cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The effect of fiber breaks and aligned penny-shaped cracks on the stiffness and energy release rates in unidirectional composites

Abstract The loss of stiffness due to penny-shaped cracks associated with fiber breaks in a unidirectional composite is the main theme of the paper. Explicit results are given for the non-trivial Hashin-Shtrikman bound together with the estimates obtained from the self-consistent and differential schemes. In addition the paper contains some results on energy release rates for two different crack growth mechanisms. It is shown that, in theory, the differential scheme enjoys a distinguished position.
Neuromuscular diversity in archosaur deep dorsal thigh muscles.

The living members of the clade Archosauria, crocodilians and birds, differ markedly in the morphology of their deep dorsal thigh muscles. To investigate whether this diversity is accompanied by diffe
Runtime generation of data processors on local user computers

Data interoperability in scientific research is a major challenge. Heterogeneous data file formats, data structure formats, and data storage schemas are prevalent in the scientific research community. This poses a great challenge for collaboration between researchers due to data interoperability issues. In our prior work, we have addressed these challenges by proposing a web-enabled approach for generating data processors initially intended for environmental science researchers. This paper takes the solution one step further, and describes the software that enables generating and running data processors on local user computers. The paper details the design of the software solution and presents the steps that the users need to follow for running processors for a variety of data conversion needs. The solution presented is powerful and flexible as it can be applied to a large variety of data conversion needs and to practically any type of data-intensive scientific research. It also facilitates collaboration as scientists can share their custom created data processors, thus increasing efficiency in research activities. Researchers can benefit from the software engineering principles used in creating and generating data processors, and can take advantage of the reusability of numerous data processors create by end users who do not necessarily have software development expertise.
Cellular and Humoral Immunity to Varicella Zoster Virus Glycoproteins in Immune and Susceptible Human Subjects

To further delineate the immune responses that protect against serious primary varicella zoster virus (VZV) infection and inhibit viral reactivation, antibody responses and T lymphocyte reactivity to three major VZV glycoproteins, gpl, gpll, and gpIII, were studied. Individual viral glycoproteins were purified using murine monoclonal antibodies. Cellular immunity was measured by lymphocyte proliferation. Antibody responses were tested in enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. Individual glycoproteins induced VZV-specific proliferation by mononuclear cells from 15 of 20 immune subjects. Serologic responses to the VZV glycoproteins occurred in 16.of 20 immune subjects. Of note, gpll served as a potent T and B cell antigen during both acute infection and convalescence. Cellmediated responses to the glycoprotein antigens represented proliferation by T lymphocytes and required antigen presentation by adherent mononuclear cells. These findings indicate that virally encoded glycoproteins contain epitopes that stimulate VZV-specific cellular and humoral immune responses. Varicella zoster virus (VZV) is a pathogen with significant clinical consequences for the general population as well as for the expanding number of immunocompromised hosts with primary immune defects, cancer, organ transplants, and AIDS [1-3]. Because host immunity plays a critical role in limiting the morbidity of VZV infection, further characterization of these protective responses should help delineate the pathogenesis of the adverse effects that may accompany VZV infection. Such insight should aid in identifying new preventive and therapeutic strategies.
SOFIRAD: France's International Commercial Media Empire.

France has created the Societe Financiere de Radiodiffusion or SOFIRAD to coordinate its international broadcasting efforts. This discussion focuses on the activities of SOFIRAD and the implications they may have for the supplementing by SOFIRAD subsidiaries of the already small official international broadcasting services. The discussion is based on a series of interviews with high-ranking officials of SOFIRAD its subsidiaries and related broadcasting organizations as well as when possible actual documents and reports from these organizations. The discussion also includes a description of how French government-owned corporations and private sector industry act to promote French economic cultural and commercial interests. Possibly most important in this context is the role SOFIRAD plays in providing a broadcast media outlet whereby French consumer goods can be advertised internationally and in providing international markets for French manufactured broadcasting and telecommunications equipment outside France. SOFIRADs efforts are consistent with the apparent government policy of investing heavily in communication technology and research and in the manufacture of equipment in a time of heightened international competition in this field. Fostering the export of French broadcasting technology via SOFIRAD and other agencies became a policy of several French governments. This was accomplished by broadcast equipment sales and by personnel training programming assistance and low-interest financing. Europe No. 1 a popular commercial radio station broadcasting only in French via a 2-megawatt long-wave transmitter from Saarbrucken in West Germany serves as a good example of the intricate and everchanging financial interlocking of SOFIRAD with its numerous partners. SOFIRAD owns 34% of Europe No. 1 but because of double voting rights under various oral agreements SOFIRAD actually controls up to 56% for voting purposes. What Europe No. 1 is to northeast France Radio Monte Carlo (RMC) is to southeast France. SOFIRAD owns 83.34% and the Principality of Monaco owns 16.66% of this station which features popular music and talk on FM and on powerful medium- and long-wave transmitters. Sud Radio a wholly SOFIRAD-owned company in Andorra is SOFIRADs biggest problem because it has become both a financial and political liability. Despite the setbacks of Sud Radio SOFIRADs overall French-language operations in Europe remain financially healthy and will remain so as long as French radio listeners find the programs an attractive alternative to the state-operated radio programs. SOFIRAD has ventured into new areas with the expansion of its radio and other media interests outside of Europe and these are outlined and described.
Stimulation of p-nitroanisole O-demethylation in perfused livers by xylitol and sorbitol☆

