cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The common structure of normal personality and psychopathology: Preliminary exploration in a non-patient sample

Abstract Normal personality and psychopathology have traditionally been conceptualized as separate or distinct areas of inquiry. However recent research exploring the hierarchical nature of personality traits suggests the possibility of integrating findings across these domains. This study used the Personality Assessment Inventory ( Morey, 1991 ) and NEO-Personality Inventory-Revised ( Costa & McCrae, 1992 ) to investigate the joint factor structure of normal personality and psychopathology. Factor analysis revealed a well defined three factor structure with scales from both instruments having prominent loadings on all the factors. The first joint PAI–NEO factor was marked by Neuroticism, Anxiety, Depression and Borderline Personality traits, the second factor had negative loadings for Agreeableness and Conscientiousness and positive loadings for Drug Abuse and Antisocial Personality traits. The third joint factor had positive loadings for Extraversion, Openness and Mania plus a secondary negative loading for Depression. The joint PAI–NEO factor structure bore a clear resemblance to the Big Three model of personality traits depicted in Markon, Krueger, and Watson’s (2005) personality hierarchy. While preliminary the current findings suggest that normal personality and psychopathology may share a common latent structure and their shared structure may integrate into the broader hierarchy of personality traits.
On improving convergence rates for nonnegative kernel failure-rate function estimators

Abstract The generalized jackknife is employed to reduce the bias in the logarithm of the kernel estimator of the failure-rate function. The estimator obtained has the desirable property of always being nonnegative with an improved rate of convergence of the bias and mean squared error.
Optimal Design of Multiactivity Multifacility Systems by Branch and Bound

This paper presents a model for designing multiactivity, multifacility systems. Given the maximum number of facilities and their possible locations, the problem is to determine which facilities to include in the system and which activities should be carried on at each facility in order to minimize the cost of the system. A branch-and-bound algorithm for solving the problem is given; the subproblems solved by the algorithm are tractable integer linear programs. The model can be used in the design of such diverse systems as neighborhood health centers, schools, and multiproduct inventory distribution systems.
Hot Wire Measurement of Velocity Gradients in a Fluid Flow

Theme paper presents the results of an experimental investigation of a technique to directly measure the first and second spatial velocity derivatives in a fluid flow. The technique's utility lies in the fact that it does not depend on graphical differentiation or computer curve fitting methods as do the usual techniques for obtaining spatial velocity derivatives. The techniques utilizes an oscillating hot wire anemometer probe traversing the flow in a direction perpendicular to the mean flow. The response signal is processed first through an electronic linearizer and then through a lockin amplifier. The spatial derivatives are contained in the coefficients of the first and second harmonics of the wire response signal from the lock-in amplifier which is tuned to the frequency of the oscillating probe. The investigation compares the experimental results with graphical and computer derived profiles with a favorable result. A check is also performed to confirm the range of independence of the results from changes in the parameters r, co, and R; the lock-in amplifier time constant, the frequency of oscillation, and the amplitude of oscillation.
M&A update: Will the rebound stumble?

After a long lull, M&A activity has begun to pick up. But will the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina— and higher oil prices—crush the M&A rebound? The authors discuss the current M&A trends, give some cautionary advice, and look at future prospects. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
The brain in AIDS: central nervous system HIV-1 infection and AIDS dementia complex

Infection with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) is frequently complicated in its late stages by the AIDS dementia complex, a neurological syndrome characterized by abnormalities in cognition, motor performance, and behavior. This dementia is due partially or wholly to a direct effect of the virus on the brain rather than to opportunistic infection, but its pathogenesis is not well understood. Productive HIV-1 brain infection is detected only in a subset of patients and is confined largely or exclusively to macrophages, microglia, and derivative multinucleated cells that are formed by virus-induced cell fusion. Absence of cytolytic infection of neurons, oligodentrocytes, and astrocytes has focused attention on the possible role of indirect mechanisms of brain dysfunction related to either virus or cell-coded toxins. Delayed development of the AIDS dementia complex, despite both early exposure of the nervous system to HIV-1 and chronic leptomeningeal infection, indicates that although this virus is "neurotropic," it is relatively nonpathogenic for the brain in the absence of immunosuppression. Within the context of the permissive effect of immunosuppression, genetic changes in HIV-1 may underlie the neuropathological heterogeneity of the AIDS dementia complex and its relatively independent course in relation to the systemic manifestations of AIDS noted in some patients.
Study of Factors Affecting Molecular Behaviors in Phenothiazine‐Mediated Biosensing by Electrochemical and Spectroscopic Methods

Reagentless glucose-detecting biosensors were constructed by incorporating a series of phenothiazine derivatives as mediators onto chitosan (CHIT) matrix via different covalent bonds, wherein glucose oxidase (GOx) was employed as the enzyme. Electrochemical studies show significant decrease in the electrocatalytic current during cyclic voltammetric and amperometric measurements, resulting from complexes formation between GOx and phenothiazine molecules. This behavior was further verified by spectroscopic studies. The decrease in the peak intensity at 258 nm is due to the gradual complexes formation over time, consistent to the decrease in the current signal in electrochemical investigations. Correlation with the molecular structures of phenothiazine derivatives reveals a strong relationship between the hydrophobicity of the mediators and the stability of the biosensor electrodes.
Prediction of the conformational requirements for binding to the κ‐opioid receptor and its subtypes. I. Novel α‐helical cyclic peptides and their role in receptor selectivity

