cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Significant Findings: Tracking the Seawifs Record with a Coupled Physical/Biogeochemical/Radiative Model of the Global Oceans

The Sea-Viewing Wide Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS) has observed 2.5 years of routine global chlorophyll observations from space. The mission was launched into a record El Nino event, which eventually gave way to one of the most intensive and longest-lasting La Nina events ever recorded. The SeaWiFS chlorophyll record captured the response of ocean phytoplankton to these significant events in the tropical Indo-Pacific basins, but also indicated significant interannual variability unrelated to the El Nino/La Nina events. This included large variability in the North Atlantic and Pacific basins, in the North Central and equatorial Atlantic, and milder patterns in the North Central Pacific. This SeaWiFS record was tracked with a coupled physical/biogeochemical/radiative model of the global oceans using near-real-time forcing data such as wind stresses, sea surface temperatures, and sea ice. This provided an opportunity to offer physically and biogeochemically meaningful explanations of the variability observed in the SeaWiFS data set, since the causal mechanisms and interrelationships of the model are completely understood. The coupled model was able to represent the seasonal distributions of chlorophyll during the SeaWiFS era, and was capable of differentiating among the widely different processes and dynamics occurring in the global oceans. The model was also reasonably successful in representing the interannual signal, especially when it was large, such as, the El Nino and La Nina events in the tropical Pacific and Indian Oceans. The model provided different phytoplankton group responses for the different events in these regions: diatoms were predominant in the tropical Pacific during the La Nina but other groups were predominant during El Nino. The opposite condition occurred in the tropical Indian Ocean. Both situations were due to the different responses of the basins to El Nino. The interannual variability in the North Atlantic, which was exhibited in SeaWiFS data as a decline in the spring/summer bloom in 1999 relative to 1998, resulted in the model from a more slowly shoaling mixed layer, allowing herbivore populations to keep pace with increasing phytoplankton populations. However, several aspects of the interannual cycle were not well-represented by the model. Explanations ranged from inherent model deficiencies, to monthly averaging of forcing fields, to biases in SeaWiFS atmospheric correction procedures.
Application of Structured Decision Making to Elk Archery Regulation Decisions in Montana

Prior to 2008, 22 hunting districts (HDs) in Montana had limited-draw, either-sex rifle permits, while the archery season was open for either-sex hunting to anyone possessing a general elk license. In addition, an unlimited number of hunters could obtain an either-sex archery elk permit in the 7 Missouri River Breaks HDs, where rifle hunting of bull elk is also limited. In 2008 the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (MFWP) Commission implemented limited-draw archery regulations in these districts. These regulations have been very controversial since they were implemented. Certain public sectors have argued fervently for changes to these limited regulations in every MFWP season-setting process since 2008, and legislation that would reverse these regulations was introduced and defeated in the last two legislative sessions. In response to the contentious debate on this topic, in 2011 MFWP staff and the Montana Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit facilitated a 10-citizen working group composed of landowners, public sporting interests and commercial/fee hunting perspectives. Using a Structured Decision Making (SDM) process, the working group developed a problem statement, fundamental objectives and assessed the performance of multiple archery season options relative to the fundamental objectives to arrive at an elk archery season proposal. In December of 2011 the MFWP Commission used these results as a basis for tentative season proposals that they distributed for wider public input and comment. Here we present the results of the SDM process and the working group proposal, as well as subsequent MFWP Commission action relative to the proposal.
Environmental Education—Ponderings From Down Under

This article describes and reflects upon Australia's extensive, federally-mandated, environmental education program. This program is based on a National Conservation Strategy which went into effect in 1989. But the program has massive support on the state and local levels as well. In addition to traditional classroom study of the environment and environmental issues, Audtralian Students do composting, re-vegetation of local canyons, and other hands-on activities. In many areas of the students' deatiledreports become the data base for the government's environmental monitoring program. A remarkable aspect of environmental education in Australia is the web of groups and individuals who are involved: local farmers, Aboriginal peoples, banks, local nurseries, and all levels of government, along with environmental organizations like Greening Astraila and Landcare.In contrast to Australia, the United States lacks a systematic educational program focused on the environment. The article concludes by summarizing th...
Excitation-Contraction Coupling in Skeletal Muscle