Abstract Xylitol and sorbitol, two sugar alcohols which readily enter into pathways of hepatic carbohydrate metabolism, stimulated p -nitroanisole O -demethylation in perfused livers from fasted, but not fed, phenobarbital-treated rats. The increase in mixed-function oxidation correlated well with the production of NADH from the metabolism of xylitol and sorbitol (half-maximal stimulation for both processes was observed with concentrations between 0.1 and 0.2 mM). p -Nitroanisole metabolism by isolated hepatic microsomes was unaffected by the addition of xylitol and sorbitol; however, when NADH was added to microsomes, or was generated from sorbitol, sorbitol dehydrogenase and NAD + , a synergistic increase in p -nitroanisole metabolism occurred. Ethanol (0.2 mM), which does not enter into pathways of carbohydrate metabolism, also caused an increase in the pyridine nucleotide redox state and stimululated p -nitroanisole O -demethylation in livers from fasted rats. In addition, sorbitol and xylitol stimulated p -nitrophenol conjugation in livers from fasted, phenobarbital-treated animals, probably by supplying substrate for increased UDP-glucuronic acid synthesis. The data indicate that sugars which influence the pyridine nucleotide redox state alter rates of mixed-function oxidation and conjugation in whole cells.
Substrate radical intermediates in soluble methane monooxygenase

Abstract EPR spin-trapping experiments were carried out using the three-component soluble methane monooxygenase (MMO). Spin-traps 5,5-dimethyl-1-pyrroline N-oxide (DMPO), α-4-pyridyl-1-oxide N-tert-butylnitrone (POBN), and nitrosobenzene (NOB) were used to investigate the possible formation of substrate radical intermediates during catalysis. In contrast to a previous report, the NADH-coupled oxidations of various substrates did not produce any trapped radical species when DMPO or POBN was present. However, radicals were detected by these traps when only the MMO reductase component and NADH were present. DMPO and POBN were found to be weak inhibitors of the MMO reaction. In contrast, NOB is a strong inhibitor for the MMO-catalyzed nitrobenzene oxidation reaction. When NOB was used as a spin-trap in the complete MMO system with or without substrate, EPR signals from an NOB radical were detected. We propose that a molecule of NOB acts simultaneously as a substrate and a spin-trap for MMO, yielding the long-lived radical and supporting a stepwise mechanism for MMO.
An Overview of Matrix Quantizer Design using the Generalized Lloyd Algorithm

This paper gives a tutorial review of extensions of the Lloyd vector quantizer called matrit quantizers. The Lloyd matrix quantizer arises naturally from the minimization step in linear prediction, where the minimization takes place over a codebook of inverse filter models. Rate-distortion theory predicts possible bit-rate savings for increasing block length N when such a code-book is optimized. Experimental results on LPC speech indicate that this is the case. On single-speaker tests, a 3-vector matrix quantizer at 3 bits per frame for the LPC model achieved average distortion comparable to a vector quantizer at 7 bits per frame. However, such savings are obtained at the expense of exponentially rising complexity. Shape-gain matrix quantizers provide a compromise between complexity and very low bit rate. In this case, N-vector shape matrices are combined with K-dimensional gain vectors to form a generalized product codebook. We have simulated a shape-gain matrix quantizer operating at 6 bits per frame (or 300 bits per second) for the LPC model having average distortion comparable to a vector quantizer operating at 9 bits per frame (or 450 bits per second), with less than 1.7 times the complexity.
Exogenous peptide ligand influences the expression and half‐life of free HLA class I heavy chains ubiquitously detected at the cell surface

A pool of free HLA class I chains has been detected at the plasma membrane of all cells concomitantly expressing folded and assembled class I molecules. To determine the origin of these free HLA heavy chains, we have examined the biosynthesis of a single HLA class I molecule, HLA-B27, expressed by a murine cell line (L-B27). In L-B27 cells, as previously shown in Epstein-Barr virus-transformed lymphoblastoid cell lines, a precursor/product relationship exists, early in biosynthesis, between free (HC10-reactive) and beta-2-microglobulin (beta 2m)-associated (W6/32-reactive) class I heavy chains as demonstrated by pulse/chase experiments. At later stages in class I biosynthesis, both HC10- and W6/32-reactive heavy chains display complex oligosaccharides and accumulate at the cell surface. HC10- and W6/32-reactive molecules are both very stable at the cell surface, with half-lifes (t1/2) of > 7 h and approximately 4 h, respectively. Interestingly, cell surface expression and turnover of HC10- and W6/32-reactive molecules were affected by the addition of peptide ligands to the culture media. Culturing cells in the presence of HLA-B27 ligands resulted in the increased expression of W6/32-reactive molecules and the decreased expression of HC10-reactive molecules. Moreover, addition of exogenous peptide extended the t1/2 of W6/32-reactive molecules to > 7 h and reduced that of HC10-reactive molecules to 4 h. These results indicate that surface HC10-reactive molecules result largely from W6/32-reactive molecules following peptide and beta 2m dissociation. Therefore, HC10-reactive species are not only the precursors but also the end products in class I biosynthesis.
Laser diagnostic techniques in a resonant incinerator

