cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A biochemical basis for induction of retina regeneration by antioxidants

The use of antioxidants in tissue regeneration has been studied, but their mechanism of action is not well understood. Here, we analyze the role of the antioxidant N-acetylcysteine (NAC) in retina regeneration. Embryonic chicks are able to regenerate their retina after its complete removal from retinal stem/progenitor cells present in the ciliary margin (CM) of the eye only if a source of exogenous factors, such as FGF2, is present. This study shows that NAC modifies the redox status of the CM, initiates self-renewal of the stem/progenitor cells, and induces regeneration in the absence of FGF2. NAC works as an antioxidant by scavenging free radicals either independently or through the synthesis of glutathione (GSH), and/or by reducing oxidized proteins through a thiol disulfide exchange activity. We dissected the mechanism used by NAC to induce regeneration through the use of inhibitors of GSH synthesis and the use of other antioxidants with different biochemical structures and modes of action, and found that NAC induces regeneration through its thiol disulfide exchange activity. Thus, our results provide, for the first time, a biochemical basis for induction of retina regeneration. Furthermore, NAC induction was independent of FGF receptor signaling, but dependent on the MAPK (pErk1/2) pathway.
High level memory structures and text coherence in translation

Various memory organization schemes have been proposed in the last five years. Lots of intelligent computer systems have been experimenting with memory schemes like scripts, plans, goals, [4] and MOPs [5] in the domain of text understanding [3] [1] and information retrieval [2]. In this paper, the focus is on the problem of translating sentences that involve lexical items which don't have equivalent counterparts in the target language. Examples are drawn from translations between English and Mandarin Chinese.
Genetic defects in insulin signalling proteins. Implications for the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes

The pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes mellitus is complex and involves abnormalities in both the action and secretion of insulin. These abnormalities are caused by a complicated interplay between genes and environment. A determination of the genetic defects that predispose to either insulin resistance or decreased insulin secretion is important, as an improved understanding of the underlying molecular mechanisms may be essential for the development of the most effective treatment. This paper focuses on genetic variants identified in genes encoding proteins in the early insulin signalling cascade. Variations frequently occur in these genes, but their effect varies in different populations. This may suggest that the genetic background is a considerable factor and that the synergistic effect of several variants plays a major role. Future, genetic-epidemiological studies of large populations are therefore important in order to obtain sufficient statistical power. The paper also discusses recent results that suggests, that insulin itself has an effect on insulin secretion by the beta-cell and that insulin signalling in the CNS plays an important role in the regulation of energy disposal, fuel metabolism, and reproduction.
The Effect of Participation in a Small-Group Discussion Session on Medical Student Learning of Intestinal Pathophysiology

Medical students are faced with the challenge of assimilating a large amount of content in a short period of time. They are motivated to look for the most efficient approach to learning and to perform well on their national licensing examinations. Medical schools are driven by accrediting agencies to reform their curriculum to increase active and collaborative learning opportunities. This prospective study evaluated the performance outcomes of an active small-group instructional session on benign colonic disorders between students who attended the session and those who did not. All students had access to the same materials and the recordings of the session through the university’s learning management system. Performance was determined by a 12-question pre-/posttest as well as the related items on the course’s final examination. All students performed significantly better on the posttest compared to the pretest (“Yes” attended and “No” did not attend: pre/post p < 0.001). There was no difference between the two groups on posttest performance (p = 0.59) or on the related questions on the final examination [Yes/No, 83.7/85.6% (p = 0.56)]. However, students who attended the session had a lower score on the remainder of the examination than those who did not attend the session [Yes/No, 81.8/85.0% (p = 0.04)] suggesting that the in-class small-group activity may have had a protective effect on performance. This study showed that participation in an active learning session was non-inferior and may benefit students that would have otherwise had lower performance justifying the large faculty effort in designing and delivering this modality.
Foldamers wave to the ribosome.

Ribosomes have now been shown to accept certain initiator tRNAs acylated with aromatic foldamer–dipeptides thereby enabling the translation of a peptide or protein with a short aromatic foldamer at the N-terminus. Some foldamer–peptide hybrids could be cyclized to generate macrocycles that present conformationally restricted peptide loops.
Solid-state synthesis of silver nanowires using biopolymer thin films

In this paper, we describe a novel method of silver nanowire (AgNW) synthesis. Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) were synthesized under ambient conditions by a chitosan/chitin-based method. These crystalline AgNPs then served as seeds for the solid-state formation of AgNWs within a drop-cast chitosan/chitin thin film. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of AgNW growth on a bio-polymer thin film. Chemical analysis demonstrated that AgNPs and AgNWs produced by this synthetic process have distinct interactions with polysaccharide polymers, and unlike AgNWs produced by other methods, the AgNWs formed in the chitin/chitosan matrix display an irregular twisted morphology. The flexible AgNW/chitosan nanocomposite material is conductive, and we incorporate this new material into a peroxide sensor to demonstrate of its potential applications in chemical sensing devices.
Management of NSCLC Invading the Superior Vena Cava

