cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Electrophysiology of the suprachiasmatic nucleus: synaptic transmission, membrane properties, and neuronal synchronization.

Knowledge of the neuronal membrane properties and synaptic physiology of the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) is critical for an understanding of the cellular basis of circadian rhythms in mammals. The hypothalamic slice preparations from rodents and a combination of electrophysiological techniques (i.e., extracellular single- and multiple-unit recording, intracellular recording, and whole-cell patch clamp) were used to study (1) the role of excitatory and inhibitory amino acids (i.e., glutamate and gamma-aminobutyric acid [GABA] in synaptic transmission, (2) the membrane properties of SCN neurons, and (3) the mechanisms of neuronal synchronization. Antagonists for N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors and non-NMDA receptors blocked excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSPs) evoked by stimulation of the optic nerve or other sites when SCN cells were depolarized or at rest, respectively. Bicuculline blocked inhibitory postsynaptic potentials (IPSPs) that were evoked by local stimulation or that occurred spontaneously. The IPSP reversal potential was near the Cl- equilibrium potential, and was shifted to depolarized levels by raising intracellular [Cl-]. Thus, glutamate and GABA appear to mediate fast excitatory and inhibitory synaptic transmission in the SCN. Some SCN neurons, but not all of them, had low-threshold Ca2+ spikes and time-dependent inward rectification, thus indicating that the electrical properties of SCN neurons are not homogenous. Neurons with a firing rate of > 6 Hz had a regular pattern, and neurons with a rate of < 4 Hz had an irregular pattern; since both the firing rate and pattern could be modified with injected currents, SCN neurons with different firing patterns are unlikely to represent distinct classes of cells.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Effect of short- and long-term dexamethasone on 3α-androstanediol glucuronide in hirsute women

The role of glucocorticoid therapy in regulating plasma 3α-androstanediol glucuronide (3α-diol G) content, a marker of androgen action, in hirsute women was unclear. A pulse injection of adrenocorticotropic hormone (0.5 U) following 1mg of dexamethasone (DEX) at midnight significantly increased the plasma level of cortisol CP P 4 -androstenedione (Δ 4 A), testosterone, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEA-S), and 3α-diol G. Human chorionic gonadotropin administered for 3 days produced a significant ( P 4 A, DHEA-S, and 3α-diol G were suppressed ( P
Towards a Theory of Displacement Atrocities: The Cherokee Trail of Tears, The Herero Genocide, and The Pontic Greek Genocide

This article examines how displacement is used as a tool of atrocity perpetration and offers initial observations that will be used to create a future typology of Displacement Atrocities. Perpetrators' uses of forced population displacement coupled with systematic deprivations of vital daily needs (i.e., food, water, clothing, shelter, and medical care) combine to kill targeted victims through primarily indirect methods. A preliminary theoretical framework of Displacement Atrocities is offered and the critical elements that comprise this crime are explored. I argue that the Displacement Atrocity crime is a new way of understanding lethal forced population displacement. This theoretical framework is used to examine three typically understudied atrocities: the Cherokee Trail of Tears, the Herero Genocide, and the Pontic Greek Genocide. These processes of destruction are all classified as examples of Displacement Atrocities. This article is part of a larger research project on Displacement Atrocities to be completed in the coming years.
Analysis of 47Ca Kinetics in Normal Subjects by Means of a Compartmental Model with a Non-Exchangeable Plasma Calcium Fraction

1. 47 Ca kinetic studies were performed in eight normal young adult males. Plasma, urinary and faecal stable and radioactive calcium and whole-body radioactivity were measured for up to 40 days after intravenous administration of the tracer. 2. The plasma radioactivity data could be fitted to the sum of four exponentials corresponding to a four-compartment model, but this model did not account for the consistently greater 47 Ca specific radioactivities in plasma relative to those in urine at the same time in five of the subjects. 3. A non-exchangeable fraction of plasma calcium estimated as 5% of the mass in the plasma compartment was postulated to account for this finding. 4. An estimate of the insensible losses of calcium was obtained from the whole-body radioactivity counting data.
Dissipative and exact inner functions

We discuss exactness and dissipative behavior of inner functions with ∞ as the Denjoy–Wolff point. We give an example of an inner function g which preserves Lebesgue measure on with and g(x) being (totally) dissipative on J(g). E-mail: pgora@vax2.concordia.ca
About Race and Aggravators in East Baton Rouge Parish Murder Cases

Are Black-on-White (BkW) death-eligible murder cases more aggravated than the other racial categories? To investigate this question, we look at the 316 death-eligible and completed murder cases with black and/or white principals gathered for the study "Death Sentencing in East Baton Rouge Parish (1990-2008)" by Glenn L. Pierce and Michael L. Radelet, and for the study "East Baton Rouge (LA) Parish Study on Race, Homicides, and Prosecutions (1990-2008)" by Tim Lyman. We find that these murders are less aggravated than it first appears.
The IBM Monopole Experiments

