cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Biophysical Regulation of Endoderm By 3-Dimensional Fibronectin Matrix

Fibronectin (FN), a major extracellular matrix (ECM) component that assembles into a 3-dimensional (3D) network, plays a significant role in the development and maintenance of most tissues. In the embryonic stem (ES) cell niche, ECM composition, elasticity, and architecture likely contribute to the decision between self-renewal and differentiation. ES cells differentiating as multicellular embryoid bodies (EBs) exhibit a 10-fold drop in expression of Nanog, a self-renewal marker, concurrent with a 3-fold upregulation in FN production as well as the onset of differentiation markers Fgf 5 (ectoderm), brachyury (mesoderm), and GATA4 (endoderm). However, FN and GATA4 appear to be temporally and spatially correlated within the EB while FN and Nanog are inversely correlated with each other. To probe any specific FN-GATA4 interaction and its biophysical regulation, FN-coated surfaces and 3-dimensional, soft fibrillar FN matrices were used as substrates for ES cells grown in monolayer culture. ES cells on FN-coated surfaces displayed a well spread morphology but did not significantly increase their FN production or GATA4 expression. In contrast, ES cells grown on fibrillar matrices were less spread, displayed a 4-fold upregulation of FN production similar to that of EBs, and expressed GATA4 via immunofluorescent detection. However, when crosslinked to increase 3D FN matrix elasticity from 350 Pa to 4500 Pa, FN expression dropped 2-fold and GATA4 staining was significantly reduced. Though the specific molecular mechanisms require elucidation, these findings suggest important temporal, spatial, and mechanical roles for FN matrix in regulation of ES cell development.
Obesity in the media: social science weighs in

Obesity has become a mainstay of media in all its forms and sociologists and others have increasingly sought to understand what reporting on obesity can tell us about the construction of social pro...
Computerized analysis for automated detection of lung nodules in digital chest radiographs

The objective of this study was to develop a computer‐aided diagnosis(CAD) scheme for automated detection of lung nodules in digital chest images in order to help radiologists to improve their performance in detecting lung nodules. Lung nodules in chest radiographs are the important sign of lungcancer which is the leading cause of cancer death in men and women in the United States, with the 5‐year survival rate only about 13%. Early detection and treatment are crucial for the improvement of this survival rate for patients with lungcancer. This dissertation included the following four topics: (1) accurate determination of ribcage boundary in digital chest radiographs; (2) detection of right and left hemidiaphragm edges and delineation of lung fields in digital chest radiographs; (3) development of a CAD scheme for automated detection of lung nodules in digital chest radiographs; and (4) ROC studies of effects of CAD output on radiologists’ performance for detection of lung nodules on chest radiographs. Our CAD scheme for automated detection of lung nodules in digital chest images was based on the segmentation of lung fields, the difference image technique, image feature analysis, and an artificial neural network. The performance of the CAD scheme was evaluated by the FROC methodology. The CAD scheme achieved an improved performance of 70% sensitivity with 1.7 false positives per image, on average. The ROC analysis results indicated that radiologists increased their performance significantly in detecting lung nodules by use of the CAD output as a ‘‘second opinion.’’ Radiologists did not increase their reading time when the CAD output was used. [Thesis copies are available upon request from the author.]
Nonsteady coaxial arcs in fully developed plasma flow.

A simplified analytical model representing arc operations under conditions of nonsteady electrical inputs is considered. The assumptions that Emmons applied to the steady-state case are imposed: discontinuous model for electrical conductivity, other gas properties constant, fully developed flow within a tube. Solution of the energy equation (uncoupled from the momentum equation) is obtained separately in each of two regions: the heated zone (wherein electrical conductivity differs from zero) and the unheated zone. The solutions are joined at the arc boundary (critical radius), resulting in a moving boundary problem. Using the Green's function method, an integral equation for the boundary motion and integral equations for the temperature profiles in the two regions are obtained. Approximate solutions of these equations are obtained for small times. The case of a step function pulse of the source was considered; numerical solutions of the integral equations were obtained over the complete time range. Solutions obtained according to the approximate method are in good agreement with the numerical calculations. Arc extinction was also studied using a negative pulse of sufficient strength.
Flame-wall interaction for a non-premixed flame propelled by a vortex ring

The characteristics of non-premixed flame–wall interaction have been studied in a reacting vortex ring configuration. A finite duration axisymmetric methane jet is injected into a quiescent oxidizer ambient to generate a laminar vortex ring. Fuel and oxidizer temperatures are adjusted such that auto-ignition takes place and results in the formation of a non-premixed flame surrounding the vortex ring. The methane combustion is modelled using detailed kinetic mechanism GRI3.0 with the reactions and the species containing nitrogen removed, except N2. The flame is propelled by the ring induced velocity and interacts with an isothermal inert wall which is perpendicular to the direction of the flame propagation. Interactions have been studied for two different wall conditions – one with and one without a thermal boundary layer. Heat release rate, vorticity, and temperature fields have been examined during the interaction. Various flame–wall interaction parameters like strain rates, flame power, Peclet number an...
SDM propagation model for multiple channels using ray theory

