cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Cellular and mitochondrial changes in glutamate-induced HT4 neuronal cell death

Abstract Elevated levels of extracellular glutamate are neurotoxic. The cytotoxic property of extracellular glutamate is known to mediate two primary mechanisms, excitotoxicity and excitotoxicity-independent processes. The excitotoxicity-independent pathway was investigated in the current study in a mouse hippocampal-derived HT4 cell line. Exposure of HT4 cells to glutamate for 12 h induced loss of cell viability preceded by rapid loss of intracellular reduced glutathione followed by accumulation of intracellular reactive oxygen species, elevation of intracellular Ca2+, progressive loss of mitochondrial membrane potential swelling and loss of mitochondrial outer membrane integrity. Glutamate-induced loss of DNA integrity has been detected. The antioxidants α-tocopherol and trolox, mitochondrial calcium uniporter inhibitor Ruthenium Red and protein synthesis inhibitor cycloheximide all showed protection against glutamate-induced toxicity. None of the protective agents except for α-tocopherol controlled the glutamate-induced reactive oxygen species build-up. However, these cell death regulators prevented the glutamate-induced mitochondrial damage and regulated glutamate-induced increase in intracellular Ca2+. Carbonyl cyanide p-trifluoromethoxyphenyl-hydrazone, a mitochondrial uncoupler, partially protected against glutamate-induced cell death and mitochondrial damage, while the mitochondrial ribosomal inhibitor chloramphenicol and extracellular Ca2+ chelator ethylene glycol-bis(β-aminoethyl ether)-N,N,N′,N′-tetraacetic acid did not protect the cells against glutamate treatment. The results of this study demonstrated that mitochondrial dysfunction was a key event in the excitotoxicity-independent component of neuronal cell death. Reactive oxygen species accumulation and glutathione depletion were prominent in glutamate-treated cells; however, these events were not direct mediators of cell death.
Relationship of Sorghum Midge (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae) Density to Damage to Resistant and Susceptible Sorghum Hybrids

Three methods were used in 1980 and 1981 to investigate the relationship between adult sorghum midge, Contarinia sorghicola (Coquillett), density and yield loss in one susceptible, ATx2752 × RTx430, and two resistant, ATx2755 × RTx2767and ATx2761 × RTx2767, sorghum hybrids. By using natural infestation (method 1) and a sequential model (method 3), similar results were obtained: 1.5 g of grain lost (42 to 48 damaged spikelets) per ovipositing midge for the susceptible and 0.32 g (9 damaged spikelets) for the resistant hybrids. A technique using caged midges (method 2) resulted in less loss per midge than the other two methods: 0.54 g (16 damaged spikelets) for the susceptible and 0.14 g (4 to 6 damaged spikelets) for the resistant hybrids. This was due to reduced oviposition by midges in cages. However, the relative differences in midge damage to resistant and susceptible sorghum hybrids were similar by all three methods. Resistant hybrids suffered about one-fifth as much damage as the susceptible hybrid because of a reduction in oviposition (45%), in the proportion of egg-infested spikelets that failed to produce kernels (52%), and in weight loss per ovipositing midge (80%).Under the conditions of these experiments, an economic threshold level of one adult midge per flowering panicle of susceptible sorghum and five for resistant sorghum is suggested. The 5-fold increase in the economic threshold level for resistant hybrids is of major significance to integrated pest management strategies.
Adrenal hemorrhage complicating ACTH therapy in Crohn's disease

Huge dose ACTH therapy is used in some severely ill patients with inflammatory bowel disease. We report a teenage girl with Crohn's disease who developed an acute abdomen following ACTH therapy. CT revealed the mass to be a hemorrhagic adrenal gland; the opposite adrenal gland was hypertrophied but without signs of hemorrhage.
Ethics and Aesthetics in European Modernist Literature: From the Sublime to the Uncanny

Preface Part I. Kant, Romantic Irony, Unheimlichkeit: 1. Border crossings in Kant 2. Kierkegaard on the economics of living poetically 3. Freud's 'Das Unheimliche': the intricacies of textual uncanniness Part II. The Romantic Heritage and Modernist Fiction: 4. Aesthetic redemption: the Thyrsus in Nietzsche, Baudelaire, and Wagner 5. The 'beautiful soul': Alain-Fournier's Le Grand Meaulnes and the aesthetics of Romanticism 6. Proust and Kafka: uncanny narrative openings 7. Textualizing immoralism: Conrad's Heart of Darkness and Gide's L'Immoraliste 8. Fishing the waters of impersonality: Virginia Woolf's To the Lighthouse Epilogue: narrative and music in Kafka and Blanchot: the 'singing' of Josefine Notes Index.
The Antheil Era: Pound, noise, and musical sensation

This essay considers the interactions between Ezra Pound and composer George Antheil. Addressing Pound's poetry and criticism, Antheil's music and essays, and modernist discourses on music and noise, Futurism, and neoplasticism, the essay argues that Antheil (for all of his neoclassical rhetoric of ‘music alone') uses music to register and profit from the material effects of industry, publicity, and scandal. His Ballet Mecanique resonated, for Pound and more broadly, as a musical factory, with a machine-like pulse that could reshape the temporality of industrial labour. The piece launched Antheil into fame, a fame from which (their contemporaries believed) Pound was eager to profit. Though criticism on Pound and Antheil tends to reinforce their formalist doctrines, Pound's surreptitious love of scandal and celebrity – an inheritance of the Italian Futurism he so often scorned – exposes these principles as mere boilerplate, as advertising for the avant-garde sensationalism and material engagement of Anthei...
Glucagon and epinephrine stimulation of adenyl cyclase in isolated rat liver plasma membranes.

