cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Recognition and management of the spectrum of acute laryngeal trauma.

Abstract Background Blunt laryngeal trauma frequently takes place in the setting of more significant injuries. In the setting of multiple injuries or, more importantly, as an isolated event, missed injuries to the laryngotracheal complex can have devastating results. More importantly, underestimation of the severity of injury can result in an airway that becomes quite difficult to manage. However, early recognition and management of laryngotracheal injuries can result in minimal morbidity and the need for minimal long-term intervention. Objectives Our goal is to heighten awareness of the severity of blunt laryngotracheal trauma and reduce both acute and long-term sequelae. Case Report We present a series of cases representing a spectrum of seemingly benign neck injuries requiring a diversity of interventions. The cases represent worsening gradations of laryngeal trauma, and the differing presentation, work-up, and management scenarios are discussed. Conclusions Expedient evaluation, treatment, and management of blunt laryngeal trauma results in favorable outcomes. Awareness of the potential for significant injury in the presence of benign examination based on the history of injury and confirmed by radiographic or endoscopic evaluation is paramount. Although minimal findings on examination and stable patients in the setting of blunt trauma to the neck may be as innocuous as it seems, the severity of injury may “lie beneath.”
On the products of lognormal and cumulative lognormal particle size distributions

Abstract The output distributions of particle size which would result when an input aerosol having a lognormal size distribution is passed through a size classifier (e.g. impactor) or control device (e.g. cyclone) having a cumulative lognormal penetration function are investigated theoretically. A computer program is presented for determining these (output) product distributions, their geometric mean sizes ( a′ 8 ), and geometric standard deviations (GSD'). The program was used for forty-five cases having different input aerosol size distributions and different functions of penetration vs particle size. These results are tabulated and used to form regression equations to facilitate predicting a′ 8 and GSD' for conditions not tabulated. The output geometric mean size ( a′ 8 ) is always smaller than the input ( a′ 8 ) and was highly correlated with it. The output aerosol geometric standard deviation (GSD') was also highly correlated with the input aerosol GSD and was never larger. Although the product size distributions are not lognormal, they are approximately so in many instances.
A syngeneic glioma model to assess the impact of neural progenitor target cell age on tumor malignancy

Human glioma incidence, malignancy and treatment resistance are directly proportional to patient age. Cell intrinsic factors are reported to contribute to human age-dependent glioma malignancy but suitable animal models to examine the role of aging are lacking. Here we developed an orthotopic syngeneic glioma model to test the hypothesis that the age of neural progenitor cells (NPCs), presumed cells of glioma origin, influences glioma malignancy. Gliomas generated from transformed donor 3-, 12-, and 18-month-old NPCs in same-aged adult hosts all formed highly invasive glial tumors that phenocopied the human disease. Survival analysis indicated increased malignancy of gliomas generated from older 12- and 18-month-old transformed NPCs compared with their 3-month counterparts (median survival of 38.5 and 42.5 vs. 77 days, respectively). This study showed for the first time that age of target cells at the time of transformation can affect malignancy and demonstrated the feasibility of a syngeneic model using transformed NPCs for future examination of the relative impacts of age-related cell intrinsic and cell-extrinsic factors in glioma malignancy.
Radiologic follow-up of patients with T1–3a,b,c or T4N+M0 renal cell carcinoma after radical nephrectomy

Objectives. To determine the pattern of disease recurrence after radical nephrectomy in patients with node-positive renal cell carcinoma (RCC) in order to design a schedule for subsequent radiologic evaluation. Methods. We reviewed the postoperative radiologic studies of 45 patients with T1–3a,b,c or T4N+M0 RCC enrolled in a prospective trial of adjuvant autolymphocyte therapy (ALT) after radical nephrectomy for node-positive disease. Chest radiograph and abdominal computed tomography (CT) were performed quarterly, and bone scan and head CT were performed every 6 months until disease recurrence, or earlier if clinically indicated. Time from surgery to recurrence and sites of recurrence were analyzed. Results. Twenty-nine patients (64%) had disease progression, with a mean time to progression of 14.9 months. Mean follow-up of patients without progression was 39 months. The sites of recurrence were retroperitoneal lymph nodes (n = 14), lung (n = 11), liver (n = 5), bone (n = 5), mediastinal lymph nodes (n = 4), renal fossa (n = 3), pelvis (n = 2), brain (n = 2), contralateral kidney (n = 1), retrocecum (n = 1), and skin (n = 1). Fourteen patients had recurrence at more than one site. Of the patients whose disease progressed, 59% did so by 12 months, 83% by 24 months, and 93% by 36 months. Mean time to progression in the ALT group was delayed compared with the observation group, but the sites of disease recurrence were not different between the two groups. Abdominal CT alone detected recurrent lesions in 79% of patients with progression, and the combination of abdominal CT and chest radiograph detected lesions in 100% of patients with progression. Conclusions. Abdominal CT with chest radiograph detects recurrence in all patients with T1–3a,b,c or T4N+M0 RCC whose disease progresses, and more than 90% of recurrences occur within the first 3 years after surgery. We recommend abdominal CT and chest radiograph every 6 months for at least 3 years and yearly thereafter in this high-risk group of patients.
General Approach for Free and Forced Vibrations of Stepped Systems Governed By the One-Dimensional Wave Equation With Non-Classical Boundary Conditions

