cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Pentose metabolism in extracts of yeast and mammalian tissues.

Abstract The anaerobic degradation of ribose-5-phosphate by extracts of yeast, brain, skeletal muscle and heart muscle has been investigated. In yeast and brain extracts cleavage occurs between carbon atoms 2 and 3 of the pentose, yielding triose phosphate and an unidentified 2-carbon fragment. With yeast extracts an apparent end-point is reached when 85% of the pentose reactive material has disappeared, and with brain the apparent end-point is reached when 60% has disappeared. In muscle extracts there appears to be no cleavage of a carbon-carbon bond, and the reaction is markedly slowed when 20–25% of the pentose-reactive material has disappeared. The product formed from ribose-5-phosphate by muscle extract is a 2-ketopentose-5-phosphate. Skeletal muscle contains phosphoribomutase which catalyzes the reversible interconversion of ribose-1-phosphate and ribose-5-phosphate. Evidence is presented which identifies the product of yeast ribokinase action (ribose + ATP) as ribose-5-phosphate. The yeast extracts used contain enzymes which catalyzes the dismutation of glycolaldehyde. DPN and TPN appear equally effective in these reactions.
The Insight ToolKit image registration framework

Publicly available scientific resources help establish evaluation standards, provide a platform for teaching and improve reproducibility. Version 4 of the Insight ToolKit ( ITK4 ) seeks to es- tablish new standards in publicly available image registration methodology. ITK4 makes severaladvances in comparison to previous versions of ITK. ITK4 supports both multivariate images and objective functions; it also unifies high-dimensional (deformation field) and low-dimensional (affine) transformations with metrics that are reusable across transform types and with com- posite transforms that allow arbitrary series of geometric mappings to be chained together seamlessly. Metrics and optimizers take advantage of multi-core resources, when available.Furthermore, ITK4 reduces the parameter optimization burden via principled heuristics that automatically set scaling across disparate parameter types (rotations versus translations). A related approach also constrains steps sizes for gradient-based optimizers. The result is that tuning for different metrics and/or image pairs is rarely necessary allowing the researcher tomore easily focus on design/comparison of registration strategies. In total, the ITK4 contribu- tion is intended as a structure to support reproducible research practices, will provide a more extensive foundation against which to evaluate new work in image registration and also enable application level programmers a broad suite of tools on which to build. Finally, we contextu- alize this work with a reference registration evaluation study with application to pediatric brainlabeling.
MEASURING AGGREGATE RELIGIOSITY IN THE UNITED STATES, 1952–2005

I present a method for measuring aggregate religiosity. The method allows one to combine many indicators of religiosity, even if the indicators measure only a portion of religiosity, or if the indicators are not measured every year of the series. I demonstrate the method by measuring aggregate religiosity of the US population from 1952 through 2005. The results show the sharp rise in religiosity during the 1950s, the decline beginning in the 1960s, and the slower decline since the 1970s. I present evidence of content and convergent validity of this new index.
A proton accelerator for medical applications

The conceptual design of a proton synchrotron for radiation treatment of cancer in a hospital is described. The proton energy would be variable on a pulse-pulse basis up to 250 MeV with a maximum accelerated current of 60nA average at a 5 Hz repetition rate. The ring would consist of a number of small straight magnets for ease of construction and flexibility of arrangement of dipoles, quadrupoles, and drift spaces. The ring would be 23 ft in diameter. The same magnets (2 times the number) could also be arranged in a ring of twice the diameter. The synchrotron would then accelerate helium ions to 250 MeV/μ, suitable for the full range of radiation treatment. A major feature of this larger synchrotron, which is the one described below, is the ability to accelerate negative hydrogen ions to 250 MeV (with lower peak magnetic fields to avoid magnetic stripping of the ions) and utilize charge exchange extraction. The latter technique appears to be most promising for satisfying the requirements for dynamic raster scanning of narrow proton beams.
K+-current modulated by PO2 in type I cells in rat carotid body is not a chemosensor

Abstract According to the membrane channel hypothesis of carotid body O2 chemoreception, hypoxia suppresses K+ currents leading to cell depolarization, [Ca2+]i rise, neurosecretion, increased neural discharge from the carotid body. We show here that tetraethylammonium (TEA) plus 4-aminopyridine (4-AP) which suppressed the Ca2+ sensitive and other K+ currents in rat carotid body type I cells, with and without low [Ca2+]o plus high [Mg2+]o, did not essentially influence low PO2 effects on [Ca2+]i and chemosensory discharge. Thus, hypoxia may suppress the K+ currents in glomus cells but K+ current suppression of itself does not lead to chemosensory excitation. Therefore, the hypothesis that K+–O2 current is linked to events in chemoreception is not substantiated. K+–O2 current is an epiphemenon which is not directly linked with O2 chemoreception.
The Pauson-Khand Reaction as a New Entry to the Synthesis of Bridged Bicyclic Heterocycles: Application to the Enantioselective Total Synthesis of (−)-Alstonerine

