cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Dangerous Crossings: The Optic of Ecological Harm

There seems to be abundant evidence that these animals [imported turtles and frogs] are more ... than a threat. There seems to be no reason that we should allow these things into the state. – Fish and Game Commissioner Mike Sutton When it became clear that the San Francisco Board of Supervisors would not enact the Commission on Animal Control and Welfare’s proposed ban on the sale of live animals, animal advocates pursued their cause in the courts and in the California legislature, as discussed in Chapter 3. They also approached the California Fish and Game Commission (FGC), an advisory body to the California Department of Fish and Game, the entity charged with stewardship over the state’s natural resources. Setting aside the argument about cruelty, which was beyond the purview of the Fish and Game Commission, animal advocates advanced an optic of ecological harm, arguing that turtles and frogs imported for food sometimes get released or otherwise escape into the wild, where they act as invasive species who harm native species of frogs and turtles through predation, competition, and disease. The Fish and Game Commission could fix the problem, according to animal advocates, by passing a ban on the importation of live turtles and frogs for food. When Chinese American activists once again invoked the optic of racism, the question became the degree to which this state body located in Sacramento would be insulated from the Chinese American political clout that had stymied local efforts against the markets. In the tradition of commissions, the Fish and Game Commission held public hearings, consulted scientific experts, and debated the matter on and off for thirteen years before finally recommending an importation ban in the spring of 2010. But in the end, Chinese Americans had enough political power to prevent the enactment of this ban as well.
High-throughput Screening of Recalcitrance Variations in Lignocellulosic Biomass: Total Lignin, Lignin Monomers, and Enzymatic Sugar Release

The conversion of lignocellulosic biomass to fuels, chemicals, and other commodities has been explored as one possible pathway toward reductions in the use of non-renewable energy sources. In order to identify which plants, out of a diverse pool, have the desired chemical traits for downstream applications, attributes, such as cellulose and lignin content, or monomeric sugar release following an enzymatic saccharification, must be compared. The experimental and data analysis protocols of the standard methods of analysis can be time-consuming, thereby limiting the number of samples that can be measured. High-throughput (HTP) methods alleviate the shortcomings of the standard methods, and permit the rapid screening of available samples to isolate those possessing the desired traits. This study illustrates the HTP sugar release and pyrolysis-molecular beam mass spectrometry pipelines employed at the National Renewable Energy Lab. These pipelines have enabled the efficient assessment of thousands of plants while decreasing experimental time and costs through reductions in labor and consumables.
In Search of the Dark Ages -- An Experimental Challenge

Most direct source detections beyond z~7 are likely to arise from wide-field narrowband surveys of Ly-a emission in the J band. For this to be true, the Ly-a emission must somehow escape from compact star-forming regions (CSR) presumably associated with massive haloes. Since the Ly-a escape fraction is <10% from an emitting region of size roughly 1 kpc, these objects will be difficult to find and hard to detect. For CSR sources, existing large-format IR arrays are close to ideal in terms of their noise characteristics for conducting "wide-field" narrowband surveys where pixel sizes are 0.1" or larger. However, we stress that Ly-a can also arise from external large-scale shocks (ELS) due to starburst winds, powered by CSRs, ploughing into gas actively accreting onto the dark halo. The winds effectively carry energy from the dense, dusty environment of a starburst into lower density regions, where the escape probability for Ly-a photons is greater. ELS emission is expected to be considerably more clumpy (<100 pc; ~0.01") than CSR emission. For a "targetted" observation of an ELS source, IR arrays will need two orders of magnitude improvement in dark current if we wish to detect dispersed clumpy emission within the environment of a massive halo. For either targetted or wide-field surveys, the deepest observations will be those where the pixel sampling is well matched to the size of the emitting regions. We show that there are only 3 -- 4 J-band windows [z = 7.72, (8.22), 8.79, 9.37] suitable for observing the Dark Ages in Ly-a; we summarize their cosmological properties in Table 1.
Small-space 2D compressed dictionary matching

The dictionary matching problem seeks all locations in a text that match any of the patterns in a dictionary. In the compressed dictionary matching problem, the input is in compressed form. In this paper we introduce the 2-dimensional compressed dictionary matching problem in Lempel-Ziv compressed images, and present an efficient solution for patterns whose rows are all periodic. Given k patterns, each of (uncompressed) size m×m, and a text of (uncompressed) size n×n, all in 2D-LZ compressed form, our algorithm finds all occurrences of the patterns in the text. The algorithm is strongly inplace, i.e., the extra space it uses is proportional to the optimal compression of the dictionary, which is O(km). The preprocessing time of the algorithm is O(km2), linear in the uncompressed dictionary size, and the time for performing the search is linear in the uncompressed text size, independent of the dictionary size. Our algorithm is general in the sense that it can be used for any 2D compression scheme which can be sequentially decompressed in small space.
The mitochondrial tricarboxylate transport protein. cDNA cloning, primary structure, and comparison with other mitochondrial transport proteins