Abstract A new exact general approach to study the free and forced torsional vibrations of a system with N -stepped changes in its properties, governed by the one-dimensional wave equation, and supported by N + 1 springs and dampers, and with concentrated masses has been developed. This approach is computationally efficient as it leads to a single equation for any N . The closed form frequency equations are presented for N = 1-4. The modifications required to apply this approach to the transverse vibrations of strings, longitudinal vibrations of stepped bars, longitudinal vibrations of partially embedded rods, elastically attached masses, repeated sections and torsional vibrations of coupled system of shafts are presented. The theoretical predictions were checked using simple and complex torsional vibrating systems, and they agree with the previous theoretical and experimental results and with the additional results obtained using a finite element method and a lumped parameter method. Results are also presented where a multi-stepped system was used as an approximation to a continuously changing system, and they agree with the previous results.
Toward Understanding How Cleavage & Polyadenylation Factor 6 Interacts with the HIV-1 Capsid Hexamer

The HIV-1 genetic material enters mammalian cells encapsulated in a shell made of capsid (CA) protein. Cleavage and polyadenylation specificity factor subunit 6 (CPSF6) is a 551AA/68kDa component of the cleavage factor Im complex (CFIm) that plays a key role in pre-mRNA 3'-processing. Researchers have shown that cytosolic CPSF6 (a truncation lacking the C-terminal RS-rich nuclear localization domain) stabilizes the HIV-1 virus core & restricts HIV-1 prior to nuclear import. Mutagenesis studies have identified CPSF6 residues 314 to 322, as being critical for HIV-1 restriction. A recent study has presented a crystal structure of the N-terminal of the HIV-1 capsid (CA-NTD) protein in complex with CPSF6: 313-327.In our study we present a crystal structure of the polypeptide CPSF6: 313-327 in complex with the complete HIV-1 capsid (CA) hexamer. Titration experiments based on fluorescence polarization anisotropy have been carried out which indicate that fluorescent labeled CPSF6 binds to the hexameric capsid eight times tighter than to the capsid NTD. This, in conjunction with anaytical ultracentrifugation titration experiments provides a greater insight into how CPSF6 binds the viral capsid and causes restriction.Funding: CPRIT (RP101491)View Large Image | View Hi-Res Image | Download PowerPoint Slide
Ballistic Diodes with Double Quantum Well Segments in Their Bases

It is shown that a current–voltage characteristic of a ballistic diode with space charge limited longitudinal electron transport through a quantum structure consisting of a double quantum well segment is of a multiextremum character with repeated N-shaped (or Z-shaped) parts.
Quantitative analysis of multi-particle interactions during particle breakage: A discrete non-linear population balance framework

Abstract Discrete linear population balance models have been widely used for comminution processes and particle breakage tests that involve a series of breakage events. The fundamental tenet of these models is the independence of particle breakage from the surrounding particle population. On the other hand, ample experimental data have shown that multi-particle interactions among particles of different sizes at the particle ensemble scale lead to a population-dependent breakage probability. In an attempt to analyze and model the multi-particle interactions, we formulate a time- or space-discrete and particle size-discrete non-linear population balance model using a recently introduced non-linear kinetics framework for rate-based comminution processes. The discrete model is developed as a limiting case and presented in equivalent matrix and index notation. The practical applicability, accuracy, and stability aspects of the model are discussed. With an empirical, flexible, non-linear functional accounting for multi-particle interactions explicitly, the proposed model can serve as a framework for quantitatively analyzing multi-particle interactions. Numerical simulations with a simplified discrete model have provided significant insight into the retardation effect of fines on the breakage probability of the coarser particles experimentally observed in dense-phase particulate systems such as particle bed compression tests.
Deletion of the N-terminus of SF2/ASF Permits RS-Domain-Independent Pre-mRNA Splicing

Serine/arginine-rich (SR) proteins are essential splicing factors with one or two RNA-recognition motifs (RRMs) and a C-terminal arginine- and serine-rich (RS) domain. SR proteins bind to exonic splicing enhancers via their RRM(s), and from this position are thought to promote splicing by antagonizing splicing silencers, recruiting other components of the splicing machinery through RS-RS domain interactions, and/or promoting RNA base-pairing through their RS domains. An RS domain tethered at an exonic splicing enhancer can function as a splicing activator, and RS domains play prominent roles in current models of SR protein functions. However, we previously reported that the RS domain of the SR protein SF2/ASF is dispensable for in vitro splicing of some pre-mRNAs. We have now extended these findings via the identification of a short inhibitory domain at the SF2/ASF N-terminus; deletion of this segment permits splicing in the absence of this SR protein's RS domain of an IgM pre-mRNA substrate previously classified as RS-domain-dependent. Deletion of the N-terminal inhibitory domain increases the splicing activity of SF2/ASF lacking its RS domain, and enhances its ability to bind pre-mRNA. Splicing of the IgM pre-mRNA in S100 complementation with SF2/ASF lacking its RS domain still requires an exonic splicing enhancer, suggesting that an SR protein RS domain is not always required for ESE-dependent splicing activation. Our data provide additional evidence that the SF2/ASF RS domain is not strictly required for constitutive splicing in vitro, contrary to prevailing models for how the domains of SR proteins function to promote splicing.
A new approach for event detection based on energy functions

