cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Dynamics of plume propagation, splitting, and nanoparticle formation during pulsed-laser ablation

Abstract A new approach has been developed for modelling the expansion of laser-generated plumes into low pressure gases, where, initially, the mean free path may be long enough for interpenetration of the plume and background. Although relatively simple in structure, it gives excellent fits to new experimental data for Si in He and Ar, and provides for the first time a detailed, coherent explanation of the observed splitting of the plume into a fast and a slow component. The model is based on a combination of multiple elastic scattering and hydrodynamic formulations. The plume is broken into orders corresponding to the number of collisions made with the background. The first order reaches the detector without any scattering, the second order undergoes one scattering event, and so forth. While particles can only be transferred between the various orders by collisions, the densities in the individual orders propagate to give the overall plume expansion. The propagation is determined by the usual equations for the conservation of mass and momentum. Representative results from the calculations are presented, and the probable role of the background gas in nanoparticle formation is discussed.
Technogeopolitics and the struggle for control of world air routes, 1910–1928

Abstract This paper introduces and encourages the use of technogeopolitics, the recursive relationship between technology and geopolitics, as a lens for analysis. Through this lens the paper examines the role of Britain, the United States, Germany and France at three international aerial conferences held in 1910, 1919 and 1928. At these conferences, the four nations' geopolitical positions are strongly influenced by each nation's current level of aviation technology. Similarly, the level of technology each nation has developed at each conference is representative of the nation's choice to invest, or not invest, in aviation technology, creating a technogeopolitical relationship. Key issues at each conference revolve around the concepts of aerial sovereignty and freedom of the air, the inclusion and exclusion of nations from aerial trading blocs, cross-Atlantic aerial relationships and the rise of US commercial air power in the Western Hemisphere reflecting each nation's attempt to assume control of the air in particular geographical regions around the world, usually at the expense of other nations.
Optimizing Quantitative Reproducibility in High-Performance Capillary Electrophoresis (HPCE) Separations of Cereal Proteins1

ABSTRACT High-performance capillary electrophoresis (HPCE) is capable of producing high-resolution, rapid separations of cereal proteins. Furthermore, HPCE is highly reproducible in terms of migration time. However, little work has focused on the quantitative reproducibility of cereal protein separations. Several factors such as sample matrix, sample evaporation, voltage ramp-up time, sample injection time, and capillary end-cut were evaluated for involvement in quantitative reproducibility. These experiments showed that preventing sample evaporation, using optimum injection times, and ensuring a clean, square cut on the capillary all improved the reproducibility of peak areas. Combining these factors into an optimized procedure produced reproducibility with peak areas varying by 1.76% relative standard deviation (RSD). Migration time was also excellent under these conditions, varying by only 0.45% RSD. Other variables such as peak area percent, peak height, and peak height percent also showed good reprod...
Some remarks on bilinear Littlewood–Paley theory☆

Abstract In this work, some bilinear analogues of linear Littlewood–Paley theory are explored. Paraproducts with functions decomposed at different scales are shown to be bounded on certain products of Lebesgue spaces. Results concerning square functions associated with smooth and nonsmooth cutoffs are also obtained.
Blaschkolinear skin pigmentary variation due to trisomy 7 mosaicism

Mosaic trisomy 7 is a rare condition that can be seen in individuals with Blaschkolinear skin pigmentary variation, somatic asymmetry, and variable other clinical anomalies. In any patient presenting with Blaschkolinear skin pigmentary variation, varying degrees of asymmetrical growth disturbance, developmental delay, and a normal lymphocytic karyotype, chromosomal mosaicism may be present. To rule out tissue-specific or occult chromosomal mosaicism, it is recommended to culture and karyotype skin fibroblasts, since lymphocyte cell lines may not demonstrate the abnormal cell line. Early diagnosis is of paramount importance, since early physical, occupational, and speech/language therapy can greatly improve the developmental outcome of these patients. We report on a fourth patient with trisomy 7 mosaicism in whom early diagnosis and developmental therapy contributed to an improved developmental outcome when compared with patients in previous reports. Early intervention can greatly benefit patients with this diagnosis, especially in minimizing the aggressive behavior associated with communication difficulties. Our patient has milder manifestations than the previously reported patients with no seizure activity or asymmetry and fewer cells with trisomy 7.
Biological spin trapping. II. Toxicity of nitrone spin traps: dose-ranging in the rat

To obtain the strongest possible free radical spin adduct signal using the electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy-spin trapping technique, it is desirable to load an animal with the highest dose of spin trap possible. One hundred and twenty six male Sprague-Dawley rats were used to establish the toxic dose range for PBN (alpha-phenyl N-tert butyl nitrone) and 18 other similar spin traps. The lethal dose of PBN was found to be approximately 100 mg/100 g BW (0.564 mmol/100 g. The 18 other compounds were then tested, and their toxicities were gauged in terms of molar equivalents to PBN. Of these spin traps, DMPO (5,5-dimethyl-1-pyrroline-N-oxide) was found to be the least toxic (no toxic signs at twice the lethal dose for PBN) while 2,6-difluoro-PBN and M4PO (3,3,5,5-tetramethyl-1-pyrroline-N-oxide) were the most toxic, both causing death at one eighth the PBN-equivalent lethal dose. Nine of the 18 nitrones appeared non-toxic at the 0.25 PBN-equivalent lethal dose level.
Blade Consolidation of Multiple Atrial Septal Defects: A Novel Approach to Transcatheter Closure

