cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A modified parachute assay for assessment of gap junction intercellular communication in placental trophoblast cells

Gap junction intercellular communication (GJIC) is a necessary process for placental development. GJIC can be assessed with a parachute assay, where fluorescent dye-loaded donor cells are ‘parachut...
Pay and benefit satisfaction, perceived organizational support, and turnover intentions: The moderating role of job variety

Abstract Wages and benefits in the hospitality industry are notoriously low, and tight margins often mean that organizations do not have the resources to increase pay. Existing research has demonstrated that low pay is a large factor in the high rate of turnover in the hospitality industry. Therefore, the present study aimed to understand whether enriching job characteristics such as job variety may attenuate the relationship between pay and benefit satisfaction. Specifically, we hypothesized and found that when pay and benefit satisfaction was low, job variety could reduce employee turnover intentions by improving the employee-organization relationship through the development of perceived organizational support. Our findings demonstrate the value in using creative means to develop the employee-organization relationship when organizations cannot increase pay.
Should Short-Term Shareholders Have Less Rights?

Public officials, business leaders, and academics have expressed concerned that allowing investors with short-term investment horizon to initiate and vote on changes in the governance of public companies can be expected to exacerbate short-termism, and have made influential proposals to eliminate or constrain the shareholder rights of such short-term investors. We develop a model to study whether such proposals could be expected to enhance the long-term value of public companies. To this end, we extend the canonical Stein Model (Stein 1988 and Stein 1989) by allowing for governance structures, pay schemes, and director selection to be determined endogenously and influenced by shareholder preferences. Using this standard framework for analyzing short-termism, we find that governance structures that give rise to some level of corporate myopia can provide benefits to long-term investors that could lead to their adoption even when short-term investors are denied participation rights. Most importantly, we show that short-term investors have the same preferences with respect to governance structures, pay schemes, and director selections as long-term shareholders and, contrary to widely expressed concerns, short-term investors would not prefer choices making long-term shareholders worse-off. Our analysis indicates that the standard economic framework for studying short-termism does not provide a basis for eliminating or weakening the rights of short-term shareholders to participate in the governance of public companies.
Managerial flexibility, uncertainty, and corporate investment: The real options effect

Abstract This paper examines how changes in uncertainty affect corporate investment and how managerial flexibility influences this effect. Consistent with existing evidence, this study shows that increased uncertainty reduces a firm's capital expenditures even after controlling for investment opportunities and fund availability. It further shows that the negative effect of increased uncertainty on corporate investment is more pronounced for firms with fewer financial constraints and larger size. Overall, the results suggest that managerial flexibility proxied by certain firm characteristics affects the negative relation between uncertainty and investment.
Normal Approximate Likelihoods to Gravitational Wave Events

Gravitational wave observations of quasicircular compact binary mergers in principle provide an arbitrarily complex likelihood over eight independent intrinsic parameters: the masses and spins of the two merging objects. In this work, we demonstrate by example that a simple normal approximation over fewer (usually, three) effective dimensions provides a very accurate representation of the likelihood, and allows us to replicate the eight-dimensional posterior over the mass and spin degrees of freedom. Alongside this paper, we provide the parameters for multivariate normal fits for each event published in GWTC-1 and GWTC-2, using the posterior samples from the catalog for each associated release. These normal approximations provide a highly efficient way to characterize gravitational wave observations when combining large numbers of events.
A Workshop for Developing Learning Modules for Science Classes Based on Biogeochemical Research

A challenging aspect of educating secondary students is integrating complex scientific concepts related to modern research topics into lesson plans that students can relate to and understand at a basic level. One method of encouraging the achievement of learning outcomes is to use real-world applications and current research to fuel student interest and excitement. This approach can be reinforced by use of demonstrations, which spur in-class discussions and can be integrated into out-of-class assignments. To attempt to develop improved curricular materials, a workshop was organized that combined the teaching expertise of a number of secondary school teachers with the research experience of a number of scientific experts to produce lesson plans centered around trace metal cycling and toxicity. These areas are important current research topics but are often neglected in pre-college education. A significant portion of the material presented at the workshop involved the use of visual and hands-on demonstrations of chemical principles that relate to geochemical processes that impact the environment. Materials provided to the instructors included suggestions for hands-on, interactive activities for use in the classroom, as well as teacher-administered demonstrations that would explore the physical and chemical bases of the principles being discussed. The participants all expressed positive feedback in terms of their confidence to administer student-centered lesson plans on the topic of biogeochemistry and their personal understanding of the subject matter, and a number of lesson plans were developed for use by the teachers to integrate the scientific principles discussed in the body of their courses.
Graphically representing artificial life with Maya programming

Maya Programming is an up to date tool with a great capacity for creating computer graphics. It is capable of representing virtually anything you can imagine as far as modeling, animation, and dynamics goes. It is very useful in learning more about how an object would act under given circumstances. You can construct objects and assign to them a variety of characteristics. You can then simulate different situations and see how the objects react or perform.
Pulmonary vascular transport in sheep. A mathematical model.

