cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The nucleotide sequence of the RAD3 gene of Saccharomyces cerevisiae : a potential adenine nucleotide binding amino acid sequence and a nonessential acidic carboxyl terminal region

Abstract The RAD3 gene of Saccharomyces cerevisiae is required for excision of pyrimidine dimers and is essential for viability. We present the nucleotide sequence of the RAD3 protein coding region and its flanking regions, and the deduced primary structure of the RAD3 protein. In addition, we have mapped the 5' end of RAD3 mRNA. The predicted RAD3 protein contains 778 amino acids with a calculated molecular weight of 89,779. A segment of the RAD3 protein shares homology with several adenine nucleotide binding proteins, suggesting that RAD3 protein may react with ATP. The twenty carboxyl terminal amino acids of RAD3 protein are predominantly acidic; however, deletion of this acidic region has no obvious effect on viability or DNA repair.
Structural Determination of Molecular Overlayer Systems with Normal Photoelectron Diffraction: c ( 2 × 2 ) CO-Ni(001) and ( 3 × 3 ) R 30 ° CO-Ni(111)

LBL~10024 Pre rint Submitted to Physical Review Letters STRUCTURAL DETERMINATION OF MOLECULAR OVERLAYER SYSTEMS WITH NORMAL PHOTOELECTRON DIFFRACTION: c(2x2)CO-Ni(001) and (13 x /3)R30° Co-Ni(111) S.D. Kevan, R.F. Davis, D.H. Rosenblatt, J.G. Tobin, M.G. Mason, D.A. Shirley, C.H. Li, and S.Y. Tong April 1981 TWO-WEEK lOAN COPY This is a Library Circulating Copy which may be borrowed for two weeks. For a personal retention copy, call Tech. Info. Diu is ion, Ext. 6782 Prepared for the U.S. Department of Energy under Contract W-7405-ENG-48
Autoradiographic analyses of35S-sulfate uptake in regenerating limbs of larvalAmbystoma.

Autoradiographic and histochemical techniques were used to determine whether chondrocytes continue to synthesize chondroitin sulfate or closely related compounds during morphological dedifferentiation of these cells in regenerating limbs of larvalAmbystoma. Forelimbs were amputated either through the mid-diaphysis or the distal epiphysis of the humerus and each animal was subsequently injected with Na2 35SO4 at an appropriate stage of regeneration. Incorporation of the isotope and metachromatic staining responses were used as indices of cell specialization. In autoradiographs of unamputated limbs, epiphyseal chondrocytes exhibited moderate sulfate incorporation, whereas isotope uptake was slight in diaphyseal regions. Accordingly, in early stages of regeneration, limbs amputated through the diaphysis showed a low level of sulfate incorporation by cartilage-derived cells; since these cells dispersed during blastema formation, they were not identifiable in later stages. When limbs were amputated through the epiphysis, the matrix here underwent slow dissolution and epiphyseal-derived chondrocytes and their progeny consequently remained identifiable as they contributed to the blastema. These cells continued to exhibit isotope uptake, even during early and middle stages of regeneration —results which support the idea of tissue-specific regeneration of cartilage. Further inspection of the stained autoradiographs revealed that in addition to chondrocytes and blastema cells derived from chondrocytes, fibroblast-like cells located lateral to the limb skeleton and seemingly derived from muscle or muscle-associated cells also exhibited a moderate label during certain stages in the restoration of the limb. In several respects isotope incorporation and related metachromatic responses by these two types of cells during blastemal and early redifferentiating stages of regeneration were seen to parallel results reported in the literature of histochemical and autoradiographic studies of differentiating chick fimb buds. These observations, which may be added to previous analogies concerning developing and regenerating limbs, suggest a similar mechanism of cytodifferentiation in the two systems. The possibility is also considered that the observed isotope uptake by cells of non-cartilaginous origin may indicate the synthesis of sulfated glycosaminoglycans which alfect cell interactions during the regenerative processes.
State‐communication apprehension and uncertainty in continuing initial interactions

This paper reports a study of state‐communication apprehension and uncertainty as they relate to each other and as they relate to information‐seeking and confirmation of relational predictions in initial, dyadic interactions. A two‐group design with an additional control group was used to test for the effects of pretests and tests given midway through initial dyadic interactions (two, 8‐minute interaction periods). Given that these effects were not obtained, the research hypotheses were supported. Results indicated that state‐communication apprehension was related to uncertainty and both of these phenomena were related to information seeking and confirmation of positive relational predictions. Also, both apprehension and uncertainty were found to decrease over the two time periods spent in continuing initial interactions.
Can Catholicism Validate Jewish Biblical Interpretation

This article analyses the Pontifical Biblical Commission's 2001 study, The Jewish People and Their Sacred Scriptures in the Christian Bible and its significance for Christian-Jewish relations. While praising the study for addressing a large and complex issue, the essay raises some questions about particularity and relativism, elements of supersessionism, and inter-textuality.
Oncology nursing education: peril and opportunities in the new century.

