cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The influence of spaceflight and simulated microgravity on bacterial motility and chemotaxis

As interest in space exploration rises, there is a growing need to quantify the impact of microgravity on the growth, survival, and adaptation of microorganisms, including those responsible for astronaut illness. Motility is a key microbial behavior that plays important roles in nutrient assimilation, tissue localization and invasion, pathogenicity, biofilm formation, and ultimately survival. Very few studies have specifically looked at the effects of microgravity on the phenotypes of microbial motility. However, genomic and transcriptomic studies give a broad general picture of overall gene expression that can be used to predict motility phenotypes based upon selected genes, such as those responsible for flagellar synthesis and function and/or taxis. In this review, we focus on specific strains of Gram-negative bacteria that have been the most studied in this context. We begin with a discussion of Earth-based microgravity simulation systems and how they may affect the genes and phenotypes of interest. We then summarize results from both Earth- and space-based systems showing effects of microgravity on motility-related genes and phenotypes.
Statistical robustness of Markov chain Monte Carlo accelerators

Statistical machine learning often uses probabilistic models and algorithms, such as Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC), to solve a wide range of problems. Probabilistic computations, often considered too slow on conventional processors, can be accelerated with specialized hardware by exploiting parallelism and optimizing the design using various approximation techniques. Current methodologies for evaluating correctness of probabilistic accelerators are often incomplete, mostly focusing only on end-point result quality ("accuracy"). It is important for hardware designers and domain experts to look beyond end-point "accuracy" and be aware of how hardware optimizations impact statistical properties. This work takes a first step toward defining metrics and a methodology for quantitatively evaluating correctness of probabilistic accelerators. We propose three pillars of statistical robustness: 1) sampling quality, 2) convergence diagnostic, and 3) goodness of fit. We apply our framework to a representative MCMC accelerator and surface design issues that cannot be exposed using only application end-point result quality. We demonstrate the benefits of this framework to guide design space exploration in a case study showing that statistical robustness comparable to floating-point software can be achieved with limited precision, avoiding floating-point hardware overheads.
Linear reinforcement learning in planning, grid fields, and cognitive control

It is thought that the brain's judicious reuse of previous computation underlies our ability to plan flexibly, but also that inappropriate reuse gives rise to inflexibilities like habits and compulsion. Yet we lack a complete, realistic account of either. Building on control engineering, here we introduce a model for decision making in the brain that reuses a temporally abstracted map of future events to enable biologically-realistic, flexible choice at the expense of specific, quantifiable biases. It replaces the classic nonlinear, model-based optimization with a linear approximation that softly maximizes around (and is weakly biased toward) a default policy. This solution demonstrates connections between seemingly disparate phenomena across behavioral neuroscience, notably flexible replanning with biases and cognitive control. It also provides insight into how the brain can represent maps of long-distance contingencies stably and componentially, as in entorhinal response fields, and exploit them to guide choice even under changing goals.
The Failed Bidirectional Glenn Shunt: Risk Factors for Poor Outcomes and the Role of Early Reoperation.

Background: Bidirectional Glenn shunt (BDG) failure carries high morbidity and mortality but the clinical factors associated with failure and the optimal management strategy are understudied. Methods: A total of 217 patients undergoing BDG at our institution between 1989 and 2020 were retrospectively reviewed and categorized as success or failure. Failure was defined as the need for reoperation (BDG takedown, reoperation for correction of cardiac defect, and/or transplantation) at any time postoperatively; operative mortality (death attributable to BDG malfunction occurring during the index hospitalization for BDG or within 30 days of discharge); or late mortality (death directly attributable to BDG malfunction occurring prior to Fontan or next-stage palliation). Univariate and binary logistic regression analyses were performed. Results: BDG failure occurred in 14 (6.5%) patients. Univariate predictors were: hypoplastic left heart syndrome (P = .037), right ventricular (RV) dominance (P = .010), greater pre-BDG pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR) (P = .012), concomitant atrioventricular valve repair (P = .020), prolonged pleural drainage (P = .001), intensive care unit (P<.001) and hospital (P = .002) stays, and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) requirement (P<.001). Multivariate predictors were: RV dominance (P = .002), greater PVR (P = .041), ICU (P<.001) and hospital (P = .020) stays, and need for ECMO (P<.001). As many as 10 of 14 (71%) patients with BDG failure died. Reoperation was performed for 10 patients with BDG failure. Five reoperation patients survived until discharge, with four patients alive at last follow-up (mean 7.9 years). Survivors underwent reoperation earlier than nonsurvivors (36 vs. 94 days). Conclusions: BDG failure carries high mortality, but preoperative predictors and postoperative indicators of failure exist. Early BDG takedown and insertion of aorta-pulmonary shunt may allow survival.
Complex Graphs and Networks

