cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Self-monitoring may be necessary for successful weight control

The relationship between self-monitoring and weight control was examined closely by analyzing 18 weeks of data for 56 participants in a long-term cognitive behavioral weight-loss program. The percentage of subjects who monitored consistently, which monitoring variables were most related to weight change, and the effect of variability in monitoring on weight change were examined. Approximately 2/3 of the subjects monitored food consumption for the entire day more than half of the days; approximately 1/4 did not monitor on most days. Monitoring—any food eaten, all foods eaten, time food was eaten, quantity of food eaten, and grams of fat consumed—was positively correlated with weight change. Not monitoring at all was negatively associated with weight change. More consistent monitors lost more weight and participants lost much more weight during their best, compared to their worst, weeks of monitoring. These results support the notions that self-monitoring, and perhaps “obsessive-compulsive self-regulation,” are necessary for successful weight control.
DNA motions in the nucleosome core particle

We have used time-resolved triplet state anisotropy decay techniques to measure the conformational flexibility of DNA in the nucleosome. From these measurements we conclude that, in a nucleosome, the DNA helix experiences substantial internal flexibility, which occurs with a time constant near 30 nsec. We find that our data can be fit well by a modified version of the Barkley-Zimm model for DNA motion, allowing only DNA twisting motions and the overall tumbling of the nucleosome. That fit yields a calculated torsional rigidity equal to 1.8 X 10(-19) erg X cm, a value equal to that measured for uncomplexed DNA. We conclude from such similarity that large, fast twisting motions of the DNA helix persist, nearly unaltered, when DNA is wrapped to form a nucleosome.
Diagnostic Evaluation of Women with Suspected Coronary Artery Disease

Women are less likely than men to be referred for coronary angiography. It is unclear whether this reflects good clinical judgment or agenda bias. The decision to refer a patient for an invasive evaluation depends upon the prevalence of disease and the population in question, the prognosis of patients with coronary artery disease and the response of these patients of the available therapies. This paper reviews the statistical basis for clinical decision making and the available epidemiologic and risk factor data in women with suspected coronary artery disease. The results of noninvasive testing in women are also reviewed. Finally, guidelines are suggested to help determine when a woman with suspected coronary artery disease should be referred for coronary angiography.
Nicotinic—dopaminergic relationships and radial-arm maze performance in rats

Accurate performance on the radial-arm maze is dependent upon the integrity of nicotinic-cholinergic, muscarinic-cholinergic, and dopaminergic systems. Pharmacological blockade of these systems with mecamylamine, scopolamine, or haloperidol impairs choice accuracy in the maze. We have previously demonstrated that the performance deficit caused by muscarinic blockade is enhanced by coadministration of the nicotinic antagonist, mecamylamine, and is diminished by coadministration of the dopamine antagonist, haloperidol. In the present study, it was found that the choice accuracy deficit produced by nicotinic blockade is enhanced, not antagonized, by coadministration of haloperidol. Thus, although both nicotinic and muscarinic cholinergic systems are involved in radial-arm maze performance and antagonists of these receptors are additive in the deficits they cause, nicotinic and muscarinic interactions with dopaminergic systems are opposite in nature.
Vibronic Participation of the Bridging Ligand in Electron Transfer and Delocalization: New Application of a Three-State Model in Pyrazine-Bridged Mixed-Valence Complexes of Trinuclear Ruthenium Clusters

The importance of the bridging ligand in mediating electronic communication and delocalization between charge centers in near-delocalized mixed-valence complexes is investigated in the specific context of pyrazine-bridged, hexanuclear ruthenium complexes that display electron-transfer rates on the order of 1011−1012 s-1, as observed by partial coalescence of infrared bands. It is shown that a three-state vibronic model explicitly including the electronic and vibrational participation of the bridging ligand is needed to account for infrared and resonance Raman evidence of vibronic activity in symmetric modes of the bridging pyrazine ligand. The specific molecular orbital and normal-mode basis for this application of the three-state model is presented using experimental observations and density functional calculations on model trinuclear ruthenium clusters. An important conclusion of the application of this model is that infrared activity of symmetric bridging ligand modes in mixed-valence complexes is not ...
The technology of potato granule manufacture

The production of potato granules, a dehydrated mashed potato product, is in line with a growing trend in the processing of foods toward concentration and improved convenience for use. Several methods for producing potato granules have been developed during the past 30 years. The only one of these methods currently in commercial use in this country is the “add-back” process. This process involves a recycling (adding back) of dried potato granules and mixing the recycled material with freshly mashed potatoes to form a friable moist mixture below 40 per cent moisture content. The moist mixture is held for a period during which moisture equilibration takes place and a reduction in starch solubility and swelling capacity occur. After drying under suitable conditions, the individual cells remain separated and substantially undamaged. Physical damage to the product may cause release of free soluble starch, which manifests itself as an undesirable rubberiness in the reconstituted product. Investigations have revealed relationships of several variables in the process to this specific attribute of quality and to others (e.g., product yield and package density) and have provided useful information for process adjustment to improve the acceptability of potato granules.
The role of coastal zones in global biogeochemical cycles

