cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
High-speed large-range dynamic-mode atomic force microscope imaging: Adaptive tapping approach via Field Programmable Gate Array

This paper presents a software-hardware integrated approach to high-speed large-range dynamic mode imaging of atomic force microscope (AFM). High speed AFM imaging is needed to interrogate dynamic processes at nanoscale such as chemical reactions. High-speed dynamic-modes such as tapping-mode AFM imaging are challenging as the probe tapping motion is highly sensitive to the highly nonlinear probe-sample interaction during the imaging process. The existing hardware-based approach via bandwidth enlargement, however, results in a substantialy restricted imaging area that can be covered. Contrarily, software-based approach, for example, the recently developed adaptive multiloop mode (AMLM) technique has demonstrated its efficacy in increasing the tapping-mode imaging speed without loss of imaging size. However, further improvement has been limited by the the hareware bandwidth and the online signal processing speed and computation complexity.Thus, in this paper, the AMLM technique is furhter enhanced to optimize the probe tapping regulation and integrated with the FPGA platform to further increase the imaging speed without loss of imaging quality and range. AFM imaging experiment is presented and discussed to illustrate this integrated approach.
Association between shoulder coracoacromial arch morphology and anterior instability of the shoulder

Background Glenohumeral instability is a common condition of the shoulder. Glenoid bone loss and humeral head bone loss are well recognized as risk factors for recurrent instability. There are few studies in the literature that examine the role of coracoacromial arch anatomy in the pathogenesis of glenohumeral instability. Previous reports found an association between posterior acromial coverage (PAC) and posterior instability. We hypothesize that coracoacromial arch anatomy is related to anterior shoulder instability. Methods In this retrospective cohort study, 50 patients with unidirectional anterior shoulder instability were matched to a control group of 50 glenohumeral arthritis patients without any history of shoulder instability. Radiographic measurements of the coracoacromial arch anatomy were made: shoulder arch angle, scapular Y angle, anterior coracoid tilt (ACT), posterior acromial tilt, anterior acromial coverage angle, PAC angle, coracoid height, posterior acromial height, and critical shoulder angle were determined using standard lateral scapular and anteroposterior radiographs. Results Logistic regression analyses found a significant association between the presence of anterior instability and flatter coracoacromial arch angles (mean, 124.1°) vs. the arthritis control group (mean, 120.6°) (odds ratios [OR] = 1.113; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.039-1.191; P = .002). There was a significant association between anterior instability and ACT (OR = 1.144; 95% CI = 1.053-1.243; P = .001), whereas a negative association was found between anterior instability and PAC (OR = 0.909; 95% CI = 0.853-0.969; P = .004) and posterior acromial tilt (OR = 0.878; 95% CI = 0.773-0.998; P = .046). Lower critical shoulder angle values were associated with the arthritis group (28.2° vs. 33.9°) (OR = 1.555; 95% CI = 1.202-2.012; P = .001). Conclusions Shoulder coracoacromial arch morphology may play a role in the stability of the shoulder joint and development of recurrent anterior instability. Shoulders with a decreased shoulder arch angle, a less contained and flatter coracoacromial arch and larger ACT, were associated with anterior instability. This study identifies the shoulder coracoacromial arch angle and anterior coracoid tile angles as risk factors for anterior shoulder instability. Our findings suggest that measuring these angles may help orthopedic surgeons understand the risk of anterior instability and analyze risk factors to improve clinical decision making.
Uretero-Arterial Fistula: A Case Report and Review of the Literature:

Uretero-arterial fistula (UAF) is a rare complication of either aneurysmal disease primarily or pelvic inflammation secondary to urologic, oncologic, or vascular interventions. Diagnosis can be difficult to confirm and treatment may need to proceed on high index of suspicion alone. We present the case of a 56-year-old woman suffering from intermittent hematuria after laser lithotripsy leading to UAF between her left ureter and left Dacron aortobifemoral bypass limb. The fistula was successfully treated with endovascular intervention.
Determining the Legal Ramifications of Express Oil and Gas Lease Provisions: Do the Rules of Document Interpretation Provide Predictability?

The oil and gas lease has served as the basic contract for the petroleum industry since 1853. Throughout the decades, the “typical” oil and gas lease clauses have been developed and revised in response to judicial decisions. To provide an update on the evolution of today’s oil and gas lease, it is necessary to review selected court decisions construing lease clauses. Theoretically, the rules of document interpretation should provide a reliable guide when courts are asked to determine the legal ramifications of express lease provisions. However, review of relevant cases, including recent decisions and older cases providing unique lessons about particular lease clauses, reveals that several problems with that theory. In particular, it shows that pervasive disagreement exists about the substance of the interpretive process, and that even when judges and parties agree about how the language of a lease should be applied, they often disagree about the meaning of that language. For the practitioner, these problems lead to unpredictability. On the other hand, they also expand the list of arguments an advocate can assert when faced with litigation over the meaning of express lease provisions. In order to avoid such litigation, drafters should carefully scrutinize past court decisions and anticipate changes in circumstances and differing interpretations. These measures can at least provide a safeguard against the nebulous nature of the interpretive process.
Melena in an Adolescent Refusing Transfusion, a Complicated Diagnosis

