cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Chronic intracranial pressure monitoring by telemetry: clinical experience.

Intracranial pressure (ICP) monitoring is a critical measure for avoiding severe brain dysfunction or brain death by directing supportive therapy so as to prevent ICP increase severe enough to reduce cerebral blood perfusion. Such situations occur with brain swelling, increased cerebral vascular volume, and increase in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) volume. Causes include ischemic stroke, subarachnoid bleeding, brain contusion, encephalitis (as in Reye's syndrome), and hydrocephalus from meningitis or neoplasm. When several days of ICP monitoring can direct resolution of the pressure crisis, the invasive direct connection of an intracranial sensor with external recording device carries only minimal infection risk. Prolonged ICP monitoring for weeks or months demands telemetry and becomes desirable in a number of chronic disease problems including both congenital and acquired hydrocephalus where enlarged and pressurized cerebral ventricles develop with reduced absorption of continuously secreted CSF. Although the primary disturbance in CSF circulation can remain incurable, its palliation by valve-regulated CSF diversions or shunting can restore normal brain function and in infants permit normal brain development. Missing this goal can result from failure to maintain a sufficiently normal pattern of CSF dynamics and ICP. Monitoring of the CSF pressure fluctuations transmitted through an intraventricular catheter provides the most accurate record of ICP pulsations. Therefore, a pressure sensing module can be “T'd” into an existing shunt system in continuity with the already placed ventricular tube. The capacity to monitor ICP accurately by telemetry was first established in dogs made hydrocephalic to assure free CSF pulse through a ventricular catheter (1,2,3, 4,5). The subsequent use of ICP monitoring by telemetry in three patients will be described.
Observation of restricted IVR in large molecules: Quasi-periodic behavior, phase-shifted and non-phase-shifted quantum beats

The concept of phase-shifted quantum beats in large molecules is developed. Measurements are reported for jet-cooled anthracene excited by a 15 ps pulse to S_1 + 1420 cm^(−1). The results represent the direct observation, in the time domain, of vibrational energy flow within specific sets of modes in the molecule. The importance of the results to intramolecular vibrational-energy redistribution (IVR) and quasi-periodic behavior is discussed.
To drill or not to drill: a synthesis of experts' judgments

Using experts’ judgment and the available information on a geologic formation, the volume of recoverable oil in a given reservoir is estimated. The methodology used is called the analytic hierarchy process. The key factors affecting the decision are defined and assigned numerical values using the judgments of geologists and petroleum engineers. The probabilities of the outcome are determined and the ‘expected value’ of each decision variable is computed. The results of the study indicate that, when good judgments are used, one can obtain an excellent estimate of the volume of recoverable oil in a reservoir in a very short time and with the least amount of physical and financial resources.
Synthesis, Properties, and Applications of Oligonucleotides Containing an RNA Dinucleotide Phosphorothiolate Linkage

RNA represents a prominent class of biomolecules. Present in all living systems, RNA plays many essential roles in gene expression, regulation, and development. Accordingly, many biological processes depend on the accurate enzymatic processing, modification, and cleavage of RNA. Understanding the catalytic mechanisms of these enzymes therefore represents an important goal in defining living systems at the molecular level.In this context, RNA molecules bearing 3′- or 5′-S-phosphorothiolate linkages comprise what are arguably among the most incisive mechanistic probes available. They have been instrumental in showing that RNA splicing systems are metalloenzymes and in mapping the ligands that reside within RNA active sites. The resulting models have in turn verified the functional relevance of crystal structures. In other cases, phosphorothiolates have offered an experimental strategy to circumvent the classic problem of kinetic ambiguity; mechanistic enzymologists have used this tool to assign precise role...
Acclimation Effects on the Supreme Court of Canada: A Cross-Cultural Examination of Judicial Folklore*

Objective. Few public law theories developed to understand the decision making of U.S. courts have been examined in different cultural settings. This study examines the applicability of the “freshman effects” theory in the context of the Canadian Supreme Court. Methods. The article uses analysis of variance tests to examine changes in the voting and authorship patterns of 15 Canadian Supreme Court Justices during the Laskin, Dickson, and Lamer Court periods (1973–1999). Results. We find very little evidence of acclimation effects on the Canadian Supreme Court. However, through the Chief Justice's power to compose decision panels, Canadian justices in their first full year of service are assigned significantly fewer cases than in subsequent years of their career. Thus, Canadian justices are given time to acclimate to the high court through a lower workload, a luxury not afforded to U.S. justices. Conclusions. Theories of public law adopted to understand U.S. courts may be limited in their generalizability beyond the U.S. setting because of the institutional and political forces that shape judicial decision making in other courts.
Recombinant Human Growth Hormone Treatment of Children with Chronic Renal Failure: Update 1990

