cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Switching Agonist/Antagonist Properties of Opiate Alkaloids at the δ Opioid Receptor Using Mutations Based on the Structure of the Orphanin FQ Receptor

In an earlier study, we have demonstrated that by mutating five amino acid residues to those conserved in the opioid receptors, the OFQ receptor could be converted to a functional receptor that bound many opioid alkaloids with nanomolar affinities. Surprisingly, when the reciprocal mutations, Lys-214 → Ala (TM5), Ile-277 → Val/His-278 → Gln/Ile-279 → Val (TM6), and Ile-304 → Thr (TM7), are introduced in the δ receptor, neither the individual mutations nor their various combinations significantly reduce the binding affinities of opioid alkaloids tested. However, these mutations cause profound alterations in the functional characteristics of the mutant receptors as measured in guanosine 5′-3-O-(thio)triphosphate binding assays. Some agonists become antagonists at some constructs as they lose their ability to activate them. Some alkaloid antagonists are transformed into agonists at other constructs, but their agonistic effects can still be blocked by the peptide antagonist TIPP. Even the δ inverse agonist 7-benzylidenenaltrexone becomes an agonist at the mutant containing both the Ile-277 → Val/His-278 → Gln/Ile-279 → Val and Ile-304 → Thr mutations. Thus, although the mutated residues are thought to be part of the binding pocket, they are critically involved in the control of the δ receptor activation process. These findings shed light on some of the structural bases of ligand efficacy. They are also compatible with the hypothesis that a ligand may achieve high affinity binding in several different ways, each having different effects on receptor activation.
DEMONSTRATION OF RAPIDLY LABELLED RNA FRACTIONS IN VIRUS-INFECTED HELA CELLS.

SummaryThe various classes of RNA in uninfected and vaccinia virus-infected HeLa cell cultures have been examined through sedimentation analysis in sucrose gradients. Infection with vaccinia virus results in the appearance at 3 hours post-infection of new rapidly labelled RNA fractions. These fractions are distinct from ribosomal RNA and are sensitive to the antibiotic Actinomycin D. The role of these new RNA fractions is discussed.It is a great pleasure to acknowledge the expert technical assistance of Miss Marge Soergel.
MICROSCOPIC (p,p') CALCULATIONS AND POLARIZATION CHARGES WITH LARGE BASIS SHELL-MODEL WAVE FUNCTIONS.

Abstract Techniques have been developed for performing microscopic model DWBA calculations of inelastic nucleon-nucleus scattering using large basis shell-model wave functions to describe the nuclear states involved. For the case of 138Ba at a bombarding energy of 30 MeV, we obtain good fits to the data by including the exchange amplitude in the DWBA and assuming a state and multipole independent polarization charge.
National library of China: The acquisition of foreign language materials

Abstract The purpose of this study is to examine the growth of the acquisition of foreign language materials in the National Library of China. An objective is to show how historical and contemporary events affected the National Library's development in terms of the procurement of foreign materials. The paper clearly demonstrates the preponderance of foreign materials in science and technology for China's modernization.
Unilateral nephrectomy and glomerular solute transport in the dog

Unilateral nephrectomy and glomerular solute transport in the dog. The influence of compensatory hyperfunction that occurs following unilateral nephrectomy on glomerular solute transport was determined in awake, unanesthetized dogs by renal clearance studies. Two groups of dogs were studied using different test solutes: group I (N = 5) using inulin, iothalamate, creatinine and sodium p-aminohippurate; and group II (N = 6) using creatinine, neutral dextran (3000 to 50,000 daltons) and sodium p-aminohippurate. Compensatory hyperfunction, as assessed by the increase in creatinine clearance per kidney, was 43 ± 7% and 39 ± 11% in the group I and II dogs, respectively. The inulin to creatinine and iothalamate to creatinine clearance ratios in the group I dogs were 0.93 ± 0.07 and 1.00 ± 0.04 before unilateral nephrectomy. The respective values after unilateral nephrectomy of 0.86 ± 0.04 and 0.89 ± 0.05 were lower but not statistically different. In the group II dogs, dextran to creatinine clearance ratios (dextran fractional clearance) over the molecular weight range studied also did not change significantly following unilateral nephrectomy. The magnitude of the change in dextran fractional clearance following unilateral nephrectomy was qualitatively consistent with that predicted by previous models of glomerular macromolecular transport based on membrane pore theory. A lack of quantitative agreement with these models, however, precluded a calculation of the changes in glomerular functional parameters following unilateral nephrectomy. Significant alterations in fractional clearance for neutral macromolecules do not occur following unilateral nephrectomy in the dog.
Age and Birth Cohort Differences in Self-Esteem: A Cross-Temporal Meta-Analysis

A meta-analytic review finds that college students' self-esteem increased substantially between 1968 and 1994 when measured using the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSE). Children's scores on the Coopersmith Self-Esteem Inventory (SEI) show a curvilinear pattern over time, decreasing from 1965 to 1979 and increasing from 1980 to 1993. Children's SEI scores are directly correlated with social statistics (e.g., divorce rate, unemployment) for the corresponding years. Analyses for age differences find that SEI scores decrease slightly during the transition from elementary school to junior high and then rise progressively through high school and college. RSE scores increase steadily with age. Results are discussed in terms of the antecedents of self-esteem, including social acceptance, competencies, and the culture of self-worth.
Preventing ACL Injuries in Females: What Physical Educators Need to Know.

Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries happen at a frequent rate, especially in girls and women. While there are many factors that contribute to ACL tears, teaching proper landing techniques and strengthening certain muscles can decrease the incidence of ACL tears, especially in women. This article reviews some of the high-risk factors that contribute to this debilitating injury and examines what physical educators can do to help prevent it. A visual checklist of proper joint landing positions is included.
Nationwide Safety: Nationwide Modeling for Broadband Network Services

As governments plan nationwide, interoperable broadband networks for their public safety services, the challenge arises of determining how and where to invest limited resources to meet demanding requirements. The United States is in the early stages of planning a nationwide 700-MHz long-term evolution (LTE) network for use by public safety officials at the local, state, and federal levels. This article presents a framework for the modeling and planning of a public safety broadband network on a nationwide scale. This framework addresses the challenges of modeling and planning for a country that is diverse in terms of terrain, user density, and public safety needs. It does so while managing computational complexity so that alternate scenarios (e.g., target areas, user requirements, and site assumptions) can be readily assessed in a timely fashion. The approach utilizes a clustering algorithm to classify areas by their terrain characteristics and user population, an iterative process for sampling and analyzing areas within each cluster, and extrapolation of the results to generate nationwide statistics such as site count, coverage percentage, and network load. Examples are given that illustrate the implications of stringent coverage reliability requirements as well as the impact of high traffic density resulting from an incident response.
The addition of erlotinib to gemcitabine and cisplatin does not appear to improve median survival in metastatic pancreatic cancer

Metastatic pancreatic cancer carries a poor prognosis, with median survival on the order of several months. There is evidence that combining gemcitabine with either erlotinib or cisplatin may be superior to single agent gemcitabine in patients with good performance (PS 0–1). We retrospectively compared outcomes of patients treated with either the three drug regimen of gemcitabine, cisplatin, and erlotinib (GCE) or the doublet of gemcitabine and cisplatin (GC) in order to assess the potential benefit of erlotinib. We also evaluated the role of erlotinib among smokers and non-smokers. We retrospectively analyzed 145 patients who presented between 2006 and 2009 with previously untreated metastatic pancreatic cancer initially treated at the M.D. Anderson cancer center with either GC or GCE. Information on tumor characteristics and overall survival time (OS) was collected by medical record review. Kaplan-Meier curves were used to estimate OS. Log rank tests were used to compare OS between groups. The Cox proportional hazards regression model was used to evaluate the ability of patient prognostic variables or treatment group to predict OS. A total of 71 patients were treated with GC, while 74 were treated with GCE. Cox analyses found no significant difference in overall survival (median 5.5 vs. 8.0 months, respectively, p-value = 0.1). Small sampling numbers may have contributed to this result. One year survival was 23 % in the GCE group and 13 % in the GC group. Patients with poor performance status (PS = 2–3) had worse survival as compared to patients with better performance status (PS = 0–1, p = 0.001). As in earlier studies, patients treated with more lines of therapy tended to have better survival (p <0.0001), and CA19-9 was found to be a significant predictor for OS (p = 0.001). No statistical evidence of a survival difference was found between smokers and non-smokers in both treatment groups (p = 0.72). In conclusion, though there was a trend towards improved survival with the addition of erlotinib to gemcitabine and cisplatin, this does not reach statistical significance.
CONDITIONAL POWER CALCULATIONS FOR EARLY ACCEPTANCE OF H0 EMBEDDED IN SEQUENTIAL TESTS

For ethical and efficiency concerns one often wishes to design a clinical trial to stop early if there is a strong treatment effect or if there is strong evidence of no treatment effect. There is a large literature to address the design of sequential trials for detecting treatment differences. There has been less attention paid to the design of trials for detecting lack of a treatment difference and most of the designs proposed have been ad hoc modifications of the traditional designs. In the context of fixed sample tests, various authors have proposed basing the decision to stop in favour of the null hypothesis, H0, on conditional power calculations for the end of the trial given the current data. Here I extend this procedure to the popular sequential designs: the O'Brien-Fleming test and the repeated significance test. I derive explicit boundaries for monitoring the test statistic useful for visualizing the impact of the parameters on the operating characteristics of the tests and thus for the design of the tests. Also, they facilitate the use of boundary crossing methods for approximations of power. I derive appropriate boundaries retrospectively for two clinical trials: one that concluded with no treatment difference (AIDS Clinical Trials Group protocol 118) and one that stopped early for positive effect (Beta-Blocker Heart Attack Trial). Finally, I compare the procedures based on the different upper boundaries and assess the impact of allowing for early stopping in favour of H0 in numerical examples.
Mass Spectrometry of Free Radicals and Vibronically Excited Molecules Produced by Pulsed Electrical Discharges