Abstract The first application of the Pauson–Khand reaction (PKR) to the synthesis of azabridged bicyclic structures is described. Compounds containing azabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane and azabicyclo[3.2.1]octane rings fused to cyclopentenones were efficiently constructed via the PKR of cis-2,6-disubstituted N-acyl piperidine enyne substrates, many of which can be readily prepared from 4-methoxypyridine in a few steps. Moreover, the PKR of cis-2,6-disubstituted piperazine enynes allowed the preparation of diazabicyclo[3.3.1]nonanes fused to cyclopentenones. This new strategy for the synthesis of azabridged bicyclic frameworks was exploited as a key step in a concise, enantioselective total synthesis of the macroline alkaloid (−)-alstonerine.
Radial Collateral Ligament Injury of the Index Metacarpophalangeal Joint: An Underreported but Important Injury

Purpose To present the results of various treatment modalities based on injury grade of radial collateral ligament (RCL) injuries to the index metacarpophalangeal (MP) joint. Methods Fourteen patients were evaluated (4 male, 10 female) with RCL injuries to the index MP joint. We defined injuries as Grade 1 (tenderness over RCL, no instability), grade 2 (laxity compared to the contralateral digit with a definite endpoint), or grade 3 (laxity without endpoint). Early presentation is defined as less than four weeks and late greater than four weeks. Results The average follow up was 24 months. Grade I-II injuries seen early (4 patients) treated with 4–6 weeks splinting had excellent results (normal ROM, stable pinch, pain free). There were no Grade I–II injuries seen late. Of Grade III injuries seen early (2 patients), attempted treatment in a removable splint was unsuccessful secondary to patient noncompliance; subsequently requiring primary repair of the collateral ligament which resulted in good outcomes. No Grade III injury seen early had attempted treatment in a cast. Eight patients presented late with Grade III injuries (4 elected for surgical intervention, 4 for nonsurgical management) and all had fair or poor outcomes. Conclusions The significance of this injury remains underestimated and requires a high index of suspicion. Stable injuries seen early should be treated with prompt immobilization. Casting may be more effective than a removable splint. Grade III injuries seen early could possibly be treated with cast immobilization though close follow up is mandatory as surgical repair may be necessary in the high demand hand. All Grade III injuries treated late yielded fair to poor results requiring tendon reconstruction or fusion with significant alteration in hand function.
Generalized dark-state polaritons for photon memory in multilevel atomic media

We generalize the concept of dark-state polariton in multilevel electromagnetically induced transparency systems. We show that the quantum states of light for the pulses can be mapped onto more than one collective atomic polarization states of the multilevel atomic system, which can act as a quantum state copier or divider. Such dark-state polaritons potentially have applications in quantum information processing.
Crystallinity and mechanical behavior evolution in ethylene-propylene random copolymers

This study investigates crystal changes in Ziegler/Natta-based ethylene−propylene random copolymers subjected to room-temperature annealing. These copolymers, which are being considered as a new class of thermoplastic elastomers, exhibit slow crystallization kinetics. This slow crystallization causes subsequent changes in mechanical behavior that take place over days and even weeks. An initial study consisting of four copolymer compositions is conducted. Crystallization is monitored via differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD) as a function of sample age and composition. For these copolymers WAXD reveals a change in crystal structure from orthorhombic to hexagonal well below the triple point of polyethylene at room temperature and pressure. Mechanical behavior is also monitored in a similar fashion. Evolution of modulus, yield stress, yield strain, and rupture energy are correlated with changes in crystal structure observed through DSC and WAXD.
INSULIN REGULATION OF TRIACYLGLYCEROL-RICH LIPOPROTEIN SYNTHESIS AND SECRETION

This review has considered a number of observations obtained from studies of insulin in perfused liver, hepatocytes, transformed liver cells and in vivo and each of the experimental systems offers advantages. The evaluation of insulin effects on component lipid synthesis suggests that overall, lipid synthesis is positively influenced by insulin. Short-term high levels of insulin through stimulation of intracellular degradation of freshly translated apo B and effects on synthesis limit the ability of hepatocytes to form and secrete TRL. The intracellular site of apo B degradation may involve membrane-bound apo B, cytoplasmic apo B and apo B which has entered the ER lumen. How insulin favors intracellular apo B degradation is not known. An area of recent investigation is in insulin-stimulated phosphorylation of intracellular substrates such as IRS-1 which activates insulin specific cellular signaling molecules [245]. Candidate molecules to study insulin action on apo B include IRS-1 and SH2-containing signaling molecules. Insulin dysregulation in carbohydrate metabolism occurs in non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus due to an imbalance between insulin sensitivity of tissue and pancreatic insulin secretion (reviewed in Refs. [307,308]). Insulin resistance in the liver results in the inability to suppress hepatic glucose production; in muscle, in impaired glucose uptake and oxidation and in adipose tissue, in the inability to suppress release of free FA. This lack of appropriate sensitivity towards insulin action leads to hyperglycemia which in turn stimulates compensatory insulin secretion by the pancreas leading to hyperinsulinemia. Ultimately, there may be failure of the pancreas to fully compensate, hyperglycemia worsens and diabetes develops. The etiology of insulin resistance is being intensively studied for the primary defect may be over secretion of insulin by the pancreas or tissue insulin resistance and both of these defects may be genetically predetermined. We suggest that, in addition to effects in carbohydrate metabolism, insulin resistance in liver results in the inability of first phase insulin to suppress hepatic TRL production which results in hypertriglyceridemia leading to high levels of plasma FA which accentuate insulin resistance in other target organs. As recently reviewed [17,254] the role of insulin as a stimulator of hepatic lipogenesis and TRL production has been long established. Several lines of evidence support that insulin is stimulatory to the production of hepatic TRL in vivo. First, population based studies support a positive relationship between plasma insulin and total TG and VLDL [253]. Second, there is a strong association between chronic hyperinsulinemia and VLDL overproduction [309].(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
On enzyme amplifier systems triggered by white noise