Abstract We are developing a mathematical description of passive transvascular fluid and protein exchange. The transport model includes vascular membrane characteristics, i.e., “equivalent” pore sizes and numbers and membrane thickness, as well as the physiological variables of microvascular hydrostatic pressure ( P mv ), perimicrovascular hydrostatic pressure, and plasma protein molecular sizes and concentrations. We are using the model to investigate the sensitivity of each of the membrane characteristics and physiological variables upon the pulmonary transvascular exchange in the steady state. For the sheep lung, we measure P mv relative to the left atrium, then assume a linear pressure distribution over the measured height of the lung for constant density and vascular membrane characteristics. Theoretical results for the total lymph/plasma concentration ratios of albumin and “globulin” as well as the lymph flow fractions relative to baseline lymph flow rate were obtained from the model as a function of the referenced P mv over the range 10–40 mm Hg. Results have been obtained for various models of membrane characteristics. The theoretical results of lymph/plasma ratios and lymph flow fractions were compared with the experimentally measured values from unanesthetized sheep. A multiplepore model was found that included a small pore system which completely sieved the smallest molecule investigated (albumin, R p = 34 A ), an intermediate-sized pore of 125 A radius, and a few large pores of 1000 A radius. The theoretical results from this model were found to compare with the experimental results from several sheep for the P mv range investigated.
Evaluating the utility of FEC with reliable multicast

Forward error correction (FEC) has been proposed as a technique for implementing efficient reliable multicast (RM). However, FEC incurs costs in encode/decode delay and implementation complexity. How much benefit is provided relative to these costs and how dependent is the benefit on the specific RM protocol? In this paper, we evaluate the benefits of FEC for RM, considering both proactive and reactive use with three RM recovery techniques: duplicate avoidance, limited scope multicast and subcast. Our simulation-based results indicate that FEC provides little benefit for an efficient RM protocol like OTERS and introduces extra delay for multi-point streaming data applications.
Mediaprocessing in the compressed domain

The emergence of compression standards such as JPEG, MPEG, H.320 and H.324 has enabled many consumer and business multimedia applications wherein the multimedia content is disseminated in their compressed form. Many applications however require processing of the multimedia content prior to presentation. Traditional approaches for processing rely on first decompressing the bitstreams and then applying the desired processing function. We describe developments that have led to processing techniques that can be directly implemented on an intermediate representation of the compressed domain information. By avoiding the computationally expensive decompression and recompression processes needed in traditional spatial/temporal domain based techniques, mediaprocessing in the compressed domain achieves 2-4 fold speedup for typical processing functions such as image downscaling, bitrate conversions, interframe to intraframe conversions.
Applications of artificial intelligence for chemical inference—X

Abstract A method for systematic interpretation and summary of evidence found for all possible mass spectral fragmentations of a molecule or set of related molecules is described. The method is embodied in a computer program (INTSUM) which interprets, in terms of fragmentation processes, mass spectral data collected on known compounds. Utilizing high resolution mass spectra from 47 estrogenic steroids, the method is verified and new findings are discussed. Finally, the method is used to explore the fragmentations of equilenins and several acetate and benzoate ester derivatives.
Physics of a sextet quark sector

Electroweak symmetry breaking may be a consequence of color sextet quark chiral symmetry breaking. A special solution of QCD is involved, with a high-energy S-Matrix that can be constructed 'semiperturbatively' via the chiral anomaly and Reggeon diagrams. An infrared fixed point and color superconductivity are crucial components of the construction. Infinite-momentum physical states contain both quarks and a universal 'anomalous wee gluon' component, and the spectrum is more limited than is required by confinement and chiral symmetry breaking. The Pomeron is approximately a Regge pole and the Critical Pomeron describes asymptotic cross sections. The strong coupling of the Pomeron to the electroweak sector could produce large x and Q{sup 2} events at HERA, and vector boson pairs at Fermilab. Further evidence for the sextet sector at Fermilab would be a large E{sub T} jet excess, due in part to the nonevolution of {alpha}{sub s}, and other phenomena related to the possibility that top quark production is due to the {eta}{sub 6}. The sextet proton and neutron are the only new baryonic states. Sextet states dominate high-energy hadronic cross sections and stable sextet neutrons could produce both dark matter and ultrahigh energy cosmic rays. The cosmic ray spectrum knee suggests themore » effective sextet threshold is between Fermilab and LHC energies, with large cross-section effects expected at the LHC. Jet and vector boson cross sections will be very much larger than expected, and sextet baryons should also be produced. Double Pomeron produced states could provide definitive evidence for the existence of the sextet sector in the initial low luminosity running.« less
Semen analysis in 1,500 cases of sterile marriage.

Abstract 1. 1. Examination of semen specimens in 1,500 cases of sterile marriage showed that about 50 per cent had deficiencies either in spermatozoa count, motility, or morphology. 2. 2. As the spermatozoa count falls below 60 million per c.c., other defects, such as motility and abnormal morphology, become more apparent until, in the very low count range, all three deficiencies together are likely to be found. 3. 3. Where successful pregnancies eventually occurred in this large group, the greatest number were found where no obvious fault was apparent in either partner and where the spermatozoa count was consistently in the higher brackets. 4. 4. It is suggested that the 60 million per c.c. spermatozoa count level is a reasonable dividing line between good and impaired fertility.
The radio-iodinated triolein test for steatorrhea.

