cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Functional diversity from generic encoding in insect campaniform sensilla

Insect proprioception utilizes hundreds of campaniform sensilla embedded in the exoskeleton that sense strain. These sensilla are essential for many behaviors, especially flight control. Despite their role in diverse behaviors, campaniform sensilla share many neural properties. White noise analysis of campaniform sensilla on both lepidopteran wings and dipteran halteres shows selectivity to two stimulus features related by a derivative (derivative pair feature detection, DPFD), which are sufficient to explain spiking activity. DPFD is an inherent property of non-specialized Hodgkin-Huxley dynamics. Nonetheless, DPFD in campaniform sensilla enables simple control laws at multiple timescales. Campaniform sensilla specialization may derive more from stimulus prefiltering by receptor mechanics and anatomical arrangement, although neural specialization may also contribute for more complex, naturalistic stimuli. Evolution may tinker with the placement of these ubiquitous sensors and adapt them to different functions without the encumbrance of particular neural specialization, a strategy potentially useful for engineered walkers and fliers.
A road map from single-cell transcriptome to patient classification for the immune response to trauma

Immune dysfunction is an important factor driving mortality and adverse outcomes after trauma but remains poorly understood, especially at the cellular level. To deconvolute the trauma-induced immune response, we applied single-cell RNA sequencing to circulating and bone marrow mononuclear cells in injured mice and circulating mononuclear cells in trauma patients. In mice, the greatest changes in gene expression were seen in monocytes across both compartments. After systemic injury, the gene expression pattern of monocytes markedly deviated from steady state with corresponding changes in critical transcription factors, which can be traced back to myeloid progenitors. These changes were largely recapitulated in the human single-cell analysis. We generalized the major changes in human CD14+ monocytes into 6 signatures, which further defined 2 trauma patient subtypes (SG1 vs. SG2) identified in the whole-blood leukocyte transcriptome in the initial 12 hours after injury. Compared with SG2, SG1 patients exhibited delayed recovery, more severe organ dysfunction, and a higher incidence of infection and noninfectious complications. The 2 patient subtypes were also recapitulated in burn and sepsis patients, revealing a shared pattern of immune response across critical illness. Our data will be broadly useful to further explore the immune response to inflammatory diseases and critical illness.
Examining the UV-Absorbing Properties of Scaevola taccada (Goodeniaceae) and Its Potential Use as a Sunscreen

The native Hawaiian plant, Scaevola taccada, commonly grows in tropical coastal areas throughout the Pacific and Indian oceans. Oral tradition suggests that the fruit of this species may have been used as a natural sunblock. To examine this, an extract of S. taccada fruit was tested to determine whether it had UV-absorbing properties, and if so, to determine its stability and potential toxicity to coral. Scaevola taccada contained UV-absorbing compound(s) with a sun-protection factor of 20, on average, that absorbed in the UVB and UVA (19.6% and 24.4% absorbance, respectively). The UV stability of the fruit extract over time and to various treatments (fresh, heated, and frozen) did not change (ANOVA, p = .396, F = 1.018). In addition, we examined the toxicity of S. taccada juice by exposing coral fragments of Porites compressa (n = 7) to four treatments (fresh and heated S. taccada extract, cytotoxic Montipora capitata eggs, and filtered seawater control). Changes in color and photosynthetic yield in treated tissue areas were measured after 4 days. Only the concentrated S. taccada fruit extract and M. capitata eggs resulted in significant changes in pigmentation or photosynthetic yield of the coral (p ≤ .0001). Further investigation is needed to isolate and expand tests on the UV-absorbing component(s) to understand this toxicity more clearly.
BLOcKeR: A Biometric Locking Paradigm for IoT and the Connected Person

As the internet-of-things (IoT) era begins, there is a significant need for low-cost access control schemes that allow humans to activate and maintain IoT systems.Traditional biometric access control systems remain, however, vulnerable to physical attacks resulting in template theft/privacy, illegal access, etc. This paper aimed to address this by expanding on a proposal called BLOcKeR, which combines biometrics with two recent advances in hardware security—physically unclonable functions (PUFs) and hardware obfuscation. Hardware obfuscation is a technique to protect electronic hardware against access control circumvention attacks through locking mechanisms. A PUF is incorporated to tie the biometrics of the owner to the system. Combining these advances with biometrics, BLOcKeR protects a biometric system from physical attacks by locking its functionality and aims at ensuring successful activation of the locked system unlike the authentication /matching in biometric systems. In addition, unlike various existing approaches, BLOcKeR does not store the raw biometric of users while providing irreversibility, unlinkability, and revocability to the templates. We present a security analysis and experiments with more than 45,000 attack variants to evaluate BLOcKeR’s security against unauthorized access.
Elliott Carter's Analysis of his Piano Sonata (1945-46): A Moment of Music Historical Agnosia?

