cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The effect of staurosporine on drug-induced, topoisomerase II-mediated DNA cleavage in human leukemia cells.

Phorbol-12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA), a stimulator of protein kinase C, dramatically decreased topoisomerase II-reactive drug-induced DNA cleavage in HL-60 human cells. The effect of staurosporine, an inhibitor of protein kinase C, on drug-induced, topoisomerase II-mediated DNA cleavage was quantified in the same cells. Staurosporine decreased the magnitude of 4′-(9-acridinylamino)methanesulfon-m-anisidide (m-AMSA)- and etoposide-induced DNA cleavage in a dose-and time-dependent fashion. Measurement of several parameters of cell proliferation revealed no clear and uniform correlation between staurosporine's inhibition of these parameters and its effects on drug-induced DNA cleavage. A direct comparison with PMA's effects on drug-induced DNA cleavage showed that whereas PMA's inhibition of etoposide-induced cleavage was much greater than its inhibition ofm-AMSA-induced cleavage, the magnitude of staurosporine's effect on the cleavage produced by the two topoisomerase II-reactive drugs was similar. Thus, although PMA stimulates protein kinase C and staurosporine inhibits this enzyme, it is unlikely that the actions of either on topoisomerase II-reactive, drug-induced DNA cleavage are mediated directly via protein kinase C. Furthermore, it is likely that the mechanisms by which PMA and staurosporine inhibit topoisomerase II-reactive drug-induced cleavage are different.
Commentary: Hazardous Pesticides in Developing Countries: A Case Study of Zambia, Africa

The article examines the environmental, public health, and management problems associated with developing countries' use of hazardous pesticides. Results from an in-depth case study of Zambia, Afri...
Determination of the potential for development of bacterial soft rot of potatoes

A method has been devised for assessing the potential hazard of soft rot development in potatoes. Tubers are placed in a mist chamber at 20 C (68F), a film of water is maintained on the tuber, and the extent of decay is assessed after 5 days. The soft rot potential determined in this way is intended as apractical indication of potential storage hazard, reflecting the overall effect of the various factors leading to bacterial decay. Tubers that had passed through a flume system and a rinsing spray in a commercial packing plant had a greater decay potential, even after passage through a hot-air dryer, than unwashed tubers. Differences in decay potential could be demonstrated between tubers that had been mechanically harvested and loaded into storage bins and those that had been harvested manually. In addition to the effect of mechanical damage and of passage through flumes, the decay potential was probably affected by the inoculum level ofErwinia carotovora. Pectolytic clostidia were also usually present in tubers rotting in mist chambers, and are probably involved in the decay.
Sharing Corporate Experience Through Electronic Repositories

With the increase in scope and complexity of major system developments, project managers and systems engineers need to access timely information to make cost-effective decisions. To share best practices and lessons-learned, many companies have decided to capture their corporate memory and disseminate it through electronic repositories. This paper describes four repositories that are helping achieve these goals at The MITRE Corporation.
1454 ANEMIA BLUNTS THE NEONATAL HOMEOTHERMIC RESPONSE TO ENVIRONMENTAL COLD STRESS(ECS)

The homeothermic response to ECS includes increased O2 consumption (VO2) with heat production. Anemia may blunt this response by reducing O2 transport; limiting VO2. We tested this hypothesis in four, awake 3-day old piglets during CONTROL(HCT=26.4±0.9%) and ANEMIC(HCT=14.8±0.1%) periods. Measurements of core(Tc) and ambient(Tamb) temperatures, arterial-mixed venous O2 contents, and cardiac output(CO, microsphere method) were made in a warm environment(W) and after 60 min. of ECS. Following recovery from ECS, an isovolemic plasma exchange transfusion was done to lower the HCT. W and ECS measurements were then repeated as described. The A-VΔO2, VO2 and O2 extraction (O2Ex) were calculated from measured values. Results are below (M±SEM): Although O2 Ex increased during ECS with anemia, VO2 and, presumably, heat production were limited with resultant hypothermia. These preliminary data suggest that anemia blunts the homeothermic response to ECS in newborn piglets.
Dynamic interaction between medial prefrontal cortex and nucleus accumbens as a function of both motivational state and reinforcer magnitude: a c-Fos immunocytochemistry study.

