cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Mosquito hemocyte-mediated immune responses

Hemocytes are a key component of the mosquito immune system that kill pathogens via phagocytic, lytic and melanization pathways. Individual mosquitoes contain between 500 and 4,000 hemocytes, which are divided into three populations named granulocytes, oenocytoids and prohemocytes. Hemocytes can also be divided by their anatomical location with 75% of hemocytes circulating in the hemocoel (circulating hemocytes) and 25% of hemocytes attaching themselves to tissues (sessile hemocytes). Greater than 85% of the hemocytes in adult mosquitoes are granulocytes, which primarily kill pathogens by phagocytosis or lysis. Oenocytoids, on the other hand, are the major producers of the enzymes required for melanization while prohemocytes are small cells that participate in phagocytosis. Both circulating and sessile hemocytes engage in defense against pathogens. The circulatory system of mosquitoes also interacts with hemocytes and facilitates elimination of potential pathogens that enter the hemocoel.
Buckling microtubules in vesicles.

Microtubules are ordered polymers of the protein tubulin that are part of the flexible, plastic, and even self-effacing skeleton of eukaryotic cells [1,2]. They are hollow cylinders, 25 nm in diameter and tens of microns long [3]. Microtubules have large bending rigidity, with a persistence length of the order of millimeters [4]. The elastic properties of microtubules and their interaction with the cell membrane are essential in defining cell morphology. This Letter is concerned with microtubules within artificial phospholipid vesicles, their shapes, and the shape transformations induced by membrane tension. A single microtubule deforms a vesicle into an oval. Under tension, the microtubule buckles and the vesicle recovers a spherical shape. This allows a measurement of the microtubule bending rigidity. A large number of microtubules organize inside a vesicle into a linear bundle which protrudes without piercing the membrane. The vesicle contains the bundle by extending a pair of narrow tubes about the microtubule extremities while maintaining
Chlorpyrifos, parathion, and their oxons bind to and desensitize a nicotinic acetylcholine receptor: relevance to their toxicities

The nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) of the electric organ of the electric ray. Torpedo sp., the richest source of nAChR, with similar structure and pharmacology to the mammalian skeletal muscle nAChR, carries several binding sites for different ligands. Incubation of Torpedo membrane-bound nAChRs with the agonist carbamylcholine (Carb) stimulated the binding of [3H]thienyl-cyclohexylpiperidine ([3H]TCP), which binds to the receptor's noncompetitive antagonist binding site in its ionic channel, with high affinity (Kd of 196 nM). The agonist-stimulated binding of [3H]TCP (i.e., binding to activated nAChRs) was inhibited in a concentration-dependent manner by four organophosphate (OP) anticholinesterases, chlorpyrifos oxon (CPO), chlorpyrifos (CPS), parathion (PS), and paraoxon (PO) with IC50 (concentration that inhibits 50% of the effect) values of 5, 150, 200, and 300 microM, respectively. The binding of CPO was totally reversible. The OPs had no effect on equilibrium binding of [alpha-125I]bungarotoxin ([alpha-125I]BGT) to the receptor's acetylcholine (ACh)-binding site, but preincubation of the membranes with the OPs increased this site's affinity for Carb. In absence of agonist, 100 microM of the OPs increased the binding of [3H]TCP by two- to fivefold with the following order of decreasing potency: PS > CPO > CPS > PO. The data suggest that in addition to inhibition of acetylcholinesterase, these OPs bind to a site on the nAChR that is different from the sites that bind ACh or TCP and that this binding induces nAChR desensitization. The relevance of this direct action of OPs on nAChRs on their acute toxicities is discussed.
Intracellular injections of BAPTA block induction of enhancement in Hermissenda type B-photoreceptors.

Abstract Light paired with serotonin (5-HT) in vivo produces both short- and long-term enhancement of generator potentials in identified B-photoreceptors in Hermissenda. The role of intracellular Ca2+ in the induction of enhancement in B-photoreceptors was assessed by buffering intracellular Ca2+ with the iontophoretic injection of BAPTA. Blocking light-elicited photoreceptor desensitization with BAPTA loading prior to applying 5-HT was used as an indication of the effectiveness of Ca2+ buffering. Enhancement was blocked in preparations that received BAPTA loading prior to the application of 5-HT while typical enhancement was elicited by light and 5-HT in control preparations. These results indicate that enhancement involves a Ca2+-dependent process.
Investigation of NO production and flame structure in plasma enhanced premixed combustion

