cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Stimulation of terrestrial-substrate preferences and locomotor activity in newly transformed tiger salamanders (Ambystoma tigrinum) by exogenous or endogenous thyroxine

Abstract Recently transformed adult tiger salamanders ( Ambystoma tigrinum ) that had never resided on land were treated with increasing, alternate-day injections of thyroxine (experiment 1) or single injections of particular dosages of this hormone (experiment 2). In all cases control salamanders received equivalent volumes of saline on a similar schedule. In both experiments, subjects treated with thyroxine displayed significant levels of terrestrial-substrate preference in a moisture-gradient apparatus. Salinetreated controls never emerged from the water. In experiment 2, animals that received single thyroxine treatments also displayed heightened levels of land-directed locomotor activity. In experiment 3, blood plasma was collected from salamanders displaying spontaneous land preference and others displaying water preference. Radioimmunoassay for thyroxine indicated that salamanders that had moved to, and resided upon, a terrestrial substrate some time subsequent to metamorphosis had significantly higher plasma levels of this hormone than did animals preferring to remain submerged. These results indicate (1) that thyroxine stimulates, and possibly maintains, emergence from water and terrestrial preference in newly transformed tiger salamanders and (2) that this hormone stimulates a locomotor activity component associated with the movement of formerly aquatic adults to the terrestrial habitat.
Not in that neighborhood: The effects of population and housing on the distribution of mortgage finance within the Chicago SMSA☆

Abstract Understanding where housing finance flows helps explain the direction of neighborhood change, metropolitan expansion, central city deterioration, revitalization, and ghetto maintenance. Sustained credit flows support healthy housing markets while a lack of credit fosters housing abandonment and neighborhood decline. Designed to encourage housing finance institutions to invest in neighborhoods which had experienced disinvestment because of race, location, and the age of local housing stocks, community reinvestment policies render institutions' housing finance patterns accountable to federal regulators and the public. This research examines residential lending patterns across the Chicago SMSA from 1980 to 1983, several years after the enactment of community reinvestment policy. On the basis of lenders' reports of the location of their home mortgages, it examines the variation in census tract housing credit flows in the Chicago region and the neighborhood factors which influenced these patterns. Findings show that conventional credit flowed more to the suburbs and gentrified parts of the city. FHA finance, a small portion of all home mortgages, did not make up for areal losses in conventional finance. Conventional credit markets were segmented by race. Areas housing more black and hispanics received less conventional finance than comparable white neighborhoods, net of other factors. FHA finance did not flow more to minority suburban areas and only flowed slightly more to black city areas. Despite more favorable loan terms, FHA loans did not substitute for conventional finance; these government insured loans were more dominant among minority areas because these areas received less conventional finance. As outcomes of a myriad of housing market processes, these lending patterns indicate a legacy of discrimination. Community reinvestment policies have not eliminated market barriers in lending patterns.
Development and pilot testing of a decision aid for surrogates of patients with prolonged mechanical ventilation.

Objective Shared decision making is inadequate in intensive care units (ICUs). Decision aids can improve decision making quality, though their role in an ICU setting is unclear. We aimed to develop and pilot test a decision aid for shared decision makers of patients undergoing prolonged mechanical ventilation.
Regime shifts and technology diffusion in crop yield growth paths with an application to maize yields in Zimbabwe

An alternative specification for the trend component of crop yield growth is developed and applied to maize yield data for Zimbabwe’s large-scale farming sector. This accounts for permanent regime shifts as new technologies are discovered but allows gradual absorption as adoption follows a diffusion path. Econometric methods are used to estimate the timing and importance of innovations, as well as the length of the diffusion path. Results from an application to Zimbabwe commercial maize yields indicate two major regime shifts that can be associated with the introduction of hybrid seed varieties, and a diffusion path that extends over a decade.
Depressive personality in the relatives of outpatients with dysthymic disorder and episodic major depressive disorder and normal controls

Background: This study examined whether there is a familial relationship between depressive personality and the mood disorders. Method: Rates of depressive personality were compared in 161 relatives of outpatients with dysthymic disorder (DD), 75 relatives of outpatients with non-chronic major depressive disorder (MDD), and 90 relatives of normal controls. All probands and relatives were evaluated using structured diagnostic interviews for Axis I disorders and depressive personality traits. Results: The relatives of patients with DD exhibited a significantly higher rate of depressive personality than the relatives of normal controls, while the relatives of patients with MDD fell in between, and did not differ from, the other two groups. These results held after controlling for a lifetime history of mood disorder in the relatives, and could not be explained by an increased rate of depressive personality in the DD probands. Limitations: The sample size was modest, comorbid non-mood Axis I and II disorders in the relatives were not controlled, and DSM-IV criteria for depressive personality disorder were not yet available at the time the study was undertaken. Conclusion: These findings are consistent with the view that depressive personality is part of a spectrum of mood disorders with a shared familial liability, but suggest that this link is strongest with chronic forms of depression such as DD and double depression.
Promising mid-term results of total hip arthroplasties using an uncemented lateral-flare hip prosthesis: a clinical and radiographic study.