In 1948, Elliott Carter penned an analysis of his Piano Sonata for Edgard Varese. His analysis of the first movement, in particular, makes one ask why Carter did not subsume its recurrent two-tempo structure under “first group” of its sonata form. Given Carter’s sophistication, was he experiencing a moment of music historical “agnosia,” since two-tempo expositions inform familiar Beethoven works such as Piano Sonata, op.31, no.2 and String Quartet in Bb, op.130. This paper explores Carter’s “agnosia” by way of internal and external evidence. Internally, it revisits the thematic chart he attached to the 1948 analysis and goes on to posit the idea that the work’s quintal neo-tonality so saturates its thematic network themes as to distort the composer’s analysis of the form, historical precedents irrespective. Externally, the paper compares three works by Beethoven to Carter’s Sonata as regards its two-tempo structure, using concepts borrowed from Hepokoski and Darcy’s Elements of Sonata Theory (1999). Finally, the author revisits writings of Carter and his circle that may explain why his analysis downplayed historical precedents to the Piano Sonata.
Object-Oriented Software Metrics for Predicting Reusability and Estimating Size

As object-oriented software development methods come into more widespread use, basic questions of software quality assurance must be reconsidered. We will highlight efforts now underway at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory to both assess the quality of software systems developed using object oriented technology and develop guidelines for future development of such systems. The current focus is on design and code reusability., and system size estimation. A number of metrics are proposed and two software systems measured and analyzed. The preliminary results reported here should be useful to software development and quality assurance personnel working in C++ implementation environment.
The Ontological Controller

Using the results obtained until now, in this chapter we can present a control architecture that can detect violations of ontological assumptions. This control architecture is intended for a controller with a well-determined state set. The welldetermined state set is obtained either by design or after the state transformation described in . Either way, we call it as the object controller and we make no distinction between the two cases.
Quantification of vehicle mixture effects on in vitro transdermal chemical flux using a random process diffusion model.

Abstract The effect of vehicle mixtures on transdermal permeation has been studied using transient flux profiles from porcine skin flow through diffusion cells. Such data characteristically exhibit a large amount of variability between treatments (vehicle and penetrant combinations) as well as noise within treatments. A novel mathematical model has been used that describes longitudinal variation as a time varying diffusivity. Between treatment variability was described by a mixed effects model. A quantitative structure property relationship (QSPR) was developed to describe the effects of the penetrant and vehicle mixture properties on the mean diffusivity and partition coefficient in the membrane. The relationship included terms for the logP and molecular weight of the penetrant and the refractive index of the vehicle mixture with R 2 > 0.95 for K and > 0.9 for partition coefficient (as K ⋅ D ). This analysis improved on previous work, finding a more parsimonious model with higher predictability, while still identifying the mixture refractive index as a key descriptor in predicting vehicle effects. The concordance with established and expected relationships lends confidence to this new methodology for evaluating transient, finite dose, transdermal flux data collected using traditional experimental methods.
The fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH) inhibitor PF‐3845 acts in the nervous system to reverse LPS‐induced tactile allodynia in mice

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Inflammatory pain presents a problem of clinical relevance and often elicits allodynia, a condition in which non-noxious stimuli are perceived as painful. One potential target to treat inflammatory pain is the endogenous cannabinoid (endocannabinoid) system, which is comprised of CB1 and CB2 cannabinoid receptors and several endogenous ligands, including anandamide (AEA). Blockade of the catabolic enzyme fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH) elevates AEA levels and elicits antinociceptive effects, without the psychomimetic side effects associated with Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH Allodynia was induced by intraplantar injection of LPS. Complementary genetic and pharmacological approaches were used to determine the strategy of blocking FAAH to reverse LPS-induced allodynia. Endocannabinoid levels were quantified using mass spectroscopy analyses. KEY RESULTS FAAH (−/−) mice or wild-type mice treated with FAAH inhibitors (URB597, OL-135 and PF-3845) displayed an anti-allodynic phenotype. Furthermore, i.p. PF-3845 increased AEA levels in the brain and spinal cord. Additionally, intraplantar PF-3845 produced a partial reduction in allodynia. However, the anti-allodynic phenotype was absent in mice expressing FAAH exclusively in the nervous system under a neural specific enolase promoter, implicating the involvement of neuronal fatty acid amides (FAAs). The anti-allodynic effects of FAAH-compromised mice required activation of both CB1 and CB2 receptors, but other potential targets of FAA substrates (i.e. µ-opioid, TRPV1 and PPARα receptors) had no apparent role. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS AEA is the primary FAAH substrate reducing LPS-induced tactile allodynia. Blockade of neuronal FAAH reverses allodynia through the activation of both cannabinoid receptors and represents a promising target to treat inflammatory pain. LINKED ARTICLES This article is part of a themed section on Cannabinoids in Biology and Medicine. To view the other articles in this section visit http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/bph.2012.165.issue-8. To view Part I of Cannabinoids in Biology and Medicine visit http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/bph.2011.163.issue-7
The Trial of Orenthal James Simpson