Objectives: To review the historic evolution of oncology nursing education, the health care trends affecting educational programs, and the educational innovations required for the future. Data Sources: Articles, textbooks, and professional documents. Conclusions: Oncology nursing education has evolved into a premier model for specialty nursing education. Oncology nursing certification at both the generalist and advanced levels is well recognized. Current trends, however, suggest that some forms of oncology nursing education are on the decline and new and innovative educational approaches need to be considered for the future. Implications for Nursing Practice: The 21st century will bring new challenges and opportunities for oncology nurse educators to develop new and innovative approaches to prepare oncology nurses to be effective and valued health care providers.
Protein structural classification using orthogonal transformation and class-association rules

Protein structure classification and comparison is a central area in the field of bioinformatics. Rapidly increasing protein structure databases commonly suffer from the 'curse of dimensionality', necessitating the development of the dimensionality reduction of structural information prior to its classification. We propose a novel automated algorithmic framework for three-dimensional structure-based classification of proteins using orthogonal transformation of the geometric shape descriptors derived from protein structures, and then employing an association rule-based supervised clustering approach. The proposed computational framework demonstrates, on two different data sets, the applicability of association rule discovery-based classification of structural descriptors for protein fold classification with improved sensitivity.
Selecting estimators for the standard deviation of a normal distribution

In a recent paper by Birch and Robertson [1] it was shown that the mean squared error of the sample variance is less than the mean squared error of the second sample moment. They also gave strong numerical evidence indicating that the reverse is true for the corresponding estimates of the standard deviation. That is, based on numerical evidence, they conjectured that the mean squared error of the square root of the sample variance is greater than the mean squared error of the square root of the second sample moment. In this note we will prove that this numerical conjecture of Birch and Robertson is true in general. In order to give the reader some background we will first briefly state some of the pertinent results of Birch and Robertson. In their paper, Birch and Robertson state that the normal distribution is a two-parameter distribution and the estimation of the variance, a 2, depends upon whether or not the mean, p, is known. Birch and Robertson also pointed out that paradoxes sometimes arise when two different criteria are used for choosing an estimator for the variance of a normal distribution. The two criteria they considered were the principles of maximum likelihood and mean squared error. They explicitly showed that the best estimator for the variance due to the method of maximum likelihood is not the best estimator when one uses mean squared error for their criteria. In particular, they showed that
Proximal interphalangeal joint arthroplasty of the hand

Abstract Disability of the proximal interphalangeal (PIP) joint often is secondary to traumatic and nontraumatic arthritis. Symptoms include pain, weakness, deformity, and stiffness that frequently affect adjacent fingers on the ulnar side of the hand. Although many patients respond to conservative treatment including activity modification, splinting, and medication, some patients require surgical management including arthroplasty. Despite shortcomings of current designs, arthroplasty of the PIP joint is an excellent procedure for pain relief and restoration of functional motion in patients who have good bone stock, minimal deformity, and preserved flexor and extensor function.
More surprises in the Hedgehog signaling pathway.

The author regrets that, owing to severe space limitations, key pieces of work have been cited using reviews rather than the original articles.
SU-FF-T-599: Investigate the Effectiveness and Benefits of a Treatment Plan Without Field Splitting as Compared to a Plan with Field Splitting

Purpose: For certain MLC models, restrictions in MLC carriage movement results in limited treatment field sizes for IMRT, and splitting fields are routinely used for large sized tumors. We explore the dosimetric and delivery efficiency advantages of not splitting large treatment fields when compared with splitting fields for large sized tumors.Method and Materials: Four head and neck patients with PTV sizes larger than 14.5 cm were selected for this study. Six IMRT plans were generated for each case using a commercial TPS (Pinnacle 7.9u) with the capability of automatic field splitting. Five, seven and nine evenly‐spaced gantry angles were used in each case, and for each set of gantry angles, two treatment plans were generated. In the case of allowing for field splitting, the TPS generated split fields automatically when necessary with 2 cm of field overlap. In the case of no field splitting, the jaw openings in the MLC‐travel direction were manually set to 14.5 cm wide with the guidance of PTV projection in the beam's eye‐view. All plans followed the treatment guidelines of RTOG Protocol H‐0022. Dose constraints and optimization parameters were kept identical for all the plans. Dose volume histograms (DVH) of PTV and critical structures were compared and differences in the dose distributions between different plans were assessed. Results: No clinically‐significant differences were observed between split and non‐split field plans, although dose uniformity for the high‐risk PTVs was slightly increased for the plans without field splitting. For most of the cases, the total MUs were reduced when non splitting field method was used. Since the number of beams was less, the treatment planning (optimization) time was less. Conclusion: Similar plan quality can be achieved with non‐split field plans. Reducing the number of split fields can reduce the total treatment time and increase patient throughput.
Refining moderators of mood contagion: Men's differential responses to depressed and depressed-anxious presentations