Abstract Adenyl cyclase has been shown to be specifically localized in the plasma membrane of rat liver. The activity of this enzyme is stimulated by glucagon and epinephrine in isolated plasma membrane systems. The stimulation by epinephrine has a lag period of about 10 minutes. Epinephrine shows selective binding to isolated plasma membranes. The results indicate that epinephrine binds to a receptor protein rather than interacting directly with the enzyme adenyl cyclase. Calcium ions also stimulate adenyl cyclase in isolated plasma membranes but the effect shows appreciable variability.
Physical bounds on electromagnetic invisibility and the potential of superconducting cloaks

Abstract The possibility of suppressing the scattering cross section of an object is subject to fundamental physical bounds imposed by causality and passivity. Global cloaking limitations have been recently derived, which imply that any linear, causal and passive cloak necessarily increases the global scattering, integrated over the whole electromagnetic spectrum, compared to the uncloaked object. Here, we expand on this topic, discussing in detail an interesting exception to this limit represented by cloaks with static diamagnetism. In this context, we explore the potential of superconducting materials to realize global and local reduction of the scattering cross section. The concepts of plasmonic and mantle cloaking are extended to superconductors, realizing strong and tunable invisibility, with some unique properties stemming from the peculiar electrodynamics of superconductors. We conclude by qualitatively discussing a possible method to derive more stringent local bounds on cloaking.
Fluorescence detection of organic molecules in the Jovian atmosphere.

A search for fluorescent emission due to the presence of possible organic molecules in the Jovian atmosphere is described. We first consider natural Jovian fluorescent emission excited by precipitating auroral particles. Due to our lack of knowledge of the Jovian precipitating particle energies and fluxes we next consider fluorescent emission excited by a laser system aboard a Jupiter spacecraft. Laser-induced fluorescence is routinely used to monitor trace constituents and pollutants in the terrestrial atmosphere. Several spacecraft laser systems are currently under development. Our calculations indicate that laser-induced fluorescent detection is approximately two orders of magnitude more sensitive than rocket ultraviolet measurements of possible Jovian absorption features at 2600 A that have been attributed to the presence of adenine or benzene.
Theoretical Concepts from Self Psychology Applied to Animal Hoarding1

Self psychology provides a theoretical framework for understanding the psychology of the animal hoarder. The following ideas from self psychology can be applied to animal hoarders and their animals to gain insight into the nature of the bond between them: 1) animals can serve a crucial selfobject function, such as cohesion, for hoarders, regardless of the actual, objective reality of the state of the animals; 2) the concept of archaic vs. mature selfobject functioning elucidates how hoarders are stuck in self-centered, archaic forms of relating with little empathic capacity; 3) the merger selfobject relationship allows hoarders to see animals as being one with them; and 4) disavowal and the vertical split explain how hoarders can live with animal suffering and be apparently oblivious to it. Similarities between self psychology and attachment theory are discussed.
Photochemical studies of M(CO)6 (M = Cr, Mo, W) at low temperature in solution. Infrared spectra of M(CO)5 (solvent) (solvent = methylcyclohexane, methylene chloride) and W(CO)5L (L = aromatic hydrocarbon)

Abstract The infrared spectra of M(CO) 5 (MCH) (MCH = methylcyclohexane; M = Cr, Mo, W), formed by 366 nm irradiation of M(CO) 6 at −78°C in rigorously purified methylcyclohexane, are reported. The previously reported spectrum of “W(CO) 5 ” at low temperature in methylcyclohexane/isopentane solution is attributed to W(CO) 5 (impurity), where the impurity is probably an aromatic or olefinic hydrocarbon. Spectra in methylene chloride solution are also discussed. The photochemical reactions of W(CO) 6 with aromatic hydrocarbon ligands in methylcyclohexane solution were also studied at −78°C in a low temperature infrared cell. Irradiation (366 nm) of W(CO) 6 at −78°C in rigorously purified methylcyclohexane solution containing approximately 5% (v/v) toluene, benzene, mesitylene, biphenyl, or p -xylene initially produces the complex W(CO) 5− (MCH). In the presence of the aromatic hydrocarbon, this complex is unstable and it decomposes in a dark reaction to give a complex which has an infrared spectrum typical for a C 4 v M(CO) 5 X molecule. It is proposed that the product of the dark reaction is W(CO) 5 (aromatic), formed by reaction of W(CO) 5 (MCH) with the aromatic ligand in solution. The infrared spectra of the W(CO) 5− (aromatic) complexes are different from the spectra previously reported for these complexes. It is shown that the spectra previously reported for W(CO) 5− (aromatic) are actually attributable to W(CO) 5 (hexane) (hexane was the solvent used in the previous study); these spectra were probably obtained before W(CO) 5 (hexane) had time to react with the aromatic hydrocarbon.
Pathophysiology of Muscle Contractures in Cerebral Palsy

