cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Dealing with confidential information in day care programs

The Evanston day care program is a highly developed system of services. For eight years all federal funding has been channeled through the 4-C's, which purchases care at, or subcontracts with, all local day care programs. Home care is available as well. School programs are separately contracted with the State, but central services are purchased from the 4-C by the School district. More than half of the day care slots in Evanston centers are Title XX funded. Care is available for children from infancy through fifth grade; families needing care apply at 4-C for all programs. Eligibility is determined at 4-C, where social work staff is available to all centers and families. Directors of all programs have been meeting together monthly since 1973. They have developed close relationships which facilitate movement of families and their children as needed. An issue that has arisen from time to time has been that of confidentiality: how much information about families passes from one center to the next? Some policies have been developed, but new aspects of the problem present themselves from time to time. The following is information derived from a meeting organized by the 4-C, to which we invited directors. David Weinstein, a lawyer with Cook County Legal Assistance Foundation, presented information on confidentiality and responded to questions. An agenda was set to focus the discussion. While this kind of discussion is more likely to occur in a closely coordinated system in which individual center directors have built a trusting relationship with each other, we feel that the issue exists elsewhere, and the conclusions might well apply in many situations.
DNA repair properties of Escherichia coli tif-1, recAo281 and lexA1 strains deficient in single-strand DNA binding protein.

Mutations affecting single-strand DNA binding protein (SSB) impair induction of mutagenic (SOS) repair. To further investigate the role of SSB in SOS induction and DNA repair, isogenic strains were constructed combining the ssb+, ssb-1 or ssb-113 alleles with one or more mutations known to alter regulation of damage inducible functions. As is true in ssb+ strains tif-1 (recA441) was found to allow thermal induction of prophage λ+ and Weigle reactivation in ssb-1 and ssb-113 strains. Furthermore, tif-1 decreased the UV sensitivity of the ssb-113 strain slightly and permitted UV induction of prophage λ+ at 30°C. Strains carrying the recAo281 allele were also constructed. This mutation causes high constitutive levels of RecA protein synthesis and relieves much of the UV sensitivity conferred by lexA− alleles without restoring SOS (error-prone) repair. In contrast, the recAo281 allele failed to alleviate the UV sensitivity associated with either ssb− mutation. In a lexA1 recAo281 background the ssb-1 mutation increased the extent of postirradiation DNA degradation and concommitantly increased UV sensitivity 20-fold to the level exhibited by a recA1 strain. The ssb-113 mutation also increased UV sensitivity markedly in this background but did so without greatly increasing postirradiation DNA degradation. These results suggest a direct role for SSB in recombinational repair apart from and in addition to its role in facilitating induction of the recA-lexA regulon.
Optical particle sorting on an optofluidic chip

We report size-based sorting of micro- and sub-micron particles using optical forces on a planar optofluidic chip. Two different combinations of fluid flow and optical beam directions in liquid-core waveguides are demonstrated. These methods allow for tunability of size selection and sorting with efficiencies as high as 100%. Very good agreement between experimental results and calculated particle trajectories in the presence of flow and optical forces is found.
The time-varying elastic properties of the left ventricular muscle

Left ventricular muscle time varying elastic properties, using dynamic model and Fourier series representations
The nonprofit sector in international perspective: The case of Sri Lanka

Abstract Sri Lanka, a developing country, has a small but growing nonprofit sector that engages in the formation of social overhead and human capital, as well as in more traditional social services. The most active multipurpose organizations combine large foreign monetary donations with domestic donations of volunteer labor. Smaller organizations depend primarily on modest government grants for financial support. Private domestic monetary contributions, unlike in the U. S., play only a minor role. Origins of these nonprofit institutions, motivations of foreign donors and of volunteer labor, interactions with the government, and implications for economic development and social welfare are examined.
Blended reality characters

We present the idea and formative design of a blended reality character, a new class of character able to maintain visual and kinetic continuity between the fully physical and fully virtual. The interactive character's embodiment fluidly transitions from an animated character on-screen to a small, alphabet block-shaped mobile robot designed as a platform for informal learning through play. We present the design and results of our study with thirty-four children aged three and a half to seven conducted using non-reactive, unobtrusive observational methods and a validated evaluation instrument. Our claim is that young children have accepted the idea, persistence and continuity of blended reality characters. Furthermore, we found that children are more deeply engaged with blended reality characters and are more fully immersed in blended reality play as co-protagonists in the experience, in comparison to interactions with strictly screen-based representations. As substantiated through the use of quantitative and qualitative analysis of drawings and verbal utterances, the study shows that young children produce longer, detailed and more imaginative descriptions of their experiences following blended reality play. The desire to continue engaging in blended reality play as expressed by children's verbal requests to revisit and extend their play time with the character positively affirms the potential for the development of an informal learning platform with sustained appeal to young children.
Minority voices of crowdsourcing: why we should pay attention to every member of the crowd

