cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Applied implications of current JEAB research on derived relations and delayed reinforcement.

The Conditions That Give Rise to Equivalence: You Have to Know the History No area of basic behavior-analytic research has more obvious applied importance than the study of derived relational responding, including stimulus equivalence, exclusion, and relational frames. In this issue of JEAB comes confirmation that the likelihood of formation of stimulus equivalence classes cannot be known without knowing the histories of the individuals involved. Before we explain what was found, it is worth discussing why equivalence is important in the first place. The applied importance ofrelational responding. The applied impact of stimulus equivalence comes largely from the way relational responding combines with principles of direct contingency control and classical conditioning so as to create entirely new means of establishing discriminative, reinforcing, motivative, and eliciting functions. The simplest case is that of stimulus equivalence-simplest because all trained and derived relations are the same. Suppose a child learns that the written word C-A-T is called "cat" (and not, say, "ball") and that this written word goes with a class of furry mammals (and not, say, round playthings). The child will probably now derive the mutual relation between the oral name and actual cats, between the oral name and written word, and between cats and the written word, all without explicit training
Effect of thrombolysis on myocardial injury: recombinant tissue plasminogen activator vs. alfimeprase.

Plasmin-dependent thrombolytic agents are potentially prothrombotic and proinflammatory. Alfimeprase, a zinc-containing metalloproteinase, degrades fibrin directly and achieves thrombolysis indepen...
γδ T Cells: T cells with B-cell-like recognition properties

Recent results suggest there are fundamental differences in antigen recognition by alpha beta and gamma delta T-cell receptors, which might underlie possible differences in function between these two types of T cell.
Chiral Metallacrown Supramolecular Compartments that Template Nanochannels: Self‐Assembly and Guest Absorption

There is a report on the Hg contamination due to the waste glass coated with mercury dumped by a thermometer factory at Kodaikanal, Tamil Nadu. Water samples from various zones of the lake located at Kodaikanal were subjected for the spectrophotometric method of Hg content. The results have disclosed that there is an elevated level of Hg. The data was analysed statistically and discussed with relation to the contamination of Hg.
The Inactive 44-kDa Processed Form of Membrane Type 1 Matrix Metalloproteinase (MT1-MMP) Enhances Proteolytic Activity via Regulation of Endocytosis of Active MT1-MMP

Membrane type 1 (MT1) matrix metalloproteinase (MMP-14) is a membrane-tethered MMP considered to be a major mediator of pericellular proteolysis. MT1-MMP is regulated by a complex array of mechanisms, including processing and endocytosis that determine the pool of active proteases on the plasma membrane. Autocatalytic processing of active MT1-MMP generates an inactive membrane-tethered 44-kDa product (44-MT1) lacking the catalytic domain. This form preserves all other enzyme domains and is retained at the cell surface. Paradoxically, accumulation of the 44-kDa form has been associated with increased enzymatic activity. Here we report that expression of a recombinant 44-MT1 (Gly285–Val582) in HT1080 fibrosarcoma cells results in enhanced pro-MMP-2 activation, proliferation within a three-dimensional collagen I matrix, and tumor growth and lung metastasis in mice. Stimulation of pro-MMP-2 activation and growth in collagen I was also observed in other cell systems. Expression of 44-MT1 in HT1080 cells is associated with a delay in the rate of active MT1-MMP endocytosis resulting in higher levels of active enzyme at the cell surface. Consistently, deletion of the cytosolic domain obliterates the stimulatory effects of 44-MT1 on MT1-MMP activity. In contrast, deletion of the hinge turns the 44-MT1 form into a negative regulator of enzyme function in vitro and in vivo, suggesting a key role for the hinge region in the functional relationship between active and processed MT1-MMP. Together, these results suggest a novel role for the 44-kDa form of MT1-MMP generated during autocatalytic processing in maintaining the pool of active enzyme at the cell surface.
An Internalization Motif Is Created in the Cytoplasmic Domain of the Transferrin Receptor by Substitution of a Tyrosine at the First Position of a Predicted Tight Turn

Receptors are internalized from the plasma membrane at approximately 10 times the rate of bulk membrane. The predominant model for the motif that promotes rapid internalization proposes a requirement for a tyrosine located in the first position of a tight turn. In this report we show that an internalization motif can be created de novo by substituting a tyrosine for the first or last residues of a tetrapeptide GDNS (residues 31-34) that is predicted to form a tight turn within the cytoplasmic domain of the human transferrin receptor. These substitutions restore wild-type levels of internalization to transferrin receptors that are poorly internalized due to missense mutations in the native internalization motif. The introduction of a tyrosine at the first or last position of the GDNS tetrapeptide in a transferrin receptor containing an unmodified wild-type internalization motif significantly increases the internalization rate above that of the wild-type receptor. Our results indicate that a functional novel internalization motif can be created by placing specific aromatic amino acids within the overall structure of an existing beta-turn in a cytoplasmic domain of a receptor.
Atrial Fibrillation detection using time-varying coherence function and Shannon Entropy

