cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Kinetic modeling of the H2O2 enhanced incineration of heptane and chlorobenzene

Abstract The addition of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) into a stream of heated air containing volatile organic compounds (VOCs), such as heptane and chlorobenzene, has been found to increase the destruction of those VOCs. Detailed kinetic models for the enhanced oxidation of heptane (44 chemical species, 144 reactions), and chlorobenzene (62 species, 212 reactions) were developed. The computer code CHEMKIN was used for the model simulations, and sensitivity analyses were performed using the code SENKIN. Additional thermodynamic data needed for the model were calculated using the group addition methods of Benson, and the computer code THERM. It was concluded that the H2O2 enhancement effect in the oxidation of heptane occurs by the thermal dissociation of the peroxide molecule, providing two OH radicals, followed by hydrogen abstraction of the heptane molecule by an OH radical. In the un-enhanced case the key reaction is the thermal dissociation of the heptane molecule into two radicals. For chlorobenzene the major VOC destruction pathway seems to be the attack of an HO2 radical to generate the phenoxy radical. The HO2 radicals are supplied by the peroxide indirectly, through OH radical attack on other H2O2 molecules, and by other downstream reactions. This is a plausible explanation for the experimental observation of the need for much higher concentrations of H2O2 with chlorobenzene than with heptane, and for the apparent delay in the destruction of chlorobenzene.
On the sign of the mass difference between the u and d quarks

We consider baryon magnetic moments and hadron mass differences to obtain evidence of the sign of the mass difference between the u and d quarks. At present, the theory of baryon magnetic moments is not sufficiently good to enable us to determine the sign reliably. All potential models we have considered require the d-quark to be heavier than the u in order to fit the meson mass spectrum, but we have not been able to rule out the possibility that a potential exists for which the opposite is true.
Techniques for high quality SiO2 films

We report on the comparison of optical, structural, and electrical properties of SiO 2 using plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition and ion-beam sputtering deposition. High-quality, low-temperature deposition of SiO 2 by ion-beam sputtering deposition is shown to have lower absorption, smoother and more densely packed films, a lower amount of fixed oxide charges, and a lower trapped-interface density than SiO 2 by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition. This high-quality SiO 2 is then demonstrated as an excellent electrical and mechanical surface passivation layer on Type-II InAs/GaSb photodetectors. The device performance improved by at least two orders of magnitude in surface resistivity, trap density, and zero-bias resistance-area product. The passivation layer also allows the device the ability to withstand the reflow and curing of underfill epoxy.
Direct algorithm for computation of derivatives of the Daubechies basis functions

Abstract We extend the direct algorithm for computing the derivatives of the compactly supported Daubechies N -vanishing-moment basis functions. The method yields exact values at dyadic rationals for the n th derivative (0 ⩽ n ⩽ N − 1) of the basis functions, when it exists. Example results are shown for the first derivatives of the basis functions from the Daubechies N -vanishing-moment extremal phase orthonormal family (for N = 3, 4, and 5), and the CDF(2, N ) spline-based biorthogonal family (for N = 6, 8, and 10).
Guayule as a feedstock for lignocellulosic biorefineries using ammonia fiber expansion (AFEX) pretreatment

Abstract Natural rubber latex extraction from guayule leaves behind greater than 90% (by weight) of agricultural residue as a feedstock suitable for conversion to biofuels via a thermochemical or biochemical route. Untreated guayule shrub and bagasse (after latex extraction) has shown to be very recalcitrant to enzymatic hydrolysis, necessitating application of a chemical pretreatment to enhance cellulase accessibility. The objective of this work was to carry out detailed compositional analysis, ammonia fiber expansion (AFEX 1 ) pretreatment, enzymatic hydrolysis and ethanol fermentation for various guayule-derived biomass fractions. Plant feedstocks tested were derived from two sources; (a) a mature 2007 AZ-2 whole guayule shrub plant obtained from USDA/ARS 2 research fields, and (b) the guayule latex-extracted commercial grade bagasse (62505) from Yulex Corporation. Compositional analysis and enzymatic hydrolysis were carried out using standard NREL 3 protocols ( www.nrel.gov/biomass/analytical_procedures.html ). AFEX pretreatment was carried out using concentrated ammonium hydroxide at elevated temperatures for desired residence times in a pressurized reactor. Yeast fermentations on biomass hydrolyzates were carried out micro-aerobically using Saccharomyces cerevisiae (424A strain) in shake flasks. AFEX pretreatment was found to substantially improve overall enzymatic digestibility by 4–20 fold for both untreated guayule shrub and latex-extracted bagasse. Maximum glucan and xylan conversion achieved for the latex-extracted bagasse was 40% and 50%, respectively. The yeast was readily able to ferment both glucose and xylose to ethanol from the guayule bagasse hydrolyzate with or without external nutrient supplementation (i.e., yeast extract and tryptone). Our results highlight the possible utilization of guayule as a feedstock for lignocellulosic refineries co-producing natural rubber latex and biofuels. However, further process improvements (e.g., lignin/resin extraction and cellulose decrystallization using a modified AFEX process) are necessary to increase the effectiveness of ammonia-based pretreatments for further enhancing enzymatic digestibility of guayule-derived hardwood biomass.
The platform for adipose tissue expansion during positive energy balance.

