cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Medial hypothalamic stimulation suppresses nociceptive spinal dorsal horn neurons but not the tail-flick reflex in the rat.

Abstract This study investigated the potential analgesic effects of medial hypothalamic stimulation (HS) on a measure of nocifensive behavior (tail-flick test (TF)) in awake rats, and potential inhibitory effects of identical HS on spinal dorsal horn neuronal responses to noxious skin heating in the same animals anesthetized with sodium pentobarbital. Sixty-five male Sprague-Dawley rats implanted with a bipolar stimulation electrode in histologically verified medial hypothalamic sites were tested behaviorally for TF suppression during HS (100 ms trains at 100 Hz, 3/s, 100–1100 μA) in 2–4 consecutive weekly test sessions. Thirty-three of these rats were then used in electrophysiological experiments to record responses of 36 dorsal horn units to noxious skin heating (48–54 °C, 10 s/2 min) of the hindfoot pad in the absence of and during HS. Behaviorally, 31 65 rats had no TF suppression at the highest HS intensity tested (1100 μA). 24 65 rats exhibited aversive behavior or motor activity which disallowed reliable TF testing, and only 10 65 rats showed TF suppression in at least one test session. In electrophysiological experiments, the heat-evoked responses of 25 36 dorsal horn units were inhibited to at least 50% of control during HS. The responses of 11 units remained at 65–100% of the control responses during HS of up to 1100 μA. In rats demonstrating TF suppression, 4 7 units were inhibited. In rats with no TF suppression, 10 15 units were inhibited, and in rats showing aversive behavior, 11 14 units were inhibited by HS. These data indicate that although HS suppresses spinal nociceptive neurons, it does not cause reliable TF suppression in unanesthetized rats and bring into question the often-held assumption that stimulation-evoked descending inhibition of spinal nociceptive neurons implies behavioral analgesia.
Geomorphology: Survive or subside?

Deltas are among the most valuable coastal ecosystems, but they are very dynamic and the factors that influence their health are complex. The rate of compaction of underlying sediments might be a more significant factor than was thought.
Free-Electron Laser with a Strong Axial Magnetic Field

A small-signal theory is given for gain in a free electron laser comprising a cold relativistic electron beam in a helical periodic transverse, and a strong uniform axial, magnetic field. Exact finite-amplitude steady-state helical orbits are included. If perturbed, these orbits oscillate about equilibrium, so that substantial gain enhancement can occur if the electromagnetic perturbations resonate with these oscillations. This gain enhancement need not be at the cost of frequency up-shift.
Epoxy-Based Nonlinear Optical Polymers Functionalized with Tricyanovinyl Chromophores

Two types of new nonlinear optical polymers have been synthesized by postreaction of an epoxy-based polymer prepared from the diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A and aniline. The new polymers DGEBA-AZO-TCV and DGEBA-AN-TCV were synthesized by azo coupling of the epoxy polymer with 4-(tricyanovinyl)aniline and by reacting the epoxy polymer with tetracyanoethylene, respectively. Using an azo coupling reaction to functionalize the polymer allows introduction of the tricyanovinyl (TCV) group and extension of the conjugation length to take place in a single-step reaction. In both synthetic routes, TCV groups are introduced at the last stage of the polymer preparation, thus preventing the exposure of the TCV chromophores to harsh reaction conditions. The d33 values for polymers DGEBA-AN-TCV and DGEBA-AZO-TCV were determined to be 27 and 66 pm/V at 1.542 μm, respectively, after corona poling. The two polymers retained 65% and 83% of the initial d33 values after they had been heated at 80 °C for 1000 h.
Obesity prevalence among youth investigated for maltreatment in the United States.

The objective of this study is to determine the prevalence and correlates of obesity among youth investigated for maltreatment in the United States. Participants were drawn from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being II, a national probability study of 5,873 children aged birth to 17 years under investigation for maltreatment in 2008. From child weight reported by caregivers, we estimated obesity (weight-for-age ≥95th percentile) prevalence among children aged 2 through 17 (n=2,948). Sex-specific logistic regression models by developmental age were used to identify obesity risk factors, including child age, race/ethnicity, and maltreatment type. Obesity prevalence was 25.4% and was higher among boys than girls (30.0% vs. 20.8%). African American adolescent boys had a lower risk for obesity than white boys (OR=0.28, 95% CI [0.08, 0.94]). Compared with girls aged 2-5 with a neglect allegation, girls with a sexual abuse allegation were at greater risk for obesity (OR=3.54, 95% CI [1.01, 12.41]). Compared with adolescent boys with a neglect allegation, boys with a physical abuse allegation had a lower risk for obesity (OR=0.24, 95% CI [0.06, 0.99]). Adolescent girls with a prior family history of investigation were at greater risk for obesity than those without a history of investigation (OR=3.97, 95% CI [1.58, 10.02]). Youth investigated for maltreatment have high obesity rates compared with national peers. Opportunities to modify and evaluate related child welfare policies and health care practices should be pursued. Language: en
Mars: VLA observations of the Northern Hemisphere and the north polar region at wavelengths of 2 and 6 cm