Due to improvements in preoperative diagnosis and perioperative care, superior vena cava involvement in lung cancer is no longer considered an absolute contraindication to surgical resection. However, it continues to remain a challenge and requires a multidisciplinary approach. Preoperative work-up is essential to assess the true extent of disease. With careful patient selection and management at specialized centers, patients can achieve encouraging long-term outcomes.
Housing and Homelessness

More than 33 million people are living with HIV/AIDS worldwide. Half of new infections are among people 25 years old and younger. The United Nations Declaration of Human Rights states that housing in addition to food, clothing, and medical care are basic human rights. HIV/AIDS is unique because it deprives families, communities, and entire nations of their young and most productive people. Risk factors such as gender, stigma, and homophobia impact both housing stability and HIV/AIDS contraction. Fifty-eight percent of the world’s HIV/AIDS cases are among women, who represent the majority of the world’s poor and suffer disproportionately from inadequate housing. In addition, men who have sex with men (MSM) are the group most at-risk of HIV infection across the globe. Homelessness and unstable housing are strongly associated with greater HIV risk, inadequate health care, poor health outcomes, and early death. Studies have indicated that stable housing eases the burden of care and support and optimizes health outcomes for people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) and their families.
Integral Psychotherapy: A Unifying Approach

Integral Psychotherapy lays out a conceptual framework for understanding and applying the wide range of psychotherapeutic approaches. The unifying model presented here addresses the dynamics of healthy human development, the assessment process, techniques and processes of therapeutic change, and much, much more. Beginning as well as experienced mental health practitioners will find the integral approach to be an exquisitely parsimonious model, one that allows practitioners and researchers to retain their own style and preferences, while simultaneously organizing ideas within a more comprehensive framework for understanding human beings and the psychotherapeutic process.
Low Cost UAS Radiometer for Landsat Land Surface Temperature Verification

Land Surface Temperature (LST) is the radiative temperature of the Earth’s surface measured by an overhead airborne or satellite sensor. LST is widely used in hydrological, agricultural, and meteorological industries. LST products are becoming more sought after which requires data providers to create accurately calibrated data sets. In this paper we investigate the feasibility of building a radiometer to collect ground truth temperature measurements to validate an LST product, specifically the Level 2 product produced by Landsat 8. We designed and fabricated a multi-channel radiometer, that can be flown on an Unmanned Aerial System (UAS), to replicate Landsat’s Thermal Infrared Sensor (TIRS) bands 10 and 11. Experimental results using a blackbody radiator show the radiometer successfully records accurate temperature measurements and is ready for flight testing with coordinated Landsat collects.
Beyond linear regression: A reference for analyzing common data types in discipline based education research

Education research data often do not meet the assumptions for linear regression models; other analysis models must be used.
Perivascular Adipose Tissue Regulates Vascular Function by Targeting Vascular Smooth Muscle Cells.

Adipose tissues are present at multiple locations in the body. Most blood vessels are surrounded with adipose tissue which is referred to as perivascular adipose tissue (PVAT). Similarly to adipose...
Optimal Oscillation Damping Controller Design for Large-Scale Wind Integrated Power Grid

This article presents a reduced-order model-based optimal oscillation damping controller (OODC) design for doubly fed induction generator (DFIG) based wind turbines (WTs). The objective of OODC is to shift the critical interarea modes (IAMs) of the WT integrated power system to the desired location using optimal output feedback. Such a controller provides a supplementary control signal to the DFIG local controller to inject the modulated active and reactive power that provides damping support to the overall power system's local and IAMs of oscillation. In the design, first, a reduced-order model of the WT integrated power system that captures all the relevant system dynamics is designed. Then, a cost function-based optimization is formulated and solved to improve the damping of the critical modes. Simulation studies are conducted on a modified IEEE 68 bus system. The results of eigenvalue analysis show that the dominant and poorly damped IAMs are shifted toward the left half-plane thus enhancing the overall system stability margin. Also, nonlinear time-domain simulation is performed to show the effectiveness of the proposed OODC to effectively improve the damping of the IAMs of the system.
Developing model biobanking consent language: what matters to prospective participants?

