cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Monitoring seasonal transpiration drying of loblolly and slash pine with time domain reflectometry

The moisture content (MC) of felled trees has a direct impact on transportation costs and efficiency. Transpirational (or field) drying of fallen trees, to reduce MC and subsequently improve the economics of transport can be employed; however, an understanding of seasonal drying rates is required. Typically load cells have been used to track moisture changes in bundles of logs but where access is limited this approach is impractical. Time-domain reflectometry (TDR) provides an alternative approach and was used to monitor seasonal changes in transpirational drying rates for felled loblolly and slash pine at a Lower Coastal Plain site in Florida and loblolly pine at a Piedmont site in Georgia on a weekly basis for approximately one year. Different transpirational drying rates and minimum MC’s were observed by season. Drying rates observed during summer, fall and spring, at both test locations, indicate that after three weeks an equilibrium (or minimum) MC is achieved. Winter drying is slower, and up to 5 weeks in the field (or even longer) may be required. Post equilibrium felled log moisture content continued to vary during most seasons with rainfall events the most probable cause. TDR provides a viable approach for monitoring transpirational drying and subsequent MC changes in felled trees.
Familial Hypobetalipoproteinemia: An Underrecognized Cause of Lean NASH.

Familial hypobetalipoproteinemia (FHBL) is an autosomal codominant genetic disorder characterized by over 60 different mutations in the APOB gene, consequently leading to translation of truncated apolipoprotein B proteins apoB-100 and apoB-48 [1]. These mutations attenuate the liver's ability to export lipoproteins, thereby resulting in triglyceride accumulation [1]. As a result, FHBL is associated with the development of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) as well as increased risk of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), hepatic cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC)[1].
Impacts of an invasive species (Anolis sagrei) on social and spatial behaviours of a native congener (Anolis carolinensis)

Interspecific aggression has important fitness consequences across the animal kingdom and can be especially important during species invasions, where asymmetric interactions between native and invasive species can lead to native species declines. We investigated the immediate behavioural consequences of interspecific interactions for a native species, the green anole lizard, Anolis carolinensis, after an invasion by a closely related invasive species, the Cuban brown anole, Anolis sagrei. We housed captive populations of green anoles (6 males, 6 females) in large outdoor enclosures and recorded their display behaviours (displays/min), activity levels (movements/min) and habitat use (2D and 3D home range size, perch height) for 10 days. We then introduced brown anoles and recorded the green anoles' behaviours for another 10 days, seeking differences between pre- and post-invasion behaviours. We recorded behavioural interactions between individuals (i.e. headbob and dewlap displays, chases, mating attempts, fights and copulations) throughout the study. To serve as a density control, we duplicated the experiment in a second enclosure using green anoles as ‘invaders’. We performed the experiment eight times with two densities of invaders: high (4 males, 4 females) and low (2 males, 2 females). We found that green anoles have smaller two-dimensional and three-dimensional home ranges and higher average perch heights after invasions but that these changes resulted from increased population densities rather than aggression from brown anole invaders. Furthermore, although green and brown anoles did display to each other, both species preferentially interacted with conspecifics and escalated aggressive behaviours between the two species (e.g. lock-jawed fights) rarely occurred. Taken together, these findings indicate that high brown anole population densities, rather than direct interference competition, could be driving green anole displacement across the brown anole's invasive range.
Generatieve grammatica en psycholinguïstiek I: Inleiding in de generatieve grammatica

De term „psycholinguistiek" wordt pas sinds rond 1950 regelmatig gebruikt om een bepaald wetenschappelijk probleemgebied aan te duiden. De eerste poging om onder dit hoofd tot een expliciete omschrijving te komen van de problemen die psychologen en linguisten gemeen hebben is vervat in een overzicht door OSGOOD en SEBEOK, dat in 1954 verscheen. Sindsdien is er een omvangrijke literatuur ontstaan, waarin het woord „psycholinguistiek" min of meer ter aanduiding van een programma wordt gebezigd. Een verhelderend overzicht over dit alles is samengesteld door DIEBOLD (1965). Niet lang na haar geboorte echter, werd de psycholinguistiek opgeschrikt door een stormachtige ontwikkeling in een van de ouders, de linguistiek. In 1957 publiceerde NOAM CHOMSKY zijn Syntactic Structures, dat het ontstaan markeert van wat sindsdien de generatieve of transformationele grammatica heet. Chomsky's theorie groeide uit tot een van de belangrijkste bewegingen in de Amerikaanse taalwetenschap, en liet niet na een grote invloed uit te oefenen op het psycholinguistische bedrijf. Dit laatste is vooral aan George Miller te danken die als eerste de psychologische betekenis van deze nieuwe stroming in de linguistiek inzag, (zie MILLER & CHOMSKY, 1963). Dit tweetal artikelen beoogt een overzicht te geven over de transformationele grammatica en de psychologische research die onder invloed ervan tot stand is gekomen. Dit eerste artikel is een summiere uiteenzetting van de beginselen van de generatieve linguistiek. Vertrouwdheid met het begrippenapparaat van deze wetenschap is namelijk vereist om de psycholinguistische research, zoals in het tweede artikel behandeld, op haar waarde te schatten. Alternatieve inleidingen kan men vinden in de oorspronkelijke literatuur (bijv. CHOMSKY, 1965; BACH, 1964; LEES,
Ellipsoidally Referenced Surveys: Issues and Solutions

