cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Elimination of Quantifiers in Algebraic Structures

One of the first techniques used in the study of the logical properties of algebraic objects was that of elimination of quantifiers. It was, for example, used by Tarski [ 161 to prove the decidability of the theory of any given algebraically closed field and the decidability of the theory of real closed ordered fields. The theories of various other algebraic structures (e.g., the padic numbers, divisible ordered abelian groups) may also be shown to eliminate quantifiers in appropriate languages. The choice of the language is especially important in these dealings. It must be chosen to lie close to natural algebraic phenomena. Any structure may be made to admit elimination of quantifiers by the choice of a sufficiently complex language: the structure may be Skolemized or Morleyized [ 151. Clearly the resulting languages are too far from the natural relations on the objects to be of immediate algebraic interest. In this paper we will show that for many natural languages those structures which have been shown in the past to admit elimination of quantifiers are, in fact, the only structures of their type to admit elimination of quantifiers in that language. In particular we will show that apart from the finite fields and the algebraically closed fields there are no other fields which admit elimination of quantifiers in the language of rings with identity (i.e., the language with primitives +, ., -, 0, l).’ We will show that the only theory of ordered fields that admits elimination of quantifiers in the natural language of ordered domains is the theory of real closed ordered fields. We show that if K is a nontrivially valued field admitting elimination of quantifiers in the language of valued fields then K is algebraically closed. Now the theory of the p-adic numbers does not admit elimination of quantifiers in the pure language of valued fields (cf. [ 121). However, if we include certain auxilary predicates {P,(x)} such that P,(x) holds if and only if x has an nth
Polarized neutron diffraction and its application to spin density studies

Spin density distributions in molecular compounds containing unpaired electrons have been studied by polarized neutron diffraction (PND). The spin density distributions provide a unique perspective of the magnetic properties of the compounds. The background and fundamentals of polarized neutron diffraction are summarized in this review, followed by examples of applications in inorganic and organic chemistry. Spin densities in several compounds that are obtained by polarized neutron diffraction are highlighted. Spin densities in single molecular magnet [Fe8O2(OH)12(tacn)6]8+ and cyano-bridged K2[Mn(H2O)2]3[Mo(CN)7]2·6H2O demonstrate how to obtain magnetic interaction in the complexes by PND. PND studies of Ru(acac)3, containing one single unpaired electron, show small spin densities in this complex. Finally the use of PND in studying nitronyl nitroxide radicals is given. Our goal in this review is to illustrate how PND functions and how it serves as a sensitive tool in directly probing spin density in molecules.
A generalized computer technique for the development of the three-phase impedance matrix for unbalanced power systems

Abstract This paper presents the development of the three-phase bus impedance and bus admittance matrices for unbalanced power systems. The imbalance conditioned by large single-phase loads, untransposed feeders, bundled conductors, etc., is reflected in the polyphase impedance or admittance matrix. The method utilizes the phase frame representation of network elements. Consequently, line removals or additions, impedance changes, conductor and phase openings can be simulated easily by modifying the bus impedance matrix. Thus, the proposed method makes it possible to analyze any type of single- or three-phase loads and unequal mutual coupling between the phases for large-scale power systems.
Convergence of finite element frequency predictions for a thin walled cylinder

Abstract The ADINA finite element computer program has been used to calculate the natural frequencies of a thin walled cylinder with both ends clamped. The 16-node quadrilateral curved shell element was applied to three progressively refined computational meshes in order to numerically estimate rates of convergence and limit frequencies. Two orders of integration were employed: 3 × 3 × 2 and 4 × 4 × 2. For each mesh and order of integration the subspace iteration method was used to calculate the first 100 frequencies. The finite element frequencies were compared with those from a Rayleigh-Ritz solution to the Kirchhoff shell equations. Calculations confirmed that frequencies converge from above, in agreement with the use of a consistent mass matrix. Frequencies obtained with the lower 3 × 3 × 2 order of integration were closer to converging than those obtained with the higher 4 × 4 × 2 order of integration. Convergence was found to correlate with mode shape rather than frequency, with modes having fewer oscillations being closest to converging.
Open-field behavior of C3H mice: Effect of early handling, field illumination, and age at testing

C3H mice, either handled or undisturbed at 1–7 days of age, were tested for later activity and defecation in the open field under low or high illumination at 50, 70, or 100 days of age. Activity scores indicated that handled Ss were more emotional at 50 and 70 days of age but less emotional at 100 days than controls. In contrast, defecation scores indicated that handled Ss were less emotional than controls at all ages. High illumination resulted in lower activity at all ages for both handled and control Ss but had differential effects upon defecation as a function of age and treatment. These results demonstrate the necessity of further research to clarify the relationship between activity and defecation as indices of emotionality in mice.
Current Concepts in the Surgical Management of Rheumatoid and Osteoarthritic Hands and Wrists

