cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Reduced tumorigenicity of cultured neuroblastoma cells after treatment in vitro with dexamethasone.

Abstract The effect of dexamethasone on tumorigenicity of cultured neuroblastoma and on de novo synthesis of DNA and protein was determined. Within 12 hr dexamethasone caused a dose-dependent inhibition of [ 3 H ]-thymidine incorporation into DNA. Incorporation of [ 3 H ]-leucine into protein was not affected by dexamethasone. Neurite formation was interrupted by actinomycin D or cycloheximide. Cells treated with dexamethasone before inoculation into A/J mice produced fewer tumors with longer latent periods than controls. About 2.6 times as many neuroblastoma cells treated with 50 μ g/ml dexamethasone for 4 days were required for tumor development in 50% of recipient animals as compared to controls. Reduced tumorigenicity was dependent upon the length of treatment and the concentration of dexamethasone used. Cortexolone did not mimic the effects of dexamethasone. If, instead of inoculation, cells were replated and grown without dexamethasone, cellular aggregations appeared among the cells cultured in the absence of dexamethasone. By autoradiography, replated cells previously treated with ethanol displayed uniform incorporation of [ 3 H ]-thymidine, whereas replated cells from dexamethasone-treated cultures exhibited no incorporation in differentiated cells. However, incorporation was noted among the clusters. We hypothesize that tumors arising after dexamethasone treatment may be due to the presence of an unresponsive subpopulation of cells.
Youth and Political Change

In an attempt to understand the political behavior of young people, the authors of this study reported here have devised a score to reflect the extent to which young persons have changed from the political positions of their parents, traced the lines of political influence of their parents, peers, and mates, and examined the effects of youthful rebellion and mobility. The political behavior of young people is of particular interest both to social scientists and political practitioners. In an attempt to understand the behavior, the authors of the study reported here have devised a score to reflect the extent to which young persons have changed from the political positions of their parents, traced the lines of political influence of parents, peers, and mates, and examined the effects of mobility and youthful rebellion.
The Rossi Transition Curve for Small Angle Showers

Measurements have been made of 7\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{} and 28\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{} cosmic-ray shower production in iron up to thicknesses of approximately 320 g/${\mathrm{cm}}^{2}$. A comparison of the data here presented and measurements previously reported for 38\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{} showers leads to the conclusion that there is no significant difference in the ratio of counting rates at the first maximum of the Rossi transition curve to that under 200 g/${\mathrm{cm}}^{2}$ for either large or small angle showers. It is concluded that the processes which are responsible for the character of the transition curve under large thicknesses of material are not necessarily restricted to small angles.
Veterans with history of mild traumatic brain injury and posttraumatic stress disorder: challenges from provider perspective.

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has separate clinical structures and care processes for traumatic brain injury (TBI) and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, because veterans are returning from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan with TBI (most frequently mild TBI mTBI.) and PTSD, the VA needs to evaluate current service delivery systems. We conducted key informant interviews with 40 providers from across the United States who represented separate clinical teams providing specialized TBI or PTSD services. We identified challenges providers perceive in scheduling and engaging patients with co-occurring mTBI and PTSD (mTBI/PTSD) in treatment, determining the etiology of patients' presenting problems, coordinating services, and knowing whether or how to alter standard treatments. We found consensus that patients with mTBI/PTSD often have other morbidities requiring specialized treatment, including pain and sleep disturbance. Another important theme we found was the need for patient and family educational material on mTBI/PTSD or pain and mTBI/PTSD and provider education tailored to provider specialty. Together, findings point to the need for guidance for providers on best practices to assess and treat mTBI/PTSD given available information, a systematic approach toward patient and provider education, and research to build the evidence base for practice. Language: en
Low-order modeling of vehicle impacts upon boulders embedded in cohesionless soil

In this paper, a planar low-order model is presented for a vehicle impact upon a boulder embedded in cohesionless soil to examine the feasibility of using boulders as anti-ram barriers. The colliding vehicle is represented as a lumped-parameter Maxwell model, the boulder is treated as a rigid body with non-negligible mass, and the soil is represented as a system of lumped-parameter Kelvin models. The low-order model allows for the linear translation of the vehicle and boulder, along with rotational motion of the boulder. The model is validated against two full scale crash tests. Both tests were performed according to ASTM F2656-07 at an M30 rating using a 6800 kg (15,000 lb.) medium-duty sized truck. The low-order model is shown to be descriptive enough for impacts that result in small boulder motion to use in sizing of boulders for use as vehicular barriers. Language: en
Myopia Associated with Retionopathy of Prematurity

