cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Decentralization: Operationalization and measurement model

Decentralization has been a continual focus of attention of both scholars and practitioners for more than half a century. Even though there is a general agreement on what decentralization is, there is no consensus about how it should be measured. This article builds on the existing body of literature that specifies three major dimensions of decentralization: political, administrative, and economic. The article offers a measurement model that unifies these dimensions in a meaningful manner that allows for comparison across countries. The proposed model is then empirically tested using confirmatory factor analysis of a data set of 37 countries over the period 2000-2009. This factor analysis reveals that there are, in fact, only two dimensions of the decentralization process. The newly developed modelʼs index illustrates that the conceptually challenging processes of decentralization can be accurately measured and analyzed. The index can be used for hypothesis testing of the causality role of decentralization.
Using Technology to Enhance Qualitative Research with Hidden Populations

Advances in technology provide researchers with increased opportunities to locate and conduct research with populations that have historically been inaccessible. This manuscript describes the development of private, voluntary web-based groups, and the process for using web cameras to conduct individual web-based interviews as a method of data collection in qualitative research. Also contained within are detailed steps for utilizing each of these technological innovations as well an exploration of the ethical issues related to using technology to enhance the research experience with members of hidden populations, using the GLBT population as a referent group. Key Words: Technological Innovation, Videoconferencing, Internet-based Groups, Data Collection, Participant Engagement and Hidden Populations
Arithmetic Properties of Apollonian Gaskets

Definition of Apollonian gasket. Sphere packing, uniqueness of Apollonian gasket, examples of unbounded Apollonian tilings. Integral solutions to Descartes’s equation, groups freely generated by reflections.
Management of Hyperthyroidism in the Setting of Thyroid Eye Disease

Thyroid eye disease (TED) is a complex autoimmune disease, the pathophysiology of which is not well understood. It is often, but not always, associated with Graves’ disease and the endocrine manifestations of hyperthyroidism. The optimal treatment of hyperthyroidism is not well established, especially with regard to minimizing the onset or progression of TED. The mainstays of treatment are antithyroid drugs (anti-TDs), radioactive iodine (RAI), and thyroidectomy. Each treatment modality has distinct advantages and disadvantages for long-term endocrine management, and varied effects on the onset and progression of TED. In developing a patient’s treatment plan, key considerations include effective endocrine control, rates of recurrent hyperthyroidism, treatment-associated complications, and effect on TED.
Quantum Mechanics, the Full Rotation Group, and Young Diagrams

The time-independent Schrodinger equation is given by $$H\psi = E\psi$$ (4.1) where H represents the Hamiltonian operator. For a point particle in a potential field V(r), H is given by $$H = \frac{{{p^2}}} {{2m}} + V\left( r \right)$$ (4.2) where p is the momentum operator $$p = - i\hbar \nabla$$ (4.2) Note that (4.1) is an eigenvalue equation in which the eigenfunction ψ corresponds to the eigenvalue E. We wish to consider cases for which the system at hand has symmetries. In this case, eigenenergies will be degenerate. An eigenenergy, E q , is q-fold degenerate if there exist q independent eigenfunctions corresponding to E q . Consider the case of a particle confined to the interior of a square in the plane with perfectly reflecting walls. Suppose ψ q is an eigenfunction of the related Hamiltonian with energy E q . Rotation of coordinates about the center of the square through π/2 produces a new eigenfunction which evidently also corresponds to the eigenenergy E q . Continuing this process produces four eigenfunctions which correspond to the eigenenergy E q . This degeneracy is evidently related to the C 4 symmetry of the square.
Uneven development and local inequality in the U.S. south : The role of outside investment, landed elites, and racial dynamics

This paper develops a historically contingent understanding of patterns of uneven economic development in the U.S. South. We conceptualize spatial variation in economic development and its consequences for inequality to be embedded in both local and international dynamics. The character of local economic development, it is argued, reflects the organizational base and heterogeneity of local elites, the divisions and relative power of nonelites, and the embeddedness of the local political economy in national and world systems of politics and production. These ideas are developed and made historically and spatially specific through an analysis of uneven development in one Southern state, North Carolina. Our findings suggest that contemporary patterns of uneven development and the resulting income deprivations and inequality reflect conditional interactions between elite economic projects and racial divisions within the working class. We find that outside investment seems to reproduce rather than disrupt local patterns of inequality and poverty.
Early Childhood Education Centers' Reported Readiness to Implement the Updated Child and Adult Care Food Program Meal Pattern Standards in the United States, 2017.