Abstract A pulsed plasma source is used to stabilize lean premixed methane flames. Nitric oxide (NO) production is measured using probe sampling and chemiluminescence analysis. While the discharge is a potential source of NO, it is observed that the flame also consumes some NO. The NO production in the flame is modeled by use of a modified opposed diffusion flame simulation (OPPDIF), augmented by the initial radical pool created by the discharge. The simulations are in qualitative and quantitative agreement with the measurements, despite the simplified modeled geometry. The structure of this plasma assisted premixed flame is discussed within the framework of two interacting premixed streams, as simulated by the OPPDIF configuration. Under certain conditions, we observe a cold pre-flame associated with the plasma-excited premixed stream, the products of which (OH radicals) have an unusually high vibrational temperature and low rotational temperature in electronically excited states, when compared to the OH characteristics found in a conventional lean premixed flames. While the role of the OH radicals in this cold pre-flame stream is not fully understood, we believe it plays an important role in igniting the surrounding combustible mixture, as confirmed by the simulations.
Some Notes on the Genus Rhagovelia with Descriptions of a New Species (Hemiptera—Veliidae)

Numerous specimens of the small water-striders of the genus Rhagovelia have been received from Dr. H. B. Hungerford, of the University of Kansas, during the past year, for determination. The material, which includes individuals from South and Central America, Mexico and the West Indies, contains a new species and several new distribution records. In addition, the writer has had an opportunity recently to collect these water-striders in several localities in the central part of the United States. It was thought that these records might be of interest.
Manic-depressive illness and social achievement in a public hospital sample.

This is the third in a series of investigations of social effectiveness defined by educational and occupational achievement among patients with primary affective disorder. As in previous studies, there is no evidence that patients with primary affective disorder differ significantly in social achievement from their own siblings. This study in an attempt to replicate achievement from their own siblings. This study is an attempt to replicate previous findings that bipolar patients and their family members have higher levels of social achievement than unipolar patients and their family members. The results of this study confirm previous results among publically hospitalized patients when they have a history of previous private hospitalization. The hypothesis that a social advantage is associated with bipolar primary affective disorder is not supported by data from publically hospitalized patients without a history of previous private hospitalization. The possible reasons for these findings are discussed, as well as the type of study wich would be required to resolve the questions raised by the present investigation.
Common Fungal Infections of the Feet in Patients with Diabetes Mellitus

Superficial fungal infections of the foot (tinea pedis and onychomycosis) are common among elderly patients. Although most authorities believe that patients with diabetes mellitus have an increased predisposition to dermatophytic infections, some controversies still remain. Because these infections disrupt the skin integrity and provide an avenue for bacterial superinfection, elderly diabetic patients with dermatophytic infection should be promptly treated with an antifungal agent. For most dermatophytic infections of the foot, topical agents are usually effective and less expensive than oral agents. Laboratory diagnosis of fungal infection prior to institution of therapy is recommended. Proper technique for obtaining the specimen is important to ensure a higher chance of isolating the infecting fungus. Commonly used anti-dermatophytic agents that are also active against the yeasts include the imidazoles, the allylamines-benzylamines and the hydroxypyridones, which are also effective against most of the moulds. Oral therapy for tinea pedis, although not well studied, should be limited to patients with more extensive infections, such as vesicobullous and moccasin type, resistant infections or chronic infections. In addition, oral agents should also be considered in diabetic and immunosuppressed patients. On the other hand, treatment of onychomycosis of the foot usually requires systemic therapy. Griseofulvin is the least effective agent when compared with the newer agents. Terbinafine, itraconazole and fluconazole have been shown to have acceptable cure rates. More recently, topical treatment of the nail with 8% ciclopirox nail lacquer, bifonazole with urea and amorolfine have been reported to be successful. Over the past decade, fungal foot infections of the skin and nail are more effectively treated with the introduction of numerous topical and oral agents.
Theta dynamics in rat: speed and acceleration across the Septotemporal axis.

Theta (6–12 Hz) rhythmicity in the local field potential (LFP) reflects a clocking mechanism that brings physically isolated neurons together in time, allowing for the integration and segregation of distributed cell assemblies. Variation in the theta signal has been linked to locomotor speed, sensorimotor integration as well as cognitive processing. Previously, we have characterized the relationship between locomotor speed and theta power and how that relationship varies across the septotemporal (long) axis of the hippocampus (HPC). The current study investigated the relationship between whole body acceleration, deceleration and theta indices at CA1 and dentate gyrus (DG) sites along the septotemporal axis of the HPC in rats. Results indicate that whole body acceleration and deceleration predicts a significant amount of variability in the theta signal beyond variation in locomotor speed. Furthermore, deceleration was more predictive of variation in theta amplitude as compared to acceleration as rats traversed a linear track. Such findings highlight key variables that systematically predict the variability in the theta signal across the long axis of the HPC. A better understanding of the relative contribution of these quantifiable variables and their variation as a function of experience and environmental conditions should facilitate our understanding of the relationship between theta and sensorimotor/cognitive functions.
Drinking and Condom use: Results from an Event-Based Daily Diary

