cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Frequency-domain measurement of neuronal activity using dynamic optical coherence tomography

We report preliminary results on high-resolution in vivo imaging of fast intrinsic optical signals of neuronal activity in the frequency domain. An optical coherence tomography (OCT) system was used for dynamic imaging of the cross section of rodent somatosensory cortex at 250 frame/s. Neurons in the cortex were excited by contralateral forepaw stimulation, and the ipsilateral forepaw was stimulated as a control. Hemodynamic responses at the cortical surface, which were simultaneously measured using a CCD, confirmed that forepaw stimulation properly evoked neuronal activation. Analysis of the OCT signal in the frequency domain resulted in that the spectrum significantly increased at the stimulation frequency during activation. This spectrum change was only observed during contralateral stimulation and highly localized at the stimulation frequency in the frequency space. Therefore, the spectrum change we observed is likely associated with neuronal activation
Umbilical hernia repair with mesh: identifying effectors of ideal outcomes.

Abstract Background Quality of life has become an important focus for improvement in hernia repair. Methods The International Hernia Mesh Registry was queried. The Carolinas Comfort Scale quantitated quality of life at 1-month, 6-month, and annual follow-up. Scores of 0 (completely asymptomatic) in all categories without recurrence defined an ideal outcome. Results The analysis consisted of 363 umbilical hernia repairs; 18.7% were laparoscopic. Demographics included age of 51.5 ± 13.8 years, 24.5% were female, and the average body mass index was 30.63 ± 5.9 kg/m 2 . Mean defect size was 4.3 ± 3.1 cm 2 . Mean follow-up was 18.2 months. Absent/minimal preoperative symptoms were predictive of ideal outcome at all time points and increasing age was predictive at 6 months and 1 year. At 6 months, the use of fixation sutures alone versus tacks (odds ratio 14.1) predicted ideal outcome. Conclusions Ideal outcomes are dependent on both patient-specific and operative factors. The durable, ideal outcome in umbilical hernia repair is most likely in an older, asymptomatic patient who undergoes mesh fixation with permanent suture.
Vortex Formation and Stability in a Scaled Gas-Core Nuclear Rocket Configuration

Realistic interplanetary space exploration depends critically upon the development of a high-speci cimpulse propulsion system. Previous studies indicate that the speci c impulse of an open-cycle gas-core nuclear rocket (OCGCNR) might approach 3000 s. Although the OCGCNR is deceptively simple in concept, it will be dif cult to develop in practice because the core is a uranium plasma that must be nearly totally con ned. Before constructing a more comprehensive model for this engine, there is a requirement to understand the limits of present full-scale simulation models and recent scaled experiments. In this scoping study we have used a two-dimensional, axisymmetric,  nite difference code to investigate the formation and stability of a recirculation region observed in a scaled experiment. It has been proposed that such a recirculation region, or vortex, might provide improved con nement of the uranium fuel. Our simulation results indicate that a more comprehensive model must treat the rocket nozzle in a selfconsistent fashion to properly calculate the con nement of the uranium plasma. Under conditions that lead to vortex formation, the position of the vortex depends upon the inlet geometry and injection velocity, the nozzle position and subsonic convergence angle, the base-bleed injection rate, and turbulence. With a large base-bleed injection rate, a vortex forms but is then swept away through the nozzle, a result that resolves an inconsistency between a full-scale engine simulation model and recent scaled experiments.
Caspase-3 mediated feedback activation of apical caspases in doxorubicin and TNF-α induced apoptosis

Aberrant apoptosis has been associated with the development and therapeutic resistance of cancer. Recent studies suggest that caspase deficiency/downregulation is frequently detected in different cancers. We have previously shown that caspase-3 reconstitution significantly sensitized MCF-7 cells to doxorubicin and etoposide. In contrast to the well established role of caspase-3 as an effector caspase, the focus of this study is to delineate caspase-3 induced feedback activation of the apical caspases-2, -8, -9 and -10A in doxorubicin and TNF-alpha induced apoptosis. Using cell-free systems we show that caspases-9 and 2 are the most sensitive, caspase-8 is less sensitive and caspase-10A is the least sensitive to caspase-3 mediated-cleavage. When apoptosis is induced by doxorubicin or TNF-alpha in an intact cell model, cleavage of caspases-8 and -9, but not caspase-2, was markedly enhanced by caspase-3. Caspase-3 mediated-feedback and activation of caspase-8 and -9 in MCF-7/C3 cells is further supported by an increase in the cleavage of caspase-8 and 9 substrates and cytochrome c release. These data indicate that, in addition to its function as an effector caspase, caspase-3 plays an important role in maximizing the activation of apical caspases and crosstalk between the two major apoptotic pathways. The significant impact of caspase-3 on both effector and apical caspases suggests that modulation of caspase-3 activity would be a useful approach to overcome drug resistance in clinical oncology.
Effect of intralipid infusion on lecithin:cholesterol acyltransferase and lipoprotein lipase in young rats.

