cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A cobalt surface pretreatment for NiCr-type alloys to attain pore-free aluminized coatings

Abstract A process has been developed for forming dense, adherent aluminized layers on Ni-Cr-type alloys. This process development was based on a previous discovery that cobalt additions of 2–20% significantly affect the morphology of aluminized coatings. To enrich the surface region of the Ni-Cr in cobalt, a layer of cobalt about (2–8) × 10 -3 mm thick is applied by physical vapor deposition, sputtering or any other suitable process. The cobalt-coated substrate is heat treated using time-temperature conditions sufficient to cause the cobalt atoms to diffuse into the substrate to the required depth prior to the second step of aluminization. The desired cobalt concentration is greater than 2 wt.% in the substrate surface. Aluminization of the substrate after surface treatment with cobalt is achieved using conventional pack cementation or any other suitable process. It is shown that the oxidation resistance of Ni-20Cr is improved when this alloy is coated with a layer of cobalt of thickness 2.5 × 10 -3 mm, then heat treated for 5 h at 1160°C and finally pack aluminized. It is also shown that a duplex-aluminized physically vapor-deposited (PVD) NiCoCr coating has a significantly different morphology from a similarly aluminized PVD Ni-Cr coating.
Concentration and Dispersion in Global Industries: Remote Electronic Access and the Location of Economic Activities

We explore how the possibility of remote electronic access to markets, resources and knowledge, enabled by the new information and communication technologies (ICTs), might change the motivations of firms to locate activities internationally, and in turn affect worldwide dispersion and concentration in an industry. Preliminary results from an exploratory analysis of the spatial distribution of firms in financial services suggest that the introduction of a business-to-business (B2B) trading network increases the global market participation of firms from peripheral countries, but does not appear to reduce the importance of locational clusters. A set of propositions is derived that provide guidance for more detailed research on the impact of ICTs on the strategy and structure of global industries.
The equivalence of decimation in time and decimation in frequency in FFT computations

Abstract A data and error complexity analysis of two algorithms for fast Fourier transforms is presented. The results show that the algorithm using decimation in time is “equivalent” to the one using decimation in frequency. This is also supported by the numerical experiments described.
Current and Future Post-Processing and Reconstruction Methods for Improved Image Quality in Coronary Computed Tomographic Angiography

While coronary computed tomographic angiography (CCTA) has high diagnostic performance to identify and exclude obstructive coronary artery disease, it is susceptible to false-positive results and non-interpretable studies, and requires the use of ionizing radiation. New methods of image reconstruction and post-processing have the potential to significantly improve image quality, reduce the number of non-interpretable studies, and improve the diagnostic accuracy of CCTA. In this manuscript, we will review current and novel technologies for image reconstruction and post-processing that may improve the image quality of CCTA.
Genome independent specificity of DNA-directed f Met-dipeptide synthesis

Under conditions which are optimal for RNA-directed polypeptide chain initiation in vitro, ribosomes bind to single-stranded DNA and synthesize fMet-dipeptides. The products directed by natural single-stranded or denatured double-stranded DNA from eight different organisms are strikingly similar: predominantly fMet-Thr, fMet-Val and fMet-LeuIle. For four of these templates, there exists evidence that these dipeptides are not representative of those synthesized from the corresponding messenger RNAs. The observations are discussed in the light of results which indicate that DNA can serve accurately as a substitute message for binding of ribosomes and synthesis of polypeptides in. vitro.
Tetanus of oral origin.

Abstract The bacteriology and symptomatology of tetanus are briefly discussed and previously reported cases originating from the oral cavity are reviewed. An additional case of tetanus with a carious tooth as the portal of entry for the organisms is reported. This disease may concern the dentist since it must be differentiated from other conditions causing spasm of the jaw muscles.
Les graphes INTEX

intex basic tools are Finite State Transducers that are represented by graphs. We show how these graphs are used to describe various linguistic phenomena. Graphs that represent elementary phenomena are re-used in other, more complex, graphs. Thus, linguists can actually build massive libraries of graphs that handle a variety of phenomena, from the vocabulary and the morphology to the syntax of natural languages. intex provides linguists with tools to easily edit, maintain, debug and validate any piece of the description by applying graphs, or sets of graphs, to large texts.
Production of lactic acid from wastepaper as a cellulosic feedstock

Lactic acid promises to be an important commodity chemical in the future as a monomer for the production of biodegradable polylactic acid (PLA). As the demand for lactic acid increases, the need to explore alternative feedstock sources and process options that are inexpensive and efficient is bound to gain importance. This paper reports the results of a study of the production of lactic acid from wastepaper as a representative cellulosic feedstock, using a batch, bench-scale simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) process. The effect on process performance of operating parameters such as pH, temperature, enzyme loading, solids concentration, and enzyme preparation has been examined. A lactic acid product yield of 84% of theoretical was achieved at a solids loading of 5%, using 25 filter paper units (FPU) of cellulase per gram of cellulose, at 45°C and pH 5.0. The pH and temperature of operation have been selected to achieve good performance of both the cellulase and the microoganism in the SSF process. Our studies show that a feedstock such as wastepaper offers considerable promise and opportunity in the future for development of a biomass-based process for lactic acid production.
Determination of pKa values of the histidine side chains of phosphatidylinositol‐specific phospholipase C from Bacillus cereus by NMR spectroscopy and site‐directed mutagenesis

