cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Characterization of a Knock-In Mouse Model with a Huntingtin Exon 1 Deletion.

Background The Huntingtin (HTT) N-terminal domains encoded by Huntingtin's (HTT) exon 1 consist of an N17 domain, the polyglutamine (polyQ) stretch and a proline-rich region (PRR). These domains are conserved in mammals and have been hypothesized to modulate HTT's functions in the developing and adult CNS, including DNA damage repair and autophagy. Objective This study longitudinally characterizes the in vivo consequences of deleting the murine Htt N-terminal domains encoded by Htt exon 1. Methods Knock-in mice with a deletion of Htt exon 1 sequences (HttΔE1) were generated and bred into the C57BL/6J congenic genetic background. Their behavior, DNA damage response, basal autophagy, and glutamatergic synapse numbers were evaluated. Results Progeny from HttΔE1/+ intercrosses are born at the expected Mendelian frequency but with a distorted male to female ratio in both the HttΔE1/ΔE1 and Htt +/+ offspring. HttΔE1/ΔE1 adults exhibit a modest deficit in accelerating rotarod performance, and an earlier increase in cortical and striatal DNA damage with elevated neuronal pan-nuclear 53bp1 levels compared to Htt +/+ mice. However, a normal response to induced DNA damage, normal levels of basal autophagy markers, and no significant differences in corticocortical, corticostriatal, thalamocortical, or thalamostriatal synapses numbers were observed compared to controls. Conclusion Our results suggest that deletion of the Htt N-terminus encoded by the Htt exon 1 does not affect Htt's critical role during embryogenesis, but instead, may have a modest effect on certain motor tasks, basal levels of DNA damage in the brain, and Htt function in the testis.
Is Metallica Fractal? A Case Study

The heavy metal band Metallica’s performance history provides evidence for a particular theory of how power law distributions in data are formed.
Optimal Dispatch of Energy Storage Systems for Harmonic Mitigation and Power Factor Correction

Energy storage systems (ESS) can provide multiple services to the electric grid, each with a unique charge/discharge profile. One category of such services comprises power quality applications, where ESS is deployed to protect downstream customers from events or disturbances that might result in poor power quality. This paper analyzes ESS usage to simultaneously mitigate two power quality issues: harmonic distortion and low power factor. Techniques for solving each one of these issues are already known by utilities; however, the main contribution of this paper is the utilization of a single asset to mitigate both power quality issues simultaneously. An optimization model was developed to determine the ESS dispatch that would satisfy the requirements for these stacked applications. Through case studies of a medium-size commercial customer, it was demonstrated that ESS can, indeed, correct and/or mitigate poor power quality issues.
Space, Infinity and Indivisibility: Newton on the Creation of Matter

About 1668 Newton composed a metaphysical treatise now entitled De Gravitatione et Aequipondio Fluidorum.1 Despite its stated subject, the work develops an account of the nature of space, time, matter and motion. Newton’s immedicate motivation is a desire to refute what are for him the chief assumptions of Descartes’ natural philosophy. He consequently embarks on an examination of the central doctrines of the latter’s Principia Philosophiae. The result is the systematic establishment in De Gravitatione of the basic principles of Newton’s own metaphysics of nature.
Las Cochinillas de Colombia (Hemiptera: Coccoidea)

egun el banco de datos de cochinillas ScaleNet (BenDov et al. 2001) existen aproximadamente 7780 especies descritas hasta el momento. Las cochinillas o coccidos, incluyen todos los miembros de la superfamilia Coccoidea, y esta compuesta de unas 22 familias (Ben-Dov et al. 2001). Estos insectos estan relacionados con los pulgones (Aphidoidea), moscas blancas (Aleyrodoidea) y psilidos (Psylloidea) (Hodgson 1994). Las cochinillas son insectos pequenos, por lo general de menos de 5 mm, y su taxonomia se basa mayormente en caracteres microscopicos de la hembra adulta.
Design of the high frequency electromagnetic behavior of planar inductor for resonant circuits in switching power converters

In this paper a planar inductor based resonant circuit is designed for zero-current switching (ZCS) buck converter. The electromagnetic behavior of the design is analyzed by finite element (FE) methods for EMI interactions. A high frequency model for conducted EMI in the resonant circuit is obtained. To suppress the conducted EMI in the circuit, a method based on the resonant circuit impedance control is proposed. All the results are compared to conventional circuits and improvement in responses were observed and verified through simulation and laboratory experimentation.
Abstract 18108: Effects of a Heart Failure Family Caregiver Intervention on Caregiver Strain and Outcomes