One of the most significant issues in hydrography today is the use of the ellipsoid as a vertical reference for surveying measurements. High-accuracy GPS is used to vertically position hydrographic data collection platforms, relating bathymetric observations directly to the ellipsoid. Models are used to translate those observations to another datum. The use of high-accuracy vertical GPS and translation models to replace traditional tidal correctors is relatively new to the hydrographic community and, as such, requires some discussion. Even though individual components of the process are well understood in their particular field, it is their amalgamation and application to hydrography that requires explanation, clarification and evaluation.Many hydrographic organizations around the world are using Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) derived heights in their data collection and processing stream. The International Federation of Surveyors (FIG) has recognized the importance of these new developments and has established a new working group under Commission 4, tasked to developing best practices for Ellipsoidally Referenced Surveys (ERS). Over twenty groups from academia, industry and government who are engaged in some form of ERS have provided the working group with a summary of their practices and experiences. This paper outlines the issues related to ERS and summarizes the solutions being employed.
Quantification of cardiolipin molecular species in Escherichia coli lipid extracts using liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

RATIONALE Cardiolipin (CL), a glycerophospholipid containing four acyl chains, is found in most organisms including Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli. While CL composes only a fraction of the total glycerophospholipids, the four acyl chains lead to a large number of possible molecular species as defined by the total number of carbons and unsaturations in the acyl chains. Understanding the molecular composition of CL, and how it changes under different growth conditions, will aid in understanding the complex role of CL in E. coli. METHODS Normal-phase liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization mass spectrometry was used to quantify the CL molecular species (as defined by the total number of carbons:unsaturations in the acyl chains) in lipid extracts prepared from E. coli grown at 15 °C, 30 °C, 37 °C and 42 °C. RESULTS Fifty-six different CL species were identified as [M–2H]2– ions in E. coli lipid extracts ranging from 60:0 to 72:4. CL species with an increased total number of unsaturations were more abundant in lipid extracts prepared from cells grown at 15 °C as compared to higher temperatures. CONCLUSIONS This work characterizes the CL composition of E. coli cells grown at various temperatures. By quantifying CL species at a molecular level we have illuminated the molecular complexity of the CL in this relatively simple model organism. This data will be useful for understanding CL function in E. coli and other organisms. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Expression of the Pseudomonas aeruginosa toxA positive regulatory gene (regA) in Escherichia coli.

Abstract The regA gene is a positive regulatory gene that regulates toxin A production in Pseudomonas aeruginosa at the transcriptional level. The product of the regA gene was examined in Escherichia coli with the expression vector pT7-7. A 1.3-kilobase AvaI-HindIII fragment containing the regA gene was cloned into the pT7-7 vector. A recombinant plasmid (pAH1) encoded a 29-kilodalton protein. The molecular weight of this protein correlated closely with the predicted molecular weight of the RegA protein. Production of the RegA protein in E. coli required both an E. coli promoter and an E. coli ribosome-binding site. Two in-frame deletion derivatives in which certain regions of the regA gene were expressed from the T7 promoter encoded 26- and 18-kilodalton fusion proteins, respectively. The RegA protein and the two fusion proteins were localized to the inner membrane of E. coli. Neither RegA protein nor the two fusion proteins showed DNA-binding activity to the 410-base-pair fragment containing the upstream region of toxA when synthesized in E. coli.
Protecting private web content from embedded scripts

Many web pages display personal information provided by users. The goal of this work is to protect that content from untrusted scripts that are embedded in host pages. We present a browser modification that provides fine-grained control over what parts of a document are visible to different scripts, and executes untrusted scripts in isolated environments where private information is not accessible. To ease deployment, we present a method for automatically inferring what nodes in a web page contain private content. This paper describes how we modify the Chromium browser to enforce newly defined security policies, presents our automatic policy generation method, and reports on experiments inferring and enforcing privacy policies for a variety of web applications.
Consumer response: the paradoxes of food and health.