A conformational search of two similar kappa-selective cyclic Dynorphin A (Dyn A) analogues is presented. [Cys5, Cys11] Dyn A1-11-NH2 (1) and [Cys5, D-Ala8, Cys11] Dyn A1-11-NH2 (2) are not only highly potent kappa-selective peptides but they also exhibit exceptional selectivity for kappa receptors in the central (brain) vs. the peripheral (ileum) systems. Molecular mechanics systematic searching of the conformational preferences of the cyclic moieties of 1 and 2 produced 741 and 1003 starting ring structures, which were minimized at two dielectric constants of 2.0 and 80.0 in the AMBER force field. By rms superimposition, these low energy structures were grouped into conformational families for each ring system minimized at each dielectric. Comparison of the lowest energy structure of each of these families demonstrated that two (labeled A and B) were found as low energy ring systems for both 1 and 2 after minimization at either dielectric constant. These two structures are thus predicted to be the putative binding conformations for Dynorphin A at receptors in the brain. Interestingly, one of these putative binding structures exhibited an alpha-helical conformation in the disulfide bridged ring that has not been observed for small cyclic peptides of this nature before. Molecular dynamics simulation of the helical binding structures indicated that the helical configuration in 2 is lower in energy and is more conformationally stable than that of 1. We correlate this with the increased selectivity and potency of 2 for kappa receptors in the brain compared to the periphery, implying that this may be due to an alpha-helical conformation in the cyclized address or helical induction in the message sequence.
On the relation between the sampled-data and the continuous optimal linear regulator problems

In this paper, the geometric relationship between the optimal solutions to the sampled-data and continuous linear quadratic regulator problems is investigated in a Hilbert space framework. It is shown that the optimal sampled-data solution, excluding the response due to the initial condition, is the projection of the optimal continuous solution onto the set of all solutions that satisfy the sampled-data constraint. That is, the optimal sampled-data solution is an optimal approximation to the continuous solution. In fact, it is shown that the sampled-data solution can be obtained by solving a sampled-data tracking problem with the continuous solution as the desired trajectory.
Alterations in histone phosphorylation in HL-60 cells specific to monocytic differentiation

In order to examine the role of histone phosphorylation in regulation of the pathway of HL-60 cell differentiation, cells were labelled with [32P]phosphoric acid and histones fractionated by two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The monocytic inducer 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA) was found to specifically stimulate phosphorylation of histone H2B in a concentration-dependent manner. At a concentration of 100 mM, H2B phosphorylation was stimulated 2.3-fold after 4 h. A second monocytic inducer 1,25-dihydroxy-cholecalciferol (100 nM) also induced phosphorylation specifically in histone H2B. In contrast, the granulocytic inducers DMSO (1.5%) or retinoic acid (1 microM) did not increase phosphorylation in any histone species.
Single-particle hydrodynamics in DPD: A new formulation

We present a new formulation of dissipative particle dynamics (DPD) that leads to correct hydrodynamics in flows around bluff bodies represented by a single particle. In particular, we introduce a shear drag coefficient and a corresponding term in the dissipative force, which along with the angular momentum incorporate non-central shear forces between particles and preserve angular momentum. We consider several prototype flows to verify the performance of the proposed formulation with comparisons against theoretical and continuum-based simulation results. Our method is similar to the Fluid Particle Method (FPM) of Espanol (Phys. Rev. E, 57 (1998) 2930) and it has the computational and implementation simplicity of the standard DPD approach.
Optical measurement of the shear-wave particle velocity in shock-loaded materials

An optical technique is carried out in our lab which uses velocity interferometers to measure the shear-wave velocity on the surface of a sample. By the planar impact on a one stage gas gun with 57 mm diameter and the anisotropy of Y-cut quartz, a combining pressure-shear loading in Ly-12 Al bonded to the rear surface of Y-cut quartz is generated. Two velocity interferometers were employed to measure simultaneously the longitudinal and transverse velocity histories on the free surface. An optical alignment method which uses laser to adjust the parallelism of the impactor and the target is also described and a measure to overcome the low laser power used in our experiments is also put forward in this paper.
Compressive Echelle spectroscopy

Building on the mathematical breakthroughs of compressive sensing (CS), we developed a 2D spectrometer system that incorporates a spatial light modulator and a single detector. For some wavelengths outside the visible spectrum, when it is too expensive to produce the large detector arrays, this scheme gives us a better solution by using only one pixel. Combining this system with the "smashed filter" technique, we hope to create an efficient IR gas sensor. We performed Matlab simulations to evaluate the effectiveness of the smashed filter for gas tracing.
The use of biofeedback techniques with school-aged children exhibiting behavioral and/or learning problems