Free radicals and metastable molecules produced by short‐duration pulsed electrical discharges have been studied with a mass spectrometer employing a collision‐free molecular‐beam sampling system. Nitrogen atoms generated by extremely short pulses (0.035‐μsec half‐width) have been used to study the dynamics of the gas‐sampling system. NH free radicals produced by electrical discharges in ammonia were detected in the X 3Σ− ground state and in the a 1Δ electronically excited state. It is estimated that approximately 22% of the NH radicals were in the a 1Δ state. Direct measurement of the ionization potential of NH in the ground state gives I (NH) = 13.1 eV. Vibronically excited nitrogen molecules from a discharge in a N2–He mixture have been observed with excitation energies up to about 9 eV, indicating that either or both of the metastable electronic states, a 1Πg and a′ 1Σu−, are substantially populated by the discharge. Evidence for excitation of N2 X 1Σg+ ground‐state molecules to high vibrational quant...
Inhibition of early stages of HIV-1 assembly by INI1/hSNF5 transdominant negative mutant S6

INI1/hSNF5 is an HIV-1 integrase (IN) binding protein specifically incorporated into virions. A truncated mutant of INI1 (S6, amino acids 183 to 294) harboring the minimal IN binding Rpt1 domain potently inhibits HIV-1 particle production in a transdominant manner. The inhibition requires interaction of S6 with IN within Gag-Pol. While INI1 is a nuclear protein and harbors a masked nuclear export signal (NES), the transdominant negative mutant S6 is cytoplasmic, due to the unmasking of NES. Here, we examined the effects of subcellular localization of S6 on HIV-1 inhibition and further investigated the stages of assembly that are affected. We found that targeting a nuclear localization signal-containing S6 variant [NLS-S6(Rpt1)] to the nucleoplasm (but not to the nucleolus) resulted in complete reversal of inhibition of particle production. Electron microscopy indicated that although no electron-dense particles at any stage of assembly were seen in cells expressing S6, virions were produced in cells expressing the rescue mutant NLS-S6(Rpt1) to wild-type levels. Immunofluorescence analysis revealed that p24 exhibited a diffuse pattern of localization within the cytoplasm in cells expressing S6 in contrast to accumulation along the membrane in controls. Pulse-chase analysis indicated that in S6-expressing cells, although Gag(Pr55(gag)) protein translation was unaffected, processing and release of p24 were defective. Together, these results indicate that expression of S6 in the cytoplasm interferes with trafficking of Gag-Pol/Gag to the membrane and causes a defective processing leading to inhibition of assembly at an early stage prior to particle formation and budding.
Sets of uniqueness and sets of multiplicity

This paper establishes a condition of metric thinness for a translation setE which suffices to imply thatE is a set of uniqueness (in the broad sense). An existence proof is given to show that this result is close to being sharp. These theorems extend results of Raphael Salem.
Correlation between dynamic fragility and glass transition temperature for different classes of glass forming liquids

Here we compile literature data for dynamic fragility m for six types of glass forming liquids: polymers, small molecule organics, hydrogen bonding organics, inorganics, ionic and metallic glass formers. Our analysis of the data shows that different categories of glass forming liquids exhibit different behaviors in terms of the correlation between m and Tg, a correlation not previously examined. For example, for hydrogen bonding organics, polymeric and metallic glass formers, there is an approximately linear increase in m with increasing Tg. While for inorganic glass formers, m appears almost independent of Tg, remaining nearly constant over a wide range in Tg. At the same time, another important parameter, the apparent activation energy Eg at Tg has been investigated. It was found that Eg increases with Tg to the 2nd power for hydrogen bonding organics, polymeric and metallic glass forming liquids, while Eg of inorganic glasses has a linear dependence on Tg.
Designing efficient codes for synchronization error channels

For communications and networking channels, coding techniques are widely used to correct errors in corrupted messages. The "Quality of Protection" (QoP) that can be provided via error correction directly affects the "Quality of Service" (QoS) experienced by users. The errors are commonly assumed to be substitution or erasure errors. Such systems rely on perfect synchronization so that no bit is deleted and no extra bit is inserted. However, in a system without the presence of perfect synchronization, special coding algorithms may be required to correct potential insertion or deletion errors in transmitted messages. Especially for systems suffering from frequent loss of synchronization, packets may require many retransmissions to guarantee reliable communication. Such schemes may become too expensive to be practical. In this paper, we propose a new synchronization channel error model based on the observations from current communication systems. In this model, the channel introduces at most t synchronization errors in each run of the transmitted sequence. We present run-length limited permutation codes capable of correcting synchronization errors based on this channel error model. Compared to previously developed codes, our codes have the advantage of correcting frequent synchronization errors, and therefore they are suitable for disruptive network channels that suffer severe synchronization failures.
The Promise of Constructivism in International Relations Theory

A challenger to the continuing dominance of neorealism and neoliberal institutionalism in the study of international relations in the United States, constructivism is regarded with a great deal of skepticism by mainstream scholars.1 While the reasons for this reception are many, three central ones are the mainstream's miscasting of constructivism as necessarily postmodern and antipositivist; constructivism's own ambivalence about whether it can buy into mainstream social science methods without sacrificing its theoretical distinctiveness; and, related to this ambivalence, constructivism's failure to advance an alternative research program. In this article, I clarify constructivism's claims, outline the differences between "conventional" and "critical" constructivism, and suggest a research agenda that both provides alternative understandings of mainstream interna-
Evidence for class-specific factors in immunoglobulin isotype switching.

