cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Considerations in the Deployment of Machine Learning Algorithms on Spaceflight Hardware

Recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) have revolutionized many fields. ML has many potential applications in the space domain. Next generation space instruments are producing data at rates that exceed the capabilities of current spacecraft to store or transmit to ground stations. Deployment of ML algorithms onboard future spacecraft could perform processing of sensor data as it is gathered, reducing data volume and providing a dramatic increase in throughput of meaningful data. ML techniques may also be used to enhance the autonomy of space missions. However ML techniques have not yet been widely deployed in space environments, primarily due to limitations on the computational capabilities of spaceflight hardware. The need to verify that high-performance computational hardware can reliably operate in this environment delays the adoption of these technologies. Nevertheless, the availability of advanced processing capabilities onboard spacecraft is increasing. These platforms may not provide the processing power of terrestrial equivalents, but they do provide the resources necessary for deploying real-time execution of ML algorithms. In this paper, we present results exploring the implementation of ML techniques on computationally-constrained, high-reliability spacecraft hardware. We show two ML algorithms utilizing deep learning techniques which illustrate the utility of these approaches for space applications. We describe implementation considerations when tailoring these algorithms for execution on computationally-constrained hardware and present a workflow for performing these optimizations. We also present initial results on characterizing the trade space between algorithm accuracy, throughput, and reliability on a variety of hardware platforms with current and anticipated paths to spaceflight.
Hands-on horticulture: Lessons learned teaching online experiential horticulture during COVID-19

Abstract As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, many courses were forced online. This posed particular challenges for courses with laboratory or hands-on components. A group of instructors at the University of Minnesota and the University of Wisconsin-Madison designed an online, asynchronous course structure for teaching introductory horticulture courses with laboratory components. Uniquely, the courses described in this article, while delivered through the online teaching platform Canvas, focused on developing hands-on activities that got students away from their computers to observe, work with, and grow plants. The course included hands-on activities that complemented lecture readings and videos and guided students through designing and setting up experiments in their homes. We heard many positive reviews from student course evaluations for this style of course and want to share the structure and the types of experiential activities we included to engage students with plants and the process of science, as well as lessons that we learned while teaching in this online learning environment. We found that the ability to care for and observe plants on a daily basis wove together the lecture and lab materials in ways that were not previously seen during in-person courses. As instructors, we would adapt some of the components of these online courses into our in-person courses in the future. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved
Extension of the eXpanded Nystagmus Acuity Function to Vertical and Multiplanar Data

We updated and extended the functionality of the eXpanded Nystagmus Acuity Function (NAFX), for application under more diverse circumstances, improving its clinical predictive value. The original NAFX ‘‘s-surface” of minimum-necessary-foveation times had been individually calculated for each combination of position and velocity limits. We have replaced it with an idealized mathematical function that repairs the irregularities in its surface due to idiosyncrasies in the subject data used for the initial calculations. To extend applicability to multiplanar data, we combine horizontal and vertical eye-movement data into a single waveform using vector summation. Torsional eye movements have little effect on visual acuity and are ignored. Age-related visual acuity relationships, derived from population data, more accurately relate the NAFX value to acuity for individual patients. Using the same patient fixation data that established the original NAF and NAFX functions, we verified that the updated NAFX yielded equivalent results for uniplanar data. For biplanar data, the results were also comparable to those of uniplanar data of the same magnitude. The updated NAFX yields greater accuracy in prediction of potential visual acuity for subjects of all ages, for uniplanar and multiplanar nystagmus, extending the objective, direct measure of post-therapy waveform improvement, allowing selection of the best therapy for a wider range of nystagmus patients. 2010 Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Detection of Trojan Horses by the analysis of system behavior and data packets

Trojan Horse is said to be one of the most serious threats to computer security. A Trojan Horse is an executable file in the Windows operating system. This executable file will have certain static and runtime characteristics. Multiple system processes in the Windows OS will be called whenever a Trojan Horse tries to execute any operation on the system. In this paper, a new Trojan Horse detection method by using Windows Dynamic Link Libraries to identify system calls from a Trojan Horses is explicated. Process explorer is used to identify the malicious executables and to determine whether they are Trojans or not. Further, an attempt made to study the network behavior after a Trojan Horse is executed using Wireshark.
Effects of protective fencing on birds, lizards, and black-tailed hares in the Western Mojave Desert

), perennial plant cover, and structural diversity of perennial plants were evaluated from spring 1994 through winter 1995 at the Desert Tortoise Research Natural Area (DTNA), in the Mojave Desert, California. Abundance and species richness of birds were higher inside than outside the DTNA, and effects were larger during breeding than wintering seasons and during a high than a low rainfall year. Ash-throated flycatchers (Myiarchus cinerascens), cactus wrens (Campylorhynchus brunneicapillus), LeConte's thrashers (Toxostoma lecontei), loggerhead shrikes (Lanius ludovicianus), sage sparrows (Amphispiza belli), and verdins (Auriparus flaviceps) were more abundant inside than outside the DTNA. Nesting activity was also more frequent inside. Total abundance and species richness of lizards and individual abundances of western whiptail lizards (Cnemidophorous tigris) and desert spiny lizards (Sceloporus magister) were higher inside than outside. In contrast, abundance of black-tailed hares was lower inside. Structural diversity of the perennial plant community did not differ due to protection, but cover was 50% higher in protected areas. Black-tailed hares generally prefer areas of low perennial plant cover, which may explain why they were more abundant outside than inside the DTNA. Habitat structure may not affect bird and lizard communities as much as availability of food at this desert site, and the greater abundance and species richness of vertebrates inside than outside the DTNA may correlate with abundances of seeds and invertebrate prey.
Blind multiuser detectors for dual rate DS-CDMA systems over frequency selective channels

