cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Exceptional drought events over eastern China during the last five centuries

Climate extremes, particularly the droughts sustaining over a prolonged period and affecting extended area (defined as “exceptional drought events”), can have long-lasting effects on economic and social activities. Here we use the Chinese drought/flood proxy data of the past five hundred years to identify the cases of exceptional drought events over eastern China (east of 105°E), and to study their spatial patterns and temporal evolutions. The associated circulations for the contemporary case are analyzed using available meteorological data. Possible linkage of these cases to climatic forcing and natural climate events is also explored. After considering the intensity, duration, and spatial coverage, we identified three exceptional drought events, which occurred in 1586–1589, 1638–1641, and 1965–1966 in chronological order. They were the most severe droughts of last five centuries in eastern China, with more than 40% of affected area and the drought center encountered a significant summer rainfall reduction (about 50% or more). These three droughts all developed first in North China (34–40°N), and then either expanded southward or moved to the Yangtze River Valley (27–34°N) and the northern part of the southeastern coastal area (22–27°N). For the 1965–1966 case, the significant reduction of summer precipitation was caused by a weakening of summer monsoon and an anomalous westward and northward displacement of the western Pacific subtropical high. Our analyses also suggest that these three exceptional drought events might be triggered by large volcanic eruptions and amplified by both volcanic eruptions and El Nino events.
Propane Respiration Jump-Starts Microbial Response to a Deep Oil Spill

The Deepwater Horizon event resulted in suspension of oil in the Gulf of Mexico water column because the leakage occurred at great depth. The distribution and fate of other abundant hydrocarbon constituents, such as natural gases, are also important in determining the impact of the leakage but are not yet well understood. From 11 to 21 June 2010, we investigated dissolved hydrocarbon gases at depth using chemical and isotopic surveys and on-site biodegradation studies. Propane and ethane were the primary drivers of microbial respiration, accounting for up to 70% of the observed oxygen depletion in fresh plumes. Propane and ethane trapped in the deep water may therefore promote rapid hydrocarbon respiration by low-diversity bacterial blooms, priming bacterial populations for degradation of other hydrocarbons in the aging plume.
Ecology: Diversity breeds complementarity

Evolutionary and ecosystem processes have long been treated as distinct. The finding that interactions among plant species cause rapid evolutionary changes that affect ecosystem function suggests that it is time for unification. See Letter p.108 More diverse plant communities are often more stable and productive, an effect which tends to increase through time. In this paper, Debra Zuppinger-Dingley et al. investigate the role of evolution in this ecological phenomenon. They assemble new ecological communities using plants — grasses, herbs and legumes — with different recent evolutionary histories, grown in either mixed-species communities or monocultures. Ecosystem functioning and morphological trait diversity were greater in communities of mixture-grown than monoculture-grown plants, suggesting that biodiversity effects in natural communities strengthen as populations adapt to their biotic environment. The finding that small-scale evolution is important to ecological relationships brings together these different perspectives on species coexistence in natural communities.
Combined small cell lung carcinomas: genotypic and immunophenotypic analysis of the separate morphologic components.

Combined small cell lung carcinomas (CSCLCs) are small cell lung carcinomas (SCLCs) containing discrete areas of non–small cell morphologic components, found in up to 30% of SCLCs. We assessed immunophenotypic and genotypic similarity between the distinct morphologic constituents in 7 CSCLCs. Each was stained for synaptophysin, CD56, chromogranin, bcl-2, thyroid transcription factor (TTF)-1, cytokeratin 7, and PAX-5. Loss of heterozygosity (LOH) analysis was performed using markers on 3p (2 loci), 17p (3 loci), 17q (1 locus), and 22q (2 loci). The distinct components shared an identical immunophenotype in 6 cases; all were positive for synaptophysin and CD56 in both components. LOH analysis revealed shared loss of least 1 marker in every lesion, including LOH at 22q13 (characteristic of SCLC) in 5 tumors. The individual elements constituting CSCLCs are closely related in most cases despite their distinct morphologic appearances. The prevalent expression of synaptophysin and CD56 and loss of 22q13 suggest that these tumors are biologically closer to SCLC.
80 Can Monotherapy after One Year Post-Transplant Be Effective without Increasing the Risk of Acute Cellular Rejection?

