cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Bridging the gap between the field and the lab: Environmental goods, policy maker input, and consequentiality

Abstract This paper explores the criterion validity of stated preference methods through experimental referenda that capture key characteristics of a stated preference survey for a proposed environmental program. In particular, we investigate whether advisory referenda, where participant votes have either known or unknown weight in the policy decision, can elicit values comparable to that of a standard, incentive-compatible referendum. When participants regard their votes as consequential, our results suggest there is no elicitation bias with advisory referenda. For advisory referenda where participants view their votes as inconsequential, and for purely hypothetical referenda, we observe elicitation bias.
Solvation of lithium ions in mixtures of tetraethylene glycol dimethyl ether and propylene carbonate

The effect of propylene carbonate (PC) on the solvation shell of lithium ions in solutions of lithium perchlorate and lithium picrate in tetraethylene glycol dimethyl ether (TEGDME) was studied as a function of PC content and temperature using 13C NMR, conductance, and optical and infrared spectroscopy. The results show that while PC promotes the dissociation of the electrolyte into free ions, it is at the same time a relatively poor cation chelating agent, and most of the cations remain bound to TEGDME even up to 80 mass % (90 mol%) PC. The ramifications of these observations for PC-plasticized lithium—polymer electrolytes are discussed.
The Occurrence And Wider Implications Of A Ghost Cult On The Columbia River, Suggested By Carvings In Wood, Bone And Stone

SPEAKING of a Chinookan Indian village of eight houses on the lower Columbia River between The Dalles and the mouth of the Klickitat River in what is now the State of Washington, Lewis and Clark (in 1805) mention a plank house where "There were figures of men, birds, and different animals, which were cut and painted on the boards which form the sides of the room; though the workmanship of these uncouth figures was very rough, they were as highly esteemed by the Indians as the finest frescoes of more civilized people."I Here they also briefly describe the large and graceful dugout canoes of the lower Columbia having raised bow and, occasionally, stern posts decorated with carved men, bears, and other animals, the large plank houses, and the neat wooden and grass utensils used for stone boiling. Also of special interest are the sacred medicine bags which were suspended in the houses of important men. One of these contained the forefingers of fourteen enemy "Snake" Indians, whose raids prior to this time seem to have largely discouraged Chinookan settlement on the south, or Oregon shore, at and above this section of the river. This same Chinookan chief had several articles of white trade goods, and "on one side of the room were two wide split boards placed together, so as to make space for a rude figure of a man cut and painted on them. On pointing to this and asking him what it meant, he said something, of which all we understood was "good," and then stepped to the image and brought out his bow and quiver, which, with some other warlike instruments, were kept behind it." A few days later, just below the Cascades of the Columbia, Captain Clark notes:
Neuroendocrine facets of human puberty

The unfolding of pubertal growth and maturation entails multisystem collaboration. Most notably, the outflow of gonadotropins and growth hormone (GH) proceeds both independently and jointly. The current update highlights this unique dependency in the human.
STUDIES ON THE BIOASSAY OF HORMONES—THE ASSAY OF PREGNANT MARE’S SERUM CHORIONIC GONADOTROPHIN

This communication is concerned with studies on the bioassay of pregnant mare’s serum chorionic gonadotrophin using the baby chick. Three endpoints have been studied. The oviduct response was found to be entirely unsuitable and the comb response of the male of doubtful value. However, the testis response appears to be a satisfactory endpoint having the advantages of reasonable sensitivity and reproducibility. materials, animals, methods The pregnant mare’s serum hormone consisted of material kindly supplied by the Upjohn Company and the Schering Corporation. The material was readily soluble in water and was dissolved just before the first injections were done and kept at –5° C. between injections. The total dose per animal was contained in 0.5 cc. of water. The White Leghorn chicks were obtained from the Kerr Chickeries in Frenchtown, N. J., and usually arrived at the laboratory one day after hatching and immediately placed on a diet of starting mash and water.
The feedback-diffraction theory of ionospheric heating

Plasma fluid equations describing concentration, velocity and temperature are coupled to the nonlinear wave equation in a numerical model of F-region heating by high power radio waves. Self-focusing of radio waves is calculated for plane waves and beams propagating in an underdense ionosphere. Ponderomotive forces are found to be negligible in comparison with thermal forces for self-focusing in the ionosphere. The structure of plasma irregularities near focal points is determined by diffraction of the radio waves.
Communication services under EMCON

Hosts are under EMCON condition, short for Emission Control, when they are prohibited from transmitting any data. Under such condition, hosts can only receive data passively and can not acknowledge any data reception. This unidirectionality of the communication channel breaks down all currently defined transport protocols. In this paper, we present architectural alternatives that would support limited communication service under such condition and also discuss other open issues.
Auxiliary-reagent mediated asymmetric induction in the aza-Claisen rearrangement

Abstract Chiral induction (72–74% diastereomeric excess) is an auxiliary-reagent mediated aza-Claisen rearrangement yielding 2- and 3-methylpent-4-enoic acids has been demonstrated.
The catabolism and heterotrophic nitrification of the siderophore deferrioxamine B.