The unique and dynamic coastal ocean is a significant source and sink of a multitude of atmospheric species of importance to global biogeochemical cycles and climate. The transition zone between land and ocean, including the atmosphere as a medium for the exchange of matter and energy, is characterized by a strong physical-biogeochemical coupling, resulting in an inherently complex system. Important biogeochemical exchanges occurring in the coastal zone involve water, nutrients (e.g., nitrogen, phosphorous, iron, and silica),salts (e.g., chlorine,bromine,and iodine), carbon (e.g.,dissolved organic carbon (DOC),dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC), particulate organic carbon (POC), and carbon dioxide (CO2), reactive organic trace gases (e.g., nitrogenous, halogenated, and sulfurous hydrocarbons), and inorganic trace gases (e.g., nitrous oxide, N2O). Coastal zones are of particular importance to humans, as they are characterized by high per area productivity and are responsible for the majority of the world's fish catch. In addition, coastal ecosystems play an important role in the global carbon cycle as large fluxes of carbon and carbon-related tracers move between the land, ocean, and atmosphere in these regions. Most of the world's population lives near coastal zones, and anthropogenic changes and related climate change in these regions can pose serious consequences not only for fisheries but also for global biogeochemical cycles.
On-characteristics of planar SCR's with regard to the use of these devices in monolithic circuits

Abstract Planar SCR's consisting of a vertical NPN transistor combined with a lateral PNP transistor are highly unsymmetrical as regards geometry and current gain. When used with a subcollector—a well-known design detail in monolithic integrated transistor technologies—such a structure shows peculiar switching properties, in particular a deterioration of the on-characteristics at higher currents and a reduction of holding current. The resulting design implications for integrated circuits with SCR's are discussed.
Influence of menstrual cycle on volunteering behaviour.

RANDOM population sampling is rarely achieved in human research. Rosenthal and Rosnow1 have concluded that human behavioural science is largely the science of punctual college sophomore volunteers. Volunteers typically have more education, higher occupational status, earlier birth position, lower chronological age, higher need for approval and lower authoritarianism than nonvolunteers2–9. We report evidence here to suggest that the volunteering behaviour of college women varies with the stage of their menstrual cycle. This implies that many experiments which report perceptual, cognitive or physiological response differences between the sexes may be biassed in systematic fashion by sampling error.
Targeted therapies in systemic lupus erythematosus: successes, failures and future

Purpose The author9s goal is to review recent phase III clinical trials in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), with emphasis on outcomes and on mechanisms by which the experimental drugs/biological agents suppress autoimmunity. Methods Prospective, randomised, controlled clinical trials in SLE published in the past 3 years identified in a PubMed search were reviewed, as well as abstracts describing similar but currently unpublished clinical trials presented at international meetings 2008–10. Conclusions Two interventions have been proved in large multicentre prospective trials to be useful in the management of SLE: mycophenolate mofetil (equivalent to cyclophosphamide with a similar safety profile) and anti-BLyS (Benlysta), which was superior to placebo when added to background immunosuppression and did not appear to increase toxicity. The anti-BLyS trial outcome measure was an anchored composite index that required reduction of disease activity measure by the systemic lupus erythematosus disease activity index. Other trials that failed or the results of which are pending are also discussed.
Methoxychlor in Chicken Breeder Diets

Abstract The feeding of 25, 100, 250, 500, 1000, 2500, and 5000 p.p.m. methoxychlor to caged Single Comb White Leghorn pullets for a 16-week period had no effect on body weight gains, egg production, feed consumption, livability, fertility and hatchability, egg weight or eggshell thickness as compared with the controls. The fertilizing capacity of cockerels fed either 500 or 5000 p.p.m. methoxychlor in an 8-week period did not differ from that of the control males. Methoxychlor accumulation in egg contents reached an equilibrium concentration of 0.4 percent the dietary level after 3 weeks feeding. No detectable residues were found in fat of birds fed 25 p.p.m. or in eggs from birds fed 25, 100, or 250 p.p.m. of methoxychlor. Egg residues were less than 0.5 p.p.m. in all groups 3 weeks after the hens were returned to control feed. Residues in the carcass fat were six- to eight-fold higher than that of egg contents.
Solution Properties of Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes

Naked metallic and semiconducting single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) were dissolved in organic solutions by derivatization with thionychloride and octadecylamine. Both ionic (charge transfer) and covalent solution-phase chemistry with concomitant modulation of the SWNT band structure were demonstrated. Solution-phase near-infrared spectroscopy was used to study the effects of chemical modifications on the band gaps of the SWNTs. Reaction of soluble SWNTs with dichlorocarbene led to functionalization of the nanotube walls.
Infant Robotic Bilateral Upper Urinary Tract Surgery

We describe a case of robot-assisted laparoscopic bilateral upper urinary tract surgery in a 4-month-old infant for complex bilateral upper urinary tract duplication anomalies.
A Bibliometric Analysis of Higher Education Literature.