We compared the effects of Intralipid and dextrose infusion on plasma lecithin:cholesterol acyltransferase (LCAT), plasma lipid profiles and lipolytic activity. We used 5-week-old male Sprague-Dawley rats which were given total parenteral nutrition (TPN) with either Intralipid (3 g/kg body weight) or an equicaloric amount of 25% dextrose in the presence or absence of heparin (1 or 10 IU/ml of TPN). 40 min after the end of 4 h of infusion, plasma LCAT activity was significantly decreased (P < 0.001), while total cholesterol and free fatty acid levels were significantly (P < 0.005) increased in rats given Intralipid as compared to those given dextrose. We found associations (P < 0.005) between LCAT activity and total cholesterol and between LCAT and free fatty acid levels; the coefficients of negative correlation were 0.543 and 0.607, respectively. Concomitantly to the increment in plasma total cholesterol levels, there was a decrease in the high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol fraction; the latter, which was 40% of the total plasma cholesterol in control and dextrose-infused rats, declined to 9% in rats given Intralipid. Administration of heparin during Intralipid infusion, even up to 10 IU/ml of TPN, did not affect any of these changes. After dextrose infusion, the values of all three parameters were similar to those of the control group. Plasma lipolytic activity was not significantly different between rate given infusion (Intralipid or dextrose) and controls. However, in the presence of heparin, plasma lipolytic activity increased similarly in both infused groups. These data indicate that in young rats, Intralipid infusion leads to an increase in plasma total cholesterol and free fatty acid levels, which correlates with a decrease in LCAT activity; the concurrent decrease in HDL cholesterol levels might account, in part, for the loss of LCAT activity. The administration of heparin results in an elevation of plasma lipolytic activity; however, it does not prevent the hypercholesterolemia, nor the decline in LCAT activity associated with Intralipid infusion.
Magnetic resonance spectroscopy of the occipital cortex and the cerebellar vermis distinguishes individual cats affected with alpha-mannosidosis from normal cats

A genetic deficiency of lysosomal alpha-mannosidase causes the lysosomal storage disease alpha-mannosidosis (AMD), in which oligosaccharide accumulation occurs in neurons and glia. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the role of magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) in detecting the oligosaccharide accumulation in AMD. Five cats with AMD and eight age-matched normal cats underwent in vivo MRS studies with a single voxel short echo time (20 ms) STEAM spectroscopy sequence on a 4.7T magnet. Two voxels were studied in each cat, from the cerebellar vermis and the occipital cortex. Metabolites of brain samples from these regions were extracted with perchloric acid and analyzed by high resolution NMR spectroscopy. A significantly elevated unresolved resonance signal between 3.4 and 4. ppm was observed in the cerebellar vermis and occipital cortex of all AMD cats, which was absent in normal cats. This resonance was shown to be from carbohydrate moieties by high resolution NMR of tissue extracts. Resonances from the Glc-NAc group (1.8-2.2 ppm) along with anomeric proton signals (4.6-5.4 ppm) from undigested oligosaccharides were also observed in the extract spectra from AMD cats. This MRS spectral pattern may be a useful biomarker for AMD diagnosis as well as for assessing responses to therapy.
INTRASPECIFIC AM FUNGAL VARIATION CONTRIBUTES TO PLANT-FUNGAL FEEDBACK IN A SERPENTINE GRASSLAND

Feedback between plants and arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi can affect species diversity in plant and fungal communities. Feedback depends on (1) some specificity between plants and fungi and (2) fungi exhibiting specificity either improving (positive feedback) or decreasing (negative feedback) host performance relative to other fungi. Associations between AM fungi and plant species in a serpentine grassland dominated by Andropogon gerardii, Schizachyrium scoparium, Sorghastrum nutans, and Sporobolus heterolepis were examined, and their performance consequences were evaluated. Specificity was determined from AM fungal spore abundance under plants in the field and from trap cultures established by inoculating greenhouse plants with field-collected roots containing fungal material. Seven AM fungal species were unevenly distributed among plant species, with differences in total spore numbers and evenness. In the field, Gigaspora gigantea exhibited specificity to Sporobolus compared to Andropogon and Sorgha...
Differential effects of Co(III), Ni(II), and Ru(III) amine complexes on Sindbis virus

Transition metal complexes [Co(cyclen)(NH(3))(2)](ClO(4))(3)H(2)O (cyclen=1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane) (2), [Co(NH(3))(5)(OH(2))](CF(3)SO(3))(3) (3) [Ni(NH(3))(6)]Br(2) (4) and [Ru(NH(3))(6)]Cl(3) (5) were tested against Sindbis infected baby hamster kidney (BHK) cells and show differential effects from the previously reported anti-viral complex [Co(NH(3))(6)]Cl(3) (1). The macrocyclic complex 2 and labile aqua complex 3 show either no or little effect on the survival on Sindbis virus-infected cells as compared to that for 1, which show a monotonic increase in % BHK cell survival. Nickel and ruthenium ammine complexes 4 and 5 had a moderate influence of cell survival. While the results showed some anti-viral activity for some of the structural variations, it appears that 1, with its potential to be a broad-spectrum anti-viral compound, occupies a unique position in its ability to both significantly enhance cell survival and to decrease viral expression of infected cells. We also show that 1 also shows anti-viral activity against Adenovirus lending support to the broad-spectrum potential of this complex.
An evaluation of fuel spray performance in a swirl stabilized combustor using optical methods for drop sizing