Nine children with growth retardation due to chronic renal failure were treated with recombinant human growth hormone (rhGH) for 12-36 months. Results demonstrated a significant increase in height velocity at each 12-month interval compared with that achieved during the year prior to treatment. However, the increase in bone age was no greater than the increase in chronological age during the period of treatment. The mean calculated creatinine clearance did not decrease significantly during the 36 months of treatment; however, two patients required institution of dialysis at 18 and 30 months following initiation of rhGH treatment. There was no exacerbation of the glucose intolerance of uraemia following treatment. Currently, 6 of 7 patients who have been treated for more than 24 months have achieved sufficient acceleration in height velocity to attain an SDS of less than -2.00 and are above the 5th centile for chronological age on the growth curve. These updated data indicate that rhGH treatment of growth retarded children with chronic renal failure continues to result in accelerated height velocity during the second and third year of treatment, and demonstrate the potential for such children to achieve normal stature (+/- 2 SD) for chronological age despite the continued presence of chronic renal failure.
The use of an expandable and adjustable prosthesis in the treatment of childhood malignant bone tumors of the extremity

Limb-sparing surgery for malignant bone tumors in the growing child usually has been avoided because of anticipated limb-length discrepancy, especially in the lower extremity. Therefore, amputation or modified amputation was often the treatment of choice. The purpose of this article is to introduce a new concept: an expandable and adjustable internal prosthesis that can be used in the growing child in the properly selected patient after removal of the malignant neoplasm. This procedure is an alternative to amputation.
Amplitude-weighted mean velocity: Clinical utilization for quantitation of mitral regurgitation

Abstract Objectives . The purpose of this study was to determine the clinical usefulness of the amplitude-weighted mean velocity method for quantitation of mitral regurgitation. Background . Amplitude-weighted mean velocity is a nonvolumetric method for calculating the mitral regurgitant fraction. Its previous validation at one center mandated an independent assessment of its usefulness and limitations. Methods . In 56 patients with and 16 patients without mitral regugitation, the regurgitant fraction was measured simultaneously by amplitude-weighted mean velocity, quantitative Doppler study and quantitative two-dimensional echocardiography. In 16 patients, multiple gain settings were used to determine the influence of this variable on amplitude-weighted mean velocity. Results . In ptients without regurgitation, amplitude-weighted mean velocity showed more scattering of regurgitant fraction (−18% to 23%) than Doppler (p = 0.016) or two-dimensional echocardiography (p = 0.022). The absolute value of regurgitant fraction was (mean ± SD) 8 ± 6%, 4 ± 2% and 4 ± 3%, respectively (p = NS). With increasing gain, the amplitudeweighted mean velocity mitral and aortic integrals increased, but the calculated regurgitant fraction remained unchanged. In patients with mitral regurgitation, significant correlation was found between amplitude-weighted mean velocity and Doppler study (r = 0.79, p = 0.0001) and between implitude-weighted mean velocity and two-dimensional echocardiography (r = 0.76, p = 0.0001) for calculated regurgitant fraction, but the standard error of the estimate (12%) was large. Conclusions . The amplitude-weighted mean velocitycalculated regurgitant fraction is gain independent, whereas the aortic and mitral integrals are gain dependent. Compared with Doppler and two-dimensional echocardiography, It shows more scattering of values in patients without regurgitation, but the methods correlate significantly in patients with mitral regurgitation. Amplitude-weighted mean velocity can be used as a simple adjunctive tool for comprehensive, noninvasive quantitation of mitral regurgitation.
Potassium solubility in metal: the effects of composition at 15 kbar and 1900°C on partitioning between iron alloys and silicate melts

Abstract To determine the role of radioactive heating as an energy source in planetary cores, the solubility of K in metal has been examined experimentally. All experiments were conducted at 15 kbar and 1900°C and involved K partitioning between Fe alloys and silicate melts. Experiments conducted with different concentrations of S in the metallic liquid indicate that S increases the solubility of K in metal. Unlike S, the presence of C in the metallic liquid does not increase K solubility in metal to a level detectable with the electron microprobe. The silicate composition significantly affects the solubility of K in S-rich metal, with the metal/silicate partition coefficient for K increasing by nearly two orders of magnitude with increasing depolymerization of the silicate melt. Using an appropriate silicate composition for the early, differentiating Earth and assuming that S is a significant light element in the core, the metal/silicate partition coefficient for K is 6×10−3 at 15 kbar and 1900°C. Such a partitioning value, if representative of the behavior of K at core formation conditions, suggests the presence of less than 1 ppm K in the Earth's core with a present-day heat generation of 1010 W, which is 2–3 orders of magnitude lower than estimates of the power necessary to drive the Earth's geodynamo. Other thermodynamic variables, namely pressure, temperature, and oxygen fugacity may also affect the solubility of K in metal.
Women in higher education: Economic, political, and cultural influences

This paper tests a multicausal hypothesis: is there evidence that the proportion of university students who are female, crossnationally, is influenced by levels of economic and cultural development and by types of political systems? Economic and cultural development are measured by energy consumption and library volumes per capita, respectively. Individual states are categorized as Marxist-Leninist, non-Marxist authoritarian, or polyarchic systems. Multiple regression results for two intervals (1975,1985) reveal substantial impacts of both economics and politics. Statistics also reveal greater variability of outcomes among authoritarian regimes.
Poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase-1 activity facilitates the dissociation of nuclear proteins from platinum-modified DNA.