Although it is often assumed that drinking alcohol interferes with condom use, most studies on this topic do not meet the conditions required for causal interpretation. We examined the association of drinking to condom use using data from diaries of alcohol use and sexual encounters, collected over 8 weeks from college students and clients of a sexually transmitted disease clinic. This method establishes the temporal relationships between drinking and condom use and controls for individual differences by using a within-subjects analysis. Multilevel models that predicted condom use from alcohol use before the sexual encounter, partner type, and the use of other contraception showed that drinking before sex was unrelated to condom use. These results do not support the persistent notion that alcohol causes people to engage in sexual risk that they would avoid when sober; instead, people tend to follow their usual pattern of condom use, regardless of alcohol use.
Cut distribution and cutter selection for sculptured surface cavity machining

SUMMARY Sculptured surfaces often appear in mechanical parts of various industrial products as external form or the functional surface and are commonly found in moulds and dies. In this study a sculptured surface is denned by a non-uniform rational B-spline surface that provides the flexibility and freedom for surface description. Work proposed here includes the evaluation of machining information, decision for machining process sequence selection, and automatic cutter selection and path generation. Machining information is first evaluated by using series of hunt planes and calculating geometric shape, and constraints of the machining cavity. A decision on the process sequence in made based on the evaluated machining information. Cutter size is automatically determined by considering geometric constraints, maximum material removal rate in the roughing process, and minimum cutter movement with the required accuracy in the finishing process. Roughing is done by pocketing procedures that consider arbitrary s...
Reconceptualizing address in television programming: The effect of address and affective empathy on viewer experience of parasocial interaction

Much scholarship has examined the parasocial bonds between audiences and media personalities. However, recent research differentiated between the development of parasocial relationships and the actual experience of parasocial interaction (EPSI) that can result from structural elements of a message such as style of address (Hartmann & Goldhoorn, 2011). This study presents an alternate conceptualization of style of address and employs an online assessment to examine its impact on the EPSI. Results indicated that bodily address, where the onscreen performer could be seen speaking to the viewer, fostered a stronger sense of interaction relative to verbal or no address. Moreover, emotional contagion, an affective component of empathy, likewise facilitated these perceived interactions, most strongly in response to bodily address.
Misplaced marketing: When marketing misplaces the benefits of education

Comments on the frequent inappropriateness of marketing education. Also addresses some of the inappropriate methods of marketing schools. Considers that certain schools that are unable to attract top students are tempted to misplace marketing by focusing the attention on a school’s “values” other than education, for instance after‐school activities, discipline, or teachers’ concerns for children’s self‐esteem. In college education, these benefits might include a sports team’s winning record, fraternity or sorority parties and local drinking establishments. Finally, expresses dissatisfaction that many students now view graduation as job certification, not as a mark of education.
Narrative and the politics of meaning

In a renewed call for interpretive psychological science, this paper argues for narrative as an integrative concept to interrogate mental experience and human development in social and political context. Master narrative engagement is defined as the process by which individuals engage with and internalize competing storylines of history and identity perceived as socially compulsory. Narrative science is concerned with individual responses to these master narratives and the extent to which elements of them become integrated into autobiographies. A narrative approach is posited as better able to capture the reality of lives in context and to enable possibilities for social and political transformation than variable-centered experimental science, which continues to dominate psychology.
Social capital and civic action: A network-based approach

Abstract We propose that social capital, defined as resources embedded in individual and organizational networks, produces expressive and instrumental civic actions. The 2000 Social Capital Benchmark Survey data were used to examine the hypothesis. Structural equation modeling confirmed that (1) individual social capital was the consistent and significant predictor of both expressive and instrumental civic actions; (2) organizational social capital played the most important role in predicting instrumental civic actions, although it was not significant in predicting expressive civic actions; and (3) civic actions are gendered: women were more likely to be involved in expressive civic actions, but the female dominance disappeared in the realm of instrumental civic actions.
Blink reflexes and the silent period in tetanus.

Abnormalities of the silent period (SP) and blink reflexes occur in diseases that interfere with inhibitory pathways, such as tetanus and stiff-person syndrome (SPS). The SP is abnormal in tetanus but not in SPS. Studies of the blink reflex in tetanus are limited. In this report, a patient with generalized tetanus is described. The masseteric-and mixed-nerve SP was absent or truncated. In contrast to SPS, blink reflex studies revealed no bilateral R1 component, and a discrete R3 was only present ipsilateral to right supraorbital stimulation. This reflects the distinct inhibitory pathways underlying these disorders.
Individual risk factors for physician boundary violations: the role of attachment style, childhood trauma and maladaptive beliefs.