Conventional superconducting magnetometers used for monopole detection must be operated in an extremely stable, low field environment. This places a severe restriction on the cross sectional area of such detectors. In addition, the geometry of these detectors does not easily permit coincidence operation with other particle detectors. Gradiometer monopole detectors developed at IBM permit a significant relaxation of the constraint on the stability of the magnetic field, and on the geometry of the detector. A prototype detector consisting of two 100 cm2 loops operated in coincidence has been constructed and operated sucessfully in a milligauss environment. No events consistent with a monopole have been observed in 95 days of operation. A larger detector is now being fabricated.
Evolving Requirements-to-Code Trace Links across Versions of a Software System

Trace links provide critical support for numeroussoftware engineering activities including safety analysis, compliance verification, test-case selection, and impact prediction. However, as the system evolves over time, there is a tendency forthe quality of trace links to degrade into a tangle of inaccurateand untrusted links. This is especially true with the links between source-code and upstream artifacts such as requirements–because developers frequently refactor and change code withoutupdating the links. We present TLE (Trace Link Evolver), asolution for automating the evolution of trace links as changesare introduced to source code. We use a set of heuristics, open source tools, and information retrieval methods to detectcommon change scenarios across different versions of software. Each change scenario is then associated with a set of linkevolution heuristics which are used to evolve trace links. Weevaluate our approach through a controlled experiment and alsothrough applying it across 27 releases of the Cassandra DatabaseSystem. Results show that the trace links evolved using ourapproach are significantly more accurate than those generatedusing information retrieval alone.
Formal Characteristics of Narratives as Predictors of Maladaptive Parenting

We examined the relationship between several characteristics of parents' narrative productions and two measures of maladaptive parenting. The two maladaptive parenting variables, indiscriminate responding to children's behavior and parent compliance with child disobedience, were derived from in-home observation of parent-child interactions. These were investigated in relationship to several structural aspects of mother Thematic Apperception Test narratives. Results showed that expressions of personal inadequacy and difficulty remaining task-focused during storytelling were related to mothers' failure to remain firm in the face of child disobedience.
Pulsed valve matrix-assisted ionization

We have developed a new ionization approach for matrix-assisted ionization with high temporal resolution using an electrically actuated pulsed valve. Matrix and analyte samples are deposited on a thin metal foil and placed at the inlet of an ambient ionization mass spectrometer. When the pulsed valve is actuated, a short puff of high pressure gas impinges on the foil and ejects particulate from the sample on the opposite side. Highly charged ions are formed from the particles at the mass spectrometer inlet. Using this source, multiply charged protein ions are produced within a selectable 4 second time window.
K+-Nucleus Inelastic and Charge Exchange Reactions

The novel features of kaons, combined with state-of-the-art advances in experimental capabilities, has stimulated growing interest and research activity (1–9) in kaon-nucleus phenomena. Although “kaon factories” have not yet emerged, “kaon shops”, such as the Brookhaven AGS accelerator, are producing data (9) and several new kaon facilities have been proposed. Measurements (9) have been recently performed of both elastic and inelastic (low-lying final states have been resolved) K±-nucleus cross sections from 12C and future experiments are planned.
Case 92: A Straightforward Case, or Is It?

Today you are to anesthetize a 4-year-old child for an elective orchidopexy. You meet the mother and the child in the preoperative area. The mother tells you that he is on a waiting list for an adenotonsillectomy (T/A).
Heterochromatin-Encoded Satellite RNAs Induce Breast Cancer

Heterochromatic repetitive satellite RNAs are extensively transcribed in a variety of human cancers, including BRCA1 mutant breast cancer. Aberrant expression of satellite RNAs in cultured cells induces the DNA damage response, activates cell cycle checkpoints, and causes defects in chromosome segregation. However, the mechanism by which satellite RNA expression leads to genomic instability is not well understood. Here we provide evidence that increased levels of satellite RNAs in mammary glands induce tumor formation in mice. Using mass spectrometry, we further show that genomic instability induced by satellite RNAs occurs through interactions with BRCA1-associated protein networks required for the stabilization of DNA replication forks. Additionally, de-stabilized replication forks likely promote the formation of RNA-DNA hybrids in cells expressing satellite RNAs. These studies lay the foundation for developing novel therapeutic strategies that block the effects of non-coding satellite RNAs in cancer cells.
Identification of high risk groups for measles immunization

Global immunization programmes can take justifiable pride in the dramatic increase in the fraction of infants under one year who have received measles vaccine which has been linked to a corresponding drop in measles-related mortality. These successes have dramatized condi tions and situations associated with continued circulation of wild measles virus. Enhanced immunization efforts should be focused on these high risk groups at the same time that measles surveillance systems are improved.
Students with Mental Retardation

Over the years, we have learned a tremendous amount about mental retardation. The history of mental retardation is, in fact, quite long, and as a result there are many concepts and concerns that should be discussed. It is indeed fortunate that this area has received so much attention; however, it is probably due to this attention that new questions have arisen that remain to be answered.
Disorders of Potassium: Physiology