Three bacteria, two of which were previously noted as active heterotrophic nitrifiers, were examined for their ability to grow and nitrify with the siderophore deferrioxamine B as the carbon source.Pseudomonas aureofaciens displayed limited growth and nitrification while a heterotrophic nitrifyingAlcaligenes sp. was without action concerning its metabolism of deferrioxamine B. The third bacterium, a unique Gram-negative soil isolate, was unable to nitrify deferrioxamine B but grew well when the siderophore was employed as the sole C source. The Gram-negative bacterium removed deferrioxamine B from the medium and left only residual amounts of the compound in solution at the termination of its growth. The organism was without action when the ferrated analogue of deferrioxamine B, ferrioxamine B, sereved as either the C source for growth, for metabolism by resting cells, or as the substrate for cell-free extracts. Deferrioxamine B, by contrast, was rapidly metabolized by resting cells. Cell-free extracts of the bacterium synthesized a monohydroxamate(s) when deferrioxamine B was the substrate. The catabolism of deferrioxamine B, which is synthesized by soil microbes, suggests that soil microflora have the ability to return deferrioxamine B, and perhaps other, siderophores to the C cycle.
Cardiovascular complications of thrombolytic therapy in patients with a mistaken diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction

Thrombolytic drugs given to patients with a mistaken diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction could produce adverse effects, although no such cases have been reported. Two patients treated with intravenous streptokinase for presumed but nonexistent acute myocardial infarction are described. Pericardial tamponade developed in both patients, in one after aortic dissection and in the other after pericarditis. Both required surgery; one died. Symptoms and electrocardiographic abnormalities mimicking acute myocardial infarction may be caused by non-coronary syndromes. In such cases, treatment with thrombolytic agents may exacerbate the underlying disease process and produce cardiovascular complications.
Different Clinical Perspectives of Good and Poor Therapy Sessions

This study investigated differences in causal attributions made by student clinicians taking actor and observer roles in good and poor therapy Sessions. One hundred thirty-four graduate student cli...
The Value of Electron Microscopy in the Diagnosis of IgA Nephropathy

Electron microscopy plays a fundamental role in the evaluation of renal diseases in general. IgA nephropathy represents a heterogeneous disease clinically and morphologically. There are a number of conditions that need to be considered in the differential diagnosis of IgA nephropathy. The renal pathologist must wisely integrate the light microscopic, immunofluorescence, and ultrastructural data when evaluating cases in which IgA nephropathy is a consideration. Electron microscopy can be crucial in providing information either to support a diagnosis of IgA nephropathy or to aid in the diagnosis of one of its mimics.
Historical view of the influences of measurement and writing theories on the practice of writing assessment in the United States

Abstract The purpose of this study is to examine the interactions among measurement theories, writing theories, and writing assessments in the United States from an historical perspective. The assessment of writing provides a useful framework for examining how theories influence, and in some cases fail to influence actual practice. Two research traditions are described to classify measurement theories (test-score and scaling), and three research traditions are proposed for classifying writing theories (form, idea and content, and sociocultural context). The results of this study trace the impact of measurement and writing traditions on writing assessment practices within selected time periods during the 20th century in the United States. One of the major findings of this historical analysis is that measurement theory has had a strong influence on writing assessments, while writing theory has had minimal influence on writing assessments. We also found support for the idea that a new discipline of writing assessment has emerged. This new discipline combines multiple fields including the writing, composition, and measurement communities of scholars, and it has the potential to set the stage for the future of writing assessment in the 21st century.
Contextual relations: The influence of familiarity, physical plausibility, and belongingness*

Individual differences were obtained in a task requiring the same-different comparison of multiobject scenes. For some Ss, performance depended only on whether the objects were in a physically plausible arrangement. It was inferred that these Ss used internalized rule systems to interrelate arrays of objects into organized scenes. For the other Ss, performance depended on whether the objects belonged together, and whether their arrangement was familiar. It was inferred that these Ss dealt with each object on an individual basis, using information concerning belongingness and familiarity of arrangement to anticipate which objects would be present and where they would be located.
Global biogeochemical cycles: progress and problems

Abstract Progress in understanding global biogeochemical cycles has been made on many fronts of organic geochemical study over the last decade. Key questions, however, remain to be answered. These include the following: 1. (1) Is kerogen completely remineralized during the weathering of sedimentary rocks? 2. (2) What types of refractory biochemicals are made by plants? 3. (3) What factors control export of organic matter from the land to the ocean? 4. (4) What are the components, sources and fates of organic materials dissolved in seawater? 5. (5) What types of organic substances accumulate in deltaic and coastal marine sediments? 6. (6) Is better understanding of global biogeochemical cycles possible through new conceptual approaches?
Tuition costs and funding needy students.