This paper proposes a novel framework for event detection based on energy functions. The key idea is that any event (or disturbance) in the system will leave a signature (like a fingerprint) in Wide Area Measurement Systems (WAMS) data-sets. We show that signatures for four broad classes of disturbance events are buried in the components that constitute the energy function for the system. This establishes a direct correspondence (or mapping) between an event and certain component(s) of the energy function. Dynamic states required to compute the energy function are estimated with a particle filter. The estimated states along with wide-area phasor information from PMUs is used to reconstruct the components of the energy function. The individual components of the energy function are tracked dynamically and the sensitivity of these components is used to detect a disturbance in the system. Results show promising distinction between signatures of different events.
Leptomeningeal fibrosis and the delayed diagnosis of a central nervous system neoplasm (primitive neuroectodermal tumor)

We report a unique case of histologically confirmed meningeal fibrosis in a child who had progressive ischemic neurologic symptoms before the delayed diagnosis of an intracranial primitive neuroectodermal tumor (PNET) was made > 1 year after initial presentation. This pathology has previously been described after neurosurgical procedures, subarachnoid hemorrhage, cranial irradiation, and with no known etiology, but has never been reported in association with a central nervous system neoplasm. In a 6-year-old boy with headaches of several months' duration MRI demonstrated hydrocephalus, a right cerebellopontine angle cyst, and dural enhancement. Biopsies of the thickened meninges taken when the cyst was surgically fenestrated demonstrated only fibrosis with no evidence of infection, hemorrhage, or neoplasm. In the next 6 months, the child had two acute stroke-like episodes with alternating hemiparesis that gradually improved. There were ischemic changes in the diencephalon on MRI. Repeat dural biopsies were unchanged. One year after the initial operation, a left hemiparesis recurred and MRI demonstrated multiple intracranial masses in the cerebral cortex, cerebellum, suprasellar area, and cauda equina. After surgical resection, the cortical mass was found to be a PNET. All the lesions regressed after treatment with radiation and chemotherapy. We hypothesize that the meningeal fibrosis represented a "desmoplastic" reaction to an occult PNET, similar to the fibrous proliferation with cerebellar desmoplastic medulloblastoma except for the extent of the meningeal involvement and the long undetected parenchymal tumor. The mechanism of the ischemic brain injury was most likely vascular involvement by the fibrotic process, either directly or by predisposition to vasoconstriction.
Trypanosoma cruzi: of man, kissing-bugs, and frogs.

Abstract Doyle, P. S., Hsieh, I., and Engel, J. C. 1999. Trypanosoma cruzi: Of man, kissing-bugs, and frogs. Experimental Parasitology 95, 71–75.
Confinement effects in bulk supercooled liquids

Supercooled liquids are known to display heterogeneous dynamics, with slow and fast relaxation modes being independent and even spatially separated in dynamically distinct domains. In such a situation, it is imaginable that the very fast modes are surrounded by material that is practically frozen on the relaxation time scale of that fast mode. Here, we show experimental evidence of such a confinement effect. For the fastest few percent of all modes, equilibration appears to be linked to a common process (e.g. macroscopic softening), while the remaining majority equilibrate on the time scale of their individual time constant, as expected for heterogeneous dynamics.
Relational Commitment and the Silent Treatment

When upset with a relational partner, intimates often enact the silent treatment, although it can harm their relationships. This study investigates the degree to which relational commitment predicts a person's self-reported use of the silent treatment. Undergraduate daters indicated their relational commitment, their use of the silent treatment when upset with their partner, and what they do if the partner asks if they are upset. Relational commitment was negatively related to using the silent treatment and stonewalling when the partner asked if there was a problem. Relational commitment was only positively related to admitting being upset when the partner asked if there was a problem. Study limitations and future research implications are discussed.
Enzyme immunoassays with electrochemical detection

Abstract Electrochemical enzyme immunoassay (EEIA) is a recent innovation, a result of the advent of sensitive and reliable electrochemical detectors. Both voltammetric and potentiometric detection can be easily adapted to flow-through immunoassay procedures allowing rapid automation.
Progress toward the assessment of health status.

