cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Divergence of mate recognition systems among conspecific populations of the plethodontid salamander Desmognathus santeetlah (Amphibia: Plethodontidae)

The disjunct geographic distribution of plethodontid salamanders of the genus Desmognathus provides excellent opportunities to test whether populations diverge in mate recognition systems so as to result in sexual incompatibility. Previous work has shown that sexual incompatibility may exist both among conspecific populations and between different species in this genus. Populations of the Santeetlah dusky salamander, Desmognathus santeetlah, are found at higher elevations in three mountain ranges in the southern Appalachian Mountains of eastern North America, where they are sympatric with congeneric species of similar body size. We report that statistically significant levels of sexual incompatibility exist among populations of D. santeetlah collected from across the species' range. Contrary to popular belief, but in accord with a growing body of empirical literature, aspects of mate recognition systems can diverge among conspecific populations of salamanders, resulting in incidental sexual incompatibility.
Designing an Experiential Learning Environment for Logistics and Systems Engineering

Systems engineering increasingly addresses the system lifecycle, as opposed to its more traditional role focusing on design and development. This new situation results in part from the recognition that upstream design and deployment decisions have potentially significant cost and performance implications post-deployment. For military systems, the role that typically addresses post-deployment issues is the logistician. Over the system lifecycle, it is important that the traditional roles of systems engineer and logistician understand issues faced by one another, as well as joint cost and performance implications. This paper presents the design of a role-based experiential learning environment for logisticians involved in military sustainment. This design leverages the generic components of an existing single-learner technology base, the Experience Accelerator, for presenting and controlling the learner experience, plus simulating program outcomes resulting from learner decisions. This technology base has been used to create a learning experience for a lead systems engineer in charge of designing and developing a new unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) system. In this new environment, the logistician learner interacts with systems engineers during UAV system acquisition and sustainment, learns about systems engineering issues and their effect on logistics, tries to influence upstream systems engineering decisions, and also performs logistics functions.
Mechanism of Iodine Lubrication

EXPERIMENTS under a great variety of conditions have shown that iodine is very effective in reducing the friction between sliding metal surfaces. Rowe1,2 has demonstrated that iodine vapour will react with outgassed titanium in a high vacuum system to form Til2, a low friction surface. The Til2 layer is very reactive and is lost through hydrolysis. Iodine in the form of a charge transfer complex can be used alone or as an additive to hydrocarbon oil to lubricate titanium, stainless steels and several heat-resistant alloys3–7. Owens, Roberts and Brown8 have also shown that iodine incorporated in a long-chain hydrocarbon can be used as an additive to hydrocarbon oils to lubricate these same materials. The proposed lubrication mechanism is the formation of a lamellar diiodide of low shear strength in situ at the wearing metal interface. Furey9,10 has shown that small amounts of elemental iodine can reduce the friction of steel on steel in laboratory tests and in engine and gear tests.
The Declaration of German Industry on Global Warming Prevention — a dynamic analysis of current performance and future prospects for development

Abstract The paper examines the “Declaration of German Industry on Global Warming Prevention (DGWP)” in its updated version of 1996. The analysis draws on the findings of empirical case studies in the cement and glass sector as well as on a general analysis of the policy process including monitoring experience so far. The findings emphasise the weak impact of the agreement on the most important driving forces for industrial energy consumption. However, an improved design and a more stringent procedural framework would allow better advantage to be taken of the particular strengths of the approach. The paper concludes by making a number of recommendations that would improve the scope and quality of commitments, and would enhance learning effects during the course of the policy process.
The ligand occupancy of endothelial protein C receptor switches the protease-activated receptor 1-dependent signaling specificity of thrombin from a permeability-enhancing to a barrier-protective response in endothelial cells

Recent studies have indicated that activated protein C (APC) may exert its cytoprotective and anti-inflammatory activities through the endothelial protein C receptor (EPCR)-dependent cleavage of protease-activated receptor 1 (PAR-1) on vascular endothelial cells. Noting that (1) the activation of protein C on endothelial cells requires thrombin, (2) relative to APC, thrombin cleaves PAR-1 with approximately 3 to 4 orders of magnitude higher catalytic efficiency, and (3) PAR-1 is a target for the proinflammatory activity of thrombin, it is not understood how APC can elicit a protective signaling response through the cleavage of PAR-1 when thrombin is present. In this study, we demonstrate that EPCR is associated with caveolin-1 in lipid rafts of endothelial cells and that its occupancy by the γ-carboxyglutamic acid (Gla) domain of protein C/APC leads to its dissociation from caveolin-1 and recruitment of PAR-1 to a protective signaling pathway through coupling of PAR-1 to the pertussis toxin–sensitive Gi-protein. Thus, when EPCR is bound by protein C, the PAR-1 cleavage-dependent protective signaling responses in endothelial cells can be mediated by either thrombin or APC. These results provide a new paradigm for understanding how PAR-1 and EPCR participate in protective signaling events in endothelial cells.
Measurement-based characterization of a collection of on-line games