The amino acid sequence of the rat liver mitochondrial tricarboxylate transport protein has been deduced from its corresponding cDNA. Using the polymerase chain reaction, with primers derived from amino acid sequence information that we obtained by direct sequencing of the purified transporter and its internal peptides, a cDNA fragment was amplified that encodes approximately two-thirds of the tricarboxylate transport protein. This cDNA fragment was used to screen a rat liver lambda gt11 cDNA library which permitted the isolation and sequencing of a cDNA clone that encodes the entire tricarboxylate transporter. The clone is 1927 base pairs in length with 5‘- and 3‘-untranslated regions of 419 and 572 base pairs, respectively. The open reading frame encodes a mature transport protein of 298 amino acids preceded by a presequence of 13 residues. Analysis of the tricarboxylate transporter sequence indicates that it contains three related sequence domains, each of approximately 100 amino acid residues in length. Dot plot comparisons and sequence alignment indicate that these domains are related to each other, as well as to domains of similar length that are present in other mitochondrial transporters. Hydrophobicity analysis predicts that the tricarboxylate carrier contains six membrane-spanning alpha-helices (two per 100-amino acid sequence domain) and has permitted the construction of an initial model for the topography of this transporter within the mitochondrial inner membrane. Finally, Southern blot analysis of both rat and human genomic DNA demonstrates the presence of multiple sequences related to the tricarboxylate transporter in both genomes. These studies provide the first information on the primary structure of the mitochondrial tricarboxylate transport protein. We are now able, on the basis of both structural and functional considerations, to assign this metabolically important transporter to the mitochondrial carrier family, the members of which are likely to have evolved from a common genetic origin.
Inflation Targets and Sudden Stops

Emerging economies experience sudden stops in capital inflows. As we have argued in Caballero and Krishnamurthy (2002), having access to monetary policy during these sudden stops is useful, but mostly for "insurance" rather than for aggregate demand reasons. In this environment, a central bank that cannot commit to monetary policy choices will ignore the insurance aspect and follow a procyclical rather than the optimal countercyclical monetary policy. The central bank will also intervene excessively to support the exchange rate. These inefficiencies are exacerbated by the presence of an expansionary bias. In order to solve these problems, we propose modifying the central bank's objective to (i) include state-contingent inflation targets, (ii) target a measure of inflation that overweights non-tradable inflation, and (iii) weigh reserves holdings.
Distribution of three classes of endogenous type-C RNA viruses among inbred strains of mice.

Abstract Mouse cells contain genetic information for type-C RNA viruses. Three prototype endogenous viruses with biologically distinguishable properties have been isolated. The present studies show that viruses immunologically indistinguishable from these prototype viruses are either chemically inducible or partially expressed in cells of many inbred mouse strains of widely diverse geographic origin. The evidence further indicates that the expression of these three virus classes is differentially regulated within cells of the strains examined.
A Failure to Report? Presidential Election Politics and the 2008 Economic Crisis

This paper addresses a key question that has thus far received scant attention: How do presidential candidates frame, spin, and sell the economic news on the campaign trail? A controlled random sample of 180 news articles was taken between August 2008 to November 2008 from six regionally diverse newspapers, The New York Times, USA Today, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Denver Post, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and Philadelphia Inquirer. In spite of conventional expectations related to candidate discussions, economics along with general defense issues and energy/environment were the most discussed policy issues in the 2008 election. Economic news reporting, thus, is dependent upon political cycles, presidential candidates, and varying economic concerns. Additionally, the evidence suggests that both candidate concerns and contemporary economic issues drive candidate speech related to the economy.
Battered Woman Syndrome

Twenty-five percent of women are physically or sexually abused, and in nearly all instances psychologically abused, by intimate partners during the course of a relationship. Walker (1979) identified Battered Woman Syndrome (BWS) as a predictable pattern of psychological response to domestic violence. During the same time period, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) was identified by the American Psychiatric Association (1980) to describe the predictable effects of traumatic events. It became increasingly clear that different types of terrifying experiences, including combat, rape, torture, and childhood physical and sexual abuse, all resulted in the same basic psychological response (Herman, 1992). Nearly two-thirds of battered women experienced symptom patterns that met the diagnostic criteria for PTSD (Goodman & Epstein, 2008). By the 1990s, it became apparent that PTSD in battered women and BWS were explaining the same condition. Keywords: battered woman syndrome; battered women; domestic violence; post-traumatic stress disorder; Complex PTSD
Fertilizers, Pills, and Magnetic Strips by Gene Glass

Education reformers and conventional educators inhabit different worlds, but if reformers are to have significant impact they need to understand how the people they are trying to reform think. In r...
The cyclin-dependent kinase 11p46 isoform interacts with RanBPM