Abstract In this article we study the system of differential equations proposed by S.N. Levine to describe the kinetics of enzyme amplifier systems. In particular we consider the multistage amplification triggered by white noise. In this case, blood clotting and visual excitation (to name two examples) become diffusions. We obtain a differential equation governing the moments of the concentration level and a comparison theorem. Finally we consider the case of vanishing diffusion.
Digital Faradaic Impedance Measurements on Corroding Copper in Acid Solutions

The faradaic impedance of a rotating copper disk has been investigated in oxygenated acid solutions. The impedance measurement system is based on a digital acquisition and analysis of multiple frequency signals. The frequency range investigated was 0.1 to 500 Hz. In sulfuric acid the corrosion involves the peroxide intermediate whose transport behavior strongly influences the impedance results. Peroxide is not important in hydrochloric acid, but the transport of cuprous ions determines the impedance behavior. Measurements at frequencies higher than about 400 Hz in sulfuric acid show a strong frequency dispersion of the capacitance due to a nonuniform current distribution.
Noise induced dimension changing bifurcations

The transition to chaos is a fundamental and widely studied problem in deterministic nonlinear dynamics. Well known routes to chaos, which include the period-doubling bifurcation route, the intermittency route, the quasiperiodic route, and the crisis route, describe transitions to low-dimensional chaotic attractors with one positive Lyapunov exponent. Transitions to high-dimensional chaotic attractors with multiple positive Lyapunov exponents have just started being addressed. In stochastic systems, transitions to chaotic-like behavior are less well characterized. Global analysis coupled with stochastic transport probability can explain emergent behavior in which stable and unstable manifolds may interact with noise to cause "stochastic chaos". Another stochastic route may induce chaotic signatures through a dimension changing bifurcation, whereby the topological dimension changes when the amplitude of the noise goes beyond a critical parameter. In this paper we present a theory of how the Lyapunov exponents may scale with the noise amplitude in general systems. A physical class of multiscale dynamical systems will be presented to show that noise may induce low dimensional chaos, or for other parameters, may induce chaos that bifurcates to an attractor contained in a high topological dimension. We present a numerical bifurcation analysis of the resulting system, illustrating the mechanism for the onset of high dimensional chaos. By computing the constrained invariant sets, we reveal the transition from low dimensional to high dimensional chaos. Applications include both deterministic and stochastic bifurcations.
Purification of acetylcholinesterase from house fly brain by affinity chromatography

Acetylcholinesterase (acetylcholine hydrolase, EC 3.1.1.7) from the heads of house flies (Musca domestica L.) was purified by affinity chromatography. The enzyme was adsorbed from the crude extracts on an affinity column containing trimethyl(p-aminophenyl) ammonium chloride hydrochloride (Ki ≈ 1.7 · 10−4M), covalently linked to Sepharose 4B, then eluted with a solution of a selective reversible inhibitor, 1,5-bis (4-allyl dimethyl ammoniumphenyl) pentan-3-one - dibromide (BW 284C51; Ki ≈ 1 · 10−7M). The enzyme was purified 1223 times in one step and had a specific activity of 752 units/mg protein. Disc gel electrophoresis in polyacrylamide gel revealed five protein bands, four corresponding to the enzyme activity bands and one devoid of enzyme activity. On the basis of periodic acid-Schiff stain intensity, the slower moving isozyme I and the contaminating band appear to be rich in carbohydrate. The purity of the enzyme estimated by disc gel of electrophoresis was 94%. Density gradient centrifugation in sucrose showed two major species each of which ran as a single band on disc gel electrophoresis. The average molecular weights were 306 000 (±11 150) for heavy (s20,w = 11.5 S) form and 143 000 (±4700) for light (s20,w = 6.9 S) form.
How Does Medical Device Regulation Perform in the United States and the European Union? A Systematic Review