A complete analysis of the components of refractive error was performed on ten eyes of five patients with myopia and retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). In comparison to an age-matched control group, these eyes exhibited both lenticular and axial myopia. Only the high crystalline lens powers, which ranged from 22.20 to 44.13 diopters (D) (mean value, 31.27 D), were found to be statistically significant. In two patients, only one eye had high myopia. The lens power in these eyes was approximately 11 D more powerful than the lens of the fellow eye. Further investigation into the ocular changes induced by prematurity and abnormal oxygen metabolism is needed to determine the reason for the high degree of lenticular myopia.
A gauge invarlant approach to two-dimensional quantum chromodynamics

Quantum chromodynamics in 1 + 1 space-time is formulated in terms of gauge invariant phase operators; i.e., the Hamiltonian as well as other Poincare generators are written in a gauge invariant hadronic language without reference to the gluon and quark fields. A systematic method for computing the 1N expansion is given. Both the meson and the baryon sectors are studied in this context. It is shown that no infrared divergences appear at any step of the calculations.
Urethral sphincter morphology in women with detrusor instability.

Abstract OBJECTIVE: To determine whether sonographic urethral sphincter morphology is different in patients with detrusor instability than in those with normal urodynamic testing. METHODS: Patients from a population of women presenting for evaluation of urinary incontinence or pelvic organ prolapse underwent intraurethral ultrasonography before multichannel urodynamic testing. Maximal rhabdosphincter thickness, total urethral diameter, total urethral circumference, and longitudinal smooth muscle thickness, diameter, and circumference were measured. For patients with detrusor instability, the strength of the involuntary detrusor contraction and the bladder volume at its onset were recorded. These data were compared with information from history questionnaires and urodynamic evaluations. RESULTS: The 17 patients with detrusor instability and 16 patients with normal urodynamic testing did not differ with respect to age, vaginal parity, race, weight, body mass index, prior continence surgery, or maximal total urethral closure pressure. Patients with detrusor instability, had decreased urethral longitudinal smooth muscle thickness (3.0 ± 0.9 mm vs 4.1 ± 0.7 mm, P = .001), total urethral diameter (18.0 ± 1.6 mm vs 19.4 ± 1.4 mm, P = .01), and total urethral circumference (5.65 ± 0.5 cm vs 6.1 ± 0.4 cm, P = .012) compared with those with normal urodynamic tests. A linear relationship between rhabdosphincter thickness and strength of involuntary detrusor contraction was observed (r = .686, P = .002). CONCLUSION: Urethral sphincter morphology is different in patients with detrusor instability compared with those who have normal urodynamic tests. These findings provide an anatomic basis for the physiologic findings in patients with “urethrogenic” detrusor instability.
A socioecological perspective on primate cognition, past and present

The papers in this special issue examine the relationship between social and ecological cognition in primates. We refer to the intersection of these two domains as socioecological cognition. Examples of socioecological cognition include socially learned predator alarm calls and socially sensitive foraging decisions. In this review we consider how primate cognition may have been shaped by the interaction of social and ecological influences in their evolutionary history. The ability to remember distant, out-of-sight locations is an ancient one, shared by many mammals and widespread among primates. It seems some monkeys and apes have evolved the ability to form more complex representations of resources, integrating “what-where-how much” information. This ability allowed anthropoids to live in larger, more cohesive groups by minimizing competition for limited resources between group members. As group size increased, however, competition for resources also increased, selecting for enhanced social skills. Enhanced social skills in turn made a more sophisticated relationship to the environment possible. The interaction of social and ecological influences created a spiraling effect in the evolution of primate intelligence. In contrast, lemurs may not have evolved the ability to form complex representations which would allow them to consider the size and location of resources. This lack in lemur ecological cognition may restrict the size of frugivorous lemur social groups, thereby limiting the complexity of lemur social life. In this special issue, we have brought together two review papers, five field studies, and one laboratory study to investigate the interaction of social and ecological factors in relation to foraging. Our goal is to stimulate research that considers social and ecological factors acting together on cognitive evolution, rather than in isolation. Cross fertilization of experimental and observational studies from captivity and the field is important for increasing our understanding of this relationship.
Dynamic heterogeneity in miscible polymer blends with stiffness disparity: Computer simulations using the bond fluctuation model

The dynamics of athermal polymer blends with stiffness disparities are studied using computer simulations of the bond-fluctuation model. For mixtures of ten-mer chains, we see a difference in the temperature dependence of the diffusion coefficients of the two blend components for all blend compositions with appreciable amounts of the more flexible component. Hence, our model system can qualitatively capture the composition dependence of dynamic heterogeneity that is observed experimentally in miscible polymer blends. While blends of ten-mer chains display clear evidence for dynamic heterogeneity, the dynamics of the two components in blends of dimers are identical over the entire temperature range studied. Shorter chain systems experience smaller concentration fluctuations and smaller contributions from chain connectivity, suggesting that local concentration variations play a critical role in the dynamic heterogeneity that is observed experimentally in miscible polymer blends with weak interactions. The d...
Electrical and magnetic properties on different phases of YBaCuO single crystals

