cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Poster: De novo expression fragment assembly from Spanning Trees (EAST)

In this poster we describe the methods underlying EAST, a novel algorithm based on Minimum Spanning Trees for the de novo assembly of short-read, traditional, and hybrid transcript-derived fragments sets, resulting in a tool that: consistently outperforms several popular tools on longer sequences (e.g. Sanger sequencing data and longer 454 sequences); is competitive against most tools on very short (e.g. 62 p Illumina) data; and is the most robust tool with respect to sequencing error. EAST can be installed and run through the PEACE GUI, with the implementation and code freely available at http://www.peace-tools.org.
Determination of specific NAPL–water interfacial areas of residual NAPLs in porous media using the interfacial tracers technique

Abstract We present here an application of a new experimental method called the `interfacial tracers technique' (IFTT), using tracer retardation by adsorption as the basis, to determine the specific NAPL–water interfacial areas ( a nw , cm 2 /cm 3 ) in packed columns of sand and glass beads containing residual saturation of non-aqueous phase liquid (NAPLs). Four NAPLs, two types of sand and uniform glass beads, and two interfacial tracers were used in the tracer experiments. The a nw values determined for residual NAPLs in sand or glassbead columns were in the range of 60 to 300 (with one exception of 1200) cm 2 /cm 3 , and are in agreement with the current understanding of immiscible fluid behavior in porous media. For a given NAPL, the a nw value was found to be about twice as large when the porous medium was NAPL wet first, compared to when the medium was first water wet. The interfacial tracer technique will be useful in assessing NAPL morphology, dissolution and mass transfer, and is useful in the characterization and remediation assessment at NAPL-contaminated waste sites.
Estimating the probability of IQ impairment from blood phenylalanine for phenylketonuria patients: a hierarchical meta-analysis

Though the control of blood phenylalanine (Phe) levels is essential for minimizing impairment in individuals with phenylketonuria (PKU), the empirical basis for the selection of specific blood Phe levels as targets has not been evaluated. We evaluated the current evidence that particular Phe levels are optimal for minimizing or avoiding cognitive impairment in individuals with PKU. This work uses meta-estimates of blood Phe-IQ correlation to predict the probability of low IQ for a range of Phe levels. We believe this metric is easily interpretable by clinicians, and hence useful in making recommendations for Phe intake. The median baseline association of Phe with IQ was estimated to be negative, both in the context of historical (median = −0.026, 95 % BCI = [−0.040, −0.013]) and concurrent (−0.007, [−0.014, 0.000]) measurement of Phe relative to IQ. The estimated additive fixed effect of critical period Phe measurement was also nominally negative for historical measurement (−0.010, [−0.022, 0.003]) and positive for concurrent measurement (0.007, [−0.018, 0.035]). Probabilities corresponding to historical measures of blood Phe demonstrated an increasing chance of low IQ with increasing Phe, with a stronger association seen between blood Phe measured during the critical period than later. In contrast, concurrently-measured Phe was more weakly correlated with the probability of low IQ, though the correlation is still positive, irrespective of whether Phe was measured during the critical or non-critical period. This meta-analysis illustrates the utility of a Bayesian hierarchical approach for not only combining information from a set of candidate studies, but also for combining different types of data to estimate parameters of interest.
Optimizing display energy consumption for hybrid Android apps (invited talk)

Energy has emerged as an important quality metric for apps that run on mobile platforms. This talk describes our approach for reducing display energy by automatically changing the color schemes used by a web app so that the pages consume less energy when displayed on an OLED based smartphone.
Disseminated herpes simplex infection in a neonate during prophylaxis with vidarabine.

HERPES simplex virus (HSV) can cause overwhelming neonatal infection even when antiviral therapy is initiated at the first sign of illness. 1-3 Thus, antiviral prophylaxis has been recommended for high-risk neonates, 1,3 including those delivered vaginally or by See also pp 1051,1056, and 1067. cesarean section (after membranes have been ruptured for more than four hours) to mothers with primary HSV genital infections. 4 This case report describes a high-risk neonate who developed disseminated HSV infection despite antiviral prophylaxis. Report of a Case A 24-year-old woman presented to the hospital 24 hours after rupture of membranes. She was at term and had been followed up for 32 weeks in the obstetrics clinic. She had had intercourse seven days before rupture of membranes. She had no history of HSV infection and no known exposure to HSV. On admission, her only complaint was vaginal pain and burning of two days' duration. Physical
Development of a continuously stirred flow cell for investigating sorption mass transfer

Abstract This paper introduces a new reversible-flow design for a continuously stirred reactor used to study sorption mass transfer in soil and solvent systems. The stirred reactor has potential advantages over conventional packed column or batch reactors because it isolates intraparticle sorption rate limitations from advective-dispersive transport, yet allows changes to flux through the reactor for analysis of sorption kinetics under dynamic conditions. Previously, stirred reactors have often failed due to clogging of sediment on the effluent frit. The reverse-flow backwashing design allows longer life and higher confidence in maintaining mixed conditions than previous designs. Mass transfer 'rate coefficients estimated from stirred and column experiments are compared; both techniques produced results consistent with a published correlation. The data also show that fitted sorption mass transfer coefficients can be strongly dependent on the choice of equilibrium partition coefficient (i.e. batch or first-moment derived values), and that the conventional two-site sorption kinetics model fails to accurately predict sorption mass transfer in the presence of changing solvent velocity through the reactor.
Use of chlorotetracycline fluorescence to demonstrate Ca2+-induced release of Ca2+ from the sarcoplasmic reticulum of skinned cardiac cells

