cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
High-Efficiency Cloning of DNA Sequences Complementary to Mouse Neuroblastoma Polyadenylated RNA

A cDNA library was efficiently synthesized from mouse neuroblastoma poIy(A)+RNA. Several modifications of the oligo(dC)(dG) tailing procedure were used. After first strand synthesis, a dATP tail was added to the 3′-end of the cDNA. The second strand was primed for synthesis with oligo(dT). Blunt ends were produced on the cDNA by treatment with S1 nuclease. Size-enriched fractions of high molecular weight DNAs were obtained by passing the cDNA over a Sepharose CL-4B column. The optimal tailing time for each cDNA fraction was individually tested. Tailing reactions used terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase and annealing reactions used a (G)-tailed PstI cut pBR322. E. coli K12 RR1 cells were transformed and 2.5–5 × 106 transformants per μg cDNA insert were obtained for each size fraction. The transformants had an average insert size of 1200 base pairs and were 98% ampicillin sensitive. Our modifications in the method for cDNA library synthesis had 3 advantages. (1) Homopolymer-primed cDNA treated with S1 nuc...
An automatic testing and grading method for a C++ list class

This paper presents a scheme for automatic grading of the member functions of a C++ list class. Developing an automatic grading program for C++ classes is non-trivial because a test case to verify one member function of the class may depend upon the correctness of one or more other class member functions. In addition, performing multiple test cases in the same driver program may produce invalid grading outcomes because an erroneous result from one test case could violate the preconditions for a later test case. The method described here uses a weakness of C++ data encapsulation that allows access to private data members of an object. Two instances of a list object are constructed, tested, and compared using student designed and instructor designed classes. If a test case produces incorrect results using the student's class, the instructor written class may be used (via a type cast) to access the private data members of the student's list object to correct the errors. The grading program automatically reports and tallies errors for each member function and for the class total.
Determination of the rate of rapid lipid transfer induced by poly(ethylene glycol) using the SLM Fourier transform phase and modulation spectrofluorometer

Rate constants were determined for the transfer of the fluorescent lipid probe 1-palmitoyl-2-[[2-[4-(6-phenyl-trans-1,3,5-hexatrienyl)phenyl]ethyl] oxy]carbonyl]-3-sn-phosphatidylcholine (DPHpPC) between large, unilamellar extrusion vesicles composed either of dipalmitoyl phosphatidylcholine (DPPC) or of DPPC mixed with a small amount (0.5 mol%) of lyso phosphatidylcholine (Lyso PC). Transfer of the lipid probe in the presence of varying concentrations of poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) was monitored using the SLM 48000-MHF Multi-Harmonic Fourier Transform phase and modulation spectrofluorometer to collect multifrequency phase and modulation fluorescence data sets on a subsecond time scale. The unique ability of this instrument to yield accurate fluorescence lifetime data on this time scale allowed transfer to be detected in terms of a time-dependent change in the fluorescent lifetime distribution associated with the lipid-like DPHpPC probe. This probe demonstrates two short fluoresence decay times (ca. 1.1–1.4 and 4.3–4.8 ns) in a probe-rich environment but a single long lifetime (ca. 7 ns) in a probe-poor environment. A simple two-state model for initial lipid transfer was used to analyze the multifrequency data sets collected over a 4-s time frame to obtain the time rate of change of the concentrations of donor and acceptor probe populations following rapid mixing of vesicles with PEG. The ability to measure fluorescence lifetimes on this time scale has allowed us to show that the of rate of lipid transfer increased dramatically at 35% PEG in both fusing and nonfusing vesicle systems. These results are interpreted in terms of a distinct interbilayer structure associated with intimate bilayer contact induced by high and potentially fusogenic concentrations of PEG.
The touch screen system in the pigeon laboratory: An initial evaluation of its utility

The touch screen system has been employed as a device for the measurement of responses and presentation of stimuli in pigeon laboratories for 4 years. Its contributions to the study of the pigeon’s behavior include the addition of response location information and an increase in the versatility of stimulus presentation. Along with the advantages of this system come some cautions. Limitations on response registration and time to construct stimuli are both concerns. Using response location as a dependent variable and distance of response registration from the pecking surface as an independent variable, the affordance of the touch screen system is investigated.
CSEM Inversion: Impact of Anisotropy, Data Coverage, And Initial Models

While 3-D inversion is a particularly effective tool for interpreting marine CSEM data, 3-D data acquisition is needed to image the resistivity structure of an anisotropic subsurface. Tests on synthetic models show resistivity artifacts when anisotropic data are forced through isotropic inversion and when offline data are excluded from anisotropic inversions. Similar artifacts appear also when the inversion starting model differs too much from the actual subsurface. As a result, inadequate attention to anisotropy or inadequate data coverage can lead directly to misinterpretation of the subsurface resistivity structure. Anisotropic imaging with good data coverage, accurate receiver orientation, and good initial resistivity models are necessary to quantitatively image resistive anomalies in an anisotropic earth.
Advanced Thyroid Cancer Patients in Phase I Clinical Trials: Outcome Assessment and Literature Review

