cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Two Dimensional Optimization of Centrifugal Compressor Impellers Using Online Quasi-3D Flow Solver and Genetic Algorithm

Modeling tools are widely used to create a performance map and decrease design cycle time in computer-aided centrifugal compressor impeller optimization procedures. However, a high-dimensional performance map is difficult to create and application of the approximate performance map brings errors into optimization procedures. This paper presents an online flow solver optimization procedure, in which a Quasi-three dimensional flow solver is directly used to evaluate impeller performances in the genetic algorithm (GA). Also, this procedure is compared with offline flow solver optimization procedure. In offline flow optimization procedure, the flow solver is employed to calculate performances in training database for creating a performance map trained by one type of artificial neural network (ANN), radial basis function network (RBFN). This performance map is further used to calculate the performances of impeller geometries. Results of these two optimization procedures under same GA parameters setting are compared and show that online flow solver optimization procedure can find better optima than offline flow solver optimization procedure. Moreover, influences of GA operators, parameters and local search algorithm on online flow solver optimization procedure are also investigated.Copyright © 2010 by ASME
Fortune teller: improving garbage collection performance in server environment using live objects prediction

Currently, the most adopted criterion to invoke garbage collection is heap space exhaustion. In other words, garbage collection is invoked when the heap space (either the entire space or generational space) runs out. A possible alternative but much more difficult approach is to invoke garbage collection when good garbage collection efficiencies can be obtained. To do so, we need to know number of garbage objects that can be collected before the collection actually takes place.In this short abstract, we introduce a predictive approach that can provide an accurate estimation of the number of dead objects at any specific point of execution. The proposed estimation model relies on the information obtained from partial reference counting. Our plan is to use this information as a criterion to invoke garbage collection. We have conducted a preliminary study to determine the feasibility of this idea and found that the model is sufficiently accurate in three SPECjvm98 benchmark applications.
The medicinal plant goldenseal is a natural LDL-lowering agent with multiple bioactive components and new action mechanisms

Our previous studies have identified berberine (BBR), an alkaloid isolated from the Chinese herb huanglian, as a unique cholesterol-lowering drug that upregulates hepatic low density lipoprotein receptor (LDLR) expression through a mechanism of mRNA stabilization. Here, we demonstrate that the root extract of goldenseal, a BBR-containing medicinal plant, is highly effective in upregulation of liver LDLR expression in HepG2 cells and in reducing plasma cholesterol and low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c) in hyperlipidemic hamsters, with greater activities than the pure compound BBR. By conducting bioassay-driven semipurifications, we demonstrate that the higher potency of goldenseal is achieved through concerted actions of multiple bioactive compounds in addition to BBR. We identify canadine (CND) and two other constituents of goldenseal as new upregulators of LDLR expression. We further show that the activity of BBR on LDLR expression is attenuated by multiple drug resistance-1 (MDR1)-mediated efflux from liver cells, whereas CND is resistant to MDR1. This finding defines a molecular mechanism for the higher activity of CND than BBR. We also provide substantial evidence to show that goldenseal contains natural MDR1 antagonist(s) that accentuate the upregulatory effect of BBR on LDLR mRNA expression. These new findings identify goldenseal as a natural LDL-c-lowering agent, and our studies provide a molecular basis for the mechanisms of action.
Changing family structures of Nepalese transmigrants in Japan: split‐households and dual‐wage earners

Based on surveys and interviews conducted in Japan and Nepal, this study of Nepalese labour migration to Japan examines the changing patterns of family responses to international migration, the increasing participation of married women in the global labour force, and the implications of these changes for households, communities and the Nepalese economy. The split-household family has long supported sojourning males of Tibeto–Burman linguistic groups as Gurkha soldiers in Indian and British Armies before returning to Nepal upon retirement. As women have increasingly left Nepal to take advantage of overseas employment, a pattern of husband–wife migration has emerged, with children being left in the hands of relatives – the dual-wage earner family. Thus, Nepal has recently witnessed the development of transnational families and individuals whose work, residence and life trajectories extend beyond the nation-state.
Modulation of the intracellular survival of Brucella abortus by tuftsin and muramyl dipeptide

Tuftsin, a physiologic bioactive peptide of animal origin, and muramyl dipeptide, a synthetic bioactive glycopeptide of microbial origin, are known to enhance several recognized macrophage functions and increase non-specific resistance of the host against a number of pathogens. The influence of these two bioactive peptides was studied in permissive bovine mammary macrophages that were unable to control the intracellular replication of Brucella abortus and restrictive bovine mammary macrophages that were able to effectively reduce the intracellular survival of B. abortus. Addition of tuftsin (Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg) or muramyl dipeptide significantly (P<0.03) enhanced the ability of the permissive macrophages to control the intracellular replication of B. abortus strain 2308 and resulted in the functional conversion of the permissive macrophages into restrictive macrophages. Addition of tripeptide tuftsin fragment (Lys-Pro-Arg), a natural inhibitor of tuftsin, to the medium completely abrogated the effect of tuftsin (P<0.03). No additive effect on the ability of the macrophages to control the survival of B. abortus resulted from the combination of tuftsin and muramyl dipeptide.
The biological foundations of cognitive science

