cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
2.02 – Soybean

In this chapter, I discuss the primary vulnerability of soybean production due to climate and environmental interactions from the effects of drought, which may be exacerbated by high temperature events. Technological adaptation could likely take advantage of warming in some production areas and rising concentrations of atmospheric CO2 would promote yields, although ozone pollution curtails full capture of potential gains. Variability in precipitation and related weather events would lead to variability in soybean production annually, which would contribute to supply and price volatility in the marketplace. There is concern that indirect land-use changes due to increasing soybean production may contribute to deforestation and loss of carbon storage reserves.
Law and Norms and Will and Grace

Like many other popular series featuring lawyers and law-related characters that are not primarily legal shows, Will & Grace was and is primarily a “relationship” show. The show features the friendships and closeness among the four main characters, best friends Will Truman and Grace Adler, who originally met in college, and Will’s friend Jack McFarland and Grace’s friend Karen Walker, who are brought together through their relationships with Will and Grace and also eventually become friends. Jack and Karen’s friendship is an exaggerated analogue of Will and Grace’s relationship. While it is not a legal show, Will & Grace does often feature legal themes, partly because one of its main characters is an attorney and partly because the law is such an important part of daily American life. If we have a problem or a dispute, we often consider whether the appropriate solution is a legal one, or whether we will be satisfied with a less formal and perhaps less binding outcome. More and more, we tend to view relationships and interactions through the legal system, using the law’s language and the law’s behavior. However, the characters in Will & Grace do not always decide on legal solutions to their problems. They may fashion other solutions that they think suit their needs, or they may never consider the law at all.
Association of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio with non-calcified coronary artery burden in psoriasis: Findings from an observational cohort study

Abstract Background Inflammation in the form of elevated high-sensitivity c-reactive protein (hs-CRP) has been shown to be critical in the development of atherothrombosis. Psoriasis, a chronic inflammatory skin disease, is associated with high systemic-inflammation, elevated neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and accelerated non-calcified coronary artery burden (NCB) by coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA). We hypothesized that NLR would associate with early, rupture-prone atherosclerosis assessed as NCB independent of hs-CRP. Methods 316 consecutive psoriasis participants were recruited with 233 having one-year follow-up as part of a prospective, observational cohort study design. CCTA scans were performed to assess NCB in all three major epicardial coronary arteries. Results Patients with above average NLR (>mean: 2.29 ​± ​1.21) were older (mean ​± ​SD; 52.0 ​± ​12.8 vs. 47.9 ​± ​12.6, p ​= ​0.002), had higher hs-CRP (med. IQR: 2.3 (0.9–7.3) vs. 1.4 (0.7–3.2), p ​= ​0.001) and had higher NCB (mean ​± ​SD; 1.21 ​± ​0.58 vs. 1.13 ​± ​0.49, p ​= ​0.018) when compared to patients with below average NLR. NLR associated with psoriasis area severity index score (β ​= ​0.14, p ​= ​0.017), hs-CRP (β ​= ​0.16, p ​= ​0.005), as well as NCB independent of traditional risk factors, body mass index, statin use and hs-CRP (β ​= ​0.08, p ​= ​0.009). One year of biologic therapy for psoriasis was associated with a reduction in NLR (−14.5%, p ​ Conclusion NLR associated with psoriasis severity, hs-CRP and NCB at baseline. Biologic therapy reduced NLR over time and this change in NLR associated with the change in NCB at one-year. Taken together, these findings suggest that NLR may capture psoriasis patients at higher risk of NCB due to residual inflammation not fully captured by hs-CRP.
Venture capital as an ecosystem engineer for regional innovation in an emerging market

Can venture capital (VC) firms transform a weak innovation ecosystem into a productive and robust one? While the literature has found VC firms’ catalyst role in innovation in developed markets, we ...
Underwriter Reputation and Pricing of Risk: Evidence from Seasoned Equity Offerings

This paper investigates how underwriter-issuer matching choices and firm risks affect the cost of equity issuance. We show that underwriter-issuer matching is not random; it reflects underwriter reputation and risk concerns, issuers’ quality, and equity market conditions. We apply Heckman self-selection estimation model to control for the endogenous underwriter-issuer matching. We find that the matching choice leads to considerable heterogeneity in pricing of issuer systematic and firm-specific risks in SEO underwriting fees. Low-reputation underwriters require compensation for bearing issuer’s systematic risk but not for firm-specific risk, while high-reputation underwriters do the opposite. Moreover, evidence in this paper suggests that the underwriter-issuer matching decision entails a non-linear relation between SEO spread and underwriter reputation: high- and low-reputation underwriters earn higher spreads than medium-reputation underwriters. Our findings highlight the importance of accounting for underwriter-issuer matching in assessing SEO underwriting contracts. The results are robust to alternative underwriter reputation measure, model specifications, sample periods, and different samples of firms.
Microstructure Evolution During Electric Current Induced Thermomechanical Fatigue of Interconnects