Background: To describe the basic demographics, analyze the response and survival experience of advanced thyroid cancer subjects treated in Phase I clinical trials. We also reviewed early Phase studies using new targeted agents in thyroid cancer. Methods: We conducted a retrospective observational study in 32 advanced thyroid cancer patients who participated in 21 Phase I trials at our center between 2002 and 2012. Descriptive statistics and Kaplan Meier analyses were used to examine clinical outcomes and survival. Results: The median age of subjects was 57.5 years (range 21-81) at the time of study enrollment; more men (53.1%) than women were enrolled. A large number of study participants were Hispanic Americans. Nearly half (46.8%) of patients had ECOG performance status of zero, 53.1% were ECOG one and above. The most common histological subtypes were papillary (37.5%), medullary (28.1%), follicular (18.7) and anaplastic (15.6%). More than half of patients had ≥ 2 metastatic sites (62.6%). Of the 30 evaluable patients for tumor response, 2 confirmed partial responses (6.6%) were observed, whereas 17 patients had stable disease (SD) as best response. Among patients with stable disease, 10 patients (33.3%) achieved SD lasting ≥ 6 months. The median overall survival from the time of enrollment in a Phase I trial was 16.1 months. No treatment related death was observed among these patients treated with an investigational agent. Conclusion: Advanced thyroid cancer patients with no standard treatment options could participate in early Phase clinical trials of novel agents. World J Oncol. 2014;5(1):24-32 doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.14740/wjon768w
Laser-Assisted Machining of a Fiber Reinforced Metal Matrix Composite

Metal matrix composites due to their excellent properties of high specific strength, fracture resistance and corrosion resistance are highly sought after over their non-ferrous alloys, but these materials also present difficulty in machining. Excessive tool wear and high tooling costs of diamond tools makes the cost associated with machining of these composites very high. This paper is concerned with machining of high volume fraction long-fiber MMC’s, which has seldom been studied. The composite material considered for this study is an Al-2%Cu aluminum matrix composite reinforced with 62% by volume fraction alumina fibers (Al-2%Cu/Al2 O3 ). Laser-machining is utilized to improve the tool life and the material removal rate while minimizing the sub-surface damage. The effectiveness of the laser-assisted machining process is studied by measuring the cutting forces, specific cutting energy, surface roughness, sub-surface damage and tool wear under various material removal temperatures. A multi-phase finite element model is developed in ABAQUS/Standard to identify and assist in selection of cutting parameters such as; tool rake angle, cutting speed and material removal temperature. The multi-phase model is also successful in predicting the damage depth on machining. The optimum material removal temperature is established as 300°C at a cutting speed of 30 m/min. LAM provides a 65% reduction in the surface roughness, specific cutting energy, the tool wear rate and minimum sub-surface damage over conventional machining using the same cutting conditions.Copyright © 2009 by ASME
Seismic characterization of a Mississippi Lime resource play in Osage County, Oklahoma, USA

AbstractWith the advent of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing in the Midcontinent, USA, fields once thought to be exhausted are now experiencing renewed exploitation. However, traditional Midcontinent seismic analysis techniques no longer provide satisfactory reservoir characterization for these unconventional plays; new seismic analysis methods are needed to properly characterize these radically innovative play concepts. Time processing and filtering is applied to a raw 3D seismic data set from Osage County, Oklahoma, paying careful attention to velocity analysis, residual statics, and coherent noise filtering. The use of a robust prestack structure-oriented filter and spectral whitening greatly enhances the results. After prestack time migrating the data using a Kirchhoff algorithm, new velocities are picked. A final normal moveout correction is applied using the new velocities, followed by a final prestack structure-oriented filter and spectral whitening. Simultaneous prestack inversion uses ...
Bypassing space explosion in high-speed regular expression matching

Network intrusion detection and prevention systems commonly use regular expression (RE) signatures to represent individual security threats. While the corresponding deterministic finite state automata (DFA) for any one RE is typically small, the DFA that corresponds to the entire set of REs is usually too large to be constructed or deployed. To address this issue, a variety of alternative automata implementations that compress the size of the final automaton have been proposed such as extended finite automata (XFA) and delayed input DFA (D2 FA). The resulting final automata are typically much smaller than the corresponding DFA. However, the previously proposed automata construction algorithms do suffer from some drawbacks. First, most employ a "Union then Minimize" framework where the automata for each RE are first joined before minimization occurs. This leads to an expensive nondeterministic finite automata (NFA) to DFA subset construction on a relatively large NFA. Second, most construct the corresponding large DFA as an intermediate step. In some cases, this DFA is so large that the final automaton cannot be constructed even though the final automaton is small enough to be deployed. In this paper, we propose a "Minimize then Union" framework for constructing compact alternative automata focusing on the D2 FA. We show that we can construct an almost optimal final D2 FA with small intermediate parsers. The key to our approach is a space-and time-efficient routine for merging two compact D2 FA into a compact D2 FA. In our experiments, our algorithm runs on average 155 times faster and uses 1500 times less memory than previous algorithms. For example, we are able to construct a D2 FA with over 80 000 000 states using only 1 GB of main memory in only 77 min.
High fill-factor two-axis gimbaled tip-tilt-piston micromirror array actuated by self-Aligned vertical electrostatic combdrives

