cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Optical methods for measuring zinc binding and release, zinc coordination environments in zinc finger proteins, and redox sensitivity and activity of zinc-bound thiols.

Publisher Summary Zinc in zinc finger proteins has a structural role in organizing protein domains for interaction with other proteins or nucleic acids. One aspect is the capacity of a zinc-bound thiolate to retain its nucleophilicity at neutral pH as is the case for enzymes involved in methyl transfer. Another aspect is the redox activity that a cysteine ligand confers on the otherwise biologically redox-inert zinc ion. This property allows coupling between zinc coordination sites and cellular redox pairs, a means to mobilize zinc from its s very stable sites and a proposed biochemical mechanism for distributing cellular zinc. There is a great demand for assays that measure the reactivity of zinc sites to determine associated protein functions. However, the significance of zinc is sharply contrasted by the limited number of methods available for its characterization. A major obstacle in studies of zinc coordination in proteins is that zinc is spectroscopically “invisible,” thus precluding the application of many techniques that provided a wealth of insight into the biological chemistry of transition metal ions. This chapter introduces and discusses spectrophotometric and spectrofluorometric assays for studying the binding and release of zinc, and indirectly, the concomitant modification and oxidation of zinc-bound thiolates. The general focus is on characterizing the coordination environment and the reactivity of zinc sites.
A model predictive control strategy to optimize the performance of radiant floor heating and cooling systems in office buildings

Abstract This paper introduces a smart operation strategy based on model predictive control (MPC) to optimize the performance of hydronic radiant floor systems in office buildings and presents results from its implementation in an actual building. Our MPC approach uses dynamic estimates and predictions of zone loads and temperatures, outdoor weather conditions, and HVAC system models to minimize energy consumption and cost while meeting equipment and thermal comfort constraints. It includes data-driven building models estimated and validated using data from an actual building, and deploys an optimizer based on constraint linear/quadratic programming with hard comfort bounds that yields a global minimum with predicted exogenous disturbances. The MPC results show 34% cost savings compared to baseline feedback control during the cooling season and 16% energy use reduction during the heating season. Also, the radiant floor system with the predictive controller shows 29–50% energy savings when compared with a baseline air delivery system serving two identical thermal zones located in the same building.
A 32-Channel ASIC for the Readout of Pixelated Liquid Argon Time Projection Chambers

A 32-channel ASIC called LArPix, intended for instrumenting pixelated readout of Liquid Argon Time Projection Chambers (LAr-TPCs), is presented. The reduced capacitance and relaxed noise specifications of a pixelated LAr-TPC allow significant power reductions relative to a traditional wire plane-based LAr-TPC. Each channel employs largely dynamic signal processing that consumes low power when idle. To reduce the number of cryostat penetrations to a manageable level, multiple LArPix chips can be daisy chained and communicated with using two wires. LArPix, with a die area of approximately 32.8 mm2 and fabricated in 180 nm CMOS technology, achieves 250 e-ENC at LN2 temperature while dissipating 61 µW per channel. The prototype has been used to successfully image cosmic-ray muons in a pixelated LAr-TPC.
0.9 V DSP blocks: a 15 ns 4 K SRAM and a 45 ns 16-bit multiply/accumulator

4 K SRAM and 16 bit multiply/accumulate DSP blocks have been designed and fabricated in Complementary heterostructure GaAs. Both circuits operate from 1.5 V to below 0.9 V. The SRAM uses 28,272 transistors in an area of 2.44 mm/sup 2/. Cell size is 278 /spl mu/m/sup 2/ at 1.0 /spl mu/m gate length. Measured results show an access delay of 5.3 ns at 1.5 V and 15.0 ns at 0.9 V. At 0.9 V, total power is 0.36 mW. The CGaAs multiplier uses a 16-bit modified Booth architecture with a 3-way 40-bit accumulator. The multiplier uses 11,200 transistors in an area of 1.23 mm/sup 2/. Measured delay is 19.0 ns at 1.5 V and 44.7 ns at 0.9 V. At 0.9 V, total current is less than 0.4 mA.
Arthritides and infection

Typical radiographic characteristics of osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, gout, and infection are reviewed.
Predicting the Temperature Dynamics of Scaled Model and Real-World IoT-Enabled Smart Homes

Recent advances in IoT sensors and actuators and smart home controllers allow us to collect real-time information about the state of the home and take intelligent actions that maximize the user's goals with respect to comfort, convenience, environmental awareness and cost. While thermal comfort is one of the primary concerns of many users, many homes use a very simple, energy inefficient approach that blankets the home with constant temperature air conditioning. Such systems do not take advantage of more energy efficient and environment friendly natural ways to manage the temperature, such as opening and closing windows, window shades and interior doors. In this paper we develop a deep neural network based model that predicts the temperature in various rooms of the home function of the state of the actuators. We also describe a scaled model of a four room home which allows us to control the doors and windows and collect data using IoT devices. We train and validate our temperature models on both data collected from the scaled model as well as from publicly available datasets from two real-world smart homes.
The Influence of an Electronic Medical Record Embedded Best Practice Alert on Rate of Hospital Acquired Catheter Associated Urinary Tract Infections: Do Best Practice Alerts Reduce CAUTIs?