The clinical results after total hip replacements using noncemented stems have shown considerable variability over the years; the design and characteristics of the implant seemed to play a role in explaining this fact. The purpose of this paper is to report the clinical, radiographic and densitometry results of total hip arthroplasties using a stem designed for noncemented implantation and to engage and load the femur proximally. Fifty-eight consecutive patients (62 hips) followed for an average of 4.3 years (range 36–70 months) were clinically and radiographically followed up at three weeks, three months, six months, one year, and yearly thereafter. The average pre-operative Harris hip score was 49 increasing to 98 at the latest follow-up. There were no cases of aseptic or septic loosening. The average subsidence at three years was 0.45 mm (SD ± 0.36 mm). Radiographically all hips were classified as stable, and evident changes compatible with new bone apposition were observed in 64% of the cases. The extended proximal geometry of the device seems to favour initial and secondary stability as reflected by the low subsidence values over time. The maintenance of periprosthetic bone stock and the absence of stress shielding can be explained by the predominantly proximal loading pattern of the stem.
Theorems from Measure Axioms, Counterexamples from ◊++

Daniel's proof that after adding supercompact many random reals, normal k'- spaces are collectionwise normal is simplified. Examples of how to use ◊++ to construct spaces are given. Question 36 of Watson is answered.
Newborn lymphocyte subpopulations: The influence of labor

Cord blood mononuclear cell subsets were enumerated in 31 neonates delivered after maternal labor, in 25 neonates delivered by cesarean section without preceding labor, and in 60 healthy adults. In neonates born with and without preceding labor percentages of CD3 cells were lower than those in adults (63% and 60% as opposed to 83% in adults). However, the absolute numbers of CD3 cells were significantly greater in newborn infants delivered without preceding labor (3.287 ± 1.451 cells per microliter) than in both neonates born after labor (2.660 ± 800 cells per microliter) and in adults (2.189 ± 807 cells per microliter). The increase in CD3 cells in infants delivered without preceding labor reflects increased numbers of CD4-positive cells. This increase in the absolute number of T lymphocytes and CD4 (helper) lymphocytes was significant ( p
Discounting the freedom to choose: implications for the paradox of choice.

Abstract Organisms prefer to make their own choices. However, emerging research from behavioral decision making sciences has demonstrated that there are boundaries to the preference for choice. Specifically, many decision makers find an extensive array of choice options to be aversive, often leading to negative emotional states and poor behavioral outcomes. This study examined the degree to which human participants discounted hypothetical rewards that were (a) delayed, (b) probabilistic, and (c) chosen from a large array of options. The present results suggest that the “paradox of choice” effect may be explained within a discounting model for individual patterns of decision making.
Ethanol enhances GABA-induced 36Cl-influx in primary spinal cord cultured neurons

Ethanol has a pharmacological profile similar to other centrally acting drugs, which facilitate GABAergic transmission. GABA is known to produce its effects by increasing the conductance to Cl− ions. In this study, we have examined the effect of ethanol on GABA-induced 36Cl-influx in primary spinal cord cultured neurons. GABA produces a concentration-dependent and saturable effect on 36Cl-influx in these neurons. Ethanol potentiates the effect of GABA on 36Cl-influx in these neurons. GABA (20 μM) increased the 36Cl-influx by 75% over the basal value and in the presence of 50 mM ethanol, the observed increase was 142%. Eadie-Hoffstee analysis of the saturation curves indicated that ethanol decreases the Km value of GABA (10.6 μM to 4.2 μM) and also increases the Vmax. Besides potentiating the effect of GABA, ethanol also appears to have a direct effect in the absence of added GABA. These results suggest that ethanol enhances GABA-induced 36Cl-influx and indicate a role of GABAergic system in the actions of ethanol. These results also support the behavioral and electrophysiological studies, which have implicated GABA systems in the actions of ethanol. The potential mechanism(s) and the role of direct effect of ethanol is not clear at this time, but is currently being investigated.
Coastal Demographic Changes in the United States, 1950-1974

The present paper compares the demographic developments which have characterized the coastal zone in conterminous United States. The population changes in the coastal counties are analyzed for the two census periods 1950-1960 and 1960-1970, and population estimates made in 1974. The coastal counties are grouped into three classes: coastal urban, non coastal urban, which are part of coastal SMSAs and coastal rural. Three objectives are sought. The first describes the demographic changes which have taken place nationally during the past 24 years. The second objective analyzes the demographic differences in the three types of settlements discussed above. The final objective compares regional, urban/exurban differences in the demography within the coastal zone. The findings of these are discussed in light of the urban/ suburban migration and competing uses for the nation's shoreline.
A finite element approximation of the flow in a curved tube

