cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Lead, Chromium, and Cadmium Emission Factors During Abrasive Blasting Operations by Bridge Painters

Work space airborne concentrations of lead, chromium, and cadmium were measured during abrasive blasting by bridge painters for the determination of emission rates. The operation used compressed air to blast steel grit at steel or metal surfaces, removing lead-based paint. It was enclosed with plastic tarpaulins to prevent the release of lead- and chromium-laden dust. Consequently, workers were at increased risk from exposure by inhalation or ingestion. Area samples were collected in 13 contained work areas on a 4-leaf bridge and adjacent viaduct while blasting was performed. Enclosure volume and exhaust air flow rate were measured for each containment area. Work space airborne concentrations ranged from 196-31,410 micrograms/m3 for lead, 1-657 micrograms/m3 for chromium, and 1-19 micrograms/m3 for cadmium. Mass balance models were used to calculate emission rates and emission factors using the measured area concentrations. Average emission factors on the bridge were 20,400 mg/m2 for lead, 75 mg/m2 for chromium, and 16 mg/m2 for cadmium; and on the viaduct were 8790 mg/m2 for lead, 568 mg/m2 for chromium, and 2.0 mg/m2 for cadmium. These values were validated using estimates of total paint volume and composition on the structure and total waste generation. All estimates were within 50% of each other except chromium estimates for the bridge. The emission factors allow prediction of work space airborne concentrations during similar operations and are a first step in the design and implementation of control measures.
Effect of phytosanitary irradiation and methyl bromide fumigation on the physical, sensory, and microbiological quality of blueberries and sweet cherries

Background The objective of this study was to determine whether irradiation could serve as a suitable phytosanitary treatment alternative to methyl bromide (MB) fumigation for blueberries and sweet cherry and also to determine the effect of phytosanitary irradiation treatment on survival of Salmonella spp. and Listeria monocytogenes on these fruit. 'Bluecrop' blueberries (Vaccinium corymbosum) and 'Sweetheart' cherries (Prunus avium) were irradiated at 0.4 kGy or fumigated with methyl bromide and evaluated for quality attributes during storage. Results Irradiation caused an immediate decrease in firmness of both fruit without further significant change during storage. Fumigated fruit, in contrast, softened by 11-14% during storage. Irradiation did not adversely affect blueberry and cherry shelf-life. MB fumigation did not impact blueberry and cherry quality attributes initially; however, fumigated fruit exhibited greater damage and mold growth than the control and irradiated samples during storage. Irradiation at 400 Gy resulted in a ∼1 log CFU g(-1) reduction in Salmonella spp. and Listeria monocytogenes counts, indicating that this treatment cannot significantly enhance safety. Conclusion This study indicates that irradiation at a target dose of 0.4 kGy for phytosanitary treatment does not negatively impact blueberry and cherry quality and can serve as an alternative to methyl bromide fumigation. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry.
Vortex Containment of Submerged Jet Discharge

The results of an experimental investigation of the discharge of submerged slot jet near a free surface are presented. These results are compared to an analysis which is developed to predict the jet trajectory, velocity profile, and temperature profile. The effects of jet submergence, velocity, and buoyancy are studied. The unique feature of the submerged slot jet is the presence of a confined vortex which acts to move the jet to the surface. From the comparisons presented it is seen that the analysis, which includes the effect of the vortex on the flow, is in good agreement with the data.
Design and Development of the Frequency Disturbance Recorder

Frequency is one of the most important parameters for determining the performance of an electrical power system. To study and gain a better understanding of the power system dynamics,the concept of building a Frequency Monitoring Network(FNET) was proposed in 2000 and has been realized now. The FNET system consists of many high dynamic precision frequency estimation devices,also known as Frequency Disturbance Recorders(FDR). These FDRs can be used at any 110 V or 220 V wall outlet and transmit measured frequency data remotely via the Ethernet. There are currently more than 40 FDRs placed strategically in different locations within the United States to monitor the entire power network. This paper summarizes the implementation of several FDR designs and discusses some of ongoing hardware developments conducted in FNET.
Effects of plane of nutrition and phenobarbital during the pre-mating period on reproduction in ewes fed differentially during the summer and mated in the fall

