cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Decision heuristics as predictors of public choice

Two studies examined cognitive and affect-based heuristics as predictors of public choice. Participants, recruited before the 2004 Presidential Election, identified the issues that would determine their voting decision and provided ratings of importance and Likelihood of Success for these issues (decision cues) regarding each presidential candidate. Both well-known and new heuristics were evaluated for descriptive fit between predicted and actual voting choices and overall predictive accuracy regarding who the winner of the sample would be. In Study 1, the performance of cue-weight free simple heuristics, particularly those based on frequency counts, matched or outperformed that of normative Franklin's rule that used both cue values and cue weights. In Study 2, the affect (admiration and contempt)-based heuristics performed even better. The Take-The-Best Emotion heuristic performed as well as the affect heuristics utilizing multiple social emotions. These findings highlight the utility of event frequency-based and interpersonal affect-based heuristics in predicting public choice under uncertainty. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The growth inhibitory effects of vitamins K and their actions on gene expression

A characteristic defect occurs in rat and human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) resulting in a loss of function of the vitamin K-dependent enzyme gamma-glutamyl-carboxylase in the tumor but not in the underlying liver. This causes the secretion of elevated levels of the immature or des-gamma-carboxylated form of prothrombin, which is used as a marker of HCC. We investigated whether, using the defined conditions of growing HCC cell lines in tissue culture, addition of the naturally occurring vitamins K1 or K2 or the synthetic vitamin K3 could influence the secretion of immature prothrombin. We found that vitamins K1, K2 and K3 all suppressed the secretion of immature prothrombin into the tissue culture medium. Vitamins K2 and K3 were also found to inhibit growth of the HCC cell line, in an apparently nontoxic and reversible manner. The influence of the vitamins K on the expression of some genes related to vitamin K action was examined and compared with that of another growth inhibitor, TGF beta 1 protein. The vitamins K were found to increase the expression of prothrombin and carboxylase messenger RNA and c-myc messenger RNA, but had no effects on the expression of TGF beta 1 messenger RNA. By contrast, TGF beta 1 increased TGF beta 1 messenger RNA levels, but had no effects on the other genes, suggesting a different pathway. The previously studied vitamin K3-mediated inhibition of growth was antagonized by the addition of catalase to the culture medium, but the inhibitory effects of vitamin K2 were not antagonized.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Weekly Gridded Aquarius L-band Radiometer-Scatterometer Observations and Salinity Retrievals over the Polar Regions - Part 2: Initial Product Analysis

Following the development and availability of Aquarius weekly polar-gridded products, this study presents the spatial and temporal radiometer and scatterometer observations at L band (frequency1.4 GHz) over the cryosphere including the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets, sea ice in both hemispheres, and over sub-Arctic land for monitoring the soil freeze-thaw state. We provide multiple examples of scientific applications for the L-band data over the cryosphere. For example, we show that over the Greenland Ice Sheet, the unusual 2012 melt event lead to an L-band brightness temperature (TB) sustained decrease of 5 K at horizontal polarization. Over the Antarctic ice sheet, normalized radar cross section (NRCS) observations recorded during ascending and descending orbits are significantly different, highlighting the anisotropy of the ice cover. Over sub-Arctic land, both passive and active observations show distinct values depending on the soil physical state (freeze-thaw). Aquarius sea surface salinity (SSS) retrievals in the polar waters are also presented. SSS variations could serve as an indicator of fresh water input to the ocean from the cryosphere, however the presence of sea ice often contaminates the SSS retrievals, hindering the analysis. The weekly grided Aquarius L-band products used a redistributed by the US Snow and Ice Data Center at http:nsidc.orgdataaquariusindex.html, and show potential for cryospheric studies.
CONGESTIVE HEART FAILURE IN OLDER PATIENTS: The Clinical Diagnosis of Heart Failure in Older Patients*

OBJECTIVE: To review the differences in presentation and clinical manifestation of heart failure in older and younger patients and to determine if these differences influence the ability to diagnose the disorder clinically. Based on this information, an approach to diagnosing heart failure in older patients is provided. DATA SOURCE: Scientific reports regarding heart failure in both the general population and the geriatric population were identified from repeated searches of MEDLINE data base and citations from appropriate articles. DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS: Relevant data were obtained from articles, with special importance placed on studies designed to examine older patients exclusively or as a subgroup in a larger study. Review of data pertaining to clinical characteristics and presentation of heart failure was performed, with emphasis on comparing the characteristics between age groups. Specific cardiac diseases that cause ventricular impairment in older patients were assessed, and the importance of systolic versus diastolic dysfunction in this age group was analyzed. CONCLUSION: Clinical diagnosis of heart failure in older patients may be difficult because of the absence of typical symptoms and physical findings. When present, the symptoms and signs may be mistakenly diagnosed as caused by concomitant disorders or aging changes. In other older patients, the symptoms and signs will be obscured by the presence of aging changes or the presence of other diseases. As a result of these difficulties, the initial diagnosis of heart failure in older patients is made later in the course of the cardiac disease process; older patients will be more unstable, and secondary preventive therapies may be of less benefit than in younger patients with the disorder. Though clinically difficult, the differentiation between systolic and diastolic ventricular dysfunction is mandatory in all older patients with heart failure. J Am Geriatr Soc 45:1128–1133,1997.
Corrective recasts: what teachers might want to know

