bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Dielectric properties of TbMnO3 ceramics
Authors: Wang C. C. , Cui Y. M. , Zhang L. W.
Published: January 2007

The complex dielectric properties for ceramic samples of TbMnO3 were investigated as functions of temperature (100K⩽T⩽360K) and frequency (100Hz⩽f⩽100kHz). Two thermally activated dielectric relaxations were found with the activation energies of 0.30 and 0.22eV for the high- and low-temperature relaxations, respectively. By means of complex impedance analysis the high-temperature relaxation was identified to originate from the internal barrier-layer capacitor effects related to the grain boundaries, and the low-temperature relaxation was ascribed to the dipolar effects induced by charge-carrier-hopping motions inside the grains.
MinSet: a general approach to derive maximally representative database subsets by using fragment dictionaries and its application to the SCOP database
Authors: Pandini Alessandro , Bonati Laura , Fraternali Franca , Kleinjung Jens
Published: January 2007

Motivation: The size of current protein databases is a challenge for many Bioinformatics applications, both in terms of processing speed and information redundancy. It may be therefore desirable to efficiently reduce the database of interest to a maximally representative subset.

Results: The MinSet method employs a combination of a Suffix Tree and a Genetic Algorithm for the generation, selection and assessment of database subsets. The approach is generally applicable to any type of string-encoded data, allowing for a drastic reduction of the database size whilst retaining most of the information contained in the original set. We demonstrate the performance of the method on a database of protein domain structures encoded as strings. We used the SCOP40 domain database by translating protein structures into character strings by means of a structural alphabet and by extracting optimized subsets according to an entropy score that is based on a constant-length fragment dictionary. Therefore, optimized subsets are maximally representative for the distribution and range of local structures. Subsets containing only 10% of the SCOP structure classes show a coverage of >90% for fragments of length 1–4.

Availability:  

Contact:  jkleinj@nimr.mrc.ac.uk

Supplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
SNPchip: R classes and methods for SNP array data
Authors: Scharpf Robert B. , Ting Jason C. , Pevsner Jonathan , Ruczinski Ingo
Published: January 2007

Summary: High-density single nucleotide polymorphism microarrays (SNP chips) provide information on a subject's genome, such as copy number and genotype (heterozygosity/homozygosity) at a SNP. While fluorescence in situ hybridization and karyotyping reveal many abnormalities, SNP chips provide a higher resolution map of the human genome that can be used to detect, e.g., aneuploidies, microdeletions, microduplications and loss of heterozygosity (LOH). As a variety of diseases are linked to such chromosomal abnormalities, SNP chips promise new insights for these diseases by aiding in the discovery of such regions, and may suggest targets for intervention. The R package SNPchip contains classes and methods useful for storing, visualizing and analyzing high density SNP data. Originally developed from the SNPscan web-tool, SNPchip utilizes S4 classes and extends other open source R tools available at Bioconductor. This has numerous advantages, including the ability to build statistical models for SNP-level data that operate on instances of the class, and to communicate with other R packages that add additional functionality.

Availability: The package is available from the Bioconductor web page at www.bioconductor.org

Contact:  ingo@jhu.edu

Supplementary information: The supplementary material as described in this article (case studies, installation guidelines and R code) is available from http://biostat.jhsph.edu/~iruczins/publications/sm/
D2‐40 Immunohistochemical Assessment of Lymphangiogenesis in Normal and Edematous Sinus Mucosa and Nasal Polyp
Authors: Kim Tae Hoon , Lee Sang Hag , Lee Heung Man , Lee Seung Hoon , Jung Hak Hyun , Cho Woo Sung , Cinn Young Gi , Choe Hwan , Kim Moo Pil , Yoo Ik One , Hwang Ho Yeon
Published: January 2007

Objective: The lymphatic system plays an important role in the maintenance of tissue fluid homeostasis, which facilitates interstitial protein transport. Until recently, the lymphatic system of the sinonasal mucosa has been relatively poorly studied. The authors aimed to investigate the distributional and quantitative changes of the lymphatic vessels in inflammatory sinus mucosa and nasal polyps in comparison with healthy sinus mucosa using D2‐40 antibody.

Methods: Immunohistochemistry and Western blotting with D2‐40 antibody were applied to normal and edematous ethmoid sinus mucosa and nasal polyps. The number, size, and length densities of lymphatic vessels were evaluated using tissue sections and whole mount preparations.

Results: Most lymphatic vessels in normal and edematous ethmoid sinus mucosa were distributed in the subepithelial layer. Some of these vessels were dilated, whereas others were compressed and had a slit‐like lumen. No D2‐40 positive vessels were found in samples of nasal polyps. Lymphatic vessels showed no statistically significant difference in their number, size, or length density between normal and edematous ethmoid sinus mucosa. Western blot also showed no differences in their expression levels.

