cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Clocks and the performance of synchronisers

The performance of two synchronisation schemes is compared. One scheme uses a fixed-period clock with the allowable resolution time of the synchronising flip-flop being one clock period, the other scheme uses a clock with extensible clock-pulse recurrence time and a special flip-flop with an additional output, M, which is asserted whenever the flip-flop is in the metastable state. By asserting the PAUSE input to the clock, clock-pulse generation is inhibited. The M outputs of the rank of flip-flops are collectively ORed to drive the PAUSE input of the clock, thus pausing clock-pulse generation when one or more of them is in the metastable state. A system using the first scheme fails when conflicting actions are taken by its components, owing to inconsistent interpretation of the outputs of the flip-flops that are in the metastable state. In the second scheme, a system fails when the job execution time exceeds a specified upper bound, owing to extension in clock pulse recurrence times. If the path delays from the M outputs to the PAUSE input of the pausable clock are small, the second scheme performs better. However, its performance degrades exponentially as the delays increase.
Dendritic cells infected with vpr-positive human immunodeficiency virus type 1 induce CD8+ T-cell apoptosis via upregulation of tumor necrosis factor alpha.

Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) viral protein R (Vpr) plays a crucial role in viral replication and pathogenesis by inducing cell cycle arrest, apoptosis, translocation of preintegration complex, potentiation of glucocorticoid action, impairment of dendritic cell (DC) maturation, and T-cell activation. Recent studies involving the direct effects of Vpr on DCs and T cells indicated that HIV-1 containing Vpr selectively impairs phenotypic maturation, cytokine network, and antigen presentation in DCs and dysregulates costimulatory molecules and cytokine production in T cells. Here, we have further investigated the indirect effect of HIV-1 Vpr + virus-infected DCs on the bystander CD8 + T-cell population. Our results indicate that HIV-1 Vpr + virus-infected DCs dysregulate CD8 + T-cell proliferation and induce apoptosis. Vpr-containing virus-infected DC-mediated CD8 + T-cell killing occurred in part through enhanced tumor necrosis factor alpha production by infected DCs and subsequent induction of death receptor signaling and activation of the caspase 8-dependent pathway in CD8 + T cells. Collectively, these results provide evidence that Vpr could be one of the important contributors to the host immune escape by HIV-1 through its ability to dysregulate both directly and indirectly the DC biology and T-cell functions.
Stable biofunctionalization of hydroxyapatite (HA) surfaces by HA-binding/osteogenic modular peptides for inducing osteogenic differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells

Hydroxyapatite (HA), the principal component of bone mineral, shows osteoconductive properties when employed for coating metal implants as well as scaffold materials in synthetic bone grafts. With the goal of providing this material with osteoinductive capabilities to promote faster bone regeneration, we show an easy approach to functionalize HA implant surfaces and enrich them with osteoinductive properties by the use of HA-binding modular peptides. The modular peptides are designed as a combination of two domains, an HA-binding peptide motif and an osteogenic peptide motif derived from the osteogenic growth peptide (OGP) or bone morphometric protein 7 (BMP-7). To identify the best HA-binding peptide, several nature-inspired peptides derived from natural bone extracellular matrix proteins (bone sialoprotein, osteonectin, osteocalcin, and salivarin statherin) were compared for HA-binding activity, revealing concentration-dependent and incubation-time-dependent behaviours. We discovered that a Poly-E heptamer (E7) is the best HA-binding peptide, and thus combined it with a second osteogenic peptidic domain to create an osteoinductive modular peptide. After binding/release characterization, we found that the addition of the second osteogenic peptide domain did not change the binding profile of the modular peptides and caused only a slight change in their release kinetics. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) were cultured on the HA substrates functionalized with modular peptides, and cell adhesion, proliferation, and differentiation in a basal medium (i.e., without any osteogenic supplements) were investigated. Gene expression data clearly showed that MSCs were committed to differentiate into osteoblasts in the presence of the modular peptides. HA discs functionalized with the E7 BMP-7 modular peptide showed the best capability in inducing the osteogenic differentiation of MSCs among all modular peptides studied. The modular peptides can easily be used to functionalize the HA implants through its constituent HA-binding motif, leaving the osteogenic peptide motif protruding from the surface for inducing osteogenesis. Our work opens up a new approach to the formulation of new bioactive HA coatings and implants for bone and dental repair.
Communicative Dynamics and Recovery From Sexual Addiction: An Inconsistent Nurturing as Control Theory Analysis

Inconsistent nurturing as control (INC) theory provides a framework for understanding communication, relational dynamics, and recovery outcomes in romantic pairings where one partner is addicted to a substance or behavior. This study tested INC in the context of heterosexual male sex addict–female coaddict relationships. Results were generally supportive of the theory. Sex addicts with partners who nurtured their problematic sexual behavior through positive and negative reinforcement were the most likely to be sexually compulsive, whereas sex addicts with partners who consistently punished their problematic sexual behavior were the least likely to be sexually compulsive.
POLICE AND PROSECUTION SYSTEMS: AN EVALUATION OF A POLICE CRIMINAL CASE PREPARATION PROGRAM