Spatial Domain Multiplexing (SDM) is a novel optical fiber multiplexing technique where multiple channels of the same wavelength are launched at specific angles inside a standard step index multimode carrier fiber. These channels are confined to specific locations inside the fiber and they do not interfere with each other while traversing the length of the fiber. Spatial filtering techniques are employed at the output end to separate, route and process the individual channels. These skew ray channels inside the SDM system follow a helical trajectory along the fiber. The screen projection of the skew rays resembles a circular polygon. A ray theory based mathematical model of the SDM system is presented and simulated as well as experimental data is compared to the model predictions. This ray theory model utilizes launch point, input incidence angle, and point of incidence on fiber to explain the behavior of the individual channels. Thus the vector approach to propagation allows us to predict the effects of pulse spreading in the SDM system. The results showed that the skew ray trajectory is sensitive to input incidence angle. Similarly changing the launch point, while maintaining the angle of incidence constant with the z axis, can drastically affect the skew ray trajectory.
Temporal dynamics of visual-evoked neuromagnetic sources: Effects of stimulus parameters and selective attention

Results are reviewed from several neuromagnetic studies which characterize the temporal dynamics of neural sources contributing to the visual evoked response and effects of attention on these sources. Different types of pattern-onset stimuli (<2°) were presented sequentially to a number of field locations in the right visual field. Multiple dipole models were applied to a sequence of instantaneous field distributions constructed at 10 ms intervals. Best-fitting source parameters were superimposed on Magnetic Resonance images (MRI) of each subject to identify the anatomical structure(s) giving rise to the surface patterns. At least three sources, presumably corresponding to different visual areas, were routinely identified from 80-150 ms following the onset of visual stimulation. This observation was consistent across subjects and studies. The temporal sequence and strength of activation of these sources, however, were dependent upon the specific stimulus parameters used to evoke the response (e.g., eccent...
Incremental hierarchical clustering of text documents

Incremental hierarchical text document clustering algorithms are important in organizing documents generated from streaming on-line sources, such as, Newswire and Blogs. However, this is a relatively unexplored area in the text document clustering literature. Popular incremental hierarchical clustering algorithms, namely Cobweb and Classit, have not been widely used with text document data. We discuss why, in the current form, these algorithms are not suitable for text clustering and propose an alternative formulation that includes changes to the underlying distributional assumption of the algorithm in order to conform with the data. Both the original Classit algorithm and our proposed algorithm are evaluated using Reuters newswire articles and Ohsumed dataset.
Health Care for Family Farmers and Women Involved in Farm Economics (WIFE)

ABSTRACT This article describes safety and health issues confronting American farmers. Factors that contribute to a lack of well-being and nonoptimal health care coverage for farming families are presented. These include the common considerable distance of farms from health care providers, the shortage of health professionals in rural areas, the inherent health and safety hazards of farming, the lack of health and accident insurance, and the stresses placed on farming families in holding multiple job responsibilities. Women Involved m Farm Economics (WIFE) a nonprofit organization, was formed initially to improve the financial status of farmers. Activities of WIFE in improving the health and safety of American farmers are described.
A new metric based on extended spatial frequency and its application to DWT based fusion algorithms

A new quantitative metric is proposed to objectively evaluate the quality of fused imagery. The measured value of the proposed metric is used as feedback to a fusion algorithm such that the image quality of the fused image can potentially be improved. This new metric, called the ratio of spatial frequency error (rSFe), is derived from the definition of a previous measure termed ''spatial frequency'' (SF) that reflects local intensity variation. In this work, (1) the concept of SF is first extended by adding two diagonal SFs, then, (2) a reference SF (SF"R) is computed from the input images, and finally, (3) the error SF (SF"E) (subtracting the fusion SF from the reference SF), or the ratio of SF error (rSFe=SF"E/SF"R), is used as a fusion quality metric. The rSFe (which can be positive or negative) indicates the direction of fusion error-over-fused (if rSFe>0) or under-fused (if rSFe<0). Thus, the rSFe value can be back propagated to the fusion algorithm (BP fusion), thereby directing further parameter adjustments in order to achieve a better-fused image. The accuracy of the rSFe is verified with other quantitative measurements such as the root mean square error (RMSE) and the image quality index (IQI), as well as with a qualitative perceptual evaluation based on a standard psychophysical paradigm. An advanced wavelet transform (aDWT) method that incorporates principal component analysis (PCA) and morphological processing into a regular DWT fusion algorithm is implemented with two adjustable parameters-the number of levels of DWT decompositions and the length of the selected wavelet. Results with aDWT were compared to those with a regular DWT and with a Laplacian pyramid. After analyzing several inhomogeneous image groups, experimental results showed that the proposed metric, rSFe, is consistent with RMSE and IQI, and is especially powerful and efficient for realizing the iterative BP fusion in order to achieve a better image quality. Human perceptual assessment was measured and found to strongly support the assertion that the aDWT offers a significant improvement over the DWT and pyramid methods.
Commercially Available Chemicals That Mimic a Deposit Feeder's (Arenicola marina) Digestive Solubilization of Lipids

