cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Quantitative 3D Tracing of Gene-delivery Viral Vectors in Human Cells and Animal Tissues

Trafficking through a variety of cellular structures and organelles is essential for the interaction between gene-delivery vectors (i.e., adeno-associated virus (AAV) and liposomes) and host cells/tissues. Here, we present a method of computer-assisted quantitative 3D biodistribution microscopy that samples the whole population of fluorescently-labeled vectors and document their trafficking routes. Using AAV as a working model, we first experimentally defined numerical parameters for the singularity of Cy5-labeled particles by combining confocal microscopy and atomic force microscopy (AFM). We then developed a robust approach that integrates single-particle fluorescence imaging with 3D deconvolution and isosurface rendering to quantitate viral distribution and trafficking in human cells as well as animal tissues at the single-particle level. Using this quantitative method, we uncovered an as yet uncharacterized rate-limiting step during viral cell entry, while delineating nuclear accumulation of virions during the first 8 hours postinfection. Further, our studies revealed for the first time that following intramuscular injection, AAV spread progressively across muscle tissues through endomysium between myofibers instead of traversing through target cells. Such 3D resolution and quantitative dissection of vector–host interactions at the subcellular level should significantly improve our ability to resolve trafficking mechanisms of gene-delivery particles and facilitate the development of enhanced viral vectors.
US restaurant guides: how to avoid chain restaurants (an annotated bibliography)

An examination of select recent (since 1995) US restaurant guidebooks. Although most provide basic information, they vary in areas they cover, intended audiences and types of restaurants included. Very few of them cover regional food or go much beyond the most basic information. This select annotated bibliography is an attempt to sort them out.
A Light-activated Quantum Capacitance Device as a Highly Tunable Variable Capacitor

Capacitance-Voltage characteristics of a metal-semiconductor-metal structure with an embedded two-dimensional electron system are reported. The device functions based on a quantum capacitance, which is activated by local illumination. The giant sensitivity to light and voltage makes this device a candidate for capacitive-based photodetection.
Phylogenetic relationships among the pine stem rust fungi (Cronartium and Peridermium spp.)

Species in Cronartium and its anamorphic genus Peridermium form a morphologically homoge- neous group of rust fungi that infect stems, branches, and cones of Pinus species in North and Central America, Asia, and Europe. Several species are im- portant forest pathogens, causing severe economic and aesthetic damage to pines in forests and parks throughout the northern hemisphere. Morphologi- cal characters have been used to distinguish among these rust fungi, but have proven inadequate for as- sessing phylogenetic relationships within the group. In this study, we extracted fungal DNA from spores
A Short History of the Radiation Chemistry of Water

The first hundred years of radiation studies have greatly clarified the chemical processes that are induced by radiation. While the fundamental ionization processes are similar in all systems, properties of the medium such as phase, polarity and composition can greatly affect the chemistry. In all systems, one needs to understand what chemical species are formed, what the internal energies are, how they are dispersed spatially, and what reactions can occur. In this review, the progress that has been made in understanding the chemistry that occurs after a radiolysis event for liquid water is outlined as an example of how progress has been made in radiation chemistry.
Contribution of the active metabolite, norcocaine, to cocaine's effects after intravenous and oral administration in rats: pharmacodynamics

Rationale: Oral cocaine is more effective than IV cocaine by pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic analysis. One explanation is involvement of the active metabolite, norcocaine, in cocaine's effects. Objectives: To evaluate norcocaine's contribution to oral cocaine's effects, norcocaine's effects as a parent compound were determined and compared to those of cocaine using a differential reinforcement of low rate (DRL 45-s) schedule and spontaneous activity (large and small movements) after IV and PO routes of administration. Methods: The effects of cocaine and norcocaine on DRL performance (shorter-response and reinforcement rates) and spontaneous activity were investigated in 3-h sessions. The changes in effects across time (effect-time profiles) and dose-response curves (DRCs) were constructed to evaluate the duration of action and potency (ED50) of both drugs. Results: Under the DRL 45-s schedule, effect-time profiles showed both drugs via the two routes of administration significantly increasing and decreasing shorter-response rates and reinforcement rates, respectively. However, cocaine produced greater effects on shorter-response rates than norcocaine, while both drugs produced comparable effects on reinforcement rates. For spontaneous activity, although IV cocaine, PO cocaine, and PO norcocaine dose- and time-dependently increased spontaneous activity, cocaine's effects were more profound than those of norcocaine. Effect-time profiles revealed that the duration of drug action was a function of dose, route, and behavioral paradigm used. According to ED50 values, IV cocaine was more effective than PO cocaine; however, PO cocaine was more effective than IV cocaine as judged by ED50 values corrected for absolute oral bioavailability. Conclusions: Norcocaine's contribution to oral cocaine's effects on DRL performance is evident. Other mechanism(s), such as a greater acute tolerance to IV cocaine's effects than to PO cocaine's effects, can be excluded.
Halftone visual cryptography by iterative halftoning