The affinity of the poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase-1 (PARP-1) for platinum-damaged DNA was first discovered during photo-cross-linking experiments using the photoactive compound Pt-BP6 [J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2004, 126, 6536–6537], an analogue of the anticancer drug cis-diamminedichloroplatinum(II), cisplatin. Although PARP inhibitors sensitize cancer cells to cisplatin, there are conflicting reports in the literature about their efficacy. In order to improve our understanding of the mechanism by which PARP inhibition might potentiate the cell-killing ability of cisplatin, and to shed light on the source of the discrepancy among different laboratories, we have in the present study probed the influence of three PARP inhibitors in four types of cancer cells, cervical (HeLa), testicular (NTera2), pancreatic (BxPC3), and osteosarcoma (U2OS), on the results of Pt-BP6 photo-cross-linking experiments and cytotoxicity assays. We find that the activity of PARP proteins following exposure to platinum-modified DNA results in the dissociation of DNA-bound proteins. PARP inhibitors were able to sensitize some, but not all, of the cell lines to cisplatin. This cell line-dependence and the potential consequences of PARP-initiated protein removal from platinum–DNA lesions are discussed. Control experiments revealed that NTera2 cells are especially sensitive to PARP inhibition.
The DNA mismatch repair enzyme PMS1 is a myositis-specific autoantigen

Objective The specificity of the autoantibody response in different autoimmune diseases makes autoantibodies useful for diagnostic purposes. It also focuses attention on tissue- and event-specific circumstances that may select unique molecules for an autoimmune response in specific diseases. Defining additional phenotype-specific autoantibodies may identify such circumstances. This study was undertaken to investigate the disease specificity of PMS1, an autoantigen previously identified in some sera from patients with myositis. Methods We used immunoprecipitation analysis to determine the frequency of autoantibodies to PMS1 in sera from patients with myositis, systemic lupus erythematosus, or scleroderma and from healthy controls. Additional antigens recognized by PMS1-positive sera were further characterized in terms of their susceptibility to cleavage by apoptotic proteases. Results PMS1, a DNA mismatch repair enzyme, was identified as a myositis-specific autoantigen. Autoantibodies to PMS1 were found in 4 of 53 patients with autoimmune myositis (7.5%), but in no sera from 94 patients with other systemic autoimmune diseases (P = 0.016). Additional mismatch repair enzymes (PMS2, MLH1) were targeted, apparently independently. Sera recognizing PMS1 also recognized several other proteins involved in DNA repair and remodeling, including poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase, DNA-dependent protein kinase, and Mi-2. All of these autoantigens were efficiently cleaved by granzyme B, generating unique fragments not observed during other forms of cell death. Conclusion PMS1 autoantibodies are myositis specific. The striking correlation between an immune response to a group of granzyme B substrates (functioning in DNA repair and remodeling) and the myositis phenotype strongly implies that tissue- and event-specific biochemical events play a role in selecting these molecules for an autoimmune response. Understanding the role of granzyme B cleavage in this response is an important priority.
Psychotherapeutic approaches to anorexia nervosa and bulimia: a selected bibliography.

The bibliography contains references to 160 articles on psychotherapeutic approaches to anorexia nervosa and bulimia from journals in psychology, psychiatry, medicine, and allied disciplines. All articles were published between 1970 and 1983 and are written in English. A broad spectrum of psychotherapies is represented.
Interpersonal Behaviour in Families: Research on the Theoretical Relationship of Two Models*

An integration of theories of family process under a recently formulated unified theory is proposed. Research was conducted testing hypothesized interrelationships between two models subsumed under the unified theory: Satir's model of defended communication and Kantor and Lehr's psychopolitical model of family process. Behavioural ratings from an Australian sample and self-report ratings from an American sample both show the two models to be significantly correlated and structurally consistent with the unified theory.
Suppression of intestinal neoplasia by DNA hypomethylation

We have used a combination of genetics and pharmacology to assess the effects of reduced DNA methyltransferase activity on ApcMin-induced intestinal neoplasia in mice. A reduction in the DNA methyltransferase activity in Min mice due to heterozygosity of the DNA methyltransferase gene, in conjunction with a weekly dose of the DNA methyltransferase inhibitor 5-aza-deoxycytidine, reduced the average number of intestinal adenomas from 113 in the control mice to only 2 polyps in the treated heterozygotes. Hence, DNA methyltransferase activity contributes substantially to tumor development in this mouse model of intestinal neoplasia. Our results argue against an oncogenic effect of DNA hypomethylation. Moreover, they are consistent with a role for DNA methyltransferase in the generation of the C to T transitions seen at high frequency in human colorectal tumors.
Spectral heterogeneity of PRODAN fluorescence in isotropic solvents revealed by multivariate photokinetic analysis.