Background and Purpose: Family Caregivers (FCGs) of persons with heart failure (HF) report social, emotional and physical concerns and life changes due to caregiving. Few interventions have addressed the needs of FCGs. This study designed and tested psychoeducational (PsychEd) and psychoeducational plus exercise (PsychEd+EX) interventions against a usual care attention control (UCAC) group for effects on perceived HF FCG caregiver strain (CS) and life changes specifically resulting from providing care. Methods: FCGs of persons with HF (N=127, mean age 55.3 ± 11.5 years, 92% women, 58% African American) were randomized to one of the three groups with data collected at baseline prior to randomization and at 6 months. Both PsychEd and PsychEd+Ex groups attended four weekly sessions focused on HF caregiving and FCG needs, coping, problem-solving, resources, and social support. PsychEd+Ex also received exercise counseling and support through scripted monthly phone calls. UCAC attended one group focused on heal...
Computing Equilibria in Large Games We Play

Describing a game using the standard representation requires information exponential in the number of players. This description complexity is impractical for modeling large games with thousands or millions of players and may also be wasteful when the information required to populate the payoff matrices of the game is unknown, hard to determine, or enjoy high redundancy which would allow for a much more succinct representation. Indeed, to model large games, succinct representations, such as graphical games, have been suggested which save in description complexity by specifying the graph of player-interactions. However, computing Nash equilibria in such games has been shown to be an intractable problem by Daskalakis, Goldberg and Papadimitriou, and whether approximate equilibria can be computed remains an important open problem. We consider instead a different class of succinct games, called anonymous games, in which the payoff of each player is a symmetric function of the actions of the other players; that is, every player is oblivious of the identities of the other players. We argue that many large games of practical interest, such as congestion games, several auction settings, and social phenomena, are anonymous and provide a polynomial time approximation scheme for computing Nash equilibria in these games.
Development of striatal compartmentalization following pre- or postnatal dopamine depletion

Nigrostriatal dopamine (DA) projections terminate in distinct patches during the late prenatal and early postnatal period in the rat. During the first postnatal week, patches of DA fibers overlap with clusters of striatal neurons that share several identified characteristics. The early segregation of striatal cell types into either these patches or the surrounding matrix becomes a permanent organizational feature of the striatum. In order to determine whether the heterogeneous distribution of DA influences the formation of cellular patches, the developmental organization of chemically identifiable cell types was examined in normal rats and in rats DA depleted as infants (0 or 3 d) or in utero (embryonic days 17–18). During the first postnatal week, corresponding patches of DA afferents and substance P (SP)- immunoreactive neurons existed in the striatum of normal animals, and AChE-positive zones overlapped these patches in the lateral striatum. Injection of 6-hydroxydopamine into the lateral ventricles of fetal or infant rats produced a dramatic loss of striatal DA terminals. Neither the patchy distribution of SP-immunoreactive neurons nor the distinctive pattern of AChE staining present during the first 2 postnatal weeks was disrupted. During the third postnatal week, cells immunoreactive for leu-enkephalin or calbindin-D28k were confined to the matrix compartment, and this compartmentalization was also not noticeably changed by pre- or postnatal DA depletion. In adult animals, overlapping patches of leu-enkephalin- and SP-immunoreactive fibers were observed, regardless of whether any DA terminals remained. Thus, the basic organization of the striatal patch and matrix compartments develops normally in the absence of DA innervation through much of the formative period. Although these observations do not completely dismiss the possibility that the first DA afferents to appear in the striatal primordia influence contracted striatal cells to develop the patch phenotype, they suggest that the patchy distribution of DA afferents may be secondary to the early clustering of striatal neurons forming the patch compartment.
Evaluating R-Based Big Data Analytic Frameworks

We study the two approaches, rHadoop and H2O, to intergate R, a popular statistical programming environment, into the Hadoop Big Data ecosystem. Using these approaches and the vanilla implementation of MapReduce to implement the solution to an analytic question for the on-time airline performance data set, we evaluate the differences in runtime performance and elaborate on the causes of these differences based on rHadoop and H2O's design principles.
University of Pennsylvania: description of the University of Pennsylvania system used for MUC-6

Breck Baldwin and Jeff Reynar informally began the University of Pennsylvania's MUC-6 coreference effort in January of 1995. For the first few months, tools were built and the system was extended at weekly 'hack sessions.' As more people began attending these meetings and contributing to the project, it grew to include eight graduate students. While the effort was still informal, Mark Wasson, from Lexis-Nexis, became an advisor to the project. In July, the students proposed to the faculty that we formally participate in the coreference task. By that time, we had developed some of the system's infrastructure and had implemented a simplistic coreference resolution system which resolved proper nouns by means of string matching. After much convincing, the faculty agreed at the end of July that we could formally participate in MUC-6. We then began an intensive effort with full-time participation from Baldwin and Reynar, and part-time efforts from the other authors. In August we were given permission from Yael Ravin of IBM's Information Retrieval group to use the IBM Name Extraction Module [3]. We were also given access to a large acronym dictionary which Peter Flynn maintains for a world wide web site in Iceland (http://curia.ucc.ie/info/net/acronyms/acro.html).
The Pursuit of Certainty: Religious and Cultural Formulations