Abstract An efficient finite element approximation of the Navier-Stokes equations is presented for the viscous flow through a curved tube. The motion depends on two parameters: the Reynolds number R and the curvature ratio ϵ. Using the intrinsic form of the Navier-Stokes equations, the complete set of momentum and continuity equations was derived. Appropriate function spaces were introduced and a variational formulation of the problem was defined. Using a finite element approximation, the continuous problem was replaced by a nonlinear finite dimensional problem. A least squares formulation was used to convert the discrete problem to a minimization problem which was then solved by a conjugate gradient scheme. To the author's knowledge, this work is the only attempt at a variational-finite element approach to the problem. The method was found to be economical, efficient for computing the flow for high curvature ratios and it has the advantage that it is valid for arbitrary cross sections. The scheme was implemented and the velocity field was computed for a wide range of values of R and ϵ. Excellent agreement was achieved in comparison with the results of previous investigators. The solutions for large curvature ratios were found to deviate considerably from those of Dean's equations which are valid in the limit of zero curvature.
Modeling of fatigue crack growth of stainless steel 304L

Abstract An effort is made to predict the crack growth of the stainless steel 304L based on a newly developed fatigue approach. The approach consists of two steps: (1) elastic–plastic finite element (FE) analysis of the component; and, (2) the application of a multiaxial fatigue criterion for the crack initiation and growth predictions based on the outputted stress–strain response from the FE analysis. The FE analysis is characterized by the implementation of an advanced cyclic plasticity theory that captures the important cyclic plasticity behavior of the material under the general loading conditions. The fatigue approach is based upon the notion that a material point fails when the accumulated fatigue damage reaches a certain value and the rule is applicable for both crack initiation and growth. As a result, one set of material constants is used for both crack initiation and growth predictions. All the material constants are generated by testing smooth specimens. The approach is applied to Mode I crack growth of compact specimens subjected to constant amplitude loading with different R-ratios and two-step high–low sequence loading. The results show that the approach can properly model the experimentally observed crack growth behavior including the notch effect, the R-ratio effect, and the sequence loading effect. In addition, the early crack growth from a notch and the total fatigue life can be simulated with the approach and the predictions agree well with the experimental observations.
Synthesis of BaTaO2N Powders Utilizing NH3 Decomposition

The current methodology for perovskite oxynitride synthesis is a gas–solid reaction with ammonia. However, a competing reaction exists, where ammonia dissociates to inert N2, rather than a nascent, active nitriding species. Therefore, oxynitride synthesis is controlled by the composition of the gas phase. Control of key processing variables (temperature, flow velocity, sample placement, temperature distribution, furnace configuration) determines the gas-phase components (NH3, N2, and H2) and subsequently, the reaction rate and purity of BaTaO2N powders.
Staphylococcal delta toxin stimulates endogenous phospholipase A2 activity and prostaglandin synthesis in fibroblasts

Delta toxin, one of at least four toxins produced by pathogenic strains of the skin bacterium Staphylococcus aureus, is an amphipathic polypeptide possessing hemolytic and cytolytic activity. Delta toxin stimulates high levels of phospholipase A2 activity in 3T3 mouse fibroblasts with concomitant synthesis and release of prostaglandins. Alpha toxin, another hemolytic toxin produced by strains of S. aureus, did not stimulate phospholipase A2 or prostaglandin release in these cells. Analysis of the release of lactate dehydrogenase and beta-galactosidase (cytoplasmic and lysosomal marker enzymes, respectively) from delta-toxin-treated cells indicated that cytolytic concentrations of the toxin damage the cell-surface membrane more extensively than lysosomal membranes. During a 30 min exposure, delta toxin stimulated 3T3 cells to hydrolyze up to 32% of the lipids biosynthetically labeled by incorporation of [3H]arachidonic acid. A relatively high percentage of the free arachidonic acid formed in delta-toxin-treated 3T3 cells was converted to prostaglandins (up to 41.3% and 8.3% converted to chromatographically identifiable prostaglandins E2 and F2 alpha, respectively, in 30 min), with optimal conversion occurring at sublytic toxin concentrations. The degree of activation of phospholipase A2 in 3T3 cells by a range of concentrations of delta toxin correlates with cytotoxicity assessed by failure to exclude trypan blue dye. Analysis of the calcium dependency of the toxin-activated phospholipase A2 was consistent with a cell-surface, Ca2+-dependent enzyme. The phospholipase A2 exhibits a degree of specificity for substrate lipids containing polyunsaturated fatty acid residues which can serve as precursors for prostaglandin formation. Enzymatic activity was not inhibited by diisopropylfluorophosphate (5 mM), N-ethylmaleimide (5 mM) or p-bromophenacylbromide (0.1 mM). Delta toxin did not activate detectable phospholipase A2 in subcellular preparations containing plasma membrane.
Fumigation with methyl bromide I. Apparatus for controlled concentration, continuous flow laboratory procedures

Details are given for the construction and operation of apparatus for laboratory fumigations with methyl bromide using controlled concentrations and continuous flow. The apparatus is useful for obtaining accurate dosage response data for soil organisms.
Complex sleep behavior in a patient with obstructive sleep apnea and nocturnal hypoglycemia: a diagnostic dilemma.

