cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
24435 Pathogen-specific metabolic pathways and innate immune responses associated with Chlamydia trachomatis infection and other STIs

ABSTRACT IMPACT: This project seeks to identify unique host responses that are biomarkers for specific urethral pathogens, and which can be used in the development of point-of-care (POC) STI diagnostics. OBJECTIVES/GOALS: How Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) and other common STIs, e.g. Neisseria gonorrhoeae, evade immunity and elicit pathology in the male urethra is poorly understood. Our objective is to determine how STI-infected urethral epithelial cells, as well as the uninfected ‘bystander’ cells with which infected cells communicate, respond to CT and other STIs. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: We evaluated how immortalized urethral cell lines - including transduced human urethral epithelial cells (THUECs) - respond to increasing doses of CT infectious particles using in vitro one-step progeny assays performed in the presence or absence of cycloheximide, a drug that inhibits eukaryotic protein synthesis. We will perform concurrent single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) and multiplex cytokine analyses to determine how different CT doses impact the transcriptomes of infected and bystander urethral epithelial cells and modulate cytokine production of the overall monolayer. Results of these experiments will inform the feasibility of performing similar analyses in situ using urethral swabs from men with clinically diagnosed urethritis. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: Our results demonstrate that immune-competent urethral cell monolayers strongly resist CT infection, unless most of the cells are simultaneously infected. This suggests that uninfected bystander cells sense CT-infected cells and secrete soluble factors that may act to limit CT proliferation in infected cells and to inform remaining uninfected cells that a potential pathogen is present. We anticipate that our scRNA-seq and cytokine analyses will identify both specific effector pathways that protect against CT and intracellular signals that modulate them. We speculate that these pathways and signals may differ during infection with CT and other STIs. Importantly, we anticipate that our in vitro model of CT infection will be highly representative of in situ immune responses observed in urethras of infected men. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE OF FINDINGS: In men, common STIs including CT are usually managed syndromically due to a lack of POC diagnostics. By determining how STIs elicit urethral inflammation and identifying countermeasures that STIs use to evade urethral immunity, we can identify host responses that serve as biomarkers for urethritis, generally, and for specific urethral pathogens.
Heterogeneous graph attention networks for scalable multi-robot scheduling with temporospatial constraints

Robot teams are increasingly being deployed in environments, such as manufacturing facilities and warehouses, to save cost and improve productivity. To efficiently coordinate multi-robot teams, fast, high-quality scheduling algorithms are essential to satisfy the temporal and spatial constraints imposed by dynamic task specification and part and robot availability. Traditional solutions include exact methods, which are intractable for large-scale problems, or application-specific heuristics, which require expert domain knowledge to develop. In this paper, we propose a novel heterogeneous graph attention network model, called ScheduleNet, to learn scheduling policies that overcome the limitations of conventional approaches. By introducing robot- and proximity-specific nodes into the simple temporal network encoding temporal constraints, we obtain a heterogeneous graph structure that is nonparametric in the number of tasks, robots and task resources or locations. We show that our model is end-to-end trainable via imitation learning on small-scale problems, and generalizes to large, unseen problems. Empirically, our method outperforms the existing state-of-the-art methods in a variety of testing scenarios involving both homogeneous and heterogeneous robot teams.
Moral Psychology in Media

This chapter provides an introduction to moral psychology as a field of research that explores questions of moral perspectives, dispositions, and judgments by harnessing social scientific and empirical methodologies. The chapter focuses on several of the more prominent lines of inquiry into moral reasoning and moral judgments, which have produced important, widely used instruments and guiding theories. Three such theories discussed here are moral development, ethical ideology, and moral foundations. The chapter surveys other topics in the field, such as autonomous agency, perceptions of workplace climate, and moral ecology, and refers to instruments used in each area. A discussion of recent applications of moral psychology to media research illuminates important questions in journalism, public relations, and advertising. The chapter concludes by noting the burgeoning affinity between moral psychology theorizing and virtues ethics frameworks.
Community detection using low-dimensional network embedding algorithms

With the increasing relevance of large networks in important areas such as the study of contact networks for spread of disease, or social networks for their impact on geopolitics, it has become necessary to study machine learning tools that are scalable to very large networks, often containing millions of nodes. One major class of such scalable algorithms is known as network representation learning or network embedding. These algorithms try to learn representations of network functionals (e.g.~nodes) by first running multiple random walks and then using the number of co-occurrences of each pair of nodes in observed random walk segments to obtain a low-dimensional representation of nodes on some Euclidean space. The aim of this paper is to rigorously understand the performance of two major algorithms, DeepWalk and node2vec, in recovering communities for canonical network models with ground truth communities. Depending on the sparsity of the graph, we find the length of the random walk segments required such that the corresponding observed co-occurrence window is able to perform almost exact recovery of the underlying community assignments. We prove that, given some fixed co-occurrence window, node2vec using random walks with a low non-backtracking probability can succeed for much sparser networks compared to DeepWalk using simple random walks. Moreover, if the sparsity parameter is low, we provide evidence that these algorithms might not succeed in almost exact recovery. The analysis requires developing general tools for path counting on random networks having an underlying low-rank structure, which are of independent interest.
Drosophila compound eye morphogenesis: blind mechanical engineers?