Abstract Cognitive Science originated in reactions against behaviorism that were motivated in significant part by the example of the computer. The computer raised the exciting possibility that mind could be understood almost entirely independently of brain: if the operations of the mind are akin to the execution of a program, then almost all the relevant aspects of mind would be captured by that program, independently of whatever was running it, be it transistors or neurons. This presumed independence of cognitive science from biology has waned considerably in recent decades, but in this paper, I argue that there is at least one crucial aspect of biology that has yet to be appreciated for its relevance to mental and other normative processes—the thermodynamics of living systems. In particular, I argue that the emergence of normativity in general—and normative function and representation in particular—depends on special systems that are far from thermodynamic equilibrium; these form the interface between the factual world of atoms and molecules and the normative world of mind. The nature of that emergence, in turn, imposes strong constraints on how the central nervous system functions, and, therefore, on how cognition is realized.
Simulation of homogeneous turbulent shear flows at higher Reynolds numbers: numerical challenges and a remedy

In a recent study, Isaza and Collins [J. Fluid Mech., 637 (2009), pp. 213–239] found the asymptotic state of homogeneous turbulent shear flows (HTSFs) to be sensitively dependent on the initial shear parameter (), and yet be almost independent of the initial Reynolds number (R λ≡qλ/ν). The stringent resolution criteria they employed, however, restricted their studies to relatively low Reynolds numbers. In this paper, we present higher resolution direct numerical simulations of HTSFs over a wider range of Reynolds numbers, aided in part by an improved parallelisation scheme that utilises two-dimensional domain decomposition. We maximise the time-window for our simulations by determining appropriate settings for the initial energy spectrum, viscosity and domain configuration, thereby ensuring that we attain the highest possible asymptotic Reynolds number at the chosen grid resolution. In the course of our study, we find that the pseudo-spectral method suffers from Gibbs oscillations while resolving the thin...
A contemporary approach to suspected ectopic pregnancy with use of quantitative and qualitative assays for the β-subunit of human chorionic gonadotropin and sonography

Although assays for the β-subunit of human chorionic gonadotropin (β-hCG) and ultrasonography have become popular diagnostic aids in the approach to patients with a suspected ectopic pregnancy, their true utility has not been clearly defined; in fact, the β-hCG assay is so sensitive that proper clinical interpretation is sometimes difficult. A recent study describing a “discriminatory zone” (β-hCG level of 6000 to 6500 mlU/ml), which correlates β-hCG levels with appearance of a gestational sac on ultrasound scans, has been reported to be of diagnostic benefit. A prospective study of 103 women with suspected ectopic pregnancy was undertaken utilizing an algorithm which included β-hCG assays (quantitative as well as qualitative) and ultrasonography. Seventy-three patients were found not to be pregnant, and seven had a normal pregnancy, 14 patients ultimately had a spontaneous abortion, and seven ectopic pregnancies were identified. The following conclusions were drawn: (1) a qualitative β-hCG assay with a sensitivity of 25 mlU/ml is an effective test in screening for ectopic pregnancies; (2) the concept of a “discriminatory zone” is valid but not of frequent clinical utility, since most patients suspected of having an ectopic gestation have β-hCG levels below this zone; (3) serial monitoring of β-hCG values is an important diagnostic aid; (4) culdocentesis is still an important contemporary diagnostic test for the patient suspected of ectopic pregnancy.
Improvement of the Serviceability of Damaged Concrete and Reinforced-Concrete Structures by Sealing Hardening Injections

We consider main approaches to the analysis of the engineering state of concrete and reinforced-concrete structures with in-service defects and evaluate the efficiency of improvement of their serviceability by injection technologies. We compute the parameters of these technologies and propose numerous injection composite materials with high technological characteristics based on polyurethane and polyepoxide. The efficiency of these materials is confirmed by the results of testing of laboratory specimens with filled stress concentrators. Additional possibilities of corrosion protection of uncoated steel reinforcement by adding corrosion inhibitors to the injection compositions are discovered and the technological features of hardening of damaged structures by filling detected defects are revealed.
Evidence for restricted oligosaccharide mobility at the erythrocyte membrane surface: a fluorescence study.

