cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Grasshopper mouse's use of visual cues during a predatory attack.

This study examined the grasshopper mouse's use of visual cues to recognize a potential prey. The mouse's latency of attack was measured in response to models presented in five experiments. The mice responded to the contrast, movement and relative size of a visual stimulus, but did not respond to different orientations or shapes. Furthermore, the mice did not learn to recognize a particular prey by its shape or by a combination of visual cues. Essentially, the mice used vision primarily to detect and follow a potential prey rather than to recognize a particular species. The significance of the mouse's use of visual cues compared with olfactory and auditory cues was discussed.
Activity centered design: towards a theoretical framework for CSCL

Computers have not yet had the profound impact on classroom practice that has been predicted. Given the proven potential of computer-mediated instruction, what can account for the lack of progress? This paper explores the theoretical underpinnings of many of the existing computer-mediated learning environments and suggests that the learning theories that lie behind them lead to designs that do not fit with nor change the basic participation structures of the classroom. We argue instead for Activity Centered Design (ACD), a model of design for Computer Supported Collaborative Learning environments, based on the following assumptions: that activity is mediated by cultural tools, that activity must be conceptualized on a number of interdependent levels, and that conceptual understanding is first established socially. We then critique our own existing learning environment, the Probability Inquiry Environment, from the ACD perspective.
Galloping Elephants: Developing Elements of a Theory of Effective Government Organizations

Much of the theory and discourse on public bureaucracies treats them negatively, as if they incline inevitably toward weak performance. This orientation prevails in spite of considerable evidence that many government organizations perform very well, and in spite of many examples of their excellent performance. This article draws on the literature and research on effective government organizations to select and develop conceptual elements of a theory to explain their effectiveness. The available research suggests that such a theory should include the following components. supportive behaviors from external stakeholders such as political authorities; agency autonomy in refining and implementing its mission; high "mission valence" (an attractive mission); a strong, mission-oriented culture, and certain leadership behaviors. The discussion further posits that these factors enhance several forms of motivation of people in the agency-task motivation, mission motivation, and public service motivationthat can be differentiated but that must be linked together in effective government agencies. A corollary of this fact is the falsity of an equally common claim. that public and nonprofit organizations cannot, and on average do not, operate as efficiently as private businesses. . . . (Simon 1998, 1 1) The elephant serves as a virtually archetypical symbol of a large, cumbersome, lumbering being. Yet an elephant can run very fast. Pachyderm means thick-skinned, yet elephants display sensitivity in acts of altruism and nurturance beyond those that 1/Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory For valuable comments on earlier drafts of this paper, I am grateful to Bob Durant, Jameson Doig, Ken Meier, Patrick Wolf, and many of the participants in the theory panel at the 1998 Midwest Political Science Association meeting. I could not take all their comments and critiques into account in my revisions, so they bear no responsibility for limitations
Three dimensional shape comparison of flexible proteins using the local-diameter descriptor.

Techniques for inferring the functions of the protein by comparing their shape similarity have been receiving a lot of attention. Proteins are functional units and their shape flexibility occupies an essential role in various biological processes. Several shape descriptors have demonstrated the capability of protein shape comparison by treating them as rigid bodies. But this may give rise to an incorrect comparison of flexible protein shapes. We introduce an efficient approach for comparing flexible protein shapes by adapting a local diameter (LD) descriptor. The LD descriptor, developed recently to handle skeleton based shape deformations [1], is adapted in this work to capture the invariant properties of shape deformations caused by the motion of the protein backbone. Every sampled point on the protein surface is assigned a value measuring the diameter of the 3D shape in the neighborhood of that point. The LD descriptor is built in the form of a one dimensional histogram from the distribution of the diameter values. The histogram based shape representation reduces the shape comparison problem of the flexible protein to a simple distance calculation between 1D feature vectors. Experimental results indicate how the LD descriptor accurately treats the protein shape deformation. In addition, we use the LD descriptor for protein shape retrieval and compare it to the effectiveness of conventional shape descriptors. A sensitivity-specificity plot shows that the LD descriptor performs much better than the conventional shape descriptors in terms of consistency over a family of proteins and discernibility across families of different proteins. Our study provides an effective technique for comparing the shape of flexible proteins. The experimental results demonstrate the insensitivity of the LD descriptor to protein shape deformation. The proposed method will be potentially useful for molecule retrieval with similar shapes and rapid structure retrieval for proteins. The demos and supplemental materials are available on https://engineering.purdue.edu/PRECISE/LDD .
Studying Shear Behavior of Ductile Metals Using an Atomic Force Microscope

The characteristics of sheared surfaces of ductile metals are fundamentally interesting for tribological performance. This research applies an atomic force microscope (AFM) to characterize the shear patterns and characteristics of pure copper metal. Two approaches were used, micro indentation and equal channel angular extrusion (ECAS). This poster discusses our findings in nano scale behavior of shear and compares the process of materials deformation. New insight of ductility for wear is reported.Copyright © 2005 by ASME
Impact of Percutaneous Transluminal Angioplasty for Treatment of Cerebral Vasospasm on Subarachnoid Hemorrhage Patient Outcomes

