cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Chemosensory responses by the heterotrophic marine dinoflagellateCrypthecodinium cohnii.

Chemosensory responses by the colorles inshore marine dinoflagellateCrypthecodinium cohnii were observed in quadrant-divided Petri plates containing an agar layer + liquid overlay. A suspension of organisms in salt solution was poured onto this and allowed to stand 3 hr. A differential tendency of the cells to become firmly attached or embedded in the substratum was observed when various substances were incorporated in the gel. A positive response (tendency to attach) occurred with: α-l-fucose, dimethyl-β-propiothetin, betaine, sucrose, glycine, L-alanine, hemin, and fructose; negative response: formalin, glutathione, acid hydrolyzed agar, protamine SO4, L-glutamic acid, lactose, glutamine, taurine, L-aspartic acid, putrescine 2 HCl, choline citrate, choline bitartrate, K citrate, and choline HCl. γ-Aminobutyric acid was negative or positive dependeng on concentration. Dead or immotile cells did not become attached. The following compounds elicited no response: α-D-fucose, dimethyl acetothetin chloride, cyclic AMP, and glucose.
1-Methoxy-, 1-deoxy-11-hydroxy- and 11-Hydroxy-1-methoxy-Δ8-tetrahydrocannabinols: new selective ligands for the CB2 receptor

Abstract Three series of new cannabinoids were prepared and their affinities for the CB 1 and CB 2 cannabinoid recptors were determined. These are the 1-methoxy-3-(1′,1′-dimethylalkyl)-, 1-deoxy-11-hydroxy-3-(1′,1′-dimethylalkyl)- and 11-hydroxy-1-methoxy-3-(1′,1′-dimethylalkyl)-Δ 8 -tetrahydrocannabinols, which contain alkyl chains from dimethylethyl to dimethylheptyl appended to C-3 of the cannabinoid. All of these compounds have greater affinity for the CB 2 receptor than for the CB 1 receptor, however only 1-methoxy-3-(1′,1′-dimethylhexyl)-Δ 8 -THC (JWH-229, 6e ) has effectively no affinity for the CB 1 receptor ( K i =3134±110 nM) and high affinity for CB 2 ( K i =18±2 nM).
Developmental genetics of the alcohol dehydrogenase locus of the Japanese quail.

In Japanese quail ♀ × chicken ♂ hybrids, the preferential transcription and translation of a maternally derived quail allele appeared to occur at the autosomally inherited liver alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) locus. In these hybrids, the product of a paternally derived chicken allele was not detectable until 3 days after the hatching (Castro-Sierra and Ohno, 1968). The present study was designed to answer the following two questions: (1) Exactly when and where in development does ADH first appear? (2) Does the appearance of the maternal gene product precede that of the paternal ADH in development of intraspecific heterozygotes as well? B and C electrophoretic variants of ADH of the Japanese quail were utilized. Developmental sequence was established. Whole embryo extracts of earlier developmental stages showed no ADH activity. At the 9th day of incubation, ADH activity was detected for the first time in newly organized liver. Until the time of hatching, no other tissue showed ADH activity. A few days after the hatching, ADH activity appeared in the kidney. Thus, the transcriptional activity by the ADH locus of Japanese quail appears highly tissue-specific. Four hundred and seven progeny resulting from 9 breeding pairs of the 5 heterozygote-producing mating types were analyzed at the 9th day (−8 days) of incubation and at the day of hatching (day 0) for their ADH phenotypes. It is concluded that so far as B/C heterozygotes of Japanese quail are concerned, the synchronous appearance of both parental gene products is a rule at this locus.
Response to Comment on “HST2 Mediates SIR2-Independent Life-Span Extension by Calorie Restriction”

Our two labs and others have shown that SIR2 controls the life span of diverse species, including Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Drosophila melanogaster, and that deleting SIR2 blocks life-span extension by calorie restriction. The methods of Kaeberlein et al . allow yeast to bypass the requirement for SIR2 and its homologs, which brings into question their suitability for modeling the physiology of more complex organisms.
Medroxyprogesterone Acetate Antagonizes Inhibitory Effects of Conjugated Equine Estrogens on Coronary Artery Atherosclerosis

Although estrogen replacement therapy is associated with reduced risk of coronary heart disease and reduced extent of coronary artery atherosclerosis, the effects of combined (estrogen plus progestin) hormone-replacement therapy are uncertain. Some observational data indicate that users of combined hormone replacement consisting of continuously administered oral conjugated equine estrogens (CEE) and oral sequentially administered (7 to 14 days per month) medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) experience a reduction in risk similar to that of users of CEE alone. However, the effects of combined, continuously administered CEE plus MPA (a prescribing pattern that has gained favor) on the risk of coronary heart disease or atherosclerosis are not known. We studied the effects of CEE (monkey equivalent of 0.625 mg/d) and MPA (monkey equivalent of 2.5 mg/d), administered separately or in combination, on the extent of coronary artery atherosclerosis (average plaque size) in surgically postmenopausal cynomolgus monkeys fed atherogenic diets and treated with these hormones for 30 months. Treatment with CEE alone resulted in atherosclerosis extent that was reduced 72% relative to untreated (estrogen-deficient) controls (P < .004). Atherosclerosis extent in animals treated with CEE plus MPA or MPA alone did not differ from that of untreated controls. Although treatment had marked effects on plasma lipoprotein patterns, statistical adjustment for variation in plasma lipoproteins did not alter the between-group relationships in atherosclerotic plaque size, suggesting that these factors do not explain substantially the atheroprotective effect of estrogen or the MPA-associated antagonism. Although the mechanism(s) remains unclear, we conclude that oral CEE inhibits the initiation and progression of coronary artery atherosclerosis and that continuously administered oral MPA antagonizes this atheroprotective effect.
Superimposed microwave modulation at two times the bit frequency: Characteristics and performance in gbps systems

