cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Protein Translocation Channels in Mitochondria

Protein translocation across membranes is a fundamental cellular process that is especially vital for mitochondrial biogenesis. More than 95% of all mitochondrial proteins must be imported from the cytoplasm. The protein-translocating channels of mitochondria have many identical properties including conductance, voltage dependence and regulation by synthetic peptides whose sequences mimic the targeting domains of precursors. Viewing protein translocation across membranes as movement of polymers through confined pathways has provided a novel perspective of channel function. These considerations suggest the observed flickering of the channels in the presence of targeting peptides represents an interaction of the peptides with the channel rather than translocation events.
Postoperative Central Nervous System Changes in Elderly Surgical Patients

It has been clear since early in the history of modern anesthesia, and for some time in the much longer history of surgery, that patients have cognitive and behavioral changes following surgery. With the advent of ever safer anesthesia care, mortality has declined. In this milieu, two major trends are notable. The first is that increasing numbers of elderly patients are undergoing both elective and emergent surgery. While elective surgery for patients over 50 was considered risky 70 years ago, patients over 100 are routinely electing to have surgical treatments. This trend is clearly supported by the demographics of western societies, where the average longevity has exceeded 75 years of age and the elderly are the fastest growing demographic. Surgical techniques have evolved significantly, providing less invasive means of performing surgical procedures. The second major trend is an evolving sense in the anesthesia community that outcomes other than mortality are important end points. Some of the newest frontiers in the effort to improve anesthesia care include prevention of postoperative neurological complications.
Walking toward moving goalposts: agile management for evolving systems

Much of the practical work in the autonomic management of storage systems has taken the "bolt-on" approach: take existing systems and add a separate management system on the side. While this approach can improve legacy systems, it has several problems, including scaling to heterogeneous and large systems and maintaining consistency between the system and the management model. We argue for a different approach, where autonomic management is woven throughout a system, as in the K2 distributed storage system that we are implementing. This distributes responsibility for management operations over all nodes according to ability and security, and stores management state as part of the entities being managed. Decision algorithms set general configuration goals and then let many system components work in parallel to move toward the goals.
Self-Diffusion of Poly(Dimethylsiloxane) Chains

In this review we have described the basic concepts involved in the diffusional behavior of polymers and the NMR technique used to measure diffusion of poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) in melts and in model networks. We have found that the final value calculated for the exponent α in the scaling law D s α M α for diffusion constant D with molecular weight M depends strongly on the fitting procedures used in data analysis. Only for very low molecular weights the exponent is affected by free volume effects. The self-diffusion of PDMS chains in melts obeys the predicted dependence on the molecular weight while their diffusion in PDMS model networks remains unclear, in part because of the short range of M studied. For melts, low molecular weight polymers behave in accordance with the Rouse model while their hydrodynamic behavior for M n ≥ 4200 g-mol¯1 might be explained in terms of the reptation model. The value found for the exponent α is -2.02, in excellent agreement with the theoretical prediction.
Observations On Reproduction In the Western Chicken Turtle, Deirochelys reticularia miaria, In Louisiana

Abstract We collected reproductive data from six female Deirochelys reticularia miaria in northeastern Louisiana that were collected in January 1999, June 2001, and May of both 2002 and 2003. One female collected in late January was dissected and found to contain two size classes of enlarged ovarian follicles. Five additional females collected on land in May or June were all gravid; three of them were caught while digging a nest. Mean clutch size was 10.6 and mean egg size was 37.68 × 22.88 mm, with a mass of 11.69 g. The mean incubation period for 32 eggs was 84 days, and hatchling measurements were mean carapace length of 31.67 mm and mass of 8.32 g.
ZD6474, a small molecule targeting VEGF and EGF receptor signaling, inhibits lung angiogenesis and metastasis and improves survival in an orthotopic model of non-small cell lung cancer

4551 Vascular endothelial and epidermal growth factor receptors (VEGFR, EGFR) are critical regulators of tumor and endothelial cells. To further understand the role of VEGFR and EGFR signaling in human lung cancer progression, we investigated the antiangiogenic and antimetastatic activity of ZD6474 (a selective small molecule inhibitor of VEGFR-2 tyrosine kinase with additional activity against the EGFR tyrosine kinase) using invitro and invivo systems. In the human lung cancer cell line NCI-H441 (which we determined to express VEGF, TGF-alpha, VEGFR-2 and EGFR) and mouse lung endothelial cells (MLECs), ZD6474 inhibited EGFR phosphorylation, VEGFR-2 phosphorylation and subsequently downstream Akt phosphorylation. ZD6474 treatment of both NCI-H441 and MLECs decreased proliferation and colony formation, induced apoptosis and inhibited migration and invasion. These in vitro data suggest that ZD6474 targets multiple events that are important for both angiogenesis and metastasis. ZD6474 also inhibited in vivo angiogenesis formation, demonstrated by a decrease in microvessel density (MVD) in subcutaneously implanted gelfoam–agarose sponges. To better characterize the effect of ZD6474 in human lung cancer, an orthotopic model using NCI-H441 cells was developed that closely mimics the patterns of growth and metastasis observed in the clinic. Treatment was evaluated at different stages of tumor progression (early, middle and late) with ZD6474 initiated on day 5, 10 or 15 after tumor injection, respectively. ZD6474 (25 mg/kg and 50 mg/kg) impaired pleural effusion formation and pleural invasion at every stage. Daily oral dosing with 25 or 50 mg/kg ZD6474 (initiated on day 5 following tumor inoculation) resulted in the almost complete suppression of the growth, invasion and metastasis of established lung tumors, when compared with controls (P 300% relative to the control (25 days vs 80 days, the time of experiment termination, P
Characterizing organic carbon dynamics during biostimulation of a uranium contaminated field site