Abstract Electrical and magnetic measurements on oxygen-deficient Y 1 Ba 2 Cu 3 O 7−δ single crystals show three distinct superconducting phases. The properties of the 60 K superconducting phase suggest a Josephson coupling of a two-dimensional superconducting structure, probably associated with the double [CuO 2 ] layers.
Modeling of the Off-Axis High Power Diode Laser (HPDL) Cladding Process

Off-axis high power diode laser (HPDL) cladding is commonly used for surface quality enhancement such as coating, part repairing, etc. Although some laser cladding models are available in the literature, little has been reported on modeling of powder flow and molten pool for a rectangular beam with side powder injection. In this article, a custom-designed flat nozzle delivers the powder material into a distinct molten pool formed by a high power diode laser (HPDL) with a rectangular beam. A powder model is first presented to reveal the powder flow behavior below the flat nozzle. Key parameters such as the nozzle inclination angle, the rectangular beam profile, shielding gas flow rates and powder feed rate are incorporated so that spatial powder density, powder velocity and temperature distribution are distinctly investigated. Then in order to describe thermal and fluidic behavior around the molten pool formed by the rectangular beam, a three dimensional self-consistent cladding model is developed with the incorporation of the distributed powder properties as input. The level set method is adopted to track the complex free surface evolution. Temperature fields and fluid motion in the molten pool area resulting from the profile of rectangular beam are distinctly revealed. The effect of continuous mass addition is also embedded into the governing equations, making the model more accurate. A HPDL cladding with little dilution is formed and the simulated result agrees well with the experiment.Copyright © 2009 by ASME
Reliability of high power/brightness diode lasers emitting from 790 to 980 nm

This paper presents recent progress in the development of high power single emitter laser diodes from 790 nm to 980 nm for reliable use in industrial and pumping applications. High performance has been demonstrated on diode lasers from 790 nm to 980 nm, with corresponding peak efficiency ~65%. Reliability has been fully demonstrated on high power diode lasers of 3.8 mm laser cavity at 3 major wavelengths. We report on the correlation between photon-energy (wavelength) and device failure modes (reliability). A newly released laser design demonstrates diode lasers with 5.0 mm laser cavity at 915-980 nm and 790 nm, with efficiency that matches the values achieved with 3.8 mm cavity length. 915-980 nm single emitters with 5.0 mm laser cavity were especially designed for high power and high brightness applications and can be reliably operated at 12 W to 18 W. These pumps have been incorporated into nLIGHT’s newly developed fiber coupled pump module, element TM . Ongoing highly accelerated diode life-tests have accumulated over 200,000 raw device hours, with extremely low failure rate observed to date. High reliability has also been demonstrated from multiple accelerated module-level lifetests.
Occurrence of Plant Growth Inhibitors in Tropical and Subtropical Vegetation

Acetone, ethanol and water extracts of mature fruits of yaupon (llex vomitoria Ait.) inhibited germination of mesquite (Prosopis juliflora Swartz DC. var. glandulosa (Torr.) Cockerell and sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench). Extracts of guava fruit (Psidium guajava L.) inhibited cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) seed germination. Water soluble inhibitors were found in fruits, leaves, roots and bark of several tropical species representing 10 different families. Strong inhibition of cucumber seed germination and growth did not occur in sand when water extracts containing inhibitors were applied. Growth of corn, sorghum, cucumber and bean was reduced in soils collected beneath Malay apple (Eugenia malaccensis L.) trees. Plant growth-inhibitors occurred in all species studied in various plant parts, and some apparently affect the growth and ecology of other plant species.
A Conjecture Concerning the Ranking of the Sciences