On-line games are a rapidly growing Internet application. Because of the cost in supporting on-line games and the unpredictable load on servers, companies are moving toward sharing infrastructure for game hosting. To efficiently provision on-line games, it is important to understand game workloads and the behavior of game players. In this paper, we present a comprehensive analysis of a collection of on-line game players and game workloads using data from several sources including: a 13-month trace of an extremely busy game server containing over 2.8 million connections, a two-year trace of the aggregate game populations of over 550 on-line games, and a 4-month trace of a content-distribution network used to deliver games. The key findings from our measurement study are: (1) these gamers are an extremely difficult set of users to satisfy and unless game servers are properly set up and provisioned, gamers quickly choose to go elsewhere, (2) the popularity of these games follows a power law making games difficult to provision at launch time, (3) game workloads are predictable only over short-term intervals, (4) there are significant challenges in hosting games on shared infrastructure due to temporal and geographic synchronization across different games and other interactive applications, and (5) game software updates are a significent burden on game hosting that must be planned for. Our results have implications for both game publishers as well as infrastructure providers.
Journalists' discursive construction of public opinion on President Obama and the economy The uses of voters' voices from a focus group

This study investigates the journalistic construction of news from a focus group of eleven Philadelphia-area voters. The journalists not only represent the participants’ voices, they also present themselves as keen observers — they attempt to display expertise as journalists. The written stories use the participants’ voices more than was found in the journalists’ oral discussion about the focus group. In both the oral and written stories, the journalists ventriloquise participants’ voices within the genre, the news-feature story of how the dire political economy affects ordinary people. The journalists represent the participants’ opinions while simultaneously recontextualizing participants’ voices within their own storyline.
A Simplified Radiative-Dynamical Model for the Static Stability of Rotating Atmospheres

Abstract In order to obtain estimates of the static stability in rotating atmospheres without performing numerical integrations of the equations of motion, a simple model is developed in which the radiative flux of heat is assumed to be balanced by the fluxes of sensible beat and potential energy due to large-scale eddies. The radiative flux divergence is modeled by a linearization about the radiative equilibrium state and the dynamical fluxes are modeled by calculating correlations from stability theory and by assuming that the amplitudes are limited by nonlinear effects. From the energy equation a single algebraic equation is derived for the mean equilibrium value of the Richardson number, Ri, in the troposphere. The radiative equilibrium state is assumed to be known. Once the solution for RI is found, the mean vertical and meridional gradients of potential temperature, 〈∂θ/∂z〉 and 〈∂θ/∂y〉, and the main properties of the mean zonal wind and eddies can be easily calculated. Even though many important flu...
Anterior Segment Growth and Peripheral Neural Pathways in Chick

Purpose: To learn if peripheral nerve pathways are necessary for corneal expansion and anterior segment growth under a 12-hr light:dark cycle or for the inhibition of corneal expansion under constant light rearing. Methods: Recently hatched White Leghorn chicks under anesthesia received unilateral ciliary ganglionectomy (CGx), cranial cervical ganglionectomy (Sx), or section of the ophthalmic nerve (TGx), along with sham-operated and/or never-operated control cohorts. Chicks were reared postoperatively under either a 12-hr light:dark cycle or under constant light. After 2 weeks and with the chicks under anesthesia, corneal radii of curvature and diameters were obtained with a photokeratoscope, refractometry and A-scan ultrasonography were performed, and the axial and equatorial dimensions of enucleated eyes were measured with digital calipers. Corneal areas were calculated from corneal curvatures and diameters. Results: Despite the rich peripheral innervation to the eye, the selective denervations perform...
Parent-completed screening for social emotional problems in young children: The effects of risk/disability status and gender on performance

Results of psychometric studies on the Ages and Stages Questionnaires: Social Emotional (ASQ:SE), a parent-completed screening tool for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers, are described. The ability of the ASQ:SE to distinguish risk and disabilities groups, and the relationship of gender and ASQ:SE scores were examined. No/low risk, at risk, developmental disabilities, and social emotional disability groups were significantly different at all eight age intervals (i.e., 6, 12, 18, 24, 30, 36, 48, and 60 months). Significant differences were found between males and females at the 30-, 36-, 48-, and 60-month age intervals. These data support the ASQ:SE as a valid screening test to assist in early identification of social and emotional problems in young children. ©2004 Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health.
The effect of the GABA antagonists bicuculline and picrotoxin on primary afferent terminal excitability

Summary (1) The effects of the convulsants bicuculline, picrotoxin, and strychnine on the polarization of gastrocnemius Ia primary afferent terminals have been ascertained with the excitability testing technique. Phasic increases in the excitability of these terminals were induced by conditioning stimuli applied to the hamstring nerve. (2) Bicuculline blocked the phasic excitability increases without appreciably altering the tonic state of terminal excitability. (3) Picrotoxin also blocked phasic increases and in addition increased the tonic excitability of the terminal. (4) Convulsant doses of strychnine failed to block phasic excitability increases but in larger doses increased tonic excitability. (5) The capacity of the GABA antagonists bicuculline and picrotoxin to block phasic increases in terminal excitability supports the hypothesis that the presynaptic inhibitory pathway contains a GABA synapse. (6) Although its position remains uncertain, these data can best be explained by locating this synapse at a site removed from the afferent terminal, where it functions to disinhibit tonically active interneurons which depolarize the terminal.
The economic burden of adults with major depressive disorder in the United States (2005 and 2010).