Although the 1995 criminal trial of O. J. Simpson for the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman has been called a great trash novel come to life, no one can deny the pull it had on the American public. If the early reports of the murder of the wife of the ex-football-star-turned-sports-announcer hadn't caught people's full attention, Simpson's surreal Bronco ride on the day of his arrest certainly did - ninety-five million television viewers witnessed the slow police chase live. The 133 days of televised courtroom testimony turned countless viewers into Simpson trial junkies. Even foreign leaders such as Margaret Thatcher and Boris Yeltsin eagerly gossiped about the trial. When Yeltsin stepped off his plane to meet President Clinton, the first question he asked was, Do you think O. J. did it? When, at 10 a.m. PST on October 3, Judge Ito's clerk read the jury's verdict of Not Guilty, 91% of all persons viewing television were glued to the unfolding scene in the Los Angeles courtroom.
A circularly polarized stacked patch antenna array for tracking applications in S-band

Design of a high gain and broadband circularly polarized array antenna using air cushion and stacked patch technique is presented in this paper. Basic radiating element of the proposed array consists of a driven patch and parasitic patch supported over an air cushion. Driven patch is fed through a microstrip line whereas the parasitic patch is electromagnetically coupled to the lower patch. Using this antenna element, a probefed 2×2 array antenna has been designed and tested. VSWR of the array antenna is less than 2 from 2.02 to 2.38 GHz. Axial ratio is less than 3dB from 2.15 to 2.40 GHz with peak gain of 17 dBi.
Structural constraints on novel ecosystems in agriculture: The rapid emergence of stereotypic modules

Abstract Agricultural ecosystems are, by their very nature, a cauldron of novel ecosystems, emerging with exotic species at the core of their very existence and followed by invasions of other species, so-called associated biodiversity. Within that framework similar ecosystem modules become assembled very rapidly with native and non-native species, a consistency that reflects deep ecological principles at both local and landscape levels. Here we describe three such modules: trophic levels and food webs, natural enemies in space and time, and trait-mediated trophic cascades and the accumulation of non-linearities. We propose that diverse agroecosystems are bound to contain such modularities and therefore have similar ecological structures as natural systems in spite of their novelty. We use examples from the coffee agroecosystem in Mexico to illustrate these modules.
Malingering and Deception in Adolescents: Assessing Credibility in Clinical and Forensic Settings

The Significance of Malingering and Deception in Adolescents Understanding and Classifying Malingering and Deception Interviewing Techniques and Strategies Psychological Testing Approaches Professional, Legal and Ethical Issues Applications in Clinical Settings Applications in Forensic Settings.
Management as a Service for IT Service Management

With the advent of the distributed computing model, IT service management has to face ranging from simple point products to entire enterprise frameworks to address the various multi-device systems management challenges. The existing technology offerings rarely solve the entire problem because they are expensive to purchase, difficult to implement, and do not incorporate the full range of features and functions to meet the systems management requirements today's organizations face. Now, with low-cost information appliances creeping their way into the data center, the only way to truly address today's heterogeneous IT challenge is to enable systems management capabilities at the service level. IT professionals should be able to simply take management service and accumulated knowledge to improve management performance. A new approach to IT service management is emerging that enables this level of integration. Management as a service (MaaS) enable IT service management to build network management appliances, services and knowledge repository that are extremely flexible and capable of evolving as customer needs evolve. MaaS implementations unify different systems management features and products into a common management environment that spans all system management types. MaaS-based management service offer greater flexibility and more cost-effective implementation than any enterprise framework can achieve. MaaS helps to make full use of the benefits offered by enterprise's converged network by identifying and resolving problems more quickly, more accurately, less expensively, and with more visibility than silos might be able to achieve on enterprise own.
LARGE-WOOD LOADING FROM NATURAL AND ENGINEERED PROCESSES AT THE WATERSHED SCALE

Large wood, both live and dead, is essential for producing complex habitat in many streams, especially in forested watersheds that support salmonid populations. The addition of engineered wood structures is a common approach taken in many streams where past watershed management practices have resulted in reduced wood loading. We examined six 300-m stream reaches in the Lagunitas Creek watershed, Northern California, to determine (i) the distribution of large wood in the bankfull channel and 10-year floodplain, (ii) the influence of large wood on the size and distribution of pools and (iii) whether streams with engineered wood structures had greater diversity of pool habitat to support salmonid populations. We found that the amount of large wood in the bankfull channel and the amount available for recruitment from the 10-year floodplain were highly variable among and within reaches examined and largely dependent on the local geomorphic setting. Stream reaches with engineered wood structures had elevated pool frequencies relative to reaches without these structures, suggesting a higher capacity to support salmonids during critical life stages. Among large wood pieces that had a strong influence on pool formation, 23% had an attached root wad and 66% were part of a cluster. All of the study reaches we examined had lower volumes of large wood in their bankfull channels than similar stream types with natural wood-loading levels, suggesting that increased additions of large wood could provide ecosystem benefits over time. These principles can be understood and transferred effectively to other watersheds using a framework of wood-loading process domains. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
“Talking Circle”: Conversation and Negotiation in the ESL Classroom

