cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Longitudinal transactional relationships between caregiver and child mental health during the COVID-19 global pandemic.

Background Emerging work examining the psychological impact of COVID-19 on children and families suggests that the relationship between pandemic-related stress, child psychosocial functioning, and caregiver mental health are interrelated. However, much of this research is unidirectional and thus little is known about the bidirectional cascading effects children and caregivers may experience. The current study examined the transactional relationships between caregiver and child mental health over time during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods Linguistically, racially, and ethnically diverse caregivers (N = 286) of young children completed measures of caregiver mental health, caregiver pandemic-related stress, and child mental health (i.e., externalizing, internalizing, prosocial behavior) across three time points in the spring of 2020. Results Using autoregressive cross-lagged analyses, impaired caregiver mental health at Time 1 (April 2020) predicted increased caregiver pandemic-related stress at Time 2 (May 2020). Caregiver pandemic-related stress at Time 1 predicted increased child internalizing symptoms at Time 2 which, in turn, predicted increased caregiver pandemic-related stress at Time 3 (July 2020). Lastly, impaired caregiver mental health at Time 2 (May 2020) predicted increased child externalizing symptoms at Time 3 (July 2020). Conclusions Assessing transactional relationships between child and caregiver mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic is important to inform models of risk and resilience. Interventions at the level of the caregiver, the child, and/or the family should be considered as a way to interrupt potential negative developmental cascades.
Application note: The first Nitrogen Index app for mobile devices: Using portable technology for smart agricultural management

Nitrogen fertilizer from organic and inorganic sources is used across the world's agroecosystems. It contributes to higher yields and higher economic returns to farmers, and is essential for food security. However, when more is applied than necessary, significant amounts of nitrogen can exit the system and impact the environment. Appropriate nitrogen management, where the right amounts of nitrogen are applied and best practices are used to ensure higher use efficiency, is important for conservation. A recent study from the USDA reported that about 66% of US cropland was not meeting all of three best management practices for nitrogen: best rate, best time of application, and best method of application (http://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/err-economic-research-report/err127.aspx). Nitrogen tools can help us assess the risk of nitrogen losses from a field to the environment and increase nitrogen use efficiencies (http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/AR/archive/sep11/nitrogen0911.htm). We need quick and mobile nitrogen management risk assessment tools that can be carried to the field and elsewhere. The first smartphone/tablet application (or ''app'') of the Nitrogen Index was released on February 26th, 2012. A PC(R) version of the Nitrogen Index, which can be used on PC desktop and laptop computers, is also available, so users can email the results from their Nitrogen Index app developed for smartphones/tablets in the field to their computer back at the office (or a farmer's or consultant's computer) using their portable device's internet service. The Nitrogen Index smartphone/tablet application can be downloaded at no cost from the Google Play(TM) website (https://play.google.com/store) to any phone that has the Android(TM) system. To find the application, the user simply needs to do a search at the Google Play website using ''Nitrogen Index'' as the search term. This new advancement in portable technology will enable the use of small devices such as smartphones to conduct an assessment on site and visit with a farmer at any given field site where a wireless connection is available. The Nitrogen Index is a quick tool, and its assessments of nitrogen loss risk are correlated with observed values. This is the first Nitrogen Index app in the world and it is the beginning of more advances to come in the field of portable agricultural technology. New advances in software (e.g., apps) and technology are bringing us to a new frontier of technology transfer, and portable technologies (e.g., smartphones, tablets) are making possible the development of 'smart agriculture'.
Doing Nutrition Differently: Critical Approaches to Diet and Dietary Intervention

Contents: Introduction, Allison and Jessica Hayes-Conroy Food justice and nutrition: a conversation with Navina Khanna and Hank Herrera, Alison Hope Alkon Our plates are full: Black women and the weight of being strong, Tamara Beauboeuf-Lafontant Other womena (TM)s gardens: radical homemaking and public performance of the politics of feeding, Kirsten Valentine Cadieux Ancient dietary wisdom for tomorrowa (TM)s children, Sally Fallon Morell Nutritional and cultural transitions in Alaska native food systems: legacies of colonialism, contested innovation, and rural-urban linkages, David V Fazzino II and Philip A. Loring Counseling the whole person, Laura Frank Doing veganism differently: racialized trauma and the personal journey towards vegan healing, A. Breeze Harper Traditional knowledge and the other in alternative dietary advice, Edmund M. Harris Feminist nutrition: difference, decolonization, and dietary change, Allison and Jessica Hayes-Conroy Nutrition isa |, Laura Newcomer Another way of doing health: lessons from the Zapatista autonomous communities in Chiapas, Mexico, Chris Rodriguez Food, community and power from a historical perspective: keys to understanding death by a "lethargya (TM) in Santa Maria del Antigua del Darien, Gregorio Saldarriaga The nutricentric consumer, Gyorgy Scrinis Should we fix food deserts?: the politics and practice of mapping food access, Jerry Shannon Mobilizing caring citizenship and Jamie Olivera (TM)s food revolution, Heidi Zimmerman Concluding questions Index.
Spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage during natalizumab treatment for relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis (P3.273)