Calculations based on 2- and 6-cm observations of Mars with the A configuration of the VLA have yielded a whole-disk effective dielectric constant of 2.34 + or - 0.05, implying a subsurface density of 1.24 + or - 0.11 g/cu cm at 2 cm, as well as 1.45 + or - 0.10 g/cu cm effective density and 2.70 + or - 0.10 dielectric constant at 6 cm. These parameters have also been estimated as a function of latitude over the 15 deg S - 60 deg N range; subsurface radio absorption length was estimated to be about 15 wavelengths at most of these latitudes. Most of the subsurface density calculations yielded results in the 1-2-g/cu cm range, implying that the subsurface is not very different from the surface observed by Viking and Mariner spacecraft; the decrease in correlation with depth is in keeping with slow variation of the subsurface in the near-subsurface region.
Volatility of indoor and outdoor ultrafine particulate matter near a freeway

Abstract Although recent studies have shown a positive association of exposure to ultrafine particulate matter (PM) with adverse effects on human health, it is not yet clear which PM components or properties of these particles may cause these responses. In the context of human exposure, depending on ventilation and air exchange ratios and in the absence of major indoor sources, an appreciable fraction of the indoor ultrafine aerosol is of outdoor origin. This study examined volatility of penetrating ultrafine outdoor particles, predominantly from freeway emissions, into indoor environments where other particle sources were minimized and no cooking activities took place. A tandem differential mobility analyzer (TDMA) system was used to study particle volatility at two apartments, 15 and 40 m downwind of the I-405 Freeway in Los Angeles, CA. The first differential mobility analyzer (DMA) selected particles of a certain diameter and subsequent heating of this monodisperse aerosol allowed for detection of changes in particle diameters by measuring the resulting size distribution with a second DMA. Aerosol volatility was examined by measuring changes in particle diameters as well as volume and number concentrations. Results suggest that outdoor particles are more volatile than indoor aerosols. Increasing temperature from ambient to 130 ∘ C decreased and broadened indoor and outdoor aerosol mode diameters, however greater mode decreases were observed for outdoor particles. Furthermore, outdoor particles lost more of their volume upon heating than indoor aerosols. No significant particle losses due to volatilization were observed at 60 ∘ C for either indoor or outdoor aerosols. A greater number of outdoor than indoor particles was lost at 110 ∘ C . Heated outdoor particles with diameters greater than 45 nm showed bi-modal distributions, indicating that some of the aerosol is composed of primarily non-volatile particles, whereas the remaining particles are composed of mainly volatile material and consequently shrink. Evaluation of outdoor particle volatility as a function of distance to the freeway revealed that aerosol volatility decreases with increasing distance from the source.
Reaction of aluminum-on-titanium bilayer with GaN: influence of the Al:Ti atomic ratio

Backscattering spectrometry, x-ray diffractometry, and scanning electron microscopy have been used to study metallurgically the evolution of 〈GaN〉/Ti(40 nm)/Al(180 nm) and 〈GaN〉/Ti(80 nm)/Al(150 nm) metal contacts before and after annealing for 30 min in vacuum between 450 and 800°C. A slight reaction of the titanium with the aluminum is first observable after annealing at 450°C. After 550°C titanium completely converts to Al3Ti. Major differences in the evolution of the samples are observed after annealing at 550 and 700°C depending on the atomic ratio between aluminum and titanium. With excess aluminum remaining after the Al3Ti formation, hillocks from at 550°C and the excess Al melts at 700°C, leading to a very strong roughening of the reacted film. Titanium nitride also appears after annealing at 700°C. The roughening of the surface can be avoided by keeping the atomic ratio of aluminum to titanium below 3. In that case, the excess titanium reacts with the Al3Ti and the second phase AlTi appears. No titanium nitride is observed in the latter case, and aluminum nitride neither, in all cases. These results still need explaining.
Epidemiologic review of pediatric and adult maxillofacial infections in hospitalized patients

Abstract Objectives Previous studies documented that location of infection (upper face versus lower face) was a useful tool inmanaging pediatric facial infections. This study's two objectives were (1) to determine if location of infection was a useful parameter for managing adults with maxillofacial infections, and (2) to compare and contrast the epidemiologic patterns of maxillofacial infections in adults and children. Study design We used a retrospective cohort study design to review the medical records of adults (age≥18) and children (age≤14) admitted for treatment of facial infections. Study variables were grouped into the following sets: demographic, clinical, laboratory, treatment, and outcome data. Bivariate data analyses were used to measure associations between study variables. Results The study sample was composed of 339 adults and 143 pediatric patients. For adult patients, upper and lower face infections could be differentiated on the basis of age, admission white blood cell count, cause of infection, microbiologic variability, treatment, and duration of outpatient treatment. Adults and children with facial infections differed as to duration of preadmission symptoms, presence of constitutional symptoms, admission temperature, location of infection, source of infection, culture results, treatment, duration of treatment, and complications. Conclusions Location of infection may not be a clinically useful parameter in managing adults with facial infection.Important differences exist between adults and children with facial infection. The management of pediatric facial infections should reflect these differences.
Abstract B53: MiR-1 inhibits EMT via Slug-dependent and tumorigenesis via Slug-independent mechanisms