Efforts to improve informed consent have led to calls for providing information a reasonable person would want to have, in a way that facilitates understanding of the reasons why one might or might not want to participate. At the same time, advances in large-scale genomic research have expanded both the opportunities and the risks for participants, families, and communities. To advance the use of effective consent materials that reflect this landscape, we used empirical data to develop model consent language, as well as brief questions to assist people in thinking about their own values relative to participation. We conducted in-person interviews to gather preliminary input on these materials from a diverse sample (n = 32) of the general population in Nashville, Tennessee. We asked them to highlight information they found especially reassuring or concerning, their hypothetical willingness to participate, and their opinions about the values questions. Consent information most often highlighted as reassuring included the purpose of the biobank, the existence and composition of a multidisciplinary oversight committee, the importance of participants’ privacy and efforts to protect it, and controlled access to a scientific database. Information most often highlighted as concerning included the deposition of data in a publicly accessible database, the risk of unintended access to data, the potential for non-research use of data, and use of medical record information in general. Seventy-five percent of participants indicated initial willingness to participate in the hypothetical biobank; this decreased to 66% as participants more closely considered the information over the course of the interview. A large majority rated the values questions as helpful. These results are consistent with other research on public perspectives on biobanking and genomic cohort studies, suggesting that our model language effectively captures commonly expressed reasons for and against participation. Our study enriches this literature by connecting specific consent form disclosures with qualitative data regarding what participants found especially reassuring or concerning and why. Interventions that facilitate individuals’ closer engagement with consent information may result in participation decisions more closely aligned with their values.
Observing Formative Assessment Practice: Learning Lessons Through Validation

This introductory essay provides a framing for and an overview of the papers contained in this special issue of the Educational Assessment journal. In it the author begins with a brief description ...
Characteristics of COVID-19 clinical trials registered with ClinicalTrials.gov: cross-sectional analysis.

Objectives To characterise current COVID-19-related research activities. Design Cross-sectional analysis. Setting Clinical trials registered with ClinicalTrials.gov testing interventions relevant to COVID-19. Data sources ClinicalTrials.gov was searched for COVID-19 and related terms to identify trials registered between 1 December 2019 and 1 May 2020 that test interventions related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Main outcome measures We classified trials according to intervention type, and report key trial characteristics including recruitment status, location, funder type, target enrolment number, intervention model (single group, randomised or sequential assignment) and projected completion date. Results Of the 630 identified clinical trials related to COVID-19, 509 (81%) involved the study of drugs or biological agents. Of these trials of drugs and biologics, 305 (60%) use an open-label design, 43 (8%) are single blinded (participant only) and 161 (32%) are double blinded (participant and investigator). 94 (18%) of the drug/biological trials are non-randomised. Either hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine is administered as part of the study protocol in 152 (30%) of the drug/biological trials. The total planned enrolment for these hydroxychloroquine/chloroquine trials is over 200 000 participants, which represents 65% of the total planned enrolment for all registered trials of drugs or biologics. There are also at least 25 registered trials of azithromycin (n=53), convalescent plasma (n=38), lopinavir/ritonavir (n=30), stem cell treatments (n=29) and tocilizumab (n=25). 142 trials were registered in the first 3 months of 2020, and 488 trials were registered between 1 April and 1 May 2020. Conclusions These findings demonstrate a robust research response to the COVID-19 pandemic, though many of the currently planned and ongoing trials focus on a small number of potential therapies, and many also lack essential design features and power necessary to provide accurate treatment effect estimates.
The effect of pulse charging on commercial lithium nickel cobalt oxide (NMC) cathode lithium-ion batteries

Abstract Fast charging is essential for high energy applications such as electric vehicles. Many methods have been proposed for faster charging and increased energy efficiencies. Pulse charging is considered as one of the promising methods for faster and efficient charging. Researchers have proposed pulse charging methods using different pulse frequencies and duty cycles for better performance. However, the effect of pulse charging frequencies on charging time and cycle life is seldom investigated. In this study, rectangular pulse-CV charging experiments on lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide (NMC) cathode commercial lithium-ion batteries were performed at 50 Hz, 100 Hz, and 1 kHz and compared with benchmark constant current – constant voltage (CC-CV) charging. From the results, it was determined that pulse-CV charging is significantly faster than CC-CV charging. It was also observed that pulse-CV charging at 1 kHz showed comparable discharge capacities to CC-CV charging throughout cycling with an approximate reduction of 17% in charging time. Battery impedance characteristics were examined using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) measurements, and equivalent circuit parameters (ECPs) were obtained for analyzing the behavior of the batteries.
Development and Prospective Validation of a Deep Learning Algorithm for Predicting Need for Mechanical Ventilation.

Background Objective and early identification of hospitalized patients, and particularly those with novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), who may require mechanical ventilation (MV) may aid in delivering timely treatment. Research Question Can a transparent deep learning (DL) model predict the need for MV in hospitalized patients and those with COVID-19 up to 24 h in advance? Study Design and Methods We trained and externally validated a transparent DL algorithm to predict the future need for MV in hospitalized patients, including those with COVID-19, using commonly available data in electronic health records. Additionally, commonly used clinical criteria (heart rate, oxygen saturation, respiratory rate, F io 2, and pH) were used to assess future need for MV. Performance of the algorithm was evaluated using the area under receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC), sensitivity, specificity, and positive predictive value. Results We obtained data from more than 30,000 ICU patients (including more than 700 patients with COVID-19) from two academic medical centers. The performance of the model with a 24-h prediction horizon at the development and validation sites was comparable (AUC, 0.895 vs 0.882, respectively), providing significant improvement over traditional clinical criteria (P Interpretation A transparent deep learning algorithm improves on traditional clinical criteria to predict the need for MV in hospitalized patients, including in those with COVID-19. Such an algorithm may help clinicians to optimize timing of tracheal intubation, to allocate resources and staff better, and to improve patient care.
Maintaining Male Exclusivity: Porcelain Privilege in the Military:

Current debates about bathrooms and bathroom policy contribute to a long history of how space shapes norms and expectations about privacy and gender equity in the workplace. The military serves as ...
Clinical Principles of Positive Pressure Ventilation

Summary A disciplined approach to applying physiologic and clinical data to PPV is essential for understanding the many devices and methods available. Ventilation and oxygenation must be appreciated as separate entities with numerous complex interrelationships. Deficits in respiration reflect both cardiopulmonary pathology and encroachment on cardiopulmonary reserves. The support of such deficits requires appropriate monitoring, correct interpretation of the obtained data, a rational choice of supportive techniques, and constant re-evaluation. This chapter has attempted to lay the foundation on which PPV can be based.
Dissemination of pragmatic randomized clinical trials information and results to patients and community stakeholders

Abstract Dissemination of information and results to patients and community stakeholders is critical for the advancement of research and clinical practice and is becoming a priority for funding agencies. This chapter focuses on dissemination of information before, during and after a pragmatic randomized clinical trial (pRCT), to patients and community stakeholders. We describe an applied approach for dissemination across categories of stakeholders to answer three main questions: To whom should one disseminate? What should be disseminated? How should dissemination happen? We conclude with a discussion on challenges for dissemination and strategies to overcome them.
The Dream Drugstore: Chemically Altered States of Consciousness

In this book, J. Allan Hobson offers a new understanding of altered states of consciousness based on knowledge of how our brain chemistry is balanced when we are awake and how that balance shifts when we fall asleep and dream. He draws on recent research that enables us to explain how psychedelic drugs work to disturb that balance and how similar imbalances may cause depression and schizophrenia. He also draws on work that expands our understanding of how certain drugs can correct imbalances and restore the brain's natural equilibrium. Hobson explains the chemical balance concept in terms of what we know about the regulation of normal states of consciousness over the course of the day by brain chemicals called neuromodulators. He presents striking confirmation of the principle that every drug that has transformative effects on consciousness interacts with the brain's own consciousness-altering chemicals. In the section called "The Medical Drugstore," Hobson describes drugs used to counteract anxiety and insomnia, to raise and lower mood, and to eliminate or diminish the hallucinations and delusions of schizophrenia. He discusses the risks involved in their administration, including the possibility of new disorders caused by indiscriminate long-term use. In "The Recreational Drugstore," Hobson discusses psychedelic drugs, narcotic analgesia, and natural drugs. He also considers the distinctions between legitimate and illegitimate drug use. In the concluding "Psychological Drugstore," he discusses the mind as an agent, not just the mediator, of change, and corrects many erroneous assumptions and practices that hinder the progress of psychoanalysis.
Understanding Deviance: Connecting Classical and Contemporary Perspectives

In this collection of 48 reprinted and completely original articles, Tammy Anderson gives her fellow instructors of undergraduate deviance a refreshing way to energize and revitalize their courses. [36 are reprints; 12 are original to this text/anthology] First, in 12 separate sections, she presents a wide range of deviant behaviors, traits, and conditions including: underage drinking and drunk driving, doping in elite sports, gang behavior, community crime, juvenile delinquency, hate crime, prison violence and transgendered prisoners, mental illness, drug-using women and domestic violence, obesity, tattooing, sexual fetishes, prostitution, drug epidemics, viral pandemics, crime control strategies and racial inequality, gay neighborhoods, HIV and bugchasers, and (lastly) youth, multicultural identity and music scenes. Second, her pairing of "classic" and "contemporary" viewpoints about deviance and social control not only "connects" important literatures of the past to today’s (student) readers, her "connections framework" also helps all of us see social life and social processes more clearly when alternative meanings are accorded to similar forms of deviant behavior. We also learn how to appreciate and interact with those who see things differently from ourselves. This may better equip us to reach common goals in an increasingly diverse and ever-changing world. Third, a major teaching goal of Anderson’s anthology is to sharpen students’ critical thinking skills by forcing them to look at how a deviant behavior, trait or condition, can be viewed from opposing or alternative perspectives. By learning to see deviance from multiple perspectives, students will better understand their own and other’s behavior and experiences and be able to anticipate future trends. Balancing multiple perspectives may also assist students in their practical work in social service, criminal justice and other agencies and institutions that deal with populations considered "deviant" in one way or another.
A Virtual Private Network for Virtual Enterprise Information Systems

The security requirements of a virtual enterprise information system are investigated and a virtual private network (VPN) is designed to ensure the security, taking the advantages of the integrated functionality of encryption, key management, user authentication, firewall, and certificate authority with low cost. Several novel techniques are adopted in the VPN: 1) An effective chaotic encryption algorithm by using Logistic chaotic mapping; 2) a chaos theory based user's "fingerprint" authentication algorithm by using mixed optically bistable chaotic model; 3) a reliable authentication mechanism by integrated Guillou-Quisquater digital signature with RSA encryption; 4) an efficient Certificate Authority (CA) and digit certificate mechanism. The details of the VPN are also presented, including a cryptography server, an auditing server, a digital signature server and an authenticating server.
Requirement of A1-a for bacillus Calmette-Guérin-mediated protection of macrophages against nitric oxide-induced apoptosis.