A historical approach is a simple way for reviewing the background necessary for discussions of the current concerns. 1947 is a convenient starting point; in this field, as well as in others, a number of contributions appeared two to three years after the war, that defined the field for years to come. Heilbrunn and Wiercinski [1] essentially demonstrated Ca2+ to be the second messenger that controls contraction, and proposed that Ca2+ entered the myoplasm from outside; A.V. Hill [2] demonstrated, with a simple diffusion calculation, the need for a propagation mechanism of activation, other than diffusion from the outside. This system was identified in the fifties: in 1958 Huxley and Taylor [3] suceeded in depolarizing localized regions of the membrane of a fiber with an extracellular electrode placed very close to the fiber, a predecessor of patch clamp. The depolarization only induced contractions (localized to the underlying zone) when the pipette was placed over the I band, but not over the A band. It is interesting that C. Franzini — Armstrong, when reviewing the field, always starts at this time. This result obviously motivated her, as it did other morphologists, to search for a structure underlying these localized effects. Her celebrated studies have a predecessor, closer to home, E. Veratti [4] who had described the T tubular system in 1902, using the Golgi staining technique. Apparently his contemporaries, when presented with the pictures, only said se non e vero e ben trovato, and ignored the result, wich was only exploited in the sixties and seventies by Franzini — Armstrong [4 bis], B. Eisenberg [5], L. Peachey [6] and others. Figure 1 shows a view of a thick transversal cut of a fiber bundle, with Golgi stain (Peachey and Eisenberg [7]), demonstrating how the T system effectively reduces the (diffusion) distances in the transversal direction to under a micrometer. As the morphological description of the T system progressed, so did that of the sarcoplasmic reticulum (Sr).
Factors affecting economics of using sexed semen in dairy cattle

The use of sexed semen in the dairy industry has grown rapidly. However, high costs and low fertility have limited the use of this potentially valuable tool. This study used simulation to evaluate 160,000 combinations of key variables in 3 spheres of influence related to profit feasibility: (1) market (e.g., milk and calf prices), (2) dairy farm management (e.g., conception rates), and (3) technology (e.g., accuracy of sexing). These influential variables were used to determine the most favorable circumstances in which managers or technicians can effect change. Three distinct scenarios were created to model 3 initiatives that a producer might take with sexed semen: (1) using sexed semen on heifers, (2) using sexed semen on heifers and a fraction of the genetically superior cows, and (3) using sexed semen on heifers and a fraction of the genetically superior cows, and breeding all other cows with beef semen. Due to the large number of management, market, and technology combinations, a response surface and interpretive graphs were created to map the scope of influence for the key variables. Technology variables such as the added cost of sexed semen had relatively little effect on profitability, defined as net present value gain per cow, whereas management variables such as conception rate had a significant effect. Milk price had relatively little effect within each scenario, but was important across scenarios. Profitability was very sensitive to the price of dairy heifer calves, relative to beef and dairy bull calves. Scenarios 1 and 2 added about $50 to $75 per cow in net present value, which ranged from $0 to $200 and from $100 to $300, respectively. Scenario 3 usually was not profitable, primarily because fewer excess dairy replacement heifers were available for sale. Dairy heifer price proved to be the most influential variable, regardless of scenario.
Cation-dependent gonadotropin releasing hormone activation of guanylate cyclase.

Gonadotropin releasing hormone enhanced guanylate cyclase [E.C.4.6.1.2] two- to threefold in pituitary, testis, liver and kidney. Dose response relationships revealed that at a concentration of 1 nanomolar, gonadotropin releasing hormone caused a maximal augmentation of guanylate cyclase activity and that increasing its concentration to the millimolar range caused no further enhancement of this enzyme. There was an absolute cation requirement for gonadotropin releasing hormone's enhancement of guanylate cyclase activity as there was no increase without any cation present. Gonadotropin releasing hormone could increase guanylate cyclase activity with either calcium or manganese in the incubation medium but more augmentation was observed with manganese. The data in this investigation suggest that guanylate cyclase may play a role in the mechanism of action of gonadotropin releasing hormone.
Mid-Infrared Gas Sensing For Combustion Applications

Progress is reported in the use of room-temperature, wavelength-tunable, solid-state mid-infrared (mid-IR) laser sensors for combustion and propulsion applications. Two such laser technologies have recently become commercially available: DFB tunable diode lasers near 2.7 μm and difference frequency generation (DFG) lasers near 3.3 μm. These lasers access the strong transitions in the fundamental O-H and C-H stretching vibrations as well as the ν1+ν3 and 2ν2+ν3 combination bands of CO2. These new laser sources provide the potential for sensitive detection of hydrocarbon fuels and combustion products H2O and CO2 in a wide variety of environments. Recent results in pulse detonation engines, laboratory flames, and shock-heated ignition experiments illustrate the potential of these tunable mid-IR laser sources for a wide variety of practical combustion applications.
Negatively Buoyant Plume Flow in a Baffle

Transient two-dimensional negatively buoyant flow into a straight adiabatic baffle beneath an isothermal circular cylinder is numerically simulated. The surrounding fluid is considered infinite in extent and at constant temperature. Governing parameters are the baffle width and the offset of the entrance of the baffle beneath the center of the cylinder. Overall characteristics of the flow and entrainment of the surrounding fluid are found to be dependent on the baffle offset; however, the attachment length of the flow to the baffle wall is relatively insensitive to the offset. Heat transfer rates to the cylinder are calculated for various times for various baffle offsets. There is a weak dependence on baffle-offset distance with heat transfer rate.Copyright © 2008 by ASME
Modeling of Single-Event Upset in Bipolar Integrated Circuits