Linearly constrained optimization techniques based on the minimization of the output energy have been proposed for the design of single rate DS-CDMA detectors. The goal of this paper is to apply this approach to dual rate systems where low rate users have symbol periods which are multiples of those of high rate users. It is observed that a high rate (HR) user experiences the same frequency selective communication channel during its M consecutive symbol periods corresponding to one symbol period of low rate (LR) users. A bank of M detectors can be derived to detect those M symbols for a HR user by minimizing the total output power of these detectors subject to a common constraint for all M detectors. The unknown constraint can be obtained by further maximizing the resulting power. To detect a LR user, one possible solution is to similarly design M such detectors in its one symbol period and combine all outputs based on some criterion such as maximum ratio combining. An alternative is to directly apply existing constrained optimization methods. It is shown that the performance of the proposed detectors tends to be close to that of the MMSE detector at high SNR.
Concordance of the Montreal cognitive assessment with standard neuropsychological measures.

Introduction The concordance of the Montreal cognitive assessment (MoCA) with more comprehensive neuropsychological measures remains unclear. This study examined the individual MoCA domains with more comprehensive and commonly used neuropsychological measures to determine the degree of overlap.
Virulence of different isolates of Aeromonas hydrophila in channel catfish

Abstract The virulence of nine Aeromonas hydrophila isolates from diseased fish, diseased Macrobrachium (freshwater shrimp) and from pond water was determined in channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) fingerlings. According to the lethal dose − 50% end point (LD50) of each isolate, the water organisms were significantly (P
Martensitic phase transformation of single-crystal lithium from bcc to a 9R-related structure

A neutron elastic- and inelastic-scattering study of single-crystal bcc lithium was performed above and below the martensitic phase transformation in the vicinity of 75 K. The transformation is abrupt and the bcc lattice partially transforms to a 9R-related (Sm-type) structure. The 9R c/sup */ and a/sup */ axes of this variant are nearly along the (110) and (11-bar0) bcc directions, respectively. The (10L) and (20L) 9R reflections were broadened and shifted from their ideal positions compared to the (00L) 9R reflections, indicative of numerous stacking faults. On warming, the sample reverts back to a single crystal with the same bcc orientation.
2-factors in dense bipartite graphs

An n-ladder is a balanced bipartite graph with vertex sets A = {a,..., an} and B = {b1,..., bn} such that ai ∼ bj iff |i-j| ≤ 1. We use techniques developed recently by Komlos et al. (1997) to show that if G = (U,V,E) is a bipartite graph with |U| = n = |V|, with n sufficiently large, and the minimum degree of G is at least n/2 + 1, then G contains an n-ladder. This answers a question of Wang.
Corn, Sorghum, and Soybean Response to Irrigation in the Mississippi River Alluvial Plain

Irrigation did not consistently affect weed cover in any of the crops. Differences between average seed yields of irrigated and nonirrigated corn, sorghum and soybean were 2886, 694 and 1574 kg/ha, respectively. Sorghum produced the most stable non irrigated yield and the smallest increase in monetary return from irrigation. Differences between I and NI corn and soybean yields were associated with increased number of seed
Stormwater runoff quality of a Louisiana log storage and handling facility

Abstract Very little attention has been paid to the stormwater runoff quality from log storage and handling facilities. This project determined the concentrations of conventional parameters such as BOD5, COD and TSS, and 123 priority pollutants of stormwater runoff samples from a log storage and handling facility in Louisiana. No significant levels of priority pollutants were found and only about 1 to 13 % of COD was biodegradable. COD followed closely with TSS, suggesting that effective control of TSS will control COD as well. The pollutant strength resulting from summer to fall storms did not vary much.
APOBEC3G-Augmented Stem Cell Therapy to Modulate HIV Replication: A Computational Study.