D’Arcy Thompson’s 1917 treatise, On Growth and Form, articulated what might reasonably be considered the First Law of Morphogenesis: “... the form of an object is a ‘diagram of forces’... which have been impressed upon it...” (Thompson 1917). This chapter is an informal, speculative essay on the emergence of form during Drosophila eye development and the forces that impress this form. It reviews selected events of retinal morphogenesis and considers mechanisms potentially responsible. In most instances, the molecular basis of morphogenesis in the eye is poorly understood; in many cases, correlation and causality remain to be distinguished. An integrated, realistic force diagram of the fly eye lies in the future.
Transmission of MPEG-2 encoded VoD services over wireless access networks using type-II hybrid ARQ schemes with RCPC codes

In this paper, we investigate the effectiveness of applying type-II hybrid ARQ schemes to the transmission of MPEG-2 encoded video streams over fixed wireless links in broadband fixed wireless access networks (B-FWANs) for video-on-demand (VoD) services. Rate compatible punctured convolutional (RCPC) codes are used. Simulations were conducted to evaluate the overall system performance. The fixed wireless channels are modeled by a specific finite-state Markov model in conjunction with the K-factor Rician fading model. Important metrics relevant to the broadband video services are analyzed including the error rate of the original information cells, the quality of the reconstructed video sequences, and channel throughput.
The Role of Presence in Laboratory Learning

It is criticized that labs generated by computers (simulated labs) or remotely controlled through the Internet (remote labs) deprive students of hands-on experience. In a study of 306 undergraduate students, I found that the importance of physical presence in the labs is positively related with students’ perceived effectiveness of the hands-on labs. Similarly, students’ psychological presence is positively related with their perceived lab effectiveness in both simulated and remote labs. However, it is surprising that those students who feel physical presence in the labs is important are not less likely to experience psychological presence or think simulated and remote labs are less effective. This result implies that physical presence in the labs might not be the key issue for learning performance in the labs, what the students believe may affect what they think but may not affect what they can achieve.
Who are the children using hospice care

Purpose The purpose was to examine the characteristics of children who use hospice care. Design and Methods Using the Andersen Model of Health Services Use, California Medicaid administrative databases were analyzed to describe the characteristics of 76 children in hospice. Results The predisposing, enabling, and need characteristics of children were identified. Children who used hospice were a diverse group with community resources that enabled them to access care while presenting with serious health needs. Children enrolled in hospice were more likely older (15–20 years of age), resided nearer a pediatric hospice, and had a serious health condition such as neuromuscular disease with multiple comorbidities. Practice Implications With this knowledge, pediatric nurses can improve their clinical practice by targeting conversations with families and children most in need of hospice care.
Projecting Primary Care Use in the Medicaid Expansion Population: Evidence for Providers and Policy Makers.

Millions of low-income adults are beginning to gain Medicaid coverage under the Affordable Care Act. To forecast the resulting need for primary care providers, we estimate the effect of Medicaid take-up on visits to office-based primary care providers, including clinics. We estimate that adults with Medicaid coverage at any point in the year have an average of 1.32 visits per year to primary care providers, 0.48 more visits than low-income adults without Medicaid. Consequently, we project a need for 2,113 additional primary care providers (range: 1,130-3,138) if all states expand Medicaid. Our estimates are somewhat lower than several recent forecasts, which may not have controlled adequately for selection bias, and which used non-representative samples for forecasting. Our findings shed light on disparities in access to care, particularly in counties with relatively few primary care providers per capita. Efforts to expand access to primary care should focus on where providers practice, rather than simply...
A study of the low‐lying electronic states of Fe2 and Co2 by negative ion photoelectron spectroscopy

The anions Fe−2 and Co−2 were prepared and cooled to 300 K in a flowing afterglow ion source, and the low‐lying electronic states of the neutral dimers were probed by negative ion photoelectron spectroscopy. Previous ab initio studies of Fe2 and Co2 have predicted single 4s–4s bonds, and extremely high densities of low‐lying states due to the small energy cost in transferring electrons among nonbonding 3d orbitals. In contrast to the complex photoelectron spectra implied by these calculations, the observed spectra are remarkably simple. It is argued that this spectral simplicity implies a greater role for the 3d electrons in the iron and cobalt dimer bonds. These data also provide values for the electron affinities of the neutral dimers (0.902±0.008 eV Fe2, 1.110±0.008 eV Co2), the bond elongation on electron attachment (0.08±0.02 A Fe2, Co2), and the vibrational frequencies of the anions (250±20 cm−1 Fe−2, 240±15 cm−1 Co−2). Related studies of the atomic anions yield improved values for the electron affi...
The Illinois Cascade Microtron a Proposal for a High Duty Factor, Intermediate Energy Electron Accelerator