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a progressively destructive disease. Gradual loss of hand function in RA patients affects their ability for self-care and interferes with their productivity in society. The continuing improvement in the medical management of RA has markedly decreased the incidence of RA hand surgery. In contrast to RA, osteoarthritis (OA) has less inflammatory reaction in the joints and is characterized by degradation of cartilage, resulting in joint destruction and osteophyte formation. The initial treatment of OA is medication and therapy. Steroid injection into affected joints can provide short-term relief, though repeat injections carry a cumulative risk of weakening the soft tissue. In this article the authors share their extensive experience in RA and OA hand surgery to provide a clear discussion of the indications and outcomes of its practice.
Adaptation of video encoding to address dynamic thermal management effects

Dynamic Thermal Management (DTM) acts as a necessary tool for safe operation of systems and increases their lifetime; however, application of DTM affects system performance, and can significantly impact the quality of results of complex real-time applications such as real-time video encoders. In this paper, we propose a dynamic adaptation algorithm that can be used with an H.264 encoder to change its complexity in real time, and hence adapt its computational needs to the dynamic changes in system performance due to DTM, while minimizing the impact on the quality and bit rate of the encoded video. We formulate our dynamic adaptation approach as a multi-dimensional optimization problem that maximizes video quality and minimizes bit rate while ensuring that the video encoder can run in real-time in spite of the DTM effects. We have implemented our adaptation algorithm with ×264, a very efficient and commonly used H.264 encoder. We evaluated the adaptive encoder on a computing platform with Intel® 1.8GHz Core™2 Duo processor, which employs DTM based on DVFS. Our measurements with several video clips reveal that because of the dynamic effects of DTM, the quality of videos encoded by ×264 are affected significantly - an average 10 dB reduction. However, with the aid of our dynamic adaptation algorithm, the ×264 encoder can encode all the streams in real-time, with an average video quality degradation of only 2.4 dB, and with only a nominal increase in bit rate of the encoded streams.
A New Identity for MLK3 as an NIMA-related, Cell Cycle–regulated Kinase That Is Localized near Centrosomes and Influences Microtubule Organization

Although conserved counterparts for most proteins involved in the G(2)/M transition of the cell cycle have been found in all eukaryotes, a notable exception is the essential but functionally enigmatic fungal kinase NIMA. While a number of vertebrate kinases have been identified with catalytic domain homology to NIMA, none of these resemble NIMA within its extensive noncatalytic region, a region critical for NIMA function in Aspergillus nidulans. We used a bioinformatics approach to search for proteins with homology to the noncatalytic region of NIMA and identified mixed lineage kinase 3 (MLK3). MLK3 has been proposed to serve as a component in MAP kinase cascades, particularly those resulting in the activation of the c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK). Here we describe the first in-depth study of endogenous MLK3 and report that, like NIMA, MLK3 phosphorylation and activity are enhanced during G(2)/M, whereas JNK remains inactive. Coincident with the G(2)/M transition, a period marked by dramatic reorganization of the cytoplasmic microtubule network, endogenous MLK3 transiently disperses away from the centrosome and centrosomal-proximal sites where it is localized during interphase. Furthermore, when overexpressed, MLK3, like NIMA, localizes to the centrosomal region, induces profound disruption of cytoplasmic microtubules and a nuclear distortion phenotype that differs from mitotic chromosome condensation. Cellular depletion of MLK3 protein using siRNA technology results in an increased sensitivity to the microtubule-stabilizing agent taxol. Our studies suggest a new role for MLK3, separable from its function in the JNK pathway, that may contribute to promoting microtubule instability, a hallmark of M phase entry.
Combined thoracoscopic and laparoscopic robotic-assisted minimally invasive esophagectomy using a four-arm platform: experience, technique and cautions during early procedure development †

OBJECTIVES: This study reports an early, single-institution experience of combined thoracoscopic and laparoscopic robotic-assisted minimally invasive esophagectomy (RAMIE) using a four-arm robotic platform, with special attention given to the pitfalls and complications during procedure development. METHODS: We conducted a prospective, single-cohort, observational study of patients undergoing RAMIE at a single institution. RESULTS: A total of 21 patients (median age, 62 years [range, 37–83 years]) underwent RAMIE with a four-arm robotic platform (17 by Ivor Lewis and 4 by McKeown). Of the patients, 17 (81%) had a complete (R0) resection, and 16 (76%) received induction treatment, the majority (14/21 [67%]) with combined chemoradiation. The median operative time was 556 min (range, 395–807 min), which decreased to 414 min (range, 405–543 min) for the last 5 cases in the series. The median estimated blood loss was 307 cm 3 (range, 200–500 cm 3 ), and the median length of hospital stay was 10 days (range, 7–70 days). The median number of lymph nodes resected was 20 (range, 10–49). Five (24%) patients were converted to open procedures. Five patients (24%) had major complications. One (5%) died of complications on postoperative Day 70, and 3 (14%) had clinically significant anastomotic leaks (Grade II or greater, by Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events version 3.0). Three patients (14%) in this early experience developed airway fistulas. CONCLUSIONS: While four-arm RAMIE may offer advantages over standard minimally invasive esophagectomy approaches, its adoption in a structured program, with critical evaluation of adverse events and subsequent adjustment of technique, is paramount to maximize patient safety, minimize complications and improve the conduct of operation early in the learning curve. Particular technical consideration should be given to prevention of airway complications.
The Simplest Experimental Design that Permits Multiple Generalization

