cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Isolation of SV40 virus and its effect on renal function in African green monkeys.

SV40 virus is of considerable concern, because it has been shown to be present in a number of samples of inactivated polio virus and adenovirus vaccines produced before 1960, and it is capable of inducing both chromosomal changes and tumours in certain experimental systems. Since the isolation of SV40 virus from naturally infected monkeys was reported by Sweet and Hilleman1, several investigators have examined experimental infection in monkeys and man with this agent. It has been shown that infection can be produced in African green monkeys by several routes of inoculation2,3. Inoculation of human volunteers4–7 has resulted in low grade infection including some evidence of transient chromosomal changes. Furthermore, administration of this virus to hamsters has resulted in the production of tumours6,8.
Six different assemblies from one building block: two-dimensional crystallization of an amide amphiphile.

A Cs-symmetric amide amphiphile containing a C18 alkyl chain exists in at least six crystalline phases at the liquid/solid interface; several of these phases display regularly arranged nanoscopic v...
Equality and Regional Finance in the Americas

This article explores competing definitions of equality embedded in contending visions for regional finance in the Americas. The U.S. free market–oriented project envisions extension of a NAFTA-like regulatory framework hemispherewide, promising Latin Americans better financial services, credit, and investment in exchange for strong financial property protections and (implicitly) dramatically reduced financial policy autonomy for their governments. Venezuela's vision of “Bolivarian” finance, exported to the Caribbean and the upper Andes, promotes assertive state management of both foreign and domestic investors, populist redistribution, and increasing reliance on nonmarket financial transactions. Brazil's regional financial project would unite South America through continentwide physical infrastructure and capitalist financial markets while retaining a role for public sector banks responsive to central government priorities. Brazil's approach shares with Venezuela's an emphasis on governments' need for financial policy authority and with the U.S. approach a concern for regulatory predictability and financial deepening.
QoS-constrained robust beamforming in MISO wiretap channels with a helper

In this paper, we develop robust beamforming strategies for multiple-input single-output (MISO) wiretap channels with a helper. The channel state information (CSI) for the legitimate link is assumed to be available while the CSI for the eavesdropper's channel is imperfect, and is assumed to be norm-bounded by some known constant. We optimize the worst-case performance for the following problems: 1) minimizing the signal to interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR) at the eavesdropper while maintaining an SINR constraint at the intended receiver, 2) maximizing the SINR at the intended receiver while forcing an SINR constraint at the eavesdropper, and 3) minimizing the global transmit power while satisfying SINR constraints at both the legitimate user and the eavesdropper. Simulation examples show the advantages of the robust designs over the non-robust counterparts.
Heterodyne Measurements of Stratospheric Ozone using a Single Sideband Tunable CO2 Laser

Heterodyne detection of ozone in the stratosphere has been demonstrated using a tunable single sideband CO 2 laser as the local oscillator (LO) and solar radiation acquired at ground level. Two unblended strong O 3 vibrational-rotational transitions at 1047.209 and 1047.225 cm -1 which were offset at 10.66 and 11.12 GHz away from the CO 2 carrier 9P20 were observed. High resolution measurements at 5 MHz ( 0.00017 cm -1 ) with a signal to noise ratio (SNR) of 100 : 1 were obtained. The measured FWHM linewidths for these lines are about ≃ 65 MHz. Retrieved data indicated magnitude of absorption is consistent with the anticipated integrated O 3 column density from the stratospheric region.
The Historical Narration of Rights in South Africa: Past, Present, and Future Tense

Human rights and cultural heritage emerge within different contexts of national, cosmopolitan, and local practice. The Liberation Heritage Route in South Africa is proposed at the cosmopolitan level, enacted at the national level, and contested at the informal, urban level. The concept of liberation bridges these different contexts for human rights in cultural heritage, illustrating different concepts of freedom and rights at play within heritage. Development and new social movements in particular demonstrate diverging contexts for imaging heritage as a site of socio-economic capacitation or recognition. The example of the Liberation Heritage Route underscores the importance of specifying what the concept of cultural rights actually capacitates in terms of concrete delivery. Because the discourse of human rights tends to exceed the mechanisms of its implementation, a heritage of human rights should start from a critical awareness of how the recognition of rights practices resonates with local communities.
Learned fear: a cause of arrhythmia onset in the presence of digitalis.