Optical diagnostics play a key role in the development of a unique, high volumetric heat release rate incinerator design at UCLA. In the device, a derivative of an aerospace dump combustor, a pre-mixed flame is stabilized within a rectangular duct by a sudden expansion in cross section at the dump plane. Wastes injected into hot, oxidative recirculation regions downstream of the dump plane experience much larger residence times than those of the bulk flow. Particle Image Velocimetry is used to study the velocity field in the combustion cavity. The results confirm the existence of the recirculation regions and illustrate the effect of waste injection on them. Planar Laser-Induced Fluorescence of the OH radical illustrates the propagation of a vortical reaction zone (flame) into the combustion cavity and its interaction with the recirculation zones.
Intervertebral disc viscoelastic parameters and residual mechanics spatially quantified using a hybrid confined/in situ indentation method

With advancing age, injury, musculoskeletal pathology or a combination of these, a degenerative cascade of biomechanical, biochemical, and nutritional alterations diminish the intervertebral discs' ability to maintain its structure and function. While the biomechanics of isolated disc tissues has been investigated across this degenerative spectrum, none have attempted to retain the in situ disc-endplate morphology during compressive tissue characterization. The objective of this study was to spatially quantify the viscoelastic parameters of the intervertebral disc throughout degeneration, including the as yet unreported residual stress/strain. This required the development of a hybrid confined/in situ indentation methodology, which preserves the disc structural morphology. At four locations of the disc (anterior-AF, right and left lateral AF, and NP) stress-relaxation tests were performed using the hybrid confined/in situ indentation method, which utilizes the vertebral endplate as the porous indenter tip. This method allows the endplate to remain interwoven with the disc tissue, retaining its native orientation. Healthy disc tissue exhibited significantly higher residual stress values compared to both moderate and severe degeneration in all locations (p<0.0156). Furthermore, the equilibrium stress at 15% strain (stress relaxation) was significantly diminished with advancing disc degeneration (p<0.0241). The equilibrium viscoelastic parameters show healthy discs encounter higher forces at the same strain level, and are able to maintain this force, where degenerated discs are unable to maintain this force throughout time. This morphology-conserved method provides insight into the spatial compressive mechanical properties of the intervertebral disc across the degeneration spectrum and will aid in modeling these tissue changes.
Mutual Group Hypnosis and Smoking

Abstract This paper describes the use of mutual group hypnosis as an environment in which to carry out a problem solving program designed to help smokers become nonsmokers. Hypnosis provides a relaxed milieu, heightens imagery and intensifies concentration. Specific techniques used include (1) brainstorming about reasons for wanting to be a nonsmoker; (2) time progression and imagery to consider the possibility of change sometime in the future; (3) spontaneous dream to monitor motivation and rehearsal of imagery associated with self-control and choice. Finally, mutual hypnosis was used to provide social support and feedback to group members. Nineteen subjects divided into four groups were seen for a week program, one and one-half hours per week by the same therapist. Results: 16 of 19 (84%) reported themselves nonsmokers by the fourth session. At 10 months 13 of 19 (68%) were still nonsmokers. Longer term follow-up studies are necessary because of the regression over ten months period. Future studies may ...
High potential x-ray tube

An account is given of further development work on the high potential x-ray tube at the California Institute of Technology. Details of the construction of the tube and its housing are presented. The housing, which is a concrete structure erected on the floor of the high potential laboratory, makes it possible to operate and make observations at close range. The tube has been equipped with a hot cathode and a tungsten target, thus rendering it more suitable for spectrographic work. High speed cathode rays outside of the tube have been obtained by replacing the target by thin windows of mica or metal. Continuous operation is possible over a period of several hours at six hundred kilovolts and with a space current of three to four milliamperes. A comparison between different types of high potential x-ray tubes and of different methods of operation is contained in the discussion.
NETWORKS OF COACTIVE NEURONS IN DEVELOPING LAYER 1

Spontaneous neuronal activity plays an important role in the development of cortical circuitry, yet its spatio-temporal dynamics are poorly understood. Cajal-Retzius (CR) neurons in developing layer 1 are necessary for correct cortical lamination and are strategically located to coordinate early circuit activity. To characterize the spontaneous activity of CR and other layer 1 neurons during cortical development, we imaged calcium transients in populations of layer 1 neurons in hemispheres and slices from postnatal rat somato-sensory neocortex. The spontaneous activity in layer 1 had complex spatio-temporal patterns. Groups of non-CR cells showed synchronous activations and formed networks of correlated neurons superimposed in the same territory. Correlated activity among non-CR cells was mediated by a depolarizing effect of GABA and was modulated by glutamate, probably released by CR cells. Our findings demonstrate that developing layer 1 can sustain complex patterns of correlated activity and reveal a circuit mechanism that can mediate this patterned activity.
Predicting disability and quality of life in a community-based sample of women with migraine headache.

