cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
When the mean no longer matters: developmental diet affects behavioral variation but not population averages in the house cricket (Acheta domesticus)

Lay Summary Understanding behavioral differences in animals is a complex task as many factors play a strong role in shaping these differences. Here, we show that house crickets exposed to a low quality diet over development expressed stronger differences among individuals relative to within individuals when responding to predator cues, compared to individuals exposed to a high quality diet. Our research stresses the importance of variation in developmental environment when investigating factors affecting behavioral variation.Twitter: @RRoyaute
Schema Theory: Mutation versus Recombination

The previous chapters have fully outlined schema theories for recombination and for mutation. Two aspects of these operators were investigated — the disruptive aspect and the constructive aspect. Disruption refers to the likelihood that a kth-order hyperplane H k will not survive either recombination or mutation. Construction refers to the likelihood that a kth-order hyperplane will be created, given that one parent is a member of a lower-order hyperplane H m , and that the other parent is a member of another lower-order hyperplane H n . In order to provide for a fair comparison of mutation and recombination, care was taken to ensure that the mathematical framework was always the same for both operators (e.g., both operators are taken to be two-parent operators that produce two children). The framework is not repeated here (see Chaps. 3–7 for full details).
Further Testing Hope’s Role in Constructive Conflict Communication

Using three waves of data, this study examined the relationship between dispositional hope and constructive conflict communication (i.e., “voice” behaviors) in adult romantic relationships. The primary goal was to test if dispositional hope directly predicted voice or if the hope–voice link is mediated by the more relationally proximal variable of conflict efficacy. Results of cross-lagged panel model analysis showed that hope directly predicted voice, even when controlling for variables, such as optimism, general self-efficacy, commitment, and alternative forms of conflict communication. Implications for hope theory-based relational interventions and future research of hope and conflict communication are discussed.
Favorable Cardiovascular Health, Compression of Morbidity, and Healthcare Costs: Forty-Year Follow-Up of the CHA Study (Chicago Heart Association Detection Project in Industry).

Background:We examined the association of cardiovascular health at younger ages with the proportion of life lived free of morbidity, the cumulative burden of morbidity, and average healthcare costs...
Understanding orality through online fanfiction: Implications for writing and pedagogy

Fanfiction is a work of fantasy in which fans write stories based on original books, movies, TV series, and other cultural and artistic forms of expression. This study looks into fanfiction dedicated to the popular TV series Breaking Bad. In particular, it examines how fans construct the (spoken) dialogues of their (written) stories. The article explores the pedagogic value of using fanfiction in educational contexts, focusing on the analysis, creation, and enactment of stories inspired by TV series and movies that feature a combination of narration and ‘written speech’. The article also offers practical recommendations for classroom and online activities that support the development of skills and understandings related to writing and orality. The effort of representing speech in a written form (i.e., writing dialogues and descriptions of conversations) can help students reflect, with the aid of the teacher, on the distinctiveness and specificity of written and spoken communication. By comparing, contrasting, and critiquing audiovisual and written texts (e.g., the episodes of a TV series and the transcriptions of its dialogues), and by creating their own dialogue-rich stories, students can improve their understanding of the idiosyncrasies of writing and orality across modes, thus advancing their literacy and critical skills as creative producers, not just consumers, of popular culture and media.
Capsules as a Delivery System for Modified-Release Products

Capsules can offer particularly unique features for controlling drug delivery. They can accommodate multiparticulate compositions comprising pellets, beads, or even small tablets. Such units can be coated to control release, or drug may be embedded in a release-controlling matrix. A capsule-based delivery system can have a number of advantages. The units need not be compressed, as is the case with tablets. Hence release-modifying coats are not in danger of being ruptured nor are release rates from matrices altered by compression forces. There is also a strong body of evidence that transit behaviors of small particles in the gastrointestinal tract are more consistent than for single larger units. Hence release, designed to be pH or time-dependent, and subsequent drug plasma profile is likely to be more consistent. Coat failure and consequent dumping of total dose is also far less likely with multiparticulates than with monolithic systems where the total dose is contained in a single unit. This is an important safety feature as controlled-release dosage forms usually contain a greater dose than units where release is not modified. Capsules can also readily accommodate units with different modes of release or different drugs. Capsules have traditionally been formed from gelatin. Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) capsules have been made available in recent years as well. These HPMC capsules contain lower levels of residual moisture that may be beneficial with moisture-sensitive drugs or formulations. With these two types of capsules available, the possibilities in development and manufacturing of the various modified-release dosage forms has been broadened.
The Numbers Don’t Speak for Themselves: Racial Disparities and the Persistence of Inequality in the Criminal Justice System:

Many scholars and activists assume the public would be motivated to fight inequality if only they knew the full extent of existing disparities. Ironically, exposure to extreme disparities can cause...
The Golden Ticket Project for peer recognition.