Potassium (K+) is the predominant intracellular cation in the body. The intracellular [K+] is 140–150 mEq/L; in blood it is 3.5–5 mEq/L. Serum contains a slightly higher concentration of K+ than plasma because K+ is released from red blood cells during clot formation. Maintenance of a high cellular concentration of K+ is necessary for several cellular functions, including growth, nucleic acid and protein synthesis, and regulation of cell volume, as well as pH and enzyme activation. In addition, a high intracellular concentration of K+ is essential to the maintenance of the resting membrane potential for cellular excitability and contraction. The high intracellular K+ concentration is maintained by the Na/K-ATPase located in the cell membranes of all animal cells. The activity of this enzyme is influenced by a variety of hormones. The kidney is the primary route for K+ excretion. In general, K+ excretion in the urine, called kaliuresis, parallels dietary intake. The other route for K+ excretion is the colon. Under conditions of decreased renal function, K+ excretion by the colon is enhanced.
Primary Malignant Melanoma of the Uvea: Radioactive Plaque Therapy and Other Treatment Modalities

Primary tumors of the eye are rare but important malignant lesions. In the United States, they represent less than 0.2% of all cancers (American Cancer Society 1990). Primary malignant melanoma of the uvea (MMU) is the most common primary tumor of the eye in adults. It constitutes 80% of primary eye tumors and about 6% of cutaneous melanomas (American Cancer Society 1990; Chalkely 1980). This tumor is seen in older patients, with nearly equal frequency in males and females. MMU has been reported to be from 8 to 20 times more common among American whites than among blacks (Callender et al. 1942; Campbell Wilder and Paul 1951; Chalkely 1980).
On stochastic modeling of heavy particle dispersion in large-eddy simulation of two-phase turbulent flow

The effect of subgrid scales on the dispersion of heavy particles could be significant especially when the subgrid energy content is not negligible and/or the particle time constant is small. In this work, a modified Langevin type equation is used to reconstruct the instantaneous velocity of the seen fluid particle which is needed in the particle momentum equation. To assess the model, a decaying isotropic turbulence is studied via a priori test. A good agreement between the model and DNS results is observed.
Expression and release of tumor necrosis factor-alpha by explants of mouse cornea.

Purpose To elucidate a possible target of immunosuppressive agents widely used in the treatment of corneal disorders, the authors determined whether corneal cells are capable of expressing and releasing tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF alpha) on lipopolysaccharide (LPS) stimulation, and they investigated whether TNF alpha production can be modulated by pharmacologic agents. Methods Trephined central corneas from C57BL/6 mice were kept in culture for 3 days. Release of TNF alpha after a 24-hour stimulation with LPS (1 microgram/ml) into the culture medium was determined both by bioassay and by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Expression of TNF alpha mRNA after 6-hour stimulation was examined by polymerase chain reaction. Immunofluorescent staining on cryostat sections of cultured corneas was performed to localize TNF alpha in the tissue. Corneal explants were pretreated with immunosuppressive agents (prednisolone, budesonide, cyclosporin A) for 48 hours, followed by 6-or 24-hour stimulation with LPS in the continuous presence of the agents. Results Lipopolysaccharide stimulated TNF alpha release into the culture medium. The addition of budesonide (10(-7) M) or prednisolone (10(-6) M) significantly inhibited LPS-induced TNF alpha release, whereas cyclosporin A (10(-7) - 10(-5) M) had no marked effect. Levels of TNF alpha mRNA in corneal explants increased fivefold after stimulation with LPS. Immunohistochemical staining revealed that TNF alpha was expressed in the epithelial cells. Budesonide markedly decreased mRNA expression and abolished immunostaining of TNF alpha stimulated by LPS. Conclusions TNF alpha is produced and released by the epithelial cells of mouse central cornea in response to LPS. Contrary to cyclosporin A, corticosteroids such as prednisolone and budesonide potently inhibit TNF alpha production.
Using R in Introductory Statistics Courses with the pmg Graphical User Interface.

The pmg add-on package for the open source statistics software R is described. This package provides a simple to use graphical user interface (GUI) that allows introductory statistics students, wit...
Transport Characteristics of Peptidomimetics. Effect of the Pyrrolinone Bioisostere on Transport Across Caco-2 Cell Monolayers

Purpose. To compare the permeation characteristics of amide bond-containing HIV-1 protease inhibitors and their pyrrolinone-containing counterparts across Caco-2 cell monolayers, a model of the intestinal mucosa.
CEBDA 2018 Keynote