Objective To understand if an electronic medical record embedded best practice alert decreased our hospital's Catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) and catheter utilization (CU) rates. Methods Data from our inpatient prospective CAUTI database, spanning 2011 to 2016, were utilized for our analysis with the Best Practice Alert (BPA) starting in 2013. Using generalized linear models we compared the CU and CAUTI rates between pre- and post-BPA periods in different patient subpopulations. Results We identified no decrease in the CU rate and no effect on the CAUTI rates as a result of the BPA. However, there was an increase in CAUTI rates in our adult intensive care unit (ICU) population from 0.2 to 1.8 CAUTIs per 1,000 catheter days (P Conclusion CAUTI rates are exceedingly low, with or without the use of a BPA. Such an alert appears to have limited success in lowering CU rates in populations where catheter use is already low and may not always lead to an improvement in CAUTI rates as there appears to be some populations that may be more prone to CAUTI development secondary to possible intrinsic or co-morbid conditions.
Joint Venting Prior to Hip Distraction Minimizes Traction Forces During Hip Arthroscopy.

Purpose This study evaluates the effect of venting on distraction of the hip during arthroscopy on a post-free traction table for fixed traction forces ranging from 0 to 100 pounds (lbs). Methods Patients underwent surgery by the senior author (S.K.A.) between November 2018 and July 2019. Inclusion criteria were primary hip arthroscopy requiring central compartment access. Patients were positioned in 10-15° Trendelenburg on a post-free traction table. Prior to instrumentation, fluoroscopic images of the operated hip joint were taken at 25-lb intervals from 0 to 100 lbs of axial traction. Traction was released for 15 minutes. Venting with 20 mL of air was performed and fluoroscopic images were repeated at all traction intervals. Joint displacement was measured at all intervals. An unvented control group underwent the same axial traction protocol for comparison. Results Sixty-one consecutive patients underwent study protocol. Fifty-eight hips in 57 patients were included. Thirty-two (55.2%) were female; mean age was 31 ± 13 years and mean body mass index was 25.7 ± 6.2. Paired samples analysis demonstrated mean differences in distraction distance prior to and after venting of 0.27, 2.60, 4.09, 4.54, and 2.31 mm at 0, 25, 50, 75, and 100 lbs of traction, which were significant (P Conclusions Venting prior to applying traction on a post-free traction table increases the distraction distance achieved for a given traction force at multiple levels of traction in comparison to the pre-vented state. Our results suggest venting the hip joint prior to the application of traction may serve to reduce the maximal amount of traction required to safely instrument the hip arthroscopically. Level of Evidence IV, case series.
Different Voices, Perfect Storms, and Asking Grandma What She Thinks: Situating Experimental Philosophy in Relation to Feminist Philosophy

At first glance it might appear that experimental philosophers and feminist philosophers would make good allies. Nonetheless, experimental philosophy has received criticism from feminist fronts, both for its methodology and for some of its guiding assumptions. Adding to this critical literature, I raise questions concerning the ways in which “differences” in intuitions are employed in experimental philosophy. Specifically, I distinguish between two ways in which differences in intuitions might play a role in philosophical practice, one which puts an end to philosophical conversation and the other which provides impetus for beginning one. Insofar as experimental philosophers are engaged in deploying “differences” in intuitions in the former rather than the latter sense, I argue that their approach is antithetical to feminist projects. Moreover, this is even (and perhaps especially) the case when experimental philosophers deploy “differences” in intuitions along lines of gender.
Outcomes of Cataract Surgery: Implications for the Developing World

Cataract surgery has virtually eliminated cataract blindness in the developed world. However, in the economically developing areas of the world it is a staggering and escalating problem where it is the leading cause of blindness affecting 16–20 million people. Outcomes research has clearly shown that modern cataract surgery with intraocular lens implantation is a safe and effective means of restoring visual function and improving vision-related quality of life. Several recent developments provide hope in the global fight against cataract blindness: decrease in the cost of modern surgerys available models of infrastructure developments and a global plan for the elimination of avoidable blindness.
Integrating boundary scan into multi-GHz I/O circuitry

A minimally invasive solution for adding boundary scan to high-speed I/O circuits is described. The insertion of boundary scan registers on the transmit side is done in the lower-speed parallel domain, while the boundary scan registers on the receive side is done using the techniques described in IEEE standard 1149.6 in the high-speed serial domain. Special clocking requirements are described, and results from actual silicon testing are presented that demonstrate negligible impact on functional performance while maintaining compliance with the both 1149.1 and 1149.6 standards.
Role of amino acids in modulating glucose-induced desensitization of the glucose transport system.