Program evaluation can provide objective information relevant to decisions on program maintenance. A program to address problems in the preparation of criminal investigation reports in a metropolitan police department was evaluated. The program permanently altered environmental conditions under which reports were prepared to facilitate performance. Police officers, who had previously prepared reports without assistance, visited the Case Preparation Room to prepare reports with assistance from office personnel. Compared to reports prepared without assistance, reports prepared in the Case Preparation Room documented more case elements required by the state legal code for criminal prosecution, were completed in fewer days following arrests, and received higher ratings from Assistant District Attorneys. Operation of a permanent program available to approximately 945 officers proved a practical solution to improving the preparation of criminal investigation reports.
Civilian Colonic Injuries and Current Surgical Management

part of man's existence since the dawn of history, but the dramatic impact of penetrating abdominal wounds was first graphically described by Xenophon in Book II of the Anabasis, v in which he describes the plight of a Greek army captain returning to camp after battle, holding his bowels in his hands after an eviscerating wound of the abdomen. Until 1853, penetrating abdominal injuries were considered fatal, but it was recognized at that time, during the Crimean War, that if death were due to continuing hemorrhage, it might be preventable, and
History, rhetoric, and humanism : toward a more comprehensive definition of technical communication

Recent research suggests that pragmatic emphasis on writing proficiency alone does not produce a good technical communicator. Attention must also be given to the technical communicator as liberally educated generalist who writes well and feels an affinity for science or technology. To this end, technical communication needs to be studied in the larger context of evolving science and technology, developing trends in technical education, and the oratorical tradition of broad learning applied to the active life. Recent studies of the collaborative culture of the workplace should be supplemented by increased attention to humanistic questions of what a person needs to be and know in order to cooperate effectively as a practicing technical communicator.
Nuclear data sheets for A = 170*

Abstract Nuclear structure data from radioactivity and nuclear reaction measurements are summarized, and adopted level properties are presented. The present compilation is based on information available through December 1974.
Targeted Expression of Human Vitamin D Receptor in Adipocytes Decreases Energy Expenditure and Induces Obesity in Mice

Our previous studies demonstrated a high fat diet-resistant lean phenotype of vitamin D receptor (VDR)-null mutant mice mainly due to increased energy expenditure, suggesting an involvement of the VDR in energy metabolism. Here, we took a transgenic approach to further define the role of VDR in adipocyte biology. We used the aP2 gene promoter to target the expression of the human (h) VDR in adipocytes in mice. In contrast to the VDR-null mice, the aP2-hVDR Tg mice developed obesity compared with the wild-type counterparts without changes in food intake. The increase in fat mass was mainly due to markedly reduced energy expenditure, which was correlated with decreased locomotive activity and reduced fatty acid β-oxidation and lipolysis in the adipose tissue in the transgenic mice. Consistently, the expression of genes involved in the regulation of fatty acid transport, thermogenesis, and lipolysis were suppressed in the transgenic mice. Taken together, these data confirm an important role of the VDR in the regulation of energy metabolism.
V.—Some new earthworms from Rangoon, Burma.—II

(1925). V.—Some new earthworms from Rangoon, Burma.—II. Annals and Magazine of Natural History: Vol. 16, No. 91, pp. 49-64.
Introduction to the Forum on Deirdre McCloskey's Bourgeois Virtue

Most economic historians agree that the period from the end of the eighteenth century to the middle of the nineteenth century witnessed, in northwestern Europe in particular, an economic trend that...
Acceleration of endothelial-like cell differentiation from CD14+ monocytes in vitro.

Objective In vitro differentiation of endothelial cells has potential applications in vascular tissue engineering and cell-based therapy for many diseases. The objective of this study was to develop a new strategy that utilizes cytokines and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) to accelerate endothelial-like cell differentiation from peripheral blood CD14(+) monocytes. Methods Peripheral blood CD14(+) monocytes were purified with immunobeads and cultured with an angiogenic growth factor-rich growth medium (EGM-2) with or without initial treatment of LPS in combination of granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) and interleukin-4 (IL-4) for 4 days (the day 4 cultures). The cells were then continuously cultured in EGM-2 medium for an additional 4 or 10 days (the day 8 or day 14 cultures). Cell markers were determined by flow cytometry analysis and immunofluorescence staining. Cytokine/chemokine profile was studied by Bio-Plex immunoassay. Results In the group of initial treatment of LPS in combination with GM-CSF, IL-4, and EGM-2, the majority of suspended CD14(+) monocytes were attached and changed their morphology to endothelial-like cells, which expressed high levels of endothelial cell markers CD31, von Willebrand factor, and vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-1 as well as two major endothelial tight junction proteins zonula occludens -1 and occludin in the day 8 cultures. Endothelial nitric oxide synthase expression was substantially increased. Endothelial-like cells were also able to uptake acetylated low-density lipoprotein and bind to Ulex europeus lectin. In addition, endothelial-like cells showed a unique cytokine/chemokine profile with substantial increases of macrophage inflammatory protein-1beta, IL-6, granulocyte colony-stimulating factor, and IL-8. Conclusion Initial treatment of LPS in combination with GM-CSF, IL-4, and EGM-2 is an effective strategy for acceleration of endothelial-like cell differentiation from peripheral blood CD14(+) monocytes in vitro.
Outflow facility in isolated porcine eyes after creation of an intrascleral canal by injection of stabilized hyaluronic acid.