Background: Natalizumab is indicated for the treatment of patients with relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS). Natalizumab is a monoclonal antibody against the α4β1-integrin, targeting the cellular adhesion molecule very late antigen-4 (VLA-4). By blocking VLA-4, fewer inflammatory cells enter the brain and thereby blunt CNS inflammation typical of MS. Alpha4β1-integrins are also expressed on endothelial cells and CD34+ progenitor cells, regulating crucial steps in angiogenesis. Blocking α4β1-integrin function may lead to increased vascular fragility. A single report described a case of intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) into a pre-existing tumefactive demyelinating lesion in a patient with RRMS treated with natalizumab. No reports of natalizumab-related ICH were confirmed in pivotal clinical trials. Objective: To describe a case of spontaneous ICH in a patient with RRMS treated with natalizumab. Results: A 59 year-old man with RRMS was treated with natalizumab as second line therapy. Brain MRI before natalizumab showed moderate MS lesion burden with no large or active demyelinating lesions. Patient developed headache, nausea, and altered mental status after two monthly infusions. He presented with acute hypertension without history of significant high blood pressure before or after the event and was on low-dose atorvastatin for hypercholesterolemia. Head CT revealed a large frontal ICH with intraventricular extension. Further work up showed no vasculitis, intracerebral aneurysms, vascular malformations, or coagulopathy. Patient was discharged four days after ictus in stable condition, and atorvastatin and natalizumab were discontinued. Conclusion: Our case and the previously reported case suggest a possible association of spontaneous ICH with natalizumab therapy. As opposed to the reported case, we were unable to detect a pre-existing demyelinating lesion at the hemorrhage site, though other risk factors were present. Clinicians caring for patients treated with natalizumab should remain vigilant for potential risk of ICH, especially with headache accompanied by nausea or altered mental status. Disclosure: Dr. Hersh has received research support from the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. Dr. Cohen has received personal compensation for activities with Biogen Idec, Eli Lilly, Novartis, and Vaccinex as a consultant and/or speaker.
MASIVE: A Case Study in Multiagent Systems

The project MASIVE (Multi-Agent Systems Interactive Virtual Environments) is the multi-agent extension of our Interactivist-Expectative Theory on Agency and Learning (IETAL). The agents in the environment learn expectations from their interactions with the environment. In addition to that, they are equipped with special sensors for sensing akin agents, and interchange their knowledge of the environment (their intrinsic representations) during their imitation conventions. In this paper we discuss the basics of the theory, and the social consequences of such an environment from the perspective of learning, knowledge dissemination, and emergence of language.
Changes in soil water dynamics due to variation in precipitation and temperature: An ecohydrological analysis in a tallgrass prairie

[1] There is considerable evidence that future global climate change will increase temperature and alter precipitation regime. To better understand how these factors will influence soil water dynamics, it is imperative to use multifactorial experiments. A 1 year “pulse” experiment, with 4°C warming and a doubling in precipitation, was performed to evaluate the changes in soil moisture dynamics. Frequency distribution analyses of soil moisture and soil temperature were used to explore the consequences of climate change on ecohydrological processes at different soil depths. There was a decrease in soil moisture frequency from 0 to 120 cm in both warming and warming with increased precipitation experiments. Different soil depths had similar patterns of change in soil moisture and soil temperature frequency. Additionally, we correlated evapotranspiration and soil moisture to look at changes in evapotranspiration from the wilting point (Ew) to maximum evapotranspiration (Emax). These results revealed a shift in the slope and position of Ew to Emax with experimental warming. Our results showed that the soil moisture dynamics and the ecohydrology were changed by different global climate change scenarios. Understanding the effects of global warming on soil moisture dynamics will be critical for predicting changes in ecosystem level processes.
Lmx1b-Mediated Emx2-Associated Regulatory Region Active During Limb Development

Lmx1b is a LIM-homeodomain transcription factor that has dorsally restricted expression in limb mesoderm and is responsible for limb dorsalization. Mice lacking functional Lmx1b exhibit ventral-ven...
Genetic structure of Greater Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) in a declining, peripheral population

ABSTRACT Loss of suitable habitat and subsequent fragmentation of populations are recognized as important factors in the decline and extinction of many species because they result in smaller, more isolated populations with reduced genetic diversity. The Greater Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus), having declined in distribution and abundance throughout its range, is a candidate species under the U.S. Endangered Species Act and a species of special concern in California. Because the relationships between dispersal, gene flow, and genetic structure are interrelated and affect the long-term persistence of Greater Sage-Grouse, we assessed the genetic structure and patterns of dispersal among Greater Sage-Grouse in a declining, peripheral population in northeastern California. We genotyped 19 microsatellite loci from 167 individuals from 13 leks and 20 individuals captured off lek. Greater Sage-Grouse in northeastern California appear to maintain gene flow and genetic diversity across the sampled region. ...
Assessment of methods for improving tracer estimation of non-steady-state rate of appearance.