Recently, several methodological critiques have pointed out that most experiments in verbal learning fail to present statistical evidence that their results could be replicated using a different sample of language materials. Consequently, many of the studies have little scientific point because their conclusions have to be restricted to the specific language items used in the experiment. All these critiques are summarized, the various solutions to the problem are evaluated, and procedures to arrive at the simplest solution are described. This solution should present no difficulties to anyone who has had a course in analysis of variance.
Significance of Authigenic K-feldspar in Cambrian-Ordovician Carbonate Rocks of the Proto-atlantic Shelf In North America

ABSTRACT Strata containing abundant authigenic feldspar, which heretofore have been considered rarities in the geologic column, now appear to be characteristic of the Cambrian-Ordovician rocks that formed on the shelf of the proto-Atlantic Ocean. They crop out from the mid-continent of North America to the present Appalachian Mountain chain and along the paleo-shelf edge through Newfoundland, Scotland, and Greenland. Abundant authigenic K-feldspar deposits in Cenozoic alkaline lake beds of the western United States are known to have formed from tephra by replacement of an intermediate zeolite stage. The presence of some volcanic rocks of probable Cambrian and Early Ordovician age in New England suggested the possibility that the authigenic K-feldspar of the shelf rocks is the only remaining ev dence of older tephra. Chemical analyses of over 1,300 carbonate rock samples of Cambrian to Devonian age from the shelf in New York State indicate that Cambrian and Lower Ordovician strata contain 7 times more normative K-feldspar than the younger strata. Petrographic study utilizing cathodoluminescence of the Tribes Hill Formation of Early Ordovician age shows that the K-feldspar is not entirely authigenic but rather, is composed of subequal amounts of detrital K-feldspar as grain cores and authigenic K-feldspars as overgrowths. Detrital quartz always is associated with the K-feldspar. A portion of the Canadian Shield near the present New York area was exposed during the Cambrian and Early Ordovician and probably served as the source for the K-feldspar and quartz detritus deposited on he shelf during that time. Tephra may have provided potassium, aluminum and silicon ions to the formation of the abundance of K-feldspar overgrowths, although no direct evidence was found. By Middle Ordovician time that part of the shield which served as the source of detritus was submerged, and the supply of detrital K-feldspar necessary for the growth of authigenic K-feldspar ended.
COST SAVINGS THRESHOLD ANALYSIS OF A CAPACITY–BUILDING PROGRAM FOR HIV PREVENTION ORGANIZATIONS

Although the incidence of HIV each year remains steady, prevention funding is increasingly competitive. Programs need to justify costs in terms of evaluation outcomes, including economic ones. Threshold analyses set performance standards to determine program effectiveness relative to that threshold. This method was used to evaluate the potential cost savings of a national capacity-building program for HIV prevention organizations. Program costs were compared with the lifetime treatment costs of HIV, yielding an estimate of the HIV infections that would have to be prevented for the program to be cost saving. The 136 persons who completed the capacity-building program between 2000 and 2003 would have to avert 41 cases of HIV for the program to be considered cost saving. These figures represent less than one tenth of 1% of the 40,000 new HIV infections that occur in the United States annually and suggest a reasonable performance standard. These data underscore the resources needed to prevent HIV.
Analysis of RNA binding by the dengue virus NS5 RNA capping enzyme.

Flaviviruses are small, capped positive sense RNA viruses that replicate in the cytoplasm of infected cells. Dengue virus and other related flaviviruses have evolved RNA capping enzymes to form the viral RNA cap structure that protects the viral genome and directs efficient viral polyprotein translation. The N-terminal domain of NS5 possesses the methyltransferase and guanylyltransferase activities necessary for forming mature RNA cap structures. The mechanism for flavivirus guanylyltransferase activity is currently unknown, and how the capping enzyme binds its diphosphorylated RNA substrate is important for deciphering how the flavivirus guanylyltransferase functions. In this report we examine how flavivirus NS5 N-terminal capping enzymes bind to the 5′ end of the viral RNA using a fluorescence polarization-based RNA binding assay. We observed that the KD for RNA binding is approximately 200 nM Dengue, Yellow Fever, and West Nile virus capping enzymes. Removal of one or both of the 5′ phosphates reduces binding affinity, indicating that the terminal phosphates contribute significantly to binding. RNA binding affinity is negatively affected by the presence of GTP or ATP and positively affected by S-adensyl methoninine (SAM). Structural superpositioning of the dengue virus capping enzyme with the Vaccinia virus VP39 protein bound to RNA suggests how the flavivirus capping enzyme may bind RNA, and mutagenesis analysis of residues in the putative RNA binding site demonstrate that several basic residues are critical for RNA binding. Several mutants show differential binding to 5′ di-, mono-, and un-phosphorylated RNAs. The mode of RNA binding appears similar to that found with other methyltransferase enzymes, and a discussion of diphosphorylated RNA binding is presented.
Do children with autism spectrum disorders show a shape bias in word learning

