cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Representing Kingship and Imagining Empire in Southern Dynasties Court Poetry

Before the fifth century, the imperial identity of a ruler seems to have disabled him as a writer rather than encouraged him to be more prolific. Literary production gradually became centered in the court by the mid-fifth century, and a distinct feature of Southern Dynasties literature is the phenomenon that emperors and princes joined with their courtiers in the act of writing poetry on social occasions. This paper focuses on a number of poems by Emperor Wen of the Song (r. 424-453), Yan Yanzhi (384-456), Xie Tiao (464-499), Shen Yue (441-513), and Liu Xiaochuo (481-539) that represent kingship and empire and thereby become a means of disseminating and implementing imperial power. In particular, it examines the physical and discursive construction of the capital Jiankang. We see thereby that Southern Dynasties court poetry was instrumental in the performance of sovereignty and the envisioning of the new, southern empire. Avant le Ve siecle, le fait d’acceder au titre d’empereur semble avoir reduit ceux a qui cela arrivait a l’incapacite en tant qu’auteurs, plutot que de les encourager a une prolixite accrue. Vers le milieu du Ve siecle en revanche, la production litteraire tendit a se concentrer sur la cour, et l’un des traits particuliers de la litterature des dynasties du Sud est de voir empereurs et princes se joindre a leurs courtisans pour composer des poemes lors de reunions amicales. Le present article se concentre sur un certain nombre de poemes de Song Wendi (r. 424-453), Yan Yanzhi (384-456), Xie Tiao (464-499), Shen Yue (441-513) et Liu Xiaochuo (481-539) qui sont autant de representations de la royaute et de l’empire, et de ce fait ont servi a propager et realiser le pouvoir imperial. Est en particulier examinee la construction physique et discursive de la capitale, Jiankang. Tout cela montre le role-cle joue par la poesie de cour sous les dynasties du Sud dans l’exercice de la souverainete et la vision d’un nouvel empire meridional.
Characterization of Extended Defects Observed in Cadmium Zinc Telluride (CZT) Crystal

Cadmium Zinc Telluride (CZT) semiconductor crystal properties have been studied extensively with a focus on correlations to their radiation detector performance. The need for defect-free CZT crystal is imperative for optimal detector performance. Extended defects like Tellurium (Te) inclusions, twins, sub-grain boundaries, and dislocations are common defects found in CZT crystals; they alter the electrical properties and, therefore, the crystal’s response to high energy radiation. In this research we studied the extended defects in CZT crystals from two separate ingots grown using the low-pressure Bridgman technique. We fabricated several detectors cut from wafers of two separate ingots by dicing, lapping, polishing, etching and applying gold metal contacts on the main surfaces of the crystals. Using infrared (IR) transmission microscope we analyzed the defects observed in the CZT detectors, showing three dimensional scans and plot size distributions of Te inclusions, twins and sub-grain boundaries observed in particular regions of the CZT detectors. We characterized electrical properties of the detectors by measuring bulk resistivity and detector response to gamma radiation. We observed that CZT detectors with more extended defects showed poor opto-electrical properties compared to detectors with fewer defects.
“The Enemy of My Enemy Is My Friend”: Thomas Szasz, the Citizens Commission on Human Rights, and Scientology’s Anti-Psychiatric Theology

This article analyzes the history and purpose of the Citizens Commission on Human Rights (CCHR), a group co-founded in 1969 by the Church of Scientology to educate the public on the alleged abuses of psychologists and psychiatrists and advocate for legal reform. Its other founder was Thomas Szasz, a non-Scientologist professionally trained as a psychiatrist who came to disagree with much of his field’s practices and methodologies. Until his death in 2012, Szasz remained supportive of CCHR and its crusade against “coercive psychiatry,” though the atheism, materialism, and libertarianism of his anti-psychiatric worldview remained at odds with Scientology’s anti-psychiatric theology. I examine L. Ron Hubbard’s evolving views on psychiatry and psychology in order to contextualize and outline this theology as it relates to the mission of CCHR as a non-profit organization heavily staffed and supported by Scientologists yet separate from the Church of Scientology International.
PD-1 inhibition in congenital pigment synthesizing metastatic melanoma

A newborn female child was born with a congenital pigment synthesizing melanoma of the scalp. Further workup revealed metastatic disease within the liver, lungs, and left tibia. Whole exome sequencing was performed on multiple samples that revealed one somatic mutation, lysine methyltransferase 2C (KMT2C), at low allelic frequency but no v-Raf murine sarcoma viral oncogene homolog B (BRAF), NF-1 mutation. Programmed death ligand 1 was moderately expressed. Treatment was initiated with the programmed cell death protein 1 inhibitor nivolumab. The patient tolerated this treatment well with minimal toxicity. She is now over a year out from initial diagnosis, continuing on nivolumab, with stable disease.
Therapeutic options for bleeding oesophageal varices: cyanoacrylate and balloon-occluded retrograde obliteration (BRTO)