Extreme-scale scientific simulations are already generating more data that can be communicated stored and analyzed. The data flood will get even worse with future exascale systems. This is true for output data and also for checkpoint/restart data. Scientific data reduction is a necessity to drastically accelerate I/O, reduce data footprint on storage and also to speed-up significantly computation, as demonstrated by the 2017 Gordon Bell award winner. But reduction should be performed wisely, for execution correctness (checkpoint/restart) and to keep the information that matters for the scientists. We can try to develop application-specific lossy data reduction techniques or to compress the dataset with advanced generic lossless compression algorithms. Unfortunately, these two approaches are either unpractical for most applications or do not provide enough data reduction for scientific datasets. Other domains already familiar with Big Data massively employ lossy compression to reduce the data size. However, lossy compression has very rarely been applied to scientific simulation data and as a result it is not well understood. In this talk, we will present challenges and opportunities in terms of compression algorithms and application of lossy compression to scientific data. We will detail not only the best-in-class compression algorithms but also the tools to assess comprehensively the error introduced by lossy compression. We will give examples of lossy compression of scientific datasets with application to visualization and checkpoint/restart. Lossy compression of scientific data reveal itself as a fascinating young research domain with many opportunities to explore and discover new techniques.
Comorbid conditions in patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) receiving abiraterone.

e16578Background: Abirateroneimproves survival in metastatic CRPC, but it can result in the development and/or worsening of hypertension, diabetes, cardiac disease, and obesity. We sought to assess...
Radiation Recall Dermatitis After the Use of Pralatrexate for Peripheral T-cell Lymphoma.

Abstract Radiation recall dermatitis (RRD) is a well-known but poorly understood phenomenon. RRD is an inflammatory reaction of the skin that occurs in a previously irradiated area shortly after the administration of a systemic agent. Although many chemotherapeutic drugs, including anti-folates, have been associated with RRD, there has been no published report of such interaction between radiation (RT) and pralatrexate. We report a case of palliative radiotherapy delivered in between cycles of pralatrexate thearpy for peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL) resulting in cutaneous ulceration (grade 3 skin toxicity) of previously irradiated lateral left hip and anterior left thigh regions. This case represents the first reported case of pralatrexate associated RRD. Clinicians across disciplines should be aware of the possibility of RRD when pralatrexate is administered after radiotherapy.
Purification and characterization of the thermostable protease produced by Serratia grimesii isolated from channel catfish.

Microbial spoilage of fishery products accounts for significant financial losses, yearly on a global scale. Psychrotrophic spoilage bacteria often secrete extracellular enzymes to break down surrounding fish tissue, rendering the product unsuitable for human consumption. For a better understanding of bacterial spoilage due to enzymatic digestion of fish products, proteases in Serratia grimesii isolated from North American catfish fillets (Ictalurus punctatus) were investigated. RESULTS Mass spectrometric evidence demonstrated that S. grimesii secretes two distinct extracellular proteases and one lipase. Protease secretion displayed broad thermostability in the 30?90 °C range. The major protease-secretion (O-1) was most active under alkaline conditions and utilized manganese as a co-factor. Organic solvents significantly disrupted the efficacy of S. grimesii extracellular enzymes and, in a series of bactericidal detergents, protease activity was highest when treated with Triton X-100. Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) and phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride (PMSF) significantly inhibited the enzyme activity, while protease was moderately stable under freeze?thaw and refrigerated storage. CONCLUSION The influence of fish spoilage-related enzymes, depending on various factors, is discussed in this paper. This study will provide new insight into enzymatic spoilage and its control, which can be exploited to enhance food safety and the shelf-life of fishery products worldwide. ? 2018 Society of Chemical Industry
Abstract B197: Translational control in macrophages during inflammatory response

Translational control has been increasingly appreciated as a critical gene-regulatory mechanism during immune responses. Previous studies suggested that translation of select cytokines could be regulated by mRNA poly(A)-tail lengths in memory T-cells and macrophages. We carried out transcriptome-wide analysis with mRNA sequencing, ribosome-footprinting profiling as well as poly(A)-tail length profiling in both RAW264.7 cells and mouse thioglycollate-elicited peritoneal macrophages. No coupling between poly(A)-tail length and translational efficiency (TE) was observed in either cell type, arguing against a global translational-regulatory regime mediated by poly(A)-tail lengths. Immune activation with the treatment of lipopolysaccharides (LPS) to these cells did not change the uncoupled regime. Moreover, gene expression landscape in LPS-treated macrophages was dominated by mRNA level changes, with little contribution from TE changes. The up- or down-regulation of TE was not accompanied by concerted lengthening or shortening of poly(A) tails, implying existence of yet unclear translational control mechanisms in these immune cells. Finally, our studies in other biologic systems, including HeLa cells, Xenopus oocytes and yeast suggest that saturating levels of poly(A)-binding proteins might suppress poly(A) tail length-mediated translational control in various uncoupled systems, including immune cells. Citation Format: Kehui Xiang, David P. Bartel. Translational control in macrophages during inflammatory response [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Fourth CRI-CIMT-EATI-AACR International Cancer Immunotherapy Conference: Translating Science into Survival; Sept 30-Oct 3, 2018; New York, NY. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Immunol Res 2019;7(2 Suppl):Abstract nr B197.
Zinc-oxide nanoparticles act catalytically and synergistically with nitric oxide donors to enhance antimicrobial efficacy.

