cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Methods, locations, and ease of cigarette access for American youth, 1997-2002.

Background The purpose of this paper is to examine trends in middle and high school students' perceived ease, methods, and locations of access to cigarettes, and to assess differences related to their sociodemographic characteristics and smoking status. Methods Annual data from nationally representative samples of 8th-, 10th-, and 12th-grade students were analyzed for the 1997–2002 period. Analyses were conducted in 2003. Results Perceived ease of access decreased significantly among never and past smokers. Decreased individual purchasing in retail outlets, as well as decreased purchasing from vending machines, were reported by 8th- and 10th-grade students. All grades reported decreased purchasing from self-service placements of cigarettes. Decreases in access were not reported across all retailer types, and no significant increases were seen in the percent of underage purchasers who reported being asked to show identification. Both gender and ethnicity were significantly related to where and how underage youth reported obtaining cigarettes. Conclusions Cigarette access for minors has been declining, but remains high. Findings show that (1) perceived access to cigarettes clearly increases with level of smoking, and (2) policies to reduce such access may be having an impact as evidenced by decreased retail and vending machine purchases and self-service purchases. However, states should continue to strengthen efforts to reduce youth cigarette access, especially in the areas of confirming buyer age via identification checks, and should make efforts to decrease access across all retailer types. Federal regulations like those previously implemented by the Food and Drug Administration might strongly assist in reducing youth access to cigarettes.
A thin RuOx oxidized layer effect for a sputtered TiN barrier performance in high-density capacitors

To broaden the process window of the conventional sputtered TiN diffusion barrier and to find an appropriate bottom electrode for high-density capacitors, we investigated the effect of a thin RuOx oxidized layer formed at the surface of each Ru and RuOx film pre-annealed at 400 °C on the oxidation behaviour of the TiN diffusion barrier at the temperature range of 400–550 °C. Not only did the Ru/TiN/n+poly-Si/Si structure retain its structure up to 550 °C, but also a partially ohmic behaviour was exhibited up to 600 °C without an increase in resistivity, whereas after pre-annealing at 400 °C, the degradation of the RuOx/TiN/n+poly-Si/Si system started. In the latter case, the microstructure of the RuOx film was an embedded porous amorphous RuO2 crystalline phase and with no formation of thin RuOx layer at the surface of the RuOx film, resulting from free diffusion of oxygen and then oxidation of the TiN diffusion barrier. In the former case, after pre-annealing at 400 °C, the addition of oxygen at the surface of the Ru film leads to the diffusion path complexes. In addition, after post-annealing at 450 °C, the conductive RuO2 phase, which can act as an oxygen-sink layer, forms at the surface of the Ru film. Therefore, as a bottom electrode structure for high-density capacitors, the Ru/TiN/n+poly-Si/Si contact system is more effective than the RuOx/TiN/n+poly-Si/Si contact system.
Credit and social capital: The community development potential of U.S. microenterprise programs

Abstract This article looks at the community‐building activities of microenterprise programs. These programs build community primarily by creating networks that build social capital. Microenterprise programs build two types of networks—networks within programs that typically involve borrowers and networks between programs and other institutions. The article examines (1) the ways in which microenterprise programs motivate the creation of both types of networks; (2) the extent to which these networks are embedded within program structures; and (3) the process by which network formation leads to the accumulation of social capital. The networks of relationships that Women's Initiative and Working Capital have catalyzed, both within and between programs, build social capital in important ways. The trust building that intraprogram relationships accomplish and the alteration of norms that interprogram relationships accomplish motivate the creation of networks that build social capital. These changes are not suff...
Nonaqueous capillary electrophoretic separation of enantiomers using the single-isomer heptakis(2,3-diacetyl-6-sulfato)-β-cyclodextrin as chiral resolving agent

Abstract The sodium salt of the single isomer heptakis(2,3-diacetyl-6-sulfato)-β-cyclodextrin has been used as chiral resolving agent for the nonaqueous capillary electrophoretic separation of the enantiomers of a variety of weak base pharmaceuticals in 100% methanol background electrolytes. As predicted by the charged resolving agent migration model of enantiomer separations, very large separation selectivities were observed for the cationic analytes around the heptakis(2,3-diacetyl-6-sulfato)-β-cyclodextrin concentrations where the effective mobilities of the slower migrating enantiomers approached zero. Neutral analytes and acidic analytes complexed very weakly with heptakis(2,3-diacetyl-6-sulfato)-β-cyclodextrin in the methanolic background electrolytes. Heptakis(2,3-diacetyl-6-sulfato)-β-cyclodextrin proved to be a useful chiral resolving agent in 100% methanolic background electrolytes for a variety of weak base analytes that have limited solubilities in aqueous background electrolytes.
Explanation, Invariance, and Intervention

