cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Cytotoxic activity of graft-infiltrating lymphocytes correlates with cellular rejection in cardiac transplant patients.

Abstract Lymphocytes propagated from allografts have shown a wide spectrum of activity during rejection including cytotoxicity, proliferation, and lymphokine production. It is necessary to correlate these activities to the rejection process to understand the in vivo immune response. The frequent need to obtain a biopsy of human cardiac allografts permits the evaluation of the function of the graft-infiltrating lymphocytes (GIL) as related to development of the rejection process. Lymphocyte cultures established from biopsies taken before, during, and after rejection episodes of grade 1.0 or greater were assayed for surface antigen expression using flow cytometry, proliferative activity using a primed lymphocyte test (PLT), and cytotoxicity using a cell-mediated lympholysis assay. Fifteen rejection episodes were followed from 10 patients. Two patients were followed through two different rejection episodes and one patient through four rejection episodes. CD8+ cells usually predominated during the rejection episode. Following the rejection episodes the GIL showed a shift toward higher proportion of CD4+ cells. Most cultures taken prior to and during rejection episodes ( 8 9 and 12 13 assayed, respectively) demonstrated > 30% killing of targets bearing donor-related HLA antigens. Seven of 15 cultures remained cytotoxic after a rejection episode whereas 8 of 15 lost cytotoxicity. The patients whose cultures remained cytotoxic after a rejection episode went on to further rejection episodes at 6, 7, 11, 20, 37, or 118 days later. Those patients whose cultures were no longer cytotoxic did not experience any subsequent rejection episode until at least 257 days later. Persistence of alloreactivity, as indicated by the ability to proliferate in a PLT, did not predict future rejection episodes. These results suggest that the cytotoxic activity of the interleukin-2 responsive T lymphocytes in the biopsies is closely related to clinical rejection, and continued cytotoxicity may be a useful prognostic indicator of future rejection episodes. Human Immunology 32, 241–245 (1991)
Bioelectronic system for the control and readout of enzyme logic gates

Abstract In this work we describe the development of a novel microelectronic backbone configured specifically for the control of biocomputing systems applied to diagnostic merits. The operation of the sensor system is validated towards the rapid assessment of pathological conditions arising from soft tissue injury (STI) and abdominal trauma (ABT) using NAND and AND Boolean enzyme logic gates, respectively. The miniaturized 19 × 19 mm device employs a custom-designed three-electrode potentiostat coupled with an integrator, voltage amplifier, comparator, and digital logic and is easily interfaced with a screen-printed electrode contingent. By implementing an adjustable threshold comparator, a precise decision threshold could be established corresponding to pathological levels of the target biomarkers. As a result, a rapid amperometric analysis tendered the diagnosis in a straightforward ‘YES’/‘NO’ digital format via the illumination of a light emitting diode. Using low quiescent current voltage regulators, the device is able to achieve microwatt power operation and can be sustained by a single 3 V coin-cell battery for over 45 h under continuous use. The low-power, low-cost, and miniaturized device meets the requirements of field-deployable logic gate amperometric sensors. Such a reconfigurable micro-/bioelectronic logic-based multi-parameter sensing system shows considerable potential for the assessment of key analytes in a multitude of relevant clinical, security, and environmental applications where go/no-go readout, rapid measurement, device miniaturization, and extended longevity on battery power are key requirements.
Anaerobic Regulation of Bacillus subtilis Krebs Cycle Genes

Krebs cycle enzyme activity in Bacillus subtilis was examined under aerobic and anaerobic conditions. Citrate synthase and aconitase activities in cells grown anaerobically in the presence of nitrate were reduced by as much as 10- and 30-fold, respectively, from levels observed under aerobic culture conditions. The maximum level of isocitrate dehydrogenase activity during anaerobic growth was only twofold lower than that in aerobic cultures. These reductions in activity under conditions of anaerobiosis were found to be primarily the result of reduced Krebs cycle gene transcription. This repression was not dependent on either the fnr or resDE gene products, which have been shown to regulate expression of other B. subtilis genes in response to anaerobic conditions. Additionally, catabolite control proteins CcpA and CcpB were not responsible for the repression. A dyad symmetry element located between positions -73 and -59 relative to the transcription start site of the aconitase gene (citB) promoter was previously shown to be a target of catabolite repression and the binding site for a putative negative regulator during aerobic growth. The deletion of the upstream arm of the dyad symmetry region abolished the citB repression observed during anaerobic growth. Furthermore, neither citZ or citB was repressed in an anaerobically grown citB mutant, an effect that was very likely the result of citrate accumulation. These results suggest that catabolite repression and anaerobic repression of citZ and citB are regulated by a common mechanism that does not involve CcpA, CcpB, Fnr, or ResDE.
Antigen-Specific CD8+ T Cell Clonal Expansions Develop from Memory T Cell Pools Established by Acute Respiratory Virus Infections