Graph theory in the information age Old and new concentration inequalities A generative model--the preferential attachment scheme Duplication models for biological networks Random graphs with given expected degrees The rise of the giant component Average distance and the diameter Eigenvalues of the adjacency matrix of $G(\mathbf{w})$ The semi-circle law for $G(\mathbf{w})$ Coupling on-line and off-line analyses of random graphs The configuration model for power law graphs The small world phenomenon in hybrid graphs Bibliography Index.
Max Havelaar and the Demise of European Colonialism

Eduard Douwes Dekker (1820-1887) published the autobiographic novel Max Havelaar in Amsterdam in 1860. Dekker chose to publish his anti-imperialist piece under the pseudonym of Multatuli. The novel appeals to the Dutch nation but more precisely it petitions the colonial ministry and home government to reexamine how its colonial policies affect the Javanese. Under the Kultuurstelsel (Culture System) the Dutch government exploited its colonial subjects and Max Havelaar is Multatuli’s response written "For the purpose of protesting against the endless expeditions and deeds…against poor miserable creatures…." Multatuli gives a voice to the unheard masses of exploited Javanese and declares them "the victims of chronic piracy" (emphasis in original) by the Dutch colonial system. The novel immediately created and continues to create "heated discussions" on the "truth or untruth" regarding Dekker’s 1856 report of his three month term as Assistant Resident of Lebak.
Electronic Mobility in Biological Processes

If you would ask a chemist to find out for you what an electric dynamo is and does, the first thing he would do is to dissolve it in hydrochloric acid. A molecular biologist would fare, perhaps, better. He might take the dynamo to pieces and describe the single pieces with the greatest care. However, if you would suggest to him that maybe there is an invisible fluid, electricity, flowing in that machine, and once he has taken it to pieces that fluid could not flow anymore, then he would scold you as a vitalist which is worse than to be called a communist by an FBI agent.
A brief summary of cognitive patterns for program comprehension

A cognitive pattern is a solution to a recurring mental problem. We focus on those relevant to program comprehension. We expand one pattern, Temporal Details, which is also a pattern language since it decomposes into sub-patterns. Tool designers can use cognitive patterns to grasp how tool users may think.
Growth factor signal transduction and hormone independence in breast cancer

Publisher Summary This chapter describes the growth factor signal transduction and hormone independence in breast cancer. Mitogenesis in breast tissue is mediated in part through the interaction of the steroid hormone estrogen, denoted E2 or 17-β-estradiol, with an intracellular protein, the estrogen receptor (ER). The E2–ER complex acts as a transcription factor to induce expression of specific genes. Hormone-dependent breast cancers express ER and are stimulated by E2, which acts in these cells in part through induction of genes coding for polypeptide growth factors that in turn promote cell growth. The E2-mediated growth stimulation of these cells leads to the use of antiestrogenic drugs to inhibit the growth of these tumors. Hormone-independent breast cancers are not stimulated by E2 and may have no detectable ER expression and are therefore insensitive to antiestrogen treatment. These tumors often express growth factors at high levels. This inverse correlation between ER and over expression of growth factors suggests that the expression of such proteins in an unregulated manner by hormone-dependent breast cancer may contribute to its growth in the absence of E2. It leads to the hypothesis that the constitutive expression of growth factors by a hormone-dependent cancer may contribute to the development of hormone independence.
Evaluation of radiometric system for detecting bacteremia

An automated radiometric system (BACTEC, Johnston Laboratories) for detection of bacteremia was evaluated in parallel with a standard blood culture system in use in our laboratory. Of 1,445 blood cultures from 484 patients with possible bacteremia, 106 sets of cultures (excluding 39 presumed contaminated), representing 56 patients, were positive by both methods. The conventional system yielded 85 positive cultures from 48 patients, whereas the BACTEC system yielded 84 positive cultures from 43 patients. The BACTEC system failed to detect 22 cultures that were positive in the conventional system, and the conventional system failed to detect 21 cultures that were positive in the BACTEC system. The detection efficiency was generally equivalent in the two systems except for the lower detection rates of anaerobes and Enterobacter aerogenes by the BACTEC system and the lower detection rates of Torulopsis glabrata and, possibly, Pseudomonas sp. (group IVD) in the conventional system. The BACTEC system had a slight advantage over the conventional system in the time interval to detection of positivity. Approximately 20% of the positive cultures detected by the BACTEC system were detected on the first day of incubation compared with 7% by the conventional system. The recovery rates and detection times of anaerobes were less efficient by the BACTEC system than by the conventional system. It does not appear that the radiometric method has much advantage over available conventional methods.
Mechano-Chemical Coupling in Shell Adhesion

The coupling between cell deformation and chemical segregation during the early stages of cell adhesion is investigated by studying the equilibrium of thin shells adhered to rigid substrates that are either flat or have topography. A finite-range adhesion law is taken to depend on the local shell-substrate separation and on the local concentrations of segregating chemical species. Nonlinear shell kinematics accounting for finite rotations of both closed spherical shells and open spherical caps are coupled with the equilibrium equations for axisymmetric deformations and linearly elastic material response. Representative solutions demonstrate the thermodynamic coupling that results in nonuniform mechanical and chemical fields, effects of substrate topography, and the influence of finite-range adhesive interactions. Strong coupling is predicted between shell deformation and the level of chemical activation which is measured by the total adhesive energy at equilibrium.
A novel calmodulin antagonist, CGS 9343B, modulates calcium-dependent changes in neurite outgrowth and growth cone movements.

