cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Renal adaptation to dietary amino acid alteration is expressed in immature renal brush border membranes.

The transport of ions and solutes at the epithelial surface of the renal proximal tubule increases during periods of reduced dietary intake and decreases with dietary excess. We have used the sulfur-containing β-amino acid, taurine, as a probe of this renal adaptive response to altered dietary sulfur amino acid intake to better understand the mechanisms of renal amino acid reabsorption. There exists an age-related precession of taurine uptake values by brush border membrane vesicles prepared from nursing rats from youngest to oldest. However, despite the immaturity of this transport mechanism, epithelial membranes become able to display a full renal adaptive response to altered sulfur amino acid intake sometime between the 7th and 14th day of life. This adaptive response is expressed in both “up regulation” and “down regulation” by means of a change in the initial rate of Na+-taurine cotransport. No changes in the lipid microenvironment of the membrane, as assessed by measurements of membrane fluidity, are evident. The lack of adaptation observed in 7-day-old pups may be due to immaturity of the Na+ transporting mechanism which energizes the uptake of amino acids.
Implications and Applications of a Behavior Systems Perspective

ABSTRACT Improving employee performance in an organization seems to cycle back and forth among six broad approaches. Rather than debate which approach is most effective, the argument is made that each approach is simply one aspect of a larger behavior system. The ultimate answer, then, is to integrate these approaches within an overarching behavior systems perspective. A potential behavior systems perspective is described as well as its implications for employee performance improvement. An expansion of OBM graduate curricula is recommended that includes more diverse improvement strategies.
Primitive Theory of Ferrimagnetic Resonance Frequencies in Rare-Earth Iron Garnets

The effective $g$ factor for ferrimagnetic resonance frequencies in rare-earth iron garnets is calculated by direct inspection of eigenvalues rather than study of the equations of motion. The rare-earth ions are treated as captive in the exchange field from the iron, but subject to decomposition of their energy levels by crystalline fields and/or spin-orbit interaction. With a crystalline field, the problem is tractable in a simple way only if these decompositions are large or small compared to those which could be produced by the exchange field acting alone. Anisotropy, actually very important at low temperatures, is neglected except insofar as it can be represented by an anisotropy field. The concept of "fictitious spin" is useful, and the spectroscopic splitting factors turn out to be more relevant than the true gyromagnetic ratios. For europium garnet, our theory becomes essentially that of Wolf. It is shown that Kittel's formula ${g}_{\mathrm{eff}}=\frac{2({M}_{\mathrm{Fe}}+{M}_{\mathrm{RE}})}{{M}_{\mathrm{Fe}}}$ has approximate validity if most of the magnetic moment of the rare earth arises from nondiagonal matrix elements joining ionic energy levels with separations large compared with the Zeeman energy in the exchange field. The fact that in certain cases the experimental results are represented fairly well by Kittel's formula is hence not necessarily to be construed as evidence that the rare-earth ion is highly damped by spin-lattice interaction as in his original model.
Theology in Church and University: the Post-Reformation Development

In the post-Reformation period one of the most significant developments concerns the understanding of the nature of theology and its relation to church and university. This development, which was related to a dual definition of theology and to a new distinction between the realms of reason and faith, began with Luther and Melanchthon and attained a preliminary crystallization with John Gerhard of the University of Jena, who was one of the chief representatives of seventeenth-century Protestant scholasticism. In this paper I wish to trace that development, which has failed to receive its due attention in accounts of Protestant theological history.
The Physiological Effects of Feeding Warfarin to Poultry

Abstract A 20 week study using layer and broiler strain chicks of both sexes was undertaken to determine whether poultry were susceptible to warfarin-induced granulomatous endocardial lesions. Birds were fed a corn-soybean meal basal diet with no added vitamin K, supplemented with either 0, 25, 50, or 100 ppm of warfarin or vitamin K at .6 mg/kg of diet. Broiler chicks showed a higher incidence of hemorrhages, more mortality, and longer prothrombin times than did the layer strain fed the same diets. Regardless of the breed, female chicks fed the highest warfarin level had significantly longer prothrombin times than the male chicks. However, there were no sex differences associated with mortality or incidence of hemorrhages among birds fed the experimental diets. Growth was most significantly reduced for chicks fed the highest warfarin level and to a lesser degree for birds fed 50 ppm of warfarin. In contrast to the first 10 weeks of the study, there was a sharp decline in mortality, incidence of hemorrhages, and prothrombin times during the last 10 weeks of the study. Layer and broiler strains of chickens fed warfarin for 20 weeks showed no evidence of granulomatous endocardial lesions as was reported for swine (Oshiro and Brooks, 1975).
A Longitudinal Study of the Predictive Relations Among Construction Play and Mathematical Achievement

