cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Internal Browning Disorder and Fruit Quality in Modified Atmosphere Packaged 'Bartlett' Pears during Storage and Transit

Abstract Internal browning (IB) can be a serious problem with the use of modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) for ‘Bartlett’ pears ( Pyrus communis L.) grown in the Pacific Northwest during storage and transit to distant markets. To investigate this disorder, ‘Bartlett’ pears harvested at commercial maturity were packed in a commercial MAP (MAPc), an experimental MAP (MAPe) and commercial perforated plastic bags (control) and stored in air at −1.1 °C. After 1 and 3 months of storage, samples of MAPc and control fruit were transferred to rooms at temperatures of 2, 4.5, 7.5, and 10 °C for 3 weeks to simulate transit temperatures and the time required to reach distant markets. MAPc maintained an average internal atmosphere of 12.3% O 2 + 5.6% CO 2 and significantly extended ‘Bartlett’ pear storage life with high eating quality and without IB and other disorders for up to 4 months at −1.1 °C. The internal gas atmosphere of MAPe equilibrated at 2.2% O 2 + 5.7% CO 2 , which resulted in fruit with 25.5 and 62.3% IB after 3 and 4 months of storage, respectively. During simulated transit conditions of 2, 4.5, 7.5, and 10 °C, the CO 2 level in MAPc was maintained at 5.6–7.9%, while O 2 was reduced dramatically to 10.5, 5.0, 2.5, and 1.0%, respectively. IB developed at 7.5 and 10 °C but not at 2 and 4.5 °C, regardless of pre-transit storage duration (1 and 3 months) at −1.1 °C. The longer the storage duration and the higher transit temperature, the higher the incidence and severity of IB. The MAP-related IB disorder observed in this study included two types of symptoms: classic pithy brown core and wet brown flesh. The MAPc storage gas atmospheres maintained fruit firmness, color and higher eating quality after ripening, eliminated senescent scald and core breakdown, suppressed the loss of ascorbic acid (AsA) and titratable acidity, and slowed the accumulation of malondialdehyde (MDA) during storage at −1.1 °C for up to 4 months or 3 months + 3 weeks at simulated transit temperatures of 2 and 4.5 °C. In contrast, fruit held in MAP with low O 2 levels (1.0–2.5%) developed IB that appeared to be associated with a reduction in AsA, accumulated MDA and exhibited an increase in membrane leakage. MAP inhibited ripening at high CO 2 + high O 2 but lead to IB when the packaging material or elevated temperatures resulted in high CO 2 + low O 2 conditions. The incidence of IB closely correlated with lipid peroxidation and appeared to be related to fruit AsA concentration. The MAPc designed for pears appears to be suitable for ‘Bartlett’ fruit stored at −1.1 °C for up to 4 months or storage for 3 months and a transportation duration of up to 3 weeks at 0–4.5 °C during the early season and at 0–2 °C during the late packing season. These conditions yielded fruit of high eating quality and without IB or over-ripening upon arrival at distant markets.
A micro-analysis of business travel demand

This study tests two hypothesis: (1) that tax deductibility and the dual benefit nature of goods on the business–pleasure borderline increases the demand for business travel, and (2) that this dual benefit decreases price elasticity. The study uses expenditure microdata and contrasts the behaviour of business travellers and pleasure travellers. Both groups are assumed to have indentical tastes, but the expenditure behaviour of business travellers is modified by the role of the business trip as a factor of production. The Linear Expenditure System (LES) allocation model is applied to expenditures on individual goods at a particular tourist destination. Business travellers are shown to have higher expenditures than pleasure travellers for food, lodging, and local transportation. Minimum quantities estimated by the LES are also higher for business travellers. Uncompensated price elasticities of business travellers are significantly smaller than that of pleasure travellers for local transportation, clothing a...
Influence of high rates of topdressed KCl and K2SO4 on recovery of K, Cl, and SO4‐S by alfalfa and residual amount remaining in the soil

Abstract This study was conducted to ascertain the percent of available K, Cl, and SO4‐S recovered by alfalfa (Medicago sativa L. cv. ‘Vernal') herbage when various rates of K as KCl and K2SO4 were topdressed and also to determine where residual K, Cl, and SO4‐S accumulated in the soil profile. An established stand of alfalfa growing on low fertility silt loam soil was topdressed in the spring of each of two harvest years with 0, 448, 896, 1344, and 1792 kg/ha of K as KCl or K2SO4. Four harvests were taken during each harvest year (1972 and 1973). Soil samples were taken during the autumn of 1973 to a depth of 91.4 cm in KCl‐fertilized plots, and to a depth of 76.2 cm in K2SO4‐fertilized and control plots. Potassium recovery by alfalfa during two harvest years where K as KCl was applied at 448, 896, 1344, and 1792 kg/ha/yr was 56, 33, 20, and 17%, respectively. Recovery of available Cl from those same treatments was 30, 17, 12, and 10%, respectively. Where K as K2SO4 was applied at 448, 896, 1344, and 179...
Demonstration of an Autoreceptor Modulating the Release of [3H]5-Hydroxytryptamine from a Synaptosomal-Rich Spinal Cord Tissue Preparation