The neurotransmitter 5-HT alters growth cone motility and neurite elongation in neuron B19, isolated from the buccal ganglion of Helisoma trivolvis (Haydon et al., 1984). The effects of 5-HT are mediated by increases in intracellular calcium levels within the growth cones (Cohan et al., 1987). 5-HT causes a receptor-mediated depolarization of the membrane, which results in the opening of voltage-sensitive calcium channels. The resulting calcium influx decreases both the elongation rate and the total outgrowth of neurites. However, the mechanism(s) mediating these calcium-dependent changes is unclear. As many of the intracellular effects of calcium in eukaryotic cells are mediated by the calcium-binding protein calmodulin, we tested the involvement of such an interaction in the regulation of neurite outgrowth. In these experiments, a new, potent calmodulin antagonist with increased selectivity, CGS 9343B (CGS; Norman et al., 1987), was used to inhibit calmodulin activity during the application of 5-HT to neuron B19. The addition of 100 microM 5-HT to the culture medium resulted in a significant decrease in the rate of neurite elongation and total neurite outgrowth. Administration of CGS to the culture medium at a concentration (1.8 microM) equivalent to its IC50 for calmodulin inhibition completely blocked the inhibitory effects of 100 microM 5- HT, on both neurite elongation and total neurite outgrowth. CGS alone caused a slight decrease in elongation rate but had no significant effect on total outgrowth. CGS did not block 5-HT-induced electrical activity, indicating that it was not acting as a 5-HT receptor antagonist.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Back-propagation fuzzy system as nonlinear dynamic system identifiers

The authors develop a training algorithm, similar to the backpropagation algorithm for neural networks, to train fuzzy systems to match desired input-output pairs. The key ideas in developing this training algorithm are to view a fuzzy system as a three-layer feedforward network, and to use the chain rule to determine gradients of the output errors of the fuzzy system with respect to its design parameters. It is shown that this training algorithm performs an error backpropagation procedure: hence, the fuzzy system equipped with the backpropagation training algorithm is called the backpropagation fuzzy system (BP FS). An online initial parameter choosing method is proposed for the BP FS, and it is shown that it is straightforward to incorporate linguistic if-then rules into the BP FS. Two examples are presented which demonstrate (1) how the fuzzy system learns to match an unknown nonlinear mapping as training progresses and (2) that performance is improved by incorporating linguistic rules. >
Using distant supervised learning to identify protein subcellular localizations from full-text scientific articles

Display Omitted Curating protein-location knowledge bases such as UniProtKB is time consuming.Distant learning with full-text articles can augment manual curation efforts.The proposed approach achieved 0.81 precision, 0.49 recall and 82% accuracy.The system identified 8210 new localization instances that were not in UniProtKB. Databases of curated biomedical knowledge, such as the protein-locations reflected in the UniProtKB database, provide an accurate and useful resource to researchers and decision makers. Our goal is to augment the manual efforts currently used to curate knowledge bases with automated approaches that leverage the increased availability of full-text scientific articles. This paper describes experiments that use distant supervised learning to identify protein subcellular localizations, which are important to understand protein function and to identify candidate drug targets. Experiments consider Swiss-Prot, the manually annotated subset of the UniProtKB protein knowledge base, and 43,000 full-text articles from the Journal of Biological Chemistry that contain just under 11.5 million sentences. The system achieves 0.81 precision and 0.49 recall at sentence level and an accuracy of 57% on held-out instances in a test set. Moreover, the approach identifies 8210 instances that are not in the UniProtKB knowledge base. Manual inspection of the 50 most likely relations showed that 41 (82%) were valid. These results have immediate benefit to researchers interested in protein function, and suggest that distant supervision should be explored to complement other manual data curation efforts.
Jewish Spirituality Through Actions in Time: Daily Occupations of Young Orthodox Jewish Couples in Los Angeles

Ethnographic methods were used to study daily occupations and weekly routines of four young Orthodox Jewish couples living in Los Angeles. Data from interviews and participant observation demonstrate the importance to the couples of fulfilling God's commandments [Hebrew, mitzvot], which organize and sanctify the otherwise mundane activities of daily living, such as eating, bathing sleeping, and rising. The article focuses on the couples' experiences in (a) observing the Sabbath, (b) studying and praying, and (c) keeping a kosher home. Orthodox Jewish ritual, practice, and spirituality are time bound and action oriented. Occupational therapists can benefit from understanding how Orthodox Jews invest and experience spiritual meaning in seemingly mundane occupations and routines.
Dynamic Characteristics of Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Tank