BACKGROUND: The economic burden of depression in the United States-including major depressive disorder (MDD), bipolar disorder, and dysthymia-was estimated at $83.1 billion in 2000. We update these findings using recent data, focusing on MDD alone and accounting for comorbid physical and psychiatric disorders. METHOD: Using national survey (DSM-IV criteria) and administrative claims data (ICD-9 codes), we estimate the incremental economic burden of individuals with MDD as well as the share of these costs attributable to MDD, with attention to any changes that occurred between 2005 and 2010. RESULTS: The incremental economic burden of individuals with MDD increased by 21.5% (from $173.2 billion to $210.5 billion, inflation-adjusted dollars). The composition of these costs remained stable, with approximately 45% attributable to direct costs, 5% to suicide-related costs, and 50% to workplace costs. Only 38% of the total costs were due to MDD itself as opposed to comorbid conditions. CONCLUSIONS: Comorbid conditions account for the largest portion of the growing economic burden of MDD. Future research should analyze further these comorbidities as well as the relative importance of factors contributing to that growing burden. These include population growth, increase in MDD prevalence, increase in treatment cost per individual with MDD, changes in employment and treatment rates, as well as changes in the composition and quality of MDD treatment services. Language: en
Acetylation of Smad2 by the Co-activator p300 Regulates Activin and Transforming Growth Factor β Response

Transforming growth factor beta (TGFbeta) signals primarily through the Smad proteins to regulate cell growth, differentiation, and extracellular matrix production. Post-translational modifications, such as phosphorylation, play an important role in the regulation of the Smad proteins. TGFbeta signaling results in the phosphorylation of Smad2 and Smad3 that then oligomerize with Smad4 and translocate into the nucleus to initiate transcription of TGFbeta target genes. The initiation of transcription is significantly enhanced by the direct interaction of the Smad complex with p300/CBP (CREB-binding protein), a co-activator with intrinsic acetyltransferase activity. However, how p300/CBP enhances transcription through this interaction is not entirely understood. In this report, we show that Smad2, but not the highly homologous Smad3, can be acetylated by p300/CBP in a ligand-dependent manner. At least three lysine residues, Lys(19), Lys(20), and Lys(39), are required for efficient acetylation of Smad2, as mutations altering these lysines abolished Smad2 acetylation in vivo. This acetylation event is required for the ability of Smad2 to mediate activin and TGFbeta signaling. Mutation of the three key lysine residues did not alter the stability of Smad2 or the ability of Smad2 to form a complex with Smad4 on promoter DNA, but it prevented nuclear accumulation of Smad2 and subsequent TGFbeta and activin responses. Thus, our studies reveal a novel mechanism of modulating Smad2 activity and localization through protein acetylation.
The structure of “communities” and communications in the new millennium

The three lineages of information,—the genetic, the cultural and artifactual—will increasingly merge their constituent information contents through advances in biotechnology and information technology. This will redefine what constitutes “social” and what constitutes “community.” A community's members communicate with their “significant others” and change their internal information states (and their internal and external behaviors). Under conditions of merging, information exchanges occur across all the three lineages. In this sense, the concept of significant other,—that is, a communicating entity—, is now spread from human communities to encompass also the biological and the artifactual. A seamless merging between the three realms now occurs affecting their respective internal information stores. The resulting image of interactions that now arises is of multiple oceans of communities, operating at different levels, the genetic, the cultural and the artifactual. There are exchanges across the different l...
Factor Analysis of Measures of Articulation, Language, Auditory Processing, Reading-Spelling, and Maxillofacial Structure

This study was concerned with the correspondence between the classification of measures by clinical judgment and by factor analysis. Forty-six measures were selected to assess language, auditory pr...
INITIATION OF VOIDING1

SUMMARY The urethral smooth musculature is the primary sphincteric mechanism. The striated external sphincter contributes about 50 per cent. of urethral closure pressure. The entire pelvic floor is a part of the sphincteric mechanism, not only by its direct contribution-the striated external sphincter-but also as a unit, as it indirectly influences the urethral closure mechanism. A prevoiding drop in urethral pressure, followed 5 to 15 seconds later by detrusor contraction, constitutes the normal pattern of initiation of voiding. In patients with low urethral closure pressure, voiding may be initiated and completed with straining and increased intra-abdominal pressure with or without minimal detrusor contraction. In other instances, the prevoiding urethral pressures may drop below the level of the resting intravesical pressure and voiding proceeds without detrusor activity. These other modalities, although occasionally encountered in “normal” people, are seen only when closure pressure is low and they are more commonly seen in pathological states. The prevoiding drop in urethral pressure is due to relaxation of the pelvic floor and the striated external sphincter.
PlantCAD: an Integrated Graphic Toolkit for Modelling and Analyzing Plant Structure