Abnormal behavior in sleep has multiple potential etiologies including untreated obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), REM behavior disorder (RBD), nocturnal seizures and disorders of partial arousal. These can be differentiated by characteristic clinical, polysomnography (PSG) and electroencephalography (EEG) findings [1]. We describe a patient with different types of abnormal behavior in sleep, caused by OSA and hypoglycemia.
Directions in software development and maintenance

Development environments are entering a period of dramatic change. A major component of this change is a reorientation toward domain driven environments including an integration of domain-oriented support tools. This reorientation will bring about a decline in the role of conventional programming languages and at the same time force an evolution toward more abstract programming representations more abstract in the sense that most of the implementation details (as they are currently known) will be abstracted away. Thus, development is moving farther away from conventional software engineering models and closer to the problem. >
National pediatric anesthesia safety quality improvement program in the United States.

BACKGROUND:As pediatric anesthesia has become safer over the years, it is difficult to quantify these safety advances at any 1 institution. Safety analytics (SA) and quality improvement (QI) are used to study and achieve high levels of safety in nonhealth care industries. We describe the development
You Say you Had a Revolution: Methodological Foundations of Closed-Loop Psychology:

To the extent that a scientific revolution represents a fundamental change in a discipline, the cognitive revolution in psychology was not particularly revolutionary. What changed least in this revolution was methodology. The experimental methods used in cognitive psychology are the same as those used in the behaviorism it overthrew. This methodological continuity results from the fact that both behaviorism and cognitive psychology are based on the same paradigm, which is also the basis of experimental psychology: the open-loop causal model of behavioral organization. A truly revolutionary approach to understanding the mind has been largely ignored because it is built on a paradigm that is inconsistent with conventional research methods. This new approach to psychology, called Perceptual Control Theory (PCT), is based on a closed-loop control model of behavioral organization that is tested using control engineering methods that are unfamiliar to most psychologists. This paper introduces the methodological foundations of closed-loop psychology, explains why the closed-loop revolution has not happened yet, and suggests what psychology might look like after the revolution has occurred.
Cultural Surprises as Sources of Sudden, Big Policy Change

A major complaint against cultural theories is that they cannot explain political change (Lockhart 1997). Cultural and institutional accounts of politics are also often seen as antagonistic (Chai 1997; Grendstad and Selle 1995; Lockhart 1999). The cultural theory (CT) developed by Mary Douglas, Aaron Wildavsky, and others (see, e.g., Schwarz and Thompson 1990; Thompson, Ellis, and Wildavsky 1990), by contrast, offers a theory of culture that includes a theory of cultural change that integrates institutions into its explanation of change (Lockhart 1997, 1999; Thompson, Ellis, and Wildavsky 1990, 69–81; Wildavsky 1985). Moreover, CT can help specify the cultural conditions for sudden, big institutional and policy change, thereby, I argue, strengthening Frank Baumgartner and Bryan Jones's “punctuated equilibria” (PE) theory of change (Baumgartner and Jones 1993, 2002). The plausibility of this CT of PE change is illustrated in this article by using it to explain dramatic changes in forest and wildlife management in the Pacific Northwest (PNW) (building on Swedlow 2002a, b, 2003, 2007, 2009, and 2011a, b).
Base-Pairing between Untranslated Regions Facilitates Translation of Uncapped, Nonpolyadenylated Viral RNA

Translationally competent mRNAs form a closed loop via interaction of initiation factors with the 5' cap and poly(A) tail. However, many viral mRNAs lack a cap and/or a poly(A) tail. We show that an uncapped, nonpolyadenylated plant viral mRNA forms a closed loop by direct base-pairing (kissing) of a stem loop in the 3' untranslated region (UTR) with a stem loop in the 5' UTR. This allows a sequence in the 3' UTR to confer translation initiation at the 5'-proximal AUG. This base-pairing is also required for replication. Unlike other cap-independent translation mechanisms, the ribosome enters at the 5' end of the mRNA. This remarkably long-distance base-pairing reveals a novel mechanism of cap-independent translation and means by which mRNA UTRs can communicate.
Examining the Military in the Local Sphere: Colombia and Mexico

The relation between the military and the democratic regimes has been central to studies of the political systems of Latin America. While in countries such as Brazil, Chile, Argentina, and Bolivia the emphasis has been on the transition from authoritarian to civilian rule, in Colombia and Mexico the situation has been different. Here, the military has not attempted to take over the state apparatus in more than 50 years, and the likelihood of a coup is minimal. However, in the past few years Mexico and Colombia have come to share some characteristics that indicate increasing conflict: increase in poverty, high levels of violence, extensive illicit drug trafficking, and political corruption. In both of them, although to varying degrees, the military has been acquiring more and more importance in the political arena.
Energy-optimal software partitioning in heterogeneous multiprocessor embedded systems