Purpose Multidrug immunosuppression is traditionally implemented to prevent acute cellular rejection (ACR) in cardiac transplant patients despite toxicities. Monotherapy, in contrast, raises concerns of higher risk of immune activation and ACR. We used noninvasive molecular diagnostic testing (MDT) with gene expression profiling to determine if cardiac transplant patients receiving monotherapy with a single calcineurin inhibitor were at greater risk of immune activation and ACR versus those on multi-drug immunosuppression. Methods and Materials 162 patients at least one year post-transplant underwent MDT. 47 (29%) patients were on monotherapy consisting of a single calcineurin inhibitor (CNI), either cyclosporine or tacrolimus. 115 patients were on multi-drug immunosuppression consisting of various combinations of CNI, antiproliferative agents, corticosteroids, and m-TOR inhibitors. Average (±SD) MDT scores were calculated for each group. Results An MDT threshold score of >34 provides a negative predictive value of 98.2 percent that 2R or greater ACR is absent in patients who are at least one year post-transplant. Mean (±SD) MDT scores in the monotherapy group were 28.44±4.62 compared to 29.11±4.08 in the multi-drug immunosuppression group. There was no significant difference in mean MDT scores between the groups (p=.3611). There was no difference in the incidence of 2R or greater ACR between patients on monotherapy and multi-drug immunosuppressive therapy (p=0.18). From the study period of 2005-2010, one patient on monotherapy versus eight patients on multi-drug therapy had 2R ACR. Conclusions 29% of patients more than one year post-transplant were safely managed on monotherapy using MDT. There were no significant differences between the average MDT scores for patients on monotherapy versus multi-drug immunosuppression. Monotherapy did not put patients at increased risk of ACR but facilitated minimization of immunosuppression, potentially improving patient compliance and decreasing risk of adverse side effects.
Probability on fuzzy sets and ϵ-fuzzy sets

Abstract This research investigates the development of probability calculi for fuzzy sets (abbreviated FS's). Two FS algebras are employed, each as a basis for a FS probability calculus. One employs minima for FS intersections and consequently maxima for unions. The other uses a product rule for intersections and a standard probability-like addition rule for unions. The two derived FS probability theories are not identical and neither is identical with standard probability theory. Finally, e-fuzzy sets, or almost standard sets, are defined and investigated. The main result of the last section is that while FS's do not satisfy all the laws of Boolean algebra fuzzy sets that are almost standard almost satisfy these laws. Moreover, the extent to which such laws are satisfied decreases as their complexity increases.
Female relationality and the idealized self

For nearly two decades writers on the psychology of women have questioned what they have taken to be the male bias in traditional definitions of psychological health and development. In 1970 Broverman et al. charted the terms of what was to become the new feminist critique: their findings showed that clinicians implicitly associated psychological maturity and health with stereotypical male characteristics, but identified normal female traits as the same as those they associated with psychological immaturity or dysfunctioning. The feminist agenda has since been to deconstruct this culturally rooted, professionally accepted equation. The following essay describes the new paradigm that has emerged from this feminist project, analyzes its elaboration in the work of the Stone Center at Wellesley College, and critiques the paradigm from the perspective of Karen Horney.
Focusing of spin polarization in semiconductors by inhomogeneous doping.

We study the evolution and distribution of nonequilibrium electron spin polarization in $n$-type semiconductors within the two-component drift-diffusion model in an applied electric field. Propagation of spin-polarized electrons through a boundary between two semiconductor regions with different doping levels is considered. We assume that inhomogeneous spin polarization is created locally and driven through the boundary by the electric field. We show that an initially created narrow region of spin polarization can be further compressed and amplified near the boundary. Since the boundary involves variation of doping but no real interface between two semiconductor materials, no significant spin polarization loss is expected. The proposed mechanism will be therefore useful in designing new spintronic devices.
Guanylate cyclase activity in frog gastric mucosa

Abstract A rapid and sensitive assay for guanylate cyclase is described. The technique is faster and less costly than comparable assays and is adapted to frog tissues for use in conjunction with gastric secretory studies. [ 3 H]GTP is incubated with 40 m M Tris—HCl (pH 7.4), 1 m M MnCl 2 , 10 m M theophylline, 4 m M cGMP, and 500–1500 μg tissue homogenate for various times at 37°C. A two-stage column chromatography with Dowex 50 (H + ) and neutral alumina was used to isolate newly formed [ 3 H]cGMP for scintillation counting. The overall cGMP recovery was 76%, with a [ 3 H]GTP blank of only 0.0025%. Basal guanylate cyclase activity was determined to be 0.09 ± 0.01 pmole cGMP/min/mg wet tissue wt. The product was verified by both column chromatography and radioimmunoassay. Frog mucosal guanylate cyclase is dependent on Mn 2+ concentration and is approximately 80% detergent labile. Secretagogue effects on cGMP production do not suggest a regulatory role in acid secretion.
Legitimate Distinctiveness and The Entrepreneurial Identity: Influence on Investor Judgments of New Venture Plausibility

We theorize about how the entrepreneurial identity, which we define as the constellation of claims around the founder, new venture, and market opportunity as to “who we are” and “what we do,” serves as a touchstone for investor judgments about new venture plausibility. We propose that entrepreneurial identities are judged favorably when they are legitimately distinctive, and that such judgments are influenced by market context and are mediated by identity narratives that provide institutional primes and equivocal cues in investor sensemaking.
Structural investigation of the arabinoxyloglucan from Nicotiana tabacum

Abstract The structure of tobacco arabinoxyloglucan has been further studied by methylation analysis, by 1 H-, and 13 C-n.m.r., and by fd. mass spectrometry, after complete digestion by cellulase. The results showed the polysaccharide molecule to be composed of two parts; a hexasaccharide component (AraXyl 2 Glc 3 , 1 ) and an unsubstituted (1→4)-β- d -glucan region (4- O -linked glucosyl residues) in the molar ratio of ∼ 1:2. Some heterogeneities of this structure in the arabinofuranosyl sub-group were also found.
Blood levels and urinary excretion in normal subjects after ingestion of tetracycline analogues.