The functional behavior of an air-assist nozzle was studied experimentally to relate the nozzle performance to the performance of a swirl-stabilized model laboratory combustor. Laser diffraction, shadowgraph photography and liquid collection were used to characterize the performance in a spray chamber. Performance was evaluated in terms of a nozzle atomizing air/fuel (A/F) ratio. The results indicated that for a gas turbine the air assist nozzles offer improvements similar to those provided by air-blast atomizers. Performance increased with increasing A/F ratio due to improved atomization and higher fuel momentum. Tailoring the nozzle to the combustor aerodynamic field is recommended, as is quantifying the combustor velocity field as a function of the nozzle operating conditions in order to optimize nozzle designs.
Development of PM 2.5 source impact spatial fields using a hybrid source apportionment air quality model

Abstract. An integral part of air quality management is knowledge of the impact of pollutant sources on ambient concentrations of particulate matter (PM). There is also a growing desire to directly use source impact estimates in health studies; however, source impacts cannot be directly measured. Several limitations are inherent in most source apportionment methods motivating the development of a novel hybrid approach that is used to estimate source impacts by combining the capabilities of receptor models (RMs) and chemical transport models (CTMs). The hybrid CTM–RM method calculates adjustment factors to refine the CTM-estimated impact of sources at monitoring sites using pollutant species observations and the results of CTM sensitivity analyses, though it does not directly generate spatial source impact fields. The CTM used here is the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) model, and the RM approach is based on the chemical mass balance (CMB) model. This work presents a method that utilizes kriging to spatially interpolate source-specific impact adjustment factors to generate revised CTM source impact fields from the CTM–RM method results, and is applied for January 2004 over the continental United States. The kriging step is evaluated using data withholding and by comparing results to data from alternative networks. Data withholding also provides an estimate of method uncertainty. Directly applied (hybrid, HYB) and spatially interpolated (spatial hybrid, SH) hybrid adjustment factors at withheld observation sites had a correlation coefficient of 0.89, a linear regression slope of 0.83 ± 0.02, and an intercept of 0.14 ± 0.02. Refined source contributions reflect current knowledge of PM emissions (e.g., significant differences in biomass burning impact fields). Concentrations of 19 species and total PM2.5 mass were reconstructed for withheld observation sites using HYB and SH adjustment factors. The mean concentrations of total PM2.5 at withheld observation sites were 11.7 (± 8.3), 16.3 (± 11), 8.59 (± 4.7), and 9.2 (± 5.7) μg m−3 for the observations, CTM, HYB, and SH predictions, respectively. Correlations improved for concentrations of major ions, including nitrate (CMAQ–DDM (decoupled direct method): 0.404, SH: 0.449), ammonium (CMAQ–DDM: 0.454, SH: 0.492), and sulfate (CMAQ–DDM: 0.706, SH: 0.730). Errors in simulated concentrations of metals were reduced considerably: 295 % (CMAQ–DDM) to 139 % (SH) for vanadium; and 1340 % (CMAQ–DDM) to 326 % (SH) for manganese. Errors in simulated concentrations of some metals are expected to remain given the uncertainties in source profiles. Species concentrations were reconstructed using SH results, and the error relative to observed concentrations was greatly reduced as compared to CTM-simulated concentrations. Results demonstrate that the hybrid method along with a spatial extension can be used for large-scale, spatially resolved source apportionment studies where observational data are spatially and temporally limited.
Tax Loss Agricultural Investments after Tax Reform

Tax reform had differential effects on tax shelter investments in agriculture. Profits from breeding livestock were reduced, while the tax advantages of citrus and almond orchard establishment were terminated. Other orchard crops which offered tax shelter advantages before reform continue to be profitable.
Impact of burned areas on the northern African seasonal climate from the perspective of regional modeling