In this paper, we present PlantCAD, a graphic toolkit for the creation, simulation and analysis of 3D virtual plants. This C++-based geometric toolkit allows easy generation of plant organs including leaves, fruits, branches, petioles and even nonbotanical things which makes it a powerful user-interactive platform for plant modeling in various biological application. Based on the basic geometric components dedicated to different organs, PlantCAD provides several methods to create plant structure from either real measured data or procedural models. Realistic appearance of the generated 3D plants is improved by using texture mapping and including hairs that cover many plant organs. Several examples from different modelling applications illustrate how PlantCAD can be used to construct, analyse or manipulate geometric models at different scales ranging from organs to plant communities.
A preferred style of sales management

Abstract The purpose of this study was to test a previously published theoretical model concerning four basic styles of sales management behavior. The results provided empirical support for the dominant-warm sales management style.
The recovery and interpretation of microvertebrate bone assemblages from archaeological contexts

The analysis of microvertebrate remains recovered from buried contexts is frequently problematic for archaeologists. Diminutive size is a major obstacle to recovering, identifying, and interpreting microfaunal bone materials successfully. Their taphonomic history is often obscure, thus the significance of microvertebrate accumulations for settlement, subsistence, and ecological interpretation is difficult to evaluate. Recognizable and reliable archaeological signatures are sought for assessing the effect of taphonomic history on microvertebrate assemblages. Relevant signatures of bone damage, skeletal survivorship, taxonomic composition, and context are examined in assemblages produced and modified through accidental non-predator-related death, predator accumulation, and postmortem alteration.
Migration of volcanism in the San Francisco volcanic field, Arizona

The remanent magnetization of volcanic rocks has been determined at 650 sites in the San Francisco volcanic field in the southern part of the Colorado Plateau. The polarity of remanent magnetization—combined with K-Ar age determinations, spatial and petrographic associations, stratigraphic relations, and state of preservation of the cinder cones—provides a basis for assignment to known magnetic polarity epochs of 610 mafic vents and >100 intermediate to silicic flows, flow sequences, and vents. The age assignments for basaltic rocks include 243 Brunhes (<0.73 Ma) vents, 220 Matuyama (0.73 to 2.48 Ma) vents, and 147 pre-Matuyama (2.48 to about 5.0 Ma) vents. Basaltic volcanism migrated northeastward before Matuyama time at a rate of ∼1.2 cm/yr and eastward (S87° ± 5°E) over the past 2.5 m.y. at a rate of 2.9 ± 0.3 cm/yr. Concomitant acceleration in total magma production (from 75 to 1,400 × 10−6 km3/yr) and frequency of basaltic eruptions (from 1 per 17,000 yr to 1 per 3,000 yr) occurred between 5 and 0.25 Ma. For the past 0.25 m.y., magma production (∼180 × 10−6 km3/yr) and perhaps eruption frequency have decreased. This evolutionary sequence, coupled with the lead and strontium-isotopic composition of the rocks, can be explained by magmatism caused by shear heating at the base of the lithosphere. We propose that this eastward drift of volcanic activity represents absolute westward motion of the North American plate. Our model is in agreement with a model in which the African plate is fixed to the deep mantle.
Porosity enhancement in β nucleated isotactic polypropylene stretched films by thermal annealing

Abstract Microporous polymer membranes were fabricated by extrusion, thermal annealing, and subsequent biaxial stretching of β nucleated isotactic polypropylene. Fabrication conditions were optimized based on prior studies so that the influence of annealing on the precursor film crystallinity and the pore formation in such films upon stretching could be investigated. Annealing perfected the crystalline structure of these materials, as evidenced by thermal and x-ray techniques. A mechanism detailing the annealing and pore formation process during biaxial stretching is presented. An appropriate metric was developed to relate the crystallinity of the precursor films to the porosity of the films after biaxially stretching. The porosity developed in biaxially stretched films increased substantially when its precursor was annealed near the melting temperature of β crystalline material, enabling the production of high permeability microporous membranes.
E-051 Upper cervical spinal dural arteriovenous fistulae: an under recognized entity?