ConclusionsBlood levels after ingestion of a single dose of 1 g of tetracycline are some-what higher and better sustained than those resulting from a similar dose of either oxytetracycline Terramycin) or chlortetracycline Aureomycin). High concentrations appear rapidly in the urine after ingestion of each of these 3 analogs and persist over a period of 48 hours. After that, appreciable concentrations of these antibiotics continue to be excreted for more than a week after a single oral dose of 1.0 g Untoward gastrointestinal symptoms, particularly diarrhea, were frequent after a single oral dose for 1.0 g of oxytetracycline, they were observed, but less frequently after chlorteracycline, and did not occur after the same dose of tetracycline
Differential scanning calorimetry and small angle x-ray diffraction study of the interaction of (R)-PAF, (R)-ET-18-OMe and (R)-Lyso-PAF with model membranes

Abstract (R)-PAF, (R)-ET-18-OMe and (R)-Lyso-PAF are ether phospholipid analogs exhibiting different biological activities. All three molecules are highly lipophilic and interact with cell membranes. The manner in which their interactions occur is relevant to their biological activities and may provide information on their mechanism(s) of action at the molecular level. We have studied the interactions of (R)-PAF, (R)-ET-18-OMe and (R)-Lyso-PAF with model membranes using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). A concentration-dependence study with DSC shows that all three analogs induce similar changes in the thermotropic behavior of model membranes. All produce a slight decrease in the main phase transition temperature of DPPC bilayers (ΔT c = 0.3 to 1.4 °C) but have a more substantial effect on the pretransition (ΔT c = 0.8 to 4.5 °C). All three disorder phosphatidylcholine (PC) membranes but impart order to PC/cholesterol membranes. We have used small angle x-ray diffraction experiments to supplement the DSC evidence on the topography of the ether lipid analogs in the bilayers. All three appear to insert themselves in the bilayer with their long chain parallel with the membrane bilayer chains.
Twenty‐first century game studies in the academy: libraries and an emerging discipline

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore and emphasize the impact of academic computer game studies programs on library services and collections.Design/methodology/approach – A review of the literature related to the relationship between gamers, game studies, and libraries, precedes discussion of the background of academic computer game studies programs. The potential challenges and opportunities concerning collection development, information literacy instruction, and reference within academic libraries are addressed along with highlights of emerging best practices.Findings – The paper provides analysis of game studies as an emerging academic discipline and of the scholarly communication within this field. It also highlights emerging practices within academic librarians serving students and faculty in this field.Research limitations/implications – Because game studies is a new discipline, best practices to meet users' needs are just beginning to be established for academic libraries. Further rese...
Deep sequencing analysis of mutations resulting from the incorporation of dNTP analogs

Next-generation DNA sequencing technology was used to score >100 000 mutations resulting from exposure of a nucleic acid template to a mutagenic dNTP analog during a single pass of a DNA polymerase. An RNA template of known secondary structure was reverse transcribed in the presence of 8-oxo-dGTP, dPTP or both, followed by forward transcription in the presence of standard NTPs. Each mutagen, whether used alone or in combination, resulted in a highly characteristic mutation profile. Mutations were generated at a mean frequency of 1–2% per eligible nucleotide position, but there was substantial variation in the frequency of mutation at different positions, with a SD close to the mean. This variation was partly due to the identity of the immediately surrounding nucleotides and was not significantly influenced by the secondary structure of the RNA template. Most of the variation appears to result from idiosyncratic features that derive from local sequence context, demonstrating how different genetic sequences have different chemical phenotypes.
Pulmonary Artery Obstruction due to Malignant Fibrous Histiocytoma

Obstruction of the pulmonary artery can be due to a variety of conditions, including chronic thromboembolic disease, neoplasia, and fibrosing mediastinitis. Differentiation can be difficult. We report a case of malignant fibrous histiocytoma causing intravascular obstruction and include a review of the literature.
Terrorism & Game Theory

This keynote paper examines how game-theoretic analyses of terrorism have provided some policy insights that do not follow from nonstrategic analyses. Some new game-theoretic applications are indicated that concern terrorist targeting of businesses, officials, and the general public, where targets can work at cross-purposes as they attempt to deflect the attack. Other novel applications involve government choice among alternative antiterrorism policies, and government concessionary policy when terrorists are either hardliners or moderates in their viewpoint. Directions for future research are also indicated.
Associations among Family Structure, Demographics, and Adolescent Perceived Life Satisfaction.