In this paper I look at the dynamics of human behavior in crowds, focusing the role of non-normative voices in current crowdsourcing initiatives. I reiterate the idea that the power of the crowd lies not in the majority but in the collective. Many popular crowdsourcing platforms are designed to disregard outliers and only reward answers that agree with the masses. I use the example of the Long Tail in order to challenge developers to design more crowdsourcing tasks that take advantage of wide variance.
A nuclear-free land for Kennewick Man

In 1964 a human skeleton was discovered in the sediments of the Columbia River near Kennewick, Washington (the extreme northwest portion of the United States). Subsequently, these bones were analyzed in several scientific laboratories and dated at more than 6000 years BP. Now known as "Kennewick Man", the remains are associated with the "Clovis Period" and, indeed, a Clovis spear point was discovered imbedded in the bone of the pelvis. Equally significant were DNA results indicating the individual was of Caucasian racial origin. Consequently, this sensational archaeological discovery stimulated widespread debates concerning the populating of the Western Hemisphere: the migration routes, the eras of the waves of migration, and the peoples involved. In spite of the enormous historical and cultural significance of the Kennewick find, contemporary Native American Indian Tribes (Nez Perce, Umatilla, Yakima, Wannapum, Colville) prevailed in the courts and were awarded the bones for a "dignified" and "sacred" reburial on the Columbia River bank at the discovery location. Whereas this reburial may have been culturally sensitive, it was both dangerous and imprudent. The internment site is only a short distance downriver from one of the most contaminated nuclear repositories in the world. The Hanford Nuclear Reservation has twelve shutdown atomic reactors that were constructed almost seventy years ago and built for the production of plutonium. The facility also encompasses five chemical-processing complexes for the extraction and refining of plutonium. During the past few decades many of the reactors, as well as their single-wall waste storage tanks and ponds, have deteriorated and have been leaking radioactive and toxic-chemical waste into the local aquifer. This contaminated ground water has been seeping ever closer to the banks of the Columbia River and the resting place of Kennewick Man and other associated (yet to be found) artifacts. Without remediative steps the toxic flow will continue past Kennewick to threaten cities such as Portland with a Chernobyl-like tragedy. Consequently, a remediation program was initiated to drain the leaking tanks and ponds so that the toxic wastes could be buried elsewhere and/or transferred to more secure double-shell reservoirs. Unfortunately, hazardous substances adhere to pores and corrosion on the vessel walls after draining. This poses problems when disposing of refuse materials and hardware from the site. It has been experimentally determined that this hazardous surface contamination may be ejected by means of radiation ablation. It was concluded that this is most effectively accomplished with underwater flashlamp irradiation. In this manner the dislodged surface contamination is freed to float in the water and is then captured and concentrated by the filters of the fluid circulation systems. The final phase of the project was assistance in designing a Stonehenge-like monument to celebrate the cleanup of the Hanford Reservation and the removal of the radioactive threat to the final resting place of Kennewick Man ("The Ancient One").
Food Taxation and Pricing Strategies to “Thin Out” the Obesity Epidemic

This article highlights characteristics of two related yet distinct economic approaches to addressing the current obesity epidemic in the United States: the general taxation of soft drinks, snack foods, and/or fast foods, and the application of pricing incentives/disincentives on foods sold in schools and worksites. The article specifically focuses on the: (1) rationale for, (2) potential barriers and limitations to, and (3) possible unintended consequences of implementing these policy interventions at the state level. Novel empirical evidence showing strong positive associations between the presence of state-level taxation on soft drinks or snack foods between 1991 and 1998 and relative changes in obesity prevalence over the same time period is further presented. The article concludes by summarizing the similarities and dissimilarities of the two approaches, and by emphasizing some of the gaps and priorities regarding these strategies that should be addressed in future research and policies to best effect obesity prevention.
Effects of Diet on the Biology and Life Tables of Typhlodromalus peregrinus (Acari: Phytoseiidae)

The biology of Typhlodromalus peregrinus (Muma) was studied in the laboratory at 26°C. Each of the following organisms was evaluated as suitable diet: all stages of Tetranychus urticae Koch; immature stages of Panonychus citri (McGregor) (Acari: Tetranychidae); and pollens of Malephora crocea (Jaquin), Quercus virginiana Miller, and Typha latifolia (L.). The combination of T. urticae with each pollen was also tested. Total developmental time ranged between 5.73 and 7 d for females and between 5.67 and 6.93 d for males. The percentage of females in the total population ranged between 53 and 61%. A diet of T urticae provided the shortest generation time (G), greatest female longevity, and mean total fecundity (F) which resulted in the highest net reproductive rate (Ro) value (25.31 expected females per female), intrinsic rate of increase (r m = 0.224), and finite rate of increase (e r m = 1.25) per day for T. peregrinus. Diets of only P. citri or M. crocea resulted in close values of G = 8.67, 8.91; F = 47.11, 49.47; R 0 = 24.00, 26.65; r m = 0.210, 0.219; and e r m = 1.23, 1.24, respectively. Q. virginiana and Typha latifolia were the least favorable food sources, with results of G = 8.78, 9.41; F = 30.38, 24.25; R 0 = 14.20, 12.04; r m = 0.193, 0.170, and e r m = 1.21, 1.18, respectively. The r m values were highly affected by generation time and mean total fecundity (R 2 = 0.947).
Directed Evolution of Gloeobacter violaceus Rhodopsin Spectral Properties

