bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Constructing prolate spheroidal quaternion wave functions on the sphere
Authors: Morais Joao , Kou Kit Ian
Published: June 2016

Over the last years, considerable attention has been paid to the role of the prolate spheroidal wave functions (PSWFs) introduced in the early sixties by D. Slepian and H.O. Pollak to many practical signal and image processing problems. The PSWFs and their applications to wave phenomena modeling, fluid dynamics, and filter design played a key role in this development. In this paper, we introduce the prolate spheroidal quaternion wave functions (PSQWFs), which refine and extend the PSWFs. The PSQWFs are ideally suited to study certain questions regarding the relationship between quaternionic functions and their Fourier transforms. We show that the PSQWFs are orthogonal and complete over two different intervals: the space of square integrable functions over a finite interval and the three‐dimensional Paley–Wiener space of bandlimited functions. No other system of classical generalized orthogonal functions is known to possess this unique property. We illustrate how to apply the PSQWFs for the quaternionic Fourier transform to analyze Slepian's energy concentration problem. We address all of the aforementioned and explore some basic facts of the arising quaternionic function theory. We conclude the paper by computing the PSQWFs restricted in frequency to the unit sphere. The representation of these functions in terms of generalized spherical harmonics is explicitly given, from which several fundamental properties can be derived. As an application, we provide the reader with plot simulations that demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A basal slip model for Lagrangian finite element simulations of 3D landslides
Authors: Cremonesi Massimiliano , Ferri Francesco , Perego Umberto
Published: June 2016

A Lagrangian numerical approach for the simulation of rapid landslide runouts is presented and discussed. The simulation approach is based on the so‐called Particle Finite Element Method. The moving soil mass is assumed to obey a rigid‐viscoplastic, non‐dilatant Drucker–Prager constitutive law, which is cast in the form of a regularized, pressure‐sensitive Bingham model. Unlike in classical formulations of computational fluid mechanics, where no‐slip boundary conditions are assumed, basal slip boundary conditions are introduced to account for the specific nature of the landslide‐basal surface interface. The basal slip conditions are formulated in the form of modified Navier boundary conditions, with a pressure‐sensitive threshold. A special mixed Eulerian–Lagrangian formulation is used for the elements on the basal interface to accommodate the new slip conditions into the Particle Finite Element Method framework. To avoid inconsistencies in the presence of complex shapes of the basal surface, the no‐flux condition through the basal surface is relaxed using a penalty approach. The proposed model is validated by simulating both laboratory tests and a real large‐scale problem, and the critical role of the basal slip is elucidated. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Altered lipid partitioning and glucocorticoid availability in CBG‐deficient male mice with diet‐induced obesity
Authors: Gulfo José , Ledda Angelo , Serra Elisabet , Cabot Cristina , Esteve Montserrat , Grasa Mar
Published: June 2016

Objective

To evaluate how deficiency in corticosteroid‐binding globulin (CBG), the specific carrier of glucocorticoids, affects glucocorticoid availability and adipose tissue in obesity.

Methods

C57BL/6 (WT) and CBG‐deficient (KO) male mice were fed during 12 weeks with standard or hyperlipidic diet (HL). Glucocorticoid availability and metabolic parameters were assessed.

Results

Body weight and food intake were increased in KO compared with WT mice fed a standard diet and were similar when fed a HL diet. Expression of CBG was found in white adipose tissue by immunochemistry, real‐time PCR, and Western blot. In obesity, the subcutaneous depot developed less in KO mice compared with WT, which was associated with a minor adipocyte area and peroxisome proliferator‐activated receptor‐γ expression. Conversely, the epididymal depot displayed higher weight and adipocyte area in KO than in WT mice. CBG deficiency caused a fall of hepatic 11β‐hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2 expression and an increase in epidymal adipose tissue, particularly in HL mice.

Conclusions

Deficiency in CBG drives lipid partitioning from subcutaneous to visceral adipose depot under a context of lipid excess and differentially modulates 11β‐hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2 expression.
Placental transcriptomes in the common aneuploidies reveal critical regions on the trisomic chromosomes and genome‐wide effects
Authors: Bianco Katherine , Gormley Matthew , Farrell Jason , Zhou Yan , Oliverio Oliver , Tilden Hannah , McMaster Michael , Fisher Susan J.
Published: June 2016

Objective

Chromosomal aberrations are frequently associated with birth defects and pregnancy losses. Trisomy 13, Trisomy 18 and Trisomy 21 are the most common, clinically relevant fetal aneusomies. This study used a transcriptomics approach to identify the molecular signatures at the maternal–fetal interface in each aneuploidy.

Methods

We profiled placental gene expression (13–22 weeks) in T13 (n = 4), T18 (n = 4) and T21 (n = 8), and in euploid pregnancies (n = 4).

Results

We found differentially expressed transcripts (≥2‐fold) in T21 (n = 160), T18 (n = 80) and T13 (n = 125). The majority were upregulated and most of the misexpressed genes were not located on the relevant trisomic chromosome, suggesting genome‐wide dysregulation. A smaller number of the differentially expressed transcripts were encoded on the trisomic chromosome, suggesting gene dosage. In T21, <10% of the genes were transcribed from the Down syndrome critical region (21q21–22), which contributes to the clinical phenotype. In T13, 15% of the upregulated genes were on the affected chromosome (13q11–14), and in T18, the percentage increased to 24% (18q11–22 region).

