cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Homeomorphisms and Fredholm Theory for Perturbations of Nonlinear Fredholm Maps of Index Zero and of A-Proper Maps with Applications

In Part I, we develop a nonlinear Fredholm alternative theory involving k-ball and k-set perturbations of general homeomorphisms as well as of homeomorphisms that are nonlinear Fredholm maps of index zero. Various generalized first Fredholm theorems are given and finite solvability of general (odd) Fredholm maps of index zero is also studied. We apply these results to the unique and finite solvability of potential and semilinear problems with strongly nonlinear boundary conditions and to quasilinear elliptic equations. The results of Sect. 1.1 are based on the Browder and Banach-Mazur homeomorphism theorems. The basic tools used in Sect. 1.2 are the recent degree theories for nonlinear C 1-Fredholm maps of index zero and their perturbations.In Part II, we discuss a number of constructive homeomorphism results for nonlinear A-proper maps and their perturbations. Error estimates are given under various conditions. We prove that k-ball and k-set perturbations of these homeomorphisms are again homeomorphisms or that the corresponding equations are finitely solvable. The theory presented in this paper is based on recent work by the author.
Relative sensitivities of simulated rainfall to fixed shape parameters and collection efficiencies

Author(s): Freeman, SW; Igel, AL; van den Heever, SC | Abstract: Rainfall prediction by weather forecasting models is strongly dependent on the microphysical parametrization being utilized within the model. As forecasting models have become more advanced, they are more commonly using double-moment bulk microphysical parametrizations. While these double-moment schemes are more sophisticated and require fewer a priori parameters than single-moment parametrizations, a number of parameter values must still be fixed for quantities that are not Prognosed or diagnosed. Two such parameters, the width of the rain drop size distribution and the choice of collection efficiencies between liquid hydrometeors, are examined here. Simulations of deep convective storms were performed in which the collection efficiency dataset and the a priori width of the rain drop size distribution (RSD) were individually and simultaneously modified. Analysis of the results show that the a priori width of the RSD was a larger control on the total accumulated precipitation (a change of up to 75% over the typical values tested in this article) than the choice of collection efficiency dataset used (a change of up to 10%). Changing the collection efficiency dataset produces most of the impacts on precipitation rates through changes in the warm rain process rates. On the other hand, the decrease in precipitation with narrowing RSDs occurs in association with the following processes: (a) decreased rain production due to increased evaporation, (b) decreased rain production due to decreased ice melting, and (c) slower raindrop fall speed which leads to longer residency times and changes in rain self-collection. These results add to the growing body of work showing that the representation of hydrometeor size distributions is critically important, and suggests that more work should be done to better represent the width of the RSD in models, including further development of triple-moment and bin schemes.
Ontology-Driven Requirements Engineering in the Responsive and Formal Design Process

Requirements that are understood and shared by all stakeholders as well as system engineers are highly critical in the development of a successful system. Natural languages (NL) are essentially preferred to represent requirements to advance this shared understanding. However, natural languages are inherently imprecise and ambiguous leading to inconsistent, incomplete, and incorrect requirements. Therefore, there is a need to represent requirements formally. In this paper, the use of ontologies for knowledge representation from requirements is presented for the responsive and formal design (RFD) process. The main goals are to (1) facilitate requirements engineering, (2) serve as an intermediate representation for automatic transition to logic-based modeling, and (3) formalize the process of transformation from requirements to logic-based modeling. Therefore, requirements engineering in the RFD process will be augmented using ontologies in the domain modeling of the system to be implemented. Ontologies are utilized to capture domain requirements, and formal mechanisms are used to check for inconsistency and incompleteness at each abstraction layer in the RFD process.
The rapid distortion of two-way coupled particle-laden turbulence

In this study, we address the modification of sheared turbulence by dispersed inertial particles. The preferential sampling of the straining regions of the flow by inertial particles in turbulence leads to an inhomogeneous distribution of particles. The strong gravitational loading exerted by the highly concentrated regions results in anisotropic alteration of turbulence at small scales in the direction of gravity. These effects are investigated in a rapid distortion theory (RDT) extended for two-way coupled particle-laden flows. To make the analysis tractable, we assume that particles have small but non-zero inertia. In the classical results for single-phase flows, the RDT assumption of fast shearing compared to the turbulence time scales leads to the distortion and shear-induced production of turbulence. In particle-laden turbulence, the coupling between the two phases under rapid shearing induces number density fluctuations that convert gravitational potential energy to turbulent kinetic energy and modulate the turbulence spectrum in a manner that increases with mass loading. Turbulence statistics obtained from RDT are compared with Euler–Lagrange simulations of homogeneously sheared particle-laden turbulence.
Assessing L2 pragmatic proficiency using a live chat platform: a study on compliment sequences

The objective of this study was to employ a new tool for assessing pragmatic proficiency (over performance) in L2 students and to determine if pragmatic lessons on compliment sequences had a positi...
A Pilot Study Examining Neural Response to Pain in Adolescents With and Without Chronic Pain