Abstract The glycophorins of whole, human erythrocytes were labeled at their sialic acid residues with one of three fluorescent probes. After preparation of the erythrocyte ghosts, the mobility of each fluorescent probe on the intact membrane was compared with its mobility on the isolated, labeled glycopeptides dissolved in aqueous buffer. A four- to ninefold decrease in the rotational relaxation time, as defined by the Perrin equation, accompanied the proteolytic removal of the labeled glycopeptides from the membrane. This suggests that the fluorescent probes, and by extrapolation, the sugars to which they are immediately attached, are restricted in their mobility at the membrane surface. A crude model of the carbohydrate layer of the erythrocyte surface was constructed by incorporating the labeled, tryptic glycopeptides into agarose gels of different agarose content. A decrease in the probe's mobility was observed as agarose content was raised. This indicates that the high oligosaccharide density at the erythrocyte membrane surface may contribute to the observed immobilization of the fluorescent probes in situ .
Examining the sensitivity of Earth's climate to the removal of ozone, landmasses and enhanced ocean heat transport in the GENESIS global climate model

Abstract This paper examines the cloud radiative forcing and its impacts on the surface climate for global climate model simulations that use reduced ozone concentrations and land fractions as boundary conditions. In one simulation using present-day land continents, ozone concentrations are reduced to zero and compared to the present-day climate simulation. In the second set of simulations under global ocean conditions, the implied poleward transport of heat by the ocean is varied. The removal of ozone causes an increase in longwave cloud radiative forcing at the top of the atmosphere and the surface. The increase in longwave forcing melts sea-ice and snow at high latitudes leading 10–14°C warmer temperatures and globally a 2°C increase. The global ocean simulations lead to higher cloud fractions than present-day simulation. Without poleward transport of heat by the ocean, surface temperatures cool as a result of higher cloud fractions. Increasing the ocean heat transport by a factor of 3.33 brings about ice-free conditions. An 11°C difference in globally averaged surface air temperatures is found between the enhanced and zero poleward oceanic heat transport simulations. The longwave cloud radiative forcing from high cloud fractions enhance the surface warming in the polar regions during the winter season. Conversely, during the summer season, a high cloud fraction increases the shortwave cloud radiative forcing producing only moderately warm temperatures in the polar regions. High cloud fractions in polar regions during warm periods throughout geologic times may help to explain the reduced equator to pole temperature gradient.
Exponential structural relaxation of a high purity silica glass

While most other glasses exhibit non-exponential structural relaxation characteristics even when the change of fictive temperature is small, a high purity silica glass exhibited exponential structural relaxation. This was demonstrated by showing that the non-exponential exponent or β value of the KWW function of the high purity silica glass approaches unity when the change of the fictive temperature approaches zero both from higher and lower temperature sides of the heat-treatment temperature. The non-exponentiality of the structural relaxation of this glass when fictive temperature change is finite is due to the change of relaxation time during the structural relaxation.
Introduction: In the Comfort of Perpetual Abandonment

Central to the notion of modernity has been a historical loss of meaning and a resulting state of melancholy. An abandoned classical landscape allows for repeated inspiration and the possibility of rebirth after the rupture. Archaeological field survey has shown that the Greek countryside has been stable in only one way, a perpetual cycle of abandonment and re-habitation from prehistory to the present. This rhythm of eternal return differs from the catastrophe of a single golden age. Rather than producing anxiety, the trope of endless abandonment annuls the drama of collapse and comforts the modern psyche. The Greek countryside, thus, provides unique fodder for modernity’s historical posturing.
Modification of Collagen by 3-Deoxyglucosone Alters Wound Healing through Differential Regulation of p38 MAP Kinase

Background Wound healing is a highly dynamic process that requires signaling from the extracellular matrix to the fibroblasts for migration and proliferation, and closure of the wound. This rate of wound closure is impaired in diabetes, which may be due to the increased levels of the precursor for advanced glycation end products, 3-deoxyglucosone (3DG). Previous studies suggest a differential role for p38 mitogen-activated kinase (MAPK) during wound healing; whereby, p38 MAPK acts as a growth kinase during normal wound healing, but acts as a stress kinase during diabetic wound repair. Therefore, we investigated the signaling cross-talk by which p38 MAPK mediates wound healing in fibroblasts cultured on native collagen and 3DG-collagen. Methodology/Principal Findings Using human dermal fibroblasts cultured on 3DG-collagen as a model of diabetic wounds, we demonstrated that p38 MAPK can promote either cell growth or cell death, and this was dependent on the activation of AKT and ERK1/2. Wound closure on native collagen was dependent on p38 MAPK phosphorylation of AKT and ERK1/2. Furthermore, proliferation and collagen production in fibroblasts cultured on native collagen was dependent on p38 MAPK regulation of AKT and ERK1/2. In contrast, 3DG-collagen decreased fibroblast migration, proliferation, and collagen expression through ERK1/2 and AKT downregulation via p38 MAPK. Conclusions/Significance Taken together, the present study shows that p38 MAPK is a key signaling molecule that plays a significantly opposite role during times of cellular growth and cellular stress, which may account for the differing rates of wound closure seen in diabetic populations.
Real dilemmas regarding blood transfusion.