This study examined the effects of simultaneous variations in motivational state (food deprivation) and reinforcer magnitude (food presentation) on c-Fos immunoreactivity in the pre-and infralimbic medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), nucleus accumbens (NAcc) core and shell, and dorsal striatum. In the first experiment, c-Fos was reliably increased in pre- and infralimbic mPFC of animals 12- and 36-h compared to 0-h deprived. In the second experiment, a small meal (2.5g) selectively increased c-Fos immunoreactivity in both mPFC subdivisions of 36-h deprived animals, as well as in both NAcc subdivisions of 12-h deprived animals. Correlational analyses revealed a changing relationship between mPFC subregions and the NAcc compartments to which they project. In subjects 12-h deprived and allowed a small meal, c-Fos counts in prelimbic mPFC and NAcc core were positively correlated, as were those in infralimbic mPFC and NAcc shell (r = . 83 and .76, respectively). The opposite was true of animals 36-h deprived, with prelimbic mPFC/NAcc core and infralimbic mPFC/NAcc shell negatively correlated (r = -.85 and -.82, respectively). The third experiment examined the effects of unrestricted feeding (presentation of 20g food) after 0, 12, or 36-h deprivation. No differences between mean c-Fos counts were found, though prelimbic mPFC/NAcc core, and mPFC/NAcc shell were positively correlated in animals 36-h deprived (r = .76 and .89, respectively). These data suggest that the activity within the mPFC and NAcc, as well as the interaction between the two, change as a complex combinatorial function of motivational state and reinforcer magnitude. Section: Cognitive and Behavioral Neuroscience
Site-dependent aggression and mating behaviour in three species of Nasonia (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae)

We tested the hypothesis that changes in male reproductive tactics are often associated with female receptivity or female density. We used a phylogenetic context, comparing three species of the parasitoid wasp Nasonia. Females of these species may emerge from the host puparium as virgins or having already mated (called within-host mating, WHM). Males vary in their probability of aggressively defending the host puparium after they emerge. We used six lines of Nasonia, two from each species, to test whether male aggressive tendencies were higher in species in which females emerge as virgins. During adult emergence from the host puparia, we scored female WHM and male aggressive behaviour, site fidelity and dispersal. We found a positive association between male and female behaviour at the species level. First, male N. vitripennis were highly aggressive and did not disperse, and 95% of females emerged as virgins. In contrast, N. giraulti males showed little to no aggression and a high tendency to disperse after emerging from the host, and 100% of females mated prior to emergence. Finally, for N. longicornis, both male aggressive behaviour and WHM were variable. Based on the molecular phylogeny of Nasonia, we hypothesize that the behavioural differences between males of N. vitripennis and N. giraulti represent the ancestral and derived states, respectively, and that N. longicornis is in an early stage of divergence from N. vitripennis. We suggest that WHM and decreased male aggression in male N. giraulti evolved as a response to the spread of the host generalist N. vitripennis.
Banana Meal as a Concentrate for Lactating Cows

Abstract Of two experiments of banana meal as an engredient of concentrate for lactating cows, one was a field trial in the Machachi Valley near Quito, Ecuador, which compared concentrates containing 75% wheat bran, 71% corn, or 71% banana meal. The three concentrates were fed to three groups of 10 Holstein cows for 112 days. The cows grazed rye grass and white clover pasture 20 h per day. Daily milk production averaged 14.3, 17.6, and 15.9 kg per cow for the respective concentrates. The other experiment at Michigan State University compared a concentrate containing 40% banana meal with a herd concentrate containing mostly corn. Cows were fed banana meal concentrate and 10 cows the control. Differences between concentrates were not significant for milk production, percent milk fat and protein, glucose and urea of plasma, or for rumen pH and volatile fatty acids. Banana meal is an acceptable substitute for corn or wheat bran in concentrates for lactating cows.
Sputter deposition of dielectric films using a magnetic field for protection from high energy electrons

Abstract Thin films of SiO 2 and Al 2 O 3 were prepared by r.f. sputtering. For protection from energetic electrons in the plasma, deposition was carried out in an area protected by a magnetic field of appropriate strength. The deposited films are free of pinholes, show sound insulation characteristics and have good adhesion to the substrate.
Intra-Flock Genetic Merit under Floor and Cage Managements

Abstract THE increasing use of individual cages for laying birds raises a number of problems of significance to breeders. Among them is the question of the relative efficiency of selection for cage performance on the basis of floor records and vice-versa. The problem may be viewed as an example of the general situation in which the efficiency of direct selection for a trait is compared with the efficiency of another criterion of selection. Whatever may be the difference in heritabilities of the two traits, gains in one can be influenced by selection with respect to the other only if the genetic correlation between the two traits is different from zero. The usual estimates of this correlation are well known to be subject to extremely large sampling fluctuations. Nor, in the absence of knowledge of the distribution of these estimates, can one make a significance test whether its value is equal to …
Two Components of Long-Distance Extraction: Successive Cyclicity in Dinka

This article presents novel data from the Nilotic language Dinka, in which the syntax of successive-cyclic movement is remarkably transparent. We show that Dinka provides strong support for the vie...
Absence of Prey Chemical Discrimination by Tongue‐flicking in an Ambush‐foraging Lizard Having Actively Foraging Ancestors