Abstract EMT is a developmental program of signaling pathways that determine commitment to epithelial and mesenchymal phenotypes. In the prostate, EMT processes have been implicated in benign prostatic hyperplasia and prostate cancer progression. In a model of Pten and TP53 null prostate adenocarcinoma that progresses via TGFβ-induced EMT, mesenchymal transformation is characterized by plasticity leading to various mesenchymal lineages and the production of bone. Here we show that SLUG is the dominant regulator of mesenchymal differentiation. As microRNAs are pleiotropic regulators of differentiation and tumorigenesis, we evaluated miR expression associated with tumorigenesis and EMT. Mir-1 and mir-200 were reduced with progression of prostate adenocarcinoma, and we identify Slug as one of the phylogenetically-conserved targets of these miRs. We demonstrate that SLUG is a direct repressor of miR-1 and miR-200 transcription. Thus, SLUG and miR-1/miR-200 act in a self-reinforcing regulatory loop leading to amplification of EMT. Depletion of Slug inhibited EMT during tumorigenesis, while forced expression of miR-1 or miR-200 inhibited both EMT and tumorigenesis in human and mouse model systems. Various miR targets were analyzed, and our findings suggest that miR-1 has roles in regulating EMT and mesenchymal differentiation through Slug and functions in tumor-suppressive programs by regulating additional targets. Citation Format: Yen-Nien Liu, Juan Juan Yin, Wassim Abou-Kheir, Paul Hynes, Orla Casey, Philip Martin, Kelly Kathleen. MiR-1 inhibits EMT via Slugdependent and tumorigenesis via Slug-independent mechanisms [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on Advances in Prostate Cancer Research; 2012 Feb 6-9; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2012;72(4 Suppl):Abstract nr B53.
Storytelling with Storyteller Agents in Second Life

The "Coming Home" project at the University of Southern California's Institute for Creative Technologies was started in 2009 to research how virtual worlds could facilitate health care activities for returning US military personnel, who frequently suffer from psychological and physical challenges. These challenges include increased stress and loss of self-esteem related to the war events they have experienced. As part of the activities of Coming Home, we implemented an ambitious storytelling activity that reinforces the positive ideals for which a warrior stands, by presenting historical figures from the past that illustrate those qualities. The storytelling includes scenes from a warrior's life, and a conversational avatar agent that can answer questions about the historical parts of the story. We have also created an interactive authoring system to allow users to make their own story to populate the SL storytelling space. Although visualized and experienced in world, the authoring tools and repository for most of the narrative content are web-based. Scripts within Second Life fetch this authored data and media and display it in the appropriate places. We also report on progress in building a tool with which users can author their own storytelling agent as part of the story they create.
Channel-opening kinetics of GluR6 kainate receptor.

GluR6 is an ionotropic glutamate receptor subunit of the kainate subtype. It plays an essential role in synaptic plasticity and epilepsy. We expressed this recombinant receptor in HEK-293 cells and characterized the glutamate-induced channel-opening reaction, using a laser−pulse photolysis technique with the caged glutamate (γ-O-(α-carboxy-2-nitrobenzyl)glutamate). This technique permits glutamate to be liberated photolytically from the caged glutamate with a time constant of ∼30 μs. Prior to laser photolysis, the caged glutamate did not activate the GluR6 channel, nor did it inhibit or potentiate the glutamate response. At the transmembrane voltage of −60 mV, pH 7.4 and 22 °C, the channel-opening and -closing rate constants were determined to be (1.1 ± 0. 4) × 104 and (4.2 ± 0.2) × 102 s-1, respectively. The intrinsic dissociation constant of glutamate and the channel-opening probability were found to be 450 ± 200 μM and 0.96, respectively. These constants are derived from a minimal kinetic mechanism of ...
Silicon Carbide from Laser Pyrolysis of Polycarbosilane

Laser pyrolysis offers a means of extending solid free-form fabrication to polymeric precursors. Laser pyrolysis of polycarbosilane (PCS) produces controlled {beta}-SiC shapes with nanometer grain size although properties are currently limited by high porosity. By the addition of filler powders, either inert or reactive, ceramic-metal and ceramic-ceramic composite shapes are possible. The results of laser pyrolysis of PCS alone and in mixtures with {beta}-SiC, Al, Si, Ti, and Zr are presented showing that the technique has the potential to produce a range of materials and shapes customized to particular design requirements.
Physician and family caregiver in the medical setting: Negotiation of care?

Abstract Forty clinic visits with physician, older patient, and family caregiver were audio-taped and analyzed for topical themes and exchanges of meaning. The extent to which the caregivers contributed to traditional physician domains of care during the visits [diagnosis, interpretation of symptoms, treatment recommendations) was unexpected. This presentation of self as a practitioner by the caregiver differed from the physician's view of the caregiver as a patient-substitute. In addition to Health Care, the problem situations most often discussed were Eating, Moving Around and Risk. In general, the participants in the clinic visit-physician, caregiver and patient-brought very little of the social context of the illness and care into the medical visit.
Poor Women in Psychological Research: Shut Up and Shut Out.