An increased plane of nutrition of ewes before mating (flushing) has been associated with an increased number of lambs per ewe. The following study was done to investigate a possible mechanism for the flushing effect. During the summer, 98 Hampshire and Suffolk ewes grazed pastures with 50 of the ewes supplemented with .45 kg of corn grain X head-1 X d-1. For approximately 12 d before fall mating, each ewe received daily either .45 kg of a corn grain-soybean oil meal mixture, an oral dose of 1 g phenobarbital or no treatment. Liver biopsies were collected from 23 ewes, representing all treatment combinations, 3 d after initiation of pre-mating treatment for determination of concentration of hepatic mixed function oxidase enzymes (MFO). Summer supplementation vs no summer supplementation resulted in ewes with heavier (P less than .05) body weights near mating (75.6 vs 71.1 kg), higher (P less than .01) mating condition scores (3.2 vs 2.9), a greater (P less than .01) number of ovulations (1.99 vs 1.74), but little difference (P greater than .10) in number of lambs born per ewe lambing. Pre-mating treatment with phenobarbital or grain mix resulted in a greater number of ovulations (P less than .01, P less than .10, respectively) than no pre-mating treatment (2.14, 1.85, 1.60; respectively). Ewes given phenobarbital had more (P less than .10) lambs per ewe than ewes given no treatment (1.71 vs 1.40). Both phenobarbital and grain mix resulted in a significant increase in concentration of MFO compared with no treatment.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Calmodulin and insulin secretion: use of naphthalenesulfonamide compounds.

Studies have been performed on the involvement of calmodulin in the control of stimulated insulin secretion. The W-compounds, which are sulfonamide-derivative calmodulin inhibitors, were used in an...
Remittances and incumbency: Theory and evidence

By raising household income, remittances lower the marginal utility of targeted electoral transfers, thus weakening the efficacy of vote buying. Yet, remittances make individuals wealthier and believe the national economy is performing well, which is positively attributed to the incumbent. Building on these insights, I show that the confluence of these divergent channels generate a surprising result that at increasingly higher levels of dissatisfaction with the incumbent, a remittance recipient is more likely to vote for the incumbent than a non-remittance recipient. These predictions and their underlying mechanisms are substantiated across 18 Latin American countries.
Microseisms in New England—Case History II

Abstract Rayleigh waves recorded on the three components of the Harvard station are used to determine the direction of approach of microseisms. In Case History I, it was observed that microseisms did not radiate exclusively from the center of a well-developed low-pressure storm area and that they remained strong and continued for many hours after the storm center moved inland over Nova Scotia, northeast of the Harvard station, coming at that time from east, southeast, and south. In Case History II, a short but distinct microseismic storm ran its course as a cold front advanced to the coast and out over the ocean, but there was no atmospheric storm system within the region covered by the U. S. Weather Map. It is proposed that microseisms are generated when a pressure gradient of magnitude as yet undefined moves over the crust and, in effect, kneads the surface layer in such a way as to set up vibrations.
Recovery from Coma Post-Cardiac Arrest Is Dependent on the Orexin Pathway

Abstract Cardiac arrest (CA) affects >550,000 people annually in the United States whereas 80–90% of survivors suffer from a comatose state. Arousal from coma is critical for recovery, but mechanisms of arousal are undefined. Orexin-A, a hypothalamic excitatory neuropeptide, has been linked to arousal deficits in various brain injuries. We investigated the orexinergic system's role in recovery from CA-related neurological impairments, including arousal deficits. Using an asphyxial CA and resuscitation model in rats, we examine neurological recovery post-resuscitation in conjunction with changes in orexin-A levels in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and orexin-expressing neurons. We also conduct pharmacological inhibition of orexin post-resuscitation. We show that recovery from neurological deficits begins between 4 and 24 h post-resuscitation, with additional recovery by 72 h post-resuscitation. Orexin-A levels in the CSF are lowest during periods of poorest arousal post-resuscitation (4 h) and recover to contro...
Use of 90Sr in fish vertebrae as an effluent exposure tracer in PCB-contaminated channel catfish

Strontium-90 was measured in the vertebrae of channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) collected from an embayment and the adjoining river/reservoir in order to determine their exposure to the polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) and 90Sr-contaminated effluent entering the embayment from a point-source discharge. Concentrations of PCBs in the fish were measured and compared with the 90Sr levels to assess the role of the effluent as a possible source of PCB contamination in catfish in the river and embayment. Catfish exposed to the elevated levels of 90Sr in the embayment were found to migrate into uncontaminated areas of the river where they were available to anglers. The pattern of PCB contamination in catfish did not mirror that of 90Sr hence, little of the PCB burden of the fish in the river could be traced to continuing PCB discharges to the embayment.
Do African digital natives wear glass skirts

It's interesting for me to be addressing an audience primarily comprised of academics. As a creative writer, you must encounter professional critics somewhat like a cow encounters an apprentice but...
SPINDLES: A S martphone P latform for I ntelligent D etection and Notification of Le g S haking

For many people, the habit of leg shaking is an annoyance to themselves and people around them. By simply becoming aware of the motion, one is able to voluntarily stop shaking. In this work, we present SPINDLES, a low-power, low-latency, non-intrusive and high accuracy mobile application to detect leg shaking and notify the user in a timely manner. SPINDLES is robust to the placement of the phone and implements a signal processing pipeline that eliminates the need for training and calibration phases common in machine learning approaches. We compare SPINDLES with other detection algorithms and existing Google Play Store applications, and find that SPINDLES is a major improvement in terms of accuracy with comparable latency and power consumption. It has a true positive rate of 99.6%, as well as a true negative rate of 97.6%, taken over 500 trials in various situations1.
A Tale of Two Jordans: Representing Syrian Refugees Before and After 2011