We demonstrate the evolution of microstructure and deformation associated with the use of electrical methods for evaluating mechanical reliability of patterned interconnects on rigid substrates. Thermomechanical fatigue in aluminum and copper interconnects was induced by means of low frequency (100 Hz), high density (> 10 MA/cm2) alternating currents, which caused cyclic Joule heating and associated thermal expansion strains between the metal lines and oxidized silicon substrate. The failure mechanism involved formation of localized plasticity, which caused topography changes on the free surfaces of the metal, leading to open circuit eventually taking place by melting at a region of severely reduced cross-sectional area. Both aluminum and copper responded to power cycling by deforming in a manner highly dependent upon variations in grain size and orientation. Isolated patches of damage appeared early within individual grains or clusters of grains, as determined by a quasi in situ scanning electron microscopy and automated electron backscatter diffraction measurement. With increased cycling, the extent of damage became more severe and widespread. We document some examples of the types of damage that mechanically confined interconnects exhibited when subjected to thousands of thermal cycles, including growth and re-orientation of grains in a systematic manner. We observed in the case of Al-1Si certain grains increasing by nearly an order of magnitude in size, and reorienting by greater than 30°. The suitability of electrical methods for accelerated testing of mechanical reliability is also discussed.
The Half Has Never Been Told: Slavery and the Making of American Capitalism: New York: Basic Books, 522 pp., $21.99, ISBN 978-0-465-04966-0, Publication Date: October 2016

Was wealth extracted through chattel slavery the primary mechanism of nineteenth-century American economic development? This increasingly fashionable argument sits at the heart of the New History o...
[Establishment the method for polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and polychlorinated dibenzofurans determination in human serum].

Objective To establish the determination method for polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and polychlorinated dibenzofurans(PCDD/Fs) in human serum, and further to provide an operable and scientific determination protocal and basis for conducting human health risk assessment for PCDD/Fs. Methods The serum samples were pretreated by C18 column solid phase extraction, acid silica gel column and activated carbon column purification, separated by DB-5 MS capillary column(60 m×0. 25 mm×0. 25 μm), and PCDD/Fs was quantitative analyzed by high resolution mass spectrometry. Results The method detection limit was in the range of 0. 35-3. 26 pg/g lipid. This method was further validated using international serum standard reference material sample SRM 1958. According to the reference mass fraction values given for SRM 1958, the concentrations of 17 PCDD/Fs monomers were all in the range of reference mass fraction values, and the relative standard deviation was 2%-19%(n=3). This method was further applied to determination PCDD/Fs in actual serum of human body. The result showed that the recovery rate of isotope labeled PCDD/Fs internal standards were in the range of 61%-135%. Conclusion The performance of the method is highly sensitive, stable and highly accurate, which meets the requirements for the determination of PCDD/Fs in human serum and the method can be applied to human health risk assessment for PCDD/Fs in the future.
A New Cost-Effective Consolidated Converter for Small Hybrid Electric Aircraft

This work proposes a new consolidated DC-DC converter with minimum components and an efficient energy management scheme (EMS) focused on the integration of hybrid energy sources for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). The proposed consolidated converter has a characteristic to operate in multiple conditions depending upon the flight mission requirements. The converter is efficiently capable of harvesting the maximum power from the solar panel, and battery in all working situations. In addition, the converter can perform as a PFC converter as well during the plug-in charging (PC) mode of the battery. The proposed converter can minimize a component count having step-up and step-down operation capability depending upon the mission necessity. The proposed system employs a permanent magnet brushless DC (BLDC) motor as a propulsion motor due to its various well-known advantages and unique features. The system is modeled in MATLAB/Simulink for offline simulation first. Then, the system is validated using a real-time hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) test bench.
Pattern-avoiding (0,1)-matrices and bases of permutation matrices

Abstract We investigate pattern-avoiding n × n ( 0 , 1 ) -matrices with emphasis on patterns of length 3: p q r -avoiding where { p , q , r } ⊆ { 1 , 2 , … , n } . We show that all such maximal ( 0 , 1 ) -matrices contain the same number of 1’s, and their structure is determined. We then show that the set of p q r -avoiding n × n permutation matrices span the linear space of dimension ( n − 1 ) 2 + 1 generated by the n × n permutation matrices and determine a corresponding basis for each p , q , r .
Establishment's Political Priority to Free Exercise