Abstract We identified Ran-binding protein (RanBPM) as an interacting partner of the caspase-processed C-terminal domain of cyclin-dependent kinase 11 (CDK11p46) by using the yeast two-hybrid system. CDK11p110 protein kinases are members of the cyclin-dependent kinase superfamily. During staurosporine-, Fas-, and tumor necrosis factor α-induced apoptosis caspase-processed activated CDK11p46 is generated from larger CDK11p110 isoforms. CDK11p46 promotes apoptosis when it is ectopically expressed in human cells. However, the mechanism of signal transduction through CDK11p46 is still unclear. In this study, we demonstrate that CDK11p46 directly interacts with RanBPM in vitro and in human cells. RanBPM contains a conserved SPRY (repeats in splA and Ryr) domain and is localized both in the nucleus and cytoplasm. The SPRY domain of RanBPM is responsible for the association between CDK11p46 and RanBPM. Furthermore, we show that CDK1146 phosphorylates RanBPM.
Newton Morton's influence on genetics: the Morton number.

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the new statistics; the Morton number. This number provides an accurate measure of Newton Morton's contribution to statistical genetics. The Morton number is defined as “Newton has Morton number 0.” For each n≥0, a person is not assigned a Morton number, who has a joint publication, with a person having Morton number n has Morton number n+1. Anyone who is not assigned a Morton number, by this process, is said to have Morton number ∞. Thus, a person's Morton number is the minimum distance from that person to Newton Morton in the collaboration graph. The chapter also discusses the Morton's data based on the electronic reference database PubMed.
Common cortical and subcortical targets of the dorsolateral prefrontal and posterior parietal cortices in the rhesus monkey: evidence for a distributed neural network subserving spatially guided behavior

Common efferent projections of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and posterior parietal cortex were examined in 3 rhesus monkeys by placing injections of tritiated amino acids and HRP in frontal and parietal cortices, respectively, of the same hemisphere. Terminal labeling originating from both frontal and parietal injection sites was found to be in apposition in 15 ipsilateral cortical areas: the supplementary motor cortex, the dorsal premotor cortex, the ventral premotor cortex, the anterior arcuate cortex (including the frontal eye fields), the orbitofrontal cortex, the anterior and posterior cingulate cortices, the frontoparietal operculum, the insular cortex, the medial parietal cortex, the superior temporal cortex, the parahippocampal gyrus, the presubiculum, the caudomedial lobule, and the medial prestriate cortex. Convergent terminal labeling was observed in the contralateral hemisphere as well, most prominently in the principal sulcal cortex, the superior arcuate cortex, and the superior temporal cortex. In certain common target areas, as for example the cingulate cortices, frontal and parietal efferents terminate in an array of interdigitating columns, an arrangement much like that observed for callosal and associational projections to the principal sulcus (Goldman-Rakic and Schwartz, 1982). In other areas, frontal and parietal terminals exhibit a laminar complementarity: in the depths of the superior temporal sulcus, prefrontal terminals are densely distributed within laminae I, III, and V, whereas parietal terminals occupy mainly laminae IV and VI directly below the prefrontal bands. Subcortical structures also receive apposing or overlapping projections from both prefrontal and parietal cortices. The dorsolateral prefrontal and posterior parietal cortices project to adjacent, longitudinal domains of the neostriatum, as has been described previously (Selemon and Goldman-Rakic, 1985); these projections are also found in close apposition in the claustrum, the amygdala, the caudomedial lobule, and throughout the anterior medial, medial dorsal, lateral dorsal, and medial pulvinar nuclei of the thalamus. In the brain stem, both areas of association cortex project to the intermediate layers of the superior colliculus and to the midline reticular formation of the pons.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
CHILDHOOD PROBLEMS IN RELATION TO THE FAMILY: Summary of a Seminar

HISTORICAL THE CHIEF focus in child psychiatry at the present time is on family relationships. It is of considerable interest that the concept of family relations did not really come into being until about the turn of the century and since then has come to occupy a position of increasingly greater emphasis in our thinking. This change in thinking took place mainly because of the efforts of Freud in Europe and Meyer in this country. It was in the first decade of the Twentieth Century that psychiatric history taking came to include a biography. However, even at that time, little attention was paid to children9s behavior difficulties. It is of considerable interest that Freud9s theories on infantile sexuality were published before Freud had ever seen a child professionally. The greatest impetus came in the Twenties with the establishment of child guidance clinics at various places throughout the country and these began to study family attitudes and the relationships between various members of the family. ATTITUDES When we introduce the subject to medical students, we like to tell them that they have learned in medical school about various sets of agents which may be normally necessary for the proper body economy, may, on some occasions, be pathogenic, and may, under different circumstances, be remedial. Chemical substances, for example, are vitally important as foodstuffs, detrimental as toxins, and remedial as drugs. We have come to recognize that there is one other set of agents that is just as important and can have similar effects. These agents we choose to refer to as attitudes. In general, a person9s feeling about himself and about the world in general will depend on the attitudes of the people who constitute his world. Certain attitudes provide an emotional climate that is ideal for the growing child and likely to provide for emotional stability. In summarizing the various attitudes that are necessary, we like to think of them in terms of the three A9s: Affection, Acceptance, and Approval. It is certainly true that any child has a better chance of developing emotional security if he is surrounded by this attitudinal constellation.
The diagnosis of sinusitis in infants and children: X-ray, computed tomography, and magnetic resonance imaging: Diagnostic imaging of pediatric sinusitis