This paper describes a multivariate analysis of the fluorescence emission of 6-propionyl-2-dimethylaminonaphthalene (PRODAN) in a series of isotropic solvents of differing polarity and hydrogen-bonding ability. Multivariate methods distill the essential features from spectral data matrices so that the structural details that are embedded within the data are revealed to the analyst. In the aprotic solvents investigated, the analysis reveals a pair of emission components that have emission maxima that scale with the orientational polarizability. In the alcohols, short-lived, polarity-independent blue bands tentatively attributed to neutral hydrogen-bonded solute−solvent complexes form and relax prior to emission from paired bands that have Stokes shifts that scale with the solvent hydrogen-bonding ability rather than the polarity. In water, the short-lived blue bands were not observed, but the shift in the paired bands did scale with the solvent hydrogen-bonding ability.
Prevention by a platelet derived factor platelet factor 4 of induction of low dose tolerance to pneumococcal polysaccharides

It was previously shown that human or mouse serum, and platelet factor 4 (PF4) prepared from human platelet releasate, counteracts nonspecific immunosuppression induced in mice by injection of concanavalin A or syngeneic gamma-irradiated lymphoma cells. The present studies show that PF4 prepared from normal mouse or human serum by absorption to heparin-agarose and elution between 0.5 and 1.5 M NaCl is also active in this respect. The ability of PF4 to counteract antigen-specific suppression of the antibody response to pneumococcal polysaccharide (pps) was now studied. PF4 derived from human or mouse serum as well as recombinant PF4 interferes with induction of antigen-specific low dose tolerance when they are injected at the same time as a low dose (0.2 microgram) of type 14 pps 3 days before an optimal immunizing dose (25 micrograms). Furthermore, injection of platelet releasate at the time of an optimal primary immunizing dose of pps type 14 enhances the secondary response to killed bacteria injected 2 weeks later, but not the primary response itself. Both effects are interpreted as due to interference with antigen-specific suppressor cell induction during primary immunization. Injection of PF4 is much less effective in reversing low dose tolerance to an optimal immunizing dose (0.1 microgram) of type 3 pps induced by injection of 0.005 microgram of this antigen. Differences in the mechanism of tolerance induction for the two pps types that might be responsible for this are discussed.
Geology of the northern Cleft segment, Juan de Fuca Ridge: Recent lava flows, sea-floor spreading, and the formation of megaplumes

Geologic mapping and lava sampling were carried out after the discovery of large bursts of hydrothermal fluids (megaplumes) over the southern Juan de Fuca Ridge in 1986 and 1987. Our investigations of the northernmost section of the Cleft segment have discovered: (1) semicontinuous low-temperature venting and one major high-temperature vent site along 17 km of the neovolcanic zone and (2) very glassy, lightly sedimented sheet flows and pillow mounds superimposed on older terrain over about 24 km along the northern-most part. The pillow mounds are documented to have erupted between 1981 and 1987. The occurrence of the megaplumes during this same time period strengthens the hypothesis that megaplumes are caused by sea-floor extension events. Although the basalts from the entire length of the neovolcanic zone of the Cleft segment appear to have been derived from the same mantle source, a systematic northward increase in Mg number along the segment within the neovolcanic zone indicates less shallow-level differentiation to the north, possibly related to the development of new magma chambers during the recent phase of sea-floor spreading that has occurred there.
Efficient rotating point spread functions for 3D imaging

Approximate rotating beams for 3D imaging can be engineered with high diffraction efficiency using phase only on-axis diffractive optical elements. We compare approximate and exact rotating point spread functions in the Gauss-Laguerre modal plane.
α-L-fucosidase from aspergillus niger: Demonstration of a novel α-L-(1 → 6)-fucosidase acting on glycopeptides

An alpha-L-fucosidase which hydrolyzes fucose from alpha-(1----6)-linkage to N-acetylglucosamine was found in Aspergillus niger. The enzyme was purified by affinity chromatography with bovine IgG glycopeptide-Sepharose 4B. The enzyme preparation released fucose from bovine IgG glycopeptide and fucosylated asialoagalactofetuin, but failed to cleave 1----2, 1----3 or 1----4 linkages of alpha-L-fucosides.
The gene family encoding the fucoxanthin chlorophyll proteins from the brown alga Macrocystis pyrifera

Six members of a multigene family encoding polypeptide constituents of the fucoxanthin, chlorophyll a/c protein complex from female gametophytes of the brown alga Macrocystis pyrifera have been cloned and characterized. The deduced amino acid sequences are very similar to those of fucoxanthin chlorophyll binding proteins (Fcp) from the diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum and exhibit limited homology to chlorophyll a/b binding (Cab) polypeptides from higher plants. The primary translation products from the M. pyrifera fcp genes are synthesized as higher molecular weight precursors that are processed prior to their assembly into the Fcp complex. The presumed N-terminal 40-amino acid presequence of the Fcp precursor polypeptide has features resembling that of a signal sequence. This presequence may be required for the protein to transverse the endoplasmic reticulum that surrounds the plastid in brown algae. A subsequent targeting step would be required for the protein to cross the double membrane of the plastid envelope. M. pyrifera fcp transcripts are of two sizes, 1.2 and 1.6 kb. The size difference is accounted for by the length of the 3′ untranslated region, which can be up to 1000 bases. Transcript abundance's of members of the fcp gene family are dependent on light quantity, light quality, or both. Transcript levels of one gene increased approximately five- to tenfold in thalli grown in low intensity relative to high intensity white or blue light. Transcripts from this gene also significantly increase in red light relative to blue light at equivalent light intensities.
Taking Conflicts of Interest Seriously without Overdoing It: Promises and Perils of Academic-Industry Partnerships