Patients with cerebral palsy present with a variety of adaptations to muscle structure and function. These pathophysiologic symptoms include functional deficits such as decreased force production and range of motion, in addition to changes in muscle structure such as decreased muscle belly size, increased sarcomere length, and altered extracellular matrix structure and composition. On a cellular level, patients with cerebral palsy have fewer muscle stem cells, termed satellite cells, and altered gene expression. Understanding the nature of these changes may present opportunities for the development of new muscle treatment therapies.
Ceruloplasmin and Metallothionein Induction by Zinc and 13-cis-Retinoic Acid in Rats with Adjuvant Inflammation

The induction of ceruloplasmin and metallothionein was investigated in rats with the early inflammatory phase of adjuvant arthritis. When examined at the peak of the acute inflammatory response, 5 days after adjuvant treatment, zinc given daily (2 mg/kg, intraperitoneally) increased serum ceruloplasmin levels by 2.0 times that found in nonarthritic rats and 1.2 times that found in non-zinc-treated arthritic rats. 13-cis-Retinoic acid (160 mg/kg, orally) given daily increased serum ceruloplasmin 2.2 and 2.7 times that found in nontreated arthritic rats when given alone and with zinc (2 mg/kg, intraperitoneally), respectively. Reduction in the inflammatory response was measured by weight of the adjuvant-injected paw, 5 days after adjuvant was administered. The reduction in inflammation was 13 and 19-20% for 13-cis-retinoic acid and zinc, respectively, when given alone, and between 26 and 31% when the treatments were combined. Zinc markedly increased liver metallothionein levels whereas 13-cis-retinoic acid was a much less potent inducer of the protein in liver. The results are discussed in light of the probable physiological roles of both ceruloplasmin and metallothionein.
The vacuum UV CD bands of repeating DNA sequences are dependent on sequence and conformation

CD spectra were obtained for eight synthetic double-stranded DNA polymers down to at least 175 nm in the vacuum uv. Three sets of sequence isomers were studied: (a) poly[d(A-C) · d(G-T)] and poly[d(A-G) · d(C-T)], (b) poly[d(A-C-C) · d(G-G-T)] and poly[d(A-C-G) · d(C-G-T)], and (c) poly[d(A) · d(T)], poly[d(A-T) · d(A-T)], poly[d(A-A-T) · d(A-T-T)], and poly[d(A-A-T-T) · d(A-A-T-T)]. There were significant differences in the CD spectra at short wavelengths among each set of sequence isomers. The (G · C)-containing sequences had the largest vacuum uv bands, which were positive and in the wavelength range of 180–191 nm. There were no large negative bands at longer wavelengths, consistent with the polymers all being in right-handed conformations. Among the set of sequences containing only A · T base pairs, poly[d(A) · d(T)] had the largest vacuum uv CD band, which was at 190 nm. This CD band was not present in the spectra of the other (A · T)-rich polymers and was absent from two first-neighbor estimations of the poly[d(A) · d(T)] spectrum obtained from the other three sequences. We concluded that the sequence dependence of the vacuum uv spectra of the (A · T)-rich polymers was due in part of the fact that poly[d(A) · d(T)] exists in a noncanonical B conformation.
Correlation of Electrons in a Narrow s Band

The ground-state wave function for the electrons in a narrow $s$ band is investigated for arbitrary density of electrons and arbitrary strength of interaction. An approximation is proposed which limits all the calculations to counting certain types of configurations and attaching the proper weights. The expectation values of the one-particle and two-particle density matrix are computed for the ferromagnetic and for the non-ferromagnetic case. The ground-state energy is obtained under the assumption that only the intra-atomic Coulomb interaction is of importance. Ferromagnetism is found to occur if the density of states is large at the band edges rather than in the center, and if the intra-atomic Coulomb repulsion is sufficiently strong. The relation of this approximation to certain exact results for one-dimensional models is discussed.
A reinterpretation of amorphous inclusions in the aucuba strain of tobacco mosaic virus.

Abstract Light and electron microscope studies were made of Turkish tobacco plants systemically infected with common tobacco mosaic virus and with the aucuba strain of this virus. These showed the large amorphous inclusions which are conspicuous in plants infected with the aucuba strain to be structurally different from X-bodies in plants infected with common TMV. The former are made up largely of masses of angled-layer aggregates and thus have a high virus content. X-bodies are composed mainly of proteinaceous filaments and ribosomes and contain relatively few virus particles. Hypotheses on origin and composition of X-bodies, based on Sheffield's studies of the amorphous inclusions from the aucuba strain, thus are of questionable validity.
A second-order singular three-point boundary value problem

The existence of a positive solution is obtained for the second-order three-point boundary value problem γ″ + ƒ (χ, γ) = 0, 0 < χ ≤ 1, y(0) = 0, γ(p) −γ(1) = 0, where 0 < p < 1 is fixed and where (χ, γ) is singular at χ = 0, = 0, and possibly at γ = ∞. The method applies a fixed-point theorem for mappings that are decreasing with respect to a cone.
An adaptively phased, four-element array of thirty-foot parabolic reflectors for passive (Echo) communication systems

