cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Roles of FORM, System-FORM, SORM, and RSM in Geotechnical Reliability Analysis

This paper examines the complementary roles and interconnections among the first-order reliability method (FORM) for single failure modes, the system FORM for correlated multiple failure modes, the second-order reliability method (SORM) for curved limit state surfaces, and the response surface methods as a link between reliability methods and stand-alone numerical packages. Geotechnical examples of reliability-based design and analysis will be provided to illustrate the principles, merits and limitations of each, and to explain the connections and evolutionary relationships among FORM, system-FORM and SORM. Comparisons will be made with other probabilistic methods in recent geotechnical literature. Apart from elucidating efficient and practical procedures for reliability-based design and analysis with the hope of engaging more practitioners to consider the probabilistic approach, the paper also aims to provide some discussions and a more balanced perspective of other probabilistic approaches (different from FORM, system-FORM, SORM, RSM) published by various researchers in recent geotechnical papers.
Ghosts of Our Fathers: Jacques Derrida and Barack Obama Discussing Inheritance

What kind of tale concerning democracy could 'fathers' unfold? We look to our fathers for instruction, guidance, safety and assurance. But to complicate this image with that of a ghost, what can we learn, find, secure, or guarantee? Are not ghosts phantom non-images that fund us, call to us, render us insecure, and lack guarantee? Such questions beg for an exploration into the past, into secrets, into the very inner-workings of heritage itself. If we, as theorists of democracy, accept the implications of these questions, we are therefore obliged to embark on the very quest present in Jacques Derrida's Specters of Marx -- we must learn to live with and speak to ghosts. According to Derrida, we are indebted to these ghosts. At this very juncture in time, one cannot help but wonder about the implication of the 'absent' father that drives and haunts President Barack Obama's political narrative. Also, consequentially, why the absence of fathers remains a dominating concern in the American context, as magnified for Obama in his 'Fathers Day Speech'? And, finally, in understanding the reality of this absence, why Obama turns to the well-established figure(s) of fatherhood in the American Tradition - the Founding Fathers - most notably in his speech 'A More Perfect Union'? In this paper I turn to Derrida's linking together of inheritance, deconstruction and democracy in order to tease out a new conception of democratic subjectivity using absent fathers as an entry point.
Insulin-like activity of crystalline glucagon as measured with rat epididymal fat pad preparation.

SummaryA small amount of insulin-like activity has been found in crystalline preparations of glucagon with rat epididymal fat pad preparation. Treatment of glucagon with cysteine lowers this insulin-like activity to a small fraction of initial activity.
Assessment of Mortality in Autoimmune Myositis With and Without Associated Interstitial Lung Disease.

Among patients with autoimmune myositis, associated interstitial lung disease (MA-ILD) is a known contributor of excess morbidity and mortality. Recent data on survival in idiopathic inflammatory myopathies originate primarily in Asia and Europe and vary widely. We sought to examine mortality in a large U.S. myositis cohort focusing in particular on the impact of associated ILD. A cross-sectional analysis of participants from the Johns Hopkins Myositis Center with autoimmune myositis (polymyositis [PM], dermatomyositis [DM], or clinically amyopathic dermatomyositis [CADM]) was conducted. The primary outcome assessed was all-cause mortality. Cumulative mortality rates were estimated using the Kaplan–Meier test; the Cox proportional hazards model was used to compare group differences in survival. Eight hundred and thirty-one participants were included with a median follow-up time of 4.5 years. Four hundred thirty-eight (53 %) had PM, 362 (43 %) had DM, and 31 (4 %) had CADM. Ninety-four (11 %) participants had clinically evident ILD. Overall, 51 participants died (6 %). In those without ILD, the survival rates at 1, 5, and 10 years were 99, 95, and 90 %, respectively. In those with ILD, the survival rates at 1, 5, and 10 years were 97, 91, and 81 %, respectively. The risk of death was statistically significantly higher among participants with ILD compared to those without ILD (HR 2.13. 95 % CI 1.06–4.25; p = 0.03). We analyzed one of the largest known cohorts of patients with autoimmune myositis and found significantly higher mortality rates among those with clinically evident ILD compared to those without clinically evident ILD. Our results suggest that ILD remains an important and significant source of mortality in patients with inflammatory myopathies and as such should be screened for and treated aggressively.
Decision Making in Clinical Preventive Medicine

The primary care physician can use the framework for decision making outlined in this article to assess the burden of suffering from conditions that occur in the patients in his or her practice, to evaluate the evidence for the effectiveness of diagnostic and therapeutic interventions, and to decide whether specific efficacious preventive maneuvers are likely to be effective when implemented in daily clinical practice.
Listening Is… Five Personal Worlds of Listening: An Auto-Ethnographic Approach