Abstract We investigate the superimposition of a strong phase-locked microwave signal applied at twice the DATA frequency for applications in Gbps multimode fiber (MMF) systems. By phase-locking the auxiliaiy microwave signal (AMS), an excessive jitter on the receiver output is avoided, and any intermodulation penalty is eliminated. Because the AMS frequency is only twice the bit frequency, it is feasible to place the AMS driver chip remotely from the laser package. The investigation is mostly based on simulations at 1.06 Gbps. System experiments were conducted to verifi the reduction in modal noise and elimination of intermodulation distortion.
Analysis of Residual Stresses in a Pressurizer Surge–Nozzle Weldment

Residual stresses and distortion of welded structures have a significant influence on their functionality and their lifetime. In Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) piping systems, residual stresses in dissimilar metal welds extensively increase their susceptibility to primary water stress corrosion cracking (PWSCC). An accurate crack initiation and growth assessment is essential to assure that no severe component failure will occur due to SCC or any other stress induced mechanism. Therefore it is necessary to develop methods for a proper residual stress and distortion prediction. Numerical welding simulations have developed fast during the recent years but no universally accepted guidelines for a reliable prediction of residual stresses have been established so far. In order to support further validation of developed methods the U.S. NRC launched an international round robin program. Its main intention is to benchmark different numerical approaches by direct comparison with experimental data obtained from a provided mock-up. This paper shows the contribution of AREVA NP Germany to this round robin. A two dimensional axis-symmetric analysis of a pressurizer surge nozzle – safe end – pipe weldment will be presented. The residual stresses are calculated by means of an uncoupled transient thermal and mechanical finite element analysis using the ABAQUS Code. In addition some comments on the selection of the material model and its effect on the resulting residual stresses will be given.Copyright © 2011 by ASME
Changes in community composition and biomass in Juncus roemerianus scheele and Spartina bakeri merr. marshes one year after a fire

Fires occur naturally in many wetlands and are widely used for marsh management. We examined the responses to fire ofJuncus roemerianus andSpartina bakeri marshes on Kennedy Space Center, Florida. In each marsh, we determined vegetation cover before burning on 5 permanent 15 m transects in the greater than 0.5 m and less than 0.5 m layers and sampled biomass on 25 plots (0.25 m2). One year after burning, we repeated the sampling. Species composition one year after burning was similar to that before the fire in bothJuncus andSpartina marshes. Minor species tended to increase, but this was significant only in the less than 0.5 m layer. In mixed stands, fire appeared to favorSpartina bakeri. Total cover (sum of the cover values for each species) in both marshes reestablished by one year after burning. Biomass did not recover as rapidly. In theJuncus marsh one year after burning, live biomass was 47.2%, standing dead 18.7%, and total biomass 29.3% of that before burning. In theSpartina marsh, biomass one year after burning was live 42.3%, standing dead 21.4%, and total 30.7% of that before burning. Fire increased the ratio of live to dead biomass from 0.82 before burning to 1.85 one year after the fire in theJuncus marsh. In theSpartina marsh, the ratio of live to dead biomass increased from 0.80 before burning to 1.59 one year after burning.
Unity of purpose/unity of effort: private‐sector preparedness in times of terror

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to consider the analysis of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks provided by the US National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the USA from the points of view of behavior analysis and systems analysis. The 9/11 Commission provides a detailed and provocative account of the structural flaws in the US security systems that enabled the 9/11 terrorists to completely subvert efforts to detect and prevent their attack. This paper considers the role of private‐sector organizations in prevention of future attacks.Design/methodology/approach – This conceptual/theoretical paper explores how understanding verbal networks and the nature of verbal rules might contribute to understanding the issues involved in re‐engineering work cultures in the face of continued terrorist threats.Findings – An understanding of verbal networks and ambiguous communications aids the re‐design of management systems and emergency response processes so that adaptive organizational responses to te...
Loss of selenium from selenoproteins: Conversion of selenocysteine to dehydroalanine in vitro