Abstract Migraine is a significant pain problem for almost one third of women in the United States. Little previous research has been conducted regarding the effects of migraine headache on the lives of women migraineurs. The purpose of this report is to determine the contribution of coping, depressive symptomatology, and the chronic pain experience on disability and quality of life in women with migraine. Two hundred and forty-seven women responded to a mailed survey about migraine headache, the chronic pain experience, coping, depressive symptomatology, and quality of life. Data were collected with the following: the Classification and Diagnostic Criteria for Headache Disorders, Cranial Neuralgias, and Facial Pain; the McGill Pain Questionnaire; the Chronic Pain Experience Instrument-Headache; the Coping Strategies Questionnaire; the Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression Scale; the Henry Ford Hospital Disability Inventory; and the Migraine-Related Quality of Life Questionnaire. Multiple regression analyses were conducted to determine the amount of variance that could be explained by selected predictor variables. Women ranged in age from 18 to 66 years and migraineurs reported suffering from migraine from 1 to 54 years. Nearly half of the migraineurs (41.5%) reported migraine headaches occurring monthly, and almost a quarter of the sample reported weekly migraines. Migraines were reported to last for several hours (53.4%). Results indicate that migraine headache pain was typically severe and throbbing, lasting for hours to days. The coping, depressive symptomatology, disability, and quality-of-life variables were all significantly correlated. Two separate regression analyses that examined predictor variables and the criterion variables, disability and quality of life, showed that a significant amount of both constructs could be explained by the predictor variables in the model tested. In the first regression analysis, depressive symptomatology, the chronic pain experience, and migraine headache pain accounted for 62.9% of the variance in disability. In the second regression analysis, 64.8% of the variance in quality of life was accounted for by depressive symptomatology, migraine headache pain, and the chronic pain experience. The variance in both outcome variables, disability and quality of life, was accounted for by similar predictor variables: depressive symptomatology, the chronic pain experience, and migraine headache pain. Further study is needed to determine specific personal and illness-related factors, pain characteristics, and coping strategies used that may predict outcomes of migraine headache such as disability, quality of life, helplessness, and other as yet unidentified effects of migraine headache. © 2000 by the American Society of Pain Management Nurses
On Some Model Problems in Quantum Control

Control and manipulation of quantum mechanical systems using electromagnetic fields is a widely studied subject in areas of physics and chemistry, including spectroscopy, atomic molecular, and optical physics, and quantum chemistry. This article attempts to provide a glimpse into the rich class of bilinear control systems that are ubiquitous in these problems. In this article, we use control of spin systems in magnetic resonance as a model system to highlight characteristic feature of problems in quantum control. Background information is provided to enable the reader to appreciate new results and developments, where principled use of ideas from control theory have provided new insights into finding optimal ways to control and manipulate quantum mechanical systems. The study of deterministic and stochastic models that arise in problems in measurement and manipulation of quantum mechanical systems may foster new developments in control. 1. Introduction. The article describes some dierential equation models that arise in the control and manipulation of quantum mechanical phenomena. Control of spin dynamics in NMR spectroscopy (1, 2, 3) is used as a paradigm to outline general principles in the control of quantum systems and describe some common characteristic phenomenon encountered in control of these physical systems.
Incident response: crew scheduling and rerouting of hazmat carriers

Incident response strategies deal with the resource allocation and minimum risk re-routing of hazardous material carriers in response to traffic incidents. Such strategies also address the effect of loss in coverage due to the non- availability of response vehicles. In addition, the effect of an incident on hazmat carriers that are presented in the local vicinity is that the resulting traffic congestion considerably increases the risk of exposure for motorists. In such a situation, the hazmat carrier needs to be re- routed through a safer path. We have proposed mathematical models that address each of the two problems. The incident response model identifies an optimal allocation of response agency units and their routing in the even of traffic incidents in real-time, while also taking into consideration the response requirements for future demands. The hazmat re- routing model determines an optimal diversion route in a network using multiple risk-based objective functions to re- route Hazmat carriers in the event of an incident occurring along the prescribed route. Mathematical programming formulations are presented for each case, and solution procedures are outlined. Some computational experience is also provided.
Lithospheric mantle duplex beneath the central Mojave Desert revealed by xenoliths from Dish Hill, California