Increasing age is associated with the development of CD8+ T cell clonal expansions (TCE) that can dominate the peripheral T cell repertoire and interfere with immune responses to infection and vaccination. Some TCE are driven by chronic infections, consistent with dysregulated outgrowth of T cell clones in response to persistent antigenic stimulation. However, a second class of TCE develops with age in the absence of chronic infections and is poorly understood in terms of origin or Ag dependence. In this study, we present evidence that Ag-specific TCE develop at high frequencies from conventional memory CD8+ T cell pools elicited by nonpersistent influenza and parainfluenza virus infections. Putative TCE occurred in both the central- and effector-memory CD8+ T cell populations and did not require Ag for their maintenance. In addition, they were similar to normal memory T cells in terms of phenotype and function, suggesting that they develop stochastically from the memory T cell pool. These data suggest that memory T cell pools become progressively dysregulated over time and this may have a significant impact on immune responsiveness in the aged.
Optical Layer Security in Fiber-Optic Networks

The physical layer of an optical network is vulnerable to a variety of attacks, including jamming, physical infrastructure attacks, eavesdropping, and interception. As the demand for network capacity grows dramatically, the issue of securing the physical layer of optical network cannot be overlooked. In this survey paper, we discuss the security threats in an optical network as well as present several existing optical techniques to improve the security. In the first part of this paper, we discuss various types of security threats that could appear in the optical layer of an optical network, including jamming, physical infrastructure attacks, eavesdropping, and interception. Intensive research has focused on improving optical network security, in the above specific areas. Real-time processing of the optical signal is essential in order to integrate security functionality at the physical layer while not undermining the true value of optical communications, which is its speed. Optical layer security benefits from the unique properties of optical processing-instantaneous response, broadband operation, electromagnetic immunity, compactness, and low latency. In the second part of this paper, various defenses against the security threats outlined in this paper are discussed, including optical encryption, optical code-division multiple access (CDMA) confidentiality, self-healing survivable optical rings, anti-jamming, and optical steganography.
A Thermohydrodynamic Analysis of Foil Journal Bearings

A thermohydrodynamic model is developed for predicting the three-dimensional (3D) temperature field in an air-lubricated, compliant foil journal bearing. The model accounts for the compressibility and the viscosity-temperature characteristic of air and the compliance of the bearing surface. The results of numerical solutions are compared to published experimental measurements and reasonable agreement has been attained. Parametric studies covering a fairly wide range of operating speeds and load conditions were carried out to illustrate the usefulness of the model in terms of predicting the thermal performance of foil journal bearings.
Association of maternal IgM concentrations above the median at 15-19 weeks of gestation and early preterm delivery.

Summary IgM concentrations greater than the median in maternal serum collected at 15–19 weeks of pregnancy were strongly associated (odds ratio 15·6) with delivery before 29 weeks. Our results suggest that the postulated inflammatory component in the aetiology of very preterm delivery may elicit a measurable maternal humoral response as early as mid-trimester.
THE ANNUAL VARIATIONS OF SUB-SOIL TEMPERATURES ABOUT A 600-FOOT CIRCLE

To assist engineers in the computations of thermal stresses, thermal loads, and the economic depth to which a protron synchrotron should he buried, the Meteorology Group predicted the annual variations of sub-soil temperatures to the depth of 20 ft. Measurements were made at four stations having various types of ground cover, and located on a circle having a diameter of 600 ft. The analysis of one year of data showed that differences of ground cover have an appreciable effect on the temperature at all measuring depths. Standard thermal diffusion coefficients for a sandy soil are too small to account for the observed range of annual temperatures.
Autoclavable low cost serum‐free cell culture media. The growth of L Cells and BHK cells on peptones

The growth of L-929 cells on a series of peptones, and protein hydrolysates was examined, and it was found that when MEM was supplemented with any of a series of peptones, cell growth was about as good as when serum was used as a supplement. Protein hydrolysates did not support cell growth very well and at higher concentrations actually reduced cell growth. L-929 and L-60TM cells were grown both as monolayers or stationary suspensions and in agitated systems in MEM supplemented with 0.5—1% bactopeptone. The addition of macromolecular compounds, insulin or oleic acid had no effect on cell growth. BHK cells were also grown on media supplemented with bactopeptone but richer media (MEM-alpha, F-12, or RMPI1640) gave higher cell yields. The cells did not form the monolayers observed with fetal calf serum, but a partial suspension system. Addition of a detergent Darvan #2 gave a totally suspension culture in both stationary and agitated systems. The production of Sindbis virus in BHK cells grown in serum-free media was examined and the yield of virus was found to be about the same as that produced in serum-supplemented systems. It is estimated that the cost of cell production media could be reduced by about 90% by the replacement of serum supplement by peptones.
Spatial management of wildlife disease