In this paper, we present a high fill-factor micromirror array actuated by self-aligned vertical electrostatic combdrives. To meet the requirements of applications in free-space communication and imaging, each micromirror has three degrees of freedom of motion: rotation around two axes in the mirror plane and linear translation perpendicular to the mirror plane. Our approach is to integrate the high fill-factor reflectors into the fabrication process of the actuators on the wafer-scale. Multilevel silicon-on-insulator (SOI) bonding is utilized to form the high optical quality reflectors and high aspect-ratio vertical combdrive actuators. The wiring for electrical access to the multielectrode per pixel array is fabricated on separate wafers by thin film processing, and flip-chip bonded to the reflector/actuator chip. This architecture overcomes the fill-factor limitation of top-side accessed electrical addressing of mirrors made on SOI. Our 360/spl mu/m pixel size mirror array achieves a 99% fill-factor with optically flat reflectors.
Why Do Employees Respond Differently to the Same Organizational Changes

Not all employees respond alike to organizational changes that they experience in common. In 40 health care clinics undergoing significant organizational change, some employees perceived decreases,...
THE EFFICACY AND SAFETY OF TADALAFIL IN UNITED STATES AND PUERTO RICAN MEN WITH ERECTILE DYSFUNCTION

ABSTRACTPurpose:: We evaluate the efficacy and safety of tadalafil, taken as needed, in men with mild to severe erectile dysfunction (ED) and assess sexual intercourse attempt patterns.Materials and Methods:: In this multicenter, double-blind, placebo controlled, parallel study conducted in the United States and Puerto Rico 207 men with ED were randomized to placebo or 20 mg tadalafil for 12 weeks. The primary efficacy variables were changes from baseline in the mean International Index of Erectile Function erectile function domain score and mean per patient percentage of “yes” responses to Sexual Encounter Profile (SEP) diary questions 2 (successful penetration) and 3 (successful intercourse). The Global Assessment Question was a secondary end point and post hoc analyses on sexual intercourse attempt patterns were conducted.Results:: Men treated with tadalafil compared with placebo reported greater mean changes from baseline on the erectile function domain score (9.3 vs 0.3 with placebo, p <0.001) and on...
Engulfment of apoptotic cells expressing HCV proteins leads to differential chemokine expression and STAT signaling in human dendritic cells.

In the majority of cases, infection with hepatitis C virus (HCV) becomes chronic and is often associated with impaired innate and adaptive immune responses. The mechanisms underlying viral persistence and lack of protective immunity are poorly understood. Considering that dendritic cells (DCs) play critical roles in initiating and modulating immune responses, we explored the effect of HCV proteins on DC gene and protein expression, phenotype, and function. Human DCs were generated following plastic adherence of monocytes and culture with granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor and interleukin-4 (IL-4) from normal subjects. Autologous nonadherent peripheral blood mononuclear cells were infected with vaccinia constructs expressing various HCV proteins (core-E1, NS5A, NS5B) or an irrelevant protein β-galactosidase (β-gal) as the control, induced to undergo apoptosis, then co-cultured with DCs. Between 2% and 10% of the genes probed in a cDNA nylon array were differentially regulated within DCs that had engulfed HCV proteins. In particular, the presence of intracellular NS5A led to increased transcriptional and protein expression of IL-8 (CXCL-8), a chemokine with proinflammatory and anti-interferon properties, and impaired interferon induction of signal transducers and activators of transcription 1 (STAT1) serine and tyrosine and STAT2 tyrosine phosphorylation. Conclusion: These data provide novel mechanisms by which HCV subverts antiviral host immunity. (HEPATOLOGY 2007;45:1422–1432.)
5. Quantitative Analyses

Chapter 5 presents quantitative analyses that examine Morgan longitudinally over the course of the circumnavigation. Variables include cognitive function, daily progress, affective dimensions (Valence and Activation), motives (Achievement, Power, Affiliation-Intimacy, and Intimacy), as well as broader concerns or psychodevelopmental stages (Identity, Intimacy, and Generativity). The analyses test a variety of hypotheses that derive from the theoretical perspectives of the five-factor model (FFM) and the life-story model (LSM). Most broadly, the FFM predicts consistency and stability of functioning whereas the LSM broaches the possibility of change and distinguishes between two levels of the voyage–the external quest and the internal journey. We tested specific hypotheses, which concerned long-term trends of and cross-correlations between variables, through concomitant time series analysis. Collectively, the quantitative results not only inform but also constrain the qualitative analyses of subsequent chapters.
Material Damping Experiments at Cryogenic Temperatures

