cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Symbiotic Network Simulation and Emulation

A testbed capable of representing detailed operations of complex applications under diverse network conditions is invaluable for understanding the design and performance of new protocols and applications before their real deployment. We introduce a novel method that combines high-performance large-scale network simulation and high-fidelity network emulation, and thus enables real instances of network applications and protocols to run in real operating environments and be tested under simulated network settings. Using our approach, network simulation and emulation can form a symbiotic relationship, through which they are synchronized for an accurate representation of the network-scale traffic behavior. We introduce a model downscaling method along with an efficient queuing model and a traffic reproduction technique, which can significantly reduce the synchronization overhead and improve accuracy. We validate our approach with extensive experiments via simulation and with a real-system implementation. We also present a case study using our approach to evaluate a multipath data transport protocol.
Contact studies on semiconductor cleavage surfaces under liquids

Abstract Experiments are described on contacts between a mercury jet and surfaces of germanium and silicon, cleaved under dielectric liquids. The results show that cleaved surfaces are non-homogeneous, giving rise to substantial localized variations of barrier height. These variations are ascribed to electronic states associated with dislocations parallel to the cleavage surface. The similarities between surfaces cleaved under liquids and those cleaved in ultra-high vacuum are discussed.
An Investigation of the Onsets of the 1999 and 2000 Monsoons in Central Nepal

Abstract The Marsyandi River basin in the central Nepalese Himalayas is a topographically complex region, with strong spatial gradients of precipitation over various timescales. A meteorological network consisting of 20 stations was installed at a variety of elevations (528–4435 m) in this region, and measurements of rainfall were made during the 1999 and 2000 summer monsoons. The onsets of the 1999 and 2000 monsoons in central Nepal were examined at different spatial scales by using a combination of rain gauge, Meteosat-5, Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM), ECMWF analysis, and Indian radiosonde data. At the network, the onsets manifested themselves as multiday rain events, which included a mixture of stratiform and convective precipitation. Moist and unstable upslope flow was associated with the occurrence of heavy rainfall. During each onset, 2-day rainfall reached as high as 462 mm, corresponding to 10%–20% of the monsoon rainfall. Differences among rain gauges were up to a factor of 8, reflec...
Rapid solubilization and translocation of 109CdO following pulmonary deposition.

In order to examine the translocation of CdO from the respiratory surfaces rats were given an intratracheal instillation of cadmium oxide tagged with 109Cd (primary particle size < 1.0 μm). The half-life of the 109Cd in lung was about 4 hr, at which time nearly 40% of the 109Cd body burden was in the liver. At 24 hr following instillation, the distribution of 109Cd (expressed as percentage of body burden, mean ± SD) was: lung, 23.9 ± 3.0; liver, 58.4 ± 3.9%; kidney, 2.7 ± 1.8%; and testes, 0.22 ± 0.02%. At 2 weeks after instillation the lung, liver, and kidney had 18, 57, and 8%, respectively, of the body burden. Less than 10% of the instilled 109Cd was excreted during the first 2 weeks. These data suggest that inhaled CdO is highly soluble in the lung but that cadmium is slowly excreted from the body, resulting in a long-term dose commitment to several tissues.
Effect of Intracerebroventricular Leptin Administration on Body Weight Gain in Neonatal Rats † 1581

Leptin, the secreted and translated product of the ob gene, acts upon the adult hypothalamus and decreases appetite and body weight gain. While neonatal rat and mouse adipocytic leptin mRNA and circulating peptide have been detected (FASB J 11:382-387, 1997; BBRC 238:44-47, 1997), and neonatal rat hypothalamic leptin receptors characterized (Ped Res 1998), the biological significance of leptin in the newborn remains unknown. To address this issue, 2 to 8 day old rats received intracerebroventricularly 0.5 μg (n=3) and 1μg (n=3) of murine leptin or vehicle (n=6) on a daily basis. In comparison to the vehicle group, a ≈27% body weight loss was noted in the 0.5 μg and 1 μg leptin groups by day 7 (leptin=8±0.5g vs vehicle=10.9±0.7g; p < 0.05). This weight loss persisted through day 9 (leptin=11.1±0.1g vs vehicle=15.5±0.3g; p < 0.05), declined to ≈11% by day 16 (leptin= 30.1±3g vs vehicle=36.9±0.7g; p< 0.05), and was no different at day 24. Though no change in plasma leptin or glucose concentrations was noted throughout, an increase in plasma insulin was observed only at day 3 in the 1μg leptin group (4.9±0.1 vs the vehicle group= 2.9±0.8 ng/ml; p < 0.05). In an attempt to determine the central mechanism(s) by which leptin induced this neonatal body weight loss, semi-quantitation of paraventricular neuropeptide Y immunoreactivity(NPY; aerence in NPY amounts was detected at 3d which is 24 hours following initiation of leptin administration. This is in contrast to our previous investigations where intracerebroventricular NPY led to biological changes within 24 hours (Varma et al Ped Res 41:1441, 1997). Studies assessing hypothalamic NPY levels between 7 to 24 days are in progress. We conclude that 1] exogenous intracerebroventricular leptin administration reduces body weight during the suckling phase, and 2] the anorexic/catabolic effect is observed 5 days after initiation of intracerebroventricular leptin injections. We speculate that the hypothalamic mechanism(s) for this biological response may include reduction in NPY synthesis/levels at later ages (7 to 24 d), or even perturbations in other anorexic neuro peptides(corticotropin-releasing hormone, proopiomelanocortin).
In-vivo imaging of biological tissues using 1.3 um optical coherence tomography

