cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A role for cAMP in the preparation of human platelets for the extraction of histocompatibility antigens

Abstract Conditions were developed for the preparation of platelets to obtain optimal yields of HL-A antigens by hypertonic salt (3 M KCl) extraction. Although these antigens were readily demonstrable on the surface of platelets prepared in 10 −2 M EDTA, they could not be solubilized by 3 M KCl. However, antigens could readily be solubilized from platelets prepared in 10 −2 M caffeine, 10 −2 M theophylline or a combination of 10 −6 M prostaglandin E 1 , and 10 −3 M theophylline. Using these conditions, three fractions of HL-A antigenic activity, as determined by specific inhibition of cytotoxicity, were obtained; (1) a fraction extractable by 3 M KCl; (2) a fraction not extractable by 3 M KCl but extractable by isotonic saline; and (3) residual activity not extractable by either solvent. Significantly higher intracellular cAMP levels were observed in those platelet preparations from which HL-A antigens were solubilized. Quantitative inhibition studies of whole platelets, performed using monospecific HL-A antisera, indicated that increased cAMP levels did not alter the immunologic potency of cell-bound HL-A antigens. In addition, extractions of cell surface-radioiodinated platelets demonstrated that a generalized increase in the extractability of cell membrane proteins, by hypertonic salt, resulted from increased intracellular cAMP levels. These results indicate that the levels of platelet cAMP, prior to 3 M KCl extraction, are important in determining whether HL-A antigens can be effectively solubilized.
Turbulent diffusion of mass in circular pipe flow

Abstract An implicit finite difference scheme was used to solve the convective-diffusion equation to predict the steady-state transport of a conservative, neutrally bouyant tracer injected along the centreline into a fully developed turbulent pipe flow. Three different distributions for the radial mass diffusivity have been compared with two independent sets of experimental data. The results indicate that the distribution based on the turbulent kinematic eddy viscosity predicted by a k−l model produces the closest agreement between the numerical model predictions and the experimentally observed tracer distribution.
Big other: surveillance capitalism and the prospects of an information civilization

This article describes an emergent logic of accumulation in the networked sphere, ‘surveillance capitalism,’ and considers its implications for ‘information civilization.’ The institutionalizing practices and operational assumptions of Google Inc. are the primary lens for this analysis as they are rendered in two recent articles authored by Google Chief Economist Hal Varian. Varian asserts four uses that follow from computer-mediated transactions: ‘data extraction and analysis,’ ‘new contractual forms due to better monitoring,’ ‘personalization and customization,’ and ‘continuous experiments.’ An examination of the nature and consequences of these uses sheds light on the implicit logic of surveillance capitalism and the global architecture of computer mediation upon which it depends. This architecture produces a distributed and largely uncontested new expression of power that I christen: ‘Big Other.’ It is constituted by unexpected and often illegible mechanisms of extraction, commodification, and control that effectively exile persons from their own behavior while producing new markets of behavioral prediction and modification. Surveillance capitalism challenges democratic norms and departs in key ways from the centuries-long evolution of market capitalism.
Transcriptional profiling of nasal epithelium during natural colds in asthmatic subjects

Abstract Rationale Although cold viruses precipitate most asthma exacerbations, the mechanisms leading to exacerbations rather than just colds are poorly understood. Transcriptional profiling of nasal mucosa may help identify genes related to exacerbations. Methods To determine the feasibility of measuring expression of a large number of genes in nasal epithelium, we scraped the nasal mucosa with Rhinoprobe during acute colds and at least 6 weeks later (baseline) in 25 episodes of colds (21 subjects, 17 with asthma). RNA was extracted using RNeasy kit and expression of 384 genes measured by two-step multiplex real-time RT-PCR. Gene expression levels were normalized to several housekeeping genes and analyzed using SAM (Significance Analysis of Microarrays) software. False discovery rate (FDR) was set at 5% or less, and magnitude of expression change was set to 2-fold or greater. Results Median FDR was 2.75%. We found 25 genes expressed more during acute colds than at baseline including ICAM-1, GM-CSF, G-CSF, IL-10, IL-10R, CCR1, CCR2, CCR5, eotaxin, and GRO1-3. The gene most significantly increased was endothelial cell-specific molecule-1 (ESM-1), a proteoglycan secreted by endothelial cells that inhibits LFA-1/ICAM-1 binding and may regulate lymphocyte migration. In addition, we found increase in genes related to generation of reactive oxygen species (NADPH oxidase p91 subunit, and glutaredoxin), co-stimulatory molecules (CD80 and ICOS), and ion channels (CLCA3 and SLC8A1, a Ca/Na exchanger). Conclusion Transcriptional signatures for a large number of genes in nasal mucosal samples can be used to monitor disease progression and to identify new genes related to virus-induced nasal inflammation and possibly asthma exacerbations.
From neural 'is' to moral 'ought': what are the moral implications of neuroscientific moral psychology?