Abstract The distinction between medical care and health care is sharpened by a description of five features of current health status. In addition to current status, prognostic assessment based on known risk factors provides a second dimension of health. Together these features make up a health status profile. The Preventive Medicine Center of the University of Tennessee Center for Health Sciences has been evolving computer-assisted health status profiles that are problem-oriented, urgency-oriented, disease-clustered, and interpretation-programmed.
Fluorescence Correlation Spectroscopy of Single Molecules on a Chip

We demonstrate fluorescence correlation spectroscopy with single molecule sensitivity using planar integrated optofluidics. An analytic model to describe the diffusion characteristics inside liquid-core waveguides is developed and used to determine molecule concentration and mobility.
Taxation of International Private Capital Flows and Securities Transactions in Developing Countries: Do Public Finance Considerations Augment the Macroeconomic Dividends?

Abstract This paper examines policies to tax international private capital flows and securities transactions in developing countries. Many recent studies focus on the macroeconomic dividends associated with these policies (namely, their contribution to macroeconomic and financial stability and lengthened investor time horizons). In this paper I explore whether the potential of these policies to raise much‐needed tax revenues in developing countries augments their well‐known macroeconomic benefits. To my knowledge, there has been no effort to examine systematically the public finance issues related to the taxation of international private capital flows or securities transactions in the developing country context. I conclude that the public finance implications of these policies in middle‐income developing countries offers additional support to the macroeconomic case for them. To different degrees, taxation of international private capital flows and securities transactions has the potential to raise modest ...
Spectroscopic Studies of Tributylstannyl Radical. Rates of Formation, Termination and Abstraction Determined by Transient Absorption Spectroscopy.

Transient absorption spectroscopy (TAS) was used to measure the rate of formation and the rate of self-termination of the main group metal hydride, tri-n-butyltin hydride (Bu3SnH). Irradiation of di-tert-butyl peroxide in the presence of Bu3SnH generates the tri-n-butylstannyl radical (Bu3Sn•) by hydrogen atom abstraction. Analysis of the growth of the Bu3Sn• at 400 nm, corrected for radical termination, yields kH-abs = (3.5 ± 0.3) × 108 M-1 s-1. The extinction coefficient of the Bu3Sn• (e = 1620 ± 40 cm-1 M-1 at 400 nm), measured for the first time in this work, is 3.5 times greater than the literature estimate. The experimental value for e(Bu3Sn•) permits the quantitative measurement of the rate of Bu3Sn• self-termination (2kt = (3.6 ± 0.3) × 109 M-1 s-1) in benzene at 296 K. This experimental value is greater than previous literature estimates but less than predicted by the Smoluchowski equation (2kts = (4.4 ± 0.2) × 109 M-1 s-1) using our measured diffusion coefficient for tin hydride (D = (1.34 ± 0.0...
EMMPDL — an Electron Microscopy and Microanalysis Public Domain Library

Abstract The Electron Microscopy and Microanalysis Public Domain Library is a collection of computer software, information and data specifically directed toward microstructural characterization. Accessible by conventional telecommunications protocols, as well as via BITNET electronic mail, it is available free of charge to all members of the scientific community interested in submitting or retrieving software, information and data for the purpose of expanding scientific and educational knowledge in the application of microscopy and microanalysis into which ever fields of science they may be found to be applicable.
A MODIS approach to predicting stream water quality in Wisconsin

Abstract Efforts to predict water quality often rely heavily on static landuse/land-cover (LULC) classifications derived from remote sensing imagery. However, LULC classifications are infrequently updated, and the development of regular (annual) land cover maps that accurately capture intra- and inter-annual change may be expensive in terms of data and labor costs. In addition, existing land cover products may not include classes relevant to the assessment of water quality. Conversely, data from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instruments are freely available, preprocessed, frequently updated, and available in a range of useful data products. Our goal was to predict water quality for streams in Wisconsin, USA using a model constructed exclusively from MODIS products. We used streamwater nitrate and dissolved phosphorus data from 2001 to 2004 from two previous studies ( Robertson et al., 2006 , Stanley and Maxted, 2008 ) to evaluate the potential for using MODIS in an empirical model to predict water quality, thereby reducing reliance on possibly dated land cover maps. Using predictors derived exclusively from MODIS data products, we successfully predicted 80% of the variation in measured nitrate concentrations. Remote sensing based models explained 51% of the variation in dissolved phosphorus concentrations. Predictions of water quality were developed on both a per-pixel and a watershed basis. The remote sensing approach offers the potential for spatially continuous estimates of stream nutrient concentrations, and complements the suite of approaches currently used to assess water quality; including periodic stream surveys models, and point-source data.
Efficient derivation of the optimal mean-square binary morphological filter from the conditional expectation via a switching algorithm for discrete power-set lattice

Once designed, implementation of an optimal mean-square binary morphological filter is extremely fast, especially when the erosions are implemented on a suitable parallel processor. On the other hand, optimal filter design involes a computationally burdensome search procedure that can, in practice, be intractable. The present paper provides an algorithm for filter design that is based on the relationship between the optimal morphological filter and the conditional expectation. The algorithm proceeds by changing the conditional expectation into a morphological filter while at the same time increasing the mean-square error by a minimal amount. It does so by switching observations between the 1-set and the 0-set of the conditional expectation. The switching algorithm is extremely efficient in many noise environments, and therefore provides a filter design that can be useful for online structuring-element updating. Owing to the relationship between stack and morphological filters, the algorithm is at once useful for finding optimal binary stack filters.
Density heterogeneity in purified preparations of broad bean mottle virus