To develop a simple and cost-effective bioavailability test for sediment-bound contaminants, the solubilization strengths of mixtures of four commercially available surfactants and four proteins were compared to that of digestive fluids from a deposit-feeding benthic polychaete Arenicola marina. Initial tests indicated that sodium taurocholate, a vertebrate bile salt, was the most accurate mimic of A. marina gut fluids' solubilization of individual polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH). Further testing with nutritional lipids and other hydrophobic contaminants confirmed the similarities of these fluids. Bovine serum albumin (BSA) solubilization of PAH was the most efficient of all the proteins tested. A cocktail of sodium taurocholate and BSA was compared to A. marina's solubilization of 12 PAH from four different contaminated sediments (from Boston, Charleston, Jacksonville, and San Diego harbors). The two solutions released most PAH to similar extents; 40 of 48 PAH-sediment combinations were released at amounts within a factor of 2 in cocktail and gut fluid solutions. Therefore, the cocktail may serve as a surrogate for real gut fluids and allow easier adoption of the in vitro incubation approach to bioavailability testing.
Back to the future: How Serbia is heading the way of post‐versailles Germany

This analogy written before Milosevic's ouster theorizes that Serbia in the aftermath of Kosovo mirrors Germany after 1919 as a nation forced to accept an imposed peace. From the evidence a resurgence of Serb nationalism and territorial ambition is still inevitable. Various parallels support this conclusion including the use of post‐war sanctions, demands to hand over a wanted war criminal and owe up to guilt, geographical fragmentation, political uncertainty, economic depression, and military association with Russia. The salient point remains one of oversight by the victors to acknowledge an ignominious settlement is the source of all grievances and patterns of instability.
Genetic Differentiation of a Subspecies of Spruce Grouse (Falcipennis canadensis) in an Endemism Hotspot

ABSTRACT. We examined the population genetics and phylogenetics of Falcipennis canadensis isleibi, a subspecies of Spruce Grouse from the Alexander Archipelago of southeast Alaska, which was recently given subspecies status on the basis of subtle differences in plumage coloration and its limited distribution on several islands. The taxonomic status of F c. isleibi is particularly consequential, both because little is known about its evolutionary, demographic, and conservation status and because island endemics often face high extinction risks. Samples were collected from central Alaska, British Columbia, and Prince of Wales (POW) and Zarembo (ZAM) islands in the Alexander Archipelago and identified to subspecies using established morphological traits. We sequenced the cytochrome-c oxidase I (COI) subunit of the mitochondrial genome (n = 62) and genotyped each individual at six nuclear microsatellite loci (n = 65). Individuals from POW and ZAM shared a unique mitochondrial haplotype not observed in other p...
Early relationships as regulators of infant physiology and behavior

In recent years, animal research has revealed a network of simple behavioral and biological processes that underlie the psychological constructs we use to define early social relationships. Hidden within the observable interactions of parent and offspring are sensorimotor, thermal and nutrient-based events which have unexpected and widespread regulatory effects on infant behavior and physiology. The complex pattern of responses resulting from early separation in infant rats can be traced to the abrupt withdrawal of a number of discrete, independent regulatory processes which had been acting on individual components of the infant's physiology and behavior. These regulatory processes also appear to mediate long-term shaping effects exerted by early relationships, for example, on the vulnerability of the adult rat to hypertension and stress ulcer. In human development, early regulatory interactions may provide a bridge between biological and psychological processes in the development of our earliest mental representations.
Hurricane Andrew's Landfall in South Florida. Part I: Standardizing Measurements for Documentation of Surface Wind Fields

Abstract Hurricane Andrew's landfall in south Florida left a swath of destruction, including many failed anemometer recording systems. Extreme destruction led to exaggerated claims of the range of wind speed that caused such damage. The authors accumulated all available data from surface platforms at heights ranging from 2 to 60 m and reconnaissance aircraft at altitudes near 3 km. Several procedures were used to represent the various types of wind measurements in a common framework for exposure, measurement height, and averaging period. This set of procedures allowed documentation of Andrew's winds in a manner understandable to both meteorologists and wind engineers. The procedures are accurate to ±10% for marine and land observing platforms, and boundary layer model adjustments of flight-level winds to the surface compare to within 20% of the nearest surface measurements. Failure to implement the adjustment procedures may lead to errors of 15%–40%. Quality control of the data is discussed, including tre...
Retention of Hispanic/Latino students in first grade: Child, parent, teacher, school, and peer predictors.

