cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
In vivo and in vitro examination of stability of primary hyperoxaluria-associated human alanine:glyoxylate aminotransferase.

Primary hyperoxaluria type I is a severe kidney stone disease caused by mutations in the protein alanine:glyoxylate aminotransferase (AGT). Many patients have mutations in AGT that are not deleterious alone but act synergistically with a common minor allele polymorphic variant to impair protein folding, dimerization, or localization. Although studies suggest that the minor allele variant itself is destabilized, no direct stability studies have been carried out. In this report, we analyze AGT function and stability using three approaches. First, we describe a yeast complementation growth assay for AGT, in which we show that human AGT can substitute for function of yeast Agx1 and that mutations associated with disease in humans show reduced growth in yeast. The reduced growth of minor allele mutants reflects reduced protein levels, indicating that these proteins are less stable than wild-type AGT in yeast. We further examine stability of AGT alleles in vitro using two direct methods, a mass spectrometry-based technique (stability of unpurified proteins from rates of H/D exchange) and differential scanning fluorimetry. We also examine the effect of known ligands pyridoxal 5′-phosphate and aminooxyacetic acid on stability. Our work establishes that the minor allele is destabilized and that pyridoxal 5′-phosphate and aminooxyacetic acid binding significantly stabilizes both alleles. To our knowledge, this is the first work that directly measures relative stabilities of AGT variants and ligand complexes. Because previous studies suggest that stabilizing compounds (i.e. pharmacological chaperones) may be effective for treatment of primary hyperoxaluria, we propose that the methods described here can be used in high throughput screens for compounds that stabilize AGT mutants.
Spectral emission of rare-earth doped Lu2SiO5 single crystals

Abstract Radioluminescence of float-zone grown single-crystal Lu 2 SiO 5 :RE (RE = Tb, Sm, Tm, Eu, Pr, Yb) has been measured and prominent electronic transitions have been identified. Tb, Sm and Tm are excellent host-lattice activators that yield strong emission relative to the luminescence from well-known Lu 2 SiO 5 :Ce. Eu- and Pr-doped Lu 2 SiO 5 exhibit weak luminescence whereas the Yb-doped sample is non-luminescent in the UV–vis portion of the spectrum. With the possible exception of Lu 2 SiO 5 :Pr, Tb 3+ is found to be an unintentional impurity in all samples investigated. Lu 2 SiO 5 :Sm is a candidate phosphor for radiation detection because it is dense and bright with orange–red emission that matches the spectral response of high-efficiency photodiodes.
Permutation scores tests for homogeneity of angular and compositional gaussian distributions

Based on independent samples, tests for homogeneity of distributions for compositional and directional data models are considered. Rao's (modified) scores statistics in conjunction with an alignment procedure are incorporated in the formulation of suitable randomisation tests which avoid the complications of likelihood based parametrics and exploit the Chatterjee-Sen (multivariate) permutation principle for such shape distributions. Our proposed tests amend readily to other directional data models. Finite as well as large sample size properties of the proposed tests are presented.
Metabolically stabilized long-circulating PEGylated polyacridine peptide polyplexes mediate hydrodynamically stimulated gene expression in liver

A novel class of PEGylated polyacridine peptides was developed that mediate potent stimulated gene transfer in the liver of mice. Polyacridine peptides, (Acr-X)(n)-Cys-polyethylene glycol (PEG), possessing 2-6 repeats of Lys-acridine (Acr) spaced by either Lys, Arg, Leu or Glu, were Cys derivatized with PEG (PEG(5000 kDa)) and evaluated as in vivo gene transfer agents. An optimal peptide of (Acr-Lys)(6)-Cys-PEG was able to bind to plasmid DNA (pGL3) with high affinity by polyintercalation, stabilize DNA from metabolism by DNAse and extend the pharmacokinetic half-life of DNA in the circulation for up to 2 h. A tail vein dose of PEGylated polyacridine peptide pGL3 polyplexes (1 μg in 50 μl), followed by a stimulatory hydrodynamic dose of normal saline at times ranging from 5 to 60 min post-DNA administration, led to a high level of luciferase expression in the liver, equivalent to levels mediated by direct hydrodynamic dosing of 1 μg of pGL3. The results establish the unique properties of PEGylated polyacridine peptides as a new and promising class of gene delivery peptides that facilitate reversible binding to plasmid DNA, protecting it from DNase in vivo resulting in an extended circulatory half-life, and release of transfection-competent DNA into the liver to mediate a high-level of gene expression upon hydrodynamic boost.
Transport, structural, and interfacial properties of poly (vinyl alcohol)-polysulfone composite nanofiltration membranes

Abstract Composite nanofiltration membranes were prepared by coating poly(vinyl alcohol) hydrogels on polysulfone ultrafiltration support membranes. Ultra-thin and defect-free poly(vinyl alcohol) hydrogels were cast using multi-step coating procedure with dilute PVA aqueous solutions and novel in situ cross-linking. The combined Spiegler–Kedem–film theory model was used to extract water permeability, solute permeability, reflection coefficients, and mass transfer coefficients for the composite membranes. Transport of water and salt ions through PVA coating films was dramatically influenced by feed solution pH and counter-ion valence as well as PVA molecular weight, concentration, and extent of cross-linking. Characterization of PVA coating film thickness, extent of cross-linking, surface thermodynamic properties, and crystallinity were used to explain differences in observed transport properties of the composite membranes.
Delayed gastric emptying in gastroesophageal reflux disease: reassessment with new methods and symptomatic correlations.

