cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Effects of Static-Field Penetration and Atomic Polarization on the Capacity of a Capacitor, Field Evaporation, and Field Ionization Processes

Both static-field penetration and atomic polarization at a metal surface change the effective work function of the surface in a high electric field. The former increases the effective work function, while the latter reduces it in a positive field. The change may amount to several electron volts at a field strength of 6\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{8}$ V/cm. These two effects should therefore be included in the calculation of the capacity in thin dielectric structures and in the theory of both field evaporation and field ionization.
Characters of central piques

Abstract As a first step towards a duality theory for central quasigroups, the paper presents an explicit computation of the characters of a central pique (quasigroup with pointed idempotent) using Wigner's “little groups” method. The characters of a central pique's cloop (principally isotopic abelian group) form a dual pique. The conjugacy classes of the dual correspond to the characters of the primal; indeed the unitary character table of the dual is the inverse of the unitary character table of the primal. Together with its dual, a central pique forms a structure known as the double. The double satisfies identities indexed by loops of 2-power order. These identities project onto the unit circle to yield identities involving character values.
I. MPTP neurotoxicity: An overview and characterization of phases of toxicity

Abstract MPTP (1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine) produces unalloyed parkinsonism in humans when injected systematically, and has been effective in producing an animal model of Parkinson's disease in non-human primates. A distinction between toxic and pharmacologic effects of the compound is drawn, and basic criteria for animal models of human disease are reviewed, particularly as they relate to MPTP. A comparison between a unique population of humans affected by this substance and non-human primates is presented. The syndrome of MPTP intoxication can be divided into three and possibly four phases, and the potential underlying mechanisms for the clinical and behavior observations of each phase are discussed.
Dynamic-angle spinning without sidebands

Abstract By means of rotor-synchronized π-pulses, it is possible to eliminate the spinning sidebands (while retaining their full intensity in the isotropic centerband) that usually arise in dynamic-angle spinning (DAS) NMR. The theory of this approach, dynamic-angle hopping (DAH-180), is described and illustrated with experimental results on quadrupolar nuclei. A magic-angle hopping (MAH-180) version of magic-angle spinning is also possible and can be used in a two-dimensional NMR experiment to produce sideband-free isotropic—anisotropic correlation spectra for spin- 1 2 nuclei.
Recent changes in sex-role ideology among divorced men and women: Some possible causes and implications

Data from two Virginia Slims Surveys of American Women (1974 and 1979) are analyzed to test the hypotheses that sex-role value differences between men and women are greater in the divorced population than among married adults and that those differences have increased in recent years. The hypotheses are generally supported, and implications are drawn for the explanation of remarriage probabilities of divorced men and women. The explanation of the growing gender gap among the divorced is linked to recent changes in the position of women in the general economic structure.
Thermal characterization of an epoxy-based underfill material for flip chip packaging

Abstract Epoxy-based underfill encapsulant materials are used in advanced microelectronic packaging to reduce thermal stresses on the solder joints and interconnections in integrated circuits. Therefore, their thermal properties directly affect package performance and reliability. In this study, the thermal properties of an epoxy-based underfill material developed for Intel’s flip chip packaging were characterized using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), thermomechanical analysis (TMA), dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA) and DMA techniques. Experimental results showed that this epoxy can be cured rapidly with low cure weight loss. Near room temperature, the cured epoxy has a low coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) and a moderate storage modulus, resulting in a low stress index. The glass transition temperature and thermomechanical properties as a function of epoxy curing conditions will be discussed.
New concepts in diagnostics for infectious diarrhea

Conventional approaches to the diagnosis of infectious diarrhea must include several modalities to detect an array of potential viruses, bacteria, and parasites. We will provide a general overview of the wide range of diagnostic modalities available for enteropathogens, briefly discuss some of the limitations of conventional methods, and then focus on new molecular methods, including real-time PCR and next-generation sequencing. In particular, we will discuss quantitation of pathogen load with these techniques. We will then describe examples whereby novel diagnostics may help illuminate the etiology of infectious diarrhea, where they may not, and how they may benefit studies of immunity to enteric infections.
Care of the Stroke Patient: Routine Management to Lifesaving Treatment Options

The management of the acute ischemic stroke patient spans the time course from the emergency evaluation and treatment period through to the eventual discharge planning phase of stroke care. In this article we evaluate the literature and describe what have become standard treatments in the care of the stroke patient. We will review the literature that supports the use of a dedicated stroke unit for routine stroke care which has demonstrated reduced rates of morbidity and mortality. Also reviewed is the use of glycemic control in the initial setting along with data supporting the use of prophylactic treatments options in order to aide in the prevention of life threatening medical complications. In addition, lifesaving treatments will be discussed in light of new literature demonstrating reduced mortality in large hemispheric stroke patients undergoing surgical decompressive surgery. Both medical and surgical treatment options are discussed and compared.
Actions of phorbol esters on levels of cAMP in cholera toxin-treated chief cells from guinea pig stomach.