Abstract A sample of 283 Hispanic children with literacy performance at entrance to first grade below the median for their school district was studied as part of a larger research project on the predictors of grade retention in grade 1. Following retention decisions, 51 Hispanic students were retained in first grade. Low literacy skills, being young at entrance to first grade, low ego resilience, low support in the teacher–student relationship, and parents' low sense of responsibility for their children's educational outcomes predicted retention decisions. Hierarchical logistics regression investigated the contribution of six categories of variables (academic competencies; socio-demographic characteristics; social, emotional, and behavioral adjustment; resiliency, school context; and home environment) to retention. Controlling for literacy, only being young for grade and parents' low sense of responsibility for their children's adjustment to school made a direct contribution to retention. Early literacy skills were higher for children enrolled in bilingual classrooms than for children in non-bilingual classrooms. Implications for educational policy are discussed.
Design, synthesis and pharmacological activity of novel enantiomerically pure phosphonic acid-based NAALADase inhibitors

Inhibitors of NAALADase have shown promise for a variety of diseases associated with glutamate excitotoxicity, and could be useful for the diagnosis and therapy of prostate cancer. A series of novel enantiomerically pure 2-(phosphonomethyl)pentanedioic acid (2-PMPA) based NAALADase inhibitors were synthesized. These compounds were prepared from previously reported (S)-2-(hydroxyphosphinoylmethyl)pentanedioic acid benzyl ester 4. Biological test results showed that the new compounds are good to outstanding NAALADase inhibitors. Compounds 8b and 10b showed activity similar to the known potent inhibitor (S)-2-PMPA. Fluorescently labeled inhibitor 19b may potentially be used to study binding to prostate cancer cells by fluorescence microscopy, and siderophore-containing inhibitor 21b may be useful for detection of prostate-derived cancer cells by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
The presence of hepatitis B surface antigen and deoxyribonucleic acid in amniotic fluid and cord blood

Abstract Objective: It is uncertain whether neonatal infection with hepatitis B, despite treatment after delivery with immunoglobulin and vaccine, is the result of prior in utero transmission of the virus or treatment failure. Furthermore, the potential risk of hepatitis B transmission from the mother to the fetus at the time a genetic amniocentesis is performed is also a concern. In an attempt to better elucidate these controversies, amniotic fluid and cord blood specimens obtained from pregnant women positive for hepatitis B surface antigen were analyzed for the presence of hepatitis B surface antigen and hepatitis B deoxyribonucleic acid. Study Design: This study was a prospective longitudinal analysis that identified hepatitis B surface antigen–positive patients who presented for amniocentesis. Cord blood was obtained from these patients at the time of delivery. Cord blood was also obtained from a group of hepatitis B surface antigen–positive patients for whom no amniocentesis was performed. All samples were analyzed for the presence of hepatitis B surface antigen and hepatitis B deoxyribonucleic acid. Results: A total of 121 hepatitis B surface antigen–positive pregnant women were identified. In the 72 pregnancies in which amniocentesis was not performed, 18% of the cord blood samples were positive for hepatitis B surface antigen and 4% were positive for hepatitis B deoxyribonucleic acid. Of 47 amniocentesis fluid samples, 32% were positive for hepatitis B surface antigen but all were negative for hepatitis B virus deoxyribonucleic acid. Of 30 cord blood samples from patients who underwent an amniocentesis, 27% were positive for hepatitis B surface antigen, but all were negative for hepatitis B virus deoxyribonucleic acid. Conclusions: This study found that hepatitis B viral deoxyribonucleic acid is rarely present in cord blood and was not identified in amniotic fluid obtained by amniocentesis. This finding suggests that in utero transmission of the virus is rare prior to the onset of labor. These data further confirm the reports in the current literature that the risk of hepatitis B transmission to the fetus during amniocentesis is low. Because hepatitis B surface antigen can exist as an isolated entity devoid of nuclear material, in some cases this protein may be able to traverse the placental and amniotic membrane barrier in a manner similar to other proteins, such as α-fetoprotein. Recommendations for genetic amniocentesis in women positive for hepatitis B surface antigen are discussed. (Am J Obstet Gynecol 2001;184:1514-20.)
Load balancing on temporally heterogeneous cluster of workstations for parallel simulated annealing

Simulated annealing (SA) is a general-purpose optimization technique widely used in various combinatorial optimization problems. However, the main drawback of this technique is a long computation time required to obtain a good quality of solution. Clusters have emerged as a feasible and popular platform for parallel computing in many applications. Computing nodes on many of the clusters available today are temporally heterogeneous. In this study, multiple Markov chain (MMC) parallel simulated annealing (PSA) algorithms have been implemented on a temporally heterogeneous cluster of workstations to solve the graph partitioning problem and their performance has been analyzed in detail. Temporal heterogeneity of a cluster of workstations is harnessed by employing static and dynamic load balancing techniques to further improve efficiency and scalability of the MMC PSA algorithms.
SPSSI and Race Relations, in the 1950s and After