We introduce a novel method for automatic detection of Atrial Fibrillation (AF) using time-varying coherence functions (TVCF) and Shannon Entropy (SE). The TVCF is estimated by the multiplication of two time-varying transfer functions (TVTFs). Two TVTFs are obtained using two adjacent data segments with one data segment as the input signal and the other data segment as the output to produce the first TVTF; the second TVTF is produced by reversing the input and output signals. The detection algorithm was tested on RR interval time series derived from two databases: the MIT-BIH Atrial Fibrillation (AF) and the MIT-BIH normal sinus rhythm (NSR). The MIT-BIH database contains a variety of short and long AF beats from 25 subjects and the MIT-BIH NSR database consists of only normal sinus rhythms from 18 subjects. Using the receiver operating characteristic curves from the combination of TVCF and SE, we obtained the accuracy of 97.49%, sensitivity of 97.41% and specificity of 97.54% for the MIT-BIH AF database. Furthermore, the specificity of the MIT-BIH NSR database was 100%.
Social roles and adaptation to the community

The purpose of this study was to refine, test, and demonstrate the applications of an instrument (the Community Adaptation Schedule) for assessing community adaptation within the psychosocial context defined by contemporary community mental health theorists and practitioners. Subsequent to formulating an operational definition of community adaptation via test construction, the new measure was administered to samples of mental health professionals, outpatients, and psychiatric hospital patients. The schedule was effective in producing significant differential patterns and scores for the study groups on most of the adaptation indices. Further, it showed high reliability, high predictive value in determining group membership, and a strong covariant relationship with a Social Activity Inventory, used as a validation measure.
Mis-usability: on the uses and misuses of usability testing

Usability has become so popular that its value is being threatened by misuse of the term and by misunderstandings about important distinctions between usability studies and empirical usability testing, between usability and verification tests, between ease of use and usefulness, and concerning how we interpret statistics. This paper examines these problems and encourages academicians and practitioners to work toward mitigating them.
Bernard J. Cigrand, DDS: Father of Flag Day and Renaissance Man

Dr. Bernard J. Cigrand is acknowledged as the “Father of Flag Day.” He relentlessly continued his activities for more than sixty years to have June 14 designated for the national observance of the birth of the American flag. That finally occurred in 1948, seventeen years after his death, when President Harry S. Truman signed a Congressional Act into law. However, the law designated a voluntary observance but did not create a legal national holiday. In addition to his fervent passion for Flag Day, Cigrand undertook a variety of other initiatives He was a practicing dentist, the dean of a dental school, an investigative journalist, an expert on heraldry and seals, a lecturer and an author of books. Despite all his achievements, Cigrand is more widely known in the European country from where his parents emigrated to the United States in 1852 - Luxembourg, than in the United States.
Violence in the prehospital setting.

As a community-based interface between the population and the healthcare system, emergency medical service (EMS) systems are at the forefront of the epidemic of interpersonal violence in the United States. Prehospital care providers are essentially the only medical personnel who are routinely on the streets and in the homes of victims of violence. As such, they are uniquely positioned to be useful in identifying, reporting, and preventing violence in all of its forms; however, this also puts them at particular risk for becoming victims themselves.
Cocaine-mediated alteration in tight junction protein expression and modulation of CCL2/CCR2 axis across the blood-brain barrier: implications for HIV-dementia.

One of the hallmark features underlying the pathogenesis of HIV encephalitis is the disruption of blood–brain barrier (BBB). Cocaine, often abused by HIV-infected patients, has been suggested to worsen the HIV-associated dementia (HAD) via unknown mechanisms. The objective of the present study was to explore the effects of cocaine on BBB permeability using human brain microvascular endothelial cells (HBMECs). Additionally, because the chemokine CCL2 and its receptor CCR2 play a crucial role in the recruitment of inflammatory cells into the central nervous system in HAD brains, we tested for the effect of cocaine in modulating the CCL2/CCR2 axis. Our findings suggest that exposure of HBMECs to cocaine correlated with the breakdown of ZO-1 tight junction protein and reorganization of the cytoskeleton resulting in stress fiber formation. Furthermore, cocaine also modulated upregulation of the CCL2/CCR2 axis in monocytes. These findings conform to the multifaceted effects of cocaine leading to accelerated progression of HIV-1 neuropathogenesis.
Zinc deficiency in rats decreases thrombin-stimulated platelet aggregation by lowering protein kinase C activity secondary to impaired calcium uptake