Background Percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) has been introduced for treatment of symptomatic cerebral vasospasm in patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). While angiographic improvement is consistently reported, clinical improvement following the procedure varies, and limited data is available regarding overall impact on outcome.
Solubility of hemoglobin S by sedimentation, equilibrium, and antisickling compounds

Abstract The effect of the compounds guanidine, arginine, lysine, and aspartic acid and the salt arginine aspartate on the solubility of deoxyhemoglobin S (Hb S) was studied by sedimentation equilibrium at 20–22 °C. Guanidine and arginine were found to be most effective, whereas aspartic acid and lysine had only a small effect. The effectiveness of these compounds in solubilizing Hb S is relatively pH independent. It is unlikely that the small effect of lysine and aspartic acid on the solubility of Hb S can account for the antisickling properties of lysine and aspartic acid previously reported (Sophianopoulos, A. J., et al. (1974) Clin. Biochem. 7 , 112–118). The effect of guanidine and arginine is large enough to account for a large part of such antisickling properties (Sophianopoulos et al. (1974). The nonideality of concentrated hemoglobin solutions (up to 0.3 g cm −3 ) has been studied in detail. By using the liganded as well as the unliganded forms of both Hb S and Hb A, it was found that the magnitude of the virial (nonideality) coefficients can change with varying solution conditions. A comparison of pure Hb S with hemolysates is made using viscosity and sedimentation velocity.
The Effect of Mathematics on the College Graduation Rates of Adult Students

Abstract This study analyzed the effect of mathematics courses on a cohort of students at a 4-year university in order to compare the effect of mathematics on adult students, those 25 and older, and traditional-age students. The transcripts of the 118 adult students and the 3,747 traditional-age students who were freshmen in the fall of 1999 were compared. The main findings of this study were (1) the adult cohort was less academically prepared upon entering college and had lower graduations rates than traditional-age students, (2) adult students who matriculated academically prepared for college-level mathematics had similar graduation rates as younger students with similar mathematics preparation, and (3) adult students who were unprepared for college mathematics had significantly lower graduation rates than traditional-age students beginning their college mathematics at the same level. While the adult group in this study included a larger percentage of minority and part-time students, which may have con...
Effect of low extracellular calcium on shortening velocity in isolated single smooth muscle cells.

To understand how smooth muscle modulates its shortening velocity within the time course of a single contraction, the factors that govern crossbridge cycling in smooth muscle must be characterized. Since calcium plays an important role in regulation of the contractile apparatus, we studied the effect of lowering extracellular calcium on shortening velocity in single smooth muscle cells isolated enzymatically from the toad,Bufo marinus, stomach muscularis. Shortening velocity was estimated by three independent methods: (1) isotonic releases; (2) slack test; (3) video images of freely shortening cells. To determine the shortening velocity from isotonic releases and the slack test method, a single cell was attached at one end to an ultrasensitive force transducer and piezoelectric displacement device at its other end. At peak isometric force, in response to electrical stimulation, a series of isotonic releases to varying force levels were imposed and the resultant shortening responses used to construct force: velocity relationships in physiological saline containing low (0.18 mM) extracellular calcium. From force: velocity relationships and slack test data, an estimate of maximum shortening velocity (Vmax) was 0.19 cell lengths/s which was 3 times lower than in normal calcium (Warshaw 1987). AlthoughVmax was reduced in low extracellular calcium, the curvature of the force: velocity relationship estimated from the hyperbolic constant,a/Fmax, was unchanged (a/Fmax=0.17). Additional evidence for an effect of extracellular calcium on shortening velocity was obtained from shortening responses of freely shortening cells attached at one end only. Data from cells exposed first to low (0.18 mM) and then normal (1.8 mM) calcium suggest at least a twofold decrease in free shortening velocity with lower extracellular calcium. These results suggest that calcium exerts its effects by altering the rate constants for specific steps in the crossbridge cycle. For example, the lowerVmax would correlate with a reduction in the rate of crossbridge detachment.
Evidence of convergence in Eastern Europe: a quantile regression approach

The change of regimes in former Soviet Bloc provides an opportunity to study the neoclassical growth theory in a region of the world that was excluded before because of the presence of centrally planned economies. A concern is whether these newly formed economies are converging to a unique steady state or are diverging. A common approach to the study of neoclassical growth theory is the use of beta-convergence. However, the approach suffers from several malaises, most notably the regression to the mean. An alternative approach relies on quantile regression to overcome this problem. Different quantile regressions controlling the customary factors are utilised to determine the patterns of growth rates of the former communist countries.
Comparison of intravenous/oral ciprofloxacin plus metronidazole versus piperacillin/tazobactam in the treatment of complicated intraabdominal infections.