Uranium contamination of groundwater remains a pressing problem at many former uranium mining and milling operations, such as the Rifle, Integrated Field Research Challenge (IFRC) site. Biostimulation of the subsurface with an organic carbon source such as acetate, followed by the microbially-induced reductive precipitation of uranium has been proposed as an effective remediation strategy. While uranium bioreduction has been studied in several field experiments, the transformation and fate of injected carbon remains poorly understood. This study evaluated the impact of added organic carbon on the long-term biogeochemical attenuation of uranium in the subsurface of a former mill tailings site. Fluorescence and ultraviolet–visible absorbance analyses were used together with dissolved organic carbon (DOC) measurements to track organic carbon dynamics during and post-biostimulation of the 2011 Rifle IFRC experiment. An electron mass balance was performed on well CD01 to account for any unidentified carbon sinks. Measured DOC values increased to 1.76 mM-C during biostimulation, and to 3.18 mM-C post-biostimulation over background DOC values of 0.3–0.4 mM-C. Elevated DOC levels persisted for 90 days after acetate injections ceased. The electron mass balance revealed that assumed electron acceptors would not account for the total amount of acetate consumed. Excitation–emission matrices showed an increase in signals associated with soluble microbial products, during biostimulation, which disappeared post-biostimulation despite an increase in total DOC. Specific ultraviolet absorbance analyses, indicated that DOC present post-biostimulation is less aromatic in nature, compared to background DOC. Our results suggest that microbes convert injected acetate into a form of solid phase organic matter that may be available to sustain iron reduction post-stimulation.
How Surface Orientation Affects Jumping-Droplet Condensation

Summary The out-of-plane jumping of coalescing droplets on superhydrophobic surfaces is capillary-inertial in nature; therefore, the effects of gravity or surface orientation are generally ignored. Here, we show that surface orientation actually has a profound effect on jumping-droplet condensation. For a horizontally oriented superhydrophobic surface, jumping droplets return to the surface and eventually become stuck. In contrast, vertical orientations can remove stuck droplets by gravitational shedding, which also serves to sweep away neighboring condensate. These differences affect the resulting droplet size distribution, which was captured using time-lapse photography and image analysis for 3 h of jumping-droplet condensation on horizontal, 45° tilted, or vertically oriented surfaces. The maximum droplet size was an order of magnitude smaller for the inclined surfaces compared to the horizontal orientation, which would enhance the theoretical heat transfer coefficient by 40% for the 45° tilt and by 100% for the vertical orientation.
Caching with Users’ Differential Privacy Preservation in Information-Centric Networks

Information-centric networking (ICN) is developed for the future Internet because of the tremendous increase of content demands in the Internet. In the ICN architecture, in-network storage for caching plays an important role in improving content delivery efficiency, scalability and availability. To enjoy the benefits of caching users’ preferable contents without disclosing the users’ privacy, in this chapter, we aim to integrate local differential privacy (LDP) techniques into data-driven optimization, and propose a novel scheme to allow content provider (CP) to collect the locally differentially private content preferences of a selected group of users, exploit data-driven approach to predict the content popularity, and offer the cache-enabled access points (APs) economic incentives to cache the selected preferable content. Here, optimized local hashing (OLH) is employed to locally add differential private noise to the users’ preference content information and the noisy data is sent to the CP. Besides, we leverage data-driven methodology to predict the content popularity according to the constructed reference distribution of the given noisy preference content data from users. We formulate a data-driven caching revenue optimization, provide feasible solutions, and conduct simulations to show the effectiveness of the proposed scheme.
Ontogeny of effective mechanical advantage in Eastern cottontail rabbits (Sylvilagus floridanus)