A description is given of an adaptively phased receiving antenna array consisting of four independently steered thirty-foot parabolic reflectors capable of operation to 15 Gc. The array has been designed as a research tool to demonstrate the principle of adaptively phasing the signals from independent array elements to achieve the same performance as would be obtained from a single equivalent aperture. The initial operating frequency has been chosen at 2270 Mc so that the array may be used in communication experiments using Echo I and Echo II passive satellites. The adaptive phasing principle is obtained by the use of a phase-locked receiver associated with each array element. The phase reference for each receiver is supplied from a common reference signal which may be obtained in three ways depending on signal characteristics. Among the advantages of this type of array are 1) ability to make separate phase corrections for each antenna, thus allowing for atmospheric inhomogeneities or for differential Doppler shift between the source and the individual antennas; 2) indifference to which particular grating lobe is chosen, because the adaptive nature of the individual phase-locked loops will always provide maximum gain; 3) potential for simple modifications to achieve interferometer or "data-processing" antenna behavior; 4) mechanical and electrical simplicity; 5) increased acquisition range for signal sources which are not known accurately in position. A detailed discussion is given of the design and various modes of operation of the phase-locked loops and receiver combining system. This is followed by a description of the automatic search and tracking functions, and their operational advantages in use with a moving target, the position of which is not known accurately. Finally, some results of preliminary tests with the system are given, which indicate that it will achieve its designed performance characteristics.
Subaperture optical system testing.

Full aperture optical system wave-front accuracy obtainable from single or. multiple subaperture wave-front measurements is analytically determined and illustrated with numerical examples. Insight gained from the analytic derivation and confirmed by the examples shows the effect of subaperture size, placement, and accuracy. The analysis also demonstrates that accurate full aperture aberrations (except tilt) can be estimated even with large uncertainty in relative subaperture tilt.
Primary B-cell lymphoma of the CNS in an infant

Primary B-cell lymphoma of the CNS is a rare tumor representing 0.2 to 2% of all primary CNS malignancies [1, 2]. The usual age of presentation is in the 4th to 6th decades. Sporadic cases have been reported in the pediatric population. However, even in this age group the tumor is extremely rare under the age of 5 [3, 4]. This is a report of a 3-year-old child with primary lymphoma of the CNS.
The preparation of 5′-iodo-125I-Δ8-THC; a radioligand for the radioimmunoassay of cannabinoids

Nucleophilic exchange of 5′-iodo-Δ8-THC and sodium iodide-125 afforded 5′-iodo-125I-Δ8THC with a maximum specific activity of 42 Ci/mmole. The specific activity could be increased to at least 100 Ci/mmole by iodide-125 displacement of the corresponding 5′-tosylate. A hapten 5′-carboxy-14C-Δ9-THC, for use in conjunction with this radioligand, was synthesized from 5′-bromo-Δ8-THC.
Fetal anemia due to non-Rhesus-D red-cell alloimmunization

Although anti-RhD was once the major etiology of hemolytic disease of the fetus/newborn (HDFN), the widespread adoption of antenatal and postpartum Rhesus immune globulin has resulted in a marked decrease in the prevalence of alloimmunization to the RhD antigen in pregnancy. Maternal alloimmunization to other red cell antigens continues to play a role as the cause of fetal disease since no prophylactic immune globulins are available to prevent the formation of these antibodies. An increasing incidence of the Kell (anti-K1) antibody has been noted in the United States. Guidelines for intervention in cases of irregular red cell antibodies are limited by the bias of anecdotal reports in the literature in favor of severe cases of HFDN. Although most diagnostic protocols used in the management of the RhD-alloimmunized pregnancy can be applied in cases of non-RhD sensitization, Kell (K1 and K2) alloimmunization should be managed more conservatively.
Potential impact of accelerating the primary dose of rotavirus vaccine in infants.

We estimated the potential impact of administering the first dose of rotavirus vaccine at 6 weeks (42 days of life) instead of 2 months of age, which is permissible for all U.S. vaccines recommended at 2 months of age, on rotavirus hospitalization rates. We used published data for hospitalization rates, vaccine coverage, and vaccine efficacy after one dose and assumed a two-week delay in seroconversion after vaccine administration in the United States. Administering the first dose of rotavirus vaccine at 6 weeks instead of 8 weeks of age should have prevented 1110, 1660, and 2210 rotavirus hospitalizations among U.S. infants <3 months of age in 2006 when the vaccine was first introduced. This estimated benefit represents a 2–4% reduction in rotavirus hospitalizations among children <5 years of age.
Caffeine pretreatment enhances the unscheduled DNA synthesis in spermatids of mice exposed to methyl methanesulfonate.