Background: Policymakers and regulators in the United States (US) and the European Union (EU) are weighing reforms to their medical device approval and post-market surveillance systems. Data may be available that identify strengths and weakness of the approaches to medical device regulation in these settings. Methods and Findings: We performed a systematic review to find empirical studies evaluating medical device regulation in the US or EU. We searched Medline using two nested categories that included medical devices and glossary terms attributable to the US Food and Drug Administration and the EU, following PRISMA guidelines for systematic reviews. We supplemented this search with a review of the US Government Accountability Office online database for reports on US Food and Drug Administration device regulation, consultations with local experts in the field, manual reference mining of selected articles, and Google searches using the same key terms used in the Medline search. We found studies of premarket evaluation and timing (n=9), studies of device recalls (n=8), and surveys of device manufacturers (n=3). These studies provide evidence of quality problems in pre-market submissions in the US, provide conflicting views of device safety based largely on recall data, and relay perceptions of some industry leaders from self-surveys. Conclusions: Few studies have quantitatively assessed medical device regulation in either the US or EU. Existing studies of US and EU device approval and post-market evaluation performance suggest that policy reforms are necessary for both systems, including improving classification of devices in the US and promoting transparency and post-market oversight in the EU. Assessment of regulatory performance in both settings is limited by lack of data on post-approval safety outcomes. Changes to these device approval and post-marketing systems must be accompanied by ongoing research to ensure that there is better assessment of what works in either setting. Please see later in the article for the Editors’ Summary.
Do Older Adults Perceive Postural Constraints for Reach Estimation

Background/Study Context: Recent evidence indicates that older persons have difficulty mentally representing intended movements. Furthermore, in an estimation of reach paradigm using motor imagery, a form of mental representation, older persons significantly overestimated their ability compared with young adults. The authors tested the notion that older adults may also have difficulty perceiving the postural constraints associated with reach estimation.Methods: The authors compared young (Mage = 22 years) and older (Mage = 67) adults on reach estimation while seated and in a more postural demanding standing and leaning forward position. The expectation was a significant postural effect with the standing condition, as evidenced by reduced overestimation.Results: Whereas there was no difference between groups in the seated condition (both overestimated), older adults underestimated whereas the younger group once again overestimated in the standing condition.Conclusion: From one perspective, these results sh...
The BARN system: use and impact of adolescent health promotion via computer

Abstract This paper reports the results of a study of the acceptance and impact of BARN (Body Awareness Resource Network), a computer-based health promotion/behavior change system for use by adolescents. BARN provided students, grades 6–12, with information and skill-building activities on the following topics: AIDS, alcohol, and other drugs, body management, human sexuality, smoking, and stress management. During the 2 years that BARN use was studied, it was used heavily by both middle school and high school students, and particularly attracted adolescents who had already experimented with risk-taking behaviors. Those teens at higher risk for escalating problems selected the relevant BARN topics. Overall, users of BARN were more likely to remain free of risk-taking behaviors than nonusers of BARN. BARN use was also associated with improvements in risk-relevant behaviors such as contraceptive use, stress reduction, cessation of smoking by light smokers, reduction of alcohol use, and reduction of problems associated with alcohol use. No relationship was found between BARN use and initiation of sexual activity, stress prevention, or onset of either alcohol use or smoking. Results suggest that a computer-based system may be a powerful tool for the reduction of risk-taking behavior in adolescents.
The Effects of Part-Time Faculty on First Semester Freshmen Retention: A Predictive Model Using Logistic Regression

Part-time faculty clearly serve a valuable purpose in higher education; however, their increased use raises concerns for administrators, faculty, and policy makers. Part-time faculty members spend a greater proportion of their overall time teaching, but the initial evidence suggests that these instructors are less available to students and are less engaged with the campus environment. Recent research attempts to connect part-time faculty utilization to student outcomes. This study explored the effects of exposure to part-time faculty instruction on student retention. Typical first-year students entering the study institution between 1999 and 2003 received over one-quarter of their total first-year instruction from part-time faculty. Furthermore, results show that as exposure to part-time faculty instruction increases, the odds of being retained decrease. Because the use of part-time faculty varies based on institutional type, additional research should focus on diverse institutional settings.
Residential succession and land-use dynamics in a vintage model of urban housing

Abstract This paper adapts the vintage model of urban housing developed in Brueckner (1978) to a two-class city. Computer simulation of the model highlights the differences between static and dynamic urban areas. The contour of building heights is irregular in the dynamic city and spatial mixing of the two income groups occurs.
The use of a computer for data management in large-scale long-term cooperative studies.

Abstract The problems of medical administration and data processing for certain large-scale, long-term cooperative clinical trials in the Veterans Administration have been greatly facilitated with the aid of a digital computer. For certain projects, all incoming data, after initial review by the clinical chief of the project, can be recorded and stored in the computer, which is programmed to check for omissions of data or for egregiously incorrect entries, and to generate notices that call these errors to the attention of the clinicians. Alternatively, in other projects, excerpts of the data can be coded separately on punched cards that are processed in the computer as needed. For each clinic participating in a project, the computer can produce the following material: schedules of patient visits, reminders of procedures to be performed at each visit, monthly accounts of salient current data for each patient, and a variety of special reports. All these reports permit frequent assessment of activities at each clinic, and also provide the project director with an up-to-date account of the status of the entire project. Prompt receipt of such information is particularly important for projects in which the future course of decisions or actions depends on continuous analysis of observed results. For semi-annual meetings of the collaborators, the computer can produce statistical tabulations and other useful summaries. This type of computer processing for carefully collected and catalogued data can be a valuable aid in the administrative procedures needed for effective collaboration of investigators, adherence to the research protocol, and analysis of data in a large-scale multi-center clinical trial.
The effect of taconite tailings on primary productivity in the Silver Bay area of Western Lake Superior