Introduction: Chronic pain is common in adolescence and is associated with both pain and prevalence of mental illness later in life. While previous functional neuroimaging work has informed knowledge of neural alterations associated with chronic pain, these findings have been primarily limited to adult samples, and it is unclear if similar patterns of altered brain activation are present in the developing adolescent brain. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to pilot a noxious pressure task during functional neuroimaging to assess brain response to pain in adolescents with and without chronic pain. Methods: Adolescents (ages 11-16) with (n=9, 7 females) and without (n=9, 7 females) chronic pain, matched on age, sex, IQ, and parental history of chronic pain, completed a noxious mechanical pressure task to assess subjective pain thresholds. This was followed by randomized presentation of subjective equivalent pressure applications (adolescents’ pain 4/0-10), and two objectively equivalent pressures (0.25 kg/cm2 and 1.5 kg/cm2), during functional magnetic resonance imaging, using an event-related task design. Results: Findings revealed that adolescents with chronic pain demonstrated significantly greater activation in the posterior cingulate compared to controls. Further, all adolescents demonstrated significant pain-related brain response in brain regions implicated in pain neurocircuitry, as well as in several regions of the default mode network. Similar patterns of neural response were also noted during pain anticipation. Conclusion: These findings are important for not only understanding the neurocircuitry involved in adolescent chronic pain, but may prove beneficial to future pain treatment efforts that seek to alter pain neurocircuitry.
The association between drug industry payments and NCCN guideline panel membership.

2068Background: The high frequency of financial relationships between the pharmaceutical industry and influential oncologists who author clinical practice guidelines may influence guideline recomme...
A Developmental Role for Microglial Presenilin 1 in Memory

Summary Microglia, the macrophages of the brain, are increasingly recognized to play a key role in synaptic plasticity and function; however, the underlying mechanisms remain elusive. Presenilin 1 (PS1) is an essential protein involved in learning and memory, through neuronal mechanisms. Loss of Presenilin function in neurons impairs synapse plasticity and causes cognitive deficits in mice. Surprisingly, here we show memory enhancement in mice by deleting PS1 selectively in microglia. We further demonstrate increased synapse transmission and in vivo neuronal activity in mice by depleting PS1 during microglial development, but not after microglial maturation. Remarkably, conditional deletion of PS1 in microglia during development increased memory retention in adulthood and was dependent on the NMDA receptor subunit GluN2B. In vivo calcium imaging of freely behaving mice revealed increased amplitude of neuronal Ca2+ transients in the CA1 hippocampus of PS1 cKO mice compared to control mice, suggesting a greater CA1 engagement during novel object exploration. Finally, loss of PS1 in microglia mitigated synaptic and cognitive deficits in a mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease. Together our results reveal a novel mechanism and function of PS1 in microglia in which modulation can enhance neuronal activity, learning and memory in mice.
Culprits or consequences: Understanding the metabolic dysregulation of muscle in diabetes

The prevalence of type 2 diabetes (T2D) continues to rise despite the amount of research dedicated to finding the culprits of this debilitating disease. Skeletal muscle is arguably the most important contributor to glucose disposal making it a clear target in insulin resistance and T2D research. Within skeletal muscle there is a clear link to metabolic dysregulation during the progression of T2D but the determination of culprits vs consequences of the disease has been elusive. Emerging evidence in skeletal muscle implicates influential cross talk between a key anabolic regulatory protein, the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) and its associated complexes (mTORC1 and mTORC2), and the well-described canonical signaling for insulin-stimulated glucose uptake. This new understanding of cellular signaling crosstalk has blurred the lines of what is a culprit and what is a consequence with regard to insulin resistance. Here, we briefly review the most recent understanding of insulin signaling in skeletal muscle, and how anabolic responses favoring anabolism directly impact cellular glucose disposal. This review highlights key cross-over interactions between protein and glucose regulatory pathways and the implications this may have for the design of new therapeutic targets for the control of glucoregulatory function in skeletal muscle.
Utility and Variability of Post Mortem Imaging in Unexplained Pediatric Cardiorespiratory Arrest

Background: Sudden unexplained pediatric deaths accounts for > 2,000 deaths per year in children in the United States. Though specific AAP guidelines exist for postmortem investigations in infants with unexplained cardiopulmonary arrest (CPA), it is unclear whether these guidelines are strictly followed. No such guidelines exist for children >1 year of age. Further, there is paucity of data regarding the yield of postmortem imaging performed in children. Objectives: 1. To describe the postmortem investigations …
The Utilization of a Performance Based Curriculum Design in Graduate Social Work Education

