low kcat value. Stopped-flow experiments to measure the formation of the AKR1C2·NADP(H) binary complex indicated that two slow isomerization events occur to yield a tight complex. A small primary deuterium isotope effect on kcat (1.5) and a slightly larger effect on kcat/Km (2.1) were observed in the steady state. In the transient state, the maximum rate constant for the single turnover of DHT (ktrans) was determined to be 0.11 s-1 for the NADPH-dependent reaction, which was ∼4-fold greater than the corresponding kcat. ktrans wa...
The average 0.5–200 keV spectrum of local active galactic nuclei and a new determination of the 2–10 keV luminosity function at z ≈ 0

The broadband X-ray spectra of AGNs contains information about the nuclear environment from Schwarzschild radii scales to distances of ~1 pc. In addition, the average shape of the X-ray spectrum is an important input into X-ray background synthesis models. Here, local (z \approx 0) AGN luminosity functions (LFs) in five energy bands are used as a low-resolution, luminosity-dependent X-ray spectrometer in order to constrain the average AGN X-ray spectrum between 0.5 and 200 keV. The 15-55 keV LF measured by Swift-BAT is assumed to be the best determination of the local LF, and then a spectral model is varied to determine the best fit to the 0.5-2 keV, 2-10 keV, 3-20 keV and 14-195 keV LFs. The spectral model consists of a Gaussian distribution of power-laws with a mean photon-index and cutoff energy E_cut, as well as contributions from distant and disc reflection. The reflection strength is parameterised by varying the Fe abundance relative to solar, A_Fe, and requiring a specific Fe K equivalent width (EW). In this way, the presence of the X-ray Baldwin effect can be tested. The spectral model that best fits the four LFs has = 1.85 \pm 0.15, E_cut=270^{+170}_{-80} keV, A_Fe=0.3^{+0.3}_{-0.15} (90% C.L.). The sub-solar A_Fe indicates the presence of strong reflection given the assumed Fe K EW. Indeed, parameterising the reflection strength with the R parameter gives R=1.7^{+1.7}_{-0.85}. There is moderate evidence for no X-ray Baldwin effect. A critical result of our procedure is that the shape of the local 2-10 keV LF measured by HEAO-1 and MAXI is incompatible with the LFs measured in the hard X-rays by Swift-BAT and RXTE. We therefore present a new determination of the local 2-10 keV LF that is consistent with all other energy bands.This new LF should be used to revise current measurements of the evolving AGN LF in the 2-10 keV band.
Immological determination of transducin content in retinas exhibiting inherited degeneration

The inherited disorders of rd mice and affected Irish setter dogs are characterized by the accumulation of cyclic GMP (cGMP). Since the cGMP level in normal retinal rods is regulated by a light-activated enzyme cascade involving rhodopsin, transducin, and phosphodiesterase, an abnormality associated with any of these three proteins would cause cGMP accumulation. In order to determine the relationship between different forms of retinal degeneration and the transducin content in the affected retinas, affinity-purified antibodies directed against the individual subunits of bovine transducin were prepared. These antibodies, which recognized transducin in many vertebrate species, were used to compare the retinal content of this protein at various stages of inherited photoreceptor degeneration. In each of the disorders studied (rd and rds mice, RCS rat, and affected Irish setter dog), retinas at early stages of degeneration displayed two characteristics similar to those of normal control retinas. First, all three subunits of transducin were detected and found to have normal electrophoretic mobility, suggesting that these disorders are unlikely to be due to changes in the composition of transducin subunits. Second, the amount of cross-reactive T beta always exceeded those of T alpha and T gamma. This disproportionately higher amount of T beta-like protein became more pronounced as the visual cells degenerated. In retinas which had undergone complete photoreceptor degeneration, cross-reactive T alpha and T gamma were undetectable. In contrast, anti-T beta gamma antibodies detected an amount of T beta-like polypeptide corresponding to 10-25% of the control. Since our anti-T beta gamma antibodies recognize the beta subunit of the GTP-binding N proteins of the adenylate cyclase system, this finding suggests that this residual T beta-like protein, which is not part of transducin, may be associated with other GTP-binding regulatory proteins.
Damage Accumulation During Multiple Stress Level Fatigue of Short-Glass-Fiber Reinforced Styrene-Maleic Anhydride

Multi-stress fatigue of short-glass-fiber-reinforced styrene-maleic anhydride (S/MA) composite materials has been studied. Specimens were tested in tension-tension fatigue (R = 0.1) in two patterns: high-stress fatigue followed by low-stress fatigue (high-low) and low stress followed by high stress (low-high). Results were analyzed using the Palmgren-Miner cumulative damage law. High-low fatigue gave Miner’s sums very close to unity, and Miner’s sums below unity were obtained for low-high fatigue. A minimum value below unity for low-high fatigue corresponded to a regime in which the first block of cycling was carried to 15% of the life.These results were interpreted by evaluating the evolution of damage and the role of plastic deformation in the fatigue behavior. The high-stress fatigue created a more extensive region of crazing in the matrix material. This plastic deformation increased the mechanical clamping force on the short fibers, making the composite more resistant to subsequent low-stress fatigue ...
Orientational distribution function in nematic tobacco-mosaic-virus liquid crystals measured by X-ray diffraction