: A superfusion system employed to measure the K+ -stimulated release of [3H]5-hydroxytryptamine ([3H]5-HT,[3H]serotonin) from a synaptosomal-rich spinal cord tissue preparation was carefully characterized, then used to examine the regulation of spinal 5-HT release. Spinal 5-HT release is apparently modulated by an autoreceptor. Exogenous 5-HT depressed, in a concentration-dependent manner, the K+-stimulated release of [3H]5-HT. Similarly, lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) produced a concentration-dependent decrease in [3H]5-HT release. Methiothepin and quipazine blocked the inhibition of release induced by exogenous 5-HT. The 5-HT2 receptor antagonists spiperone and ketanserin failed to alter the action of 5-HT at the spinal 5-HT autoreceptor. Spiperone and ketanserin were shown, however, to alter the storage of [3H]5-HT. When used in concentrations greater than 10 nM, the drugs evoked increases in basal [3H]5-HT and [3H]5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid ([3H]5-HIAA) effluxes which were independent of the presence of calcium ions. A good agreement existed between the potencies of drugs for modifying autoreceptor function and their abilities to compete for high-affinity [3H]5-HT binding in the spinal cord (designated 5-HT1). Furthermore quipazine, in concentrations that preferentially interact with the 5-HT1B subtype, antagonized the actions of exogenous 5-HT on K+ -stimulated release. Spiperone, in a concentration that approximated the affinity constant of 5-HT1A sites for the drug, was ineffective in altering the ability of exogenous 5-HT to modulate K+-stimulated [3H]5-HT release. These results suggest that 5-HT1B sites are associated with serotonergic autoreceptor function in the spinal cord.
Investigation of the cross-reaction of rat prolactin with antisera to ovine prolactin.

Abstract Although a number of investigators have employed antisera to ovine prolactin to localize the prolactin-containing cells of rat pituitaries by the fluorescent-antibody method, a cross-reaction between antisera to ovine prolactin and rat prolactin cannot be demonstrated using Ouchterlony or biological neutralization methods. However, a very small partial cross-reaction has been detected using a highly sensitive radioimmunotechnique. The significance of these results is discussed.
On infinitely adaptive crystal structures

Abstract Many realizations of infinitely adaptive crystal structures have been reported recently. It is shown that the elastic energy associated with the forced coherent registration of two types of lattice planes gives a long range repulsive interaction that can account for the observations.
Muscarinic receptors in preoptic area and hypothalamus: effects of cyclicity, sex and estrogen treatment.

Abstract Cholinergic muscarinic receptor binding was measured in the preoptic area (POA) and whole hypothalamus (HTH) of adult Sprague-Dawley rats using the tritiated antagonist quinuclidinyl benzilate ([3H]QNB) as the ligand. Binding of [3H]QNB expressed as fmol/mg protein was 30% higher in POA than in HTH from gonadectomized rats. Cyclic changes were observed in the POA with the highest binding at proestrus and the lowest binding at diestrus. In HTH, no significant changes occurred over the estrous cycle. Estrogen treatment (10 μg of estradiol benzoate (EB)/120 g b. wt./48 and 24 h before sacrifice) increased [3H]QNB binding by 42% in the POA and 17% in HTH, relative to the ovariectomized controls. The enhancement of [3H]QNB binding in POA as compared with controls was evident with both the filtration and the centrifugation methods, although binding levels were higher when centrifugation assay was used. A lower estrogen dose (2 μg EB/rat/48 and 24 h before sacrifice) which is routinely used to activate lordotic behavior in female rats increased muscarinic binding by 26% in the POA but had no appreciable effect in HTH. A significant sex difference was found in the ability of estrogen to induce [3H]QNB binding in the central nervous system (CNS). Estrogen was ineffective in altering [3H]QNB binding in either brain region of castrated males, although the level and pattern of cholinergic binding between untreated gonadectomized males and females were similar. These data suggest that physiological changes in estrogen secretion over the estrous cycle are capable of modulating cholinergic muscarinic binding in the POA and these changes may be physiological relevance. The failure of estrogen to enhance binding in either the POA or HTH of male rats is consistent with the hypothesis that cholinergic mechanisms are involved in mediating sensitivity to estrogenic hormones and implicates the sexual differentiation process in its regulation.
Transposition of the Great Arteries

Experience with 74 consecutive patients with transposition of the great arteries treated by palliative methods at the Children9s Hospital Medical Center in Boston from June 1950 to September 1966 forms the basis for this report. Four palliative techniques were considered in detail. The specific palliative approach suggested depended on the anatomy and physiology in the individual case. Atrial septal defect creation was used largely for patients with an intact ventricular septum to improve arterial saturation, vent the left atrium, and prevent development of pulmonary vascular obstructive changes. Pulmonary artery banding was the procedure used mainly for infants with large ventricular septal defect, adequate mixing, and pulmonary arterial hypertension. The combined operation was performed on infants with ventricular defect in whom arterial-venous mixing was less than optimal through a relatively small ventricular septal defect. Arterial shunt operations were used for cyanotic infants, not in congestive failure, with ventricular septal defect and severe pulmonic stenosis. The authors recommend palliative surgery in the neonatal period for all patients with transposition of the great arteries, except for the few with type IIA lesions who have just the optimal amount of arterial saturation and absence of congestive heart failure. At present at least an 84% survival rate can be expected from the palliative surgical procedures even in the critically ill infant in the first days of life.
Structure-Based Design of Novel Pyrimido[4,5-c]pyridazine Derivatives as Dihydropteroate Synthase Inhibitors with Increased Affinity