This chapter juxtaposes the pre- and post-2011 Jordanian imagination of Syrians in Nader Omran’s production of Slawomir Mrozek’s The Emigres (2009), Omar Abusaada’s Syria : The Trojan Women (2013/2014), and Nawwar Bulbul’s Shakespeare in Zaatari (2014). Though such performances aim to alleviate suffering in afflicted communities, they also raise multiple questions as to the role of NGOs in contemporary Jordan, the balance between self-promotion and service, and the continued need for oppressed people in the global south to perform Western classics in order to prove they have ‘that which passeth show’.
Propagation and Absorption in Tissue Media

The propagation of electromagnetic waves in biological materials is governed by the dielectric constant, conductivity, source configuration, and the geometrical factors that describe the tissue structure. These parameters also determine the quantity of energy a given biological body extracts from the propagating wave. When the radius of curvature of the body surface is large compared to the wavelength and beam width of the impinging radiation, planar tissue models may be used to estimate the absorbed energy and its distribution inside the body. Otherwise, the absorbed energy will be dictated by the size of the body, the curvature of its surface, the ratio of body size to wavelength, and the source characteristics.
Hazards and Disasters in Afghanistan

The natural hazards that affect people and infrastructure in Afghanistan are considerable and have produced numerous disasters in the past. Earthquakes, floods, droughts, sandstorms and dust storms, rapid wet debris flows, snow avalanches, landslides, and extreme weather events are the chief threats. A number of emergency plans and disaster management operational systems have been implemented to attempt to control the negative results of these hazards. New plans to address the hazardous effects of climate change are also underway.
Transverse myelitis--a review of the presentation, diagnosis, and initial management

Myelitis is a rare neurological disorder of the spinal cord that is caused by inflammation and can have devastating neurologic effects with up to two-thirds of patients having a moderate to severe degree of residual disability. Symptoms typically develop over hours or days and then worsen over a matter of days to weeks. Patients can present with sensory alteration, weakness, and autonomic dysfunction including bowel and bladder problems, temperature dysregulation, or even bouts of hypertension. Evaluation for compressive etiologies must be a priority as compressive myelopathy and transverse myelitis are often clinically indistinguishable and emergent surgical intervention is indicated in such cases. However, if neuroimaging and CSF studies indicate inflammation within the central nervous system, then a work-up for myelitis must include autoimmune, inflammatory, and infectious etiologies. Acute management of these patients is dictated by which etiology is suspected and rapid initiation of that treatment portends a more favorable patient outcome. This review will discuss a practical clinical approach to the diagnosis and acute management of patients with myelitis including clinical symptoms, the role of neuroimaging, and the utility of both CSF and serological studies in the management of these patients.
A Conservation Plan for Metasequoia in China

Models for resource protection are examined in this chapter, including the program challenges and successes for the redwood forests in California, rainforests in Central and South America, coral reefs in Australia and the giant panda in China. A Metasequoia Conservation Plan is discussed and tools for assessing effectiveness of conservation programs are suggested. In addition, the Appendices include an education plan, a Metasequoia fact sheet, funding sources, international support organizations and an example of an endangered species management plan.
Multi-scale considerations for grassland butterfly conservation in agroecosystems

Abstract Global change threatens the persistence of multiple taxonomic groups, including butterflies. While conservation efforts for butterfly populations have increased, they are often hampered by a lack of true density estimates and a better understanding of ecological factors that influence density. Our objective was to enhance current grassland butterfly conservation efforts by using line-transect distance sampling to calculate density estimates and model the influence of landscape and local variables on butterfly density in the Northern Great Plains, USA. We calculated density for five obligate and ten facultative grassland species to produce one of the most extensive datasets for butterfly densities to date. In contrast to most previous research, we found that landscape variables influenced butterfly density more often than local variables. Specifically, the percent cover of perennial grasslands, crop lands, and wetlands appeared in 90% of species models, whereas common local variables—forb richness and invasive plant cover— appeared in 60% of best-ranked models. We expected the density of obligate butterfly species to decrease as invasive plants increased, but butterfly species' responses varied with larval diet, instead of habitat associations. Best-ranked models for Danaus plexippus and Speyeria idalia, two species of conservation concern with obligate host plants, did not include local host plant availability. Our results reiterate the importance of modeling species responses to variables across multiple scales and the potential benefits of conserving large tracts of grasslands. Although results emphasize the need for conservation at the landscape scale, managing for heterogeneous local scale variables will also help conserve grassland butterflies.
An Affective Mechanism of Linking Voluntary Workplace Green Behavior to Job Satisfaction

While outcomes of environmentally responsible behaviors have been investigated at the organization-level, little has been examined at the individual-level. To assist in filling this key gap, we dra...
Brief for Biomedical Ethicists Ruth R. Faden, PH.D., et al., Amici Curiae in Support of Petitioners, EMW Women’s Surgical Center, P.S.C., et al. v. Adam Meier, No. 19-417 (9th Cir. Oct. 28, 2019).

