cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Origin of ultraviolet damage in DNA

A novel ultraviolet (u.v.) footprinting technique has been used to analyze the formation of u.v. photoproducts at 250 bases of a 5 S rRNA gene under conditions where the gene is either double or single-stranded. Because many more types of u.v. damage can be detected by the u.v. footprinting technique than has been previously possible, we have been able to examine in detail why certain bases in DNA are damaged by u.v. light while others are not. Our measurements demonstrate that the ability of u.v. light to damage a given base in DNA is determined by two factors, the sequence of the DNA in the immediate vicinity of the photoproduct, and the flexibility of the DNA at the site of the photoproduct. For pyrimidines, the predominant photoreaction in double-stranded DNA involves covalent dimerization between adjacent pyrimidine residues. Dimerization is much easier in melted DNA because the geometrical changes required for adjacent pyrimidine residues to dimerize are easier in single-stranded DNA. The absorption of a u.v. photon cannot simultaneously induce the geometrical changes required for adjacent pyrimidines or other bases to dimerize with one another. Rather, upon the absorption of a u.v. photon, only those thermally excited bases that are in a geometry capable of easily forming a photodimer during excitation, can photoreact. In contrast to adjacent pyrimidines, non-adjacent pyrimidines (pyrimidines flanked on either side by a purine) do not readily form u.v. photoproducts in double-stranded DNA. Because photoreactions at non-adjacent pyrimidine residues are greatly enhanced in single-stranded DNA, their failure to form in double-helical DNA is attributed to torsional constraints imposed by the double helix which make it difficult for non-adjacent pyrimidines to adopt a geometry necessary for photoreaction. Although purines are believed to be resistant to u.v. damage, our measurements demonstrate that at moderate u.v. dosages purines which are flanked on their 5' side by two or more contiguous pyrimidines readily form u.v. photoproducts in double-stranded DNA. Flanking pyrimidines appear to activate purine photoreactions by transferring triplet excitation energy to the purine. Melting of the DNA helix greatly inhibits the ability of flanking pyrimidines to activate purine photoreactions, presumably by disrupting intimate orbital overlap required for triplet transfer.
The use of community surveys for health planning: the experience of 56 northwest rural communities.

: A rural health services development program of the University of Washington School of Medicine has worked for 15 years with communities throughout the five-state region of Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Washington and Wyoming to strengthen their health systems. In the course of that work, 56 communities were surveyed about their utilization and opinions of local health systems. This database allows the following generalizations to be made about rural Northwest communities: (1) People think highly of their local hospitals, physicians and other key components of the acute medical care system and want their hospitals to remain open. Older respondents are more satisfied than younger respondents; (2) the typical hospital market share is 36 percent, the typical physician market share is 50 percent (3) satisfaction with discrete, well-funded services such as pharmacy, ambulance and dentistry is quite high, whereas satisfaction with mental health and substance abuse treatment is significantly lower; (4) the most commonly cited serious problems in surveyed communities were “too few physicians or-services” and “care is too expensive”; and (5) there is great variation between communities in both satisfaction and utilization.
Multiresponse imaging system design for improved resolution

Multiresponse imaging is a process that acquires A images, each with a different optical response, and reassembles them into a single image with an improved resolution that can approach 1/sq rt A times the photodetector-array sampling lattice. Our goals are to optimize the performance of this process in terms of the resolution and fidelity of the restored image and to assess the amount of information required to do so. The theoretical approach is based on the extension of both image restoration and rate-distortion theories from their traditional realm of signal processing to image processing which includes image gathering and display.
Vortical Structures in a 2-D Vertical Bluff-Body Burner

Abstract Vortical structures arc investigated experimentally for combusting flow from a 2-D slot burner. A combination of a fast reactive system producing TiO2 seed particles and a 2-D sheet lighting method was used to visualize the vortical structures. At a fixed air flow rate, three regimes were observed—depending on the fuel flow. These three regimes depend on whether the fuel penetrates the recirculating zones and are designated as pre-penetration, penetration-transition, and penetration regime. In each regime, the flame and vortical structures are described and vortical shedding frequency is measured. It was found that the “petal” structures observed in a flame consist of vortical pairs of opposite sign. It is believed that these “petals” may be the precursor of flamelets seen in turbulent combustion.
The hydrology and form of spring-dominated channels