It has been proposed that the trans-sarcolemmal influx of Ca2+ occurring during the plateau of the mammalian cardiac action potentials is insufficient in itself to activate the myofilaments, but can trigger a release of Ca2+ from the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) which is sufficient for activation. The demonstration of this Ca2+-induced release of Ca2+ relied entirely on experiments in which the tension developed by the myofilaments was used as a sensor of the changes of myoplasmic free Ca2+ concentration ([free Ca2+]) in segments of single cardiac cells from which the sarcolemma had been removed by microdissection (skinned cardiac cells). The small size of these preparations has previously prevented the use of more direct methods for the detection of myoplasmic Ca2+ movements. The present study is a direct demonstration of Ca2+-induced release of Ca2+ from the SR of skinned cardiac cells treated with chlorotetracycline (CTC), a fluorescent chelate probe which enables changes in the amount of Ca2+ bound to a variety of biological membranes or micelles to be monitored. The fluorescence increases when more Ca2+ is bound.
Nuclear science summer school for high school students

We have developed a two-week summer lecture and laboratory course that introduces high school students to concepts in nuclear science. The program has operated at the San Jose State University Nuclear Science Facility for two years. Experienced high school science teachers run the summer school, assisted by other science teachers. Students consider the program to be effective. Its popularity is shown by numerous requests for reservations and the necessity to offer multiple sections in 1997. *** DIRECT SUPPORT *** A0553010 00006
RADIOTHERAPY OF CANINE NON-TONSILLAR SQUAMOUS CELL CARCINOMA

The records of 14 dogs treated with megavoltage radiation for non-tonsillar oral squamous cell carcinoma were reviewed to determine the efficacy of this treatment modality. Total radiation dose was either 48 or 57 Gray (Gy), while dose per fraction was either 3.0 or 4.0 Gy. Median disease free interval and survival were 365 and 450 days, respectively. Median disease free interval was shorter in dogs older than nine years (210 days) as compared with dogs less than or equal to nine years old (470 days), (p < .005). Median survival was shorter in dogs older than nine years (315 days) as compared with dogs less than or equal to nine years old (1080 days), (p < 0.02). Weight, stage, anatomic subsite, intraoral location, duration of disease, prior surgery, and number of radiation fractions did not appear to influence disease free interval or survival. Data presented herein suggest that survival in dogs with non-tonsillar squamous cell carcinoma receiving megavoltage radiation may be longer than that achieved with orthovoltage radiation or surgery. Megavoltage radiation appears to be an effective treatment for non-tonsillar oral squamous cell carcinoma in dogs. Further study is needed to determine the optimal time-dose sched-ule.
Topical Application of Lindane Cream (Kwell) and Antipyrine Metabolism

The transcutaneous absorption of a 1% lindane cream (Kwell) was determined after application according to the official label. By 3days after application the plasma lindane level increased from nondetectable to 10.3 ± 2.2ng/ml. Sufficient lindane was absorbed to increase the plasma clearance of antipyrine from 0.027 ± 0.009 to 0.037 ± 0.011 1/kg/hr ( p
Scattering Matrix and Chemical Reaction Rates

The connection between macroscopic bimolecular chemical reaction rate expressions and microscopic collision properties is usually based formally on collision cross sections. An alternative formulation based on spherical waves, or on classical trajectories classified according to the initial angular momentum L of the collision, leads to a direct connection between reaction rates and the scattering matrix, from which the collision cross sections can always be derived. Because of the ease of expressing the scattering matrix for many‐body collisions, this formulation can be used for three‐body or many‐body reactions, as well as for two‐body ones. For a gas otherwise in thermodynamic equilibrium, the rate coefficient for a reaction taking n+1 reactant molecules in internal states collectively labeled by i to n′+1 products in internal states j is kij(n+1)=(h22πμkT)3n/2h−1 ∫ 0∞ ∑ γ ∑ γ′|Siγ,jγ′(E)|2exp(−E/kT)dE. Here μ is the common reduced mass, μn ∑ k=1n+1mk= ∏ k=1n+1mk, and γ and γ′ are the 3n—1 or 3n′—1 orbi...
Coincidence, historical repetition, and self‐knowledge: Jung, Vico, and Joyce

Jung develops synchronicity as an a causal principle of connection by recounting various examples of meaningful coincidence from experience and by analysing various systems of divination, notably the I Ching. Philosophical theory of causality has given no significant attention to synchronicity; the events of synchronicity are regarded as chance. The Neapolitan philosopher Giambattista Vico (1668-1744) developed a doctrine of historical experience and of self-knowledge that grounds the phenomenon of synchronicity in a metaphysics. James Joyce employed Vico's conception of language and historical cycles as the basis of Joyce's final literary work, Finnegans Wake. Vico's metaphysical sense of synchronicity and Joyce's literary formulation offer a grounding of this principle in non-divinatory sources in modern Western thought, something which Jung's discussion does not provide. These philosophical and literary perspectives complement Jung's to offer an expanded context in which to recognize synchronicity and to make sense of it.
The electrocardiogram during electroconvulsive therapy as studied by radioelectrocardiography.