Abstract Amino acids were found to play an integral role in modulating glucose-induced desensitization of the glucose transport system (GTS). When adipocytes were treated for 6 h in a defined buffer containing 25 ng/ml insulin, 20 mM glucose, plus the 15 amino acids found in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium, we observed marked desensitization of the GTS, manifested by a 60% decrease in maximal insulin responsiveness (MIR) and a 2.5-fold reduction in insulin sensitivity. In contrast, little or no desensitization was seen under similar conditions in the absence of amino acids. The ability of amino acids to co-regulate the GTS appears to be directly attributable to amino acids per se since desensitization was still observed in cycloheximide-treated cells. Moreover, the action of amino acids is specific to glucose-induced desensitization since amino acids were not required for dexamethasone-induced desensitization of the GTS. Of the 15 amino acids contained in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium, one group of 8 amino acids was fully effective in mediating loss of both MIR and insulin sensitivity, whereas the remaining 7 amino acids were ineffective. Interestingly, this second group selectively retained the ability to modulate loss of insulin sensitivity. Upon screening the individual amino acids, we found that L-glutamine (but not D-glutamine) was as effective as total amino acids in modulating loss of MIR, whereas glycine and threonine were only partially effective. Since isoleucine and serine enhanced both MIR and insulin sensitivity of the protein synthesis system without influencing the GTS, it appears that amino acids can influence several insulin effector systems with notable differences in rapidity of action, direction of regulation, and specificity of amino acids. From these studies we conclude: 1) desensitization of the GTS requires three components--glucose, insulin, and selective amino acids; 2) insulin resistance of the GTS can be induced through several mechanisms, but only glucose-induced desensitization requires amino acids; 3) glucose-induced desensitization is mediated primarily by metabolic events independent of de novo protein synthesis; and 4) glutamine is the primary amino acid modulating glucose-induced loss of MIR. Overall, these studies reveal that amino acids play an important role in modulating insulin action at the cellular level and provide new insights into the metabolic mechanisms mediating insulin resistance of the glucose transport system.
Characterization of Three Plasmid Deoxyribonucleic Acid Molecules in a Strain of Streptococcus faecalis: Identification of a Plasmid Determining Erythromycin Resistance

Three plasmids designated α, β, and γ, distinguishable by their molecular weights (6, 17, and 34 million, respectively) were isolated from Streptococcus faecalis strain DS-5 (ATCC 14508). Derivatives of this strain “cured” for erythromycin resistance lacked the β-plasmid. In the parent strain the β-plasmid was estimated to be present to the extent of one to two copies per chromosomal genome equivalent whereas the α- and γ-plasmids were about nine and five copies, respectively. Images
Level of education and injecting drug use among African Americans.

Abstract Drawing upon a nationally representative survey sample of African American (AA) drug injectors and non-injectors, this study tests for a suspected causal association between dropping out of school and the occurrence of injecting drug use (IDU), which remains a major cause of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) transmission in this population. The data are from public use files of the National Household Surveys on Drug Abuse (NHSDA) conducted between 1991 and 1995. From within the NHSDA’s nationally representative sample of adult household residents, a total of 389 AA adults with a history of IDU were matched on neighborhood of residence with 2253 AA adults with no history of IDU. The conditional form of multiple logistic regression was used to estimate the relative risk of having injected a drug for school dropouts relative to a reference category of AA who received the high school diploma but did not go to college. AAs who dropped out of high school were an estimated two times more likely to have injected drugs. With statistical adjustment for age, sex, and Hispanic background, the estimated association was 1.9 (95% confidence interval (C.I.)=1.3–2.6, P
TCRβ Chain That Forms Peptide-Independent Alloreactive TCR Transfers Reduced Reactivity with Irrelevant Peptide/MHC Complex

A major feature of the TCR repertoire is strong alloreactivity. Peptides presented by allogeneic MHC are irrelevant for recognition by a subset of alloreactive T cells. To characterize peptide-independent TCRs at the molecular level, we forced the expression of a TCRβ chain isolated from a peptide-independent alloreactive CD8+ T cell line. The alloreactive TCR repertoire in the transgenic mouse was peptide dependent. However, analysis of essential TCR contacts formed during the recognition of self-MHC-restricted Ag showed that fewer contacts with peptide were established by the transgenic TCRβ chain, and that this was compensated by additional contacts formed by endogenous TCRα chains. Thus, reduced interaction with the peptide appears to be a transferable feature of the peptide-independent TCRβ chain. In addition, these findings demonstrate that reactivity to peptides is preferred over the reactivity to MHC during the formation of the TCR repertoire.
Cause of acute myocardial infarction after successful coronary angioplasty.

Abstract Percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty is now accepted as effective therapy for selected patients with coronary artery disease.1 It has been suggested that patients with complete revascularization after coronary angioplasty have a lower incidence of subsequent myocardial infarction than those with incomplete revasculariiation. However, it is not known whether myocardial infarction after angioplasty is due to occlusion at the angioplasty site, at the site of an undilated stenosis or at the site of a previously nonobstructive lesion. In patients treated medically2,3 or with bypass surgery,4 subsequent myocardial infarction frequently occurs owing to occlusion at a site that previously had
Control of male fertility report of a workshop.