Abstract The form of channels that receive the bulk of their flow from springs differs in a number of ways from channels receiving direct runoff from rain and snowmelt. Spring-dominated channels tend to have poorly developed bars, and logs and aquatic vegetation may clog the channel. The organic-rich floodplain soils of spring-dominated channels are very moist. Channel beds lack a cover of fines indicating that sediment transport occurs frequently enough to flush fine sediment even though the drainage area of channels is very small. These differences in form reflect the distinctive hydrology. The range of discharge in spring-dominated channels is narrow. Spring-dominated channels often flow at bankfull or above 20 percent of the time while the typical value for runoff-dominated channels is 2–4 percent. At Browns Creek, an example of spring-dominated channels, the ratio of baseflow to bankfull flows is 0.65, whereas the respective value for runoff-dominated channels is 0.10. Peak flows often occur in late summer or fall whereas peak flows in runoff-dominated channels in the study areas occur with the spring snowmelt. Bankfull flows occur with a recurrence interval of about 1.67 years which is roughly equivalent to values for snowmelt- and runoff-dominated channels.
Chromosome organization during male meiosis in Bombyx mori

Chromatin organization during male meiosis in Bombyx mori has been investigated utilizing the Miller spreading procedure. During meiotic prophase, the linear 200–300 A chromatin fibers evident at interphase are folded into tandem arrays of approximately 7,000 loops per haploid genome. Adjacent loops visualized during early prophase are separated by 0.15–0.2 nm of nucleosomal DNA. Meiotic metaphase chromosomes display numerous loops which project radially from the central region of the chromosome suggesting that the loop conformation of prophase is maintained throughout meiosis. Spread preparations of spermatogenic stages through pachytene allow the visualization of actively transcribed ribosomal DNA. Throughout this period, these transcription units appear to be organized into loops in such a way that one active transcription unit exists on a single loop. Furthermore, there are various levels of transcription on different ribosomal loops, although the number of loops displaying active transcription remains constant throughout this period.
Microstructural characterization of doped dicalcium silicate polymorphs

This study has shown that bothΒ- andα′-C2S can be readily stabilized by suitable doping with BaO, B2O3, and P2O5, using a single firing at 1450° C. TheΒ-C2S samples all have similar lamellar structures, irrespective of the dopant present, which show (100) twinning. Grain boundary phases are present in allΒ-C2S preparations. Theα′-C2S crystals usually contain precipitates and associated strain fields and dislocations, but a grain boundary phase was only observed inα′-C2S stabilized by BaO. Some correlation between reactivity and presence of dislocations and strain fields has been suggested for theα′-C2S phase.
Endocrinology of female puberty

Purpose of reviewPuberty is the developmental process that culminates in reproductive capability. It is initiated by the release of gonadotropin-releasing hormone from specialized neurons of the hypothalamus to stimulate hormonal cascades and gonadal activation. The age of pubertal onset in girls ma
Morphologic Study of Intermediate Filaments in Rat Hepatocytes

Rat livers perfused with 0.5% Triton X-100 for 15 to 90 min followed by 1% sodium dodecyl sulfate for 30 min were studied by electron microscopy and polyaerylamide gel electrophoresis. After 15 min of perfusion, a rich network of intermediate filaments and microtubules was visualized in the cytoplasm of hepatocytes. Using stereopairs, branching was visualized. Connections of filaments were noted with nuclei, centrioles, microtubules, vesicles, and rough endoplasmic reticulum. The existence of connections supported the concept that intermediate filaments may function to integrate mechanically the cytoplasmic space as postulated by Lazarides.
Volume-conductor fields of the isolated axon☆

Abstract A solution of Laplace's equation relating the transmembrane potential distribution of an active fiber in a volume conductor to its extracellular field distribution utilizing a Fourier-transform method [4] has been reformulated as a one-dimensional linear filtering problem. Formulation of the solution in this manner allows the application of well-known techniques in linear system theory and optimal linear filtering, thereby facilitating the solution for both the forward (from transmembrane to field potential distribution) and inverse (from field to transmembrane potential distribution) problems. The forward problem is shown to be a simple two-stage filtering process composed of a membrane and medium filter. In the inverse case, the field potential distribution is considered in the presence of additive measurement noise, and the best estimate in the least-mean-square sense is obtained for the transmembrane potential distribution. Discrete Fourier-transform techniques are applied to this reformulated Fourier-transform method, resulting in a fast, efficient algorithm for solution of the forward and inverse field problems.
Tumor promotion by foreign bodies (IUD).

Abstract Commercial intrauterine devices (IUDs) were cut into small fragments and implanted subcutaneously and intraperitoneally in mice initiated with 7,12-dimethylbenzanthracene (DMBA). The mice given intraperitoneal IUDs developed significantly more tumors in a shorter time than mice without the IUD. It is suggested that foreign bodies such as the IUD can promote tumors, even at a distance by a humoral mechanism such as autoantibody.
Repentance and Continuous Improvement: Ethical Implications for the Modern Leader

Although leadership of organizations rarely is discussed in terms of the religious construct of repentance, we propose that repentance and continuous improvement are closely related ideas that profoundly impact individuals and organizations. We identify six parallels between repentance and continuous improvement and then show how these parallels apply to the fundamental principles associated with highly regarded leadership perspectives. We conclude by identifying five contributions of the article to the management literature.
Global scale decadal climate variability