Proton-pumping rhodopsins (PPRs) are photoactive retinal-binding proteins that transport ions across biological membranes in response to light. These proteins are interesting for light-harvesting applications in bioenergy production, in optogenetics applications in neuroscience, and as fluorescent sensors of membrane potential. Little is known, however, about how the protein sequence determines the considerable variation in spectral properties of PPRs from different biological niches or how to engineer these properties in a given PPR. Here we report a comprehensive study of amino acid substitutions in the retinal-binding pocket of Gloeobacter violaceus rhodopsin (GR) that tune its spectral properties. Directed evolution generated 70 GR variants with absorption maxima shifted by up to ± 80 nm, extending the protein's light absorption significantly beyond the range of known natural PPRs. While proton-pumping activity was disrupted in many of the spectrally shifted variants, we identified single tuning mutations that incurred blue and red shifts of 42 nm and 22 nm, respectively, that did not disrupt proton pumping. Blue-shifting mutations were distributed evenly along the retinal molecule while red-shifting mutations were clustered near the residue K257, which forms a covalent bond with retinal through a Schiff base linkage. Thirty eight of the identified tuning mutations are not found in known microbial rhodopsins. We discovered a subset of red-shifted GRs that exhibit high levels of fluorescence relative to the WT (wild-type) protein.
The Use of Hyaluronidase as an Adjunct to Surgical Procedures

background. Although the use of hyaluronidase as an adjunct to anesthesia is frequently described for plastic surgery and ophthalmologic procedures, its use in dermatologic surgery has not been well investigated. objective. In this report we review the advantages and disadvantages of using hyaluronidase in dermatologic procedures. methods. The effect of adding hyaluronidase to local anesthesia was evaluated in 72 Operations performed over a 1-year period. results. Although the duration of anesthesia is slightly decreased, the addition of hyaluronidase to local anesthesia offers the benefits of minimizing loss of surface contour and enhanced ease in undermining and dissection through subeutaneous tissue planes. The onset of anesthesia using hyaluronidase is immediate and the area of anesthesia appears increased over anesthesia without hyaluronidase. conclusion. We therefore recommend the adjunct of hyaluronidase to local anesthesia as a useful advancement in surgical technique.
We Are Not All Legislated Equally: A National Survey of System Offices for Institutional Research.

The operation of a system office for community college institutional research occurs in a majority of the fifty states, and how states handle institutional research functions can vary for a variety of reasons.
In silico prediction of Ara h 2 T cell epitopes in peanut-allergic children.

BACKGROUND Despite the frequency and severity of peanut allergy, the only approved treatment is strict avoidance. Different types of immunotherapy with crude peanut extract are not universally effective and have been associated with relatively high adverse reaction rates. OBJECTIVE We sought to determine whether in silico predictive algorithms were useful in identifying candidate peptides for an Ara h 2 peptide-based vaccine using peanut-allergic patients' peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) in vitro. A human leucocyte antigen (HLA) distribution analysis was also performed. METHODS Major histocompatibility complex (MHC)-class II-binding peptides were predicted using NetMHCIIpan-2.0 and NetMHCII-2.2 algorithms. PBMCs from 80 peanut-allergic patients were stimulated with overlapping 20-mer Ara h 2 peptides. Cell supernatant cytokine profiles were evaluated by multiplex assays. HLA-DRB1* and HLA-DQB1* typing were performed. RESULTS Four regions of overlapping sequences induced PBMC proliferation and predominant Th2 cytokine production. HLA genotyping showed 30 different DRB1* allele specificities and eight DQ serological specificities. The in silico analysis revealed similar relevant regions and predicted identical or similar core 9-mer epitopes to those identified in vitro. If relevant peptides, as determined by either in vitro or in silico analysis (15 peptides and 9 core epitopes respectively), were used in a peptide-based vaccine, they would cover virtually all subjects in the cohort studied. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Four dominant regions in Ara h 2 have been identified, containing sequences that could serve as potential candidates for peptide-based immunotherapy. MHC-class II-based T cell epitope prediction algorithms for HLA-DR and -DQ loci accurately predicted Ara h 2 T cell epitopes in peanut-allergic subjects, suggesting their potential utility in a peptide-based vaccine design for food allergy.
Distributed Models in Plantwide Dynamic Simulators

