bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Cosmogenic and trapped noble gases in individual chondrules: Clues to chondrule formation
Authors: Das J. P. , Murty S. V. S. 
Published: January 2010

Abstract— We studied the elemental and isotopic abundances of noble gases (He, Ne, Ar in most cases, and Kr, Xe also in some cases) in individual chondrules separated from six ordinary, two enstatite, and two carbonaceous chondrites. Most chondrules show detectable amounts of trapped 20Ne and 36Ar, and the ratio (36Ar/20Ne)t (from ordinary and carbonaceous chondrites) suggests that HL and Q are the two major trapped components. A different trend between (36Ar/20Ne)t and trapped 36Ar is observed for chondrules in enstatite chondrites indicating a different environment and/or mechanism for their formation compared to chondrules in ordinary and carbonaceous chondrites. We found that a chondrule from Dhajala chondrite (DH‐11) shows the presence of solar‐type noble gases, as suggested by the (36Ar/20Ne)t ratio, Ne‐isotopic composition, and excess of 4He.Cosmic‐ray exposure (CRE) ages of most chondrules are similar to their host chondrites. A few chondrules show higher CRE age compared to their host, suggesting that some chondrules and/or precursors of chondrules have received cosmic ray irradiation before accreting to their parent body. Among these chondrules, DH‐11 (with solar trapped gases) and a chondrule from Murray chondrite (MRY‐1) also have lower values of (21Ne/22Ne)c, indicative of SCR contribution. However, such evidences are sporadic and indicate that chondrule formation event may have erased such excess irradiation records by solar wind and SCR in most chondrules. These results support the nebular environment for chondrule formation.
Collisional modification of the acapulcoite/lodranite parent body revealed by the iodine‐xenon system in lodranites
Authors: Crowther S. A. , Whitby J. A. , Busfield A. , Holland G. , Busemann H. , Gilmour J. D. 
Published: January 2010

Abstract—The I‐Xe system of three lodranites has been investigated. Samples of Gibson yielded no isochrons, and late model ages are attributed to late addition of iodine. Two metal and one silicate separate from the transitional lodranite Graves Nunataks (GRA) 95209 gave ages that are consistent with each other and with the literature I‐Xe age of Acapulco feldspar. These yield a mean closure age 4.19 ± 0.53 Ma after the Shallowater enstatite reference age (4562.3 ± 0.4 Ma). Such identical I‐Xe ages from distinct phases imply that the parent material underwent a period of rapid cooling, the absolute age of this event being 4558.1 ± 0.7 Ma. Such rapid cooling indicates an increase in the rate at which heat could be conducted away, requiring a significant modification of the parent body. We suggest the parent body was modified by an impact at or close to the time recorded by the I‐Xe system.An age of 10.4 ± 2.3 Ma after Shallowater has been determined for one whole‐rock sample of Lewis Cliff (LEW) 88280. Since the release pattern is similar to that of GRA 95209 this hints that the larger grain size of this sample may reflect slower cooling due to deeper post impact burial.
Moduli spaces of irreducible symplectic manifolds
Authors: Gritsenko V. , Hulek K. , Sankaran G. K. 
Published: January 2010

AbstractWe study the moduli spaces of polarised irreducible symplectic manifolds. By a comparison with locally symmetric varieties of orthogonal type of dimension 20, we show that the moduli space of polarised deformation K3[2]manifolds with polarisation of degree 2dand split type is of general type ifd≥12.
High Diversity of Extended-Spectrum β-Lactamases in
Escherichia coli
Isolates from Italian Broiler Flocks
Authors: Bortolaia Valeria , Guardabassi Luca , Trevisani Marcello , Bisgaard Magne , Venturi Luciano , Bojesen Anders Miki 
Published: January 2010

