LWIR spectral measurements of volcanic sulfur dioxide plumes

Algorithms and Technologies for Multispectral, Hyperspectral, and Ultraspectral Imagery X, Proceedings of the SPIE, Vol. 5425, edited by Sylvia S. Shen and Paul E. Lewis, 2004

SAR Littoral Studies Workshop

Presentation includes welcome, early acknowledgements, workshop goals and objectives, schedule, and conclusions / discussion

Rotational effects in vibrational excitation of H2 on Cu (100).

Theoretical Chemistr

Hunter S. Thompson and gonzo journalism: A research guide.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify and annotate resources related to Hunter S. Thompson and Gonzo Journalism. Design/methodology/approach – Numerous searches are performed in online library catalogs, online databases, and web search engines to identify monographs, journal articles, multimedia titles, and web sites relevant to the topic. Resources located in the searches are then reviewed and annotated by the author and selected for inclusion in the paper based on their relative quality. Findings – A great deal of popular work has been devoted to Thompson and Gonzo Journalism, but also a surprising amount of scholarly analysis. Most primary source material is now available in monographic form, and critical literature is fairly evenly distributed between journal articles and monographs. Search results for Thompson and Gonzo Journalism are often complicated by a number of factors, but these can be compensated for by using search limiters. Research limitations/implications – Because of the sheer volume of work, scholarly and popular, devoted to Thompson and Gonzo Journalism, it is not possible to provide a comprehensive evaluation of all of the materials on the topic. While every attempt is made to be inclusive, the goal of the guide was to include the best sources on the topic, and some resources are reviewed but not included because of quality issues. A number of un-annotated bibliographies are referenced that would be helpful in directing readers to additional resources not included here. Originality/value – Although there are bibliographies of Thompson\u27s work, none are annotated or prepared with academic researchers in mind. In addition, none of the bibliographies located in the course of researching the paper attempted to identify academic journal literature related to Thompson or Gonzo Journalism

Plasma Wave Observations During Electron Beam Experiments at High Altitudes

Electron beam experiments on the nearly geosynchronous P78-2 satellite conducted in 1979 resulted in observations of intense radiation near the local electron gyrofrequency. These signals resembled naturally occurring fce waves during the same period. The amplitude of the stimulated waves depended upon beam parameters. During 50-eV beam operations, current levels of 10/xA produced strong emissions. Current levels of 1 /xA and 100/xA did not. These emissions correspond in time to previously reported observations of electron distributions which suggest heating of the local thermal plasma. Sufficient power is in the observed emissions to explain some aspects of the heated electron distributions observed during the experiments.This report was submitted by The Aerospace Corporation, El Segundo, CA 90245, under Contract No. F04701-88-C-0089 with the Space Systems Division, P.O. Box 92960, Los Angeles, CA 90009-2960

STUDIES ON ACUTE TOXICITY OF NICOTINE AND AGING

The mechanisms in the brain for acute toxicity of nicotine were investigated in rats. Age-related changes in acute toxicity of nicotine were also studied. An acute intraperitoneal (i. p.) or intracerebroventricular (i. c. v.) injection of nicotine intensified convulsions and death dose-dependently. But those convulsive responses induced by nicotine (i. c. v.) were more rapid and shorter than those induced by nicotine (i. p.). Acute toxic effects of nicotine were dose-dependently antagonized by mecamylamine (i. p. or i. c. v.), but not by hexamethonium (i. p.). Nicotine (10 or 24.5 mg/kg, i. p.) significantly increased dopamine, 3, 4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid and homovanillic acid in striatum. Furthermore, electrical lesion of striatum suppressed acute toxicities of nicotine. Pretreatment of SCH-23390, but not of haloperidol or sulpiride, blocked nicotine-induced convulsions and death. Pretreatment of phenobarbioal, diazepam or MK-801 also prevented acute toxicity of nicotine. Nicotine levels in the blood and cortex after an acute i. p. injection of nicotine (24.5 mg/kg) were significantly higher in old rats than in young rats. Hepatic metabolisms of nicotine decreased age-relatedly. Also, nicotine (24.5 mg/kg, i. p.)-induced lethality tended to increase in old rats. On the other hand, nicotine (24.5 mg/kg, i. p.) did not change monoamine levels in any brain regions in old rats. These results indicate that acute toxic effects of nicotine can be attributed to a central site. Acute toxicity of nicotine may be related to dopaminergic neurons, especially in the nigrostriatal system, as well as GABAergic and glutamatergic neurons. Furthermore, stimulation of D1 receptors in the central dopaminergic system may be concerned with the propagation of acute toxic effects of nicotine. Also, acute toxicity of nicotine in old rats may be involved in two significant decreases, in hepatic metabolism of nicotine and in brain sensitivity to nicotine

Maternal Influenza Infection During Pregnancy Impacts Postnatal Brain Development in the Rhesus Monkey