Nineteenth century methodologists had a clear idea of how the sciences should be ranked. Open Volume II of William Whewell's The Philosophy of the Inductive Sciences (1840) at Part II, Book XI, Chapter 9 and you will find a chart with mathematics at the top, followed by mechanics and astronomy, down through chemistry, zoology, biology and psychology, and ending with natural theology. A familiar enough order, and one with which many would still agree, give and take a few sciences that have come and gone since the publication of Whewell's work. This ranking was not simply a British Kantian's prejudice. In Volume 1 of his Cours de Philosophic Positive, Auguste Comte provided a foldout chart displaying his own hierarchy of the sciences, again with mathematics at the head but now with social physics (later to be renamed with the classically hybrid neologism 'sociology' by Comte) at the foot. This ordering has proved to be remarkably persistent, for it is doubtful that a survey of randomly selected scientists taken today would produce an order much different from those of Whewell and Comte. To what does the order correspond and what explains its durability? Whewell had two views that lay behind his hierarchy. "The Classification of Sciences has its chief use in pointing out to us the extent of our powers of arriving at truth..." (op. cit., p. 277) and "It is to be observed also that in our classification, each Science may involve, not only the Ideas or Conceptions which are placed opposite to it in the list, but also all which precede it" (ibid, p. 279). Both of these criteria would nowadays require a good deal more argument to justify the ranking than they did to the early Victorians. With regard to the first criterion, their ebullient confidence in the wholesale truth of Newtonian mechanics has evaporated, and historicist characterizations of scientific method have made it difficult to make a persuasive case for a long-term return to the stability of true theories in the physical sciences. The second criterion, conceptual reduction, may seem more promising, but it is only that. Materialism has been a remarkably successful presupposition for most sciences, but it is physicalism that is needed to support the start of the hierarchy, and physicalism is a multi-faceted doctrine. Most commonly it is now taken to involve a thesis of linguistic reduction of a given (non-physical) theory to some theory of physics (or, more liberally, of physical science), l as for example in the characterization by Quine:
A decision support system for stochastic cost-volume-profit analysis

Abstract A decision support system for applying cost-volume-profit analysis in an uncertain environment is presented. Product mix programming problem is considered when the contributions of the products are stochastic in nature. Previous studies in this area have assumed that the product contributions are normally distributed and are independent of each other. These assumptions are relaxed in this paper by using four moments of the contributions. A decision support framework for CVP analysis with four moments is presented. The goal is to assist the decision maker in using multiple models and data sources for achieving different objectives. Various models needed for a flexible formulation of the decision problem are discussed. Components of the database and features of the dialog interface are presented along with a prototypical implementation.
Spectral feature analysis for assessment of water status and health level in coast live oak (Quercus agrifolia) leaves

Reflectance and relative water content (RWC %) were measured from a total of 306 coast live oak (Quercus agrifolia) leaf samples. The maximum (or minimum) first derivative (1D) and its corresponding wavelength position (WP) were extracted from 10 spectral slopes along each spectral reflectance curve. A correlation analysis was conducted between these spectral features (1Ds and WPs) and the corresponding RWC of oak leaves. An analysis of the variance of spectral features and RWC was also carried out between two health levels of oak leaves, healthy and infected. The results indicate that high correlations exist between some derivative spectral features (1Ds and WPs) and the RWC of oak leaves. With all 306 leaf spectra covering a wide range of RWC of oak leaves (including healthy, infected and newly dead), maximum (or minimum) derivative values at both sides of the absorption valleys near 1200, 1400 and 1940 nm and the WP of the right side of the 1200 nm valley and of both sides of the 1400 nm and 1940 nm va...
Disunity of Virtue

This paper argues against the unity of the virtues, while trying to salvage some of its attractive aspects. I focus on the strongest argument for the unity thesis, which begins from the premise that true virtue cannot lead its possessor morally astray. I suggest that this premise presupposes the possibility of completely insulating an agent’s set of virtues from any liability to moral error. I then distinguish three conditions that separately foreclose this possibility, concentrating on the proposition that there is more to morality than virtue alone—that is, not all moral considerations are ones to which some virtue is characteristically sensitive. If the virtues are not unified, the situationist critique of virtue ethics also turns out to be more difficult to establish than some have supposed.
A GUI based LIDAR data processing system for model generation and mapping

This paper presents a Graphical User Interface (GUI) system to process huge volume geospatial data acquired from LIDAR survey. This GUI system provides friendly user interface to display, edit and process LIDAR data. It also offers useful geospatial tool kits to process area of interest from a big data set. The processing results would be used for high quality digital elevation model (DEM) generation and mapping.
The Relationship of Participation in Sports and Physical Activity to Body Objectification, Instrumentality, and Locus of Control Among Young Women:

The primary purposes of this study were to assess the possible relationship of sports participation during high school to body self-objectification, instrumentality and locus of control, and to explore the possibility that different sports might be differentially related to psychological variables according to the perceived stereotypical masculinity or femininity of the sport. Two studies were reported herein. In the first, using 195 male and female students, we examined perceptions of sports according to emphasis on physical appearance and perceived masculinity/femininity. These findings were used in Study 2, which included 437 college women, to describe sports participation along dimensions of both extent of participation and the nature of the sports in which the individual participated. Extent of participation in physical fitness activity was also assessed. Participation in sports and/or physical activity was associated with higher scores on the body shame subscale of McKinley and Hyde's (1996) Objecti...
n-type vs. p-type semiconduction at high temperatures in oxide superconductors

Abstract n-type as well as p-type semiconduction occurs in both “123” and “214” classes of oxide superconductors at elevated temperatures (600–850°C) as exhibited in plots of thermoelectric coefficient vs. logarithm of conductivity (Jonker plots). The similarity in high conductivity intercepts indicates similar conduction parameters (density-of-states, mobility) regardless of material or sign of charge carrier. The Jonker plot is a useful means of investigating the gradual transition from semiconducting to metallic behavior in these systems.
Potent, novel in vitro inhibitors of the Pseudomonas aeruginosa deacetylase LpxC.