ABSTRACT

We characterized 67
Escherichia coli
isolates with reduced susceptibility to cefotaxime or ceftiofur obtained from healthy broilers housed in five Italian farms. The
bla
CTX-M-1
,
bla
CTX-M-32
and
bla
SHV-12
β-lactamase genes were identified on IncI1, IncN, or IncFIB plasmids. Considerable genetic diversity was detected among the extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing isolates, and we identified indistinguishable strains in unrelated farms and indistinguishable plasmids in genetically unrelated strains. The detection of highly mobile plasmids suggests a potential animal reservoir for β-lactamase genes.
Roles of Calcineurin and Crz1 in Antifungal Susceptibility and Virulence of
Candida glabrata
Authors: Miyazaki Taiga , Yamauchi Shunsuke , Inamine Tatsuo , Nagayoshi Yosuke , Saijo Tomomi , Izumikawa Koichi , Seki Masafumi , Kakeya Hiroshi , Yamamoto Yoshihiro , Yanagihara Katsunori , Miyazaki Yoshitsugu , Kohno Shigeru 
Published: January 2010

ABSTRACT

A
Candida glabrata
calcineurin mutant exhibited increased susceptibility to both azole antifungal and cell wall-damaging agents and was also attenuated in virulence. Although a mutant lacking the downstream transcription factor Crz1 displayed a cell wall-associated phenotype intermediate to that of the calcineurin mutant and was modestly attenuated in virulence, it did not show increased azole susceptibility. These results suggest that calcineurin regulates both Crz1-dependent and -independent pathways depending on the type of stress.
Activity of the Investigational Fluoroquinolone Finafloxacin against Ciprofloxacin-Sensitive and -Resistant
Acinetobacter baumannii
Isolates
Authors: Higgins Paul G. , Stubbings Will , Wisplinghoff Hilmar , Seifert Harald 
Published: January 2010

ABSTRACT

This study compared the activity of finafloxacin, a novel fluoroquinolone which shows enhanced activity under acidic pH, and that of ciprofloxacin against
Acinetobacter baumannii
under standard conditions (pH 7.2) and at a pH of 5.8. Overall, finafloxacin demonstrated superior activity to ciprofloxacin under acidic conditions. Furthermore, finafloxacin showed comparable activity to ciprofloxacin at pH 7.2. Hence, finafloxacin could be a promising new antimicrobial agent for the treatment of
A. baumannii
infections at acidic body compartments.
Broad-Spectrum Activity against Bacterial Mastitis Pathogens and Activation of Mammary Epithelial Cells Support a Protective Role of Neutrophil Cathelicidins in Bovine Mastitis
Authors: Tomasinsig Linda , De Conti Gennyfer , Skerlavaj Barbara , Piccinini Renata , Mazzilli Maria , D'Este Francesca , Tossi Alessandro , Zanetti Margherita 
Published: January 2010

ABSTRACTCathelicidins are peptide components of the innate immune system of mammals. Apart from exerting a direct antibiotic activity, they can also trigger specific defense responses in the host. Their roles in various pathophysiological conditions have been studied, but there is a lack of published information on their expression and activities in the context of mastitis. The aims of this study were to investigate the expression of the bovine cathelicidins BMAP-27, BMAP-28, Bac5, and indolicidin in healthy and infected mammary tissue and in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-treated cells, to determine their activities against bacteria isolated from bovine mastitis, and to examine their potentials to trigger defense responses in bovine mammary cells. The genes were found to be upregulated in LPS-stimulated neutrophils, but not in infected quarters or epithelial cells. All peptides showed a variably broad spectrum of activity against 28 bacterial isolates from bovine mastitis (MIC values, 0.5 to 32 μM), some of which were antibiotic resistant. The activity of each peptide was significantly enhanced when it was pairwise tested with the other peptides, reaching the synergy threshold when indolicidin was present. The bactericidal activity was sensitive to milk components; BMAP-27 and -28 were highly effective in mastitic bovine milk and inhibited in milk from healthy cows. Both peptides were also active in whey and in blood serum and triggered the expression of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) in bovine mammary epithelial cells. Our results indicate multiple roles for the bovine cathelicidins in mastitis, with complementary and mutually enhanced antimicrobial activities against causative pathogens and the capacity to activate host cells.
Pseudomonas aeruginosa
Cytotoxin ExoU Is Injected into Phagocytic Cells during Acute Pneumonia
Authors: Diaz Maureen H. , Hauser Alan R. 
Published: January 2010