Lingually mediated detection of prey chemicals is widespread in one major clade of lizards, Scleroglossa, but rare in the other, Iguania. It is absent in all ambush-foraging families tested and present in all actively foraging families. In Iguania, prey chemical discrimination is known only in the herbivorous Iguanidae; in Scleroglossa, it was heretofore known to be absent only in ambush-foraging gekkonids. Because ambush foraging precludes lingual sampling of a wide area and tongue-flicking would disrupt the crypticity ambushers maintain by immobility, we predicted that prey chemical discrimination would be absent in scleroglossans that have secondarily adopted ambush foraging. The Cape girdled lizard, Cordylus cordylus, is member of Cordylidae, a family of ambush foragers considered derived from active foragers in the Autarchoglossa, a group of scleroglossan families having highly developed lingual chemosensory behaviours. As predicted, this species did not discriminate surface chemicals of three prey species from control substances in a series of standardized experiments in which prey chemicals were presented on cotton-tipped applicators. Thus, even in taxa having highly developed prey chemical discrimination, adoption of ambush foraging may induce loss of prey chemical discrimination, providing further and stronger evidence that prey chemical discrimination is adaptively adjusted to foraging mode.
The scaling of reproductive variability in trees

Seed output in perennial plant populations is temporally variable and often synchronous over large regions. The similarly complex spatiotemporal dynamics of animal populations have been characterized by the power-law scaling of the variance in population numbers with mean abundance. Here we show that a large compilation of published reproductive time series exhibits largely invariant mean–variance scaling properties across both angiosperm and conifer tree species. A simple model of seed production in tree stands shows that observed values of the scaling exponent reflect very general aspects of plant ecology and life history as well as the temporal dynamics of seed production. Together, these results suggest that the continuum of reproductive variability and synchrony observed in trees may reflect the influence of a common set of ecological processes.
Lymphoplasmacytic sclerosing (autoimmune) pancreatitis

Lymphoplasmacytic sclerosing pancreatitis (LPSP), also known as autoimmune pancreatitis or nonalcoholic, duct destructive chronic pancreatitis, has been increasingly recognized in the past decade as a histologically distinctive type of pancreatitis that affects middle-aged patients who lack the typical risk factors for chronic pancreatitis (alcohol abuse in particular). LPSP is sometimes associated with other autoimmune diseases or fibroinflammatory lesions, although in some patients, pancreatic and biliary involvement represent the only known disease process. Many patients present with pancreatic masses clinically and radiographically simulating pancreatic carcinoma, and associated bile duct strictures enhance the resemblance. Elevated serum IgG4 levels have been described in patients with LPSP and have been used to distinguish LPSP from pancreatic carcinoma preoperatively. Although there is some heterogeneity of pathologic findings, resected cases of LPSP typically demonstrate dense periductal lymphoplasmacytic inflammation, periductal and parenchymal fibrosis, and obliterative venulitis; neutrophilic infiltration of the ductal epithelium ("granulocytic epithelial lesions") may also occur. Large tumor-like masses of fibroinflammatory tissue ("reactive fibroinflammatory pseudotumors") may develop and extend beyond the pancreas. Following surgical resection, a few patients suffer recurrence of fibroinflammatory lesions in the pancreatobiliary tree, or they may develop other manifestations of autoimmune disease elsewhere in the body. However, the overall prognosis is excellent. Response to steroid therapy has been noted. Current studies are focusing on identifying additional preoperative diagnostic tests and on characterizing possible variants of LPSP. This review presents the defining clinical and pathologic features of LPSP and discusses the ongoing efforts to understand the pathogenesis of this disease.
Zircon-Vanadium Blue Pigment

Vanadium was incorporated into zircon by heating in air and in controlled atmospheres of oxygen. It was found that V2+ could not be incorporated into zircon by firing in a hydrogen atmosphere. Comparison of the absorption spectrum of V3+ in YPO4 with that of blue zircons prepared in air and oxygen atmospheres, with and without fluoride additives, showed that it is highly probable that V4+ is solely responsible for the color of the pigment. Crystal field analysis confirmed the existence of V in the ZrO8 position in the zircon structure.
PACES: Protein sequential assignment by computer-assisted exhaustive search

A crucial step in determining solution structures of proteins using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy is the process of sequential assignment, which correlates backbone resonances to corresponding residues in the primary sequence of a protein, today, typically using data from triple-resonance NMR experiments. Although the development of automated approaches for sequential assignment has greatly facilitated this process, the performance of these programs is usually less satisfactory for large proteins, especially in the cases of missing connectivity or severe chemical shift degeneracy. Here, we report the development of a novel computer-assisted method for sequential assignment, using an algorithm that conducts an exhaustive search of all spin systems both for establishing sequential connectivities and then for assignment. By running the program iteratively with user intervention after each cycle, ambiguities in the assignments can be eliminated efficiently and backbone resonances can be assigned rapidly. The efficiency and robustness of this approach have been tested with 27 proteins of sizes varying from 76 amino acids to 723 amino acids, and with data of varying qualities, using experimental data for three proteins, and published assignments modified with simulated noise for the other 24. The complexity of sequential assignment with regard to the size of the protein, the completeness of NMR data sets, and the uncertainty in resonance positions has been examined.
Random access MAC for efficient broadcast support in ad hoc networks