Aggregation of rat platelets, when stimulated by adenosine diphosphate (ADP) or fluoride, is impaired by zinc deficiency, and the defect is associated with a decreased uptake of external Ca2+. Zinc deficiency also impairs the aggregatory response of platelets to phorbol myristate acetate (PMA), an activator of protein kinase C, but low zinc status decreases the PMA response only when calcium is added to the external medium. The purpose of this study was to determine the role of protein kinase C in rat platelet function and its relationship to the zinc deficiency pathology observed in platelets stimulated by thrombin (THR). The percent of maximal aggregation and the concentration of cytosolic-free Ca2+ were measured in washed platelets stimulated by THR and PMA. For the protein kinase C experiments platelets were obtained from rats fed a grain-based diet, and for the thrombin experiments they were from rats fed purified diets. In the latter experiments, immature male rats were fed for 2 weeks a low zinc diet (<1 mg/kg) ad libitum or a zinc adequate (100 mg/kg) diet either ad libitum or pair-fed. Zinc deficiency impaired the aggregation of platelets stimulated by 0.045 U/mL of THR by approximately 40%, and the external calcium uptake (0.03 U/mL of THR) was decreased by approximately 30%. Staurosporine, a protein kinase C inhibitor, decreased thrombin-induced aggregation in a concentration-dependent manner, but it had no effect on the external calcium uptake. While PMA had a synergistic effect with thrombin in the stimulation of platelet aggregation, it actually decreased the cytosolic-free calcium response to thrombin. It is concluded that zinc deficiency impairs thrombin-stimulated platelet aggregation and calcium uptake and that protein kinase C activity is essential for rat platelet aggregation. Protein kinase C does not stimulate calcium uptake and must act downstream of the calcium uptake defect. A model of rat platelet activation is presented depicting impaired Ca2+ uptake as the primary defect in zinc deficiency.
Triangular Cellular Automata for Computing Two-Dimensional Elastodynamic Response on Arbitrary Domains

This study extends a recently developed cellular automata (CA) modeling approach (Leamy, 2008, "Application of Cellular Automata Modeling to Seismic Elastodynamics, " Int. J. Solids Struct., 45(17), pp. 4835―4849) to arbitrary two-dimensional geometries via the development of a rule set governing triangular automata (cells). As in the previous rectangular CA method, each cell represents a state machine, which updates in a stepped manner using a local "bottom-up" rule set and state input from neighboring cells. Notably, the approach avoids the need to develop and solve partial differential equations and the complexity therein. The elastodynamic responses of several general geometries and loading cases (interior, Neumann, and Dirichlet) are computed with the method and then compared with results generated using the earlier rectangular CA and finite element approaches. Favorable results are reported in all cases with numerical experiments indicating that the extended CA method avoids, importantly, spurious oscillations at the front of sharp wave fronts.
Effect of dietary clofibrate on epoxide hydrolase activity in tissues of mice.

Abstract The effects of dietary clofibrate on the epoxide-metabolizing enzymes of mouse liver, kidney, lung and testis were evaluated using trans -stilbene oxide as a selective substrate for the cytosolic epoxide hydrolase, cis -stilbene oxide and benzo[ a ]pyrene 4,5-oxide as substrates for the microsomal form, and cis -stilbene oxide as a substrate for glutathione S -transferase activity. The hydration of trans -stilbene oxide was greatest in liver followed by kidney > lung > testis. Its hydrolysis was increased significantly in the cytosolic fraction of liver and kidney of clofibrate-treated mice and in the microsomes from the liver. Isoelectric focusing indicates that the same enzyme is responsible for hydrolysis of trans -stilbene oxide in normal and induced liver and kidney. Clofibrate induced glutathione S -transferase activity on cis -stilbene oxide only in the liver. Hydrolysis of both cis -stilbene oxide and benzo[ a ]pyrene 4,5-oxide was highest in testis followed by liver>lung>kidney. Hydration of cis -stilbene oxide was induced significantly in both liver and kidney by clofibrate but that of benzo[ a ]pyrene 4,5-oxide was induced only in the liver. These and other data based on ratios of hydration of benzo[ a ]pyrene 4,5-oxide to cis -stilbene oxide in tissues of normal and induced animals indicate that there are one or more novel epoxide hydrolase activities which cannot be accounted for by either the classical cytosolic or mirosomal hydrolases. These effects are notable in the microsomes of kidney and especially in the cytosol of testis.
The Camera's Positioning: Brides, Grooms, and Their Photographers in Taipei's Bridal Industry

This article analyzes the intense orchestration of the bride's appearance—both her physical beauty and her ability to appear to captivate her groom—in Taiwanese bridal salons. Historical circumstance, competitive consumption, and family politics combine to render young women willing if not always eager subjects. Photographers, in turn, attempt to provoke specific subjective states in their clients so as to produce atractive, naturalistic poses and facial expressions. Through attention to positioning processes, the subtleties of the relationships among subjective experience, social performance, and cultural belief are examined.
The effect of sediment redox chemistry on solubility/chemically active forms of selected metals in bottom sediment receiving produced water discharge