PURPOSE: To investigate outflow facility in isolated porcine eyes after creation of an intrascleral canal by injection of stabilized, nonanimal, hyaluronic acid gel (NASHA; Q-Med AB, Uppsala, Sweden). METHODS: Outflow facility of 60 porcine eyes was measured after creation of an intrascleral canal into the anterior chamber by injection of NASHA gel using six different combinations of needle size (21, 23, and 27 gauge) and canal length (4.6 mm). Ten eyes were tested in each of the six subgroups and an additional 10 were control eyes. After cannulation of the anterior chamber and adjustment of the inflow rate to achieve a stable pressure of 10 mm Hg, an intrascleral channel was created by injection of NASHA gel. The inflow rate was then increased to achieve a stable pressure of 20 mm Hg and then again adjusted to maintain a stable pressure of 30 mm Hg. RESULTS: A significant increase in outflow facility was found between the control group and the NASHA gel-injected group (60 eyes) for both the 10- to 20-mm Hg and the 20- to 30-mm Hg pressure change (P < 0.001). Increase in outflow facility was independent of the canal lengths and the needle sizes used for both the 10- to 20-mm Hg (P = 0.82) and 20- to 30-mm Hg (P = 0.99) pressure change. CONCLUSIONS: A single ab externo intrascleral canal created by injection of NASHA gel increases the outflow facility in isolated porcine eyes. This is a potentially promising new technique for lowering intraocular pressure. It remains to be seen whether these positive results can be reproduced for significant periods in humans.
Use of microdialysis to measure brain noradrenergic receptor function in vivo.

The present studies were undertaken to explore the use of intracerebral microdialysis to measure brain adrenergic receptor activity in vivo using the efflux of cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) in the extracellular fluid as an index of receptor function. An initial study with brain slices showed that extracellular levels of cAMP were highly correlated with intracellular levels after noradrenergic receptor activation. Detectable levels of extracellular cAMP were obtained from microdialysis probes implanted in the frontal cortex. Stable levels (3.5 ± 2.7pmol/ml) were obtained between 1.5 and 7 h after implantation. Perfusion of probes with NE (10−5 to 10−3 M) led to dose-dependent increases in cAMP efflux. The response to NE was blocked by infusion of the β-antagonist, timolol, indicating that it reflected β-receptor activation. Similar responses were obtained at 2 and 24 h after implantation indicating that the responses were not affected by acute traumatic effects of implantation. The finding show that the microdialysis technique can be successfully applied to the in vivo study of central adrenoceptor function. This suggests that the in vivo measurement of second messengers by microdialysis will provide a valuable new neurochemical and neuropharmacological technique.
Evidence for seismogenic normal faults at shallow dips in continental rifts

Several recent observations indicate that normal faulting earthquakes occasionally occur on faults dipping < 35°, dips often considered shallow. Most of these occur in the Woodlark and Aegean rifts. The Woodlark and Aegean rifts are found to generate significantly more earthquakes than others, and are the most rapidly extending, so display the widest variety of fault behavior. Even within the Woodlark rift system extension rates vary along strike, with the shallowest-dipping faults confined to the most rapidly rifting segment. Here, several events (MW 6.0  6.8) feature nodal planes dipping 23-35°. These planes are subparallel to shear zones bounding nearby metamorphic core complexes, including one imaged to 8-9 km depth by seismic reflection profiling. In the western Gulf of Corinth at least one large event (Mw 6.4) occurred on a fault dipping ~33°. As the Woodlark example, this rift segment exhibits a high opening rate (10-20 mm/yr). Several other cases elsewhere, based on older historic data, microseismicity, or geologic inference suggest seismic slip at similar or shallower dips. Still, no documented large earthquake exhibits seismic slip on sub-horizontal surfaces (dip <10-15°). Stress rotation may explain the 23-35° dips, but thus far no realistic mechanism has been found. More likely, these faults represent surfaces somewhat weaker than surrounding rock, through some combination of modest cohesion of the surrounding rock and slightly lower frictional coefficients on the fault. Such weakening may be a consequence of high slip rates, which rapidly generate large offsets and mature fault systems.
Fluorescent imaging and quantitation of solid support-bound nucleic acids

Recent advances in molecular biology have enabled the deposition of nucleic acids on solid phases to form arrays of oligonucleotides. Such arrays are being applied in milli to nanoscale molecular and biochemical analysis such as genetic mutation detection, gene expression quantitation and DNA sequencing using so-called DNA chip arrays. A major obstacle to continue use of such arrays is detection and analysis of the arrayed nucleic acids, nucleic acids, nucleic acids' targets that bind via hybridization to the arrays and the products of array-based biochemical reactions. We report here on the design and utility of our experimental set-up for analysis of surface bound, arrayed oligonucleotides, and our experience in detection and quantitation of multiple fluorescent labels bound to the surface through attachment, hybridization, and arrayed primer extension.
Growth of InAs–InAsSb SLS through the use of digital alloys