Deacetylation of uridyldiphospho-3-O-(R-hydroxydecanoyl)-N-acetylglucosamine by LpxC is the first committed step in the Pseudomonas aeruginosa biosynthetic pathway to lipid A; homologous enzymes are found widely among Gram-negative bacteria. As an essential enzyme for which no inhibitors have yet been reported, the P. aeruginosa LpxC represents a highly attractive target for a novel antibacterial drug. We synthesized several focused small-molecule libraries, each composed of a variable aromatic ring, one of four heterocyclic/spacer moieties, and a hydroxamic acid and evaluated the LpxC inhibition of these compounds against purified P. aeruginosa enzyme. To ensure that the in vitro assay would be as physiologically relevant as possible, we synthesized a tritiated form of the specific P. aeruginosa glycolipid substrate and measured directly the enzymatically released acetate. Several of our novel compounds, predominantly those having fluorinated substituents on the aromatic ring and an oxazoline as the hete...
Understanding the origin of radon indoors—Building a predictive capability

Abstract Indoor radon concentrations one to two orders of magnitude higher than the U.S. average of $ 60 Bq m−3 ( $ 1.5 pCil−1) are not uncommon, and concentrations greater than 4000 Bq m −3 have been observed in houses in areas with no known artificially-enhanced radon sources. In general, source categories for indoor radon are well known: soil, domestic water, building materials, outdoor air and natural gas. Soil is thought to be a major source of indoor radon, either through molecular diffusion (usually a minor component) or convective flow of soil gas. While soil gas flow into residences has been demonstrated, no detailed understanding of the important factors affecting the source strength of radon from soil has yet emerged. Preliminary work in this area has identified a number of likely issues, including the concentration of radium in the soil, the emanating fraction, soil type, soil moisture content, and other factors that would influence soil permeability and soil gas transport. Because a significant number of dwellings are expected to have indoor radon concentrations above guideline levels, a predictive capability is needed that would help identify geographical areas having the potential for high indoor concentrations. This paper reviews the preliminary work that has been done to identify important soil and building characteristics that influence the migration of radon and outlines the areas of further research necessary for development of a predictive method.
Upregulation of Estrogen Receptor-α Expression in Rabbit Cardiac Allograft

Estrogen receptor (ER) expression has been detected in different tissues, and estradiol-17beta treatment protects against experimental transplant arteriosclerosis. In this study, ER-alpha expression in the rabbit hearts and attached aortas before and after cardiac-aorta allograft transplantation was examined. Ten male New Zealand White rabbits were transplanted with cardiac-aorta allografts from male Dutch Belted rabbits. This transplant arteriosclerosis model uses a 0.5% cholesterol diet and immunosuppression with cyclosporin A (10 mg . kg-1 . d-1) until euthanatization 42 days later. The cardiac grafts with the attached aorta were harvested. Strong staining of ER-alpha protein was shown in the coronary arteries of the cardiac allografts by immunohistochemistry with the use of a mouse anti-human ER-alpha monoclonal antibody (ID5). In contrast, both the nongrafted hearts of the recipients and donor hearts expressed only weak staining. RNase protection assay with the use of a 32P-labeled ER-alpha antisense riboprobe (pOR 300) proved that the basal expression of ER-alpha mRNA is similar in the nongrafted aorta of both recipients and donors. A marked increase of ER-alpha mRNA was observed in the allograft aorta compared with the nongrafted aorta (289+/-69%, P<0. 02) by reverse transcription and polymerase chain reaction. The DNA sequence analysis confirmed that the polymerase chain reaction-amplified fragment corresponded to ER-alpha. This is the first observation of ER-alpha upregulation in the allograft vasculature and may relate to the allograft cardiovascular protective effects of estrogen.
Inflation and Social Structure: The United States in an Epoch of Declining Abundance

