cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Associations of malaria, HIV, and coinfection, with anemia in pregnancy in sub-Saharan Africa: a population-based cross-sectional study.

Malaria and HIV are common infections in Africa and cause substantial morbidity and mortality in pregnant women. We aimed to assess the association of malaria with anemia in pregnant women and to explore the joint effects of malaria and HIV infection on anemia in pregnant women. We used nationally representative, cross-sectional demographic and health surveys (DHS) that were conducted between 2012 and 2017 across 7 countries of sub-Saharan Africa (Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gambia, Ghana, Mali, Senegal and Togo). The outcome variables were anemia (defined as a hemoglobin concentration < 110 g/L), and hemoglobin concentration on a continuous scale, in pregnant women at the time of the interview. We used generalized linear mixed-effects models to account for the nested structure of the data. We adjusted models for individual covariates, with random effects of the primary sampling unit nested within a country. A total of 947 pregnant women, ages, 15–49 y, were analyzed. Prevalence of malaria only, HIV only, and malaria- HIV coinfection in pregnant women was 31% (95% CI: 28.5 to 34.5%, n = 293), 1.3% (95% CI: 0.77 to 2.4%, n = 13) and 0.52% (95% CI: 0.02 to 1.3%, n = 5) respectively. Overall prevalence of anemia was 48.3% (95% CI: 45.1 to 51.5%). The anemia prevalence in pregnant women with malaria infection only was 56.0% (95% CI: 50.1 to 61.7%); HIV infection only, 62.5% (95% CI: 25.9 to 89.8%); malaria- HIV coinfection, 60.0 (95% CI: 17.0–92.7%) and without either infection, 44.6% (95% CI: 40.7 to 48.6%). In the fully adjusted models, malaria infection was associated with 27% higher prevalence of anemia (95% CI of prevalence ratio: 1.12 to 1.45; p = 0.004), and 3.4 g/L lower hemoglobin concentration (95% CI: - 5.01 to − 1.79; p = 0.03) compared to uninfected pregnant women. The prevalence of HIV infection and malaria-HIV coinfection was too low to allow meaningful analysis of their association with anemia or hemoglobin concentration. Malaria was associated with an increased prevalence of anemia during pregnancy.
Images of violence: can lynching photographs prepare students for the world?

Using data from a qualitative case study examining how lynching is taught in schools near historic lynching sites, this article examines how lynching photographs were used or not used in the teachi...
HTA: A Scalable High-Throughput Accelerator for Irregular HPC Workloads.

We propose a new architecture called HTA for high throughput irregular HPC applications with little data reuse. HTA reduces the contention within the memory system with the help of a partitioned memory controller that is amenable for 2.5D implementation using Silicon Photonics. In terms of scalability, HTA supports 4\(\times \) higher number of compute units compared to the state-of-the-art GPU systems. Our simulation-based evaluation on a representative set of HPC benchmarks shows that the proposed design reduces the queuing latency by 10% to 30%, and improves the variability in memory access latency by 10% to 60%. Our results show that the HTA improves the L1 miss penalty by 2.3\(\times \) to 5\(\times \) over GPUs. When compared to a multi-GPU system with the same number of compute units, our simulation results show that the HTA can provide up to 2\(\times \) speedup.
Local stress constraints in topology optimization of structures subjected to arbitrary dynamic loads: a stress aggregation-free approach

We present an augmented Lagrangian-based approach for stress-constrained topology optimization of structures subjected to general dynamic loading. The approach renders structures that satisfy the stress constraints locally at every time step. To solve problems with a large number of stress constraints, we normalize the penalty term of the augmented Lagrangian function with respect to the total number of constraints (i.e., the number of elements in the mesh times the number of time steps). Moreover, we solve the stress-constrained problem effectively by penalizing constraints associated with high stress values more severely than those associated with low stress values. We integrate the equations of motion using the HHT-α method and conduct the sensitivity analysis consistently with this method via the “discretize-then-differentiate” approach. We present several numerical examples that elucidate the effectiveness of the approach to solve dynamic, stress-constrained problems under several loading scenarios including loads that change in magnitude and/or direction and loads that change in position as a function of time.
Customer Review Analysis: A Systematic Review

Due to the continuous growth of E-Commerce platforms, more and more data is becoming widely available. Almost every online transaction, from buying products on Amazon to renting vacation homes on Airbnb, allows for users to leave feedback in the form of customer reviews. Therefore, there is a need to provide an overview of the status of customer review analysis. This paper systematically reviews research works conducted in the past ten years (2010–2020) to identify how customer reviews are being analyzed and how this analysis can serve the consumers or vendors. We present several commonly used machine learning algorithms, datasets, and numerous applications of customer review analysis to provide insight as well as discuss directions for future research.
Tacrine: A Pharmacological Approach to Alzheimer's Disease