Abstract In earlier studies we have shown that guinea pigs exposed to signal-shock pairs develop digitalis toxicity earlier than control pigs on a test day when shocks are not delivered. Presenting subjects with signal-shock pairs is known to produce learned changes in autonomic tone thought to reflect fear. However, we were unable to find evidence of such changes in that model. A recent report extended our work on psychosomatic digitalis toxicity to the rabbit. Although that animal has been extensively used in studies of visceral learning, that study did not provide sufficient data to rigorously conclude that visceral learning had taken place. In this report, we show that rabbits which have learned that a signal accurately predicts the occurence of shock develop digitalis-toxic arrhythmias more often during the signal and significantly earlier than other rabbits given prior exposure to equal numbers of signals and shocks, never explicitly paired. The use of this latter control group indicates that rabbits exposed to signal-shock pairs have learned to associate the signal with its consequences; independent evidence of learning exists in the fact that these rabbits showed a signal-locked bradycardia on their training day. However, bradycardia did not appear to be the mechanism for the early elicitation of digitalis toxicity on the test day when ouabain was infused during probes with the signal alone. These data may have clinical significance in their indication that factors in the external milieu can precipitate digitalis-toxic arrhythmias in individuals that would otherwise have no evidence of digitalis toxicity.
Integer-Valued Polynomial Rings, t-Closure, and Associated Primes

Given an integral domain D with quotient field K, the ring of integer-valued polynomials on D is the subring {f(X) ∈ K[X]: f(D) ⊂ D} of the polynomial ring K[X]. Using the tools of t-closure and associated primes, we generalize some known results on integer-valued polynomial rings over Krull domains, Prufer v-multiplication domains, and Mori domains.
The discovery of the Zollinger-Ellison syndrome

Over the years, great strides have been made in the diagnosis and care of patients with gastrinoma and with the ZE syndrome. As the 40th anniversary of the description of this tumor approaches, we remain indebted to Professors Zollinger and Ellison for their outstanding work. They will long be remembered and revered as outstanding surgical scholars of our time.
Performance of the NEAR laser altimeter at the asteroid 433 Eros after five years in space

After a 5-year mission, the Near-Earth Asteroid Rendezvous-Shoemaker (NEAR) spacecraft made a controlled landing 12 February 2001 onto the asteroid, 433 Eros. Onboard the spacecraft, the NEAR Laser Rangefinder (NLR), a laser altimeter, gathered over 11 million measurements throughout 2000 and 2001, providing a spatially dense, high-resolution, topographical map of Eros. This instrument, launched in February 1996, was subjected to a constant, albeit, low radiation background predicted during the mission design phase to be 3 krad, cumulative, from solar protons at a shield depth of 1.8 mm aluminum. Using the onboard NLR calibration capability, and through extended observation of NLR measurement performance, the instrument exceeded requirements for this particular radiation environment. Electronic parts for the altimeter had been reviewed, assessed and screened, as necessary, for space quality and radiation hardness during its development. The NEAR mission included an excursion beyond Mars' orbit during its 4-year transit, followed by a one-year mission orbiting the near-Earth asteroid, 433 Eros, continuously collecting altimetry data. The majority of the data collection occurred during solar maximum and, in particular, operated without interruption through the events on Bastille Day, 14 July 2000 (comparable to the large October 1989 events of the previous solar maximum) and 10 November 2000. At Earth, the July 2000 proton level provided in a few days over half of the expected cumulative radiation, predicted through use of Feynman's model. Based on uneventful operation of the NEAR, including the absence of any degradation in solar array currents due to proton displacement damage and the nominal performance of the altimeter, it appears that the 14 July event did not intersect the NEAR location. The NLR-derived topographic data successfully enabled determination of Eros' shape, mass, and density contributing to the understanding the internal structure and collisional evolution of Eros.
Efficient modeling of volume holographic storage channels (VHSC)

Equalizer design typically requires careful modeling of the underlying storage channel. The aim of this paper is to present an efficient ISI model for volume hololgraphic storage channels (VHSC) in which we consider the frequency plane aperture, spatial light modulator (SLM) and CCD fill factors, and SLM finite contrast ratio as the main sources of ISI.
Freundlich Red-Shift Formula

Freundlich has attempted to explain various anomalous observations by suggesting that the red shift be reinterpreted as an effect proportional to radiation density and length along the path of a photon. For a star of radius $R$ the contribution of the outside radiation field exceeds that within the atmosphere (thickness ${l}_{0}$) by a factor of the order of $\frac{R}{{l}_{0}}=1000$ for average stars; this makes Freundlich's original formula untenable. The question is here examined whether the objections to Freundlich's conception can be removed if one reduces his constant of proportionality by ${10}^{\ensuremath{-}3}$. To give the conception a full trial the calculations are made realistically, taking into account the extension of the star, and the deviations from Lambert's law of emission which result from the radiative transfer conditions in the photosphere. The resultant formula for the radiation shift gives an approximate fit with solar observations out to near the limb without retaining, as Freundlich does, an additional relativity shift equal to one fifth of the expected value. However, the rise of the observed shift at the limb to the gravitational value (and even higher) is unaccounted for. The serious objections to Freundlich's interpretation from other astronomical evidence still stand, though the order of magnitude of the discrepancies is in some instances considerably reduced.
Theoretical study of a quantum-point-contact model.