Relationships between perceived life satisfaction and family structure were examined among 5,021 public high school adolescents using the self-report CDC Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS). Adjusted multiple logistic regression analyses and multivariate models (via SUDAAN) constructed separately, revealed significant race by gender effects. Living with other relatives, non-relatives, or guardians was significantly related (p < .01) to reported life dissatisfaction for all race and gender groups, except black males. However, white females and males living with both parents were significantly less likely (p < .001) to report dissatisfaction with life. Black females living with their mothers only were also significantly less likely (p < .001) to report dissatisfaction with life while black males living with their fathers only and white females living with their mother and another adult/adults were significantly more likely (p < .01) to report dissatisfaction with life. Differing family structures appear to exert disparate effects for life satisfaction on adolescents as a function of race and/or gender. Thus, a particular health promotion intervention may not benefit all adolescents. Intervention efforts must be tailored to adolescents’ specific race and gender characteristics.
Evaluation of convergence behavior of metamodeling techniques for bridging scales in multi-scale multimaterial simulation

The effectiveness of several metamodeling techniques, viz. the Polynomial Stochastic Collocation method, Adaptive Stochastic Collocation method, a Radial Basis Function Neural Network, a Kriging Method and a Dynamic Kriging Method is evaluated. This is done with the express purpose of using metamodels to bridge scales between micro- and macro-scale models in a multi-scale multimaterial simulation. The rate of convergence of the error when used to reconstruct hypersurfaces of known functions is studied. For sufficiently large number of training points, Stochastic Collocation methods generally converge faster than the other metamodeling techniques, while the DKG method converges faster when the number of input points is less than 100 in a two-dimensional parameter space. Because the input points correspond to computationally expensive micro/meso-scale computations, the DKG is favored for bridging scales in a multi-scale solver.
Portable pupillography of the swinging flashlight test to detect afferent pupillary defects

Abstract Objective To investigate the ability of a portable, personal computer-driven, pupillometer to record the pupillary response curve during the swinging flashlight test. Also, to determine whether these response curves can be used to identify and quantify relative asymmetry in the pupillary light reflex between eyes in healthy volunteers with simulated afferent pupil defects (APDs) and patients with optic neuropathies. Design Comparative, observational case series and instrument validation. Participants Healthy volunteers with no known ocular disease and patients (n = 20) with various optic neuropathies noted to have relative APDs on examination. Methods Pupillary response curves of the right eye were recorded with a portable, electronic, infrared pupillometer from healthy volunteers (with and without simulated APDs) and patients with APDs while the light stimulus alternated between eyes, simulating the swinging flashlight test. Simulated APDs in healthy volunteers were created with increasingly dense neutral density filters in front of the left eye. Main outcome measures Differences in constriction amplitude, latency, and constriction velocity of the pupillary response with right eye stimulation versus left eye stimulation in both groups of subjects. Results A significant correlation between neutral density filter strength and intereye differences was seen for all measurement parameters in volunteers with simulated APDs. Depending on the measurement parameter and stimulus intensity, simulated APDs of 0.6 log units or more could be distinguished from normal responses. Clinically graded true APDs had intereye differences similar to simulated APDs of the same density. Those with real and simulated APDs of 0.9 log units or more could be distinguished from healthy volunteers with 80% sensitivity and 92% specificity. Responses from those with real and simulated small APDs of 0.3 to 0.6 log units could not be distinguished reliably. Conclusions Portable, personal-computer driven, electronic, infrared pupillography can record the swinging flashlight test accurately and identify large afferent pupillary defects. An affordable, portable, reliable device for identifying relative APDs would be useful in the identification and follow-up of patients with neurogenic vision loss.
Parenting adolescent drivers is both a continuation of parenting from earlier periods and an anticipation of a new challenge

Greater parental involvement in the driving process and greater parent-imposed limits on novice adolescent drivers hold promise for reducing driving fatalities. However, relatively little is known about why some parents are more involved in the driving process than others. Driving-specific parenting may be both a continuation of established patterns of parenting and a response to a novel developmental task. Adolescents (n=242, M age 15.4 years, 49% male) who were enrolled in a drivers' education courses and their parents (n=276, 70% mothers) completed questionnaires reporting pre-driving parenting styles and monitoring behaviors; the adolescents' previous driving experiences; perceptions of risks for novice adolescent drivers; attitudes regarding parental involvement; and expected levels of limit-setting and autonomy attainment once adolescents begins driving. Parents' and adolescents' involvement attitudes and expectations for limits on driving and autonomy attainment were linked in multivariate models with established patterns of parenting and perceptions of risk. The discussion emphasizes implications for prevention and intervention efforts to increase parental involvement and limits.
A Chronometric Analysis of Simple Deductive Reasoning

