cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Selectivities in Hydrocarbon Activation: Kinetic and Thermodynamic Investigations of Reversible 1,2-RH-Elimination from (silox)2(tBu3SiNH)TiR (silox = tBu3SiO)

Addition of 2.0 equiv of Na(silox) to TiCl4(THF)2 afforded (silox)2TiCl2 (1), which yielded (silox)2(tBu3SiNH)TiCl (2-Cl) upon treatment with tBu3SiNLi. Grignard or alkyllithium additions to 2-Cl or 1,2-RH-addition to transient (silox)2TiNSitBu3 (3) produced (silox)2(tBu3SiNH)TiR (2-R; R = Me, Et, CH2Ph = Bz, CHCH2 = Vy, cBu, nBu, Ph, H, cPr, cPe, CH2-3,5-Me2C6H3 = Mes, neoHex, cHex, η3-H2CHCH2, η3-H2CCHCHMe). Insertions of C2H4, butadiene, HC2H, and HC2tBu into the titanium−hydride bond of 2-H generated (silox)2(tBu3SiNH)TiR (2-R; R = Et, η3-H2CCHCHMe, Vy, E-CHCHtBu). Trapping of 3 by donors L afforded (silox)2LTiNSitBu3 (3-L; L = OEt2, THF (X-ray, two independent molecules: d(TiN) = 1.772(3), 1.783(3) A), py, PMe3, NMe3, NEt3) and RC2R‘ = HC2H, MeC2Me, EtC2Et, HC2tBu) and Kinetics of 1,2-RH-elimination from 2-R revealed a first-order process (24.8 °C): R = Bz < Mes < H < Me (1.54(10) × 10-5 s-1) < neoHex < Et < nBu < cBu < cPe < cHex < cPr < Vy < Ph. Kinetics data, large 1,2-RH/D-elimination KIE's (e....
Controller design and performance evaluation for deadlock avoidance in automated flexible manufacturing cells

In this paper, the design of a deadlock avoidance controller is described. The uncontrolled system is modeled using colored Petri nets. The system controller is based on a restrictive (not maximally permissive) deadlock avoidance policy to resolve deadlocks and control the real-time resource allocation decisions in the system. Performance evaluation of systems controlled by not maximally permissive algorithms is essential in determining the applicability and effectiveness of the control algorithms. The performance of the controlled system is compared with performance of optimal control policies to quantify the effects of the restrictiveness of the deadlock avoidance policy on system performance.
Geologic nitrogen in terrestrial biogeochemical cycling

Recent research implicates geologic nitrogen as a large and reactive pool of nitrogen that can have significant ecological effects. This study was conducted to determine the landscape distribution of geologic nitrogen and the fate of this nitrogen during rock to soil transformation in the lower Mokelumne River watershed located in the western Sierra Nevada of California. Mineralogy and chemistry were determined for six major lithologies in the study area to examine the spatial distribution of nitrogen in bedrock. In addition, soil samples were collected from two watersheds having high stream-water nitrate concentrations to determine the fate of nitrogen during weathering and soil formation. With the exception of diorite, all bedrock contained detectable concentrations of nitrogen: 153–1801 and 98–739 mg N kg−1 for metasedimentary and metavolcanic lithologies, respectively. A significant amount of nitrogen was released during soil formation: 2350 and 2570 kg N ha−1 for soils formed on greenstone and slate, respectively. This amount of nitrogen represents from 30% to 50% of the current soil nitrogen pool. In these ecosystems, nitrogen released from bedrock contributes to an excess of available nitrogen relative to biotic demands, leading to nitrate leaching and elevated concentrations of nitrate in stream water. Given the widespread occurrence of geologic nitrogen and the large global inventory of nitrogen contained within bedrock, the role of geologic nitrogen as a source of nitrogen for terrestrial biogeochemical cycling must be considered.
Improved Reading Comprehension by Writing

In this article, the author argues that writing skills are important in developing reading comprehension skills that prepare our students for the advanced studies of the 21st Century. Examples are ...
Low molecular weight RNA associated with 28 s nucleolar RNA.

Abstract Extraction of nucleolar RNA at 65 °C results in the liberation from nucleolar 28 s RNA of a hitherto undescribed low molecular weight RNA referred to as 8 s (28 s) RNA, as well as a previously described U3 RNA and a 7 s RNA (Pene, Knight & Darnell, 1968; Weinberg & Penman, 1968). The U3 and 8 s (28 s) RNA's are not degradation or cleavage products since their rates of labeling with [ 32 P]orthophosphate are lower than those of nucleolar RNA's of higher molecular weight. The U3 and 8 s (28 s) nucleolar RNA's differ in composition and mobility from the ribosomal and nucleolar 7 s RNA thermal products. Several molecular species appear to be present in the U3 and 8 s (28 s) RNA's, since the major 3′-terminal nucleosides of U3 RNA are adenosine and uridine and the major 3′-terminal nucleosides of 8 s (28 s) RNA are cytidine and uridine. Interestingly, neither nucleolar 45 s RNA nor 35 s RNA contains the U3 or 8 s RNA components which are present in the nucleolar 28 s RNA.
Quantification of Microstructural Evolution in Grain Boundary Networks