Background A supportive working environment can be protective against burnout in residency training. To help foster a positive culture, we developed the 'Golden Ticket Project' (GTP) and evaluated it as a tool for peer appreciation. Methods In October 2013-July 2014, all paediatric residents (n = 83) at a paediatric residency programme were invited to participate in the GTP. Through an electronic form, residents could award a co-resident with a 'Golden Ticket' for any behaviour that they were grateful for. Two authors manually coded and analysed the tickets using content analysis to identify recurring themes. We also distributed an anonymous survey to all residents to assess their attitudes toward the GTP. Results The majority (61%) of residents either gave or received 'Golden Tickets' (51/83). Reasons for receiving tickets fell into five categories: (i) teamwork; (ii) positive attitude; (iii) patient care; (iv) resident-resident support; and (v) supervisory skills. Across all three classes, teamwork was recognised most frequently, noted in 43% of all tickets. The recognition of other behaviours varied by class. Fifty-five percent (46/83) of residents completed the programme evaluation survey. Seventy-six percent (35/46) of respondents wanted the programme to continue; of those, 49% (17/35) 'agreed' or 'strongly agreed' that they were 'more aware of acts of kindness in the residency program because of the GTP'. A supportive working environment can be protective against burnout in residency training DISCUSSION: The GTP is a feasible and valued peer-support initiative for residents. The GTP characterised behaviours and attitudes that residents were grateful for in their peers. These behaviours could inform the development of wellness interventions for residents that focus on building supportive working environments.
Assessment of Psychological Concomitants of Oral Contraceptives

This paper will review research on the menstrual cycle and on oral contraceptives currently in progress in the Department of Psychiatry at Stanford University. The psychological aspect of the work is oriented around two major purposes. The first is an attempt to develop a standard technique for the assessment of symptoms and change of symptoms throughout the menstrual cycle. The second involves the comparison of women on oral contraceptives with women not on oral contraceptives in terms of the symptom changes throughout their menstrual cycles.
Pharmacokinetics of Anticancer Drugs

Kinetic processes during absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion determine the extent of drug activity. The success of cancer chemotherapy is particularly dependent upon a series of dynamic events, such as pharmacokinetics, cell cycle kinetics, target enzyme activities, dosage schedule and sequence in combination therapy, and kinetics of endogenous metabolites. Pharmacokinetics therefore, should represent an integral part of pharmacological and clinical studies. Anticancer drugs present special problems in pharmacokinetic investigations. The very nature of their mechanism of action often requires interaction of the drug with specific anabolic and catabolic enzymes in addition to interaction with the hepatic microsomal drug metabolizing enzyme system. Exploitation of enzyme differences between normal and neoplastic tissue may be important in drug efficacy. This demonstrates the complexity frequently encountered in pharmacokinetics of antineoplastic agents. Every single agent may require an entirely different approach to yield useful data. The following information can result from pharmacokinetic studies.
Characterization of higher-degree dispersion, right spread and stop-loss transform orders

The original dispersion order is extended to a higher degree dispersion order. Identifying it with a higher degree stop-loss transform order and with higher degree right spread orders, we obtain a three-fold generalization of the characterization of the original right spread order in Belzunce (1999). An application to the comparison of value-at-risk for insurance contracts is given.
Cell-Like Micromotors.

ConspectusIn the past decade, versatile micro- and nanosized machines have emerged as active agents for large-scale detoxification, sensing, microfabrication, and many other promising applications. Micromachines have also been envisioned as the next advancement in dynamic therapy with numerous proof-of-concept studies in drug delivery, microsurgery, and detoxification. However, the practical use of synthetic micromotors in the body requires the development of fully biocompatible designs facilitating micromotor movement in biological fluids of diverse composition and displaying desired functions in specific locations. The combination of the efficient movement of synthetic micromotors with the biological functions of natural cells has resulted in cell-like micromotors with expanded therapeutic and toxin-removing capabilities toward different biological applications. Thus, these biocompatible and biomimetic cell-like micromotors can provide efficient movement in complex biofluids and mimic the functionalitie...
A Non-Discriminatory Autonomous Controller for EV Charging in Microgrids

This paper proposes an autonomous controller for the charging of EVs in a microgrid. The proposed controller has three objectives: avoiding under- and over-voltages at the point of charging, ensuring fair charging among the EVs in the microgrid, and preserving the lifetime of the battery by reducing the charging rate at high state of charge. The benefits of the proposed controller are highlighted by comparing it to a proportional controller that decides on the charging reference based on the difference between the voltages at the point of connection and a reference value. The results illustrated the advantage of the use of the proposed controller over the conventional one in achieving fair charging and increasing the life time of the battery.
Adsorption of Human Serum Albumin on Graphene Oxide: Implications for Protein Corona Formation and Conformation