Abstract In order to improve the stability and repeatability of the growth of InAs–InAsSb (Ga-free) superlattices (SLs), we have investigated the use of an InAs–InSb digital alloy in place of the InAsSb ternary material. We report on a PIN structure made from Ga-free SL material grown using the digital alloy method, and compare the results to a reference PIN device composed of the InAs–InAsSb SL. The results for both devices show λ cutoff,0% =5 μm at T = 80 K , which is in agreement with the 14 ML InAs–12 ML InAs 0.81 Sb 0.19 SL design used. At T = 80 K and a bias voltage of V b = − 0.01 V ( V b = − 0.25 V ), the average dark currents (from 5 measured devices for each sample) for the ternary and digital alloy based devices are 0.1315 (4.249) A/cm 2 and 0.1068 (3.522) A/cm 2 , respectively. The quantum efficiencies under the same conditions are 24.1% (24.0%) for the ternary and 39.7% (39.9%) for the digital alloy. This improvement in quantum efficiency is attributed to superior crystalline quality in the digital alloy sample. These initial results show that the digital alloy sample is comparable to or better than the reference sample in each tested metric, and thus is worthy of further investigation.
CAP, the −45 region, and RNA polymerase: three partners in transcription initiation at lacP1 in Escherichia coli

The lac operon of Escherichia coli is positively regulated by the catabolite activator protein (CAP) bound upstream of the -45 region (CAP binding is centered at -61.5; the -45 region extends from -50 to -38). Certain mutations within the -45 region generate sequences that resemble UP elements in base composition and mimic the stimulation by the rrnBP1 UP element, yielding up to 15-fold stimulation in vivo. These -45 region "UP mutants" are compromised in their CAP stimulation. CAP and UP elements do not act in a fully additive manner in vivo at the lac operon. Transcription assays with the wild-type lac promoter and an UP mutant of lac indicate that CAP and UP DNA also fail to act in a completely additive manner in vitro. RNA polymerase can stabilize CAP binding to promoter DNA with a -45 region UP element against a heparin challenge. This shows that CAP and the UP DNA do not compete for the alpha-CTD as a mechanism for their lack of additivity. CAP and UP elements both demonstrate decreased stimulation of transcription as RNA polymerase concentration is increased from 0.05 to 10 nM in in vitro transcription experiments. In addition CAP also stimulates transcription in a manner that does not decrease as RNA polymerase is varied over this concentration range. This invariable stimulation is by two- to threefold and occurs both in vivo and in vitro. It is not dependent upon the alpha-CTD of RNA polymerase and is maintained in the presence of the AR1 CAP mutant HL159. This two- to threefold invariable CAP stimulation appears to depend on the -45 region sequence as our -45 region mutants demonstrate different responses to HL159 CAP stimulation in vivo.
The Many Uses Of Point-Contact Diodes

A detailed review of the principles governing the performance of point-contact diodes is presented. The requirements necessary for these devices to be used as harmonic generators and mixers in the submillimetre and infrared region are emphasized, and some new developments concerning the physical mechanisms responsible for the operation of the diode are reported. Special attention is given to the importance of surfaces and interfaces in these devices.
Unusual properties of thermally sensitive oligomer–enzyme conjugates of poly(N‐isopropylacrylamide)–trypsin

Reversible soluble–insoluble oligomer–enzyme conjugates have been prepared by conjugating a thermally sensitive oligomer, poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) [poly(NIPAAm)] to trypsin. The conjugates can catalyze enzymatic reactions in solution and then may be separated from the solution by thermal precipitation. One special feature of the conjugates is that every poly(NIPAAm) chain has only one end attachment to the enzyme, so that the loss of enzymatic activity due to steric hindrance should be minimized. Conjugates with various numbers of oligomer chains per trypsin molecule were prepared. Surprisingly, the conjugates increased in enzymatic activity with increasing oligomer conjugation to the native trypsin. The trypsin active sites in the conjugates were accessible to large molecules, such as soybean trypsin inhibitor (MW = 21,500). The enzyme conjugates were more stable than native trypsin, both in solution and in the precipitated phase. On the other hand, the conjugates lost enzymatic activity faster than native trypsin when the temperature was repeatedly cycled through the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) of the poly(NIPAAm). The recovery of the conjugates by thermal precipitation in each cycle was over 95% even after 14 cycles through the LCST. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res, 39, 498–505, 1998.
Spontaneous thrombosis in a coronary artery fistula with aneurysmal dilatation of the sinus of Valsalva

This case report describes spontaneous thrombosis of a congenital coronary artery fistula with associated aneurysmal dilatation of the right coronary sinus of Valsalva. The grossly dilated sinus of Valsalva was reconstructed with a Dacron patch. Coronary revascularization was performed with a sequential saphenous vein graft anastomosed to the right posterior descending and posterior ventricular arteries distally and to the aorta proximally.
Invited paper: Parametric instabilities in the tokamak edge plasma in the ion cyclotron heating regimes

Abstract Parametric instabilities in the scrape-off layer (SOL) of tokamak plasmas are studied in the presence of ICRF and/or IBW RF fields. Growth rates and typical threshold RF fields are deduced for multi-ion species plasmas for pump frequencies in the vicinity of the first few ion cyclotron harmonics. Decay instabilities into ion Bernstein waves and quasi-modes are predicted to occur. Such decay waves may lead to edge heating and impurity generation.
Efficient, anonymous, and authenticated conference key setup in cellular wireless networks

Conference call is a key functionality that a wireless network should support. When a conference call is set up in a wireless network, conference attendees should be authenticated. In many applications, the attendees also need to be anonymous. In this paper, we propose a very efficient protocol for authenticated and anonymous conference key setup. Our protocol uses only symmetric-key encryptions/decryptions and hashing and is thus much faster than any existing protocol using public-key cryptography. In addition to the conference key setup protocol, we also present two protocols, for authenticated call setup and authenticated handoff, respectively. These two protocols are also much faster than existing protocols based on public-key cryptography. Consequently, a system using the three protocols presented in this paper will have both high security and high efficiency.
A CHANGE IN LEVEL OF A NON-STATIONARY TIME SERIES.