The Pursuit of Certainty: Religious and Cultural Formulations. Wendy James, ed. London: Routledge Press, 1995. xi + 308 pp., index.
5α-androstane-3β, 17β-diol binds to androgen and estrogen receptors without activating copulatory behavior in female rats

Abstract The ability of the androgen metabolite 5α-androstane-3β, 17β-diol (3β-A-diol) to facilitate copulatory behavior was assessed directly in adult ovariectomized rats. Neither the highest dosage of 5 mg/day for three days, nor 2 mg/day for 15 days could induce lordosis behavior in females that displayed typically high lordosis quotients with low dosages of estradiol (E). Furthermore, prolonged administration of 5α-dihydrotesterone (DHT) induced a low but significant level of male-typical mounting behavior in females, whereas 3β-A-diol administered for 20 days (2 mg/day) had no effect on mounting behavior. However, this reduced androgen metabolite did compete moderately well for DHT and E binding sites on androgen and estrogen receptors respectively in hypothalamic cytosol preparations. We conclude that in spite of its ability to bind to these receptors in the brain 3β-A-diol, a major metabolite of DHT, is totally inert with respect to sexual behavior.
Vanadate and molybdate stimulate the oxidation of NADH by superoxide radical.

Abstract Vanadate or molybdate strongly accelerate the cooxidation of NADH, or of reduced nicotinamide mononucleotide, by the xanthine oxidase plus xanthine reaction. Superoxide dismutase eliminated the effect of vanadate or molybdate, while catalase was without effect. It follows that vanadate or molybdate accelerate the oxidation of dihydropyridines by O2−. A stoichiometry of 4 NADH oxidized per O2− introduced suggests a chain reaction for which a mechanism is proposed. These results provide an explanation for the reported stimulation, by vanadate, of NADH oxidation by biological membranes.
Fokker–Planck and non-linear hydrodynamic equations of an inelastic system of several Brownian particles in a non-equilibrium bath

Abstract The Fokker–Planck equation for the translational modes of an inelastic system of Brownian particles in a non-equilibrium bath of light particles is derived from first principles of statistical mechanics. The bath and internal modes relax on a time scale that is much shorter than that of the translational modes and they are eliminated using time-dependent projection operators techniques and expansions in several small parameters. These small parameters reflect the difference in masses between the Brownian and bath particles, the weak coupling of the bath to the internal modes, the difference in mean bath and Brownian velocities and the macroscopic gradients of the system. The Fokker–Planck equation is expressed in terms of correlation functions over homogeneous local equilibrium averages and is valid up to second order in the smallness parameters and for times greater than the relaxation time of the fast modes. The non-linear hydrodynamic equations for the translational modes are derived using time-dependent projection operators and the effective Liouvillian obtained from the Fokker–Planck equation. The momentum and energy density hydrodynamic equations are not conserved and present terms which reflect the non-equilibrium nature of the bath and of the internal modes, as well as the irreversible processes occurring in the system.
An inference design for fault location in real-time control systems

Abstract We develop a probabilistic comparison-based model and fault-location strategies using statistical inference, namely point and set estimation. Our heuristic distance-based algorithm can efficiently locate the faults with a 1 — α level of confidence. We show how the exponential complexity of the global estimation process for fault location in a real-time system S is simplified using this approach. The complexity of the run-time fault location is O(n) for systems with n units. Fault-free systems can be handled, and there is a high likelihood of distinguishing truly faulty units from those that appear faulty because of the imperfect environment, thus eliminating unnecessary replacements during reconfiguration. Our work is intended to be a practical approach to fault location; it accommodates all the random effects of testing real-time control systems in a general way.
Fluctuating Efforts and Interdependencies in Collaborative Work

We present a dynamical model of cooperative efforts comprised of concurrently performed, interrelated tasks. The model contains a stochastic component to account for temporal fluctuations both in task performance and in the effect of a given unit of work on the project as a whole. We show that as the number of concurrent tasks increases, so does the average completion time. Also, for fixed system size, the dynamics of individual project realizations can exhibit large deviations from the average when fluctuations increase past a certain threshold, causing long delays in completion times. These effects are in agreement with empirical observation. We also show that the negative effects of both large groups and long delays caused by fluctuations may be mitigated by arranging projects in a hierarchical or modular structure. Our model is applicable to any arrangement of interdependent tasks, providing an analytical prediction for the average completion time as well as a numerical threshold for the fluctuation strength beyond which long delays are likely. In conjunction with previous modeling techniques, it thus provides managers with a predictive tool to be used in the design of a project’s architecture.
Inexpensive large area counters using multi-wire proportional chambers☆

Abstract Multi-wire proportional chambers are used as a replacement for conventional large area plastic scintillators. For applications which can tolerate larger time jitters than are obtained from scintillators, the proportional chamber is less expensive and more flexible, particularly in magnetic fields. A technique is described which permits inexpensive mechanical construction by means of lamination of frames from thin sheets. This method of frame construction should be useful for spark chamber frames as well as proportional chambers because it provides rigid, flat frames with no machining.
Bilateral pneumothoraces and subcutaneous emphysema after endoscopic sphincterotomy