Academic-industry collaborations and the conflicts of interest (COI) arising out of them are not new. However, as industry funding for research in the life and health sciences has increased and scandals involving financial COI are brought to the public’s attention, demands for disclosure have grown. In a March 2008 American Council on Science and Health report by Ronald Bailey, he argues that the focus on COI—especially financial COI—is obsessive and likely to be more detrimental to scientific progress and public health than COI themselves. In response, we argue that downplaying the potential negative impact of COI arising out of academic-industry relationships is no less harmful than overreacting to it.
Automatically configuring ACO using multilevel ParamILS to solve transportation planning problems with underlying weighted networks

Abstract Configuring parameter settings for ant colony optimisation (ACO) based algorithms is a challenging and time consuming task, because it usually requires evaluating a large number of parameter combinations to find the most appropriate setting. In this study, a multilevel ParamILS (MParamILS) technique, that combines a graph coarsening method and the ParamILS framework, has been developed for configuring ACO algorithms to solve transportation planning problems with underlying weighted networks. The essential idea is to first use the graph coarsening method to recursively produce a set of increasingly coarser level problems from the original problem, and then apply ParamILS sequentially to the coarser level problems to select high-quality settings from a parameter combination domain. From the coarsest level to the finest (original) level problem, the parameter domain is refined by removing the low-quality settings identified by ParamILS. The size of the combination domain continues to decrease, resulting in fewer number of parameter combinations evaluated at finer level problems, hence the computing time is reduced. The performance of MParamILS was compared with ParamILS. Experimental results showed that MParamILS matches ParamILS in solution quality with significant reduction in computing time for all test cases.
The effect of R&D investment on firm value: An examination of US manufacturing and service industries

Abstract We examine the association between investment in research and development (R&D) and market value among US firms over an 18-year period covering 26,500 firm-years. We study the R&D investment–firm performance linkage in both manufacturing and service industries to evaluate differences in their relative contributions to firm value. Finally, we investigate the impact of a major economic disruption such as the terrorist bombing of the World Trade Center in New York on September 11, 2001 (popularly known as 9/11) on R&D investment relative to the performance of a firm. After controlling for firm size, industry concentration, and leverage, we find that R&D investment positively affects firm performance. More specifically, R&D investment in the manufacturing sector contributes more positively to firm market value than in the service sector pre-9/11. However, the service sector shows stronger R&D investment–market performance association post-9/11 than manufacturing firms. Consistent with the resource-based literature, the results show that investment in R&D contributes positively to firm performance for both manufacturing and service firms, despite major economic disruptions.
Sex differences in brain maturation in maltreatment-related pediatric posttraumatic stress disorder.

Abstract Background . Recent investigations suggested that pediatric posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is associated with adverse brain development. However, sex differences are poorly understood. Methods . In this study, 61 medically healthy children and adolescents (31 males and 30 females) with chronic PTSD secondary to abuse, who had similar trauma and mental health histories, and 122 healthy controls (62 males and 60 females) underwent comprehensive psychiatric assessments and an anatomical MRI brain scan. Results . When gender groups were analyzed separately, findings of larger prefrontal lobe CSF volumes and smaller midsagittal area of the corpus callosum subregion 7 (splenium) were seen in both boys and girls with maltreatment-related PTSD compared to their gender-matched comparison subjects. Subjects with PTSD did not show the normal age related increases in the area of the total corpus callosum and its region 7 (splenium) compared to non-maltreated subjects; however, this finding was more prominent in males with PTSD. Significant sex by group effects demonstrated smaller cerebral volumes and corpus callosum regions 1 (rostrum) and 6 (isthmus) in PTSD males and greater lateral ventricular volume increases in maltreated males with PTSD than maltreated females with PTSD. Conclusions . These data suggest that there are sex differences in the brain maturation of boys and girls with maltreatment-related PTSD. Longitudinal MRI brain investigations of childhood PTSD and the relationship of gender to psychosocial outcomes are warranted.
Polypyrrole growth on YBa2Cu3O(7-δ) modified wih a self-assembled monolayer of N-(3-aminopropyl)pyrrole: Hardwiring the 'electroactive hot spots' on a superconductor electrode

This paper describes a new method for controlling the deposition of conductive polymer systems onto high-T{sup c} superconductor surfaces. This method relies on the spontaneous adsorption of the pyrrole-terminated alkylamine reagent 1 onto YBa{sup 2}Cu{sup 3}O{sup 7-{delta}} prior to polymerization. Large changes in the polymer growth rates and vast improvements in the polymer morphology are obtained with the use of such adsorbed monolayers. As described, the adsorbed monolayer structures promote radically different polymer deposition properties from those observed previously for the more traditional electrode materials (i.e., Au, Pt, etc.). These unusual observations provided valuable insight into the electrochemical characteristics and local surface electroactivity/conductivity properties of oriented cuprate superconductor films. 16 refs., 2 figs.
Relationships among three species of littorina and their larval digenea