Research has established the existence of mood induction in conditions of moderate to intense affective displays. Findings are less consistent with regard to for whom and under what circumstances mood induction occurs. The present study expands upon past work by examining the unique and interactive effects of target mood state (“depressed” vs. “depressed-anxious”) and participant gender on mood induction and interpersonal rejection. Participants viewed a video of either a pure depressed or concurrently depressed and anxious female target, then completed measures of mood symptoms, regard for the target, and willingness to interact with the target. Women reported similar mood symptoms in response to both videos, but men reported elevated depressed and anxious mood following the depressed-anxious video. Men were also more likely to hold the depressed-anxious target in lower regard, but no gender differences were found in willingness to interact with the target. The present findings suggest that women's displays of concurrent depressed and anxious mood, as compared to depressed mood alone, have particularly negative effects upon men's mood.
ULTRAFAST STUDIES OF EXCITED-STATE DYNAMICS OF PHTHALOCYANINE AND ZINC PHTHALOCYANINE TETRASULFONATE IN SOLUTION

Femtosecond measurements of transient absorption, bleach, and stimulated emission are used to study the excited-state dynamics of phthalocyanine tetrasulfonate (PcS4) and zinc phthalocyanine tetrasulfonate (ZnPcS4) in solution. In water the excited-state decay process is fast and dominated by energy relaxation due to intermolecular aggregation. In dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) both PcS4 and ZnPcS4 exist predominantly in the monomeric form and exhibit very different dynamics from that of the aggregates. The decays are much slower and the observed processes are strongly dependent on the probe wavelength. For PcS4 in DMSO, when probed at 790 nm, the dynamics are dominated by stimulated emission which is observed for the first time in solution. At other wavelengths either transient absorption or bleach dominates the signal. All the observed dynamics can be well fit using a double-exponential function with a fast and slow component. The fast decay has a time constant of 10 ± 4 ps for both phthalocyanines while the...
Cold Dark Matter

Motivated by inflation, the theory of big-bang nucleosynthesis, and the quest for a deeper understanding of fundamental forces and particles, a paradigm for the development of structure in the universe has evolved. It holds that most of the matter exists in the form of slowly moving elementary particles left over from the earliest moments—cold dark matter—and that the small density inhomogeneities that seed structure formation arose from quantum fluctuations around 10−34 seconds after the big bang. A flood of observations, from determinations of the Hubble constant to measurements of the anisotropy of cosmic background radiation, are now testing the cold dark matter paradigm.
Asymptomatic Waldenstrom's macroglobulinemia

A study was undertaken to evaluate the frequency and natural history of disease in patients with asymptomatic Waldenstrom's macroglobulinemia (WM). Among 132 consecutive, newly diagnosed patients with monoclonal IgM, 82 (27%) had symptomatic WM indicated by anemia, lymphadenopathy, or splenomegaly. Thirty-one patients had similar clinical features but were asymptomatic and followed without therapy until disease progression. There were 19 patients with monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance of IgM type (MGUS). In comparison to overt WM, patients with asymptomatic WM had significantly higher hemoglobin (Hgb) level (median, 12.1 v 9.7 g/dL), lower serum beta(2)-microglobulin (B(2)M) level (median, 2.4 v 3.4 mg/L), and similar IgM peaks (median, 2.2 and 1.8 g/dL). The IgM component was 3.6 g/dL or less in all patients with asymptomatic disease. For asymptomatic WM, median time to disease progression was 6.9 years with rare morbidity. Prognostic factors for early progression were Hgb or= 3.0 mg/L, and IgM peak >3.0 g/dL. Combinations of these variables defined three risk groups for progression with markedly different median times to progression of >5 years, 2 years, and 0.5 year, respectively. Response rate and survival after institution of treatment were similar to those of patients treated promptly for overt disease. We conclude that, among patients with WM, 27% were asymptomatic with slow disease progression before the need for chemotherapy. Since disease outcomes after treatment were similar to those of patients treated at diagnosis, patients with asymptomatic disease should be identified and followed without treatment for as long as risks of complications remain low.
ANALYTIC DEFORMATIONS OF EQUIVARIANT GENERA, UNIVERSAL SYMMETRY BLOCKS AND WITTEN'S RIGIDITY

This paper is an extension of [9], where we have established a fixed-point formula for the formal t-deformations ind,(D, M) of the G-index ind(D, M) (G being a compact Lie group) of a basic differential operator D on a closed G-manifold M. The most important examples of D are the Signature, Dirac, and Euler-Todd operators. This deformation ind,(D, M) takes value in the ring %!(G)[ [t]], g’(G) denoting the algebra of central functions on G, @-spanned by the characters of the complex G-representations. The deformation is produced with the help of a stable exponential operation 4: K,( -) + @ @ KG( -)[ [t]] in the equivariant complex K-theory. In fact, these operations are in one-to-one correspondence with the elements cpt(u) E C [u, u- ‘1 [[t]], cpO(u) being invertible in C [u, u- ‘1. In the text we can also use notation Q(M) for ind,(D, M). One can view ind,(D, M) as a formal sum C, ~ o Xjt’, where xj is a G-index of the operator D twisted by certain tensor fields on M. The type of the twist is prescribed by q,(u), j, and dim M (cf. (1.3) and (1.6) from Section 1).
Analytical robustness assessment for robust design