Wireless communications are becoming an important part of our everyday lifestyle. One major area that will have an enormous impact on the performance of wireless ad hoc networks is the medium access control (MAC) layer. Current random access MAC protocols for ad hoc networks support reliable unicast but not reliable broadcast. We propose a random access MAC protocol, broadcast support multiple access (BSMA), which improves the broadcast reliability in ad hoc networks.
Time Complexity of Decentralized Fixed-Mode Verification

Given an interconnected system, this note is concerned with the time complexity of verifying whether an unrepeated mode of the system is a decentralized fixed mode (DFM). It is shown that checking the decentralized fixedness of any distinct mode is tantamount to testing the strong connectivity of a digraph formed based on the system. It is subsequently proved that the time complexity of this decision problem using the proposed approach is the same as the complexity of matrix multiplication. This work concludes that the identification of distinct DFMs (by means of a deterministic algorithm, rather than a randomized one) is computationally very easy, although the existing algorithms for solving this problem would wrongly imply that it is cumbersome. This note provides not only a complexity analysis, but also an efficient algorithm for tackling the underlying problem.
Hymenaea protera sp.n. (Leguminosae, Caesalpinioideae) from Dominican amber has African affinities

Hymenaea protera is described from amber originating from La Toca mine in the Dominican Republic. The fossil species is characterized by the presence of reduced petals as well as distinctly clawed showy petals with cordate to reniform bases and a glabrous, verrucose ovary with long hirsute hairs at its base and along one margin. The fossil species most closely resembles the extantH. verrucosa Gaertner which occurs in East Africa and adjacent islands. These findings are interpreted as supporting a hypothesis that the genusHymenaea arose in the late Cretaceous on the combined South American-African continents and that Cretaceous and early Tertiary landmass movements were significant in determining the present amphi-Atlantic distribution of the genus. It is proposed that at least the majority, if not all, of the amber recovered from La Toca mine and other mines in the vicinity with similar-aged deposits originated fromH. protera.
Electron Transfer In Proteins

Electron-transfer (ET) reactions are key steps in a diverse array of biological transformations ranging from photosynthesis to aerobic respiration. A powerful theoretical formalism has been developed that describes ET rates in terms of two parameters: the nuclear reorganization [lambda] energy (1) and the electronic-coupling strength (HAB). Studies of ET reactions in ruthenium-modified proteins have probed [lambda] and HAB in several metalloproteins (cytochrome c, myoglobin, azurin). This work has shown that protein reorganization energies are sensitive to the medium surrounding the redox sites and that an aqueous environment, in particular, leads to large reorganization energies. Analyses of electronic-coupling strengths suggest that the efficiency of long-range ET depends on the protein secondary structure: [beta]sheets appear to mediate coupling more efficiently than [alpha]-helical structures, and hydrogen bonds play a critical role in both.
Ultralow Current Measurements With Silicon-on-Sapphire Integrator Circuits

This letter reports the results on measurements and modeling of the ultralow current measurement capability of a silicon-on-sapphire current integrator circuit. We have tested the lowest possible current measurable with the device and the noise performance with picoampere input currents. The device is capable of resolving subpicoampere currents with an rms noise of 350 fA in a 110-Hz bandwidth. The device is also capable of digitally measuring currents up to 100 muA by employing a pulse-based A/D converters.
Reduction in potassium concentration of stored red blood cell units using a resin filter

BACKGROUND: Hyperkalemia is a serious complication of rapid and massive blood transfusion due to high plasma potassium (K) in stored red blood cell (RBC) units. A potassium adsorption filter (PAF) was developed in Japan to remove K by exchanging with sodium (Na). We performed an in vitro evaluation of its efficacy and feasibility of use. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Three AS-3 RBC units were filtered by each PAF using gravity; 10 PAFs were tested. Blood group, age, flow rate, and irradiation status were recorded. Total volume, K, Na, Cl, Mg, total Ca (tCa), RBC count, hemoglobin (Hb), hematocrit (Hct), and plasma Hb were measured before and after filtering each unit. Ionized Ca (iCa), pH, and glucose were measured for some units. RESULTS: After filtration, the mean decrease in K was 97.5% in the first RBC unit, 91.2% in the second unit, and 64.4% in the third unit. The mean increases in Na, Mg, and tCa were 33.0, 151.4, and 116.1%, respectively. iCa and pH remained low; glucose was unchanged. RBC count, Hb, and Hct decreased slightly after filtration of first units; plasma Hb was unchanged. After filtration, there was no visual evidence of increased hemolysis or clot formation. CONCLUSION: The PAF decreased K concentration in stored AS-3 RBC units to minimal levels in the first and second RBC units. Optimally, one filter could be used for 2 RBC units. Although Na increased, the level may not be clinically significant. PAF may be useful for at-risk patients receiving older units or blood that has been stored after gamma irradiation.
Ginkgo biloba and vitamin E for Alzheimer's disease

Alzheimer's disease affects an estimated 35 million people worldwide, with over 5 million affected in the United States. Few medications are currently approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease; subsequently, patients and caregivers often look for additional treatment options. This article reviews studies evaluating the use of Ginkgo biloba and vitamin E for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease.
Indexes as Tools for Measuring Usage of Print and Electronic Resources