Halftone visual cryptography (HVC) is a visual sharing scheme where a secret image is encoded into halftone shares taking meaningful visual information. In this paper, novel construction method of HVC based on an iterative halftoning method is proposed. The secret image is concurrently embedded into binary valued shares while these shares are halftoned by constrained iterative halftoning. The proposed method is able to generate halftone shares showing natural images with high image quality. Reconstructed secret images, obtained by stacking qualified shares together, does not suffer from cross interference of share images. Simulations are provided to show the effectiveness of our proposed method.
MobiCom poster: Anamika: distributed service composition architecture for pervasive environments

Development of customized services by discovering, integrating and executing existing ones (refered to as service composition) has received a lot of attention in the last few years with respect to wired, infrastrutcure based web-services. With the advancement in the wireless technology and pervasive computing, we envison that in the near future, we will have such information or services embedded in various wireless devices in our vicinity. However, wired infrastructure-based service discovery and composition architectures do not take into consideration factors arising from the possible mobility of the service providers. In this paper, we present Anamika: a distributed, de-centralized and fault-tolerant design architecture for distributed service discovery and reactive service composition in pervasive environments.
A simple and inexpensive cannula technique for chemical stimulation of the brain

Abstract This paper describes a simple, inexpensive, rapid and accurate method for the construction and implantation of cannulae for chemical stimulation of both dorsal and ventral structures in the brain. Animals implanted with this type of cannulae have been used for several months with minimal loss due to blockage or damage to the cannulae.
The Rodent Orbitofrontal Cortex Gets Time and Direction

The orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) helps direct decision making through its flexible coding of reward and economic value. In this issue of Neuron, papers by Roesch et al. and Feierstein et al. demonstrate the importance of temporal and spatial features to processing in the rodent OFC.
Taking time to be healthy: Predicting health behaviors with delay discounting and time perspective

Delay discounting, a willingness to postpone receiving an immediate reward in order to gain additional benefits in the future, is conceptually related to time perspective, the cognitive processes which filter temporal information and influence behavior. One measure of delay discounting (Money Choice Questionnaire) and two measures of time perspective (Consideration of Future Consequences Scale and Zimbardo Time Perspective Inventory) were compared in this study to each other and to self-reported health behaviors with 467 undergraduates. Delay discounting and time perspective significantly improved the incremental prediction of tobacco, alcohol, and drug use, exercise frequency, eating breakfast, wearing a safety belt, estimated longevity, health concerns, and sociosexual orientation above and beyond sex and Big Five traits. These results further suggest that delay discounting and time perspective are indeed similar but also non-redundant constructs that are not reducible to global personality.
Model-Based Control using a lifting approach

In this paper, discrete-time Model-Based Networked Control Systems (MB-NCS) are studied. A lifting process is applied to a general MB-NCS configuration in which the controller is connected to the actuator and plant by means of a digital communication network resulting in a multirate system; the controller is updated every nT time units while the plant is updated every mT time units. Here, necessary and sufficient conditions for asymptotic stability are derived in terms of the parameters n and m. The lifting process is also applied to the MB-NCS configuration when only sensor data is sent over the network. In both cases a Linear Time-Invariant (LTI) system is obtained after applying lifting techniques. Necessary and sufficient conditions are given for the asymptotic stability of the system with instantaneous feedback in terms of h, the periodic update constant, and in terms of h and τ for the intermittent feedback case, where τ is the time interval in which the loop remains closed.
First measured plasma concentration value as Cmax; impact on the Cmax confidence interval in bioequivalence studies†

In bioequivalence studies, the first blood or plasma sample taken after dosing sometimes yields a higher assayed drug concentration than any samples drawn thereafter. This circumstance ('first C(max)' or 'FCM'), is usually considered undesirable, since a 'true C(max)' requires that the sampled concentrations immediately preceding and immediately after the 'true C(max)' concentration should be lower than the 'true C(max)' concentration. Therefore, a question arises whether the presence of FCM in a bioequivalence study affects the power and accuracy of the computed statistical confidence interval (CI) for C(max). This study examines what effect, if any, the inclusion or exclusion of FCM data has on the statistical power and accuracy of the 90% CI computed for C(max) in the analysis of results for in vivo bioequivalence studies. Actual experimental study data as well as data from simulated studies were evaluated. In the simulated studies, up to half of the study subjects exhibited FCM, and various levels of intrasubject variability were incorporated into the absorption rate constant. The two one-sided tests procedure was used to assess equivalence of C(max) for the test versus reference products when either a complete set of C(max) data was analysed (designated 'CC(max)'), which included subjects with FCM profiles; or a truncated set of data was analysed (designated 'TC(max)'), that excluded all subjects with FCM. The results showed that the CC(max) metric had greater statistical power and comparable or greater statistical accuracy compared to TC(max) for both bioequivalent and non-bioequivalent drug product formulations. Even when up to 50% of the study subjects had FCM, the power and accuracy of the 90% CI for rate of absorption (i.e. C(max)) was not significantly affected. Consequently, this study shows that, in the analysis of data from conventional in vivo bioequivalence studies, the inclusion of 50% of the subjects exhibiting FCM does not greatly impact the statistical results obtained for C(max). Published in 2000 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Heat transfer computed tomography techniques for damage detection in metallic structures