The papers in this session “Food Culture and Consumer Response” investigate the complex and variable factors that influence people’s beliefs and behaviors when it comes to eating a healthy diet. While scientific investigation and innovation can teach us how foods affect our bodily functions and provide new mechanisms for delivering the nutrients we need, we turn to the social sciences and the humanities when we want to understand what consumers mean when they talk about wanting to eat right, why people’s eating habits often don’t reflect scientific ideals, or how food consumers view new technologies. Together these papers show how important people’s values, beliefs, aspirations, and social context are to their dietary health. They compel us to acknowledge that the dietary challenges of the 21st century cannot be met using the tools of scientific investigation or social and cultural analysis alone and to pursue, therefore, just the kind of crossdisciplinary conversation that is exemplified by this session. I teach courses that explore the cultural aspects of eating habits, and I frequently ask my students why they try to eat a healthy diet. Their answers typically include the following reasons: to live longer and avoid disease; to be sexy, attractive, or thin; to perform better in school, at work, or in sports; to show that they are educated, moral, or disciplined. Such responses clearly indicate that, for these students as it is for so many people, dietary health is a means to achieving goals that have nothing to do with the biomedical health of the body. These responses show us that ideas about health express fundamental cultural values and complex individual aspirations. And they show us, therefore, why it is that questions about dietary health inevitably bring us to the intersection between science and culture. Each of these papers explores an aspect of this intersection. Marika Lyly shows how people’s perceptions of whole grain and refined grain products are shaped by culture and vary by national context. Klaus Grunert makes it clear that while consumers do desire healthiness in their foods, that desire is shaped by other values and beliefs, such as the preference for naturalness. Using the case of artificial sweeteners as an example, Carolyn De La Pena shows that “health” can have many different meanings at the same time. Finally, Lotte Holme explores linkages between obesity and socioeconomic status that make it clear science alone cannot solve our dietary problems. Taken together, these investigations reveal striking tensions in consumer responses to healthy foods. Sociologists of eating have long recognized that people have a fundamentally ambivalent relationship with food, and that this ambivalence produces anxiety. At the most basic level humans are anxious about food because we are omnivores, torn between neophilia (attraction to novelty) and neophobia (fear of the new). 1 Like other omnivores, humans have to constantly balance curiosity and caution as we make choices about what to eat. But sociologists
A potential mitochondrial survival mechanism in human metastatic melanoma cells

Proc Amer Assoc Cancer Res, Volume 47, 2006 4697 Mitochondria are devoted to producing 90% of the cell’s energy by the process of oxidative phosphorylation, a process associated with reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. Unsurprisingly, since ROS have been shown to cause DNA damage, studies have shown that mitochondrial DNA mutations are evident in many human cancers, are more extensive and sustained longer than nuclear DNA mutations, and subsequently initiate a cascade of events leading to impaired ROS production, metabolism, and homeostasis. Previously, we demonstrated that melanoma cells exhibited higher intracellular superoxide anion levels, suggesting that these cells are under constant oxidative stress. Utilizing JC-1 probe and flow cytometry as a qualitative measure of mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), we found that melanoma cells respire at a much lower inner membrane potential than melanocytes. In addition, carbonyl cyanide p-trifluoro-methoxy phenylhydrazone (FCCP), a known uncoupler of oxidative phosphorylation, differentially affected MMP in melanocytes and melanoma cells. We found that melanoma cells partially overcame the drop in MMP produced by FCCP through alteration of mitochondrial complex V (oligomycin-sensitive). The probes 6-carboxy-2’7’-dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate (DCF) and dihydro-ethidium (HE) showed that treatment with FCCP produced a comparable increase in intracellular hydrogen peroxide and superoxide anion in melanocytes and melanoma cells. The effects of metal chelators: o-phenanthroline (OP), pyrolidinedithio-carbamate (PDTC) and deferoxamine (DEF) on MMP were studied. In human melanoma cells the metal chelators produced significant decreases in MMP as well as a reduction in cell viability, while normal melanocytes were more resistant to chelator OP and DEF-induced MMP changes. More detailed studies demonstrated that the toxic effects of chelators were preceded by cytosolic cytochrome c accumulation and an increase in cellular Bax/Bcl-2 ratio. Notably, the decrease in MMP was reversed by the addition of equi-molar ferrous and ferric ions to cells exposed to OP and DEF, respectively. Overall, our data suggests that melanoma cells possess an alternative survival mechanism at the mitochondrial level in the face of uncoupling of oxidative phosphorylation, and implicates the mitochondria as a potential target for therapeutic intervention in human melanoma.
Productivity and Sustainable Harvest of Edible Forest Mushrooms

Summary The commercial harvest of wild edible forest mushrooms has increased dramatically in the Pacific Northwest United States during the last decade, creating public and managerial concerns about potential over-harvesting. These concerns have prompted Federal land m anagement agencies and research organizations to undertake a variety of research projects addressing the ecological impacts and long-term sustainability of widespread harvesting. This article lists and briefly describes 25 ongoing research projects investigating the three most important forest mushroom genera of commerce; matsutake, morels, and chanterelles. We finish by describing future Federal directions in regional research and monitoring designed to ensure sustainable harvests through long-term cooperative monitoring involving multiple stakeholders, especially interested publics.
The molecular cloning and characterization of murine ferritin heavy chain, a tumor necrosis factor-inducible gene.

