cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Association between shame aversion and ruminative retribution: Evidence for moderation by externalization of blame and control

Shame aversion has been theorized to motivate aggression against the self or others as means of down-regulating shame. Additionally, the direction of aggression may depend on tendencies to attribute blame or causes internally or externally. Data from two separate samples were used to examine shame aversion and its interaction with causal or blame attributions in relation to aggression, controlling for shame-proneness, which is more commonly studied. Results indicated that shame aversion was positively associated with verbal, relational, and passive-rational aggression, as well as with ruminative retribution and non-suicidal self-injury, after accounting for shame-proneness. Most noteworthy, a significant two-way interaction indicated that the association between shame aversion and ruminative retribution (fantasizing about people getting their comeuppance) was particularly strong at high levels of externalization of blame. Findings therefore suggest that although shame-proneness may create situations in which shame regulation strategies are necessary, aggressive fantasies may be used as a regulation strategy when individuals have difficulty tolerating shame and blame others for their circumstances.
Visualization of Knowledge with Concept Maps in a Teacher Education Course

The use of concept mapping strategies has implications in teaching and learning to improve visual literacy. This study examined pre-service teacher education students’ experiences and perspectives in relation to concept map creation and their use in education to promote visual literacy. The data analyzed for this study consisted of concept maps created by students and their written online portfolio reflections. Findings revealed that students found concept maps helped organize and present information visually relating to a specific topic. Highlighting key points helped direct learners’ attention. Students’ inabilities to decide what information to include and the best way to present information were limitations of concept map creation. Also, there were technical difficulties. More research needs to be completed as concept maps are practical visual tools.
Safety Control Synthesis for Systems with Missing Measurements

Abstract We study the problem of synthesizing controllers that enforce hard state-constraints under occasionally missing state measurements. Although the problem can be solved as a partial information game via power set construction, it is undesired to do so because power set construction is computationally expensive. In this paper, we consider the instances where the missing data pattern can be specified by an automaton, and show that, for such cases, the synthesis problem admits a simpler solution. We introduce string automata and exploit the causality requirement to define the structure of the controller, and further use this structure to derive a product system. The synthesis problem then reduces to a full-information game on this product system. Two examples illustrate the efficacy of the proposed approach.
Real-Time Adaptive Spectral Filter Based Parasitic Vibration Cancellation in Self-Mixing Laser Sensor Signals

Parasitic motion corrupts the measurement of all non-contact sensor systems. It thus hinders deployment of these sensors for such real-world applications where it is impossible to keep the sensor perfectly stationary. In this paper, an adaptive algorithm is presented to remove parasitic vibrations corrupting the measurements of a self-mixing (SM) interferometric laser sensor. Previously, this was achieved by coupling a solid state accelerometer (SSA) with the SM sensor followed by either a pre-calibration based design or a time-domain adaptive filter based system. The proposed method is based on adaptive spectral filtering where filter coefficients are derived based on the parasitic vibrations present in the retrieved target motion. Importantly, it neither requires any pre-calibration procedure nor has any dependence on parameters such as filter-order, convergence criteria, or step-size (required in case of time-domain adaptive filters), thus making the proposed scheme a suitable choice for mass production of SSA-SM sensor systems. The proposed algorithm provides improved mean RMS error of 5.37 nm as opposed to 19.1 nm for least mean square (LMS) filter, 20.22 nm for recursive least square (RLS) filter, and 24.7 nm for pre-calibration based system. This method’s performance has also been characterized and an embedded, real-time, hardware design is also presented. At the end, hardware system results (on experimental data-set) and sensor bounds/bandwidth are also quantified.
Reverse Ordered Sequential Mechanism for Lactoperoxidase with Inhibition by Hydrogen Peroxide.

Lactoperoxidase (LPO, FeIII in its resting state in the absence of substrates)—an enzyme secreted from human mammary, salivary, and other mucosal glands—catalyzes the oxidation of thiocyanate (SCN−) by hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) to produce hypothiocyanite (OSCN−), which functions as an antimicrobial agent. The accepted catalytic mechanism, called the halogen cycle, comprises a two-electron oxidation of LPO by H2O2 to produce oxoiron(IV) radicals, followed by O-atom transfer to SCN−. However, the mechanism does not explain biphasic kinetics and inhibition by H2O2 at low concentration of reducing substrate, conditions that may be biologically relevant. We propose an ordered sequential mechanism in which the order of substrate binding is reversed, first SCN− and then H2O2. The sequence of substrate binding that is described by the halogen cycle mechanism is actually inhibitory.
Ischemic preconditioning attenuates apoptotic cell death associated with ischemia/reperfusion

