cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
An Analytical Modeling Approach for Evaluation of Capping of Contaminated Sediments

An analytical design tool is developed to predict performance of a cap for containment of contaminated sediments. Transient conditions within a cap can be modeled by advection, diffusion, and reaction within the typically homogeneous chemical isolation layer for which analytical models exist. After contaminant penetration of the chemical isolation layer, a steady state model is proposed that incorporates pore water advection and diffusion, sediment erosion and deposition, sediment re-working and pore water pumping via bioturbation, and reaction. The steady state model allows the complexities of the biologically active layer to be considered while maintaining an analytical form for convenient and rapid evaluation. In this paper, the model framework, behavior, and limitations are presented.
Dimensional stability, optical and elastic properties of MgAl2O4 spinel irradiated in FFTF to very high exposures

Stoichiometric MgAl{sub 2}O{sub 4} spinel specimens irradiated in FFTF-MOTA at temperatures between 385 and 750C to fluences ranging from 2.2 to 24.9 {times} 10{sup 22} n cm {sup {minus}}2 (E>0.1 MeV) darken significantly, but do not develop any significant loss in weight or change in dimensions. Similar behavior was observed in both single crystal and fully dense polycrystalline specimens. Measurements of elastic constants by an ultrasonic technique show that no measurable changes occur as a result of the irradiation. These and other results confirm the stability of this material for fusion application as an electrical insulator.
Continental scientific drilling at Long Valley‐Mono Craters

Deep drilling is an important means of exploring the structure and conditions within continental crust. It is recognized as an important tool in understanding the structure of continental basement rocks, the nature and properties of thermal and volcanic regimes, the amount and character of mineral resources, the causes and consequences of earthquakes, and in testing geophysical interpretations based on surface and near-surface observations [U.S. Geodynamics Committee, 1979]. A major basic research program, funded principally by the Department of Energy and the U.S. Geological Survey, is now underway to assess the suitability of the Long Valley-Mono Craters volcanic complex for deep drilling under the auspices of the thermal regimes portion of the Continental Scientific Drilling Program (CSDP). Scientific investigators participating in the site assessment represent several agencies, national laboratories, and universities, as well as the private sector.
Transforming growth factor-β stimulates epithelial–mesenchymal transformation in the proepicardium

The proepicardium (PE) migrates over the heart and forms the epicardium. A subset of these PE-derived cells undergoes epithelial-mesenchymal transformation (EMT) and gives rise to cardiac fibroblasts and components of the coronary vasculature. We report that transforming growth factor-beta (TGFbeta) 1 and TGFbeta2 increase EMT in PE explants as measured by invasion into a collagen gel, loss of cytokeratin expression, and redistribution of ZO1. The type I TGFbeta receptors ALK2 and ALK5 are both expressed in the PE. However, only constitutively active (ca) ALK2 stimulates PE-derived epithelial cell activation, the first step in transformation, whereas caALK5 stimulates neither activation nor transformation in PE explants. Overexpression of Smad6, an inhibitor of ALK2 signaling, inhibits epithelial cell activation, whereas BMP7, a known ligand for ALK2, has no effect. These data demonstrate that TGFbeta stimulates transformation in the PE and suggest that ALK2 partially mediates this effect.
Measuring Governance: Implications of Conceptual Choices

This article examines challenges of measurement validity in aggregate governance indicators. We focus on three deleterious consequences of aggregating perception-based indicators in the absence of conceptual clarity: (i) the scant attention to content validity; (ii) the conflation of causes, characteristics and consequences of governance; and (iii) the underestimation of uncertainty. As an alternative, we present a Bayesian latent variable framework for measuring governance. This alternative formal statistical model offers several advantages: it is a principled method that allows the researcher to make explicit the conceptual choices in measuring governance, and it provides an assessment of uncertainty by letting measurement error (noise) in governance measures propagate into inferences. We argue that this multidimensional, disaggregated and transparent approach will lead to greater measurement validity and transparency about the uncertainty in governance measures. The conceptual and empirical analysis uses data from the World Bank Governance Indicators.
Metabolic inactivation of resolvin E1 and stabilization of its anti-inflammatory actions