The Amplatzer atrial septal defect occlusion device has gained popularity for the nonoperative closure of secundum-type defects. We describe a case of multiple atrial septal defects that were "consolidated" into a single defect using blade atrial septostomy for successful closure with single Amplatzer device.
Nevus spilus with synchronous melanomas: case report and literature review.

Background:Nevus spilus is a rare, acquired, and often large cutaneous lesion consisting of a light brown background macule containing varying numbers of small darker macular or papular areas.Objec...
Therapeutic Implications of Biomarkers in Chronic Heart Failure

Understanding of chronic heart failure (HF) has progressed from the concept of a purely hemodynamic disorder to that of a syndrome that results from dysfunction in interconnected molecular pathways. As a result, the focus of research investigations and clinical care has shifted to measurement and modification of maladaptive molecular processes. Accumulating evidence shows that molecular biomarkers provide a window into the pathophysiology of chronic HF and therefore have important therapeutic implications. However, the use of biomarkers in the treatment of HF remains in its infancy. This is partly a result of shortcomings in research studies and a dearth of biomarker-guided clinical trials. In this review, we summarize the potential therapeutic implications of promising biomarkers that uniquely capture the molecular dysfunction that occurs in chronic HF. We discuss the need for strict statistical standards in biomarker studies, provide an overview of biomarker-guided clinical trial design, and discuss the therapeutic potential of a multimarker-based strategy.
A consulting system for data base design

Abstract This paper proposes a methodology for automated data base design based on a set of managerial reports. We introduce the notion of report schemata, specified in terms of record types and binary relations, as a framework for analyzing report structures and interactions among reports. Four classes of binary relations are identified, each being characteristic of a certain type of elementary report. Multiple binary relations are used to specify more complex reports. We also discuss concepts such as report covering and the maximal members for transforming reports to a parsimonious representation for data base design. Finally, we formulate this report-driven data base design methodology as an expert consulting system in Artificial Intelligence.
Possible route to low current, high speed, dynamic switching in a perpendicular anisotropy CoFeB-MgO junction using Spin Hall Effect of Ta

We have experimentally demonstrated a significant control of magnetic anisotropy in a CoFeB-MgO junction using Spin Hall Effect (SHE) in underlying Ta layer. We developed a model that reproduces the experimentally observed unique switching behavior of SHE based spin torque. Using this model, we show that the dynamics of switching for SHE is qualitatively different from conventional STT. Taking advantage of this dynamics we show that it is possible to dynamically switch magnets at sub 10 ns speeds without increasing the current amplitude from what is necessary for steady state switching. We show this behavior in two different settings -one appropriate for reducing write power in memory and other for reducing clock power in spintronic logic applications.
A role of acetoacetyl-CoA synthetase in acetoacetate utilization by rat liver cell fractions

Abstract The enzyme acetoacetyl-CoA synthetase which catalyzes the synthesis of acetoacetyl-CoA from acetoacetate, CoA and ATP is shown to be present in mitochondrial and cytoplasmic fractions of rat liver. It was decreased in both specific activity and amount after starvation for 48 hours. It is proposed that the synthetase normally functions in the re-utilization of some of the acetoacetate produced within the mitochondrion as well as that reaching the cytoplasm, and that acetoacetate can function as an acetyl carrier between mitochondria and cytoplasm.
Toward the understanding of complex population dynamics: planktonic community as a model system

Ecologists have long been interested in understanding population dynamics in nature. Although theoretical ecologists have shown that mathematical models can represent various dynamic behaviors, and empirical ecologists have confirmed that some types of dynamics actually exist in nature, we do not yet completely understand how population dynamics are driven. The list of possible mechanisms driving population dynamics is still growing. Here I review studies of population dynamics carried out both in the field and in the laboratory by my colleagues and myself. I first describe some population dynamics of planktonic organisms living in freshwater lakes, then introduce some mechanisms driving population dynamics, for which theoretical and empirical evidence has only recently begun to accumulate. I also discuss how and why laboratory microcosms are a useful tool in the study of population dynamics. Future challenges to the advance of our understandings of complex population dynamics in nature lie where three different approaches intersect: time-series data description, mathematical modeling, and laboratory and field experiments.
Absorption of amino acids by Schistosoma mansoni.