34 speakers participated in a workshop on the control of male fertility and the information they presented is summarized in this report. Possible targets for contraceptive action include: 1) the anterior pelvic ganglia with its adrenergic neurons 2) interference with a sperm-coating protein 3) use of small molecular weight compounds in the permeable epididymis and 4) enzyme inhibitors which affect sperm motility. Vasectomy is discussed including the relative lack of success in achieving pregnancy (30%) after successful restoration of the vas. The use of reversible valves and other occluding devices also has problems in restoring normal sperm count. Use of chemical methods of vas occlusion has a higher failure rate than that of standard vasectomy. No adverse effects of vasectomy on the endocrinological status of the patients have been detected. Data on antibody development in vasectomized men suggest there is large variability (20%-50%) in the number who develop sperm-immobilizing and sperm-agglutinating activity.
An impulsive solar burst observed in H-alpha, microwaves, and hard X-rays

H-alpha, microwave, and hard X-ray observations of an unusually short duration impulsive spike burst are presented. The observations are analyzed, and it is found that the single spike is in fact composed of two separate acceleration episodes. The differences found in the time profiles for the two components stress the role of the decay rate and lead to a simple explanation for the often observed delay of the microwave peak. The approximate numbers of electrons responsible for the two types of emission are derived and compared.
High-Temperature Phase Transition and Dissociation of (Mg, Fe)SiO3 Perovskite at Lower Mantle Pressures.

To study the crystallography of Earth9s lower mantle, techniques for measuring synchrotron x-ray diffraction from a laser-heated diamond anvil cell have been developed. Experiments on samples of (Mg, Fe)SiO3 show that silicate perovskite maintains its orthorhombic symmetry at 38 gigapascals and 1850 kelvin. Measurements at 65 and 70 gigapascals provide evidence for a temperature-induced orthorhombic-to-cubic phase transition and dissociation to an assemblage of perovskite and mixed oxides. If these phase transitions occur in Earth, they will require a significant change in mineralogical models of the lower mantle.
Flexible fingers can solve gripper sensitivity problems

FLEXIBILITY has always been associated with robotic systems. However, once a robot has been integrated into an application, the robot is no longer flexible but becomes a part of the tooling. This loss of flexibility is attributed to the use of rigid, costly tooling, which includes end effector tooling.
The Insider As Outsider: Ricarda Huch’s Autobiographical Texts

Current discussions about how Germans can live together harmoniously arise from a long tradition of ideas about the meaning of Germany as a cultural, political, or geographic entity. Especially deserving of attention with regard to such debates are earlier texts which have challenged the insider/outsider dichotomy in positing a collective German identity, writings which simultaneously represent and under-mine the term ‘German’. A set of narratives from the earlier half of this century which are striking in their veneration of ‘German tradition’ and concurrent questioning of traditional ideas of German identity are the autobiographical texts of Ricarda Huch (1864–1947). This essay investigates Huch’s depiction of herself as an exotic insider/alien. A comparison of how she recreates herself as ‘foreign’ to her cursory treatment of other outsiders, such as her family’s former slaves, adds a new perspective to her ideas about collective German identity. Her position as an ‘Inappropriate Other’ connects to the current questioning of distinctions between insider and outsider. Huch’s texts destabilise the idea of Germanness, blurring the differences that separate it from what is foreign.
Disproportionate tonotopic representation for processing CF-FM sonar signals in the mustache bat auditory cortex

The extent of cortical representation of the peripheral sensory field depends on its importance for species behavior. The orientation sound of the mustache bat (Pteronotus parnellii rubiginosus) invariably consists of long constant-frequency and short frequency-modulated components and is indispensable for its survival. A disproportionately large part of the auditory cortex of this bat is occupied by neurons processing the predominant components in the orientation signal and Doppler-shifted echoes. This disproportionate cortical representation related to features of biologically significant signals is comparable to that in the somatosensory and visual systems in many mammals, but it has not previously been observed in the auditory system.
Mean Loads from Wind-Tunnel Turbulence on Low-Aspect-Ratio Flat Plates

Turbulence grids are employed in an investigation to study the effects of freestream turbulence levels on aerodynamic loads for several low-aspect-ratio flat-plate wings. The objective of this research was to investigate how large levels of freestream turbulence affect a fixed wing in a low-speed turbulent flow. This paper specifically focuses on time-averaged mean load measurements of wings with three aspect ratios in highly turbulent and low-turbulence baseline flows. Relevant findings are that the presence of turbulence decreases the mean lift for an aspect ratio of 1 wing while increasing the mean lift for an aspect ratio of 2 and 4 wings. The stall angle of attack was increased for all aspect ratios investigated. Turbulence also modifies pitching moments to behave more smoothly than baseline cases. The standard deviations of the loads were found to be constant across the angle of attack, but the rolling moment was significantly increased with increasing aspect ratios.
Posterior calvarial vault expansion using distraction osteogenesis