Abstract Agents like carbachol and cholecystokinin (CCK), that activate chief cell phosphoinositidase C, thereby increasing cell calcium concentration, increase cAMP levels in cholera toxin-treated, but not control, gastric chief cells. In the present study, we found that phorbol esters, like PMA, that activate protein kinase C, also cause augmentation of chief cell cAMP levels. The maximal effect with PMA (100 nM) was about 50% of the maximal response with CCK (10 nM) or (100 μM). Because protein kinase C is a calcium-dependent enzyme, we examined the effect of modulating cell calcium levels with the ionophore A23187. The ionophore alone caused a dose-dependent augmentation of cAMP levels. Adding 100 nM PMA caused an additive response, such that a maximal cAMP response, equal to that seen with 100 μM carbachol, was observed with 30 nM A23187. Carbachol-, A23187-, and PMA-induced augmentation of cAMP levels was progressively reduced by increasing concentrations of calmidazolium, a calmodulin inhibitor. Combination of phorbol esters that activate protein kinase C with ionophores that increase cell calcium mimics the actions of CCK and carbachol on cAMP levels in cholera toxin-treated chief cells.
Realizing adaptive systems

The next generation of distributed systems will require individual components to adapt to their environment. Increasingly, developers want architectures that allow the internal structures of the software that comprise their systems to change autonomously with changes in the deployment environment. This has given rise to research in reflective technologies like middleware, languages, etc. However, these technologies only get us part of the way to systems that can adapt.For a system to be truly adaptive, it must also change in support of evolving technologies and ontologies. When engineering to support these requirements, some of goals of reflective technologies can also be met without changes to middleware and languages. The Enterprise Intelligent Distributed Architecture (EIDA) is an attempt to realize these goals by creating a set of development tools that are also deployed with the system as run time servers. By completely automating the development of key components of the runtime system, the goal is to enable the adaptation of these components to changes in the environment, technology and ontology of the system.
Pipelines for transporting CO2 in the UK

Abstract National Grid is currently pursuing plans to develop a pipeline system in the North Yorkshire and Humber areas of the United Kingdom (UK) to transport dense phase carbon dioxide (CO2) from a major industrial emitter to a saline aquifer off the Yorkshire coast. The company's longer term aspiration is to develop the first pipeline into a network configuration that links up multiple CO2 emitters in the Yorkshire and Humberside area. The planned developments are supported by European Union grants which have been used to partly fund the required technical studies. CO2 is a hazardous substance which in the unlikely event of an accidental release, could cause harm to people. Compliance with UK safety legislation requires compliance with recognised pipeline codes. Currently, the UK pipeline standard and code for high pressure pipelines do not directly apply to dense phase CO2, but do allow the use of quantified risk assessmnt (QRA) in cases which are not fully covered by the documents. National Grid has completed the COOLTRANS (CO2 Liquid pipeline TRANSportation) research programme, and the results of this research have been used to develop a comprehensive QRA methodology for dense phase CO2 pipelines, which has been used in routeing and design studies to ensure that the principles of the UK standards and codes are correctly applied. This paper describes the routeing and design principles specified in the UK pipeline standard and code of practice, and explains how the COOLTRANS research findings have been used in the development and application of a QRA methodology for CO2 pipelines, which ensures the principles are applied to these pipelines.
The German grand coalition of 2005–09 and party system change: Catalyst or continuity?

Two times in the last fifty years grand coalitions have altered traditionally bi-polar patterns of German electoral competition, changing the electoral context by making it difficult for voters to endorse anti-incumbent alternatives. How have voters reacted under these circumstances, and were their responses different because of the weakening of partisan attachments in the forty years between the two grand coalitions? This study explores these questions by examining voter behavior in German state elections under the federal grand coalitions of 1966–69 and 2005–09, comparing voters’ responses with long-term trends in German party system development. The second grand coalition saw a continuation of trends in declining turnout and increasing electoral volatility, but in contrast to the first grand coalition there was no surge in support for far-right parties. Such a change may be the result of differences between the party systems in the two period, with voters in unified Germany having many more options for expressing discontent.
Sex differences in nerve growth factor levels in superior cervical ganglia and pineals

Abstract The current studies were undertaken to determine whether males or neonatally testosterone-treated rats of either gender have elevated endogenous levels of NGF in the SCG and one of its targets, the pineal gland. The ages studied were 5 days postnatal, which is at the peak of normal neuron death in the SCG but before a significant gender difference is present; 15 days, when normal neuron death is largely complete and males have more SCG neurons than females; and 30 days, when target innervation has matured. At 5 days, while neuron death is occurring, but before there is a significant gender difference in neuron number in the SCG, pineal glands and SCGs of males had higher NGF content than those of females. The increased NGF in the ganglia of males at the time that these neurons are undergoing neuron death may play a role in the development of the sex difference in SCG neuron numbers. At 15 days, females had more NGF in their pineal glands and SCGs than did males, even though males have significantly more SCG neurons at this age than do females. This gender difference in the developmental course of NGF content could promote the survival of different populations of neurons in males and females. By 30 days, SCG and pineal NGF content of males was almost twice that of females. This is consistent with the presence of more neurons in the SCGs of males at this age. Both the pineal gland and the SCG showed a loss of approximately 80% content of NGF during the first postnatal month. In males, this loss occurred between postnatal days 5 and 15, while in females, the drop in NGF content occurred between postnatal days 15 and 30. Treatment with testosterone from birth reduced NGF content in the SCGs of both males and females at 5 days of age. The depression of NGF levels by testosterone treatment may reflect a further acceleration of the developmental fall of NGC levels.
Ionic dissociation of hydrogen bromide in water clusters: a computational study

