52 research outputs found
On the Structure of Style Space for Documents
We identify three aspects of style pertaining to documents. The first of these we call literary style and it includes the word and sentence constructions and choice of illustrations traditionally associated with authorship. The second we call informative style and it includes formatting and iconic choices that convey additional information such as the document\u27s genre or corporate identity. The third aspect of style covers the degrees of freedom remaining for the author and is used to convey the author\u27s intent. Literary style is the realm of academic scholarship and discourse and is beyond the scope of the present article. But corporate and intent style can be quantified by measuring many different attributes. For example, density of text, colorfulness of images, regularity of positioning of images, diversity of font and typeface, all contribute to the document\u27s overall style. Indeed, we have identified more than 150 different value functions, each of which can be measured, and each of which can contribute to a document\u27s overall stylistic appearance. Measurement of these value functions effectively places a document as a point in a style space. But the 150 value functions are not independent. A heuristic approach is described for investigating the possibility of finding basis vectors for intent space
Application of activated barrier hopping theory to viscoplastic modeling of glassy polymers
YesAn established statistical mechanical theory of amorphous polymer deformation has been incorporated as a plastic mechanism into a constitutive model and applied to a range of polymer mechanical deformations. The temperature and rate dependence of the tensile yield of PVC, as reported in early studies, has been modeled to high levels of accuracy. Tensile experiments on PET reported here are analyzed similarly and good accuracy is also achieved. The frequently observed increase in the gradient of the plot of yield stress against logarithm of strain rate is an inherent feature of the constitutive model. The form of temperature dependence of the yield that is predicted by the model is found to give an accurate representation. The constitutive model is developed in two-dimensional form and implemented as a user-defined subroutine in the finite element package ABAQUS. This analysis is applied to the tensile experiments on PET, in some of which strain is localized in the form of shear bands and necks. These deformations are modeled with partial success, though adiabatic heating of the instability causes inaccuracies for this isothermal implementation of the model. The plastic mechanism has advantages over the Eyring process, is equally tractable,and presents no particular difficulties in implementation with finite elements.F. Boutenel acknowledges an Erasmus Programme Scholarshi
Minocycline Inhibition of Monocyte Activation Correlates with Neuronal Protection in SIV NeuroAIDS
Background: Minocycline is a tetracycline antibiotic that has been proposed as a potential conjunctive therapy for HIV-1
associated cognitive disorders. Precise mechanism(s) of minocycline’s functions are not well defined.
Methods: Fourteen rhesus macaques were SIV infected and neuronal metabolites measured by proton magnetic resonance
spectroscopy (1H MRS). Seven received minocycline (4 mg/kg) daily starting at day 28 post-infection (pi). Monocyte
expansion and activation were assessed by flow cytometry, cell traffic to lymph nodes, CD16 regulation, viral replication,
and cytokine production were studied.
Results: Minocycline treatment decreased plasma virus and pro-inflammatory CD14+CD16+ and CD14loCD16+ monocytes,
and reduced their expression of CD11b, CD163, CD64, CCR2 and HLA-DR. There was reduced recruitment of monocyte/
macrophages and productively infected cells in axillary lymph nodes. There was an inverse correlation between brain NAA/
Cr (neuronal injury) and circulating CD14+CD16+ and CD14loCD16+ monocytes. Minocycline treatment in vitro reduced SIV
replication CD16 expression on activated CD14+CD16+ monocytes, and IL-6 production by monocytes following LPS
stimulation.
Conclusion: Neuroprotective effects of minocycline are due in part to reduction of activated monocytes, monocyte traffic.
Mechanisms for these effects include CD16 regulation, reduced viral replication, and inhibited immune activation.
Citation: Campbell JH, Burdo TH, Autissier P, Bombardier JP, Westmoreland SV, et al. (2011) Minocycline Inhibition of Monocyte Activation Correlate
Protective effect of vitreous against hemoglobin neurotoxicity
Hypothesis: Vitreous protects neurons from hemoglobin (Hb) toxicity.
Model: Primary cortical cell cultures (murine); cultures treated with Hb 10 micromolar alone or with bovine vitreous or vitreous components. Outcome measures: Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH)release, propidium iodide fluorescence staining intensity, culture malondialdehyde (MDA), culture iron
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