Overall, studies of the effect of tacrine on the cognitive symptoms of AD are inconclusive. Small (1992) gave some insight into this variability of results by stressing that different research methods can generate different outcomes. Small also pointed out that there is an inherent weakness in the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE)--a tool used in most, if not all, AD studies. The MMSE is not sensitive to subtle and real changes in mental function. Regardless of the inconclusiveness of these studies, research must continue in order to tease out the variables contributing to clinically significant gains found in some studies. Anecdotal observations, combined with the previously summarized clinical trials, indicate that a subgroup of AD patients may hope to benefit from tacrine. At a geriatric clinic with which the author is associated, prospective patients and their families are told that tacrine helps about 10% to 20% of those who take it. Further, they are instructed that tacrine seems to be most helpful if given early in the disease process and that it is relatively expensive. Treatment with tacrine costs about $1,000 to $1,500 per year (Anderson, 1993). The maximum dose of tacrine is 120 mg per day, and there is a relatively high incidence of side effects. The most serious side effect of tacrine is liver toxicity, which occurs in up to 30% of the patients taking this drug. Elevations in serum aminotransferase levels occur with the same frequency and therefore must be closely monitored. Additionally, 20% of patients taking tacrine develop nausea and vomiting.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
All-atom Folding Simulations of Insulin B-chain and its Mimetic Peptide

Insulin is a small peptide hormone that regulates blood glucose levels in higher organisms and thereby plays a central role in diabetes. Novel therapeutic efforts are currently underway to treat diabetes such as design of small synthetic peptides that can mimic effects of insulin binding to the insulin receptor, a cell-surface glycoprotein of the the receptor tyrosine kinase superfamily. Although many mimetic peptide sequences have been discovered, and found to selectively function as agonists or antagonists, underlying mechanistic details as well as the structures of peptides remain elusive. In this work, we have studied the folding properties and structure of a peptide that mimics the B-chain of insulin. Using atomistic simulation approaches involving enhanced sampling of peptide conformations, we characterize the folding thermodynamics of mimetic peptide and compare it against folding of the native peptide sequence, the structure for which is known. We observe that the native and mimetic peptides large...
Direct Plasmon-Driven Photoelectrocatalysis

Harnessing the energy from hot charge carriers is an emerging research area with the potential to improve energy conversion technologies.1−3 Here we present a novel plasmonic photoelectrode architecture carefully designed to drive photocatalytic reactions by efficient, nonradiative plasmon decay into hot carriers. In contrast to past work, our architecture does not utilize a Schottky junction, the commonly used building block to collect hot carriers. Instead, we observed large photocurrents from a Schottky-free junction due to direct hot electron injection from plasmonic gold nanoparticles into the reactant species upon plasmon decay. The key ingredients of our approach are (i) an architecture for increased light absorption inspired by optical impedance matching concepts,4 (ii) carrier separation by a selective transport layer, and (iii) efficient hot-carrier generation and injection from small plasmonic Au nanoparticles to adsorbed water molecules. We also investigated the quantum efficiency of hot elect...
Aid and the Rise and Fall of Conflict in the Muslim World

The conflict following the Arab Spring is not the first wave of civil war in the Muslim world in recent time. From the mid-1980s to the end of the century, an average of one in 10 predominantly-Muslim countries experienced violent civil war in any given year. We provide a partial explanation for this statistic: a foreign aid windfall to poor, non-oil producing Muslim countries during the twin oil crises of the 1970s allowed the recipient states to become more repressive and stave o rebellion. When oil prices fell in the mid-1980s, the windfall ended, and the recipient countries experienced a significant uptick in civil war. To provide a causal interpretation we leverage a quasi-natural experiment of oil price induced aid disbursements which favored Muslim countries over non-Muslim countries. Our empirical findings are consistent with existing theories that foreign aid can “buy” stability.
MRI-guided stereotactic laser ablation of mesial temporal structures for the treatment of refractory temporal lobe epilepsy (S31.008)

Objective: To review the efficacy and safety of MRI-guided laser ablation of mesial temporal structures in patients with intractable temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). Background: A novel surgical technique for the treatment of intractable TLE was introduced two years ago and consists on the use of MRI-guided laser ablation of mesial temporal structures. This procedure is less invasive than resective surgery and is associated with a very rapid recovery and potentially, with less post-surgical cognitive deficits. Design/Methods: Fifteen patients with intractable TLE underwent this surgical procedure between November 2013 and April 2014. Patients were followed at one, four, twelve and 24 weeks after surgery. At each visit we investigated seizure frequency, cognitive and psychiatric symptoms as well as any adverse event of AEDs. The data were collected retrospectively from the electronic medical records. The minimum post-surgical follow up period was 6 months. Results: The mean age was 44 years old, with 7 patients being > 50. One patient had bilateral independent ictal foci, with >90[percnt] of seizures from the ablated side. Another had dual pathology with an ipsilateral focal dysplasia posterior to the left hippocampus. Eleven patients have been seizure free, and two reported auras. Two patients had one breakthrough seizure after missing several days of their AEDs. There were no neurological or neurosurgical complications post-surgically. Recurrence and /or worsening of existing depression occurred in 5 patients and a hypomanic episode in one. One patient reported a mild worsening of his verbal memory. Patients above the age of 50 did not have any complications. Conclusions: Laser ablation appears to offer a minimally invasive alternative to resective surgery and could be considered especially in the elderly population. Longer follow-up periods are necessary to establish long-term efficacy of this procedure. Disclosure: Dr. Ribot has nothing to disclose. Dr. Jagid has nothing to disclose. Dr. Serrano has nothing to disclose. Dr. Lowe has nothing to disclose. Dr. Rey has nothing to disclose. Dr. Tornes has nothing to disclose. Dr. Kanner has nothing to disclose.
The Optical Future of High-Speed Networks