The interplay between the innate immune system restriction factor APOBEC3G and the HIV protein Vif is a key host-retrovirus interaction. APOBEC3G can counteract HIV infection in at least two ways: by inducing lethal mutations on the viral cDNA; and by blocking steps in reverse transcription and viral integration into the host genome. HIV-Vif blocks these antiviral functions of APOBEC3G by impeding its encapsulation. Nonetheless, it has been shown that overexpression of APOBEC3G, or interfering with APOBEC3G-Vif binding, can efficiently block in vitro HIV replication. Some clinical studies have also suggested that high levels of APOBEC3G expression in HIV patients are correlated with increased CD4+ T cell count and low levels of viral load; however, other studies have reported contradictory results and challenged this observation. Stem cell therapy to replace a patient’s immune cells with cells that are more HIV-resistant is a promising approach. Pre-implantation gene transfection of these stem cells can augment the HIV-resistance of progeny CD4+ T cells. As a protein, APOBEC3G has the advantage that it can be genetically encoded, while small molecules cannot. We have developed a mathematical model to quantitatively study the effects on in vivo HIV replication of therapeutic delivery of CD34+ stem cells transfected to overexpress APOBEC3G. Our model suggests that stem cell therapy resulting in a high fraction of APOBEC3G-overexpressing CD4+ T cells can effectively inhibit in vivo HIV replication. We extended our model to simulate the combination of APOBEC3G therapy with other biological activities, to estimate the likelihood of improved outcomes.
Occupational Claims to Professionalism: The Case of Paralegals

This article, based on fifty-one in-depth interviews with paralegals working in private law firms, bridges the gap between sociologists' understanding of professions and professionalization and workers' subjective meaning of professional and professionalism. For paralegals to be professional, they must be both competent and capable of maintaining the proper demeanor, which includes their thoughts, behaviors, appearances, and emotions. Ironically, paralegals claim the title professional, or make claims to professionalism, to make themselves feel better about the unprofessional manner in which they are treated by attorneys; however, their assumptions about the meaning of professionalism undercut the likelihood that they will ever make collective demands for the professional treatment they seek.
Risks and Challenges of Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillators in Young Adults

The clinical use of the implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) is well established to prevent sudden death in patients with left ventricular dysfunction due to coronary artery disease and dilated cardiomyopathy, and its use has saved thousands of lives. More recently, its use has been extended to other patients at risk for sudden cardiac arrest due to ventricular fibrillation: patients with structural heart diseases such as hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia and patients with normal cardiac anatomy and function except for electrophysiologic abnormalities that predispose to cardiac arrest: Brugada syndrome and long QT syndrome. A distinguishing feature of these patients may be the young age when they present for either primary or secondary prevention. This contrasts with the "first wave" of adult ICD implantations that were usually performed in elderly or middle aged patients. An important consideration in favor of ICD implantation in young patients with sudden death risk is the long and cumulative period of their risk. Similarly, after implantation, these patients will experience the long-term risks of ICD implantation. This review focuses on the unique challenges presented by device implantation in young patients 16 to 45 years of age who may have 4 to 7 decades of life with their devices. Although devices may prolong life, they come with problems that will pose unique challenges for both patients and their physicians. Moreover, because of the long durations, these problems may accelerate as patients age.
800-6 Prognostic Value of Coronary Calcium Scores by Electron Beam Computed Tomography (EBCT) in Patients Undergoing Coronary Angiography: A Multicenter Study

Four hundred and fifty two patients (pts) underwent coronary angiography (CA) and EBCT at 5 different centers between April 1989 and Dec. 1993. EBCT studies were analyzed by a cardiologist, blinded to CA and clinical data, using a specialized work station. A follow-up phone survey was completed in 53%. Three other cardiologists. blinded to CA and EBCT, reviewed records for all deaths and hospital admissions for chest pain or suspected myocardial infarction. They determined that 9 CHD deaths and 6 acute infarctions had occurred in 31 ± 14 mos. The quartile EBCT score distribution for events was: Quartile Range of Scores # of Pts # of Events 1 (0–6) 60 0 2 (6–92) 60 3 3 (92–400) 60 6 4 (l400) 60 6 Logistic regression including age, sex, CA findings and log (EBCT score) showed that only log (score) predicted events. EBCT coronary calcium predicts CHD events in pts undergoing angiography but pts with lower scores can also suffer events.
Inferring Dynamic Signatures of Microbes in Complex Host Ecosystems

The human gut microbiota comprise a complex and dynamic ecosystem that profoundly affects host development and physiology. Standard approaches for analyzing time-series data of the microbiota involve computation of measures of ecological community diversity at each time-point, or measures of dissimilarity between pairs of time-points. Although these approaches, which treat data as static snapshots of microbial communities, can identify shifts in overall community structure, they fail to capture the dynamic properties of individual members of the microbiota and their contributions to the underlying time-varying behavior of host ecosystems. To address the limitations of current methods, we present a computational framework that uses continuous-time dynamical models coupled with Bayesian dimensionality adaptation methods to identify time-dependent signatures of individual microbial taxa within a host as well as across multiple hosts. We apply our framework to a publicly available dataset of 16S rRNA gene sequences from stool samples collected over ten months from multiple human subjects, each of whom received repeated courses of oral antibiotics. Using new diversity measures enabled by our framework, we discover groups of both phylogenetically close and distant bacterial taxa that exhibit consensus responses to antibiotic exposure across multiple human subjects. These consensus responses reveal a timeline for equilibration of sub-communities of micro-organisms with distinct physiologies, yielding insights into the successive changes that occur in microbial populations in the human gut after antibiotic treatments. Additionally, our framework leverages microbial signatures shared among human subjects to automatically design optimal experiments to interrogate dynamic properties of the microbiota in new studies. Overall, our approach provides a powerful, general-purpose framework for understanding the dynamic behaviors of complex microbial ecosystems, which we believe will prove instrumental for future studies in this field.
In/sub 0.25/Ga/sub 0.75/As/AlAs-based resonant tunneling diodes grown on prepatterned and nonpatterned GaAs

