cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Introduction: Port Jews in the Atlantic world Jewish history

In recent years, port Jews have become increasingly familiar figures in modern European Jewish history. The term 'port Jews' was introduced to highlight the distinctive role and experience of Jewish merchants who lived in dynamic Mediterranean and Atlantic port cities in early modern Europe, cities such as Livorno, Trieste, Amsterdam, London, and Bordeaux. Perceived in their day as acculturated and useful agents, purveyors and facilitators of international maritime com merce, they benefited from relatively favorable civil-legal status and trod a particular road to modernity.1 This issue of Jewish History proposes to take port Jews across the Atlantic Ocean and make them familiar figures in the Jewish history of the Americas as well. Several scholars have located port Jews beyond the early modern centers of western and central Europe, with some extending the geographic and chronological parameters of their discussions to include cities such as Odessa, Singapore, and Cape Town, and the experiences of Jews in port cities during the era of mass migration in the 19th and early 20th centuries.2 The following articles broaden consideration of port Jews in a way that is crucial to the early modern period itself. Initial studies of port Jews focused on the processes by which these Jews became rooted in a local milieu and integrated into the civic realm, in effect seeing them as resident subjects or citizens in the making, on the road toward legal equality. But, as I have argued elsewhere, routes are as important as roots in the study of merchant communities, and therefore, more attention should be paid to the actual movement of port Jews and their far-flung human, commercial, and cultural networks.3 For the early modern period, there is one vital pattern of movement and exchange that scholars of port Jews must address: Just as early modern
On the undiffusion of established practices

33. Deyell MW, Buller CE, Miller LH, et al. Impact of National Clinical Guideline recommendations for revascularization of persistently occluded infarct-related arteries on clinical practice in the United States. Arch Intern Med. 2011;171(18): 1636-1643. 34. ShahMR, Hasselblad V, Stevenson LW, et al. Impact of the pulmonary artery catheter in critically ill patients: meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials. JAMA. 2005;294(13):1664-1670.
Temperature dependence of the rotational life times in solid H2

Abstract We have studied the temperature dependence of the nuclear transverse and longitudinal relaxation times in solid H 2 for ortho concentrations 10 -3 X -2 between 0.4 K and the triple point, 13.9 K. We find a striking temperature dependence in T 2 over the whole temperature range. This new effect is ascribed to a coupling between molecular rotation and lattice vibrations, which is brought into evidence by the narrow width of the spectral density of the rotational fluctuations at low X .
Children at risk for early academic problems: the role of learning-related social skills

Abstract Increasing evidence suggests that aspects of children’s learning-related social skills (including interpersonal skills and work-related skills) contribute to early school performance. The present investigation examined the association of work-related skills to academic outcomes at the beginning of kindergarten and at the end of second grade as well as characteristics of children with low work-related skills. Children were selected from a sample of 540 children based on low work-related skills scores on the Cooper-Farran Behavioral Rating Scales, a teacher-rated scale. Results indicated that work-related skills predicted unique variance in academic outcomes at school entry and at the end of second grade, after controlling for kindergarten academic score and important background variables. In addition, children with poor work-related skills ( n = 82) were found to differ from the overall sample on a number of child, family, and sociocultural variables including: significantly lower IQs, more behavior difficulties, and more medical problems, such as hearing and language problems. Finally, children with low work-related skills scored lower on academic outcomes at the beginning of kindergarten and at the end of second grade. Findings highlight the importance of early work-related skills in understanding successful school transition and early academic achievement.
Kinetic isotope effect studies of the reaction catalyzed by uracil DNA glycosylase: Evidence for an oxocarbenium ion - Uracil anion intermediate

The DNA repair enzyme uracil DNA glycosylase catalyzes the first step in the uracil base excision repair pathway, the hydrolytic cleavage of the N-glycosidic bond of deoxyuridine in DNA. Here we re...
Determinants of sputum neutrophilia after experimental infection with rhinovirus (RV) 16

Abstract Rationale Although lower airway neutrophilia occurs during RV infections and may be an important component of the inflammatory response to cause an asthma exacerbation, the mechanisms of this infection-immune interaction are incompletely understood. Methods To define the relationship and kinetics of neutrophilic inflammation and viral load in the lower airway, 13 allergic asthma and 6 normal subjects were experimentally inoculated with RV16. During the infection, nasal lavage and sputum specimens were obtained serially to measure cellular inflammation and RV RNA by real time PCR. Results After inoculation, sputum RV RNA peaked at 3–7 days (range to 4.6 × 10 5 PCR units), and sputum neutrophils were significantly increased at 7 days (6.5 vs 2.5 × 10 5 cells/gram at baseline, p s =0.73, p=0.01). At the recovery phase, sputum neutrophilia persisted in subjects still shedding virus from the nose (r s =0.72, p=0.02). Conclusions Experimental infection with RV induces a variable degree of sputum neutrophilia, which appears to be dependent on viral replication in the lower airway, as well as prolonged viral shedding. These data suggest that greater viral replication in the lower airway, perhaps due to impaired antiviral responses, is a risk factor for bronchial inflammation and could contribute to respiratory infection induced asthma exacerbations.
Investigations of chromatic transformations of polydiacetylene with aromatic compounds