The development of infection-resistant materials is of substantial importance as seen with an increase in antibiotic resistance. In this project, the nitric oxide (NO)-releasing polymer has an added topcoat of zinc oxide nanoparticle (ZnO-NP) to improve NO-release and match the endogenous NO flux (0.5-4 × 10-10 mol cm-2 min-1 ). The ZnO-NP is incorporated to act as a catalyst and provide the additional benefit of acting synergistically with NO as an antimicrobial agent. The ZnO-NP topcoat is applied on a polycarbonate-based polyurethane (CarboSil) that contains blended NO donor, S-nitroso-N-acetylpenicillamine (SNAP). This sample, SNAP-ZnO, continuously sustained NO release above 0.5 × 10-10 mol cm-2 min-1 for 14 days while samples containing only SNAP dropped below physiological levels within 24 h. The ZnO-NP topcoat improved NO release and reduced the amount of SNAP leached by 55% over a 7-day period. ICP-MS data observed negligible Zn ion release into the environment, suggesting longevity of the catalyst within the material. Compared to samples with no NO-release, the SNAP-ZnO films had a 99.03% killing efficacy against Staphylococcus aureus and 87.62% killing efficacy against Pseudomonas aeruginosa. A cell cytotoxicity study using mouse fibroblast 3T3 cells also noted no significant difference in viability between the controls and the SNAP-ZnO material, indicating no toxicity toward mammalian cells. The studies indicate that the synergy of combining a metal ion catalyst with a NO-releasing polymer significantly improved NO-release kinetics and antimicrobial activity for device coating applications. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part A: 00A: 000-000, 2019.
Understanding India: Bhadralok, Modernity and Colonial India:

This article explores the understandings of mid-nineteenth-century colonial India through the perceptions of Bholanauth Chunder, an anglicised Bengali bhadralok and his early attempt at seeing and ...
Properties and material models for common construction materials at elevated temperatures

Abstract Construction building materials experience physio-chemical and phase changes when subjected to elevated temperatures. These changes are often defined through temperature-dependent material models. A cross examination of adopted models reveals that such models markedly varies across open literature and fire guides (i.e. ASCE, Eurocodes etc.). This, not only complicates the process of fire analysis and design, but can also hinders ongoing standardization initiatives. In support of these initiatives, this paper leverages symbolic regression through artificial neural networks (ANN) and genetic programming (GP) to arrive at representative temperature-dependent thermal and mechanical material models for common building materials, namely: normal strength concrete, masonry, structural steel, stainless steel, cold-formed steel and wood. The proposed material models have the potential to regulate and modernize structural design under extreme loading conditions, i.e. fire. The result of this investigation demonstrates the value of utilizing artificial intelligence (AI) into comprehending the complex nature of temperature-induced effects on building materials; together with deriving associated temperature-dependent models.
Abstract PR09: A systematic approach to create patient-derived models of rare tumors

Precision cancer medicine is based on the ability to predict the dependencies of a given tumor from its molecular makeup. Despite successes in multiple common cancers, such prediction remains challenging for the majority of rare and understudied tumors, given the absence of laboratory model systems in which to discover and/or validate therapeutic hypotheses. Here, we describe our efforts to address this challenge systematically with the ultimate goal of making it possible to learn how to predict ex vivo growth requirements for cancer samples based on technical, clinical, and genomic properties of the starting tumor material. Over the last 5 years, we have processed nearly 2,000 tumor biospecimens and created over 375 genomically confirmed patient-derived cell lines, organoids, and neurosphere cultures, with >10% of these representing rare cancers. To make this possible, we have implemented three key workflows including (1) direct-to-patient sample sourcing, (2) a tissue cryopreservation and genomic credentialing system to ensure quality prior to model creation, and (3) a systematic empirical approach to screening rich media and variations on organoid technologies ex vivo (HYBRID). We have begun performing genome-wide CRISPR viability screens in these cultures as part of our larger activities to generate a systematic laboratory-based functional map of cancer dependencies (a “Cancer Dependency Map”). The novel organoid, spheroid, and cell line models created as part of this effort are being made publicly available to the scientific community. Looking ahead, as the barriers to culturing rare tumors are overcome, we expect that preclinical functional genomics data will be useful for difficult-to-treat tumors without existing molecularly guided standard-of-care regimens. This abstract is also being presented as Poster A06. Citation Format: Yuen-Yi Tseng, Paula Keskula, Rebecca Deasy, Andrew Hong, Priya Chatterji, Francisca Vazquez, Adam Bass, Barbara Van Hare, David Sandak, Keith Ligon, Jesse Boehm. A systematic approach to create patient-derived models of rare tumors [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on the Evolving Landscape of Cancer Modeling; 2020 Mar 2-5; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2020;80(11 Suppl):Abstract nr PR09.
Assessing the costs and returns of on-farm food safety improvements: A survey of Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) training participants

Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) training programs were developed to provide guidance to fruit and vegetable growers on how to reduce food safety risks on the farm. These programs have been enhanced over the years due, in part, to increasing buyer and regulatory requirements. However, the costs of implementing additional food safety practices has been identified as a primary barrier to long-term farm financial feasibility, particularly for smaller scale producers. A survey of past participants in New York State revealed that increasing food safety improvements facilitated by GAPs have not significantly impacted the size of farm operations or the types of crops grown. In terms of farm size, we show that both the financial costs and financial benefits of food safety improvements increase with farm size, but at decreasing rates. In so doing, relatively higher market sales gains per acre by smaller farms from additional food safety investments offset the relatively higher costs to them of their implementation. We also demonstrate that benefits of food safety improvements were significantly higher for farms that had third-party food safety audits and for those that market primarily through wholesale channels. The results should prove welcome by educators as they encourage participation by all scales of producers in GAPs trainings and for growers in understanding that food safety investments can support both reduced microbial risks and sales growth.
Public Trust and Acceptance for Concepts of Remotely Operated Urban Air Mobility Transportation

There is building interest within industry and government to enable Urban Air Mobility (i.e., air-taxies). One concept envisions remotely piloted aircraft, yet it is unclear how this will impact pu...
Measuring Inflation Accurately

The most commonly used measures of inflation suffer from persistent and well-documented biases. As a result, official price indices overstate the inflation rate. The most prominent inflation measure, the Consumer Price Index (CPI), has historically overstated inflation by about seven-tenths of a percentage point each year. The Personal Consumption Expenditures price index (PCE) overstates inflation by about four-tenths of a percentage point per year. Neither of these common price indices fully accounts for the benefits of increased competition in retail, the rapid decline in price of new products, or the improved quality of many products over time. Overstatements of inflation have led many analysts to conclude that living standards have stagnated since the 1970s. The mis-measurement makes old incomes look larger, in inflation-adjusted terms, than they really were. Accurately accounting for inflation shows that typical American incomes grew at a healthy pace until 2007. A bias-corrected price index shows that real median wages grew 30 percent between 1979 and 2007. Real middle-quintile household incomes grew around 65 percent over that period. In the generation preceding the Great Recession, living standards rose considerably. Only since 2007, in response to the Great Recession and the sluggish recovery, have Americans begun to worry about wage stagnation.
We Have It Totally Under Control? Exploring the Effects of Ideology and Knowing Someone Diagnosed With COVID-19 on Evaluations of President Trump’s Leadership on the Pandemic

President Donald Trump has made various decisions, many controversial, to manage the coronavirus pandemic. The reaction to President Trump’s leadership has been met with a mixed response from the p...
Overcoming Past Perceptions and Profession-Wide Identity Crisis to Reflect Pharmacy's Future

The profession of pharmacy has come to encompass a myriad of identities including apothecary, dispenser, merchandiser, expert advisor, and health care provider. While these have changed over time, the responsibilities and scope of practice have not evolved to keep up with the goals of the profession and level of education of practicing pharmacists in the United States. By assuming both the product-centric and patient-centric responsibilities for the aforementioned names, our true professional identity is unclear, which can be linked to the development and preservation of impostor phenomenon among the profession. For pharmacy to truly move forward, we need a unified definition for the profession by either letting go of past identities or separating these identities from each other through altering our standards within professional degree programs and practice models. Without substantial changes to the way we approach this challenge as a profession, the problems described will only persist and deepen.
Loss of PPARγ Promotes Mitochondrial Dysfunction through Downregulation of PGC1α

Rationale: Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is an important clinical problem that causes significant morbidity and mortality despite existing therapies. Recent evidence indicates that metabolic derangements in pulmonary vascular wall cells stimulate mitochondrial (MT) dysfunction that promotes proliferative vascular remodeling. We previously showed that expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) was reduced in murine hypoxia-induced PH and that reductions in PPARγ were sufficient to stimulate Nox4 expression, H2O2 production, and human pulmonary artery smooth muscle cell (HPASMC) proliferation. Objective: We hypothesize that PPARγ coactivator 1 alpha (PGC1α, which stimulates MT biogenesis), is a critical PPARγ-regulated target that modulates MT function, reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, and the proliferative PASMC phenotype in PH. Methods and Results: To examine the molecular pathways stimulated by reductions in PPARγ, siPPARγ or GW9662 (PPARγ antagonist) were used to inhib...
Word Association and Verbal Learning Methods, USA

Many experimental studies employ meaningful materials, but it is relatively rarely that meaning itself has been an independent variable in learning experitnents. Even when meaning has been deliberately varied in some way, interest has been focused primarily on the learning process. The use of the learning process as a means of studying the phenomenon of meaning, or as a means of measuring meaning, or as a means of arriving at a definition of meaning, reflects rather recent developments in both interest and method.
Quantitative enzymatic hydrolysis of tRNAs : Reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography of tRNA nucleosides