This article reviews 44 studies that investigated the efficacy of biofeedback techniques in treating childhood behavioral and learning disorders. Although the data suggest that children can learn voluntary control over a variety of physiological processes, methodological flaws make it impossible to specify the mechanisms responsible for such learning. Further, the data do not suggest that biofeedback techniques are superior to more conventional treatments in remediating learning or behavioral disorders. Suggestions for future research focus upon the elimination of methodological weaknesses, the use of more stringent diagnostic criteria, and the use of more sophisticated biofeedback equipment and procedures.
Combined reflectance and fluorescence spectroscopy for in vivo detection of cervical pre-cancer

Optical technologies, such as reflectance and fluorescence spectroscopy, have shown the potential to provide improved point-of-care detection methods for cervical neoplasia that are sensitive, specific, and cost-effective. Our specific goals are to analyze the diagnostic potential of reflectance and fluorescence spectra, alone and in combination, to discriminate normal and precancerous cervical tissue in vivo and to identify which classification features contain significant diagnostic information. Reflectance spectra are measured at four source-detector separations and fluorescence emission spectra are measured at 16 excitation wavelengths, from 324 sites in 161 patients. These 20 spectral features are permuted in all possible combinations of one, two, and three; and classification algorithms are developed to evaluate the diagnostic performance of each combination. Algorithms based on fluorescence spectra alone yield better diagnostic performance than those based on reflectance spectra alone. The combination of fluorescence and reflectance do not significantly improve diagnostic performance compared to fluorescence alone, except in the case of discriminating high-grade precancers from columnar normal tissue. In general, fluorescence emission spectra at 330- to 360-nm and 460- to 470-nm excitation provide the best diagnostic performance for separating all pairs of tissue categories.
Monte Carlo calculations for the phase equilibria of alkanes, alcohols, water, and their mixtures

Abstract Configurational-bias Monte Carlo simulations were carried out to investigate (i) the self-aggregation of 1-hexanol in n -hexane rich binary solutions; (ii) the partitioning of normal alkane and primary alkanol solutes between water, neat or water-saturated 1-octanol, n -octane, and vapour phases, and (iii) the vapour–liquid phase diagram of the binary mixture of methanol and n -hexane at a temperature of 448 K. The optimized potentials for liquid simulations (OPLS) united-atom force field was used to describe the interactions of the alkanes and alcohols, and the transferable intermolecular potentials 4 point (TIP4P) model was used for water. Analysis of radial distribution functions and their corresponding number integrals supports a micro-heterogenous picture of the 1-hexanol/hexane solutions with the majority of the 1-hexanol molecules being part of hydrogen-bonded clusters with four to six molecules. The OPLS force field yields Gibbs free energies of transfer that are in qualitative, albeit not quantitative agreement with experimental results. Comparison of the partitioning between a helium vapour phase and dry and wet (water-saturated) 1-octanol established that water saturation affects mostly the partitioning of polar solutes, while differences for alkane partitioning were found to be negligible. The vapour pressure of OPLS n -hexane is too low and that of methanol too high, resulting in a binary vapour–liquid phase diagram that deviates significantly from experiment.
Nanoparticle separation and deposition processing using gas expanded liquid technology

Most currently employed nanoparticle post-synthesis processing techniques are solvent intensive and time consuming. This article reviews the development of highly tunable CO 2 gas-expanded liquid (GXL) systems to process nanoparticles in a sustainable and efficient manner. The highly adjustable physico-chemical properties of these GXLs provide unique opportunities to control nanoparticle dispersability and precipitation through simple variations in applied CO 2 pressure. This article illustrates that these tunable solvent systems can be used to create high quality, wide-area nanoparticle thin films and can also be used for the size-selective fractionation of ligand stabilized metallic nanoparticles. Recent advancements in the development of models that accurately predict nanoparticle dispersability in these tunable solvent systems are also described.
Second-order illusions: Mach bands, Chevreul, and Craik--O'Brien--Cornsweet.

Mach bands, which normally occur at the edges of ramp modulations of luminance, are demonstrated to occur in fullwave stimuli that have ramp modulations of contrast while maintaining constant expected luminance. [The fullwave stimuli are random textures that (1) have a ramp contrast modulation that is exposed by fullwave rectification (e.g. absolute value or square) or by halfwave rectification but (2) have a uniform expected luminance throughout, so the modulation remains hidden without rectification.] Two different textures were used: random pixels and ‘Mexican hats’. Stimuli were presented dynamically, with a new instantiation of the texture every 67 msec (this enhances the magnitude of the illusion). Both fullwave Mach-band stimuli exhibit perceptual Mach bands that are decreases or increases in apparent texture contrast with no concomitant change in apparent brightness. The perceived contrast bands in fullwave Mach stimuli and the brightness bands in a conventional luminance Mach-band stimulus have approximately the same magnitude. Chevreul (staircase) illusions in luminance and in fullwave patterns also are found to have approximately similar magnitudes, as do luminance and fullwave Craik-O'Brien-Cornsweet illusions. None of these illusions can be perceived with halfwave textures. These results indicate that second-order (texture) illusions result from fullwave, not halfwave, rectification and involve spatial interactions that are remarkably similar to those in first-order (luminance) processing.
Negative Pressure Wound Therapy Reduces the Effectiveness of Traditional Local Antibiotic Depot in a Large Complex Musculoskeletal Wound Animal Model