Abstract Objective The assessment and remediation of boundary-challenged health care professionals is enhanced through examination of individual risk factors. We assessed three such factors — attachment style, childhood trauma and maladaptive beliefs — in 100 attendees (mostly physicians) of a continuing medical education (CME) professional boundaries course. We propose a theoretical model that draws a causal arc from childhood maltreatment through insecure attachment and maladaptive beliefs to elevated risk for boundary violations. Methods We administered the Experiences in Close Relationships Questionnaire Revised (ECR-R), Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ) and Young Schema Questionnaire (YSQ) to 100 health care professionals attending a CME course on professional boundaries. Experts rated participant autobiographies to determine attachment style and early adversities. Correlations and relationships between self-ratings and expert ratings and among different risk factors were examined. Results One fifth of participants reported moderate to severe childhood abuse; sixty percent reported moderate to severe emotional neglect. Despite this, average attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance were low, and more than half of participants were rated "secure" by experts. Childhood maltreatment was correlated with attachment anxiety and avoidance and predicted expert-rated insecure attachment and maladaptive beliefs. Conclusions Our findings support a potential link between childhood adversity and boundary difficulties, partly mediated by insecure attachment and early maladaptive beliefs. Furthermore, these results suggest that boundary education programs and professional wellness programs may be enhanced with a focus on sequelae of childhood maltreatment, attachment and common maladaptive thinking patterns.
A Longitudinal Analysis of Competing Explanations for the Transformation of Southern Congressional Politics

This study analyzes the voting behavior of southern members of the House during the Ninety-first through One-hundredth Congresses. We build upon the literature regarding constituency influence and congressional voting to account for more liberal voting records on civil rights measures by southern Democratic incumbents. Our primary hypothesis is that long-term Democratic incumbents have altered their voting patterns due in part to the mobilization and empowerment of the southern black electorate. Additionally, we explore competing accounts for this trend which focus upon generational replacement and party succession. Finally, we discuss the implications of our research for theories of representative government as well as concerns about electoral politics in the American South.
The Nature and Development of Scientific Reasoning: A Synthetic View.

This paper presents a synthesis of what is currently known about the nature and development of scientific reasoning and why it plays a central role in acquiring scientific literacy. Science is viewed as a hypothetico-deductive (HD) enterprise engaging in the generation and test of alternative explanations. Explanation generation and test requires the use of several key reasoning patterns and sub-patterns. Reasoning at the highest level is complicated by the fact that scientific explanations generally involve the postulation of non-perceptible entities, thus arguments used in their test require sub-arguments to link the postulate under test with its deduced consequence. Science is HD in nature because this is how the brain spontaneously processes information whether it basic visual recognition, every-day descriptive and causal hypothesis testing, or advanced theory testing. The key point in terms of complex HD arguments is that if sufficient chunking of concepts and/or reasoning sub-patterns have not occurred, then one’s attempt to construct and maintain such arguments in working memory and use them to draw conclusions and construct concepts will “fall apart.” Thus, the conclusions and concepts will be “lost.” Consequently, teachers must know what students bring with them in terms of their stages of intellectual development (i.e., preoperational, concrete, formal, or post-formal) and subject-specific declarative knowledge. Effective instruction mirrors the practice of science where students confront puzzling observations and then personally participate in the explanation generation and testing process – a process in which some of their ideas are contradicted by the evidence and by the arguments of others.
Progression of heart failure: a role for interstitial fibrosis.

Progressive deterioration of left ventricular (LV) function is a characteristic feature of the heart failure (HF) state. The mechanism or mechanisms responsible for this hemodynamic deterioration are not known but may be related to progressive intrinsic dysfunction, degeneration and loss of viable cardiocytes. In the present study, we tested the hypothesis that accumulation of collagen in the cardiac interstitium (reactive interstitial fibrosis, RIF), known to occur in HF, results in reduced capillary density (CD=capillary/fiber ratio) and increased oxygen diffusion distance (ODD) which can lead to hypoxia and dysfunction of the collagen encircled myocyte. Studies were performed in LV tissue obtained from 10 dogs with chronic HF (LV ejection fraction 26±1%) produced by multiple sequential intracoronary, microembolizations. In each dog, CD and ODD were evaluated in LV regions that manifested severe RIF (volume fraction 16±2%) and in LV regions of little or no RIF (volume fraction 4±1%). In regions of severe RIF, CD was significantly decreased compared to regions of no RIF (0.92±0.02 vs. 1.05±0.03) (P<0.03). Similarly, ODD was significantly increased in regions of severe RIF compared to regions of no RIF (15.3±0.4 vs. 12.2±0.3 μm) (P<0.001). These data suggest that in dogs with chronic HF, constituent myocytes of LV regions which manifest severe RIF may be subjected to chronic hypoxia; a condition that can adversely impact the function and viability of the collagen encircled cardiocyte.
Tower Ocean Wave and Radar Dependence Experiment: An overview

