cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Reproductive Strategies of Some African Monkeys

Seven species of African monkeys, living in captive breeding groups, differed in rate of maturation, birth interval, and probably longevity. Some of these differences could be related to natural habitat, with grassland species maturing and breeding faster than forest species. Only two species showed any effect of climatic changes on conception rate; both were affected by rainfall at the equatorial site, and both are reported to breed seasonally in the wild. One seasonally breeding species, the patas, became aseasonal in captivity. A social facilitatory effect on conceptions was indicated for one species, the vervet. Species specific demographic characteristics could be the main cause of species differences in social organization.
Schleiermacher and the Construction of a Contemporary Roman Catholic Foundational Theology

When I was completing my book on foundational theology, I presented a paper on the concept of broad reflective equilibrium and foundational theology to a group of colleagues at a conference sponsored by the Association of Theological Schools. This paper summarized the book's concluding section, which dealt with the relationship between contemporary criticisms of foundationalism and a foundational theology employing the method of broad reflective equilibrium. It advanced a systematic and historical argument. Systematically, the section argued that the method of broad reflective equilibrium offered a vision of foundational theology that avoided the pitfalls of foundationalism, overcoming the foundationalism of fundamental theology. It appealed to current discussions about methodology, specifically, the discussions on reflective equilibrium in the philosophy of science and in political ethics. The historical argument appealed to Schleiermacher by relating Schleiermacher's stance on the relationship between systematic and philosophical theology to the conception of a nonfoundationalist foundational theology, employing the method of broad reflective equilibrium.
On the Notational Independence of Various Hierarchies of Degrees of Unsolvability

From the work of Kleene, Post and Davis it is well-known that the arithmetic sets can be characterized as those sets recursive in o (n) for some natural number n, where o (0) = o and o (n+-3yT0'x, X, A) Actually the arithmetic sets which can be expressed in prenex form with n alternating quantifiers (applied to recursive predicates) are recursive in 0(n). Hence, starting with 0, the "jump operation", which takes a set A into the set A33yTA(x, x, y), serves to increase the "complexity" of sets in a uniform way. As far as extending the c-sequence of degrees of unsolvability (i.e. the degrees represented by the 0(n)) into the 2nd number class, there is an immediate problem. One knows from Spector [17], corollary 2, p. 585, that there is no l.u.b. for the c-sequence. So, at co one must pick a degree in some other "natural" way. Unfortunately, what has seemed "natural" to some mathematicians has not seemed natural to others. Kleene and Davis (cf. [10] and [3] respectively) extended this arithmetic hierarchy of degrees of unsolvability by making use of natural number notations for a certain segment of ordinals of the 1st and 2nd number classes, the "constructive" ordinals. Using the Church-Kleene system S3, one can "sum up" previously obtained sets at the limit notations in a way that is certainly natural from a notational point of view. However, even though various uniqueness theorems have been proved (notably Spector [16], theorem 5), thus somewhat reinforcing the naturalness of the notational devices, still it was Spector himself who expressed misgivings over the fact that at limit notations the associated sets are so strongly dependent on notation. That is to ask the question whether one can build the same hierarchy of degrees without referring to any system of notations. It is the purpose of this paper to show that the hyperarithmetic hierarchy of degrees is a "natural" hierarchy, that one can construct the degrees of unsolvability of this hierarchy using absolutely no rotational devices whatsoever. It will be shown how, except for certain "co-local disturbances",
Large-scale quantum-mechanical simulations of nanoscale devices and new materials

Recent advances in theoretical methods and high performance computing allow for reliable first-principles investigations of nanoscale devices and complex materials. Using large scale O(N) real-space-based ab initio calculations, we carried out a theoretical study of carbon nanotube-cluster composites as prototype systems for molecular sensing at the nanoscale. Dramatic changes in the electrical conductance of the composite are predicted when gas molecules are adsorbed onto the metal clusters. The observed sensitivity and selectivity might suggest new avenues for the design and production of nanotube-based molecular sensors. The second part of this article focuses on calculating and predicting the properties of piezoelectrics, and on "designing" new materials with enhanced piezoelectric response. We consider polymers in the polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) family and show that our calculations not only reproduce well the existing experimental data, but also provide a much improved understanding of their polar properties, which leads to a "design" of novel polymers with a BN backbone. The new polymers are predicted to have up to 100% better piezoelectric response and an enhanced thermal stability with respect to their PVDF analogs. Since methods for their synthesis are readily available, they offer a promising avenue for improving ferro and piezoelectric devices.
Multiband Mobility in Semiconducting Carbon Nanotubes