This paper defends a counterfactual account of explanation, according to which successful explanation requires tracing patterns of counterfactual dependence of a special sort, involving what I call active counterfactuals. Explanations having this feature must appeal to generalizations that are invariant-stable under certain sorts of changes. These ideas are illustrated by examples drawn from physics and econometrics.
Steady flow of a polar fluid in a rotating pipe

It is shown that the axial motion and rotational motion in the steady flow of a polar fluid in a rotating cylinder are coupled, and that the rotational motion is not a rigid body rotation. For the same problem in traditional viscous fluid theory the axial motion and rotational motion are uncoupled, and the rotational motion is a rigid body rotation.
Power and Resistance: The Reality of Spanish Realism

The scant attention given to Spain in studies on European realism cannot be attributed to issues of literary quality, because Spanish realism has been widely acknowledged to possess works and authors of extraordinary importance. Rather, it ought to be ascribed to the country's marginal position in Europe in the last two centuries and to the failure of criticism to underscore the movement's uniqueness. An analysis of Spanish realism, as it was defined in contemporary debates and in the writings of some of its most representative authors, shows the movement's determination to distance itself from its French counterpart, as well as its desire to connect with the Golden Age tradition of Miguel de Cervantes and the picaresque novel. This dual impulse shapes its distinctiveness not only thematically, but at the structural and stylistic levels as well. Spanish realism exhibits a unique idiosyncrasy that must be taken into account to understand the protean nature of a richer and far more complex movement than is ...
Cloning and physical characterization of linked lysine genes (lys4, lys15) of Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

The plasmid pSC4 which carries a 7.8 kb yeast DNA insert at the BamHI site of the Vector YEp13, complemented simultaneously MO-59-13c lys4, LU75 1ys15 and LU32 lys4lys15 (double) mutations of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The 1.9 kb BamHl-XbaI DNA insert of the subclone pS051 complemented the LU75 lys15 mutation. The 2.8 kb XhoI-XhoI DNA insert of the pS052 subclone, like pSC4, complemented all three mutations. The 1.9 kb BamHI-XbaI DNA and the 2.8 kb XhoI-XhoI DNA were 100 bp apart in the pSC4 DNA insert and exhibited no homology with each other upon Southern hybridization. The 1.9 kb BamHI-XbaI DNA insert exhibited homology with the pSC4 and pS051 DNA as well as the genomic DNA of MO-59-13c lys4, LU75 lys15, LU32 lys4lys15, and RC1 (LYS) when digested with appropriate restriction enzymes. The 2.8 kb Xhol-XhoI DNA insert exhibited homology with the pSC4 and pS052 DNA as well as MO-59-13c lys4, LU75 lys15, LU32 lys4lys15, and RC1 (LYS) genomic DNA, when digested with XhoI enzyme. The 2.8 kb DNA probe also hybridized with ply(A)+ RNA from RC1 and lys4− transformant but not that from. MO-59-13c lys4 mutant.
Cytoprotective Response of A1, a Bcl-2 Homologue Expressed in Mature Human Neutrophils and Promyelocytic HL-60 Cells, to Oxidant Stress-Induced Cell Death

The ability to generate reactive oxidative intermediates is one of the quintessential properties of mature human neutrophils. Endogenously generated oxidants have been shown to be an important mechanism underlying neutrophil cell death. In acute lung inflammation, newly recruited neutrophils further encounter external oxidants, including reactive oxygen and nitrogen intermediates. In our present study, we showed that A1, a constitutive and inducible Bcl-2 homologue expressed in mature circulating human neutrophils, might confer the protection from hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)- and peroxynitrite (ONOO)-induced cell death. Utilizing the myeloid precursor cell line, HL-60, we further examined the hypothesis that A1 was capable of conferring cytoprotective activity against these oxidative stresses. Whereas the control-transfected HL-60 cells expressed small amounts of A1 and were sensitive to the biologically relevant, cell death-inducing oxidants, H2O2 and ONOO, the stable transfectants that overexpressed A1 were significantly more tolerant. Furthermore, there was a correlation between the level of A1 expression and the anti-apoptotic activity. Thus, our results suggest a cytoprotective role of A1 in mature human neutrophils under oxidant stresses in host defense and inflammation.
Generation Y travelers' commitment to online social network websites

Abstract This study aims to develop a theory-based model of relationship commitment in an online social network (OSN) context for Generation Y travelers. An online questionnaire was sent to a systematic random sample of 12,000 students at six U.S. universities. A total of 513 respondents participated in the study. Study results suggest that perceived utility and trust are positively related to both affective and calculative commitment. In terms of the relationship between perceived risk and commitment dimensions, the lower the risk associated with OSNs, the more likely customers are to continue the relationship. This study highlights the pivotal role of affective commitment in developing loyalty to travel-related OSNs.
Molecular Recognition in Structured Matrixes: Control of Guest Localization in Block Copolymer Films