Abstract The ionic dissociation of hydrobromic acid in an aqueous environment is studied by density functional theory calculations on the water clusters HBr(H2O)n, n=1–4. The equilibrium structure, binding energies, vibrational frequencies, and dipole moments of the clusters are calculated in order to understand the mechanism of aqueous acid dissociation. These calculations indicate that HBr does not dissociate until at least three, preferably four, water molecules are positioned around the acid molecule. The Br–H bond grows progressively longer as more water molecules are added in the cluster, causing significant red-shift in its stretching frequency, along with drastic increase in the IR intensity.
Calcium Oxalate Calculi Found Attached to the Renal Papilla: Preliminary Evidence for Early Mechanisms in Stone Formation

Background: Calculi are commonly found attached to the renal papilla in calcium oxalate (CaOx) stone formers, but the mechanisms by which stones form in this manner are not well established. Materials and Methods: Data are presented from three attached stones collected from different patients. Stone morphology and composition were determined using micro computed tomography (CT) and infrared microspectrometry. Results: One of the stones was composed of CaOx with a peripheral region of apatite, such as might have come from a Randall's plaque. Another stone was covered with large CaOx crystals but contained at least two layers of apatite, with no apatite regions exposed at the surface. The third stone contained CaOx with inclusions of apatite and more apatite on its surface, along with a substantial volume of poorly mineralized material that could not be identified. Conclusions: The complexity of these stones and their differing morphologies do not by themselves allow inference of the mechanism of stone form...
A Biomechanical Analysis of a Novel Arthroscopic Suture Method Compared to Standard Suture Knots and Materials for Rotator Cuff Repair

Purpose: To biomechanically compare a novel suture welding method to 2 standard suture materials when tied with 3 types of arthroscopic knots. Methods: Sixty suture loops were tied with Weston, Roeder, and Duncan knots for both No. 2 FiberWire (FW) and No. 2 Ethibond (EB; 10 loops/group). Ten suture loops were created using a novel technique using No. 2 Nylon suture, with welding of the suture ends using sonic energy. All loops were created over the same dowel. Loops were cycled between 10N and 45N for 200 cycles, followed by a failure test. Loop elongation and ultimate failure load were compared between welded sutures and both materials using a 2-way analysis of variance. Results: There were no differences in loop elongation for the welded Nylon sutures compared to EB Roeder and EB Duncan knots, although EB Weston knots had significantly less loop elongation ( P P P Conclusions: A novel method to simplify the knot tying procedure by welding the suture ends demonstrated mechanical properties generally similar to No. 2 Ethibond. This method provides: (1) surgical advantages by eliminating knot tying; (2) a quick and easy locking mechanism; and (3) a low profile that eliminates high-profile knots. However, it is not clear whether the lower stiffness or the lower failure load may detract from these potential benefits compared to constructs with greater stiffness. Clinical Relevance: The suture welding technique generally behaved in a manner similar to that of Ethibond suture loops, although the difficulty of tying arthroscopic knots was eliminated.
High-field mobility of light holes in strained InGaAs quantum wells

Abstract The small in-plane mass of light holes in strained quantum wells leads to high mobility at low electric fields. An analysis shows that the high-field mobility in high quality samples primarily depends on Δ, the strain splitting of the light and heavy holes, and ħω 0 , the optical phonon energy. Monte Carlo calculations show that the carrier drift velocity versus electric field characteristic can be optimized for Δ ≈ ħω 0 . In this case, the low field mobility is enhanced but a Gunn effect is avoided at high fields. Pulsed field measurements on a p-doped GaAs/InGaAs/GaAs sample show that the drift velocity lies below the theoretical predictions. Further calculations in which interface roughness scattering is included show that interface roughness scattering can reduce the drift velocity. Comparison with the data suggests the roughness fluctuation length Δ ≈ 10 nm.
Study of the actin cytoskeleton in live endothelial cells expressing GFP-actin.