Conclusion: These findings indicate that lymphangiogenesis does not occur in edematous ethmoid sinus mucosa, which may not reuptake interstitial fluid efficiently in inflammatory conditions, resulting in the formation of mucosal edema in chronic inflammation.
Millennial to annual volume changes in the Humber Estuary
Authors: Townend I.H , Wang Z.B , Rees J.G
Published: January 2007

Analysis of stratigraphic records and historic charts has allowed comparison of Holocene and historical rates of accommodation space change in the Humber Basin. Apparent rate differences are explained using a morphological model and an analytical approach to separate out the effect of differing forcing signals. This understanding is then used to construct a simple behavioural model of how estuary volumes change over time that is consistent over millennial to annual time-scales. Given the desire to promote the sustainable management of estuaries, the approach provides a means to identify the natural variability that should be anticipated. Distinguishing such signals from influences such as sea
-
level rise is also important for the proper attribution of impacts due to climate change.
Habitat‐choice interactions between pike predators and perch prey depend on water transparency
Authors: Skov C. , Nilsson P. A. , Jacobsen L. , Brönmark C.
Published: January 2007

A mesocosm experiment indicated that water transparency influenced antipredator behaviour in young‐of‐the‐year perch Perca fluviatilis, which partly contradicts another study by showing that high transparency decreases rather than increases perch antipredatory use of vegetated habitats when predators are also free to choose habitat. The present study emphasizes the importance of simultaneously considering both prey and predator habitat‐choice behaviours when evaluating predator–prey interactions in relation to water visibility
Evaluation of marking European silver eels with visible implant elastomer tags and alcian blue
Authors: Simon J.
Published: January 2007

After 183 days, the retention of the visible implant elastomer marks implanted on the belly and along the basis of the ventral fin margin of the European silver eel Anguilla anguilla was 100%. The retention of the alcian blue spots on the belly was 84% after 1 day, but decreased to 68% by the end of the experiment (after 183 days). Marking‐induced mortality was 0% for both marking types over the complete trial period.
Distribution of the bathypelagic perch fry layer along the longitudinal profile of two large canyon‐shaped reservoirs
Authors: ČEch M. , Kubečka J. , Frouzová J. , Draštík V. , Kratochvíl M. , Matěna J. , Hejzlar J.
Published: January 2007

The distribution of the bathypelagic perchPerca fluviatilisfry (BPF) layer and its qualitative and quantitative changes were studied along the longitudinal profiles of the large canyon‐shaped Slapy and Orlík Reservoirs (Czech Republic), using acoustic methods (SIMRAD EY500 echosounder, split‐beam transducer, Sonar5 post‐processing software). In Slapy Reservoir (sampled in late May), the BPF layer created by the mass of non‐shoaling perch larvae and juveniles (average total length,LT, 10·4 mm) was recorded from the dam for 29 km upstream. The BPF layer only vanished in the upper third of the reservoir due to the extremely cold hypolimnetic water discharged from Orlík Reservoir, which is situated upstream in the cascade. Both abundance and size of BPF increased significantly upstream following, in Slapy Reservoir, the trophic gradient. In Orlík Reservoir (sampled in late June), the BPF layer was created predominantly by shoaling perch fry individuals (averageLT31·8 mm), recorded along the whole longitudinal profile of the reservoir (>50 km, filled with relatively warm water). Both the sizes of BPF and their shoaling activity again increased significantly from the dam towards the inflow following, in Orlík Reservoir, the trophic gradient. Pooling the data from both reservoirs, it was evident that the tendency to flock in a dense layer and, much later, to create distinct shoals, increased continuously with the size of BPF. A number of variables describing the BPF layer in Slapy and Orlík Reservoir are given.
The influence of temperature during early life on phenotypic expression at later ontogenetic stages in sea bass
Authors: Georgakopoulou E. , Sfakianakis D. G. , Kouttouki S. , Divanach P. , Kentouri M. , Koumoundouros G.
Published: January 2007

To exam whether the temperature experienced by fishes at early developmental stages can influence their phenotype at subsequent stages, the model species used, European sea bass Dicentrarchus labrax was subjected to water temperatures of 15 or 20° C during the half‐epiboly stage until the metamorphosis. Meristic and morphometric characters at three different stages, well after the end of the thermal treatments, were explored. Body shape and most of the meristic characters were significantly affected by the environmental temperature during their early life stages. Fish body shape at 15° C tended to be more slender than at 20° C. The dorsal spines and soft rays, the pectoral lepidotrichia and caudal dermatotrichia were significantly affected. Phenotypic differences due to the two thermal regimes are discussed in terms of their functional meaning during the transition from the planktonic to the littoral niche.
Fibrinogen and elastin bind to the same region within the A domain of fibronectin binding protein A, an MSCRAMM of Staphylococcus aureus
Authors: Keane Fiona M. , Loughman Anthony , Valtulina Viviana , Brennan Marian , Speziale Pietro , Foster Timothy J.
Published: January 2007