Introduction: GI bleeding in a child requires swift and systematic management. Despite differences in the etiology of GI bleeding between children and adults, the standard management is similar for both groups. After stabilization with intravenous fluids and, if needed, blood transfusion, management typically proceeds with endoscopy for definitive diagnosis and potential therapeutic intervention. The evaluation and management of GI bleeding are challenging when endoscopy cannot be performed. Here we present a case of an adolescent with a GI bleed who could not undergo endoscopy because she electively refused blood …
Integration and transfer learning of single-cell transcriptomes via cFIT

Large, comprehensive collections of single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) datasets have been generated that allow for the full transcriptional characterization of cell types across a wide variety of biological and clinical conditions. As new methods arise to measure distinct cellular modalities, a key analytical challenge is to integrate these datasets or transfer knowledge from one to the other to better understand cellular identity and functions. Here, we present a simple yet surprisingly effective method named common factor integration and transfer learning (cFIT) for capturing various batch effects across experiments, technologies, subjects, and even species. The proposed method models the shared information between various datasets by a common factor space while allowing for unique distortions and shifts in genewise expression in each batch. The model parameters are learned under an iterative nonnegative matrix factorization (NMF) framework and then used for synchronized integration from across-domain assays. In addition, the model enables transferring via low-rank matrix from more informative data to allow for precise identification in data of lower quality. Compared with existing approaches, our method imposes weaker assumptions on the cell composition of each individual dataset; however, it is shown to be more reliable in preserving biological variations. We apply cFIT to multiple scRNA-seq datasets of developing brain from human and mouse, varying by technologies and developmental stages. The successful integration and transfer uncover the transcriptional resemblance across systems. The study helps establish a comprehensive landscape of brain cell-type diversity and provides insights into brain development.
Resilient Control of Platooning Networked Robitic Systems via Dynamic Watermarking.

Networked robotic systems, such as connected vehicle platoons, can improve the safety and efficiency of transportation networks by allowing for high-speed coordination. To enable such coordination, these systems rely on networked communications. This can make them susceptible to cyber attacks. Though security methods such as encryption or specially designed network topologies can increase the difficulty of successfully executing such an attack, these techniques are unable to guarantee secure communication against an attacker. More troublingly, these security methods are unable to ensure that individual agents are able to detect attacks that alter the content of specific messages. To ensure resilient behavior under such attacks, this paper formulates a networked linear time-varying version of dynamic watermarking in which each agent generates and adds a private excitation to the input of its corresponding robotic subsystem. This paper demonstrates that such a method can enable each agent in a networked robotic system to detect cyber attacks. By altering measurements sent between vehicles, this paper illustrates that an attacker can create unstable behavior within a platoon. By utilizing the dynamic watermarking method proposed in this paper, the attack is detected, allowing the vehicles in the platoon to gracefully degrade to a non-communicative control strategy that maintains safety across a variety of scenarios.
Impact of Oncology Pharmacists on the Knowledge, Attitude, and Practices of Clinicians to Enhance Patient Engagement of Self-Administered Oral Oncolytics.

Oncology clinical pharmacists are uniquely positioned to make interventions to impact the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of clinicians as well as patient activation and engagement. To accomplish this goal, pharmacists can target health system-related, provider-related, and patient-related factors to enhance patient-centered care and drive behavioral health changes. Interventions that pharmacists must tackle include educating team members and patients on the medication acquisition process, communicating urgency of treatment, optimizing workflows, facilitating guideline recommendations, preventing, and managing treatment toxicities, and promoting patient self-advocacy through education and shared decision-making. As crucial members of the healthcare team, oncology pharmacists can simplify highly complex treatment regimens to facilitate and optimize patients’ ownership of their care. This narrative review will focus on the example of venetoclax treatment in acute myeloid leukemia to demonstrate the impact that pharmacists provide that leads to behavioral change of patients and clinicians.
The Role and Impact of Financial Advisors in the Market for Municipal Bonds

Significantly more and more issuers of municipal bonds use the services of financial advisors during the bond issuance process. We investigate the benefits to issuers and market participants arising from the role of financial advisors in the issuance of municipal bonds. Using a large sample of 9,493 tax-exempt municipal bonds, we show that financial advisors have significant impact on borrowing costs, reoffering yields and underwriter gross spreads. Our results are more pronounced for revenue bonds, particularly for negotiated revenue issues. In addition, our results show significant advantages to using a financial advisor for refunding issues supporting the view that financial advisors play important roles for more complex issues. Our results are consistent with the interpretation that financial advisors provide important and useful services resulting in monitoring and information asymmetry reduction benefits accruing to issuers and market participants.
Response of plasmonic terahertz detectors to amplitude modulated signals