The influence of solution chemistry on the adsorption of human serum albumin (HSA) proteins on graphene oxide (GO) was investigated through batch adsorption experiments and the use of a quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation (QCM-D). The conformation of HSA layers on GO was also examined with the QCM-D. Our results show that an increase in ionic strength under neutral pH conditions resulted in stronger binding between HSA and GO, as well as more compact HSA layers on GO, emphasizing the key role of electrostatic interactions in controlling HSA-GO interactions. Calcium ions also facilitated HSA adsorption likely through charge neutralization and bridging effect. At physiological ionic strength conditions (150 mM), maximum HSA adsorption was observed at the isoelectric point of HSA (4.7). Under acidic conditions, the adsorption of HSA on GO led to the formation of protein layers with a high degree of fluidity due to the extended conformation of HSA. Finally, the attachment of GO to a supported lipid bilayer that was composed of zwitterionic 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine, a model for cell membranes, was reduced in the presence of protein coronas. This reduction in GO attachment was influenced by the conformation of the protein coronas on GO.
Multi-Channel Large Network Simulation Including Adversarial Activity

Network simulation is essential to test adversarial search problems for privacy preservation and benchmarking purposes. Different generative models have been developed for single-channel, homogeneous networks that model social networks, communication, and co-authorship. Modeling multichannel networks simultaneously with correlated channel attributes at scale compounds complexity, and including adversarial signals across channels creates a second set of burdens. We present a methodology to employ a suite of generation tools to produce realistic large-scale synthetic activity graphs with embed an adversarial activity. We describe our technical process and how we employ subject matter experts (SMEs) to improve the adversarial signal. We discuss challenges in multi-channel modeling and scalability. We also discuss challenges for high fidelity multi-channel network generation at billion-edges scale.
Application of the Concept of Optimal Control Systems to Inborn Motor Automatisms in Various Animal Species

We can now provide a natural and simple explanation for the experimental facts described in Chapter 1. We will focus on the initiation of CPGs and their organization in various animal species.
Subaxial Cervical Reconstruction of Multilevel Corpectomies and Skip Corpectomies

Anterior cervical corpectomies are used in cases of ventral cord compression that cannot be addressed with a standard anterior cervical discectomy or posterior cervical laminectomy or laminoplasty. Although relatively uncommon, several pathologies render this a useful surgical technique for severe spondylotic myelopathy, infection, and ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament. Anterior cervical corpectomy aims to treat spinal canal stenosis. Adequate imaging is necessary for proper preoperative workup and surgical planning. The goal of surgery is to provide adequate decompression, stabilization, maintenance of cervical alignment, and arthrodesis. Careful surgical technique is essential for adequate decompression and avoidance of complications. The illustrations provided identify the relevant anatomy and important surgical steps that will help perform an anterior cervical corpectomy safely.
Optic Pathway Gliomas

Optic pathway gliomas incorporate a biologically complex group of tumors that can arise along the extent of the visual pathway from the globe to the optic radiations. The most challenging of these lesions emanates from the hypothalamus and/or optic chiasm and, by their nature, is not amenable to complete surgical removal without significant morbidity. In contrast to low-grade gliomas in adults, these tumors often respond for a time to chemotherapy regimens, and recent studies indicate a high incidence of recurring BRAF gene anomalies that appear amenable to biologically targeted therapy, which has drastically influenced how adjuvant therapy for these tumors is now considered. An important clinical feature that influences management of these tumors is the fact that optic pathway tumors in children with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) typically behave in a substantially more indolent manner than in those without this disorder and may be sensitive to the same chemotherapeutic and BRAF pathway-targeted biological therapy approaches, necessitating a more conservative approach to surgical and radiotherapeutic intervention.
Finding sequins in the rubble: The journeys of two Latina migrant lesbians in Los Angeles.

Mainstream research on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender Los Angeles (LA) has ignored Latinx queer communities until recently, and lesbian Latinas, particularly those who are migrants and/or refu...
Gender Gap in Leadership in Academic Medicine and Dentistry: What Are the Barriers? What Can Be Done To Correct It?

Purpose The present study aimed to report the main barriers to women's advancement in leadership and high-rank academic positions in the fields of medicine and dentistry. Materials and Methods An electronic search was conducted of the MEDLINE database using the PubMed search engine. The Google Scholar search engine was also used to access scholarly articles across all disciplines. A total of 173 reports and abstracts published in the English language were retrieved and evaluated for their content. Of these, 32 were initially selected and reviewed. Finally, 16 studies focusing on gender-related discrepancies in healthcare concerning leadership and academic advancement were included. Results The following themes emerged as the main contributors to the gender disparity in academic medicine and dentistry: 1) the lack of appropriate role models and mentorship for successful socialization of female faculty; 2) the lack of peer support for women's promotion through the academic ranks and their selection for executive administrative roles at equal rates as their male counterparts; and 3) implicit bias and negative stereotypes. Conclusions A need exists to increase the number of female role models and enhance mentorship to increase the attraction toward academic careers in medicine and dentistry. Cultural changes also are required at an institutional and organizational level to embrace diversity. The implicit biases against women's promotion to higher academic ranks must be addressed.
Distributed Digital Low-Dropout Regulators with Phase Interleaving for On-Chip Voltage Noise Mitigation

