cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Sequential motor ability of left-handed inverted and non-inverted writers

Abstract Left-handed female subjects, categorized as using an inverted (LI) (n=7) or non-inverted (LN) (n=7) writing posture, were compared on performance of a motor task. Task parameters were manipulated to create four conditions varying in demand for sequential processing. Based on previously observed group differences in the direction and extent of hemispheric lateralization, non-inverted writers were predicated to exhibit superior left hand performance. An analysis of variance substantiated a performance superiority by the LN writers, however, post hoc analysis indicated the difference to exist only at the highest level of task difficulty. Analysis of right-hand performance revealed a significant group difference in favor of the LN writers and a group-by-sequential processing demand interaction. This interaction indicated that the decrement in performance of LI writers, relative to LN writers, increased systematically with increases in task demands for sequential processing. Since previous research indicated that inverted writers exhibit less hemispheric specialization of function, it is concluded that this bilateral representation is associated with an overall reduction in sequential processing ability.
Highlighting computations in bioscience and bioinformatics: review of the Symposium of Computations in Bioinformatics and Bioscience (SCBB07)

The Second Symposium on Computations in Bioinformatics and Bioscience (SCBB07) was held in Iowa City, Iowa, USA, on August 13–15, 2007. This annual event attracted dozens of bioinformatics professionals and students, who are interested in solving emerging computational problems in bioscience, from China, Japan, Taiwan and the United States. The Scientific Committee of the symposium selected 18 peer-reviewed papers for publication in this supplemental issue of BMC Bioinformatics. These papers cover a broad spectrum of topics in computational biology and bioinformatics, including DNA, protein and genome sequence analysis, gene expression and microarray analysis, computational proteomics and protein structure classification, systems biology and machine learning.
Cell fate regulation governed by a repurposed bacterial histidine kinase

One of the simplest organisms to divide asymmetrically is the bacterium Caulobacter crescentus. The DivL pseudo-histidine kinase, positioned at one cell pole, regulates cell-fate by controlling the activation of the global transcription factor CtrA via an interaction with the response regulator (RR) DivK. DivL uniquely contains a tyrosine at the histidine phosphorylation site, and can achieve these regulatory functions in vivo without kinase activity. Determination of the DivL crystal structure and biochemical analysis of wild-type and site-specific DivL mutants revealed that the DivL PAS domains regulate binding specificity for DivK∼P over DivK, which is modulated by an allosteric intramolecular interaction between adjacent domains. We discovered that DivL's catalytic domains have been repurposed as a phosphospecific RR input sensor, thereby reversing the flow of information observed in conventional histidine kinase (HK)-RR systems and coupling a complex network of signaling proteins for cell-fate regulation.
Solid-particle erosion of tungsten carbide/cobalt cermet and hardened 440C stainless steel—A comparison

Abstract Solid-particle erosion tests were conducted on hardened AISI 440C stainless steel and a cermet that consisted of ≈90 vol.% submicrometer WC embedded in ≈10 vol.% Co. Angular Al 2 O 3 abrasives were used as the erodent. Experimental variables were: angle of impact = 20°, 50°, or 90°; erodent velocity = 60 or 120 m/s; erodent nominal diameter = 63 or 143 μm. For all test conditions, the stainless steel eroded faster than the cermet. Analysis of weight-loss data and examination of eroded surfaces by scanning electron microscopy indicated that the erosion mechanisms were similar for the two hard materials. Both exhibited significant plasticity when impacted, but the stainless steel's response to impact appeared to have been more ductile in nature.
Cryoanalgesia for painful peripheral nerve lesions.

Abstract Twelve patients with chronically painful peripheral nerve lesions were treated with cryoanalgesia. The pain was relieved in 6 patients for 1–12 months. Although the pain eventually recurred, the patients resumed normal activities during remission. It is necessary to improve the techniques of nerve localization and to determine the proper mode of nerve freezing.
Pre-operative Gynecologic Evaluation of Bariatric Surgery Patients: Improving Cancer Detection in a High-Risk Population

Background Obesity is strongly associated with endometrial and breast cancers; further, obese women are less likely to undergo recommended cancer screening. The objective was to determine the preoperative practices of bariatric surgeons with regard to gynecologic assessment and cancer screening. Study Design A 28-question survey was mailed to 1,503 US bariatric surgeons to assess self-reported perceptions of gynecologic cancer screening, preoperative evaluation of female patients, and gynecologic oncology awareness and knowledge. Results Of 1,503 surgeons, 274 responded (18%) and 11incomplete surveys were excluded, leaving 263 (17%) for analysis. Mean surgeon age was 46.8 years. Surgeons averaged 13.9 years postresidency and were predominantly male (89%). Eighty percent obtained gynecologic histories, but 56% and 49%, respectively, did not require Pap tests or mammograms before bariatric surgery. Only 21% had ever referred a patient for endometrial evaluation. Female surgeons were more likely to obtain menstrual and cancer-related family histories (p Conclusions Given the massive increases in morbid obesity and bariatric surgery in women, surgeons could serve a vital role in educating patients about both gynecologic and nongynecologic malignancy risks. With appropriate referral for cancer screening, patient outcomes could improve.
Targeted resistance gene mapping in soybean using modified AFLPs.