With the ever increasing optical transmission rate, now exceeding 1 Tb/s on a single fiber thanks to Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM) technologies, electronic routing/switching is quickly becoming a performance bottleneck in high-speed backbone networks. WDM optical networking, though rooting in the physical and link layers, is by no means yet another ordinary low layer technology as it may affect the designs of the upper electronic layer. Specifically, WDM optical networks can be configured to bypass intermediate electronic components by switching/routing data in the optical domain. This will not only reduce electronic processing and I/O loads, but also provide bit-rate and coding format transparency. However, this may also lead to unexpected “shortest” and “alternate” paths in the electronic layer. In addition, primitive optical logic, and especially the lack of optical memory (buffer) are major challenges in order to realize the vision of building a bandwidth-abundant infrastructure, which is ubiquitous and yet efficient, based on WDM optical networks. In this talk, I will describe these issues and along relevant optical switching paradigms, namely wavelength-routing (as a form of optical circuit switching), optical packet switching, and optical burst switching (OBS), and discuss how the next generation Optical Internet may support QoS and provide multicast services in the WDM optical layer.
Modeling RFID security

Many security and privacy protocols for RFID systems have been proposed [7] [12] [6] [11]. In most cases these protocols are evaluated in terms of security based on some model. Here we describe several of the security requirements that are needed in an RFID system and model these requirements. They include privacy of tag data, privacy of ownership, integrity of tag data, and availability of tag identity. We also construct less restrictive versions of many of these models to reflect the security needed for some less security-intensive RFID applications and compare them to existing models.
GeoSTAR - a microwave sounder for geostationary satellites

Geo STAR represents a new approach to microwave atmospheric sounding that is now under development. It has capabilities similar to sensors currently operating on low earth orbiting weather satellites but is intended for deployment in geostationary orbit - where it will complement future infrared sounders and enable all-weather temperature and humidity soundings and rain mapping. The required spatial resolution of 50 km or better dictates an aperture of 4 meters or more at a sounding frequency of 50 GHz, which is difficult to achieve with a real aperture system - this is the reason why it has until now not been possible to put a microwave sounder on a geostationary platform, GeoSTAR is instead based on a synthetic aperture imaging approach. Among the advantages of such a system are that there are no moving parts, and the size of the aperture is easily expandable to meet future needs. A ground based prototype of GeoSTAR is currently under development in an effort led by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory
HFIR vessel probabilistic fracture mechanics analysis

The life of the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) pressure vessel is limited by a radiation induced reduction in the material`s fracture toughness. Hydrostatic proof testing and probabilistic fracture mechanics analyses are being used to meet the intent of the ASME Code, while extending the life of the vessel well beyond its original design value. The most recent probabilistic evaluation is more precise and accounts for the effects of gamma as well as neutron radiation embrittlement. This analysis confirms the earlier estimates of a permissible vessel lifetime of at least 50 EFPY (100 MW).
Domestic Violence and Animal Cruelty: Untangling the Web of Abuse

A growing body of research indicates that batterers often threaten, hurt, or kill family pets as a means of coercing and controlling their female partners and that women sometimes delay seeking shelter out of concern for the welfare of their pets. This article reviews the research on the link between animal abuse and domestic violence, describes the implications of this research for social work practice, and offers suggestions and resources for integrating this content into all aspects of the social work curriculum.
Glial Vascular Degeneration in CADASIL

CADASIL is a genetic vascular dementia caused by mutations in the Notch 3 gene on Chromosome 19. However, little is known about the mechanisms of vascular degeneration. We characterized upstream components of Notch signaling pathways that may be disrupted in CADASIL, by measuring expression of insulin, IGF-1, and IGF-2 receptors, Notch 1, Notch 3, and aspartyl-(asparaginyl)-β-hydroxylase (AAH) in cortex and white matter from 3 CADASIL and 6 control brains. We assessed CADASIL-associated cell loss by measuring mRNA corresponding to neurons, oligodendroglia, and astrocytes, and indices of vascular degeneration by measuring smooth muscle actin (SMA) and endothelin-1 expression in isolated vessels. Immunohistochemical staining was used to assess SMA degeneration. Significant abnormalities, including reduced cerebral white matter mRNA levels of Notch 1, Notch 3, AAH, SMA, IGF receptors, myelin-associated glycoproteins, and glial fibrillary acidic protein, and reduced vascular expression of SMA, IGF receptors, Notch 1, and Notch 3 were detected in CADASIL-lesioned brains. In addition, we found CADASIL-associated reductions in SMA, and increases in ubiquitin immunoreactivity in the media of white matter and meningeal vessels. No abnormalities in gene expression or immunoreactivity were observed in CADASIL cerebral cortex. In conclusion, molecular abnormalities in CADASIL are largely restricted to white matter and white matter vessels, corresponding to the distribution of neuropathological lesions. These preliminary findings suggest that CADASIL is mediated by both glial and vascular degeneration with reduced expression of IGF receptors and AAH, which regulate Notch expression and function.
Subthreshold analog circuit for computing the maximal principal component of 3-D data