Abstract The effect of caffeine on unscheduled DNA synthesis (UDS) induced by methyl methanesulfonate (MMS) was studied in the germ cells of male mice. The concentration of caffeine in the testes was found to be greatest about 0.5 h after i.p. injection. Therefore, caffeine exposures were given 0.5 h before i.p. injection with MMS. DNA repair in early spermatids was measured by the unscheduled incorporation of [3h]dThd into the germ cells, which were then recovered from the caudal epididymides 16 days after chemical treatment. Pretreatment of the mice with 100 mg caffeine/kg resulted in approximately a 60% increase in the unscheduled uptake of [3]H]dThd into the MMS-damaged germ cells, compared with that observed with MMS treatment alone (P Further studies showed that caffeine enhancement of UDS response of germ cells to MMS damage was not due to a reduction in the endogenous dThd pool. Also, chemical dosimetry studies using [3H]MMS did not show any difference in the level of testicular DNA methylation in caffeine-pretreated animals compared with controls. To explain the increased UDS response of the germ cells to MMS-induced DNA damage following caffeine pretreatment, we suggest a model in which the average patch size resulting from the excision of methylated DNA is increased in the presence of caffeine (or possibly its metabolites). Thus, for example, pretreatment with 100 mg caffeine/kg results in a DNA repair patch ≈60% larger than that resulting from MMS treatment alone.
Longitudinal association of dementia and depression

Objectives Depression is an important precursor to dementia, but less is known about the role dementia plays in altering the course of depression. We examined whether depression prevalence, incidence, and severity are higher in those with dementia versus those with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), or normal cognition. Design Prospective cohort study using the longitudinal Uniform Data Set of the National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center (2005–2013). Setting 34 Alzheimer Disease research centers. Participants 27,776 subjects with dementia, MCI, or normal cognition. Measurements Depression status was determined by a clinical diagnosis of depression within the prior 2 years and by a Geriatric Depression Scale-Short Form score >5. Results Rates of depression were significantly higher in subjects with MCI and dementia compared with those with normal cognition at index visit. Controlling for demographics and common chronic conditions, logistic regression analysis revealed elevated depression in those with MCI (OR: 2.40 [95% CI: 2.25, 2.56]) or dementia (OR: 2.64 [95% CI: 2.43, 2.86]) relative to those with normal cognition. In the subjects without depression at the index visit (N = 18,842), those with MCI and dementia had higher probabilities of depression diagnosis 2 years post index visit than those with normal cognition: MCI = 21.7%, dementia = 24.7%, normal cognition = 10.5%. Conclusion MCI and dementia were associated with significantly higher rates of depression in concurrent as well as prospective analyses. These findings suggest that efforts to effectively engage and treat older adults with dementia will need also to address co-occurring depression.
Work and Welfare Strategies among Single Mothers in Rural New England: The Role of Social Networks and Social Support

This paper examines how community, social, and interpersonal networks are associated with reliance on work or welfare among rural single mothers. Based on telephone interviews with single mothers in rural northern New England, the data were used to measure the effects of demographic characteristics, community context, informal and formal social networks, and perceived social support on employment, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), and other service use. Demographic factors were related to work and welfare as expected, with education having a particularly important effect on a mother s likelihood of being employed. Informal networks were more important than formal networks for both TANF receipt and reliance on other types of assistance. Social support from friends and family decreased reliance on public assistance, although social support from family increased the likelihood of working. There was a consistent effect of length of residence for all outcomes; the longer a woman had lived in her ...
Analysis and modeling of photomask edge effects for 3D geometries and the effect on process window

Simulation was used to explore boundary layer models for 1D and 2D patterns that would be appropriate for fast CAD modeling of physical effects during design. FDTD simulation was used to compare rigorous thick mask modeling to a thin mask approximation (TMA). When features are large, edges can be viewed as independent and modeled as separate from one another, but for small mask features, edges experience cross-talk. For attenuating phase-shift masks, interaction distances as large as 150nm were observed. Polarization effects are important for accurate EMF models. Due to polarization effects, the edge perturbations in line ends become different compared to a perpendicular edge. For a mask designed to be real, the 90o transmission created at edges produces an asymmetry through focus, which is also polarization dependent. Thick mask fields are calculated using TEMPEST and Panoramic Technologies software. Fields are then analyzed in the near field and on wafer CDs to examine deviations from TMA.
Predictors of outcome of myocarditis.

Heart failure from myocarditis may be transient or may progress to unremitting severe cardiac failure. This study was performed to determine the outcomes and prognostic features of pediatric patients with myocarditis. Patients with the diagnosis of myocarditis between 1990 and 2001 were identified through the coding system of Yale–New Haven Hospital. A total of 28 patients were included, with ages ranging from 1 day to 20 years. Before discharge, 11 patients developed unremitting severe cardiac failure. Of the remaining 17 patients, at the time of discharge 10 had normal systolic function and 7 had decreased systolic function. Unremitting cardiac failure developed in 9 of 14 patients (64%) with an ejection fraction <30% and in only 2 of 14 (14%) of those with an ejection fraction ≥30% on admission (p < 0.01). Furthermore, shortening fraction <15%, left ventricular dilatation, and moderate to severe mitral regurgitation on admission as well as arrhythmia were significantly associated with development of unremitting severe cardiac failure. In this series of patients with myocarditis, by the time of discharge 39% of the patients had developed unremitting severe cardiac failure, 25% had depressed systolic function, and 36% had normal systolic function. Predictive factors at admission for poor outcome were ejection fraction <30%, shortening fraction <15%, left ventricular dilatation, and moderate to severe mitral regurgitation.
Functional components and resolved thresholds in patients with unilateral nonorganic hearing loss