We demonstrate the use of molecular recognition to control the spatial distribution of guest molecules within block copolymer films. Block copolymers bearing recognition units were combined with complementary and noncomplementary molecules, and the extent of segregation of these molecules into the different domain types within microphase-separated thin films was quantitatively analyzed using dynamic secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS). Complementarity between the guest molecules and the polymer functionalities proved to be a key factor and an efficient tool for directing the segregation preference of the molecules to the different domain types. The effect of segregation preference on the glass transition temperature was studied using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and the results corroborate the SIMS findings. In a complementary study, guests with tunable sizes (via dendron substituents) were used to control block copolymer morphology. Morphological characterization using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray diffraction reveal that selectivity differences can be directly translated into the ability to obtain different morphologies from recognition unit-functionalized block copolymer scaffolds.
Combined tissue-type plasminogen activator and prostacyclin therapy for acute myocardial infarction

Current limitations of recombinant tissue-type plasminogen activator (rt-PA) therapy for acute myocardial infarction include failure to achieve recanalization in 25% of patients, reocclusion and reperfusion injury. Iloprost, a stable analogue of prostacyclin (PGI2), has been demonstrated to facilitate thrombolysis and reduce myocardial stunning in experimental models. To evaluate combined therapy, rt-PA (100 mg 3 h) and Iloprost (2 ng/kg per min for 48 h) were administered to 25 patients and then rt-PA alone (same dose) was given to an additional 25 patients with evolving myocardial infarction. At 90 min after drug administration, infarct-related vessel patency was observed in 11 (44%) of 25 who received rt-PA plus Iloprost compared with 15 (60%) of 25 who received rt-PA alone (p = 0.26). At 1 week, reocclusion had occurred in 3 (14%) of 21 patients who received combined therapy compared with 6 (26%) of 23 patients treated with rt-PA alone (p = 0.46). Ejection fraction increased significantly from baseline to 7 days for rt-PA alone whereas it decreased with combined therapy (rt-PA alone whereas it decreased with combined therapy (rt-PA alone: 47.3 +/- 11.5% at baseline to 50.4 +/- 9.8% at 7 days; rt-PA plus Iloprost: 51.3 +/- 10.1% at baseline to 49.0 +/- 9.4% at 7 days; difference between groups p = 0.05). At 4 h after therapy, fibrinogen decreased 33% for rt-PA plus Iloprost compared with a 52% for rt-PA alone (p = 0.001). Fibrinogen degradation products increased 60% more for rt-PA alone than for rt-PA plus Ilprost. Thus, the combination of rt-PA plus Iloprost at the doses employed did not improve immediate or follow-up coronary artery patency or left ventricular functional recovery compared with that achieved with rt-PA alone.
Material indifference: A principle or a convenience

Abstract Constitutive relations for stress and energy flux, derived from the Boltzman equation by the Chapman-Enskog procedure, are shown to violate the principle of material indifference while exhibiting invariance under Galilei transformations.
Redundant Roles for Histone H3 N-Terminal Lysine Residues in Subtelomeric Gene Repression in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The transcription of genes located in subtelomeric regions of yeast chromosomes is repressed relative to the rest of the genome. This repression requires wild-type nucleosome levels but not the telomere silencing factors Sir2, Sir3, Sir4, and Rap1. Subtelomeric heterochromatin is characterized by the absence of acetylation or methylation of histone H3 lysine residues, but it is not known whether histone H3 hypoacetylation or hypomethylation is a prerequisite for the establishment of subtelomeric heterochromatin. We have systematically mutated the N-terminal tails of histone H3 and H4 in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and characterized the effects each mutant has on genome-wide expression. Our results show that subtelomeric transcriptional repression is dependent on the histone H3 N-terminal domain, but not the histone H4 N-terminal domain. Mutating lysine-4, lysine-9, lysine-14, lysine-18, lysine-23, and lysine-27 to glycine in histone H3 is also sufficient to significantly reduce subtelomeric gene repression. Individual histone H3 lysine mutations, however, have little effect on subtelomeric gene repression or genome-wide expression, indicating that these six lysine residues have redundant functions. We propose that acetylation and methylation of histone H3 N-terminal lysine residues act as redundant mechanisms to demarcate regions of euchromatin from heterochromatin.
Applying Motivation Theory to Real-World Problems:

This article examines the effectiveness of incorporating an applied learning experience in an upper level undergraduate motivation theory class. In this 3-part course requirement, students (a) participated in a 2-hr field experience, (b) completed a homework assignment based on their participation, and (c) worked in groups to develop a deeper understanding of motivational interventions and possible solutions for problems observed during the applied learning experience. Students identified the field experience and the group project as effective tools for understanding and applying motivation theory in a realistic setting.
Impact of tobacco-smoke on key signaling pathways in the innate immune response in lung macrophages