SPSSI's activities in connection with the 1954 U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Brown v. Board of Education, particularly in the preparation of the social science statement submitted with the legal brief, represent a major contribution in the area of race relations in the United States. The background of this contribution is briefly recounted, together with some developments in the convergence between SPSSI and the APA. Special attention is given to Kenneth Clark's role in this connection. This is followed by comments on some recent, not always favorable, developments. One positive phenomenon in both race relations and international relations is nonpsychologists' increasing use of psychological concepts and research. This is regarded as a hopeful sign of an increasing influence of psychology and of SPSSI in the analysis of significant social issues. This is seen as a ray of light in a somber picture of some recent developments.
THF co-solvent enhances hydrocarbon fuel precursor yields from lignocellulosic biomass

A novel single phase co-solvent system using tetrahydrofuran (THF) promotes hydrolysis of maple wood to sugars, sugar dehydration, and lignin extraction simultaneously and achieves higher overall yields of the fuel precursors furfural, 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), and levulinic acid (LA) than previously reported from biomass. In a one-pot reaction, we obtained yields of 86% furfural, 21% HMF, and 40% LA in the liquid phase and over 90% extraction of lignin as a solid powder. The co-solvent reaction also produced a glucan-rich residue that is highly digestible by enzymes for biological conversion to ethanol or further thermochemical reaction to additional HMF and levulinic acid. These findings enable an integrated conversion platform in which THF is both a co-solvent and final co-product to enhance production of fuel precursors for catalytic upgrading to renewable liquid hydrocarbons fuels.
Structural and Functional Role of Proline Residues in Fibroblast Growth Factor-1

Fibroblast Growth Factors (FGFs) belong to a large family of β-trefoil polypeptide growth factors and contain no disulfide binds. FGFs are involved in various important biological processes such as development and maintenance of cells. FGFs are about 154 amino acids long and are believed to share a common core of 140 amino acids with 6 invariant proline residues. The secondary structural elements in FGFs include 12 antiparallel beta-sheets arranged in to a beta-barrel motif. Critical analyses of the three-dimensional structure of human acidic fibroblast factpr (hFGF-1) show that proline residues play a critical role in shaping the beta-barrel architecture of the protein. In this context, using a site-directed mutagenesis approach, we examined the effects of substitution of proline on the structure, stability and function of hFGF-1. The stability of of the various proline mutants of FGF-1, were assessed by differential scanning calorimetry, limited proteolytic digestion, and urea-induced equilibrium unfolding. Conformational changes induced in the various proline mutants of hFGF-1 have been studied using 1-anilino-8-napthalene sulfonate binding, far UV circular dichroism, and multidimensional NMR spectroscopy. The heparin and receptor binding affinities of the hFGF-1 mutants were investigated by isothermal titration calorimetry. The results of this study are expected to provide valuable information for a rational design of hFGF-1 with increased stability and enhanced cell proliferation activity.
Growth of GaAs/Ca0.45Sr0.55F2/GaAs structures by molecular beam epitaxy

Abstract Lattice-matched GaAs/Ca 0.45 Sr 0.55 F 2 /GaAs structures are grown by molecular beam epitaxy on GaAs(100) substrates. The surface morphology and crystallinity of each layer are studied as a function of growth temperature. The best fluoride layers are grown with a substrate temperature of about 530°C and show excellent crystallinity ( χ min = 7% in ion channeling). The best GaAs layers are obtained around 600°C and show medium bulk crystallinity ( χ min = 30%). Electron beam irradiation of the fluoride surface considerably improves the GaAs surface morphology.
Conservative management of postoperative chylothorax using somatostatin

Chylothorax is a rare but serious postoperative complication of thoracic surgical procedures. We report the case of a 77-year-old man who underwent a coronary artery bypass procedure using a left internal mammary artery pedicle graft. A permanent pacemaker was required postoperatively. A persistent postoperative chylothorax developed necessitating continuous drainage and conservative management. Somatostatin was instituted when after 1 week this management failed to resolve the chylothorax. This led to rapid cessation of chyle production. Enteral feeding was reinstituted without complication and surgical intervention was avoided.
A fast greedy algorithm for routing concurrent video flows

Real-time multimedia communication is an important service that should be supported in wireless ad hoc networks. In this paper, we consider the problem of how to optimally support multiple concurrent video communication sessions in a wireless ad hoc network. Our problem formulation follows an application-centric cross-layer approach with the objective of minimizing the average distortion of all video sessions via finding optimal paths for each session. Since this network-wide optimization problem is shown to be NP-complete, we develop competitive heuristic algorithms to address this problem. Specifically, we describe a greedy algorithm based on the key characteristics of the end-to-end video distortion model, and use numerical results to demonstrate its performance as compared to the global optima. This greedy heuristic algorithm can be used to quickly compute a set of good paths for the video sessions. It can also be used to speed up the genetic algorithm-based algorithm proposed in our previous work.
On the correlation between domain size and coercive force in grain-oriented 3.25 % Si-Fe

A method is described for measuring the size of the largest spike-shaped magnetic domains on surfaces of grain-oriented 3.25% Si-Fe. Values of coercive force, obtained by using measured spike-domain size in a previously derived empirical expression correlating spike size witht he coercive force in silicon-iron, are in close agreement with coercive force values obtained from B-H loop measurements. This technique makes it possible to measure the coercive force on non-toroidal magnetic components used in data processing machines.
A Case of Solid Blood