Teachers, in particular those who operate in communicatively oriented classrooms, frequently use recasts (i.e. reformulations) when interacting with students. Research has nevertheless shown that, as a corrective feedback strategy, recasts are the least effective, particularly in terms of helping students to recover from grammatical errors. One reason for the lack of efficacy is that recasts are sometimes intended to fulfil a corrective function and sometimes a communicative function. In consequence, the corrective function, when intended, is often obscured and hence ignored. This paper garners insights from the existing research, presenting them in the form of five pedagogic strategies buttressed with authentic classroom examples. The goal of these strategies is to increase the saliency of the corrective function of the recasts so that they become more noticeable, and hence more effective in drawing learners' attention to gaps between their interlanguage and the target grammar.
Immunopathology of NZB/BL mice. V. Viruslike (filtrable) agent separable from lymphoma cells and identifiable by electron microscopy.

Hemolytic disease characterized by slight anemia, reticulocytosis, hemosiderosis, extramedullary hematopoiesis, and positive indirect antiglobulin (Coombs') tests and renal disease with proteinuria, hypoalbuminemia, and glomerular lesions were produced in Swiss mice by neonatal intraperitoneal inoculation of cell-free filtrates prepared from the spleens of old NZB/Bl mice. Lymphoid cell and plasma cell hyperplasia as well as hypergammaglobulinemia occurred in some of these inoculated mice. Type "C" murine oncogenic virus-like particles, indistinguishable from those previously described (1), were shown by electron microscopic study to be present in distinctive locations, notably in the basal foldings of convoluted tubules in the kidneys of a newborn NZB/Bl mouse, old NZB/Bl mice, a CBA x NZB F1 hybrid mouse, and a Swiss mouse inoculated with NZB/Bl spleen cell-free filtrate. These observations point to two (perhaps related) circumstances which may be requisites for the pathogenic action of this newly discovered virus within and outside the strain NZB: infection of newborn, or infant, mice; persistent, possibly tolerant, infection of adult mice.
Practical Issues in Real-World Implementation of Structural Health Monitoring Systems

Currently, there exist several different types of structural health monitoring (SHM) systems that are in the stage of development and/or are being tested for use in real-world applications. For a number of years, Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) systems have demonstrated feasibility in laboratory and controlled testing environments. Acellent has been developing and testing strategies to bring the SHM field to the next level. These include issues involved with system installation, calibration, reliability and connections for structures fabricated with composite materials. Composite structures are susceptible to hidden or barely visible damage caused by impacts and/or excessive loads that if unchecked may lead to lower structural reliability, higher life-cycle costs, and loss in operational capability. Current maintenance and inspection techniques for in-service composite structures can be labor-intensive and time-consuming. Utilization of an integrated sensor network system such as that developed by Acellent can greatly reduce the inspection burden through fast in-situ data collection and processing. Using a built-in network of actuators and sensors, Acellent Technologies is providing the tools required for a practical SHM system. In this paper, key development and testing issues concerning real-world implementation of the SHM system on composite structures are presented.
A study of apparent ionospheric motions associated with multiple traveling ionospheric disturbances

Abstract The apparent undulatory motion of the ionospheric HF reflecting surface is studied using a method based on the relationship between angle-of-arrival and Doppler. The conditions are mid-latitude, daytime, F -region, winter/spring/summer. We usually find that multiple traveling ionospheric disturbances are active simultaneously, so that the HF Doppler evolves in a highly irregular and non-sinusoidal manner. We study the influence of this multiple-wave overlap on the apparent propagation velocity measured quasi-instantaneously. The apparent propagation velocity retains the key features observed by others, namely dominant propagation toward the E/SE, and virtually no propagation toward the W/NW. However, the apparent instantaneous velocity varies widely in both magnitude and azimuth over times as short as 500s. This is explained in terms of multiple-wave overlap.
Edgar Allan Poe's (Meta)physics: A Pre-History of the Post-Human

Matthew A. Taylor, ““Edgar Allan Poe's (Meta)physics: A Pre-History of the Post-Human”” (pp. 193––221) Edgar Allan Poe partakes of a social imaginary pursuing a single, unified theory of the physical and metaphysical. In this essay I examine how Poe, rather than following the predominantly utopian, utilitarian, and self-affirming teleologies of many such contemporary discourses (mesmerism, spiritualism, etc.), pictures instead the unsettling implications for human ontology consequent upon the idea that persons are less autonomous or sovereign entities than mutable effects of external, inhuman forces. Routing my discussion through a critical reading of Martin Heidegger's Being and Time , I argue that Poe's cosmological poem-essay Eureka and much of his short fiction——including ““Ligeia”” and ““The Fall of the House of Usher””——present a model of the universe and of the natural world that actively erodes the distinctions separating humanity from its physical environment, indeed that finally refuses the differentiation of subject and object altogether. My essay provides a brief genealogy for this macabre literalization of contemporary theories of the universe in Poe's writing and explores the implications that it has for a critical tradition (psychoanalytic, deconstructive, ideological) largely invested in the selves rather than the surroundings of Poe's tales.
Ultra-short electron and photon pulses☆