Amici curiae, who are 137 scholars in the field of biomedical ethics, submitted this brief in support of EMW Women’s Surgical Center's petition for certiorari in the U.S. Supreme Court in its constitutional challenge to Kentucky House Bill 2. The challenged law -- which is justified as an informed consent requirement -- compels doctors, in every case, to perform an ultrasound and describe the physical features of the fetus, as well as to play the sound of the fetal heartbeat, before performing an abortion, regardless of the patient’s wishes. The patient is expressly permitted to close her eyes and cover her ears, but that doesn't absolve the doctor from continuing to display/describe the image. Only after this happens can the woman give “informed consent” (even if she hasn't seen or heard anything) under this Kentucky law. This amicus brief explains why the law deviates from any plausible understanding of what is ethically required of physicians in the context of soliciting informed consent, as well as why the law deviates from foundational moral principles and requires physicians to act contrary to medical ethics.
Language matters: precision health as a cross-cutting care, research and policy agenda

The biomedical research and healthcare delivery communities have increasingly come to focus their attention on the role of data and computation in order to improve the quality, safety, costs, and outcomes of both wellness promotion and care delivery. Depending on the scale of such efforts, and the environments in which they are situated, they are referred to variably as personalized or precision medicine, population health, clinical transformation, value-driven care, or value-based transformation. Despite the original intent of many efforts and publications that have sought to define personalized, precision, or data-driven approaches to improving health and wellness, the use of such terminology in current practice often treats said activities as discrete areas of endeavor within minimal cross-linkage across or between scales of inquiry. We believe that this current state creates numerous barriers that are preventing the advancement of relevant science, practice, and policy. As such, we believe that it is necessary to amplify and reaffirm our collective understanding that these fields share common means of inquiry, differentiated only by the units of measure being utilized, their sources of data, and the manner in which they are executed. Therefore, in this perspective, we explore and focus attention on such commonalities and then present a conceptual framework that links constituent activities into an integrated model that we refer to as a precision healthcare system. The presentation of this framework is intended to provide the basis for the types of shared, broad-based, and descriptive language needed to reference and realize such a framework.
Chapter 4 – Structured Packings

Gauze and metal sheet structured packing have been in use in countless separation columns for more than 50 years, and vacuum applications have become the unquestioned domain of structured packing. Structured packing is manufactured in various types, geometries, and materials, which are addressed in this chapter. The performance characteristics of various packing types (i.e. efficiency, capacity, and pressure drop) are described and examples given. Other column internals, such as liquid and vapor distributors, are important “nonseparating” column internals, and various products are available. Adequate liquid and vapor distribution is important to achieve the full performance of structured packing, and the impact of maldistribution on the design is highlighted. Examples of important applications using structured packing are given at the end of this chapter.
“It took me quite a long time to develop a voice”: Examining feminist digital activism in the Indian #MeToo movement:

As my analysis of the tweets and interviews with participants and activists of the resurgent #MeTooIndia movement in 2018 show, the work of elite activists and the risks they took were critical for...
A 7nm Fin-FET 4.04-Mb/mm2 TCAM with Improved Electromigration Reliability Using Far-Side Driving Scheme and Self-Adjust Reference Match-Line Amplifier

In the era where electromigration (EM) resistance is degraded by the continuous process advancement, we provide a solution to improve this EM resistance by 60% using our ternary content-addressable memory (TCAM). We designed the high-density TCAM macro in a 7nm Fin-FET process which includes novel circuitry: far-side driver of match and search line, and self-adjust reference match amplifier. Measurement shows that total active power in our proposed macro is 15 % less than that in the conventional one. A 4.04 Mb/mm2 marks the world highest memory density at this time.
Sustainability Indicators of a Small Restaurant Business: A Case of a Coffee Shop in Thailand

Small businesses usually have sustainability difficulty. It is, therefore, the main aim of this study to assess the sustainability indicators of a small restaurant business, in particular, is a coffee shop in Thailand named Montreux Cafe and Farm. It specifically dealt with four indicators, such as the marketing promotional strategy, the service/product mix, the service environment, the service physical environment, and the service delivery system. The study utilized the qualitative way of research through interviews and observations. Reviews and comments were also gathered. It was found that the four indicators are the ones given attention in order for the coffee shop to stay within five years or beyond. It is then recommended that the small restaurant business to become sustainable should use social media for its marketing promotional strategy and pay more attention to what the customers would expect to experience in terms of the service/product mix, service physical environment, and service delivery system.
Social Justice Journalism: A Cultural History of Social Movement Media from Abolition to #womensmarch: by Linda J. Lumsden, New York, Peter Lang, 2019, 308 pp.

