cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
OP18.06: Comparison of 3D to 2D Ultrasound techniques for counting ovarian follicles

Objectives: Oocyte competence is related to perifollicular blood flow supply. We evaluated the correlation between perifollicular vascularization indexes (PVI), cumulus-oocyte complex (COC) assessment during controlled ovarian hyperstimulation (COH) and oocyte competence vs embryo grading. Methods: 75 women undergoing ICSI cycles were enrolled. Women affected by PCO or other ovarian pathologies were excluded. Follicular growth and PVI was monitored by a GE730 Voluson machine equipped with a transvaginal volume transducer. All the stored volumes were off line analyzed by the VOCALTM imaging program to calculate vascularization index (VI), flow index (FI) and vascularization flow index (VFI) and by the Niche TM imaging program in every follicle > 15 mm to evaluate the presence of the COC, assumed when an intrafollicular hyiperechoic mass, separated from the follicular wall, was detected. Ovulation was inducted by hCG. Oocytes were mechanically denuded for ICSI to assess their maturity to the presence of a polar body. Results: There was a progressive increasing in PVI during COH and a total of 336 COC were observed in 397 follicles. 271 mature oocytes were retrieved. There was a significant correlation between the COC detection, PVI and high oocyte scoring, being the most mature oocyte collected from the most vascularized follicles. We selected 150 most mature oocytes for injection obtaining 131 high quality (grade 1/2) embryos. Conclusions: The identification of prognostic biomarkers of oocyte competence could give infertile couples the maximal chance of conception. We have used 3D power Doppler to relate PVI in growing follicles and oocyte maturity to embryo grading, assuming that changes in perifollicular blood flow supplying follicular growing reflect a better oocyte quality, leading to the development of higher quality embryos. PVI and ultrasound detection of the COC seem to be prognostic factors of oocyte maturity and can be used to improve IVF outcome.
Endometriosis after neosalpingostomy

A patient seen for infertility developed severe endometriosis within 2 years of neosalpingostomy for bilateral fallopian tube obstruction. A retrospective review of infertility surgeries revealed none of 20 patients with obstructed tubes to have endometriosis, compared with 66 of 125 (52.8%) with at least one patent fallopian tube ( p
Ethanol and Normobaric Oxygen: Novel Approach in Modulating Pyruvate Dehydrogenase Complex After Severe Transient and Permanent Ischemic Stroke

Background and Purpose— Ischemic stroke induces metabolic disarray. A central regulatory site, pyruvate dehydrogeanse complex (PDHC) sits at the cross-roads of 2 fundamental metabolic pathways: aerobic and anaerobic. In this study, we combined ethanol (EtOH) and normobaric oxygen (NBO) to develop a novel treatment to modulate PDHC and its regulatory proteins, namely pyruvate dehydrogenase phosphatase and pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase, leading to improved metabolism and reduced oxidative damage. Methods— Sprague–Dawley rats were subjected to transient (2, 3, or 4 hours) middle cerebral artery occlusion followed by 3- or 24-hour reperfusion, or permanent (28 hours) middle cerebral artery occlusion without reperfusion. At 2 hours after the onset of ischemia, rats received either an intraperitoneal injection of saline, 1 dose of EtOH (1.5 g/kg) for 2- and 3-hour middle cerebral artery occlusion, 2 doses of EtOH (1.5 g/kg followed by 1.0 g/kg in 2 hours) in 4 hours or permanent middle cerebral artery occlusion, and EtOH+95% NBO (at 2 hours after the onset of ischemia for 6 hours) in permanent stroke. Infarct volumes and neurological deficits were examined. Oxidative metabolism and stress were determined by measuring ADP/ATP ratio and reactive oxygen species levels. Protein levels of PDHC, pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase, and pyruvate dehydrogenase phosphatase were assessed. Results— EtOH induced dose-dependent neuroprotection in transient ischemia. Compared to EtOH or NBO alone, NBO+EtOH produced the best outcomes in permanent ischemia. These therapies improved brain oxidative metabolism by decreasing ADP/ATP ratios and reactive oxygen species levels, in association with significantly raised levels of PDHC and pyruvate dehydrogenase phosphatase, as well as decreased pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase. Conclusions— Both EtOH and EtOH+NBO treatments conferred neuroprotection in severe stroke by affecting brain metabolism. The treatment may modulate the damaging cascade of metabolic events by bringing the PDHC activity back to normal metabolic levels.
CUE EFFECTIVENESS OF WORD VS COLOR AS A FUNCTION OF CATEGORICAL RELATEDNESS OF WORD CUES

In his review of cue effectiveness in paired-associate learning, Richardson (1971) concluded that, when the components of a compound stimulus vary in difficulty, the less difficult component is the more effective cue. Many studies that supported this conclusion used compound stimuli consisting of colors and either words or nonsense trigrams. In an illustrative study (Underwood, Ham, & Ekstrand, 1962) Ss learned paired-associate lists with compound stimuli of words and colors or of CCC trigrams and colors. Afcer learning Ss were presented with either the compound or one of the components and were asked to recall the associated response. Underwood, et al. noted colors were less effective cues than words but more effective than CCC trigrams. It has been suggested that words were more effective cues than colors because they were more likely to be selected, while colors more effective than CCC trigrarns because component-response difficulty was less ( Richardson, 1971 ) . The decrease in che relative effectiveness of the verbal cues in verbalcolor stimulus compounds with the change from words to trigrams may be due to several variables of difference between words and trigrams, such as meaningfulness or interstimulus similarity. A verbal cue of high meaningfulness was more effective than one of low meaningfulness (Lovelace, 1968). Newman and Taylor (1963) found that on a retention test, removal of color cues from trigram-color compound stimuli produced greater decrement in recall for trigrams high in interstimi~lus formal similarity than for trigrams low in interstimulus formal similarity. The present study examined the relative effectiveness of the verbal and color components of compound stimuli as a function of interstimulus conceptual similarity. The verbal component of the stimuli in 8-pair lists varied in the number of different categories represented. Verbal stimuli represented 1, 2, 4 or 8 categories. Thus, conceptual similarity among word stimuli varied without changes in meaningfulness or formal similarity. For the color component eight distinct colors were utilized. On che retention test Ss were presented with both stimulus components, the word, or the color. As it had been suggested that attended cues change as a function of degree of learning (Richardson, 1971), a single presentation-recall trial was used. It was hypothesized that
Nonadiabatic molecular dynamics study of electron transfer from alizarin to the hydrated Ti4+ ion.

Ab initio real-time nonadiabatic (NA) molecular dynamics (MD) simulations are performed in order to investigate the photoinduced electron transfer (ET) from alizarin to the hydrated Ti4+ ion and compare it with the ET into bulk TiO2 that forms the basis of the Gratzel type solar cell. The experimental data and electronic structure calculations indicate that the photoexcitation spectra of alizarin attached to either bulk TiO2 or the Ti4+ ion in solution are very similar. In contrast, the NAMD simulations at ambient temperature predict marked differences between the ET dynamics that follow the photoexcitation in the two systems. The simulation of ET between alizarin and the TiO2 surface shows predominantly adiabatic transfer that occurs within 8 fs (Duncan et al. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2005, 127, 7941), in agreement with the time-resolved experimental data. The simulation of alizarin attached to the hydrated Ti4+ ion reported presently predicts that the ET does occur, but on a slower 30 fs time scale, with a sub...
Localized corrosion behavior of aluminum surface alloys produced by ion implantation and ion beam mixing

Abstract The pitting corrosion behavior of MoAl surface alloys produced by ion implantation and ion beam mixing was examined and compared with that of pure aluminum. The pitting potentials of various MoAl surface alloys produced by ion implantation were 0.140–0.175 V higher (more noble) than that of pure aluminum, indicating an increased resistance to pitting corrosion. Ion-beam-mixed surface alloys were prepared by either ion implanting or vapor depositing molybdenum on an aluminum substrate and then mixing with an inert or reactive element. The pitting potentials of the ion-beam-mixed samples were 0.100–0.650 V higher than the pitting potentials of aluminum or the MoAl surface alloys produced by ion implantation. The improvement in the pitting resistance of the MoAl surface alloys was related to the pH of zero charge model of passive film breakdown.
An autoradiographic study of δ-aminolevulinic acid uptake by mouse brain

Abstract δ-Aminolevulinic acid (ALA), a toxic precursor of porphyrin, when injected i.v. failed to enter most brain structures, such as the cortex, thalamus, midbrain, and others, as determined by the autoradiographic technique. However, the choroid plexus, median eminence, and a narrow strip of the periventricular zone, which usually lack a barrier function, were labeled in these experiments. These results indicate that the blood-brain barrier is virtually impermeable for ALA, although the amino acid may enter the cerebrospinal fluid via fenestrated capillaries of the circum ventricular organs and tanycytes of the median eminence.
Mutational analysis of histidine residues in human organic anion transporter 4 (hOAT4)

Human organic anion transporter 4 (hOAT4) belongs to a family of organic anion transporters which play critical roles in the body disposition of clinically important drugs, including anti-HIV therapeutics, antitumour drugs, antibiotics, anti-hypertensives and anti-inflammatories. hOAT4-mediated transport of the organic anion oestrone sulphate in COS-7 cells was inhibited by the histidine-modifying reagent DEPC (diethyl pyrocarbonate). Therefore the role of histidine residues in the function of hOAT4 was examined by site-directed mutagenesis. All five histidine residues of hOAT4 were converted into alanine, singly or in combination. Single replacement of His-47, or simultaneous replacement of His-47/52/83 or His-47/52/83/305/469 (H-less) led to a 50–80% decrease in transport activity. The decreased transport activity of these mutants was correlated with a decreased amount of cell-surface expression, although the total cell expression of these mutants was similar to that of wild-type hOAT4. These results suggest that mutation at positions 47, 47/52/83 and 47/52/83/305/469 impaired membrane expression rather than function. We also showed that, although most of the histidine mutants of hOAT4 were sensitive to inhibition by DEPC, H469A (His-469→Ala) was completely insensitive to inhibition by this reagent. Therefore modification of His-469 is responsible for the inhibition of hOAT4 by DEPC.
Racial and Ethnic Succession in Four Cities

The concept of succession is well established in both ecological and economic models of urban residential change yet much remains unknown about the determinants of succession in urban neighborhoods. Employing longitudinal census tract data for four [U.S.] cities this article predicts racial composition of neighborhoods as a function of earlier-period racial ethnic socioeconomic and physical characteristics. There is support for aspects of the ecological and filtering models of succession although many elements of the process are not generally applicable across time and place. (EXCERPT)
The English You Need to Know: Language Ideology in a Citizenship Classroom.

Abstract This study examines the discursive construction of adequate English proficiency through error correction in citizenship classrooms. In particular, the microanalysis of corrective sequences demonstrates that such proficiency is viewed narrowly – as a practical tool for passing the naturalization interview and not necessarily a tool for broader functioning in the society. Hearable grammatical and phonological accuracy is constructed as a major component of the adequate command of English. The views on what it means to speak English well enough for the purposes of naturalization appear to be deeply rooted in the ideological notions of language for citizenship in the U.S.
DESMID‐BACTERIAL ASSOCIATIONS IN SPHAGNUM‐DOMINATED WISCONSIN PEATLANDS1

In a survey employing epifluorescence microscopy with the DNA fluorochrome DAPI, associations between bacteria and filamentous desmids were found to be commonplace in acidic, Sphagnum-dominated Wisconsin peat-lands. Bacteria were associated with all genera of filamentous desmids encountered including Desmidium, Hyalotheca, Onychonema, Spondylosium, and Teilingia. Although only associations involving filamentous desmids having mucilaginous sheaths are illustrated here, bacteria were also noted on taxa lacking sheaths as well as some unicellular forms. Bacteria on Desmidium majus Lagerheim, D. grevillii (Kutz.) De Bary, and Hyalotheca dissiliens (Smith) Breb. ex Ralfs tended to be concentrated in small pockets in the sheath material located near the isthmus and in the region between adjacent cells in the filament, whereas those associated with Spondylosium pulchrum (Bail.) Archer were more evenly distributed throughout the sheath. Most bacteria were rodshaped. Those associated with S. pulchrum, D. grevillii, and D. majus ranged from 1.1 to 11.2 μm in length. Bacteria within the sheaths of H. dissiliens and D. grevillii were Gram-negative. A second morphologically distinct population of bacteria was found at the sheath margin in D. majus and D. grevillii. Field collections containing filamentous desmids were examined with scanning electron microscopy and bacteria associated with Desmidium majus were investigated with transmission electron microscopy.
Dopant activation and strain relaxation in P-implanted metastable pseudomorphic Ge0.12Si0.88 grown on Si(100)

Metastable pseudomorphic Ge 0.12 Si 0.88 films of 265 nm thickness were grown on Si(100) substrates by molecular beam epitaxy and then implanted with 100 keV phosphorus ions at room temperature to doses of 5x10 13 cm -2 (lightly implanted) and 1.5 X 10 15 cm -2 (heavily implanted), respectively. The damage and strain of the films were measured by MeV 4 He channeling spectrometry, transmission electron microscopy, and double-crystal X-ray diffractometry. The projected range of P ions is about half of the epilayer thickness. In both cases, no noticeable damage at the Si-GeSi interface is observed after the implantation. The top ∼ 190 nm of the heavily implanted samples are amorphized by the implantation, while the lightly implanted samples are not amorphized. Implanted samples, together with non-implanted reference samples, were subsequently annealed in a vacuum furnace for 30 min from 400-800°C. For the lightly implanted samples, most of the implantation-induced damage and strain can be effectively removed by furnace annealing at 400-550°C; the electrical activation of P ions at these low annealing temperatures is poor. Annealing of the lightly implanted samples at higher temperatures improves the dopant activation, but results in strain relaxation of the heterostructure. For the heavily implanted samples annealed at or above 500°C, the top amorphous GeSi regrows by solid-phase epitaxy and the implanted phosphorus ions reach ∼ 100% activation after the completion of solid-phase epitaxial regrowth. The regrown GeSi, however, is fully relaxed with a high density of threading dislocations (∼ 10 10 -10 11 cm -2 ). If a heavily implanted sample is annealed at or above 700°C, misfit dislocations appear at the Si-GeSi interface; at 800°C strain in the entire GeSi becomes fully relaxed. Strain relaxation of the Si/GeSi heterostructure is significantly enhanced by the implantation. This enhancement appears to be a function of the ion dose. We conclude that as a metastable pseudomorphic Ge 0.12 Si 0.88 layer on Si(100) is doped with P implantation, steady-state furnace annealing cannot achieve full dopant activation in the epilayer without the loss of its crystalline perfection and its pseudomorphic strain.
Kleine-Levin syndrome and idiopathic hypersomnia: Spectrum disorders

Kleine-Levin syndrome (KLS) and idiopathic hypersomnia (IH) are primary sleep disorders of unknown etiologies, which often run a chronic course. The common core symptoms of these syndromes are hypersomnolence and sleep drunkenness, with periodic hypersomnolence and hyperphagia being the prominent symptoms of KLS. Psychiatric manifestations are common to both and include irritability, depression, apathy, inattention and poor concentration. Both disorders are diagnosed clinically and no specific laboratory investigation is available to confirm the diagnosis. We present a case highlighting the overlapping of the symptoms of KLS and IH, producing a complex clinical picture.
Policy choices in South Asian tourism development

Abstract Government tourism initiatives in developing countries have been applauded by tourism scholars as a means of assisting a private sector that has insufficient resources and assuring public control of the industry's future. This article reviews the tourism development experience of seven South Asian countries (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, the Maldive Republic) on five policy options: public versus private tourism development; domestic versus international tourism; class versus mass tourism; centralization versus decentralization; and integrated versus enclave tourism. All of the governments in the region have been involved in tourism development to some degree, but they have shown considerable variation in their responses to these policy choices. Which choices are made by a specific country, it is suggested, will depend as much on political and cultural considerations as upon economic factors.
“This ain't no sideshow”: Historians and media studies

In recent years, challenges from inside as well as outside the discipline have encouraged historians to investigate mass communication processes and texts as primary evidence about the past. Historically grounded inquiries into mass communication have focused on three related areas of analysis: apparatus centered criticism, social history, and textual interpretation. This rich body of scholarship has begun to answer important questions about history and cultural theory, but it has also pointed the way toward even more complex and intriguing work yet to be done.
Cascade Vortical Gust Response Including Steady Loading Effects

A series of experiments are performed to investigate the effect of steady loading and separated flow on the unsteady vortical gust response of both low and high solidity blade rows, including the effects of airfoil camber. This is accomplished utilizing a unique single stage turbomachine research facility in which the flow is not generated by the blading but rather by an additional fan. This provides the ability to quantify the steady or mean performance of the stator row over a range of steady loading levels both with and without unsteady flow effects. In particular, for a particular mean stator angle-of-attack, the steady and mean aerodynamic performance are determined in a steady flow and also in an unsteady flow generated by a rotor composed of perforated plates at the same mean operating condition. This enables the stator vane row dynamic stall conditions to be identified. The unsteady aerodynamic response of both symmetric and cambered stator vanes configured as low and high solidity stator vane rows is then investigated over a range of mean angle-of-attack values, including attached and separated flows with dynamic stall.Copyright © 1995 by ASME
A limited number of antibody specificities mediate broad and potent serum neutralization in selected HIV-1 infected individuals.

A protective vaccine against HIV-1 will likely require the elicitation of a broadly neutralizing antibody (bNAb) response. Although the development of an immunogen that elicits such antibodies remains elusive, a proportion of HIV-1 infected individuals evolve broadly neutralizing serum responses over time, demonstrating that the human immune system can recognize and generate NAbs to conserved epitopes on the virus. Understanding the specificities that mediate broad neutralization will provide insight into which epitopes should be targeted for immunogen design and aid in the isolation of broadly neutralizing monoclonal antibodies from these donors. Here, we have used a number of new and established technologies to map the bNAb specificities in the sera of 19 donors who exhibit among the most potent cross-clade serum neutralizing activities observed to date. The results suggest that broad and potent serum neutralization arises in most donors through a limited number of specificities (1–2 per donor). The major targets recognized are an epitope defined by the bNAbs PG9 and PG16 that is associated with conserved regions of the V1, V2 and V3 loops, an epitope overlapping the CD4 binding site and possibly the coreceptor binding site, an epitope sensitive to a loss of the glycan at N332 and distinct from that recognized by the bNAb 2G12 and an epitope sensitive to an I165A substitution. In approximately half of the donors, key N-linked glycans were critical for expression of the epitopes recognized by the bNAb specificities in the sera.
Classroom-Based Social Skills Training: Impact on Peer Acceptance of First-Grade Students

The effectiveness of regular classroom-based social skills training that was co-facilitated by the classroom teacher and a school psychologist was examined in this study. Results indicated significant gains in peer acceptance on the Work With peer rating scale and practical, but marginal, gains on the Play With peer rating scale. Our primary intentions were to (a) boost the likelihood of social skills training taking place in the regular classroom with the teacher as the provider and (b) facilitate collaboration between regular education teachers and related school personnel.
Energy dependence of the response of a 3He long counter

Abstract A polyethylene-moderated 3 He neutron detector that had previously been found to have an energy-independent efficiency for broad-spectrum neutron sources is apparently resonant to 450 keV neutrons.
Theatricality. Edited by Tracy C. Davis and Thomas Postlewait. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003; pp. 236. $55 cloth; $23.99 paper.

The concepts of theatricality and performativity have been enormously productive sources of recent scholarship in the fields of theatre and performance studies. While the former term has a long history of use and abuse, the latter has gained contemporary currency in connection with the emergence of performance studies, on the one hand, and new interpretations and applications of J. L. Austin's 1950s philosophy, on the other. As scholars have reexamined theatricality and probed performativity, a number of new uses of these terms have developed, and depending on the scholar's viewpoint, a binary or sometimes hierarchical relationship between these terms has prevailed.
Dimensionless Correlation of the Hanging Film Phenomenon

The hanging film experiments of Wallis and Makkenchery and Pushkina and Sorokin are reviewed. The results indicate that the product of the Kutateladze number and the square root of the gas phase friction coefficient should be a constant for tubes for which the Bond number exceeds 20. A tentative dimensionless correlation of the data is advanced but more experiments are needed to resolve the mechanisms governing the phenomenon.
CHARACTERIZATION OF THE GLUCOCORTICOID RECEPTOR TRANSLOCATED TO THE NUCLEUS IN INTACT AtT-20 MOUSE PITUITARY TUMOR CELLS AT LOW TEMPERATURES

Although low temperatures retard the nuclear translocation of glucocorticoid-receptor complexes, they do not completely inhibit it. To gain insight into the mechanism of nuclear translocation, we determined the Stokes radius and surface charge density of the receptors bound to the nucleus at 0 C and compared them with the values obtained from standard preparations of activated and unactivated glucocorticoid receptors. Specifically, intact, viable AtT-20 cells were incubated at 0 C for 3 h with 10 nM tritiated triamcinolone acetonide and the nuclear receptor extracted with 0.3 M KC1/20 mM sodium molybdate. These nuclear receptors were found to elute from an Agarose A 1.5 m column with a Stokes radius identical to that of an “activated” receptor (6.4 nm) but eluted from a DEAE column at the same position as an “unactivated” species (0.17 M KC1). From these results we hypothesize that the change in receptor structure that leads to nuclear binding is a multistep process, and although the change in molecular s...
Savings behaviour in low-income countries

The empirical literature on savings in low-income countries has exploited some remarkable data sets to shed new light on savings behaviour in the poor agricultural households that make up the majority of the population in such countries. A number of conclusions have emerged: (i) the degree of consumption smoothing over seasons within the year and across years, in response to very large income fluctuations, is higher than was supposed; (ii) the lack of complete insurance and credit markets, however, is manifested in asset stocks and asset compositions among farmers, especially small farmers, that are inefficient; (iii) the combination of low and volatile incomes is an important cause of inefficiency and income inequality; (iv) the proximity of formal financial institutions increases financial savings and crowds out informal insurance arrangements, thus, in principle, better facilitating financial intermediation; and (iv) simple life-cycle models of savings do not appear to explain long-term savings in low-income settings. Copyright 2001, Oxford University Press.
Polishing wear resistance of ion-implanted 304 steel

Steel (AISI-304) disks, polished to a 3 μm diamond finish, were implanted to doses of about 2 × 1017/cm2 with N+, Ni+ or, Ne+, ions. Polishing wear rates, measured to a depth resolution of about 20 nm, showed that each of the implanted disks wore 20% to 40% faster than nonimplanted layers. Auger analysis showed (1) Gaussian-like profiles of the N-implanted layer, but with somewhat enhanced oxidation of the surface, and (2) a sputter-limited implantation profile in the Ni-implantcd layer, with some vacuum carburization. Transmission electron microscope analysis indicated that polishing produced an α′-martensite layer in the mainly austenitic 304 surface, but that implantation of N transformed the martensite to austenite at the outermost layers and produced iron nitrides below. In addition. Nimplantation stabilized the austenite against martensite transformation during subsequent wear. Martensite vanished after Ni implantation because of sputter removal, not phase transformation, during Ni bombardment. The Ne-implanted layer remained predominantly martensite. Changes in wear rates and microstructures were confined to depths commensurate with the range of ions in the implanted layer. Several hypotheses on the effects of ion implantation on microstructureand wear are discussed.
Axonal transport of a clathrin uncoating ATPase (HSC70): a role for HSC70 in the modulation of coated vesicle assembly in vivo

Clathrin plays an important role in many cellular processes, including endocytosis, secretion, and sorting of membranous organelles. Both the neuronal cell body and presynaptic terminals contain numerous coated vesicles, but few are detectable in the axonal regions that connect these two regions of the neuron. Clathrin heavy chains, light chains, and assembly proteins have all been shown to be axonally transported as part of slow component b (SCb). However, the paucity of coated vesicles present in the axon indicates the existence of a mechanism regulating clathrin coated assembly in vivo. A clathrin uncoating ATPase has been described that binds in stoichiometric amounts to clathrin and dissociates clathrin coats from vesicles in the presence of ATP in vitro. This clathrin uncoating ATPase is a major cytosolic protein of Mr 70 kD in bovine brain, forming 1% of soluble brain protein, and appears to be homologous with a constitutively expressed 70 kd heat shock protein (HSC70). We report here that a major 70 kD protein present in the SCb rate component of axonal transport is identical with HSC70 by both biochemical and immunochemical criteria. The cotransport of HSC70 with clathrin in SCb of axonal transport is consistent with a role for HSC70 in vivo in the regulation of clathrin function during axonal transport.
Mutations in conserved domains IV and VI of the large (L) subunit of the sendai virus RNA polymerase give a spectrum of defective RNA synthesis phenotypes.

The Sendai virus RNA polymerase is a complex of two virus-encoded proteins, the phosphoprotein (P) and the large (L) protein. When aligned with amino acid sequences of L proteins from other negative-sense RNA viruses, the Sendai L protein contains six regions of good conservation, designated domains I–VI, which have been postulated to be important for the various enzymatic activities of the polymerase. To directly address the roles of domains IV and VI, 14 site-directed mutations were constructed either by changing clustered charged amino acids to ala or by substituting selected Sendai L amino acids with the corresponding sequence from measles virus L. Each mutant L protein was tested for its ability to transcribe and replicate the Sendai genome. The series of mutations created a spectrum of phenotypes, from those with significant, near wild-type, activity to those being completely defective for all RNA synthesis. The inactive L proteins, however, were still able to bind P protein and form a polymerase capable of binding the nucleocapsid template. The remainder of the mutations reduced, but did not abolish, enzymatic activity and included one mutant with a specific defect in the synthesis of the leader RNA compared with mRNA, and three mutants that replicated genome RNA much more efficiently in vivo than in vitro. Together, these data suggest that even within a domain, the function of the Sendai L protein is likely to be very complex. In addition, SS3 and SS10 L in domain IV and SS13 L in domain VI were shown to be temperature-sensitive. Both SS3 and SS10 gave significant, although not wild-type, activity at 32°C; however, each was completely inactivated for all RNA synthesis at 37 and 39.6°C. SS13 was completely inactive only when synthesized at the higher temperature. Each polymerase synthesized at 32°C could only be partially heat inactivated in vitro at 39.6°C, suggesting that inactivation involves both thermal lability of the protein and temperature sensitivity for its synthesis.
Role of nuclear antigens and antinuclear antibodies in inflammation.

Abstract The sera of patients with lupus erythematosus and other “autosensitivity” diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis, frequently contain not only the LE cell factor but antinuclear antibodies directed against denatured and native DNA, Sm antigen of the nucleus, protein associated with RNA, and probably many other nuclear antigens. The patients rarely have antibody only to a single nuclear antigen and, furthermore, these antinuclear antibodies are found to be heterogeneous immunoglobulins of the γG, γA, and γM immunoglobulin classes. Data are presented which suggest that at least in rheumatoid arthritis the antibodies may be the result rather than the cause of the disease. Similar antibodies have been elicited by immunization of animals with killed bacteria, human serum, and DNA components conjugated to carrier proteins. Animals with such experimentally induced antibodies do not acquire “human” diseases and it is of further interest that such antinuclear antibodies are found in low concentrations in humans without disease. The above data, taken together with the observations that antinuclear antibodies are generally incapable of injuring intact cells, initially suggest that these antibodies have limited pathogenetic significance. This may not be the case, however, because there is increasing evidence that nuclear antigens and antinuclear antibodies may be one of a series of antigen-antibody combinations capable of eliciting inflammation of the synovium within the joint and along the basement membrane of the renal glomerulus. One animal disease which may bear on this question is Aleutian disease of mink. We have recently had the opportunity to examine 16 pairs of mink sera taken before and after the onset of the disease. Nuclear antigen (DNA) was detected in all these sera both before and after onset of the disease. Only in the diseased animals was antinuclear antibody detectable. It has been suggested by others that the vasculitis and other immunopathologic features of Aleutian disease are due to circulating antigen-antibody complexes even though the disease can be transmitted from mink to mink by filterable material.
Measurements of Compton scattered transition radiation at high Lorentz factors

Abstract X-ray transition radiation can be used to measure the Lorentz factor of relativistic particles. Standard transition radiation detectors (TRDs) typically incorporate thin plastic foil, foam, or fiber radiators and gas-filled X-ray detectors, and are sensitive up to γ∼104. To reach Lorentz factors up to γ∼105, thicker, denser radiators can be used, which consequently produce X-rays of harder energies (≳100 keV ) . At these energies, scintillator detectors are more efficient in detecting the hard X-rays, and Compton scattering of the X-rays out of the path of the particle becomes important. The Compton scattering can be utilized to separate the transition radiation from the ionization background spatially. The use of conducting metal foils is predicted to yield enhanced signals compared to standard nonconducting plastic foils of the same dimensions. We have designed and built an inorganic scintillator-based Compton Scatter TRD optimized for high Lorentz factors and exposed it to high-energy electrons at the CERN SPS. We present the results of the accelerator tests and comparisons to simulations, demonstrating (1) the effectiveness of the Compton Scatter TRD approach; (2) the performance of conducting aluminum foils; and (3) the ability of a TRD to measure energies approximately an order of magnitude higher than previously used in very high-energy cosmic ray studies.
Multiscale Part-Spectrum k-Distribution Database for Atomic Radiation in Hypersonic Nonequilibrium Flows

An accurate and compact part-spectrum k-distribution database has been developed for the two most important radiating species N and O encountered in hypersonic nonequilibrium flows. The database allows users to calculate the desired full-spectrum k-distributions through look-up and interpolation, providing an efficient means to perform radiative transfer calculations. A detailed methodology of the k-distribution data generation is presented. An optimized Gauss quadrature scheme is implemented for reducing the size of the database. The accuracy of the database is determined by comparing partspectrum emissivities with those obtained from line-by-line calculations. The application of the database to construct full-spectrum k-distributions at arbitrary gas states is discussed. Heat transfer results for the stagnation line of the Stardust vehicle are discussed and CPU-time studies are presented, demonstrating the accuracy and efficiency of the k-distribution database. [DOI: 10.1115/1.4004528]
ISOLATOR: dynamically ensuring isolation in comcurrent programs

In this paper, we focus on concurrent programs that use locks to achieve isolation of data accessed by critical sections of code. We present ISOLATOR, an algorithm that guarantees isolation for well-behaved threads of a program that obey a locking discipline even in the presence of ill-behaved threads that disobey the locking discipline. ISOLATOR uses code instrumentation, data replication, and virtual memory protection to detect isolation violations and delays ill-behaved threads to ensure isolation. Our instrumentation scheme requires access only to the code of well-behaved threads. We have evaluated ISOLATOR on several benchmark programs and found that ISOLATOR can ensure isolation with reasonable runtime overheads. In addition, we present three general desiderata - safety, isolation, and permissiveness - for any scheme that attempts to ensure isolation, and formally prove that ISOLATOR satisfies all of these desiderata.
Find, Remind, and Bind: The Functions of Gratitude in Everyday Relationships

Though interest in the emotion of gratitude has historically focused on its role in social exchange, new evidence suggests a different and more important role for gratitude in social life. The find-remind-and-bind theory of gratitude posits that the positive emotion of gratitude serves the evolutionary function of strengthening a relationship with a responsive interaction partner (Algoe, Haidt, & Gable, 2008). The current article identifies prior, economic models of gratitude, elaborates on unique features of the find-remind-and-bind theory, reviews the accumulating evidence for gratitude in social life in light of this novel perspective, and discusses how the find-remind-and-bind theory is relevant to methodology and hypothesis testing. In sum, within the context of reciprocally-altruistic relationships, gratitude signals communal relationship norms and may be an evolved mechanism to fuel upward spirals of mutually responsive behaviors between recipient and benefactor. In this way, gratitude is important for forming and maintaining the most important relationships of our lives, those with the people we interact with every day.
Multiresolution Hierarchical Path-Planning for Small UAVs Using Wavelet Decompositions

We present an algorithm for solving the shortest (collision-free) path planning problem for an agent (e.g., a small UAV) with limited on-board computational resources. The agent has detailed knowledge of the environment and the obstacles only in the vicinity of its current position. Far away obstacles are only partially known and may even change dynamically. The algorithm makes use of the wavelet transform to construct an approximation of the environment at different levels of resolution. We associate with this multiresolution representation of the environment a graph, whose dimension can be made commensurate to the on-board computational resources of the agent. The adjacency list of the graph can be efficiently constructed directly from the approximation and detail wavelet coefficients, thus further speeding up the whole process. Simulations are presented to test the efficiency of the algorithm using non-trivial scenarios.
Effects of dietary carbohydrate restriction versus low-fat diet on flow-mediated dilation

We previously reported that a carbohydrate-restricted diet (CRD) ameliorated many of the traditional markers associated with metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular risk compared with a low-fat diet (LFD). There remains concern how CRD affects vascular function because acute meals high in fat have been shown to impair endothelial function. Here, we extend our work and address these concerns by measuring fasting and postprandial vascular function in 40 overweight men and women with moderate hypertriacylglycerolemia who were randomly assigned to consume hypocaloric diets (approximately 1500 kcal) restricted in carbohydrate (percentage of carbohydrate-fat-protein = 12:59:28) or LFD (56:24:20). Flow-mediated dilation of the brachial artery was assessed before and after ingestion of a high-fat meal (908 kcal, 84% fat) at baseline and after 12 weeks. Compared with the LFD, the CRD resulted in a greater decrease in postprandial triacylglycerol (-47% vs -15%, P = .007), insulin (-51% vs -6%, P = .009), and lymphocyte (-12% vs -1%, P = .050) responses. Postprandial fatty acids were significantly increased by the CRD compared with the LFD (P = .033). Serum interleukin-6 increased significantly over the postprandial period; and the response was augmented in the CRD (46%) compared with the LFD (-13%) group (P = .038). After 12 weeks, peak flow-mediated dilation at 3 hours increased from 5.1% to 6.5% in the CRD group and decreased from 7.9% to 5.2% in the LFD group (P = .004). These findings show that a 12-week low-carbohydrate diet improves postprandial vascular function more than a LFD in individuals with atherogenic dyslipidemia.
Embryonic Salivary Gland Branching Morphogenesis

Salivary submandibular gland (SMG) morphogenesis is regulated by the functional integration of stage-specific growth factor-, cytokine- and transcription factor-mediated signaling which mediates specific patterns of cell proliferation, cell quiescence, apoptosis, and histodifferentiation. We describe the stage-specific distribution of protein components of key signaling pathways during embryonic SMG development and correlate their protein expression patterns with cell proliferation and apoptosis. We then review the critical role of the Fibroblast Growth Factor (FGF), Hedgehog (Hh) and Ectodysplasin (Eda) signaling pathways and discuss how they may interact within the context of a nonlinear genetic network.
Treatment of a deaf multiple personality disorder.

(1991). Treatment of a Deaf Multiple Personality Disorder. American Journal of Clinical Hypnosis: Vol. 34, No. 1, pp. 68-69.
Multi-crease self-folding by global heating

This study demonstrates a new approach to autonomous folding for the body of a 3D robot from a 2D sheet, using heat. We approach this challenge by folding a 0.27-mm sheetlike material into a structure. We utilize the thermal deformation of a contractive sheet sandwiched by rigid structural layers. During this baking process, the heat applied on the entire sheet induces contraction of the contracting layer and thus forms an instructed bend in the sheet. To attain the targeted folding angles, the V-fold spans method is used. The targeted angle I¸out can be kinematically encoded into crease geometry. The realization of this angle in the folded structure can be approximately controlled by a contraction angle I¸in. The process is non-reversible, is reliable, and is relatively fast. Our method can be applied simultaneously to all the folds in multi-crease origami structures. We demonstrate the use of this method to create a lightweight mobile robot.
Sources Of Error In Thematic Classification Of Remotely Sensed Imagery

From a statistician's point of view, the input datasets are rarely examined to determine their underlying frequency distribution; it is just assumed that the data are normal enough, and that the deviations from normality are unimportant. It is not clear how deviations from a hypothetical multivariate normal might affect the power of the classification process, and there is ample evidence in the literature that, at a minimum, the spectral channels are correlated. From a practioner's point of view, in a supervised classification the number of training fields for developing a statistical description of a given class is usually arbitrary. It is unclear how small changes in the details of the training field selection process affect the quality of the derived thematic information. The start of an examination of this latter problem is discussed.
Automatic rapid prototyping of semi-custom VLSI circuits using Actel FPGAs

We describe a technique for translating semicustom VLSI circuits automatically into field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) for rapid prototyping to develop a system. Using an array multiplier as an example of this translation, the VLSI circuits are designed using a cell-matrix based environment. The multiplier is implemented in CMOS in both synchronous and asynchronous pipelined versions, and translated into Actel FPGAs. All test chips were found to be fully functional, and the translation efficiency in terms of chip speed and area is shown.
Correspondence-free multi-camera activity analysis and scene modeling

We propose a novel approach for activity analysis in multiple synchronized but uncalibrated static camera views. We assume that the topology of camera views is unknown and quite arbitrary, the fields of views covered by these cameras may have no overlap or any amount of overlap, and objects may move on different ground planes. Using low-level cues, objects are tracked in each of the camera views independently, and the positions and velocities of objects along trajectories are computed as features. Under a generative model, our approach jointly learns the distribution of an activity in the feature spaces of different camera views. It accomplishes two tasks: (1) grouping trajectories in different camera views belonging to the same activity into one cluster; (2) modeling paths commonly taken by objects across camera views. To our knowledge, no prior result of co-clustering trajectories in multiple camera views has been published. Advantages of this approach are that it does not require first solving the challenging correspondence problem, and the learning is unsupervised. Our approach is evaluated on two very large data sets with 22, 951 and 14, 985 trajectories.
Locality-Preserving Discriminant Analysis in Kernel-Induced Feature Spaces for Hyperspectral Image Classification

Linear discriminant analysis (LDA) has been widely applied for hyperspectral image (HSI) analysis as a popular method for feature extraction and dimensionality reduction. Linear methods such as LDA work well for unimodal Gaussian class-conditional distributions. However, when data samples between classes are nonlinearly separated in the input space, linear methods such as LDA are expected to fail. The kernel discriminant analysis (KDA) attempts to address this issue by mapping data in the input space onto a subspace such that Fisher's ratio in an intermediate (higher-dimensional) kernel-induced space is maximized. In recent studies with HSI data, KDA has been shown to outperform LDA, particularly when the data distributions are non-Gaussian and multimodal, such as when pixels represent target classes severely mixed with background classes. In this letter, a modified KDA algorithm, i.e., kernel local Fisher discriminant analysis (KLFDA), is studied for HSI analysis. Unlike KDA, KLFDA imposes an additional constraint on the mapping-it ensures that neighboring points in the input space stay close-by in the projected subspace and vice versa. Classification experiments with a challenging HSI task demonstrate that this approach outperforms current state-of-the-art HSI-classification methods.
Qualitative/fuzzy approach to document recognition

Qualitative and fuzzy representations are presented for modeling the geometric and topological attributes of orthogonal image blocks in a document layout. Qualitative models provide a compact representation since there is no absolute metric; at the same time they preserve much of the important information such as tangency relations and symmetry. A fuzzy logic approach allows some degree of uncertainty in recognizing document blocks and modeling human perception. It is shown that using qualitative reasoning in conjunction with fuzzy logic permits the production of a model that is capable of handling a wider class of documents despite variable locations and sizes of the blocks in the document. The model is based on a new point-interval representation which retains both topological and geometrical attributes of the block regions within a qualitative nonnumeric framework, and a grade of membership vector for each block. >