Juvenile animals must survive in the same environment as adults despite smaller sizes, immature musculoskeletal tissues, general ecological naivete and other limits of performance. Developmental changes in muscle leverage could constitute one mechanism to promote increased performance in juveniles despite ontogenetic limitations. We tested this hypothesis using a holistic dataset on growth and locomotor development in wild eastern cottontail rabbits (Sylvilagus floridanus) to examine ontogenetic changes in hindlimb muscle effective mechanical advantage (EMA). EMA is a dimensionless index of muscle leverage, equal to the quotient of average muscle lever length and the load arm length of the ground reaction force (GRF), effectively representing the magnitude of output force arising from a given muscle force. We found that EMA at the hip and ankle joints, as well as overall hindlimb EMA, significantly declined across ontogeny in S. floridanus, whereas EMA at the knee joint remained unchanged. Ontogenetic decreases in EMA were due to isometric scaling of muscle lever arm lengths alongside positive ontogenetic allometry of GRF load arm lengths - which in turn was primarily related to positive allometry of hindlimb segment lengths. Greater EMA limits the estimated volume of hindlimb extensor muscle that has to be activated in young rabbits, likely mitigating the energetic cost of locomotion and saving metabolic resources for other physiological functions, such as growth and tissue differentiation. An additional examination of limb growth allometry across a diverse sample of mammalian taxa suggests that ontogenetic decreases in limb joint EMA may be a common mammalian trend.
Questioning the Effort Hypothesis That Depressed Patients Perform Disproportionately Worse on Effortful Cognitive Tasks

The debate over Hasher and Zacks’ effort hypothesis—that performance on effortful tasks by patients with depression will be disproportionately worse than their performance on automatic tasks—shows ...
Flattening filter free VMAT for a stereotactic, single-dose of 30 Gy to lung lesion in a 15-min treatment slot.

Cone-beam CT-guided single dose of lung stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) treatment with a flattening filter free (FFF) beam and volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT) is a safe and highly effective treatment modality for selective small lung lesions. Four-dimensional (4D) CT-based treatment plans were generated using advanced AcurosXB algorithm for heterogeneity corrections. 6X-FFF beam produced highly conformal radiosurgical dose distribution to the target and reduced lung SBRT fraction duration to less than 10 min for a single dose of 30 Gy, significantly improving patient comfort and clinic workflow. Early follow-up CT imaging results (mean, 8 months) show high local control rates (100%) with no acute lung or rib toxicity. Longer clinical follow-up in a larger patient cohort managed in this fashion is underway to further validate this treatment approach.
Differences in Pain, Opioid Use, and Function Following Unicompartmental Knee Arthroplasty compared to Total Knee Arthroplasty

Abstract Background We sought to determine if immediate postsurgical pain, opioid use, and clinical function differed between unicompartmental knee arthroplasty (UKA) and total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Methods A single-institution database was utilized to identify patients who underwent elective total joint arthroplasty between 2016 and 2019. Results In total, 6616 patients were identified: 98.20% TKA (6497) and 1.80% (119) UKA. UKA patients were younger, had lower body mass index, and more often male than the TKA cohort. Aggregate opioid consumption (75.94 morphine milligram equivalents vs 136.5 morphine milligram equivalents; P Conclusion UKA patients are younger, have lower body mass index and American Society of Anesthesiologists scores, and more often male than TKA patients. UKA patients had significantly shorter length of stay than TKA patients and were discharged home more often than TKA patients, on both the day of surgery and following hospital admission. Most notably, UKA patients reported lower pain scores and were found to require 45% lower opioid medication in the immediate postsurgical period than TKA patients. Surprisingly, UKA and TKA patients discharged on the day of surgery did not differ in terms of pain scores, opioid utilization, or mobilization, suggesting that our rapid rehabilitation UKA protocols can be successfully translated to outpatient TKAs with similar outcomes. Level III Evidence Retrospective Cohort Study.
Deuterium excess and 17O-excess variability in meteoric water across the Pacific Northwest, USA

High-precision triple oxygen isotope analysis of water has given rise to a novel second-order parameter, 17O-excess (often denoted as Δ17O), which describes the deviation from a reference relations...
Modelling sonic boom propagation through planetary boundary layer turbulence near the lateral extent of the carpet

Nonlinear acoustic propagation of sonic booms in the atmospheric boundary layer is considered in the context of a one-way solution to a third order wave equation. A split-step approach is utilized to compute different physical effects efficiently. Unlike previous approaches, the diffraction effects are computed exactly in the forward direction with no restriction on the angle of propagation. This results in more accurate modelling of sonic boom near the carpet edge. Heterogenous flow effects are incorporated with a wide-angle parabolic approximation. Nonlinear propagation is computed with a Burgers-Hayes method. Turbulence in the medium is constructed by the method of random Fourier modes. The turbulence spectra are constructed using an altitude dependent 3-dimensional von Karman spectrum. The turbulence field is considered frozen, as the eddy turnover time in the atmospheric boundary layer is generally much larger than the propagation time of the acoustic wave. Comparisons with benchmark predictions from the PCBoom software are conducted. The benchmark cases provide insight into the accuracy of the current prediction code for non-turbulent atmospheres. Future work is discussed regarding the prediction of shaped booms, boundary conditions, and predictions near the lateral extent of the boom carpet where previous approaches fail to capture the diffraction effects.
Objective Assessment of Physiologic Alterations Associated With Hemodynamically Significant Patent Ductus Arteriosus in Extremely Premature Neonates