Thermochromic changes of 10,12-pentacosadiynoic acid (PCDA) were investigated in combination with four aromatic compounds, benzene, furan, thiophene, and cyclopentadiene, with subsequent exposure to UV radiation. Using Raman spectroscopy and solid-state Fluorometry, no differences were observed between benzene, furan, or thiophene from the PCDA itself, with respect to the blue to red color change, which took place from 80°C to 100°C. However, the addition of cyclopentadiene exhibited the color change at a significantly higher temperature, ranging from 180°C to 200°C. Lack of new products formed during the initial mixing period was ruled out by analysis using solid-state NMR MAS and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), with only monomer peaks at 69.61°C for the PCDA and 72.37°C for PCDA in combination with cyclopentadiene, as recorded by the DSC. It is believed that a chemical bond between PCDA and cyclopentadiene is formed after polymerization from catalysis by the UV radiation. Solid-state NMR MAS revealed a chemical shift peak of 131.55 ppm for the PCDA and a much larger peak at 130.84 ppm for the PCDA and cyclopentadiene. The DSC exhibited melting point peaks at 193.26°C and 194.88°C for PCDA and PCDA with cyclopentadiene, respectively. Because the color change involves CC bond rotation of side groups, stressing π-bond overlap, the cyclopentadiene bond is thought to prevent rotation by steric hindrance until a higher temperature or melting occurs at the DSC stated temperature of 194.88°C. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011
Reflection profiling in the deep ocean using a near bottom hydrophone

A 20 km long high resolution seismic reflection profile was carried out approximately 300 km southwest of Bermuda. The data were collected using a small airgun sound source and a single hydrophone receiver towed ∼100 m above the seafloor at a depth of ∼5400 m. Comparisons with nearby conventional seismic reflection profiles show the considerable improvement of resolving power provided by this method, particularly of the basement morphology beneath the 700 m thick sediment column. The data were recorded digitally and selected data examples show the enhancement provided by filtering, stacking, source deconvolution and corrections for hydrophone motion. The precise picture of basement topography that results from this data is compared with deep tow bathymetry profiles of the present day mid-Atlantic Ridge flanks, and is seen to be remarkably similar.
The Principles and Practices of Peer Review

The principles and practices of research peer review are described. While the principles are fundamentally generic and apply to peer review across the full spectrum of performing institutions as well as to manuscript/proposal/program peer review, the focus of this paper is peer review of proposed and ongoing programs in federal agencies. The paper describes desireable characteristics and important intangible factors in successful peer review. Also presented is a heuristic protocol for the conduct of successful peer review research evaluations and impact assessments. Problems with peer review are then outlined, followed by examples of peer review of proposed and existing programs in selected federal agencies. Some peer review variants, such as the Science Court, are described, and then research requirements to improve peer review are discussed.
Simultaneous coordination of 2, 6-dimethylpyranone by 1, 8-naphthalenediylbis(dichloroborane)

Abstract We show evidence of simultaneous coordination of 2, 6-dimethylpyranone by 1, 8-naphthalenediylbis(dichloroborane) in solution.
Evidence that the Goitrogen, Methimazole, Interferes with the Extrathyroidal Utilization of Exogenous Thyroxine11

The effects of varying dietary calcium on absorption and excretion of calcium, magnesium and phosphate by intact and parathyroidectomized rats were determined. Since varying dietary calcium in intact rats influences parathyroid activity, the role of endogenous parathyroid secretion on the metabolism of these elements was also examined. The only significant differences in calcium metabolism, between pair—fed intact and parathyroidectomized (parex) rats, were in those fed very low levels of calcium. In this instance, rats with intact parathyroids absorbed more calcium, excreted less in the urine and had higher levels of serum calcium. No significant differences in phosphate absorption or balance between intact and parex rats were found at any level of dietary calcium. Excess endogenous parathyroid secretion had no effect on phosphate absorption, but increased urinary phosphate and lowered serum phosphate. A fall in urinary phosphate of intact rats with increasing amounts of calcium intake was primarily the ...
Etching of silicon carbide for device fabrication and through via-hole formation

We have investigated the etching of SiC using inductively-coupled-plasma reactive ion etching with SF6-based and Cl2-based gas mixtures. Etch rates have been investigated as functions of bias voltage, ICP coil power, and chamber pressure. It will be shown, for the first time, that SiC surfaces etched in Cl2-based plasmas yield better surface electrical characteristics than those etched in SF6-based plasmas. We have also achieved SiC etch rates in excess of 1 μm/min which are suitable for micro-machining and via-hole applications. Through via-holes obtained in 140 μm thick SiC at an effective etch rate of 824 nm/min have been achieved. To the best of our knowledge, to date, this is the highest effective etch rate for a through via-hole etched with a masking process compatible with microelectronic fabrication.
Optimal frames for erasures

We study frames from the viewpoint of coding theory. We introduce a numerical measure of how well a frame reconstructs vectors when some of the frame coefficients of a vector are lost and then attempt to find and classify the frames that are optimal in this setting.
Differentially expressed genes in major depression reside on the periphery of resilient gene coexpression networks.