A 56-year-old male with cirrhosis presented with acute bleeding from cardiofundal gastroesophageal varices (GOV) and was treated with endoscopic cyanoacrylate glue. Glue therapy achieved stabilisation of the patient in the emergent setting. Three months later, the patient suffered rebleeding. At that time, he underwent retreatment with balloon-occluded retrograde obliteration (BRTO), with no recurrence at a follow-up of 14 months.Available treatments for bleeding GOV include methods to (a) directly obstruct the varices (endoscopic variceal ligation , sclerotherapy and cyanoacrylate glue, BRTO) or to (b) decrease portal pressure (surgical portacaval shunts; transportal intrahepatic portosystemic shunt). No precise guidelines are available regarding when to use which modality, and few centres have experience with all of them. This case report illustrates a setting in which both options of cyanoacrylate glue therapy and BRTO were used for acute gastric variceal bleeding.
Exploring Factors That Influence Quality Literature Circles.

Research indicates that literature circles are an authentic means for literacy development that students typically enjoy. To better understand the potential value and to add to the research base re...
On the Ergodic Throughput Capacity of Massive MIMO Supported Hybrid Wireless Networks

In this paper, we investigate theoretical transmission capacity limit in the uplink hybrid wireless network under infrastructure mode. Massive MIMO is considered to improve network capacity. Multi-user MIMO is preferred over Point-to-Point MIMO for Massive implementation to achieve improved scalability. For ad hoc mode, without infrastructure support, Massive MIMO is not practical to implement in each user device due to the limitation of complexity. Another perspective of this paper is to include the fading effect on capacity. Under favorable propagation condition, Massive MIMO greatly mitigates small-scale fading effect between each user and base station antenna. Outage capacity over large-scale fading channel is derived in both low SNR and high SNR scenarios.
The Role of Language in Structure-Dependent Cognition

The ability to construct an indefinite number of ideas by combining a finite set of elements in a hierarchically structured sequence is a signal characteristic of human cognition. To illustrate, consider the sentence The girl who kissed the boy closed the door. It is immediately clear to any proficient English speaker that the state of affairs described by this sentence is that the girl is doing the closing. This specific interpretation is as effortless as automatic, and if anybody interpreted it any differently it might be sufficient grounds for doubting her proficiency of the English language. Nonetheless, one might wonder why, for example, we do not interpret the noun phrase the boy as being the subject of the verb phrase closed the door. After all, the boy is linearly much more proximal to the verb phrase than is the girl. Furthermore, the sentence actually even contains the well-formed fragment […] the boy closed the door, in which, of course, it is the boy doing the closing. Yet, when we consider the full sentence, the relative linear proximity of its component elements does not appear to guide our interpretation. How is it then that we so effortlessly and automatically interpret the sentence above as describing a state of affairs in which a (certain) girl, who just so happens to have given a kiss to a (certain) boy, has closed the door? One explanation, which is perhaps the founding intuition of the modern study of language as a mental phenomenon, is that despite the fact that language is typically manifested as a temporally linear sequence of utterances, in our mind we spontaneously build a rich abstract hierarchical representation of how each discrete element within the sequence relates to every other element. It is the building of these abstract representations that allows us to assign meaning to strings of utterances. Although this ability is most prominently displayed in our use of natural language, it also characterizes several other aspects of human cognition such as logic reasoning, number and music cognition, action sequences and spatial relations, among others. As I will describe below, at least at an intuitive level, these seemingly distant domains of human cognition all appear to be organized at an abstract level and might therefore share, hidden behind a linear surface structure, the hierarchical and recursive features that are most commonly described by the syntactic trees built by linguists (see Fig. 5.1 for an example).
Osteoporosis from the Perspective of an Obstetrician-Gynecologist

(1996). Osteoporosis from the Perspective of an Obstetrician-Gynecologist. Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings: Vol. 9, No. 4, pp. 53-54.
Decellularized materials derived from TSP2-KO mice promote enhanced neovascularization and integration in diabetic wounds.

Abstract Decellularized biologic scaffolds are gaining popularity over synthetic biomaterials as naturally derived materials capable of promoting improved healing. Nevertheless, the most widely used biologic material – acellular dermal matrix (ADM) – exhibits slow repopulation and remodeling, which prevents integration. Additionally, engineering control of these materials is limited because they require a natural source for their production. In the current report, we demonstrate the feasibility of using genetically engineered animals to create decellularized biologic scaffolds with favorable extracellular matrix (ECM) properties. Specifically, we utilized skin from thrombospondin (TSP)-2 KO mice to derive various decellularized products. Scanning electron microscopy and mechanical testing showed that TSP-2 KO ADM exhibited an altered structure and a reduction in elastic modulus and ultimate tensile strength , respectively. When a powdered form of KO ADM was implanted subcutaneously, it was able to promote enhanced vascularization over WT. Additionally, when implanted subcutaneously, intact slabs of KO ADM were populated by higher number of host cells when compared to WT. In vitro studies confirmed the promigratory properties of KO ADM. Specifically, degradation products released by pepsin digestion of KO ADM induced greater cell migration than WT. Moreover, cell-derived ECM from TSP-2 null fibroblasts was more permissive to fibroblast migration. Finally, ADMs were implanted in a diabetic wound model to examine their ability to accelerate wound healing. KO ADM exhibited enhanced remodeling and vascular maturation, indicative of efficient integration. Overall, we demonstrate that genetic manipulation enables engineered ECM-based materials with increased regenerative potential.
Iron Redox Chemistry Promotes Antiparallel Oligomerization of α-Synuclein.