Management of raised intracranial pressure in syndromic multi-suture craniosynostosis by cranial vault expansion can be achieved by a number of techniques. We present our initial experience in treating this group of patients with posterior calvarial distraction. Six patients underwent distraction osteogenesis of their posterior calvarial vault. The mean period of distraction was 28 days. The mean consolidation period was 49 days. The mean distance of advancement was 24 mm. Five out of six patients completed their period of distraction and three of these cases also completed their period of consolidation. Significant calvarial expansion and improvement of head shape was achieved in all cases. Posterior calvarial distraction is a safe and more efficient method of calvarial expansion than conventional techniques. These are early promising results, and future modification of the distraction devices will be needed if the effective consolidation time is to be increased.
Framing in the Making The Evolution of Sex Offender Motivation in Sierra Leone

Previous research on sexual violence has focused on individual-level behaviors that typically include a single victim in an isolated event. Criminologists have failed to examine sexual violence as ...
Postnatal MSG treatment attenuates angiotensin II (AII) induced drinking in rats

Abstract Exogenous angiotensin II (AII) administration produces a robust drinking response, even in water-satiated rats. AII receptors are located in the hypothalamus and circumventricular organs (CVOs). Early postnatal administration of monosodium glutamate (MSG) produces hypothalamic/CVO damage. Therefore MSG might damage hypothalamic/CVO neurons important for producing the drinking response to AII. Few noinvasive procedures or tests exist to indicate the presence of a MSG lesion. Thus, the present study sought to determine whether altered water consumption after AII administration would signify the presence of a MSG lesion, as well as to demonstrate hypothalamic/CVO involvement in AII-induced drinking. Adult rats (dosed as neonates with MSG or saline) were given various doses of AII and the β-adrenergic agonist isoproterenol. MSG-treated rats drank significantly less water after 100 ug/kg, sc AII than control rats. MSG-treated rats also had an unexpectedly high mortality after 100 ug/kg, sc isoproterenol. Thus, measurement of the drinking response may be a sensitive, noninvasive method for detecting neurotoxic damage to hypothalamic/CVO sites critical for the central action of AII.
Infusion at constant rate in vivo

Infusion can be maintained at a constant rate over an extended period of time in vivo by the use of an implanted diffusion chamber. Plasma59Fe was maintained at a constant level for 10 days when infused from a s.c. implant. Injected isotope was cleared exponentially with a half-clearance time of about 8 h.
Multi-program benchmark definition

Although definition of single-program benchmarks is relatively straight-forward—a benchmark is a program plus a specific input—definition of multi-program benchmarks is more complex. Each program may have a different runtime and they may have different interactions depending on how they align with each other. While prior work has focused on sampling multiprogram benchmarks, little attention has been paid to defining the benchmarks in their entirety. In this work, we propose a four-tuple that formally defines multi-program benchmarks in a well-defined way. We then examine how four different classes of benchmarks created by varying the elements of this tuple align with real-world use-cases. We evaluate the impact of these variations on real hardware, and see drastic variations in results between different benchmarks constructed from the same programs. Notable differences include significant speedups versus slowdowns (e.g., +57% vs -5% or +26% vs -18%), and large differences in magnitude even when the results are in the same direction (e.g., 67% versus 11%).
Prions and related phenomena.

The second issue of Prion, which we are happily presenting to the reader, is further emphasizing our general strategy of covering prions and related phenomena in different experimental settings, with the attention to both biological roles and clinical applications.
SU-C-108-03: Investigation of MLC Leaf Tolerance and Dose Accuracy in VMAT Delivery

Purpose: VMAT employs a multi‐parameter modulation methodology. It tends to perform less reliably than the one‐dimensional IMRT. Therefore, setting a suitable leaf positioning tolerance on the machine is crucial. In this study, we investigated the relationship between the leaf tolerance and the dose delivery accuracy for VMAT SBRT lung plans. The goal was to determine the optimal leaf tolerance for daily VMAT SBRT treatments. Methods: The study was performed on a VMAT‐enabled Trilogy LINAC. To minimize the systematic bias in leaf and gantry speeds, all the VMAT SBRT plans had a prescription dose of 1800 cGy × 3. Prior to each plan delivery, the leaf positioning tolerance was reset to a new value in Machine Hardware Configuration in Treatment Administration. Upon completion of the plan delivery, the Dynalog Files and, more importantly, the Treatment Log File, i.e., the Dlog File, were saved and exported for post‐processing. For our initial investigation, we tested leaf tolerance values of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 mm, respectively. Results: We found that when the leaf tolerance was set to a tighter value, such as 1, 2, and 3 mm, a good delivery accuracy was preserved without any MLC interlock occurrences. However, when the leaf tolerance was increased to be greater than a threshold value, such as 3 mm in this case, the delivery accuracy deteriorated almost linearly beyond that point. We also found that except for the leaf tolerance = 1 mm, the gantry angle accuracy virtually remained unchanged as the leaf tolerance was increased, indicating a decoupling between the leaf tolerance and the gantry angle uncertainty. Conclusion: We recommend that for VMAT SBRT lung plans with a prescription dose of 1800 cGy × 3, the optimal leaf tolerance should be set to 3 mm.
A role for potassium in the use of iron by plants