Digital low-dropout regulators (DLDOs) have been drawing significant attention within modern integrated systems such as processors and Internet of Things (IoT) devices. Despite the advantages of low design complexity, low voltage operation capability, and fast transient response, the inherent limit cycle oscillation of DLDOs lead to undesirable output voltage ripple at steady state. On the other hand, distributed on-chip voltage regulation with multiple tiny voltage regulators distributed across the chip achieves superior on-chip voltage noise profile. In this work, distributed DLDOs with phase interleaving are exploited to mitigate on-chip voltage noise due to limit cycle oscillation. Resonant rotary clock (ReRoC) is leveraged for robust clock generation and distribution. It is demonstrated through theoretical analysis and extensive simulations that significant on-chip voltage noise reduction can be achieved with the proposed technique.
The war novel and human rights

AbstractThe war novel, a distinct genre of fiction, has typically been read as a type of humanitarian narrative. This article explains how the war novel participates in humanitarian discourse but a...
Prostate diffusion MRI with minimal echo time using eddy current nulled convex optimized diffusion encoding.

BACKGROUND Prostate diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) using monopolar encoding is sensitive to eddy-current-induced distortion artifacts. Twice-refocused bipolar encoding suppresses eddy current artifacts, but increases echo time (TE), leading to lower signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). Optimization of the diffusion encoding might improve prostate DWI. PURPOSE To evaluate eddy current nulled convex optimized diffusion encoding (ENCODE) for prostate DWI with minimal TE. STUDY TYPE Prospective cohort study. POPULATION A diffusion phantom, an ex vivo prostate specimen, 10 healthy male subjects (27 ± 3 years old), and five prostate cancer patients (62 ± 7 years old). FIELD STRENGTH/SEQUENCE 3T; single-shot spin-echo echoplanar DWI. ASSESSMENT Eddy-current artifacts, TE, SNR, apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC), and image quality scores from three independent readers were compared between monopolar, bipolar, and ENCODE prostate DWI for standard-resolution (1.6 × 1.6 mm2 , partial Fourier factor [pF] = 6/8) and higher-resolution protocols (1.6 × 1.6 mm2 , pF = off; 1.0 × 1.0 mm2 , pF = 6/8). STATISTICAL TESTING SNR and ADC differences between techniques were tested with Kruskal-Wallis and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests (P < 0.05 considered significant). RESULTS Eddy current suppression with ENCODE was comparable to bipolar encoding (mean coefficient of variation across three diffusion directions of 9.4% and 9%). For a standard-resolution protocol, ENCODE achieved similar TE as monopolar and reduced TE by 14 msec compared to bipolar, resulting in 27% and 29% higher mean SNR in prostate transition zone (TZ) and peripheral zone (PZ) (P < 0.05) compared to bipolar, respectively. For higher-resolution protocols, ENCODE achieved the shortest TE (67 msec), with 17-21% and 58-70% higher mean SNR compared to monopolar (TE = 77 msec) and bipolar (TE = 102 msec) in PZ and TZ (P < 0.05). No significant differences were found in mean TZ (P = 0.91) and PZ ADC (P = 0.94) between the three techniques. ENCODE achieved similar or higher image quality scores than bipolar DWI in patients, with mean intraclass correlation coefficient of 0.77 for overall quality between three independent readers. DATA CONCLUSION ENCODE minimizes TE (improves SNR) and reduces eddy-current distortion for prostate DWI compared to monopolar and bipolar encoding. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE 2 Technical Efficacy: Stage 1 J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2020;51:1526-1539.
Analyzing Barriers, Innovating Pedagogy: Applying Universal Design for Learning in a Teacher Residency

Over the last two decades, Universal Design for Learning (UDL) has emerged as a pedagogical framework for inclusive teaching and learning. UDL builds on learner variability as a starting point for ...
Novel hollow fiber membrane reactor for high purity H2 generation from thermal catalytic NH3 decomposition

Abstract Although storage of H2 in various liquid chemicals makes it very attractive for practical applications, production and purification of H2 from decomposition of these chemicals under relatively mild conditions is still challenging. In this work, we reported production of high-purity H2 from NH3 decomposition using a combined packed bed/membrane reactor loaded with Ru-based catalyst. Three types of membranes (modified MFI zeolite membrane, carbon molecular sieve membrane, and Pd/Ag membrane) were employed and compared for H2 production and purification from NH3 decomposition. All these membrane reactors exhibited high NH3 conversion of >99% with H2 recovery of >90% under pressurized NH3 feed of 7 bar. Nevertheless, H2 purity varied because of the different separation performance of these membranes. High H2 purity of >99.999% with
Increased sigma-1 receptor binding observed in the pain matrix of patients suffering from chronic pain.