Conclusion

The trisomic placental (and possibly fetal) phenotypes are driven by the combined effects of genome‐wide phenomena and increased gene dosage from the trisomic chromosome. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The benefits and limitations of cell‐free DNA screening for 22q11.2 deletion syndrome
Authors: Dugoff Lorraine , Mennuti Michael T. , McDonald‐McGinn Donna M.
Published: June 2016

Cell‐free DNA testing is increasingly being used to screen pregnant women for fetal aneuploidy. This technology may also identify microdeletion syndromes, including 22q11.2 deletion syndrome, the most common microdeletion syndrome, and the 22q11.2 duplication syndrome. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the 22q11.2 deletion syndrome, to review the early experience with cell‐free DNA screening for this deletion and to consider the potential benefits that may be associated with prenatal detection of the deletion. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Study of interfacial charge transfer in nanosemiconductor–molecule composites
Authors: Jayabharathi Jayaraman , Prabhakaran Annadurai , Karunakaran Chockalingam , Thanikachalam Venugopal , Sundharesan Munusamy
Published: June 2016

Interaction of sol–gel synthesized Ce–Ag‐codoped ZnO (CSZO) nanocrystals with (E)‐1‐(naphthalen‐1‐yl)‐2‐styryl‐1H‐phenanthro[9,10‐d]imidazole has been analysed. The synthesized nanocrystals and their composites with naphthyl styryl phenanthrimidazole have been characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy, X‐ray diffractometry, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) lifetime and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry. XPS shows doped silver and cerium in Ag0 and Ce4+ states, respectively. SEM and TEM images of CSZO nanoparticles show that they appear to be 3D trapezoid and cocoon‐like shape. The selected area electron diffraction pattern supports the nanocrystalline character of the synthesized material. The percentages of doping of cerium and silver in CSZO are 0.54 (at.) and 0.34 (at.), respectively. From the energy levels of the materials used in the imidazole–CSZO composite, the dominant CT direction has been analysed. Theoretical investigation shows that the binding energy and energy gap of the imidazole composites are highly dependent on the nature of the silver oxide cluster and that charge transfer in the imidazole–Ag4O4 composite is faster than the same in other composites. Molecular docking technique has also been carried out to understand the imidazole–DNA interactions. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Landscape of protein–small ligand binding modes
Authors: Kasahara Kota , Kinoshita Kengo
Published: June 2016

Elucidating the mechanisms of specific small‐molecule (ligand) recognition by proteins is a long‐standing conundrum. While the structures of these molecules, proteins and ligands, have been extensively studied, protein–ligand interactions, or binding modes, have not been comprehensively analyzed. Although methods for assessing similarities of binding site structures have been extensively developed, the methods for the computational treatment of binding modes have not been well established. Here, we developed a computational method for encoding the information about binding modes as graphs, and assessing their similarities. An all‐against‐all comparison of 20,040 protein–ligand complexes provided the landscape of the protein–ligand binding modes and its relationships with protein‐ and chemical spaces. While similar proteins in the same SCOP Family tend to bind relatively similar ligands with similar binding modes, the correlation between ligand and binding similarities was not very high (R2 = 0.443). We found many pairs with novel relationships, in which two evolutionally distant proteins recognize dissimilar ligands by similar binding modes (757,474 pairs out of 200,790,780 pairs were categorized into this relationship, in our dataset). In addition, there were an abundance of pairs of homologous proteins binding to similar ligands with different binding modes (68,217 pairs). Our results showed that many interesting relationships between protein–ligand complexes are still hidden in the structure database, and our new method for assessing binding mode similarities is effective to find them.
Measuring concurrency using a joint multistate and point process model for retrospective sexual history data
Authors: Aralis Hilary J. , Gorbach Pamina M. , Brookmeyer Ron
Published: June 2016

Understanding the impact of concurrency, defined as overlapping sexual partnerships, on the spread of HIV within various communities has been complicated by difficulties in measuring concurrency. Retrospective sexual history data consisting of first and last dates of sexual intercourse for each previous and ongoing partnership is often obtained through use of cross‐sectional surveys. Previous attempts to empirically estimate the magnitude and extent of concurrency among these surveyed populations have inadequately accounted for the dependence between partnerships and used only a snapshot of the available data. We introduce a joint multistate and point process model in which states are defined as the number of ongoing partnerships an individual is engaged in at a given time. Sexual partnerships starting and ending on the same date are referred to as one‐offs and modeled as discrete events. The proposed method treats each individual's continuation in and transition through various numbers of ongoing partnerships as a separate stochastic process and allows the occurrence of one‐offs to impact subsequent rates of partnership formation and dissolution. Estimators for the concurrent partnership distribution and mean sojourn times during which a person has k ongoing partnerships are presented. We demonstrate this modeling approach using epidemiological data collected from a sample of men having sex with men and seeking HIV testing at a Los Angeles clinic. Among this sample, the estimated point prevalence of concurrency was higher among men later diagnosed HIV positive. One‐offs were associated with increased rates of subsequent partnership dissolution. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
QTL mapping of the pasting properties of wheat flour treated by papain digestion
Authors: Wang Fang‐fang , Liu Tong‐tong , Li Qing‐fang , An Yu‐ling , Xie Chu‐peng , Sun Xiaoxiao , Liu Kai , Deng Zhi‐ying , Tian Ji‐chun , Chen Jian‐sheng
Published: June 2016