We present new data and a compact mobility model for semiconducting single-wall carbon nanotubes, with only two adjustable parameters, the elastic and inelastic collision mean free paths at 300 K. The mobility increases with diameter, decreases with temperature, and has a more complex dependence on charge density. The model and data suggest that the room temperature mobility does not exceed 10 000 cm2/Vmiddots at high carrier density (n > 0.5 nm-1) for typical single-wall nanotube diameters, due to the strong scattering effect of the second subband.
Biophysical separation of Staphylococcus epidermidis strains based on antibiotic resistance

Electrophoretic and dielectrophoretic approaches to separations can provide unique capabilities. In the past, capillary and microchip-based approaches to electrophoresis have demonstrated extremely high-resolution separations. More recently, dielectrophoretic systems have shown excellent results for the separation of bioparticles. Here we demonstrate resolution of a difficult pair of targets: gentamicin resistant and susceptible strains of Staphylococcus epidermidis. This separation has significant potential implications for healthcare. This establishes a foundation for biophysical separations as a direct diagnostic tool, potentially improving nearly every figure of merit for diagnostics and antibiotic stewardship. The separations are performed on a modified gradient insulator-based dielectrophoresis (g-iDEP) system and demonstrate that the presence of antibiotic resistance enzymes (or secondary effects) produces a sufficient degree of electrophysical difference to allow separation. The differentiating factor is the ratio of electrophoretic to dielectrophoretic mobilities. This factor is 4.6 ± 0.6 × 109 V m–2 for the resistant strain, versus 9.2 ± 0.4 × 109 V m–2 for the susceptible strain. Using g-iDEP separation, this difference produces clear and easily discerned differentiation of the two strains.
Enhancing double-patterning detailed routing with lazy coloring and within-path conflict avoidance

Double patterning technology (DPT) is emerging as the dominant technology to achieve the 32-nm node and beyond. Two challenges faced by DPT are layout decomposition and overlay error. To handle the challenges, some effort has been made to consider DPT during detailed routing. In this paper, we propose two enhancing techniques for DPT-friendly detailed routing: lazy color decision and last conflict segment recording. Experiments show that our techniques are able to reduce the number of stitches by 15~20% with 4% increase in running time.
Pulmonary surfactant: a front line of lung host defense

The lung is a uniquely vulnerable organ. Residing at the interface of the body and the environment, the lung is optimized for gas exchange, having a very thin, delicate epithelium, abundant blood flow, and a vast surface area. Inherent in this structure is an enormous immunological burden from pathogens, allergens, and pollutants resident in the 11,000 liters of air inhaled daily. Fortunately, protective immune mechanisms act locally in the lung to facilitate clearance of inhaled pathogens and to modulate inflammatory responses. These defensive mechanisms include both innate (nonantibody-mediated) and adaptive (antibody-mediated) systems. The purpose of this commentary is to review briefly the functions of one unique lung innate immune system, pulmonary surfactant, and to highlight the recent findings of Wu et al. (1) described in this issue of the JCI. Wu and colleagues report a new and intriguing innate immune function of surfactant: direct antimicrobial activity.
Value stream analysis of a re-engineered construction supply chain

A case study is presented that documents the most common configuration of the supply chain for pipe supports used in power plants in the USA. This supply chain, like many others in construction, has numerous inefficiencies, many of which occur at the interfaces between processes, disciplines or organizations. Recognizing and understanding such inefficiencies, their causes and potential remedies provides a basis for process re-engineering. The study describes how today's industry practices are changing to yield shorter supply chain lead times. To model the mechanisms that drive those changes, data are presented from industry practice in the form of value stream maps that span organizational disciplines and company boundaries. Metrics commonly used in lean construction are introduced to gauge system performance. A current state map documents how work flows throughout the design, procurement and fabrication phases of pipe supports. Analysis of this current state map highlights value-added and non-value-added...
The genesis and performance characteristics of Roman chariots

The Roman chariot wheel built upon knowledge gained by earlier wheelwrights in Europe and elsewhere to create multi-spoked, relatively simple and economical wooden wheels with or without iron tires. To understand the design, construction and physical characteristics of a chariot it is necessary to consider two classes of structural elements: the wheels, and the suspension system. For each element or subassembly there are many possible good design choices. The major issues, in order of significance, are: safety, comfort, performance as measured by acceleration capability, and the economic constraints of structural methods and horsepower availability. Specifically, any wheel must be rigid yet light in weight, and not just light but topology-optimized for minimal rotational inertia as well as for resistance to bending loads which are encountered when turning and on sloping ground. The flexibility requirements of a suspension system are the opposite to those of the wheel, with the general need for springiness, not rigidity. The best tools for dealing with these complex issues belong to the mechanical sciences of statics, dynamics, and the mechanics of materials; 2 an experience in engineering design and failure analysis is also useful. Another useful method for investigating chariots involves the creation of small flexible models — which the ancients must have used too; in these models, the flexibilities of some components must be exaggerated to demonstrate instantly the numerous specific aspects of a chariot’s inner dynamics and to answer questions about the suspensions. For present purposes, our chariot may be defined as a light, fast and manoeuvrable vehicle with two spoked wheels, on which the driver stands. 3 The fundamental advantage of a spoked wheel was the greatly reduced mass and corresponding linear inertia, and the reduced rotational inertia. Minimizing rotational inertia is crucial for racing wheels, though not for other vehicles such as carts or stage coaches: for an infinitesimal mass element, its rotational inertia with respect to the axis of rotation is defined as the mass times the square of its distance to that axis. For a rigid body, its rotational inertia is the summation of all of its elemental inertias. Remarkably, some ancient engineers understood, 4
Modeling the strain fields for an in-vivo bone growth experiment