The fibronectin binding protein, FnBPA, is a multifunctional microbial surface component recognizing adhesive matrix molecule (MSCRAMM) that promotes bacterial adherence to immobilized fibrinogen and elastin via the N‐terminal A domain. The binding site for fibrinogen and elastin was localized to subdomains N2N3. A three‐dimensional structural model of FnBPA was created based on the known crystal structure of the domains N2N3 of clumping factor A (ClfA). The role of individual residues in the putative ligand binding trench was examined by testing the affinity of mutants for fibrinogen and elastin. Two residues (N304 and F306) were crucial for binding both ligands and are in the equivalent positions to residues known to be important for fibrinogen binding by ClfA. A peptide comprising the C‐terminus of the γ‐chain of fibrinogen and a monoclonal anti‐rAFnBPA antibody were potent inhibitors of the FnBPA–elastin interaction. This suggests that FnBPA binds to fibrinogen and elastin in a similar manner. Amino acid sequence divergence of 26.5% occurred between the A domains of FnBPA from strains 8325–4 and P1. Most variant residues were predicted to be located on the surface of domains N2N3 while few occurred in the putative ligand binding trench and the latching peptide explaining limited immunocross reactivity while ligand binding activity is conserved.
A novel F‐box protein involved in sexual development and pathogenesis in Gibberella zeae
Authors: Han You‐Kyoung , Kim Myoung‐Dong , Lee Seung‐Ho , Yun Sung‐Hwan , Lee Yin‐Won
Published: January 2007

Gibberella zeae is an ascomyceteous fungus that causes serious diseases in cereal crops. Severe epidemics require strains that are virulent and that can reproduce sexually. We characterized an insertional mutant (designated ZH436) with a pleiotropic defect in both traits, and identified a novel F‐box protein gene encoding FBP1 (F‐box protein 1) that is similar to fungal F‐box proteins including Saccharomyces cerevisiae Grr1, a well‐characterized component of the Skp1‐Cullin‐F‐box protein (SCFGrr1) E3 ligase complex required for protein degradation. FBP1 also can bind both S. cerevisiae Skp1 protein, the other component of the SCFGrr1 complex, and its G. zeae sequence homologue SKP1. Two putative protein interacting domains in FBP1 are essential for in vivo function. FBP1 and ScGRR1 are not so interchangeable between S. cerevisiae and G. zeae, but FBP1 can partially complement several defects of a yeast grr1 deletion mutant. Functional analyses confirmed that FBP1 is required for several phenotypes including both sexual development and virulence in G. zeae; the phenotype of ΔFBP1 strains is different from those of null mutants for F‐box proteins in other filamentous fungi as well as from S. cerevisiae grr1Δ strains. Thus, FBP1 is a versatile F‐box protein that presumably participates in the formation of the SCFFBP1 complex that probably controls the ubiquitin‐mediated degradation of proteins involved in sexual reproduction and virulence important for disease development by G. zeae.
Identity Salience, Identity Acceptance, and Racial Policy Attitudes: American National Identity as a Uniting Force
Authors: Transue John E.
Published: January 2007

Political science has paid a great deal of attention to sources of intergroup conflict, but the discipline has focused less on forces that bring people together and lead them to transcend group boundaries. This study presents evidence that attachment to a shared superordinate identity can improve intergroup relations by reducing the social distance between people of different racial groups. Using a survey experiment, this research shows that making a superordinate identity salient increased support for a tax increase. The effects of the identity salience treatment are compared to a policy particularism treatment in terms of effect size and their interaction with each other. The size and direction of the identity salience effect is affected by the degree of respondents' acceptance of the proffered identity. Implications for social identity theory, racial policy attitudes, and American national identity are discussed.
Principle vs. Pragmatism: Policy Shifts and Political Competition
Authors: Tavits Margit
Published: January 2007

This article investigates the electoral effect of party policy shifts. I argue that whether party policy shifts are damaging or rewarding depends on whether the shift occurs in the pragmatic or principled issue domain. On pragmatic issues, voters value “getting things done.” Policy shifts in this domain signal responsiveness to the changing environment and are likely to be rewarded. Principled issues, however, concern core beliefs and values. Any policy shift in this domain is a sign of inconsistency and lack of credibility, which is likely to lead to voter withdrawal. These arguments are supported by evidence from 23 advanced democracies over a period of 40 years.
The Capitalist Peace
Authors: Gartzke Erik
Published: January 2007

It is widely accepted that democracies are less conflict prone, if only with other democracies. Debate persists, however, about the causes underlying liberal peace. This article offers a contrarian account based on liberal political economy. Economic development, free markets, and similar interstate interests all anticipate a lessening of militarized disputes or wars. This “capitalist peace” also accounts for the effect commonly attributed to regime type in standard statistical tests of the democratic peace.
The respiratory drive to thoracic motoneurones in the cat and its relation to the connections from expiratory bulbospinal neurones
Authors: Saywell S. A. , Anissimova N. P. , Ford T. W. , Meehan C. F. , Kirkwood P. A.
Published: January 2007