We present the analysis, design, and experimental results of a circuit that computes the maximal principal component of three dimensional data. To reduce power consumption, the implemented model uses circuit elements and differential pairs which operate in the subthreshold regime of MOS operation. >
Effect of Thyrotropin-Releasing Factor on Thyrotropic Cells in vitro*

Publisher Summary This chapter presents the effect of thyrotropin-releasing factor (TRF) on the thyrotropic cells [thyrotropic hormone (TSH) cells] that was investigated in vitro , and it was found that the TSH cells undergo degranulation rapidly following the exposure to the TRF in vitro. TSH cells were more frequently found in clusters in the center of the gland. The cells were polygonal to stellate in shape and usually located in the center of the cord. Signs of TSH release were noticed in those pituitary glands that were placed in the incubation medium immediately after the removal from the animals. After five minutes of exposure of the gland to TRF, some TSH cells were degranulated, their cytoplasm filled with hydropic vacuoles, and anti-TSH positive granules found among the vacuoles. In conclusion, the synthetic TRF is capable of releasing the TSH cells in vitro. The morphological changes associated with the release of TSH are similar to those observed in other cell types, and it may be concluded that the phase of the release of the pituitary hormones from the pituitary glands are very similar.
Glucocorticoid binding sites in rat brain: subcellular and anatomical localizations.

Publisher Summary This chapter reviews the chemistry of glucocorticoid action in brain by following the interaction of the hormone itself with this organ. This approach has provided information as to the subcellular and neuroanatomical location within the rat brain of glucocorticoid binding sites-presumptive “receptors”—located in the cell nuclei and soluble portion of the tissue. The results serve to direct attention to a particular cellular mechanism of hormone action and to certain brain regions for further neurochemical and physiological studies. Steroid hormones act directly on the brain to regulate pituitary hormone secretion and influence behavior. Thus, from the point of view of neuroendocrinology and physiological psychology, the brain is a target organ for steroid hormones, but the chemistry of the hormone-brain interaction has only recently come under intensive investigation. The soluble binding protein differs from that in blood and appears able to transfer [ 3 H] corticosterone to isolated cell nuclei in vitro. Nuclear uptake is also demonstrated in brain tissue slices and is shown to be strongly temperature-dependent.
INTEGRATED NUTRIENT MANAGEMENT IN WHEAT (TRITICUM AESTIVUM) AND IT'S RESIDUAL EFFECT ON RICE (ORYZA SATIVA) IN NORTH-WESTERN HIMALAYAS

A field experiment was conducted during 2001-02 to 2003-04 at CSK HP Krishi Vishvavidyalaya, Palampur, to study the effect of organic sources and fertility levels on wheat and their residual effect on rice. Five organic sources, viz. S1 : FYM 5.0 t /ha on dry weight basis, S2: paddy straw, S3 : soybean straw, S4: FYM 2.5 t/ha + paddy straw and S5 : FYM 2.5 t/ha + soybean straw (paddy and soybean straw were applied to supply N as in Si) were applied in all possible combinations with 3 fertility levels viz. 50, 100 (120 kg N + 26.2 kg P + 24.5 kg K/ha) and 150% of recommended fertilizer dose (RDF) to wheat crop. Sixteen treatments including one absolute control (no fertilizer and manure) were laid out in randomized block design with 3 replications. Organic sources and fertility levels significantly affected the plant height, yield attributes and productivity of wheat crop. Averaged over the fertility levels, S1 produced significantly higher wheat grain yield (41.7 q/ha) followed by S4 (31.6 q/ha), S5 (31.4 q/ha), S2 (28.5q/ha) and S3 (28.4 q/ha). Growth (plant height) and yield attributes viz, effective tillers per m row length, number of grains per spike and 1000 - grain weight supported the productivity levels. Based on the mean value of three years, gross return (Rs 37,294/ha), net return (Rs 18,184/ha) and benefit: cost ratio from wheat was higher in S1. Application of 100 and 150% of recommended dose of chemical fertilizers compared to 50% level increased wheat productivity by 5.3 (19.6%) and 10.7 (39.5%) q/ha, respectively. On an average, wheat productivity increased by 126.9 per cent with integrated nutrient management compared to absolute control (no manure/fertilizes).Residual effect of fertility levels applied to wheat improved the growth, yield parameters (number of tillers per unit area and 1000 grain weight) and paddy yield significantly up to 100% level where as residual effect of organic sources was not significant. Thus, high productivity (41.7 q/ha) and profitability of the wheat (in wheat - rice system) can be realized by applying FYM 5 t/ha alongwith l50% of recommended dose of chemical fertilizers. However, FYM 2.5 t/ha + paddy/soybean straws may also be used to obtain comparatively lower productivity levels (31.4-31.6 q/ha).
A Phenomenological Study of Falling Out of Romantic Love

