cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Musically speaking: Exploring music instruction with teachers of students who are visually impaired

If you had been alive in May of 1890, you might have noticed a brief article in The New York Times that described the 59th anniversary celebration of the New York Institution for the Blind. The article, recently reprised in the Internet archives of the Times, was entitled "Instructing Blind Children: Remarkable Results Attained in Music and Other Studies." It included the following excerpt. The entertainment was provided by about one hundred boys and girls from various classes. The programme was largely musical, for music is everywhere recognized as an essential curriculum for the blind, because it not only affords pupils almost their sole pleasure, but provides the best means for thorough mental training and culture. This was shown by the heartiness and tunefulness of the chorus singing and the excellence of the class and individual work illustrating the training of the ear in the study of harmony. The article is replete with excessive cheerfulness and stereotypical assumptions, including the belief that music is almost the "sole pleasure" of blind students, whose lives would surely be miserable without it. In spite of such trite assumptions, however, the core statement that "music is everywhere recognized as an essential curriculum for the blind" is an idea worth revisiting. In contrast with the message of this article, music instruction for visually impaired students in today's educational environment is not often viewed as an "essential curriculum." Many professionals in the field of visual impairment maintain a cautious distance from the role of music instruction for their students. Often there is not enough time to include sufficient music instruction due to the importance of academics in a student's daily schedule. Sometimes opportunities are missed because teachers are not personally skilled in music and do not know how to support their students' musical interests. For these and other reasons, discussion of music instruction or activities is often not included in meetings with educational or rehabilitation teams. In an effort to avoid typecasting of blind people as musically talented, some realities of their auditory world may be overlooked. Neurological research indicates that a larger area in the brains of people who are blind compared to those of sighted subjects is responsive to auditory stimuli, often resulting in functional advantages in localization and attention to sound (Elbert, Sterr, Rockstroh, Pantev, Muller, & Taub, 2002). Further, absolute pitch is more common among people who are blind (Sacks, 2007); one study found that 57% of blind study participants had absolute pitch, as compared with 20% of the general population (Hamilton, Pascual-Leone, & Schlaug, 2004). …
Readable image for the visually impaired

A picture is worth a thousand words is a well know adage and refers to the fact that any complex word description can be conveyed easily and quickly with a still image. The use of images, pictures and block diagrams to describe something is often used without a second thought. The use of images in any form becomes an accessibility issue for the visually impaired. With the concept of a document and the hyper text markup language (HTML) page blurring, W3C has come up with measures to make the images accessible on the web. The most recent being the use of alt attribute, which is designed to be an alternative text description for images on web pages and longdesc attribute which is a mechanism to give greater details of the image. In this paper, we propose an approach which enables accessibility of images. This paper has two parts, the first part describes a mechanism to build a multi level description of an image to enable accessibility or readability while the second part describes an user interface that enables navigation of the multi level description by hovering on the image.
Abstract 462: Low Carbohydrate High Protein (LCHP) Diets Are Atherogenic by Modulating Macrophage Mtorc1-mitophagy Signaling to Accelerate Apoptosis and Plaque Complexity

Low carbohydrate high protein (LCHP) diets which are commonly utilized for weight loss have been reported to raise cardiovascular risk. However, the mechanisms underlying this risk are unknown. We ...
Weight changes prepartum and presence of bulls postpartum interact to affect duration of postpartum anestrus in cows.

Our hypothesis was that cows with greater body condition at parturition would respond to the presence of bulls (biostimulation) by having shorter periods of postpartum anestrus than cows with a lesser body condition. Multiparous cows in good body condition at the initiation of the study were either maintained on a high dietary regimen or switched to a low dietary regimen during the 90 d preceding parturition. After parturition, half of the cows from each group were placed in pastures with sterile bulls, and the remaining half were placed in pastures without bulls. This study was replicated during a 2nd yr. Blood samples were collected twice weekly and assayed for concentrations of progesterone to estimate time of onset of luteal function after parturition. There was a significant interaction (P less than .05) between body condition at parturition and presence of bulls postpartum on the duration of postpartum anestrus. Cows of lesser body condition that were in the presence of bulls after calving initiated estrous cycles 14 d earlier than cows with lesser body condition that were isolated from bulls. In cows with a greater body condition, presence of bulls after calving only shortened postpartum anestrus by 6 d. Thus, we reject our initial hypothesis.
Single Center Real-World Experience of Daratumumab and Extra-Medullary Myeloma