Abstract Considerable concern has arisen over the possibility that the discharge of taconite tailings into Lake Superior could affect algal primary productivity. In 1972, primary productivity studies utilizing the carbon-14 technique were run in the Silver Bay area. Samples were collected and analyzed on a weekly basis for a three month period that included a five week plant shutdown period. Resultant productivity data indicate that there is no apparent relationship between primary productivity and the discharge of taconite tailings. Productivity trends in the Silver Bay area tend to conform to the known seasonal behavior of phytoplankton in western Lake Superior.
Instrumental neutron activation analysis of wheat bunt spores

The concentrations of seventeen elements in two species of fungus which cause wheat bunt disease,Tilletia caries (DC.) Tul. andTilletia controversa Kuhn, were determined by instrumental neutron activation analysis. Differences in the K and Cl concentrations between these two species of spores are large and therefore can be used as a criterion for distinguishing between the two species of fungus.
Canopy gap characteristics and their implications for management in the temperate rainforests of southeast Alaska

Abstract In the coastal temperate rainforests of southeast Alaska, much progress has been made in describing landscape-level natural disturbances and formulating management systems that emulate those disturbances. Little is known, however, concerning canopy gaps, the dominant form of natural disturbance in the region. During June–August, 1991–1993, we characterized canopy gap patterns and dynamics at three sites in the western hemlock/blueberry/shield fern plant association in the northern portion of the Tongass National Forest. Forest area in canopy gaps ranged from 5.8 to 12.6% and averaged 8.7%. The proportion of forest area in expanded gaps ranged from 18.1 to 43.9% and averaged 27.4%. Gap and gapmaker (tree whose death or crown displacement results in the creation or expansion of a canopy gap) characteristics were generally similar among sites. The majority of canopy gaps were 2 in area, had a D / H ratio 2 . Gapmakers were usually snapped, had recently died ( 80 years. Forest turnover time was estimated to range from 230 to 920 years, and average 575 years. Canopy residence time was estimated to range between 210 and 840 years, and averaged 525 years. To emulate canopy gap dynamics in the plant association studied, forest managers should: (1) maintain a small proportion of a stand in openings within an otherwise undisturbed canopy; (2) use a combination of single tree selection and small group selection systems; (3) re-enter stands every 20–80 years; (4) select larger than average diameter crop trees in proportion to the species composition of the stand; (5) minimize soil disturbance and (6) select crop trees during re-entry so that the creation of new gaps and the expansion of old gaps is accomplished in approximately equal proportions.
Genital knowledge and gender constancy in preschool children.

Etude des conceptions d'enfants d'âge prescolaire sur la conservation du sexe masculin ou feminin en depit de transformations perceptuelles
Control of adipogenesis by ezrin, radixin and moesin-dependent biomechanics remodeling.

We have recently shown that altered stem cell biomechanics can regulate the lineage commitment through a family of the membrane–cytoskeleton linker proteins (ERM; ezrin, radixin, moesin). The ERM proteins not only modulate the cell stiffness and actin cytoskeleton organization, but also rearrange focal adhesions and therefore influence the biochemically-directed stem cell differentiation. Combining silencing RNA, atomic force microscopy, and fluorescence microscopy, the role of the ERM proteins involved in the regulation of stem cell biomechanics and adipogenic differentiation was quantitatively determined. Transient ERM knockdown by RNAi caused disassembly of actin stress fibers and focal adhesions and a decrease in the cell stiffness. The silencing RNA treatment not only induced mechanical changes in stem cells but impaired adipogenesis in a time-dependent manner. While siRNA ERM treatment at day 0 substantially interfered with adipogenesis, the same treatment at day 3 of adipogenic differentiation significantly facilitated adipogenesis, as assessed by the expression of adipocyte-specific markers. The intact biomechanics homeostasis appears to be critical for the adipogenic induction. These findings may lead to potential biomechanical intervention techniques and methodologies to control the fate and extent of adipogenesis that would likely be involved in stem cell-based therapeutics for soft tissue repair and regeneration.
Genetic heterogeneity in euphausiid populations: Euphausia krohnii and Nematoscelis megalops in North Atlantic Slope Water1

Genetic heterogeneity of samples of Euphausia krohnii and Nematoscelis megalops collected from a 6,000-km2 area in western North Atlantic Slope Water was investigated by electrophoretic assay of allozymic variability at eight enzyme loci. Both species exhibited significant among-sample heterogeneity of allozyme frequencies. Genetic distances between samples were large for intraspecific comparisons (D = 0.116 for E. krohnii and D = 0.203 for N. megalops). This heterogeneity indicates that both species are genetically structured.
Multiple description distributed image coding with side information for mobile wireless transmission