Two active site histidine residues have been implicated in the catalysis of phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C (PI-PLC). In this report, we present the first study of the pKa values of histidines of a PI-PLC. All six histidines of Bacillus cereus PI-PLC were studied by 2D NMR spectroscopy and site-directed mutagenesis. The protein was selectively labeled with 13C epsilon 1-histidine. A series of 1H-13C HSQC NMR spectra were acquired over a pH range of 4.0-9.0. Five of the six histidines have been individually substituted with alanine to aid the resonance assignments in the NMR spectra. Overall, the remaining histidines in the mutants show little chemical shift changes in the 1H-13C HSQC spectra, indicating that the alanine substitution has no effect on the tertiary structure of the protein. H32A and H82A mutants are inactive enzymes, while H92A and H61A are fully active, and H81A retains about 15% of the wild-type activity. The active site histidines, His32 and His82, display pKa values of 7.6 and 6.9, respectively. His92 and His227 exhibit pKa values of 5.4 and 6.9. His61 and His81 do not titrate over the pH range studied. These values are consistent with the crystal structure data, which shows that His92 and His227 are on the surface of the protein, whereas His61 and His81 are buried. The pKa value of 6.9 corroborates the hypothesis of His82 acting as a general acid in the catalysis. His32 is essential to enzyme activity, but its putative role as the general base is in question due to its relatively high pKa.
Computer-based basic skills instruction in a CETA funded project: A case study

This study investigated the question, Can computer-based education be used to develop literacy and mathematics skills in young adults so that they can pursue job and career opportunities that are not subsidized by agencies and the public and private sector? It also examined issues related to the motivation of students whose training was subsidized by CETA funding and that of learners who sought training voluntarily. In general, the study did not yield the results the program administrators expected. The computer-based instruction seemed to have little effect on program participants. Discussion probes at issues related to similar failures in CETA-funded projects and makes specific recommendations about the conditions of learning that must be present and the types of incentives necessary for the successful implementation of job skills training.
Assessment of ISCCP cloudiness over the Tibetan Plateau using CloudSat-CALIPSO

[1] Cloudiness over the Tibetan Plateau is difficult to estimate because ground-based measurements are sparse. Satellite observations are thus the best tool and one of the longest climatologies available, the International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project (ISCCP), relies on passive remote sensing to characterize cloud cover and altitude. Active remote sensing from space is used to assess the accuracy of the ISCCP observations over the Tibetan Plateau. August 2006 is chosen to conduct the assessment and compared to February 2007. Cloud cover from ISCCP is underestimated by about 18%, in part because of misdetection of low-level clouds at night. ISCCP cloud top pressures are overestimated by about 150–200 mb in August and 60–130 mb in February. However, the most accurate ISCCP cloud top pressures, with a maximum bias of about 50 mb, are obtained when there are thick single-layer clouds. Within the region, there is no evidence that the differences are directly dependent on elevation. Problems identified in other regions, such as multilayer clouds and optically thin clouds, explain most of the discrepancies in our study region. These results indicate that ISCCP cloud retrievals can be used to compile a realistic climatology at the highest altitudes where single-layer clouds dominate and that the retrievals are most accurate in winter.
Fatty acid distribution and its effect on oxygen permeability in laminated edible films

Lipid contents, distributed fatty acid concentrations and oxygen permeability of laminated methylcellulose/corn zein-fatty acid films and methylcellulose films separated from the laminate were investigated. Total lipid contents ranged from 0.056 to 0.157 g/cm 3 for the laminated edible film structure, and distributed fatty acid contents ranged from 0.062 to 0.220 g/cm 3 in the methylcellulose layer. Fatty acid distribution increased with chain length and fatty acid concentration. Oxygen permeabilities of both laminated methylcellulose/corn zein-fatty acid films and methylcellulose films separated from the laminate increased as chain length of fatty acid decreased and concentration of fatty acid increased. Scanning electron microscopy and Soxhlet extraction appeared to show distribution of fatty acids from the corn zein layer into and through the methylcellulose layer.
HLA-B8 and clinical features of Sjogren's syndrome.