Background: Daratumumab (Dara) was recently FDA approved for the treatment of relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma (RRMM). We evaluated a real-world single-center experience of Dara salvage therapy for RRMM. Methods: Patients treated at the University of Florida with Dara for RRMM between January 2016 and February 2018 were included. Data was collected by chart review and analyzed for patient demographics, disease characteristics, treatment, and outcomes. Results: 25 patients (13 as monotherapy and 12 in combination) were included, with a median age of 63 (range, 42-86) years. Median time from MM diagnosis to Dara initiation was 51.3 (range, 8.4 -162.3) months. The median duration of Dara therapy was 72 days (range, 7 - 622). The median number of Dara doses was 7 (range, 2- 49). The best response to DARA was Very Good Partial Response (VGPR) in 1 (4%), Partial Response (PR) in 17 (68%), while 7 (28%) had Progressive Disease (PD). Overall Response Rate (ORR) to Dara was 72%. By the end of the study period, another 11 (44%) patients progressed while on DARA with a total of 18 (72%) patients having PD at the time of analysis. Estimated median progression free survival (PFS) after starting Dara was 155 days (95% CI: 21 - 289) and estimated median overall survival (OS) in the entire cohort was 11.7 months (95% CI: 4.2 - 19.2). Post DARA, 1 (4%) patient with VGPR underwent ASCT, while 9 (36%) went on to have other therapies which included HyperCVAD, Melphalan, and clinical trials, and 8 (32%) were treated with only best supportive care. Of 18 patients who had PD, 10 (40%) patients had a progressive extramedullary disease (EMD), of whom 6 (24%) had EMD prior to starting Dara, while another 4 (16%) patients developed new EMD while on Dara. PFS in the EMD cohort was 63 days (95% CI: 23 - 103), which was shorter than patients with no EMD (333 days; 95% CI: 42 - 624) (P= 0.08). Estimated median OS in patients with EMD was 5.4 months while in patients with no EMD was 16.1 months (p =0.16). Conclusions: DARA therapy does have good ORR (72%) in RRMM, however, there was an unusually high incidence of progressive or newly diagnosed EMD in RRMM patients treated with Dara/Dara-containing regimens, suggesting that Dara may not be effective in treating or preventing EMD. Moreover, we noticed patients who have EMD or develop new EMD tends to have worse outcomes. The underlying escape mechanism for EMD remains unknown and warrants further investigation. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
Optimizing a novel micropropagation system for Poacea in a single, multifactor experiment

A disposable, flexible film vessel was demonstrated for liquid culture micrporopagation of Poacea × ‘Cape Breeze’ and a micropropagation process was optimized for this system. Process factors involving media volume and plant density; mineral factors of ammonium and phosphate concentrations; and the important organic chemicals sucrose and benzyladenine; were simultaneously varied in the presence and absence of an inert paper substrate (40 treatment combinations for the six continuous factors, duplicated for the nominal factor, paper). Plant multiplication was enhanced by having fewest plants per vessel (10) with the largest volume of medium (90 mL), with the greatest concentrations of benyzladenine (10 µM) and phosphate (6.25 mM), in the absence of the paper. Optimal ex vitro growth, measured by dry mass increase on the mist bed required plants that had been grown under very different in vitro conditions (the smallest volume of medium per vessel (30 mL), fewest plants per vessel (10), low benzyladenine (1.6 µM), lowest phosphate (1.25 mM), in the presence of paper). Media that produced the largest in vitro plants produced plants that rapidly increased in dry mass in the greenhouse. Increasing the number of plants per vessel (30) increases the economy of the system with greater numbers of plants, but they are smaller and grow more slowly than the low-density cultures. In a small experiment using 80 vessels, separate optimal conditions in both process and media formulation were determined for both stage II and stage III cultures of Poacea. The analysis identified most important factors that drive the responses, from other significant responses with less impact. A liquid culture micropropagation system for Poacea in flexible-film vessels was optimized for process and nutritional factors in both stages II and III in a small, response surface method experiment.
Decentralized Dynamic Task Allocation in Swarm Robotic Systems for Disaster Response: Extended Abstract

Multiple robotic systems, working together, can provide important solutions to different real-world applications (e.g., disaster response), among which task allocation problems feature prominently. Very few existing decentralized multi-robotic task allocation (MRTA) methods simultaneously offer the following capabilities: consideration of task deadlines, consideration of robot range and task completion capacity limitations, and allowing asynchronous decision-making under dynamic task spaces. To provision these capabilities, this paper presents a computationally efficient algorithm that involves novel construction and matching of bipartite graphs. Its performance is tested on a multi-UAV flood response application.
Estimation of Blood Alcohol Concentration From Smartphone Gait Data Using Neural Networks