Perforation complicates endoscopic sphincterotomy in approximately 1% of cases.1, 2 Generally, the perforation occurs at the site of the sphincterotomy and results in retroperitoneal free air. The diagnosis is usually made (immediately) during the procedure by visualization ofextravasated iodinated contrast material beyond the confines of the common bile duct lumen.3-5 If the perforation is not recognized at immediate postsphincterotomy ductography, it should be suspected or recognized within a few hours of the procedure by the presence of abdominal pain, distension, fever, and leukocytosis as well as by x-ray evidence of retroperitoneal air. Occasionally, CT may be necessary to confirm the presence of a perforation.6-8 We describe an unusual presentation of duodenal perforation occurring during endoscopic sphincterotomy in which retroperitoneal free air tracked into the mediastinum and caused bilateral pneumothoraces and subcutaneous emphysema.
Diagnosis and Orthodontic Treatment of a Patient with Hypothyroidism: Report of Case

A 9-year-old girl was referred for orthodontic treatment. During examination, the condition of her dentition was noted and she was referred to a pediatrician who ordered an endocrine assay. When she was 21, the patient returned to have the orthodontic treatment, which had not been begun previously. Early institution of hypothyroid therapy resulted in normal craniofacial development; delayed eruption of the dentition and a malocclusion were corrected with orthodontic treatment.
Kalirin12 interacts with dynamin

Guanine nucleotide exchange factors (GEFs) and their target Rho GTPases regulate cytoskeletal changes and membrane trafficking. Dynamin, a large force-generating GTPase, plays an essential role in membrane tubulation and fission in cells. Kalirin12, a neuronal RhoGEF, is found in growth cones early in development and in dendritic spines later in development. The IgFn domain of Kalirin12, not present in other Kalirin isoforms, binds dynamin1 and dynamin2. An inactivating mutation in the GTPase domain of dynamin diminishes this interaction and the isolated GTPase domain of dynamin retains the ability to bind Kalirin12. Co-immunoprecipitation demonstrates an interaction of Kalirin12 and dynamin2 in embryonic brain. Purified recombinant Kalirin-IgFn domain inhibits the ability of purified rat brain dynamin to oligomerize in response to the presence of liposomes containing phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate. Consistent with this, expression of exogenous Kalirin12 or its IgFn domain in PC12 cells disrupts clathrin-mediated transferrin endocytosis. Similarly, expression of exogenous Kalirin12 disrupts transferrin endocytosis in cortical neurons. Expression of Kalirin7, a shorter isoform which lacks the IgFn domain, was previously shown to inhibit clathrin-mediated endocytosis; the GTPase domain of dynamin does not interact with Kalirin7. Kalirin12 may play a role in coordinating Rho GTPase-mediated changes in the actin cytoskeleton with dynamin-mediated changes in membrane trafficking.
Overwintering of Trichogramma ostriniae (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae) within target and non-target host eggs

Abstract Trichogramma ostriniae was imported into the USA from China and it continues to be evaluated as a biological control agent against the European corn borer and other lepidopteran pest species. A natural enemy's ability to overwinter is a facet of its biology with important ramifications for biological control and non-target effects. Thus, studies were conducted to examine the ability of the introduced egg parasitoid to survive over winters in central New York State. Eggs of Ostrinia nubilalis, Ephestia kuehniella, Trichoplusia ni, Helicoverpa zea and Utetheisa ornatrix were subjected to parasitism by adult T. ostriniae and then placed out of doors and exposed to winter conditions. For trials initiated in 2003 and 2004, the adult parental wasps were exposed to a diapause-inducing photoperiod and temperature regime in the laboratory; in 2010, parental wasps were conditioned out of doors and prior to the onset of winter conditions. Emergence of their progeny was monitored over time by taking aliquots...
Calculation of stopping powers in ordered ultrathin films

Abstract Because v -layer systems with v = 1,2,3,… are the clear laminar limit of nanoscale technologies, predictive calculation of their properties is an important coming need. Strong quantum size effects (QSE) arise in v -layers from the existence of multiple scale lengths (basically thickness and lattice spacing). A simple electron gas argument shows that QSE will be manifest in stopping. The challenge is that modern crystal and film calculations almost always are based on density functional theory in the local density approximation because it usually predicts the energetically favored lattice spacing, symmetry, and cohesive energy well. Contrary to prior usage in stopping theory, the theory provides no wavefunctions and its one-electron energies have known flaws as spectroscopic quantities. In response to these difficulties, we consider some state-dependent local plasma approximations and report the first tests on atoms.
Does the gas content of amber reveal the composition of palaeoatmospheres