Studies in adipose tissue gene expression and histology have focused largely on cross-sectional studies examining associations with measured metabolic parameters. These studies have contributed to our understanding of adipose tissue as a more active endocrine organ than previously envisioned. Yet, adipose tissue has the capacity to expand and contract more rapidly than other organs. Understanding the changes that occur with adipose tissue expansion/reduction may be crucial to preventing weight gain and aiding weight loss and maintenance. The study by Alligier et al. (1) in this issue of the JCEM examined early (at 14 d) and later (at 56 d) changes in whole adipose tissue gene expression and histology in individuals undergoing overfeeding. Not surprisingly, genes associated with lipid and fatty acid biosynthesis were increased early in overfeeding. The more compelling findings were those after 8 wk of overfeeding that demonstrated up-regulation of pathways involved in angiogenesis, extracellular matrix deposition, and the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) along with down-regulation of the cellular nutrient-sensing β-catenin-dependent Wnt pathway.
Effect of age on hypertrophy of the rat heart following infarction.

To separate the physiologic process of growth from the pathologic process of hypertrophy in rat hearts with myocardial infarction, we compared 32 young, actively-growing rats (initial age 7 weeks) with 45 mature, slowly-growing rats (initial age 18 wecks). Animals were sacrificed five weeks after induction of infarction. During this period, young animals had a 58% increase in body weight and mature animals an 8% increase (p 0.2). Therefore, cardiac hypertrophy following infarction in rats is not dependent upon age.
RF-MEMS resonator design for parameter characterization

A unique methodology involving Bulk Acoustic Wave (BAW) Solidly Mounted Resonators (SMRs) is presented in this paper which can be used to extract precise materials information that is vital to designing high performance RF filters. The novel approach allows simultaneous extraction of multiple parameters for multiple materials. Changes in materials properties over temperature can also be extracted.
Metaphor, mythology, and everyday language

Abstract It has long been a familiar fact that mythologies involve metaphorical and symbolic structures. This paper will attempt to expose some of the relationships between those structures and the metaphorical structures commonly found in everyday language. Although this is part of a project which will eventually involve more crosscultural comparison, I intend to focus here on one particular and well-documented mythological tradition within the Indo-European linguistic and cultural community: namely, classical Greek mythology. It will become evident that this tradition has startling parallels with everyday metaphorical structures even in such a distant branch of Indo-European as English.
Jesus in History and in Faith

ASIGNIFICANT trend of thought in German biblical scholarship today is challenging us to a renewed effort to recover the real Jesus, Jesus as he actually was in ancient Palestine. It is being said that the enterprise can be successful and that it is important for faith. What makes this so interesting is that the proponents of this point of view are, generally speaking, the very scholars who a short time back discounted both the possibility and the importance of the quest of the historical Jesus. They are either pupils of Rudolf Bultmann, the leading skeptic in this area, or scholars who have been influenced by him. Even Bultmann himself is now making concessions to this new trend. It is not our purpose here to review this development. That work has been adequately done by others.1 Our purpose is rather to address ourselves to two questions which are involved in the subject of the quest of the historical Jesus. The first asks why it is important to seek to confront the earthly Jesus in the interests of a vital faith in him today. The second, growing out of that, enquires into what it is that the scholar can contribute to the layman in this area.
Patterns of bursting occurring in thalamic cells during parkinsonian tremor