Abstract : Suppose that observations zsubt of a time series are available at equally spaced time intervals. The authors consider the problem of making inferences about a possible shift in level of the series associated with the occurrance of an event E at some particular time. For example, the observations might be of some economic indicator and one might suspect a change in level to occur in a particular interval because of a change in fiscal policy. Alternatively, zsubt could be the daily output of a chemical process and the event E might be a change in the supplier of raw material.
Attrition properties of precipitated iron Fischer–Tropsch catalysts

Abstract While precipitated iron catalysts provide optimal activity and selectivity for Fischer–Tropsch (F–T) synthesis with coal-derived synthesis gas, their attrition resistance under reaction conditions has been questioned. It is well known that iron oxides undergo phase transformations during activation and reaction, leading to changes in volume, which are a primary cause of catalyst break up (‘chemical attrition’). In this paper we report on attrition properties of precipitated Fe catalysts under both inert and reactive conditions in a stirred tank slurry reactor (STSR). Our results show that after 364 h of testing in the STSR, the particle size reduction due to fracture and erosion was moderate. The observed increase in fraction of particles smaller than 10 μm was small (7.8%). Catalytic performance was excellent, yielding low methane and high C5+ selectivities of 2.6 and 82.5%, respectively, at 78.5% single pass conversion. We conclude therefore that iron catalysts used in this study have adequate attrition resistance and desirable F–T activity and selectivity for use in conversion of coal-derived syngas to liquid fuels in the slurry bubble column reactor.
Cdc42 Is a Rho GTPase Family Member That Can Mediate Insulin Signaling to Glucose Transport in 3T3-L1 Adipocytes

We investigated the role of cdc42, a Rho GTPase family member, in insulin-induced glucose transport in 3T3-L1 adipocytes. Microinjection of anti-cdc42 antibody or cdc42 siRNA led to decreased insulin-induced and constitutively active Gq (CA-Gq; Q209L)-induced GLUT4 translocation. Adenovirus-mediated expression of constitutively active cdc42 (CA-cdc42; V12) stimulated 2-deoxyglucose uptake to 56% of the maximal insulin response, and this was blocked by treatment with the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3-kinase) inhibitor, wortmannin, or LY294002. Both insulin and CA-Gq expression caused an increase in cdc42 activity, showing that cdc42 is activated by insulin and is downstream of Gαq/11 in this activation pathway. Immunoprecipitation experiments showed that insulin enhanced a direct association of cdc42 and p85, and both insulin treatment and CA-cdc42 expression stimulated PI3-kinase activity in immunoprecipitates with anti-cdc42 antibody. Furthermore, the effects of insulin, CA-Gq, and CA-cdc42 on GLUT4 translocation or 2-deoxyglucose uptake were inhibited by microinjection of anti-protein kinase Cλ (PKCλ) antibody or overexpression of a kinase-deficient PKCλ construct. In summary, activated cdc42 can mediate 1) insulin-stimulated GLUT4 translocation and 2) glucose transport in a PI3-kinase-dependent manner. 3) Insulin treatment and constitutively active Gq expression can enhance the cdc42 activity state as well as the association of cdc42 with activated PI3-kinase. 4) PKCλ inhibition blocks CA-cdc42, CA-Gq, and insulin-stimulated GLUT4 translocation. Taken together, these data indicate that cdc42 can mediate insulin signaling to GLUT4 translocation and lies downstream of Gαq/11 and upstream of PI3-kinase and PKCλ in this stimulatory pathway.
Momentum and Turbulent Kinetic Energy Budgets Within the Park Avenue Street Canyon During the Joint Urban 2003 Field Campaign

Very few attempts have so far been made to quantify the momentum and turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) budgets within real urban canopies. In this study, sonic anemometer data obtained during the Joint Urban 2003 field campaign in Oklahoma City, U.S.A. were used for calculating the momentum and TKE budgets within a real-world urban street canyon. Sonic anemometers were deployed on multiple towers in the lower half of the canyon. Gradients in all three principal directions were included in the analyses. The storage and buoyancy terms were found to have negligible contributions to both the momentum and TKE budgets. The momentum budgets were generally found to be more complex than a simple balance of two physical processes. The horizontal terms were found to have significant and sometimes dominant contributions to the momentum and TKE budgets.
A review of published case reports of inadvertent pulmonary placement of nasogastric tubes in children.