Many moral philosophers regard scientific research as irrelevant to their work because science deals with what is the case, whereas ethics deals with what ought to be. Some ethicists question this is/ought distinction, arguing that science and normative ethics are continuous and that ethics might someday be regarded as a natural social science. I agree with traditional ethicists that there is a sharp and crucial distinction between the 'is' of science and the 'ought' of ethics, but maintain nonetheless that science, and neuroscience in particular, can have profound ethical implications by providing us with information that will prompt us to re-evaluate our moral values and our conceptions of morality.
Direct regulation of membrane type 1 matrix metalloproteinase following myocardial infarction causes changes in survival, cardiac function, and remodeling.

The membrane type 1 matrix metalloproteinase (MT1-MMP) is increased in left ventricular (LV) failure. However, the direct effects of altered MT1-MMP levels on survival, LV function, and geometry following myocardial infarction (MI) and the proteolytic substrates involved in this process remain unclear. MI was induced in mice with cardiac-restricted overexpression of MT1-MMP (MT1-MMPexp; full length human), reduced MT1-MMP expression (heterozygous; MT1-MMP+/−), and wild type. Post-MI survival was reduced with MT1-MMPexp and increased with MT1-MMP+/− compared with WT. LV ejection fraction was lower in the post-MI MT1-MMPexp mice compared with WT post-MI and was higher in the MT1-MMP+/− mice. In vivo localization of MT1-MMP using antibody-conjugated microbubbles revealed higher MT1-MMP levels post-MI, which were the highest in the MT1-MMPexp group and the lowest in the MT1-MMP+/− group. LV collagen content within the MI region was higher in the MT1-MMPexp vs. WT post-MI and reduced in the MT1-MMP+/− group. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that MT1-MMP proteolytically processed the profibrotic molecule, latency-associated transforming growth factor-1-binding protein (LTBP-1), and MT1-MMP-specific LTBP-1 proteolytic activity was increased by over fourfold in the post-MI MT1-MMPexp group and reduced in the MT1-MMP+/− group, which was directionally paralleled by phospho-Smad-3 levels, a critical signaling component of the profibrotic transforming growth factor pathway. We conclude that modulating myocardial MT1-MMP levels affected LV function and matrix structure, and a contributory mechanism for these effects is through processing of profibrotic signaling molecules. These findings underscore the diversity of biological effects of certain MMP types on the LV remodeling process.
General Relativity after Einstein

General Relativity: An Einstein Centenary Survey. Edited by S. W. Hawking and W. Israel. Pp. 831. (Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, 1979.) £37.50.
Testing the limits: The CONFU digital-images and multimedia guidelines and their consequences for libraries and educators

The long‐awaited digital‐images and multimedia guidelines were released for use in December 1996, and their crafters encouraged use and evaluation during a trial period. This article explores the question of images of art traditionally employed and collected by educators and libraries within the context of copyright to demonstrate some of the difficulties that will be encountered by individuals and institutions trying to apply the guidelines as written. To illustrate the procedure, this article analyzes the process of obtaining permissions for reuse of images from the University of Oregon's Image Reserve and identifies issues requiring further study.
The significance of pH and manometric testing afterlaparoscopic fundoplication

Laparoscopic antireflux surgery has become the standard operation for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). This study examined the outcomes of laparoscopic antireflux surgery, hypothesizing that both subjective symptoms and objective pH would correlate with manometric parameters to reflect the absence of reflux after fundoplication. We evaluated 56 patients who underwent laparoscopic antireflux surgery. Preoperative and postoperative symptoms were documented by chart reviews and confirmed by telephone interviews with the patient. Preoperative pH probe and esophageal manometry studies were compared with postoperative studies performed 3 to 6 months after fundoplication. Subjective symptoms were correlated with objective measurements of acid reflux and lower esophageal sphincter pressure (LESP). The follow-up period was 3 to 29 months. Symptomatic improvement was seen in 91% of patients, and good to excellent improvement in preoperative symptoms was cited. Postoperatively, there was significant improvement in percentages of upright supine times when esophageal pH was less than 4 (p <0.001). There was an increase in LESP from an average of 16.9 mmHg preoperatively to 22.7 mmHg postoperatively (p <0.001). There was no correlation between postoperative LESP and symptoms or LESP and 24-h pH results. However, there was a predictive correlation between LESP and postoperative heartburn symptoms (p <0.001). These findings imply that symptom follow-up evaluation is adequate in the asymptomatic patient after laparoscopic fundoplication, and that routine physiologic testing is not necessary.
Quantum number density asymmetries within QCD jets correlated with Λ 0 polarization

The observation of jets in a variety of hard-scattering processes has allowed the quantitative study of perturbative quantum chromodynamics (PQCD) by comparing detailed theoretical predictions with a wide range of experimental data. This paper examines how some important, nonperturbative, facets of QCD involving the internal dynamical structure of jets can be studied by measuring the spin orientation of ${\ensuremath{\Lambda}}_{0}$ particles produced in these jets. The measurement of the transverse polarization for an individual ${\ensuremath{\Lambda}}_{0}$ within a QCD jet permits the definition of spin-directed asymmetries for quantum number densities in rapidity space (such as charge, strangeness and baryon number densities) involving neighboring hadrons in the jet. These asymmetries can only be generated by soft, nonperturbative dynamical mechanisms and such measurements can provide insight not otherwise accessible into the color rearrangement that occurs during the hadronization stage of fragmentation process.
Evaluation of transient temperature distributions in a dielectric in an alternating field