Driving is a dynamic activity, which requires quick reflexes and decision making in order to respond to sudden changes in traffic conditions. Alcohol consumption impairs motor and cognitive skills, and causes many driving-related accidents annually. Passive methods of proactively detecting drivers who are too drunk to drive in order to notify them and prevent accidents, have recently been proposed. The effects of alcohol on a drinker’s gait (walk) is a reliable indicator of their intoxication level. In this paper, we investigate detecting drinkers’ intoxication levels from their gait by using neural networks to analyze sensor data gathered from their smartphone. Using data gathered from a large controlled alcohol study, we perform regression analysis using a Bi-directional Long Short Term Memory (Bi-LSTM) and Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) architectures to predict a person’s Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) from their smartphone’s accelerometer and gyroscope data. We innovatively proposed a comprehensive suite of pre-processing techniques and model-specific extensions to vanilla CNN and bi-LSTM models, which are well thought out and adapted specifically for BAC estimation. Our Bi-LSTM architecture achieves an RMSE of 0.0167 and the CNN architecture achieves an RMSE of 0.0168, outperforming state-of-the-art intoxication detection models using Bayesian Regularized Multilayer Perceptrons (MLP) (RMSE of 0.017) and the Random Forest (RF), with hand-crafted features. Moreover, our models learn features from raw sensor data, obviating the need for hand-crafted features, which is time consuming. Moreover, they achieve lower variance across folds and are hence more generalizable.
An Examination of P. Davidson’s Misunderstandings about the Limiting Frequency Theory of Probability, Ergodicity and Non Ergodicity: These Approaches Require that either the Number of Observations Approaches Infinity or Time Approaches Infinity in Order for the Limit to Exist

Paul Davidson’s technical understanding of the mathematical details of the Limiting Frequency theory of probability and Kolmogorov’s measure theoretic extension from additivity to countable additivity, which allows for an extension of the concept of the Law of Large Numbers to the concept or ergodicity and non ergodicity, where time is substituted for observations, is extremely poor. Davidson has repeatedly made errors in many journal articles published in the Journal of Post Keynesian Economics and books published by Edward Elgar about these concepts since 1979. For instance, one example of a fundamental error made by Davidson since 1982 is his assertion, contradicted by all mathematical statisticians, that “Non stationarity is a sufficient, but not a necessary, condition for nonergodicity”. Davidson has repeated this false claim many times in the literature since 1982 when it first appeared in an article published in the Journal of Post Keynesian Economics. It is very simple to grasp what Davidson’s fundamental error is from just the title of a 1973 paper published in The Annals of Probability by R W Madsen and D L Isaacson, titled “Strongly Ergodic Behavior for Non-Stationary Markov Processes”, to realize that the correct mathematical statement is that non-stationary processes can be ergodic. This means that the correct analysis, known for certain by all mathematical statisticians since 1973, is that “Non stationarity is a necessary, but not a sufficient, condition for nonergodicity”. There is no existing evidence that Paul Davidson had any knowledge of Keynes’s approach to measurement, which rejected the exact and precise approach of Kolmogorov and Tinbergen except as a very special case, in favor of an inexact approach to measurement based on approximation and imprecise, interval valued probability and outcomes. Given that the concepts of ergodicity and non ergodicity require as a necessary condition the acceptance of the measure theoretic approach of Kolmogorov,it is straightforward to conclude that Keynes would reject the concepts of ergodicity and non ergodicity in macroeconomics or in regard to the concept of uncertainty because Part II of the TP establishes non additivity and non linearity as the general case and additivity and linearity as a special case, which is what the Kolmogorov axioms require.
Instability results for Euclidean distance, nearest neighbor search on high dimensional Gaussian data

Abstract In 1998, Beyer et al. described a nearest neighbor query as unstable if the query point has nearly identical distance from all points in the dataset. Subsequently, researchers have proven that, as data dimensionality goes to infinity, the probability of query instability approaches one for various kinds of data distributions, dataset size functions, and distance metrics. This paper addresses the problem of characterizing query instability behavior over centered Gaussian data generation distributions and Euclidean distance. Sufficient conditions are established on the covariance matrices and dataset size function under which the probability of query instability approaches one. Furthermore, conditions are also established under which the query instability probability is strictly bounded away from one for a non-vanishing set of query points.
A Comparative Analysis of Long-Term Outcomes in the MOMENTUM 3 Pivotal Trial and Continued Access Protocol Post-Approval Study Phase: A Study of over 1500 HeartMate 3 Implants