Osseointegration is critical for implant fixation, and mechanical stimuli play a role in this process. Our long term goal is to investigate the relationship between local mechanical environment and osseointegration. In this paper, as a first step in the study, we constructed an approximate 3D model of the in-vivo test and focused on calculating the strain fields around the implant. We first demonstrated that 3D finite element models gave significant differences compared with 2D models. The 3D model was then used to study strain distributions as gap tissue properties were varied over an experimentally estimated range in the first 7 days post implant. Results for strain concentration in gap tissue around the circumferential ridges and bottom of the implant agreed, on average, with previous 2D studies. Variations of the strain field around the implant were consistent with bone healing and remodeling trends around the implant between post-surgical days 1 and 5, and 6 and 7.
Effective Global Health Promotion Achievements, Tools, and Strategies Used in the Americas Over the Past Decade

There have been numerous international commitments made by governments from around the world to promote health and prevent illness and disease. As globalization increases our interdependence with both positive and negative effects, the World Health Organization and the Pan American Health Organization (its Regional Office for the Americas), have responded to ever increasing mandates from their member countries by developing responses to support governments in promoting health and incorporating upstream approaches into their policies, programs and activities. This article highlights some of the most important of these political declarations that have direct impact on health education and promotion ranging from the Alma Ata Declaration on Primary Health Care in 1978 to the Rio Declaration on the Social Determinants of Health in 2011. Additionally, emphasis is placed on identifying and providing examples of the application of specific tools, strategies and approaches to facilitate fulfillment of these mandat...
On the Physiology of Amoeboid Movement

1. The effect of temperature on the velocity of locomotion of two species of marine limax Amoebae has been determined. In both the velocity rises with the temperature. It is reversibly inhibited just below 0° C. There is a low optimum temperature (type A, 22° C. to 25° C. ; type B, 20° C.) above which the velocity falls rapidly; at higher temperatures activity is inhibited irreversibly. 2. Evidence is brought to show that the fall of velocity above the optimum is due to a destructive effect on the mechanism of amoeboid activity. It is shown that were this effect absent, the velocity would probably continue to rise with the temperature in a normal manner. 3. The temperature coefficient of the velocity is similar to that of ciliary activity and many other biological processes. 4. The rate of amoeboid activity is probably not controlled by the velocity of some simple chemical process the energy of which is directly converted into work done, because the temperature coefficient of the rate of doing work is high and variable and unlike that usually met with in biological processes. 5. The rate of amoeboid activity appears to be controlled by the rate at which the protoplasm changes its state (sol gel). This provides a rational explanation of the fact that it is the velocity and not the rate of doing work which varies with the temperature as do other biological processes. 6. In view of conclusions arrived at in another paper,16 it is possible that the value of the temperature coefficient indicates that the rate at which protoplasm can change its state is controlled by a chemical reaction.
What brings women to the table? Female and male students' perceptions of ways of thinking in engineering study and practice

Women represent only one fifth of engineering Bachelor's degree recipients in the U.S. This gender gap has stubbornly held for the past several years. Based on survey and interview data, this study examines the experiences and perspectives of 40 first-year women and men intending to study engineering at a public, research extensive university. We found that, regardless of gender, students view math, science, and other technical abilities as foundational in engineering. However, our findings also provide a complex picture of gender differences in the experiences and ways of thinking beginning under-graduates associate with engineering. With a more detailed understanding of what distinguishes women as early successes in the possible engineering pathways, this study provides empirical grounds for portraying engineering more broadly in order to recruit more women.
Feeding Site Preferences of Seven Lepidopteran Pests of Celery

The feeding site preferences of seven species of lepidopteran pests of celery were investigated under greenhouse conditions. The cabbage looper, Trichoplusia ni (Hubner), fed on leaves and was not observed to damage the petiole. The beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua (Hubner), the corn earworm, Heliothis zea (Boddie), the false celery leaf tier, Udea profundalis (Packard), the variegated cutworm, Peridroma saucia (Hubner), and Platynota stultana (Walsingham) fed on both leaves and petioles but tended to occur more often on the petioles as they matured. In contrast, the salt marsh caterpillar, Estigmene acrea (Drury), tended to occur more often on leaves during later instars. Based on these data, the cabbage looper would not be predicted to be a serious economic pest except at very high populations. The six remaining species may possess a much higher potential to cause economic damage, especially during the last portion of the growing season.
Edwardsiella ictaluri Encodes an Acid-Activated Urease That Is Required for Intracellular Replication in Channel Catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) Macrophages