Abstract Methods to obtain short and ultra-short particle and photon pulses are described. First we discuss bunch length scaling and limits in storage rings. Pulse durations of the order of a few ps can be obtained from linac based sources like free electron lasers. Finally the techniques to produce very short electron pulses reaching rms values of about 40 fs will be described. Such bunches in connection with magnetic fields radiate high intensity photon pulses of equal time duration at wavelengths equal to or longer than the electron bunch length. An experiment, presently under construction at Stanford, to produce such ultra-short photon pulses with an expected flux of 4×1021 photons/s/100%BW for wave numbers from 1 to about 1000 cm−1 in a train of bunches separated by 350 ps is described. The photon flux in a single micro-bunch of 100 fs (FWHM) duration is expected to be 1016 photons/100%BW.
Neural substrates of contextual interference during motor learning support a model of active preparation

When individuals acquire new skills, initial performance is typically better and tasks are judged to be easier when the tasks are segregated and practiced by block, compared to when different tasks are randomly intermixed in practice. However, subsequent skill retention is better for a randomly practiced group, an effect known as contextual interference (CI). The present study examined the neural substrates of CI using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Individuals learned a set of three 4-element sequences with the left hand according to a block or random practice schedule. Behavioral retest for skill retention confirmed the presence of a typical CI effect with the random group outperforming the block group. Using a go/no-go fMRI paradigm, sequence preparation during the premovement study period was separated from movement execution. Imaging data for the two groups were compared for the first 1/3 and final 1/3 of training trials. Toward the end of training, behavioral performance between the two groups was similar, although the random group would later display a performance advantage on retention testing. During study time, the random group showed greater activity in sensorimotor and premotor regions compared to the block group. These areas are associated with motor preparation, sequencing, and response selection. This pattern of recruitment is consistent with the hypothesis that CI benefits in a sequencing task are due to improved capacity to actively prepare motor responses.
The stability of K2[Pt(CN)4]Cl0·3·x.H2O in wet and dry atmosphere

Abstract The behavior of the one-dimensional electrical conductor K2[Pt(CN)4 Cl0·3·x.H2O is studied at several temperatures in both wet and dry atmospheres using chemical analysis, X-ray diffraction and magnetic susceptibility data. It is concluded that the material is a series of hydrates with x between 2.5 and 3, and that a variation in x might influence its physical properties.
Requirements engineering at the margins: avoiding technological hubris through alternative approaches

Technological hubris occurs when attempts are made to develop technological solutions for marginalized groups. Despite being impoverished, these groups constitute the bulk of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) users. Developers all too often assume these peripheral, marginalized groups have the same needs as people in the core, developed countries and engineer technologies accordingly. Likewise, software engineers typically use the same approaches to elicit requirements and develop technologies for such groups. Both these tactics run the risk of disregarding the true needs of such users by not taking their environment, social order, or influences of either into account. Our position is that developers must reconsider current, widely adopted requirements engineering approaches when developing ICT for marginalized groups. We advocate embracing alternative techniques from the social sciences, here considering two such techniques, namely cultural probes and storytelling. We explore how these techniques can be adapted for software requirements.
Sexual Behavior in Gynandromorphs of Diprion similis (Hymenoptera: Diprionidae)

Gynandromorphs of the introduced pine sawfly, Diprion similis (Hartig), were reported by Britton and Zappe (1918) and Coppel (1959). Those studies were essentially descriptive ones, with no attempt to investigate the behavior of these anomalous forms.
Eruptions associated with respiratory and enteric viruses

Abstract Dermatologic manifestations may be seen from infections due to a number of viruses transmitted through the respiratory and enteric routes. This chapter will focus on the epidemiology, pathogenesis, and clinical manifestations of the enteroviruses; hepatitis A, B, and non-A, non-B viruses; Epstein-Barr virus; cytomegalovirus; and the adenovirus. Though some characteristic dermatologic syndromes occur as a result of infection from these viruses, the overwhelming majority of dermatologic manifestations are nonspecific. Therefore, an overall knowledge of the epidemiology, clinical features, and appropriate diagnostic tests is necessary for making the correct diagnosis.
PMH4: ASSESSMENT OF PATIENTS' ATTITUDES TOWARD ANTIPSYCHOTIC TREATMENT IN A 40-WEEK RANDOMIZED, CONTROLLED TRIAL