For the most part, theory and empirical study in the psychology of women have failed to recognize many distinctions among women. Indeed, the focus of feminist theory and research has been directed to the explication of women's essential experience of gender, as if this could be separated from the confounds of class and race. This presentation raises the issue of the diversity among poor women, the need to disentangle ethnicity and class, and the limitation of adopting a middle-class White perspective. In addition to racism, other possible causes of exclusion are explored. Silencing of poor women is also discussed in terms of causes and impact on the discipline of psychology. We have not provided sufficient mechanisms to allow diverse groups of women to tell their own stories; instead, we have felt comfortable in making assumptions and drawing parallels that may be inappropriate and incorrect. Suggestions for achieving feminist goals are provided.
A historic perspective on the contributions of surgeons to the understanding of acute pancreatitis.

BACKGROUND: Acute pancreatitis is a disease with a broad spectrum of presentation, severity, and treatment. Current management involves a multidisplinary team of surgeons, gastroenterologists, and interventional radiologists whose varied clinical skills contribute to the evolving diagnostic and therapeutic strategies for this disease. However, critical aspects of therapy have remained the responsibility of the general surgeon. The purpose of this review is to examine the many contributions of surgeons in acute pancreatitis. DATA SOURCES: A review of the literature taken from PubMed on seminal articles published by surgeons on the subject of acute pancreatitis. CONCLUSIONS: Surgeons have made significant contributions to the understanding of the pathophysiology and evolution of therapy of acute pancreatitis. The specialty should continue to take a leadership role to improve outcomes.
Optimal task allocation in hypercube multiprocessor ensembles

Abstract Criteria are established to determine the optimal policy for allocating a set of uniform tasks onto a multiprocessor hypercube ensemble. It is shown that the optimal policy depends on the ratio of computation to intertask communication required by the distributed program, and that based on this ratio, tasks should be placed either all on one processor or uniformly distributed over the largest possible hypercube.
Predicting recovery using continuous low back pain outcome measures.

Abstract Background context: There is a lack of research evaluating multiple follow-up visits, specifically when using continuous outcome measures. Continuous outcome measures with several follow-up assessments would allow us to evaluate rate of recovery. Purpose: To predict low back pain outcomes based on the quantification of initial conditions. Study design/setting This was a prospective study where patients were enrolled within the first month of low back pain symptoms and evaluated for 3 months. Patients were recruited from several primary care facilities. Patient sample Thirty-two patients with local low back pain symptoms were recruited for the study. Outcome measures There were four major outcome measures, including functional performance probability, symptom intensity, impairment of activities of daily living, and a summary outcome measure. Methods Regression models were constructed using the initial conditions, including psychological, psychosocial, physical workplace, and personal factors, to predict the rate of recovery for each outcome measure. Results Twenty-eight patients completed the study. The r 2 value for the rate of recovery regression models were 0.77 symptom intensity prediction, 0.85 activities of daily living prediction, 0.87 functional performance probability prediction, and 0.96 summary outcome measure prediction. Two functional performance patterns of recovery were found, including a steady improvement and a large jump in improvement. A discriminant function model identified the pattern of recovery in 91% of cases given initial conditions. Conclusions Continuous outcome measures can be accurately predicted given the initial conditions.
Public relations scales: advancing the excellence theory

Purpose – This paper aims to develop five public relations scales as a substitutions for models/dimensions that were subject to much criticism. Based on this conceptual re‐evaluation of the excellence study, one of the dominant public relations paradigms, the manuscript proposes a measurement approach for the public relations practice.Design/methodology/approach – This is a conceptual paper based on a critical literature review aimed at understanding the errors in the public relations models conceptualization and their empirical tests. Based on this review, new and improved scales of public relations are proposed.Findings – The study developed five scales of public relations as substitutions for models/dimensions. The study proposed a measurement approach for the public relations practice. Finally, the study concluded that further research advancing the excellence scholarship is essential to better understanding the profession of public relations.Practical implications – This manuscript creates a measurem...
Exploring alternative approaches to routine outpatient pain screening.

Objective. To evaluate potential alternatives to the numeric rating scale (NRS) for routine pain screening. Design. Cross-sectional. Setting. Nineteen Veterans Affairs outpatient clinics in Southern California at two hospitals and six community sites. Patients. Five hundred twenty-eight veterans from primary care, cardiology, and oncology clinics sampled in proportion to the total number of visits made to each clinic during the previous year. Methods. Veterans were approached following clinic visits to complete researcher-administered surveys about their clinic experience. Using the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI) interference scale of 5 as a reference standard for important unrelieved pain, we evaluated potential alternative pain screening items and item combinations by analyzing sensitivity and specificity, area under the receiver operating curve (AUC), and likelihood ratios. Results. Of the veterans, 43.6% had unrelieved pain as measured by the reference standard. Approximately half had painful musculoskeletal diagnoses and one-third had comorbid mental health or substance use disorders. The fifth vital sign detected pain less accurately than did an NRS with a 1-week timeframe and an item assessing pain-related bother over the past week. AUCs were 0.79, 0.86, and 0.86, respectively. A sequential approach combining the pain-related bother and NRS with a 1-week timeframe items had good discriminatory ability. Conclusions. Alternative single or combined pain screening strategies assessing pain-related bother may improve routine pain detection.
Exact reductions of Markovian dynamics for ion channels with a single permissive state