It has been proposed that parkinsonian tremor is produced either by the activity of an intrinsic thalamic pacemaker or by the oscillation of an unstable long loop reflex arc. The former (central) hypothesis proposes that overactivity of neurons in the internal segment of the globus pallidus inhibits or hyperpolarizes thalamic neurons. When hyperpolarized, thalamic cells oscillate with bursting of the type associated with low threshold calcium spikes (low threshold spike-bursts). Low threshold spike-bursts can be identified by particular patterns of interspike intervals within the burst. The alternative (peripheral) hypothesis proposes that tremor results from oscillation of a reflex arc transmitting activity from muscle stretch receptors to thalamus, motor cortex, and back to the stretched muscle. When the gain of this reflex is increased, the arc may become unstable and oscillate. Oscillations produced by peripheral inputs may produce an acceleration-deceleration pattern within the burst which results in sinusoidal modulation of a spike train if bursting is periodic. We have assessed these two hypotheses by studying the pattern of interspike intervals occurring within bursts recorded in patients with parkinsonian tremor. The spike trains were analysed for 118 cells located in the ventral nuclear group including ventralis intermedius (thalamic cerebellar relay nucleus, n=48) and ventralis oralis posterior (thalamic pallidal relay nucleus, n=39) of patients with parkinsonian tremor. Two cells recorded in ventralis intermedius of a sleeping patient with chronic pain showed bursting activity similar to the low threshold spike-bursts recorded in sleeping animals, suggesting a common mechanism for low threshold spike-bursts across species. Forty-two cells recorded in patients with parkinsonian tremor (ventralis intermedius, n=19; ventralis oralis posterior, n=12) were classified as tremor-related cells because their activity was characterized by both a concentration of power at tremor frequency and significant correlation with tremor. Eleven tremor-related cells, 10 located in ventralis intermedius or ventralis oralis posterior and most responding to sensory inputs, had an acceleration-deceleration pattern of intraburst firing. Only one cell, a tremor-related cell in ventralis intermedius, showed the pattern expected of presumed low threshold spike-bursts. Therefore, intraburst interspike interval patterns consistent with either the central or the peripheral hypothesis were recorded in the thalamus of patients with parkinsonian tremor. Twenty-one tremor-related cells (15 cells in ventralis intermedius or ventralis oralis posterior) had bursts with intraburst interspike intervals which were independent of position of the interspike interval within the burst. Therefore, the activity of the majority of cells was not consistent with either hypothesis, suggesting that another oscillatory process may contribute to parkinsonian tremor.
External pacing for the termination of sustained supraventricular tachycardia in children

Cardiac pacing from either endocardial or transesophageal sites has proven useful in termination of sustained supraventricular tachycardia in children. In two patients we demonstrated the efficacy of external pacing in the termination of sustained supraventricular tachycardia. The ease and apparent safety of the technique make it an attractive addition to our current therapies for supraventricular tachycardia in children. The usefulness of external pacing in treating pediatric arrhythmias needs further evaluation.
Conversational asymmetry between mothers and children

TURNABOUTS, which both respond to and require a response from the other (either verbal or nonverbal), were produced more than twice as often by mothers as by their children at 2; 2 and 2; 6, in videotaped dialogues during semi-structured play. The 27 mothers showed stable individual differences in this aspect of their turn-taking, across situations and across time. Children tended to take a reciprocal role rather than an imitative one within the immediate situation: if a mother produced many mands, her child produced few. At 2; 10 the children were tested for language comprehension, puzzle-solving and conversational engagement with an investigator. Mothers' mands at the earlier ages appeared to have a negative effect upon these measures, even when social class differences were controlled; but causal interpretations were complicated by the fact that language production measures also predicted the 2; 10 cognitive measures.
Global human resource development: The four C approach

The Four C approach defines a method to assist human resource development professionals design strategic global training in a multinational environment. The method was developed from an analysis of published global HRD articles and two books. Four common elements were discovered during the review of the design and development of global HRD. Cooperation, collaboration, communication, and culture are the Four Cs that form the backbone of any global HRD organization. This approach is at the conceptual level with the mechanics of implementation left up to the HRD professional. Each section of the Four Cs presents the definition, discuss application, and summarize implementation. The opinion of the author is presented in the context of instructional system design to facilitate understanding the Four Cs.
Limited sex-biased neural gene expression patterns across strains in Zebrafish (Danio rerio)

Male and female vertebrates typically differ in a range of characteristics, from morphology to physiology to behavior, which are influenced by factors such as the social environment and the internal hormonal and genetic milieu. However, sex differences in gene expression profiles in the brains of vertebrates are only beginning to be understood. Fishes provide a unique complement to studies of sex differences in mammals and birds given that fish show extreme plasticity and lability of sexually dimorphic characters and behaviors during development and even adulthood. Hence, teleost models can give additional insight into sexual differentiation. The goal of this study is to identify neurotranscriptomic mechanisms for sex differences in the brain. In this study we examined whole-brain sex-biased gene expression through RNA-sequencing across four strains of zebrafish. We subsequently conducted systems level analyses by examining gene network dynamics between the sexes using weighted gene coexpression network analysis. Surprisingly, only 61 genes (approximately 0.4% of genes analyzed) showed a significant sex effect across all four strains, and 48 of these differences were male-biased. Several of these genes are associated with steroid hormone biosynthesis. Despite sex differences in a display of stress-related behaviors, basal transcript levels did not predict the intensity of the behavioral display. WGCNA revealed only one module that was significantly associated with sex. Intriguingly, comparing intermodule dynamics between the sexes revealed only moderate preservation. Further we identify sex-specific gene modules. Despite differences in morphology, physiology, and behavior, there is limited sex-biased neural gene expression in zebrafish. Further, genes found to be sex-biased are associated with hormone biosynthesis, suggesting that sex steroid hormones may be key contributors to sexual behavioral plasticity seen in teleosts. A possible mechanism is through regulating specific brain gene networks.
Mass measurement accuracy of a trapped ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometer

Abstract A method has been developed for greatly improving the mass measurement accuracy of ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometers. By using a trapped ion analyzer cell and frequency sweep mode of operation, good mass measurement accuracy can be attained even with rather broad, low resolution peaks. The factors which limit the mass measurement accuracy of the spectrometer are discussed and improved methods of operation are suggested.
Novel Oral Anticoagulants: A Review of the Literature and Considerations in Special Clinical Situations