Language classrooms are often said to provide little opportunity for student-generated talk and meaningful use of language. However, this research shows that one classroom event, the talking circle, can provide a rich opportunity for students to extend their receptive and productive repertoires in the L2. Moreover, this type of instructional activity creates opportunities for learners to engage in meaningful communication, on the one hand, and to practice recently acquired social and linguistic knowledge, on the other. Both are appropriate activities for the L2 classroom. Results of a microethnographic analysis of one talking circle in an elementary ESL classroom are examined in relation to specific academic, social, and communicative requirements that constrain or enhance language use and language learning. Discussion of these results illustrates the value of ethnographic research in increasing our understanding of talk and interaction in L2 classrooms.
Changes in CNV amplitude with progressive induction of stress as a function of sex

Abstract Using a progressively more difficult discriminative reaction time paradigm (S 1 -S 2 - response; S δ -S 2 -nonresponse) CNVs were recorded from males and females. Errors in performance were punished with a 95dB “squeal” (stress). Although the sexes did not show a difference in CNV amplitude when all trials in all conditions were averaged, females showed a significant decline in CNV amplitude on response trials, and an increase on nonresponse trials, as discrimination became more difficult and they received punishment for incorrect responses. No significant changes appeared in the males under similar progressive stress. The data demonstrate that differential effects of stress on CNV can be confounded by selection of subjects, as well as experimental design, and that CNV amplitude is not determined by response set or expectancy, alone.
Age at natural menopause in relation to all-cause and cause-specific mortality in a follow-up study of US black women

Abstract Objectives Early age at natural menopause has been associated with increased all-cause mortality in several studies, although the literature is not consistent. This relation has not been examined among African American women. Study design Data were from the Black Women's Health Study, a follow-up study of African-American women enrolled in 1995. Among 11,212 women who were naturally menopausal at entry to the study or during follow-up through 2008, we assessed the relation of age at natural menopause to all-cause and cause-specific mortality. At baseline and biennially, participants reported on reproductive and medical history, including gynecologic surgeries and exogenous hormone use. Mortality data were obtained from the National Death Index. Multivariable Cox proportional hazard models were used to estimate mortality rate ratios (MRR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for categories of age at menopause. Results Of 692 deaths identified during 91,829 person years of follow-up, 261 were due to cancer, 199 to cardiovascular diseases and 232 to other causes. Natural menopause before age 40 was associated with increased all-cause mortality (MRR = 1.34, 95% CI 0.96–1.84, relative to menopause at 50–54 years; P -trend = 0.04) and with the subcategories of death considered – cancer, cardiovascular disease, and all other causes. The associations were present among never and ever users of postmenopausal female hormones and among never and ever smokers. Conclusions In this large prospective cohort of African-American women, natural menopause before age 40 was associated with a higher rate of all-cause and cause-specific mortality. These findings provide support for the theory that natural menopause before age 40 may be a marker of accelerated somatic aging.
Pressure dependency of transcleral flow.

Abstract In vivo measurement of the transcleral flow rate was accomplished using a new method that does not require penetration of the eye or use of tracer materials. The transcleral flow rate in rabbits was 0·16 μl/min/cm2, or approximately 1·1 μl/min across the entire slceral surface, and was dependent on the pressure gradient across the pathway. Darcy's law appears to describe the transcleral flow, and states that the flow rate is proportional to the flow conductivity of the material, the surface area and the pressure gradient, and is inversely proportional to the thickness of the material.
Do human-developed index terms help users? An experimental study of MeSH terms in biomedical searching

To what extent do MeSH terms improve search effectiveness of different kinds of users? We observed four different kinds of information seekers using an experimental information retrieval system: (1) search novices; (2) domain experts; (3) search experts and (4) medical librarians. The information needs were a subset of the relatively difficult topics originally created for the Text REtrieval Conference (TREC). Effectiveness of retrieval was based on the relevance judgments provided by TREC. Participants searched either using a version of the system in which MeSH terms were displayed or another version in which they had to formulate their own terms. The results suggest that MeSH terms are more helpful in terms of precision for domain experts than for search experts. We speculate that this is because of the highly technical nature of the topics; only the domain experts had the knowledge to understand and therefore make use of the MeSH terms. The results advance our understanding of the usefulness of controlled vocabulary in interactive information retrieval systems.
Stoichiometry of H+/amino acid cotransport in Neurospora crassa revealed by current-voltage analysis.