The Tower Ocean Wave and Radar Dependence experiment was conducted between October 1984 and January 1986 to study the mechanisms involved in the SAR imaging of the ocean surface. Measurements obtained included in situ capillary and short gravity waves, long surface waves and internal waves, ambient current and detailed meteorological measurements, and stereophotography. None of the hypotheses on SAR imaging of long surface waves considered are able to explain all of the present SAR observations.
Learning Sparse Overcomplete Codes for Images

Images can be coded accurately using a sparse set of vectors from a learned overcomplete dictionary, with potential applications in image compression and feature selection for pattern recognition. We present a survey of algorithms that perform dictionary learning and sparse coding and make three contributions. First, we compare our overcomplete dictionary learning algorithm (FOCUSS-CNDL) with overcomplete independent component analysis (ICA). Second, noting that once a dictionary has been learned in a given domain the problem becomes one of choosing the vectors to form an accurate, sparse representation, we compare a recently developed algorithm (sparse Bayesian learning with adjustable variance Gaussians, SBL-AVG) to well known methods of subset selection: matching pursuit and FOCUSS. Third, noting that in some cases it may be necessary to find a non-negative sparse coding, we present a modified version of the FOCUSS algorithm that can find such non-negative codings. Efficient parallel implementations in VLSI could make these algorithms more practical for many applications.
Mixed Theories of Punishment and Mixed Offenders: Some Unresolved Tensions

Mixed theories of legal punishment treat both crime reduction and retributive concerns as irreducibly important and so worthy of inclusion in a single justificatory framework. Yet crime reduction and retributive approaches employ different assumptions about the necessary characteristics of those liable to punishment. Retributive accounts of legal punishment require offenders to be more responsive to moral considerations than do crime reduction accounts. The tensions these different assumptions create are explored in the mixed theories of John Rawls, H. L. A. Hart, and Andrew von Hirsch. It is argued that none of these theories successfully resolve the tensions. The prospects for resolving them are then discussed.
Radiotelemetered activity from the amygdala during social interactions in the monkey.

Electrical activity from the amygdaloid nucleus in freely moving monkeys (Cercopithecus aethiops) during social interactions and alone were recorded via radiotelemetry. Spectral analysis of amygdaloid activity revealed highest power outputs occurred during behaviors related to sexual and aggressive interactions and the lowest with the tension-reducing behavior of grooming. Power output was not directly related to motor activity. These results suggest that amygdaloid activity is related to the emotional significance and degree of ambiguity of an interaction. It is hypothesized that at least two separate afferent systems, one for low frequencies and the other for fast frequencies, may be correlated with different behavioral events.
The Effects of Drug-Testing Program Characteristics on Applicants' Attitudes Toward Potential Employment

Abstract This study is an investigation of the effects of a mandatory versus probablecause drug-testing program and the level of restrictiveness of confidentiality policy on potential applicants' attitudes and intentions to apply for employment in an organization. One hundred fifty-six American students were randomly assigned to four experimental groups conforming to a 2 × 2 analysis of variance design: Type of Program (mandatory versus probable cause) x Level of Confidentiality (low versus high). A less restrictive confidentiality policy was associated with lower intentions to apply for employment relative to a more restrictive confidentiality policy. There were no perceived main or interactive effects involving a drug-testing program. Perceived procedural fairness partially mediated the effects of confidentiality on application intentions, and, in turn, an applicant's attitude toward the organization completely mediated the effects of perceived procedural fairness. These findings showed that procedural ...
Acoustic plasma waves in semimetals

The acoustic plasma wave suffers severe landau damping for equal-temperature carriers obeying Boltzmann statistics, but can be relatively weakly landau damped in semimetals if in the propagation direction the Fermi velocities and masses of the two carriers are very unequal. Only the carriers with the smaller Fermi velocity are important in producing collision damping since the other carriers store no appreciable momentum. Some results for many-valley semimetals like bismuth are given, together with a discussion of the problem of exciting and detecting this essentially neutral and longitudinal wave. Experiments undertaken to detect the acoustic plasma waveb y transmission through thin wafers of bismuth at 10 Gc/sec have been unsuccessful thus far, but have revealed the existence of a higher velocity wave of weak amplitude that has not yet been identified. A discussion is also given of some magnetic quantum effectsth at should be associated with the acoustic wave.
Experimental active control results from the SPICES smart structure demonstrations

The final demonstrations of the ARPA SPICES (Synthesis and Processing of Intelligent Cost Effective Structures) program test the control of two active vibration mounts manufactured from composites with embedded actuators and sensors. Both mount demonstrations address wide band control problems for real disturbances, one at low frequency and the other at high frequency. The control systems for both are two-level hierarchies, with an inner active damping augmentation loop and an outer vibration control loop. We first review the control design requirements for the demonstration and summarize our control design approach. Then we focus on presenting the experimental results of the final demonstrations. For the low frequency demonstration, two alternative control approaches were demonstrated, one involving finite impulse response modeling and the other state space modeling. For the high frequency demonstration only the finite impulse response modeling approach was used because of computational limitations due to the complex system dynamics.© (1996) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Release of β-galactosidase from E. coli by a plasmid containing a temperature sensitive lytic function