Analysis of observations and results from a global coupled climate model show that coherent decadal climate variability extends over the entire Pacific basin, is associated with processes in the Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions to contribute to global patterns of decadal climate variability, and encompasses regional decadal mechanisms noted in previous studies. Ocean heat content anomalies embedded in the gyre circulations of the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Oceans are associated with global decadal timescale “El Nino-like” signals in atmosphere and ocean with consequent global energy balance variations. Large-scale tropical-midlatitude interactions act to replenish the ocean heat content anomalies. Maxima in decadal timescale globally averaged surface temperature occur in conjunction with periodic arrangements of SST anomalies, in association with the heat content anomalies embedded in the various ocean gyre circulations, in a global “El Nino-like” pattern that is highly correlated with such maxima. The decadal timescale in the model is approximately set by the circuit times of the ocean gyre circulations.
Spoken language and small groups: a student experience in graduate nursing education.

The study investigates student verbal activities in six small discussion groups. A total of 18 registered nurse graduate students from two schools participated. The content for their discussion was based on three nursing practice situations that focused on adult medical-surgical nursing The components that served as basic units of analysis for the data were four types of pedagogical move that characterized the verbal interplay of the students. [These include structuring, soliciting, responding and reacting. Within each pedagogical move four categories of meanings are identified. These categories include substantive-discipline, method of inquiry (nursing process), substantive-logical and digresion.] The descriptive data suggest that the discussion pattern was characterized by a high proportion of cyclical reacting moves. The referential base for much of the substantive-discipline meanings was the patient's disease processes, with discipline referenced content primarily in nursing, pathology, and psychology. The general character for the nursing process suggests frequent use of the assessment phase and minimal use of the remaining four phases, especially the nursing diagnosis and evaluation phases. Additionally, the collection of assessment data was guided by a perceptual emphasis on the pathophysiological manifestations of the patient. These data replicate earlier reports on the frequency with which students verbalize empirical meanings of fact-stating and explaining more often than either evaluative or analytic meanings. The findings support current concern with one of the major challenges still facing nursing, that of shifting from disease centred nursing to patient centred nursing. The aim of the shift is to encourage wholism in the nursing care of patients and avoid reducing nursing inquiry to only one discipline perspective, attainment of a balanced perspective for the nursing activities discussed by the students in this study was not evident.
Are inotropic agents contraindicated in congestive heart failure

The myocardium in the patient with congestive heart failure is abnormal and probably unable to generate sufficient chemical energy to meet the heart's mechanical needs. Such a condition of “energy starvation” would have several important implications; among these is that inotropic stimulation, by increasing energy utilization, could accelerate the progressive death of myocardial cells that characterizes end-stage heart failure. An important goal of therapy in these patients, therefore, is to reduce cardiac energy expenditure. This can be accomplished by unloading the failing heart, which has already been shown to prolong survival in patients with severe congestive heart failure. Slowing the progressive death of myocardial cells may also be accomplished by the administration of negative, rather than positive, inotropic drugs.
Complementing apolipoprotein secretion by cultured retinal pigment epithelium

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a major cause of vision loss in the elderly, and it has two times the prevalence of Alzheimer disease in the United States. The underlying metabolic/vascular disease, with secondary neurodegeneration of photoreceptors, is still poorly understood, despite clinical success in treating neovascular complications. Most enigmatic have been drusen, the characteristic extracellular lesions that develop posterior to a support cell layer, the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). Drusen are established ocular risk factors for progression to sight-threatening stages of disease. A major impediment to understanding drusen has been the scarcity of suitable experimental systems. In PNAS, the work by Johnson et al. (1) describes an RPE culture system exhibiting secretion of druse component apolipoprotein E, a cholesterol transporter, and activation of systemically derived complement, a pathway fingered in AMD by multiple genetic association studies.
The Ionization in Argon and in Air by Single Alpha-Particles as a Function of Their Energy

An extended series of measurements has been made to determine the possible variation of $W$, the energy to make an ion pair in pure argon, with the energy of the ionizing alpha-particle. The ionization in argon relative to the ionization produced by a comparison polonium alpha has been measured for the alpha-emitters ThX, ThC, ThA, RaC\ensuremath{'}, ThC\ensuremath{'}. For alpha-particles in this energy region from 5 to 9 Mev, no deviation of $W$ from the average $W$ for the polonium alpha could be found amounting to as much as \textonehalf{} percent. This is in marked contrast to the alpha-ionization in air from the work of Stetter. More indirect measurements in the region 1-5 Mev indicate no measurable change in $W$ for alpha-particles in argon, while values derived from the Stetter curve for air show a marked increase of $W$ as zero alpha-energy is approached. Evidence from direct measurements is given to show that the energy to make an ion pair in argon for the ${\mathrm{Li}}^{7*}$ ion emitted from the reaction ${\mathrm{B}}^{10}(n,\ensuremath{\alpha}){\mathrm{Li}}^{7*}$ is apparently the same as the average for the polonium alpha-particle.
Data-parallel procedures for drainage basin analysis