Thermal catastrophe in dielectrics is a term which refers to a phenomenon in which the temperature in a dielectric subjected to an alternating electric field becomes infinite in a finite length of time. Mathematical aspects of this phenomenon are investigated in the paper. It is assumed that the rate of heat generation is proportional to the square of the field intensity and to an exponential function of temperature. A mathematical theory of existence and uniqueness for the initial-value/boundary-value problem for the phenomena is presented. It is shown analytically that there is a critical field intensity above which thermal catastrophe occurs. An estimate of the critical intensity is made analytically, and this is compared with critical intensities obtained numerically. Analytic lower boundaries to the solution to the equations for temperature in the dielectric are derived. A numerical solution is recomputed on a digital computer and compared with a solution obtained on a differential analyser.
A case study on the application of predictive analytics toward forecasting swing door failure

Predictive maintenance is a maintenance approach that involves monitoring machines in order to predict their failures. This case study focuses on predicting failure of swing doors employed in a facility and scheduling maintenance based on the predicted failure date. Swing doors in a facility are checked regularly. Problems such as a door stays open only for a short period of time, a door opens only after a hard push act as signals that some larger problem may be growing. With this information, maintenance can be scheduled before the door goes out of service. Hold on Time (HoT), which is the specified time during which a swing door is held open, is collected for all swing doors in a facility. By closely following the trend exhibited by hold on time readings observed overtime, abnormal operations could be predicted beforehand, and maintenance can be carried out before any doors fail. Piecewise regression is the technique adopted for prediction and is implemented using R.
A numerical approach to directly compute nonlinear normal modes of geometrically nonlinear finite element models

Abstract The nonlinear normal modes of a dynamical system provide a modal framework in which the dynamics of a structure can be readily understood. Current numerical approaches use continuation to find a nonlinear normal mode branch that initiates at a low energy, linearized mode. The predictor-corrector based approach follows the periodic solutions as the response amplitude increases, forming the nonlinear normal mode. This method uses the Jacobian of the shooting function in a Newton–Raphson algorithm to find the initial conditions and integration period that result in a periodic response of the conservative equations of motion. Large scale finite element models require that the Jacobian be computed using finite differences since the closed form equations are not explicitly available. The Jacobian must be computed with respect to all of the states, making the algorithm prohibitively expensive for models with many degrees-of-freedom. In this paper, the initial conditions of each periodic solution are determined based on a subset of the linear modes of a geometrically nonlinear finite element model. The first approach, termed enforced modal displacement, sets the initial conditions as a linear combination of linear mode shapes. The second approach, here called the applied modal force method, applies a static load to the structure in a combination of applied forces that would excite a single linear mode, computes the static response to that load, and uses that to set the initial conditions. Both of these algorithms greatly reduce the number of variables that are iterated on during continuation. As a result, the cost of computing each solution along the nonlinear normal mode is only on the order of ten times the cost required to integrate the finite element model over one period of the response. The algorithm is initiated with only one linear mode and additional modes are added in a systematic way as they become important to the periodic solutions along the nonlinear mode branch. The approach is demonstrated on two geometrically nonlinear finite element models, showing a dramatic reduction in the computational cost required to obtain the nonlinear normal mode.
Characterization of a DNA-binding factor that recognizes the 22-base pair trans-spliced leader sequence in Ascaris lumbricoides

In nematodes, a subset of pre-mRNAs acquires a common 22 nucleotide 5'-terminal exon via transsplicing (see [1] for review). The donor molecule in trans-splicing is an approx. 100 nt, non-polyadenylated RNA, the spliced leader (SL) RNA. Genes encoding nematode SL RNAs are multicopy and usually, but not always, tandemly reiterated in association with 5S rRNA genes [1]. We have previously characterized genes encoding the SL RNA of the parasitic nematode, Ascar is lumbricoides and shown that SL RNA synthesis was catalyzed by RNA polymerase II [2]. We also determined that the SL RNA was accurately and efficiently transcribed in cell-free extracts prepared from 32-64 cell Ascar is lumbricoides embryos [3]. Subsequent mutational analysis established that efficient initiation of transcription in vitro depended upon two cis-acting DNA elements, a compact region centered approx. 50 nucleotides upstream of the
Buckling of polar orthotropic circular plates on elastic foundation by computerized symbolic algebra

Abstract Buckling of polar orthotropic circular plates resting on elastic foundation is studied in the context of the Rayleigh's method. A variant of this method, suggested originally by Rayleigh and based on the use of noninteger power, is contrasted with the variant containing an undetermined multiplier (the latter being equivalent to the Rayleigh-Ritz method). Results are obtained by computerized symbolic algebra.
Reaction of celite-bound fluorescein isothiocyanate with the 50S E. coli ribosomal subunit.