Apoptosis or programmed cell death is a genetically controlled response for cells to commit suicide and is associated with DNA fragmentation or laddering. The common inducers of apoptosis include oxygen free radicals/oxidative stress and Ca2+ which are also implicated in the pathogenesis of myocardial ischemic reperfusion injury. To examine whether ischemic reperfusion injury is mediated by apoptotic cell death, isolated perfused rat hearts were subjected to 15,30 or 60 min of ischemia as well as 15 min of ischemia followed by 30, 60, 90 or 120 min of reperfusion. At the end of each experiment, the heart was processed for the evaluation of apoptosis and DNA laddering. Apoptosis was studied by visualizing the apoptotic cardiomyocytes by direct fluorescence detection of digoxigenin-labeled genomic DNA using APOPTAG® in situ apoptosis detection kit. DNA laddering was evaluated by subjecting the DNA obtained from the hearts to 1.8% agarose gel electrophoresis and photographed under UV illumination. The results of our study revealed apoptotic cells only in the 90 and 120 min reperfused hearts as demonstrated by the intense fluorescence of the immunostained digoxigenin-labeled genomic DNA when observed under fluorescence microscopy. None of the ischemic hearts showed any evidence of apoptosis. These results were corroborated with the findings of DNA fragmentation which showed increased ladders of DNA bands in the same reperfused hearts representing integer multiples of the internucleosomal DNA length (about 180 bp). The presence of apoptotic cells and DNA fragmentation in the myocardium were completely abolished by subjecting the myocardium to repeated short-term ischemia and reperfusion which also reduced the ischemic reperfusion injury as evidenced by better recovery of left ventricular performance in the preconditioned myocardium. The results of this study indicate that reperfusion of ischemic heart, but not ischemia, induces apoptotic cell death and DNA fragmentation which can be inhibited by myocardial adaptation to ischemia. (Mol Cell Biochem 186: 139-145, 1998)
A note on Miller’s theorem about maps out of classifying spaces

Let X be a connected infinite loop space whose fundamental group is a torsion group and let Y be a finite nilpotent CW-complex. The main result of this paper is that the space of based maps from X to the profinite completion of Y is weakly contractible.
Low Salinity, Cool-Core Cyclonic Eddy Detected Northwest of Luzon during the South China Sea Monsoon Experiment (SCSMEX) in July 1998

To detect eddies, intensive surveys of the northeast South China Sea (SCS) (114°30′–121°30′ E, 17°–22°N) were conducted in July 1998 during the international SCS Monsoon Experiment (SCSMEX), the U.S. Navy using Airborne Expendable Bathythermograph and Conductivity-Temperature-Depth sensors (AXBT/AXCTD), and the Chinese Academy of Sciences using Acoustic Doppler Current Profilers (ADCP). The hydrographic survey included 307 AXBT and 9 AXCTD stations, distributed uniformly throughout the survey area. The ADCP survey had two sections. The velocity field inverted from the AXBT/AXCTD data and analyzed from the ADCP data confirm the existence of a low salinity, cool-core cyclonic eddy located northwest of Luzon Island (i.e., the Northwest Luzon Eddy). The radius of this eddy is approximately 150 km. The horizontal temperature gradient of the eddy increases with depth from the surface to 100 m and then decreases with depth below 100 m. The cool core was evident from the surface to 300 m depth, being 1°–2°C cooler inside the eddy than outside. The tangential velocity of the eddy is around 30–40 cm/s above 50 m and decreases with depth. At 300 m depth, it becomes less than 5 cm/s.
Stored-Ion Spectroscopy

An individual elementary/atomic particle kept at rest in free space for extended periods, is an ideal object for high resolution spectroscopy. All external causes for line broadening or shifts such as 1. and 2. order Doppler and transit time effects as well as Zeeman or Stark effects are eliminated for such a system. This ideal has been approximated most closely so far in experiments on an individual Ba+ ion localized in a Paul (rf) quadrupole trap to ∿2000A by optical side band cooling and made visible, all accomplished by means of laser Open image in new window Fig. 1. Mono-electron oscillator mode of electron in Penning trap, the Geonium “atom.” The electron moves only parallel to the magnetic field →B and along the symmetry axis of the electrode structure. Each time it gets too close to one of the negatively charged caps it is turned around and an oscillatory motion results. beams. High resolution spectroscopy on an individual electron/positron localized to <200 µm by rf side band cooling in a Penning trap employing a 50 kG field has already yielded the most precise data on the magnetic moments of these particles and also provided a severe test of the CPT theorem for charged elementary particles. Furthermore, localization of an elementary particle in space is one of the most fundamental problems in physics and worthy of study on its own merit.
Job Attitudes: Cognition and Affect