Introduction Spinal dural arteriovenous fistulae (dAVFs) are uncommon lesions that often present with slowly progressive myelopathy. These shunts are located most commonly in the thoracolumbar region. A location in the cervical spine is considered exceedingly rare and has been reported most often in the context of subarachnoid hemorrhage. We report a series of five cases of upper cervical dAVFs and describe the clinical and angiographic characteristics of these lesions. Materials and methods A review of interventional neuroradiology database identified five patients with upper cervical dural arteriovenous fistulae (CdAVFs). We performed a review of the patient charts, imaging studies, including digital subtraction angiography (DSA) and C arm CTs (when available), and the operative records. The imaging studies were reviewed by two neuroradiologists with experience in spinal angiography and interventions. We also performed a detailed review of the English literature on this entity. Results Mean age of the patients was 61.6 years (range 45–75 years). There were three men and two women. Four of the five patients presented with subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) that could be attributed to the CdAVF. One patient had an incidental detection of the CdAVF while undergoing cerebral angiography for a ruptured left posterior communicating aneurysm. The fistulae were located at C1 or C2 level and supplied by C1/C2 radicular arteries. Small branches of anterior or lateral spinal artery were noted to supply the fistulae in four of the five patients. Embolization was performed in 3/5 lesions and was curative in one. Reduction in flow was accomplished in 2/5 but definitive cure using endovascular therapy was not possible due to small size of the feeder vessels and/or supply from ASA. One of these two patients has had microsurgical obliteration of the fistula. Two patients are being medically observed, one with incidentally detected fistula and another who refused microsurgical therapy. Conclusion Upper cervical dAVFs may possibly be an under recognized entity. Approximately half of the reported cases have presented with SAH. Endovascular therapy is often difficult due to small size, eloquent nature and multiplicity of feeder vessels. Microsurgical therapy is also difficult but may offer a chance of complete obliteration in selected cases. In high risk cases, expectant management may be reasonable since the clinical course from the hemorrhage seems to be fairly benign and significant complications from SAH are uncommon. We advocate bilateral selective vertebral angiography (in addition to usual DSA workup) with the inclusion of their cervical segments in evaluation of any patient with hemorrhage in the region of the foramen magnum/upper cervical spine. These lesions have a higher chance of detection if the upper cervical spine is included in the imaging field of view.
Switching and filament formation in hot-wire CVD p-type a-Si:H devices

Abstract We fabricate metal/a-Si/metal thin film switches which incorporate hot-wire chemical vapor deposition (HWCVD) Si layers. A H-diluted gas mixture is used to grow the B-doped, 1000 A hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) layers at approximately 10 A/s. We compare switching behavior in Cr/a-Si:H(p)/Ag and c-Si(p)/a-Si:H(p)/Ag structures containing p-type hydrogenated amorphous silicon. We observed that the switching is polarity-dependent only in the sample on c-Si(p). Switching to a low-resistance state occurs at 0.4 mA/cm 2 when any of the metal contacts are biased positive. When the c-Si(p) is biased positive holes are injected and no switching occurs even up to 4 A/cm 2 . We suggest that the switching requires a blocking metal/a-Si(p) contact, possibly because local electrical breakdown initiates metal filament formation.
Back to the Future: A Look at Present Textbooks and Past Recommendations

Year after year, and issue after issue, journals devoted to language learning and instruction are filled with articles describing new methods, reporting research, and making recommendations. Naturally, the goal of these articles is to improve L2 instruction by moving the profession forward. Although the desired outcome may be the same, the present article takes a different approach by pausing a moment to look back. Specifically, two articles published in the late 1980s are revisited in order to determine whether or not suggestions made nearly a decade ago are reflected in recent textbooks.
Spectral Bar Coding of Polystyrene Microbeads Using Multicolored Quantum Dots

This paper focuses on encoding polystyrene microbeads, 10−100 μm in diameter, with a luminescent spectral bar code composed of mixtures of quantum dots (QDs) emitting at different wavelengths (colors). The QDs are encapsulated in the bead interior during the bead synthesis using a suspension polymerization, and the bar code is constructed by varying both the number of colors included in the bead and, for each color, the number of QDs of that color. Confocal laser scanning microscopy images of the beads demonstrate that the multicolored QDs are pushed together into inclusions within the bead interior. The encoded bead emission spectrum indicates that the peak position of the included colors does not shift relative to the corresponding peaks of the spectra recorded for the nonaggregated QDs at identical loading concentrations. Due to the spatial proximity of the QDs in the inclusions, electronic energy transfer from the lower wavelength emitting QDs to the higher emitting QDs changes the relative intensitie...
Valence Compounds versus Metals. Synthesis, Characterization, and Electronic Structures of Cubic Ae4Pn3 Phases in the Systems Ae = Ca, Sr, Ba, Eu; Pn = As, Sb, Bi

The isostructural compounds Sr(4)Bi(3), Ba(4)Bi(3), and Ba(4)As( approximately )(2.60) were prepared by direct reactions of the corresponding elements and their structures determined from single-crystal X-ray diffraction data as anti-Th(3)P(4) type in the cubic space group I43d, Z = 4 (a = 10.101(1) A, 10.550(1) A, 9.973 (1) A, respectively). The two bismuth compounds are stoichiometric, and the arsenide refines as Ba(4)As(2.60(2)). Only unrelated phases are obtained for all binary combinations among the title components for either Ca or Sb. The magnetic susceptibility and resistivities of Ba(4)Bi(3) and Eu(4)Bi(3) show that they are good metallic conductors ( approximately 40 microomega.cm at 298 K), whereas Ba(4)As(2.60) exhibits rho(150) > 1000 microomega.cm. The electronic structures of Sr(4)Bi(3), Ba(4)Bi(3), and Ba(4)As(3) were calculated by TB-LMTO-ASA methods. Mixing of cation d states into somewhat disperse valence p bands on Bi results in empty bands at E(F) and metallic behavior, whereas the narrower valence band in the electron-deficient Ba(4)As(3) leads to vacancies in about 11% of the anion sites and a valence compound.
Feature space analysis of MRI.