The effects of a short-range impurity potential V of radius ${\mathit{a}}_{0}$ on a model two-dimensional (2D) quantum-point contact (QPC) are studied. In this model the 2D electron gas is confined between two symmetrical hyperbolas. \ensuremath{\Vert}V\ifmmode \tilde{}\else \~{}\fi{}\ensuremath{\Vert}=2${\mathit{ma}}_{0}^{2}$\ensuremath{\Vert}V\ensuremath{\Vert}/${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Elzxh}}}^{2}$ is assumed to be small but \ensuremath{\Vert}V\ensuremath{\Vert} can be high on the scale of Fermi energy. A bound state at an attractive short-range impurity exists, at finite widths w of the constriction, only if the potential or w exceed some threshold values. The dependence of the binding energy on the width of the constriction and on the parameters of the impurity is found. An explicit expression for the conductance G(E) of the QPC with an impurity (attractive or repulsive) as a function of the Fermi energy E is derived. At small \ensuremath{\Vert}V\ifmmode \tilde{}\else \~{}\fi{}\ensuremath{\Vert} the sign of the impurity effect on the conductance, \ensuremath{\Delta}G, is opposite to the sign of the potential. As the depth of the attractive potential increases, \ensuremath{\Delta}G(E) becomes negative in some regions of Fermi energy. For stronger potentials \ensuremath{\Delta}G is negative for all Fermi energies both for attractive and repulsive impurities. For attractive impurities the dependence of \ensuremath{\Delta}G(E) on V is nonmonotonic: the \ensuremath{\Vert}\ensuremath{\Delta}G(E)\ensuremath{\Vert} peaks and minima are especially high, and the total conductance G(E) is a nonmonotonic function of Fermi energy, when the depth of the potential is close to the threshold value at which a bound state appears. At even higher \ensuremath{\Vert}V\ensuremath{\Vert} the \ensuremath{\Vert}\ensuremath{\Delta}G(E)\ensuremath{\Vert} peaks and minima decrease but are on the order of conductance quantum ${\mathit{e}}^{2}$/2\ensuremath{\pi}\ensuremath{\Elzxh}, and G(E) is monotonic.The \ensuremath{\Vert}\ensuremath{\Delta}G(E)\ensuremath{\Vert} peaks and minima correspond, respectively, to the conductance steps, i.e., regions of transition from one plateau to the next one, and to the feet of these steps. The modulation resistance noise generated by random abrupt changes of the impurity potential is discussed. At high-impurity potentials the deviation of a conductance plateau from its quantized value grows with its number, i.e., the plateaus become progressively less perfect and more noisy. The results are compared with those found earlier for quasi-one-dimensional QPC models.
Study of hydrogen stability in low-k dielectric films by ion beam techniques

Abstract With shrinking device geometries into the 65 nm technology node, a transition to low-k dielectrics becomes increasingly attractive. Negative bias temperature instability, which is associated with hydrogen migration at elevated temperatures, becomes the main degradation mechanism of concern for conductivity breakdown in semiconductor devices. The possibility of hydrogen release during each of the fabrication process is, therefore, of great interest to the understanding of device reliability. In the current study, various low-k dielectric films were subjected to thermal annealing in N2 ambient at temperatures that are generally used for device fabrication. Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS) and elastic recoil detection analysis (ERDA) were used to investigate composition change and hydrogen redistribution of the dielectric films. The results indicate that organosilicate glass, silicon nitride and silicon oxynitride films were stable at temperatures up to 500 °C. In phosphorus doped silicon glass and plasma-enhanced tetraethylorthosilicate films, significant hydrogen release from the surface region was evident after heat treatment in N2 purged environment at 300 °C for 30 min, further hydrogen release is observed as temperature increases.
Administration of an intravenous perfluorocarbon contrast agent improves echocardiographic determination of left ventricular volumes and ejection fraction: comparison with cine magnetic resonance imaging.

Abstract Objectives. The purpose of this study was to determine whether contrast-enhanced transthoracic echocardiography improves the evaluation of left ventricular (LV) volumes and ejection fraction (EF). Background. Echocardiographic assessment of LV volumes and EF is widely used but may be inaccurate when the endocardium is not completely visualized. Recently the intravenous (IV) administration of perfluorocarbon microbubbles has been shown to enhance opacification of the LV cavity, but the utility of these agents to improve the echocardiographic assessment of LV systolic function is unknown. Methods. In 40 subjects (29 men and 11 women, aged 24 to 81 years) an assessment of LV volumes and EF was performed with a magnetic resonance imaging examination, followed immediately by a transthoracic echocardiogram before and after the intravenous administration of 2% dodecafluoropentane emulsion (EchoGen; Sonus Pharmaceuticals, Bothell, Washington). Results. Contrast enhanced the echocardiographic assessment of LV end diastolic volume (p Conclusions. Administration of an intravenous contrast agent improves the ability to accurately assess LV volumes and EF in humans. Contrast enhancement is most useful in subjects with two or more adjacent endocardial segments not seen at baseline.
Constraining f ( R ) gravity as a scalar-tensor theory