Modeling support for dynamic simulation of chemical-process flowsheets, which is of significant value for plantwide dynamic simulation using differential–algebraic model formulations, is to date very limited when one or more unit models include partial differential equations. Several new techniques that provide modeling support for such simulations are presented. These techniques are based on a generalized characteristic analysis and a differentiation index analysis of partial differential–algebraic models. They can be used to uncover systems that cannot be solved as part of a dynamic simulation, and to determine whether or not the initial and boundary conditions supplied by the modeler form a well-posed problem. In a network flow context, they can further be used to select, enforce, and adapt the boundary conditions as required to maintain automatically a mathematically well-posed problem. Each of these provides time-saving support to the system modeler.
Tests of an exemplar model for relating perceptual classification and recognition memory

Experiments were conducted in which Ss made classification, recognition, and similarity judgments for 34 schematic faces. A multidimensional scaling (MDS) solution for the faces was derived on the basis of the similarity judgments. This MDS solution was then used in conjunction with an exemplar-similarity model to accurately predict Ss' classification and recognition judgments. Evidence was provided that Ss allocated attention to the psychological dimensions differentially for classification and recognition. The distribution of attention came close to the ideal-observer distribution for classification, and some tendencies in that direction were observed for recognition. Evidence was also provided for interactive effects of individual exemplar frequencies and similarities on classification and recognition, in accord with the predictions of the exemplar model. Unexpectedly, however, the frequency effects appeared to be larger for classification than for recognition. The purpose of this study was to provide tests of a model for relating perceptual classification performance and oldnew recognition memory. The model under investigation is the context theory of classification proposed by Medin and Schaffer (1978) and elaborated by Estes (1986a) and Nosofsky (1984, 1986). According to the context theory, people represent categories by storing individual exemplars in memory, and make classification decisions on the basis of similarity comparisons with the stored exemplars. This exemplar view of category representation strongly motivates the study of relations between classification and recognition, because if individual exemplars are stored in memory during classification learning, this fact should be corroborated by postacquisition recognition memory tests. Nosofsky (1988a) demonstrated preliminary support for an exemplar-based approach to relating classification and recognition. The approach assumes that classification decisions are based on the similarity of an item to the exemplars of a target category relative to exemplars of contrast categories. Recognition decisions are based on the absolute summed similarity of an item to all exemplars of all categories. This absolute summed similarity gives a measure of overall familiarity, with higher familiarity values leading to higher recognition probabilities. This idea that recognition judgments may be based on a form of summed similarity or a "global match" to information stored in memory serves as a core assumption for a variety of extant theories (e.g., Gillund & Shiffrin, 1984; Hintzman, 1986, 1988; Metcalfe-Eich, 1982; Murdock, 1982; Ratcliff, 1978). Unique contributions of the present work are
Resource partitioning to male and female flowers of Spinacia oleracea L. in relation to whole-plant monocarpic senescence

Male plants of spinach (Spinacea oleracea L.) senesce following flowering. It has been suggested that nutrient drain by male flowers is insufficient to trigger senescence. The partitioning of radiolabelled photosynthate between vegetative and reproductive tissue was compared in male (staminate) versus female (pistillate) plants. After the start of flowering staminate plants senesce 3 weeks earlier than pistillate plants. Soon after the start of flowering, staminate plants allocated several times as much photosynthate to flowering structures as did pistillate plants. The buds of staminate flowers with developing pollen had the greatest draw of photosynthate. When the staminate plants begin to show senescence 68% of fixed C was allocated to the staminate reproductive structures. In the pistillate plants, export to the developing fruits and young flowers remained near 10% until mid-reproductive development, when it increased to 40%, declining to 27% as the plants started to senesce. These differences were also present on a sink-mass corrected basis. Flowers on staminate spinach plants develop faster than pistillate flowers and have a greater draw of photosynthate than do pistillate flowers and fruits, although for a shorter period. Pistillate plants also produce more leaf area within the inflorescence to sustain the developing fruits. The 14 C in the staminate flowers declined due to respiration, especially during pollen maturation; no such loss occurred in pistillate reproductive structures. The partitioning to the reproductive structures correlates with the greater production of floral versus vegetative tissue in staminate plants and their more rapid senescence. As at senescence the leaves still had adequate carbohydrate, the resources are clearly phloem-transported compounds other than carbohydrates. The extent of the resource redistribution to reproductive structures and away from the development of new vegetative sinks, starting very early in the reproductive phase, is sufficient to account for the triggering of senescence in the rest of the plant.
Digitally manipulated images and painting