Abstract Iron‐efficient T3238FER tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) and A7 soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] were unable to respond to iron (Fe) deficiency stress in the absence of potassium (K) in growth solutions. The lack of response in both FER tomato and A7 soybean was a diminished exudation of hydrogen (H+) ions and reductants and a lower level of Fe(III) reduction at the roots. This lack of Fe‐stress response resulted in reduced levels of leaf Fe and greater chlorosis in the absence of K in both species. Solution K was replaced with vary.ing equimolar levels of both sodium (Na) and rubidium (Rb) in growth solutions, but neither effectively substituted for K which appears essential in eliciting the Fe‐stress response mechanism resulting in the uptake of Fe by the plant. Potassium seems to have a very specific role in the plant for maximum utilization of Fe.
DETAILED LOOP MODEL (DLM) ANALYSIS OF LIQUID SOLAR THERMOSIPHONS WITH HEAT EXCHANGERS

An analytical Detailed Loop Model (DLM) has been developed to analyze the performance of solar thermosiphon water heaters with heat exchangers in storage tanks. The model has been used to study the performance of thermosiphons as a function of heat exchanger characteristics, heat transfer fluids, flow resistances, tank stratification, and tank elevation relative to the collector. The results indicate that good performance can be attained with these systems compared to thermosiphons without heat exchangers.
Linear and punctate porokeratosis associated with end-stage liver disease

A periodic eruption of porokeratosis developed in a 31-year-old black woman with chronic idiopathic hepatitis requiring liver transplantation. The clinicopathologic features were chiefly those of linear and punctate porokeratosis but overlapped those of porokeratosis plantaris, palmaris et disseminata and hyperkeratotic or verrucous porokeratosis. Typical cornoid lamellae were visible on histologic examination. Outbreaks of the lesions occurred during exacerbations of the liver disease. The skin condition rapidly improved after operation, with concomitant improvement in liver function.
Stimulus control and delayed reinforcement

Abstract Pigeons were tested for generalization along the line-orientation dimension, after being trained on various two-component multiple schedules. The first component contained either a variable-interval 1-min schedule of immediate reinforcement or an extinction schedule and was associated with a plain white key (S1). The second component contained a variable-interval 1-min schedule of delayed reinforcement and was associated with a black line on a white background (S2). The major results showed that (a) decremental gradients were obtained around the stimulus associated with the delayed reinforcement component when S1 was associated with extinction, but that incremental gradients were obtained when S1 was associated with immediate reinforcement, (b) the subjects' pretraining did not affect the generalization gradients if sufficient training on the terminal multiple schedule was provided, and (c) changing the S1 schedule from immediate reinforcement to extinction produced behavioral contrast if reinforcement was delayed for 10 sec during S2, but not if it was delayed for 20 sec.
Why Are We Reluctant to Act Immediately on Climate Change?: From Ontological Assumptions to Core Cognition

Drawing on the findings from cognitive and developmental psychology, I argue that the wait-and-see approach to climate change originates from a misconception that heat is a material-like object. This ontological assumption exemplifies a general cognitive bias—we prefer to treat various ontological entities, including processes, as objects. The object bias is ultimately associated with our core cognition of objects, a system of representations that consists mainly of spatiotemporal information. To persuade people to act immediately on climate change, we need a special conceptual change to abandon the well-entrenched object bias and the related misconception of the nature of heat.
A GIS-based methodology for the assessment of weather radar beam blockage in mountainous regions: two examples from the US NEXRAD network

The US National Weather Service (NWS) has installed a large network of weather Surveillance radars (WSR-88D) that provide precipitation maps for the United States. Many of these radars operate in mountainous regions and consequently suffer from beam blockage caused by terrain obstacles. The authors present a methodology for assessing the severity of the beam blockage and outline its implications for radar-derived precipitation estimates. The methodology involves the calculation of two-dimensional maps of power loss using a digital elevation model (DEM)-based algorithm of beam propagation for different radar antenna elevation angles. Using a large sample of actual radar data, the authors compare the simulated beam blockage results with the probability of detection of radar reflectivity above a certain threshold. The authors also compare their results with similar but coarser resolution blockage maps developed by the NWS and used in the NEXRAD system. For visualization, ArcGIS software is used to illustrate the results and offer a physical interpretation of the analyses. The study involves two NEXRAD sites: KRLX in Charleston, West Virginia and KEMX in Tucson, Arizona. The KRLX site does not suffer from significant blockage except for a single narrow sector. By contrast, the KEMX site contains several areas of blockage. The authors conclude that DEM-based prediction of radar beam occultation is a viable tool, as indicated by the good agreement of the calculated patterns of power loss with the actual long-term radar data.
Insiders' personal stock donations from the lens of stakeholder, stewardship and agency theories