Plain film radiographic examination, the historical standard, is rapidly being supplanted by computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in the diagnosis of sinusitis. In particular, many endoscopic surgeons consider CT to be a mandatory part of the preoperative evaluation. MRI is useful for cases complicated by orbital or intracranial extension. However, because of considerations of cost, the need for sedation, and for CT radiation exposure, conventional x-ray films will continue to play an important role in the diagnosis and management of medically treated sinus disease. Incidental sinus abnormalities in children without apparent symptoms are usually the result of resolving, uncomplicated upper respiratory tract infection. Opacification, moderate-to-severe mucosal thickening, or air fluid levels in patients with persistent symptoms indicate sinusitis. Sinus imaging in children, whatever the modality, is demanding both in obtaining technically adequate studies and interpreting findings. Poor-quality examinations usually overestimate the presence and severity of disease. Ideally, children should be referred to centers with expertise in pediatric ear, nose, and throat imaging.
Neck web and congenital heart defects: a pathogenic association in 45 X-O Turner syndrome?

This study explores the association between neck web and congenital heart disease in patients with Turner syndrome. Of 193 cases with documented 45 X-O karyotype, 106 (55%) had a web neck and 87 (45%) had a normal neck. The incidence of congenital heart disease was significantly different between these two groups, occurring in 30% of those with web neck and 9% of those with normal neck (x2 = 12.82, P less than .0005). The difference was most striking in coarctation of the aorta for which the prevalence was 25% with web neck and 3% with normal neck (X2 = 17.65, P less than .0001). The association between web neck and congenital heart disease suggests a pathogenic relationship exists between the two. The following hypothesis is proposed to explain the association. Increased lymphatic pressure associated with jugular lymphatic sac obstruction distends the thoracic ducts, which compress the ascending aorta altering intracardiac blood flow. Redirection of intracardiac blood flow produces coarctation of the aorta and other defects in the spectrum of left heart obstruction. This proposed mechanism is an example of a teratogenic event remote from the heart, which alters cardiovascular morphology.
An orthogonal approach to multifunctional molecularly imprinted polymers.

An “orthogonal” approach to molecularly imprinted polymers has been demonstrated using a crown ether derived monomer that does not exhibit cross-reactivity with other functional monomers. This strategy provides multiple functional groups in the binding site of molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) without unproductive interactions between functional monomers. The orthogonal functional group system was shown to act cooperatively in MIPs to bind a template with higher selectivity than any of the individual functional monomers alone.
Childhood Physical Abuse and Sociopathy: Is This Link Magnified among Firstborn Children?

The Psychopathic Deviate scale of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory–2 (MMPI–2) provides a valid psychometric index of sociopathic tendencies in both clinical and nonclinical samples. Childhood physical abuse has provided a robust predictor of sociopathic penchants. The link between childhood physical abuse and MMPI–2 Psychopathic Deviate scores was examined (N = 322) as a function of birth order. A significant childhood physical abuse by birth order interaction was found (p 70) found for firstborn participants. Childhood physical abuse predicted Psychopathic Deviate scores for firstborn (r = .50, p < .0001, d = 1.15) and middle-born (r = .24, p = .006, d = .49) offspring. Harris–Lingoes subscale scores suggested firstborns felt selectively alienated from self and others in response to childhood physical abuse experiences.
Fluorescent Peptide–PNA Chimeras for Imaging Monoamine Oxidase A mRNA in Neuronal Cells

Monoamine oxidases (MAO) catalyze the oxidative deamination of many biogenic amines and are integral proteins found in the mitochondrial outer membrane. Changes in MAO-A levels are associated with depression, trait aggression, and addiction. Here we report the synthesis, characterization, and in vitro evaluation of novel fluorescent peptide-peptide nucleic acid (PNA) chimeras for MAOA mRNA imaging in live neuronal cells. The probes were designed to include MAOA-specific PNA dodecamers, separated by an N-terminal spacer to a μ-opioid receptor targeting peptide (DAMGO), with a spacer and a fluorophore on the C-terminus. The probe was successfully delivered into human SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells through μ-opioid receptor-mediated endocytosis. The K(d) by flow cytometry was 11.6 ± 0.8 nM. Uptake studies by fluorescence microscopy showed ∼5-fold higher signal in human SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells than in negative control CHO-K1 cells that lack μ-opioid receptors. Moreover, a peptide-mismatch control sequence showed no significant uptake in SH-SY5Y cells. Such mRNA imaging agents with near-infrared fluorophores might enable real time imaging and quantitation of neuronal mRNAs in live animal models.
Influence of tractor wheel tracks and crusts/seals on runoff: Observations and simulations with the RZWQM☆☆☆