The resolvins (Rv) are lipid mediators derived from omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids that act within a local inflammatory milieu to stop leukocyte recruitment and promote resolution. Resolvin E1 (RvE1; (5S,12R,18R)-trihydroxy-6Z,8E,10E,14Z,16E-eicosapentaenoic acid) is an oxygenase product derived from omega-3 eicosapentaenoic acid that displays potent anti-inflammation/pro-resolution actions in vivo. Here, we determined whether oxidoreductase enzymes catalyze the conversion of RvE1 and assessed the biological activity of the RvE1 metabolite. With NAD+ as a cofactor, recombinant 15-hydroxyprostaglandin dehydrogenase acted as an 18-hydroxyl dehydrogenase to form 18-oxo-RvE1. In the murine lung, dehydrogenation of the hydroxyl group at carbon 18 position to form 18-oxo-RvE1 represented the major initial metabolic route for RvE1. At a concentration where RvE1 potently reduced polymorphonuclear leukocyte (PMN) recruitment in zymosan-induced peritonitis, 18-oxo-RvE1 was devoid of activity. In human neutrophils, carbon 20 hydroxylation of RvE1 was the main route of conversion. An RvE1 analog, i.e. 19-(p-fluorophenoxy)-RvE1, was synthesized that resisted rapid metabolic inactivation and proved to retain biological activity reducing PMN infiltration and pro-inflammatory cytokine/chemokine production in vivo. These results established the structure of a novel RvE1 initial metabolite, indicating that conversion of RvE1 to the oxo product represents a mode of RvE1 inactivation. Moreover, the designed RvE1 analog, which resisted further metabolism/inactivation, could be a useful tool to evaluate the actions of RvE1 in complex disease models.
Technology report: Work product retrieval systems in today's law offices

Contemporary law offices use many different technologies for storing and retrieving documents produced in the course of legal work. This article examines two approaches in detail: document management, as exemplified by SoftSolutions, and electronic publishing, as exemplified by Folio VIEWS. Some other approaches are reviewed, and the pragmatics, politics, economics, and legalities of legal work product retrieval are discussed.
Aspects of early hominid emergence

Helen E. Fisher. The Sex Contract: The Evolution of Human Behavior.New York: William Morrow, 1982. 253 pp. $13.50.
Nuclear Data Sheets for A=181

Abstract Level schemes from radioactive decay and reaction studies are presented for all nuclei with mass number A=181. The experimental data have been reevaluated and outstanding discrepancies in the literature have been discussed. Adopted levels, transitions, and other nuclear properties are given.
Acute stress reactions to recent life events among women and men living with HIV/AIDS.

Objective:This study examined the prevalence of acute stress reactions to recent life events among persons living with HIV/AIDS. A second aim was to investigate the relationship of acute stress rea...
The sleep-wake cycle and motor activity, but not temperature, are disrupted over the light-dark cycle in mice genetically depleted of serotonin

We examined the role that serotonin has in the modulation of sleep and wakefulness across a 12-h:12-h light-dark cycle and determined whether temperature and motor activity are directly responsible for potential disruptions to arousal state. Telemetry transmitters were implanted in 24 wild-type mice (Tph2+/+) and 24 mice with a null mutation for tryptophan hydroxylase 2 (Tph2−/−). After surgery, electroencephalography, core body temperature, and motor activity were recorded for 24 h. Temperature for a given arousal state (quiet and active wake, non-rapid eye movement, and paradoxical sleep) was similar in the Tph2+/+ and Tph2−/− mice across the light-dark cycle. The percentage of time spent in active wakefulness, along with motor activity, was decreased in the Tph2+/+ compared with the Tph2−/− mice at the start and end of the dark cycle. This difference persisted into the light cycle. In contrast, the time spent in a given arousal state was similar at the remaining time points. Despite this similarity, periods of non-rapid-eye-movement sleep and wakefulness were less consolidated in the Tph2+/+ compared with the Tph2−/− mice throughout the light-dark cycle. We conclude that the depletion of serotonin does not disrupt the diurnal variation in the sleep-wake cycle, motor activity, and temperature. However, serotonin may suppress photic and nonphotic inputs that manifest at light-dark transitions and serve to shorten the ultraradian duration of wakefulness and non-rapid-eye-movement sleep. Finally, alterations in the sleep-wake cycle following depletion of serotonin are unrelated to disruptions in the modulation of temperature.
The Measurement of Goal Agreement between Husbands and Wives

OVER THE years, there seems to have been only a sporadic concern with the goals of husbands and wives or the objectives towards which marriage partners strive. Perhaps even more impressive than the general dearth of research on family goals is the specific lack of research relevant to the agreement of husbands and wives concerning their goals. In marriage, after all, we have a man and woman who, whatever their personal aspirations and ambitions, have embarked on an interdependent career. A number of questions with regard to the extent of goal concensus between husband and wife immediately come to mind. How close, or how far apart, are most couples at the time of marriage with regard to the goals towards which each thinks the new family should strive? Are couples aware of the discrepancy, if any, that exists between them? Do couples come to agree less or more as years of marriage go on? Questions such as those posed above suggest that a better understanding of marriage and interspousal relations could be gained through inquiry into the matter of husband-wife agreement on family goals. It is the purpose of this paper to describe a method for measuring goal agreement. At the outset of the larger study of which this paper is a part, it was decided that a system of measuring goal agreement should be based on current methods of measuring family goals and should be as procedurally uncomplicated as feasible. These criteria were imposed in order that the system developed would have wide applicability and, hopefully, greater use. While the present paper deals with methods rather than findings, it should be indicated that the methods were developed to analyze data from a project titled, "Evaluation of the Iowa Extension Farm Family Development Program." Data were collected from
Manganese efflux in Parkinsonism: Insights from newly characterized SLC30A10 mutations