The microvascular endothelium plays an important role as a selectively permeable barrier to fluids and solutes. The adhesive junctions between endothelial cells regulate permeability of the endothelium, and many studies have indicated the important contribution of the actin cytoskeleton to determining junctional integrity 1-5 . A cortical actin belt is thought to be important for the maintenance of stable junctions 1, 2, 4, 5 . In contrast, actin stress fibers are thought to generate centripetal tension within endothelial cells that weakens junctions 2-5 . Much of this theory has been based on studies in which endothelial cells are treated with inflammatory mediators known to increase endothelial permeability, and then fixing the cells and labeling F-actin for microscopic observation. However, these studies provide a very limited understanding of the role of the actin cytoskeleton because images of fixed cells provide only snapshots in time with no information about the dynamics of actin structures 5 . Live-cell imaging allows incorporation of the dynamic nature of the actin cytoskeleton into the studies of the mechanisms determining endothelial barrier integrity. A major advantage of this method is that the impact of various inflammatory stimuli on actin structures in endothelial cells can be assessed in the same set of living cells before and after treatment, removing potential bias that may occur when observing fixed specimens. Human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) are transfected with a GFP-β-actin plasmid and grown to confluence on glass coverslips. Timelapse images of GFP-actin in confluent HUVEC are captured before and after the addition of inflammatory mediators that elicit time-dependent changes in endothelial barrier integrity. These studies enable visual observation of the fluid sequence of changes in the actin cytoskeleton that contribute to endothelial barrier disruption and restoration. Our results consistently show local, actin-rich lamellipodia formation and turnover in endothelial cells. The formation and movement of actin stress fibers can also be observed. An analysis of the frequency of formation and turnover of the local lamellipodia, before and after treatment with inflammatory stimuli can be documented by kymograph analyses. These studies provide important information on the dynamic nature of the actin cytoskeleton in endothelial cells that can used to discover previously unidentified molecular mechanisms important for the maintenance of endothelial barrier integrity.
Protein kinase R (PKR) plays a pro-viral role in porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) replication by modulating viral gene transcription

Protein kinase R (PKR) is involved in apoptotic cell death and antiviral activities in response to many virus infections. To reveal the role of PKR in the replication of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV), we first examined the kinetics of PKR phosphorylation during PRRSV infection. The results showed that PRRSV transiently activates PKR at 12 and 24 h postinfection. Surprisingly, eIF-2α, the well-known downstream target of PKR, was significantly phosphorylated compared to mock-infected cells only at 48 and 72 h postinfection. Reduced viral gene transcription, viral protein synthesis, and virus titer were detected in cells transfected with PKR silencing RNA prior to PRRSV infection compared to control silencing RNA transfected cells, indicating a role of PKR in facilitating virus replication. Overall, our data suggest that PKR is not a major contributor to the phosphorylation of eIF-2α during PRRSV infection, but it plays a pro-viral role in PRRSV replication by modulating primarily viral gene transcription.
Development of Spelling and Differential Relations to Text Reading in Grades 3-12

The authors claim that assessing spelling in Grades 3-12 has utility. They base their claim on data from 875,040 students in Grades 3-12 in 52,923 classes in 840 Florida schools who took the Reading Comprehension, Maze, and Word Analysis spelling portions of the Florida Assessments for Instruction in Reading during the 2009-2010 school year. The importance of instruction to spelling ability was evident in (a) the large intraclass correlations at the class relative to the school level, (b) the greater variability in spelling at the class level rather than at the student level, (c) the greater role of demographics at the class level compared to the student level, and (d) the role of high ability spelling classrooms compared to low ability spelling classrooms in differentiating Reading Comprehension and Maze performance. Growth in spelling was evident in the elementary grades but stagnant above Grade 7. The authors conclude with the hope that secondary teachers will include spelling instruction as part of their goal to engage students in reading for understanding. Why assess spelling beyond the primary grades? We were asked this question so many times in the development of the Florida Assessments for Instruction in Reading (FAIR) that we decided to call the computer-adaptive spelling test Word Analysis rather than spelling. The objective of this article is to provide empirical evidence that assessing spelling in students in Grades 3-12 has utility. We are interested in whether variability exists in spelling growth at the student, class, and school levels in Grades 3-12 and whether growth varies for disaggregated groups of students. We are also interested in the value added of reading comprehension in predicting spelling outcomes over and above a text effi- ciency measure based on adjusted maze fluency, controlling for demographics. Finally, we are interested in the implica- tions of spelling development and its relation to text reading efficiency and reading comprehension for instruction in Grades 3 and above.
The Marketplace and the Temple: Economic Metaphors and Religious Meanings in the Folk Songs of Colonial Bengal