Orientational distributions of the rod-shaped tobacco-mosaic-virus particle in magnetically aligned nematic solutions ($0.05M$ borate buffer, $p\mathrm{H} 8.5$) were measured by analysis of the angular spread of x-ray diffraction patterns. We measured Gaussian orientational distributions with order parameters varying between 0.77 in a solution with coexisting nematic and isotropic phase, to 0.95 in the single-phase nematic solution at higher concentration. Our experimental results are in good agreement with model calculations based on a modified Onsager theory for suspensions of hard rods.
Collector's Guide to the Chlorite Group

All photos by the author of specimens in his collection Mineral collectors may be forgiven if they have a love/hate relationship with the chlorite group. When a green microscopic or earthy phase is...
Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) inhibition of monocyte binding by vascular endothelium is associated with sialylation of neural cell adhesion molecule.

Rationale: Adhesion of monocytes to vascular endothelium is necessary for atheroma formation. This adhesion requires binding of endothelial neural cell adhesion molecule (NCAM) to monocyte NCAM. NCAM:NCAM binding is blocked by sialylation of NCAM (polysialylated NCAM; PSA-NCAM). Since estradiol (E2) and dihydrotestosterone (DHT) induced PSA-NCAM and decreased monocyte adhesion, in consideration of possible clinical applications we tested whether their prohormone dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) has similar effects. Experimental: (1) DHEA was administered to cultured human coronary artery endothelial cells (HCAECs) from men and women. Monocyte binding was assessed using fluorescence-labeled monocytes. (2) HCEACs were incubated with E2, DHT, DHEA alone, or with trilostane, fulvestrant or flutamide. Expression of PSA-NCAM was assessed by immunohistochemistry and Western blotting. Results: Dehydroepiandrosterone inhibited monocyte adhesion to HCAECs by ≥50% (P < .01). Fulvestrant or flutamide blockade of DHEA’s inhibition of monocyte binding appeared to be gender dependent. The DHEA-induced expression of PSA-NCAM was completely blocked by trilostane. Conclusions: In these preliminary in vitro studies, DHEA increased PSA-NCAM expression and inhibited monocyte binding in an estrogen- and androgen receptor-dependent manner. Dehydroepiandrosteroneappears to act via its end metabolites, E2 and DHT. Dehydroepiandrosterone could furnish clinical prevention against atherogenesis and arteriosclerosis.
The appeal and behavior of the ku kiux klan in object relations perspective

Abstract The conspicuous and peculiarly ruinous behavior of the Ku Klux Klan may provide an example of psychosocial pathology that can be usefully analyzed via an extension of object relations theory. This largely theoretical paper employs the concept, pioneered by Klein, of the split maternal presence and advances the theoretical hypothesis that this split is projected into social life. Some deprived and psychologically damaged adults experience the “maternal presence” of society as split and have special requirements for group support. Under certain circumstances, groups like the KKK may meet those requirements. In addition, the eruption of group violence of the KKK type may be explainable by analyzing the psychodynamics of group regression to an infantile level and the accompanying arousal of the “unmanageable mother.”
Interruptions in Task-oriented Conversations: Effects of Violations of Expectations by Males and Females

The issue of power is a fascinating one, both for communication researchers and for the public at large. Power, the ability to influence or to perhaps control the behavior of others, is an important interpersonal phenomenon. The study of power, including its bases and manifestations, has generated a large body of both scientific and popular literature. Some investigators of power in communication have sought to identify conversational features that signal attempts to gain interpersonal power through communication. Interruptions appear to be in this category of conversational features. It has been argued that interlocutors may use interruption as a means of establishing dominance over their fellows; i.e., as a means to acquire power. If so, who might use such a device and what might the results of such behavior be? It is to these questions that the reported study addresses itself. The purpose of this study is threefold: a) to describe and investigate a communication phenomenon called the deep interruption,...
Dendrite bundles in the ventral commissure of cat spinal cord.

Abstract The dendrites which cross midline from one spinal ventral horn to the other in the dendritic commissure of Cajal are organized into bundles similar to those we have previously described elsewhere in spinal cord, brainstem reticular formation, and thalamus. These commissural bundles are made up of dendrites from motoneurons of functionally diverse pools from both sides of the cord, in addition to the shafts of many interneurons. These bundle complexes appear to be present at birth in both cervical and lumbosacral regions. They are conceived as the repository for central programs concerned with reflexive response sequences involving pairs of extremities, such as stepping and walking.
Benefits and risks in malaria control.