Abstract Purified preparations of broad bean mottle virus (BBMV), which appeared homogeneous in sedimentation and electrophoretic studies, exhibited two very close bands after centrifugation in CsCl. Only virus or purified ribonucleic acid (RNA) from the bottom band was infective. While some properties of the two components were found to be the same (base ratio, serological), a small difference in the amount of RNA (about 250 nucleotides) could account for the density heterogeneity. Evidence from sedimentation studies suggested that the missing nucleotides did not result in extensive fragmentation of the RNA.
The actin gene from Cryptococcus neoformans: structure and phylogenetic analysis

Using heterologous probing of a genomic library, we have cloned and sequenced the actin gene from the pathogenic yeast Cryptococcus neoformans. The actin gene is 1371 bp in length, and exists as a single copy, as is the case for all fungi studied to date. The locations of the introns in the C. neoformans actin gene are unique among all other known actin genes, and the deduced coding sequence results in a 375 amino acid chain with very high homology to other actins. A phylogenetic tree comprising 31 actin-coding sequences from a wide variety of organisms shows that the C. neoformans actin gene is grouped on a distinct branch together with all other known fungal actin sequences. The availability of the C. neoformans actin gene will aid future phylogenetic and molecular studies of this important human pathogen.
Dipole Moment and Structure of Thiophene Derivatives and Benzene Analogs

The dipole moments of 2-halothiophene, 2,2′-bithiophene, 2-thiophenecarboxylic acid derivatives, and the corresponding benzene analogs have been measured in benzene and in dioxane. Evidence is presented that the conformation in 2-thiophenecarboxylic acid derivatives has the thiophene dipole (which has the sulfur negative) opposed to the resultant dipole of the carboxyl or ester group. The conformation in 2,2′-bisthiophene is shown to be cis. In dioxane, there is more resonance interaction between the thiophene ring and the functional groups than between the benzene ring and these groups. The chemical shift and the coupling constant of the NMR spectra of the 2-halothiophenes and 5,5′-dihalo-2,2′-bithiophenes have been assigned.
Water Quality Issues in the North Central Region of the United States: A Teaching-Learning Model

The intensification of grain production in the North Central Region of the United States has affected the quality of both surface and ground water resources in the region and also contributed to hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico. This study revealed a lack of suitable educational programs to assist extension educators in understanding water quality issues. The purpose of this study was to identify the perceptions of extension educators in the North Central Region regarding water quality issues and subsequently to develop a teaching-learning model for educational programs focused on water quality in the area.
General attentiveness effects of discriminative training.

Using a design that permitted the simultaneous assessment of intra-, inter-, and extradimensional effects of discriminative training, the generality of discriminative effects that have been said to reflect increases in “general attentiveness” was assessed. Pigeons received either discriminative training with two stimuli correlated with reinforcement and one stimulus correlated with nonreinforcement, or nondifferential reinforcement (control) training. One positive stimulus was part of an intradimensional task and the other was not. After training, generalization tests were conducted to assess stimulus control along several dimensions. Discriminative training resulted in increased control along dimensions of the positive stimulus involved in the intradimensional task, but not along any dimensions of the other positive stimulus. The results suggested that discriminative training leads to increases in attention that are neither so general as suggested by the “general attentiveness” view nor so specific as to be revealed solely by intradimensional effects.
Sodium sulfide prevents water diffusion abnormality in the brain and improves long term outcome after cardiac arrest in mice.

Abstract Aim of the study Sudden cardiac arrest (CA) is one of the leading causes of death worldwide. Previously we demonstrated that administration of sodium sulfide (Na 2 S), a hydrogen sulfide (H 2 S) donor, markedly improved the neurological outcome and survival rate at 24 h after CA and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) in mice. In this study, we sought to elucidate the mechanism responsible for the neuroprotective effects of Na 2 S and its impact on the long-term survival after CA/CPR in mice. Methods Adult male mice were subjected to potassium-induced CA for 7.5 min at 37 °C whereupon CPR was performed with chest compression and mechanical ventilation. Mice received Na 2 S (0.55 mg kg −1 i.v.) or vehicle 1 min before CPR. Results Mice that were subjected to CA/CPR and received vehicle exhibited a poor 10-day survival rate (4/12) and depressed neurological function. Cardiac arrest and CPR induced abnormal water diffusion in the vulnerable regions of the brain, as demonstrated by hyperintense diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) 24 h after CA/CPR. Extent of hyperintense DWI was associated with matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP-9) activation, worse neurological outcomes, and poor survival rate at 10 days after CA/CPR. Administration of Na 2 S prevented the development of abnormal water diffusion and MMP-9 activation and markedly improved neurological function and long-term survival (9/12, P Conclusion These results suggest that administration of Na 2 S 1 min before CPR improves neurological function and survival rate at 10 days after CA/CPR by preventing water diffusion abnormality in the brain potentially via inhibiting MMP-9 activation early after resuscitation.
A programming framework for quality-aware ubiquitous multimedia applications