American law is beset by disagreement about the First Amendment. Progressive scholars are attacking the venerable liberal view that First Amendment rights must not be constricted to secure communal, political benefits. To prioritize rights, they say, reflects an unjust inflation of individual interest over our common political commitments. These disagreements afflict the Religion Clauses as well. Critics claim that religious exemption has become more important than the values of disestablishment that define the polity. Free exercise exemption, they argue, has subordinated establishment. This Article contests these views. The fundamental rules and norms constituting the political regime—what the Article calls “the establishment”—has now, and has always had, political priority to rights of exemption from it. This basic claim may be narrowed to the issue of church and state, but it is simply a more focused version of the same thing: the establishment’s civil religion—the set of transcendent, church-state propositions that supports the political regime’s legitimacy and authority—has political priority to rights of exemption from it. Narrowed further, the basic claim also reflects the dynamics of Religion Clause doctrine: religious exemption’s contemporary ascendance is an epiphenomenal consequence of the civil religion dismantling effected by the Supreme Court’s Religion Clause doctrine in the twentieth century and consolidated by the Court in the twenty first. Though today’s most divisive law and religion controversies often take surface-level legal shape as conflicts about free exercise exemption, their deeper source is a long-gestating transformation in the nature of the American political regime’s civil religion establishment. Today’s free exercise cases are the latest skirmishes in yesterday’s disestablishment wars. They reflect disagreements over how best to characterize the work of the dismantlers, as well as efforts toward consolidation of that work to achieve a new civil religion regime. And what they show is that in twenty-first century America, just as ever, establishment still takes political priority to free exercise.
The retrosplenial cortex as a possible "sensory integration" area: A neural network modeling approach of the differential outcomes effect in negative patterning.

Abstract We explored the hypothesis that learning a Pavlovian negative patterning task would be facilitated when training with differential, as opposed to non-differential, reinforcing outcomes. Two groups of rats received pairings of one visual and one auditory stimulus with food reward when these stimuli were presented on separate training trials, but without reward when both stimuli were presented on simultaneous stimulus compound trials (V+, A+, AV-; similar to an XOR problem). For Group Differential, each stimulus was separately paired with distinctively tasting food rewards, whereas for Group Non-Differential each stimulus was randomly paired with both food reward types across different stimulus element trials. We observed that rats learned the negative patterning task more rapidly and effectively when trained with differential outcomes. These data support a multi-layered connectionist model introduced by Delamater (2012) in which a multi-modal processing structure plays the role of a “sensory integration” area like that hypothesized for the retrosplenial cortex by Dave Bucci and his colleagues (e.g., Todd, Fournier, & Bucci, 2019). We discuss how such a region may develop different “negative occasion setting” and “configural inhibition” mechanisms in solving negative patterning and related tasks.
Effect of supporting layer materials on performances of piezoelectric cantilevers

In this paper, a performance comparison between several piezoelectric cantilevers sharing similar piezoelectric patches but having different supporting structures is carried out. It is indeed known that supporting structure material affects the power output of the device through structural damping and position of the elastic axis, whereas stiffness and mass per unit length have an influence on the modal frequencies. For this reason, three different metallic materials (brass, aluminum and steel) and a bioplastic (PLA) are chosen, the latter being 3D printed. 3D printing guarantees an easy prototyping of the cantilever plate and its clamping block, allowing for innovative shapes and a completely sustainable production of piezoelectrics once lead-free solutions for the piezoelectric will be economically affordable. The comparison primary concerns the voltage-to-acceleration frequency response function, focusing on the first bending mode response, and then takes into account electric power output per volume of the ceramic layer of the different devices. A comparison between the most performing of the considered harvesters and a commercial on-the-shelf device is finally carried out, demonstrating how the support layer choice can significantly influence the energy harvester performance.
Marginal employment and health in Germany and the United Kingdom: Does unstable employment predict health?

In der Studie werden potentielle gesundheitliche Folgen prekarer Beschaftigungsverhaltnisse einschlieslich Zeitarbeit und Teilzeitbeschaftigung untersucht. Ausgangspunkt sind die wachsenden Befurchtungen in Europa, das befristete Beschaftigungsverhaltnisse und andere Formen prekarer Beschaftigung soziale Ungleichheit befordern konnten. Daten der Jahre 1991 bis 1993 des Household-Panel-Comparability-Projekts wurden mittels logistischer Regressionsmodelle fur Deutschland (11.980 Personen) und Grosbritannien (8.729 Personen) analysiert. Die Kategorie 'Gesundheit' wurde als einzige Variable des von den Befragten selbstwahrgenommenen Gesundheitszustands herangezogen.
Alterations in protein kinase C isoenzyme expression and autophosphorylation during the progression of pressure overload-induced left ventricular hypertrophy

Cardiomyocytes express several isoenzymes of protein kinase C (PKC), which as a group have been implicated in the induction of left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) and its transition to heart failure. Individual PKC isoenzymes also require transphosphorylation and autophosphorylation for enzymatic activity. To determine whether PKC isoenzyme expression and autophosphorylation are altered during LVH progression in vivo, suprarenal abdominal aortic coarctation was performed Sprague-Dawley rats. Quantitative Western blotting was performed on LV tissue 1, 8 and 24 weeks after aortic banding, using antibodies specific for total PKCα, PKCδ and PKCe, and their C-terminal autophosphorylation sites. Aortic banding produced sustained hypertension and gradually developing LVH that progressed to diastolic heart failure over time. PKCe levels and autophosphorylation were not significantly different from sham-operated controls during any stage of LVH progression. PKCα expression levels were also unaffected during the induction of LVH, but increased 3.2 ± 0.8 fold during the transition to heart failure. In addition, there was a high degree of correlation between PKCα levels and the degree of LVH in 24 week banded animals. However, autophosphorylated PKCα was not increased at any time point. In contrast, PKCδ autophosphorylation was increased prior to the development of LVH, and also during the transition to heart failure. The increased PKCδ autophosphorylation in 1 week banded rats was not accompanied by an increase in total PKCδ, whereas total PKCδ levels were markedly increased (6.0 ± 1.7 fold) in 24 week banded animals. Furthermore, both phosphorylated and total PKCδ levels were highly correlated with the degree of LVH in 24 week banded rats. In summary, we provide indirect evidence to indicate that PKCδ may be involved in the induction of pressure overload LVH, whereas both PKCδ and PKCα may be involved in the transition to heart failure.
Aerodynamic Benefit of Aircraft Formation Flight