Abstract : Objectives: Negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) has been used to help manage open wounds. Surgeons also often use local antibiotic depot as adjunctive therapy in an effort to reduce infection rates. These 2 techniques have been reported to be used in conjunction, but there are little data to support this practice. We sought to compare the contamination levels of wounds treated with the commonly used antibiotic bead pouch technique to wounds that received both antibiotic beads and NWPT. Methods: The effectiveness of a bead pouch was compared with antibiotic beads with NPWT. The anterior compartment and proximal tibia of goats were injured and inoculated with Staphylococcus aureus. Six hours later, the wounds were debrided and the animals were assigned to a group; the bacteria level was quantified immediately before and after initial debride ment and 2 days after treatment. Results: The wounds in the antibiotic bead pouch group had 6 fold less bacteria than the augmented NPWT group, 11 2% versus 67 11% of baseline values, respectively (P 0.01). As expected, high levels of the antibiotic were consistently recovered from the aug mented NPWT effluent samples at all time points. Conclusions: NPWT reduces the effectiveness of local antibiotic depot. These results can provide surgeons with the information to personalize the adjunctive therapies to individual patients, with the degree of difficulty in managing the wound and concern for infection being the 2 variables dictating treatment.
Emergency Medical Services: A Journey to Subspecialty

In 1996, the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Agenda for the Future called on interested organizations to continue their work to develop the basis for emergency medical services as a subspecialty.1...
The thermally activated solid-solution hardening of the ternary system: niobium-molybdenum-tungsten

Abstract The temperature dependence of the flow stress of ultra-high-vacuumdegassed Nb-Mo-W single crystals has been investigated between 77 and 900 K. Tests of alloys containing up to 9.4 at.% (Mo+W) show that the thermal component of the flow stress exhibits little or no increase with increasing ternary-solute content for most of the alloys tested. Solid-solution softening is observed in the Nb-4.2Mo-W alloys at 77 K. The results are interpreted utilizing a phenomenological analysis of the solid-solution hardening increments. The analysis of the results suggests that a non-random solute distribution is responsible for reducing the thermally-activated, flow-stress component, especially in concentrated alloys with a Mo to W ratio of near unity.
Zinc and cadmium toxicity to alfalfa and its microsymbiont

The availability of heavy metals in soil depends on their speciation in solution and chemical activities of free metals. To examine the sensitivity of alfalfa (Glycine max L.), its microsymbiont, and the process of N 2 fixation to Zn 2+ and Cd 2+ activities, a growth chamber study was conducted. Nutrient solution was used with the chelator, EGTA, to buffer Zn 2+ and Cd 2+ activities. The activities of Zn 2+ and Cd 2+ ranged from pZn 2+ = 8.0 to 5.0 and pCd 2+ = 10.5 to 8.0 mol L -1 . Plants grown in pZn 2+ = 5.25 and 5.0 ; and pCd 2+ = 8.75 and 8.65 were stunted and chlorotic with interveinal necrosis. In these treatments, shoot concentrations of Zn and Cd averaged about 300 and 50 mg kg -1 , respectively. This resulted in a 20 and 90% yield reduction for plants grown in pZn 2+ = 5.25 and 5.0, respectively. Yield reduction was 50 and 75% for pCd 2+ = 8.75 and 8.65, respectively. Plants supplied with mineral N had about 40% greater shoot yield than plants inoculated with rhizobia. No nodulation occurred at pZn 2+ = 5.0, but at pZn 2+ = 5.25 and pCd 2+ = 8.75 and 8.65, there was a delay in nodulation. All nodules formed were mostly effective in N 2 fixation. Enumeration of viable cells showed a significant decline of total cell counts from 10 5.5 cell mL -1 in the control to 10 5.1 and 10 4.8 at the highest Zn 2+ and Cd 2+ activities, respectively. At the activities studied, Cd was more toxic to rhizobia than Zn. However, at the highest activities, toxicity of metals were so severe that root development was inhibited and in some cases resulted in plant death. These results suggest that toxicity of Zn and Cd was greater to plants than to rhizobia.
Expression of myogenic regulatory factors in the muscle-derived electric organ of Sternopygus macrurus.