Brain metal dyshomeostasis and altered structural dynamics of the presynaptic protein α-synuclein (αS) are both implicated in the pathology of Parkinson’s disease (PD), yet a mechanistic understanding of disease progression in the context of αS structure and metal interactions remains elusive. In this Communication, we detail the influence of iron, a prevalent redox-active brain biometal, on the aggregation propensity and secondary structure of N-terminally acetylated αS (NAcαS), the physiologically relevant form in humans. We demonstrate that under aerobic conditions, Fe(II) commits NAcαS to a PD-relevant oligomeric assembly, verified by the oligomer-selective A11 antibody, that does not have any parallel β-sheet character but contains a substantial right-twisted antiparallel β-sheet component based on CD analyses and descriptive deconvolution of the secondary structure. This NAcαS–FeII oligomer does not develop into the β-sheet fibrils that have become hallmarks of PD, even after extended incubation, as...
Western European Late Bronze Age

The Late Bronze Age occurred during the Sub-Boreal climatic period, which lasted until about 2800 b.p. At the beginning of the tradition, conditions were somewhat wetter, but drier conditions ensued around 3100 b.p. At the end of the tradition, the Sub-Atlantic period marked a relatively rapid climatic degeneration with an increase in rainfall, humidity, and flooding of lowlands throughout much of Europe. The western part of the tradition was characterized by a cool and moist maritime climate, the southern part by a warm and dry Mediterranean climate, and the eastern part by a highly variable continental climate.
Monoclonal antibody targeting BDCA2 ameliorates skin lesions in systemic lupus erythematosus

BACKGROUND. Plasmacytoid DCs (pDC) produce large amounts of type I IFN (IFN-I), cytokines convincingly linked to systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) pathogenesis. BIIB059 is a humanized mAb that binds blood DC antigen 2 (BDCA2), a pDC-specific receptor that inhibits the production of IFN-I and other inflammatory mediators when ligated. A first-in-human study was conducted to assess safety, tolerability, and pharmacokinetic (PK) and pharmacodynamic (PD) effects of single BIIB059 doses in healthy volunteers (HV) and patients with SLE with active cutaneous disease as well as proof of biological activity and preliminary clinical response in the SLE cohort. METHODS. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial was conducted in HV (n = 54) and patients with SLE (n = 12). All subjects were monitored for adverse events. Serum BIIB059 concentrations, BDCA2 levels on pDCs, and IFN-responsive biomarkers in whole blood and skin biopsies were measured. Skin disease activity was determined using the Cutaneous Lupus Erythematosus Disease Area and Severity Index Activity (CLASI-A). RESULTS. Single doses of BIIB059 were associated with favorable safety and PK profiles. BIIB059 administration led to BDCA2 internalization on pDCs, which correlated with circulating BIIB059 levels. BIIB059 administration in patients with SLE decreased expression of IFN response genes in blood, normalized MxA expression, reduced immune infiltrates in skin lesions, and decreased CLASI-A score. CONCLUSIONS. Single doses of BIIB059 were associated with favorable safety and PK/PD profiles and robust target engagement and biological activity, supporting further development of BIIB059 in SLE. The data suggest that targeting pDCs may be beneficial for patients with SLE, especially those with cutaneous manifestations. TRIAL REGISTRATION. ClinicalTrials.gov {"type":"clinical-trial","attrs":{"text":"NCT02106897","term_id":"NCT02106897"}}NCT02106897. FUNDING. Biogen Inc.
Interaction and Regulation Between Lipid Mediator Phosphatidic Acid and Circadian Clock Regulators

Circadian clocks play important roles in regulating cellular metabolism, but the reciprocal effect that metabolism has on the clock is largely unknown in plants. Here, we show that the central glycerolipid metabolite and lipid mediator phosphatidic acid (PA) interacts with and modulates the function of the core clock regulators LATE ELONGATED HYPOCOTYL (LHY) and CIRCADIAN CLOCK ASSOCIATED1 (CCA1) in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana). PA reduced the ability of LHY and CCA1 to bind the promoter of their target gene TIMING OF CAB EXPRESSION1. Increased PA accumulation and inhibition of PA-producing enzymes had opposite effects on circadian clock outputs. Diurnal change in levels of several membrane phospholipid species, including PA, observed in wild type was lost in the LHY and CCA1 double knockout mutant. Storage lipid accumulation was also affected in the clock mutants. These results indicate that the interaction of PA with the clock regulator may function as a cellular conduit to integrate the circadian clock with lipid metabolism.
ACM Task Force on Data Science Education: Draft Report and Opportunity for Feedback