Job satisfaction—how people think and feel about their jobs—is among the most extensively studied constructs in organizational psychology. I review theories of the antecedents and consequences of job satisfaction, assigning prominence to both seminal models (e.g., the Cornell Model) and contemporary ones (e.g., Affective Events Theory, the Unfolding Model). I also discuss the measurement of the cognitive and affective (emotional) components of job satisfaction. In addition, I describe several promising avenues for future research. One such avenue involves another job attitude, employee engagement, and issues concerning its differentiability from job satisfaction and other job attitudes. Another avenue, pertaining primarily to the affective component of job satisfaction, involves a reconceptualization of many phenomena of considerable interest to organizational researchers (including, but not limited to, job performance, work–family conflict, organizational justice and emotional labor) as at least partially within-person phenomena—leading, ultimately, to a within-person organizational psychology. Overall, research on job satisfaction is vibrant and promises to remain so for the foreseeable future. Keywords: job attitude; job satisfaction; mood; emotion; employee engagement
Academic Achievement of Elementary Students: A Comparison Study of Student Athletes Versus Nonathletes

The place of sports in academic institutions has been analyzed at length for several years. However most studies focus on the participation of high school and university students in school sports. Very little research exists to suggest a positive or negative correlation between academic achievement and participation in interscholastic sports at the elementary level. As a result the relationship between academic performance and participation in school sports among elementary students in grades 4 and 5 was investigated in this study. Through an independent-samples t test analysis of 1,605 fourth and fifth grade boys and girls, it was determined that students who participated in school sports were likely to have higher standardized test scores in both reading and math as measured by the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program. This was true of both male and female students. Additionally students of African-American, Asian, and Latino ethnicity who participated in interscholastic athletics also performed significantly higher on standardized tests than did their peers who did not participate in school sports. However it was determined that no significant relationship existed between participation in school sports and attendance at the elementary level. The results of this study suggest that there exists a positive relationship between interscholastic sports participation and academic achievement.
Type discrimination of Various Welding Defects Created During Production and In-Service Use

Verification of the quality of welded structures, both post-production and in-service, has long been a concern of the engineering, materials and nondestructive communities. Nondestructive techniques have been developed and refined to address this verification problem. Each technique has inherent limitations, however, that in certain situations preclude its use or severely restrict the type of information that may be obtained particularly concerning the flaw type. Of these techniques, x-ray investigation is probably the most versatile in determining flaw type and size at present. The equipment required for x-ray examination, however, place constraints on its use, particularly for in-service structures, from the standpoint of accessibility and personnel safety.
Cutting Edge: Induction of Inflammatory Disease by Adoptive Transfer of an Atypical NK Cell Subset

Several mouse models of systemic lupus erythematosus, including FcγRIIB-KO and TLR7tg mice, develop an expansion of an atypical NK cell subset with functional similarity to cells referred as IFN-producing killer DCs or pre-mature NKs in other systems. In this study, we show that atypical NKs purified from spleens of systemic lupus erythematosus–prone mice, and identified as NK1.1+CD11c+CD122+MHC-II+, induce persistent autoimmune disease in an IFN-I– and CD40L-dependent manner when transferred to wild-type mice. A single transfer of 4 × 106 NK1.1+ cells from TLR7tg into wild-type induces a 2-wk–long wave of inflammatory cytokines in the serum; a sustained increase in T cell activation and follicular helper cells for the following months; and a progressive expansion of dendritic cells, monocytes, and granulocytes. Furthermore, IL-15 deficiency, which impedes development of NK cells, ameliorates the autoimmune pathology of TLR7tg mice. These results suggest that cells of the NK lineage can develop into cytokine-producing/APCs that affect the priming and progression of systemic autoimmune disease.
Surgical excision for anterior-process fractures of the calcaneus

Most fractures of the anterior process of the calcaneus are successfully treated with cast immobilization. Eighteen of the twenty-five patients in this study were so treated successfully, although their symptoms persisted for variable periods after removal of the cast. Seven of the twenty-five patients had excision of the fracture fragment, two of whom were not relieved of their symptoms after excision. Both of these patients had had a missed diagnosis and no prior treatment of a fracture that had gone on to non-union. This suggests that the correct initial diagnosis and treatment are important, particularly if the fracture fragment is large, and that early excision of the fragment is usually not necessary or advisable.
The effect of femoral component head size on posterior dislocation of the artificial hip joint.