The soybean [Glycine max (Merr.) L.] linkage group F contains a vital region of clustered genes for resistance to numerous pathogens including the soybean mosaic virus resistance gene, Rsv1. In order to develop new genetic markers that map to this gene cluster, we employed a targeted approach that utilizes the speed and high-throughput of AFLP, but modified it to incorporate sequence information from the highly conserved nucleotide binding site (NBS) region of cloned disease resistance genes. By using a labeled degenerate primer corresponding to the p-loop portion of the NBS region of resistance genes, such as N, L6, and Rps2, we were able to quickly amplify numerous polymorphic bands between parents of a population segregating for resistance to Rsv1. Of these polymorphic bands, bulk segregant analysis revealed four markers that were closely linked to Rsv1. These markers were cloned and used as probes for RFLP analysis. The four clones mapped to within a 6-cM region surrounding Rsv1, the closest being 0.4 cM away from the gene. Sequence analysis showed that all four clones contain the p-loop sequence corresponding to the degenerate primer and that one of the four clones contains an open reading frame sequence which when translated is related to the NBS region of other cloned disease resistance genes. The rapid identification of four markers closely linked to Rsv1 in soybean demonstrates the utility of this method for generating markers tightly linked to important plant disease resistance genes.
Morphological alterations in hippocampus after long-term alcohol consumption in mice

Golgi methods were used to examine the hippocampus of laboratory mice that received alcohol-containing or control diets for 4 months followed by a 2-month alcohol-free period. Long-term alcohol consumption resulted in a significant loss of dendritic spines on hippocampal pyramidal cells and dentate granule cells. This study provides evidence that long-term alcohol consumption, in the absence of malnutrition, produces morphological damage to the central nervous system.
Contribution of dietary oxalate to urinary oxalate excretion

Contribution of dietary oxalate to urinary oxalate excretion. Background The amount of oxalate excreted in urine has a significant impact on calcium oxalate supersaturation and stone formation. Dietary oxalate is believed to make only a minor (10 to 20%) contribution to the amount of oxalate excreted in urine, but the validity of the experimental observations that support this conclusion can be questioned. An understanding of the actual contribution of dietary oxalate to urinary oxalate excretion is important, as it is potentially modifiable. Methods We varied the amount of dietary oxalate consumed by a group of adult individuals using formula diets and controlled, solid-food diets with a known oxalate content, determined by a recently developed analytical procedure. Controlled solid-food diets were consumed containing 10, 50, and 250 mg of oxalate/2500 kcal, as well as formula diets containing 0 and 180 mg oxalate/2500 kcal. Changes in the content of oxalate and other ions were assessed in 24-hour urine collections. Results Urinary oxalate excretion increased as dietary oxalate intake increased. With oxalate-containing diets, the mean contribution of dietary oxalate to urinary oxalate excretion ranged from 24.4 ± 15.5% on the 10 mg/2500 kcal/day diet to 41.5 ± 9.1% on the 250 mg/2500 kcal/day diet, much higher than previously estimated. When the calcium content of a diet containing 250 mg of oxalate was reduced from 1002 mg to 391 mg, urinary oxalate excretion increased by a mean of 28.2 ± 4.8%, and the mean dietary contribution increased to 52.6 ± 8.6%. Conclusions These results suggest that dietary oxalate makes a much greater contribution to urinary oxalate excretion than previously recognized, that dietary calcium influences the bioavailability of ingested oxalate, and that the absorption of dietary oxalate may be an important factor in calcium oxalate stone formation.
Investigating rare events with nonequilibrium work measurements. II. Transition and reaction rates

We present a formalism for investigating transition pathways and transition probabilities for rare events in biomolecular systems. The formalism is based on combining Transition Path Theory with the results of nonequilibrium work relations, and shows that the equilibrium and nonequilibrium transition rates are in fact related. Aside from its fundamental importance, this allows for the calculation of relative equilibrium reaction rates with driven nonequilibrium simulations such as Steered Molecular Dynamics. The workings of the formalism are illustrated with a few typical numerical examples.
Gibberellin A3 reverts floral primordia to vegetative growth in sorghum

Abstract Immature inflorescences of Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench were cultured on defined media that contained isopentenyl adenine or gibberellin A 3 (GA 3 , gibberellic acid) to examine the effect of these phytohormones on the development of phyllody or leafy panicles, a common symptom associated with sorghum head smut, caused by Sporisorium reilianum . Floral primordia after application of GA 3 reverted to a vegetative leafy growth and these eventually produced autotrophic plants. This response mimics the developmental effect of smut infection. It appeared that the effect of GA 3 was specific for internodal elongation and maintenance of vegetative growth and did not promote or allow floral development. Phyllody in partially infected sorghum plants could therefore be due to an increase in GA 3 in the affected panicles.
The absorption and emission of impurity lines from hot compressed argon with a trace of graphite powder

Abstract The spectrum obtained from argon compressed by a ballistic compressor presents an interesting situation of absorption and emission of impurity lines from a mass of gas not of uniform temperature and with a trace of graphite powder. A theoretical account for the lines which appear in emission prior to peak compression and in absorption thereafter is given.
Dopaminergic regulation of cholecystokinin mRNA content in rat striatum.