Ferritin is a ubiquitous and highly conserved protein which plays a major role in iron homeostasis. We have identified and sequenced a full-length cDNA for murine ferritin heavy chain. The isolated cDNA is 819 nucleotides in length. It includes 546 nucleotides which encode a protein of 182 amino acids, a 5′ noncoding sequence of 120 nucleotides, and a 3′-noncoding region of 153 nucleotides. The sequence displays a high degree of homology to human ferritin H, and includes a portion of the iron-responsive element conserved in chick, frog, and human ferritin. Tumor necrosis factor (TNF), a cytokine which mediates elements of the stress response, induces expression of ferritin H mRNA. Both mouse TA1 adipocytes and human muscle cells increase expression of ferritin H mRNA 4-6-fold after 48 h exposure to TNF. This increase occurs both prior and subsequent to differentiation of adipocytes and muscle cells, and is accompanied by an increase in the synthesis of the ferritin H subunit. These findings suggest a novel role for TNF in iron metabolism.
Phase noise reduction techniques of radar's TWTA

The reduction of phase noise of TWTAs in radar transmitters is imperative because strongly reflected clutter can mask the signal of a moving target. This paper provides better understanding of the phase noise behavior of a TWTA and proposes two new methods to substantially suppress this noise. Multi-PSK digital communication and modern radar transmitters have stringent requirements on their power amplifier amplitude and phase stability response. The TWTA in radar systems is operating at fully saturated power, causing the phase noise to be the dominant noise component. We propose two novel methods that can be complementary to further reduce the overall phase noise. These methods are superior to the present complicated noise filtering devices because of their simple implementation, lightness and inexpensiveness.
Rapid Functional Decline of Activated and Memory Graft-versus-Host–Reactive T Cells Encountering Host Antigens in the Absence of Inflammation

Inflammation in the priming host environment has critical effects on the graft-versus-host (GVH) responses mediated by naive donor T cells. However, it is unclear how a quiescent or inflammatory environment impacts the activity of GVH-reactive primed T and memory cells. We show in this article that GVH-reactive primed donor T cells generated in irradiated recipients had diminished ability compared with naive T cells to increase donor chimerism when transferred to quiescent mixed allogeneic chimeras. GVH-reactive primed T cells showed marked loss of cytotoxic function and activation, and delayed but not decreased proliferation or accumulation in lymphoid tissues when transferred to quiescent mixed chimeras compared with freshly irradiated secondary recipients. Primed CD4 and CD8 T cells provided mutual help to sustain these functions in both subsets. CD8 help for CD4 cells was largely IFN-γ dependent. TLR stimulation after transfer of GVH-reactive primed T cells to mixed chimeras restored their cytotoxic effector function and permitted the generation of more effective T cell memory in association with reduced PD-1 expression on CD4 memory cells. Our data indicate that an inflammatory host environment is required for the maintenance of GVH-reactive primed T cell functions and the generation of memory T cells that can rapidly acquire effector functions. These findings have important implications for graft-versus-host disease and T cell-mediated immunotherapies.
Professional Development Training for Engineering Managers

Abstract:The purpose of this article is to assist engineering managers in developing a better understanding of how to meet the number of professional development hours (PDHs) required by state engineering licensing boards in order to become a registered professional engineer. A study was conducted to identify the total number of PDH units for all engineers across the United States and individual state requirements. The article discusses the various methods that can be used by engineering managers to satisfy PDH units toward state engineering registration. State laws regulating professional development as well as particular engineering management focus areas are identified in this article.
Exposure to community violence is associated with asthma hospitalizations and emergency department visits.

Background Exposure to community violence (ECV) has been associated with asthma morbidity of children living in inner-city neighborhoods. Objective To examine with prospective longitudinal data whether ECV is independently associated with asthma-related health outcomes in adults. Methods Adults with moderate-severe asthma, recruited from clinics serving inner-city neighborhoods, completed questionnaires covering sociodemographics, asthma severity, and ECV and were followed for 26 weeks. Longitudinal models were used to assess unadjusted and adjusted associations of subsequent asthma outcomes (emergency department [ED] visits, hospitalizations, FEV 1 , quality of life). Results A total of 397 adults, 47 ± 14 years old, 73% women, 70% African American, 7% Latino, mean FEV 1 66% ± 19%, 133 with hospitalizations and 222 with ED visits for asthma in the year before entry, were evaluated. Ninety-one reported ECV. Controlling for age, sex, race/ethnicity, and household income, those exposed to violence had 2.27 (95% CI, 1.32-3.90) times more asthma-related ED visits per month and 2.49 (95% CI, 1.11-5.60) times more asthma-related hospitalizations per month over the 26-week study period compared with those unexposed. Violence-exposed participants also had 1.71 (95% CI, 1.14-2.56) times more overall ED visits per month and 1.72 (95% CI, 0.95-3.11) times more overall hospitalizations per month from any cause. Asthma-related quality of life was lower in the violence-exposed participants (−0.40; 95% CI, −0.77 to −0.025; P = .04). Effect modification by depressive symptoms was only statistically significant for the ECV association with overall ED visits and quality-of-life outcomes ( P Conclusion In adults, ECV is associated with increased asthma hospitalizations and emergency care for asthma or any condition and with asthma-related quality of life.
Pressor response to posterior hypothalamic administration of carbachol is mediated by muscarinic M3 receptor.