Many of the healthcare consequences of cigarette smoking could be due to its ability to compromise the immune system, and in respiratory diseases like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a constant low level of infection could be responsible for some of the symptoms/pathology. The aim was to assess the impact of cigarette smoke (CS) on the release of innate effector cytokines in THP-1 cells and human lung macrophages, and to determine the molecular mechanism behind the altered response. Cells were exposed to CS with and without endotoxin stimulus, cytokines, glutathione, mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) phosphorylation, IkappaB kinase-2 (IKK-2) activity, nuclear factor kappa B (NF-kappaB), and activator protein-1 (AP-1) pathway activation was measured. Attempts were made to mimic or block the effect of CS by using nicotine, nitric oxide donors/inhibitors, prostanoid inhibitors, and anti-oxidants. Results showed that CS initially delayed the production of "innate" cytokines (e.g., IL-1beta and IL-6) and reduced glutathione levels. This was associated with a reduction in NF-kappaB pathway activation, which suggested a causative link. CS also increased the phosphorylation of MAPK's and the production of IL-8 but interestingly only in stimulated cells. Exogenous glutathione treatment reversed both these effects of CS, which suggests that this molecule may play a central role. In conclusion, this data provides a novel mechanistic explanation for why smokers have increased prevalence/severity of respiratory infections. In addition, the suppression of the innate response is accompanied by an increase in the neutrophil chemoattractant, IL-8, which may suggest a link to the pathogenesis of smoking-related inflammatory disease.
Resection of locally advanced pancreatic cancer after downstaging with continuous-infusion 5-fluorouracil, mitomycin-C, leucovorin, and dipyridamole

Patients with locally advanced pancreatic adenocarcinoma who receive conventional therapy with radiation with 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) have median survivals ranging from 8 to 12 months. Here we report our experience with a four-drug chemotherapeutic regimen that resulted in sufficient downstaging of tumor in some patients to justify surgical reexploration and resection. From April 1991 through April 1994, 38 patients received 5-FU as a continuous infusion (200 mg/m2/day), calcium leucovorin weekly by intravenous bolus injection (30 mg/m2), mitomycin-C every 6 weeks (10 mg/m2 intravenously), and dipyridamole daily orally (75 mg) for locally advanced unresected pancreatic cancer. All of these patients were evaluable for response, toxicity, and survival. There were 14 partial responses and one complete response—a 39% response rate. The median survival for all patients was 15.5 months; the 1-year survival rate from time of initial diagnosis was 70%. Six of 15 responding patients had sufficient tumor regression to meet clinical criteria for resectability and reexploration, four of whom underwent a curative resection. The median survival of these six patients was 28 months from the time of original diagnosis. The 1-year survival was 83%, with one patient still alive and free of disease at 53 months. We believe this unique experience from a single institution justifies a prospective multi-institutional trial to evaluate the efficacy of this approach in a larger number of patients.
A multi-modal investigation of the roles of distress tolerance and emotional reactivity in obsessive-compulsive symptoms

Emerging evidence implicates important roles of poor distress tolerance and heightened emotional reactivity in obsessive-compulsive disorder. To date, investigations have relied mostly on self-report measures, and we sought to extend the literature by examining the relationship between OC symptoms and distress tolerance, as well as emotional reactivity, using three laboratory assessments. Nonclinical participants (N=167) viewed emotional films associated with four different negative emotions and also completed mirror tracing and handgrip persistence tasks. Greater obsessions scores were predictive of poorer emotional tolerance for a sad film and shorter persistence on the mirror tracing task. Among men only, obsessions were negatively correlated with persistence on the handgrip task. Associations between increased emotional reactivity and washing symptoms also emerged. These findings provide further evidence for the role of poor distress tolerance in obsessions and suggest heightened emotional reactivity ...
Race and the death penalty in Kentucky murder trials: 1976–1991

This study re-examines the effect of race of the victim on the probability that an accused murderer is charged with a capital crime and sentenced to death in Kentucky. It adds over five years of data to our original study. The results show that Blacks accused of killing Whites had a higher than average probability of being charged with a capital crime (by the prosecutor) and sentenced to die (by the jury) than other homicide offenders. This finding remains after taking into account the effects of differences in the heinousness of the murder, prior criminal record, the personal relationship between the victim and the offender, and the probability that the accused will not stand trial for a capital offense. Kentucky’s “guided discretion” system of capital sentencing has failed to eliminate race as a factor in this process.
Noninvasive evaluation of vaginal fibrosis following radiotherapy for gynecologic malignancies: A feasibility study with ultrasound B-mode and Nakagami parameter imaging