This paper presents an MRI feature-space image-analysis method and its application to brain tumor studies. The proposed method generates a transformed feature space in which the normal tissues (white matter, gray matter, and CSF) become orthonormal. As such, the method is expected to have site-to-site and patient-to-patient consistency, and is useful for identification of tissue types, segmentation of tissues, and quantitative measurements on tissues. The steps of the work accomplished are as follows: (1) Four T 2 -weighted and two T 1 -weighted images (before and after injection of gadolinium) were acquired for 10 tumor patients. (2) Images were analyzed by an image analyst according to the proposed algorithm. (3) Biopsy samples were extracted from each patient and were subsequently analyzed by the pathology laboratory. (4) Image-analysis results were compared with the biopsy results. Pre- and postsurgery feature spaces were also compared. The proposed method made it possible to visualize the MRI feature space and to segment the image. In all cases, the operators were able to find clusters for normal and abnormal tissues. Also, clusters for different zones of the tumor were found. The method successfully segmented the image into normal tissues (white matter, gray matter, and CSF) and different zones of the lesion (tumor, cyst, edema, radiation necrosis, necrotic core, and infiltrated tumor). The results agreed with those obtained from the biopsy samples. Comparison of pre- with postsurgery and radiation feature spaces illustrated that the original solid tumor was not present in the second study, but a new tissue component appeared in a different location of the feature space. This tissue could be radiation necrosis generated as a result of radiation.
Variation in Minnesota HRS Wheats: Bran Content

Bran content in both wheat-meal and flour was measured using an automated fluorescence microscopic imaging instrument, and correlated with milling extraction, ash content, and test weight values. Quantitative image analysis of the kernel bran content revealed differences in the linear response and slope, when plotted against test weight for common Minnesota HRS wheat varieties or a correlation coefficient of -0.818 for all HRS wheat samples (sample number = 65, p = 0.01). Whole-wheat bran and ash values also correlated significantly (p = 0.01) with the percent milling extraction (-0.927 and -0.687, respectively). The flour bran content was not significantly correlated with flour ash content (0.202). La quantite de son contenue dans les farines de ble de la variete Minnessota HRS (ble dur de printemps) est mesuree par microscopie fluorescente, et analyse de l'image. Une correlation est recherchee avec le rendement de la mouture, la teneur en cendres, et le poids. La teneur en son est un meilleur indicateur de l'aptitude a la mouture que la teneur en cendre.
MR and MR arthrography to identify degenerative and posttraumatic diseases in the shoulder joint

MR imaging provides a comprehensive evaluation of a wide spectrum of both intraarticular and extraarticular pathology of the shoulder. MR imaging enables the detection or exclusion of degenerative and posttraumatic diseases of the shoulder with a reasonable accuracy. MR arthrography is useful in the visualization of subtle anatomic details and further improves the differentiation. In this article, findings of MR imaging and MR arthrography of degenerative and posttraumatic shoulder diseases (impingement syndrome, rotator cuff tears, and glenohumeral instability) has been reviewed.
Isotopic fractionation of Mg2+(aq), Ca2+(aq), and Fe2+(aq) with carbonate minerals

Abstract Density-functional electronic structure calculations are used to compute the equilibrium constants for 26Mg/24Mg and 44Ca/40Ca isotope exchange between carbonate minerals and uncomplexed divalent aquo ions. The most reliable calculations at the B3LYP/6-311++G(2d,2p) level predict equilibrium constants K, reported as 103ln (K) at 25 °C, of −5.3, −1.1, and +1.2 for 26Mg/24Mg exchange between calcite (CaCO3), magnesite (MgCO3), and dolomite (Ca0.5Mg0.5CO3), respectively, and Mg2+(aq), with positive values indicating enrichment of the heavy isotope in the mineral phase. For 44Ca/40Ca exchange between calcite and Ca2+(aq) at 25 °C, the calculations predict values of +1.5 for Ca2+(aq) in 6-fold coordination and +4.1 for Ca2+(aq) in 7-fold coordination. We find that the reduced partition function ratios can be reliably computed from systems as small as M ( CO 3 ) 6 10 - and M ( H 2 O ) 6 2 + embedded in a set of fixed atoms representing the second-shell (and greater) coordination environment. We find that the aqueous cluster representing the aquo ion is much more sensitive to improvements in the basis set than the calculations on the mineral systems, and that fractionation factors should be computed using the best possible basis set for the aquo complex, even if the reduced partition function ratio calculated with the same basis set is not available for the mineral system. The new calculations show that the previous discrepancies between theory and experiment for Fe3+–hematite and Fe2+–siderite fractionations arise from an insufficiently accurate reduced partition function ratio for the Fe3+(aq) and Fe2+(aq) species.
Assignment of the stereochemistry and anomeric configuration of structurally informative product ions derived from disaccharides: infrared photodissociation of glycosyl-glycolaldehydes in the negative ion mode.