Although manganese (Mn) is required for normal cellular function, overexposure to this metal may cause an extrapyramidal syndrome resembling Parkinson’s disease (PD). Notably, high whole-blood Mn levels have been reported in patients with idiopathic PD. Because Mn is both essential at low dose and toxic at higher dose; its transport and homeostasis are tightly regulated. Previously, the only protein known to be operant in cellular Mn export was the iron-regulating transporter, ferroportin (Fpn). The causal role for Mn in PD has yet to be fully understood, but evidence of a familial predisposition to PD associated with Mn toxicity is mounting. A recently discovered mutation in SLC30A10 identified its gene product as putatively involved in Mn efflux. Patients with the SLC30A10 mutation display Parkinsonian-like gate disturbances and hypermanganesemia. This review will address Mn transport proteins, the newly discovered SLC30A10 mutations and their implications to Parkinsonism and Mn regulation.
Awareness of Form Class as a Factor in ESL Reading Comprehension.

This paper presents the results of an empirical study relating awareness of form class (morphology) to reading comprehension in which an ESL subject pool was employed. The analyses indicate that awareness of form class and reading comprehension are significantly related, but the authors note that morphology competence is but one dimension of reading comprehension and that in these data the effects of reliable method variance, world knowledge, lexical knowledge, and discourse grammar knowledge may be equally or more robust in explaining the reading comprehension variance as form class awareness. The difficulty of partitioning trait variance from trait-irrelevant variance in language testing in general is also discussed.
The Design of an Embedded File System Based on the Flash

Analyzed the unique characteristics of reading and writing the flash memory, and researched the ways of designing a file system. The target embedded file system has the advantages of the traditional file system and the sequential file system. It is able to adapt to the unique characteristics of reading and writing the flash memory. It can solve the inconsistent data problem in the embedded device when power down. And it can solve the bad blocks of the flash which are generated by erase operations also.
The σ ligand rimcazole activates noradrenergic neurons projecting to the paraventricular nucleus and increases corticosterone secretion in rats

Abstract Intraperitoneal injection of rimcazole, a σ ligand, into male rats increased plasma concentrations of corticosterone in a dose- and time-related fashion. Concurrently, rimcazole increased concentrations of dopamine and 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC) in the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of the hypothalamus, suggesting that the drug activates noradrenergic neurons terminating in this nucleus. This latter suggestion was confirmed by the finding that rimcazole also increased concentrations of the norepinephrine metabolite 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylethylene glycol (MHPG) in the PVN. Pentazocine, a σ ligand was without effect per se, but blocked the ability of rimcazole to increase concentrations of MHPG in the PVN and corticosterone in plasma. Taken together, these results suggest that rimcazole activates noradrenergic neurons projecting to the PVN via a mechanism involving σ binding sites, and this action may be responsible for the ability of this drug to increase secretion of corticosterone.
Plastic zones in Fe-3Si steel double-cantilever-beam specimens

Plastic zones generated in double-cantilever-beam specimens of an Fe-3Si steel are revealed by etching. Zones corresponding to relative stress intensity levels in the range 0.4 √(in.)<K/σY< 0.8√(in.), beam height to length ratios H/W = 0.125 and 0.35, and conditions approaching plane strain are examined. The furthest extent of the zones, p ≈ 0.13 (K/σY)2, is about half that previously observed in plates loaded in tension to comparable K-levels. The results are consistent with previous, measurements by Clark and lend support to Wilson's calculations. At high stress levels, when the zone size to beam height ratio ϱ/H≳ 0.09, the zone begins to tilt backwards and undergoes a transition from a crack- to a beam-zone. Implications of this transition with respect to the minimum beam height requirement are examined.
The Effects of HIV Stigma on Health, Disclosure of HIV Status, and Risk Behavior of Homeless and Unstably Housed Persons Living with HIV

HIV-related stigma negatively affects the lives of persons living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). Homeless/unstably housed PLWHA experience myriad challenges and may be particularly vulnerable to the effects of HIV-related stigma. Homeless/unstably housed PLWHA from 3 U.S. cities (N = 637) completed computer-assisted interviews that measured demographics, self-assessed physical and mental health, medical utilization, adherence, HIV disclosure, and risk behaviors. Internal and perceived external HIV stigma were assessed and combined for a total stigma score. Higher levels of stigma were experienced by women, homeless participants, those with a high school education or less, and those more recently diagnosed with HIV. Stigma was strongly associated with poorer self-assessed physical and mental health, and perceived external stigma was associated with recent non-adherence to HIV treatment. Perceived external stigma was associated with decreased HIV disclosure to social network members, and internal stigma was associated with drug use and non-disclosure to sex partners. Interventions are needed to reduce HIV-related stigma and its effects on the health of homeless/unstably housed PLWHA.
Dental fear treatment outcomes for substances use disorder patients