OBJECTIVES: Pharmacotherapy can reduce or prevent symptom relapse among schizophrenics, thereby providing long-term benefits. Relapse is common following noncompliance or discontinuation of antipsychotic medication, and dissatisfaction with medication may lead to noncompliance resulting in symptom relapse and increased health care expenditures. We assessed how schizophrenic patients view the use of antipsychotics. METHODS: The Drug Attitude Inventory (DAI), comprised of 10 “yes/no” questions about efficacy, side effects and satisfaction, was used to characterize patients' attitudes and subjective responses to antipsychotic treatment. The DAI was administered to subjects with chronic or subchronic schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder in a forty-week, double-blind, randomized, parallel-group, flexible-dose study of two regimens of ziprasidone (80 to 120 mg QD or 40 to 80 BID) and one regimen of haloperidol (5 to 20 mg daily). A score was calculated as the sum of the responses to all questionnaire items, and the subsets of six subjective and four attitudinal questions. A categorical linear model was used to analyze the marginal probabilities of favorable responses to the questions. RESULTS: For total, subjective and attitudinal items, DAI scores at baseline were comparable between treatment groups. Overall item response significantly favored ziprasidone at week 40 (p = 0.0016; 7/10 questions showed a higher percentage of positive responses for ziprasidone, and the magnitude of differences per question ranged from +14.2% to −3.7%). This difference was primarily due to positive responses to the subjective questions (p = 0.0006; 4/6 questions showed a higher percentage of positive responses for ziprasidone, and the magnitude of differences per question ranged from +14.2% to −3.2%). CONCLUSIONS: Patients in the ziprasidone groups had a significantly more positive attitude regarding their medication than those in the haloperidol group over 40 weeks of treatment. These findings have implications for greater patient compliance with ziprasidone treatment, which may lead to decreases in relapse rates, hospitalizations, and other health care resource use.
Evaluation of progression-free survival as a surrogate endpoint for survival in chemotherapy and targeted agent metastatic colorectal cancer trials.

Pooled analyses of chemotherapy trials in metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) have suggested that progression-free survival (PFS) is a surrogate endpoint for overall survival (OS). However, this has not been evaluated under current standard-of-care regimens of chemotherapy in combination with targeted therapies. We conducted an analysis of published mCRC trials of chemotherapy and targeted therapies from 2000 to evaluate the surrogacy of PFS and response rate (RR) for OS. Study-level data was pooled from 24 randomized mCRC trials that evaluated fluoropyrimidine-based regimens and included trials conducted with targeted agents (panitumumab, cetuximab, bevacizumab, and aflibercept). A total of 69 treatment arms with a sample size of 20,438 patients was included. Linear regression analysis was carried out to estimate the correlation of PFS and RR with OS. The correlation coefficient between PFS HRs and OS HRs was 0.86 for all trials, 0.89 for 12 phase III trials of targeted agents in combination with chemotherapy, 0.95 for 8 first-line phase III trials of targeted agents, and 0.83 for 9 trials of anti-EGFR-targeted agents. In all cases, correlation coefficients between RR and OS HRs were lower than those between PFS HRs and OS HRs (range, 0.42–0.81). In this study-level analysis of randomized mCRC trials of chemotherapy and targeted agents, improvements in PFS are strongly correlated with improvements in OS. This suggests that PFS remains a valid surrogate endpoint for OS with current treatment regimens in the mCRC setting. Clin Cancer Res; 19(5); 969–76. ©2012 AACR .
New electronic transitions of the rubidium dimer

Rubidium dimers were formed by thermal vaporization of the metal followed by continuous co-expansion with argon through a small pinhole into a vacuum chamber. The dimers were detected by laser-induced fluorescence (LIF). Vibrationally resolved excitation spectra were recorded for two new band systems in the wavelength regions around 394 nm and 353 nm. The well known D-X system near 430 nm was also observed. All three band systems exhibited long vibrational progressions, indicative of substantial changes in the equilibrium bond lengths on electronic excitation. Isotope splittings between the bands of 85 Rb 2 and 85 Rb 87 Rb were resolved for the band system centered at 353 nm. Vibrational analyses were carried out, and the upper state vibrational constants are reported. Possible assignments of the electronic configurations for the newly observed states are considered.
Noninvasive Imaging of Intraarterial Baffles in Infants and Children

Baffles within the lumen of the pulmonary artery are created in (1) the Aubert procedure, a variation of the arterial switch favored by some surgeons when two major coronary ostia arise close to one another or when one coronary artery has an intramural course, and (2) the Takeuchi procedure, a technique applied to patients with anomalous origin of the left coronary from the pulmonary artery. In both operations, coronary artery transplantation is avoided; instead, an aorticopulmonary window is created and aortic blood is redirected by an intrapulmonary artery baffle into the coronary circulation. We imaged five patients with Aubert and 10 patients with Takeuchi procedures by use of ultrasound to assess the sequelae of such intraarterial baffles. All five Aubert patients were
A context maintenance and retrieval model of organizational processes in free recall