Donald Kennedy's Editorial “academic health II” (27 Aug., p. [1213][1]) suggests that state institutions of higher education should consider charging families who can afford it tuition closer to the cost of educating their students. Tuition costs at these institutions have gone up sharply over
Relativistic bose gas

We calculate the partition function for a relativistic Bose-Einstein gas. The excitation energies are identified and compared with known results in various limits. In particular, this treatment shows how the Goldstone bosons of a spontaneously broken symmetry and the quasiparticles of the nonrelativistic gas emerge as special cases of one general formula. New results are obtained for the spectrum of Goldstone modes in a medium of nonzero density, and the fully relativistic case is discussed along with a possible cosmological application.
A Multifunction Home Control System

A multifunction Home Control System is described, which combines HVAC, security alarm, hazard alarm, emergency alarm, lighting and appliance control into one central system. A unique "touch bar" concept is used to simplify the control panel, and provision is made for the easy addition of other features and functions to installed systems.
A Note on the Regional Triad Model and The Soft Drink Industry

The objective of this paper is to analyze the five largest companies in the soft drink industry in the context of the regional triad theory as presented in Rugman and Brain (2003) and later in Rugman and Verbeke (2004b, 2007). We find that of the five largest companies in the soft drink industry, only Coca‐Cola meets the definition of a global company as defined by regional triad theory. National Beverage is a strictly domestic company and Cadbury, Cott, and Pepsi are bi‐regional MNEs with sales in the NAFTA and European triad regions. Coca‐Cola reports sales in five major geographic regions, which fits the criteria of a global firm
Effects of mother-son incest and positive perceptions of sexual abuse experiences on the psychosocial adjustment of clinic-referred men.

Abstract Objective: The primary objective was to examine the long-term impact of mother-son incest and positive initial perceptions of sexual abuse experiences on adult male psychosocial functioning. Method: Sixty-seven clinic-referred men with a history of sexual abuse participated. The participants completed self-report measures regarding their current psychosocial functioning and described the nature of their sexual and physical abuse experiences during childhood. Results: Seventeen men reported mother-son incest, and these men endorsed more trauma symptoms than did other sexually abused men, even after controlling for a history of multiple perpetrators and physical abuse. Mother-son incest was likely to be subtle, involving behaviors that may be difficult to distinguish from normal caregiving (e.g., genital touching), despite the potentially serious long-term consequences. Twenty-seven men recalled positive or mixed initial perceptions of the abuse, including about half of the men who had been abused by their mothers. These men reported more adjustment problems than did men who recalled purely negative initial perceptions. Conclusions: Mother-son incest and positive initial perceptions of sexual abuse experiences both appear to be risk factors for more severe psychosocial adjustment problems among clinic-referred men.
Do Physical Activity Patterns Across the Lifecourse Impact Birth Outcomes

The significant impact of physical activity during, or immediately prior to pregnancy on a range of pregnancy and birth outcomes has been established. However, lifecourse theory posits that the antecedents of poor outcomes occur across a larger trajectory of time. The objective of this study was to examine whether physical activity patterns over the lifecourse impact birth outcomes. The sample (n = 1,713) was derived from Waves I, III, and IV of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health and limited to women who had their first, singleton live birth between Waves III and IV; respondents who had missing data were excluded. Outcome variables included preterm birth (<37 weeks) and low birth weight (<5.5 pounds). Physical activity was categorized as follows: long-term physically active (active at Waves I and III); short-term physically active (active at only Wave I or III); and not physically active (not active at Waves I and III). Survey-weighted logistic regression controlled for socio-demographic and established predictors of poor birth outcomes. Women categorized as long-term physically active had lower rates of preterm births (12.2 vs. 18.7 %) and low birth weight (9.1 vs. 11.1 %) compared to women categorized as not physically active. However, when controlling for covariates, adjusted analysis revealed that physical activity consistency only predicted preterm birth (aOR = 0.55, 95 % CI = 0.33-0.91). Findings suggest that physical activity patterns across the lifecourse may decrease risk of preterm birth. Implications include efforts supporting patterns of physical activity over longer periods of time prior to pregnancy.
Percentage of pupillary dilation as a measure of item difficulty

The purpose of this study was to compare four measures of difficulty of mental multiplication items: percentage of pupillary dilation, latency of solution, number of correct responses, and judgment of item difficulty. Sixteen multiplication problems, classified into four levels of difficulty, were presented visually to 13 Ss, who verbalized their solutions to the problems. Analyses of variance and correlation coefficients were computed. It was concluded that all four measures of difficulty were useful but that judgment of difficulty and latency of solution were better measures of item difficulty than were the other two. A discussion of pupillary dilation and information processing is included.
On toroidal compactification of heterotic superstrings