Abstract The reaction of Celite-bound fluorescein isothiocyanate with E. coli 50S ribosomes and the 50S moiety of the intact 70S particle has been studied. Approximately five dyes react per 50S particle at pH 8.6 or 9.0. Substantial biological activity is retained. No significant difference between the pattern of reactivity of free and complexed 50S particle can be detected. This suggests the absence of major shielding or conformational changes induced in the 50S by combination with the 30S subunit. The most reactive proteins are L1, L2, L3, and L21. Protein L3 is found in 1.5 and 3 m LiCl core particles where it is still very reactive toward fluorescein. Some other core particle proteins are more reactive than they are in the intact ribosome. In general this work supports previous findings that the proteins of the intact 50S subunit are much less exposed than those of the 30S particle.
Phase shifting of an interferometer using nonlocal quantum-state correlations

We describe an experiment where the phase and amplitude of the interference pattern of light going through an interferometer was varied by doing operations on quantum-correlated light that did not go through the interferometer. This was accomplished by sending a pair of polarization-entangled photons in separate directions, one to an interferometer and the other one to a phase shifter, in principle in a remote location. The interferometer was set up to put the state of the pair in a superposition of maximally entangled states. The phase shifter inserted a phase between the product-state components that made up each entangled state. Polarizers located before the detectors projected the quantum state of the light. As a result, the phase and amplitude of the interference pattern were varied by changing the settings of the phase shifter and polarizer in the path of the photon in the remote location.
Chemical modification of Kevlar fiber surfaces and of model diamides

Organic reactions of aromatic diamides as models for PPTA fibers have been investigated to select reagents and conditions suitable for surface-controlled heterogeneous reactions on Kevlar filaments and fabrics. Amine functional groups have been incorporated into fiber surfaces by bromination followed by ammonolysis and by nitration followed by reduction. Modification of filaments has been attained without impairment of fiber properties. Preliminary experiments have also shown that the presence of amino groups on Kevlar fabric can provide remarkably improved peel strength and apparent interlaminar shear strength in epoxy laminates, suggesting a significant role of covalent bonding in improving adhesion in aramidepoxy composites.
Dimensions of Students' Evaluation of Instruction: An Empirical Synthesis

A two-stage procedure was used to reduce 75 factors isolated in 11 selected studies of students' evaluation of instruction to six major dimensions: I. Effort demanded by instructor, II. Instructor's preparation and organization, III. Instructor's evaluation of student performance, IV. Instructor's knowledge of subject, V. Value of course to student, and VI. Instructor's friendliness and regard for student. Each dimension is illustrated with four rating items.
Optical tomography for small volume absorbing inclusions

We present the asymptotic expansion of the solution to a diffusion equation with a finite number of absorbing inclusions of small volume. We use the first few terms in this expansion measured at the domain boundary to reconstruct the absorption parameters of the inclusions and certain geometrical characteristics. We demonstrate theoretically and numerically that the number of inclusions, their location and their capacity can be reconstructed in a stable way even from moderately noisy data. The reconstruction of the absorption parameter, which is important in optical tomography to discriminate between healthy and unhealthy tissues, requires us however to have far less noisy data. Since the reconstruction of absorption maps from boundary measurements is an extremely ill posed problem, the method of asymptotic expansions of small volume inclusions provides a useful framework to decide which information can be reconstructed from boundary measurements with a given noise level.
Diurnal Timing of Ovipositional Activities of Edovum puttleri (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae), an Egg Parasitoid of Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae)

Visits by Edovum puttleri Grissell to Colorado potato beetle egg masses on potato plants in field cages were most frequent between 1100 and 1600 hours, 6–11 h after sunrise. In the laboratory at 26 ± l°C, 16:8 (L:D) photoperiod, peak oviposition occurred during the 4-h period between 1400 and 1800 hours, 8–12 h after the lights were turned on. No eggs were laid during the scotophase.
Extended Vacuum Solutions and their Elementary Excitations of the Yang-Mills Gauge Theory

A number of nontrivial vacua of the Yang–Mills gauge theory which are extended in space are derived. For the vacuum solution with a constant "magnetic" field of one color species, the elementary excitations of the other species are circularly polarized, with a spectrum much like the Landau levels of nonrelativistic electrons in a constant magnetic field.
Tumor cell-platelet aggregation: induced by cathepsin B-like proteinase and inhibited by prostacyclin

The ability of tumor cells to metastasize may be related to their ability to promote aggregation of host platelets. The use of inhibitors of cysteine proteinases resulted in parallel inhibition of B16 amelanotic melanoma-induced platelet aggregation and of a cathepsin B activity. The antimetastatic agent prostacyclin inhibited platelet aggregation induced by the tumor cells and by papain, a cathepsin B-mimicking agent.
Experimental characterization of nanoscale optofluidic sensor arrays