Characterization of reduced and alkylated rat selenoprotein P by mass spectrometry yielded selenopeptides from which one or more selenium atoms were missing. Predicted selenopeptide mass peaks were accompanied by peaks corresponding to the conversion of one or more selenocysteine residues to dehydroalanine(s). Experiments were carried out to determine whether this loss of selenium occurred in vitro. A selenopeptide was isolated that contained two selenocysteine residues that were both in selenide-sulfide linkages with cysteine residues. After the peptide had been reduced and alkylated, in addition to the predicted mass peak with both selenocysteine residues present, two mass peaks were detected at positions expected for conversion of one and two selenocysteine residues of this selenopeptide to dehydroalanine residues, which was confirmed by tandem mass spectrometry. Similar findings were obtained from a study of another selenoprotein, rat plasma glutathione peroxidase. These results indicate that selenium atoms are lost from selenoproteins during purification and characterization. The loss of selenium from selenoproteins is probably through the mechanism of oxidation of selenocysteine residue to selenoxide followed by syn-β-elimination of selenenic acid during sample processing.
Effects of selected insecticides on Cotesia plutellae, endoparasitoid of Plutella xylostella

Effects of field dosages ofselected insecticides to Cotesiaplutellae (Kurdjumov) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), a larval endoparasitoidof Plutella xylostella L. (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae), wereinvestigated under laboratory conditions.Emergence of adult C. plutellae frominsecticide-treated pupae was not significantlydifferent from the control treatment. Contacttoxicity to C. plutellae adults variedgreatly among the insecticides in a paperresidue contact bioassay. Threeazadirachtin-based insecticides, Agroneem(4.8 mg a.i.liter−1), Neemix (20 mga.i.liter−1) and Ecozin (20 mgai.liter−1) caused 11.1, 16.7 and 5.6%adult mortality, respectively. Of fourcommercial Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt)insecticides examined (all at 1.2 mga.i.liter−1), Crymax and Xentari had noeffect on adult parasitoids, whereas Mattchcaused 5.6% mortality, and Dipel caused 11.1%mortality. Indoxacarb (53 mg a.i.liter−1),λ-cyhalothrin (28 mg a.i.liter−1) andspinosad (53 mg a.i.liter−1) caused 100,88.5 and 50% adult mortalities, respectively.Low adult mortality (0–5.6%) was recorded fromingestion of azadirachtin-based, Btinsecticides and indoxacarb, compared with100% adult mortality in treatments of spinosador λ-cyhalothrin. Compared with the watercontrol, ingestion of azadirachtin-basedinsecticides significantly reduced parasitismby 50–57%, and Bt insecticides by 8–25%.However, ingestion of these insecticides didnot affect longevity of male and femaleparasitoid adults with one exception; femalelongevity was significantly reduced in theindoxacarb treatment. Insecticide residuescaused considerable mortality of C.plutellae adults, 39 and 44% mortality causedby 10 d old indoxacarb and λ-cyhalothrin,respectively, and 24 and 0% mortality causedby 7 and 10 d old residues of spinosad,respectively.
The Effects of Unnatural Day Lengths Upon Maturation and Egg Production of the Japanese Quail Coturnix coturnix japonica

Abstract NUMEROUS investigations have established that the cyclic pattern of oviposition is affected by daily fluctuations in light intensity. Natural selection has coordinated the hen’s physiological rhythm of egg formation with an external light-dark cycle of 24 hours. In individuals with exceptionally high rates of lay, the interval between successive eggs approaches 24 hours; this interval enables these hens to lay at about the same time each day. Hens with a low rate of lay have longer intervals between eggs and usually interrupt egg production for one or more days whenever oviposition time has advanced to fall within the night hours (Warren and Scott, 1935; Fraps, 1961). When the daily light cycle is replaced by continuous lighting, hens continue to produce eggs at regular but slightly longer intervals than before (Arrington et al., 1962). Experiments at this laboratory have shown that regular oviposition cycles are maintained by a small proportion of …
Influenza Virus-Mediated Membrane Fusion: Determinants of Hemagglutinin Fusogenic Activity and Experimental Approaches for Assessing Virus Fusion

Hemagglutinin (HA) is the viral protein that facilitates the entry of influenza viruses into host cells. This protein controls two critical aspects of entry: virus binding and membrane fusion. In order for HA to carry out these functions, it must first undergo a priming step, proteolytic cleavage, which renders it fusion competent. Membrane fusion commences from inside the endosome after a drop in lumenal pH and an ensuing conformational change in HA that leads to the hemifusion of the outer membrane leaflets of the virus and endosome, the formation of a stalk between them, followed by pore formation. Thus, the fusion machinery is an excellent target for antiviral compounds, especially those that target the conserved stem region of the protein. However, traditional ensemble fusion assays provide a somewhat limited ability to directly quantify fusion partly due to the inherent averaging of individual fusion events resulting from experimental constraints. Inspired by the gains achieved by single molecule experiments and analysis of stochastic events, recently-developed individual virion imaging techniques and analysis of single fusion events has provided critical information about individual virion behavior, discriminated intermediate fusion steps within a single virion, and allowed the study of the overall population dynamics without the loss of discrete, individual information. In this article, we first start by reviewing the determinants of HA fusogenic activity and the viral entry process, highlight some open questions, and then describe the experimental approaches for assaying fusion that will be useful in developing the most effective therapies in the future.
SURVEILLANCE FOR BAYLISASCARIS PROCYONIS IN RACCOONS (PROCYON LOTOR) FROM WYOMING, USA