Abstract Background: The Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) serves nutritious meals/snacks to >3.6 million children in early childhood education (ECE) centers. This study provides a nationwi...
PV Power Generation Credit Sharing towards Sustainable Community Solar

This paper present a new conceptual framework of PV power generation credit sharing by leveraging social tie in residential community to maximize the financial benefit of community solar programs. Social tie-driven credit sharing schemes for residential community is designed to manage the dynamic allocation of solar PV power production ratio and credit among community members, so as to avoid unnecessary devaluation of solar PV power production by electric utilities. Along this avenue, a community solar management system that incorporates and integrates social tie network and credit sharing schemes is then developed.
Seasonal Precipitation Influences Streamflow Vulnerability to the 2015 Drought in the Western United States

AbstractStreamflow was exceptionally low in the spring and summer of 2015 across much of the western United States because of a regional drought that exploited the sensitivity of both snow- and rai...
Medical image compression and analysis using wavelet modulus maxima decomposition

A method of highly effective biomedical image compression that includes the reconstruction process with a good convergence rate is presented in the paper. It represents an image in the form of its wavelet modulus maxima decomposition. The technique allows the compressed image representation to include only those wavelet transform coefficients that correspond to the wavelet transform modulus maxima that are determined for each resolution level. The proposed approach to analysis of medical images uses the wavelet modulus maxima decomposition to enhance image features that are not visually apparent. The transient behavior of pixel intensities (that corresponds to edges and singular points) is used for image enhancement. The detection of edges is realized by detecting modulus maxima in a two-dimensional dyadic wavelet transform at the proper scale. This approach to image analysis aims at determining structures of the diseased tissue that are represented by the image edges. It is expected that this technique will help with early detection of cancer when routine interpretation of CT scans is inconclusive and biopsy would be required.
Litigation Risk and the Independent Director Labor Market

After decades of declining litigation risk, independent directors of public companies are viewed as effectively immune to personal litigation costs. However, the unexpected In re Investors Bancorp decision by the Delaware Supreme Court in 2017 lowered the liability threshold only for directors in derivative litigation over their own equity grants. Investors and firms both reacted to this rare increase in director-only litigation risk. First, Delaware firms experienced significant negative short-window returns, concentrated in firms where equity compensation is most important, consistent with investor concerns about attracting and/or retaining qualified directors. Second, Delaware firms added more qualified directors to the compensation committee. Third, Delaware firms with higher abnormal compensation decreased director compensation. Finally, Delaware firms decreased discussion of director pay in 8-K filings and their use of compensation consultants. Overall, results are consistent with firms acting to mitigate litigation concerns.
A brief review of the relationship of executive function assessment and violence

Abstract This review analyzes nine studies comparing violent or aggressive groups to nonviolent groups on tests of executive function (EF). The purpose is to determine if those committing violence, or scoring highly on assessments of impulsive aggression, demonstrate significant impairment in EF while controlling for variables such as age, education, head trauma, substance use, and intelligence. The reviewed studies tested a diverse selection of offenders, including murderers, domestic offenders, sexual offenders, perpetrators of assault, and batterers. The characteristic finding from the examined studies was that errors on Trail Making Test- Part B and various scores from the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test differentiated violent and nonviolent persons more consistently than other EF tests used. Violent offenders also performed significantly worse on tests of verbal fluency and general verbal ability compared to nonviolent individuals. Additionally, the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test was able to differentiate between different types of violent offenders. These results held across the type of crime committed, as well as incarcerated individuals, and individuals who self-reported as being physically aggressive.
Developing a novel force forecasting technique for early prediction of critical events in robotics

Safety critical events in robotic applications can often be characterized by forces between the robot end-effector and the environment. One application in which safe interaction between the robot and environment is critical is in the area of medical robots. In this paper, we propose a novel Compact Form Dynamic Linearization Model-Free Prediction (CFDL-MFP) technique to predict future values of any time-series sensor data, such as interaction forces. Existing time series forecasting methods have high computational times which motivates the development of a novel technique. Using Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) forecasting as benchmark, the performance of the proposed model was evaluated in terms of accuracy, computation efficiency, and stability on various force profiles. The proposed algorithm was 11% more accurate than ARIMA and maximum computation time of CFDL-MFP was 4ms, compared to ARIMA (7390ms). Furthermore, we evaluate the model in the special case of predicting needle buckling events, before they occur, by using only axial force and needle-tip position data. The model was evaluated experimentally for robustness with steerable needle insertions into different tissues including gelatin and biological tissue. For a needle insertion velocity of 2.5mm/s, the proposed algorithm was able to predict needle buckling 2.03s sooner than human detections. In biological tissue, no false positive or false negative buckling detections occurred and the rates were low in artificial tissue. The proposed forecasting model can be used to ensure safe robot interactions with delicate environments by predicting adverse force-based events before they occur.
Activation of Cholera Toxin by ADP-Ribosylation Factors, 20-kDa Guanine Nucleotide-Binding Proteins