The descending control of respiratory‐related motoneurones in the thoracic spinal cord remains the subject of some debate. In this study, direct connections from expiratory bulbospinal neurones to identified motoneurones were investigated using spike‐triggered averaging and the strengths of connection revealed were related to the presence and size of central respiratory drive potentials in the same motoneurones. Intracellular recordings were made from motoneurones in segments T5–T9 of the spinal cord of anaesthetized cats. Spike‐triggered averaging from expiratory bulbospinal neurones in the caudal medulla revealed monosynaptic EPSPs in all groups of motoneurones, with the strongest connections to expiratory motoneurones with axons in the internal intercostal nerve. In the latter, connection strength was similar irrespective of the target muscle (e.g. external abdominal oblique or internal intercostal) and the EPSP amplitude was positively correlated with the amplitude of the central respiratory drive potential of the motoneurone. For this group, EPSPs were found in 45/83 bulbospinal neurone/motoneurone pairs, with a mean amplitude of 40.5 μV. The overall strength of the connection supports previous measurements made by cross‐correlation, but is about 10 times stronger than that reported in the only previous similar survey to use spike‐triggered averaging. Calculations are presented to suggest that this input alone is sufficient to account for all the expiratory depolarization seen in the recorded motoneurones. However, extra sources of input, or amplification of this one, are likely to be necessary to produce a useful motoneurone output.
Left-Right Dynein Motor Implicated in Selective Chromatid Segregation in Mouse Cells
Authors: Armakolas Athanasios , Klar Amar J. S.
Published: January 2007

During cell division, copies of mouse chromosome 7 are segregated selectively or randomly to daughter cells depending on the cell type. The mechanism for differential segregation is unknown. Because mouse left-right dynein (LRD) gene mutations result in randomization of visceral organs' laterality, we hypothesized that LRD may also function in selective chromatid segregation. Indeed, upon knock-down by RNA interference methods, LRD depletion disrupts biased segregation. LRD messenger RNA presence or absence correlates with the observed segregation patterns. This work supports the claim that LRD functions in a mechanism for selective chromatid segregation.
CO
2
-Forced Climate and Vegetation Instability During Late Paleozoic Deglaciation
Authors: Montañez Isabel P. , Tabor Neil J. , Niemeier Deb , DiMichele William A. , Frank Tracy D. , Fielding Christopher R. , Isbell John L. , Birgenheier Lauren P. , Rygel Michael C.
Published: January 2007

The late Paleozoic deglaciation is the vegetated Earth's only recorded icehouse-to-greenhouse transition, yet the climate dynamics remain enigmatic. By using the stable isotopic compositions of soil-formed minerals, fossil-plant matter, and shallow-water brachiopods, we estimated atmospheric partial pressure of carbon dioxide (
p
CO
2
) and tropical marine surface temperatures during this climate transition. Comparison to southern Gondwanan glacial records documents covariance between inferred shifts in
p
CO
2
, temperature, and ice volume consistent with greenhouse gas forcing of climate. Major restructuring of paleotropical flora in western Euramerica occurred in step with climate and
p
CO
2
shifts, illustrating the biotic impact associated with past CO
2
-forced turnover to a permanent ice-free world.
Particle Dark Matter in the Universe: At the Brink of Discovery?
Authors: Sadoulet Bernard
Published: January 2007

The nature of dark matter is one of the central problems of cosmology, particle physics, and gravity. It may be made of still unknown particles produced in the early universe. Much progress has been made in attempts to detect these particles and in the development of the required experimental techniques. Results from direct searches, the Large Hadron Collider, and the Gamma-ray Large Area Space Telescope offer promising opportunities within the next decade to find the missing dark matter.
Crimes and misdemeanours: the case of child abandonment
Authors: Giordano S
Published: January 2007

In 2002, a child was abandoned in a Burger King restaurant in Amsterdam by a Chinese woman, who hoped that the baby would be picked up by someone able to give the child a better life. She was convicted for child abandonment and imprisoned. Whereas some forms of child abandonment are criminalised, others are socially accepted and not even on the ethics agenda. This paper is an invitation to reflect on the inconsistency in the ways in which we prosecute, punish or try to correct some forms of child abandonment and yet make allowances for others.
Should research ethics committees be told how to think?
Authors: Sayers G M
Published: January 2007

Research ethics committees (RECs) are charged with providing an opinion on whether research proposals are ethical. These committees are overseen by a central office that acts for the Department of Health and hence the State. An advisory group has recently reported back to the Department of Health, recommending that it should deal with (excessive) inconsistency in the decisions made by different RECs. This article questions the desirability and feasibility of questing for consistent ethical decisions.
Culpability and blame after pregnancy loss
Authors: Hale B
Published: January 2007

The problem of feeling guilty about a pregnancy loss is suggested to be primarily a moral matter and not a medical or psychological one. Two standard approaches to women who blame themselves for a loss are first introduced, characterised as either psychologistic or deterministic. Both these approaches are shown to underdetermine the autonomy of the mother by depending on the notion that the mother is not culpable for the loss if she “could not have acted otherwise”. The inability to act otherwise is explained as not being as strong a determinant of culpability as it may seem at first. Instead, people’s culpability for a bad turn of events implies strongly that they have acted for the wrong reasons, which is probably not true in the case of women who have experienced a loss of pregnancy. The practical conclusion of this paper is that women who feel a sense of guilt in the wake of their loss have a good reason to reject both the psychologistic and the deterministic approaches to their guilt—that they are justified in feeling upset about what has gone wrong, even responsible for the life of the child, but are not culpable for the unfortunate turn of events.
The possibility of a universal declaration of biomedical ethics
Authors: Hedayat K M
Published: January 2007