This study expanded upon previous work (Gelfand & Silman, 1985) on the relationship between functional components (the difference between the nonorganic and resolved thresholds) and the underlying organic hearing levels. The nature of nonorganic hearing loss (NOHL) was studied with respect to hearing sensitivity after resolution of the nonorganic components in 25 patients with unilateral NOHLs. Most of the subjects had an organic hearing loss underlying the functional components. The configuration of the functional components as a function of frequency was related to that of the resolved hearing levels in a manner similar to that reported for bilateral NOHLs. The strategy employed to exaggerate the loss in the ear with the nonorganic overlay appeared to be unrelated to the nature of the loss in the opposite ear, but the perception of an interaural difference might in some way bias the patient to 'choose' a unilateral NOHL as opposed to a bilateral one. The findings confirm and expand upon the prior ones, suggesting the use of an internalized loudness-based anchor by patients with NOHLs. Thus, the pure tone configuration of NOHL is consistently accounted for on the basis of known and explainable auditory factors regardless of whether the hearing levels are exaggerated in one or both ears.
So Where Are We? A Guest Opinion Editorial

Reliability engineering have been longstanding, well understood, well defined, and practiced by a small community when one looks at the entirety of engineering. Of more recent, the hardware, component, and system principles of reliability and reliability engineering have gradually moved into the software arena. Today, terms like software reliability, software reliability engineering, software fault tolerance, and software resilience are common vernacular and main stream. And we are now able to achieve levels of ultra-reliability in software systems of uncompromising criticality, but unfortunately at extreme costs, and slowly.
Metabolic activation and biological effects of nitrosamines in the mammalian lung.

Abstract Nitrosamines and their precursors are among the most common contaminants of our environment, and may of therm are highly carcinogenic. Nitrosamines are believed to require metabolic activation in the host organism, and many of them demonstrate a pronounced organ and cell type specificity. This review summarizes recent in vivo and in vitro experiments which focus on the mechanisms of nitrosamine-induced lung carcinogenesis. Currently available in vivo and in vitro data suggest that nitrosamines may be metabolized by cytochrome P-450, prostaglandin endoperoxide synthetase, or monoamine oxidases. The presence of one or the other of these enzyme systems may be partially responsible for the cell type-specific effects of this class of chemicals. Moreover, evidence in vitro suggests selective uptake of nitrosamines by cell type-specific receptors, a phenomenon which offers a more logical explanation than previously published theories for the selectively of biological effects exerted by nitrosamines.
Planning for Conservation: The Management of Vernacular Landscape in Asir Region, Southwestern Saudi Arabia

For centuries, local inhabitants of the southwestern highlands of Saudi Arabia appear to have managed successfully to balance population growth with natural resources under a local tribal self-government. The land management system came under centralized authority after the establishment of the Saudi state in 1932. The state witnessed the integration of various tribes and geographic regions into one unified government. Since 1932, Saudi Arabia has undergone tremendous population and economic growth following the implementation of six development plans. The changes affected the local institutions established by the tribes, which had once governed natural resources use. The breakdown of the old methods of land management now prevents indigenous residents of the area from protecting the forests of the region, and from exploiting them in sound ways as they have done traditionally. In this article, I propose that the current government approach to land management can be modified to return legal title to indige...
Systems engineering design and spatial modeling for improved natural hazard risk assessment

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a novel modeling approach that combines a balanced systems engineering design model with a geospatial model to explore the complex interactions between natural hazards and engineered systems.Design/methodology/approach – The approach taken in this work was to assemble a combined systems engineering design/geospatial model and interface it with a physics‐based hazard model to assess how to visualize the coupling of potential hazard effects from the physical domain into the functional/requirements domain.Findings – It was demonstrated that it is possible to combine the two models and apply them to realistic hazard cases. A number of potential benefits are described and made possible by this approach including the generation of systems‐level damage assessments, the potential reduction of geo‐information data collection requirements, the incorporation of socio‐technical elements, the generation of functional templates, and the creation of a superior mitigation...
Observation of helium flow induced beam orbit oscillations at RHIC

Horizontal beam orbit jitter at frequencies around 10 Hz has been observed at RHIC for several years. The distinct frequencies of this jitter have been found at superconducting low-beta quadrupole triplet magnets around the ring, where they coincide with mechanical vibration modes of the cold masses. Recently, we have identified liquid helium flow as the driving force of these oscillations.
The permeation of gases through symmetric and asymmetric (Loeb-Type) cellulose acetate membranes

Abstract Significant differences have been observed in the steady-state permeation of gases through symmetric and asymmetric (Loeb-type) cellulose acetate membranes. The studies were made with O2, N2, Ar, Kr, Xe, and CO2 in the temperature range from -5 to 85°C and at subatmospheric pressures. The differences in permeation behavior may reflect structural differences between the symmetric membranes and the dense surface layer (“skin”) of the asymmetric membranes. The overall mechanism of gas permeation through the symmetric membranes appears to be one of “solution-diffusion,” similar to that observed with many other nonporous polymeric membranes. In the case of the asymmetric membranes, this mechanism is probably modified by the presence of micropores or other imperfections in the dense surface layer. Cellulose acetate exhibits two second-order transitions in the presence of the penetrant gases, one between 60 and 70°C and the other near 15°C. The transitions were observed with both types of membranes.
Recent Developments in the Beneficiation of Chinese Bauxite