The results of work done on the quantitative characterization of single-event upset (SEU) in bipolar random-access memories (RAMs) have been obtained through computer simulation of SEU in RAM cells that contain circuit models for bipolar transistors. The models include current generators that emulate the charge collected from ion tracks. The computer simulation results are compared with test data obtained from a RAM in a bipolar microprocessor chip. This methodology is applicable to other bipolar integrated circuit constructions in addition to RAM cells.
Non-visible defect detection in glass using infrared thermography and artificial neural networks

Defects in glass are a major problem in the manufacturing industry as these defects cause for recall and rejection of materials and products. Defects such as bubbles need to be detected early on in the manufacturing process in order to avoid loss of revenue for a company. Many of these defects are not immediately visible making them difficult to detect. In the past, methods have included embedding artificial defects within two layers of a different material, and then optical and visual methods have been used in order to classify and locate these defects. In this study an infrared camera was used in order to take images of non-visible artificial defect samples and understand the use of infrared technology for defect detection. This could then be used to locate and classify defects based on diameter and depth. Artificial Neural Networks were used to predict the sample classifications based on temperature variation, cooling rate, and the time at which the image was taken. Artificial Neural Networks showed to be a good prediction method for depth classification as it reached a 76% accuracy rate, whereas this method was not as effective for diameter classification. Results from this study produced a mathematical model for this range of data and showed that temperature variation amongst different depths of samples was higher compared to the temperature variation of diameter size. Artificial Neural Networks can therefore be used to classify a sample as defective or non-defective, and then the mathematical model presented can be used to estimate the depth of the defect.
Robotic telepresence: past, present, and future

Abstract : THE SCOPE of telemedicine defined as the use of telecommunications to allow caregivers to interact with patients and/or other caregivers operating at remote locations is very broad. For example, the Army s current telemedicine program, as described by Poropatich et al, encompasses a wide breadth of various forms of information that is transmitted and shared for the purpose of patient care, education, and other communication, from the transmission of dermatologic or radiologic images to real-time video telemonitoring support in the intensive care unit. For the purposes of this review, the discussion is limited to telemedicine that uses real-time video telecommunication capabilities.
The HNZ construction and the Z=0 condition for compositeness

Abstract It is proved that the Z = 0 condition relates two theories with a different number of basic fields in such a way that the vacuum expectation values of T- products of fields are the same on-shell and off-shell in both theories, with the possible exception of the two-point function of the composite particle for which an HNZ local field is constructed in one of the theories. The connection to the Bethe- Salpeter method is also discussed together with other problems related to the Z = 0 condition.
Cereal rust fungi genomics and the pursuit of virulence and avirulence factors.

Rust diseases cause significant reductions annually in yield of cereal crops worldwide. Traditional monoculture cropping systems apply significant selection pressure on the pathogen to cause rapid shifts in pathotypes. Plant breeders strive to stay ahead of the evolving pathogens by releasing new crop genotypes with new rust resistance genes or gene combinations. Owing to the limited number of known resistance genes and the lack of molecular understanding of the plant–pathogen interaction, rusts remain challenging organisms to study, both at organismal and molecular levels. This review discusses recent progress by a number of laboratories towards better understanding the molecular component of rust disease resistance.
Polarization-induced renormalization of the B1 elastic modulus in a ferroelectric liquid crystal.

Quasielastic light-scattering measurements are reported for a chiral smectic-C material as a function of enantiomer concentration and applied electric field. The elastic constant ${\mathit{B}}_{1}$ and associated viscosity have been determined. More importantly, it was found that ${\mathit{B}}_{1}$ is composed of a bare part ${\mathit{B}}_{1}^{0}$ and a polarization-dependent part \ensuremath{\propto}${\mathit{P}}_{0}^{2}$/${\mathit{q}}^{2}$. For q${10}^{5}$ ${\mathrm{cm}}^{\mathrm{\ensuremath{-}}1}$, the polarization-dependent term is much larger than ${\mathit{B}}_{1}^{0}$.
Insulin Regulation of Glucose-6-phosphate Dehydrogenase Gene Expression Is Rapamycin-sensitive and Requires Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinase

Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PDH) controls the flow of carbon through the pentose phosphate pathway and also produces NADPH needed for maintenance of reduced glutathione and reductive biosynthesis. Hepatic expression of G6PDH is known to respond to several dietary and hormonal factors, but the mechanism behind regulation of this expression has not been characterized. We show that insulin similarly induces expression of endogenous hepatic G6PDH and a reporter construct containing 935 base pairs of the G6PDH promoter linked to luciferase in transient transfection assays. Using well tested and structurally distinct inhibitors of Ras farnesylation, lovastatin and B581, and a specific inhibitor of mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase activation, PD 98059, we show that the Ras/Raf/mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway is not utilized for the insulin-induced stimulation of G6PDH gene expression in primary rat hepatocytes. Similarly, using well characterized inhibitors of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase, wortmannin and LY 294002, we show that PI 3-kinase activity is necessary for the induction of G6PDH expression by insulin. Rapamycin, an inhibitor of FRAP protein, which is involved in the activation of pp70 S6 kinase, blocks the insulin induction of G6PDH, suggesting that S6 kinase is also necessary for the insulin induction of G6PDH expression.
VP-PET: a new imaging modality?

