679WEIGHT % FeO I00 80 60 5 0 4 0 3 0 20 15 I0 5 0The writers express their appreciation to Prodyot Roy, Leo Infrared spectra were determined for a series of oxides related by ordering and distortion to the rock-salt structure. The expected spectrum of the tetragonal 1: 1 ordering (space group DdhI8) contains 5 ir-active and 8 Raman-active bands. For the trigonally distorted structure (space group 42) factor group calculations yield 4 ir and 2 Raman modes. The expected additional structure appears in the spectra of the tetragonal materials but is broadened and washed out by the long-range polarization field. The spectra of the trigonal materials contain twice the predicted number of modes. The broadened bands of the koordinated structures are compared with the sharp spectra of &coordinated y-LiA102.

Combined digital data from multiple satellites and Doppler radar can provide fire weather meteorologists and resource managers with accurate information on forest fire location, intensity, growth, smoke plumes, and associated mesoscale weather. An integrated application using real-time satellite and radar is described for the Miller's Reach forest fire that occurred in south-central Alaska in June 1996. Generated data and products were made available immediately on-scene via point-to-point high-speed portable satellite communications. This fire consumed over 15 000 ha and destroyed 344 structures.

The accuracy of pavement condition prediction is a major concern associated with a pavement management system (PMS). The PMS used by the Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) includes a project-level optimization system that requires models that estimate the probability of a given level of distress occurring. These models are based on historical pavement condition data and specific project-level data concerning pavement structural characteristics, traffic, and climatic conditions. Multiple linear regression and two artificial neural network (ANN) structures are used to predict roughness distress level probability for bituminous pavements as defined by the KDOT PMS. Since the response variable is the probability of being in a given roughness distress level, within the historical database the probability values are binary (1 if the pavement exists in a given roughness distress level or 0 if the pavement is in any other roughness distress level). This produces poorly conditioned data for regression analysis. Therefore, results indicate that ANNs have a superior ability to predict the probability of roughness distress level compared with multiple regression methods.

Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) represent the largest subclass of growth factors in the transforming growth factor r3(TGF-p) superfamily. BMPs have proven to be multifunctional regulators of a wide variety of biological processes in numerous types of cell and tissue. The role of inhibins, activins and TGF-ps (which also belong to the TGF-p superfamily) in reproduction has been studied extensively over the last 15 years. However, there were no reports on the role of BMPs in the mammalian ovary until 1999 when we reported an intrinsic ovarian BMP system replete with BMP ligands, receptors and novel biological functions. Since this report it has become clear that the BMP system plays an important role in the regulation of ovarian function, evidenced by the ability of BMPs to control granulosa cell proliferation and cytodifferentiation, as well as oocyte development. The physiological relevance of the BMP system has recently been highlighted by the discovery that genetic mutations in the BMP-15 ligand or the BMP type lB receptor lead to critical aberrations in folliculogenesis and ovulation. This review provides a current overview of the rapidly emerging field of the BMP system in mammalian ovarian function.