The role of apoptosis in regulating the course of intracellular microbial infection is not well understood. We studied the relationship between apoptotic regulation and bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) treatment in murine peritoneal exudate macrophages (PEM) and the J774 macrophage cell line. In both PEM and J774 cells, mRNA expression of the anti-apoptotic gene, A1, was selectively induced by BCG treatment as compared with other bcl2 family members ( bcl-w, bcl-2, bcl-xl, bcl-xs, bax, bak, bad ). In PEM, A1 expression was maximal by 8 h postinfection and was abrogated by the proteasomal inhibitor MG-132. The induction was independent of protein synthesis as well as the p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase pathways and did not require live organism. Three genes encoding closely related isoforms of A1 were all expressed; however, the A1-a isoform displayed the greatest fold induction in PEM. BCG-induced A1 expression was associated with protection of host macrophages from NO-mediated apoptosis in both PEM and J774 cells. BCG-mediated protection was abrogated in PEM derived from A1-a −/− mice, indicating a requirement of A1-a for survival of inflammatory macrophages.
«Asi lo paresçe por su Aspeto»: Fisiognomía y construcción de la diferencia en la Bogotá colonial

Resumen es: Este articulo analiza lo que los burocratas de la modernidad temprana consideraban personas de diferentes calidades: indio, mestizo, negro, mulato, parec...
Animal-assisted therapy to promote ambulation in the hospital setting: Potentially effective but is it feasible?

Objective : Preliminary studies demonstrating efficacy of the use of animal assisted therapy (AAT) to promote ambulation in the hospital setting support the need for additional studies using rigorous designs to determine its potential for use in the clinical setting. To determine the feasibility of a randomized controlled trial of AAT in the hospital setting to promote ambulation in cardiac patients the objectives were to examine recruitment yields; acceptability of therapy; and identification of safety, patient care, resource, and methodological challenges in using AAT with inpatients from multiple perspectives. Methods : This mixed methods study used structured interviews with patients who declined participation in AAT, participants who walked with a therapy dog, nursing personnel, and primary care providers. Participants’ clinical and demographic data were abstracted from healthcare records. Descriptive statistics were reported for quantitative data and narrative responses were analyzed using content analysis. Results : Unit personnel and participants perceived AAT to be acceptable, without negatively impacting unit resources, and safe—even among overweight or patients at higher risk of falling. Many patients for whom this intervention would be appropriate declined participation. Availability of therapy dogs was inconsistent and required alteration of plans for AAT on several days. Conclusions : Major obstacles to routine use of hospital-based AAT need to be addressed when designing a study to compare the effectiveness of AAT with other interventions. A sufficient pool of therapy dogs and their handlers would need to be in place to facilitate its use in a randomized controlled trial to promote ambulation in clinical practice.
Seedling Centipedegrass Response to Mesotrione Plus Simazine Mixtures

Centipedegrass (Eremochloa ophiuroides) is a low-maintenance, warmseason grass common throughout the southern United States. Slow establishment and growth rate of seeded centipedegrass often allows for increased weed competition, yet weed control options are limited. Tank-mixing simazine with mesotrione has been reported to improve weed control because of synergistic modes of action. A 2-year field trial was conducted to evaluate centipedegrass response to mesotrione and simazine applications applied 2 weeks after emergence. Mesotrione (0.25 lb/ acre) did not reduce centipedegrass cover at any rating when applied alone. All rates of simazine, alone and tank-mixed with mesotrione, resulted in decreased centipedegrass cover 7 days after treatment (DAT). However, simazine alone at 0.25 lb/ acre did not reduce turf cover 14, 28, and 49 DAT, and simazine at 0.25 lb/acre tank-mixed with mesotrione at 0.25 lb/acre did not reduce turf cover 28 and 49 DAT. Results indicate that newly established centipedegrass is vulnerable to cover reduction because of simazine and simazine plus mesotrione tank-mixture. Mesotrione and mesotrione tank-mixed with low rates of simazine is a viable option for newly seeded centipedegrass weed control; however, turf cover may be delayed.
Introduction: Honoring J. Fred Read