In previous studies, we reported 850 nm wavelength optical coherence-gated imaging of biological tissues in vitro and in vivo. The results demonstrated the potential of this technique to show the microstructural differences in living tissues and therefore to non invasively diagnose superficial lesions. However, because of the overwhelming light scattering of most biological tissues, the effective penetration depth of coherence-gated imaging is limited. In order to increase the detection depth and improve imaging contrast, we started the research of fast optical coherence- gated imaging of biological tissues at 1300 nm. The advantages of using long wavelength lie in the following two aspects: (1) Tissue scattering decreases with increasing wavelength; (2) According to our model analysis, coherent interference modulation amplitude also increases with wavelength. The current imaging system can acquire a high- resolution image in less than 30 seconds. Preliminary mouse brain and skin images shows that at 1300 nm, the imaging contrast and penetration depth are improved in comparison with 850 nm, making it useful for living tissue imaging and tumor diagnostics.© (1997) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Topological insulators in three dimensions from spontaneous symmetry breaking

We study three-dimensional systems where strong repulsion leads to an insulating state via spontaneously generated spin-orbit interactions. We discuss a microscopic model where the resulting state is topological. Such topological ``Mott'' insulators differ from their band-insulator counterparts in that they possess an additional order parameter, a rotation matrix, which describes the spontaneous breaking of spin-rotation symmetry. We show that line defects of this order are associated with protected one-dimensional modes in the strong topological Mott insulator that provides a bulk characterization of this phase. Possible physical realizations in cold-atom systems are discussed.
Quasicrystals and quasicrystal-related phases in the AlMn system☆

Abstract The AlMn system is very rich in phases with composition close to Al4Mn. As solidification conditions change from very slow (casting) to extremely fast (atomized submicron-size droplets) the following phases will form: hexagonal μ phase (a = 1.995nm; c = 2.452nm), hexagonal λ phase (a = 2.841 nm; c = 1.238 nm), decagonal quasicrystal, icosahedral quasicrystal and microquasicrystalline or “amorphous” phase. In the present work, the potential interrelationship between the structures of the crystalline, quasicrystalline and amorphous Al4Mn phases is investigated by a systematic study of electron diffraction intensities. Analysis of electron diffraction intensity modulations and their spatial relationships suggests that the phases have a structural skeleton of icosahedral units, possibly of the Mackay icosahedron type. Different crystalline and quasi-periodic phases can be formed by different stackings of the same icosahedral clusters and they are not necessarily in a single orientation. The amorphous structure can be described as a network of the randomly oriented clusters.
Third-party error detection support mechanisms for dictation speech recognition

Although speech recognition has improved significantly in recent years, its adoption continues to be limited, in part, by the effort and frustration associated with correcting speech recognition errors. Error detection is a particularly challenging issue in third-party error correction where different individuals are responsible for the original dictation and correcting the resulting text. This research aims to address the difficulty experienced in third-party error detection by developing and evaluating a variety of support mechanisms. Drawing on a growing body of literature on human computer interaction and speech recognition, four support mechanisms were designed and evaluated, namely indexed audio, speech summarization, error prediction, and the presentation of alternative hypotheses. A user study assessed the impact of these support mechanisms on both performance and perceptions during error detection tasks. Performance measures included effectiveness and efficiency, and perception measures included confidence, perceived usefulness, and cognitive workload. The results provide strong support for the use of indexed audio in the context of third-party error detection. The results also confirm that consecutive error rate, or the percentage of recognition errors immediately adjacent to another error, has a negative impact on the effectiveness of third-party error detection. Other support mechanisms failed to improve either effectiveness or perceptions, but they did negate the negative impact as consecutive error rate increased. These findings have significant implications for speech recognition error detection research and the design of error detection support solutions.
Subject response to loss in an experimental tournament

Abstract We present tests for the influence of losing on subsequent behavior in a nongame tournament experiment. The results are uniformly insignificant, suggesting non-convex incentives, such as tournaments or quotas, do not cause suboptimal behavior among losers as has been asserted.
Digital generation of equal temperament

The generation of pitches of an equally tempered musical scale through nonbinary frequency division is explored, including an analysis of the resulting frequency errors. Useful approximations to 21/12, in addition to the well known 196/185 ratio, are sought. A criterion for allowable errors is developed and applied to ratios involving integers up to 10 000. Based on an optimum tuning algorithm, it is determined that there are other possible ratios that could be implemented more simply and at a lower cost than the 196/185 ratio.
Emotional Segues and the Management of Emotion by Women and Men