Coupling of ions to the uptake of neutral and basic amino acids via a general amino acid transport system (System II), was studied in a mutant of Neurospora crassa (bat mtr) which lacks other transport systems for these solutes. All amino acids tested--including ones bearing no net charge--elicited rapid membrane depolarization, as expected for ion-coupled transport. (Since amino acid transport in Neurospora is not dependent on extracellular Na+ or K+, the associated ion is presumed to be H+.) Although the 14C-labeled amino acid fluxes through System II are largely independent of the identity of the amino acid, the depolarization caused by basic amino acids (L-lysine and L-ornithine) is 60-70% greater than that for neutral amino acids (e.g. L-leucine). This difference is consistent with a constant H+/amino acid stoichiometry of 2, the extra charge for lysine and ornithine being that on the amino acid itself, so that the charge ratio basic:neutral amino acids is 3:2. When actual membrane charge flow associated with amino acid uptake was compared with measured 14C-labeled amino acid influx, ratios of 2.07 charges/mol L-leucine and 3.40 charges/mol L-lysine were obtained, again in accord with a constant translocation stoichiometry of 2H+/amino acid. The advantages of this electrical method for estimating H+/solute stoichiometry in cotransport are discussed in relation to more familiar methods.
The PPh3-Substituted Hydroxycyclopentadienyl Ruthenium Hydride [2,5-Ph2-3,4-Tol2(η5-C4COH)]Ru(CO)(PPh3)H is a More Efficient Catalyst for Hydrogenation of Aldehydes.

The phosphine-substituted hydroxycyclopentadienyl ruthenium hydride [2,5-Ph2-3,4-Tol2(η5-C4COH)]Ru(CO)(PPh3)H (8) displayed behavior significantly different from that of the dicarbonyl analogue, including the failure to form an unreactive diruthenium complex analogous to the Shvo catalyst 5. Complex 8 shows no apparent reduction of aldehydes in the absence of a trap but exchanges deuterium between the hydride of 8-RuDOD and the aldehydic hydrogen of p-tolualdehyde. This provides evidence that aldehyde reduction by 8 occurs but is reversible. 8 catalyzes the hydrogenation of benzaldehyde under mild temperature and pressure conditions. A rate law of −d[RCHO]/dt = k[RCHO][8][H2]0 was obtained.
Function of the Urnulae in Protecting the Red Velvet Mite, Balaustium Sp., Against Water Loss and in Enhancing its Activity at High Temperatures

Abstract Features of Balaustium sp. include resistance to intense heat and desiccation, affinity for hot surfaces in bright light, abundance in semi-arid/arid biotopes, and a large pair of secretory glands called umulae with no known function (defense secretion excepted). Here we show that the urnulae secrete a waterproofing barrier that reduces the mite's cuticular permeability to water. Exposure to white light was used to stimulate release of the secretion; the urnulae protruded and exuded streams of red fluid at the tip of this structure that covered the entire body. Results showed that mites coated with urnulae secretion lost water at approximately half the rate of mites that did not secrete. Similarly, urnulae secretion coated mites demonstrated an increase in water-tightness of the cuticle reflected by a 9°C elevation in temperature threshold for water loss on an evaporation curve, increasing their optimal temperature tolerance for survival (lethal permeability temperature, LPT). Results also show a...
Sex steroids modulate prolactin action in spontaneously luteinizing porcine granulosa cells in vitro.

Prolactin (20–1000 ng/ml) stimulated progesterone secretion in monolayer cultures of granulosa cells isolated from mature (>8 mm) porcine follicles. The action of 17β-estradiol alone and the interaction between estradiol and prolactin in controlling steroidogenesis were critically dependent upon the duration of hormone treatment. Acute administration (within 36 h) of 17β-estradiol, but not 17α-estradiol, suppressed both spontaneous and prolactin-stimulated progesterone production. Continuation of estrogen treatment beyond 48 h markedly increased progesterone secretion per cell and with prolactin produced synergistic enhancement of progesterone accumulation. However, 5a-dihydrotestosterone also significantly augmented progesterone production after both acute and prolonged administration. The steroidogenic effect of prolactin was greater in the presence of 5α-dihydrotestosterone, but did not elicit true synergism. Measurements of sex-steroids levels in porcine follicular fluids indicated that estrogen conce...
Universal Model for Exoergic Bimolecular Reactions and Inelastic Processes

From a rigorous multichannel quantum-defect formulation of bimolecular processes, we derive a fully quantal and analytic model for the total rate of exoergic bimolecular reactions or inelastic processes that is applicable over a wide range of temperatures including the ultracold regime. The theory establishes a connection between the ultracold chemistry and the regular chemistry by showing that the same theory that gives the quantum threshold behavior agrees with the classical Gorin model at higher temperatures. In between, it predicts that the rates for identical bosonic molecules and distinguishable molecules would first decrease with temperature outside of the Wigner threshold region, before rising after a minimum is reached.
A condition for the superiority of the (2, 2)-step methods over the related Chebyshev method