Protein hydrolysis is widely used in the food industry to improve food or industrial quality, and processing is carried out concurrently or subsequently to starch pasting. In this study, QTL mapping of the pasting properties of natural wheat flour (NWF) and papain‐treated flour (PTF) was performed in three environments. These analyses involved a set of 173 F9:10 recombinant inbred lines (RILs) derived from “Shannong01‐35 × Gaocheng9411” with a genetic linkage map consisting of 6248 molecular markers. The additive, epistatic, and epistatic × environment interaction effects of QTLs for pasting properties were analyzed. A total of 43 and 31 additive QTLs for pasting properties were detected using NWF and PTF, respectively. QPv1A.4‐1, QPv4B.4‐17, QTv1A.4‐1, QTv4B.4‐17, QSb4B.4‐17, QPt1A.4‐1, and QPt4B.4‐17 were identified using both NWF and PTF. In contrast, QPv6A.2‐128, QTv6A.2‐128, QFv6A.2‐75, and QBd6A.2‐128 were only identified in wheat flour; thus, these QTLs are related to the papain digestion site. Five and eight pairs of epistatic interaction QTLs were identified in NWF and PTF, respectively. QPv1A.4‐1/QPv4B.4‐17 and QTv1A.4‐1/QTv4B.4‐17 were identified in NWF and PTF, whereas, QInA1A.4‐1 and QInA4B.4‐17 were only detected in PTF. Two and three pairs of epistatic × environment interactions were detected in NWF and PTF, respectively. In the present study, two important QTL clusters (≥3 QTLs) were detected from NWF, and three clusters were detected from PTF. The results of the comprehensive evaluation of protein hydrolysis and starch pasting provide valuable information to facilitate the improvement of wheat flour quality and promote the molecular breeding of wheat.
Students from non‐dominant linguistic backgrounds making sense of cosmology visualizations
Authors: Buck Bracey Zoë E.
Published: June 2016

This article presents the results of exploratory research with community college students from non‐dominant linguistic backgrounds (NDLB) in an introductory astronomy class as they collaborated to reconstruct dynamic cosmology visualizations through drawing. Data included student discourse during the drawing activity, post‐activity interviews, and the drawings themselves. This work comes from the theoretical perspective that revealing student competence should be an essential part of science education research, and is guided by sociocultural theory. Results indicate that dynamic cosmology visualizations can support the development of cosmological literacy by facilitating heterogeneous sense‐making strategies. The activity of drawing the visualizations in groups created fluid, hybrid spaces where students could grapple directly with cosmology content while trying on the language of science. In light of these findings, the author argues that carefully incorporating collaborative activity around the interpretation of visualizations into learning environments can improve access to cosmology content for learners, particularly those who come from non‐dominant linguistic backgrounds. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 54: 29–57, 2017
Cover Image, Volume 6, Issue 4
Authors: Zhang Zhuhua , Liu Xiaofei , Yu Jin , Hang Yang , Li Yao , Guo Yufeng , Xu Ying , Sun Xu , Zhou Jianxin , Guo Wanlin
Published: June 2016

The front cover image, by Wanlin Guo et al., is based on the Advanced Review Tunable electronic and magnetic properties of two‐dimensional materials and their one‐dimensional derivatives, DOI: 10.1002/wcms.1251.

image
The organization and regulation of mRNA–protein complexes
Authors: Rissland Olivia S.
Published: June 2016

In a eukaryotic cell, each messenger RNA (mRNA) is bound to a variety of proteins to form an mRNA–protein complex (mRNP). Together, these proteins impact nearly every step in the life cycle of an mRNA and are critical for the proper control of gene expression. In the cytoplasm, for instance, mRNPs affect mRNA translatability and stability and provide regulation of specific transcripts as well as global, transcriptome‐wide control. mRNPs are complex, diverse, and dynamic, and so they have been a challenge to understand. But the advent of high‐throughput sequencing technology has heralded a new era in the study of mRNPs. Here, I will discuss general principles of cytoplasmic mRNP organization and regulation. Using microRNA‐mediated repression as a case study, I will focus on common themes in mRNPs and highlight the interplay between mRNP composition and posttranscriptional regulation. mRNPs are an important control point in regulating gene expression, and while the study of these fascinating complexes presents remaining challenges, recent advances provide a critical lens for deciphering gene regulation. WIREs RNA 2017, 8:e1369. doi: 10.1002/wrna.1369

This article is categorized under:

RNA Interactions with Proteins and Other Molecules > Protein–RNA Interactions: Functional Implications

Translation > Translation Regulation

RNA Turnover and Surveillance > Turnover/Surveillance Mechanisms
Loss of heterophylly in aquatic plants: not ABA-mediated stress but exogenous ABA treatment induces stomatal leaves in Potamogeton perfoliatus
Authors: Iida Satoko , Ikeda Miyuki , Amano Momoe , Sakayama Hidetoshi , Kadono Yasuro , Kosuge Keiko
Published: June 2016