A 53-year-old man with a noncontributory medical history presented to the hospital with blurry vision, intermittently blue fingers, and slowly progressive dyspnea. Blood test results showed the following: hematocrit, 16% (reference interval, 40%–51%); white blood cells, 15.5 × 103/μL (reference interval, 4.2 × 103/μL to 9.1 × 103/μL); platelet count, 50 …
An Underwater Transmissometer For Ocean Survey Work

A transmissometer developed at the Visibility Laboratory, University of California at San Diego is described. This instrument is capable of being operated by nontechnical persons with little instruction. No compromise has been made in the precision of measurement to obtain the design objectives which include ease of operation, low maintenance and reliability. The optical system, Which has a cylindrically limited beam rather than a collimated source of light, is discussed.© (1968) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Failure analysis of design qualification testing: 2007 VS. 2005

The design/performance qualification testing is a set of well-defined accelerated stress tests with strict pass/fail criteria. ASU-PTL is an ISO 17025 accredited testing laboratory and has been providing photovoltaic testing services since 1992. This paper presents a failure analysis on the design qualification testing of both crystalline silicon (c-Si) and thin-film technologies for two consecutive periods: 1997–2005 & 2005–2007. In the first period, the industry was growing at a slower rate with traditional manufacturers and the qualification testing of c-Si technologies was primarily conducted per Edition 1 of IEC 61215 standard. In the second period, the industry was growing at an explosive rate with new manufacturers joining the traditional manufacturers and the qualification testing of c-Si was primarily conducted per Edition 2 of IEC 61215. Similar failure analysis according to IEC 61646 has been carried out for the thin-film technologies as well. The failure analysis of the test results presented in this paper indicates a large increase in the failure rates for both c-Si and thin-film technologies during the period of 2005–2007.
Speech imagery and perceptions of charisma: The mediating role of positive affect

The purpose of this research was to investigate the effects of imagery in a leader's speech on listeners' perceptions of the leader's charisma. A former US president's inaugural address was rewritten to create low and high imagery versions, and audio recordings of the two speeches were made. Participants were randomly assigned to high or low speech imagery conditions. After listening to the speech, they provided ratings on various summary leadership measures. The high imagery speech resulted in higher ratings of charisma than the low imagery speech. This effect was partially mediated by state positive affect (having controlled for trait affect levels). High imagery led to increased charisma ratings partially through increasing listeners' state positive affect relative to their trait affect baseline level. Implications for theory are addressed.
A Theory of Demand for Gambles

Although gambling is primarily an economic activity, no single theory of the demand for gambles has gained wide-spread acceptance among economists. This paper proposes a simple model of the demand for gambling that is based on the standard economic assumptions that (1) resources are scarce and (2) consumer's utility increases with income at a decreasing rate. This model has the advantages that (1) it is based solely on changes in income, (2) is potentially applicable to most consumers, (3) preserves the assumption of diminishing marginal utility of income, (4) is consistent with the insurance-buying gambler, and (5) has intuitive appeal.
ADAPTING BAUMOL'S INVENTORY THEORETIC TO LANDED COST DECISIONS

Major U.S. corporations have been importers for over 200 years. A significant impetus for “offshoring” has been reducing costs—usually labor costs. Often, other costs were overlooked. There has been a growing disenchantment with sourcing goods overseas, especially when there may be domestic alternatives as other costs begin to dominate. Baumol and Vinod’s Inventory Theoretic model was useful in adding transportation considerations. However, Baumol leaves out several important costs that unless considered in offshoring decisions can lead to suboptimal solutions. This paper extends that model, providing a prescriptive model that could be operationalized by firms to evaluate offshore sourcing decisions.
Prospective delivery of reliably dated term infants of diabetic mothers without determination of fetal lung maturity: comparison to historical control

Objective: To determine whether omitting fetal lung maturity (FLM) testing prior to delivery in term pregnancies complicated by gestational (GDM) and pregestational diabetes mellitus would increase the risk of neonatal respiratory distress syndrome (RDS). Methods: In a 2-year study (1990-91), 1457 pregnant women with accurately dated pregnancies were enrolled after 37 completed weeks and prospectively followed through delivery without FLM testing (study group). The prevalence of RDS and other neonatal outcomes was compared with a historical control group (n = 713, 1988-89) who had undergone determination of lecithin/sphingomyelin ratio prior to delivery at term. Logistic regression analysis was performed to determine independent predictors of RDS. Results: The study group compared to the control group had less severe diabetes: diet-controlled GDM, 35% vs. 18%, respectively; insulin-requiring GDM, 42% vs. 42%, respectively; undiagnosed type-2 diabetes, 14% vs. 31%, respectively; and pre-existing diabetes, ...
Skew estimator method for alignment of troposcatter antennas and synchronization of master clocks