Statements on issues in biomedical ethics, purporting to represent international interests, have been put forth by numerous groups. Most of these groups are composed of thinkers in the tradition of European secularism, and do not take into account the values of other ethical systems. One fifth of the world’s population is accounted for by Islam, which is a universal religion, with more than 1400 years of scholarship. Although many values are held in common by secular ethical systems and Islam, their inferences are different. The question, “Is it possible to derive a truly universal declaration of biomedical ethics?” is discussed here by examining the value and extent of personal autonomy in Western and Islamic biomedical ethical constructs. These constructs are then tested vis-à-vis the issue of abortion. It is concluded that having a universal declaration of biomedical ethics in practice is not possible, although there are many conceptual similarities and agreements between secular and Islamic value systems, unless a radical paradigm shift occurs in segments of the world’s deliberative bodies. The appellation “universal” should not be used on deliberative statements unless the ethical values of all major schools of thought are satisfied.
QUASI-PERIODIC FACTORIZATIONS
Authors: SZABÓ SÁNDOR
Published: January 2007

We will describe a family of p-groups all of whose have factorizations that are not quasi-periodic.
Expression and localization of surfactant proteins in human nasal epithelium
Authors: Kim Jin Kook , Kim Sung-Shik , Rha Keung Won , Kim Chang-Hoon , Cho Jae Hoon , Lee Chang-Hoon , Lee Jeung-Gweon , Yoon Joo-Heon
Published: January 2007

Surfactant proteins (SPs), designated SP-A, SP-B, SP-C, and SP-D, play an important role in surfactant metabolism and host defense mechanisms in the lung. This study investigates expression of the different SP types in human nasal mucosa and cultured normal human nasal epithelial (NHNE) cells and whether the expression of SP mRNA is influenced by the degree of mucociliary differentiation. RT-PCR was performed with mRNA from cultured NHNE cells and nasal mucosa. Immunohistochemical staining for SPs was performed on nasal mucosa specimens. Western blot analysis was performed on cell lysates from cultured NHNE cells. SP-A2, SP-B, and SP-D mRNAs were expressed in normal NHNE cells and human nasal mucosa. SPs were localized in ciliated cells of the surface epithelium and serous acini of the submucosal glands. SP-A, SP-B, and SP-D proteins were expressed in cultured NHNE cells. The degree of mucociliary differentiation influenced expression of the SP gene. We demonstrate that SP-A, SP-B, and SP-D are expressed in human nasal mucosa and cultured NHNE cells. Further study of the functional role of SPs in the upper airway is required.
Dopamine does not limit fetal cerebrovascular responses to hypoxia
Authors: Mayock Dennis E. , Bennett Rachel , Robinson Roderick D. , Gleason Christine A.
Published: January 2007

Dopamine is used clinically to stabilize mean arterial blood pressure (MAP) in sick infants. One goal of this therapeutic intervention is to maintain adequate cerebral blood flow (CBF) and perfusion pressure. High-dose intravenous dopamine has been previously demonstrated to increase cerebrovascular resistance (CVR) in near-term fetal sheep. We hypothesized that this vascular response might limit cerebral vasodilatation during acute isocapnic hypoxia. We studied nine near-term chronically catheterized unanesthetized fetal sheep. Using radiolabeled microspheres to measure fetal CBF, we calculated CVR at baseline, during fetal hypoxia, and then with the addition of an intravenous dopamine infusion at 2.5, 7.5, and 25 μg·kg−1·min−1 while hypoxia continued. During acute isocapnic fetal hypoxia, CBF increased 73.0 ± 14.1% and CVR decreased 38.9 ± 4.9% from baseline. Dopamine infusion at 2.5 and 7.5 μg·kg−1·min−1, begun during hypoxia, did not alter CVR or MAP, but MAP increased when dopamine infusion was increased to 25 μg·kg−1·min−1. Dopamine did not alter CBF or affect the CBF response to hypoxia at any dose. However, CVR increased at a dopamine infusion rate of 25 μg·kg−1·min−1. This increase in CVR at the highest dopamine infusion rate is likely an autoregulatory response to the increase in MAP, similar to our previous findings. Therefore, in chronically catheterized unanesthetized near-term fetal sheep, dopamine does not alter the expected cerebrovascular responses to hypoxia.
STAT3 signaling is activated in human skeletal muscle following acute resistance exercise
Authors: Trenerry Marissa K. , Carey Kate A. , Ward Alister C. , Cameron-Smith David
Published: January 2007