We show that the cooperative model for the kinetics of a tetrameric potassium ion channel derived in Nekouzadeh et al. (Biophys J 95(7):3510-3520, 2008) is an invariant manifold reduction of the full master equation for the channel kinetics. We further establish the validity of this reduction for ion channel models consisting of multiple independent subunits with cooperative transitions from a single permissive state to a conducting state. Finally, we conclude that solutions of the reduced model are globally asymptotically stable solutions of the full master equation system.
Complexity of certain decision problems about congruential languages

Abstract Given an arbitrary finite Church-Rosser Thue system S , it is shown that the question of whether a given congruence class is finite is undecidable, and the question of whether every congruence class is finite is not even semidecidable (in fact, Π 2 -complete). It is shown that the question of whether a given (resp. every) congruence class is a context-free language is at least as hard. Also, given a finite rewriting system over a commutative monoid, the question of whether every congruence class is finite is shown to be tractable. This contrasts with the known result that the question of whether a given congruence class is finite requires space at least exponential in the square root of the input length.
Cardiovascular Disasters in Pregnancy

Cardiovascular emergencies in pregnancy are rare but often catastrophic. This article reviews the diagnosis and management of venous thromboembolism, aortic dissection, acquired heart disease and cardiomyopathy, acute myocardial infarction, and cardiac dysrhythmias in the setting of pregnancy. It also reviews updated resuscitation guidelines for cardiac arrest and perimortem cesarean section.
Cholesterol turnover in plasma, aorta, muscles and erythrocytes in young and old rats.

Abstract Turnover of cholesterol was measured in 2 and 14 months old male rats (120 young and 109 old) using a single intravenous injection of 3 H-cholesterol and following the radioactivity of serum, aorta and muscle for 12 days. Blood cholesterol level is higher in the older animals. T 1 2 of the fast exchanging pool of cholesterol (compartment A) is 0.7 days in young rats and 0.9 days in old rats ( p ⩽ 0.025). T 1 2 of the slow exchanging pool of cholesterol (compartment B) in the young rats is 22 days and 32 days in the old rats ( p ⩽ 0.025). Additional mathematical analysis showed that there is a decrease of the production of cholesterol and slower removal of cholesterol from both pools during aging. The effect of aging on cholesterol metabolism is exactly the opposite to the effect of cholestyramine as described in the literature. The speed of exchange of 3 H-cholesterol between the plasma lipoproteins and erythrocytes is the same in the young and old rats both in vivo and in vitro measurements. Exchange of cholesterol between the blood and muscle or aorta is slower in older animals. Specific activity of the aorta in the old animals never reaches the specific activity of the blood. This shows that a part of the cholesterol pool in the aorta of old animals is metabolically very inert.
Effects of Employees' Uniform on Company Image and Employees' Self-perceptions and Customers' Perceptions

The purpose of the study is to investigate how different styles of employee uniforms affect customers' perceptions of the hotel image and employees' self-perceptions. The results of the study indicated a significant relationship between uniforms and employees' job performance. Significance also existed between employees' job satisfaction and styles of uniform. A significant relationship between styles of uniform and customers' perception of employee performance was found as well.
Internal Medicine and the Journey to Medical Generalism

The overspecialized U.S. physician workforce and mix of graduating residents undermine strategies to provide quality and affordable health care to all Americans. Several respected advisory bodies h...
When will we tame the oceans

The old saying may have to go. Marine biologist John Marra argues that our traditional relationship with the untamed oceans is unsustainable. Like many a prairie and forest, the oceans must be domesticated or they die.
The biosynthesis of 13C labeled starch granules as a source of uniformly labeled 13C D‐glucose

A potato plant has been grown in a closed chamber with CO2 enriched to a level of 31 at. % in 13C as the sole source of carbon. In 80 days the plant produced 1,684 g of tubers labeled with 29 at. % 13C. of the carbon fixed by the potato plant appromixately 70% was found in the tubers while 30% was found in the tops and roots. Recovered starch granules constituted 10% of the fresh weight of these tubers. A 16% yield of glucose was obtained, based on all of the carbon dioxide used. Distribution of the 13C label among the six species of carbon atoms in strach appears to be nearly uniform. The plant and tubers were indistinguishable from those grown on normal isotopic CO2 indicating no gross isotope effect at this level of 13C enrichement.
DNA Origami with Complex Curvatures in Three-Dimensional Space