Abstract Procedures for drainage basin delineation and modeling of drainage flow accumulation are provided for single instruction stream, multiple data stream (SIMD) computers. Performance statistics were gathered from a series of windows on a DEM and analyzed for an implementation of the procedures, written in C ∗ and executed on a Thinking Machines CM-5 in SIMD mode. Results of the analysis show that the SIMD implementation completes execution in less than one-half the time of a comparable sequential implementation when both are run over the largest window. The results also show that execution times for the SIMD implementation initially increase linearly with the ratio of virtual processors to physical processors.
Is racism dead? Comparing (expressive) means and (structural equation) models.

Much scholarship suggests that racism - belief in out-group inferiority - is unrelated to contemporary attitudes. Purportedly, a new form of racism, one which relies upon a belief in cultural difference, has become a more acceptable basis for such attitudes. The authors argue that an appropriate empirical assessment of racism (both ‘old’ and ‘new’) depends upon (1) clear conceptualization and operationalization, and (2) attention to both mean-level expression and explanatory value in structural equation models. This study assessed the endorsement of racism and belief in cultural difference as well as their association with a measure of general attitude in a secondary analysis of parallel representative surveys of attitudes toward different ethnic out-groups in France, the Netherlands, Western Germany and Britain (N = 3242; see Reif & Melich, 1991). For six of the seven out-group targets, racism was strongly related to ethnic majority attitudes, despite low meanlevel endorsement. In a pattern consistent with a ‘new’, indirect racism, the relationship between British racism and attitudes toward Afro-Caribbeans was mediated by belief in cultural difference.
Differential Effects of Adult Court Transfer on Juvenile Offender Recidivism

Prior research indicates that adolescent offenders transferred to adult court are more likely to recidivate than those retained in the juvenile system. The studies supporting this conclusion, however, are limited in addressing the issue of heterogeneity among transferred adolescents. This study estimates the effect of transfer on later crime using a sample of 654 serious juvenile offenders, 29% of whom were transferred. We use propensity score matching to reduce potential selection bias, and we partition the sample on legal characteristics to examine subgroup effects. We find an overall null effect of transfer on re-arrest, but evidence of differential effects of transfer for adolescents with different offending histories. These results suggest that evaluating the effects of transfer for all transferred adolescents together may lead to misguided policy conclusions.
Ξ production at AGS energies

Abstract A relativistic transport model is used to study Ξ − production in 2–11 A GeV Au+Au collisions. Introducing the strangeness-exchange reactions between antikaons and hyperons as the sources for Ξ − , we find that the cascade yield in these collisions is in reasonable agreement with the data. Although the Ξ − abundance does not reach chemical equilibrium unless the cross section for strangeness-exchange reactions is enhanced by six times, it exhibits the strongest enhancement with increasing centrality of collision and with increasing beam energy.
syn-Selective additions to Garner aldehyde: synthesis of a potent glucosylceramide synthase inhibitor

Highly syn-selective additions of aryl Grignard reagents to Garner aldehyde 5 are reported, making possible a practical, asymmetric synthesis of the potent glucosylceramide synthase inhibitor 3.
Dimensional Measurement Data Analysis, Part 1: A Zone Fitting Algorithm

Measured data taken from Coordinate Measuring Machines (CMMs) are in the form of Cartesian coordinates of points from a part surface, in order to interpret the data, a numerical analysis must be performed on them. Currently, data fitting techniques such as a least squares fit or a min-max fit are employed to compare the measured points to the design model. As the objectives of the various techniques differ, they often yield conflicting results. Since this discrepancy may lead to a different conclusions in the process dimensional inspection, it is critical that inspection procedures are based on well defined criteria that employ the appropriate technique to achieve the desired inspection goals. If tolerances are represented by tolerance zones, a zone fitting algorithm, introduced in this paper, provides a more consistent means of verify conformance to the tolerance zone, It determines whether a set of measured points fits into a specified tolerance zone. If the point set can fit into the zone, a rigid body transformation placing the points inside the zone is returned. The algorithm is numerically stable and addresses a general type of tolerance zone, The examples demonstrate that the zone fitting algorithm is more consistent compared to the least squares fit and the min-max fit in tolerance zone conformance verification. A subsequent paper (Part 2) addresses the determination of a minimum zone that extends inspection from a pass/ fail mode to a quality analysis operation.
Salvation, Liberation and Christian Character Formation: Postliberal and Liberation Theologians in Dialogue