Abstract Using mass spectrometry in the negative ion mode, m/z 221 ions are frequently observed as product ion substructures derived from reducing disaccharides having 2, 4, or 6 linkages. The ions have been shown to be glycosyl-glycolaldehydes. All 16 stereochemical variants of their pyranosides were prepared and evaluated by infrared photodissociation, in addition to HexNAc-glycolaldehyde variants ( m/z 262) of 2-acetamido-2-deoxy- d -glucose and 2-acetamido-2-deoxy- d -galactose. The stereochemistry and anomeric configuration of these ions were differentiated in the gas phase using a Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance spectrometer with infrared multiphoton dissociation at 10.6 μm. Results were compared to those obtained by collision-induced dissociation. In some cases, differentiation was far preferable using infrared photodissociation; in others, collision-induced dissociation was preferred. Using an instrument that interfaced a linear trap with a Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance spectrometer, either dissociation technique could be used to optimally discriminate between isomers. With infrared photodissociation, spectral differences were highly statistically significant, even between pairs of isomers having spectra that appeared to be visually somewhat similar ( p −9 , student’s t -test for key discriminatory ions). Comparisons among different instruments suggest that physical standards of the stereochemical variants of these ions will be required for their detailed structural assignments in unknowns, as some variation was observed among instruments, both using infrared photodissociation and collision-induced dissociation.
Magnetic properties of Fe[S2CNC4H8O]2X, X = Cl, Br, I

Abstract The title systems, including solvated and unsolvated forms, have been studied by dc susceptibility measurements. Curie-Weiss fits show that all materials except the unsolvated chloro system, which probably corresponds to an unusual ligand field case, are characterized by a 4A2 ground state. Average g values are in the range 2.05–2.10, while Weiss θ values are negative and increasingly so in the sequence chloro, bromo, iodo. Data are analyzed assuming axial and rhombic crystal field terms D[ S z 2 - S(S + 1)/3] and E[ S x 2 - S y 2 ] , and incorporating exchange interactions in a mean-field approximation. All D values are positive and the zero-field splitting, δ = 2(D 2 + 3E 2 ) 1 2 , increases in the order chloro, bromo, iodo, as does the size of the antiferromagnetic exchange. At low temperatures susceptibility maxima are observed, and antiferromagnetic transitions are inferred. The ratio Tc/T(χmax) suggests that some systems are of low magnetic dimensionality. Fits based on 2D-XY or 1D-Ising models are presented; in each case a strong interlayer or interchain interaction is also required. Ordering temperatures are compared with recent theory for Tc as a function of D and J for S = 3 2 antiferromagnets. Comparisons with previously studied Fe3+ systems of this general type are also made.
Naming to Picture Versus Description in Three Aphasic Subgroups

Twenty-three male aphasics, classified as Broca's, Wernicke's and anomic, were tested on their ability to name objects to either visual confrontation or oral associative description. For the Broca's and Wernicke's aphasics, naming to visual confrontation was significantly better than to oral description. Broca's aphasics tended to produce more correct names than both other groups in both conditions, although significance was reached only in oral description. Differences were not significantly affected by the comprehension deficit or severity of aphasia. With picture naming, all groups tended to name immediately or not al all. For oral description, there was a greater proportion of long latency responses for the posterior patients. When given phonemic or visual cues to assist naming, Broca's aphasics benefited the most, the anomics performing most poorly. All these results suggest qualitative differences in naming ability in aphasic subgroups.
HURRICANE KATRINA'S EFFECT ON THE PERCEPTION OF NEW ORLEANS LEISURE TOURISTS

Destination image is a critical factor to potential travelers. Many say that Hurricane Katrina was the costliest and one of the deadliest hurricanes in the history of the United States. The purpose of this study was to investigate the tourist destination images of leisure travelers to New Orleans before and after the storm. Further, this study assessed the influence of media exposure and geographic point of origin on perceptions. The results of this research provide fundamental implications for strategic image management that can assist in designing and implementing marketing campaigns to enhance tourism destination images and to overcome prevailing negative ones.
Environmental Change, Risky Sexual Behavior, and the HIV/AIDS Pandemic: Linkages Through Livelihoods in Rural Haiti.