In simulations on the fate of agricultural chemicals applied to crops, accurate partitioning of rainfall between infiltration and runoff is fundamental to chemical runoff predictions. We evaluated the Root Zone Water Quality Model (RZWQM version 3.1) against measured runoff from two field plots (15×45 m with 3% slope) on a Tifton loamy sand (fine-loamy, siliceous, thermic Plinthic Kandiudult). Six simulated rainfall events, each 25 mm h−1 for 2 h, were applied to maize (Zea mays, L.) each year. In the uncalibrated mode, RZWQM under-predicted runoff by 40% on average, with the closest fit for events that occurred after full canopy. Saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ks) accounted for the majority of the uncertainty in predicted runoff. When Ks of the surface crust was back calibrated from the measured runoff, RZWQM predicted runoff closely for the remaining plots and events. Alternatively, using different Ks values for wheel track and crop beds, running the model for each and, then, proportionally assigning runoff also led to predictions that agreed with measured runoff. When spatial and temporal changes in Ks were calibrated to specific conditions at the site, RZWQM effectively predicted runoff.
A Novel Transition-Sensitive Conjugate Methodology Applied to Turbine Vane Heat Transfer

A documented numerical methodology for conjugate heat transfer was employed to predict the metal temperature of an internally-cooled gas turbine vane at realistic operating conditions. The conjugate heat transfer approach involves the simultaneous solution of the flow field (convection) and the conduction within the metal vane, allowing a solution of the complete heat transfer problem in a single simulation. This technique means better accuracy and faster turn-around time than the typical industry practice of multiple, decoupled solutions. In the present simulations, the solid and fluid zones were coupled by energy conservation at the interfaces. In the fluid zones, the Reynoldsaveraged Navier-Stokes equations were closed with a three-equation, eddy-viscosity model, developed in-house and previously documented, with the capability to predict laminar-to-turbulent boundary-layer transition. The single-point model is fully-predictive for transition and requires no problem-dependent user inputs. For comparison, a simulation was also run with a commercially available Realizable k-e turbulence model. A high-quality, unstructured gird was employed in both cases. Numerical predictions for midspan temperature on the airfoil surface are compared to data from an open-literature experiment with the same geometry and operating conditions. The new model captured transition of the initially laminar boundary layer to a turbulent boundary layer on the suction surface. The results with the new model show excellent agreement with measured data for surface temperature over the majority of the airfoil surface. The new model showed a marked improvement over the Realizable k-e model in all regions where laminar boundary layers exist, highlighting the importance of accurately modeling transition in turbomachinery heat transfer simulations.Copyright © 2003 by ASME
Tongue muscle plasticity following hypoglossal nerve stimulation in aged rats

Introduction Age-related decreases in tongue muscle mass and strength have been reported. It may be possible to prevent age-related tongue muscle changes using neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES). Our hypothesis was that alterations in muscle contractile properties and myosin heavy chain composition would be found following NMES.
Carbonic anhydrase levels and internal lacunar CO2 concentrations in aquatic macrophytes

Abstract Carbonic anhydrase levels were examined in a variety of aquatic macrophytes from different habitats. Carbonic anhydrase levels increased across the habitat gradient, from low activity in submersed aquatic macrophytes, intermediate in floating-leaved and free-floating plants to high activity in emergent macrophytes. Internal CO2 concentrations ranged from low to high in submersed macrophytes, but were low in floating-leaved and emergent macrophytes. No correlation was found between internal lacunar CO2 concentrations and carbonic anhydrase activities.
Optimal deviations from an asset allocation

Abstract Institutional investors have long recognized that asset allocation is the most crucial decision required to achieve their investment goals. The basic asset allocation problem is to decide which asset classes to include in the investment portfolio and in what proportions. After having determining a ‘strategic benchmark portfolio’, a portfolio manager may wish to set tolerable limits within which individual asset class managers can vary. We model this problem mathematically as a convex optimization problem, and propose an algorithm to solve it. Numerical results are presented on an example problem, a set of randomly generated problems, and on two real-world investment problem taken from the literature. Scope and purpose We consider a portfolio management problem of asset classes, each of which is managed by an independent ‘submanager’. Given a ‘benchmark’ portfolio, the general manager often wished to allow the submanagers some flexibility in risk, but wishes to limit the overall risk of the portfolio. Thus, the general manager wishes to set optimal limits for the submanagers off of the benchmark in such a way that the overall risk is limited. The mathematical model that reflects this situation is a convex optimization problem with a (potentially) huge number of constraints. We propose a ‘cutting plane’ method to solve it. In addition, we propose a heuristic scheme to start the algorithm which, in practice, predicts the crucial constraints in one or two steps. The model and algorithm are tested both on randomly generated problems and on a problem taken from the literature.
Krylov model order reduction of finite element approximations of electromagnetic devices with frequency-dependent material properties