T he spread of wildlife diseases is a major threat to livestock, human health, resource-based recreation, and biodiversity conservation (Cleaveland, Laurenson, and Taylor). The development of economically sound wildlife disease-management strategies requires an understanding of the links between ecological functions (e.g., disease transmission and wildlife dispersal) and economic choices, and the associated tradeoffs. Spatial linkages are particularly relevant. Yet while ecologists have long-argued that space is important (Hudson et al.), prior economic work has largely ignored spatial issues. For instance, Horan and Wolf analyzed a case study of bovine tuberculosis (bTB) in Michigan deer, a problem where the disease appears to be confined to a single, spatially confined, wildlife population-an island. But wildlife disease matters generally are not spatially confined. Barlow, in analyzing bTB in possums in New Zealand, accounted for immigration of susceptible possums into a disease reservoir. However, he modeled immigration as fixed and unaffected by management. Bicknell, Wilen, and Howitt, also focusing on possums in New Zealand, developed a model that incorporates simple density-dependent net migration. This allowed the authors to account for endogenous immigration when deriving optimal culling strategies. However,
"It's a small world after all": NoC performance optimization via long-range link insertion

Networks-on-chip (NoCs) represent a promising solution to complex on-chip communication problems. The NoC communication architectures considered so far are based on either completely regular or fully customized topologies. In this paper, we present a methodology to automatically synthesize an architecture which is neither regular nor fully customized. Instead, the communication architecture we propose is a superposition of a few long-range links and a standard mesh network. The few application-specific long-range links we insert significantly increase the critical traffic workload at which the network transitions from a free to a congested state. This way, we can exploit the benefits offered by both complete regularity and partial topology customization. Indeed, our experimental results demonstrate a significant reduction in the average packet latency and a major improvement in the achievable network through with minimal impact on network topology
Effects of Substrate Orientation and Channel Stress on Short-Channel Thin SOI MOSFETs

We present a study of the effects of substrate orientation and longitudinal channel stress on the performance of extremely thin silicon-on-insulator (ETSOI) MOSFETs with gate lengths down to 25 nm. We find that short-channel electron and hole mobilities follow the long-channel mobility trends versus substrate orientation and longitudinal channel stress. We show that with respect to (100) silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrates, short-channel ETSOI MOSFETs on (110) SOI substrates lead to 25% enhancement of the p-channel FET drive current at the expense of 12% degradation of the n-channel FET drive current at a fixed off-current of 100 nA/μm and a supply voltage of 1 V. Finally, we estimate that an ETSOI complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) on (110) SOI substrates should lead to 10% faster ring oscillators compared with those on (100) SOI wafers, which also implies that (100)-oriented wafers with (110) sidewalls are a better choice for fabricating nonplanar FinFETs and trigate CMOS circuits.
A simple test structure for accurately monitoring channel doping variations in a MOSFET

A new test structure and measurement technique is described that allows improved monitoring of the integrated channel doping in MOSFETs that is the primary cause of statistical threshold voltage fluctuations. The methodology is physically based and has been applied successfully to a 0.8 /spl mu/m BiCMOS process. The advantages of this approach over the conventional method are clearly demonstrated. Results obtained from high volume testing are also presented. >
Ecological impacts of genotypic diversity in the clonal seagrass Zostera marina

Genetic diversity, like species diversity, can have important consequences for communities and ecosystems. However, little is known about whether the effects of genetic diversity demonstrated in experimental assemblages are of sufficient strength to generate patterns in natural systems. We conducted a survey of eelgrass (Zostera marina) to examine the correlation between eelgrass clonal diversity and two metrics of community structure across two seasons: shoot density (reflective of habitat quality) and biomass of epiphytic algae (as a measure of food resource availability). Eelgrass clonal diversity was not related to epiphyte biomass in either winter or summer. Interestingly, there was a positive relationship between eelgrass clonal diversity and shoot density only in the winter, when eelgrass experiences stress from abiotic and biotic factors. The magnitude of this correlation was similar to that of other factors known to affect shoot density such as tidal elevation or position in the bed. In contrast, summer shoot density and diversity were uncorrelated. This natural pattern is consistent with previous experimental results in which diversity positively affected shoot density only during periods of abiotic or biotic stress, suggesting that the effects of clonal diversity are sufficiently strong to influence shoot density in the field, despite the presence of potentially confounding environmental gradients.
Teacher Training Designs for Improving Instruction in Interracial Classrooms