Summary Models of simple deductions with three logical rules, conjunction, disjunction, and implication were proposed, from which patterns of reaction-times in deductive reasoning were constructed. Thirty-five male and female undergraduate Ss were asked to draw inferences from abstract logical rules based on Wason's and Johnson-Laird's selection task. For all rules, it was predicted that trials on which a fallacious inference was invited but refused would show the shortest latencies, while valid inferences involving memory retrieval would require more time, with the longest latencies occurring on inferences requiring memory retrieval and negation of retrieved information. In general, the data supported the predictions. Time for rule encoding was also measured, and it was found that disjunction takes longer to understand than implication or conjunction.
Genetic manipulation of male sterility for the production of hybrid seed

A pollen cDNA library has been constructed from Nicotiana tabacum and twenty pollen specific cDNA clones have been isolated by means of differential screening. The clones fall into ten homology groups on the basis of hybridisation data. Northern analysis was performed using the largest cDNA clone from each group and pollen specific messages were identified ranging between 1.2–4 kb. The predicted amino acid sequence of one cDNA clone, TP10, shows homology to the deduced amino acid sequences of two pollen specific pectate lyase genes identified in tomato while another clone, TP27 shows homology to a pollen specific polygalacturonase-like cDNA isolated from Oenothera organensis. The transcripts corresponding to both these cDNA clones are first detected late in pollen development, and are not detectable in vegetative tissues such as root, leaf, style or fruit. Genomic clones have been isolated from a tobacco genomic library using TP10 and TP27 as probes. The genomic clone for TP10 has been characterised and an open reading frame has been identified which shows 96% homology to the cDNA clone.
Collaborative information seeking (CIS): toward new theories and applications

The nature of the available information and its role in our lives have changed significantly, but the methods and tools that are used to access and share that information in collaboration have remained largely unaltered. Within the GROUP/CSCW community, the area of collaborative information seeking/retrieval/behavior (CIS/CIR/CIB) has drawn a new stream of interest to it in the recent years. This has been possible due to involvement and initiatives of several prominent researchers from various fields, such as IR, HCI, LIS, and CSCW. This workshop is aimed to take these efforts to the next level by focusing on theories and models that are grounded in the literature and existing empirical studies, as well as applications and tools that help us advance the field further. We are interested in bringing together a group of researchers working on various conceptual and technical aspects of collaborative information seeking, search, retrieval, and sensemaking. The workshop will provide an excellent opportunity to share your work-in-progress, seek valuable feedback from your fellow researchers, and start or strengthen collaborative endeavors.
Stagnation region solutions of the full viscous shock-layer equations

T re-entry problem continues to provide motivation for study of low Reynolds number, high Mach number blunt-body flows. This flow regime is one in which the viscous effects influence a significant portion of the total shock-layer thickness, thereby violating the classical boundary-layer approximations and requiring the use of a more comprehensive set of governing equations. The viscous shock-layer equations' represent an intermediate level of approximation between the boundary-layer and Navier-Stokes equations. Although some evidence exists that the viscous shock-layer model will suffice for re-entry-type flow problems,' there has, as yet, not been a critical assessment of the range of validity of these equations. This situation is due to the difficulties involved in solution of these equations. Although the "thin-shock-layer" version of these equations has been solved by numerous authors 5>6 only a few' have addressed the full set of equations, with none conducting an assessment of the range of validity of these equations. This is performed in the present paper through comparison with experimental stagnation point data for spherical nose shapes. Numerical solutions of the viscous shock-layer equations are obtained by combining an implicit finite-difference scheme with a relaxation technique for determining the bow shock shape. The effects of thin layer approximations, wall slip, and shock slip boundary conditions are included in the analysis to establish their relative importance.
Familial Insulin Resistance with Acanthosis Nigricans, Acral Hypertrophy, and Muscle Cramps

RESISTANCE of the target cell to insulin action coexists with the skin lesion acanthosis nigricans in several distinct clinical syndromes.1 The Type A syndrome of insulin resistance, in which insul...
Spectroscopic Evidence for the Formation of a Four-Coordinate Co2+Cobalamin Species upon Binding to the Human ATP:Cobalamin Adenosyltransferase

The human adenosyltransferase hATR converts exogenous cobalamin into coenzyme B12 by transferring the adenosyl group from cosubstrate ATP to a transiently formed Co1+cobalamin (Co1+Cbl) species. A particularly puzzling aspect of hATR function is that the midpoint potential for Co2+Cbl → Co1+Cbl reduction is below that of readily available biological reductants. Our magnetic circular dichroism and electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopic studies reported here reveal that, in the absence of ATP, the interaction between Co2+Cbl and hATR promotes partial conversion of the cofactor to its “base-off” form in which a water molecule occupies the lower axial position. This interaction becomes much stronger in the presence of ATP, leading to the formation of an unprecedented Co2+Cbl species with spectroscopic signatures consistent with an essentially four-coordinate, square-planar Co2+ center. This unusual Co2+Cbl coordination is expected to raise the Co2+/1+ reduction potential well into the physiological range.
A neurosciences-in-psychiatry curriculum project for medical students.