Robust design ensures product performances to be insensitive to various uncertainties and therefore results in high quality and productivity. Robustness assessment, which evaluates the variability of performances, is an important and indispensable component of robust design. An accurate and efficient robustness assessment is essential for obtaining a real robust solution. The aim of this paper is to investigate features of model-based methods for robustness assessment in terms of accuracy, efficiency, and reliability. Recommendations on the use of those methods are provided based on the comparison study through example problems.
The Adaptive Cline at LDH (Lactate Dehydrogenase) in Killifish Fundulus heteroclitus Remains Stationary After 40 Years of Warming Estuaries

Since the 1970s, water temperatures along the Atlantic seaboard of the United States have risen by an average of 0.5 °C in summer months and 2.2 °C in winter months. In response, the distribution and abundance of several nearshore species have changed dramatically, but no study has attempted to document whether estuarine populations have evolved greater thermal tolerance. Here, we re-examine the classic latitudinal cline at lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) in the killifish Fundulus heteroclitus that was originally described by Dennis Powers and associates from samples collected between 1970 and 1972. Laboratory and field evidences indicated that northern and southern isozymes at muscle LDH are locally adapted to cold and warm temperatures, respectively. Despite the potential for evolutionary response at this adaptive locus, we detected no significant shift of the LDH cline from 20 to 30 F. heteroclitus collected at each of 13 locations between the early 1970s and 2010. We conclude that the microevolution of LDH-mediated thermal tolerance has not occurred, that shifts in alleles are too incremental to be distinguished from random processes, or that F. heteroclitus uses phenotypic and genetic mechanisms besides LDH to respond to warmer waters.
The Co-evolution of Business Incubators and National Incubator Networks in Emerging Markets

The study proposes a three stage model of the development of business incubation practices in emerging markets. The model addresses the diffusion of incubation practices to new markets, the institutionalization of those practices and the co-evolution of incubators and national networks of incubation. The model is based on interviews conducted in Bolivia, Peru, Chile, Argentina, and Brazil. New incubators in emerging markets often face strong cultural norms and institutional impediments to helping entrepreneurs start new businesses. As incubation becomes better established in a country, incubators provide more advanced technical, legal and market-based advice. Networks of incubators form to share specialized services across many incubators, to allocate government funding to incubators, and to lobby for public and private support of innovation.
Slow but steady progress towards understanding peri-procedural myocardial infarction

This editorial refers to ‘Frequency, causes, predictors, and clinical significance of peri-procedural myocardial infarction following percutaneous coronary intervention’[†][1], by D.-W. Park et al. , on page 1662 Despite over two decades of research, the clinical significance and optimal management of peri-procedural myocardial infarction (PMI) remains a matter of considerable controversy. The topic is important because percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) is the dominant method for revascularization, with over a million patients around the world receiving the therapy each year. The large body of data correlating PMI with adverse clinical outcomes provides compelling evidence that it may be a clinically meaningful complication of PCI. However, our knowledge of this entity is limited by the fact that virtually all data published to date are retrospective, demonstrate an association with outcomes but not a causal relationship, pre-date the use of contemporary cardiac troponin (cTn) assays with the recommended 99th percentile cut-off value for the upper reference limit (URL), and do not provide an explanation for the fact that even a trivial elevation in a biomarker is associated with an unfavourable outcome.1,2 From a clinician's perspective, the unanswered questions are—whether one should routinely screen for PMI, which patients need to be observed in hospital for a longer duration after PMI, what are the therapeutic implications, what should we tell patients who sustained a PMI despite an otherwise successful procedure, and is PMI prognostically equivalent to spontaneous myocardial infarction (MI). The recently published third universal definition of MI attempts to provide some guidance by defining PMI in patients with normal ( 5× URL within 48 h of the procedure together with either (i) evidence of prolonged (>20 min) ischaemia as demonstrated by chest pain; (ii) ischaemic ST changes or new pathological Q waves; (iii) angiographic … [1]: #fn-2
Treatment with tyrosine kinase inhibitors for patients with differentiated thyroid cancer: the M. D. Anderson experience.

Objectives: Until recently, treatment options for patients with progressive, radioactive iodine-resistant differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) have been limited. In our clinical practice, we have begun to use sorafenib and sunitinib for patients with progressive DTC who are not able or willing to participate in clinical trials. In this paper, we describe the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center’s experience with the off-label use of these tyrosine kinase inhibitors for DTC. Methods: Adult patients were included if they had a diagnosis of radioactive iodine-refractory DTC, were treated with single agent sorafenib or sunitinib, and had both baseline and at least one follow-up scan for restaging purposes. All imaging data were collected, as well as the TSH-suppressed thyroglobulin (Tg) levels corresponding to each scan date. The primary endpoints were radiographic response and progression-free survival (PFS). Secondary objectives were tissue-specific radiographic responses and correlation of Tg wi...
Governmentality, Biopower, and the Debate over Genetic Enhancement