A unique experimental facility has been designed to measure damping of materials at cryogenic temperatures. The test facility pays special attention to removing other sources of damping in the measurement by avoiding frictional interfaces, decoupling the test specimen from the support system, and by using a non-contacting measurement device; Damping data is obtained for materials (AI, GrEp, Be, Fused Quartz), strain amplitudes (less than 10-6 ppm), frequencies (20Hz-330Hz) and temperatures (20K-293K) relevant to future precision optical space missions. The test data shows a significant decrease in viscous damping at cryogenic temperatures and can be as low as 10-4%, but the amount of the damping decrease is a function of frequency and material. Contrary to the other materials whose damping monotonically decreased with temperature, damping of Fused Quartz increased substantially at cryo, after reaching a minimum at around l50 K. The damping is also shown to be insensitive to strain for low strain levels. At room temperatures, the test data correlates well to the analytical predictions of the Zener damping model. Discrepancies at cryogenic temperatures between the model predictions and the test data are observed.
Financial Integration in Late Nineteenth-Century Austria

The process of financial integration has been charted in several studies of the late nineteenth-century U.S. economy but lacks comparable documentation in a European case. This gap is filled through an examination of interregional interest rate trends in the pre-World War I Austrian economy. The Austrian data show a marked trend toward rate convergence beginning in the 1870s. These results are significant for the U.S. case and for the long standing debate on the economic viability of the Habsburg Monarchy before World War I and of the successor states in the interwar period.
Distinct roles for de novo versus hydrolytic pathways of sphingolipid biosynthesis in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Saccharomyces cerevisiae produces the sphingolipid ceramide by de novo synthesis as well as by hydrolysis of complex sphingolipids by Isc1p (inositolphosphoceramide-phospholipase C), which is homologous with the mammalian neutral sphingomyelinases. Though the roles of sphingolipids in yeast stress responses are well characterized, it has been unclear whether Isc1p contributes to stress-induced sphingolipids. The present study was undertaken in order to distinguish the relative roles of de novo sphingolipid biosynthesis versus Isc1p-mediated sphingolipid production in the heat-stress response. Ceramide production was measured at normal and increased temperature in an ISC1 deletion and its parental strain (ISC1 being the gene that codes for Isc1p). The results showed that Isc1p contributes specifically to the formation of the C24-, C24:1- and C26-dihydroceramide species. The interaction between these two pathways of sphingolipid production was confirmed by the finding that ISC1 deletion is synthetically lethal with the lcb1-100 mutation. Interestingly, Isc1p did not contribute significantly to transient cell-cycle arrest or growth at elevated temperature, responses known to be regulated by the de novo pathway. In order to define specific contributions of ISC1, microarray hybridizations were performed, and analyses showed misregulation of genes involved in carbon source utilization and sexual reproduction, which was corroborated by defining a sporulation defect of the isc1Δ strain. These results indicate that the two pathways of ceramide production in yeast interact, but differ in their regulation of ceramides of distinct molecular species and serve distinct cellular functions.
Security rights violations in the context of counter-terrorism: analysis of the post-Soviet nations

This study aims to explain the security rights violations of terrorism suspects. It develops a theoretical model and assesses its predictions using a sample of post-Soviet states. The author uses original data on security rights violations of individuals implicated in terrorism and their family members and supporters, collected by means of systematic content analysis of several types of reports. Contrary to a widely held belief that the magnitude of terrorism is the main determinant of human rights practices in the context of the ‘war on terror’, the study finds no support for the impact of terrorist attacks on security rights violations of terrorism suspects. Political conflict, on the other hand, appears to be a stronger predictor of security rights violations in the post-Soviet nations. Statistical results also lend support to the impact of international norms and a number of other factors on human rights violations in the name of combating terrorism. The author discusses implications of the findings f...
Variation in Vocal-Motor Development in Infant Siblings of Children with Autism

In this study we examined early motor, vocal, and communicative development in a group of younger siblings of children diagnosed with autism (Infant Siblings). Infant Siblings and no-risk comparison later-born infants were videotaped at home with a primary caregiver each month from 5 to 14 months, with follow-up at 18 months. As a group, Infant Siblings were delayed in the onset of early developmental milestones and spent significantly less time in a greater number of postures, suggestive of relative postural instability. In addition, they demonstrated attenuated patterns of change in rhythmic arm activity around the time of reduplicated babble onset; and they were highly likely to exhibit delayed language development at 18 months.
DYNAMICS OF STIMULUS-EXPRESSION COUPLING AS REVEALED BY MONITORING OF PROLACTIN PROMOTER-DRIVEN REPORTER ACTIVITY IN INDIVIDUAL, LIVING MAMMOTROPES