Received 30 June 2008; revised 30 November 2008; accepted 12 December 2008; published 5 March 2009. [1] Low-angle subduction of oceanic lithosphere may be an important process in modifying continental lithosphere. A classic example is the underthrusting of the Farallon plate beneath North America during the Laramide orogeny. To assess the relevance of this process to the evolution and composition of continental lithosphere, the mantle stratigraphy beneath the Mojave Desert was constrained using ultramafic xenoliths hosted in Plio-Pleistocene cinder cones. Whole-rock chemistry, clinopyroxene trace element and Nd isotope data, in combination with geothermometry and surface heat flow, indicate kilometer-scale compositional layering. The shallow parts are depleted in radiogenic Nd (eNd = 13 to 6.4) and are interpreted to be ancient continental mantle that escaped tectonic erosion by low-angle subduction. The deeper samples are enriched in radiogenic Nd (eNd = +5.7 to +16.1) and reveal two superposed mantle slices of recent origin. Within each slice, compositions range from fertile lherzolites at the top to harzburgites at the bottom: the latter formed by 25–28% low-pressure melt depletion and the former formed by refertilization of harzburgites by mid-ocean-ridge-basalt-like liquids. The superposition and internal compositional zonation of the slices preclude recent fertilization by Cenozoic extension-related magmas. The above observations imply that the lower Mojavian lithosphere represents tectonically subcreted and imbricated lithosphere having an oceanic protolith. If so, the lherzolitic domains may be related to melting and refertilization beneath mid-ocean ridges. The present Mojavian lithosphere is thus a composite of a shallow section of the original North American lithosphere underlain by Farallon oceanic lithosphere accreted during low-angle subduction.
N-Acetylcysteine Enhances Hippocampal Neuronal Survival After Transient Forebrain Ischemia in Rats

Background and Purpose Free radical scavengers enhance neuronal survival in some models of transient forebrain ischemia. Recent experiments have suggested that N -acetylcysteine prevents cellular injury after a reperfusion injury. No information is available regarding the neuroprotective potential of the free radical scavenger N -acetylcysteine after transient forebrain ischemia. In this study we evaluated the potential of N -acetylcysteine to improve hippocampal neuronal survival after transient forebrain ischemia in the rat. Methods In series A and B, ventilated, paralyzed, normothermic rats had 10 minutes of transient forebrain ischemia induced by bilateral carotid occlusion with hypotension induced by blood withdrawal (mean arterial blood pressure, 45 mm Hg). In series A, animals were administered N -acetylcysteine (163 mg/kg) 30 minutes and 5 minutes before transient forebrain ischemia. In series B, N -acetylcysteine (326 mg/kg) was administered 15 minutes after transient forebrain ischemia. In series C, N -acetylcysteine (326 mg/kg) was administered 15 minutes after transient forebrain ischemia in animals with a mean arterial blood pressure of 30 mm Hg during transient forebrain ischemia. All series had normal control, sham, and vehicle treatment groups. In all series, the rats were allowed to recover and were killed at 7 days after ischemia. The effect of forebrain ischemia was assessed by evaluating the number of viable neurons at bregma sections −3.3, −3.8, and −4.3 of the CA1 region of the hippocampus. Results The results demonstrated no physiological difference among the various treatment groups. There were no differences in the number of viable neurons between the transient forebrain ischemia with no treatment group and the vehicle (saline)-treated transient forebrain ischemic groups. Animals pretreated with N -acetylcysteine (mean number of neurons, 84±6) had a significant increase ( P <.05) in neuronal survival compared with vehicle-treated animals (mean number of neurons, 43±4). Animals posttreated with N -acetylcysteine (mean number of neurons, 89±9) had a significant increase in neuronal survival compared with vehicle-treated animals (mean number of neurons, 7±1). However, N -acetylcysteine protection was only partial at 45 mm Hg and did not improve neuronal survival (mean number of neurons, 22±3) in animals with a more severe ischemic insult (mean arterial blood pressure, 30 mm Hg during transient forebrain ischemia) compared with vehicle-treated animals (mean number of neurons, 10±1). Conclusions N -Acetylcysteine partially improved neuronal survival when administered before or after ischemia following transient cerebral ischemia (mean arterial blood pressure, 45 mm Hg) but not with a more severe ischemic insult of 10 minutes of transient cerebral ischemia with a mean arterial blood pressure of 30 mm Hg.
Genetics of type 1 diabetes: Compounding effect of Dr3 and Dr4 alleles on diabetic risk in HLA identical sibs of affected children

Abstract A retrospective and prospective analysis of 43 HLA-identical sib pairs with at least one sib affected with type 1 diabetes mellitus (IDDM) revealed that 46% were heterozygous for both DR3 and DR4 alleles (DR3,4). Nineteen percent possessed only DR3, 30% only DR4, and 5% neither of these diabetes-associated alleles. Ninety percent (9 of 10) of pairs in which both sibs were diabetic (concordant) were DR3,4 vs. 33% (11 of 33) DR3,4 in nonconcordant pairs (p
A user-driven treadmill control scheme for simulating overground locomotion

Treadmill-based locomotor training should simulate overground walking as closely as possible for optimal skill transfer. The constant speed of a standard treadmill encourages automaticity rather than engagement and fails to simulate the variable speeds encountered during real-world walking. To address this limitation, this paper proposes a user-driven treadmill velocity control scheme that allows the user to experience natural fluctuations in walking velocity with minimal unwanted inertial force due to acceleration/deceleration of the treadmill belt. A smart estimation limiter in the scheme effectively attenuates the inertial force during velocity changes. The proposed scheme requires measurement of pelvic and swing foot motions, and is developed for a treadmill of typical belt length (1.5 m). The proposed scheme is quantitatively evaluated here with four healthy subjects by comparing it with the most advanced control scheme identified in the literature.
Precise position measurements of Jupiter, Saturn and Uranus systems with the Very Large Array