Abstract The (2, 2)-step iterative methods related to an optimal Chebyshev method for solving a real and nonsymmetric linear system A x = b are studied. A condition under which the asymptotic rate of convergence of the optimal Chebyshev method can be improved by a related (2, 2)-step method is derived. The condition depends not only on the location of the extreme eigenvalues of T but also on whether the ratio of the minor axis to the major axis of the optimal ellipse is greater than the golden ratio. Two numerical examples are given to illustrate our results.
A New 10 Micron Astronomical Polarimeter

We describe a new design for an astronomical polarimeter optimized for use in the 8 to 13p spectral region based on an earlier visible wavelength instrument. The combination of a special infrared ZnSe birefringence modulator and a background-limited fast photoconductive detector permits carry-over of many of the digital signal processing advantages of the earlier instrument. Within a single measurement sequence, this instrument will measure the photometric intensity, the circular polarization, and both components of the linear polarization. Used with a 2.5 meter class infrared telescope, the device should permit a 3u detection of 1% linear or circular polarization at 10u in less than 400 seconds of any compact source brighter than 1.2 mag.
Researching Health Communication Technology Intervention Projects: The Challenge of Achieving Utilization Levels Sufficient for Evaluation

ABSTRACT The deployment of interactive communication technologies to deliver health services and education has grown significantly over the past decade. Telemedicine, the use of telecommunication technologies for health care, is one specific application that has enjoyed significant public and private funding for research projects. However, telemedicine project evaluators have run into a serious barrier in their research efforts, namely, the deployment of telemedicine is often tremendously time-consuming and often yields utilization levels inadequate for research purposes. This article seeks to overview this problem through a case analysis of a multidimensional telemedicine project in Michigan that enjoyed both success and failure. The article concludes with a discussion of five universal challenges that must be addressed for project evaluators to achieve utilization levels to allow for reliable research conclusions.
Functions of bounded index, bounded value distribution and u-bounded index

On donne les definitions des indices bornes et des distributions a valeur bornees et on trouve des resultats reliant ces concepts aux transformees de Fourier et aux fonctions caracteristiques. On presente des resultats sur des solutions de systemes couples d'equations differentielles. On considere la structure algebrique des fonctions meromorphes vectorielles qui satisfont de telles equations differentielles
Characterizing throughput bottlenecks for secure GridFTP transfers

GridFTP is the de facto standard for bulk data movement in distributed science environments. It extends the legacy FTP to provide strong security, reliability, and high performance. GridFTP, like FTP, is a two-channel protocol-the control channel is used for sending commands and responses, and the data channel is used for transferring the actual data. The control channel is encrypted and integrity protected by default. The data channel is authenticated by default. Encryption and integrity protection are both supported on the data channel but are not enabled by default because of their high CPU cost and low data transfer rates. In this paper, we present an extensive experimental study on the performance implications of enabling integrity protection and encryption on the data channel. We show that in a vast number of cases involving the use of nonthreaded Globus GridFTP servers on multicore systems, throughputs of secure transfers are not comparable to those of nonencrypted and nonintegrity-protected transfers because of an inefficient use of available processors. However, in cases where a strong desire for higher security levels permits larger expenditures in processing, integrity protection and sometimes even crypto-graphic confidentiality can be provided without having to suffer a decline in throughput. We show that this can be accomplished through threaded Globus GridFTP server instances configured with appropriately chosen parallelism and concurrency, allowing for a more effective use of available system resources.
The effects of adaptation to square-wave gratings as a function of grating orientation

An adaptation technique was used to measure the selectivity or tuning for grating orientation in the visual system for different orientations of the inspection stimulus. Duration thresholds for grating patterns of constant luminance were determined for 13 test gratings oriented from ±5 to 90 deg away from each of five adaptation gratings: 0, 22, 45, 67, and 90 deg. Threshold data obtained for test gratings without prior adaptation indicated higher sensitivity for gratings oriented along the horizontal and vertical axis than along the oblique axis. After adaptation, thresholds increased (sensitivity was reduced) for gratings having similar orientations as the test gratings. However, the functions relating sensitivity reduction to degree of angular disparity between test and adaptation grating did not vary across the five inpsection orientations, i.e., selectivity or tuning for grating orientation appeared to be independent of the orientation of the adapting stimulus.
Ctr1 Is an Apical Copper Transporter in Mammalian Intestinal Epithelial Cells in Vivo That Is Controlled at the Level of Protein Stability