The most common approach for estimating substrate rate of appearance (Ra) is use of the single-pool model first proposed by R. W. Steele, J. S. Wall, R. C. DeBodo, and N. Altszuler. (Am. J. Physiol...
Symbol error correcting codes for memory applications

Symbol error correcting codes have been used for fault tolerance in computer memory subsystems configured in b-bits-per-chip. This paper presents algorithms for designing the parity check matrices of symbol error correcting codes to reduce circuit count and the circuit time delay. It presents a technique for formulating the parity check matrices for modular implementation. It also presents codes that use a smaller number of circuits and require a shorter circuit delay time than other known codes. These results are useful for practical design of symbol error correcting codes.
Transparent plastic scintillators for neutron detection based on lithium salicylate

Abstract Transparent plastic scintillators with pulse shape discrimination containing 6Li salicylate have been synthesized by bulk polymerization with a maximum 6Li loading of 0.40 wt%. Photoluminescence and scintillation responses to gamma-rays and neutrons are reported herein. Plastics containing 6Li salicylate exhibit higher light yields and permit a higher loading of 6Li as compared to previously reported plastics based on lithium 3-phenylsalicylate. However, pulse shape discrimination performance is reduced in lithium salicylate plastics due to the requirement of adding more nonaromatic monomers to the polymer matrix as compared to those based on lithium 3-phenylsalicylate. Reduction in light yield and pulse shape discrimination performance in lithium-loaded plastics as compared to pulse shape discrimination plastics without lithium is interpreted in terms of energy transfer interference by the aromatic lithium salts.
Mammals of the northern Philippines: tolerance for habitat disturbance and resistance to invasive species in an endemic insular fauna

Aim Island faunas, particularly those with high levels of endemism, usually are considered especially susceptible to disruption from habitat disturbance and invasive alien species. We tested this general hypothesis by examining the distribution of small mammals along gradients of anthropogenic habitat disturbance in northern Luzon Island, an area with a very high level of mammalian endemism. Location Central Cordillera, northern Luzon Island, Philippines. Methods Using standard trapping techniques, we documented the occurrence and abundance of 16 endemic and two non-native species along four disturbance gradients where habitat ranged from mature forest to deforested cropland. Using regression analysis and AICc for model selection, we assessed the influence of four predictor variables (geographic range, elevational range, body size and diet breadth) on the disturbance tolerance of species. Results Non-native species dominated areas with the most severe disturbance and were rare or absent in mature forest. Native species richness declined with increasing disturbance level, but responses of individual species varied. Elevational range (a measure of habitat breadth) was the best predictor of response of native species to habitat disturbance. Geographic range, body size and diet breadth were weakly correlated. Main conclusions The endemic small mammal fauna of northern Luzon includes species adapted to varying levels of natural disturbance and appears to be resistant to disruption by resident alien species. In these respects, it resembles a diverse continental fauna rather than a depauperate insular fauna. We conclude that the long and complex history of Luzon as an ancient member of the Philippine island arc system has involved highly dynamic ecological conditions resulting in a biota adapted to changing conditions. We predict that similar responses will be seen in other taxonomic groups and in other ancient island arc systems.
Simultaneous peptide and oligonucleotide formation in mixtures of amino acid, nucleoside triphosphate, imidazole, and magnesium ion.

Simultaneous peptide and oligonucleotide formation was observed in reaction mixtures of amino acid, nucleoside triphosphate, imidazole, and MgCl 2 . At 70 ° C in solutions that were evaporated to dryness the formation of peptide for phe and pro was greatest with CTP relative to ATP, GTP, and UTP. Lysine exhibited a preference for GTP and glycine for UTP. At ambient temperature in solution at pH 7.8, CTP was preferred by glycine, but at pH 8.7 UTP was preferred. The glycine nucleotide phosphoramidates were also detected and characterized in reactions at 40 °C. The glycine-reaction preference for CTP at pH 7.8 and UTP at 8.7 suggested that the basicity of the nucleoside triphosphate was involved in increasing the peptide yield. CTP near neutrality is the most basic nucleoside triphosphate and the basic anionic form UTP could facilitate peptide formation at pH 8.7. These data, together with information on the complexing of poly(C) by GTP, led to the experimentally approchable hypothesis that GTP, by forming a basic triplex between the cytosine residues adjacent to the peptidyl adenosine and aminoacyl adenosine at the termini of two proto-tRNAs, would promote peptide bond synthesis between the aminoacyl residue and peptidyl residue.
SELECTIVE REACTIVITY OF SP3 AND SP2 CARBANIONS OF 1-SUBSTITUTED 1,2,4-TRIAZOLES. A COMPARATIVE APPROACH

The regioselectivity of lithiation reactions of 1-n-alkyl-, 1-allyl-, and 1-propargyl-1H-1,2,4-triazoles was studied in terms of the products formed by sequential treatment with BuLi and a range of electrophiles.
Correlation of rocket propulsion fuel properties with chemical composition using comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography with time-of-flight mass spectrometry followed by partial least squares regression analysis