In this work, the effect of grain boundary engineering (GBE) on the structure and connectivity of networks of two types of boundaries was quantified. General high angle boundaries and “special” Σ = 3 and Σ = 9 coincident site lattice boundaries were considered. The effect of GBE processing was to increase the population and length of special boundaries and to disrupt the network of high-angle grain boundaries (HAGBs) in the microstructure. The GBE processing resulted in an increase in the population of special boundaries as determined by line length fraction from approximately 37% to approximately 57%. The connectivity of the special boundaries, as determined by topological analysis, increased by a factor of 4, while the connectivity of HAGBs decreased by an order of magnitude. Cluster sizes in the special boundary network increased across the range of sizes, and the maximum cluster size of HAGBs decreased significantly. The metrics reported here allow for a quantitative analysis of grain boundary connectivity in microstructures, as well as for a quantitative means of comparison of microstructures. These metrics will be used in simulations of diffusional creep, with the aim of quantifying structure–property relationships in grain boundary engineered systems.
Simultaneous lung resection via a transdiaphragmatic approach in patients undergoing liver resection for synchronous liver and lung metastases.

Background For patients with synchronous liver and lung metastases from colorectal cancer, the invasiveness of adding thoracic to abdominal surgery is an obstacle to concurrent liver and lung metastasectomy. We developed a simple technique to resect lung lesions via a transdiaphragmatic approach without thoracic incision in patients undergoing liver metastasectomy. Methods Sixteen patients with synchronous liver and unilateral lung metastases underwent transdiaphragmatic wedge resection of lung lesions simultaneous with liver metastasectomy. Short-term operative outcomes were compared with those in 102 patients treated with conventional unilateral wedge resection for colorectal lung metastases. Results Twenty peripheral ( Conclusion Simultaneous transdiaphragmatic resection of peripheral lung lesions is safe in patients undergoing liver resection. The low-invasive transdiaphragmatic approach facilitates aggressive operative treatment for synchronous liver and lung metastases.
Modeling Crowd and Trained Leader Behavior during Building Evacuation

This article considers animating evacuation in complex buildings by crowds who might not know the structure's connectivity, or who find routes accidentally blocked. It takes into account simulated crowd behavior under two conditions: where agents communicate building route knowledge, and where agents take different roles such as trained personnel, leaders, and followers
TNF-α induces upregulation of EGFR expression and signaling in human colonic myofibroblasts

The myofibroblast has recently been identified as an important mediator of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α)-associated colitis and cancer, but the mechanism(s) involved remains incompletely understood. Recent evidence suggests that TNF-α is a central regulator of multiple inflammatory signaling cascades. One important target of TNF-α may be the signaling pathway downstream of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), which has been associated with many human cancers. Here, we show that long-term exposure of 18Co cells, a model of human colonic myofibroblasts, with TNF-α led to a striking increase in cell surface EGFR expression, an effect that was completely inhibited by cycloheximide. Subsequent EGFR binding by EGF and heparin binding (HB)-EGF was associated with enhanced EGFR tyrosine kinase activity, prolonged ERK activation, and a significant increase in cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) expression compared with 18Co cells treated with EGF and HB-EGF alone. TNF-α also increased EGFR expression and signaling in primary myofibroblasts isolated from human colon tissue. TNF-α-induced upregulation of EGFR may be a plausible mechanism to explain the exaggerated cellular responsiveness that characterizes inflammatory bowel disease and that may contribute to a microenvironment that predisposes to colitis-associated cancer through enhanced COX-2 expression.
Multicritical crossovers near the dilute bose gas quantum critical point.

Many zero temperature transitions, involving the deviation in the value of a $U(1)$ conserved charge from a quantized value, are described by the dilute Bose gas quantum critical point. On such transitions, we study the consequences of perturbations which break the symmetry down to $Z_N$ in $d$ spatial dimensions. For the case $d=1$, $N=2$, we obtain exact, finite temperature, multicritical crossover functions by a mapping to an integrable lattice model.
The State of Software Maintenance

A state of software maintenance survey is presented, indicating the incongruity of the simultaneous existence of importance and neglect in this field. An overview is given of selected developments and activities covering the following topics: • The "Maintenance Problem." • Models. • Methods for improving maintenance. • Metrics. • Maintenance information management. • Standards. • Maintenance of existing code. • Surveys.
Beyond Babble : A Text-Generation Method and Computer Program for Composing Text, Music and Poetry

The author presents a method for creating sound poetry and text/sound music. According to his theory on the musical nature of speech and through the quantification of syllabic stress, the author presents his aesthetics of text/sound music and a detailed description of his original algorithms for manipulating characters representing phonemes. Redefining compositional techniques through his Beyond Babble computer program, The Babble Poet, he synthesizes vocalisms that sound like speech, yet are not, allowing nonsensical words to exist without semantic content and its inherent perceptual baggage. He also explores the applications of his program in composition by composing text/sound etudes synthesizing well-known texts with his method.
Visual motor skills in homeless children.