The treatment of intraabdominal infection is challenging because of their polymicrobial nature 1–3 and accompanying death and complications. Treatment may be further complicated by bacteriologic resistance issues, such as the large number of β-lactamase-producing Enterobacteriaceae present in intraabdominal infections. For most episodes, antimicrobial regimens usually involve combination therapy, 4–11 although several monotherapy approaches have been studied. 5,6,12–15 Ciprofloxacin (CIP), a 1-cyclopropyl fluoroquinolone, has excellent activity against aerobic gram-negative facultative microbes commonly associated with intraabdominal infections 16,17 and also penetrates well into the peritoneal cavity. 18,19 In this study, CIP was used in combination with metronidazole (MET), which has proven efficacy in the treatment of intraabdominal infections. 13 One important advantage of CIP+MET combination therapy over conventional antibiotic regimens is that it permits patients to be switched from intravenous (IV) to oral therapy, thus maintaining the same antibiotic class and providing consistent susceptibility. Because of the excellent bioavailability of CIP (70%), 20 oral CIP 500 mg twice daily is bioequivalent to 400 mg of intravenous CIP q12h. 19 Treatment of serious abdominal infections with oral therapy can allow recovery at home, potentially lowering the risk of acquiring a nosocomial or IV catheter-related complication. Obviously, limiting the duration of hospital stay and also antimicrobial costs is desirable in the current healthcare environment. The primary objective of this study was to compare the efficacy of IV CIP+MET with IV piperacillin/tazobactam (PIP/TAZO) for the treatment of complicated intraabdominal infections. A secondary goal was to compare the efficacy of IV CIP+MET alone with sequential IV-to-oral CIP+MET therapy. We hypothesized that CIP+MET would provide equivalent clinical resolution to the PIP/TAZO regimen.
Effects of success and failure on perceptions of gender identity

Though much research has focused upon how feminine role prescriptions affect female attitudes and behavior in competition, little research has been done concerning how male norms relate to male competitive behavior. The present research found that following competition with an opposite sex member, males who failed estimated that their partners would rate them as less masculine than did males who succeeded. Horner's theory of success avoidance (1968) in women was not firmly substantiated since it was found that females who succeeded did not estimate that their partners would rate them as less feminine than did females who failed. It was speculated that female success may be as incompatible, if not more incompatible, with male norms as it is with female norms.
Internal organization of membranes at end bulbs of held in the anteroventral cochlear nucleus

The end bulb of Held in the rostral ventral cochlear nucleus of the chinchilla and guinea pig was studied with the freeze-fracture technique. The end bulb has multiple, small active zones which are uniformly distributed within the calyceal portion of this terminal. Single or small groups of active zones are surrounded by enlarged channels of extracellular space often containing processes of astrocytes. Small plasmalemmal deformations occur at these active zones. The number of these deformations is thought to be indicative of exocytotic transmitter release because they are more frequent in animals fixed in a noisy environment compared to animals fixed in a quiet environment. Thus, our study provides a basis for the quantitative study of changes in transmitter secretion at a central nervous system synapse driven by a controllable natural stimulus. The postsynaptic active zone at end bulbs resembles other excitatory synapses in the central nervous system in having an aggregate of large particles on the external membrane leaflet. This junctional aggregate of particles is coextensive with the presynaptic active zone and with the postsynaptic density seen in thin sections. Several perisynaptic aggregates of particles are deployed around each active zone on the external membrane leaflet. These irregularly-shaped aggregates occur preferentially opposite the channels of enlarged extracellular space and along the edge of the end bulb and are not components of intercellular junctions or plasmalemmal contacts with cytoplasmic organelles. Although the function of the different particle aggregates on the postsynaptic membrane is not clear, our findings provide a basis for studying the factors controlling and maintaining their structure as well as more evidence that a consistent relationship exists between types of synaptic action and structure of the postsynaptic membrane.
Age-related alterations in the stimulated release in vitro of catecholamines and luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone from the male rat hypothalamus.

Using an in vitro perifusion system, the present study investigated the possibility that alterations in catecholamine and luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) secretion from the male rat mediobasal hypothalamus are present during the period of middle-age. The results indicate that, while tissue concentrations and baseline secretion of norepinephrine, dopamine and LHRH were similar between age groups, the patterns of dopamine and LHRH release in response to a series of depolarizing stimuli was different in the older animals. After all challenges, dopamine concentrations in the perifusate declined much more sharply for the middle-aged group, a finding that may be associated with a decrease with age in the pool of transmitter available for ready release. Also, tissue fragments from young adult rats were able to maintain the release of LHRH to a greater extent than tissue from the middle-aged animals, but only for the initial challenge period. The typical episodic pattern of LHRH release appeared to be disrupted in the older group following a second stimulus. It is possible that these age-related changes are early components of a dysruption in the hypothalamic mechanisms governing gonadotropin secretion.
Layered VAR control strategy of DFIG-based wind farm

This paper proposed a novel layered VAR control strategy to solve VAR and voltage stability caused by wind farm integration. The strategy first calculated reactive power demand of the wind farm by deviation of reference voltage and measured voltage of control point. Then the calculated reactive power demand was distributed by equal power factor algorithm to single wind generator in the wind farm. In this way voltage stability of grid integrated with wind farm can be solved. Wind farm reactive power limit and power factor limit were considered real-time in wind farm reactive power demand calculation. Simulation shows the strategy can support voltage of control point and restrain voltage fluctuation caused by load change.
A Model Citizen? Is Tamoxifen More Effective Than Aromatase Inhibitors if We Pick the Right Patients?