ABSTRACT

ExoU, a cytotoxin translocated into host cells via the type III secretion system of
Pseudomonas aeruginosa
, is associated with increased mortality and disease severity. We previously showed that impairment of recruited phagocytic cells allowed survival of ExoU-secreting
P. aeruginosa
in the lung. Here we analyzed types of cells injected with ExoU
in vivo
using translational fusions of ExoU with a β-lactamase reporter (ExoU-Bla). Cells injected with ExoU-Bla were detectable
in vitro
but not
in vivo
, presumably due to the rapid cytotoxicity induced by the toxin. Therefore, we used a noncytotoxic ExoU variant, designated ExoU(S142A)-Bla, to analyze injection
in vivo
. We determined that phagocytic cells in the lung were frequently injected with ExoU(S142A). Early during infection, resident macrophages constituted the majority of cells into which ExoU was injected, but neutrophils and monocytes became the predominant types of cells into which ExoU was injected upon recruitment into the lung. We observed a modest preference for injection into neutrophils over injection into other cell types, but in general the repertoire of injected immune cells reflected the relative abundance of these cells in the lung. Our results indicate that phagocytic cells in the lung are injected with ExoU and support the hypothesis that ExoU-mediated impairment of phagocytes has a role in the pathogenesis of pneumonia caused by
P. aeruginosa
.
Chloroplast DNA polymorphism reveals geographic structure and introgression in theQuercus crassifolia ×Quercus crassipeshybrid complex in Mexico
Authors: Tovar-Sánchez E. , Mussali-Galante P. , Esteban-Jiménez R. , Piñero D. , Arias D. M. , Dorado O. , Oyama K. 
Published: January 2010

Quercus crassifolia H. & B. and Quercus crassipes H. & B. are two common temperate forest species in Mexico that form hybrids when they occur in mixed (sympatric) areas. In this study, we used chloroplast microsatellite haplotypes to infer phylogeographic patterns onto the genetic structure of populations of both parental species, thus defining probable colonization routes throughout Mexico. Haplotype diversity in seven hybrid zones and four allopatric sites with nonmixed (allopatric) populations of both putative parental species was analyzed. To determine the expansion and colonization routes for the two species, we carried out a nested clade phylogeographic analysis that would allow us to infer the haplotype correspondence to a phylogeographical approach. In spite of sharing many common populations, we determined that there is a different genetic historical colonization for Q. crassipes and for Q. crassifolia. Hybrid populations had the highest levels of genetic variation (Gv), Shannon diversity index (H), and haplotype number (nh) in comparison with nonmixed/allopatric populations of their putative parentals. Furthermore, populations of hybrid zones showed the highest values of genetic differentiation FST, RST. Moreover, both species share four distinctive cpDNA haplotypes, which were most likely acquired by introgression through hybrids located in several populations throughout the Eje Neovolcánico area. This last region was confirmed to be a “hot spot” for oak diversity, a place in which different maternal lineages merged.
Relationships between flowering phenology and female reproductive success in the Japanese tree species Magnolia stellata
Authors: Setsuko Suzuki , Tamaki Ichiro , Ishida Kiyoshi , Tomaru Nobuhiro 
Published: January 2010

We have examined the earliness, duration, and amplitude of flowering genets in a Magnolia stellata (Sieb. et Zucc.) Maxim. population in relation to their size, environmental factors (temperature and light), and female reproductive success (ovule survival rate) over three consecutive years. Average flowering durations of individual flowers, genets, and the whole population in these 3 years were 10.2, 15.2, and 29.0 d, respectively. A bisexual phase (with both female and male phase flowers) in genets spanned 62.9% of the total flowering period, suggesting that geitonogamy can occur. The earliness, duration, and amplitude of flowering genets were all significantly correlated, indicating that genets flower early and long periods have high flowering amplitudes. The three parameters were also significantly correlated with the size of the genets (represented by the diameter at breast height of its thickest ramet) and relative photosynthetic photon flux density at the top of their crowns. Therefore, genets that are large and located in well-lit sites tend to have many flowers, and blossom both earlier and longer. Later-flowering genets have higher female reproductive success, probably because M. stellata is protogynous. Significantly positive correlation between flowering amplitude and female reproductive success suggests that large numbers of flowers increase the attractiveness of genets for pollinators, and this outweighs the negative effects of geitonogamy.
Connecting women and technology
Authors: Barr Valerie 
Published: January 2010