It is unusual for a relatively mature field such as nuclear medicine to see an innovation akin to a new imaging modality. Although in its preliminary stages, the work by Tai et al. ( [1][1] ) on pages [471–479][2] of this issue of The Journal of Nuclear Medicine describes a novel concept that
Influence of Fat on Expansion of Glassy Amylopectin Extrudates by Microwave Heating

ABSTRACT The effect of solid fat (melting point 70°C) and liquid fat (melting point -20°C) on the microwave expansion of extruded glassy amylopectin pellets was investigated. Glassy, unexpanded amylopectin extrudates containing ≤10% fat were equilibrated at different water activity levels (aw) and then expanded by microwave heating. Expanded products were characterized by analyzing degree of expansion, structure, and texture. For the aw range studied, expansion increased with increasing aw of the pellets until a maximum at aw = 0.605 and then decreased. Completely dehydrated samples did not expand at all. This demonstrated that moisture was the driving force in the microwave expansion of the pellets. The addition of solid fat contributed greatly to expansion. The highest degree of expansion was obtained for pellets containing 6% solid fat at all aw levels. Due to the effect on expansion, the addition of solid fat also affected the microstructure and texture of the expanded products. Concentrations of soli...
Ability of Terminal QRS Notching to Distinguish Benign from Malignant Electrocardiographic Forms of Early Repolarization

Recent studies have suggested that early repolarization (ER) might be associated with up to 1/3 of idiopathic ventricular tachycardia/ventricular fibrillation (VT/VF) cases ("malignant" ER). We sought to identify electrocardiographic features to distinguish benign from malignant variants of ER. We reviewed the medical records for implantable-cardioverter defibrillators implanted at a single institution (1988 to 2008) to identify cases of idiopathic VT/VF. The electrocardiograms were scored for ER, defined as a >or=0.1-mV elevation of the QRS-ST junction manifesting as J-point slurring or notching in 2 contiguous leads. We also identified a cohort of 200 healthy age- and gender-matched controls with electrocardiographic findings previously identified as normal ER ("benign" ER cohort). Of 1,224 consecutive implantable-cardioverter defibrillator implants, we identified 39 cases of idiopathic VT/VF. Of the 39 cases, 9 (23%) demonstrated ER. During a mean follow-up of 7.2 +/- 4.6 years, the combined end point of appropriate implantable-cardioverter defibrillator shocks or all-cause mortality occurred less frequently in cases of idiopathic VT/VF with ER than in those without ER (11% vs 30%, odds ratio 0.29, 95% confidence interval 0.03 to 2.69, p = 0.40). A comparison of the electrocardiograms between those with malignant ER and controls demonstrated that QRS notching was significantly more prevalent among cases when present in leads V4 (44% vs 5%, p = 0.001) and V5 (44% vs 8%, p = 0.006), with a similar trend in lead V6 (33% vs 5%, p = 0.013). In conclusion, left precordial terminal QRS notching is more prevalent in malignant variants of ER than in benign cases. These findings could have important implications for risk stratification of patients with ER.
A guide to engineering workstations: how ICs impact workstations

The process employed by a group of workstation designers in creating a prototype for a high-performance, low-cost workstation is described. The design team moved an existing architecture-the precision-architecture, reduced-instruction-set computer (PA-RISC) design-into the realm of a low-cost desktop computer. The goal was to make a PA-RISC implementation suitable for a high-performance single-user workstation that would provide exceptional application and graphics performance, yet would also provide continuity with existing systems. It is shown how performance goals and design capabilities influenced decisions about what types of ICs should be used. >
Comparison of the transduction efficiency of tyrosine-mutant adeno-associated virus serotype vectors in kidney

Gene therapy has a distinct potential to treat kidney diseases. However, the efficient transduction of a significant number of renal cells by viral vectors has been difficult to accomplish. Previous studies indicate that adeno-associated virus (AAV) can transduce renal cells with variable and suboptimal efficiency. Because new and innovative mutants of AAV are now available, we compared their efficacy in transducing rat kidneys. We compared five types of AAV mutants (AAV2 mut-triple, AAV2 sextuple, AAV8 mut447, AAV8 mut733 and AAV9 mut446) carrying a green fluorescence protein (GFP) reporter gene. A pressure microinjection technique was used to inject either 1.5 × 10(11) vector genome (vg) AAV mutants or three dose of AAV2 sextuple into the renal cortex of rats. The microinjection approach has not been used in AAV-mediated renal gene transfer thus far. Slow and sustained microinjection enables continuous administration of the viral vector to the kidney cortex and limits any damage to the kidney, because the tip of a glass micropipette is very small. Three weeks after injection, the kidneys were collected and evaluated for GFP expression. Among the various mutated AAV serotypes studied, only AAV2 sextuple showed robust GFP expression in renal tissue. The AAV2 sextuple serotype appears to be an efficient gene transfer vector to preferentially target renal tubular epithelial cells. A combination of the AAV2 sextuple and the microinjection technique holds the key to the future of therapeutic treatments for kidney diseases.
Intrapulmonary Shunting in Primary Pulmonary Hypertension: An Observation in Two Patients Treated With Epoprostenol Sodium