Ubiquitous computing promises a computing environment that seamlessly and pervasively delivers applications to the user, despite changes of resources, devices, and locations. However, few ubiquitous multimedia applications (UMAs) exist up-to-date. One of the main reasons lies in the fact that it is difficult and error-prone to build a UMA which is mobile and deployable in different ubiquitous environments, and still provides acceptable application-specific Quality-of-Service (QoS) guarantees. In this paper, we present the design and implementation of a novel programming framework, called 'QCompiler" to address the challenges. The framework includes (1) a high-level application specification for the application developer to easily write a UMA with specific quality, mobility, and ubiquity supports, (2) a meta-data compilation, which provides automated consistency checks, translations, and substitutions, to relieve the application developer from dealing with complex programming related to quality, mobility, and ubiquity, (3) a binding, which prepares a quality-aware specification to be executable, in a specific deployment environment, and (4)a run-time meta-data execution, utilizing the meta-data compilation's results, to manage and control a quality-aware multimedia application. As a case study, we apply the programming framework to build a mobile Video-on-Demand (VoD) application. The experimental results show tradeoffs between easiness and flexibility to develop and deploy UMA, and overheads during UMA instantiation and adaptation.
Dendritic morphologies of directionally solidified single crystals along different crystallographic orientations

Pb-2.2 wt% Sb alloy was directionally solidified along[1 0 0], [1 1 0] and [1 1 1] crystallog raphic orientations using pure lead single crystal seeds, with a positive thermal gradient of 140 K cm � 1 and growth rate of 10m ms � 1 , and then quenched. Longitudinal (parallel to the growth direction) and transverse microstructures in the mushy region and in the quenched portion ahead of the solidification front were examined to investigate the morphology of primary dendrites solidified along different crystallographic orientations. Transverse microstructures showed that for growth along [1 0 0] the primary dendrites had the usual four-fold symmetry due to side-branching; for [1 1 0] orientation, they appeared plate like; while for [1 1 1] orientation, a uniform distribution of nodes was observed. These observations confirm that side-branches in FCC metal alloys grow along / 10 0S crystallographic directions irrespective of heat-extraction direction. r 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
Thermally conductive polymer compositions

While polymers are widely used for their excellent insulating properties, there is a growing need for thermally conductive polymer compounds. The thermal conductivity of metal particle, mineral particle, and carbon fiber filled compounds are examined at volume concentrations up to the maximum packing fraction of each filler. From these data the coefficients in Nielsen's model were determined for each type of filler. Gaps in available thermal conductivity data were then predicted using these coefficients, the properties of the polymer and filler, and the volume concentration of the filler. Gaps were found to exist mostly for compounds containing short fiber reinforced compounds. A comparison of predicted values of thermal conductivity for such systems with the sparse data available shows that Nielsen's model cannot be applied to highly filled fiber reinforced composites because it cannot account for the anisotropy of such compositions.
Patchy and Multiregion Janus Particles with Tunable Optical Properties

Multiregion and patchy optically active Janus particles were synthesized via a hierarchical self-assembly process. Gold nanoparticles were assembled on the top surfaces of nano- and submicrometer silica particles, which were selectively protected on their bottom surfaces by covalent attachment to a copolymer film. The morphologies of the gold particle layer, and the resulting optical properties of the Janus particles, were tuned by changing the surface energy between the silica and gold particles, followed by annealing.
Increased levels of rat hepatic nuclear free and engaged RNA polymerase activities during liver regeneration.

Abstract Rat liver nuclei, seventeen hours after partial hepatectomy, showed a two to three-fold increase in total RNA synthesis in vitro over the sham operated controls. When tested with exogenous synthetic template, this was found to be mainly a reflection of increased levels of both the nuclear free and engaged RNA polymerase activities per se . It was also observed that there was a greater stimulation of the species of RNA polymerase that are α-amanitin resistant than sensitive (3.2 μg/ml). This observation was further confirmed by DEAE-Sephadex column chromatography of the solubilized nuclear free and engaged RNA polymerases and found RNA polymerase I and IIIa were the major species greatly stimulated during this period of liver regeneration. These data suggest not only that there exists a sensitive equilibrium between the nuclear free and engaged RNA polymerases; they also suggest the possibility that RNA polymerase itself may play a positive role in the regulation of gene expression.
Optimization of air vehicles operations using mixed-integer linear programming