Publisher Summary Cholera toxin, an oligomeric protein secreted by Vibrio cholerae , is responsible to a large extent for the devastating diarrheal syndrome characteristic of cholera. The toxin is composed of two types of subunits, A and B, with one A and five B subunits per holotoxin molecule. This chapter discusses the activation of Escherichia coli heat-labile enterotoxins by ADP-ribosylation factors, the participation of a guanine nucleotide-binding protein cascade in the activation of adenylate cyclase by cholera toxin, and the immunological characterization of ADP-ribosylation factors. Escherichia coli produces a family of heat-labile enterotoxins, or LTs as they are commonly designated, that appear to be similar in structure and function to cholera toxin; these enterotoxins are responsible in part for the symptomatology of travelers' diarrhea. Two classes of LTs have been defined, LT-I and LT-IIa and b. Based on similarities of amino acid sequence, it appears that LT-I is more closely related to cholera toxin than it is to either of the LT-IIs. Like cholera toxin, the LTs are composed of a B oligomer noncovalently associated with a single A subunit.
Differentiation of Hispanic biogeographic ancestry with 80 ancestry informative markers

Ancestry informative single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) can identify biogeographic ancestry (BGA); however, population substructure and relatively recent admixture can make differentiation difficult in heterogeneous Hispanic populations. Utilizing unrelated individuals from the Genomic Origins and Admixture in Latinos dataset (GOAL, n = 160), we designed an 80 SNP panel (Setser80) that accurately depicts BGA through STRUCTURE and PCA. We compared our Setser80 to the Seldin and Kidd panels via resampling simulations, which models data based on allele frequencies. We incorporated Admixed American 1000 Genomes populations (1000 G, n = 347), into a combined populations dataset to determine robustness. Using multinomial logistic regression (MLR), we compared the 3 panels on the combined dataset and found overall MLR classification accuracies: 93.2% Setser80, 87.9% Seldin panel, 71.4% Kidd panel. Naive Bayesian classification had similar results on the combined dataset: 91.5% Setser80, 84.7% Seldin panel, 71.1% Kidd panel. Although Peru and Mexico were absent from panel design, we achieved high classification accuracy on the combined populations for Peru (MLR = 100%, naive Bayes = 98%), and Mexico (MLR = 90%, naive Bayes = 83.4%) as evidence of the portability of the Setser80. Our results indicate the Setser80 SNP panel can reliably classify BGA for individuals of presumed Hispanic origin.
Site-specific Crosslinking Coupled with Mass Spectrometry as a Structural Tool in Studies of the Human α1 Glycine Receptor

Recent advances in mass spectrometry coupled with chemical crosslinking (CX-MS) can be applied for the structural interrogation of macromolecular complexes to identify state-dependent distance constraints and provides a powerful complementary technique to other structural methods. In this study, we develop a CX-MS approach to identify the sites of crosslinking from a single targeted location within the human glycine receptor (GlyR) in a single apo/resting state. The GlyR belongs to the family of pentameric ligand-gated ion channel receptors that function in fast neuronal transmission. A single cysteine residue was re-introduced into Cys null GlyR construct at position 41 within the extracellular domain of an overexpressed human alpha1 homomeric GlyR. After purification and reconstitution into vesicles, a methanethiosulfonate benzophenone heterobifunctional crosslinker was attached via formation of a disulfide bond, and the resting receptor is subsequently photocrosslinked. Monomeric and oligomeric bands from SDS-PAGE gels were then trypsinized and analyzed by tandem MS in bottom-up studies. Dozens of intra- and inter-subunit sites of crosslinking were differentiated and identified from single gel bands (pmols of purified GlyR), showing the utility of this approach to identify a diverse array of distance constraints of GlyR in its resting state. These studies highlight the potential of CX-MS as an experimental approach to identify state-dependent crosslinks of full length integral membrane protein assemblies in a native-like lipid environment.
Surface-Level Actual Similarity Vs. Deep-Level Perceived Similarity: Predicting Leader-Member Exchange Agreement

Drawing upon similarity-attraction theory (Byrne, 1971), we explore whether deep-level perceived similarity or surface-level actual similarity is more predictive of agreement between supervisors and subordinates about the quality of their relationship (LMX). To examine this question we analyze supervisor-subordinate agreement on four antecedents of LMX: one surface-level similarity variable (relational demography), and three deep-level similarity variables (common perspective, receptiveness, and liking). Responses from a matched set of 203 supervisor-subordinate dyads indicate that deeplevel similarity matters more than surface-level similarity since all three deep-level perceptual variables explain variance in LMX agreement above and beyond the variance explained by surface-level actual similarity.
A Two-Layered Approach to Adaptive Dialogues for Robotic Assistance

Socially assistive robots should provide users with personalized assistance within a wide range of scenarios such as hospitals, home or social settings and private houses. Different people may have different needs both at the cognitive/physical support level and in relation to the preferences of interaction. Consequently the typology of tasks and the way the assistance is delivered can change according to the person with whom the robot is interacting. The authors’ long-term research goal is the realization of an advanced cognitive system able to support multiple assistive scenarios with adaptations over time. We here show how the integration of model-based and model-free AI technologies can contextualize robot assistive behaviors and dynamically decide what to do (assistive plan) and how to do it (assistive plan execution), according to the different features and needs of assisted persons. Although the approach is general, the paper specifically focuses on the synthesis of personalized therapies for (cognitive) stimulation of users.
Estrogen Receptor Alpha Mutations in Breast Cancer Cells Cause Gene Expression Changes through Constant Activity and Secondary Effects