In transfusing patients with red blood cells, physicians and surgeons aim to enhance the circulatory oxygen-carrying capacity that has been compromised due to blood loss or a hematological disorder. In general, bleeding and transfusion strongly correlate with adverse outcomes in patients undergoing
Low energy implantation of boron with decaborane ions

Formation of p-type shallow junctions for future generations of Si devices will require ion implantation of B at very low energies (< 1 keV). An alternative to implantation of monomer ions at very low energy is implantation of large molecular ions at a higher energy. In an ion beam of decaborane (B10H14) each of the B atoms carries only 9% of the ion kinetic energy. We have examined ionization properties of decaborane and built an experimental ion source and an implantation apparatus with magnetic mass analysis. Analyzed decaborane ion beams with energies from 2 to 10 keV and beam currents of several microamperes were obtained. Si samples were implanted with decaborane ions and the implanted dose measured by current integration was compared with B content obtained by nuclear reaction analysis. Experiments with electrostatic beam deflection show that the large ions survive the transport in the implanter environment and that neutralization is negligible. During implantation, the retained B dose is reduced in comparison with the nominal implanted dose due to sputtering. Dose loss is greater at 200 eV compared to 500 eV. The properties of decaborane ion beams and the prospects of using them for shallow implantation of B into Si are discussed.
The tradeoff between reproductive and food resources in the crayfish Orconectes virilis

The conflict between mating and foraging is one of the many tradeoffs associated with reproduction. The relative attraction to sex pheromone and food stimuli by male virile crayfish (Orconectes virilis) were tested using two experiments. In the first experiment, the responses by males to pheromone and food stimuli alone were assessed. In the second experiment, males were exposed to both pheromone and food stimuli in a choice maze. To determine the effects of feeding motivation, the males in the choice experiment were fed either one day or seven days prior to observation. Male crayfish exhibited similar responses to the pheromone and food stimuli individually. Males exhibited a preference for the pheromone stimulus over the food stimulus in the choice trials, and that preference that was not influenced by starvation.
Progesterone Regulates Osteopontin Expression in Human Trophoblasts: A Model of Paracrine Control in the Placenta?

Osteopontin (OPN), a matrix glycosylated phosphoprotein, has been proposed to play a role(s) in basic cellular processes, such as neovascularization and tissue remodeling, which are essential to placental morphogenesis and embryo implantation. We have shown OPN to be expressed by cytotrophoblasts of the chorionic villus, and a putative progesterone regulatory element in the OPN promoter suggests hormonal regulatory control. This led us to test the hypothesis that progesterone regulates OPN expression in human cytotrophoblasts. Cytotrophoblasts isolated from human placentas were treated with combinations of progesterone, RU486, and/or aminoglutethimide, and their expression of OPN was assessed by Northern hybridization and immunocytochemistry. The expression of OPN messenger RNA (mRNA) declined as trophoblasts aggregated, but rebounded at later times when syncytia and mononuclear cytotrophoblasts coexisted in culture. Progesterone increased OPN mRNA expression by aggregating mononuclear cytotrophoblasts. Aminoglutethimide suppression of endogenous steroidogenesis by syncytiotrophoblasts inhibited OPN expression, whereas the addition of exogenous progesterone to cells treated with aminoglutethimide reversed this inhibitory effect. These observations were confirmed at the protein level by immunocytochemistry. Treatment of cytotrophoblasts with both progesterone and RU486 inhibited the up-regulatory effect on OPN mRNA associated with exposure to progesterone alone, further confirming a direct effect of progesterone. We conclude that progesterone up-regulates OPN expression in human cytotrophoblasts, and we propose that in vivo, progesterone secretion by syncytiotrophoblasts regulates the expression of OPN by the underlying cytotrophoblasts. As the receptors for OPN, alpha(v) integrins, are expressed by syncytiotrophoblasts, we postulate that these paracrine regulatory mechanisms contribute to the adhesive and/or signaling events between the two trophoblast cell types of the chorionic villus.
The Volunteer Subject in Sensory Restriction Research

(1967). The Volunteer Subject in Sensory Restriction Research. The Journal of Social Psychology: Vol. 72, No. 1, pp. 123-124.
Time-resolved fluorescence immunoassay (TRFIA) for the detection of Escherichia coli O157:H7 in apple cider

An immunoassay based on immunomagnetic separation and time-resolved fluorometry was developed for the detection of E. coli O157:H7 in apple cider. The time-resolved fluorescent immunoassay (TRFIA) uses a polyclonal antibody bound to immunomagnetic beads as the capture antibody and the same antibody labeled with europium as the detection antibody. Cell suspensions of 10(1) to 10(8) E. coli O157:H7 and K-12 organisms per ml were used to test the sensitivity and specificity of the assay. The sensitivity of the assay was 10(3) E. coli O157:H7 cells with no cross-reaction with K-12. Pure cultures of E. coli O157:H7 (10(1) to 10(5) CFU/ml) in apple cider could be detected within 6 h, including 4 h for incubation in modified EC broth with novobiocin and 2 h for the immunoassay. When apple cider was spiked with 1 to 10(3) CFU/ml of E. coli O157:H7 and 10(6) CFU/ml of K-12, our data show that the high level of K-12 in apple cider did not impede the detection of low levels of O157:H7. The minimum detectable numbers of cells present in the initial inoculum were 10(2) and 10(1) CFU/ml after 4- and 6-h enrichment. The TRFIA provides a rapid and sensitive means of detecting E. coli O157:H7 in apple cider.
A cryptic proline permease in Salmonella typhimurium.