Although Foucault adamantly refused to make moral pronouncements or dictate moral principles or political programs to his readers, his work offers a number of tools and concepts that can help us develop our own ethical views and practices. One of these tools is genealogical analysis, and one of these concepts is "biopower." Specifically, this essay seeks to demonstrate that Foucault's concept of biopower and his genealogical method are valuable as we consider moral questions raised by genetic enhancement technologies. First, it examines contemporary debate over the development, marketing, and application of such technologies, suggesting that what passes for ethical deliberation is often little more than political maneuvering in a field where stakes are very high and public perceptions will play a crucial role in decisions about which technologies will be funded or disallowed. It goes on to argue that genuine ethical deliberation on these issues requires some serious investigation of their historical context. Accordingly, then, it takes up the oft-heard charge from critics that genetic enhancement technologies are continuous with twentieth-century eugenic projects or will usher in a new age of eugenics. Foucault explicitly links twentieth-century eugenics with the rise of biopower. Through review of some aspects of the twentieth-century eugenics movement alongside some of the rhetoric and claims of enhancement's modern-day proponents, the essay shows ways in which deployment of genetic enhancement technologies is and is not continuous with earlier deployments of biopower.
High-Inductance-Density, Air-Core, Power Inductors, and Transformers Designed for Operation at 100–500 MHz

This paper presents the microfabrication and measurement of high-inductance-density, moderate-Q, air-core inductors, and transformers intended for switch-mode power supplies operating in the 100-500 MHz frequency range. The inductors and transformers were fabricated on Pyrex substrates with four layers of electrodeposited copper with each layer up to 10 ?m thick. Stacked winding layers allowed for mutual coupling between layers to increase areal inductance density. Inductors of various designs exhibited inductance densities of up to 100 nH/mm 2 and quality factors approaching 20 in the frequency range of interest. Transformers were formed by interleaving primary and secondary coils and were designed with increased inductance in the secondary coil for voltage gain. A fabricated transformer, 1.5 mm × 1.5 mm in area, yielded 46 nH primary inductance and 500 nH secondary inductance with a coupling coefficient of 0.63. Measurements indicated that a maximum transformer efficiency of 78% at 125 MHz would be possible.
NONLINEAR CONTROL STRATEGIES FOR LIMITING DYNAMIC RESPONSE EXTREMES

Under extreme environmental loadings such as winds, waves, and earthquakes, civil engineering structures are known to undergo large vibration responses, often resulting in severe damage. Recent developments in active structural control have focused on limiting the amplitude of oscillation of a structure to be within safe, allowable bounds. In this paper, a nonlinear control approach that is capable of limiting extreme dynamic responses of a structure at a reduced expense in control effort is studied. To derive the nonlinear control law, a performance index that is quartic in the states and quadratic in the control is defined. Utilizing a tensor expansion solution procedure for the resulting nonlinear optimal control problem, general polynomial representations of the nonlinear control law are obtained in illustrative problems. Numerical examples of a seismically excited, controlled structure are presented to demonstrate the ability of selected nonlinear control strategies to expend a smaller control effort than an equivalent linear control strategy while limiting the extreme displacement responses.
The Identity of a Material Thing and its Matter

I have both a smaller and a larger aim. The smaller aim is polemical. Kit Fine believes that a material thing—a Romanesque statue, for example, or an open door—can be distinguished from its constituent matter—a piece of alloy, say, or a hunk of plastic—without recourse to modal or temporal considerations. The statue is Romanesque; the piece of alloy is not Romanesque. The door is open; the hunk of plastic is not open. I argue that these considerations, when combined with a proper understanding of how the use of ‘not’ is functioning, entail that the statue is the piece of alloy, and that the door is the hunk of plastic. Far from challenging the doctrine that a material thing is its matter, Fine’s observations confirm the view. My larger aim is methodological. I will show that natural language semantics can guide inquiry in certain areas of metaphysics by helping us to advance lingering debates.
Increased robustness against bit errors for distributed speech recognition in wireless environments

In distributed speech recognition, the speech features are computed on a mobile device, compressed, and sent over a network to a speech recognition server, where the Viterbi search and hidden Markov modeling take place. We examine some error concealment methods for distributed speech recognition over burst error channels. We consider interpolation and interleaving, and we present a novel use of the stochastic weighted Viterbi recognition algorithm to increase robustness against interpolated features. We examine interleaving at both the frame level and codebook index level. Channel errors are simulated using a Gilbert model, and the performance of our algorithm is compared with other techniques, including the ETSI DSR standard, on a digits task and a large vocabulary task. Coupled with interleaving and interpolation, our algorithm can provide accuracy as high as 96.7% on a digit recognition task during an average bit error probability of 1/20. On the more difficult WSJ task, the accuracy without bit errors is 85.7%. Using our algorithm, we can achieve 82.9% accuracy with an average bit error probability of 1/30.
Augmenting soil water storage using uncharred switchgrass and pyrolyzed biochars