There is an increased need to more fully assess and control the composition of kerosene-based rocket propulsion fuels such as RP-1. In particular, it is critical to make better quantitative connections among the following three attributes: fuel performance (thermal stability, sooting propensity, engine specific impulse, etc.), fuel properties (such as flash point, density, kinematic viscosity, net heat of combustion, and hydrogen content), and the chemical composition of a given fuel, i.e., amounts of specific chemical compounds and compound classes present in a fuel as a result of feedstock blending and/or processing. Recent efforts in predicting fuel chemical and physical behavior through modeling put greater emphasis on attaining detailed and accurate fuel properties and fuel composition information. Often, one-dimensional gas chromatography (GC) combined with mass spectrometry (MS) is employed to provide chemical composition information. Building on approaches that used GC-MS, but to glean substantially more chemical information from these complex fuels, we recently studied the use of comprehensive two dimensional (2D) gas chromatography combined with time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC×GC-TOFMS) using a "reversed column" format: RTX-wax column for the first dimension, and a RTX-1 column for the second dimension. In this report, by applying chemometric data analysis, specifically partial least-squares (PLS) regression analysis, we are able to readily model (and correlate) the chemical compositional information provided by use of GC×GC-TOFMS to RP-1 fuel property information such as density, kinematic viscosity, net heat of combustion, and so on. Furthermore, we readily identified compounds that contribute significantly to measured differences in fuel properties based on results from the PLS models. We anticipate this new chemical analysis strategy will have broad implications for the development of high fidelity composition-property models, leading to an improved approach to fuel formulation and specification for advanced engine cycles.
Two phases of pseudopod protrusion in tumor cells revealed by a micropipette.

Abstract Pseudopod protrusion at the leading edge is a characteristic of migrating tumor cells as they traverse vascular subendothelial basement membranes to establish metastases. A micropipette system has been developed to study the dynamics of pseudopod protrusion in individual human melanoma cells in response to type IV collagen, a component of basement membranes. Soluble type IV collagen stimulates chemotaxis of A2058 melanoma cells through a G protein-coupled receptor, and induces an early burst of intracellular calcium (Savarese et al ., 1992, J. Biol. Chem. 267, 21928-21935). A micropipette filled with type IV collagen solution (100 μg/ml) was positioned so that the tip was adjacent to a cell suspended in Dulbeceo's modified Eagle's medium. Within 10 min, tumor cells generated a pseudopod which entered the micropipette with an average velocity of 0.24 μm/min and proceeded to lengthen for 40 min. Pseudopods from individual cells ranged from 7.5-10 μm at this time and were characterized by an irregular shape which did not fill the lumen of the micropipette. Pretreatment of cells with pertussis toxin (0.5 μg/ml), which inhibits cell migration by ∼90% (but not the calcium burst), blocked formation of the irregular, extended pseudopod, while allowing a much smaller outpouching, or bleb, to form. Lengths of such blebs from individual PT-treated cells reached a plateau at ∼20 min and ranged from 2.2-4.0 μm at the end point. Treatment of cells with bis-(amino-phenoxy)ethane tetraacetic acid (75 μ M ), an intracellular Ca 2+ chelator, blocked initial bleb formation and prevented extension. From these observations we hypothesize that tumor cell pseudopod protrusion induced by soluble type IV collagen takes place in distinct, separable phases: an initial convex, symmetrical outpouching, caused by localized Ca +2 -activated actin depolymerization and osmotic flux, followed by an extension with an irregular shape, which requires G protein-mediated actin polymerization.
SELECT PROPERTIES OF THE GRAPH MODEL OF A GENERAL AUTOMATON

Select properties are presented for a graph model of a general automaton consisting of a processor, environment and time graph. The properties, stated in the form of theorems and corollaries, deal with connectedness, number of points and lines and indegree and outdegree as the model relates to the automaton's sets, functions and characteristics. The properties are illustrated by an example automaton.
Death Following Injection Sclerotherapy Due to Phenol Toxicity

Prolapse rectum (PR) or protrusion of the rectum beyond the anus occurs frequently in populations at both extremes of age. In the pediatric population, in developed countries, the commonest cause for PR is thought to be cystic fibrosis (CF). Treatment options for CF include conservative management, surgical resection and fixation, suturing, and injection sclerotherapy (IS). The last is considered an attractive treatment option because it is minimally invasive. In this case report, the authors present the details about a 2-year-old female child, with PR and CF, who died after IS, using phenol as the sclerotherapeutic agent. Autopsy findings and toxicology tests performed to establish phenol toxicity are documented. The available literature is reviewed. This case report underscores the risks of using phenol for IS and emphasizes the point that the procedure is not innocuous and an adverse outcome including fatality is a possibility.
The relation of percolation to energy migration dynamics