After decades of empiricism, the treatment of cancer is widely felt to be entering the era of “targeted” therapy and leading to personalized strategies for individuals with this dreaded disease. Of course, the approach to targeted therapy in oncology is not a new one. Students of breast cancer history point to Sir George Beatson’s report in 1896 of the clinical improvement he observed in three young women with locally advanced breast cancer following surgical oophorectomy ( 1 ). Subsequent landmark studies by Jensen, Lippman, and McGuire, among others, demonstrated that what Beatson had actually done was remove a specific growth factor, 17 -estradiol, from its cellular target, the estrogen receptor (ER) ( 2 – 4 ). Clinicians now routinely use tissue ER content to individualize antiestrogen therapy for breast cancer patients ( 5 ).
A neural network approach to high performance analog circuit design

In order to gain new insight into the design of high-precision, high-speed analog circuits, several possible network implementations of an A/D convertor are presented. These networks are marked by programmability and parallelism, which can be used to maintain circuit precision without the use of feedback. This removes design constraints on closed-loop stability, and may lead to faster circuit performance. On-chip training or calibration is likely to be necessary, but can be done in an offline mode, and thus may not hinder circuit speed significantly. >
Lincoln as Commander-in-Chief

Abstract Abraham Lincoln's presidency was defined and dominated by war, yet Lincoln himself had very little direct experience with warfare; nor had the American presidency been truly tested by war when he took office. Lincoln had to negotiate very difficult political and constitutional terrain as he waged the Civil War: issues of executive authority, constitutional powers and their limitations, and the nature of civil liberties during war constantly bedeviled him. His guiding principle in all these matters, and the greatest lesson we can learn from him today, was his flexibility and his pragmatism.
Red Tomato: Keeping It Local

This case describes the operating model and history of Red Tomato, a non-profit organization dedicated to branding and logistical support for locally grown produce farmers in the northeast U.S. The case highlights the challenges involved in making locally grown produce available to large consumer markets.
The economics of health care reform

Health care costs in the United States have been rising faster than most other goods and services for more than 20 years. The fundamental reason for this rise in cost is unbridled demand for health care services. Demand is high because those who receive the benefits (patients) pay a relatively small portion of the cost of their health insurance. The bulk of health insurance costs are paid by employers or the government for the majority of Americans. To control these rising costs, the demand for health care must be brought under control. This would be best accomplished by a system which requires each individual or family to pay for their own health insurance. This type of payment system would force consumers to become price sensitive and educated on different health insurance plan options. Controlling the demand for health care is the simplest way to control its cost, because in a competitive, consumer-driven market, providers would have to offer cost-effective health care. With this type of market-driven system, appropriate price and utilization levels for health care would be reached within the context of future economic growth and living standards.
A fuzzy set analysis for predicting performance of clay liners

The authors document a methodology for evaluating performance of a clay liner in terms of the possibility of meeting the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's requirement on the hydraulic conductivity. Four major categories of factors affecting the performance of clay liners are identified through a review of literature. A survey of expert opinions was conducted to measure the extent of the contribution of each category to the performance of clay liners. In this proposed methodology, the clay liner is evaluated and rated using a linguistic assessment to reflect the uncertainty faced in the evaluation process. These grades are translated into fuzzy numbers and processed using fuzzy arithmetic. The final results of the analysis is a fuzzy number that represents the overall predicted performance of a clay liner. Example case studies are presented to demonstrate the methodology. >
Differential response of aspen and birch trees to heat stress under elevated carbon dioxide

The effect of high temperature on photosynthesis of isoprene-emitting (aspen) and non-isoprene-emitting (birch) trees were measured under elevated CO(2) and ambient conditions. Aspen trees tolerated heat better than birch trees and elevated CO(2) protected photosynthesis of both species against moderate heat stress. Elevated CO(2) increased carboxylation capacity, photosynthetic electron transport capacity, and triose phosphate use in both birch and aspen trees. High temperature (36-39 degrees C) decreased all of these parameters in birch regardless of CO(2) treatment, but only photosynthetic electron transport and triose phosphate use at ambient CO(2) were reduced in aspen. Among the two aspen clones tested, 271 showed higher thermotolerance than 42E possibly because of the higher isoprene-emission, especially under elevated CO(2). Our results indicate that isoprene-emitting trees may have a competitive advantage over non-isoprene emitting ones as temperatures rise, indicating that biological diversity may be affected in some ecosystems because of heat tolerance mechanisms.
Mode of Action: Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibition—Developmental Effects Associated With Exposure to ACE Inhibitors