This longitudinal study began in 1982 with 37 four year old children who attended the same child care center for at least one year. The participants were assessed on their construction play products of blocks, Legos, and carpentry using the Lunzer Five Point Play Scale. An IQ score was obtained using The McCarthy Scales of Children's Mental Abilities. Gender was also used as a control variable. In 1998, 27 of these participants were found and standardized test scores in mathematics for grades 3, 5, 7, and high school were correlated with play scores. The California Acheivement Test as well as high school higher mathematics classes and honors format classes were noted. Results showed that grades 3 and 5 had little significance found between a participant's play performance and mathematical achievement. At grade 7 and in high school each area of construction play and standardized test scores were found to be significant.
AIDS: Ethical implications for psychological intervention.

L'auteur s'interesse dans cet article aux problemes ethiques poses par la prise en charge de patients atteints du SIDA par les psychologues. Les problemes de confidentialite dans le cas de toxicomanes et d'homosexuels sont tout particulierement evoques
Predicting market orientation: Chinese retailers in a transitional economy

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide an investigation of market orientation of retailers in China, an emerging economy. Several predictors of Chinese retailers' market orientation are examined.Design/methodology/approach – Using survey data collected from 99 retailers in China, the paper tests the hypothesized relationships using a multiple regression model.Findings – The paper finds that perceived supplier market orientation (SMO), firm size, and ownership are predictors of retailer market orientation (RMO). The results of this paper suggest that market orientation is perceived as important and is being adopted by retailers with varying ownerships and structures across China.Research limitations/implications – The study has several limitations including sample, sample size, and single‐respondent design. Nevertheless, the paper depicts a contemporary picture of Chinese retailers' adoption of market orientation.Practical implications – The findings of this study provide both retailers and supp...
The polarization behavior of the iron, 304 and 316 stainless steel electrodes in molten sodium carbonate under CO/CO2/H2/H2S atmospheres

Abstract The electrode polarization behavior of iron and austenitic stainless steels 304 and 316 was studied in molten sodium carbonate at 1000°C under an atmosphere of 24% CO, 24% CO2, 49.3% H2 and 2.7% H2S at 1 atm. The empirical polarization data were fitted to a previously described analytical model incorporating the effects of electron transfer polarization, concentration polarization and ohmic loss. Three distinct anodic reactions were seen. Comparison of curve parameters with results from a previous study of the nickel electrode together with analyses of anodic scales and expected equilibria in the system indicate that these reactions, in order of increasing anodic overpotential, are the oxidation of iron to the Fe2+ state with the formation of FeO, the oxidation of iron and chromium to the 3+ state with the formation of the spinel oxide FeFe2−xCrxO4, and the oxidation of CO32− with formation of O2. The only distinction in the behavior of the iron and stainless steel electrodes is in the composition of the spinel oxide and a Nernstian displacement of the reaction Fe = Fe2+ + 2e. In addition to these significant electrode reactions, carburization of iron was seen at cathodic potentials, with oxidation of the carbide at anodic potentials.
Taxonomic and functional aspects of the patterning of enamel thickness distribution in extant large-bodied hominoids.

One of the few uncontested viewpoints in studies of enamel thickness is that the molars of the African apes, Pan and Gorilla, possess ''thin'' enamel, while Pongo and modern humans possess varying degrees of ''thick'' enamel, even when interspecific differences in overall body or tooth size are taken into account. Such studies focus primarily on estimates of the total volume of enamel relative to tooth size (i.e., ''relative'' enamel thickness), as this is thought to bear directly on questions concerning dietary proclivities and phylogenetic relationships. Only recently have studies shifted focus to examining differences in the distribution of enamel across the tooth crown, i.e., the patterning of enamel thickness, as this may contribute to more refined models of tooth function and dietary adaptations in extant hominoids. Addition- ally, this feature has been suggested to be a reliable indicator of taxonomic affinity in early hominins, though no study has specifically addressed whether species-specific patterns exist among known phena. The aims of this paper were to test more explicitly whether enamel thickness patterning provides valuable taxonomic, functional, and/or phylogenetic information for maxillary molars of large-bodied extant hominoids. A series of seven linear enamel thickness measurements was recorded in the plane of the mesial cusps in cross sections of a total of 62 maxillary molars of P. troglodytes, G. gorilla, P. pygmaeus, and H. sapiens to estimate the patterning of enamel thickness distribution. Results from a discriminant function analysis reveal that, overall, this trait reclassifies extant hominoid maxillary molars with 90% accuracy: 100% of extant Homo, 75.0% of Pongo, 83.3% of Pan, and 66.7% of Gorilla are reclassified correctly, indicating that this feature possesses a strong taxonomic signal. Furthermore, differences in the structure of the enamel cap are evident among hominoids: modern humans differ from Pongo in possessing proportionally thicker enamel in areas of the crown associated with shearing activity; Pan molars are better designed than those of Gorilla for generating a greater component of crushing/grinding loads. Thus, African ape molars are structurally dissimilar, even though they are both considered to belong to a morphologically homogeneous ''thin-enameled'' group. Simple developmental mechanisms can be invoked to explain the sometimes subtle differences in the achievement of adult morphology. For instance, human and
Two-dimensional equations for guided electromagnetic waves in anisotropic dielectric plates surrounded by free space