What is effective listening? This question intrigues both scholars and the general public. Theoretical explorations provide insight into the listening process as well as pragmatic guidelines for how to be a good listener. But even the most learned listening scholar will often fall back on the observation that they know effective listening best when they experience it.Five renowned listening experts were asked to respond to the question, “What is listening from the perspective of your lived experience?” Each was asked to work from an auto-ethnographic methodology. The five lifeworlds described in this study represent their responses to this question and offer unique, individual ethnographic contexts describing the listening experience of each of the participants.
Post-Infectious Sequelae of Travelers’ Diarrhea: Reactive Arthritis, Guillain-Barré Syndrome, and Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Purpose of review Although travelers’ diarrhea is a self-limited illness in most persons, it can be associated with post-infectious sequelae, which can be prolonged and disabling. In some individuals, a bout of travelers’ diarrhea leads to persistent gastrointestinal symptoms such as chronic diarrhea, episodic abdominal pain and bloating, constipation or dyspepsia, and gastroesophageal reflux.
CHEMICALS FROM STARCH

Publisher Summary Starch is a prime candidate for use as a raw material because it is available at a low cost and can be converted into a variety of useful monomeric and polymeric products by chemical and biochemical means. This chapter emphasizes the promising applications of starch-derived products. It describes the techniques for fermenting starch to various chemicals. The production of some industrial-grade ethanol from natural products is an example of the rising trend toward fermentation biosynthesis. Although starch is being considered for the production of alcohol and hydrocarbons as a direct replacement for petroleum, any such conversions are accompanied by drastic mass losses due to the elimination of CO2 and H2O. Several polyhydroxy compounds have been developed from starch for industrial applications that are less expensive than comparable products made from petroleum.
Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Cartilage Contact and Bound Water in ACL-Deficient and ACL Reconstructed Knees

Objectives: Osteoarthritis (OA) is common following ACL-reconstructive (ACLR) surgery (6). The cause of early OA is not understood, but theories have focused on osteochondral damage at the time of injury (2) and abnormal joint mechanics following surgical repair (7). In this study, we investigate the inter-relationship of cartilage mechanics and biomarkers of OA in both ACL-deficient (ACLD) and ACLR knees. Our approach employs a novel dynamic MR sequence to measure joint mechanics (3) and the recently developed mcDESPOT to assess regional variations in water bound to proteoglycan (PG) (5). We hypothesize that bound water will be diminished in the cartilage of ACLD knees and, after surgery, will continue to adapt in a manner that reflects altered cartilage loading. This abstract presents initial observations on a cross-section of healthy, ACLD and ACLR knees.
Organizing Prostitution Through Silence^Discourse: Unveiling Masks of a Masquerade

Prostitution operates as a hidden organized activity relying on covert organizing processes in order to function. This study analyzes how both talk and silence discursively construct prostitution. Data, including prostitution policies and in-depth interviews, revealed that certain participants are marked silent while others are made visible. Results are presented through a metaphor of a masquerade in order to illuminate the complexity of hidden organizing. This metaphor offers a way to examine systematic and pervasive silence(s) within hidden organizing. Implications are offered for theory and research of the discursive construction of hidden organizations.
‘London particular’: the city, its atmosphere and the visibility of its objects

Over the course of the nineteenth century, the smoke-filled atmospheres of London and other industrial cities were the subject of aesthetic, scientific and legal inquiry. Reconstructing the conjunction of such inquiries in a pivotal architectural episode—the rebuilding of the Houses of Parliament—reveals an important transformation in the understanding of the relationship between a city and its architectural objects. Where it once seemed possible to regard these objects (and their architects) as independent, discrete participants in the larger material and administrative domains of the city, the expanding knowledge and judgements of the atmosphere and its effects produced an entirely different perception. The city and its architectural objects were co-extensive, involuntary participants in an encompassing process of change registered by two newly recognised categories: decay and maintenance.
Abstract B121: AIB1 is a transcriptional and translational mediator of breast cancer cell growth and migration targets