The authors present the context maintenance and retrieval (CMR) model of memory search, a generalized version of the temporal context model of M. W. Howard and M. J. Kahana (2002a), which proposes that memory search is driven by an internally maintained context representation composed of stimulus-related and source-related features. In the CMR model, organizational effects (the tendency for related items to cluster during the recall sequence) arise as a consequence of associations between active context elements and features of the studied material. Semantic clustering is due to longstanding context-to-item associations, whereas temporal clustering and source clustering are both due to associations formed during the study episode. A behavioral investigation of the three forms of organization provides data to constrain the CMR model, revealing interactions between the organizational factors. Finally, the authors discuss the implications of CMR for their understanding of a broad class of episodic memory phenomena and suggest ways in which this theory may guide exploration of the neural correlates of memory search.
Language-integrated querying of XML data in SQL server

Developers need to access persistent XML data programmatically. Object-oriented access is often the preferred method. Translating XML data into objects or vice-versa is a hard problem due to the data model mismatch and the difficulty of query translation. Our prototype addresses this problem by transforming object-based queries and updates into queries and updates on XML using declarative mappings between classes and XML schema types. Our prototype extends the ADO.NET Entity Framework and leverages its object-relational mapping capabilities.We demonstrate how a developer can interact with stored relational and XML data using the Language Integrated Query (LINQ) feature of .NET. We show how LINQ queries are translated into a combination of SQL and XQuery. Finally, we illustrate how explicit mappings facilitate data independence upon database refactoring.
Shared patron driven acquisition of E-books in the California State University Library Consortium

The California State University (CSU) system has a history of consortial purchasing of electronic resources. Its most recent endeavor is consortial Patron Driven Acquisition (PDA) of e-books. Two PDA e-book pilots, funded by the CSU Chancellor's Office, were conducted in 2011 and 2012. The aim of the pilots was to reduce duplication of e-books on CSU campuses, and determine if consortial PDA is appropriate for the CSU. This article provides an overview of CSU's cooperative collection development efforts, results from both pilots, and addresses how a consortial PDA program affects collection development locally on one CSU campus.
2010 Nicolas Andry Award: Multipotent Adult Stem Cells from Adipose Tissue for Musculoskeletal Tissue Engineering

Background Cell-based therapies such as tissue engineering provide promising therapeutic possibilities to enhance the repair or regeneration of damaged or diseased tissues but are dependent on the availability and controlled manipulation of appropriate cell sources.
Bottleneck management: theory and practice

Advocates of TOC believe that bottleneck resource restricts an operation's ability to make money, and the best way to maximise income is to fully exploit the bottleneck resource. Almost all TOC literature focuses on situations where 100% bottleneck utilisation is applied. Based on the implementation experience, the finding is that the optimal level of bottleneck utilisation should be less than 100% and any attempt to increase utilisation beyond the optimal level brings disastrous results for a door manufacturing plant. In order to improve and maintain the performance of the plant effective bottleneck management is critical. The experience provides a deeper understanding of how to design such plants, which could be beneficial for practising managers and academics working with TOC concepts.
Poly(styrene-graft-hyperbranched polyglycidol): synthesis and solution behavior of a hyperbranched polyelectrolyte

This work presents a three-step synthetic procedure to obtain a hypergrafted copolymer composed of a glassy backbone with flexible branched pendant segments. The desired hypergrafted structure was obtained by using a polyfunctional macroinitiator, linear poly(styrene-co-4-hydroxystyrene), to yield polystyrene-graft-hyperbranched polyglycidol with randomly placed branch junctions. Atomic force microscopy, dynamic light scattering, and viscometry probed the aggregation and viscometric behavior of the polymer in DMF and DMF–LiBr solutions. The polymer exhibited polyelectrolyte behavior demonstrated by a large increase in the reduced viscosity prior to neutralization with LiBr salt. Additionally, conformational changes were observed by dynamic light scattering in both the average aggregate size and aggregate population with the addition of LiBr salt.
Synthesis and stabilization of complex behaviors through online trajectory optimization

We present an online trajectory optimization method and software platform applicable to complex humanoid robots performing challenging tasks such as getting up from an arbitrary pose on the ground and recovering from large disturbances using dexterous acrobatic maneuvers. The resulting behaviors, illustrated in the attached video, are computed only 7 × slower than real time, on a standard PC. The video also shows results on the acrobot problem, planar swimming and one-legged hopping. These simpler problems can already be solved in real time, without pre-computing anything.
A History in 230 Trees

Presenting examples from the past 450 years, Pietsch surveys the use of branching diagrams to convey relationships among organisms.
Reoperative thyroidectomy in the treatment of thyroid carcinoma

Abstract The most common reason for reoperative thyroidectomy is to complete a total thyroidectomy in patients in whom a frozen-section diagnosis of benign adenoma proves to be carcinoma on permanent section. The secondary operation is frequently avoided because of the technical difficulties encountered at surgery and the fear of injury to recurrent laryngeal nerves and the development of permanent hypoparathyroidism. In a personal series of 1,182 patients operated on for thyroid carcinoma over a 40-year period, there were 140 cases with false-negative frozen section results (18.3% of frozen sections performed). There were 107 patients who underwent completion thyroidectomy. Additional foci of cancer were found in 32 patients (30%). The indications for reoperation, the operative findings, and the results of surgery are presented. The operative technique is described in detail. There was no instance of recurrent nerve injury or permanent hypoparathyroidism.
Laboratory deformation of granular quartz sand: Implications for the burial of clastic rocks