Abstract 1. 1. The uptake of alanine, arginine, aspartate, glutamate, cycloleucine, leucine, methionine, phenylalanine and valine by Schistosoma mansoni were measured kinetically. The Km (in μmoles) were determined to be 5·56, 3·64, 1·18, 0·14, 4·0, 0·29, 0·29, 0·63 and 0·45 respectively. 2. 2. Except for arginine the above amino acids can be concentrated against a gradient and are thus actively transported. Proline uptake was also examined but apparently it is taken up by simple diffusion. 3. 3. Glutamate and cycloleucine were selected for further study. It was shown that these two amino acids enter Schistosoma via separate sites. The cycloleucine site is shared with leucine, phenylalanine and serine and is sodium insensitive. The glutamate site is shared with aspartate, glutamine and leucine. The site is partly sodium dependent and is inhibited by ouabain and phloridzin.
Capitalization, Equalization, and Intergovernmental Aid

This article makes a simple but heretofore unappreciated point: In urban areas, voter movement will cause equalizing intergovernmental aid (such as state education aid) to be capitalized into the value of housing. Because poor voters are likely to be renters, they will have to pay for better schools created by state aid through higher housing costs. To establish this point, the article describes a very simple model of an urban area with two communities and three income groups. In the case of an urban area in which the central city is not large relative to the metropolitan region, the welfare effect of intergovernmental aid on poor voters is completely offset by higher housing costs. Rather than increasing the total resources available to poor people, intergovernmental aid amounts to a Hicksian price adjustment that leaves the poor no better off than before. The article then discusses real-world complications to the model, including alternative decision-making mechanisms and preferences, and concludes that...
Pectin Methyl Esterases of the Banana. Purification and Properties

SUMMARY Earlier, three fractions of pectin methyl esterase (PME) had been obtained from the pulp of the banana by differential extraction. The crude enzyme preparations have now been purified further by ammonium sulfate fractionation and ion-exchange chromatography on columns of DEAE- and CM-cellulose. Each fraction has a unique behavior on the ion-exchange columns. Additional criteria have been established to differentiate the fractions. These include response to cations, inorganic phosphate, nucleotides, and sucrose, as well as differences in initial reaction kinetics, resistance to end-product inhibition, and cold stabilities. The possibility of interconversion between fractions is discussed; Fractions I and II may be converted by treatment with 3.5 × 10−4M sodium dodecyl sulfate to forms resembling Fraction III as determined by pH-activity spectra.
Analysis of intraocular lens power calculation

We performed an analysis of ocular biometry and intraocular lens (IOL) power calculation on 100 eyes that had anterior chamber IOL implantation during 1981 and 1982. Various methods of calculating the IOL power were used, including the standard lens power, presurgical basic refraction, Fyodorov's formula, Colenbrander's formula, Binkhorst's formula, and the SRK formula. In addition, we took the median value of these calculated results as the median power in selecting an appropriate IOL power. The postoperative refraction and actually implanted IOL power were used to determine the IOL power needed for emmetropia. Our regression analysis of the predicted IOL power and power actually needed for emmetropia showed that the methods of standard power and presurgical basic refraction were unreliable while the rest were of satisfactory accuracy. Among the latter, all the predicted IOL powers based on the biometric data had almost the same coefficient of determination and standard error of estimate. However, with the SRK formula and the median power the values of the regression line were closest to the ideal value. With the regression analysis, the accuracy of predicted IOL power from theoretical formulas was comparable to that of the SRK regression formula.
Immune regulatory cells in umbilical cord blood and their potential roles in transplantation tolerance.

Umbilical cord blood (UCB) is a source of primitive hematopoietic stem (HSC) and progenitor cells, that served as an alternative to bone marrow (BM) for effective transplantation therapy. Success of HSC transplantation (HSCT) is limited in part by graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), graft rejection and delayed immune reconstitution, which all relate to immunological complications. GVHD after UCB transplantation is lower compared to that of BM HSCT. This may relate to the tolerogenic nature of T cells, mononuclear cells (MNCs) and especially immune regulatory cells existing in UCB. UCB contains limiting numbers of HSC or CD34+ cell dose for adult patients resulting in delayed engraftment after UCB transplantation (UCBT). This needs to be improved for optimal transplantation outcomes. Approaches have been undertaken to promote HSC engraftment, including co-infusion of multiple units of UCB cells. These new methods however added additional immunological complications. Herein, we describe current knowledge on features of UCB immune cells, including regulatory T cells (Tregs) and mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSCs) and their potential future usage to reduce GVHD.
Are constitutional state of emergency clauses effective: An empirical exploration

We aim to complement the work of legal scholars by investigating the effects of constitutional provisions for states of emergency, on the respect for personal (or physical) integrity rights, in instances in which governments are confronted with domestic crises. Our findings show that such constitutional provisions have an important impact on governments' propensities to abuse such rights. However, these impacts are not always what one might expect, and indeed, our findings suggest that following the recommendations of lawyers groups may actually have a damaging effect on human rights in many instances.
Combined chronic low dose radiation-caloric restriction: a model for regression of spontaneous mammary tumor.