We search for viable f(R) theories of gravity, making use of the equivalence between such theories and scalar-tensor gravity. We find that models can be made consistent with solar system constraints either by giving the scalar a high mass or by exploiting the so-called chameleon effect. However, in both cases, it appears likely that any late-time cosmic acceleration will be observationally indistinguishable from acceleration caused by a cosmological constant. We also explore further observational constraints from, e.g., big bang nucleosynthesis and inflation.
A new titanosauriform from the Early Cretaceous Cloverly Formation of Montana

Abstract New material representing the northernmost titanosauriform from North America is described from the Cloverly Formation (Aptian/Albian) of Montana, USA. Representing a basal titanosauriform, Rugocaudia cooneyi gen. et sp. nov., the remains consist of 18 caudal vertebral and associated material. Possessing a combination of several unique caudal vertebrae features, Rugocaudia appears uniquely distinct from previously recognized North American sauropod genera. This Early Cretaceous taxon from Montana and subsequent discovery of titanosauriform material from Wyoming indicates a stronger Early Cretaceous sauropod presence across the continental USA than previously recognized. The presence of these northern latitude taxa helps to expand the spatial distribution of Early Cretaceous sauropods and is an additional piece of evidence to counter the claims of waning Early Cretaceous sauropod diversity in North America.
Tissue distribution and metabolism of the Lathyrus sativus neurotoxin, L-3-oxalylamino-2-aminopropionic acid, in the squirrel monkey.

Abstract– Although the L. sativus neurotoxin, L-3-oxalylamino-2-aminopropionic acid, is believed to cause neurological disease in humans, evidence that the toxin can enter the central nervous system except in animals with an immature or damaged blood-brain barrier is lacking. Experiments described here suggest that an intraperitoneal dose of L-3-[14C-oxalyl]amino-2-aminopropionic acid enters the central nervous system of young squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciureus) whose blood-brain barrier is mature. Most of the radioactivity recovered from monkey urine and tissues 1 h after injection was unchanged toxin. None was recovered in expired air as radioactive carbon dioxide.
Parietal contributions to visual feature binding: evidence from a patient with bilateral lesions

Neurophysiologists have documented the existence of multiple cortical areas responsive to different visual features. This modular organization has sparked theoretical interest in how the "binding problem" is solved. Recent data from a neurological patient (R.M.) with bilateral parietal-occipital lesions demonstrates that the binding problem is not just a hypothetical construct; it can be a practical problem, as rare as the selective inability to perceive motion or color. R.M. miscombines colors and shapes even under free viewing conditions and is unable to judge either relative or absolute visual locations. The evidence suggests that a single explanation--an inadequate spatial representation--can account for R.M.'s spatial judgment and feature-binding deficits.
Seasonal influenza vaccination coverage among local health department personnel in North Carolina, 2007-2008.

Background National estimates indicate that a low proportion of institutional and hospital-based healthcare workers obtain influenza vaccine. Information on seasonal influenza vaccination coverage in county-level public healthcare workers is lacking, including knowledge, attitudes, and perceptions regarding seasonal influenza vaccination. Purpose The purpose of this study was to investigate the percentage of employees receiving seasonal influenza vaccination, including perceptions and attitudes of employees of 17 health agencies in a 25-county region in eastern, rural North Carolina. Methods Prior to the H1N1 pandemic, an 18-item voluntary, self-administered survey (pen-and-paper or web-based) was provided to 1653 employees of 15 local health departments and two health jurisdictions in 25 counties of eastern North Carolina in May 2008, obtaining vaccination information for 2007–2008 influenza season. Analysis was conducted in summer 2008 and October 2009. Results A total of 1209 respondents completed the survey (73% response proportion). Seventy-two percent of valid survey respondents voluntarily received free influenza vaccine for the 2007–2008 season. Gender, ethnicity, and ≥10 years working in public health were significantly associated with obtaining vaccine. Using logistic regression, positive significant predictors were having a vaccination last year and perceived importance of vaccine. Cost to obtain vaccination was a deterrent. The most common reason stated was to protect people (66%), while the most common reason for not receiving the vaccine was belief that the vaccine can cause illness (19%). Almost 60% of employees reported support for a mandatory seasonal influenza vaccination program at their health department. Conclusions The percentage of county public health workers obtaining seasonal influenza vaccination is almost twice that of healthcare workers in other settings. This study provides evidence that efforts may be successful in increasing influenza vaccination coverage of healthcare workers.
Determining Warning Label Content and Format Using Emea

Error Modes and Effects Analysis (EMEA) is a recently developed procedure intended to help practitioners systematically apply cognitive guidelines regarding the appropriate content and format of a warning sign or label. The EMEA procedure includes elements of Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA), task analysis, and Rasmussen's SRK levels of performance taxonomy. The first step in EMEA is to identify inappropriate or missing responses within particular stages of user or purchaser interaction with the product. Focus then shifts to identifying the frequency and effect of each inappropriate or missing response, its behavioral basis stratified by the level of task performance at which it might occur, and existing and potential intervention strategies. Two case studies are presented illustrating the application of this approach.
Cytokine production by human airway epithelial cells after exposure to an air pollution particle is metal-dependent