The improved aerodynamic efficiency of formation flight is a result of induced drag reductions when multiple wings fly in close lateral proximity to one another to take advantage of the upwash fields of neighboring wings. The spacing in the streamwise direction, however, can be sufficiently large for safe flight operations. Maximum drag benefits are seen when neighboring wings in a formation have a lateral overlap of approximately 10% of the span. Theoretical studies of elliptically loaded wings in formation show that induced drag reduction ranges from 44% for two wings to 81% for 25 wings. V-shaped formations, often seen in flocks of migrating birds, result in equal distribution of the drag benefit amongst all the individuals. Formation flight has the potential to result in significantly reduced fuel burn even when applied to existing aircraft and routes. Keywords: aerodynamics; induced drag; drag reduction; formation flight; bird flight; flocking
You and Me Against the World: Marriage and Divorce from Creditors' Perspective, in Reconceiving the Family: Critique on the American Law Institute's Principles of the Law of Family Dissolution

The Principles of the Law of Family Dissolution addresses the financial rights and obligations of family participants with respect to each other. But, legal regulation of families affects more than just family participants. It affects relationships with outsiders such as credit card issuers, tort claimants, taxing authorities, and medical care providers. Although the Principles expressly do not address these non-family relationships, the subjects the Principles do address necessarily affect creditors in ways that may be surprising. This chapter shows that family law and creditors' rights are inescapably related. Part I explains how two or more persons can collaborate to shield wealth from their creditors and how creditors can protect themselves from this behavior. Part II explains some of the ways marital and divorce law facilitate wealth-shielding behavior. Part III makes some observations about the Principles' potential effect on the balance between the property rights of adults in marital or cohabiting relationships inter se and the rights of their creditors. To understand the full impact of the Principles, we must consider creditors' perspective. Indeed, only when we take into account how creditors will perceive changes in regulation of marriage and families, can we fully appreciate the social impact of the proposed regulation.
Knowledge-based feature generation

ABSTRACT The instance description language of machine learning algorithms is usually crafted by humans. This paper describes a method of automatically enriching an instance description language with new, problem-specific terms. The method is independent of any particular learning algorithm or concept description language. Instead, it is guided by whatever domain-specific information is available, such as a search problem specification. An example shows how two useful new terms can be created for the n-queens problem.
Novel mutations of Escherichia coli that produce recombinogenic lesions in DNA. V. Recombinogenic plasmids from arl mutants of Escherichia coli are unusually sensitive to nuclease S1 and partially deficient in cytosine methylation at C-C-(A/T)-G-G sequences.

Two novel phenotypes previously associated with arl mutations of Escherichia coli, increased frequencies of genetic recombination and unusual sensitivity of DNA to the single-strand-specific nuclease S1, have been defined most completely by the properties of λ bacteriophages grown on arl bacteria (Arl− phages). We now find that plasmids maintained in arl mutants (Arl− plasmids) exhibit elevated recombination frequencies, unusual sensitivity to nuclease S1 (in a limited number of regions) and a new Arl phenotype, partially deficient methylation of the inner cytosine at C-C-(A/T)-G-G sequences. A variety of Arl− plasmids (all pBR322 derivatives) show elevated recombination (4 to 10-fold) by three different assays (frequencies of homomultimers and of heteromultimers, efficiency of intramolecular recombination). Plasmids from arl bacteria (after conversion to linear form) are nicked by nuclease S1 about 0.7 times per duplex; Arl+ plasmids are nuclease S1-resistant. Restriction endonuclease EcoRII (recognition sequence, C-C-(A/T)-G-G) cuts Arl− plasmid DNA more readily than Arl+ DNA, but Arl− plasmids are still more EcoRII-resistant than Dcm− plasmids (from E. coli dcm mutants, which lack the chromosomal cytosine methylase; recognition sequence, also C-C-(A/T)-G-G). By chromatographic analyses, Arl− plasmid DNA contains less 5-methylcytosine than Arl+ (0.07% versus 0.15%). although the 6-methyladenine content is the same (0.5mol%).
Heterogeneous maximal-throughput bursty traffic model with application to packet switches