The ACM Data Science Task Force was established by the ACM Education Council and tasked with articulating the role of computing discipline-specific contributions to this emerging field. This special session seeks to introduce the work of the ACM Data Science Task Force as well as to engage the SIGCSE community in this effort. Members of the task force will introduce key components of a draft report, including a summary of data science curricular efforts to date, results of ACM academic and industry surveys on data science, as well as the initial articulation of computing competencies for undergraduate programs in data science. This session should be of interest to all SIGCSE attendees, but especially faculty developing college-level curricula in Data Science.
Internal Dynamical Control on Tropical Cyclone Intensity Variability – A Review

ABSTRACT The current understanding of internal dynamical processes responsible for tropical cyclone intensity variability is reviewed. These internal dynamic processes are small in horizontal scale and are constrained to characteristics of the vortex itself and less dependent on the environmental and oceanic conditions. Important internal dynamical processes for tropical cyclone evolution are: (i) spiral rainband dynamics, (ii) asymmetric deep convection, (iii) eye/eyewall mixing, and (iv) eyewall replacement cycles. It is shown that while there exists a reasonable understanding of these internal processes in idealized frameworks, there still remains a large gap in our understanding of these processes in the real atmosphere. Additionally, further research is warranted on the interplay of these internal processes with each other as well as their interaction with the environment.
Data-Driven Identification of Consumers With Deferrable Loads for Demand Response Programs

Power utilities leverage demand response (DR) events to effectively reduce the peak load at critical times with excessive power demand. DR programs are generally categorized as manual or automated from the automation perspective. The opportunities for automated DR in the residential sector have emerged with the integration of smart and connected loads. For example, smart appliances with deferrable loads can be scheduled to shift their load without consumers’ direct involvement, given that many consumers might not engage sufficiently to participate in the manual DR. However, it has been shown that unjustified load shifting from many consumers in peak times could result in high off-peak demand. Therefore, it is essential for utilities to identify and target consumers for participation according to efficacy criteria. To address this issue, in this letter, we propose a data-driven method for the selection of consumers according to their potential for demand reduction in a DR program. The proposed method characterizes the frequency, consistency, and the peak time usage of deferrable loads across several subsequent days. By measuring the impact on peak-load shaving, we evaluated our approach on a subset of electricity dataset from the Pecan Street Dataport. The findings demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed method in selecting consumers with deferrable loads based on their potential for demand reduction in the future events.
BRAFV600E Mutation is Associated with an Increased Risk of Papillary Thyroid Cancer Recurrence

Papillary thyroid carcinoma is the most common endocrine malignancy and one of the most common cancers worldwide. However, the optimal timing and frequency of surveillance to assess for recurrence remain undetermined. As the incidence of thyroid cancer continues to rise worldwide, identifying risk factors for recurrence and investigating intervals and durations of surveillance are paramount to adapt treatment and follow-up plans to high-risk individuals and to reduce interventions for low-risk patients. Our dataset included an unselected cohort of papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) patients who underwent a total thyroidectomy (or unilateral then completion thyroidectomy) at a single institution from 2000 to 2007. BRAF genotyping was performed on available specimens by a validated PCR-based assay. Pathologic structural recurrence was the primary outcome. We performed univariate and multivariable analyses to identify predictors of cancer recurrence. In total, 599 patients underwent complete resection of the thyroid gland for PTC. The cohort was young (mean age 45.0 years), predominately female (n = 462, 76.9%), and median follow-up was 10.3 years (IQR 5.4–12.2). Recurrence occurred more commonly in the BRAFV600E group (18.6 vs. 9.9%, p = 0.02). BRAF independently predicted PTC recurrence (HR 2.81, p = 0.006). BRAF mutation is an independent predictor of papillary thyroid carcinoma long-term recurrence. Understanding molecular characteristics of individual thyroid cancers may help risk-stratify patients and direct them toward more appropriate initial care and long-term surveillance strategies.
Epidemiological characteristics of and temporal-spatial clustering of gonorrhea in Zhejiang province during 2004-2012

Objective To investigate the epidemiological characteristics of gonorrhea,and to analyze its temporal-spatial clustering in Zhejiang province.Methods Data on the incidence and demographic characteristics of gonorrhea in Zhejiang province from January 2004 to December 2012 were obtained from the China Information System for Disease Control and Prevention.The population,time and space distributions of gonorrhea were described.Epidemic curve and incidence maps were drawn.A space-time permutation scan statistic was used to detect space-time clusters,and spatial autocorrelation analysis was performed to calculate the Moran's I value and draw Local Indicators of Spatial Association (LISA) cluster maps.Results In Zhejiang province,a total of 199 956 cases of gonorrhea were reported with a decreasing trend in incidence rate from 2004 to 2012.The male to female ratio was 3.51:1 (155 634/44 331).People aged between 25 and 60 years accounted for 75.21％ of these patients,whereas the constituent ratio of people aged 0-1 years and ＞ 60 years increased with time.The incidence rate of gonorrhea was significantly higher in middle and north parts than in the south part of Zhejiang province,and higher in summer than in winter and spring with the peak incidence observed in August.Thirteen temporal-spatial clusters were detected,with the large clusters in Hangzhou,Huzhou,Ningbo,Shaoxing and their neighbor counties/cities/ districts,as well as some counties/cities/districts in Jinhua.All of the above clusters lasted 4.5 years.LISA maps showed an increasing trend in high-high aggregation counties/cities/districts which spread from the north to south part of Zhejiang province.Conclusion There is a temporal-spatial aggregation of gonorrhea in Zhejiang province with young and middle-aged men as the main affected population. Key words: Gonorrhea; Epidemiologic studies; Space-time clustering; Small-area analysis
‘I made the scene’: an interview with Carol Tyler