Libraries are experiencing rapid change as they add electronic resources. These resources are popular with patrons, but their usage is not captured in traditional library statistics. Libraries must find a way to represent the diverse data available for electronic resources in some meaningful way that allows for comparison with statistics for print resources. To do this, the Cushing/Whitney Medical Library has created two indexes, the Electronic and Print Usage Indexes. An index is a simple tool that combines data on items from a group into one number and so represents overall change in the group. The indexes at Cushing/Whitney show that in 1998–1999, patron usage of electronic resources more than doubled, whereas print use declined.
The Quality and Effectiveness of Marketing Strategy: Effects of Functional and Dysfunctional Conflict in lntraorganizational Relationships

By examining only dysfunctional conflict and ignoring functional conflict, empirical research in marketing has presented only part of the story. This research offers the first systematic look at the antecedents and consequences of both functionaland dysfunctional conflict in intraorganiational relationships. The authors develop and empirically test a causal model for key organizational antecedents of new product strategy quality and market performance. They find that dysfunctional conflict in the decision-making process has deleterious consequences for quality of strategy and market performance, whereas functional conflict improves both quality of strategy and performance. Specifically, organizational design characteristics such as formalization, interdepartmental interconnectedness, low communication barriers, and team spirit improve new product performance by enhancing functional conflict, whereas centralization and high communication barriers lower new product performance by increasing dysfunctional conflict. A post hoc test for common method bias or variance suggests that bias or variance alone cannot explain these findings.
Peptide immunotherapy for allergic disease

The only disease-modifying treatment available for IgE-mediated disease is specific immunotherapy, but the retention of B cell epitopes in whole allergen preparations confers a risk of IgE-mediated systemic reactions to their administration. Compelling evidence for the central role of T cells in allergic disease suggests that IgE-binding epitopes could be removed from such therapy, improving safety without affecting efficacy. Short, allergen-derived peptides lack the conformational determinants required for IgE crosslinking and are, therefore, an attractive therapeutic possibility. However, human leukocyte antigen (HLA) polymorphism means that T cell peptide epitopes present a huge diversity, which makes the design of peptide-based vaccines problematic. Over the past 10 years, advances in our understanding of epitope selection and major histocompatibility complex (MHC)–peptide–T cell receptor interactions have taken this therapy forward to early clinical trials with human volunteers.
High-pressure densification of wood residues to form an upgraded fuel

Abstract High-pressure binderless compaction of wood processing residues and other biomass waste materials, including hardwood, softwood, and bark in the forms of sawdust, mulches, and chips, were studied. A piston-and-mold (punch-and-die) process was used to produce densified logs (slugs) under room temperature and at pressures ranging from 34 to 138 MPa. The properties of the logs including density, abrasion resistance, impact resistance, compressive strength, water resistance, and long-term performance were tested. The effects of moisture content, compaction pressure, compaction speed, pressure holding time, particle size and particle shape were studied. It was found that the necessary moisture for producing good-quality logs ranges from 5 to 12% for all the woody materials studied, and the optimum moisture content is in the neighborhood of 8%. It was also found that mulch is the easiest form to be compacted into dense and strong logs, sawdust is the second, and chips the last. For the mulches, a compaction pressure of 70 MPa can produce high-quality logs. For sawdust, a minimum pressure of 100 MPa is needed to form good logs. And for chips, no good logs can be made even at pressure as high as 138 MPa. The logs produced under optimal conditions had dry densities near or higher than 1 g / cm 3 . Such high density facilitates storage, handling and transportation of biomass. The dense logs also have high-energy content per unit volume, making it easier to be co-fired with coal in power plants.
Real-time Pedestrian Detection Using LIDAR and Convolutional Neural Networks

This paper presents a novel real-time pedestrian detection system utilizing a LIDAR-based object detector and convolutional neural network (CNN)-based image classifier. Our method achieves over 10 frames/second processing speed by constraining the search space using the range information from the LIDAR. The image region candidates detected by the LIDAR are confirmed for the presence of pedestrians by a convolutional neural network classifier. Our CNN classifier achieves high accuracy at a low computational cost thanks to its ability to automatically learn a small number of highly discriminating features. The focus of this paper is the evaluation of the effect of region of interest (ROI) detection on system accuracy and processing speed. The evaluation results indicate that the use of the LIDAR-based ROI detector can reduce the number of false positives by a factor of 2 and reduce the processing time by a factor of 4. The single frame detection accuracy of the system is above 90% when there is 1 false positive per second.
Nutritional Armor for the Injured Warfighter: Omega-3 Fatty Acids in Surgery, Trauma, and Intensive Care