The discovery of Quasi-Stellar Objects (QSO’s) and the development of Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) techniques since the early 1960’s have afforded an extremely precise coordinate grid system or reference frame on the sky. Since the QSO’s are both stellar-like objects and strong emitters of radio flux, their positions can be measured with both optical and radio techniques. However, the radio VLBI measurements on simple, compact sources are by far the most precise, the useful unit being micro-radians. The origin of the VLBI reference frame is tied to the stellar reference frame by the measurements of Hazard et al. (1971) who precisely measured the optical position of the QSO 3C273 with lunar occultations, which, when combined with VLBI position measurements of the same source, ‘‘tied’’ the VLBI and stellar position frames together. Their reported accuracy is ±0.15 arc seconds, but there is good reason to believe that the error in that frame tie is significantly smaller. Radio tracking measurements of spacecraft associated with the inner planets, such as the Viking Orbiters around Mars, combined with VLBI measurements indicate that the frames of the inner planets (i.e. their ephemerides), stellar system, and the VLBI reference sources are consistent to better than ±0:’03 (Newhall et al., 1984).
Effect of metrazol on brain norepinephrine: a possible factor in amnesia produced by the drug.

Abstract Metrazol-induced seizures reduced brain norepinephrine (NE) of mice trained in a passive avoidance paradigm. A reduction of NE was observed 5 but not 1440 min following injections. The implications of the results are discussed with respect to amnesia produced by metrazol.
Monge-ampere waves in a 1-dimensional elastic medium

Abstract Waves in a 1-dimensional elastic medium are described by a model equation of the form U ττ =p(ϵ) 2 U, xx , ϵ = U, x . A solution of this model equation that also satisfies the Monge-Ampere equation is referred to as a Monge-Ampere wave solution. An infinite family of exact Monge-Ampere wave solutions is constructed. This family is parametrized by three constants of integration and an arbitrary smooth function of four variables.
Percutaneous Alternatives in Nutritional Support: A Radiologic Perspective

As alternatives to per os feeding and nutritional support increase in number and complexity, the interventional radiologist has come to play a more significant role in the creation and maintenance of nutritional access. In very difficult access cases, the concerted effort of the nutritional surgeon and the radiologist is often required. We describe several such situations which have been successfully managed at our institution. The indications for and techniques of percutaneous reestablishment of surgically placed jejunostomy tubes, the percutaneous conversion of gastrostomy to jejunostomy tubes with retention of the gastrostomy tube, and percutaneous placement of an inferior vena caval Hickman catheter are all described in detail. (Journal of Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition12:513-520, 1988)
Nanofabrication of Heteromolecular Organic Nanostructures on Epitaxial Graphene via Room Temperature Feedback-Controlled Lithography

Nanoscale control of surface chemistry holds promise for tailoring the electronic, optical, and chemical properties of graphene. Toward this end, the nanofabrication of sub-5-nm heteromolecular organic nanostructures is demonstrated on epitaxial graphene using room temperature ultrahigh vacuum scanning tunneling microscopy. In particular, monolayers of the organic semiconductor 3,4,9,10-perylene-tetracarboxylic dianhydride (PTCDA) are nanopatterned on epitaxial graphene using feedback-controlled lithography (FCL) and then used as chemical resists to template the deposition of N,N′-dioctyl-3,4,9,10-perylene-tetracarboxylic diimide (PTCDI-C8). The generality of this FCL-based nanofabrication procedure suggests its applicability to a wide range of fundamental studies and prototype device fabrication on chemically functionalized graphene.
When does outsourcing become a right source for academic excellence

Many new nursing leaders assuming deanships, assistant deanships, or interim deanships have limited education, experience, or background to prepare them for the job. To assist new deans and those aspiring to be deans, the authors of this department, 2 deans, offer survival tips based on their personal experiences and insights. They address common issues, challenges, and opportunities that face academic executive teams, such as negotiating an executive contract, obtaining faculty lines, building effective work teams, managing difficult employees, and creating nimble organizational structure to respond to changing consumer, healthcare delivery, and community needs. The authors welcome counterpoint discussions with readers.
Steepened channels upstream of knickpoints: Controls on relict landscape response