The analysis focusses on the market situations of the upper classes, the middle class, and some economically marginal groups, and attempts to answer the following questions: 1) Which groups and classes are most apt to bear the burden of unemployment, inflation and decreases in the rates of economic expansion? 2) What kinds of tensions and conflicts—and social resentments and hostilities—are apt to arise as a result of the differential distribution of the economic burden? What are likely to be the social and political responses—domestic and international—of the U.S. to a situation in which it can no longer assume an autonomous national economy?
Power quality concerns and solutions

The pipeline project discussed in this article involved building a new 70-m, 24-in diameter section of a petroleum products pipeline stretch and investigates power issues on a 2,500-hp pipeline booster station adjustable frequency drive. AFDs were originally intended only to be for soft starting, not for continuous use. The active front-end topology uses PWM switching of the rectifier, as well as a reactor/capacitor on the input, to limit harmonics being generated back in to power system.
Giving Voice to Black Children: An Analysis of Social Agency

In the last decade, a new sociology of childhood has made important contributions to our understanding of children as social agents shaping their daily lives in various contexts and situations. Although social difference and diverse childhood experiences hold a central place in these new paradigms, several researchers have noted the neglect of black 1 children in mainstream research agendas, with little attention paid to their lived experiences in social institutions. This conceptual paper begins with a brief discussion exploring the intersections between black children, marginalization and childhood studies. The following section reviews ongoing concerns implicated in the high presence of black children in public care. By applying theories about childhood to children in public care generally and specifically to black children, this paper advocates participatory approaches to incorporate new initiatives in working with black children in public care.
Erdheim-Chester disease: an unusual presentation of an uncommon disease.

Erdheim–Chester disease (ECD) is a rare, non-Langerhans cell histiocytosis with classic radiographic findings of patchy or diffuse osteosclerosis predominantly involving the long bones in a bilaterally symmetrical pattern. A 49-year-old woman presented with diffuse lymphadenopathy, painful skin lesions, and constitutional symptoms. Recent history was significant for a nontraumatic fracture of the tibia 3 weeks prior to admission. Physical examination and laboratory studies were notable for lower extremity pain and swelling, nodular lesions on the skin, and normocytic, normochromic anemia. Plain radiographs showed a lytic pattern of destruction with a superimposed fracture in the left proximal tibia. MRI showed focal bone marrow replacement extending from the subchondral bone to the tibial diaphysis. Excisional lymph node and skin biopsies of the lesions demonstrated a CD-68 positive, S-100 variable, and CD1a-negative histiocytic cell proliferation filling the dermis and completely replacing the sampled lymph node with an accompanying chronic inflammatory infiltrate and fibrosis, pathognomonic for ECD. We report an unusual case of ECD presenting initially as diffuse, painful lymphadenopathy, and subsequently demonstrating a lytic lesion of the tibia underlying a nontraumatic fracture.
Half or more of the somatic mutations in cancers of self-renewing tissues originate prior to tumor initiation

Although it has been hypothesized that some of the somatic mutations found in tumors may occur before tumor initiation, there is little experimental or conceptual data on this topic. To gain insights into this fundamental issue, we formulated a mathematical model for the evolution of somatic mutations in which all relevant phases of a tissue’s history are considered. The model makes the prediction, validated by our empirical findings, that the number of somatic mutations in tumors of self-renewing tissues is positively correlated with the age of the patient at diagnosis. Importantly, our analysis indicates that half or more of the somatic mutations in certain tumors of self-renewing tissues occur before the onset of neoplasia. The model also provides a unique way to estimate the in vivo tissue-specific somatic mutation rates in normal tissues directly from the sequencing data of tumors. Our results have substantial implications for the interpretation of the large number of genome-wide cancer studies now being undertaken.
Sequencing and characterization of the human thiazide-sensitive Na-Cl cotransporter (SLC12A3) gene promoter.

Abstract The thiazide-sensitive Na-Cl cotransporter SLC12A3 displays expression restricted to distal convoluted tubule cells where it catalyzes the uptake of sodium and chloride through the apical membrane. We sequenced 1959 bp of the 5′ flanking region of human SLC12A3, located the area of transcription initiation, and used deletion constructs of the flanking region to determine areas that affect reporter gene expression in two cell lines, MDCT and CHO. Amplification of the 5′ end of SLC12A3 cDNA from an adapter-ligated human kidney cDNA library demonstrated that transcription initiation is confined to an area from −18 to −6 bp upstream of the translation start codon. Maximum promoter activity (9.815 ± 0.864 times control) was observed in MDCT cells using a promoter containing 1019 bp of the 5′ flanking region. A promoter containing only 134 bp of the 5′ flanking region upstream of the translation initiation codon maintained reporter gene expression at levels equal to 75% of that maximally observed (7.375 ± 0.533 times control). Sequence analysis of this minimal promoter responsible for most of the SLC12A3 promoter activity revealed a TATA element, two Sp binding sites, a potential E box, and a potential binding site for NF-1/CTF or NY-I/CP-I. This promoter, and all other promoter constructs from SLC12A3, displayed repressor activity in CHO cells. A construct containing sequence 94 bp upstream of the initiation codon with two potential Sp binding sites was required for this repression. Protein–DNA interactions between the 182 bp region immediately upstream of the start codon and the nuclear proteins from rat kidney cortex and HeLa cells were examined to further clarify the role of the putative binding sites for SLC12A3 expression. Physiological studies investigating the effects of osmolarity, pH, and mineralocorticoid steroid on promoter activity demonstrated that the promoter activity was repressed by acidification, whereas no effects of increased osmolarity or deoxycorticosterone acetate addition were observed.
Food consumption by cabbage loopers infected with nuclear polyhedrosis virus