Abstract The incidence of HLA-B8 in 46 patients with Sjogren's syndrome was found to be 45.7%, a significant increase over the normal incidence of 22% in 485 Caucasian controls. If the associated rheumatic disease was polymyositis, however, the incidence of HLA-B8 was 71%; similarly, if the associated rheumatic disease was scleroderma, the incidence of HLA-B8 was 56%. HLA-B8 was not significantly elevated in patients with associated rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, or necrotizing vasculitis. These data suggest that the association of HLA-B8 with Sjogren's syndrome may reflect increased incidences of this antigen in individuals with certain associated rheumatic diseases rather than an increased incidence in Sjogren's syndrome per se; this may have further relevance to the cellular nature of the autoimmune process in polymyositis and scleroderma.
CARDIAC CONTROL DURING DUAL-TASK PERFORMANCE OF VISUAL OR AUDITORY MONITORING WITH VISUAL-MANUAL TRACKING

Thirty university students (15 females) performed tasks from the NASA Multi-attribute Task Battery, which was used to manipulate the attentional processing resource demands of the tasks. Separate groups performed visual or auditory monitoring tasks singly and in combination with visual-manual tracking while heart period, respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), and pre-ejection period (PEP) were recorded to determine the modes of cardiac control during task performance. The tracking single-task suppressed RSA and was interpreted as eliciting an uncoupled parasympathetic inhibition mode of cardiac control because of its demand upon perceptual and manual processing resources. The monitoring task both suppressed RSA and shortened PEP and was interpreted as eliciting a reciprocally-coupled sympathetic activation and parasympathetic inhibition mode of cardiac control because of its demand for perceptual/central processing resources. Dividing attention elicited uncoupled parasympathetic inhibition that was greater for the visual monitoring and tracking dual-task than for the auditory monitoring and tracking dual-task, which we interpreted as indicating a greater sharing of perceptual/spatial and manual processing resources for these tasks. Practice lengthened PEP in the dual-tasks and was interpreted as eliciting uncoupled sympathetic inhibition that was indicative of improved central processing resource efficiency. The results are evaluated in terms of how knowledge of cardiac control modes may be used to assess mental workload in applications such as adaptive automation.
The Academic Life: Realistic Changes Needed for Business School Students and Faculty

Business schools have paid a lot of attention to restructuring and invigorating their MBA and executive offerings but little attention to their PhD programs. With increasing demand for qualified pr...
Chromatic dispersion in nonlinear optical waveguides

Compound chromatic dispersion has been calculated for waveguides with nonlinear substrate made of heavy metal oxide and fluoride glasses. Negative dispersion was found in a single-mode regime for those guides. Crossover value of wavelength is waveguide power-dependent. Such a behavior offers a very attractive pulse compression scheme in the potentially important 3 μm wavelength range.
Purification of the coat and scaffolding proteins from procapsids of bacteriophage P22.

Abstract The procapsid intermediate in phage P22 morphogenesis is a double shell structure with the gene 5 coat protein on the outside and the gene 8 scaffolding protein on the inside. Scaffolding subunits were released from within purified procapsids by treatment with 0.5 M guanidine hydrochloride, and separated from the remaining empty coat protein shells by gel filtration. The scaffolding subunits probably exit through the coat protein lattice. Scaffolding protein which had not interacted with coat protein was also purified without guanidine hydrochloride from extracts of 5−-infected cells lacking the coat protein. This isolated protein was in the form of soluble subunits, rather than organized shells, and behaved similarly to the subunits obtained by dissociation of procapsids. Electron micrographs of uranyl acetate stained scaffolding protein displayed pentameric aggregates. Empty procapsid shells were dissociated into coat subunits with 3 M guanidine hydrochloride, and the subunits further purified by gel filtration. Both coat and scaffolding subunits isolated from procapsids remained soluble under conditions in which the procapsids themselves were stable. Preliminary amino acid composition analysis revealed no distinctly basic or acidic composition of either protein. These coat and scaffolding subunits may represent the precursor conformations of these proteins.
Interactive Introductory Nutrition Course Focusing on Disease Prevention Increased Whole-Grain Consumption by College Students

Abstract Objective To estimate current consumption of whole grains in college students and determine whether there would be an increase in whole-grain consumption after the students completed an interactive introductory nutrition course focusing on disease prevention. Methods Eighty college students, 18–24 years old, participated in the study. Grain and whole-grain consumption, whole-grain food sources, and energy intake were measured before and after the nutrition course. Repeated-measures analysis of variance was performed. Results After the study, whole-grain intake significantly increased from 0.37 ounces (oz) to 1.16 oz ( P Conclusions and Implications A general nutrition course can be used as an avenue to increase whole-grain intake by college students.
Rib lesions in chronic pulmonary tuberculosis

The diagnosis of skeletal tuberculosis in human remains has traditionally been based upon the detection of secondary skeletal lesions which result from hemotogenous dissemination of tubercle bacilli (e.g., Pott's disease). Since such lesions develop in less than 7% of cases of human tuberculosis, the paleodemography and paleoepidemiology of this disease have been difficult to assess from skeletal remains. This study presents a new diagnostic approach to tuberculosis, focusing on the skeletal manifestations of chronic pulmonary disease (which comprises approximately 90% of human-form tuberculosis). Four hundred forty-five skeletal remains from persons dying of tuberculosis during the first half of the 20th century were examined. A total of 70/445 (16%) exhibited skeletal lesions in one or more locations as a response to infection. Of these 70, 39 (56%) were found to display a specific set of lesions restricted to the internal aspect of the ribs. These lesions take one of two forms: (1) diffuse periostitis or (2) localized abscess, and appear to correspond to areas of chronic pulmonary infection. The diffuse type of rib lesion is more commonly observed than the localized type. In our observations (and according to the natural history of tuberculosis) the occurrence of chronic pulmonary tuberculosis is usually mutually exclusive with hematogenous dissemination to secondary bone locations. Thus, the detection of rib lesions in cases of chronic pulmonary disease increases the absolute sample size of skeletal tuberculosis by a factor of two in this study.
Colombian Liberalism and the Roman Catholic Church, 1863–1886