This study investigates the impact of burned areas on the surface energy balance and monthly precipitation in northern Africa as simulated by a state-of-the-art regional model. Mean burned area fraction derived from MODIS date of burning product was implemented in a set of 1-year long WRF-NMM/SSiB2 model simulations. Vegetation cover fraction and LAI were degraded daily based on mean burned area fraction and on the survival rate for each vegetation land cover type. Additionally, ground darkening associated with wildfire-induced ash and charcoal deposition was imposed through lower ground albedo for a period after burning. In general, wildfire-induced vegetation and ground condition deterioration increased mean surface albedo by exposing the brighter bare ground, which in turn caused a decrease in monthly surface net radiation. On average, the wildfire-season albedo increase was approximately 6.3 % over the Sahel. The associated decrease in surface available energy caused a drop in surface sensible heat flux to the atmosphere during the dry months of winter and early spring, which gradually transitioned to a more substantial decrease in surface evapotranspiration in April and May that lessened throughout the rainy season. Overall, post-fire land condition deterioration resulted in a decrease in precipitation over sub-Saharan Africa, associated with the weakening of the West African monsoon progression through the region. A decrease in atmospheric moisture flux convergence was observed in the burned area simulations, which played a dominant role in reducing precipitation in the area, especially in the months preceding the monsoon onset. The areas with the largest precipitation impact were those covered by savannas and rainforests, where annual precipitation decreased by 3.8 and 3.3 %, respectively. The resulting precipitation decrease and vegetation deterioration caused a drop in gross primary productivity in the region, which was strongest in late winter and early spring. This study suggests the cooling and drying of atmosphere induced by burned areas caused the strengthening of subsidence during pre-onset and weakening of upward atmospheric motion during onset and mature stages of the monsoon leading to a waning of convective instability and precipitation. Monthly mid-tropospheric vertical wind showed a strengthening of downward motion in winter and spring seasons, and weakening of upward movement during the rainy months. Furthermore, precipitation energy analysis revealed that most of precipitation decrease originated from convective events, which supports the hypothesis of reduced convective instability due to wildfires.
Facial expressions of affect in autistic, mentally retarded and normal children

This study examined the facial affect expressions of autistic, mentally retarded and normal children. Affect was coded using the Maximally Discriminative Movement Coding System. Results indicated that the autistic children were more flat/neutral in their affect expression than the mentally retarded children. Moreover, they displayed a variety of ambiguous expressions not displayed by any of the other children. This unique pattern may be related to the difficulties that autistic children have in sharing affect, and to the difficulties that others experience in reading their affective signals.
Cloning, sequence and transcriptional analysis of the structural gene for LPD‐3, the third lipoamide dehydrogenase of Pseudomonas putida

The third lipoamide dehydrogenase structural gene of Pseudomonas putida, lpd3, was isolated from a library of P. putida PpG2 DNA cloned in Escherichia coli TB1. The nucleotide sequence of lpd3 and its flanking regions indicate that lpd3 is not part of an operon, which is unique for a prokaryotic lipoamide dehydrogenase. An open reading frame was found 207 bases upstream from the start of transcription, but is encoded on the strand opposite lpd3. There is no evidence of an open reading frame immediately downstream from lpd3. The coding region of lpd3 consists of 1401 bp, providing for 466 amino acids plus a stop codon with a G/C content of 62.4%. The transcriptional start site was located 33-bp upstream from the start of translation. The third lipoamide dehydrogenase (LPD-3) shares amino acid identity with the other two lipoamide dehydrogenases of P. putida, 45% with that of the 2-oxoglutarate dehydrogenase and pyruvate multienzyme complexes, and 45.9% with the lipoamide dehydrogenase of the branched-chain oxoacid complex. LPD-3 is more closely related to eukaryotic lipoamide dehydrogenases since it has 53.6% amino acid sequence identity with pig and human lipoamide dehydrogenases and 51.1% identity with yeast lipoamide dehydrogenase. LPD-3 was not produced in wild-type P. putida PpG2 under a variety of growth conditions. However, LPD-3 was produced in P. putida PpG2 carrying pSP14, a pKT240-based clone with the entire lpd3 gene plus 104 bases of the leader. The only demonstrated role of LPD-3 in P. putida is a substitute for lipoamide dehydrogenase of the 2-oxoglutarate dehydrogenase and pyruvate multienzyme complexes when the latter is inactive or missing.
Tumor Necrosis Factor-α Acts as a Complete Mitogen for Primary Rat Hepatocytes

The cytokine tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α has previously been shown to prime hepatocytes to a state of replicative competence, but has not been shown to act as a complete mitogen for these cells. In the present study we have altered our previously described long-term dimethyl sulfoxide culture system to exclude all known hepatocyte mitogens from the culture media and enable us to directly examine the effects of TNF-α on primary rat hepatocytes. We have shown that cells maintained under these culture conditions retain the biochemical and morphological features of well-differentiated hepatocytes. Treatment with TNF-α induced DNA synthesis relative to control, to a level not significantly different from that induced by the known hepatocyte mitogen, epidermal growth factor (EGF). Maximal DNA synthesis was induced by treatment with 250 U/ml TNF-α for 24 hours. Mitotic figures were observed in cultures treated with TNF-α or EGF but not in untreated controls. Treatment of cultures with TNF-α, but not EGF, induced activation of both nuclear factor-κB p50 homodimers and p50/p65 heterodimers. DNA synthesis induced by TNF-α was inhibited by treatment with transforming growth factor-β. Based on the results of our studies, we conclude that TNF-α acts as a complete mitogen for rat hepatocytes.
Effects of cortisol and stress on channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) pathogen susceptibility and lysozyme activity following exposure to Edwardsiella ictaluri