Purpose: This study's purpose is to develop a quantitative ultrasound technology to evaluate radiation-induced vaginal fibrosis. Radiation therapy (RT) is an important treatment modality for most gynecologic (GYN) malignancies. However, vaginal fibrosis is a common chronic side-effect, affecting 80% of women post vaginal or pelvic RT. Vaginal fibrosis leads to pain, sexual dysfunction, and poor quality of life. Methods: The authors propose a novel ultrasound approach that combines conventional B-mode imaging with Nakagami parameter imaging to quantitatively evaluate post-RT vaginal injury. From the B-mode image, vaginal wall thickness and echo intensity were calculated to capture the anatomy and echogenicity of the vaginal wall. From Nakagami imaging, two statistical parameters, Nakagami probability density function (PDF) and Nakagami shape, were computed to measure the concentration and arrangement of vaginal tissue microstructures. This novel ultrasound imaging concept was investigated in a pilot study of 12 patients, who were previously diagnosed and treated for endometrial cancer. The 12 participants were stratified into two groups: (1) the control group consisted of 6 patients who received surgery (hysterectomy) alone and (2) the post-RT group consisted of 6 patients who received surgery plus radiotherapy, with a follow-up time of 12–38 months. Each participant underwent one transvaginal ultrasound study (6 MHz). Three transverse images of the anterior vaginal wall were acquired in a 2 cm step from the apex (vaginal cuff) to the introitus (vagina opening). The vaginal wall thickness, echo intensity, Nakagami PDF, and Nakagami parameter were calculated to evaluate radiation-induced vaginal fibrosis. Results: Both B-mode and Nakagami methods showed significant differences in parameters between the post-RT and nonirradiated vaginal walls. Compared with the control group, the vaginal wall thickness of the post-RT group increased by 153.2% (p = 0.002), the echo intensity increased by 11.6% (p = 0.017), the Nakagami PDF increased by 72.3% (p < 0.001), and the Nakagami shape valued increased by 33.0% (p = 0.028). Conclusions: Vaginal fibrosis appears to be associated with a thickened vaginal wall, higher echogenicity, as well as increased Nakagami PDF and shape parameters. This pilot study shows the authors’ quantitative ultrasound approach combining B-mode and Nakagami imaging is a promising imaging method to evaluate vaginal fibrosis. This imaging method may be useful as physicians try to address vaginal toxicities and sexual dysfunction in women after radiotherapy for GYN malignancies.
On Separable Tests, Correlated Priors, and Paradoxical Results in Multidimensional Item Response Theory

This paper presents a study of the impact of prior structure on paradoxical results in multidimensional item response theory. Paradoxical results refer to the possibility that an incorrect response could be beneficial to an examinee. We demonstrate that when three or more ability dimensions are being used, paradoxical results can be induced by using priors in which all abilities are positively correlated where they would not occur if the abilities were modeled as being independent. In the case of separable tests, we demonstrate the mathematical causes of paradoxical results, develop a computationally feasible means to check whether they can occur in any given test, and demonstrate a class of prior covariance matrices that can be guaranteed to avoid them.
Can randomized mapping secure instruction caches from side-channel attacks?

Information leakage through cache side channels is a serious threat in computer systems. The leak of secret cryptographic keys voids the protections provided by strong cryptography and software virtualization. Past cache side channel defenses focused almost entirely on data caches. Recently, instruction cache based side-channel attacks have been demonstrated to be practical -- even in a Cloud Computing environment across two virtual machines. Unlike data caches, instruction caches leak information through secret-dependent execution paths. In this paper, we propose to use a classification matrix to quantitatively characterize the vulnerability of an instruction cache to software side channel attacks. We use this quantitative analysis to answer the open question: can randomized mapping proposed for thwarting data cache side channel attacks secure instruction caches? We further study the performance impact of the randomized mapping approach for the instruction cache.
Policy models: concepts and rules-of-thumb

The desire to build policy models or models for policy makers is based on two foundations. First, the need to solicit funds to pay for the construction of models means that those who want to construct models have to promise a "useful" product. Since a large portion of the models built are to support some level of policy, public or private, there is a deliberate attempt to promise output which will be useful to the decision process. Secondly, it is clear from history that the advisor to the throne is a coveted position and one dreamed of by many scientists. It is also clear that the day is coming when models will play a large role in making such policy. The advisory role then shifts to the model builder.Unfortunately, the reality of model development for the policy level does not appear to agree with the rhetoric. This presentation will review the concept of policy models and suggest some rules-of-thumb for building them.
Protection from cerebral ischemic injury in gerbils with the spin trap agent N-tert-butyl-α-phenylnitrone (PBN)

N-Tert-butyl-alpha-phenylnitrone (PBN), a spin trap agent, reduced ischemic hippocampal damage and the associated locomotor hyperactivity in Mongolian gerbils. Cerebral ischemia was induced in unanesthetized gerbils by a bilateral 5 min occlusion of the carotid arteries. PBN (100 mg/kg, i.p.) administered 30 min prior to carotid occlusion, prevented the increase in locomotor activity observed in saline-injected ischemic animals and significantly reduced damage to the hippocampal CAI pyramidal cell layer observed 5 days post-ischemia. These findings support the hypothesis of an involvement of reactive free radicals as a significant cause of ischemia-reperfusion-induced cerebral injury and suggest that PBN may be a useful agent for the prevention of cerebral ischemic damage.
Wheat growth responses of cultivars to H+ concentration