The Nuclear Physics Laboratory at the University of Illinois currently operates a 6-traversal Microtron Using a Superconducting Linac, MUSL-2, which provides 100% duty factor electron beams with energies between 2 and 80 MeV. We have submitted to the National Science Foundation a proposal to construct a 750 MeV cascade microtron capable of delivering 100% duty factor beams with currents of up to 100 ?A. Subharmonic RF splitting of the output beam will provide up to three simultaneous beams for experiments, with independently controllable currents (summing to 100 ?A). The proposal also includes two large building additions and the major new experimental equipment needed to exploit fully the research potential of this new accelerator.
Visualization of the embryonic nervous system in whole-mount Drosophila embryos.

The Drosophila embryo is an attractive model system for investigating the cellular and molecular basis of neuronal development. Here we describe the procedure for the visualization of Drosophila embryonic nervous system using antibodies to neuronal proteins. Since the entire embryonic peripheral nervous and central nervous systems are well characterized at the level of individual cells (Dambly-Chaudiere et al., 1986; Bodmer et al., 1987; Bodmer et al., 1989), any aberrations to these systems can be easily identified using antibodies to different neuronal proteins. The developing embryos are collected at certain times to ensure that the embryos are in the proper developmental stages for visualization. After collection, the outer layers of the embryo, the chorion membrane and the vitelline envelope that surrounds the embryo, are removed before fixation. Embryos are then incubated with neuronal antibodies and visualized using fluorescently labeled secondary antibodies. Embryos at stages 12-17 are visualized to access the embryonic nervous system. At stage 12 the CNS germ band starts shortening and by stage 15 the definitive pattern of the commissure has been achieved. By stage 17 the CNS contracts and the PNS is fully developed (Campos-Ortega et al. 1985). Thus changes in the pattern of the PNS and CNS can be easily observed during these developmental stages.
Natural Systems Approach to Preventing Environmental Harm from Unpaved Roads

In the United States, non-point-source pollution has been documented at more than 11,000 individual sites along the state of Pennsylvania's 20,000 mi of unpaved roads. This substantiates the fact that traditional road maintenance practices are not addressing dust and sediment pollution. A Dirt and Gravel Road Pollution Prevention Program instigated by concerned citizens, initiated by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, and implemented by local county conservation districts has begun implementing an education and funding program that encourages recognition and use of the relentless forces of nature to reduce pollution through enlightened road maintenance objectives and decisions. Referred to as the natural systems approach, this work has application when maintenance decisions are made by nonengineer generalists who can be quickly trained to recognize the indicators of stable vegetation and drainage patterns associated with good and bad road performance. Replicating the stable environments associ...
Microclimate effects of crop residues on biological processes

Residues from crops left on the soil surface have an impact on the microclimate, primarily temperature, within the soil and the atmosphere; but, the impact on the biological system is largely unknown. Residue is assumed to have a positive impact on the biological system in the soil and a negative impact on crop growth. This report investigates the effect of standing residue on the microclimate surrounding a cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) crop in a semi-arid environment and the effect of flat residue on the seasonal soil temperature and soil water regimes in a humid climate with a corn (Zea mays L.) and soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] production system. A study was conducted during 1987 and 1988 in a semi-arid climate at Lubbock, Texas using standing wheat stubble to shelter cotton from wind. In this study soil water, microclimatic variables, and plant growth were measured within standing stubble and bare soil during the early vegetative growth period. Air temperatures were warmer at night within the standing residue and the air more humid throughout the day. This led to a reduction in the soil water evaporation rate and an increase in the water use efficiency of the cotton plant within the stubble. Studies on corn residue with continuous corn and corn-soybean rotations with no-till, chiselplow, and moldboard plow tillage practices in central Iowa showed that the average soil temperatures in the upper soil profile were not affected by the presence of flat residue after tillage. Diurnal temperature ranges were most affected by the residue throughout the year. The largest effect of the residue on soil temperature was in the fall after harvest when no-till fields cooled more slowly than tilled fields. In the spring, surface residue decreased the soil water evaporation rate and increased the soil water storage within the soil profile covered with residue. In years with below normal rainfall, the additional stored soil water due to the surface residue was used by the plant to maintain transpiration rates at optimal levels during the early vegetative growth period. The biological implications of crop residue on the soil surface can be more positive than negative and increasing our understanding of the physical environment and biological system interactions will lead to improved resource management.
Developing an observational tool for reliably identifying work system factors in the operating room that impact cardiac surgical care

The objective of this study is to develop a reliable Tablet-PC based observational tool for identifying work systems factors that impact cardiac surgical care. Using the tool we observed 26 open he...
Comparison of the Efficiency of Two Flashcard Drill Methods on Children's Reading Performance