Abstract Periods of stress are often associated with disease outbreaks in cultured fish, and stress is often characterized by the secretion of cortisol. Although stress and cortisol secretion are highly correlated in fish, the role of cortisol in affecting channel catfish ( Ictalurus punctatus ) pathogen susceptibility is unclear. The effects of short-term stress and exogenous cortisol administration on channel catfish susceptibility to Edwardsiella ictaluri , the etiologic agent of enteric septicemia of catfish (ESC), were investigated. Channel catfish were exposed to virulent E. ictaluri following a standardized 30-min low-water stress or administration of dietary cortisol (100 mg/kg feed) and compared to a pathogen-challenged control group of catfish. Pathogen susceptibility increased in stressed catfish (43.3% mortality) when compared to cortisol-fed catfish (26.7%) and controls (26.7%). A greater ( P E. ictaluri relative to cortisol-fed catfish (13.0%) over the course of the study, however, average levels of circulating bacteria were not different ( P > 0.05) among the treatments. Catfish challenged by the low-water stress event had elevated ( P P P > 0.05) to either lysozyme activity or bacterial levels; however, lysozyme activity was positively correlated ( P = 0.0197) to blood bacterial concentrations. These results implicate other stress factors or pathways, separate from or possibly in conjunction with cortisol, in the stress-associated immunosuppression of channel catfish as it relates to ESC susceptibility.
Experimentally acquired associations in memory encoding by preschoolers

Three- and 4-year-old children were given extensive paired-associate (PA) training in which response terms were highly familiar words and stimulus terms were words semantically related to response terms but relatively unfamiliar to the Ss. Subsequent recognition memory (RM) performance indicated, by an analysis of false recognitions, that the newly acquired associations functioned during the encoding of the RM items, i.e., the PA response terms occurred as implicit associative responses to the PA stimulus terms presented for learning. The feasibility of using an entirely verbal PA task with children as young as 3 years also was demonstrated.
Electron temperature enhancement effects on plasma irregularities associated with charged dust in the Earth's mesosphere

[1] Recently, experimental observations have shown that Polar Mesospheric Summer Echoes (PMSE) may be modulated by radio wave heating the irregularity source region with a ground-based ionospheric heating facility. It is clear from these past investigations that the temporal behavior of PMSE during ionospheric heating shows promise as a diagnostic for the associated dust layer. To investigate the temporal behavior of plasma irregularities thought to produce PMSE, this work describes a new model that incorporates both finite diffusion time effects as well as dust charging. The hybrid model utilizes fluid ions described by continuity and momentum equations, electrons whose behavior is determined from quasi-neutrality, and charged dust described by the standard Particle-In-Cell (PIC) method. The model has been used to investigate the temporal behavior of charged dust associated electron irregularities during electron temperature enhancement associated with radio wave heating. The model predicts that the temporal behavior of the irregularities depends on the ratio of the electron-ion ambipolar diffusion time to the dust particle charging time τdif/τchg. The results indicate that typically for τdif/τchg ≪ 1, an enhancement in electron irregularity amplitude occurs for a period after turn-off of the radio wave heating. The work also predicts that for τdif/τchg ≫ 1, an enhancement in electron irregularity amplitude occurs for a time period after the turn-on of the radio wave heating. Owing to the dependence of τdif on irregularity scale size, these results have important implications for observations of PMSE modification at different radar frequencies. Therefore new possibilities may exist for diagnosing the dust layer with radio wave heating which are discussed.
Health effects of acid aerosols on North American children: respiratory symptoms.

We examined the respiratory health effects of exposure to acidic air pollution among 13,369 white children 8 to 12 years old from 24 communities in the United States and Canada between 1988 and 199...
Lymphoepithelioma in childhood

Nine black children with lymphoepithelioma, a rare malignancy of childhood, are the subject of this report. Unique clinical features included tender cervical lymphadenopathy with torticollis, trismus, epistaxis, and change in voice quality. A nasopharyngeal mass was demonstrable in seven children on careful examination, but none was resectable. Treatment with radiation alone or radiation plus cyclophosphamide resulted in complete tumor regression in eight of the nine children. Local recurrence or distant metastases occurred in four within 10 months, two of whom responded to additional radiation plus cyclophosphamide or adriamycin. At present, four children are alive without disease for periods of seven to 78 months, two are alive for seven to 53 months and are in remission from recurrent disease, and three have died with distant metastases. Freedom from disease for one year was associated with a favorable prognosis. Adjuvant chemotherapy appears warranted in view of the high incidence of local recurrence and distant metastases.
1. Women, Tradition and Politics in Japanese Classical Theatre

Elite rule requires a monopolistic retention of the political resources upon which the rule is maintained. In the traditional dramatic arts of Japan, noh and kabuki, the resources of the prestige of tradition, names, knowledge, experience, secrets, access and publicity have been controlled exclusively by and for the male members of acting families. Female roles continue to be played by men even though Japanese women have provided ample evidence of their talent and success in other forms of Japanese drama. This is not a unique phenomenon, but instead is representative of a pervasive sexual inequality in Japanese society.
Using Therapeutic Letters to Navigate Resistance and Ambivalence: Experiential Implications for Group Counseling