Immunoglobulin class switch recombination (SR) occurs by a B cell–specific, intrachromosomal deletional process between switch regions. We have developed a plasmid-based transient transfection assay for SR to test for the presence of transacting switch activities. The plasmids are novel in that they lack a eukaryotic origin of DNA replication. The recombination activity of these switch substrates is restricted to a subset of B cell lines that support isotype switching on their endogenous loci and to mitogen-activated normal splenic B cells. The factors required for extrachromosomal plasmid recombination are constitutively expressed in proliferating splenic B cells and in B cell lines capable of inducibly undergoing immunoglobulin SR on their chromosomal genes. These studies suggest that mitogens that induce switching on the chromosome induce accessibility rather than switch recombinase activity. Finally, we provide evidence for two distinct switching activities which independently mediate μ→α and μ→γ3 SR.
Sprödbruchsicherheit geschweißter Verbindungen bei Raumtemperatur und tiefen Temperaturen

Es werden diejenigen Betriesbedingungen angefuhrt, welche eine Uberprufung von Bauteilen, insbesondere von Druckbehaltern, bezuglich der Sprodbruchgefahrdung nahelegen. Den Schwerpunkt bildet die Behandlung von geschweisten Behaltern aus ferritischen Baustahlen. Die Einflusgrosen auf das Bruchverhalten werden angefuhrt: Der Spannungszustand, die Temperatur und die Verformungsgeschwindigkeit werden in ihrer Auswirkung kurz erlautert und Beispiele an Bauteilen erwahnt. Auf Moglichkeiten zur Minderung der Sprodbruchgefahrdung werden Hinweise gegeben. Oft ist eine zufriedenstellende Beurteilung der Sprodbruchsicherheit mittels der ublichen Kerbschlagproben nicht moglich, vor allem bei groseren Wanddicken oder hochfesten Werkstoffen sowie an entsprechenden Schweisverbindungen. Moglichkeiten und Grenzen der verbreitetsten Sprodbruchprufungen werden diskutiert, und ein Vorschlag zur Verfahrenswahl, welcher die Aussagefahigkeit der verschiedenen Prufarten berucksichtigt, wird beschrieben. Auf neuere Konzepte des Lloyds Register sowie im Rahmen des ASME und der ISO wird hingewiesen.
Treatment of GERD and proton pump inhibitor use in the elderly: practical approaches and frequently asked questions.

Treatment of GERD and Proton Pump Inhibitor Use in the Elderly: Practical Approaches and Frequently Asked Questions
Drug/Cell-line Browser: interactive canvas visualization of cancer drug/cell-line viability assay datasets

Summary: Recently, several high profile studies collected cell viability data from panels of cancer cell lines treated with many drugs applied at different concentrations. Such drug sensitivity data for cancer cell lines provide suggestive treatments for different types and subtypes of cancer. Visualization of these datasets can reveal patterns that may not be obvious by examining the data without such efforts. Here we introduce Drug/Cell-line Browser (DCB), an online interactive HTML5 data visualization tool for interacting with three of the recently published datasets of cancer cell lines/drug-viability studies. DCB uses clustering and canvas visualization of the drugs and the cell lines, as well as a bar graph that summarizes drug effectiveness for the tissue of origin or the cancer subtypes for single or multiple drugs. DCB can help in understanding drug response patterns and prioritizing drug/cancer cell line interactions by tissue of origin or cancer subtype. Availability and implementation: DCB is an open source Web-based tool that is freely available at: http://www.maayanlab.net/LINCS/DCB Contact: ude.mssm@nayaam.iva Supplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Cutting Edge: A Toll-Like Receptor 2 Polymorphism That Is Associated with Lepromatous Leprosy Is Unable to Mediate Mycobacterial Signaling

Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are key mediators of the innate immune response to microbial pathogens. We investigated the role of TLRs in the recognition of Mycobacterium leprae and the significance of TLR2Arg(677)Trp, a recently discovered human polymorphism that is associated with lepromatous leprosy. In mice, TNF-alpha production in response to M. leprae was essentially absent in TLR2-deficient macrophages. Similarly, human TLR2 mediated M. leprae-dependent activation of NF-kappaB in transfected Chinese hamster ovary and human embryonic kidney 293 cells, with enhancement of this signaling in the presence of CD14. In contrast, activation of NF-kappaB by human TLR2Arg(677)Trp was abolished in response to M. leprae and Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The impaired function of this TLR2 variant provides a molecular mechanism for the poor cellular immune response associated with lepromatous leprosy and may have important implications for understanding the pathogenesis of other mycobacterial infections.
Nonlocal thermodynamic equilibrium processes in ozone: Implications for the energy budget of the mesosphere and lower thermosphere