Heterophyllous aquatic plants produce aerial (i.e., floating and terrestrial) and submerged leaves—the latter lack stomata—while homophyllous plants contain only submerged leaves, and cannot survive on land. To identify whether differences in morphogenetic potential and/or physiological stress responses are responsible for variation in phenotypic plasticity between two plants types, responses to abscisic acid (ABA) and salinity stress were compared between the closely related, but ecologically diverse pondweeds, Potamogeton wrightii (heterophyllous) and P. perfoliatus (homophyllous). The ABA-treated (1 or 10 μM) P. wrightii plants exhibited heterophylly and produced leaves with stomata. The obligate submerged P. perfoliatus plants were able to produce stomata on their leaves, but there were no changes to leaf shape, and stomatal production occurred only at a high ABA concentration (10 μM). Under salinity stress conditions, only P. wrightii leaves formed stomata. Additionally, the expression of stress-responsive NCED genes, which encode a key enzyme in ABA biosynthesis, was consistently up-regulated in P. wrightii, but only temporarily in P. perfoliatus. The observed species-specific gene expression patterns may be responsible for the induction or suppression of stomatal production during exposure to salinity stress. These results suggest that the two Potamogeton species have an innate morphogenetic ability to form stomata, but the actual production of stomata depends on ABA-mediated stress responses specific to each species and habitat.
Environmental enrichment attenuates the blood brain barrier dysfunction induced by the neonatal hypoxia‐ischemia
Authors: Diaz Ramiro , Miguel Patrícia Maidana , Deniz Bruna Ferrary , Confortim Heloísa Deola , Barbosa Sílvia , Mendonça Monique Culturato Padilha , da Cruz‐Höfling Maria Alice , Pereira Lenir Orlandi
Published: June 2016

Environmental enrichment (EE) is considered an efficient neuroprotector against neonatal hypoxia‐ischemia (HI). Nevertheless, the mechanisms involved are not yet clear. In this context, the aim of this study was to investigate the effects of neonatal HI and environmental stimulation in the hippocampus of rats at 3 different time points (PND 8, 22 and 60), evaluating some aspects of BBB structure and function. Seven‐day‐old Wistar rats were divided into four groups: a control group maintained in a standard environment (CTSE), a control group maintained in an enrichment environment (CTEE), an HI group maintained in a standard environment (HISE) and an HI group maintained in an enrichment environment (HIEE). At the 7th postnatal day (PND), rats were submitted to the Levine‐Rice model of neonatal HI. This method consists of permanent occlusion of the right common carotid artery with subsequent exposure to hypoxia. Rats from CTEE and HIEE were stimulated with environmental enrichment. The EE protocol started 24 h after HI, in which pup rats with their dams were stimulated in a maintained EE (PND 8–22). Subsequently, animals were submitted to daily EE (1 h/day, PND 23–60). The expression of some proteins involved in BBB structure (β‐catenin, occludin, connexin‐43, aquaporin‐4, glut‐1 and GFAP) were quantified by western blotting in the hippocampi of rats in three periods, at PND 8, 22 and 60. The BBB permeability and integrity was assessed by Evans blue staining and the immunohistochemistry for GFAP in the CA1 region of the hippocampus were also performed. The results showed an HI‐induced decreased occludin expression at PND 22 and low levels of occludin, β‐catenin and GFAP at PND 60 in the hippocampus of the hypoxic‐ischemic rats. Interestingly, in young and adult rats, EE reversed these effects. Evans blue extravasation into the brain parenchyma confirmed the BBB dysfunction brought on by HI. No differences were observed at PND 8, probably due to the immaturity of the BBB at this age. The present study makes an important contribution to understanding the mechanism of the hypoxic‐ischemic brain damage and also to presents, for the first time, the recovery of BBB dysfunction as a possible pathway for the protective effect of EE.
Character evolution and the origin of Caimaninae (Crocodylia) in the New World Tropics: new evidence from the Miocene of Panama and Venezuela
Authors: Hastings Alexander K. , Reisser Moritz , Scheyer Torsten M.
Published: June 2016

Alligators and caimans share a close relationship, supported by both molecular and morphological characters. The divergence between alligators and caimans has been difficult to discern in the fossil record. Two basal taxa have recently been described from the Miocene of Panama and Venezuela but have not yet been presented in a joint phylogeny. Continued preparation of the type material of the Venezuelan Globidentosuchus brachyrostris Scheyer et al., 2013 has revealed new characters for scoring in a cladistic framework. In addition, the first lower jaw of the Panamanian Centenariosuchus gilmorei Hastings et al., 2013 is described herein, and additional characters were scored. In total, we conducted five cladistic analyses to better understand the character evolution involved in the establishment of Caimaninae. In each case, Globidentosuchus appears as the basal-most of the caimanine lineage, followed by Culebrasuchus mesoamericanus Hastings et al., 2013 from Panama. Stepwise character additions of synapomorphies define progressively more derived caimanines, but stratigraphic context creates ghost lineages extending from the Miocene to Paleocene. The persistence of two basal taxa into the Miocene of northern South America and Central America supports the concept of a relict basal population in this region. This further supports biogeographic hypotheses of dispersals in both directions between North and South America prior to full land connection.
Degrees in random self-similar bipolar networks
Authors: Chen Chen , Mahmoud Hosam
Published: June 2016