Teacher training programs are among the variety of efforts utilized to meet the challenge of school desegregation and to improve the quality of interracial education. This article details some of the underlying assumptions of teacher retraining efforts-both inservice and preservice-and ties them into ongoing problems of racism in public schools. In addition to delineating targets of change or retraining, the article provides examples of various strategies for change, including the presentation of written and audiovisual materials, laboratory training sessions, diagnostic studies and feedback, formation of internal confrontation and problem-solving teams, and others. The strategies cannot stand by themselves, however; in use they must be integrated into other attacks on the structures of racism in our schools.
Experiments on magnetically-ordered superconductors

Abstract Certain ternary rare earth compounds exhibit long-range magnetic order in the superconducting state. Superconductivity coexists with antiferromagnetic order, but is destroyed by the onset of ferromagnetic order at a second transition temperature T c2 ≈ T M , where T M is the Curie temperature. In antiferromagnetic superconductors, the antiferromagnetic order modifies superconducting properties such as the curve of the upper critical magnetic field which exhibits a feature in the vicinity of the Neel temperature. In ferromagnetic superconductors, a long wavelength ( ≈ 10 2 A) sinusoidally modulated magnetic state develops in the superconducting state as a result of the superconducting-ferromagnetic interactions. Recent experiments on magnetically-ordered ternary and pseudoternary rare earth superconductors are briefly reviewed.
Folate Intake, Mthfr Genotype, and Sex Modulate Choline Metabolism in Mice

Choline and folate are interrelated in 1-carbon metabolism, mostly because of their shared function as methyl donors for homocysteine remethylation. Folate deficiency and mutations of methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) reduce the availability of a major methyl donor, 5-methyltetrahydrofolate, which in turn may lead to compensatory changes in choline metabolism. This study investigated the hypothesis that reductions in methyl group supply, either due to dietary folate deficiency or Mthfr gene deletion, would modify tissue choline metabolism in a sex-specific manner. Mthfr wild type (+/+) or heterozygous (+/−) knockout mice were randomized to a folate-deficient or control diet for 8 wk during which time deuterium-labeled choline (d9-choline) was consumed in the drinking water (~10 μmol/d). Mthfr heterozygosity did not alter brain choline metabolite concentrations, but it did enhance their labeling in males (P < 0.05) and tended to do so in females (P < 0.10), a finding consistent with greater turnover of dietary choline in brains of +/− mice. Dietary folate deficiency in females yielded 52% higher (P = 0.027) hepatic glycerophosphocholine, which suggests that phosphatidylcholine (PtdCho) degradation was enhanced. Labeling of the hepatic PtdCho in d3 form was also reduced (P < 0.001) in females, which implies that fewer of the dietary choline-derived methyl groups were used for de novo PtdCho biosynthesis under conditions of folate insufficiency. Males responded to folate restriction with a doubling (P < 0.001) of hepatic choline dehydrogenase transcripts, a finding consistent with enhanced conversion of choline to the methyl donor, betaine. Collectively, these data show that several adaptations in choline metabolism transpire as a result of mild perturbations in folate metabolism, presumably to preserve methyl group homeostasis.
When a Body Meets a Body: A Neo-Kleinian View of Language and Bodily Experience

“We used to be baffled by Kikongo words with so many different meanings: bangala, for most precious and most insufferable and also poisonwood. That one word brought down father’s sermons every time, as he ended them all with the shout ‘Tata Jesus is bangala!’” In The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver (1998), Leah, one of four sisters, is describing her experience of a paranoid, grandiose, intellectualized missionary father intent on subduing the body Africa through the ritual of baptism. The Poisonwood Bible is a story told in five voices, a postmodern version of A. Kurosawa’s (1950) film Rashomon. It is not simply the same events described through different eyes, but a whole tapestry of the growing up together of a mother and four daughters that articulates subjective experience as much different as it is similar. Mother Orleanna Price, Rachel, the twins Leah and Adah, and the youngest, Ruth May, are seared by their experience of the Reverend Price, an increasingly mad evangelical preacher, and by the experience of living in Africa. Africa may be seen as symbolic of the body of the mother, the embodiment of nature and of real bodily experience that both resists the laws of culture and gives rise to the laws of culture. The Reverend Price’s increasingly manic attempts to impress the Law of the Father onto the land may be seen as a great Lacanian failure to instantiate the domination of the paternal order onto the feminine body. Obsessed with defeating the flesh, and with bringing his form of salvation to a people he refused to allow to touch his own soul, he retreats further and further into stereotypical language and behavior, mistaking the toxic poisonwood for a simple weed, pulling it out
Avatar-centric risk evaluation