The effect of sediment redox conditions on the solubility behavior of Fe, Pb, Ni, Ba, and Cu in bottom sediment collected from a produce water discharge site was investigated using kinetics and chemical fractionation procedures. Sediment collected was composited and subsamples incubated in laboratory microcosms under controlled Eh-pH conditions. Sediment was sequentially extracted for determining metals in five fractions (exchangeable, carbonate, bound to iron and manganese oxide, bound to organic matter and sulfide, mineral matrix or residue). Metal distribution in the fractions indicates that under oxidizing sediment conditions, the behavior of Fe, Pb and Ni were governed by Fe(III) and Mn(IV) oxides; Ba by insoluble complexation with humic compounds; and Cu by carbonates and humic complexation. Under reducing sediment condition, the behaviors of Fe and Cu were controlled by the formation of insoluble sulfides and humic complexes; the behaviors of Ni and Ba by carbonate and Pb behavior by sulfides, carbonates and humic complexes. With increases in sediment redox potential, the affinity between Fe(III), Mn(IV) oxides and Fe, Pb, Ni, Cu increased, the affinity between insoluble large molecular humic and Ba increased, and the affinity between carbonates and Cu increased. With decreasing sediment redox potential, the affinity between carbonates and Fe, Ni, Ba increased; the affinity between sulfides, humic substances and Fe, Pb, Ni, Cu also increased. Upon Fe(III) oxide reduction, it is estimated that 20% of total reducible Fe(III) oxides was reduced by direct bacterial reduction (K = −42.6 ppm/day), 80% of total reducible Fe(III) oxides was associated with chemical fractions attributed to sulfide oxidation (K = −171.5 ppm/day). The rate constants (ppm/day) for dissolved Ni (Eh <0 mV), Pb (Eh < −80 mV) and Cu (−80 mV < Eh <0 mV) are −1.6, −0.047 and −0.16, respectively. In our incubation period, the rate constants (ppm/day) for Ni bound to Fe(III) and Mn(IV) oxides, Ba bound to carbonates and Cu bound to insoluble large molecular humic are −3.2, 0.91 and 4.3, respectively.
The inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor (Itpr) gene family in Xenopus: identification of type 2 and type 3 inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor subtypes.

Studies in the Xenopus model system have provided considerable insight into the developmental role of intracellular Ca2+ signals produced by activation of IP3Rs (inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptors). However, unlike mammalian systems where three IP3R subtypes have been well characterized, our molecular understanding of the IP3Rs that underpin Ca2+ signalling during Xenopus embryogenesis relate solely to the original characterization of the ‘Xenopus IP3R’ cloned and purified from Xenopus laevis oocytes several years ago. In the present study, we have identified Xenopus type 2 and type 3 IP3Rs and report the full-length sequence, genomic architecture and developmental expression profile of these additional IP3R subtypes. In the light of the emerging genomic resources and opportunities for genetic manipulation in the diploid frog Xenopus tropicalis, these data will facilitate manipulations to resolve the contribution of IP3R diversity in Ca2+ signalling events observed during vertebrate development.
Nonparametric inference for extrinsic means on size-and-(reflection)-shape manifolds with applications in medical imaging

For all p>2,k>p, a size-and-reflection-shape space [email protected]"p","0^k of k-ads in general position in R^p, invariant under translation, rotation and reflection, is shown to be a smooth manifold and is equivariantly embedded in a space of symmetric matrices, allowing a nonparametric statistical analysis based on extrinsic means. Equivariant embeddings are also given for the reflection-shape-manifold [email protected]"p","0^k, a space of orbits of scaled k-ads in general position under the group of isometries of R^p, providing a methodology for statistical analysis of three-dimensional images and a resolution of the mathematical problems inherent in the use of the Kendall shape spaces in p-dimensions, p>2. The Veronese embedding of the planar Kendall shape manifold @S"2^k is extended to an equivariant embedding of the size-and-shape manifold [email protected]"2^k, which is useful in the analysis of size-and-shape. Four medical imaging applications are provided to illustrate the theory.
Constructing the Three-Dimensional World of Speech Events

This article describes the Digitized Tonga database project, the construction of a geographically and ethnographically very detailed three-dimensional representation of Tonga, Polynesia. This digital representation creates a rich landscape for extensive and in-depth analyses of linguistic and ethnographic data. The article provides a detailed description of the process by which the two-dimensional representation created by GIS (Geographic Information System) and the three-dimensional representation of the speech events under analysis obtained We also illustrate how digital video clips of interviews are simultaneously displayed on the computer screen with these two representations, thus helping the analysis of linguistic data.
Site of Conflict: Journalism and Literature at War in Arturo Pérez-Reverte’s Territorio Comanche

Ambivalence surrounds and permeates the text of Spanish author Arturo Perez-Reverte’s Territorio Comanche (1994), a novel about the experience of a television news reporter covering the war in the former Yugoslavia. The narrative description on Territorio’s book jacket explains that it is a ‘novela-reportaje’ (‘novel-journalistic reporting’). Perez-Reverte utilizes the generic hybridity (‘novel’ vs. ‘report’) of Territorio to interrogate the image-creating activity of the mass media. In addition to perhaps serving as an effective marketing strategy for the novel itself (that is, by appealing to readers’ desire for innovation in form), Perez-Reverte’s play with the concept of genre challenges the reader not just to acknowledge the seduction inherent in war reportage — the glamour and adventure of the reporter juxtaposed with the abject suffering of the war victims — but also to take responsibility, as a media consumer, for her role in the industry’s ratings- and sales-driven mechanisms of representation, w...
THE TEACHER, THE AUTHOR, AND THE TEXT: VARIATIONS IN FORM AND CONTENT OF WRITING CONFERENCES