Genomic analysis indicated that Edwardsiella ictaluri encodes a putative urease pathogenicity island containing the products of nine open reading frames, including urea and ammonium transporters. In vitro studies with wild-type E. ictaluri and a ureG::kan urease mutant strain indicated that E. ictaluri is significantly tolerant of acid conditions (pH 3.0) but that urease activity is not required for acid tolerance. Growth studies demonstrated that E. ictaluri is unable to grow at pH 5 in the absence of urea but is able to elevate the environmental pH from pH 5 to pH 7 and grow when exogenous urea is available. Substantial production of ammonia was observed for wild-type E. ictaluri in vitro in the presence of urea at low pH, and optimal activity occurred at pH 2 to 3. No ammonia production was detected for the urease mutant. Proteomic analysis with two-dimensional gel electrophoresis indicated that urease proteins are expressed at both pH 5 and pH 7, although urease activity is detectable only at pH 5. Urease was not required for initial invasion of catfish but was required for subsequent proliferation and virulence. Urease was not required for initial uptake or survival in head kidney-derived macrophages but was required for intracellular replication. Intracellular replication of wild-type E. ictaluri was significantly enhanced when urea was present, indicating that urease plays an important role in intracellular survival and replication, possibly through neutralization of the acidic environment of the phagosome.
The Relationship between Management Traits and the Commitment of IT Engineers to their Organizations

Since the demise of the “dot-com boom”, information technology (IT) engineers have been reluctant about changing jobs when these opportunities do arise. The result is unmotivated engineers reluctantly staying with their employing organizations. This paper investigates the relationship between management traits and the commitment of information technology engineers to their organizations. Fifty seven engineers participated in the study. The results showed that engineers whose managers possess high aggregate management traits display high levels of identification commitment. There was little or no relationship between aggregate management traits and compliance commitment. Respondents whose managers possess high aggregate management trait reported low intention to leave. The study also found that respondents with high levels of identification commitment have low intent to leave their respective companies, and those with high identification commitment demonstrated high levels of compliance commitment. A relationship could not be established between compliance commitment and intent to leave.
Impacts of a nuclear war in South Asia on soybean and maize production in the Midwest United States

Crop production would decline in the Midwestern United States from climate change following a regional nuclear conflict between India and Pakistan. Using Agro-IBIS, a dynamic agroecosystem model, we simulated the response of maize and soybeans to cooler, drier, and darker conditions from war-related smoke. We combined observed climate conditions for the states of Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, and Missouri with output from a general circulation climate model simulation that injected 5 Tg of elemental carbon into the upper troposphere. Both maize and soybeans showed notable yield reductions for a decade after the event. Maize yields declined 10–40 % while soybean yields dropped 2–20 %. Temporal variation in magnitude of yield for both crops generally followed the variation in climatic anomalies, with the greatest decline in the 5 years following the 5 Tg event and then less, but still substantial yield decline, for the rest of the decade. Yield reduction for both crops was linked to changes in growing period duration and, less markedly, to reduced precipitation and altered maximum daily temperature during the growing season. The seasonal average of daily maximum temperature anomalies, combined with precipitation and radiation changes, had a quadratic relationship to yield differences; small (0 °C) and large (−3 °C) maximum temperature anomalies combined with other changes led to increased yield loss, but medium changes (−1 °C) had small to neutral effects on yield. The exact timing of the temperature changes during the various crop growth phases also had an important effect.
Expression of herpes simplex virus glycoprotein D on antigen presenting cells infected with vaccinia recombinants and protective immunity.

We studied the effect of the temporal regulation of herpes simplex virus (HSV) type 1 glycoprotein D (gD-1) expression in Ia+ epidermal cells (EC) and macrophages on virus specific immunity and protection from HSV-2 challenge. gD-1 was expressed on the surface of cells infected with a vaccinia recombinant containing gD-1 under the control of an early vaccinia virus promoter (VP176). It was not expressed in cells infected with a recombinant (VP254) in which gD-1 is controlled by a late vaccinia virus promoter. BALB/c mice immunized with both recombinants seroconverted to HSV-2 as determined by neutralization. However, HSV specific delayed type hypersensitivity (DTH) responses were significantly (p<0.025) higher in VP176 than VP254 immunized animals. Both VP176 and VP254 immunized mice were protected from severe neurological disease due to HSV-2 challenge at 14 days post immunization, but long term protection was observed only in VP176 immunized mice.
Single-carrier space-time block-coded transmissions over frequency-selective fading channels