The Reports by S. Blanford et al. (“Fungal pathogen reduces potential for malaria transmission,” 10 June, p. [1638][1]) and E.-J. Scholte et al. (“An entomopathogenic fungus for control of adult African malaria mosquitoes,” 10 June, p. [1641][2]) identify the fungus Metarhizium anisopliae as
The adolescent and contraception: issues and controversies.

Issues relating to adolescent sexuality and high fertility in the U.S. are reviewed briefly. Similar issues in the developing world are discussed, with emphasis placed on the limited data on the subject currently available in most developing countries. The contraceptive options available for the sexually active teenager are presented, together with a discussion of the very difficult decisions and controversies that result from the lack of an ideal or even preferable method of contraception at present.
MULTIVARIATE PHENOTYPIC DIFFERENTIATION AMONG BOTTLENECK LINES OF THE HOUSEFLY.

Multivariate phenotypic differentiation in eight morphometric traits was examined in bottleneck lines of the housefly initiated with one, four, or 16 pairs of flies from a natural outbred population. Differentiation was assessed using a Mahalanobis' distance metric in units of additive genetic variance and covariance estimated from the ancestral population (i.e., generalized genetic distance). This distance metric was partitioned into contributions of size and shape to total distance. Bottleneck lines of all sizes diverged significantly from the ancestral line, but the direction of these shifts differed among the lines of different initial founding size. Those populations founded with single pairs diverged from the ancestral line mostly in shape; the 16-pair lines differentiated almost entirely in size, and the four-pair lines were intermediate in the relative contribution of shape to differentiation from the control. Bottlenecks serve to alter the genetic relationships among traits within the derived populations and in doing so could promote speciation by permitting differentiation of the populations along evolutionary trajectories less accessible to the base population.
Statistical Methods in Compressive Imaging

This talk will review recent developments in the use of statistical methods for inversion of data that are acquired compressively. A particular focus will be placed on dictionary learning and its connection to mixture models. It will be explained how these methods can be used to achieve very efficient inversion, with state-of-the-art accuracy. The basic framework will be demonstrated as applied to real compressively acquired data. In particular, we will consider compressive measurements with respect to time, spectrum and focus. Article not available.
Irrelevance of the Power Stroke for the Directionality, Stopping Force, and Optimal Efficiency of Chemically Driven Molecular Machines

A simple model for a chemically driven molecular walker shows that the elastic energy stored by the molecule and released during the conformational change known as the power-stroke (i.e., the free-energy difference between the pre- and post-power-stroke states) is irrelevant for determining the directionality, stopping force, and efficiency of the motor. Further, the apportionment of the dependence on the externally applied force between the forward and reverse rate constants of the power-stroke (or indeed among all rate constants) is irrelevant for determining the directionality, stopping force, and efficiency of the motor. Arguments based on the principle of microscopic reversibility demonstrate that this result is general for all chemically driven molecular machines, and even more broadly that the relative energies of the states of the motor have no role in determining the directionality, stopping force, or optimal efficiency of the machine. Instead, the directionality, stopping force, and optimal efficiency are determined solely by the relative heights of the energy barriers between the states. Molecular recognition—the ability of a molecular machine to discriminate between substrate and product depending on the state of the machine—is far more important for determining the intrinsic directionality and thermodynamics of chemo-mechanical coupling than are the details of the internal mechanical conformational motions of the machine. In contrast to the conclusions for chemical driving, a power-stroke is very important for the directionality and efficiency of light-driven molecular machines and for molecular machines driven by external modulation of thermodynamic parameters.
Confirmatory factor analysis of the Sensitivity to Punishment and Sensitivity to Reward Questionnaire

Abstract The Sensitivity to Punishment and Sensitivity to Reward Questionnaire (SPSRQ) was developed by Torrubia et al. (1995) as a self-report measure of the Behavioral Inhibition System (BIS) and the Behavioral Approach System (BAS), two motivational systems proposed by Gray’s model (1975, 1982, 1987a, 1987b). Past research used exploratory factor analysis to examine the factor structure of the SPSRQ. Some support was found for 2 orthogonal factors––Sensitivity to Punishment and Sensitivity to Reward, which correspond to the BIS and BAS, respectively. The purpose of the present study was to further assess the underlying factor structure of the SPSRQ using Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA). Results did not support two-, three-, four-, or five-factor models. Based on factor loadings the two-factor CFA, items were removed systematically and a final model, with a reduced pool of items, was tested with the original data sample (N=603) and two additional independent samples (N=104; N=163). Results based on the reduced pool of items suggested support for a two-factor model, but some problems were identified, thus further improvements in this self-report measure should be considered in future research.
REGGE MODEL IN HIGH-ENERGY LEPTON PROCESSES.