Bauxite resources and their beneficiation are becoming increasingly important for study in order to sustain the rapid progress of the aluminum industry in China. Some industrial practices in the processing of bauxite resources, such as selective grinding, magnetic separation, and flotation, as well as some recent research efforts are summarized in this paper.
Positive Elements in Function Algebras

Given a domain \(G \subseteq \mathbb {C}\), we let \(H^\infty (G)\) be the Banach algebra of all bounded holomorphic functions on \(G\) under the supremum norm and \(\mathcal {A}(G)\) be the subalgebra of \(H^\infty (G)\) of those functions which have continuous extension to the closure \(\overline{G}\). If the domain \(G\) is symmetric with respect to the real axis, we may give these algebras the involution \(f \mapsto f^*\); \(f^*(z) = \overline{f(\bar{z})}\). We study the positive elements of the resulting Banach \(*\)-algebras. Under certain restrictions on the domain \(G\), we are able to show that, for any \(f \in \mathcal {A}(G)\), \(f|_{G \cap \mathbb {R}} \ge 0\) if and only \(f = g^*g\) for some \(g \in \mathcal {A}(G)\). Similar results are proved in \(H^\infty (G)\) and \(H^p(G)\) where appropriate.
THE EFFECT OF SELENIUM COMPOUNDS UPON GROWTH AND GERMINATION IN PLANTS

Sulfur is a necessary constituent of plants. Since selenium and tellurium according to the periodic law belong to the same group as sulfur, it becomes of interest to determine their occurrence in plant tissue and their possibility of replacing sulfur in plant metabolism. It is very likely that these elements and their compounds are present in soil, and it is therefore of considerable importance to observe their effect upon germination and growth. Selenium was discovered by Berzelius in I8I7. He recovered it from the deposit in the lead chambers of a sulfuric acid factory in Gripsholm, Sweden. He named it selenium (Greek, moon) on account of its resemblance to tellurium (Greek, earth) discovered a short time before. Selenium is widely distributed in small quantities. It rarely occurs in the free state, and is often associated with native sulfur and native sulfides. It also occurs in meteoric iron. The usual commercial sources of selenium are the residues of the sulfuric acid factory. When iron pyrites is burned, the volatilized selenium and selenium dioxid are deposited in the flues of the Glover tower and in the chambers. Selenium is an amorphous or crystalline solid; tasteless, odorless, and insoluble in water. It melts at 2I7? C. and boils at 6750 C. The vapor is dark yellow and possesses an odor of putrid horse-radish. When suddenly cooled, the vapor condenses to a fine, brick-red powder (flowers of selenium). Selenium, like sulfur, appears in allotropic forms. One of these, metallic selenium, a gray or black solid, has a metallic appearance and conducts electricity. Its electrical conductivity is peculiarly affected by light and heat, increasing when heated and especially when exposed to light. In its chemical properties, selenium closely resembles tellurium. It is somewhat less negative than sulfur, and has valencies of two, four, and six. Chemically it is inactive, until heated. It burns with a reddish-blue flame to form selenium dioxid. It unites readily with hydrogen, phosphorus, the halogens, and with metals to form selenids. Selenium can replace sulfur in alums and in organic compounds. Selenium and tellurium differ from sulfur in the ease with which their compounds are reduced to the free element. Compounds of sulfur, like
Lessons from image perception studies for the design of medical imaging systems

Our laboratory uses image perception studies to optimize the acquisition and processing of image sequences from x-ray fluoroscopy and interventional MRI (iMRI) both of which are used to guide complex minimally invasive treatments of cancer and vascular disease. Fluoroscopy consists of high frame rate, quantum-limited image sequences. Since it accounts for over half of the diagnostic population x-ray dose, we attempt to reduce dose by optimizing image acquisition and filtering. We quantify image quality using human detection experiments and modeling. Human spatio-temporal processing greatly affects results. For example, spatial noise reduction filtering is significantly more effective on image sequences than on single image frames where it gives relatively little improvement due to the deleterious effect of spatial noise correlation. At CWRU, we use iMRI to guide a radio-frequency probe used for the thermal ablation of cancer. Improving the speed and accuracy of insertion to the target will reduce patient risk and discomfort. We are investigating keyhole imaging whereby one updates only a portion of the Fourier domain at each time step, producing a fast, approximate image sequence. To optimize the very large number of techniques and parameters, we use a perceptual difference model that quantifies the degrading effects introduced by fast MR imaging, including the blurring of interventional devices. Preliminary studies show that a perpendicular frequency encoding direction provides superior image quality in the region of interest compared to other keyhole stripe orientations. Together these two applications illustrate that image perception studies can impact the design of medical imaging systems.
Evaluation of Zebrafish Danio rerio as a Model for Enteric Septicemia of Catfish (ESC)