In this paper, we proposed a multiple description distributed image coding system for mobile wireless transmission. The innovations of proposed system are two folds: First, when MDC is applied to wavelet subband based image coding; it is possible to introduce correlation between the descriptions in each subband. At the encoder, the correlation information is encoded by systematic Reed Solomon (RS) encoder. Only the parity check bits are sent to channel. At the receiver, when part of descriptions are lost, however, their correlation information are available, the Wyner Ziv decoder can still recover the description by using the correlation information and the partly received description as noisy version and the side information. Secondly, in each description, we use multiple bitstream image coding to achieve error robust transmission. In conventional entropy subband coding, the first bit error may cause the decoder to discard all subsequent bits. A multiple bitstream image encoding is developed based on the decomposition of images in the wavelet domain. We show that such decomposition is able to reduce error propagation in transmission, thus to achieve scalability on PSNR performance over the changes of BER, Experimental result shows that the PSNR could be improved with the same coding rate.
Effects of 3-methylcholanthrene and some related compounds upon the benzpyrene hydroxylase activity in fetal rat liver explants.

Abstract The addition of 3-methylcholanthrene (3-MC) or some of its derivatives to expiants of fetal rat liver caused a reproducible “induction” of benzpyrene (BP) hydroxylase. In fresh explants, a lag of 6–12 hr was observed, whereas a more immediate increase in enzyme activity was noted when 3-MC was added to 40-hr preincubated cultures. The addition of 3-MC and 1-keto-3-MC (10 −5 M in the medium) caused a 4-fold elevation in BP-hydroxylase, while the 1-hydroxy and the cis-11,12-dihydroxy-11, 12-dihydro derivatives produced a stimulatory activity of only 2,7- and 2-fold respectively. The most potent compound in this regard was the trans-1,2-dihydroxy-3-MC; its administration resulted in a 6.7-fold increase in enzyme activity. This study points out certain advantages of studying the induction phenomenon in this system in vitro .
Parties and Accountable Government in New Democracies

Political scientists have long associated accountability with strong political parties, and have also frequently noted the weakness of parties in new democracies. This article disaggregates the str...
Time effects on dynamic soil properties under random excitation conditions

Two types of clayey soils, a kaolinite and a bentonite, were tested using a resonant column apparatus under random excitation conditions. The concept of root mean square (rms) strain was utilized for the purpose of strain calculations during random loading. The conventional estimator of the transfer function was used for random vibration analysis. The effect of confinement duration (at a constant pressure) on dynamic soil properties, namely damping and shear modulus, was evaluated. The results indicate that for both cohesive soils, the effect of time was less pronounced during random vibration than sinusoidal loading at the same rms strain. This effect is however more pronounced when the peak shearing strain of sinusoidal loading is considered. Furthermore, time effects were more pronounced at low strain levels than at high strain levels.
Batteries: Higher energy density than gasoline?

The energy density of batteries is two orders of magnitude below that of liquid fuels. However, this information alone cannot be used to compare batteries to liquid fuels for automobile energy storage media. Because electric motors have a higher energy conversion efficiency and lower mass than combustion engines, they can provide a higher deliverable mechanical energy density than internal combustion for most transportation applications.
Degenerate spin-boson system

The temporal evolution of a degenerate two-level system (spin) coupled to a dissipative bath (bosons) is studied in this Rapid Communication. Closed-form expressions for the occupancy probabilities and correlation functions are found by functional methods. The non-Markovian characteristics such as explicit dependence on the initial condition and a possible long-time tail behavior are shown to be present. We also suggest a reasonable procedure for the construction of the Green's function of the nondegenerate system.
Chemotherapy of osteoarticular tuberculosis

Tuberculosis (TB) of the bones and joints is rampant in India with the dorsolumbar spine as the most common site of osseous involvement. For diagnosis, clinical suspicion needs to be confirmed through appropriate laboratory and imaging investigations, and increasingly nowadays, nucleic acid amplification techniques. Chemotherapy remains the cornerstone of management complemented by rest, nutritional support and splinting, as necessary. Operative intervention is required if response to chemotherapy is unsatisfactory and for spinal stabilization. The drugs and regimens are fundamentally similar to those for pulmonary TB. However, there is lack of consensus on the appropriate duration of treatment. The prevailing practice of extending treatment till radiological evidence of healing is complete, may be unnecessary in view of recent reports that 6-9 months of therapy is sufficient for the majority of cases. Relapse rates are not drastically improved by extending treatment to 12 months or even longer, except perhaps in pediatric cases. However, prolonged treatment may be required if surgical debridement is indicated but cannot be done. Multidrug-resistant TB should be suspected if disease activity shows no signs of abating after 4-6 months of uninterrupted therapy. These cases are therapeutically challenging and will require second line or experimental antiTB drugs, supported by resistance testing where feasible. Coexistent HIV/AIDS may also necessitate prolonged treatment. Interactions between first line antiTB drugs and antiretroviral medication can complicate matters. Close monitoring is essential in all cases, with dechallenge and cautious reinstitution of drugs in the event of toxicity. While awaiting the arrival of long overdue new antiTB medication, existing drugs and regimens must be used in an informed manner with emphasis on patient compliance.
Clinical management of osteogenesis imperfecta.