Dihydropteroate synthase (DHPS) is the validated drug target for sulfonamide antimicrobial therapy. However, due to widespread drug resistance and poor tolerance, the use of sulfonamide antibiotics is now limited. The pterin binding pocket in DHPS is highly conserved and is distinct from the sulfonamide binding site. It therefore represents an attractive alternative target for the design of novel antibacterial agents. We previously carried out the structural characterization of a known pyridazine inhibitor in the Bacillus anthracis DHPS pterin site and identified a number of unfavorable interactions that appear to compromise binding. With this structural information, a series of 4,5-dioxo-1,4,5,6-tetrahydropyrimido[4,5-c]pyridazines were designed to improve binding affinity. Most importantly, the N-methyl ring substitution was removed to improve binding within the pterin pocket, and the length of the side chain carboxylic acid was optimized to fully engage the pyrophosphate binding site. These inhibitors were synthesized and evaluated by an enzyme activity assay, X-ray crystallography, isothermal calorimetry, and surface plasmon resonance to obtain a comprehensive understanding of the binding interactions from structural, kinetic, and thermodynamic perspectives. This study clearly demonstrates that compounds lacking the N-methyl substitution exhibit increased inhibition of DHPS, but the beneficial effects of optimizing the side chain length are less apparent.
The identification and characterization of a prenoid constituent (farnesol) of Hymenolepis diminuta (Cestoda).

Abstract 1. 1. Some non-saponifiable materials from H. diminuta were characterized with particular emphasis given to the prenoid alcohol, farnesol. 2. 2. The cestode's non-saponifiables contained farnesol which was identified and quantified using column chromatography, gas-liquid chromatography, mass spectrometry, and isotope dilution. 3. 3. Only the 2- trans , 6- trans isomer of farnesol was found, being present at a mean concentration of 0.65 μg/g wet weight tissue. No 2- cis , 6- trans isomer was detected. 4. 4. Two non-prenoid materials with apparent molecular weights of 224, possibly representing isomeric variants, were found. One of these materials co-chromatographed with 2- cis , 6- trans farnesol on a 15% FFAP gas-liquid chromatographic column. 5. 5. The cestode's non-saponifiables contained copious quantities of cholesterol.
High accuracy determination of the shape of the efficiency curve of the HPGe detector in the energy range 900 to 1300 keV

Abstract A method for high accuracy characterization of the shape of a High Purity Germanium (HPGe) detector efficiency curve has been developed. Radionuclides with decay schemes having at least two γ lines, for which the yield ratio can be calculated accurately, are used to establish the shape of the detector efficiency curve. Measurements using 60Co and 46Sc sources show that the behavior of the efficiency curve of the detector on a log-log scale is indistinguishable from that of a straight line with a slope of −0.828 ± 0.004. Measurements using a 24Na source show that above 1368 keV this behavior no longer holds due to pair production and escape effects. The measured value of the slope in that case is −0.951 ± 0.002. The proposed method is to be used in measurements requiring the minimum calibration bias in the determination of the reaction rate ratios, such as reactor dosimetry applications, integral cross section measurements and k0 determination for neutron activation analysis.
Sensitivity Analysis of Track Maintenance Strategies for the High Speed Rail (HSR) Services

Track Maintenance (TM) is one of the critical parts of rail operations and asset management. It has been estimated that about 25–35% of all operational costs are related to the track maintenance performance which can be typically classified as either corrective maintenance (CM) or preventive maintenance (PM). The first is a more reactive approach, where maintenance is conducted when inspections have revealed a need for action. The latter is a strategic approach that is mainly applied through maintenance planning. High Speed Rail (HSR) systems, especially on shared HSR corridors, can complicate track maintenance conditions due to the tight tolerances and precision, reliability and safety issues required by HSR. This paper evaluates strategic approaches for track maintenance planning along selected HSR corridors with either shared or dedicated operation pattern. The paper uses analytical and descriptive parameter tables to evaluate how sensitive a corridor is to changes in essential criteria for developing track maintenance strategies (TMS). These criteria may include: - HSR traffic conditions and operations regime; - TMS approach (or strategy) on current rail lines connected to the new HSR line; - Operation and Maintenance (O&M) structure of HSR management system. The descriptive parameter tables have been used by a specific PM modeling approach called preventive maintenance scheduling problem (PMSP). Before running PMSP model over a designated line, the respective parameters of the model should be calibrated and analyzed based on the line specifications. The descriptive parameter tables can be used during calibration procedure to assist in analyzing the sensitivity of model’s parameters and variables for the above mentioned criteria. This paper discusses and compares TMS approaches on three planned HSR corridors in Europe (Lisbon-Madrid HSR), Asia (Tehran-Isfahan HSR) and USA (California HSR). All three HSR rail corridors are under development, but each presents specific sensitivities to the given PM model’s parameters that can affect track maintenance strategic planning along these corridors. We concluded that TMS model calibration by these descriptive analytical tables can assist maintenance strategic planners in identifying different TMS approaches when dealing with maintenance contractors, HSR operators and public rail authorities.Copyright © 2011 by ASME
The Failure of Popular Justice in Uganda: Local Councils and Women’s Property Rights

