cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
John Cotton and Roger Williams: Their Controversy Concerning Religious Liberty

Many people in the United States today feel that England is fighting a battle that is also their own. The English people, on the other hand, note with great satisfaction and gratitude the sympathy that the United States displays for their life and death struggle. A similar mutual interest existed between the American colonies of the seventeenth century and the England of the age of the Revolution. We have only to look at the many impassioned controversies on both sides of the Atlantic. They tell us a lively story of the exchange of ideas between Old and New England. Robert Baillie, Samuel Rutherford, William Twiss, three outstanding members of the Westminster Assembly, engaged in long arguments with John Cotton on various problems of doctrine and church government. John Cotton and other New England ministers in long pamphlets answered any reproaches of heresy made by the English or Scotch Presbyterians. It is safe to say, furthermore, that the controversy between John Cotton and Roger Williams, with which we are here concerned, would never have been started without Williams's participation in the debates of the Long Parliament in 1643/44.
Continuity of ODE solutions

This paper gives two lemmas dealing with the continuity of solutions of ordinary differential equations with respect to perturbations in the vector field and initial conditions when the equations contain a linear part. The basic lemmas in ODE theory are special cases of these lemmas. The lemmas are useful in easily deriving some nonlinear ODE stability results. They are also useful in certain singular perturbation problems.
Health and health care for legalized aliens

Abstract Under provisions of the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act, almost two million illegal aliens applied for legalization in the United States between May 1, 1987 and May 1, 1988. Over 1300 applicants for legalization were interviewed in Maryland during 1988. A relatively young group, respondents rated their health as positive and their responses to a symptom checklist supported this assessment. Over half of the respondents had no health insurance, and presence or absence of health insurance was strongly related to occupational classification. The survey indicated a need for primary prevention programs, attention to cultural norms of the applicants, and the need of applicants to obtain jobs that offer health insurance.
Anti-realism and speaker knowledge

Dummettian anti-realism repudiates the realist's notion of ‘verification-transcendent’ truth. Perhaps the most crucial element in the Dummettian attack on realist truth is the critique of so-called “realist semantics”, which assigns verification-transcendent truth-conditions as the meanings of (some) sentences. The Dummettian critique charges that realist semantics cannot serve as an adequate theory of meaning for a natural language, and that, consequently, the realist conception of truth must be rejected as well. In arguing for this, Dummett and his followers have appealed to a certain conception of linguistic knowledge. This paper examines closely the appeal to speakers' knowledge of linguistic meaning, its force and limitations.
A uniqueness result for a generalized radon transform

There exist five families of Lipschitz curves on the unit square such that any continuous function is uniquely defined by the values of its integral (properly defined) along these curves. We present this uniqueness result as a consequence of the Kolmogorov superposition theorem.
Dependence of resonant magnetic perturbation experiments on the DIII-D plasma shape

The shape of the cross-section of fusion plasma experiments in many devices is a key determinant of the resulting plasma characteristics. Experiments to attempt suppression of edge localized modes (ELMs) by the technique of resonant magnetic perturbation (RMP) were performed in the DIII-D tokamak in varying plasma shapes. It was found that while ELM suppression in a plasma shape similar to the ITER shape with a single magnetic null was possible, ELM suppression could not be attained in a balanced or upward-biased double-null (DN) shape, although the ELMs in the DN shape were smaller and of higher frequency than the ones before RMP was applied. Calculation of the peeling–ballooning stability of the plasma showed that the ELMing plasma is stable to type-I ELMs, suggesting the ELMs are of another type.
The carbonylation of [Re2(μ-O2CCH3)X2 (μ-dmpm)3]PF6 (X = Cl OR Br; dmpm = Me2PCH2PME2) involving a switch in the binding of two of the dmpm ligands from bridging to chelating

Abstract The reactions of the triply bonded complexes [Re2(μ-O2CCH3)X2(μ-dmpm)3] PF6 (X = Cl or Br; dmpm = Me2PCH2PMe2) with CO in deoxygenated acetone/HPF6(aq) mixtures afford the unusual dirhenium(II) carbonyl complexes [Re2(μ-X)2(μ-dmpm) (CO)2(dmpm)2(H2PO4)2 in which the ReRe bond is very long [2.918(2) A for X = Cl]. These reactions are accompanied by the switch of two of the bridging dmpm ligands to a chelating mode.
Word Processing and the Technology of Prose

Hypothese selon laquelle l'utilisation du traitement de texte est une operation mentale plus proche de l'ecriture que ne l'est la redaction a la main ou avec une machine a ecrire. Le detail des operations intellectuelles engagees dans le traitement de texte est presente
On non-Landau damped solutions to the linearized vlasov equation

Because of the existence of perturbations on the equilibrium velocity distribution of an electron plasma that are entire functions and yet do not give the damping predicted by Landau, the Landau calculation is re-examined critically, for the source of these solutions. It is shown that certain tacit assumptions go into the Landau calculation which were not proved there, but are demonstrated to be true. A broad class of initial perturbations is constructed that satisfies all the Landau criteria but does not yield Landau damping. These results derived for a Maxwell equilibrium distribution are generalized to a broader class of equilibrium distributions. Newcomb’s result that an increasing electric potential cannot be monotonic is quite simply proved as a by-product of the integral equation for the plasma.
Microwave Spectroscopy in the Region from Two to Three Millimeters