In early 2021we met with Carol Tyler over Zoom to discuss her comics, her participation in the underground comix community, and her forthcoming work, The Ephemerata: Shaping the Exquisite Nature of...
Polymeric drug delivery systems for mitigating oxidative stress

Abstract Oxidative stress is an outcome of the imbalance between the generation and neutralization of oxidants. Depending on cell type, reactive oxygen species (ROS) can play an important role in subcellular events such as signal transduction associated with cellular proliferation, senescence, and apoptosis. ROS also play an important role in the activation of enzymes, expression of genes, formation of disulfide bonds during the oxidative folding of disulfide-bond-containing proteins in the endoplasmic reticulum, and controlling the activity of caspase during apoptosis. When produced in excess, these ROS can cause deleterious health effects by altering the structures of intracellular biomolecules such as protein, nucleic acid, carbohydrates, and lipid. If left unregulated, oxidative stress can eventually result in the onset of various chronic (e.g., cancer), degenerative (e.g., neurodegenerative diseases), and acute pathologies (e.g., stroke). A better understanding of the etiology of oxidative stress is important. It will facilitate the development of novel and effective therapeutic approaches for the amelioration of pathophysiological conditions arising from elevated reactive species level inside the eukaryotic cells. This book chapter provides a brief overview of the recent developments (2015 onwards) in this area, which is progressing rapidly. Therefore, this book chapter focuses on the relationship between oxidative stress and various diseases and the role of exogenous antioxidants in scavenging these free radicals.
High Glucose and Advanced Glycation End Products Induce CD147-Mediated MMP Activity in Human Adipocytes

Basigin (CD147) is a transmembrane glycoprotein that regulates several physiological processes, including the production and activity of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs). The activity of CD147 depends mainly on its glycosylation, which varies among pathophysiological conditions. However, it is unknown whether CD147 activity or its function in MMP regulation are affected by the diabetic environment, which is characterized by high glucose (HG) levels and an excess of glycation end products (AGEs). In this study, we investigated the effect of HG and AGEs on CD147 expression in human adipocytes. We also examined the mediating role of nuclear factor kappa B (NFκB) and receptor of AGE (RAGE) to this effect. Our findings show that carboxymethyl lysine and HG increased CD147 expression and glycosylation, which was accompanied by increases in MMP2 and MMP9 expression and activity, as well as upregulations of the N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase, MGAT5. These effects were abolished by NFκB and RAGE inhibition, CD147 gene silencing, and by the glycosylation inhibitor, tunicamycin. In conclusion, the current findings indicate that AGEs and HG induce CD147 expression and glycosylation in adipocytes, with possible mediation by NFκB and RAGE. One of the critical outcomes of this pathway is augmented MMP activity known to contribute to cardiovascular complications in diabetes.
RBrownie: an R package for testing hypotheses about rates of evolutionary change

Summary 1. Maximum likelihood analyses for testing hypotheses about how rates of disparification might vary across clades can provide important insight into the evolutionary process. While the Brownie phylogenetic library can perform such analyses, it does so outside of a general scripting environment. 2. We present RBrownie, an interface between the Brownie phylogenetic library and the R software environment, which provides easy access to the main methods in Brownie (see O'Meara 2008; PhD Dissertation, Nature Precedings), including discrete ancestral state reconstruction. In addition, RBrownie supplies a direct interface to Brownie, allowing advanced users to construct more complex combinations of analyses and to execute any newly added Brownie functions. 3. Overall, it is a package that features evolutionary rate analyses in a flexible and familiar environment.
Critical resource multicast protection in data center networks

Resources in a network are imperfect, and equipment failure can have detrimental effects on data and transmission success rates. Attempts to improve the survivability of network communications when these failures occur focus primarily on protection against the common occurrence of link failures, while nodal failure has been largely overlooked. In data-critical infrastructures, such as cloud computing or data center networks, wherein the critical points of interest are at the nodes, a natural disaster or directed attack could have catastrophic consequences for the localized data. To overcome single points of failure, replicated multicast transmissions can be used to distribute copies of critical data to various geographically dispersed locations on the grid. We therefore explore strategies to protect against single critical node failures during multicast transmissions. We propose three novel multicast survivable heuristics and quantitatively analyze and then compare them to traditional multicast provisioning schemes through extensive simulation.1
Studies on Nuclear 4.5 S Ribonucleic Acid III of Novikoff Hepatoma Ascites Cells