Incorporating new neuroscience findings relevant to psychiatry into the medical school curriculum is challenging, especially at the level of clinical learning. In this pilot project, third-year medical student volunteers in their required 8-week clerkship participated in an e-mail-based experience relating contemporary neuroscience to psychiatry. A faculty preceptor guided participants using one of the participants’ patient work-ups as a platform to explore questions related to the neurosciences. Participants were surveyed for follow up. Eleven of 13 eligible students agreed to participate in the study during one academic year. Data is qualitative, consisting of the responses of the students and the formulations and feedback of the preceptor as the project proceeded. Participants were successful in identifying symptom complexes in the sample history and in exploring their questions in the literature and with one another. The protocol is well-suited to distance learning, is relevant to psychiatric education, and is flexible in its application.
Phylogenetic Analysis of Thermal Acclimation of the Glycolytic Enzymes in the Genus Fundulus

Physiological acclimation that alters enzyme activity can compensate for the effect of temperature on function and may be achieved by altering enzyme concentration. This study uses phylogenetic analyses to investigate the evolutionary history of and to test several hypotheses about acclimation responses among all the glycolytic enzymes. These hypotheses are that (1) acclimation increases enzyme concentration at lower temperatures to compensate for reduced activity; (2) equilibrium enzymes tend to show acclimation responses; and (3) acclimation responses are more common in species whose populations experience either large temporal or geographical temperature variations. Using maximal activities as indices of enzyme concentration, the presence of acclimation responses in all the glycolytic enzymes in the heart ventricle was determined for five species in the teleost genus Fundulus. Three of these species are distributed along the steep thermal cline of the North American Atlantic coast, and thus these species experience both seasonal and geographical variation in temperature. The other two species are found in the Gulf of Mexico and experience seasonal variation similar to the Atlantic species but no geographical variation in temperature. Two Atlantic coast species, Fundulus heteroclitus and Fundulus majalis, have unique derived acclimation responses. No derived acclimation responses occur in the Gulf species. A conserved response in hexokinase was observed within one subgenus comprising both Atlantic and Gulf species. In F. heteroclitus, enolase responded to acclimation, and in F majalis, aldolase, triphosphate isomerase, and lactate dehydrogenase had acclimation responses. These enzymes are equilibrium enzymes, and the concentrations of all of them increase at lower temperatures, which would compensate for the effect of temperature on enzyme activity. The compensatory changes all occur in the Atlantic species and may be a mechanism for species to expand their ranges. These data suggest that physiological acclimation is evolutionarily labile.
An expanded model of community assessment: A case study

A model is presented for assessing social service needs on the local community level. The model expands existing definitions of community needs assessment to include six phases: (a) defining the parameters and constituents, (b) identifying the information needs and common values among these constituencies, (c) integrating and translating research knowledge from the social sciences, (d) developing procedures for gathering specific information for decision making, (e) gathering and organizing community-level information (e.g., secondary data), and (f) presenting information to the constituent groups. This model is designed to improve the quality of social service decisions by promoting the effective use of social science research knowledge in community decision making and promoting consensus and cooperation among local stakeholder groups through a direct focus on values. A case study is presented that illustrates the implementation of the model in an assessment of the need for day care services for young children.
Pupillary size as an index of preference in political candidates.

15 Ss were preselected as to political preference, actively supporting either a liberal or conservative political candidate and the pupils of their right eyes were photographed while viewing slides of these candidates. The white conservative preference group dilated to the slide of George Wallace and constricted to the slides of Lyndon Johnson and Martin Luther King, while the white and Negro liberal political preference groups reacted in the opposite manner; agreement was perfect between pupillary and verbal preferences.
Effectiveness of an Acidulated Phosphate Fluoride-Pumice Prophylactic Paste: A Two-Year Report

The cariostatic potentiality of an acidulated phosphate fluoride-pumice prophylactic paste was tested on children in grades 5 through 7 in a fluoridated community and in a nonfluoridated community. Measurements of effectiveness were made by one examiner without the use of radiographs; a second examiner made the measurements with and without the use of radiographs. The only significant differences (<0.05) were found in the nonfluoridated community.
Tool Used To Assess How Well Community Health Centers Function As Medical Homes May Be Flawed