ABSTRACT Background Previous studies have shown that patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) have slower rates of gastric emptying than control subjects, but the prevalence has differed because of variations in methodology. The recent establishment of international control values for scintigraphic gastric emptying assessment makes standardization of this technique possible. It would also be useful to determine whether specific gastrointestinal symptoms predicted delayed gastric emptying in GERD. Methods Forty-nine patients (mean age, 42.9 years; range, 24–65 years; 35 women, 14 men) who were diagnosed with GERD in the previous 12 months were given a standardized 280-kcal 99 Tc-labeled low fat meal (egg beater). Percentage of intragastric residual content was recorded at baseline and at hourly intervals for 240 minutes by scintigraphy. Patients were also asked about the presence of dyspepsia (bloating, postprandial discomfort or belching, or early satiety), dysphagia, or regurgitation. Results Sixteen patients (33%) had intragastric residual contents greater than the 95th percentile (>40%) at 120 minutes, and 13 (26%) had abnormal results at 240 minutes (>6%). Dyspepsia was present in all patients. Regurgitation and dysphagia were common (present in approximately 80% and 40% of patients, respectively) and the prevalence of these symptoms did not differ between patients with normal versus delayed gastric emptying. Conclusions Using standardized techniques: 1) delayed gastric emptying is common in patients presenting with GERD at both 120 and 240 minutes after ingestion of a solid meal and 2) symptoms alone are not a useful predictor of this pathophysiology. Awareness of this subgroup of patients can be important in treatment strategies and long-term therapy.
Bite wound infections

Patients with mammalian bite wounds account for hundreds of thousands of emergency department, urgent care center, and physician office visits in the United States each year. The types of wounds encountered by physicians range from insignificant scratches to life-threatening neck and facial injuries. Infectious complications of bite wounds are common, and the consequences of these infections are significant and sometimes disabling. This article reviews the infectious complications of cat, dog, and human bite wounds. The prevention of tetanus and rabies virus infection, the appropriate antimicrobial treatment of bacterial infections, and the frequent need for surgical consultation and intervention are emphasized.
Myocardial infarction treated with two lymphagogues, calcium dobesilate (CLS 2210) and hyaluronidase: a coded, placebo-controlled animal study.

Summary The effects on the evolution of canine myocardial infarction (MI) of the lymphagogues hyaluronidase (hyaluronate glucanohydrolase) (known to reduce the size of MIs) and calcium dobesilate (calcium, 2,5-dihydroxybenzenesulfonate, CLS 2210) were compared in a coded, placebo-controlled study in 48 dogs, during the first 24 h after coronary occlusion. Ml was induced by embolization of the anterior descending branch of the left coronary artery. The animals were given either a placebo, CLS 2210, or hyaluronidase by intravenous infusion begun immediately after embolization and continued for 24 h. The volume of myocardial tissue at risk was evaluated at 2 and 24 h by ungated computed tomography (CT), and after necropsy by staining myocardial sections with triphenyl tetrazolium chloride (TTC). Electrocardiography and estimation of serum creatine kinase (CK.) activity were also performed. In the 25 animals that survived 24 h, the results of all tests showed that there was less myocardial damage in the animals treated with the two lymphagogues than in those treated with placebo, and less damage with CLS 2210 than with hyaluronidase. The good correlation between the volume of ischemic tissue as assessed by CT in vivo and as assessed by TTC staining after necropsy (r = 0.959) confirms that the CT per-fusion phase defect accurately reflects the volume of tissue at risk during the evolution of MI. This study has shown that CLS 2210 is at least as effective as hyaluronidase in reducing myocardial damage due to coronary artery occlusion in dogs.
Predictors of treatment efficacy in a clinical trial of three psychosocial treatments for adolescent depression.

ABSTRACT Objective To assess the predictors of treatment outcome across treatments, as well as those associated with differential treatment response. Method One hundred seven adolescent outpatients, aged 13 to 18 years, with DSM-III-R major depression were randomly assigned to one of three manual-based, brief (12 to 16 sessions) psychosocial treatments: cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), systemic-behavioral family therapy, or nondirective supportive therapy. Those with good and poor outcomes were compared. Result Continued depression was predicted by clinical referral (versus via advertisement) and was in part mediated by hopelessness. Other predictors of depression were comorbid anxiety disorder and higher levels of cognitive distortion and hopelessness at intake. Achievement of clinical remission was predicted by a higher level of self-reported depression. Poorer functional status was predicted by a higher level of initial interviewer-rated depression. Comorbid anxiety and maternal depressive symptoms predicted differential treatment efficacy. CBT's performance continued to be robust with respect to nondirective supportive therapy, even in the presence of the above-noted adverse predictors. Conclusion Predictors of poor outcome may give clues as to how to boost treatment response. Subjects who come to treatment for clinical trials via advertisement (versus clinical referral) may show more favorable treatment responses. CBT is likely to be a robust intervention even in more complex and difficult-to-treat patients.
Enhancement of GaAs solar cell performance by using a ZnO sol–gel anti-reflection coating