James Frederick Read was born in Manchester, England in April 1944, however, he spent most of his youth in Perth, Australia. Fred earned his undergraduate (honors) degree from the University of Western Australia in 1966. Fred stayed on at the university to study modern and Pleistocene carbonates in Shark Bay with Brian Logan, earning his Ph.D. in 1971. The entirety of Fred’s Ph.D. was published in AAPG special memoirs. Fred continued at the University of Western Australia as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow studying the Devonian backreef, Pillara Formation in the Canning Basin of Western Australia. In 1973 Fred moved to Virginia to become an assistant professor in the rapidly expanding Department of Geological Sciences at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech) in Blacksburg. Fred was promoted to associate professor in 1978 and full professor in 1983. Fred taught at Virginia Tech for 38 years until he retired in 2012 and is now Emeritus Professor. He and his students published more than 120 papers, and he guided 12 M.S. students and 20 Ph.D. and postdoctoral students to complete their research during his tenure. Many of Fred’s M.S. students are leaders in carbonate research in the energy industry. Many of Fred’s Ph.D. students also became leaders in carbonate research in the petroleum industry (ExxonMobil, Chevron, BP, etc.) and others went on to become faculty members at universities all over the United States (including Massachusetts Institute of Technology; California Institute of Technology; University of California, Riverside; University of California, Davis; University of New Mexico; and Texas A&M University) mentoring a new generation of carbonate sedimentologists and stratigraphers. Fred and his students made many lasting contributions in understanding carbonate platform morphologies, computer modeling of carbonate platforms, diagenesis, paleoclimate and paleooceanographic interpretations of carbonate platforms, and reservoir characterization. Fred and his students twice …
Structural Roles of Polyoma Virus Proteins

The superhelical, closed circular form of polyoma deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) (Co 1) is bound in a 25S DNA-protein complex to the viral histone-like proteins after alkaline disruption of the virion. Nicked viral DNA or linear DNA are largely free of protein. Most of the viral protein disruption is in the form of capsomeres, sedimenting principally at 10S and 7S. Despite the relatively constant ratio of 10S to 7S material in many preparations, (1:5.5 to 1:6.0, respectively), the two classes of capsomeres are indistinguishable by electron microscopy and contain only P(2), P(3), and P(4) in molar ratios of approximately 5:1:1 or 6:1:1, respectively. Material with sedimentation rates of approximately 1 to 3S is enriched for P(5) and contains small amounts of P(2), P(3), and P(4). During the in vitro reassembly of DNA-free, shell-like particles from disrupted virus, proteins P(1), P(2), P(3), P(4), and P(7) are reincorporated efficiently, whereas P(5) and P(6) are not. The presence in empty reassembled particles of histone-like protein, expecially P(7), implies that at least this one of the minor protein components of the virion may participate in protein-protein interactions with other components of the capsid.
Abstract 110: Anesthetic Preconditioning and Mitochondrial Slo K+ Channel Activity Require Slo2.1

Introduction: Volatile anesthetic preconditioning (APC) protects the heart from ischemia-reperfusion (IR) injury. APC elicits evolutionarily-conserved protective signaling pathways that converge at the mitochondrial level, where the Slo family of K+ channels is thought to mediate protection through an unknown mechanism. Recent work in C. elegans has focused attention on the Slo2 gene product as a transducer of APC effects on hypoxic survival. In mammals, Slo2 has diverged into two paralogs, Slo 2.1 (KCNT2; Slick) and Slo2.2 (KCNT1; Slack). These genes code for Na+-activated K+ channels and are highly expressed in brain, but their function in cardiomyocytes and/or mitochondria is unknown. Methods: The contribution of Slo channels to cardiac physiology was characterized using knockout mice, including Slo1 and two novel Slo2.x alleles. APC was assessed through ex-vivo cardiac IR injury. Isolated mitochondrial K+ channel activity was assessed using a Tl+ flux assay, and by patch-clamp of cardiac mitoplasts. Electron microscopy was used to assess mitochondrial morphology in primary cardiomyocytes and Seahorse extracellular flux analysis used to assess bioenergetics. Results: The Slo2.x ( double KO ) and the Slo2.1 single KO mice could not be protected from cardiac IR injury by APC. Physiologic approaches demonstrated that Slo2.1 is present in mitochondria and Slo2.1 -dependent mitochondrial K+ transport can be triggered directly by volatile anesthetics. Cardiomyocytes from Slo2.x dKO mice exhibited profound metabolic remodeling and electron microscopy revealed that Slo2.1 knockouts had enlarged circular mitochondria. In contrast, Slo1 KO mice responded normally to APC and exhibited wild type mitochondrial physiology. Conclusion: Slo2.1 activation protects against cardiac IR, and is required for APC. Slo2.1 also contributes to mitochondrial metabolic homeostasis. As a molecular target for APC, identification of Slo2.1 may facilitate development of targeted therapeutic molecules that can protect the heart and minimize the side effects of volatile anesthetics.
Is the hair follicle necessary for normal wound healing