1076 Objectives: The sigma-1 receptor (S1R) has been found to be an important modulator of signaling mechanisms in pain and inflammation, and its expression is upregulated at regions of heightened nociception in the periphery. Indeed, whole body [18F]FTC-146 PET/MRI, a highly selective PET (positron emission tomography) radioligand for the S1R, has shown increased uptake at sites of pain generation (for example, in Fig. 1). The purpose of this study is to determine whether [18F]FTC-146 shows differential binding in the brain of chronic pain patients compared to asymptomatic volunteers. Results from this study will potentially help determine whether expression of S1R in the brain plays a role in pain perception and central sensitization, and may also support the development of S1R-specific drugs for treating pain. Methods: Healthy asymptomatic volunteers (4 female, 2 male) and pain patients (3 female, 2 male) experiencing low back and pelvic pain were recruited and written informed consent was received from each. The pain intensity of patients was reported as a minimum of 4 out of 10 on a numerical pain scale, for no less than 6 months. A GE SIGNA PET/MRI system (time-of-flight PET; 3.0T MRI bore) was used for the whole-body PET/MRI scans consisting of eight to ten stations. The injection dose of [18F]FTC-146 was 10 mCi, and imaging of the brain began immediately after intravenous injection while imaging of whole-body (head-to-toe) began 40 minutes after injection. Corresponding static PET images and MRI scans were matched, normalized and referenced to the white matter region in PMOD 3.7 (PMOD Technologies LLC). Average SUV and standard deviation were collected. We performed an unpaired t-test to determine the significance of the SUV in detected lesions in comparison with the corresponding measurements from healthy volunteers. Results: Eighty-three predetermined VOIs (volumes of interest) were collected using the segmented adult brain MRI atlas in PMOD. Visual display showed that the precentral gyrus, hippocampus, amygdala, thalamus, and insula exhibited a significantly greater uptake of [18F]FTC-146 when graphed against healthy controls. The mean and standard deviation of SUV from patients in the precentral gyrus / hippocampus / amygdala / cuneus / thalamus / insula were 1.75 ± 1.01 (p<0.0024)/ 1.28 ± 0.59 (p<0.097) / 1.15 ± 0.54 (p<0.073) / 1.73 ± 0.91 (p<0.007)/ 1.56 ± 0.74 (p<0.085)/ 1.47 ± 0.86 (p<0.01), while those for the healthy volunteers were 1.47 ± 0.70 / 1.19 ± 0.65 / 1.05 ± 0.48 / 1.49 ± 0.56 / 1.50 ± 0.45 / 1.39 ± 0.63, respectively. In Figure 2, a greater uptake in the right side of the thalamus can possibly be attributed to the patient’s low back and left leg pain. Conclusions: Sigma-1 receptor shows significantly (p
Embracing Collisions to Increase Fidelity of Sensing Systems with COTS Tags

RFID techniques have been extensively used in sensing systems due to their low cost. However, limited by the structural simplicity, collision is one key issue which is inevitable in RFID systems, thus limiting the accuracy and scalability of such sensing systems. Existing anti-collision techniques try to enable parallel decoding without sensing based applications in mind, which can not operate on COTS RFID systems. To address the issue, we propose COFFEE, which enables parallel channel estimation of COTS passive tags by harnessing the collision. We revisit the physical layer design of current standard. By exploiting the characteristics of low sampling rate and channel diversity of RFID tags, we separate the collided data and extract the channels of the collided tags. We also propose a tag identification algorithm which explores history channel information and identify the tags without decoding. COFFEE is compatible with current COTS RFID standards which can be applied to all RFID-based sensing systems without any modification on tag side. To evaluate the real world performance of our system, we build a prototype and conduct extensive experiments. The experimental results show that we can achieve up to 7.33x median time resolution gain for the best case and 3.42x median gain on average.
Perceptions on the Utilization of the Instructional Materials in Academic English Courses of an International College in Thailand

The study aimed to ascertain the perceptions of the college students in the instructional material used in their English class among second year students and its relationship to their academic performance. In evaluating an instructional material, content, instructional quality, technical quality, presentation and organization, accuracy and up-to-datedness of information, and assessment were examined. This descriptive research was concerned with the relationship between the perceptions of second year students towards the instructional material used as their main text when they are classified according to their gender, major and faculty and their performance. The study was necessitated due to the prevailing complaints regarding the main text used in their courses as is true in other colleges and universities.
A New Approach to Calibration and Use of Mechanistic-Empirical Design Methods

Mechanistic empirical (M-E) pavement design methods have been available for practice since the late 1970s, and many agencies use them for design and analysis of new pavement and rehabilitation projects. The mechanistic part has typically been based on mechanics and laboratory testing, sometimes validated with data from well-instrumented accelerated pavement test (APT) sections. The empirical transfer functions have traditionally been calibrated with small numbers of field sections from which materials properties have been sampled. This paper presents a new approach for calibration, that provides better compatibility with pavement management systems and future use of performance related specifications.
Low voltage switched-current /spl Sigma//spl Delta/ analog-to-digital converters modelling based on VHDL-AMS