Advocates of alternative dispute resolution argue that informal community-based institutions are better placed to provide inexpensive expedient and culturally appropriate forms of justice. In 1988 the Ugandan government extended judicial capacity to local councils (LCs) on similar grounds. Drawing on attempts by women in southwestern Uganda to use the LCs to adjudicate property disputes this article investigates why popular justice has failed to protect the customary property rights of women. The gap between theory and practice arises out of misconceptions of community. The tendency to ascribe a morality and autonomy to local spaces obscures the ability of elites to use informal institutions for purposes of social control. In the light of womens attempts to escape the "rule of persons" and to seek out arbiters whom they associate with the rule of law it can be argued that the utility of the state to ordinary Ugandans should be reconsidered. (authors)
An architecture for a data-intensive computer

Scientific instruments, as well as simulations, generate increasingly large datasets, changing the way we do science. We propose a system that we call the data-intensive computer for computing with Petascale-sized datasets. The data-intensive computer consists of an HPC cluster, a massively parallel database and a set of computing servers running the data-intensive operating system, which turns the database into a layer in the memory hierarchy of the data-intensive computer.The data-intensive operating system is data-object-oriented: the abstract programming model of a sequential file, central to traditional computer operating systems, is replaced with system-level support for high-level data objects, such as multi-dimensional arrays, graphs, sparse arrays, etc. User application programs will be compiled into code that is executed both on the HPC cluster and inside the database. The data-intensive operating system is however non-local, allowing remote applications to execute code inside the database. This model supports the collaborative environment, where a large data set is typically created and processed by a large group of users.We are developing a software library, MPI-DB, which is a prototype of the data-intensive operating system. It is currently being used by the Turbulence group at JHU to store simulation output in the database and to perform simulations refining previously stored results.
Developing an objective function to characterize the tradeoffs in salting out and the foam and droplet fractionation processes

There are many methods for separating and purifying proteins from dilute solutions, such as salting out/precipitation, adsorption/chromatography, foam fractionation, and droplet fractionation. In order to determine the optimal condition for a selected separation and purification process, an objective function is developed. The objective function consists of three parameters, which are the protein mass recovery, the separation ratio, and the enzymatic activity ratio. In this paper the objective function is determined as a function of the pH of the bulk solution for egg albumin, cellulase, and sporamin (for foam fractionation) and invertase ( for droplet fractionation). It is found that the optimal pH for all the systems except for cellulase is near their isoelectric point.
What's ahead for 2000 A.D.?

On January 1, 2000 many applications will stop working properly. Most utilities and applications express the year as the two low order digits of the full representation of the year so that dates in the new century will appear to occur before dates in the old. When this phenomenon occurred in the past humans adapted quickly, and no great dislocation occurred.Unfortunately, the computer is not as adaptable or reasonable as the human.This paper presents one possible solution to the problem, at least in the APL environment. This solution involves replacing date fields in files and records with a pseudo-Julian day number (PJD). This number permits the analyst to use date information arithmetically to determine the day of the week, the period between dates, create lists of dates, etc. The PJD is easily converted to or from human-usable canonical date forms. Finally, the technique defers difficulties due to changes of year, century, millennium, etc. indefinitely.In the later sections of the paper some thoughts on possible extensions to the leap-year algorithm are discussed. The new terms would improve precision without affecting the past or present. Finally, sample functions which support and utilize this “perpetual” calendar are given.It must be emphasized that this paper represents a solution only within the APL environment. The concept is applicable in any environment, language or system but only if it or a similar solution is adopted before December 31, 1999. If we users of APL recognize and fix the problem in our environment while the rest of the computing world ignores it, the problem will still affect everyone, including us.
The biometry of an isotope displacement immunologic microassay

Abstract Bioassay micro techniques have been used widely in determining the potency of insulin as well as for estimating the strength of many other biological substances. The development of micro bioassay methods which rely on the antigenic specificity of the biological substance being assayed is an encouraging recent development. Such immunoassay procedures, which are both reliable and practical, appear to provide a general method for the measurement of many biological substances. The present study is concerned with certain biometric aspects of isotope displacement immunoassays. General principles associated with such assays are presented, and the primary sources of variation are discussed. A nonlinear statistical model, based upon the assumption of univalent antigen and a single order of antibody combining sites, is developed. Procedures are outlined and numerically illustrated for inverse point and interval estimation for this model. Specific examples illustrating the procedure are drawn from the diabetes and insulin literature. This is done because the procedure was first developed for assaying minute quantities of insulin and is most widely used for this purpose. However, it should be noted that the method has been successful in many other applications as well.
Why is learning and memory dysfunction in Type 2 diabetes limited to older adults