The hair follicle contributes cells to the interfollicular epidermis after wounding, but the functional role of these cells has not been resolved. To address this question, Langton et al. (this issue, 2008) take advantage of the Edaradd mutant mouse, which lacks hair follicles on its tail. They discover an initial sluggish response of the hairless tail epidermis to wounding that is rapidly compensated for by recruitment of epidermal cells from outside the normally responsive area. This suggests that the hair follicle is important but not necessary for normal wound healing.
Television Use and Confidence in Television By Blacks and Whites in Four Selected Years

Despite concern about the relatively incomplete nature of research on the relationship between Blacks and television reported by Poindexter and Stroman (1981: 105), certain findings comparing Blacks and whites and television seem to be well established. For example, studies cited by Comstock (1980: 31), Allen (1981: 48, 51), and Poindexter and Stroman (1981: 108-109) uniformly indicate that Blacks on the average watch more television than whites. Also, research by Comstock (1980: 31) and Bower (1973: 45-46) into Black attitudes toward the medium concludes that Blacks overall hold a more positive attitude toward the medium than whites in the sense that Blacks deem television as a whole more credible than do whites. Less rigorously established is the related matter of the connection between television use and perceived credibility of the medium by Blacks. For nonminority audiences, significant and positive relationships between viewing and credibility have been reported by Comstock (1980: 32) and Westley and Severin (1964: 332-335). In these studies, a consistent interplay was
Testing Kalman Smoothing/PCA Transient Signal Detection Using Synthetic Data

The Southern California Earthquake Center (SCEC), a community of researchers from over 60 institutions worldwide, has made efforts to understand earthquakes and mitigate earthquake risk in southern California and elsewhere. The broad objective of SCEC’s tectonic geodesy disciplinary activities is to make available a variety of geodetic data collected in southern California and use these data for addressing problems associated with deformation processes. One of the topics of interest for fulfilling this objective is to “develop a geodetic network‐processing system that will detect anomalous strain transients” (Murray‐Moraleda and Lohman, 2010). Our detection method consists of smoothing based on Kalman filtering and principal component analysis (PCA) (Ji and Herring, 2013). Smoothing improves the signal‐to‐noise ratio (SNR) in the time domain by reducing the white noise with adjustments for steady motions and temporally correlated noise, whereas PCA improves the SNR in the space domain by accounting for the spatial coherence of transient signals. This method is based purely on data without any source‐specific model, in contrast to the Network Inversion Filter (Segall and Matthews, 1997; McGuire and Segall, 2003) that requires definition of fault geometry and typically assumes elastic deformation. Inaccurate fault geometry or inelastic deformation may lead to unreliable fault‐slip estimates and limit the detection capability of the filter. The Network Strain Filter (NSF) proposed by Ohtani et al. (2010) is similar to our method in that it avoids source‐specific models and uses Kalman filtering. However, for spatially coherent transient deformation the NSF uses predefined wavelets that are included in the Kalman filter, whereas our method uses data‐based eigenvectors from PCA after Kalman filtering. SCEC has supported a project, the transient‐detection exercise, in which participants applied their detection methods to synthetic Global Positioning System (GPS) daily‐position time series and reported back on any transient signals they detected. Because the data …
Bird abundance and diversity across a hardwood gradient within early seral plantation forest

The extensive removal of competing broadleaved shrubs in forest plantations typically results in structural and compositional simplification of early seral habitat. However, information on the tradeoffs between such intensive forestry practices and biodiversity is scant. Here we assess the magnitude and direction of potential impacts of intensive forest management on populations of early seral-associated breeding birds. Observed population declines of several Neotropical migrant bird species are hypothesized to be linked to the loss of early seral habitat on the breeding grounds. We investigated the association between broadleaved hardwood cover and avian abundance and diversity in intensively managed early seral Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) stands of the Pacific Northwest. Bird species richness decreased across an elevational gradient, but did not vary as a function of either local vegetation composition or structure. In contrast, bird abundance was strongly associated with hardwood cover at local and landscape scales, especially for foliage-gleaning species. We found strong support for the existence of a threshold in relative bird abundance as a function of hardwood at the stand scale; abundance doubled with an increase from 1% to ∼6% hardwood and then reached a plateau. Though abundance of leaf-gleaners increased even more strongly across a gradient in hardwood cover, evidence for a distinct threshold was less clear. We conclude that when early seral hardwood forest is scarce, even small increases in hardwood may provide substantial conservation benefits. However, for some species (i.e., foliage gleaners), there may be more direct trade-offs in abundance and juvenile recruitment with hardwood management intensity.
Further studies on the deoxyribonucleic acid helping effect during transformation

Transformation studies of the Challis strain of the H group of streptococcus were performed to further investigate the molecular basis of the deoxyribonucleic acid helping effect. Studies in the efficiency of transformation in the presence of non-transforming DNA support the notion that bacterial cells are indiscriminate in their uptake of donor DNA and that the helping effect occurs at a time when both transforming (T) and helping (H) DNAs have jointly entered the recipients. Furthermore, the ability of H DNA to promote transformation by T DNA is not directly altered by exposure of the former DNA to either UV-irradiation or nitrous acid. Nor does 5-bromouracil incorporation affect the capacity of H DNA to assist T DNA to transform a Challis cell.
Natural Convection From a Vertical Surface to a Thermally Stratified Fluid