This article analyzes North American postliberal theological assessments of Latin American liberationists by focusing on Stanley Hauerwas’s and George Hunsinger’s critical reflections on Gustavo Gutierrez’s theology. Both conclude that Gutierrez tends to conflate salvation with socio-political liberation. The author argues that reading Gutierrez’s theology from a regulative doctrinal perspective (as articulated in George Lindbeck’s The Nature of Doctrine) reveals a doctrinal structure holding salvation and liberation as a unity without confusion. Furthermore the author suggests that there is a mutually beneficial complementarity between Hauerwas and Gutierrez regarding central aspects of their views on cultivating appropriate Christian character.
CD4+ T-cell subsets and cytokines involved in peripheral tolerance

Peripheral tolerance is induced under conditions that avoid activation of antigen-presenting cells (APCs) to release cytokines. Such tolerance occurs in both CD4+ T helper (Th)-cell subsets (Th1 and Th2), probably because it is induced in precursor cells. By contrast, activation of APCs to release cytokines by immunization or infection activates either both subsets or predominantly one of them. A model for CD4+ T-cell tolerization and subset expansion is presented here.
BV solutions for hyperbolic systems of balance laws with relaxation

Abstract For hyperbolic systems of balance laws with source manifesting relaxation, it is shown that the Kawashima condition, which yields global classical solutions with smooth initial values near equilibrium, is also instrumental in inducing the existence of global admissible BV solutions, accommodating shocks.
Sharp Inequalities for Heat Kernels of Schrödinger Operators and Applications to Spectral Gaps

Abstract This paper derives inequalities for multiple integrals from which sharp inequalities for ratios of heat kernels and integrals of heat kernels of certain Schrodinger operators follow. Such ratio inequalities imply sharp inequalities for spectral gaps. The multiple integral inequalities, although very different, are motivated by the now classical Brascamp–Lieb–Luttinger rearrangement inequalities.
A comparative analysis of potential impact area of common sugar cane burning methods

Abstract The negative effects of agricultural burning are well-known, although the actual impact area of different activities has not previously been quantified. An elastic backscatter lidar system was used to examine the impact-area size and dispersion of smoke generated from different types of sugarcane burning activities; pre-harvest (standing) burning and post-harvest (ground) burning. Experiments were conducted in the sugarcane harvest season of 2010 and 2011 at two locations in Louisiana, USA. Current dispersion theory would suggest that the primary difference between burn types would be primarily in the initial plume rise, but that the overall plume shape would remain the same. However, remotely sensed lidar data with the capability to measure plume dispersion and the short time dynamics of plume location showed pre-harvest (standing) burning produced a larger plume with greater rise and more spread within the 300 m of the plume, but a decrease in dispersion, but not concentration further downwind. Post-harvest (ground) burning produced a more traditional plume shape, but still exceeded impact area predictions near the source. Moreover, large changes in plume size can occur with small increases in wind speed. These are the first instrumented measurements of the meteorological effects of the different types of sugarcane burning. These results indicate that ground burning is preferable, but should be avoided in lower wind speed conditions.
Efficient simulation of hierarchical stochastic activity network models

Stochastic extensions to Petri nets have gained widespread acceptance as a method for describing the dynamic behavior of discrete-event systems. Both simulation and analytic methods have been proposed to solve such models. This paper describes a set of efficient procedures for simulating models that are represented as stochastic activity networks (SANs, a variant of stochastic Petri nets) and composed SAN-based reward models (SBRMs). Composed SBRMs are a hierarchical representation for SANs, in which individual SAN models can be replicated and joined together with other models, in an iterative fashion. The procedures exploit the hierarchical structure and symmetries introduced by the replicate operation in a composed SBRM to reduce the cost of future event list management. The procedures have been implemented as part of a larger performance-dependability modeling package known asUltraSAN, and have been applied to real, large-scale applications.
The relationship between lifetime stress and addiction severity in cocaine-dependent participants