I comment on the use of background gauge fields and antisymmetric tensor fields in toroidal compactification of heterotic strings, and explicitly construct the background gauge field that interpolates between the ${\mathrm{E}}_{8}$\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${\mathrm{E}}_{8}$ and Spin(32)/${Z}_{2}$ theories defined on ${R}^{9}$\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${S}^{1}$.
Visualization of large scale time-varying scientific data

New challenges for scientists have emerged in the past several years as the size of data generated from simulations has experienced an exponential growth. One major factor that is contributing to the growth of data size is the increasingly widespread ability to perform very large scale time-varying simulations. To analyze complex dynamic phenomena from a timevarying data set, it is necessary to navigate and browse the data in both the spatial and temporal domains, select data at different resolutions, experiment with different visualization parameters, and compute and animate selected features over a period of time. In this paper, we present several algorithms for visualizing large scale time-varying Scientific data including: (1) Lossless spatio-temporal data encoding and indexing schemes allowing for interactive visualization of time-varying data at arbitrary spatial and temporal scales. (2) Coherence based accelerated visulaization algorithms (3) Time-varying feature enhancement and tracking algorithms. Our goal is to minimize visualization computation cost, to minimize data transfer (network transmit and disk I/O) cost, to maximize the user's ability to interrogate time-varying data in different spatial and temporal scales, and to detect and track important time-varying features.
Microcalorimeter arrays for ultra-high energy resolution X- and gamma-ray detection

Microcalorimeter detectors provide superior energy resolution for the detection of X-rays and gamma-rays. The technology utilizes a cryogenic transition-edge sensor (TES) coupled to a tin bulk absorber. We are working on fabrication methods for the production of arrays with many sensors. In this paper, we present data collected with an array of microcalorimeters using as many as 26 sensor elements simultaneously. Advances in sensor design have extended the useful dynamic range to photon energies up to ∼200 keV, while providing resolution performance in the 80–90 eV FWHM range, significantly better than planar high-purity germanium. These sensor arrays have applications in the measurement of nuclear materials. We present data collected from 153Gd, a highly-enriched uranium sample, and a plutonium isotopic standard source. We also demonstrate clean separation of the 235U 185.715 keV peak from the ubiquitous 226Ra 186.211 keV background peak interference.
Intimate partner violence among individuals in methadone maintenance treatment

ABSTRACT. Background: Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a highly prevalent and concerning problem among methadone maintenance populations, and previous studies have shown a relationship between a history of IPV and increased substance use and affective disturbances. Methods: The current study examined (1) the association between recent IPV victimization and alcohol and cocaine use and (2) the relationship between recent IPV victimization and depression in a sample of smokers (N = 203) in methadone maintenance treatment (MMT). Participants in this study completed a battery of assessments that included standard questionnaires of trauma, alcohol and substance use, and depression. Parallel logistic and linear regression models were used to estimate the adjusted association of IPV victimization and depressive symptoms and evaluate the adjusted association of victimization with recent substance use. Results: Participants recently victimized by partners were shown to have significantly higher mean Center for Ep...
Duck! Scaling the height of a horizontal barrier to body height.

Recent research shows that the body is used to scale environmental extents. We question whether the body is used to scale heights as measured by real actions (Experiments 1 and 2) or by judgments about action and extent made from a single viewpoint (Experiments 3 and 4). First, participants walked under barriers naturally, when wearing shoes, or when wearing a helmet. Participants required a larger margin of safety (they ducked at shorter heights) when they were made taller. In follow-up experiments, participants visually matched barrier heights and judged whether they could walk under them when wearing shoes or a helmet. Only the helmet decreased visually matched estimates; action judgments were no different when participants’ eye height increased. The final experiment suggested that the change in matched estimates may have been due to lack of experience wearing the helmet. Overall, the results suggest that perceived height is scaled to the body and that when body height is altered, experience may moderate the rescaling of height.
The Prickly Side of Building Clouds

The creation of the Sherpa cloud database taught three main lessons: Developing a good cloud API is an underappreciated art, developers should decide carefully what and what not to build, and real load testing is critical. Cloud platforms are evolving and becoming ever more complex. Initially, providers such as Amazon offered only simple resources such as storage and computation for rent. Now, many cloud providers offer higher level services with more features and semantics. Examples include:Google's AppEngine, which provides a full Web development platform; Amazon's various services, including Elastic MapReduce for complex computations over data;the Yahoo Query Language, a platform for combining Web data sources; cloud data-warehousing offerings such as Aster Data's cloud edition; andvarious open source tools for cloud computing developed by Cloudera and others.
Changing addresses: social conflict, civic culture, and the politics of house numbering reform in Milwaukee, 1913–1931