Novel oral anticoagulants (OACs), including dabigatran etexilate, rivaroxaban, and apixaban, are available alternative anticoagulant therapy to vitamin K antagonists. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved dabigatran, rivaroxaban, and apixaban for the treatment of appropriate patients for specific clinical indications. Therapeutic advantages of prescribing the new OACs are related to their predictable pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties. Dabigatran, rivaroxaban, and apixaban have all been shown to be noninferior to warfarin treatment for stroke prevention in respective phase 3 clinical trials; dabigatran and apixaban were shown to be superior to warfarin as preventive therapy. Dabigatran, rivaroxaban, and apixaban are all approved agents for stroke prevention in patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation in the United States and Europe. Among these agents, rivaroxaban is the only FDA-approved drug for the treatment of venous thromboembolism. This article reviews the major clinical trials that investigated the efficacy and safety of the new OACs and the use of these agents in special clinical situations.
Optimization of sensor introduction into laminated composite materials

ABSTRACT This work seeks to extend the functionality of the composite material beyond that of simply load-bearing and to enable in situ sensing, without compromising the structural integrity of the host composite material. Essential to the application of smart composites is the issue of the m echanical coupling of the sensor to the ho st material. Here we present various methods of embedding sensors within the host composite material. In this study, quasi-static three-point bending (short beam) and fatigue three-point bending (shor t beam) tests are conducted in order to characterize the effects of introducing the sensors into the host composite material. The sensors that are examined include three types of polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) thin film sensors: silver ink with a protective coating of urethane, silver ink without a protective coating, and nickel-copper allo y without a protective coating. The methods of sensor integration include placement at the midplane between the layers of prepreg material as well as a sandwich configuration in which a PVDF thin film sensor is placed between the first and second and nineteenth and twentieth layers of prepreg. Each PVDF sensor is continuous and occupies the entire layer, lying in the plane normal to the thickness direction in laminated composites. The work described here is part of an ongoing effort to understand the structural effects of integrating microsensor networks into a host composite material. Keywords: composite, sensing, embedding, three-point bending, fatigue, polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF)
Second and third NIR optical windows for imaging of bone microfractures

Microfractures in bone, secondary to repetitive stress, particularly in the lower extremities, are an important problem for military recruits and for athletes. They also may occur in those with brittle bones, such as the elderly, or in patients taking bisphosphonates for osteoporosis. Microfractures can be early predictors of major bone fracture and may be as important as changes in bone density in predicting where and how likely a major fracture will occur. Unlike major bone fractures, microfractures can be difficult to detect by conventional methods. We explored a second NIR spectral window from 1,100 nm to 1,350 nm, and a third spectral window from 1,600 nm to 1,870 nm to image microfractures through tissue media. Due to a reduction in scattering at longer NIR wavelengths, employment of the second and third NIR windows may allow for deeper penetration into tissue and higher contrast images of microfractures underneath the skin.
Diffusible factors regulate hair cell regeneration in the avian inner ear.

Abstract Damage to the avian inner ear results in up-regulation of mitotic activity resulting in regeneration of hair cells. The objective of this investigation was to determine whether the damaged inner ear epithelium releases a soluble mitogen that is responsible for the up-regulation of proliferation. The sensory epithelium from normal and drug-damaged avian inner ears was cultured alone or in the presence of other cultures. As previously shown in vivo and in vitro, damaged organs displayed increased supporting cell proliferation compared with undamaged organs, leading to eventual morphologic and functional recovery. When damaged organs were cocultured with an undamaged organ, proliferation was increased in the undamaged tissue. When undamaged organs were cultured together, proliferation was decreased. These results indicate that a soluble factor released from the damaged inner ear epithelium stimulates proliferation and suggest the release of a factor from normal tissue that suppressed mitotic activity. Thus, reparative hair cell regeneration in the inner ear appears to be regulated by a balance between proliferative and antiproliferative paracrine factors.
Biosynthesis of neurohypophyseal polypeptides: The order of peptide components in Pro-pressophysin and Pro-oxyphysin

Abstract Analyses of the pI 5.6 and 6.1 forms of Pro-pressophysin (Pro-PP), and pI 5.1 and 5.4 forms of Pro-oxyphysin (Pro-OP), indicate that all these forms contain both the appropriate nonapeptide hormone (oxytocin or vasopressin) and neurophysin moieties. In addition both forms of Pro-PP contain the glycopeptide adduct characteristic of this prohormone. Cyanogen bromide cleavages of the precursors indicate the nonapeptide hormones are present at the NH 2 -terminus of the prohormones, and the glycopeptide moiety in Pro-PP at the COOH-terminus.
Comparative Evaluation of Two Surgical Scrub Preparations in Cattle