Abstract After nuclear 4.5 S RNA was obtained in an electrophoretically homogenous state by preparative electrophoresis on polyacrylamide gels, it was separated by chromatography on DEAE-Sephadex into three peaks, the last of which contained 4.5 S RNAiii. The 4.5 S RNAiii is an extranucleolar nuclear species not found in the cytoplasm. The present study demonstrates that nuclear 4.5 S RNAiii is a unique RNA species with adenosine 3',5'-diphosphate residue (pAp) as the 5'-terminal and 2'-O-methyl uridine as the 3'-terminal nucleoside. It has a very low Tm of 37.5°. Its molecular weight is approximately 28,000 based upon mobility in polyacrylamide gels and 5'-terminal analyses. Analysis of the alkali-resistant dinucleotides showed that the 4.5 S RNAiii contains four alkali-resistant dinucleotides, i.e., adenosine 2'-O-methyl-3'-phosphoryl adenosine 3'-phosphate (AmpAp), guanosine 2'-O-methyl-3'-phosphoryl adenosine 3'-phosphate (GmpAp), and 2 guanosine 2'-O-methyl-3'-phosphorylguanosine 3'-phosphate residues (Gmp-Gp). After hydrolysis with pancreatic RNase, analysis of oligonucleotide frequencies indicates that most of the molecule is cleaved into mono- to tetranucleotides, i.e. only 18% remaining in larger fragments. Compared with other 4–7 S nuclear RNAs, the isotope distribution in these oligonucleotides differs in that the percentage is lower in uridine and higher in AAAC.
The Archaeology of Alcohol and Drinking

Through its complex history, alcohol has served many cultural functions, often constructive ones. For centuries it has been used as a valuable economic commodity, a medicinal tool, a focus of social gatherings, and a mechanism for psychological escape.Frederick Smith identifies key themes associated with alcohol production, distribution, and consumption. He discusses industrial and home production of alcoholic beverages and both public and clandestine drinking. He defines the contexts in which drinking takes place and the motivations - social and antisocial - for alcohol consumption.As a case study, Smith examines archaeological evidence of alcohol use from a cave site in Barbados, proposing that major historical events can be influenced by the social and spiritual use of alcohol. At the same time, Smith argues, alcohol can also provide people with a temporary respite from the challenges of daily life.
Magnetic Tunnel Junctions

The sections in this article are Introduction Fundamentals of Magnetic Tunnel Junctions (MTJs) Influence of Chemical Bonding on Spin-Polarized Tunneling Influence of Wave-Function Symmetry on Spin-Polarized Tunneling Relationship of Tunneling Magnetoresistance to Tunneling Spin Polarization Temperature and Bias Voltage Dependence of TMR Spin-Dependent Tunneling in Other Systems Conclusion
Formula for the Mean Square Displacement Exponent of the Self-Avoiding Walk in 3, 4 and All Dimensions

This paper proves the formula for the root mean square displacement exponent ν(d) of the self-avoiding walk (SAW) in Z d , and thus, resolves some major long-standing open conjectures rooted in chemical physics (Flory (1949) (3)). The values ν(2) = 3/4 and ν(4) = 1/2 coincide with those that were believed on the basis of heuristic and "numerical evidence". Perhaps surprisingly, there was no precise conjecture in dimension 3. Yet as early as in the 1980ies, Monte Carlo simulations produced a couple of confidence intervals for the exponent ν(3). This work is a follow-up to Hueter (7), which proves the result for d = 2 and lays out the fundamental building blocks for the analysis in all dimensions. We consider (a) the point process of self-intersections defined via certain paths of length n of the symmetric simple random walk in Z d and (b) a "weakly self-avoiding cone process" relative to this point process in a certain "shape". The asymptotic expected distance of the process in (b) can be calculated rather precisely as n tends large and, if the point process has circular shape, can be shown to asymptotically equal (up to error terms) the one of the weakly SAW with parameter β > 0. From these results, a number of distance exponents are immediately collectable for the SAW as well. Our approach invokes the Palm distribution of the point process of self-intersections in a cone.
Physics of Solar System Plasmas

Anyone who has taught an introductory course in space physics faces an insolvable dilemma. Space physics is the common name for the physics of the plasma regions in the solar system. The dilemma is, do you introduce the topics in plasma physics in an ordered progression and illustrate them with examples drawn from the solar system, in which case you are teaching a course in plasma physics with applications to the solar system? Or do you describe the various regions and environments found in the solar system in a coherent order and introduce the plasma physics as it is needed, in which case you are teaching a course in geophysics? I have tried both approaches, and neither works well. The first approach gives students an understanding of plasma physics and its hierarchy of approximations, but they usually do not get a coherent understanding of geospace. The second approach gives students a good grasp of the Sun/solar wind/magnetosphere/ionosphere as a single complex system, but they invariably end up with a poorer grasp of what physics applies in various situations. For programs that can accommodate it, two separate courses is clearly the best approach. Not all programs have that luxury.
The Relation Between Macroeconomic Uncertainty And The Expected Performance Of the Economy