Shoot length (cm), shoot fresh weight (g/pot), root length (cm), and root fresh weight (g/pot) were measured on six cultivars of wheat (Triticum aestivum L. cv Saluda, C9733, Gore, Stacy, FL301, and FL302) grown at pH 6.0, 5.5, 5.0, 4.5, or 4.0 for 14 days in ‘white quartz flintshot’ sand. Plants were watered on alternate days with pH-adjusted buffer solutions. All measured plant parameters decreased as H+ concentration increased from pH 6.0 to 4.0. Decreased lengths of shoots and roots were similar among the cultivars as the pH decreased. This indicated a uniform response of wheat cultivars to excess H+ concentration in the soil solution; however, the decrease in shoot and root length was only about 50% as large as was previously reported for sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench.].
A Novel Approach to Synthesize Lanthanum Telluride Thermoelectric Thin Films in Ambient Conditions

Rare-earth telluride compounds are characterized by their high performance thermoelectric properties that have been applied to the development of functional materials [1]. Recently, May and co-workers reported that nanostructured bulk lanthanum telluride (La3-xTe4, 0 ≤ x ≤ 1/3) by mechanical ball-milling exceeded the figure of merit (ZT) of 1 at high temperatures near 1300K [2-3]. Since the increased thermoelectric efficiency of nanostructured materials is due to the enhancement of phonon scattering introduced by quantum confinement, thin films have also generated significant scientific and technological interest [4-6]. Here, we report on the electrodepostion of lanthanum telluride and lanthanum thin films in ionic liquids in ambient conditions. Surface morphologies varied from needle-like to granular structures and depend on deposition conditions. This novel electrochemical synthesis approach is a simple, inexpensive and laboratory-environment friendly method of synthesizing nanostructured thermoelectric materials.
An RF heated tandem mirror plasma propulsion study

Experimental results on a tandem mirror hybrid plume rocket involving a three-stage system of plasma injection, heating, and subsequent injection through a magnetic nozzle are presented. In the experiments, a plasma is created by breaking down the gas with electron cyclotron resonance heating at 2 kW in the central cell, and the ion species is then heated to high temperatures with ion cyclotron resonance heating at 10 kW in the end cell. A Langmuir probe measured an electron density of 2.5 x 10 to the 16th/cu m and a temperature of 100 eV in the central cell and an ion density of 1.25 x 10 to the 17th/cu m and a temperature of 500 eV in the end cell.
Ethical and Medicolegal Issues Related to Percutaneous Endoscopic Gastrostomy Placement

Enteral nutrition, in many respects more than other medical interventions, has been in the limelight concerning the ethics of withdrawing or withholding nutritional support. This article describes the ethical and legal issues surrounding enteral nutrition, identifies the elements of informed consent for enteral nutrition, provides an overview of the endoscopic gastrostomy procedure, and offers recommendations for addressing ethicolegal issues in enteral nutrition.
Comparison of the proliferative capacity of acute leukaemia cells in bone marrow and blood.

IN recent discussions1,2 of the proliferative capacity of leukaemic cells in acute leukaemia, these cells have been treated as a uniform population with regard to their generation cycle. The reported findings of these studies that only a small percentage of the leukaemic cells incorporated labelled thymidine after short-term exposure have been taken to suggest a long generation time for these cells and therefore a low proliferative capacity. In the interpretation of these results, however, it is important to know if the leukaemic cell population is indeed relatively uniform with regard to cell division. For this purpose a comparison was made between the rate of incorporation of labelled thymidine by leukaemic cells obtained from blood and bone marrow of patients with acute leukaemia.
Self-calibrating hybrid wavelength, polarization, and time-multiplexed heterodyne interferometers for Angstrom precision measurements

Propose here unique wavelength and hybrid wavelength-polarization and wavelength-polarization-time-multiplexed heterodyne optical interferometers using an internal self-referencing scheme enabling Angstrom level sensitivity optical path-length measurements. As a first step, a proof-of-concept wavelength multiplexed scanning heterodyne interferometer is built to test the surface quality of a test mirror, demonstrating ±100 A profile variations with a 0.9 A accuracy. The hybrid wavelength-polarization and wavelength-polarization-time-multiplexed interferometers can be used to form spectrally coded distributed sensors.
Stature variation in the British American colonies: French and Indian war records, 1755–1763

Personnel records kept by military units of American colonials during the French and Indian War (1755-1763) are analyzed for relationships between environmental factors and stature. A robust American economy and direct access to high-quality food were apparently critical to tallness of this white American male sample. American-born men were taller at all ages than those who had migrated from Europe. January temperatures, rural versus urban birth, and ethnicity also showed stature relationships within the American-born group; thermal effects were by far the strongest of the non-nutritional factors.
Classification of watersheds into integrated social and biophysical indicators with clustering analysis