As a developing profession, social work is increasing its efforts to utilize systematically concepts from the field of education in its professional training. This research examines the use of a performance based curriculum design in the teaching of a graduate social work course. Results of this study support the use of this approach from the perspective of improved student performance. Interest in the use of performance based objectives in education stems from a concern that material be presented to students in ways that maximize learning opportunities and add precision to the measurement of mastery of knowledge and skills. Placing emphasis on development of a framework for teaching provides a way of reducing ambiguities. The value of clearly stated objectives for learning is demonstrated when learning becomes focused, goal-oriented and students understand what to do and how to do it. Goals of learning are frequently presented in general terms out of a fear that specifically articulated objectives will lead to preoccupation with trivia. Arkava and Brenner (1976:17) write: There are dangers inherent in the move toward greater specification of our curriculum objectives. One of the more obvious dangers is that of becoming preoccupied with trivia. Competency-based education programs may lead to focus on innurnerable and sometimes irrelevant details. The alternative, to present goals in very general terms, however, often contributes to difficulty in the teaching-learning process. Failure to specify clear learning objectives creates serious problems in the evaluation process. Without specific objectives, instructors are forced to write global questions which rely heavily upon more subjective evaluations of performance. If learning outcomes are not clearly defined, then the power of these instruments to achieve their purpose becomes severely limited. The degree of confidence in the validity of the measurement instrument is determined by the extent that it reflects achievement of
Dynamics Studies of the O(3P) + Ch4, C2H6 and C3H8 Reactions

We report theoretical simulations of hyperthermal O(3P) collisions with CH4. C2H6 and C3H8 that are related to erosion processes in low Earth orbit (LEO). In the first part of this paper, we use electronic structure calculations to show that at energies well below those accessible in LEO, there is a whole new body of reaction channels that are open in addition to the well known lowest barrier one, H abstraction to give OH + alkyl radicals. For instance, O addition to the hydrocarbon followed by H elimination to give alkoxy radicals + H is possible through barriers of about 2 eV. Similar barrier heights are found for direct carbon-carbon bond breakage processes that can take place in hydrocarbons containing C-C bonds (ethane and propane). In the second part of this paper, we carry out reaction dynamics calculations using the quasiclassical trajectory method in conjunction with a novel semiempirical Hamiltonian termed MSINDO. Cross section calculations reveal that H elimination and C- C breakage are both competitive with H abstraction in the reactions of O(3P) with ethane and propane. In O(3P) + methane, elimination is even more important than H abstraction under LEO conditions. Energy distributions for the majority channels show different patterns according to the kinematies of the products that are formed. For H abstraction to give OH, most of the energy is released as product translation, while OH is fairly cold. For H elimination, most energy is released as internal energy of the oxyradical. Angular distributions also depend on the product channel. H abstraction shows a trend with collision energy that matches that of reactions undergoing a direct mechanism. Near threshold H elimination and C-C breakage angular distributions reveal the presence of two different saddle points that connect reagents and products for each process.
Mononeuropathies of infancy and childhood.

Publisher Summary The evaluation of an infant, child, or adolescent with a mononeuropathy utilizes the same electromyography (EMG) techniques as for adult evaluations. In the newborn and toddler, the important maturation parameters that affect the results of nerve conduction studies (NCS) and needle EMG need to be recognized. In both infants and children, there is a different clinical set of lesions at this level of the neuro-axis. Pediatric median nerve lesions are equally frequent at proximal locations. Rare anatomical variant nerve entrapments, secondary to congenital bands, may be very difficult to recognize in children. A fastidious attention to detail is necessary to evaluate some of these very rare mono-neuropathies. At times, it is needed to consider the child's anxieties, terminating the study before it is complete and have the youngster brought back later to complete the analysis. Rarely with very young or uncooperative children, the EMG needs to be carried out with general anesthesia. This allows the opportunity to examine many muscles to provide the most precise localization, especially in the rare circumstance where surgical exploration is considered. This chapter discusses the most common pediatric mononeuropathies. Rare neuropathies found in the neonate and infant less than one year old are described. Subsequently, the mononeuropathies affecting the major peripheral nerves of older children are reviewed. The discussions utilize occasional vignettes to illustrate important clinical issues.
A coupled oscillatory model mimicking avian circadian regulatory systems.

Much evidence indicates that the pineal gland and thesuprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) are the primary pacemakers in the housesparrow, Passer domesticus. The interactions between the pineal andSCN predicted by the neuroendocrine loop model indicates that uncouplingwould cause the two oscillators to damp out in constant darkness. Basedupon the original neuroendocrine loop model, a mathematical frameworkof the house sparrow circadian regulatory organization that incorporatesdamping and co-inhibitory coupling has been formulated. The proposedmodel clearly indicates that two coupled oscillators must be 180°out of the phase for sustaining oscillations. From damping coefficients,which can be determined from experimental data, other parameters suchas external stimuli (interaction coefficient) and characteristicfrequencies can then be computed. Based upon earlier studies and simulations,we conclude that the sparrow pineal gland dampens more rapidly than does theSCN, suggesting that the SCN are probably more important in sparrowsthan previously thought. The model also provides the explanations ofendogenous circadian period (tau) alteration. Finally, we extend this modelto other avian and to mammalian circadian systems. We suggest that avianand mammalian circadian systems may differ in damping coefficients ofpineal glands and the degree of SCN dominance.
Designing a comprehensive visual recognition system