A methodology is presented for the Krylov subspace-based model order reduction of finite element models of electromagnetic structures with material properties and impedance boundary conditions exhibiting arbitrary frequency dependence. The proposed methodology is a generalization of an equation-preserving Krylov model order reduction scheme for methodology for second-order, linear dynamical systems. The emphasis of this paper is on the application of this method to the broadband model order reduction of planar circuits including lossy strips of arbitrary thickness and lossy reference planes. In particular, it is shown that the proposed model order reduction methodology provides for the accurately modelling of the impact of the frequency dependence of the internal impedance per unit length of the thick lossy strip on the electromagnetic response of the stripline structure over a very broad, multi-GHz frequency band, extending all the way down to frequencies in the DC neighbourhood. In addition, the application of the proposed methodology to the broadband modelling of electromagnetic coupling between strips on either side of a lossy ground plane is demonstrated. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Brain natriuretic peptide and risk of atrial fibrillation after thoracic surgery

Objectives Postoperative atrial fibrillation (POAF) complicating general thoracic surgery is a marker of increased morbidity and stroke risk. Our goal was to determine whether increased preoperative brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) levels are able to stratify patients by the risk of POAF. Methods Using a prospective database of 415 patients aged 60 years or older, who had undergone lung or esophageal surgery during a 1-year period, the preoperative clinical data, including BNP levels, were compared between patients who developed POAF lasting longer than 5 minutes during hospitalization and those who did not. Results POAF occurred in 65 (16%) of the 415 patients and was more frequent among patients who had undergone esophagectomy or anatomic lung resection (22% or 58 of 269) compared with those who did not (5% or 7 of 146; P P P = .04), male gender (OR, 2.61; 95% CI, 1.12-4.17; P = .02), and BNP level 30 pg/mL or greater (OR, 4.52; 95% CI, 2.19-9.32; P P Conclusions Among patients undergoing anatomic lung resection or esophagectomy, increased age, male gender, and preoperative BNP level of 30 pg/mL or greater were significant risk factors for the development of POAF. The identification of patients who are more likely to develop POAF will allow the development of trials assessing prevention strategies aimed at reducing this complication.
A test of the unified neutral theory of biodiversity

One of the fundamental questions of ecology is what controls biodiversity. Recent theory suggests that biodiversity is controlled predominantly by neutral drift of species abundances1,2,3,4. This theory has generated considerable controversy5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12, because it claims that many mechanisms that have long been studied by ecologists (such as niches) have little involvement in structuring communities. The theory predicts that the species abundance distribution within a community should follow a zero-sum multinomial distribution (ZSM), but this has not, so far, been rigorously tested. Specifically, it remains to be shown that the ZSM fits the data significantly better than reasonable null models. Here I test whether the ZSM fits several empirical data sets better than the lognormal distribution. It does not. Not only does the ZSM fail to fit empirical data better than the lognormal distribution 95% of the time, it also fails to fit empirical data better even a majority of the time. This means that there is no evidence that the ZSM predicts abundances better than the much more parsimonious null hypothesis.
Traumatic Memories: Empirical Foundations, Forensic and Clinical Implications

This article reviews empirical research on memories for negative personal experiences among adults. It examines basic concepts (including neural underpinnings), theoretical models of the affect-memory relationship, and data from three sources: victims or witnesses to crimes and atrocities, “flashbulb memories” for traumatic events, and laboratory simulations of shocking experiences. Evidence suggests that memories for traumatic experiences contain more central than peripheral detail, are reasonably accurate and well-retained for very long periods, but are not completely indelible. Assertions of eyewitness memory's vulnerability to change through suggestion have overstated the evidence. Forensic and clinical implications are discussed and a plea issued for more study of the memory phenomena that characterize posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and are the focus of trauma survivors’ treatment.
Unsupervised Extraction of Human-Interpretable Nonverbal Behavioral Cues in a Public Speaking Scenario

We present a framework for unsupervised detection of nonverbal behavioral cues---hand gestures, pose, body movements, etc.---from a collection of motion capture (MoCap) sequences in a public speaking setting. We extract the cues by solving a sparse and shift-invariant dictionary learning problem, known as shift-invariant sparse coding. We find that the extracted behavioral cues are human-interpretable in the context of public speaking. Our technique can be applied to automatically identify the common patterns of body movements and the time-instances of their occurrences, minimizing time and efforts needed for manual detection and coding of nonverbal human behaviors.
Contextual variability in American English dark‐l