Embedded systems with heterogeneous processors extend the energy/timing trade-off flexibility and provide the opportunity to fine tune resource utilization for particular applications. In this paper, we present a resource model that considers the time and energy costs of run-time mode switching, which considerably improves the accuracy of existing models. Given an application, the software partitioning problem then becomes an optimization over energy cost given deadline constraints, which can be formulate as an integer linear programming (ILP) problem. We apply the resource modeling and software partitioning techniques to a multi- module embedded sensing device, the mPlatform, and present a case study of configuring the platform for a real-time sound source localization application on a stack of MSP430 and ARM7 processor based sensing and processing boards.
A comparison of three infant skinfold reference standards: Tanner-Whitehouse, Cambridge Infant Growth Study, and WHO Child Growth Standards

As researchers increasingly focus on early infancy as a critical period of development, there is a greater need for methodological tools that can address all aspects of infant growth. Infant skinfold measures, in particular, are measurements in need of reliable reference standards that encompass all ages of infants and provide an accurate assessment of the relative fatness of a population. This report evaluates three published reference standards for infant skinfold measurements: Tanner-Whitehouse, Cambridge Infant Growth Study, and the World Health Organization (WHO) Child Growth Standards. To assess these standards, triceps skinfolds from a population of rural Kenyan infants (n = 250) and triceps skinfolds and subscapular skinfolds from infants in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1999-2002 (NHANES; n = 1197) were calculated as z-scores from the lambda-mu-sigma curves provided by each reference population. The Tanner-Whitehouse standards represented both the Kenyan and US populations as lean, while the Cambridge standards represented both populations as overfat. The distribution of z-scores based on the WHO standards fell in the middle, but excluded infants from both populations who were below the age of 3 months. Based on these results, the WHO reference standard is the best skinfold reference standard for infants over the age of 3 months. For populations with infants of all ages, the Tanner-Whitehouse standards are recommended, despite representing both study populations as underfat. Ideally, the WHO will extend their reference standard to include infants between the ages of 0 and 3 months.
Pattern and origin of stepped-bed morphology in high-gradient streams, Western Cascades, Oregon

A general hierarchical framework for viewing stepped-bed morphology in high-gradient channels is presented. We emphasize channel units—bed features that are one or more channel widths in length—as a particularly important scale of variation. Field studies in two streams in the Cascade Range in Oregon indicated that pool, riffle, rapid, cascade, and step channel units had distinct bed slope ranges, with average slopes of 0.005, 0.011, 0.029, 0.055, and 0.173, respectively. Steeper units (rapids and cascades) are composed of step-pool sequences created by particles representing the 90th or larger percentile size fraction of bed material. Step spacing is inversely proportional to bed slope. The distribution of channel units along a stream is influenced by bedrock and processes that introduce coarse sediment. Cascade and pool units dominate where landslide and debris-flow deposits constrict channel width and deliver large immobile boulders to the channel, whereas riffle and rapid units dominate in broad valley flats where deposition of finer sediment occurs. Markov chain analysis indicates that channel units occur in nonrandom two-unit sequences with the slope of the upstream unit inversely proportional to the slope of the next downstream unit. Pool-to-pool spacings average two to four channel widths, but variability in spacing is high, owing to uneven distribution of bedrock out-crops and boulder deposits within the channel. Hydraulic reconstruction indicates that channel units form during high- magnitude, low-frequency events with recurrence intervals of about 50 yr. Comparison of channel-unit morphology to high-gradient flume experiments with heterogenous bedload mixtures indicated that unit morphogenesis is linked to factors that cause congestion of large particles during bedload transport events; these include local constrictions in channel width, immobile bed material, and abrupt fluctuations in velocity due to hydraulic jumps that promote deposition. Channel units appear to be a two-dimensional bar form found in streams where gradients exceed 2%, bedload is widely sorted, and width-to-depth ratios and sediment supply are low—conditions found in many mountain environments.
Nuclear waste storage in Gabon

The geological record of Oklo, Republic of Gabon, may provide clues to the best and safest methods of storing radioactive waste products. A group of isotope geochemists from the Los Alamos National Laboratory has begun a field and laboratory study of natural geologic nuclear reactors in equatorial Africa to assess the distribution of radioactive products in the ground. The project requires a good deal of study, and the early results must be considered preliminary; nonetheless, they are very promising. T. Benjamin of Los Alamos reported recently at a meeting of the Geological Society of Washington that radionuclides did not appear to migrate great distances from several of the natural reactors at the Oklo deposit.
Imidazole-containing triblock copolymers with a synergy of ether and imidazolium sites