Delay in closure of ductus arteriosus in postnatal life may lead to serious consequences and complications in an extremely premature neonate secondary to hemodynamic alterations in regional blood flow pattern in various organs. Despite the widespread recognition amongst neonatologists to identify a hemodynamically significant patent ductus arteriosus (hsPDA) early in the postnatal course, there is lack of consensus in its definition and thus the threshold to initiate treatment. Echocardiographic assessment of PDA shunt size and volume combined with neonatologists' impression of clinical significance is most frequently used to determine the need for treatment of PDA. Common clinical signs of hsPDA utilized as surrogate for decreased tissue perfusion may lag behind early echocardiographic signs. Although echocardiogram allows direct assessment of PDA shunt and hemodynamic alterations in the heart, it is limited by dependence on pediatric cardiologist availability, interobserver variation and isolated time point assessment. Electrical cardiometry (EC) is a non-invasive continuous real time measurement of cardiac output by applying changes in thoracic electrical impedance. EC has been validated in preterm newborns by concomitant transthoracic echocardiogram assessments and may be beneficial in studying changes in cardiac output in premature newborns with hsPDA. Alterations in perfusion index derived from continuous pulse oximetry monitoring has been used to study changes in cardiac performance and tissue perfusion in infants with PDA. Near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) has been used to objectively and continuously assess variations in renal, mesenteric, and cerebral oxygen saturation and thus perfusion changes due to diastolic vascular steal from hsPDA in preterm neonates. Doppler ultrasound studies measuring resistive indices in cerebral circulation indicate disturbance in cerebral perfusion secondary to ductal steal. With recent trends of change in practice toward less intervention in care of preterm newborn, treatment strategy needs to be targeted for select preterm population most vulnerable to adverse hemodynamic effects of PDA. Integration of these novel ways of hemodynamic and tissue perfusion assessment in routine clinical care may help mitigate the challenges in defining and targeting treatment of hsPDA thereby improving outcomes in extremely premature neonates.
Exploring "Return to Productivity" Among People Living With Burn Injury: A Burn Model System National Database Report.

Introduction Burn survivors experience barriers to returning to work. For those who do return to work, little is known regarding whether they achieve pre-injury productivity (i.e., equivalent or gain in income compared to pre-injury income). Identifying patients at risk of not achieving pre-injury productivity is important for targeting services that support this population. Methods We extracted occupational and income data through 24 months post-injury from the multi-center, longitudinal Burn Model System National Database. Annual income was reported in six groups: 199k. Participants were classified by change in income at each follow up (i.e., gain, loss, equivalent). Explanatory variables included demographics, injury characteristics, insurance payer, employment status, and job type. Multi-level, multi-variable logistic regression was used to model return to productivity. Results 453 participants provided complete income data at discharge and follow up. Of the 302 participants employed pre-injury, 180 (60%) returned to work within 24 months post-injury. Less than half (138) returned to productivity (46% of participants employed pre-injury; 77% of those who returned to work). Characteristics associated with return to productivity included older age (median 46.9 vs 45.9 years, OR 1.03, p=0.006), Hispanic ethnicity (24% vs 11%, OR 1.80, p=0.041), burn size >20% TBSA (33.7% vs 33.0%, OR 2.09, p=0.045), and post-injury employment (54% vs 26%, OR 3.41, p Conclusion More than half of employed people living with burn injury experienced loss in productivity within 24 months post-injury. Even if they return to work, people living with burn injuries face challenges returning to productivity and may benefit from vocational rehabilitation and/or financial assistance.
Effect of Grain Size and Pb Doping on the Thermoelectric Properties of Extruded Samples of the Bi0.85Sb0.15 Solid Solution

Electrical and thermal parameters of extruded samples of the Bi0.85Sb0.15 solid solution have been studied as functions of grain size, annealing conditions, Pb acceptor dopant concentration, and magnetic field strength in the temperature range ~77–300 K. The results demonstrate that extrusion of polycrystalline Bi0.85Sb0.15 material produces an axial texture; that is, some of the grains in the polycrystal become aligned so that their trigonal axis is parallel to the extrusion axis. Concurrently, plastic deformation produces various structural defects in the crystal lattice of individual grains. The structural defects accumulate predominantly between (111) cleavage planes of the crystals. The texture of the samples has been shown to depend on grain size. Doping Bi0.85Sb0.15 samples of grain size d ~ 630 μm with Pb acceptor impurities and annealing them at ~503 K for 5 h, we have obtained n-type materials with a thermoelectric figure of merit of ~5 × 10–3 K–1 at ~200 K.
Accuracy of HVL measurements utilizing solid state detectors for radiography and fluoroscopy X-ray systems.