Abstract The performance of a GaAs p–n junction solar cell was investigated by coating the device with 110 nm thick ZnO sol–gel anti-reflection film. A post-furnace thermal annealing at 150 °C for 30 min was performed on the ZnO film after it was spin coated on the device with a speed of 8000 rpm. Ellipsometry was used to measure the reflectance, thickness, and the refractive index of the ZnO film. The solar cell performance was investigated by using the current–voltage technique from which the power conversion efficiency was extracted. The spectral response and quantum efficiency were also measured for the solar cell. An enhancement, after utilizing the ZnO anti-reflection coating, was observed on the order of 32%, 38, and 51% for the power conversion efficiency, spectral response, and quantum efficiency, respectively.
Chemoprophylactic effectiveness of aureomycin and terramycin in murine bartonellosis.

ConclusionsBoth aureomycin and terramycin, started 48 to 72 hours before the expected onset of illness and continued for 9 days were found to be effective in preventing murine bartonellosis. Rats treated with these compounds developed no evidence of illness while the morbidity in the control groups was 100%, and the mortality 50 to 100%. A few bartonellae appeared in the blood of some of the treated rats, but anemia and hemoglobinuria were prevented. The chemoprophylactic effectiveness of these 2 compounds in murine bartonellosis is in contrast to negative results obtained with a wide variety of other antibiotics.
Tensile forces in skeletal structures.

Recent hypotheses about the mechanisms of adaptation of bone to impressed mechanical forces differ according to the extent to which tensile stresses are thought to be functionally important in bone. A pilot study of three anatomical regions by means of the photoelastic analogy suggests the possibility that net tension rarely exists in significantly large regions of bones during normal function. Thus the examination of two situations (opposite linear attachment of muscles to the lips of bony crests and opposite areal attachment of muscles to either side of thin bony plates) suggests that in rare cases where precise anatomical architecture is such that net tension may be present, then bone is not found; such regions consist of appropriate collagenous structures. In the third situation (opposite attachment of tendons to a sesamoid bone) where it would appear that net tension ought to exist, it is suggested that it is likely that it does not. Net tension probably occurs only in tendons running in tightly curved bony grooves: those very situations where sesamoid bones are not present.
The distribution of selected organic molecules in freshwater sediment

Abstract The microbial degradation of organic material in lake sediment is dependent upon several parameters including the molecular nature of the organic material. In this study, the flux in the concentration of selected substrate molecules (cellulose, chitin and protein) was examined in sediment over a five-month period. In addition, the levels of metabolic products (free sugars, free amino acids and volatile acids) were also monitored. Results of the study indicate that while chitin and protein were actively metabolized, cellulose was less subject to degradation. The distribution of metabolic products over sample time indicated that aerobic metabolism was the primary mechanism of decomposition. Free sugars and dissolved amino acid levels always exceeded volatile acid concentrations.
Creation of a Postpartum Roadmap and Whiteboard: A Family's Step-By-Step Guide Toward Their Journey Home

Childbearing Poster Presentation Purpose for the Program To manage expectations of the postpartum patient and her family regarding the hospital stay from admission to discharge through the use of he postpartum roadmap and whiteboard. Patient feedback indicated new families were uncertain of what to expect from caregivers and what was expected of them with regard to learning all of the postpartum and newborn skills needed for successful discharge. Proposed Change Rather than allowing patients to remain unsure about their care, an interdisciplinary team set out to create a tool (by going shift-to-shift to learn what tests, skills, and education would occur) that allows families to navigate to a successful discharge, beginning the moment they arrive on the postpartum unit. The postpartum roadmap and whiteboard guide the new family through everything that will occur during the postpartum stay. By explaining to the family what they can expect of the caregivers and what they in turn will be expected to learn and demonstrate, we have created an interactive tool that outlines every phase of the postpartum hospital stay. Implementation, Outcomes and Evaluation After reviewing input from nurses, physicians, patients (current and past through satisfaction surveys), marketing, and social work, two tools (one written roadmap and one whiteboard) were created that broke the postpartum experience and expectations for families into six phases: Admission, Getting to know your baby, Preparing to be a family at home, Complete all patient tests, You are ready to go home, and Discharge. All staff on the four mother–baby units were educated on how to communicate the roadmap and whiteboard upon the patient's admission to the floor. Evaluation surveys were given to staff and patients to ensure satisfaction was obtained on both parts. The survey results showed staff appreciated patients having a written tool they could refer to after being educated on expectations during the postpartum stay. Patients seemed to enjoy referring to the written tool as well as the visual ease of the whiteboard. The combination of both tests put patients at ease with concerns about expectations of their care. Overall, since implementing the tool in January 2013, there has been a 15.8% increase in very good response to the Press Ganey's survey question on discharge preparedness. Implications for Nursing Practice The postpartum roadmap and whiteboard may be valued tools that allow nursing and patients to fully communicate all stages and expectations of postpartum care. Including patients in the plan of care is an innovative approach to nursing.
Decision Horizons in Discrete Time Undiscounted Markov Renewal Programming