While breast cancer patients with tumors that express estrogen receptor α (ER) generally respond well to hormone therapies that block ER activity, a significant number of patients relapse. Approximately 30% of these recurrences harbor activating mutations in the ligand binding domain (LBD) of ER, which have been shown to confer ligand-independent function. However, much is still unclear regarding the effect of mutant ER beyond its estrogen independence. To investigate the molecular effects of mutant ER, we developed multiple isogenic ER-mutant cell lines for the most common LBD mutations, Y537S and D538G. These mutations induced differential expression of thousands of genes, the majority of which were mutant allele specific and were not observed upon estrogen treatment of wild-type (WT) cells. These mutant-specific genes showed consistent differential expression across ER-mutant lines developed in other laboratories. WT cells with long-term estrogen exposure only exhibited some of these transcriptional changes, suggesting that mutant ER causes novel regulatory effects that are not simply due to constant activity. While ER mutations exhibited minor effects on ER genomic binding, with the exception of ligand independence, ER mutations conferred substantial differences in chromatin accessibility. Mutant ER was bound to approximately a quarter of mutant-enriched accessible regions that were enriched for other DNA binding factors, including FOXA1, CTCF, and OCT1. Overall, our findings indicate that mutant ER causes several consistent effects on gene expression, both indirectly and through constant activity. Significance: This study demonstrates the multiple roles of mutant ER in breast cancer progression, including constant ER activity and secondary regulatory effects on gene expression and chromatin accessibility. Graphical Abstract: http://cancerres.aacrjournals.org/content/canres/81/3/539/F1.large.jpg. See related commentary by Hermida-Prado and Jeselsohn, p. 537 See related article by Williams and colleagues, p. 732
Using Reinforcement Learning in Slotted Aloha for Ad-Hoc Networks

Slotted ALOHA is known to have poor channel utilization (a maximum of 37% when average offered load is one packet per time slot). Reinforcement learning has recently been proposed as a technique that allows nodes to learn to coordinate their transmissions in order to attain much higher network utilization. All reinforcement learning schemes proposed to date assume immediate feedback on the outcome of a packet transmission. We introduce ALOHA-dQT, a reinforcement-learning protocol that achieves high utilization by having nodes broadcast short summaries of the channel history as known to them along with their packets. Our simulation results show that ALOHA-dQT leads to network utilization above 75%, with fair bandwidth allocation among nodes. ALOHA-dQT is the first reinforcement-learning approach applied to slotted ALOHA suitable for ad-hoc networks without centralized repeaters.
Techno-economic analysis of offshore isothermal compressed air energy storage in saline aquifers co-located with wind power

Abstract Offshore wind power projects are increasingly attractive in many regions even though capacity is impacted by intermittency as it is with other renewable power sources. We examine balancing the intermittency with an Offshore Compressed Air Energy Storage (OCAES) system that combines near-isothermal compression and expansion processes via water spray injection with air storage in saline aquifers. Spray injection maintains the air at nearly constant temperatures to improve round-trip efficiency, and saline aquifers are abundant in near-shore environments at suitable depths. This techno-economic analysis estimates the efficiency, cost, and value of OCAES, and demonstrates it in the context of the Atlantic coast of the United States, for a wind lease near Virginia. The round-trip efficiency of the OCAES system is projected using a thermal fluid process model that accounts for machinery performance as well as geophysical subsurface characteristics and gradients. Cost estimates are based on combining axial gas turbine technology with water spray injection retrofits and drilling experience from the oil and gas industry. Value to the electric grid is quantified with a price-taker dispatch model that optimizes the value of delivered electricity. The study analyzed power capacities from 10 to 390 MW, and our results show that for the geophysical conditions considered, a 200 MW OCAES system is expected to have a round-trip efficiency of 77% and a capital cost of $1457/kW. When paired with a 500 MW wind farm, OCAES is able to increase revenue from $0.031/kWh, without storage, to $0.048/kWh. We also show that a 350 MW OCAES system with 168 hours of storage is able to make the wind farm power output constant with a levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) of $0.22/kWh, 81% less than with 10-hour lithium-ion battery technology.
Relation of Magnetic Resonance Elastography to Fontan Circulatory Failure in a Cohort of Pediatric and Adult Patients