During the nineteenth century the question of the proper rela tionship between the Roman Catholic church and the Colombian state was the source of much bitter political controversy and con tributed significantly to at least two of the civil wars of the period. Despite the importance of this subject, it has attracted little attention from historians, whether Colombian or foreign; as a result, many aspects of the issue are imperfectly understood. Of no phase of the church-state struggle is this more true than the two decades of Liberal party rule from 1863 to 1886.1 Although the "religious issue" was in the forefront of public affairs during much of this period, there is no satisfactory treatment of the legislation governing church-state relations at the time, nor of the positions held by the leaders of Colombia's two political parties, the Liberal and the Conservative. Divisions over ecclesiastical policy within the two parties and within the hierarchy itself have not been adequately analyzed. Finally, there has been insufficient consideration of the extent to which the leaders of both parties exploited the religious issue for political reasons.
Gamma rays emitted in the decay of 238Np

Abstract A stock solution of 238 Np was produced by the 237 Np(n,γ) reaction and was purified by solvent extraction. Three small portions were used to measure absolute activity by liquid scintillation counting, and two large portions were used to obtain γ-ray spectra with Ge detectors. Intensities for strong γ rays (e.g., 25.17±0.13% for 984.17 keV) agree within ∼1% with current evaluations, but several transitions previously assigned to and from the 968-keV level in 238 Pu are unlikely to be present. The β counting yielded a half-life of 2.1024±0.0005 days for 238 Np.
A Hole in the Heart

A 65-year-old man with stage IV adenocarcinoma of the lung first presented with a left pleural mass and malignant pleural effusion in December 2008. He underwent chest tube drainage and received carboplatin and pemetrexed with partial response, but in June 2009, he developed escalating shortness of breath, lower extremity edema, and left side chest pain for 1 week. Physical examination suggested decompensated heart failure. Computed tomography imaging of the chest revealed progression of disease including new pericardial and myocardial metastases invading the left atrium (Figure 1) and right ventricle (Figure 2). A moderate, loculated pleural effusion was present. The patient was admitted to the hospital for diuresis and chemoradiotherapy but experienced cardiac arrest and died on the third hospital day. No autopsy was performed. One large autopsy series reported a 21% prevalence of cardiac metastases on postmortem examination of 460 patients with adenocarcinoma of the lung.1 However, symptomatic disease detected antemortem is quite rare, with only case reports described in the literature.2–5 There are no defined treatment standards for the treatment of this grave situation. One report describes ventriculectomy of an intracavitary pedunculated mass resulting in 7-month survival.2 However, another report describes a patient similar to our patient, with a large right ventricular mass, who also died of hemodynamic compromise shortly after hospital admission.3
Tensor and torsion products of injective modules

Yoneda raised the question of whether the tensor product of injective modules is injective. Ishikawa showed that for a commutative noetherian ring R this is the case if the injective envelope E(R) of R is flat. The latter condition is equivalent to R being generically Gorenstein (i.e., R>p Gorenstein for every minimal prime ideal p). We use a version of this characterization to prove the converse of Ishikawa's result and raise the question of the injectivity of the higher torsion products of injective modules We show that for a commutative noetherian ring R these products are injective if and only if R is Gorenstein. More precisely, we prove that for a Gorenstein ring R and a prime ideal p ⊂ R, Tor, (E(R,p is 0 unless i = ht p and in this case is isomorphic to E(R/p).
Nodal metastases of nasopharyngeal carcinoma: patterns of disease on MRI and FDG PET

The patterns of nodal spread of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) have an important influence on treatment planning, but have not yet been fully addressed. We prospectively used MRI and FDG PET to document the patterns of nodal spread in NPC. One hundred and one patients with newly diagnosed NPC were studied with MRI and FDG PET. On MRI, nodes were considered as metastatic according to criteria regarding size, the presence of nodal necrosis, and extracapsular spread. FDG PET images were interpreted visually, and nodes were considered metastatic if they showed prominent FDG uptake against the background. Nodal metastases were found in 89 of our 101 patients. Analysis of the distributions of nodal metastases in these 89 patients showed that retropharyngeal nodes were less frequently involved than cervical nodes (82.0% vs 95.5%). The vast majority of cervical nodal metastases were to the internal jugular chain, including nodes at levels II, III, and IV, with decreasing incidences of 95.5%, 60.7%, and 34.8%, respectively. Level V nodal involvement was found in 27% of patients. Supraclavicular fossa nodal metastases were not uncommon and occurred in 22.5% of patients. Skip metastases in the lower-level nodes or supraclavicular fossa nodes occurred in 7.9% of patients. Mediastinal and abdominal metastatic adenopathy was present in 4.5% and 3.4% of patients, respectively, and was associated with advanced nodal metastasis in the supraclavicular fossa. Level VI (2.2%), level VII (1.1%), submandibular (2.2%), and parotid (3.4%) nodal metastases were uncommon and were always associated with advanced ipsilateral nodal metastases of the neck. We conclude that the combined use of FDG PET and MRI can comprehensively depict the pattern of nodal metastasis in NPC patients. Nodal metastases principally affected level II nodes, from which lymphatic spread extended down in an orderly manner to involve level III, level IV, and the supraclavicular fossa nodes, or extended posteriorly to involve level V nodes. The frequency of skip metastases was 7.9%. Distant spread to mediastinal or abdominal nodes was found in 3–5% of patients, usually in association with supraclavicular nodal metastases.
An Analysis of Perceptual and Related Processes Occurring in Projective Testing