The bibliometric “laws” formulated by Bradford and Lotka have been applied to the literatures of a number of disciplines. In this instance, the laws are applied to citations to journals in 569 papers on higher education. Bradford's Law focuses on scatter, that is, the distribution of use of items; Lotka's Law concentrates on the productivity of authors. The conformity of higher education literature, as represented by the database used, is not perfect with the two bibliometric laws, but the results do suggest that the underlying concepts of the laws may well have applicability to examination of the discipline. A further suggestion is that this kind of examination has implications with regard to the means by which scholarship is communicated.
Use of allogeneic bone marrow labeled with neomycin resistance gene to examine bone marrow-derived chimerism in experimental organ transplantation.

Abstract Posttransplant infusion of viable donor bone marrow cells (DBMC) has been shown in our previous studies to promote acceptance of incompatible kidney allografts in rhesus monkeys after treatment with polyclonal antithymocyte globulin to deplete peripheral T-lymphocytes. In this nonhuman primate model, the infusion of the DBMC is requisite for the induction of functional graft tolerance and specific MLR and CTLp unresponsiveness, although the relevant role and fate of bone marrow-derived chimeric cells is uncertain. Standard immunological and molecular techniques applied to this monkey model are unable to differentiate between chimeric cells derived from the infused DBMC and those derived from allograft-borne passenger leukocyte emigrants. To distinguish chimerism due to infused DBMC, we transduced DBMC with a functional neomycin resistance gene (Neo r ) using the retroviral vector pHSG-Neo. Neo r -transduced BMC were infused into recipients approximately 2 wk after kidney transplantation and treatment with rabbit antithymocyte globulin. No maintenance immunosuppressive drugs were given. Genomic DNA isolated from peripheral blood leukocytes was used to monitor the presence of Neo r -positive cells. Tissue samples obtained at necropsy also were assessed for Neo r -positive chimeric cells. The presence of DBMC-derived chimerism was assessed by polymerase chain reaction using Neo r sequence-specific primers (PCR-SSP). Chimerism was detectable in recipient tissues at various times for up to 6 mo after DBMC infusion. These studies using gene transduction methodology indicate that a stable genetic marker can provide capability to examine DBMC-derived chimerism for prolonged periods in a non-human primate model. This approach should facilitate future studies in preclinical models to study the role and type of chimeric cell lineages in relation to functional allograft tolerance.
Do Patients Want Control over their Own Health Care? A Review of Measures, Findings, and Research Issues

Across a wide variety of medical settings, patients report that they want detailed information about their condition and their treatment whereas stated desire for input into decision making is skewed more in the direction of physician-only or at least collaborative decision-making. These results, along with the contextual and individual difference factors associated with increased willingness to relinquish control (lower educational level, more serious illness, increasing age), indicate that patients want to assume control if they feel it will be beneficial to them to do so. The findings, however, are based largely on the relationship of patients' mean scores to arbitrarily determined scale midpoints on measures with little or no criterion-related validity. These measures also show insufficient overlap with better validated measures of desire for health care control, which indicate more normally distributed scores and a broader range of individual differences among respondents. Findings are discussed in terms of the need for further research on the structure (dimensionality) and stability of the construct desire for health care control and issues involved in conducting needed criterion-related validational work.
“I Listened to Korean Society. I Always Heard that Women Should be this Way …”: The Negotiation and Construction of Gendered Identities in Claiming a Dominant Language and Race in the United States

Based on a year-long, qualitative study of five East Asian women, pre-service teachers enrolled in U.S. Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) teacher education programs, this article examines one Korean woman's journey as she navigates through her multiple identities as a daughter, spouse, mother, and language teacher inside and outside of Korea and the United States. In narrative accounts audiotaped during in-depth interviews conducted over a period of seven months, Han Nah shared experiences that have been shaped by her gendered identities while also being transformed by these identities. Han Nah's identities are viewed as a site of struggle in multiple contexts: (1) Han Nah was influenced by how her parents positioned her as a traditional Korean woman in the larger Korean patriarchal society, which in turn impacted her own decisions navigating through both Korean and U.S. educational and professional contexts; and (2) Han Nah's “mothering” and “spousal” identities influenced and somew...
Modulation of T Cell Proliferation by Stimulation of the β-Adrenergic Receptor: Lack of Correlation between Inhibition of T Cell Proliferation and cAMP Accumulation