Knowledge of the natural history of different types of OI permits planning of rehabilitation goals for children with OI. Notwithstanding this knowledge, rehabilitation will need to he modified to accommodate unexpected fractures and the highly variable chance of deformity in each individual. Immobilisation should be minimized to avoid immobilization osteoporosis. New rehabilitation issues include basilar impression. recommencement of fractures in postmenopausal women with OI, pregnancy related bone loss and sleep apnoea.
Incidence and clinical correlates of human papillomavirus disease in a pediatric population referred for evaluation of sexual abuse

Abstract Study Objective: To investigate the incidence of genital warts in a pediatric population at risk of sexual abuse. Design: Retrospective chart review of all files of the Child and Adolescent Sexual Abuse Referral Center at San Francisco General Hospital for identification of children with clinically evident genital warts. Results: The incidence of genital warts in this population was 0.3% (17 of 5506). The average age of children with evidence of genital warts was 3.4 years (range 13 months to 14 years 9 months), and of the 17 patients with warts, 6 had clinical evidence of sexual abuse. Conclusions: Genital warts are an uncommon finding in children referred for evaluation of sexual abuse. The majority of lesions occurred in children less than 4 years of age with no other evidence for sexual abuse. Perinatal transmission or other nonsexual routes of transmission may be important in this population.
Variation of Estimated Numbers of Milk Somatic Cells Stained with Wright's Stain or Pyronin Y – Methyl Green Stain

Summary The purpose of this research was to compare the variation of estimated numbers of somatic cells in milk stained with pyronin Y – methyl green with that of cells stained with Wright's stain. Pour Breed smears were made from each of 27 milk samples, including 14 mastitic samples. Two smears were stained with Wright's stain and two with pyronin Y – methyl green stain. The averages obtained (× 10 4 ) from duplicate determinations of agranulocytes, granulocytes, leucocytes, epithelial cells, and total somatic cells were 8, 306, 314, 64, and 378, respectively, for Wright's stain; and 15, 344, 359, 63, and 422, respectively, for pyronin Y – methyl green stain. Although the epithelial cells were equally recognizable in the two stains, a considerable portion of the leucocytes was masked by the background of the smears prepared with Wright's stain. The pyronin Y – methyl green stain resulted in an approximate 25% reduction in smear variance and in an approximate 50% reduction in count variance when compared with Wright's stain. Expected 95% confidence intervals for determinations of mean cell numbers were computed from the estimated variance components with varying numbers of smears and counts. These values generally indicate that one should make approximately 200 smears from a milk sample to obtain a 95% confidence interval of approximately 50×10 4 cells per milliliter of milk. These data suggest that ways of reducing the error variance should be investigated.
Precarious Work, Insecure Workers: Employment Relations in Transition

The growth of precarious work since the 1970s has emerged as a core contemporary concern within politics, in the media, and among researchers. Uncertain and unpredictable work contrasts with the re...
The Book of Ben Sira in Rabbinic Literature

The Book of Ben Sira is a wisdom composition written in Hebrew toward the beginning of the second century BCE. It is well preserved in a Greek translation that, according to its prologue, was done by the author’s grandson, and a Syriac translation of a few hundred years later is preserved in the Peshitta. Between fragments found at Masada and in the Cairo Geniza, some 60 percent of the book survives in Hebrew.
Predicting embryonic patterning using mutual entropy fitness and in silico evolution

During vertebrate embryogenesis, the expression of Hox genes that define anterior-posterior identity follows general rules: temporal colinearity and posterior prevalence. A mathematical measure for the quality or fitness of the embryonic pattern produced by a gene regulatory network is derived. Using this measure and in silico evolution we derive gene interaction networks for anterior-posterior (AP) patterning under two developmental paradigms. For patterning during growth (paradigm I), which is appropriate for vertebrates and short germ-band insects, the algorithm creates gene expression patterns reminiscent of Hox gene expression. The networks operate through a timer gene, the level of which measures developmental progression (a candidate is the widely conserved posterior morphogen Caudal). The timer gene provides a simple mechanism to coordinate patterning with growth rate. The timer, when expressed as a static spatial gradient, functions as a classical morphogen (paradigm II), providing a natural way to derive the AP patterning, as seen in long germ-band insects that express their Hox genes simultaneously, from the ancestral short germ-band system. Although the biochemistry of Hox regulation in higher vertebrates is complex, the actual spatiotemporal expression phenotype is not, and simple activation and repression by Hill functions suffices in our model. In silico evolution provides a quantitative demonstration that continuous positive selection can generate complex phenotypes from simple components by incremental evolution, as Darwin proposed.
Liver Cell Calcium Homeostasis in Carbon Tetrachloride Liver Cell Injury: New Data With Fura21