Abstract Baylisascaris procyonis is a common roundworm of raccoons that causes severe clinical disease in many vertebrates, including humans. The distribution of B. procyonis in the US is poorly documented in portions of its range and has not been reported from Wyoming. Our objectives were to determine the statewide distribution and prevalence of this parasite in raccoons in Wyoming, using intestinal and fecal examinations. We examined 363 raccoons from 23 Wyoming counties in 2009–11, testing the reliability of two methods (intestinal extrusion and incision) to determine worm burdens. We found 163 raccoons (45%) positive for B. procyonis. The two methods of examination did not differ, although extrusion missed some infections. Neither age nor sex affected apparent prevalence or worm burdens. Prevalence did not differ with land use, yet burden was highest among rural raccoons. Fecal examination revealed that juvenile raccoons had a higher proportion of patent infections than adults, but neither sex nor loc...
FURTHER STUDIES ON SHEEP GRAZING IN THE NORTHERN PENNINES

The grazing of 3 relatively productive grasslands (Festucaf Agrostis) by hill sheep was examined in relation to herbage consumption, grazing pressure, dung deposition and the number of sheep in the area. Herbage intake ranged from 400 Ib/ac/annum (dry weight) on the highest (2450 ft O. D.) and most exposed grassland to 800 Ib/ac/annum on a grassland (1700 ft O. D.) adjacent to extensive heather moorland on blanket bog. The highest pressure (5·5 sheep/ac) was also found on grassland surrounded by blanket bog (1 sheep/14 ac).
PAX2(-)/PAX8(-)/inhibin A(+) immunoprofile in hemangioblastoma: A helpful combination in the differential diagnosis with metastatic clear cell renal cellcarcinoma to the central nervous system

Background: Hemangioblastomas account for up to 2.5% of all intracranial tumors. They may occur sporadically or as a part of the multisystem genetic syndrome of Von Hippel-Lindau syndrome (VHL). Patients with VHL are also at an increased risk of developing clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC). Distinguishing hemangioblastomas from metastatic ccRCC to the central nervous system (CNS) can be challenging at times when based solely on hematoxylin and eosin-stained sections. We propose an immunohistochemistry (IHC) panel of combination of PAX2, PAX8, and inhibin A as a helpful approach in distinguishing the 2 lesions. Design: Archival tissues from 20 hemangioblastomas and 16 ccRCCs metastatic to the CNS were retrieved from our surgical pathology files (2001 to 2010). IHC for PAX2, PAX8, and inhibin A was performed on routine or tissue microarray sections using standard IHC protocol. The intensity of nuclear staining was evaluated for each marker and was assigned an incremental 0, 1+, 2+, and 3+ score. The extent of staining was categorized as focal ( 75%). Result: (1) Hemangioblastoma: The Von Hippel-Lindau syndrome was diagnosed in 4 of 16 (25%) patients, 2 of whom developed multiple hemangioblastomas. All 20 (100%) hemangioblastomas were positive for inhibin A (cytoplasmic). The staining intensity was moderate or strong (2+ or 3+) in 19 cases (95%), all of which were multifocal or diffuse in extent. Nuclear PAX2 staining was present in 1 of 19 evaluable lesions (5%), whereas PAX8 staining was not present in any of the 20 examined lesions. (2) Metastatic ccRCC to the CNS: Fourteen of 16 (88%) examined ccRCCs were positive for PAX2, whereas 15 of 16 (94%) lesions showed PAX8 staining. None of 16 (0%) examined ccRCCs were positive for inhibin A. Conclusions: We propose the use of the combination of PAX2, PAX8, and inhibin A as a helpful ancillary IHC panel to resolve the differential diagnosis of hemangioblastoma versus metastatic ccRCC. The immunoprofile of PAX2(+) or PAX8(+) and inhibin A(� ) supports the diagnosis of metastatic ccRCC with a sensitivity of 94%, specificity of 100%, and positive predictive value of 100%. The PAX2(� ), PAX8(� ), and inhibin A(+) profile supports the diagnosis of hemangioblastoma with a sensitivity of 95%, specificity of 100%, and positive predictive value of 100%.
Correcting Past Health Policy Mistakes

China's health policy in the 1980s followed its economic policy of marketization. China shifted health financing from public to private and commercialized the country's public health services. Unwittingly, the Chinese government did not grasp the serious market failures in health care, which resulted in a profit-driven public health service in which patients pay directly for services. China's health policy created three major unintended consequences: disparity between rural and urban residents, poor quality of health care, and rapid inflation in health expenditures. Since 2003, China has tried to correct its policy mistakes through public financing and by establishing social health insurance. However, strong profit motives have become embedded within the culture of medical professionals and have eroded the professional ethics that prioritize medical practices for patients' benefits. Restoring medical ethics is a formidable challenge. This paper analyzes the transformation of the Chinese health system and ...
Calcium oxalate crystal localization and osteopontin immunostaining in genetic hypercalciuric stone-forming rats