In order to examine the clinical treatment outcome for dental fears, we compared the records of 18 phobics who had co-morbid substance use disorder (SUD) with those of 27 subjects who were phobic without concomitant SUD. Outcomes were determined by calculation of changes in the Dental Fear Survey (DFS) score. Subjects were classified by the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-III-R. All subjects received exposure-based behavioral therapy with or without pharmacological adjuncts. All 27 subjects in the non-SUD group and 15 of 18 (83.3%) of subjects in the SUD group improved. Non-SUD subjects improved more than SUD's on the avoidance and specific fear, but not on the physiological upset, dimensions of the DFS.
Linking Business and Marketing Strategies:: An Analysis of the Competitive Environment of Hotels

Recent literature in strategic management points to the development of functional skills and resources appropriate to the competitive setting. Thus, a thorough understanding of competitive conditio...
Control of a linear system with a Markov property

In this paper, the theory of games and statistical decisions is applied to the problem of synthesizing a controller for a linear discrete time plant in the presence of uncertainty about the value of certain process parameters. Particular care is taken to describe how these unknown parameters complicate the choice of the properties of an optimal control rule. The theory is illustrated by the study of the characteristics of a second-order system.
Celestial illusions and ancient astronomers: Aristarchus and Eratosthenes

When the moon is half, one would expect that a line starting from the moon’s center and being perpendicular to the “shadow diameter” would, if extended, go through the center of the light source, namely, the sun. It turns out that, when the sun is visible, this extended line appears to aim significantly above the sun, which is the essence of the “half-moon illusion”. The explanation advanced here is that this is not an optical illusion; instead, it can be explained by the relative sizes and distances of the earth, moon, and sun, and it hinges on the fact that the sunrays are nearly parallel with respect to the earth-moon system. It turns out that the ancients knew and used this near-parallelism of the sunrays. Eratosthenes, for example, used a simple but ingenious scheme to obtain a good estimate of the earth’s circumference. An interesting question is: How did the ancients arrive at the conclusion that the sunrays are nearly parallel? This was probably a corollary, based on the immense size of the sun and its huge distance from the earth, as estimated by, among others, Aristarchus of Samos by a brilliantly simple method.
Efficient temporal shortest path queries on evolving social graphs

Graph-like data appears in many applications, such as social networks, internet hyperlinks, roadmaps, etc. and in most cases, graphs are dynamic, evolving through time. In this work, we study the problem of efficient shortest-path query evaluation on evolving social graphs. Our shortest-path queries are "temporal": they can refer to any time-point or time-interval in the graph's evolution, and corresponding valid answers should be returned. To efficiently support this type of temporal query, we extend the traditional Dijkstra's algorithm to compute shortest-path distance(s) for a time-point or a time-interval. To speed up query processing, we explore preprocessing index techniques such as Contraction Hierarchies (CH). Moreover, we examine how to maintain the evolving graph along with the index by utilizing temporal partition strategies. Experimental evaluations on real world datasets and large synthetic datasets demonstrate the feasibility and scalability of our proposed efficient techniques and optimizations.
Work in progress — Games for life workshop: Outreach to middle and high school age girl scouts

In spring 2008 the author, a professor teaching game design at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), offered a lecture on the game design process and video game industry to a local Girl Scouts of America (GSA) troop to help them meet the requirements for the “Games for Life Interest Project.” (GFL) In fall 2009, RIT faculty and students offered their first full-day GFL workshop, designed to allow the scouts to meet the majority of the requirements for the insignia. The workshop has since been offered, in various forms, twice in Rochester, New York and once in Los Angeles, California. The workshop has now been refined to the point where the author plans to release the course materials openly via the web so that others across the country can offer the workshop in their home communities. This Work In Progress paper will discuss the evolution of the workshop and its materials, the creation of teacher/presenter training materials, the plans for distribution of the materials and follow-up with troop leaders who have offered the workshop in their own communities.
Convection of macromolecules is the dominant mode of transport across horizontal 0.4- and 3-μm filters in diffusion Chambers: Significance for biologic monolayer permeability assessment

Abstract The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the permeability characteristics of fluorescein-labeled hydroxyethyl starch (FITC-HES, 20 P D 0 anomalously increased as aE increased, a pattern not seen for free diffusion (flat P D 0 with increased aE) or restricted diffusion (decline in P D 0 with increased aE). Substantial natural convection across the porous filters produced the anomalous P D 0 curve for the following reasons: (1) this effect was elevated with positive pressure and ameliorated by zero driving pressure, and (2) the effect was much greater across filters with large (3 μm) vs small (0.4 μm) pore sizes. In addition, we estimated that less than half of macromolecular transport above 50 A probe radius at zero transmural pressure arrives by diffusion. The findings suggest that the property of restricted diffusion of biologic layers on these filters will be artifactually exaggerated when the measured resistance of the filter is subtracted from that of the filter plus biologic monolayer. Remedies for this problem may include using smaller pore filters, filters layered with extracellular material, or structural methods to determine true filter permeability.
Bends in SV40 DNA: use of mutagenesis to identify the critical bases involved