Abstract House numbering systems are way-finding systems with cultural significance not only by virtue of their quantification of space but because large centralized systems define a center and axes which have symbolic potential. The article briefly traces house numbering systems in American cities, then analyzes the evolution of Milwaukee's system, beginning with rudimentary numbering of a few business and upper-middle class streets, moving to a number of systems, one for each side of town, after prodding by the Post Office, and then to their unification, 1913–1931. It shows how the interests of large citywide businesses and government promoted reform efforts, while the public was largely uninterested and localistic. Reformers concerned about class and ethnic cleavages favored a unified, centralized numbering scheme symbolically centered on downtown business and a new civic center, conferring enhanced legitimacy on business and law; but this was politically unpopular because it required renaming streets on which a majority of voters lived. But the public acquiesced to the idea of reform, and an alternative unified scheme was adopted in the end. This article provides a detailed analysis of the practical interests underlying house numbering and explores the surprising symbolic potential of house numbers.
The effect of endpoint knowledge on perceived exertion, affect, and attentional focus during self-paced running.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of endpoint knowledge on psychophysiological variables. Twenty-two runners (11 men and 11 women) participated in 2 conditions: a run with an unknown endpoint and a run to the same distance with knowledge of the endpoint. Rating of perceived exertion (RPE), affect, heart rate, and attentional focus were assessed during testing. Subjects ran faster when the endpoint was known (p 0.05). There were differences in attentional focus between conditions (p = 0.034) and subjects reported more associative thoughts in the known endpoint condition. Cardiorespiratory fitness was a significant predictor of attentional focus in the known endpoint condition. In sum, when the endpoint was known, subjects used more associative strategies as RPE increased, and those with higher fitness levels used more associative strategies overall.
Cyclic assembly-disassembly of cortical microtubules during maturation and early development of starfish oocytes

An extensive array of cortical microtubules in oocytes of the starfish Pisaster ochraceus undergoes multiple cycles of disappearance and reappearance during maturation and early development. These events were studied in isolated fragments of the oocyte cortex stained with antitubulin antibodies for indirect immunofluorescence. The meshwork of long microtubules is present in the cortex (a) of immature oocytes, i.e., before treatment with the maturation-inducing hormone 1-methyladenine, (b) for 10-20 min after treatment with 1-methyladenine, (c) after formation of the second polar body (in reduced numbers in unfertilized oocytes), and (d) in the intermitotic period between first and second cleavage divisions. The array of cortical microtubules is absent in oocytes (a) undergoing germinal vesicle breakdown, (b) during the two meiotic divisions (polar body divisions), and (c) during mitosis of the first and, perhaps, subsequent cleavage divisions. The cycle of assembly-disassembly of cortical microtubules is synchronized to the cycle of nuclear envelope breakdown and reformation and to the mitotic cycle; specifically, cortical microtubules are present when a nucleus is intact (germinal vesicle, female pronucleus, zygote nucleus, blastomere nucleus) and are absent whenever a meiotic or mitotic spindle is present. These findings are discussed in terms of microtubule organizing centers in eggs, possible triggers for microtubule assembly and disassembly, the eccentric location of the germinal vesicle, and the regulation of oocyte maturation and cell division.
Anticonvulsants-induced chorea: a role for pharmacodynamic drug interaction?

Chorea is a rare side effect of anticonvulsants. We describe three patients who developed chorea secondary to anticonvulsant combination use. A mechanism to explain this finding is proposed. After identification of an index case with anticonvulsant-induced chorea, we reviewed the electronic data base records for all patients with seizures followed in the epilepsy clinics at our university-based hospital for cases of dyskinesia associated with anticonvulsants. Two additional patients, one adult and one pediatric patient were identified. Three patients developed chorea while receiving combination anticonvulsants. Two patients had transient chorea that resolved with withdrawal of one of the drugs. All three patients were using phenytoin and lamotrigine in combination when the chorea started, chorea improved with tapering one of the medications. Polytherapy with certain anticonvulsants may predispose patients to drug-induced chorea. A particular increased risk was seen with combinations that have phenytoin and lamotrigine. This could be due to an additive or a synergistic effect on central dopaminergic pathways.
Modular tangential counter‐rotating twin screw extrusion: Determination of screw pumping characteristics of modules and composite machine behavior

Extensive experimental studies of a starved flow modular tangential screw extruder are described. Die pressures and fill factor profiles along the screw axis are measured and used to determine screw characteristic curves Q vs. AP/L for individual screw elements of varying designs in a Leistritz twin screw extruder. Superior pumping characteristics of matched as opposed to staggered elements is found. The experimental screw characteristic curves are compared with the results of mathematical simulations of the flow. Agreement is generally good.
Retinal Bipolar Cell Input Mechanisms in Giant Danio. II. Patch-Clamp Analysis of on Bipolar Cells