[1] The morphology of a relict landscape provides important insight into erosion rates and processes prior to base level fall. Fluvial knickpoints are commonly thought to form a leak-proof moving boundary between a rejuvenated landscape below and a relict landscape above. We argue that fluvial rejuvenation may leak farther upstream, depending on the rate and style of knickpoint migration. The outer margin of a relict landscape should therefore be used with caution in tectonic geomorphology studies, as channel steepening upstream of knickpoints could reduce the relict area. We explore the response of the Roan Plateau to knickpoint retreat triggered by late Cenozoic upper Colorado River incision. Multiple knickpoints (100-m waterfalls) separate a low-relief, upper landscape from incised canyons below. Two digital elevation model data sets (10-m U.S. Geological Survey and 1-m Airborne Laser Swath Mapping) indicate steeper channels above waterfalls relative to concave channels farther upstream. The steepened reaches are several kilometers long, correspond to doubling of slope, and exhibit channel narrowing and an increase in hillslope angle. We compare two mechanisms for generating steepened reaches. The first uses a recent model for erosion amplification due to flow acceleration at the waterfall lip. The second acknowledges that waterfall lips may be limited to the outcrop of a resistant formation. Subtle structural warping of the stratigraphy can lead to lowering of the waterfall lip as it retreats, thus lowering base level for upstream channels. Results of numerical modeling experiments suggest the latter mechanism is more consistent with our observations of long, mildly steepened reaches.
On controllability estimation to aid in partitioning logic circuits

The authors present a computer-aided test tool, PACE (Partitioning Aid and Controllability Estimator), which provides controllability estimation and interfaces with a partitioning-for-testability tool. When interfaced with a partitioning tool, PACE can be used for verifying the optimum number of partitions. It utilizes controllability estimation to help designers early in the design cycle. In PACE, two transfer factors, the zero-controllability transfer factor and one-controllability transfer factor, are defined for each primitive device. The zero-controllability index, one-controllability index and average-controllability index are three indices which are calculated across a primitive device for each line of a circuit. In addition, there is an overall-controllability index for the whole circuit. PACE can be used for both combinational and sequential circuits. >
LV twisting and untwisting in HCM: Ejection begets filling: Diastolic functional aspects of HCM

Conventional and emerging concepts on mechanisms by which hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) engenders diastolic dysfunction are surveyed. A shift from familiar left ventricular (LV) diastolic function approaches to large-scale (twist-untwist) and small-scale (titin unfolding-refolding, etc.) wall rebound models, incorporating interaction and dynamic distortions and rearrangements of myofiber sheets and ultrastructural constituents, is suggested. Such an emerging new paradigm of diastolic dynamics, emphasizing the relationship of myofiber sheet and ultraconstituent distortion to LV mechanics and end-systolic shape, might clarify intricate patterns of early diastolic rebound and suction, needed for LV filling in many of the polymorphic phenotypes of HCM.
Radiotracers for cardiac sympathetic innervation: transport kinetics and binding affinities for the human norepinephrine transporter.

Introduction Most radiotracers for imaging of cardiac sympathetic innervation are substrates of the norepinephrine transporter (NET). The goal of this study was to characterize the NET transport kinetics and binding affinities of several sympathetic nerve radiotracers, including [11C]-(−)-meta-hydroxyephedrine, [11C]-(−)-epinephrine, and a series of [11C]-labeled phenethylguanidines under development in our laboratory. For comparison, the NET transport kinetics and binding affinities of some [3H]-labeled biogenic amines were also determined.
A general and efficient approach for the construction of RNA oligonucleotides containing a 5'-phosphorothiolate linkage.

Oligoribonucleotides containing a 5 0 -phosphorothiolate linkage have provided effective tools to study the mechanisms of RNA catalysis, allowing resolution of kinetic ambiguity associated with mechanistic dissection and providing a strategy to establish linkage between catalysis and specific functional groups. However, challenges associated with their synthesis have limited wider application of these modified nucleic acids. Here, we describe a general semisynthetic strategy to obtain these oligoribonucleotides reliably and relatively efficiently. The approach begins with the chemical synthesis of an RNA dinucleotide containing the 5 0 -phosphorothiolate linkage, with the adjacent 2 0 -hydroxyl group protected as the photolabile 2 0 O-o-nitrobenzyl or 2 0 -O-a-methyl-o-nitrobenzyl derivative. Enzymatic ligation of the 2 0 -protected dinucleotide to transcribed or chemically synthesized 5 0 and 3 0 flanking RNAs yields the full-length oligoribonucleotide. The photolabile protecting group increases the chemical stability of these highly activated oligoribonucleotides during synthesis and long-term storage but is easily removed with UV irradiation under neutral conditions, allowing immediate use of the modified RNA in biochemical experiments.
Myosin Light Chain Mutation Causes Autosomal Recessive Cardiomyopathy With Mid-Cavitary Hypertrophy and Restrictive Physiology

Background— Autosomal dominant hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is caused by inherited defects of sarcomeric proteins. We tested the hypothesis that homozygosity for a sarcomeric protein defect can cause recessive HCM. Methods and Results— We studied a family with early-onset cardiomyopathy in 3 siblings, characterized by mid-cavitary hypertrophy and restrictive physiology. Genotyping of DNA markers spanning 8 genes for autosomal dominant HCM revealed inheritance of an identical paternal and maternal haplotype at the essential light chain of myosin locus by the affected children. Sequencing showed that these individuals were homozygous for a Glu143Lys substitution of a highly conserved amino acid that was absent in 150 controls. Family members with one Glu143Lys allele had normal echocardiograms and ECGs, even in late adulthood, whereas those with two mutant alleles developed severe cardiomyopathy in childhood. These findings, coupled with previous studies of myosin light chain structure and function in ...
Close lower and upper bounds for the minimum reticulate network of multiple phylogenetic trees