Discusses the artist's use of digitally manipulated images sourced from photographic studies from nature and used a visual resource for canvas painting. Traditional approaches to canvas painting have included various paths of image preparation prior to the actual application of paint to canvas. This presentation reveals the artist's approach to utilizing digital technology as a means for exploring ideas related to formal considerations of composition and color through image manipulation within Adobe Photoshop. Images that originate as original photographic studies from nature are manipulated, printed as hard copy and used as source for the final paintings on canvas. These canvas paintings are large in scale and are executed within the synthetic acrylic medium. Occasionally, the hard-copy images are re-manipulated as collage pieces and/or re-scanned and re-processed through the software. The final paintings, however, are not totally pre-determined by the digitized images. Alterations are made throughout the process of creating the paintings. Considerations of actual surface texture, color transparency, and numerous other characteristics not available for manipulation through image digitization all partake and influence the final outcome. The presentation includes a slide representation of the entire process involved in creating the final paintings from the initial photographs, digitization and the final, physical act of painting on canvas. The use of traditional materials within art and the relationship of new technologies within that process is an important underlying issue.
Color appearance and the digital imaging pipeline

An effective image reproduction pipeline, spanning image capture, processing and display, must be designed to account for the properties of the human observer. In designing an image pipeline, three principles of human vision are particularly important: trichromacy, color adaptation, and pattern-color sensitivity. These properties also play an important role in metrics used to evaluate image quality reproduction. The main portion of this review comprises a description of these properties of the visual system and how these principles are incorporated into the image reproduction pipeline. The last part of this review describes a new image capture technology, based on a digital pixel fabricated on a CMOS process. This sensor is well-designed for exploring a novel image pipeline architecture that we call multiple-capture, single-image. This architecture is being developed to serve features of human vision that are not yet incorporated in the conventional pipeline.
The runtime abort graph and its application to software transactional memory optimization

Programming with atomic sections is a promising alternative to locks since it raises the abstraction and removes deadlocks at the programmer level. However, implementations of atomic sections using software transactional memory (STM) support have significant bookkeeping overheads. Additionally, because of the speculative nature of transactions, aborts can be frequent greatly lowering application performance. Thus regardless of the STM implementation, tools need to be available to programmers that provide insights into the runtime characteristics of an application as well as provide means to improve performance. This paper attempts to identify the source of an abort at the granularity of a transactional memory reference. The resulting abort patterns are captured in the form of a runtime abort graph (RAG). We show how to build this graph efficiently using compiler instrumentation. We then describe a technique that works on the RAG and automatically recommends STM policy changes to improve performance. Detailed experimental results are presented showing the tradeoffs in building the RAG and its use in reducing aborts and improving performance.
Unidirectional magnetic-field gradients and geometric-phase errors during Fourier encoding using orthogonal ac fields

Nuclear magnetic resonance and imaging in very low fields is fundamentally limited by untruncated concomitant gradients, which cause severe distortions in image acquisition and volume selection if the gradient fields are strong compared to the static field. In this paper, it is shown that gradient fields oscillating in quadrature can be used for spatial encoding in low fields and provide substantial improvements over conventional encoding methods using static gradients. In particular, cases where the maximum applied gradient field $\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}{B}_{max}$ is comparable to or higher than the static field ${B}_{0}$ over the field of view, i.e., $\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}{B}_{max}∕{B}_{0}g1$, are examined. With these gradients, undistorted volume selection and image encoding is possible because smaller geometric phase errors are introduced during cyclic motion of the Hamiltonian. In the low field limit, slice selection is achieved with a combination of soft pulse segments and a coherent train of hard pulses to average out concomitant fields over the fast scale of the Hamiltonian.
The relationship between follicle development and progesterone receptor membrane component-1 expression in women undergoing in vitro fertilization.

Objective To determine the relationship between progesterone receptor membrane component-1 (PGRMC1) expression and the outcome of IVF treatment. Design A prospective study in which PGRMC1 messenger RNA (mRNA) levels, methylation status of the Pgrmc1 promoter, and the presence of point mutations within Pgrmc1 were obtained from granulosa (GC)/luteal cells of women undergoing controlled ovarian hyperstimulation (COH). Setting Fertility center/basic science laboratory. Patient(s) Eighty-five patients undergoing IVF treatment and 10 women who were undergoing COH for the purpose of oocyte donation were included in this study. Intervention(s) None. Main Outcome Measure(s) The PGRMC1 measurements were correlated with clinical outcomes, such as number of follicles, number of retrieved oocytes, and ongoing pregnancy rates (PR). Result(s) The PGRMC1 mRNA levels within GC/luteal cells of 18% of IVF patients were >2.25-fold higher than those of oocyte donors. Individuals with elevated PGRMC1 mRNA levels had 30% fewer large follicles and fewer oocytes retrieved. The elevated PGRMC1 mRNA levels were associated with an increase in the methylation of Pgrmc1 promoter. Conclusion(s) In patients with elevated PGRMC1 mRNA levels, gonadotropin-induced follicle development is attenuated, although sufficient numbers of follicles develop to allow for ET and subsequent pregnancy.
Inositol-1,4,5-trisphosphate receptors in the vertebrate retina