The potential for associating panels of biomarkers with disease states and the need to rapidly diagnose pathogenic threats requires the development of new biosensor technologies which can combine the multiplexing capabilities of traditional microarrays with the sensitivity of emerging nanosensors. In this paper we introduce our Nanoscale Optofluidic Sensors Arrays which combine the advantages of both these approaches. In this paper we describe the operating principal of the array and the fabrication, integration and functionalization techniques involved in creating it. Initial characterization experiments are presented demonstrating the bulk sensitivity of the array and the independence of each sensor element.
Predictors of Teachers' Preferences Concerning their Evaluation

Personal backgrounds, skills, and attitudes toward professional success reported by experienced classroom teachers modestly predicted preferences for ways of evaluating their work. Teachers view their work as an amalgam: a labor, a profession, a craft, and an art. Achieving consensus regarding teacher evaluation may require multifaceted approaches that recognize varied teacher needs and backgrounds.
New Classes of Charged Spheroidal Models

New classes of exact solutions to the Einstein-Maxwell system is found in closed form by assuming that the hypersurface is spheroidal. This is achieved by choosing a particular form for the electric field intensity. A class of solution is found for all positive spheroidal parameter for a specific form of electric field intensity. In general, the condition of pressure isotropy reduces to a difference equation with variable, rational coefficients that can be solved. Consequently, an explicit solution in series form is found. By placing restrictions on the parameters, it is shown that the series terminates and there exist two classes of solutions in terms of elementary functions. These solutions contain the models found previously in the limit of vanishing charge. Solutions found are directly relating the spheroidal parameter and electric field intensity. Masses obtained are consistent with the previously reported experimental and theoretical studies describing strange stars. A physical analysis indicates that these models may be used to describe a charged sphere.
Classes of auditory evoked responses.

Auditory evoked potentials arise from different neural structures, yield different types of information and suffer different limitations. In order of activation, these are(1) Organ of Corti (0 msec latency): 'CM'; usefulness uncertain.(2) Auditory nerve (1–4 msec): 'N1'; practically limited to study of basal turn (high frequencies). Basis of electrocochleography; useful for certain abnormalities but not for threshold audiogram.(3) Cochlear nucleus through inferior colliculus (3–20 msec): low voltage waves demonstrated but not clearly identified with structures.(4) Medial geniculate and primary cortical projection area (25–50 msec): low voltage waves can yield a threshold audiogram and are stable in sleep. Inadequately exploited.(5) Cortical projection areas; secondary response (50–280 msec): 'V potential': a slow, variable on- or off-response, but excellent for threshold audiograms in cooperative waking subjects. A DC shift during continued stimulation has also been demostrated but not exploited.(6) Diffu...
Viral Expression of CCL2 Is Sufficient To Induce Demyelination in RAG1−/− Mice Infected with a Neurotropic Coronavirus

Mouse hepatitis virus strain JHM causes a chronic demyelinating disease in susceptible strains of rodents. Demyelination does not develop in infected RAG1-/- (recombination activation gene-deficient) mice but can be induced by several experimental interventions, including adoptive transfer of virus-specific T cells or antibodies. A common feature of demyelination in these models is extensive infiltration of macrophages/microglia into the white matter. The data obtained thus far do not indicate whether macrophage/microglia infiltration, in the absence of T cells or antibody, is sufficient to mediate demyelination. To determine whether the expression of a single macrophage chemoattractant, in the context of virus infection, could initiate the demyelinating process, we engineered a recombinant coronavirus that expressed the chemokine CCL2/monocyte chemoattractant protein-1. CCL2 has been implicated in macrophage infiltration into the central nervous system and is involved in demyelination in many experimental models of demyelination. Extensive macrophage/microglia infiltration and demyelination has developed in RAG1-/- mice infected with this recombinant virus. Thus, these results suggest that the minimal requirement for demyelination is increased expression of a single macrophage-attracting chemokine in the context of an inflammatory milieu, such as that induced by a viral infection.
Bioavailability in vivo of benzo[a]pyrene adsorbed to diesel particulate.

To evaluate health risks associated with exposure to particulates in the environment, it is necessary to quantify the bioavailability of carcinogens associated with the particulates. Direct analysis of bioavailability in vivo is most readily accomplished by adsorbing a radiolabeled form of the carcinogen to the particulate. A sam ple of native diesel particulate collected from an Oldsmobile die sel engine that contained 1.03 μg benzo[a]pyrene ( BaP)/g particulate was supplemented with exogenous [ 3H]-BaP to pro duce a particulate containing 2.62 μg BaP/g. To insure that elu tion of BaP from native and [3H]-BaP-supplemented particulate was similar, in vitro analyses were performed. When using phos pholipid vesicles composed of dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine (DMPC), 1.52% of total BaP was eluted from native particulate into the vesicles in 18 hrs; from [ 3H]-BaP supplemented particu late, 1.68% was eluted. Using toluene as eluent, 2.55% was eluted from native particulate, and 8.25% from supplemented particu...
Savage numbers and the evolution of civilization in Victorian prehistory.