WHAT does the gas content of amber indicate? It has been suggested that bubbles in amber preserve the composition of the atmosphere at the time the amber was exuded from trees1,2, while others suggest that the gas content is controlled by solubility relationships3, diffusion4 or chemical reactions involving oxygen consumption5. Here I describe a combined study of nitrogen, argon and oxygen in amber which makes it possible to distinguish bubble gas from matrix gas in amber by considering N2/Ar and O2/Ar ratios of the first gas released during the crushing of individual amber samples. Crushing experiments do not indicate high oxygen levels in Cretaceous amber as have been recently reported1. Neither Baltic nor Cretaceous amber has even the amount of oxygen expected for equilibration with the modern atmosphere. Successive crushings of individual amber pieces show that the first crush has the highest oxygen content and that both bubble and matrix oxygen is consumed as crushing continues. These results suggest that the oxygen content of amber does not have a bearing on the composition of the palaeoatmosphere.
Children's Migration to the United States from Mexico and Central America: Evidence from the Mexican and Latin American Migration Projects

In light of rising numbers of unaccompanied minors at the Mexico-US border in 2014, this article examines child migration from Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Costa Rica, and Nicaragua. Using data ...
Effects of Body Position and Attitude Similarity on Interpersonal Attraction and Opinion Change

Summ~y.-Addressees, who were similar or dissimilar in attitude to a communicator, viewed slides of the communicator which showed her displaying either open or closed body positions. Addressees who were 'similar in attitude to the communicator evaluated her more positively than addressees who were dissimilar to her. Given attitude similarity between addressees and the communicator, addressees evaluated the communicator more positively when she displayed open body positions than when she displayed closed body positions. In general addressees' opinion changes were directly related to their positive evalulation of the communicator but in some cases the addressees' awareness of the experimental manipulation altered the effect on opinion. In accordance with recent investigations of interpersonal interactions, a communicator who displays open body positions as compared to dosed body positions should be judged as (a) better liked or evaluated and (b) more active, potent, and persuasive (Mehrabian, 1968% 1968b, 1972; Mehrabian & Friar, 1960; Mehrabian & Williams, 1969) .' McGinley, LeFevre, and McGinley (1975) tested these assumptions in a study of opinion change where a female communicator who was presented as having attitudes similar to those of her addressees affected addressees' opinion changes on specific ropics when she displayed open body positions but not when she displayed dosed body positions. McGinley, et dl. also found that addressees rated the communicator as more evaluatively positive, active, and potent when she used open body positions than when she used closed body positions. Furthermore, with the exception of a potency effect similar rating results were found when the addressees were not given information about the communicator's attitudes. Inasmuch as McGinley, et al. used only one level of attitude similarity (92%), their study does not clarify the effects of the communicator's attitude similaricy with addressees on either the addressees' perception of the communicator or on their change of opinion toward an opinion posited by the cornbnicator. In an attempt to clarify this issue, the present study involved the manipulation of both attitude similarity (90 and 10%) between a communicaror and her addressees, and the open and dosed body positions of the communicator.
The therapeutic value of pilgrimage: a grounded theory study

The purpose of this constructivist grounded theory study was to explore the therapeutic value of pilgrimage journeys. Ten participants representing diverse pilgrimage experiences were interviewed about their particular journeys. The interview protocol was based on previous pilgrimage scholarship, psychological theory, and extrapolated data from the participants. The interview transcripts were coded and analysed by three independent coders. After the establishment and validation of the initial, focused, axial, and theoretical codes, the investigators posited an emerging grounded theory that pilgrimage is therapeutic in biological, psychological, social, and spiritual ways.
Representation by Other Means: Mexican American and Puerto Rican Social Movement Organizations

Electoral participation is only one facet of a larger pattern of Latino political engagement. As the oldest Latino communities in the United States, Mexican Americans (since 1848) and Puerto Ricans (since 1898) have a long history of organizing to protect themselves against racial discrimination. Social movement organizations were often the only outlets for political representation and self-defense in a society where Latinos were outnumbered and barred from effective participation in the institutions of government. Latino organizations generated a leadership cadre and served as vehicles through which interests of class, gender, occupation, and ideology were mediated
Some characterizations of the ribge trace

Ridge regression is a popular method for estimating linear regression coefficients when the explanatory variables are highly correlated. Ridge regression defines a class of estimators from which a unique estimator may be chosen based on the behavior of the ridge trace, a plot of the regression coefficient estimates versus the nonnegative scalar ridge parameter. In this paper characteristics of the ridge trace are determined algebraically when the correlation matrix of the explanatory variables is assumed to have a special structure (so-called Toeplitz). Special structure was required because quantitative characteristics are intractable in general. The Toeplitz structure was chosen because of its tractability and because it differs from the restrictive cases which have already been studied. Specific properties characterized include: (i) the order of the individual ridge estimates; (ii) the order of the rate-of-change of these estimates; and (iii) the number of sign changes in an individual estimate.
Di- and triphosphate derivatives of acyclo- and arabinosylguanine effects on the polymerization of purified tubulin