This study investigated the changing practices of two teachers in conducting writing conferences with elementary students. Drawing from observational data of conferences and interview data with the teachers, the paper presents the cases of Erica, a fifth-grade teacher, and Emily, a first-grade teacher, as they incorporated the Teachers College Writing Project philosophy in their teaching. Erica's conferences at the beginning of the school year reflected her technical orientation toward writing as she focused on mechanics. At the end of the year, Erica's conferences with students focused much more on ideas, reflecting her changing orientation towards students taking more control of their writing. Like Erica's conferences, the content of Emily's conferences shifted from an emphasis upon logistics and mechanics to focusing on students' ideas. In contrast to Erica, however, Emily provided complete support to students initially and moved towards providing more intervention in the writing of students at the end of the year. The study provides contrasting examples of two teachers learning to alter classroom norms and responding to students in authentic ways. It also suggests the possibilities of teachers changing their roles within the writing conference. A central feature of contemporary views about writing is the teacher-student writing conference. The writing conference in which the teacher interacts with students for the purposes of clarification and revision is an example of a process in which there is opportunity for the teacher and the student to negotiate the meaning of a text through dialogue. Calkins (1986) described the main purpose of the writing conference as getting students to become critical readers of their own texts—to engage in dialogue with their own texts. The conferences are conceived of as conversations between the teacher and child that can include the topic of writing, the strategies the student uses, as well as the writer's goal and opinion of the work (Calkins & Harwayne, 1987).
Equation-free: The computer-aided analysis of complex multiscale systems

The best available descriptions of systems often come at a fine level (atomistic, stochastic, microscopic, agent based), whereas the questions asked and the tasks required by the modeler (prediction, parametric analysis, optimization, and control) are at a much coarser, macroscopic level. Traditional modeling approaches start by deriving macroscopic evolution equations from microscopic models, and then bringing an arsenal of computational tools to bear on these macroscopic descriptions. Over the last few years with several collaborators, we have developed and validated a mathematically inspired, computational enabling technology that allows the modeler to perform macroscopic tasks acting on the microscopic models directly. We call this the “equation-free” approach, since it circumvents the step of obtaining accurate macroscopic descriptions. The backbone of this approach is the design of computational “experiments”. In traditional numerical analysis, the main code “pings“ a subroutine containing the model, and uses the returned information (time derivatives, etc.) to perform computer-assisted analysis. In our approach the same main code “pings“ a subroutine that runs an ensemble of appropriately initialized computational experiments from which the same quantities are estimated. Traditional continuum numerical algorithms can, thus, be viewed as protocols for experimental design (where “experiment“ means a computational experiment set up, and performed with a model at a different level of description). Ultimately, what makes it all possible is the ability to initialize computational experiments at will. Short bursts of appropriately initialized computational experimentation -through matrix-free numerical analysis, and systems theory tools like estimationbridge microscopic simulation with macroscopic modeling. If enough control authority exists to initialize laboratory experiments “at will” this computational enabling technology can lead to experimental protocols for the equation-free exploration of complex system dynamics.
Vitreal insulin-like growth factor binding proteins (IGFBPs) are increased in human and animal diabetics

Although patients with diabetic retinopathy have been reported to have elevated vitreal IGF-I levels, it is not known whether diabetes also affects the levels of vitreal IGF binding proteins (IGFBPs) which control IGF's bioavailability. To address this issue, vitreal IGFBP levels were assayed in human diabetics, rats with streptozotocin-induced diabetes and galactose-fed dogs with diabetic-like retinopathy. Using 125I-IGF-II ligand blots, it was found that human diabetics have a 4-fold increase in vitreal IGFBP levels. Also, western blots on human diabetic vitreous reveal increased levels of IGFBP-2 and proteolytic fragments of IGFBP-3. IGF binding assays on vitreous from streptozotocin-treated rats (three months in duration) also indicate a 5-fold increase in IGF binding activity. IGF ligand blots using vitreous from rats with a shorter duration of diabetes (one month) show a 63% increase in IGFBP binding and a marked decrease in serum IGFBP binding. IGF ligand blots and IGFBP-2 and -4 western blots using vitreous from galactose-fed dogs with diabetic-like retinopathy exhibit a 6-fold increase in vitreal IGFBPs. The observation that vitreal IGFBPs are elevated in diabetic humans and rats without overt retinopathy suggests that these increases are not the result of a preexisting end-stage retinopathy but rather are an early ocular event in the diabetic process. Increases in vitreal IGFBPs thus could participate in the proliferative aspects of diabetic retinopathy by virtue of their putative intrinsic bioactivity or their capacity to alter IGF bioavailability.
The effects of channel errors on coordinated and non-coordinated medium access control protocols

In this paper, we investigate the effects of channel noise on the performance of coordinated and non-coordinated MAC protocols. Comparative evaluations of these protocols under a perfect channel assumption have shown that coordinated MAC protocols, which regulate channel access locally, outperform non-coordinated channel access schemes in terms of energy efficiency and throughput. However, coordinated MAC protocols are more vulnerable than non-coordinated MAC protocols to channel noise due to their dependence on the robustness of the control traffic. In order to observe the degradation in performance of a coordinated MAC protocol (MH-TRACE), we investigate the impact of losing control packets. Furthermore, the performance in terms of throughput, delay, and energy efficiency of both coordinated (MH-TRACE) and non-coordinated (IEEE 802.11) MAC protocols is explored using a general error model that takes into account the length of the packets. Our results show that despite its higher level of vulnerability, the coordinated MAC protocol's performance is superior to the performance of the non-coordinated MAC protocol even when error rates are high.
RSSI-based physical layout classification and target tethering in mobile ad-hoc networks