The
Communications
Web site, http://cacm.acm.org, features more than a dozen bloggers in the BLOG@CACM community. In each issue of
Communications
, we'll publish excerpts from selected posts.

twitter

Follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/blogCACM
Guest blogger Valerie Barr writes about highlights of the ninth Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing Conference, including keynote speeches by Megan Smith and Francine Berman.
Taking a flexible approach to ASPs
Authors: Altaf Farheen , Schuff David 
Published: January 2010

Introduction

In 2001, subscription-based application service providers (ASPs) represented the new paradigm for application deployment. It was anticipated that ASP spending would reach $7.8 billion by 2004, and a 2001 survey conducted by PMP Research revealed that 23% of respondents said they would likely use an ASP in the future. However, this turned out not to be the case. By 2004, spending on ASPs had increased only to $4.2 billion.
Over the past few years, there has been a revival of the ASP model through the notion of cloud computing and "software as a service." The market for cloud-based services was $16 billion in 2008, and projections estimate the market for spending in this area will reach $42 billion by 2012. However, this still only would represent 9% of overall IT spending. These services have traditionally targeted larger companies instead of small or medium-sized businesses (or SMEs). Companies like Oracle, Siebel, and Ariba claim that nearly 60% of their business comes from companies that have annual revenues exceeding $1 billion. However, the ASP model provides the same or greater benefits to SMEs, including lower costs, greater choice, simpler installation (and no related fees), and the ability to access applications from any internet-connected computer. ASP subscribers also often receive "24 by 7" technical support. This access to IT expertise (without maintaining an in-house IT staff) results in further savings for businesses.
Despite the benefits, small businesses have not readily adopted ASPs. The reasons for this lack of adoption include the reluctance of SMEs to replace their existing systems with untried ASPs and the inappropriateness of the "one-size-fits-all" approach that doesn't take in to consideration specific industry or firm requirements. This makes the SME a significant untapped market for companies operating in this space.
The purpose of this article is to more fully understand the SME market for ASPs through an analysis of the factors that are most important to likely adopters. While previous work has broadly investigated adoption by SMEs and the general adoption of ASPs, this study combines both perspectives and proposes the new construct of "flexibility" as influential in the adoption decision. We surveyed 101 SMEs that had not yet adopted ASPs and asked them to rate the importance of several factors that would affect their decision. Correlating likelihood of adoption with the importance of those factors yields several important insights into how ASP vendors should position their product offerings.
Practical intelligence in IT
Authors: Joseph Damien , Ang Soon , Chang Roger H. L. , Slaughter Sandra A. 
Published: January 2010

Introduction

What qualities make a successful it professional? Certainty strong technical skills are sine qua non. As a result, the technology geek remains the stereotype of an information technology (IT) professional. Indeed, when companies hire IT professionals, their focus is often on the "hard" skills needed to perform the work, such as years of Java programming experience.
However, there is a growing (and gnawing) awareness that technical skills alone are insufficient for success in IT, particularly in today's dynamic, distributed and complex workplace. Companies are exploring outsourcing and offshoring to become more flexible and contain costs while strategically leveraging IT. Consequently, IT professionals (whether onsite or offshore, in-house or outsourced) must acquire a broader set of skills beyond their traditional technical skills. These broader managerial or interpersonal skills are generically labeled "soft skills."
Despite the increasing importance of soft skills, very little systematic research has conceptualized such skills and even less has measured these skills. Given this gap in the literature, this article introduces "practical intelligence" as the overarching concept that could provide a better understanding of this broader set of skills required of IT professionals. We describe the development of the SoftSkills for IT (SSIT) instrument for assessing an IT professional's level of practical intelligence, and report the results of a study that validates this instrument by comparing the practical intelligence of experienced IT professionals versus novices. We conclude by drawing out implications of our study for IT recruitment, training and development, and suggest future research directions.
Introduction to the SIGACT news online algorithms column
Authors: Chrobak Marek 
Published: January 2010