Abstract Electrocardiographic tracings were obtained by continuous radioelectrocardiographic monitoring in 20 patients with apparently normal cardiovascular systems during and after the convulsive stages of electroconvulsive treatment. Sinus tachycardia was typical during the convulsive stage while sinus bradycardia usually developed in the postconvulsive stage. Ischemie S-T depression was noticed in half of the patients and was more pronounced during the convulsive stage. Premature beats developed in 13 patients and were more frequent in the postconvulsive period. Oxygen administration during electroconvulsive therapy, if anything, tended to increase the depression of the S-T segment and the arrhythmias, probably because of the increased duration and severity of the convulsions. The advantages of radioelectrocardiography in recording electrocardiographic phenomena during the convulsive stage are briefly discussed.
The identification of a myeloma serum factor which alters serum beta lipoproteins

Abstract Hyperlipidemia and myelomatosis rarely occur together. This report describes the evidence which indicates that there is present in the serum of persons with this disorder combination a substance capable of so altering the serum β-lipoproteins of normal sera that these lipoproteins will not migrate in a starch gel system. The serum factor responsible for this lipoprotein alteration has been isolated, characterized, and identified. It is the myeloma paraprotein.
Large-scale gene function analysis in Candida albicans.

Candida albicans is the most frequently isolated systemic fungal pathogen of humans. Studies of gene function in C. albicans have relied heavily on budding yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) as a model or surrogate expression host because the genetics of C. albicans are unwieldy. Three recent reports describe different strategies that overcome the limitations of C. albicans genetics and provide a preview of large-scale C. albicans gene function analysis. The preview is slightly hazy as some of the data remain confidential; such secrecy in a publication is a break with tradition in fungal pathogenesis research and genome-wide analyses. Nonetheless, these strategies provide vital tools that could be used to explore the genetic basis of fungal virulence and related unique C. albicans biological traits, and to probe the functions of the many C. albicans genes that lack close S. cerevisiae homologs.
Thomas Szasz: rebel with a questionable cause

1 Onwuteaka-Philipsen BD, Brinkman-Stoppelenburg A, Penning C, et al. Trends in end-of-life practices before and after the enactment of the euthanasia law in the Netherlands from 1990 to 2010: a repeated cross-sectional survey. Lancet 2012; 380: 908–15. 2 Papavsiliou E, Payne S, Brearley S, Brown J, Seymour J. Continuous sedation (CS) until death: mapping the literature by bibliometric analysis. J Pain Symptom Manage 2012; published online Sept 28. http://dx.doi.org/ 10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2012.05.012. 3 Cherny NI, Radbruch L. EAPC recommended framework for the use of sedation in palliative care. Palliat Med 2009; 23: 581–93. 4 Dean MM, Cellarius V, Henry B, Oneschuk D, Librach Canadian Society Of Palliative Care Physicians Taskforce SL. Framework for continuous palliative sedation therapy in Canada. J Palliat Med 2012; 15: 870–79. 5 Janssens R, van Delden JJ, Widdershoven GA. Palliative sedation: not just normal medical practice. Ethical refl ections on the Royal Dutch Medical Association’s guideline on palliative sedation. J Med Ethics 2012; 38: 664–68. David Bazelon wrote in 1966 in the landmark case of Rouse v Cameron. The recognition over the next decade by courts across the country that many of the half-million people being held without due process for years on end in large state asylums were merely being warehoused and not treated was the major impetus for the deinstitutionalisation of psychiatric patients. Although some of the courts might also have accepted the Szaszian view that psychiatric diagnoses were a fraud or a phantom, they rested their decisions on the straightforward conclusion that the US Constitution forbids locking people up on the grounds that they needed psychiatric treatment and then not providing it.
Resolution, optimization, and encoding of pointer variables for the behavioral synthesis from C

As designers may model mixed hardware-software systems using a subset of C or C++, we present SpC, a solution to synthesize and optimize hardware C models with pointers. In hardware, a pointer is not only the address of data in memory, but it may also reference data mapped to registers, ports, or wires. Pointer analysis is used to find the set of locations each pointer may reference in a program at compile time. In this paper, we address the problem of synthesizing and optimizing pointers to multiple variables or array elements. The value of the pointers are encoded and branching statements are used to dynamically access data referenced by pointers. A heuristic is used to efficiently encode the values of the pointers. Compiler techniques are also used to reduce storage before loads and stores. An implementation using the SUIF framework (Wilson et al., 1994; SUIF Compiler Framework) is presented, followed by some case studies and experimental results.
Modeling the rheology of suspensions with high-viscosity solvents: a predictive multiscale approach.