Continuous intravenous infusion of epoprostenol sodium in selected patients with primary pulmonary hypertension improves symptoms and survival. This report describes two patients with primary pulmonary hypertension treated with epoprostenol in whom intrapulmonary shunting and severe hypoxemia occurred. Intrapulmonary shunting was confirmed by contrast echocardiography showing delayed appearance of bubbles in the left cardiac chambers after peripheral venous injection of agitated saline solution.
Efficient execution of dynamically controllable simple temporal networks with uncertainty

A simple temporal network with uncertainty (STNU) is a data structure for representing and reasoning about temporal constraints where the durations of certain temporal intervals--the contingent links--are only discovered during execution. The most important property of an STNU is whether it is dynamically controllable (DC)--that is, whether there exists a strategy for executing its time-points that will guarantee that all of its constraints will be satisfied no matter how the durations of the contingent links turn out. The literature on STNUs includes a variety of DC-checking algorithms and execution algorithms. The fastest DC-checking algorithm reported so far is the $$O(N^3)$$O(N3)-time algorithm due to Morris (Integration of AI and OR techniques in constraint programming--11th international conference, CPAIOR 2014, volume 8451 of Lecture Notes in Computer Science. Springer, Berlin, pp 464---479, 2014). The fastest execution algorithm for dynamically controllable STNUs is the $$O(N^3)$$O(N3)-time algorithm due to Hunsberger (Proceedings of the 20th international symposium on temporal representation and reasoning (TIME-2013). IEEE Computer Society, Washington, 2013). This paper begins by providing the first comprehensive, rigorous, and yet streamlined treatment of the theoretical foundations of STNUs, including execution semantics, dynamic controllability, and a set of results that have been collected into what has recently been called the fundamental theorem of STNUs. The paper carefully argues from basic definitions to proofs of the major theorems on which all of the important algorithmic work on STNUs depends. Although many parts of this presentation have appeared in various forms, in various papers, the scattered nature of the STNU literature has allowed too many holes in the theory to persist, and has relied all too often on proof sketches that leave important details unexamined. The presentation combines results from many sources, while also introducing novel approaches and proofs. The paper concludes by presenting a modified version of a recent algorithm for managing the execution of dynamically controllable STNUs, the fastest reported so far in the literature. The modified version organizes its computations more efficiently and corrects an oversight in the original algorithm.
Two-group drift-flux model in boiling flow

Abstract The two-group two-fluid model with interfacial area transport equation has been developed to improve the prediction of void fraction and heat transfer characteristics in two-phase systems. In the one-dimensional formulation, a closure relation is required for the group-1 and group-2 area-average local relative velocity. Furthermore, in the case of the modified two-fluid model with the gas-mixture momentum equation, the group-1 and group-2 void weighted gas velocities must be calculated with additional closure relations. The drift-flux general expression is extended to two bubble groups in order to describe the group-1 and group-2 void weighted gas velocities and area-averaged local relative velocities. Correlations for group-1 and group-2 distribution parameters and drift velocities are proposed and evaluated with a two-group boiling dataset taken in an internally heated annulus. The proposed distribution parameters show an average agreement within ±5%. The overall estimation of group-1 and group-2 void weighted gas velocities calculated with the newly proposed two-group drift-flux general expression shows an average agreement within ±16% of the measured value. The equations obtained for area-averaged relative velocity of group-1 and group-2 bubbles were simplified by neglecting covariance in void fraction. This assumption was compared with the experimental database and resulted in an average error within ±13%.
Unraveling future research: an analysis of emergent literature in open innovation

Breakthrough discoveries and productive collaborations are crucially important for successful open innovation, fuelling rapid generation of scientific knowledge, and making synthesis and analysis of this information difficult. Improved methods for identifying research gaps and emergent conceptual themes across open innovation research are necessary. The purposes of the study are (i) to present a novel methodological approach that utilizes centering resonance analysis (CRA) as its core text clustering engine to establish relationships and thematic patterns among diverse scientific literature pertaining to open innovation, (ii) to demonstrate this methodology in an open innovation context, (iii) to validate this approach, and (iv) to discuss the extensibility of the provided methodology to other contexts. Results show that thematic threads are consistent with recognized innovation research work, as well as highlight new threads that may be crucial in shaping future research perspectives. The authors believe that much can be gained from the proposed approach and from the use of computer-based tools to aid in the rapid development of the field of open innovation and its integration to wider-focused research on innovation. Keywords: open innovation; clustering analysis; literature review; future research (Published: 15 December 2010) Citation: Annals of Innovation & Entrepreneurship 2010, 1 : 5845 - DOI: 10.3402/aie.v1i1.5845
Patterns and dynamics of treeline advance on the Seward Peninsula, Alaska