Despite the many epidemiological studies supporting the contention that ambient air pollution particles can adversely affect human health, there is no clear agreement as to a biologically plausible mechanism which can explain the acute mortality and morbidity associated with exposure to particles less than 10 microm in size. We tested the hypothesis that metals present in an air pollution particle can induce the synthesis and expression of the inflammatory cytokines IL-8, IL-6, and TNFalpha. A residual oil fly ash (ROFA) containing the transition metals vanadium, nickel, and iron was used as a model emission source air pollution particle. Normal human bronchial epithelial (NHBE) cells were exposed for either 2 or 24 hr to 0, 5, 50, or 200 microg/ml ROFA. Concentrations of IL-8, IL-6, and TNF-alpha proteins were measured with commercially available ELISA kits. mRNA for these same cytokines was quantified by RT-PCR. NHBE cells exposed to ROFA produced significant amounts of IL-8, IL-6, and TNF, as well as mRNAs coding for these cytokines. Cytokine production was inhibited by the inclusion of either the metal chelator deferoxamine (1.0 mM) or the free radical scavenger dimethylthiourea (1.0 mM). In addition, vanadium containing compounds, but not iron or nickel sulfates, mimicked the effects of intact ROFA. These results demonstrate that metals present in ROFA may be responsible for production and release of inflammatory mediators by the respiratory tract epithelium and suggest that these mediators may contribute to the toxic effects of particulate air pollutants reported in epidemiology studies.
Correction of differential capacitance profiles for Debye-length effects

Conventional differential capacitance-voltage ( C-V ) profiling methods are limited in resolution by the method used to convert C-V data to profile data. A new method of numerical calculation of C-V data, using cubic finite elements, is presented which allows a more exact relationship between C-V data and profile data to be calculated. This new method of data reduction allows the resolution of differential C-V profiling method to be extended to dimensions near the local extrinsic Debye length.
Use of liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry and a chemical cleavage reaction for the structure elucidation of a new sildenafil analogue detected as an adulterant in an herbal dietary supplement.

An herbal dietary supplement, marketed as a natural product for the enhancement of sexual function, was analyzed by HPLC with photodiode array and mass spectral detection and found to contain a compound related to the synthetic phosphodiesterase-5 (PDE-5) inhibitors. Based on UV spectra, mass spectra and direct infusion MSn, the structure of the compound was tentatively identified as a sildenafil analogue in which the sulfonyl group had been replaced with an acetyl group. This new analogue is similar to acetildenafil, a previously reported sildenafil analogue, but differs in that it contains an N-methyl group where acetildenafil contains an N-ethyl group. The structure of the unknown was unequivocally established by chemical cleavage of the phenacylamine group of the molecule to generate N-methylpiperazine; other cleavage products matched those generated from acetildenafil. Since the new compound has one less CH2 group than acetildenafil, it was named nor-acetildenafil.
Rapid oxidation of dl-selenomethionine by peroxynitrite

Peroxynitrite, the reaction product of nitric oxide and superoxide, rapidly oxidizes DL-selenomethionine (MetSe) with overall second-order kinetics, first-order in peroxynitrite and first-order in MetSe. The oxidation of MetSe by peroxynitrite goes by two competing mechanism. The first produces ethylene by what we propose to be a one-electron oxidation of MetSe. In the second mechanism, MetSe undergoes a two-electron oxidation that gives methionine selenoxide (MetSe = O); the apparent second-order rate constant, k2(app), for this process is (2.4 +/- 0.1) x 10(3) M-1s-1 at pH 7.4 and 25 degrees C. The kinetic modeling of the experimental data suggests that both peroxynitrous acid (k2 = 20,460 +/- 440 M-1s-1 at 25 degrees C) and the peroxynitrite anion (k3 = 200 +/- 170 M-1s-1 at 25 degrees C) are involved in the second-order reaction leading to selenoxide. These rate constants are 10- to 1,000-fold higher than those for the reactions of methionine (Met) with peroxynitrite. With increasing concentrations of MetSe at pH 7.4, the yield of ethylene decreases, while that of MetSe = O increases, suggesting that the reactions leading to ethylene and selenoxide have different kinetic orders. These results are analogous to those we previously reported for methionine and 2-keto-4-thiomethylbutanoic acid (KTBA),where ethylene is produced in a first-order reaction and sulfoxide in a second-order reaction. Therefore, we suggest that the reaction of peryoxynitrite with MetSe involves a mechanism similar to that we proposed for Met, in which an activated intermediate of peroxynitrous acid (HOONO) is the one-electron oxidant and reacts with first-order kinetics and ground-state peroxynitrite is the two-electron oxidant and reacts with second-order kinetics.
Force-Rate Characterization of Two Spiropyran-Based Molecular Force Probes