We report the construction of a plasmid which carries the oX174 lysis gene E downstream from the lambda pL promoter. This plasmid is capable of triggering lysis inE.coli when the growth temperature is raised from 30°C to 42°C. The kinetics of release of β-galactosidase and intracellular protein have been determined, as well as the decrease in cell viability upon induction of lysis. In addition, β-galactosidase can be released efficiently after induction by a short sonication period. Both methods allow efficient release of β-galactosidase.
Ultrastructure of the coxal gland of the horseshoe crab Limulus polyphemus: Evidence for ultrafiltration and osmoregulation.

Electron microscopic examination of the paired coxal glands of the horseshoe crab Limulus polyphemus, focusing on urinary and vascular channels, shows six morphologically distinct regions. Each of four nephridial lobes consists of two cortical layers surrounding a medulla. The outer and inner cortexes contain blood vessels separated by a basement membrane from the urinary space lined by podocytes. Podocyte foot processes are applied to the basement membrane, interdigitate with those from other podocytes, and have a filtration slit diaphragm between them. Cortical morphology demonstrates ultrafiltration of blood, a previously undescribed function of the gland, as well as possible endocytic reabsorption of materials by the podocytes. The medulla drains into the stolon connecting the four lobes. These two areas have urinary tubules of cuboidal epithelium featuring microvillous-like apical projections, cytoplasmic vesicles and vacuoles, elaborate lateral interdigitations with septate junctions, and basal invaginations containing numerous mitochondria. These tubules are closely surrounded by blood channels, lined by a basement membrane containing embedded support cells. The medulla and stolon morphology are suggestive of both ion transport and water movement, in keeping with the gland's role in osmoregulation. The stolon empties into the end sac in the base of the most posterior lobe. It is lined by tall epithelium exhibiting apical overlap, blunt projections into the lumen, apparent endocytic vesicles, and basal plasma membrane infoldings with mitochondria. The end sac drains into the conducting nephric duct, the proximal end of which is lined by a cuticle. J. Morphol. 234:233-252, 1997. © 1997 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Clinical relevance of age-related immune dysfunction

Immunosenescence is the state of dysregulated immune function that contributes to the increased susceptibility to infection of the elderly. Extensive studies of inbred laboratory animals and very healthy elderly humans have identified changes in immunity; these studies have identified limited phenotypic and functional changes in the T cell component of adaptive immunity. However, no compelling scientific evidence has shown that these changes have direct relevance to the common infections seen in the aged population. This perspective will attempt to shed light on this dilemma. First, it will review clinically relevant infections in the elderly, focusing on influenza and influenza virus vaccination and how chronic illness contributes to increased risk and severity of infection and/or failed vaccine response. Second, key changes in immunity will be reviewed, keeping a perspective of the impact of confounding variables in addition to age but focusing on age-related changes in the interaction of the innate and acquired components of immunity. If the goal is to prevent serious infections in the elderly, it appears that the field of geriatric immunology and/or infectious diseases is faced with the tremendous challenge of studying a very diverse population, including mildly immunocompromised/chronically ill individuals and very healthy elderly.
Absorption and biliary secretion of intraperitoneally injected 3β‐methoxycholest‐5‐ene‐4‐14C in the rat

Following ip injection of 1 mg amounts of methoxycholestene-4-14C into normal intact rats, the amount of label in the whole liver was measured at different time intervals in different animals. These studies indicated that most of the injected compound was absorbed by or before 12 hr. In bile duct-cannulated rats the secretion of label from ip injected methoxycholestene-4-14C or cholesterol-4-14C into bile was usually less during the first 24 hr than during the second 24 hr after injection. Studies on the nature of the labeled compounds in the bile following ip injection of methoxycholestene-4-14C indicate that most of the label is present in metabolites, 47% of the label in cholic acid and 31% in chenodeoxycholic acid.
Heart rate and activity in response to natural stimuli in nervous and normal pointer dogs

Une experience utilise une technique photoelectrique pour mesurer la locomotive et le rythme cardiaque chez deux lignees de pointers selectionnes pour leurs comportements normaux ou nerveux
The relationship between zinc and copper status and lipid levels in African-Americans.