In this paper, we develop 3D dynamic models for polymer electrolyte fuel cells (PEFCs) and hydrogen tanks, respectively. The PEFC model considers the key components of a single PEFC and couples the various mechanisms that govern fuel cell transient including the electrochemical double-layer behavior, species transport, heat transfer, liquid water dynamics, and membrane water uptake. The hydrogen tank model includes a 3D description of the hydrogen discharging kinetics coupled with mass/heat transport in a LaNi5 –based hydrogen tank. Efforts are made to discuss the dynamic characteristics of the PEFC and hydrogen tank together with the possible coupling of the two systems. Local electrochemical and hydride reaction rates, transport processes and associated limiting factors are investigated.Copyright © 2010 by ASME
The Interference Microscope in Fiber Research Part I: Initial Studies on Rayon, Cotton, Wool, and Synthetic Fibers

Application of the Baker interference microscope in fiber research is described. It was found possible to reveal and distinguish fine details of the fiber structure and to recognize even minute differences in refractive index by color contrast. It is furthermore possible to determine quantitatively the refractive index of these details. The theoretical back ground is considered and the technique employed described. Typical examples with different fibers are shown.
The new religious rite: a symbolic interactionist case study of lesbian commitment rituals.

SUMMARY Despite the legal and religious establishment's denial of rights and recognition to same-gender couples, many lesbians and gay men are adapting and/or creating their own rituals to affirm their commitments to each other. This article uses participant observation of a black lesbian couple's shower and holy union ceremony to explore the multiple and competing meanings attached to the ritualistic symbols and narratives they incorporated. I seek to complicate the existing framework, in which rituals are held to produce feelings of belonging for participants and serve as vehicles for the social transformation of marginalized groups (e.g., Driver, 1991). By adapting and appropriating ritualistic elements often used in heterosexual weddings, I argue that this couple and their ritual coordinators succeeded in creating a sense of social order, "communitas" (Turner, 1969), and personal and social transformation for some participants. However, I also suggest that the achievement of these functions hinged on the creation of symbolic out-groups and the reproduction of social conventions around gender, the family, and the "appropriate" expression of sex in marriage, which diminished the experience of communitas and social transformation for other participants. Future research should focus on the competing expectations and interpretations participants bring to their experiences of rituals and the ways in which existing structures of power and authority may limit rituals' social functionality, creation of communitas, and revolutionary potential.
Dynamics of the transcriptome response of cultured human embryonic stem cells to ionizing radiation exposure.

Abstract One of the key consequences of exposure of human cells to genotoxic agents is the activation of DNA damage responses (DDR). While the mechanisms underpinning DDR in fully differentiated somatic human cells have been studied extensively, molecular signaling events and pathways involved in DDR in pluripotent human embryonic stem cells (hESC) remain largely unexplored. We studied changes in the human genome-wide transcriptome of H9 hESC line following exposures to 1 Gy of gamma-radiation at 2 h and 16 h post-irradiation. Quantitative real-time PCR was performed to verify the expression data for a subset of genes. In parallel, the cell growth, DDR kinetics, and expression of pluripotency markers in irradiated hESC were monitored. The changes in gene expression in hESC after exposure to ionizing radiation (IR) are substantially different from those observed in somatic human cell lines. Gene expression patterns at 2 h post-IR showed almost an exclusively p53-dependent, predominantly pro-apoptotic, signature with a total of only 30 up-regulated genes. In contrast, the gene expression patterns at 16 h post-IR showed 354 differentially expressed genes, mostly involved in pro-survival pathways, such as increased expression of metallothioneins, ubiquitin cycle, and general metabolism signaling. Cell growth data paralleled trends in gene expression changes. DDR in hESC followed the kinetics reported for human somatic differentiated cells. The expression of pluripotency markers characteristic of undifferentiated hESC was not affected by exposure to IR during the time course of our analysis. Our data on dynamics of transcriptome response of irradiated hESCs may provide a valuable tool to screen for markers of IR exposure of human cells in their most naive state; thus unmasking the key elements of DDR; at the same time, avoiding the complexity of interpreting distinct cell type-dependent genotoxic stress responses of terminally differentiated cells.
Transient Left Ventricular Dysfunction Under Severe Stress: Brain-Heart Relationship Revisited

Abstract Purpose Transient left ventricular dysfunction in patients under emotional or physical stress, also known as tako-tsubo-like left ventricular dysfunction, has been recently been recognized as a distinct clinical entity. The aims of this review are to define this phenomenon and to explore its similarities to the left ventricular dysfunction seen in patients with acute brain injury. Methods MEDLINE database, bibliographies of each citation for relevant articles, and consultation with clinical experts were used to examine the clinical picture of tako-tsubo-like left ventricular dysfunction. Results We identified case series and a systematic review that report on patients with this syndrome. This phenomenon occurs predominantly in female patients, presenting with a variety of ST-T segment changes and mildly elevated cardiac enzymes that mimic an acute coronary syndrome. The left ventricular dysfunction, typically showing a hyperkinetic basal region and an akinetic apical half of the ventricle, occurs in the absence of obstructed epicardial coronary arteries. The ventricular dysfunction usually resolves within weeks with a generally favorable prognosis. This phenomenon has similarities to that seen in patients with acute brain injury with regard to clinical presentation, pathology, and its reversible nature. Conclusions Transient left ventricular dysfunction occurs in the absence of obstructive epicardial coronary artery disease. In its broadest sense, this phenomenon may encompass a range of disorders including left ventricular dysfunction after central nervous system injury.
Majority Involvement in Minority Movements: Civil Rights, Abolition, Untouchability1