Copper is an essential trace element that functions in a diverse array of biochemical processes that include mitochondrial respiration, neurotransmitter biogenesis, connective tissue maturation, and reactive oxygen chemistry. The Ctr1 protein is a high-affinity Cu+ importer that is structurally and functionally conserved in yeast, plants, fruit flies, and humans and that, in all of these organisms, is localized to the plasma membrane and intracellular vesicles. Although intestinal epithelial cell-specific deletion of Ctr1 in mice demonstrated a critical role for Ctr1 in dietary copper absorption, some controversy exists over the localization of Ctr1 in intestinal epithelial cells in vivo. In this work, we assess the localization of Ctr1 in intestinal epithelial cells through two independent mechanisms. Using immunohistochemistry, we demonstrate that Ctr1 localizes to the apical membrane in intestinal epithelial cells of the mouse, rat, and pig. Moreover, biotinylation of intestinal luminal proteins from mice fed a control or a copper-deficient diet showed elevated levels of both total and apical membrane Ctr1 protein in response to transient dietary copper limitation. Experiments in cultured HEK293T cells demonstrated that alterations in the levels of the glycosylated form of Ctr1 in response to copper availability were a time-dependent, copper-specific posttranslational response. Taken together, these results demonstrate apical localization of Ctr1 in intestinal epithelia across three mammalian species and suggest that increased Ctr1 apical localization in response to dietary copper limitation may represent an adaptive response to homeostatically modulate Ctr1 availability at the site of intestinal copper absorption.
Mainstreaming: Needs Assessment Through a Videotape Visual Scale

This study set out to develop a videotape scale measuring attitude toward atypical students and their music behavior, and to use this scale to investigate the reactions of college music education and therapy majors to these situations. To accomplish this purpose, a tape containing 26 excerpts portraying individuals involved in music activities was viewed by two groups of subjects. One group (N = 44) viewed the tape using Thurstone ratings in determining the degree to which the musical responses portrayed in each segment were common behavior of the general population. These ratings classified the segments as normal, moderately atypical, or extremely atypical. The same tape was viewed by 83 respondents who indicated their willingness to interact, willingness to work with, or felt capability in working with the individual portrayed in each segment. A six-point Likert scale was used in this procedure. Likert scale responses of the majors were then compared for each category (normal, moderately atypical, extre...
Proton magnetic relaxation of adenosine 5′-diphosphate and adenosine 5′-triphosphate in solution

Abstract Measurements have been made of the longitudinal proton magnetic relaxation of the non-exchangeable protons of ADP and ATP in D 2 O solutions at 300 MHz from 278 to 333 K. The proton spin-lattice relaxation times of both compounds are dominated by dipolar interactions. The motion of the ADP and ATP molecules in the solution and hindered intramolecular motions around the glycosidic and the C 4′ C 5′ bonds are responsible for the modulation of the dipolar interactions. Activation energies characterizing the intramolecular motions range between 8.0 and 16.0 and between 19.6 and 67.9 kJ/mole respectively.
Vanadium chemistry and biochemistry of relevance for use of vanadium compounds as antidiabetic agents

The stability of 11 vanadium compounds is tested under physiological conditions and in administration fluids. Several compounds including those currently used as insulin-mimetic agents in animal and human studies are stable upon dissolution in distilled water but lack such stability in distilled water at pH 7. Complex lability may result in decomposition at neutral pH and thus may compromise the effectiveness of these compounds as therapeutic agents; Even well characterized vanadium compounds are surprisingly labile. Sufficiently stable complexes such as the VEDTA complex will only slowly reduce, however, none of the vanadium compounds currently used as insulin-mimetic agents show the high stability of the VEDTA complex. Both the bis(maltolato)oxovanadium(IV) and peroxovanadium complexes extend the insulin-mimetic action of vanadate in reducing cellular environments probably by increased lifetimes under physiological conditions and/or by decomposing to other insulin mimetic compounds. For example, treatment with two equivalents of glutathione or other thiols the (dipicolinato)peroxovanadate(V) forms (dipicolinato)oxovanadate(V) and vanadate, which are both insulin-mimetic vanadium(V) compounds and can continue to act. The reactivity of vanadate under physiological conditions effects a multitude of biological responses. Other vanadium complexes may mimic insulin but not induce similar responses if the vanadate formation is blocked or reduced. We conclude that three properties, stability, lability and redox chemistry are critical to prolong the half-life of the insulin-mimetic form of vanadium compounds under physiological conditions and should all be considered in development of vanadium-based oral insulin-mimetic agents.
Fatigue and Non-Fatigue Mathematical Muscle Models During Functional Electrical Stimulation of Paralyzed Muscle

Abstract Electrical muscle stimulation demonstrates potential for restoring functional movement and for preventing muscle atrophy after spinal cord injury (SCI). To optimize delivery of electrical stimulation protocols, an accurate and easy-to-implement mathematical skeletal muscle model is essential. The existing models are either accurate but complex, making them hard to implement, such as the Hill-Huxley-type model, or simple but inaccurate, such as second order model. In this paper, we propose a Wiener-Hammerstein system to model the paralyzed skeletal muscle dynamics under electrical stimulus conditions. The proposed model has substantial advantages in identification algorithm analysis and implementation including computational complexity and convergence. Experimental data sets were collected on soleus muscles under 15 Hz frequency stimulation for fourteen subjects with SCI. The simulation results show that the proposed model outperforms the Hill-Huxley-type model not only in peak force prediction, but also in fitting performance for force output of each individual stimulation train.
On being fair to facts