Elevated magnetic resonance elastography (MRE)-derived liver stiffness may be associated with worse outcomes in people with Fontan circulation. We sought to evaluate the association between liver stiffness and Fontan failure or portal hypertension. Single center cross-sectional retrospective study of people with Fontan circulation who underwent MRE between 2011 and 2020. The cohort was divided into adult (age ≥ 21 years) and pediatric (< 21 years) groups. Fontan circulatory failure (FF) was defined as any of the following: death, transplantation, ventricular assist device, heart failure symptoms requiring escalation of diuretics. Radiologic portal hypertension was defined as the presence of one or more of the following: splenomegaly, ascites, or gastrointestinal varices. 128 patients were included (average age = 22.6 ± 8.7 years) and 58 (45%) were children. Median liver stiffness was 4.3 kPa (interquartile range (IQR) 3.8–5.8) for the entire cohort. Thirty patients (23%) developed FF (16 adults, 14 children). Liver stiffness was higher in adults with FF compared to those without FF (4.9 (IQR 4.0–6.0) vs. 4.2 (IQR 3.8–4.7) kPa, p = 0.04). There was no difference in liver stiffness between pediatric patients with and without FF (4.4 (IQR 4.1–5.4) vs. 4.4 (IQR 3.8–5.0), p = 0.5). Adults with radiologic portal hypertension and adults with moderate or severe atrioventricular valve regurgitation had higher liver stiffness than adults without. MRE-derived liver stiffness is associated with atrioventricular valve regurgitation, portal hypertension, and poor clinical outcomes in adults with Fontan circulation. There was no association between liver stiffness and FF in pediatric patients. This difference may be due to the progressive nature of Fontan-associated liver disease.
Specialization in data curation: preliminary results from an alumni survey, 2008-2012

Data curation is an emergent field requiring a workforce with new skills to meet digital data needs across a wide variety of domains. This study surveyed masters-level graduates with a Specialization in Data Curation from the Graduate School of Library and Information Science (GSLIS) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The survey assesses the value of the program to graduates, career placement, and continuing education needs. Preliminary findings and trends are reported to inform the evolution of data curation education in library and information science (LIS) programs.
Multiple periods in the variability of the supermassive black hole binary candidate quasar PG1302-102?

Graham et al. (2015) discovered a supermassive black hole binary (SMBHB) candidate and identified the detected 5.2 yr period of the optical variability as the orbital period of the binary. Hydrodynamical simulations predict multiple periodic components for the variability of SMBHBs, thus raising the possibility that the true period of the binary is different from 5.2 yr. We analyse the periodogram of PG1302 and find no compelling evidence for additional peaks. We derive upper limits on any additional periodic modulations in the available data, by modeling the light-curve as the sum of red noise and the known 5.2 yr periodic component, and injecting additional sinusoidal signals. We find that, with the current data, we would be able to detect with high significance (false alarm probability <1%) secondary periodic terms with periods in the range predicted by the simulations, if the amplitude of the variability was at least ~0.07 mag (compared to 0.14 mag for the main peak). A three-year follow-up monitoring campaign with weekly observations can increase the sensitivity for detecting secondary peaks ~50%, and would allow a more robust test of predictions from hydrodynamical simulations.
Expression of the myristoylated alanine-rich C kinase substrate (MARCKS) and MARCKS-related protein (MRP) in the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus of suicide victims.

Background: Although suicide is a leading cause of death in the United States and represents a significant public health threat, little is known about the neurobiological or molecular factors that contribute to its pathophysiology. A number of studies now indicate that lithium has considerable efficacy in the prevention of suicide in patients with affective disorders, and accumulating evidence indicates that protein kinase C (PKC) and its substrates, in particular the myristoylated alanine-rich C kinase substrate (MARCKS), are primary targets of chronic lithium treatment. We therefore hypothesized that a dysregulation in MARCKS expression in key brain regions could contribute to the pathophysiology associated with suicide. To address this, we examined MARCKS, as well as the closely related MARCKS-related protein (MRP), mRNA expression in the hippocampus and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex of suicide victims and normal controls. Method: MARCKS and MRP mRNA expression was assessed by quantitative in situ hybridization histochemistry performed on postmortem hippocampal and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex sections from suicide (N = 9) and normal control (N = 10) brains. Results: In the normal hippocampus, both MARCKS and MRP mRNA expression were highest in the granule cell layer and low-moderate in CA1, CA3, and hilus. A high level of MRP mRNA expression was also observed in the white matter of the fimbria/fornix. Neither MARCKS nor MRP mRNA expression levels differed significantly in the granule cell layer, CA3, hilus, or CA1 in suicide victims relative to normal controls (1-way ANOVA, p >.05). In the normal prefrontal cortex, MARCKS was expressed exclusively in gray matter (layers I-VI), whereas MRP was expressed in both gray and white matter. Neither MARCKS nor MRP mRNA expression levels in the gray and white matter regions of the dorsal prefrontal cortex differed between suicides and normal controls (1-way ANOVA, p>.05). Conclusion: The present findings are the first to demonstrate the expression and distribution of MARCKS and MRP in the human hippocampus and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, and their expression pattern within these regions bears strong resemblance to those observed in the adult rat brain. Comparison of MARCKS and MRP mRNA expression in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex of suicide victims and normal controls indicates that these 2 mRNAs are not differentially regulated in these regions. However, differences in MARCKS and MRP protein expression and function cannot be ruled out by the present findings.
Inferring Analysts' Information about Changes in Earnings Components*