In this paper, a multiscale approach spanning atomistic and mesoscopic regimes to model the rheology of suspensions that have strongly interacting particles in highly viscous solvents is presented. The model suspensions studied here have 65% sucrose solution\char22{}a Newtonian fluid with a viscosity of 170 cP at room temperature\char22{}as the solvent phase with ceramic particles of sizes on the order of a few $\ensuremath{\mu}\text{ms}$ as the dispersed (solute) phase. A multiscale approach is proposed to quantitatively account for the effect of the properties of constituent materials on the bulk rheology of the suspension apart from the effect of hydrodynamic factors. A dissipative particle dynamics-type particle-based approach is adopted to which material-specific, mesoscopic force fields developed using molecular dynamics are fed. Issues pertaining to the handling of the vast spectrum of time and length scales present and an appropriate Gallilean-invariant thermostat for solvent dynamics are addressed and resolved. Numerical calculations compare reasonably well to experimentally measured viscosities up to reasonably high Peclet numbers $(\ensuremath{\sim}{10}^{4})$.
The dis-integrating library system: Effects of new technologies in acquisitions

This paper examines deficiencies for acquisitions in the integrated library system (ILS) concept of library automation. The extension of technology to the library by materials vendors (book suppliers and subscription agents) and the telecommunications and networking advances that foster that extension, are two technological developments that may undercut the primacy of the ILS acquisitions module. Identifying priorities for interfacing ILS automation with materials vendor automation can be undertaken meaningfully only when acquisitions as a subprofession identifies its mission and operational priorities.
The HOXB13 G84E Mutation is Associated with an Increased Risk for Prostate Cancer and other Malignancies

Background:A rare non-conservative substitution (G84E) in the HOXB13 gene has been shown to be associated with risk of prostate cancer. DNA samples from male patients included in the Mayo Clinic Biobank (MCB) were genotyped to determine the frequency of the G84E mutation and its association with various cancers. Methods:Subjects were genotyped using a custom TaqMan (Applied Biosystems) assay for G84E (rs138213197). In addition to donating a blood specimen, all MCB participants completed a baseline questionnaire to collect information on medical history and family history of cancer. Results:Forty-nine of 9,012 male patients were carriers of G84E (0.5%). Thirty-one percent (n=2,595) of participants had been diagnosed with cancer, including 51.1% of G84E carriers compared to just 30.6% of non-carriers (p=0.004). G84E was most frequently observed among men with prostate cancer compared to men without cancer (p<0.0001). However, the mutation was also more commonly observed in men with bladder cancer (p=0.06) and leukemia (p=0.01). G84E carriers were more likely to have a positive family history of prostate cancer in a first degree relative compared to non-carriers (36.2% v. 16.0%, p=0.0003). Conclusions: Our study confirms the association between the HOXB13 G84E variant and prostate cancer and suggests a novel association between G84E and leukemia and a suggestive association with bladder cancer. Future investigation is warranted to confirm these associations in order to improve our understanding of the role of germline HOXB13 mutations in human cancer. Impact: The associations between HOXB13 and prostate, leukemia and bladder suggest that this gene is important in carcinogenesis.
Evidence for a taurine-deficiency cardiomyopathy.

R ecently, a study by Pion et al’ demonstrated a feline condition of cardiomyopathy that could be ascribed to dietary deficiency of taurine and could be reversed by dietary supplementation with this amino acid. This finding raises the question of whether there is a taurine-deficient cardiomyopathy in man. Taurine is a p amino acid in which sulfonic acid replaces the carboxyl group of /3 alanine. Because of the sulfonyl group it is not incorporated into proteins but remains as free amino acid in plasma and tissues. It is present in highest concentrations in heart, muscle, central nervous system and platelets. Its exact role is not fully defined but it appears to have an important effect on the function of the heart and central nervous system and also is a major component of bile acids. This review will discuss the regulation of body taurine, how taurine levels in the heart are maintained, the effect of taurine on cardiac function and the possible role of taurine in congestive heart failure.
Mediator subunit 12 coordinates intrinsic and extrinsic control of epithalamic development

In the developing brain, the production of neurons from multipotent precursors must be carefully regulated in order to generate the appropriate numbers of various differentiated neuronal types. Inductive signals from extrinsic elements such as growth factors need to be integrated with timely expression of intrinsic elements such as transcription factors that define the competence of the cell. The transcriptional Mediator complex offers a mechanism to coordinate the timing and levels of intrinsic and extrinsic influences by acting as a rapid molecular switch for transcription of poised RNA pol II. The epithalamus is a highly conserved region of the vertebrate brain that differentiates early and rapidly in the zebrafish. It includes the pineal and parapineal organs and the habenular nuclei. Mutation of the Mediator complex subunit Med12 impairs the specification of habenular and parapineal neurons and causes a loss of differentiation in pineal neurons and photoreceptors. Although FGF ligands and transcription factors for parapineal and photoreceptor development are still expressed in the pineal complex of med12 mutants, FGF signaling is impaired and transcription factor expression is reduced and/or delayed. We find that the timely expression of one of these transcription factors, tbx2b, is controlled by Med12 and is vital for parapineal specification. We propose that the Mediator complex is responsible for subtle but significant changes in transcriptional timing and amplitude that are essential for coordinating the development of neurons in the epithalamus.
Newspaper reporting and the production of deviance: Drug use among professional athletes