The presence of beta-adrenergic receptors on T cells suggests the potential for modulating T cell function upon binding of an appropriate agonist. Utilizing highly purified human T cells we assessed the proliferative capacity of T cells upon stimulation with immobilized anti-CD3 monoclonal antibody (mAb) in the presence of the beta-adrenergic agonist isoproterenol (ISO). The proliferative response of T cells and their CD4+, CD8+, or CD45RO+ subsets to anti-CD3 mAb was inhibited in a dose-dependent manner by ISO. In parallel experiments, various concentrations of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) were added to anti-CD3 mAb-stimulated T cells and their subsets. Similar dose-dependent effects were observed with the important exception that PGE2 was considerably more immunosuppressive than ISO. The results also showed that PGE2 was a much more effective inhibitor of anti-CD3 mAb-induced interleukin 2 synthesis by T cells than was ISO. Because both the beta-adrenergic and PGE2 receptors are linked to adenylyl cyclase, the magnitude and kinetics of cAMP accumulation in T cells and their subsets were determined after stimulation with ISO or PGE2. The results show that PGE2 induced a greater and more sustained accumulation of cAMP than ISO. Moreover, these differences could not be ascribed to differential modulation of cAMP phosphodiesterase activity. Correlation of the degree of inhibition of anti-CD3 mAb-induced T cell proliferation by PGE2 or ISO with the level of accumulation of cAMP in these stimulated T cells indicate that, on an equimolar basis, cAMP elicited by PGE2 is more immunosuppressive than that induced by ISO. These results suggest that qualitative differences in cAMP accumulation in T cells have an important role in the subsequent modulation of anti-CD3 mAb-induced T cell proliferation.
THE POWER FUNCTION OF CARBONATION

. The relationship between the physical carbonation level of carbonated spring water and the magnitude of carbonation perception was determined by a trained panel using two assessing conditions, swallowing and expectoration. Spring water was carbonated to 5 carbonation levels. Panelists were asked to rate their perception of carbonation intensity by using magnitude estimation. The power function equations were established with high correlation coefficients for both assessing conditions. The exponents, 2.79 (swallowing) and 2.65 (expectoration), suggested a sharp increase of perceived CO2 magnitude with increasing concentration. There was no significant difference between exponents resulting from the two assessing conditions. Therefore, the response should not be affected if samples are expectorated in studies of carbonation perception.
CEBPE activation in PML-RARA cells by arsenic.

To the editor: In a recent perspective, Ablain and de The challenged the classic model of acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL), whereby differentiation-impairment in lineage-committed progenitors causes self-renewal, and instead proposed that APL arises from deregulation of stem cell self-renewal
HIV DNA Vaccination: Advances and Experiences

The world is in dire need of a vaccine against HIV. Several approaches for vaccine development have been taken to eradicate this deadly virus. DNA vaccines in particular are being considered as prime candidates for this task. The ease with which they can be molecularly manipulated, compounded by their immunogenicity, safety, and simple and reproducible manufacture, have put DNA vaccines in the vaccine spotlight. Co-transfection of plasmids encoding HIV antigens, with those having the potential to veer the immune response in the desired direction (cytokines, chemokines, and co-stimulatory molecules), have shown promise. In addition, manipulation of codons of the HIV structural genes in the plasmid, to alter the dependence on rev have shown promising results. DNA vaccines are proving their efficacy in challenge studies in non-human primates. The first generation of DNA vaccines seem to be well tolerated in humans. In addition to being safe, they were also found to be immunogenic. Improving on these initial clinical studies may deliver a safe and effective DNA vaccine for HIV-1.
Morphology and fine structure of the feline neonatal medullary raphe nuclei

Abstract A light and electron microscopic study of the caudal medullary raphe nuclei of neonatal kittens reveals that these nuclei are composed of three size classes of neurons with several possible subclasses. Internuclearly projecting dendritic arborizations in the transverse plane and intranuclear projections in the sagittal plane are common features of large and medium size class neurons of raphe nuclei magnus and obscurus though not for the cells of nucleus raphe pallidus. A positive correlation exists between neuron size and density of axosomatic and axodendritic synapses, which suggests that the large class neurons are the first to receive input in synaptogenesis, which is occurring at this time. A wide variety of synaptic forms and integration is also a characteristic feature within these nuclei, though it is not clear whether this morphological variance represents a phylogenic and/or ontogenic trend or just an expression of the multifunctional nature of this region.
Modeling two-step coal liquefaction processes

Abstract The conversion of coal into liquid fuels of increased hydrogen content requires a series of transformations of the original coal structure. These transformations involve both thermal and catalytic reactions that are intrinsically incompatible. Coal conversion occurs first through a thermal decomposition of the coal matrix which requires high temperature. The initial coal fragments are very unstable and tend to recombine unless immediately stabilized either by homogeneous reactions with solvent molecules or through catalytic addition of hydrogen. Catalytic hydrogenation is thermodynamically limited and has poor selectivity at high temperatures, thus immediate transfer of dissolved coal from the high temperature thermal reaction to a lower temperature catalytic reaction is indicated. This paper describes the chemistry involved in the various steps of such conversions and discusses apparatus and techniques that can be used to model these reactions on laboratory scale. The importance of integrating the disciplines of chemistry, engineering, and economics in the evolution of appropriate models is emphasized.
The uptake of fructose by Pseudomonas putida

Fructose transport was not apparently affected in a number of Pseudomonas putida strains with deranged activity of a common glucose-gluconate uptake system, indicating the existence of an independent fructose uptake system. Fructose uptake by glucose-gluconate uptake mutants was induced by fructose and obeyed saturation kinetics (apparent Km equal 0.3 mM). The fructose uptake system serves to transport glucose in addition to fructose. The entry of fructose into P.putida cells appears to be mediated also by the glucose-gluconate uptake system, as shown by the ability to accumulate fructose of wild type cells grown on glucose, a substrate that induces the glucose-gluconate uptake system but not the fructose uptake system. In addition, fructose was found to be an inducer of the glucose-gluconate uptake system. The physiological significance of these observations is not clear because the fructose uptake system can provide the cell with a high enough internal concentration of fructose to support maximum growth rate on this hexose, as shown by following the growth course of a glucose-gluconate uptake mutants on fructose.
The Emancipatory Power of Critical Art