This paper identifies ‘savage numbers’ – number-like or number-replacing concepts and practices attributed to peoples viewed as civilizationally inferior – as a crucial and hitherto unrecognized body of evidence in the first two decades of the Victorian science of prehistory. It traces the changing and often ambivalent status of savage numbers in the period after the 1858–1859 ‘time revolution’ in the human sciences by following successive reappropriations of an iconic 1853 story from Francis Galton's African travels. In response to a fundamental lack of physical evidence concerning prehistoric men, savage numbers offered a readily available body of data that helped scholars envisage great extremes of civilizational lowliness in a way that was at once analysable and comparable, and anecdotes like Galton's made those data vivid and compelling. Moreover, they provided a simple and direct means of conceiving of the progressive scale of civilizational development, uniting societies and races past and present, at the heart of Victorian scientific racism.
Continuous Choquet integrals with respect to random sets with applications to landmine detection

A hit-miss transform is defined using Choquet integrals with respect to random sets. In this context, random sets represent random shapes defined on the plane. Random sets are characterised by their capacity functional. Capacity functional is fuzzy measures. Choquet integrals with respect to random sets are interpreted as stochastic morphological operations. Specifically, the integrals represent the average probability that sets either intersect or are contained in the random sets. Formulas are defined for random erosions and dilations of disks and annuli with Gaussian radii. Applications to landmine detection are given.
Support Fragmentation for Multiplicative Cascade Measures

The family of h-cascades arises naturally in the study of multiplicative cascades. We show that the limiting h-cascades deriving from a single collection of cascade generators have disjoint supports with probability 1 and are consequently a.s. mutually singular. This result relies upon the derivation of a fragmentation level for the individual multiplicative h-cascade measures using large deviation type techniques.
Grounded: Transcriptional Pausing in Naive mESCs

Growing mouse pluripotent stem cells in defined media with signaling inhibitors establishes a naive ground state different from that of cells grown in serum. Recently in Cell, Marks et al. (2012) reported differences in the transcriptional and epigenomic landscapes of naive and serum-exposed mouse stem cells that improve our understanding of the pluripotent ground state.
DARK ADAPTATION IN DINEUTES.

The level of dark adaptation of the whirligig beetle can be measured in terms of the threshold intensity calling forth a response. The course of dark adaptation was determined at levels of light adaptation of 6.5, 91.6, and 6100 foot-candles. All data can be fitted by the same curve. This indicates that dark adaptation follows parts of the same course irrespective of the level of light adaptation. The intensity of the adapting light determines the level at which dark adaptation will begin. The relation between log aI 0 (instantaneous threshold) and log of adapting light intensity is linear over the range studied.
Specific sequences within arginine–glycine-rich domains affect mRNA-binding protein function

The discovery of roles for arginine methylation in intracellular transport and mRNA splicing has focused attention on the methylated arginine–glycine (RG)-rich domains found in many eukaryotic RNA-binding proteins. Sequence similarity among these highly repetitive RG domains, combined with interactions between RG-rich proteins, raises the question of whether these regions are general interaction motifs or whether there is specificity within these domains. Using the essential Saccharomyces cerevisiae mRNA-binding protein Npl3 (ScNpl3) as a model system, we first tested the importance of the RG domain for protein function. While Npl3 lacking the RG domain could not support growth of cells lacking Npl3, surprisingly, expression of the RG domain alone supported partial growth of these cells. To address the specificity of this domain, we created chimeric forms of ScNpl3 with RG-rich domains of S. cerevisiae nucleolar proteins, Gar1 and Nop1 (ScGar1, ScNop1), or of the Candida albicans Npl3 ortholog (CaNpl3). Whereas the CaNpl3 RG chimeric protein retained nearly wild-type function in S. cerevisiae, the ScGar1 and ScNop1 RG domains significantly reduced Npl3 function and self-association, indicating RG domain specificity. Nuclear localization of Npl3 also requires specific RG sequences, yet heterologous RG domains allow similar modulation of Npl3 transport by arginine methylation.
Expression, menstrual cycle-dependent activation, and bimodal mitogenic effect of transforming growth factor-β1 in human myometrium and leiomyoma

Abstract Objective: Transforming growth factor-β1 is the prototype of a bimodal regulator of cell growth, which can either inhibit or stimulate the proliferation of smooth muscle cells. Part of transforming growth factor-β1-mediated stimulation of growth is associated with the increased production of platelet-derived growth factor. The conversion of latent-to-active transforming growth factor-β provides a pivotal mechanism for the regulation of the biologic activity of transforming growth factor-β. We investigated the differential expression and production of the active form of transforming growth factor-β1 in the myometrium and leiomyoma throughout the menstrual cycle. We also studied the mitogenic effects of transforming growth factor-β1 and plateletderived growth factor on myometrial and leiomyoma cells in culture. Study Design: Myometrium and leiomyoma tissue pairs were obtained from 28 women who underwent hysterectomy. Total RNA from each tissue was extracted, and Northern blot analysis was performed for the detection of TGF-β1 messenger RNA. Active and total transforming growth factor-β1 protein was quantified with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Cell proliferation of cultured human myometrial and leiomyoma cells that are treated with TGF-β1 (0.01-1 ng/mL), anti–transforming growth factor-β antibody (0.01-10 ng/mL), or platelet-derived growth factor (10 ng/mL) was assessed by the [ 3 H]thymidine incorporation method. Results: Overall, the transforming growth factor-β1 messenger RNA level in myometrial samples was 1.2-fold higher than in the leiomyoma samples ( P P P P P Conclusion: Levels of active transforming growth factor-β1 that were produced in follicular and luteal phases indicate a stimulatory role for ovarian hormones. The finding that transforming growth factor-β1, only at low concentrations, stimulates cell proliferation mainly in leiomyoma cells is in agreement with the bimodal and dose-dependent effects of transforming growth factor-β1 that is observed in smooth muscle cells of other tissues. The persistent and high rate of cell proliferation with platelet-derived growth factor suggests that the growth stimulatory effect of transforming growth factor-β1 may be mediated through its up-regulatory effect on platelet-derived growth factor. (Am J Obstet Gynecol 2003;188:76-83.)
Self-assembled lipid nanoparticles for imaging disease