Studies examining the role of zinc and copper nutriture as risk factors for cardiovascular disease in European Americans have produced conflicting results. This study assessed the associations between zinc and copper status and serum lipid levels in an adult African-American community. A cross-sectional study was conducted on 600 individuals (233 males, 367 females) from 25 to 65 yr of age using a random sampling design in a small city in Alabama. Anthropometric, dietary, and serum zinc, copper, and lipid measurements were made. The mean serum zinc and copper levels and dietary zinc intake were similar to that reported previously for European Americans. There were no significant associations between serum zinc, copper, or zinc/copper ratio and total serum cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), or triglyceride levels. For males, there was a small but significant association between dietary zinc and the total cholesterol/HDL-C ratio (r=−0.17, p=0.03). Similarly, females taking either zinc supplements or a multivitamin including zinc had higher HDL-C values than nonsupplementing females. Further prospective studies of the relationship between zinc status and lipid levels in African Americans are needed to verify these results.
Residential preferences, neighborhood filtering and neighborhood change

Abstract The structure of households' residential preferences are investigated employing sale prices as a preference ranking over “bundles” of housing characteristics including structural, neighborhood, and local public sector characteristics. Neighborhood characteristics, in particular income class, are found to have a significant influence on preference rankings. However, the results also suggest that short run changes in rank are significantly affected by racial change.
Mechanical bandwidth as a guideline to high-performance manipulator design

The mechanical bandwidth of a manipulator ultimately limits its closed-loop bandwidth and so its response in both trajectory and force control. Here, mechanical design strategies are introduced to improve performance, including placing a distinct speed reducer at the joint rather than at the motor shaft, limiting the transmission ratio and properly selecting the contact compliance. The authors define simple models of the transmission for position-in-position-out and force-out and examine the corresponding transfer functions. The bandwidth of each of the simple models (which neglect damping) is approximately equal to the frequency of the first break point in the magnitude of the frequency response which, in turn, is equal to its lowest resonant frequency. The aim is for the open-loop bandwidth to be as high as possible to increase the quickness of the manipulator's response to commands. >
Measuring vulnerability to stereotype threat

Resumen en: Introduction. In this study, we examined the psychometric properties of an instrument intended to measure vulnerability to stereotype threat. Method. We ...
Decentralized estimation in an inhomogeneous sensing environment

We consider decentralized estimation of a noise-corrupted deterministic parameter by a bandwidth-constrained sensor network with a fusion center. The sensor noises are assumed to be additive, zero mean, spatially uncorrelated, but otherwise unknown and possibly different across sensors due to varying sensor quality and inhomogeneous sensing environment. The classical best linear unbiased estimator (BLUE) linearly combines the real-valued sensor observations to minimize the mean square error (MSE). Unfortunately, such a scheme cannot be implemented in a practical bandwidth-constrained sensor network due to its requirement to transmit real-valued messages. In this paper, we construct a decentralized estimation scheme (DES) where each sensor compresses its observation to a small number of bits with length proportional to the logarithm of its local signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). The resulting compressed bits from different sensors are then collected and combined by the fusion center to estimate the unknown parameter. The proposed DES is universal in the sense that each sensor compression scheme requires only the knowledge of local SNR, rather than the noise probability distribution functions (pdf), while the final fusion step is also independent of the local noise pdfs. We show that the MSE of the proposed DES is within a constant factor of 25/8 of that achieved by the classical centralized BLUE estimator.
Ethanol fermentation from hydrolysed hot-water wood extracts by pentose fermenting yeasts

Abstract Two strains of each yeast Candida shehatae and Pichia stipitis were used to ferment sugar maple wood extracts to ethanol. Of these four strains the most promising was the P. stipitis NRRL Y-11543 strain. This strain produced a maximum of 13.51 g L −1 ethanol from wood extracts containing 5- and 6- carbon sugars. The main carbon source for fermentation in these extracts was xylose monosaccharide at 36.7 g L −1 with other sugars concentrations ranging from 1.04 to 2.08 g L −1 . Through dilute acid hydrolysis the oligomers in the extracts were converted to xylose and other monosaccharides. The initial sugar maple dilute acid hydrolysate used in this study has a xylose concentration of 86.8 g L −1 . Nano-membrane filtration removed the majority of the acetates, formates, furfurals and methanol, which were liberated during hydrolysis; however the sulfates that were introduced remained. High levels of sulphate and aromatic compounds in the hydrolysate were inhibitory to the fermentation. P. stipitis did not produce much ethanol from this hydrolysate without dilution with distilled water. The highest ethanol concentration reached was 18.4 g L −1 after a 1:1 dilution with distilled water. Further improvements in the hydrolysis of hot water extracts also resulted in higher sugars concentrations. Reducing the amount of sulfates as well as better control of aeration rate by carrying out the fermentation in a benchtop fermentor resulted in higher ethanol concentrations of 35.4 g L −1 in only 76 h as opposed to 7 days in shake flasks.
Coupled waveguide excitation of traveling wave antennas