By using data from surveys of expectations, it is shown that macroeconomic uncertainty, measured by the standard deviation of the expected output growth, the expected unemployment rate, and the expected inflation rate, is negatively related to the expected performance of the economy, proxied by the expected growth rate of output. That is, forward-looking agents are more uncertain about the future development of output, unemployment, and inflation when the growth rate of output is expected to fall, and they are less uncertain when this growth rate is expected to increase. The findings indicate that macroeconomic polices would have asymmetric effects on output depending upon how economic agents expect the economy to perform in the near future
Neural networks for extracting unsymmetric principal components

The authors introduce two forms of unsymmetric principal component analysis (UPCA), namely the cross-correlation UPCA and the linear approximation UPCA problem. Both are concerned with the SVD of the input-teacher cross-correlation matrix itself (first problem) or after prewhitening (second problem). The second problem is also equivalent to reduced-rank Wiener filtering. For the former problem, the authors propose an unsymmetric linear model for extracting one or more components using lateral inhibition connections in the hidden layer. The numerical convergence properties of the model are theoretically established. For the linear approximation UPCA problem, one can apply back-propagation extended either using a straightforward deflation procedure or with the use of lateral orthogonalizing connections in the hidden layer. All proposed models were tested and the simulation results confirm the theoretical expectations. >
On the stabilization of unstable plants via learning control

Intelligent controls in general and learning control in particular typically address the control of stable plants. The performance of learning control in stabilizing the response of unstable plants is investigated. >
Poesía: hogar, dulce hogar

El profeta en su casa. Panos menores. Jotamario. Fundacion Simon y Lola Guberek, Bogota, 1988.
Jekyll and Hyde: the role of heme oxygenase-1 in erythroid biology.

There is currently a great deal of excitement regarding the role of stem cell niches that regulate hematopoietic stem cell self-renewal and differentiation. It should be noted, however, that the original description of a hematopoietic niche actually occurred in 1958 when the French hematologist,
Anhedonia and the brain reward circuitry in depression

Anhedonia, or the loss of pleasure in previously rewarding stimuli, is a core symptom of major depressive disorder that may reflect an underlying dysregulation in reward processing. The mesolimbic dopamine circuit, also known as the brain's reward circuit, is integral to processing the rewarding salience of stimuli to guide actions. Manifestation of anhedonia and associated depression symptoms like feelings of sadness, changes in appetite, and psychomotor effects, may reflect changes in the brain reward circuitry as a common underlying disease process. This review will synthesize the recent literature from human and rodent studies providing a circuit-level framework for understanding anhedonia in depression, with emphasis on the nucleus accumbens.
Beyond assessment: examining providers' responses to disclosures of violence.

PURPOSE: Intimate partner violence (IPV) and sexual assault (SA) are significant public health issues. In spite of gains made in research and support for screening, little is known about how healthcare providers respond to disclosures of violence. The purpose of this analysis was to examine providers' documented responses to women's disclosure of IPV or SA. DATA SOURCES: This qualitative analysis of healthcare providers' responses to the disclosure of violence was part of a larger retrospective review of 2000 medical records from four family planning clinics in the northeastern United States. CONCLUSIONS: Findings from this analysis reveal that although screening for IPV and past experiences of violence is consistent, providers' responses to disclosures of violence are often inconsistent. The majority of documented responses to the disclosure of violence (81.5%) were only descriptive in nature and 13% of the medical records contained no documentation of the violence. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: As universal violence assessment has increased, providers need to be aware of not only how to screen for violence, but how to respond in a way that is helpful, sincere, nonjudgmental, and legally adequate. This will require providers to move beyond a description of violence toward a response that is action-oriented and includes safety planning and referrals. Language: en
Limit distributions for queues and random rooted trees

In this paper several limit theorems are proved for the fluctuations of the queue size during the initial busy period of a queuing process with one server. These theorems are used to find the solutions of various problems connected with the heights and widths of random rooted trees.
Is U Aquarii a Thorne-Żytkow Object?

The R Coronae Borealis (RCB) star U Aqr was known to show an unusual abundance pattern with respect to the post-iron peak elements. The abundances of elements in the light s-process peak—Rb, Sr, Y, and Zr—are greatly enhanced, whereas elements representative of the heavy s-process peak, such as Ba, do not exhibit large abundance enhancements. Recent calculations of the abundances of elements formed by rapid proton capture in Thorne-Żytkow objects indicate that qualitatively the abundance pattern of post-iron peak elements in Thorne-Żytkow objects appeared to match that observed in U Aqr. New high-resolution spectra of U Aqr and two other stars are used to explore the possibility that U Aqr is a Thorne-Żytkow object. Our spectra show that on the basis of the light s-process elements, in particular the absence of an enhancement of Mo, Cu, and Zn, it does not appear that U Aqr is a good candidate for a Thorne-Żytkow object. However, the light s-process abundance pattern resembles that of Sakurai's star that has recently begun to show RCB characteristics. We suggest that these stars represent a possible source for the "weak" component of the solar system s-process distribution of heavy elements.
Effects of probenecid on striatal dopamine depletion in acute and long-term 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP)-treated mice.