The paper presents an analysis of a discrete-time Markov-modulated process for generating heterogeneous bursty traffic in input-queued switches. The goals of the model described are two fold. First, it constitutes an expansion of the classic ON/OFF process to address scenarios in which multiple queues receive bursts from a shared input stream. Second, in concert with the first goal, it enables 100% link utilization (hence maximal traffic generation throughput) by avoiding the mandatory OFF slots introduced by classic ON/OFF models. This work is especially valuable in evaluating the performance of packet switching fabrics under bursty conditions
Modeling Crack Propagation in Polycrystalline Alloys Using a Variational Multiscale Cohesive Method

Crack propagation in polycrystalline grains is analyzed using a novel multiscale polycrystalline model. The approach combines reduced order descriptors of microstructures with explicit representation of polycrystals at critical areas (eg. crack tips). For the critical areas, refined meshes are employed to discretize each crystal. The crack propagation in the microstructure is calculated using the variational multiscale method which allows for arbitrary transgranular and intergranular crack paths. The computational load is reduced substantially by combining probabilistic representation of the macroscale problem with exact resolution of the crystals at the crack tips. One example of grain boundary failure is demonstrated in this paper, showing exceptional mesh convergence and efficiency of the numerical approach.
A Coupled Lumped-Parameter and Distributed Network Model for Cerebral Pulse-Wave Hemodynamics

The cerebral circulation is unique in its ability to maintain blood flow to the brain under widely varying physiologic conditions. Incorporating this autoregulatory response is necessary for cerebral blood flow (CBF) modeling, as well as investigations into pathological conditions. We discuss a one-dimensional (1D) nonlinear model of blood flow in the cerebral arteries coupled to autoregulatory lumped-parameter (LP) networks. The LP networks incorporate intracranial pressure (ICP), cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), and cortical collateral blood flow models. The overall model is used to evaluate changes in CBF due to occlusions in the middle cerebral artery (MCA) and common carotid artery (CCA). Velocity waveforms at the CCA and internal carotid artery (ICA) were examined prior and post MCA occlusion. Evident waveform changes due to the occlusion were observed, providing insight into cerebral vasospasm monitoring by morphological changes of the velocity or pressure waveforms. The role of modeling of collateral blood flows through cortical pathways and communicating arteries was also studied. When the MCA was occluded, the cortical collateral flow had an important compensatory role, whereas the communicating arteries in the circle of Willis (CoW) became more important when the CCA was occluded. To validate the model, simulations were conducted to reproduce a clinical test to assess dynamic autoregulatory function, and results demonstrated agreement with published measurements.
WS-EPM: Web services for enterprise project management

This work presents a new service-oriented architecture for enterprise project management that integrates business process, human resources and project management within an enterprise or across the value chain network. In the proposed WS-EPM framework, the project resources include business processes, skilled people, physical resources, control policies, and so forth. The project resources used in WS-EPM are described by WSResource properties language. In addition, the coordination of project resources is guided by a set of operations modeled by business process execution language for Web services (BPEL4WS). At the end of this paper, we present an industry application scenario that leverages the proposed WS-EPM for achieving maximum ROI with limited resources.
Alternate formulation of enhanced backscattering as phase conjugation and diffraction: derivation and experimental observation

Enhanced backscattering (EBS), also known as weak localization of light, is derived using the Huygens–Fresnel principle and backscattering is generally shown to be the sum of an incoherent baseline and a phase conjugated portion of the incident wave that forms EBS. The phase conjugated portion is truncated by an effective aperture described by the probability function P(s) of coherent path-pair separations. P(s) is determined by the scattering properties of the medium and so characterization of EBS can be used for metrology of scattering materials. A three dimensional intensity peak is predicted in free space at a point conjugate to the source and is experimentally observed.
Environmental and accident dosimetry using the pre-dose TL technique

Abstract Application of the pre-dose technique to bricks, tiles and other ceramic materials enables retrospective dosimetry in a variety of environmental and accident situations. Uncertainties in various aspects of the dosimetry process and their effects on dose estimation are discussed. Methods of sample preparation and analysis currently in use in the Utah laboratory are described.
Southwestern internal medicine conference: drug therapy in the management of acute renal failure

Pharmacologic intervention aimed at altering the natural history of acute renal failure is a routine practice without scientific support of efficacy. Oliguria has become a separate disease entity with an apparent disregard for the underlying condition that caused it. Volume expansion is clearly beneficial in preventing many volume depleted patients from progressing to acute renal failure. While mannitol and furosemide have been used to "convert" oliguric acute renal failure to the more easy to manage non-oliguric acute renal failure, published reports suggest that responders were not as ill as non-responders. The use of dopamine to increase urine flow in patients with established acute renal failure is the current fashion, but there is little evidence that this drug raises the glomerular filtration rate or shortens the course of acute renal failure. These pharmacologic therapies increase the complexity and cost of care with little tangible evidence of benefit to the patient or the physician caring for the patient.
Neurofilament subunits undergo more rapid translocation within retinas than in optic axons