Abstract Glutamate- and nucleotide-dependent polymerization of purified calf brain tubulin was used as a model system to study interactions of ribose-modified GDP and GTP analogs with tubulin. Earlier studies (Hamel, E., and Lin, C.M. (1981) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 78, 3368–3372) were extended to three additional sets of analogs: the di- and triphosphate derivatives of 9-β- D -arabinofuranosylguanine (araGDP and araGTP) and acycloguanosine (9-(2-hydroxyethoxymethyl)guanine) (acycloGDP and acycloGTP), as well as the periodate-oxidized and borohydride-reduced derivatives of GDP and GTP (ox-redGDP and ox-redGTP). Disruption of the ribose ring in ox-redGTP resulted in major loss of activity relative to GTP in supporting tubulin polymerization, although the analog's deficiency may result from an inability to displace GDP from the exchangeable site rather than a direct effect on the polymerization reaction itself. The poor activity of ox-redGTP could be largely reversed if nucleoside diphosphate kinase was added to the reaction mixture. Removal of the 2′ and 3′ carbons entirely, in the form of acycloGTP, resulted in only minimal loss of activity relative to GTP. AraGTP, on the other hand, was more active than GTP in supporting tubulin polymerization. All three GDP analogs were much less effective than GDP in inhibiting tubulin polymerization, although araGDP was significantly more inhibitory than acycloGDP or ox-redGDP. Relative inhibitory activity of these and additional GDP analogs was the same whether GTP or a GTP analog was used to support tubulin polymerization.
Improving the prognosis for patients with glioblastoma: the rationale for targeting Src

Glioblastoma is the most common and aggressive form of primary brain tumor. The prognosis for patients diagnosed with glioblastoma is poor, with a median survival of 12-14 months and a 5-year survival rate of <5%. The upfront standard treatment for patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma, consisting of surgery followed by chemotherapy combined with radiotherapy, provides only short-term survival benefits. Recurrent glioblastoma is an extremely challenging therapeutic setting because of the aggressive and resistant nature of the tumor. A set of key molecular targets in oncology is the Src family of non-receptor protein kinases. Dysregulated signaling via the Src kinases has been shown to underlie glioma-related proliferation, angiogenesis, migration, and survival. Here we review the biologic role of Src in malignant glioma and discuss key preclinical studies demonstrating the potential utility of inhibiting Src in glioma. Proof of clinical benefit is forthcoming from the first clinical studies involving the newest generation of small molecule Src inhibitors currently in clinical trials for recurrent glioblastoma. Blocking Src alone will likely not translate into a significant clinical benefit; thus, strategies for combining Src inhibitors with potential synergistic therapeutic modalities will be discussed. This review will focus on dasatinib, the most advanced Src inhibitor being tested in glioblastoma, which is currently in phase I/II trials in this setting.
Riccati equation solution of the minimum time output control problem

By taking a geometrical approach, and by using a type of orthogonality in constructing bases for the k th controllable subspaces, a general solution is derived for the multivariable minimum time output control problem. The solution is easier to implement than solutions derived by traditional approaches to output control, and in fact it is shown that the optimal control sequence may be constructed from the solution to a specialized Riccati equation. This new approach thus relates geometrical approaches to the problem to the previously known result that output control is just a special case of the singular linear quadratic optimal control problem.
Propagation of Elastic Waves in Deep Vertically Shaken Particle Beds.

A wave traveling upward through a particle bed is observed to steepen and form a shock as the surface is approached. This steepening is due to the increase in the local speed of sound that is induced by the local pressure increase in the upward moving phase of the wave behind the wave front. The pressure increase leads to an increase in the local coordination number which in turn increases the local elastic modulus and the sound speed.
Boundedness and Global Nonexistence for a Nonlinear Convective Parabolic-System

Abstract A two-component parabolic system with convective terms is studied. It is shown that if the forces on the right hand side are no worse than quadratic in the variables then the solution remains bounded for all time. It is also proved that if the forces are allowed to grow faster than quadratic then finite time blow-up is to be expected.
Developed countries should not use inactivated polio vaccine for the prevention of poliomyelitis.