Abstract We present theoretical study of the response of two-dimensional gated electron gas to an amplitude modulated signals with carrier frequency in the terahertz range. The model is based on complete hydrodynamic equations, and includes effects of viscosity, pressure gradients and thermal transport in the conduction channel of a high electron mobility semiconductor transistor (HEMT). The modulation response was evaluated as a function of modulation frequency fM for a wide range of mobility values. Maximum modulation frequency fMAX was evaluated as a function of channel mobility, with typical values of fMAX in the subterahertz range of frequencies. Our analysis shows that short channel field effect transistors operating in the plasmonic regime can meet all the requirements for applications as terahertz detectors and modulators in ultra high-speed wireless communication circuits.
SU‐E‐J‐117: Comparison of Different QA Methods for Deformable Image Registration to the Known Errors for Prostate and Head‐And‐Neck Virtual Phantoms

Purpose: Several methods can evaluate the accuracy of deformable image registration (DIR), but they are not necessarily a true measurement of DIR accuracy. The purpose here is to evaluate how these methods compare to known errors found with prostate and head-and-neck virtual phantoms. Methods: Quality assurance of DIR falls in three basic categories: contour comparison, landmark tracking, and image similarity. These different methods were utilized to evaluate the performance of four DIR algorithms, MIM and three from Velocity: Deformable (DEF), Deformable Multi-Pass (DMP), and Extended Deformable Multi-Pass (XMP). For contour comparison, organs were contoured (total of 15) on both the undeformed and deformed images. Then, the DIR algorithms were used to transfer contours from the undeformed to the deformed image and compared to that drawn directly on the deformed image. For landmark tracking, we found visible landmarks and measured their locations on the deformed and the undeformed images. The resulting deformation measurement was then compared to that predicted by the algorithm. For image similarity, we calculated the root-mean-square and the mean-absolute differences between the deformed and warped undeformed images. Finally, we calculated the actual spatial registration error for each DIR algorithm, from the known deformations. Results: The MIM algorithm produced the lowest average errors for the landmark analysis, the closest image similarity, and overall the most accurate contour transfers. When compared to the known deformations, MIM also produced the lowest average error, but the largest spatial registration errors. The lowest maximum spatial errors were made by DEF and DMP for the prostate and head-and-neck phantoms, respectively. Conclusion: Contour comparison, landmark tracking, and image similarity all indicated that MIM was the most accurate DIR algorithm. These metrics were aligned with MIM producing the lowest known mean errors, but did not catch that MIM was also by far producing the largest known errors.
The synthesis of Sendai virus polypeptides in infected cells. II. Intracellular distribution of polypeptides.

Abstract The intracellular distribution and the kinetics of association of Sendai virus polypeptides with cytoplasmic fractions and plasma membranes have been studied. The viral surface glycoproteins HN and F 0 have been found in pulse-chase experiments to migrate from rough to smooth membranes and to the plasma membrane. The M protein was found in varying amounts in most cell fractions but was predominantly associated with smooth membranes; there was no evidence of its migration from rough to smooth membranes. The L, P, and NP polypeptides were found with the rough membrane and free ribosome fractions. Polypeptides B and C, which were previously found in extracts of whole infected cells, were found to be unstable during cell fractionation. In the presence of protease inhibitors, polypeptide C, which is thought to be a virus-specific nonstructural protein, was found with the rough membrane fraction. Thus its instability in cell fractions appears to be due to proteolytic digestion. Polypeptide B was not found in cell fractions even in the presence of protease inhibitors. Evidence reported in the following paper has indicated that B is a phosphorylated form of polypeptide M and that its instability is presumably due to loss of phosphate. Polypeptides I–IV, which the available evidence suggests are cellular polypeptides whose synthesis may be enhanced in infected cells, were found in significant amount in soluble form after cell fractionation, although IV was also associated with most membrane fractions.
Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy for Military Veterans with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Systematic Review

Military personnel in a war situation appear to be especially susceptible to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), given that a high number of recently deployed service members are diagnosed with the disorder. Exposure therapy is frequently used in the treatment of this population. To our knowledge, however, there are no detailed systematic reviews of a relatively new exposure therapy, virtual reality exposure (VRE), in the treatment of combat veterans with PTSD. Therefore, the present work provides a comprehensive, 15-year overview (1999 to 2013) of research on the therapeutic effectiveness of VRE in treating PTSD in military combat veterans. A considerable body of empirical evidence suggests that VRE can decrease PTSD symptoms within the veteran population and follow-up data do show promise for maintaining positive treatment outcomes. Further research is necessary to determine the long-term effects of this treatment.
Chromosome constitution of human endometrium