Summary The level of radioactivity in blood and feces following the administration of a test dose of radio-iodinated triolein (RITO) has been studied in normal subjects and in patients with steatorrhea associated with chronic pancreatitis. Simultaneous studies were made of the total lipid content of the feces. Radioactivity of whole blood was found to be as efficient as or more efficient than radioactivity of plasma or of the lipid fraction of plasma in discriminating between normal subjects and those with steatorrhea. Simultaneous ingestion of 30 or 60 ml. of nonradioactive vegetable oil with the test dose of RITO did not alter blood or fecal levels of radioactivity. Preliminary administration of Lugol's solution did not alter blood or fecal levels of radioactivity. All patients who excreted abnormally large amounts of lipid in the feces, as determined chemically, also had abnormally high levels of radioactivity in the feces. Blood radioactivity levels were below the normal range in only 4 of 14 patients who exhibited steatorrhea by the criteria of fecal lipid content and fecal radioactivity. As the test is currently performed by us and by others, the finding of a normal blood level of radioactivity does not exclude the existence of steatorrhea.
PRODUCTION AND EXCRETION OF UREA BY THE FETAL LAMB

The urea production rate of the fetal lamb has been measured in 10 pregnant ewes studied who were free of operative stress. The measurement of the fetal urea production rate was made by utilizing an independent measurement of placental urea clearance by the infusion of urea tagged with radioactive carbon (14C) into the fetal circulation and the endogenous concentration difference for urea between umbilical arterial blood and maternal arterial blood. It was shown that the concentration difference of urea between umbilical arterial and maternal arterial blood is significantly elevated during the first four days of recovery from surgery, with a mean value of 0.06 mg/ml plasma water on the first day. By the fifth postoperative day this concentration difference has decreased to a mean value of 0.034, which does not change from the fifth to the twelfth postoperative days. This study demonstrates that urea is excreted across the placenta at a rate of approximately 0.54 mg/min/kg fetal weight. By comparison with the urea excretion rate of adult sheep, this is a high rate of fetal urea excretion. It was demonstrated that the urea excretion rate across the placenta could be increased threefold by an infusion of ammonium lactate into the fetus. Thus, the endogenous urea excretion rate of 0.54 mg/min/kg fetal weight does not represent the maximum rate of urea production for the fetus. The finding of a high urea production rate in fetal life is new and contrary to the common belief that nitrogen catabolism plays a minor role in fetal life. These studies demonstrate that as much as 25% of the fetal oxygen consumption could be accounted for by the catabolism of amino acids.
My Depressed Person (A Monologue)

A friend recommended a story by David Foster Wallace called "The Depressed Person." My friend has never been really depressed, although she is well aware that depression, psychotherapy, mental instability, clinical diagnoses, crazy behavior, internal pain, lack of self-esteem, alternative therapies, crystal-gazing, the whole nine yards of contemporary malaise and its panaceas are all around her. A keen student of her culture, she admired this story because its language is so dead-on and pulls you into an experience of psycho therapy. I know that others have found it insulting to that practice, but when I read it I did not see it that way, nor do I now, even knowing that in none of its manifestations was Freud's proliferating legacy able to save the story's author. What I saw instead was a brilliant narrative (if something so pain fully circular can be said to be a narrative at all) driven by the enact ment of unremitting self-consciousness. Its forward motion proceeds at the pace of therapy, which is to say in a series of repetitions and involutions that border on the grotesque; a few developments along the way tug you forward, while the central character, the depressed person herself, never moves off the dime. No matter what happens she is at the bottom of a well and all she can see hear touch feel taste smell is herself. The brilliance of the story is its double action: the free indirect discourse of excruciating self-centeredness and the linguistic play around its ouroboric tedium. Reading it was painful and fascinating. First, there's the digressive style, and then the inter minable footnotes that keep interrupting the flow of the narrative, which as I said is not flowing much at all. It's a problem, keeping the different tracks running along at the same time, jumping back and forth and up and down on the page. I finally gave up reading it the first time through and had to go back later. At one point a dramatic turn surprises the loose shape of the story, springing the traps of self-centeredness and skepticism toward psychotherapy and other professional techniques for easing mental anguish. That's almost all I want to say about the story, because what really made it so riveting was my intimate and long-term association with
The presentation and clinical significance of sinonasal respiratory epithelial adenomatoid hamartoma (REAH).