The application of Regge-model ideas to high-energy semileptonic reactions is taken up in some detail for the process $\ensuremath{\nu}+p\ensuremath{\rightarrow}{\ensuremath{\mu}}^{\ensuremath{-}}+p+{\ensuremath{\pi}}^{+}$ (and its electroproduction analogs), and, qualitatively, for more complicated processes of the sort $\ensuremath{\nu}+p\ensuremath{\rightarrow}{\ensuremath{\mu}}^{\ensuremath{-}}+p+{X}_{1}+{X}_{2}+\dots{}$.
The effect of the selective reversible acetylcholinesterase inhibitor E2020 on extracellular acetylcholine and biogenic amine levels in rat cortex

E2020 is a piperidine cholinesterase inhibitor (ChEI) which is structurally distinct from other compounds presently under study for treatment of Alzheimer's disease. We studied the effect of this compound on acetylcholine (ACh), norepinephrine (NE), dopamine (DA) and serotonin (5-HT; 5-hydroxytryptamine) by means of transcortical microdialysis in the cortex of awake rats with no ChEI in the probe. We also compared the inhibition of brain cholinesterase (ChE) by two different approaches. Following 0.5 and 2.0 mg/kg s.c. administration, the increase in ACh was 200% (30 min) and 2100% (1 hr), respectively. The maximal ChE inhibition at 30 min was 35.5% (2.0 mg/kg) and 15.6% (0.5 mg/kg) when measured as ACh hydrolysis in the diluted homogenate. After the 2.0 mg/kg dose, phosphorylation by DFP was completely blocked at 30 min. After 0.5 mg/kg, ChE phosphorylation was maximally inhibited at 30 min (56%) and declined thereafter to negligible levels by 3 hr. In addition, E2020 increased extracellular levels of catecholamines in cortex in agreement with our previous findings with carbamate ChEI. Following 2.0 mg/kg, both NE (100%) and DA (80%) were elevated, whereas after 0.5 mg/kg only NE (50%) was affected. Neither dose affected extracellular 5-HT. Thus, E2020, which inhibits brain ChE by a novel, reversible mechanism, elevates extracellular ACh in a comparable manner to other centrally-active ChEI, and this elevation of ACh is associated with stimulation of catecholamine release.
Covert behavior modification: An experimental analogue

Abstract Data are presented from two experiments investigating the modifiability of covert responses. We chose imagery as the target behavior because of its significant role in behavior therapy techniques. Recent evidence on the facilitative effects of imagery in paired-associate learning enabled us to corroborate self-reports of covert responding. In an attempt to control the frequency of imagery, subjects were either reinforced or punished for self-reports of specific associate methods. The data indicated predictable frequency changes in imagery as a function of external contingency arrangements. An analysis of differential recall performance substantiated subject's self-reports by showing a consistent superiority on imagined (versus non-imagined) items. These findings are interpreted as supportive of the homogeneity assumption regarding overt and covert behavior principles. Clinical implications are briefly discussed.
Weights for data related by a tree

How can one characterize a set of data collected from different biological species, or indeed any set of data related by an evolutionary tree? The structure imposed by the tree implies that the data are not independent, and for most applications this should be taken into account. We describe strategies for weighting the data that circumvent some of the problems of dependency.
SNPP VIIRS thermal emissive band thermal calibration errors and their impact on radiance and brightness temperature retrieval

The Visible-Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) on-board the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (SNPP) spacecraft as a primary sensor was launched October 28, 2011. It has 22 bands: 7 thermal emissive bands (TEBs), 14 reflective solar bands (RSBs) and a Day Night Band (DNB). The TEBs are calibrated on-orbit using the On-Board Calibrator BlackBody (OBCBB) as a thermal source every scan to track the detector gain change. A thermal model is used in both the OBCBB derived gain calibration as well as in other corrections to the Earth View (EV) radiance and brightness temperature retrievals. This thermal model uses prelaunch calibration coefficients to convert detector response into radiance as well as VIIRS cavity thermistors to estimate the sensor's internal emission contributions. The inputs to the thermal model have uncertainties which introduce errors in both the gain correction and the EV retrievals. This paper will discuss the impacts of the thermal model uncertainties on the VIIRS calibration.
The virion of the lipid-containing bacteriophage PR4

Abstract Bacteriophage PR4 is a lipid-containing phage that infects Escherichia coli K-12. We have examined the molecular composition of homogeneous preparations of this phage with the following results. The genome is a linear double-stranded DNA molecule of 14,500 base pairs ( M r 9.6 × 10 6 ) having a GC content of 46%. The phage lipids are 98% (by weight) phospholipids and 2% neutral lipids. The phospholipids consist of 56% phosphatidylethanolamine, 37% phosphatidylglycerol, and 4.6% cardiolipin, by weight. The relative phosphatidylglycerol content of the phage phospholipids is twice that found in the host cell. The fatty acid compositions of the viral and cellular phospholipids are identical. The phage capsid contains 14 proteins ranging in molecular weight from 9000 to 60,000. The major capsid protein, comprising 80% of the total virion protein, has a molecular weight of 37,200. The purified phage contains 73% protein, 13% lipid, and 14% DNA (by weight) and has an isoelectric point of pH 4.2.
Filial Obligations in Post-Divorce Stepfamilies