Single-cell paradigms have greatly expanded our knowledge about stimulus-secretion coupling, but the understanding of stimulus-gene expression coupling has lagged behind for lack of a dynamic model sufficiently sensitive to provide single-cell resolution. In the present study, we made continuous indirect measurements within individual, living cells of expression dynamics both before and after treatment with a gene-activating secretagogue. This was accomplished by transfecting (via microinjection) individual, primary mammotropes with a PRL promoter-driven luciferase reporter plasmid, and then quantifying the rate of photonic emissions (reflective of endogenous gene activity). We found that individual cells exhibit spontaneous, random, short-term fluctuations of basal reporter activity and are extremely heterogeneous in terms of responses to a stimulatory agent (TRH). In addition, we found that responses are affected by several factors including the secretory status of the pituitary donor, the manner in which the stimulus is presented, and by the initial level of reporter activity. Moreover, the responsiveness of an individual cell can fluctuate dramatically over time. These results invite speculation that a given cell can “sense” its gene activation state and regulate its response accordingly to satisfy requirements for the corresponding secretory product. (Molecular Endocrinology 13: 1718‐1727, 1999)
Computation Cost in Grid Computing Environments

Computational grid is an upcoming environment based on open standards and virtualization of individual resources created with a goal of supporting collaboration and resource sharing. As the technology advances and user base grows, grid computing will advance beyond research institutions and find its place in the commercial sector, in need of supporting the service-oriented goals imposed by such community. With the advent or various services, Quality of Service (QoS) levels will need to be shaped to provide quantitative and qualitative measure of service satisfaction for various user categories. A major concern among these users will be the associated cost for individual services and their ability to compare these costs and services between different providers. This paper raises some initial issues in the given area, analyzes only the few currently available approaches and provides the foundation for future work in terms service comparison and cost analysis.
Continuous plug‐flow bioreactor: Experimental testing with Pseudomonas putida culture grown on benzoate

The goals of this work were to test the feasibility of a continuous plug-flow (PF) bioreactor and to compare the growth in the PF bioreactor to that in a batch bioreactor. A culture of Pseudomonas putida was pumped through a tube made of Teflon with varying residence times. The culture was aerated by pumping of air simultaneously with liquid medium to provide air bubbles along the tubular culture. When the residence time in the PF bioreactor was greater than the time needed to reach the stationary phase in batch mode, the maximum biomass density reached in PF mode was the same as the maximum density reached in the batch bioreactor, and benzoate (the only carbon and energy source) was completely consumed. The drawbacks for practical application of PF were found to be fluctuations of cell concentration in the outflow cultural liquid due to cell aggregation, significant cell adhesion to the inner wall of Teflon tubing, and inadequate aeration.
Local time—Temperature-dependent deformation of a woven composite

Moire interferometry is utilized to investigate the time-temperature-dependent deformation of a woven composite substrate used in multilayer circuit board applications. Creep tests are performed at temperatures ranging from 27 to 70°C, and the resulting longitudinal and transverse displacement fields are measured via moire interferometry. Measured displacement fields reveal the influence of fabric architecture on woven composite response. The deformation fields in the plane of the composite for loading along both warp and fill directions consist of a periodic arrangement of high-strain and low-strain regions in accordance to the interlacing bundle architecture. The deformation fields over the cross-section of the composite indicate that neighboring unit cells are subjected to equal and opposite bending moment even when the composite is loaded in uniaxial tension.
EAS studies of the oxides formed on iron-chromium alloys at 400°C

Abstract Auger Electron Spectroscopy (AES) has been used to study the compositions and properties of the oxides formed at 400°C on Fe-Cr alloys. The alloys investigated consisted of Cr additions of 3%, 9%, 12% and 18%. It is found that for the Cr additions (Cr = 3%), the oxide consists mainly of iron. However, the addition of Cr from 9% up to 18% results in the formation of layered oxides, i.e., Fe 2 O 3 exists in the outer oxide/gas interface and Fe 3− x Cr x O 4 in the inner region with the predominant chromium oxide next to the substrate. The additions of Cr ⩾ 9% to the alloys retard the oxide growth significantly.
Experiments with in-transit processing for data intensive grid workflows

Efficient and robust data streaming and in-transit data manipulations are critical requirements of emerging scientific and engineering application workflows, which are based on seamless interactions and coupling between geographically distributed application components. The overall goal of this research is to address these requirements and develop a data streaming and in-transit data manipulation service. In this paper, we experimentally investigate reactive management strategies for in-transit data manipulation, as well as cooperative end-to-end management for wide-area data-streaming and in-transit data manipulation for data-intensive scientific and engineering workflows.
My Own Invention - Stories as Sustenance: Augusta Baker as an inspiration.