Background Sinonasal respiratory epithelial adenomatoid hamartoma (REAH) is a benign glandular proliferation with ciliated epithelium. Little is known about REAH, with only a few published case reports appearing since its original description in 1995. Classically described as an isolated polypoid lesion arising from the nasal septum, more recent descriptions also suggest that REAH can occur among nasal polyps. We report the largest experience with REAH to date, and aim to better understand and characterize this unique entity. Methods In this case series, all cases of REAH diagnosed between 2006 and 2011 were reviewed. Clinical presentation, histologic and radiographic features, and operative findings were examined. Results There were 45 patients 19 females and 26 males, with a mean age of 55.9 years (range, 23–83). Most cases of REAH (33/45, 73%) were found in association with another pathologic process (sinonasal polyposis, adenoiditis, hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia [HHT], inverted papilloma [IP], or malignancy). Of these, REAH occurring among diffuse polyposis (79% of cases) represented the large majority. The average Harvard computed tomography (CT) stage for this cohort was 3.1. The other presentation of REAH (12/45, 27%) was an isolated sinonasal mass. In cases of isolated REAH, the majority of lesions (75%) were noted to be originating in the olfactory clefts. Conclusion Isolated REAH, which may mimic a neoplasm, appears to be a different clinical entity than the more common form encountered in association with nasal polyps and inflammation. Further investigation into the etiology and clinical significance is needed.
Concentration, production and turnover of viruses and dissolved DNA pools at Stn ALOHA, North Pacific Subtropical Gyre

The concentrations, production rates and turnover times of the components of the dissolved DNA (D-DNA) pool, including viruses, were investigated in a depth profile at Stn ALOHA in the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre. A recently developed centrifugal concentration method was used to quantify the 3 major components of the D-DNA pool: free or enzymatically-hydrolyzable D-DNA (ehD-DNA), D-DNA within viruses and uncharacterized bound D-DNA. The production rates of each of these components of the D-DNA pool were estimated using a dilution technique and the turnover times of each component were calculated. Concentrations of total D-DNA and ehD-DNA were approximately 1.2 and 0.6 ng ml -1 , respectively, throughout the mixed layer (upper 100 m), and decreased with increasing depth to 0.2 and 0.06 ng ml -1 at 500 m, resulting in ehD-DNA constituting 27 to 51 % of the total D-DNA pool. Concentrations of viruses ranged from 0.9 to 1.0 x 10 7 ml -1 within the mixed layer and also decreased with increasing depth to 0.2 x 10 7 ml -1 at 500 m. The average mass of DNA per viral genome was estimated at each depth with viral genome fingerprinting, and ranged from 62.5 to 69.8 ag DNA per virus. Multiplying the concentration of viruses by the average mass of DNA per virus at each depth revealed the concentration of D-DNA within viruses, which ranged from 0.13 to 0.68 ng ml -1 and constituted 49 to 63 % of the total D-DNA pool. There was no measurable concentration of uncharacterized bound D-DNA in the depth profile. The production rates of ehD-DNA and D-DNA within viruses ranged from 0.10 to 0.41 and 0.03 to 0.07 ng ml -1 h -1 , respectively, within the mixed layer, but no production of D-DNA could be measured below the mixed layer. The calculated turnover times of ehD-DNA ranged from 0.97 to 6.2 h within the mixed layer and were 3 to 10 times shorter than the turnover times of D-DNA within viruses, which ranged from 9.6 to 24 h. In addition, the amount of phosphorus that was calculated to be produced within the ehD-DNA was able to support the biologically available phosphorus (BAP) demand, based on previously reported measurements of BAP uptake at Stn ALOHA. Using the measured virus production rates, viruses were estimated to lyse 3.2 to 16.5% of the standing stock of bacteria at Stn ALOHA h -1 , resulting in the release of ehD-DNA, which was estimated as 11 to 35 % of the total ehD-DNA production. This research supports the hypothesis that individual components of the D-DNA pool are cycled at different rates and shows that viruses in open-ocean gyre systems may have large impacts on the microbial community there, including viral-induced mortality and subsequent release of cellular contents to the dissolved organic matter pool.
Assembled tau filaments differ from native paired helical filaments as determined by scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM)

Abstract Paired helical filaments (PHF) are abnormal, approximately 20–25-nm wide periodically twisted filaments, which accumulate in Alzheimer's disease (AD) brain and other neurodegenerative disorders, including corticobasal degeneration (CBD). PHF are primarily composed of highly phosphorylated tau protein. However, both phosphorylated and non-phosphorylated forms of tau are able to assemble in vitro into filaments similar in the ultrastructural appearance to PHF. In the present study, filaments were assembled in vitro from unmodified recombinant human tau and the physical mass per unit length of filaments and the mass density were determined using scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM). Two general types of filaments were observed. One type was composed of 11.4 nm-wide, 10–75 nm long, frequently twisted and PHF-like filaments, with a mass per unit length (44 kDa/nm) approximately one third of that observed in isolated AD filaments. The other were straight filaments, approximately 6.8-nm wide and 0.2–2 μm long, which often formed parallel clusters of two or more filaments. Triple clusters were 19.2-nm wide and had a mass per unit length (70 kDa/nm) approximately two thirds of that seen in isolated AD filaments. Despite different morphology, both twisted and straight filaments had mass densities between 0.48–0.55 kDa/nm3. These values are significantly higher than those reported for PHF found either in AD (0.40 kDa/nm3) or CBD (0.33 kDa/nm3). These results suggest that the packing of tau differs in vivo from that observed in vitro and that specific tau isoform content, elongation of tau molecules by phosphorylation or other factors may be required to reproduce pathological assembly. Therefore mass density determinations appear to be an important criterion in comparing various filaments.
Use of Tetrazolium Dyes in an Agar Medium for Differentiation of Streptococcus Lactis and Streptococcus Cremoris