Taking into account the global status of polio, it seems evident that the continuing use of oral poliovaccine in all countries is the most obvious and prudent public health policy for the foreseeable future. Possible exceptions might include those countries which are not troubled by the added cost of the inactivated vaccine; whose health services are able to guarantee high levels of vaccine coverage; and which can expect to experience comparatively few importations of wild poliovirus. An important question is whether it is warranted at this time to recommend a combined schedule of inactivated vaccine followed by live vaccine. This implies the addition of at least two inoculations of inactivated vaccine to an already complex vaccination schedule. In most countries, this now includes the administration of three inoculations each of DTP and Haemophilus influenzae as well as one of measles-mumps-rubella vaccine by approximately 12 months of age. Some countries also routinely vaccinate young children against hepatitis B (three additional inoculations). Because most physicians and clinics, as a policy, do not give more than two inoculations at one visit, it implies the need for scheduling additional well-child visits. In the United States, this is a principal factor in the greatly increased estimated costs of such a programme. Experience also shows that as the number of routine visits which are required for vaccination increases, overall vaccination coverage diminishes. The schedule recommended in the United States possesses yet a further problem. Children there would not receive the second dose of oral vaccine until five years of age, thus permitting the accumulation of a large number of preschool children with limited intestinal immunity—a potentially explosive problem were wild virus to be introduced. The inactivated polio vaccine is useful and certainly indicated for the small numbers of persons for whom the live, oral vaccine is contraindicated. However, to use it routinely implies accepting the potential of substantial penalties while reducing but not eliminating, an already extremely small risk of vaccine-associated paralytic illness. From the public health perspective, I therefore argue against the proposition. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Asthma, body mass index, and C-reactive protein among US adults.

Obesity, a state that may be characterized by a low-grade inflammation, has been associated with asthma. C-reactive protein, an acute phase reactant, is elevated in obese people. However, little is known about how asthma affects C-reactive protein concentrations. Using data from 14,224 participants of the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (1988–1994), the author examined C-reactive protein concentrations among participants with current asthma (n = 651), who formerly had asthma (n = 303), and who never had asthma (n = 13,270). Compared with 21% of participants with current asthma, 11% with former asthma (P<.001) and 15% without asthma (P = .018) had C-reactive protein concentrations ≥85th percentile of the sex-specific distribution. Compared with participants without asthma, the age-adjusted odds ratios for having an elevated C-reactive protein concentration was 1.49 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.11, 2.00) for persons with current asthma. After adjusting for age, sex, race or ethnic...
Balanced allocations with heterogenous bins

Balls-into-bins processes are a useful and common abstraction for many load-balancing related problems. A well known paradigm for load balancing in distributed or parallel servers is the "multiple choice paradigm" where an item (ball) is put in the less loaded out of d uniformly chosen servers (bins). In many applications however the uniformity of the sampling probability is not guaranteed. If the system is heterogenous or dynamic it may be the case that some bins are sampled with a higher probability than others. We investigate the power of the multiple choice paradigm in the setting where bins are not sampled from the uniform distribution. Byers et al [5] showed that a logarithmic imbalance in the sampling probability could be tolerated, as long as the number of balls is linear in the number of bins. We show that if the number of balls is much larger than the number of bins, this ceases to be the case. Given a probability over bins, we prove tight upper and lower bounds for the number of choices needed in the 1-out-of-d scheme in order to maintain a balanced allocations when the number of items is arbitrarily high.
Unexpected Silicon Group Transfer in Difunctional Alkoxy Silanes

During the hydrosilylation reaction of a difunctional silane with allyl glycidyl ether (AGE), two scrambled hydrosilylation products were produced in significant amounts. This scrambling is reaction condition dependent and has been observed in a few other examples. It appears to be the first such alkoxysilane transformation to occur under these conditions, although similar siloxane transformations have been documented. This also introduces a method of preparing certain organofunctional alkyldialkoxysilanes in high purities via hydrosilylation, where the close boiling rearrangement by-products are minimized.
Pulsed Mie Scattering Measurements of the Collapse of a Sonoluminescing Bubble

Measurements of light scattered off a bubble that is illuminated by a train of short pulses enables one to resolve the strongly supersonic collapse of a sonoluminescing bubble. We find that the collapse is faster than Mach 4 (relative to the ambient speed of sound of the gas in the bubble) and that the flash of sonoluminescence is emitted within 500 ps of the minimum bubble radius, at about which time the bubble's acceleration is greater than ${10}^{11}\phantom{\rule{0ex}{0ex}}\mathrm{g}$.
The Responsible Party Government Model in House and Senate Elections

Responsible party government theory requires that voters hold parties electorally accountable for their performance in control of government. Existing literature suggests that voters do this only to a limited extent—holding the presidential party's candidates responsible for government performance on Election Day. While this method of voting may hold the executive accountable for his performance, it is not really an effective way to hold the party in control of Congress accountable for its performance. The method falls short particularly when Congress is controlled by a different party than the president, but also whenever a Congress controlled by the same party pursues policies different from the president's. Using surveys of voters leaving the polls in the 1990, 1994, and 1998 midterm congressional elections, this study tests whether voters' evaluations of Congress's job performance also affect their support for majority party candidates in House and Senate elections, during both unified and divided government.
Application of Coupled Lattice Boltzmann and Phase-Field Methods for Multiphase Flow Simulations