Rhonda Jeffries warmly celebrates the life and legacy of the great American storyteller, Augusta Baker.
GENETIC RECOMBINATION IN SEXUAL CROSSES OF PHYCOMYCES

Sexual crosses between strains of Phycomyces blakesleeanus , involving three auxotrophic and one color marker and yielding a high proportion of zygospore germination, are described. Samples of 20–40 germ spores from 311 individual fertile germ sporangia originating from five two-factor and three three-factor crosses were characterized. The results show: (1) absence of any contribution of apogamic nuclei to the progeny, (2) confirmation of Burgeff's conjecture that the germ spores of any germ sporangium in most cases derive from one meiosis. In a cross involving two allelic markers the analysis of 175 pooled germ sporangia suggests an intragenic recombination frequency of 0.6%. All other factor combinations tested are unlinked. The bulk of the germ spores are homokaryotic. However, a small portion (4%) are heterokaryotic with respect to mating type.
Relative efficiency and sample size for cluster randomized trials with variable cluster sizes

Background The statistical power of cluster randomized trials depends on two sample size components, the number of clusters per group and the numbers of individuals within clusters (cluster size). Variable cluster sizes are common and this variation alone may have significant impact on study power. Previous approaches have taken this into account by either adjusting total sample size using a designated design effect or adjusting the number of clusters according to an assessment of the relative efficiency of unequal versus equal cluster sizes.Purpose This article defines a relative efficiency of unequal versus equal cluster sizes using noncentrality parameters, investigates properties of this measure, and proposes an approach for adjusting the required sample size accordingly.Methods We focus on comparing two groups with normally distributed outcomes using t-test, and use the noncentrality parameter to define the relative efficiency of unequal versus equal cluster sizes and show that statistical power depe...
In situ fluorescence spectroscopic studies of polymerization of anaerobic adhesives

Anaerobic adhesives cured by a redox initiated free radical mechanism contain acrylate monomers, stabilizers, accelerators, a nonreactive fluorophore used as an inspection aid, and various nonreactive ingredients to modify polymer properties and rheology. Fluorescence spectroscopy has shown that collisional quenching of the fluorophore due to an amine cure-accelerator is reduced by rising viscosity during polymerization, thus resulting in an increase in fluorescence intensity. By monitoring the changes in fluorescence intensity with an in situ fiber-optic method, room temperature polymerizations have been characterized both in a model formulation containing only reactive ingredients as well as in a real commercial formulation containing many nonreactive ingredients. The results from this fluorescence method on polymerization monitoring show excellent correlation with the FTIR results. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 2008
Neural Processing of Facial Identity and Emotion in Infants at High-Risk for Autism Spectrum Disorders

Deficits in face processing and social impairment are core characteristics of autism spectrum disorder. The present work examined 7-month-old infants at high-risk for developing autism and typically developing controls at low-risk, using a face perception task designed to differentiate between the effects of face identity and facial emotions on neural response using functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy. In addition, we employed independent component analysis, as well as a novel method of condition-related component selection and classification to identify group differences in hemodynamic waveforms and response distributions associated with face and emotion processing. The results indicate similarities of waveforms, but differences in the magnitude, spatial distribution, and timing of responses between groups. These early differences in local cortical regions and the hemodynamic response may, in turn, contribute to differences in patterns of functional connectivity.
Support for the Woman with an Ectopic Pregnancy

The etiology, diagnosis, and nursing interventions of ectopic pregnancy are reviewed. In addition, patient needs for expert nursing care are discussed. Implications for nursing research on ectopic pregnancy are stressed.
Improving average health and persisting health inequities—towards a justice and fairness platform for health policy making in Asia

Methods: Utilizing published data from Demographic Health Surveys (DHS) and case studies and reviews on health inequity in the Asian region, this article aims to describe the existing patterns of inequity of health access both within and between countries, focusing on immunization, maternal health access, nutritional outcomes and child mortality, with a view to recommending health policy options for addressing these health inequities. We compare the gap in access and outcomes between the highest and the lowest wealth quintiles, as well as crossreference these findings with case studies and surveys on health inequities in the region. Results: In Asia, while in terms of aggregate health more of the poor are being reached, the reduction in the gap between social groups in some cases is stagnating, particularly for maternal health access and childhood stunting. Inequity gaps for immunization are persisting, and remain very wide in large population countries. For child mortality, more of the poor are surviving, although the rate of mortality decline is more rapid in higher than lower socio-economic groupings.
Prevalence and Determinants of Cardiac and Vascular Hypertrophy in Hypertension

Hypertrophy of the capacitance arteries has recently been documented in hypertensive patients by noninvasive ultrasound techniques. To better define the prevalence and determinants of vascular hypertrophy and its potential association with ventricular hypertrophy in hypertension, we compared carotid and cardiac ultrasound findings in 172 normotensive and 172 unmedicated hypertensive subjects matched for age and sex. Despite similar body size, hypertension was associated with increased left ventricular wall thicknesses, mass, and mass index (89 versus 80 g/m2, P < .0001 for all comparisons) and increased carotid wall thickness (0.82 versus 0.77 mm) and cross-section area (17.1 versus 15.3 mm2, P < .005 for both comparisons). Among the 172 normotensive subjects, left ventricular hypertrophy was noted in 9 (5.2%) and arterial hypertrophy was found in 9 (5.2%), whereas ventricular hypertrophy was found in 21 (12.2%) and arterial hypertrophy in 19 (11%) hypertensive subjects. Arterial hypertrophy was found in 9% of hypertensive subjects with normal ventricular mass and in 24% with left ventricular hypertrophy (P < .05). Among hypertensive subjects carotid wall thickness and cross-sectional area were most strongly related to age and systolic pressure (P < .0001 for all comparisons), with little contribution form body size. Carotid relative wall thickness was only related to increasing age (P < .01). In contrast, left ventricular wall thickness and mass were strongly related to body size and systolic pressure (P < .0001 for comparisons) but not to age (P = NS).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Enhanced sensitivity of pancreatic islets from preobese 2-week-old ob/ob mice to neurohormonal stimulation of insulin secretion.