The calcium fluorescent probe fura2 was used to measure concentration of free calcium in the cytosol of isolated rat hepatocytes in suspension. The resting level in untreated hepatocytes was 121 nM. On addition of CCl4 at a concentration of 0.5 mM, cytosolic free calcium rose sharply and reached a statistically significant (P less than 0.05) steady plateau level of about 190 nM within five minutes. With a concentration of 1.0 mM CCl4, cytosolic free calcium rose within ten minutes to a plateau level of about 200 nM. Use of fura2, along with the capacity of Mn2+ ions to effectively quench fura2 fluorescence, provided the basis for a simple and decisive method to determine whether the added CCl4 was permeabilizing the hepatocyte plasma membrane by direct solvent action. It was found that up to a concentration of 1.0 mM, CCl4 did not permeabilize the plasma membrane, but direct attack on the plasma membrane was unequivocally demonstrated for concentrations of 2 mM CCl4 and above. Finally, an hypothesis is presented for resolution of the puzzling dilemma that emerged from the observation, reported from two laboratories, that CCl4 can rapidly mobilize liver mitochondrial calcium despite the well-known relative resistance of these organelles to the damaging effects of this toxic agent.
Associations of the Local Food Environment with Diet Quality—A Comparison of Assessments based on Surveys and Geographic Information Systems The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis

There is growing interest in understanding how food environments affect diet, but characterizing the food environment is challenging. The authors investigated the relation between global diet measures (an empirically derived "fats and processed meats" (FPM) dietary pattern and the Alternate Healthy Eating Index (AHEI)) and three complementary measures of the local food environment: 1) supermarket density, 2) participant-reported assessments, and 3) aggregated survey responses of independent informants. Data were derived from the baseline examination (2000-2002) of the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis, a US study of adults aged 45-84 years. A healthy diet was defined as scoring in the top or bottom quintile of AHEI or FPM, respectively. The probability of having a healthy diet was modeled by each environment measure using binomial regression. Participants with no supermarkets near their homes were 25-46% less likely to have a healthy diet than those with the most stores, after adjustment for age, sex, race/ethnicity, and socioeconomic indicators: The relative probability of a healthy diet for the lowest store density category versus the highest was 0.75 (95% confidence interval: 0.59, 0.95) for the AHEI and 0.54 (95% confidence interval: 0.42, 0.70) for FPM. Similarly, participants living in areas with the worst-ranked food environments (by participants or informants) were 22-35% less likely to have a healthy diet than those in the best-ranked food environments. Efforts to improve diet may benefit from combining individual and environmental approaches.
Characteristics of HfZrO x gate stack engineering for reliability improvement on 28nm HK/MG CMOS technology

High-K/Metal-Gate (HK/MG) reliability TDDB and BTI are investigated systematically for the first time through HfZrO x gate stack engineering. To meet reliability requirements, it is shown that the HK film thickness, the position and concentration of a Zr dopant, utilizing post deposition anneal (PDA), and decoupled plasma nitridation (DPN) are important factors.
Working Alone Together: Coworking as Emergent Collaborative Activity

Mobile professionals can choose to work in offices, executive suites, home offices, or other spaces. But some have instead chosen to work at coworking spaces: open-plan office environments in which they work alongside other unaffiliated professionals for a fee of approximately $250 a month. But what service are they actually purchasing with that monthly fee? How do they describe that service? From an activity theory perspective, what are its object, outcome, and actors? This article reports on a 20-month study that answers such questions.
Influence of Reduced Carbon Emissions and Oxidation on the Distribution of Atmospheric CO2: Implications for Inversion Analyses

Recent inverse analyses constraining carbon fluxes using atmospheric CO_2 observations have assumed that the CO_2 source from atmospheric oxidation of reduced carbon is released at the surface rather than distributed globally in the atmosphere. This produces a bias in the estimates of surface fluxes. We used a three‐dimensional (3D) atmospheric chemistry model (GEOS‐CHEM) to evaluate the magnitude of this effect on modeled concentrations and flux estimates. We find that resolving the 3D structure of the atmospheric CO_2 source, as opposed to emitting this reduced carbon as CO_2 at the surface, yields a decrease in the modeled annual mean interhemispheric gradient (N‐S) of 0.21 ppm. Larger adjustments (up to −0.6 ppm) are apparent on a regional basis in and downwind of regions of high reduced carbon emissions. We used TransCom3 annual mean simulations from three transport models to evaluate the implications for inversion estimates. The main impacts are systematic decreases in estimates of northern continental land uptake (i.e., by 0.22 to 0.26 Pg C yr^(−1)), and reductions in tropical land carbon efflux with smaller changes over oceans and in the Southern Hemisphere. These adjustments represent a systematic bias in flux estimates, accounting for changes of 9 to 27% in the estimated northern land CO_2 sink for the three models evaluated here. Our results highlight the need for a realistic description of reduced carbon emission and oxidation processes in deriving inversion estimates of CO_2 surface fluxes.