The number of periods which have much influence on the initial decision is vital to a real world decision maker who desires to ``validate'' the usefulness of applying a stationary known distribution model to a nonstationary partial information problem. This question can be studied by analytically or computationally studying the convergence rate of successively longer finite horizon problems with one or more extreme sets of terminal conditions. White [16], Schweitzer [10], Odoni [9], Hastings [3], and Morton [6] have contributed analytically to this question for the undiscounted Markov decision problem. Recently Boyse [1] adapted some of these results to the discrete time undiscounted Markov renewal programming problem. Here a simpler extension is given, which allows all the earlier results to be used directly, providing somewhat stronger results.
Course of hypertension during prolonged treatment with heterologous renin.

L'hypertension arterielle causee par des injections sous-cutanees de renine de porc disparait graduellement au cours d'un traitement prolonge. L'elevation du taux d'anti-renine plasmatique est vraisemblablement responsable de ce retour a la tension normale. Pendant la phase d'hypertension, on a note une potentiation des effets cardiovasculaires de la renine et de l'angiotensine, potentiation dont le role dans la pathogenese de l'hypertension reste a determiner.
Radioactive nuclear beam facilities in north America: Status and outlook☆

Abstract Seven existing north American radioactive nuclear beam (RNB) facilities provide nuclear physics research opportunities. The US Rare-Isotope Accelerator (RIA) initiative promises enormously widened opportunities for the region via a highly flexible next-generation RNB facility.
Wafer-level packaging method incorporating embedded thermal management for GaN-based RF front-ends

We report a new wafer-level, low-cost, scalable RF front-end packaging approach that enables heterogeneous integration of GaN integrated circuits (IC) with other ICs (Si, SiGe, InP, GaAs etc) and RF passives in a 3D package that includes RF/DC interconnects and thermal management. This is achieved by forming a composite substrate utilizing double-side polished alumina wafers with embedded electroformed heat spreaders and through substrate vias. We call this composite substrate Integrated Thermal Array Plate (ITAP). Compared to conventionally mounted GaN power amplifier (PA) using AuSn and silver epoxy the ITAP pckaged X-band PA demonstrated 1.42x and 2x improvement in output power respectively (36.4 dBm, with 57% associated power added efficiency). By using a junction temperature (T j ) evaluation circuit we demonstrated that the ITAP reduces the T j by 40° when the dissipated power is 2W/mm or increases the power handling by 1.45x when the T j is held at 150°C. Using the same approach we are also reporting wafer-level packaged GaN power switches as well as thermal cycling and thermal shock test data that show no performance degradation.
Probability mapping of land use change: A GIS interface for visualizing transition probabilities

Abstract In the past few years the visualization and modeling of land use change over time has been carried out by summarizing the total amount, types, and locations of change but without a means to query the spatial pattern of the individual changes or investigate the probability of change in or between land cover or land use classifications. We show how the stochastic process known as Markov chains afford a powerful descriptive and predictive model for land use changes and for future land use distributions. We also present an automated interface for change analysis that employs a Geographic Information System and an application that facilitates the construction and spatial query of change mechanisms. This interactive spatial query tool, conceived for the investigation of the impact of urban growth management polices, is applied to remote sensing data for 1984 and 1988–1989 of the Chesapeake Bay region (U.S.A.). Matrix menus written in ARC/INFO Macro Language (AML) permit the spatial display of the different land cover classes and are also an excellent tool for the visualization of dynamic change and for hypothesis formulation.
Covalent linkage between RNA and nascent DNA in the slime mold, Physarum polycephalum.

Abstract When α- 32 P-labeled deoxyribonucleoside triphosphates are injected into plasmodia of the eukaryotic slime mold, Physarum polycephalum , they are incorporated initially into strands of DNA which are mostly less than 300 nucleotides long. Sixty minutes after injection incorporated deoxyribonucleoside triphosphates are found in much longer strands. If the short strands found two minutes after injection are denatured and centrifuged to equilibrium in a Cs 2 SO 4 density gradient, they migrate to a density slightly greater than that of single-stranded Physarum DNA. When these short strands are treated with alkali to hydrolyze RNA, a small fraction of the incorporated 32 P is made acid-soluble and is identified as a mixture of the four ribonucleoside 2′,3′-monophosphates. Such transfer of 32 P to ribonucleotides occurs when any of the 4 α- 32 P-labeled deoxyribonucleoside triphosphates is used for injection, but the transfer is greatest with [α- 32 P]dGTP. We conclude that very short stretches of RNA are found linked through phosphodiester bonds to nascent DNA chains in Physarum polycephalum and that any of the 16 possible combinations of ribo-and deoxyribonucleotides can occur at the RNA-DNA junction.
Critical analysis of the mean-field approximation for the calculation of the magnetic moment in the Friedel-Anderson impurity model