Abstract Objective The primary focus of the current report was to determine if there was an association between LSC-R and ASI-Lite scores in cocaine-dependent individuals. The secondary focus was to determine if any demographic/drug use variables or comorbid psychiatric diagnoses (e.g. alcohol-dependence, mood disorders) were associated with higher LSC-R or ASI-Lite scores. We hypothesized that scores on the LSC-R would be positively correlated with ASI-Lite scores. Method The sample included 239 cocaine-dependent individuals. The primary assessments administered were the LSC-R, the ASI-Lite, and the demographic/drug use questionnaire. Results Simple linear regression revealed that total lifetime stress was positively and significantly correlated with total ASI-Lite scores; however, the r 2 value was very low indicating that this relationship is more likely explained by other factors. It was also determined that participants with a diagnosis of alcohol dependence versus those that did not had significantly higher ASI-Lite scores (even when the alcohol composite score was included as a covariate). Participants with a diagnosis of a mood disorder versus those who did not had significantly higher LSC-R scores and females had significantly higher LSC-R scores when compared to males. After performing a median split, those cocaine users with High LSC scores had significantly higher Beck Depression Inventory-II scores, total ASI-Lite scores, and Fagerstrom Test of Nicotine Dependence scores when compared to those individuals with Low LSC scores. Further analysis of the ASI-Lite demonstrated that composite scores in the domains of Medical, Drug, Legal, Family and Social Status, and Psychiatric were all significantly elevated in the High LSC group. Conclusions Overall, those with higher lifetime stress demonstrated higher addiction severity and depressive symptoms versus those that endorsed lower lifetime stress. Thus, additional research should be conducted investigating the impact stressful life events has on drug use patterns and characteristics.
Series resonant converter with clamped tank capacitor voltage

An improved series resonant converter is described. It uses diodes to clamp the voltage across the resonant capacitor under heavy load conditions. The resonant tank current and output current are controlled, continuous conduction mode is achieved, and the shoot-through condition is eliminated. A computer simulation and a 1 kW demonstration model are described. >
Algorithms for multidimensional partitioning of static files

The problem of multidimensional file partitioning (MDFP) arises in large databases that are subject to frequent range queries on one or more attributes. In an MDFP scheme, the search attribute space is partitioned into cells, which are mapped to physical disk locations. This mapping preserves the order of the search attribute values so that range queries can be answered most efficiently, while maintaining good performance for other types of queries. Recently, MDFP schemes have been suggested to include both dynamic and static file organizations. Optimal and heuristic MDFP algorithms are developed for the static case. The results of extensive computational experiments show that the proposed heuristics perform better than known static ones. It is also shown that incorporating a static algorithm into a dynamic MDFP such as a grid file at conversion and/or periodical reorganization points significantly improves the resulting storage utilization of the data file and decreases the size of the directory file. >
A Kinesin Switch I Arginine to Lysine Mutation Rescues Microtubule Function

Switch I and II are key active site structural elements of kinesins, myosins, and G-proteins. Our analysis of a switch I mutant (R210A) in Drosophila melanogaster kinesin showed a reduction in microtubule affinity, a loss in cooperativity between the motor domains, and an ATP hydrolysis defect leading to aberrant detachment from the microtubule. To investigate the conserved arginine in switch I further, a lysine substitution mutant was generated. The R210K dimeric motor has lost the ability to hydrolyze ATP; however, it has rescued microtubule function. Our results show that R210K has restored microtubule association kinetics, microtubule affinity, ADP release kinetics, and motor domain cooperativity. Moreover, the active site at head 1 is able to distinguish ATP, ADP, and AMP-PNP to signal head 2 to bind the microtubule and release mantADP with kinetics comparable with wild-type. Therefore, the structural pathway of communication from head 1 to head 2 is restored, and head 2 can respond to this signal by binding the microtubule and releasing mantADP. Structural modeling revealed that lysine could retain some of the hydrogen bonds made by arginine but not all, suggesting a structural hypothesis for the ability of lysine to rescue microtubule function in the Arg210 mutant.
Patterns of glomerular injury in kidneys infiltrated by lymphoplasmacytic neoplasms

Glomerular injury may occur as a result of immune dysfunction in patients with remote lymphoplasmacytic neoplasms. Glomerular injury concurrent with direct infiltration of the kidney by lymphoplasmacytic neoplasms has been reported but is not extensively characterized. We identified 18 patients, all presenting with elevated serum creatinine and many with proteinuria, whose renal biopsies showed direct involvement of kidney by a variety of neoplasms, including chronic leukocytic leukemia/small lymphocytic lymphoma (n = 7), diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (n = 6), multiple myeloma (n = 4), or B-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma (n = 1). In 10 cases (55%), there was coexistent glomerular pathology: 5 of these cases, including glomerulonephritis with membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis-like pattern of injury (n = 4) and membranous nephropathy (n = 1), featured deposition of immune complexes; 2 demonstrated deposition of monoclonal immunoglobulin components: λ light chain amyloidosis (n = 1) and light chain deposition disease (n = 1); 2 showed minimal change disease; and, in 1 case, there was focal crescentic pauci-immune-type glomerulonephritis. In addition, 1 biopsy revealed diabetic nephropathy and 3 showed nonspecific ischemic changes. In the remaining 4 cases, there were no significant glomerular abnormalities. In 11 cases (61%), the diagnosis of lymphoproliferative disease was established following the kidney biopsy. Our study indicates that lymphoplasmacytic neoplasms may be first diagnosed in renal biopsies performed for evaluation of renal dysfunction with or without proteinuria. Concurrent glomerular injury may be a direct result of the lymphoplasmacytic disorder through a paraprotein deposition process resulting in amyloid or monoclonal immunoglobulin deposition disease, or may be caused indirectly through immune-mediated mechanisms, as in the cases of glomerulonephritis with membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis-like pattern of injury, membranous nephropathy, and possibly minimal change disease.
Domestic Violence and Alcohol Use: Trauma-related Symptoms and Motives for Drinking