This paper presents a four‐subject study that examines the relative influence of syllable position and stress, together with vowel context on the colouring of the dark‐l characteristic of speakers of General American English. Most investigators report lighter /l/ tokens in syllable onsets and darker tokens in coda positions. The present study demonstrates that when dark‐l serves as an onset in iambic intervocalic context with tautosyllabic high front vowels, it is fully dark as a result of domain‐initial strengthening. By contrast, when dark‐l is abutted across a word boundary to word‐final or word‐initial consonants, or when it is contained in a foot‐internal context (preboundary intervocalic rime with trochaic stress) its dorsal gesture is constrained, resulting in less dark tokens. In the case of dark‐l, articulatory undershoot must be understood not only in terms of the alveolar gesture, but also the dorsal gesture.
EyePhone: A mobile EOG-based Human-Computer Interface for assistive healthcare

Human-Computer Interfaces (HCI) allow effective interactions between human being and computers, which is of particular significance to people with disabilities or temporary mobility impairment. In this paper, we propose the EyePhone framework, a mobile HCI that allows users to control mobile phones through intentional eye or facial movements. A proof-of-concept prototype is developed based on a wearable electroencephalograph (EEG) headset and an Android smartphone. Specifically, a graphical window can receive and display continuous EEG data acquired from the headset; a mouse emulator can allow users to move a cursor around the smartphone screen by moving their heads and eyes; and an emergency dialer can allow users to make an emergency phone call through a certain pattern of eye/facial movements. The launching and switching of each functional module are also implemented through predefined head movement patterns, in order to achieve a true “hands-free” environment. The efficacy and efficiency of the proposed EyePhone system is evaluated based on experiments in a variety of scenarios (e.g., sitting, standing, and walking).
Dynamic response of the VACM temperature sensor

Abstract The relative dynamic response between a standard (‘slow’) and a modified (‘fast’) VACM temperature sensor is estimated from moored instruments. The response is modeled by heat conduction in a horizontally infinite plate of finite thickness. A function satisfactory for the correction of temperature spectra measured with the standard sensor is derived.
Luke 10.18—Who Saw Satan Fall?:

In Lk. 10.17-20 Jesus' first statement to the returning missionaries has traditionally been translated, 'I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven' (10.18). A wide variety of interpretations have been offered, concerning when and how Jesus saw or will see Satan fall: before creation, at the temptations, during the disciples' mission, at the crucifixion, etc. The article proposes that the imperfect έθeΏρουν be translated not 'I saw' but 'they [sc. 'the demons' in 10.17] saw', and hence that Jesus' response to the disciples is an explanation of their successful exorcisms: the demons became subject to the disciples because they had seen their leader, Satan, dethroned.
Ricco's law: response as a power function of stimulus luminance and distance from target center.

Abstract It is shown that the classical model for interpreting Ricco's Law for concentric targets of different diameters—which assumes equal contributions from all portions of the area of summation—is a special case of the following pair of relations: (1) the local response at each point within the summation area is a power function of luminance; (2) before contributing to the total response from the summation area, the local response is scaled by an amount that is a power function of distance from the center of the area. While the powers in the two relations must differ by (n/2 − 1) any value of n is possible ( n is the power to which luminance is raised). However, only when n = 0 (the classical case) will the same solution hold for different target shapes as holds for the circular target.
Wood Anatomy and Relationships of Neowawraea (Euphorbiaceae)

Wood anatomy of three specimens of Neowawraea phyllanthoides Rock, a rare and endangered member of Euphorbiaceae endemic to the Hawaiian Islands, is described and compared with woods of other genera of subfamily Phyllanthoideae. Neowawraea has often been associated or synonymized with Drypetes Vahl. Wood of Neowawraea is diffuse porous, perforation plates are simple, imperforate tracheary elements are thin-walled septate fiber-tracheids, rays are heterocel- lular and crystalliferous, and axial xylem parenchyma is restricted to a few scanty paratracheal and terminal cells. In several respects these results differ from earlier published descriptions of the wood of this taxon; these earlier descriptions are shown to be in error. Further, as described here, wood of Neowawraea differs greatly from that of Drypetes. Accordingly, generic status for Neowaw- raea is warranted on anatomical grounds and relationship with certain genera of tribe Phyllantheae such as Breynia Forst., Glochidion Forst., or Phyllanthus L. is favored over relationship with Drypetes. Neowawraea Rock is a monotypic genus of dioecious trees endemic to the Hawaiian Is- lands. Historically recorded from Kauai, Oahu, Molokai, Maui, and Hawaii (St. John 1973), the species is currently considered in danger of ex- tinction (Fosberg and Herbst 1975). Given its
Methods of fluid dynamics in nuclear physics catania, Italy, April 9–11, 1984 an interdisciplinary workshop

Abstract Approximately thirty physicists and mathematicians gathered for this informal workshop in Catania, Sicily, a city nestled between Mount Etna to the west and the Riviera of the Cyclops to the east (where Ulysses, according to tradition, had his encounter with the one-eyed giant). The workshop was organized jointly by the physics and mathematics departments of the Univeristy of Catania, the prime movers being mathematics Professor M. Anile and physics Professor M. Di Toro.
N-Cadherin and Integrin Blockade Inhibit Arteriolar Myogenic Reactivity but not Pressure-Induced Increases in Intracellular Ca2+