The nuclear p160 steroid receptor co-activator, AIB1 is a downstream regulator of the insulin-like growth factor (IGF-I) tyrosine kinase signaling axis [1]. Since AIB1 is over-expressed in 31-64% of breast cancers cell several mechanisms have been described to explain its function in breast cancer [2]. AIB1 transcriptionally regulates genes involved in carcinogenesis via its co-partnership with estrogen receptor alpha (ERα) and E2F1 [3]. Interestingly the transcriptional mediators, c-myc and E2F1 induce mRNA translation potentially via the transcriptional regulation of ribosome biogenesis factors [4]. However, whether AIB1 acts in similarly is not well known [3]. Furthermore, since IGF-I signaling stimulates mRNA cap-dependent translation and also affects AIB1, we hypothesize that AIB1 acts as both a transcriptional and translational regulator of breast cancer cell growth and migration in an IGF-dependent manner. ER positive (MCF7L) wild-type, stably expressing AIB1 and scrambled control short hairpin RNA (shAIB1 and shCON) cells were created. Cells were treated for 24h in serum free media plus and minus IGF-I (5nM). Polyribosomal mRNA was stratified using sucrose gradients and fractionated into ten individual fractions and total-RNA samples were obtained. qRT-PCR was performed to determine IGF-I and AIB1 mediated transcriptional and translational effects on AIB1, markers of proliferation (i.e. KI67 and PCNA), cell cycle (i.e. p21), survival (i.e. BCL2), migration (i.e. VEGFA) and ribosome biogenesis factors (i.e. eIF3A and eIF5) in MCF7L shCON and shAIB1 cells. Statistical significance was determined by one-way ANOVA (p 1. Oh, A., et al. Cancer Res, 2004. 15 (64): p.8299-308 2. Lahusen, T., et al. Breast Cancer Res Treat, 2009: 116(2): p.225-37 3. Louie, MC., et al. Mol Cell Biol, 2004: 24(12): p. 5157-71 4. Cole, MD and Cowling VH. Oncogene, 2009: 28: p 1169-1175 Citation Format: Aleksandra M. Ochnik, Mark S. Peterson, Svetlana V. Avdulov, Douglas Yee. AIB1 is a transcriptional and translational mediator of breast cancer cell growth and migration targets. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on Advances in Breast Cancer Research: Genetics, Biology, and Clinical Applications; Oct 3-6, 2013; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Mol Cancer Res 2013;11(10 Suppl):Abstract nr B121.
Lateral Orbitofrontal Inactivation Dissociates Devaluation-Sensitive Behavior and Economic Choice

How do we choose between goods that have different subjective values, like apples and oranges? Neuroeconomics proposes that this is done by reducing complex goods to a single unitary value to allow comparison. This value is computed "on the fly" from the underlying model of the goods space, allowing decisions to meet current needs. This is termed "model-based" behavior to distinguish it from pre-determined, habitual, or "model-free" behavior. The lateral orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) supports model-based behavior in rats and primates, but whether the OFC is necessary for economic choice is less clear. Here we tested this question by optogenetically inactivating the lateral OFC in rats in a classic model-based task and during economic choice. Contrary to predictions, inactivation disrupted model-based behavior without affecting economic choice.
An Ant Colony Approach for the Winner Determination Problem

Combinatorial auctions are those where bidders can bid on bundles of items. These auctions can lead to more economically efficient allocations but determining the winners is an NP-complete problem. In this paper, we propose an ant colony technique for approximating solutions to hard instances of this problem. Hard instances are those that are unsolvable within reasonable time by CPLEX and have more than 1000 bids on 500 or more unique items. Such instances occur in real world applications such as 4th Party Logistics (4PL) auctions, online resource time sharing auctions and the sale of spectrum licenses by the Federal Communications Commission. We perform experiments on 10 such instances to show and compare the performance of the proposed approach to CPLEX (Branch-and-Bound), stochastic greedy search, random walk and a memetic algorithm. Results indicate that in a given runtime, CPLEX results lie within the third quartile of the values generated using our approach for 3 of 10 of the instances. In addition, CPLEX results are on average \(0.24\%\) worse than best values reported using our approach for 5 of 10 instances. Further, our approach performs statistically significantly better (\(p< 0.01\)) than other heuristics on all instances.
Overview of Clinical Decision Support Systems

Clinical decision support systems (CDSS) are computer systems designed to impact clinician decision making about individual patients at the point in time that these decisions are made.With the increased focus on the prevention of medical errors that has occurred since the publication of the landmark Institute of Medicine report, To Err Is Human, computer-based physician order entry (CPOE) systems, coupled with CDSS, have been proposed as a key element of systems’ approaches to improving patient safety.1, 2, 3, 4 If used properly, CDSS have the potential to change the way medicine has been taught and practiced. This chapter will provide an overview of clinical decision support systems, summarize current data on the use and impact of clinical decision support systems in practice, and will provide guidelines for users to consider as these systems begin to be incorporated in commercial systems, and implemented outside the research and development settings. The other chapters in this book will explore these issues in more depth.
Fully endoscopic laser stapedotomy: is it comparable with microscopic surgery?

Background Microscopic stapedotomy is very successful and has long history, but it still has some constraints. Thus, otoendoscopy is increasingly popular nowadays. Aims/objectives The retrospective review study was to investigate the role of endoscopic laser stapedotomy in treating patients with otosclerosis. Materials and methods Seventeen patients who received endoscopic laser stapedotomy from April 2014 to July 2017 were enrolled and compared to 13 patients who had microscopic stapedotomy from February 2009 to March 2012. The anatomical structures, operative time, and postoperative hearing outcomes were assessed in two groups. Relation between external acoustic canal and operative time was also analyzed. Results Using an endoscope, the operative field was clear, with easily identified anatomy, without need to sacrifice bony structures. The operative time was significantly longer in the endoscopic group in 2014 and decreased in the following years. There was no significant difference of hearing improvements between the two groups. There was a weak correlation between the width of the external auditory canal and the operative time. Conclusions and significance Fully endoscopic stapes surgery is a feasible and safe surgical technique and results in satisfactory hearing outcomes. However, surgeons take longer to master the technique and to achieve shorter endoscopic operative times.
Pembrolizumab (pembro) in heavily pretreated metastatic castrate-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC).