The marketplace and the temple: traditionally, Western scholars have been nervous and ambivalent about bringing these two spheres into too close a proximity. On one side, historians of religions trained in the lineage of Joachim Wach or Mircea Eliade have long warned that “reductionism” is the cardinal sin in the study of religion, which is claimed to be a sui generis , or irreducible phenomenon. Hence, “economic reductionism” or “vulgar economism” would be the most heinous crime of all (Wach 1958; Eliade 1958, xi). On the other side, those trained in Marxist and neo-Marxist traditions have typically wanted to explain religious myths and rituals either as ideological screens masking deeper material forces or as symbolic expressions of misrecognized social interests. As Pierre Bourdieu—one of the most sophisticated recent representatives of this tradition—explains his own method, he wishes to “utilize the economic model to extend materialist critique into the realm of religion and to uncover the specific interests of the protagonists of the religious game, priests, prophets and sorcerers” (1990, 107).
A Bayesian approach to electrical conductivity relaxation and isotope exchange/secondary ion mass spectrometry

article i nfo Article history: A Bayesian method for interpretation of electrical conductivity relaxation and isotope exchange/secondary ion mass spectrometry data is presented and demonstrated on data appearing in the literature. The new method enables quantification of uncertainty due to data fitting inestimates for theeffectivesurfaceexchange coefficient k* and the effective diffusion coefficient D*. The standard infinite series solutions to the semi-infinite diffusion problem with linearized chemical kinetics at the boundary are utilized, although the Bayesian technique does not depend on the existence of analytical solutions. The methodology is demonstrated in the analysis of data appearingintheliterature,bothforisotopeexchange/secondaryionmassspectrometryandelectricalconductivity relaxation. In particular,theutility of thetechnique in definitivelyresolvingquestionsofparameteridentifiability is demonstrated in a comparison of two literature studies on the same bulk material that lead to widely different estimated parameters using the standard nonlinear least squares fit.
Scanning and Sequential Decision Making for Multidimensional Data–Part I: The Noiseless Case

We investigate the problem of scanning and prediction (ldquoscandiction,rdquo for short) of multidimensional data arrays. This problem arises in several aspects of image and video processing, such as predictive coding, for example, where an image is compressed by coding the error sequence resulting from scandicting it. Thus, it is natural to ask what is the optimal method to scan and predict a given image, what is the resulting minimum prediction loss, and whether there exist specific scandiction schemes which are universal in some sense. Specifically, we investigate the following problems: first, modeling the data array as a random field, we wish to examine whether there exists a scandiction scheme which is independent of the field's distribution, yet asymptotically achieves the same performance as if this distribution were known. This question is answered in the affirmative for the set of all spatially stationary random fields and under mild conditions on the loss function. We then discuss the scenario where a nonoptimal scanning order is used, yet accompanied by an optimal predictor, and derive bounds on the excess loss compared to optimal scanning and prediction. This paper is the first part of a two-part paper on sequential decision making for multidimensional data. It deals with clean, noiseless data arrays. The second part deals with noisy data arrays, namely, with the case where the decision maker observes only a noisy version of the data, yet it is judged with respect to the original, clean data.
FREEZE-DRYING OF FOOT-AND-MOUTH DISEASE VIRUS AND STORAGE STABILITY OF THE INFECTIVITY OF DRIED VIRUS AT 4 C.

Foot-and-mouth disease virus, type A, strain 119, propagated in cultures of calf kidney cells and in the tongue epithelium of cattle was used. The process of freeze-drying was conducted in two cycles on unit volumes of 4 ml in Pyrex ampoules, averaging 150 ampoules per run, and was studied separately from the problems of storage. Ampoules containing freeze-dried virus were flame-sealed for either immediate study or storage at 4 C for later reference. Tissue-culture virus dried with various additives had a mean processing loss of 0.8 log LD50 per ml for six different preparations. Virus freeze-dried in tissue suspension had a mean loss of 0.8 log LD50 per ml for three different preparations. A second set of preparations was processed and specifically studied for storage quality at 4 C. The virus in 14 freeze-dried tissue-culture preparations had a mean loss of 0.75 log LD50 per ml while stored at 4 C for 1 year. Virus in four freeze-dried tissue suspensions had a mean loss of 0.05 log LD50 per ml held at 4 C for 1 year. None of the specific additives used for conservation of the virus during the freeze-drying process or during storage at 4 C contributed significantly to the stability of the virus preparations over and above that observed with the normal growth medium of the tissue culture or the ordinary diluents used in making suspensions of tissue virus.
Evaluating the effectiveness of expandable radiocollars for juvenile cervids

We present the retention rate of expandable radiocollars that can be used on juvenile cervids. These collars permit investigations into a previously understudied segment of cervid populations. We captured 60 male sika deer (Cervus nippon) in Dorchester County, Maryland, USA, during their first winter (6–8 months of age; captured 2008 and 2009) and attached expandable radiocollars. Retention of collars differed between years. The first year, 85% of collars were retained for 1 year with a mean retention time of 532 days (SE = 27). After modifications, 100% of second-year collars were retained for the duration of the study or until the animal's death (max = 483 days). We used trail cameras to observe wear and fit of the collars 6–8 months after deployment. Our data suggest that the expandable collar design can be improved to last beyond an animal's dispersal and provide a useful tool for monitoring juvenile cervids. © 2014 The Wildlife Society.
Soil moisture controls on canopy-scale water and carbon fluxes in an African savanna