We study space-time block coding for single-carrier block transmissions over frequency-selective multipath fading channels. We propose novel transmission schemes that achieve a maximum diversity of order N/sub t/N/sub r/(L+1) in rich scattering environments, where N/sub t/ (N/sub r/) is the number of transmit (receive) antennas, and L is the order of the finite impulse response (FIR) channels. We show that linear receiver processing collects full antenna diversity, while the overall complexity remains comparable to that of single-antenna transmissions over frequency-selective channels. We develop transmissions enabling maximum-likelihood optimal decoding based on Viterbi's ( 1998) algorithm, as well as turbo decoding. With single receive and two transmit antennas, the proposed transmission format is capacity achieving. Simulation results demonstrate that joint exploitation of space-multipath diversity leads to significantly improved performance in the presence of frequency-selective fading channels.
Economic Integration and Country Allocation in Europe

The impact of European integration—at the company and macro levels—on correlations between stock market returns is analyzed. A new procedure based on randomization methodology is introduced to test for the absence of country-systematic differences in the return patterns of two stock markets. The results indicate that stock market integration in Europe is not yet complete, but the comovement of European markets has increased substantially and is likely to continue to grow. Therefore, top-down managers of European equity portfolios need to look for a new strategy other than country-based allocation.
A Qualitative Study of Limited Access Permit Dental Hygienists in Oregon

Many states have adopted alternative oral health care delivery systems that include expanded roles for dental hygienists. This qualitative study was designed to evaluate the impact of the Limited Access Permit (LAP) legislation in Oregon and to understand the relationship between dental hygienists and dentists within this delivery system. The snowball sampling technique was used to identify LAP dental hygienists and collaborating dentists. The snowball sampling technique begins with the identification of a known expert in the field who serves as the initial "sampling unit." Subsequent individuals are then recommended, or nominated, to the investigator by the initial study participant and are selected based upon the need to fill in or extend information. The final sample consisted of seven LAP dental hygienists and two collaborating dentists. Interviews, field observations, and document analysis were utilized for data collection. Factors that led to the creation of LAP dental hygiene practice, current LAP practice, personal characteristics, relationships between LAP dental hygienists and dentists, and the impact that LAP dental hygienists have had on access to oral health care were explored. Data revealed that the Oregon legislature twice expanded the LAP scope of practice to increase access to oral health care services. LAP dental hygienists practice in community and school-based settings. Common characteristics of LAP dental hygienists include entrepreneurship, lifelong learning, and a commitment to underserved populations. The findings from this study indicate that LAP dental hygienists and collaborating dentists have positive relationships. No evidence of lower quality of care in unsupervised dental hygiene practices was found. However, the impact of the LAP legislation is still unknown due to the limited numbers of LAP dental hygienists and the early nature of the LAP practice.
Human and simian immunodeficiency virus capsid proteins are major viral determinants of early, postentry replication blocks in simian cells

The cells of most Old World monkey species exhibit early, postentry restrictions on infection by human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) but not by simian immunodeficiency virus of macaques (SIV(mac)). Conversely, SIV(mac), but not HIV-1, infection is blocked in most New World monkey cells. By using chimeric HIV-1/SIV(mac) viruses capable of a single round of infection, we demonstrated that a major viral determinant of this restriction is the capsid (CA) protein. The efficiency of early events following HIV-1 and SIV(mac) entry is apparently determined by the interaction of the incoming viral CA and species-specific host factors.
Anwendungsszenarien und neue Versorgungsformen

Ich freue mich, dass der Munchner Kreis das Thema Telemonitoring zum Inhalt dieser Konferenz gemacht hat. Die Folien von Herrn Goetz eben waren eine hervorragende Einfuhrung. Ist die Zeit reif? Investitionssicherheit, die ganzen Anforderungen - das ist genau mein Thema.
Higher Densities of Distributed Pheromone Sources Provide Disruption of Codling Moth (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) Superior to That of Lower Densities of Clumped Sources

Field experiments quantified the effect of synthetic pheromone release-site density and distribution on 1) orientational disruption of male codling moths, Cydia pomonella (L.) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae), to pheromone-baited traps; and 2) fruit injury. A clustering test varied pheromone release-site density from 0 to 1,000 Isomate-C Plus dispensers per ha while maintaining the total number of dispensers at 1,000. Percentage of orientational disruption of pheromone-baited traps increased significantly as a function of increasing density of release sites. Fruit injury decreased as the density of release sites increased and was lowest in plots treated with Isomate-C Plus dispensers distributed as 1,000 point sources per ha. We also manipulated point source density of 0.1-ml paraffin-wax drops containing 5% codlemone [(E,E)-8,10-dodecadien-1-ol], and thus the total amount of pheromone deployed per hectare. The percentage of disruption of traps baited with either 1.0- or 0.1-mg codlemone lures increased with increasing density of wax drops deployed. Both trapping and field observations confirmed that wax drops were attractive to male codling moths, suggesting that disruption was mediated by competitive attraction. Development of dispensers that can be mechanically applied at high densities has potential to improve the efficacy and economics of codling moth disruption at high population densities.
Turner et al. Reply to "Emergence of the Same Successful Clade among Distinct Populations of emm89 Streptococcus pyogenes in Multiple Geographic Regions".