Review of the literature on the cognitive correlates and consequences of Type 2 diabetes reveals two very intriguing findings. Not only are verbal learning and memory skills most likely to be disrupted as compared to other cognitive skills (e.g. attention, executive function; psychomotor efficiency), but these mnestic deficits appear to be restricted to individuals with diabetes who are older than 60-65 years of age. Middle-aged adults with either Type 2 or Type 1 diabetes are apparently protected insofar as researchers have only infrequently reported learning and memory impairments in that age group. Why do older adults have such an increased risk of diabetes-associated memory dysfunction? In our view, this phenomenon is a consequence of a synergistic interaction between diabetes-related metabolic derangements and the structural and functional changes occurring in the central nervous system (CNS) that are part of the normal ageing process. To critically evaluate that possibility, we summarise what is known about learning and memory dysfunction in the adult with diabetes, examine the extent to which chronic hyperglycaemia may adversely affect the integrity of the CNS, and selectively review the literature on age-associated changes in brain morphology and cognitive function, paying special attention to the threshold theory of cognitive impairment.
Germlining of the HIV-1 broadly neutralizing antibody domain m36.

Abstract Engineered antibody domains (eAds) have emerged as a novel class of HIV-1 inhibitors and are currently under preclinical testing as promising drug candidates for prevention and therapy of HIV-1 infection. Reverse mutation of antibodies to germline sequences (germlining) could not only identify less mutated variants with lower probability of immunogenicity and other improved properties but also help elucidate their mechanisms of action. In this study, we sequentially reverted the framework (FRs) and complementary determining regions (CDRs) of m36, a human antibody heavy chain variable domain-based eAd targeting the coreceptor binding site of the viral envelope glycoprotein gp120, back to germline sequences. Two types of amino acid mutations and one region in the antibody V segment were identified that are critical for HIV-1 neutralization. These include four mutations to acidic acid residues distributed in the CDR1 and CDR2, two mutations to hydrophobic residues in the FR3 and CDR3, and partial FR2 and FR3 sequences flanking the CDR2 that are derived from a different gene family. An m36 variant with all five mutations in the FRs reverted back to germline showed slightly increased neutralizing activity against two HIV-1 isolates tested. Another variant with seven of twelve mutations in the V segment reverted retained potency within threefold of that of the mature antibody. These results, together with an analysis of m36–gp120-CD4 docking structures, could have implications for the further development of m36 and elucidation of its mechanism of potent and broad HIV-1 neutralization.
Signal amplification and detection via a supramolecular allosteric catalyst.

The design of a supramolecular allosteric catalyst system for catalytic signal amplification and detection is presented. The catalyst was switched “on” by the introduction of an analyte that also behaves as an allosteric activator. Concentrations of Cl- ions as low as 800 nM were catalytically amplified and detected. The signal was transduced via a pH-sensitive fluorescent probe and observed visually using a laboratory, handheld UV lamp and by spectrophotometry. Furthermore, the allosteric effect was quantified using gas chromatography for a range of Cl- concentrations. This three-part detection scheme involving analyte binding, allosteric catalyst activation, and signal transduction represents a new approach to small-molecule detection.
Studies on the Modification of Thermoplastic Polyolefins (TPOs)—Part I. Effect of Various Modifiers on the Adhesion of a Two-Component (2K) Polyurethane Coating to the Modified TPOs

Thermoplastic polyolefins (TPOs) have low energy surfaces, therefore, they are difficult to be adhered to with adhesive and coating systems. Various modifiers, namely, polycaprolactone, polyvinyl acetate, poly(oxy-ethylene)glycol and polyamides were incorporated into the matrix of TPOs to modify and enhance their surface energy in order to improve adhesion of two component (2K) urethane coatings to their surface. Adhesion was investigated by using the crosshatch adhesion test. Good adhesion of 2K polyurethane coatings to the modified TPOs was achieved by using polyamides based on maleated polypropylene (MPP) and polyetheramine (PEA) (ED4000). The adhesion was found to be dependent on the modifier percentage and the equivalent ratio of MPP to PEA (ED4000).
Relativistic Statistical Mechanics and Blackbody Radiation

A manifestly Lorentz-invariant generalization of the Gibbs's canonical density operator is derived for the free fields of quantum electrodynamics from the maximum-entropy principle. Known results for the energy density, entropy, and other thermodynamic functions of blackbody radiation are very simply rederived. Use of the invariant density operator makes it clear that, contrary to recent assertions of Ott and others, it is not necessarily most natural to assume that temperature transforms like an energy. What is more to the point, it is shown that the concept of temperature in a moving system can be eliminated altogether if desired. Temperature may be conveniently considered as a purely rest-frame concept. The invariant density operator is then used to investigate the second-order two-point space-time correlation functions of the blackbody radiation field. The recent results of Mehta and Wolf and others are generalized to an arbitrary uniformly moving corodinate system, and the most interesting cases of pure temporal and spatial coherence are presented graphically. Two examples are given in which a moving observer measures a higher degree of coherence than he would in the rest system. Some remarks are made concerning the Gaussian nature of the phase-space distribution function, and the consequences for higher-order correlation functions in a moving frame are discussed briefly.
Regulation of alternative RNA splicing by exon definition and exon sequences in viral and mammalian gene expression