The mechanically accelerated ring-opening reaction of spiropyran to a colored merocyanine provides a useful method by which to image the molecular scale stress/strain distribution within a polymer, but the magnitude of the forces necessary for activation has yet to be quantified. Here, we report single molecule force spectroscopy studies of two spiropyran isomers. Ring opening on the time scale of tens of milliseconds is found to require forces of ∼240 pN, well below that of previously characterized covalent mechanophores. The lower threshold force is a combination of a low force-free activation energy and the fact that the change in rate with force (activation length) of each isomer is greater than that inferred in other systems. Finally, regiochemical effects on mechanochemical coupling are characterized, and increasing force reverses the relative ring opening rates of the two isomers.
Optical Head Design Using HOE's

ABSTRACT We describe an optical head design using two spherical lenses and two HOE's. This study was intended to show the feasibility of using HOE's to improve the performance of optical head for Read/Write optical disc drives. The two HOE's correct the spherical aberrations of the lens, change the elliptical beam to a circular one and compensate for wavelength shift up to +, - 5 nm. Experiments have been performed to confirm these concepts. The HOE's were made optically in the visible wavelength using an intermediate CGH. Ideally the HOE's are to be generated by a computer and preferably written directly by an e-beam machine. Since at that time all the commercially available e-beam shops we contacted lacked the confidence in making such high resolution CGH, we decided to use the Optical-CGH approach. Actually this approach offers several advantages. First we can make large and high resolution ir HOE immediately. Secondly \ve can even make Bragg (or volume) ir hologram using visible light. Basically we create a pre-distorted CGH from which the final HOE can be made using visible light. The final HOE can then be reconstruct at the ir wavelength without aberrations. The techniques used here can be extended to optical head designs using aspherical lenses. The HOE's function can then be, in addition to beam shaping, to achieve a larger wavelength compensation, to correct the residual chromatic and aspherical aberrations of the aspherical lenses. The astigmatism of the laser diode can also be corrected by the HOE's. The possibility of an optical head using only HOE's (no lenses) will be discussed. Computer simulations and experimental results are shown.1. IntroductionThe HOE's are compact, light weight and low cost. Also a single HOE can often replace many conventional optics. Thus we expect the use of HOE's in place of conventional optics can reduce system complexity, size, and cost and at the same time improve performance and reliability.However, in order to make HOE practical, we must first overcome several technical obstacles. The first and probably the most important is to make HOE's less sensitive to wavelength changes so that laser diodes can be used as the light source. The wavelength of a laser diode changes with temperature and driving current. Even a so-called single mode laser may be driven into multi- mode. It is therefore very important that the optical system using HOE's must be compensated at least for the wavelength drift of laser diodes. The wavelength drift due to driving current and mode hopping cannot be controlled by stablizing the laser temperature.
The atmospheric effect on the separability of field classes measured from satellites

The atmospheric effect on the upward radiance emerging from the atmosphere above a nonuniform surface results in a reduction of the separability between the surface classes by broadening the radiance probability distribution of each class, while narrowing the total radiance range. The atmospheric modulation transfer function (MTF) is used in Fourier transform analyses to simulate the atmospheric effect on the imagery of a nonuniform surface and to demonstrate the atmospheric effect on separability of field classes.
Optimal continuous finite preview problem

This short paper deals with the preview problem, in which a controller can use future information as well as present and past information in deciding the control. The problem of following command signals is considered for the continuous time system. It is assumed that the controller can make use of the finite preview information with respect to command signal from the present time t up to t la time units in the future. t la is called the preview length and usually t_{la} , the duration of the problem, which distinguishes the present problem from the optimal tracking problem. It is shown how to utilize the local future information obtained by finite preview to minimize an optimality criterion evaluated over the problem duration. An example is given to show advantages of making use of future information and the existence of an effective preview length.
Plasma fibronectin concentration in animal models of sepsis and endotoxemia

Plasma fibronectin is a nonspecific opsonin which mediates phagocytosis of particulate matter by macrophages. Fibronectin depletion results in depression of reticuloendothelial system phagocytic function. This may potentiate microvascular embolization and sludging in critical illness. It has been hypothesized that sepsis is a major cause of fibronectin depletion. To explore this hypothesis, plasma fibronectin concentrations were measured in rats with intraabdominal abscesses and in rabbits subjected to the generalized Shwartzman reaction (spaced doses of endotoxin). In both groups of animals there was a significant increase (P < 0.05) rather than decrease in fibronectin concentrations at times when sepsis and disseminated intravascular coagulation were manifest. This study does not support the hypothesized relationship between sepsis and fibronectin depletion. Until the kinetics of fibronectin production and utilization are further delineated, caution must be exercised in the interpretation of immunoreactive plasma fibronectin levels.
Persistent pitfalls and applicable approaches for justification of advanced manufacturing systems

Abstract This article focuses on main pitfalls/errors in application of traditional economic decision models which tend to impede the adoption of advanced manufacturing systems. The three main pitfalls are: arbitrarily high hurdle rates, comparison with the status quo, and insufficient benefits analysis. Several simple models are presented as approaches to overcoming those pitfalls so as to provide for more useful evaluations.
The Production Management System under Mass Customization