Purpose The MOMENTUM 3 pivotal trial conducted from 2014 to 2018 evaluated safety and effectiveness of the HeartMate 3 (HM3) left ventricular assist system (LVAS) compared to the HeartMate II pump. The trial demonstrated superiority of the HM3 LVAS for the primary endpoint of survival free of disabling stroke or reoperation to replace a malfunctioning pump at 2-years. HM3 LVAS superiority was due to improved hemocompatibility with near-elimination of device thrombosis, halving of stroke rates, and a decrease in gastrointestinal bleeding rates compared to the control device. Once enrollment for the pivotal trial was completed, and prior to FDA approval of the HM3 LVAS, the MOMENTUM 3 Continued Access Protocol (CAP) was initiated in 2016 as a single arm study to evaluate the HM3 LVAS in the post-approval phase using similar entry criteria as the pivotal trial. We plan to compare 2-year outcomes from the first 1000 CAP patients to the 515 patients implanted with HM3 in the pivotal trial. We hypothesize that clinical outcomes from the CAP cohort (post-approval phase) will be comparable or better to early results observed in the pivotal trial. Methods The MOMENTUM 3 CAP is a single arm, prospective study conducted at 68 centers that participated in the pivotal trial and designed as the post-approval study phase of the trial. Entry criteria for MOMENTUM 3 CAP matched those of the pivotal trial until FDA approval for short-term HM3 use was granted in August 2017. BTT patients were subsequently excluded from the CAP cohort starting in October 2017 and only transplant ineligible patients were enrolled afterwards. Baseline demographics and 2-year outcomes will be compared between the pivotal trial and CAP cohorts. The data lock will be performed in December 2020 with results available by March 2021. Endpoints These trial findings will include the first presentation of the largest comprehensive comparative analysis of long-term outcomes in over 1500 HM3 patients from the MOMENTUM 3 pivotal trial and CAP cohorts with respect to survival, adverse events, quality of life and functional status at 2 years. The findings will inform the field on whether “within trial” findings are preserved in the “post-approval” phase and account for temporal changes in medical and surgical management with the HM3 LVAS. (MOMENTUM 3 and CAP funded by Abbott)
Building and Maintaining Mentoring Relationships (Presentation Slides)

Overview • Are you mentorable? (Quiz) • Finding a Mentor • Fool’s Gold (Avoiding Troll Models) • Expectations • Shared vs individual responsibilities • Coaching vs. Mentoring • Mentorship: the guide on the side, vs the sage on the stage. • Trust and openness • Norm setting and expectations: • Accountability and Goals • Reciprocity • Mentor Challenges
Integrated Outage Management With Feeder Restoration for Distribution Systems With DERs

The increasing deployment of distributed energy resources (DERs) and microgrids benefits power grids by improving system resilience. In a resilience mode without the utility system, the distribution grid relies on DERs to serve critical load. In such a severe event with multiple faults on the distribution feeders, actuation of various protective devices (PDs) divides the distribution system into electrical islands. The undetected actuated PDs due to fault current contributions from DERs can delay the restoration process, thereby reducing the system resilience. In this paper, algorithms are proposed for outage management and feeder restoration for distribution systems with multiple DERs. The Advanced Outage Management (AOM) identifies the faulted sections and actuated PDs in a distribution system with DERs by incorporating smart meter data. The Advanced Feeder Restoration (AFR) is proposed to restore a distribution system with available energy resources taking into consideration the availability of utility sources and DERs as well as the feeder configuration. By partitioning the system into islands, critical load will be served with the available generation resources within islands. When the utility systems become available, the optimal path will be determined to reconnect these islands back to substations and restore the remaining load. The proposed method has been validated with modified IEEE 123-Bus and 8500-Node Test Feeders. Simulation results demonstrate the capability of the integrated AOM and AFR to enhance distribution system resilience.
Quantitative Craniofacial Analysis and Generation of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells for Muenke Syndrome: A Case Report

In this case report, we focus on Muenke syndrome (MS), a disease caused by the p.Pro250Arg variant in fibroblast growth factor receptor 3 (FGFR3) and characterized by uni- or bilateral coronal suture synostosis, macrocephaly without craniosynostosis, dysmorphic craniofacial features, and dental malocclusion. The clinical findings of MS are further complicated by variable expression of phenotypic traits and incomplete penetrance. As such, unraveling the mechanisms behind MS will require a comprehensive and systematic way of phenotyping patients to precisely identify the impact of the mutation variant on craniofacial development. To establish this framework, we quantitatively delineated the craniofacial phenotype of an individual with MS and compared this to his unaffected parents using three-dimensional cephalometric analysis of cone beam computed tomography scans and geometric morphometric analysis, in addition to an extensive clinical evaluation. Secondly, given the utility of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) as a patient-specific investigative tool, we also generated the first hiPSCs derived from a family trio, the proband and his unaffected parents as controls, with detailed characterization of all cell lines. This report provides a starting point for evaluating the mechanistic underpinning of the craniofacial development in MS with the goal of linking specific clinical manifestations to molecular insights gained from hiPSC-based disease modeling.
Boundaries and enhancements: ULF wave-driven dynamics of energetic particles in the Van Allen belts

High-energy electron populations within the Van Allen radiation belts are highly dynamic, and seen to increase and decrease on timescales as short as hours. One of the lingering questions about radiation belt dynamics overall is which types of plasma waves are responsible for the various changes we observe. Here, we present two studies that illuminate how ULF waves shape the boundaries and enhancements of relativistic electrons. One result, using seven years of Van Allen Probes satellite data, shows that ULF waves can create multi-MeV flux enhancements following geomagnetically active periods. Thus, ULF-driven radial diffusion can often be the dominant mechanism behind ultrarelativistic electron enhancements; although high populations of lower energies, likely produced by VLF interactions, are a necessary precondition. A second analysis, looking at decades of POES data, shows that relativistic breaches of the lower boundary of the outer belt happen in concert with elevated ULF wave power yet are not associated with particular type of solar driving. How relativistic electrons can cross this barrier and enter into the slot region and inner zone is crucial for understanding the radiation environment in this regime closest to Earth.
Relationship of DNA Tertiary and Quaternary Structure to Carcinogenic Processes