Computer vision has made significant advances during the last decade. Many capabilities such as the detection of faces or the recognition of rigid textured objects such as landmarks are now working to very satisfying levels. Across the various products and services offered by Google we are interested in analyzing an image crawled on the web in all its aspects. When designing such a comprehensive system it becomes obvious however that important abilities are still lacking. One example is object class recognition that scales to thousands or even millions of classes. Another area where we are still facing obstacles is the reliable recognition of objects that have little surface texture and which are largely contour defined. Even a seemingly simple task such as reading text in a photo is still lacking the accuracy we need. The talk describes our efforts in designing a large scale image recognition system that can analyze any given image on the web with respect to many dimensions. We report on the recognition disciplines in which we made good progress but we also call out areas which still require additional work to reach production ready solutions.
Ethical Perspectives: Are Future Marketers any Different?

The notion of ethics in business continues to receive considerable attention. Many universities and professional organizations have attempted to address the issue of ethics by adding ethics courses to the curriculum and by creating codes of ethics for individuals working in that field. A study of students in Australia has shown that students majoring in marketing are more prone to less-than-ethical behavior than are other students. In an attempt to better understand the attitudes of future marketers in the US, we examine the attitudes of marketing majors interms of an ethical practices code and with respect toa set of ethical value statements. The ethical perspectives of marketing majors are compared to thoseof other business majors. In addition, the effect of taking a course in ethics is examined.
Global mapping of ionospheric HF/VHF radio wave absorption due to solar energetic protons

[1] Simple, one-parameter algorithms are applied to the observed energetic proton flux as provided by instruments aboard the GOES series of satellites to yield estimates of the high-latitude HF and VHF radio wave absorption for day and night, respectively. These results are extended to full daily coverage by treating the effects of solar illumination, geomagnetic cutoff variation, and frequency dependence over the entire earth. Validation calculations of the polar cap absorption of HF radio waves have been performed for 11 larger solar energetic particle events during the period from 1992 to 2002 and the results are compared to observations of 30 MHz riometers operated by the Air Force Geophysics Laboratory and located at Thule, Greenland. Prediction of the minimum event duration from current flux level is also obtained, and a specimen presentation of the north and south polar caps illustrates the graphical output of the model for the peak of the 6 December 2006 solar proton event.
Medium access control in wireless sensor networks

This chapter reviews medium access control (MAC), an enabling technology in wireless sensor networks. MAC protocols control how sensors access a shared radio channel to communicate with neighbors. Battery-powered wireless sensor networks with many nearby nodes challenge traditional MAC design. This chapter discusses design trade-offs with an emphasis on energy efficiency. It classifies existing MAC protocols and compares their advantages and disadvantages in the context of sensor networks. Finally, it presents S-MAC as an example of a MAC protocol designed specifically for a sensor network, illustrating one combination of design trade-offs.
Numerical optimization of non-adaptive microphone arrays

The paper describes an application of the numerical optimization methods for the design of non-adaptive multisensor arrays. The parameters and the geometry of such arrays do not change with changes in the input signals, and must be chosen in advance, depending on the array application. Generally, the goal of a non-adaptive multisensor array may be numerically expressed through its pattern function which shows the gain for a signal coming from a particular direction in space. The real pattern function depends on the geometry of the array and on the processing which signals from every sensor undergo. The array pattern function is non-linear and it is frequency dependent. The difference between the goal pattern function and the real pattern function is the essence of numerical optimization. The geometry and the processing parameters of the multi-sensor array are optimized to provide the minimum difference over a specified frequency range. Such minimization is a difficult non-linear and multi-parameter problem. Optimization results for several goal functions for multi-microphone arrays are provided and discussed.
Ineffective Assistance of Counsel Based on Counsel's Alleged Fourth Amendment Failures

Criminal defense counsel's failure to move to suppress evidence allegedly obtained in violation of the Fourth Amendment may be the basis for an ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claim raised on appeal or in a petition for habeas corpus relief. The framework governing review of such claims is complex, however, and appellants' and petitioners' ineffective assistance claims are generally unsuccessful. Professors John and Nancy Burkoff discuss the recent decisional law on this subject.
The One Laptop School: Equipping Rural Elementary Schools in South India Through Public Private Partnerships