ABSTRACT Nutrients have traditionally been viewed as a means to provide basic energy for cellular homeostasis and amino acids for protein synthesis in all humans. Young, healthy men and women in the military today are presumed to be well nourished and mentally and physically fit to perform their duties in austere environments. Exposure to high-intensity projectiles, blast injuries, and other wounds of war, however, is an everyday occurrence during deployment that potentially challenges all homeostatic mechanisms. After sustaining such devastating injuries, critically ill, surgical, and trauma patients are in a constant dynamic state between the systemic inflammatory response syndrome (and compensatory anti-inflammatory response syndrome. Compelling evidence supports both immune and metabolic response modulation by specific nutrients, including omega-3 fatty acids, primarily eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). The concept of providing nutrients as therapeutic rather than supportive...
Cloud Photogrammetry from Airborne Time-Lapse Photography

Measuring the growth of a cloud is a necessity in many current cloud studies. The ideal location for the observer who performs this task is aboard an airplane in continuous flight around the cloud. His record mainly consists of time-lapse photographs, and some means of locating the aircraft at the time each photograph was taken. The location of the aircraft in this case, was determined by means of its Doppler navigation equipment. The technique used to analyze the photographs, process the navigational information and obtain the desired measurements of the clouds is described. The various problems inherent in this method are considered, and results of its application are presented.
“Speaking of Annihilation”: Mobilizing for War against Human and Insect Enemies, 1914–1945

In 1944 and 1945, two periodicals with very different audiences published similar images. Both showed half-human, half-insect creatures, talked of the "annihilation" of these vermin, and touted modern technology as the means to accomplish that end. One piece, a cartoon in the United States Marines' magazine Leatherneck, showed a creature labeled "Louseous Japanicas" and said its "breeding grounds around the Tokyo area . . . must be completely annihilated." (See figure 1.) A month after the cartoon appeared, the United States began mass incendiary bombings of Japanese cities, followed by the atomic blasts that leveled Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Although the Leatherneck cartoon was surely intended to be humorous and hyperbolic, calls for annihilation of human enemies had, by the end of the war, become realistic. So too with insect enemies. The second cartoon, an advertisement in a chemical industry journal, promoted perfumes to eliminate insecticide odors. (See figure 2.) Tapping the rhetoric that pervaded World War II, the text began, "Speaking of annihilation." The accompanying image showed three creatures with insect bodies, each with a stereotypical head representing a national enemy. The Italian creature lay on its back, an allusion to Allied victory over the Italian army. The German and Japanese creatures remained standing, as guns blasted all three with chemical clouds. Like human enemies, the advertisement implied, insect enemies could and should be annihilated. That possibility, too, had come within reach by the end of World War II. The Allies killed disease-bearing lice and mosquitoes over wide areas using a powerful new insecticide called DDT (dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane), and entomologists called for the extermination of entire species.
A STUDY ON THE EFFECT OF PREPARATION PARAMETERS ON THE CATALYTIC PERFORMANCE AND ACTIVE COMPONENTS OF A NEW TYPE HYDRODESULFURIZATION CATALYST

ABSTRACT The effects of the impregnating conditions on the contents of the active components of a new type hydrodesulfurization (HDS) catalyst have been studied by ICP technique in this paper. Meanwhile, the effects of the activation temperature, the activation time and the calcining temperature on the catalytic properties of the CoMo/(TiO2 + Al2O3) catalyst have also been studied. The results show that at the given hygroscopicity of the support, the contents of the Co and the Mo, both of which are the active components of the catalyst, change linearly with the changes of the concentrations of the solvents in the impregnant. When the catalyst is impregnated at 40°C for 2 h, the contents of the active components reach the maximum values. The calcining temperature sharply affects the dispersed state of the active components on the surface of the support. When calcined at 500°C for 2 h, this HDS catalyst obtains the best catalytic activity. Even when the catalyst has been calcined at 600°C for 3 h, its activ...
Intramolecular N-Glycan/Polypeptide Interactions Observed at Multiple N-Glycan Remodeling Steps through [13C,15N]-N-Acetylglucosamine Labeling of Immunoglobulin G1

Asparagine-linked (N) glycosylation is a common eukaryotic protein modification that affects protein folding, function, and stability through intramolecular interactions between N-glycan and polypeptide residues. Attempts to characterize the structure–activity relationship of each N-glycan are hindered by inherent properties of the glycoprotein, including glycan conformational and compositional heterogeneity. These limitations can be addressed by using a combination of nuclear magnetic resonance techniques following enzymatic glycan remodeling to simultaneously generate homogeneous glycoforms. However, widely applicable methods do not yet exist. To address this technological gap, immature glycoforms of the immunoglobulin G1 fragment crystallizable (Fc) were isolated in a homogeneous state and enzymatically remodeled with [13C,15N]-N-acetylglucosamine (GlcNAc). UDP-[13C,15N]GlcNAc was synthesized enzymatically in a one-pot reaction from [13C]glucose and [15N-amido]glutamine. Modifying Fc with recombinantly...
Development, Use and Implications of Diagnostic Creativity Assessment App, RDCA – Reisman Diagnostic Creativity Assessment