The sympatric species Littorina saxatilis (Olivi), L. obtusata (L.), and L. littorea (L.) from the northeast coast of the USA were examined seasonally for larval trematodes. Snails were collected from two sites in Maine and one in Rhode Island. Eight species of Digenea were found: Microphallus pygmaeus (Levinsen, 1881), Microphallus similis (Jagerskiold, 1900), Microphallus sp., Cryptocotyle lingua (Creplin, 1825), Himasthla sp., Renicola roscovita (Stunkard, 1932), Podocotyle atomon (Rudolphi, 1809), and Cercaria lebouri (Stunkard, 1932). All 8 species were found to infect L. obtusata. Only Cercaria lebouri was absent from L. saxatilis. L. littorea was only infected with three species, M. pygmaeus, Cryptocotyle lingua, and R. roscovita. L. littorea does not appear to be a normal host for M. pygmaeus. Variation in occurrence and incidence of larval trematodes in snails from the three sites was related to the occurrence of the definitive hosts. Different seasonal variations in incidence of C. lingua and M. pygmaeus in L. obtusata and L. saxatilis were probably due to mortality of the snail hosts and the habits of the intermediate and definitive hosts. The incidence of C. lingua increased with increasing host size, but the incidence of M. pygmaeus reached a peak in smaller size classes. Although females were more abundant, significantly more male L. obtusata were infected at one Maine site.
Impairment of the Programmed Cell Death-1 Pathway Increases Atherosclerotic Lesion Development and Inflammation

Objective— Programmed cell death-1 (PD-1) is a member of the CD28 superfamily that delivers negative signals on interaction with its 2 ligands, PD-L1 and PD-L2. We studied the contribution of the PD-1 pathway to regulation of T cells that promote atherosclerotic lesion formation and inflammation. Methods and Results— We show that compared with Ldlr −/− control mice, Pd1 −/− Ldlr −/− mice developed larger lesions with more abundant CD4 + and CD8 + T cells and macrophages, accompanied by higher levels of serum tumor necrosis factor-α. Iliac lymph node T cells from Pd1 −/− Ldlr −/− mice proliferated more to αCD3 or oxidized low-density lipoprotein stimulation compared with controls. CD8 + T cells from Pd1 −/− Ldlr −/− mice displayed more cytotoxic activity compared with controls in vivo and in vitro. Administration of a blocking anti-PD-1 antibody increased lesional inflammation in hypercholesterolemic Ldlr −/− mice with more lesional T cells and more activated T cells in paraaortic lymph nodes. The changes in lesional T-cell content when PD-1 was absent or blocked were also observed in bone marrow chimeric Ldlr −/− mice lacking PD-L1 and PD-L2 on hematopoietic cells. Conclusion— PD-1 has an important role in downregulating proatherogenic T-cell responses, and blockade of this molecule for treatment of viral infections or cancer may increase risk of cardiovascular complications.
Contact-site cross-linking agents.

Contact-site cross-linking agents comprise a heterogeneous grouping of cross-linkers which share the common property of being able to cross-link only very closely juxtaposed residues in macromolecular complexes. We have defined contact-site cross-linking arbitrarily as the covalent joining of residues such that they are constrained to a distance which is equivalent to or less than their closest possible steric approach prior to becoming linked (1). We recognize two classes of contact-site cross-linkers, bridge type and zero-length type. The former, such as formaldehyde, become incorporated during cross-linking as one-atom bridges. The latter, such as the carbodiimides, operate as condensing agents with the result that the cross-linked residues become interjoined directly. Contact-site cross-linkers have been used in several ways as specific probes of both the static and dynamic aspects of macromolecular structure. They can yield precise structural information about macromolecular contacts when actual sites of cross-linking are determined by peptide or nucleotide mapping techniques. In this way exact contacs between histones in the nucleosome, between protein and RNA in the ribosome, and between RNA polymerase and DNA have been determined. Contact-site cross-linkers have also been used to probe the perturbation of contacts following macromolecular conformational changes. Certain histonehistone ‘cross-linkable’ sites are rendered unreactive after induction of chromatin conformational changes thus serving to localize sites of perturbation.
Saturated very long chain fatty acids are required for the production of infectious human cytomegalovirus progeny.

Human cytomegalovirus hijacks host cell metabolism, increasing the flux of carbon from glucose to malonyl-CoA, the committed precursor to fatty acid synthesis and elongation. Inhibition of acetyl-CoA carboxylase blocks the production of progeny virus. To probe further the role of fatty acid metabolism during infection, we performed an siRNA screen to identify host cell metabolic enzymes needed for the production of infectious cytomegalovirus progeny. The screen predicted that multiple long chain acyl-CoA synthetases and fatty acid elongases are needed during infection, and the levels of RNAs encoding several of these enzymes were upregulated by the virus. Roles for acyl-CoA synthetases and elongases during infection were confirmed by using small molecule antagonists. Consistent with a role for these enzymes, mass spectrometry-based fatty acid analysis with13C-labeling revealed that malonyl-CoA is consumed by elongases to produce very long chain fatty acids, generating an approximately 8-fold increase in C26-C34 fatty acid tails in infected cells. The virion envelope was yet further enriched in C26-C34 saturated fatty acids, and elongase inhibitors caused the production of virions with lower levels of these fatty acids and markedly reduced infectivity. These results reveal a dependence of cytomegalovirus on very long chain fatty acid metabolism.
Affective Change: Integrating Pre-Sessions in the Students' Classroom Prior to Library Instruction.