255Background: KEYNOTE-199 has shown PSA responses of 11% to pembro in mCRPC. This study aims to further evaluate pembro in heavily pre-treated mCRPC patients (pts) correlating clinical outcomes wi...
Self-consistent charge embedding at very low cost, with application to symmetry-adapted perturbation theory

Extended symmetry-adapted perturbation theory (XSAPT) uses a self-consistent charge embedding to capture many-body polarization, in conjunction with a pairwise-additive SAPT calculation of intermolecular interaction energies. The original implementation of XSAPT is based on charges that are fit to reproduce molecular electrostatic potentials, but this becomes a computational bottleneck in large systems. Charge embedding based on modified Hirshfeld atomic charges is reported here, which dramatically reduces the computational cost without compromising accuracy. Exemplary calculations are presented for supramolecular complexes such as C60@C60H28, a DNA intercalation complex, and a 323-atom model of a drug molecule bound to an enzyme active site. The proposed charge embedding should be useful in other fragment-based quantum chemistry methods as well.
Modulation of transcription of the platelet-derived growth factor A-chain gene by a promoter region sensitive to S1 nuclease.

Homodimers of the platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) A-chain are strong mitogens for cells of mesenchymal origin. Differences in the levels of expression of the PDGF A-chain gene have been reported in both normal and transformed cell lines, suggesting that transcription of the PDGF A-chain gene is highly regulated. We have now identified two S1-hypersensitive sites which flank a 13-base pair oligo(dG).oligo(dC) sequence located 70-82 base pairs upstream of the transcription initiation site. Three lines of evidence suggest that these S1-sensitive sites contribute to optimum promoter activity. Nuclear protein(s) binding to these sites were detected in gel mobility shift assays. Deletion of the S1-sensitive sites results in a 2-3-fold decrease in the transcriptional activity and eliminated sensitivity to S1 nuclease. Deletions in the oligo(dG).oligo(dC) motif also eliminated sensitivity to S1 and resulted in a 2.5-fold decrease of the promoter activity in the stable transfection assays. The results suggest that the highly G+C-rich region in the PDGF A-chain gene promoter locally induces the formation of non-B-form DNA under torsional stress which appears to be important in the transcriptional regulation of the PDGF A-chain gene in vivo.
Travel-Time Tomography for Local Sound Speed Reconstruction Using Average Sound Speeds

Our previous work on estimating the local speed of sound from average sound speed assumes a perfectly layered medium where sound speed is only allowed to vary axially away from the transducer surface. This layered-medium approach relies on inverting the relationship between the local interval sound speeds in each layer and the effective average sound speed up to a particular imaging depth. The primary limitation of this approach is that local sound speed estimation can become inaccurate in the presence of lateral variations in sound speed or a curved transducer surface. To better estimate sound speed in the presence of these non-idealities, we propose a travel-time tomographic approach that accounts for propagation paths from the scattering volume to each transducer element.
Evolving Distribution Utility Rate Structures to Accommodate Emerging Technologies

This paper explores distribution utility rate structures from all over the world and their evolution as new distributed energy resources (DER) technologies enter residential markets. Novel DER technologies - such as rooftop solar, behind-the-meter battery energy storage, and controllable loads are increasingly becoming a part of consumer residences. Distribution utilities are devising novel tariff schemes to accommodate emerging technologies and leverage these assets for grid support in residences. These tariff schemes provide consumers with incentives to encourage them to actively participate in a way to reduce their electricity bill as well as help distribution utilities with load management. For this research, a public utility rate structure database was used.
Algorithm for Fast Simultaneous Harmonic and Fundamental Impedance Tuning in Reconfigurable Radar Transmitter Power Amplifiers

Strategic choice of harmonic load impedances for a radar transmitter power amplifier can increase both the power efficiency and range of the transmitter. With the advent of high-power tunable circuitry, possibilities exist for real-time reconfiguration of the power amplifier fundamental and harmonic impedances to maximize output power and efficiency over changes in frequency and array scan angle. We present, for the first time, a search algorithm that performs simultaneous, fast tuning of the power amplifier fundamental- and harmonic-frequency load impedances. Simulation results demonstrate a 20% PAE increase for the transistor model examined over fundamental tuning alone. In addition, re-tuning after changing frequencies from 500 MHz to 300 MHz is shown to provide a 30% PAE improvement at the second frequency compared to using the same reflection coefficient as the first frequency. These improvements demonstrate the need and benefits of a fundamental and harmonic frequency reconfigurable radar transmitter amplifier in increasing the efficiency and radar range of the transmitter.
Genesis of Quality Measurements to Improve the Care Delivered to Patients With Brain Metastases.