Many children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) acquire a sizeable lexicon. However, these children also seem to understand and/or store the meanings of words differently from typically developing children. One of the mechanisms that helps typically developing children learn novel words is the shape bias, in which the referent of a noun is mapped onto the shape of an object, rather than onto its color, texture, or size. We hypothesized that children with Autistic Disorder would show reduced or absent shape bias. Using the Intermodal Preferential Looking Paradigm (IPL), we compared the performance of young children with ASD and typically developing children (TYP), across four time points, in their use of shape bias. Neither group showed a shape bias at Visit 1, when half of the children in both groups produced fewer than 50 count nouns. Only the TYP group showed a shape bias at Visits 2, 3, and 4. According to growth curve analyses, the rate of increase in the shape bias scores over time was significant for the TYP children. The fact that the TYP group showed a shape bias at 24 months of age, whereas children with ASD did not demonstrate a shape bias despite a sizeable vocabulary, supports a dissociation between vocabulary size and principles governing acquisition in ASD children from early in language development.
Local regulation may be excessively stringent

Abstract A jurisdiction can export pollution by imposing regulations that induce firms causing the pollution to move elsewhere. Jurisdictions may therefore not “race to the bottom,” but instead impose excessively stringent regulations.
C-Reactive Protein Binds to Apoptotic Cells, Protects the Cells from Assembly of the Terminal Complement Components, and Sustains an Antiinflammatory Innate Immune Response

C-reactive protein (CRP) is a serum protein that is massively induced as part of the innate immune response to infection and tissue injury. As CRP has been detected in damaged tissues and is known to activate complement, we assessed whether apoptotic lymphocytes bound CRP and determined the effect of binding on innate immunity. CRP bound to apoptotic cells in a Ca2+-dependent manner and augmented the classical pathway of complement activation but protected the cells from assembly of the terminal complement components. Furthermore, CRP enhanced opsonization and phagocytosis of apoptotic cells by macrophages associated with the expression of the antiinflammatory cytokine transforming growth factor β. The antiinflammatory effects of CRP required C1q and factor H and were not effective once cells had become necrotic. These observations demonstrate that CRP and the classical complement components act in concert to promote noninflammatory clearance of apoptotic cells and may help to explain how deficiencies of the classical pathway and certain pentraxins lead to impaired handling of apoptotic cells and increased necrosis with the likelihood of immune response to self.
Understanding User’s Acceptance of Social Shopping Websites: Effects of Social Comparison and Trust

Social shopping websites are among the latest developments in E-commerce to combine the power of social networking with Internet shopping to provide a unique online experience. While the adoption of information technology is well studied, new theoretical development is needed to account for the specific characteristics of social shopping websites. This study augments the TAM (Technology Acceptance Model) with social factors including an online shopper’s tendency to social comparison, and trust in information privacy and data security. Results provide significant support of the extended model. Directions for future research are discussed.
Peer Interactions and Academic Engagement of Youth With Developmental Disabilities in Inclusive Middle and High School Classrooms

We examined the peer interactions and academic engagement of 23 middle and high school students with developmental disabilities within inclusive academic and elective classrooms. The extent to which students with and without disabilities interacted socially was highly variable and influenced by instructional format, the proximity of general and special educators, and curricular area. Peer interactions occurred more often within small group instructional formats, when students were not receiving direct support from a paraprofessional or special educator, and in elective courses. Academic engagement also varied, with higher levels evidenced during one-to-one or small group instruction and when in proximity of general or special educators. Implications for designing effective support strategies for students with autism and/or intellectual disability within general education classrooms are discussed.
Efficiency of work of inspiratory muscles in standing and in exercising dogs.

The objective of this study was to elucidate the resistive, elastic, and total inspiratory muscle work and mainly the efficiency of the inspiratory muscle work in still standing and in exercising dogs. In ISO experiments with nine mongrel dogs, respiratory and circulatory functions were recorded at rest and during a 1.5-mph walk on a treadmill belt which was inclined by 9°. Each dog had been trained and surgically prepared before the series of experiments started. An electronic pressure transducer together with a fluid-filled catheter was attached to the ribs at the midthoracic level. Airflow was monitored with a pneumotachygraph attached to a face mask. Aortic flow was monitored with an electromagnetic flow transducer. Catheters in the atria, the ventricles, and the pulmonary and systemic vessels were used to determine hemodynamic parameters and blood gas levels. All recorded and all derived functions were evaluated by a dedicated computer. At rest, resistive inspiratory work (0.98 kg cm) was smaller than elastic work (1.36 kg cm). Elastic work did not change with exercise but resistive work increased to 1.46 kg·cm. The increase of total work from 2.33 kg·cm at rest to 2.79 kg·cm during exercise did not reach significance. Inspiratory power increased with exercise. Estimated diaphragmatic oxygen consumption increased from 2.23 ml/min at rest to 3.64 ml/min during exercise. It was 1.6 percent of the total oxygen consumption at rest and 1.7 percent of the total oxygen consumption during exercise. The estimated efficiency of the work of inspiratory muscles was 15.8 percent at rest and 25.8 percent during exercise. These values did not vary substantially between different animals.
Comprehensive Discourse Analysis: An Instance of Professional Peer Interaction.