We investigate mobile ad-hoc indoor networks consisting of simple inexpensive robots, LANdroids, with limited wireless communication range and without any range or location sensors. We focus on the problem of using the mobile LANdroids to take responsibility for maintaining connectivity between a static Gateway and mobile Targets that move beyond the communication range of an established network. We refer to such a tracking task as Target Tethering. This type of network commonly uses IEEE 802.11 wireless protocols for communication, with Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) as a measure of radio signal strength. RSSI data is noisy and poorly relates to distance in indoor environments, leading to a challenging Target Tethering task. Some algorithms use the trace of single-source RSSI data to infer distance between two nodes and use it to compute a Target Tethering policy. However, such distance estimates are poor. We instead aim at inferring physical network layout from RSSI data among multiple nodes. We introduce a novel approach based on Cluster Geometries, classes of network nodes corresponding to rotation-invariant physical layouts of LANdroids and a mobile Target, with the conjecture that multi-robot RSSI data can distinguish the Cluster Geometries and therefore the physical layouts. We proceed with extensive experiments and support our conjecture by showing successful classification of the designed Cluster Geometries given the multi-robot RSSI-based data. We then combine the estimated Geometries with motion patterns of the moving Targets to show that suitable multi-robot Target Tethering policies for unknown indoor environments can be learned using multi-agent reinforcement-learning. Specifically, we use an interesting variation of Q-learning where we first learn offline base policies in general open environments and later specialize the policies seamlessly during online execution to account for obstacles in the indoor environment.
Viruses as Self-Assembled Templates

Research endeavors in employing viruses and virus-like protein assemblies as biologically derived nanotemplates for nanomaterials synthesis and device fabrication have recently experienced significant growth. Materials and applications arising from this novel bottom-up assembly approach vary widely from metal and metal oxide nanoparticles and nanowires for catalysis and nanoelectronics, high surface area electrodes for energy applications, to sensing or tissue engineering scaffolds for biomedical applications. By harnessing and manipulating the exquisite control that Nature has provided, the overarching goal for this emerging field of nanobiotechnology has been to achieve features and performances that transcend what is possible from inorganic, man-made methods. In this review, we describe the chemical aspects from a selected number of exciting studies based on three viral shape categories: rod, icosahedral, and filamentous. Increasing the understanding and better manipulation of the unique advantages that each category of viruses offers has led to distinct nanomaterials and applications; polymeric conducting nanofibers from rod-shaped tobacco mosaic virus (TMV), catalytically active nanoparticles with highly controlled sizes from cowpea chlorotic mosaic virus (CCMV), and biopanning-based affinity selection from M13 bacteriophage libraries, to name a few. Such novel materials from these bottom-up assembly approaches are starting to show performances and capabilities beyond or impossible to be achieved via traditional materials, top-down approaches, and inorganic devices. Keywords: virus; self-assembly; tobacco mosaic virus; cowpea mosaic virus; cowpea chlorotic mosaic virus; bacteriophage; phage display; nanobiotechnology
Work in Progress: A Comprehensive Design Experience Based On Product Development Across Multiple Courses

The design of sophisticated electronic products in an academic setting is becoming more difficult due to the complexity inherent in modern systems. In this project, we are investigating methods to address this complexity and thereby give students a systems perspective and better preparation for the modern workforce. The methods involve developing/distributing pieces of a large design across multiple courses and using them in subsequent courses to build up to the final product. An example system consisting of a weather-satellite receiver is described as the first product development cycle.
Synergistic interactions between XPC and p53 mutations in double-mutant mice: neural tube abnormalities and accelerated UV radiation-induced skin cancer

The significance of DNA repair to human health has been well documented by studies on xeroderma pigmentosum (XP) patients, who suffer a dramatically increased risk of cancer in sun-exposed areas of their skin [1,2]. This autosomal recessive disorder has been directly associated with a defect in nucleotide excision-repair (NER) [1,2]. Like human XP individuals, mice carrying homozygous mutations in XP genes manifest a predisposition to skin carcinogenesis following exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation [3-5]. Recent studies have suggested that, in addition to roles in apoptosis [6] and cell-cycle checkpoint control [7] in response to DNA damage, p53 protein may modulate NER [8]. Mutations in the p53 gene have been observed in 50% of all human tumors [9] and have been implicated in both the early [10] and late [11] stages of skin cancer. To examine the consequences of a combined deficiency of the XPC and the p53 proteins in mice, we generated double-mutant animals. We document a spectrum of neural tube defects in XPC p53 mutant embryos. Additionally, we show that, following exposure to UV-B radiation, XPC p53 mutant mice have more severe solar keratosis and suffer accelerated skin cancer compared with XPC mutant mice that are wild-type with respect to p53.
Dolutegravir: A New Integrase Strand Transfer Inhibitor for the Treatment of HIV