Abstract Samples of endometrium from 21 normal women, 21 patients with a history of sterility, 21 women with problems of repeated abortion, and 3 patients ∗ ∗Since statistical analysis was completed, endometrium from 5 more patients with functional uterine bleeding have been studied and similar chromosome counts were obtained. with functional uterine bleeding were grown in tissue culture. Samples of the cervices of 9 of these patients were also grown in vitro by similar methods and used as controls. From these cultures, 2,482 metaphases were obtained and chromosomes were counted. Karyotypes were studied in the technically satisfactory ones. Aneuploidy was present in all types of endometrium with the largest percentage of cells with abnormal chromosome numbers being of the hypodiploid type. There was also a statistical difference in the proportion of cells with 46 chromosomes between normal endometrium and cervix, between the normal versus the sterility and abortion groups with the greatest difference existing between the bleeders and normal, sterility, and abortion groups. The karyotypes of cells with 46 chromosomes were normal, while there was a random loss of chromosomes in the hypodiploid group. The aneuploidy present in all types of endometrium is apparently the physiologic characteristic of the tissue and the regular sloughing of the endometrium may be necessary to avoid pathologic states which create excessive bleeding and may lead to malignant change in the endometrium.
A Reduced Carbohydrate, Increased Protein Diet Stabilizes Glycemic Control and Minimizes Adipose Tissue Glucose Disposal in Rats

The dietary reference intakes (DRIs) established an acceptable macronutrient distribution range (AMDR); however, few studies have evaluated differences in metabolic regulations across the DRI range. This study examined differences in glycemic regulations associated with specific ratios of carbohydrate and protein. Male rats ( approximately 200 g) were fed either a high-carbohydrate diet (CHO group: 60% of energy as carbohydrates, 12% protein, 28% fat) or a reduced-carbohydrate diet [PRO (protein) group: 42% carbohydrates, 30% protein, 28% fat]. Rats consumed 3 meals/d with energy distributed as 16, 42, and 42%. On d 25, blood and tissues were obtained after 12 h of food deprivation and at 30 and 90 min after the first meal. Before the meal, the CHO group had lower plasma glucose and insulin, reduced liver glycogen, lower expression of hepatic phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase (PEPCK), and increased fatty acid synthase (FAS) in adipose tissue. After the meal, the CHO group had greater increases in plasma glucose and insulin, producing increased skeletal muscle phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3-kinase) activity, glucose uptake, and glycogen content, and increased adipose PI3-kinase activity, glucose uptake, and FAS. In contrast, the PRO group had limited postprandial changes in plasma glucose and insulin with reduced muscle PI3-kinase activity and glucose uptake, and no postprandial changes in adipose PI3-kinase activity or FAS. This study demonstrates that changes in carbohydrate and protein intakes within the AMDR produce fundamental shifts in glycemic regulation from high-CHO diets that require insulin-mediated peripheral glucose disposal to high-PRO diets that increase hepatic regulation of glucose appearance into the blood.
Micromachined bulk PZT tissue contrast sensor for fine needle aspiration biopsy

This paper describes a micromachined piezoelectric sensor, integrated into a cavity at the tip of a biopsy needle, and preliminary experiments to determine if such a device can be used for real-time tissue differentiation, which is needed for needle positioning guidance during fine needle aspiration (FNA) biopsy. The sensor is fabricated from bulk lead zirconate titanate (PZT), using a customized process in which micro electro-discharge machining is used to form a steel tool that is subsequently used for batch-mode ultrasonic micromachining of bulk PZT ceramic. The resulting sensor is 50 µm thick and 200 µm in diameter. It is placed in the biopsy needle cavity, against a steel diaphragm which is 300 µm diameter and has an average thickness of 23 µm. Devices were tested in materials that mimic the ultrasound characteristics of human tissue, used in the training of physicians, and with porcine fat and muscle tissue. In both schemes, the magnitude and frequency of an electrical impedance resonance peak showed tissue-specific characteristics as the needle was inserted. For example, in the porcine tissue, the impedance peak frequency changed ≈13 MHz from the initial 163 MHz, and the magnitude changed ≈1600 Ω from the initial 2100 Ω, as the needle moved from fat to muscle. Samples including oils and saline solution were tested for calibration, and an empirical tissue contrast model shows an approximately proportional relationship between measured frequency shift and sample acoustic impedance. These results suggest that the device can complement existing methods for guidance during biopsies.
Anderson localization for the almost Mathieu equation: II. Point spectrum for λ>2

We prove that for any λ>2 and a.e. ω, θ the pure point spectrum of the almost Mathieu operator (H(θ)Ψ)n = Ψn-1 + Ψn+1 + λ cos(2π(θ +nω))Ψn contains the essential closure\(\hat \sigma\) of the spectrum. Corresponding eigenfunctions decay exponentially. The singular continuous component, if it exists, is concentrated on a set of zero measure which is nowhere dense in\(\hat \sigma\).
Representationalism and the conceivability of inverted spectra