A completely electronic sweep spectroscope of high resolution has been developed for the wave-length region from 2 to 3 millimeters (150,000 mc/sec. to 100,000 mc/sec.). The radiation source is a silicon crystal harmonic generator driven by Ratheon klystrons. Silicon crystals are used also as detectors. Radiation of wave-length 1.96 mm (154,000 mc/sec.) has been generated and detected with strength more than ten times the noise level. Some lines in the hyperfine structure of the $J=19\ensuremath{\rightarrow}20$ rotational transition of ICN at 2.32 mm have been observed. The $J=1\ensuremath{\rightarrow}2$ transition of C${\mathrm{H}}_{3}$F has been observed at 2.93, and the separation of the $K=1$ and $K=0$ lines has been determined as 1.8 mc. Precision measurements on the first rotational line ($J=0\ensuremath{\rightarrow}1$) of ${\mathrm{C}}^{12}$${\mathrm{O}}^{16}$, and ${\mathrm{C}}^{13}$${\mathrm{O}}^{16}$ in the 2.6-mm region have been made with an electronic frequency standard monitored by the 10 mc/sec. signal of station WWV. The following molecular constants were determined: for ${\mathrm{C}}^{12}$${\mathrm{O}}^{16}$, ${B}_{0}={1.92262}_{5}$ ${\mathrm{cm}}^{\ensuremath{-}1}$, ${B}_{e}={1.93136}_{7}$ ${\mathrm{cm}}^{\ensuremath{-}1}$, ${I}_{0}={14.5553}_{1}\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{\ensuremath{-}40}$ g ${\mathrm{cm}}^{2}$, ${I}_{e}={14.4894}_{3}\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{\ensuremath{-}40}$ g ${\mathrm{cm}}^{2}$, ${r}_{0}={1.13078}_{9}A$, ${r}_{e}={1.12822}_{7}A$; for ${\mathrm{C}}^{13}$${\mathrm{O}}^{16}$ ${B}_{0}={1.83806}_{9}$ ${\mathrm{cm}}^{\ensuremath{-}1}$, ${I}_{0}={15.2248}_{9}\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{\ensuremath{-}40}$ g ${\mathrm{cm}}^{2}$, ${r}_{0}={1.13072}_{5}A$. The last three digits quoted for $r$ and $I$ have relative significance only, because of possible error in Planck's constant.
Divergence of cantilever columns under combined conservative and follower loads

Etude de la stabilite de colonnes cantilever a rigidite en flexion decroissant de maniere monotone de bas en haut soumises a des charges de compression repartie et a l'extremite des types force conservative et force suiveuse
Variation of Water Retention Characteristics due to Particle Rearrangement under Zero Gravity

Controlled delivery of water to plant root zone remains a challenge in the exploration of plant growth under zero gravity, in which soil water retention characteristics are difficult to predict due to possible soil particle rearrangement and pore restructuring. This paper aims to provide an understanding of the effect of soil particle rearrangement on the water retention characteristics in zero gravity. A three-dimensional pore network model is developed to predict water retention characteristics under two forms of particle packing—cubic packing (most porous) and rhombohedral packing (most compact). The pore-throat distributions, as input parameters to the network model, are derived from particle size distribution under the two forms of particle arrangement. The model simulations reveal the quantitative variation of water retention characteristics due to particle rearrangement. Soil particle rearrangement that occurs during the drying process is shown to significantly change the water retention curve when...
Formation of Sic, Si3N4 and SiO2 by High-Dose Ion Implantation and Laser Annealing

High-dose ion implantation (1017 ions-cm−2) of C+, N+, and O+ at 50 KeV into silicon followed by pulsed laser annealing at 1.06 µm was studied. Formation of SiC, Si3N4, and SiO2 has been observed and investigated using Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) and Differential Fourier-Transform Infrared (FT-IR) Spectroscopy. Furthermore, in N+-implanted and laser-annealed silicon samples, we have observed a cell-like structure which has been identified to be spheroidal polycrystalline silicon formed by the rapid laser irradiation.
A generalized theory on the noise generation from supersonic shear layers.

Abstract In 1960, O. M. Phillips introduced a theory on noise generation from supersonic shear layers. The theory is based on a convective wave equation which can describe the aerodynamic parameters and noise generation mechanism more accurately than the original Lighthill equation. The solution to the convective wave equation, as given by Phillips, is restricted to Mach wave radiation at asymptotically large (hypersonic) Mach numbers. The present paper presents a generalization to Phillips' theory. Both Mach wave radiation and non-Mach wave noise radiation mechanisms are considered. The range of validity of Phillips' theory has been expanded to include the low supersonic and transonic ranges. These generalizations are important not only in their analytical rigor, but also in their prospective applications to practical problems in jet noise prediction and control. It has been found that the low frequency noise is refracted by the mean flow while the high frequency noise is refracted and attenuated by the mean flow. For each given noise frequency, the source is limited to a finite layer of the jet. Incidentally, the major portion of the noise spectrum can be analytically classified as high frequencies. The noise generation mechanisms in a supersonic jet are found to differ from those in a subsonic jet in general. This theory is considered to have the prospect of answering important questions in supersonic jet noise such as noise source distribution, mean flow refraction effects, directivity, spectrum, and efficiency of noise radiation.
Prognosis of surgically corrected coarctation of the aorta. A 20-year postoperative appraisal.