Evidence has shown an activation of phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PIP2) specific phospholipase C (PtdIns-PLC) by light in the vertebrate retina and rod outer segments (ROS), suggesting important roles for its two metabolites, 1,2-diacylglycerol (DG) and inositol-1,4,5-trisphosphate [Ins(1,4,5)P3]. DG activates protein kinase C (PKC) and Ins(1,4,5)P3 releases bound intracellular calcium. Since Ca2+ plays an important role in light adaptation, the presence of Ins(1,4,5)P3 receptors in ROS may indicate a regulatory role of Ins(1,4,5)P3 to the free Ca2+ content. In the present study, we investigated the Ins(1,4,5)P3 receptors in whole retinal membranes and several subcellular fractions prepared from bovine retinas. Scatchard analyses of binding data for retinal membrane preparations showed a single, high-affinity binding site with equilibrium dissociation constant (Kd) of 24 +/- 2 nM and maximal binding capacity (Bmax) of 353 +/- 15 fmol/mg protein at pH 7.4. Specific binding was found in both small and large synaptosomal preparations representing inner and outer plexiform layers, respectively. A detectable, but low abundance of Ins(1,4,5)P3-specific binding in ROS was observed at both pH 7.4 and 8.3, but no specific binding of Ins(1,4,5)P3 was found in isolated outer segment discs. The binding of Ins(1,4,5)P3 in ROS was reduced by addition of ATP, suggesting a regulatory role for this nucleotide. Addition of calcium, sodium, and potassium ions also reduced specific binding of Ins(1,4,5)P3. Immunocytochemical studies indicate intense staining in the inner segment and extending to the ROS. Inner and outer plexiform layers were also stained. These findings show that the Ins(1,4,5)P3 receptor is present in photoreceptor cells and inner and outer plexiform layers in the vertebrate retina.
EFFECTIVENESS OF COMPOSITES IN EARTHQUAKE DAMAGE REPAIR OF REINFORCED CONCRETE FLARED COLUMNS

A method to utilize fiber composites for rapid repair of earthquake damaged flared columns was developed. Two 0.4-scale reinforced concrete columns that had been tested to failure in previous research were used. Both columns had been subjected to slow cyclic loads and had failed due to low-cycle fatigue of the longitudinal bars. To repair the columns, the damaged concrete in and around the plastic hinge was removed and the steel bars were straightened. Low-shrinkage, high-strength concrete grout was placed in the column afterward. The broken longitudinal bars were not replaced. Rather, glass and carbon fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) sheets with fibers running in the axial direction of the column were added to provide flexural strength to the columns. Additionally, glass FRP sheets with horizontal fibers were attached on the column to provide confinement and shear strength. Cyclic tests of the repaired columns indicated that the method to restore the strength was effective. Analysis using conventional constitutive relationships led to a close estimate of the lateral load response of the models.
A Block Lanczos Method for Computing the Singular Values and Corresponding Singular Vectors of a Matrix

We present a block Lanczos method to compute the largest singular values and corresponding left and right singular vectors of a large sparse matrix. Our algorithm does not transform the matrix A but accesses it only through a user-supplied routine which computes AX or $A^t$X for a given matrix X. This paper also includes a thorough discussion of the various ways to compute the singular value decomposition of a banded upper triangular matrix; this problem arises as a subproblem to be solved during the block Lanczos procedure.
Computation of Fourier transforms on the symmetric group

Let G be a finite group and f any complex-valued function defined on G. If p is a matrix representation of G then the Fourier transform of f at p is defined as the matrix ∑s∊Gf(s)p(s)-Various applications demand the computation of the Fourier transforms of f at all irreducible representations of G. Direct computation of all such Fourier transforms requires on the order of |G|2 arithmetic operations.
Computer animation of the sphere eversion