It is shown that the calculation of the magnetic moment of a Friedel-Anderson impurity in mean-field theory is unreliable. A class of approximate solutions, which contains the mean-field solution as an element, is expressed in rotated Hilbert space and optimized. The optimal state has considerably lower energy than the mean-field solution and requires almost twice the Coulomb exchange $U$ to become magnetic. Since most moment calculations of magnetic impurities, for example the spin-density-functional theory, use the mean-field approximation the resulting magnetic moments have to be critically reexamined.
Older motherhood and the changing life course in the era of assisted reproductive technologies

Midlife, once a focus of particular interest to gerontologists because of its implications for later life, has recently received little attention. But as new reproductive technologies have expanded in the United States, motherhood is occurring at older ages. While older motherhood is not a new social practice, what is unique is that an increasing number of women are becoming pregnant through technological means, often for the first time, at the end of their reproductive cycle. These women can be understood as part of a new middle age, engaging in new life course possibilities that respond to changing social, cultural, physical, and economic realities, and potentially extending much later in the life course. Drawing on interviews with 79 couples, we utilize symbolic interactionist conceptualizations of identity and stigma to consider how women negotiate the shifting social identities associated with older motherhood. We conclude that older motherhood will be one phenomenon contributing to an enduring change in views of what constitutes old age, and that it will be seen as occurring much later in the life course.
A comment on redundant coordinates

Abstract An example is examined which contra-indicates the proposition that the force constant matrix of a system possessing a redundant coordinate must be singular.
Composition profiles and reaction mechanisms in a near-sooting premixed benzene/oxygen/argon flame

The structure of a near-sooting flat low-pressure laminar benzene-oxygen-argon flame was studied using a molecular beam mass spectrometer system. Mole fraction profiles of fifty-one species are presented and their mechanistic implications are discussed with regard to the decay of benzene and the formation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and soot. A mechanism is outlined for production of C 2 , C 3 , C 4 and C 5 species from initial attack of O atom on benzene. Trends observed as the fuel equivalence ratio is increased past the sooting limit suggest a sequential growth from polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons of 120–210 amu to heavier species and then to soot. A critical step in mechanisms for rapid growth of aromatic structures by free radical addition reactions is the stabilization of the adduct by forming six-membered rings. A mechanism requiring methyl substitution on the aromatic ring is discussed.
Radical (NO) and Nonradical (N2O) Reagents Convert a Ruthenium(IV) Nitride to the Same Nitrosyl Complex

The ruthenium(IV) nitride complex (PNP)RuN (PNP = (tBu2PCH2-SiMe2)2N-) reacts rapidly with 2NO to form (PNP)Ru(NO) and N2O, via no detectable intermediate. The linear nitrosyl complex has a planar structure. In a slower reaction, (PNP)RuN reacts with N2O by O-atom transfer (established by 15N labeling) to give the same nitrosyl complex and N2. Density functional theory (B3LYP) calculations show both reactions to be very thermodynamically favorable. Analysis of possible intermediates in each reaction shows that radical (PNP)RuN(NO) has much spin density on nitride N (hence, N2-), while one 2 + 3 metallacycle, (PNP)RuN3O, has the wrong connectivity to form a product. Instead, an intermediate with a doubly bent N2O (hence, a two-electron reduced N-nitrosoimide form) brings the O atom in proximity to the nitride N on the path to a product.
The nitric oxide-cyclic GMP pathway plays an essential role in both promoting cell survival of cerebellar granule cells in culture and protecting the cells against ethanol neurotoxicity.

NMDA has two beneficial effects on primary neuronal cultures of cerebellar granule cells (CGCs) established from 10-day-old rat pups. First, NMDA is neurotrophic and will enhance survival of CGCs in culture in the absence of ethanol. Second, ethanol exposure will induce cell death in CGC cultures, and NMDA can lessen this ethanol-induced cell loss, i.e., NMDA is neuroprotective. Because NMDA can stimulate production of nitric oxide (NO), which can in turn enhance synthesis of cyclic GMP, this study tested the hypothesis that the NO-cyclic GMP pathway is essential for NMDA-mediated neurotrophism and neuroprotection. Inhibiting the synthesis of NO with N(G)-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester eliminated both the NMDA-mediated neurotrophic and neuroprotective effects. Similarly, inhibiting production of cyclic GMP with the agent LY83583 also abolished these effects. The NO generator 2,2'-(hydroxynitrosohydrazono) bisethanamine produced neurotrophic and neuroprotective effects that were similar to those induced by NMDA. Also, 8-bromo-cyclic GMP produced neurotrophic and neuroprotective effects that were quite similar to the effects produced by NMDA. In conclusion, NMDA enhances survival of cerebellar granule cells and protects the cells against ethanol-induced cell death by a mechanism(s) that involves the NO-cyclic GMP pathway.
Thermal Expansions of Solid Argon, Krypton, and Xenon above 1 K