Most philosophers who have endorsed the idea that there is such a thing as phenomenal content—content that supervenes on phenomenal character—have also endorsed what I call Standard Russellianism. According to Standard Russellianism, phenomenal content is Russellian in nature, and the properties represented by perceptual experiences are mind-independent physical properties. In agreement with Sydney Shoemaker [Shoemaker, S. (1994). Philosophy and Phenomenological Research, 54 249–314], I argue that Standard Russellianism is incompatible with the possibility of spectrum inversion without illusion. One defense of Standard Russellianism is to hold that spectrum inversion without illusion is conceivable but not in fact possible. I argue that this response fails. As a consequence, either phenomenal content is not Russellian, or experiences do not represent mind-independent physical properties.
CFD and Acoustical Analyses for Coastal Highway Erosion

Highway 82 is located along the Gulf of Mexico and provides one of the barriers to flood damage from wave action that occurs normally along the coastal shoreline and as a result of wave surges during stormy weather and hurricanes. When the waves break over the top of Highway 82 form the south, significant erosion damage will occur on the north side of the road instead, often resulting in destruction of the shoulder and the roadway that it supports. This results in significant maintenance cost for the State of Louisiana, loss of vital access to the coastline, and destruction of the protective barrier necessary to protect the residences and uses of the land along the Gulf of Mexico. The CFD and acoustical analyses were performed to evaluate the erosion resistance of a design configuration. The CFD simulations were conducted to investigate the weather and wave conditions and the impact on the shoulder erosion. The in-situ pressure data were recorded at several locations on and downstream of the north-side shoulder, and acoustical analyses were conducted to investigate the acoustic characteristics associated with the weather and wave conditions.Copyright © 2010 by ASME
Hardhats, hippies, and hawks: the Vietnam antiwar movement as myth and memory

On rare occasions, something enters one’s mental universe so radiant that it lights up the whole mind, burning away what now seem like intellectual preoccupations of vastly less import. Such was my...
Effects of hypoxia on gene and protein expression in the blue crab, Callinectes sapidus.

Abstract Increases in hypoxic conditions are one of the major factors responsible for declines in estuarine habitat quality, yet to date there are no indicators for recognizing populations of estuarine organisms that are suffering from chronic hypoxic stress. Here we test the hypothesis that alterations in gene and protein expression of antioxidant enzymes and other stress-specific proteins can be used as molecular indicators of hypoxic stress. Blue crabs, Callinectes sapidus, were exposed to 2–3 ppm DO for 5 days. Gene expression was measured using macroarrays constructed from cDNA of 10 partial gene transcripts cloned from blue crab hepatopancreas. Significant (p⩽0.05) down-regulation of gene expression was found for MnSOD, hemocyanin, ribosomal S15 and L23. Subtractive hybridization using RNA from control and hypoxic hepatopancreas tissues also indicated down-regulation of hemocyanin transcription. In contrast, Western blotting showed a significant (p⩽0.05) increase of hemocyanin protein in the hepatopancreas and cross-linking of MnSOD proteins in hypoxia-exposed crabs. Thus, hypoxia-responsive cDNA arrays and Westerns may be useful diagnostic tools for monitoring effects of hypoxia in estuarine crustacea.
Management of Serials in Libraries

Librarianship has encountered profound change and challenge during the last decade, much of which has been generated by the factors affecting serials procurement and access. These challenges are th...
Neuroplasticity-based cognitive and linguistic skills training improves reading and writing skills in college students.

This study reports an evaluation of the effect of computer-based cognitive and linguistic training on college students’ reading and writing skills. The computer-based training included a series of increasingly challenging software programs that were designed to strengthen students’ foundational cognitive skills (memory, attention span, processing speed, and sequencing) in the context of listening and higher level reading tasks. Twenty-five college students (12 native English language; 13 English Second Language) who demonstrated poor writing skills participated in the training group. The training group received daily training during the spring semester (11 weeks) with the Fast ForWord Literacy (FFW-L) and upper levels of the Fast ForWord Reading series (Levels 3, 4 and 5). The comparison group (n=28) selected from the general college population did not receive training. Both the training and comparison groups attended the same university. All students took the Gates MacGinitie Reading Test (GMRT) and the Oral and Written Language Scales (OWLS) Written Expression Scale at the beginning (Time 1) and end (Time 2) of the spring college semester. Results from this study showed that the training group made a statistically greater improvement from Time 1 to Time 2 in both their reading skills and their writing skills than the comparison group. The group who received training began with statistically lower writing skills before training, but exceeded the writing skills of the comparison group after training.
Pyridoxal 5' phosphate: a selective inhibitor of oncornaviral DNA polymerases.

Pyridoxal 5′ phosphate at concentrations < 0.5 mM inhibits polymerization of deoxynucleoside triphosphate catalysed by variety of DNA polymerases isolated from type C RNA tumor viruses, as well as E.coli, but doesnot affect the polymerase associated RNase H activity. Both phosphate and aldehyde groups of pyridoxal phosphate are essential for the inhibition which appears to be mediated through the reversible Schiff base.
Urethral diverticula: a review and an update.