In Social Justice Journalism: A Cultural History of Social Movement Media from Abolition to #womensmarch, author Linda Lumsden uses a selection of social justice movement periodicals and connects t...
Temporal Head Pose Estimation From Point Cloud in Naturalistic Driving Conditions

Head pose estimation is an important problem as it facilitates tasks such as gaze estimation and attention modeling. In the automotive context, head pose provides crucial information about the driver's mental state, including drowsiness, distraction and attention. It can also be used for interaction with in-vehicle infotainment systems. While computer vision algorithms using RGB cameras are reliable in controlled environments, head pose estimation is a challenging problem in the car due to sudden illumination changes, occlusions and large head rotations that are common in a vehicle. These issues can be partially alleviated by using depth cameras. Head rotation trajectories are continuous with important temporal dependencies. Our study leverages this observation, proposing a novel temporal deep learning model for head pose estimation from point cloud. The approach extracts discriminative feature representation directly from point cloud data, leveraging the 3D spatial structure of the face. The frame-based representations are then combined with bidirectional long short term memory (BLSTM) layers. We train this model on the newly collected multimodal driver monitoring (MDM) dataset, achieving better results compared to non-temporal algorithms using point cloud data, and state-of-the-art models using RGB images. We further show quantitatively and qualitatively that incorporating temporal information provides large improvements not only in accuracy, but also in the smoothness of the predictions.
Low-head hydropower as a reserve power source: A case study of Northeastern Illinois

Abstract Wind power generation faces intermittency challenges, typically requiring reserve power sources to maintain reliability of the electricity grid. This study proposes that hydropower turbines installed at low-head dams can provide reserve power generation to support wind power, avoiding the externalities associated with fossil-fuel plants and conventional hydropower. Low-head dams in the United States are used for flood control, securing municipal water supplies, and providing reservoir pools for recreation. As a case study, we estimated hydropower potential at 12 low-head dams along a 150-km reach of the Fox River (Northeastern Illinois, USA) using a calibrated river flow model. We analyzed the model's output to assess power generation capacity and reliability as a source of baseload power and as a component in a coupled wind-hydropower system. The modeled system performed reliably over a five-year time period despite significant long-term fluctuations in streamflow, offsetting the short-term variability of wind power. However, combining the low-head hydropower system with wind power limited the output of the system to the minimum generated by the low-head hydropower. The low-head hydropower system's small capacity and high break-even price suggest that it is better suited for local applications rather than grid-scale operations, especially if permitting regulations are considered.
Genetic modification of adipose-derived stem cells for bone regeneration

Abstract Adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs) can be isolated in large quantities from the lipoaspirates of patients. Furthermore, the therapeutic potential of ASCs is vast, with their ability to differentiate into osteogenic, chondrogenic, and adipogenic phenotypes. This chapter focuses on the genetic modifications of ASCs to differentiate into osteogenic cells for bone regeneration. The role of important signaling pathways such as bone morphogenic protein (BMP), hedgehog (HH), and wingless (WNT) are discussed in the context of osteogenesis. Furthermore, the exogenous application of signaling pathway proteins is explored to understand the commitment of stem cells toward osteoblastic differentiation in the setting of cell cultures. The advantages and disadvantages of genetic alteration technologies, including electroporation, viral transduction, minicircles, CRISPR, and nanoparticles, are analyzed to determine methods of promoting osteogenesis by targeting specific genes within the stem cells. Altering the genetic landscape of the innate ASC genome through genetic technologies can establish standardized protocols to safely develop cell-based therapeutics for bone regeneration. Finally, the chapter will highlight ongoing applications of genetically altered ASCs for bone regeneration in patients to establish the current clinical care landscape.
Strategies for implementing music-based interventions for people with dementia in long-term care facilities: A systematic review.

Objectives Research has found that music-based interventions can decrease behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia or behaviors that challenge (BPSD/BtC). However, how to effectively implement these interventions is unclear. This study synthesizes available evidence regarding implementation strategies and outcomes of music-based interventions for people with dementia at residential long-term care facilities. Methods Study registered with PROSPERO (registration number: CRD42020194354). We searched the following databases: PsychInfo, PubMed, MEDLINE, CINAHL, and The Cochrane Library. Inclusion criteria included articles targeting music-based interventions conducted for people with dementia, studies conducted in residential long-term care facilities, and articles that reported implementation strategies and outcomes of the intervention. Results Of the included eight studies, half were studies of music therapy and the other half were on individualized music. 49 implementation strategies were reported. The most frequently reported category of strategies was planning (34.7%), followed by education (24.5%), quality management (24.5%), restructuring (12.2%), and finance (4.1%). No strategies under the category of attending to the policy context were reported. The most frequently reported implementation outcomes were appropriateness (27.3%), followed by adoption (22.7%), fidelity (22.7%), acceptability (9.1%), sustainability (9.1%), and cost (9.1%). No studies measured feasibility or penetration. Conclusions Although various effective implementation strategies were identified, we were unable to examine the effectiveness of individual implementation strategies due to the designs of the selected studies. Less attention has been paid to strategies that aim at structural changes of intervention delivery systems. Future studies should investigate facilitators and barriers of implementing music-based interventions especially focusing on structural aspects. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Genocidal Conquest, Plunder of Resources and Dehumanization of the Oromo in Ethiopia