Mass customization (MC) is an advanced production mode in the 21st century that combines two opposite production patterns -- customization production and mass production. It keeps low production cost and fast delivery time, while meeting individual customers needs. Firstly, via analyzing the typical production management patterns (material requirement planning (MRP)/ just in time (JIT)), and based on the two strategies of modularization and postponement, the paper presented a push/pull manufacturing model to meet the demands of MC. This model integrates the two different production patterns (push and pull) to reduce inventory, production costs and production time. Before the customer order decoupling point (CODP), common components and selective components are produced via push of plan in presence of inventory. After the CODP, customization production is conducted by pull of orders.
Drillhole lavas from the northwestern Deccan Traps, and the evolution of Réunion hotspot mantle

Abstract Picritic and basaltic lavas from three drillholes in the northwestern Deccan Traps provide new evidence on the composition of the Deccan mantle source. Age-corrected Nd Pb Sr isotopic ratios of these lavas define two distinct trends. One, Trend 1, reflects mixing between a mantle end-member very similar to that of modern Reunion Island and high-208Pb/204Pb, high-207Pb/204Pb continental lithospheric (sensu lato) material unlike any seen in the well-studied southern Deccan formations (but broadly like a lithospheric end-member in the Madagascar province). The other trend, Trend 2, records mixing between the same or similar continental lithospheric material and a mantle end-member resembling that of the thick Ambenali Formation of the southwestern Deccan. Trend 2 flows are interbedded with Trend 1 flows in one drillhole, indicating that the mantle source region was compositionally zoned and, in the context of a Reunion plume model for the province, consistent with a zoned plume head (e.g., [1]). In the same context, the Trend 1 data imply that (1) the isotopic composition of the Reunion end-member has changed relatively little in the last ∼ 66 m.y., and that (2) the source feeding the recent shield lavas of Reunion and Mauritius Islands may contain a small fraction of MORB-type mantle entrained with the presumed plume-source material. The picritic flood-basalts have previously been suggested to be high-degree melts from the hottest part of the Reunion plume head, dominated by plume-source mantle, and basalts lower in MgO have been suggested as corresponding to cooler regions of the head characterized by a significant amount of entrained non-plume-source mantle [1]. However, both Trend 1 and Trend 2 include picritic members, and the most Reunion-like lavas are non-picritic basalts. Moreover, elemental data indicate that the somewhat alkalic drillhole lavas probably represent lesser degrees of partial melting than the strongly tholeiitic Ambenali basalts to the south. Indeed, regional north-to-south Deccan-wide gradients are present in incompatible element ratios and suggest that the average degree of melting increased gradually southward in the Deccan, perhaps as a result of progressive lithospheric thinning.
Modeling deepwater seabed steady-state thermal fields around buried pipeline including trenching and backfill effects

Abstract Deepwater pipelines are designed to transport mixtures of oil and gas, and their associated impurities at wellhead temperatures that can be in excess of 149 °C (∼300 °F or 422 K) while the external temperature maybe in the range of 5 °C (∼41 °F or 278 K). Depending on the circumstances these pipelines may be buried for physical protection or for additional thermal insulation using robotic trenching equipment. This results in a complex cut and backfill geometry in the seafloor in addition to altering the thermal properties of the backfill. A two-dimensional boundary element model was developed specifically to address to investigate the local steady-state thermal field in the near field of the pipeline. The model allows one to account for the complex geometries in the near field associated with this burial technique, site-specific multi-layered soil conditions and the seawater adjacent to the seafloor. A parametric study was preformed to evaluate effects of the thermal power loss, burial depth, pipe diameter and soil thermal conductivity on the thermal field in the near field of a buried pipeline. The numerical examples illustrate the influence of the backfill thermal property on the temperature at the pipe wall, that the pipe diameter controls the required output thermal power needed to maintain the desired pipe wall temperature, and the importance of pipeline burial depth on seabed temperature distribution above the pipeline.
Hybrid infrared imaging arrays

Infrared focal planes in intrinsic semiconductors offer advantages over extrinsic semiconductors in both operating temperature and quantum efficiency. Current research on hybrid focal planes is directed toward devices in which detection occurs in an intrinsic narrow energy bandgap semiconductor, and signal processing is accomplished in a silicon multiplexer which is electrically interfaced to the detector array. Two principal hybrid device designs are being developed to sense the incident photon flux: frontside and backside illuminated configurations. These hybrid designs and the approaches using III-V, IV-VI and II-VI alloy systems are described. Furthermore, the devices which incorporate self spectral filtering and detector-multiplexer interface circuits will be described. The operation of existing focal planes and the key technical problems associated with the attainment of practical, high performance hybrid focal planes will be discussed.
Mathematical model of intimal thickening in atherosclerosis: vessel stenosis as a free boundary problem.