The conversion of chemical potential energy and infrared radiative energy to kinetic energy by non-LTE processes involving ozone is a potentially significant source of heat in the terrestrial upper mesosphere and lower thermosphere. Heating rates are calculated and compared using two different statistical equilibrium models previously applied in the analysis of measurements of limb emission from ozone. The calculated heating depends strongly on the assumed distribution and relaxation of energy in the quasi-nascent ozone molecule. Finally, in the absence of a detailed data base of rate coefficients it may be possible to estimate the heating rate due to non-LTE processes in ozone from appropriate satellite measurements of the ozone concentration and of the infrared emission from ozone in the 9-12 micron spectral interval.
Statistical Data Stability and Leakage Evaluation of FinFET SRAM Cells with Dynamic Threshold Voltage Tuning under Process Parameter Fluctuations

A new six transistor (6T) FinFET static memory cell with dynamic access transistor threshold voltage tuning is evaluated in this paper for statistical power and stability distributions under process parameter variations. The independent-gate (IG) FinFET SRAM cell activates only one gate of the double-gate data access transistors during a read operation. The disturbance caused by the direct data access mechanism of the standard 6T SRAM cell topology is significantly reduced by dynamically increasing the threshold voltage of the access transistors. All the transistors in the presented SRAM cell are sized minimum without producing any data stability concerns. The average read static-noise-margin of the statistical samples with the independent gate bias technique is 82% higher as compared to the standard tied-gate FinFET SRAM cells under process variations. Furthermore, the IG-FinFET SRAM circuit reduces the average leakage power and the cell area by up to 53.3% and 17.5%, respectively, as compared to the standard tied-gate FinFET SRAM circuits sized for comparable data stability in a 32 nm FinFET technology.
Reduced-order averaged modeling of active-clamp converters

Reduced-order averaged modeling and analysis of soft-switching dc-dc converters employing active clamping techniques are presented in this paper. A general modeling method based on time-scale separation of converter state variables is used to develop large-signal averaged models that accurately represent the converter dynamics up to half the switching frequency. The fast-changing resonant variables of the active clamping circuits are eliminated in the modeling process, resulting in reduced-order models that are much simpler than existing full-order models. A method is also presented to account for the effects of switching-frequency ripple on converter dynamics in the low-frequency region. A transformer-coupled active-clamp single-ended primary inductance converter (SEPIC) is studied in detail to demonstrate the application of the method. Numerical simulation and experimental measurement of frequency responses of a experimental SEPIC converter are presented to validate the developed models. Additionally, an active-clamp flyback converter is briefly studied to demonstrate the general applicability of the method to other active-clamp converter topologies.
ASYMPTOTIC SOLUTIONS OF A NONHOMOGENEOUS DIFFERENTIAL EQUATION WITH A TURNING POINT

A linear second-order differential equation of the form $$ d^{2 } U/d t^{2 } + \left[ {\lambda ^{2 } \varphi (t) + \lambda \chi (t,\lambda )} \right]U = \lambda ^{2 } \psi (t,\lambda ) $$ (1) is considered with the real variable t ranging over a finite closed interval. The parameter λ is assumed to be large and complex-valued, and the real-valued function ϕ is assumed to have a single zero of first order, known as a turning point. Assuming that χ and ψ are analytic in λ for ¦ λ ¦ > λ0 > 0 and that ϕ, χ, and ψ are infinitely differentiable in t, two types of formal solutions are constructed in terms of a solution of the differential equation S″(z)+ z S (z) = 1. (2) Properties of solutions of (2) are established, and it is shown that, when λ lies in a given quadrant of the λ-plane, S can be chosen so that the formal solutions furnish asymptotic representations of actual solutions of (1) provided λ is sufficiently large.
Teacher Research Experiences, Partnerships With Scientists, and Teacher Networks Sustaining Factors From Professional Development

This study examined some long-term impacts of a professional development program, Teachers in the Woods. Several outcomes of the program were acknowledged by participants as having been valuable: a network of like-minded teachers, a network of scientists and teachers, and an increase in teachers' ecological knowledge and field skills. The authors made 3 observations with regard to professional development. First, engaging teachers in real-world field science research is an effective way for them to gain ecological knowledge and skills. Second, the collegiality among teachers and scientists developed during the period of field work can enhance science learning. Third, collegiality among teachers provides opportunities to discuss pedagogy-related issues. Both aspects of collegiality provide support mechanisms that sustain teachers' efforts to modify their teaching practices.
Treatment of resectable gastric cancer: current standards of care

Gastric cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death worldwide. The local surgical treatment of gastric cancer varies geographically. However, there has been a confluence of opinion regarding the optimal therapy of gastric cancer toward multimodality therapy. In the East, many clinicians pursue adjuvant chemotherapy after a D2 resection. However, in the West, clinicians use either perioperative chemotherapy or postoperative chemoradiation. It remains unclear at this time whether either perioperative approach is the optimal approach.
A unified approach to time- and frequency-domain realization of FIR adaptive digital filters