Publisher Summary This chapter reviews DNA superstructure as studied in nucleoids, and possible correlations between modification of the tertiary and quarternary levels of DNA organization and carcinogenic processes. Most eukaryotic DNA supercoiling results from the wrapping of DNA around histone core particles to form nucleosomes. The chapter illustrates how mutagenic DNA damage can alter DNA superstructure. DNA superstructure may also be responsive to membrane-modulated signals, perhaps with polyamines as second messengers. Agrobacterium tumefaciens DNA supercoiling is responsive to polyamines. Similarly, the superhelical modulating ability of a Micrococcus luteus protein extract is modulated by physiological concentrations of polyamines under physiological ionic conditions. A causal relationship between alterations of DNA superstructure and carcinogenesis has not been demonstrated. However, the chapter imparts enough information so that the reader can form an appreciation of the possible significance of DNA superstructure to the cancer problem.
Bayes Least Squares Linear Regression Is Asymptotically Full Bayes: Estimation of Spectral Densities

The Bayes least squares linear method of estimating regression functions using orthogonal expansions may be implemented by making first an orthogonal transformation that yields uncorrelated variables. The theorem presented here gives conditions sufficient for joint asymptotic normality of the transformed variables. Thus when the coefficients are independent and normal according to the prior, one expects that in the presence of much data they will be (approximately) independent normal according to the posterior. The method is illustrated using a suggestion of Wahba (1980) to transform the problem of estimating a spectral density into a regression problem.
Data Quality and Failures Characterization of Sensing Data in Environmental Applications

Environmental monitoring, targeting at discovering and understanding the environmental laws and changes, is one of the most important sensor network application domains. Environmental monitoring is one of the most important sensor network application domains. The success of those applications is determined by the quality of the collected data. Thus, it is crucial to carefully analyze the collected sensing data, which not only helps us understand the features of monitored field, but also unveil any limitations and opportunities that should be considered in future sensor system design. In this paper, we take an initial step and analyze one-month sensing data collected from a real-world water system surveillance application, focusing on the data similarity, data abnormality and failure patterns. Our major findings include: (1) Information similarity, including pattern similarity and numerical similarity, is very common, which provides a good opportunity to trade off energy efficiency and data quality; (2) Spatial and multi-modality correlation analysis provide a way to evaluate data integrity and to detect conflicting data that usually indicates appearances of sensor malfunction or interesting events; and (3) External harsh environmental conditions may be the most important factor on inflicting failures in environmental applications. Communication failures, mainly caused by lacking of synchronization, contribute the largest portion among all failure types.
Branch Campus Librarianship with Minimal Infrastructure: Rewards and Challenges

Delaware County Community College provides library services to its branch campus community members by stationing a librarian at a campus 5 to 20 hours each week, without any more library infrastructure than an Internet-enabled computer on the school network. Faculty and students have reacted favorably to the increased presence of librarians. Although it bears challenges, it also has considerable rewards and flexibility in terms of being able to respond to the needs of the constituents.
Glycosaminoglycan Stimulation of the In Vitro Conversion of Boar Proacrosin into Acrosin

Glycosaminoglycans obtained from shark cartilage, whale cartilage, porcine intestinal mucosa, porcine skin, and human umbilical cord were found to accelerate the in vitro conversion of highly purified boar sperm proacrosin Into mα-acrosin. Since none of the glycosaminoglycan preparations demonstrated esterase activity (BzArgOEt), general proteinase activity (Azocoll), or stimulation of acrosin activity, the glycosaminoglycan stimulation of proacrosin conversion into acrosin results from a direct Interaction between proacrosin and the glycosaminoglycans. These results demonstrate that the glycosaminoglycan stimulation of proacrosin conversion into acrosin is a general phenomenon that is not speciesor organspecific and indicate that glycosaminoglycans could function in the regulation of the In vivo conversion of proacrosin into acrosin.
Fast Calculation of Max-Min Fair Rates for Multi-commodity Flows in Fat-Tree Networks

Max-min fairness is often used in the performance modeling of interconnection networks. Existing methods to compute max-min fair rates for multi-commodity flows have high complexity and are computationally infeasible for large networks. In this work, we show that by considering topological features, this problem can be solved efficiently for the fat-tree topology that is widely used in data centers and high performance computing clusters. Using two new algorithms that we developed, we demonstrate it is possible to find the max-min fair rate allocation for multi-commodity flows in fat-tree networks that support tens of thousands of nodes. We evaluate the run-time performance of the proposed algorithms and demonstrate an application.
Effect of ZrO2, Al2O3 and La2O3 on cobalt–copper catalysts for higher alcohols synthesis