The structure of gene coexpression networks reflects the activation and interaction of multiple cellular systems. Since the pathology of neuropsychiatric disorders is influenced by diverse cellular systems and pathways, we investigated gene coexpression networks in major depression, and searched for putative unifying themes in network connectivity across neuropsychiatric disorders. Specifically, based on the prevalence of the lethality-centrality relationship in disease-related networks, we hypothesized that network changes between control and major depression-related networks would be centered around coexpression hubs, and secondly, that differentially expressed (DE) genes would have a characteristic position and connectivity level in those networks. Mathematically, the first hypothesis tests the relationship of differential coexpression to network connectivity, while the second “hybrid” expression-and-network hypothesis tests the relationship of differential expression to network connectivity. To answer these questions about the potential interaction of coexpression network structure with differential expression, we utilized all available human post-mortem depression-related datasets appropriate for coexpression analysis, which spanned different microarray platforms, cohorts, and brain regions. Similar studies were also performed in an animal model of depression and in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder microarray datasets. We now provide results which consistently support (1) that genes assemble into small-world and scale-free networks in control subjects, (2) that this efficient network topology is largely resilient to changes in depressed subjects, and (3) that DE genes are positioned on the periphery of coexpression networks. Similar results were observed in a mouse model of depression, and in selected bipolar- and schizophrenia-related networks. Finally, we show that baseline expression variability contributes to the propensity of genes to be network hubs.
Respiratory-chain characteristics of mutants of Azotobacter vinelandii negative to tetramethyl-p-phenylenediamine oxidase.

Mutants of Azotobacter vinelandii negative to N,N,N′,N′-tetramethyl-p-phenylenediamine [Ph(NMe2)2] oxidase were obtained after mutagenesis by screening colonies with the ‘oxidase reagent’ Ph(NMe2)2. These mutants appear to be the first respiratory mutants reported for Azotobacter. Characterization of one of these mutants (AV-11) revealed similar growth rates under N2-fixing conditions, comparable P/O ratios (about 0.6, NADH) and H/O quotients (about 4), and similar respiration rates as the parent strain AV-OP. No oxygen consumption or net synthesis of ATP could be demonstrated with phosphorylating membranes of mutant AV-11 using reduced Ph(NMe2)2 as substrate. The oxidase-negative properties of mutant AV-11 appear to be associated with an inability of the terminal oxidases cytochromes o and a1 to reoxidize cytochromes c4+c5 in membrane particles. Cytochrome c4+c5 of mutant AV-11 could not be reoxidized by normal procedures (bubbling with oxygen or with 0.05 mM ferricyanide). These could only be reoxidized by excess ferricyanide (10 – 20 mM). Oxidized cytochromes c4+c5 of mutant AV-11 are readily reduced by reduced Ph(NMe2)2 and studies on partially purified cytochromes c4 and c5 showed no unusual properties. A comparison of the respiratory kinetics for membrane particles of strains AV-11 and AV-OP showed no differences in the oxidation of NADH or malate via cytochrome oxidase d[V= 3.2 μmol oxygen consumed × min−1× mg protein−1; Km (O2) = 18 μM]. The respiratory kinetics exhibited for oxidation of reduced Ph(NMe2)2 via the oxidases cytochrome o and a1 could only be determined for strain AV-OP (V= 0.7 μmol O2× min−1× mg protein−1; Km= 3.1 μM). The very high V value observed for oxidation of cytochrome d (strains AV-11 and AV-OP) suggests that this oxidase is capable of handling the electron flow generated by the very active dehydrogenases. Since the respiratory chain of mutant AV-11 appears to be blocked between cytochromes c4+c5 and the oxidases cytochromes o and a1, we suggest that for the Ph(NMe2)2-oxidase-negative mutants, cytochrome d is the only functional oxidase.
MOAB-SD: integrated structured and unstructured mesh representation

Structured and semi-structured (a.k.a. swept or extruded) hexahedral meshes are used in many types of engineering analysis. In finite element analysis, regions of structured and semi-structured mesh are often connected in an unstructured manner, preventing the use of a globally consistent parametric space to represent these meshes. This paper describes a method for mapping between the parametric spaces of such regions, and methods for representing these regions and interfaces between them. Using these methods, a 57% reduction in mesh storage cost is demonstrated, without loss of any information. These methods have been implemented in the MOAB mesh database component, which provides access to these meshes from both structured and unstructured functions. The total cost for representing structured mesh in MOAB is less than 25 MB per million elements using double-precision vertex coordinates; this is only slightly larger than the space required to store vertex coordinates alone.
A Specific Population of Abnormal Prion Protein Aggregates Is Preferentially Taken Up by Cells and Disaggregated in a Strain-Dependent Manner