Abstract The nigrostriatal dopaminergic activity was pharmacologically changed to assess whether dopamine (DA) regulates cholecystokinin (CCK) mRNA steady state in rat striatum. Cocaine and benztropine, two dopaminergic agonists known to induce DA release and to block its re-uptake, produced a time dependent increase in CCK mRNA content in rat striatum. A significant increase in striatal CCK mRNA was observed 8 h after a single injection of cocaine (15 mg/kg, i.p.) or benztropine (15 mg/kg, i.p.) whereas a two-fold increase was observed after a daily treatment for one week with these two dopaminergic agonists. Cocaine and benztropine failed to change CCK mRNA content in the cerebral cortex. Haloperidol, a dopaminergic receptor blocker, injected at 1 mg/kg, i.p., daily for 7 days, decreased CCK mRNA content in striatum but not in the cerebral cortex. Moreover, haloperidol blocked the effect of cocaine and benztropine, suggesting that the stimulation of striatal dopaminergic receptors is necessary for the induction of CCK biosynthesis. The neurotoxin 6-hydroxydopamine injected into the medial forebrain bundle, elicited a 50% decrease in striatal CCK mRNA, supporting the hypothesis that DA tonically regulates CCK biosynthesis in postsynaptic neurons. To characterize the dopaminergic receptor subtype involved in this regulation, BHT 920, a specific D2 receptor agonist and SKF 38393, a specific D1 receptor agonist were used. While one week treatment with BHT 920 (1 mg/kg, i.p.) increases striatal CCK mRNA content, SKF 38393 (3 mg/kg, i.p.) failed to change this parameter. These data suggests that the increase of striatal CCK mRNA is mediated by the activation of the D2 receptor subtype.
Behavioral evidence for the evolution of walking and bounding before terrestriality in sarcopterygian fishes

Tetrapods evolved from sarcopterygian fishes in the Devonian and were the first vertebrates to colonize land. The locomotor component of this transition can be divided into four major events: terrestriality, the origins of digited limbs, solid substrate-based locomotion, and alternating gaits that use pelvic appendages as major propulsors. As the sister group to tetrapods, lungfish are a morphologically and phylogenetically relevant sarcopterygian taxon for understanding the order in which these events occurred. We found that a species of African lungfish (Protopterus annectens) uses a range of pelvic fin-driven, tetrapod-like gaits, including walking and bounding, in an aquatic environment, despite having a derived limb endoskeleton and primitively small, muscularly supported pelvis. Surprisingly, given these morphological traits, P. annectens also lifts its body clear of the substrate using its pelvic fins, an ability thought to be a tetrapod innovation. Our findings suggest that some fundamental features of tetrapod locomotion, including pelvic limb gait patterns and substrate association, probably arose in sarcopterygians before the origin of digited limbs or terrestriality. It follows that the attribution of some of the nondigited Devonian fossil trackways to limbed tetrapods may need to be revisited.
A system for transformational analysis

A system is proposed here for assigning a derived P-marker to a given transformed sentence and obtaining the corresponding base P-marker at the same time. Rules of analytical phrase-structure grammar for such a system have associated with them information pertaining to the transformational histories of their own derivation. When a phrase-structure analysis of the sentence is obtained, the set of grammar rules used for the analysis contains all the information necessary for the direct mapping of the derived P-marker into the corresponding P-marker. The system can also be used for decomposing a given complex sentence into "kernel" sentences for the purpose of structure matching between a query sentence and stored document sentences in information retrieval. An experimental program for the proposed system has been written and is currently tested with a small sample grammar. Study is underway to see if there is any mechanical procedure for obtaining an analytical phrase structure grammar of the proposed type for a given transformational grammar.
Order splitting in single sourcing with scheduled-release orders

Traditional inventory models assume that a buyer places one order with a supplier in each order cycle. A large number of researchers have studied the benefits of dual sourcing such that an order quantity is split and placed simultaneously with two suppliers. We show that many of the benefits of dual sourcing are due to order splitting rather than using two suppliers. We investigate order splitting with one supplier such that the first part of the order is sent out immediately but the second part of the order is released later (scheduled-release). Through extensive computational results, we show that in many situations where dual sourcing or the use of a cheaper supplier would be cost effective, single sourcing with order splitting using scheduled-release orders is better. The paper provides a quantitative rationale to continue with one supplier. We also summarize the qualitative reasons to prefer single sourcing or multiple sourcing.
Geometric algorithms for manufacturing of freeform multi-material objects using reconfigurable tools