In most groups of electric fish, the current-producing cells of electric organs (EOs) derive from striated muscle fibers but retain some phenotypic characteristics of their precursor muscle cells. Given the role of the MyoD family of myogenic regulatory factors (MRFs) in the transcriptional activation of the muscle program in vertebrates, we examined their expression in the electrocytes of the gymnotiform Sternopygus macrurus . We estimated the number of MRF genes in the S. macrurus genome and our Southern blot analyses revealed a single MyoD, myogenin, myf5 and MRF4 gene. Quantitative RT-PCR showed that muscle and EO transcribe all MRF genes. With the exception of MyoD , the endogenous levels of myogenin , myf5 and MRF4 transcripts in electrocytes were greater than those detected in muscle fibers. These data indicate that MRF expression levels are not sufficient to predict the level to which the muscle program is manifested. Qualitative expression analysis of MRF co-regulators MEF2C, Id1 and Id2 also revealed these genes not to be unique to either muscle or EO, and detected similar expression patterns in the two tissues. Therefore, the partial muscle program of the EO is not associated with a partial expression of MRFs or with apparent distinct levels of some MRF co-factors. In addition, electrical inactivation by spinal cord transection (ST) resulted in the up-regulation of some muscle proteins in electrocytes without an accompanying increase in MRF transcript levels or notable changes in the co-factors MEF2C, Id1 and Id2. These findings suggest that the neural regulation of the skeletal muscle program via MRFs in S. macrurus might differ from that of their mammalian counterparts. Together, these data further our understanding of the molecular processes involved in the plasticity of the vertebrate skeletal muscle program that brings about the muscle-like phenotype of the non-contractile electrogenic cells in S. macrurus .
Diagnosis and management of aggressive, acquired cholesteatoma with skull base and calvarial involvement : a report of 3 cases

A prospective case review of 3 patients treated at a tertiary referral center from 1997 to 2002 are presented. Three men, age 30 to 68 (mean, 45) years, were treated for acquired cholesteatoma with skull base invasion. Two patients had no prior otological surgery, and 1 was detected after 4 prior mastoid procedures. One presented with progressive unilateral facial palsy, 1 with otorrhea, and 1 with temporal mass above a modified radical mastoidectomy cavity. All 3 patients were treated with single-staged canal wall-down mastoidectomy. Patients were followed up with otoscopy and neuroimaging from 40 to 61 months. Two patients had no recurrence of cholesteatoma, and 1 had squamous debris in the mastoid cavity removed in the outpatient clinic. One had complete ipsilateral facial nerve paralysis preoperatively and recovered to House-Brackmann grade III within 1 year of surgery. Patient 1 had labyrinthine involvement before surgery and had ipsilateral anacusis after resection and repair. No other complications occurred. Initial presentation, workup, surgical challenges, disease follow-up, facial nerve function, hearing results, and complications are reported.
Polarimetric description of superposing random electromagnetic fields with different spectral composition

We present a polarimetric technique that provides a complete description of a mixture of uncorrelated optical fields with different spectral and polarization properties. The second-order coherence theory is used to describe the superposition of two random optical fields, and an imaging experiment is reported that illustrates the capability to separate radiations with different spectral composition and to simultaneously determine their Stokes vectors.
ON THE IRREDUCIBILITY OF THE DETERMINANT OF THE MATRIX OF MOVING PLANES

ABSTRACT We show that, for generic bihomogeneous polynomials, the determinant of the matrix of moving planes is irreducible.
A Progressive Damage Methodology for Residual Strength Predictions of Notched Composite Panels

The translaminate fracture behavior of carbon/epoxy structural laminates with through-penetration notches was investigated to develop a residual strength prediction methodology for composite structures. An experimental characterization of several composite materials systems revealed a fracture resistance behavior that was very similar to the R-curve behavior exhibited by ductile metals. Fractographic examinations led to the postulate that the damage growth resistance was primarily due to fractured fibers in the principal load-carrying plies being bridged by intact fibers of the adjacent plies. The load transfer associated with this bridging mechanism suggest that a progressive damage analysis methodology will be appropriate for predicting the residual strength of laminates with through-penetration notches. A progressive damage methodology developed by the authors was used to predict the initiation and growth of matrix cracks and fiber fracture. Most of the residual strength predictions for different panel widths. notch lengths, and material systems were within about 10 percent of the experiemntal failure loads.
In situ time-resolved measurements of carbon nanotube and nanohorn growth

Growth mechanisms of carbon nanotubes are investigated and compared for both high- and low-temperature synthesis methods through experiments utilizing time-resolved, in situ imaging and spectros-copy. High-speed videography and pyrometry measured the timeframes for growth for single-wall car-bon nanotubes (SWNTs) and nanohorns (SWNHs) by laser vaporization (LV) at 1150 C, revealing that C can self-assemble at high temperatures preferentially into SWNH structures without catalyst assistance at rates comparable to catalyst-assisted SWNT growth by either laser vaporization or chemical vapor depo-sition (CVD). Laser interferometry and videography reveal the coordinated growth of vertically-aligned nanotube arrays (VANTAs) by CVD at 550-900 C.
Charged Residues in Hepatitis C Virus NS4B Are Critical for Multiple NS4B Functions in RNA Replication