Intron removal from a pre-mRNA by RNA splicing was once thought to be controlled mainly by intron splicing signals. However, viral and other eukaryotic RNA exon sequences have recently been found to regulate RNA splicing, polyadenylation, export, and nonsense-mediated RNA decay in addition to their coding function. Regulation of alternative RNA splicing by exon sequences is largely attributable to the presence of two major cis-acting elements in the regulated exons, the exonic splicing enhancer (ESE) and the suppressor or silencer (ESS). Two types of ESEs have been verified from more than 50 genes or exons: purine-rich ESEs, which are the more common, and non-purine-rich ESEs. In contrast, the sequences of ESSs identified in approximately 20 genes or exons are highly diverse and show little similarity to each other. Through interactions with cellular splicing factors, an ESE or ESS determines whether or not a regulated splice site, usually an upstream 3' splice site, will be used for RNA splicing. However, how these elements function precisely in selecting a regulated splice site is only partially understood. The balance between positive and negative regulation of splice site selection likely depends on the cis-element's identity and changes in cellular splicing factors under physiological or pathological conditions.
Predatory Behavior of Yellow Baboons

1. A group of 32 yellow baboons (Papio cynocephalus) in the Masai-Amboseli National Park, Kenya, caught and ate 45 vertebrate prey items during 2519.19 hours of observation. 2. Eighty percent of the prey items were mammals and the most frequently eaten species were African hares (Lepus capensis), vervet monkeys (Cercopithecus aethiops) and neonate gazelle (Cazella granti and G. thomsoni) in that order. The details of predatory behavior for each prey species are described. 3. Rates of predation were significantly higher during the long dry season than during other months of the year, although no correlation was found between total monthly rainfall and monthly rates of predation. A lognormal model however provided a good fit to the monthly rate of predation data suggesting that the rate of predation by Amboseli baboons was affected by several factors that acted multiplicatively with respect to each other and were themselves related to rainfall or dryness. 4. A mean of 2.3 individuals fed directly from the carcass of each prey item. A mean of 3.5 individuals per prey item fed directly or indirectly, i.e., on scraps, from each carcass. In general, both the number of individuals who fed from each carcass and the duration of their feeding bouts was dependent upon the gross body size of the prey item. Adult males fed directly from the carcass of prey items for about three times more minutes than expected from their number in the group; other classes of individuals fed directly from prey carcasses for only one-fourth as many minutes as expected. In general, an adult male would be expected to feed on each category of vertebrate prey at least once per year, while individuals of all other age-sex classes would be expected to feed on most prey categories only once every two years. 5. The most frequent social behavior around prey items was agonistic bouts; no cooperation, simultaneous feeding or specific begging gestures were observed. 6. Estimates of the total number of prey killed annually by Amboseli baboons indicate that baboon predation probably has a negligible effect on prey populations other than vervet monkeys. 7. It is speculated that the need for vitamin B12 underlies baboon predatory behavior, and perhaps that of other primate species as well.
Improving solid-state hydriding and dehydriding properties of the LiBH4 plus MgH2 system with the addition of Mn and V dopants

Abstract The hydriding process of the 2LiH + MgB 2 mixture is controlled by outward diffusion of Mg and inward diffusion of Li and H within MgB 2 crystals to form LiBH 4 . This study explores the feasibility of using transition metal dopants, such as Mn and V, to enhance the diffusion rate and thus the hydriding kinetics. It is found that Mn can indeed enhance the hydriding kinetics of the 2LiH + MgB 2 mixture, while V does not. The major factor in enhancing the diffusion rate and thus the hydriding kinetics is related to the dopant's ability to induce the lattice distortion of MgB 2 crystals. This study demonstrates that the kinetics of the diffusion controlled solid-state hydriding process can be improved by doping if the dopant is properly selected.
Heart failure and cardiac disease in children with HIV infection

Abstract Cardiac complications in children infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) include heart failure, cardiomyopathy, arrhythmias, pericardial effusions and myocardial infarction. In addition, laboratory evidence of cardiac dysfunction has been associated with increased all-cause mortality in children with HIV. It is unclear whether heart disease is a marker for a more virulent course of illness or if there is a direct link between cardiac disease and increased mortality. Estimates of the incidence of cardiac dysfunction seen on echocardiography vary widely and have been described in up to 65% of children. The incidence of other cardiac complications also varies depending on surveillance and detection methods. More accurate estimates of the frequency and extent of heart disease in these children await completion of long-term studies currently in progress. Clinicians should maintain a high index of suspicion for heart disease in these children. Echocardiography is useful in the evaluation of cardiac function in HIV infected children and is recommended for those who are symptomatic from heart disease. Recognition of cardiac dysfunction is often difficult in these children because of the presence of complications such as fever, chronic lung disease, anemia, nephrotic syndrome and hepatosplenomegaly. Patients with pulmonary disease that is unresponsive to usual measures, or those with concurrent illnesses which may mask clinical signs of heart failure, should also be evaluated for cardiac disease.
Structure-Based Ligand Discovery for Solute Carrier Transporters