Abstract Purpose: This study was carried out to determine whether chronic low dose radiation can act alone or in synergy with restricted diet in down-regulating spontaneously occurring mammary tumor in tumor-susceptible female C3H/He mice and whether immune cells are involved. Methods and Materials: At 7 months of age, one-half of the experimental mice were maintained on an ad lib diet, and the other half was adapted over a period of 1 month to a diet of 70% of the daily amount of food consumed by the ad lib-fed mice. The food of the restricted diet was enriched such that the vitamin and mineral intake was the same for both groups. Half of the mice in each group was then subjected to chronic low dose radiation (0.04 Gy per exposure from a 60 Co source, 3 ×-per-week for 4 weeks) and the other half was sham irradiated. The 70% calorically restricted diet was maintained throughout the study. Results: Chronic low dose radiation alone was ineffective in down-regulating spontaneous mammary tumor, unlike caloric restriction. However, chronic low dose radiation when combined with caloric restriction promoted regression of mammary tumors, which were infiltrated with massive numbers of CD8 + T cells. These phenomena were not seen in mice subjected to caloric restriction alone. Conclusion: Combined chronic low dose radiation-caloric restriction appears to be a useful model for promoting spontaneous mammary tumor regression.
Quasi-phase-matched fiber-optic parametric amplifier and gain enhancement

Summary form only given.We enhance the gain of fiber-optic parametric amplifier (PA) by >6 dB by quasi-phase matching (QPM) the pump and signal waves. In a PA with 96 m dispersion-shifted (DS) fiber and 16 W peak pump power, we realize QPM by inserting 6 m SMF-28 fiber at 50 m point. Due to the abrupt phase change by SMF-28, the maximum gain is increased from 3.7 dB to 9.8 dB. Simulation shows that QPM causes unidirectional flow of energy from pump to signal and >13 dB gain enhancement can be obtained with three-stage QPM PA. With QPM technique, it is possible to solve the problem of low PA gain without using near-/spl lambda//sub 0/ pumping or high nonlinearity fiber.
Intra-annual variation in the stable oxygen and carbon isotope ratios of cellulose in tree rings of coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens)

Fog is a seasonally variable hydrologic input to coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens, D. Don) ecosystems with a stable isotopic composition (δ 18O, δ2H) that is distinct from rainfall. The intra-an...
WISC—R Subtest Reliability over Time: Implications for Practice and Research:

This study investigated the test-retest reliabilities of the WISC-R IQs and scaled scores on subtests over 3- and 6-yr. intervals for a learning disabled sample. Statistical procedures and individual analyses were conducted on a sample of 107 students who had at least two evaluations. For the total sample, 3-yr. test-retest reliabilities of the Verbal IQ, Performance IQ, and Full Scale IQ were .69, .72, and .77, respectively. Subtest reliabilities ranged from .33 to .71, with a median of .49, but nine subtests had reliabilities of .62 or lower. Individual analyses indicated considerable variability, with some students decreasing as much as 33 IQ points on retest. Similar results were noted for a subsample of 41 students who had three evaluations over a 6-yr. period. Problems with subtest interpretation due to the inconsistency of the WISC-R scores and extensions of this research to the WISC-III are discussed.
Photovoltaic and other outputs from pulsed laser illuminated ferroelectrics

Abstract Polarized lithium niobate single crystals and barium titanate ceramic samples are investigated under 15 ns pulsed laser illumination. Pyroelectric, piezoelectric and anomalous photovoltaic outputs are distinguished. Both prompt and long-lived photovoltaic currents are observed.
Automatic segmentation of digitized data for reverse engineering applications

Reverse engineering is the process of developing a Computer Aided Design (CAD)model and a manufacturing database for an existing part. This process is used in CAD modeling of part prototypes, in designing molds, and in automated inspection of parts with complex surfaces. The work reported in this paper is on the automatic segmentation of 3-Dimensional (3-D) digitized data captured by a laser scanner or a Coordinate Measuring Machine (CMM) for reverse engineering applications. Automatic surface segmentation of digitized data is achieved using a combination of region and edge based approaches. It is assumed that the part surface contains planar as well as curved surfaces that are embedded in a base surface. The part surface should be visible to a single scanning probe (21/2D object). Neural network algorithms are developed for surface segmentation and edge detection. A back propagation network is used to segment part surfaces into surface primitives which are homogenous in their intrinsic differential geome...
SU‐GG‐T‐107: Feasibility Study of Total Marrow Irradiation Using RapidArc