A long-term retrospective analysis of 248 patients, 11-25 years after surgical correction of coarctation of the aorta, revealed a high incidence of premature cardiovascular disease. Twelve percent of patients with follow-up have died. It is suggested that premature death in patients with adequate surgical repair may be related to the duration of preoperative hypertension. Fifty-nine patients were evaluated on a standard hospital protocol. Seventy-eight percent had evidence of cardiovascular disease and over 40% had no change or had increased blood pressure over the preoperative value. These data emphasize the importance of early diagnosis and treatment for patients with coarctation of the aorta as well as the need for close postoperative follow-up.
Semi-Empirical Molecular Orbital Calculations on Some Tautomers of Cytosine

The stability of a series of cytosine tautomers has been investigated using both all valence electron and π-electron SCF methods. The effect of general and selective scaling of the bond lengths was studied in the CNDO/2 calculations. The enol tautomer of cytosine exceeded the keto form in stability in these calculations. π-electron SCF CI calculations were performed on the cytosine tautomers using two different parameterization schemes. The calculated transitions obtained for the enol form showed a close proximity to that of the keto and imino structures. Comparison was made with the experimental electronic spectrum in water and acetonitrile. No clear distiction between the keto and enol forms could be made on the basis of these calculations.
High performance virtual machine migration with RDMA over modern interconnects

One of the most useful features provided by virtual machine (VM) technologies is the ability to migrate running OS instances across distinct physical nodes. As a basis for many administration tools in modern clusters and data-centers, VM migration is desired to be extremely efficient to reduce both migration time and performance impact on hosted applications. Currently, most VM environments use the Socket interface and the TCP/IP protocol to transfer VM migration traffic. In this paper, we propose a high performance VM migration design by using RDMA (Remote Direct Memory Access). RDMA is a feature provided by many modern high speed interconnects that are currently being widely deployed in data-centers and clusters. By taking advantage of the low software overhead and the one-sided nature of RDMA, our design significantly improves the efficiency of VM migration. We also contribute a set of micro-benchmarks and application-level benchmark evaluations aimed at evaluating important metrics of VM migration. The evaluations using our prototype implementation over Xen and InfiniBand show that RDMA can drastically reduce the migration overhead: up to 80% on total migration time and up to 77% on application observed downtime.
Electron-energy-loss rates in Al x Ga 1-x As/GaAs heterostructures at low temperatures

We have measured the energy-loss rates of electrons in modulation-doped ${\mathrm{Al}}_{\mathrm{x}}$${\mathrm{Ga}}_{1\mathrm{\ensuremath{-}}\mathrm{x}}$As/GaAs heterojunctions at low temperatures. At the temperatures of this experiment, the energy loss is due to acoustic-phonon scattering, mostly through the deformation-potential interaction. We describe a theory of the energy-loss rate to acoustic phonons, discuss the effects of static screening, and determine a value of the deformation-potential constant by matching the theory to our experimental data. We show how the temperature dependence of the energy-loss rate can be used to determine the effectiveness of screening. In agreement with previous studies, we find that an anomalously large deformation-potential constant of 16.0 or 11.5 eV, for the screened or unscreened theory, respectively, is necessary to explain the data. However, in contrast with previous studies, we do not interpret this result as indicating some error in previous measurements of the deformation potential in bulk GaAs. Rather, we suggest that it results from some inadequacy in the model used to represent acoustic-phonon scattering in heterojunctions, or from some additional scattering mechanism not present in bulk material.
Infection of rabbits with human immunodeficiency virus 1. A small animal model for acquired immunodeficiency syndrome

Injection of rabbits with a human T cell line infected with HIV-1 caused seroconversion within 6 wk, and HIV-1 could be isolated from PBL cultures of infected rabbits. Identity of the isolated virus with HIV-1 was shown by analysis of products amplified by the polymerase chain reaction. HIV-1 infection was seen in rabbits injected with HIV-1- infected cells alone as well as in those that were first infected with HTLV-1 and subsequently with HIV-1. There were no consistent signs of disease in the rabbits infected with HIV-1 alone but HTLV-1/HIV-1- infected rabbits showed signs of illness including diarrhea and weight loss, transient neurologic impairment and, in one animal, a rapidly progressing mammary adenocarcinoma. Examination of organs taken at necropsy from both HIV-1- and HTLV-1/HIV-1-infected animals showed splenic hyperplasia and lymphocyte infiltration of the lungs, as well as moderate damage to liver and kidney in some cases.
Why Autonomy? The Making of Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Region 1918–1925