Abstract Numerical solutions are presented of a master equation for energy migration among conducting sites on a lattice, averaged over site configurations for a given concentration. The relation between static percolation phenomenon and the dynamics of energy migration is explored.
Plasma heating and gradient modifications by resonant absorption

Abstract Results of two-dimensional electromagnetic simulations of linear mode conversion in an inhomogeneous, freely expanding plasma are reported. Important modifications of the plasma profile are shown to be intrinsic to the process.
Gene therapy for lung cancer

Lung cancer patients suffer a 15% overall survival despite advances in chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and surgery. This unacceptably low survival rate is due to the usual finding of advanced disease at diagnosis. However, multimodality strategies using conventional therapies only minimally improve survival rates even in early stages of lung cancer. Attempts to improve survival in advanced disease using various combinations of platinum-based chemotherapy have demonstrated that no regimen is superior, suggesting a therapeutic plateau and the need for novel, more specific, and less toxic therapeutic strategies. Over the past three decades, the genetic etiology of cancer has been gradually delineated, albeit not yet completely. Understanding the molecular events that occur during the multistep process of bronchogenic carcinogenesis may make these tasks more surmountable. During these same three decades, techniques have been developed which allow transfer of functional genes into mammalian cells. For example, blockade of activated tumor-promoting oncogenes or replacement of inactivated tumor-suppressing or apoptosis-promoting genes can be achieved by gene therapy. This article will discuss the therapeutic implications of these molecular changes associated with bronchogenic carcinomas and will then review the status of gene therapies for treatment of lung cancer.
13C isotope fractionation during rhizosphere respiration of C3 and C4 plants

Stable carbon isotopes are used extensively to partition total soil CO2 efflux into root-derived rhizosphere respiration or autotrophic respiration and soil-derived heterotrophic respiration. However, it remains unclear whether CO2 from rhizosphere respiration has the same δ13C value as root biomass. Here we investigated the magnitude of 13C isotope fractionation during rhizosphere respiration relative to root biomass in six plant species. Plants were grown in a carbon-free sand-perlite medium inoculated with microorganisms from a farm soil for 62 days inside a greenhouse. We measured the δ13C value of rhizosphere respiration using a closed-circulation 48-hour CO2 trapping method during 40~42 and 60~62 days after sowing. We found a consistent depletion in 13C (0.9~1.7‰) of CO2 from rhizosphere respiration relative to root biomass in three C3 species (Glycine max L. Merr., Helianthus annuus L. and Triticum aestivum L.), but a relatively large depletion in 13C (3.7~7.0‰) in three C4 species (Amaranthus tricolor L., Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench and Zea mays L. ssp. mays). Overall, our results indicate that CO2 from rhizosphere respiration is more 13C-depleted than root biomass. Therefore, accounting for this 13C fractionation is required for accurately partitioning total soil CO2 efflux into root-derived and soil-derived components using natural abundance stable carbon isotope methods.
Effects of probabilistic independent outcomes upon predictions

Ss won or lost 10 cents for correct and incorrect predictions of draws from binary packs. The draws also had independent outcome values (IO’s) that depended upon the cards drawn but not upon the predictions. These IO’s were probabilistic, with expected values ranging from 10 cents to −10 cents. Cards with positive IO were predicted significantly more often than cards with negative IO, with objective probability constant.
Spectral origins and ionization potentials of guanine tautomers: Theoretical elucidation of experimental findings

Abstract The HF, B3LYP and MP2 methods along with the 6-311G(d,p) and 6-311++G(d,p) basis sets have been used to compute the relative stability, ionization potentials and spectral origins corresponding to the electronic lowest singlet ππ ∗ excited states of 28 possible guanine tautomers in the gas phase to supplement the experimental data. The CIS/6-311G(d,p) level of theory was used to optimize electronic singlet ππ ∗ excited state geometries. The TDDFT method and the 6-311G(d,p) basis set was used to compute spectral origins (0–0 transitions) using the ground and excited state optimized geometries. Significant variations in the ionization potentials and spectral origins among guanine tautomers were revealed. We believe that the computed results would be helpful to interpret the complex R2PI spectra of guanine obtained in the supersonic jet-beam experiments.
A study on the dissolution rate of irradiated poly(methyl methacrylate)

A detailed study of the factors affecting the dissolution rate of poly(methyl methacrylate), PMMA, showed that the magnitude of the increase in the dissolution rate of irradiated PMMA could not be entirely attributed to the reduction in the molecular weight, MW. The formation of non-polymeric volatile fragments by radiation exposure, i.e., CO, CO2H2, CH3OH and CH4 causes a large increase in the solvent flux into the polymer matrix, thereby causing a large increase in the dissolution rate of exposed PMMA. The volatilization of these low molecular weight fragments cause an increase in the “excess free volume” (microporosity) of the glassy PMMA. The relative magnitudes of the contribution of the MW reduction and the formation of volatile matter on the increase in the solubility rate of the irradiated polymer were found to depend on the molecular size of the solvent, and also on the enthalpy of mixing.
Associative long-term depression in the hippocampus induced by hebbian covariance.