In this research, geometric algorithms for representation and fabrication of three-dimensional (3D) freeform multi-material objects using a rapidly reconfigurable moulding process have been presented. The rapidly reconfigurable moulding system consists of many discrete arrays of pins each forming the mould-face of a mould block. A new material representation scheme is proposed for freeform multi-material objects. The geometric algorithms detailed in this paper analyse the given multi-material object and decompose it based on the material regions and manufacturability of the regions using silhouette-edge based method. The processing sequence is then determined to fabricate the decomposed multi-material object using the reconfigurable moulding process. Computer implementation and illustrative examples are also presented.
On monotone chaining procedures of the CF type

Abstract We study procedures in which revised estimates of variables are iteratively computed, from initially given estimates, via use of monotone functions. Under broad hypotheses, we show how to obtain the limit values, when these exist, by solving a single mixed integer program. This result aids the computation of ‘measures of belief’ in procedures based on inexact reasoning, such as occur in some ‘expert systems’.
Spying on America : the FBI's domestic counterintelligence program

The Media Office Raid: Secret FBI Counterintelligence Becomes Public The Communist Party, U.S.A. COINTELPRO The Socialist Workers Party COINTELPRO The White Hate Group COINTELPRO The Black Nationalist Hate Group COINTELPRO The New Left COINTELPRO The End of COINTELPRO Bibliography Index
Aberrant responses in social interaction of dopamine transporter knockout mice

The dopamine (DA) transporter (DAT) controls the temporal and spatial resolution of dopaminergic neurotransmission. Disruption of the Dat1 gene in mice leads to increased extracellular DA concentrations and reduced expression of D1- and D2-like receptors in striatum. The mutants are hyperactive in the open field and they display deficits in learning and memory. In humans, dopaminergic dysfunction has been associated with a number of different psychiatric disorders and some of these conditions are accompanied by abnormal social responses. To determine whether social responses were also impaired in DAT knockout (KO) mice, behaviors of group- and isolation-housed animals were compared. All group-housed animals readily established hierarchies. However, the social organizations of the mutants were changed over time. Under both group- and isolation-housed conditions, mutants exhibited increased rates of reactivity and aggression following mild social contact. In isolation, exposure to a novel environment exacerbated these abnormal responses. Regardless of housing context, stereotyped and perseverative patterns of social responses were a common feature of the KO repertoire. In fact, many abnormal behaviors were due to the emergence and predominance of these inflexible behaviors. These data suggest that KO mice may serve as a useful animal model for understanding not only how DA dysfunction contributes to social abnormalities, but also how behavioral inflexibility distorts their social responses.
How to Do Things with Time

Sample selection bias is a common problem in the business history literature. This paper proposes methods for researching and writing the history of firms and industries designed to address the problem. The key elements are a forward-looking perspective and close attention to the development over time of selection environments, the resources individual firms can mobilize, and understanding an agency within the firm or firms.
The embryonic human choriocapillaris develops by hemo‐vasculogenesis

The purpose of this study was to characterize normal human choroidal vascular development from 6-23 weeks gestation (WG). Markers of endothelial cells (EC) (CD34, CD31, vWf), angioblasts and EC (CD39), leukocytes (CD45), erythroblasts (epsilon chain of hemoglobin, Hb-e), proliferating cells (Ki67), and VEGFR-2 were employed. At 6-7 WG, many erythroblasts were observed within islands of precursor cells in the choriocapillaris layer and others were independent from the islands. Many erythroblasts (Hb-epsilon(+)) were also positive for EC markers and/or VEGFR-2. By 8-12 WG, most of the Hb-epsilon cells had disappeared and vascular lumens became apparent. At 14-23 WG, some EC were proliferating on the scleral side of choriocapillaris in association with forming deeper vessels. In conclusion, embryonic choriocapillaris appears to form initially by hemo-vasculogenesis (blood vessels and blood cells form simultaneously from common precursors) while angiogenesis appears to be the mode of intermediate and large choroidal vessel development in the fetus.
Does a robotic scrub nurse improve economy of movements

Objective: Robotic assistance during surgery has been shown to be a useful resource to both augment the surgical skills of the surgeon through tele-operation, and to assist the surgeon handling the surgical instruments to the surgeon, similar to a surgical tech. We evaluated the performance and effect of a gesture driven surgical robotic nurse in the context of economy of movements, during an abdominal incision and closure exercise with a simulator. Methods: A longitudinal midline incision (100 mm) was performed on the simulated abdominal wall to enter the peritoneal cavity without damaging the internal organs. The wound was then closed using a blunt needle ensuring that no tissue is caught up by the suture material. All the instruments required to complete this task were delivered by a robotic surgical manipulator directly to the surgeon. The instruments were requested through voice and gesture recognition. The robotic system used a low end range sensor camera to extract the hand poses and for recognizing the gestures. The instruments were delivered to the vicinity of the patient, at chest height and at a reachable distance to the surgeon. Task performance measures for each of three abdominal incision and closure exercises were measured and compared to a human scrub nurse instrument delivery action. Picking instrument position variance, completion time and trajectory of the hand were recorded for further analysis. Results: The variance of the position of the robotic tip when delivering the surgical instrument is compared to the same position when a human delivers the instrument. The variance was found to be 88.86% smaller compared to the human delivery group. The mean task completion time to complete the surgical exercise was 162.7± 10.1 secs for the human assistant and 191.6± 3.3 secs (P<.01) when using the robotic standard display group. Conclusion: Multimodal robotic scrub nurse assistant improves the surgical procedure by reducing the number of movements (lower variance in the picking position). The variance of the picking point is closely related to the concept of economy of movements in the operating room. Improving the effectiveness of the operating room can potentially enhance the safety of surgical interventions without affecting the performance time.
A Characterization of Retailer Response to Manufacturer Trade Deals