The purpose of this study was to extend prior flashcard drill and practice research by holding instructional time constant and allowing learning trials to vary. Specifically, the authors aimed to determine whether an incremental rehearsal method or a traditional drill and practice method was most efficient in helping 5 first-grade children read, maintain, and generalize words when time allocated for each instructional method was controlled. Findings revealed that all 5 participants learned more words per session with the traditional drill and practice method. However, a higher percentage of words that were taught under the incremental rehearsal condition were generalized when they were presented in the context of sentences. These findings have implications for school psychologists and educators who play a role in deciding what academic interventions will be used to maximize student learning in the classroom.
Significance of porosity for stratigraphy and textural composition in subsurface, coarse fluvial deposits: Boise Hydrogeophysical Research Site

Recognition and quantitative characterization of subsurface stratigraphic units in coarse unconsolidated fluvial deposits are difficult because large grain size and the large scale of sedimentary structures make direct interpretation from core difficult or impossible. In this paper, we use porosity data from well logs and grain-size distribution (GSD) data from core to investigate four pebble- and cobble-dominated units that have been identified in porosity logs in deposits at a research well field (Boise Hydrogeophysical Research Site). Lacking direct observation at an appropriate scale, questions about distribution of parameters and textural composition in these units are analyzed with statistical tests. The four pebble- and cobble-dominated “porosity stratigraphic” units may be grouped into two types: (1) Units 1 and 3 have low porosity (mean ∼0.17–0.18) and low porosity variance; and (2) Units 2 and 4 have higher porosity (mean ∼ 0.23–0.24) and higher porosity variance. Based on GSD data, core samples are subdivided into five lithotypes. The five lithotypes occur in different proportions and have different vertical transition probability characteristics in the two types of units: (1) Units 1 and 3 have only framework-gravel–dominated lithotypes and have random vertical transition probability between these two lithotypes; and (2) Units 2 and 4 consist of both framework-gravel–dominated and sand- or matrix-dominated lithotypes and have structured vertical transition probability. The two framework-gravel–dominated lithotypes occur in all four stratigraphic units but have distinctly lower porosity in Units 1 and 3 (i.e., tighter packing) than in Units 2 and 4 (looser packing). Considering the repeated stratigraphic occurrence of (and the statistical significance of differences between) the two types of units, both the individual unit distinctions and the two unit groupings appear to be valid. It is reasonable to interpret that the observed packing differences associated with Units 1 and 3 compared with Units 2 and 4 are related to different sedimentary processes that produce different bedforms or grain fabrics, perhaps under different bedload transport rates.
Five New Species of Aphanolaimus (Nemata: Araeolaimida) With a Key To Species

Five new species of Aphanolaimus de Man, 1880 are described, four from southern Chile as follows: A. yamani sp. n. characterized by length of male and female, slender neck region and long, slender tail, ovoid ventral gland, position of first and second lateral epidermal gland (leg) pores and beginning of lateral field: A. chilensis sp. n. distinguished by length of male and female, gradually and evenly narrowing neck, conoid tail, ovoid ventral gland, position of first and second leg pores and beginning of lateral field: A. elegans sp. n. distinguished by its large size, large, oval amphids slightly longer than wide, prominent cephalic setae 7-10 μm long, with H-shaped ventral gland: A. fuegoensis sp. n. distinctive by its large size, blunt head as wide or wider than long, large circular amphid with prominent circular projection in center surrounding a central depression, oval ventral gland and coarse annulation. The fifth species was collected in the Andaman Islands, India and is described as A. seshadrii sp. n. characterized by numerous longitudinal lines (<50/annulus), by its small size, cephalic setae 8 μm long and lateral field beginning very near head. Collections from Mendocino County and Lake Tahoe, both in California, held specimens that bridge most of the morphological characters and measurements of A. spiriferus Cobb, 1914 and A. cobbi Micoletzky, 1922 leading to the conclusion they are conspecific. A. spiriferus has priority by earlier publication and A. cobbi is designated a junior synonym as follows: A. spiriferus Cobb, 1914, syn. A. cobbi Micoletzky, 1922 syn. n. A review of A. communis Cobb, 1915 found it inadequately described, no illustrations were published and no type specimens extant. The description suggests communis may be a species of Paraphanolaimus. As a consequence of these doubtful characteristics it is proposed A. communis Cobb, 1915 be assigned to species inquirendae.
Clinical characteristics, treatment, and outcome of pancreatic Schwannomas.