Abstract Mountainous Karabakh—an Armenian-populated area within Elizavetpol’ guberniya with a Turkic majority—became a source of dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan after the collapse of the Russian Empire. During the Soviet conquest of the region, the Bolshevik Party used the issue of Karabakh to promote its agenda by supporting at times the claims of its ally Azerbaijan, or those of Armenia when it needed to facilitate the capture of Zangezur. By 1921, when the Sovietisation of the region was complete, the Karabakh issue was still unresolved. The solution adopted was to leave Karabakh under Azerbaijani control on condition that it had autonomous status, but this was a solution that satisfied neither side.
Translational diffusion coefficient of α‐chymotrypsinogen A by laser‐light‐scattering spectroscopy

The translational diffusion coefficient of a pure sample of α-chymotrypsinogen A is measured by laser light scattering to give a value of D20,w0 = (8.40 ± 0.15) × 10−7 cm2/sec.
Maturation of bacteriophage T4 lagging strand fragments depends on interaction of T4 RNase H with T4 32 protein rather than the T4 gene 45 clamp.

In the bacteriophage T4 DNA replication system, T4 RNase H removes the RNA primers and some adjacent DNA before the lagging strand fragments are ligated. This 5′-nuclease has strong structural and functional similarity to the FEN1 nuclease family. We have shown previously that T4 32 protein binds DNA behind the nuclease and increases its processivity. Here we show that T4 RNase H with a C-terminal deletion (residues 278–305) retains its exonuclease activity but is no longer affected by 32 protein. T4 gene 45 replication clamp stimulates T4 RNase H on nicked or gapped substrates, where it can be loaded behind the nuclease, but does not increase its processivity. An N-terminal deletion (residues 2–10) of a conserved clamp interaction motif eliminates stimulation by the clamp. In the crystal structure of T4 RNase H, the binding sites for the clamp at the N terminus and for 32 protein at the C terminus are located close together, away from the catalytic site of the enzyme. By using mutant T4 RNase H with deletions in the binding site for either the clamp or 32 protein, we show that it is the interaction of T4 RNase H with 32 protein, rather than the clamp, that most affects the maturation of lagging strand fragments in the T4 replication system in vitro and T4 phage production in vivo.
The control of a toy robot ARM: a real time programming experience

The problem of controlling a non-intelligent toy robot arm at the device level renders itself as a perfect candidate for real-time programming applications because it involves the coordination of a set of concurrent activities which have to satisfy strict timing and space constraints. The problem can be tackled in a non-structured fashion by using ad-hoc programming techniques or in a more structured fashion which reveals the true nature of the problem and solves it in a general way extensible to similar problems. It is our belief that since the problem involves the coordination of concurrent activities the techniques used in the design and implementation of operating systems would better suit our requirements. It is shown that using the basic concepts of concurrency and their implementation can lead to the design of a general real-time scheduler which solves this and other related problems as well.
Direct Electronic Fourier Transform (DEFT) Spectra For Surveillance And Countersurveillance

This paper contains the results of a joint investigation by the US Army Engineer Topographic Laboratories (ETL) and the US Army Tank-Automotive Research and Development Command (TARADCOM). The main emphasis is to describe investigations using Direct Electronic Fourier Transform (DEFT) technology and the DEFT method to generate Fourier transforms for surveillance and countersurveillance. These investigations include quantitative results which are obtained with an early device and a comparison of these results with subjective human judgments. A computer simulation of DEFT spectra is performed for the purpose of bandwith ex-tension and signal-to-noise improvement. DEFT devices are a recent advance in acousto-optic technology. Early devices generate a real-time, one-dimensional Fourier transform of a two-dimensional image. This Fourier transform is a limited bandwidth radio frequency spectrum representing the image. This paper contains a very brief description of DEFT technology and appropriate references on the development of the DEFT device.© (1980) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Infrared ellipsometry characterization of porous silicon bragg reflectors.

We investigate porous silicon Bragg reflectors in a nondestructive manner using variable angle-of-incidence infrared spectroscopic ellipsometry. In addition to the thickness, volume porosity, inhomogeneity, and optical anisotropy, properties of the solid content of the porous material are investigated in terms of dielectric function and surface chemistry. The material was found to have positive birefringence. The high sensitivity of the technique is employed to detect and identify infrared resonant absorptions related to different Si–H as well as Si–O–Si vibrational modes. The average electrical resistivity of the solid content of the porous material is determined to be 0.03 Ω cm, which is larger than the corresponding bulk value of 0.019 Ω cm. Furthermore the average carrier concentration in the porous material shows a decrease from 6.2 × 1018 cm-3 to 4 × 1018 cm-3.
Biomechanical Evaluation of Anterior Cruciate Ligament Femoral Fixation Techniques

BackgroundA number of different femoral anterior cruciate ligament fixation techniques are currently in use. Slippage of the graft caused by excessive early loading or aggressive rehabilitation may negate benefits of surgery and result in a knee with undesirable laxity.HypothesisAnterior cruciate ligament femoral graft slippage varies by fixation technique and amount of cyclic loading.Study DesignControlled laboratory study.MethodsGraft slippage in 5 different soft tissue anterior cruciate ligament femoral fixation techniques (Bio-TransFix cross-pin technique, Stratis ST cross-pin technique, Bilok ST transverse femoral screw, Delta tapered bio-interference screw, and single-loop TensionLok) was compared by cyclic loading of double-bundle grafts in porcine femurs. Graft slippage was measured using a differential variable reluctance transducer.ResultsThe Bio-TransFix had significantly less (P =. 002) total graft slippage (1.14 ± 0.43 mm) compared to the Delta (3.74 ± 3.25 mm), Bilok ST (3.92 ± 2.28 mm), and...
ACCESS FROM SPACE: A NEW PERSPECTIVE ON NASA'S SPACE TRANSPORTATION NEEDS AND OPPORTUNITIES