Hazard detection and prevention of natural and man-made disasters at critical civil infrastructure is becoming increasingly important. Recent events, such as earthquakes and terrorist attacks, clearly demonstrated the societal and economical impact stemming from the limitations and uncertainty within currently deployed emergency response systems. We present a new data visualization and simulation platform that facilitates risk detection, emergency response and assessment in hazardous situations. The platform is based on the acquisition, modeling and analysis of sensor data, to capture objects and temporal changes in the observed spaces. Avatars are acquired, inserted and tracked in a virtual environment, enabling the simulation of multiple perilous situations and assisting in determining possible risk mitigation strategies. While the initial research focus is on algorithms and techniques in the field of hazard detection and prevention using path planning, the results can also be applied to diverse fields such as media contents development, cultural heritage, e-learning, teleconferencing, animation and video gaming.
Thermal stability of ME recording media by measuring time and temperature effects

Different metal evaporated (ME) media were compared to investigate the cause of the temperature dependence of coercivity for ME media. It was found that exchange coupling and the temperature dependence of coercivity near room temperature are separate issues. By measuring the time dependence of coercivity, the crystalline anisotropy of Co was found to be the main cause of ME media's temperature dependence of coercivity. The switching volume for Hi8 ME medium was found to be extremely small, about 1100 nm/sup 3/, which indicates highly desirable low recording noise. Furthermore, by evaluating the value of K/sub u/V/K/sub B/T, ME media were found to be thermally stable.
The formation of specific synaptic connections between muscle sensory and motor neurons in the absence of coordinated patterns of muscle activity

The influence of patterned neuronal activity on the formation of specific monosynaptic connections between muscle sensory and motor neurons was studied in the developing spinal cord of the bullfrog. Motor innervation of the forelimb was disrupted in tadpoles by resection of the brachial ventral root before these synaptic connections began to form in the spinal cord. In those frogs accepted for analysis, motor reinnervation of the forelimb was nonspecific and there was no coordinated movement of the limb. Synaptic connections therefore developed in the absence of temporal correlations of activity in muscle spindle afferents and motoneurons. Despite this disruption, afferent fibers supplying the triceps brachii muscles selectively innervated a restricted subpopulation of brachial motoneurons. Those motoneurons that received large synaptic inputs from afferents in one branch of the triceps nerve also received large inputs from afferents in the other triceps branches. Inputs from afferents supplying other muscles were not correlated with those from triceps afferents, suggesting the existence of a property common to all triceps afferents causing them to innervate a common subpopulation of motoneurons. These results show that in the absence of normal patterned sensory activity, sufficient cues still exist to permit the formation of specific sets of synaptic connections, and they argue indirectly for the existence of chemical labels that can determine the pattern of these connections.
Response of plant antioxidant defense genes to environmental stress.

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the genomic responses of plants to the oxidative stress—particularly in maize . The chapter also discusses several mechanisms that the plants and other aerobes have evolved for protection against the toxic effects of reduced oxygen species. Particular emphasis is placed on the discussion of the molecular dissection of two antioxidant gene families—catalase and superoxide dismutase—in an effort to unravel the mechanisms by which the genome perceives and responds to oxidative stress signals. Among higher eukaryotes, plants have evolved diverse ways of responding to their environment. Plants have incorporated a variety of environmental signals into their developmental pathways that have provided for their wide range of adaptive capacities over time. An example of such an environmental signal is light that—in addition to driving photosynthesis—serves as a trigger and modulator of complex regulatory and developmental mechanisms. The chapter presents an example of photosynthesis to illustrate the catalase gene expression in maize.
Neuropsychological Assessment of Obsessive–Compulsive Disorder

Obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) is marked by several dysfunctional neuropsychological performance domains. This chapter reviews further specific functional neuropsychological domains and expected behavioral limitations associated with these areas. These functional domains are broadly categorized based on executive functioning, working memory, and memory confidence. The chapter also considers each of these areas in childhood OCD.
Ultra HD Blu-ray Format Video Characteristics

The Blu-ray Disc Association recently finished a new format extension called Ultra HD Blu-ray. The new format supports next-generation video technologies and several optional enhancements. This paper provides an in-depth description of the video technologies offered by Ultra HD Blu-ray and an overview of new optional features. The Ultra HD Blu-ray format allows improvement to the video representation by increasing the pixel code value quantization to 10 bits, enabling representation of high dynamic range imagery using SMPTE ST 2084 electrooptical transfer function, enabling representation of wide color gamut imagery using International Telecommunications Union Radiocommunication Sector (ITU-R) BT.2020 color primaries, increasing spatial resolution to 3840 $\times$ 2160, and allowing increased frame rates up to 60p. Carriage of mastering display color volume metadata described by SMPTE ST 2086 and new content metadata parameters called maximum content light level (MaxCLL) and maximum frame average light level (MaxFALL) are also enabled by the new format. Additionally, the Ultra HD Blu-ray format improves compression efficiency by using the new HEVC/H.265 video compression standard.
Nomad Raids and Fortified Pueblos