Reversible addition–fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization enabled the synthesis of well-defined A–BC–A triblock copolymers containing a synergy of pendant ether and imidazolium sites. The soft central BC block comprises low Tg di(ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate (DEGMEMA) and 1-(4-vinylbenzyl) methyl imidazolium units. External polystyrene blocks provide mechanical reinforcement within a nanoscale morphology. Dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) of the A–BC–A triblock copolymers exhibited a plateau region, which suggested the formation of a microphase-separated morphology. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) and small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) collectively probed the morphology of the A–BC–A triblock copolymers, revealing long-range order at the nanoscale dimensions. Dielectric relaxation spectroscopy (DRS) examined the ion-transport properties of ionomeric A–BC–A triblock copolymers and random copolymers with different compositions. The role of morphology was demonstrated with block copolymer nanoscale structures providing superior ionic conductivity and mechanical performance compared to random copolymers. Under a 4 V direct current (DC) applied voltage, electromechanical transducers derived from these triblock copolymer membranes with added ionic liquid showed superior actuation performance compared to a benchmark Nafion® membrane, suggesting potential for ionic polymer device applications. This was attributed to optimum modulus, improved ionic conductivity, and microphase-separated morphology of triblock copolymers.
The socioecology of Monk Parakeets: Insights into parrot social complexity

ABSTRACT Our recent work on Monk Parakeets (Myiopsitta monachus) reported dominance steepness values that were inaccurate because of a bug in the analysis program. Updated steepness values are more moderate than initially reported, which places captive Monk Parakeet groups midway between egalitarianism and despotism.
Radiographic diagnosis of craniodorsal coxofemoral luxation in standing equids

Summary Radiographic evaluation of the pelvis in standing horses has been used to diagnose fractures of the pelvis, head and greater trochanter of the femur, and luxations of the coxofemoral joint. Coxofemoral luxation injuries are more common in smaller horse breeds and donkeys, but, due to their size, the standing ventrodorsal projection is not possible, as there is insufficient space to place the radiography equipment under the animal's abdomen. The objective of the study was to report the advantages and limitations of the use of an oblique radiographic projection to diagnose unilateral craniodorsal coxofemoral luxation in 3 ponies and a donkey performed with the animals standing under light sedation. All cases had severe unilateral hindlimb lameness and asymmetry of the gluteal region; 2 also had concurrent intermittent upward fixation of the patella. A standing dorsolateral 20–30° ventral oblique radiograph of the affected coxofemoral joint was performed in all cases to obtain a definitive diagnosis. Radiography of the coxofemoral joint in standing ponies and donkeys can be carried out to identify craniodorsal coxofemoral luxation avoiding the need for general anaesthesia.
Pulmonary artery size and flow disturbances after patent ductus arteriosus coil occlusion.

Abstract Our experience suggests that flow disturbances in the LPA and descending aorta may occur after coil occlusion of the PDA; however, these are usually minor and resolve with time. Left pulmonary artery relative size may decrease following patent ductus arteriosus coil occlusion. Thus, serial followup echocardiography is recommended to assess long-term LPA growth.
Robustness of muscle synergies underlying three-dimensional force generation at the hand in healthy humans

Previous studies using advanced matrix factorization techniques have shown that the coordination of human voluntary limb movements may be accomplished using combinations of a small number of intermuscular coordination patterns, or muscle synergies. However, the potential use of muscle synergies for isometric force generation has been evaluated mostly using correlational methods. The results of such studies suggest that fixed relationships between the activations of pairs of muscles are relatively rare. There is also emerging evidence that the nervous system uses independent strategies to control movement and force generation, which suggests that one cannot conclude a priori that isometric force generation is accomplished by combining muscle synergies, as shown in movement control. In this study, we used non-negative matrix factorization to evaluate the ability of a few muscle synergies to reconstruct the activation patterns of human arm muscles underlying the generation of three-dimensional (3-D) isometric forces at the hand. Surface electromyographic (EMG) data were recorded from eight key elbow and shoulder muscles during 3-D force target-matching protocols performed across a range of load levels and hand positions. Four synergies were sufficient to explain, on average, 95% of the variance in EMG datasets. Furthermore, we found that muscle synergy composition was conserved across biomechanical task conditions, experimental protocols, and subjects. Our findings are consistent with the view that the nervous system can generate isometric forces by assembling a combination of a small number of muscle synergies, differentially weighted according to task constraints.
Tomographic imaging via wave equation inversion

Methods that include diffraction effects are discussed for the tomographic reconstruction of the complex index of refraction within a soft-scattering object. The methods are Fourier-domain based and are threfore computationally efficient. An important signal-processing issue is shown to be the determination of the unwrapped phase of the sensed fields. The theoretical presentation is followed by examples of experimental results.
Serologic Reactivity Using Conserved Envelope Epitopes in Feline Lentivirus-Infected Felids:

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) based on synthetic peptides identical to lenti- virus envelope protein amino acid sequences was used to study serologic reactivity of lentivirus-infected domestic cats and nondomestic felids. One feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) peptide, P237, was consistently recognized by antibodies from FIV-infected cats, but 2 other FIV peptide antigens were not. The molecular basis for this serologic reactivity was examined. Lentivirus-infected nondomestic Felis species reacted intensely with a puma lentivirus (PLV) peptide corresponding to the conserved FIV peptide. However, lentivirus-infected Panthera species, from which a different lentivirus has been isolated, did not react with the PLV. FIV-infected domestic felids also did not have significant reactivity with the PLV peptide. The peptide ELISA is comparable in sensitivity and specificity to western blot analysis and a commercial enzyme immunoassay. Unlike the other assays, however, the peptide ELISA is inexpensive, requires a small amount of serum, enables the study of specific isotype reactivity, and discriminates between antibodies to FIV and those to PLV. Antibody tests based upon the FIV and the PLV peptides should be useful for detecting the possible introduction of FIV into exotic felids or of lentiviruses from nondomestic felids into the domestic cat population. Lentiviruses of the family Retroviridae are impor- tant pathogens of domestic cats and infect nondomes- tic felids, resulting in a poorly characterized disease that may complicate the management of threatened and endangered species. Feline immunodeficiency vi- rus (FIV) infection impairs the immune system of in- fected cats 1 and leaves them susceptible to opportu- nistic organisms. Diagnosis of the disease in cats is based upon serologic reactivity with FIV antigens. These tests commonly include immunoblots of viral proteins or a commercial enzyme immunoassay (EIA). a Although the immunoblot assay is an accepted stan- dard for the detection of antibody reactive with FIV, 4 it is expensive and requires special equipment and ex- pertise. The EIA is easy to use, but independent ver- ification of the assay's efficacy is not available, it has become increasingly expensive, and it requires a rel- atively large quantity of serum. An alternative test has recently been developed for FIV. 2 This enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay
Distance-Based Genome Rearrangement Phylogeny

Evolution operates on whole genomes through direct rearrangements of genes, such as inversions, transpositions, and inverted transpositions, as well as through operations, such as duplications, losses, and transfers, that also affect the gene content of the genomes. Because these events are rare relative to nucleotide substitutions, gene order data offer the possibility of resolving ancient branches in the tree of life; the combination of gene order data with sequence data also has the potential to provide more robust phylogenetic reconstructions, since each can elucidate evolution at different time scales. Distance corrections greatly improve the accuracy of phylogeny reconstructions from DNA sequences, enabling distance-based methods to approach the accuracy of the more elaborate methods based on parsimony or likelihood at a fraction of the computational cost. This paper focuses on developing distance correction methods for phylogeny reconstruction from whole genomes. The main question we investigate is how to estimate evolutionary histories from whole genomes with equal gene content, and we present a technique, the empirically derived estimator (EDE), that we have developed for this purpose. We study the use of EDE on whole genomes with identical gene content, and we explore the accuracy of phylogenies inferred using EDE with the neighbor joining and minimum evolution methods under a wide range of model conditions. Our study shows that tree reconstruction under these two methods is much more accurate when based on EDE distances than when based on other distances previously suggested for whole genomes.
Achieving treat to target in gout: a clinical practice improvement project

Objective: Gout care is suboptimal because of lack of translation of knowledge into real-world practice, despite evidence-based guidelines. We have developed processes to ensure systematic care for gout patients and determined the predictors for achievement of a target serum uric acid (SUA) concentration of < 360 μmol/L in a prospective cohort of Asian gout patients requiring allopurinol therapy.Methods: A 1-year clinical practice improvement project was undertaken using evidence-based guidelines and quality planning tools. Interventions included comprehensive patient education, enhanced telephone access, reappointments and refills, upward titration of allopurinol with no limitation specified by renal function, and increased frequency of visits until the target SUA concentration was achieved. The primary outcome was the time to achieve an SUA level of <360 μmol/L.Results: We recruited 126 gout patients. The median time to achieving the target SUA concentration was 36.9 weeks [95% confidence interval (CI) ...
Antifungal activity against Scedosporium species and novel assays to assess antifungal pharmacodynamics against filamentous fungi

The saprophytic moulds Scedosporium prolificans and Scedosporium apiospermum/Pseudallescheria boydii are an increasing cause of invasive fungal infections in immunocompromised hosts. The growing importance and high mortality rates of invasive disease caused by these fungi necessitates the search for newer treatment strategies. However, clinically available antifungal agents have modest to minimal activity against these organisms that has been confirmed by suboptimal responses in the clinic. Due to this limited in vitro activity and poor clinical response, antifungal combinations and high-dose regimens are frequently recommended to treat these refractory infections. However, development of a pharmacodynamic basis for antifungal dosing in scedosporiosis has been hampered by the limitations in the application of traditional microbiological techniques and endpoints for Scedosporium species. Newer quantitative and qualitative assays have demonstrated utility for measuring drug lethality in filamentous fungi, i...
MNK kinases regulate multiple TLR pathways and innate proinflammatory cytokines in macrophages