Likely originating from the periurethral glands, female urethral diverticula (UD) are an uncommon but fascinating clinical entity. UD are variable in their presentation and the diagnosis is sometimes difficult and delayed. Modern imaging modalities such as surface coil and endoluminal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have added to the diagnostic armamentarium but have also furthered our understanding of UD. Accurate preoperative characterization of the often complex anatomical patterns seen on these imaging studies including saddlebag and circumferential urethral involvement, as well as complete evaluation of associated voiding dysfunction such as complete evaluation of associated voiding dysfunction such as urinary incontinence often impacts contemporary surgical management. Neurourol. Urodynam. 26:972–977, 2007. © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
A Nonlinear Scheme for Parameter Estimation in Linear Systems

Abstract An algorithm is presented which provides a maximum-likelihood estimate for an unknown parameter contained in a linear dynamic system driven by white, Gaussian noise. Taylor series expansions are used to develop approximations to the estimation equations. These approximations are recursive and can be calculated iteratively. The algorithm can be realized either as an analog or as a digital system and is shown to compare favorably with existing techniques in a simple example.
Gating of the cAMP Signaling Cascade and Melatonin Synthesis by the Circadian Clock in Mammalian Retina

Melatonin is synthesized in retinal photoreceptor cells and acts as a neuromodulator imparting photoperiodic information to the retina. The synthesis of melatonin is controlled by an ocular circadian clock and by light in a finely tuned mechanism that ensures that melatonin is synthesized and acts only at night in darkness. Here we report that the circadian clock gates melatonin synthesis in part by regulating the expression of the type 1 adenylyl cyclase (AC1) and the synthesis of cAMP in photoreceptor cells. This gating is effected through E-box-mediated transcriptional activation of the AC1 gene, which undergoes robust daily fluctuations that persist in constant illumination. The circadian control of the cAMP signaling cascade indicates that the clock has a more general and profound impact on retinal functions than previously thought. In addition, rhythmic control of AC1 expression was observed in other parts of the central circadian axis, the suprachiasmatic nucleus and pineal gland, but not in other brain areas examined. Thus, clock control of the cAMP signaling cascade may play a central role in the integration of circadian signals that control physiology and behavior.
Protein-protein interactions involving congenital cataract T5P γC-crystallin mutant: A confocal fluorescence microscopy study

The human lens crystallin gene CRYGC T5P is associated with Coppock-like cataract and has a phenotype of a dust-like opacity of the fetal lens nucleus and deep cortical region. Previous in vitro mutation studies indicate that the protein has changed conformation, solubility, and stability, which may make it susceptible to aggregation, as seen in cataractous lens and cell culture expression. To investigate the mechanisms leading to these events, we studied protein-protein interactions using confocal fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) microscopy. The method detects protein-protein interactions in the natural environment of living cells. Crystallin genes (CRYGC T5P, CRYGC, and CRYAA) were fused to either the green fluorescence protein (GFP) or red fluorescence protein (DsRED or RFP) vector. Each of the following GFP-RFP (donor-acceptor) plasmid pairs was cotransfected into HeLa cells: gammaC-gammaC, gammaC-gammaCT5P, gammaCT5P-gammaCT5P, alphaA-gammaC, and alphaA-gammaCT5P. After culture, confocal fluorescence cell images were taken. Protein-protein interactions in the form of net FRET were evaluated. The confocal fluorescence images show that cells expressing T5P gammaC-crystallin contain many protein aggregates, but cells co-expressing with either gammaC- or alphaA-crystallin reduce the aggregation considerably. FRET determination indicates that gammaCT5P-gammaCT5P shows less protein-protein interaction than either gammaC-gammaC or gammaC-gammaCT5P. Cotransfection with alphaA-crystallin (alphaA-gammaC or alphaA-T5PgammaC) increases nFRET compared with gammaC-gammaC or gammaC-T5PgammaC. Our results demonstrate that T5P gammaC-crystallin shows more protein aggregates and less protein-protein interaction than WT gammaC-crystallin. Chaperone alphaA-crystallin can rescue T5P gammaC-crystallin from aggregation through increased protein interaction. The formation of congenital cataract may be due to reduced protein-protein interactions and increased aggregation from an insufficient amount of alpha-crystallin for protection.
SU-E-J-28: Clinical Evaluation of XVI-Guided VMAT and IMRT of Prostate Cancer