[1] Boreal tree species are expected to invade tundra ecosystems as climate warms. Because forested ecosystems differ from tundra ecosystems in a number of climatically relevant characteristics, this advance of the altitudinal and latitudinal tree limit may ultimately feedback on regional climate. We used tree rings to reconstruct the response of the treeline ecotone on the Seward Peninsula in northwestern Alaska to 20th century warming. We further explored the sensitivity of the treeline ecotone to climate change using the spatially explicit, frame-based model ALFRESCO. Our reconstructions of forest response to past warming indicate that in upland tundra spruce have successfully established progressively farther from the forest limit since the 1880s. Shrub tundra has thus been converted to low-density forest–tundra within a band extending approximately 10 km from the forest limit. In lowland sites, where soil thermal and hydrologic properties are the primary constraint on tree distribution, trees began establishing in tundra after 1920, and establishment was restricted to areas that had experienced thermokarst activity in the past. Modeling experiments suggested that changes in disturbance regime and spruce growth response to climate may introduce strongly nonlinear responses to climate change at treeline. Field data and model experiments thus both indicate that large and nearly instantaneous responses to warming are likely at the treeline ecotone but that sensitivity to warming is likely to vary substantially over space and time.
Three-state surface hopping calculations of acetaldehyde photodissociation to CH3 + HCO on ab initio potential surfaces.

We report Trajectory Surface Hopping (TSH) calculations of CH3CHO photodissociation involving three electronic states, S1, T1, and S0, with a focus on the radical products CH3 + HCO, which can be formed from both T1 and S0. We use previously reported potential energy surfaces and spin–orbit couplings for T1 and S0 and report a new potential and spin–orbit coupling for S1 here. Roughly 32 000 trajectories are performed at energies corresponding to seven photolysis wavelengths between 372 and 230 nm. Motivated by recent experiments, we examine the branching ratio of the T1 to S0 pathways as a function of photolysis energy. We also present the relative translational energy and CH3 vibrational energy distributions from these pathways at a photolysis energy of 100 kcal mol−1, formed from both the T1 and S0 potentials. As with standard quasiclassical trajectory calculations, violation of zero-point energy for products also occurs in TSH calculations. This is shown to be a serious issue for this branching ratio and one of several methods considered to deal with this issue is shown to give satisfactory results.
The neurofibromatosis-Noonan syndrome

We report on two patients with clinical evidence of Noonan syndrome and neurofibromatosis. Four hypotheses to explain the simultaneous occurrence of both conditions are discussed.
Behavioural pharmacology of 6-hydroxydopamine

Abstract The long-term effect of 6-HDA on operant behaviour is schedule-dependent; normal response patterns are maintained on FR and FI schedules, while an increase in responding gradually develops on a VI schedule. This effect appears to be related to altered function of central dopamine-containing neurons. 6-HDA-treated rats are more sensitive to AMT, suggesting that CA-containing neurons surviving 6-HDA treatment participate in maintaining the normal patterns of responding observed on the FR and FI schedules. Maintenance of normal function may also involve the development of central denervation supersensitivity which, as indicated by experiments with l -dopa, occurs soon after 6-HDA treatment. The rate-decreasing effect of d -amphetamine is unaltered in 6-HDA-treated rats while the rate-increasing effect is attenuated, consistent with proposals that the rate-increasing effect is mediated by release of catecholamines.
Induction of metallothionein by zinc in lethal milk mutant mice.

Adult lethal milk (lm/lm) mutant mice display increased induction of hepatic metallothionein synthesis compared to wild-type mice following the subcutaneous injection of 40 µmol ZnCl2/kg mouse. At this zinc dose the rate of incorporation of |35S| cysteine into hepatic metallothionein in adult (100-to 230-day-old) lm/lm mice was approximately 2.4-fold greater than the rate of incorporation of isotope in wild-type animals. At a higher zinc dose (160 µmol ZnCl2/kg) the incorporation of |35S| cysteine into hepatic metallothionein was similar in lm/lm and wild-type mice. The altered dose-response to zinc administration was not due to a change in hepatic zinc, copper, or manganese levels, to a difference in 65Zn uptake, or to an alteration in 65Zn bound to differential centrifugation fractions of adult lm/lm liver. 65Zn bound to hepatic metallothionein was, however, increased in aging lm/lm mice with symptomatic skin lesions.
Embryonic-Fetal Toxicity and Teratogenic Effects of a Group of Methacrylate Esters in Rats

Monomers of five methacrylate esters and acrylic acid were administered at three dose levels to female rats on days 5, 10, and 15 of gestation. The incidences of resorptions, dead fetuses, gross abnormalities, and skeletal malformations are presented for each of these groups. Mean fetal weights also were determined for each group, and those of the monomer-treated groups were significantly smaller (P ≤ 0.01) than those of the untreated controls.
The role of phenolics in goldenrod ball gall resistance and formation