Prion diseases are characterized by the conversion of the soluble protease-sensitive host-encoded prion protein (PrP(C)) into its aggregated, protease-resistant, and infectious isoform (PrP(Sc)). One of the earliest events occurring in cells following exposure to an exogenous source of prions is the cellular uptake of PrP(Sc). It is unclear how the biochemical properties of PrP(Sc) influence its uptake, although aggregate size is thought to be important. Here we show that for two different strains of mouse prions, one that infects cells (22L) and one that does not (87V), a fraction of PrP(Sc) associated with distinct sedimentation properties is preferentially taken up by the cells. However, while the fraction of PrP(Sc) and the kinetics of uptake were similar for both strains, PrP(Sc) derived from the 87V strain was disaggregated more rapidly than that derived from 22L. The increased rate of PrP(Sc) disaggregation did not correlate with either the conformational or aggregate stability of 87V PrP(Sc), both of which were greater than those of 22L PrP(Sc). Our data suggest that the kinetics of disaggregation of PrP(Sc) following cellular uptake is independent of PrP(Sc) stability but may be dependent upon some component of the PrP(Sc) aggregate other than PrP. Rapid disaggregation of 87V PrP(Sc) by the cell may contribute, at least in part, to the inability of 87V to infect cells in vitro.
Perspectives on within-group scoring

Abstract This article comments on the Interim Report: Within-Group Scoring of the General Aptitude Test Battery (A. Wigdor & J. Hartigan, Eds., 1988) of the Committee on the General Aptitude Test Battery of the Commission on Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education of the National Research Council. The author is a member of the Liaison Group that has been selected to inform the Committee of varying policy perspectives and represents the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice in the Liaison Group. The article explains the legal—constitutional and statutory—objections that the Department of Justice has made to the use of “race-normed” GATB test scores in employment referral programs sponsored by the U.S. Employment Service and concludes that under Supreme Court case law the USES's policy is unlawful. It then examines the “equity vs efficiency” concept proposed by the GATB Committee and concludes that it is inconsistent with the analytical framework of Title VII law, as that framework has evolved in Supreme Court decisions from 1971 to the present.
Determination of Internal Deformation Field in Asphalt Cores Using X-Ray Computer Tomography

Although existing nondestructive evaluation methods and transducers provide useful quantitative information on composite materials, they measure only macroscopic deformations and, often, only after the strain has exceeded a certain predetermined threshold. It is well established, however, that maintenance intervention is more effective if applied early in the deformation process. A new method for computing the microscopic internal displacement fields associated with permanent deformations of three-dimensional asphalt-aggregate cores with complex internal structure and satisfying the small gradient approximation of continuum mechanics is presented. The displacement fields are computed from a sequence of three-dimensional X-ray computed tomography images, obtained using a new imaging protocol developed specifically for mass-fraction and mix-density estimates of composite cores. By assuming that the image intensity of the tomographic images represents a certain conserved property that is incompressible, a constrained nonlinear regression model for motion estimation is developed. Successive linear approximation is then employed and each linear subsidiary problem is solved using variational calculus. The resulting Euler-Lagrange equations are approximated and solved using finite differencing methods and a conjugate gradient algorithm in a multiresolution framework. The method is validated using pairs of synthetic images of plane shear flow. The three-dimensional displacement field in the interior of a cylindrical asphalt/aggregate core loaded to a state of permanent deformation is calculated using this method.
Capillary gas chromatographic assay for valproic acid and its 2-desaturated metabolite in brain and plasma.

Abstract A capillary gas chromatographic method has been developed for quantitating the antiepileptic drug valproic acid and its pharmacologically active metabolite, E-Δ2-valproic acid, in brain and plasma. The method was designed to cover large concentration ranges of both valproic acid and E-Δ2-valproic acid for pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic studies in laboratory animals and human subjects. Careful optimization of the extraction and chromatographic procedures was needed to resolve the analytes from a variety of endogenous constituents and other known metabolites of valproic acid. A sensitivity limit of 0.10 μg/g for 300 mg of brain tissue or 0.20 μg/ml for 150 μl of plasma was achieved using flame ionization detection. The within-batch coefficients of variation for both analytes were less than 8%. Reproducible calibration data were observed over a period of three to eleven months.
On the flow of thermal defects from the bulk to surfaces

Abstract This paper treats flow of defects between bulk and surface sites, as a crystal passes towards equilibrium, for some practical cases. These include the realistic but quite elaborate example in which vacancy flow from the bulk is coupled to surface step edges, acting as sinks, by reaction with adatoms that are believed to dominate transport on metal surfaces. It is shown how surface processes modify the defect flow from the bulk only at short times. Lacking accurate parameters (such as concentrations) for surface defects, a crude modeling of the theoretical results is offered in order to explore likely generic behavior. The model employs a recently described approximate universality of behavior, scaled to the melting temperature, relevant mainly to fcc (1 1 1) surfaces. Under a range of conditions it is the reaction of advacancies with adatoms that provides the important channel for bulk vacancy flow. Adatom flow onto the terraces from surface step edge sinks is the bottleneck to flow above a crossover temperature (depending on step spacing) and equilibrium recombination is the bottleneck below the crossover.
Coincidence studies of the giant multipole resonances in 116Sn using the (e, e′ n) reaction