One hundred seventeen cattle that had undergone surgery were assigned randomly to two preoperative skin preparation protocols. Group 1 (60 animals) skin preparation was with povidoneiodine soap and isopropyl alcohol, whereas group 2 (57 animals) had skin preparation with chlorhexidine gluconate and isopropyl alcohol. Quantitative microbial culture plates were used to estimate the number of colony forming units (CFUs) before skin preparation (prescrub), after skin preparation (postscrub), after surgery (postoperative), and in room air (environment). A significant decrease in CFU occurred postscrub for both skin preparations (P < .05). Chlorhexidine and alcohol preparation resulted in significantly fewer CFUs (LSMean +/- SE = 2.79 CFU +/- 1.74) and a greater percentage reduction in CFUs (98.64% +/- 2.01) postscrub than providone and alcohol (LSMean +/- SE = 10.27 CFUs +/- 1.51, 93.29% +/- 1.85); (P < .005). Group 2 had a significantly higher frequency of negative cultures postscrub (49.1%) compared with group 1 (18.3%) (P < .001). The number of postoperative CFUs were not significantly different between the two treatment groups. Wound infection frequency for clean surgical procedures was not significantly different between the two skin preparation protocols (group 1 = 9.8%, group 2 = 10.7%), however, infection frequency was significantly higher for surgical procedures with a ventral abdominal approach (5 of 14, 35.7%,) compared with a flank approach (1 of 41, 2.4%) or other approaches (orthopedic procedures) (1 of 16, 6.3%) (P < .05). Both skin preparation protocols were effective and safe in decreasing the skin microflora population of cattle before surgery and although preparation with chlorhexidine gluconate and alcohol resulted in less CFUs immediately postscrub, the frequency of surgical wound infection was similar for both protocols.
m -Rook numbers and a generalization of a formula of Frobenius to C m ? S n

In ordinary rook theory, rook placements are associated to permutations of the symmetric group sn. We provide a generalization of this theory in which "m-rook placements" are related to elements of Cmsn, where Cm is the cyclic group of order m. Within this model, we define and interpret combinatorially a p, q-analogue of the m-rook numbers. We also define a p, q-analogue of the m-hit numbers and show that the coefficients of these polynomials in p and q are nonnegative integers for m-Ferrers boards. Finally, we define statistics desm(σ), majm(σ), and comajm(σ) as analogues of the ordinary descent, major, and comajor index statistics and prove a generalization of a formula of Frobenius that relates these statistics to generalized p, q-Stirling numbers of the second kind.
The adenosinetriphosphate-adenosinediphosphate exchange enzyme from chloroplasts. Further purification and antigenic properties.

Abstract In an attempt to determine the role of the ATP-ADP exchange enzyme from chloroplasts in photophosphorylation, a rabbit antibody was prepared against the purified enzyme. The antibody formed did not lend itself, however, to this study, since the enzyme-antibody complex is soluble and enzymic activity is retained.
High order “ZIP” differencing of convective terms

The ZIP flux form for differencing the term (wv)x, where w is a convected quantity and v is a convective velocity, is observed to be equivalent to differencing the alternative expression wvx + wxv using centered second order finite differences. The advantage of this form is that one class of nonlinear computational instabilities is eliminated. Based on this observation, the extension of the ZIP flux concept to arbitrarily high order accuracy is given. Computational examples show the advantage both of the ZIP flux concept itself and of its higher order forms within the context of flux-corrected transport (FCT) algorithms.
Collimators and collimator arrays for telecommunication applications

Precision collimators and collimator arrays are increasingly critical components as telecommunication networks increase in bandwidth. In this paper we describe the collimator fabrication process at Corning Rochester Photonics Corporation. We describe replicated and etched collimator arrays and illustrate packaging concepts. Metrology and optical performance data is presented for both individual and arrayed collimators. Microlens surfaces etched into fused silica with surfaces sags of greater than 70micrometers , surface finishes better than 30 Angstroms are presented. Collimator arrays with pointing errors less than 40(mu) Rad, and microlens focal length uniformity error less than +/- 0.5% have been fabricated and the data presented.© (2001) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
The Stereotyped Parent

Parents portrayed in adolescent fiction tend to be flat and stereotyped; only occasionally are they warm and understanding. Studies suggest that many young people need to view their parents negatively in order to make their own way.
Selective deletion of the leptin receptor in dopamine neurons produces anxiogenic-like behavior and increases dopaminergic activity in amygdala