Calcium oxalate crystal localization and osteopontin immuno- staining in genetic hypercalciuric stone-forming rats. Background. The inbred genetic hypercalciuric stone- forming (GHS) rats develop calcium phosphate (apatite) stones when fed a normal 1.2% calcium diet. The addition of 1% hy- droxyproline to this diet does not alter the type of stone formed, while rats fed this diet with 3% hydroxyproline form mixed apatite and calcium oxalate stones and those with 5% hydrox- yproline added form only calcium oxalate stones. The present study was designed to determine the localization of stone for- mation and if this solid phase resulted in pathologic changes to the kidneys. Methods. GHS rats were fed 15 g of the standard diet or the diet supplemented with 1%, 3%, or 5% hydroxyproline for 18 weeks. A separate group of Sprague-Dawley rats (the parental strain of the GHS rats), fed the standard diet for a similar duration, served as an additional control. At 18 weeks, all kidneys were perfusion-fixed for structural analysis, detection of crystal deposits using the Yasue silver substitution method, and osteopontin immunostaining. Results. There were no crystal deposits found in the kidneys of Sprague-Dawley rats. Crystal deposits were found in the kid- neys of all GHS rats and this Yasue-stained material was de- tected only in the urinary space. No crystal deposits were noted within the cortical or medullary segments of the nephron and there was no evidence for tubular damage in any group. The only pathologic changes occurred in 3% and 5% hydroxypro- line groups with the 5% group showing the most severe changes. In these rats, which form only calcium oxalate stones, focal sites along the urothelial lining of the papilla and fornix of the urinary space demonstrated a proliferative response characterized by increased density of urothelial cells that surrounded the crys- tal deposits. At the fornix, some crystals were lodged within the interstitium, deep to the proliferative urothelium. There was increased osteopontin immunostaining in the proliferating urothelium. Conclusion. Thus in the GHS rat, the initial stone forma- tion occurred solely in the urinary space. Tubular damage was not observed with either apatite or calcium oxalate stones. The
Further thoughts on memory: replies to Schechtman, Adams, and Goldberg

This is a response to three critical discussions of my book Memory: A Philosophical Study (Oxford University Press 2010): Marya Schechtman, “Memory and Identity”, Fred Adams, “Husker Du?”, and Sanford Goldberg “The Metasemantics of Memory”.
Pb-Pb collisions at √ sNN = 2.76 TeV in a multiphase transport model

The multiplicity and elliptic flow of charged particles produced in Pb-Pb collisions at center of mass energy $\sqrt{{s}_{\mathit{NN}}}=2.76$ TeV from the Large Hadron Collider are studied in a multiphase transport (AMPT) model. With the standard parameters in the HIJING model, which is used as initial conditions for subsequent partonic and hadronic scatterings in the AMPT model, the resulting multiplicity of final charged particles at mid-pseudorapidity is consistent with the experimental data measured by the ALICE Collaboration. This value is, however, increased by about $25%$ if the final-state partonic and hadronic scatterings are turned off. Because of final-state scatterings, particularly those among partons, the final elliptic flow of charged hadrons is also consistent with the ALICE data if a smaller but more isotropic parton scattering cross section than previously used in the AMPT model for describing the charged hadron elliptic flow in heavy ion collisions at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider is used. The resulting transverse momentum spectra of charged particles as well as the centrality dependence of their multiplicity density and the elliptic flow are also in reasonable agreement with the ALICE data. Furthermore, the multiplicities, transverse momentum spectra, and elliptic flows of identified hadrons such as protons, kaons, and pions are predicted.
Psychiatric mental health nursing: challenge and change.

Editor's note . We invited Dr Peplau to provide a personal reflection on the recent history of psychiatric nursing and her thoughts on immediate challenges facing the profession. The paper is an individual scholar's commentary on the way that psychiatry has waxed and waned over the years, in relation to nursing. This historical review discovers and reports a challenge to current practice. Dr Peplau describes a professional shift that is pulling nurses toward the subordinate role observed earlier this century. The paper draws attention to how contemporary practice can be positively influenced, e.g., by giving a structure to the allocation and conduct of nurse–patient time.
Economics of Paid Extension: Lessons from Experience in Nicaragua

Public Agricultural Extension (Extension) faces major changes and challenges, resulting from less available public resources and from changes in demand for extension. Structural changes in extension provision and financing alternatives have been one type of response to the changes in conditions under which extension operates. Some new mechanisms, all modifications to traditional public extension, include: private extension, commercialized extension, and co-financed extension, will be called hereafter paid-extension. Several experiences of paid-extension around the world are reported in the literature (see Keynan, Olin and Dinar for details). Most of them provide information on the structure and operation of the different paidextension arrangements and, in some cases, some anecdotal results on the costs and benefits associated with these operations. This article offers, in the next section, a framework to evaluate economic performance of paid-extension, and demonstrates its application, in the third and fourth sections, using two types of paid-extension programs in Nicaragua. The article is concluded with a discussion on policy implications.
Compositional verification of a communication protocol for a remotely operated aircraft

This paper presents the formal specification and verification of a communication protocol between a ground station and a remotely operated aircraft. The protocol can be seen as the vertical composition of protocol layers, where each layer performs input and output message processing, and the horizontal composition of different processes concurrently inhabiting the same layer, where each process should satisfy a distinct delivery requirement. A compositional technique is used to formally prove that the protocol satisfies these requirements. Although the protocol itself is not novel, the methodology employed in its verification extends existing techniques by automating the tedious and usually cumbersome part of the proof, thereby making the iterative design process of protocols feasible.
Evaluation of dabigatran bleeding adverse reaction reports in the FDA adverse event reporting system during the first year of approval.