This articleΓCOs purpose is to report on a Public Private Partnership (PPP) program in South India that provides information and communication technology (ICT) to rural elementary schools. The article examines the current status of rural, government-run elementary schools in India by reviewing reports like the Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) in India. Challenges like teacher absences, student drop-outs, lack of electricity, lack of separate toilets for genders, and a lack of teaching resources will be discussed. To meet these challenges, the article will describe the rise in popularity of IndiaΓCOs PPPs. Then the article moves to a case study investigation of a PPP, called the SSA Foundation, which implements a ΓC£one laptop per schoolΓC¥ program in rural areas in the Indian States of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. Using ethnographic data from field research, the case study includes a description of how the students in a rural Karnataka elementary school use their schoolΓCOs laptop. The school is situated in a small village where most travel is non-motorized.┬a Walking, usually without shoes, is the main form of transportation.┬a A bicycle is considered a luxury.┬a Most villagers work in the surrounding ragi and millet fields; laboring, often with only simple tool blades. Wood fires are the main source of fuel for cooking.┬a In this village, the schoolΓCOs laptop has become a prized possession. The case study offers a ΓC£thick descriptionΓC¥ (Geertz, 1973) of how the village schoolΓCOs students use the laptop for learning basic computing skills and for learning English. ┬a Keywords: elementary schooling; educational technology, Public Private Partnerships, rural India, sociotechnical narratives ┬a
Electromagnetic torques, precession and evolution of magnetic inclination of pulsars

We present analytic calculations of the electromagnetic torques acting on a magnetic neutron star rotating in vacuum, including near-zone torques associated with the inertia of dipole and quadrupole magnetic fields. We incorporate these torques into the rotational dynamics of a rigid-body neutron star, and show that the effects of the inertial torque can be understood as a modification of the moment of inertia tensor of the star. We apply our rotational dynamics equation to the Crab pulsar, including intrinsic distortions of the star and various electromagnetic torques, to investigate the possibility that the counter-alignment of the magnetic inclination angle, as suggested by recent observations, could be explained by pulsar precession. We find that if the effective principal axis of the pulsar is nearly aligned with either the magnetic dipole axis or the rotation axis, then precession may account for the observed counter-alignment over decade timescales. Over the spindown timescale of the pulsar, the magnetic inclination angle always decreases.
Viscous flow of a volatile liquid on an inclined heated surface

We investigate the effects of evaporation on a gravity-driven flow of a viscous liquid on a heated solid surface. Vapor molecules are adsorbed on the dry areas of the solid and form a microscopic adsorbed film. The thickness of this film is calculated from the formulas for disjoining pressure and the principles of equilibrium thermodynamics. A lubrication-type approach is used to derive an evolution equation capable of describing both the macroscopic shape of the vapor-liquid interface and the adsorbed film on the vapor-solid interface. Under the conditions of negligible evaporation, the numerical solution of the evolution equation predicts translational motion and formation of capillary ridge, in agreement with previous investigations. Moderate evaporation is shown to slow down the flow and decrease the height of the capillary ridge, which implies a stabilizing effect of evaporation on the well-known instability observed in gravity-driven thin film flows. We also study the combined effects of evaporation and thermocapillary stresses and show that the latter act to reduce the velocity of the downward motion, but increase the height of the capillary ridge. Apparent contact angles are found from the solution and shown to increase with evaporation and contact line speed. For strong evaporation, steady state solutions are found such that evaporation balances the downward motion of the interface under the action of gravity.
Toward a Positive Economic Theory of Hedging

The hedging models developed over the last half century are evaluated for their ability to explain the actual hedging behavior of the various economic agents. This evaluation shows a total lack of a reasonable positive model of hedging behavior. While each class of existing models predicts some observed behavior, none is able to predict the broad range of actions that is easily observed in the real world. In this paper I develop such a model and include a plausible and coldly rational economic explanation for why farmers don't hedge at all while merchandisers with identical risk attitudes will fully hedge.
Expression of β1 Integrins in Normal Human Keratinocytes

The majority of cell adhesive events to the extracellular matrix are mediated by cell surface receptors, beta 1 integrins. Keratinocytes express at least six different polypeptides of beta 1 integrin class, namely beta 1, alpha 2, alpha 3, alpha 5, and alpha 6 (alpha 6 is mainly associated with beta 4 polypeptide). These epithelial cells use alpha 2 beta 1 as a collagen receptor and alpha 3 beta 1 as a fibronectin receptor, while alpha 6 beta 4 is the major basement membrane receptor. Expression of alpha 5 beta 1 complex is low. Processing of beta 1 integrins is fast in keratinocytes; half-maximal maturation takes only 3 hours. In addition to their function in cell-matrix interactions, beta 1 integrins (alpha 2 beta 1 and alpha 3 beta 1) have also a role in maintaining keratinocyte cell-cell interactions. It is possible that resting basal keratinocytes use beta 1 integrins as cell-cell adhesion receptors, and during activation, like in wound healing, these receptors relocalize to mediate events involving cell-matrix interactions.
Cape Natural Tea Products and the U.S. Market: Rooibos Rebels Ready to Raid

Cape Natural Tea Products was a young herbal products company based in South Africa. Rooibos tea was the strongest component of their product portfolio. In South Africa, rooibos was a commodity product and a direct competitor of coffee and tea. Antioxidants and other nutrients made rooibos a functional food. The American market developed interest in functional foods; however, the diverse opinions and knowledge of American consumers of functional foods made marketing difficult. Could the company benefit from the American market? With strong competition at home and marketing challenges abroad, what would be the best path of success for the company?
Reactive iron transport in an acidic mountain stream in Summit County, Colorado: A hydrologic perspective