The detection of damage in structures at its earliest stages has many economical and safety benefits. Permanent monitoring systems using various forms of sensor networks and analysis methods are often employed to increase the frequency and diagnostic capabilities of inspections. Some of these techniques provide spatial/volumetric information about a given area/volume of a structure. Many of the available spatial sensing techniques can be costly and cannot be permanently deployed (e.g., IR camera thermography). For this reason intricate analysis methods using permanently deployable sensors are being developed (e.g., ultrasonic piezoelectrics, sensing skins). One approach is to leverage the low cost of heaters and temperature sensors to develop an economical, permanently installable method of spatial damage detection using heat transfer. This paper presents a method similar to that of X-ray computed tomography (CT). However, the theories for Xray CT must be adapted to properly represent heat transfer as well as account for the relatively large and immobile sensors spacing used on a structure (i.e., there is a finite number of heaters/sensors permanently installed around the perimeter of the area of interest). The derivation of heat transfer computed tomography is discussed in this paper including two methods for steering the effective heat wave. A high fidelity finite element method (FEM) model is used to verify the analytical derivation of individual steps within the method as well as simulate the complete damage detection technique. Experimental results from both damaged and undamaged aluminum plate specimens are used to validate the FEM model and to justify theoretical assumptions. The simulation results are discussed along with possible improvements and modifications to the technique.
STAGING OF MIDDLE AND LATE EMBRYONIC DEVELOPMENT IN THE MEDICINAL LEECH, HIRUDO MEDICINALIS

We present a description of the last half of embryonic development in the European medicinal leech, Hirudo medicinalis, based entirely on externally visible morphological features, and establish reliably observable stages during that development. Embryogenesis, from the time fertilized eggs are deposited in an eggcase (called a cocoon) to the emergence of juveniles from the cocoon, takes approximately 4 weeks at room temperature. The stages described in this paper extend from the completion of segmentation to the appearance of the final bands of pigmentation. Developmental stages are expressed as percentages of total embryonic developmental time. This staging table was constructed for embryos kept at 20 degrees C. In addition, the development of animals kept at 17 degrees C or at 24 degrees C was compared with those held at 20 degrees C. Development proceeds more quickly at higher temperatures. Because development in embryos held at higher or lower temperatures was linearly related to the stages determined for embryos held at 20 degrees C, the rate of development at any intermediate temperature can be predicted from the staging table at 20 degrees C by simple multiplication.
Reflex Responses of Lip Muscles in Young and Older Women

The perioral reflex in response to innocuous mechanical stimulation of the lip vermilion was studied in 20 young and 20 older women. Responses to stimuli at the right and left sides of both the upp...
Human factors research in motor vehicle occupant restraint systems

The US national program in highway and motor vehicle safety has provided a new stimulus to human factors research by agencies of the Federal Government. As early as 1957, McFarland and Moore described areas of application of this discipline in a series of articles entitled, "Human Factors in Highway Safety". An important area included in their list was the protection of occupants of a motor vehicle from injury during a crash. This paper will describe some results of human factors research in motor vehicle occupant restraint systems by the Office of Vehicle Systems Research in the National Bureau of Standards.
Energy efficiency and the slump in labour productivity in the USA

Energy consumption is included in an aggregate Cobb-Douglas production function for the USA. The data suggest that energy conservation has not reduced the growth rate for real GNP by more than 0.3 percentage points and that less than one-fifth of the overall slump in labour productivity since 1973 should be attributed to higher energy prices.
Not so silent after all: Examination and analysis of the silent stage in childhood second language acquisition