The DC current-voltage characteristics of strained In/sub 0.25/Ga/sub 0.75/As/AlAs resonant tunneling diode (RTD) structures grown on GaAs
Transport phenomena in polymeric membrane fuel cells

Transport phenomena of mass, energy, momentum and electrical charges play a significant role in proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). In this study the transport and balance equations are the basis of a simulation model which allows the evaluation of the distribution of the physico-chemical parameters within the structure of a PEMFC reactor. Model validation is presented; the validated model is then used to investigate the behaviour of the reactor, with particular attention to critical operating conditions. Critical conditions arise in a number of cases: flooding, membrane drying and degradation due to temperature peaks are discussed in this paper.
Regulation of cholesterol 7α-hydroxylase gene (CYP7A1) transcription by the liver orphan receptor (LXRα)

The cholesterol 7alpha-hydroxylase gene (CYP7A1) plays an important role in regulation of bile acid biosynthesis and cholesterol homeostasis. Oxysterol receptor, LXR, stimulates, whereas the bile acid receptor, FXR, inhibits CYP7A1 transcription. The goal of this study was to investigate the role of LXRalpha on the regulation of rat, human and hamster CYP7A1 transcription in its native promoter and cellular context. Cotransfection with LXRalpha and RXRalpha expression plasmids strongly stimulated rat CYP7A1/luciferase reporter activity in HepG2 cells and oxysterol was not required. However, LXRalpha had much less effect on hamster and no significant effect on human CYP7A1 promoter activity in HepG2 cells. In Chinese hamster ovary cells, cotransfection with LXRalpha stimulated reporter activity by less than 2-fold and addition of 22(R)-hydroxycholesterol caused a small but significant stimulation of rat, human and hamster CYP7A1 promoter activity. At least two direct repeats of AGGTCA-like sequences with 4-base spacing (DR4) and five-base spacing (DR5), in previously identified bile acid response elements of the rat CYP7A1 were able to bind LXRalpha/RXRalpha and confer LXRalpha stimulation. However, LXRalpha did not bind to the corresponding sequences of the human gene and bound weakly to hamster and mouse DR4 sequences. Therefore, rats and mice have the unusual capacity to convert cholesterol to bile acids by LXRalpha-mediated stimulation of CYP7A1 transcription, whereas other species do not respond to cholesterol and develop hypercholesterolemia on a diet high in cholesterol.
Nelfinavir Inhibits Intra-Mitochondrial Calcium Influx and Protects Brain against Hypoxic-Ischemic Injury in Neonatal Mice

Nelfinavir (NLF), an antiretroviral agent, preserves mitochondrial membranes integrity and protects mature brain against ischemic injury in rodents. Our study demonstrates that in neonatal mice NLF significantly limits mitochondrial calcium influx, the event associated with protection of the brain against hypoxic-ischemic insult (HI). Compared to the vehicle-treated mice, cerebral mitochondria from NLF-treated mice exhibited a significantly greater tolerance to the Ca2+-induced membrane permeabilization, greater ADP-phosphorylating activity and reduced cytochrome C release during reperfusion. Pre-treatment with NLF or Ruthenium red (RuR) significantly improved viability of murine hippocampal HT-22 cells, reduced Ca2+ content and preserved membrane potential (Ψm) in mitochondria following oxygen-glucose deprivation (OGD). Following histamine-stimulated Ca2+ release from endoplasmic reticulum, in contrast to the vehicle-treated cells, the cells treated with NLF or RuR also demonstrated reduced Ca2+ content in their mitochondria, the event associated with preserved Ψm. Because RuR inhibits mitochondrial Ca2+ uniporter, we tested whether the NLF acts via the mechanism similar to the RuR. However, in contrast to the RuR, in the experiment with direct interaction of these agents with mitochondria isolated from naive mice, the NLF did not alter mitochondrial Ca2+ influx, and did not prevent Ca2+ induced collapse of the Ψm. These data strongly argues against interaction of NLF and mitochondrial Ca2+ uniporter. Although the exact mechanism remains unclear, our study is the first to show that NLF inhibits intramitochondrial Ca2+ flux and protects developing brain against HI-reperfusion injury. This novel action of NLF has important clinical implication, because it targets a fundamental mechanism of post-ischemic cell death: intramitochondrial Ca2+ overload → mitochondrial membrane permeabilization → secondary energy failure.
Clinical course and pathologic findings after Gliadel and radiotherapy for newly diagnosed malignant glioma: implications for patient management.