This paper develops a technique to infer the accuracy of analysts' forecasts of different components of earnings when databases contain forecasts of only bottom line (or limited component) earnings forecasts. We focus our analysis on three components - sales, operating profit percentage, and effective tax rates - and find that larger changes in all three components are associated with larger contemporaneous forecast errors, but that the change in operating profit percentage appears to be the most difficult to forecast. This difficulty in forecasting changes in the operating profit percentage appears to be concentrated in those observations in which net income decreases from the prior year.
Práticas de controle e prevalência de helmintos gastrintestinais parasitos de bovinos leiteiros em Pindamonhangaba, São Paulo, Brasil

Os objetivos do presente estudo foram realizar o levantamento das atividades de manejo utilizadas para controle dos helmintos gastrintestinais parasitos de bovinos leiteiros e diagnosticar a prevalencia da infestacao em animais jovens e adultos no municipio de Pindamonhangaba, Vale do Paraiba, Estado de Sao Paulo. O levantamento das praticas de controle foi feito mediante a aplicacao de questionarios aos pecuaristas. A maioria dos entrevistados (52,5%) declarou tratar os animais na estacao seca do ano, entre maio e agosto. Os usos profilatico (47,5%) e curativo (45,0%) foram a razao da aplicacao dos antihelminticos. Apenas 6,4% dos produtores procuraram orientacao de medico veterinario para tratamento. Houve concentracao das dosificacoes no primeiro ano de vida dos animais. Nenhum produtor admitiu tratar os animais com idade de um ano ou mais especificamente para controle da verminose. Quando o fazia, visava a populacao de carrapatos e moscas-do-chifre. Os produtos mais utilizados foram: ivermectinas (50,0%), levamisole (37,5%) e albendazole (12,5%), sendo a formulacao injetavel preferida (78,9%) a oral (21,1%). O peso dos animais utilizado para calculo da dose quase sempre foi determinado por estimativa visual (95,0%). Pela analise coproparasitaria evidenciou-se 50,7% (358/706) de animais com contagem de OPG positiva para ovos da Ordem Strongylida (media = 167,8 ± 355,5), sendo os animais jovens mais parasitados (media = 281,5 ± 461,5) quando comparados (p< 0,05) aos adultos (media = 52,3 ± 113,5). Conclui-se com o levantamento efetuado que as praticas de manejo adotadas pelos produtores da regiao (dosificacoes no periodo da seca, uso profilatico, sem orientacao tecnica, possiveis subdosagens e pressao com ivermectina) podem favorecer o desenvolvimento da resistencia aos anti-helminticos utilizados.
Aplastic anemia: therapeutic updates in immunosuppression and transplantation

Advances in hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) and immunosuppressive therapy (IST) have improved survival in severe aplastic anemia (SAA) from 10%-20% in the 1960s to 80%-90% today. A matched sibling HSCT is the treatment of choice in younger patients, whereas IST is often used in older patients or in those who lack a histocompatible sibling. Graft rejection, GVHD, and poor immune reconstitution (with associated infectious complications) limit the success of HSCT, whereas lack of response, relapse, and clonal evolution limit the success of IST. The historically high rate of graft rejection in SAA is now less problematic in the matched setting, but with greater rates observed with unrelated and umbilical cord donors. The correlation of increasing age with the risk of GVHD and the significant morbidity and mortality of this transplantation complication continue to affect the decision to pursue HSCT versus IST as initial therapy in adults with SAA. Outcomes with matched unrelated donor HSCT have improved, likely due to better donor selection, supportive care, and improved transplantation protocols. Results with mismatched unrelated donor and umbilical HSCT are not as favorable, with higher rates of graft rejection, GVHD, and infectious complications. Investigation of several upfront alternative IST protocols has not improved outcomes beyond horse antithymocyte globulin and cyclosporine. More recently, the role of alemtuzumab in SAA has been better defined and an oral thrombomimetic, eltrombopag, is showing promising activity in refractory cases. The most recent advances in HSCT and IST in SAA are discussed in this review.
Vasoregulation at the molecular level: A role for the β1 subunit of the calcium-activated potassium (BK) channel