Abstract A pH perturbation experiment was conducted in an acidic, metal-enriched, mountain stream to identify relative rates of chemical and hydrologic processes as they influence iron transport. During the experiment the pH was lowered from 4.2 to 3.2 for three hours by injection of sulfuric acid. Amorphous iron oxides are abundant on the streambed, and dissolution and photoreduction reactions resulted in a rapid increase in the dissolved iron concentration. The increase occurred simultaneously with the decrease in pH. Ferrous iron was the major aqueous iron species. The changes in the iron concentration during the experiment indicate that variation exists in the solubility properties of the hydrous iron oxides on the streambed with dissolution of at least two compartments of hydrous iron oxides contributing to the iron pulse. Spatial variations of the hydrologic properties along the stream were quantified by simulating the transport of a coinjected tracer, lithium. A simulation of iron transport, as a conservative solute, indicated that hydrologie transport had a significant role in determining downstream changes in the iron pulse. The rapidity of the changes in iron concentration indicates that a model based on dynamic equilibrium may be adequate for simulating iron transport in acid streams. A major challenge for predictive solute transport models of geochemical processes may be due to substantial spatial and seasonal variations in chemical properties of the reactive hydrous oxides in such streams, and in the physical and hydrologic properties of the stream
Making midwives: postmodern conditions and midwifery training in Saint Lucia.

Drawing on material from fieldwork conducted on the island of Saint Lucia, I examine how Saint Lucian nurse-midwives and student midwives negotiate multiple ways of understanding and evaluating their practices and roles in light of contradictory and powerful cultural, historical, and political forces. I argue that, although Saint Lucian nurse-midwives may not qualify as "postmodern" according to the criteria proposed by Davis-Floyd and Davis (1996), they are nonetheless struggling with postmodern conditions as they negotiate between competing healing ideologies. I illustrate the significance of these negotiations through analyzing: (1) the ways nurse-midwives understand and articulate the healing ideologies at play in Saint Lucia, (2) historical and ideological aspects of the Saint Lucian nurse-midwifery training program, and (3) a classroom discussion during which student reported on "bush-midwives."
Enhanced response to ozone exposure during the follicular phase of the menstrual cycle.

Exposure to ozone (O3), a toxic component of photochemical smog, results in significant airway inflammation, respiratory discomfort, and pulmonary function impairment. These effects can be reduced via pretreatment with anti-inflammatory agents. Progesterone, a gonadal steroid, is known to reduce general inflammation in the uterine endometrium. However, it is not known whether fluctuations in blood levels of progesterone, which are experienced during the normal female menstrual cycle, could alter O3 inflammatory-induced pulmonary responses. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that young, adult females are more responsive to O3 inhalation with respect to pulmonary function impairment during their follicular (F) menstrual phase when progesterone levels are lowest than during their mid-luteal (ML) phase when progesterone levels are highest. Nine subjects with normal ovarian function were exposed in random order for 1 hr each to filtered air and to 0.30 ppm O3 in their F and ML menstrual phases. Ozone responsiveness was measured by percent change in pulmonary function from pre- to postexposure. Significant gas concentration effects (filtered air versus O3) were observed for forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in 1 sec (FEV1), and forced expiratory flow between 25 and 75% of FVC (FEF25-75; p < .05). More importantly, the pulmonary function flow rates, FEV1 and FEF25-75, showed a significant menstrual phase and gas concentration interaction effect, with larger decrements observed in the F menstrual phase when progesterone concentrations were significantly lower. We conclude that young, adult females appear to be more responsive to acute O3 exposure during the F phase than during the ML phase of their menstrual cycles.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
What is Alcoholics Anonymous affiliation

An increasing body of research evidence supports the use of 12-step program affiliation as an effective adjunct and aftercare for formal treatment. Recently, three brief (9- or 10-item) measures of affiliation have been developed. However, the brief scales are difficult to interpret, and the question of exactly what is affiliation (or disaffiliation) remains unclear. This analysis examines the question of what is the essence of affiliation vs. disaffiliation. Data from the Project MATCH 1-year posttreatment Alcoholics Anonymous Involvement (AAI) scale (N=1506) are used to identify the most salient items of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) affiliation predicting 1-year posttreatment drinking outcomes. Analysis using stepwise regression suggests that a three-item solution can explain a similar amount of variance in the proportion of days abstinent in months 9 through 12 posttreatment, as does using the nine items. These three "core items predicting recovery" include AA attendance, sum of steps completed, and identifying self as an AA member. As an affiliation composite scale, these three items are easier to interpret and administer than the full AAI scale, and when combined, possess adequate reliability (alpha=0.72).
New Ceramic Electron Multiplier