This paper provides a brief review of the current state of the art for missions requiring access from space through planetary atmospheres. Some of the major technical challenges for the principle access from space segments of hypersonic entry, supersonic and subsonic descent, and landing for robotic and eventual crewed missions are identified along with some important cross cutting capabilities. Technology development opportunities and activities that may meet these challenges are discussed. New access from space opportunities provided by advanced avionics and information technologies, inflatable/deployable systems, higher L/D vehicles, and nano and pico-entry vehicles are then briefly described. A new concept called “Scout Probes for Exploration”, which could significantly reduce risk for access from space missions by combining a number of these advancements, is then introduced and discussed.
Mathematical Modeling of Serum 13C-Retinol in Captive Rhesus Monkeys Provides New Insights on Hypervitaminosis A

Hypervitaminosis A is increasingly a public health concern, and thus noninvasive quantitative methods merit exploration. In this study, we applied the 13C-retinol isotope dilution test to a nonhuman primate model with excessive liver stores. After baseline serum chemistries, rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta; n = 16) were administered 3.5 μmol 13C2-retinyl acetate. Blood was drawn at baseline, 5 h, and 2, 4, 7, 14, 21, and 28 d following the dose. Liver biopsies were collected 7 d before and 2 d after dosing (n = 4) and at 7, 14, and 28 d (n = 4/time) after dosing. Serum and liver were analyzed by HPLC and GC-combustion-isotope ratio MS for retinol and its enrichment, respectively. Model-based compartmental analysis was applied to serum data. Lactate dehydrogenase was elevated in 50% of the monkeys. Total body reserves (TBR) of vitamin A (VA) were calculated at 28 d. Predicted TBR (3.52 ± 2.01 mmol VA) represented measured liver stores (4.56 ± 1.38 mmol VA; P = 0.124). Predicted liver VA concentrations (13.3 ± 9.7 μmol/g) were similar to measured liver VA concentrations (16.4 ± 5.3 μmol/g). The kinetic models predict that 27–52% of extravascular VA is exchanging with serum in hypervitaminotic A monkeys. The test correctly diagnosed hypervitaminosis A in all monkeys, i.e. 100% sensitivity. Stable isotope techniques have important public health potential for the classification of VA status, including hypervitaminosis, because no other technique besides invasive liver biopsies, correctly identifies excessive liver VA stores.
When a Child Dies A Critical Analysis of Grief-Related Controversies in DSM-5

The upcoming fifth edition of the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders has incited vociferous debate among academics, clinicians, and the general...
When additional multiple‐choice lures aid versus hinder later memory

SUMMARY Three experiments were conducted to investigate whether increasing the number of lures on a multiple-choice test helps, hinders or has no effect on later memory. All three patterns have been reported in the literature. In Experiment 1, the stimuli were unrelated word lists, and increasing the number of lures on an initial multiple-choice test led to better performance on later free recall and cued recall tasks. In contrast, in Experiments 2 and 3, stimuli were facts from prose materials, and increasing the number of multiple-choice lures led to robust costs in cued recall and smaller costs in free recall. The results indicate that performance on the initial multiple-choice test is a critical factor. When initial multiple-choice performance was near ceiling, testing with additional lures led to superior performance on subsequent tests. However, at lower levels of multiple-choice performance, testing with additional lures produced costs on later tests. Copyright # 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Secondary Structural Preferences of Some Antibacterial Cyclooctapeptides in the Presence of Calcium(II)

The purpose of this study is to understand the interactions of some antibacterial cationic amphipathic cyclooctapeptides with calcium(II) and their secondary structural preferences. The thermodynamic parameters associated with calcium(II) interactions, between the antibacterial active cyclooctapeptides (COP 1–6) and those that did not exhibit significant activities (COP 7–9), were studied by isothermal titration calorimetry. Calcium(II) binding in the absence and presence of micellar dodecylphosphocholine (DPC), a membrane mimicking detergent, was conducted by circular dichroism (CD). Both groups of cyclopeptides showed weak binding affinities for calcium(II) (Kb ca. 10−3 M−1). However, CD data showed that the antimicrobial peptides COP 1–6 adopted a twisted beta-sheet structure (positive CD absorption band at ca. 203 nm) in the presence of calcium(II) in micellar DPC. In contrast, COP 7–9, which lacked antibacterial activity, adopted a different conformational structure (negative CD absorption band at ca. 203 nm). These results indicate that these cyclopeptides could adopt secondary structural preferences in the presence of calcium(II) amidst a hydrophobic environment to elicit their antibacterial activity. These findings could be useful in facilitating the design of cyclopeptide derivatives that can adopt this beta-sheet-like secondary structure and, thereby, provide a useful molecular template for crafting antibacterial compounds.
Reply to “The Natural Environment May Be the Most Important Source of Antibiotic Resistance Genes”