Background: Posterior dislocation continues to be a relatively common complication following total hip arthroplasty. In addition to technical and patient-associated factors, prosthetic features have also been shown to influence stability of the artificial hip joint. In this study, a dynamic model of the artificial hip joint was used to examine the influence of the size of the head of the femoral component on the range of motion prior to impingement and posterior dislocation following total hip replacement. Methods: Six fresh cadaveric specimens were dissected, and an uncemented total hip prosthesis was implanted in each. Each specimen was mounted in a mechanical testing machine and loaded with use of a system of seven cables attached to the femur and pelvis that simulated the action of the major muscle groups crossing the hip joint. The hip was taken through a range of motion similar to that experienced when rising from a seated position. The three-dimensional position of the femur at the points of impingement and dislocation was recorded electronically. The range of joint motion was tested with prosthetic femoral heads of four different diameters (twenty-two, twenty-six, twenty-eight, and thirty-two millimeters). Results: Significant associations were noted between the femoral head size and the degree of flexion at dislocation in ten (p = 0.001), twenty (p < 0.001), and thirty (p = 0.003) degrees of adduction. Increasing the femoral head size from twenty-two to twenty-eight millimeters increased the range of flexion by an average of 5.6 degrees prior to impingement and by an average of 7.6 degrees prior to posterior dislocation; however, increasing the head size from twenty-eight to thirty-two millimeters did not lead to more significant improvement in the range of joint motion. The site of impingement prior to dislocation varied with the size of the femoral head. With a twenty-two-millimeter head, impingement occurred between the neck of the femoral prosthesis and the acetabular liner, whereas with a thirty-two-millimeter head, impingement most frequently occurred between the osseous femur and the pelvis. Conclusions: With the particular prosthesis that was tested, increasing the diameter of the femoral head component increased the range of motion prior to impingement and dislocation, decreased the prevalence of prosthetic impingement, and increased the prevalence of osseous impingement. Clinical Relevance: These results suggest that femoral heads with a twenty-eight-millimeter diameter increase the range of motion after total hip replacement. This may be beneficial when additional factors compromising joint stability are encountered.
Science Education's Need for a Theory of Epistemological Development

Science educators have been interested in developing people’s understanding of the epistemology of science for a long time. Despite decades of research on students’ ideas, and decades of instructional reforms, it remains very hard to change students’ ideas about the nature of scientific knowledge and practice. There are essentially two specializations in science education related to epistemology: research on student’s conceptions of the nature of professional science (NOS) and research on students’ own efforts to make scientific meaning of the world through inquiry, modeling, argumentation, and so on. They have produced different conclusions about students’ understanding of the epistemology of science (Sandoval, 2005), and the fact that they are in very little dialogue with each other is a major obstacle to producing a coherent theory of epistemological development; a point I expand on below. Without such a theory, however, it is difficult to see how instructional experiences in school are likely to help students develop productive understandings of the epistemology of science. There are, at least, two reasons why we should want all students to leave high school with productive understandings of the epistemology of science. One is so that people understand what makes science science, to distinguish science as a field of human endeavor from other human endeavors. The second reason is to be able to use this understanding to identify scientific arguments and explanations from other kinds, and to be able to evaluate them in
AMINO GROUP REACTIVITY IN DNA--AMINOACRIDINE COMPLEXES.

The rates of diazotization of representatives of two classes of dyes within the acridine and triphenylmethane families have been studied under three sets of conditions: (1) free in solution; (2) bound to DNA; and (3) bound to dissimilar anionic polymers. The classes of dyes are distinguished according to the possibility or impossibility of fitting all of the amino groups of each molecule within the area bounded by the external van der Waals contour of the projection of a base pair onto the plane of the dye. For neither class of dye is the reaction rate relative to simple solution inhibited more than 50%, and usually much less, by combination with synthetic anionic polymers. However, the classes are sharply distinguished by the effect of DNA binding, in that amino groups that can fall inside the van der Waals contour in the diagram are found to be strongly inhibited, while those lying outside the contour are relatively unaffected. It is concluded that combination with DNA, unlike combination with the other polymers, covers both faces of the dye. Since no formaldehyde-reactive amino groups of nucleotides are liberated by combination of DNA with dye, hydrogen-bonding between base pairs is not significantly disturbed. These structural requirements are in agreement with the intercalation model that has been previously proposed.
An Image Transform Coding Algorithm Based On A Generalized Correlation Model

Image transform coding is a technique whereby a sampled image is divided into blocks. A two-dimensional discrete transform of each block is taken, and the resulting transform coefficients are coded. Coding of the transform coefficients requires their quantization and, consequently, a model for the transform coefficient variances that is based in turn on a correlation model for the image blocks. In the proposed correlation model each block of image data is formed by an arbitrary left and right matrix multiplication of a stationary white matrix. One consequence of this correlation model is that the transform coefficient variances are product separable in row and column indexes. The product separable model for the transform coefficient variances forms the basis of a transform coding algorithm. The algorithm is described and tested on real sampled images.© (1978) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
The mTOR Inhibitor Rapamycin Has Limited Acute Anticonvulsant Effects in Mice

Objective The mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway integrates signals from different nutrient sources, including amino acids and glucose. Compounds that inhibit mTOR kinase activity such as rapamycin and everolimus can suppress seizures in some chronic animal models and in patients with tuberous sclerosis. However, it is not known whether mTOR inhibitors exert acute anticonvulsant effects in addition to their longer term antiepileptogenic effects. To gain insights into how rapamycin suppresses seizures, we investigated the anticonvulsant activity of rapamycin using acute seizure tests in mice.
Sperm motion kinetics: a new perspective in evaluating infertility.