The purpose of this paper is to provide accurate and fast models to design and simulate complex switched current (SI) circuits. SI circuits can be manufactured using deep submicron CMOS technology, hence they are suitable for mixed analog-digital systems. As a mixed signal design, it makes them very difficult to simulate. With the VHDL-AMS models presented in this paper, we were able to design a low-power A/D converter based on a EA modulator. This system was designed with a Hewlett-Packard low-voltage, 0.5 /spl mu/m, digital CMOS technology. Obtained results proved the correctness of our models. The system works with a 2.5V power supply.
Effect of concurrent distraction on communication failures in schizophrenic patients: II. Medication status correlations

In order to examine the effects of irrelevant distracting information on speech disorder, medicated (n = 13) and unmedicated (n = 18) schizophrenics were compared to a mixed affective sample (n = 15) on the frequencies of linguistic measures of verbal communication disorder. Patients conversed with an interviewer during the presence and absence of irrelevant information inserted into their conversation. Affective patients manifested no distraction-related increase in communication disorder. Schizophrenics on medication manifested a small, but nonsignificant, increase in communication disorders during the concurrent distraction condition. Unmedicated schizophrenics manifested a substantial increase in their communication disorders during distraction. These data suggest that medication reduces the extent to which speech processes in schizophrenia are vulnerable to overload-related deterioration and provide confirmation of the hypothesis that some component of positive thought disorder in schizophrenia is due to medication-responsive attention deficits.
Use of phoA fusions to study the topology of the Escherichia coli inner membrane protein leader peptidase.

Abstract A topology of the Escherichia coli leader peptidase has been previously proposed on the basis of proteolytic studies. Here, a collection of alkaline phosphatase fusions to leader peptidase is described. Fusions to the periplasmic domain of this protein exhibit high alkaline phosphatase activity, while fusions to the cytoplasmic domain exhibit low activity. Elements within the cytoplasmic domain are necessary to stably anchor alkaline phosphatase in the cytoplasm. The amino-terminal hydrophobic segment of leader peptidase acts as a weak export signal for alkaline phosphatase. However, when this segment is preceded by four lysines, it acts as a highly efficient export signal. The coherence of in vitro studies with alkaline phosphatase fusion analysis of the topology of leader peptidase further indicates the utility of this genetic approach to membrane protein structure and insertion.
Discovering and leveraging content similarity to optimize collective on-demand data access to IaaS cloud storage

A critical feature of IaaS cloud computing is the ability to quickly disseminate the content of a shared dataset at large scale. In this context, a common pattern is collective on-demand read, i.e., accessing the same VM image or dataset from a large number of VM instances concurrently. There are various techniques that avoid I/O contention to the storage service where the dataset is located without relying on pre-broadcast. Most such techniques employ peer-to-peer collaborative behavior where the VM instances exchange information about the content that was accessed during runtime, such that it is possible to fetch the missing data pieces directly from each other rather than the storage system. However, such techniques are often limited within a group that performs a collective read. In light of high data redundancy on large IaaS data centers and multiple users that simultaneously run VM instance groups that perform collective reads, an important opportunity arises: enabling unrelated VM instances belonging to different groups to collaborate and exchange common data in order to further reduce the I/O pressure on the storage system. This paper deals with the challenges posed by such a solution, which prompt the need for novel techniques to efficiently detect and leverage common data pieces across groups. To this end, we introduce a low-overhead fingerprint based approach that we evaluate and demonstrate to be efficient in practice for a representative scenario on dozens of nodes and a variety of group configurations.
Designing engaging experiences with children and artists

Product (and service) designers have long been concerned with the user’s direct experience of their offerings, with ease-of-use often the primary design goal. However, we believe that the indirect experiences evoked by a product are at least as important to many users. For example, a comfortable bicycle seat is valued by most cyclists but the fun of speeding through the open country with good friends is more likely to motivate the purchase of a bicycle in the first place.
Visual-vestibular stimulation influences spatial and non-spatial cognitive processing