Romantic love is considered a necessary ingredient in marriage. In this study, the experience of falling out of romantic love with one’s spouse was examined. Eight individuals who had fallen out of romantic love with their spouse were interviewed. By using Moustakas’ Transcendental Phenomenological method, several themes emerged which provided a description of the experience of the phenomena. These themes included loss of trust, of intimacy, and of feeling loved; emotional pain; and negative sense of self. Gradual decline was identified as a slow, progressive deterioration of the relationship in which over time the romantic love decreased and eventually ended. Pivotal moment of knowing was seen as a specific moment in which there was awareness of no longer being in romantic love. The specific circumstances associated with pivotal moment were different for each participant, but the clarity of the moment was universal. Although not exhaustive in their scope, the identified themes were reported to be a part of the romantic love dissolution experience.
Season of birth and disordered eating in a population-based sample of young U.S. females.

Objective—We used data from a population-based study of 9,039 adolescent and young adult females, followed prospectively since 1996 as part of the Growing Up Today Study (GUTS), to examine the relationship between season of birth and disordered eating in the U.S. Methods—We tested whether the distribution of birth season and month differed for participants who had ever reported both underweight and dieting/weight concern symptoms (n=134) or both frequent bingeing and purging symptoms (n = 77) compared to other GUTS participants. Results—The two disordered-eating groups had relative birth peaks in the fall and relative birth troughs in the summer compared to other GUTS participants, but only the fall peak was consistently statistically significant. Discussion—It appears that U.S. females born in the fall are more likely to develop disordered eating and that age relative to the rest of their school-year cohort may account for some of this phenomenon.
Smokeless tobacco on campus.

Self-reports on smokeless tobacco consumption were obtained from 438 students attending a small Midwestern liberal arts college. While use among 249 female students was negligible, 9% of 189 male respondents reported routine use of smokeless tobacco products.
The design of the corner-reflector antenna

The corner-reflector antenna has been investigated by Kraus and others.1,2 The mathematical expressions for the array factor as given in this earlier work are cumbersome, making it difficult to design such an antenna accurately. It is the purpose of this paper to overcome this difficulty.
Spin-dependent resistivity and quantum Hall ferromagnetism in two-dimensional electrons confined to AlAs quantum wells

Abstract We observe a strong dependence of the amplitude and field position of longitudinal resistivity ( ρ xx ) peaks in the spin-resolved integer quantum Hall regime on the spin orientation of the Landau level (LL) in which the Fermi energy resides. The amplitude of a given peak is maximal when the partially filled LL has the same spin as the lowest LL, and amplitude changes as large as an order of magnitude are observed as the sample is tilted in field. In addition, the field position of both the ρ xx peaks and plateau–plateau transitions in the Hall resistance shift depending on the spin orientation of the LLs. The spin dependence of the resistivity points to a new explanation for resistivity spikes, associated with first-order quantum Hall ferromagnetic transitions, that occur at the edges of quantum Hall states.
Implicit Romantic Fantasies and Women's Interest in Personal Power: A Glass Slipper Effect?

Three experiments investigated the relationship between women's romantic fantasies and their interest in personal power. Romantic fantasies (associating partners with chivalry and heroism) were assessed using the Implicit Association Test and self-reports. In each experiment, women's implicit romantic fantasies were dissociated with their conscious beliefs. More important, implicit (but not explicit) romantic fantasies negatively predicted women's interest in personal power, including projected income, education goal, interest in high-status jobs, and group leadership appeal. By contrast, men's implicit romantic fantasies were not routinely linked to their interest in personal power. In concert, the findings are consistent with positing a "glass slipper" effect for women that may be an implicit barrier to gender equity.
A sensitive method for determining the nephrotoxic effects of the analgesic acetaminophen upon esterases using isoelectric focusing

In a study of the biochemical mechanisms of renal toxicity of acetaminophen, quantitative studies of the nonspecific kidney esterases were carried out in New Zealand white female rabbits. After the administration of a sublethal dose of 2.5 g/kg acetaminophen, four animals each plus four controls were sacrificed at 24 and 48 h. subsequent isoelectric focusing of kidney homogenate supernatants over a pH range of 3.5–8.0 showed marked changes in each of the groups. Zymograms of the nonspecific esterases in each group showed a characteristic pattern which deviated greatly from control animals. A morphological and histochemical examination of kidney sections from all animals showed no pathological changes in any of the kidneys. This would indicate that abnormal biochemical changes are being manifested in the kidney long before any morphological deviations. It would seem that this group of enzymes could provide a valuable market for early toxicological changes.
An advanced dynemicin A model: Stabilization of the 3,8-epoxide by anthraquinone functionality in the absence of the bridging enediyne

Abstract Annulation of a quinone aminal like structure with a lithiated cyanophthalide leads to a quinone stabilized epoxide in the dynemicin series.
Photoreduction of quinones by isolated spinach chloroplasts.