Essential hypertension is among the most common and most costly medical conditions in the United States. Multiple defects in the kidneys, the vasculature, and the neuro-endocrine system may contribute to the development of this disorder. Within the past decade investigators have identified several molecular components of the vasculature that control tone and influence blood pressure. For example, the large conductance BK type calcium-activated potassium channel has recently been shown to play an important role in maintaining the dynamic equilibrium between vasoconstriction and vasodilation of vascular smooth muscle. Activation of vascular smooth muscle BK channels leads to hyperpolarization of the cell membrane, which causes deactivation of voltage-dependent calcium channels and vasodilation. In this review, we will summarize recently published data focusing on the role of the BK channel's accessory beta1 subunit as well as other modulators of BK channel activation that influence vascular tone and blood pressure.
Circulatory Control in Idiopathic Orthostatic Hypotension (Shy-Drager Syndrome)

Of three patients with Shy-Drager syndrome, two presented with syncope related to exercise and, in all three, exercise stress clearly defined the element of orthostatic hypotension. Autonomic cardiovascular regulatory function was absent in two, but some residual autonomic function was present in the form of heart rate response in one patient who had milder postural hypotension. Hemodynamic studies were carried out with subjects supine and tilted 45° before and after exercise, following plasma volume expansion, and during the effects of isoproterenol and atropine. Despite disordered venoconstrictor responses demonstrated during exercise, hyperventilation, and after the Valsalva maneuver, decrease in central blood volume and right atrial pressure were not excessive with tilt, and total systemic vascular resistance remained essentially unchanged as did heart rate. Cardiac index may have decreased excessively (–24%), suggesting a cardiac component in production of hypotension. Absence of sympathetic cardiac effects, both chronotropic and inotropic, may play a significant role in orthostatic hypotension by limiting heart rate and preventing shift of the Frank-Starling curve to the left. Amelioration of postural effects by plasma volume expansion was noted along with increased cardiac output, stroke volume, and pulse pressure indicating that myocardial heterometric regulation was operative. Atropine had little effect, eliminating the possibility that parasympathetic depressor effects were responsible for postural hypotension. Exercise, by decreasing systemic vascular resistance even though venous return was adequate, produced hypotension even in recumbency and aggravated postural effects. Similarly, isoproterenol caused marked hypotension in supine subjects. Exercise, by reducing systemic vascular resistance, has a deleterious effect despite increased venous return and may precipitate postural symptoms. Exercise stress is of value in the evaluation of patients with syncope or cerebral ischemia secondary to autonomic dysfunction where orthostatic hypotension is of doubtful significance at rest.
Sputtering of organic molecules

Abstract Mass spectrometrists are currently using kiloelectron-volt ion and atom bombardment to produce large, intact molecular ions from involatile organic compounds. The mechanism of particle emission from a surface involves momentum transfer from the bombarding particle to sample atoms and has been studied in some detail. Producing intact molecules successfully by this technique is dependent upon: (a) the nature of the momentum-transfer process; and (b) the amount of radiation damage incurred by the uppermost monolayer of the sample from which the molecules are emitted. This paper will address these two areas of critical importance.
RELATION OF CERTAIN ENDOCRINE GLANDS TO BODY WEIGHT IN GROWING AND MATURE GUINEA PIGS

IN ENDOCRINE studies involving the use of experimental animals, it is important to be able to differentiate between the normal weight changes of the several endocrine glands associated with increasing body weight and changes which may be due to experimental conditions. Even when a considerable number of control animals are included in an experiment, it is difficult to determine the influence of the experimental condition upon gland weight, if the experimental treatment also influences growth rate, unless controls of various body weights are autopsied. Under such conditions, standards of normal endocrine gland weight with increasing body weight should be valuable reference data for comparative purposes. Since gland weights in general do not vary directly (to the first power) with body weight, but to some other power of body weight, the power formula or the relative growth equation Y = aXb has been used widely in statistical studies relating organ weight to body weight (DuBois, 1898; Lapicque, 1898;
A review of the larviculture of cobia Rachycentron canadum, a warm water marine fish

Cobia Rachycentron canadum is a marine finfish species with emerging global potential for mariculture. Positive culture attributes include capacity for natural and induced tank spawning, growth rates in excess of 6 kg/year, high disease resistance, high survival rates (post-larviculture stage) in tanks and net pens, adaptability to commercially available extruded diets, and high-quality fillets suitable for the sashimi as well as white tablecloth restaurant markets. Nonetheless, cobia production faces several bottlenecks limiting industrial expansion including limitations in fingerling production per unit volume. This paper will provide an overview of production limitations, and focus on recent spawning and larviculture research results and ongoing research initiatives.
Development of the Indicators of Successful Inclusion Scale (ISIS): addressing ecological concerns

The Indicators of Successful Inclusion Scale (ISIS) was developed to measure pre-service and practicing educators’ beliefs regarding factors that contribute to educating students with disabilities in general education classrooms. The measure was designed to assess teachers’ beliefs and attitudes related to inclusive education and to consider their possible utility for understanding teachers’ inclusion-related intentions and behaviors. Specifically, the ISIS targets personal and ecological factors thought to influence intentional inclusive practice: beliefs related to the perceived benefits of inclusion, beliefs regarding administrative school support for the practice of inclusion. ISIS scale development, and exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses yielded discrete subscales addressing teachers’ ecological beliefs. Analyses of internal consistency and test-retest reliability data suggest the ISIS functions in a reliable fashion. Our construct validation procedures yielded evidence supporting the ISIS ...
A method for accelerating CFG-parsing by using dependency information