Summary: Wild-type Salmonella typhimurium expresses three proline transport systems: a high-affinity proline transport system encoded by the putP gene, and two glycine betaine transport systems with a lower affinity for proline encoded by the proP and proU genes. Although proline uptake by the ProP and ProU transport systems is sufficient to supplement a proline auxotroph, it is not efficient enough to allow proline utilization as a sole source of carbon or nitrogen. Thus, the PutP transport system is required for utilization of proline as a carbon or nitrogen source. In this study, an overexpression suppressor, designated proY, which allows proline utilization in a putP genetic background and does not require the function of any of the known proline transport systems, was cloned and characterized. The suppressor gene, designated proY, maps at 8 min on the S. typhimurium linkage map, distant from any of the other characterized proline transport genes. The DNA sequence of the proY gene predicts that it encodes a hydrophobic integral membrane protein, with strong similarity to a family of amino acid transporters. The suppressor phenotype requires either a multicopy clone of the proY + gene or both a single copy of the proY + gene and a proZ mutation. These results indicate that the proY gene is the structural gene for a cryptic proline transporter that is silent unless overexpressed on a multicopy plasmid or activated by a proZ mutation.
Collaborative filtering and carbon footprint calculation

An increasingly common way for people to measure and understand their individual environmental impact is by using an online carbon footprint calculator. Although a wide variety of these calculators are available, the vast majority shares the same form of user interaction and calculation methods, limiting the reach of these tools and introducing a number of problems for informing users of their environmental impact. We find that the interaction afforded by popular calculators—in addition to considering only a limited number of impact factors at a single instant in time—treats a person's carbon footprint as an individual matter, rather than drawing attention to the interconnectivity and wider impacts of footprints across the person's broader community. To address these problems, we present the Better Carbon calculator, which uses collaborative filtering and location-based calculation to provide an individual footprint estimate while simultaneously affecting and improving the estimates for other people in a user's community.
Grothendieck groups of dihedral and quaternion group rings

Abstract For a finite group G , let G 0 ( Z G ) denote the Grothendieck group of finitely-generated Z G -modules with relations arising from short-exact sequences. It is shown that the methods of Lenstra for G Abelian can be adapted to semidirect products G = π ⋊ Γ with π cyclic, resulting in a description of G 0 ( Z G ) as a direct sum of Grothendieck groups of certain twisted group rings. In the case of the dihedral groups D 2 n and the generalized quaternion groups Q 4 m , this leads to explicit formulas. Finally, it is shown that for a group G with no commuting elements of relatively-prime orders, the restriction-of-scalars map G 0 ( M G ) → G 0 ( Z G ), where M G is a maximal order containing Z G , is an isomorphism, a result suggested by S. Chase.
Control of prosthetic gait.

Abstract Recent advances in two types of prosthetic gait are particularly noteworthy, namely work on limb and neural prostheses. Current work on artificial limbs has been oriented towards improving devices, with commercialization as the driving force. Progress has been made in understanding how the compliant properties of the foot, ankle and knee joints of artificial legs affect the energetics and kinematics of gait. Work is continuing on automated systems for fabricating sockets with improved fit to increase the comfort of artificial limbs. Neural prostheses use electrical stimulation to activate paralyzed muscle: Advances have been made in understanding how to model the patterns of neural prosthetic gait and how neural prostheses respond to disturbances. Work in real-time control of stimulated muscle has progressed in the area of system identification and in using natural sensors for feedback signals. There still remains a wide gap, however, between able-bodied gait and the gait that can be achieved using current neural prosthesis systems.
Fluid inclusion constraints on petroleum PVT and compositional history of the Greater Alwyn—South Brent petroleum system, northern North sea

Abstract Pressure–volume–temperature (PVT) simulation of individual petroleum inclusions that are trapped in source rocks, migration pathways, and reservoirs, is, when combined with standard inclusion analytical techniques, a useful tool for the quantitative estimation of paleopressures, paleotemperatures and changes in petroleum compositions over time. This study presents the results from the application of these techniques to determine the evolution of the petroleum trapped through time as maturation and migration progress within the Greater Alwyn—South Brent petroleum system of the northern North Sea. The results for the Brent reservoir from the six study fields indicate that the petroleum inclusions recorded a wide range of compositions during the filling history of the reservoir. The methane concentrations and gas/oil ratios of included petroleum are lower than those presently within the reservoir. The fluid inclusion data suggest that changes in petroleum compositions through time can be interpreted in terms of gradual mixing of earlier reservoired oil with later migrated, more mature and gas-rich fluids. Fields nearest the kitchen area appear to have been more severely affected by the emplacement of increasingly mature petroleum. Phase separation during vertical migration may also occur, but is thought to be a volumetrically minor process. The estimated paleopressures mostly correspond to the current pressure regime, which is slightly higher than hydrostatic and lower than lithostatic. Combining fluid inclusion results with thermal–burial models suggests that petroleum migration began at approximately 55–64 Ma in the area. This study provides quantitative limits on and confirms the value of fluid inclusion technology in such applications as evaluating oil compositions, migration timing, trap-fill history, paleopressures, and in constraining the outputs of basin modeling.
The effect of temporary hypoxia on prostaglandin synthesis in mouse brain cell cultures during development.