The first two integrase strand transfer inhibitors (INSTIs) approved for treatment of patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) were raltegravir and elvitegravir. Both raltegravir and elvitegravir are now guideline-preferred agents as part of an antiretroviral regimen for treatment-naive patients. However, raltegravir is dosed twice/day. Elvitegravir is available in a single-tablet regimen and dosed once/day because it is administered with the pharmacokinetic booster cobicistat, a potent CYP3A4 inhibitor that can lead to clinically significant drug-drug interactions. In addition, raltegravir and elvitegravir have a low genetic barrier to resistance and are associated with cross-resistance. Dolutegravir is a new-generation INSTI administered once/day without a pharmacokinetic booster and can be coformulated in a single-tablet regimen. Phase III studies have demonstrated the efficacy and safety of dolutegravir for treatment-naive and treatment-experienced patients. Compared with other INSTIs, dolutegravir has a higher genetic barrier to resistance. Dolutegravir was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in August 2013 and joins raltegravir and elvitegravir as guideline-preferred agents for the management for HIV-infected treatment-naive patients.
Dietary Intake of Advanced Glycation End Products Did Not Affect Endothelial Function and Inflammation in Healthy Adults in a Randomized Controlled Trial

When food is heated to high temperatures, the characteristic “browning” generates advanced glycation end products (AGEs). AGEs are associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and other adverse outcomes. Whether dietary AGEs are absorbed and are harmful to human health remains highly controversial. The objective of this study was to compare the effects of a diet high or low in AGEs on endothelial function, circulating AGEs, inflammatory mediators, and circulating receptors for AGEs in healthy adults. A randomized, parallel-arm, controlled dietary intervention was conducted for 6 wk with 24 healthy adults, aged 50–69 y, that compared isocaloric, food-equivalent diets that were prepared at either high or mild temperatures. Peripheral arterial tonometry, serum and urine carboxymethyl-lysine (CML), inflammatory mediators (interleukin-6, C-reactive protein, vascular adhesion molecule-1, and tumor necrosis factor-α receptors I and II), soluble receptor for AGEs, and endogenous secretory receptor for AGEs were measured at baseline and after 6 wk of dietary intervention. In the low-AGE diet group, the following changed from baseline to 6 wk (mean ± SE): serum CML from 763 ± 24 to 679 ± 29 ng/mL (P = 0.03) and urine CML from 1.37 ± 1.47 to 0.77 ± 2.01 μg/mL creatinine (P = 0.02). There were no significant changes in serum and urinary CML concentrations from baseline to follow-up in the high-AGE diet group. A high- or low-AGE diet had no significant impact on peripheral arterial tonometry or any inflammatory mediators after 6 wk of dietary intervention. In healthy middle-aged to older adults, consumption of a diet high or low in AGEs for 6 wk had no impact on endothelial function and inflammatory mediators, 2 precursors of cardiovascular disease. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as {"type":"clinical-trial","attrs":{"text":"NCT01402973","term_id":"NCT01402973"}}NCT01402973.
Effective Porosity for Gassmann Fluid Substitution

Summary In this study, we have analyzed the complexity of pore structure and its interaction with pore fluid. The specific surface area is an important parameter related to water retention in reservoir rocks. The surface tension between mineral surface and pore fluids might be so strong that some portion of pore fluids does not respond as fluid under small pressure disturbance. Integrated study of ultrasonic lab measurement data, petrographic data, mercury injection capillary pressure (MICP) data and NMR T2 data shows the rationality of using an effective porosity as input for Gassmann equation. The effective porosity for Gassmann equation should be frequency-dependent. Knowing the pore geometry, if an empirical correlation between frequency and threshold pore throat size or NMR T2 is set up, Gassmann equation can be applicable to data of any frequency measurement. Without information of pore geometry, the irreducible water saturation can be used to estimate effective porosity; the “modified” Gassmann equation should give more reliable prediction of saturation effect.
The Poultry Parasite and Disease Problems of Egypt

(1959). The Poultry Parasite and Disease Problems of Egypt. World's Poultry Science Journal: Vol. 15, No. 3, pp. 228-230.
The importomer--a peroxisomal membrane complex involved in protein translocation into the peroxisome matrix.