Purpose: For an IGRT prostate cancertreatment using CT simulation and Cone‐beam CT(CBCT), bone‐based automated matching and target‐ volume‐based manual matching are compared with each other to comprehend their characteristics and any major difference. Methods: 20 patients of prostate or prostate/seminal vesicletreatment were selected. All of the patients were treated with XVI‐guided VMAT or IMRT. Each patient has his cone‐beam CTimages in the database. The patient's daily shift information of both manual matching and automated matching was taken from XVI. Then, five patients' data that have the largest deviation between two methods were chosen, and were analyzed by Pinnacle3: the shift information from the manual and automated matching was applied to the plan, and then prostate as GTV and critical organs of the rectum and bladder were contoured. Based on the composite plan, the dose on each organ was computed for both manual and automated matching. Results: PTV from each treatment plan with margin of 5 mm all around except for 3‐mm margin in posterior direction turned out to be wide enough to cover the whole prostate for both manual and automated matching. After aligning each patient's skin‐marking and laser, IGRT suggests 0.5 to 2 cm shifts from the aligned position in posterior/anterior and superior/inferior directions. In spite of the full coverage of GTV, the rectum and bladder received doses significantly different from the two matching approaches. Conclusion: The current margin for PTV seems to work properly so that both GTVs from manual matching and automated matching are fully covered. For IGRT, skin‐marking alignment becomes less important based on the matching data. Importantly, we found bone‐based matching and target‐based matching could result considerable difference in V90 of the rectum and bladder.
On Psychoanalytic Supervision as Signature Pedagogy

What is signature pedagogy in psychoanalytic education? This paper examines that question, considering why psychoanalytic supervision best deserves that designation. In focusing on supervision as signature pedagogy, I accentuate its role in building psychoanalytic habits of mind, habits of hand, and habits of heart, and transforming theory and self-knowledge into practical product. Other facets of supervision as signature pedagogy addressed in this paper include its features of engagement, uncertainty, formation, and pervasiveness, as well as levels of surface, deep, and implicit structure. Epistemological, ontological, and axiological in nature, psychoanalytic supervision engages trainees in learning to do, think, and value what psychoanalytic practitioners in the field do, think, and value: It is, most fundamentally, professional preparation for competent, “good work.” In this paper, effort is made to shine a light on and celebrate the pivotal role of supervision in “making” or developing budding psycho...
Tagging Wikipedia: collaboratively creating a category system

Category systems have traditionally been created by small committees of people who had authority over the system they were designing. With the rise of large-scale social media systems, category schemes are being created by groups with differing perspectives, values, and expectations for how categories will be used. Prior studies of social tagging and folksonomy focused on the application and evolution of the collective category scheme, but struggled to uncover some of the collective rationale undergirding the decision-making processes in those schemes. In this paper, we qualitatively analyze the early discussions among editors of Wikipedia about the design and creation of its category system. We highlight three themes that dominated the discussion: hierarchy, scope and navigation, and relate these themes to their more formal roots in the information science literature. We distill out four styles of collaboration with regard to category systems that apply broadly to social tagging and other folksonomies. We conclude the paper with implications for collaborative tools and category systems as applied to large-scale collaborative systems.
Role of renal tissue angiotensin II in proximal tubule function.

the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) in the kidney has been studied extensively, both in its regulation of systemic function and within the kidney. Evidence that the components of the RAS are produced and function locally suggests that it can also exert paracrine control of renal function. The rate-
Zinc binding and dimerization of Streptococcus pyogenes pyrogenic exotoxin C are not essential for T-cell stimulation.

Streptococcal pyrogenic enterotoxin C (Spe-C) is a superantigen virulence factor produced byStreptococcus pyogenes that activates T-cells polyclonally. The biologically active form of Spe-C is thought to be a homodimer containing an essential zinc coordination site on each subunit, consisting of the residues His167, His201, and Asp203. Crystallographic data suggested that receptor specificity is dependent on contacts between the zinc coordination site of Spe-C and the β-chain of the major histocompatibility complex type II (MHCII) molecule. Our results indicate that only a minor fraction of dimer is present at T-cell stimulatory concentrations of Spe-C following mutation of the unpaired side chain of cysteine at residue 27 to serine. Mutations of amino acid residues His167, His201, or Asp203had only minor effects on protein stability but resulted in greatly diminished MHCII binding, as measured by surface plasmon resonance with isolated receptor/ligand pairs and flow cytometry with MHCII-expressing cells. However, with the exception of the mutants D203A and D203N, mutation of the zinc-binding site of Spe-C did not significantly impact T-cell activation. The mutation Y76A, located in a polar pocket conserved among most superantigens, resulted in significant loss of T-cell stimulation, although no effect was observed on the overall binding to human MHCII molecules, perhaps because of the masking of this lower affinity interaction by the dominant zinc-dependent binding. To a lesser extent, mutations of side chains found in a second conserved MHCII α-chain-binding site consisting of a hydrophobic surface loop decreased T-cell stimulation. Our results demonstrate that dimerization and zinc coordination are not essential for biological activity of Spe-C and suggest the contribution of an alternative MHCII binding mode to T-cell activation.
argE-Encoded N-Acetyl-l-Ornithine Deacetylase from Escherichia coli Contains a Dinuclear Metalloactive Site