[1] Tower-based measurements of mass and energy exchanges at the end of the growing season in central Botswana were used to evaluate functional relationships commonly applied to predict water and carbon fluxes between savanna landscapes and the atmosphere. Following a large rainfall event, daily evapotranspiration (ETdaily) exhibited an exponential decay consistent with a derived analytical expression based on critical and wilting-point soil moisture limits for savanna vegetation native to the study region. A piecewise linear soil moisture limitation function provided good estimates of ETdaily as a function of potential evapotranspiration and soil moisture (R 2 = 0.92). Comparison of a soil moisture mass balance with measured ETdaily indicated deeper root water uptake at a site with more woody vegetation compared with a grass-dominated site. Linear correlation (R 2 = 0.90) of daytime CO2 flux and evapotranspiration supported a constant water use efficiency to estimate carbon fluxes from water fluxes. Daytime and nighttime CO2 fluxes responded similarly to soil drying, enabling estimation of total daily CO2 flux from ETdaily. These experimental results support a simple model of savanna land-atmosphere exchange over interstorm periods. INDEX TERMS: 1818 Hydrology: Evapotranspiration; 3322 Meteorology and Atmospheric Dynamics: Land/atmosphere interactions; 1866 Hydrology: Soil moisture; 1878 Hydrology: Water/energy interactions; KEYWORDS: African savanna, evapotranspiration, land-atmosphere exchange, soil moisture, water and carbon flux, water limitation
Training and Education Needs of Consumers, Families, and Front-Line Staff in Behavioral Health Practice

Much of the behavioral health care delivered to people with serious mental illnesses and chronic addictive disorders is provided by front-line or direct service mental health workers. Issues related to the qualifications, training, and ongoing evaluation of the competencies of this important provider group have received scant attention in the behavioral health field. This paper explores the educational needs and best practices of the consumers and families who carry much of the burden of caring for disabled populations, as well as the front-line staff, many of whom are employed in state psychiatric hospitals and community mental health or addiction treatment systems. Within the overall context of culturally competent behavioral health care, specific recommendations are proposed in an attempt to move the field forward.
Semidefinite programming bounds on the probability of error of binary communication systems with inexactly known intersymbol interference

We consider the problem of evaluating the probability of error of binary communication systems in the presence of additive noise and intersymbol interferences whose statistics are inexactly known due to the estimation errors of the channel coefficients. We present a new method using semidefinite programming to evaluate tight bounds on the error probability based on the upper and lower bounds on the moments of those interferences. Numerical results are provided and compared with a previously published technique.
Quantitative and qualitative comparison of 0.025 mmol/kg gadobenate dimeglumine for abdominal MRI at 1.5 T and 3 T MRI in patients with low estimated glomerular filtration rate

Abstract Purpose To investigate the efficacy and adequacy of enhancement employing 0.025 mmol/kg of gadobenate dimeglumine at 1.5 Tesla (T), and to compare the extent of enhancement of this dosage between 1.5 T and 3 T systems. Materials and methods Our final population included 116 consecutive patients who underwent 0.025 mmol/kg gadobenate dimeglumine-enhanced abdominal MRI (78 men and 38 women; age, 64.1 ± 13.6 years). Sixty patients underwent imaging at 1.5 T and 56 patients underwent imaging at 3 T. Abdominal enhancement was evaluated qualitatively and quantitatively. The quality of enhancement was compared using Mann–Whitney U test. The percentage of enhancement of each organ was compared using Student t -test. Results The mean quality rating of enhancement was at least “good” in all phases of enhancement for both 1.5 T and 3 T. There was a non-significant trend to higher mean ratings at 3 T. The liver showed a 1.3-fold higher arterial-phase percentage of enhancement at 3 T ( p = 0.0138). There were no differences between the mean relative enhancement of the pancreas and aorta throughout all phases of enhancement. The percentage of enhancement of the renal cortex was significantly higher at 3 T ( p p = 0.0293). Conclusion A dose of 0.025 mmol/kg of gadobenate dimeglumine demonstrates diagnostic enhancement in the majority of patients at 1.5 T, without significant differences on qualitative evaluation compared to 3 T.
Time Use and Well-Being in Older Widows: Adaptation and Resilience

Research on widowhood mostly emphasizes negative outcomes, but some studies suggest widows are resilient. This study evaluated the in-depth daily experiences of older widows compared to married women. Participants included 75 widows and 125 married women from the National Study of Daily Experiences II, who completed daily diaries over 8 days. For long-term widows, there were no differences compared to married women in daily and general well-being, and a few differences in time use. Results add to the literature by using daily diary data to illustrate the general resilience of older women many years after the death of a spouse.
Nanofluidic structures with complex three-dimensional surfaces

Nanofluidic devices have typically explored a design space of patterns limited by a single nanoscale structure depth. A method is presented here for fabricating nanofluidic structures with complex three-dimensional (3D) surfaces, utilizing a single layer of grayscale photolithography and standard integrated circuit manufacturing tools. This method is applied to construct nanofluidic devices with numerous (30) structure depths controlled from approximately 10 to approximately 620 nm with an average standard deviation of 1 cm. A prototype 3D nanofluidic device is demonstrated that implements size exclusion of rigid nanoparticles and variable nanoscale confinement and deformation of biomolecules.
Pitfalls in pancreatic imaging.