This study employs a social constructionist perspective to assess why the use of illegal drugs among professional athletes became a significant social problem in the 1980s. A content analysis of two newspapers was conducted, covering press reports of the athlete‐drug issue over a 28‐year period. These results suggest a pattern in the level and type of reporting consistent with a social constructionist framework. Key factors in the definitional process involved media concern with newsworthy stories, efforts by league officials to protect the moral and economic integrity of the game, and denial of a problem and strong resistance to proposed drug policies by player associations. The drug issue was used by league officials either directly or indirectly as a means to weaken the concerns of professional athletes for improved economic benefits.
Morphologically “Differentiated” Mouse Neuroblastoma Cells Induced by Noncyclic AMP Agents: Levels of Cyclic AMP, Nucleic Acid and Protein

SummaryThe levels of cyclic AMP, DNA, RNA, and protein were measured in morphologically “differentiated” cells induced by noncyclic AMP agents such as 5-bromodeoxyuridine (5-BrdU), 6-thioguanine, serum-free medium (SFM) and X rays. The cyclic AMP levels in 5-BrdU-, SFM-treated cells increased by about twofold, whereas it remained unchanged in X irradiated and 6-thioguanine-treated cells. This shows that X ray and 6-thioguanine probably bypass the step involving the elevation of cyclic AMP. Sodium butyrate increased the cyclic AMP level without causing morphological differentiation, indicating that an elevation of cyclic AMP is not sufficient for the expression of differentiated phenotype. The RNA and protein contents of “differentiated” cells markedly increased. The DNA content of SFM- and 6-thioguanine-treated cells did not significantly change when compared to controls, indicating that the relative distribution of cells throughout the cell cycle was about the same as controls. The DNA content of 5-BrdU ...
The role of Drosophila Lamin C in muscle function and gene expression.

The inner side of the nuclear envelope (NE) is lined with lamins, a meshwork of intermediate filaments that provides structural support for the nucleus and plays roles in many nuclear processes. Lamins, classified as A- or B-types on the basis of biochemical properties, have a conserved globular head, central rod and C-terminal domain that includes an Ig-fold structural motif. In humans, mutations in A-type lamins give rise to diseases that exhibit tissue-specific defects, such as Emery-Dreifuss muscular dystrophy. Drosophila is being used as a model to determine tissue-specific functions of A-type lamins in development, with implications for understanding human disease mechanisms. The GAL4-UAS system was used to express wild-type and mutant forms of Lamin C (the presumed Drosophila A-type lamin), in an otherwise wild-type background. Larval muscle-specific expression of wild type Drosophila Lamin C caused no overt phenotype. By contrast, larval muscle-specific expression of a truncated form of Lamin C lacking the N-terminal head (Lamin C ΔN) caused muscle defects and semi-lethality, with adult ‘escapers’ possessing malformed legs. The leg defects were due to a lack of larval muscle function and alterations in hormone-regulated gene expression. The consequences of Lamin C association at a gene were tested directly by targeting a Lamin C DNA-binding domain fusion protein upstream of a reporter gene. Association of Lamin C correlated with localization of the reporter gene at the nuclear periphery and gene repression. These data demonstrate connections among the Drosophila A-type lamin, hormone-induced gene expression and muscle function.
A Survey of Teacher Concerns

The ACTFL/SCOLT (Southern Conference on Language Teaching) Task Force on Research in Foreign Language Education recently conducted a national survey of foreign language teachers, chairmen of outstanding high school programs, and state foreign language coordinators and consultants to find out from them what their most pressing questions were regarding foreign language learning and teaching. Of the many issues raised by survey respondents, the top ten were the following: 1) testing and evaluation, 2) promoting and maintaining interest in foreign language study, 3) language learning theory, 4) developing oral proficiency among students, 5) program development, 6) dealing with multi-level classes, 7) integrating instructional aids (especially videotapes and computers) into the classroom routine, 8) teaching culture, 9) the student as learner, and 10) techniques for including partner and group work in instruction. As a follow-up to the survey, the task force is presently working on a report that will consist of research-based answers to many of the questions posed by the survey respondents.
Modeling Spatial Variation in Housing Prices: A Variable Interaction Approach

The absolute location of each real estate parcel in an urban housing market has a unique location-value signature. Accessibility indices, distant gradients and locational dummies cannot fully account for the influence of absolute location on the market price of housing because there are an indeterminable number of externalities (local and nonlocal) influencing a given property at a given location. Furthermore, the degree to which externalities affect real estate values is not only unique at each location but highly variable over space. Hence, absolute location must be viewed as interactive with other determinants of housing value. We present an interactive variables approach and test its ability to explain price variations in an urban residential housing market. The statistical evidence suggests that the value of location, as embodied in the selling price of housing units, may not be separable from other determinants of value. It is recommended that housing valuation models, therefore, be specified to allow site, structural and other independent attributes to interact with absolute location—{x, y} coordinates—when accounting for intraurban variation in the market price of residential housing. This approach is especially useful when estimating the value of housing for geographic areas where very little is known a priori about the neighborhoods or submarkets.
The effects of radiation on the retention of strontium in zeolite-NaSrY