A scenario where multiple air vehicles are required to prosecute geographically dispersed targets is considered. Furthermore, multiple tasks are to be successively performed on each target, that is, the targets must be classified, attacked, and verified as destroyed. The optimal, for example, minimum time, performance of these tasks requires cooperation among the vehicles such that critical timing constraints are satisfied, that is, a target must be classified before it can be attacked, and an air vehicle is sent to a target area to verify its destruction only after the target has been attacked. In this paper, the optimal task assignment/scheduling problem is posed as a mixed-integer linear program (MILP). The solution of the MILP assigns all tasks to the vehicles and performs the scheduling in an optimal manner, including staged departure times. Coupled tasks involving timing and task order constraints are automatically addressed. When the air vehicles have sufficient endurance, the existence of a solution is guaranteed.
Parameterized architecture-level dynamic thermal models for multicore microprocessors

In this article, we propose a new architecture-level parameterized dynamic thermal behavioral modeling algorithm for emerging thermal-related design and optimization problems for high-performance multicore microprocessor design. We propose a new approach, called ParThermPOF, to build the parameterized thermal performance models from the given accurate architecture thermal and power information. The new method can include a number of variable parameters such as the locations of thermal sensors in a heat sink, different components (heat sink, heat spreader, core, cache, etc.), thermal conductivity of heat sink materials, etc. The method consists of two steps: first, a response surface method based on low-order polynomials is applied to build the parameterized models at each time point for all the given sampling nodes in the parameter space. Second, an improved Generalized Pencil-Of-Function (GPOF) method is employed to build the transfer-function-based behavioral models for each time-varying coefficient of the polynomials generated in the first step. Experimental results on a practical quad-core microprocessor show that the generated parameterized thermal model matches the given data very well. The compact models by ParThermPOF offer two order of magnitudes speedup over the commercial thermal analysis tool FloTHERM on the given examples. ParThermPOF is very suitable for design space exploration and optimization where both time and system parameters need to be considered.
Selective extraction of pesticides from lipid-containing matrixes using supercritical binary gas mixtures

When supercritical carbon dioxide is used for extraction of trace compounds from lipid-rich samples, the resulting extract can contain a substantial amount of lipid coextractive which interferes in the subsequent chromatographic analysis. In this case, a cleanup step, which is time-consuming, is required in order to remove or reduce the lipid content in the extract. In this study, we report on a new approach for the extraction of trace compounds which significantly reduces the quantity of lipid coextractives, thereby eliminating the need for a sample cleanup step. An autoclave high-pressure reactor equipped with a mechanical stirring device was used for mixing gases, such as carbon dioxide and nitrogen, to generate the desired fluid mixtures. The composition of the mixtures could be adjusted by two mass flow controllers prior to the autoclave mixing device. The generated carbon dioxide/nitrogen binary mixtures were then employed to facilitate supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) at high pressures and elev...
Sworn to protect...implementing the security systems development life cycle into local law enforcement

This paper sets out to provide an example for local law enforcement agencies to use in order to develop a basic information security program. In conjunction with outside sources used to parallel some key points between other organizations, such as universities and non-profit agencies, the Security Systems Development Life Cycle is a methodology used as the basis for this paper. The information from outside sources suggests that universities and non-profit businesses have suffered from massive attacks to the vital information of their students and personnel. To avoid falling victim to a predator waiting to induce the same systemic damage that has plagued these organizations, local law enforcement agencies must begin to develop plans to protect themselves in ways not traditionally thought of. Just as these two organizations house personal and organizational information that could be damaging if compromised, so to do local law enforcement agencies. A local law enforcement agency concerns vast information on, not only personnel but, defendants, victims, and witnesses as well. These defendants, victims, and witnesses have a right to have their information protected. A compromise to information could be severely damaging to the reputation and morale of any local law enforcement agency. With the thought of a possible deviant lurking and waiting for the opportune moment to strike, the local law enforcement agency should be approaching a sound, viable, and holistic program for their defensive strategy---the Security Systems Development Life Cycle offers the framework for a much needed information security program.
Continuum percolation thresholds in two dimensions

A wide variety of methods have been used to compute percolation thresholds. In lattice percolation, the most powerful of these methods consists of microcanonical simulations using the union-find algorithm to efficiently determine the connected clusters, and (in two dimensions) using exact values from conformal field theory for the probability, at the phase transition, that various kinds of wrapping clusters exist on the torus. We apply this approach to percolation in continuum models, finding overlaps between objects with real-valued positions and orientations. In particular, we find precise values of the percolation transition for disks, squares, rotated squares, and rotated sticks in two dimensions and confirm that these transitions behave as conformal field theory predicts. The running time and memory use of our algorithm are essentially linear as a function of the number of objects at criticality.
Hydroxyproline Formation and Its Relation to Auxin-induced Cell Elongation in the Avena Coleoptile

A study has been made of the effects on hydroxyproline formation of 4 factors that influence the rate of cell elongation in the Avena coleoptile; auxin, sugars, an external osmoticum, and actinomycin D. Hydroxyproline formation is increased by a combination of auxin and sucrose, but is affected to a much lesser extent by either factor alone. Its formation is inhibited by an external osmoticum but is scarcely affected by actinomycin D. The lack of correlation between the amount of hydroxyproline synthesis and the growth rate suggests that hydroxyproline formation is not involved in the actual process of wall loosening. It is suggested, instead, that if the wall is to retain its capacity for rapid extension, those hemicelluloses which are incorporated into it by intussusception rather than by apposition must be attached to a hydroxyproline-protein.
Invasive Pneumococcal Disease in Infants Younger Than 90 Days Before and After Introduction of PCV7