While studies of written text continue to engage students from a number of disciplines, investigations of naturally occurring talk have increased exponentially in the last decade. This paper reports on such an investigation, a comprehensive discourse analysis of talk among professional peers (in a doctoral dissertation defense), attending to an instance of problematic communication and to some possible implications and interpretations of such nonsuccesses in social interaction. The method employed is an adaptation of Labov and Fanshel. (Communicative nonsuccess, comprehensive discourse analysis, interaction among professional peers, naturally occurring talk, social structure, and language use.) The study of discourse appears to be moving toward the status of a "grownup" disciplinary practice, grownup both in its increasing acceptance by traditional practitioners from the many fields in which it has roots and in its own revolutionary (Tyler I980: 831) remove from disputation over priorities of formn and content and discovery of "reality in the everyday accomplishments of those who get the work of the world done" (ibid.). While studies of written text continue to engage students from many disciplines, investigations of naturally occurring talk have increased exponentially in the last decade. This paper reports ongoing work on text from an extended conversational event, attending to an instance of problematic communication and to some possible implications and interpretations of such nonsuccesses in social interaction. Rich as the literature on analysis of conversational discourse has become (too rich to need reference) it reflects continuing difficulties of researchers with some fundamental methodological (and practical and ethical) and theoretical problems. Two central problems are: (i) for a variety of reasons (including, nontrivially, limits on human energies and time resources), few analysts have been able to undertake the project of "comprehensive discourse analysis" called for by Labov and Fanshel (1977: 354); that in which analysts are "accountable to an entire body of conversation, attempting to account for the interpretation of all utterances and the coherent sequencing among them"; (2) data which are less than fully satisfactory for a variety of reasons including, nonexhaustively: (a) a paucity of texts of complete speech events, and of events involving more than 0047-4045/82/010015-33 $2.50 ? I982 Cambridge University Press
Neurotrophic factors and neuro-muscular disease: II. GDNF, other neurotrophic factors, and future directions.

This is the second of two reviews in which we discuss the essential aspects of neurotrophic factor neurobiology, the characteristics of each neurotrophic factor, and their clinical relevance to neuromuscular diseases. The previous paper reviewed the neurotrophin family and neuropoietic cytokines. In the present article, we focus on the GDNF family and other neurotrophic factors and then consider future approaches that may be utilized in neurotrophic factor treatment.
Inhibition of the angiopoietin/Tie2 axis induces immunogenic modulation, which sensitizes human tumor cells to immune attack

The angiopoietin/Tie2 pathway is an attractive target for cancer therapy due to its well-known role in regulating angiogenesis. Trebananib, a recombinant peptide-Fc fusion protein, or peptibody, that binds to angiopoietin-1 (Ang1) and Ang2 to block their interaction with the Tie2 receptor, is under active clinical investigation. We investigated whether suppressing the angiopoietin/Tie2 pathway, using the preclinical version of Trebananib (mL4-3 and L1-7(N)), could increase the sensitivity of human tumor cells to immune-mediated lysis through immunogenic modulation, which would make Trebananib a promising candidate for combination with immunotherapy. We assessed human carcinoma cells for expression and activation of Ang1 and Ang2 and their receptor tyrosine kinase Tie2. In vitro, we exposed tumor cell lines expressing Tie2 to the peptibodies mL4-3 and L1-7(N), which inhibit the binding of Ang1 and Ang2 to Tie2, and assessed the cells for changes in viability, proliferation, surface phenotype, and sensitivity to attack by antigen-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs). Suppression of the angiopoietin/Tie2 pathway using mL4-3 and L1-7(N) had no effect on the proliferation or viability of tumor cells. However, these inhibitors markedly altered tumor cell phenotype, rendering tumor cells significantly more sensitive to antigen-specific CTL killing. ICAM-1 was shown to be mechanistically involved in these inhibitors’ ability to sensitize tumor cells to immune-mediated attack by functional blocking studies. Our findings provide a rationale for the combination of agents targeting the angiopoietin/Tie2 pathway with cancer immunotherapies.
Organizational Leadership And Subordinate Effect In Utahs Certified Public Accounting Profession