Unilateral microinjection of the acetylcholine receptor agonist carbachol into the posterior hypothalamic nucleus evokes a pressor response in the conscious, freely moving rat. To further localize this response 3.3 or 5.5 nmol of carbachol was microinjected in a volume of 50 nl directly into and outside the region of the posterior hypothalamic nucleus. Administration of carbachol outside the posterior hypothalamic nucleus failed to evoke a change in blood pressure indicating that the carbachol-induced pressor response is mediated from the posterior hypothalamic nucleus. Since posterior hypothalamic administration of atropine completely blocks the carbachol-induced increase in blood pressure and atropine blocks the three pharmacologically identified muscarinic receptor subtypes, methylatropine and progressively more selective muscarinic antagonists were administered into the posterior hypothalamic nucleus prior to 5.5 nmol of carbachol. Microinjection of the M1/M2/M3 muscarinic antagonist methylatropine (0.19–12.5 nmol), the M1/M3 antagonist 4-DAMP (4-diphenylacetoxy-N-Methylpiperidine; 0.9–3.6 nmol), the M1 antagonist pirenzpine (9.5–38 nmol), the M2 antagonist methoctramine (5.5–44 nmol), or the M3 antagonist p-F-HHSiD (para-fluoro-hexahydro-sila-difenidol; 2.1–8.3 nmol) inhibited the peak increase in mean arterial pressure and the area under the curve of the change in mean arterial pressure versus time plot in a dose-dependent manner. Log ID50s calculated for the antagonists from the dose-response curves were found to correlate significantly with the log Kis of the antagonists for the muscarinic M3 receptor subtype. These results demonstrate that the increase in mean arterial pressure evoked by microinjection of carbachol into the posterior hypothalamic nucleus is mediated by the muscarinic M3 receptor.
EflFect of Hyperthyroidism on Insulin and Glucose Dynamics in Rabbits

Studies with New Zealand rabbits were done to determine the effect of hyperthyroidism on glucose utilization and insulin secretion. Tolerance tests were performed while the animals were euthyroid, and then repeated after the animals had been rendered hyperthyroid by daily sc sodium thyroxine administration (100 μg/kg/day). After the induction of hyperthyroidism, there was an increase in intravenous glucose disposal rate constant (KG) after glucose administration with no alteration in glucose—stimulated plasma insulin levels. Tissue sensitivity to insulin, and insulin half—life, were evaluated by iv injection of 0.15 U insulin per kg body wt. Hyperthyroidism produced an increase in the glucose disposal rate constant (KI) after insulin administration and a significant lowering of the glucose nadir indicating enhanced insulin sensitivity. A decreased insulin half-life was also noted during the hyperthyroid state (3.4 ± 0.3 min) as compared to the control state (5.6 ± 0.3 min). In vitro pancreas incubation st...
Live (vaccines) from New York.

Over 40 000 hematopoietic cell transplantations (HCT) are performed worldwide each year, increasing the number of transplant survivors returning to school, the work place and overseas travel. Outbreaks of measles and mumps in immunocompetent individuals and the increased morbidity associated with primary varicella and shingles in older individuals highlight the need for effective vaccination of these vulnerable patients. In current post-HCT vaccination guidelines, only the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine (MMR) and the live-attenuated varicella vaccine (LAVV) designed to prevent primary varicella in varicella zoster seronegative individuals are permissible post HCT and only in select patient groups. All other vaccines, including the shingles vaccines, are contraindicated post HCT. Current data, primarily in pediatric HCT recipients, demonstrate a 60–70% response following a single MMR or LAVV. A two-dose schedule increases the seroconversion rate following these vaccines. This review will highlight published studies on the immunogenicity of MMR and the LAVV, areas in which data on these vaccines are lacking, the criteria for their use in patients transplanted at our center and potential studies to answer questions posed by the growing number of transplant survivors and their physicians on how to safely administer live-attenuated viral vaccines.
Correspondence between AXAF TMA X-ray performance and models based upon mechanical and visible light measurements

The AXAF Technology Mirror Assembly (TMA) was characterized prior to X-ray testing by properties measured mechanically or with visible light; these include alignment offsets, roundness and global-axial-slope errors, axial-figure errors with characteristic lengths greater than about five mm, and surface roughness with scale lengths between about 0.005 and 0.5 mm. The X-ray data of Schwartz et al. (1985) are compared with predictions based upon the mechanical and visible light measurements.
Reversal of hyperglycemia and diabetic nephropathy: Effect of reinstitution of good metabolic control on oxidative stress in the kidney of diabetic rats