Objective: Identify the visual motor, visual perceptual and motor coordination skills of homeless pre-school and school-aged children living in an emergency shelter for homeless families.Method: All three subtests of the Developmental Test of Visual Motor Integration–4th Edition, Revised (VMI) were administered to 33 children living in a family homeless shelter.Results: Homeless children did not display significant deficits in visual motor, visual perceptual or motor coordination skills. However, participants performed significantly better on the motor coordination subtest than on the visual motor and visual perceptual subtests.Conclusions: Previous literature had identified visual motor deficits in pre-school homeless children. This finding was not supported in this investigation. The significant difference in performance on the various subtests suggests that these children may benefit from external structure for paper/pencil tasks. Implications for occupational therapy services are made with suggestions...
The establishment of early B cell tolerance in humans: lessons from primary immunodeficiency diseases

Patients with primary immunodeficiency (PID) provide rare opportunities to study the impact of specific gene mutations on the regulation of human B cell tolerance. Alterations in B cell receptor and Toll-like receptor signaling pathways result in a defective central checkpoint and a failure to counterselect developing autoreactive B cells in the bone marrow. In contrast, CD40L- and MHC class II–deficient patients only displayed peripheral B cell tolerance defects, suggesting that decreased numbers of regulatory T cells and increased concentration of B cell activating factor (BAFF) may interfere with the peripheral removal of autoreactive B cells. The pathways regulating B cell tolerance identified in PID patients are likely to be affected in patients with rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, and type 1 diabetes who display defective central and peripheral B cell tolerance checkpoints. Indeed, risk alleles encoding variants altering BCR signaling, such as PTPN22 alleles associated with the development of these diseases, interfere with the removal of developing autoreactive B cells. Hence, insights into B cell selection from PID patients are highly relevant to the understanding of the etiology of autoimmune conditions.
Three-dimensional J-resolved H-1 magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging of volunteers and patients with brain tumors at 3T†

A method that combines two-dimensional (2D) J-resolved spectroscopy with three spatial dimension magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging (MRSI) is introduced to measure J-coupled metabolites of glutamate (Glu), glutamine (Gln), myo-Inositol (mI), and lactate (Lac) in the brain and to simultaneously obtain T2 values of choline (Cho), creatine (Cr), and N-acetyl aspartate (NAA). Relatively few points in the t1 dimension (six echo times) and a flyback echo-planar trajectory were incorporated in the acquisition to speed up the total acquisition time so that it was within a clinically feasible range (23 min). Data obtained using GAMMA software simulations and from phantoms have shown that the 4CH2 resonances of Glu can be separated from Gln at 2.35 ppm in TE-averaged spectra. Results from phantoms, six normal volunteers, and four patients demonstrated good signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). The J crosspeaks from the methyl group of Lac were visualized in the 2D spectra from the phantom and the glioma patient, and could be quantified from the spectra at J 4.17 Hz. This technique also enables the evaluation of the changes in metabolite T2. Compared with the values in normal white matter, the T2 values of Cho and Cr were statistically significantly increased in regions of glioma. Magn Reson Med 58:886 – 892, 2007. © 2007 Wiley
Teletext: Towards an Information Utility?

Transmitting data via television sets offers new potential for an at-home information source—but for what needs and at what cost?
Lymphoma of the tympanic membrane in acquired immunodeficiency syndrome

Lymphoproliferative disease is more common in the immunocompromised host and can occur at unusual sites. Lymphomas of the temporal bone are rare. We present the first case of a large B-cell Lymphoma of the tympanic membrane in a patient with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. The tympanic membrane is a site rich with antigen-presenting dendritic cells that may play an etiologic role in neoplastic transformation at this site. The staging, treatment and prognosis of an immunocompromised host afflicted with lymphoma is discussed. Future directions in improving survival include better therapy for the primary viral infection and less toxic therapy for the lymphoma.
Generalist and specialist predators that mediate permanence in ecological communities

General dynamic models of systems with two prey and one or two predators are considered. After rescaling the equations so that both prey have the same intrinsic rate of growth, it is shown that there exists a generalist predator that can mediate permanence if and only if there is a population density of a prey at which its per-capita growth rate is positive yet less than its competitor’s invasion rate. In particular, this result implies that if the outcome of competition between the prey is independent of initial conditions, then there exists a generalist predator that mediates permanence. On the other hand, if the outcome of competition is contingent upon initial conditions (i.e., the prey are bistable), then there may not exist a suitable generalist predator. For example, bistable prey modeled by the Ayala–Gilpin (θ-Logistic) equations can be stabilized if and only if θ<1 for one of the prey. It is also shown that two specialist predators always can mediate permanence between bistable prey by creating a repelling heteroclinic cycle consisting of fixed points and limit cycles.
Parallel processing and stability analysis of the Kalman filter