Results are presented of a study of natural convection from an isothermal finite plate immersed in a stable thermally stratified fluid. An analytical solution to the problem is obtained by using the local nonsimilarity method. Theoretical local and overall heat transfer coefficients are given for Pr = 0.7 and 6.0. Velocity and temperature profiles are given for Pr = 6.0. The actual experimental configuration was a vertical copper cylinder enclosed in a cube with rigid walls. Heat transfer data are correlated with the measured ambient thermal gradient. Visual studies of the flow field are also discussed. Excellent agreement is achieved between analysis and experiment.
Multidecadal Warming and Shoaling of Antarctic Intermediate Water

Antarctic Intermediate Water (AAIW) is a dominant Southern Hemisphere water mass that spreads from its formation regions just north of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC) to at least 20°S in all oceans. This study uses an isopycnal climatology constructed from Argo conductivity–temperature–depth (CTD) profile data to define the current state of the AAIW salinity minimum (its core) and thence compute anomalies of AAIW core pressure, potential temperature, salinity, and potential density since the mid-1970s from ship-based CTD profiles. The results are used to calculate maps of temporal property trends at the AAIW core, where statistically significant strong circumpolar shoaling (30–50 dbar decade−1), warming (0.05°–0.15°C decade−1), and density reductions [up to −0.03 (kg m−3) decade−1] are found. These trends are strongest just north of the ACC in the southeast Pacific and Atlantic Oceans and decrease equatorward. Salinity trends are generally small, with their sign varying regionally. Bottle data are used to extend the AAIW core potential temperature anomaly analysis back to 1925 in the Atlantic and to ~1960 elsewhere. The modern warm AAIW core conditions appear largely unprecedented in the historical record: biennially and zonally binned median AAIW core potential temperatures within each ocean basin are, with the notable exception of the subtropical South Atlantic in the 1950s–70s, 0.2–1°C colder than modern values. Zonally averaged sea surface temperature anomalies around the AAIW formation latitudes in each ocean and sectoral southern annular mode indices are used to put the AAIW core property trends and variations into context.
Changes in the fine structure of tadpole (Rana catesbeiana) liver during thyroxine-induced metamorphosis

Summary Alterations in the fine structure of tadpole ( Rana catesbeiana ) liver cells have been studied during the period of extensive biochemical modification caused by l -thyroxine. The nuclei, euchromatic in control cells, become heterochromatic. The mitochondria increase significantly in size with slight alterations in the cristae. The rough endoplasmic reticulum proliferates, and the staining density of the cisternal lumens increases. The Golgi complex and its cisternal contents increase in staining density, and the number of Golgi regions increases. These changes provide cytological criteria for the differentiation of liver cells during thyroxine-induced metamorphosis.
Evaluation of a wave-vector-frequency-domain method for nonlinear wave propagation

A wave-vector-frequency-domain method is presented to describe one-directional forward or backward acoustic wave propagation in a nonlinear homogeneous medium. Starting from a frequency-domain representation of the second-order nonlinear acoustic wave equation, an implicit solution for the nonlinear term is proposed by employing the Green’s function. Its approximation, which is more suitable for numerical implementation, is used. An error study is carried out to test the efficiency of the model by comparing the results with the Fubini solution. It is shown that the error grows as the propagation distance and step-size increase. However, for the specific case tested, even at a step size as large as one wavelength, sufficient accuracy for plane-wave propagation is observed. A two-dimensional steered transducer problem is explored to verify the nonlinear acoustic field directional independence of the model. A three-dimensional single-element transducer problem is solved to verify the forward model by comparing it with an existing nonlinear wave propagation code. Finally, backward-projection behavior is examined. The sound field over a plane in an absorptive medium is backward projected to the source and compared with the initial field, where good agreement is observed.
Thermal and Morphological Effects on the Hydrolytic Stability of Aluminum Tris(8-hydroxyquinoline) (Alq3)

An investigation into the physical and chemical characteristics of aluminum tris(8-hydroxyquinoline) (Alq3), a reliable electron-transporting and emitting material for low molecular weight based organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs), was performed. In the presence of atmospheric moisture, the thermal stability of Alq3 was studied by monitoring the evolution of its volatile byproduct, 8-hydroxyquinoline (8-Hq), using thermogravimetric analysis and gas chromatography/mass spectroscopy (GC/MS). Sample morphology was shown to be an important parameter in the stability of Alq3. Annealed (more crystalline) samples exhibited greater stability to hydrolysis than freshly sublimed films, at the expense of photoluminescence efficiency. The possible implications of these phenomena are discussed with respect to failure mechanisms of Alq3-based OLEDs.