Problem Little is known about the incidence of inadvertent pulmonary placement of nasogastric tubes during blind insertions in children. Purpose The purpose of this paper was to conduct a review of published case reports over the past two decades. Methods An OVID Medline search was conducted of articles published from 1993 through 2012. Results Fifteen published case reports were located; four patients died as a result of their malpositioned tubes. The auscultatory bedside method failed to detect the malpositioned tubes in all seven cases in which it was used. Conclusions The incidence of inadvertent pulmonary placement of nasogastric tubes is relatively low but can lead to serious and even lethal results in children. The auscultatory method to predict tube location is unreliable.
Ionospheric dynamo theory for production of far ultraviolet emissions on Uranus

A model is presented to explain diffuse FUV emissions from the outer planets, specifically Uranus, in excess of those diffuse emissions that are currently explainable by scattering of sunlight and/or excitation by photoelectrons. These electroglow emissions in H Ly-alpha and H2 bands, which occur in the sunlit hemisphere slightly above the homopause, appear to require particle excitation in the 10- to 50-eV range. An in situ mechanism for accelerating photoelectrons (and ions is proposed, involving neutral wind dynamo generation of field-aligned currents analogous to what occurs in the earth's equatorial E and F regions. Sufficiently strong field-aligned currents are found in the model calculation for Uranus to produce a potential drop of about 100 eV or greater between the F peak and homopause, concentrated at lower altitudes, and capable in principle of accelerating photoelectrons (and ions) to the 10- to 50-eV energies required to explain the observed emissions. The fact that the excitation and ionization cross sections are larger than elastic scattering cross sections in an H2 atmosphere at these energies makes in situ acceleration feasible for the production of UV on the outer planets.
Detergency Study: Distribution of Natural Soils on Shirt Collars

Collar soil on woven fabrics was studied in order to characterize the distribution of residual natural soils on fibers. Scanning electron micrographs of longitudinal yarns and cross sections reveal...
Impact of high-dose granulocyte transfusions in patients with cancer with candidemia: retrospective case-control analysis of 491 episodes of Candida species bloodstream infections.

BACKGROUND The efficacy and feasibility of donor granulocyte transfusion therapy (GTX) have changed considerably over the past four decades. The authors sought to determine the impact of high-dose (approximately 5.5 × 1010 cells) GTX in patients with candidemia. METHODS The authors' case–control retrospective analysis comprised 491 consecutive patients treated at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center (Houston,TX) from 1993 to 2000. The cohort included 29 patients with Candida species bloodstream infection who had received GTX and 462 who had not. RESULTS Both groups were comparable in age, gender, APACHE II score, recent chemotherapy received, broad-spectrum antibiotics, systemic corticosteroids, radiotherapy, intravascular catheter, and concordant antifungal therapy (P ≥ 0.1). The patients who received GTX compared with those who did not had a higher incidence of underlying leukemia (86% vs. 29%, P 72 hours, P < 0.02), and had more stays in critical care units (68% vs. 44%, P < 0.03). On the bases of a reduced multivariate model, a significantly increased risk of death was found for patients with hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (odds ratio [OR] = 2.51; 95% confidence interval [95% CI], 0.99–6.31; P < 0.05), for patients with persistent neutropenia (OR = 4.57; 95% CI, 1.99–10.47; P < 0.0003), and for patients with leukemia who also had prolonged candidemia (OR = 3.59; 95% CI, 1.61–7.98; P < 0.002), disseminated candidiasis (OR = 5.19; 95% CI, 2.17–12.42; P < 0.0002), or non-C. albicans candidemia (OR = 5.02; 95% CI, 1.07–23.64; P < 0.04). In patients with leukemia, death was attributable to candidemia in 50% of the GTX recipients, compared with 59% of the non-GTX patients who had received antifungal therapy alone (P = 0.4). CONCLUSIONS Despite the presence of multiple predictors of increased mortality, high-dose GTX therapy in these high-risk patients with cancer was associated with better than expected survival rates. Cancer 2004. © 2004 American Cancer Society.
Concanavalin a binding to the epithelial surface of the developing mouse olfactory placode

Concanavalin A (Con A), a lectin binding to mannosyl and glucosyl residues of glycoproteins and glycolipids, was used to study the appearance of carbohydrate-rich cell surface material on the olfactory placode and nasal processes which contribute to formation of the primary palate. In vivo incorporation of 3H-thymidine was also used in an attempt to correlate changes in labeling index with formation of the olfactory placode and nasal processes. The cell surface of the early frontonasal epithelium binds Con A very little, if at all, but Con A binding was observed when the olfactory placode could be identified as a plate of cuboidal cells that exhibited a reduced labeling index. During the period of formation of the nasal processes, Con A binding was observed on the facial epithelium including the presumptive contact region. There was also a decline in the labeling index throughout primary palate formation. This study provides three criteria by which the olfactory placode can be identified: a morphological change of placode cells to a cuboidal shape, a synthesis or rearrangement of surface coat material that binds Con A, and a reduced labeling index.
Luminescent properties of fishes from nearshore California basins