Abstract A period of silence has been advanced as a characteristic feature of childhood second language acquisition. Evidence is presented to document that the presumption of silence as the second of four typical stages of second language acquisition has influenced policy and practice in preschool classrooms. A narrative review examines the extent and quality of the evidence for a silent stage in second language acquisition in young children. Twelve studies meeting inclusion criteria were reviewed and evaluated. Evidence of a silent, non-verbal, pre-production, or receptive language stage was limited. Significant conceptual and methodological limitations within the largely qualitative studies were found. Four major issues raised by the studies are elaborated upon: the theoretical clarity and operational definitions of silence and stage, phase, or period; the psychological meaning and consequences of silence; the cross-context consistency of individual patterns of silence; and how adult language elicitation and support techniques may modulate silence. Recommendations based on contemporary evidence of language acquisition processes are made for the future study of (1) second language acquisition in preschool children and (2) pedagogical practice within preschool settings to promote second language acquisition. Finally, historical, theoretical, empirical, and contextual influences likely to have given rise to the appeal and ready endorsement of silence as a consistent and typical characteristic of childhood second language acquisition are presented.
Multiscale Assessment of Binary and Continuous Landcover Variables for MODIS Validation, Mapping, and Modeling Applications

Abstract Validation, mapping, and modeling efforts require accurate methods to transform process rates and ecosystem attributes estimated from small field plots to the 250–1000-m-wide cells used by a new generation of land cover mapping sensors. We provide alternative scale transformations, each with attendant assumptions and limitations. The choice of method depends on spatial characteristics of the land cover variables in question and consequently may vary between biomes or with the intended application. We extend the fractal similarity dimension renormalization method, previously developed for binary maps, to continuous variables. The method can preserve both the mean and the multifractal properties of the image, thereby satisfying a major goal, namely, to provide accurate areal estimates without sacrificing information about within-site variation. The scale transformation enables the multifractal scaling exponents of landscapes or individual spectral bands to be brought in and out of register with each other, thereby opening another dimension upon which to detect the scales at which various land use or terrain processes operate. Alternatively, landscapes can be selectively rescaled to highlight patterns due to particular processes. We recommend geostatistical procedures with which to assess spatial characteristics both within a site and within individual image cells. We recommend that aggregation of fine-grain measurements during validation of the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MODIS) products be based on continuous variables to reduce errors that originate from uncertainties in binary maps.
A Heuristic Programming Algorithm for Warehouse Location

Abstract A new heuristic programming method of solving a particular type of warehouse location problem is presented. The problem is to allocate K or less facilities to N possible locations so as to service M demand centers at minimum cost. The algorithm presented is suitable for hand calculation of medium-size problems (50 × 50) or when computerized will readily solve large-scale problems of the order of (600 × 600); i.e., 600 demand centers and 600 possible locations.
Discriminating measures and normal values for expiratory obstruction

Objectives To develop mean and 95% confidence limits for the lower limit of normal (LLN) values for forced expiratory volume in 3 s (FEV 3 )/FVC ratio for Latin, black, and white adults; to ascertain comparative variability of the FEV 1 /FVC ratio, the FEV 3 /FVC ratio, and forced expiratory flow, midexpiratory phase (FEF 25–75 ) in never-smoking adults; to evaluate their utility in measuring the effect of smoking on airflow limitation; and to develop and use the fraction of the FVC that had not been expired during the first 3 s of the FVC (1 − FEV 3 /FVC) to identify the growing fraction of long-time-constant lung units. Design Analysis of the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III) database of never-smokers and current smokers. Participants A total of 5,938 adult never-smokers and 3,570 current smokers from NHANES III with spirometric data meeting American Thoracic Society standards. Measurements and results After establishing new databases for never-smokers and current smokers, we quantified the mean and LLN values of FEV 3 /FVC in never-smokers, and identified spirometric abnormalities in current smokers. When associated with older age, FEV 3 /FVC decreases and 1 − FEV 3 /FVC increases as FEV 1 /FVC decreases. On average, using these measurements, the condition of current smokers worsened about 20 years faster than that of never-smokers by middle age. If 25–75 was used to identify abnormality, over one quarter of all never-smokers would have been falsely identified as being abnormal. Using 95% confidence limits, 42% of 683 smokers with reduced FEV 1 /FVC and/or FEV 3 /FVC would have been judged as normal by FEF 25–75 . Conclusions FEV 1 /FVC, FEV 3 /FVC, and 1 − FEV 3 /FVC characterize expiratory obstruction well. In contrast, FEF 25–75 measurements can be misleading and can cause an unacceptably large number of probable false-negative results and probable false-positive results.
Laboratory drilling under Martian conditions yields unexpected results

[1] Current plans to drill boreholes in the surface of Mars suppose that diamond drill bits will be used on drilling equipment developing drilling power of 100 W or less. Such drilling produces very fine cuttings. At Martian ambient pressure, it has been shown that quite small gas flows are capable of clearing these cuttings from the hole. For example, the release of 1 L of gas compressed to 50 torr is capable of removing 25 g of cuttings from a borehole 50 mm in diameter and at least 250 mm deep. Generating such volumes of gas by compressing the Martian atmosphere would not be difficult. Alternatively, the required volume of gas could be provided by the sublimation of ice trapped in the pore spaces of soil or rock in the Martian surface. Once heated by the friction of the drill bit, the ice transforms into vapor, and blows the cuttings out of the hole. Since the cuttings are, in effect, freeze-dried, they do not choke the drill bit or hole, with the result that the drilling efficiency is much greater than under terrestrial pressures and temperatures.
Trends in oral disease and health.