Glutamate receptors on giant danio retinal on bipolar cells were studied with whole cell patch clamping using a slice preparation. Cone-driven on bipolars (Cbs) and mixed-input on bipolars (Mbs) were identified morphologically. Most Cbs responded to the excitatory amino acid transporter (EAAT) substrate d-aspartate but not to the group III metabotropic glutamate receptor (mGluR) agonist l-(+)-2-amino-4-phosphonobutyric acid (l-AP4) or the AMPA/kainate receptor agonist kainate, suggesting EAATs are the primary glutamate receptors on Cbs. The EAAT inhibitor dl-threo-beta-benzyloxyasparate (TBOA) blocked all light-evoked responses of Cbs, suggesting these responses are mediated exclusively by EAATs. Conversely, all Mbs responded to d-aspartate and l-AP4 but not to kainate, indicating they have both EAATs and group III mGluRs (presumably mGluR6). The light responses of Mbs involve both receptors because they could be blocked by TBOA plus (RS)-alpha-cyclopropyl-4-phosphonophenylglycine (CPPG, a group III mGluR antagonist) but not by either alone. Under dark-adapted conditions, the responses of Mbs to green (rod-selective) stimuli were reduced by CPPG but enhanced by TBOA. In contrast, both antagonists reduced the responses to red (cone-selective) stimuli, although TBOA was more effective. Furthermore, under photopic conditions, TBOA failed to eliminate light-evoked responses of Mbs. Thus on Mbs, rod inputs are mediated predominantly by mGluR6, whereas cone inputs are mediated mainly by EAATs but also by mGluR6 to some extent. Finally, we explored the interactions between EAATs and mGluR6 in Mbs. Responses to d-aspartate were reduced by l-AP4 and vice versa. Therefore mGluR6 and EAATs suppress each other, and this might underlie mutual suppression between rod and cone signals in Mbs.
The Role of Perception in a Theory of Communication

Agents who operate in complex environments generally obtain necessary information through their perceptions. Most commonly, these perceptions are part of the communicative process. In this paper, we present an integrated theory of perception and communication, based on the thesis that communicative acts are best understood as actions of perception. We show that an agent learns through communicative acts by combining the information that a communicative act has just occurred together with his prior knowledge. We distinguish between primary and secondary meanings in communicative actions, and give a detailed formalization of the code model to explain primary communicative actions.
Research Commentary: The Next Wave of Nomadic Computing

A nomadic information environment is a heterogeneous assemblage of interconnected technological, and social, and organizational elements that enable the physical and social mobility of computing and communication services between organizational actors both within and across organizational borders. We analyze such environments based on their prevalent features of mobility, digital convergence, and mass scale, along with their mutual interdependencies. By using a framework that organizes research topics in nomadic information environments at the individual, team, organizational, and inter organizational levels and is comprised of both service and infrastructure development, we assess the opportunities and challenges for IS research. These deal with the design, use, adoption, and impacts of nomadic information environments. We conclude by discussing research challenges posed by nomadic information environments for information systems research skills and methods. These deal with the need to invent novel research methods and shift our research focus, the necessity to question the divide between the technical and the social, and the need to better integrate developmental and behavioral (empirical) research modes.
Scale effects in animal joints. II. Thickness and elasticity in the deformability of articular cartilage

The deformability of articular cartilage was studied in vitro in 64 bovine, canine and human joints with an indenting compressometer. Two factors contributed to the depth of the indentation: the thickness of the cartilage and its intrinsic elasticity. Within a given species, there was in general a consistent curvilinear relationship between the magnitude of the deformation and the thickness of the articular cartilage under a given level of static loading (usually 106 pounds per square inch). Although it was not possible to establish a satisfactory Young's modulus, differences in intrinsic elasticity were demonstrated by variations in the indentations produced in cartilages of comparable thickness, when subjected to the same compressive stress. These species differences corresponded roughly to variations in the water content of the articular cartilages (bovine, 87; canine, 80; human, 79%). The data are consistent with the hypothesis that deformability of articular cartilage serves to increase the congruence of joints and thereby reduce the stresses on their surfaces. A frequently postulated senescent thinning of articular cartilage received no support from measurements of 28 intact human patellas through the fifth decade of life.
The gestational weight gain and the birth weight outcome in adolescent pregnancy compared to young adult pregnancy.