The Emancipatory Power of Critical Art Jacques Ranciere, The Emancipated Spectator (London: Verso, 2011) Perhaps best known for co-authoring Reading Capital with Louis Althusser, Jacques Ranciere i...
Numerical radius and zero pattern of matrices

Abstract Let A be an n × n complex matrix and r be the maximum size of its principal submatrices with no off-diagonal zero entries. Suppose A has zero main diagonal and x is a unit n-vector. Then, letting ‖ A ‖ be the Frobenius norm of A, we show that | 〈 A x , x 〉 | 2 ⩽ ( 1 − 1 / 2 r − 1 / 2 n ) ‖ A ‖ 2 . This inequality is tight within an additive term O ( r n −2 ) . If the matrix A is Hermitian, then | 〈 A x , x 〉 | 2 ⩽ ( 1 − 1 / r ) ‖ A ‖ 2 . This inequality is sharp; moreover, it implies the Turan theorem for graphs.
Axisymmetric infiltration in soils, I. Numerical techniques for solution

Abstract Numerical solutions are obtained to the transient, three-dimensional axisymmetric, unsaturated moisture movement through homogeneous soil due to infiltration over a horizontal circular surface area. The paper is divided into two parts. The present part deals with techniques for numerical solutions, the difficulties in achieving such solutions due to the strong nonlinearities of the equation of flow, and procedures which minimize such difficulties. In this part three adaptations of the Crank-Nicolson method, and three variations of the alternating direction implicit (ADI) method are studied and their solutions compared. Only those methods which evaluate the nonlinear coefficients on the advanced time planes fully implicitly yield solution in close agreement. When dealing with the Crank-Nicolson adaptations, fully implicitly implies solving a system of nonlinear equations by the Newton-Raphson iteration, and in the ADI methods the coefficients causing the nonlinearities must be iteratively corrected a number of times. A single predictor is not adequate. One valid adaptation of the Crank-Nicolson method produces a system of nonlinear equations, which is much easier to solve than the other, and the third adaptation is valid only for constant coefficients, and it produces solutions grossly in error, and thus illustrates the influence of the nonlinearity on the equation of flow. Part II (Jeppson, 1974) compiles solutions from a number of problems in graphs relating some items of interst in infiltration to such problem specifications as size of circle of application and parameters describing the hydraulic properties of unsaturated soils.
Cytolipin H, a pure lipid hapten isolated from human carcinoma.

ANTISERA prepared by injecting rabbits with cytoplasmic fractions or homogenates of human tissues frequently contain antibodies directed against substances extractable from the tissue with organic solvents and presumably lipid in nature. Material derived from tumours is reported to be more effective than that from normal tissues in eliciting this type of antibody1, suggesting that tumours may contain larger quantities of one or several lipoprotein antigens or possibly antigens qualitatively different. Exploration of this problem by the methods of immunochemical analysis is obstructed by several complications: the antigenic complexity of lipid extracts, the multiplicity of antibodies in the antiserum reagents, and the paucity of information regarding non-specific lipid–protein interactions for many classes of lipids. A fourth complication is of even greater moment than the other three combined, namely, the fact that specific lipid–protein interactions are markedly influenced by certain ubiquitous, non-specific lipids2.
Regulation of human skin collagenase activity by hydrocortisone and dexamethasone in organ culture.

Abstract Hydrocortisone and dexamethasone (9α-fluoro, 16α-methyl prednisolone) prevent the appearance of collagenase in cultures of normal human skin, human rheumatoid synovium and rat uterus. Hydrocortisone is maximally inhibiting at 10−7M and dexamethasone at 10−8M in culture medium. Neither steroid is an inhibitor of enzyme activity. The loss of collagenase activity in cultured tissue is not accompanied by detectable inhibition of protein synthesis. Reduction of enzyme activity in culture medium is concomitant with a parallel cessation of tissue collagen degradation, indicating that the tissue fails to produce active collagenase in the presence of physiologic levels of glucocorticoids.
The geometry of harmonic oscillators

(1990). The Geometry of Harmonic Oscillators. The American Mathematical Monthly: Vol. 97, No. 6, pp. 457-465.
Tunable stringency aptamer selection and gold nanoparticle assay for detection of cortisol.