Insulin secretion from perifused islets of preobese, 2-week-old, genetically obese (ob/ob) mice and their lean littermates was examined to identify early-onset abnormalities in regulation of insulin secretion by ob/ob mice. The ob/ob mice were slightly hyperinsulinemic (+20%) and hypoglycemic (-12%) at 2 weeks of age. Pancreatic islet size, DNA content, and insulin content were similar in ob/ob and lean mice. The responsiveness of islets to glucose, as determined by 20 mM glucose-induced insulin secretion, and the sensitivity of islets to glucose, as determined by the glucose threshold for insulin secretion, were unaffected by phenotype, but two insulin secretagogues that potentiate glucose-induced insulin secretion via activation of the phospholipase-C signal transduction pathway (i.e. acetylcholine, and cholecystokinin) were more effective in stimulating insulin secretion from islets of ob/ob mice than from islets of lean mice. Both responsiveness and sensitivity to acetylcholine and cholecystokinin pot...
Dynamics of Protamine 1 Binding to Single DNA Molecules

Protamine molecules bind to and condense DNA in the sperm of most vertebrates, packaging the sperm genome in an inactive state until it can be reactivated following fertilization. By using methods that enable the analysis of protamine binding to individual DNA molecules, we have monitored the kinetics of DNA condensation and decondensation by protamine 1 (P1) and synthetic peptides corresponding to specific segments of the bull P1 DNA binding domain. Our results show that the number of clustered arginine residues present in the DNA binding domain is the most important factor affecting the condensation and stability of the DNA-protamine complex prior to the formation of inter-protamine disulfide cross-links. The high affinity of P1 for DNA is achieved by the coordinated binding of three anchoring domains, which together in bull P1 contain 19 Arg residues. The single DNA molecule experiments show that sequences containing two or more anchoring domains have an off-rate that is at least 3 orders of magnitude slower than those containing a single domain. The use of Arg, rather than Lys residues, and the inclusion of Tyr or Phe residues in the hinge regions between anchoring domains provide additional stability to the complex.
Etch damage and deposition repair of vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers

Dielectric layers are often employed as etch masks for mesa and trench structures during vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) fabrication. The removal of these mask layers by reactive ion etching results in unavoidable exposure of the top laser facet to sputtering. This sputtering is experimentally shown to impact the device performance. After a thickness of less than a quarter wavelength (∼60nm) has been removed, the VCSELs are no longer able to achieve lasing threshold. Simulation indicates that the reason for this is a decrease in quality factor by more than an order of magnitude. Consistent with this explanation is that the damage can be partially repaired (allowing laser oscillation) by depositing SiO2 to compensate for the missing semiconductor material.
Cooperative Communications Using Scalable, Medium Block-length LDPC Codes

Cooperative communications has received increasing attention in recent years because of the ubiquity of wireless devices. Each year more mobile computing devices enter the market, most of which have limitations in terms of size, number of antennas and battery power. Cooperation enables these devices to form a virtual multiple antenna system and benefit from diversity. Most of the literature on cooperation is information theoretic with often unrealistic assumptions. In this paper we examine decode and forward scheme from a practical point of view and utilize scalable, architecture-aware low density parity check (LDPC) codes. We present simulation results for two variations of decode and forward strategy and show that even with realistic assumptions about the system, relaying outperforms direct link communications with over 2.5 dB.
Finite Element Simulation of Piezoelectric Wafer Active Sensors Based Structural Health Monitoring

Crack detection with piezoelectric wafer active sensors (PWAS) is emerging as an effective and powerful technique in structural health monitoring (SHM). Modeling and simulation of PWAS and host structure play an important role in the SHM applications with PWAS. For decades finite element method has been extensively applied in the analysis of piezoelectric materials and structures. The advantage of finite element analysis over analytical solutions is that stress and electrical field measurements of complex geometries, and their variations throughout the device, are more readily calculated. FEM allows calculation of the stress and electric field distributions under static loads and under any applied electrical frequency, and so the effect of device geometry can be assessed and optimized without the need to manufacture and test numerous devices. Coupled field analysis taking both mechanical motions and electrical characteristics into account should all be employed to provide a systemic overview of the piezoelectric sensors/actuators (even arrays of them) and the host structures. This use of PWAS for SHM has followed two main paths: (a). Wave propagation (b). Electromechanical impedance; Previous research has shown that PWAS can detect damage using wave reflections, changes in wave signature, or changes in the electromechanical (E/M) impedance spectrum. The primary goal of this paper is to investigate the use of finite element method (FEM) to simulate various SHM methods with PWAS. For the simulation of Electro-mechanical (E/M) impedance technique, simple models, like free PWAS of different shapes and 1-dimmension beam with PWAS are investigated and the simulated structural E/M impedance was presented. For the wave propagation SHM technique, a long beam with several PWAS installed was studied. One PWAS is excited by tone burst signals and elastic wave will propagate along the beam. The existence of a crack will affect the structure integrity and the echo reflected by crack can be observed through the simulations. By using the coupled field elements, direct simulation of electro-mechanical interaction of the PWAS and the host structure was made possible. The electrical potential generated on the PWAS surface by the stimulation of elastic wave can be examined in our FEM analysis. The simulation results are then compared to analytical calculation and experimental data.Copyright © 2007 by ASME
Alcohol and human sexual behavior