Studies have shown that good metabolic control (GC) is beneficial in slowing the progression of nephropathy in diabetes, and if the duration of poor metabolic control (PC) is prolonged before reinstitution of GC, nephropathy is not easily reversed. This study is to identify the biochemical abnormalities that could contribute to the resistance of nephropathy to reverse after establishment of GC in rats. The effect of reinstitution of GC and its duration is evaluated on oxidative stress and nitric oxide (NO) levels in the renal cortex and urine of diabetic rats. The rats were maintained in GC (5% glycated hemoglobin, GHb) soon after or 6 months after induction of hyperglycemia, and were sacrificed 13 months after induction of diabetes. For rats in which GC was initiated soon after induction of diabetes, oxidative stress [as measured by the levels of lipid peroxides (LPOs), 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG), and reduced glutathione (GSH)] and NO in urine and renal cortex were not different from that observed in normal control rats, but when reinstitution of GC was delayed for 6 months after induction of diabetes, oxidative stress and NO remain elevated in both urine and renal cortex. This suggests that hyperglycemia-induced oxidative stress and NO can be prevented if GC is initiated very early, but are not easily reversed if PC is maintained for longer durations. Understanding the mechanisms responsible for this phenomenon could reveal novel means to reverse nephropathy in diabetic patients.
Correlates of Dual-Method Contraceptive Use: An Analysis of the National Survey of Family Growth (2006–2008)

Objective. To analyze a nationally representative sample of women for correlates of dual-contraceptive-method use. Materials and Methods. We conducted an analysis of the National Survey of Family Growth, 2006–2008, a cross-sectional survey of reproductive-aged women in the United States. Results. Dual method use was reported by 7.3% of the 5,178 women in the sample. Correlates of higher rates of dual-contraceptive-method use included age younger than 36 years and nonmarried marital status. Lower rates of dual method use were observed for women with less than a high-school education and women without consistent health insurance in the past year. Compared to women using oral contraceptives, use of the contraceptive injection or long-acting reversible contraception was associated with lower dual-method use. Conclusions. The overall rate of dual-method use in the USA is low. Future interventions to promote dual method use should target high-risk groups with modifiable risk factors.
Thermal equilibrium in turbulent diffusion flames

Abstract Temperatures describing the Boltzmann distribution over excited rotation and vibrations levels of OH and over-excited levels of atomic iron, as well as the ionization temperature of alkaline earth metals have been measured in turbulent diffusion flames of analytical interest. Thermal equilibrium exists in the H 2 -O 2 and in the C 2 H 2 -O 2 flame. In the H 2 -air and in the H 2 -Ar-entrained air flame an increase is observed for the measured temperature with the excitation energy of the upper level of the transition, and this indicates a suprathermal excitation of energy levels over 25 000 cm -1 .
Biology of Calliopsis pugionis (Hymenoptera: Andrenidae): Nesting, Foraging, and Investment Sex Ratio

Calliopsis pugionis Cockerell usually nests in dense aggregations, with up to 1,650 nests per m2, in areas of bare soil. A female provisions one cell each day with pollen from composites, here Encelia and Hemizonia , usually in three or four pollen foraging trips, followed by a trip in which she collects nectar and pollen for her own consumption. Matings take place both on flowers and at nest sites. Males compose 70.8% of the larvae provisioned. Investment sex ratio (M/F) ranges from 1.07 to 2.43 when estimated from several measures of cost, including adult dry weight, prepupal wet weight, meconia weight, pollen trip foraging time, total foraging time, and number of days. The best estimate of investment sex ratio is probably about 2. Quantitative predictions of effect on sex ratio of differential parasitism of males and females by a cleptoparasitic bee, Holcopasites ruthae Cooper, are derived. These account for only some of the male bias in investment sex ratio; other factors could include local resource competition.
Leveraging renewable energy in data centers: present and future

Interest has been growing in powering data centers (at least partially) with renewable or "green" sources of energy, such as solar or wind. However, it is challenging to use these sources because, unlike the "brown" (carbon-intensive) energy drawn from the electrical grid, they are not always available. In this keynote talk, I will first discuss the tradeoffs involved in leveraging green energy today and the prospects for the future. I will then discuss the main research challenges and questions involved in managing the use of green energy in data centers. Next, I will describe some of the software and hardware that researchers are building to explore these challenges and questions. Specifically, I will overview systems that match a data center's computational workload to the green energy supply. I will also describe Parasol, the solar-powered micro-data center we have just built at Rutgers University. Finally, I will discuss some potential avenues for future research on this topic.
Phospholipid composition and extractibility of light- and dark-adapted bovine retinal rod outer segments.

Abstract The treatment of light- and dark-adapted bovine rod outer segments with a bleaching solvent system (2:1 CHCl 3 -MeOH) resulted in phospholipid extracts with no discernible quantitative differences. Functional group analyses of both extracts showed no compositional variations and served to characterize the phospholipid content of bovine rod outer segments.
Diurnal variation of atomic hydrogen in the thermosphere

Abstract The diurnal variation of atomic hydrogen concentrations in the thermosphere is calculated from the time-dependent continuity and diffusion equations for a range of exospheric temperatures using Jacchia's formulation for the thermal and density structure of the background atmosphere. The magnitude of this variation at the critical level is similar to that obtained by approximate methods, but the details are very different. The diurnal behavior of atomic hydrogen at the critical level is insensitive to the conditions near the turbopause. As a consequence disturbances at the critical level are largely damped out when they reach the turbopause.
Turning Back the Clock on Neurodegeneration