PURPOSE:High-value and high-quality health care requires outcome measurements to inform treatment decisions, but, to our knowledge, no standardized measurements exist to evaluate brain metastases (...
The Pitch: Managers’ Disclosure Choice During IPO Roadshows

We examine firm disclosure choice during the initial public offering (IPO) roadshow presentation to examine the informativeness of a management presentation designed to attract investors. While firms must submit a comprehensive registration filing during the IPO, investors convey strong interest in the IPO roadshow, which is shorter and typically allows managers more autonomy to select what information is released and how it is discussed. We find that IPO roadshows have significantly more positive, less negative, and less uncertain language than the SEC filing. Using machine learning to classify roadshow topics into one of five major topics from the registration statement, we find that roadshows differ in both the topics selected and the language used within each topic. We then examine the predictive ability of the roadshow language, and we find that roadshow language predicts future accounting performance while filing language does not. These results highlight the informational role of management presentations.
Overexpression of the microtubule-binding protein CLIP-170 induces a +TIP network superstructure consistent with a biomolecular condensate

Abstract Proper regulation of microtubule (MT) dynamics is critical for cellular processes including cell division and intracellular transport. Plus-end tracking proteins (+TIPs) dynamically track growing MTs and play a key role in MT regulation. +TIPs participate in a complex web of intra- and inter-molecular interactions known as the +TIP network. Hypotheses addressing the purpose of +TIP:+TIP interactions include relieving +TIP autoinhibition and localizing MT regulators to growing MT ends. In addition, we have proposed that the web of +TIP:+TIP interactions has a physical purpose, creating a superstructure that constrains the structural fluctuations of the fragile MT tip and thus acts as a polymerization chaperone. Many animal +TIP network proteins are multivalent and have intrinsically disordered regions, features commonly found in biomolecular condensates. This observation suggests that the +TIP network might under some conditions form a biomolecular condensate. Previous studies have shown that overexpression of the +TIP CLIP-170 induces large “patch” structures containing CLIP-170 and other +TIPs. To test the hypothesis that these patches might be biomolecular condensates, we used video microscopy, immunofluorescence staining, and Fluorescence Recovery After Photobleaching (FRAP). Our data show that the CLIP-170-induced patches have hallmarks indicative of a biomolecular condensate, one that contains +TIP proteins and excludes other known condensate markers. Moreover, bioinformatic studies demonstrate that the presence of intrinsically disordered regions is conserved in key +TIPs, implying that these regions are functionally significant. Together, these results indicate that the CLIP-170 induced patches in cells are phase-separated liquid condensates and raise the possibility that the endogenous +TIP network might form a liquid droplet at MT ends or other +TIP locations.
Combination of a dynamic rigidizing overtube and a novel injectable needle-type knife to facilitate colorectal endoscopic submucosal dissection.

Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) allows for the en bloc and complete endoscopic resection of superficial lesions throughout the GI tract. Although technically challenging, colorectal ESD is increasingly performed for endoscopic resection of large and difficult polyps, especially those that may harbor early malignancy or cannot be successfully removed with standard endoscopic mucosal resection.1 Here, we present a challenging case of a laterally spreading tumor at the hepatic flexure in a difficult and unstable colon, which was removed by ESD using a novel injectable needle-type knife and with the assistance of a novel dynamic rigidizing overtube (Video 1, available online at www.giejournal.org).
Inhibition of photodynamic therapy induced‑immunosuppression with aminolevulinic acid leads to enhanced outcomes of tumors and pre‑cancerous lesions (Review)

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a treatment option for tumors and pre-cancerous lesions, but it has immunosuppressive side effects that limit its effectiveness. Recent studies suggest that PDT-mediated immunosuppression occurs through a cyclooxygenase type 2 (COX-2) mediated pathway that leads to increases in regulatory T cells (Tregs) and myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs), which act as negative regulators of immune responses. Given this pathway, there are three main methods to block immunosuppression: i) Inhibiting the proliferation of Tregs, which can be achieved with the administration of cyclophosphamide or inhibitors of indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase 1, an activator of Tregs; ii) inhibiting MDSCs by reducing hypoxia around the tumor to create an unfavorable environment or administering all-trans-retinoic acid, which converts MDSCs to a non-immunosuppressive state; and iii) inhibiting COX-2 through selective or non-selective COX-inhibitors. In the present review article, strategies that have shown increased efficacy of PDT in treating tumors and pre-cancerous lesions by blocking the immunosuppressive side effects are outlined and discussed.
Prevalence of Self-Care and Ambulatory Disability in Baby Boom and Generation-X Birth-Cohorts by Intersectional Markers of Social Stratification