Coupling of lattice Boltzmann (LB) and phase-field (PF) methods is discussed for simulation of a range of multiphase flow problems. The local relaxation and shifting operators make the LB method an attractive candidate for the simulation of the single-phase as well as multiphase flows. For simulating interface dynamics, LB methods require to be coupled with an appropriate scheme representing interfacial dynamics. To this end, we have used a model based on the order parameter, which could be either an index function or a phase-field variable, and coupled it with a LB solver for the simulation of various classes of complex multi-physics and multiphase flows. The LB method is used to compute the flow-field, and, in the case of electrodeposition process modeling, the electro-static potential-field. The application of such a coupled LB-PF is illustrated by the solution of a variety of examples. Finally, fast simulation of such a coupled algorithm is achieved using the state-of-art numerical solution acceleration techniques involving preconditioning and multigrid approaches.Copyright © 2013 by ASME
Dangerous Encounters: Meanings of Violence in a Brazilian City

CONTENTS 1. 2. II 3. 4. 5. III 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. IV 11. 12.
The Multiple Mirror Telescope (MMT) Top Box

So named because it resides on top of the focal plane instrument, the MMT top box is a two-level optical bench with many remotely controlled features which can be configured for experimental use of the MMT. It houses the relay optics and television cameras for focusing, coaligning and guiding the six telescopes of the MMT, as well as the integrating sphere, filter wheel, Hartmann mask wheel, and relay optics of the comparison source for instrumental calibration. It also provides a rigid mounting platform for research instruments as well as special fixtures for telescope tests and collimation. In accommodating these tasks the top box incorporates several novel features which may interest designers of other large telescopes.
Dynamical systems approach to low-level integration of motion and binocular stereopsis

The representation of trajectories for moving edges by a nonlinear dynamical system is presented as a technique for the integration of motion and binocular disparity. The integration is accomplished through the monolithic use of dynamical systems as the computational mechanism. In this approach, the motion of a simple feature through a small region of the image is modeled by a dynamical system with three variables. Visual processing by the model dynamics occurs within a retinotopic array of identical dynamical systems with nearest neighbor coupling. A form of segmentation, called feature linking, is accomplished by the convergence of neighboring array elements to the same stable mode of coherent oscillations involving only those dynamical systems that respond to the co-occurrence of the same feature and motion. Each model dynamic for a moving feature is driven by concurrent inputs from a pair of Gabor filters in phase quadrature. The stable modes of the model dynamics consist of limit cycles with nearly linear phase. The co-occurrence of a particular feature and velocity of motion in the image sequence optimally selects a particular limit cycle. The integration of motion and binocular stereopsis is achieved through the use of the linear phase property of the limit cycles to recover the positional disparity between similar features moving through corresponding regions in the retinotopic arrays for the left and right images. Bifurcation theory is applied to rigorously describe the convergence properties of the dynamical systems. The focus of this paper concerns the mapping of visual motion onto analog dynamical systems as an initial step toward a theory of low-level integration of motion and binocular stereopsis.
On the structure of isolated junctions between communicating cells.

Gap junctions are specialized regions of contact between apposed plasma membranes of communicating cells. They are composed of hexagonally arranged units (connexons) embedded in plasma membranes and linked together in the extracellular space. The three-dimensional structure of the connexon, was obtained by Fourier analysis on specimens of isolated rat liver gap junctions. The connexon is an annular oligomer, composed of six subunits, that protrudes from both sides of the plasma membrane. The subunits are tangentially displaced about the connexon axis. A narrow channel is located along the connexon, axis spanning the thickness of the junction, but it is greatly reduced in the hydrophobic zones of the membranes. Two closely related forms of isolated gap junctions which have different connexon subunit structures but the same hexagonal lattice, were obtained. The transition between the two forms of communicating junctions seen in isolation is produced by radial inward motion of the connexon subunits near their cytoplasmic surfaces and a reduction of their inclination tangential to the 6-fold axis. Similar rearrangement of essentially rigid subunits embedded in the membrane could provide a mechanism for modulation of the junction permeability.
Abnormal microglial–neuronal spatial organization in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex in autism

Abstract Microglial activation and alterations in neuron number have been reported in autism. However, it is unknown whether microglial activation in the disorder includes a neuron-directed microglial response that might reflect neuronal dysfunction, or instead indicates a non-directed, pro-activation brain environment. To address this question, we examined microglial and neuronal organization in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, a region of pronounced early brain overgrowth in autism, via spatial pattern analysis of 13 male postmortem autism subjects and 9 controls. We report that microglia are more frequently present near neurons in the autism cases at a distance interval of 25 μm, as well as 75 and 100 μm. Many interactions are observed between near-distance microglia and neurons that appear to involve encirclement of the neurons by microglial processes. Analysis of a young subject subgroup preliminarily suggests that this alteration may be present from an early age in autism. We additionally observed that neuron–neuron clustering, although normal in cases with autism as a whole, increases with advancing age in autism, suggesting a gradual loss of normal neuronal organization in the disorder. Microglia–microglia organization is normal in autism at all ages, indicating that aberrantly close microglia–neuron association in the disorder is not a result of altered microglial distribution. Our findings confirm that at least some microglial activation in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex in autism is associated with a neuron-specific reaction, and suggest that neuronal organization may degrade later in life in the disorder.