Abstract Bioluminescence flash kinetics and quantum emissions of specimens of 10 species of fishes from the families Astronesthidae, Malacosteidae, Melanostomiatidae, Myctophidae, Stomiatidae and Sternoptychidae were determined. Fish were collected from the San Clemente and Santa Catalina basins of the Southern Californian Bight. Body photophores emitted long-lasting glows with peak photon fluxes to 3.0 × 10 10 photons · s −1 . Caudal luminescent tissues exhibited both discrete flashes and spontaneous trains up to 30 Hz with average flash duration from 43 to 79 ms and peak photon fluxes of 2.2 × 10 12 photons · s −1 . Orbital photophore displays persisted up to 1415 ms with a maximum emission rate of 1 Hz and a maximum photon flux of 7.5 × 10 11 photons · s −1 . The flash kinetics and quantum intensity of the oral light organs from Stemoptyx diaphana Hermann are quantified for the first time. The flash durations of myctophid caudal organs were significantly shorter compared with congeners from Hawaiian waters, indicating that regional environmental conditions may account for shorter flash duration.
Sinonasal paraganglioma: endoscopic resection with a 4-year follow-up.

Background. Paragangliomas are uncommon neuroendocrine tumors. In the head and neck, they are most commonly seen at the carotid body, the temporal bone, or along the vagus nerve. Sinonasal paragangliomas are extremely rare. Most cases reported describe management by open surgical resection, with sublabial and/or transfacial approaches. Methods. We present a case of a large sinonasal paraganglioma successfully managed by endoscopic resection. Results. The patient has no evidence of recurrence after 4 years of follow-up. Conclusions. This case demonstrates that sinonasal paragangliomas might be amenable to endoscopic resection. However, the most important priority to consider when selecting a surgical technique is whether adequate excision with clear margins can be obtained. Furthermore, because of the aggressive nature of these tumors, regardless of the surgical approach, long-term follow-up is recommended.
T H -17 cells in the circle of immunity and autoimmunity

CD4(+) effector T cells have been categorized into two subsets: T helper type 1 (T(H)1) and T(H)2. Another subset of T cells that produce interleukin 17 (IL-17; 'T(H)-17 cells') has been identified that is highly proinflammatory and induces severe autoimmunity. Whereas IL-23 serves to expand previously differentiated T(H)-17 cell populations, IL-6 and transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) induce the differentiation of T(H)-17 cells from naive precursors. These data suggest a dichotomy between CD4(+) regulatory T cells positive for the transcription factor Foxp3 and T(H)-17 cells: TGF-beta induces Foxp3 and generates induced regulatory T cells, whereas IL-6 inhibits TGF-beta-driven Foxp3 expression and together with TGF-beta induces T(H)-17 cells. Emerging data regarding T(H)-17 cells suggest a very important function for this T cell subset in immunity and disease.
Evaluation of Ciprofloxacin in the Treatment of Pseudomonas aeruginosa Infections

The efficacy and safety of ciprofloxacin in the treatment of Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections was evaluated in 72 patients suffering from upper urinary tract infection (19 patients), deep soft tissue infection (16), chronic osteomyelitis (12), abscess (7), chronic otitis media (6), otitis extema (3) and bronchopneumonia (9). Forty-eight patients received an oral dose of 500 mg or 750 mg b.i.d. and five patients an i.v. dose of 200 mg b.i.d., while 19 patients were given both oral and parenteral doses. The duration of therapy ranged from seven days to more than four months. The MICs of ciprofloxacin for the Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains isolated were in the range 0.06–2 mg/1; 36% of the strains were resistant to all other available antibiotics. At follow-up after a minimum of six months the clinical success rate was 75% and the infecting organism was permanently eradicated in 49% of the patients. In nine patients the organism developed resistance, particularly when the initial MIC was higher than 0.5 mg/I. No significant adverse reactions were observed. Ciprofloxacin is the first antipseudomonal antimicrobial agent which can be administered orally and therefore fulfills a need in chemotherapy.
A fast multithreaded out-of-core visualization technique

Out-of-core rendering techniques are necessary for viewing large volume disk-resident data sets produced by many scientific applications or high resolution imaging systems. Traditional visualizers can provide real-time performance but require all of the data to be viewed to be in the RAM. We describe a multithreaded implementation of an out-of-core isosurface renderer that does not impose such restrictions and yet provides performance that scales well with the size of the data. Our renderer uses an interval tree data structure on disk with a layout that reduces disk seeks to read out only the relevant data from the disk. The low resulting disk latencies are hidden by using prefetching and multithreading to overlap the activities of the rendering computations and disk accesses. Our renderer outperforms the out-of-core isosurface renderer of the well-known vtk toolkit by about one order of magnitude and several orders of magnitude when compared against vtk toolkit's optimized in-core algorithm on large representative CT scan data. The multithreaded version also scales well with the number of threads.
Live Oral Typhoid Vaccine Ty21a Induces Cross-Reactive Humoral Immune Responses against Salmonella enterica Serovar Paratyphi A and S. Paratyphi B in Humans