Axonal transport of neurofilaments (NFs) has long been considered to be regulated by phosphorylation, although recent studies have challenged this hypothesis. Our prior analyses of axonal transport in optic axons demonstrated two distinct NF transport rates that spatially and temporally correlated with changes in NF phosphorylation. In our prior studies, we focused on subunits already within axons. Re-examination of these data using additional approaches and examining additional earlier time points have allowed us to calculate rates at which subunits transport out of retinas and into optic axons. NF subunits were radiolabeled by intravitreal injection of 35S-methionine. NF axonal transport was monitored by following the location of the front of radiolabeled subunits immunoprecipitated from retinas and segments of optic axons, which demonstrated four distinct transport rates. Subunits within retinas exhibited the fastest rate, and underwent a 50% slowing upon exiting the retina and entering optic axons. While this slowing could be due to a regional caliber increase and/or regional increase in NF phosphorylation within the first segment, prior studies indicated that inhibition of phosphatase activities increased NF phosphorylation within retinas and slowed NF subunit exit from retinas to a degree similar to that normally observed within the first segment of axons, suggesting that regional phosphorylation played a major role in slowing of NF transport following their exit from the retina. These findings provide additional support for the notion that phosphorylation regulates NF axonal transport.
Side-Chain Effects on the Conductivity, Morphology, and Thermoelectric Properties of Self-Doped Narrow-Band-Gap Conjugated Polyelectrolytes

This contribution reports a series of anionic narrow-band-gap self-doped conjugated polyelectrolytes (CPEs) with π-conjugated cyclopenta-[2,1-b;3,4-b′]-dithiophene-alt-4,7-(2,1,3-benzothiadiazole) backbones, but with different counterions (Na+, K+, vs tetrabutylammonium) and lengths of alkyl chains (C4 vs C3). These materials were doped to provide air-stable, water-soluble conductive materials. Solid-state electrical conductivity, thermopower, and thermal conductivity were measured and compared. CPEs with smaller counterions and shorter side chains exhibit higher doping levels and form more ordered films. The smallest countercation (Na+) provides thin films with higher electrical conductivity, but a comparable thermopower, compared to those with larger counterions, thereby leading to a higher power factor. Chemical modifications of the pendant side chains do not influence out of plane thermal conductivity. These studies introduce a novel approach to understand thermoelectric performance by structural modi...
Rotational isomerism in molecules of genetic interest

Abstract In this paper the role of Raman Spectroscopy and Circular Dichroism in the determination of the secondary structure of nucleic acids as a function of base composition and interaction with platinum anticancer drugs is discussed. It is pointed out that these various differences in secondary structure occur because of different rotational isomers which are present in these biologically active large molecules.
A fast pulsar in SN1987A

We have examined the possibility that rapid weakly magnetized pulsars might be formed in Type II supernovae such as SN 1987 A in the Large Magellanic Cloud. Since these supernovae are the expected progenitors of the strongly magnetized galactic disc pulsars, it is then necessary to assume that the magnetic field grows rapidly and saturates at about 10 12 G. Given that the Crab pulsar already has a strong field after 900 yr, there is only a short time in which to grow the field. We show that the fast pulsar does not have time to spin down significantly during the growth period, with the result that we will have for a while a fast strongly magnetized pulsar, with a luminosity 1000 times that of the Crab pulsar. This bright phase should last several hundred years, roughly the interval between supernovae, which raises the question why they have not yet been detected
A characterization of competition graphs of arbitrary digraphs

Let D = (K/;A) be a digraph which may have loops, i.e., arcs of the form (x,x). The competition graph of D is the undirected graph G obtained as follows. V(G) = I/ and {x, y> EE(G) if and only if for some z E V, arcs (x, z) and (y, z) are in A. Competition graphs were introduced by Cohen [1968] in connection with problems of ecology. Cohen was primarily interested in the case where D is an acyclic digraph. This case is also discussed by Cohen [1977, 19781, Dutton and Brigham [1983], Lundgren and Maybee [ 19831, Opsut [1982], and Roberts [1978a,b]. Dutton and Brigham [ 19831 introduce the study of competition graphs of digraphs D which may not be acyclic. A notion similar to that of competition graph arises when D is a bipartite digraph with all arcs heading from a set S to a set T. The subgraph of the competition graph which is generated by vertices in S is the confusion graph which arises in the study of communication over noisy channels (Shannon [1956], Roberts [1978b]). Here, the set S is a transmission alphabet and the set T is a receiving alphabet, and an arc from s to t means that s can be received as t. A similar construction gives rise to the conflict graph which is relevant to the problem of assigning channels to radio or television transmitters (Cozzens and Roberts [1982], Hale (19801, Opsut and Roberts [1981]). Here, the set S is taken to be a set of transmitters and the set T to be a set of locations, and an arc from s to t means that transmitter s can be heard at location 1. Dutton and Brigham characterize the competition graphs arising from digraphs D which may have cycles and which also may have loops. We shall obtain a similar characterization in the case that there are no loops. Let m(G) be the smallest number of cliques (not necessarily maximal) of G which cover all edges of G. Orlin [I9771 and Kou, et al. [1978] prove that computation of m(G) is an NP-complete problem. Dutton and Brigham [1983] prove the following theorem.
Contribution of afterload, hypertrophy and geometry to left ventricular ejection fraction in aortic valve stenosis, pure aortic regurgitation and idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy.