We are pleased that Friaes et al. have elected to examine emm 89 strains in Portugal (1); it was our hope that other groups would evaluate emm 89 strains from elsewhere, using either whole-genome sequencing (WGS) or the PCR method that we described in our report (2). Subsequent to our publication (2), Zhu et al. used WGS to identify variants of the nga - slo promoter among emm 89 isolates in the United States, Finland, and Iceland (3) indicative of the new emergent emm 89 clade in these countries. Although they did not use WGS, Friaes et al. demonstrated that it is likely that the emergent emm 89 clade that we identified in the United Kingdom and elsewhere is also present in Portugal (1). Friaes and colleagues have noted that the focus on different aspects of emm 89 strains in the various studies (2–4) makes it hard to determine if the same clade had disseminated in different regions. In our original report, we aimed to provide a single comprehensive description of all six regions of recombination that characterize this emergent emm 89 clade (2). Two of these regions, the nga - slo locus (region 2) and the hasABC capsule locus (region 6), were highlighted because of their phenotypic significance; it was beyond the scope of our paper to undertake in-depth analysis of all of the regions. We did, however, clearly demonstrate enhanced NGA-SLO toxin expression and stated that this could be due to a single polymorphism or several polymorphisms within the nga - slo locus and promoter or elsewhere in the genome. Indeed, it may be misleading to focus on a single region or multiple regions of recombination without understanding of the collective impact of all of the changes. In …
On the observation of intervalence charge transfer bands in hydrogen-bonded mixed-valence complexes.

Ruthenium clusters of the type [Ru3(μ3-O)(OAc)6(CO)(L)(nic)], where L = 4-dimethylaminopyridine (dmap) and nic = isonicotinic acid, form hydrogen-bonded mixed-valence dimers upon a single electron reduction. Electrochemical responses show two overlapping reduction waves, indicating the presence of a thermodynamically stable mixed-valence dimer with considerable electronic coupling across the hydrogen bond. Electronic spectra of the singly reduced hydrogen-bonded mixed-valence dimer reveal two intervalence charge transfer bands in the near-infrared region consistent with a Robin-Day class II system. These bands are assigned as metal-to-metal and metal-to-bridge charge transfer, and their behavior is best described by a semiclassical three state model. Infrared spectroscopy suggests localized behavior indicating electron transfer between the two clusters is slower than 1010 s–1.
Anterior surgical management of single-level cervical disc disease: a cost-effectiveness analysis.

STUDY DESIGN Cost-effectiveness analysis with decision analysis and meta-analysis. OBJECTIVE To determine the relative cost-effectiveness of anterior cervical discectomy with fusion (with autograft, allograft, or spacers), anterior cervical discectomy without fusion (ACD), and cervical disc replacement (CDR) for the treatment of 1-level cervical disc disease. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA There is debate as to the optimal anterior surgical strategy to treat single-level cervical disc disease. Surgical strategies include 3 techniques of anterior cervical discectomy with fusion (autograft, allograft, or spacer-assisted fusion), ACD, and CDR. Several controlled trials have compared these treatments but have yielded mixed results. Decision analysis provides a structure for making a quantitative comparison of the costs and outcomes of each treatment. METHODS A literature search was performed and yielded 156 case series that fulfilled our search criteria describing nearly 17,000 cases. Data were abstracted from these publications and pooled meta-analytically to estimate the incidence of various outcomes, including index-level and adjacent-level reoperation. A decision analytic model calculated the expected costs in US dollars and outcomes in quality-adjusted life years for a typical adult patient with 1-level cervical radiculopathy subjected to each of the 5 approaches. RESULTS At 5 years postoperatively, patients who had undergone ACD alone had significantly (P < 0.001) more quality-adjusted life years (4.885 ± 0.041) than those receiving other treatments. Patients with ACD also exhibited highly significant (P < 0.001) differences in costs, incurring the lowest societal costs ($16,558 ± $539). Follow-up data were inadequate for comparison beyond 5 years. CONCLUSION The results of our decision analytic model indicate advantages for ACD, both in effectiveness and costs, over other strategies. Thus, ACD is a cost-effective alternative to anterior cervical discectomy with fusion and CDR in patients with single-level cervical disc disease. Definitive conclusions about degenerative changes after ACD and adjacent-level disease after CDR await longer follow-up. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE 4.
Hyperspheres in Spaces of Constant Curvature