The patient-centered medical home model holds the potential for reducing disease complications and improving health, and the federal government is now promoting the adoption of the model within federally qualified community health centers. In a group of Los Angeles community health centers, we found that all would have qualified as patient-centered medical homes under a widely used assessment tool developed by the National Committee for Quality Assurance and endorsed by the federal government for the community health center program. However, we also found that there was no significant relationship between how well these centers performed on the assessment and whether they achieved a range of process or outcome measures for diabetes care. These findings suggest that the federal government is promoting medical home redesign that may not be sensitive to, or inclusive of, services that will actually improve diabetes care for low-income patients. Therefore, additional methods are required for measuring and imp...
Prediction of Diffuser Core Flow Fluctuations Caused by Oscillating Turbulent Flow

Theoretical consideration of the time-dependent diffuser core flow, involving two limiting models (highfrequency and low-frequency) for the time-dependent effective core flow area, results in predictions for decay of the first harmonic core velocity and wall pressure amplitudes with streamwise distance. In order to predict these decays, it is necessary to specify only time mean core flow and either time-dependent diffuser inlet or exit conditions. The theoretical models are compared with experiments for diffuser inlet conditions, spanning a tenfold range of dimensionless frequencies. The high-frequency model best predicts the decay of core velocity fluctuations and wall pressure fluctuations in the streamwise direction. A backward calculation scheme, which uses diffuser exit conditions as initial conditions, enables good prediction of the fluctuating wall pressure distributions when the diffuser exit exhausts into the atmosphere. An order-of-magn itude analysis yields a simple expression for decay of the core velocity fluctuations when the dimensionless frequency is approximately unity.
A Robust Algorithm for Fiber-Bundle Atlas Construction

In this paper, we demonstrate an integrated registration and clustering algorithm to compute an atlas of fiber- bundles from a set of multi-subject diffusion weighted MR images. We formulate a maximum likelihood problem which the proposed method solves using a generalized Expectation Maximization (EM) framework. Additionally, the algorithm employs an outlier rejection and denoising strategy to produce sharp probabilistic maps of certain bundles of interest. This map is potentially useful for making diffusion measurements in a common coordinate system to identify pathology related changes or developmental trends.
Improve delay performance of wireless video streaming with active queue management

This paper proposed a packet scheduling algorithm to improve the quality of service (QoS) of video streaming over wireless network. We apply the active queue management (AQM) techniques at the Access Category (AC) queue of 802.11e WLAN EDCA to regulate the queuing delay. When a packet arrives, first the queuing probability is calculated to determine the probability the packet should be assigned to an AC queue. The queuing probability considers both queue length and load factor. Then the packet scheduling algorithm determines how to assign the packets to different AC queues. This design takes into account the queue length, the application requirement and the current network situation. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed scheduling algorithm can improve the performance of video streaming over 802.11e EDCA. It can provide higher PSNR values and lower end-to-end delay compared to the standard 802.11e EDCA.
Depression, realism, and the overconfidence effect : are the sadder wiser when predicting future actions and events ?

Do depressed individuals make more realistic judgments than their nondepressed peers in real world settings? Depressed and nondepressed Ss in 2 studies were asked to make predictions about future actions and outcomes that might occur in their personal academic and social worlds. Both groups of Ss displayed overconfidence, that is, they overestimated the likelihood that their predictions would prove to be accurate. Of key importance, depressed Ss were less accurate in their predictions, and thus more overconfident, than their nondepressed counterparts. These differences arose because depressed Ss (a) were more likely to predict the occurrence of low base-rate events and (b) were less likely to be correct when they made optimistic predictions (i.e., stated that positive events would occur or that aversive outcomes would not). Discussion focuses on implications of these findings for the depressive realism hypothesis.
Scientific approaches to enrichment and stereotypies in zoo animals: what's been done and where should we go next?

The zoo scientific community was among the first to focus attention on captivity-induced stereotypic behaviors, their causes, and methods of eradication. Environmental enrichment has emerged recently as the main husbandry tool for tackling this problem. An increasing number of research publications have attempted to evaluate the effectiveness of enrichment in reducing stereotypic behavior and to develop further concepts to explain how effective enrichment works. A review and meta-analysis of this literature indicates that enrichment is a successful technique for reducing stereotypic behavior in zoo animals. Enrichment was associated with significant reduction in stereotypy performance about 53% of the time. Published enrichment and stereotypy research is lacking for most zoo species, with most studies on large, charismatic, and often endangered species, but it is unclear whether stereotypies are more prevalent in these species. In addition, problems with scientific methods and data presentation, quantitatively detailed in this work, severely limit the conclusions drawn from zoo research. Further understanding of what kinds of enrichment works and what doesn't will require greater attention to experimental design, sample size, statistical analysis, and better descriptions of enrichment properties and the form of stereotypy. We recommend that future studies focus on increasing sample size (e.g., through multi-institutional studies), appropriate repeated measures design (e.g., with multiple baseline and experimental phases), providing full statistical information about the behavioral changes observed (including standard error), and ultimately the development of a predictive science for enrichment, stereotypies, and wellbeing. Zoo Biol 0:1–20, 2005. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Chiron-1: a user interface development system tailored to software environments

User interface development systems for software environments have to cope with the broad, dynamic, and extensible scope of such environments, must support internal and external integration, and should enable various software development strategies. The Chiron-1 system adapts and extends some key ideas from current research in user interface development systems to address the particular demands of such environments. Important Chiron-1 concepts are: separation of concerns, client/server architecture, dynamism, hybrid language interface, and open architecture. The authors discuss the requirements on such user interface development systems, present the Chiron-1 system, describe the concepts it embodies, and report on their experiences with its design. >
"Bound" residues in soils and transfer of soil residues in crops.