Five fragments of DNA exhibiting sequence directed bends were isolated from the Simian Virus 40 genome using a two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel fractionation. The bend sites were mapped for each fragment using the circular permutation test. All five sites have multiple, short runs of A residues with helical spacing typical of other bent fragments. Base pairs important for the bends were determined for one fragment by utilizing a random, single base pair mutagenesis. Of 28 mutants with decreased or increased bends, 14 had alterations that could be interpreted to affect the spaced runs of A residues, supporting their role in bends as predicted by the ApA wedge model. One major mutation was not explainable by existing models. The remaining minor mutations may only be due to small, local DNA conformational changes in the surrounding B-DNA.
Corruption and development

Abstract Corruption is studied as a form of decision-taking under uncertainty and separate reaction functions are derived for the briber and bribee that shed light on the determination of the bribe. A typology of corruption is established drawing the distinction between extortionary, subversive and benign corruption and their effects on allocative efficiency are explored. It is argued that while the economic effects of corruption are likely to be unfavourable there may be circumstances where the converse holds. The discussion does not extend to the moral and social aspects of corruption.
Assessing the assessment of psychosocial factors.

vical cancer. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 125, 807813. Schmidt, P. (1984). Autoritarismus, Entfremdung und psychosomatische Krebsforschung: Explikation der drei Forschungs-programme durch eine allgemeine Theorie und empirische Tests mittels Strukturvergleichung [Authoritarianism, estrangement and psychosomatic research: Explication of three research programs through a general theory and empirical tests by means of comparisons of structures]. Unpublished dissertation, University of Giessen. Shapiro, D., & Goldstein, I. B. (1982). Biobehavioral perspectives on hypertension. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 50, 841-858. Williams, R., & Anderson, N. (1987). Hostility and coronary heart disease. In Elias & P. Marshall (Eds.), Cardio-vascular disease and behavior (pp. 17-37). New York: Hemisphere. Wolf, S., & Wolff, H. (1943). Human gastricfunction. New York: Oxford University Press. Wright, R., Contrada, R., & Glass, D. (1985). Psychophysiologic correlates of Type A behavior. In E. Katkin & S. Manuck (Eds.), Advances in behavioral medicine (pp. 39-88). Greenwich, CT: JAI.
Identifying Potentially Preventable Emergency Department Visits by Nursing Home Residents in the United States.

Objectives To identify and describe potentially preventable emergency department (ED) visits by nursing home (NH) residents in the United States. These visits are important because they are common, frequently lead to hospitalization, and can be associated with significant cost to the patient and the health care system.
d-Orbital stereoelectronic control of the stereochemistry of SN2' displacements by organocuprate reagents

Abstract The anti stereochemistry observed in organocuprate SN2′ displacements can be rationalized as a stereoelectronic effect arising from “bidentate” binding involving a d orbital of nueleophilic copper and π* and σ* orbitals of the substrate. The extension of this idea to other reactions of organocuprates including additions to acetylenes and enones is discussed.
Accurate systolic wall thickening by nuclear magnetic resonance imaging with tissue tagging: Correlation with sonomicrometers in normal and ischemic myocardium

Objectives. This study examined whether the correlation of systolic wall thickening (%WT) by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) imaging with wall thickening by sonomicrometry (SM) is improved by using a three-dimensional volume element model of the left ventricular wall. Background. Left ventricular wall obliquity with respect to the imaging plane causes overestimation of wall thickness by planar imaging techniques. Wall thickness perpendicular to the endocardial surface can be accurately calculated by three-dimensional reconstruction of left ventricular wall segments. Methods. Sonomicrometers were placed transmurally in 11 dogs (left anterior descending artery territory) with an imaging marker, visible on NMR imaging, sewn to the epicardial crystal. Two adjacent NMR short-axis image planes were radially segmented by four perpendicular spin-saturated planes (tags), dividing the myocardium into eight volume elements, one of which contained the sonomicrometer crystal pair. Left ventricular thickness and thickening were calculated by four methods: 1) linear = distance between epicardium and endocardium at midpoint in the segment with the sonomicrometer; 2) planar = area of that segment divided by the mean of the endocardial and epicardial arc lengths; 3) biplanar = average of wall thicknesses calculated by the planar method from the segment with sonomicrometers and the corresponding segment located in the adjacent short-axis imaging plane; and 4) three-dimensional = volume of the element with the sonomicrometers divided by the mean of the endocardial and epicardial surface areas. Results. Regressions for all methods using pooled data from control periods and during ischemia: Linear %WT = 0.59 + 1.31 SM%WT (r = 0.71, SEE = 0.28, p < 0.0002) Planar %WT = 1.43 + 1.62 SM%WT (r = 0.87, SEE = 0.19, p < 0.0001) Biplanar %WT = 2.09+1.46 SM%WT (r = 0.90, SEE = 0.15, p < O.0001) Three-dimensional %WT = 0.19+1.49 SM%WT (r = 0.95, SEE = 0.10, p < 0.0001) Conclusions. Nuclear magnetic resonance imaging with tissue tagging allows accurate noninvasive assessment of systolic wall thickening. The three-dimensional volume element approach, by accounting for obliquity between the image plane and the left ventricular wall, provides the strongest correlation between NMR imaging and percent systolic wall thickening by sonomicrometer crystals.
New device for creating a continuous curvilinear capsulorhexis.