The transcription factor signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) has been identified as a mediator of cytokine signaling and implicated in hypertrophy; however, the importance of this pathway following resistance exercise in human skeletal muscle has not been investigated. In the present study, the phosphorylation and nuclear localization of STAT3, together with STAT3-regulated genes, were measured in the early recovery period following intense resistance exercise. Muscle biopsy samples from healthy subjects (7 males, 23.0 + 0.9 yr) were harvested before and again at 2, 4, and 24 h into recovery following a single bout of maximal leg extension exercise (3 sets, 12 repetitions). Rapid and transient activation of phosphorylated (tyrosine 705) STAT3 was observed at 2 h postexercise. STAT3 phosphorylation paralleled the transient localization of STAT3 to the nucleus, which also peaked at 2 h postexercise. Downstream transcriptional events regulated by STAT3 activation peaked at 2 h postexercise, including early responsive genes c-FOS (800-fold), JUNB (38-fold), and c-MYC (140-fold) at 2 h postexercise. A delayed peak in VEGF (4-fold) was measured 4 h postexercise. Finally, genes associated with modulating STAT3 signaling were also increased following exercise, including the negative regulator SOCS3 (60-fold). Thus, following a single bout of intense resistance exercise, a rapid phosphorylation and nuclear translocation of STAT3 are evident in human skeletal muscle. These data suggest that STAT3 signaling is an important common element and may contribute to the remodeling and adaptation of skeletal muscle following resistance exercise.
The Dynamic Changes in Roles of Learning through the Baldwin Effect
Authors: Suzuki Reiji , Arita Takaya
Published: January 2007

The interaction between evolution and learning called the Baldwin effect is a two-step evolutionary scenario caused by the balances between benefit and cost of learning in general. However, little is known about the dynamic evolution of these balances in complex environments. Our purpose is to give a new insight into the benefit and cost of learning by focusing on the quantitative evolution of phenotypic plasticity under the assumption of epistatic interactions. For this purpose, we have constructed an evolutionary model of quantitative traits by using an extended version of Kauffman's NK fitness landscape. Phenotypic plasticity is introduced into our model; whether each phenotype is plastic or not is genetically defined, and plastic phenotypes can be adjusted by learning. The simulation results clearly show that drastic changes in roles of learning cause three-step evolution through the Baldwin effect and also cause the evolution of genetic robustness against mutations. We also conceptualize four different roles of learning by using a hill-climbing image of a population on a fitness landscape.
Spatiotemporal Conversion of Auditory Information for Cochleotopic Mapping
Authors: Hoshino Osamu
Published: January 2007

Auditory communication signals such as monkey calls are complex FM vocal sounds and in general induce action potentials in different timing in the primary auditory cortex. Delay line scheme is one of the effective ways for detecting such neuronal timing. However, the scheme is not straightforwardly applicable if the time intervals of signals are beyond the latency time of delay lines. In fact, monkey calls are often expressed in longer time intervals (hundreds of milliseconds to seconds) and are beyond the latency times observed in the brain (less than several hundreds of milliseconds). Here, we propose a cochleotopic map similar to that in vision known as a retinotopic map. We show that information about monkey calls could be mapped on a cochleotopic cortical network as spatiotemporal firing patterns of neurons, which can then be decomposed into simple (linearly sweeping) FM components and integrated into unified percepts by higher cortical networks. We suggest that the spatiotemporal conversion of auditory information may be essential for developing the cochleotopic map, which could serve as the foundation for later processing, or monkey call identification by higher cortical areas.
Dimension Selection for Feature Selection and Dimension Reduction with Principal and Independent Component Analysis
Authors: Koch Inge , Naito Kanta
Published: January 2007

This letter is concerned with the problem of selecting the best or most informative dimension for dimension reduction and feature extraction in high-dimensional data. The dimension of the data is reduced by principal component analysis; subsequent application of independent component analysis to the principal component scores determines the most nongaussian directions in the lower-dimensional space. A criterion for choosing the optimal dimension based on bias-adjusted skewness and kurtosis is proposed. This new dimension selector is applied to real data sets and compared to existing methods. Simulation studies for a range of densities show that the proposed method performs well and is more appropriate for nongaussian data than existing methods.
Mentors for Gifted Underachieving Males: Developing Potential and Realizing Promise
Authors: Hébert Thomas P. , Olenchak F. Richard
Published: January 2007

The literature focusing on mentorships arnd underachieving gifted young men is almost nonexistent. To address this need, the researchers examined the mentorship experiences of three students who characterized various aspects of giftedness -and underachievement in males. The findigs of the study revealed a single core category with three attendant subcategories. The influence of a significant adult on a young person was the dominant category. Several related subcategories reinforced the importance of the mentor: mentors' open-minded and nonjudgmental characteristics; consistent and personalized social/emotional support and advocacy; and strength and interest based strategies for intervention to reverse underachievement. These results underscore the critical effectiveness of mentorships on underachievement regardless of age, environment, and socioeconomic background. Implications of the findings are presented that highlight the successful features of the mentor-protege relationship.
Decisions Regarding Music Training: Parental Beliefs and Values
Authors: Dai David Yun , Schader Robin M.
Published: January 2007