Are differences in disability prevalence between individuals at the top and bottom strata of society a product of non-random processes? Under the assumption that genetic mutations are unlikely to account for the notable differences by makers of social stratification, the research presents a class, race, and then sex (CSR) hypothesis. The cross-sectional study, situated in the continental USA, uses information on 4,914,628 community-dwelling individuals from the Baby Boom (born 1951–1961) and Generation-X (born 1971–1981) birth-cohorts. When population-weighted, the sample is said to represent 96,639,980 of their counterparts. The data come from the American Community Survey Public Use Microdata Sample 2008–2012 file. Findings indicate that intersectional markers of social stratification help explain the prevalence and risk of self-care and ambulatory disability as predicted by the CSR hypothesis. The analysis provides novel evidence for the plausibility of a “Mexican Paradox” for disability. Amongst those from the Generation-X birth-cohort, low-education Mexican-origin Latinos had lower risk of disability than low-education non-Latino whites. Ageing studies should consider using intersectional markers of social stratification.
Victorian Literature and the Anorexic Body: Conclusion: the politics of thinness

I began this book by expressing the hope that exploring anorexia nervosa as a semiotic system or cultural paradigm might help our understanding of why women today succumb to the disease and, more generally, to patterns of disorderly eating. I would like to end by speculating about the kind of political work that literary and cultural criticism can accomplish in the effort to curtail anorexia nervosa both as pathology and as cultural ideology. While I focused on the Victorian period in the introduction, I would like, briefly, to turn to contemporary culture, and end, as I began, with an anecdote. Recently, I asked students in a course entitled “The Body in Literature and Culture” to complete the following phrase: “My body is.” Their answers did not, unfortunately, surprise me: “an animal – something to fight against”; “contrary to the mind, full of urges and instincts”; “at war with me”; “breeder, sexual, animal”; “something that commits treason against myself.” Perhaps most honest and sad: “I hate to see my body, especially naked.” I asked students to read their own comments alongside Plato's Phaedo , in which Plato writes that “we shall be closest to knowledge if we refrain as much as possible from association with the body or join with it more than we must, if we are not infected with its nature but purify ourselves from it until the god himself frees us. In this way we shall escape the contamination of the body's folly.
The Forecast and planning of Manpower with Implications to Higher Educational Institutions- Mathematical Models

The article investigates the possibilities of planning a national higher educational system, namely the ways and the means wherein a desired output of the system is to be obtained from a given input. This examination generates guidelines whereupon a detailed mathematical model can be erected to effectuate the planning objectives. However, since the actual construction of the model involves a bulk of mathematical machinery and notations too burdensome to be comprised in the manuscript, the model itself is not developed here. Rather, a detailed exemplification of the planning operations is illustrated on a lilliputian system which serves as a demonstrative vehicle.
A methodology for the control and custom VLSI implementation of large-scale Clos networks

A control algorithm is developed and implemented for a three-stage Clos network which results in using a multiple-chip approach. The system will be nonblocking in the strict sense and completely self-routing, i.e. the controller for the network will reside in the network and not in a separate computer that runs a program that controls switches to the interconnect array. Intermodule communication required for network operation is described followed by a discussion of how the number of network inputs/outputs may be varied. A delay model of the network is developed. >
Political Regimes and Currency Crises

This paper examines the relationship between political regime type and currency crises. Some theories suggest that democratic regimes, owing to their greater political transparency and larger number of veto players, should have a lower risk of currency crisis than dictatorships. Alternative arguments emphasize the advantages of political insulation and rulers with long time horizons, and imply that crises should be most likely in democracies and least common in monarchic dictatorships. We evaluate these competing arguments across four types of political regimes using a time-series cross-sectional dataset that covers 178 countries between 1973 and 2009. Our findings suggest that the risk of currency crisis is substantially lower in monarchies than in democracies and other types of dictatorship. Further analyses indicate that the adoption of prudent financial policies largely account for this robust negative association between monarchies and the probability of currency crises. This suggests that political regimes strongly influence financial stability, and perverse political incentives help explain why currency crises are so common.
Preferences of locavores favoring community supported agriculture in the United States and France

Various retail outlets are available for consumers to access local foods including grocery stores, farmers' markets, and community supported agriculture (CSA) programs. This study purports that consumers' selection of retail outlets for local foods depends on a tradeoff between the degree of assurance on credence attributes offered at the outlet, and the associated time and convenience costs. Empirically, survey responses from U.S. and French individuals are analyzed. Ordered logit model results suggest distinct motivators for local food consumption in our samples: support for local farmers among U.S. respondents and respect for the environment among French respondents. Latent class models identified consumer segments that valued CSA participation consisting of a quarter of the U.S. sample and three fifths of the French sample. Individuals within these CSA-inclined segments in both samples preferred bundle mixes with greater variety and the ability to provide input on the content of the bundle.
Atg7 suppresses inflammatory responses in Klebsiella pneumoniae-infected mice by regulating the p38/IκB/NF-κB circuit (IRM9P.720)