The half-value layer (HVL) is one of the regulatory required radiation safety parameters that needs to be measured annually. With the advent of solid state detectors and their associated electrometer assembly, the HVL measurement can be conducted with relative ease. In fact, various radiological technique parameters such as tube potential (kV), exposure time in millisecond (msec), air kerma (mGy), and air kerma rate (mGy/sec) can be obtained along with the HVL with just one exposure. The measured (or, calculated) HVL is based on radiation detection systems calibrated for conventional x-ray systems equipped with tungsten anode and added aluminum filters (molybdenum anode and filter in the case of mammography systems). However, a new generation of radiography and fluoroscopy (R/F) systems, inclusive of interventional angiography equipment, is equipped with varying thicknesses and materials of spectral shaping filters (SSF) to minimize the radiation exposure to the patients while image quality is maintained and optimized. The accuracy of HVL obtained with new generation of R/F systems has not been investigated in depth due to the addition of spectral filters yielding a harder beam quality with a higher HVL than the regulatory required value of 2.9 mm Al HVL at 80 kV. It would be of great interest to determine the accuracy of HVL as measured (or, calculated) by the solid state detector systems (SSDS), especially when accurate radiation dose delivered to the patient is required. In this investigation, the subject is limited to the accuracy of HVL measurement for conventional R/F systems.
Virtual Externship Programs Can Serve as a Viable Alternative to In-Person Externship Experiences in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery.

OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study is to describe a model for a virtual externship program in oral and maxillofacial surgery; to quantify the value of a virtual externship in increasing understanding of the program structure, scope, and commitment to diversity; and to offer qualitative feedback on structural components. DESIGN A retrospective study was completed comparing dental student perceptions of an oral and maxillofacial surgery program and the virtual externship experience prior to and following an oral and maxillofacial surgery residency virtual externship event. An electronic survey was distributed to registrants and included 25 questions: 5 related to demographics, 17 ascertaining understanding of various components of the residency and perception of virtual externships, and 3 text-based response queries. RESULTS Of the 167 attendees, 125 individuals completed the pre-externship survey and 50 completed the postexternship survey for a response rate of 74.8 and 29.9% respectively. Respondents of both surveys included 30 men and 20 women, aged 18 to 34, at various stages of dental school training and of various ethnic backgrounds. All externs reported an interest in participating in virtual externships if offered by oral and maxillofacial surgery programs. Understanding of scope of practice, daily activities of the program and residents, living in Ann Arbor, relationship between residents and with faculty, and program structure demonstrated a significant increase (P < .001). Perceived commitment to diversity and respect for people of different races, cultures, and backgrounds also showed a significant increase following the event (P < .001). CONCLUSIONS A virtual externship can successfully duplicate many of the most valuable components of an in-person externship to allow enhanced understanding and interest in the residency program and can incorporate novel components otherwise not possible in an-person externship.
Surveys and Maps for Industrial Growth

Planning for industrial development is best based on data from a sequence of geodetic, topographic, geologic, hydrologic, and land (property) surveys—not necessarily in the order listed. In planning industrial growth, past experience, present requirements, and future trends indicate increasing demand for precise and comprehensive survey data. Technological developments in instruments, techniques, and products of the surveying and mapping profession are adequate to meet forseeable demands.
Precipitation sequence and kinetics in a Mg-4Sm-1Zn-0.4Zr (wt%) alloy

Abstract The present research presents a series of investigations into phase identification and precipitation sequence in Mg-4Sm-1Zn-0.4Zr 1 alloy, using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and high angle annular dark field scanning transmission electron microscopy (HAADF-STEM). The precipitation sequence is: super saturated solid solution (S.S.S.S) → solute atom clusters → γ″ → γ′ (→stacking faults) → γ. Structure of γ″ has been determined as an ordered hexagonal GP zone, a = 0.556 nm, c = 0.414 nm γ′ is composed of several γ″ layers. Kinetic studies show that quenched-in vacancies play an important role in the formation of solute clusters, while the growth of both precipitates are diffusion controlled. Analysis of microstructure evolution suggests that nucleation of γ′ happens near existing γ″ precipitates.
Avery, Oswald Theodore (1877–1955)

This article has no abstract. Keywords: Avery, Oswald Theodore (work with pneumococcus)
Multiple binding of ligands to a linear biopolymer.

Publisher Summary Many biological processes involve cooperative binding of several different protein ligands to linear biopolymers (such as DNA, actin, and microtubules). If each subunit (monomer) of the biopolymer has only one ligand-binding site, the binding is purely competitive and cooperative binding phenomena are derived mainly from nearest-neighbor ligand–ligand interactions. This kind of binding is referred to as the ‘‘single-binding’’ type. On the other hand, in ‘‘multiple-binding’’ systems in which each subunit of the biopolymer contains two or more binding sites, such that more than one ligand can bind to the same subunit simultaneously, the cooperative binding of one ligand may be modulated allosterically by the other ligand. For example, binding of myosin subfragment 1 (S-1) molecules to a bare actin is known to be noncooperative. But, when the actin is prebound with tropomyosin–troponin molecules, the binding of S-1 becomes cooperative. Theoretical treatment of cooperative binding of ligands to linear biopolymers is an interesting biophysical problem and has attracted considerable attention. However, most of the formalisms developed so far are concentrated on the ‘‘single-binding’’ model. This chapter introduces a formalism that can be used to treat not only single-binding systems, but also multiple-binding systems. Instead of discussing the theoretical basis of the formalism, this chapter uses a simple two-ligand multiple-binding system to illustrate how to carry out the evaluation of the secular equation and the binding isotherms. The purpose is to present the general methodology of the formalism, so that one may be able to modify or extend when needed.
Evaluation of nitrogen and organic matter balance in the feedlot as affected by level and source of dietary fiber.