The paper presents an approach to implementing the parallel Kalman filter. The parallel Kalman filter is computationally intensive and hence complex due to the inherent matrix operations. Often, the filter cannot be computed in real time when the system has a large number of state variables. A method is discussed for achieving almost real-time performance. In addition, a method for determining stability of the Kalman filter is presented. This method involves the use a paradigm that achieves high performance and close to real time results while maintaining accuracy for the Kalman filter. In addition, the paradigm shows an improvement of the processor utilization over other implementations and provides flexibility in terms of the hardware used for implementation.
Diagnostic Approach Based on Capsular Antigen, Capsule Detection, β-Glucan, and DNA Analysis

The polysaccharide capsule is a unique feature of Cryptococcus neoformans that distinguishes the organism from other medically important yeasts. Various histochemical stains react with cryptococci, including mucin stains such as mucicarmine, alcian blue, and periodic acid-Schiff that stain the capsule and Fontana-Masson stain, which interacts with the cell wall. The sensitivity of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) antigen detection is highest for diagnosing cryptococcal meningitis in HIV-infected persons and varies based upon factors such as the fungal burden in the CSF and the presence of well-encapsulated organisms. Since the serum cryptococcal antigen is positive in almost all AIDS patients with cryptococcal meningitis, there has been interest in using the test to screen high-risk HIV-infected persons, such as those with fevers, neurological symptoms, and/or low CD4 counts. At the current time, there are four commercially available assays that detect β-Glucan (BG) in serum. Over the past two decades, a myriad of molecular techniques have been explored for the detection of pathogenic fungi. Molecular fingerprinting techniques, e.g., randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD), restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP), pulsed-field gel electrophoresis, amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP), PCR fingerprinting with minisatellite (M13) or microsatellite primers [e.g., (GACA)4 or (CTG)5], karyotypes, sequencing, multilocus microsatellite typing, mating-type locus, and multilocus sequence typing (MLST), are among the most popular typing techniques that have been applied to discern and characterize the genetic heterogeneity within the species of the C. neoformans species complex.
Targeting to Transcriptionally Active Loci by the Hydrophilic N-Terminal Domain of Drosophila DNA Topoisomerase I

DNA topoisomerase I (topo I) from Drosophila melanogaster contains a nonconserved, hydrophilic N-terminal domain of about 430 residues upstream of the conserved core domains. Deletion of this N terminus did not affect the catalytic activity of topo I, while further removal of sequences into the conserved regions inactivated its enzymatic activity. We have investigated the cellular function of the Drosophila topo I N-terminal domain with top1-lacZ transgenes. There was at least one putative nuclear localization signal within the first 315 residues of the N-terminal domain that allows efficient import of the large chimeric proteins into Drosophila nuclei. The top1-lacZ fusion proteins colocalized with RNA polymerase II (pol II) at developmental puffs on the polytene chromosomes. Either topo I or the top1-lacZ fusion protein was colocalized with RNA pol II in some but not all of the nonpuff, interband loci. However, the fusion proteins as well as RNA pol II were recruited to heat shock puffs during heat treatment, and they returned to the developmental puffs after recovery from heat shock. By immunoprecipitation, we showed that two of the largest subunits of RNA pol II coprecipitated with the N-terminal 315-residue fusion protein by using antibodies against beta-galactosidase. These data suggest that the topo I fusion protein can be localized to the transcriptional complex on chromatin and that the N-terminal 315 residues were sufficient to respond to cellular processes, especially during the reprogramming of gene expression.
Heat and mass transfer scale-up issues during freeze drying: II. Control and characterization of the degree of supercooling

This study aims to investigate the effect of the ice nucleation temperature on the primary drying process using an ice fog technique for temperature-controlled nucleation. In order to facilitate scale up of the freeze-drying process, this research seeks to find a correlation of the product resistance and the degree of supercooling with the specific surface area of the product. Freeze-drying experiments were performed using 5% wt/vol solutions of sucrose, dextran, hydroxyethyl starch (HES), and mannitol. Temperature-controlled nucleation was achieved using the ice fog technique where cold nitrogen gas was introduced into the chamber to form an “ice fog”, there-by facilitating nucleation of samples at the temperature of interest. Manometric temperature measurement (MTM) was used during primary drying to evaluate the product resistance as a function of cake thickness. Specific surface areas (SSA) of the freeze-dried cakes were determined. The ice fog technique was refined to successfully control the ice nucleation temperature of solutions within 1°C. A significant increase in product resistance was produced by a decrease in nucleation temperature. The SSA was found to increase with decreasing nucleation temperature, and the product resistance increased with increasing SSA. The ice fog technique can be refined into a viable method for nucleation temperature control. The SSA of the product correlates well with the degree of supercooling and with the resistance of the product to mass transfer (ie, flow of water vapor through the dry layer). Using this correlation and SSA measurements, one could predict scaleup drying differences and accordingly alter the freeze-drying process so as to bring about equivalence of product temperature history during lyophilization.
Ex situ tuning of bendable x-ray mirrors for optimal beamline performance