(1953). An Analysis of Perceptual and Related Processes Occurring in Projective Testing. The Journal of General Psychology: Vol. 49, No. 1, pp. 65-85.
SU‐GG‐T‐584: A Simple Mini‐Total Body Irradiation Technique for Small Linac Room

Purpose: A single fraction of 2 Gy total body irradiation (mini‐TBI) has been used for immunosupression therapy for stem cells transplantation. Because of the low dose, blocks are not required. For patients in excessively ill heath, it can be very difficult to hold a standing or seated position for the length of time required to deliver a full mini‐TBI treatment. Small linac rooms can make it impossible for a patient to be treated lying down in the traditional manner both because of space and field size limitations. We have developed a simple technique to deliver a mini‐TBI treatment to a patient lying down in a room with minimal space. Method and Materials: Linac was setup with gantry and collimator rotated to 45 degree projecting a 210 cm long light field on the floor. Patients up to 190 cm height can be setup on the floor and treated with SAO, SPO, IPO, and IAO fields each giving 1/4 of the dose. The patient was repositioned exchanging first supine/prone and then head/feet to complete treatment.Dosimetry was evaluated with the Eclipse treatment planning system and verified with ion‐chamber measurement in acrylic phantom. Effects of energy and beam spoiler were also investigated. Results: Treatment setup was simple and showed a homogeneous dose distribution. The mid‐plane doses at 70 and 90 cm away the center were 110% and 116%f the prescription, respectively. The high dose area can easily be reduced by using 1–3 mm thick lead sheets mounted on a blocking tray as a partial transmission filter. Dose at 3 mm from surface was 99% of the prescription treated with 6 MVwithout spoiler. Conclusion: A single dose of TBI can be safely delivered with the method described in this study. Patient's comfort, setup complexity and treatment time were significantly improved using this method.
Swelling-controlled, constant rate delivery systems

Materials and conditions required for constant rate absorption of a liquid into a glassy polymer (Case II transport) have been exploited to produce prototype devices for constant rate delivery of a solute, molecularly dispersed within the polymer, to the surrounding liquid environment. Absorption of n-hexane in polystyrene films, containing between one and two percent of Sudan Red IV dye, resulted in constant rate liberation of the colored solute to the surrounding fluid. The rate of dye release was controlled by the constant rate absorption of n-hexane in these dye-containing films. Companion experiments involving microtome sectioning and photomicrographic recording of dye-loaded films, consequent to immersion in n-hexane for various time intervals, revealed that the unpenetrated central core retained the dye originally dispersed within the film sample and, conversely, the swollen outer regions were completely denuded of dye consequent to n-hexane penetration. The constant rate advance of the microscopically observable sharp boundary, between dye-containing and dye-denuded polymer, was quantitatively consistent with the independently determined kinetics of dye accumulation in the supernatant n-hexane. These results indicate that diffusion of invading n-hexane to the relaxing boundary and back diffusion of dye in the previously swollen outer shell are both rapid compared with the rate-determining Case II transport of n-hexane in these dye-containing films. The delivery of Sudan Red IV to the n-hexane was not confounded by an initial burst of solute, typically common to so-called membrane-reservoir controlled delivery devices. Swelling-induced delivery from glassy matrices appears useful, therefore, for the design of monolithic devices for constant rate delivery over the entire course of the delivery cycle. The concept is not limited to monolithic devices; membrane-reservoir devices could be constructed involving a glassy, solute-containing reservoir which could be activated by penetration of invading liquid consequent to placement in a suitable fluid environment. Development of devices, suitable for swelling-controlled release of drugs to target organs, will be based upon glassy, hydrophilic polymeric hosts.
Mechanism of action of the phorbol ester tumor promoters: Specific receptors for lipophilic ligands