tudy Objective Evaluate dabigatran adverse event reports with a reported bleeding event and/or reported fatal outcome compared with warfarin. Design Retrospective analysis of the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) database. Measurements and Main Results We identified reports from October 1, 2010, through December 31, 2011, in the United States listing dabigatran or warfarin as the primary suspected agent. Bleeding events and related outcomes were determined. A bleeding-related mortality rate was calculated based on national dabigatran treatment data. Results Dabigatran was the primary suspected agent in 9029 adverse reports. Of these, 2347 (26%) were bleeding events; a fatal outcome was reported in 348 (15%) of the bleeding events. In comparison, warfarin was the suspected agent in 2038 reports, of which 647 (32%) were reported as bleeding events. Among the warfarin bleeding reports, 46 (7.1%) reported a fatal outcome. Based on national dabigatran use and adverse bleed reports with fatal outcomes, we estimate a lower bound of 150 bleeding-related fatalities per 100,000 dabigatran patient-years. Because of underreporting bias, these estimates represent a lower bound on the population bleeding mortality rates. Conclusion Reports from FAERS are subject to significant bias but suggest that fatal outcomes among dabigatran reports are higher in clinical practice than they were in controlled clinical trials.
Mining, indexing, and searching for textual chemical molecule information on the web

Current search engines do not support user searches for chemical entities (chemical names and formulae) beyond simple keyword searches. Usually a chemical molecule can be represented in multiple textual ways. A simple keyword search would retrieve only the exact match and not the others. We show how to build a search engine that enables searches for chemical entities and demonstrate empirically that it improves the relevance of returned documents. Our search engine first extracts chemical entities from text, performs novel indexing suitable for chemical names and formulae, and supports different query models that a scientist may require. We propose a model of hierarchical conditional random fields for chemical formula tagging that considers long-term dependencies at the sentence level. To substring searches of chemical names, a search engine must index substrings of chemical names. Indexing all possible sub-sequences is not feasible in practice. We propose an algorithm for independent frequent subsequence mining to discover sub-terms of chemical names with their probabilities. We then propose an unsupervised hierarchical text segmentation (HTS) method to represent a sequence with a tree structure based on discovered independent frequent subsequences, so that sub-terms on the HTS tree should be indexed. Query models with corresponding ranking functions are introduced for chemical name searches. Experiments show that our approaches to chemical entity tagging perform well. Furthermore, we show that index pruning can reduce the index size and query time without changing the returned ranked results significantly. Finally, experiments show that our approaches out-perform traditional methods for document search with ambiguous chemical terms.
Experimental studies on the pathogenesis of infections due to Pseudomonas aeruginosa: direct evidence for toxin production during Pseudomonas infection of burned skin tissues.

Direct evidence is presented for the production of an exotoxin by Pseudomonas aeruginosa multiplying at the burned site in an infected mouse. Pseudomonas toxin was assayed by measurement of its ability to catalyze the transfer of radioactivity from [14C] adenine-labeled nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide to elongation factor 2 (adenosine diphosphate ribosylation activity). This enzyme activity was found in saline extracts of burned infected skin but was not present in similar extracts of burned uninfected skin. It was detected in the serum of infected animals by 26 hr after infection. The level of active elongation factor 2 in the livers of infected mice was reduced significantly after infection. These data suggest that pseudomonas exotoxin, produced by bacteria multiplying at the burn site, enters the circulation and is disseminated to different organs where it acts by depletion of elongation factor 2 and thus causes a reduction in protein synthesis. Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic pathogen that is frequently associated with severe infections of compromised patients [1]. In particular, pseudomonas sepsis in patients with burns has presented a major problem during the last decade [2]. The rate of recovery of Pseudomonas species from the burn site increases with time following the burn. If no topical drug therapy is applied, 70% of all burn wounds are colonized with Pseudomonas within three weeks [3], and the incidence of infection is greater in patients with burns covering more than 30% of
The ebb and flow of consumer identities: the role of memory, emotions and threats

It is well established that consumers use their product and brand choices to signal and reinforce identities. More recently, consumer researchers have begun to focus on the dynamic nature of identity. Moving beyond the momentary effect of a given identity on behavior, newer research investigates how a constellation of identities influence each other and how this interface drives long-term consumption and behavioral patterns. Of particular interest are the processes by which an identity becomes strengthened and weakened over time — both in isolation and also with respect to other identities the consumer may hold. We review these psychological processes based on recent consumer research in the areas of memory, emotions, and threats to identity.
The Financial Detective, 2005

The case presents the student with financial ratios for eight pairs of unidentified companies and asks them to mate the description of the company with the financial profile derived from the ratios. The primary objective of this case is to introduce students to financial ratio analysisin particular, the range of ratios and the insights each one affords. This case presumes that students have already been introduced to the definitions of various financial ratios through other readings or lectures. The structured exploration of pairs of companies within an industry affords a number of important insights into strategy and financial performance. First, the economics of individual industries account for significant variations in financial ratios because of differences in technologies, product characteristics, or competitive structures. Second, financial performance results from managerial choices: within industries, the wide variation in financial ratios is often a result of the differences in corporate strategy in marketing, operations, and finance. For those reasons, this case is a good springboard into subsequent classes, which deal with the interaction of strategy and financial performance.
Reconstructing Rome