Abstract We extend analytical and numerical methods recently devel oped at the Advanced Light Source (ALS) optical metrology laboratory (OML) for optimal tuning and calibration of bendable x-ray optics based on ex situ measurements with surface slope profilers [Opt. Eng. 48(8), 083601 (2009); Proc. SPIE 8141, 8141-19 (2011)]. We minimize the rms variation of residual slope deviations fro m ideal surface figure. Previo usly, our adjustment assumed the deviations were weighted equally across the optic. In this work, we analyze the case when the mirror length is significant with respect to the imaging conjugate. This corresponds, for example, to high de-magnification by bendable Kirkpatrick Baez mirror pairs, used near the ends of synchrotron and free electron la ser beamlines for micro- and nano-focusing that often results in a very short mirror to image distance, of the same order of magnitude as the mirrors length. In this case, contributions to focal distortion of residual errors of mirror surface figure (appearing due to mechanical alignment tolerances, sagittal shaping errors, and the limited number of adjustable parameters inherent in a two-couple bender) strongly depend on position across the optic. Specifically, the downstream deviations from exact shape should be weighted less because the rays have a shorte r path to travel to the image. Here, we derive an analytical expression for the weighting function and present a mathematical background for the bending adjustment procedure for optimization of the mirrors beamline performance. The ef ficacy of the optimization is demonstrated for a short-focus mirror used for diffraction limited focusing at ALS beamline 12.3.2. Keywords: bendable mirrors, x-rays, x-ray optics, synchrotron radiation, synchrotron beamline, Kirkpatrick-Baez
Diverging polygon-based modeling (DPBM) of concentrated solar flux distributions

Abstract This paper presents an efficient and robust methodology for modeling concentrated solar flux distributions. Compared to ray tracing methods, which provide high accuracy but can be computationally intensive, this approach makes a number of simplifying assumptions in order to reduce complexity by modeling incident and reflected flux as a series of simple geometric diverging polygons, then applying shading and blocking effects. A reduction in processing time (as compared to ray tracing) allows for evaluating and visualizing numerous combinations of engineering and operational variables (easily exceeding 106 unique iterations) to ascertain instantaneous, transient, and annual system performance. The method is demonstrated on a linear Fresnel reflector array and a number of variable iteration examples presented. While some precision is sacrificed for computational speed, flux distributions were compared to ray tracing (SolTrace) and average concentration ratio generally found to agree within ∼3%. This method presents a quick and very flexible coarse adjust method for concentrated solar power (CSP) field design, and can be used to both rapidly gain an understanding of system performance as well as to narrow variable constraint windows for follow-on high accuracy system optimization.
Abnormal resting state functional connectivity in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome: an arterial spin-labeling fMRI study.

Abstract Background Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is a debilitating disorder characterized by severe fatigue and neurocognitive dysfunction. Recent work from our laboratory and others utilizing arterial spin labeling functional magnetic resonance imaging (ASL) indicated that ME/CFS patients have lower resting state regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) in several brain areas associated with memory, cognitive, affective, and motor function. This hypoperfusion may underlie ME/CFS pathogenesis and may result in alterations of functional relationships between brain regions. The current report used ASL to compare functional connectivity of regions implicated in ME/CFS between patients and healthy controls (HC). Methods Participants were 17 ME/CFS patients (Mage = 48.88 years, SD = 12) fulfilling the 1994 CDC criteria and 17 age/sex matched HC (Mage = 49.82 years, SD = 11.32). All participants underwent T1-weighted structural MRI as well as a 6-min pseudo-continuous arterial spin labeling (pCASL) sequence, which quantifies CBF by magnetically labeling blood as it enters the brain. Imaging data were preprocessed using SPM 12 and ASL tbx, and seed-to-voxel functional connectivity analysis was conducted using the CONN toolbox. All effects noted below are significant at p Results ME/CFS patients demonstrated greater functional connectivity relative to HC in bilateral superior frontal gyrus, ACC, precuneus, and right angular gyrus to regions including precuneus, right postcentral gyrus, supplementary motor area, posterior cingulate gyrus, and thalamus. In contrast, HC patients had greater functional connectivity than ME/CFS in ACC, left parahippocampal gyrus, and bilateral pallidum to regions including right insula, right precentral gyrus, and hippocampus. Connectivity of the left parahippocampal gyrus correlated strongly with overall clinical fatigue of ME/CFS patients. Conclusion This is the first ASL based connectivity analysis of patients with ME/CFS. Our results demonstrate altered functional connectivity of several regions associated with cognitive, affective, memory, and higher cognitive function in ME/CFS patients. Connectivity to memory related brain areas (parahippocampal gyrus) was correlated with clinical fatigue ratings, providing supporting evidence that brain network abnormalities may contribute to ME/CFS pathogenesis.
Salivary FOXP2 expression and oral feeding success in premature infants