The Oromo and the Amhara people have lived as neighbours in the region of Shawa,1 Ethiopia at least since the fourteenth century, if not earlier.2 This article deals with genocidal violence during ...
An Examination of the Indirect Effect of Anxiety Sensitivity in terms of Asthma and Smoking Cessation Processes

Abstract Introduction Despite the increased rates of smoking and poor cessation outcomes among individuals with asthma relative to those without, little scholarly attention has examined mechanisms linking asthma to smoking cessation processes. The current study sought to examine the indirect effect of anxiety sensitivity in terms of asthma and smoking cessation processes (i.e., duration of longest quit attempt, motivation to quit smoking, smoking dependence motives). Methods Participants were 90 regular daily smokers: 43 with asthma (51.2% male, M age = 38.0 years, SD = 12.5) and 47 without asthma (46.8% male, M age = 35.4 years, SD = 11.2) who were participating in a larger smoking cessation study. Data from the baseline (pre-quit attempt) assessment session were used. Results After accounting for the effects of gender, race, daily smoking rate, and negative affectivity, asthma status was indirectly related to motives for smoking related to nicotine dependence and motivation to quit smoking through anxiety sensitivity. There was no significant indirect effect for duration of longest quit attempt. Conclusions These findings suggest that smokers with asthma may be particularly fearful of physiological arousal, which in turn, may account for greater motivation to quit smoking, but also stronger dependence motives for smoking.
Matrix interactions regulating myelinogenesis in cultured oligodendrocytes.

Myelin is a membrane unique to the nervous system that is deposited in segments along selected nerve fibers. Myelin functions as an insulator to increase the velocity of impulses transmitted between the cell body of a nerve and its target. In the central nervous system (CNS) myelin is produced by oligodendroglial cells. Each cell extends numerous processes that ensheathe segments of several different axons simultaneously. A different mechanism of myelination appears to occur in the peripheral nervous system where Schwann cells myelinate only single segments of single axons. Other differences are seen between Schwann cells and oligodendroglia such as morphology, growth factor requirements, extracellular matrix involvement and composition of the myelin produced.
Effects of home nest stimuli on the emotional response of preweanling rats to an unfamiliar environment

A recent study (Richardson, Siegel, & Campbell, in press) demonstrated that the presence of an anesthetized dam has a marked calming effect on the emotional responses of young rats between 16 and 30 days of age to separation from their home cage and placement in an unfamiliar environment, but has no effect on adult emotionality. With elevated heart rate (HR) as an index of fear, the present investigation assessed the relative contribution of the olfactory and thermotactile properties of the lactating dam in such fear reduction in 16-day-old rat pups. In addition, the possible influence of odors from soiled bedding material from the pups#’ home cage on emotionality was examined. Our inquiry revealed that the tactile and thermal, but not olfactory, stimulus dimensions of the anesthetized dam were important determinants of the dam#’s fear-reducing capacity. The presence of odors from the home cage had no effect on the emotional state of the animal. These results are discussed in relation to the hypothesis that stimuli from the home environment (e.g., home odors) enhance learning in young animais by reducing the stress that the animals experience when separated from their home cage and placed in an unfamiliar environment.
Capturing student's teamwork and open-ended design performance in an undergraduate multimedia engineering design class

The present work describes the authors experiences capturing student performance in the freshman design class ME39C: Multimedia Case Studies of Engineering Design, at the University of California, Berkeley, USA. The focus of the ME39C class is to facilitate students as they work in teams to develop an original web based multimedia case study of an engineering design. The paper emphasizes a qualitative approach to capturing student performance and focuses on the process of teamwork and the interaction among students. They used a series of different methods to triangulate, compare and evaluate student performance. Specifically, they used an original web-based discussion tool, student observations and interviews, and questionnaires. Initial findings revealed that information obtained by one method sometimes contradicted data obtained from another. These contradictions suggest caution when analyzing student performance based on just one point of view. The data also indicates that team work, both in terms of product and process, can and should be collected continuously throughout the semester in order to provide the necessary feedback essential to student learning and improvement. Using a variety of assessment techniques affords a more comprehensive analysis of student performance.
School Public Relations

(1969). School Public Relations. Journal of Health, Physical Education, Recreation: Vol. 40, No. 9, pp. 82-82.
Identification and Characterization of 22 Genes That Affect the Vulval Cell Lineages of the Nematode CAENORHABDITIS ELEGANS