The catalytic and structural properties of the argE-encoded N-acetyl-L-ornithine deacetylase (ArgE) from Escherichia coli were investigated. On the basis of kinetic and ITC (isothermal titration calorimetry) data, Zn(II) binds to ArgE with Kd values that differ by approximately 20 times. Moreover, ArgE exhibits approximately 90% of its full catalytic activity upon addition of one metal ion. Therefore, ArgE behaves similarly to the aminopeptidase from Aeromonas proteolytica (AAP) in that one metal ion is the catalytic metal ion while the second likely plays a structural role. The N-acetyl-L-ornithine (NAO) deacetylase activity of ArgE showed a linear temperature dependence from 20 to 45 degrees C, indicating that the rate-limiting step does not change over this temperature range. The activation energy for NAO hydrolysis by ArgE was 25.6 kJ/mol when loaded with Zn(II) and 34.3 kJ/mol when loaded with Co(II). Electronic absorption and EPR (electron paramagnetic resonance) spectra of [Co x (ArgE)] and [CoCo(ArgE)] indicate that both divalent metal binding sites are five coordinate. In addition, EPR data show clear evidence of spin-spin coupling between the Co(II) ions in the active site but only after addition of a second equivalent of Co(II). Combination of these data provides the first physical evidence that the ArgE from E. coli contains a dinuclear Zn(II) active site, similar to AAP and the carboxypeptidase G2 from Pseudomonas sp. strain RS-16 (CPG2).
The Impact of Technical Assistance and Implementation Support on Program Capacity to Deliver Integrated Services

This study assessed gains that New York State mental health and addiction outpatient clinics achieved in their capacity to provide integrated mental health and substance abuse services for persons with co-occurring disorders. The investigators used two Dual Diagnosis Capability (DDC) indices—one for Addiction Treatment (DDCAT) and one for Mental Health Treatment (DDCMHT)—to measure integration capability at baseline (n = 603) and at follow-up (n = 150), an average of 2 years post-baseline, during which time programs received technical assistance and implementation support. At baseline, the average program score was 2.68, below the “Capable” level (3.0 on a 5-point scale). At follow-up, the average score was 3.04, and the percent of programs rated Capable more than doubled (from 22 to 52%). Programs with lower baseline scores and those with more time to follow-up (2–3 years) had the greatest increases, but 12 to 18 months were sufficient to realize sizeable and significant improvements.
Efficacy of injection therapy for symptomatic lumbar synovial cysts.

COMMENTARY ON: Martha JF, Swaim B, Wang DA, et al. Outcome of percutaneous rupture of lumbar synovial cysts: a case series of 101 patients. Spine J 2009;9:899–904 (in this issue) .
AD-like tau phosphorylation in human neuroblastoma cells following PKC hyperactivation is mediated by MAP kinase

SH-SY-5Y human neuroblastoma cells were treated with the phorbol ester TPA and the MAP kinase inhibitors PD98059. Microdensitometric analyses revealed that TPA treatment induced 60% and 46% increases in immunoreactivity towards monoclonal antibodies (AT-8 and PHF-1, respectively; p=0.0005) that recognize tau epitopes common to paired helical filaments. These increases were attenuated by the simultaneous treatment with PD98059. Steady-state AT-8 and PHF-1 immunoreactivity were not inhibited by PD98059. These analyses corroborate studies from other laboratories that indicate that MAP kinase may not normally confer AD-like immunoreactivity to tau within intact cells, but demonstrate that hyperactivation of upstream kinase(s) may recruit otherwise benign kinases to hyperphosphorylate tau. These findings further implicate the potential involvement of hyperactivation of signal transduction pathways in the early events that propagate PHF formation. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
THe Effect of Three Model Characteristics on Imitation and Learning

Summary The effects of the model characteristics of stigma, friendliness, and affect on imitation and learning were studied in three field experiments using 100 male and 100 female adults as Ss. The results revealed a significant modeling or imitation effect, although specific model characteristics seemed to have no effeets on imitation. Learning was affected by model characteristics such that characteristics which increased attention to the model also tended to increase learning of the model's responses. Females imitated and learned more of the model's responses than did males, possibly because the model was female.
Mapping seduction: traditional narrative abstractions as parameterized story systems

Enduring story patterns provide a rich source of variation that can be exploited by the creators of multiform digital stories. Stories of seduction and courtship, for example, reveal variations based on the "moral physics" of the story world including characters serving similar plot functions, such as seducer or suitor, who contrast with one another in significant ways. Focusing on story structure at this level of abstraction can help authors to avoid arbitrary variation, by creating narratively consistent worlds that provide interaction choices that offer the possibility of dramatic agency.
Recognition in the wavelet domain: A survey

The use of wavelets has grown enormously since their original inception in the mid-1980s. Since the wavelet data repre- sentation combines spatial, frequency, and scale information in a sparse data representation, they are very useful in a number of image processing applications. This paper discusses current work in applying wavelets to object and pattern recognition. Feature extrac- tion methods and search algorithms for matching images are dis- cussed. Some important issues are the search for invariant repre- sentations, similarities between existing applications and the human visual system, and the derivation of wavelets that match specific targets. Results from several existing systems and areas for future research are presented. © 2001 SPIE and IS&T.