A differential parallel-plate capacitance dilatometer has been used to measure the linear thermal-expansion coefficients of free-standing samples of solid argon (1-35 K), krypton (1-45 K), and xenon (1-105 K). The present data for argon and krypton are systematically larger than existing x-ray lattice-parameter data above 20 K by a constant proportionality factor which varies from 1 to 3% for different runs and different samples and which most likely is due to bonding of the samples to the capacitor plates. These data have been normalized using the x-ray results. The xenon results agree with other published data without the use of a scale factor. Temperature-dependent Gr\"uneisen parameters $\ensuremath{\gamma}$ are calculated for these solids using available thermodynamic data. These calculations give ${\ensuremath{\gamma}}_{0}=2.7\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.1$ for argon, 2.67 \ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{} 0.07 for krypton, and 2.5 \ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{} 0.1 for xenon, with the major uncertainty occurring through the bulk-modulus data.
Certain Physiological and Biochemical Changes in Greenhouse‐Grown Tomatoes (Lycopersicon Esculentum Mill.)

SUMMARY Tomatoes of V. R. Moscow and Fireball varieties grown in a greenhouse varied markedly from previously reported data on field-grown lots of the same varieties with regards to total titratable acidity, color development, free reducing sugars, pectins, volatile reducing substances (VRS), organic acids, and ascorbic acid. Concentrations of all the nonvolatile attributes except total titratable acidity (%) were low as compared with field-ripened tomatoes. Lower concentrations of VRS, organic acids (mg/100 g), and sugars (%) considerably affected flavor, aroma, and taste in greenhouse tomatoes. Color (beta-carotene and lycopene) development was defective. In general, tomatoes grown in the greenhouse were “flat” and tasteless.
Electron-capture/negatron-emission branching ratio of 236Np (22 hr)

Abstract A value of 1·05 ± 0·17 has been determined for the electron-capture/negatron-emission branching ratio of 22 hr 236Np using a combination of α-counting techniques and mass spectrometric measurements. The relative production of 22 hr 236Np to that of long-lived 236Np has been recalculated and found to be about seven for the interaction of 18 MeV deuterons with 235U.
Radiation dose to the floor of mouth muscles predicts swallowing complications following chemoradiation in oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma

Summary Objectives While radiation dose to the larynx and pharyngeal constrictors has been the focus of swallowing complications, the suprahyoid muscles, or floor of mouth (FoM) muscles, are critical for hyoid and laryngeal elevation and effective bolus diversion, preventing penetration and aspiration. We hypothesize that radiation dose to these muscles may be important in the development of dysphagia. Materials and methods We studied 46 patients with OPSCC treated with CRT and who underwent baseline swallowing evaluations and post-treatment videofluoroscopic swallowing studies (VFSS) from 2007 to 2010. Patients with abnormal penetration aspiration scores (PAS > 2) served as the study population and patients with normal PAS scores (⩽2) served as the control cohort. Three suprahyoid muscles and two extrinsic tongue muscles were individually delineated and collectively referred to as the FoM muscles. Radiation dose-volume relationships for these muscles were calculated. Univariate logistic regression analysis was used to determine parameters of significance between patients with normal or abnormal PAS scores. A multivariate regression analysis was subsequently performed to isolate the most statistically critical structures associated with abnormal PAS. Results Univariate analysis resulted in significance/borderline significance of multiple structures associated with abnormal PAS following irradiation. However, when a multivariate model was applied, only the mean dose to the floor of mouth and minimum dose to the geniohyoid were associated with post-radiation abnormal PAS. Conclusions The dose and volume delivered to the collective FoM muscles may be associated with an increased risk of laryngeal penetration/aspiration to a greater degree than previously recognized organs at risk.
Wherever You Go, There You Are: Bringing Experiences of Race, Class, Language, Gender, and Culture to Research in Mathematics Education.

Through this performance ethnography the authors present the stories of emerging scholars who in their research identify an interest in equity issues in the field of mathematics education. The article is based on life-story interviews with 26 participants. Six composite characters were developed to represent the voices of the participants. Particular attention is devoted to issues of race and how other experiences can provide windows into the racialized experiences that exist in learning and teaching mathematics.
Paying for Security: The Security-Prosperity Dilemma in the United States

To investigate the direct and indirect effects of defense spending on economic growth, the authors develop a multilink (via investment, employment, and exports) defense-growth model and test it with U.S. data for the time period from 1951 to 2000. By doing so, they advance previous scholarship on the indirect effects of the defense-growth trade-off through both a theoretical and empirical investigation of multiple indirect channels. Using a nonlinear four-sector production function model that incorporates labor, capital, technology, and exports, they test the direct and indirect impacts of defense spending on growth. Defense spending has a negative, indirect effect on economic growth via investment and export while the direct impact on growth seems to be rather small. Nonmilitary government spending has economic effects on growth that are similar to those associated with military spending.
Accounting research and policy making