A new experimental method has been developed to measure the release of radionuclides from radiation-damaged materials using a combination of 500 keV H+ beam irradiation, electron microscopy, and electron microprobe analysis techniques. A good correlation between the radiation damage and changes in the release of radionuclides from irradiated zeolite-Y preloaded with Sr has been established. After irradiation with a 500 keV H+ beam to a dose of 3.6 × 1017 ions cm−2, the release of Sr in 1 N NaCl, 1 N CaCl2 and 10 mN AgNO3 solutions was reduced by a factor of up to seven in the radiation-damaged material. A comparison of results obtained in 10 mN AgNO3 solution with that of 1 N CaCl2 solution showed that structural damage occurred not only to the supercages, but also to the small cages, i.e. sodalite cages and double 6-ring prisms. When the radiation dose was above 2.5 × 1010 Gy, the ion exchange of the large cations (Ca and Sr) was completely stopped, whereas the small cation-exchange (Ag and Na) could still proceed. A leach test in the deionized water showed that amorphization of zeolite-NaSrY can reduce the release of the adsorbed radionuclides, Sr, from 0.23 mg g−1 for crystalline zeolite-NaSrY to 0.12 mg g−1 after 234 h of leaching in 90 °C deionized water.
Did Buchanan and Wagner Misrepresent Keynes

for ﬁ scal policy. They argued that “the Keynesian theory of economic policy produces inherent biases when applied within the institutions of political democracy” (xviii). These biases led to the growth of government that followed the Second World War. They were a direct consequence of the Keynesian revolution and its implication that “what is folly in the con-duct of a private family may be prudence in the conduct of the affairs of a great nation” (3). In particular, Buchanan and Wagner argued that Keynes and the Keynesians undermined the old-time ﬁ scal religion of balanced budgets and ushered in the era of permanent budget de ﬁ cits.Bradley Bateman (2005) challenges Buchanan and Wagner’s interpreta-tion of Keynes’s views of de ﬁ cit ﬁ nancing. Bateman argues that “from top to bottom, Buchanan and Wagner get it wrong as regards John Maynard Keynes” (186). That is, the position they attribute to Keynes is not the one that Keynes held. Keynes did not, says Bateman, advocate de ﬁ cit ﬁ nancing but rather supported the old-time ﬁ scal religion. Bateman said that
Progressive development of the rat osteoblast phenotype in vitro: Reciprocal relationships in expression of genes associated with osteoblast proliferation and differentiation during formation of the bone extracellular matrix

The relationship of cell proliferation to the temporal expression of genes characterizing a developmental sequence associated with bone cell differentiation was examined in primary diploid cultures of fetal calvarial derived osteoblasts by the combined use of autoradiography, histochemistry, biochemistry, and mRNA assays of osteoblast cell growth and phenotypic genes. Modifications in gene expression define a developmental sequence that has 1) three principle periods–;proliferation, extracellular matrix maturation, and mineralization–;and 2) two restriction points to which the cells can progress but cannot pass without further signal–;the first when proliferation is down-regulated and gene expression associated with extracellular matrix maturation is induced, and the second when mineralization occurs. Initially, actively proliferating cells, expressing cell cycle-and cell growth-regulated genes, produce a fibronectin/type I collagen extracel-lular matrix. A reciprocal and functionally coupled relationship between the decline in proliferative activity and the subsequent induction of genes associated with matrix maturation and mineralization is supported by 1) a temporal sequence of events in which there is an enhanced expression of alkaline phos-phatase immediately following the proliferative period, and later, an increased expression of osteocalcin and osteopontin at the onset of mineralization; 2) increased expression of a specific subset of osteoblast phenotype markers, alkaline phosphatase and osteopontin, when proliferation is inhibited by hydroxyurea; and 3) enhanced levels of expression of the osteoblast markers as a function of ascorbic acid-induced collagen deposition, suggesting that the extracellular matrix contributes to both the shutdown of proliferation and the development of the osteoblast phenotype.
SWEL: hardware cache coherence protocols to map shared data onto shared caches

Snooping and directory-based coherence protocols have become the de facto standard in chip multi-processors, but neither design is without drawbacks. Snooping protocols are not scalable, while directory protocols incur directory storage overhead, frequent indirections, and are more prone to design bugs. In this paper, we propose a novel coherence protocol that greatly reduces the number of coherence operations and falls back on a simple broadcast-based snooping protocol when infrequent coherence is required. This new protocol is based on the premise that most blocks are either private to a core or read-only, and hence, do not require coherence. This will be especially true for future large-scale multi-core machines that will be used to execute message-passing workloads in the HPC domain, or multiple virtual machines for servers. In such systems, it is expected that a very small fraction of blocks will be both shared and frequently written, hence the need to optimize coherence protocols for a new common case. In our new protocol, dubbed SWEL (protocol states are Shared, Written, Exclusivity Level), the L1 cache attempts to store only private or read-only blocks, while shared and written blocks must reside at the shared L2 level. These determinations are made at runtime without software assistance. While accesses to blocks banished from the L1 become more expensive, SWEL can improve throughput because directory indirection is removed for many common write-sharing patterns. Compared to a MESI based directory implementation, we see up to 15% increased performance, a maximum degradation of 2%, and an average performance increase of 2.5% using SWEL and its derivatives. Other advantages of this strategy are reduced protocol complexity (achieved by reducing transient states) and significantly less storage overhead than traditional directory protocols.
Ion exchange reaction of [18F]fluoride with an oxidized carbon surface.