Geriatric dentistry researchers are building a basic knowledge basic pertaining to the oral health status of older adults. Important findings on the prevalence of disease that run counter to “conventional wisdom” surrounding the oral health of older adults are that edentulism is decreasing, that both coronal and root caries are prevalent, that serious periodontal disease is not as prevalent as thought, that chronological age is not strongly associated with disease in older adults, and that oral lesions, especially those related to dentures, are prevalent. An important finding has been that the majority of disease seems to occur in a minority of the population. While the prevalence of oral diseases have been shown to be associated with water fluoridation, systemic diseases, use of medications, social and behavioral factors, and a variety of other oral conditions, there is only preliminary information on the incidence of disease and actual risk factors. The data available on the incidence of disease come from a study of community-dwelling older adults in Iowa, and these data generally confirm the prevalence results. Coronal and root caries are active in this older population with caries being the best predictor of tooth loss. Furthermore, most disease occurs in a high risk group. Multivariate models predicting people at highest risk for root and coronal caries implicate stress and anxiety, use of tobacco, and recent onset of illness as risk factors. In addition, preliminary results indicate that some dental conditions may be predictive of general health status.
Events and streams: harnessing and unleashing their synergy!

One of the purposes of this paper is to demonstrate the ubiquitous nature and relevance of simple and complex events in situation monitoring and other unforeseen applications. This paper retrospectively analyzes the progress of event-based capability and their applicability in various domains. Although research on event-based approaches started in a humble manner with the intention of introducing triggers in database management systems for monitoring application state and to automate applications by reducing/eliminating user intervention, currently it has become a force to reckon with as it finds use in many diverse domains. This is primarily due to the fact that a large number of real-world applications are indeed event-driven and hence the paradigm is apposite.The other purpose of this paper is to identify and establish the synergy between stream processing and event processing. The resurgence of complex event processing (or CEP) has demonstrated the resiliency of this paradigm and its relevance to a large class of applications. In addition, the advent of stream processing based on sensor and other data generated on a continuous basis has, in our opinion, enhanced the role of events in critical ways. Instead of implicitly assuming event generation, stream processing indeed provides a powerful mechanism for generating interesting events.In this paper, we briefly overview the development of the ECA (or event-condition-action) paradigm. We briefly discuss the evolution of the ECA paradigm (or active capability) in Relational and Object-oriented systems. We then describe several diverse applications where the ECA paradigm has been used effectively. The applications range from customized monitoring of web pages to specification and enforcement of role-based access control policies (RBAC). The multitude of applications clearly demonstrate the ubiquitous nature of event-based approaches to problems that were not envisioned as the ones where the active capability would be applicable.Finally, this paper analyzes the differences between stream and event processing and proposes an integration architecture to meet the requirements of applications such as linear road bench mark and network fault management applications. These applications have a strong stream computation component to generate interesting events and a complex event processing component to detect situations for timely notification.
Hyperthermia and Cancer Therapy: A Review of Biomedical Engineering Contributions and Challenges

In this paper, we attempt to give an overview of the status of hyperthermia as a modality for cancer treatment from an engineer's point of view. By hyperthermia we mean elevating the tumor tissue to the temperature range of 42-50°C and holding it at this temperature for 30 min-1 h. We give a brief history of the field, some comments on the biological rationale, and a survey of present methods for producing hyperthermia using electromagnetic and ultrasonic techniques. Finally, we give some comments on the success of present systems in achieving the specifications set by the clinicians and suggest some fundamental problems we feel need to be solved if hyperthermia is going to be able to make a contribution to the cure and control of this disease.
Ginzburg-Landau theory of the upper critical field in filamentary superconductors