Does neuronal loss associated with dementia necessarily impair the ability to learn new information and recall old memories? In a recent report in Nature, Fischer et al. (2007) show that the ability to learn and remember can be reestablished in a mouse model of dementia through either environmental enrichment or chronic treatment with an inhibitor of histone deacetylase.
Hyperparathyroidism, Humoral Hypercalcemia of Malignancy, and the Anabolic Actions of Parathyroid Hormone and Parathyroid Hormone-Related Protein on the Skeleton

So what have we learned from the Takeuchi case? It has been 80 years since malignancy-associated hypercalcemia was described. It has been 45 years since HHM was first described. It has been 15 years since PTHrP was identified, and 12 years since PTHrP immunoassays became available for clinical research. We now know almost everything about HHM in pathophysiological terms, and we can reproduce the cardinal features of the syndrome in laboratory animals and humans. The Takeuchi case reminds us that we still have a few things to learn about HHM. Specifically, "Why is the regulation of 1,25(OH)2D different in patients with HHM and HPT?" and "Why is normal osteoblast-osteoclast coupling dysregulated in HHM?" or more fundamentally, "What regulates osteoblast-osteoclast coupling, and why is it deranged in HHM?" Given the rate of accumulation of new information about HHM, about the anabolic effects of PTH and PTHrP, and about osteoblast-osteoclast coupling over the past 10 years, there is reason to be optimistic that the answers to these questions will soon become clear.
Effects of retinoic acid on the immune system: Stimulation of T killer cell induction

Retinoic acid (RA), a vitamin A derivative with anti-tumor activity, was assayed for its effects on the immune system in mice. High doses of this compound (1000 microgram/mouse/day) have toxic effects and cause depletion on the peripheral lymphoid organs (spleen, thymus) while leaving the bone marrow cells unaffected. Both the in vivo and in vitro induction of cell-mediated cytotoxicity (CMC) to allogeneic tumor cells is stimulated at least tenfold by low doses (25--300 microgram/mouse/day) of RA while high doses suppress CMC induction. RA is shown to be a specific adjuvant for the induction of cytotoxic thymus-derived lymphocytes (T cells) and not a general T cell mitogen or adjuvant. It does not enhance the proliferative response in the mixed lymphocyte culture nor does it stimulate lymphocyte proliferation in response to the mitogens concanavalin A and phytohemagglutinin. The induction of cooperating T cells and the delayed-type hypersensitivity reaction are also not stimulated by RA. In contrast to the reported stimulatory effects of retinyl palmitate and retinyl acetate, RA does not stimulate the humoral response to erythrocytes. The strong adjuvant effects that RA has on the induction of CMC at low doses may be responsible for its anti-tumor activity.
Effects of chronic intraputamenal infusion of glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) in aged Rhesus monkeys.

In this study, 17-23 year old Rhesus monkeys were used as an early model of Parkinson's disease (PD). Four animals received chronic infusions of GDNF and four received vehicle infusions into the right putamen via programmable pumps for 8 weeks. Weekly videotaping was performed to record general motor performance and a monkey movement analysis panel (mMAP) was used to quantify fine and coarse upper limb motor performance. The GDNF-treated animals showed significant improvements in their overall motor performance in the last 3 weeks of the study compared to controls. Fine motor time of the upper limbs improved significantly in both the GDNF-treated and control animals. After 8 weeks of drug administration, the animals were euthanized and tissue punches were taken from the basal ganglia for measures of dopamine (DA) and DA metabolite levels. In the right putamen, GDNF infusion produced a 217% increase in homovanillic acid (HVA) levels. In addition, DA levels increased by 50% in the right caudate nucleus and there were 122 and 76% increases in 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC) levels in the right and left caudate nucleus, respectively. HVA levels were also seen to be increased by 212% in the right caudate nucleus. Finally, changes were seen in the right globus pallidus, with 390 and 171% increases in DA and HVA levels, respectively. These data support the hypothesis that GDNF may be beneficial for the treatment of damaged or degenerating DA neurons in aged monkeys and possibly in aged humans.
Pressuring, Shearing, Torsion and Extension of a Circular Tube or Bar of Cylindrically Anisotropic Material

One of the novel features of the present paper is that we have written the equation of equilibrium and the stress-strain law of an inhomogeneous anisotropic linear elastic material in a compact form for cylindrical coordinate system using matrix notation. For a two-dimensional deformation the result resembles Stroh’s sextic formalism in a rectangular coordinate system. We then consider the material to be cylindrically anisotropic. It means that the elastic stiffnesses referred to a cylindrical coordinate system are constants. The problem of a circular tube subjected to a uniform normal stress and shearing stresses at the inner and outer surfaces of the tube is studied. Also studied are the axial extension and torsion of the tube. Unlike isotropic materials for which the applied normal stress (or shear stress) induces only the normal (or shear) stress, all three displacement components and most of the six stress components are nonzero for general anisotropic materials. This is particularly interesting for the uniform axial extension of the tube. For an isotropic material the stress σ 33 is the only non-zero and uniform stress inside the tube. For a cylindrically anisotropic material the stresses σ rr , σ θθ , and σ θ3 are also non-zero. Moreover, they depend on r and are not uniform. A solid cylinder or a cylinder with a pin hole is a special case of a tube. It is shown that, for the loads mentioned above including the axial extension, the stress may be unbounded at the pinhole.
Tweeting, re-tweeting, and commenting: microblogging and social movements in China