Abstract In this work, we classify watersheds in the US portion of the Great Lakes basin according to a wide range of social and environmental characteristics. Classified watershed indicators serve to provide organizing principles for prescribing effective management strategies and for developing regional scale monitoring and modeling efforts. Classifications also provide a means for synthesizing seemingly disparate ecological attributes into powerful indicators. We use a robust watershed classification scheme based on cluster analysis that integrates a set of 12 social and environmental factors chosen to reflect the state of water resources in the Great Lakes basin. We found five statistically distinct classified watershed indicators: Urban Centers, Intensive Agriculture, Cultivated Rural, Northwoods, and Lakes Destinations. Within these classifications, we distinguished relationships between impacts on water resources and biophysical, demographic, land-use, and social characteristics of the landscape. We found that agricultural areas can be divided into those with high and low water impact, and that watersheds with considerable influence of seasonal homes are further distinguished into watersheds with inland lakes and relatively high socioeconomic status, contrasted with watersheds with wetlands and relatively low socioeconomic status.
Chlorophyll-a and pheopigments as tracers of labile organic carbon at the central equatorial Pacific seafloor

High rates of primary production and fast sinking rates lead to the deposition of phytodetritus and highly reactive organic matter to the sediments of the central equatorial Pacific. These substances are responsible for driving important chemical fluxes and fueling benthic organisms. Chloropigments have proven useful as tracers of similar highly reactive organic carbon components in lacustrine and nearshore marine sediments. In this study we investigate the degradation of chlorophyll-a and pheopigments-a at four abyssal sites on the JGOFS equatorial Pacific transect along 140°W and explore the usefulness of these chloropigments as tracers of the most-reactive component of the deep-sea particulate organic carbon (POC) rain. First-order reaction rate constants (k = 1–75 yr−1, half-life 3–250 d) and relative reactivities (chlorophyll-a > allomer and pheophorbide-a > pheophytin-a) derived from most of the sedimentary profiles are similar to those found in laboratory and other field (lake and coastal marine) studies. However, in some profiles, the rate constants determined by fitting data below 0.5 cm are slower by up to 3 orders of magnitude despite an apparent abundance of bacteria, macrofauna, and porewater oxygen. Model results assuming multi-G kinetics suggest that these chloropigments degrade as two components: one, which accounts for at least 99% of the degradation and 11–57% of the sediment inventory, degrades with a half-life of 4–120 days. The other component degrades with a half-life of up to 440 years. These results suggest that some otherwise labile POC may be protected and escape rapid degradation near the sediment-water interface. If phytodetritus is deposited continuously throughout the year, our model-calculated chlorophyll-a fluxes indicate that it could account for 25–100% of the annual POC flux at sites close to the equator.
Expectations, target zones, and oil price dynamics

Abstract This paper incorporates inventory shocks and market expectations in OPEC's oil pricing mechanism and applies the target zone and speculative attack literatures to oil price dynamics. The paper examines the oil price behavior in the two-sided target zone model and the asymmetric tolerance zone model. It focuses on the characteristics of the smooth-pasting and speculative-attack solutions that are associated with credible and noncredible intervention policies. The analysis shows that credibility of OPEC's intervention policy declines as its output ceiling is reduced to a low level, which makes the price vulnerable to speculative attacks, and increases as the ceiling rises. The credibility is directly related to sensitivity of the market price to changes in the output and the sensitivity of this price to changes in the price expectations, and is inversely related to the positive intertemporal bias in the size of the random shocks in the quantity.
Random source induced spontaneous symmetry breaking in scalar field theories

Abstract We study the effective potential for scalar field theories in the presence of gaussian random sources, coupled to the scalar field in a self-consistent way. We compute the effective potential both in the loop and in the 1/ N expansions and find various instabilities. The only feasible instabilities are the ones induced by (formally) imaginary random sources. The pertinent phase transition is a first-order transition.
Minimizing Residual Vibration in Short-Maneuver Pulse-Width Control

Two problems encountered in precision manufacturing are friction and flexibility. With regard to friction, pulse-width control has been shown to be exceptionally effective for rigid systems; however, when used to control flexible systems residual vibrations often result, limiting speed and precision. In previous work, a pulse-width controller was developed that uses two pulses in sequence such that the second pulse minimizes vibration induced by the first. This controller used a brute-force numerical process and obtained solutions similar to optimal zero vibration techniques. Additionally, trends in numerical solutions were identified that approached limiting values for short pulse durations. In the present paper, a theoretical foundation for these limiting values is derived. This derivation shows that for short maneuvers approximate analytical expressions for pulse-widths and their application times are easily obtained. These analytical expressions are used as the basis of a pulse-width controller that is shown to effectively minimize residual vibration in simulations and experiments.
The initial evaluation of adults with bronchiectasis

Bronchiectasis can be caused by a myriad of underlying conditions or environmental insults to the bronchial tree. Despite a detailed evaluation, the cause remains undetermined in approximately 50% of cases. Nonetheless, it is important to use a systematic approach to the diagnostic evaluation of a patient with newly diagnosed bronchiectasis, because a substantial proportion of patients have a specific underlying diagnosis with implications for prognosis or treatment. There is not one panel of tests that can be recommended for all patients. This article reviews the initial evaluation of an adult patient with bronchiectasis.
Political Liberties and Attribute Changes