The Reisman Diagnostic Creativity Assessment (RDCA) is a free online self-report creativity assessment that provides immediate feedback to the user and is diagnostic, rather than predictive, with the focus on making the user aware of creative strengths and weaknesses. Several engineering and teacher education studies have included the RDCA over a period of 3 years to refine the document items as a result of factor and statistical analyses. We acknowledge the advantages and disadvantages of self-report instruments and question the traditional use of reliability as a psychometric measure for self-report assessments. Many tools and techniques for enhancing creative factors identified by the RDCA are included.
Research on the development of database for the monitoring of radiation dose in cardiovascular interventional procedures

Objective:A database was designed and developed for effective utilization monitoring data of radiation dose to patients and occupational operators in cardiovascular interventional procedures.Methods:To complete a command reception of the client program,data display and other functions,compiled database software using MS Visual Basic level programming language.Using MS Access database completed data storage,management and maintenance.Results:The database was designed according to technological indicator acknowledged;the relevant help file was set up.The database includes two sub-libraries professional database and patient database.Professionals and patients can be recorded separately input,record view and record query.Conclusion:The data platform for monitoring data of radiation dose in cardiovascular interventional procedures was provided,which can provide basic data for constituting normalization and technical standard of dose limited of radiation dose to patients and occupational operators in cardiovascular interventional procedures.
Appraisal of the Mustard procedure for the physiological correction of "simple" transposition of the great arteries. Eighty consecutive cases, 1970-1980.

Eighty successive patients underwent the Mustard operation for “simple” transposition of the great arteries (TGA) between January, 1970, and January, 1980. Ages ranged from 42 days to 12.4 years (mean 14.7 months). Balloon atrial septostomy (BAS) with balloon volumes of more than 2.5 ml produced significant increases of arterial oxygen saturation, although the initial benefit of BAS was greater than that found at follow-up catheterization. In these patients the left ventricular (LV) pressure tended to decrease during the first months of life, but this drop was less marked at the end of the first year. Deep hypothermia and cardiocirculatory arrest were employed in all cases. Several modifications were adapted to the original surgical technique in order to reduce late sequelae. There were two early and three late deaths. At follow-up (mean 4.5 years) 74% of patients were symptom free. Sinoatrial and atrioventricular (A V) conduction disturbances were present in five and six patients, respectively. Caval or pulmonary venous obstruction occurred in 13 patients, seven of whom required reoperation. Isolated tricuspid valve incompetence was present in one patient only, but in four it was associated with other defects. Primary right ventricular (RV) failure occurred in one patient. These findings, in relation to mortality, complications, and the excellent clinical results in the majority of survivors, compare favorably with results published for patients with “simple” TGA who have been subjected to other types of physiological or anatomic correction. At the present time, there seems to be no good reason to alter our surgical policy in this group of patients.
QM/MM Protocol for Direct Molecular Dynamics of Chemical Reactions in Solution: The Water-Accelerated Diels–Alder Reaction

We describe a solvent-perturbed transition state (SPTS) sampling scheme for simulating chemical reaction dynamics in condensed phase. The method, adapted from Truhlar and Gao’s ensemble-averaged variational transition state theory, includes the effect of instantaneous solvent configuration on the potential energy surface of the reacting system (RS) and allows initial conditions for the RS to be sampled quasiclassically by TS normal mode sampling. We use a QM/MM model with direct dynamics, in which QM forces of the RS are computed at each trajectory point. The SPTS scheme is applied to the acceleration of the Diels–Alder reaction of cyclopentadiene (CP) + methyl vinyl ketone (MVK) in water. We explored the effect of the number of SPTS and of solvent box size on the distribution of bond lengths in the TS. Statistical sampling of the sampling was achieved when distribution of forming bond lengths converged. We describe the region enclosing the partial bond lengths as the transition zone. Transition zones in ...
Pacific Influences on Tropical Atlantic Teleconnections to the Southern Hemisphere High Latitudes

AbstractSeveral recent studies have connected Antarctic climate variability to tropical Atlantic sea surface temperatures (SST), proposing a Rossby wave response from the Atlantic as the primary dynamical mechanism. In this investigation, reanalysis data and atmospheric general circulation model experiments are used to further diagnose these dynamical links. Focus is placed on the possible mediating role of Pacific processes, motivated by the similar spatial characteristics of Southern Hemisphere (SH) teleconnections associated with tropical Atlantic and Pacific SST variability. During austral winter (JJA), both reanalyses and model simulations reveal that Atlantic teleconnections represent a two-mechanism process, whereby increased tropical Atlantic SST promotes two conditions: 1) an intensification of the local Atlantic Hadley circulation (HC), driven by enhanced interaction between SST anomalies and the ITCZ, that increases convergence at the descending branch, establishing anomalous vorticity forcing ...
Coral communities and coral reefs of Ecuador