The nonstructural 4B (NS4B) protein of hepatitis C virus (HCV) plays a central role in the formation of the HCV replication complex. To gain insight into the role of charged residues for NS4B function in HCV RNA replication, alanine substitutions were engineered in place of 28 charged residues residing in the N- and C-terminal cytoplasmic domains of the NS4B protein of the HCV genotype 1b strain Con1. Eleven single charged-to-alanine mutants were not viable, while the remaining mutants were replication competent, albeit to differing degrees. By selecting revertants, second-site mutations were identified for one of the lethal NS4B mutations. Second-site mutations mapped to NS4B and partially suppressed the lethal replication phenotype. Further analyses showed that three NS4B mutations disrupted the formation of putative replication complexes, one mutation altered the stability of the NS4B protein, and cleavage at the NS4B/5A junction was significantly delayed by another mutation. Individual charged-to-alanine mutations did not affect interactions between the NS4B and NS3-4A proteins. A triple charged-to-alanine mutation produced a temperature-sensitive replication phenotype with no detectable RNA replication at 39°C, demonstrating that conditional mutations can be obtained by altering the charge characteristics of NS4B. Finally, NS4B mutations dispensable for efficient Con1 RNA replication were tested in the context of the chimeric genotype 2a virus, but significant defects in infectious-virus production were not detected. Taken together, these findings highlight the importance of charged residues for multiple NS4B functions in HCV RNA replication, including the formation of a functional replication complex.
Identification and characterization of a RAPD-PCR marker for distinguishing Asian and North American gypsy moths

The recent introduction of the Asian gypsy moth (Lymantria dispar L.) into North America has necessitated the development of genetic markers to distinguish Asian moths from the established North American population, which originated in Europe. We used RAPD-PCR to identify a DNA length polymorphism that is diagnostic for the two moth strains. The polymorphism maps to an autosomal locus with codominant Mendelian inheritance. DNA sequence analyses of the Asian and North American forms enabled development of locus-specific primers so that this marker, designated FS-1, will be useful for strain identification under varying conditions in different laboratories.
A maximum neural network for the max cut problem

The max cut problem, one of the NP-complete problems, was chosen to test the capability of an artificial neural network. The algorithm based on the maximum neural network was tested by 1000 randomly generated examples, including up to 300 vertex problems. The simulation result shows that the proposed parallel algorithm using the maximum neural network generates better solutions than Hsu's algorithm (1983) within one hundred iteration steps, regardless of the problem size. >
The Effect of Wearing Different Types of Respirators on Postural Stability and Comfort

Respirators are commonly used to protect workers against workplace airborne contaminants, but this equipment may become a safety hazard by creating discomfort, disorientation and postural instability. Although postural stability is critical to workers, especially those working near moving objects or on surfaces where a loss of balance may become life threatening, little attention has been given to the effect of respirators on wearers’ postural stability. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of wearing a half-mask respirator, a full-face respirator, a self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA), and no-respirator on postural stability, using computerized dynamic posturography (CDP). The subjects’ perception of comfort was also assessed. Over 60% of the subjects reported that wearing a respirator was uncomfortable and 20% felt that they had difficulty balancing while wearing the SCBA. The half-mask respirators, full-face respirators or SCBA did not produce any differences in postural stability over a baseline (no-respirator). However, the subjects expressed concerns with comfort.
HIGEDA: a hierarchical gene-set genetics based algorithm for finding subtle motifs in biological sequences

Motivation: Identification of motifs in biological sequences is a challenging problem because such motifs are often short, degenerate, and may contain gaps. Most algorithms that have been developed for motif-finding use the expectation-maximization (EM) algorithm iteratively. Although EM algorithms can converge quickly, they depend strongly on initialization parameters and can converge to local sub-optimal solutions. In addition, they cannot generate gapped motifs. The effectiveness of EM algorithms in motif finding can be improved by incorporating methods that choose different sets of initial parameters to enable escape from local optima, and that allow gapped alignments within motif models. Results: We have developed HIGEDA, an algorithm that uses the hierarchical gene-set genetic algorithm (HGA) with EM to initiate and search for the best parameters for the motif model. In addition, HIGEDA can identify gapped motifs using a position weight matrix and dynamic programming to generate an optimal gapped alignment of the motif model with sequences from the dataset. We show that HIGEDA outperforms MEME and other motif-finding algorithms on both DNA and protein sequences. Availability and implementation: Source code and test datasets are available for download at http://ouray.cudenver.edu/∼tnle/, implemented in C++ and supported on Linux and MS Windows.
Age at onset and familial risk for major depression in a Swedish national twin sample.