Summary A medium consisting of 0.5% Tryptone, 0.5% yeast extract, 0.2% l-arginine, 1.5% agar, 0.2% K 2 HPO 4 , 0.05% glucose, and 0.005% 2,3,5-triphenyltetrazolium chloride (TTC) has been developed which may be used to distinguish Streptococcus lactis from Streptococcus cremoris. S. lactis organisms, by virtue of their ability to produce ammonia from arginine, formed red colonies; colonies of S. cremoris were white. The incorporation of tetrazolium blue or tetrazolium red into the basal arginine medium in place of TTC produced analogous results. To insure that the production of colored colonies by S. lactis was dependent on an unimpaired degradation of arginine, catabolism of the amino acid by this organism was studied. Mutants of S. lactis Strain 27, which lacked the ability to produce ammonia from arginine, were obtained by ultraviolet light irradiation and selection on arginine-TTC agar. Whole cells and cell-free extracts of mutant and wild type organisms were compared for their abilities to produce CO 2 from arginine and citrulline. Cell-free extracts of the wild type organism produced more than 9 μ moles of CO 2 from 10 μ moles of either arginine or citrulline; cell-free extracts of the mutant produced about 6 μ moles of CO 2 from either substrate. Whole cells of the wild type organism produced nearly 10 μ moles of CO 2 from 10 μ moles of arginine, but only 3 μ moles of CO 2 from 10 μ moles of citrulline; whole cells of the mutant produced less than 1 μ mole of CO 2 from either substrate. No enzymes for arginine degradation were found in cell-free extracts of S. cremoris Strain 144.
Appropriate relationships between comprehensive planning and transportation planning for the 1970s

Transportation planning and comprehensive planning have evolved as separate and frequently conflicting fields of professional activity. Current relationships between both types of planning are characterized by increasing frustration and declining effectiveness in the national pursuit of public development policy objectives. At the federal level, ambivalence toward comprehensive planning has hampered the development of planning capacity among state, metropolitan, and local agencies, while unquestioning pursuit of federal-aid highway construction has produced a monolithic transportation planning establishment operating at a single level of government and dominated by a single mode. The results of the current separatism characteristic of comprehensive planning and transportation planning are apparent in a pattern of local injunctions against highway projects, belated analyses of a comprehensive range of environmental and socio-economic factors inherent in highway construction, and widespread public demand for a reassessment of the true costs and benefits of highway systems. Organizational and structural prescriptions are offered to achieve more appropriate relationships between transportation planning and comprehevensive planning institutions in order to achieve the potential benefits of both through integrated action.
Low dose nicotine treatment during early adolescence increases subsequent cocaine reward

Adolescence is a critical period for the initiation of drug use, starting with tobacco and alcohol and progressing to marijuana and other illicit drugs. These findings have led to the suggestion that tobacco and alcohol are ‘gateway’ drugs that sensitize maturing reward pathways to the effects of illicit substances such as cocaine. To test this hypothesis, we have examined whether low-dose nicotine pretreatment alters acquisition of cocaine self-administration in adolescents more than in adults. Male and female Sprague-Dawley rats, aged postnatal day (P) 28 or P86, were given two daily intravenous injections of nicotine (0.03 mg/kg/0.1 ml) or saline for four days. At P32 and P90, rats were placed in self-administration chambers and tested for acquisition of cocaine (0.2 or 0.5 mg/kg/inj) for five days. Data were collapsed across cocaine dose and sex since there was no significant effect of these variables. Adolescent rats pretreated with nicotine exhibited significantly greater cocaine-reinforced responding as compared to saline controls or adults (p < 0.01). This drug pretreatment effect did not generalize to all rewards, since nicotine did not increase responding for sucrose pellets in adolescents. These findings provide evidence that the adolescent brain is uniquely vulnerable to the effects of nicotine on subsequent drug reward.
The assay of sodium radio‐iodide (I131) used for medicinal purposes

The calibration of I131 using the electroscope, the method of absolute beta counting, and the method of the simulated I131 reference source is reported. The characterization of the beta radiation of I131 through the determination of the mass absorption coefficient in aluminum is described. A test for the radiochemical purity is given.
Tillage systems for cotton on silty upland soils