The design and performance of a new ceramic envelope electron multiplier are described. The tube uses hemispherically shaped 3/8" diameter dynodes crimped into kovar cups. The dynode assemblies are alternately stacked between high-alumina ceramic rings and brazed into a rugged single piece construction envelope. The structure has an outside diameter of 0. 5 inches with an overall length of 2.75 inches and is capable of withstanding extreme environmental conditions. The tube withstands 100 g shocks for 11 msec duration, random vibration levels of 1.3 g2 /Hz, and can be operated over a temperature range from liquid N2 to 400°C. The electron optics of the discrete dynodes provide optimum interstage electron collection. The single electron pulse height distribution at gains higher than 108 is nearly Gaussian and has a FWHM of approximately 0.6. Complete data on pulse height distribution characteristics is reviewed over the dynamic range of the device. The photon sensitivity of the device will be discussed within the range of 58.3 to 150 nm as well as the adaptability for charged particle conversion below 3 keV. Fatigue characteristics are examined as a function of accumulated counts up to 1012, exposure to controlled atmospheres of dry air, noble gases, and maximum counting rates up to 10 MHz. Applications for these detectors are reviewed, including their projected use in mass spectroscopy experiments on the Apollo 17 mission.
Clinical Outcome After Surgical Correction of Mitral Regurgitation Due to Papillary Muscle Rupture

Background— Papillary muscle rupture (PMR) is an infrequent but catastrophic complication of acute myocardial infarction (MI). Although always considered, surgical treatment is often denied because of high operative mortality. Moreover, the effects of surgery for PMR on long-term outcome, particularly compared with expected outcome after MI, are undefined. Methods and Results— Fifty-four consecutive patients (age, 70±8 years; 74% male) underwent mitral surgery for post-MI PMR from January 1980 through December 2000. Severe presentation (cardiogenic shock, pulmonary edema, or cardiac arrest) was noted in 91% preoperatively. Performance of coronary artery bypass graft was associated with lower operative mortality (odds ratio, 0.18; 95% CI, 0.04 to 0.83; P=0.011), whereas there was a trend for lower mortality after surgery after 1990 (odds ratio, 0.28; 95% CI, 0.06 to 1.3). Thus, operative mortality (overall, 18.5%) decreased from 67% up to 1990 without coronary artery bypass graft to 8.7% after 1990 with co...
Nucleotide sequence from the genetic left end of bacteriophage T7 DNA to the beginning of gene 4

The nucleotide sequence running from the genetic left end of bacteriophage T7 DNA to within the coding sequence of gene 4 is given, except for the internal coding sequence for the gene 1 protein, which has been determined elsewhere. The sequence presented contains nucleotides 1 to 3342 and 5654 to 12,100 of the approximately 40,000 base-pairs of T7 DNA. This sequence includes: the three strong early promoters and the termination site for Escherichia coli RNA polymerase: eight promoter sites for T7 RNA polymerase; six RNAase III cleavage sites; the primary origin of replication of T7 DNA; the complete coding sequences for 13 previously known T7 proteins, including the anti-restriction protein, protein kinase, DNA ligase, the gene 2 inhibitor of E. coli RNA polymerase, single-strand DNA binding protein, the gene 3 endonuclease, and lysozyme (which is actually an N-acetylmuramyl-l-alanine amidase); the complete coding sequences for eight potential new T7-coded proteins; and two apparently independent initiation sites that produce overlapping polypeptide chains of gene 4 primase. More than 86% of the first 12,100 base-pairs of T7 DNA appear to be devoted to specifying amino acid sequences for T7 proteins, and the arrangement of coding sequences and other genetic elements is very efficient. There is little overlap between coding sequences for different proteins, but junctions between adjacent coding sequences are typically close, the termination codon for one protein often overlapping the initiation codon for the next. For almost half of the potential T7 proteins, the sequence in the messenger RNA that can interact with 16 S ribosomal RNA in initiation of protein synthesis is part of the coding sequence for the preceding protein. The longest non-coding region, about 900 base-pairs, is at the left end of the DNA. The right half of this region contains the strong early promoters for E. coli RNA polymerase and the first RNAase III cleavage site. The left end contains the terminal repetition (nucleotides 1 to 160), followed by a striking array of repeated sequences (nucleotides 175 to 340) that might have some role in packaging the DNA into phage particles, and an A · T-rich region (nucleotides 356 to 492) that contains a promoter for T7 RNA polymerase, and which might function as a replication origin.
Do Hormones in Milk Affect the Function of the Neonatal Intestine

The presence of a number of peptide hormones and other biologically active peptides (BAP) in the milk of various species, together with the low proteolytic activity in the gastrointestinal tract of newborns and “permeability” for macromolecules, suggests theirpotential significance for the neonate I review the presence of hormones and other biologically active peptides (BAP) in milks of various species. Furthermore, I summarize data demonstrating the effects of orogastrically administered BAP with special attention to epidermal growth factor.
A Cell Surface Protein with Herpesvirus Entry Activity (HveB) Confers Susceptibility to Infection by Mutants of Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1, Herpes Simplex Virus Type 2, and Pseudorabies Virus