The study described in this article attempted to determine what effect a 10‐ to 20‐minute pre‐session given in the students’ classroom prior to a regularly scheduled library instruction session in the library had upon the affective experience of freshman composition students. Students in six paired classes were given pretest and post‐test questionnaires to determine if there was a difference in scores in four areas measured by the study: 1) library use and intended use; 2) feelings about the library; 3) attitudes toward librarians; and 4) perceived effectiveness of library instruction. According to Vidmar, the results of the study demonstrated that students felt better about the library, the librarians, and the research in general when exposed to a pre‐session.
Phosphodiesterase Type 5 Expanding Roles in Cardiovascular Regulation

Phosphodiesterase type 5A (PDE5A) selectively hydrolyzes cyclic GMP. Inhibitors of PDE5A such as sildenafil are widely used to treat erectile dysfunction, but growing evidence supports important roles for the enzyme in both the vasculature and heart. In disorders such as cardiac failure, PDE5A upregulation may contribute to a decline in cGMP and protein kinase G signaling, exacerbating dysfunction. PDE5A plays an important role in the pulmonary vasculature where its inhibition benefits patients with pulmonary hypertension. In the heart, PDE5A signaling appears compartmentalized, and its inhibition is cardioprotective against ischemia-reperfusion and antracycline toxicity, blunts acute adrenergic contractile stimulation, and can suppress chronic hypertrophy and dysfunction attributable to pressure-overload. In this review, we discuss the molecular biology, pharmacology, and physiology of PDE5A, mechanisms of vascular and cardiac regulation, and recent evidence supporting the utility of selective PDE5A inhibition for the treatment of cardiovascular disorders.
Ciento veinticinco años de lucha : el nacionalismo cubano y la democracia política hacia el siglo XXI

maticas proporciones que exige de ellos una respuesta contraria a su historia: sin importar la gradualidad con que procedan, deben poner en practica reformas cuyo corolario logico es el restablecimiento del capitalismo. Sin embargo, la crisis politica no es menos acongojante: para enfrentarla, el gobierno cubano debe avanzar hacia la instauracion de una democracia politica. Debido en parte a que la dirigencia debe aun reconocer la segunda crisis, las perspectivas de una transicion politica exitosa son todavia mas inciertas que las relacionadas con una transformacion economica eficaz. Simplemente, puede decirse que para afrontar con exito la crisis politica en definitiva deben celebrarse elecciones libres y abiertas que bien podrian terminar con el ejercicio del poder de Fidel Castro y el Partido Comunista de Cuba (pee), opcion que el actual gobierno no ha considerado seriamente hasta el momento.
A learning algorithm for visual pose estimation of continuum robots

Continuum robots offer significant advantages for surgical intervention due to their down-scalability, dexterity, and structural flexibility. While structural compliance offers a passive way to guard against trauma, it necessitates robust methods for online estimation of the robot configuration in order to enable precise position and manipulation control. In this paper, we address the pose estimation problem by applying a novel mapping of the robot configuration to a feature descriptor space using stereo vision. We generate a mapping of known features through a supervised learning algorithm that relates the feature descriptor to known ground truth. Features are represented in a reduced sub-space, which we call eigen-features. The descriptor provides some robustness to occlusions, which are inherent to surgical environments, and the methodology that we describe can be applied to multi-segment continuum robots for closed-loop control. Experimental validation on a single-segment continuum robot demonstrates the robustness and efficacy of the algorithm for configuration estimation. Results show that the errors are in the range of 1°.
The Breakup of a Main-Belt Asteroid 450 Thousand Years Ago

Collisions in the asteroid belt frequently lead to catastrophic breakups, where more than half of the target's mass is ejected into space. Several dozen large asteroids have been disrupted by impacts over the past several billion years. These impact events have produced groups of fragments with similar orbits called asteroid families. Here we report the discovery of a very young asteroid family around the object 1270 Datura. Our work takes advantage of a method for identification of recent breakups in the asteroid belt using catalogs of osculating (i.e., instantaneous) asteroid orbits. The very young families show up in these catalogs as clusters in a five-dimensional space of osculating orbital elements.
High-order validated representation of Poincaré maps