Data reported in this contribution are based on research efforts in our laboratory at the University of Wisconsin. References to the original publications of the various research topics are presented and indicate the contributions of B. A. Anderegg, T. W. Fuhremann, J. Katan, T. T. Liang, K. R. Schulz and E. P. Lichtenstein.
Quantum mechanics and the possibility of a Cantorian space-time

In his brief history of time [l], Hawking gave an interesting anthropic argument [2], stating that space-time had to be four dimensional and it is some time ago that Feynman et al. [3] effectively demonstrated the self-similarity and Weierstrass-like properties of the path of an electron. This was done by magnifying iteratively small parts of it (see Fig. 7-l of 01). Although these were two side remarks, coming from such authorities of theoretical physics, one is of course encouraged to quickly note an obvious but important connection to some recently reported results regarding higher dimensional triadic sets and Peano-like dynamics of turbulent systems [4,5]. “Suspending” the classical triadic Cantor set in n-dimensional space through amplification with a certain geometrical probability quotient, it was shown that this leads to the following Hausdorff capacity dimensions (d,(“)):
Method for detection of respiratory cycle-related EEG changes in sleep-disordered breathing.

Study Objectives: In sleep-disordered breathing (SDB), visual or computerized analysis of electroencephalogram (EEG) signals shows that disruption of sleep architecture occurs in association with apneas and hypopneas. We developed a new signal analysis algorithm to investigate whether brief changes in cortical activity can also occur with individual respiratory cycles. Design: Retrospective. Setting: University sleep laboratory. Participants: A 6 year-old boy with SDB. Intervention: Polysomnography before and after clinically indicated adenotonsillectomy. Measurements: For the first 3 hours of nocturnal sleep, a computer algorithm divided nonapneic respiratory cycles into 4 segments and, for each, computed mean EEG powers within delta, theta, alpha, sigma, and beta frequency ranges. Differences between segment-specific EEG powers were tested by analysis of variance. Respiratory cycle-related EEG changes (RCREC) were quantified. Results: Preoperative RCREC were statistically significant in delta (P .01) ranges. One year after the operation, RCREC in all ranges showed statistical significance (P < .01), but delta, theta, and sigma RCREC had decreased, whereas alpha and beta RCREC had increased. Preoperative RCREC also were demonstrated in a sequence of 101 breaths that contained no apneas or hypopneas (P < .0001). Several tested variations in the signal-analysis approach, including analysis of the entire nocturnal polysomnogram, did not meaningfully improve the significance of RCREC. Conclusions: In this child with SDB, the EEG varied with respiratory cycles to a quantifiable extent that changed after adenotonsillectomy. We speculate that RCREC may reflect brief but extremely numerous microarousals.
Nearly degenerate time-resolved faraday rotation in quantum wells: The role of exciton-exciton interactions

Experimental studies of nearly degenerate time-resolved Faraday rotation (TRFR) in GaAs and InGaAs quantum wells show that many body interactions between excitons strongly modify the TRFR response from the electron spin coherence.
A Digital Envelope Combiner for Switching Power Amplifier Linearization

A digital envelope combiner (DEC) technique that employs an open-loop transformer-based combination of a bank of two-level polar switching power amplifiers to generate wide-bandwidth modulated radio frequency signals with simultaneously high efficiency and good linearity is presented. The application of the DEC is illustrated by the design and simulation-based verification of a 2.4-GHz 0.13-?m complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor power amplifier that achieves EVM < -25 dBc, ACPR < -40 dBc, and an average drain efficiency of 37% while generating a 16.25-MHz-bandwidth 8.9-dB-peak-to-average signal power ratio (PAR) 64-state quadrature amplitude modulation signal.
Diagnosing the interconnect of bus-connected multi-RAM systems under restricted and general fault models

This paper presents new approaches for detection and diagnosis (with no confounding or aliasing) of interconnect faults (short, open and stuck-at) in a system consisting of multiple RAM chips connected through busses. These systems (referred to as a bus-connected multi RAM systems, or BCMRS) are characterized by multiple types of lines (bus and driver lines), disjoint busses (address and data) as well as by the presence of memories (whose number is given by D). Detection and maximal diagnosis are considered under a restricted fault model (short faults only) as well as a general fault model (all types of faults).