Biochar is an amendment that can augment soil water storage; however, its projected cost per ton could be financially limiting at field application scales. It may be more monetarily convenient if an alternate amendment was available that could deliver similar soil enhancements. We compared two switchgrass biochars pyrolyzed at 250 and 500 °C with raw switchgrass (uncharred) on moisture storage and bulk density changes in a Norfolk loamy sand (fine-loamy, kaolinitic, thermic Typic Kandiudult). Amendments were mixed into triplicate pots at 20 g/kg along with untreated controls. Soils were laboratory incubated at 10% moisture content (w/w) for 118 days, and the pots were irrigated three times with 1.3 pore volumes of deionized water every 30 days. Soil bulk densities were recorded before each irrigation event. Assessment of alterations in soil water storage was examined through cumulative water evaporative losses from incubation day 0 to day 33 and by monitoring soil water contents for 13 consecutive days past each irrigation event. Rankings of soil water evaporative losses were as follows: uncharred switchgrass ≤ switchgrass (500 °C) ≤ switchgrass (250 °C) < control. After the first irrigation event, uncharred switchgrass amendment significantly increased moisture storage compared with soil treated with biochar and the control. While all amendments increased water storage relative to the control, uncharred switchgrass delivered equivalent, if not slightly better, moisture storage improvements compared with the two switchgrass biochars. Uncharred switchgrass would likely not be as effective over the long term (years to decades) as pyrolyzed biochars, due to greater degradation of uncharred material.
A deterministic multiuser code-timing estimator for long-code bandlimited CDMA systems

In this paper, we present a deterministic multiuser code-timing estimator for asynchronous direct-sequence (DS) code-division multiple-access (CDMA) systems with aperiodic long spreading codes and bandlimited chip waveforms. A key feature of the proposed estimator is that it captures and capitalizes on a deterministic structure of the overall interference, namely multi-access interference (MAI) and inter-symbol interference (ISI), in the frequency domain. This allows complete interference elimination in a deterministic manner, which is in general more effective and data-efficient than stochastic approaches. Numerical results show that the proposed estimator can achieve fast acquisition; it is also near-far resistant, providing accurate code acquisition for even overloaded systems (i.e., systems with more users than the processing gain) in multipath fading environments.
Mechanical Alternans Is Associated With Mortality in Acute Hospitalized Heart Failure Prospective Mechanical Alternans Study (MAS)

Background— Acute hospitalized heart failure (AHHF) is associated with 40% to 50% risk of death or rehospitalization within 6 months after discharge. Timely (before hospital discharge) risk stratification of patients with AHHF is crucial. We hypothesized that mechanical alternans (MA) and T-wave alternans (TWA) are associated with postdischarge outcomes in patients with AHHF. Methods and Results— A prospective cohort study was conducted in the intensive cardiac care unit and enrolled 133 patients (59.6±15.7 years; 65% men) admitted with AHHF. Surface ECG and peripheral arterial blood pressure waveform via arterial line were recorded continuously during the intensive cardiac care unit stay. MA and TWA were measured by enhanced modified moving average method. All-cause death or heart transplant served as a combined primary end point. MA was observed in 28 patients (25%), whereas TWA was detected in 33 patients (33%). If present, MA was tightly coupled with TWA. Mean TWA amplitude was larger in patients with both TWA and MA when compared with patients with lone TWA (median, 37 [interquartile range, 26–61] versus 22 [21–23] μV; P =0.045). After a median of 10-month postdischarge, 42 (38%) patients died and 2 had heart transplants. MA was associated with the primary end point in univariable Cox model (hazard ratio, 1.84; 95% confidence interval, 1.00–3.40; P =0.05) and after adjustment for left ventricular ejection fraction, New York Heart Association HF class, and implanted implantable cardioverter defibrillator/cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillator (hazard ratio, 2.12 95% confidence interval, 1.13–3.98; P =0.020). TWA without consideration of simultaneous MA was not significantly associated with primary end point (hazard ratio, 1.42; 95% confidence interval, 0.77–2.64; P =0.260). Conclusions— MA is independently associated with outcomes in AHHF. Clinical Trial Registration— URL: . Unique identifier: [NCT01557465][1]. [1]: /lookup/external-ref?link_type=CLINTRIALGOV&access_num=NCT01557465&atom=%2Fcircae%2F7%2F2%2F259.atom
The effect of I,Q mismatch errors on adaptive cancellation

The effects of in-phase (I) and quadrature-phase (Q) amplitude errors and low-pass-filter (LPF) errors on adaptive cancellers are investigated. I,Q errors occur because of errors in the synthesis process of the mixers and LPFs designed to be identical for each input channel. These I,Q errors among the channels result in cancellation degradation. Tapped delay line transversal filters have been proposed as a way to compensate for these errors and thus improve cancellation performance. However, it is shown that if there is any LPF mismatch, then transversal filtering has a small effect on improving canceler performance. The use of individual I,Q adaptive transversal filter weighting is suggested as a means of completely eliminating the phase amplitude errors, and making the canceler performance responsive to transversal filter compensation. >
Nitrification in Mono Lake, California: Activity and community composition during contrasting hydrological regimes