Certain mutant strains of herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) are unable to infect cells in which entry is dependent on HVEM, the previously described herpesvirus entry mediator designated here as herpesvirus entry protein A (HveA). These mutant viruses can infect other cells where entry is apparently dependent on other co-receptors. The mutant virus HSV-1(KOS)Rid1 was used to screen a human cDNA expression library for ability of transfected plasmids to convert resistant Chinese hamster ovary cells to susceptibility to virus entry. A plasmid expressing the previously described poliovirus receptor-related protein 2 (Prr2) was isolated on the basis of this activity. This protein, designated here as HveB, was shown to mediate the entry of three mutant HSV-1 strains that cannot use HVEM as co-receptor, but not wild-type HSV-1 strains. HveB also mediated the entry of HSV-2 and pseudorabies virus but not bovine herpesvirus type 1. HveB was expressed in some human neuronal cell lines, fibroblastic cells, keratinocytes, and primary activated T lymphocytes. Antibodies specific for HveB blocked infection of HveB-expressing CHO cells and a human fibroblastic cell strain HEL299. Differences in ability of HSV-1 and HSV-2 strains to use HveB for entry should influence the types of cells that can be infected and thereby account in part for serotype and strain differences in tissue tropism and pathogenicity.
Inhibition of bladder tumor cell implantation in cauterized urothelium, without inhibition of healing, by a fibronectin-related peptide (GRGDS)

Background: Local recurrence after transurethral resection of bladder tumors (TURB) is common and might be diminished if free tumor cells within the bladder are prevented from reattaching. Methods: In vitro inhibition of murine bladder tumor cells to an approximation of urothelial matrix with agents that might block attachment to components of the extracellular matrix, and in vivo inhibition of attachment in cautery-injured murine bladder. Results: GRGDS, (0.1–2.5 mg/ml), a fibronectin-related peptide, mannose-6-phosphate, (0.1–20 mg/ml), a carbohydrate, and heparin (1–625 units/ml) all inhibited attachment in vitro in a dose-dependent fashion. YIGSR (0.1–2 mg/ml), a laminin-related peptide, did not. Mannose (10 mg/ml) did not significantly inhibit attachment of tumor cells to cauterized urothelium in vivo, whereas there was a 77% reduction of attachment in bladders irrigated with GRGDS (6.25 mg/ml) (p<0.05), and the appearance of subsequent tumors in the bladder was inhibited. Finally, GRGDS (6.25 mg/ml) did not inhibit healing of the cautery ulcer. Conclusions: RGD-containing peptides may be useful as adjuvant therapy to decrease local recurrence after TURB and perhaps in other circumstances in which tumor cells spilled into a wound or body cavity threaten surgical success.
Estimation with incomplete data: An improved computational method and the analysis of nested data

Maximum likelihood estimation with incomplete normal nrocedure and (ii.)allows tor a Simple MLI.I v=n,ce nf noofori TiVplilinndv Closed form solutions are described for the general nested case.Exact, ssample, moments are given for the two group case Some. computational comparisions are made with the earlier ESTMAT algorithm.
The biogenesis of ethylene in Penicillium digitatum.

Abstract The origin of ethylene in Penicillium digitatum has been shown to be intimately associated with the Krebs cycle. 2-Ketoglutaric acid and glutamic acid are the most efficient precursors of ethylene, which is derived from carbons 3 and 4 of these substrates as a unit. However, which of these is the immediate precursor has not been established. Since 2-ketoglutaric acid is a very efficient precursor and succinic acid is an inefficient one, 2-ketoglutaric acid must be the branching point at which the pathway of ethylene biosynthesis leads away from the Krebs cycle. This conclusion is in full agreement with the following observations: Three of the four hydrogen atoms of the ethylene molecule were derived from protons of the medium; C-2 but not C-1 of acetate was incorporated into ethylene; and [2,3- 14 C]succinic acid but not [2,3- 3 H]succinic acid was incorporated.
Electronic structure and valence-bond band structure of cuprate superconducting materials.

From ab initio calculations on various clusters representing the La_(2-x)Sr_xCu_1O_4 and Y_1Ba_2Cu_3O_7 classes of high-temperature superconductors, it is shown that (i) all copper sites have a Cu^(II)(d^9)oxidation state with one unpaired spin that is coupled antiferromagnetically to the spins of adjacent Cu^(II) sites; (ii) oxidation beyond the cupric (Cu^(II)) state leads not to Cu^(III) but rather to oxidized oxygen atoms, with an oxygen pπ hole bridging two Cu^(II) sites; (iii) the oxygen pπhole at these oxidized sites is ferromagnetically coupled to the adjacent Cu^(II)d electrons despite the fact that this is opposed by the direct dd exchange; and (iv) the hopping of these oxygen pπ holes (in CuO sheets or chains) from site to site is responsible for the conductivity in these systems (N-electron band structures are reported for the migration of these localized charges).