Abstract 1. 1. The effect of probenecid on striatal dopamine depletion in acute 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP)-treated mice was examined. 2. 2. Mice treated with a single dose of MPTP (15 mg/kg, s.c.) showed a significant depletion of striatal dopamine throughout a time-course of 7 days. Interestingly, this MPTP-induced striatal dopamine depletion was potentiated by a concomitant injection with a single dose of probenecid (250 mg/kg, i.p.). 3. 3. However, this potentiation of dopamine depletion by probenecid was only a transient phenomenon seen at 4–5 days after the treatment. 4. 4. In a long-term study, mice were treated with the same dosages of MPTP or probenecid plus MPTP twice a week for 5 weeks, we detected that probenecid plus MPTP caused a persistent depletion of striatal DA for 6 months. 5. 5. During this period a partial recovery of DA levels was seen with MPTP alone-treated mice. 6. 6. The detailed mechanisms by which probenecid causes acute potentiation and persistent long-term depletion of striatal dopamine by MPTP are still unclear. 7. 7. With the evidence presented in this study, we determined that after the administration of MPTP in mice, the drug was rapidly metabolized in the periphery and excreted as MPTP N-oxide. 8. 8. Probenecid was shown to inhibit the excretion of urine and urinary MPTP N-oxide shortly after MPTP administration, which may directly or indirectly increase the neurotoxic action of MPTP in mice.
New roles for the RB tumor suppressor protein.

Abstract For a gene whose existence was first postulated in 1971, was cloned in 1986 and whose functions have been extensively characterized ever since, you might be inclined to think there was not much new to report regarding the retinoblastoma tumor suppressor gene (RB) — but you would be wrong to make such an assumption. RB is still piquing our interest with several activities defined over the past year that reveal new and exciting roles for this key tumor suppressor gene. These functions include regulation of senescence through specific gene silencing mechanisms, control of developmental processes in extra-embryonic tissues, maintaining tissue homeostasis and determining survival responses to chemotherapy.
Strain energy of 〈111〉 slit cracks in cubic crystals

Abstract Based on the equivalence relations, explicit expressions for the energy of 〈111〉 slit cracks in a cubic crystal are obtained. The energy values of 〈111〉, 〈110〉 and 〈100〉 cracks are evaluated and compared for brittle metals and non-metals. The results are used to discuss the cleavage fracture in α-iron.
A fossil termite bug, Termitaradus protera sp. n. (Hemiptera: Termitaphididae), from Mexican amber

A termite bug, Termitaradus protera sp. n. (Termitaphididae: Hemiptera) from Mexican amber, represents the first known fossil of this family. The fossil species differs from the nine extant species by its larger size, the larger number of lobules present in each body segment and the distinctly geniculate antennae. Two shriveled termite bodies lying next to the fossil suggest that contrary to traditional opinion, termitaradids may indeed be predatory on termites. The presence of a termitaradid in Mexican Tertiary deposits suggests a wider distribution of these forms in the past than is inferred by the distribution of extant forms.
Further Studies of the Rôle of Vitamin C in the Nutrition of Calves

A previous publication (1) has reported experiments showing that calves do not require vitamin C in their feed in quantities that can be measured by the present method of testing food materials for their antiscorbutic potency by feeding them to guinea pigs. Further results have been obtained which have no effect on the practical phase of this problem, but which have extended somewhat our knowledge of vitamin C in relation to the bovine. This paper is concerned with a study of the presence of vitamin C in the livers of two of the calves and in the milk of a heifer grown from birth on the vitamin C-deficient ration and with an attempt to locate the source of vitamin C supply to calves receiving rations deficient in this vitamin.
Polyamines stimulate D-glucose transport in isolated renal brush-border membrane vesicles.

Abstract Polyamines are natural constituents of most living organisms. However, their function in normal or pathological conditions is not fully understood. We have investigated in vitro effects of polyamines on characteristic properties of isolated renal brush-border membrane vesicles in order to determine whether polyamines have a regulatory role in membrane transport processes. The polyamines putrescine, spermidine and spermine were found to stimulate d -glucose uptake. Diffusional l -glucose uptake was not altered, indicating that the polyamines affected the active transport of d -glucose, rather than inducing nonspecific changes in membrane lipid properties. The amiloride-sensitive Na + /H + exchange was slightly inhibited by polyamines while Mg 2+ -ATPase activity was stimulated. The polyamine effects could not be explained solely by the polycationic properties of these agents, since polycationic polypeptides had an opposite effect. For example, lysozyme was found to inhibit d -glucose transport. Spermine was incorporated into the trichloroacetic acid-insoluble fraction of brush-border membrane proteins. Results indicated that this incorporation process consisted of at least two components: a Ca 2+ -independent component and a Ca 2+ -dependent component, possibly as a result of transglutaminase activity which was present in the isolated renal brush-border membranes. By using SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in conjunction with fluorography, | 3 H|spermine was shown to be incorporated into several brush-border membrane proteins, mainly the 57 kDa, 74 kDa, 100kDa, a heavy molecular weight band (greater than 200 kDa) and a low molecular weight band (less than 10 kDa). Our results suggest that the polyamine effects on membrane function may be due to a covalent modification of membrane proteins, possibly via a transglutaminase-mediated incorporation of polyamines or to the crosslinking of membrane proteins.