A BRIEF, high-frequency activation of excitatory synapses in the hippocampus produces a long-lasting increase in synaptic strengths called long-term potentiation (LTP)1. A test input, which by itself does not have a long-lasting effect on synaptic strengths, can be potentiated through association when it is activated at the same time as a separate conditioning input2–4.Neural network modelling studies have also predicted that synaptic strengths should be weakened when test and conditioning inputs are anti-correlated5–8. Evidence for such heterosynaptic depression in the hippocampus has been found for inputs that are inactive2,9 or weakly active3 during the stimulation of a conditioning input, but this depression does not depend on any pattern of test input activity and does not seem to last as long as LTP. We report here an associative long-term depression (LTD) in field CA1 that is produced when a low-frequency test input is negatively correlated in time with a high-frequency conditioning input. LTD of synaptic strength is also produced by activating presynaptic terminals while a postsy-naptic neuron is hyperpolarized. This confirms theoretical predictions8 that the mechanism for associative LTD is homosynaptic and follows a hebbian covariance rule7.
Gender, Self-Control, and Offending Behaviors Among Latino Youth

Using data from the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods (PHDCN), the current study investigates the empirical validity of Gottfredson and Hirschi's propositions linking gender, self-control, and offending behaviors across a large and diverse sample of Latino youth. According to their theory, differences in self-control- that are influenced by differences in parenting practices--should account for differential offending across race/ethnicity and gender. Consistent with their theory, results found males to have lower self-control and greater involvement in self-reported violent and property offending compared to females. Furthermore, Latino youth with lower self-control were more likely to report violent and property offending; however, the gender gap observed for property and violent offending was not accounted for by low self-control or parenting. In fact, none of the parenting measures (warmth, hostility, monitoring) differed for males and females and they were not found to influence involvement in offending for males or females. Low self-control predicted violent offending for males and females separately, but it predicted property offending only for males. In addition to mentioning limitations and future research, findings are discussed as they relate to theory and prior research on self-control.
Minimising warranty cost by design for reliability in product development phase

This paper proposes an optimisation procedure to minimise product warranty cost through design for reliability (DFR) in the early development phase. The DFR tool enables the product manufacturers to pro-actively design out potential failure modes due to hardware, software, process and customer usage issues. Reliability prediction for complex hardware?software systems usually is difficult when uncertainties exist in operational environment. This paper proposes a stochastic reliability model to estimate component and non-component failure rates considering uncertainties in operational temperatures and customer usages. Based on the stochastic model, an optimisation program is formulated to minimise the expected product warranty cost subject to the design budget constraint. The trade-off between the design budget and the warranty cost is compared under different design options. Finally, the optimal DFR procedure is demonstrated on a type of automatic semiconductor test equipment. Throughout the paper, systems and products will be used interchangeably.
SOAR/IFOR: intelligent agents for air simulation and control

Producing realistic computer generated forces in a distributed integrated simulation requires flexible mission execution and behavior coordination within the agent itself as well as in its interactions with other agents. This paper focuses on the types of behavior required to produce a realistic airborne forward air controller in closely coordinated attack missions.
Passive direct formic acid microfabricated fuel cells

Abstract This paper reports on microscale silicon-based direct formic acid fuel cells (Si-DFAFCs) in which the fuel and the oxidant are supplied to the electrodes in a passive manner. Passive delivery of fuel and oxidant eliminates the need for ancillary components and associated parasitic losses. In this Si-DFAFC, an aqueous solution of formic acid is in direct contact with a Pd- or Pt-based anode and a Pt-based cathode is exposed to either a forced oxygen stream or quiescent air. In the presence of a forced oxygen flow on the cathode side the cell with Pd catalyst on the anode delivers a maximum power density of about 30 mW cm −2 at room temperature, limited mostly by mass transfer at the anode, while in an all-passive mode (quiescent air on the cathode side) a maximum power density of 12.3 mW cm −2 is obtained, limited by oxygen transport. This all-passive Si-DFAFC is fabricated using processes that are post-CMOS compatible, and thus can be integrated directly with envisioned MEMS applications, such as small sensors and actuators.
Two novel frameshift mutations in NKX2.5 result in novel features including visceral inversus and sinus venosus type ASD