Abstract [18F]Fluoride was trapped from [18O]water in high yield by ion exchange on a microporous carbon prepared by controlled oxidation to produce a cationic surface with an exchange capacity of about 350 μ equiv/g. The [18F]fluoride could be recovered by displacement with aqueous K2CO3. The cationic carbon offered a dimensionally rigid matrix of high thermal stability. It was characterized with respect to chemical reactivity and selectivity for anion exchange.
Validation of virtual humanoid intelligent agents in virtual reality systems

One of the great benefits VR systems offer is their ability to simulate a number of virtual humans when their presence is needed in the context of some learning or training experience. Being that the real humans may not be available to play different roles and support virtual sessions, the ability of a system to generate highly believable representations of autonomous virtual humans — virtual intelligent agents — is vital in achieving specific learning and training objectives. Eliminating the elements of the system that can cause a negative learning and training transfer is a paramount in those systems. We illustrate the results of two user studies focused on validation of non-deterministic domain-specific behaviors generated by our system (example: behaviors typical for a well coordinated group of paramedics or military unit). The results and observations confirmed that when it comes to VR systems with stringent requirements and high expectations for positive learning/training transfer, we still need humans to evaluate and validate synthesized human-like agent behaviors.
Anxiety, Type A behavior, and cardiovascular disease

Males with anxiety disorders appear to have increased mortality due to circulatory system disease, and Type A behavior is a risk factor for coronary heart disease (CHD). Thus, we determined Type A behavior in anxious patients. Fifty-seven DSM-III defined anxiety disorder patients completed the Jenkins Activity Survey (JAS) and Symptom Checklist-90-Revised (SCL-90-R). Significantly more male (92%) than female (52%) anxious patients had Type A behavior. Correlations between the JAS scales and SCL-90-R subscales were also different between male and female patients; in males, significant correlations were observed for SCL-90-R anxiety with both JAS Type A and JAS Hard-Driving and Competitive, and for SCL-90-R hostility with JAS Hard-Driving and Competitive. However, there were no consistent correlations between the JAS and the SCL-90-R subscales in females. A trend for fathers of anxious patients to have an increased prevalence of CHD was also observed. The increased incidence of Type A behavior in male, but not in female, anxious patients suggest a mechanism for increased mortality due to circulatory disease in male anxiety patients.
Persistent Hiccups Associated with Epidural Ropivacaine in a Newborn

OBJECTIVE:To report a case of persistent hiccups associated with epidural ropivacaine in a newborn infant.CASE SUMMARY:A term female infant (3.05 kg) received epidural ropivacaine for pain control during and after an operative procedure to correct a tracheoesophageal fistula. Three intermittent doses of ropivacaine were administered during the operative period (total dose 2.29 mg/kg) followed by a continuous epidural (caudal) infusion (0.1% ropivacaine; initial dose 0.23 mg/kg/h plus fentanyl 0.46 μg/kg/h). The infant was extubated in the recovery area and transferred to the intensive care unit. Within hours of transfer, she developed persistent hiccups. The epidural infusion was titrated for pain control, up to 0.32 mg/kg/h (ropivacaine). The hiccup frequency increased to every 10-30 seconds, with the patient appearing hypotonic with lip trembling and intermittent tongue fasciculation. An electroencephalogram did not show any epileptiform activity or focal features consistent with seizure activity. The e...
J-DES: A graphical interactive package for analysis and synthesis of discrete event systems

This paper described the algorithmic and software design principles of an object-oriented, Java-based graphical interactive software packages, J-DES, for analysis and synthesis of discrete event systems (DES). The software is also capable of quantitatively evaluating different supervisory controllers in terms of a language measure.
Word association: grammatical, semantic, and affective dimensions of associates to homonyms.

Scoring schema of word associations for grammatical form, affective and semantic-syntactic associates were developed using factor analyses of logically developed schema. The schema evolved over the...
Feynman-Kac Functional and the Schrödinger Equation

The Feynman-Kac formula and its connections with classical analysis were inititated in [3]. Recently there has been a revival of interest in the associated probabilistic methods, particularly in applications to quantum physics as treated in [7]. Oddly enough the inherent potential theory has not been developed from this point of view. A search into the literature after this work was under way uncovered only one paper by Khas’minskii [4] which dealt with some relevant problems. But there the function q is assumed to be nonnegative and the methods used do not apparently apply to the general case; see the remarks after Corollary 2 to Theorem 2.2 below.** The case of q taking both signs is appealing as it involves oscillatory rather than absolute convergence problems. Intuitively, the Brownian motion must make intricate cancellations along its paths to yield up any determinable averages. In this respect Theorem 1.2 is a decisive result whose significance has yet to be explored. Next we solve the boundary value problem for the Schrodinger equation (Δ+2q)ϕ= 0. In fact, for a positive continuous boundary function f, a solution is obtained in the explicit formula given in (2) of §1 below, provided that this quantity is finite (at least at one point x in D). Thus the Feynman-Kac formula supplies the natural Green’s operator for the problem.
Criteria for the recognition of shallow-perennial-saline-lake halites based on Recent sediments from the Qaidam Basin, western China