In this article, the author provides a simple characterization of retailer response to manufacturer trade deals in terms of the consumer demand conditions that the retailer faces. Specifically, the...
Biochemical constituents of the blood plasma and pericardial fluid of several marine bivalve molluscs: Implications for ultrafiltration

Abstract Protein and N- acetylamino sugar concentrations are significantly lower in Mercenaria mercenaria pericardial fluid than in blood plasma, although concentrations of Na + , K + , lipid, glucose and carbohydrate are similar in each compartment. Of the > 35 protein subunits identified in plasma by 7.5% SDS-PAGE, up to 24 are found in pericardial fluid, yet only six to 10 are appreciably stained. Three pericardial fluid bands (28, 30 and 53 kDa) are absent from plasma. Densitometric measurements imply that the effective threshold for ultrafiltration is above 51 and below 83 kDa. Comparable qualitative SDS-PAGE results were obtained for Crassedoma giganteum, Patinopecten caurinus , and Mytilus californianus .
Nitrogen-incorporated ultrananocrystalline diamond microneedle arrays for electrochemical biosensing

Abstract Microneedles are minimally invasive transdermal medical devices that are utilized for various applications, including drug delivery, fluid sampling, micro-dialysis, and electrochemical sensing. These devices are associated with less pain and tissue damage as compared with conventional hypodermic needle-based devices. In this study, we demonstrate fabrication of titanium alloy microneedle arrays with nitrogen-incorporated ultrananocrystalline diamond (N-UNCD) coatings. Microneedles were micromachined from ASTM F136 ELI Ti –6Al–4V alloy, a widely used medical-grade titanium alloy. N-UNCD coatings were deposited on the microneedles using microwave plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition to enhance mechanical strength, increase hardness, improve biocompatibility, and provide an electrochemically stable surface. The structural and chemical properties of the N-UNCD titanium alloy microneedle arrays were evaluated using scanning electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy. The mechanical robustness and skin penetration capability of the devices were demonstrated using cadaveric porcine skin. Finally, the electrochemical properties of the N-UNCD electrodes were evaluated; in vitro electrochemical detection of uric acid and dopamine was demonstrated using unmodified N-UNCD electrodes. These results demonstrate the application potential of N-UNCD-coated titanium alloy microneedles for transdermal electrochemical biosensing applications.
Measurement of time delays in the parametric production of photon pairs.

The spread in time intervals between the two photons produced in the process of spontaneous parametric down-conversion in a potassium dihydrogen phosphate crystal has been measured with a time resolution of the order of 100 psec. The correlation time is found to be independent of the coherence time of the pump photons or of the propagation time through the crystal, consistent with recent theoretical predictions.
Ulcerative Diphtherial Vulvovaginitis: A Case Report

Abstract A 17-year-old black girl chemotherapy patient presented with right labial soreness which caused significant pain with ambulation. Examination revealed acute vulvovaginitis with a large area of ulceration and edema of the labia minora extending to the posterior fourchette. The ulcer was cultured and grew Staphylococcus aureus and Corynebacterium diphtheriae . The patient was treated with erythromycin with complete resolution of symptoms. The authors emphasize that ulcerative lesions of the genital region may be caused by a variety of infectious organisms. Therefore, accurate diagnosis requires the routine use of culture in all patients.
College Students’ Perceptions and Behaviors Toward Calorie Counts on Menu

This study identified college students’ perceptions and behaviors related to calorie counts on menus and examined any inconsistencies between perception and behavior among different levels of nutrition education. Fifty-four percent of respondents always believed that calorie information on menus can assist weight maintenance or weight loss. Forty-one percent of respondents always wanted to see calorie counts on menus at all restaurants. Behavioral statements were overall carried out “sometimes” by one third of students, while only one tenth of respondents indicated that they always changed menu selections or eating habits after knowing the calorie count. There were differences in perception and behavior score (PB Score) among different levels of nutrition education. This study confirmed the importance of nutrition education for college students in affecting menu item choices.
Complex cloacal malformations: use of rotational fluoroscopy and 3-D reconstruction in diagnosis and surgical planning