Purpose To describe the evolution of a new device to facilitate continuous curvilinear capsulorhexis (CCC) creation. Setting Department of Ophthalmology, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado, USA. Design Experimental study. Methods Bench-side ex vivo testing of unique prototypes for guidance and assistance of CCC in bovine and human eyes was performed. Five designs were sequentially tested as follows: a flexible circular blade of nickel-titanium alloy (nitinol), a flexible nitinol guide wire, a flexible elastomeric suction device, a combination approach of a nitinol guide wire and flexible silicone ring, and a freestanding micropatterned silicone ring. Results The first 3 designs were not amenable to insertion through a sub-2.4 mm corneal incision and failed to maintain adequate downward force to cut the capsule and/or prevent radial tears. The fourth design was successfully inserted through a 2.4 mm incision and maintained adequate downward pressure and contact to guide a manual CCC without radial tears. The final design was insertable through a 2.4 mm incision and exhibited self-adhesive characteristics after placement on the anterior capsule of an ophthalmic viscosurgical device–filled anterior chamber. Conclusions Given the steep learning curve of manual capsulorhexis and the high cost of capsulotomy-assistive devices, such as the femtosecond laser, an alternative approach for creating a CCC is desirable. Performance of a highly precise manual CCC through a small incision using a medical-grade silicone device with an adhesive micropatterned design is a viable and cost-effective option for use in cataract surgery across a wide range of user experience. Financial Disclosure All authors are named as the inventors in a patent filed by the University of Colorado covering the details in this report.
Energy transfer in benzalkonium chloride micelles.

Abstract The energy transfer process from the excited phenyl group of micellar benzalkonium chloride (BAC) to solubilized anthracene is described. NMR studies show the solubilization site of the anthracene to be near the phenyl group in the BAC micelles. The system gives an energy transfer efficiency of 0.741 and the donor—acceptor separation is 41.4 A.
Improved spatial harmonic selection for SMASH image reconstructions.

The fitting of coil sensitivity functions to spatial harmonics is central to image reconstructions using the simultaneous acquisition of spatial harmonics (SMASH) technique. It has previously been shown that the selection of the set of spatial harmonics used in a SMASH reconstruction can have a noticeable effect on the quality of the reconstructed image. However, a mechanism for automatic selection of the best set of harmonics in any particular situation has not been provided. In this work, a modification to the SMASH reconstruction procedure is introduced that allows the use of a weighted average of all possible harmonics in a reconstruction. The new reconstruction procedure is shown to allow automatic selection of the spatial harmonics and substantially improve SNR for both phantom and in vivo images.
Bioinformatics approaches for detecting gene-gene and gene-environment interactions in studies of human disease.

Neurological and mental disorders occur often, with approximately 450 million people suffering from them worldwide. Like most other common diseases, neurological disorders are hypothesized to be highly complex, with interactions among genes and risk factors playing a major role in the process. In recent years it has become obvious that for common diseases there may be more complex interactions among genes with and without strong independent main effects. These effects are more difficult to detect using traditional methodologies. In this manuscript the author introduces the concept of epistasis and the challenges associated with detecting it. Next, she briefly mentions a number of bioinformatics approaches that have been developed to deal with this issue. Multifactor dimensionality reduction is a methodology developed specifically to deal with the challenge of detecting interaction effects in the absence of statistically detectable main effects in studies of common disorders, such as Alzheimer disease or b...
Views on smoking cessation methods in ethnic minority communities: A qualitative investigation

Abstract Objective. The purpose of this qualitative analysis is to increase our understanding of minority smokers' experiences and beliefs about guideline-recommended smoking cessation treatments. Methods. We conducted sixteen focus groups ( N = 95) among current and former smokers from four ethnic minority communities in Minneapolis/St. Paul in 2005. Focus groups were conducted separately for American Indians, Vietnamese, Hmong and African Americans. Results. Participants reported little experience with counseling and views on seeking help from physicians were mixed. African American and American Indian participants expressed feelings of mistrust and negative experiences with doctors. Hmong and Vietnamese smokers viewed doctors positively but did not regard them as an important resource to help with quitting, and especially for Vietnamese, the cultural value of mental control and self-determination was seen as most important to quit smoking. Across all the groups, pharmacotherapy was rarely utilized and participants had low knowledge and poor understanding of the benefits of pharmacotherapy. Conclusions. Personal beliefs, views toward doctors, and lack of knowledge are important determinants of the use of tobacco treatments among ethnic minority smokers. In order to increase minority smokers' utilization of evidence-based tobacco cessation treatments, effective strategies are needed to deliver accurate information about treatment from trusted sources.
GGA proteins bind ubiquitin to facilitate sorting at the trans-Golgi network