We investigate several aspects of a self-similar evolutionary process that builds a random bipolar network from building blocks that are themselves small bipolar networks. We characterize admissible outdegrees in the history of the evolution. We obtain the limit distribution of the polar degrees (when suitably scaled) characterized by its sequence of moments. We also obtain the asymptotic joint multivariate normal distribution of the number of nodes of small admissible outdegrees. Five possible substructures arise, and each has its own parameters (mean vector and covariance matrix) in the multivariate distribution. Several results are obtained by mapping bipolar networks into Pólya urns.
Respondent-driven sampling and an unusual epidemic
Authors: Malmros J. , Liljeros F. , Britton T.
Published: June 2016

Respondent-driven sampling (RDS) is frequently used when sampling from hidden populations. In RDS, sampled individuals pass on participation coupons to at most c of their acquaintances in the community (c = 3 being a common choice). If these individuals choose to participate, they in turn pass coupons on to their acquaintances, and so on. The process of recruiting is shown to behave like a new Reed–Frost-type network epidemic, in which 'becoming infected' corresponds to study participation. We calculate R0, the probability of a major 'outbreak', and the relative size of a major outbreak for c < ∞ in the limit of infinite population size and compare to the standard Reed–Frost epidemic. Our results indicate that c should often be chosen larger than in current practice.
Boundary crossing probabilities for high-dimensional Brownian motion
Authors: Fu James C. , Wu Tung-Lung
Published: June 2016

The two-sided nonlinear boundary crossing probabilities for one-dimensional Brownian motion and related processes have been studied in Fu and Wu (2010) based on the finite Markov chain imbedding technique. It provides an efficient numerical method to computing the boundary crossing probabilities. In this paper we extend the above results for high-dimensional Brownian motion. In particular, we obtain the rate of convergence for high-dimensional boundary crossing probabilities. Numerical results are also provided to illustrate our results.
Optimal dividend and reinsurance in the presence of two reinsurers
Authors: Chen Mi , Yuen Kam Chuen
Published: June 2016

In this paper the optimal dividend (subject to transaction costs) and reinsurance (with two reinsurers) problem is studied in the limit diffusion setting. It is assumed that transaction costs and taxes are required when dividends occur, and that the premiums charged by two reinsurers are calculated according to the exponential premium principle with different parameters, which makes the stochastic control problem nonlinear. The objective of the insurer is to determine the optimal reinsurance and dividend policy so as to maximize the expected discounted dividends until ruin. The problem is formulated as a mixed classical-impulse stochastic control problem. Explicit expressions for the value function and the corresponding optimal strategy are obtained. Finally, a numerical example is presented to illustrate the impact of the parameters associated with the two reinsurers' premium principle on the optimal reinsurance strategy.
Extreme paths in oriented two-dimensional percolation
Authors: Andjel E. D. , Gray L. F.
Published: June 2016

A useful result about leftmost and rightmost paths in two-dimensional bond percolation is proved. This result was introduced without proof in Gray (1991) in the context of the contact process in continuous time. As discussed here, it also holds for several related models, including the discrete-time contact process and two-dimensional site percolation. Among the consequences are a natural monotonicity in the probability of percolation between different sites and a somewhat counter-intuitive correlation inequality.
Complexity bounds for Markov chain Monte Carlo algorithms via diffusion limits
Authors: Roberts Gareth O. , Rosenthal Jeffrey S.
Published: June 2016

We connect known results about diffusion limits of Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) algorithms to the computer science notion of algorithm complexity. Our main result states that any weak limit of a Markov process implies a corresponding complexity bound (in an appropriate metric). We then combine this result with previously-known MCMC diffusion limit results to prove that under appropriate assumptions, the random-walk Metropolis algorithm in d dimensions takes O(d) iterations to converge to stationarity, while the Metropolis-adjusted Langevin algorithm takes O(d1/3) iterations to converge to stationarity.
Recording of fluid, beverage and water intakes at the population level in Europe
Authors: Gandy Joan , Le Bellego Laurent , König Jürgen , Piekarz Ana , Tavoularis Gabriel , Tennant David R.
Published: June 2016

The European Food Safety Authority’s 2010 scientific opinion on dietary reference values for total water intakes was partly based on observed intakes in population groups. Large variability was observed, and it is unlikely that these differences can be explained by differences in climate, activity level and/or culture. This suggests that there are uncertainties in the methodologies used to assess water intake from food and fluids, including all types of beverages. To determine current methods for recording and reporting total water, beverages and fluid intakes, twenty-one European countries were surveyed using an electronic questionnaire. In total, twelve countries responded and ten completed surveys were summarised. Countries reported that their survey was representative of the population in terms of age and socio-economic status. However, a variety of methods were used – that is, repeated 24-h recalls, estimated food diaries and FFQ. None of the methods were validated to assess water and fluid intakes. The methods used to record liquid foods – for example, soup and diluted drinks – were inconsistent. Clarity and consistency on definitions of categories of beverages to facilitate comparisons between countries are needed. Recommendations for a unified approach to surveying and quantifying intake of water from fluids and foods are proposed.
Shame, Survival, Satisfaction: Legal Representations of Sex between Men in Early Twentieth-Century Beijing
Authors: Wang Y. Yvon
Published: June 2016