This article involves the study of a patient with a rare benign schwannoma in the body of the pancreas. After reviewing 39 patient cases previously reported in the literature, a discussion of the schwannoma with regard to clinical presentation, diagnosis, and treatment is examined. A review of the patient’s chart was performed along with a review of the literature using a Medline search. Translations were performed whenever necessary. There are 23 reports of 29 patient cases of pancreatic schwannomas in English and European literature and one report of 10 patient cases in the Japanese literature. The mean age was 57.75 years (range 32–89) and the male-to-female (M:F) ratio was 17:23. The mean reported size was 8.79 cm. The lesion was located in the head in 16 patients (40%), the body in 8 patients (20%), the body and tail in 8 patients (20%), the tail in 6 patients (15%), the head and body in 1 patient (2.5%), and the location was not specified in 1 patient (2.5%). Of the English and European patients, 11 out of 30 patients (36.7%) exhibited solid tumors and 14 out of 30 patients (46.7%) exhibited cystic tumors. The majority of the tumors (35 out of 40) were benign, but there were.ve reported malignancies. There were no deaths or recurrences reported with a follow-up of 18.68 months ± 24.09 (range 3–108 months). Pancreatic schwannomas are rare, and the preoperative diagnosis is difficult. Intraoperative frozen section can confirm the diagnosis of a benign schwannoma. Enucleation of the tumor from the surrounding parenchyma is recommended, if possible. Patients undergoing resection indicate an excellent long-term prognosis.
The variational iteration method: A powerful scheme for handling linear and nonlinear diffusion equations

In this work, we introduce a framework for obtaining exact solutions to linear and nonlinear diffusion equations. Exact solutions are developed for some diffusion processes of power law diffusitivies. He's variational iteration method (VIM) is used for analytic treatment of these equations. The powerful VIM method is capable of handling both linear and nonlinear equations in a direct manner.
Evidence for durable kidney stone prevention over several decades

OBJECTIVE To analyse three outcomes of stone prevention strategies in one clinic devoted to that activity since 1969, i.e. stone recurrence rates, stone-related procedures and 24-h urinary stone risk factor, to assess whether such treatment can be maintained over long periods. PATIENTS AND METHODS We selected 2509 patients with at least one laboratory follow-up after initial clinical and laboratory evaluation. We divided them into five time cohorts of 5, 10, 15, 20 and >20 years of follow-up. Rates of new stones and stone-related procedures, and 24-h urinary stone risk factors were compared between the cohorts using analysis of variance and general linear modelling. RESULTS Stone rates and rates of stone-related procedures declined in all five cohorts, as did 24-h urinary stone risk indices. We found no diminution of treatment effects for any of these three over time. CONCLUSION Those patients who remained under active care had significant reductions in stone recurrence and rates of stone-related urological procedures for up to >20 years. However, only a small fraction of patients who entered the clinic remained for such long periods. Urine testing substantiates impressive and sustained reductions in supersaturation, the principle driving force for stone formation. Overall, for those patients willing to remain in continuous treatment for periods of up to three decades, medical stone prevention appears to be effective in maintaining low recurrence and procedure rates.
More Applicants or More Applications per Applicant? A Big Question When Pools Are Small

Two aspects of many real-world hiring situations affect hiring success in ways that are not well understood. One is that many applicant pools are relatively small, with perhaps fewer than 20 and sometimes fewer than 10 applicants. The other is that job seekers are likely to apply for more than one job at a time. Despite calls for more research that would be relevant to the small-scale hiring situation, scholars have given little attention to expected new-hire quality in small-pool hiring in general and even less to more specific questions of how that expected quality is affected if applicants apply for multiple jobs simultaneously. Most currently accepted methods linking expected new-hire quality to the selection ratio (or hiring rate) are based on the properties of large pools. The authors argue that those methods are based on the inherent, but dubious, assumption that all job seekers in a given applicant pool are pursuing that particular job and no other jobs. In the small-pool context, these factors ha...
Poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase-1 initiated neuronal cell death pathway-do androgens matter?

Activation of poly (ADP-ribose) polymerases (PARP) contributes to ischemic damage by causing neuronal nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD(+)) depletion, release of apoptosis-inducing factor and consequent caspase-independent cell death. PARP-mediated cell death is sexually dimorphic, participating in ischemic damage in the male brain, but not the female brain. We tested the hypothesis that androgen signaling is required for this male-specific neuronal cell death pathway. We observed smaller damage following focal cerebral ischemia (MCAO) in male PARP-1 knockout mice compared to wild type (WT) as well as decreased damage in male mice treated with the PARP inhibitor PJ34. Protection from ischemic damage provided by PJ-34 in WT mice is lost after removal of testicular androgens (CAST) and rescued by androgen replacement. CAST PARP-1 KO mice exhibit increased damage compared to intact male KO mice, an effect reversed by androgen replacement in an androgen receptor-dependent manner. Lastly, we observed that ischemia causes an increase in PARP-1 expression that is diminished in the absence of testicular androgens. Our data indicate that PARP-mediated neuronal cell death in the male brain requires intact androgen-androgen receptor signaling.
Magnetic voltage regulator using current mode control