Abstract Zebrafish (also known as zebra danio) Danio rerio were injected intramuscularly with Edwardsiella ictaluri at doses of 6 × 103, 6 × 104, or 6 × 105 colony-forming units per gram (CFU/g) or sterile phosphate-buffered saline (sham) or were not injected. Mortality occurred from 2 to 5 d postinjection (dpi) at rates of 0, 76.6, and 81.3% for the low, medium, and high doses, respectively, and E. ictaluri was isolated from dead fish. Survivors were sampled at 10 dpi and E. ictaluri was not isolated. Sham-injected and noninjected controls did not suffer mortality. Histopathology trials were performed in which zebrafish were injected with 1 × 104 CFU/g or sham-injected and sampled at 12, 24, 48, 72, and 96 h postinjection for histological interpretation. Collectively, these zebrafish demonstrated increasing severity of splenic, hepatic, cardiac, and renal interstitial necrosis over time. To evaluate the progression of chronic infection, zebrafish were injected with 1 × 102 CFU/g and held for 1 month post...
Efficient uncertainty analyses using fast probability integration

Abstract Fast probability integration (FPI) algorthms are adapted, extended and used to perform nuclear engineering uncertainty analyses. Methods are presented to improve the efficiency and precision of FPI for frequently encountered input distributions, to permit quick estimates of extreme model output quantiles and to provide appropriate sensitivity and uncertainty importance measures. Advantages and disadvantages of FPI as a stand-alone method are explored in two demonstration applications. FPI is first applied to estimate extreme (0.95, 0.99, 0.999 and 0.9999) quantiles of the frequency of a dominant station blackout accident. Sensitivity measures are quantified to indicate how the relative importance of each model input changes at progressively more extreme output quantiles. FPI is next applied to analyze uncertainties in fire damage times predicted by compbrn iiie . Alternative FPI-based uncertainty importance measures are compared and shown to consistently rank the input contributions to the output uncertainty. FPI results are compared with results obtained from Monte Carlo sampling to demonstrate the computational advantage that clearly favors FPI, especially at the more extreme output quantiles. In a third application, Latin hypercube sampling (LHS) is combined with FPI to determine extreme quantiles of peak cladding temperature during the blowdown phase of a large-break loss of coolant accident as modeled by trac-pfi/mod2 . The 0.95 quantile peak cladding temperature is reproducibly determined to within 2 K in one LHS-FPI iteration, which is based on only 21 trac-pfi/mod2 runs. To demonstrate convergence for a more extreme case, LHS-FPI is also applied to estimate the 0.999 quantile peak cladding temperature. In each LHS-FPI iteration a final code run is performed to assure that the code-calculated peak cladding temperature agrees with that predicted by LHS-FPI at the most probable point. Importance measures are quantified at this point to identify dominant input-output relationships. Compared with past code scaling, applicability and uncertainty (CSAU) analyses, LHS-FPI offers a significant reduction in the number of best-estimate code runs required while providing additional checks and insights.
3D Vector Forward Modeling

A 3D accoustic wave equation modeling program for the CDC Cyber 205 which has been in development at the University of Houston for two years is now operational. Several test cases have been run involving simple multilayer models. More extensive tests involving more complexity in the geometry of the model are planned. Validation of the model by comparison with tank data is also planned. An overview of the principal features of the computer program is given including a discussion of the use of the SLICE-4 facility of the Cyber 205. Observed times are reported and compared with original estimates. Three dimensional snapshots are presented and discussed.
HIV-Specific Immune Dysregulation and Atherosclerosis

HIV + patients face a heightened risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD), which cannot be fully explained by traditional risk factors or antiretroviral therapy (ART)-related cardiotoxicity. Increasing evidence suggests a significant contribution of HIV-specific immune dysregulation to atherosclerosis. HIV-specific immune dysregulation may have the following atherogenic effects: 1) activation of endothelial and immune cells; 2) enhancement of the percentage of circulating atherogenic immune cell subsets; and 3) modification of lipid function. Efforts are underway to link immune dysregulation markers with validated CVD endpoints and to identify genetic predispositions for HIV-induced atherogenesis. Moreover, immune suppressants are under evaluation in HIV + patients to attempt modification of immune-mediated CVD risk. Taken together, these studies will enhance understanding of CVD risk stratification and reduction strategies in HIV.
The discovery of biological enantioselectivity: Louis Pasteur and the fermentation of tartaric acid, 1857—A review and analysis 150 yr later

Nearly a decade after discovering molecular chirality in 1848, Louis Pasteur changed research direction and began investigating fermentations. Conflicting explanations have been given for this switch to microbiology, but the evidence strongly suggests that Pasteur's appointment in 1854 to the University of Lille--an agricultural-industrial region where fermentation-based manufacturing was of great importance--and an appeal for help in 1856 by a local manufacturer experiencing problems in his beetroot-fermentation-based alcohol production played a significant role. Thus began, in late 1856, Pasteur's pioneering studies of lactic and alcoholic fermentations. In 1857, reportedly as a result of a laboratory mishap, he found that in incubations of ammonium (+/-)-tartrate with unidentified microorganisms (+)-tartaric acid was consumed with considerable preference over (-)-tartaric acid. In 1860, he demonstrated a similar enantioselectivity in the metabolism of tartaric acid by Penicillium glaucum, a common mold. Chance likely played a significant role both in Pasteur's shift to microbiology and his discovery of enantioselective tartrate fermentations, but he rejected pure serendipity as a significant factor in experimental science and in his own career. Pasteur's milestone discovery of biological enantioselectivity began the process that in the long run established the fundamental importance of molecular chirality in biology.