This paper describes an algorithm for accelerating the CFG-parsing process by using dependency (or modifier-modifiee relationship) information given by, for instance, dependency estimation programs such as stochastic parsers, user's indication in an interactive application, and linguistic annotations added in a source text. This is a method for enhancing existing grammar-based CFG-parsing system by using dependency information.
Generalized gauge fields and applications to weak interactions

Abstract Yang-Mills' field is generalized to possess a nontrivial scalar part. The most general transformations for such a field under the 3-parameter isotopic gauge transformation is obtained. Using this generalized gauge field, a gauge invariant Lagrangian is constructed within the framework of the quark model. Interactions for spin-1 as well as for spin-0 are generated. As a further application a weak interaction theory mediated by the generalized gauge (boson) field is formulated. The entire weak interactions are generated in two halfs; the hadron-boson interaction is generated according to Yang-Mills' trick using the generalized gauge field and the other half (boson-lepton, etc.) is then generated by making use of the scalar part of the gauge fields according to the conventional pion gauge principle. The effective Lagrangian is then found to be mediated by the effective propagators which fall off as p −2 at high momenta; the unitarity of the theory can thereby be insured. Universality in weaker sense than the usual one is applied to the intermediate bosons; our theory for β-decay then reduces to Cabibbo's at low energy.
Edge detection for magneto-optical data storage

Here we report a new kind of detector which senses transitions between up and down magnetization, rather than the magnetization direction itself. We present theoretical analysis, computer modeling and experimental results which show high-frequency SNR levels comparable to the performance of conventional detectors.© (1990) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Exception reporting as a quality marker

> ‘GPs who practise patient-centred, evidence-based care will, inevitably, have higher exception rates. As outliers, they should expect a visit from their PCT hit squad.’ I made this prediction at the end of a lecture on Communicating Risk to Patients, delivered at our Faculty Annual Symposium on a sunny summer morning in 2005, just over a year after the introduction of the Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF). So it was not a surprise but rather a source of satisfaction when my practice received just such a visit 5 years later. The visiting team included a GP who was also a medical adviser to the PCT and whom I respected. The conduct of the visiting team was impeccable and professional. The members gave the impression of having open minds and listened attentively to the reasons for excepting the individuals they had singled out. They courteously pointed out alternatives to …
Extension of an improved one-fluid conformal solution theory to real fluid mixtures with large size differences

Conformal solution theories have been shown to be inadequate as the size ratio of the molecules in a mixture increases. We present an improved van der Waals-1 fluid conformal solution theory which incorporates a correction term developed using statistical mechanical perturbation theory. The correction addresses the effect of different size molecules on the Helmholtz free energy of the mixture. Results of the new model are compared with other conformal solution theories for model Lennard-Jones systems. We also show how to extend the model to perform computations on real fluid mixtures. Results for selected hydrocarbon mixtures are given.
Foreign faiths and national renewal: Christian conversion among Kyrgyz youth

Drawing on my research among foreign religious workers and young converts, I explore here the changing religious landscape in the Kyrgyz Republic. Although many people in Kyrgyzstan are aware of the material benefits enjoyed by people who convert to new faiths (money, food and professional opportunity), to understand the appeal of these faiths among young people it is important to look beyond material factors. I argue that Christianity's success must be understood in the context of the current social and economic crisis and is a result of Christian leaders' ability to link young people's spiritual lives to projects of national renewal. The story of evangelical Christianity in Kyrgyzstan speaks to an ongoing debate in the social sciences about the usefulness of studying conversion as an individual experience of changed belief versus as a response to social and political realities. The emphasis, in Kyrgyz churches, on the importance of individual converts to national renewal reveals that the individual and ...
Exact and approximate solutions to the finite temperature wave equation in a one-dimensional perpendicularly stratified plasma

The sixth order wave equation which results from a finite temperature expansion of the Vlasov equation is solved globally in the ion cyclotron range of frequencies. A perpendicularly stratified, onedimensional slab plasma is assumed. The diamagnetic drift and the associated anisotropy are included in the unperturbed distribution function to ensure a self-adjoint system. All x-dependence in the plasma pressure and magnetic field is retained along with the electric field parallel to . Thus, Landau damping of the ion Bernstein wave is included self-consistently. Because of the global nature of the solution, the evanescent short wavelength Bernstein waves do not grow exponentially as in shooting methods. Strong variations occur in the absorption and in the structure of the wave fields as resonance topology is varied. Solutions to the complete sixth order differential equation are compared to those from an approximate second order equation based on local dispersion theory.