No one who has seen the fortified villages and inaccessible cliff dwellings of the Pueblo III period of Anasazi culture can fail to have been impressed by the amount of labor expended in their construction or by the inconvenience entailed in living in them. It is clear that they reflect an urgent need for defense; it is less clear against whom their builders had to defend themselves. Southwestern archaeologists have been prone to dismiss this problem with somewhat vague statements about nomad invasions which compelled the agricultural Anasazi to draw together into large groups and build strongholds. This theory was a dyanced very early in the history of Southwestern research, when most of our present information on this region was lacking, and it may be profitable to re-examine it at this time.
Introduction: Intergovernmental Dimensions of Urban Fiscal Stress

Cities are not the principal controllers of their own fiscal destinies. The causes and consequences of this lack of control are rooted deeply in our constitutional system, which divides power between a national government and fifty state governments and fails to mention local governments at all. Because the very existence of cities is a product of state authorization through grants of incorporation rights and charter approvals, it should come as no surprise that municipalities depend on state governments for the powers they need to maintain their fiscal health.' What is surprising is that little attention has been focused on the role that states play in "creating" municipal fiscal stress and the extent to which a municipality's ability to recover from stress is contingent upon state laws. Many of these laws were passed under demographic, socioeconomic, and political conditions drastically different from those of today. This special issue of Publius focuses on the intergovernmental dimensions of municipal governments' reactions to fiscal stress. Two common threads tie the articles together (see Table 1). One is the notion that stress is largely exogenous to cities. It is more often a product of national and regional fiscal decline, which in turn is followed by drastic demographic and socioeconomic changes. It is also the product of the historical and cultural environment in which the city has evolved. A second, and perhaps more pervasive, theme is that state governments have played a major role in urban fiscal decline and must redefine that role to reverse the process. The power to relieve municipal fiscal pressure lies with the states much more than with the federal government. This fact will be more apparent in the 1980s because of cutbacks in direct federal aid to cities and the creation of new block grants designed to strengthen the role of the states in the allocation of federal funds.
Using a Theory of Learning in College Mathematics Courses

Suppose you were teaching a mathematics course that included the topic of coset of a group. More specifically, you might want your students to understand what a coset is, to be able to find examples and non-examples, to establish some properties such as the lemmas leading up to Lagrange’s theorem as well as the theorem itself together with its applications. You might even want your students to be able to construct examples of quotient groups and prove theorems relating properties of a quotient group to properties of the original group.
Quantitative effects of myocardial edema on the left ventricular pressure-volume relation. Influence of cardioplegia osmolarity over two hours of ischemic arrest.

We previously studied edema and left ventricular pressure-volume relations in a porcine heart model in which edema occurred even with hyperosmolar crystalloid cardioplegia. This susceptibility to edema was attributed to venous occlusion and an initial 20-minute period of ischemia. Results did not demonstrate reversal of edema by hyperosmolar perfusates. Accordingly, in the present study, heart weight, myocardial water content, and left ventricular pressure-volume curves were measured before and after perfusion-induced edema in eight isolated, arrested, hypothermic porcine hearts. Cardioplegic solution was infused 2.1 ± 0.8 minutes after the onset of ischemia, and the atrioventricular ring was not clamped during the administration of cardioplegic solution. Cardioplegic solution (1 L) was infused at intervals of 33 ± 6 minutes at 4° C. Solution osmolarity was 380 (Stanford solution) or 294 mOsm/L (Plegisol solution). The perfusion sequence was 380-1, 380-2, 294-1, 380-3. Pressure-volume relations were assessed with the use of left ventricular volume at a pressure of 10 mm Hg and the ventricular chamber stiffness constant, β, derived from P = αeβV. Perfusions 380-1 and 380-2 did not affect the pressure-volume curve. Perfusion 294-1 increased heart weight and water content (p J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 1993;106:651-7)
Visualizing Optical Phase Anisotropy in Black Phosphorus

Layered black phosphorus has triggered enormous interest since its recent emergence. Compared to most other two-dimensional materials, black phosphorus features a moderate band gap and pronounced in-plane anisotropy, which stems from the unique atomic-puckering crystal structure. The future potential of black phosphorus in optoelectronics demands a deeper understanding of its unique anisotropic behavior. In particular, the phase information on light when interacting with the material is imperative for many applications in the optical regime. In this work we have comprehensively studied a wide range of optical anisotropic properties of black phosphorus, including the Raman scattering, extinction spectra, and phase retardance by utilizing conventional spectral measurements and a uniquely developed interferometric spectroscopy and imaging technique. The phase retardance of light passed through black phosphorus is exploited in conjunction with polarization interferometric techniques to demonstrate an optical ...
Stochastic optimization for electric power generation expansion planning with discrete climate change scenarios