Alcohol use is frequently associated with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), especially in the face of chronic traumatic experiences. However, the relationship between alcohol use and symptoms associated with chronic trauma exposure has not been evaluated. This study examined alcohol use in recently battered women (N=369). Differences were found in trauma symptoms between abstainers, moderate drinkers, and heavy drinkers, with heavy drinkers reporting more severe symptoms. Mediational analyses suggest that the relationship between drinking and trauma symptoms is mediated by drinking to cope, which has not been previously demonstrated in a battered population. Results suggest the importance of assessing trauma symptoms and motives for drinking in understanding alcohol use in recent survivors of domestic violence.
Multilinear projection for face recognition via canonical decomposition

This paper introduces a new multilinear projection algorithm for appearance-based recognition in a tensor framework. The multilinear projection simultaneously maps an unlabeled image from the pixel space into multiple causal factors underlying image formation, including illumination, imaging, and scene structure. For facial recognition, the most relevant aspect of scene structure is the specific person whose face has been imaged. Our new multilinear projection algorithm, which is based on the canonical decomposition of tensors, is superior to our previously proposed multilinear projection algorithm that is based on an M-mode SVD. To develop our new algorithm, we extend and formalize the definition of the mode-m product, the modem identity tensor, and the mode-m pseudo-inverse tensor. We demonstrate our multilinear projection in the context of facial image recognition and compare its results in simultaneously inferring the identity, view, illumination, etc., coefficient vectors of an unlabeled test image against those obtained using multilinear projection based on the M-mode SVD, as well as against the results obtained using a set of multiple linear projections. Finally, we present a strategy for developing a practical biometric system that can enroll an uncooperative subject using a one or more images and then recognize that subject in unconstrained test images.
Parallel Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1-Specific CD8+ T-Lymphocyte Responses in Blood and Mucosa during Chronic Infection

revealed that the magnitude of pool-specific responses is correlated within each individual (mean r 2 0.82 0.04) and across all individuals (r 2 0.75; P < 0.001). Overall, 85.1% of screened peptide pools yielded concordant negative or positive results between compartments. CTL targeting was also closely related between blood and mucosa, with Nef being the most highly targeted (mean of 2.4 spot-forming cells [SFC[/10 6 CD8 T lymphocytes/amino acid [SFC/CD8/aa]), followed by Gag (1.5 SFC/CD8/aa). Finally, comparisons of peptide pool responses seen in both blood and mucosa (concordant positives) versus those seen only in one but not the other (discordant positives) showed that most discordant results were likely an artifact of responses being near the limit of detection. Overall, these results indicate that HIV-1-specific CTL responses in the blood mirror those seen in the mucosal compartment in natural chronic infection. For protective or immunotherapeutic vaccination, it will be important to determine whether immunity is elicited in the mucosa, which is a key site of initial infection and subsequent HIV-1 replication in vivo.
Conduction analysis in mixed cardiomyocytes-fibroblasts cultures using microelectrode arrays

Models for cardiac arrhythmia currently exist primarily in in-vivo and computer simulation form. Towards the development of such a model in-vitro, a better understanding of electrical conduction in heterogeneous cultures is required. Increasing ratios of cardiomyocytes and fibroblasts were cultured on 500 × 500 µm arrays of 36 microelectrodes to study the emergence and properties of action potential propagation in mixed cultures. A minimum ratio of 70% cardiomyocytes to 30% fibroblasts was found to be necessary for detection of electrical activity. However, the establishment of a continuous, homogeneous depolarization wave across the culture required a higher proportion of cardiomyocytes; even a 90:10 ratio was unable to consistently produce a unidirectional, uniform depolarization wave as is seen in controls. This model underlines the importance and sensitivity of tissue homogeneity in supporting electrical conduction, and is especially relevant to studies of arrhythmia (reentry) and stem cell grafts.
Information assurance measures and metrics - state of practice and proposed taxonomy

The term "assurance" has been used for decades in trusted system development as an expression of confidence that one has in the strength of mechanisms or countermeasures. One of the unsolved problems of security engineering is the adoption of measures or metrics that can reliably depict the assurance associated with a specific hardware and software system. This paper reports on a recent attempt to focus requirements in this area by examining those currently in use. It then suggests a categorization of information assurance (IA) metrics that may be tailored to an organization's needs. We believe that the provision of security mechanisms in systems is a subset of the systems engineering discipline having a large software-engineering correlation. There is general agreement that no single system metric or any "one-prefect" set of IA metrics applies across all systems or audiences. The set most useful for an organization largely depends on their IA goals, their technical, organizational and operational needs, and the financial, personnel, and technical resources that are available.
Bayesian spectrum estimation of harmonic signals