The objective of the study is to determine whether salivary FOXP2 gene expression levels at the initiation of oral feeding attempts are predictive of oral feeding success in the premature newborn. In this prospective study, saliva samples from 21 premature infants (13 males; birth gestational age [GA]: 30-34 wk) were collected around the initiation of oral feeding trials. Total RNA was extracted and underwent reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction amplification for FOXP2. Oral feeding success was denoted by the days required to attain full oral feeds. A linear regression model, controlling for sex, birth GA, and weight at salivary collection, revealed that FOXP2 expression was significantly associated with oral feeding success (P = 0.002). The higher the expression level of FOXP2, the shorter the duration to feed. Salivary FOXP2 expression levels are significantly associated with oral feeding success in the preterm infant. FOXP2 may serve as a novel and informative biomarker to noninvasively assess infant feeding skills to reduce morbidities and length of stay.
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Future of Small Island States

The article examines the potential implications of climate change on small island states, especially in the Pacific, and the mechanisms of the United Nations Framework Convention that may be germane to protecting their interests. The article suggests alternative legal mechanisms for effectuating this objective.
A carbon nanofiber (CNF) based 3-D microelectrode array for in-vitro neural proliferation and signal recording

Microelectrode arrays (MEAs) are commonly utilized for stimulating and recording extracellular electrical signals including both local field and action potentials in both in-vitro and in-vivo neural studies. This work demonstrates the feasibility of 3D microelectrode arrays using a novel carbon nanomaterial, electrospun carbon nanofiber (CNF). CNF MEAs impedance is characterized and compared to that of carbon nanotube MEAs and commercial TiN MEAs. An in-vitro culture of CNF electrodes are performed using E18 cortical neurons and analyzed for cell interaction. With these electrodes we are able to detect extracellular neural signals including action potentials from single neurons from an array of CNF electrodes embedded within the substrate of an MEA.
What Happens to the Employees When a Business Closes

A national recession began in December 2007 and ended in June 2009. In this report we describe what happened after employees involuntarily lost their jobs because Maryland businesses closed between January 2004 and June 2009 — including both pre-recession and recession closures. This focus avoids many interpretive pitfalls about employee and employer motives, options and decisions.Four questions are answered here about impacts of the recent recession on employees that lost a job because of a business closure in Maryland: Were job losers during the recession less likely than their pre-recession counterparts to reappear as an employee of a Maryland business following the involuntary end of their former business affiliation? For those who did reappear, did it take longer for those that lost a job during the recession to return to work than the time taken for their pre-recession counterparts to return to work? Were those that lost a job after the recession began, and then reappeared, more likely than their pre-recession counterparts to now be affiliated with an employer in a different industry? What are the comparative pre-post earnings profiles for those losing their previous job because of a business closure during the recession or pre-recession time spans?The policy relevance of our findings is enhanced by the comparison of business closure consequences during the recession and pre-recession years. We seek to learn practical lessons for future actions from what happened in Maryland during these different phases of the most recent business cycle.We begin in the next section by describing the data used, the interpretive challenges faced and how we responded to these challenges. Findings are presented in a third section, and policy relevancy implications follow in a concluding section.
The Church of England and the love of learning

This article draws attention to the Church of England's relative indifference to a strategy for the encouragement of research and scholarship within its ranks, especially among its clergy. Reasons ...
Impact of Alkyl Substituents on the Gas-Phase Competition between Substitution and Elimination

The S(N)2 and E2 reactions of a series of alkyl bromides with varying substitution patterns at the α- and β-carbons have been studied in the gas phase using naphthoate and phenoxide-based nucleophiles. The experimental work is supported by calculations at the MP2/6-31+G(d,p)//MP2/6-31+G(d) level. The results parallel reactivity patterns observed in the condensed phase, but offer new insights into steric factors in S(N)2 processes. In the gas phase, polarizability is more important, and the highest S(N)2 reactivity is observed when the β-carbon is 2°. In addition, the data confirm that alkyl substituents at the β-carbon have a greater accelerating effect on E2 reactions than those at the α-carbon. Finally, computed data based on lowest enthalpy pathways provide poor descriptions of the reactions of the larger alkyl bromides and are skewed toward crowded systems that offer stabilizing, nonbonded interactions at the expense of conformational freedom.
Biology, Behayior, and Effects of Larvae of Pink Bollworm in Cotton Flowers

From 0.9–1.8% of the cotton blooms in 2 fields at Tempe, AZ were infested during the major flowering period by larvae of the pink bollworm, Pectinophora gossypiella (Saunders), during early July; the averages were 0.34–0.80 rosetted blooms/acre. Larvae collected from resetted blooms and held in the laboratory at constant temperature pupated 4.53 days after the day of flowering. Larvae left the flowers the day after flowering. In the field, the pupal stage was 7.29 days. About 40% fewer infested flowers made bolls but the weight of bolls developed from these flowers was not affected.
Microanalysis with high Spatial Resolution

Elemental microanalysis, using x-rays and electron energy loss scattering, has been shown to be possible with electron beam probe sizes down to 0.5nm. This paper will discuss some practical problems, such as specimen drift, signal magnitude, and probe-specimen interaction when the probe is made very small. These problems have arisen in two studies: 1) an investigation of as segregation in poly-crystalline Si and 2) imaging of metal spheres with surface and bulk plasmon inelastic scattering.
The thin-flap LASIK technique.