Using the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (Bass and Avolio 2004), we test the correlation of transformational, transactional, and passive-avoidant leadership styles to subordinate perceptions of workplace efficiency, effectiveness, and satisfaction. Results, from a convenience sample of 103 accounting professionals in 11 CPA firms in Utah, show that transformational leadership has the largest positive correlation. Transactional leadership is less positively correlated. The passive-avoidant style is negatively correlated. Recommendations for implementing transformational leadership are provided.
Two-DOF precision platform for spacecraft thrust vector control: control strategies and simulations

This paper presents control strategies and simulations of a two-DOF precision platform as an adaptive thruster mount structure with precision positioning and active vibration suppression capabilities for thrust vector control of space satellites. First, the configuration of the two-DOF precision platform is introduced, which is an intelligent tripod with two in-plane rotational degrees of freedom for the top device-plate. Precision positioning of this platform is achieved using active members that extend or contract to tilt the top device-plate where the thruster is mounted. Kinematic analysis of the platform is then presented and followed by two control strategies; namely local control strategy and global control strategy. In the local control strategy, the motion of each active member is controlled locally according to the kinematical feature of the platform and the local sensor information to achieve the desired tilt of the top device-plate. In the global control strategy, the motion of each active member is adjusted according to the system level information from a tilt sensor. Fuzzy logic control is employed and the two control strategies are simulated and compared.
Alcohol Decreases Organic Dust-Stimulated Airway Epithelial TNF-Alpha Through a Nitric Oxide and Protein Kinase-Mediated Inhibition of TACE.

Background Farm workers in rural areas consume more alcohol than those who reside in urban areas. Occupational exposures such as agricultural work can pose hazards on the respiratory system. It is established that hog barn dust induces inflammation in the airway, including the release of cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and IL-8. We have shown that alcohol alters airway epithelial innate defense through changes in both nitric oxide (NO) and cAMP-dependent protein kinase A (PKA). Simultaneous exposure to hog barn dust and alcohol decreases inflammatory mediators, TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-8, in mice. Previously, mice exposed to both alcohol and hog barn dust showed a depleted amount of lymphocytes compared to mice exposed only to hog barn dust. Weakening of the innate immune response could lead to enhanced susceptibility to disease. In addition, mice that were co-exposed to hog barn dust and alcohol also experienced increased mortality. Methods Because we recently demonstrated that PKA activation inhibits the TNF-α sheddase, TNF-α-converting enzyme (TACE), we hypothesized that an alcohol-mediated PKA pathway blocks TACE activity and prevents the normative inflammatory response to hog barn dust exposure. To delineate these effects, we used PKA pathway inhibitors (adenylyl cyclase [AC], cAMP, and PKA) to modulate the effects of alcohol on dust-stimulated TNF-α release in the bronchial epithelial cell line, BEAS-2B. Alcohol pretreatment blocked TACE activity and TNF-α release in hog barn dust-treated cells. Results Alcohol continued to block hog barn dust-mediated TNF-α release in the presence of the particulate AC inhibitor, SQ22,536. The soluble adenylyl cyclase inhibitor, KH7, however, significantly increased the inflammatory response to hog barn dust. phosphodiesterase 4 inhibitors significantly elevated cAMP and enhanced alcohol-mediated inhibition of dust-stimulated TNF-α release. In addition, the NO synthase inhibitor, l-NMMA, also reversed the alcohol-blocking effect on dust-stimulated TNF-α. Conclusions These data suggest that alcohol requires a soluble cyclase-generated cAMP-PKA pathway that is dependent upon the action of NO to inhibit TACE and TNF-α release. These findings support our observations that alcohol functions through a dual NO and PKA pathway in bronchial epithelial cells.
International Relations and the Relevance of History

It has become a commonplace that those who do not learn from the mistakes of the past are destined to repeat them. Yet the problem of what lessons of the past apply to current situations remains a thorny one. In his book, The Bitter Heritage, Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr. has pointed out that the statesman's memory of historical events may entrap as well as enlighten him. In certain situations the memory of recent historical events may cause a man to draw false analogies and thereby institute policies that lead to disaster. Occasionally a lack of historical memory may be a positive benefit in making policy decisions. The difficulty and danger of using historical analogies as aids in making policy is illustrated in a quotation that Schlesinger uses from the writings of Mark Twain.
Online Inductive Electrospray Ionization Mass Spectrometry as a Process Analytical Technology Tool To Monitor the Synthetic Route to Anagliptin

Inductive electrospray ionization (iESI) is an ambient ionization method that is particularly well-suited to online reaction monitoring. It allows the potential of electrospray mass spectrometry (MS) to be realized as a routine process analytical technology (PAT) tool to monitor practical synthetic reactions in real time. In this study, a synthetic route to Anagliptin (target API) was successfully monitored using online iESI-MS. Starting materials not seen by traditional reaction monitoring tools (HPLC-UV/Vis and GC-FID) were observed, as well as water-sensitive reagents and intermediates which cannot easily be followed by other methods. Online tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) was used to characterize chemical species in the reaction mixture. Impurities and byproducts were identified, and information on the progress of byproduct formation enabled implementation of strategies to eliminate these byproducts in the course of the reaction. This work demonstrates how iESI-MS can be employed to obtain comprehens...
Molecular trajectories provide signatures of protein clustering and crowding at the oil/water interface.