A Bayesian spectrum estimator of harmonic signals in Gaussian noise is derived. It is based on the expected value of the theoretical signal spectrum over the joint posterior density function of the signal and noise parameters. Simulation results are provided that show its performance and comparison with MUSIC. >
Annette Baier on reason and morals in Hume's philosophy

Annette Baier should have entitled her book A Progress of Reason and Sentiments instead of A Progress of Sentiments, because one of her chief concerns is the role and significance of reason in Hume's philosophy. She says in the Preface that her aim in the book is “to present Hume's work as exhibiting a progress of thought and sentiment, and acquiring ‘new force as it advances‘” (p. viii). Because the issue of reason in Hume's philosophy is central to her concern, Baier initiates a discussion of it in Chapter 1 and relentlessly pursues the discussion throughout the book. I think it is fair to say that Baier wishes to answer the question “How, if at all, does cognitive reason function in Hume's philosophy?” To answer this question she begins by contrasting Hume's method of conducting philosophy with the method of the Cartesian or intellectualist tradition. She shows that solipsism is, to borrow Gilbert Ryle's expression, the “ineluctable destiny” of the kind of philosopher who glorifies the intellect while denigrating the other human capacities, the individual who indulges in abstract speculation over practical matters. According to Baier, this solipsistic predicament i s what Hume's protagonist articulates towards the end of his intellectual adventure in Book I, Part IV of the Treatise in saying: “Where am I or what? From what causes do I derive my existence?…” Here, Baier affirms, is pure (read unsociable) reason trapped in a miasma of self-doubt, perplexities, bewilderment and desolation from which it cannot extricate itself.
Characterization of New Technology Carbon Blacks

Abstract In this paper we have examined a limited number of conventional and new technology blacks, using the “t” method of nitrogen adsorption for comparison of surface area and dibutyl phthalate adsorption (DBPA) for comparison of structure. At a given “t” area the new technology blacks are of lower iodine number; conversely, at a given iodine number, the new technology blacks are of higher “t” area. This is not due to porosity, but rather to differences in carbon black-iodine surface interaction. The DBPA tests gives a fairly consistent measure of carbon black structure in rubber, for both types of blacks. An important difference between the two classes of black is in the higher tinting strength of new technology blacks, at a given “solid sphere” diameter (which depends primarily on the “t” area and to a lesser extent on the DBPA). We have introduced the use of a disk photosedimentometer for studying carbon black aggregate size distributions and have found that at a given “t” area, the distribution cur...
Abstract 367: Measurement of Lumen Dimensions in Non-stented and Stented Coronary Arteries: A Meta-analysis of Frequency Domain Optical Coherence Tomography versus Intravascular Ultrasound

Background: Intraluminal coronary morphology is traditionally evaluated by Intravascular Ultrasound (IVUS). Frequency Domain Optical Coherence Tomography (FD-OCT) is a novel method for evaluation of coronary lumen dimensions. Current literature has paucity of data with limited sample size comparing FD-OCT to IVUS. The objective of this meta-analysis is to compare the FD-OCT versus IVUS in assessment of lumen dimensions in non-stented and stented coronary arteries. Methods: PubMed and the Cochrane Center Register of Controlled Trials were searched through January 2015. Seven studies (n=169 vessels) comparing FD-OCT versus IVUS procedures in assessing lumen dimensions in non-stented and stented coronary arteries were included. Outcomes were minimum lumen area, minimum lumen diameter and maximum lumen diameter. The mean difference (MD) with 95% confidence interval (CI) was computed and p<0.05 was considered as a level of significance. Results: FD-OCT measured significantly smaller minimum lumen area and maximum lumen diameter compared to IVUS in non-stented vessels (MD: -0.86 mm2, CI: -1.18 to -0.55, p<0.00001 and MD: -0.21 mm, CI: -0.35 to -0.06, p=0.006, respectively). Minimum lumen diameter was not significantly different between two groups in non-stented coronary arteries (p=0.21). In stented vessels, no significant difference was found in measurement of minimum lumen area (p=0.34) and minimum lumen diameter (p=0.41) between FD-OCT and IVUS. Conclusion: The results of this study suggest that FD-OCT maybe a better modality to evaluate the severity of stenosis in non-stented coronary arteries. FD-OCT is comparable to IVUS in measuring lumen dimensions in stented vessels. ![][1] ![][2] [1]: /embed/graphic-1.gif [2]: /embed/graphic-2.gif