(1969). Hyperspheres in Spaces of Constant Curvature. The American Mathematical Monthly: Vol. 76, No. 1, pp. 43-44.
Decreased Pulmonary Arterial Proportional Pulse Pressure After Pulmonary Artery Catheter Optimization for Advanced Heart Failure Is Associated With Adverse Clinical Outcomes

Abstract Background This study evaluated the novel index pulmonary arterial proportional pulse pressure (PAPP) in the Evaluation Study of Congestive Heart Failure and Pulmonary Artery Catheterization Effectiveness (ESCAPE) trial. Methods and Results Multivariable Cox proportional hazards and logistical regression were used to model 6-month death; death, transplantation, or left ventricular assist device (DTLVAD); and DTLVAD or heart failure rehospitalization (DTLVADHF) with respect to PAPP. Among 175 patients with final hemodynamic data, 15.5% and 33.9%, respectively, died in optimal PAPP (PAPP >0.50) and nonoptimal PAPP (PAPP ≤0.50) groups ( P = .008), and PAPP was independently associated with death, DTLVAD, and DTLVADHF ( P P P = .01) in the Cox model, with no other clinical, laboratory, or hemodynamic parameters significant after adjustment for PAPP. Conclusions PAPP, a novel parameter for right-sided proportional pulse pressure, is an independent and powerful predictor of adverse clinical outcomes in advanced HF. Increased PAPP promises to be a useful therapeutic target in patients with pulmonary arterial pressure assessment.
Flat-Topology High-Throughput Compute Node With AWGR-Based Optical-Interconnects

This study presents simulation studies on the execution time and energy consumption of optical multi-socket boards with on-chip, all-to-all, and contention-less arrayed waveguide grating routers-based interconnection. This study considers throughput and energy-efficiency optimizations based on dynamic voltage and frequency scaling under realistic, shared memory, and cache-coherent PARSEC benchmarking traffic. The benchmark results show how a low-latency, optical inter-socket interconnection can provide significant execution time reduction, and up to 3× energy savings when using dynamic variable bandwidth communication techniques when compared to an electronic baseline. The proposed architecture can be used as “building block” for future energy-aware large-scale systems.
EVALUATING SWORDS: INTRODUCTION AND TRANSLATION OF A HOW-TO GUIDE FROM THE HAN-XIN PERIOD

This article introduces and translates an excavated text from the Juyan region here referred to as “Evaluating Swords.” Dating to the Han-Xin period, it instructs its reader on how make a general determination of the quality of steel swords based on a visual inspection. The introduction to the translation discusses the background of the text, its present condition, and the problems of orthography and usage that complicate its understanding. A transcription and additional textual and interpretive commentary accompany the English translation of the text.
A comparison of instrumental techniques at differentiating outcrops of Edwards Plateau chert at the local scale

Abstract This study compares two widely accepted analytical techniques, Laser Ablation-Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) and Instrument Neutron Activation Analysis (INAA). These techniques are compared and contrasted to determine the composition of intra-formation Edwards Plateau chert. As a case study, three unique chert outcrops only several hundred meters apart (hyper-local (Speer 2014)) at the Gault Site (41BL323) in central Texas were tested with each of the techniques. The differences of each instrumental technique on Edwards Plateau chert is assessed using the geochemical data retrieved. The geochemical data were evaluated with multivariate statistics in order to determine which instrumental technique is most effective at distinguishing between these three unique Edwards Plateau chert outcrops. This study also seeks to determine if either of the instrumental techniques can effectively separate out geochemical differences of Edwards Plateau chert outcrops.
Interaction of diuretics with thiols and cell membranes in kidney tubules

Interest in renal thiol groups is related in large part to the potent diuretic action of several organic mercurial compounds. Following administration of both diuretic and nondiuretic organic mercurial compounds there occurs a reduction in protein-bound sulphydryl groups of the renal tubule (Farah & Kruse, 1960). The diuretic response and the corresponding reduction of protein-bound sulphydryl groups are both reversed by administration of the dithiol, dimercaprol (Cafruny & Farah, 1956). This observation has implicated renal thiol groups in the diuretic response to organic mercurial compounds.
Produktionsplanung und Vielfalt der Produkte