Klebsiella pneumoniae (Kp) is a Gram-negative bacterium that can cause serious infections in humans, particularly invading lungs and intestines. Autophagy-related gene 7 (Atg7) has been shown to be associated with certain bacterial infections; however, the role of Atg7 in host immunity against Kp infection has not been elucidated. Here we showed that Atg7 expression was significantly increased in murine alveolar macrophage (MH-S) cells upon Kp infection, whereas knocking down Atg7 with siRNA increased bacterial burdens in MH-S cells. In addition, using biochemical assays and whole animal imaging analysis, we found that compared to WT mice atg7 knockout (KO) mice exhibited increased susceptibility to Kp infection, with decreased survival rates, increased bacterial burdens, and enhanced lung injury. Moreover, atg7 KO mice induced proinflammatory cytokines and superoxide production in Kp-infected lungs. Similarly, Atg7 silencing in MH-S cells markedly increased levels of cytokines. Mechanistically, we observed that Atg7 depletion regulated p38 phosphorylation which changed IκB binding and inhibited NF-κB nuclear translocation, thus exacerbating NF-κB-mediated cytokine secretion. Collectively, these findings indicate that Atg7 offers resistance to Kp infection by modulating both systemic and local production of proinflammatory cytokines via a p38IκB/NF-κB pathway.
Mitigating Escalation of Commitment: An Investigation of the Effects of Priming in Team Decision-Making Settings

This research examines escalation of commitment in team capital investment decisions and the extent to which it can be mitigated using a cognitive prime. Specifically, I examine the use of a cognitive prime as a way to mitigate escalation in two decision-making settings: (1) face-to-face team and (2) computer-mediated team. Continued investment in failing projects is costly for firms. The use of a cognitive prime to reduce escalation would provide a low cost way to mitigate escalation. In this study, participants are primed to think about sunk costs. The expectation is that priming team members to think about sunk costs will increase the accessibility of sunk cost knowledge and reduce the likelihood of continued investment in the failing project. Further, based on Persuasive Arguments Theory, it is expected that the prime will reduce escalation in teams communicating in a computer-mediated setting more than in any other decision setting. The results of the experiment support the prediction that priming will reduce escalation and did so in all decision making settings. Further, the results indicate that, in the computer-mediated setting, primed teams had the least amount of escalation behavior coupled with the largest difference in escalation compared to teams that were not primed.
Movies and the Reagan Presidency: Success and Ethics

List of Illustrations List of Tables Acknowledgments Defining Reagan-Era Hollywood The Reagan Era and Hollywood's Political Economic Structure Reagan-Era Hollywood and the Recuperation of the Success Ethic Race and the Biracial Buddy Movie Gender and the MTV Music-Video Movie Class and the Yuppie Movie The Legacy of the Reagan Era Appendix: Top 10 Movies of 1970-2001 (in millions) Bibliography
Microtubule-associated protein tau as a therapeutic target in neurodegenerative disease.

Interest in the biology of the microtubule-associated protein tau, not only as a pathologic marker, but as a therapeutic target has surged considerably over the last few years. This is due, in part, to the discovery of mutations in tau causing a group of aggressively degenerative neurologic disorders characterized by abnormalities of tau very similar to what is seen in Alzheimer’s disease where mutations in tau are absent. As these same mutations also precipitate authentic forms of neurofibrillary degeneration in tau transgenic mice, the gateways to testing therapeutic ideas preclinically have opened. Other Alzheimer’s disease animal models have been notoriously bare of this feature, limiting their predictive power for clinical success. In this review, the authors discuss some of the main therapeutic ideas presently advanced in the field and their molecular rationales.
Ground- and excited-state properties of LiF in the local-density formalism

The band structure, charge density, x-ray scattering factor (and their behavior under pressure), equilibrium lattice constant, and cohesive energy of the prototype ionic solid LiF were determined using our recently developed self-consistent numerical basis set (non-muffin-tin) linear-combination-of-atomic-orbitals method, within the local-density formalism (LDF). The details of the bonding and the effects of exchange and correlation on the electronic structure are discussed with reference to the conventional picture of ionic bonding. Remarkably good agreement is found with the observed data for the ground-state properties of the system. Contrary to the results of previous band studies, the conventional band-structure approach to excitation energies (i.e., identifying them with the band eigenvalue differences) is found to fail completely in accounting for the observed data in the entire x-ray and optical spectral region when fully self-consistent solutions of the LDF one-particle equation with no further approximation to the crystal potential are obtained. It is found that in the presence of some spatial localization of the initial or final crystal states, the spurious self-interaction terms, as well as the polarization and orbital relaxation self-energy effects are of a similar order of magnitude as the Koopmans'-like interband terms. In order to treat these effects within the LDF self-consistently, we describe the excitation processes as transitions involving point-defect-like states in the solid calculated by a supercell method in which the excitation energies are determined as total-energy differences between (separately calculated) excited- and ground-state configurations. The excited state is represented as a superlattice of locally excited sites using large (8-and 16-atom) unit cells, each containing a single excited site. We find, in the self-consistency limit, that a small but finite degree of spatial localization of the excited states exists even for valence excitations, inducing thereby self-interaction as well as self-energy relaxation and polarization effects. The LDF model is found to account very well for both interband and exciton transitions over the entire spectral region (12-695 eV) and to yield definite predictions regarding the exciton bandwidths and series limits.
Biosynthesis of Creatine by the Kidney