Motivation: Reticulate network is a model for displaying and quantifying the effects of complex reticulate processes on the evolutionary history of species undergoing reticulate evolution. A central computational problem on reticulate networks is: given a set of phylogenetic trees (each for some region of the genomes), reconstruct the most parsimonious reticulate network (called the minimum reticulate network) that combines the topological information contained in the given trees. This problem is well-known to be NP-hard. Thus, existing approaches for this problem either work with only two input trees or make simplifying topological assumptions. Results: We present novel results on the minimum reticulate network problem. Unlike existing approaches, we address the fully general problem: there is no restriction on the number of trees that are input, and there is no restriction on the form of the allowed reticulate network. We present lower and upper bounds on the minimum number of reticulation events in the minimum reticulate network (and infer an approximately parsimonious reticulate network). A program called PIRN implements these methods, which also outputs a graphical representation of the inferred network. Empirical results on simulated and biological data show that our methods are practical for a wide range of data. More importantly, the lower and upper bounds match for many datasets (especially when the number of trees is small or reticulation level is low), and this allows us to solve the minimum reticulate network problem exactly for these datasets. Availability: A software tool, PIRN, is available for download from the web page: http://www.engr.uconn.edu/~ywu. Contact: ywu@engr.uconn.edu Supplementary information:Supplementary data is available at Bioinformatics online.
Conceiving the Republic of Mankind: The Political Thought of Anacharsis Cloots

Summary During the French Revolution, Jean-Baptiste “Anacharsis” Cloots (1755–1794) developed a theory of the world state as the means to guarantee perpetual peace for mankind. Though his ideas have largely been misunderstood, Cloots's political writings were in fact an extensive plea for a more cosmopolitan understanding of the French Revolution. His system adapted institutions and concepts of the French revolutionary republic for a world state, the republic of mankind. This essay recovers his political vision and connects it both to the heritage of eighteenth-century political thought, especially Rousseau, and to revolutionary political culture. The goal is to retrieve the meaning of Cloots's universal republic, and with it a chapter in the history of cosmopolitan thought.
Identification of Bacillus anthracis Spore Component Antigens Conserved across Diverse Bacillus cereus sensu lato Strains

We sought to identify proteins in the Bacillus anthracis spore, conserved in other strains of the closely related Bacillus cereus group, that elicit an immune response in mammals. Two high throughput approaches were used. First, an in silico screening identified 200 conserved putative B. anthracis spore components. A total of 192 of those candidate genes were expressed and purified in vitro, 75 of which reacted with the rabbit immune sera generated against B. anthracis spores. The second approach was to screen for cross-reacting antigens in the spore proteome of 10 diverse B. cereus group strains. Two-dimensional electrophoresis resolved more than 200 protein spots in each spore preparation. About 72% of the protein spots were found in all the strains. 18 of these conserved proteins reacted against anti-B. anthracis spore rabbit immune sera, two of which (alanine racemase, Dal-1 and the methionine transporter, MetN) overlapped the set of proteins identified using the in silico screen. A conserved repeat domain protein (Crd) was the most immunoreactive protein found broadly across B. cereus sensu lato strains. We have established an approach for finding conserved targets across a species using population genomics and proteomics. The results of these screens suggest the possibility of a multiepitope antigen for broad host range diagnostics or therapeutics against Bacillus spore infection.
Computer intensive statistical methods

The special session “Computer-Intensive Statistical Methods” was held in morning and afternoon parts at the 1985 AGU Fall Meeting in San Francisco. Calif. Its mission was to provide a forum for hydrologists and statisticians who are active in bringing unconventional, algorithmic-oriented statistical techniques to bear on problems of hydrology. Statistician Emanuel Parzen (Texas A&M University, College Station, Tex.) opened the session by relating recent developments in quantile estimation methods and showing how properties of such methods can be used to advantage to categorize runoff data previously analyzed by I. Rodriguez-Iturbe (Universidad Simon Bolivar, Caracas, Venezuela). Statistician Eugene Schuster (University of Texas, El Paso) discussed recent developments in nonparametric density estimation which enlarge the framework for convenient incorporation of prior and ancillary information. These extensions were motivated by peak annual flow analysis. Mathematician D. Myers (University of Arizona, Tucson) gave a brief overview of “kriging” and outlined some recently developed methodology.
High-Rate Design of Transform Coders with Gaussian Mixture Companders

This paper examines the problem of designing fixed-rate transform coders for sources with arbitrary distributions, under input-weighted squared error distortion measures. As a component of this system, a flexible scalar compander using Gaussian mixtures is proposed. An algorithm is developed to set the parameters of the system using a data-driven technique that automatically balances the source statistics, distortion measure, and structure of the transform coder to minimize the high-rate distortion. The implementation of Gaussian mixture companders is explored, resulting in a flexible, low-complexity scalar quantizer. The operation of this system for the problem of wideband speech spectrum quantization with log spectral distortion is illustrated, and shown to provide good performance with very low, rate-independent complexity