The upper critical field for coupled filamentary superconductors is analyzed within the context of a Ginzburg-Landau theory similar to the Lawrence-Doniach theory for coupled layered superconductors. Upward curvature in the critical field as the temperature is lowered results from the decreased coupling of the filaments, and an ultimate divergence in the critical field at all angles occurs below a decoupling temperature ${T}^{*}$. Unusual anomalies are predicted to occur in the ${H}_{c2\ensuremath{\parallel}}(T)$ curve, corresponding to a commensurate fitting of the vortices into the filament lattice. The behavior of ${H}_{c2}$ for coupled filaments is contrasted with that of an isolated fiber of finite diameter. The model is applied to ${(\mathrm{SN})}_{x}$, to the transition-metal trichalcogenides Nb${\mathrm{Se}}_{3}$ and Ta${\mathrm{Se}}_{3}$, and to mercury embedded in asbestos.
Graphical tools for assessing information quality: loan application decisions

Using a loan application data set, this paper demonstrates the use of several graphical tools to assess information quality: histograms to study individual variables, scatter plots to compare original and cleaned variables as well as to examine the effects that cleaning a particular predictor has on models of a decision, decision trees to identify important predictors of a decision, and ROC curves to evaluate the predictive value of each attribute. Proposed techniques for cleaning a data set include eliminating erroneous records, excluding attributes with too many incorrect values from the model and applying domain knowledge. We suggest that our approach can be applied to a small sample of a data set to help prioritise which variables should be cleaned.
Rapid Synthesis of Gold and Platinum Nanoparticles Using Metal Displacement Reduction with Sonomechanical Assistance

We present a new route for preparation of metallic nanoparticles by sonomechanical-assisted metal displacement reduction. Au and Pt nanoparticles with sizes around 10 and 6 nm, respectively, and narrow size distributions were synthesized via the displacement reduction of precursor salts of HAuCl4·3H20 and H2PtCl6·6H2O by Cu and Fe foils, respectively.
The association between skin collagen glucosepane and past progression of microvascular and neuropathic complications in type 1 diabetes

Abstract Purpose We determined the association between novel and acid-labile skin collagen-linked advanced glycation endproducts (AGEs) and the progression of microvascular and neuropathic complications from baseline to near study closeout in the Diabetes Control and Complications Trial (DCCT). Methods From a skin biopsy obtained near the close of the DCCT, proteolytic collagen digests were analyzed by liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) for glucosepane (GSPNE), glyoxal and methylglyoxal hydroimidazolones (G-H1 and MG-H1) and the glycation product fructose-lysine (FL) using isotope dilution method. Results GSPNE and MG-H1 correlated with age and diabetes duration (P 40 mg/24 h (OR = 5.3, P Conclusions Glucosepane is a novel AGE marker of diabetic complications that is robustly associated with nephropathic, retinopathic and neuropathic outcomes despite adjustment for A1c, suggesting that it could be one mediator of these complications with possible diagnostic implications.
Insights for curriculum design from design research

The paper considers how research in product/process design methodologies can be used to design engineering curricula. Following the Function-Behavior-Structure (FBS) framework for product design, we show how the curriculum design task can be separated into functionality of the curriculum, student behaviors and course structures. We then describe possible ways in which such a design could help us explore the possibilities of designing different types of curricula with the same functionality so that we could develop flexible, fault tolerant, scalable curricula that evolves with changing circumstances. These requirements are not generally included as curriculum design criteria and an approach that highlights the role of “robustness” would be useful.
Groundwater-sapping origin for the giant quebradas of northern Chile

Northernmost Chile is home to a well-preserved disequilibrium landscape of great antiquity. Contrasting drainage patterns are developed on the western slope of the Altiplano plateau. The oldest of these patterns is a now-relict parallel-patterned drainage network. In places a younger pattern, comprising a series of deeply incised canyons, or quebradas, crosscuts the older parallel-patterned network. These canyons show strong evidence of a groundwater-sapping origin. We hypothesize that the initiation of the canyon network resulted from changes in the hydrological regime related to a drying out of climate of the forearc and to the uplift of the Altiplano plateau.
Long uninterrupted CGG repeats within the first exon of the human FMR1 gene are not intrinsically unstable in transgenic mice

Despite the increasing number of disorders known to result from trinucleotide repeat amplification, the molecular mechanism underlying these dynamic mutations is still unknown. In an attempt to create a mouse model for the CGG repeat instability seen in Fragile X syndrome, we constructed transgenes corresponding to FMR1 premutation alleles. While in humans these alleles would expand to full mutation with almost 100% certainty upon maternal transmission, they remain stable in our transgenic mice. Therefore, the presence of a large number of uninterrupted CGGs is not sufficient to cause instability in mice, even in the context of flanking human FMR1 sequences.
Weed hosts of the tobacco rattle virus in Idaho