A cloacal malformation is a congenital malformation in which the urinary tract, gynecological system and distal rectum fail to separate and form a common channel with a single perineal opening. Precise anatomical information is required to plan surgery and predict prognosis for children with this abnormality. Conventional fluoroscopic studies provide limited information, primarily due to the overlap of structures and inability to make accurate measurements. Rotational fluoroscopy and 3-D reconstruction help clarify overlapping structures and allow for precise measurement of the common channel, thereby helping to predict the complexity of the surgical case as well as the long-term prognosis regarding bowel, bladder and sexual function.
Organic matrix in produced water from the Osage-Skiatook Petroleum Environmental Research site, Osage county, Oklahoma

Produced water (water co-produced with oil and gas) constitutes the single largest waste stream for oil and gas industry. Reclaiming this water for beneficial use is thought to be one of the most practical solutions that can solve both environmental and water shortage problems. The feasibility of this practice depends on the ability to remove its chemical content to the levels that meets the appropriate standards. Organic compounds are probably the most difficult fraction to handle. In this paper, the discrete organic compounds and non-volatile, macromolecular organic compounds (i.e., natural organic matter--NOM) of three produced water samples from the Osage-Skiatook Environmental Research site were characterized. Two of the three produced waters had very little contribution from NOM, while one of the samples had about 23% NOM contribution to its organic matrix pool. Fluorescent spectrophotometric scans provided little differentiation among the organic quality of the produced water, while pyrolysis-GC/MS showed that the NOM characteristics of the three produced waters were distinct. Specifically, the overall halogenated content and aromaticity of the NOM were found to be possible qualifiers that distinguish produced water from the coalbed methane well from produced water from the oil well. And the specific chemical fragments that are linked to polysaccharide sources were found to be potential identifiers that distinguish produced water from the newer oil well from produced water from the older oil well. These identifiers were, however, only suggested for this preliminary study. More samples must be included to build a substantial database on produced water NOM to confirm and identify more markers.
Branching ratio for the M1 decay of the 2 (2)S1/2 state in one-electron krypton.

We report a measurement of the lifetime of the 2 [sup 2][ital S][sub 1/2] state in one-electron krypton and a direct determination of the branching ratio for the [ital M]1 decay of this state. The branching-ratio measurement provides a sensitive test of the relativistic corrections to the decay rate. The lifetime measurement yields (36.8[plus minus]1.4) ps and the branching ratio is found to be 0.356(15), both in good agreement with the theoretical values of 37.008 ps and 0.3643, respectively. From these measurements we also deduce the corresponding magnetic-dipole decay rate [ital A][sub [ital M]1]=9.68(55)[times]10[sup 9]s[sup [minus]1] and the two-photon decay rate [ital A][sub 2[ital E]1] =1.750(78)[times]10[sup 10] s[sup [minus]1].
Menopause and the human hypothalamus: Evidence for the role of kisspeptin/neurokinin B neurons in the regulation of estrogen negative feedback

Menopause is characterized by depletion of ovarian follicles, a reduction of ovarian hormones to castrate levels and elevated levels of serum gonadotropins. Rather than degenerating, the reproductive neuroendocrine axis in postmenopausal women is intact and responds robustly to the removal of ovarian hormones. Studies in both human and non-human primates provide evidence that the gonadotropin hypersecretion in postmenopausal women is secondary to increased gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) secretion from the hypothalamus. In addition, menopause is accompanied by hypertrophy of neurons in the infundibular (arcuate) nucleus expressing KiSS-1, neurokinin B (NKB), substance P, dynorphin and estrogen receptor alpha (ERalpha) mRNA. Ovariectomy in experimental animals induces nearly identical findings, providing evidence that these changes are a compensatory response to ovarian failure. The anatomical site of the hypertrophied neurons, as well as the extensive data implicating kisspeptin, NKB and dynorphin in the regulation of GnRH secretion, provide compelling evidence that these neurons are part of the neural network responsible for the increased levels of serum gonadotropins in postmenopausal women. We propose that neurons expressing KiSS-1, NKB, substance P, dynorphin and ERalpha mRNA in the infundibular nucleus play an important role in sex-steroid feedback on gonadotropin secretion in the human.
Conductance Changes Associated with Receptor Potential in Limulus Photoreceptors

The receptor potential in Limulus photoreceptors appears to be a consequence not of permeability changes in the cell membrane but of alterations in a light-sensitive constant-current generator.
Domain flexibility modulates the heterogeneous assembly mechanism of anthrax toxin protective antigen.