No-tillage systems for cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) production on sloping, upland sites have not been widely adopted in the Mid-South of the USA, even though conventional cotton production creates a serious erosion hazard. A field study was established following sod on a site with loess soils to evaluate tillage system effect on cotton yield and earliness. The sod was tilled prior to establishment of treatments, which included conventional (chisel, disk, bed, cultivate), ridge till (remove ridge tops at planting, cultivate postemergence to rebuild ridges), no-tillage [wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cover seeded following cotton harvest, killed prior to planting], and minimum tillage (one pass with a mulch finisher prior to planting, cultivate postemergence). During the first year of the study, no-tillage cotton yields were lower and maturity delayed compared with conventional tillage. During Years 3 to 5, no-tillage crop yields were is to 42% greater and crop maturity was 6 to 10 d earlier than conventional tillage. Minimum tillage yields were similar to conventional tillage while ridge tillage was lower in two of the last 3 yr of the study. Results of this study indicate viable no-tillage production systems for cotton can be developed for highly erosive loess soils in the Mid-South.
The Combing of Cribellar Silk by the Prithine Misionella Mendensis, with Notes on Other Filistatid Spiders (Araneae: Filistatidae)

Abstract We present the first observations of the combing and attaching behavior in the subfamily Prithinae (Filistatidae), taken from Misionella mendensis. We compare its web architecture with that of other prithines (Pritha nana and Pikelinia sp. from Chile) and filistatines (Kukulcania hibernalis and Filistata insidiatrix). The combing behavior of M. mendensis corresponds to the stereotyped type I combing behavior, as is known for other filistatids. However, M. mendensis attaches the cribellar segments in a unique way, splitting the cribellar segment longitudinally and pushing each half to the substrate, attaching the silk with the tarsi of both legs IV simultaneously. These stereotyped movements result in web units of a very characteristic structure. We report the same split attachment behavior in the prithine Pikelinia tambilloi. We scored these observations into a previous dataset for filistatid relationships. Because of the missing observations on attachment behavior in the North American basal gen...
Measuring the intensity and phase of 1.5-/spl mu/m ultrashort laser pulses

We have extended FROG to measure the intensity and phase of ultrashort pulses at ~1.5 micron. We employ the highly dispersive, high conversion efficiency, nonlinear crystal Proustite in this experimentally ultrasimple, few-element FROG device. (4 pages)
DiscML: an R package for estimating evolutionary rates of discrete characters using maximum likelihood

The study of discrete characters is crucial for the understanding of evolutionary processes. Even though great advances have been made in the analysis of nucleotide sequences, computer programs for non-DNA discrete characters are often dedicated to specific analyses and lack flexibility. Discrete characters often have different transition rate matrices, variable rates among sites and sometimes contain unobservable states. To obtain the ability to accurately estimate a variety of discrete characters, programs with sophisticated methodologies and flexible settings are desired. DiscML performs maximum likelihood estimation for evolutionary rates of discrete characters on a provided phylogeny with the options that correct for unobservable data, rate variations, and unknown prior root probabilities from the empirical data. It gives users options to customize the instantaneous transition rate matrices, or to choose pre-determined matrices from models such as birth-and-death (BD), birth-death-and-innovation (BDI), equal rates (ER), symmetric (SYM), general time-reversible (GTR) and all rates different (ARD). Moreover, we show application examples of DiscML on gene family data and on intron presence/absence data. DiscML was developed as a unified R program for estimating evolutionary rates of discrete characters with no restriction on the number of character states, and with flexibility to use different transition models. DiscML is ideal for the analyses of binary (1s/0s) patterns, multi-gene families, and multistate discrete morphological characteristics.
Undertreated and Untreated Pain Should Be Considered an Adverse Event of Neonatal Circumcision—Reply

We would like to thank Bisogni et al., for their comments about intra- and post-operative pain as an adverse event (AE) to male circumcision (MC). Use of appropriate analgesia for pain management is a good practice that should be the standard of care during and after any surgical procedure as it can substantially control pain1. In a prospective study of 583 neonatal circumcisions performed between December 2005 and December 2008, when appropriate analgesia was applied, 93.5% of neonates circumcised in the first week of life showed no indication of pain on an objective standardized neonatal pain rating system used by the authors2. The recently published manuscript3 which found a low incidence of adverse events (AEs) (< 0.5%) associated with male circumcision in U.S. medical settings during 2001–2010 is based on data from a healthcare reimbursement claims database. This database captures only diagnoses and procedures billed to third parties. The analysis studied the association between 41 AEs, not including pain, and male circumcision. A search of the same healthcare reimbursement claims database for the ICD9 codes 338.18 (other acute postoperative pain) and 338.19 (other acute pain) detected one patient with pain associated with the male circumcision procedure among 1,400,920 circumcised males. Taking into consideration the possibility that pain may be an underreported AE in the healthcare reimbursement claims database used for this analysis, a more thorough analysis of the association of pain and male circumcision would require additional data sources, including information related to use of and type of pain control methods. As previously recommended3, future researchers studying the association between AEs and male circumcision should consider using additional data sources to ascertain AEs that are not captured in data from reimbursement claims.
Thermochemistry of the Ethyl Radical and the C-H Bond Strength in Ethane

CCSD(T) theory has been applied to the ethyl radical using aug-cc-pVDZ, cc-pVTZ, and cc-pVQZ basis sets, and extrapolated to the complete basis set limit. QCISD/6-311G(d,p) results were used to est...
Cushing’s syndrome: diagnosis and surveillance using salivary cortisol