Ubiquitination functions as a sorting signal for lysosomal degradation of cell-surface proteins by facilitating their internalization from the plasma membrane and incorporation into lumenal vesicles of multivesicular bodies (MVBs)1. Ubiquitin may also mediate sorting of proteins from the trans-Golgi network (TGN) to the endosome, thereby preventing their appearance on the cell surface and hastening their degradation in the lysosome–vacuole2,3,4,5,6. Substantiation of a direct ubiquitin-dependent TGN sorting pathway relies in part on identifying candidate machinery that may function as a ubiquitin-sorting 'receptor'at the TGN. Members of the GGA family of coat proteins localize to the TGN and promote the incorporation of proteins into clathrin-coated vesicles destined for transport to endosomes7,8. We show that the GGA coat proteins bind directly to ubiquitin through their GAT domain and demonstrate that this interaction is required for the ubiquitin-dependent sorting of the Gap1 amino acid transporter from the TGN to endosomes. Thus, GGA proteins fulfill the role of ubiquitin sorting receptors at the TGN.
Lavender Eye, a Recessive Sex-Linked Mutant of the Boll Weevil (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) and Its Map Distance from the Recessive Sex-Linked Mutant Dark Scale

A new mutant of the boll weevil, Anthonomus grandis grandis Boheman, is described. The lavender eye characteristic is sex-linked and recessive. Eye color is distinctly different from the two autosomal recessive eye color mutants, “pearl” and “plum,” currently in culture at this laboratory. Lavender eye and “dark scale,” a previously reported sex-linked recessive, are linked. These loci are about 22 map units apart on the sex chromosome.
Multivariate Data Analysis for Neuroimaging Data: Overview and Application to Alzheimer’s Disease

As clinical and cognitive neuroscience mature, the need for sophisticated neuroimaging analysis becomes more apparent. Multivariate analysis techniques have recently received increasing attention as they have many attractive features that cannot be easily realized by the more commonly used univariate, voxel-wise, techniques. Multivariate approaches evaluate correlation/covariance of activation across brain regions, rather than proceeding on a voxel-by-voxel basis. Thus, their results can be more easily interpreted as a signature of neural networks. Univariate approaches, on the other hand, cannot directly address functional connectivity in the brain. The covariance approach can also result in greater statistical power when compared with univariate techniques, which are forced to employ very stringent, and often overly conservative, corrections for voxel-wise multiple comparisons. Multivariate techniques also lend themselves much better to prospective application of results from the analysis of one dataset to entirely new datasets. Multivariate techniques are thus well placed to provide information about mean differences and correlations with behavior, similarly to univariate approaches, with potentially greater statistical power and better reproducibility checks. In contrast to these advantages is the high barrier of entry to the use of multivariate approaches, preventing more widespread application in the community. To the neuroscientist becoming familiar with multivariate analysis techniques, an initial survey of the field might present a bewildering variety of approaches that, although algorithmically similar, are presented with different emphases, typically by people with mathematics backgrounds. We believe that multivariate analysis techniques have sufficient potential to warrant better dissemination. Researchers should be able to employ them in an informed and accessible manner. The following article attempts to provide a basic introduction with sample applications to simulated and real-world data sets.
Discovering Ourselves by Unfolding our Panorama: Interviewing Pioneers in Counseling

In the last analysis, the essential thing is the life of the individual. This alone makes history, here alone do the great transformations first take place, and the whole future, the whole history of the world, ultimately spring as a gigantic summation from these hidden sources in individuals. In our most private and most subjective lives we are not only the passive witnesses of our age, and its sufferers, but also its makers.
Chlorination of Channel Catfish Ponds

— Laboratory studies with pond water samples revealed that 5 mg/L active chlorine was needed to provide enough chlorine residual to reduce biological activity. Treatment of channel catfish ponds with repeated, 0.1-mg/L doses of active chlorine from calcium hypochlorite at 6- to 8-d intervals, as sometimes done by catfish farmers, had little influence on water quality. Dissolved oxygen, total ammonia-nitrogen, and chlorophyll a concentrations and pH were similar between treated and control ponds. Concentrations of chemical oxygen demand and particulate organic matter were seldom different between treated and control ponds. Channel catfish survival and net production were not improved by chlorine treatment. Thus, chlorination of production ponds during the grow-out period is not a useful technique. Treatment of sediment samples from ponds with up to 1,200-mg active chlorinelkg soil did not reduce bacterial abundance, so chlorination of bottoms of empty ponds may not he an effective disinfection procedure. Chlorination of pond waters with 30-mg/L active chlorine caused complete kill of bacteria 24 h after treatment, although heterotrophic bacteria quickly re-populated the water. Thus, chlorination can be an effective way to disinfect ponds before stocking.
Like mother, (not) like daughter: The social construction of menopause and aging