Relative to species tested in laboratory studies, the human fetus displays higher vulnerability to enalapril and other angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEI) exhibiting a malformative syndrome that does not appear to have a similar counterpart in experimental animals. An important reason for this higher vulnerability is the earlier intrauterine development of the kidney and the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone (RAS) system in humans, organ systems that are specific targets of ACEI's pharmacological effect. In humans, these systems begin developing prior to the onset of skeletal ossification at the end of the first trimester, with continuing vulnerability throughout the pregnancy. In most animal species tested, these target systems develop close to term, when the fetus is relatively more mature and less vulnerable to the effects of developmental toxicants. For this reason, animal studies that follow standard protocols and evaluate developmental toxicity only for exposures during embryogenesis will miss developmental effects arising secondary to disruption of target systems that develop after the period of major organogenesis. Thus, although the animal mode of action (MOA) for enalapril and other ACEI is plausible in humans, differences in the timing of development of critical target organ systems, particularly the renal system and RAS, explain the absence of definitive structural abnormalities in test animals.
Testing and applying a fish vitellogenesis model to evaluate laboratory and field biomarkers of endocrine disruption in Atlantic croaker (Micropogonias undulatus) exposed to hypoxia

Recently, hypoxia has been shown to act as an endocrine disruptor. We used a model of vitellogenesis in a female sciaenid fish to simulate the effects of hypoxia and to determine if reproductive impairment observed in field-caught fish could be attributed to dissolved oxygen conditions at the sampling sites. The model is a set of coupled, ordinary differential equations that simulate major biochemical reactions from the secretion of gonadotropin to production of vitellogenin. Various intermediate variables in the model correspond to commonly measured biomarkers, and we assume a direct relationship between cumulative vitellogenin (VTG) and the gonadosomatic index (GSI). Model predictions were compared to results of laboratory studies that examined the effects of hypoxia on Atlantic croaker (Micropogonias undulatus) reproduction. When hypoxia was assumed to cause reduced gonadotropin and impaired aromatase activity, model predictions of VTG production were similar to laboratory-measured reductions in GSI. The model was then applied to reproductive biomarkers measured in fish from normoxic and hypoxic locations in Pensacola Bay (FL, USA). We simulated the relationship between reduced estradiol-17β and VTG production under hypoxia, and we compared these results with field data. Good agreement between field and simulation results suggested that croaker collected from hypoxic sites in October were exposed to hypoxic conditions for an extended period during gonadal recrudescence and that hypoxia was a dominant cause for the reduced GSIs. Monte Carlo uncertainty analyses suggested that the maximum rate of free testosterone production is the most sensitive parameter. Our simulations demonstrated that the model can be used identifying the mechanism underlying endocrine disruption and for interpreting field-measured biomarkers in situations of multiple stressors.
Automated detection of Pueraria montana (kudzu) through Haar analysis of hyperspectral reflectance data

The automated detection of noxious weeds using remote sensing techniques would be of great benefit for their monitoring and control. In this article, the Haar discrete wavelet transform (DWT) method is investigated for extracting pertinent features from hyperspectral signatures. Based on the Haar DWT features, a fully automated detection system is designed and evaluated to determine its performance for the practical use of kudzu detection. For performance evaluation, the authors use a leave-one-out test of a nearest mean classifier to compute classification accuracies and the corresponding 95% confidence intervals. When the system was tested to determine its ability to classify each of five classes of weeds, including kudzu and four similar broadleaf weeds, the classification accuracy was 90.2%/spl plusmn/4.4%. When the system was tested to determine its ability to detect kudzu among a mixture of the four weed types, the classification accuracy was 100%.
Infant Race Affects Application of Clinical Guidelines When Screening for Drugs of Abuse in Newborns

BACKGROUND: Screening for illicit drugs in newborns has privacy, social, and legal risks for families of the infants. Established drug-screening criteria may be applied in a manner that considers nonproven risk factors such as race in addition to evidence-based factors. OBJECTIVE: The goal of this study was to determine if race was used as a criterion for screening infants for intrauterine cocaine exposure. We hypothesized that infants of black mothers would be more likely to be screened regardless of whether they met the standard criteria for screening of our institution9s NICU. METHODS: We used the electronic medical records of newborn infants and their mothers to determine which mother-infant pairs had documented evidence of meeting the criteria for screening infants for prenatal exposure to illicit drugs set forth in the guidelines of our NICU. We then assessed the rates of drug screening to determine the strongest predictors of whether an infant would be screened. RESULTS: We assessed 2121 mother-infant pairs. Infants born to black mothers were more likely than those born to white mothers to have screening performed whether they met screening criteria (35.1% vs 12.9%; P CONCLUSION: Providers seemed to have used race, in addition to recognized risk criteria, as a factor in deciding whether to screen an infant for maternal illicit drug use.
Mutations of the endothelin-B receptor and endothelin-3 genes in Hirschsprung's disease