Introduction The use of multidetector computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with imaging protocols optimized for imaging of the pancreas has improved the localization as well as the detection and the characterization of pancreatic lesions. Although the typical radiological appearances of common pancreatic lesions is well known, there are several potential pitfalls that can be encountered in pancreatic imaging, such as pancreatic anatomical variants mimicking pancreatic lesions, inflammatory conditions mimicking malignancy, atypical radiological appearance of pancreatic adenocarcinoma, and cystic pancreatic lesions and peripancreatic lesions mimicking intrapancreatic lesions. An understanding of these potential pitfalls in pancreatic imaging is essential to avoid misdiagnosis that can result in inappropriate patient management.
Characterization of a ricin-resistant mutant of Leishmania donovani that expresses lipophosphoglycan

The abundant cell-surface lipophosphoglycan (LPG) of Leishmania parasites plays a central role throughout the eukaryote's life cycle. A number of LPG-defective mutants and their complementing genes have been isolated and have proven invaluable in assessing the importance of LPG and related glycoconjugates in parasite virulence. While ricin agglutination selection protocols frequently result in lpg- mutants, one Leishmania donovani variant we isolated, named JABBA, was found to be lpg+. Procyclic (logarithmic) JABBA expresses significant amounts of a large-sized LPG, larger than observed from procyclic wild type but similar in size to LPG from wild type from metacyclic (stationary) phase. Structural analysis of the LPG from logarithmically grown JABBA by capillary electrophoresis protocols revealed that it averaged 30 repeat units composed of the unsubstituted Gal(β1,4)Man(α1)-PO4 typical of wild-type L. donovani. Analysis of JABBA LPG caps indicated that 20% is branched trisaccharide Gal(β1,4)[Glc(β1,2)]Man and tetrasaccharide Gal(β1,4)[Glc(β1,2)Man(α1,2)]Man instead of the usual Gal(β1,4)Man and Man(α1,2)Man terminating caps. Consistent with these structural observations, analyses of the relevant glycosyltransferases in JABBA microsomes involved in LPG biosynthesis showed a 2-fold increase in elongating mannosylphosphoryltransferase activity and up-regulation of a β-glucosyltransferase activity. Furthermore, the caps of JABBA LPG are cryptic in presentation as shown by the loss of binding by the lectins, ricin, peanut agglutinin and concanavalin A and reduced accessibility of the terminal galactose residues to oxidation by galactose oxidase. These results indicate that LPG from JABBA is intriguingly similar to the larger LPG in wild-type parasites that arises following the differentiation of the non-infectious procyclic promastigotes to infectious, metacyclic forms.
Rapid structure determination of disordered materials: study of GeSe2 glass

X-ray diffraction experiments on GeSe2 glass employing an Imaging Plate detector system have been carried out and their performance compared to that of traditional experiments employing point-type detectors. Imaging Plate detectors have been found to perform very well delivering good quality data for just a second. The analysis of the experimental data shows that the atomic ordering in GeSe2 glass bears many of the characteristics of a random network of Ge – Se4 tetrahedra. q 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Auditory Vigilance in Aphasic Individuals: Detecting Nonlinguistic Stimuli with Full or Divided Attention

Previous research (LaPointe & Erickson, 1991) has shown that aphasic individuals have difficulty, relative to control subjects, in monitoring for spoken words while performing a secondary task. This finding may indicate that aphasics have fundamental deficits in attention or that their linguistic deficits are simply exacerbated by dividing attention. Twenty subjects, 10 nonfluent aphasic and 10 nonaphasic adults, listened to two 10-min series of nonlinguistic acoustic stimuli across conditions of focused and divided attention. Subjects tried to identify target sounds interspersed with nontarget sounds. As in prior research, aphasic subjects performed less accurately on the auditory vigilance task during the divided attention condition, relative to the undivided attention condition and to control subjects. The findings suggest that deficient cognitive processing, intertwined with linguistic deficit, may underlie auditory comprehension deficits in aphasia and may help explain performance variation within aphasic individuals across tasks.
Stronger CDA strategies through empirical game-theoretic analysis and reinforcement learning

We present a general methodology to automate the search for equilibrium strategies in games derived from computational experimentation. Our approach interleaves empirical game-theoretic analysis with reinforcement learning. We apply this methodology to the classic Continuous Double Auction game, conducting the most comprehensive CDA strategic study published to date. Empirical game analysis confirms prior findings about the relative performance of known strategies. Reinforcement learning derives new bidding strategies from the empirical equilibrium environment. Iterative application of this approach yields strategies stronger than any other published CDA bidding policy, culminating in a new Nash equilibrium supported exclusively by our learned strategies.
X-Ray Luminescence Computed Tomography via Selective Excitation: A Feasibility Study