Community photo collections like Flickr offer a rich, ever-growing record of the world around us. New computer vision techniques can use photographs from these collections to rapidly build detailed 3D models.
Wulff Construction for Alloy Nanoparticles

The Wulff construction is an invaluable tool to understand and predict the shape of nanoparticles. We demonstrate here that this venerable model, which gives a size-independent thermodynamic shape, becomes size dependent in the nanoscale regime for an alloy and that the infinite reservoir approximation breaks down. The improvements in structure and energetic modeling have wide-ranging implications both in areas where energetics govern (e.g., nucleation and growth) and where the surface composition is important (e.g., heterogeneous catalysis).
Vaccination with Various Western Equine Encephalomyelitis Viruses; Comparison as Antigens and as Test Inocula.

Conclusions(1) The immunological identity of 4 strains of W.E.E. virus was confirmed by tests in mice. (2) Results of comparative tests for their antigenic potency suggested that the one most recently isolated may be somewhat superior to the older laboratory strains. (3) Mice vaccinated with comparable doses of either of the 4 strains showed equal degrees of resistance to 3 of the strains, while tests with the 4th, the current R.I. strain, indicated that this strain is not a sensitive indicator of the degree of immunity of vaccinated mice. (4) Parallel tests in which vaccinated mice were challenged intracerebrally with the current and with earlier samples of the R.I. strain indicate that after its 9th or 10th year of propagation in laboratory mice, certain changes may have taken place which rendered this strain increasingly less suitable for use in challenge tests for immunity.
Fruiting and genetic analysis of Heterobasidion annosum

Several methods for fruiting Heterobasidion annosum are presented. The methods are simple, reproducible, and can be applied to heterokaryotic mycelia isolated from nature as well as the mycelia resulting from crosses of homokaryotic strains. Methods for mutagenesis and recovery of auxotrophic and morphological mutants are discussed. Instances of fruiting in common-^ heterokaryons and in homokaryons are analyzed. The importance of meeting genetic criteria for successful fruiting is discussed. Heterobasidion annosum (Fr.) Bref. [-Fomes annosus (Fr.) Karst.] causes root decay in coniferous trees. A voluminous literature describes the fungus (see Koenigs, 1960, and Hodges, 1969, for reviews). Few reports consider the genetics of H. annosum. This is understandable because of the scarcity of requisite infor? mation on the mating system and reliable methods to promote sexual fruiting. Recent reports (Korhonen, 1978; Chase and Ullrich, 1983) satisfy essential needs for rudimentary information on the mating system. Heterobasidion an? nosum is heterothallic, multiallelic and unifactorial except for homothallic isolates from Australia (Chase, unpubl. data). Reports on the fruiting of H. annosum in laboratory culture are infrequent. Reynolds (1973), Miller (1960), and Boyce (1962) developed nonaxenic methods of fruiting H. annosum. These involve the use of logs which contain H. annosum incubated under moist but nonsterile conditions. These methods are not wellsuited to genetic analysis. There have been few reports of fruiting of cultures of H. annosum under axenic conditions. Liese (1931) obtained fruiting of H. an? nosum on malt extract agar following exposure of cultures to temperatures less than -26 C. Sychev and Negrutskii (1978) obtained fruiting on White's medium, wort agar, and on various types of wood. Cartwright and Findlay (1958) observed occasional fruiting on sterilized wood blocks. Siepmann (1970) induced H. an? nosum to fruit on sterile wood under controlled environmental conditions. Most recently Holt et al (1983) developed a method for fruiting cultures isolated from infected roots and wood, as well as from mycelia resulting from crosses of ho? mokaryotic strains in the laboratory. This method involves a complex medium and long (up to six months) incubation periods. Except for the report of Holt et al (1983) the earlier papers have not included data to permit assessment of the reproducibility of their particular methods. None has utilized a large, diverse group of H. annosum isolates and fruiting has usually occurred only on very complex media. During the course of our genetic studies (Chase and Ullrich, 1983) we observed that many independent heterokaryons of H. annosum fruited when inoculated to standard 1.25% malt extract agar in Petri dishes. We report improvements in this procedure that permit routine genetic analysis in H. annosum.
Involuntary Sterilization and the Rights of the Mildly Retarded

In discussing the involuntary-sterilization court cases, some members of our group were particularly concerned with the discrepancies between decisions in different states, noting a lack of a consistent moral or philosophical point of view. The question of whether or not involuntary sterilization ought to be allowed under any circumstances was broached, revealing a number of differences of opinion among the group members as to the possible existence of circumstances in which the retarded might indeed “benefit” from sterilization. A particularly telling debate arose over the difficult matter of judging in advance the ability of a retarded person to function as an adequate parent.
EEG Background Activity and Anticonvulsant Drugs

The effects of antiepileptic drugs (AED) on EEG background activity in 37 newly treated children with epilepsy were examined at the Departments of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Toyama Medical and Pharmaceutical University, Toyama City, Japan.
Time Course of Resolution of Hyperprolactinemia After Transsphenoidal Surgery Among Patients Presenting with Pituitary Stalk Compression.