Specific implementations of the finite impulse response (FIR) block adaptive filter in the frequency domain are presented and some of their important properties are discussed. The time-domain block adaptive filter implemented in the frequency domain is shown to be equivalent to the frequency-domain adaptive filter (derived in the frequency domain), provided data sectioning is done properly. All of the known time- and frequency-domain adaptive filters [1]-[12], [16]-[18] are contained in the set of possible block adaptive filter structures. Thus, the block adaptive filter is generic and its formulation unifies the current theory of time- and frequency-domain FIR adaptive filter structures. A detailed analysis of overlap-save and overlap-add implementations shows that the former is to be preferred for adaptive applications because it requires less computation, a fact that is not true for fixed coefficient filters.
Effect of Boundary Conditions on the Dynamic Response Characterization Of Board-Level Drop Test

Board-level drop test has emerged as a key qualification test for assessing the impact reliability of electronic components. JEDEC standards for board level drop test address different test board designs, assembly, materials, constructions, tester setup etc. However, it fails to emphasize the effect of varying boundary conditions on the dynamic response of the PCB assembly. Repeated dropping of boards during statistical reliability testing loosens up the mounting screws after a certain number of drops. Also, different sizes, and materials of mounts and supports can produce a significant variation in the vibration response of the PCB assembly. This paper addresses the effect of such boundary conditions and their influence on the overall dynamic characteristics of the system. A novel optical technique has been developed to measure the whole-field impact dynamic response of the PCB. Pair of synchronized high-speed cameras the images of board assembly at rates upto 15,000 pictures per second. A digital image correlation (DIC) system has been integrated with the cameras to analyze the acquired images to give dynamic deformation, shape and strain over the entire surface of board during impact. These measurements are conducted for different standoff heights, varying tightening torques on mounting screws and for rubber shim placement between the support and the board. Modal analysis has been performed on the finite element model for the board assembly to validate the experimental measurements. Furthermore, using spectral analysis, quantitative evaluation of varying boundary conditions has been done to understand their effect on fundamental modes and harmonics. With significant sensitivity observed as regards to these parameters, the need for accurate accounting of the boundary conditions while analyzing a drop test has been underlined.
Live Urbanism – Towards SENSEable Cities and Beyond

In the context of ubiquitous information services, the city shall not only be seen as a place of social interactions, financial transactions, a network of technology nodes, a geographical agglomeration area or as a political landscape, but more as an actuated multidimensional conglomerate of heterogeneous processes, in which the citizens are the central component. In other words, the city can be regarded as a complex near real-time control system, creating a feedback loop between the city itself, the city management and the citizens, which is achieved by pervasive sensing.
Modern Outcomes of Mechanical Circulatory Support as a Bridge to Pediatric Heart Transplantation

Background Pediatric patients awaiting orthotopic heart transplantation frequently require bridge to transplantation (BTT) with mechanical circulatory support. Posttransplant survival outcomes and predictors of mortality have not been thoroughly described in the modern era using a large-scale analysis. Methods The United Network for Organ Sharing database was reviewed to identify pediatric heart transplant recipients from 2005 through 2012. Patients were stratified into three groups: extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), ventricular assist device (VAD), and direct transplantation (DTXP). The primary outcome was posttransplant survival. Results Two thousand seven hundred seventy-seven pediatric patients underwent orthotopic heart transplantation. There were 617 patients who required BTT with mechanical circulatory support (22.2%), of whom there were 428 VAD BTT (69.4%) and 189 ECMO BTT (30.6%). An increase in VAD use was observed during the study period (p Conclusions Pediatric patients with DTXP or VAD BTT have equivalent posttransplant survival. However, those requiring ECMO BTT have inferior early posttransplant survival compared with those receiving DTXP.
Electrospray droplet exposure to organic vapors: metal ion removal from proteins and protein complexes.

The exposure of aqueous nanoelectrospray droplets to various organic vapors can dramatically reduce sodium adduction on protein ions in positive ion mass spectra. Volatile alcohols, such as methanol, ethanol, and isopropanol lead to a significant reduction in sodium ion adduction but are not as effective as acetonitrile, acetone, and ethyl acetate. Organic vapor exposure in the negative ion mode, on the other hand, has essentially no effect on alkali ion adduction. Evidence is presented to suggest that the mechanism by which organic vapor exposure reduces alkali ion adduction in the positive mode involves the depletion of alkali metal ions via ion evaporation of metal ions solvated with organic molecules. The early generation of metal/organic cluster ions during the droplet desolvation process results in fewer metal ions available to condense on the protein ions formed via the charged residue mechanism. These effects are demonstrated with holomyoglobin ions to illustrate that the metal ion reduction takes...
FLAME SPREADING OVER THIN FUEL SAMPLES IN PARTIAL GRAVITY ENVIRONMENTS