THE chemical nature of the precursors contributing to the biosynthesis of creatine has been established as the result of in vivo experiments by Bloch et al.1,2 and DuVigneaud et al.3 as well as by the experiments with tissue slices and homogenates by Borsook and Dubnoff4–6. The last-named investigators also demonstrated that, in the mammal, the kidney is the major site of glycocyamine formation4,5; a slight transmethylating activity was also detected at this site. Baker and Miller7 also reported that the kidney is able to synthesize creatine although at a level exceeding that noted by Borsook and Dubnoff. It appears to be the present prevailing point of view that the kidney does not contribute significantly to the formation of creatine from glycocyamine8. Evidence to the contrary, derived from experiments with perfused rat kidneys and eviscerated rats, is presented in this communication.
Engineering applications of particle image velocimeters

Particle Image Velocimetry has developed to the point where it is possible to apply the technique to a wide range of flow phenomena that are significant to engineering and science. A review of current research shows that most of these applications remain in the research laboratory, but the potential exists for expansion into less ideal environments in the near future. This paper reviews some of the flows that have been studied by PIV at the University of Illinois and summarizes some of the experience gained from these applications.Particle Image Velocimetry has developed to the point where it is possible to apply the technique to a wide range of flow phenomena that are significant to engineering and science. A review of current research shows that most of these applications remain in the research laboratory, but the potential exists for expansion into less ideal environments in the near future. This paper reviews some of the flows that have been studied by PIV at the University of Illinois and summarizes some of the experience gained from these applications.
The anthropology of science part I: Science as a humanity

While we may be disappointed at the level of science literacy in contemporary society, there has also been a quiet revolution in the humanities with respect to the nature of science itself, situating it within the general sphere of human thought and activity. Much of what is now accepted as commonplace within the humanities concerning science is commonly either unacknowledged or perceived as threatening by scientist. A broader perspective about science is called for, one that will facilitate communication between scientists and nonscientists, that will assist the teaching and general acceptance of science, and to which the field of anthropology should be central.
Theory of electronic transport in random alloys: Korringa-Kohn-Rostoker coherent-potential approximation

The Korringa-Kohn-Rostoker coherent-potential approximation is a powerful and versatile tool for calculating the single-particle properties of disordered alloys. Here this technique is extended to transport properties. The formalism is based on the one-electron Kubo formula. It yields correct results in the limits of weak scattering or low concentration, i.e., the solution to the Boltzmann equation including vertex corrections. Transport coefficients can also be easily evaluated in the strong-scattering, high-concentration regime where the Boltzmann equation is not valid. The structure of the formalism is displayed by applying it to a one-dimensional muffin-tin model alloy.
Protein marking reveals predation on termites by the woodland ant, Aphaenogaster rudis

Subterranean termites provide a major potential food source for forest-dwelling ants, yet the interactions between ants and termites are seldom investigated largely due to the cryptic nature of both the predator and the prey. We used protein marking (rabbit immunoglobin protein, IgG) and double antibody sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (DAS-ELISA) to examine the trophic interactions between the woodland ant, Aphaenogaster rudis (Emery) and the eastern subterranean termite, Reticulitermes flavipes (Kollar). We marked the prey by feeding the termites paper treated with a solution of rabbit immunoglobin protein (IgG). Subsequently, we offered live, IgG-fed termites to ant colonies and monitored the intracolony distribution of IgG-marked prey. Laboratory experiments on the distribution of protein-marked termite prey in colonies of A. rudis revealed that all castes and developmental stages receive termite prey within 24 h. In field experiments, live, protein-marked termites were offered to foraging ants. Following predation, the marker was recovered from the ants, demonstrating that A. rudis preys on R. flavipes under field conditions. Our results provide a unique picture of the trophic-level interactions between predatory ants and subterranean termites. Furthermore, we show that protein markers are highly suitable to track trophic interactions between predators and prey, especially when observing elusive animals with cryptic food-web ecology.
The mercedes graph as a superposition of simpler graphs

Abstract It is proved that the Hanckel-transform of the configuration-space function corresponding to the Mercedes graph can be written as a superposition of functions related to simpler graphs, i.e. with one or more lines missing.
Design of an immersion echelle-prism mid-IR spectrograph for chemical remote sensing

We have designed an immersion echelle-prism spectrograph for the remote detection of chemicals in the atmosphere. The instrument operates in the 2 and 3 micron atmospheric windows and provides maximum throughput at 0.1 cm-1 resolution. Crossed dispersers consisting of a high order silicon immersion echelle (13.5 grooves/mm) and 43 degree immersion prism (Rutherford prism) are combined in a Littrow configuration to generate a two-dimensional spectrum in the image plane.