We present a strategy to design and construct self-assembling DNA nanostructures that define intricate curved surfaces in three-dimensional (3D) space using the DNA origami folding technique. Double-helical DNA is bent to follow the rounded contours of the target object, and potential strand crossovers are subsequently identified. Concentric rings of DNA are used to generate in-plane curvature, constrained to 2D by rationally designed geometries and crossover networks. Out-of-plane curvature is introduced by adjusting the particular position and pattern of crossovers between adjacent DNA double helices, whose conformation often deviates from the natural, B-form twist density. A series of DNA nanostructures with high curvature—such as 2D arrangements of concentric rings and 3D spherical shells, ellipsoidal shells, and a nanoflask—were assembled.
Ultrafast microscopy of surface plasmon dynamics

Localized and propagating surface plasmon dynamics in Ag films are imaged by time-resolved photoemission electron microscopy with <10 fs time and d~40 nm spatial resolution. Movies of plasmon dephasing are recorded with 330 as/frame rate.
Towards a shared language for problem-solving in design

As tools for design get increasingly complex and powerful, it is increasingly important that their users have a solid grounding in what it is these tools do and how they do it. When these tools are software engineering tools, we can assume that their users have formal training in computing. However, when the tools are for designing art or multimedia objects, the artists using the tools typically don't have much background in the computing technology they are using. While interdisciplinary design teams can work around the shortcomings of individual team members, they might be more effective teams if they shared a common language and understanding of certain key aspects of the design process. At the University of Washington we have begun a project to study the use of the theory of problem solving as shared knowledge by design teams engaged in creating of multimedia games. The theory we used is derived from early work in artificial intelligence. The concepts of state space, search, operators and evaluation functions are key components of the shared knowledge. The theory is embodied in a software system called T-STAR (Transparent STate-spaces search ARchitecture) which supports a collaborative interface for problem-solving. A key question for the project is "to what extent will interdisciplinary design teams adopt and exploit the theory of problem solving when given an opportunity to do so?"
Rheology and stability of water-in-oil-in-water multiple emulsions containing Span 83 and Tween 80.

Multiple emulsions are often stabilized using a combination of hydrophilic and hydrophobic surfactants. The ratio of these surfactants is important in achieving stable multiple emulsions. The objective of this study was to evaluate the long-term stability of water-in-oil-in-water (W/O/W) multiple emulsions with respect to the concentrations of Span 83 and Tween 80. In addition, the effect of surfactant and electrolyte concentration on emulsion bulk rheological properties was investigated. Light microscopy, creaming volume, and rheological properties were used to assess emulsion stability. It was observed that the optimal surfactant concentrations for W/O/W emulsion long-term stability were 20% wt/vol Span 83 in the oil phase and 0.1% wt/vol Tween 80 in the continuous phase. Higher concentrations of Tween 80 had a destructive effect on W/O/W emulsion stability, which correlated with the observation that interfacial film strength at the oil/water interface decreased as the Tween 80 concentration increased. High Span 83 concentrations increased the storage modulus G′ (solidlike) values and hence enhanced multiple emulsion stability. However, when 30% wt/vol Span 83 was incorporated, the viscosity of the primary W/O emulsion increased considerably and the emulsion droplets lost their shape. Salt added to the inner aqueous phase exerted an osmotic pressure that caused diffusion of water into the inner aqueous phase and increased W/O/W emulsion viscosity through an increase in the volume fraction of the primary W/O emulsion. This type of viscosity increase imposed a destabilizing effect because of the likelihood of rupture of the inner and multiple droplets.
Fewer chromosome aberrations and earlier apoptosis induced by DNA synthesis inhibitors, a topoisomerase II inhibitor or alkylating agents in human cells with normal compared with mutant p53

The human lymphoblastoid cell lines TK6 (normal p53) and WI-L2-NS or WTK1 (mutant p53) differ in sensitivity to killing and induction of gene mutations and chromosome aberrations by ionizing radiation. This may be related to decreased apoptosis in the cells with mutated p53, such that more damaged cells survive. We compared the response of the two cell types to various chemicals. First, to ensure that the thymidine kinase deficiency does not increase the sensitivity of TK6 tk+/- cells to mutagens, we demonstrated that they were not hypersensitive to aberration induction by altered DNA precursor pools or DNA synthesis inhibition, by aphidicolin (APC), methotrexate, hydroxyurea (HU), cytosine arabinoside and thymidine. TK6 cells were then compared with WI-L2-NS or WTK1 cells. With APC, HU, methyl methanesulfonate (MMS), ethyl nitrosourea (ENU) and etoposide (etop), TK6 cells had more apoptosis in the first two days after treatment. Fewer aberrations were seen in normal p53 TK6 cells than the mutant p53 WI-L2-NS cells, ranging from very little difference between the two cell types with MMS to very large differences with ENU and etop. For MMS and ENU we followed cultures for several days, and found that WI-L2-NS cells underwent delayed apoptosis 3 to 5 days after treatment, in parallel with published observations with ionizing radiation. WI-L2-NS cells also had a delayed increase in aberrations (up to 5 days post-treatment) when no aberrations remained in TK6 cells. Colony forming efficiency was measured for APC, MMS and ENU, and was greater in the p53 mutant cells. Our results show that normal p53 function is required for rapid and efficient apoptosis in these lymphoblastoid cells with DNA synthesis inhibitors, alkylating agents and a topoisomerase II inhibitor, and support the hypothesis that induced levels of aberrations are higher in p53 mutant cells because of a failure to remove damaged cells by apoptosis.
On Being College Prep: Examining the Implementation of a “College for All” Mission in an Urban Charter School