Some genotypes of Solidago altissima have been shown to exhibit a hypersensitive response to the tephritid ball gallmaker Eurosta solidaginis. When the gallmaker attempts to stimulate gall formation in these genotypes, necrotic tissue surrounds the larva and apparently causes larval death [Anderson, S. S., et al. (1989) Ecology 70, 1048]. Other genotypes have varying degrees of resistance or susceptibility [McCrea, K. D. and Abrahamson, W. G. (1987) Ecology 68, 822]. Studies of other host plants have shown that phenolic compounds can play an important role in this defensive reaction. To determine the role of phenolics in the resistance of S. altissima to ball gallmakers, weekly tissue samples were collected from two resistant and two susceptible clones, both with and without Eurosta attack. These samples were analysed for total phenolics using the Folin-Ciocalteau procedure. Phenolic content increased over time in all clones. In unattacked ramets, phenolic levels were higher in susceptible clones than in resistant clones. No evidence of an increase in phenolics was seen with a hypersensitive response, but a significantly higher concentration was found in plants that had initiated normal gall development. A second study of rapidly growing galls in three additional susceptible clones confirmed this increase in phenolics, demontrated that the higher phenolic concentrations were restricted to gall tissue, and showed that phenolic levels increase as much as five-fold in galls near their peak growth period. Increases in total phenolic levels were clearly not responsible for the hypersensitive reaction for resistance, but phenols could potentially play a role in gall formation by influencing the hormonal control of growth and/or in protection of the gallmaker from its natural enemies.
Local Struggles for Environmental Justice: Activating Knowledge for Change

ABSTRACT Environmental knowledge and how it is acquired and deployed are important features of local environmental politics in the US. This paper is an ethnography of a community-based participatory research effort for environmental justice in Phoenix, Arizona. Residents, professional community activists, and university-based researchers worked together to conduct a health and environmental concerns survey and monitor air quality in a low-income Latino neighborhood. Analysis of this case explores how neighborhood struggles for environmental justice can result in socioenvironmental change through the activation of knowledge in certain political-legal frames. The interpenetration of lay knowledge and expert knowledge during community-based participatory research is theorized to spur environmental justice action when enabled by political-legal structures, and subvert the supposed binary between science and advocacy. The role of the university in community-based participatory research is also examined. Cataly...
Preventing vertical HIV transmission in the year 2000: progress and prospects--a review.

In the USA, progress in the ability to eliminate vertical HIV-1 transmission that was unthinkable just a few years ago has been virtually achieved with fewer than 200 new cases of infant HIV infection reported in 1999. Nevertheless, critical research questions as well as public health challenges remain. New infant HIV infections continue to occur among women who did not obtain prenatal care or who were not offered HIV testing during pregnancy and innovative approaches are needed to address these barriers. The CDC-funded Mother-Infant Rapid Intervention At Delivery (MIRIAD) Study in five US metropolitan areas is one such approach that will test the feasibility of offering rapid testing to women presenting late in pregnancy or at delivery with undocumented HIV status. In addition, further research addressing the role of the placenta in preventing or enhancing in utero HIV transmission is needed. Internationally, new clinical trial findings provide hope that a short course of antiretrovirals can substantially reduce vertical HIV-1 transmission in resource-poor settings in the developing world where most paediatric HIV infections occur. Future research will focus on the role of post-perinatal exposure prophylaxis with antiretrovirals administered to the infant and on the prevention of postnatal transmission of HIV-1 through breast milk while maintaining adequate nutrition. A major challenge is to translate trial results into a coordinated public health implementation plan in order to maximally reduce mother-to-child HIV-1 transmission worldwide.
Isoelectric points of plasma‐modified and aged silicon oxynitride surfaces measured using contact angle titrations

Acid-base properties of metal oxides and polymers can control adhesion properties between materials, electrical properties, the physical structure of the material and gas adsorption behavior. To determine the relationships between surface isoelectric point, chemical composition and aging effects, plasma-surface treatment of amorphous silicon oxynitride (SiOxNy) substrates was explored using Ar, H2O vapor, and NH3 inductively coupled rf plasmas. Overall, the Ar plasma treatment resulted in nonpermanent changes to the surface properties, whereas the H2O and NH3 plasmas introduced permanent chemical changes to the SiOxNy surfaces. In particular, the H2O plasma treatments resulted in formation of a more ordered SiO2 surface, whereas the NH3 plasma created a nitrogen-rich surface. The trends in isoelectric point and chemical changes upon aging for one month suggest that contact angle and composition are closely related, whereas the relationship between IEP and composition is not as directly correlated. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Enthalpy recovery of poly(ether imide) : Experiment and model calculations incorporating thermal gradients