Clients in the early stages of changing addictive behaviors are typically not ready to assume active roles in making significant changes. Navigating these challenges with traditional talk therapy can prove ineffective. Experiential group activities help normalize the difficulties associated with making changes and help clinicians bypass client resistance and ambivalence. The application of one such experiential activity, “Writing a Letter to My Substance/Behavior,” is described and a case study is provided.
Effective conductance method for the primordial recombination spectrum

As atoms formed for the first time during primordial recombination, they emitted bound-bound and free-bound radiation leading to spectral distortions to the cosmic microwave background. These distortions might become observable in the future with high-sensitivity spectrometers, and provide a new window into physical conditions in the early universe. The standard multilevel atom method habitually used to compute the recombination spectrum is computationally expensive, impeding a detailed quantitative exploration of the information contained in spectral distortions thus far. In this work it is shown that the emissivity in optically thin allowed transitions can be factored into a computationally expensive but cosmology-independent part and a computationally cheap, cosmology-dependent part. The slow part of the computation consists in pre-computing temperature-dependent effective “conductances,” linearly relating line or continuum intensity to departures from Saha equilibrium of the lowest-order excited states (2s and 2p), that can be seen as “voltages.” The computation of these departures from equilibrium as a function of redshift is itself very fast, thanks to the effective multilevel atom method introduced in an earlier work. With this factorization, the recurring cost of a single computation of the recombination spectrum is only a fraction of a second on a standard laptop, more than four orders of magnitude shorter than standard computations. The spectrum from helium recombination can be efficiently computed in an identical way, and a fast code computing the full primordial recombination spectrum with this method will be made publicly available soon.
Integrin-Associated Protein Binding Domain of Thrombospondin-1 Enhances Insulin-Like Growth Factor-I Receptor Signaling in Vascular Smooth Muscle Cells

Insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) stimulates vascular smooth muscle cell (SMC) proliferation and migration. The response of smooth muscle cells to IGF-I is determined not only by activation of the IGF-I receptor but also by at least three other transmembrane proteins, alphaVbeta3, integrin-associated protein (IAP), and SHPS-1. This regulation seems to be attributable to their ability to regulate the transfer of SHP-2 phosphatase, a key component of IGF-I signaling. Ligand occupancy of SHPS-1 with IAP is required for the recruitment and transfer of SHP-2 and subsequent signaling in response to IGF-I. The extracellular matrix protein thrombospondin-1 stimulates an increase in the cell proliferation response to IGF-I. Because thrombospondin-1 is a ligand for IAP, we wished to determine whether the enhancing effect of thrombospondin-1 was mediated through IAP binding. To examine the effect of thrombospondin-1 binding to IAP, we used a peptide termed 4N1K derived from the IAP binding site of thrombospondin-1. Preincubation with 4N1K increased IGF-I-stimulated mitogen-activated protein kinase activation and DNA synthesis. This enhancement seemed to be attributable to its ability to increase the duration of IGF-I-stimulated receptor and insulin receptor substrate-1 (IRS-1) phosphorylation. Preincubation with 4N1K delayed IGF-I stimulation of SHPS-1 phosphorylation (attributable to an alteration in IAP-SHPS-1 interaction), resulting in a delay in SHP-2 recruitment. This delay in SHP-2 transfer seems to account for the increase in the duration of IGF-I receptor phosphorylation and for enhanced downstream signaling. These observations support the conclusion that thrombospondin-1 and IGF-I seem to function coordinately in stimulating smooth muscle proliferation via the thrombospondin-1 interaction with IAP.
Structural and conformational changes during thermally-induced crystallization of poly(trimethylene terephthalate) by infrared spectroscopy

Conformational changes occurring during thermally-induced crystallization of poly(trimethylene terephthalate) (PTT) by annealing have been studied using density measurement, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and mid-infrared spectroscopy (MIR). Infrared spectra of amorphous and semicrystalline PTT were obtained, and digital subtraction of the amorphous contribution from the semicrystalline PTT spectra provided characteristic MIR spectra of amorphous and crystalline PTT. The normalized absorbance of 1577, 1173, and 976 cm -1 were plotted against the crystallinity showing that these bands can be used unambiguously to represent the trans conformation while the band at 1358 cm -1 can be used to represent gauche conformation of methylene segment. The presence of a weak band at 1358 cm -1 in the amorphous spectrum suggested that a small amount of gauche conformation is present in the amorphous phase. Infrared spectroscopy has been used for the first time as a means to estimate the trans and gauche conformations of methylene segments in PTT as a function of T a . The amount of gauche conformation was plotted against the crystalline fraction and the extrapolation of this plot to zero crystalline fraction provided a value of 0.07, suggested that the pure amorphous phase consist of ∼ 7% gauche conformation. It was found that the amorphous and crystalline gauche conformation increases at the expense of amorphous trans conformation during thermally induced crystallization of PTT.
A Review of Explicit and Systematic Scripted Instructional Programs for Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Despite deficits in academic outcomes for individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), a relatively small proportion of intervention research has investigated interventions to address academic development for this population. This article includes a review of the research literature on the effectiveness of teaching academic skills to students with ASD using explicit and systematic scripted (ESS) programs. Nine studies were located and evaluated using descriptive analysis and quality indicators for single-case experimental design research. Results showed that only one study met all quality indicators for single-case research and that ESS programs are not evidence-based practices for individuals with ASD, though there is enough promise to warrant additional investigation. Limitations and areas of future research are discussed.
Credit Ratings, Cost Of Debt, And Internal Control Disclosures: A Comparison Of SOX 302 And SOX 404