Abstract Three cobalt–copper catalysts singly promoted with La, Zr, or Al were studied for catalytic conversion of syngas to higher alcohols. The properties of the promoted catalysts have been characterized by TPR, XRD, XPS and BET. CO hydrogenation was carried out in a plug-flow reactor under 30 bar, GHSV = 36000 scc/gcat/h, H2/CO = 2, and 250 °C at differential conversions. The catalyst activity and selectivity to higher alcohols are greatest on CuCoLa2O​3: ethanol selectivity 10.5% at a conversion of 0.76%. During 9 h of time-on-stream, CO conversion decreased on CuCoLa2O3​ while methanol and higher alcohol selectivity increased. The behaviors on CuCoZrO2 and CuCoAl2O3 were different. On these two catalysts, CO conversion and selectivity reached a near-steady state much more quickly than CuCoLa2O3. These results suggest changes on CuCoLa2O3 that increase the selectivity for oxygenates continue with time, at least over the time scale investigated here.
Intracellular pH in the toad Bufo marinus following hypercapnia.

Summary We investigated the effects of hypercapnia on intracellular acid-base regulation in brain and liver of the toad Bufo marinus L. After 1 h at 5 % CO2, arterial PCCH increased significantly, from 1.6±0.04 to 5.7±0.23kPa, while brain and liver intracellular pH (pHi) decreased significantly. Reductions in pHi of both tissues were partially compensated by increased levels of bicarbonate. Surprisingly, however, compensation was lower than expected in brain and higher than expected in liver. We suggest that compensation in brain may be limited by secondary effects of bicarbonate loading in this tissue.
The Use of Gene Knockout Mice in Thermoregulation Studies

Abstract As the use of gene knockout models in thermoregulation studies has gained popularity, the reported incidence of redundant or discrepant phenotypes between studies has also increased. Several gene knockout models mimic human processes and have provided valuable insight into the role of endogenous mediators in thermoregulatory processes. There are also many examples of mutant strains expressing virtually identical phenotypes as their wild-type controls, causing concern regarding the appropriateness of these models for the study of physiological processes. In some cases, discrepancies in results are being reported from different laboratories that are studying the same gene knockout model. While mutant strains provide a powerful tool for analysis of gene function in vivo, the breeding strategies used to generate the strain may have a profound impact on the expressed phenotype. This review examines the intricacies of working with a small rodent such as the mouse and discusses the advantages and disadvantages of using gene knockout models for thermoregulatory research. A number of experimental strategies that can be used to minimize the occurrence of redundant phenotypes are presented. The influence of background strain effects is also considered, since this may be one of the most important factors influencing a mutant phenotype. A future perspective is provided in which more advanced technologies using conditional gene inactivation and the production of rat knockout strains will improve current experimental design.
The Leidenfrost point : Experimental study and assessment of existing models

Recent demands for superior material properties and more efficient use of materials and production time are forcing manufacturers to develop intelligent processing techniques for enhanced process control in order to better dictate the end product. In the heat treatment and processing of metallic alloys, the desire to obtain parts of enhanced and uniform mechanical properties is requiring increased control over heat removal rates and enhanced temperature control. In particular, spray quenching has been shown to be an effective means to control and enhance the cooling rates of heat treatable aluminum alloys. This study presents a detailed and thorough parametric study of the Leidenfrost point (LFP), which serves as the temperature boundary between the transition and film boiling regimes. Sessile drop evaporation experiments were conducted with acetone, benzene, FC-72, and water on heated aluminum surfaces with either polished, particle blasted, or rough sanded finishes to observe the influential effects of fluid properties, surface roughness, and surface contamination on the LFP. A weak relationship between surface energies and the LFP was observed by performing droplet evaporation experiments with water on polished copper, nickel, and silver surfaces. Additional parameters which were investigated and found to have negligible influence on the LFP included liquidmore » subcooling, liquid degassing, surface roughness on the polished level, and the presence of polishing paste residues. The accumulated LFP data of this study were used to assess several existing models which attempt to identify the mechanisms which govern the LFP. The disagreement between the experimental LFP values and those predicted by the various models suggests that an accurate and robust theoretical model which effectively captures the LFP mechanisms is currently unavailable.« less
Disciplines of truth: The ‘Arab Spring’, American journalistic practice, and the production of public knowledge

This essay posits American journalism as a particular realm of public knowledge production, inflected with its own professional practices as well as the way in which those practices subjugate technologies of representation. Taking the Arab Spring of 2011 as a case study in journalistic knowledge production, this article analyzes three epistemological conditions underscoring the Arab Spring’s development as an object of knowledge: the use of social media tools within the practice of journalism, the representational authority of the individual reporter, and the articulation of journalistic knowledge to broader institutions of liberal democratic power. While these are by no means the only possible themes of investigation, by looking at how journalistic practices rendered the Arab Spring sensible and worthy of public consideration, this essay hopes to reveal them as temporally and technologically contingent, but also linked to the values of liberal democracy that undergird journalism’s role in American public...
Identification of flexible structures for robust control