Rates of nitrification, geochemical variables, and the associated ammonia oxidizer microbial community were investigated in the water column of Mono Lake, California, between August 2002 and August 2003. Ammonia oxidation rates were measured using a 15N isotope tracer technique. 16S ribosomal deoxyribonucleic acid, functional gene, and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) analyses were used to characterize the ammonia oxidizer population. Peak ammonia oxidation activity occurred consistently between 12 and 14 m; the maximum integrated rate was observed in November 2002. The ammonia-oxidizing bacterial (AOB) community exhibited sequences most closely related to halo and/or alkaline tolerant Nitrosomonas-like sequences. The observed phylogeny represented a significant shift from previously documented AOB community composition and was coincident with Mono Lake’s transition from monomixis to meromixis. Samples were also analyzed for ammoniaoxidizing archaea (AOA). FISH analysis revealed a substantial population of Crenarchaeota, the phylum encompassing all known AOA; however, no archaeal ammonia monooxygenase (amoA) sequences were detected. Unrealistic AOB cell-specific nitrification rates strongly indicate the possibility of a missing nitrification source, and correlations between nitrification rates, geochemical variables, and crenarchaeal and AOB abundance also indicate a significant AOA contribution to nitrification. However, the lack of verifiable archaeal amoA genes leaves open the question of whether AOA contribute to nitrification in Mono Lake.
Unified constant-frequency integration control of active power filters-steady-state and dynamics

An active power filter (APF) is a device that is connected in parallel to and cancels the reactive and harmonic currents from a group of nonlinear loads so that the resulting total current drawn from the AC mains is sinusoidal. This paper presents a unified constant-frequency integration (UCI) APF control method based on one-cycle control. This method employs an integrator with reset as its core component to control the pulse width of an AC-DC converter so that its current draw is precisely opposite to the reactive and harmonic current draw of the nonlinear loads. In contrast to previously proposed methods, there is no need to generate a current reference for the control of the converter current, thus no need for a multiplier and no need to sense the AC line voltage, the APF current, or the nonlinear load current. Only one AC current sensor is used to sense the AC main current and one DC voltage sensor is used to sense the DC capacitor voltage. The control method features constant switching frequency operation, minimum reactive and harmonic current generation, and simple analog circuitry. It provides a low cost and high performance solution for power quality control. Steady-state and dynamic study is presented in this paper. Design example is given using a two-level AC-DC boost topology. A prototype was developed to demonstrate the performance of the proposed APF. This control method is generalized to control a family of converters that are suitable for APF applications. All findings are supported by experiments and simulation.
Region-Specific Phosphorylation of Rabphilin in Mossy Fiber Nerve Terminals of the Hippocampus

In mossy fiber synapses of the CA3 region of the hippocampus, long-term potentiation (LTP) is induced presynaptically by activation of cAMP-dependent protein kinase A (PKA). Rab3A is a synaptic vesicle protein that regulates vesicle fusion and is essential for mossy fiber LTP. Rab3A probably acts via two effector proteins, rabphilin and RIM, of which rabphilin is an in vitro substrate for PKA. To test if rabphilin is phosphorylated in nerve terminals and if its PKA-dependent phosphorylation correlates with the PKA-dependent induction of LTP in mossy fiber terminals, we have studied the phosphorylation of rabphilin in synaptosomes isolated from the CA1 and CA3 regions of the hippocampus. Rabphilin was phosphorylated in both CA1 and CA3 synaptosomes. However, when we treated the CA1 and CA3 synaptosomes with forskolin (an agent that enhances PKA activity) or induced Ca2+ influx into synaptosomes with high K+, rabphilin phosphorylation was increased selectively in mossy fiber CA3 synaptosomes, but not in CA1 synaptosomes. In contrast, the phosphorylation of synapsin, studied as a control for the specificity of the region-specific phosphorylation of rabphilin, was augmented similarly by both treatments in CA1 and CA3 synaptosomes. These results reveal that the phosphorylation states of two synaptic substrates for PKA and CaM KII, rabphilin and synapsin, are regulated differentially in a region-specific manner, an unexpected finding because rabphilin and synapsin are similarly present in CA1 and CA3 synaptosomes and are colocalized on the same synaptic vesicles. The region-specific phosphorylation of rabphilin agrees well with the restricted induction of LTP by presynaptic PKA activation in mossy fiber, but not CA1, nerve terminals.
Induction of TGF-β1 in the trabecular meshwork under cyclic mechanical stress

The pathophysiological mechanisms involved in the failure of the trabecular meshwork (TM) to maintain normal levels of aqueous outflow in glaucoma are not yet understood. Aberrant activation of the transforming growth factor beta-1 (TGF-beta1) pathway has been implicated in several degenerative diseases. We investigated the possibility that chronic cyclic mechanical stress that affects the TM might result in increased production of TGF-beta1. Primary cultures of TM cells subjected to cyclic mechanical stress (5% stretching, 1 cycle/sec) demonstrate a significant increase in total and biologically active secreted TGF-beta1 that was associated with activation of the TGF-beta1 promoter, measured using a recombinant adenovirus expressing the secreted reporter gene secreted alkaline phosphatase protein (SEAP) under the TGF-beta1 gene promoter (AdTGFbeta1-SEAP). Associated changes in the transcription of MMP-2, TIMP-2, and CTGF were assessed by semiquantitative PCR. Immunohistochemical analysis of TGF-beta1 in organ culture of human eyes revealed a generalized accumulation of this protein in the extracellular matrix (ECM) of the TM, while expression of the TGF-beta1 promoter, analyzed using the LacZ reporter gene, was localized in some specific cells within the outflow pathway. Induction of the TGF-beta1 promoter in organ culture was demonstrated using a novel model for cyclic mechanical stress in human perfused anterior segments infected with AdTGFbeta1-SEAP. Given the relevant physiological and pathophysiological roles of TGF-beta1, its induction after cyclic mechanical stress in the TM supports the hypothesis that this cytokine might play a significant role in the physiology of the TM, and contribute to the pathological changes of this tissue in certain forms of glaucoma.
How to measure slab–off and reverse slab prism in spectacle lenses