Solute Carrier (SLC) Transporters are membrane proteins that control the uptake and efflux of various solutes such as amino acids, sugars, and drugs. In humans, SLCs can be drug targets themselves or be responsible for absorption, targeting, and disposition of drugs. We first perform a comprehensive comparison of SLCs to inform attempts to model their structures, a prerequisite for structure-based ligand discovery. We then describe an integrated computational and experimental approach for identifying transporter-small molecule interactions. Particularly, we use comparative modeling and virtual screening, followed by experimental validation by measuring uptake kinetics, to identify interactions between SLC transporters and small molecules ligands, including prescription drugs, metabolites, and fragment-like compounds. For example, we discovered that several existing prescription drugs interact with the norepinephrine transporter, NET, which may explain some of the pharmacological effects (i.e., efficacy and/or side effects) of these drugs via polypharmacology. We also applied our approach to related transporters, to identify rules for substrate specificity in a key membrane transporter family of the nervous system (i.e., the SLC6 family). Our combined theoretical and experimental approach is generally applicable to structural characterization of protein families other than SLCs, including receptors, ion-channels, and enzymes, as well as their interactions with small molecule ligands.
Property fields in a Tortugas Eddy in the southern straits of Florida

Sea surface temperature imagery, ship-based surveys, and moored current meters described the passage of a Tortugas Eddy as it moved east at ca. 6 km day -1 through the southern Straits of Florida (SSF). In mid-April 1999 the eddy SST signature extended across half the width of the Straits. While in the western SSF, the eddy center was ca. 30 km seaward of the outer reef. The upper pycnocline, the subsurface chlorophyll a maximum (SCM), and nutricline shoaled from ca. 80 m at the eddy edge to < 60 m at the center. Maximum chlorophyll a concentrations in the SCM were highest near the eddy center, at 1 mg m -3 , although the depth-integrated concentrations (mg m -2 ) were similar across the feature. Nutrient-density relationships show nitrate + nitrite, phosphate, and silicate decreased to detection limits at σ t < 25.0; the SCM was centered near this isopycnal surface. As the Eddy passed Looe Key (81.5W) the alongshore currents reversed to the west. During this period high-nutrient, cool waters shoaled near the bottom on the outer reef. By early May, the eddy SST signature was compressed into a thin band of cool surface waters off the Middle to Upper Keys. As the feature moved towards shore in the Middle to Upper Florida Keys, the nitrate + nitrite and chlorophyll concentrations increased in bottom waters along the outer reef. Processes such as internal tidal bores and breaking internal waves are likely responsible for delivering nutrients from Tortugas Eddies to the outer reef in the Middle to Upper Keys.
Literature, trauma and the African moral imagination

Trauma theory claims to represent a ‘new mode of reading and of listening’, but its Eurocentric roots lead to the question of whether or not this approach is relevant in postcolonial contexts. This essay makes the case that engaging trauma theory through African literatures is in fact a productive exercise, mostly because of what it does for the former. African social thought, expressed through its writers and critics, allows us to refine and address crucial problems in trauma theory, including questions about the representation of trauma and strategies for trauma healing. African writers' deployment of images such as the railroad, which is closely linked with discourses of trauma and of modernism, illustrates how their works can reframe trauma studies from an African perspective. An appreciation of the continent's traumatogenic contexts, of writers' cultural resources and strategies for speaking to those contexts, and of the intrinsically transformational impulse of the African moral imagination, suggest...
Antibody-cytokine fusion proteins: harnessing the combined power of cytokines and antibodies for cancer therapy.

Advances in genetic engineering and expression systems have led to rapid progress in the development of tumor-specific antibodies fused to immunostimulators such as the cytokines interleukin-2 (IL-2), granulocyte/ macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF), and interleukin-12 (IL-12). These “antibody-cytokine fusion proteins” combine the unique targeting ability of antibodies with the cytokine activity (1–3). The goal of this approach to cancer therapy is to concentrate the cytokine in the tumor microenvironment and in so doing directly enhance the tumoricidal effect of the antibody and/or enhance the host immune response against the tumor while limiting severe toxic side effects associated with the high dose of systemic cytokine administration. Multiple antibody-cytokine fusion proteins retaining both antibodyand cytokine-associated functions have been developed with different specificities targeting a broad variety of tumors. In animals bearing tumors, antibody-cytokine fusion proteins are able to localize at the tumor and to elicit a significant antitumor response that in some cases results in a complete elimination of the primary and metastatic tumors (4–7). These observations suggest that antibody-cytokine fusion proteins represent a new generation of effective immunotherapeutic reagents for the treatment of human cancer. The present review describes strategies for construction of antibody-cytokine fusion proteins, summarizes its advantages over other methods for cytokine delivery to the tumor microenvironment, and discusses the properties of several proteins with IgG genetically fused to the cytokines IL-2, GMCSF, or IL-12.
Fast CT for pulmonary embolus