Social movements seeking to change the subordinate status of ethnic minorities have drawn activists from both the minority and dominant groups. Conflict has at times developed between movement members of these two groups. In a comparative analysis of three movements—the civil rights movement, the anti-slavery cause in the U.S., and the movement to abolish Untouchability in India—the sources of tension appear quite similar. Ideologically, minority group activists viewed themselves as more radical and committed to that particular cause than did their dominant group co-workers and were more for a strategy of minority group self-help. Organizational conflict arose as majority members disproportionately assumed decision-making positions in the movement. A third source of tension developed because some movement members were carriers of prejudices and hostilities of the larger social milieu. Outsiders frequently played essential roles in the early phases of these movements, but pressures developed on majority members to reduce involvement or withdraw altogether.
Light Control of Anthocyanin Biosynthesis in Zea Seedlings

Evidence for involvement of two non-photosynthetic pigments in photoinduction of anthocyanin biosynthesis in the roots and mesocotyls of Zea mays L. seedlings is presented. Short (5 min), low energy (4.5 × 103 J m−2) fluences of red light neither induced anthocyanin synthesis nor enhanced phenylalanine ammonia-lyase activity in dark-grown maize seedlings. Little anthocyanin synthesis and no enhancement of phenylalanine ammonia-lyase activity was induced by continuous far-red light. Continuous white or blue light induced both anthocyanin synthesis and enhanced phenylalanine ammonia-lyase activity. These results show that phytochrome alone cannot induce anthocyanin synthesis in maize seedlings. However, a strong phytochrome mediation of white light induced pigment synthesis was demonstrated. This effect was not demonstrable with white light enhanced phenylalanine ammonia-lyase activity, indicating that phytochrome controls another step in anthocyanin biosynthesis.
Cross-diffusion induced Turing instability for a three species food chain model

Abstract In this paper, we study a strongly coupled reaction–diffusion system describing three interacting species in a food chain model, where the third species preys on the second one and simultaneously the second species preys on the first one. We first show that the unique positive equilibrium solution is globally asymptotically stable for the corresponding ODE system. The positive equilibrium solution remains linearly stable for the reaction–diffusion system without cross-diffusion, hence it does not belong to the classical Turing instability scheme. We further proved that the positive equilibrium solution is globally asymptotically stable for the reaction–diffusion system without cross-diffusion by constructing a Lyapunov function. But it becomes linearly unstable only when cross-diffusion also plays a role in the reaction–diffusion system, hence the instability is driven solely from the effect of cross-diffusion. Our results also exhibit some interesting combining effects of cross-diffusion, intra-species competitions and inter-species interactions.
Social Knowledge and Citizenship Education: Two Views of Truth and Criticism

(1980). Social Knowledge and Citizenship Education: Two Views of Truth and Criticism. Curriculum Inquiry: Vol. 10, No. 2, pp. 115-141.
Feasibility and performance region modeling of analog and digital circuits

Hierarchy plays a significant role in the design of digital and analog circuits. At each level of the hierarchy it becomes essential to evaluate if a sub-block design is feasible and if so which design style is the best candidate for the particular problem. This paper proposes a general methodology for evaluating the feasibility and the performance of sub-blocks at all levels of the hierarchy. A vertical binary search technique is used to generate the feasibility macromodel and a layered volume-slicing methodology with radial basis functions is used to generate the performance macromodel. Macromodels have been developed and verified for both analog and digital blocks. Analog macromodels have been developed at three different levels of hierarchy (current mirror, opamp, and A/D converter). The impact of different fabrication processes on the performance of analog circuits have also been explored. Though the modeling technique has been fine tuned to handle analog circuits the approach is general and is applicable to both analog and digital circuits. This feature makes it particularly suitable for mixed-signal designs.
Electronic structure and properties of transition-metal-metalloid glasses: Ni1-xPx.