We compare the effects of SOX 302 and SOX 404 mandated internal control system disclosures on firm credit ratings, changes in credit ratings, and firm cost of debt. We find results consistent with the interpretation that disclosure of firm internal control deficiencies provides incremental information to credit analysts which is negatively associated with a firm’s credit rating, and positively associated with cost of debt. Additionally, we find that while disclosures under SOX 302 are negatively related to credit ratings, this effect largely disappears once prior 404 disclosures are considered. Importantly, the impact of 404 internal control disclosures is significant regardless of past 302 disclosures. These results contribute positively to the public policy debate concerning the efficacy of auditor attested internal control evaluations required by SOX 404.
Research Strategy: Innovation

This is an entirely new section that was not part of the prior NIH grant format. Because innovation is a major criterion for evaluation and scoring of grant applications, this section was created both to make it easier for reviewers to assess this criterion and to allow applicants to highlight this aspect of their projects. This section is contrived and difficult to write, because unlike the other sections conveying facts and plans, the “Innovation” section is your explanation of why your proposed project is innovative. In effect, you are evaluating and touting your own work to the reviewers.
System Performance Characterization

Characterizing an adaptive optics (AO) system refers to understanding its performance and limitations. The goal of an AO system is to correct wavefront aberrations. The uncorrected aberrations, called the residual errors and referred to in what follows simply as the errors, degrade the image quality in the science camera. Understanding the source of these errors is a great aid in designing an AO system and optimizing its performance. This chapter explains how to estimate the wavefront error terms and the relationship between the wavefront error and the degradation of the image. The analysis deals with the particular case of a HartmannShack wavefront sensor (WFS) and a continuous deformable mirror (DM), although the principles involved can be applied to any AO system.
Desertification alters regional ecosystem–climate interactions

We studied the spatial patterns and temporal dynamics of vegetation structural responses to precipitation variation in grassland, transitional, and desertified-shrubland ecosystems in an 800 km2 region of Northern Chihuahua, USA. Airborne high-fidelity imaging spectroscopy data collected from 1997 to 2001 provided spatially detailed measurements of photosynthetic and senescent canopy cover and bare soil extent. The observations were made following wintertime and summer monsoonal rains, which varied in magnitude by >300% over the study period, allowing an assessment of ecosystem responses to climate variation in the context of desertification. Desertification caused a persistent increase in both photosynthetic vegetation (PV) and bare soil cover, and a lasting decrease in nonphotosynthetic vegetation (NPV). We did not observe a change in the spatial variability of PV cover, but its temporal variation decreased substantially. In contrast, desertification caused the spatial variability of NPV to increase markedly, while its temporal variation did not change. Both the spatial and temporal variation of exposed bare surfaces decreased with desertification. Desertification appeared to be linked to a shift in seasonal precipitation use by vegetation from mainly summer to winter inputs, resulting in an apparent decoupling of vegetation responses to inter-annual monsoonal variation. Higher winter rainfall led to decreased springtime spatial variability in the PV cover of desertified areas. Higher summer rainfall resulted in decreased PV cover variation in grassland, transition and desertified-shrubland regions. The effects of desertification on NPV dynamics were more than three times greater than on PV or bare soil dynamics. Using remotely sensed PV and NPV as proxies for net primary production (NPP) and litter dynamics, respectively, we estimated that desertification decreases the temporal variability of NPP and increases spatial variation of litter production and loss. Quantitative studies of surface biological materials and ecosystem processes can now be measured with high ‘structural’ detail using imaging spectroscopy and shortwave-infrared spectral mixture analysis.
A STUDY OF THE LOW BLOOD PRESSURES ASSOCIATED WITH ANAPHYLACTIC AND PEPTONE SHOCK AND EXPERIMENTAL FAT EMBOLISM, WITH SPECIAL. REFERENCE TO SURGICAL SHOCK

1. In peptone shock there is a marked, precipitate fall in arterial pressure. At the same time there is a fall in venous pressure. 2. In experimental fat embolism, (a) the fall in blood pressure is always gradual; (b) approximately 1 cc. of oil for each pound of body weight must be injected before a lasting fall in arterial pressure is produced; (c) it makes only a slight difference whether this amount is injected in small doses at a time or in relatively large quantities; and (d) when the arterial pressure falls, but not till then, the venous pressure rises. 3. In peptone shock, dyspnea, by its suction and force-pump action upon the reservoir of stagnating blood in the liver, brings more blood to the heart and causes a rise in arterial pressure. By repeatedly inducing short periods of dyspnea at frequent intervals, permanently beneficial results are obtained and the life of the animal can be saved. 4. In experimental fat embolism, dyspnea will cause a rise in blood pressure. But permanently beneficial results have not been obtained by this method. If dyspnea is found to bring permanent improvement in surgical shock, it is indirect evidence that this condition is not due to fat embolism. Respiratory suction is probably not responsible for the rise in blood pressure in experimental fat embolism. It seems more likely that the dyspnea in some way facilitates the passage of blood through the embarrassed pulmonary circulation. Artificial respiration with a bellows will also frequently cause a rise in blood pressure in experimental fat embolism. 5. In peptone shock the respiration is usually not affected, although there is some evidence that the respiratory center may be in a state of increased irritability. In experimental fat embolism, in some animals a violent dyspnea develops spontaneously. This is usually accompanied by edema of the lungs. In other instances, an apnea occurs, even before the blood pressure has begun to decline.
Lorentzian-tensor signatures and applications