Randomized trials have demonstrated Gliadel® improves survival for appropriately selected patients with newly diagnosed malignant glioma. As only limited information is available to guide the management of patients who have Gliadel® controlled-release BCNU wafers implanted in the cranial resection cavity prior to radiotherapy (RT), this retrospective review was conducted to describe clinical course, toxicity, and pathologic findings after this therapy for newly diagnosed malignant glioma. Forty-six consecutive patients receiving Gliadel® (3.8% BCNU impregnated wafers) followed by radiotherapy for newly diagnosed malignant glioma at Johns Hopkins Hospital from 1990 to August 1999 were identified, although one was lost to follow up and is excluded. Patients were evaluated for postoperative infection, pathology at reoperation, and survival. Twenty-eight patients received radiotherapy at Johns Hopkins and these patients are also evaluable for toxicity experienced during and one month after completion of RT. T...
Platelet reactivity in patients with subacute stent thrombosis compared with non-stent-related acute myocardial infarction.

Background Recent case control studies suggest that patients with subacute stent thrombosis (SAT) have increased platelet reactivity. However, SAT often presents as acute myocardial infarction (AMI), which is also associated with augmented platelet activation. We therefore compared platelet reactivity in patients with SAT and patients with AMI unrelated to stenting. Methods We identified 20 patients with SAT, 20 patients with ST-elevation AMI who underwent primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), and 20 patients who underwent stenting without SAT occurrence (stable control group). Platelet function was measured ≥3 days after PCI in the SAT (repeat procedure) and AMI groups and ≥3 months after stenting in the stable group. All patients received aspirin and clopidogrel. Platelet reactivity was evaluated by aggregation in response to 5 and 20 μmol/L of adenosine diphosphate and 1.5 mmol/L arachidonic acid, and by flow cytomeric determination of P-selectin and glycoprotein IIb/IIIa activation. Results Clinical characteristics were similar among the groups. Platelet testing was performed 4.9 ± 1.7, 3.1 ± 0.3, and 108 ± 22 days after PCI in the SAT, AMI, and stable groups, respectively. The SAT group had higher platelet aggregation and activation markers than the stable group. However, platelet aggregation and activation was very similar in the SAT and AMI groups. Conclusions Patients with SAT have increased platelet reactivity, compared with patients who do not develop SAT following stenting. However, the augmented platelet reactivity does not appear to differ from patients with AMI unrelated to stenting. This study highlights the need for large prospective studies to determine whether platelet hyperreactivity increases the risk of SAT.
Long range interaction between hydrogen and rare gas atoms with surfaces of III-V semiconductors

Abstract Calculations are presented of the coefficients C2, C5 and Cs1, Cs2, which describe the asymptotic potential between an atom and a surface and the substrate mediated adatom-adatom long range interaction, respectively. We have considered the interaction of hydrogen and rare gases with surfaces of GaP, GaAs, GaSb, InP, InAs, and InSb for which recent dielectric function data and theoretical calculations have become available. We have compared our full calculations with a simple formula introduced by Vidali and Cole.
An experiment in automated health care evaluation from narrative medical records

Abstract This paper describes an experiment in the automatic application of health care evaluation criteria to narrative hospital discharge summaries. The processing of the documents was done in two steps. First a three-stage system for natural language analysis accepted the sentences of each discharge summary as input and produced as output a tabular representation of the information in the document. Second, the health care evaluation criteria were implemented as a set of retrieval routines on this tabular representation. A comparison of the computer-generated evaluation results with those obtained by a physician reviewer showed good agreement, indicating that it is possible to process medical narrative automatically and to perform complex, medically significant fact retrieval on narrative input.
The metabolism of aromatic acids by Pseudomonas testosteroni and P. acidovorans

P. testosteroni oxidizes benzoate, m-hydroxybenzoate and p-hydroxybenzoate to protocatechuate, which is dissimilated through the meta cleavage pathway. P. acidovorans uses the same pathway for the oxidation of p-hydroxybenzoate. but employs the gentisate pathway for the oxidation of m-hydroxybenzoate. The difference between the two species with respect to m-hydroxybenzoate metabolism reflects a difference with respect to the specificity of their m-hydroxybenzoate hydroxylases: the enzyme of P. testosteroni hydroxylates in the 4 position, and that of P. acidovorans in the 6 position.
A simplified model to predict the effects of aggregation on the absorption properties of soot particles

Abstract An exact electrostatics formulation for sphere clusters is used to predict the Rayleigh-limit radiative absorption properties of soot aggregates. In the near to mid IR wavelengths, it is shown that aggregation can result in absorption cross sections that are significantly larger than that predicted by an independent-sphere (Rayleigh–Gans) model. The relative increase in absorption increases with the number of spheres in the aggregate, and reaches an asymptote for aggregates containing 100 – 200 spheres. A simplified correlation is developed to predict the aggregate absorption cross section as a function of number of spheres and refractive index. Implications of the effects of aggregation on absorption and emission of thermal radiation by soot in flame and atmospheric environments are discussed.
Enhancement of Anaerobic Respiration in Root Tips of Zea mays following Low-Oxygen (Hypoxic) Acclimation.