INFERTILITY Pavithra Ranganathan, Lucas Moyett, David R. Nelson, Ashok Agarwal, The Cleveland Clinic Foundation Objective: Semen analysis is an indispensable tool in evaluating and treating infertility. Computer assisted semen analysis (CASA) is used frequently in most andrology laboratories. In addition to sperm concentration and motility, CASA provides information on sperm motion kinetics. Clinicians and urologists under utilize the motion kinetic values to evaluate and treat male infertility. This is due to the lack of standard cut-off values and reference ranges for motion kinetic parameters. We examined the sperm motion kinetics in patients evaluated for semen analysis to determine the 1) variations and trends in motion kinetics in patients, 2) compare their values to a group of healthy donors, and 3) establish cut-off values and reference ranges for these parameters.
The Bioterrorism Act and Water Utilities Protection: How to Proceed from Policy to Practice

The use of biological agents to attack water utilities is a real and serious threat that terrorists pose. The Japanese cult Aum Shinrikyo and Muslim extremist groups’ development and deployment of such weapons have proven the potential of a bioterrorist attack. After the terrorist attacks of 9/11, the Bioterrorism Act of 2002 was signed into law. This act aims to address threats to resources such as the food supply and pharmaceuticals. In this article the water security portion of the act will be discussed while highlighting various security methods in which the bill can be implemented into practice.
Adrenocortical carcinoma and congenital hemihypertrophy

C H I L D R E N with congenital hemihypertrophy, a condition characterized by gross asymmetry of the body, are at unusually high risk for developing three types of intraabdominal mal ignancy: Wilms' tumor, adrenocortical carcinoma, and hepatoblastoma. 1-a The case is presented of a 10-monthold infant with congenital hemihypertrophy. Although the pat ient was asymptomatic, an intravenous pyelogram was obtained because of the known association of hemihypertrophy with malignancy. This led to the discovery of a nonfunct ioning, and otherwise silent, adrenocortical tumor.
An algorithm for optimal comma free codes with isomorphism rejection

A general algorithm for finding optimal comma-free codes and deriving upper bounds on the minimum redundancy of comma-free codes that implements the idea of isomorphism rejection is presented, together with tables with bounds on the minimum redundancy computed by using this algorithm.
Herpesvirus quiescence in neuronal cells. V: Forskolin-responsiveness of the herpes simplex virus type 1 α0 promoter and contribution of the putative cAMP response element

The herpes simplex virus (HSV)-1 alpha0 promoter contains a putative cAMP response element (CRE) located at positions -68 to -60 with respect to the initiation of transcription. In this report, the authors examined the functionality of this element using (1) luciferase reporter gene assays in nerve growth factor-differentiated (ND)-PC12 cells and (2) virus-induced activation from quiescently infected (QIF)-PC12 cells. The putative alpha0 CRE was completely eliminated by digestion with the restriction enzyme Tsp45I followed by mung bean nuclease treatment. The mutated region was verified by DNA sequencing and was inserted into the alpha0-luciferase reporter plasmid (pRDalpha0-LUC) creating (pRDalpha0deltaCRE-LUC), and into the HSV-1 genome of strain 17(+)(alpha0deltaCRE). Insertion into both copies of the alpha0 promoter was verified by Southern blot analysis. ND-PC12 cells transfected with pRDalpha0-LUC and pRDalpha0deltaCRE-LUC plasmids responded similarly to forskolin (50 microM), with approximately 250% increases in luciferase activity compared to mock-treated cultures as measured 3 days following treatment. When QIF-PC12 cultures established with HSV-1 strain 17(+) and alpha0deltaCRE were treated with forskolin (50 microM) 17 days post infection, virus was detected in 9/24 (37.5%) and 13/24 (54.2%) of induced cultures by day 8 post treatment, respectively. In contrast, virus was detected in 0/23 and 1/24 (4.2%) of mock-treated cultures by day 8 post treatment for wild-type and mutant viruses, respectively. These findings indicate that the alpha0 promoter is forskolin responsive, the purported CRE of the alpha0 promoter does not confer forskolin responsiveness in ND-PC12 cells, and this element is not required for reactivation of HSV-1 from QIF-PC12 cells.
Ocular pathologic findings in neonatal adrenoleukodystrophy

Ocular pathology in a case of neonatal adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD) showed marked degeneration of photoreceptor cells throughout the retina including the macula. Macroscopically visible white opacities in the cortical vitreous of the posterior fundus were shown immunohistochemically and ultrastructurally to be macrophages containing bileaflet inclusions, a finding previously unreported. Additional findings included extensive loss of the retinal nerve fiber and ganglion cell layers, optic nerve degeneration, and bileaflet inclusions in retinal pigment epithelial cells and macrophages of the retina and optic nerve. Focal retinal pigmentary changes were observed that histologically were different from retinitis pigmentosa.
Stock allocation in a two-echelon distribution system or “What to do until your ship comes in”

In this paper, we focus on a single order cycle of a warehouse, serving N retailers where the only shipments allowed during the cycle are from the warehouse to the retailers. For a simple ship-up-to-S allocation policy, we develop both the exact cost model and a computationally tractable approximate cost model for the case of identical retailers, and demonstrate empirically the benefits of centralizing at least a portion of the total system stock.
Ocean Acidification Leads to Counterproductive Intestinal Base Loss in the Gulf Toadfish (Opsanus beta)