Abstract We present 116 Sn (e, e′ n) measurements in the giant resonance region with kinematics that favor electric monopole, dipole, and quadrupole excitation. The excitation energy of the monopole resonance, while consistent with trends observed in heavy nuclei, is higher than results from hadron scattering experiments on Sn. The quadrupole strenght disagrees with an open-shell RPA calculation.
Oral pirfenidone in patients with chronic fibrosis resulting from radiotherapy: a pilot study

Background Fibrosis is a common side effect after treatment with ionizing radiation. Several methods to ameliorate debilitating fibrosis have been employed but without consistent results. The goal of this pilot study is to determine if Pirfenidone, a novel regulator of cytokine gene expression, has the potential to ameliorate established radiation-induced fibrosis.
Adipose differentiation-related protein and regulators of lipid homeostasis identified by gene expression profiling in the murine db/db diabetic kidney

We investigated the molecular basis of progressive diabetic renal injury in db/db mice by profiling kidney gene expression. Using high-density microarrays, we identified 482 RNA transcripts differe...
Do certain headache syndromes occur in "pain-prone" patients?

SYNOPSIS To clarify the actual components of headache syndromes and their possible association with other types of pain and psychological traits, 177 patients subject to severe intermittent headaches were studied. Data used were derived from (a) a de tailed headache questionnaire, (b) a second questionnaire concerning the occurrence of other pain and of feelings of good or ill health, (c) the Cornell Medical Index. A stepwise regression analysis was run for each headache characteristic using data from the pain questionnaire and the Cornell Medical Index as independent variables. Interesting associations of variables were (1) increased frequency of headache with male sex and increased duration of headache with female, (2) inability to carry on work load during headache, headache preceded by spots before the eyes, weakness of arm or leg preceding headache were all positively associated with history of fainting. Neither vomiting with headache, nor unilaterality of pain was associated with any other pain variables. Also of note was the fact that there was no evidence by testing of increased psychological disturbance in patients with back pain. The results suggest that the “tension headache-neurosis” concept is dubious, that autonomic instability as evidenced by fainting is indeed important in some headache syndromes, and that new headache syndromes need to be defined.
Determination of thermal emission spectra maximizing thermophotovoltaic performance using a genetic algorithm

Abstract Optimal radiator thermal emission spectra maximizing thermophotovoltaic (TPV) conversion efficiency and output power density are determined when thermal effects in the cell are considered. For this purpose, a framework is designed in which a TPV model that accounts for radiative, electrical and thermal losses is coupled with a genetic algorithm. The TPV device under study involves a spectrally selective radiator at a temperature of 2000 K, a gallium antimonide cell, and a cell thermal management system characterized by a fluid temperature and a heat transfer coefficient of 293 K and 600 Wm −2 K −1 . It is shown that a maximum conversion efficiency of 38.8% is achievable with an emission spectrum that has emissivity of unity between 0.719 eV and 0.763 eV and zero elsewhere. This optimal spectrum is less than half of the width of the spectra obtained when thermal losses in the cell are neglected. A maximum output power density of 41,708 Wm −2 is achievable with a radiator spectrum having emissivity values of unity between 0.684 eV and 1.082 eV and zero elsewhere when thermal losses are accounted for. These emission spectra are shown to greatly outperform blackbody and tungsten radiators, and could be obtained using artificial structures such as metamaterials or photonic crystals.
Estimation of residual and end-diastolic volumes of the right ventricle of men without heart disease, using the dye-dilution method

Abstract Right heart residual and end-diastolic volumes have been estimated by the dye-dilution method. Various modifications have been introduced in order to obtain reasonable approximations. These include attainment of high-velocity flows through the sampling catheter, shortening of the time constant of the recording densitometer, measures to insure optimal mixing of the injected dye in the ventricular cavity, and estimation of the percentage residual volume both from the ratios of beat-to-beat concentrations in the later part of the dye-dis-appearance curve and from the number of cardiac cycles required to obtain 95 per cent washout of dye. Cardiac output was estimated by means of brachial arterial sampling in the conventional manner, and the end-diastolic volume was calculated from the stroke volume so obtained and the percentage residual volume. In 6 subjects with no history of heart disease, normal right heart pressures, and normal-sized hearts as determined by roentgenography, the end-diastolic volume averaged 147 ± 31 ml. The estimated residual volume averaged 48 ± 5 per cent of the end-diastolic volume. In 2 subjects studied, breath holding reduced this value to 25 per cent.
Sintering of ZnO: I, Densification and Grain Growth