Two-dimensional governing equations for guided electromagnetic waves in an anisotropic dielectric plate surrounded by free space are deduced from the three-dimensional Maxwell's equations by expanding the electromagnetic vector potential in a series of trigonometric functions of thickness coordinate in the plate and in exponentially decaying functions of thickness coordinate in the upper and lower halves of free space. By further satisfying the continuity conditions of the electromagnetic field at the interfaces between the plate and free spaces, a single system of two-dimensional governing equations is obtained. Dispersion relations are obtained from the two-dimensional equations and computed for the doubly rotated cut of lithium niobate (yxlt)45/spl deg//5/spl deg/. These dispersion curves are then compared with the corresponding ones obtained from the exact solutions of the three-dimensional Maxwell's equations. It is shown that the agreement between the approximate and exact dispersion curves is very close. >
The Business of Social Design: Rethinking Model and Method

Effecting design-driven social change tends to require changes to the traditional consultancy business model. Funding, clients, and complexity may be significantly different, and the emergence of human-centered design puts the designer earlier in the process. Integrating social design so that it contributes to bottom-line success, rather than jeopardizing it, is the key to success. Designers and consultancies who want to practice social design often find that it requires significant changes to their business model. Here are some ideas.
Paleogene anatexis along the Gulf of Alaska margin

Early Tertiary plutons of biotite tonalite, granodiorite, and granite are found in a curvilinear 2,000-km-long belt along the margin of the Gulf of Alaska. These plutons intrude flyschoid rocks that were accreted to the continental margin during Late Cretaceous and/or early Tertiary time. Field, petrologic, age, and Rb-Sr data on plutonic and metamorphic rocks in eastern Chugach Mountains suggest that the granitic magmas were produced by partial melting of deeper parts of the accretionary prism after it was deformed against the continent. Such magmas may be a common product of heating at the termination of certain major accretionary episodes; they are not subduction-related magmas from subcrustal sources.
Reliability of acuities determined with the sweep visual evoked potential (sVEP)

sVEPs are generally used to rapidly obtain visual acuity. Several studies have determined the reliability of acuity measurements with psychophysical techniques. The aim of this study was to determine the intersession and intrasession variabilities of sVEP measurements. Twenty-four normal, adult subjects took part in this project. Stimulus production and data analyses were done using an Enfant 4010. Standard VEP recording techniques were employed. Data were collected on two separate days (at least 1 week apart). At each visit, two complete sets of sVEP data were collected and averaged. A logMAR acuity chart was also used to determine the acuity at each visit. Paired t tests, 95% confidence intervals, intraclass correlation coefficients, and coefficients of repeatability were used to determine whether there was a difference in the intrasession and intersession acuities. The mean acuity difference and coefficient of repeatability were +0.01 and 0.191 for visit 1 and −0.019 and 0.186 for visit 2, respectively. The mean acuity difference and coefficient of repeatability across visits were +0.008 and 0.176 for the first acuity and−0.02 and 0.170 for the second acuity, respectively. Paired t tests did not find a significant difference between any set of data or the average for visits one and two (all P values > 0.05). The intraclass correlation coefficients comparing the average sVEP data and the logMAR data for visits 1 and 2 were 0.71 and 0.88, respectively. The coefficients of repeatability for the averaged sVEP acuity and the logMAR acuity for the two visits were 0.11 and 0.07, respectively. The repeatability of the sVEP acuity estimate in a large population of adults is similar to that of previous published reports on infants and is nearly as high as that of logMAR acuity chart data. The repeatability is the same for single best estimates of acuity and averaged estimates of acuity across visits.
Dynamics of living polymers