This article uses Beijing police case records between 1913 and 1948 to uncover a new view of male-male sexual relationships and their legal regulation infin-de-siècleChina. It moves beyond previous studies' focus on sexological discourse and the world of Peking opera, revealing that sex between men was neither rare nor secret to most denizens of the city. Much older practices and vocabularies surrounding male-male sex endured, even flourished, for far longer than the media or elite discourse might lead one to expect. Testimonies in these archives also make clear how difficult it can be to separate sexual abuse from the need for survival and for erotic fulfillment. Studying how the former imperial capital's many disenfranchised men and the law enforcement prosecuting them defined these boundaries, as well as those of erotic legitimacy more broadly, offers insights for understanding sexual politics in today's China.
In vitroanthelmintic activity of active compounds of the fringed rueRuta chalepensisagainst dairy ewe gastrointestinal nematodes
Authors: Ortu E. , Sanna G. , Scala A. , Pulina G. , Caboni P. , Battacone G.
Published: June 2016

Infections by gastrointestinal nematodes negatively affect small ruminant health and at the same time cause substantial economic losses worldwide. Because resistance to conventional anthelmintic compounds is growing, target studies evaluating the effectiveness of alternative ingredients of botanical origin on gastrointestinal nematodes are needed. In this study, we evaluated thein vitroanthelmintic activity ofRuta chalepensisL. extracts on the third-stage larvae of sheep gastrointestinal nematodes. A methanol extract showed the highest anthelmintic activity, with an EC50= 0.10 ± 0.06 mg/ml after 96 h, while the essential oil had an EC50= 1.45 ± 1.22 mg/ml after 48 h. Moreover, three secondary metabolites of the essential oil, i.e. 2-decanone, 2-nonanone and 2-undecanone, showed EC50values of 0.07 ± 0.06, 0.25 ± 0.29 and 0.88 ± 0.73 mg/ml at 24 h, respectively. The present study indicated that theR. chalepensismethanol extract, the essential oil and its metabolites 2-decanone, 2-nonanone and 2-undecanone showed promising anthelmintic activity on gastrointestinal nematodes.
Growth rate for free-electron lasers through a warm beam layered model
Authors: Peter E. , Rizzato F. B. , Endler A.
Published: June 2016

In the present work, we describe the linear growth rate of the laser field for a one-dimensional theoretical single-pass free-electron laser, including space-charge and thermal effects, in the hydrodynamical regime. In a recent work (Peter, Endler & Rizzato, Phys. Plasmas, vol. 21, 2014, 113104), the thermal effects were already included for a water-bag initial distribution for the longitudinal velocities of the particles of the beam. Here, we extend the result for different and symmetrical initial distributions, considering that in the hydrodynamical regime, the beam can be thought of as a warm fluid composed of a sum of different fluids with different densities, where the initial distribution of each fluid is a water-bag distribution. The total pressure of the beam is related to the sum of the pressures of these fluids. This approach is much less complicated than the kinetic approach. We compare the results given by the linear set of equations and wave–particle simulations for water-bag and Gaussian initial distributions. The evolution of the particle distribution in the phase space is also shown in order to demonstrate that the assumption of the sum of different fluids reproduces the physics of the system in a reasonable fashion.
Cortical GABA markers identify a molecular subtype of psychotic and bipolar disorders
Authors: Volk D. W. , Sampson A. R. , Zhang Y. , Edelson J. R. , Lewis D. A.
Published: June 2016

Background

Deficits in gamma aminobutyric acid (GABA) neuron-related markers, including the GABA-synthesizing enzyme GAD67, the calcium-binding protein parvalbumin, the neuropeptide somatostatin, and the transcription factor Lhx6, are most pronounced in a subset of schizophrenia subjects identified as having a ‘low GABA marker’ (LGM) molecular phenotype. Furthermore, schizophrenia shares degrees of genetic liability, clinical features and cortical circuitry abnormalities with schizoaffective disorder and bipolar disorder. Therefore, we determined the extent to which a similar LGM molecular phenotype may also exist in subjects with these disorders.

Method

Transcript levels for GAD67, parvalbumin, somatostatin, and Lhx6 were quantified using quantitative PCR in prefrontal cortex area 9 of 184 subjects with a diagnosis of schizophrenia (n= 39), schizoaffective disorder (n= 23) or bipolar disorder (n= 35), or with a confirmed absence of any psychiatric diagnoses (n= 87). A blinded clustering approach was employed to determine the presence of a LGM molecular phenotype across all subjects.

Results

Approximately 49% of the subjects with schizophrenia, 48% of the subjects with schizoaffective disorder, and 29% of the subjects with bipolar disorder, but only 5% of unaffected subjects, clustered in the cortical LGM molecular phenotype.

Conclusions

These findings support the characterization of psychotic and bipolar disorders by cortical molecular phenotype which may help elucidate more pathophysiologically informed and personalized medications.
1. On the Laws of Motion. Part I
Authors: Tait
Published: June 2016

The substance of part at least of this paper was given in 1876 as an evening lecture to the British Association at its Glasgow meeting.