Background In many biomedical disorders, early age at onset (AAO) is an index of high liability to illness which is manifest by an increased risk of illness in relatives. Most but not all prior studies report such a pattern for major depression (MD). Method Lifetime MD and AAO were assessed at personal interview using modified DSM-III-R criteria in 13864 twin pairs, including 4229 onsets of MD, from the Swedish National Twin Registry. Analyses were conducted using Cox proportional hazards models. Results Controlling for year of birth, gender, zygosity, co-twin history of MD and the interaction of zygosity and co-twin history, the best-fit model showed a significant main effect and a quadratic effect of AAO of MD in the co-twin on the log hazard ratio for MD in the index twin. When examined together, these effects predicted that from the ages of 15 to approximately 35 years, AAO of MD is moderately negatively related to risk of illness in relatives. However, past age 35, the function flattens out, with little change of risk in relatives with further increases of AAO. Even when the co-twin had a late AAO, the risk in the index twin substantially exceeded that seen when the co-twin had no history of MD. Conclusion In this large sample, AAO is a meaningful, albeit modest, index of familial liability to MD. The relationship is nonlinear and results largely from an increased liability in individuals with an early AAO. These results should be interpreted in the context of the limitations of long-term recall.
Alpha-helical protein networks are self-protective and flaw-tolerant.

Alpha-helix based protein networks as they appear in intermediate filaments in the cell’s cytoskeleton and the nuclear membrane robustly withstand large deformation of up to several hundred percent strain, despite the presence of structural imperfections or flaws. This performance is not achieved by most synthetic materials, which typically fail at much smaller deformation and show a great sensitivity to the existence of structural flaws. Here we report a series of molecular dynamics simulations with a simple coarse-grained multi-scale model of alpha-helical protein domains, explaining the structural and mechanistic basis for this observed behavior. We find that the characteristic properties of alpha-helix based protein networks are due to the particular nanomechanical properties of their protein constituents, enabling the formation of large dissipative yield regions around structural flaws, effectively protecting the protein network against catastrophic failure. We show that the key for these self protecting properties is a geometric transformation of the crack shape that significantly reduces the stress concentration at corners. Specifically, our analysis demonstrates that the failure strain of alpha-helix based protein networks is insensitive to the presence of structural flaws in the protein network, only marginally affecting their overall strength. Our findings may help to explain the ability of cells to undergo large deformation without catastrophic failure while providing significant mechanical resistance.
Exact Optical Susceptibilities of Three State Systems Interacting with a Single Frequency Electric Field

Using Floquet theory together with density matrix formalism, an exact, nonpertur-bative expression for the optical susceptibility of a three level system interacting with a single mode electric field is derived. By using a three state model that mimics a polymeric system, it is shown that in certain cases, using typical values for the intensity of the electric field, successive terms in the series {ie169-1} approach the same of order magnitude.
Optimal beaver population management using reduced order distributed parameter model and single network adaptive critics

Using a distributed parameter model for beaver population that accounts for their spatial and temporal behavior, an optimal control for a desired distribution of the animals is presented. Optimal solutions are obtained through a "single network adaptive critic" (SNAC) neural network architecture. The objective of this research is to design an "optimal" beaver harvesting scheme for a region of interest.
ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1-2013 Preliminary Determination: Qualitative Analysis

Section 304(b) of the Energy Conservation and Production Act (ECPA), as amended, requires the Secretary of Energy to make a determination each time a revised version of ASHRAE Standard 90.1 is published with respect to whether the revised standard would improve energy efficiency in commercial buildings. When the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) issues an affirmative determination on Standard 90.1, states are statutorily required to certify within two years that they have reviewed and updated the commercial provisions of their building energy code, with respect to energy efficiency, to meet or exceed the revised standard. This report provides a preliminary qualitative analysis of all addenda to ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1-2010 (referred to as Standard 90.1-2010 or 2010 edition) that were included in ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1-2013 (referred to as Standard 90.1-2013 or 2013 edition).
An Improved Bioassay for Acth Determination

An improved method for the bioassay of ACTH has been developed using short-term culture of adrenal cell suspensions derived from intact rats. Six separate pools of adrenals were used and cells derived from the same pool were compared after acute dispersion and overnight culture. The ED50, defined as the concentration of ACTH required to produce half maximal steroidogenesis, for cultured cells was 35.4+/-2 pg/ml compared to 240+/-60 pg/ml for cells used immediately after dispersion. The minimum concentrations of ACTH necessary to produce a response significantly above basal levels were 0.98+/-.10 pg/ml and 12.1+/-3 pg/ml respectively. Response characteristics of the cultured cells were highly reproducible. The incubation volume employed in this study was 0.25 ml, so the ED50 expressed as dose of ACTH per tube was actually 8.8 pg for the cultured cells. Such sensitivity provides requisite methodology for the measurement of ACTH under varying physiological conditions.
Voluntary Approaches to Environmental Protection: The Role of Legislative Threats

Traditionally, policymakers have relied on legislative and regulatory restric-tions on polluters to ensure adequate protection of the environment. To a lesser extent, they have used economic incentives, such as taxes, tradeable permits, and environmental liability.1 Recently, however, attention has turned to the use of voluntary agreements between regulators and polluters as an alternative to mandatory approaches based on regulation or legislation. Voluntary agreements can be an attractive alternative to mandatory restrictions since they have the potential to reduce compliance costs by allowing greater flexibility and to reduce administrative and other transactions costs (Baggott, 1986; Goodin, 1986). Notable examples of the recent use of voluntary environmental protection agreements include the US Environmental Protection Agency’s 33/50 Program to reduce voluntarily discharges of industrial toxic pollutants (US Environmental Protection Agency, 1992) and the Dutch National Environmental Policy Plan.
Axonal Neuropathy with Neuromyotonia