This short review summarizes the use of late-night salivary cortisol measurement in the diagnosis of Cushing’s syndrome, in the evaluation of patients with adrenal incidentalomas, and in monitoring of post-operative patients, with a focus on the different assay methodologies currently in common use. The focus is on recent studies identified by literature searches using Ovid Medline and Google Scholar as well as analysis of several recent review articles on the topic. Measurement of late night salivary cortisol (LNSC) has an excellent sensitivity and specificity for the diagnosis of Cushing’s syndrome regardless of the assay methodology used. Immunoassays have the advantage of simplicity, low cost, and small sample volume requirement, while liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry has the advantage of a high specificity for cortisol and the ability to measure cortisone. The overnight dexamethasone suppression test appears to be superior to LNSC measurement in the evaluation of patients with adrenal incidentalomas. LNSC measurement is an excellent approach to monitor post-operative Cushing’s disease patients for surgical failure or recurrence. Salivary cortisol is most useful as the initial test when Cushing’s syndrome is suspected and for periodic patient monitoring after pituitary surgery for Cushing’s disease.
The Riboflavin and Pantothenic Acid Requirement of Brook Trout

Abstract Experiments were conducted to determine the riboflavin and pantothenic acid requirement of brook trout. Groups of trout were fed diets containing different levels of the vitamins and after a period the fish were killed and their livers analyzed micro-biologically to determine the amount of storage of the vitamins. It was found that up to a maximum, the amount of storage increased with the level of the vitamins in the diet. When a maximum level was reached in the liver additional amounts in the diet did not increase the liver content. It has been tentatively concluded that brook trout require between 0.36 and 0.53 milligrams of riboflavin per kilogram of body weight daily and between 1.11 and 1.45 milligrams of pantothenic acid. Anemic fish contained low levels of both these vitamins, supporting the conclusion of Tunison et al. (1943) that they play a role in trout anemia. A deficiency of pantothenic acid resulted in a gill disease, confirming the results of Wolf (1943), but it is thought that it ...
Rapid genetic selection of inhibitor-resistant protease mutants : Clinically relevant and novel mutants of the HIV protease

Site-specific proteolysis is an important regulatory mechanism in many basic cellular processes as well as playing critical roles in the life cycle of viruses and other pathogenic organisms. For the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) the encoded protease is required for the replication of the virus and has been the target of novel antiviral therapeutics. However, the emergence of inhibitor-resistant viral strains has become an increasingly significant clinical problem. Using a bacteriophage-based genetic selection, a bank of inhibitor-resistant mutants in this protease has been isolated that includes mutations that correlate with resistant clinical isolates. The rapid selection of such mutations has implications for the prediction of relevant mutations and may be applicable to other viral systems.
Evidence for a Specific Dihydrotestosterone-Binding Cytosol Receptor in the Human Prostate

A technique for the demonstration of a human steroid and organ-specific prostate cytosol receptor is described. Tissue from 17 patients with benign prostatic hypertrophy was incubated in Eagle's medium with 3H-testosterone (T) .06 nm following pre-incubation with an anti-androgen. The minces were homogenized and the cytosol fraction obtained. The cytosol was then fractionated on a duo-gel column of G-50 Sephadex over Bio-gel A 1.5m and fractions counted for 3H, assayed for protein and plotted graphically. Three main peaks were seen. Only the second peak (approximately 150,000 mol wt), which contained predominantly dihydrotestosterone (DHT), was significantly and reproducibly inhibited by 2.1 μM cyproterone acetate (Cyp A) pre-incubation. This inhibition was considered a specific indicator for receptor since Cyp A at μM had little effect (less than 10%) on 3H-DHT binding to plasma. Similar results were noted for other anti-androgens tested, but cortisol and etiocholanolone had no effects on 3H-5α DHT bindi...
Simulation and Control of an Active Tilting-Pad Journal Bearing

This study developed an active tilting-pad journal bearing with a feedback control system to regulate the orbit of a rotating shaft. The control is implemented by means of linear actuators installe...
INTRACELLULAR TRANSPORT OF SECRETORY PROTEINS IN THE PANCREATIC EXOCRINE CELL : II. Transport to Condensing Vacuoles and Zymogen Granules

In the previous paper we described an in vitro system of guinea pig pancreatic slices whose secretory proteins can be pulse-labeled with radioactive amino acids. From kinetic experiments performed on smooth and rough microsomes isolated by gradient centrifugation from such slices, we obtained direct evidence that secretory proteins are transported from the cisternae of the rough endoplasmic reticulum to condensing vacuoles of the Golgi complex via small vesicles located in the periphery of the complex. Since condensing vacuoles ultimately become zymogen granules, it was of interest to study this phase of the secretory cycle in pulse-labeled slices. To this intent, a zymogen granule fraction was isolated by differential centrifugation from slices at the end of a 3-min pulse with leucine-14C and after varying times of incubation in chase medium. At the end of the pulse, few radioactive proteins were found in this fraction; after +17 min in chaser, its proteins were half maximally labeled; they became maximally labeled between +37 and +57 min. Parallel electron microscopic radioautography of intact cells in slices pulse labeled with leucine-3H showed, however, that zymogen granules become labeled, at the earliest, +57 min post-pulse. We assumed that the discrepancy between the two sets of results was due to the presence of rapidly labeled condensing vacuoles in the zymogen granule fraction. To test this assumption, electron microscopic radioautography was performed on sections of zymogen granule pellets isolated from slices pulse labeled with leucine-3H and subsequently incubated in chaser. The results showed that the early labeling of the zymogen granule fractions was, indeed, due to the presence of highly labeled condensing vacuoles among the components of these fractions.
A simplified approach to Bode's theorem for continuous-time and discrete-time systems