The magnetic regulator circuit described herein utilizes saturable reactors as a means for controlling the output current and voltage in an electrical power converter. The operational characteristics of this type of regulator are very similar to the functional behaviors of "switch-mode" regulators. The basic regulation scheme is illustrated in Figure 2. An AC squarewave signal is rectified and then applied to an LC averaging circuit. The DC voltage which appears at the output "E o " can be modified by varying the average voltage applied to the LC network. This average can be changed by applying a bias current to the control winding of the saturable reactor (SR). The control range, the circuit gain as well as other operating perimeters are based to a large extent on the core material which is used for designing and building the saturable reactors. The circuit design described hereunder is intended to provide guide lines for selecting and designing saturable reactors which can be used in voltage and current regulators. The most significant advantages of using the magnetic regulator circuits presented hereunder is their affect on three important operational charactersitics. First the converter will be very efficient, second it offers quiet operation (EMI) and third its ouput regulation and stability is quite exceptional. Because of these unusual operational features, the magnetic voltage regulator is presented as an alternative to linear and semi-conductor switching regulators.
Adsorption of Clostridium thermocellum cellulases onto pretreated mixed hardwood, avicel, and lignin.

Adsorption of Avicel-hydrolyzing activity was examined with respect to: mixed hardwood flour pretreated with 1% sulfuric acid for 9 s at 220 degrees C (PTW220), lignin prepared from PTW220 by either acid or enzymatic hydrolysis, and Avicel. Experiments were conducted at 60 degrees C for all materials, and also at 25 degrees C for PTW220. Based on transient adsorption results and reaction rates, times were selected at which to characterize adsorption at 60 degrees C as follows: PTW220, 1 min; lignin, 30 min; and Avicel, 45 min. Similar results were obtained for adsorption of cellulase activity to PTW220 at 25 and 60 degrees C, and for lignin prepared by enzymatic and acid hydrolysis. For all materials, adsorption was described well by a Langmuir equation, although the reversibility of adsorption was not investigated. Langmuir affinity constants (L/g) were: PTW220, 109; lignin, 17.9; Avicel, 4.3; cellulose from PTW220, > or =187. Langmuir capacity constants were 760 for PTW220 and 42 for Avicel; the cellulase binding capacity of lignin appeared to be very high under the conditions examined, and could not be determined. At low and moderate cellulase loadings at least, the majority of cellulase activity adsorbed to PTW220 is bound to the cellulosic component. The results indicate that PTW220, and its cellulose component in particular, differ radically from Avicel with respect to adsorption. Avicel-hydrolyzing activity and CMC-hydrolyzing activities were found to bind to Avicel with a constant ratio of essentially one, consistent with adsorption of a multi-activity complex.
A stochastic multiscale framework for modeling flow through random heterogeneous porous media

Flow through porous media is ubiquitous, occurring from large geological scales down to the microscopic scales. Several critical engineering phenomena like contaminant spread, nuclear waste disposal and oil recovery rely on accurate analysis and prediction of these multiscale phenomena. Such analysis is complicated by inherent uncertainties as well as the limited information available to characterize the system. Any realistic modeling of these transport phenomena has to resolve two key issues: (i) the multi-length scale variations in permeability that these systems exhibit, and (ii) the inherently limited information available to quantify these property variations that necessitates posing these phenomena as stochastic processes. A stochastic variational multiscale formulation is developed to incorporate uncertain multiscale features. A stochastic analogue to a mixed multiscale finite element framework is used to formulate the physical stochastic multiscale process. Recent developments in linear and non-linear model reduction techniques are used to convert the limited information available about the permeability variation into a viable stochastic input model. An adaptive sparse grid collocation strategy is used to efficiently solve the resulting stochastic partial differential equations (SPDEs). The framework is applied to analyze flow through random heterogeneous media when only limited statistics about the permeability variation are given.
The concepts of crossreactivity and specificity in immunology

Abstract The advent of direct binding assays for studying the interactions of immunoglobulins and antigens has made it important to distinguish among several types of crossreactivity. The molecular basis of crossreactivity is reviewed and the behavior of these different processes in the displacement curves ordinarily used for radioimmunoassay is analysed in detail. Both the structure of the antigens and the homogeneity or heterogeneity of the antibodies must be explicitly considered. Immunological specificity may be defined by similar reasoning. These concepts, which represent applications of the principles of protein chemistry, should also be useful in describing the interactions of molecules in solution with cell receptors.
Fermi Surfaces of Thorium and Actinium