Documentation is provided of the authors' experience with modeling and identification of an experimental flexible structure for the purpose of control design, with the primary aim being to motivate some important research directions in this area. A multi-input/multi-output (MIMO) model of the structure is generated using the finite element method. This model is inadequate for control design, due to its large variation from the experimental data. Chebyshev polynomials are employed to fit the data with single-input/multi-output (SIMO) transfer function models. Combining these SIMO models leads to a MIMO model with more modes than the original finite element model. To find a physically motivated model, an ad hoc model reduction technique which uses a priori knowledge of the structure is developed. The ad hoc approach is compared with balanced realization model reduction to determine its benefits. Descriptions of the errors between the model and experimental data are formulated for robust control design. Plots of select transfer function models and experimental data are included. >
Transnational Migration: Bringing Gender In

This article aims to bring gender into an even tighter transnational migration focus by broadening and deepening our original framework of “gendered geographies of power,” linking it more directly to existing and emerging scholarship. We examine and highlight previously neglected areas such as the role of the state and the social imaginary in gendering transnational processes and experiences. We identify topics that remain under-appreciated, under-researched, and/or under-theorized. Finally, we initiate a discussion of how a gendered analysis of transnational migration can help bridge this particular research to other gendered transnational processes under study that do not privilege migration.
Adrenomedullin stabilizes the lymphatic endothelial barrier in vitro and in vivo.

The lymphatic vascular system functions to maintain fluid homeostasis by removing fluid from the interstitial space and returning it to venous circulation. This process is dependent upon the maintenance and modulation of a semi-permeable barrier between lymphatic endothelial cells of the lymphatic capillaries. However, our understanding of the lymphatic endothelial barrier and the molecular mechanisms that govern its function remains limited. Adrenomedullin (AM) is a 52 amino acid secreted peptide which has a wide range of effects on cardiovascular physiology and is required for the normal development of the lymphatic vascular system. Here, we report that AM can also modulate lymphatic permeability in cultured dermal microlymphatic endothelial cells (HMVEC-dLy). AM stimulation caused a reorganization of the tight junction protein ZO-1 and the adherens protein VE-cadherin at the plasma membrane, effectively tightening the endothelial barrier. Stabilization of the lymphatic endothelial barrier by AM occurred independently of changes in junctional protein gene expression and AM−/− endothelial cells showed no differences in the gene expression of junctional proteins compared to wildtype endothelial cells. Nevertheless, local administration of AM in the mouse tail decreased the rate of lymph uptake from the interstitial space into the lymphatic capillaries. Together, these data reveal a previously unrecognized role for AM in controlling lymphatic endothelial permeability and lymphatic flow through reorganization of junctional proteins.
Clinical Relevance of MGMT in the Treatment of Cancer

ABSTRACT: A number of DNA-damaging chemotherapeutic agents attack the O6 position on guanine, forming the most potent cytotoxic DNA adducts known. The DNA repair enzyme O6-alkylguanine DNA alkyltransferase (AGT), encoded by the gene MGMT, repairs alkylation at this site and is responsible for protecting both tumor and normal cells from these agents. Cells and tissues vary greatly in AGT expression, not only between tissues but also between individuals. AGT activity correlates inversely with sensitivity to agents that form O6-alkylguanine DNA adducts, such as carmustine (BCNU), temozolomide, streptozotocin, and dacarbazine. The one exception is those tumors lacking mismatch repair, which renders them resistant to methylating agents. A recent study in patients with gliomas confirmed the correlation between low-level expression of the MGMT gene and response and survival after BCNU. An inhibitor to AGT, O6-benzylguanine (BG), depletes AGT in human tumors without associated toxicity and is now in phase II clin...
Further studies on hypothermia and the blood-brain barrier system

Abstract Rats subjected to five episodes of recurrent, progressively deeper hypothermia showed no difference in cerebral deposition of rubidium tracer at 16 °C and/or apnea from animals lowered to this temperature and/or condition only once. Rats allowed to rewarm from 16 °C showed persisting increased cerebral deposition of tracer at 20 °C with gradual diminution at higher temperatures; at 37 °C, deposition of rubidium tracer in brains of rewarmed rats was not different from that of euthermic rats which were not subjected to hypothermia.
Isolation of a high molecular weight actin-binding protein from baby hamster kidney (BHK-21) cells