Enthalpy recovery data on poly(ether imide) from differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) is fit using the Moynihan−Tool−Narayanswamy model of structural recovery. A self-consistent phenomenological equation is used to describe the experimentally observed structure and temperature dependence of the relaxation time in both glass and equilibrium regimes. Temperature gradients in the DSC sample are calculated based on the thermal diffusivity of the material and are, for the first time, incorporated into the model calculations. When no thermal gradients are assumed, model parameters are found to vary with thermal history despite the use of the self-consistent equation for the relaxation time. There is also a discrepancy between experimental data and model calculations with respect to the shape of the DSC annealing peaks. Accounting for the presence of thermal gradients in the DSC sample is found to affect the values of the model parameters needed to fit the data. However, thermal gradients are unable to accoun...
Ego-motion compensation improves fixation detection in wearable eye tracking

The objective is an efficient means to improve the accuracy of detected fixations. The context is studies of natural behavior of subjects wearing eye trackers while observing distant objects. Fixation detection algorithms try to determine when the image on the retina is stable. Previous algorithms for wearable eye trackers consider only eye-in-head motion. In the presence of the vestibular-ocular response (VOR), however, the motion of the head counteracts eye-in-head rotation. Compensating for this ego-motion increases the number of detected fixations for all subjects. This compensation significantly affects the number and size of the fixations detected, more accurately reflecting mobile observers' natural gaze behavior.
Presynaptic spectrin is essential for synapse stabilization.

Summary Background: Precise neural circuitry is established and maintained through a regulated balance of synapse stabilization and disassembly. Currently, little is known about the molecular mechanisms that specify synapse stability versus disassembly. Results: Here, we demonstrate that presynaptic spectrin is an essential scaffold that is required to maintain synapse stability at the Drosophila neuromuscular junction (NMJ). Loss of presynaptic spectrin leads to synapse disassembly and ultimately to the elimination of the NMJ. Synapse elimination is documented through light-level, ultrastructural, and electrophysiological assays. These combined assays reveal that impaired neurotransmission is secondary to synapse retraction. We demonstrate that loss of presynaptic, but not postsynaptic, spectrin leads to the disorganization and elimination of essential synaptic cell-adhesion molecules. In addition, we provide evidence of altered axonal transport and disrupted synaptic microtubules as events that contribute to synapse retraction in animals lacking presynaptic spectrin. Conclusions: Our data suggest that presynaptic spectrin functions as an essential presynaptic scaffold that may link synaptic cell adhesion with the stabilization of the underlying microtubule cytoskeleton.
A model study of how electric field structures affect the polar cap F region

The ionospheric polar F region's response to a series of electric field structures is studied theoretically, modeling individual electric field structures as elongated two-cell Volland patterns. A semiempirical model of a single electric field structure is developed, and specific structure polar cap electric field models are described. The results of using these models as an input to the Utah State University time-dependent ionospheric model (TDIM) are presented. The implications of the results for present-day 'smooth' input simulations are considered.
Outcomes of a placebo run-in period in a head and neck cancer chemoprevention trial.

Abstract This study describes the outcomes of an eight-week placebo run-in period in a head and neck cancer chemoprevention trial. Of 391 former cancer patients who entered the run-in over the first two years of the trial, 91% were randomized. Pill counts showed that adherence rates ranged from 0% to 120% (mean 96%, SD = 15%). The trial did not randomize subjects who were no longer interested in trial participation (n = 20), who did not return within 10 weeks of enrollment date (n = 3), or who did not achieve a drug adherence level of at least 75% (n = 9). Three subjects were not randomized for other reasons. Univariate predictors of run-in outcome (randomized or not randomized) included ethnicity, education level, cancer site, cancer stage, and Karnofsky performance score. Multivariate analyses resulted in a logistic model with Karnofsky performance and education level as significant predictors of randomization. Persons with a Karnofsky score of 100 had 2.3 higher odds of randomization (95% CI = 1.1, 4.9) than persons with compromised Karnofsky scores, and persons with more than a high school education had 2.1 higher odds of randomization (95% CI = 1.0, 4.9) than persons with less education. These results suggest that the use of a run-in period may compromise the external validity of randomized prevention trials. More research is needed to understand further the behavioral factors underlying the observed differences so that prevention researchers can develop effective interventions for facilitating trial participation, especially in under represented, trial-eligible groups. Investigators should expand the objectives of a runin period to (1) evaluate why eligible persons refuse trial enrollment or fail to be randomized at the end of the run-in and (2) use the run-in period for a systematic evaluation of levels and costs of intervention strategies designed to promote trial enrollment and adherence.
A Solar Observatory on Long Island

A brief history of the solar observatory at Rocky Point, Long Island, New York, is presented herein. A topical semichronological account of the establishment of this observatory and the design and construction of the equipment follows. The results of the optical design and construction confirm our belief that the presently accepted tolerances (one-quarter wavelength limit, etc.) are too coarse and that all attempts at closer control of figure will be of benefit. A means of preventing mirror distortion due to exposure to the sun is described. The inter-relations between focal curve, emulsion sensitization, and filters are discussed. The excellent seeing conditions existing on Long Island and the observed meteorological situations accompanying the times of good seeing are described.