This papers summarizes aspects of conducting flame spread experiments in a partial gravity environment aboard a NASA aircraft flying parabolic trajectories. The acceleration environment is increasingly disturbed by variations in the acceleration environment called gjitter as the nominal acceleration approaches zero. Results of flame spreading tests for thin solid fuels spreading downward in partial gravity are reviewed. Both material flammability and flame spread rates are shown to be enhanced at Lunar and Martian gravity levels compared to results at normal Earth gravity. An improved method for correlating these data using dimensionless spread rate, Damkohler number and a radiative loss parameter is presented.
Description of Some Immature Stages of Lepidosaphes camelliae (Homoptera: Coccoidea: Diaspididae)

The first- and second-instar male and female of camellia scale, Lepidosaphes camelliae Hoke, are described and illustrated. Morphological differences between the first and second instar of this species and Lepidosaphes ulmi (L.) are compared and discussed.
Nanophotonic Quantum Memory Based on Rare-Earth-Ions Coupled to an Optical Resonator

We demonstrate optical photon storage in a Nd:YSO nano-resonator using multi-mode stimulated photon echo and atomic frequency comb protocols. Current results indicate strong prospects for on-chip nanophotonic quantum memories using rare-earth-ions.
Noncentral Difference Quotients and the Derivative

(1988). Noncentral Difference Quotients and the Derivative. The American Mathematical Monthly: Vol. 95, No. 6, pp. 551-553.
Measurement of Composite Phosphate in Meat Products by Microwave Ashing and Molecular Spectroscopy

[Objective]To establish the measurement of composite phosphate in meat products by microwave ashing method. [Methods]The samples were ashed by microwave,the best temperature and time for ashing were found to compare with the national standard method.[Results]with the samples digested by microwave ashing,the accuracy tests RSD = 0.57%,the recovery was between 96.7% ~ 103%,compared with the national standard method,the difference was not significant.[Conclusion]The microwave ashing method is applicable in determination of composite phosphate,with high accuracy and good reproduction.
Don’t Pester Me! Unwanted Upgrade Innovation

Consumers encounter incremental innovations that aim to improve currently owned products on a daily basis. This type of innovation, which we term upgrade innovation, can improve user experience, product security, and the overall performance of the owned product. Yet, upgrade innovation is not always appreciated by customers, at times leading customers to reject it or ignore its availability. In an extreme non-adoption condition, customers may actively seek strategies in order not to be notified the availability of upgrade innovations.
Perspective taking and decision-making in educational game play: A mixed-methods study

ABSTRACTVideo games have the potential to be contexts for moral learning. We investigated whether Quandary, a video game designed to promote ethical thinking and moral considerations for decision-making, would help promote positive skills such as perspective taking and empathy in adolescents. We examined the effect of playing Quandary on 131 middle school students on self-reported measures of moral thinking via mixed-method randomized control trials. In addition, we conducted qualitative analyses of one-on-one participant interviews and short-answer responses to capture experiences and reflections from playing Quandary, as well as the depth in which students across conditions responded to the interview questions. We found that short-term quantitative indicators did not show change across conditions; however, qualitative analyses revealed thematic responses that are consistent with the core components of the Quandary game, and that students in the Quandary condition showed a greater depth of response to in...
Associations of Parent-Adolescent Discrepancies in Family Cohesion and Conflict with Adolescent Impairment

Family cohesion and family conflict are important protective and risk factors respectively in the development of child psychopathology. Our study examines parent-adolescent discrepancy of the family environment constructs, family cohesion and family conflict, and their associations with adolescent impairment. The sample consists of 141 parent-adolescent dyads evaluated at an outpatient behavioral health clinic. The mean adolescent age is 14.8 (range 11–18) while the mean parent age is 48.9 (range 32–67). Findings show that adolescents report significantly less family cohesion but do not differ significantly in reports of family conflict. Greater family cohesion is associated with less adolescent impairment by multiple reporters. Nonetheless, greater family conflict is associated with more adolescent impairment by the same reporter. The results show that both adolescent and parent reports of family cohesion and conflict are important to consider when integrating information gathered in a clinical assessment.
Anticipatory smooth pursuit eye movements evoked by probabilistic cues

Anticipatory smooth eye movements (ASEM; smooth eye movements in the direction of anticipated target motion) are elicited by cues that signal the direction of future target motion with high levels of certainty. Natural cues, however, rarely convey information with perfect certainty, and responses to uncertainty provide insights about how predictive behaviors are generated. Subjects smoothly pursued targets that moved to the right or left with varying cued probabilities. ASEM strength in a given direction increased with the probability level. The type of cue also played a role. ASEM elicited by symbolic visual cues tended to underweight low probabilities and overweight high probabilities. Cues based on memory (varying the proportion of trials with left or right motion) produced the opposite pattern, overweighting low probabilities and underweighting high probabilities. Finally, cues whose perceptual structure depicted the motion path produced a bias in ASEM in the depicted direction that was maintained across levels of cue congruency. The results show that the smooth pursuit system relies on a combination of signals, including memory for recent target motions, interpretation of cues, and prior beliefs about the relationship between the perceptual configuration and the motion path to determine the anticipatory response in the presence of uncertainty.
The ultrastructural basis of actin filament regulation.