The densification rate and grain growth rate of pure MgO powder compacts are measured between 1450 and 1650° C in air. Densification rate in a semilog plot appears to be linear up to about 94% of the theoretical, followed by marked nonlinearity. The time dependence of grain growth is 1/2 at the beginning and then decreases considerably with further sintering. Application of lattice diffusion model to the densification and grain growth data gives calculated diffusion coefficients in fair agreement with the directly measured diffusion coefficients for magnesium; they are also in fair agreement with the literature value of the diffusion coefficients calculated from various other kinetic processes in MgO.
A nonlinear-dynamics based approach to stability analysis of non-foster networks with electrically-small antennas

Non-Foster networks have the potential to provide wideband matching to electrically-small antennas. Impedance data from a model of an electrically-small monopole provides the starting point of this work. A lumped-element model of the monopole is developed, and used to design a matching network using a shunt negative capacitor and L-section subnetwork. The resulting network provides a larger bandwidth than that with passive matching. Stability of the network is analyzed under the assumption of ideal negative capacitor, and it is demonstrated that a change in an antenna impedance can induce instability. Transient analysis using Agilent ADS software, calculations based on differential equations using MATLAB, and s-domain analysis are all employed. The network is similarly analyzed when the negative capacitor is replaced by an equivalent J-transform circuit section, allowing for the inclusion of a nonlinear negative resistance. Nonlinear differential equations are developed for general stability analysis of non-Foster networks.
Waveguides in inverted opal photonic crystals.

Waveguiding phenomena are investigated in an inverted opal photonic crystal made of interpenetrating air spheres, coated with amorphous Ge. Here we focus on the complete gap between the 8th and the 9th band, since a projected band analysis reveals that it is difficult to use the large lower incomplete gap for guiding purposes. Two kinds of line defects are analyzed within this photonic structure, with the plane-wave expansion method. The first one consists of an air cylinder in the Γ – K direction. It gives rise to a large number of defect modes in the bandgap. Most of these modes have large field components at the surface. The second defect is an array of air spheres, also along the Γ – K direction. This is shown to avoid the surface-like modes and sustain only two modes associated with different polarizations, in the frequency range of interest. The air mode waveguiding bandwidth reaches up to 113 nm centered at a wavelength of 1.5μm.
CLIENT NARRATIVES: A THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVE

The role of subjective client narratives in health care represents a clinical and therapeutic tool, useful in complementing objective, scientific data. Of particular interest to mental health practitioners is the role narratives play as a therapeutic tool to guide clinical practice. This paper lays a foundation for understanding the importance of narrative in the psychotherapeutic process. It provides a brief overview of narrative theory and methods of structural analysis in order to provide a theoretical approach that can be utilized by nurses to address clients' needs.
Armadillo and dTCF: a marriage made in the nucleus

Abstract Within the past year, Armadillo and β-catenin's role in transducing the Wingless/Wnt signal has been substantially clarified. It is now clear that Armadillo and β-catenin bind directly to members of the T-cell factor/lymphoid enhancer factor subfamily of HMG box DNA-binding proteins, forming bipartite transcription factors that regulate Wingless/Wnt responsive genes in both Drosophila and vertebrates. These partners not only play key roles in a variety of cell fate decisions during normal development but, when inappropriately activated, contribute to both colon cancer and melanoma.
Eyeblink classical conditioning in Alzheimer's disease and cerebrovascular dementia

Eyeblink classical conditioning (EBCC) is severely and consistently impaired in probable Alzheimer's disease (AD), presumably due to normal age related changes in the cerebellum and AD-related hippocampal cholinergic disruption. Less consistent impairment and more variable EBCC performance was predicted in patients with cerebrovascular dementia (CVD) because some CVD patients should have impairment in EBCC when their lesions affect the EBCC circuitry, whereas others with lesions in noncritical regions should have normal EBCC. As predicted, variability in EBCC performance was greater in patients with CVD than in probable AD patients. Acquisition of conditioned responses in the group of CVD patients was better than in the probable AD group. These data show in another sample of normal control subjects and probable AD patients that EBCC has a high sensitivity for probable AD.
Statistical Interpretation of a Data Adaptive Clutter Subspace Estimation Algorithm

Detection algorithms in a nonhomogeneous clutter environment have to contend with the problem of excessive false alarm rates when the clutter is not sufficiently suppressed. Prior to signal detection, adaptive receivers must either "null" or "whiten" the clutter. The former approach requires estimates of the basis vectors of the clutter subspace while the latter requires estimates of the covariance matrix of the clutter. It may be preferable to null the clutter when the dimensionality of the clutter subspace (M) is small in comparison to the length of the data vector coherently processed (N) and also when the signal to be detected is not substantially within the clutter-plus-noise subspace. Depending on the scenario, radar clutter data may have a variety of effects such as clutter discretes, data dropouts due to terrain masking that cause shadowing, multipath effects, and non-Gaussian amplitude statistics. We consider a statistical model which can account for some of these effects and apply the model to design an algorithm to obtain a maximum likelihood estimate (MLE) of the orthonormal basis vectors of the clutter-plus-noise subspace. We show that the problem can be reformulated to develop a recursive approach for MLE based on the expectation-maximization (EM) algorithm. Results of the analysis show that each training vector must be scaled by a nonnegative scale factor from the interval [0,1] prior to subspace estimation. The scale factor applied to each training vector increases monotonically with the subspace clutter-plus-noise power of the vector. Conditions for the existence and uniqueness of the solution are considered. A statistical interpretation of the solution is provided along with sample simulation results.
Changes in plant–soil hydraulic pressure gradients of soybean in response to soil drying