Abstract To investigate the relation of left ventricular (LV) afterload, hypertrophy, geometry and systolic pump function, 17 normal persons, 24 patients with aortic stenosis (AS), 20 with aortic regurgitation (AR) and 15 with idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy (DC) were studied. Two-dimensional echograms were used to assess end-systolic meridional and circumferential stresses and their ratio, LV mass, relative wall thickness ( h R ratio) and the ratio of LV minor axis to length, used as an index of shape. Independently obtained ejection fraction (EF) was used to determine which patients had normal (EF ≥ 55%) and which had depressed (EF h R ratio (0.53 vs 0.73, p h R ratio (0.28 vs 0.38, p
An investigation of the thermal and thermo‐oxidative degradation of polybenzoxazines with a reactive functional group

The thermal behavior of a series of polybenzoxazines based on 3-amino- phenylacetylene has been investigated. The effect of reactive amine on the thermal cleavage of the Mannich base is examined under both inert and oxidative environments. It has been shown that the thermal stability of polybenzoxazines is substantially improved by the reactive amine. Various biphenols are found to have insignificant effect on the thermal stability of this series of polybenzoxazines. These nitrogen containing phenolic resins are nonflammable polymers. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci B: Polym Phys 37: 647- 659, 1999
A unified simulation of the filling and postfilling stages in injection molding. Part I: Formulation

This study employs a unified theoretical model to simulate the filling and postfilling stages of the injection-molding process. Implementation of such a model is based on a hybrid finite-element/finite-difference numerical solution of the generalized Hele-Shaw flow of a compressible viscous fluid under nonisothermal conditions. The shear viscosity of the polymeric material is represented by a Cross model for the shear-rate dependence and a WLF-type functional form for the temperature and pressure dependence, whereas the specific volume is modeled in terms of a double-domain Tait equation. The analysis also handles variable specific heat and thermal conductivity of the polymer as a function of temperature. Complex thin parts of variable thickness can be modeled and discretized by flat, triangular finite elements which may have arbitrary orientation in three-dimensional space, whereas runners and possible round pins or bosses in the part are represented as one-dimensional circular-tube elements. A control-volume scheme is employed that leads to automatic melt-front advancement during the cavity-filling stage.
Frustration reactions of normal and neurotic persons.

(1942). Frustration Reactions of Normal and Neurotic Persons. The Journal of Psychology: Vol. 13, No. 1, pp. 3-19.
Short-Term Response of Subadult White Sturgeon to Hopper Dredge Disposal Operations

Abstract The effect of dredged-material disposal operations on the behavior of seven white sturgeon Acipenser transmontanus (50–101 cm fork length) was examined by analysis of the movements and depth use of these fish before, during, and after a series of hopper dredge disposal operations in the lower Columbia River. Analyses of fish locations showed that 12 flow-lane disposal operations within a 24-h period had minimal effect on subadult white sturgeon behavior; six of the seven fish showed slight attraction to the disposal area during disposals, and one fish increased its distance from the disposal area. The core area for all fish combined shifted toward the disposal area during disposals. In the 24 h after completion of the disposal operations the fish core areas shifted back toward those areas occupied before the disposals. The rates of movement, depths used, and diel movement patterns of the white sturgeon showed little change over all periods, suggesting that natural behaviors were not altered durin...
A LIVING ORGANISM MORPHOLOGICALLY COMPARABLE TO THE PRECAMBRIAN GENUS KAKABEKIA

A living species of the fossil genus Kakabekia, isolated from a soil sample secured at Harlech Castle, Wales, is described. It resembles the type species K. umbellata Barghoorn in all major respects: tripartite structure consisting of mantle, stiple and basal enlargement, and size range of 5-15 M. Variations in the cultured form include mantle margin (entire to scalloped), mantle radial structure (6- to 8-parted, but sometimes 5- to 9-parted) and concentric rings. The name K. barghoorniana is proposed in recognition of the discoverer and author of the fossil genus.
A retrospective pooled analysis of duloxetine safety in 23 983 subjects

ABSTRACTObjective: The safety and tolerability of duloxetine for major depressive disorder (MDD), generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), diabetic peripheral neuropathic pain (DPNP), fibromyalgia, and lower urinary tract disorders (LUTD) (including female stress urinary incontinence [SUI] and other LUTDs) has been established in individual clinical studies. The objective of this manuscript is to characterize the overall safety profile of duloxetine, regardless of indication, based on data from the duloxetine exposures integrated safety database.Research design and methods: The duloxetine exposures integrated safety database was examined using pooled data from 23 983 patients randomized to receive duloxetine in 64 studies for MDD, GAD, DPNP, fibromyalgia, or LUTDs. Evaluated aspects of drug safety included treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs), adverse events leading to discontinuation, serious adverse events (SAEs), clinical laboratory tests, vital signs, and electrocardiograms.Results: Common TEAEs inclu...
A dentist's social responsibility to diagnose elder abuse