Abstract The purpose of this study was to assess adult children's obligations to assist older divorced parents and stepparents. Attitudes of 1,009 randomly selected participants were elicited using a vignette that portrayed a situation adult (step)children experience in post-divorce families. Findings suggest that, (a) adult children are obligated to help their divorced parents, (b) kinship is not a sufficient reason for most people to attribute obligations to adult children, although familial obligation is the most frequently offered rationale for helping divorced parents, (c) adult stepchildren are perceived to be responsible to help their stepparents, (d) there is consensus regarding the type of help that should and should not be given by (step)children to (step)parents, (e) adult (step) children are not perceived to be obligated to provide physicalcaregiving for (step)parents, (f) relationship quality is an important criterion for attributing responsibilities to stepchildren, and (g) older adults diff...
The direct thermal effects of the refrigerant R-134A on atmospheric surface temperature

Abstract The direct thermal effect of refrigerant R-134A (1, 1, 1, 2-tetrafluoroethane) has been evaluated using a one-dimensional radiative-convective model of the atmosphere. The surface temperature increase from a uniform 1 ppbv distribution of R-134A was calculated to be less than 0.04 K, as compared to 0.14 K for 1 ppbv of R-12. Using recent extimates (Anderson L., 1981, Atmospheric Environment 15 , 1579–1582) of 0.1 ppbv for the worst case ground level concentration of R-134A, our results give a temperature increase from direct thermal heating of 0.004 K, about an order of magnitude less than that from R-12.
Understanding and visualizing microstructure and microstructure variance as a stochastic process

Abstract The study of microstructure–property relationships is a defining concept in the field of materials science and engineering. Despite the paramount importance of microstructure to the field a rigorous systematic framework for the description of structural variance between samples of materials with the same processing history and between different materials classes has yet to be adopted. Here the authors utilize the formalism of stochastic processes to develop a statistical definition of microstructure and develop measures of structural variance in terms of the measured variance of estimators of higher order probability distributions. Principal component analysis (PCA) of higher order distributions is used to produce visualization of the space spanned by an ensemble of microstructure realizations and for quantification of the structural variance within the ensemble. The structural variance is correlated with the variance in properties and structure/property maps are produced in the PCA space.
Measuring electrical resistivity to interpret tectonic plate coupling

The coupling of tectonic plates—the degree to which the plates are locked together or free to move—is controlled by factors ranging from temperature and pressure to the shear stress between the plates as well as the shape of the interface between the plates. At subduction margins, GPS observations can be used to identify places where the subducting plates are locked or unlocked. At the Hikurangi margin, a subduction zone that runs north to south off New Zealand's eastern coast, a strong longitudinal gradient in plate coupling is present that is unexplained by any of the familiar factors.
A dedicated system for acoustic detection of coronary artery disease (ADCAD)

A PC-based real time system for noninvasive detection of coronary artery disease (CAD) is described. The ADCAD system allows a relatively untrained operator to start an automatic sequencing process which includes acquisition of diastolic heart sounds, display, real-time editing and artifact rejection, diastolic segment isolation, and various spectral analysis techniques.
EDITORIAL: ITS Technologies and Techniques for Traffic Operations and Management

Intelligent transportation systems have been maturing over the last two decades. Some of the technologies have had significant impacts on transportation operations. Our motivation for this issue wa...
Modelling of the nucleation temperature of the f.c.c. phase competing with glass formation in Cu-Ti alloys

Abstract The observed occurrence of a metastable f.c.c. phase competing with glass formation, and also occurring partially with metallic glass, in Cu-Ti alloys subjected to pulsed laser irradiation has been modelled in terms of both thermodynamic and kinetic parameters. The driving free energy ΔGv for the formation of the f.c.c. phase from supercooled liquid alloys can be shown to be the result of a shallow T0 curve extending from the Cu side of the phase diagram and laying substantially above the glass transition temperature (Tg) at all compositions. The dependence of the nucleation temperature Tn upon the cooling rate Ṫ has been modelled for conditions related to substrate epitaxy and also for nucleation in the bulk supercooled liquid. In the former case, when suitable assumptions are made about the values of interfacial energy (γ) and activation energy for diffusion (Q), it has been shown that Tn is profoundly depressed with increasing Ṫ for Ṫ values exceeding 109K/s, the effect being m the middle of the phase diagram, as observed experimentally. When Ṫ is about 1010K/s, Tn, is depressed below Tg over a wide range of compositions, approximately in agreement with the observed glass formation range in the Cn-Ti system. Considerations of possible bulk nucleation (homogeneous or heterogeneous) indicate that the nucleation temperature associated with this type of nucleation must be above the nucleation temperature for substrate-related nucleation. The estimated growth times of the f.c.c. microcrystals competing with glass formation are of the order of microseconds. Combined with the growth velocities (ifνc), which are of the order of meters/sec, they account for the very small average size (100 A) of the experimentally observed microcrystals. The actual growth velocities may be smaller than the speed (ντ) with which the temperature isotherms traverse the resolidifying zone. A model of growth is proposed which accounts for the observed mixture of f.c.c. crystals and metallic glass in the re-solidified zone.
Tn7 transposition: recognition of the attTn7 target sequence