The linear-muffin-tin-orbital method is used to study the electronic structure of ${\mathrm{Ni}}_{1\mathrm{\ensuremath{-}}\mathrm{x}}$${\mathrm{P}}_{\mathrm{x}}$, a prototype transition-metal--metalloid glass. Recent studies of c-${\mathrm{Ni}}_{3}$P and a-${\mathrm{Ni}}_{3}$P, based on the orthogonalized linear-combination-of-atomic-orbitals method, show that the densities of states of the two structures are quite similar. Because of this result and the complexity of the self-consistent spin-polarized calculations, the 16-atom cluster of c-${\mathrm{Ni}}_{3}$P is used to simulate the amorphous structure. The calculated results agree very well with the observed rapid decrease in the density of states at the Fermi level as x increases from 0.125 to 0.25. This rapid decrease in the density of states at the Fermi level with increasing x also explains the disappearance of a ferromagnetic phase transition in ${\mathrm{Ni}}_{1\mathrm{\ensuremath{-}}\mathrm{x}}$${\mathrm{P}}_{\mathrm{x}}$ glass for x greater than 0.18--0.19. The electronic structure responsible for the many interesting properties of a transition-metal--metalloid glass arises from a complex hybridization of transition-metal and metalloid orbitals.
Polymer membrane properties and structures for membrane light modulator applications.

A judicious selection of polymer materials for the fabrication of a deformable-membrane light modulator (e.g., the photoemitter membrane light modulator) will enhance its speed. A polymer with a low surface energy decreases the device response time by lowering the membrane tension that is caused by the surface interaction between the membrane and an adjacent dielectric surface. The material must also have high temperature stability. A composite structure of parylene on poly[bis(trifluoroethoxy)phosphazene] on SiOx is found to meet these requirements, with stability to 220°C and a tension of 0.18 N/m, giving a potential frame rate of close to 10 kHz or a throughput of >1010 pixels/sec.
The assurance problem in a laboratory market

In the most general terms, a public good exhibits the characteristic of nonexcludability; its benefits are available both to those who help to provide it and those who do not. Two other important features of the public goods provision problem are (i) the mechanism or institution for providing the good and (ii) the incentive structure for potential providers. Among the most familiar institutions is the voluntary contributions mechanism (VCM) combined with an incentive structure such that, for a single period, low levels of contribution are a dominant strategy equilibrium, while some higher level of provision is Pareto-superior. There has been a considerable amount of experimental research on such an environment (see Isaac and Walker, 1987a, for a survey). The existence of such a dominant strategy equilibrium, however, is not the only potential source of problems for the VCM. In particular, under alternative environments a potential provider can have an incentive to contribute if, and only if, he or she has a credible guarantee that others will also contribute. Absent such a guarantee, the provider may withhold. An environment exhibiting these incentives but without such a guarantee is sometimes said to exhibit the assurance problem (see Schmidtz, 1987).
Quality of Crude Oil Extracted from Aging Walleye Pollock ( Theragra chalcogramma ) Byproducts

The quality of crude oil was examined as a function of the temperature and delay time between collecting and processing the fish byproducts from a commercial cannery into crude oil. Extracts from pollock byproducts stored at 6 and 15 °C for up to 4 and 10 days was examined. Longer storage of byproducts resulted in higher free fatty acid (FFA) and an increase in retinol levels in the extracted crude oils. Primary and secondary oxidation assays consisting of peroxide value and thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances increased initially with storage time on day 1 followed by an unexpected decrease with storage time. Higher storage temperature resulted in greater FFA and retinol levels, but lower oxidation products in the crude oils. The tocopherol levels decreased with storage time of the byproducts with no differences between the storage temperatures. Eicosapentaenoic acid, docosahexaenoic acid and polyunsaturated fatty acids percentage remained similar in the extracted oils with the respective storage time or temperature treatments.
Urea-formaldehyde for the control of common scab of potato

A series of field tests over a period of 4 growing seasons has shown that Urea-formaldehyde (Uracide) when applied into the furroe at time of planting prvides a very effective control of potato scab. The most satisfactory rate of application to obtain control without phytotoxicity appears to be 20 gal/A. Rates of 25 gal/A and above resulted in reduced yield. The material can be effectively applied at time of planting by the use of spray nozzles mounted directly on the potato planter and directed into the furrow just in front of the dropping seed pieces.
Measurement of Gelatinase B (MMP-9) in the Cerebrospinal Fluid of Patients With Vascular Dementia and Alzheimer Disease

Background and Purpose— Vascular causes of dementia are increasing in importance because of the aging of the population. Biological markers to distinguish patients with vascular dementia (VaD) from...
It's not about technology, but community practice: a response to Scotland and Wood.

Much has been made of the current inability to increase the pace of discovery and documentation of the rich pageant of life on this planet [1]. One of the most contentious issues is whether new publishing practices, especially utilization of web-based knowledge repositories and publishing platforms, are panacea, placebo, or anathema ([2,3] in support; [4,5] against). In a recent TREE article [6], we posited that the pace of discovery and documentation could be increased by changing the current practice of publishing data and species hypotheses.
Review: Alzheimer's amyloid beta-peptide-associated free radical oxidative stress and neurotoxicity.