This article reports findings from a four-year case study of an urban college preparatory charter high school. Through analyses of teacher and staff interviews, the author highlights how the school approached the idea of “college for all” under the archetypal influence of “college preparatory.” The interview data show how the charter school staff engaged in important educational questions about what defines college preparation even though those questions became more complex as the school matured. These findings are presented in three themes: (1) building a school, which reflects staff members’ views on the school’s start-up period of building renovation and growth, (2) building a curriculum, which reflects staff members’ views on teachers’ instructional practices, and (3) building a college culture, which reflects staff members’ efforts to provide students with supplemental academic and social supports for college planning and preparation.
Variation by race in children's alcohol expectancies.

Abstract The purpose of this study was to further investigate a post-hoc finding on racial differences in children's alcohol expectancies. This was a secondary analysis of data originally collected for an evaluation study of longitudinal effects of a pre-school substance abuse prevention program in Cleveland, OH. Ss were second and third grade students who had received intervention services 3 years earlier and a matched comparison group who had not. The samples were combined for a total N=69. Independent samples t-tests were used to assess differences in alcohol expectancy scores (on the Children's Alcohol-Related Expectancies (CARE) questionnaire). Data analysis revealed significantly higher CARE scores for black children than for whites. Most of the variance was in a sub-scale, which measures beliefs on how alcohol effects arousal and aggression. The finding that black children more often reported beliefs that alcohol intensifies feelings and makes fighting easier may suggest differential exposure to models of behavior. Alternatively, the finding may reflect aspects of alcohol marketing in African American communities.
Corporate criminology: Explaining deviance of business and political organizations

Abstract Explanations of criminal behavior historically have focused on the behavior of individuals. The criminality of organizations, or corporate criminology, has only recently received systematic attention from researchers and policy makers. Four existing theories of organizational crime, and subsequent evaluations of their explanatory power, are comparatively assessed with special attention given to their implications for control strategies. It is suggested that strategies based on causal factors will achieve greater success than prevailing approaches to corporate criminality.
Engineering the current-voltage characteristics of metal-insulator-metal diodes using double-insulator tunnel barriers

Abstract The femtosecond-fast transport in metal–insulator–metal (MIM) tunnel diodes makes them attractive for applications such as ultra-high frequency rectenna detectors and solar cells, and mixers. These applications impose severe requirements on the diode current–voltage I ( V ) characteristics. For example, rectennas operating at terahertz or higher frequencies require diodes to have low resistance and adequate nonlinearity. To analyze and design MIM diodes with the desired characteristics, we developed a simulator based on the transfer-matrix method, and verified its accuracy by comparing simulated I ( V ) characteristics with those measured in MIM diodes that we fabricated by sputtering, and also with simulations based on the quantum transmitting boundary method. Single-insulator low-resistance diodes are not sufficiently nonlinear for efficient rectennas. Multi-insulator diodes can be engineered to provide both low resistance and substantial nonlinearity. The improved performance of multi-insulator diodes can result from either resonant tunneling or a step change in tunneling distance with voltage, either of which can be made to dominate by the appropriate choice of insulators and barrier thicknesses. The stability of the interfaces in the MIIM diodes is confirmed through a thermodynamic analysis.
“It's More Than Planting Trees, It's Planting Ideas”: Ecofeminist Praxis in the Green Belt Movement

Led by Wangari Maathai, the Green Belt Movement emerged as a response to environmental degradation in postcolonial Kenya. This essay examines three Green Belt Movement campaigns that operated as praxis to resist environmental and political oppression, empowering rural women to enact a political consciousness toward democracy and environmental justice. The ecofeminist conception of power-toward drives an analysis of the ways participants were empowered to materially rearticulate an environmentally stable and democratic Kenya. As a case study of environmental justice in the Global South, this essay demonstrates the applicability of an ecofeminist framework in critical rhetorical analysis by exploring the dynamics of social change.
Carbon isotopic fractionation in the biosynthesis of bacterial fatty acids. Ozonolysis of unsaturated fatty acids as a means of determining the intramolecular distribution of carbon isotopes