It is well known that new spectacle lenses for the correction of anisometropia can induce diplopia with reading. The difference in the powers of the lenses induces a net prismatic effect that can cause double vision through off-center areas of the lenses. This is particularly bothersome when patients try to read, often noting vertical double vision in attempted downgaze, especially through multifocal add segments. This induced prismatic effect can be compensated at one level of downgaze by the use of slab-off or reverse slab prism. Typically the slab-off correction is ground into the stronger minus, or weaker plus lens. Reverse slab is ground into the weaker minus, or stronger plus, lens. Unfortunately, determining the amount of slab-off prism already incorporated into spectacle lenses is nonintuitive and inconvenient. This usually requires the use of a lens clock, which is not widely accessible to many ophthalmology practices. A simple technique, described in the past but poorly known, is illustrated here for quickly measuring slab-off and reverse slab prism prescription lenses in the clinic with a common manual lens meter.
Association between hyperhomocysteinemia and primary pulmonary hypertension.

Abstract Study objective : This case-control study was conducted to test the hypothesis that fasting homocysteine levels are higher in PPH patients than in healthy controls. Design : Levels of plasma total homocysteine, serum folate, vitamin B-12, and serum creatinine in 18 consecutive patients with PPH were compared with data from 36 age- and sex-matched controls. Results : Eight of the 18 patients (44.4%) and three of the 36 controls (8.3%) had elevated plasma total homocysteine (tHcy) levels (⩾15μmol/l, odds ratio 8.8; 95% CI: 2.0–39.6; P =0.005). There was an inverse correlation between tHcy levels and creatinine clearance in patients with PPH ( P =0.036). Conclusion : PPH patients are significantly more likely to have hyperhomocysteinemia, and higher mean plasma total homocysteine levels than in controls. Plasma total homocysteine may be an important factor in the pathogenesis of PPH.
Hotelling's generalized distribution and performance of 2D-RAKE receivers

Two-dimensional (2D) RAKE (2D-RAKE) receivers process signals in both time and space to improve the performance of code-division multiple-access (CDMA) systems. We establish the connection between the 2D-RAKE signal-to-interference-ratio (SIR) output statistics and the generalized Hotelling's (1947, 1951, 1931) T/sup 2//sub 0/ (in the complex case) distribution. We study this distribution and offer new simple explicit closed-form expressions (in terms of hypergeometric functions) for its probability density function (PDF) and cumulative distribution function (CDF). Based on that, we derive the outage probability of dual-branch 2D-RAKE receivers over Rayleigh-fading channels. Some numerical examples for particular cases of interests are plotted and discussed.
Uncovering clinical significance of vital sign dynamics in critical care

Vital-sign time series of heart rate (HR) and blood pressure (BP) exhibit complex patterns of fluctuations, reflecting the underlying pathological and physiological states of patients. In this work, we adopt a switching vector auto-regressive process framework to learn a shared global library of “phenotypic” vital-sign dynamical behaviors from HR and BP time series of a patient cohort. Using HR and BP time series of over 450 adult ICU patients, we demonstrate that the fluctuation patterns in HR and BP are significantly correlated with several laboratory measurements routinely monitored in the ICU, and can potentially be used to reveal the underlying patho-physiological states of the patients. We demonstrate that the bivariate dynamics of HR/BP alone achieve similar performance in sepsis detection in comparison to the SAPS I scores, which use age and the most extreme values of 13 physiological variables. Further, combining the bivariate dynamics of HR/MAP time series and SAPS I provides a significantly more accurate (p=0.02) assessment of patients' risks in sepsis than using SAPS I alone (AUC 0.70 [0.63, 0.78] vs 0.78 [0.70, 0.85]), suggesting that the dynamics of the interaction between HR and BP may contain additional predictive value beyond that contained in the SAPS I scores.
EXAMINATION OF POTENTIAL BIASES IN AIR TEMPERATURE CAUSED BY POOR STATION LOCATIONS

Questions have been raised about whether poor siting practices that have existed in recent years at some in situ weather-observing stations are causing a bias in U.S. temperature change analysis. This potential bias was examined using homogeneity-adjusted maximum, minimum, and mean temperature data from five stations in eastern Colorado—two with good current siting and three with poor current siting. No siting-induced bias was found in the homogeneity-adjusted data. Furthermore, the results indicate that homogeneity-adjusted time series from the stations with poor current siting represent the temperature variability and change in the region as a whole quite well because they are very similar to the time series from stations with excellent siting.