Musical talent development generally involves high levels of parental support over an extended period of time. This study examined parents' expectancy beliefs and values regarding their child's music training, regular academic work, and athletic activities. Parents of 231 students, aged 6-18, who attended programs at four music institutions responded to a questionnaire. The results suggest that parents may initially send their children for music training not for musical talent development per se, but for more general educational value. However, with more training and more advanced musical development, parents seem to regulate their beliefs and values across the three domains in the single-minded service of musical talent development.
A National Study of Local and State Advocacy in Gifted Education
Authors: Robinson Ann , Moon Sidney M.
Published: January 2007

This qualitative study examined advocacy in local and state contexts. Sixty-one examples of advocacy from 34 states were summarized through screening surveys sent to state directors of gifted education and to collaborative school districts from the National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented. Six sites were investigated further through case studies leading to the cross-case analysis that is reported in this paper. Overall, the study was guided by 2 questions. First, what do local and state advocacy efforts on behalf of gifted and talented children look like? Second, what factors facilitate positive outcomes for advocates? As defined by advocates, local and state advocacy ranges from short-term efforts in a single school building, to increased services for children, to complex, statewide initiatives to influence legislation, develop policies, and secure funding. Factors that support positive outcomes include advocates who are persistent, knowledgeable about both best practices in gifted education and local/state political processes, and more often collaborative than adversarial. The role of the champion, the importance of advocacy for acceptance, and the practical problem-solving skills and tools of individual advocates and groups of advocates are explored.
Increasing Black Student Enrollment in Gifted Programs: An Exploration of the Pulaski County Special School District's Advocacy Efforts
Authors: Grantham Tarek C.
Published: January 2007

An increasing amount of literature focuses on effective advocacy efforts that promote excellence in gifted education, yet educators know very little about successful advocacy efforts targeted to ensure equitable representation of Black students in programs for the gifted. In this article, the author presents findings and research of an advocacy event in Pulaski County, Arkansas, where one school district's efforts to desegregate their gifted program resulted in more Black students enrolled. Different phases of a Gifted Program Advocacy Model (G-PAM) are used to explain important components of the Pulaski County Special School District's advocacy efforts.
Addressing Underrepresentation of Gifted Minority Children Using the Naglieri Nonverbal Ability Test (NNAT)
Authors: Naglieri Jack A. , Ford Donna Y.
Published: January 2007

A persistent problem in education is the underrepresentation of diverse students in gifted education programs. Many educators attribute the poor participation of diverse students in gifted programs to the ineffectiveness of standardized tests in capturing the ability of these students. Thus, a primary agenda of school selection committees is to find more culturally sensitive measures. This study examined the effectiveness of the Naglieri Nonverbal Ability Test (NNAT) in identifying gifted Black and Hispanic students in comparison to White students. The sample was comprised of 20,270 students in grades K-12 who were similar to the U.S. population on several demographic variables. The distributions of NNAT standard scores were studied separately for White, Black, and Hispanic groups. Results indicate that similar percentages of White (5.6%), Black (5.1%0/), and Hispanic (4.4%) children earned an NNAT standard score of 125 (95th percentile rank). These findings suggest that the NNAT may be useful as part of a procedure to identify diverse students for gifted education services.
Challenges and Opportunities for Students Who Are Gifted: What the Experts Say
Authors: Pfeiffer Steven I.
Published: January 2007

Five questions were answered by 64 authorities in the gifted field: (a) What do you see as the three greatest identification, assessment, and/or definitional issues in the gifted field? (b) What do you see as the three greatest curricula, instruction, and/or program issues for the gifted student? (c) What are the three most pressing unanswered questions in the gifted field? (d) What have been the three most important research findings in the last 5 years in the gifted field? (e) What are the three most significant developments or innovations in gifted education in the last 5 years? Responses were coded and sorted according to an analytic strategy that permitted the descriptive data to be grouped into a small number of categories. Most frequent categories included a need for consensus on how to define, conceptualize, and identify giftedness; new procedures to increase the under-representation of gifted minority students; and the importance of translating research on educational innovations into practice. Research and practice implications for the gifted field are provided.
Turning the Looking Glass Inside Out: A Gifted Student in an At-Risk Setting
Authors: Barone Diane , Schneider Rebecca
Published: January 2007

This qualitative study occurred in a multigrade classroom of 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders in a school labeled at-risk. The focal student in this study was Kirby, identified in this setting as a gifted student. Kirby’s classroom teacher and a university researcher collaborated in data collection that included interviews, classroom observations, a teacher journal, artifacts, and analysis over a 3-year period that was centered on literacy learning and teaching. It was discovered that the open-ended, flexible learning and teaching that occurred in the classroom benefited Kirby’s learning, as well as that of the other children in the classroom. Additionally, Kirby benefited from the rich literacy environment that was established by his mother.
From Noncompetence to Exceptional Talent: Exploring the Range of Academic Achievement Within and Between Grade Levels
Authors: Gagné Françoys
Published: January 2007