Abstract This research is dedicated to the study of electric power system generation expansion planning considering uncertainty of climate change. Policy makers are increasingly concerned about the effects of climate change and its impact on human systems when making decisions. Electric power generation expansion planning (GEP) problems that determine the optimal expansion capacity and technology under particular technical constraints, given cost and policy assumptions, are undoubtedly among those decisions. The best approach to comprehensively model climate change uncertainties, and to optimize the generation planning under uncertainty needs to be rigorously studied. In this research, a preliminary GEP model is proposed with available input data from various sources. Discrete scenarios of possible climate change outcomes are defined and optimization models are formulated to specifically model uncertainty. Relationships between climate change and GEP parameters are defined for each scenario to consider their effects. The preliminary GEP model is then solved under each scenario to identify the climate change impact on generation expansion planning decisions. Two related optimization models are then presented and solved to find the optimal results under uncertainty: Model 1 is expected total cost minimization, and Model 2 is maximum regret minimization. Both models find compromise solutions that are suitable for all scenarios, which avoid the possible risk associated with a poor decision that is only optimal for one particular scenario, or only for an average climate change forecast.
Investigating the Impact of Technology Use on the Efficacy of Broadcast Brand Integration

Rapid advances in technology have influenced the ways in which consumers experience live events, both in person and via television. One of the most prevalent of recent trends has been an increase in the use of “second screens,” or the simultaneous consumption of an event and use of an electronic device, such as a smartphone or tablet (Galily 2014). A recent study of US consumers found that 86 % said they participated in multitasking during television consumption, up from 72 % in 2011 (Deloitte 2014). Research has suggested that this trend is particularly pervasive among sport fans (Gantz and Lewis 2014). There are a number of entertainment options available to sports fans via such devices, including accessing statistical information about the event, viewing other camera angles, and participating with other fans on social media.
Towards first-principles based prediction of highly accurate electrochemical Pourbiax diagrams

Electrochemical potential/pH (Pourbaix) diagrams underpin many aqueous electrochemical processes and are central to the identification of stable phases of metals for processes ranging from electrocatalysis to corrosion. Even though standard DFT calculations are potentially powerful tools for the prediction of such diagrams, inherent errors in the description of transition metal (hydroxy)oxides, together with neglect of van der Waals interactions, have limited the reliability of such predictions for even the simplest pure metal bulk compounds, and corresponding predictions for more complex alloy or surface structures are even more challenging. In the present work, through synergistic use of a Hubbard U correction, a state-of-the-art dispersion correction, and a water-based bulk reference state for the calculations, these errors are systematically corrected. The approach describes the weak binding that occurs between hydroxyl-containing functional groups in certain compounds in Pourbaix diagrams, corrects f...
Democratic Education Online: Combating Racialized Aggressions on Social Media.

In ShortSocial media have opened the doors for racial hostility to be displayed on campus in new ways, and specifically towards students of color.Most racially hostile posts occur on geo-locating a...
Improved longitudinal EMAT transducer for elastic constant extraction

Elastic constants are extracted by measuring the shear and longitudinal bulk acoustic wave (BAW) velocities along several crystal orientations. Rapid, precise measurement of crystal elastic properties are fundamental in the evaluation of new materials for the fabrication of acoustic wave based filters and resonators. The extraction of elastic constants can be done by the use of external piezoelectric transducers in pulse echo or sweep frequency time domain reflection techniques. Recently introduced resonant ultrasound techniques can also be used for elastic constants extraction. This paper discusses a novel, highly efficient design for a longitudinal electromagnetic acoustic transducer (L-EMAT) to be used as an alternative in crystal elastic constant extraction. EMATs are used to launch bulk acoustic waves (BAWs) in samples by way of Lorentz's force due to the induction of surface eddy currents in the presence of a static magnetic field. The EMAT technology is a powerful, non-contact technique used for nondestructive evaluation (NDE) of materials. For NDE applications, acoustic wave mode selection is not critical, provided a dominant mode is identified to detect potentially catastrophic microfractures and metal fatigue in structures such as airplane wings and railroad tracks. Recently, this technology has been extended to the extraction of elastic constants of crystals. For precise elastic constant extraction, plate resonators are employed. It is desirable to avoid the excitation of various longitudinal and shear modes by the same EMAT transducer, for two main reasons: (a) the resonating frequency peaks may overlap, reducing the accuracy of the measurement; (b) the efficiency of the transducer in generating the desired mode increases, if only one mode is excited by the EMAT. The longitudinal EMAT design and fabrication originally reported in this paper explores mode selectivity and improved efficiency by: i) increasing the static magnetic field at the surface of the sample; ii) maximizing the current density in the sample's metallic layer; and iii) orienting the current and static magnetic field such that they are orthogonal. The fabricated longitudinal EMAT was used to measure the longitudinal BAW phase velocity values of X-cut and Z-cut quartz samples, and X-cut langatate (LGT, La3Ga5.5Ta0.5O14) samples. Details of the longitudinal EMAT design, its impedance response, the resonant peaks in the frequency spectra of the measured quartz and LGT plate resonators are reported in the paper. The measured results using a RITEC SNAP system showed better than 0.1% accuracy on the quartz and LGT samples when compared to published constants. The designed longitudinal EMAT has shown to be an accurate and simple alternative in determining crystal elastic constants
Nursing and Patient Care