Reef-building coral formations along the mainland coast of Ecuador and in the Galapagos Islands are described with reference to coral species richness, community structure, relationship to physical and biotic controls, framework development and distribution. A brief history of coral studies in Ecuador is traced from the first notice of corals in the Galapagos Islands by C. Darwin in 1835 to the discovery of small patch and fringing coral reefs in the Galapagos by G.M. Wellington in 1974. Recent ecological work through 1998 is noted in the context of physical and biotic processes controlling the development and maintenance of these marginal eastern Pacific coral formations. Coral reefs also occur in the coastal waters of mainland Ecuador, but these have not yet (as of 2000) received detailed study. Most natural disturbances in the Galapagos are local and varied, including, for example, tectonic uplift, rock slides, extreme low tidal exposures, and sea urchin bioerosion. Protracted sea warming associated with El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events have in recent years caused extensive coral bleaching (i.e., the loss of zooxanthella endosymbionts from coral hosts), high mortality and the subsequent loss of reef frameworks by intense bioerosion. Anthropogenic disturbances from anchoring, entanglement of fishing lines and nets, coral extraction and, along the mainland, poor land use leading to extensive soil erosion, siltation and eutrophication, result in coral degradation. Despite the existence of the Machalilla National Park, whose boundaries include incipient coral reef frameworks at La Plata Island and the Machalilla fringing reef, no provisions for the protection of corals have been incorporated in the Machalilla park management plan. A management plan that provides for the protection of all wildlife in the Galapagos reserve, including a 40 km perimeter in surrounding waters, is to some degree compromised by a lack of resources to ensure enforcement. With increasing fishing pressure, tourism and population buildup, the likelihood of continued degradation of ENSO-damaged coral communities is high.
Why is it so hard to implement change? A qualitative examination of barriers and facilitators to distribution of naloxone for overdose prevention in a safety net environment

The increase in opioid overdose deaths has become a national public health crisis. Naloxone is an important tool in opioid overdose prevention. Distribution of nasal naloxone has been found to be a feasible, and effective intervention in community settings and may have potential high applicability in the emergency department, which is often the initial point of care for persons at high risk of overdose. One safety net hospital introduced an innovative policy to offer take-home nasal naloxone via a standing order to ensure distribution to patients at risk for overdose. The aims of this study were to examine acceptance and uptake of the policy and assess facilitators and barriers to implementation. After obtaining pre-post data on naloxone distribution, we conducted a qualitative study. The PARiHS framework steered development of the qualitative guide. We used theoretical sampling in order to include the range of types of emergency department staff (50 total). The constant comparative method was initially used to code the transcripts and identify themes; the themes that emerged from the coding were then mapped back to the evidence, context and facilitation constructs of the PARiHS framework. Acceptance of the policy was good but uptake was low. Primary themes related to facilitators included: real-world driven intervention with philosophical, clinician and leadership support; basic education and training efforts; availability of resources; and ability to leave the ED with the naloxone kit in hand. Barriers fell into five general categories: protocol and policy; workflow and logistical; patient-related; staff roles and responsibilities; and education and training. The actual implementation of a new innovation in healthcare delivery is largely driven by factors beyond acceptance. Despite support and resources, implementation was challenging, with low uptake. While the potential of this innovation is unknown, understanding the experience is important to improve uptake in this setting and offer possible solutions for other facilities to address the opioid overdose crisis. Use of the PARiHS framework allowed us to recognize and understand key evidence, contextual and facilitation barriers to the successful implementation of the policy and to identify areas for improvement.
Automated support vector regression

Multivariate calibration is an important procedure for analytical chemistry. Automated or self-configuring methods can be used by scientists who lack expertise, may be embedded into data processing pipelines, and are less prone to user bias; however, the development of such algorithms is often neglected by the chemometrics community. Support vector regression (SVR) is a powerful method for accommodating megavariate data. SVR offers the advantage of fast calibration and flexibility in a variety of loss functions (ie, minimization of the residual error). By embedding bootstrapped Latin partitions (BLPs) into the calibration, the key parameter, the cost C, can be optimized to furnish an automated method. The methods are termed super SVR (sSVR). The BLP predictions of the calibration set accurately model the external prediction error of the entire calibration set. Prediction rates for super partial least squares (sPLS) are compared with sSVRs using three loss functions, Gauss, Laplace, and Huber. For linear data with uniformly distributed noise, sPLS is faster and gave better predictions. However, for data with outliers or a real data set of single-beam near infrared spectra of bovine plasma, gasoline, and wheat, the sSVRs performed better than sPLS, and generally, the Huber loss function gave the best results.
David Livingstone Smith. How Biology Shapes Philosophy: New Foundations for Naturalism.

Livingstone Smith, David (ed.). 2017. How Biology Shapes Philosophy: New Foundations for Naturalism . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. xiv, 351 pages. Hardcover $99.99.
From model building to analytics solution in hours the enterprise platform for analytics teams

This demo paper describes our approach to make the work of analytics teams in the enterprise environment easy. The paper introduces a SaaS platform, called IBM Data Science Experience, which enables such cross-functional teams to collaborate using various advanced algorithms for data analysis through a light-weight web interface. While the list of supported algorithms is growing, this paper focuses on two services that the platform supports, namely Watson Machine Learning and Decision Optimization, and illustrates their use in an example.