This paper studies the relationship between personal stock donation by top executives and board of directors (insiders) of publicly traded corporations and their personal tax, shareholders' returns, and social responsibility. The study finds evidence that the timing of stock donations is driven by personal tax gain. The study further shows, comparing stock gift corporations relative to their non-stock gift cohorts, that personal stock gifts are associated with lower short-term and long-term stock returns to shareholders. This implies that stock donation driven by insiders' personal gain adversely affects shareholder wealth. However, the likelihood and intensity of insiders to make personal stock donation is reduced when firms have strong corporate social responsibility (CSR). Agency theory explains insiders' opportunistic behavior, stakeholder theory is also supported by evidence that stock donation is negatively related to CSR, and stewardship theory offers a different view to explain the rationale behind insiders' stock donation and shareholders' reactions to stock gifts.
Characterization of horse (Equus caballus) immunoglobulin mu chain-encoding genes

Horse (Equus caballus) immunoglobulin mu chain-encoding (IgM) variable, joining, and constant gene segments were cloned and characterized. Nucleotide sequence analyses of 15 cDNA clones from a mesenteric lymph node library identified 7 unique variable gene segments, 5 separate joining segments, and a single constant region. Based on comparison with human sequences, horse variable segments could be grouped into either family 1 of immunoglobulin (Ig) clan I or family 4 of Ig clan II subclan IV. All horse sequences had a relatively conserved 16 base pair (bp) segment in framework 3 which was recognized with high specificity in polymerase chain reaction by a degenerate oligonucleotide primer. Horse complementarity determining regions (CDR) had considerable variability in predicted amino acid content and length but also included the presence of relatively conserved residues and several canonical sequences that may be necessary in formation of the β chain main structure and conformation of antigen-binding sites through interaction with light chain CDR. Sequence analysis of joining regions revealed the presence of nearly invariant 3′ regions similar to those found in human and mouse genes. A single horse IgM constant region comprising 1472 bp and encoding 451 residues was also identified. Direct comparison of the horse constant region predicted amino acid sequence with those from eleven other species revealed the presence of 53 invariant residues with particularly conserved sequences within the third and fourth exons. Phylogenetic analysis using a neighbor-joining algorithm showed closest similarity of the horse mu chain-encoding constant region gene to human and dog sequences. Together, these findings provide insights into the comparative biology of IgM as well as data for additional detailed studies of the horse immune system and investigation of immune-related diseases.
Scanning-beam electron microscopy of the conidia of the brown and albino filamentous varieties of Histoplasma capsulatum

Aspects of the surface appearance and external morphology of the conidial forms of the albino and brown filamentous varieties ofHistoplasma capsulatum as seen by scanning-beam electron microscopy are described and illustrated by electron micrographs. Septal areas between the hyphal cells of the supporting mycelium are seen as slightly elevated annular rings or ridges. The smooth micro- and macroconidia of the albino filamentous variety show a fine wrinkling and delicate irregularities of surface texture. Macroconidia of the brown filamentous variety are illustrated showing variations in numbers and respective length of the conspicuous wall projections or tubercles. The 3-dimensional perspective, unusual depth of focus, and high resolving power of the stereoscan technique permitted observations of external conidia morphology unattainable by other methods of study.
Quantitative fluorescence spectroscopy in strongly scattering media containing multiple fluorophores

We have used diffusion theory to model the fluorescence photon density inside a strongly scattering medium containing multiple fluorophores. Frequency- domain parameters were measured as functions of source-detector separation and modulation frequency inside in a turbid medium containing two fluorophores. Our theoretical prediction, based on a model originally proposed by Patterson and Pogue, was found to be in excellent agreement with the experimental data.
Assessment of Pictographs Developed Through a Participatory Design Process Using an Online Survey Tool

Background: Inpatient discharge instructions are a mandatory requirement of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. The instructions include all the information relevant to post-discharge patient care. Prior studies show that patients often cannot fully understand or remember all the instructions. To address this issue, we have previously conducted a pilot study in which pictographs were created through a participatory design process to facilitate the comprehension and recall of discharge instructions. Objective: The main objective of this study was to verify the individual effectiveness of pictographs created through a participatory design process. Methods: In this study, we included 20 pictographs developed by our group and 20 pictographs developed by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation as a reference baseline for pictographic recognition. To assess whether the participants could recognize the meaning of the pictographs, we designed an asymmetrical pictograph–text label-linking test. Data collection lasted for 7 days after the email invitation. A total of 44 people accessed the survey site. We excluded 7 participants who completed less than 50% of the survey. A total of 719 answers from 37 participants were analyzed. Results: The analysis showed that the participants recognized the pictographs developed in-house significantly better than those included in the study as a baseline (P< .001). This trend was true regardless of the participant’s gender, age, and education level. The results also revealed that there is a large variance in the quality of the pictographs developed using the same design process—the recognition rate ranged from below 50% to above 90%. Conclusions: This study confirmed that the majority of the pictographs developed in a participatory design process involving a small number of nurses and consumers were recognizable by a larger number of consumers. The variance in recognition rates suggests that pictographs should be assessed individually before being evaluated within the context of an application. [J Med Internet Res 2009;11(1):e5]
Chiral effective action with heavy-quark symmetry.