Background Primary lactotroph disinhibition, or stalk effect, occurs when mechanical compression of the pituitary stalk disrupts the tonic inhibition by dopamine released by the hypothalamus. The resolution of pituitary stalk effect–related hyperprolactinemia postoperatively has not been studied in a large cohort of patients. We performed a retrospective review to investigate the time course of recovery of lactotroph disinhibition after transsphenoidal surgery. Methods Medical records were retrospectively reviewed for all patients undergoing transsphenoidal surgery with the senior author from April 2008 to November 2014. Results Of 556 pituitary adenomas, 289 (52.0%) were eliminated: 77 (13.9%) had an immunohistochemically confirmed prolactinoma, 119 (21.4%) patients had previous surgery, 93 (16.7%) had incomplete medical records, leaving 267 patients (48.0%) for final analysis. Of these patients, 72 (27.0%) had increased serum prolactin levels (≥23.3 ng/mL), suggestive of pituitary stalk effect (maximum prolactin level = 148.0 ng/mL). Patients with stalk effect were more likely than those with normal serum prolactin levels to present with menstrual dysfunction (29.7% vs. 19.4%; P Conclusions Transsphenoidal surgery can provide durable normalization of serum prolactin levels and related symptoms caused by pituitary stalk compression–related lactotroph disinhibition.
A Thickness-Weighted Average Perspective of Force Balance in an Idealized Circumpolar Current

AbstractThe exact, three-dimensional, thickness-weighted averaged (TWA) Boussinesq equations are used to diagnose eddy–mean flow interaction in an idealized circumpolar current (ICC). The force exerted by mesoscale eddies on the TWA velocity is expressed as the divergence of the Eliassen–Palm flux tensor. Consistent with previous findings, the analysis indicates that the dynamically relevant definition of the ocean surface layer is composed of the set of buoyancy coordinates that ever reside at the ocean surface at a given horizontal position. The surface layer is found to be a physically distinct object with a diabatic and force balance that is largely isolated from the underlying adiabatic region in the interior. Within the ICC surface layer, the TWA meridional velocity is southward/northward in the top/bottom half and has a value near zero at the bottom. In the top half of the surface layer, the zonal forces due to wind stress and meridional advection of potential vorticity act to accelerate the TWA zo...
Two-Year Visit

Teddy is a 2-year-old boy who lives on a farm where his parents work. The mother works in the kitchen and the father works in the fields. Teddy’s current weight is 12.6 kg (27.7 lb); his length is 88 cm (35.2 in.), putting him in the 50th percentile for both. His head circumference is 48.5 cm (19.4 in.), putting him in the 60th percentile for head size. The family’s income is near the federal poverty level and Teddy has few toys and books. Teddy eats finger foods at meals and has about six small meals each day with about two foods at each meal. His parents are concerned he doesn’t sit down to eat but wants to run around during meals. His mother cuts up fruit and provides finger foods for him to eat while at the babysitter. Teddy has a daily bowel movement and urinates about 4–5 times a day. He has not expressed any interest in toilet training but his parents do read books to him on the topic. He takes one nap a day. Teddy runs without falling. He walks up and down stairs unassisted one step at a time and enjoys climbing and exploring. Teddy has temper tantrums when he doesn’t get what he wants. His parents discipline him with time-out, but first try to distract him and give words to his feelings. Teddy often needs parental reassurance and engages in play that imitates his parents’ behavior. He likes to pretend to sweep the floor and feed the chickens. Teddy enjoys jumping, kicking balls and throwing overhand, and running in the yard. He is able to put on a t-shirt, his socks, and Velcro sneakers, He talks in two- to three-word sentences. Teddy’s parents are using good discipline techniques such as distraction, patience, ignoring temper tantrums, and using time-out appropriately.
Political participation in a violent society: The impact of lynching on voter turnout in the post-Reconstruction South

How does violence against a group affect political participation? In theory, the targeted group may either become politically mobilized or may become discouraged and withdraw from political participation. To address this question, we assess the impact of lynchings on differential rates of black turnout in the post-Reconstruction American South. We first provide evidence that lynchings are not politically motivated. We then show that, even though lynchings were not politically motivated, exposure to lynching reduced local black voter turnout by roughly 2.5 percentage points. A series of specification tests suggest this relationship can be interpreted as causal.
Quantum Metrology and Quantum Information Processing with Hyper-Entangled Quantum States

A pair of photons generated in the nonlinear process of spontaneous parametric down conversion is, in general, entangled so as to contain strong energy, time, polarization, and momentum quantum correlations. This entanglement involving more than one pair of quantum variable, known as hyper-entanglement entanglement, serves as a powerful tool in fundamental studies of foundations of the quantum theory, in the development of novel information processing techniques, and in the construction of new quantum measurement technologies, such as quantum ellipsometry.
Factors Associated With Physician Loss in Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction Malpractice Lawsuits

Background:Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction is among the most common orthopaedic procedures, with its incidence doubling over the past decade. To date, no studies have analyzed litig...