Abstract The effects of age, temperature, and dose on artificial medium consumption by healthy and nuclear polyhedrosis virus-infected cabbage looper larvae were measured using gravimetric methods. Instar in which lethal infection occurred was more closely related to subsequent food consumption than was larval age in days. Larval cabbage loopers, lethally infected in either the first or second instar, consumed 2% or less of their potential consumption. Larvae infected in the third instar consumed ca. 5% of their subsequent potential. In the fourth instar, this amount increased to ca. 10%. If infection occurred in the fifth instar, no significant amount of feeding was prevented. Increasing the virus dosage significantly decreased consumption and length of feeding period over the range of dosages tested. The relationship between consumption patterns of diseased and healthy insects remained constant over a 20–35°C temperature range.
Internet/Web systems development: what can be learned from hi-tech new product strategic planning

A DELPHI questionnaire study of the management problems of Internet/Web systems development was completed in 2001 and its results have been reported in the literature. The most important problems collectively consist of a cluster of problems involving Internet strategic planning and other strategy-related problems. This cluster includes 4 of the first 5 problems and a total of 7 of the top 16. Other recent research studies have reached similar conclusions about the high importance of strategy considerations in the field of high-tech product development, where strategic planning for new product development was found to be the top problem. High-tech product development occurs in a different operating (and usually mutually exclusive) environment from that of Internet/Web systems (Web systems) development in that the former involves R&D, engineering, and production activities and produces a (usually) physical product suited for the marketplace, whereas Web systems development creates systems for internal use by the developing company, using analysis and development tools and methodologies that differ significantly from those of traditional IT systems development. However, the new-product development activities and Web systems development activities also have a great deal in common: each takes place in a highly uncertain, rapidly changing, complex, advanced-technology environment that is difficult for other managers to understand and properly consider during the strategy planning processes. A large body of knowledge has emerged about strategic planning and management of new-product development, but no such body of knowledge has yet emerged with respect to Web systems development strategic planning activities. This article is directed to strategic planning management knowledge transfer from the high-tech product development arena to the field of Web systems development. The article first describes, and then compares the processes of both activities. Then considered is how high-tech product development planning and management practices can be used for Web systems development.
The Slovaks in the Habsburg Empire: A Struggle for Existence

The example of the Slovaks, next to the Ruthenians the weakest and least privileged people of the Danubian monarchy, is eminently fitted to the examination of Austria's ability to deal with the main problem of its modern political life, namely, that of the coexistence and possible reconciliation of its nationalities. One of the first to point out this fundamental issue for the continued existence of Austria with unusual clarity was Frantisek Palacký in his 1848 letter to the Vorparlament of the Frankfurt National Assembly. Far from being an expression of unreserved faith in the future of the monarchy, his memorable words on the necessity of the Habsburg state1 were dictated by political realism and foresight. Emphasizing the dangers of German nationalism and Russian imperialism, which he perhaps intentionally exaggerated,2 the Czech leader was fully aware of the political weakness of the small Slav nations who were only gradually establishing their national identity. It was for their sake that he gave a final expression to the policy of Austro-Slavism, seeking the salvation of the Austrian Slavs in the preservation of the monarchy. He endeavored, however, to give it a new raison d'etre based on the creation of a common defensive system for its individual nationalities in which all were to be given “complete equality of rights and respect.” While sincere, Palacký's support of Austria was neither unconditional nor devoid of a strong element of doubt. The nationalist policies of the Austrian Germans and the rebellious Magyars, whose chauvinism was only thinly covered by a veneer of liberalism, caused him to moderate his opinion in regard to the ability of the Austrian rulers to change the empire into a federal and democratic state. Thus, at the end of his Frankfurt message Palacký expressed only the hope that the Habsburg monarchy would not miss the opportunity to change into a state based on principles of justice, which alone could save it from disintegration.
Simulation of planar I/F networks with delayed connections