Pros and cons of competitive analysis have been debated since its inception in mid 1980s. Much of this discussion centered around the accuracy of performance evaluation methods for paging, which is probably the most central among online optimization problems studied in the literature, and, at the same time, ironically, the most prominent example of shortcomings of competitive analysis. In this quarter's column, Reza Dorrigiv and Alejandro Lopez-Ortiz review the history of the problem, discuss several performance models from the literature, and propose a new model that avoids shortcomings of previous approaches.
If you are interested in contributing to the column as a guest writer, feel free to contact me by email. All kinds of contributions related to online algorithms and competitive analysis are of interest: technical articles, surveys, conference reports, opinion pieces, and other.
Socrates and Gorgias
Authors: Doyle James 
Published: January 2010

AbstractIn this paper I try to solve some problems concerning the interpretation of Socrates’ conversation with Gorgias about the nature of rhetoric in Plato’s Gorgias (448e6-461b2). I begin by clarifying what, ethically, is at stake in the conversation (section 2). In the main body of the paper (sections 3-6) I address the question of what we are to understand Gorgias as believing about the nature of rhetoric: I criticise accounts given by Charles Kahn and John Cooper, and suggest an alternative account of my own. In the final section I spell out some of the implications of my account for the interpretation of the Gorgias, and of Plato more generally.
Truth and Contradiction in Aristotle’s De Interpretatione 6-9
Authors: Jones Russell E. 
Published: January 2010

AbstractIn De Interpretatione 6-9, Aristotle considers three logical principles: the principle of bivalence, the law of excluded middle, and the rule of contradictory pairs (according to which of any contradictory pair of statements, exactly one is true and the other false). Surprisingly, Aristotle accepts none of these without qualification. I offer a coherent interpretation of these chapters as a whole, while focusing special attention on two sorts of statements that are of particular interest to Aristotle: universal statements not made universally and future particular statements. With respect to the former, I argue that Aristotle takes them to be indeterminate and so to violate the rule of contradictory pairs. With respect to the latter, the subject of the much discussed ninth chapter, I argue that the rule of contradictory pairs, and not the principle of bivalence, is the focus of Aristotle’s refutation. Nevertheless, Aristotle rejects bivalence for future particular statements.
Islamic Legal Maxims as Substantive Canons of Construction: Hudūd-Avoidance in Cases of Doubt
Authors: Rabb Intisar 
Published: January 2010

AbstractLegal maxims reflect settled principles of law to which jurists appeal when confronting new legal cases. One such maxim of Islamic criminal law stipulates that judges are to avoid imposing hudūd and other sanctions when beset by doubts as to the scope of the law or the sufficiency of the evidence (idra'ū'l-hudūd bi'l-shubahāt): the "hudūd maxim." Jurists of all periods reference this maxim widely. But whereas developed juristic works attribute it to Muhammad in the form of a prophetic report (hadīth), early jurists do not. Instead, they cite the maxim as an anonymous saying of nonspecific provenance in a form unknown to hadīth collectors of the first three centuries after Islam's advent. This difference in the jurists' citations of the maxim signals a significant shift in claims to legal authority and the asserted scope of judicial discretion, as jurists debated whether and how to resolve legal and factual doubt. While political authorities exercised increasingly wide discretion over criminal matters and used it to benefit the elite, most jurists promoted an egalitarian "jurisprudence of doubt" through insisting on criminal liability for high-status offenders and heightening claims of the authoritativeness and scope of the hudūd maxim as a hadīth.
Wael B. Hallaq on the Origins of Islamic Law: A Review Essay
Authors: Powers David 
Published: January 2010

AbstractIn his The Origins and Evolution of Islamic Law, Wael B. Hallaq seeks to create a new paradigm for the scholarly understanding of the origins of Islamic law. In this essay, I review Hallaq's Origins and four other publications of his in an effort to assess his achievement. A comparison of Hallaq's vision of legal developments during the first two centuries AH with that of Joseph Schacht suggests that the differences between the two scholars are minor and that much scholarly work remains to be done on the emergence of Islamic legal doctrine.