Cells and tissue preparations specifically bind the phorbol ester tumor promoters. The agreement in structure-activity relationships between binding and biological response strongly argues that these binding sites function as phorbol ester receptors. Upon subcellular fractionation, the phorbol ester binding activity is particulate. In addition, a phorbol ester apo-receptor can be detected in cytosol which requires phospholipids for reconstitution. This apo-receptor appears to correspond to protein kinase C. Diacylglycerols, the probable natural activators of protein kinase C, competitively inhibit phorbol ester binding, consistent with their being the postulated endogenous phorbol ester analogs. In certain systems, heterogeneity of phorbol ester binding is found. An outstanding issue therefore is whether protein kinase C is the phorbol ester receptor or whether it is only the most abundant class of receptor. Although this question remains unresolved, we can demonstrate heterogeneity of phorbol ester binding by reconstitution of apo-receptor into a heterogeneous lipid environment.
The automatic calibration system of humidity fixed points at CMS

Abstract The automatic hygrostat is designed to calibrate hygrometers by employing several humidity fixed points under thermostat conditions. The set incorporates a blowing fan, a box-like measuring vessel, a control system, and an assembly of five acrylic resin trays which contain stainless steel covers, labyrinth baffle-boards at the bottom and are all set in a reciprocating motion. The trays are successively turned on or off by operating solenoid valves to give a closed circulation with the measuring vessel, establishing the humidity at a specific value selected by the user. The desired relative humidities are attained by adding lithium chloride, potassium carbonate, sodium chloride, potassium chloride, and potassium sulfate to pure water inside the five trays and can generate levels of approximately 12, 43, 75, 86, and 97% RH respectively, which have a maximum difference value, compared to reference values of ±1% RH in the range around room temperature. After switching to another tray for the control setting, the time required to reach a new equilibrium should be no longer than about 20 minutes.
Performance measurement criteria in health care organizations: Review and future research directions

Abstract As pressures from government, insurance companies, communities, and individual consumers to lower the cost and improve health care quality increase, various health care performance measures have emerged as critical elements for cost containment. Previous research has not addressed the issue of standard performance measures for the health care industry. This paper has attempted to review the current literature and suggest future directions for both practitioners and researchers.
Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever in southeastern Europe

Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) is an acute, tick-borne viral disease, affecting only humans and newborn mice, with hemorrhagic manifestations and considerable mortality in humans. CCHF virus circulates in nature in an enzootic tick-vertebrate-tick cycle; migrating birds and livestock transferred from endemic to non-endemic areas may carry large numbers of infected ticks thus spreading the CCHF virus into novel areas. From 2000 through 2008, the infection emerged or re-emerged in Bulgaria, Albania, Kosovo, and Turkey. It has also recently emerged in Greece, where the first human case has been recognized. This has been attributed to mild winters and to the disruption of agricultural activities, both accounting for an increased tick population, as well as to the migration or transportation of tick-infested birds or animals. CCHF cases occurring as an expected event in endemic areas should be notified to clinicians in the international neighborhood. They should be aware of the probability of importation of CCHF cases from endemic areas, of human-to-human transmission, particularly in the nosocomial setting, and of the potential transmission of the virus via tick-infested and infected imported livestock. This novel European CCHF geographic distribution is a challenge for the scientific community of medical microbiologists, epidemiologists, medical entomologists, and veterinarians that could be followed by acceleration of a European Standardized Response at the national, regional, and international level.
Visible-light-induced photocatalytic inactivation of bacteria by composite photocatalysts of palladium oxide and nitrogen-doped titanium oxide

Composite photocatalysts of palladium oxide and nitrogen-doped titanium oxide (PdO/TiON) were synthesized by a solgel process, as convenient forms of nanopowder or immobilized powder on nanofiber. The PdO/TiON catalysts were tested for visible-light-activated photocatalysis using different bacterial indicators, including gram-negative cells of Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and gram-positive cells of Staphylococcus aureus. Disinfection data indicated that PdO/TiON composite photocatalysts have a much better photocatalytic activity than either palladium-doped (PdO/TiO2) or nitrogen-doped titanium oxide (TiON) under visible-light illumination. The roles of Pd and N were discussed in terms of the production and separation of the charge carriers under visible light illumination. The photocatalytic activity was thus dependent on dopants and light intensity. Microscopic characterization demonstrated that visible-light photocatalysis on PdO/TiON caused drastic damage on the bacteria cell wall and the cell membrane.
Photoemission studies of H2O adsorption on pure and Cr-doped V2O3

Abstract Vanadium oxides having initial surface compositions of VO 2 and V 2 O 5 are used extensively as industrial catalysts and catalyst supports. However, the V cations generally become further reduced under reaction conditions, with V 3+ a common species. We have used single-crystal V 2 O 3 to study the chemisorption of H 2 O on V 3+ cations; both pure and 1.5% Cr-doped V 2 O 3 (0 0 0 1) were studied, the latter of which undergoes a bulk metal–insulator transition near room temperature. Clean, stoichiometric (0 0 0 1) surfaces were prepared by annealing; the work function of Cr-doped V 2 O 3 (0 0 0 1) was found to be 0.7 eV lower than that of pure V 2 O 3 (0 0 0 1). UPS and XPS were employed to examine the interaction with H 2 O at temperatures ⩾180 K. Molecular H 2 O adsorption is observed at 180 K on pure and Cr-doped substrates (which are both metallic at this temperature), and adsorption quickly saturates at about monolayer coverage. There was no evidence of multilayer water adsorption at 180 K, and the molecular species desorb above 220 K. In contrast, large H 2 O exposures (⩾10 3 L) at 180 K result in UPS features indicative of adsorbed hydroxide, accompanied by a further decrease in the work function of 0.6 eV. H 2 O exposure at 273 K – where pure V 2 O 3 is metallic, while the Cr-doped material is insulating – results only in dissociative adsorption on both substrates, with a sticking coefficient ⩽10 −3 . The mode of H 2 O adsorption on Cr-doped V 2 O 3 is similar to that on pure V 2 O 3 at both 180 and 273 K; however, less H 2 O adsorbs on Cr-doped V 2 O 3 at both temperatures.
Excitonic pairing between nodal fermions