We explore the influence of mechanical deformation in natural sands through experiments on water-saturated samples of quartz sand. Stresses, volumetric strain, and microseismicity (or acoustic emission, AE) rates were monitored throughout each test. Deformation of quartz sand at low stresses is accommodated by granular flow without significant grain breakage, whereas at high stresses, granulation and cataclastic flow are dominant. Sands deformed under isotropic conditions show compactive strains with an inverse power-law dependence of macroscopic crushing strength on mean grain size. Triaxial compression at high effective pressures produces compactive strain and a high AE rate associated with considerable particle-size reduction. Triaxial compression at low effective pressure produces dilatant granular flow accommodated by grain boundary frictional sliding and particle rotation. On the basis of experiment results, we predict the evolution of porosity and macroscopic yield strength as a function of depth for extensional and contractional basins. Sand strength increases linearly with depth for shallow burial, whereas for deep burial, strength decreases nonlinearly with depth. At subyield stresses, porosity evolves as a function of applied mean stress and is independent of distortional stress. Our predictions are in qualitative agreement with observations of microfracture density obtained from laboratory creep-compaction experiments and with natural sandstones of the Gulf of Mexico basin. Mechanical deformation contributes as much as a 30% increase to fluid pressure evolution, which has particular application to sedimentary systems that display zones of fluid overpressure. Furthermore, deformational strains cannot be fully recovered during uplift, erosion, and unloading of a sedimentary basin.
Jean-Paul Sartre’s Philosophy of Freedom

It is now a commonplace in discussions of existentialism to distinguish between existentialism the fad, the darling of the Left Bank and of the sensation seekers, and existentialism the serious philosophical endeavor to explicate the categories and structure of man’s existence in its unique and immediate being. Nevertheless,. any discussion of the writings of Jean-Paul Sartre seems, like a tropistic reaction of a plant, to bend toward a confused admixture of ontology, ethics, psychology, literature, and publicity. It is beyond the scope of my present intentions to determine the reasons for the unclarified status of Sartre’s thought, but that lack of clarification may be taken as a starting point for an examination into the meaning of Sartre’s conception of existential freedom.
The myth and mysteries of Metamaterials — separating the facts from fiction?

In this paper we take a critical look at the emerging field of metamaterials, with a view to understanding their behaviors as well as performance-enhancement capabilities of small antennas. The objective is to see if we can sort out the facts from fiction, and if we can identify the directions along which we might profitably tailor our future research effort on metamaterials.
Is the Black Community More Homophobic?: Reflections on the Intersectionality of Race, Class, Gender, Culture and Religiosity of the Perception of Homophobia in the Black Community

This article examines the perception of homophobia in the black community. The author offers a context for answering this question that briefly explores the parameters for understanding the black community and the experience of black gays and lesbians within this context. No mention of homophobia as it relates to black people would be complete without addressing the impact of racism, sexism, class, and religious practices within the black community. The author gives a rationale for the prevailing assumption that gay and lesbian intolerance is higher among black people and explores at what cost and to what benefit. Recommendations are given for building a stronger and more cohesive black community.
Pathways leading to apoptotic neurodegeneration following trauma to the developing rat brain.

Abstract Trauma triggers diffuse apoptotic neurodegeneration in the developing rat brain. To explore the pathogenesis of this phenomenon we investigated the involvement of three possible mechanisms: death receptor activation, activation of the intrinsic apoptotic pathway by cytochrome c release into the cytoplasm, and changes in trophic support provided by endogenous neurotrophins. We detected a decrease in the expression of bcl-2 and bcl-x L , two antiapoptotic proteins that decrease mitochondrial membrane permeability, an increase in cytochrome c immunoreactivity in the cytosolic fraction, and an activation of caspase-9 in brain regions which show apoptotic neurodegeneration following percussion brain trauma in 7-day-old rats. Increase in the expression of the death receptor Fas was revealed by RT-PCR analysis, Western blotting, and immunohistochemistry, as was activation of caspase-8 in cortex and thalamus. Apoptotic neurodegeneration was accompanied by an increase in the expression of BDNF and NT-3 in vulnerable brain regions. The pancaspase inhibitor z-VAD.FMK ameliorated apoptotic neurodegeneration with a therapeutic time window of up to 8 h after trauma. These findings suggest involvement of intrinsic and extrinsic apoptotic pathways in neurodegeneration following trauma to the developing rat brain. Upregulation of neurotrophin expression may represent an endogenous mechanism that limits this apoptotic process.
Gauss elimination: a case study on parallel machines