The results of a theoretical study of the energy bands and the Fermi surface of thorium calculated by the relativistic-augmented-plane-wave (RAPW) method and of actinium (rigid-band approximation) are reported. A muffin-tin version of the crystal potential was used and the exchange was included in the full ${\ensuremath{\rho}}^{\frac{1}{3}}$ Slater approximation. A set of 36 reciprocal-lattice vectors was used in the expansion of the wave function, and with this set the energy eigenvalues were converged to within 0.003 Ry at the points of high symmetry. The calculated bands were interpolated by the method of "spline-fits" to obtain the density of states and the Fermi energy. The Fermi surface consists of three distinct pieces: a hole surface shaped like a rounded cube centered at $\ensuremath{\Gamma}$, electron surface shaped like pairs of lungs centered on the symmetry lines $\ensuremath{\Gamma}K$, and hole surfaces shaped like dumbbells centered on the symmetry lines $\ensuremath{\Gamma}L$. The de Haas-van Alphen frequencies are determined and the results compared with the existing experimental data. Assuming a rigid-band model, the present results have been used to predict the Fermi surface of actinium.
Role of Endogenous Morphine in the Attenuation of Opiate Withdrawal Syndrome by N-acetylmuramyl-L-alanine-D-isoglutamine (MDP)

Opiates, long considered the prototypical addictive drug, cause the phenomenon of tolerance and physical dependence following chronic administration. Although many factors promote the addictive state, our studies have focused on the role of endogenous morphine in modifying physical dependence. Mammalian tissues contain morphine and codeine and have the capacity to synthesize these alkaloids. The present report shows that N-acetylmuramyl-L-alanine-D-isoglutamine (MDP), which elevates the endogenous opiate alkaloids in various brain regions and peripheral tissues, can attenuate the withdrawal syndrome of morphine-addicted rats.
Differential Responses of Forage Pearl Millet Genotypes to Chinch Bug (Heteroptera: Blissidae) Feeding

Chinch bug, Blissus leucopterus leucopterus (Say) (Heteroptera: Blissidae), is one of the most important insect pests on forage pearl millet, Pennisetum glaucum L. R. Br., production in the southeastern United States. Twenty-nine forage pearl millet genotypes were assessed for chinch bug resistance by using stunt and necrosis ratings in combination with quantitative measurements of chlorophyll content and leaf photosynthetic rate. Plant stunt and leaf sheath necrosis ratings, and chlorophyll content in flag leaves differed among the 29 genotypes. Photosynthetic rate differed both among the noninfested control and among the chinch bug-infested plants. The chinch bug-infested plants had lower photosynthetic rate than the noninfested control plants. Inbreds with resistance superior to that of Tift 23DB were identified for hybrid development. When the 29 pearl millet genotypes were assessed by the six parameters by using cluster analysis, genotypes 07F-1226, 07F-1229, 07F-1231, 07F-1235, 07F-1238, 07F-1239, and 07F-1240 were the most resistant, whereas the genotypes 07F-1220, 07F-1221, 07F-1225, 07F-1227, 07F-1232, 07F-1246, and Tift 23DB were the most susceptible to chinch bug feeding. The rest of the genotypes expressed intermediate responses to the six parameters. To differentiate the physiological impact of chinch bug feeding on light and dark reactions of plant photosynthesis, photosynthesis capacity was assessed using light and CO2 (A/Ci) response curves on noninfested and chinch bug-infested plants of genotypes 07F-1246, 07F-1223, and 07F-1245, which expressed low, intermediate, and high chlorophyll content, respectively. Based on the A/Ci curves, photosynthesis capacity of injured leaves was suppressed in 07F-1223 and 07F-1246, whereas the chinch bug-injured 07F-1245 leaves showed an increase of photosynthetic rate compared with the noninfested plants. In contrast, light response curves were suppressed in the chinch bug-injured plants compared with the noninfested plants of all three genotypes, irrespective of their variations in insect injury ratings. This research demonstrated that visual stunt and necrosis rating methods in combination with chlorophyll and photosynthesis measurements could be used in screening forage pearl millet for chinch bug resistance and deciphering the underlying resistance mechanisms.
Biomedical Big Data for Clinical Research and Patient Care: Role of Semantic Computing

Healthcare datasets are increasingly characterized by large volume, high rate of generation and need for real time analysis (velocity), and variety. These datasets are often termed biomedical big data and include multi-modal electrophysiological signals and electronic health records. In this talk, we focus on the computational challenges associated with signal data management and the role of semantic computing in addressing these challenges. We describe a cloud computing platform called Cloud wave that has been developed to effectively manage electrophysiological big data for epilepsy clinical research and patient care.
Turmoil in the Taiwan Strait: Wellington Koo and ROC Foreign Policy 1953–1956

Turmoil in the Taiwan Strait addresses Ambassador Wellington Koo's role in Chinese foreign policy from 1953 to 1956 and his relevance in the larger Cold War context. In particular, it focuses on Koo's involvement in the 1954 Sino-American Mutual Defense Treaty and the 1955 Dachen Islands Crisis. This paper argues that, although Koo accomplished a fair amount during this time, he would have encountered fewer professional obstacles had he not represented Chiang Kai-Shek, who had become a controversial figure by the mid-1950s. At the same time, one can conclude that Koo creatively used media and meetings with statesmen abroad to shore up support for the Republic of China during this turbulent decade. This article attempts to provide another perspective on Koo, who has traditionally been understudied in the West. Furthermore, this work seeks to add a meaningful contribution to the historiography on cross-strait relations—particularly in the contemporary era.
Evaluation of erectile dysfunction and sleep-related erections