We examine the metric tensor signatures in two Lorentzian frames of reference. We write the electromagnetic tensor produced by a line charge in its frame of rest. Using the induced fields in the "stationary" system, we compare the resulting magnetic flux density fields of two signatures often employed by various authors. We select the signature (-, +,+,+) as the better of the two because it accounts for the correct sign in magnetic-field expressions. We briefly discuss the disagreement between the above field and the Biot-Savart field when the beta factor is high; and we apply the results to a moving point charge.
The Effect of Tranquilizers on Egg Production and Egg Shell Quality in Caged Layers

Abstract SEVERAL reports have suggested beneficial effects of the use of tranquilizers n poultry nutrition and management practices. Burger, et al. (1959) and Fritz et al. (1959) obtained significant increases in chick growth with reserpine. Carlson (1959a) noted a similar growth response with a rapid growing strain of female broiler chicks. Meprobamate, fed at varying levels, produced a growth depression in the chick (Garren and Hill, 1957; Babcock and Taylor, 1957). Weiss (1959) reported that reserpine, injected at a level of 0.02 milligram per kilogram of body weight or fed at 2.0 milligrams per kilogram of diet, afforded laying birds protection against severe heat stress. Burger and Lorenz (1960) observed that reserpine and chlorpromazine in the diet prolonged the survival of chickens under defined conditions of experimental heat shock. Reserpine has been shown to support egg production and shell quality during and following periods of thermal stress (Van Matre et al,…
Perceived vocal fatigue and effort in relation to laryngeal functional measures in paresis patients

Objectives/Hypothesis To determine if differences in objective measures of laryngeal function can meaningfully explain different levels of self-perceptions of effort or fatigue in patients with vocal fold paresis. Study Design A retrospective chart review of 72 patients with vocal fold paresis diagnosed using laryngeal electromyography, who had either been observed (n = 21), treated only by injection (n = 24), or treated only by surgery (n = 27). Methods Before and after treatment/observation, patients' subjective ratings of severity of vocal effort and fatigue were assessed using the Glottal Function Index. Laryngeal function was assessed using maximum phonation time and translaryngeal flow. Results None of the variables demonstrated a significant linear change across time. Post hoc Tukey analyses following analysis of variance (ANOVA) found significant differences in flow among three groups, those rating symptoms of effort as no problem, moderate problem, or severe problem. Post hoc Tukey analyses following ANOVA found significant differences in the amount that flow changed among three groups, those demonstrating no difference, minor differences, or major differences in ratings of effort before and after treatment. Conclusions Changes in reported symptom severity of effort were related to changes in translaryngeal midvowel flow that were not explained by passage of time. Level of Evidence 4. Laryngoscope, 124:1631–1637, 2014
On Calculating Multiplicative Inverses Modulo $2^{m}$

This paper presents a procedure for calculating multiplicative inverses Modulo 2m, based on a novel mathematical approach. The procedure is suitable for software implementation on a general-purpose processor. When counting the total number of word-level processor multiplications, the computational effort involved in calculating a multiplicative inverse is 2/3 that of a single multiplication of m-bit values, in addition to a few word-level multiplications. For standard processor word sizes, the number of these additional multiplications does not exceed 12. This introduces a clear advantage of the proposed method when compared to other known methods presented in the literature.
Sensitivity to punishment and self-control: the mediating role of emotion

Past research has found that high sensitivity to punishment is associated with a vulnerability to experience negative emotions (Carver & White, 1994) and lowered self-control (Segarra, Molto, & Torrubia, 2000). Separate lines of research have found that negative emotions may contribute to a loss of self-control (Tice, Bratslavsky, & Baumeister, 2001). Two studies were conducted to test whether vulnerability to and current experience of emotional distress mediates this relationship between sensitivity to punishment and self-control. In Study 1, neuroticism (vulnerability to emotional distress) served as a mediator in the relationship between sensitivity to punishment and self-control, such that sensitivity to punishment led to neuroticism, which, in turn, negatively affected self-control behavior. In Study 2, which replicated and extended Study 1, depression and anxiety (current emotional distress) mediated the relationship between sensitivity to punishment and self-control. These findings help account for the diminished self-control observed in individuals high in sensitivity to punishment and provide support for a mechanism underlying self-control failure.