Abstract Photoreducibility by isolated spinach chloroplasts of 1,4-benzoquinone, tetrachloro- p -benzoquinone, 2,3-dichloro; 2-chloro-3-amino; 2-methyl, and non-substituted 1,4-naphthoquinones were studied together with oxygen evolution by the Hill reaction. It has been observed by a spectrophotometric method that the naphthoquinones were quantitatively photoreduced to corresponding hydroquinones under anaerobic conditions and readily reoxidized to the original naphthoquinones by molecular oxygen. The naphthoquinones showed no oxygen evolution by the Hill reaction. On the other hand, tetrachloro- p -benzoquinone and p -benzoquinone were photoreduced to hydroquinone under aerobic and anaerobic conditions, and stoichiometric oxygen evolution was observed by the Hill reaction. A possible correlation between the photoreducibility of these quinones and their phytotoxicity was discussed.
Diamond nucleation on graphite substrate using a pure hydrogen feed

Abstract Diamond particles and films were grown on graphite substrates using hot-filament CVD method with a pure hydrogen feed. After deposition, graphite substrates showed strong etching effects. A trough of 1 mm deep and 4–5 mm wide was formed in the graphite opposite to the filament. Scanning electron microscopy and micro-Raman spectrum demonstrate that diamond has grown both inside and near the edge of the trough. The results are discussed with respect to the possible precursors of diamond deposition and the effect of atomic hydrogen interaction with graphite substrates.
Oxidation of 1-Naphthol Coupled to Reduction of Structural Fe3+ in Smectite

Sorption and transformation of 1-naphthol by a K-smectite (K-SWy-2) were studied using batch sorption isotherms, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The sorbents included three preparations of the reference smectite clay (SWy-2): (1) whole clay containing naturally occurring carbonate impurities, (2) SWy-2 with the removal of carbonate impurities, and (3) the carbonate-free SWy-2 fraction amended with calcite. For the whole clay and carbonate-free clay amended with calcite, >80% of added 1-naphthol disappeared from aqueous solution within 24 h, corresponding to a sorbed concentration of ≥2 mg/g of clay. In contrast, only 35% of the added 1-naphthol disappeared from solution in the carbonate-free clay after 24 h of exposure. For the clays from the three preparations in this study, <1% of sorbed 1-naphthol could be recovered by methanol extraction from the clays. The XRD data suggested that 1-naphthol was intercalated in the smectite, but was not conclusive because the 1-naphthol sorption range (1.5–2.8 mg/g of clay) in this study had relatively minor effects on the XRD patterns. The FTIR spectra of sorbed 1-naphthol-clay complexes demonstrated structural Fe3+ reduction. The spectra also showed evidence of the transformation of 1-naphthol. It suggests that reduction of structural Fe3+ may be coupled to oxidation/polymerization of 1-naphthol. Further transformation of oxidized 1-naphthol, such as by oxidative coupling reactions, is implicated by formation of a dark gray color on the clay and the inability to extract sorbed 1-naphthol.
Quantitative study of aluminum binding to human serum albumin and transferrin by a chelex competitive binding assay

Abstract Binding of aluminum to human serum albumin and transferrin was investigated using a competitive binding assay incorporating a cation exchange resin, chelex. Both albumin and transferrin were found to produce linear Scatchard plots of aluminum binding data over the aluminum and protein concentration ranges found in humans. Binding constants measured for albumin and transferrin were 1.96 and 0.515 μM, respectively.
Short-range sea clutter in horizon search radar systems: antenna pattern effects

Short-range clutter can limit the performance of radar systems using high pulse repetition frequency (PRF) waveforms. The paper evaluates the antenna pattern effects of short-range sea clutter for an example horizon search system. Clutter-to-noise ratio (C/N) and signal-to-noise ratios (S/N) are evaluated for several antenna designs, in which aperture illumination weighting can be achieved on either transmit or receive. Three antenna effects are studied: illumination function (pattern), elevation of the pattern with respect to horizontal (‘upspot’), and aperture diameter. Of several cases examined, one with uniform weighting on transmit and Taylor weighting on receive gives the most desirable clutter response. With reference to the case of uniform transmit and receive patterns with no upspot, a Taylor receive pattern with −42 dB sidelobe level in combination with an optimal upspot angle reduces worst-case clutter by ≈14.7 dB at the expense of ≈10.25 dB increase in the transmit power required to equalise S/N to that of the reference. Doubling the aperture diameter further reduces worst-case clutter by ≈13.2 dB, with required transmit power actually decreasing (≈12.41 dB) over the previous case. Here, the cost is a larger antenna. Antenna considerations are shown to have a considerable impact on clutter and to be perhaps the best method of reducing radar dynamic range requirements.
A method for isolating human plasma lecithin:Cholesterol acyltransferase without using anti-apolipoprotein D, and its characterization