Abstract Design The study design incorporated a random assignment to either a teenage group (13–18 years of age; n=50), or to an adult group (19–25 years of age; n=50). Comparisons were made on length of gestation; maternal birthdate; maternal gravida; maternal pregestational weight; maternal weight at the first visit; maternal height; maternal prepregnancy BMI; weights measured monthly during gestation; gestational age at delivery; infant birth weight and length between the two groups. Pregnancy outcome was defined as optimum if newborn birth weight ranged from 3 to 4Kg. The total maternal weight gain was calculated. Subjects/Setting Patients were from a designated prenatal clinic in an inner city hospital. Statistical Analysis Multi-variate regression analysis was used to determine mean differences in weight gain on the pregnancy outcome between the two groups. Results No significant difference was found between the birth weight of the babies of the two groups. Conclusions This study demonstrated that mothers' weight gain is the strongest determinant of the birth weight of the babies regardless of their age. No significant difference was found in the birth weights of infants born to adolescents and young adult mothers, when race and gravidity were comparable in the two groups. A significant correlation was noted between the weight gain of adolescent African-American mothers and the birth weight of their babies. However, this correlation was not noted among young adult African-American mothers suggesting that a higher weight gain among adolescents may result in larger babies.
Self-Recognition in Dementia of the Alzheimer Type

A prospective study of patients with moderate (n = 20) and severe (n = 19) dementia of the Alzheimer type was performed to compare the ability of patients to recognize themselves. A Mini-Mental State Examination cut-off score was used to separate those patients with severe dementia (MMSE score < 6) from those with moderate dementia (MMSE = 7--15). Each patient was then scored according to his ability to name two body parts correctly and to recognize himself in a mirror. Severe degrees of dementia were significantly associated with the inability of patients to recognize themselves while those with moderate degrees of dementia still retained this capacity.
Statistical angular error-based triangulation for efficient and accurate multi-view scene reconstruction

This paper presents a framework for N-view triangulation of scene points, which improves processing time and final reprojection error with respect to standard methods, such as linear triangulation. The framework introduces an angular error-based cost function, which is robust to outliers and inexpensive to compute, and designed such that simple adaptive gradient descent can be applied for convergence. Our method also presents a statistical sampling component based on confidence levels, that reduces the number of rays to be used for triangulation of a given feature track. It is shown how the statistical component yields a meaningful yet much reduced set of representative rays for triangulation, and how the application of the cost function on the reduced sample can efficiently yield faster and more accurate solutions. Results are demonstrated on real and synthetic data, where it is proven to significantly increase the speed of triangulation and optimize reprojection error in most cases. This makes it especially attractive for efficient triangulation of large scenes given the speed and low memory requirements.
A new method for the analytical solution of a degenerate diffusion equation

Certain nonlinear diffusion equations of degenerate parabolic type display a finite speed of propagation of disturbances. This mathematical behavior can be used to describe a wide range of nonlinear phenomena such as the penetration distance of a thermal layer, the boundary of a reaction zone, or a wetting front in unsaturated soil moisture flow. However, there are two main difficulties in obtaining solutions to problems of this class. One is that the location of the interface is not known a priori and must be discovered during the analysis. The other is the fact that the differential equation is singular in the neighborhood of the interface. The solution technique developed and presented in this work overcomes these difficulties by extracting a local solution of the differential equation in the neighborhood of the diffusing front. One profound result is the discovery that the velocity of the front is entirely controlled by the first term of the spectral series expansion. Also, by capturing the critical behavior of the solution in the region of the singularity and incorporating the behavior as a dominant factor, the series expansion is provided a means for very rapid convergence. The versatility of the solution technique is demonstrated by solving various boundary value problems covering a broad range of interest and the solutions are tested against previously published results.
The first crystal structure of a Meisenheimer complex with organic cation

The structure of the Meisenheimer complex 2′,4′,6′-trinitro-3′,5′-dihydrospiro(1,3-dioxolane-2,8′-cyclohexadienide) C8H6N3O8(−) 1− with tetra-n-butyl-ammonium C16H36 N(+) has been determined by X-ray crystallography. The compound 1 crystallizes in the space group P21 with two molecules (Z′ = 2) in the asymmetric unit. The unit cell parameters are a = 8.728(3) A, b = 13.760(4) A, c = 22.882(7) A, β = 96.17(3)∘. Interactions between the Meisenheimer complex and organic cation in 1 involve only a number of weak to moderate C–H⋅sO bonds. Thus, it has been concluded that the structure 1 represents the geometry of the Meisenheimer complex minimally influenced by the cation. Comparison the structure 1 and the compound 2 (1− K+⋅H2O) studied previously reveals an interesting structural effect attributed to coordination of potassium cations with the nitro groups of 1−. It leads to notable shortening of the C–N bond lengths of the nitro groups only, while changes of other bond lengths in the Meisenheimer complex are not significant.
Programmed cell death in Caenorhabditis elegans

Programmed cell death in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans requires the activities of the genes ced-3 and ced-4 and is antagonized by the activity of the gene ced-9. Cloning of these C. elegans genes has shown that two of them encode proteins with similarity to vertebrate cell death genes and has revealed that nematodes and mammals share a common pathway for programmed cell death.
A sweet spot in the FGFR signal transduction pathway.