Investigators from the Children's Hospital, Coimbra, Portugal, and centers in Belgium, report a 16-year-old girl with consanguineous parents who presented with progressive distal muscular atrophy and weakness, beginning at age 6 years.
Bending Two-Dimensional Materials To Control Charge Localization and Fermi-Level Shift

High-performance electronics requires the fine control of semiconductor conductivity. In atomically thin two-dimensional (2D) materials, traditional doping technique for controlling carrier concentration and carrier type may cause crystal damage and significant mobility reduction. Contact engineering for tuning carrier injection and extraction and carrier type may suffer from strong Fermi-level pinning. Here, using first-principles calculations, we predict that mechanical bending, as a unique attribute of thin 2D materials, can be used to control conductivity and Fermi-level shift. We find that bending can control the charge localization of top valence bands in both MoS2 and phosphorene nanoribbons. The donor-like in-gap edge-states of armchair MoS2 ribbon and their associated Fermi-level pinning can be removed by bending. A bending-controllable new in-gap state and accompanying direct–indirect gap transition are predicted in armchair phosphorene nanoribbon. We demonstrate that such emergent bending effec...
Development of phenylalanine hydroxylase in liver of the rat.

SummaryDevelopment of phenylalanine hydroxylase in livers of fetal, newborn, and adult rats has been studied. The results indicate that the enzyme system develops shortly after birth. Activity of the enzyme is negligible in livers of fetal rats near term and rats less than 24 hours old; it approaches the adult level in livers of animals only a few days old. The virtually inactive preparations obtained from livers of fetal and newborn animals could not be activated by adding increasing amounts of pyridine nucleotide to the reaction mixtures in either oxidized or reduced form. The activity of soluble fractions of adult liver was partially lost during short dialysis; the initially low activity of preparations of livers from fetal and newborn animals was particularly sensitive to this procedure.
A nine-month transfusion service experience with low-ionic-strength saline solution (LISS).

Blood group antibody detection and patient crossmatch studies were undertaken in a hospital transfusion service to compare a low-ionic-strength saline medium with a conventional saline-albumin isotonic medium. All tests were performed in parallel in both media. Sera from 93 patients were tested. Forty Rh and 53 non-Rh antibodies were examined. Two clinically significant antibodies, anti-E and anti-Lea, were detected only by low-ionic-strength saline medium. Two antibodies reactive only at room temperature, anti-E and anti-P1, were not detected by the low-ionic-strength saline medium with a 12-minute incubation. There was no nonspecific reaction. The parallel crossmatch study included 595 patients with 1,513 routine and problem crossmatches. There were eight nonrepeatable positive reactions by the saline-albumin method and only one with the low-ionic-strength saline medium method. Three clinically significant antibodies, anti-E, anti-Lea, and anti-P1, were detected only by the low-ionic-strength saline crossmatch. A four-month comprehensive review of the routine use of low-ionic-strength saline solution in 2,939 hospital investigations, including antibody screens, crossmatches, and 2,317 donor work-ups, revealed a general enhancement of antibody sensitivity, no nonspecific reaction, an albumin savings of 37%, and an average savings of 13 minutes per twounit crossmatch procedure. This review demonstrates that a low-ionic-strength saline medium can safely be used routinely in the blood bank laboratory for antibody screening and crossmatch procedures.
A Systematic Review of Paraprofessional-Delivered Educational Practices to Improve Outcomes for Students with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities.

The involvement ofparaprofessionals in the education of students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) has been both complex and controversial. Many scholars and advocates have raised concerns about the roles these staff members play in schools and the degree to which there is empirical support for their direct work with students. We conducted a systematic review of the literature to address two primary questions: To what extent have paraprofessional-implemented educational practices been shown to improve outcomes for elementary and secondary students with IDD, and what professional development strategies enable paraprofessionals to implement these strategies with fidelity? These studies indicate paraprofessionals, when given adequate training, are capable of effectively implementing a number of educational practices that result in improved academic and social outcomes, specifically, teaching communication skills, reducing problem behaviors, and increasing independence for students with I...
Moving Matters: The Causal Effect of Moving Schools on Student Performance

Policy makers and analysts often view the reduction of student mobility across schools as a way to improve academic performance. Prior work indicates that children do worse in the year of a school move, but has been largely unsuccessful in isolating the causal effects of mobility. We use longitudinal data on students in New York City public elementary and middle schools to isolate the causal effects of school moves on student performance. We account for observed and time-invariant differences between movers and non-movers using rich data on student sociodemographic and education program characteristics and student fixed effects. To address the potential endogeneity of school moves arising from unobserved, time-varying factors, we use three sets of plausibly exogenous instruments for mobility: first-grade school grade span, grade span of zoned middle school, and building sale. We find that in the medium term, students making structural moves perform significantly worse in both English language arts (ELA) a...