The bacterial transposon Tn7 encodes two distinct but overlapping transposition pathways. tnsABC + tnsD promote transposition to a specific site, attTn7, while tnsABC + tnsE promote transposition to many other sites unrelated to attTn7. We have identified a tnsD-dependent DNA binding activity that specifically recognizes attTn7. We have localized the recognition sequences for this activity to a 28-base-pair region and have shown that this same region can provide specific properties of an attTn7 target in vivo. Interestingly, these sequences are positioned more than 25 base pairs from the specific point of Tn7 insertion.
Managing for variability to sustain freshwater ecosystems

Water resources development for human needs has come at a significant cost to the natural functioning of aquatic and riparian ecosystems in the United States and around the world. The construction of hundreds of thousands of dams nationally and globally and the extensive human transformation of land cover have greatly modified the magnitude, timing, and duration of river flows that have historically sustained naturally dynamic riverine ecosystems Graf 1999; Nilsson et al. 2005; Poff et al. 2006 . This pervasive alteration is contributing to the global crisis of biodiversity loss in freshwater ecosystems and to the degradation of many of the natural goods and services that these ecosystems provide to human communities Postel and Richter 2003; Dudgeon et al. 2006; Poff et al. 2007 . The importance of sustaining healthy ecosystems to support human well-being in a world of shrinking water resource availability is now broadly recognized World Commission on Dams 2000; Gleick 2003; Millennium Ecosystem Assessment 2003 . The many economic benefits provided to human society from maintaining healthy aquatic and riparian ecosystems, coupled with the high cost and difficulty of restoring degraded ecosystems Bernhardt et al. 2005 , have fueled the growing awareness that principles of ecosystem science need to be more fully integrated into water resources planning and management. The term “environmental flows” has emerged to capture the important idea that nature must be allocated a share of water in water resources management if such planning and development is truly to be integrated integrated water resources management or IWRM Naiman et al. 2002; Bernhardt et al. 2006 . Environmental flows are defined by the Brisbane Declaration http://www.river symposium.com/index.php? element 2007 BrisbaneDeclaration 241007 as the quantity, timing, and quality of water flows required to sustain freshwater and estuarine ecosystems and the human livelihoods and well-being that depend on these ecosystems. In recent years, guidelines for environmental flows have been developed and variously implemented in many places in the United States and around the world. Such developments are certainly encouraging; however, a key issue in actually achieving ecologically sustainable development revolves around just how these environmental flows are defined and implemented. All too often, there is a precarious balance between provision of even minimal environmental flows and real or perceived human demand, leading to social conflict and associated legal or regulatory challenges Poff et al. 2003 . Maintaining adequate environmental flows in heavily allocated basins is especially difficult and is becoming more commonplace—the Klamath River basin Oregon and California , the Appalachicola-ChatahoocheeFlint basin Georgia, Alabama, and Florida , and the recent drought conditions in the city of Atlanta are but a few contemporary examples of conflicts that threaten to undermine the political will necessary to sustain healthy riverine ecosystems. Such con-
Intratemporal and intracranial complications of acute otitis media in a pediatric population

Abstract Objective To review all cases intratemporal and intracranial complications of acute otitis media (AOM) in infants and children from 1998 to 2013. Methods Retrospective chart review of 109 consecutive patients admitted for complications of AOM during a 15-year period at a tertiary-care children's hospital. The main outcomes are: (1) complications of AOM, (2) bacteriology, (3) management strategies. Results In our population, complications included mastoiditis (86.1%), subperiosteal abscess (38%), facial nerve palsy (16.7%), sigmoid sinus thrombosis (8.3%) and epidural abscess (7.4%). Other complications included post-auricular cellulitis, otic hydrocephalus and elevated intracranial pressure, internal jugular thrombosis, cranial nerve VI palsy and Gradenigo's syndrome, labyrinthine fistula, sensorineural hearing loss, and cerebellar infarct. Sixty-one patients (56%) received antibiotics prior to presentation. Cultures revealed Streptococcus pneumoniae in 36 patients (33.3%), other bacteria in 30 patients (27.8%), and “no growth” in 33 patients (30.5%). Nine patients (8.3%) did not undergo culture. Of the patients with S. pneumoniae, 20 cultures (55%) were found to be multidrug-resistant. Eleven patients (10.2%) were treated non-surgically, 31 (31%) were treated with myringotomy and intravenous antibiotics. Forty patients (97.5%) presenting with subperiosteal abscess required mastoid surgery. Thirteen of 18 (72.2%) patients with facial paralysis had full recovery. Eight of 10 (80%) patients with epidural abscess empyema required mastoid surgery and incision and drainage of the abscess. Conclusion Complications of AOM are uncommon, yet continue to have potentially serious consequences. The bacteriology in this population reveals an increasing trend of multi-drug resistant S. pneumoniae as the causative organism.
Start a Clinical Research Project