In 1948, Stephen Smale, a mathematician who was then at the University of Chicago, proved that it was possible to turn the surface of a sphere inside out by a special kind of deformation called a “regular homotopy”. During a regular homotopy, the surface must remain continuous, without any tears or holes, and smooth, without any creases or singularities. However, the surface is allowed to cross and pass through itself. In other words, if we consider a position of the sphere as a function from the standard round spherical surface S2 into the three dimensional space R3, this function must be continuous and smooth (C1), but not necessarily one-to-one. Such a function is called an immersion, and some sample immersions of the sphere are shown in the figures here. A regular homotopy is then a continuous family of immersions, satisfying a technical condition that its partial derivatives with respect to position coordinates on S2 are continuous functions of time, as well as of position on S2. This is the smoothness condition which prohibits creases and kinks. Smale proved that there was a regular homotopy between any two immersions of the sphere. The ordinary round sphere and an inside-out round sphere are special cases of immersions, so there must be a regular homotopy between them. Smale’s proof was by induction and in principal contained a construction of an actual regular homotopy, but one so complicated that it would be impossible to visualize. Once the solution was known to be possible, a number of people tried to invent simple and easily visualized homotopies. One of these is discussed in a Scientific American article [7], which contains a more extensive description of the problem, and a complete sequence of illustrations for the homotopy. However, in order to understand the deformation, the reader must imagine the motions between the illustrations in the sequence, and convince himself that they are continuous and smooth. Clearly it would be preferable to have a movie showing the whole deformation. Since each frame is a different complicated surface, this is an obvious candidate for computer animation. The film projected at the meeting and illustrated in the figures here shows a regular homotopy developed by Bernard Morin, a blind French mathematician who was also instrumental in the creation of several other such homotopies. The one used here is among the simplest known, since it contains only fourteen critical stages, the minimum among the homotopies known at present. There were two main problems in the creation of the film: first the mathematical definition of the homotopy to the computer, and second, the efficient computation of the frames for output through suitable hardware onto film. These will be discussed in the sections to follow.
ONSET TIME AND DURATION OF CORONA ACTIVITY ON VENUS: STRATIGRAPHY AND HISTORY FROM PHOTOGEOLOGIC STUDY OF STEREO IMAGES

The details of stratigraphic units and structures making up six coronae and their regional surroundings on Venus were examined using full resolution Magellan images and stereoscopic coverage. Altimetry and stereoscopic coverage were essential in establishing the local stratigraphic relationships and the timing of corona-related topography. The degree of preservation of signatures of earlier corona-related activities and the scale of later corona-related activities vary significantly from corona to corona. We compared the geologic sequence in each corona to regional and global stratigraphic units, placing the coronae in the broader context of the geologic history of Venus. The results of this study were compared with earlier analyses bringing the total number of corona considered to about 15% of the total corona population. We found that corona started forming soon after tessera formation and largely spanned a significant part of the subsequent geologic history of Venus, over about 200–400 million years. Topographic annulae were initiated in early post-tessera time but were largely completely formed by the time of emplacement of regional plains with wrinkle ridges. Some coronae ceased activity by this time, while others continued until closer to the present, although showing evidence of waning activity. Coronae-associated volcanism dominated many coronae during this later stage. Convincing evidence of pre-regional plains corona- related volcanism was not found in the population examined here. We conclude that coronae formed in a two stage process; the first stage (tectonic phase) involved the annular warping of early extensive stratigraphic units of volcanic origin and the second (volcanic phase) involved coronae-related lava flow activity and local fracturing. For the vast majority of coronae, the first tectonic phase was largely complete prior to the emplacement of the regional plains (Pwr, plains with wrinkle ridges). The vast majority of corona-related volcanic activity (emplacement of Pl, lobate flows) occurred subsequent to the emplacement of regional plains. We found no evidence of coronae initiation in substantially later periods of the observed history of Venus.
Hobbes and the Wolf-Man

A few years ago when I was living in Spain, I depended in part on the London Times Literary Supplement to keep me abreast of developments in the English speaking literary and intellectual worlds. On unfolding the latest issue one morning, I was greeted by a bold-face headline proclaiming ‘The Hobbesian world of the Amazonian Jungle’. The headline writer had, of course, hit on a nearly infallible way of communicating with his educated readers. They would know Hobbes’s name and if they remembered anything at all about him from their school days, it would be that he held men to be vicious, wolflike creatures who preyed without stop or relent against one another. And so Hobbes’s name could be depended on to inform the readers of the supplement that if they read the trailing article, they would be treated to juicy tales of savage atrocities, in this case among the steamy vines and ferns of Brazil. Such has been the fate of Thomas Hobbes. This timid, scholarly man who detested war, and who expended his best energies in trying to persuade his contemporaries to cooperation, accommodation and peace, had come in the 20th century to be a symbol for all that is worst in human nature. Branded the Monster of Malmsbury in his own lifetime, he is remembered three hundred years later as the great maligner of human nature.
Prospects for Vaccines During Pregnancy and in the Newborn Period

Infection continues to cause significant morbidity and mortality during the first few months of life. Immunization of mothers or newborn babies may provide an effective method to further reduce infections in young infants. The current status of maternal and neonatal immunizations are reviewed, and new vaccine strategies for immunization of newborns are discussed. Increased use of vaccines in mothers or newborn babies will, however, require a concerted effort from several groups, including the pharmaceutical companies, public health organizations, and medical communities.
Binary Components of Wolf-Rayet Type

Several kinds of unusual stars owe their peculiarities to their nature as components of close binaries. The rare objects of spectral types W (Wolf-Rayet stars) seem to be one of them. More than half of type W stars are binary members, and the chances are good that all of them are. The contention has so far not met with empirical objections that the blue massive objects just mentioned are their precursors.
Effects of Leaf Position, Leaf Wounding, and Plant Age of Two Soybean Genotypes on Soybean Looper (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) Growth