Abstract A method for isolating human plasma lecithin:cholesterol acyltransf erase (EC 2.3.1.43) purified more than 50000-fold is described. The crude enzyme obtained by initial ammonium sulfate and citric acid treatment of 2 1 of human plasma is subjected to repeated DEAE-cellulose chromatography to yield a preparation purified more than 600-fold. Hydroxyapatite chromatography of concentrates from this fraction using 0.5 mM phosphate buffer, pH 6.8, yields enzyme preparations purified more than 50000-fold. The enzyme isolated by this procedure was free of apolipoprotein D, as shown by the absence of an arc in immunodiffusion with anti-apolipoprotein D. The enzyme showed a single band by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in the presence and absence of SDS. Upon analytical isoelectrofocusing the enzyme separated into three iso forms with isoelectric points below that of egg albumin (p I 4.6). The enzyme was characterized by a high content of glutamic acid, leucine and glycine, and a lower content of tyrosine. The enzyme possessed both transferase and phospholipase A, activities and both activities show absolute requirement for apolipoprotein A-I. The purified enzyme was injected into Balb/c mice and the antiserum reacted both with the purified enzyme and normal human serum in immunodiffusion, giving lines of complete identity. The antiserum gave no precipitation lines with albumin or apolipoprotein D, providing additional evidence for the absence of apolipoprotein D in the purified enzyme. The gamma-globulin isolated from the antiserum inhibited human lecithin:cholesterol acyltransferase activity.
Obstructing left auricular thrombi.

A NTE-MORTEM formation of thrombi within the auricles of the heart is not uncommon, particularly in individuals dying of rheumatic heart disease.* -:I Usually, these thrombi are important only as sources of peripheral emboli. On occasion, however, auricular thrombi may obstruct the general circulation. In 1814, William Wood” detected at necropsy a large ball-valve thrombus (13.5 inches in diameter) in the left auricle which had obstructed the flow of blood, he believed, through a stenotic mitral orifice. Van Ziemssen6 and others have felt that a clear distinction between large free and pedunculated auricular thrombi should not be made since both could produce the same symptoms. In our necropsy records, we studied the post-mortem findings and later the clinical histories of four patients. Two had died with a large pedunculated left auricular thrombus and two with a free thrombus in the left auricle.
Animal sacrifice: a model of paternal exploitation

The late Nancy Jay described a striking feature of animal sacrifice: in many different cultures it functions to establish paternity. This article develops a theoretical framework for understanding just what it is about animal sacrifice that makes it so cross‐culturally well‐suited for establishing paternity. The main premise of this framework is that sacrifice communicates menace – not so much towards the domesticated animals ritually killed, but primarily towards those subordinated humans (children in particular) who are similarly disempowered vis‐a‐vis the class of male sacrificers. By demonstrating their willingness and ability to kill, sacrificing men gain a material basis for claiming credit for human reproduction, namely, that children live only by virtue of the sacrificers’ decision to kill animals in their stead. This framework is explicated through reference to Old and New Testament discourses of sacrifice.
Pornography and the Male Sexual Script: An Analysis of Consumption and Sexual Relations

Pornography has become a primary source of sexual education. At the same time, mainstream commercial pornography has coalesced around a relatively homogenous script involving violence and female degradation. Yet, little work has been done exploring the associations between pornography and dyadic sexual encounters: What role does pornography play inside real-world sexual encounters between a man and a woman? Cognitive script theory argues media scripts create a readily accessible heuristic model for decision-making. The more a user watches a particular media script, the more embedded those codes of behavior become in their worldview and the more likely they are to use those scripts to act upon real life experiences. We argue pornography creates a sexual script that then guides sexual experiences. To test this, we surveyed 487 college men (ages 18-29 years) in the United States to compare their rate of pornography use with sexual preferences and concerns. Results showed the more pornography a man watches, the more likely he was to use it during sex, request particular pornographic sex acts of his partner, deliberately conjure images of pornography during sex to maintain arousal, and have concerns over his own sexual performance and body image. Further, higher pornography use was negatively associated with enjoying sexually intimate behaviors with a partner. We conclude that pornography provides a powerful heuristic model which is implicated in men's expectations and behaviors during sexual encounters.
Range data acquisition from an encoded structured light pattern

In this paper, an implemented structured lighting system is described. Experiments are performed on the system using various objects, and method of range data acquisition is verified. After the calibration is explained with a set of numerical data, the procedural steps of image analysis are illustrated using a simple object. The obtained range data are plotted for verification of the method. The performance of the system, based on error analysis, is also described.© (1993) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Cloned bacillus subtilis DNA containing a gene that is activated early during sporulation