Self-assembled nanoparticles composed of low-cost phospholipids unilamellar vesicles (ULVEs) were developed and functionalized with molecular targeting agents to target and image brain diseases.
Activity and partial purification of chlorophyllase in aqueous systems.

SUMMARY A procedure is described for the 500-fold purification of chloro- phyllase from etiolated rye seedlings. Evidence is presented that the final preparation is a lipoprotein-sodium deoxycholate complex. An assay procedure with an aqueous medium is presented. p-Chloromercuribenzoate and ferricyanide inhibit the enzyme, whereas iodoacetamide and diisopropyl fluorophos- phate do not, at the concentrations tested. The possible role of the enzyme in the biosynthesis and breakdown of chlorophyll and in the formation of lamellas of the chloroplast is discussed. REFERENCES 1. 2. 3. k: 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. WILLST~TTER, R., AND STOLL, A., Untersuchungen Ober Chloro- phyll, Springer-Verlag, Berlin, 1913, p. 172. KROSSING, G., Biochem. Z., 306, 359 (1940). ARDAO, C., AND VENNESLAND, B., Plant Physiol., 36, 368 (1960). MAYER, H., Planta, 11, 294 (1930). HOLDEN, M., Biochem. J., 78, 359 (1961). WEAST, C.
Proof of one-loop finiteness of type-I SO(32) superstring theory.

We prove, in the Lorentz-covariant formulation of the type-I superstring theory, that the parity-conserving one-loop amplitudes with arbitrary numbers of external gauge bosons are finite if the internal-symmetry group is SO(32).
Nonlinear Lagrange relaxation based QoS routing revisited

The development of efficient quality of service (QoS) routing algorithms in a high-speed networking or the next generation IP networking environment is a very important and at the same time very difficult task due to the need to provide divergent services with multiple QoS requirements. Recently, a heuristic algorithm H/spl I.bar/MCOP, which is based on a nonlinear Lagrange relaxation (NLR) technique, has been proposed to resolve the contradiction between the time complexity and the quality of solution. Even though H/spl I.bar/MCOP has demonstrated outstanding capability for finding feasible solutions to the multi-path constrained (MCP) problem, it has not exploited the full capability that an NLR-based technique could offer. In this paper, we propose a new NLR-based heuristic, in which the search process is interpreted from a probability perspective. Simulation results indicate that, in comparison with H/spl I.bar/MCOP, the proposed heuristic can achieve a significant performance improvement when it is used as a basic step for solving more complicated QoS routing problems.
Deficient guanine nucleotide regulatory unit activity in cultured fibroblast membranes from patients with pseudohypoparathyroidism type I. A cause of impaired synthesis of 3',5'-cyclic AMP by intact and broken cells

A B S T R A C T Deficient activity of the guanine nucleotide regulatory protein (G unit), an integral component of the membrane-bound adenylate cyclase complex, has been implicated as the biochemical lesion in many patients with pseudohypoparathyroidism
Blind channel estimation using fractional sampling

We consider the problem of blind estimation of a communication channel based on the oversampled channel output. We propose a nonparametric approach that, based on the cyclic spectrum of the output, finds the channel phase response without neither the need of phase unwrapping nor channel length information. For band-limited channels, the cyclic spectrum has limited support. For this case, we propose an approximation for the discretized phase of the cyclic spectrum that, under certain conditions, results in a simpler channel estimation method. The proposed approach is applied to simulated data and real recordings and is compared to existing methods.
Sinusoidal Lining Cells and Hepatotoxicity

Treatment of experimental animals with toxic doses of acetaminophen, carbon tetrachloride, phenobarbital, galactosamine, or endotoxin results in an accumulation of macrophages in the liver. These mononuclear phagocytes, as well as hepatic endothelial cells and stellate cells, are activated to release increased amounts of proinflammatory and cytotoxic mediators including hydrogen peroxide, superoxide anion, nitric oxide, bioactive lipids, interleukin 1, platelet activating factor, and tumor necrosis factor alpha. Each of these mediators has the capacity to induce tissue injury directly and/or augment the inflammatory response. When animals are treated with agents that block macrophage functioning and/or mediator release, xenobiotic-induced hepatotoxicity is reduced. In contrast, treatment of animals with macrophage activators augments toxicant-induced liver damage. These data provide direct support for a role of macrophages and inflammatory mediators in hepatotoxicity.
Demonstration of Active Guidance with SmartCane