Using high throughput single-molecule total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy (TIRFM), we have acquired molecular trajectories of bovine serum albumin (BSA) and hen egg white lysozyme during protein layer formation at the silicone oil–water interface. These trajectories were analyzed to determine the distribution of molecular diffusion coefficients, and for signatures of molecular crowding/caging, including subdiffusive motion and temporal anticorrelation of the instantaneous velocity vector. The evolution of these properties with aging time of the interface was compared with dynamic interfacial tension measurements. For both lysozyme and BSA, we observed an overall slowing of protein objects, the onset of both subdiffusive and anticorrelated motion (associated with crowding), and a decrease in the interfacial tension with aging time. For lysozyme, all of these phenomena occurred virtually simultaneously, consistent with a homogeneous model of layer formation that involves gradual crowding of we...
Experimental single-strain mobilomics reveals events that shape pathogen emergence

Virulence genes on mobile DNAs such as genomic islands (GIs) and plasmids promote bacterial pathogen emergence. Excision is an early step in GI mobilization, producing a circular GI and a deletion site in the chromosome; circular forms are also known for some bacterial insertion sequences (ISs). The recombinant sequence at the junctions of such circles and deletions can be detected sensitively in high-throughput sequencing data, using new computational methods that enable empirical discovery of mobile DNAs. For the rich mobilome of a hospital Klebsiella pneumoniae strain, circularization junctions (CJs) were detected for six GIs and seven IS types. Our methods revealed differential biology of multiple mobile DNAs, imprecision of integrases and transposases, and differential activity among identical IS copies for IS26, ISKpn18 and ISKpn21 Using the resistance of circular dsDNA molecules to exonuclease, internally calibrated with the native plasmids, showed that not all molecules bearing GI CJs were circular. Transpositions were also detected, revealing replicon preference (ISKpn18 prefers a conjugative IncA/C2 plasmid), local action (IS26), regional preferences, selection (against capsule synthesis) and IS polarity inversion. Efficient discovery and global characterization of numerous mobile elements per experiment improves accounting for the new gene combinations that arise in emerging pathogens.
Resonant excitation linewidth narrowing of quantum dots emission

We show that weak off-resonance light can increase the brightness of a resonantly excited quantum dot transition and reduce its inhomogeneous linewidth, thus improves the photons indistinguishability and the scope of quantum information applications.
Dynamical tides in coalescing superfluid neutron star binaries with hyperon cores and their detectability with third-generation gravitational-wave detectors

The dynamical tide in a coalescing neutron star binary induces phase shifts in the gravitational waveform as the orbit sweeps through resonances with individual g-modes. Unlike the phase shift due to the equilibrium tide, the phase shifts due to the dynamical tide are sensitive to the stratification, composition, and superfluid state of the core. We extend our previous study of the dynamical tide in superfluid neutron stars by allowing for hyperons in the core. Hyperon gradients give rise to a new type of composition g-mode. Compared to g-modes due to muon-to-electron gradients, those due to hyperon gradients are concentrated much deeper in the core and therefore probe higher density regions. We find that the phase shifts due to resonantly excited hyperonic modes are ~ 10^{-3} rad, an order of magnitude smaller than those due to muonic modes. We show that by stacking events, third generation gravitational-wave detectors should be able to detect the phase shifts due to muonic modes. Those due to hyperonic modes will, however, be difficult to detect due to their smaller magnitude.
High-resolution Imaging in Male Germ Cell–Associated Kinase (MAK)-related Retinal Degeneration

Purpose To describe the characteristics of MAK -related retinal degeneration using optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) and adaptive optics scanning laser ophthalmoscopy (AOSLO). Design Cross-sectional study. Methods Six patients with rod-cone degeneration and disease-causing mutations in MAK were evaluated with visual acuity, spectral-domain OCT, confocal AOSLO, and OCTA. Foveal avascular zone (FAZ) area, vessel densities, and perfusion densities of the superficial capillary plexus (SCP) and deep capillary plexus (DCP) in the central macula in all 6 patients were compared with 5 normal subjects. Cone spacing was measured in 4 patients from AOSLO images and compared with 37 normal subjects. Results Patients ranged from 25 to 81 years of age (mean, 52 years). Visual acuity varied from 20/13 to 20/40 +2 , except in 1 patient with cystoid macular edema whose vision was 20/60 − and 20/70 +1 . The SCP ( P = .012) and DCP ( P = .013) vessel density and perfusion density ( P =.015 and .013, respectively) were significantly lower in patients compared to normal subjects in the parafoveal region 1.0–3.0 mm from the fovea, but were similar to normal subjects within 1.0 mm of the fovea. The FAZ area was not significantly different from normal (all P ≥ .24). Cone spacing was normal at almost all locations in 2 patients with early disease and increased in 2 patients with advanced disease. Conclusions Although retinal vascular densities are reduced and cone spacing is increased in advanced disease, central foveal structure is maintained until late stages of disease, which may contribute to preservation of foveal vision in eyes with MAK -related retinal degeneration.
The Structure of Student Engagement in Community College Student Success Programs: A Quantitative Activity Systems Analysis:

Community colleges increasingly implement various student success programs, including 1st-year seminars, college skills courses, learning communities, and orientation, in an effort to boost degree ...
Distinct Signature of Oxylipid Mediators of Inflammation during Infection and Asymptomatic Colonization by E. coli in the Urinary Bladder

Urinary tract infection (UTI) is an extremely common infectious disease. Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) is the predominant etiological agent of UTI. Asymptomatic bacteriuric E. coli (ABEC) strains successfully colonize the urinary tract resulting in asymptomatic bacteriuria (ABU) and do not induce symptoms associated with UTI. Oxylipids are key signaling molecules involved in inflammation. Based on the distinct clinical outcomes of E. coli colonization, we hypothesized that UPEC triggers the production of predominantly proinflammatory oxylipids and ABEC leads to production of primarily anti-inflammatory or proresolving oxylipids in the urinary tract. We performed quantitative detection of 39 oxylipid mediators with proinflammatory, anti-inflammatory, and proresolving properties, during UTI and ABU caused by genetically distinct E. coli strains in the murine urinary bladder. Our results reveal that infection with UPEC causes an increased accumulation of proinflammatory oxylipids as early as 6 h postinoculation, compared to controls. To the contrary, ABEC colonization leads to decreased accumulation of proinflammatory oxylipids at the early time point compared to UPEC infection but does not affect the level of proresolving oxylipids. This report represents the first comprehensive investigation on the oxylipidome during benign ABEC colonization observed in ABU and acute inflammation triggered by UPEC leading to UTI.
The Relation Between Music Technology and Music Industry

The music industry has changed drastically over the last century and most of its changes and transformations have been technology-driven. Music technology – encompassing musical instruments, sound generators, studio equipment and software, perceptual audio coding algorithms, and reproduction software and devices – has shaped the way music is produced, performed, distributed, and consumed. The evolution of music technology enabled studios and hobbyist producers to produce music at a technical quality unthinkable decades ago and have affordable access to new effects as well as production techniques. Artists explore nontraditional ways of sound generation and sound modification to create previously unheard effects, soundscapes, or even to conceive new musical styles. The consumer has immediate access to a vast diversity of songs and styles and is able to listen to individualized playlists virtually everywhere and at any time. The most disruptive technological innovations during the past 130 years have probably been: 1. The possibility to record and distribute recordings on a large scale through the gramophone. 2. The introduction of vinyl disks enabling high-quality sound reproduction.
Gene targeting in hemostasis: protein C.

Protein C (PC) is the zymogen form of a serine protease, activated protein C (APC), a naturally occurring anticoagulant. In control of the coagulation of blood, APC functions by attenuating thrombin formation. It serves this role through inactivation, by limited proteolysis, of two important cofactors for overall clot formation, one of which, Factor Va (FVa), stimulates prothrombin activation, and another, Factor VIIIa (FVIIIa), enhances activation of coagulation Factor X (FX). In maintaining the fluidity of blood, APC also indirectly functions in fibrinolysis, in one manner by directly inactivating an inhibitor of plasminogen activation, plasminogen activation inhibitor-1 (PAI-1), and in another manner via its role in attenuating thrombin production, with the resulting effect of limiting production of another thrombin-dependent fibrinolytic inhibitor, thrombin activatable fibrinolysis inhibitor (TAFI). PC, and other components of the PC anticoagulant pathway, e.g., protein S (PS), thrombomodulin (Tm), and endothelial cell protein C receptor (EPCR), also can serve as anti-inflammatory mediators, through a number of different thrombin-dependent and thrombin-independent mechanisms. A large number of symptomatic and asymptomatic mutations occur in PC in humans, which express a variety of phenotypes. Generation and characterization of a murine model of a total PC gene inactivation has demonstrated that while an untreated total PC deficiency results in neonatal death through DIC-related abnormalities, a valuable resource is now available to study phenotypes of less severe deficiencies of this protein. Such studies will lead to advances in an understanding of the relative role of this protein system in the various pathways in which it has an influence.
An investigation of the hydration of calcium aluminate through ultrasonic wave propagation

The hydration process of a high alumina cement was investigated through ultrasonic wave propagation techniques. A correlation between wave amplitude and velocity and breaking strength of the cement is demonstrated. The wave behaviour through hydrating cements was found to be a function of the cement-to-water ratio between values of 2 and 4. Changes in the temperature of the hydrating samples were found to exhibit a similar dependence.