Purpose: Total body irradiation (TBI) is commonly used in conjunction with chemotherapy as a preconditioning regimen prior to bone marrow transplantation in patients with hematological malignancies. It is associated with significant toxicities due to irradiation of large volume of normal tissue. The purpose of this work is to investigate feasibility of using RapidArc for targeted total marrow irradiation (TMI) while minimizing dose to critical organs.Method and Materials: The CTimage volumes with 5 mm thickness of a pediatric patient treated with other disease was used for this planning study in an Eclipse treatment planning system (Varian Medical Systems, CA). The target volume was defined as the skeletal bone, excluding mandible and maxillary bones. The technique used three separate treatment plans targeting the head‐neck region, chest and pelvis. Each plan consists of one clockwise and one counter‐clockwise full arcs. The chest plan was initially optimized and subsequently used as the based plan for both head‐neck and pelvic plans optimization. For dosimetry quality assurance (QA), the calculated plan was delivered on a Varian 23 iX Clinac linear accelerator equipped with RapidArc (Varian Medical Systems, CA). The dose accuracy was verified with volumetric portal images, using Dosimetry Check (Math resolutions, LLC) program. Results: Average dose reduction of the RapidArc based TMI, compared to conventional TBI, are 16% for lung, 23% for kidney, 29% for liver, and 74% for lenses while more than 95% of the PTV is covered by 97% of the prescribed dose. Each plan passed dosimetry QA when the gamma evaluation criteria of 5% absolute point dose difference and 5 mm of distance to agreement (DTA) was selected. Conclusion: The adequate target dose coverage and reduced normal organdose were observed. Patient‐specific QA is achieved using the Dosimetry Check system. Initial results are encouraging and warrant further investigation.
Effect of Impurities on Free-Hole Infrared Absorption in p-Type Germanium

The free-hole absorption in $p$-type germanium (gallium-doped) is studied as a function of concentration over the range from ${10}^{15}$ to ${10}^{20}$ acceptors/${\mathrm{cm}}^{3}$. The spectra are modified as the carrier and total impurity concentrations are increased. With increasing concentration the structure in the spectrum becomes less pronounced. The effects observed are consistent with changes in the Fermi level and with nonvertical transitions induced by charged impurity centers.
The role of protein kinase cη in T cell biology.

Protein kinase Cη (PKCη) is a member of the novel PKC subfamily, which also includes δ, e, and θ isoforms. Compared to the other novel PKCs, the function of PKCη in the immune system is largely unknown. Several studies have started to reveal the role of PKCη, particularly in T cells. PKCη is highly expressed in T cells, and is upregulated during thymocyte positive selection. Interestingly, like the θ isoform, PKCη is also recruited to the immunological synapse that is formed between a T cell and an antigen-presenting cell. However, unlike PKCθ, which becomes concentrated to the central region of the synapse, PKCη remains in a diffuse pattern over the whole area of the synapse, suggesting distinctive roles of these two isoforms in signal transduction. Although PKCη is dispensable for thymocyte development, further analysis of PKCη− or PKCθ−deficient and double knockout mice revealed the redundancy of these two isoforms in thymocyte development. In contrast, PKCη rather than PKCθ, plays an important role for T cell homeostatic proliferation, which requires recognition of self-antigen. Another piece of evidence demonstrating that PKCη and PKCθ have isoform specific as well as redundant roles come from the analysis of CD4 to CD8 T cell ratios in the periphery of these knockout mice. Deficiency in PKCη or PKCθ had opposing effects as PKCη knockout mice had a higher ratio of CD4 to CD8 T cells compared to that of wild-type mice, whereas PKCθ-deficient mice had a lower ratio. Biochemical studies showed that calcium flux and NFκB translocation is impaired in PKCη-deficient T cells upon TCR crosslinking stimulation, a character shared with PKCθ-deficient T cells. However, unlike the case with PKCθ, the mechanistic study of PKCη is at early stage and the signaling pathways involving PKCη, at least in T cells, are essentially unknown. In this review, we will cover the topics mentioned above as well as provide some perspectives for further investigations regarding PKCη.
T-Matrix Range-Truncation Scheme for Disordered Alloys: Nearest-Neighbor Truncation in One-Dimensional Model

A $T$-matrix range-truncation scheme is applied to a one-dimensional Wannier-model binary alloy with nearest-neighbor hopping. The $T$-matrix truncation range is taken at the nearest-neighbor separation. Following a discussion of the general approach, numerical results for the density of states are shown for a variety of model parameters and compared to histograms obtained by Dean's method. Results for the effective-medium self-energy and the spatial range of the average of Green's function in the approximation are also discussed. The one-dimensional systems investigated include examples of both a constant and configurationally dependent hopping integral. The nearest-neighbor $T$-matrix truncation scheme is found to give a good account of impurity structure in dilute one-dimensional alloys.
Fabrication of Nanocrystal Tube Using Peptide Tubule as Template and Its Application as Signal-Enhancing Cuvette

A method of fabricating nanocrystal tubules was developed by coating carboxylic acid−thiol capped Au nanocrystals on peptide tubule templates to form the Au nanocrystal tubules. Hydrogen bonding between the amide groups of the tubules and the carboxylic acid groups of the nanocrystals was used as a driving force for this assembly process. The Au nanocrystal tubules with hollow structures were applied to hold and analyze trace molecules as signal-enhancing cuvettes for Raman spectroscopy. The Raman scattering of trace Rhodamine B on the Au nanocrystal-coated tubule was enhanced by a factor of 105.
“OUT ART”: Reducing homophobia on college campuses through artistic intervention