Alzheimer’s disease, the major dementing disorder of the elderly that affects over 4 million Americans, is related to amyloid b-peptide, the principal component of senile plaques in Alzheimer’s disease brain. Oxidative stress, manifested by protein oxidation and lipid peroxidation, among other alterations, is a characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease brain. Our laboratory united these two observations in a model to account for neurodegeneration in Alzheimer’s disease brain, the amyloid b-peptideassociated oxidative stress model for neurotoxicity in Alzheimer’s disease. Under this model, the aggregated peptide, perhaps in concert with bound redox metal ions, initiates free radical processes resulting in protein oxidation, lipid peroxidation, reactive oxygen species formation, cellular dysfunction leading to calcium ion accumulation, and subsequent neuronal death. Free radical antioxidants abrogate these findings. This review outlines the substantial evidence from multiidisciplinary approaches for amyloid b-peptide-associated free radical oxidative stress and neurotoxicity and protection against these oxidative processes and cell death by free radical scavengers. In addition, we review the strong evidence supporting the notion that the single methionine residue of amyloid b-peptide is vital to the oxidative stress and neurotoxicological properties of this peptide. Further, we discuss studies that support the hypothesis that aggregated soluble amyloid b-peptide and not fibrils per se are necessary for oxidative stress and neurotoxicity associated with amyloid b-peptide. © 2000 Academic Press
Molecular Basis of Transabdominal—A Sexually Dimorphic Mutant of the Bithorax Complex of Drosophila

Abstract Transabdominal (Tab) is a dominant gain-of-function mutation that results in islands of sexually dimorphic abdominal cuticle in the dorsal thorax of the adult fly. This phenotype has complete penetrance and constant expressivity, and we show that it results from ectopic expression of ABD-BII, one of two proteins derived from the Abdominal B (Abd-B) domain of the bithorax complex (BX-C) and one that is normally expressed only in terminal portions of the abdomen. In Tab/+ animals ABD-BII is ectopically expressed in the relevant imaginal "wing" disc as three islands of cells whose location on the fate map corresponds to the three islands of transformed cuticle in each half of the adult thorax. Tab is associated with an inseparable inversion bringing sequences in 90E next to sequences in the transcription unit encoding ABD-BII in 89E. That 90E sequences drive ectopic expression of ABD-BII is indicated by our finding that such sequences in a P-element transformant express the reporter gene's product (beta-galactosidase) in the same three islands of wing disc cells. On morphological grounds, the transformed islands in the adult thorax correspond to subsets of muscle attachment cells. Ectopic expression of a homeodomain protein thus creates a unique and invariant pattern of sexual dimorphism.
PERCEPTIONS OF PUBERTY: ADOLESCENT AND PARENT RATINGS OF PUBERTAL STAGE

Assessment of stage of pubertal development is important both in clinical research with adolescents and in well adolescent health care. The physical examination needed to establish pubertal stage is not always feasible in some research settings. The purpose of this study was: (a) to examine relations among ratings of pubertal stage done by adolescents, parents, and medical personnel and, (b) to examine whether accuracy of adolescent ratings and parent ratings varied with stage of pubertal development (Tanner criteria). The participants were 46 healthy boys, ages 10-14, and 44 girls, ages 9-14, and their parents. Adolescents and parents rated the adolescents' pubertal stage using photographs of the 5 stages of puberty. Correlations between adolescent and medical personnel ranged from r = .77 to .91, (p ≤ .001). The majority of the adolescents were accurate in their ratings. Adolescents underestimating pubertal stage were at the later stages of puberty and those overestimating were at the earlier stages of puberty. Correlations between ratings by parent and medical personnel ranged from r= .75 to .87, (p ≤ .001). The majority of parents were accurate in ratings. Parents not accurate in pubertal assessment underestimated the stage of adolescents in the later stages of puberty. Results indicate that adolescent ratings and parent ratings are valid assessments of stage of pubertal development.
Protein-bound corticosteroid in human serum is selectively transported into rat brain and liver in vivo.

It is generally regarded that only free corticosteroid is available for entry into tissues in vivo, although some studies have suggested that albumin-bound corticosteroid is available for liver uptake. However, recent studies suggest that owing to favorable kinetic relationships among tissue capillary transit times and hormone dissociation rates from plasma proteins, free plus albumin-bound hormone may be available to peripheral tissues. Moreover, globulin-bound hormone may enter the liver under normal conditions and be available to peripheral tissues under pathological circumstances. The present studies measure the free and noncorticosteroid-binding globulin (non-CBG)-bound corticosteroid fractions in vitro and compare these measurements to the fraction of corticosteroid in human sera that is available for entry into rat brain and rat liver in vivo. Corticosterone was used as the model corticosteroid, since this compound binds to CBG with the same affinity as does cortisol, and the brain extraction of co...
Which electronic structure method for the study of defects: A commentary