Plant gas-exchange response to drying soil in many instances tracks a common pattern when expressed as a function of fraction of transpirable soil water (FTSW). There is little decrease in gas exchange until FTSW decreases to a value in the range of about 0.3-0.45, then with further drying gas exchange declines approximately linearly. This unique pattern is hypothesised to reflect mainly changes in the water potential gradient between bulk soil and plant. The primary objective was to directly document the basis of this response by measuring the hydrostatic pressure gradient required in the soil to maintain leaf xylem at zero potential with decreasing FTSW. Pots in which soybean (Glycine max) plants were grown were placed in a pressure chamber and the pressure adjusted to maintain zero water potential in a leaf petiolule. These results showed a small, relatively constant hydrostatic pressure had to be applied to the soil to maintain zero leaf xylem water potential until FTSW decreased to approximately 0.3-0.45. Thereafter, the required hydrostatic pressure gradient increased as FTSW continued to decrease. Hydraulic conductance was calculated to be relatively stable early in the drying cycle, and then decrease as the soil dried to comparatively high FTSW of 0.5-0.7.
Using Labor Market Information in Program Development and Evaluation.

In addition to describing various sources of labor market data, this chapter examines how community college administrators and faculty use labor market information in the development and evaluation of career and technical education (CTE) degrees and certificate programs.
Thermo-mechanical models of steel solidification based on two elastic visco-plastic constitutive laws

Abstract Two thermo-mechanical models based on different elastic-visco-plastic constitutive laws are applied to simulate temperature and stress development of a slice through the solidifying shell of 0.27%C steel in a continuous casting mold under typical commercial operating conditions with realistic temperature dependant properties. A general form of the transient heat equation, including latent-heat from phase transformations such as solidification and other temperature-dependent properties, is solved numerically for the temperature field history. The resulting thermal stresses are solved by integrating the elastic-visco-plastic constitutive laws of Kozlowski [P.F. Kozlowski, B.G. Thomas, J.A. Azzi, H. Wang, Simple constitutive equations for steel at high temperature, Metall. Trans. 23A (1992) 903–918] for austenite in combination with the Zhu power-law [H. Zhu, Coupled thermal–mechanical finite-element model with application to initial solidification, PhD thesis, University of Illinois, 1993] for delta-ferrite with ABAQUS [ABAQUS Inc., User Manuals v6.6, 2006] using a user-defined subroutine UMAT [S. Koric, B.G. Thomas, Efficient thermo-mechanical model for solidification processes, Int. J. Num. Meth. Eng. 66 (2006) 1955–1989], and the Anand law for steel [L. Anand, Constitutive equations for the rate dependant deformation of metals at elevated temperatures, ASME J. Eng. Mater. Technol. 104 (1982) 12–17; S.B. Brown, K.H. Kim, L. Anand, An internal variable constitutive model for hot working of metals, Int. J. Plasticity 6 (1989) 95–130] using the integration scheme recently implemented in ANSYS [ANSYS Inc., User Manuals v100, 2006]. The results from these two approaches are compared and CPU times are benchmarked. A comparison of one-dimensional constitutive behavior of these laws with experimental tensile test data [P.J. Wray, Plastic deformation of delta-ferritic iron at intermediate strain rates, Metall. Trans. A 7A (1976) 1621–1627; P.J. Wray, Effect of carbon content on the plastic flow of plain carbon steel at elevated temperatures, Metall. Trans. A 13 (1982) 125–134] and previous work [A.E. Huespe, A. Cardona, N. Nigro, V. Fachinotti, Visco-plastic constitutive models of steel at high temperature, J. Mater. Process. Technol. 102 (2000) 143–152] shows reasonable agreement for both models, although the Kozlowski–Zhu approach is much more accurate for low carbon steels. The thermo-mechanical models studied here are useful for efficient and accurate analysis of steel solidification processes using convenient commercial software.
Studies on immobilized trypsin in high concentrations of organic solvents

It is well known that the rate of enzymic reactions involving ions or dipolar molecules can be modified or effected by the ionic strength of the reaction medium. It has also been shown that the addition of organic solvents to the reaction medium can also change the reaction rates of enzymes (1,2). Recent studies by Royer (3) have indicated that if trypsin is immobilized on control pore glass in the presence of BAEE, several changes occur in the kinetic parameters of the immobilized enzyme. We have attempted in this study to extend the observations of Royer in aqueous systems to systems containing high concentrations of organic solvents of differing dielectric constant and to determine the effect of these solvents on the activity of the immobilized trypsin.
Multimedia courseware for instruction of engineering experimentation