The purpose of this study was to assess the attitudinal effects on first‐year undergraduates of a festival featuring artistic texts by and about gays, lesbians, and bisexuals. First‐year students (n = 270) at a small liberal arts university in the Northeastern United States completed an instrument measuring their homophobia before and after the festival. Results indicated: (1) attendance at festival events significantly reduced homophobic attitudes; (2) the larger number of events attended, either in total or because the events were assigned but would have been attended regardless, significantly decreased homophobia; and (3) increases in homophobia reported by a minority of students were unrelated to attendance at festival events. Implications of these findings, most notably the efficacy of using art for affecting homophobic attitudes, are discussed.
Sub-10 nm carbon nanotube transistor

This first demonstration of CNT transistors with channel lengths down to 9 nm shows substantially better scaling behavior than theoretically expected. Numerical simulations suggest that a possible explanation for the surprisingly good performance is a result of the gate modulating both the charge in the channel and in the contact regions. The unprecedented performance should ignite exciting new research into improving the purity and placement of nanotubes, as well as optimizing CNT transistor structure and integration. Results from aggressively scaling these molecular-channel transistors exhibit their strong suitability for a low-voltage, high-performance logic technology.
Work in progress - Pedagogical practices for teaching critical thinking skills to CSET students

Ample evidence exists that employers seek graduates who can think critically and therefore make sound decisions. These skills are especially important to employers interested in hiring computer science, engineering, and technology (CSET) graduates. While liberal arts students are taught to think critically through written assignments, pedagogy relative to critical thinking seems to be lacking in CSET courses. A research project is being developed to determine best practices for teaching CSET college students to employ critical thinking when learning technical material. This pedagogy will require students to continually and interactively present logical support for calculations and other technical information presented in the text and by faculty. Classes where critical thinking pedagogy is being used will be observed and students and faculty will be interviewed relative to their perceptions of these teaching methodologies. An analysis of findings will be presented in a paper. The long term benefits of this study will be that CSET graduates will be better prepared to make decisions and solve problems they will encounter in the diverse and technical workplace.
Stent placement for arterial and venous cerebrovascular disease: preliminary experience.

PURPOSE: To report initial clinical experience with stent placement in the cerebrovascular circulation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Four patients underwent arterial or venous stent placement. Two patients had cervical internal carotid artery dissections, with aneurysms and stenoses of the distal cervical carotid artery. Two patients had venous occlusive disease involving the major dural sinuses, with substantial pressure gradients across the stenoses. RESULTS: Immediately after stent placement, the true arterial lumina returned to normal diameter and both carotid aneurysms were more than 90% occluded. Follow-up angiography demonstrated continued improvement in the arterial aneurysms. Both patients with dural sinus venous occlusive disease showed substantial improvement of the sinus stenoses and substantial reversal of the pressure gradients after venous stent placement. At follow-up, these patients have done well. CONCLUSION: This preliminary experience suggests there may be a role for stents in the management...
Soybean Rust PIPE: Past, Present, and Future

Soybean ( Glycine max Merrill) is a very important and valuable field crop, with uses for food, feed, and industrial applications, produced on ≍75 million acres in the United States each year. Soybean rust (SBR), a potentially devastating disease of soybean caused by the fungus Phakospora pachyrhizi Sydow, was first detected in the Continental United States in the fall of 2004. Beginning in 2005, the SBR-Pest Information Platform for Extension and Education (PIPE), has been used to provide soybean farmers and agricultural professionals with: (1) near real-time information on the distribution and severity of SBR in North America; (2) time-sensitive SBR risk assessments; (3) information on SBR management options; and (4) links to other important tools and information on SBR. The main goal of the SBR-PIPE was (and is) to provide soybean farmers with the information needed to make the best possible SBR management decisions. The “engine” for the SBR-PIPE is state-of-the-art information technology delivered through the Internet. The “fuel” for the engine is accurate and timely SBR monitoring data and observations made by trained individuals, as well as publicly available weather data used to run SBR predictive models. Since 2005, the SBR-PIPE has successfully met the needs of U.S. soybean industry and is estimated to have saved farmers between $209-299M, annually. This article describes the origin, function, successes, limitations, and future of the SBR PIPE.
Design Of Low To Medium Altitude Surveillance Systems Providing Continuous Multiple Above-The-Horizon Viewing

A deterministic approach is used to derive the total number of platforms, sensor elevation field of view, and sensor/space-object maximum range requirements for the preliminary design of space-based surveillance systems in polar orbits that provide continuous multiple global or polar cap above-the-horizon (ATH) viewing. These requirements are determined as a function of surveillance platform altitude, the minimum and maximum space object altitudes of interest, and the multiplicity of continuous global or polar cap ATH coverage desired. Example trade-offs are given for platform altitudes between 500 and 2500 km.
Correlations between In Vitro Transport in a Three-Phase Model Cell and In Vivo Absorption of a Series of Sulfanilamides