Ninety-five mutants of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans altered in the cell lineages of the vulva have been isolated on the basis of their displaying one of two phenotypes, Vulvaless or Multivulva. In Vulvaless mutants, which define 12 genes, no vulva is present. In Multivulva mutants, which define ten genes, one or more supernumerary vulva-like protrusions are located along the ventral side of the animal. A single recessive mutation is responsible for the phenotypes of most, but not all, of these strains. Fifteen of these 22 genes are represented by multiple alleles. We have shown by a variety of genetic criteria that mutations that result in a Vulvaless or Multivulva phenotype in six of the 22 genes most likely eliminate gene function. In addition, Vulvaless or Multivulva mutations in seven of the other genes most likely result in a partial reduction of gene function; the absence of the activity of any of these genes probably results in lethality or sterility. Our results suggest that we may have identified most, or all, genes of these two classes.
A Plunge into Networks

Drawing on models, techniques, and findings from sociology, physics, mathematics, and computer science, Jackson provides a foundation for analyzing and understanding social and economic networks.
Methods of estimation of IC50 and SC50 parameters for indirect response models from single dose data

The basic indirect response models are described by several pharmacodynamic parameters of which IC(50) (drug concentration eliciting 50% of the maximum inhibition) and SC(50) (drug concentration eliciting 50% of the maximum stimulation) are not readily derived from the response versus time or response versus concentration plots. We discuss limitations of existing methods of IC(50) and SC(50) estimation from single dose data. A novel approach to such estimations based on the area between the baseline and effect curve is introduced. The effects of pharmacokinetic profile, dose, data variability, and number of data on the parameter estimation are analyzed for the new and one of the previously described methods. Our analysis is based on reconstruction of true IC(50) and SC(50) values from rich and sparse computer-generated data sets modified by two noise levels. Extensions of these methods to two dose data sets are presented. Both methods yielded IC(50) and SC(50) close to the known true values. Depending on the factors mentioned above, these methods exhibited different levels of accuracy.
Phase Portrait of the Riccati Equation from the Periodic Control Problem

A comprehensive description is provided of the properties of the matrix Riccati differential equation in which the coefficient matrices are T-periodic for some T ≫ 0. Under very mild assumptions, the asymptotic behavior of every solution is described.
Pace: An Alternative Measure of Student Question Response Time

In some professions, speed and accuracy are as important as acquired requisite knowledge and skills. The availability of computer-based testing now facilitates examination of these two important aspects of student performance. We found that student response times in a conventional non-speeded multiple-choice test, at both the global and individual question levels, closely approximated lognormal distributions. We propose a new measure, pace, which is derived from the survival function of these distributions for analysis of individual person response times. These pace estimates could be used both to rank and compare students; pace also performed maximally compared to other parameterizations in generalizability and dependability studies. While pace was very weakly related to person ability, there was no detectable relationship to question parameters of shift, natural logarithmic mean, or natural logarithmic standard deviation. That is, pace was a person-dependent, question-independent measure. Pace measureme...
The Effects of Childhood, Adult, and Community Socioeconomic Conditions on Health and Mortality among Older Adults in China

Using a large, nationally representative longitudinal sample of Chinese aged 65 and older, this study examines the effects of childhood, adult, and community socioeconomic conditions on mortality and several major health outcomes. The role of social mobility is also tested. We find that childhood socioeconomic conditions exert long-term effects on functional limitations, cognitive impairment, self-rated health, and mortality independent of adult and community socioeconomic conditions. Achieved conditions matter for most outcomes as well, considering that adult and community socioeconomic conditions have additional impacts on health among Chinese elders. The majority of the effects of childhood conditions are not mediated by adult and community conditions. The results also show that social mobility and health in later life are linked in complex ways and that psychosocial factors have marginal explanatory power for the effects of socioeconomic conditions. Overall, this study provides new longitudinal evidence from China to support the notion that health and mortality at older ages are influenced by long-term and dynamic processes structured by the social stratification system. We discuss our findings in the context of the life course and ecological perspective, emphasizing that human development is influenced by a nexus of social experiences that impact individuals throughout life.
Fifty Years of Rectification

In the middle of Latin America's lost decade of the 1980s, Cuba seemed to be doing relatively well. Economic indicators were up, the institutions set up a decade earlier after the first congress of the Cuban Communist party in 1975 were working, and the future of the socialist camp seemed assured (Angotti, 1988). Party members headed to the third congress and listened intently to the report from Fidel that enumerated the accomplishments, problems, and chal lenges for the future. But something happened on the way to the congress: the Cuban Revolution, again. Criticisms cascaded: bureaucracy, waste, machismo, dis crimination against blacks, individualism, corruption, overreliance on mater ial incentives. The mechanisms for central planning that borrowed liberally from the Soviet and East European experiences were under assault, and the central focus was not the institutions themselves but what Fidel later called
Impact of Synthetic Technique on PLA-PEO-PLA Physical Hydrogel Properties