Experienced clinical healthcare providers ought to investigate challenging roles and activities. The utilization of seasoned role models is an effective method for learning thought-provoking aspects of the professional role. Lifelong learning is a responsibility for every professional nurse. The challenge of seeking and succeeding at acquiring new competence within a different role is a goal to be aggressively sought in the current healthcare arena. The willingness to confront fears and challenges is a quality to be developed and utilized. As the nursing profession is endeavoring to establish its unique place in the healthcare field, the eagerness to confront challenges is a quality to be valued. Since the face of America is changing, professional nurses must be ready and capable of meeting the challenges confronting the healthcare arena. Cultural awareness, moving to a higher level of practice by incorporating research ideas, and changing the mindset of how nurses think are vital aspects integrated into this changing environment. Nurses must have a vision about the future. By being open and interested in seeking new trials, the nursing profession can make changes to improve the future for clients, thus the practice of nursing.
Syllabic features and phonic impression in English, German, French and Spanish

An attempt is made to analyze objectively the syllabic features which contribute to the subjective impression a language makes upon a foreign ear. Four languages are involved in this analysis - English, German, French and Spanish. The syllabic character of each one is emphasized by comparison with the others. 2000 syllables are analyzed in each of the four languages. Seven aspects of the syllable emerge from the objective data. (1) Phonic content in terms of place of articulation based either on the ten most frequent syllables or on the complete corpus of 2000 syllables, shows the following preferences: in English, apical consonants with central vowels: in German, apical consonants with center and front vowels; in (2) The research reported herein was performed pursuant to a contract with the United States Department of Health, Education and Welfare, Office of Education. French, apical consonants with front vowels; in Spanish, apical consonants with a balance of open and mid-open vowels. (2) Consonant-to-vowel ratio, or simply consonantal load since each syllable has only one vowel, is highest in German, almost balanced in English, and lowest in French and Spanish. (3) Variety and complexity of syllabic structures are both greater in the two Germanic languages than in the two Romance languages. The prevailing structures are divided among CVC and CV in German and English, whereas in Spanish and French the CV structure holds a majority by itself alone. (4) Syllable length, in terms of number of phonemes, is also greater in Germanic than in Latin languages. (5) The predominance of closed syllables in German and English (63 and 60 percent) is almost as marked as the preference for open syllables in Spanish and French (72 and 76 percent). (6) In frequency of different-syllable structures, Spanish stands alone - it shows the smallest number of different syllables; English shows the largest number, with German and French not far behind. (7) And again Spanish is set apart with respect to the relationship of syllable length with average-group frequency — Spanish repeats its shorter syllables more often than the three other languages. To these objective data correspond subjective impressions such as frontal resonance, active articulation, auditory richness, forward motion, heaviness, musical predominance, sequential legato, repetitiveness, monotony, (or their opposites) the sum of which contributes considerably to characterizing a language.
Analysis of Fracture Mechanics Specimens Made of Inconel 600 Based on Assessment Methods of Different Complexity

Fracture mechanics analysis plays an important role in the frame of the safety assessment of nuclear components. Usually the goal of such an analysis is to decide if a given flaw size in the piping (or any component of the primary circuit) is acceptable or not. The word “acceptable” means that structural integrity of the component is guaranteed with sufficient safety margins up to the end of service life or up to the next in-service inspection (considering the worst case loads and lower bound material properties). To fulfil this high-responsible task in practice some useful Engineering Assessment methods (EAM) have been established i.e. Local flow stress concept (Germany), assessment based on J-Integral (France RSE-M), Limit load calculation according to (ASME XI, USA) or Two criteria approach (R6, UK). These EAM are verified by a large number of testscarried out in the past. On a higher level, more advanced assessment methods have been developed during the last years, based on micromechanical models of void nucleation and growth. These advanced micromechanical models are used within the Finite Element Analysis (FEA) and allow to study the whole crack growth process from initiation to final failure in more detail. In the ductile regime, which is the typical case for application of aforementioned methods, the crack growth can be divided into three phases: crack initiation, stable crack growth and unstable crack growth. In this paper methods of different complexity will be applied to analyse fracture mechanics specimens made of Inconel 600. Special focus will be placed on the crack growth modelling based on the Gurson’s porous metal plasticity theory. All performed calculations will be compared with experiments.© 2009 ASME
Neoplastic transformation by quartz in the BALB/3T3/A31‐1‐1 cell line and the effects of associated minerals