This study investigated the impact of visual-vestibular stimulation on performance of an auditory information processing task in young and older adults. Performance on a spatial choice reaction time task was compared to performance on a nonspatial choice reaction time task. The tasks were performed during simultaneous rotational and moving visual stimulation. The non-spatial task was an auditory frequency discrimination task while the spatial task was a right-left lateralization task. Visual and vestibular conditions consisted of a non-movement baseline, sinusoidal earth-vertical axis rotation (EVAR) in darkness, off-vertical axis rotation (OVAR) in darkness at a constant velocity, OVAR in darkness with a sinusoidal profile, EVAR with a lighted visual surround, constant velocity optokinetic stimulation, and sinusoidal optokinetic stimulation. Baseline reaction times were subtracted from reaction times during each stimulus condition to yield “task cost”, which was analyzed statistically. Subjects were healthy young (n = 20; 24 ± 2.7 yrs; 10F) and older (n = 29; 73 ± 6.0 yrs; 18F) adults. Results indicated that task cost was affected by the visual-vestibular condition and a task × condition interaction. There was no main effect of task or age group and no significant interaction with age. Otolithic stimulation and visual stimulation were associated with greater task cost compared to semicircular canal stimulation. Combining semicircular canal with otolithic or visual stimulation had no additional effect beyond otolithic or visual stimulation alone. This pattern of task cost being larger for otolith or visual vs. semicircular canal stimulation was found for both the spatial and non-spatial tasks. The significant interaction between condition and task type revealed that the task cost for the spatial task was larger than the task cost for the non-spatial task during visual conditions but not during non-visual conditions although the visual and non-visual conditions were not entirely comparable. This study suggests that interference of vestibular stimulation with cognitive processing is especially prominent for otolithic and visual stimulation although the strength of the various visual-vestibular stimuli may not have been uniform. Also, spatial tasks are more affected than non-spatial tasks during visual stimulation and interference between vestibular stimulation and cognitive processing is not age dependent for these relatively easy tasks.
Analysis of the Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor Gene in Fresh Human Head and Neck Tumors

Seventeen fresh uncultured tumors obtained from biopsies of patients with various forms of head and neck cancer and two squamous cell carcinoma cell lines were analyzed for RNA expression and structural alterations of the epidermal growth factor reception gene. We used cDNA probes for the external and the internal domains of the gene. Enhanced mRNA expression was found only in one squamous cell carcinoma cell line, which is known to have high levels of epidermal growth factor receptor. No amplification or structural rearrangement of the epidermal growth factor receptor gene was found.
The scientific basis for establishing solubility criteria for veterinary species.

Martinez, M. N., Fahmy, R. The scientific basis for establishing solubility criteria for veterinary species. J. vet. Pharmacol. Therap. 35 (Suppl. 1), 81–86. The relationship between factors influencing the in vitro and in vivo drug solubilization is highly dependent upon the physiology of the individual animal species and the physico-chemical properties of the drug. The solubilization of a drug in an aqueous medium is controlled by the strength of the interaction between a molecule of the active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) and the molecules of the solvent. In this regard, the stronger this interaction, the greater the likelihood that the drug will go into solution. Counteracting this solubilization process is the strength of the affinity of the solute for itself, or how tightly bound the compound is to its own solid state form. The stronger affinity of a solute for itself, the more difficult it will be for that molecule to go into solubility. However, solubility is not a universal value. Rather, it should be considered from the perspective of the interactions between the API in its solid form and the solution conditions such as: pH, the nature of the primary solvent, the presence of co-solvents, the presence of solubilizing additives, the ionic strength of the medium, incubation time, and temperature. Each of these factors needs to be considered when evaluating potential interspecies differences in drug solubility.
Magnetoelastic vibration damping properties of TbDy alloys

Damping of axial and bending mode vibrations in giant magnetoelastic polycrystalline TbDy alloys was studied at cryogenic temperatures. All specimens of TbDy were arc-melted in the proper composition ratio and dropped into a chilled copper mold. Additional treatments consisted of cold plane-rolling to induce crystallographic texture and then heat-treating to relieve internal stress. Mechanical hysteretic losses were measured at various strains, frequencies, and loading configurations down to 77 K. Both as-cast and textured polycrystalline TbDy samples were tested along with an aluminum specimen for comparison. Loss factors at multiple natural vibration frequencies of the samples were measured for axial modes. Larger damping rates were measured for axial mode vibrations than for bending mode vibrations, possibly reflecting the larger specimen volume contributing to magnetoelastic damping. At LN2 temperatures TbDy materials demonstrated q > 0.05 at 0.01 Hz and q > 0.1 at higher frequencies from 0.6-1.5 kHz.
Reoperations on the Aortic Root and Ascending Aorta