The vascular myogenic response is characterized by arterial constriction in response to an increase in intraluminal pressure and dilatation to a decrease in pressure. This mechanism is important for the regulation of blood flow, capillary pressure and arterial pressure. The identity of the mechanosensory mechanism(s) for this response is incompletely understood but has been shown to include the integrins as cell-extracellular matrix receptors. The possibility that a cell-cell adhesion receptor is involved has not been studied. Thus, we tested the hypothesis that N-cadherin, a cell-cell adhesion molecule in vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs), was important for myogenic responsiveness. The purpose of this study was to investigate: 1. whether cadherin inhibition blocks myogenic responses to increases in intraluminal pressure and 2. the effect of the cadherin or integrin blockade on pressure-induced changes in [Ca2+]i. Cadherin blockade was tested in isolated rat cremaster arterioles on myogenic responses to acute pressure steps from 60 – 100 mmHg and changes in VSMC Ca2+ were measured using fura-2. In the presence of a synthetic cadherin inhibitory peptide or a function blocking antibody, myogenic responses were inhibited. In contrast, during N-cadherin blockade, pressure-induced changes in [Ca2+]i were not altered. Similarly, vessels treated with function-blocking β1- or β3-integrin antibodies maintained pressure-induced [Ca2+]i responses despite inhibition of myogenic constriction. Collectively, these data suggest that both cadherins and integrins play a fundamental role in mediating myogenic constriction but argue against their direct involvement in mediating pressure-induced [Ca2+]i increases.
Padé approximants and the effective shell model interaction

Abstract A scheme for approximating the effective interaction in the presence of an intruder state is discussed. The method, which employs the Pade approximation for individual matrix elements in an appropriately transformed basis, is shown to be reliable for a 3 × 3 Hamiltonian matrix.
Preliminary capillary hysteresis simulations in fractured rocks, Yucca Mountain, Nevada

Abstract Preliminary simulations have been carried out to address the question of how hysteretic (history-dependent) capillary pressure-liquid saturation relation may affect the flow and liquid saturation distribution in a fractured rock system. Using a hysteresis model modified from the theoretically based dependent domain model of Mualem (1984), a system consisting of discrete fractures and rock matrix parts was simulated under periodically occurring infiltration pulses. Comparisons were made between the hysteretic case and the non-hysteretic case using the main drying curve alone. Material properties used represent values reported for the densely welded tuffs at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. Since no actual hysteresis measurements were available for the welded tuffs, the necessary data was derived based on information available in the soils literature The strongly hysteretic behavior in the uppermost layer of the matrix along with the overall lower matrix capillary suctions, generated higher fracture flows and a more “smeared” matrix liquid saturation vs. depth distribution for the hysteretic case. While the actual amounts of water being absorbed into the matrix were very similar, the distributions of this absorbed water were different and the matrix was affected up to greater depths in the hysteretic case in comparison to the non-hysteretic case.
Neutron activation determination of vanadium in iron meteorites and sulfide nodules

Vanadium concentrations in meteoritic irons and sulfide modules from iron meteorites determined by neutron activation
EXTRARENAL MANIFESTATIONS OF ADPKD

A 47-year-old woman was evaluated in the Nephrology Clinic at New England Medical Center for autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD). She had undergone abdominal and pelvic noncontrast computed tomographic scans for the evaluation of dyspareunia and stress incontinence. These studies revealed markedly enlarged cystic kidneys as well as multiple cysts involving most of the liver parenchyma, particularly the superior right lobe; the liver size was normal. Several hepatic Structures with high attenuation values were consistent with complicated hemorrhagic cysts or solid masses. She had questionable minimal intrahepatic biliary ductal dilation but no pancreatic or splenic cysts. The patient had been unaware of her renal diagnosis prior to these studies and referred herself for further evaluation. In the Nephrology Clinic, she specifically denied any history of hypertension, flank or abdominal pain, urinary tract infection, or hematuria. She was gravida 4, para 2; she had never used oral contraceptives. The serum creatinine was reportedly normal until one year previously, when it was 1.5 mg/dl. She was taking no medications, and a review of systems was negative. Her family history revealed that her mother and one sister had end-stage renal failure due to ADPKD. A brother also had ADPKD with hypertension and well-preserved renal function. Physical examination disclosed a blood pressure of 120/90 mm Hg. Mild arteriolar narrowing was present on funduscopic examination. The chest was clear and cardiac examination was normal. The left kidney was markedly enlarged and slightly tender to palpation. The right kidney was not felt. The liver edge was palpable but nontender. Trace pedal edema was present. Gynecologic examination revealed grade-2 uterovaginal prolapse. The serum creatinine and BUN levels were 1.7 and 28 mg/dl, respectively. Hematocrit was 36%. Liver function tests, including bilirubin, LDI-I, AST, and ALT, were within normal limits. Cholesterol was 159 mg/dl.