This article analyzes the magnitude of individual differences in academic achievement and their growth over the first 9 years of schooling. The author anchors the widening-gap phenomenon on the theoretical recognition of large individual differences in learning pace, which logically leads over time to an increasing gap in knowledge and skills between the fastest and slowest learners. The achievement data used as evidence were borrowed from the developmental standard score (SS) norms of the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS; Hoover, Dunbar, & Frisbie, 2001). These norms reveal, among other things, that within most grade levels the range between the lowest and highest achievers exceeds the 8-year gap in knowledge between average 1st- and 9th-grade students. Moreover, the achievement gap widens by about 145% between grades 1 and 9. Parallel evidence suggests that standardized achievement test data probably underestimate the true differences. Because it ensues from stable individual differences in learning aptitude, educators should not perceive that widening achievement gap as a failure of the educational system, but should recognize it instead as a proof that all learners are given the opportunity to progress at their own learning pace.
A Case Study of Teachers of Gifted Learners: Moving From Prescribed Practice to Described Practitioners
Authors: Graffam Ben
Published: January 2007

Two exemplary teachers of gifted learners were studied in order to get a better understanding of both teacher practices and teacher thoughts about those practices. Through extensive observation and in-depth interviews, these teachers demonstrated and discussed the qualities they felt to be essential for educating gifted learners. Though each teacher leads a different kind of classroom experience, both assert that (a) teaching gifted learners requires the framing of individualized and whole-group learning simultaneously, and (b) that the path a person takes to become a teacher of gifted learners is important. Equally significant is the way each of these teachers assimilates and combines some of the canonical ideas of gifted education. This kind of study is rare in our literature, but may be invaluable for teachers—pre-service teachers or those already working—who want to hone their skills in working with gifted learners.
A Study of Instructional Methods Used in Fast-Paced Classes
Authors: Lee Seon-Young , Olszewski-Kubilius Paula
Published: January 2007

This study involved 15 secondary-level teachers who taught fast-paced classes at a university-based summer program and similar regularly paced classes in their local schools in order to examine how teachers differentiate or modify instructional methods and content selections for fast-paced classes. Interviews were conducted with the teachers during the summer sessions with a brief survey used as supplemental data. Overall, teachers in this study used a varied set of instructional strategies and in-class activities for their fast-paced classes including lectures, presentations, group activities, demonstrations, frequent tests and quizzes, timed writing, essays, and discussion. The shorter time frame (3 weeks versus 9 months) and teachers’ perceptions about students’ academic abilities were the two major reasons given for the differentiated instructional strategies and content in the fast-paced classes. In the survey data, less repetition in course content, advanced-level readings and questions, and more independence in learning were found for the fast-paced classes. Yet, the teachers were not likely to move beyond the textbook for enrichment materials or individualize homework or assignments for students in their fast-paced classes. They also expressed concerns regarding depth versus breadth of the material covered in the 3-week courses.
The Crystallizing Experience: A Study in Musical Precocity
Authors: Freeman Cathy
Published: January 2007

This study examines the nature of musical precocity and the mechanisms that mediate a “crystallizing experience.” Howard Gardner (1983) has made a cogent argument for the inclusion of musical intelligence in the spectrum of human intelligences. lie has proposed that this musical ability may evolve in different ways. One of these is the “crystallizing experience,” a dramatic event in a person's life that makes manifest inherent giftedness. The crystallizing experience may serve as a useful constrict for explaining how certain talented individuals first commit themselves to an area of giftedness. The present study involved 24 musically precocious boys of middle school age who were asked questions, individually and in focus groups, regarding the nature of crystallizing experiences. This study of the crystallizing experience revealed important implications for understanding the structure and composition of extraordinary performance.
The Effect of Relocation on Gifted Students
Authors: Plucker Jonathan A.
Published: January 2007

Over the course of two years, researchers conducted two qualitative studies to investigate the impact of moving on gifted children. Participants were five families, each of which included gifted children and at least one parent presently or recently in the military. Study 1 involved elementary students living on a military base, and students in Study 2 attended suburban high schools. While academic performance was not hindered by moving, parents and students reported that organizational inconsistencies among schools (e.g., widely varying criteria for admittance to gifted programs) were a frequent cause of frustration. Frequent relocations had little impact on parent and student perceptions of the gifted children's long-term social, emotional, and academic development. In the short term, however, certain children experienced varying degrees of social difficulties that appeared to result from the relocations.
The Relationship Between Cultural Competence Education and Increasing Diversity in Nursing Schools and Practice Settings
Authors: Pacquiao Dula
Published: January 2007

This article attempted to examine the relationship between cultural competence education and increasing diversity in nursing schools and practice settings. In addition to the review of the literature, a panel of experts was interviewed regarding institutional practices in response to the challenge of increasing diversity and cultural competence education. Evidence of positive outcomes of cultural competent care and impact of race and ethnic concordance between patients and providers are presented. The challenge of increasing underrepresented minorities in health care professions remains elusive. An ecological analysis is recommended to address the social and cultural barriers that transcend the micro system of the school and the macro system of the society. The challenge of increasing diversity and realizing outcomes of cultural competence education requires social and comprehensive remedies to level life inequities that perpetuate a history of disadvantages in some groups.