While engaged in writing the article “Mechanics” for the Ency. Brit., I had to consider carefully what basis to adopt, and decided that the time had not yet come in which (at least in a semi-popular article) Newton's laws of motion could be modified. The article was therefore based entirely on these laws, with a mere hint towards the end that in all probability they would soon require essential modification. It is well, however, that the question of modification should now be considered; and this should be done, not in a popular essay but, before a scientific society.
2. On Illegitimacy in Scotland
Authors: Seton George
Published: June 2016

In the year 1860, at the meeting of the Social Science Association in Glasgow, I read a paper on “The Causes of Illegitimacy in Scotland,” which was published shortly afterwards; and eleven years later (1871), at the meeting of the British Association in Edinburgh, I read another paper on “The Illegitimacy of Banffshire,” which was privately printed. On the present occasion I intend to confine my observations to the facts exhibited by the Registrar-General's returns.
1. Observations of the Rainband from June 1882 to January 1883
Authors: Mill Hugh Robert
Published: June 2016

The series of observations to be described was undertaken in order to ascertain how far a small pocket spectroscope could be relied upon for the prediction of rain, with a view to its popular use for that purpose.

The instrument employed was Hilger's smallest sized direct-vision spectroscope, its length being one inch and a half, and its diameter half an inch. It was furnished with the ordinary adjustable slit, and had no special provision for the exclusion of dust. It is desirable, however, to use an instrument which has the eyehole protected by a plate of thin glass, and the slit covered with a thicker plate. In this case care must be taken to keep the glass free from scratches, which greatly obscure the spectrum.
4. On the Dynamical Theory of Dispersion
Authors: Thomson William
Published: June 2016

Professor Tait laid upon the table a series of Photographs of Astronomical Instruments made at the new works of the Geneva Society for the Manufacture of Scientific Instruments. These photographs ware sent by the Astronomer-Royal for Scotland.
3. Transmission of Power by Alternate Currents
Authors: Forbes George
Published: June 2016

When a current of electricity is sent through a dynamo machine in the same direction as the current flows when the dynamo is being used as a generator, then the field magnets are polarised in their normal manner, and the magnetism of the armature is such as to cause it to rotate in the opposite direction to that in which it turns when generating a current. The dynamo now acts as a motor. If now the current be sent through the dynamo in the opposite direction, the field magnets are polarised in the opposite manner, i.e., a north pole is found where a south pole was before. The same is true of the magnetism of the armature.
2. The Acids of Opium
Authors: Dott D. B.
Published: June 2016

The acids which have been described as existing in opium are meconic, sulphuric, lactic, and acetic acids. It is not certain that the two latter are always present. In any case they exist in small amount, and are of little importance. For many years after its discovery in 1805 by Sertüurner, meconic acid was regarded not only as the peculiar acid of opium, but as that with which the morphine and some of the other bases are wholly combined. In later years it has become known that the morphine exists partly as sulphate, but I do not find that any analyses have been made, showing to what extent this is the case. The subject has indeed received but little attention, as is evident from the fact that in many of the most recent publications it is assumed that the morphine exists naturally entirely as meconate.
3. Further Note on the Maximum Density Point of Water
Authors: Tait
Published: June 2016

During my long investigations of the “Pressure-Errors of the ‘Challenger’ Thermometers,” but more especially two years ago (Proceedings, May 1881), I was led to suspect a lowering of the maximum density point of water by pressure. For I found that the change of temperature of water increased faster than in direct proportion to the sudden change of pressure which produced it. These experiments were, at my request, more fully carried out by Messrs Marshall, Smith, and Omond (Proceedings, July 1882). Their result was (approximately) a lowering of the maximum density point by 5° C. for 1 ton-weight of pressure per square inch (roughly speaking, about 150 atmospheres). In a note appended to their paper I deduced from their experimental data a lowering of 3° 6 C, and from my own a lowering of about 3° C. for the same pressure.
5. On the Structure of the Pitcher in the Seedling of Nepenthes, as compared with that in the Adult Plant
Authors: Dickson Alexander
Published: June 2016

The only observations, so far as I am aware, that have been made on the pitchers of Nepenthes seedlings, are those by Sir J. D. Hooker, who, in 1859, described their external configuration in his paper “On the Origin and Development of the Pitchers of Nepenthes, &c,” in vol. xxii. of the Linnean Society's Transactions, and afterwards added a few details of anatomical structure, in his admirable address on Insectivorous Plants, delivered at the Belfast meeting of the British Association in 1874.
3. New Forms of Nerve Terminations in the Skin of Mammals
Authors: Hoggan George , Turner
Published: June 2016

The new forms have been found in the palms of the raccoon, the Procyon lotor, so named from its habit of dipping its morsels in water before eating them. These forms are three in number, and, in order to prevent any morphological or physiological appellation being applied to them, they have been named, for purposes of description and differentiation, after three ladies respectively, the Browne, the Hoggan, and the Blackwell bodies. The Browne bodies occupy the apices of the dermic papillae, exactly where the Meissner bodies are found in man, monkeys, and marsupials; otherwise they have no resemblance to these bodies. Properly speaking, they are not bodies, but only forked terminations of the nerves, formed generally of two or three prongs, and these are twisted and intertwined in an intricate manner. Nor do they possess any capsular envelopes, the presence of which differentiates them from the Hoggan bodies, that being the only distinct difference between the two.
5. Abstract Report on the “Porcupine” Tunicata
Authors: Herdman W. A.
Published: June 2016