Abstract Cultures of dissociated brain cells of new born mice represent a model for the study of brain development. One and two weeks old, they correspond in regard to oligodendrocyte differentiation to about the developmental stage of a human newborn and a six months old infant respectively. Such cultures were used to establish the developmental prostaglandin pattern and to study early and late recovery of prostaglandin synthesis from temporary hypoxia. Basal and bradykinin stimulated prostaglandin release were examined. Most prominently in stimulated release, the developmental prostaglandin pattern at one week showed a prevalence of PGE2 (33 ± 4%) over PGD2 (12 ± 5%), which in two weeks old cultures changes to an opposite distribution (PGE2 10 ± 4%; PGD2 25 ± 6%). This change goes parallel with the number and differentiation of oligodendrocytes. During the first day post hypoxia, imposed at the end of one week, the production of 6 oxo PGF1α, PGE2, PGD2 and TXB2 was significantly decreased in two study series and increased compared to control in another. Since the arachidonic acid uptake was the same in all three series, this differential observation indicates differential early recovery. 8 days post hypoxia (late recovery), PG release was not different from control, indicating complete recovery at that time. During early recovery from hypoxia on 14 days old cultures, basal PG release was not significantly different from control, however bradykinin stimulated release was significantly inhibited in all three series. This may indicate that mainly regulatory influences on PG release in older cultures are compromised by hypoxia. The Model is a useful tool for the study of developmental changes of metabolism as well as of exogenous influences.
Holmium laser lithotripsy of urinary calculi: initial experience with the 200-μm holmium laser fiber

We performed a pilot evaluation of the 200 micron holmium laser fiber to treat a variety of ureteral and renal calculi. The 200 micron laser fiber has the potential advantage of being more malleable and therefore having increased deflectability compared to larger laser fibers. A total of sixty patients underwent treatment for urinary calculi either primarily or as an adjunct. Thirty-three intrarenal stones and 26 ureteral stones were ureteroscopically treated with the 200 micron holmium laser fiber. Mean stone burden was 12.8 mm for renal stones (range equals 3 - 40 mm) and 7.7 mm for ureteral stones (range 5 - 15 mm). The ability to treat calculi in dependent calices and energy required to fragment calculi were studied. In addition, a bench top study was performed to determine the effect of the 200 micron fiber on active deflection of various flexible ureteroscopes. The bench studies revealed that the 200 micron fiber limited the flexibility of the ureteroscopes from 9 to 43 degrees depending on the ureteroscope. In spite of the limitation demonstrated in the bench top studies, in vivo we found that using the small diameter laser fiber, we could access and treat calculi located within dependent and lower pole calices. In addition, although the 200 micron fiber did inhibit deflection of flexible ureteroscopes, in all cases we were able to obtain access to the lower pole using this fiber.
Reassuring weaker parties after civil wars: The benefits and costs of executive power-sharing systems in Africa

Abstract This article begins with a discussion of power-sharing institutions in terms of their short- and long-term implications, examining the possible lack of fit between power sharing as an incentive to reach agreements during the negotiation phase while proving a source of conflict during the longer-term consolidation phase. In the next section, I analyse Africa's real world experiences with power sharing, looking at the details of experiments in the 1990s after civil wars. I then discuss the question of reassuring weaker parties, linking the search for increased political, economic and strategic security during the negotiation phase with the changed circumstances that prevailed during the consolidation phase. Finally, in the conclusion, I probe the anticipated and unanticipated consequences that may follow from the adoption of power-sharing systems in Africa.
Reduced variability of Neoral pharmacokinetic studies in pediatric renal transplantation

In adult renal transplant recipients the Neoral area under the curve (AUC) displays less inter- and intra- individual variability than Sandimmune, and those renal transplant recipients with reduced intra-individual variability of the AUC have a lower risk for chronic rejection. As variability of Neoral pharmacokinetic (Pk) parameters has not been investigated in pediatric renal transplant recipients, we retrospectively analyzed 453 Pk profiles in 14 pediatric patients who were switched from Sandimmune to Neoral and compared the inter- and intra-individual variability of the Pk profiles on both formulations. After the switch, we observed less inter- and intra-individual variability of AUC, the 2-h concentration, and the oral clearance. As clearance with both formulations is supposedly equal, the significantly lower intra-individual variability of oral clearance is most likely an effect of less variable absorption. While the lower inter-individual variability of the Pk parameters suggests increased success in keeping cyclosporine concentrations on target, the lower intra-individual variability leads to the hypothesis that with Neoral, a lower incidence of chronic rejection might be achieved.
Dissociated Vertical Deviation: An Acquired Nystagmus-Blockage Phenomenon