We study excitonic pairing in nodal fermion systems characterized by a vanishing quasiparticle density of states at the pointlike Fermi surface and a concomitant lack of screening for long-range interactions. By solving the gap equation for the excitonic order parameter, we obtain a critical value of the interaction strength for a variety of power-law interactions and densities of states. We compute the free energy and analyze possible phase transitions, thus shedding further light on the unusual pairing properties of this peculiar class of strongly correlated systems.
Use of mucosal immunization with porcine zona pellucida (PZP) in mice and rabbits.

Abstract Rabbits ( Oryctolagus cuniculus ) and two strains of mice ( Mus musculus , one inbred and one outbred) were immunized against porcine zona pellucida (PZP) antigen. Alginate microspheres or cholera toxin B were used alone or in combination when mucosal immunization routes were used. Serum antibody responses and fertility were assessed. Neither rabbit or mouse groups immunized by mucosal routes generated significant antibody responses to PZP as compared to parenteral immunization (ANOVA, P > 0.05). The study shows that porcine zona pellucida is not an effective mucosal antigen in small mammals.
Composition Requirements for Glass Formation in Metallic and Ionic Systems

WE have developed in recent papers the point of view that all liquids, ionic and metallic included, would form glasses when sufficiently undercooled, save for the intervention of crystallization1–3. We have shown2 that the glass-forming tendency (for a given rate of cooling and for substances of a given molecular type) is greater the lower is the reduced melting temperature : where T m is the thermodynamic crystallization temperature, and h v is the molecular heat of vaporization. This criterion is in semi-quantitative accord with experience on glass formation. In particular it encompasses Zachariasen's4 criterion, and accounts for the enhancement of glass-forming tendency by molecular asymmetrization, both being simply equivalent to the depression of τm. It is also clear, as we pointed out, that the addition of impurities which depress τm similarly enhances the glass-forming tendency. In this communication we point out striking new experimental confirmation of this last deduction.
Orientation‐selective 14N electron spin echo envelope modulation (ESEEM): The determination of 14N quadrupole coupling tensor principal axis orientations in orientationally disordered solids

We present an orientation‐selective ESEEM (electron spin echo envelope modulation) technique. From a measurement of the variation of the amplitudes of modulation components at 14N pure quadrupole frequencies as a function of irradiation position within an EPR (electron paramagnetic resonance) powder pattern, we determine the orientation of the principal axes of the quadrupole coupling tensor relative to the principal axes of the tensor which governs the dispersion of the EPR spectrum in an orientationally disordered sample. The pure quadrupole frequencies appear when the EPR frequency is selected such that the nuclear Zeeman and the hyperfine interaction are approximately equal in magnitude. We have applied the method to a mercaptoethanol complex of myoglobin in which the pure quadrupole frequencies originate from 14N in the proximal imidazole ring. Our results enable us to validate the assignment of the quadrupole modulations to the metal‐coordinated nitrogen of the imidazole ring, to correlate the princ...
A New Species of Vexillata (Nemata: Ornithostrongylidae) from the Coarse-Haired Pocket Mouse Chaetodipus hispidus in New Mexico

Individuals of a new species of trichostrongyloid nematode of the genus Vexillata were collected from the intestines of the coarse-haired pocket mouse Chaetodipus hispidus from eastern New Mexico. This new species possesses general features of the genus Vexillata but may be recognized as distinct from all other species by unique features of the dorsal ray of the caudal bursa and the synlophe.
Selective interference alignment for MIMO femtocell networks

An interference limited multitier multiuser MIMO cellular uplink is considered. Specifically, an interference management scheme is proposed where interference from subsets of macrocell users is aligned at the femtocell base stations in order to ensure acceptable service for the femtocell users. The scheme employs interference alignment (IA) at each femtocell base station (FBS), to the set of macrocell users (MU) that are causing the high interference specifically at that FBS, and hence is termed selective IA. The proposed IA algorithm determines the interference subspaces at each FBS and precoders for each MU in a distributed fashion. Numerical results demonstrate the performance advantage of selective IA.
Absolute versus intensity-based emission caps