The analogy of coupled waveguides to a pair of coupled transmission lines is employed to obtain a design procedure for the establishment (approximately) of a certain class of traveling wave field distributions over an aperture in a conducting plane. The aperture is the opening to free space in the broad wall of a rectangular waveguide (dielectric loaded). This waveguide is coupled to a second waveguide through a series of slots or holes. The coupled waveguides permit the simultaneous excitation of two modes whose propagation constants can be designed to have a convenient difference. The major features in the radiation patterns can be predicted by the superposition of the patterns of two line sources which are equivalent to the traveling wave field distributions of the two modes. Advantage is taken of the degree of adjustment possible in the propagation constants of these modes to obtain a variety of radiation patterns. In particular, it is found that directive radiation patterns with low side lobes (lower than those of a uniform distribution) can be synthesized.
Financialization and Government Borrowing Capacity in Emerging Markets, by Iain Hardie

In his compelling new book, Iain Hardie asks why some emerging economy governments are more able than others to raise new funds or refinance existing debt through private markets without evidence o...
Design of the Super Conducting Super High Momentum Spectrometer (SHMS) for the JLAB 12 GeV Upgrade

The 12 GeV Upgrade at Jefferson Lab requires a new particle spectrometer for precision Nuclear Physics studies at the highest electron momentum available. This new spectrometer the Super High Momentum Spectrometer (SHMS) operating at 11 GeV/c will be built in Hall C to work in coincidence with the present device, the 7.5 GeV/c High Momentum Spectrometer (HMS). The SHMS design requires five new SC magnets arranged as dipole, quad, quad, quad, dipole or dQQQD. The ldquodrdquo is a small 3.1 T, SC dipole providing an initial 3.5 degree bend which allows the SHMS to reach a 5.5 degree scattering angle and provide enough clearance for the other much larger magnets of the SHMS. The first SC quad is an upgraded version of the HMS Q1 quad running at 10.7 T/m in a 40 cm warm bore with a 1.86 m EFL. The second and third quads are a pair of a completely new design, 60 cm warm bore, 14.4 T/m, 1.6 m EFL cosine2Theta SC quadrupole. Finally, the main dipole is a 60 cm warm bore 4.5 T, 2.85 m EFL magnet that provides the momentum analysis for the SHMS. This project is on schedule for the start of commercial procurement beginning in FY2009 to support start of Physics with the SHMS in 2014. The final design details of these four unique magnets will be presented including the coil design, magnetic design, force collar, and cryostat.
Interacting with hidden content using content-aware free-space transparency

We present content-aware free-space transparency, an approach to viewing and manipulating the otherwise hidden content of obscured windows through unimportant regions of overlapping windows. Traditional approaches to interacting with otherwise obscured content in a window system render an entire window uniformly transparent. In contrast, content-aware free-space transparency uses opaque-to-transparent gradients and image-processing filters to minimize the interference from overlapping material, based on properties of that material. By increasing the amount of simultaneously visible content and allowing basic interaction with otherwise obscured content, without modifying window geometry, we believe that free-space transparency has the potential to improve user productivity.
Atomic Force Microscopy Sensing Using Multiple Modes

An Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) explores the topography of a sample surface using a micro-sized flexible cantilever, which works as a flexible robot arm. The flexible cantilever is controlled to keep vibrating when an AFM works in the tapping mode. The cantilever is modeled as a flexible beam instead of a point mass system in this paper. The nonlinear interaction force between the tip and sample surface is also modeled. A simulation environment is developed to analyze the dynamics of cantilevers using the flexible beam model. Simulation results confirm that the flexible beam model can represent the system more accurately than the point-mass model. It has been shown that lower modes are more sensitive to changes of surface topography or surface materials when the cantilever is driven to vibrate at a higher harmonic mode. At the same time, this simulation environment also provides a more accurate way to validate the design of a new AFM probe and AFM controller than simulation packages which use the point-mass model.
Attitudes and decision making among women seeking abortions at one U.S. clinic.

CONTEXT: Various restrictions on abortion have been imposed under the pretense that women may be uninformed, undecided or coerced in regard to their decision to terminate a pregnancy. Understanding whether certain women are at risk of low confidence in their abortion decision is useful for providing client-centered care and allocating counseling time to women with the greatest needs. METHODS: Data were abstracted from the precounseling needs assessment form and clinical intake form of 5,109 women who sought 5,387 abortions at one U.S. clinic in 2008. Multivariate logistic regression was used to analyze variables associated with women’s high confidence in their abortion decision. RESULTS: For 87% of the abortions sought, women had high confidence in their decision before receiving counseling. Certain variables were negatively associated with abortions’ being sought by women with high confidence: being younger than 20, being black, not having a high school diploma, having a history of depression, having a fetus with an anomaly, having general difficulty making decisions, having spiritual concerns, believing that abortion is killing and fearing not being forgiven by God (odds ratios, 0.2–0.8). Having a supportive mother or male partner was associated with increased odds of high confidence (1.3 and 1.2, respectively). CONCLUSION: Regulations requiring state-approved information or waiting periods may not meet the complex needs of all women. Instead, women may benefit more from interactions with trained staff who can assess and respond to their individual needs.