Wir haben soeben gesehen, das eine integrierte Gesellschaft wahrscheinlich eine grosere Auswahl an Konsumgutern fordern wird, als man mit den gegenwartig vorherrschenden Produktionsmethoden zur Verfugung stellen kann, und das auserdem die Produktionskosten heute durch den schnellen Wechsel der Mode gesteigert werden. In diesem Kapitel wollen wir nun zeigen, das bestimmte Veranderungen unserer heutigen Produktionsmethoden geeignet waren, eine grosere Auswahl an Endprodukten zu erreichen und gleichzeitig die Storungen, die durch das Schwanken der Mode hervorgerufen werden, zu verringern. Der Leser, der an der Erorterung dieses fast rein technischen Problems nicht interessiert ist, kann das vorliegende Kapitel ubergehen und gleich mit dem folgenden fortfahren.
Equivariant exponentially harmonic maps between manifolds with metrics of signatures

Harmonic maps and exponentially harmonic maps are different. We study equivariant exponentially harmonic maps between warped product manifolds. We then investigate equivariant exponentially harmonic maps from manifolds with metrics of (p,q)-signatures into manifolds with metrics of (p′,q′)-signatures, obtain the reduction theorem, and provide a few examples.
High-Performance Hybrid Bismuth–Carbon Nanotube Based Contrast Agent for X-ray CT Imaging

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have been used for a plethora of biomedical applications, including their use as delivery vehicles for drugs, imaging agents, proteins, DNA, and other materials. Here, we describe the synthesis and characterization of a new CNT-based contrast agent (CA) for X-ray computed tomography (CT) imaging. The CA is a hybrid material derived from ultrashort single-walled carbon nanotubes (20–80 nm long, US-tubes) and Bi(III) oxo-salicylate clusters with four Bi(III) ions per cluster (Bi4C). The element bismuth was chosen over iodine, which is the conventional element used for CT CAs in the clinic today due to its high X-ray attenuation capability and its low toxicity, which makes bismuth a more-promising element for new CT CA design. The new CA contains 20% by weight bismuth with no detectable release of bismuth after a 48 h challenge by various biological media at 37 °C, demonstrating the presence of a strong interaction between the two components of the hybrid material. The performance of ...
Studying the effect of bending on the performance of flexible dual band microstrip monopole antenna

This paper investigates the effects of bending on the performance of a flexible dual-band printed monopole antenna designed to work for GPS, WLAN, and WiMAX applications. The antenna is printed on a Polyimide substrate with a relative permittivity of 4.3 and thickness of 25 pm. The antenna is fed by a coplanar waveguide transmission line to enhance the impedance matching over the wide operating bandwidth. The dual bands are (1.53–1.67) GHz and (2.95–5.8) GHz. The simulated and measured values are in good agreement in term of Sn before and after bending. The radiation patterns show excellent performance of the antenna in the applications under consideration. The antenna achieves a maximum gain of 2 dB over the first band and 3.6 dB over the second band.
The immediate effects of foot self-massage in combination with exercise using tennis balls on balance performance in community-dwelling older adults

Objectives: To determine immediate effects of foot self-massage in combination with exercise using tennis balls on balance performance in community-dwelling older adults Materials and methods: This study was a quasi-experimental before/after study without a control group. Thirty healthy elderly adults both male and female (average age: 69.23±7.00 years, BMI: 23.05±3.82 kg/m2) were participated. Participants performed foot self-massage combined with tennis ball exercise for 10 positions under researcher’s supervision. Timed up and go test (TUG) and functional reach test (FRT) were used to assess functional balance before and after foot massage and exercise. Participants also provided satisfaction survey on the equipment and foot massage with exercise program after post-test. Data was analyzed by Wilcoxon signed-rank test and dependent t-test to compare differences between pre- and post-test of TUG and FRT respectively. An alpha level of p <0.05 was used to test statistical significance. Results: The results presented that TUG significantly decreased at the end of the study (pre-test: 11.06±2.72 s, post-test: 9.92±2.65 s, p =0.000). FRT also showed a significant increase between pre- and the post-test (pre-test:26.58±6.66 cm, post-test:32.28±6.4 cm, p =0.000). Survey score was 4.53±0.63 out of 5 which classified as very satisfied. Conclusions: Findings from this study demonstrated that foot self-massage combined with tennis ball exercise may improve functional balance and also build comfort for foot in elderly.
Vocabulary and Notation

We begin by introducing some of the vocabulary used throughout this book. A human brain consists of approximately 100 billion neurons (nerve cells), and perhaps an equal number of glia or glial cells (auxiliary cells) [5]. A neuron consists of a cell body or soma, and branching projections, the dendrites (input units) and the axon (output unit). Figure 1.1 shows a caricature. For a depiction of real cells in the hippocampus, a brain structure that is central in memory formation and spatial navigation, see Fig. 1.2.
Invasive Lobular Breast Cancer

Invasive lobular breast cancer originates in the milk-producing lobules of the breast and is the second most common form of breast cancer. PET/MR imaging is less sensitive for the detection of invasive lobular carcinoma than for that of invasive ductal carcinoma. Osseous lesions are usually sclerotic appearing with low or no FDG uptake.