The leptin receptor (Lepr) is expressed on midbrain dopamine neurons. However, the specific role of Lepr signaling in dopamine neurons remains to be clarified. In the present study, we generated a line of conditional knockout mice lacking functional Lepr selectively on dopamine neurons (Lepr(DAT-Cre)). These mice exhibit normal body weight and feeding. Behaviorally, Lepr(DAT-Cre) mice display an anxiogenic-like phenotype in the elevated plus-maze, light-dark box, social interaction and novelty-suppressed feeding tests. Depression-related behaviors, as assessed by chronic stress-induced anhedonia, forced swim and tail-suspension tests, were not affected by deletion of Lepr in dopamine neurons. In vivo electrophysiological recordings of dopamine neurons in the ventral tegmental area revealed an increase in burst firing in Lepr(DAT-Cre) mice. Moreover, blockade of D1-dependent dopamine transmission in the central amygdala by local microinjection of the D1 antagonist SCH23390 attenuated the anxiogenic phenotype of Lepr(DAT-Cre) mice. These findings suggest that Lepr signaling in midbrain dopamine neurons has a crucial role for the expression of anxiety and for the dopamine modulation of amygdala function.
COMPARISON OF SMOKING-INDUCED GENE EXPRESSION ON AFFYMETRIX EXON AND 3'-BASED EXPRESSION ARRAYS

Cigarette smoke is the major cause of lung cancer and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in the United States. We have previously defined the impact of tobacco smoke on intrathoracic airway gene expression among healthy nonsmokers and smokers using standard 3'-based expression U133A arrays [12]. In this report, we compared the performance of the Affymetrix GeneChip Human Exon 1.0 ST array with the HG-U133A array for detecting smoking-related gene expression changes in large airway epithelium obtained at bronchoscopy. RNA obtained from the same bronchial airway epithelial cell samples of four current smokers and three never smokers was hybridized to both arrays. Out of 22,215 probe sets on HG-U133A, 14,741 RefSeq transcripts were mapped to 17,800 core transcripts on the Exon array and the 2 platforms were compared for this overlapping transcript set. While the reproducibility of both platforms was high, the Exon array had a slightly stronger correlation for technical replicates. A majority of the genes with the largest smoking-related fold changes were tightly correlated between platforms, but there were a number of smoking-related changes in gene expression that were detected only on the Exon arrays. Furthermore, while the HG-U133A study did not have enough power to detect any differentially expressed genes between the 4 current vs. 3 never smokers at a False Discovery Rate (FDR) < 0.05, seventy differential expressed genes were detected at FDR < 0.05 in the same set of samples using the Exon platform. These findings suggest that the all-Exon array is a more robust platform for measuring airway epithelial gene expression and can serve as an effective tool for exploring host response to and damage from cigarette smoke.
Selective chemical vapor deposition synthesis of double-wall carbon nanotubes on mesoporous silica.

Double-wall carbon nanotubes (DWNTs) have been selectively synthesized over Fe/Co loaded mesoporous silica by catalytic chemical vapor deposition of alcohol. Several silica materials with desired pore diameter and morphology have been investigated for the DWNT growth. The diameter distribution and selectivity of the DWNT are found to depend on the reaction temperature, pore size, and thermal stability of the support material. A high-yield synthesis of DWNTs has been achieved at 900 °C over high-temperature stable mesoporous silica. The outer diameter of DWNTs is found to be in the range of 1.5−5.4 nm with a “d” spacing of 0.38 ± 0.02 nm between inner and outer layers, which is much larger than those of multiwall carbon nanotubes.
Extension and Implementation of a Model-based Approach to Hyperspectral Change Detection

A new method for hyperspectral change detection derived from a parametric radiative transfer model was recently developed. The model-based approach explicitly accounts for local illumination variations, such as shadows, which act as a constant source of false alarms in traditional change detection techniques. Here we formally derive the model-based approach as a generalized likelihood ratio test (GLRT) developed from the data model. Additionally, we discuss variations on implementation techniques for the algorithm and provide results using tower-based data and HYDICE data.
Electrophysiological aids in congestive heart failure: supporting and synchronizing systole.

A variety of electrophysiologic abnormalities is seen in the setting of chronic left ventricular dysfunction. Atrial, atrioventricular, and inter- and intra-ventricular conduction disturbances may place the failing ventricle at a further mechanical disadvantage. Several studies recently have evaluated the safety and efficacy of cardiac resynchronization therapy in moderate to severe heart failure. Data from these studies have shown statistically significant improvements in left ventricular geometry and function, New York Heart Association functional class, exercise tolerance, and quality of life. Some studies have suggested reduction in morbidity and mortality; such findings await confirmation, however, from ongoing largescale outcomes studies.
Advances in understanding the relationship between the skull base and larynx with comments on the origins of speech

The position of upper respiratory structures, such as the larynx, has proven to be of great importance in determining an animal’s breathing, swallowing and vocalizing abilities. Studies on living mammals have also shown that the shape of the basicranium is related to the position of the larynx. This information has been of value in using the skull base as a means to reconstruct the upper respiratory tract of fossil hominids. Ongoing comparative and experimental studies of this region are adding new information on the mechanical relationship of the skull base to contiguous areas of the respiratory tract. For example, examination of the region in mammals disparate from humans, such as cetaceans, and experimental work on the region in rats, is adding new data on how the larynx and skull base may functionally interact.
The U.S. Electoral College and Spatial Biases in Voter Power