Abstract Methods for the determination of 13 C abundances at individual olefinic carbon positions have been developed, tested, and shown to perform accurately. 1. (1) The double bond is oxidized with ozone; 2. (2) silver oxide is used to cleave the resulting ozonide quantitatively to carboxylic-acid fragments; 3. (3) a modified Schmidt decarboxylation is used to produce CO 2 quantitatively from the carboxyl groups of the separated cleavage products; 4. (4) the CO 2 is utilized for mass spectrometric analysis. The results of intramolecular isotopic analyses are combined with molecular-average isotopic compositions determined by total combustion in order to show that fatty acids biosynthesized by Escherichia coli grown aerobically with glucose as the sole carbon source and harvested at late log phase are depleted by approximately 3%. in 13 C relative to the glucose. This fractionation arises in the formation of acetylcoenzyme A by pyruvate dehydrogenase and is localized at the carboxyl position in the acetyl-CoA product. The isotopic order in that two-carbon subunit is carried through the biosynthesis of fatty acids so that alternate positions in the fatty-acid chains are depleted in 13 C by an amount equal to twice the molecular-average depletion. The kinetic isotope effect at C-2 for pyruvate dehydrogenase in vivo is shown to be approximately 2.3%. While it appears that no other fractionation mechanism has controlled the overall depletion of 13 C in these fatty acids, a separate process responsible for control of isotopic abundances in the carboxyl groups has been identified and described elsewhere [Monson K.D. and Hayes J.M. (1980) J. Biol. Chem. 255 , 11435–11441]. It is concluded that kinetic, rather than thermodynamic, factors have controlled isotopic distributions in these cells and that kinetic factors will be dominant in most biological reactions.
Analysis of a sequence of images using point and line correspondences

In this paper, a feature based approach for analyzing time-varying imagery is presented. Instead of restricting the analysis to be based on points or lines, we propose to use points and lines simultaneously. A special case where four point and one line correspondences are combined for computing the structure and motion of 3D objects from a given image sequence is discussed in detail. Computer simulation results are provided to demonstrate the validity of the algorithm.
A quantitative description of the copulatory behavior of western harvest mice (Reitbrodontomys megalotis).

Zusammenfassung Das Kopulationsverhalten von Reithrodontomys megalotis wurde an 9 ♂♂ und 13 ♀♀ in 34 Versuchen analysiert. Jeder Versuch dauerte, bis eine halbe Stunde ohne Einfuhrungen blieb. Die Einfuhrungen sind kurz; “Hangen” und Beckenstose fehlen. Es gibt mehrfache Ejakulationen, aber mehrfache Einfuhrungen vor der Ejakulation sind nicht notig. Bis zur ersten Einfuhrung vergingen im Mittel etwa 20 min, im Laufe der Versuche immer weniger. Die erste Ejakulation folgte nach nur drei Einfuhrungen nach etwa 3 min. R. megalotis braucht zur Ejakulation weniger Genitalreizung als andere bisher untersuchte Nager. Da ihre Umgebung wenig Schutz bietet, scheint die schnelle Ejakulation von R. megalotis mit dem Feinddruck zusammenzuhangen.
Quantitative Monitoring of Adenocarcinoma Development in Rodents by Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Purpose: Accurately following the time course of tumor progression and response to therapy in animal models of cancer is key to the development of better chemopreventive and chemotherapeutic agents. The goal of this work was to monitor quantitatively the development and progression of adenocarcinoma in a time course study of mice treated with the carcinogen urethane using in vivo small-animal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Experimental Design: Mice treated with a single dose of urethane were imaged at four time points beginning 8 months after treatment. High-resolution images of mouse lung were obtained in vivo using respiratory-gated MRI methods. Individual tumors were manually segmented and their volumes calculated. At the end of the study, mice were euthanized and MRI tumor quantification was validated by histology and histopathology. Results: Tumors as small as 0.4 mm in diameter can be detected and quantitatively measured in mice by in vivo MRI. Total tumor burden increased consistently in all mice studied, whereas the growth rate of individual tumors varied widely. The positions and diameters of individual tumors as measured by MRI correlated well with histology results. Histologic study of large, rapidly growing tumors showed that these were adenocarcinomas, whereas small, slowly growing lesions were predominantly adenomas. Conclusions: Longitudinal in vivo MRI is a powerful modality that can be of great aid in elucidating the factors that control the onset of lung tumors and can serve as a platform for the development and preclinical testing of novel therapies having a high likelihood of efficacy in human clinical trials.
Human cryptochrome exhibits light-dependent magnetosensitivity

Humans are not believed to have a magnetic sense, even though many animals use the Earth's magnetic field for orientation and navigation. One model of magnetosensing in animals proposes that geomagnetic fields are perceived by light-sensitive chemical reactions involving the flavoprotein cryptochrome (CRY). Here we show using a transgenic approach that human CRY2, which is heavily expressed in the retina, can function as a magnetosensor in the magnetoreception system of Drosophila and that it does so in a light-dependent manner. The results show that human CRY2 has the molecular capability to function as a light-sensitive magnetosensor and reopen an area of sensory biology that is ready for further exploration in humans.
Rhabdomyolysis Complicating Doxylamine Overdose

A 16-year-old male presenting with anticholinergic symptoms was found to have hematuria and oliguria. Evaluation of the patient revealed a serum creatinine of 2.2 mg/d1, myoglobinuria, and a creatine phosphokinase (CPK) level of 78, 750 IU/1 with 99 percent fraction 3 isoenzyme. A toxic screen showed the presence of doxylamine, an antihistamine of the ethanolamine class, at a level of 75 times therapeutic. The patient did not have a history of trauma or seizures. The extremely high CPK level with the doxylamine overdose suggests that doxylamine may be associated with nontraumatic rhabdomyolysis. This is the first case report of rhabdomyolysis being associated with an antihistamine overdose.