J. L. AUSTIN in his paper "Unfair to Facts" ' defends the view that facts are genuinely in the world and tries to cast doubt on Strawson's claim that facts are pseudo-objects and therefore not in the world. The point at issue between Strawson and Austin arose in their earlier debate on truth.2 There Austin viewed with cautious favor the practice of calling the nonlinguistic correlates of statements 'facts,' but he did not object to saying that a statement is true if it corresponds (in a suitably conventional way) to the AUTHOR'S NOTE: This paper was part of a larger paper that was read at the Chicago meeting of the American Philosophical Association, May 29, 1965. 1
A wetting layer breaks the ice rules

Abstract Ab initio calculations for a water layer on Ru(0 0 0 1) predict that to preserve O–Ru bonds, a substantial percentage of weaker, O–H⋯O bonds will optimally be broken, even in its ground state. Thus, the axiom that wetting only occurs if water molecules bind more strongly to a surface than to each other is fundamental to understanding this wetting layer’s structure. X-ray photoelectron spectra confirm the present prediction of ∼6.7% broken H-bonds in the wetting layer at 150 K.
The response to H-2-different virus-infected cells is mediated by long-lived T lymphocytes and is diminished by prior virus priming in a syngeneic environment

Abstract Immunologically naive C57BL/6J(B6, H-2K b D b ) T cells can, after negative selection in vivo to remove alloreactive lymphocytes, be induced to respond to H-2K k -vaccinia virus when primed in irradiated B10.A(4R) (H-2K k D b ) recipients. Precursors with the capacity to generate cytotoxic T-lymphocyte (CTL) effector function specific for H-2K k -vaccinia virus are present in the long-lived, recirculating T-cell pool. However, prior priming of the B6(H-2 b ) mice with vaccinia virus abrogates the responder potential of the H-2 b CTL for H-2K k -vaccinia virus. Furthermore, addition of primed to unprimed H-2 b T cells greatly diminishes the response of the naive lymphocyte populations. A possible mechanism for this suppression is that the expanded pool of memory CTL specific for H-2D b -vaccinia virus eliminates the resident B10.A(4R) stimulator cells before the primary response to H-2K k -vaccinia virus is sufficiently developed.
On the influence of fiber shape in bone-shaped short-fiber composites

Abstract Composite materials reinforced by bone-shaped short (BSS) fibers enlarged at both ends are well-known to have significantly better strength and toughness than those reinforced by conventional, short, straight (CSS) fibers with the same aspect ratio. Comparing the fracture characteristics of double-cantilever-beam specimens made of BSS and CSS fiber composites reveals the distinct mechanisms responsible for the toughness enhancement provided by the BSS fiber reinforcement. Enlarged BSS fiber ends anchor the fiber in the matrix and lead to a significantly higher stress to pull out than that required for CSS fibers, altering crack propagation characteristics. To study BSS fiber-bridging capability further, we examine the effects of increasing the size of the enlarged fiber end on the pull-out characteristics and identify the sequence of failure mechanisms involved in the pull-out process. However, large microcracks initiated at the enlarged ends can potentially mask the toughening enhancements provided by BSS fibers. To understand the influence of fiber-end geometry on debond initiation at the fiber ends, we analyze the interfacial stresses around fiber ends varying in geometry using an elastic finite-element model. We note a bound to these in terms of the Eshelby and Kelvin elastic solutions.
Using Solar Robotic Technology to Detect Lethal and Toxic Chemicals

In today's society, robots are used in many aspects of our lives. For instance, the robot is used as assistance at home, office workplace, hospital, industry plants, educational institution, waste disposal facilities, and others. However, the use of robots to detect and to avoid the exposure to toxic and harmful chemicals has not been addressed adequately. This remains a critical issue and a challenge. To face the challenge, the objective of this paper is to provide a unique perspective in designing and building a tele-operated (human operator with remote control) and autonomous robot (self-guided without human interference) that can detect harmful and lethal chemical gases (NO2, N2, CO, CO2, LPG, CH4, CNG, C2H5OH, NH3, H2 and others) on the ground. Applications include coal mine explosion prevention and detections of natural gas and other industrial and explosive chemicals leaks, detection of harmful gases in public gathering places such as subway stations, shopping malls, and airports. This solar chemical detection robot (SCDR) will potentially reduce the massive loss of human life and reduce the destruction to our environment resulting in land prosperity and a healthier ecosystem. The power management and distribution system of SCDR will be powered by an eco-friendly rechargeable battery which can be recharged during the day by solar energy. This will extend the service hours of the SCDR.