Recently, heterozygous mutations of human NKX2.5 were identified in patients with congenital heart disease.1,2 The most common phenotypes were progressive atrioventricular conduction delays (AV block) and secundum atrial septal defect (ASD), but other anatomical abnormalities, such as ventricular septal defect, tetralogy of Fallot, or tricuspid valve abnormalities, including Ebstein’s anomaly, and progressive left ventricular failure, were also reported. These findings strongly suggest that NKX2.5 is important in the later stages of heart development and maturation in addition to its role in cardiac progenitor commitment and patterning in the developing heart. To characterise further the genotype-phenotype correlation of NKX2.5 mutations, we used NKX2.5 as a candidate gene in two kindreds where subjects in multiple generations had congenital heart disease and AV block. In this report, we describe phenotypes in two families with novel frameshift mutations in NKX2.5 . The findings suggest an expanded population of subjects who could now be examined for mutations within this transcription factor and its upstream and downstream regulatory elements. ### Subjects All studies were carried out in accordance with the institutional guidelines for human research. Subjects were evaluated by history, review of medical records, physical examination, 12 lead electrocardiogram (ECG), and two dimensional transthoracic echocardiography with colour flow Doppler. Cardiac catheterisation, abdominal echography, and/or cardiac surgery have been performed in some subjects. Following the methods of Benson et al ,1 the products, including all coding regions and intervening intron of NKX2.5 , were amplified with the primers (1F and 4R) in a single polymerase chain reaction (PCR), using standard conditions and concentrations of reagents. Products were analysed on standard 1% agarose gels and stained with ethidium bromide. Sequencing primers used were previously designed for specific region sequencing1 and carried out on the Applied Biosystems DNA Sequencing system (Model 373 or 377). For family 1, …
Route to mode locking in a three-mode He-Ne 3.39-μm laser including chaos in the secondary beat frequency

A helium-neon laser at 3.39 ..mu..m has been operated under cavity and discharge conditions permitting three modes to simultaneously oscillate for some regions of cavity tuning. Both mode-locked and -unlocked regions have been found. For unlocked three-mode operation, the laser output may include a secondary beat frequency. As the cavity length is tuned to the mode-locked region, this secondary beat frequency approaches zero and displays critical fluctuations at the transition to mode-locked operation. As the discharge current is increased, for fixed cavity length, the peaks in the power spectrum representing the secondary beat and its harmonics undergo a 100-fold broadening enroute to a broad chaotic spectrum before the laser reaches a mode-locked, low-noise configuration. This appears to be the onset of a deterministically chaotic behavior of the coupled modes that is distinct from the critical fluctuations. Details of cavity tuning and current variation on the laser output, including hysterisis effects, are reported here.
Lightning initiation on aircraft in thunderstorms

The physical model of the initiation of lightning flashes by aircraft in thunderstorms is presented. The model is based on the 'bi-directional uncharged leader' concept by Kasemir, and is verified with airborne data from lightning strikes to an instrumented airplane (NASA F-106B and FAA CV-580). The characteristics of electromagnetic processes during lightning attachment are identified by comparison with those studied in natural flashes, those triggered by wire trailing rockets, and laboratory discharges. A triggered flash starts with either a negative corona or a positive leader that depends on the ambient electric field vector and the airplane form factor. The positive leader with continuous current that increases with time is followed in a few milliseconds by the negative stepped leader with current pulses of a few kA. The two leaders develop in space simultaneously and bi-directionally from the oppositely charged extremities of the airplane.
An evaluation of threaded models for a classical MD proxy application

Exascale systems will have many-core nodes, less memory capacity per core than today's systems, and a large degree of performance variability between cores. All these conditions challenge bulk synchronous SPMD models in which execution is typically synchronous and communication is based on buffers and ghost regions.We explore the design of a multithreaded MD code to evaluate several tradeoffs that arise when converting an MPI application into a hybrid multithreaded application, to address the aforementioned constraints of future architectures.Using OpenMP and PThreads, we implemented several variants of CoMD, a molecular dynamics proxy application. We found that in CoMD, duplicating some of the work to avoid race conditions is an easier and more scalable solution than using atomic updates; that data allocation and placement can be controlled to some extent with a hybrid MPI+threads approach, though an explicit NUMA API to control locality may be desirable; and finally that dynamically scheduling the work within a process can mitigate the impact of performance variability among cores and preserve most of the performance, especially when compared to bulk synchronous implementations such as the MPI reference.
The effects of increasing genetic distance on alignment of, and tree construction from, rDNA internal transcribed spacer sequences

We examined how alignment of internal transcribed spacers of rDNA in fungi and plants changes with increasing genetic distance by successive removal of sequences from each data set followed by realignment and phylogenetic analysis. Increasing genetic distance can negatively affect phylogenetic reconstruction in two ways. First, it may cause errors in the alignment and therefore the homology hypotheses of the sequence characters. Second, it may cause errors in the homology assessments of character states because of multiple hits on individual branches. These two causes of error in phylogenetic inference were distinguished from one another in our analysis. The errors in alignment caused by increasing genetic distance were primarily due to inserting too few gaps and inserting gaps at the wrong positions. Errors in tree resolution, topology, and/or branch-support values were more often caused by multiple hits than by misaligned positions. This suggests that increasing genetic distance negatively affects our primary homology assessments of character states more severely than our primary homology assessments of characters. We suggest that increasing taxon sampling with the aim of subdividing long branches is a strategy for obtaining reliable alignments.
Peak temperature influences on heating rate effect in hyperthermic cytotoxicity