We study theoretically the dynamics of living polymers which can add and subtract monomer units at their live chain ends. The classic example is ionic living polymerization. In equilibrium, a delicate balance is maintained in which each initiated chain has a very small negative average growth rate (“velocity”) just sufficient to negate the effect of growth rate fluctuations. This leads to an exponential molecular weight distribution (MWD) with mean $\bar{N}$ . After a small perturbation of relative amplitude $\epsilon$ , e.g. a small temperature jump, this balance is destroyed: the velocity acquires a boost greatly exceeding its tiny equilibrium value. For $\epsilon > \epsilon_{\mathrm c} \approx 1/\bar{N}^{1/2}$ the response has 3 stages: (1) Coherent chain growth or shrinkage, leaving a highly non-linear hole or peak in the MWD at small chain lengths. During this episode, lasting time $\tau_{\mathrm fast} \sim \bar{N}$ , the MWD’s first moment and monomer concentration m relax very close to equilibrium. (2) Hole-filling (or peak decay) after $\tau_{\mathrm fill} \sim \epsilon^2 \bar{N}^2$ . The absence or surfeit of small chains is erased. (3) Global MWD shape relaxation after $\tau_{\mathrm slow} \sim \bar{N}^2$ . By this time second and higher MWD moments have relaxed. During episodes (2) and (3) the fast variables ( $\bar{N},m$ ) are enslaved to the slowly varying number of free initiators (chains of zero length). Thus fast variables are quasi-statically fine-tuned to equilibrium. The outstanding feature of these dynamics is their ultrasensitivity: despite the perturbation’s linearity, the response is non-linear until the late episode (3). For very small perturbations, $\epsilon < \epsilon_{\mathrm c}$ , response remains non-linear but with a less dramatic peak or hole during episode (1). Our predictions are in agreement with viscosity measurements on the most widely studied system, $\alpha$ -methylstyrene.
Combining an Autologous Peripheral Nervous System “Bridge” and Matrix Modification by Chondroitinase Allows Robust, Functional Regeneration beyond a Hemisection Lesion of the Adult Rat Spinal Cord

Chondroitinase-ABC (ChABC) was applied to a cervical level 5 (C5) dorsal quadrant aspiration cavity of the adult rat spinal cord to degrade the local accumulation of inhibitory chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans. The intent was to enhance the extension of regenerated axons from the distal end of a peripheral nerve (PN) graft back into the C5 spinal cord, having bypassed a hemisection lesion at C3. ChABC-treated rats showed (1) gradual improvement in the range of forelimb swing during locomotion, with some animals progressing to the point of raising their forelimb above the nose, (2) an enhanced ability to use the forelimb in a cylinder test, and (3) improvements in balance and weight bearing on a horizontal rope. Transection of the PN graft, which cuts through regenerated axons, greatly diminished these functional improvements. Axonal regrowth from the PN graft correlated well with the behavioral assessments. Thus, many more axons extended for much longer distances into the cord after ChABC treatment and bridge insertion compared with the control groups, in which axons regenerated into the PN graft but growth back into the spinal cord was extremely limited. These results demonstrate, for the first time, that modulation of extracellular matrix components after spinal cord injury promotes significant axonal regeneration beyond the distal end of a PN bridge back into the spinal cord and that regenerating axons can mediate the return of useful function of the affected limb.
Instructive Conductive 3D Silk Foam‐Based Bone Tissue Scaffolds Enable Electrical Stimulation of Stem Cells for Enhanced Osteogenic Differentiation

Stimuli-responsive materials enabling the behavior of the cells that reside within them to be controlled are vital for the development of instructive tissue scaffolds for tissue engineering. Herein, we describe the preparation of conductive silk foam-based bone tissue scaffolds that enable the electrical stimulation of human mesenchymal stem cells (HMSCs) to enhance their differentiation toward osteogenic outcomes.
Genomic insights into Wnt signaling in an early diverging metazoan, the ctenophore Mnemiopsis leidyi

Background Intercellular signaling pathways are a fundamental component of the integrating cellular behavior required for the evolution of multicellularity. The genomes of three of the four early branching animal phyla (Cnidaria, Placozoa and Porifera) have been surveyed for key components, but not the fourth (Ctenophora). Genomic data from ctenophores could be particularly relevant, as ctenophores have been proposed to be one of the earliest branching metazoan phyla.
Linear Dichroism and Orientation of the Phycomyces Photopigment