The endothelin-B receptor gene (EDNRB) and the endothelin-3 gene (EDN3) have recently been recognized as susceptibility genes for Hirschsprung's disease (HD). Novel EDNRB mutations have been detected in non-syndrommc HD patients with heterozygous forms, and homozygous mutations of the EDNRB or the EDN3 genes have been reported in HD patients associated with type 2 Waardenburg syndrome. These observations confirm that impaired function of the endothelin-B receptor or endothelin-3 is involved in the aetiology of some human HD cases. EDNRB mutations appear to be associated with shortsegment HD, in contrast to RET mutations, which are found mainly in long-segment aganglionosis.
The Caenorhabditis elegans nephrocystins act as global modifiers of cilium structure.

Nephronophthisis (NPHP) is the most common genetic cause of end-stage renal disease in children and young adults. In Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, Caenorhabditis elegans, and mammals, the NPHP1 and NPHP4 gene products nephrocystin-1 and nephrocystin-4 localize to basal bodies or ciliary transition zones (TZs), but their function in this location remains unknown. We show here that loss of C. elegans NPHP-1 and NPHP-4 from TZs is tolerated in developing cilia but causes changes in localization of specific ciliary components and a broad range of subtle axonemal ultrastructural defects. In amphid channel cilia, nphp-4 mutations cause B tubule defects that further disrupt intraflagellar transport (IFT). We propose that NPHP-1 and NPHP-4 act globally at the TZ to regulate ciliary access of the IFT machinery, axonemal structural components, and signaling molecules, and that perturbing this balance results in cell type–specific phenotypes.
Structural evolution of La-Cr-O thin films: Part I. Microstructure and phase development

The structural evolution of La–Cr–O thin films and the formation mechanisms of the LaCrO3 perovskite phase have been studied. X-ray amorphous La–Cr–O protective coatings were deposited by magnetron sputtering on metallic interconnect materials. During the annealing of the material in air a two-step phase transition from La–Cr–O to a monoclinic LaCrO4 monazite and further to an orthorhombic LaCrO3 perovskite phase was observed. The formation of a fine nanoporous structure is a result of the significant increase in density of the final LaCrO3 perovskite in comparison with monazite LaCrO4 phase. While the porous structure was not sought after for this application, these distinctive nanostructures may have numerous applications in catalysis, separation membranes or for other SOFC components.
Identifying individual changes in performance with composite quality indicators while accounting for regression to the mean.

Almost a decade ago Morton & Torgerson (p. 1084) indicated that perceived medical benefits could be due to “…regression-to-the-mean.” Despite this caution, the regression-to-the-mean “…effects on the identification of changes in institutional performance do not seem to have been considered previously in any depth.” (Jones & Spiegelhalter, p. 1646). As a response, Jones & Spiegelhalter provide a methodology to adjust for regression-to-the-mean when modeling recent changes in institutional performance for one variable quality indicators (QIs). Therefore, in our view, Jones & Spiegelhalter provide a breakthrough methodology for performance measures. At the same time, in the interests of parsimony, it is useful to aggregate individual QIs into a composite score. Our question is: Can we develop and demonstrate a methodology that extends the ‘regression-to-the-mean’ literature to allow for composite quality indicators? Using a latent variable modeling approach, we extend the methodology to the composite indicator case. We demonstrate the approach on four indicators collected by the National Database of Nursing Quality Indicators® (NDNQI®). A simulation study further demonstrates its “proof of concept.”
Development of Multilocus PCR Assays for Raffaelea lauricola, Causal Agent of Laurel Wilt Disease.

Dreaden, T. J., Davis, J. M., Harmon, C. L., Ploetz, R. C., Palmateer, A. J., Soltis, P. S., and Smith, J. A. 2014. Development of multilocus PCR assays for Raffaelea lauricola, causal agent of laurel wilt disease. Plant Dis. 98:379-383. Laurel wilt, caused by the fungus Raffaelea lauricola, is an exotic disease that affects members of the Lauraceae plant family in the southeastern United States. The disease is spreading rapidly in native forests and is now found in commercial avocado groves in south Florida, where an accurate diagnostic method would improve disease management. A polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method based on amplifying the ribosomal small-subunit DNA, with a detection limit of 0.0001 ng, was found to be suitable for some quantitative PCR applications; however, it was not taxon specific. Genomic sequencing of R. lauricola was used to identify and develop primers to amplify two taxon-specific simple-sequence repeat (SSR) loci, which did not amplify from related taxa or host DNA. The new SSR loci PCR assay has a detection limit of 0.1 ng of R. lauricola DNA, is compatible with traditional and real-time PCR, was tested in four labs to confirm consistency, and reduces diagnostic time from 1 week to 1 day. Our work illustrates pitfalls to designing taxon-specific assays for new pathogens and that undescribed fungi can limit specificity.
A Defense of Subsequent Consent