BACKGROUND: Introduction of the heptavalent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV7) changed the epidemiology of invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD). We evaluated the changes that occurred after PCV7 introduction among Utah infants aged 1 to 90 days, too young to be fully immunized. METHODS: We identified children RESULTS: Of 513 children with IPD, 36 were 1 to 90 days and accounted for 7% of IPD cases in both the pre– and post–vaccine introduction period. The pre–vaccine IPD incidence rate was 5.0 per 100 000 live births, and was unchanged in the post–vaccine introduction period. IPD caused by PCV7 serotypes decreased by 74% (from 2.2 to 0.58 per 100 000), whereas non-vaccine serotype IPD increased by 57% (from 2.8 to 4.4 per 100 000). Sixteen infants (44%) required intensive care, and 3 (8%) died. Bacteremia without focus (56%) and meningitis (44%) were the predominant syndromes in the pre– and post–vaccine introduction periods, respectively. In the post–vaccine introduction period, serotype 7F was the most common serotype among infants and was responsible for 50% of meningitis. CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of IPD in Utah infants aged 1 to 90 days caused by PCV7 serotypes decreased after PCV7 introduction, but overall incidence was unchanged. In the post–vaccine introduction period, serotype 7F predominated in this age group and was associated with meningitis.
Proteolytic enzyme activities in a variety of snake venoms.

Summary The trypsin-like activity of twenty-five Crotalidae and Viperidae venoms was investigated using p -toluenesulfonyl- l -arginine methyl ester (TAME) and N -benzoyl- l -arginine ethyl ester (BAEE), with and without soybean trypsin inhibitor and ovomucoid. Since hydrolysis of these substrates was not inhibited in the presence of the two inhibitors, the enzymes present in Crotalidae and Viperidae venoms are not identical to trypsin. Chymotrypsin-like activity of thirty-three Crotalidae, Viperidae, and Elapidae venoms was tested using N -benzoyl- l -tyrosine ethyl ester and N -acetyl- l -tyrosine ethyl ester. Most of the venoms did not hydrolyze these substrates. Apparently, there is no chymotrypsin in these snake venoms. Thrombin-like activity was tested using both TAME and BAEE. None of the Crotalidae and Viperidae venoms formed fibrin from fibrinogen even though they hydrolyzed TAME. It is also concluded that the proteolytic enzymes in Crotalidae and Viperidae venoms are similar to each other, while those of Elapidae venoms are different. It is apparent from this investigation that there are new types of proteolytic enzymes whose nature needs further clarification.
Sustainability and the design of knowledge tools

The concept of sustainable development has gained widespread support over the last decade, with many organizations adopting it as an important goal. The motivation behind people's interest in sustainable development is the belief that current human activities may degrade the environment and cause serious negative consequences for human populations. These concerns are especially understandable when we consider that the current practices of industrialized countries will in the future be used to support an ever-growing population. What needs to be present in any useful discussion of sustainability is a rigorous application of both relevant theory and technological expertise. These are examples of knowledge tools which can be used to organize and give meaning to data, create and analyze concepts, and synthesize the two (data and concepts) to aid in decision making. The author offers some insights which may help in the design of knowledge tools for a sustainable civilization.
Thy-1+ Epidermal Cells Are Not Demonstrable in Rat and Human Skin

Recent studies have revealed the presence of a population of Thy-1+ epidermal cells in murine epidermis. These experiments were designed to determine whether analogous Thy-1+ cell populations occur in rat and human epidermis. Thy-1+ cells could not be demonstrated in epidermal sheets derived from rat and human skin or in epidermal cell lines, KB and A431. To date, Thy-1+ epidermal cells have been observed only in murine epithelia. The cellular equivalent of the murine Thy-1+ cell in other species remains elusive.
DNA polymorphisms in bovine fatty acid synthase are associated with beef fatty acid composition.

The objective of this study was to identify single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the thioesterase (TE) domain of the bovine fatty acid synthase (FASN) gene and to evaluate the extent to which they were associated with beef fatty acid composition. The four exons in FASN that encode for the TE domain were sequenced, and three SNPs, AF285607:g.17924A>G, g.18663T>C and g.18727C>T, were identified. Purebred Angus bulls (n = 331) were classified into three genotype groups, g.17924AA (n = 121), g.17924AG (n = 168) and g.17924GG (n = 42). The g.17924A>G genotype was significantly associated with fatty acid composition of longissimus dorsi muscle of Angus bulls. Cattle with the g.17924GG genotype had lower myristic acid (C14:0; P G and g.18663T>C, similar significant associations of fatty acid contents with the g.18663T>C genotypes were observed. In conclusion, the SNPs g.17924A>G and g.18663T>C may be used as DNA markers to select breeding stock that have a healthier fatty acid composition.