Root tips (10-millimeter length) were excised from hypoxically pretreated (HPT, 4% [v/v] oxygen at 25°C for 16 hours) or nonhypoxically pretreated (NHPT, 40% [v/v] oxygen) maize (Zea mays) plants, and their rates of respiration were compared by respirometry under aerobic and anaerobic conditions with exogenous glucose. The respiratory quotient under aerobic conditions with 50 millimolar glucose was approximately 1.0, which is consistent with glucose or other hexose sugars being utilized as the predominant carbon source in glycolysis. Under strictly anaerobic conditions (anoxia), glycolysis was accelerated appreciably in both HPT and NHPT root tips, but the rate of anaerobic respiration quickly declined in NHPT roots. [U-14C]Glucose supplied under anaerobic conditions was taken up and respired by HPT root tips up to five times more rapidly than by NHPT roots. When anaerobic ethanol production was measured with excised root tips in 50 millimolar glucose, HPT tissues consistently produced ethanol more rapidly than NHPT tissues. These data suggest that a period of low oxygen partial pressure is necessary to permit adequate acclimation of the root tip of maize to subsequent anoxia, resulting in more rapid rates of fermentation and generation of ATP.
Interplanetary energy flux associated with magnetospheric substorms

Abstract It is shown that the interplanetary quantity e ( t ), obtained by Perreault and Akasofu (1978), for intense geomagnetic storms, also correlates well with individual magnetospheric substonns. This quantity is given by e(t) = VB 2 sin 4 ( θ 2 )l o 2 , where V and B denote the solar wind speed and the magnitude of the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF), respectively, and θ denotes the polar angle of the IMF; l o is a constant ≊ 7 Earth radii. The AE index is used in this correlation study. The correlation is good enough to predict both the occurrence and intensity of magnetospheric substonns observed in the auroral zone, by monitoring the quantity e ( t ) upstream of the solar wind.
Galectin-1 research in T cell immunity: past, present and future.

Galectin-1 (Gal-1) is one of 15 evolutionarily conserved s-galactoside-binding proteins that display biologically-diverse activities in pathogenesis of inflammation and cancer. Gal-1 is variably expressed on immune cells and endothelial cells, though is commonly found and secreted at high levels in cancer cells. It induces apoptosis in effector T cells through homodimeric binding of N-acetyllactosamines on membrane glycoproteins (Gal-1 ligands). There is also compelling evidence in models of cancer and autoimmunity that recombinant Gal-1 (rGal-1) can potentiate immunoregulatory function of T cells. Here, we review Gal-1's structural and functional features, while analyzing potential drawbacks and technical difficulties inherent to rGal-1's nature. We also describe new Gal-1 preparations that exhibit dimeric stability and functional activity on T cells, providing renewed excitement for studying Gal-1 efficacy and/or use as anti-inflammatory therapeutics. We lastly summarize strategies targeting the Gal-1-Gal-1 ligand axis to circumvent Gal-1-driven immune escape in cancer and boost anti-tumor immunity.
Reliability of observer ratings in the assessment of personality disorders: a preliminary study.

A 200-item, self-report personality disorder inventory (Coolidge Axis II Inventory; CATI) was administered to 52 married target subjects. Their spouses and a close friend completed a significant-other form about the targets. The mean correlation across all personality disorder scales was 0.51 for the targets-spouses, 0.36 for the targets-friends, and 0.41 for the spouses-friends. Twenty-eight target-spouse correlations were significant and ranged from 0.99 to -.40. The mean correlation for the individual 13 personality disorder scales was 0.46 for target-spouses and ranged from 0.63 for the histrionic scale to 0.27 for the paranoid scale. The results were interpreted as establishing a basis for significant other assessment of personality disorders.
Gouy shift and temporal reshaping of focused single-cycle electromagnetic pulses

We discuss exact solutions of Maxwell’s equations that describe the evolution of single-cycle electromagnetic pulses. The solutions are applied to recent observations of the diffraction transformation of terahertz pulses. In particular, we elucidate the role of the Gouy shift in the temporal reshaping and polarity reversals of single-cycle terahertz pulses.
Light-induced absorbance changes in chloroplasts mediated by Photosystem I and Photosystem II at low temperature

Abstract Stable light-induced absorbance changes in chloroplasts at −196 °C were measured across the visible spectrum from 370 to 730 nm in an effort to find previously undiscovered absorbance changes that could be related to the primary photochemical activity of Photosystem I or Photosystem II. A Photosystem I mediated absorbance increase of a band at 690 nm and a Photosystem II mediated absorbance increase of a band at 683 nm were found. The 690-nm change accompanied the oxidation of P 700 and the 683-nm increase accompanied the reduction of C-550. No Soret band was detected for P 700 . A specific effort was made to measure the difference spectrum for the photooxidation of P 680 under conditions (chloroplasts frozen to −196 °C in the presence of ferricyanide) where a stable, Photosystem II mediated EPR signal, attributed to P 680 + has been reported. The difference spectra, however, did not show that P 680 + was stable at −196 °C under any conditions tested. Absorbance measurements induced by saturating flashes at −196 °C (in the presence or absence of ferricyanide) indicated that all of the P 680 + formed by the flash was reduced in the dark either by a secondary electron donor or by a backreaction with the primary electron acceptor. We conclude that P 680 + is not stable in the dark at −196 °C: if the normal secondary donor at −196 °C is oxidized by ferricyanide prior to freezing, P 680 + will oxidize other substances.
Insulin degradation by insulin target cells.