Prior consent is morally transformative; it has moral magic. In other words, whether an intervention is morally permissible sometimes depends on whether it was consented to beforehand. On this everyone agrees. However, from this assumption I argue it follows that subsequent consent—the kind that occurs after the intervention for which it is consent—can be morally transformative as well. This is important because if subsequent consent is merely a natural extension of prior (and concurrent) consent, then it could justify many interventions which cannot appeal to prior (or concurrent) consent, for example clinical research in emergency settings, and which would therefore otherwise have to appeal to potentially less reputable sources for their justification, such as paternalism or counterfactual consent—what a subject would have consented to in some relevant counterfactual situation. Gerald Dworkin was the first to suggest that subsequent consent might be efficacious, but his comments on the subject were quite condensed, and he never followed up on his brief suggestion, which was also unnecessarily restricted to parental paternalism toward their children:
Re: “Recent Measures to Improve Radiology Reporting: Perspectives From Primary Care Physicians”

In their recent article, Gunn et al [1] noted the paradoxical finding that referringprimarycarephysicianswantradiologists to recommend appropriate additional imaging procedures but at the same time dislike unqualified recommendations because they feel medicolegally obligated to perform any further examinations that have been suggested, especially if located in a separate section of the radiology report. They also correctly observed that the failure of a radiologist to make appropriate recommendations could both compromise patient care and risk litigation. I have addressed this issue in my practice and developed two simple approaches. If I believe that an additional imaging study should be obtained, I generallyuse thephrase“If there isneed tofurthercharacterizethisabnormality, X would be the next imaging procedure.” In this way, I have fulfilled my medicolegal obligation as a radiologist by “suggesting,” rather than “recommending,” further imaging. Moreover, such phraseology protects referring clinicians from family members if they believe that further imaging would be futile, as in the case of a patient for whom only palliative therapy is appropriate. A similar situation occurs in the frequent case of chest radiographic findings that are equivocal for pneumonia. By using the phrase “superimposed pneumonia should be considered in the appropriate clinical setting,” I effectively raise thepossibility of pneumonia but also protect the referring clinician by offering a choice. If the clinical decision is not to treat with antibiotics, the radiology report provides protection from a patient or family members demanding antibiotic therapy that the clinician deems inappropriate. Conversely, if the clinician
Alterations in cholesterol absorption/synthesis markers characterize Framingham Offspring Study participants with CHD

Data is limited on measures influencing cholesterol homeostasis in subjects at high risk of developing cardiovascular disease (CVD) relative to established risk factors. To address this, we quantified circulating indicators of cholesterol homeostasis (plasma phytosterols and cholesterol precursor concentrations as surrogate measures of cholesterol absorption and synthesis, respectively) in Framingham Offspring Study Cycle-6 participants diagnosed with established CVD and/or ≥50% carotid stenosis not taking lipid lowering medication (cases, N = 155) and matched controls (N = 414). Cases and controls had similar plasma LDL-cholesterol; HDL-cholesterol was significantly lower in males, while triglyceride concentrations were significantly higher in female cases relative to their respective controls. Cholesterol absorption markers were significantly higher (229 ± 7 vs. 196 ± 4, 169 ± 6 vs. 149 ± 3 and 144 ± 5 vs. 135 ± 3 for campesterol, sitosterol, and cholestanol, respectively), whereas cholesterol synthesis markers were significantly lower (116 ± 4 vs. 138 ± 3, 73 ± 3 vs. 75 ± 2 for lathosterol and desmosterol, respectively) in cases compared with controls, irrespective of sex. After controlling for standard risk factors, campesterol (2.47 [1.71-3.56]; P < 0.0001), sitosterol (1.86 [1.38-2.50]; P < 0.0001), cholestanol (1.57 [1.09-2.27]; P = 0.02), desmosterol (0.59 [0.42-0.84]; P = 0.003), and lathosterol (0.58 [0.43-0.77]; P = 0.0002) were significantly associated with CVD (odds ratio [95% confidence interval]). These data suggest that impaired cholesterol homeostasis, reflected by lower synthesis and higher absorption marker concentrations, are highly significant independent predictors of prevalent CVD in this study population.
IN VITRO EFFECTS OF ADRENAL STEROID HORMONES ON AMINO ACID TRANSPORT IN MUSCLE.