Abstract Background . Reoperations on the aortic root and the ascending aorta are being performed with increasing frequency and remain a challenging problem. Methods . Eighty-one patients (age range, 14 to 78 years) underwent reoperations on the aortic root or the ascending aorta during a 14.5-year interval ending October 1996. The previous operations were aortic valve procedure (28%), coronary artery bypass grafting (25%), aortic root replacement (24%), ascending aortic replacement (19%), and miscellaneous (5%). Twenty-two patients (27%) had had two or more previous operations. The principal indications for reoperation were true or false aneurysm (35%), acute or chronic dissection (28%), and malfunction of an aortic valve substitute (27%). The reoperations performed were aortic root replacement (composite graft, allograft, or autograft) in 48 patients and graft replacement of the ascending aorta in 33 patients. Concomitant procedures included aortic arch replacement in 43 patients (55%) and coronary artery bypass grafting in 33 patients (41%). Results . The 30-day mortality rate was 8.6% (7 patients). It was 8.3% for aortic root replacement and 9.1% for ascending aorta replacement ( p > 0.05). Using stepwise multivariate logistic regression analysis of 23 variables, preoperative functional class III/IV ( p = 0.047) and duration of cardiopulmonary bypass ( p = 0.007) were significant independent predictors of early death. The mean duration of follow-up was 3.6 years. The 1-year, 5-year, and 10-year survival rates were 89%, 81%, and 69%, respectively. Freedom from reoperation on the heart or ascending aorta was 98%, 92%, and 69%, respectively. Reoperation for false aneurysm ( p = 0.050) and the presence of coexisting coronary artery disease requiring bypass grafting ( p = 0.010) were the only significant predictors of late mortality. Conclusions . Reoperations on the aortic root and the ascending aorta can be accomplished with acceptable early mortality and satisfactory long-term results. More frequent resection of the aneurysmal or dissected segments of the ascending aorta and aortic root at the initial operation may reduce the need for subsequent reoperation.
Grapes and Cardiovascular Disease

Epidemiological studies suggest that consumption of wine, grape products, and other foods containing polyphenols is associated with decreased risk for cardiovascular disease. The benefits of wine consumption appear to be greater than other alcoholic beverages. Experimental studies indicate that grape polyphenols could reduce atherosclerosis by a number of mechanisms, including inhibition of oxidation of LDL and other favorable effects on cellular redox state, improvement of endothelial function, lowering blood pressure, inhibition of platelet aggregation, reducing inflammation, and activating novel proteins that prevent cell senescence, e.g. Sirtuin 1. Translational studies in humans support these beneficial effects. More clinical studies are needed to confirm these effects and formulate dietary guidelines. The available data, however, strongly support the recommendation that a diet rich in fruits and vegetables, including grapes, can decrease the risk for cardiovascular disease.
Hot-electron micro & nanobolometers based on low-mobility 2DEG for high resolution THz spectroscopy

The results on design, fabrication, and characterization of a hot-electron bolometer (HEB) based on the low-mobility two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) in a AlGaN/GaN heterostructures show that our HEBs have high coupling to incident THz radiation due to the Drude absorption. Significant heating by THz radiation is realized due to the small value of the electron heat capacity. A low contact resistance achieved in our devices ensures that the THz radiation couples primarily to the 2DEG. Due to the small electron momentum relaxation time, the real part of the 2DEG sensor impedance is ~50–100 Ω, which provides a good impedance match between the sensor and antenna. Currently the room temperature responsivity of our devices reaches ~ 0.04 A/W at 2.55 THz along with a noise equivalent power ~ 5 nW/Hz1/2 at room temperature.
Homeodomains: together again for the first time

Abstract The first three co-crystal structures of homeodomain dimers show that there is more than one way for homeodomains to associate with each other on DNA.
Geometric features in images of polyhedra

In model-based object recognition, the features used to describe a model often represent various geometric properties of the model. But there is a difficulty in recognizing a 3D object when the orientation of the object or the view angle of the camera in three space is unknown. This occurs because measurements of the geometric features of an object in a 2D image vary with different view directions. The variations of measured features may be expressed using probability density functions. These densities may be used to completely characterize the observed variations. In this paper we introduce a recognition scheme based on the probabilistic analysis of view variations of geometric features. Our previous work quantified the view variations of a certain pair of features (referred to as quadrature line ratios) for planar surfaces which were scale invariant and image rotation invariant. That work is now extended to a complete 3D convex polyhedral object recognition scheme. We derive the joint density of two pairs of features which are measured from two non-coplanar faces of an object. Likelihood functions based on this density have been developed for each aspect of a polyhedral object and used in the recognition scheme. Experiments have been conducted to verify the efficiency of the proposed scheme.© (1995) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Floating voltage-controlled resistors in CMOS technology

A method for implementing floating voltage-controlled resistors in CMOS technology is proposed. The method takes advantage of the cancellation of the first-order nonlinearities of two MOS transistors in physical proximity.
A comparative study of focused Jpeg compression, FJpeg

Abstract Eye movements are one important component of human vision: only specific regions of the visual scene are fixated and processed by the brain at high resolution. The rest of the image is sampled at lower and coarser resolution by the retina; but still, the image is perceived as uniformly clear. A focused Jpeg encoder, FJpeg, or visual-compression has been developed to operate in a similar fashion. Its implementation is based on specific image processing algorithms capable of predicting human regions-of-interest, ROIs, and on a corresponding differentiated quantization of the DCT coefficients. With FJpeg, the fidelity of ROIs are maintained by preserving their Jpeg–DCT frequency coefficients and balancing this by strongly compressing the residual part of an image, peripheral to the ROIs. It is possible in this way to increase the average compression ratio while preserving visual quality of the image. We present carefully designed experiments to demonstrate that subjects judged FJpeg visual-compression images as superior to standard Jpeg images over a number of conditions.