The corky ringspot disease of potato (Solanum tuberosum) caused by the tobacco rattle virus (TRV) is a serious problem in certain Idaho localities. To investigate natural TRV sources, weeds and plants from rotation crops were randomly collected from six fields with a history of corky ringspot symptoms. Transmission trials, Ouchterlony agar double-diffusion tests, and electron-microscopy showed evidence of TRV in three Idaho counties (Fremont, Ada, and Canyon). Inoculations were made from 27 species and TRV was recovered from the roots of three:Solanum nigrum, Brassica campestris, andErodium cicutarium. Solanum nigrum was the most consistent source of TRV and it generally incited the severest symptoms onNicotiana tabacum (Samsun NN). The results show thatS. nigrum, besides being an important wild host of TRV, may be a useful naturallyoccurring bait plant for detection of TRV in field soils.
Orthotopic Heart Transplantation

Heart transplantation has become the most effective therapy for end-stage congestive heart failure. Since the first human-to-human transplant in 1967, outcomes have changed from relatively poor to a mean survival of more than 11 years, according to data reported in 2012. These improved outcomes and increased numbers of patients receiving orthotopic heart transplants are due to multiple reasons, including changes in immunosuppressive drugs, better management of heart failure patients on the waiting list, increasing use of ventricular assist devices (VADs) as bridge support, improved VAD technology, and improved donor organ preservation. Much of this chapter focuses on details of the orthotopic transplantation procedure itself. Other sections describe the steps involved in accepting transplant recipients and potential contraindications and how patients are prepared for the transplant. Criteria for donor acceptance are also described, as is the critical nature of the target time frame from donor heart availability to transplant, how a donor heart is checked for viability, considerations of posttransplant care including management of immunosuppressive agents, and monitoring for various types of potential rejection and how to treat them.
How an energy company takes a human rights approach

Two CPR Fall 2007 Meeting panelists re-team to expand their focus on corporate social responsibility and its relationship to conflict resolution. First, John Sherman, of Westborough, Mass., describes why his employer, energy provider National Grid, focuses substantial business efforts on giving communities a voice in its efforts. Caroline Rees, of Cambridge, Mass., examines the need for grievance mechanisms to address inevitable local conflicts. Both authors provide practical advice based on adaptable existing models.
Parasitism in a community context: trait‐mediated interactions with competition and predation

Predation and competition can induce important density- and trait-mediated effects on species, with implications for community stability. However, interactions of these factors with parasitism remain understudied. Here we investigate interactions among competition, predation and parasitism by crossing tadpole density (Bufo americanus), presence of a caged predator (Notophthalmus viridescens), and Echinostoma trivolvis trematodes, experimentally partitioning their effects on tadpole exposure and susceptibility to infection. Predation did not affect E. trivolvis infection but accelerated tadpole development and growth, and decreased activity. The presence of E. trivolvis caused the opposite effects on these three responses and reduced tadpole survival. High conspecific density reduced tadpole survival, growth, and development, and increased tadpole activity. Effects of predation and parasitism on activity were only evident at low tadpole density. High-density mesocosms also had twice the number of E. trivolvis infections as low-density mesocosms, despite a lack of evidence for stress-induced immunomodulation. Instead, this effect was explained by high density delaying tadpole development, which increased both the duration of exposure to cercariae and susceptibility to infection, because tadpoles spent more time in highly susceptible early stages. These results highlight the importance of accounting for trait-mediated effects, host plasticity, and exposure vs. susceptibility in parasite ecology.
New Asian Ephemerella with notes (Ephemeroptera: Ephemerellidae)

The currently recognized Ephemerella species are included in 13 subgenera. New subgenera are Cincticostella and Acerella. Ephemerella levanidovi Tshernova is transferred to Cincticostella n. subg., thus it contains six species, E. nigra Ueno n. comb., E. castanea n. sp., E. delicata n. sp., E. imanishii n. sp., E. insolta n. sp., and E. levanidovae Tshernova n. comb. The subgenus Acerella n. subg. includes four species, E. longicaudata Ueno n. comb., E. commodema n. sp., E. perculta n. sp., and E. undatella n. sp., Ephemerella yoshinoensis Gose is transferred to the subgenus Drunella and four undescribed and unnamed species, E. kohnoi n. sp., E. aculea n. sp., E. hifurcata n. sp., and E. borakensis n. sp., are placed in Drunella. Three undescribed species, E. denticula n. sp., E. keijoensis n. sp., and E. maxima n. sp., are included in the subgenus Ephemerella s. s.
D-fiber optical backplane interconnect

A bus based singlemode optical backplane interconnect using D-fibers provides a flexible and modular approach for high speed processing and switching systems for telecommunications applications. This paper describes the implementation of a bus based system in a rack format, using evanescent optical connector technology.© (1994) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Liquid-metal flow in an electrically insulated rectangular duct with a non-uniform magnetic field