AbstractCap-and-trade systems limit emissions to some pre-specified absolute quantity. Intensity-based limits, that restrict emissions to some pre-specified rate relative to input or output, are much more widely used in environmental regulation and have gained attention recently within the context of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions trading. In this paper we provide a non-technical introduction to the differences between these two forms of emission limits. Our aim is not to advocate either form, but to elucidate the properties of each in a world where future emissions and GDP are not known with certainty. We argue that the two forms have identical effects in a world where future emissions and economic output (i.e. GDP) are known with certainty, and show that outcomes for marginal costs, abatement, emissions and welfare diverge only because of the variance of actual future GDP relative to its forecast expectation.© 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
The Great Awakening as Artifact: George Whitefield and the Construction of Intercolonial Revival, 1739-1745

Throughout the 1720s and 1730s evangelical preachers sparked revivals from New England to New Jersey. In his long pastorate at Northampton, Massachusetts, Solomon Stoddard reported five “harvests” of souls in the Connecticut Valley. His grandson Jonathan Edwards succeeded him and led a spiritual awakening in 1734 and 1735 resulting in the “Conversion of Many Hundred Souls in Northampton and Neighboring Towns and Villages.” In the late 1720s the pietist minister Jacob Frelinghuysen inspired a renewal of piety among the Dutch Reformed in New York. At the same time the Presbyterian evangelists William and Gilbert Tennent reported revivals in the churches they had established between New Brunswick, New Jersey and Staten Island, New York.1 While sharing a common message, these evangelical revivals remained local, private affairs, contained within specific geographic and denominational boundaries. Although each proclaimed the necessity of a spiritual new birth and the primacy of divine grace in salvation, theawakenings did not expand into a larger, united movement.
Anisotropic Orientational Motion of Molecular Adsorbates at the Air−Water Interface

The ultrafast orientational motions of coumarin 314 (C314) adsorbed at the air/water interface were investigated by time-resolved surface second harmonic generation (TRSHG). The theory and method of using TRSHG to detect both out-of-plane and in-plane orientational motions are discussed. The interfacial solute motions were found to be anisotropic, with differing out-of-plane and in-plane reorientation time constants. This report presents the first direct observation of in-plane orientational motion of a molecule (C314) at the air/water interface using TRSHG. The in-plane reorientation time constant is 600 ± 40 ps. The out-of-plane reorientation time constant is 350 ± 20 ps. The out-of-plane orientational motion of C314 is similar to the previous results on rhodamine 6G at the air/water interface which indicated increased interfacial friction compared with bulk aqueous solution. The surface reorientation times are 2−3 times slower than the bulk isotropic orientational diffusion time.
Neighboring optimal guidance for aeroassisted orbital transfer

A neighboring optimal guidance scheme for a nonlinear dynamic system is devised with stochastic inputs and perfect measurements as applicable to fuel optimal control of an aeroassisted orbital transfer vehicle. For the deterministic nonlinear dynamic system describing the atmospheric maneuver, a nominal trajectory is determined. Then, taking modeling uncertainties into account, a linear, stochastic, neighboring optimal guidance scheme is devised. Assuming the additive character of the stochastic effects, the optimal trajectory is approximated as the sum of the deterministic nominal trajectory and the stochastic neighboring optimal solution. Numerical results are presented for a typical aeroassisted orbital transfer vehicle. >
A predictive tool for quantifying wind erosion from coal surfaces

A simulation computer program is described for the quantification of particulate emissions generated by wind erosion of coal surfaces. Erosion potentials reported by Cowherd provide the basic test data correlating suspended particulate loss with wind speed. Daily fastest miles of wind, precipitation and surface disturbances are stochastically simulated. Erosion loss is shown to vary according to the probability and the amount of rainfall, the frequency of disturbance of the erodible surface and the fastest mile of wind distribution parameters.
Degree of Monotone Approximation

We are interested in approximating monotone functions by monotone polynomials. Denote by ∏n, the space of algebraic polynomials of degree ≤ n, and by ∏*n, the set of those polynomials in ∏n which are monotone non-decreasing on the interval [−1,1].
The ultrastructure of lipid-depleted rod photoreceptor membranes.

The structure of lipid-depleted retinal rod photoreceptor membranes was studied by means of electron microscopy. Aldehyde-fixed retinas were exhaustively extracted with acetone, chloroform-methanol, and acidified chloroform-methanol. The effect of prefixation on the extractability of lipids was evaluated by means of thin-layer chromatography and fatty acid analysis. Prefixation with glutaraldehyde rendered 38% of the phospholipids unextractable, while only 7% were unextractable after formaldehyde fixation. Embedding the retina in a lipid-retaining, polymerizable glutaraldehyde-urea mixture allows a comparison of the interaction of OsO4 with lipid-depleted membranes and rod disk membranes which contain all their lipids. A decrease in electron density and a deterioration of membrane fine structure in lipid-depleted tissue are correlated with the extent of lipid extraction. These observations are indicative of the role of the lipid bilayer in the ultrastructural visualization of membrane structure with OsO4. Negatively stained thin sections of extracted tissue reveal substructures in the lipid-depleted rod membranes. These substructures are probably the opsin molecules which are the major protein component of retinal rod photoreceptor membranes.