Abstract In recent American history, the definition of menopause has shifted from a natural, developmental transition to an increasingly more medicalized perspective that emphasizes biological deficits of the aging female body. Using qualitative data from two generations of women, this essay explores how and why this redefinition has occurred and what effect it has had on women's attitudes toward health and aging. The physical experiences of menopause were remarkably similar across mother–daughter pairs; however, daughters (who represented a slice of the baby boom cohort) differed from their mothers in how they talked about menopause, how they defined and treated menopause, and how willingly they accepted or fought the changes associated with menopause. Major social institutions, including the media and pharmaceutical industry, have played a significant role in reshaping the cultural lens through which women experience issues of health, body, and aging. This essay emphasizes the baby boomers' desire to maintain control over their bodies and considers how this cohort of women, as a result, may experience late-life issues of body and health.
Young adults at risk for hypertension: Effects of family history and anger management in determining responses to interpersonal conflict

An experiment was conducted with young adults to study the effects of two hypothesized risk factors for essential hypertension, namely, having (1) a positive family history of essential hypertension, and (2) anger inhibition. Subjects were tested in a dyadic role play task designed to simulate mundane and conflictual social interactions. Heart rate and blood pressure were recorded, reports of emotion were obtained, and role play behavior was coded for assertiveness. Although family history of essential hypertension and anger inhibition were not associated with one another, both variables were related to cardiovascular activity. These results provide new information about the relationship between these two hypothesized risk factors and extend previously observed differences between at-risk and low-risk subjects for hypertension to a more naturalistic, interpersonal stressor.
Hippocampal sleep spindles revisited: physiologic or epileptic activity?

Abstract Objective : Few reports have described sleep spindles in intracranial electrode recordings from human hippocampus. Controversy exists regarding whether hippocampal spindles represent a physiologic or epileptic phenomenon. Methods : We reviewed hippocampal recordings in 8 subjects to characterize events resembling sleep spindles. Results : In 6 subjects, events occurred exclusively during non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep, were similar in morphology to surface spindles, occurred simultaneously or independently of surface spindles, and did not show a consistent relationship to the epileptic region. In an additional subject, a proportion of the hippocampal activity recorded differed slightly in morphology from surface spindles, was present during both NREM and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, occurred in the same channels as isolated interictal epileptiform discharges, attenuated just prior to seizures, and occurred postictally as repetitive discharges. This activity occurred simultaneously or independently of surface spindles, but differed from surface spindles by both visual and signal analysis measures. Conclusions : Most examples of hippocampal activity resembling spindles are probably physiologic, originating within the hippocampus or propagated from neighboring regions. However, in one subject, spindle activity and epileptiform discharges may have coincided, supporting experimental evidence that neurophysiological processes associated with spindle generation and NREM sleep contribute to the activation of epileptiform discharges.
Tunneling rates for excited states of sodium in a static electric field

We have measured ionization rates for selected Stark states of sodium in the range $n=12\ensuremath{-}14$, $|m|=2$. We find that the ionization rates for the lowest Stark components of each term are in excellent agreement with values calculated for hydrogen. The systematics of ionization of the higher sublevels, however, is in serious disagreement with hydrogenic theory because of effects of level mixing.
Temperature Fields below Melt-Blowing Dies of Various Geometries

Temperature fields were measured below two parallel, rectangular air nozzles. These are the types of nozzles that are commonly used in the melt-blowing process to produce fine polymer fibers. Each rectangular nozzle had a large length-to-width ratio, and the nozzles were closely spaced. Three types of nozzles were compared: (1) a die where the jets meet at a 60° angle and the die tip was blunt, (2) a die with a 60° angle and a sharp tip, and (3) a die with a 70° angle and a sharp tip. Correlations were developed to predict the temperature fields below these die types.
Enhanced Photocatalytic Reduction of CO2 to CO through TiO2 Passivation of InP in Ionic Liquids.

A robust and reliable method for improving the photocatalytic performance of InP, which is one of the best known materials for solar photoconversion (i.e., solar cells). In this article, we report substantial improvements (up to 18×) in the photocatalytic yields for CO2 reduction to CO through the surface passivation of InP with TiO2 deposited by atomic layer deposition (ALD). Here, the main mechanisms of enhancement are the introduction of catalytically active sites and the formation of a pn-junction. Photoelectrochemical reactions were carried out in a nonaqueous solution consisting of ionic liquid, 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate ([EMIM]BF4), dissolved in acetonitrile, which enables CO2 reduction with a Faradaic efficiency of 99 % at an underpotential of +0.78 V. While the photocatalytic yield increases with the addition of the TiO2 layer, a corresponding drop in the photoluminescence intensity indicates the presence of catalytically active sites, which cause an increase in the electron-hole pair recombination rate. NMR spectra show that the [EMIM]+ ions in solution form an intermediate complex with CO2−, thus lowering the energy barrier of this reaction.
Design synthesis of miniature multiband monopole antennas with application to ground-based and vehicular communication systems

In this letter, we present a novel design methodology for miniature multiband monopole and whip-type antennas. The miniaturization and multiband response are simultaneously achieved by placing a fixed number of thin stubs at strategic locations along the antenna. A robust genetic algorithm technique is introduced to determine the optimal lengths and locations of the stubs for a specified percent reduction in monopole length.