This paper discusses the role of research information in policy making, describes some instances in which that information played an important role, and concludes with observations about ways to develop enhanced relationships between researchers and policy makers.
Daily Sequential Changes in Plasma Atrial Natriuretic Factor Concentrations in Mechanically Ventilated Low-Birth-Weight Infants

Plasma atrial natriuretic factor (ANF) concentrations are elevated in mechanically ventilated infants. To test the hypothesis that changes in pulmonary compliance affect ANF cncentration, we measured
NMR Hyperpolarization Techniques for Biomedicine

Recent developments in NMR hyperpolarization have enabled a wide array of new in vivo molecular imaging modalities, ranging from functional imaging of the lungs to metabolic imaging of cancer. This Concept article explores selected advances in methods for the preparation and use of hyperpolarized contrast agents, many of which are already at or near the phase of their clinical validation in patients.
CORRELATES OF LOW BIRTH WEIGHT: PSYCHOLOGICAL STATUS AT SIX TO SEVEN YEARS OF AGE.

Four hundred and forty-two low birth-weight children and 415 full-time children were examined when 6-7 years using a battery of six psychological measures. In addition, data were available as regards their families9 socioeconomic class and mothers9 child-rearing practices. Perinatal information was obtained from hospital records and neurological data from a pediatric examination performed when subjects were 40 weeks of age. Data were analyzed only for those children whose IQ9s were ≥ 60, and who were free of gross sensory or motor handicaps, or severe emotional disturbances. Results suggest the following conclusions: 1. Premature children are psychologically impaired when race, maternal attitudes and practices, and social class factors are simultaneously controlled. Such impairment is not secondary to personality trait disturbances. 2. The degree of impairment increases [SEE TABLE XI IN SOURCE PDF] with decreasing birth weight. 3. Lower birth weight is a cause of poor performance largely in so far as low birth weight is associated with perinatal trauma, or a composite index suggestive of neurological damage, or both. 4. Perceptual-motor disturbances (as measured by the Bender Gestalt Test), flaws in comprehension and abstract reasoning, perseveration trends, poor gross motor development, immature speech, and impaired IQ significantly identify low birth-weight children. The effectiveness of these measures9 discriminatory power apparently is in the order listed. 5. Statistical interaction of low birth-weight or neurological damage with race, socioeconomic status, or subject9s sex was not obtained for any of the six psychological measures.
One-representative safety analysis in the non-monotonic transform model

We analyze the safety question for the Non-Monotonic Transform (NMT) model, an access control model that encompasses a wide variety of practical access control mechanisms. In general, safety analysis, i.e. whether it is possible for a specified subject to obtain a given access right for a certain object, is computationally intractable, even for many monotonic models. We identify one-representable NMT schemes and argue that they have tractable safety analysis. Safety analysis of one-representable schemes considers exactly one representative of each type of subject in the initial state, and thus the complexity of safety analysis is independent of the total number of subjects in the system. We demonstrate by example that one-representable schemes admit applications of practical interest, and that safety analysis guides the construction of such schemes. >
VIEWS OF NATURE AND SELF-DISCIPLINE: EVIDENCE FROM INNER CITY CHILDREN

Children growing up in the inner city are at risk of academic underachievement, juvenile delinquency, teenage pregnancy, and other important negative outcomes. Avoiding these outcomes requires self-discipline. Self-discipline, in turn, may draw on directed attention, a limited resource that can be renewed through contact with nature. This study examined the relationship between near-home nature and three forms of self-discipline in 169 inner city girls and boys randomly assigned to 12 architecturally identical high-rise buildings with varying levels of nearby nature. Parent ratings of the naturalness of the view from home were used to predict children’s performance on tests of concentration, impulse inhibition, and delay of grati¢cation. Regressions indicated that, on average, the more natural a girl’s view from home, the better her performance at each of these forms of self-discipline. For girls, view accounted for 20% of the variance in scores on the combined selfdiscipline index. For boys, who typically spend less time playing in and around their homes, view from home showed no relationship to performance on any measure. These ¢ndings suggest that, for girls, green space immediately outside the home can help them lead more eiective, self-disciplined lives. For boys, perhaps more distant green spaces are equally important. # 2002 Academic Press
Hybrid Channel Codes for Efficient FSO/RF Communication Systems