Recent studies suggest that gender may be less influential on the experience of emotion than originally believed. Most of these studies, however, have focused almost exclusively on gender differences in discrete emotional experiences, paying less attention to the ways in which emotions may co-occur within a relatively short period. Using the General Survey's 1996 emotions module, I examine the correlational structure of nine latent emotion factors – tranquility, joy, hope, pride, self-reproach, anger, rage, fear and distress – by gender. Using the technique of shortest path analysis, I find women's most common emotional pathways are longer, more complex, and more likely to use more positive and less powerful emotions than those most common to men. Implications for emotion management, both personal and interpersonal, are discussed.
AMP-activated protein kinase mediates ischemic glucose uptake and prevents postischemic cardiac dysfunction, apoptosis, and injury

AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is an important regulator of diverse cellular pathways in the setting of energetic stress. Whether AMPK plays a critical role in the metabolic and functional responses to myocardial ischemia and reperfusion remains uncertain. We examined the cardiac consequences of long-term inhibition of AMPK activity in transgenic mice expressing a kinase dead (KD) form of the enzyme. The KD mice had normal fractional shortening and no heart failure, cardiac hypertrophy, or fibrosis, although the in vivo left ventricular (LV) dP/dt was lower than that in WT hearts. During low-flow ischemia and postischemic reperfusion in vitro, KD hearts failed to augment glucose uptake and glycolysis, although glucose transporter content and insulin-stimulated glucose uptake were normal. KD hearts also failed to increase fatty acid oxidation during reperfusion. Furthermore, KD hearts demonstrated significantly impaired recovery of LV contractile function during postischemic reperfusion that was associated with a lower ATP content and increased injury compared with WT hearts. Caspase-3 activity and TUNEL-staining were increased in KD hearts after ischemia and reperfusion. Thus, AMPK is responsible for activation of glucose uptake and glycolysis during low-flow ischemia and plays an important protective role in limiting damage and apoptotic activity associated with ischemia and reperfusion in the heart.
Does glutathione-S-transferase dethiolate lens protein-thiol mixed disulfides?-A comparative study with thioltransferase.

Abstract Protein S-thiolation is a process in which under oxidative stress, vulnerable sulfhydryl groups of proteins are conjugated to non-protein thiols such as glutathione (GSH) or cysteine resulting in the formation of protein-thiol mixed disulfides, protein-S-S-glutathione (PSSG) and protein-S-S-cysteine (PSSC). This process spontaneously disrupts the redox homeostasis of the cells, which in turn leads to functional disturbances in the respective tissue. In the ocular lens, such modification of proteins may trigger a cascade of events starting with the alteration of protein conformation, protein/enzyme deactivation, protein-S-S-protein aggregation and eventually lens opacification or cataract. Generally, the first line of defense system in the cells protects the lens proteins against such damage. Recent studies in our laboratory have shown that in addition to this defense system, lens cells also possess a well developed system to repair the oxidative damage to the lens proteins. We have identified this repair system as thioltransferase (TTase) and have proved that TTase by its dethiolase activity reverses the protein S-thiolation process which returns the oxidatively damaged lens proteins/enzymes to their original reduced state and restores their physiological functions. We investigated if this repair mechanism was mediated by enzymes other than TTase. We studied glutathione S-transferase (GST) and report here for the first time the cloning, high level expression, and purification of human lens μ and π isoforms of GST. A comparative study of recombinant human lens TTase and GST (μ and π) on their dethiolating abilities using lens crystallin-thiol mixed disulfides showed that the lens TTase is 60–70% more efficient in the dethiolation/repair process than GST. When TTase and GST were tested in conjunction for the dethiolation of thiol mixed disulfides, there was no significant enhancement of dethiolase activity. These findings suggest that TTase by itself is an efficient enzyme in the dethiolation/repair process and hence can be considered a crucial system to counteract oxidative stress in the lens.
Triggered instructions: a control paradigm for spatially-programmed architectures

In this paper, we present triggered instructions, a novel control paradigm for arrays of processing elements (PEs) aimed at exploiting spatial parallelism. Triggered instructions completely eliminate the program counter and allow programs to transition concisely between states without explicit branch instructions. They also allow efficient reactivity to inter-PE communication traffic. The approach provides a unified mechanism to avoid over-serialized execution, essentially achieving the effect of techniques such as dynamic instruction reordering and multithreading, which each require distinct hardware mechanisms in a traditional sequential architecture.Our analysis shows that a triggered-instruction based spatial accelerator can achieve 8X greater area-normalized performance than a traditional general-purpose processor. Further analysis shows that triggered control reduces the number of static and dynamic instructions in the critical paths by 62% and 64% respectively over a program-counter style spatial baseline, resulting in a speedup of 2.0X.
Regional cerebral blood flow during hypoglycaemia in children with IDDM.

Hypoglycaemia may cause transient cognitive impairment and neurological deficits that are frequently unilateral. The effect of mild hypoglycaemia (serum glucose level 3.4±0.1 mmol/l; mean±SEM) on regional cerebral blood flow and cerebrovascular resistance was studied in eight right-handed children with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (age 14.9±0.7 years; diabetes duration 7.4±1.1 years; six males) using the intravenous xenon-133 clearance method. Global mean cerebral grey and white matter blood flow, adjusted to mean pCO2 of cohort, showed a trend towards an increase from 54.7±3.5 ml·100 g−1·min−1 at baseline euglycaemia to 58.0±4.1 ml·100 g−1·min−1 during hypoglycaemia (p=0.075). Statistically significant changes were seen in global mean cerebral grey matter blood flow, as indexed by initial slope, which increased from 88.0±6.5 min−1 before hypoglycaemia to 96.3±7.2 min−1 during hypoglycaemia (p<0.05). Cerebral grey matter blood flow was significantly higher in the right hemisphere compared to the left during hypoglycaemia (p<0.01) but not at baseline euglycaemia. Measurements of global cerebrovascular resistance showed a borderline decrease from 1.64±0.11 to 1.54±0.11 mm Hg·ml−1·100 g−1·min−1 (p< 0.09). In conclusion, mild hypoglycaemia is associated with increases in cerebral blood flow which are greater in grey matter flow indices and in the right hemisphere. We speculate that asymmetrical cerebral blood flow changes may explain the frequent laterality of neurological deficits during severe hypoglycaemia.
A wide complex tachycardia: what is the mechanism?

A 33-year-old female was referred for an electrophysiologic study because of recurrent episodes of palpitations. Catheters were placed in the high right atrium (HRA), the His bundle (HIS), and the right ventricular apex (RVA). Baseline cycle length in sinus rhythm and atrial-His (AH) and His-ventricular (HV) intervals were 790, 90, and 45 ms, respectively. Spontaneous onset of a wide complex tachycardia with a left bundle branch block morphology and variable cycle length was observed on several occasions (Fig. 1). Atrial pacing at a rate of 600 ms with an extrastimulus with a coupling interval of 390 ms was conducted, as shown in Figure 2. What is the mechanism of this wide complex tachycardia?
Linear and nonlinear modal analysis of aeroelastic structural systems

Abstract This paper deals with the investigation of linear modal analysis and the autoparametric interaction of aeroelastic systems. The normal-mode frequencies and the associated mode shapes are obtained in terms of the system parameters. The main objective of the linear analysis is to explore the critical regions of autoparametric (or internal) resonance conditions, Σk i ω i = 0 (where k i are integers and ω i are the normal-mode frequencies.) The results show that for certain system parameters the condition of internal resonance is satisfied. The dynamic behavior of the structure in the neighborhood of internal-resonance conditions is obtained by considering the nonlinear coupling of the normal modes. Under certain conditions the steady-state response is derived analytically for the sum internal-resonance condition. It is concluded that the nonlinear modal analysis reveals certain types of response characteristics which cannot be interpreted within the framework of the linear theory of small oscillations.
Application of new ophthalmic technology in the pediatric patient.

Purpose of review The present review will summarize briefly the recent advances in diagnostic tools, surgical techniques, and ophthalmic medications as they relate to the pediatric patient. The review will highlight results from studies that have investigated these new technologies and techniques. Recent findings In the past several years there has been a plethora of literature on the application of new technologies and surgical techniques in children. New tools have been used for everything from gathering normative data about the pediatric eye to using the technologies to study diseases such as glaucoma and ocular tumors. Results of surgical techniques such as small-incision cataract surgery, sutureless vitrectomy, and refractive surgery are now reported with regularity in the pediatric ophthalmology literature. Summary In the past 10 years pediatric ophthalmology has made significant advances. Technology has enabled us to qualify and quantify disease states more efficiently, and to explore new surgical techniques for disease processes that were formerly considered relatively untreatable.
Injection molding using a generalized Eulerian Lagrangian formulation

A mathematical and a numerical approach to model the injection mold filling stage is presented. The approach is based on a Generalized Eulerian Lagrangian (GEL) formulation. In purely Lagrangian formulations the solution is obtained at mesh points which follow the local fluid velocity. On the other hand, in Eulerian formulations the mesh is fixed and the solution is obtained at fixed spatial locations. In injection molding different parts of the flow domain are best analyzed by one but not both formulation methods. The Generalized Eulerian Lagrangian formulation combines the advantages of both formulations: In the same flow problem but different regions the GEL formulation allows the selective application of an Eulerian, Lagrangian, or a mixture of the two formulations. In this work the melt is described using the White-Metzner constitutive relation and results are shown and discussed for the filling of a cavity from a single gate and from a fully open end under different process conditions.
Drug Development: Old Drugs and New Lead

Amebiasis is a global disease caused by the protozoan parasite Entamoeba histolytica. It affects 50 million people, leading to 70,000 deaths each year, and about 500 million people are at risk. Current treatment requires both metronidazole and paromomycin, but metronidazole has several adverse effects and resistance is an increasing concern. Moreover, treatment with two drugs for 20 days makes compliance difficult. Although amebiasis affects millions people, it is a disease primarily of the poor, and therefore new drug development for this disease is not a priority for major pharmaceutical companies. Yet finding a better drug for such a significant cause of morbidity and mortality would have an impact on millions of people suffering from this diarrheal disease. To facilitate the identification of new drug leads for this anaerobic parasite, we developed and validated a novel automated, high-throughput screening methodology. Screening identified an FDA-approved drug, auranofin, used therapeutically for rheumatoid arthritis, as active against E. histolytica in culture. Auranofin was ten times more potent against E. histolytica than metronidazole. The discovery of auranofin offers a promising drug repositioning opportunity for the treatment of amebiasis.
Mouse histidyl-tRNAs during pregnancy. Differentiation of activity profiles within and between organs.

Optimal conditions for in vitro formation of His-tRNA were established. Transfer RNA of maternal mouse organs and total embryo at 13 and 17 days of pregnancy was acylated in vitro with [3H] or [14C] histidine and examined by reversed-phase plaskon chromatography. Most tissues show different radioactive profiles reflecting a varying activity of six to eight isoaccepting His-tRNA species. Quantitative differences in profile were observed for liver tRNA during pregnancy. Profiles of embryo and uterus, kidney, heart and muscle changed less, and that of brain did not change during pregnancy. The significance of these observations with respect to molecular differentiation of His-tRNAs during pregnancy is discussed.
Detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in Erythema Induratum of Bazin Using Polymerase Chain Reaction

Tuberculosis poses a serious diagnostic and therapeutic problem, even in developed countries. As originally described, 1 tuberculids are cutaneous eruptions that result from an abnormally marked host response to the presence of mycobacteria. One such tuberculid is erythema induratum of Bazin (EIB), in which Mycobacterium tuberculosis has recently been detected. 2 Patients and Methods. Sixteen formaldehyde solution— fixed, paraffin-embedded blocks of EIB were collected from 1988 to 1995 ( Table ). 3 As a positive control in all procedures, a paraffin-embedded sample of M tuberculosis as confirmed by mycobacterial culture was included. As a negative control, an acrochordon specimen was included. Reagent controls were also included. DNA was extracted from paraffin-embedded blocks as previously described 4 and analyzed for M tuberculosis DNA by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using a primer specific for M tuberculosis and M bovis . 5 The methods outlined by Eisenach et al 5 were adhered to stringently with 1
Popularity-aware greedy dual-size Web proxy caching algorithms

Web caching aims at reducing network traffic, server load and user-perceived retrieval delays by replicating popular content on proxy caches that are strategically placed within the network. While key to effective cache utilization, popularity information (e.g. relative access frequencies of objects requested through a proxy) is seldom incorporated directly in cache replacement algorithms. Rather other properties of the request stream (e.g. temporal locality and content size), which are easier to capture in an online fashion, are used to indirectly infer popularity information, and hence drive cache replacement policies. Recent studies suggest that the correlation between these secondary properties and popularity is weakening due in part to the prevalence of efficient client and proxy caches. This trend points to the need for proxy cache replacement algorithms that directly capture popularity information. We present an on-line algorithm that effectively captures and maintains an accurate popularity profile of Web objects requested through a caching proxy. We propose a novel cache replacement policy that uses such information to generalize the well-known greedy dual-size algorithm, and show the superiority of our proposed algorithm by comparing it to a host of recently-proposed and widely-used algorithms using extensive trace-driven simulations and a variety of performance metrics.
Dynamic virtual ground voltage estimation for power gating

With the technology moving into the deep sub-100 nm region, the increase of leakage power consumption necessitates more aggressive power reduction techniques. Power gating is a promising technique. Our research emphasizes the virtual ground voltage (VVG) as the key to make critical design trade-offs for power gating. We develop an accurate model to estimate the dynamic VVG value of a circuit block as a function of time after its ground is gated. Experimental results show that the model has less than 1% average error compared with HSPICE results. The CAD tool implemented based on the model has a 100 times speedup over HSPICE.
Surgical Approaches to Epicardial Pacemaker Placement: Does Pocket Location Affect Lead Survival?

Permanent cardiac pacing in pediatric patients presents challenges related to small patient size, complex anatomy, electrophysiologic abnormalities, and limited access to cardiac chambers. Epicardial pacing currently remains the conventional technique for infants and patients with complex congenital heart disease. Pacemaker lead failure is the major source of failure for such epicardial systems. The authors hypothesized that a retrocostal surgical approach would reduce the rate of lead failure due to fracture compared with the more traditional subrectus and subxiphoid approaches. To evaluate this hypothesis, a retrospective chart review analyzed patients with epicardial pacemaker systems implanted or followed at Rady Children’s Hospital San Diego between January 1980 and May 2007. The study cohort consisted of 219 patients and a total of 620 leads with epicardial pacemakers. Among these patients, 84% had structural congenital heart disease, and 45% were younger than 3 years at time of the first implantation. The estimated lead survival was 93% at 2 years and 83% at 5 years. The majority of leads failed due to pacing problems (54%), followed by lead fracture (31%) and sensing problems (14%). When lead failure was adjusted for length of follow-up period, no significant differences in the rates of failure by pocket location were found.
Gain-distributed feedback filters

Equivalent circuits are developed for gain-distributed feedback filters. The filters can be tuned by endloading. Side-coupling of the filters to a signal waveguide results in channel-dropping filters. These active filters suppress undesired resonances more effectively than passive filters. >
Tumorigenicity and metabolism of 4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanol enantiomers and metabolites in the A/J mouse

4-(Methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanol (NNAL), a major metabolite of the tobacco-specific pulmonary carcinogen 4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanone (NNK), has a chiral center but the tumorigenicity of the NNAL enantiomers has not been previously examined. In this study, we assessed the relative tumorigenic activities in the A/J mouse of NNK, racemic NNAL, (R)-NNAL, (S)-NNAL and several NNAL metabolites, including [4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)but-(S)-1-yl] b-O-D-glucosiduronic acid [(S)-NNAL-Gluc], 4-(methylnitrosamino)-1(3-pyridyl N-oxide)-1-butanol, 5-(3-pyridyl)-2-hydroxytetrahydrofuran, 4-(3-pyridyl)butane-1,4-diol and 2-(3-pyridyl) tetrahydrofuran. We also quantified urinary metabolites of racemic NNAL and its enantiomers and investigated their metabolism with A/J mouse liver and lung microsomes. Groups of female A/J mice were given a single i.p. injection of 20 mmol of each compound and killed 16 weeks later. Based on lung tumor multiplicity, (R)-NNAL (25.6 K 7.5 lung tumors/mouse) was as tumorigenic as NNK (25.3 K 9.8) and significantly more tumorigenic than racemic NNAL (12.1 K 5.6) or (S)-NNAL (8.2 K 3.3) (P < 0.0001). None of the NNAL metabolites was tumorigenic. The major urinary metabolites of racemic NNAL and the NNAL enantiomers were 4-hydroxy-4-(3-pyridyl)butanoic acid (hydroxy acid), NNAL-N-oxide and NNAL-Gluc, in addition to unchanged NNAL. Treatment with (R)-NNAL or (S)-NNAL gave predominantly (R)-hydroxy acid or (S)-hydroxy acid, respectively, as urinary metabolites. While treatment of mice with racemic or (S)-NNAL resulted in urinary excretion of (S)-NNAL-Gluc, treatment with (R)-NNAL gave both (R)NNAL-Gluc and (S)-NNAL-Gluc in urine, apparently through the metabolic intermediacy of NNK. (S)-NNAL appeared to be a better substrate for glucuronidation than (R)-NNAL in the A/J mouse. Mouse liver and lung microsomes converted NNAL to products of a-hydroxylation, to NNAL-N-oxide, to adenosine dinucleotide phosphate adducts and to NNK. In lung microsomes, metabolic activation by a-hydroxylation of (R)-NNAL was significantly
Dissonance between multiple alerting systems.II. avoidance and mitigation

For pt.I. see ibid., p. 366-75. The potential for conflicting information to be transmitted by different automated alerting systems is growing as these systems become more pervasive in process operations. Newly introduced alerting systems must be carefully designed to minimize the potential for and impact of alerting conflicts. A model of alert dissonance, developed in a companion paper (Part I), provides both a theoretical foundation for understanding conflicts and a practical basis from which specific problems can be addressed. Alerting systems are hybrid processes, involving continuous process dynamics and discrete alert level changes in state space. This paper presents a hybrid model to facilitate analysis of dissonance. Using backward reachability analysis, regions of dangerous dissonance space are identified. Then, modifications can be made to the control strategy of the process or to the alerting thresholds to avoid dangerous consequences of dissonance. An example problem is presented to demonstrate the application of the hybrid model to identify dangerous dissonance space and to identify proper actions to avoid dangerous consequences of dissonance.
Graduate level biotransport learning using relevant research examples

Biotransport involving mass transfer (diffusive or convective) with and without associated reaction processes is an integral part of biomedical engineering. It is central in the analysis of biological systems at the cellular and organ level as well as for the design of bioartificial organs. The focus of this presentation will be the development of the module mass transfer and reaction processes in physiological systems and biomedical devices - in the core Engineering Science III (ESIII) - Biomedical Dynamics and Applications (BMED8102) course within the Biomedical Engineering (BME) PhD curriculum. Specifically, demonstrating the way in which mass transfer fundamentals are taught in the context of and primarily through biological and biomedical engineering examples, particularly, including relevant research examples from the biomedical engineering literature. In this way, the students gain a deeper appreciation for the underlying mass transfer principles in the relevant literature. The goal is for the students to be able to identify these underlying principles and apply them themselves.
Substernal goiter: when is a sternotomy required?

Abstract Background Sternotomy for substernal goiters (SSG) is associated with greater morbidity than a cervical approach to thyroidectomy. We sought to identify predictors for sternotomy as a surgical approach for the removal of SSG and analyzed the preoperative and postoperative characteristics of patients with SSG compared with those with large goiters contained entirely within the neck or a cervical goiter. Methods A retrospective review of a surgical database was performed. We included patients with large (>100 g) thyroids or SSG, regardless of size. Between 1995 and 2013, 220 patients met these criteria. Comparisons were made between patients who had an SSG and patients who had a cervical goiter with particular focus on those who required sternotomy. Results Of the 220 patients, 127 patients (58%) had SSG, of whom 7 (5.5%) required sternotomy. All patients who underwent sternotomy underwent preoperative computed tomography scanning and were more likely to have preoperative symptoms of chest pressure and voice complaints and have extension of the thyroid gland below the aortic arch. Sternotomy took an average of 2 hours longer than a cervical incision, was associated with significantly more blood loss (600 versus 190 mL, P = 0.04), and a longer length of stay (3.1 versus 1.8 d, P = 0.03) than cervical thyroidectomy. Conclusions Sternotomy for SSG is rare. All patients necessitating sternotomy had extension below the aortic arch and were more likely to present complaining of chest pressure and voice issues.
Approximation of mean time between failure when a system has periodic maintenance

This paper describes a simple technique for estimating the mean time between failure (MTBF) of a system that has periodic maintenance at regular intervals. This type of maintenance is typically found in high reliability, mission-oriented applications where it is convenient to perform maintenance after the completion of the mission. This approximation technique can greatly simplify the MTBF analysis for large systems. The motivation for this analysis was to understand the nature of the error in the approximation and to develop a means for quantifying that error. This paper provides the derivation of the equations that bound the error that can result when using this approximation method. It shows that, for most applications, the MTBF calculations can be greatly simplified with only a very small sacrifice in accuracy.
Does a 30-min quality improvement clinical practice meeting reviewing the recommended Papanicolaou test guidelines for adolescents improve provider adherence to guidelines in a pediatric primary care office?

Purpose The purpose of this quality improvement project was to evaluate adherence to Papanicolaou (Pap) test guidelines 6 months prior to and 6 months following a 30-min educational clinical practice meeting in a pediatric primary care office. Guidelines for Pap tests have been revised in recent years by the American Academy of Obstetrics and Gynecology, the American Cancer Society, and the U.S. Preventive Task Force, but providers often do not adhere to the guidelines. Data sources A total of 777 charts from a pediatric primary care office were reviewed. Eighty-four percent (652) met criteria for inclusion. Conclusions Among sexually active adolescents, there was a statistically significant relationship between rates of Pap tests following the clinical practice meeting (χ2(1) = 13.5, p = .001). Prior to the meeting there were 29 Pap tests recorded, whereas after there were two Pap tests done. After the focused clinical practice meeting, providers performed far fewer Pap tests, which is in accordance with the guidelines for this population. Implications for practice Providers may not always practice in accordance with recommended clinical practice guidelines for various reasons. Focused, in-office educational interventions via clinical practice meetings may be an effective way of discussing recommended guidelines to improve provider adherence.
Geostrophic and Ageostrophic Circulations in Midlatitude Squall Lines

The Eliassen transverse circulation equation is derived from the set of f-plane, semigeostrophic, slab-symmetric equations with the inclusion of both diabatic heating and ambient shear effects. Numerical integrations of this model in geostrophic coordinates are performed in the context of a typical midlatitude squall line characterized by a leading convective line and a trailing stratiform rain region. Some dynamical insights are provided by these integrations in conjunction with the theoretical framework, which seem to be unavailable by primitive-equation model simulations. A more complete dynamical picture of a squall line circulation system is revealed from this study: a balanced midlevel horizontal vortex coupled with an ageostrophic transverse circulation in the normalline plane. This configuration suggests an interaction between two distinct dynamical scales, that is, the scales with geostrophic and ageostrophic-like motions, both of which play important roles in mesoscale convective systems. The internal and external physical processes that affect the ageostrophic transverse circulation are further discussed.
Single-channel analyses of ethanol modulation of neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors.

: Background: We have previously reported that ethanol potentiates the acetylcholine-induced currents of the α4β2 neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors in rat cortical neurons and of those that are stably expressed in human embryonic kidney cells. The potentiation of the maximal currents evoked by high concentrations of acetylcholine suggests that ethanol affects the channel gating. Methods: We performed single-channel patch-clamp experiments to elucidate the detailed mechanism of ethanol modulation of the α4β2 receptor that is stably expressed in human embryonic kidney cells. Results: At least two conductance states, 40.5 pS and 21.9 pS, were activated by acetylcholine. Acetylcholine at 30 nM predominantly induced the high conductance state currents (85% of total). Ethanol did not affect the single-channel conductance but selectively modulated the high-conductance state currents. The high-conductance state currents exhibited two open time constants. Both time constants were increased by 100 mM ethanol, from 1.9 msec to 2.8 msec and from 9.0 msec to 15.5 msec, respectively. Ethanol also prolonged the burst duration and the open time within burst and increased the probability of channel opening. Conclusions: These changes in single-channel parameters indicate that ethanol stabilizes the α4β2 receptor-channel in the opening state, explaining how the maximum acetylcholine-induced whole-cell currents are further potentiated by ethanol.
NetSolve/D: a massively parallel grid execution system for scalable data intensive collaboration

The persistent mood of exhilaration in the research community over exponential increases in the capacity of computational resources has been tempered recently by the realization that a torrential influx of data from instruments, sensors and simulations is growing even faster than the resources needed to analyze it. The impact of this "data deluge", challenging enough by itself is exacerbated by the fact that many data intensive projects today involve teams of collaborators spread out across geographically and organizationally distinct sites. A system that addresses these conditions must enable a community of collaborators, distributed throughout the wide area, to get responsive answers to dynamic queries and analyses applied to terascale or larger data sets. In this paper we describe the NetSolve/D system architecture which is designed to achieve this goal of data intensive online computing.
The costs and benefits of practical and emotional support on adjustment: A daily diary study of couples experiencing acute stress

Emotional support from intimate partners has been shown to have both costs and benefits for daily anxious and depressed moods (N. Bolger, A. Zuckerman, & R. C. Kessler, 2000). We examine whether similar costs and benefits are found for practical support, and when fatigue, vigor, and anger are outcomes. Results are based on daily diary reports from 68 recent law school graduates and their intimate partners during the month before the New York State bar examination. Partners’ reports of practical support provision to the examinee were beneficial in that they were associated with decreased examinee fatigue and increased examinee vigor. In contrast, examinees’ recognition of emotional support receipt was costly in that it was associated with increases in anger, as well as anxious and depressed mood. Results highlight the distinction between emotional and practical support and are consistent with findings that suggest that invisible (provided but not recognized) support leads to the best outcomes.
The Human Dimension of Elections How Poll Workers Shape Public Confidence in Elections

Voting technologies received considerable scrutiny after the 2000 election. However, the voter—poll worker interaction is also of critical importance. Poll workers exercise discretion and implement...
Mendel’s Generation: Molecular Sex and the Informatic Body:

The use of informatic metaphors and models derived from mid-20th-century cyberscience in molecular biology has been the subject of much controversy. Many social critics have argued that informatic discourses implicitly privilege a disembodied or implicitly masculine conception of life that is most fully realized in contemporary genomics. In this paper, I offer a different perspective on these issues by returning to the 18th-century work of Gregor Mendel, who conducted a series of experiments that are generally regarded as having laid down the basic rules of heredity underlying genetic science. I attempt to show that a nascent informatic understanding of the body is already present in Mendel’s work, and that the implications of his approach for the politics of gender and social life are much more ambiguous than is generally recognized. More specifically, I argue that the meaning of ‘sex’, and of its relation to the organic body, is implicitly at stake in Mendel’s thought. I suggest that his text contains c...
Effect of photoperiod and temperature on the intensity of pupal diapause in the cotton bollworm, Helicoverpa armigera (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)

The intensity of pupal diapause in the cotton bollworm, Helicoverpa armigera (Hubner) was investigated under both laboratory and natural conditions. By transferring diapausing pupae induced under LD 11:13, LD 12:12 and LD 13:11 at 20, 22 and 25 °C to 25 °C combined with LD 15:9 to terminate diapause the rearing day length of 11 h evoked greater intensity of diapause than did 12 and 13 h at 25 °C; whereas the rearing temperature of 25 °C evoked more intense diapause than did 20 and 22 °C under LD 11:13. By transferring diapausing pupae induced under LD 12:12 at 20 and 22 °C to six temperatures of 18, 20, 22, 25, 28 and 31 °C combined with LD 15:9 to terminate diapause, the duration of diapause was significantly shortened from 146 days at 18 °C to 24 days at 31 °C, showing that high temperatures significantly accelerate diapause development. Furthermore, the duration of diapause was significantly longer at the rearing temperature of 22 °C than that at 20 °C when the diapause-terminating temperatures were 20 and 22 °C. Chilling at 5 °C did not shorten the duration of diapause but lengthened it when chilling period was included. However, chilling plays an important role in synchronizing adult emergence. Rearing temperature of 22 °C also evoked more intense diapause than did 20 °C in most chilling treatments. When the overwintering pupae were transferred at different times from natural temperatures to 25 °C, it was found that the earlier the transfer took place, the earlier the adults emerged when the time spent under natural conditions was included. However, cool temperatures before March showed an enhanced effect on diapause development at 20 °C, suggesting that the high diapause-terminating temperature can offset the effect of chilling on diapause development. The result of diapause termination under natural conditions suggests that the developmental threshold for post-diapause development in H. armigera should be around 17.5 °C.