The authors report their experiences with the Gauss elimination algorithm on several parallel machines. Several different software designs are demonstrated, ranging from a simple shared memory implementation to the use of a message passing programming model. It is found that the efficient use of local memory is critical to obtaining good performance on scalable machines. Machines with large coherent caches appear to require the least software effort in order to obtain effective performance. >
The Making of Union Democracy

S. M. Lipset, M. Trow and J. Coleman argue that the possibilities for significant and widespread union democracy in labor unions are slight. They base their pessimism on their understanding of where democracy is likely to develop : in unions with highly skilled and highly paid workers, with moderately sized units, and with autonomous subunits. Autonomous subunits are likely to develop only in small-scale and not in highly rationalized industries. Here the author reexamines the bases for this pessimism by comparing the highly democratic International Typographical Union with United Automobile Workers Local 600, which displayed equally impressive levels of democracy, but entirely different structural and political characteristics. This historical and comparative analysis is followed by an in-depth empirical analysis of the political processes within Local 600. The latter finds that while union factions based on Communist-influenced ideology acted as a boost to union democracy (measured here by the level of electoral contention), factions based on the more conservative Association of Catholic Trade Unionists acted to suppress high levels of electoral contention. Hence, factionalism's impact on union democracy depends in part on the ideological orientation driving it
The vacuolar DHHC-CRD protein Pfa3p is a protein acyltransferase for Vac8p.

Palmitoylation of the vacuolar membrane protein Vac8p is essential for vacuole fusion in yeast (Veit, M., R. Laage, L. Dietrich, L. Wang, and C. Ungermann. 2001. EMBO J. 20:3145–3155; Wang, Y.X., E.J. Kauffman, J.E. Duex, and L.S. Weisman. 2001. J. Biol. Chem. 276:35133–35140). Proteins that contain an Asp-His-His-Cys (DHHC)–cysteine rich domain (CRD) are emerging as a family of protein acyltransferases, and are therefore candidates for mediators of Vac8p palmitoylation. Here we demonstrate that the DHHC-CRD proteins Pfa3p (protein fatty acyltransferase 3, encoded by YNL326c) and Swf1p are important for vacuole fusion. Cells lacking Pfa3p had fragmented vacuoles when stressed, and cells lacking both Pfa3p and Swf1p had fragmented vacuoles under normal growth conditions. Pfa3p promoted Vac8p membrane association and palmitoylation in vivo and partially purified Pfa3p palmitoylated Vac8p in vitro, establishing Vac8p as a substrate for palmitoylation by Pfa3p. Vac8p is the first N-myristoylated, palmitoylated protein identified as a substrate for a DHHC-CRD protein.
Management of cancer pain

Summary Patients with cancer have diverse symptoms, impairments in physical and psychological functioning, and other difficulties that can undermine their quality of life. If inadequately controlled, pain can have a profoundly adverse impact on the patient and his or her family. The critical importance of pain management as part of routine cancer care has been forcefully advanced by WHO, internationlal and national professional organisations, and governmental agencies. The prevalence of chronic pain is about 30–50% among patients with cancer who are undergoing active treatment for a solid tumour and 70–90% among those with advanced disease. Prospective surveys indicate that as many as 90% of patients could attain adequate relief with simple drug therapies, but this success rate is not achieved in routine practice. Inadequate management of pain is the result of various issues that include: undertreatment by clinicians with insufficient knowledge of pain assessment and therapy; inappropriate concerns about opioid sideeffects and addiction; a tendency to give lower priority to symptom control than to disease management; patients under-reporting of pain and non-compliance with therapy; and impediments to optimum analgesic therapy in the healthcare system. To improve the management of cancer pain, every practitioner involved in the care of these patients must ensure that his or her medical information is current and that patients receive appropriate education.
Effect of Degradability of Dietary Protein and Fat on Ruminal, Blood, and Milk Components of Jersey and Holstein Cows

Abstract Twelve Holstein cows and 12 Jersey cows were used in six 4 × 4 Latin squares to investigate the effects of the degradability of dietary protein and supplemental dietary fat on milk components. Dietary dry matter contained 16% crude protein with two concentrations of ruminally undegradable protein (RUP) obtained by substituting blood meal for a portion of the soybean meal. Treatments were 1) 29% RUP, 0% added fat; 2) 29% RUP, 2.7% added fat (Ca soaps of fatty acids); 3) 41% RUP, 0% added fat; and 4) 41% RUP, 2.7% added fat. The dry matter of the total mixed ration fed at 1000 and 1400 h consisted of 30% corn silage, 29% alfalfa haylage, and 41% concentrate. Supplemental dietary fat depressed dry matter intake by 6.2%. Plasma urea N was greater at 0700 and 1600 h for Jerseys fed diets containing added fat and greater at 0700 h for Holsteins fed diets containing 41% RUP than for Holsteins fed 0% added fat and 29% RUP. When averaged across both breeds, milk production increased 7.1%, and production of 4% fat-corrected milk by Jerseys increased 8.4%, in response to added dietary fat. Milk protein was reduced when Holstein diets contained 41% RUP. Milk protein content was reduced 7.1 and 3.9%, and milk urea N was increased 4.9 and 8.5%, by added fat and 41% RUP in both breeds, respectively. Added fat reduced the concentration, but not the yield, of milk components. Substitution of blood meal decreased the concentration and yield of milk protein and casein N.
Seeing Touch Is Correlated with Content-Specific Activity in Primary Somatosensory Cortex