O’Toole is absolutely right that most antibiotic genes probably evolved in the environment long ago (1), but the letter ignores the principle of selection, which is an essential component of Darwinian evolution. Antibiotic use in agriculture has been shown repeatedly to contribute to antibiotic resistance among human pathogens and commensals. We do not expect that any microbiologist would argue that human uses of antibiotics "created" resistance genes from scratch. Rather, the large quantities of antibiotics used in agriculture and medicine have selected for resistant strains that were already in the environment, people, or animals; i.e., the frequency of these strains in the population has been increased. …
Double-peaked narrow-line signatures of dual supermassive black holes in galaxy merger simulations

We present a first attempt to model the narrow-line (NL) region of active galactic nuclei (AGN) in hydrodynamic simulations of galaxy mergers, using a novel physical prescription. This model is used to determine the origin of double-peaked NL (dNL) AGN in merging galaxies and their connection to supermassive black hole (SMBH) pairs, motivated by recent observations of such objects. We find that dNL AGN induced by the relative motion of SMBH pairs are a generic but short-lived feature of gaseous major mergers. dNL AGN should often be observed in late-stage mergers, during the kpc-scale phase of SMBH inspiral or soon after the SMBH merger. However, even within the kpc-scale phase, only a minority of dNL AGN are directly induced by SMBH motion; their lifetimes are typically a few Myr. Most double peaks arise from gas kinematics near the SMBH, although prior to the SMBH merger up to 80% of all dNL profiles may be influenced by SMBH motion via altered peak ratios or velocity offsets. The total lifetimes of dNL AGN depend strongly on viewing angle and on properties of the merging galaxies. Also, in a typical merger, at least 10-40% of the double peaks induced by SMBH motion have small projected separations, 0.1-1 kpc, such that dual peaks of stellar surface brightness are not easily resolved. Diffuse tidal features can indicate late-stage galaxy mergers, although they do not distinguish SMBH pairs from merged SMBHs. We show that dNL profiles with peak velocity splittings > 500 km s^-1 or with measurable overall velocity shifts are often associated with SMBH pairs. Our results support the notion that selection of dNL AGN is a promising method for identifying dual SMBH candidates, but demonstrate the critical importance of high-resolution, multi-wavelength follow-up observations, and the use of multiple lines of evidence, for confirming the dual nature of candidate SMBH pairs. (Abridged)
Psychological distress in a Department of Veterans Affairs spine patient population

Abstract Background context The veteran population presents a unique confluence of biopsychosocial factors in the treatment of spinal conditions. In addition to poorer health status and higher numbers of chronic medical conditions compared with the general population, previous reports have highlighted the high prevalence of psychological disorders within the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health system. To our knowledge, no study has specifically evaluated psychological distress in patients with a spinal disorder within the VA health system. Purpose To determine the prevalence of psychological distress among spine patients in a VA hospital and if higher levels of distress correlated with patient demographics and self-reported patient outcome scores. Study design/setting Cross-sectional evaluation of adult patients at a regional VA outpatient orthopedic spine surgery clinic. Patient sample One hundred forty-nine adult patients presenting for treatment of spine-related disorders. Outcome measures Patients were evaluated using the Distress and Risk Assessment Method (DRAM), a validated survey consisting of the Zung Depression Scale and the Modified Somatic Perception Questionnaire. In addition, self-reported pain, disability, and quality of life were assessed using the visual analog scale (VAS) for neck or back pain and the Neck Disability Index or Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) depending on the patient's location of pain. Methods The DRAM survey was used to determine the prevalence of psychological distress by classifying patients into normal, at-risk, and severe distress groups. Visual analog scale scores for neck and back pain, and self-reported disability scores, and demographic data including age, gender, combat experience, and use of antidepressant, anxiolytic, or narcotic medications were obtained at the time of enrollment. Results The DRAM survey identified 79.9% of patients as having some degree of psychological distress, whereas the remaining 20.1% were classified as normal. Among those with psychological distress, 43.6% of patients were categorized as severe distress. Compared with the normal group, a history of combat was more frequent in all distressed patient groups including the at-risk (p=.04) and severe distress (p=.009) groups. Those in the severe distress category more commonly reported the use of narcotics (p=.043) and antidepressant/anxiolytics medications (p=.0001). Those in the severe distress group had significantly higher ODI scores (p Conclusions We identified a large number of patients (80%) with some level of psychological distress and 43% with severe distress. The percent of patients with severe psychological distress in the VA was double that previously reported in a non-VA patient setting. Patients with severe distress had higher ODI scores, back pain VAS scores, use of narcotics and antidepressants, and a reported history of combat when compared with those without distress.
Technology related decision-making issues in hospitals

The various organizational levels at which hospital health care equipment is assessed are discussed. Strengths and weakness of the process are examined. Suggestions to improve the decision-making process are given. >
A Wavelet Based Long Range Signal Strength Prediction in Wireless Networks