Abstract An endonuclease restriction fragment of Bacillus subtilis DNA has been identified that contains a gene whose transcription is activated early during the process of spore formation. This 4.4 kilobase (kb) DNA was detected by hybridizing electrophoretically separated Eco R1 restriction fragments with a radioactively labeled RNA of 0.4 kb from sporulating cells. The 4.4 kb B. subtilis DNA was then cloned and amplified in E. coli by insertion into the plasmid vector pMB9. Using the cloned B. subtilis DNA as a hybridization probe, we were able to detect the 0.4 kb transcript in total RNA from pulse-labeled bacteria. In wild-type cells, the gene coding for the 0.4 kb RNA was turned on within the first 30 min of spore formation. Although transcribed normally in a mutant blocked at stage II of spore development, the gene for the 0.4 kb RNA was not turned on in six different mutants blocked at stage 0 of sporulation. We conclude that the cloned B. subtilis DNA contains a gene whose transcription is regulated by events occurring at the onset of spore development.
Antral axial forces postprandially and after erythromycin in organic and functional dysmotilities

Our aims were to measure antral axial forces in patients with suspected upper gut dysmotilities and to compare the number of antral contractions detected by an axial force catheter and by manometric sensors in the distal antrum and pylorus. Fifteen patients (2 men, 13 women; mean age 42 years) underwent studies for 3 hr fasting, 2 hr postprandially, and up to 60 min after intravenous erythromycin (3 mg/kg). Seven patients had gastroparesis or chronic intestinal pseudoobstruction, five functional disease, and three subacute obstruction. Postprandially, the number of peaks detected by the two methods was not significantly different; however, after erythromycin, the axial catheter detected more contractions (P=0.02). Erythromycin significantly increased the number of postprandial axial forces (from 1.2±0.3/min to 2.5±0.3/min,P≤0.01) in the whole group and in the organic dysmotility group (P=0.01). Erythromycin significantly increases the number of axial forces in functional and organic upper gut dysmotilities, but the axial force catheter is not advantageous over manometry for postprandial measurements of antral motility.
A Nonlinear Model for Structural Vibrations in Rolling Element Bearings: Part I—Derivation of Governing Equations

This paper, the first of two companion papers, presents a model for investigating structural vibrations in rolling element bearings. The analytical formulation accounts for tangential and radial motions of the rolling elements, as well as the cage, the inner and the outer races. The contacts between the rolling elements and races are treated as nonlinear springs whose stiffnesses are obtained by application of the equation for Hertzian elastic contact deformation. The derivation of the equations of motion is facilitated by assuming that only rolling contact exists between the races and rolling elements. Application of Lagrange's equations leads to a system of nonlinear ordinary differential equations governing the motion of the bearing system. These equations are then solved using the Runge-Kutta integration technique. Using the formulation in the second part-A Nonlinear Model for Structural Vibrations in Rolling Element Bearings: Part II-Simulation and Results, a number of effects on bearing structural vibrations are studied. This work is unique from previous studies in that the model simulates vibration from intrinsic properties and constituent elements of the bearing, and takes into account every contact region within the bearing, representing it by a nonlinear spring.
Spatial and frequency dependence of plasma currents in a 300 mm capacitively coupled plasma reactor

There is much interest in scaling rf-excited capacitively coupled plasma reactors to larger sizes and to higher frequencies. As the size approaches operating wavelength, concerns arise about non-uniformity across the work piece, particularly in light of the well-documented slow-surface-wave phenomenon. We present measurements and calculations of spatial and frequency dependence of rf magnetic fields inside argon plasma in an industrially relevant, 300 mm plasma-processing chamber. The results show distinct differences in the spatial distributions and harmonic content of rf fields in the plasma at the three frequencies studied (13.56, 60 and 176 MHz). Evidence of a slow-wave structure was not apparent. The results suggest that interaction between the plasma and the rf excitation circuit may strongly influence the structures of these magnetic fields and that this interaction is frequency dependent. At the higher frequencies, wave propagation becomes extremely complex; it is controlled by the strong electrical nonlinearity of the sheath and is not explained simply by previous models.
L-phenylalanine ammonia-lyase. Binding of polysaccharide by the enzyme from maize

Abstract The amount of carbohydrate associated with maize phenylalanine ammonia-lyase at all stages of purification was appreciable; monosaccharides present in hydrolyzed enzyme were arabinose, ribose, fucose, galactose, mannose, and glucose. The ratio of neutral sugars: amino sugars was 9 : 1. As much as 90% of the carbohydrate could be removed as a high molecular weight polysaccharide by gel electrophoresis, DEAE-Sephadex chromatography, or trichloracetic acid precipitation. Precipitation with (NH4)2SO4 and column chromatography on agarose or hydroxylapatite did not decrease the carbohydrate : protein ratio. Removal of the polysaccharide (composed of arabinose and galactose) is accompanied by large losses of activity. In vivo localization of the enzyme may depend on its ability to bind specific polysaccharides.
Taste Acquisition and Appetite Control

As summarized elsewhere,1 at the time of birth infants appear able to distinguish between sweet, sour, and bitter tastes and between differences in sweetness of a solution. Newborn breastfed infants also appear able to distinguish between the presence and absence of garlic or alcohol in the milk. The ability to detect saltiness may not develop until about 4 months of age. Although short-term feeding studies …