ABSTRACT Enteric fever caused by Salmonella enterica serovar Paratyphi A infection has emerged as an important public health problem. Recognizing that in randomized controlled field trials oral immunization with attenuated S. enterica serovar Typhi live vaccine Ty21a conferred significant cross-protection against S. Paratyphi B but not S. Paratyphi A disease, we undertook a clinical study to ascertain whether humoral immune responses could explain the field trial results. Ty21a immunization of adult residents of Maryland elicited predominantly IgA antibody-secreting cells (ASC) that recognize S. Typhi lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Cross-reactivity to S. Paratyphi A LPS was significantly lower than that to S. Paratyphi B LPS. ASC producing IgG and IgA that bind LPS from each of these Salmonella serovars expressed CD27 and integrin α4β7 (gut homing), with a significant proportion coexpressing CD62L (secondary lymphoid tissue homing). No significant differences were observed in serum antibody against LPS of the different serovars. Levels of IgA B memory (BM) cells to S. Typhi LPS were significantly higher than those against S. Paratyphi A or B LPS, with no differences observed between S. Paratyphi A and B. The response of IgA BM to outer membrane proteins (OMP) from S. Typhi was significantly stronger than that to OMP of S. Paratyphi A but similar to that to OMP of S. Paratyphi B. The percentages of IgG or IgA BM responders to LPS or OMP from these Salmonella strains were similar. Whereas cross-reactive humoral immune responses to S. Paratyphi A or B antigens are demonstrable following Ty21a immunization, they cannot explain the efficacy data gleaned from controlled field trials.
Hemodynamic Responses to Positional Change in Habitually Physically Active and Inactive Older Men

This study explored hemodynamic responses to positional change in 11 habitually physically active and 11 physically inactive healthy older men (mean age 70 years). Data were collected in the supine, sitting, standing, and 70 degrees upright tilt positions over a 10-minute period (long-term response). Dependent variables were heart rate, stroke volume, cardiac output, total peripheral resistance, and blood pressure. Stroke volume, cardiac output, and total peripheral resistance were expressed per unit body surface area. The results of this study indicated that the physically active older men had significantly lower resting heart rates and significantly higher stroke volume indices in all four positions compared with the physically inactive men. The physically active men also tended to have lower total peripheral resistance indices and higher cardiac indices in all four positions, but the differences were not statistically significant. However, physically active and inactive older men reacted similarly (with respect to all hemodynamic variables except the stroke volume index) in the sitting, standing and 70 degrees upright tilt positions as compared with the supine; the stroke volume index decreased significantly more compared with that of the supine in the physically active men.
Powering brain power: GLUT1 and the era of structure based human transporter biology

Every student of biochemistry quickly appreciates the central role of glycolysis in cellular metabolism. What is not usually addressed in an introductory course is how glucose gets inside a cell in the first place. Specialized integral membrane proteins known as transporters are responsible for glucose uptake; in mammals, glucose is imported by members of the GLUT family of which 14 different varieties have been identified in humans [1]. GLUT transporters are members of the major facilitator superfamily of transporters and catalyze the facilitated uptake of glucose in the thermodynamically favored direction. The most widely distributed version isGLUT1that is responsible for getting glucose into red blood cells and across the blood brain barrier, among many other roles [2].
An efficient hybrid cache coherence protocol for shared memory multiprocessors

This paper presents a new tree-based cache coherence protocol which is a hybrid of the limited directory and the linked list schemes. By utilizing a limited number of pointers in the directory, the proposed protocol connects the nodes caching a shared block in a tree fashion. In addition to the low communication overhead, the proposed scheme also contains the advantages of the existing bit-map and tree-based linked list protocols, namely, scalable memory requirement and logarithmic invalidation latency. We evaluate the performance of our protocol by running four applications on an execution-driven simulator. Our simulation results show that the performance of the proposed protocol is very close to that of the full-map directory protocol.
Can One Language Bootstrap the Other: A Case Study on Event Extraction

This paper proposes a new bootstrapping framework using cross-lingual information projection. We demonstrate that this framework is particularly effective for a challenging NLP task which is situated at the end of a pipeline and thus suffers from the errors propagated from upstream processing and has low-performance baseline. Using Chinese event extraction as a case study and bitexts as a new source of information, we present three bootstrapping techniques. We first conclude that the standard mono-lingual bootstrapping approach is not so effective. Then we exploit a second approach that potentially benefits from the extra information captured by an English event extraction system and projected into Chinese. Such a cross-lingual scheme produces significant performance gain. Finally we show that the combination of mono-lingual and cross-lingual information in bootstrapping can further enhance the performance. Ultimately this new framework obtained 10.1% relative improvement in trigger labeling (F-measure) and 9.5% relative improvement in argument-labeling.
Head-banging: robust smoothing in the plane

The head-banging technique is a median-based smoother intended for use on nongridded spatial data. The smoother is designed to remove small-scale local variations within a data set while preserving regional trends. Several synthetic and field data sets are used to test the performance of the technique. Head-banging is shown to be particularly adept at preserving edge structures and is thus applicable in the field of structural geology, where data often contain edges due to faults or other steep formations. >
Average Energy Flow of Optical Pulses in Dispersive Media

The arrival time of a light pulse at a point in space is defined using a time expectation integral over the Poynting vector. The delay between pulse arrival times at two distinct points is shown to consist of two parts: a spectral superposition of group delays (inverse of group velocity) and a delay due to spectral reshaping via absorption or amplification. The result provides a context wherein group velocity is always meaningful even for broad band pulses and when the group velocity is superluminal or negative. The result imposes luminality on sharply defined pulses.