AbstractOceanic CO2 has increased from 280 to 380 μatm since preindustrial times and is expected to reach 1,900 μatm by 2300. In addition, regional upwelling zones exhibit levels up to 2,300 μatm, making exploration at future global projected CO2 levels ecologically relevant today. Recent work has demonstrated that CO2 exposure as low as 1,000 μatm induces acidosis in toadfish (Opansus beta), leading to metabolic compensation by retention of blood in an effort to defend pH. Since increased serosal translates to increased secretion rates in isolated intestinal tissue, we predicted that blood elevation of and Pco2 during exposure to 1,900 μatm CO2 would increase in vivo base secretion rates. Rectal fluid and CaCO3 excretions were collected from toadfish exposed to 380 (control) and 1,900 μatm CO2 for 72 h. Fluids were analyzed for pH, osmolality, ionic composition, and total CO2. Precipitated CaCO3 was analyzed for titratable alkalinity, Mg2+, and Ca2+ content. Fish exposed to 1,900 μatm CO2 exhibited highe...
Hylleraas-configuration-interaction study of the 1 S ground state of neutral beryllium

Hylleraas-configuration-interaction (Hy-CI) method variational calculations are reported for the ${}^{1}S$ ground state of neutral beryllium. The best nonrelativistic energy obtained was $\ensuremath{-}14.667 356 4$ hartree, which is estimated to be accurate to a tenth of a microhartree.
Impurities in nonlinear optical oxide crystals

Impurities in nonlinear optical oxide crystals can affect many of the properties for device applications. The structures of typical crystals are tolerant with respect to occupancy and are nonstoichiometric on the cation sublattices (e.g. the A sublattice in crystals with the general formula AMO3). This may, at least in part, be due to the presence of the relatively strong covalent nature of the acentric oxide groups determining the nonlinear optical properties. These circumstances make the incorporation of impurities into the lattice relatively easy and result in large distribution coefficients for many impurities. Generally, little purification during growth will occur with respect to these impurities and therefore, it is usually necessary to purify the starting materials of any unwanted ions. Chemical or powder processing and firing procedures can be used to prevent any contamination of the crystal growth precursors by common impurities (e.g. Si, Al, Fe, Ca, Na, K, Mg, Cl, and S) at a level of <10 parts per million total concentration. A combination of analytical techniques, including those which require little or no sample preparation (e.g. secondary ion mass spectrometry, neutron activation analysis, or laser microprobe mass spectrometry), should be used to determine the impurities present in a material. For example, the effects of protons incorporated (OH-) in the lattice of these crystals can be very detrimental and can be detected using infrared spectroscopy. The growth of many of these crystals requires flux techniques, but the temperature dependence of any nonstoichiometry present and of the distribution coefficients make the use of slow cooling techniques generally not recommended when uniformity of properties is required.
Thermal decomposition of energetic materials 58. Chemistry of ammonium nitrate and ammonium dinitramide near the burning surface temperature

Abstract The rapid pyrolysis chemistry of films of ammonium nitrate (AN), NH4NO3, and ammonium dinitramide (ADN), NH4 [N(NO2)2], at temperatures approximating a burning surface is described by the use of T-jump/Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The sequence of appearance and amounts af each gas product combined with the net endothermicity and exothermicity of the process at each time enables consistent reaction schemes to be developed. The decomposition of the condensed phase of AN is net endothermic up to at least 33 atm. Although dissociative sublimation and the formation of N2O and H2O dominate the overall process, the superposition of two additional reactions is needed to account for all of the products observed from AN. ADN becomes highly exothermic very early in the decomposition process. The superposition of two stoichiometric reaction branches explains this behavior. The spectra and thermal responses are consistent with the reaction of NH3, with NO2 being the major source of heat released during the decomposition of AN above 33 atm and ADN at 1 atm and higher.
Nuclear RNA polymerase activities and poly(A)-containing mRNA accumulation in cultured AKR mouse embryo cells stimulated to proliferate.