The transport of A IB into isolated diaphragms of normal rats was inhibited when the muscles were incubated for 4 hr in the presence of various steroid hormones. The synthetic glucocorticoid, dexamethasone, which inhibited AIB transport at a concentration of 10-8M, had the greatest activity of the hormones tested. Cortisol, corticosterone, 11-deoxycortisol and 11-deoxycorticosterone were inhibitory at 10-7M, while 11-dehydrocorticosterone and aldosterone had some activity at 10-6M. Progesterone was inhibitory at a concentiation of 10-5M, while 17β-estradiol, Δ4- androstene-3,17-dione and cholesterol were inactive. Under the conditions employed, corticosterone (10-7M) had no effect on the concentration of amino nitrogen in the cells of the diaphragm. When incubation periods of short duration (0.5–2.0 hr) were used, corticosterone did not inhibit AIB transport when tested at concentrations ranging from 10-4 to 10-7M. However, when diaphragms were preincubated with corticosterone (10-6M) only for 3 hr, the s...
Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli CS1 pilus: not one structure but several

Published ahead of print 25 January 2013 The views expressed in this Commentary do not necessarily reflect the views of the journal or of ASM.
Nonparametric and Gaussian bivariate transvariation theory: its applications to economics

This paper is concerned with the bivariate transvariation theory. It presents an historical account of the subject and a development of the theory. It deals with the probability of transvariation and its related concepts, namely, transvariability and its maximum; the rth moment of transvariation, its maximum and the rth intensity of transvariation; area of transvariation and discriminative value. These concepts are developed without parametric constraint and under the assumption of Gaussian distribution. The sample variances and covariances of the transvariation parameters estimators are herein deduced. The applications, performed on economic variables, underline the fruitfulness of transvariation theory as a quantitative method to deal with comparative statics analysis.
Fine Structure Studies of R. MelilotinodDABC Genes

The ability of Rhizobium bacteria to invade plants and stimulate the host to develop nodules depends upon a series of genes, including the nodulation (nod) and host range (host specific nod) genes (Kondorosi et al, 1984; Jacobs et al, 1985), as well as loci which influence the state of the bacterial cell surface and probably other genes not yet specified. The bacterium Rhizobium meliloti invades alfalfa (lucerne, genus Medicago), and a few other genera of plants. We have analyzed the genes which R. meliloti requires for symbiosis with alfalfa, and report here our studies on the map and sequence of four of these genes, together with identification of their protein products, and the analysis of conditions for their expression.
Stimulant Effects of Marihuana on Three Neuropsychological Systems

The present report deals with three separate studies examining the effects of marihuana on three neuropsychological systems: memory, pain perception, and vision. The results suggest there may be a commonality in the way marihuana affects these systems.
Depression and literacy are important factors for missed appointments

Multiple variables are related to missed clinic appointments. However, the prevalence of missed appointments is still high suggesting other factors may play a role. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between missed appointments and multiple variables simultaneously across a health care system, including patient demographics, psychiatric symptoms, cognitive functioning and literacy status. Chart reviews were conducted on 147 consecutive patients who were seen by a primary care psychologist over a six month period and completed measures to determine levels of depression, anxiety, sleep, cognitive functioning and health literacy. Demographic information and rates of missed appointments were also collected from charts. The average rate of missed appointments was 15.38%. In univariate analyses, factors related to higher rates of missed appointments included younger age (p = .03), lower income (p = .05), probable depression (p = .05), sleep difficulty (p = .05) and limited reading ability (p = .003). There were trends for a higher rate of missed appointments for patients identifying as black (p = .06), government insurance (p = .06) and limited math ability (p = .06). In a multivariate model, probable depression (p = .02) and limited reading ability (p = .003) were the only independent predictors. Depression and literacy status may be the most important factors associated with missed appointments. Implications are discussed including regular screening for depression and literacy status as well as interventions that can be utilized to help improve the rate of missed appointments.
Memorial for Julian Royce Goldsmith, 1918–1999

Julian Goldsmith served as the president of the Mineralogical Society of America (1971), the Geological Society of America (1975), and The Geochemical Society (1965). Julian performed major research in mineralogy, was a beloved teacher and friend, and probably one of the best administrators in the history of the earth sciences at the University of Chicago. He was a graduate of the University of Chicago and spent his academic career there. He departed from Chicago only during World War II to do defense research at the Corning Glass Works in up state New York. After the war he returned to Chicago where he completed his Ph.D. requirements in 1947. His thesis advisor was the legendary Norman L. Bowen, who was, without exaggeration, the most influential experimental petrologist of the 20th century. His career at Chicago began as a Research Associate in 1947 and advanced through the ranks to full Professor in 1958. In 1969 he was made Distinguished Service Professor, and Professor Emeritus in 1990 when he (pretended to) “retire.” In 1947 Bowen departed from Chicago to go to the Geophysical Laboratory. Julian inherited Bowen’s lab, consisting of a few high-temperature ovens, open to the air. By 1950, Julian was able to add some externally heated hydrothermal pressure units and an X-ray diffractometer to greatly aid in phase identifications, rather than having to rely entirely upon optical microscopy. In 1948, largely through Julian’s efforts, the German crystallographer Fritz Laves came to Chicago. The two of them made a formidable team for the next six years. They produced a series of groundbreaking experimental results on the alkali feldspars, focusing …