The three protein components of anthrax toxin are nontoxic individually, but they form active holotoxin complexes upon assembly. The role of the protective antigen (PA) component of the toxin is to deliver two other enzyme components, lethal factor and edema factor, across the plasma membrane and into the cytoplasm of target cells. PA is produced as a proprotein, which must be proteolytically activated; generally, cell surface activation is mediated by a furin family protease. Activated PA can then assemble into one of two noninterconverting oligomers, a homoheptamer and a homooctamer, which have unique properties. Herein we describe molecular determinants that influence the stoichiometry of PA in toxin complexes. By tethering PA domain 4 (D4) to domain 2 with two different-length cross-links, we can control the relative proportions of PA heptamers and octamers. The longer cross-link favors octamer formation, whereas the shorter one favors formation of the heptamer. X-ray crystal structures of PA (up to 1.45 A resolution), including these cross-linked PA constructs, reveal that a hinge-like movement of D4 correlates with the relative preference for each oligomeric architecture. Furthermore, we report the conformation of the flexible loop containing the furin cleavage site and show that, for efficient processing, the furin site cannot be moved ~5 or 6 residues within the loop. We propose that there are different orientations of D4 relative to the main body of PA that favor the formation of either the heptamer or the octamer.
The move of IRDS repository standards toward object orientation

Abstract Standards for repository systems are in the midst of a move toward an object-oriented foundation. Repository systems need object management concepts like inheritance, encapsulating operations, and name overloading to function with the flexibility and extensibility required to control and integrate information at an enterprise level. Object orientation provides the necessary basis for future evolution of repository standards to knowledge management solutions that support a full and rigorous definition of the meaning of an enterprise's information and business policies.
Utility-Based Energy-Efficient Power Control for Multi-Carrier DS/CDMA

In this paper, based on the Nash game theory, we first propose a non-cooperative power control game for MC-DS/CDMA systems. Then, we present an ameliorated power control solution by introducing a pricing strategy to improve the overall quality of service (QoS) of the entire system. Compared to previous pricing strategies, our pricing scheme aims at increasing the entire system utility rather than individual utility to ensure that each player adopts a social behavior. Moreover, it does not require tuning or training procedures to avoid large computational complexity. Therefore, our approach forces each user to share efficiently rather than seek aggressively the system resources. Computer simulation results show that the proposed approach achieves a significant improvement in the total system utility, and it is useful in combating multiple access interference (MAI) and additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) power to maintain satisfactory performance
Developmental Analysis of Spliceosomal snRNA Isoform Expression

Pre-mRNA splicing is a critical step in eukaryotic gene expression that contributes to proteomic, cellular, and developmental complexity. Small nuclear (sn)RNAs are core spliceosomal components; however, the extent to which differential expression of snRNA isoforms regulates splicing is completely unknown. This is partly due to difficulties in the accurate analysis of the spatial and temporal expression patterns of snRNAs. Here, we use high-throughput RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) data to profile expression of four major snRNAs throughout Drosophila development. This analysis shows that individual isoforms of each snRNA have distinct expression patterns in the embryo, larva, and pharate adult stages. Expression of these isoforms is more heterogeneous during embryogenesis; as development progresses, a single isoform from each snRNA subtype gradually dominates expression. Despite the lack of stable snRNA orthologous groups during evolution, this developmental switching of snRNA isoforms also occurs in distantly related vertebrate species, such as Xenopus, mouse, and human. Our results indicate that expression of snRNA isoforms is regulated and lays the foundation for functional studies of individual snRNA isoforms.
Further serial transmission electron microscopy studies of auditory hair cell innervation in lizards and in a snake

Auditory hair cells of three lizard and one snake species were studied by serial transmission electron microscopy (TEM) sections of two unidirectional hair cells (UHC) and two bidirectional hair cells (BHC) and by nonserial section montages of each entire papilla cut at 2-microns intervals across the papillar width. The unidirectional hair cell region of the agamid lizard, Acanthosaura crucigera, lacked efferent innervation. Another agamid lizard, Agama agama, studied by nonserial section only, also lacked efferent innervation to the UHC. Afferent innervation to both the UHC and BHC of Acanthosaura was primarily exclusive (each nerve fiber innervates only one hair cell), although an occasional nerve fiber innervated two hair cells. Both the UHC and the BHC of the anguid, Celestus costatus, were exclusively innervated. Both hair cell types of the varanid, Varanus exanthematicus, were nonexclusively innervated (all afferent nerve fibers innervate two or more hair cells). The auditory papilla of the colubrid snake, Elaphe obsoleta, has only one type of hair cell and each is nonexclusively innervated. The numbers of afferent and efferent nerve fibers and of afferent synapses are presented in tabular form.
Yohimbine impairs extinction of cocaine-conditioned place preference in an α2-adrenergic receptor independent process

Extinction, a form of learning that has the ability to reshape learned behavior based on new experiences, has been heavily studied utilizing fear learning paradigms. Mechanisms underlying extinction of positive-valence associations, such as drug self-administration and place preference, are poorly understood yet may have important relevance to addiction treatment. Data suggest a major role for the noradrenergic system in extinction of fear-based learning. Employing both pharmacological and genetic approaches, we investigated the role of the α2-adrenergic receptor (α2-AR) in extinction of cocaine-conditioned place preference (CPP) and glutamatergic transmission in the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST). We found that pre-extinction systemic treatment with the α2-AR antagonist yohimbine impaired cocaine CPP extinction in C57BL/6J mice, an effect that was not mimicked by the more selective α2-AR antagonist, atipamezole. Moreover, α2A-AR knockout mice exhibited similar cocaine CPP extinction and exacerbated extinction impairing effects of yohimbine. Using acute brain slices and electrophysiological approaches, we found that yohimbine produces a slowly evolving depression of glutamatergic transmission in the BNST that was not mimicked by atipamezole. Further, this action was extant in slices from α2A-AR knockout mice. Our data strongly suggest that extinction-modifying effects of yohimbine are unlikely to be due to actions at α2A-ARs.
Nonlinear absorption in a GaAs waveguide just above half the band gap