The hexosamine biosynthetic pathway, whose end product is UDP-N acetylglucosamine (UDP-GlcNAc), lies at the base of cellular glycosylation pathways, including glycosylation of lipids, formation of heparin sulfated proteoglycans, and N- and O-linked glycosylation of proteins. Forward genetic studies in Drosophila have revealed that mutations in genes encoding different enzymes of the hexosamine biosynthetic pathway result in reduction of UDP-GlcNAc to different extents, with a consequent disruption of distinct glycosylation pathways and developmental processes. A maternal and zygotic loss-of-function screen has identified mutations in nesthocker ( nst ), which encodes an enzyme in the hexosamine biosynthetic pathway. Embryos lacking maternal and zygotic nst gene products show defective O-GlcNAcylation of a fibroblast growth factor receptor (FGFR)–specific adaptor protein, which impairs FGFR-dependent migration of mesodermal and tracheal cells.
Inactivation of the nucleolar apparatus during meiotic prophase in corn anthers

Abstract The synthesis of RNA in corn anthers has been studied by autoradiography using 3 H-uridine and 3 H-cytidine. Both chromosomes and the nucleolar apparatus synthesize RNA in the premeiotic interphase cells. RNA synthesis decreases as the first meiotic prophase progresses. The rate of decrease, however, is much greater in the persisting nucleolar apparatus than in the chromosomal fraction, perhaps suggesting a more selective inhibition of synthesis of ribosomal RNA than of other RNA fractions.
Pasta lesion-trans-tendon techniquefor repair

A PASTA lesion is a partial articular supraspinatus tendon avulsion. There is no consensus on the ideal treatment of partial-thickness tears. This article will help in the decision-making process and outline the surgical steps in arthroscopic transtendon repair of a partial-thickness articular-sided rotator-cuff tear.
Influence of defects on the infrared spectra of polymers

For an infinitely repeated regular polymer chain structure the only vibrations which are optically active are those in which the phase of the motion is the same in each unit (the factor-group modes). Frequencies for which the phase difference is nonzero are optically inactive but can become activated by the presence of defects in the chain. Such defects would normally be chemical impurities or conformational irregularities in the chain. A simple theory is developed which shows that for a dilute system of defects the major characteristics determining possible activation of the nonfactor-group modes are: (1) the strength of the coupling between the defect vibration and the vibrations of the neighboring chain, and (2) whether or not the natural frequency of the defect vibration lies inside a lattice band of the regular chain. An analysis of the low- and high-frequency regions of the spectrum of low-density polyethylene, based on the above considerations, indicates that several features of the spectrum can be associated with defect-induced absorption. A similar explanation can account for certain intensity changes in the CCl stretching region of syndiotactic poly(vinyl chloroide) when this polymer is submitted to mechanical treatment.
Learning-based approximation of interconnect delay and slew in signoff timing tools

Incremental static timing analysis (iSTA) is the backbone of iterative sizing and Vt-swapping heuristics for post-layout timing recovery and leakage power reduction. Performing such analysis through available interfaces of a signoff STA tool brings efficiency and functionality limitations. Thus, an internal iSTA tool must be built that matches the signoff STA tool. A key challenge is the matching of “black-box” modeling of interconnect effects in the signoff tool, so as to match wire slew, wire delay, gate slew and gate delay on each arc of the timing graph. Previous moment-based analytical models for gate and wire slew and delay typically have large errors when compared to values from signoff STA tools. To mitigate the accumulation of these errors and preserve timing correlation, sizing tools must invoke the signoff STA tool frequently, thus incurring large runtime costs. In this work, we pursue a learning-based approach to fit analytical models of wire slew and delay to estimates from a signoff STA tool. These models can improve the accuracy of delay and slew estimations, such that the number of invocations of the signoff STA tool during sizing optimizations is significantly reduced.
Rates of RNA chain growth in developing sea urchin embryos.

Abstract The average time necessary to add a nucleotide onto growing RNA chains (step time) has been determined for several developmental stages of Strongylocentrotus purpuratus embryos. One procedure involved quantitation of isolated nucleosides derived from the 3′ end of newly synthesized chains plus total rates of nucleotide incorporation. The former values provide the number of growing chains so that rates of incorproation per RNA chain may be calculated. A second procedure involves determinations of the times required for RNA molecules of given size classes to become fully labeled. These times may be equated to the synthetic times for the particular size class [Bremer, H., and Yuan, D. (1968). RNA chain growth-rate in Escherichia coli. J. Mol. Biol. 38, 163–180]. The step times for blastula and pluteus embryos is 6–9 nucleotides/sec at 15°C, which would result in an average synthetic time for heterogeneous nuclear RNA (HnRNA) molecules of about 2 × 106 daltons of 12–18 min. The half-life of HnRNA in this species of sea urchins is 15–20 min, implying a transient existence for large HnRNA molecules.