Actin filaments are found in virtually all cells, performing diverse functions throughout the animal and plant kingdoms. They are generally dynamic structures that may disassemble or reassemble as needed. Actin accomplishes these astonishing feats by binding to specific actin-binding proteins, which modify its structure, enabling it to perform the required function. These actin-binding proteins include components that cross-link filaments (forming bundles or networks), sever filaments (causing depolymerization), sequester actin monomers (preventing polymerization), cap filaments (inhibiting depolymerization), and those that act as motor proteins to generate motility.
MIDLIFE STRESSFUL OCCUPATIONAL EXPOSURES AND HIPPOCAMPAL SIZE IN HEALTHY OLDER ADULTS

AbstractRaising retirement age warrants better understanding of the role of occupation in brain aging. Although occupational stress has been linked to decreased brain volumes in younger workers (Savic, 2015), the role of occupational stress in brain aging remains unknown. In order to address this relationship, we conducted two studies relating past occupational characteristics to MRI data from older adults. First, we assess occupational stress using the Work Design Questionnaire (Morgeson & Humphrey, 2006) combined with interpersonal conflict and workload questionnaires in 101 healthy adults (Mage=70, a subsample of NCT01472744 trial). We measured hippocampal volume with Magnetic Resonance Imaging. Greater physical demands of participants’ most recent job were related to smaller left (F(4,93)=10.5, p=.006, sr=-.260) and right hippocampi (F(4,93)=7.18, p=.024, sr=-.231, both corrected for age, education, total brain volume). Greater physical demand was also associated with lower episodic memory scores (F(3,97)=2.8, p=.006, sr=-.272, corrected for age and education). Next, we tested this finding in 83 cognitively healthy older adults (Mage=69), a subsample of an Acting Out trial (5R01AG036682-03). Here, we used these participants’ primary midlife job titles and descriptions (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2017) to categorize the participants into those with high (n=31) and low (n=52) occupational physical demands. Older adults whose midlife jobs were characterized by greater physical demands had smaller left (p=.019) and right (p=.035) hippocampi. Together, we identified occupational physical demands as stressful factor that may negatively impact brain aging. Future analyses should contrast the opposing effects of leisure physical activity and work physical demands on brain aging.
Baseline Impedance Measured During High-resolution Esophageal Impedance Manometry in Patients With Rumination Syndrome is as Abnormal as in Patients With GERD.

Goals and Background:Baseline impedance measured during high-resolution impedance manometry (HRIM) can distinguish patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) from controls, presumably due to differences in esophageal acid exposure. The characteristics of regurgitation and reflux in ruminat
Pharmacology of Immunosuppression

As discussed in the subsequent chapters of this section, transplant of solid organs has emerged to become a viable and very realistic option for the treatment of a variety of disorders. The outcomes from transplantation of solid organs, including Heart, Heart/Lung, Lung, Kidney, Liver, Small Bowel, Liver/Small Bowel/Pancreas have improved significantly with time. To a large measure, the successes in solid transplant programs have occurred concomitantly with advances in surgical techniques and prevention of acute and chronic allograft rejection. As many of these children are cared for in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) environment, both immediately after as well as with the myriad of potential complications and long-term problems that may occur, clinicians working in the PICU must have an in-depth understanding of the pharmacology of immunosuppressive medications as well as their potential adverse effects.
Baseline Description of the Juvenile Localized Scleroderma Subgroup From the Childhood Arthritis and Rheumatology Research Alliance Legacy Registry

Objective Localized scleroderma (LS) is a chronic inflammatory and fibrosing skin disorder. We present baseline data on the juvenile LS (jLS) cohort from the Childhood Arthritis and Rheumatology Research Alliance (CARRA) Legacy Registry, a multicenter observational registry of pediatric rheumatologic disorders. Methods This is a cross-sectional analysis of children with jLS enrolled in the CARRA Legacy Registry between May 2010 and April 2014. Descriptive statistics were used for demographic, clinical, and laboratory features. Data analysis included two-sample t test, χ2 test, Fisher's exact test, linear/logistic regression, and analysis of variance. Results Of 381 children with jLS, 76% were female and 80% Caucasian. Mean onset age was 8.2 years, with 17% having a 2-year or greater delay to first pediatric rheumatology (PRH) visit. Linear scleroderma was the most common subtype (54%). Antinuclear antibody (ANA) positivity was associated with joint contracture (P = 0.04), muscle atrophy (P = 0.014), and extremity shortening (P = 0.007). Elevated aldolase was associated with joint contracture (P = 0.008) and elevated creatine kinase (CK) with muscle atrophy (P = 0.028) and extremity shortening (P = 0.016). Children with functional limitation (27%) had earlier first PRH visit compared with those without (P = 0.01). Poorer function correlated with muscle atrophy, joint contracture, and extremity shortening (P < 0.001). Methotrexate (97%) and corticosteroids (68%) were the most common medications used. Conclusion Children with jLS without joint limitation are referred later, highlighting the insidious onset and need for educating referring providers. Poorer function correlated with muscle atrophy, joint contracture, and limb shortening. ANA positivity and elevated CK or aldolase were associated with muscle atrophy, joint contracture, and/or limb shortening, suggesting predictors of muscle involvement.