Because of the high prevalence of dental disease and consequent need for dental care in the elderly, dentists are in frequent contact with the elderly, thus providing an opportunity for realizing their social obligation to become more involved in diagnosing and reducing elder abuse. Current estimates of the incidence of elder abuse in the US indicate that nearly 10% of the elderly population is affected, and this incidence rate is steadily increasing. Problems of vague definitions regarding abuse, elusiveness of the problem, and limited interest on the part of health care professionals may have deterred dentists from more involvement in the past. Apathy, tunnel vision, and vested interests of dental professionals may also contribute to the poor oral health of the elderly and consequently decrease the elders' quality of life. However, by developing a clear understanding of possible etiologies and by knowing physical and behavioral indicators of abuse, dentists can better fulfill their moral and social obligations and greatly reduce the incidence of elder abuse. Language: en
High Performance Liquid Chromatographic Analysis of Erythromycin and Related Impurities in Pharmaceutical Formulations

Abstract In the last few years, several liquid chromatographic methods for the analysis of erythromycin have been published. Until recently, most of the published methods were either complex or lacked the selectivity needed for the assay of erythromycin in the presence of erythromycin derivatives and impurities. Recently, we developed a significantly improved C18 liquid chromatographic method for the assay of erythromycin. In comparison, our method is simpler, more rugged, faster, and more sensitive and selective than other published methods. In this investigation, the developed method was successfully used for the assay of erythromycin in several pharmaceutical formulations.
Bacterial Destruction of Nicotinic Acid

Little is known of the capacity of bacteria to accomplish the destruction of vitamins. Most microbiological work dealing with accessory factors has been concerned with the nutritive requirements of various bacteria, yeasts or higher fungi, with the use of microorganisms for vitamin assay procedures or, more rarely, with their use as "tools" to study the function of vitamins. The commonly accepted opinion of the nutritional use of a vitamin by microorganisms, in those cases where the function has been sufficiently studied to afford an insight into the matter, is that the accessory factor is appropriated as such by the cell and incorporated into an enzyme-coenzyme complex. The process is regarded as involving little chemical change in the vitamin molecule other than that concerned with the
Tissue distribution of an endogenous ligand to the NA,K ATPase molecule

A variety of evidence indicates the presence of a circulating ligand to the Na,K ATPase molecule that is involved in the regulation of extracellular sodium metabolism. To examine the potential role of endogenous ligands to the Na,K ATPase molecule in the regulation of intracellular sodium metabolism, the tissue distribution of digitalis-like activity was quantitated in several brain regions and peripheral organs. The digitalis-like activity of desalted and delipidated extracts of tissue was widely distributed and produced a displacement of tritiated ouabain that was parallel to the displacement produced by cold ouabain. These results suggest that tissue contains an endogenous ligand to the Na,K ATPase molecule and that this ligand may regulate intracellular sodium metabolism in an autocoid-like manner.
Effects of PentaLyte and Voluven hemodilution on plasma coagulation kinetics in the rabbit: role of thrombin-fibrinogen and factor XIII-fibrin polymer interactions.

BACKGROUND Hydroxyethyl starch (HES) administration has resulted in decreased hemostasis and fibrinogen (FI)-thrombin-(FIIa)-Factor XIII (FXIII) interactions. I proposed to determine the hemostatic effect of hemodilution with PentaLyte (6% HES, mean molecular weight 220 kDa) and Voluven (6% HES, 130 kDa). METHODS Rabbits were intravenously administered 20 ml/kg PentaLyte or Voluven (n = 8 per fluid) over 10 min. Plasma was obtained prior to, 1 min and 1 h after hemodilution. Thrombelastography was performed, with clot initiation (R, sec), clot propagation (alpha, degrees), and clot strength (shear elastic modulus, G, dynes/cm2) determined over 20 min. Celite-activated samples had either no additions or addition of FI, FIIa or activated FXIII (FXIIIa) to restore protein content to pre-diluted values. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS While there were no significant differences between the groups, R significantly decreased 1 h after hemodilution compared with values observed before and 1 min after hemodilution, whereas alpha and G significantly decreased 1 min after hemodilution and then significantly, but only partially, increased 1 h after hemodilution compared with pre-dilution values. Addition of FI, FIIa and FXIIIa significantly decreased R in both groups. alpha and G 1 min after hemodilution were significantly enhanced by FI, FIIa, FXIIIa in both groups; however, 1 h after hemodilution, rabbits administered PentaLyte had alpha and G enhanced only by FI and FXIIIa addition, whereas animals administered Voluven had alpha and G significantly enhanced by FI addition. PentaLyte and Voluven hemodilution initially diminishes FIIa-FI and FXIIIa-fibrin, but within an hour primarily inhibit FXIIIa-fibrin interactions in the rabbit.