PURPOSE: To determine if LASIK using a 130-μm mi crokeratome head (than-flap LASIK) is as visually effective and safe as when using a 160-μm head. METHODS: A study was performed comparing post-operative day 1 uncorrected visual acurty (UCVA) and flap complications in eyes undergoing myopic: LASIK with a 130-μm head versus a 160-μm head using the BD K-3000 microkeratome (BD Ophthalmic Systems Waltham, Mass). RESULTS: The mean preoperative myopia in the 155 eyes of 80 patients in the 130-μm head group was -5.00′2.53 diopters (D) compared to 3.78′1.73 D in the 279 eyes of 148 patients in the 160-μm head group. The groups were otherwise similar in terms of age, preoperative cylinder, and best spectacle-corrected visual acuity. The geometric mean postoperative day 1 UCVA was 20/25 in the 130-μm head group compared to 20/26 in the 160-μmhead group. The only flap complication in the series was a singte partial flap in the 160-μm head group. CONCLUSIONS: LASIK with a 130-μm head (thin-flap LASIK) is as visually effective and safe as when using a 160-μm head with the BD K-3000 microkeratome.
Rethinking Africa in the Age of Revolution: The evolution of Jean-Baptiste-Léonard Durand’s Voyage au Sénégal

ABSTRACTIn the Age of Revolution, the idea that Europe should help a “savage” Africa attain civilization through colonization was on the rise. When explaining how such views came about, scholars have looked at the ways in which the production and reception of travel literature and natural histories of Africa shaped, and were shaped by, evolving ideas of race in eighteenth-century Europe. Though insightful, these studies ignore the impact of the encounter with Africa itself as well as the geopolitical context within which it took place. This article argues that the idea of a ‘savage’ Africa in need of civilization through colonization was linked to Europeans’ inability to easily advance their commercial enterprises in Africa at a time when European colonization in the Americas was eroding. Through a study of Jean-Baptiste-Leonard Durand’s activities in Senegal during his directorship of the French Compagnie de la gomme du Senegal in the mid-1780s and of his published account of these experiences in the Voy...
Multivalent Chromosomal Expression of the Clostridium botulinum Serotype A Neurotoxin Heavy-Chain Antigen and the Bacillus anthracis Protective Antigen in Lactobacillus acidophilus

Clostridium botulinum and Bacillus anthracis produce potent toxins that cause severe disease in humans. New and improved vaccines are needed for both of these pathogens. For mucosal vaccine delivery using lactic acid bacteria, chromosomal expression of antigens is preferred over plasmid-based expression systems, as chromosomal expression circumvents plasmid instability and the need for antibiotic pressure. In this study, we constructed three strains of Lactobacillus acidophilus NCFM expressing from the chromosome (i) the nontoxic host receptor-binding domain of the heavy chain of Clostridium botulinum serotype A neurotoxin (BoNT/A-Hc), (ii) the anthrax protective antigen (PA), and (iii) both the BoNT/A-Hc and the PA. The BoNT/A-Hc vaccine cassette was engineered to contain the signal peptide from the S-layer protein A from L. acidophilus and a dendritic-cell-targeting peptide. A chromosomal region downstream of lba0889 carrying a highly expressed enolase gene was selected for insertion of the vaccine cassettes. Western blot analysis confirmed the heterologous expression of the two antigens from plasmid and chromosome locations. Stability assays demonstrated loss of the vaccine cassettes from expression plasmids without antibiotic maintenance. RNA sequencing showed high expression of each antigen and that insertion of the vaccine cassettes had little to no effect on the transcription of other genes in the chromosome. This study demonstrated that chromosomal integrative recombinant strains are promising vaccine delivery vehicles when targeted into high-expression chromosomal regions. Levels of expression match high-copy-number plasmids and eliminate the requirement for antibiotic selective maintenance of recombinant plasmids. IMPORTANCE Clostridium botulinum and Bacillus anthracis produce potent neurotoxins that pose a biochemical warfare concern; therefore, effective vaccines against these bacteria are required. Chromosomal expression of antigens is preferred over plasmid-based expression systems since expressing antigens from a chromosomal location confers an advantage to the vaccine strains by eliminating the antibiotic maintenance required for plasmids and negates issues with plasmid instability that would result in loss of the antigen. Lactic acid bacteria, including Lactobacillus acidophilus, have shown potential for mucosal vaccine delivery, as L. acidophilus is bile and acid tolerant, allowing transit through the gastrointestinal tract where cells interact with host epithelial and immune cells, including dendritic cells. In this study, we successfully expressed C. botulinum and B. anthracis antigens in the probiotic L. acidophilus strain NCFM. Both antigens were highly expressed individually or in tandem from the chromosome of L. acidophilus.
Simulation performance of simultaneous TDRSS support of Space Station and Space Shuttle