Abstract Exponentially growing Chinese hamster V79 cells were heated from 37°C up to 42°C or 43°C at four different heating rates: immediate exposure, 12 hour, 1 hour, and 2 hours. The D 0 's of the heat survival curves for both 42°C and 43°C were determined for the different heating rates. The results show that the decrease in toxicity to cells at 43°C resulting from a slower heating rate appears to be less pronounced than that at 42°C. However, the thermotolerance ratio is found to depend on the specific heating time (the reciprocal of the heating rate), in a linear fashion and it does not seem to depend on the peak temperature. We propose that the difference in the heat exchange on cell membranes at different rates of heating may contribute to the causes for the difference in cell sensitivity to hyperthermia
Normal forms and truth tables for fuzzy logics

In this paper, we examine and compare De Morgan-, Kleene-, and Boolean-disjunctive and conjunctive normal forms and consider their role in fuzzy settings. In particular, we show that there are normal forms and truth tables for classical fuzzy propositional logic and interval-valued fuzzy propositional logic that are completely analogous to those for Boolean propositional logic. Thus, determining logical equivalence of two expressions in fuzzy propositional logic is a finite problem, and similarly for the interval-valued case. Turksen's work on interval-valued fuzzy sets is examined in light of these results.
Abstract: An International Comparison of Private and Public Schools Using Multilevel Propensity Score Methods and Graphics.

As can be seen from the recent Special Issue of MBR on propensity score analysis (PSA) methods, the use of PSA has gained increasing popularity for estimating causal effects in observational studies. However, PSA use with multilevel or clustered data has been limited, and to date there seems to have been no development of specialized graphics for such data. This paper introduces the multilevelPSA (http://multilevelPSA.r-forge.r-project.org) package for R that provides cluster-based functions for estimating propensity scores as well as graphics to exhibit results for multilevel data. This work extends to the multilevel case the framework for visualizing propensity score analysis introduced by Helmreich and Pruzek (2009). International data from the Programme for International Student Assessment (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, 2009) are comprehensively examined to compare private with public schools on reading, mathematics, and science outcomes after adjusting for covariate differen...
Preservation of primary lake signatures in alkaline earth carbonates of the Eocene Green River Wilkins Peak-Laney Member transition zone

Abstract Significant changes in carbonate mineralogy, texture, and stable isotope composition occur at the transition from the Wilkins Peak Member to the Laney Member in the Eocene Green River Formation, Bridger Basin, Wyoming, which reflect evolution of inflow waters, lake waters, and paleoenvironments. The top of the Wilkins Peak Member contains heterogeneous laminae of calcite and dolomite. Evaporites associated with these layers suggest deposition in hypersaline lakes. Diagenetic carbonate mineral textures include euhedral cement overgrowths and interlocking mosaics of calcite and dolomite crystals, 20–70 μm in size. Electron microprobe analyses indicate diagenetic overgrowth of Fe-rich dolomite on cloudy Fe-poor cores. δ18O values of carbonate laminae in the upper Wilkins Peak Member vary by ~ 6‰ with no depth dependent or mineralogic trends, which also suggests diagenetic overprinting. Alternating organic-rich and primary aragonite, calcite, and dolomite laminae were identified from the lower Laney Member. Primary lacustrine aragonite consists of well sorted, prismatic crystals 5–10 μm in length, with micro-lamination defined by crystal size variation. Primary precipitated calcite and dolomite laminae are monominerallic, with well sorted polyhedral crystals, ~ 10 μm in size. Primary mineralogy of the lower Laney Member changes from calcite to aragonite and dolomite stratigraphically upward. Along the same 15 m thick stratigraphic interval, δ18O values decrease upward by ~ 3‰, all of which suggests (1) lake waters underwent evaporative concentration, which together with calcite precipitation increased the lake water Mg/Ca ratios and led to formation of aragonite and dolomite, (2) source waters became lower in δ18O, possibly as inflow changed to higher altitude foreland rivers. The results from this study show that understanding the primary lacustrine versus diagenetic origin of Green River carbonate minerals is essential for paleoenvironmental and paleoclimate interpretations.
Gandhian fictions: rereading Satyagraha in South Africa

From 1923–24, Mahatma Gandhi wrote his recollections of South Africa from a prison cell in India. This text, Satyagraha in South Africa, was intended to be ‘helpful in our present struggle’ to liberate India, as well as ‘a guide to any regular historian who may arise in the future.’ An emphatically transnational text, Satyagraha in South Africa relies upon the mode of allegory to place South Africa and India in relation to each other. As it encourages comparison, however, it discourages common cause. Gandhi places Africans as the anterior sign in a larger system of signification: South African politics prefigures Indian anti-colonial victory to come, but the African native also represents the innocent natives of India writ large. Without the political didactics of Hind Swaraj, the journalistic interventions of Indian Opinion or even the philosophical aspirations of My Experiments with Truth, this fictionalised history has rarely been the centre of attention. Satyagraha in South Africa, however, reveals Ga...
The slac linear collider - a status report

This report presents progress made at the Stanford Linear Collider (SLC). Design goals of the various components are compared to measurements made on the equipment. 8 figs., 2 tabs. (JDH)