Abstract A rapid quantitative method for enzymatic hydrolysis of microgram amounts of tRNA has been developed, specifically to take full advantage of our precise, accurate, and selective reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) system for separation and measurement of the major and modified nucleosides in tRNA. After study of several enzyme systems, nuclease P1 and bacterial alkaline phosphatase were selected and the hydrolysis parameters were systematically studied. Optimized hydrolysis conditions give quantitative hydrolysis in 2 h and this short incubation time prevents loss of unstable nucleosides. The chromatographic system can tolerate relatively high levels of protein in the sample allowing high enzyme—substrate ratios and direct injection of hydrolysates. This enzymatic hydrolysis—HPLC method is the best described to date for quantitative determination of the nucleoside composition of tRNAs and has already provided important information for investigation of the role of modification in the function of RNAs.
Literature and Favoritism in Early Modern England: “What pleased the prince”: Edward II and the imbalanced constitution

The plays discussed in chapter 5 use the trope of erotic incontinence to figure favoritism as the representative symptom of tyranny, a perspective that re-imagines the favorite as the vehicle by which the king's unruly will asserts itself. This is why so many of the early modern English fictions dealing with corrupt favoritism as erotic desire are set in what to the English were the symbolic locations of absolutist excess: France, Muscovy, imperial Rome, Catholic Italian dukedoms, the Muslim east. Such stories can of course be intensely topical for English audiences interested in favoritism or absolutism, but they deal with imagined states that are understood to be crucially unlike England, with its native liberties and balanced constitution. The central native exemplum of passionate and corrupting favoritism, for late Elizabethan and early Stuart writers, is clearly the tale of the reign, deposition, and murder of King Edward II. The story is utterly ubiquitous in the period's controversial political writing, where it serves as a highly contested precedent for arguments about the nature and limitations of English monarchy, and it is perhaps the most frequently retold political fable of the era as well. The best-known version is of course Christopher Marlowe's ( c . 1591–92) but we also have significant recastings of the story by Michael Drayton (who produced several long poems about Edward's reign in different modes), Richard Niccols (who added a narrative of the life of Edward II to the Mirror For Magistrates collection in 1610), Francis Hubert (whose long verse history of Edward's life and death underwent a number of significant revisions between its original composition in the 1590s and its eventual printing in 1628 and 1629), and Elizabeth Cary (who composed a Tacitean history of the Edward II story as a way to comment upon political controversy c . 1627).
Abusive Head Trauma

Abusive head trauma (AHT) is the leading cause of trauma deaths in infants (Gerber, 2007). AHT is most common in the first year of life; as many as 95% of severe head injuries in the first year of life are due to inflicted injury (Duhaime et al., 1987; Ettaro, Berger, & Songer, 2004; Hadley, Sonntag, Rekate, & Murphy, 1989; Jaspan, Griffiths, McConachie, & Punt, 2003; Keenan, Runyan, & Nocera, 2006; King, MacKay, & Sirnick, 2003; Ludwig & Warman, 1984). Head injury is the most common cause of death from physical abuse; one study found that 36 of 42 abuse deaths were due to AHT. It is estimated that up to 28/100,000 infants sustain AHT in the first year of life, with a mortality rate of 21.4%.
The Tribal College As Family Support System.

This study asked a single question: What is it that tribal colleges are doing that might explain their success in retention of high-risk students? An ethnography of a typical tribal college identified three ways in which family support contributes to retention. These are provision of a coordinated system of social services, especially child care; incorporation of cultural familial values, knowledge, and traditions throughout the institution's operations; and location on the reservation. The reservation history is one of forced separation of families to obtain even a secondary education. There is a dramatic drop in educational attainment rates of Native American students at the point at which relocation is required. Given these facts, it is recommended that the emphasis on transfer to mainstream institutions off reservation be balanced with provision of baccalaureate and graduate degrees on the reservation.
Protecting Your Home Broadband Computer

A home broadband connection opens opportunities for working from remote locations and staying connected at unusual hours. It also opens the potential for malicious attack from outside sources and potentially provides a backdoor for compromising workplace security. This article covers basic items that may harden the home computer against attack including a physical firewall/router, a software firewall, anti-virus software, anti-spyware software, and anti-malware software. Additional measures include limiting folder sharing, keeping up to date on software patches, and being aware of current security issues. References point to sources of further information.
Electron microscopy of the normal and I131 treated thyroid gland of the newt, Notophthalmus viridescens

The fine structure of the thyroid of the newt, Notophthalmus viridescens, was studied with the electron microscope. Specimens were injected I.P. with 30 μc of I131 and sample thryoids were examined at 12 hour intervals thereafter. The ultrastructure of the normal thyroid gland is described, and compared with that of the irradiated glands. The first visible ultrastructural change observed after injection of the radioiodin was a striking alteration of nuclear morphology. This effect was followed by an increase in the frequency of whorled lamellar structures, a decrease in the number of microvilli, and degeneration of the Golgi apparatus and endoplasmic reticulum. Further effects observed included an increase in the number of large cytoplasmic granules and a decrease in the number of smaller ones, the presence of autophagic vacuoles, and finally, an increase in the number of degenerated mitochondria.
Signal-to-noise optimization in polarimetry.