Multimedia courseware is being developed that will assist in the instruction of a senior-level engineering experimentation course at UC Berkeley. In this course, students conduct experiments that tackle open-ended problems requiring teamwork, experiment design, and the integration of theory with actual system behavior. The courseware provides students with a central resource that allows them to integrate the disparate information required to successfully complete their experiments. In addition, the multimedia courseware offers an improved pedagogical tool for helping students understand the engineering devices they will be working with in the lab, since it can provide video demonstrations of inherently motion-dependent concepts, such as system behavior of controlling the signal on an oscilloscope. The courseware is designed in modules to permit its modification and use at other institutions. >
Guidelines for Prevention, I

Developing and implementing successful interventions often depend upon effectively addressing ethnicity and social class factors, as these influence sexual behavior and its risks. Sexual attitudes differ across cultures. In most cultures, there are strong standards regarding sexual behavior which differ for men and women. Cultural differences also affect the extent to which early sexual behavior is considered acceptable.
Non-blocking operation of a tunable compact optical filter with large FSR

We fabricate and characterize a CMOS-compatible, Mach-Zehnder-coupled, 2nd-order-ring-resonator filter with doubled free spectral range and demonstrate non-blocking operation while tuning it to a new wavelength.
Ionic Selectivity of Ih Channels of Rod Photoreceptors in Tiger Salamanders

Ionic selectivity of Ih channels of tiger salamander rod photoreceptors was investigated using whole-cell voltage clamp. Measured reversal potentials and the Goldman-Hodgkin-Katz voltage equation were used to calculate permeability ratios with 20 mM K+ as a reference. In the absence of external K+, Ih is small and hard to discern. Hence, we defined Ih as the current blocked by 2 mM external Cs+. Some small amines permeate Ih channels, with the following permeability ratios (PX/PK):NH4+, 0.17; methylammonium, 0.06; and hydrazine, 0.04. Other amines are tially impermeant: dimethylammonium ( 1.55; K+, 1; Rb+, > 0.55; Na+, 0.33; Li+, 0.02. Except for Na+, the relative slope conductance had a similar sequence (GX/GK): T1+, 1.07; K+, 1; Rb+, 0.37; NH4+, 0.07; Na+, 0.02. Based on permeabilities to organic cations, the narrowest part of the pore has a diameter between 4.0 and 4.6 A. Some permeant cations have large effects on the gating kinetics of Ih channels; however, permeant cations appear to have little effect on the steady-state activation curve of Ih channels. Lowering K+ or replacing K+ with Na+ reduces the maximal conductance of Ih but does not shift or change the steepness of its voltage dependence. With ammonium or methylammonium replacing K+ a similar pattern is seen, except that there is a small positive shift of approximately 10 mV in the voltage dependence.
Premenarchal Ovarian Torsion and Elevated CA-125

Abstract Background Ovarian tumors are the most common gynecologic malignancy occurring in childhood, with germ cell tumors being most frequent. This contrasts with adults where epithelial tumors account for most ovarian neoplasms. Tumor markers are an integral part of the work-up and may guide management. Case A 6-year-old girl with a persistent adnexal mass was found to have a highly elevated CA-125. Other tumor markers were normal. Laparoscopy revealed an enlarged, adherent ovary. A minilaparotomy revealed an ovary filled with necrotic material. This necrotic material was excised and the ovary was spared. The pathology was consistent with necrosis. Follow-up ultrasonography and CA-125 were normal. Summary and Conclusions This case demonstrates for the first time the association of an elevated CA-125 and ovarian torsion in a pediatric patient. This benign finding allowed attempting a conservative ovary-sparing approach during the surgery even in the presence of a highly elevated CA-125. However, in general, for children CA-125 is of limited utility, as it will not affect the indication for surgical exploration of persistent masses and elevations in CA-125 may discourage ovarian conservation.
Plasma altered layer model for plasma damage characterization of porous OSG films

A plasma altered layer model was developed to characterize plasma damage in porous OSG (organosilicate glass) low-k dielectrics by taking into account the kinetics of radical diffusion, reaction, and recombination. A gap structure was designed to study plasma damage and validate the model. It consisted of two parallel rectangular Si spacers and a top optical mask to control the energy and intensity of ion, photon, and radical in the plasma. CO 2 and O 2 plasma-induced damages were found to depend on the radical concentration, the energy and intensity of VUV photons, the ion energy, and the substrate temperature. Overall, the results obtained from plasma damage studies were consistent with the prediction of the model. The application of the model was demonstrated in a study of He plasma pretreatment and damage formation in OSG films with varying carbon concentrations. Both treatments were found to be effective in improving the material resistance to plasma damage.