Previous work has shown that the stiffness of poly(lactide)-b-poly(ethylene oxide)-b-poly(lactide) [PLA−PEO−PLA] hydrogels can be influenced by crystallinity. Those hydrogels with crystalline PLLA end blocks had a higher storage modulus (up to 1 order of magnitude) than the amorphous equivalents. All the previous work was done with polymers synthesized in the bulk. This paper reports the difference in mechanical properties when two different synthetic techniques are usedbulk and solution synthesis. Solution-synthesized polymers consistently formed stiffer hydrogels than bulk-synthesized polymers. Further investigation determined the following: crystalline polymers from solution synthesis still form stiffer gels than the amorphous analogues, but not to the extent previously reported; the solution synthesized polymers have narrower distributions, but this alone does not account for the mechanical differences. However, the presence of asymmetric triblock copolymers, which act like an effective diblock copol...
Equitable Recoupment: Is It Finally Equitable?

ABSTRACT: There are currently no statutory remedies for the double taxation of a taxpayer or transaction, only a judicial doctrine known as equitable recoupment. Equitable recoupment can be used by either a taxpayer or the government to avoid unjust enrichment caused by enforcement of the statute of limitations. It involves a single transaction subject to two different legal theories of taxation, a claim barred by the statute of limitations, and a sufficient identity of interest between the taxpayers. Until recently, equitable recoupment could be raised in District Court and the Court of Federal Claims, but the jurisdiction of the Tax Court in such matters was uncertain. The enactment of a new tax provision in 2006 allows taxpayers to avoid having to sue for a refund and enables them to seek relief in Tax Court. This is particularly helpful for taxpayers who do not have the resources to pay a tax and then file a claim for refund, especially in light of the new enforcement efforts on the part of the IRS. T...
Lab of things: a devices research and teaching platform for home and beyond

Inspired by the availability of inexpensive connected devices-such as lights, water sensors, security cameras, power meters, and thermostats-we built the Lab of Things (LoT) platform to enable easy interaction with devices for a range of applications, including automation, security, energy management, and elder care. Our goal is to substantially lower the barrier for researchers and students to develop and experiment with new technologies for the home environment. LoT provides a common framework to write applications that use connected devices and includes a set of cloud services that enable remote command/control of devices, monitoring of system health, and data collection. We released the LoT SDK in July 2013 for non-commercial use. I will describe the research studies that motivated the development of Lab of Things, student and research projects developed using Lab of Things and its precursor HomeOS, and our long-term vision of research groups working together to create a test bed of homes around the world that are willing to participate in field studies.
Thermodynamics of Ligand Binding and Catalysis in Human Liver Medium-Chain Acyl-CoA Dehydrogenase: Comparative Studies Involving Normal and 3‘-Dephosphorylated C8-CoAs and Wild-Type and Asn191 → Ala (N191A) Mutant Enzymes†

Following our demonstration that the terminal 3‘-phosphate group of acyl-CoA substrates (which is confined to the exterior of the protein structure, and is fully exposed to the outside solvent environment) exhibits a functional role in the recombinant human liver medium-chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase (MCAD)-catalyzed reaction [Peterson, K. L., and Srivastava, D. K. (1997) Biochem. J. 325, 751−760], we became interested in delineating its thermodynamic contribution in stabilizing the “ground” and “transition” state structures during enzyme catalysis. Since the 3‘-phosphate group of the coenzyme A thiolester has the potential to form a hydrogen bond with the side chain group of Asn-191, these studies were performed utilizing both normal and 3‘-dephosphorylated forms of octanoyl-CoA and octenoyl-CoA (cumulatively referred to as C8-CoA) as the physiological substrate and product of the enzyme, respectively, as well as utilizing wild-type and Asn191 → Ala (N191A) site-specific mutant enzymes. The experimental da...
Excited-State Reaction Dynamics of Chlorine Dioxide in Water from Absolute Resonance Raman Intensities

Resonance Raman spectra of aqueous chlorine dioxide (OClO) are measured for several excitation wavelengths spanning the photochemically relevant 2B1−2A2 optical transition. A mode-specific description of the optically prepared, 2A2 potential energy surface is derived by simultaneous analysis of the absolute resonance Raman and absorption cross sections. The resonance Raman spectra are dominated by transitions involving the symmetric stretch and bend coordinates demonstrating that excited-state structural evolution occurs predominately along these degrees of freedom. Scattering intensity is not observed for transitions involving the asymmetric stretch, demonstrating that excited-state structural evolution along this coordinate is modest. The limited evolution along the asymmetric stretch coordinate results in the preservation of C2v symmetry on the 2A2 surface. It is proposed that this preservation of symmetry is responsible for the increase in Cl photoproduct quantum yield in solution relative to the gas ...