Studies the synchronization characteristics of a locally connected, planar network of (leaky) integrate-and-fire (I/F) neurons after Hopfield and Hertz (1995). Simulations were conducted using both the Java programming language and the MatLab prototyping language in order to detect implementation errors. Further, two different algorithms were used in the simulations. The first method was a standard numerical simulation using Runge Kutta methods. The second method was an event-driven algorithm generalized from Campbell et el. (1999). Both algorithms yield the same results. Visualizations were included to make qualitative behaviors visually apparent. We replicated the original Hopfield et al. simulation results in which periodic synchronous firing emerged. The Java software displays the activation level of each unit in the planar grid in real time. The software also displays the number of units firing per time step. Since the software runs in real time, the user can observe a movie of the network evolution simply by running the simulation. The main result obtained is that when small delays are introduced, synchronized firing takes the form of a traveling wave across the grid. When axon transmission was instantaneous, it was possible to achieve complete synchrony, but when small delays were introduced the largest amount of synchrony possible as less than 10 percent. With larger delays, the synchrony disappears entirely.
Enzymatic synthesis and purification of aromatic coenzyme a esters.

Abstract Two recombinant His-tagged proteins, a plant 4-coumarate:coenzyme A ligase (EC 6.2.1.12) and a bacterial benzoate:coenzyme A ligase (EC 6.2.1.25), were expressed in Escherichia coli and purified in a single step using Ni-chelating chromatography. Purified enzymes were used to synthesize cinnamoyl-coenzyme A (CoA), p-coumaroyl-CoA, feruloyl-CoA, caffeoyl-CoA, and benzoyl-CoA. Conversions up to 95% were achieved. Using a rapid solid-phase extraction procedure, the target CoA esters were isolated with yields of up to 80%. Structures were confirmed by analytical comparison with chemically synthesized reference compounds and electrospray ionization–mass spectrometry. The recombinant enzymes were stable for several months at −80°C, thus providing a reliable and facile method to produce these delicate biological intermediates.
Microtubular organization in elongating myogenic cells

Microtubule organization has been studied in serially sectioned myogenic cells in the tail muscle regeneration blastema of Rana pipiens tadpoles. In mesenchymal cells and in some premyoblasts, microtubules radiate from centriolar satellites in a cell center, while in more mature myoblasts and myotubes the centrioles no longer appear to serve as organizing centers for microtubules. In all elongate, fusiform myogenic cells, the microtubules are predominately oriented in the longitudinal axis of the cell. Counts of microtubules in transverse sections spaced at regular intervals along the cells show that the absolute number of microtubules is greatest in the thickened midregions of the cells and decreases relatively smoothly toward the tapered ends of the cells. Close paraxial association of microtubules (within 40 nm surface-to-surface) occurs along the entire lengths of cells but appears with greatest frequency in their tapered ends. In two myoblasts, serial sections were used to trace all microtubules in 8-µm long segments of the cells located about midway between the nucleus and one end of the cell. Since tracings show that as many as 50% of the microtubules terminate within the 8-µm long segment, it seems unlikely that any microtubules extend the entire length of the cell. It is proposed that lateral interactions between paraxial microtubules stabilize the overall microtubular apparatus and contribute to maintenance of the bipolar form of the cells. A three-dimensional model of the complete microtubular array in one of the 8-µm long segments of a myoblast has been constructed. The model reveals that a few microtubules within the segment are bent into smooth curves and loops that could be generated by sliding interaction between paraxial microtubules.
Identification of faulty links in dynamic-routed networks

The authors present a maximum a posteriori method to identify faulty links in a communication network. A designated network node with management responsibilities determines a fault has occurred due to its inability to communicate with certain other nodes. Given this information as well as the information that it can communicate with another specified set of nodes, one would like to identify as quickly as possible a ranked list of the most probable failed network links. The authors also indicate how the method might be extended to the identification of most probable faulty network resources in a more abstract (higher level) model of a network, including, for example, an object-oriented model. >
Consequences of Connection: Loneliness, Reading, and Robots

Modern communication technologies are reshaping the ways humans connect with one another as well as how we converse with machines of our own making. Our question in this essay is whether digital communication is changing the nature of conversation and, if so, what the implications may be for us as people. Our analysis identifies three sets of parameters for approaching these issues: linguistic (structure of conversations, communication medium, modulating the conversation to suit the perceived needs of our interlocutor, controlling the conversation), social (inner- or other-directed behavior, front stage or back stage behavior, strong or weak social ties, loneliness), and cognitive (level of intellectual engagement). We use these parameters to explore some of the linguistic, social, and cognitive consequences of electronically-mediated communication, of social reading onscreen, and of conversing with social robots.