Growth of the soybean looper, Pseudoplusia includens (Walker), on the foliage of soybean, Glycine max (L.) Merr., plant introduction (PI) ‘227687’ was evaluated by measuring growth rate of last-instar larvae for 33 h relative to growth on the susceptible soybean cultivar Davis. The top two fully expanded leaves nearest the apex of ‘PI 227687’ consistently supported higher larval growth rates than the third and lower leaves. No differences in resistance were observed between leaves below the third leaf. The same trend was also observed among leaves from ‘Davis’ plants but larval growth rates were from 2- to 6-fold greater on ‘Davis’ leaves than on corresponding leaves of ‘PI 227687’. Larval growth rates supported by ‘PI 227687’ plants varying in age from 4 to 8 weeks old did not differ when leaves from similar plant locations were compared. Mechanically wounding ‘PI 227687’ leaves 72 h before assay decreased the growth rates among P. includens larvae fed either greenhouse or field-grown leaves relative to those fed normal, unwounded ‘PI 227687’ leaves.
Uncovering the natural history of cancer from post-mortem cross-sectional diameters of hepatic metastases

We develop a mathematical and statistical methodology for estimation of important unobservable characteristics of the individual natural history of cancer from a sample of cross-sectional diameters of liver metastases measured at autopsy. Estimation of the natural history of cancer is based on a previously proposed stochastic model of cancer progression tailored to this type of observations. The model accounts for primary tumour growth, shedding of metastases, their selection, latency and growth in a given secondary site. The model was applied to the aforementioned data on 428 liver metastases detected in one untreated small cell lung cancer patient. Identifiable model parameters were estimated by the method of maximum likelihood and through minimizing the [Formula: see text] distance between theoretical and empirical cumulative distribution functions. The model with optimal parameters provided an excellent fit to the data. Results of data analysis support, if only indirectly, the hypothesis of the existence of stem-like cancer cells in the case of small cell lung carcinoma and point to the possibility of suppression of metastatic growth by a large primary tumour. They also lead to determination of the lower and upper bounds for the age of cancer onset and expected duration of metastatic latency. Finally, model-based inference on the patient's natural history of cancer allowed us to conclude that resection of the primary tumour would most likely not have had a curative effect.
On Node Classification in Dynamic Content-based Networks.

In recent years, a large amount of information has become available online in the form of web documents, social networks, blogs, or other kinds of social entities. Such networks are large, heterogeneous, and often contain a huge number of links. This linkage structure encodes rich structural information about the underlying topical behavior of the network. Such networks are often dynamic and evolve rapidly over time. Much of the work in the literature has focussed either on the problem of classification with purely text behavior, or on the problem of classification with purely the linkage behavior of the underlying graph. Furthermore, the work in the literature is mostly designed for the problem of static networks. However, a given network may be quite diverse, and the use of either content or structure could be more or less effective in different parts of the network. In this paper, we examine the problem of node classification in dynamic information networks with both text content and links. Our techniques use a random walk approach in conjunction with the content of the network in order to facilitate an effective classification process. This results in an effective approach which is more robust to variations in content and linkage structure. Our approach is dynamic, and can be applied to networks which are updated incrementally. Our results suggest that an approach which is based on a combination of content and links is extremely robust and effective. We present experimental results illustrating the effectiveness and efficiency of our approach.
Noncardiac operations combined with coronary artery bypass.

At the Scott and White Clinic, patients with cardiac valve or coronary artery disease who also have other conditions requiring surgical correction undergo concomitant operations when feasible. The advantages of doing so may include reduced risk and discomfort for the patient as well as shortened convalescence and therefore enhanced cost effectiveness.
The role of allergen immunotherapy in the management of allergic rhinitis.

PurposeTo evaluate the role of allergen immunotherapy (AIT) in the treatment of allergic rhinitis (AR).MethodIndividual studies, systematic reviews, and practice guidelines that included informatio...
Permanent increase of the electrical conductivity of polymers induced by ultraviolet laser radiation

Ultraviolet laser radiation is capable of producing clearly defined mechanical structures in organic polymers, and a spatial resolution in the 1 μm region was recently demonstrated.1 The high absorption coefficients of ultraviolet radiation in some organic materials provides good localization of the deposited energy. Any change in the physical properties of these materials induced by absorption of ultraviolet radiation should have this characteristic, including laser induced electrical conductivity. The electrical patterning of polymers by ultraviolet radiation provides both high spacial resolution and technologically useful changes in the electrical conductivity. Presented herein is the first results concerning the permanent increase of electrical conductivity of polyimide (Kapton) and polybenzimidazole (FBI) induced by KrF laser irradiation at 248 nm.