The mechanism of dissociated vertical deviation (DVD) is beginning to be understood, but does DVD serve a useful purpose? This study explores the hypothesis that DVD improves visual acuity in the f...
The role of international transfer of technology in Japan's economic growth

Abstract The study has two objectives. The first is to review the current state of knowledge about the quantitative role of technological progress in Japan's economic growth. While a few studies have challenged its preeminent role as a source of growth, attributing such growth to a more highly educated labor force or to a rapid growth of capital, etc., a main finding of recent research has been to reaffirm technological change as the most important source of growth. The second objective of the study is to suggest how this rapid technological progress was achieved. A process is described in which, in Japan, a national policy on growth was established, policy tools developed, cooperation of involved groups secured, and new commodities marketed. In this process, the importation of foreign technology apparently played a key role and the study calls for detailed research on this key factor.
IT'S HARD TO HOVER AT HEIGHT

![Figure][1] Hovering flight is one of the most strenuous activities imaginable. It's so hard that one might imagine that it would be impossible in thin mountain air, which provides less lift and has less oxygen. And yet hummingbirds live, thrive – and hover – high in the forests of the
Atrial extracellular matrix remodeling and the maintenance of atrial fibrillation.

Background— Remodeling occurs in both ventricle and atrium in dilated cardiomyopathy and heart failure. However, the alteration of atrial extracellular matrix components during remodeling and its effect on the electrical remodeling and atrial arrhythmia have never been explored. Methods and Results— Atrial tissue samples of 53 explanted hearts from patients with dilated cardiomyopathy and end-stage heart failure who underwent heart transplantation were examined. Nineteen patients had permanent atrial fibrillation (PmAF), 18 had persistent AF (PsAF), and 16 had no documented AF (NAF). Sixteen donor left atria (LA) were used as controls (CNs). Western Blot analysis revealed a selective downregulation of tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase (TIMP)-2 in PmAF and PsAF groups compared with the NAF and CN groups and an upregulation of atrial metalloproteinase (MMP)-2 that was most pronounced in the PmAF group followed by the PsAF and NAF groups. Immunofluorescent staining revealed that in the LA, type I collage...
Contrasting the Predictions for Coulomb and Creep-Rate-Dependent Friction in the Modeling of Fiber-Draw Processes

One of the most important features in industrial fiber-drawing processes is the friction between filament tow and draw rollers, because it is what creates the tension in the fiber that performs the draw. To understand fiber draw, therefore, it would be valuable to examine the sensitivity of model predictions to the choice of the idealization of the friction incorporated in the model. This paper begins the comparative study by deriving and solving models for fiber draw, which for the first time study the friction between filament tow and draw rollers as something other than Coulomb friction, namely creep-rate-dependent friction. Sensitivity of the draw model to the choice of friction idealization is investigated by contrasting process simulations employing the usual Coulomb model for friction with simulations of the same processes employing the creep-rate-dependent friction model. It is demonstrated that the draw-model predictions of fiber behavior depend both qualitatively and quantitatively on the specific idealization of the friction between filament and rollers. For example, whereas the Coulomb friction model predicts adhesion zones on the rollers, in which the fibers and roller move together with no slip, there are strictly no adhesion zones with the creep-rate-dependent friction model, although with a choice of processing parameters the predicted relative velocity between fiber and roller can be made arbitrarily small. With the creep-rate-dependent friction model the fiber speed at the point of attachment to the draw roller must be greater than the roller surface speed for the equations of momentum to be satisfied. This small, but finite, abrupt change in speed profile can be interpreted as the formation of a neck in the fiber just upstream of the point of attachment to the roller.
Niobium-Silicide Junction Technology for Superconducting Digital Electronics

We present a technology based on Nb/NbxSi1-x/Nb junctions, with barriers near the metal-insulator transition, for applications in superconducting electronics (SCE) as an alternative to Nb/AlOx/Nb tunnel junctions. Josephson junctions with co-sputtered amorphous Nb-Si barriers can be made with a wide variety of electrical properties: critical current density (Jc), capacitance (C), and normal resistance (Rn) can be reliably selected within wide ranges by choosing both the barrier thickness and Nb concentration. Nonhysteretic Nb/NbxSi1-x/Nb junctions with IcRn products greater than 1mV, where Ic is the critical current, and Jc values near 100kA/cm2 have been fabricated and are promising for superconductive digital electronics. These barriers have thicknesses of several nanometers; this improves fabrication reproducibility and junction uniformity, both of which are necessary for complex digital circuits. Recent improvements to our deposition system have allowed us to obtain better uniformity across the wafer.
All Phase Resetting Curves Are Bimodal, but Some Are More Bimodal Than Others

Phase resetting curves (PRCs) are phenomenological and quantitative tools that tabulate the transient changes in the firing period of endogenous neural oscillators as a result of external stimuli, for example, presynaptic inputs. A brief current perturbation can produce either a delay (positive phase resetting) or an advance (negative phase resetting) of the subsequent spike, depending on the timing of the stimulus. We showed that any planar neural oscillator has two remarkable points, which we called neutral points, where brief current perturbations produce no phase resetting and where the PRC flips its sign. Since there are only two neutral points, all PRCs of planar neural oscillators are bimodal. The degree of bimodality of a PRC, that is, the ratio between the amplitudes of the delay and advance lobes of a PRC, can be smoothly adjusted when the bifurcation scenario leading to stable oscillatory behavior combines a saddle node of invariant circle (SNIC) and an Andronov-Hopf bifurcation (HB).
Genetics of nonsenescence and charcoal rot resistance in sorghum.