A high molecular weight protein (HMWP) with properties similar to those of both actin-binding protein (ABP) and filamin has been isolated from cultured baby hamster kidney (BHK-21) cells. The protein was present in an actomyosin-depleted sucrose extract of the cells and was eluted, upon gel chromatography on Sepharose 4B, near the void volume. The subunit migration on sodium dodecyl sulfate/polyacrylamide gels and the amino acid composition of HMWP were similar to those of ABP and filamin. HMWP bound to and crosslinked F-actin from rabbit muscle, as shown by the formation of a gel that was sedimented with low-speed centrifugation. This interaction was insensitive to temperature and low concentrations of calcium ions, although it may depend on the presence of myosin. Observation of thin sections of the actin-HMWP gel revealed crosslinked complexes of laterally aggregated actin filaments. The axial period of the dense crosslinks was 34 nm. The HMWP may be involved in regulation of microfilament organization.
Atomic absorption spectroscopy with a high-temperature furnace

Abstract Some of the operating conditions of an atomic absorption system based on a high temperature graphite tube furnace have been investigated. Methanol has been found to be a suitable solvent. Nebulized solutions are carried by an inert gas to the center of an electrically heated, well insulated, long graphite tube. With modest optics and electronics, sensitivities have been found to be comparable to the “flame in tube” methods. Memory effects, while detectable, have not been found to be as serious as they are in those methods where the gas stream is at a higher temperature than the tube walls.
Generic instability of rotating relativistic stars

All rotating perfect fluid configurations having two-parameter equations of state are shown to be dynamically unstable to nonaxisymmetric perturbations in the framework of general relativity. Perturbations of an equilibrium fluid are described by means of a Lagrangian displacement, and an action for the linearized field equations is obtained, in terms of which the symplectic product and canonical energy of the system can be expressed. Previous criteria governing stability were based on the sign of the canonical energy, but this functional fails to be invariant under the gauge freedom associated with a class of trivial Lagrangian displacements, whose existence was first pointed out by Schutz and Sorkin [12]. In order to regain a stability criterion, one must eliminate the trivials, and this is accomplished by restricting consideration to a class of “canonical” displacements, orthogonal to the trivials with respect to the symplectic product. There nevertheless remain perturbations having angular dependenceeimφ (φ the azimuthal angle) which, for sufficiently largem, make the canonical energy negative; consequently, even slowly rotating stars are unstable to short wavelength perturbations. To show strict instability, it is necessary to assume that time-dependent nonaxisymmetric perturbations radiate energy to null infinity. As a byproduct of the work, the relativistic generalization of Ertel's theorem (conservation of vorticity in constant entropy surfaces) is obtained and shown to be Noetherrelated to the symmetry associated with the trivial displacements.
Structural studies of the neural-cell-adhesion molecule by X-ray and neutron reflectivity.

The structures of adhesion proteins play an important role in the formation of intercellular junctions and the control of intermembrane spacing. This paper describes the combination of neutron and X-ray specular reflectivity measurements to investigate the structure of the ectodomain of the neural-cell-adhesion molecule (NCAM). The measurements with unmodified NCAM suggest the presence of a bend in the extraceullar region. Measurements with the polysialic-acid-modified form of NCAM reveal that, at physiological ionic strength, the carbohydrate chains extend beyond the range of the unmodified protein. The excluded volume of the polymer is also ionic-strength-dependent, as expected for a polyelectrolyte. The structural characteristics obtained from these independent analyses of X-ray and neutron reflectivity data agree with each other, with prior reflectivity studies, and with molecular dimensions obtained from direct-force measurements. These results provide structural insights into the configuration of th...
British University Debating: A Reappraisal.

Based on the writer's participation in two debate tours of Great Britain, this essay re‐examines the philosophies and types of British debate activities. Contrary to past reports, it finds a greater seriousness of purpose and a heterogeneity of formats in British debating. A few recommendations for the SCA are offered and the implications of the British system for American debate are considered.
Antifibrotic therapy in chronic liver disease

The response to injury is one of wound healing and, subsequently, fibrosis. This response is generalized, occurring in diverse organ systems. Injury and wounding in the liver ultimately lead to cirrhosis in many patients (although not all patients), and are the result of many different diseases. The fact that various diseases result in cirrhosis suggests a common pathogenesis. Study over the past 2 decades has shed considerable light on the pathogenesis of fibrosis and cirrhosis. A growing body of literature indicates that the hepatic stellate cell is a central component in the fibrogenic process. Stellate cells undergo a transformation during injury that has been termed activation. Activation is complex and multifaceted, but one of its most prominent features is the synthesis of large amounts of extracellular matrix, resulting in deposition of scar or fibrous tissue. The fibrogenic process is dynamic; it is noteworthy that even advanced fibrosis (or cirrhosis) is reversible. The best antifibrotic therapy is treatment of the underlying disease. For example, eradication of hepatitis B or C virus can lead to the reversal of fibrosis. In situations in which treating the underlying process is not possible, specific antifibrotic therapy is desirable. A number of specific antifibrotic therapies have been tried, but have been met with poor or mediocre success. However, elucidation of the mechanisms responsible for fibrogenesis, with particular emphasis on stellate cell biology, has highlighted many putative novel therapies. This article emphasizes mechanisms underlying fibrogenesis, and reviews current antifibrotic therapies as well as potential future approaches.