Microprocessor-based instrumentation for optimum alignment of troposcatter antennas and simultaneous synchronization of transmitter and receiver oscillators is discussed. The instrument estimates various spectral moments of the Doppler spectrum of the received signal. When the third central moment or skew is zero, the antennas are properly aligned. Tests of this method indicate that alignment to within 1/10 beam width within a time period of 10 min or less is possible.
Revision des Atomgewichtes von Eisen. 2. Mitteilung: Die Analyse des Ferrobromids

Reines Ferrioxyd enthalt nach der Reduktion in Wasserstoff 0.699427 Eisen, woraus sich das Atomgewicht des Eisens zu 55.841 ergibt.
Enhancing the Stability of CuO Thin-Film Photoelectrodes by Ti Alloying

A major drawback for CuO as an efficient photocathode in photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting is its instability in aqueous solution. In this paper, we report that Ti alloying can enhance the stability of CuO in PEC water splitting but at the cost of reduced crystallinity and optical absorption, and therefore reduced photocurrent. We further report that a balance between the stability and photocurrent can be realized by a bilayer configuration—a thin Ti-alloyed CuO layer on a pure CuO thin film. Our results indicate that the thickness of the top Ti-alloyed CuO layer should be optimized to realize the best stability and photocurrent.
Eye cancer related glaucoma: current concepts

Eye cancer-related glaucomas occur through a variety of mechanisms. They can be challenging to diagnose and are often refractory to treatment. The literature reveals the variety of ways eye cancers cause glaucoma. Mechanisms include direct invasion, infiltration, or seeding of the aqueous outflow structures as well as indirect processes, such as compressive angle closure and anterior segment neovascularization. This review describes established, evolving, and new diagnostic techniques (e.g., high-frequency ultrasound and aspiration biopsy techniques). Treatment options typically depend upon the tumor type (primary or secondary), its location, and mechanism of glaucoma. However, they include standard pharmacologic, laser, incisional, and radiotherapeutic approaches. We hope this review leads to early detection and optimum treatment of eye cancer-related glaucomas. Clearly, prompt diagnosis and management of eye cancer-related glaucoma offers an opportunity to both preserve vision and the patient's life.
Optimal trajectory planning of robotic manipulators via quasi-linearization and state parametrization

A numerical algorithm has been developed to solve the problem of optimal control of robotic manipulators. A quasi-linearization method is used to convert a nonlinear optimal control problem into a sequence of LQ (linear quadratic) problems, which are solved by an efficient Fourier-based state parameterization approach. The update laws for the nominal trajectory ensure satisfaction of the terminal conditions. In contrast to dynamic-programming-based methods, the proposed approach does not demand extensive computer storage requirements and thus is capable of achieving optimality without limiting the degrees of freedom of the trajectory. Compared to nonlinear-programming-based methods, the approach offers significant advantages in computational efficiency. Compared to calculus-of-variations-based methods, the approach eliminates the requirement of solving a two-point boundary-value problem and therefore is more robust and efficient. >
Toward decrypting the allosteric mechanism of the ryanodine receptor based on coarse‐grained structural and dynamic modeling

The ryanodine receptors (RyRs) are a family of calcium (Ca) channels that regulate Ca release by undergoing a closed-to-open gating transition in response to action potential or Ca binding. The allosteric mechanism of RyRs gating, which is activated/regulated by ligand/protein binding >200 A away from the channel gate, remains elusive for the lack of high-resolution structures. Recent solution of the closed-form structures of the RyR1 isoform by cryo-electron microscopy has paved the way for detailed structure-driven studies of RyRs functions. Toward elucidating the allosteric mechanism of RyRs gating, we performed coarse-grained modeling based on the newly solved closed-form structures of RyR1. Our normal mode analysis captured a key mode of collective motions dominating the observed structural variations in RyR1, which features large outward and downward movements of the peripheral domains with the channel remaining closed, and involves hotspot residues that overlap well with key functional sites and disease mutations. In particular, we found a key interaction between a peripheral domain and the Ca-binding EF hand domain, which may allow for direct coupling of Ca binding to the collective motions as captured by the above mode. This key mode was robustly reproduced by the normal mode analysis of the other two closed-form structures of RyR1 solved independently. To elucidate the closed-to-open conformational changes in RyR1 with amino-acid level of details, we flexibly fitted the closed-form structures of RyR1 into a 10-A cryo-electron microscopy map of the open state. We observed extensive structural changes involving the peripheral domains and the central domains, resulting in the channel pore opening. In sum, our findings have offered unprecedented structural and dynamic insights to the allosteric mechanism of RyR1 via modulation of the key collective motions involved in RyR1 gating. The predicted hotspot residues and open-form conformation of RyR1 will guide future mutational and functional studies.
Short- and Long-Term Vegetation Change Related to Grazing Systems, Precipitation, and Mesquite Cover