For many questions in dynamical systems theory it is desirable to have Poincare maps available as a tool to study long-term behavior of the dynamical system under consideration. In a validated setting, the Poincare map should be defined over as large a domain as possible. Taylor model based validated integrators relate final coordinates to initial conditions via a high-order polynomial and a small remainder bound, which usually is many orders of magnitude smaller than the initial domain. It is shown how it is possible to obtain a Taylor model representation of the Poincare map from the original Taylor model flow representation of the ODE. First a high-order polynomial approximation of the time necessary to reach the plane of the Poincare map is determined as a function of the initial conditions. This is achieved by reducing the problem to a non-validated polynomial inversion. This approximate representation is inserted into the Taylor model of the time-dependent flow, leading to an approximate Poincare map. A validated correction is performed that provides a rigorous enclosure of the Poincare map.
A geographic perspective on commercial internet survivability

The earliest predecessor to the commercial Internet of today was ARPANET, a packet switched computer network developed by the US Defense Department's Advanced Research Projects Agency. Designed to withstand a nuclear attack, ARPANET utilized a deurbanized, decentralized, and distributed network topology. As ARPANET gradually evolved into NSFNET and eventually the commercial Internet, increasing traffic, demands for interconnection, and growing private interests required the movement from a distributed network topology to a more economically viable network configuration, hub-and-spoke. Although transmission speeds and capacities of today's commercial Internet clearly surpass those of its predecessors, the economics of network survivability and reliability have also become more relevant. With thousands of businesses, corporations, universities, and governments relying on the Internet for day-to-day functions, major disruptions in service have the potential to be economically catastrophic. This paper explores the network topology of the commercial Internet, with a focus on network survivability. GIS based approaches are used to simulate both nodal and link failure in the US commercial backbone system in order to assess potential impacts. Results suggest that many of the larger metropolitan benefit from robust network infrastructure, while smaller cities are more prone to service disruptions.
Applying computational tools to predict gaze direction in interactive visual environments

Future interactive virtual environments will be “attention-aware,” capable of predicting, reacting to, and ultimately influencing the visual attention of their human operators. Before such environments can be realized, it is necessary to operationalize our understanding of the relevant aspects of visual perception, in the form of fully automated computational heuristics that can efficiently identify locations that would attract human gaze in complex dynamic environments. One promising approach to designing such heuristics draws on ideas from computational neuroscience. We compared several neurobiologically inspired heuristics with eye-movement recordings from five observers playing video games, and found that human gaze was better predicted by heuristics that detect outliers from the global distribution of visual features than by purely local heuristics. Heuristics sensitive to dynamic events performed best overall. Further, heuristic prediction power differed more between games than between different human observers. While other factors clearly also influence eye position, our findings suggest that simple neurally inspired algorithmic methods can account for a significant portion of human gaze behavior in a naturalistic, interactive setting. These algorithms may be useful in the implementation of interactive virtual environments, both to predict the cognitive state of human operators, as well as to effectively endow virtual agents in the system with humanlike visual behavior.
On the Security of Randomized Arithmetic Codes Against Ciphertext-Only Attacks

Modifications of arithmetic coding (AC) have been proposed to improve the security of traditional AC. Two main modifications to AC are randomized AC (RAC) and AC with key-based interval splitting (KSAC). Chosen-plaintext attacks have been proposed for these two methods when the same key is used to encrypt different messages. We first give a definition for security of encryption using AC that is based on the inability of the adversary to distinguish between the encryption of one plaintext from the encryption of another. Using this definition, we prove that RAC is insecure even if a new random key is used to compress every message. Our proof assumes that the adversary can only eavesdrop on the ciphertext and cannot request encryptions of chosen-plaintexts. We then prove that the method of first-compress-then-encrypt, where the encryption is performed by a bitwise xor of the compressed output with a pseudorandom bit sequence, is provably secure with respect to chosen-plaintext attacks. If the pseudorandom bit sequence is derived in advance using Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) in the counter mode, then the first-compress-then-encrypt method results in a performance penalty of only a few two input xor-gate delays.
Development of an insertional expression vector system for Methylobacterium extorquens AM1 and generation of null mutants lacking mtdA and/or fch

Over the past few years, the genetic ‘toolkit’ available for use with Methylobacterium extorquens AM1 has expanded significantly. Here a further advance is presented and demonstrated, an insertional expression system that allows expression of genes from a stable, unmarked chromosomal locus. This system has been used to better understand the role of the tetrahydrofolate (H4F) pathway in methylotrophy. Previously, it has not been possible to generate null mutants lacking either mtdA (encoding an NADP-dependent methylene-H4F/methylene-tetrahydromethanopterin dehydrogenase) or fch (encoding methenyl-H4F cyclohydrolase). An unmarked strain was generated that expressed the analogous folD gene (encoding a bifunctional NADP-dependent methylene-H4F dehydrogenase/methenyl-H4F cyclohydrolase) from Methylobacterium chloromethanicum CM4T. In this strain, null mutants could be obtained that grew normally on multicarbon substrates but were defective for growth on C1 substrates. Additionally, null mutants of mtdA and/or fch could also be generated in the wild-type by supplementing the succinate medium with formate. These strains were unable to grow on C1 compounds but were not methanol-sensitive. These approaches have demonstrated that the apparent essentiality of mtdA and fch is due to the need for formyl-H4F for biosynthesis of purines and other compounds, and have provided clear genetic evidence that the H4F pathway is required for methylotrophy.