Abstract Despite the potential clinical significance of the relationship between alcohol consumption and human sexual responsiveness. the subject has received little systematic research attention. Clinical observations have suggested that alcohol abuse can lead to impotency disorders in males and sexual dysfunction in women. Alcohol has been associated with sex offences such as rape and pedophilia, increased sexual activity and extramarital affairs. However, correlation has been confused with cause, and unequivocal evidence of alcohol as the causal agent is lacking. Recent research using penile tumescence and vaginal pressure pulse as measures of sexual arousal has shown a significant negative linear relation between alcohol and sexual responsiveness in both men and women social drinkers. Findings that cognitive rather than pharmacological factors decisively influence alcohol's effects on sexual arousal, together with other psychosocial analyses, dispute the disinhibition hypothesis of alcohol's effects. A social learning analysis of alcohol's influence on sex is proposed.
Reverse transcription in the eukaryotic genome: retroviruses, pararetroviruses, retrotransposons, and retrotranscripts.

Recent studies indicate that > 10% of the human and mouse genome appears to consist of integrated DNA copies of RNA molecules. These sequences include retroviruses, retrovirus-like DNAs, retrotransposons, and retrotranscripts and represent more than 500,000 separate integration events. The nature of the enzymes used for the reverse transcription from RNA to DNA and for integration of the DNA copies into chromosomal DNA is unknown. A major evolutionary effect of these integrations would have been mutation. Thus, present-day organisms are those that survived this mutational load.
Factor structure of the negative symptom assessment

The factor structure of the Negative Symptom Assessment (NSA), a standardized negative symptoms rating scale, was systematically evaluated in a group of 223 inpatients with schizophrenia. Confirmatory factor analyses found that a six-factor model best described the NSA. More specifically, the domains of Communication, Emotion/Affect, Social Involvement, Motivation, Gross Cognition, and Retardation characterized the rating scale. This latent structure of the NSA is consistent with a multidimensional conceptualization of negative symptoms.
THE SHAPE AND AERODYNAMICS OF LARGE RAINDROPS

Abstract The physical factors which might be expected to control the shape of large raindrops are surface tension, hydrostatic pressures, external aerodynamic pressure, electrostatic charge, and internal circulation. Each of these is examined quantitatively, and it is concluded that under most conditions only the first three play important roles in producing the deformation characteristic of large raindrops. By analysis of high-speed photographs of water drops falling at terminal velocity, the distribution of aerodynamic pressures is deduced and is shown to imply that separation in the airflow about a raindrop has very significant effects on drop shape. The surface integral of the vertical components of the deduced aerodynamic pressures is found to be in reasonable agreement with the drop weight. The effect of boundary-layer separation on a number of physical processes occurring at the surface of falling drops is noted briefly.
Group Testing As A Pedagogical Technique To Enhance Learning In Difficult Subjects

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of group testing as a pedagogical technique to enhance learning in a difficult subject such as statistics. Individual test scores were compared to their group test scores for the same, identical test. A t test was used to compare the scores for 157 randomly selected MBA students enrolled in a graduate level quantitative research methods course. Results of the t test were significant (t= -14.807, p= .000) illustrating that individual scores were significantly lower than the group scores.
Fluorination by Sulfur Tetrafluoride

This chapter is an update of Chapter 1 of Volume 21 of Organic Reactions, based on the nearly 110 publications that have appeared from 1972 through 1982. Since the nature of the reaction and its mechanistic considerations have been clearly described in the previous chapter, they are not repeated. However, mechanisms involving the reaction of sulfur tetrafluoride with certain specific compounds are discussed under “Scope and Limitations”. Sulfur tetrafluoride continues to be one of the more common fluorinating agents, especially for relatively inert substrates. Its synthetic applications are summarized. Keywords: sulfur tetrafluoride; fluorination; scope; limitation; alcohols; aldehydes; ketones; carboxylic acids; esters; lactones; amides; imides; acid anhydrides; carbonates; oxiranes; halides; amines; phosphorus compounds; silicon compounds; polymers; boron compounds; experimental procedures