The Journal of Nursing and Patient Care plays a crucial role in the development of effective nursing practices. It attracts scholars from a broad array of scientific disciplines who engage in research, develop theories and models, and analyze real life cases, and design training and development programs for a professional audience. Nurses face many challenges. Patient care initiatives and new technologies can result in better nursing practices. However, the nursing profession faces an imminent shortage of nurses. Retention of older nurses, integration of newer and inexperienced nurses, and the high patient nurse ratio constitute pressing problems with potentially detrimental consequences for patient care. Finding new and innovative ways to address these challenges is essential to attract and retain talents in the profession and to maintain high quality patient care. Such challenges highlight the need for research on turnover, occupational health among nurses, effective newcomer adjustment strategies, mentoring,training and development, and to elucidate ways nurses can play a leadership role in the profession.
Nurse Competence on Physiologic Monitors Use: Toward Eliminating Alarm Fatigue in Intensive Care Units

Background Studies on nurse competence on alarm management are a few and tend to be focused on limited skills. In response to Phase II of implementing the National Patient Safety Goal on clinical alarm systems safety, this study assessed nurses' perceived competence on physiologic monitors use in intensive care units (ICUs) and developed and validated a tool for this purpose. Methods This descriptive study took place in a Magnet hospital in a Southwestern state of the U.S. A Nurse Competence on Philips Physiologic Monitors Use Survey was created and went through validation by 13 expert ICU nurses. The survey included 5 subscales with 59 rated items and two open-ended questions. Items on the first 4 subscales reflect most common tasks nurses perform using physiologic monitors. Items on the fifth subscale (advanced functions) reflect rarely used skills and were included to understand the scope of utilizing advanced physiologic monitors' features. Thirty nurses from 4 adult ICUs were invited to respond to the survey. Results Thirty nurses (100%) responded to the survey. The majority of nurses were from Neuro (47%) and Surgical Trauma (37%) ICUs. The data supported the high reliability and construct validity of the survey. At least one (3%) to 8 nurses (27%) reported lack of confidence on each item on the survey. On the first four subscales, 3% - 40% of the nurses reported they had never heard of or used 27 features/functions on the monitors. No relationships were found between subscales' scores and demographic characteristics (p > .05). Nurses asked for training on navigating the central-station monitor and troubleshooting alarms, and the use of unit-specific super users to tailor training to users' needs. Conclusion This is the first study to create and test a list of competencies for physiologic monitors use. Rigorous, periodic and individualized training is essential for safe and appropriate use of physiologic monitors and to decrease alarm fatigue. Training should be comprehensive to include all necessary skills and should not assume proficiency on basic skills. Special attention should be focused on managing technical alarms. Increasing the number of super users is a recommended strategy for individualized and unit-specific training. There is a need for a usability testing of complex IT-equipped medical devices, such as physiologic monitors, for effective, efficient and safe navigation of the monitors.
A Structural and Mechanistic Model of the O2-Evolving Complex of Photosystem II

Acetate-inhibited photosystem II (PSII) membranes illuminated at temperatures above 250 K and rapidly frozen to 77 K display a broadened radical electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) signal arising from the S2 state of the Mn4 cluster interacting with YZ• (1, 2). Spectral simulation of the S2YZ• EPR signal from acetate-inhibited PSII indicates that the distance between the two paramagnets is 7.7 ± 0.5 A based on a point-dipole approximation (3). To gain insight into the structure of the water-oxidation site, we have constructed a series of structural models which incorporate a Mn4 complex, YZ, Ca2+ and Cl−. We find that a structural model in which YZ is H-bonded to water/hydroxide bound to one Mn atom in the cluster is consistent with the YZ-Mn4 distance, the proposed YZ and Mn4 cluster orientations in the membrane, and proposals that YZ participates in proton-coupled electron transfer with the Mn4 cluster. By considering the chemistry and reactivity of Mn=O species, we propose a mechanism of the O-O bond-forming step which includes new functional roles for Ca2+ and Cl− (4).