ABSTRACT Continuous brine-trench exposures of Recent evaporitic sediments, cut through the top few meters of the Qaidam Basin, western China, record the temporal evolution of saline-lake to saline-lake-margin subenvironments; correlation of stratigraphic sections from different parts of the depocenter record the spatial evolution of these subenvironments. Shallow perennial saline lakes cycle through various stages (dilute lake, saline lake, saline pan, and desiccated pan) and this produces characteristic suites of sedimentary textures and structures. In addition, main-lake and lake-margin subenvironments contain quite different suites of sedimentary textures and structures. Recent sediments from the Qarhan Salt Plain consist of laminated siliciclastic muds (13-50 cm thick, devoid of mudcracks) overlain by halite (centimeter-scale) and interlayered mud (submillimeter- to centimeter-scale), termed mud-halite couplets, which represent one shallowing- and concentrating-upwards succession. Sediments of shallow perennial lakes consist of a basal laminated mud overlain by mud-halite couplets with dominantly conformable contacts. Halite layers are crystalline frameworks made up of halite cubes and chevrons. Mud-halite couplets with ubiquitous dissolution surfaces and heavily dissolution-modified halites make up saline-pan sediments and subaerially modified halites, respectively. This succession of sediments records the flooding and desiccation of a 200 km2 lake with waters depths of 2.2-3.0 m. The lateral continuity of beds and the three-dimensional array of facies show that this lake was filled by a combination of progradation and basin-wide aggradation. Mud-rich and mud-poor packages can be traced for several kilometers in the center of the Holocene lake, whereas units are less laterally continuous on the margins of the lake, near the inflow zone. Syndepositional dissolution pipes in halite layers suggest subaerial modification and are useful in tracking lake expansion and contraction through time. Vertical successions of structures and textures distinguish deposits of shallow perennial saline lakes from deposits of ephemeral salt pans in the geologic record. Sediments deposited in shallow, nonstratified, perennial saline lakes may be host to one or more of the following: laterally continuous layers; muds undisrupted by subaerial exposure; erosional channels; cumulate halite; vertically bottom-grown halite; halite layers conformably draped by mud; and halite layers truncated by nonuniformly spaced dissolution surfaces.
Transcriptional blackjack with p21.

Transcriptional regulation by RNA polymerase II (RNA Pol II) is an amalgamated process requiring the collective action of a large number of transcription factors to ensure proper synthesis of messenger RNA (mRNA). Several RNA Pol II elongation factors and proper phosphorylation of the C-terminal domain (CTD) of the RPB1 subunit of Pol II have been shown to be essential for transcription when RNA Pol II enters its processive elongation stage. In a study reported in the previous issue of Genes & Development, Emerson and colleagues (Gomes et al. 2006) demonstrated an exception to this rule. Transcription of p21, a target gene within the p53 pathway, bypasses the requirements for RNA Pol II elongation factors (including P-TEFb) and CTD phosphorylation for its p53-dependent transcription. Their data indicate the presence of a cellular compensatory mechanism for several of the p53 target genes to ensure a transcriptional response under heightened cellular stress. Mammalian cells are bombarded with a host of cellular stresses and require specialized mechanisms to maintain their integrity. The p53 protein is a sequence-specific DNA-binding transcription factor that regulates expression of numerous genes involved in cell cycle arrest and apoptosis, and is regarded as the cell’s cornerstone of defense against stresses such as DNA damage, oncogene activation, and oxidative stress (Takimoto and El-Deiry 2001; Taylor and Stark 2001). Several genes involved in the DNA damage response pathway contain p53-binding elements upstream of their promoters. In response to chemical or irradiation-induced DNA damage, binding of p53 to target genes occurs rapidly to shut off cell cycle progression and allow for recovery. There are a variety of p53-dependent pathways that can maintain cell cycle blocks (Bunz et al. 1998; Agami and Bernards 2000; Laronga et al. 2000; Vousden 2000; Gartel and Tyner 2002). Induction of cell cycle arrest by p53 is regulated by the level of transcriptional activation of the p21/WAF1/CIP1 gene (Espinosa and Emerson 2001; Takimoto and El-Deiry 2001; Espinosa et al. 2003). Once p21 (a potent inhibitor of cyclindependent kinases) is expressed, the cells become arrested (Agami and Bernards 2000). The topoisomerase II inhibitor doxorubicin induces double-stranded DNA breaks and is also a potent stimulator of p53 activity (Ravizza et al. 2004). The results presented by Gomes et al. (2006) in the previous issue of Genes & Development give new insight into the complicated mechanisms cells use to respond to various stresses, and strongly suggest the existence of highly specialized cellular responses that are specific for each type of stress-inducing factor.