The MNK kinases are downstream of both the p38 and ERK MAP kinase pathways and act to increase gene expression. MNK inhibition using the compound CGP57380 has recently been reported to inhibit tumor necrosis factor (TNF) production in macrophage cell lines stimulated with Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide (LPS). However, the range of receptors that signal through the MNK kinases and the extent of the resultant cytokine response are not known. We found that TNF production was inhibited in RAW264.7 macrophage cells by CGP57380 in a dose-responsive manner with agonists for Toll-like receptor (TLR) 2 (HKLM), TLR4 (Salmonella LPS), TLR6/2 (FSL), TLR7 (imiquimod), and TLR9 (CpG DNA). CGP57380 also inhibited the peak of TNF mRNA production and increased the rate of TNF mRNA decay, effects not due to the destabilizing RNA binding protein tristetraprolin (TTP). Similar to its effects on TNF, CGP57380 caused dose-responsive inhibition of TTP production from stimulation with either LPS or CpG DNA. MNK inhibition also blocked IL-6 but permitted IL-10 production in response to LPS. Studies using bone marrow-derived macrophages (BMDM) isolated from a spontaneous mouse model of Crohn's disease-like ileitis (SAMP1/YitFc strain) revealed significant inhibition by CGP57380 of the proinflammatory cytokines TNF, IL-6, and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 at 4 and 24 h after LPS stimulation. IL-10 production was higher in CGP53870-treated BMDM at 4 h but was similar to the controls by 24 h. Taken together, these data demonstrate that MNK kinases signal through a variety of TLR agonists and mediate a potent innate, proinflammatory cytokine response.
Whiteness and difference in nursing

Abstract This paper uses a semiotic, performative theory of language and post-colonial theory to argue that nursing's representations of ‘multiculturalism’ need to be grounded in a theory of whiteness, an historicized understanding of how ethnic/cultural differences come to be represented in the ways they are and informed by Foucault's notions of power/knowledge. Using nursing education and ‘cultural compentency’ as examples, the paper draws on a range of literatures to suggest more critical and politically productive ways of approaching difference from within nursing's largely white interpretive framework.
Monthly Fog Frequency in the Continental United States

Abstract The heavy fog statistics for 244 first-order weather stations were used to generate experimental objective analyses of the annual and monthly geographic distribution of heavy fog within the Continental United States. The resulting computer-prepared map of annual distribution was compared with existing analyses and was found to be in reasonable agreement. The maps of monthly distribution of fog are presented as a new contribution for use in forecasting and other operations.
The Weevil Genus Achia Champion (Coleoptera: Curculionidae): New Species Associated with Urvillea (Sapindaceae) and New Serjania Host Plant Records for A. ancile Burke and A. affinis Hustache

Abstract Three new species of the weevil genus Achia Champion are described: A. urvilleae Clark and Burke from the state of Santa Catarina, Brazil and Misiones Province, Argentina; A. uniformis Clark and Burke from Bolivia; and A. boliviana Clark and Burke from Bolivia and Salta and Santiago del Estero provinces, Argentina. Keys and illustrations to facilitate identification of the species are provided. New host plant records for these and other species of Achia include: Urvillea ulmacea Kunth for A. urvilleae; Urvillea chacoensis Hunz. for A. boliviana; Serjania laruotteana Cambess for A. ancile Burke; and Serjania fuscifolia Radlk. for A. affinis Hustache. The genus Achia is apparently most closely related to Cissoanthonomus Hustache and Cionopsis Champion. These three genera have the head constricted behind the eyes, profemora greatly enlarged, and their known hosts are plants of the family Sapindaceae.
Dominant Paradigm of Fire Control: Solution or Problem?

This paper discusses several issues in forest and Wildland management that have become a paradigm with references from the popular press regarding forest and Wildland fire. A number of ideological conceptions of the world construct perceptions and undermine efforts to reduce or control wild fires. These conceptions presuppose events in a “natural world” that is really a human control and limited space. Many of these conceptions structure how human activities are planned in “natural” or “wild” areas as suburban sprawl continues. These conceptions also structure how fires are perceived to originate and spread defeating fire fighting and planning for fire control. This paper shows how these activities actually promote fire and are creating conditions for more expensive and intense fires. One of the central ideas to today’s seasonal wild fires is that they have resulted from years of fire suppression and a buildup of biomass. This is contradicted by pollen analysis, fire regimes and the concentration of the most extensive fires in the past 20 years after fire management philosophies had changed to allow for periodic control burns. A human “fire adapted” ecosystem has been created and is being spread and complicated by planning and fire suppression activities. Fire suppression history and its relation to wildfire, defensive space and prescribed burns have become concepts entrenched in the public mind. Whether scientific evidence supports these beliefs and what consequences result is reviewed. Evidence is presented concerning bias in firefighter’s choice of homes to defend that may skew data on home survival.