The usage of conventional assistive cane devices is critical in reducing the risk of falls, which are particularly detrimental for the elderly and disabled. Many of the individuals that experience the greatest risk of falling rely on cane devices for support of ambulation. However, the results of many studies have shown that incorrect cane usage is prevalent among cane users. The original SmartCane assistive system [4] has been developed to provide a method for acquiring detailed motion data from cane usage. The cane itself, however, lacks any type of programmability as well as real-time data processing algorithms to provide feedback to the cane user. In this demonstration, we have incorporated an embedded computing platform into SmartCane [2] and developed a real-time sensor information processing algorithm that provides direct detection of cane usage characteristics. The new system provides local data processing capability by classifying whether an individual is executing a stride with proper cane motion and applied forces. It also provides direct feedback information to the individual, thereby guiding the subject towards proper cane usage and reducing the risk of falls.
Change in Developmental Timing As a Mechanism of Macroevolution

No modern subject has dominated evolutionary thought with quite the force that Haeckel’s biogenetic law exerted during the late 19th century (16). Since Haeckel’s law — best known by its tongue-twisting motto, ontogeny recapitulates phylogeny — is fundamentally about change in developmental timing, this reborn theme of the last decade or so has deep, but usually unacknowledged, roots.
Energy-Saving Information Multi-agent System with Web Services for Cloud Computing

This paper focuses on designing an information multi-agent system with Web service techniques for cloud computing and its interaction paradigms. It employs the concept of SQL IC to construct the operational interface of cloud database as a data warehouse. This approach not only can look after both sides of ubiquitous access advantages of cloud techniques, but also retain the consistent user interface of a data warehouse. It enables information users to conveniently use the Internet to quickly access the system information in clouds. This paper preliminarily proposes an energy-saving information multi-agent system architecture with Web services for cloud computing. Related presentations and comparisons of the system prototype also verify its feasibility.
The Problem of Self-Torture: What's Being Done?

We commonly face circumstances in which the cumulative negative effects of repeatedly acting in a certain way over time will be significant, although the negative effects of any one such act, taken on its own, are insubstantial. Warren Quinn's puzzle of the self-torturer presents an especially clear example of this type of predicament. This paper considers three different approaches to understanding the rational response to such situations. The first focuses on the conditions under which it is rational to revise one's prior intentions. The second raises the possibility of a fundamental disconnect between the rational assessment of an extended pattern of choices and the assessment of the individual choices that make up that pattern. I show that neither adequately addresses the underlying issues. I propose a third approach, according to which the rational assessment of the “self-torturer's” choices is guided, not by any plan or intention the he has actually adopted, but by the plan or plans it would have been reasonable for him to adopt from the outset. The larger significance of this conclusion is brought out through the identification of conditions under which one's past choices can non-derivatively constrain the rational response to one's present circumstances.
Elementary Steps, the Role of Chemisorbed Oxygen, and the Effects of Cluster Size in Catalytic CH4–O2 Reactions on Palladium

Kinetic and isotopic data and effects of cluster size are used to probe elementary steps and their kinetic relevance in CH4–O2 reactions on Pd clusters that retain a metallic bulk during catalysis. CO2 and H2O were the only products detected, except when O2 was nearly depleted, during which trace CO amounts were formed. 13CH4–12CO–O2 reactions showed that CO reacts with chemisorbed oxygen (O*) much faster than CH4 with reactive collision probability ratios for CO and CH4 proportional to O2/CO ratios via a constant exceeding 500. Thus, even if CO desorbed before forming CO2, it would oxidize via reactions with O* at any reactor residence time required for detectable CH4 conversion, making direct partial oxidation impractical as a molecular route to H2–CO mixtures on Pd. CH4 turnover rates and effective first-order rate constants initially decreased and then reached constant values as O2 pressure and O* coverage increased as a result of a transition in the surface species involved in kinetically relevant C–...
Determination of Formaldehyde Content in Indoor Air by HPLC

[Objective] To establish a determination method of formaldehyde content in indoor air by HPLC.[Methods] The measurements related detection wavelength,mobile phase,derived reagents,methods of operation,the linear range and the minimum detection limits,precision and accuracy,etc were investigated.[Results]Sampling efficiency of this method was 94% ~ 96%,the recovery was 92.0% ~ 101.0%.[Conclusion]The method is simple,rapid,sensitive,with good precision,high accuracy and strong anti-interference ability; can be used in determination of formaldehyde content in indoor air,waster water and dishwashing detergent.
Reliability Design in Scheme Phase

For weapon system,the scheme phase is a very important phase in the developing process.And reliability is a key point for the scheme design.In this paper,some important aspects that should be focused on for reliability design during the scheme phase are discussed in terms of reliability requirements,analysis of reliability prediction and design of reliability.A few practical design methods are proposed.