Abstract Recent findings illustrate the complexities associated with the interaction between insulin and its target cells. These results suggest that the processes involved in insulin action and those involved in insulin degradation may have certain steps in common. Both apparently begin when insulin binds to the insulin receptor. The next step is unknown but it ultimately leads to the internalization of the hormone before insulin dissociates from the cell surface. Furthermore, internalization appears to be a requirement for efficient degradation of insulin since the vast majority (perhaps all in certain cells) of the degrading activity is intracellular. Internalization may not be required to produce certain actions of the hormone, however, and the two processes may diverge at this point. 162 It is not clear how insulin enters the target cell other than the process appears to be receptor-mediated. Also, further work is needed to more fully characterize the vesicles that contain internalized insulin. Finally, the actual location of insulin degradation and the enzyme(s) involved need further study, especially to clarify the relative contributions of lysosomes, cytosolic protease, and GIT to physiological insulin destruction. An understanding of the overall process of insulin degradation is required for a complete description of the physiologic disposition of the hormone at the target cell. Moreover, this system has subtle control mechanisms that may have important implications for the management of diabetes and other endocrine and metabolic disorders.
A Brief Pre-Intervention Analysis and Demonstration of the Effects of a Behavioral Safety Package on Postural Behaviors of Pharmacy Employees.

Abstract This study employed a pre-intervention analysis to determine factors that contributed to safe ergonomic postures in a small pharmacy. The pharmacy was located on a university campus and employed both pharmacists and pharmacy technicians. Three of the eight pharmacy employees had experienced various repetitive motion injuries that resulted in a total of 36 lost days and 161 restricted days in the year prior to treatment onset. Observers collected detailed naturalistic data on the pharmacy employees' ergonomic behaviors when participants were on and off the phone. Results indicated that the participants' ergonomic postures were more at risk when the participants were using the phone. The preintervention analysis proved valuable for identifying variables responsible for the participants' at-risk behavior and aiding in the development of an intervention.
Accumulation of foliar soluble proline in sulphur dioxide-stressed Glycine max CV. ‘Essex’ and Hordeum vulgare CVS ‘Proctor’ and ‘Excelsior’ seedlings

Abstract We examined foliar soluble proline levels of 14-day-old Hordeum vulgare and Glycine max seedlings which had been fumigated with SO2 and harvested each under a variety of conditions. Visibly injured leaves of fumigated H. vulgare, cvs ‘Proctor’ and ‘Excelsior’ seedlings always contained more soluble proline than did non-fumigated leaves. The soluble proline levels of necrotic and non-necrotic areas of fumigated H. vulgare leaves (10 ppm, 4 h) were 15–30 and 1·5–18·0-fold, respectively, greater than those of comparable areas of non-fumigated leaves. Soluble proline accumulation occurred prior to the appearance of visible foliar injury in barley plants which were grown under winter glasshouse conditions (short daylength, temperatures of 18–21°C, high relative humidity). The extent (31–107%) to which soluble proline accumulated within G. max leaves was dependent upon both growth and fumigation conditions. Exposure to SO2 did not alter the dry weight/fresh weight ratios of those leaf areas which remained non-necrotic subsequent to fumigation, nor did it decrease leaf water potential. Other foliar soluble amino acids did not increase to the same extent that proline did as a result of fumigation, although slight quantitative changes in amino acids were observed.
Perceptions of, and Assistance Provided to, a Hypothetical Rape Victim: Differences between Rape Disclosure Recipients and Nonrecipients.

AbstractObjective: Undergraduate rape disclosure recipients’ and nonrecipients’ sociodemographic and life experience variables, attitudes towards rape, and responses to a hypothetical rape disclosure were compared to determine differences between them. Participants: One hundred ninety-two undergraduates at 3 universities participated in this online survey between November 2011 and April 2012. Methods: Participants reported on their rape myth acceptance (RMA) and personal direct and indirect (ie, disclosure receipt) experiences with sexual assault. Participants also responded to a hypothetical rape disclosure. Results: Disclosure recipients were more likely to report a victimization history, and less confusion and perceived ineffectiveness in helping the hypothetical victim. RMA and nonrecipient status predicted perceived victim responsibility; these variables and childhood victimization predicted confusion about helping. RMA also predicted perceived ineffectiveness of one's helping behaviors. Victimizatio...
Out‐of‐hospital Administration of Mannitol to Head‐injured Patients Does Not Change Systolic Blood Pressure