Abstract This paper presents a model for the steady liquid-metal flow through a rectangular duct with electrically insulated walls and with an externally applied, spatially variable, transverse magnetic field. The magnetic field is strong enough that inertial effects can be neglected and that viscous effects are confined to boundary layers. The model involves a composite solution for the inviscid core region and the boundary layers adjacent to the two walls which are parallel to the magnetic field. In regions of a non-uniform magnetic field, the flow is concentrated near this pair of walls and there is a pressure drop associated with the circulations of electric currents in planes which are perpendicular to the magnetic field.
Statistical Calibration of ASTM C150 Bogue-Derived Phase Limits to Directly Determined Phases by Quantitative X-Ray Powder Diffraction

Statistical analyses of companion Bogue (ASTM C150-07) and quantitative X-ray powder diffraction (QXRD) estimates for cement phases are used to establish the most likely linear relationship between these two measurement techniques for alite, belite, aluminate, ferrite, and for the combinations (C3S+4.75⋅C3A) and (C4AF+2⋅C3A) used to characterize heat of hydration and sulfate resistance, respectively. This cross-calibration was performed using published data from more than 194 Portland cements, spanning more than 50 years of manufacture. Each resulting calibration is a linear relationship, reported with 99 % Working–Hotelling–Scheffe confidence limits from the least-squares regression. Fieller calibration intervals are used to report bounds for the QXRD values corresponding to the Bogue limits given in ASTM C150-07, Table 1. Such bounds could allow either technique to be used for phase estimation to assess the compliance of a Portland cement.
Comparison of H5 and H8 relaxation rates of a 2H/13C/15N labeled RNA oligonucleotide with selective protonation at C5 and C8

Abstract Uniformly 13C/15N enriched ribonucleotide monophosphates have been prepared with extensive deuterium enrichment of the non-exchangeable positions. The purine C8 and pyrimidine C5 base positions were selectively protonated prior to incorporation of the individual nucleotide triphosphates into an RNA oligonucleotide. The longitudinal and transverse relaxation rates of the H8 and H5 resonances of this deuterated molecule were compared with the relaxation rates of the corresponding protonated, 13C/15N enriched RNA molecule. Deuteration disrupts the efficiency of 1H–1H dipolar relaxation and reduces the longitudinal and transverse magnetization relaxation rates on average to 25% and 68%, respectively, of the values measured for the non-deuterated RNA molecule. Importantly, the longitudinal relaxation rates remain sufficiently rapid (>1s−1) to permit the use of short recovery delays in multidimensional NMR experiments without significant loss of sensitivity.
Application of IMC-Smith Controller in the Large-Delay Network Congestion Control

At present, the transmission delay of network brings disadvantages to network congestion control, and the existent algorithms depend on exactitude model excessively. Therefore, a new delay expiation controller is proposed. The controller is used in the active queue management (AQM) algorithm. The new controller combines inner mode controller (IMC) and Smith estimate controller of control theory to AQM algorithm. The new algorithm can compensate time delay beforehand, so it could control the network congestion in time. The stability and robustness of network system can be ensured by the new algorithm under the condition of the parameter changing in a wide range. The simulation results of the algorithm under different conditions show the superiority of the IMC-Smith AQM algorithm.
Identification, Purification, and Characterization of Iminodiacetate Oxidase from the EDTA-Degrading Bacterium BNC1

Microbial degradation of synthetic chelating agents, such as EDTA and nitrilotriacetate (NTA), may help immobilizing radionuclides and heavy metals in the environment. The EDTA- and NTA-degrading bacterium BNC1 uses EDTA monooxygenase to oxidize NTA to iminodiacetate (IDA) and EDTA to ethylenediaminediacetate (EDDA). IDA- and EDDA-degrading enzymes have not been purified and characterized to date. In this report, an IDA oxidase was purified to apparent homogeneity from strain BNC1 by using a combination of eight purification steps. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis revealed a single protein band of 40 kDa, and by using size exclusion chromatography, we estimated the native enzyme to be a homodimer. Flavin adenine dinucleotide was determined as its prosthetic group. The purified enzyme oxidized IDA to glycine and glyoxylate with the consumption of O2. The temperature and pH optima for IDA oxidation were 35°C and 8, respectively. The apparent Km for IDA was 4.0 mM with a kcat of 5.3 s−1. When the N-terminal amino acid sequence was determined, it matched exactly with that encoded by a previously sequenced hypothetical oxidase gene of BNC1. The gene was expressed in Escherichia coli, and the gene product as a C-terminal fusion with a His tag was purified by a one-step nickel affinity chromatography. The purified fusion protein had essentially the same enzymatic activity and properties as the native IDA oxidase. IDA oxidase also oxidized EDDA to ethylenediamine and glyoxylate. Thus, IDA oxidase is likely the second enzyme in both NTA and EDTA degradation pathways in strain BNC1.