A trial was conducted to determine the effect of level and source of dietary fiber on N and OM excretion by cattle on finishing diets. One hundred twenty steers were stratified by weight and allotted to one of the following treatments: 7.5% roughage (7.5% R), wet corn gluten feed (WCGF; 41.5% of dietary DM), and all-concentrate (All Con) diet. Cattle were fed for 87 d during the summer with 23.7 m2 of pen area per animal. Steers fed the WCGF diet had heavier final weights, greater DMI, and higher ADG (P < .01) than the 7.5% R and All Con treatments. Steers fed All Con had lower (P < .01) DMI than the other two treatments. Nitrogen and OM mass balances in the feedlot were quantified. Main components were nutrient input, retention, and excretion. Nitrogen and OM intake of steers fed WCGF were greater (P < .05) than those of steers fed the other treatments. The WCGF treatment had a greater percentage of fecal N output (P < .05). The All Con treatment had a greater (P < .01) percentage of urinary N than WCGF and 7.5% R diets. Steers fed the WCGF treatment excreted more (P < .01) OM compared with the other treatments, which led to more N and OM being removed in manure at cleaning. The All Con treatment had more (P < .01) N and OM in runoff than the other treatments. Nutrition can change site of fermentation, which affects the composition of excreted material; however, total amount of N excreted may be more important than route of excretion in decreasing N losses to the environment and maximizing recovery in manure.
FDTD modeling of helicopter antenna pattern rotor modulation

Rotor modulation is the periodic disruption of electromagnetic communication signals caused by the rotation of lift or thrust generating propellers on aircraft. Rotor modulation is predominantly associated with helicopters because their very large main rotor can cause intense modulation effects, and their comparatively small fuselages provide few antenna mounting locations at which rotor modulation can be avoided. Rotor modulation modeling, because of its complexity, has not received very much attention. We use the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method to model the radiation patterns of antennas mounted on helicopters, including the modulating effects due to the motion of the rotor blades.
Facilitating Electronic Business Planning with Decision Making Support Systems

Decision making support has evolved over time and across disciplines [3] with much research focusing on ways to improve such support. In the process, there has been an evolution from simple data access and reporting to complex analytical, creative support. Meanwhile electronic business planning, a complex process, that can be facilitated through management science, economics, statistics, and other technological tools, has shown great promise for overall business control and management in the new E-era. However, managers are rarely aware of these tools, are unskillful in their use, unwilling to, or incapable of, acquiring the proficiency. In this ongoing project, we intend to explore how decision making support systems (DMSS) can facilitate electronic business planning by deriving an operational e-business model and illustrating how the model can be delivered through a DMSS. Such delivery will enable managers to measure and evaluate the impact of plans on electronic business performance.
Kinetic and structural evidence for a sequential ordered Bi Bi mechanism of catalysis by Saccharomyces cerevisiae myristoyl-CoA:protein N-myristoyltransferase

The mechanism of catalysis of Escherichia coli-derived Saccharomyces cerevisiae myristoyl-CoA: protein N-myristoyltransferase (NMT) has been characterized. Previous studies indicated that a high affinity reaction intermediate forms between NMT and myristoyl-CoA in the absence of a peptide substrate. This complex has been further characterized using S-(2-oxo)pentadecyl-CoA, a nonhydrolyzable myristoyl-CoA analog. Binding studies involving this analog, as well as myristoylpeptide and CoA, have indicated that the CoA moiety of the acyl substrate is retained in the acyl-NMT complex prior to peptide addition. These structural data, along with kinetic studies of myristoylpeptide and CoA product inhibition, indicate that the mechanism of catalysis of NMT is ordered Bi Bi, with myristoyl-CoA binding to NMT occurring prior to peptide binding and CoA release taking place before release of acyl peptide. Further analyses of the interactions between NMT, acyl peptide, and CoA demonstrate that NMT is able to deacylate a myristoylpeptide in the presence of CoA.
Blind source separation and deconvolution by dynamic component analysis

We derive new unsupervised learning rules for blind separation of mixed and convolved sources. These rules are nonlinear in the signals and thus exploit high-order spatiotemporal statistics to achieve separation. The derivation is based on a global optimization formulation of the separation problem, yielding a stable algorithm. Different rules are obtained from frequency- and time-domain optimization. We illustrate the performance of this method by successfully separating convolutive mixtures of speech signals.
QUALITY OF LIFE IN ADULT RECIPIENTS OF BONE MARROW TRANSPLANTATION

Quality of life, coping styles, and satisfaction with health care were assessed in 32 bone marrow transplant recipients and 22 conventional chemotherapy recipients. Subjects reported having generally good quality of life with no significant differences in quality of life or coping styles between the two groups. Quality of life was not significantly associated with age, socioeconomic status, time since diagnosis, or time since last treatment, although lower scores were associated with a passive coping style. Interestingly, bone marrow transplant recipients reported greater over-all satisfaction with health care and more contentment with the cost and convenience of health-care delivery than did conventional chemotherapy recipients.
PHOTOSYNTHESIS OF AMINO ACIDS.