Conventional hybrid RF and optical wireless communication systems make use of parallel Free Space Optical (FSO) and Radio Frequency (RF) channels to achieve higher reliability than individual channels. True hybridization can be accomplished when both channels collaboratively compensate the shortcomings of each other and thereby improve the performance of the system as a whole. In this paper, we propose a novel coding paradigm called "Hybrid Channel Coding" that not only optimally achieves the capacity of the combined FSO and RF channels but also can potentially provide carrier grade reliability (99.999%) for hybrid FSO/RF systems. The proposed mechanism uses non-uniform and rate-compatible LDPC codes to achieve the desired reliability and capacity limits. We propose a design methodology for constructing these Hybrid Channel Codes. Using analysis and simulation, we show that by using Hybrid Channel Codes, we can obtain significantly better availability results in terms of the required link margin while the average throughput obtained is more than 33% better than the currently existing systems. Also by avoiding data duplication, we preserve to a great extent the crucial security benefits of FSO communications. Simulations also show that Hybrid Channel Codes can achieve more than two orders of magnitude improvement in bit error rate compared to present systems.
Eight-channel microdisk CW laser arrays vertically coupled to common output bus waveguides

1.6-nm spectrally spaced eight-channel semiconductor microdisk laser arrays are presented, where high-Q disk lasing modes are vertically coupled out through a common bus waveguide. The spectral channel spacing is achieved by varying the disk resonator radii from 10.6 to 10.95 /spl mu/m. Typical linewidth of 0.25 nm and side-mode suppression ratio of -20dB are observed under continuous-wave lasing operation near /spl lambda/=1.51 /spl mu/m. This is the first demonstration of integrated microresonator laser arrays.
Sensor networks with mobile agents

Architecture for large scale low power sensor network is proposed. Referred to as sensor networks with mobile agents (SENMA), SENMA exploit node redundancies by introducing mobile agents that communicate opportunistically with a large field of sensors. The addition of mobile agents shifts computationally intensive tasks away from primitive sensors to more powerful mobile agents, which enables energy efficient operations under severely limited power constraints. An opportunistic ALOHA random access coupled with a direct sequence spread spectrum physical layer is proposed. A comparison of SENMA with a flat ad hoc sensor network shows a substantial gain in energy efficiency.
Rapid infusion of additive red blood cells: Alternative techniques for massive hemorrhage

Additive red blood cells (RBCs) have replaced packed RBCs for treatment of massive hemorrhage in many medical centers. Modifications in transfusion apparatus and RBC viscosity were tested for their ability to provide rapid flow of additive RBCs. Infusions through standard transfusion tubing and three types of large-bore transfusion tubing were compared using three large-bore catheters, two infusion pressures, and additive RBCs of three different viscosities. More than 13 minutes were required to infuse 1 unit 4 C RBCs using current accepted practice (16-gauge catheter, standard tubing, gravity flow). The most rapid technique resulted in an infusion time of 20 ± 1 seconds for 22 C blood. The addition of pressure infusion, large-bore tubing, or an 8F catheter to a transfusion system reduced infusion times up to 74%, 82%, and 85%, respectively. The combination of all three techniques resulted in a maximum improvement of 96%. Saline predilution and warming did not consistently provide clinically important differences in infusion time but may be important for avoidance of hypothermia. Spectrophotometric measurement of free hemoglobin demonstrated no clinically significant hemolysis secondary to rapid infusion. Clinical management should address potential hypocalcemia and coagulopathy. We conclude that large-bore tubing, pressure infusion, and an 8F catheter can provide important decreases in infusion time of additive RBCs without evidence of significant hemolysis.
Studies of the Strain-Dependent Properties of A15 Filamentary Conductors at Brookhaven National Laboratory

Strain-dependent properties of A15 filamentary conductors can be divided into two broad categories of effects: elastic or “intrinsic” strain effects and irreversible behavior, usually associated with the formation of cracks in the A15 compound. The term “strain tolerance” of conductors is often used without properly distinguishing between the two types of effects with resulting confusion and conflicting claims from proponents of various types of conductors. This may be illustrated by a comparison between the behavior of Nb3Sn and V3Ga conductors. The intrinsic response of the “thermodynamic” superconducting properties, such as critical temperature and magnetic field, to elastic strain-produced changes in size and shape of the crystal lattice differs between the two compounds by nearly an order of magnitude, with Nb3Sn having the larger response,1 yet the degree to which the crystal lattice may be distorted from its equilibrium state before brittle fracture occurs is essentially the same for the two compounds. Therefore, when bronze-processed composite conductors are intentionally strained, the superconducting critical parameters of a V3Ga conductor will be relatively insensitive to applied strain compared to a Nb3Sn conductor.
Uncertainty Quantification in Verification and Validation of Computational Solid Mechanics Models - Example

Verification and validation (V&V) are processes designed to assure, with quantifiable confidence, that the computational models we use, solve the problems they are meant to solve, and that the models adequately represent the structures they are meant to model. The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Standards Committee on Verification and Validation in Computational Solid Mechanics (PTC 60/V&V 10) has approved a Guide for performing V&V [1]. The Guide is brief, and does not provide specific methods for the performance of model V&V, therefore, subcommittees have been formed to develop documents specifying methods for accomplishing the various activities of V&V. One of these subcommittees was formed to develop the “Uncertainty Quantification Supplement to the ASME V&V 10-2006 Guide.” The talks in this special session describe some of the activities associated with uncertainty quantification in V&V. This paper presents an example used to illuminate some of the tools and measures developed in the other papers in this sequence. The example describes experimental results and model predictions.