Significant advances in this past decade have improved our understanding of erectile physiology. A variety of tests are available for diagnosing impotence. SRE testing provides objective physiological information that is useful for indexing erectile capability and formulating a rational treatment plan. As such, SRE testing is a powerful noninvasive tool for assessing dysfunction. Nonetheless, in making a final diagnosis, the skillful clinician relies on more than one assessment parameter and on clinical acumen.
Experimental evidence for alternative stable equilibria in a benthic pond food web

Both local and initial conditions have been implicated in causing variation in the strengths of predator effects among natural communities. In this study, I performed a controlled mesocosm experiment using two common snails, Physella gyrina and Helisoma trivolvis, and their insect predator, Belostoma flumineum, to explicitly quantify and understand the causes of previously observed variation in food web interactions in natural ecosystems. The results from a controlled mesocosm experiment showed that: (1) at low productivity, snails were dominated by small-vulnerable species (P. gyrina), predator effects were strong and predator effects caused a trophic cascade extending to producers; (2) at high productivity, snails were dominated by large-invulnerable species (H. trivolvis), predator effects were weak and there was no trophic cascade to producers; (3) at intermediate productivity, alternative stable equilibria were implicated, such that depending on initial conditions, snails were dominated by either small-vulnerable or large-invulnerable species and predator effects were either strong or weak. Thus, this study represents one of the first to quantify how variation in food web structure can result from the local environment, initial conditions and their interaction.
Constitutional Law in 1951–1952.

The 1951 Term of the Supreme Court, during which there was no change in its makeup, continued to exhibit the behavior pattern of the previous Term, both in the mechanics of operation and the drift of decision. The work of the Truman Court is a compound of new Justices and the shifting concatenation of historical forces. It operates amidst the strains and tensions of the Cold War. The leading cases of this Term, dealing with such subjects as presidential seizure of private property, the treatment of aliens, by-products of the trials of Communists, and the pressure on civil liberties generally, all reflect the push of current history.The total number of dispositions during the 1951 Term, 1207, was almost the same as the number for the 1950 Term, which was 1202. There were only 83 signed opinions, as compared with 98 in the 1950 Term and 87 in the 1949 Term. Twenty-five years ago the number of signed opinions averaged around 200 per Term. The reduction in the number of signed opinions was matched by a growing number of dispositions on the merits by memorandum order. The Court disposed of 200 cases on the merits; 101 came up by appeal (in about equal numbers from the federal district courts and the state courts) and 99 reached the Court on certiorari (72 from the federal Courts of Appeals, 24 from state courts, and 2 from the Court of Claims). The Court continued to keep a tight rein on its discretionary jurisdiction.
The role of CO2 embodiment in US–China trade

Abstract This study examines the influence of US–China trade on national and global emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2). The three basic questions are as follows: (1) What amount of CO2 emissions is avoided in the US by importing Chinese goods? (2) How much are CO2 emissions in China increased as a result of the production of goods for export to the US? and (3) What are the impacts of US–China trade on global CO2 emissions? Our initial findings reveal that during 1997–2003: (1) US CO2 emissions would have increased from 3% to 6% if the goods imported from China had been produced in the US, (2) About 7%–14% of China's current CO2 emissions were a result of producing exports for US consumers, and (3) US–China trade has increased global CO2 emissions by an estimated 720 million metric tons. We suggest that the export of US technologies and expertise related to clean production and energy efficiency to China could be a “win–win” strategy for both countries for reducing their trade imbalance and mitigating global CO2 emissions. Improved international accounting methodologies for assigning responsibility for CO2 emissions must be designed to account for the dynamic nature of international trade.
A method for assessment of maximum long bone length and living stature from fragmentary long bones.

The proper analysis of prehistoric skeletal populations includes estimated individual statures and this estimation usually depends on the presence of one or more complete long bones, a condition that is too often rare. Although a number of techniques have been devised to utilize fragmentary long bones for stature estimations, the results have not produced the desired accuracy. The present paper attempts to refine and expand Muller's method by applying more up-to-date statistical procedures as well as exercising stricter control of the sample. Using a sample of 117 prehistoric Indians from various archeological sites in the southeastern United States, regression formulae were established for specified segments of the femur, humerus, and tibia to aid in the estimation of total long bone lengths from fragmentary remains. Once total length has been determined, it is possible to calculate living stature of the individual with a reasonable degree of accuracy.
Symbol of Support: The Pink Triangle

The 1995 ACA convention presents a moral dilemma for members who support the use of antidiscrimination legislation to protect the rights of gay, lesbian, and bisexual individuals. A historic metaphor, based on the symbols used during the Nazi extermination, is used to explore strategic symbolic acts in support of a moral position.