There is increasing evidence to suggest that primary sensory cortices can become active in the absence of external stimulation in their respective modalities. This occurs, for example, when stimuli processed via one sensory modality imply features characteristic of a different modality; for instance, visual stimuli that imply touch have been observed to activate the primary somatosensory cortex (SI). In the present study, we addressed the question of whether such cross-modal activations are content specific. To this end, we investigated neural activity in the primary somatosensory cortex of subjects who observed human hands engaged in the haptic exploration of different everyday objects. Using multivariate pattern analysis of functional magnetic resonance imaging data, we were able to predict, based exclusively on the activity pattern in SI, which of several objects a subject saw being explored. Along with previous studies that found similar evidence for other modalities, our results suggest that primary sensory cortices represent information relevant for their modality even when this information enters the brain via a different sensory system.
Design of a 30 kV power supply for capacitor charging using short duty burst mode

This paper describes a power supply designed for charging a 6.66 /spl mu/F capacitor to 30 kV in approximately 40 ms. The power supply should be capable of recharging the capacitor several times within a time frame of a few minutes. The primary supply would be a 500 VDC source, which could ultimately be supplied by a thermal battery. The major components of the power supply are a high-power inverter in H-bridge configuration followed by a step-up transformer. The switches for the H-bridge are high power isolated gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs). Control of the circuit is achieved by controlling the IGBTs by pulse width modulation (PWM). A microcontroller is being used to generate the required PWM signals. Use of the microcontroller provides a wide range of control flexibility and will allow for adaptation to the characteristics of the primary DC source. In order to minimize the volume of the transformer and at the same time limit the switching losses in the IGBTs, a switching frequency of 10 kHz was chosen. Circuit simulations show that 30 kV is reached after about 38 ms.
Colorectal Cancer Screening: Language is a Greater Barrier for Latino Men than Latino Women

Colorectal cancer screening (CRC) disparities between non-Latino Whites and Latinos remain, and may have increased. The goal of this analysis was to examine the association between Latino race/ethnicity, gender, and English-proficiency and CRC screening. Analysis of the CDC’s BRFSS 2008 survey. We estimated crude and adjusted screening rates and odds ratios of respondents’ reported CRC test receipt stratified by self-reported Latino ethnicity, gender, and limited English proficiency (LEP) as determined by language of survey response (English vs Spanish). Of 99,883 respondents included in the study populations, LEP Latino men had the lowest adjusted screening rates (48.2 %) which were lower that all other Latinos subgroups including Latina women with LEP (56.2 %). Compared to non-Latino White men, LEP Latino men were 0.47 times as likely to report receiving CRC screening tests (AOR 0.47; 95 % CI 0.35–0.63). Disparities in CRC screening are most dramatic for LEP Latino men.
The Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression: One Scale or Many?

The Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD) has emerged as a standard in the study of depression. However, despite its extensive use and the assumption that it is a single measure, integration of data produced in studies utilising the HRSD is difficult for several reasons. After a review of 688 relevant articles, tt was determined that approximately 42% contained referencing errors resulting in confusion over which administration procedures were actually implemented. Since its introduction, several alternate versions of the scale have emerged and alternate scoring methods, ad hoc revisions, or derivative versions of the scale have been applied. These and related problems with the HRSD are detailed along with suggestions for reducing the ambiguities that result from its continued use in depression research.
Compact representation of helium wave functions in perimetric and hyperspherical coordinates

Variational calculations of the ground-state energy of helium are performed using a basis set representation that includes an explicit treatment of the Fock expansion in hyperspherical coordinates. The construction of basis functions that have the correct cusp behavior at three-particle coalescence points and the evaluation of integrals containing these functions is discussed. The basis set in hyperspherical coordinates is added to a basis set consisting of products of Laguerre polynomials in perimetric coordinates. It is demonstrated that the use of Fock basis functions provides a substantial improvement in the convergence rate of the basis set expansion.
Block Asynchronous I/O: A Flexible Infrastructure for User-Level Filesystems

Block Asynchronous I/O (BAIO) is a mechanism that strives to eliminate the kernel abstraction of a filesystem. In-kernel filesystems serve all applications with a generic set of policies,do not take advantage of application-level knowledge, and consequently deliver sub-optimal performance to a majority of applications. BAIO is a low-level disk access mechanism that solves this problem by exporting the filesystem component of the kernel to the application level, thereby facilitating construction of customized user-level filesystems. The role of the kernel is restricted to regulating access to disk by multiple processes, keeping track of ownership information, and enforcing protection boundaries. All other policies, including physical layout of data on disk and the caching and prefetching of data, are implemented at application-level, in a manner that best suits the specific requirements of the application.