A historic perspective is provided to the choice of methodologies for point defects in semiconductors. A summary and commentary on the highlights of the CECAM workshop: "Which electronic structure method for the study of defects?" is given, attempting to provide a link between the different contributions. To this purpose different themes running through the compilation are identified and rather than discussing individual contributions one by one, the discussion is focused around these themes. The first theme is the problem of correcting for finite size effects. The second theme is the problem of the underestimate of the band gaps and how to correct for it in defect calculations. The third theme is the self-interaction error of local density approximation (LDA) and its repercussions for polaronic defects. The fourth theme is progress in methods beyond LDA that are becoming applicable to point defects, either for ground states or excited state properties.
The lived experience of disability

In this paper I reflect upon my personal experience of chronic progressive multiple sclerosis in order to provide a phenomenological account of the human experience of disability. In particular, I argue that the phenomenological notion of lived body provides important insights into the profound disruptions of space and time that are an integral element of changed physical capacities such as loss of mobility. In addition, phenomenology discloses the emotional dimension of physical disorder. The lived body disruption engendered by loss of mobility includes a change in the character of surrounding space, an alteration in one's taken-for-granted awareness of (and interaction with) objects, the disruption of corporeal identity, a disturbance in one's relations with others, and a change in the character of temporal experience. The loss of upright posture is of particular significance since it not only concretely diminishes autonomy but affects the way one is treated by others. Such a change in posture is, therefore, particularly disruptive in the social world of everyday life. An understanding of the lived body disruption engendered by disability has important applications for the clinical context in devising effective therapies, as well as for the social arena in determining how best to resolve the various challenges posed by chronic disabling disorders.
New findings in the chromosome 13 long-arm deletion syndrome and retinoblastoma.

Abstract New clinical and pathologic findings in patients with deletion of the long arm of chromosome 13 (13q-) include optic nerve hypoplasia and retinal dysplasia. Fibroblasts derived from patients with a 13q- syndrome with and without retinoblastoma, as well as from familial and sporadic retinoblastoma, are a useful model for the study of genetic susceptibility to the development of spontaneous and radiationinduced cancers. Fibroblasts from patients with hereditary retinoblastoma appear more radiosensitive than fibroblasts from patients with sporadic retinoblastoma or normal control patients.
Update: Systemic Radiotherapy Can Cure Lymphoma: A Paradigm for Other Malignancies?

The cytocidal potency of a molecule can be augmented by conjugating a radionuclide for molecular targeted radionuclide therapy (MTRT) for cancer. Radioimmunotherapy (RIT) should be incorporated into the management of patients with B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) soon after the patients have proven incurable. Better drugs, strategies, and combinations with other drugs seem certain to make RIT integral to the management of patients with NHL and likely to lead to a cure of the currently incurable NHL. These improved drugs, strategies, and combinations thereof also offer opportunities for RIT to become part of the management of solid malignancies, including epithelial cancers. Smaller radionuclide carriers, such as those used for pretargeted strategies, provide dose intensification. The potential of pretargeted RIT to improve patient outcomes is striking.
Integrated photonic crystal networks with coupled quantum dots

Single InAs quantum dots can be used to control the transmission function of photonic crystal cavities, as we have already shown for systems that operate both in strong and weak coupling regime. Here we present our most recent work on devices where the cavity is connected in a micron-scale optical network via multiple photonic crystal waveguides terminated with input and output optical couplers. This architecture allows for multiple signal and control beams to be coupled simultaneously in the cavity via distinct ports. The devices are equipped with two input ports where the waveguides are terminated with input grating-couplers that allow for coupling into the waveguide from an out-of-plane direction. A third waveguide coupled to the cavity is terminated with a different kind of grating out-coupler that allows for improved directional scattering of the light transmitted through the cavity. We have already shown in previous experiments with a single cavity with coupled quantum dots, that this system acts as a highly nonlinear medium that enables all optical switching at powers down to the single photon level. In our most recent experiments we take significant steps towards demonstrating that this switching can be done in integrated structures, as needed for optical signal processing devices for both classical and quantum information science.
Hazard function estimation from homogeneous right censored data with missing censoring indicators

Abstract The kernel smoothed Nelson–Aalen estimator has been well investigated, but is unsuitable when some of the censoring indicators are missing. A representation introduced by Dikta, however, facilitates hazard estimation when there are missing censoring indicators. In this article, we investigate (i) a kernel smoothed semiparametric hazard estimator and (ii) a kernel smoothed “pre-smoothed” Nelson–Aalen estimator. We derive the asymptotic normality of the proposed estimators and compare their asymptotic variances.
Project Jefferson and the Development of Research Skills

Project Jefferson, a cooperative effort between the University of Southern California University Library, the Freshman Writing Program, and the School of Industrial and Systems Engineering, is an attempt to encourage the development of research and critical thinking skills among students. The project's aim is to:
The physician-scientist.

The physician-scientist plays a unique role in academic medicine, as one who conducts research informed by clinical experience. This academic ideal was highly valued by Irwin Freedberg, both for himself and for the trainees and colleagues who have benefited from his guidance along this career path. Both of us had the privilege of working with Irwin at New York University — one recruited as a new assistant professor 16 years ago; the other as a resident five years ago, now a clinical instructor and postdoctoral fellow.