With increased research attention being paid to the relationship between information and communication technologies (ICTs) and social movements during the Arab Spring, the role of new and social media in promoting social movements in China is examined in depth. Focusing on the most popular social media platform in China, Weibo, this research includes a review of new scholarship about ICTs and social movements, analysis of Chinese grassroots social movements organized via Weibo, and the limitations of these social movements. The guiding question here is how individual Chinese citizens strategically used Weibo to facilitate social movements.
A New Uniplanar Coplanar Waveguide/ Slotline Balanced Mixer

This paper presents a new uniplanar microwave mixer circuit. The mixer utilizes even and odd modes on a coplanar waveguide to create a singly balanced mixer. The RF signal is fed quasi-optically as an even mode on a coplanar waveguide through a slot antenna while the local oscillator signal is fed to the same coplanar waveguide as an odd mode through an even-mode to odd-mode converter. The resulting mixer circuit is simple, compact, efficient, and can be scaled easily to millimeter wave frequencies.
Surgical management of renal cell carcinoma with inferior vena cava tumor thrombus

Abstract Background. The optimal management of patients with renal cell carcinoma with inferior vena cava tumor thrombus remains unresolved. Traditional approaches have included resection with or without the use of cardiopulmonary bypass. Chemotherapy has played a minor role except for biotherapeutic agents used for metastatic disease. Methods. From January 1989 to January 1996, 37 patients with renal cell carcinoma and inferior vena cava tumor thrombus underwent surgical resection. The 27 men and 10 women had a median age of 57 years (range, 29 to 78 years). Thirty-six patients presented with symptoms; 21 had hematuria. Distant metastases were present in 12 patients. Tumor thrombi extended to the infrahepatic inferior vena cava (n = 16), the intrahepatic inferior vena cava (n = 16), the suprahepatic inferior vena cava (n = 3), and into the right atrium (n = 2). All tumors were resected by inferior vena cava isolation and, when necessary, extended hepatic mobilization and Pringle maneuver, with primary or patch closure of the vena cavotomy. Cardiopulmonary bypass was necessary in only 2 patients with intraatrial thrombus. Results. Complications occurred in 11 patients, and 1 patient died 2 days postoperatively of a myocardial infarction (mortality, 2.7%). Twenty patients are alive; overall 2- and 5-year survival rates were 61.7% and 33.6%, respectively. For patients without lymph node or distant metastases (stage IIIa), 2- and 5-year survival rates were 74% and 45%, respectively. The presence of distant metastatic disease (stage IV) at the time of operation did not have a significant adverse effect on survival, as reflected by 2- and 5-year survival rates of 62.5% and 31.3%, respectively. Lymph node metastases (stage IIIc) adversely affected survival as there were no long-term survivors. Conclusions. Resection of an intracaval tumor thrombus arising from renal cell carcinoma can be performed safely and can result in prolonged survival even in the presence of metastatic disease. In our experience, extracorporeal circulatory support was required only when the tumor thrombus extended into the heart. (Ann Thorac Surg 1997;63:1592–600)
Identification of potential platelet alloantigens in the Equidae family by comparison of gene sequences encoding major platelet membrane glycoproteins

Background Platelet alloantigens in horses may play an important role in the development of neonatal alloimmune thrombocytopenia (NAIT). Objective The objective of this study was to evaluate genes encoding major platelet glycoproteins within the Equidae family in an effort to identify potential alloantigens. Methods DNA was isolated from blood samples obtained from Equidae family members, including a Holsteiner-Oldenburg cross, a Quarter horse, a donkey, and a Plains zebra (Equus burchelli). Gene sequences encoding equine platelet membrane glycoproteins IIb, IIIa (integrin subunits αIIb and β3), Ia (integrin subunit α2), and Ibα were determined using PCR. Gene sequences were compared to the equine genome available on GenBank. Polymorphisms that would be predicted to result in amino acid changes on platelet surfaces were documented and compared with known alloantigenic sites documented on human platelets. Results Amino acid differences were predicted based on nucleotide sequences for all 4 genes. Nine differences were documented for αIIb, 5 differences were documented for β3, 7 differences were documented for α2, and 16 differences were documented for Ibα outside the macroglycopeptide region. Conclusions This study represents the first effort at identifying potential platelet alloantigens in members of the Equidae Family based on evaluation of gene sequences. The data obtained form the groundwork for identifying potential platelet alloantigens involved in transfusion reactions and neonatal alloimmune thrombocytopenia (NAIT). More work is required to determine whether the predicted amino acid differences documented in this study play a role in alloimmunity, and whether other polymorphisms not detected in this study are present that may result in alloimmunity.