The United States does not provide for direct election of its chief executive but utilizes the Electoral College to represent voter choices. Central to this institution is the “winner-take-all” model by which electoral votes in all states but two are awarded to the candidate who garners a plurality of that state's popular vote. As game theorists have long pointed out, this system introduces several biases in voter power that differentially reward or punish voters based on each state's population or electorate. This article offers a historical overview of the Electoral College and the geographic biases in voter power it introduces. It extends the influential binomial model of voter power proposed by Banzhaf in the 1960s to include a multinomial approach sensitive to the presence of more than two parties, the absolute and relative margins of victories, and the number of electoral votes in each state. It then applies this approach to U.S. presidential elections from 1960 to 2004 utilizing a series of cartogr...
Linear Electromechanical Model of Ionic Polymer Transducers -Part I: Model Development

A linear electromechanical model is developed for ionic polymer materials. The model is based on an equivalent circuit representation that is related to the mechanical, electrical, and electromechanical properties of the material. Expressions for the quasi-static and dynamic mechanical impedance are derived from beam theory. The Golla-Hughes-McTavish model of viscoelasticity is incorporated into the model to include effects due to a rate dependent modulus. Similar to previous research, the electrical impedance is modeled as a series combination of resistive and capacitive elements. The major contribution of this work is the derivation of an electromechanical coupling term that is related to an effective bending strain coefficient. This parameter is also frequency dependent to model the low-frequency relaxation that has been measured in certain ionic polymer materials. The resulting linear electromechanical model is based on the measurement of the effective permittivity, elastic modulus, and effective stra...
Coronary stenting in the elderly: Longitudinal results in a wide spectrum of patients treated with a new and more practical approach

One hundred-twelve intracoronary stents (83 Palmaz-Schatz, 25 biliary, and 4 Gianturco-Roubin) were placed in 87 (51.7% male) patients aged ≥70 years (70–93; mean 76.1) during a 1-year period. All stents were deployed using high-pressure inflation (mean 17.4 ± 2 atm) without intravascular ultrasound. All patients received antiplatelet therapy with aspirin and ticlopidine. Seven patients additionally received warfarin at the physician's discretion. No patient was excluded from analysis regardless of presentation (40% acute myocardial infarction and 12.6% bailout) or complication. There were four deaths and two target vessel reinterventions in-hospital. One reintervention (a bailout) developed a non-Q-wave myocardial infarction. Bleeding, vascular complications, and length of stay were all greater for the warfarin group. The event-free survival rate was 83.9%, at an average of 8.6 months follow-up. A wide range of elderly patients can thus undergo stenting without intravascular ultrasound, usually without warfarin, yielding results comparable to those with more standard therapy in select populations. Cathet. Cardiovasc. Diagn. 44:397–404, 1998. © 1998 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Localized dynamic changes in cortical blood flow with whisker stimulation corresponds to matched vascular and neuronal architecture of rat barrels.

The hypothesis that functional groups of neurons in whisker barrels are linked to a modular organization of cortical vessels was tested. Endovascular casts demonstrated cortical capillary networks resembling the whisker barrel pattern that were fed from the middle cerebral artery. In histological sections, dense capillaries apparently were confined to single barrels and were supplied by one or a few penetrating arterioles. The barrel field in cortical layer IV was localized in relation to surface arteriovenous patterns. Living vessels were imaged through a closed cranial window under anesthesia with a fluorescence microscope and SIT or ICCD cameras. After intracarotid injections of fluorescein isothiocyanate–dextrans, saline, or 3 μm latex beads, changes in arteriolar diameter, arteriovenous transit times (AVTTs), and bead velocities were measured. When row C whiskers were stroked at 4–5 Hz for 1 min, blood flow increased in arterioles that supplied contralateral row C barrels as demonstrated by postmorte...
Dielectric breakdown of Electromagnetic Metamaterials in the mean-field approximation

Electromagnetic Metamaterials (MTMs) are artificial materials with novel electromagnetic properties not available in nature. MTMs typically consist of a homogeneous host material containing appropriately configured embedded compact inclusions. MTMs have the potential to enable significant improvement on performance of low-profile (i.e. microstrip) and conformal antennas, including reduction of antenna size and antenna coupling. One key limitation for MTM implementation is the possibility of dielectric breakdown from electrical stresses such as high ambient electric fields arising from the transmitter itself, lightning and atmospheric charges, precipitation static (p-static), and electrostatic discharge (ESD). In this paper we investigate dielectric breakdown in the mean- field approximation. Dielectric breakdown is deemed to occur if the electric potential across an insulator exceeds a certain critical value, causing the insulator to become conductive and leading to failure of the insulator. Embedded conductive structures, such as those comprising MTMs, cause electric field enhancement near the metallic inclusion lowering the electric strength. We calculate the detailed electric field distribution within the MTM and compare the peak values to a critical breakdown field. Using the mean-field theory, we replace each inclusion by an equivalent dipole. The effect of remaining dipoles is taken into account by an effective field. The polarizability is determined by a self-consistent solution for the effective field. We determine the detailed field in the vicinity of the inclusion by summing the effective field and the local field due to the inclusion. We find that the presence of inclusions reduces the electric strength of the MTM in comparison to the electric strength of the pure host material. For a dilute MTM, the reduction depends mainly on the geometry of the inclusion. The reduction depends weakly on the concentration of the inclusions and is independent of the permittivity of the host material. The reduction may be significant even for very dilute MTMs and needs to be taken into account in practical applications. This work is an initial stage in CERDEC's effort to evaluate limitations to MTM parameters given the presence of intrinsic or environmental electromagnetic fields.
Higher-order mimetic methods for unstructured meshes