Objective: To determine the effect of out-of-hospital mannitol administration on systolic blood pressure (BP) in the head-injured multiple-trauma patient. Methods: This was a prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial involving a university-based helicopter air medical service and level-1 trauma center hospital. Endotracheally intubated head-trauma victims with Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) scores < 12 were enrolled from November 22, 1991, to November 20, 1992, if evaluated by the participating aeromedical transport team within 6 hours of injury. Patients were excluded if they were <18 years old, had already received mannitol or another diuretic, were potentially pregnant, or were receiving CPR. All patients were intubated prior to study drug (mannitol [1 g/ kg] or normal saline) use. Pulse and BP were measured every 15 minutes for 2 hours following study drug administration. Results: A total of 44 patients were enrolled. After exclusion of 3 patients who did not meet all inclusion criteria, there were 20 patients in the mannitol group and 21 patients in the placebo group. The groups were similar at baseline in age, pulse, systolic BP (baseline mannitol: 124 ± 47 mm Hg; placebo: 128 ± 32 mm Hg), GCS score, and Injury Severity Scale score. Systolic BP did not change significantly throughout the observation period in either group. This study had 83% power to detect a mean systolic BP drop to <90 mm Hg. Conclusion: Out-of-hospital administration of mannitol did not significantly change systolic BP in this group of head-injured multiple-trauma patients.
Morality and writing in the Baroque

A work like the Essays of Montaigne, written at the threshold of Modern Times, cannot simply be considered, if indeed any book can, as a standard book. Published after the end of an epoch in which each book claimed to be, in itself or in connection with its sources, a full expression of the cre? ative word, a compilation of divine discourse, the Essays emerges as a para? digm of human discourse. It emerges therefore as an embodiment of the limitations of such discourse not only in respect to authority, completeness, consistency and time, but also, and this hides the postmodern side of its modernity, in respect to sincerity. All these limitations of human discourse are made even more apparent in the purported durability of writing than they had been, in times past, in those learned or inquiring forms of speech that took shape as dialogues from Plato to the Renaissance humanists. The problematic nature of the Essays as a book is evident, in spite of its virtues, because of the impossibility to apply to it any genre rules (the essay, as an offspring of the personal diary, has even more claims to generic free? dom than the novel, the new form of narrative whose antigeneric and coun tercultural presuppositions will receive final approval in the poetics of the German aestheticians of the Romantic period). Nothing will therefore open the way to the specification of the essay, to its closure as discourse; the reader or critic of it possesses no clues to an adequate interpretation,
A Sex Pheromone in the Lesser Cornstalk Borer

The lesser cornstalk borer (LCB), Elasmopalpus lignosellus (Zeller), is one of the most destructive insect pests of cultivated peanuts. Its range extends throughout the peanut-growing areas of the southwestern and southeastern U. S. (Leuck 1966, King et al. 1961, Walton et al. 1964). To provide for a reliable adult sampling technique and a potential, noninsecticidal method for borer control the following study was conducted to determine the presence or absence of a sex pheromone in the lesser cornstalk borer.
Rule base management using meta knowledge

This paper describes the rule base management strategy of an expert system environment. The environment includes a set of integrated tools which facilitate acquisition, manipulation and maintenance of knowledge. The rule base management component of the system, called RBM, assists these tasks by organizing global semantic information within the rule base. RBM extracts this semantic information from the texts included in “rule structures” and builds a semantic network of the concepts found in the rule base. The rule base is then divided into rulesets which are clusters of rules that refer to the same atomic concept. Construction of this meta knowledge is achieved through a keyword matching mechanism. The paper includes a brief description of the RBM system, the dictionary it uses for building meta-level knowledge, and its keyword matching technique.
Optical properties of perylene films in the visible and near uv

Ellipsometric measurements of the refractive index and absorption coefficient of vacuum-evaporated perylene films are reported for the wavelength range 0.35 μm ≤ λ ≤ 0.7 μm. An independent determination of refractive index at one wavelength by a critical-angle measurement allows calculation of both optical constants as well as the film thickness from the ellipsometer data. The principal features of the wavelength dependence of the film absorption are a broad maximum around 0.5 μm, a weak peak from 0.41 − 0.45 μm, and a strong edge at 0.375 μm. Each of these features corresponds to a peak in the crystal absorption spectrum measured by Hochstrasser.
Laparoscopic clipping of the median sacral artery in huge sacrococcygeal teratomas

Huge sacrococcygeal teratomas in the newborn can cause significant morbidity and even death due to cardiac failure, hemorrhage, or both. Surgical removal is the treatment of choice, but can indicate these events. Ligation of the median sacral artery, which always supplies the tumor, prior to its removal has been advocated, but in the past this procedure required a formal laparotomy. Nowadays, it can be easily accomplished laparoscopically, as this case report demonstrates.
A review of meta-analyses of single-subject experimental designs: Methodological issues and practice

Several metrics have been suggested for summarizing results from single-subject experimental designs. This study briefly reviews the most commonly used metrics, noting their methodological limitations. This study also includes a synthesis of recent meta-analyses, describing which metrics were used and how meta-analysts handled dependence in the form of multiple treatments, outcomes, and participants per study. Guidelines for future methodological research and for single-subject experimental design meta-analysts are provided. Source of funding: Preparation of this article was supported by a grant from the Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education. However, the opinions expressed do not express the opinions of this agency.