Local natural resources are central to rural livelihoods across much of the developing world. Such “natural capital” represents one of several types of assets available to households as they craft livelihood strategies. In order to explore the potential for environmental scarcity and change to contribute to perpetuation of the HIV/AIDS pandemic, we examine the association between declining natural capital and engaging in risky sexual behaviors, as potentially another livelihood strategy. Such an association has been demonstrated in Kenya and Tanzania, through the fish-for-sex trade. To explore the possibility of this connection within rural Haitian livelihoods we use Demographic and Health Survey data, with a focus on rural women, combined with vegetation measures generated from satellite imagery. We find that lack of condom use in recent sexual encounters is associated with local environmental scarcity—controlling for respondent age, education, religion and knowledge of AIDS preventive measures. The results suggest that explicit consideration of the environmental dimensions of HIV/AIDS may be of relevance in scholarship examining factors shaping the pandemic.
Clinical evidence that hyperinsulinaemia independent of gonadotropins stimulates ovarian growth.

Objective Ovarian enlargement is a constant feature of syndromes of extreme insulin resistance. The objective of this study is to show the role of insulin on ovarian growth in the presence of low gonadotropin levels. Patients Seven young patients with syndromes of extreme insulin resistance (five with lipodystrophy, one with Type B syndrome and one with Rabson-Mendenhall syndrome) were studied. Measurements Baseline LH concentrations and luteinizing hormone releasing hormone (LHRH) tests were performed. Total testosterone, insulin and C-peptide values were measured. Pelvic ultrasounds were performed. Results Four patients were prepubertal (age range 7-10 years old) and had prepubertal gonadotropin levels, and 2 of the 4 who were tested did not respond to LHRH (NIH 10 and RM-PAL). Three patients were Tanner stage 4 (age range 13-17 years old) and had low gonadotropins that did not respond to LHRH stimulation test. All seven patients had marked hyperinsulinaemia and 6 of 7 had at least one enlarged ovary. Testosterone values were increased in 4 of 7 patients. Conclusion This represents the first example of the pathologic role of insulin to stimulate ovarian growth with low circulating gonadotropins. Thus, while ovarian growth and steroidogenesis are normally stimulated by gonadotropins at puberty, hyperinsulinaemia stimulates pathologic growth of the ovary and an androgenic steroid profile that is active at all ages. We suggest that these patients constitute a model to separate the effect of insulin from gonadotropin in stimulating ovarian growth and/or steroidogenesis.
Robust performance with respect to block diagonal input uncertainty

The authors consider the robust performance problem of maintaining a small output sensitivity function despite the presence of block diagonal uncertainty at the plant input. For the case of two blocks of uncertainty, they study this problem by analyzing bounds on the structured singular value. It is shown that the potential difficulty of attaining robust performance is primarily determined by the difficulty of maintaining a small set of interaction parameters. The authors derive a robustness indicator which is useful in detecting this potential difficulty. The indicator is a function of both the plant condition number and its input directionality properties. >
Liquid-metal magnetohydrodynamics

Abstract : The results from part of a continuing study of the application of liquid-metal magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) to practical systems are presented. Two possible components from the complete power system are covered - the MHD induction generator and the condensing ejector. The theory of the MHD induction generator required for the design is reviewed. This is followed by a discussion of the objectives and philosophy of this experimental program because they form the framework for the design. Included are the effects of the copper side bars and the field harmonics, and details of the construction of the generator. The predicted performance is summarized for operation with both single- and two-phase working fluids. Finally the preliminary test results without the working fluid are reported. (Author)
Long-term stability of neural prosthetic control signals from silicon cortical arrays in rhesus macaque motor cortex

Cortically-controlled prosthetic systems aim to help disabled patients by translating neural signals from the brain into control signals for guiding prosthetic devices. Recent reports have demonstrated reasonably high levels of performance and control of computer cursors and prosthetic limbs, but to achieve true clinical viability, the long-term operation of these systems must be better understood. In particular, the quality and stability of the electrically-recorded neural signals require further characterization. Here, we quantify action potential changes and offline neural decoder performance over 382 days of recording from four intracortical arrays in three animals. Action potential amplitude decreased by 2.4% per month on average over the course of 9.4, 10.4, and 31.7 months in three animals. During most time periods, decoder performance was not well correlated with action potential amplitude (p > 0.05 for three of four arrays). In two arrays from one animal, action potential amplitude declined by an average of 37% over the first 2 months after implant. However, when using simple threshold-crossing events rather than well-isolated action potentials, no corresponding performance loss was observed during this time using an offline decoder. One of these arrays was effectively used for online prosthetic experiments over the following year. Substantial short-term variations in waveforms were quantified using a wireless system for contiguous recording in one animal, and compared within and between days for all three animals. Overall, this study suggests that action potential amplitude declines more slowly than previously supposed, and performance can be maintained over the course of multiple years when decoding from threshold-crossing events rather than isolated action potentials. This suggests that neural prosthetic systems may provide high performance over multiple years in human clinical trials.