The first-known aptamer for the stress biomarker cortisol was selected using a tunable stringency magnetic bead selection strategy. The capture DNA probe immobilized on the beads was systematically lengthened to increase the number of bases bound to the complementary pool primer regions following selection enrichment. This resulted in a single sequence (15–1) dominating the final round 15 pool, where the same sequence was the second-highest copy number candidate in the enriched pool with the shorter capture DNA probe (round 13). A thorough analysis of the next-generation sequencing results showed that a high copy number may only correlate with enhanced affinity under certain stringency and enrichment conditions, in contrast with prior published reports. Aptamer 15–1 demonstrated enhanced binding to cortisol (K d = 6.9 ± 2.8 μM by equilibrium dialysis; 16.1 ± 0.6 μM by microscale thermophoresis) when compared with the top sequence from round 13 and the negative control progesterone. Whereas most aptamer selections terminate at the selection round demonstrating the highest enrichment, this work shows that extending the selection with higher stringency conditions leads to lower amounts eluted by the target but higher copy numbers of a sequence with enhanced binding. The structure-switching aptamer was applied to a gold nanoparticle assay in buffer and was shown to discriminate between cortisol and two other stress biomarkers, norepinephrine and epinephrine, and a structurally analogous biomarker of liver dysfunction, cholic acid. We believe this approach enhances aptamer selection and serves as proof-of-principle work toward development of point-of-care diagnostics for medical, combat, or bioterrorism targets.
Field Testing, Evaluation and Validation of a Web-Based MedWatch Decision Support System (MWDSS): An Empirical Study of the Application of Mobile Tracking of Epidemiological Disease Trends and Patient Movements in a Military Scenario

The MedWatch decision support system (MWDSS) is a promising mobile medical informatics technology approaching maturity. MWDSS was originally commissioned as a Web-based tool for medical planners to facilitate resource management by medical facilities and to track disease trends and patient movement. Given the present military climate, automated medical surveillance capabilities are valuable tools for medical support of the armed forces. MWDSS promises to enhance medical support for the military. The development of MWDSS is consistent with the Department of Defense (DoD) directives, which identified medical surveillance as important for maintaining force readiness. This report documents the results of a subject matter expert (SME) survey conducted to evaluate the MWDSS software. Thirty nine SMEs agreed to undergo any necessary training to use the software and to provide feedback on its performance during the simulation. While some users did not require follow-up training, others required some refresher training to perform certain functions. SMEs for this exercise were able to quickly and successfully train to use MWDSS and were satisfied that it performed most of its functions well. They also felt that it could be a useful tool in understanding the common operational picture and had features that would allow users to obtain, evaluate, and present information more efficiently than previous methods. Overall, participants indicated that MWDSS had significant potential utility for mobile medical informatics. Some of the SME's reluctance to accept new mobile medical informatics may be viewed through a cognitive perspective. The research draws on Kelly's personal construct theory (PCT) to argue that SME's reluctance to use new mobile medical informatics are influenced by their inability to change their established group personal constructs related to information systems development and delivery activities.
Comparison of abdominal aortic aneurysm diameter measurements obtained with ultrasound and computed tomography: Is there a difference?

Abstract Objectives Accurate diameter measurements of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) with both computed tomography (CT) and ultrasound (US) are essential for screening, planning surgical intervention, and follow-up after endovascular repair. Often there is a discrepancy between measurements obtained with CT and US, and neither limit of agreement (LOA) nor correlation between the two imaging methods has been clearly established. The purpose of this study was to assess the paired differences in AAA diameter measurements obtained with CT and US in a large national endograft trial. Methods CT and US measurements were obtained from an independent core laboratory established to assess imaging data in a national endograft trial (Ancure; Guidant, Menlo Park, Calif). The study included only baseline examinations in which both CT and US measurements were available. Axial CT images and transverse US images were assessed for maximal AAA diameter and recorded as CT max and US max , respectively. Correlations and LOA were performed between all image diameters, and differences in their means were assessed with paired t test. Results A total of 334 concurrent measurements were available at baseline after endovascular repair. CT max was greater than US max in 95% (n = 312), and mean CT max (5.69 ± 0.89 cm) was significantly larger ( P max (4.74 ± 0.91 cm). The correlation coefficient between CT max and US max was 0.705, but the difference between the two was less than 1.0 cm in only 51%. There was less discrepancy between CT max and US max for small AAA (0.7 cm, 15.3%) compared with medium (0.9 cm, 17.9%) and large (1.46 cm, 20.3%) AAA; however, the difference was not statistically significant. LOA between CT max and US max (−0.45-2.36 cm) exceeded the limits of clinical acceptability (−0.5-0.5 cm). Poor LOA was also found in each subgroup based on AAA size. Conclusions Maximal AAA diameter measured with CT is significantly and consistently larger than maximal AAA diameter measured with US. The clinical significance of this difference and its cause remains a subject for further investigation.
Motion based retrieval of dynamic objects in videos

Most existing video retrieval systems use low-level visual features such as color histogram, shape, texture, or motion. In this paper, we explore the use of higher-level motion representation for video retrieval of dynamic objects. We use three motion representations, which together can retrieve a large variety of motion patterns. Our approach works on top of a tracking unit and assumes that each dynamic object has been tracked and circumscribed in a minimal bounding box in each video frame. We represent the motion attributes of each object in terms of changes in the image context of its circumscribing box. The changes are described via motion templates [4], self-similarity plots [3], and image dynamics [9]. Initially, defined criteria of the retrieval process are interactively refined using relevance feedback from the user. Experimental results demonstrate the use of the proposed motion models in retrieving objects undergoing complex motion.
Oxygen isotopic fractionation and exchange during bacterial nitrite oxidation