Abstract Methods have been developed for performing dual tracer experiments with 15 N and 14 C on the photosynthesis and biosynthesis of amino acids in Chlorella pyrenoidosa . These methods involved the development of apparatus for maintaining algae in a condition of steady-state photosynthesis, including amino acid synthesis, and of adding tracers in a stepwise fashion so that specific activity of the tracer is maintained at a constant level without alteration of other environmental factors. This method has been applied, and the kinetics of the labeling of several primary amino acids with 14 C and 15 N have been studied. The results indicate that the reductive amination to form glutamic acid is the primary route for incorporation of 15 N in this organism during photosynthesis of amino acids. Certain relationships between the site of the photosynthesis of carbon skeletons of primary amino acids and the site of 15 N incorporation have been proposed and discussed.
Evidence for the involvement of carbonic anhydrase and urease in calcium carbonate formation in the gravity-sensing organ of Aplysia californica

To better understand the mechanisms that could modulate the formation of otoconia, calcium carbonate granules in the inner ear of vertebrate species, we examined statoconia formation in the gravity-sensing organ, the statocyst, of the gastropod mollusk Aplysia californica using an in vitro organ culture model. We determined the type of calcium carbonate present in the statoconia and investigated the role of carbonic anhydrase (CA) and urease in regulating statocyst pH as well as the role of protein synthesis and urease in statoconia production and homeostasis in vitro. The type of mineral present in statoconia was found to be aragonitic calcium carbonate. When the CA inhibitor, acetazolamide (AZ), was added to cultures of statocysts, the pH initially (30 min) increased and then decreased. The urease inhibitor, acetohydroxamic acid (AHA), decreased statocyst pH. Simultaneous addition of AZ and AHA caused a decrease in pH. Inhibition of urease activity also reduced total statoconia number, but had no effect on statoconia volume. Inhibition of protein synthesis reduced statoconia production and increased statoconia volume. In a previous study, inhibition of CA was shown to decrease statoconia production. Taken together, these data show that urease and CA play a role in regulating statocyst pH and the formation and maintenance of statoconia. CA produces carbonate ion for calcium carbonate formation and urease neutralizes the acid formed due to CA action, by production of ammonia.
A Twist on Torsade: A Prolonged QT Interval on Methadone

A woman developed a prolonged QT interval and torsade de pointes while on methadone treatment for heroin addiction. We think methadone, or its impaired metabolism, was the major cause for her prolonged QT interval and progression to torsade. However, torsade is often multifactorial, as was likely so in this case. We advise physicians treating patients taking methadone to obtain careful medication and drug-use histories, screen for risk factors associated with long QT syndrome, counsel patients about potential drug interactions, and measure the QT interval before and during methadone treatment in high-risk patients.
MicroRNA-29 Regulates T-Box Transcription Factors and Interferon-γ Production in Helper T Cells

MicroRNA (miRNA)-deficient helper T cells exhibit abnormal IFN-γ production and decreased proliferation. However, the contributions of individual miRNAs to this phenotype remain poorly understood. We conducted a screen for miRNA function in primary T cells and identified individual miRNAs that rescue the defects associated with miRNA deficiency. Multiple members of the miR-17 and miR-92 families enhanced miRNA-deficient T cell proliferation whereas miR-29 largely corrected their aberrant interferon-γ (IFN-γ) expression. Repression of IFN-γ production by miR-29 involved direct targeting of both T-bet and Eomes, two transcription factors known to induce IFN-γ production. Although not usually expressed at functionally relevant amounts in helper T cells, Eomes was abundant in miRNA-deficient cells and was upregulated after miR-29 inhibition in wild-type cells. These results demonstrate that miR-29 regulates helper T cell differentiation by repressing multiple target genes, including at least two that are independently capable of inducing the T helper 1 (Th1) cell gene expression program.
The clinical approach to desmoplastic small round cell tumor

Abstract Background and Objectives : Desmoplastic small round cell tumor (DSRCT) is an increasingly recognized entity with a historically poor prognosis. This article describes the present clinical management of these patients. Methods : We retrospectively reviewed our experience with 40 histologically proven cases of desmoplastic small round cell tumor diagnosed between 7/1/72 and 10/1/99. Thirty-five of these patients are the subjects of a previous report. Demographic data, mode of presentation, completeness of resection, and overall survival were assessed. Results : The overall survival from DSRCT remains very poor and in our series was 29% at three years from diagnosis. There is a significant correlation between use of intense alkylator therapy (P6 protocol), and gross total resection with improved overall survival. It is often technically feasible to remove large peritoneal masses using a tangential dissection technique. Extensive hepatic parenchymal or hilar involvement or extensive infiltration of the diaphragm in the region of the septum transversum and hepatic veins usually makes gross total resection impossible with a corresponding worsened prognosis. Conclusion : We recommend induction chemotherapy (P6) followed by aggressive surgical debulking and external beam radiotherapy for the treatment of DSRCT. Further progress will require new forms of treatment.
Maximum likelihood estimation for multivariate observations of Markov sources