X-ray luminescence computed tomography (XLCT) is proposed as a new molecular imaging modality based on the selective excitation and optical detection of X-ray-excitable phosphor nanoparticles. These nano-sized particles can be fabricated to emit near-infrared (NIR) light when excited with X-rays, and, because because both X-rays and NIR photons propagate long distances in tissue, they are particularly well suited for in vivo biomedical imaging. In XLCT, tomographic images are generated by irradiating the subject using a sequence of programmed X-ray beams, while sensitive photo-detectors measure the light diffusing out of the subject. By restricting the X-ray excitation to a single, narrow beam of radiation, the origin of the optical photons can be inferred regardless of where these photons were detected, and how many times they scattered in tissue. This study presents computer simulations exploring the feasibility of imaging small objects with XLCT, such as research animals. The accumulation of 50 nm phosphor nanoparticles in a 2-mm-diameter target can be detected and quantified with subpicomolar sensitivity using less than 1 cGy of radiation dose. Provided sufficient signal-to-noise ratio, the spatial resolution of the system can be made as high as needed by narrowing the beam aperture. In particular, 1 mm spatial resolution was achieved for a 1-mm-wide X-ray beam. By including an X-ray detector in the system, anatomical imaging is performed simultaneously with molecular imaging via standard X-ray computed tomography (CT). The molecular and anatomical images are spatially and temporally co-registered, and, if a single-pixel X-ray detector is used, they have matching spatial resolution.
Time to definitive diagnosis of breast cancer in Latina and non-Hispanic white women: The six cities study

Time delay after an abnormal screening mammogram may have a critical impact on tumor size, stage at diagnosis, treatment, prognosis, and survival of subsequent breast cancer. This study was undertaken to evaluate disparities between Latina and non-Hispanic white (NHW) women in time to definitive diagnosis of breast cancer after an abnormal screening mammogram, as well as factors contributing to such disparities. As part of the activities of the National Cancer Institute (NCI)-funded Redes En Accion research network, clinical records of 186 Latinas and 74 NHWs who received abnormal screening mammogram results were reviewed to determine the time to obtain a definitive diagnosis. Data was obtained from participating clinics in six U.S. cities and included demographics, clinical history, and mammogram characteristics. Kaplan-Meier estimates and Cox proportional hazards models were used to test differences in median time to definitive diagnosis by ethnicity after adjusting for clinic site, demographics, and clinical characteristics. Time-to-event analysis showed that Latinas took 2.2 times longer to reach 50% definitively diagnosed with breast cancer relative to NHWs, and three times longer to reach 80% diagnosed (p=0.001). Latinas’ median time to definitive diagnosis was 60 days compared to 27 for NHWs, a 59% gap in diagnosis rates (adjusted Hazard Ratio [aHR] = 1.59, 95% CI = 1.09, 2.31; p=0.015). BI-RADS-4/5 women’s diagnosis rate was more than twice that of BI-RADS-3 (aHR = 2.11, 95% CI = 1.18, 3.78; p=0.011). Disparities in time between receipt of abnormal screening result and definitive diagnosis adversely affect Latinas compared to NHWs, and remain significant after adjusting for demographic and clinical variables. With cancer now the leading cause of mortality among Latinos, a greater need exists for ethnically and culturally appropriate interventions like patient navigation to facilitate Latinas’ successful entry into, and progression through, the cancer care system.
Secondary emission from small dust grains at high electron energies

A previous model for secondary electron emission from small grains is modified to calculate yields for micron sized grains, both spherical and cylindrical, when the primary electrons constitute a high energy parallel beam. It is found that, in general, the secondary electron yield is significantly higher than for the case of normal incidence. Moreover, the equilibrium potentials of the grain are always positive due to this enhanced secondary emission. These results are compared with experimental data recently available for micron sized glass particles, and equilibrium potentials, calculated based on the model presented here, and are found to be in reasonably good agreement with their measured potentials. >
Serologic Diagnosis of Acute Lymphadenopathic Toxoplasmosis

The diagnosis of acute toxoplasmosis usually depends on serology, yet little data are available to compare the relative usefulness of various serologic tests after the onset of illness. The Sabin-Feldman dye test (DT), the IgM immunofluorescent antibody (IgM-IFA) test, the soluble antigen complement-fixation (CF) test, and the indirect hemagglutination (IHA) test were performed on serial serum specimens from 27 previously healthy patients, each of whom could identify the date of onset of illness within two weeks. IgM-IFA titers of greater than or equal to 1:160 were the best indicators of infection acquired in the past two to four months. The DT was useful for screening, but two-tube rises in titer were rarely documented, and absolute titers were imprecise indicators of the recentness of infection. Although two-tube rises in titer in CF and IHA tests could be seen in the majority of patients, the rises were so slow that both tests were less useful than the IgM-IFA test in documenting the diagnosis of acute toxoplasmosis.