Nonlinear absorption in a GaAs waveguide is measured with photon energies near half the band-gap energy by employing single-beam and pump-probe attenuation techniques. Two-photon absorption followed by free-carrier absorption are the dominant nonlinear absorption mechanisms that are included in a model that fits the experimental data. >
Introducing incentives in the market for live and cadaveric organ donations.

We evaluate the introduction of monetary incentives in the market for live and cadaveric organ donations. We show that monetary incentives would increase the supply of organs for transplant sufficiently to eliminate the very large queues in organ markets, and the suffering and deaths of many of those waiting, without increasing the total cost of transplant surgery by more than about 12 percent. We build on the value-of-life literature and other parts of economic analysis to estimate the equilibrium cost of live transplants for kidneys and livers. We also show that market price for kidneys will be determined by the cost of live donations, even though most organs will come from cadavers.
Legion: Lessons Learned Building a Grid Operating System

Legion was the first integrated grid middleware architected from first principles to address the complexity of grid environments. Just as a traditional operating system provides an abstract interface to the underlying physical resources of a machine, Legion was designed to provide a powerful virtual machine interface layered over the distributed, heterogeneous, autonomous, and fault-prone physical and logical resources that constitute a grid. We believe that without a solid, integrated, operating system-like grid middleware, grids will fail to cross the chasm from bleeding-edge supercomputing users to more mainstream computing. This work provides an overview of the architectural principles that drove Legion, a high-level description of the system with complete references to more detailed explanations, and the history of Legion from first inception in August 1993 through commercialization. We present a number of important lessons, both technical and sociological, learned during the course of developing and deploying Legion.
ARCHER: using symbolic, path-sensitive analysis to detect memory access errors

Memory corruption errors lead to non-deterministic, elusive crashes. This paper describes ARCHER (ARray CHeckER) a static, effective memory access checker. ARCHER uses path-sensitive, interprocedural symbolic analysis to bound the values of both variables and memory sizes. It evaluates known values using a constraint solver at every array access, pointer dereference, or call to a function that expects a size parameter. Accesses that violate constraints are flagged as errors. Those that are exploitable by malicious attackers are marked as security holes.Memory corruption errors lead to non-deterministic, elusive crashes. This paper describes ARCHER (ARray CHeckER) a static, effective memory access checker. ARCHER uses path-sensitive, interprocedural symbolic analysis to bound the values of both variables and memory sizes. It evaluates known values using a constraint solver at every array access, pointer dereference, or call to a function that expects a size parameter. Accesses that violate constraints are flagged as errors. Those that are exploitable by malicious attackers are marked as security holes.We carefully designed ARCHER to work well on large bodies of source code. It requires no annotations to use (though it can use them). Its solver has been built to be powerful in the ways that real code requires, while backing off on the places that were irrelevant. Selective power allows it to gain efficiency while avoiding classes of false positives that arise when a complex analysis interacts badly with statically undecidable program properties. ARCHER uses statistical code analysis to automatically infer the set of functions that it should track --- this inference serves as a robust guard against omissions, especially in large systems which can have hundreds of such functions.In practice ARCHER is effective: it finds many errors; its analysis scales to systems of millions of lines of code and the average false positive rate of our results is below 35%. We have run ARCHER over several large open source software projects --- such as Linux, OpenBSD, Sendmail, and PostgreSQL --- and have found errors in all of them (118 in the case of Linux, including 21 security holes).
Medical care value purchasing: medicolegal promises, pitfalls, and progress.

Medical care value purchasing is the latest effort to promote cost containment while maintaining or enhancing the quality of medical care. The fuel driv ing this process is mandated health care cost and quality data disclosure to stimulate competition in oversupplied markets so that the highest quality and lowest cost providers achieve the greatest market share gains. States such as Pennsylvania, pursuant to Act 89, are in the vanguard of this national move ment, sometimes referred to as the "Buy Right Strat egy for Health Care Purchasing."The measurement of provider quality and cost-ef fectiveness will become a "growth industry" in the 1990s. Medical paternalism will give way to con sumer activism in health care decision making. How ever, there are certain medicolegal pitfalls arising from the promises associated with mandated data disclosure concerning provider cost and quality effec tiveness.One pitfall is that the unmeasurable quality attri butes (such as compassion and empathy) will fall into even gr...
Managed Care for Medicare-Medicaid Dual Eligibles: Appropriateness, Availability, Payment, and Policy

The bifurcation of responsibility for caring for dual eligibles has helped create a fragmented service delivery system, fraught with administrative inefficiencies, barriers to more effective care, ...