Abstract Atherosclerosis is an inflammatory disease of the artery characterized by an expansion of the intimal region. Intimal thickening is usually attributed to the migration of smooth muscle cells (SMCs) from the surrounding media and proliferation of SMCs already present in the intima. Intimal expansion can give rise to dangerous events such as stenosis (leading to stroke) or plaque rupture (leading to myocardial infarction). In this paper we propose and study a mathematical model of intimal thickening, posed as a free boundary problem. Intimal thickening is driven by damage to the endothelium, resulting in the release of cytokines and migration of SMCs. By coupling a boundary value problem for cytokine concentration to an evolution law for the intimal area, we reduce the problem to a single nonlinear differential equation for the luminal radius. We analyze the steady states, perform a bifurcation analysis and compare model solutions to data from rabbits whose iliac arteries are subject to a balloon pullback injury. In order to obtain a favorable fit, we find that migrating SMCs must enter the intima very slowly compared to cells in dermal wounds. This cell behavior is indicative of a weak inflammatory response which is consistent with atherosclerosis being a chronic inflammatory disease.
Small deformation multi-scale analysis of heterogeneous materials with the Voronoi cell finite element model and homogenization theory

Abstract In this paper, a multiple scale finite element model (VCFEM-HOMO) has been developed for elastic-plastic analysis of heterogeneous (porous and composite) materials by combining asymptotic homogenization theory with the Voronoi cell finite element model (VCFEM). VCFEM for microstructural modeling originates from representative material elements at sampling points in the structure. Structural modeling is done by the general purpose finite element code ABAQUS, and interfacing with the microscale VCFEM analysis is done through the user subroutine in ABAQUS for material constitutive relation, UMAT. Asymptotic homogenization in UMAT generates macroscopic material parameters for ABAQUS.
Characteristics of odorant elicited calcium changes in cultured human olfactory neurons

An important step in establishing and utilizing a cell culture system for the in vitro study of olfaction is assessing whether the cultured cells possess physiological properties similar to those of mature olfactory neurons. Various investigators have successfully established proliferating cell lines from olfactory tissue, but few have demonstrated the characteristics of odor sensitivity of these cells. We successfully established cultured cell lines from adult human olfactory tissue obtained using an olfactory biopsy procedure and measured their ability to respond to odor stimulation using calcium imaging techniques. A subset of the human olfactory cells in culture displayed a distinct morphology and specifically expressed immunocytochemical markers characteristic of mature human olfactory neurons such as OMP, Golf, NCAM and NST. Under defined growth conditions, these cultured cells responded to odorant mixes that have been previously shown to elicit intracellular calcium changes in acutely-isolated human olfactory neurons. These odorant-elicited calcium responses displayed characteristics similar to those found in mature human olfactory neurons. First, cultured cells responded with either increases or decreases in intracellular calcium. Second, increases in calcium were abolished by removal of extracellular calcium. Third, inhibitors of the olfactory signal transduction cascades reversibly blocked these odorant-elicited intracellular calcium changes. Our results demonstrate that cultures of adult human olfactory cells established from olfactory biopsies retain some of the in vivo odorant response characteristics of acutely isolated cells from the adult olfactory epithelium. This work has important ramifications for investigation of olfactory function and dysfunction using biopsy procedures and in vitro assays of odor sensitivity. J. Neurosci. Res. 62:737–749, 2000. © 2000 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Locating emergency medical rescue vehicles under conditions of urgency

Abstract This article describes how a fire department's information system was utilized to solve a pressing emergency medical rescue vehicle location problem. The existing information system was augmented by a manual data system to provide the needed information in a very short time. The result of the problem analysis further provided feedback regarding the deficiencies of the information system for emergency medical rescue purposes.
An Analytical Solution for Steady-State Flow Between Aquifers Through an Open Well

Vertical communication between aquifers via open wells may cause migration of a chemical plume from a contaminated aquifer into a water-supply aquifer. Hence, quantifying the rate of flow through such wells may aid either in identifying likely transport paths or in designing a migration monitoring system. In this study, a steady-state solution was developed which allows quantification of the volumetric flow rate which will occur within an inactive well which fully penetrates two confined aquifers. The solution is an adaptation of the Thiem solution and includes a well-loss term based on the square of the flow rate. The solution for flow between a confined aquifer and an unconfined aquifer is also presented. Based on three examples concerning hypothetical flow problems, it was shown that the well-loss term is insignificant unless both aquifers have high transmissivities and the well-loss coefficient is large. Limitations of the solution are also presented.
Striving for number one: practices from the US banking industry

States that the financial services industry has become one of the USA most visible players in the tough, new competitive era. What worked for corporations in the past has been re‐engineered; re‐evaluated, reprocessed, and reinvented in hopes of entering this new era with an edge on competition. Presents three corporate strategies of today′s banking industry’s “heavy‐hitters”. Each corporation has a strategy unique to its corporate culture, but all of these banking corporations have the same desire: to be the customer’s number one choice for their banking products and services. Customers equal profitability, and profitability equates to future success and prosperity. The banking industry has witnessed an evolution from the old way of doing business. With this evolution comes new possibilities in all facets of the business environment. Helps to illustrate how each corporation is “rising to the occasion” and developing their own unique strategies to remain a successful and profitable player in the banking game.