Rangeland scientists struggle with how long rangeland experiments must continue in order to detect treatment effects, particularly in semiarid ecosystems characterized by slow responses and high spatiotemporal variability. We compared changes in eight grass and three shrub categories to grazing systems (yearlong vs. seasonal rotation with equivalent long-term stocking rates), and covariates (precipitation and mesquite [Prosopis velutina] gradients) over 12 yr (1972–1984) and 34 yr (1972–2006) on the Santa Rita Experimental Range, Arizona. We used split-plot analysis of variance, with year as the split, to make these comparisons. Grazing systems did not influence plant dynamics as shown by the lack of grazing system by year effect on all response variables in either time period. The absence of a detectable grazing effect on vegetation changes may be due to overriding influences of grazing intensity, pasture size, precipitation variability, and few replicates. Also, more time may be needed to detect the small accumulating and potentially temporary effects from grazing systems. The grazing system main effects present at the beginning and throughout the study suggest that pastures assigned to each grazing system had different potentials to support vegetation. Nearly twice the number of response variables were related to the precipitation covariate than to mesquite cover, but only about half of all the relationships were consistent between time periods. The struggle to know how long to observe before detecting a grazing system effect was not resolved with the additional 22 yr of observation because we cannot definitively reject that either more time is needed to detect small but cumulative effects or that the two grazing systems are not different.
DOES MUSCULAR DAMAGE DURING CAPTURE AND HANDLING HANDICAP RADIOMARKED NORTHERN BOBWHITES

Abstract Northern bobwhites (Colinus virginianus) are captured routinely for scientific study. Extreme exertion during restraint and transport can lead to acidosis and free radical production that result in muscle tissue damage. This condition, termed capture myopathy, can result in dyspnea, hyperthermia, weakness, muscle rigidity, and collapse. These complications could lead to increased susceptibility of individuals to predation or contribute to death weeks or months after capture. Death caused by capture could negatively bias mortality rate estimates if mortalities occur after traditional censor periods. We hypothesize that muscular damage incurred during capture handicaps northern bobwhites. We evaluated our hypothesis by comparing survival of northern bobwhite that were treated for muscular damage with an injection of vitamin E and selenium, a solution recommended in veterinary avian medicine, with bobwhites that were not treated. We captured northern bobwhite during 2002 and 2003 and injected half o...
Pleural Hypercarbia After Lung Surgery Is Associated With Persistent Alveolopleural Fistulae

Background Persistent air leak (PAL) > 5 days due to alveolopleural fistulae is a leading cause of morbidity following surgical resection. Elevated CO 2 levels reportedly inhibit alveolar epithelial cell proliferation and impair wound healing in vitro. Because the injured lung surface is in direct communication with the pleural cavity, we investigated whether the pleural gaseous milieu affected lung healing. Methods Oxygen and CO 2 levels in pleural gas were determined prospectively in consecutive patients (N = 116) undergoing lung resection by using an infrared spectroscopy-based analyzer. Poisson and logistic regression analyses were used to determine the relationship between time to resolution of air leaks and pleural oxygen and CO 2 . In addition, patients with pleural CO 2 concentrations ≥ 6% on postoperative day 1 (n = 20) were alternatively treated with supplemental oxygen and extrapleural suction to reduce the pleural CO 2 levels. Results Poisson analyses revealed that every 1% increase in CO 2 was associated with a delay in resolution of air leak by 9 h (95% CI, 7.1 to 10.8; P 2 increased the odds of PAL by 10-fold (95% CI, 2.2 to 47.8; P = .003). In patients with pleural CO 2 ≥ 6%, a reduction in CO 2 promoted resolution of air leak (6.0 ± 1.2 vs 3.4 ± 1.1 days; P Conclusions Pleural hypercarbia seems to be associated with persistent alveolopleural fistulae following lung resection. Analysis of pleural gases could allow for better chest tube management following lung resection. Patients with intrapleural hypercarbia seem to benefit from supplemental oxygen and suction, whereas patients who do not have hypercarbia can be maintained on water seal drainage.
Arabic Diacritization with Recurrent Neural Networks

Arabic, Hebrew, and similar languages are typically written without diacritics, leading to ambiguity and posing a major challenge for core language processing tasks like speech recognition. Previous approaches to automatic diacritization employed a variety of machine learning techniques. However, they typically rely on existing tools like morphological analyzers and therefore cannot be easily extended to new genres and languages. We develop a recurrent neural network with long shortterm memory layers for predicting diacritics in Arabic text. Our language-independent approach is trained solely from diacritized text without relying on external tools. We show experimentally that our model can rival state-of-the-art methods that have access to additional resources.
Central Leptin Receptor Action and Resistance in Obesity

The discovery of leptin in 1994 has led to remarkable advances in obesity research. We now know that leptin is a cytokinelike hormone that is produced in adipose tissue and plays a pivotal role in regulation of energy balance and in a variety of additional processes via actions in the central nervous system. This symposium review covers current understandings of neuronal leptin receptor signaling and mechanisms of obesity-related leptin resistance in the central nervous system and provides recent insights into the regulation of peripheral glucose balance by central leptin action in rodents.