Quartz, the most common form of crystalline silica, was tested quantitatively for neoplastic transformation in the mouse embryo cell line, BALB/3T3/A31-1-1. Five quartz dust samples of respirable size [Min-U-Sil 5 (MQZ); hydrofluoric-acid-etched MQZ (HFMQZ); Chinese standard quartz (CSQZ); DQ12; and F600] all induced significant levels of neoplastic transformation, showing dose-dependent increases in the frequency of morphologically transformed foci at lower tested doses and a plateau level of response at higher doses. The plateau levels reached by the five tested samples did not differ substantially (maximum transformation frequencies per 105 cells ranging from 53.2 for MQZ to 28.3 for HFMQZ). F600 had minimal cytotoxicity but transforming activity comparable to the other samples. Cells from all tested transformed foci, when injected s.c. in nude mice, grew as sarcomas. Cytogenetic analysis showed that all tested silica-transformed cell lines had acquired one to five additional marker chromosomes, of types not seen in untreated control lines, indicative of induced chromosomal translocations and amplification. Increased expression of one or more of five genes (p53, myc, H-ras, K-ras, and abl) was observed in several quartz-transformed cell lines. No transforming activity was found for hematite and anatase (both nontoxic), and for rutile (more toxic than MQZ). Combined exposure (1:1 w/w per unit culture area) of each of these dusts with MQZ showed that hematite and anatase inhibited MQZ toxicity as well as transformation, whereas rutile markedly enhanced MQZ toxicity but not MQZ-induced transformation. © 1996 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Ferret red cells: Na/Ca exchange and Na-K-Cl cotransport.

Abstract The primary pathway for K influx in ferret red cells is the NaKCl cotransporter and the primary pathway for Ca influx is the Na/Ca exchanger. This makes ferret red cells favorable models for the study of these two transport systems. The evidence that Na/Ca exchange is of primary importance for steady state cell volume regulation and the Na-K-Cl cotransport has a minor role is presented. The approaches to, and results of, the determination of the stoichiometry, of the mechanism, and of the regulation by ATP and Mg, for Na/Ca exchange is contrasted with that taken for NaKCl cotransport.
Lesions of Amygdala, Pyriform Cortex and other Brain Structures Due to Dipiperidinoethane Intoxication

Single doses of dipiperidinoethane (DPE) produced symmetrical necrosis in pyriform cortex, amygdala and other areas of gray matter in rats, mice and gerbils. The necrosis was detectable in 10 hours and fully developed in 24 hours. Its distribution and severity were not influenced by carotid artery ligation. DPE was not a cumulative poison. There was a high degree of chemical specificity: neurotoxic activity was present in DPE derivatives modified by methylation of the two piperidine rings, but neurotoxicity was absent in derivatives with different ring systems or different connecting chains.
An Interface Design Methodology: Scenario Based Design Extended for Diverse Computer User Groups

The purpose of this work is to begin development of a culturally valid interface design process. This process would benefit interface designers and design companies by providing a model that facilitates design for special user populations (e.g., the educationally underserved). Discussion in this paper centers on merging (1) an accepted interface design process in the HCI community, (2) various elicitation methods for determining user needs and (3) noted design considerations for marginalized groups such as the economically/educationally underserved in the United States. The acculturalization model discussed here is an extension of Rosson and Carroll's (2002) scenario based development (SBD) user-centered interface design approach. In SBD, scenarios are developed and analyzed to assist designers with requirements analysis, system functionality, information presentation, interactions methods, documentation, and the design of the prototypes and the usability evaluations. SBD employs three major phases: analysis, design, and prototype and evaluation
Cancellation of the polarization distortions in fiber-based polarization-sensitive Mueller-matrix optical coherence tomography

A multi-channel polarization-sensitive Mueller-matrix optical coherence tomography (OCT) was built with single-mode optical fibers in both the sample and reference arms. A new rigorous algorithm was developed to eliminate dynamically the polarization distortions caused by the sampling fiber and consequently retrieve the calibrated polarization properties of the sample. The roundtrip Jones matrix of the sampling fiber used in the algorithm was acquired from the reflecting surface of the sample for each depth scan (A scan). Both this new algorithm and the algorithm used in previous fiber-based polarization-sensitive OCT (PS-OCT) were tested with simulated data, which shows that the only parameter that can be correctly retrieved by the previous algorithm is the phase retardation. The skin of a rat was imaged with this fiber-based system.