Recent technical advances in CT have led to the ability to scan a volume in a shorter period with optimal contrast opacification of blood vessels, including the pulmonary arteries. Initially, there were isolated instances of an accidental detection of a filling defect because of pulmonary embolus in the pulmonary arteries. Gradually, directed examinations were introduced to diagnose or exclude pulmonary embolus. These examinations were successful. Radiologists and clinicians now are turning to fast CT for this purpose for a variety of reasons, including the proven accuracy and reliability of the method and the relative deficiencies of traditional noninvasive methods. Accurate interpretation of CT scans for possible pulmonary embolus depends on the ability to conduct a high-quality examination and to recognize the spectrum of findings for both acute and chronic emboli. This article reviews the history of fast CT pulmonary angiography, and it presents both technical and diagnostic information germaine to the performance of this technique.
Neurotensin and its analogs—Correlation of specific binding with stimulation of cyclic GMP formation in neuroblastoma clone N1E-115

Abstract The receptors which mediate neurotensin-stimulated intracellular cyclic GMP formation in murine neuroblastoma clone N1E-115 [J. A. Gilbert and E. Richelson, Eur. J. Pharmac. 99 , 245 (1984)] were further characterized. The binding of [ 3 H]neurotensin to intact N1E-115 cells at 0° displayed specificity, saturability, reversibility, and tissue linearity. A single class of neurotensin receptors was demonstrated with an apparent K D of 9–11 nM and a B max of 180–250 fmoles/10 6 cells, determined by the type of serum employed in the cellular culture medium. A number of neurotensin analogs and fragments were compared for their ability to inhibit [ 3 H]neurotensin binding and stimulate intracellular cyclic GMP formation with intact N1E-115 cells. A direct correlation was found to exist between the K D and EC 50 for each peptide. The carboxyl-terminal portion of neurotensin proved to be responsible for the binding and biochemical activities of this peptide with clone N1E-115. Neurotensin(8–13) was, in fact, fifty times more potent than native neurotensin in stimulating intracellular cyclic GMP formation and had an 18-fold higher affinity for the neurotensin receptor on this neuronal cell type.
Introduction: Lesbians, Sexuality, and Islam

Writing on lesbianism same-sex attractions is always a contentious issue irrespective of culture or religion. In Islamic states and countries with substantial Muslim populations, writing on women's...
Unifying geometric, probabilistic, and potential field approaches to multi-robot deployment

This paper unifies and extends several different existing strategies for deploying groups of robots in an environment. A cost function is proposed that can be specialized to represent widely different multi-robot deployment tasks. It is shown that geometric and probabilistic deployment strategies that were previously seen as distinct are in fact related through this cost function, and differ only in the value of a single parameter. These strategies are also related to potential field-based controllers through the same cost function, though the relationship is not as simple. Distributed controllers are then obtained from the gradient of the cost function and are proved to converge to a local minimum of the cost function. Three special cases are derived as examples: a Voronoi-based coverage control task, a probabilistic minimum variance task, and a task using artificial potential fields. The performance of the three different controllers are compared in simulation. A result is also proved linking multi-robot deployment to non-convex optimization problems, and multi-robot consensus (i.e. all robots moving to the same point) to convex optimization problems, which implies that multi-robot deployment is inherently more difficult than multi-robot consensus.
Sexual Addiction: Diagnostic Problems

In recent years clinicians report a great deal of concern about definition, diagnostic assessment, and treatment modalities when dealing with what might be called out-of-control sexual behavior. Many terms have been used to describe the phenomenon of problematic sexual behavior. Many of these concepts overlap, some are no longer popular, and some are used interchangeably. Without clear criteria and definitions, the diagnosis is difficult, if not impossible, to assign. This paper compares problematic sexual behavior with the common heuristic explanations from the current literature, which identify the problem as a compulsive, impulsive, or addictive disorder. Accordingly, this paper will look at the current treatment models employed despite these controversies.
More Than Meets the Market? Landlord Agency in the Illinois Housing Choice Voucher Program

The federal Housing Choice Voucher Program currently serves as one of the nation's predominant strategies for providing affordable rental housing for low-income households. The program is designed around two goals: first, to uphold the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's mission to provide safe, decent, and affordable housing; and second, to facilitate household residential location choices, with the idea that such choices can leverage other types of nonhousing opportunities for assisted households. While scholarly research has described a range of positive and negative household outcomes associated with the voucher subsidy, less is known about how those outcomes are produced on the ground. This research describes findings from 72 in-depth interviews with Illinois landlords and other voucher program stakeholders regarding their experiences with the program, with the goal of linking landlord practices to tenant outcomes. Findings of this research underscore the substantial influence that lan...