Background: Maternal infection with influenza and other pathogens during pregnancy has been associated with increased risk for schizophrenia and neurodevelopmental disorders. In rodent studies, maternal inflammatory responses to influenza affect fetal brain development. However, to verify the relevance of these findings to humans, research is needed in a primate species with more advanced prenatal corticogenesis. Methods: Twelve pregnant rhesus monkeys were infected with influenza, A/Sydney/5/97 (H3N2), 1 month before term (early third trimester) and compared with 7 control pregnancies. Nasal swabs and blood samples confirmed viral shedding and immune activation. Structural magnetic resonance imaging was conducted at 1 year; behavioral development and cortisol reactivity were also assessed. Results: Maternal infections were mild and self-limiting. At birth, maternally derived influenza-specific immunoglobulin G was present in the neonate, but there was no evidence of direct viral exposure. Birth weight and gestation length were not affected, nor were infant neuromotor, behavioral, and endocrine responses. However, magnetic resonance imaging analyses revealed significant reductions in cortical gray matter in flu-exposed animals. Regional analyses indicated the largest gray matter reductions occurred bilaterally in cingulate and parietal areas; white matter was also reduced significantly in the parietal lobe. Conclusions: Influenza infection during pregnancy affects neural development in the monkey, reducing gray matter throughout most of the cortex and decreasing white matter in parietal cortex. These brain alterations are likely to be permanent, given that they were still present at the monkey-equivalent of older childhood and thus might increase the likelihood of later behavioral pathology

Retroviral gene transfer is inhibited by chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans/glycosaminoglycans in malignant pleural effusions

Gene therapy may be an important adjuvant for treating cancer in the pleural space. The initial results of retroviral gene transfer to cancer cells in malignant pleural effusions revealed that transduction was markedly inhibited, and studies to characterize the inhibitory factor(s) were performed. The inhibition was contained within the soluble, rather than cellular, components of the effusions and was demonstrated with amphotropic, gibbon ape leukemia virus, and vesicular stomatitis virus-glycoprotein pseudotyped retroviral vectors. After excluding complement proteins, a series of studies identified chondroitin sulfates (CSs) as the inhibitory substances. First, treatment of the effusions with mammalian hyaluronidase or chondroitinases, but not Streptomyces hyaluronidase, abolished the inhibitory activity. Second, addition of exogenous CS glycosaminoglycans mimicked the inhibition observed with pleural effusions. Third, immunoassays and biochemical analyses of malignant pleural effusion specimens revealed CS in relevant concentrations within pleural fluid. Fourth, proteoglycans/glycosaminoglycans isolated from the effusions inhibited retroviral gene transfer. Analyses of the mechanism of inhibition indicate that the chondroitin sulfates interact with vector in solution rather than at the target cell surface. These results suggest that drainage of the malignant pleural effusion, and perhaps enzymatic pretreatment of the pleural cavity, will be necessary for efficient retroviral vector mediated gene delivery to pleural metastases

The Colorado Plateau Coring Project (CPCP): 100 Million Years of Earth System History

Lasting over 100 million years, the early Mesozoic (252 to 145 Ma) is punctuated by two of the five major mass extinctions of the Phanerozoic (Permo-Triassic and Triassic-Jurassic) plus several smaller extinction events. It witnessed the evolutionary appearance of the modem terrestrial biota including frogs, salamanders, turtles, lizards, crocodilians, dinosaurs, birds, and mammals, and spans a time of dramatic climate changes on the continents. What is arguably the richest record of these events lies in the vast (- 2.5 million km2) complex of epicontinental basins in the western part of Pangea, now largely preserved on the Colorado Plateau (Fig.l). Since the mid-19th century, classic studies of these basins, their strata, and their fossils have made this succession instrumental in framing our context of the early Mesozoic Earth system as reflected in the international literature. Despite this long and distinguished history of study of the Colorado Plateau region, striking ambiguities in temporal resolution, major uncertainties in global correlations, and significant doubts about paleolatitudinal position hamper incorporation of the huge amount of information from the region into-tests of major competing climatic, biotic, and tectonic hypotheses and a fundamental understanding of Earth system processes

Regulation of murine airway surface liquid volume by CFTR and Ca2+-activated Cl- conductances

Two Cl- conductances have been described in the apical membrane of both human and murine proximal airway epithelia that are thought to play predominant roles in airway hydration: (1) CFTR, which is cAMP regulated and (2) the Ca2+-activated Cl- conductance (CaCC) whose molecular identity is uncertain. In addition to second messenger regulation, cross talk between these two channels may also exist and, whereas CFTR is absent or defective in cystic fibrosis (CF) airways, CaCC is preserved, and may even be up-regulated. Increased CaCC activity in CF airways is controversial. Hence, we have investigated the effects of CFTR on CaCC activity and have also assessed the relative contributions of these two conductances to airway surface liquid (ASL) height (volume) in murine tracheal epithelia. We find that CaCC is up-regulated in intact murine CF tracheal epithelia, which leads to an increase in UTP-mediated Cl-/volume secretion. This up-regulation is dependent on cell polarity and is lost in nonpolarized epithelia. We find no role for an increased electrical driving force in CaCC up-regulation but do find an increased Ca2+ signal in response to mucosal nucleotides that may contribute to the increased Cl-/volume secretion seen in intact epithelia. CFTR plays a critical role in maintaining ASL height under basal conditions and accordingly, ASL height is reduced in CF epithelia. In contrast, CaCC does not appear to significantly affect basal ASL height, but does appear to be important in regulating ASL height in response to released agonists (e.g., mucosal nucleotides). We conclude that both CaCC and the Ca2+ signal are increased in CF airway epithelia, and that they contribute to acute but not basal regulation of ASL height