A higher-order mimetic method for the solution of partial differential equations on unstructured meshes is developed and demonstrated on the problem of conductive heat transfer. Mimetic discretization methods create discrete versions of the partial differential operators (such and the gradient and divergence) that are exact in some sense and therefore mimic the important mathematical properties of their continuous counterparts. The proposed numerical method is an interesting mixture of both finite volume and finite element ideas. While the ideas presented can be applied to arbitrarily high-order accuracy, we focus in this work on the details of creating a third-order accurate method. The proposed method is shown to be exact for piecewise quadratic solutions and shows third-order convergence on arbitrary triangular/tetrahedral meshes. The numerical accuracy of the method is confirmed on both two-dimensional and three-dimensional unstructured meshes. The computational cost required for a desired accuracy is analyzed against lower-order mimetic methods.
The Morel-Lavallée lesion revisited: management in spinopelvic dissociation

Abstract Background context The Morel-Lavallee lesion occurs from a compression and shear force that usually separates the skin and subcutaneous tissue from the underlying muscular fascia. A dead space is created that becomes filled with blood, liquefied fat, and lymphatic fluid from the shearing of vasculature and lymphatics. If not treated appropriately, these lesions can become infected, cause tissue necrosis, or form chronic seromas. Purpose To review appropriate identification and treatment of Morel-Lavallee lesions in spinopelvic dissociation patients. Study design Uncontrolled case series. Methods Retrospective review of medical records. No funding was received in support of this study. The authors report no conflicts of interest. Results We present four cases of patients with traumatic spinopelvic dissociation. All had concomitant lumbosacral Morel-Lavallee lesions. All four trauma patients suffered traumatic spinopelvic dissociation with concomitant lumbosacral Morel-Lavallee lesions. Appropriate treatment included irrigation and debridement, drainage, antibiotics, and vacuum-assisted wound closure. Conclusions Our series reflects an association of Morel-Lavallee lesion in spinopelvic dissociation trauma patients. Possibly, the rotatory injury that occurs at the spinopelvic junction creates a shear force to form the Morel-Lavallee lesion. When presented with a spinopelvic dissociation patient, one should be prepared to treat a Morel-Lavallee lesion.
Carnivore incidents with U.S. civil aircraft

Wildlife incidents with aircraft are of concern in the United States as they pose a risk to human safety and economic losses for the aviation industry. Most previous research on wildlife-aircraft incidents has emphasized birds, bats, and ungulates. We queried the Federal Aviation Administration's National Wildlife Strike Database from 1990 to 2012 to characterize carnivore incidents with U.S. civil aircraft. We found 1016 carnivore inci- dents with aircraft representing at least 16 species, with coyotes (n = 404) being the species most frequently struck. California and Texas had the most reported incidents and incidents were most likely to occur at night from August to November. Overall estimated damage to aircraft was US$ 7 million. Coinciding with the increase in air traffic, the rate of carnivore- aircraft incidents increased 13.1% annually from 1990 to 2012 whereas the rate of dama- ging incidents remained fairly constant. Due to the increase in carnivore-aircraft incidents from 1990 to 2012, we recommend further research on techniques to increase detection of carnivores and implementation and scheduled maintenance of perimeter high fences for exclusion. Additionally, we recommend increasing patrol of runways, especially during peak incident periods (July-November) and at night (2000-0600 h).
Local degradation of electroluminescent emission centers in ZnS:Cu,Cl phosphors

Abstract ZnS:Cu contains needle-shaped, CuS conducting nano-precipitates along the [111] planes which amplify the applied electric fields near the tips when the field is reversed, enabling AC electroluminescence for ∼ 50 μ m thick devices at AC voltages of ∼ 100 V . Unfortunately, the degradation process is poorly understood; previous studies using photodiode measurements were only able to determine the overall device degradation. Here, we analyze many individual emission centers using time-lapse microscope images of several degrading devices. We find that most of the individual emission centers have large, sudden, discrete drops in luminosity and many have a luminosity that actually increases significantly, minutes to hours after a drop. This suggests that there are two primary degradation mechanisms: gradual multi-step diffusion of single-atom trap states away from the high-field region (causing the gradual decrease in luminosity) and the sudden break-up and reformation of complex trap states within the high field region (causing the sudden decreases and increases, respectively).