Abstract The signal-to-noise ratio of a polarimeter is considered for cases which include flicker noise. It is found that using good quality polarizers is essential for detecting small rotations. A high-intensity light-source is also desirable, provided that the intensity can be stabilized. The predicted detectability of 2.8 × 10−7 degree with current instruments agrees with previously published experimental results.
Age, Sex, and Weight Comparisons in Three Species of Shrews

The extreme variability in species of shrews has confused systematists for some time. Shrews were conceded to be more variable than most other mammalian groups and taxonomically extremely difficult to handle. Only relatively recently have the sources of this variability been recognized and analyzed. Several recent authors have studied growth and sexual patterns in Sorex and related genera. These studies establish that the so-called “inherent variability” of shrews is actually no greater than that of many mammalian groups once growth and secondary sexual variation are understood. When ample specimens for comparison are available, these sources of variation cause little difficulty. The small size and the difficulty of obtaining specimens in many areas remain as the chief deterrents to full understanding of the systematics of Sorex . The material presented in this paper was collected in connection with a study of differentiation in restricted populations of tidal marsh shrews in the San Francisco Bay Region. In order to compare morphological traits of several shrew populations statistically, variability due to age, sex and size (as reflected by weight) had necessarily to be considered first. Variation arising from these factors had to be eliminated or minimized before reliable trait samples could be defined and compared. This paper reports the variability of these characteristics for the individual species populations and presents data in a manner to facilitate comparisons between species. The differentiation pattern in the shrew populations under study will be presented in a later paper. Only specimens from the San Francisco Bay Region are included. The “Bay Region” is composed of nine counties—Santa Clara, San Mateo, San Francisco, Marin, Sonoma, Napa, Solano, Contra Costa, and Alameda. All specimens from these counties for which full data were available (692) have been utilized. A number …
THE INTEGRATION OF A SYSTEM OF PRICE AND QUANTITY STATISTICS WITH DATA ON RELATED VARIABLES

This paper has two main points. First, the usefulness of the industry detail called for in the SNA would be increased if it were altered to facilitate the construction of price and quantity aggregates classified by stage-of-process sectors. Second, the price and quantity data so arranged should be augmented by data on behaviorally related variables classified the same way. The feasibility of the stage-of-process approach is demonstrated by a table showing the high degree to which the U.S. input-output table for 1967 can be triangularized. The analytical usefulness of the approach is demonstrated through analysis of changes in prices, output, unfilled orders and finished goods inventories for primary and for finished goods manufacturers.
A study on the labeling of o-iodohippuric acid with 123I

Abstract Recent emphasis on the replacement of 131 I with 123 I, in the ionic form and incorporated into organ and function specific compounds, prompted an investigation of the radioiodination of the renal function and imaging agent, o -iodohippuric acid. One of the more rapid and efficient methods is one in which the o -iodohippuric acid, in the molten state, is labeled with 123 I. The effects of volume and chemical composition of 123 I solutions on the labeling efficiency of this “melt” method were determined. The results showed that a concentration of NaOH greater than 0.6 molecular equivalent (meq) per 200 mg of o -iodohippuric acid caused a rapid decrease in labeling efficiency resulting from a change in the pH of the reaction mixture from acidic to basic. Adjustment of the pH to below approximately 5 before the reaction resulted in quantitative labeling yields. When the 123 I was in saline, the yield was independent of the volume of saline. As a result of these studies, a method for fast and efficient labeling of o -iodohippuric acid with 123 I was developed and is described.
Experiences in mining aviation safety data

The goal of data analysis in aviation safety is simple: improve safety. However, the path to this goal is hard to identify. What data mining methods are most applicable to this task? What data are available and how should they be analyzed? How do we focus on the most interesting results? Our answers to these questions are based on a recent research project we completed. The encouraging news is that we found a number of aviation safety offices doing commendable work to collect and analyze safety-related data. But we also found a number of areas where data mining techniques could provide new tools that either perform analyses that were not considered before, or that can now be done more easily.Currently, Aviation Safety offices collect and analyze the incident reports by a combination of manual and automated methods. Data analysis is done by safety officers who are well familiar with the domain, but not with data mining methods. Some Aviation Safety officers have tools to automate the database query and report generation process. However, the actual analysis is done by the officer with only fairly rudimentary tools to help extract the useful information from the data.Our research project looked at the application of data mining techniques to aviation safety data to help Aviation Safety officers with their analysis task. This effort led to the creation of a tool called the “Aviation Safety Data Mining Workbench”. This paper describes the research effort, the workbench, the experience with data mining of Aviation Safety data, and lessons learned.