Parameter estimation for multivariate functions of Markov chains, a class of versatile statistical models for vector random processes, is discussed. The model regards an ordered sequence of vectors as noisy multivariate observations of a Markov chain. Mixture distributions are a special case. The foundations of the theory presented here were established by Baum, Petrie, Soules, and Weiss. A powerful representation theorem by Fan is employed to generalize the analysis of Baum, {\em et al.} to a larger class of distributions.
Observed and Calculated Lengths of Lake Trout (Salvelinus namaycush) in Cayuga Lake, New York

Abstract Back-calculated lengths of lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) in Cayuga Lake, New York, were compared with empirical values. The body-scale relationship was sigmoid over a range of fish lengths of 6 to 26 inches; the method of back-calculation involved preparation of a body-scale ruler adapted for use on a conventional direct proportion calculating device. When compared graphically, calculated and observed mean lengths (through age VII) were in excellent agreement. Calculated data showed a significantly lower variance than observed.
GaP/GaOx Core−Shell Nanowires and Nanochains and Their Transport Properties

GaP/GaOx core−shell nanowires and nanochains have been synthesized in a large quantity by thermal evaporation of mixture of GaP and Ga powders at high temperature. The as-synthesized products were ...
A sideways approach to data security and privacy awareness

How might a university culture be evolved to develop better habits respecting data security and privacy? At Furman, the desire for portable backup solutions for local systems was leveraged with complementary activities to encourage participation in a 90-minute training session designed to pique interest and offer practical solutions for information protection. With benefit of a routine auditor's report expressing certain concerns about data privacy and modest financing set aside to support this strategic initiative, the IT group began a three-year project culminating in sessions and programs customized for faculty, staff and students. The background work began with Data Classification training for middle managers and faculty gatekeepers. A security video contest for students provided interesting and relevant content. The Federal Trade Commission, Identity Theft Resource Center and other nonprofit and governmental agencies offer appropriate and interesting materials at no cost. These materials were used, along withbackup drives purchased for session participants. Challenges in developing the session content include how to make data privacy interesting enough to prompt voluntary participation and how to connect the idea of providing a local backup strategy to users only after they understand the information inappropriate for such a solution. Participants are exposed to data classification schema, participate in exercises to assess the risk of the information they handle, offered network alternatives to high-risk data storage on local systems, and provided with an external drive and instructions on how to use it. Assessment of the program's effectiveness is both in participation and outcomes.
Effects of herbaceous and woody plant control on Pinus palustris growth and foliar nutrients through six growing seasons

Abstract To determine if either herbaceous or woody plants are more competitive with longleaf pine ( Pinus palustris P. Mill.) seedlings, two vegetation management treatments—herbaceous plant control (HPC, No or Yes) and woody plant control (WPC, No or Yes) were applied in newly established longleaf pine plantings in a randomized complete block 2 × 2 factorial design in two studies ( α = 0.05). Both studies were broadcast prescribed burned as a normal management practice and the soils were of moderate texture. In the fourth growing season and 2 years after treatments ceased in Study 1, the HPC plots had more herbaceous plant productivity than the no HPC (NHPC) plots and arborescent vegetation had recovered from the WPC treatment. In Study 2, herbaceous plant productivity was less on the HPC plots than on the NHPC plots and the WPC plots had more herbaceous plant productivity and less arborescent vegetation than the no WPC plots. In both studies, HPC significantly increased height growth of the longleaf pine trees although total control of herbaceous plants was neither attempted nor achieved. The WPC treatment did not affect longleaf pine height growth. After six growing seasons, the longleaf pine trees averaged 0.9, 1.5, 1.1, and 1.7 m tall on the Burn only, Burn-HPC, Burn-WPC, and Burn-WPC–HPC treatments, respectively, in Study 1. In Study 2, the longleaf pines averaged 3.8, 4.8, 3.9, and 4.8 m tall on the Burn only, Burn-HPC, Burn-WPC, and Burn-WPC–HPC treatments, respectively. Herbaceous plant control reduced Mg concentrations in the living longleaf pine needles in both studies. Foliar P was generally deficient. Overall, however, the longleaf pine foliage had good nutritional balance on these moderately textured soils.
The Importance of Considering Exposure States When Designing Survey Research Studies

The purpose of this chapter is to examine how survey researchers assess information gained through exposures to media messages, particularly how they consider, or do not consider, the psychological state of the person during those exposures. The thesis of this paper is that exposure states are essential characteristics that constrain how people experience each media message and thereby limit as well as shape what they remember from that experience. It is argued that there are four qualitatively different exposure states for media messages: attentional, automatic, transported, and self-reflexive. Depending on the exposure state, the person has a different cognitive and emotional experience with the message. It is shown why ignoring exposure state is a serious threat to the validity of findings in media research. The paper compares and contrasts the different measurement schemes (specific measures and procedures) that are most valid across the different exposure states.