We derive an effective action combining chiral and heavy-quark symmetry, using approximate bosonization techniques to QCD-inspired models of spontaneous symmetry breaking. We explicitly show that the heavy-quark limit is compatible with the large [ital N][sub [ital c]] (number of color) limit in the meson sector, and estimate the couplings between the light and heavy mesons ([ital D],[ital D][sup *], . . .) and their chiral partners to order one in the heavy-quark mass. The relevance of this effective action to solitons with heavy quarks is briefly discussed.
SAT performance: Understanding the contributions of cognitive/learning and social/personality factors

This study identifies a number of sources of individual differences in SAT performance by examining the simultaneous contributions of factors from two otherwise disparate research areas, namely cognition/learning and social/personality. Preliminary analysis revealed that just the cognitive/learning measures accounted for 37.8, 41.4 and 21.9% of the variance in SAT, V-SAT and Q-SAT performance, respectively while just the social/personality measures accounted for 21.4, 18.2 and 17.3% of the variance. When combined, cognitive/learning and social/personality factors accounted for even larger amounts of variance in performance; specifically 43.4, 44.6 and 28% for the SAT, V-SAT and Q-SAT, respectively. Finally, the results revealed that three measures consistently predicted performance on the SAT, V-SAT and Q-SAT; two measures were the learning/cognitive factors of working memory and integration of new text-based information with information from long-term memory and one measure was the social/personality factor, test anxiety.
A simple negative-ion sputter source

Abstract We describe a source of negative ions by cesium sputtering (SNICS) which has the simple axial geometry of the Hill-Nelson positive-ion sputter source. However the filament which provides the axial magnetic field also serves as a surface ionization source of Cs + . Like the Aarhus negative ion source (ANIS) our geometry preferentially focusses those negative ions which directly sputter from the cathode and which fall through the cathode potential drop. The source has negative-ion current, emittance, and brightness comparable or superior to other sputter sources of negative ions. The erosion pattern of the sputter cathode suggests that the Cs + ions involved in the sputtering process do not necessarily originate in the plasma.
As-placed contact angles for sessile drops.

Abstract As-placed contact angle is the contact angle a drop adapts as a result of its placement on a surface. As expected, the as-placed contact angle, θ AP , of a sessile drop on a horizontal surface decreases with the drop size due to the increase in hydrostatic pressure. We present a theoretical prediction for θ AP which shows that it is a unique function of the advancing contact angle, θ A , drop size, and material properties (surface tensions and densities). We test our prediction with published and new data. The theory agrees with the experiments. From the relation of the as-placed contact angle to drop size the thermodynamic equilibrium contact angle is also calculated.
Effects of alkyl grafting on surface properties and blood compatibility of polyurethane block copolymers

In order to probe the factors which affect the interaction between the surface of a multiphase polyurethane material and blood, a series of butanediol-chain-extended polyetherurethanes was synthesized. These polyurethanes contained different levels of phase separation, produced by systematically varying the hard segment chemical structure by grafting ethyl and octadecyl groups to the urethane nitrogen atom. Surface characterization using high vacuum, air-equilibrated, and water-equilibrated methods was performed. A canine ex vivo arteriovenous series shunt was used to monitor initial platelet and fibrinogen deposition on these polymers. The ex vivo response to these materials, along with contact angle and ESCA surface chemistry, was found to vary with the degree of alkyl derivatization. This study demonstrated that an increase in the degree of phase separation and also the incorporation of long chain (C18) alkyl groups can affect surface properties and improve the short-term blood compatibility of the underivatized polyurethane.
A unified approach to a posteriori error estimation using element residual methods

This paper deals with the problem of obtaining numerical estimates of the accuracy of approximations to solutions of elliptic partial differential equations. It is shown that, by solving appropriate local residual type problems, one can obtain upper bounds on the error in the energy norm. Moreover, in the special case of adaptiveh-p finite element analysis, the estimator will also give a realistic estimate of the error. A key feature of this is the development of a systematic approach to the determination of boundary conditions for the local problems. The work extends and combines several existing methods to the case of fullh-p finite element approximation on possibly irregular meshes with, elements of non-uniform degree. As a special case, the analysis proves a conjecture made by Bank and Weiser [Some A Posteriori Error Estimators for Elliptic Partial Differential Equations, Math. Comput.44, 283---301 (1985)].