Abstract The import of proteins into the peroxisome matrix is an essential step in peroxisome biogenesis, which is critical for normal functioning of most eukaryotic cells. The translocation of proteins across the peroxisome membrane and the dynamic behavior of the import receptors during the import cycle is facilitated by several peroxisome–membrane-associated protein complexes, one of which is called the importomer complex [B. Agne, N.M. Meindl, K. Niederhoff, H. Einwachter, P. Rehling, A. Sickmann, H.E. Meyer, W. Girzalsky, W.H. Kunau, Pex8p: an intraperoxisomal organizer of the peroxisomal import machinery, Mol. Cell 11 (2003) 635–646; P.P. Hazra, I. Suriapranata, W.B. Snyder, S. Subramani, Peroxisome remnants in pex3Δ cells and the requirement of Pex3p for interactions between the peroxisomal docking and translocation subcomplexes, Traffic 3 (2002) 560–574. [1] , [2] ]. We provide below a brief historical perspective regarding the importomer and its role in peroxisome biogenesis. We also identify areas in which further work is needed to uncover the physiological role of the importomer.
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon exposure in Steller's eiders (Polysticta stelleri) and Harlequin ducks (Histronicus histronicus) in the eastern Aleutian Islands, Alaska, USA

Seaducks may be affected by harmful levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) at seaports near the Arctic. As an indicator of exposure to PAHs, we measured hepatic enzyme 7-ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase activity (EROD) to determine cytochrome P4501A induction in Steller's eiders (Polysticta stelleri) and Harlequin ducks (Histronicus histronicus) from Unalaska, Popof, and Unga Islands (AK, USA) in 2002 and 2003. We measured PAHs and organic contaminants in seaduck prey samples and polychlorinated biphenyl congeners in seaduck blood plasma to determine any relationship to EROD. Using Akaike's information criterion, species and site differences best explained EROD patterns: Activity was higher in Harlequin ducks than in Steller's eiders and higher at industrial than at nonindustrial sites. Site-specific concentrations of PAHs in blue mussels ([Mytilus trossilus] seaduck prey; PAH concentrations higher at Dutch Harbor, Unalaska, than at other sites) also was important in defining EROD patterns. Organochlorine compounds rarely were detected in prey samples. No relationship was found between polychlorinated biphenyl congeners in avian blood and EROD, which further supported inferences derived from Akaike's information criterion. Congeners were highest in seaducks from a nonindustrial or reference site, contrary to PAH patterns. To assist in interpreting the field study, 15 captive Steller's eiders were dosed with a PAH known to induce cytochrome P4501A. Dosed, captive Steller's eiders had definitive induction, but results indicated that wild Steller's eiders were exposed to PAHs or other inducing compounds at levels greater than those used in laboratory studies. Concentrations of PAHs in blue mussels at or near Dutch Harbor (∼1,180–5,980 ng/g) approached those found at highly contaminated sites (∼4,100–7,500 ng/g).
Dependency Parsing with Reference to Slovene, Spanish and Swedish

We describe a parser used in the CoNLL 2006 Shared Task, "Multingual Dependency Parsing." The parser first identifies syntactic dependencies and then labels those dependencies using a maximum entropy classifier. We consider the impact of feature engineering and the choice of machine learning algorithm, with particular focus on Slovene, Spanish and Swedish.
Structural control with dissipative damping devices

Structural vibration mitigation using semiactive control strategies has received special attention recently due to the attractive properties of semiactive devices. The main restriction of a semiactive device is that it can only produce dissipative forces, which may be expressed in mathematical terms as a nonlinear inequality constraint. Standard active control algorithms do not generally account for this kind of constraint. In this paper, the nonlinear dissipativity constraint is integrated into the well-known linear quadratic regulator (LQR) algorithm using linear matrix inequality (LMI) techniques to be utilized in the semiactive control of the structures. First, the linear quadratic regulator problem is recast as an eigenvalue problem (EVP) in terms of LMIs. Then, the dissipativity constraint is appended in weak expected value form to the other constraints in the EVP. The proposed method is demonstrated in semiactive control of a 2-DOF structural system. It is found that although the dissipativity constraint is represented in its weak form, the proposed method yielded control forces more dissipative than standard H/sub 2//LQR methodologies.
Is there an epidemic of child or adolescent depression

BACKGROUND: Both the professional and the general media have recently published concerns about an 'epidemic' of child and adolescent depression. Reasons for this concern include (1) increases in antidepressant prescriptions, (2) retrospective recall by successive birth cohorts of adults, (3) rising adolescent suicide rates until 1990, and (4) evidence of an increase in emotional problems across three cohorts of British adolescents. METHODS: Epidemiologic studies of children born between 1965 and 1996 were reviewed and a meta-analysis conducted of all studies that used structured diagnostic interviews to make formal diagnoses of depression on representative population samples of participants up to age 18. The effect of year of birth on prevalence was estimated, controlling for age, sex, sample size, taxonomy (e.g., DSM vs. ICD), measurement instrument, and time-frame of the interview (current, 3 months, 6 months, 12 months). RESULTS: Twenty-six studies were identified, generating close to 60,000 observations on children born between 1965 and 1996 who had received at least one structured psychiatric interview capable of making a formal diagnosis of depression. Rates of depression showed no effect of year of birth. There was little effect of taxonomy, measurement instrument, or time-frame of interview. The overall prevalence estimates were: under 13, 2.8% (standard error (SE) .5%); 13-18 5.6% (SE .3%); 13-18 girls: 5.9% (SE .3%); 13-18 boys: 4.6% (SE .3%). CONCLUSIONS: When concurrent assessment rather than retrospective recall is used, there is no evidence for an increased prevalence of child or adolescent depression over the past 30 years. Public perception of an 'epidemic' may arise from heightened awareness of a disorder that was long under-diagnosed by clinicians. Language: en