The simulation performance of simultaneous tracking and data-relay satellite system (TDRSS) support of Space Station and Space Shuttle communication is discussed. Eight Ku- and S-band forward and return links are considered. The models and parameters of the systems are described in detail in an accompanying paper (see ibid., p.1-9). >
FT-infrared spectroscopic and molecular simulation studies of adsorption of simple gases, methanol and water on aluminophosphates

Abstract We report an in-situ spectroscopic study of the chemical nature of the adsorbed species present in porous solids, such as aluminophosphates, during adsorption of simple gases, methanol, and water. Diffuse reflectance FTIR spectroscopy was used to distinguish between chemisorbed and physisorbed surface OH groups and identify their connection with surface protionic properties. Information on the extents of hydrogen-bonding, e.g. fraction of non-hydrogen-bonded and hydrogen-bonded species, and the adsorbate-adsorbate and adsorbate-adsorbent interactions were obtained, together with details on the structures of the various hydrogen-bonded species present. Experimental data obtained from adsorption measurements on VPI-5 were in qualitative agreement with results obtained from Grand Canonical Monte Carlo (GCMC) molecular simulations. Density profile plots were also obtained from the GCMC results.
Symptoms and Signs in Early Vertebrobasilar Territory Stroke

Within the posterior circulation, as in the anterior circulation, most acute brain infarcts are caused by thrombi within intracranial arteries. These thrombi can form in situ (“thrombosis”) within the intracranial arteries or represent emboli that have arisen from the heart, aorta, or proximal cervicocranial arteries. The possible exception is infarction in the distribution of single penetrating or circumferential branch arteries; such infarctions are often caused by luminal compromise by plaques and changes within the vessel walls [1]. Individuals of Japanese, Chinese, and Thai origin and African-Americans are more likely to have occlusive changes within intracranial posterior circulation arteries and branches, especially the distal basilar artery and the posterior inferior cerebellar arteries (PICAs), than are comparable Caucasian populations [2,3]. Thrombolysis is likely to have a different effectiveness in patients who have emboli to previously normal intracranial arteries (the entire intraluminal lesion representing a thrombus) compared to those patients that have important prior luminal narrowing caused by plaque (the occlusive lesion representing plaque plus thrombus). In this chapter, I concentrate on reviewing the clinical symptoms and signs in patients with acute occlusions of the intracranial vertebral arteries (ICVAs) and the basilar artery (BA), because they are the patients in whom thrombolysis is most likely to be feasible and therapeutically successful, and contrast the findings in patients with ICVA and BA occlusion to those found in patients with atheromatous branch disease and lacunar infarction.
Empathetic user design: understanding and living the reality of an audience

Motherhood is often a source of guilt, conflict, and ambivalence, and any communication about motherhood must be governed by an ethic of care and principles that take into account the fraught nature of such an identity. Social media provide individuals with new ways to discuss aspects of and share information about motherhood in different communication settings. Within this context, this article presents the results of 18 qualitative interviews of "mommy bloggers" and reports on the communication design principles and techniques these individuals employ to reach audiences of women. It also takes into account the contexts of users through social media. Overall, these bloggers use communication strategies such as identification, a rejection of perfectionism, an ethic of care, stories and narratives, branding, interactions with users, and a conversational tone to reach the target audience of women. These women act as professional communicators online by understanding this audience, living the reality of this audience through their own experiences, and designing communication that appeals to and ultimately improves the lives of their users. A study of their communication patterns can provide communication designers with insights on what I call empathetic user design and the importance of lived experience as authority.
Patient preference in primary care provider type.

Abstract Background Given the growing roles of nurse practitioners (NPs) and physician assistants (PAs), patients are increasingly able to choose their primary care provider type. Studies examining patient preferences among provider types are limited and ours is the first to examine reasons for patients’ provider type preferences. Methods Using data from the 2014 Association of American Medical Colleges’ (AAMC) Consumer Survey of Health Care Access, we used qualitative analysis to identify themes in open text responses of reasons for respondents’ provider type preference (N = 4220). After coding responses for themes, we used chi-square tests to assess whether there were statistically significant differences in respondents’ reasons for their provider preference, and whether reasons vary by the gender, race, or age of the respondent. Results Those preferring physicians were more likely to cite physician qualifications (75%) and trust (7%) than those preferring NP/PAs (qualifications = 36%; trust = 4%). Those preferring NP/PAs were more likely to cite bedside manner (20%) and convenience (9%) than those preferring physicians (bedside manner = 5%; convenience = 4%). Both groups of respondents were equally likely to mention previous experience with their provider type as a reason for their preference (prefer physician = 19%; prefer NP/PA = 21%). Conclusions Provider qualifications and previous health care experiences are cited as key reasons for preferring all provider types. Additionally, physicians are more often preferred for their qualifications and technical skills, whereas NP/PAs are more often preferred for their interpersonal skills. Implications Our results could help providers, health system administrators, workforce planners, and policy makers better understand patient perspectives and design care that enhances patient satisfaction.