A simplified approach to W.H. Bode's (1945) theorem for both continuous-time and discrete-time systems, along with some generalization, are presented. For continuous-time systems, the constraints of open-loop stability and roll-off at s= varies as are removed. A counterexample shows that when the excess poles/zeros vanishes, the Bode integral drops from infinite to finite value when the open-loop gain crosses a critical value. A revised result is also developed. The salient feature of this approach is that at no stage are either Cauchy's theorem or the Poisson integral invoked; the simplified proof relies only on elementary analysis. This approach carries over to the discrete-time cases in a straightforward manner. >
Measuring fatigue related to facial muscle function

Abstract Objective: The purpose of this study was to explore the expression of facial muscle fatigue in individuals without impaired muscle function using surface electromyography (EMG). Design: Descriptive study of the expression of facial muscle fatigue in individuals without impaired muscle function. Participants: Convenience sample. Twenty individuals, 5 men and 15 women, between 20 and 50 years of age who volunteered to participate. Outcome Measures: Two tests of fatigue, a 10-second sustained contraction test, and a 25 repeated 3-second contractions test, were conducted on three facial expressions: brow raise, smile, and pucker. Surface EMG quantification of the muscle activity of the voluntary maximal facial muscle contractions was recorded during the fatigue tests. Results: For the sustained fatigue test, all three expressions had a significant decline in activity (brow raise 34.51%, smile 22.96%, and pucker 29.05%); confirmed by a one-way ANOVA with repeated measures (brow raise df = 2, 38; f = 53.28; p = 0.00; smile df = 2, 38; f = 39.913; p = 0.00; pucker df = 2, 38; f = 76.002; p = 0.00). For the repeated fatigue test, percent fatigue was significant for smile (11.62%; df = 1, 19; f = 13.823; p = 0.001) but not for brow raise (7.27%; df = 1, 19; f = 1.945; p = 0.179) or pucker (4.22%; df = 1, 19; f = 2.508; p = 1.30). Conclusions: The muscle activity of sustained maximal voluntary muscle contractions of facial muscles fatigues significantly with time for brow raise, smile, and pucker expressions. The same facial muscles are more resistant to fatigue of muscle activity with repeated, brief contractions. Knowing the amount of facial muscle fatigue of individuals without impairment can be beneficial in developing outcome measures and goals for rehabilitation of individuals with facial neuromuscular dysfunction. Changes in fatigue tests of an individual with facial neuromuscular dysfunction with rehabilitation is reviewed for comparison.
Subgrid-Scale Modeling of Turbulent Convection Using Truncated Navier-Stokes Dynamics

Using concepts from the subgrid-scale estimation modeling, we develop a procedure for large-eddy simulations which employs Navier-Stokes equations truncated to an available mesh resolution. Operationally the procedure consists of numerically solving the truncated Navier-Stokes equation and a periodic processing of the small scale component of its solution. The modeling procedure is applied to simulate turbulent Rayleigh-Benard convection
Yet another generalization of the Kruskal-Katona theorem

Abstract For an n-tuple t = (t1,t2,…,tn) of integers satisfying 1⩽t 1 ⩽t 2 ···⩽t n , T( t )=T denotes the ranked partially ordered set consisting of n- tuples a = (a 1 ,a 2 ,…,a n ) of integers satisfying tn−ti⩽ai⩽tn, i = 1,2,…,n, partially ordered by defining a to precede c if ai = ci or ci = tn for i = 1,2,…,n. The rank r( a ) of a is |{i|ai = tn}|. For 0⩽l⩽n, the set consisting of all elements of rank l is called the lth rank and is denoted Tl. Let b, l and m denote positive integers satisfying b⩽l⩽n and m⩽|Tl|. For a subset A of Tl, Δb A denotes the elements of Tl-b which precede at least one element of A. An algorithm is given for calculating min |Δb A|, where the minimum is taken over all m-element subsets A of Tl. If t1 = t2 = ··· = tn = 1, it reduces to the Kruskal-Katona algorithm.
Nursing Care of Children with Fluid and Electrolyte Disorders

Nursing care of the pediatric patient requires a foundation of specific knowledge. A difficult and sometimes baffling component of nursing care of children is fluid and electrolyte management. It is essential for nurses to understand major principles regarding fluid and electrolyte balance to enhance their observation and intervention skills. Major principles guiding nurses who care for pediatric populations are: