cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Flame synthesis of zinc oxide nanocrystals

Abstract Distinctive zinc oxide (ZnO) nanocrystals were synthesized on the surface of Zn probes using a counter-flow flame medium formed by methane/acetylene and oxygen-enriched air streams. The source material, a zinc wire with a purity of ∼99.99% and diameter of 1 mm, was introduced through a sleeve into the oxygen rich region of the flame. The position of the probe/sleeve was varied within the flame medium resulting in growth variation of ZnO nanocrystals on the surface of the probe. The shape and structural parameters of the grown crystals strongly depend on the flame position. Structural variations of the synthesized crystals include single-crystalline ZnO nanorods and microprisms (ZMPs) (the ZMPs have less than a few micrometers in length and several hundred nanometers in cross section) with a large number of facets and complex axial symmetry with a nanorod protruding from their tips. The protruding rods are less than 100 nm in diameter and lengths are less than 1 μm. The protruding nanorods can be elongated several times by increasing the residence time of the probe/sleeve inside the oxygen-rich flame or by varying the flame position. At different flame heights, nanorods having higher length-to-diameter aspect-ratio can be synthesized. A lattice spacing of ∼0.26 nm was measured for the synthesized nanorods, which can be closely correlated with the (0 0 2) interplanar spacing of hexagonal ZnO (Wurtzite) cells. The synthesized nanostructures were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), high resolution TEM (HR-TEM), X-ray energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), and selected area electron diffraction pattern (SAED). The growth mechanism of the ZnO nanostructures is discussed.
Characterization of subcutaneous microvascular blood flow during tilt table-induced neurally mediated syncope

Abstract Objectives. This study aimed to characterize subcutaneous blood flow changes during neurally mediated syncope and to determine whether microvasculature oscillation (vasomotion) is characteristically altered in conjunction with syncopal events. Background. Marked pallor is commonly associated with neurally mediated syncope. However, little attention has been paid to the evaluation of subcutaneous blood flow and vasomotion in this setting. Methods. This study utilized laser Doppler flowmetry to assess changes in subcutaneous microvascular blood flow during head-up tilt table testing in 13 patients with syncope and 6 control subjects. Blood flow and vasomotion frequency were measured continuously before, during and after completion of 80° head-up tilt testing (≤25-min duration). Results. Among the 13 patients with syncope, tilt testing reproduced syncopal symptoms in 9 (tilt-positive group) but not in 4 (tilt-negative group). None of the six control subjects developed symptoms during testing. Baseline mean subcutaneous blood flow did not differ significantly among the three groups. However, during upright tilt, blood flow gradually diminished in the tilt-positive group, reaching a nadir of 0.8 ± 0.33 ml/min per 100 g of tissue (mean ± SD), but remained relatively constant in the tilt-negative group and control subjects. The difference in mean blood flow response to tilt was statistically significant when the tilt-positive group was compared with either the tilt-negative group or control subjects (p Conclusions. These findings document an expected diminution of subcutaneous blood flow in association with neurally mediated syncope and indicate that characteristic changes in microvasculature oscillation frequency occur in conjunction with syncopal symptoms. To the extent that microvasculature vasomotion is influenced by neural control, the changes in vasomotion frequency are consistent with relative diminution of peripheral sympathetic neural influence during neurally mediated syncopal episodes.
Quenching cross sections for Xe(3P2) metastable atoms with simple molecules

Abstract The cross section for quenching of Xe( 3 P 2 , 8.3 eV) metastable atoms by thirteen simple molecules has been measured using the flowing-afterglow technique. Except for H 2 and N 2 , the cross sections for quenching of Xe( 3 P 2 ) are larger than for quenching of Ar( 3 P 2 ). For both Ar( 3 P 2 ) and Xe( 3 P 2 ) the magnitude of the quenching cross section for the majority of the molecules is dominated by long range forces. The technique used for generating Xe( 3 P 2 ) was based upon the addition of Xe to a flow of argon metastable atoms which results in the transfer of energy from a large fraction of Ar metastable atoms to ground state Xe atoms, yielding Xe( 3 P 2 ) atoms.
Computer room water protection

Water can enter computer rooms from numerous sources: air conditioners; roof, floor, and wall leaks; backed‐up floor drains; fire sprinklers; and so on. While insulated power and signal cables may not be affected by water, splices in such cables as well as computer components may be seriously affected. A wide range of water monitoring and signaling equipment is available for subfloor and ceiling installation to detect and warn of water problems.
Ultrastructural Aspects of Acetylcholine Receptor Turnover at the Normal End-plate and in Autoimmune Myasthenia Gravis

Acetylcholine receptor (AChR) deficiency at the myasthenic end-plate has been attributed to complement-mediated lysis of the junctional folds and to increased fractional degradation rate of AChR cross-linked by myasthenic immunoglobulin. This paper addresses the manner in which AChR is internalized and degraded at the normal end-plate and provides morphologic evidence for accelerated AChR degradation at the end-plate of rats with experimental autoimmune myasthenia gravis (EAMG). We sequentially traced the fate of end-plate AChR labeled in vivo with intramuscularly-injected peroxidase-alpha-bungarotoxin (PBGT) in control rats and rats with chronic EAMG. At both control and EAMG end-plates, AChR is internalized by endocytosis. The endocytosed vesicles containing AChR are transferred into the lysosomal compartment which extends from the junctional folds into the junctional sarcoplasm. Regardless of whether the initial intensity of the reaction for AChR at the EAMG end-plate appeared normal or reduced. AChR disappeared more rapidly from the EAMG than from the control end-plates. Despite the accelerated fractional turnover rate of end-plate AChR in EAMG, the postsynaptic membrane surface which could be labeled with PBGT for AChR remained unchanged over a 120-hour period. These data suggest that end-plate AChR is at a steady state in chronic EAMG.
Sodium iodide density gradients for the preparative buoyant density separations of dna mixtures

Abstract Preparative buoyant density separations of a DNA mixture have been achieved in sodium iodide density gradients. Better separations are obtained in sodium iodide than in cesium chloride gradients. The separation is relatively unaffected by the addition of the dye ethidium bromide, thus making sodium iodide gradients convenient and economical.
Control and Prediction of Gelation Kinetics in Enzymatically Cross-Linked Poly(ethylene glycol) Hydrogels

We demonstrate control of gelation kinetics in formation of poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) hydrogels by enzymatic cross-linking. A predictive model for gelation kinetics based on macromer structure and composition, stoichiometric ratios of reactants, cross-linking enzyme concentration, and the underlying kinetics of enzyme reaction was developed on the basis of classical Flory−Stockmayer theory. Experiments with substrate-functionalized multiarm comb PEG showed good agreement with theory upon variation of the enzyme concentration, with a slight overprediction in the time to gelation. Experiments with a substrate-functionalized difunctional PEG in conjunction with a polypeptide where macromer concentrations were varied were also consistent with theory, but with a slight underprediction of gelation time.
Workers' Earnings in the New Economy

Abstract This paper addresses the impact of forces in the new economy on the earnings of workers. Using data from the Indiana Survey of Workers In a Polarized Economy (ISWIPE), we examine the impact of several variables that have not been systematically examined in previous research. Specifically, we investigate the impact on earnings of the new economy variables of downsizing, contingent work, “job slide,” perceived job security, working with computers, job growth, deindustrialization, and work in the marginal sector. After controlling for a variety of sociodemographic, class, and structural variables, we find that indicators of the new economy contribute importantly to the explanation of earnings. We find that working in the marginal sector is more important than traditional dualistic concepts such as core and periphery sectors and primary and secondary labor markets for explaining earnings. We believe our findings provide evidence for the importance of a “reconstituted core and periphery” in the labor ...
Quality Changes in Alfalfa Hay During Storage in Bales

This study quantified changes in forage quality and chemical composition that occurred in baled alfalfa hay. Conventional and laboratory-scale alfalfa hay bales of three densities (1.0, 1.5, and 2.0 times the density of the conventional bale) were made at two percentages of moisture (20 and 30%) and were stored for 60 d in small haystacks insulated with straw. Bale treatments were sampled before storage and at 4, 11, 22, and 60 d postbaling. These sampling times corresponded to specifically chosen temperature maxima and minima found in typical curves of temperature and time for baled alfalfa hay. Most changes in forage chemical composition (quality) appeared to be closely related to accumulated heating degree days >30°C. The most active period of quality degradation, as measured by increases in NDF and ADIN concentration, generally occurred between 4 and 11 d postbaling. High moisture treatment combinations that favored extended microbial activity continued to depress forage quality (particularly increased NDF and ADIN) between d 11 and 22. Little change in quality occurred after 22 d, indicating that most changes in forage quality were completed within a month after baling. Strong linear relationships were observed between both NDF and artifact N concentrations and heating degree days >30°C in high moisture treatments.
Partner communication and HIV risk behaviors among “at risk” women

Summary Objectives: This research focused on communication with one’s sexual and dating partners, and addressed two main research questions: First, what is the relationship between partner communication and involvement in HIV risk behaviors? Second, which factors predict women’s level of partner communication about key issues salient in their lives? Methods: Cross-sectional interviews were conducted with 250 adult women living in the Atlanta, Georgia metropolitan area between August 1997 and August 2000. Street outreach was used to identify potential study participants, with further expansion of the sample done via targeted sampling and ethnographic mapping procedures. Path analysis was used to examine the relationships between partner communication and HIV risk taking, and to identify predictors for the extent of women’s partner communication. Results: The data revealed an inverse relationship between partner communication and involvement in HIV risk taking. Eight statistically significant predictors of partner communication were identified: age, marital status, length of longest marital-type relationship, level of happiness in longest relationship, knowing anyone who had died from AIDS, number of financial problems experienced, having a sexually transmitted disease during the previous year, and self-esteem level. Conclusions: Partner communication is an important variable to consider when understanding “at risk” women’s HIV risk behavior practices. Finding ways to enhance women’s communication with their sexual and dating partners appears to be one promising way of reducing their level of HIV risk.
Rectangular Tiling in Multidimensional Arrays

We study the following tiling problem in d dimensions: given a d-dimensional rectangular array of nonnegative numbers and an integer p, partition the array into at most p rectangular subarrays so that the maximum weight of any subarray is minimized; the weight of a subarray is the sum of its elements. The rectangular tiling problem is motivated by applications in data mining, data partitioning, and video compression. Recently, Khanna, Muthukrishnan, and Paterson SODA '98], showed that the tiling problem is NP-complete and gave a 2.5-approximation algorithm for d=2.In this paper, we extend their result to multidimensional arrays and give an algorithm with approximation ratio d+32, for d?2. The algorithm can be implemented to run in worst-case time O(N+plogN) time, where N is the size of the array, and the constant is of the order d!. We also obtain a similar algorithm for the dual tiling problem, where the goal is to compute a tiling of weight at most W using as few tiles as possible. Our algorithm yields an approximation factor (2d+1).We implemented our algorithm and ran simulation tests on multidimensional arrays with random data. In our limited experiments, the algorithm always produced approximations that were no worse than factor two from the optimal.
Crystal chemistry and electrochemical characterization of layered LiNi0.5−yCo0.5−yMn2yO2 and LiCo0.5−yMn0.5−yNi2yO2 (0 ≤ 2y ≤ 1) cathodes

Abstract The crystal chemistry and electrochemical performance of the layered LiNi0.5−yCo0.5−yMn2yO2 and LiCo0.5−yMn0.5−yNi2yO2 oxide cathodes for 0 ≤ 2y ≤ 1 have been investigated. Li2MnO3 impurity phase is observed for Mn-rich compositions with 2y > 0.6 in LiNi0.5−yCo0.5−yMn2yO2 and 2y
The Changing Structure of the Radio Nebula around the Soft Gamma-Ray Repeater SGR 1806–20

From earlier Very Large Array (VLA) observations, we have shown that the soft gamma-ray repeater (SGR) 1806-20 is coincident with the radio nebula G10.0-0.3. Furthermore, we have shown that the peak of the quiescent X-ray emission coincides with a compact radio source that has a "core-jet" morphology. We present new results from a VLA monitoring campaign of the compact source over 1.8 yr at arcsecond resolution. In agreement with earlier low-resolution data, we see no evidence for strong flaring either before or after a γ-ray burst. Amazingly, however, between the first epoch and the second, which are separated by 1.4 yr, we observe an apparent angular displacement of the jetlike feature by 50°. We argue that these jets are created episodically and then fade away on timescales of about 1 yr. We compare these jets with those seen in accreting Galactic sources, such as GRS 1915+10 and SS 433, and find qualitative differences between the jets of the SGR and the accreting sources. We suggest that the jets in the SGR are powered by sudden deposition of particles and fields from an underlying compact object and are delineated by nonthermal radio emission from the ejected material. Thus far, the relationship of the creation of the jets to γ-ray bursts is unclear. Energy in the jet plasma is found to be E 102Eγ, Eγ being the energy radiated in the most luminous γ-ray events. In particular, we draw an analogy to bursts in magnetoactive stars and the Sun; in this case, however, they could represent dramatic events on the surface of a hypothetical highly magnetized (1014-1015 G) neutron star.
Acoustical cues to the reconstruction of missing words in speech perception

A series of experiments was conducted to examine whether listeners could utilize subtle acoustical cues in reconstructing words that were missing from the speech signal. Preliminary tests revealed that listeners can make use of semantic context in such reconstruction, analogous to earlier results in reading. In Experiment 1, listeners were able to use intonational cues at the beginning of a string to detect whether or not a sentence-initial word had been missing. In Experiments 2 and 3, listeners utilized coarticulatory cues for palatalization in sentence-internal locations to guide their lexical selection of reconstructed words. In Experiment 4, listeners were influenced in lexical selection by the duration of a silent interval that had replaced the missing word. Taken together, the results indicate that listeners can utilize the acoustical fine structure of speech to both detect the occurrence of a missing word and guide its lexical reconstruction.
Optical constants of germanium and gray tin the . method

Abstract The imaginary parts of the dielectric constants of germanium and gray tin have been calculated from the previously obtained k . p band structures of these materials. Spin-orbit coupling effects have been included in the gray tin calculation. The results of these calculations are compared with experimental data.
Ornithine decarboxylase activity and polyamine content of the placenta and decidual tissue in the rat

Summary Measurements of ornithine decarboxylase (ODC) activity and of the amounts of putrescine, spermidine and spermine in the placenta and uterus of the pregnant rat and in decidual tissue of the pseudo-pregnant rat showed that these wax and wane with the growth rate of the tissues. Human term placenta has essentially no ODC activity, but placentae from 15-week human gestations have substantial amounts of enzyme. The ODC activity of the rat placenta increases 40-fold from day 10 to day 17 of pregnancy, then gradually decreases. The content of the polyamines in the placenta also reaches a peak on day 17. The ODC activity of the endometrium between implantation sites remains low until the end of pregnancy and then increases eight-fold on days 21 and 22. This may represent increased uterine activity in preparation for parturition. The ODC activity and the polyamine content of decidual tissue responds to administered oestradiol with increases that reach a peak within four hours. The ODC activity and polyamine content of decidual tissue decrease after the fifth day of decidualization. Nuclei isolated from decidual tissue respond to the addition of spermine or spermidine with an increase in the rate of RNA synthesis. Spermidine increases the elongation of RNA chains, but does not initiate the synthesis of new RNA chains in decidual nuclei.
Enhancing bactericidal activity of bovine lymphoid cells during the periparturient period.

The antibacterial activity of bovine lymphocytes was evaluated following in vitro stimulation with interleukin-2. Mononuclear cells were isolated from the blood, lymph node, and mammary parenchymal tissue of four lactating and four periparturient dairy cows. These cells were evaluated for antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus following incubation for 48 h with or without interleukin-2. Cultures stimulated with interleukin-2 had higher bactericidal activity of all three isolated cell populations than did unstimulated cultures, regardless of lactational stage. This observation suggests that this effector function may possibly be activated in vivo and may potentially increase mammary gland resistance to bacterial infections during periods of increased susceptibility. Flow cytometric analysis of the cultured cells revealed that antibacterial effector cells were mainly CD2+ and were depleted of macrophages. Despite shifts in CD4+, CD8+, and γδ T lymphocytes during the periparturient period, bactericidal activity was similar among the three cell sources. This similarity suggests that these lymphocyte phenotypes might not be directly responsible for this effector function. Identification of the antibacterial effector phenotype and its mechanism of action may lead to immunoregulatory strategies aimed at enhancing this novel bactericidal function.
Research to guide management of outdoor recreation and tourism in parks and protected areas

A framework for managing outdoor recreation and tourism in parks and protected areas was presented in this article. This management-by-objectives framework includes, (1) formulating indicators and standards of quality, (2) monitoring indicators of quality and (3) implementing management actions designed to maintain standards of quality. This management framework can be used to help balance the demand for outdoor recreation and tourism and the need to protect park resources and the quality of the visitor experience. A programme of research to help guide application of this management framework was described and illustrated. This research is part of a growing body of scientific and professional literature on outdoor recreation and tourism that can be used to build the capacity of park and protected area management agencies. Conservation implications: The management framework described in this article, and the associated programme of research, can be used by conservation practitioners to balance use and protection of national parks and protected areas.
Tunable sub-Poissonian light generation from a parametric amplifier using an intensity feedforward scheme

We analyze an intensity feedforward scheme to produce a sub-Poissonian (amplitude-squeezed) light beam from the intensity-correlated twin beams generated by a nondegenerate parametric amplifier. Photon-number measurement of the idler beam at the output of the parametric amplifier is linearly fed forward onto the output signal beam using an amplitude modulator. The minimum available Fano factor is shown to be 1/(2g-1), where g is the parametric amplifier gain, and is equal to the nonclassical intensity-noise-reduction factor of the twin beams at the output of the parametric amplifier. By changing the frequency of the input-signal beam, tunable sub-Poissonian light can be generated with this scheme for application in precision absorption spectroscopy.
Regulation of Wnt signaling by the tumor suppressor adenomatous polyposis coli does not require the ability to enter the nucleus or a particular cytoplasmic localization

Wnt signaling plays key roles in development and disease. The tumor suppressor adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) is an essential negative regulator of Wnt signaling. Its best-characterized role is as part of the destruction complex, targeting the Wnt effector β-catenin (βcat) for phosphorylation and ultimate destruction, but several studies suggested APC also may act in the nucleus at promoters of Wnt-responsive genes or to shuttle βcat out for destruction. Even in its role in the destruction complex, APC's mechanism of action remains mysterious. We have suggested APC positions the destruction complex at the appropriate subcellular location, facilitating βcat destruction. In this study, we directly tested APC's proposed roles in the nucleus or in precisely localizing the destruction complex by generating a series of APC2 variants to which we added tags relocalizing otherwise wild-type APC to different cytoplasmic locations. We tested these for function in human colon cancer cells and Drosophila embryos. Strikingly, all rescue Wnt regulation and down-regulate Wnt target genes in colon cancer cells, and most restore Wnt regulation in Drosophila embryos null for both fly APCs. These data suggest that APC2 does not have to shuttle into the nucleus or localize to a particular subcellular location to regulate Wnt signaling.
Haematopoietic stem cells and repair of the ischaemic heart

HSCs (haematopoietic stem cells) are multipotent stem cells that give rise to all cells of the blood cell lineage. In recent years, it has been proposed that bone marrow serves as a reservoir for cardiomyogenic precursors and that, following cardiac injury, these stem cells circulate to the site of injury where they contribute to myocardial repair and regeneration. This concept of stem cell plasticity has been controversial and, in fact, several key studies on the cardiomyogenic potential of HSCs have not been reproducible in the hands of independent investigators. Despite this controversy, the clinical community has pushed forward with clinical trials of bone marrow transplantation for the treatment of ischaemic heart disease. The following review summarizes the mechanistic underpinnings of bone marrow transplantation into ischaemic myocardium, focusing on the basic science that forms the foundation of this field, and highlights the controversies and new avenues for research that have emerged. It also describes the current state of the art in clinical trials of bone marrow transplantation for heart failure.
Optical control with specially-engineered photonic lattices and intelligently-designed optical beams

We will provide a brief overview of our work on optical control of light beams in photonic lattices and of particles with nonconventional optical beams, including trapping and manipulation with propelling beams, bottle beams, and self-accelerating Airy beams
The roles of seedling salt tolerance and resprouting in forest zonation on thewest coast of Florida, USA

To determine whether the zonation of seven coastal tree species in north Florida correlated with the relative abilities of their seedlings to tolerate soil salinity, we subjected seedlings of Sabal palmetto, Juniperus virginianavar. silicicola, Quercus virginiana, Celtis laevigata, Ulmusspp., Acer floridanum, and Liquidambar styraciflua to a range of salinities ( ;0, 2, 4, 8, 15, and 22 g synthetic sea salt/L; up to 63% full strength seawater salinity) in a 6-mo greenhouse experiment. Pots with shoot-killed plants were flushed with freshwater for $5 wk to assess recovery. Salt tolerance was assessed as plant survival under saline conditions and as the ability to retain green leaf tissue under saline conditions. Using either criterion, the rank order of seedling salt tolerance correlated significantly (P # 0.05) with that expected based on species zonation near the coast. Agreement was better, however, using retention of leaf tissue as an index of salt tolerance. Species from forest zones that were frequently exposed to tidal water retained green leaf tissue under saline conditions. Species from zones occasionally subjected to very high tides were shoot killed but resprouted following removal of salt from the root zone. Those restricted to zones exposed only to infrequent storm surges died at salinities $4 g/L. Thus, differential seedling salt tolerance was consistent with tree zonation and, although the ability of young seedlings to resprout following salt removal did not appear to allow tree establishment at the extreme seaward margin of the forest, it appeared important in intermediate zones.
Providing absolute differentiated services with statistical guarantees in static-priority scheduling networks

The authors propose and analyze a methodology for providing absolute differentiated services with statistical performance guarantees for real time applications in networks that use static priority schedulers. We extend previous work on delay analysis and develop a method that can be used to derive statistical delay guarantees in a flow-unaware fashion. While traditional delay analysis methods depend on flow population information, we have developed a method that relies on network (re-)configuration time analysis, and that allows us to analyze the delays without depending on the dynamic status of flow population. With this new method, we are able to reduce the runtime admission control to a simple utilization test. No explicit delay computation is necessary at admission time, making this approach scalable to large systems.
Estimation of the variance of percentile estimates

The asymptotic formula for the variance of a percentile estimate is inversely proportional to the square of the probability density function evaluated at that percentile. In this note we show, for small and moderate sample sizes, that the estimate of the variance can have a moderate to large coefficient of variation even when the form of the density is known. When the density must be estimated empirically, the coefficient of variation increases substantially. We conclude that the estimate of the variance should not be used in either confidence interval estimation or hypothesis testing except for very large sample sizes.
Asymptotically stable stationary solutions to the reaction-diffusion equations

We assume that there exists an asymptotically stable stationary solution of a Galerkin approximation for the reaction-diffusion system. It is shown that there exists a nearby stationary solution of the full reaction-diffusion system provided the order of the Galerkin approximation is high enough. The Lyapunov second method is used to prove the asymptotic stability of the stationary solution.
Introduction: The Evolving Twenty-First Century Global Mediascape

The introductory Chap. 1 inserts the book in the existing scholarly conversations on global media and entertainment. It analyzes the relevance of the topic in the twenty-first century global mediascape and introduces the main themes of the study. It indicates the theoretical framework, perspective, research questions and organization of the book, and its unique contributions to the evolving body of literature on the topic.
Citizens Abroad: Emigration and the State in the Middle East and North Africa

Citizens Abroad: Emigration and the State in the Middle East and North Africa. By Laurie A. Brand. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006. 264p. $85.00. This book charts new territory by taking emi gration, and the policies of sending states toward their citizens abroad, seriously. Laurie Brand's comparative examination of state emigration institutions and policy across Morocco, Tunisia, Lebanon, and Jordan places her in an excellent position both to critique and to contribute to literatures on transnationalism and citizenship that are myopically focused on immigration to the North and host country policies toward migrants. Most intriguingly, early research led Brand to frame her investigation in terms of broader questions about the contemporary reconfiguration of “sovereignty in the international system” by home states in response not only to host state actions but also to the changing demands, material resources, and experiences of emigre communities (pp. 10–11, 222).
Annual physiological changes in individually housed squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciureus)

This study investigated whether annual changes in physiology occur in individually housed squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciureus). Physiological measures were monitored for 20 months. Over the course of the study, all individually housed males and females exhibited clear annual changes in gonadal and adrenal hormone levels, and males exhibited species-typical changes in body weight. Females exhibited a typical pattern of hormonal changes, with elevations in gonadal steroids occurring during the same months as elevations in cortisol. Males, however, exhibited an atypical pattern, as elevations in hormone levels were not synchronized with each other; rather, elevations in testosterone occurred out of phase with changes in cortisol and body weight. The timing of annual events in individually housed subjects was compared to that in nearby social groups, in which the timing of the breeding season from year to year was determined by social group formations and was outside the naturally occurring breeding season. Elevations of ovarian and adrenocortical hormones in individually housed females were synchronized with indices of breeding in heterosexual social groups. Similarly, weight gain in males was associated with elevations in cortisol and, as with socially housed males, tended to precede seasonal breeding in the social groups. In contrast, annual testosterone elevations for individually housed males were not synchronized with breeding in nearby social groups. We conclude that direct physical interaction is not required for the annual expression of breeding readiness. Synchrony of seasonality among squirrel monkeys may be accomplished by distant social cues in females, but males may require physical interaction for complete synchrony of annual physiological changes.
Foreign-born care givers in Washington State nursing homes: characteristics, associations with quality of care, and views of administrators.

Objective: Following national trends, Washington State relies heavily on foreign-born workers to provide long-term care. Our study assesses state nursing facility characteristics, quality ratings, and the views of facility administrators about the implications of an increasing number of foreign-born employees. Methods: We used independently available data to supplement a survey of nursing home administrators. Results: Nearly half of the administrators reported difficulty hiring U.S.-born job applicants. Three in four administrators reported problems related to language differences, and just more than a third reported challenges related to cultural and/or religious differences. Nonetheless, the proportion of foreign-born employees was positively associated with independent facility quality ratings. Almost half of the administrators reported discrimination by patients/clients toward their foreign-born workers. Quality ratings were negatively associated with for-profit, chain, or multi-ownership status. Disc...
Agonist-induced Ca2+ entry determined by inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate recognition.

It has been considered that Ca2+ release is the causal trigger for Ca2+ entry after receptor activation. In DT40 B cells devoid of inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptors (IP3R), the lack of Ca2+ entry in response to receptor activation is attributed to the absence of Ca2+ release. We reveal in this article that IP3R recognition of IP3 determines agonist-induced Ca2+ entry (ACE), independent of its Ca2+ release activity. In DT40 IP3R–/– cells, endogenous ACE can be rescued with type 1 IP3R mutants (both a ΔC-terminal truncation mutant and a D2550A pore mutant), which are defective in Ca2+ release channel activity. Thus, in response to B cell receptor activation, ACE is restored in an IP3R-dependent manner without Ca2+ store release. Conversely, ACE cannot be rescued with mutant IP3Rs lacking IP3 binding (both the Δ90–110 and R265Q IP3-binding site mutants). We conclude that an IP3-dependent conformational change in the IP3R, not endoplasmic reticulum Ca2+ pool release, triggers ACE.
Optimum damping in linear isolation systems

Optimum isolation damping for minimum acceleration response of base-isolated structures subjected to stationary random excitation is investigated. Three linear models are considered to account for the energy dissipation mechanism of the isolation system: a Kelvin element, a linear hysteretic element and a standard solid linear element, commonly used viscoelastic models for isolation systems comprising natural rubber bearings and viscous dampers. The criterion selected for optimality is the minimization of the mean-square floor acceleration response. The effects of the frequency content of the excitation and superstructure properties on the optimum damping and on the mean-square acceleration response are addressed. The study basically shows that the attainable reduction in the floor acceleration largely depends on the energy dissipation mechanism assumed for the isolation system as well as on the frequency content of the ground acceleration process. Special care should be taken in accurately modelling the mechanical behaviour of the energy dissipation devices.
Cash Flow Training and Improved Microfinance Outcomes

Despite its promise as a powerful tool for alleviating poverty, research suggests that microfinance has had only a modest impact on development. Misallocation of funds by clients has been implicated as a major impediment to microfinance success. In this study, clients received training on how to track (but not manage) their cash flows during the first two meetings of the microfinance loan cycle. Examination of weekly cash flow shows that clients immediately invested the majority of their funds into the businesses and carefully managed revenues and expenditures to maintain sufficient food and other household expenditures throughout the loan cycle. It is not possible to know whether this behaviour occurred as a result of monitoring cash flow because clients who do not keep cash flow records do not have a reliable way to report expenditures. However, exit interviews provide evidence that cash flow tracking enhanced financial performance and control. When asked whether tracking cash flows affected their understanding and behaviour, half or more of the subjects responded that tracking their cash flow helped them to understand the importance of investing in the business, identify unnecessary expenditures and/or develop a better understanding of their revenues, expenses and profit. By investing a small amount of time in helping clients track cash flows, lenders can empower clients and potentially improve both the repayment and productive benefits of the loans they make. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Fine particulate matter source attribution for Southeast Texas using 14C/13C ratios

[1] Radiocarbon analyses of fine particulate matter samples collected during the summer of 2000 in southeast Texas indicate that a substantial fraction of the aerosol carbon at an urban/suburban site (27–73%) and at a rural, forested site (44–77%) was modern carbon. Data from emission inventories and additional ambient measurements indicate that the most likely sources of this modern carbon are biomass burning fires and biogenic secondary organic aerosol.
Improving the Knowledge and Attitudes of Low-Income Families about Banking and Predatory Financial Practices:

Research has found that low-income families often do not access the mainstream banking services used by financially better-off families, and that they correspondingly are subject to predatory financial practices. This article evaluates a training program intended to improve the banking and related financial practices of low-income persons. Pretraining surveys found low initial knowledge about banking and predatory practices, and trainees were skeptical about the costs and difficulties associated with bank use. Post-training surveys found significant knowledge improvements in these respects, as well as attitude changes favorable to the use of mainstream financial institutions. The implications of these findings for social work involvement in financial training development are discussed.
Manganese in the Air: Are Children at Greater Risk than Adults?

Whether or not children are at higher risk from exposure to air pollutants has become a central question in regulatory toxicology. In order to examine this issue for essential metals several questions related to toxicokinetics and toxicodynamics need to be addressed. These include (1) whether exposure patterns among infants and children are likely to result in disproportionately high exposures to substances in ambient air, and (2) whether infants display special susceptibilities in comparison to the general population. In addition, differences in how developing systems handle metals compared to adults, and interactions between specific metals and other substances with common mechanisms, need to be considered. This study examined the toxicodynamic differences between adults and infants exposed to manganese via inhalation and/or dietary routes of exposure.
The Risk of Immune Thrombocytopenic Purpura After Vaccination in Children and Adolescents

BACKGROUND: The risk of immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) after childhood vaccines other than measles-mumps-rubella vaccine (MMR) is unknown.
Domestic Crony Capitalism and International Fickle Capital: Is There a Connection?

Domestic crony capitalism and fickle international capital flows are often suggested as two rival explanations for currency crises. This article examines a possible linkage between the two that has not been explored much in the literature: domestic crony capitalism may make a country more dependent on the more fickle type of international capital flows (e.g. international bank loans) rather than the less volatile type (e.g. foreign direct investment). It presents statistical evidence that the degree of domestic crony capitalism is indeed associated with a higher external loanto-FDI ratio. Such a composition of capital flows has been identified as being associated with a higher incidence of a currency crisis. Therefore, even though crony capitalism does not forecast the exact timing of a crisis, it can nevertheless increase its likelihood.
SLA Decomposition: Translating Service Level Objectives to System Level Thresholds

In today's complex and highly dynamic computing environments, systems/services have to be constantly adjusted to meet service level agreements (SLAs) and to improve resource utilization, thus reducing operating cost. Traditional design of such systems usually involves domain experts who implicitly translate service level objectives (SLOs) specified in SLAs to system-level thresholds in an ad-hoc manner. In this paper, we present an approach that combines performance modeling with performance profiling to create models that translate SLOs to lower-level resource requirements for each system involved in providing the service. Using these models, the process of creating an efficient design of a system/service can be automated, eliminating the involvement of domain experts. We demonstrate that our approach is practical and that it can be applied to different applications and software architectures. Our experiments show that for a typical 3-tier e-commerce application in a virtualized environment the SLAs can be met while improving CPU utilization up to 3 times.
Mathematical Modeling and Computer-Aided Manufacturing of Rough Surfaces for Experimental Study of Seafloor Scattering

