Algorithms for testing that sets of DNA words concatenate without secondary structure

We present an efficient algorithm for determining whether all moleculesin a combinatorial set of DNA or RNA strandsare structure free, and thus availablefor bonding to their Watson-Crick complements.This work is motivated by the goalof testing whether strands used in DNAcomputations or as molecular bar-codesare structure free, where the strands areconcatenations of short words. We alsopresent an algorithm for determining whetherall words in S*, for some finite setS of equi-length words, are structure free. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

The face of the patent is not the “Whole Story”: determining effective life of a pharmaceutical patent in the United States

This article provides an overview of the factors that may contribute to the effective term of protection for a pharmaceutical product in the USA––by patent and by FDA market exclusivities, identifies public and commercial sources for collecting relevant patent term and exclusivity data, and provides a strategy for ensuring that the effective term of protection has been calculated accurately.     

Updating Situation Models: Reply to Zwaan and Madden (2004).

E. J. O'Brien, M. L. Rizzella, J. E. Albrecht, and J. G. Halleran (1998) demonstrated that, consistent with the memory-based text processing view, outdated or incorrect information can be reactivated through a passive resonance process. Once reactivated, this outdated information can still influence comprehension. R. A. Zwaan and C. J. Madden (2004) suggested that the O'Brien et al. findings resulted from problems with the materials used. The present authors show that the possible "problems" identified by Zwaan and Madden do not adequately explain the findings of O'Brien et al. and that Zwaan and Madden's Experiment 3 lacks sufficient control or power to support their alternative interpretation of O'Brien et al. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Counting Fluorescent Dye Molecules on DNA Origami by Means of Photon Statistics

Obtaining quantitative information about molecular assemblies with high spatial and temporal resolution is a challenging task in fluorescence microscopy. Single‐molecule techniques build on the ability to count molecules one by one. Here, a method is presented that extends recent approaches to analyze the statistics of coincidently emitted photons to enable reliable counting of molecules in the range of 1–20. This method does not require photochemistry such as blinking or bleaching. DNA origami structures are labeled with up to 36 dye molecules as a new evaluation tool to characterize this counting by a photon statistics approach. Labeled DNA origami has a well‐defined labeling stoichiometry and ensures equal brightness for all dyes incorporated. Bias and precision of the estimating algorithm are determined, along with the minimal acquisition time required for robust estimation. Complexes containing up to 18 molecules can be investigated non‐invasively within 150 ms. The method might become a quantifying add‐on for confocal microscopes and could be especially powerful in combination with STED/RESOLFT‐type microscopy.     

Quantification and source characterization of volatile organic compounds from exercising and application of chlorine-based cleaning products in a university athletic center

Humans spend approximately 90% of their time indoors, impacting their own air quality through occupancy and activities. Human VOC emissions indoors from exercise are still relatively uncertain, and questions remain about emissions from chlorine-based cleaners. To investigate these and other issues, the ATHLETic center study of Indoor Chemistry (ATHLETIC) campaign was conducted in the weight room of the Dal Ward Athletic Center at the University of Colorado Boulder. Using a Vocus Proton-Transfer-Reaction Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometer (Vocus PTR-TOF), an Aerodyne Gas Chromatograph (GC), an Iodide-Chemical Ionization Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometer (I-CIMS), and Picarro cavity ringdown spectrometers, we alternated measurements between the weight room and supply air, allowing for determination of VOC, NH₃, H₂O, and CO₂ emission rates per person (emission factors). Human-derived emission factors were higher than previous studies of measuring indoor air quality in rooms with individuals at rest and correlated with increased CO₂ emission factors. Emission factors from personal care products (PCPs) were consistent with previous studies and typically decreased throughout the day. In addition, N-chloraldimines were observed in the gas phase after the exercise equipment was cleaned with a dichlor solution. The chloraldimines likely originated from reactions of free amino acids with HOCl on gym surfaces.     

Ansel Adams and Fiat Lux

Abstract

In 1963, Clark Kerr, then President of the University of California, approached Ansel Adams and Nancy Newhall to participate in the centennial celebrations (in 1968) of the founding of the University. Adams's photographic work on the nme campuses in the years following resulted in the production of six thousand negatives, from which six hundred and five were produced as fine prints (placed in the University Archives at the Bancroft Library at Berkeley) and many others reproduced in the book, Fiat Lux (1968), with text by Nancy Newhall. In 1990, an exhibition consisting of one hundred of those photographs (to celebrate the twenty-fifth anniversary of the University of California at Irvine) toured the campuses of the University between January 1991 and May 1992, accompanied by the exhibition catalogue, Ansel Adams: Fiat Lux.