A three-phase model cell, employing a liquid lipid barrier, was used to establish correlations between reported in vivo absorption data and experimentally determined in vitro transport rates for a series of N1-substituted heterocyclic sulfanilamides. These studies, using isopentyl acetate as the lipid phase, involved the effect of pH on the rate constants for three derivatives and the effect of the N1-substituent on the overall transport for unionized species. Correlations were made between the in vitro data and in vivo gastric, intestinal, and rectal absorption data, indicating the utility of this model to simulate passive drug absorption. Transport rates and partition coefficients were also found to be related.
Fish takes the bait: Holocaust denial and postmodernist theory

Stanley Fish has garnered a well-deserved reputation as one of our generation’s most skillful debaters. So adept is he at  nding the weakness of an interlocutor’s arguments that competent fellow-rhetoricians decline to take him on publicly. In a very recent essay about Fish in The New Yorker, an episode is described at a Law and Literature conference some 15 years ago: Fish humiliated a fellow English Literature professor by interrupting him and insisting he take his seat and shut up. Fish already knew the move his questioner was about to make, stated it better than the man could himself, and then demolished it before the chap had even regained his chair much less his composure. I happened to be present at that event, which in the relatively placid world of academicians has managed to take on legendary proportions. Indeed, I must take some responsibility for the episode, having then just recently introduced Fish to the Law and Literature community at an event on Faulkner in Jackson, Mississippi and (soon after) at the law professor convention in San Francisco. Fish immediately seized upon this expansion of his audience base, which now included not only literary types but also lawyers, judges and law professors, potential rivals in his own realm of rhetoric and argument. Lawyers are provoked by Fish, and he respects them, too. I have never seen him deliberately embarrass a lawyer in public. But he has surely taken on the profession, one by one or collectively, and he has built an impressive body of written work challenging law professors and their various interpretive theories. Indeed, Fish’s books and articles read like a report card of everybody else’s work, and he rarely gives any competing theorist higher than a
Exploiting Mobility for Key Establishment

Despite years of research on security and cryptography, the vast majority of Internet communications are still unencrypted. We argue the blame lies not with users but with the tools they have available to them. Securing a communication channel with encryption is easy - the hard part is distributing keys in the first place. Current solutions rely ultimately on user actions - verification of encryption keys by inspecting either fingerprints or certificates. Instead, we present a model in which keys are established insecurely and automatically confirmed by exchanging cryptographic hashes of the key. To thwart an active attacker, hashes must travel over some path the attacker does not control. To do so, we exploit users everyday mobility, plus the capabilities of an overlay network, to resend hashes from diverse access points. Initial simulation and field results support our claim that this generates routes sufficiently diverse to foil all but the most powerful attackers, without requiring explicit action on the part of users.
Description and Validation of the Pelv-Sim: A Training Model Designed to Improve Gynecologic Minimally Invasive Suturing Skills

Abstract Study Objective To describe and validate the Pelv-Sim trainer, an innovative training model for gynecologic laparoscopic suturing with 4 laparoscopic exercises: closing an open vaginal cuff, transposing an ovary to the pelvic sidewall, ligating an infundibulopelvic ligament, and closing a port-site fascial incision. Design Randomized controlled trial (Canadian Task Force classification I). Setting Academic medical center. Participants Obstetrics and gynecology residents (n = 19) and third-year medical students (n = 10). Interventions To test the Pelv-Sim model for construct validity, all participants were timed as they completed the 4 tasks, and their performances were compared. The residents were then randomized to a study group asked to train with the Pelv-Sim for 1 hour/week for 10 weeks, or to a control group. To evaluate the effectiveness of training with the Pelv-Sim model, both groups of residents were retested at the end of the 10-week study period. Pretraining and posttraining performances were compared within each group. Measurements and Main Results Before the intervention, the residents completed all 4 tasks in significantly less time than the medical students (all p values ≤.012). When retested after the 10-week study period, the control group showed no significant performance improvements. The trained group showed significant improvement in performance for the vaginal cuff closure task (p = .004) and the ovary transposition task (p = .047), but not for the infundibulopelvic ligament ligation or the fascial closure tasks. Conclusion Construct validity was shown for all 4 Pelv-Sim simulation tasks. Resident training improves performance on the vaginal cuff closure and ovary transposition tasks. The Pelv-Sim has the potential to be a valuable tool in laparoscopic training for gynecology residents.
A formal approach to component-based software engineering: education and evaluation