Nonsenescence is a delayed leaf and plant death resistance mechanism in sorghum that circumvents the detrimental effects of reduced soil moisture combined with high temperatures during post-anthesis growth. This drought-tolerance mechanism is often equated with charcoal rot resistance, a widespread root and stalk disease of great destructive potential. Therefore, the inheritance of charcoal rot resistance was investigated directly, by exposure of sorghum to Macrophomina phaseolina, the causal organism, and indirectly, by determination of the inheritance of nonsenescence. Sorghum families derived from diallel crosses between two nonsenescent, resistant inbreds (B35, SC599-11E) and two senescent, susceptible inbreds (BTx378, BTx623) were evaluated in 1989 at College Station and at Lubbock, Texas, under controlled and field conditions. We determined that nonsenescence was regulated by dominant and recessive epistatic interactions between two nonsenescence-inducing loci and a third locus with modifying effects. The same conclusion was reached for charcoal rot resistance. The presence of different genetic mechanisms within SC599-11E for nonsenescence and charcoal rot resistance verifies that these two forms of resistance are not different manifestations of a single trait, i.e., they are not to be equated with each other. We conclude that nonsenescence alone cannot account for, and should not be used as the sole breeding criterion for, resistance to charcoal rot in sorghum.
The effect of hydrostatic pressure on the ductile-brittle transition in molybdenum

Abstract The ductile-brittle transition temperature for bend specimens of recrystallized powder metallurgy molybdenum has been shown to be lowered from 50°C to 2°C by the application of a hydrostatic pressure of ~20,000 psi (~1.4 kbar). The pressure medium was kerosene. The samples were obtained from 0.020 in. dia. wire which was stated to be 99.95% pure and after recrystallization had an average grain diameter of 1 40 mm . It was shown within experimental error that an applied hydrostatic pressure of 20,000 psi results in an increase in the fracture stress by this same amount and thus it is concluded that the rate controlling mechanism of fracture is governed by the tensile component of the applied stress and in fact is independent of a corresponding change in the maximum shear stress of 10,000 psi. It is argued that any critical shear stress which may be important to the fracture process must have a value at or below the value of the maximum shear stress at the transition temperature corresponding to atmospheric pressure. It is estimated that at least for some cases this value is as low as 37,500 psi.
Resection or reduction? The dilemma of managing retrograde intussusception after Roux-en-Y gastric bypass.

Abstract Background Retrograde intussusception (RI) at the jejunojejunostomy can occur after Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB). Although this complication is rare, it has been encountered more frequently as the number of bariatric procedures have increased. Little data is available to assist surgeons with the optimal management of this condition. Our objectives were to identify the risk factors for RI after RYGB and report on outcomes after surgical intervention at a tertiary academic surgical unit. Methods We used our prospective longitudinal institutional bariatric surgical database to identify patients with post-RYGB RI from 1996 to 2011. Results We identified 28 post-RYGB RI cases. The median interval between RYGB and RI was 52 months, and the median percentage of excess weight loss was 75%. Patients presented with acute symptoms in 36% of the cases. All patients underwent surgical exploration, including resection and revision of the jejunojejunostomy (46%) or operative reduction with or without enteropexy (54%). Those undergoing resection had a longer hospital stay but similar 30-day complication rates. At a median follow-up of 9 months, only 1 recurrence was documented. Conclusions RI is a rare and late complication of RYGB and typically occurs after significant weight loss. In the presence of ischemia or nonreducible RI, resection and revision of the jejunojejunostomy is recommended. In less acute patients, laparoscopic management with reduction and/or enteropexy offers a reduced hospital length of stay while maintaining equivalent morbidity and low recurrence compared with resection.
Measurement of aging anxiety: development of the Anxiety about Aging Scale

This research is based on the premise that aging anxiety is an important mediating factor in attitudes and behavior toward elderly individuals as well as a mediating factor in adjustment to one's o...
The Not-for-Profit Sector: No Longer About Just Raising Funds

The not-for-profit world today faces difficult times, compounded by the changing focus and direction of many non-profit organizations. With contributor revenues down, many not-for-profits are suddenly faced with the reality of having to start operating very differently. No longer can they go to a significant donor and easily get a check or obtain other sources of funding. As a result, how non-profits handle their money has been placed under greater scrutiny. And, various constituencies (board members, contributors, members of the community, politicians) now hold management more accountable. This article examines how the not-for-profit sector is changing their thinking, strategies, and operations to better cope with the changing environment and to prepare the foundation for future growth and success.