This paper deals only with the Aseidice Simplices collected during the cruises of the “Porcupine” in the summers of 1868–1870. The Asciidce Composite will be worked up along with the “Challenger” forms, and will appear in the second part of the Eeport upon the Tunicata of that expedition.
3. The Remarkable Sunsets
Authors: Aitken John
Published: June 2016

The very remarkable and beautiful sunsets which have been so frequent of late, in which the sky has been lit up with a wondrous wealth of colouring, and with a splendour more than earthly, has given rise to much interest and speculation as to the cause of the brilliant colouring. According to one explanation, the effect is produced by the light becoming coloured in its passage through the atmosphere by an excess of water vapour, or other absorbing medium, at present in the air. The other explanation is, that the effects are the result of a superabundance of atmospheric dust, probably due to the late eruptions of Krakatoa and other volcanic mountains.
1. Abstract of Paper on Micrometrical Measures of Gaseous Spectra
Authors: Smyth C. Piazzi
Published: June 2016

Ever since the Royal Society, Edinburgh, was pleased to accept my paper in 1880, on the general appearance of Gaseous Spectra, as seen on a very small scale; but complete on that scale from end to end of the visible spectrum,—I have been desirous of presenting them with some very highly-dispersed views of the more intricate portions of those spectra.
2. Further Note on the Compressibility of Water
Authors: Tait
Published: June 2016

I had hoped to be able, during the winter, to extend my observations to temperatures near the freezing point, but the lowest temperature reached by the large compression apparatus was 6°·3 C; while the highest is (at present) about 15° C. From so small a range nothing can be expected as to the temperature effect on the compressibility of water, further than an approximation to its values through that range.
4. Tenth and Final Eeport of the Boulder Committee; with Appendix, containing an Abstract of the information in the Nine Annual Reports of the Committee; and a Summary of the principal points apparently established by the information so received. (Plates VIII. to X.)
Authors: Home David Milne
Published: June 2016

The Committee are of opinion that it is now time to submit a final Report to the Council. Nine Annual Reports have already been presented, extending altogether to about 400 pages, as printed in the Proceedings of the Society. The appointment of the Committee took place in April 1871, and the first Report was presented in April 1872, by which time a considerable number of answers were received to circulars sent by the Committee, first to the parochial clergy, and next to the parochial schoolmasters, asking for information.
6. Notice of Two Localities for Remarkable Gravel Banks or Kaims, and Boulders, in the West of Scotland, in Supplement of the Boulder Committee's Tenth Report
Authors: Home David Milne
Published: June 2016

About eight or ten years ago, when in Lochaber, studying the “Parallel Roads” problem, I became acquainted with a district in the valley of the River Spean, which presented the phenomena of gravel banks or kaims, and boulders, on a larger scale than I had ever before or have since met with.
An Analysis of the Principles of Economics
Authors: Geddes Patrick
Published: June 2016

In a paper read nearly three years ago to this Society, I have attempted

(1)

To review the existing state of statistics ;

(2)

To define the nature of the subject, and its relation to history and the sciences;

(3)

Broadly to group and co-ordinate the whole body of existing and possible statistics, in relation to the respective statistical sciences ; and

(4)

In accordance with the preliminary sciences to frame a classification embracing all existing and possible sociological statistics. Moreover,

(5)

This was shown to involve, or rather actually to constitute, an aspect of the pressing problem of the systematisation of the literature of economics, of which

(6)

The existing schools were briefly criticised ;

(7)

The relation of the conceptions of scientific economics to practical economics was outlined ;

(8)

As also their relation to ethics.
4. On the General Effects of Molecular Attraction of Small Range on the Behaviour of a Group of Smooth Impinging Spheres
Authors: Tait
Published: June 2016

The present instalment traces some of the consequences of assuming the hard spherical particles of a gas to exert intense molecular forces when at distances comparable with their diameters. The effect of the new term in the virial in counteracting and at last obliterating that due to the impacts, is traced as the gas is gradually compressed.

Next, the spheres (still supposed to attract one another) are regarded as capable of absorbing energy in a vibratory form, and of losing it directly by radiation. In such a case the relative translatory energy may be so reduced that pairs of spheres may remain within molecular distance from one another. The bearing of these results upon condensation, dissociation, &c, is given.
1. On a New Formula for the Pressure of Earth Against a Retaining Wall
Authors: Elliott A. C. , Armstrong
Published: June 2016

There are two main distinct methods of attacking the problem of the retaining wall. The first in chronological order is due to Coulomb, and is variously named, perhaps most commonly as the method of the Wedge of Least Eesistance. Briefly characterised, it might be said to depend upon the mathematical artifice of finding the resultant force due to the mutual action of the earth mass, and the wall a maximum, the earth being supposed to yield incipiently under the action of its weight, and in opposition to friction and the reaction in question, along an inclined plane determined so as to fulfil that imposed condition. Coulomb's method has been developed by various writers, and may be regarded as complete.