Summary When non-growing AKR-2B mouse embryo cells are stimulated to proliferate by changing from serum-deficient to fresh media containing 10% serum, there is a consistent lag of 12 h before the onset of DNA synthesis. Endogenous DNA-dependent RNA polymerase activities, binding and initiation sites on isolated chromatin for exogenous RNA polymerase, and the rate of accumulation of poly(A)-containing polysomal RNA has been examined in AKR-2B cells with emphasis on the interval between stimulation and the onset of DNA synthesis. RNA polymerase type II activity, which is responsible for transcription of heterogeneous nuclear RNA (hnRNA), was increased by 1 h after stimulation and at 6 h reached peak levels which were 60–100% greater than the activity in resting cells. A rifampicin challenge method to assay for E. coli RNA polymerase binding and initiation sites on isolated chromatin was used to assay for changes in the amount of DNA available as a template for transcription. The results of this assay showed a slight decrease in the number of binding and initiation sites at 4 h followed by a slight increase at 6 h. The rate of accumulation of poly(A)-containing mRNA in polysomes showed a pattern and magnitude of increase following stimulation which was considerably different from that of RNA polymerase type II activity. There was a 4.5-fold increase over the resting levels by 2 h following stimulation. This enhanced level was maintained at all time points examined prior to the onset of DNA synthesis. These data suggest that both transcriptional and post-transcriptional mechanisms are responsible for the marked increase in polysomal poly(A)-containing mRNA observed after resting cells are stimulated to proliferate.
Approximate Method for Buckling of Symmetric Composite Laminates under Thermal Loading

In this paper, an approximate closed-form solution is presented to compute the thermal buckling response of a symmetric angle-ply laminates that are clamped in one edge and free along the other edge. For this boundary condition, no exact solution is available and, in order to compute the critical buckling temperatures, numerical methods such as the Rayleigh—Ritz or finite element method must be used. Approximate closed-form solutions bridge the void between exact and approximate numerical solutions and can readily be employed in design optimization. The environment corresponds to a steady state condition providing a uniform temperature distribution for the laminate. The laminate consists of four layers [θ/-θ]s constructed of low, moderate, and high stiffness ratio materials. Comparative results using the Rayleigh—Ritz method provides a means of assessing the accuracy of the expression. For certain laminate architectures, several modes must be computed using the approximate quadratic expression to ascertai...
Exploring the Sequence Determinants of Spontaneous Membrane-Translocating Peptides

The development of cell penetrating peptides (CPPs) has long promised to enable the delivery of a wide variety of polar compounds into cells. Yet the lack of tools for engineering and designing such peptides creates a bottleneck in the discovery pipeline. In addition, a consensus raised from mounting studies favors a mechanism that requires one or more types of energy-dependent endocytotic pathways for cellular uptake of most CPPs, which significantly limits their applications. The goal of this work was to learn to engineer spontaneous membrane translocating peptides (SMTPs) that move across lipid bilayers and cellular membranes in an energy-independent manner. A previous orthogonal screen of a synthetic peptide library (N=10,368) for SMTPs revealed a conserved 9-residue motif (PLI[L/Y]LRLLR) in a family of 12-residue SMTPs that translocate rapidly without causing any bilayer destabilization. In this work, we used one of these SMTPs, PLIYLRLLRGQF, as the template for rational iterations of SMTPs designed to reveal the sequence determinants of spontaneous translocation. Translocation of the variants was measured in large unilamellar vesicles (LUVs) containing entrapped protease. We also measured vesicle permeabilization caused by each of these analogs. For each variant, the rate of peptide translocation and its effect on membrane permeability is discussed. Our results shed light on the determinants of spontaneous translocation, which may allow for the discovery and engineering of potent SMTPs to overcome the membrane barrier for drugs delivery.
Breaking open a protein barrel

Enzymes—catalytically active proteins—are the most powerful catalysts known, endowed with exquisite selectivity for reactants and tremendous acceleration in rates (1). An ability to tailor catalysts to desired targets has been a Philosopher's Stone for chemists (2) as well as alchemists for a long time. Proteins acquire their chemical activity by folding into intricate three-dimensional structures, thousands of which are available for inspection in the Protein Data Bank (http://www.rcsb.org/pdb/). But simply looking at a structure does not tell us why a given sequence forms one structure and not another, or why so many seemingly unrelated sequences can achieve similar structures. We need to take proteins apart and tinker with their insides, as we would with any complex piece of machinery. What principles govern folding? Does a small set of key residues nucleate or lock in a structure, or does structure reflect an almost imperceptible influence of dozens or hundreds of side chains? Are local interactions more important than long-range effects or vice versa?
How complex is a complex

New advances in mass spectrometry allow researchers to determine the way multiple protein subunits are assembled spatially. This approach can reveal topology and provide information on the interacting proteins of the 19S proteasome.
Indistinguishability and identifiability analysis of linear compartmental models

Abstract Two-compartmental model structures are said to be indistinguishable if theyhave the same input-output properties. In cases in which available a priori information is not sufficient to specify a unique compartmental model structure, indistinguishable model structures may have to be generated and their attributes examined for relevance. An algorithm is developed that, for a given compartmental model, investigates the complete set of models with the same number of compartments and the same input-output structure as the original model, applies geometrical rules necessary for indistinguishable models, and tests models meeting the geometrical criteria for equality of transfer functions. Identifiability is also checked in the algorithm. The software consists of three programs. Program 1 determines the number of locally identifiable parameters. Program 2 applies several geometrical rules that eliminate many (generally most) of the candidate models. Program 3 checks the equality between system transfer functions of the original model and models being tested. Ranks of Jacobian matrices and submatrices and other criteria are used to check patterns of moment invariants and local identifiability. Structural controllability and structural observability are checked throughout the programs. The approach was successfully used to corroborate results from examples investigated by others.
On Sequential Data-Driven Density Estimation