We elucidate the controls on the d 18 O values of microbially produced nitrate by tracking the d 18 O of nitrite and nitrate during bacterial nitrite oxidation, which is the final step of the nitrification process. Aside from the d 18 O values of the nitrite and water substrates, three factors can affect the d 18 O value of nitrate produced during nitrite oxidation: (1) a kinetic isotope effect for nitrite oxidation ( 18 ek,NO2), (2) a kinetic isotope effect for water incorporation by nitrite oxidoreductase ( 18 ek,H2O,2), and (3) microbially mediated exchange of oxygen atoms between nitrite and water (xNOB). These parameters were quantified through batch culture experiments with species from three genera of marine nitrite-oxidizing bacteria: Nitrococcus, Nitrobacter, and Nitrospira. Experiments conducted with 18O-labeled water showed that less than 3% of the oxygen atoms in nitrite were exchanged with water and that 18 ek,H2O,2 ranged from +12.8% to +18.2%. With the use of these parameters and the previously measured values of the d18O of nitrite produced by ammonia-oxidizing bacteria, the d18O of newly produced nitrate in the ocean was estimated to fall between 28.3% to 20.7%, which is within the range necessary for balancing a deep ocean nitrate d18O budget.
Auditory temporal summation in infants and adults: Effects of stimulus bandwidth and masking noise

A visually reinforced operant procedure was employed to determine the behavioral thresholds of 6- to 7-month-old infants and adults for stimuli of various bandwidths and durations. Experi­ ment 1 compared absolute thresholds for broadband and '!.I-octave filtered clicks and 300-msec noise bursts. For adult subjects, the difference in threshold for clicks and noise bursts was quite comparable in the two bandwidth conditions, but infants' click-noise threshold differences were significantly larger for broadband than for Ill-octave stimuli. In Experiment 2, 2-point threshold­ duration functions were compared for 4-kHz tones and octave-band noise bursts presented in back­ grounds of quiet and continuous noise. Infants' threshold-duration function for octave-band noise bursts was significantly steeper than the comparable adult function in quiet, but not in masking noise. These results suggest that young infants may have particular difficulty detecting low­ intensity broadband sounds when durations are very short. The relationship between the duration of an auditory stimulus and the intensity necessary for its detection has been the subject of numerous investigationsduring the past 4 to 5 decades, and still continues to be a topic of both theoretical and clinical interest. In general, auditory thresholds are found to decrease exponentially with in­ creases in stimulus duration up to a maximum duration of approximately 200-300 msec. This decrease in threshold is thought to reflect the summation of neural activity within the auditory system over brief periods of time and is typically referred to as temporal summation or temporal integration. The time constant of integration varies with signal frequency; however, for midfrequency tones between durations of 10 and 100-200 msec, audi­ tory thresholds closely approximate perfect integration of stimulus energy, decreasing at the rate of 8-10 dB per decade increase in stimulus duration (Gerken, Bhat, & Hutchison-Clutter, 1990; Plomp & Bouman, 1959; Wat­ son & Gengel, 1969). Much of the interest in temporal summation stems from reports suggestingthat alterations of the threshold-duration function may be systematically related to certain types of auditory dysfunction. For conditions in which the thresholds of normal-hearing adults decrease by approx­ imately 10 dB for each decade increase in duration, shal
Observing-Self in Memories of Obsessive-Compulsives

College students recalled ten specific events (e.g., giving a public performance) to test the hypothesis that obsessive-compulsives more often take the observing-self perspective in autobiographical memories. A curvilinear relationship was found with scores on the Maudsley Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory: individuals with low-to-moderate scores had fewer observing-self memories than did either high obsessives or those with the lowest scores. Observer memories were rated higher in vividness and emotionality than were field memories, and as having been rehearsed more often. As compared to non-obsessives, the obsessives reported that their memories in general, whether observer or field, were more vivid and detailed, and had been more frequently rehearsed.
Calculations of energy bands and optical properties of solid-state superlattice materials