This study attempts to extend to the question of political liberty a cross-time analytical approach already successfully applied to conflict. In the previous study, increases in quality of life were associated with reduced conflict. Here, increases in quality of life are predicted to be associated with extensions of political liberty. The research results in fact support this interpretation.
Built-in test for folded programmable logic arrays

Abstract Implementing a function using a programmable logic array (PLA) can often be very expensive in terms of area. Folding rows and/or columns of a PLA usually leads to a reduction in area. In this paper the problem of fault detection in folded PLAs is considered. A new fault, the ‘cutpoint’ fault, is described and universal test sets for the detection of this fault are presented. Modifications to existing built-in universally testable design techniques for nonfolded PLAs are presented; the new designs are now applicable to folded PLAs.
Ancestral and recombinant 16-locus HLA haplotypes in the Hutterites.

Prior studies in the Schmiedeleut Hutterites of South Dakota have demonstrated associations between human leukocyte antigen (HLA) haplotype matching and fetal loss (Ober et al. 1992) and mate preferences (Ober et al. 1997), as well as deficiencies of homozygotes for HLA haplotypes (Kostyu et al. 1993). These studies were based on the serologically-defined five-locus HLA-A, -C, -B, -DR, -DQ haplotype. To further elucidate the effects of specific major histocompatibility (MHC) loci or regions on fetal loss and mate choice, we genotyped a sample of Hutterites for 14 MHC loci by DNA or biochemical methods. Typing for additional loci in the HLA-A to HLA-DPB1 region increased the number of recognized Hutterite MHC haplotypes to 67, and further localized the site of cross-over in 9 of 15 recombinant haplotypes. Hutterite MHC haplotype sequences are similar to those observed in outbred Caucasians, suggesting that the influence of HLA haplotypes on fetal loss and mating structure may be general.
IMMUNIZATION OF MICE WITH IRRADIATED PASTEURELLA TULARENSIS.

Abstract : Viable attenuated tularemia vaccines have been shown to be effective in immunizing mice and other animals against challenge with highly virulent Pasteurella tularensis. Nonviable preparations, however, induced little or no resistance to challenge with even small numbers of virulent organisms. It seemed reasonable to expect that antigenicity would be retained to a greater extent if the organisms were killed by irradiation rather than by chemicals or heat. Vaccines rendered nonviable by the action of X-radiation produced levels of immunity such that 20 to 30% of immunized mice survived intraperitoneal challenge with moderate doses of the highly virulent SCHU S4 strain. Cysteamine at a concentration of 0.02 M was added to the bacterial suspension prior to irradiation to minimize the indirect effects of irradiation. Vaccines contained approximately 10 sup 9 nonviable organisms per milliliter. Proof of nonviability of irradiated vaccines was based on (a) absence of colonies when irradiated vaccines were plated on solid medium, (b) failure to isolate P. tularensis from sacrificed immunized animals, and (c) the inability of treatment with streptomycin during immunization to interfere with the development of immunity.
The Role of Landmark Information in Intelligent Navigation Displays

Advanced Traveler Information Systems (ATIS) are advanced communication and navigation systems that use computer-based in-vehicle systems to provide navigation and travel-related information to drivers. To help drivers navigate effectively and get to their destinations quickly and safely, navigational information must be effectively communicated to the driver. Landmarks are important environmental and navigational cues that help drivers to get to their destinations. This paper describes a study that tested the influence of landmark information in route guidance displays on navigation performance in a simulated driving environment. Forty-eight participants drove in a high-fidelity simulator and navigated using route guidance displays with and without landmark icons. The results indicated that landmarks were beneficial as a navigation aid; they helped drivers make turning decisions more quickly, especially in reduced visibility conditions (i.e., foggy conditions). Landmarks were particularly beneficial to o...
A study of the temperature-based dynamic nature of characteristic gases in oil-cellulose insulation systems

Dissolved gas analysis (DGA) is a well established method to monitor and predict the condition of devices with oil-cellulose insulation, especially power transformers. However, the effect of the migration of theses gases between the liquid and solid insulation is often ignored. The migration phenomenon is temperature dependent and, if ignored, can potentially lead to erroneous condition assessment by the DGA method. This paper addresses the dynamic nature of propagation of these gases in such systems based on temperature variations. Diffusion times, and therefore diffusivity of the gases, in oil-impregnated cellulose are calculated by identifying the diffusion process as a linear system. The diffusion time-constants, and steady-state condition at the working concentrations, are estimated based on the identified model. A sensitivity study is performed to show the dependency of the diffusion time-constants to the temperature and the oil-cellulose ratio in the system. The equilibrium curves are obtained in the case of carbon dioxide by using solubility information of this gas in the oil and paper pulp, similar to the case of moisture equilibrium. The results are compared with the experimental data. An example of the implication of the obtained data is shown