Prediction of rapidly time varying fading channel conditions enables adaptive data transmissions in wireless systems, which in turn improves the quality of service for end users and reduces the power consumption for data transmissions. Most of the existing long range prediction methods for fast fading in wireless networks use autoregressive (AR) models and make the assumption that the input fading signal is stationary and wireless channel parameters vary slowly (S. Semmelrodt and R. Kattenbach, 2003). In this paper, we provide a method to predict the non-stationary received signal strength in a more realistic and fast varying wireless environment, using multiresolution wavelet analysis. We first use discrete wavelet decomposition (DWT) to decompose the signal strength trace into components at different scales, then use AR and linear regression models to predict small, medium and large scale fading components respectively, and finally synthesize the output signal of our prediction algorithm. By properly choosing the wavelet basis, we map the non-stationary signal strength trace into stationary wavelet detail coefficients and use them as input to the AR predictor at different scales. Longer prediction range is easily achieved by choosing the appropriate maximum decomposition scale, while still achieving low prediction error. Our experimental results shows that our wavelet based algorithm outperforms existing time-domain AR prediction methods in terms of both prediction accuracy and computational complexity.
Runtime Validation of Transactional Memory Systems

Transactional Memory (TM) has been proposed as a promising solution to effectively harness the increasing processing power of emerging multi/many- core systems. While there has been considerable research on the design and implementation of TM systems, it remains to be shown how to address the validation challenge of such systems in face of increasing design bugs and dynamic errors. This paper proposes a runtime validation methodology for ensuring the end-to-end correctness of a TM system. We use an extended constraint graph model to capture the correctness of a transactional execution, and provide efficient hardware support to perform online checking of this constraint graph. We describe the design ideas as well as the key optimization techniques to make this approach practical. Experiments based on a state-of-the-art TM system framework show that our design effectively performs system-level runtime validation with relatively small overhead.
The inhibition of hexose transport and metabolism by small amounts of adenosine 5′-triphosphate in isolated rat adipocytes

Abstract The effects of ATP on glucose transport and metabolism were studied in rat adipocytes. Over a concentration range of 10–250 μ m , ATP was found to inhibit several aspects of adipocyte glucose metabolism, particularly when stimulated by insulin. Much of the effect of ATP on glucose metabolism appeared related to impairment of glucose transport, reflected by inhibition of both basal and insulin-stimulated rates of 3- O -methylglucose transport. ATP inhibited the V of insulin-stimulated 3- O -methylglucose transport, but had no effect on the K m . The inhibitory effects of ATP were much less apparent when cells were preincubated with insulin, suggesting that ATP inhibited only the components of hexose transport not yet activated by the hormone. At very high medium glucose concentrations, where transport was no longer rate limiting for metabolism, there was no inhibition of glucose oxidation by 250 μ m ATP. However, when hexose transport was blocked with cytochalasin B (50 μ m ), a small inhibitory effect of ATP persisted on basal and insulin-stimulated glucose and fructose oxidation, suggesting that intracellular metabolism was impaired. The mechanism of the intracellular effect did not appear to be caused by uptake of exogenous ATP. These studies provide further evidence that energy metabolism may play an important role in the regulation of facilitated glucose transport.
Neuromaturation and Adolescent Risk Taking: Why Development Is Not Determinism

In the January 2009 issue of this journal, Males argues that adolescent brain science perpetuates the "myth of adolescent risk taking." He contends that those who study adolescent neuromaturation are biological determinists who ignore the profound social and environmental forces that influence adolescent behavior to further their own agendas. Males mischaracterizes developmental research and misinterprets public health data. This article analyzes his argument and provides a response based on the evidence. There is significant cross-species evidence that adolescence serves an important developmental function on the road to full maturation and is not merely an oppressive social construction. Research on neuromaturation can help elucidate both the vulnerabilities and tremendous potential of the adolescent brain. It also provides the opportunity to examine the role of social environments in shaping developmental processes and to explore how reasoned understandings of adolescent brain and biological development are being used to inform interventions that scaffold adolescent vulnerabilities.
Dissipation observations of drag coefficients over the open ocean

Forty-three open-ocean observations of drag coefficients observed at Argus Island Tower near Bermuda by the dissipation technique resulted in constant drag coefficients for mean horizontal wind velocities between 7.8 and 10.4 m .s^{1} in good agreement with the larger near-neutral data set of DeLeonibus and Simpson [1] and the neutral data of Large and Pond [2], both of whom observed 10^{3}C_{10} = 1.2 where C_{10} is the drag coefficient at l0 m. Ratios of vertical-to-horizontal wind velocity spectral densities averaged over an inertial subrange of 0.8 to 1.6 Hz ranged from 0.7 to 1.07 in agreement with the Busch and Panofsky [3] result that isotropy is approached only when the observation height is much greater than the Nyquist wavelength.
Raising P50 increases tissue PO2 in canine skeletal muscle but does not affect critical O2 extraction ratio

Curtis, Scott E., Thomas A. Walker, W. E. Bradley, and Stephen M. Cain. Raising P50increases tissue P O 2 in canine skeletal muscle but does not affect critical O2 extraction ratio.J. Appl. Physiol...
Transforming growth factor-β and multidrug resistance in chronic lymphocytic leukemia

Patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) frequently respond to initial treatment, but then become resistant to chemotherapy. Studies have shown one important cause of chemotherapeutic resistance to be multidrug resistance (MDR). To investigate the potential role of MDR and transforming growth factor-β (TFG-β), a potent growth inhibitor of B lymphocytes, in the development of chemotherapeutic resistance in CLL, we evaluated 22 CLL patients for loss or mutation of TGF-β receptors (TβR), plasma TGF-β1 levels, and expression of MDR1 mRNA. Receptor crosslinking and immunoprecipitation experiments did not demonstrate loss of TβRs in any patients studied. No relationship between plasma TGF-β1 levels and expression of MDR1 mRNA was seen. Correlation of plasma TGF-β1 levels to disease stage revealed a consistent decline in plasma TGF-β1 levels with advancing disease stage (P=0.031).
Clinical Features, Virus Identification, and Sinusitis as a Complication of Upper Respiratory Tract Illness in Children Ages 4-7 Years.

Objective To determine the rate of sinusitis complicating upper respiratory tract illnesses (URIs) in children. We prospectively identified the clinical, virologic, and epidemiologic characteristics of URIs in a population of 4- to 7-year-old children followed for 1 year. Study design This was an observational cohort study in 2 primary care pediatric practices in Madison, Wisconsin. Nasal samples were obtained during 4 asymptomatic surveillance visits and during symptomatic URIs. A polymerase chain reaction-based assay for 9 respiratory viruses was performed on nasal samples. A diagnosis of sinusitis was based on published criteria. Results Two hundred thirty-six children ages 48-96 months were enrolled. A total of 327 URIs were characterized. The mean number of URIs per child was 1.3 (range 0-9) per year. Viruses were detected in 81% of URIs; rhinovirus (RV) was most common. Seventy-two percent of URIs were resolved clinically by the 10th day. RV-A and RV-C were detected more frequently at URI visits; RV-B was detected at the same rate for both asymptomatic surveillance visits and URI visits. Sinusitis was diagnosed in 8.8% of symptomatic URIs. Viruses were detected frequently (33%) in samples from asymptomatic children. Conclusions Sinusitis occurred in 8.8% of symptomatic URIs in our study. The virus most frequently detected with URIs in children was RV; RV-A and RV-C detection but not RV-B detection were associated with illness. Viruses, especially RV, are detected frequently in asymptomatic children. Most URIs have improved or resolved by the 10th day after onset. Children experienced a mean of 1.3 URIs per year, which was lower than expected.
Biology and Habits of Bracon politiventris (Hymenoptera: Braconidae)

Bracon politiventris (Cushman) was an abundant parasitoid of the western spruce budworm, Choristoneura occidentalis Freeman, in Colorado in 1963. Its apparent importance prompted laboratory studies of its life history and habits and field observations on its host-searching behavior. Male wasps appeared first, and copulated immediately with females when they emerged. Honey was a suitable food for both sexes; females also fed at punctures in paralyzed hosts. Each female wasp attacked and paralyzed about 10 budworm larvae, usually stage VI, in their feeding tunnels and deposited about 100 eggs externally. At 25°C the eggs hatched in about 24 hours; the gregarious larvae fed externally and were fully grown in 3 days. Several months of cold treatment were necessary for prepupae in diapause to resume development in their cocoons. Alternative lepidopteran hosts probably include Dioryctria reniculella (Grote) and Choristoneura conflictana (Walker).
Proof without Words: 1 Domino = 2 Squares: Concentric Squares

(1987). Proof without Words: 1 Domino = 2 Squares: Concentric Squares. Mathematics Magazine: Vol. 60, No. 5, pp. 327-327.
A Generic Fusion Platform of Failure Diagnostics for Resilient Engineering System Design

Effective health diagnostics provides benefits such as improved safety, improved reliability, and reduced costs for the operation and maintenance of complex engineered systems. This paper presents a multi-attribute classification fusion approach which leverages the strengths provided by multiple membership classifiers to form a robust classification model for structural health diagnostics. The developed classification fusion approach conducts the health diagnostics with three primary stages: (i) fusion formulation using a k-fold cross validation model; (ii) diagnostics with multiple multi-attribute classifiers as member algorithms; and (iii) classification fusion through a weighted majority voting with dominance system. State-of-the-art classification techniques from three broad categories (i.e., supervised learning, unsupervised learning, and statistical inference) are employed as the member algorithms. The developed classification fusion approach is demonstrated with the 2008 PHM challenge problem. The developed fusion diagnostics approach outperforms any stand-alone member algorithm with better diagnostic accuracy and robustness.Copyright © 2015 by ASME
Influence of colchicine on the form of skeletal muscle in tissue culture.

SummaryColchicine administered to tissue cultures of rat skeletal muscle in concentrations of 10-8 molar or greater causes a breaking-up of the sarcoblastic ribbons into short, widened segments of apparently decreased consistency. These segments remain viable. 9 other biologically active agents used as controls have no such effect. A possible mechanism of this action of colchicine is discussed.