Summarizes an approach for introducing component-based software engineering (CBSE) early in the undergraduate computer science curriculum, and an evaluation of the impact of the approach at two institutions. Principles taught include a modular style of software development, an emphasis on human understanding of component behavior even while using formal specifications, and the importance of maintainability, as well as classical issues such as efficiency analysis and reasoning. Qualitative and quantitative evaluations of student outcomes and end-to-end changes in student attitudes show mostly positive results that are statistically significant, confirming that: (1) it is possible to teach CBSE principles without displacing "classical" principles usually taught in introductory courses, (2) students can understand and reuse formally specified components without knowing their implementations, and (3) student attitudes towards software engineering can be altered in directions heretofore often assumed to be difficult to achieve.
Recognition of the universally conserved 3′-CCA end of tRNA by elongation factor EF-Tu

Escherichia coli tRNA(Val) with pyrimidine substitutions for the universally conserved 3'-terminal adenine can be readily aminoacylated. It cannot, however, transfer valine into polypeptides. Conversely, despite being a poor substrate for valyl-tRNA synthetase, tRNA(Val) with a 3'-terminal guanine is active in in vitro polypeptide synthesis. To better understand the function of the 3'-CCA sequence of tRNA in protein synthesis, the effects of systematically varying all three bases on formation of the Val-tRNA(Val):EF-Tu:GTP ternary complex were investigated. Substitutions at C74 and C75 have no significant effect, but replacing A76 with pyrimidines decreases the affinity of valyl-tRNA(Val) for EF-Tu:GTP, thus explaining the inability of these tRNA(Val) variants to function in polypeptide synthesis. Valyl-tRNA(Val) terminating in 3'-guanine is readily recognized by EF-TU:GTP. Dissociation constants of the EF-Tu:GTP ternary complexes with valine tRNAs having nucleotide substitutions at the 3' end increase in the order adenine < guanine < uracil; EF-Tu has very little affinity for tRNA terminating in 3' cytosine. Similar observations were made in studies of the interaction of 3' end mutants of E. coli tRNA(Ala) and tRNA(Phe) with EF-Tu:GTP. These results indicate that EF-Tu:GTP preferentially recognizes purines and discriminates against pyrimidines, especially cytosine, at the 3' end of aminoacyl-tRNAs.
Global dynamics of cosmological expansion with a minimally coupled scalar field

Abstract We give a complete description of the asymptotic behavior of a Friedmann–Robertson–Walker Universe with `normal' matter and a minimally coupled scalar field. We classify the conditions under which the Universe is or is not accelerating. In particular, we show that only two types of large time behavior exist: an exponential regime, and a subexponential expansion with the logarithmic derivative of the scale factor tending to zero. In the case of the subexponetial expansion the Universe accelerates when the scalar field energy density is dominant and the potential behaves in a specified manner, or if matter violates the strong energy condition ρ +3 p >0. When the expansion is exponential the Universe accelerates, and the scalar field energy density is dominant. We find that for the Big Bang to occur at zero scale factor, the equation of state of matter needs to satisfy certain restrictions at large densities. Similarly, a never ending expansion of the Universe constrains the equation of state at small matter densities.
Genetics of Prion Disease in Cattle

Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) is a prion disease that is invariably fatal in cattle and has been implicated as a significant human health risk. As a transmissible disease of livestock, it has impacted food safety, production practices, global trade, and profitability. Genetic polymorphisms that alter the prion protein in humans and sheep are associated with transmissible spongiform encephalopathy susceptibility or resistance. In contrast, there is no strong evidence that nonsynonymous mutations in the bovine prion gene (PRNP) are associated with classical BSE (C-BSE) disease susceptibility, though two bovine PRNP insertion/deletion polymorphisms, in the putative region, are associated with susceptibility to C-BSE. However, these associations do not explain the full extent of BSE susceptibility, and loci outside of PRNP appear to be associated with disease incidence in some cattle populations. This article provides a review of the current state of genetic knowledge regarding prion diseases in cattle.
Final-state interactions in semi-inclusive deep inelastic scattering off the Deuteron

Semi-inclusive deep inelastic scattering off the deuteron with production of a slow nucleon in recoil kinematics is studied in the virtual nucleon approximation, in which the final-state interaction (FSI) is calculated within generalized eikonal approximation. The cross section is derived in a factorized approach, with a factor describing the virtual photon interaction with the off-shell nucleon and a distorted spectral function accounting for the final-state interactions. One of the main goals of the study is to understand how much the general features of the diffractive high-energy soft rescattering accounts for the observed features of FSI in deep inelastic scattering (DIS). Comparison with the Jefferson Lab data shows good agreement in the covered range of kinematics. Most importantly, our calculation correctly reproduces the rise of the FSI in the forward direction of the slow nucleon production angle. By fitting our calculation to the data we extracted the $W$ and ${Q}^{2}$ dependencies of the total cross section and slope factor of the interaction of DIS products, $X$, off the spectator nucleon. This analysis shows the $\mathit{XN}$-scattering cross section rising with $W$ and decreasing with an increase of ${Q}^{2}$. Finally, our analysis points at a largely suppressed off-shell part of the rescattering amplitude.