Diverse aspects of stochastic processes, time-series analysis, fractal geometry, and manufacturing technology are brought together to provide a unified theoretical framework for the mathematical characterization and physical fabrication of scale-model representations of the rough ocean bottom. These scale models can be used to validate the predictions of interface-scattering theories, particularly those relating to the dependence of scattering strength on roughness parameters. In acoustical oceanography, rough surfaces are conventionally described in terms of power-spectral density (PSD) or fractal dimension. Here, recently developed concepts describing modified power-law PSD and approximately self-affine stochastic fractals are used to account for issues of finite sample size and finite manufacturing resolution. The large- and small- bandwidth restrictions that these issues inherently impose are related to their effects on the properties of surfaces as characterized both mathematically and by visual observation. This development provides the groundwork for numerical generation of surfaces, using spectral methods, and their physical manufacture, using computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) techniques. Effects of the spectral method of numerical generation on the statistics of generated topography are detailed. A manufacturing technique using a computer numerically controlled (CNC) milling machine is discussed and topography-specific guidelines for accurate manufacture of rough surfaces are prescribed.
Accuracy-Privacy Tradeoffs for Two-Party Differentially Private Protocols

Differential privacy (DP) is a well-studied notion of privacy that is generally achieved by randomizing outputs to preserve the privacy of the input records. A central problem in differential privacy is how much accuracy must be lost in order to preserve input privacy?
Driven Current Tokamak (DCT) Scoping Study

The present Department of Energy (DOE) plan calls for the construction of an Engineering Test Reactor (ETR) that is to be the last major experimental fusion device prior to the commercialization of fusion power. The plasma driver of the ETR is to be either a long-pulse tokamak or a tandem mirror machine. The possibility of using the Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor (TFTR) facility to consolidate the physics and technology database for the tokamak version of the ETR has been considered. This paper addresses two of the options being considered: (1) a superconducting toroidal field (TF) coil-hydrogen plasma alternative, and (2) a superconducting or hybrid TF coil-high Q alternative. Both options assume essentially steady-state operation through the application of rf current drive. The options are evaluated on the basis of performance and cost determined by application of the Fusion Engineering Design Center (FEDC) Tokamak System Code.
Race and Quarterback Survival in the National Football League

This study examines data from the 2001 to 2009 National Football League (NFL) seasons to determine whether Black quarterbacks face discrimination. When controlling for injury, age, experience, perf...
Cancer stem cell molecular reprogramming of the Warburg effect in glioblastomas: a new target gleaned from an old concept

Prior targeted treatment for glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) with anti-angiogenic agents, such as bevacizumab, has been met with limited success potentially owing to GBM tumor's ability to develop a hypoxia-induced escape mechanism--a glycolytic switch from oxidative phosphorylation to glycolysis, an old concept known as the Warburg effect. New studies points to a subpopulation of cells as a source for treatment-resistance, cancer stem cells (CSCs). Taken together, the induction of the Warburg effect leads to the promotion of CSC self-renewal and undifferentiation. In response to hypoxia, hypoxia-inducible transcription factor is upregulated and is the central driver in setting off the cascade of events in CSC metabolic reprogramming. Hypoxia-inducible transcription factor upregulates GLUT1 to increase glucose uptake into the cell, upregulates HK2 and PK during glycolysis, upregulates LDHA in the termination of glycolysis, and downregulates PDH to redirect energy production toward glycolysis. This review aims to unite these old and new concepts simultaneously and examine potential enzyme targets driven by hypoxia in the glycolytic phenotype of CSCs to reverse the metabolic shift induced by the Warburg effect.
Heterosexual Marking and Binary Cultural Conceptions of Sexual Orientation

AbstractIn this article, the authors focus on cultural conceptions of sexual orientation revealed through their examination of heterosexual marking. Heterosexual marking consists of behaviors believed to convey heterosexual status, regardless of intent and accuracy. Data is from 12 focus groups with 57 young adults. The authors found that a common motive for heterosexual marking is to fend off the possibility that one could be perceived as gay or lesbian, and that some behaviors used to mark heterosexuality involve direct conveyance that one is not gay or lesbian. The authors also describe various ways that the heterosexual marking system delineated by participants obscures the existence of bisexuality and other nonbinary sexual identities. The authors conclude that this system reflects and reinforces antonymous and dichotomous conceptions of sexual orientation. Lastly, the authors discuss these findings in relation to past research and highlight the significance of these findings for the identity practic...
Toxicity of Nembutal for Guinea Pigs

The purpose of this investigation was to determine the average lethal dose of nembutal for guinea pigs, that is, the dose which kills 50% of a large group of the animals. All animals used on these experiments were normal and well fed. They were used only once.The drug was injected intraperitoneally into 510 guinea pigs. The animals were divided into 4 weight-groups and the doses per kilo body weight of guinea pigs varied by 2.5 mg. increments from 42.5 to 67.5 mg. Table I summarizes the results.The weights of the guinea pigs greatly influenced both the duration of sleep for those animals that recovered and the toxicity for those that died, less of the drug per kilo body weight being required for both of these effects with the heavier animals than with the smaller pigs.