Abstract The theory and methods of minimax and sequential inferences, pioneered by Abraham Wald in 1940's, shaped the way statisticians see the statistics today. This article employs the Wald approaches together with the modern oracle analysis to develop the theory and methods of a sharp minimax adaptive sequential density estimation. In particular, it proves a long-standing conjecture about a sufficient condition for a sharp adaptive sequential estimation with an assigned mean integrated squared error. It also suggests, and then studies via intensive Monte-Carlo simulations, a data-driven sequential density estimator that can be recommended for practical applications.
Autologous Blood Transfusion during Cardiopulmonary Bypass

Immediately prior to cardiopulmonary bypass, two units of blood were removed from each of 25 patients undergoing open-heart surgery, and the autologous blood was reinfused after cessation of support with the pump oxygenator. Pertinent data on blood balance and hematologic measurements were compared to a matched group of control subjects. There were no significant differences in the amount of operative or postoperative bleeding, the requirements for homologous blood and blood products, or the amount of protamine needed for neutralization of heparin.
Microglia as a Potential Bridge between the Amyloid β‐Peptide and Tau

Inflammation is a critical component of the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD), consisting of the activation of both microglia and astrocytes. Activated microglia and reactive astrocytes are found in and around extraneuronal amyloid-beta plaques and are thought to facilitate the clearance of these deposits from the brain parenchyma. However, mounting evidence indicates that chronic activation of microglia, presumably via the secretion of cytokines and reactive molecules, may exacerbate plaque pathology as well as enhance the hyperphosphorylation of tau and the subsequent development of neurofibrillary tangles. Thus, suppression of microglial activity in AD brain has been considered as a potential treatment of AD and may slow the disease progression. Along these lines, anti-inflammatory drugs, particularly nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), lessen the effects of AD pathology. In this review, we discuss the molecular mechanism of inflammatory responses in AD brain as well as animal models, and current therapies using NSAIDs, antioxidants, and immunotherapy as neuroprotective strategies for AD.
Characterizing crystal growth by oriented aggregation

Oriented aggregation (OA) is a non-classical crystal growth mechanism by which uniquely shaped nanocrystals with tight size control can be produced. Primary crystallites attach with crystallographic order, leading to the formation of secondary, single crystals. Comprehensive characterization is critical for elucidating the fundamental processes of oriented aggregation. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), cryogenic TEM, and in situ fluid cell TEM enable direct imaging of materials throughout the growth process. Correlative techniques, such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), small angle neutron scattering (SANS), dynamic light scattering (DLS), and UV-visible spectroscopy, as well as kinetic modeling, also lead to important insights. Each of these techniques has advantages and limitations; a combination of methods is required to push our understanding of OA forward.
Classical roots of knot theory

Abstract Vandermonde wrote in 1771: “Whatever the twists and turns of a system of threads in space, one can always obtain an expression for the calculation of its dimensions, but this expression will be of little use in practice. The craftsman who fashions a braid, a net, or some knots will be concerned, not with questions of measurement, but with those of position: what he sees there is the manner in which the threads are interlaced.” We sketch in this essay the history of knot theory stressing the combinatorial aspect of the theory that is so visible in Jones type invariants.
Effect of Exercise Training on Multiple Respiratory Variables in Patients with Coronary Artery Disease: Correlation with Change in Exercise Capacity:

Multiple measurements of pulmonary function were performed during exer cise testing in 29 patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) before and after exercise training. Following training, significant increases in oxygen consump tion (VO 2), carbon dioxide production (VCO2), and peak flow at maximal exer cise were seen as compared with pretraining values (p < .01), but not in any other respiratory variables. Only the peak respiratory exchange ratio (RER) achieved during pretraining exercise testing and peak values of minute ventilation (VT), respiratory rate, and VCO2 during a posttraining exercise test showed signifi cant correlations with the change in maximum VO2 following exercise training (p<.05). Significant correlations were also found among VT, VCO2, and peak flow at peak exercise following exercise training and the change in exercise du ration between pretraining and posttraining stress tests. Of 22 patients evaluat ed with thallium 201 scintigraphy during their pretraining exercise test, 11 dev...
An efficient algorithm for sequence comparison with block reversals

Given two sequences X and Y that are strings over some alphabet set, we consider the distance d(X,Y) between them defined to be minimum number of character replacements and block (substring) reversals needed to transform X to Y (or vice versa). The operations are required to be disjoint. This is the "simplest" sequence comparison problem we know of that allows natural block edit operations. Block reversals arise naturally in genomic sequence comparison; they are also of interest in matching music data. We present an algorithm for exactly computing the distance d(X,Y); it takes time O(|X|log2|X|), and hence, is near-linear. Trivial approach takes quadratic time.