The calculational results of the electronic and optical properties of some III-V semiconductor compounds obtained from the pseudopotential energy band method are compared with results obtained from other energy band calculational techniques and with experiments are compared. The calculation of real and imaginary parts of the optical refractive index of the GaAs–AlAs superlattice shows good agreement with experimental data. The calculations of the energy gap as a function of the number of atomic layers were carried out for GaAs–AlAs and GaSb-InAs superlattices. The result obtained from these calculations shows that it is about 10 to 15% below the existing experimental data. However, if the band gap of experimental data is correctly normalized to the correct room temperature value, our calculations show excellent agreement with experimental data. Comparison of the results obtained from our calculations concerning the charge density and the charge confinement are carried out with the results obtained from other energy band calculation techniques. Die berechneten Ergebnisse der elektronischen und optischen Eigenschaften einiger III-V-Halb-leiterverbindungen, die durch die Pseudopotential-Energiebandmethode erhalten wurden, werden mit Ergebnissen verglichen, die durch andere Energieband-Berechnungsmethoden und aus Experimenten erhalten wurden. Die Werte, die fur Real- und Imaginarteile der optischen Brechungsindizes des GaAs–AlAs-Supergitters berechnet werden, stimmen mit den Versuchsdaten gut uberein. Berechnungen der Energielucke als Funktion der Anzahl der Atomschichten werden fur GaAs–AlAs- und GaSb-InAs- Supergitter durchgefuhrt Das Ergebnis dieser Berechnungen liegt etwa 10 bis 15% unterhalb gegenwartiger Versuchsdaten. Wenn jedoch die Bandlucke der Versuchsdaten auf die tatsachliche Zimmertemperatur normiert wird, weisen unsere Berechnungen ausgezeichnete Ubereinstimmung mit Versuchsdaten auf. Die Ergebnisse unserer Berechnungen in Hinblick auf die Raumladungsdichte und die Raumladungseinschrankung werden mit Ergebnissen anderer Energieband-Berechnungs- methoden verglichen.
Improving cluster tools performance using colored Petri nets in semiconductor manifacturing

Semiconductor manufacturing is a capital-extensive industry. How to utilize billions of dollars of equipment as efficiently as possible is a critical factor for a semiconductor manufacturer to succeed in stiff competition. Improving performance of manufacturing process increases overall tool throughput, reduces operating costs, and saves companies millions of dollars. In this study, we develop a methodology to analyze and improve a cluster tool's performance. A Colored Petri Net model is developed to determine internal bottleneck resource of the tool. Results conclude that the methodology improves tool efficiency and provides significant cost savings.
Usefulness of core roll preparations in immediate assessment of neoplastic lung lesions: comparison to conventional CT scan-guided lung fine-needle aspiration cytology.

Introduction: CT scan-guided fine-needle aspiration (FNA) of lung nodules is a well-established diagnostic technique. In our institution, both FNA and tissue core biopsy (using a 20-gauge needle) under CT scan guidance are routinely performed during the same procedure, and a preliminary diagnosis (an immediate assessment) is rendered. We compared core roll preparations (CRPs) with aspirate smears in the immediate assessment of pulmonary lesions and also assessed whether CRP resulted in the alteration of the histopathology of the core biopsy. Study design: Twenty-five cases of neoplastic pulmonary lesions diagnosed in CT scan-guided lung FNA specimens, with core biopsies performed sequentially at the same visit for each patient, were evaluated. CRPs were made by lightly rolling the tissue core on a glass slide, followed by air-drying. Only stained slides (Diff-Quik; Mercedes Medical; Sarasota, FL) were reviewed, and were scored for cellularity and morphology. Results: CRPs in seven cases (28%) scored more diagnostic points than FNA smears, and were found to be better for cellularity and morphology compared to the corresponding FNA smears. The FNA smears scored more than CRPs in 10 cases (40%), while in 8 cases (32%) both CRPs and FNA smears scored equal diagnostic points. Using both CRP and FNA smears in the immediate assessment of lung biopsy specimens, we could assign a specific malignant histologic cell type in 23 of 25 cases (92%). In comparison, if the FNA smears were evaluated alone, we could assign a specific malignant histologic cell type in only 16 of 25 cases (64%). The CRP did not alter the histopathology of the core biopsy specimens in any of the above cases. Conclusion: The CRP complements the CT scan-guided lung FNA procedure in the immediate assessment of neoplastic lung lesions without altering the histopathology of core biopsy specimens.
Synthesis of 7-aminocoumarin by Buchwald-Hartwig cross coupling for specific protein labeling in living cells

To enable minimally invasive studies of proteins in their native context, it is desirable to tag proteins with small, bright reporter groups. Recently, our lab described PRIME (probe incorporation mediated by enzymes) technology for such tagging.[1–3] An engineered variant of Escherichia coli lipoic acid ligase (LplA) is used to covalently attach a fluorescent substrate, such as 7-hydroxycoumarin, onto a 13-residue peptide-recognition sequence (called LAP, for ligase acceptor peptide) that is genetically fused to a protein of interest (POI; Scheme 1A). The targeting specificity is derived from the extremely high natural sequence specificity of LplA.[4] PRIME was used to label and visualize various LAP-tagged cytoskeletal and adhesion proteins in living mammalian cells.
The Relations of Children's Dispositional Prosocial Behavior to Emotionality, Regulation, and Social Functioning

The purpose of this study was to examine the relations of a measure of children's dispositional prosocial behavior (i.e., peer nominations) to individual differences in children's negative emotionality, regulation, and social functioning. Children with prosocial reputations tended to be high in constructive social skills (i.e., socially appropriate behavior and constructive coping) and attentional regulation, and low in negative emotionality. The relations of children's negative emotionality to prosocial reputation were moderated by level of dispositional attentional regulation. In addition, the relations of prosocial reputation to constructive social skills and parent-reported negative emotionality (for girls) increased with age. Vagal tone, a marker of physiological regulation, was negatively related to girls' prosocial reputation.