The greater sensitivity of a cylindrical Phycomyces sporangiophore to blue light polarized transversely rather than longitudinally is a consequence of the dichroism and orientation of the receptor pigment. The abilities of wild type and several carotene mutants to distinguish between the two directions of polarization are the same. The E-vector angle for maximum response relative to the transverse direction is 42 ± 4° at 280 nm, 7° ± 3° at 456 nm, and 7° ± 8° at 486 nm. The in vivo attenuation of polarized light at these wavelengths is very small. The polarized light effect in Phycomyces cannot arise from reflections at the cell surface or from differential attenuations due to internal screening or scattering.
Staphylococcus aureus HrtA Is an ATPase Required for Protection against Heme Toxicity and Prevention of a Transcriptional Heme Stress Response

During systemic infection, Staphylococcus aureus acquires nutrient iron from heme, the cofactor of vertebrate myoglobin and hemoglobin. Upon exposure to heme, S. aureus up-regulates the expression of the heme-regulated transporter, HrtAB. Strains lacking hrtAB exhibit increased sensitivity to heme toxicity, and upon heme exposure they elaborate a secreted protein response that interferes with the recruitment of neutrophils to the site of infection. Taken together, these results have led to the suggestion that hrtAB encodes an efflux system responsible for relieving the toxic effects of accumulated heme. Here we extend these observations by demonstrating that HrtA is the ATPase component of the HrtAB transport system. We show that HrtA is an Mn2+/Mg2+-dependent ATPase that functions at an optimal pH of 7.5 and exhibits in vitro temperature dependence uncommon to ABC transporter ATPases. Furthermore, we identify conserved residues within HrtA that are required for in vitro ATPase activity and are essential for the functionality of HrtA in vivo. Finally, we show that heme induces an alteration in the gene expression pattern of S. aureus ΔhrtA, implying the presence of a novel transcriptional regulatory mechanism responsible for the previously described immunomodulatory characteristics of hrtA mutants exposed to heme.
Synthesis and assembly of nonspherical hollow silica colloids under confinement

Hard peanut-shaped colloids were synthesized and organized into a degenerate crystal (DC), a phase previously observed only in simulations. In this structure, particle lobes tile a triangular lattice while their orientations uniformly populate the three underlying crystalline directions.
L-theanine intervention enhances human gammadeltaT lymphocyte function.

Human γδ T lymphocytes are a subset of T cells and are a first line of defense against microbes and tumors. These γδ T cells can be primed by nitrogen-containing bisphosphonates, and certain short-chain alkylamines. These primed γδ T cells have an enhanced capacity to proliferate and to secrete cytokines upon ex vivo exposure to a wide variety of microbes and tumor cells. The largest dietary source of alkylamines is L-theanine, an amino acid unique to tea beverages that is catabolized to ethylamine. Supplementation of subjects with capsules containing L-theanine and catechins has recently been shown to decrease the incidence of cold and flu symptoms, while enhancing γδ T cell function.
The Value of Positron Emission Tomography in the Surgical Management of Recurrent Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma

Patients with papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) may suffer recurrence despite thyroidectomy and complete radioiodine (RAI) ablation. Reoperation is vitally dependent on accurate and complete disease localization, typically utilizing cervical ultrasonography (US) and/or computed tomography. Our aim was to determine the comparative value of F18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (PET) to US for localization of locoregional recurrence in patients who underwent reoperation for recurrent PTC. From 1999 to 2004, 30 patients who underwent re-exploration and 100 nonoperated patients who were investigated with PET for possible recurrent PTC were reviewed. The surgical group [9 males, 21 females; mean age = 50 years (range = 18–84 years)] all had received RAI ablation. Preoperative thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), thyroglobulin (Tg), and location of metastasis were recorded for each imaging study and surgical exploration. All separate sites that contained disease pathologically must have been identified by imaging for a patient to be considered true positive (TP). PET scans were TP in 43%, false positive in 7%, false negative (FN) in 50%, and had a sensitivity of 46%. Comparable US results were 86%, 10%, 3%, and 96%. Of the 15 patients with FN PET scans, 13 had lymph node metastasis less than 2 cm in diameter, 11 had Tg ≤ 10 μg/L, and the TSH < 20 in 13. In only 3 of the 30 (10%) patients was PET deemed to add value. At least with suppressed TSH, PET scanning in reoperative PTC patients appears to offer modest benefit beyond high-resolution US.
Student Perception, Mathematical Problem Solving, and Learning Disabilities

The purpose of this article is to discuss student perception of mathematical problem solving. Findings from five studies measuring attitude toward mathematics, perception of performance, perception of the importance of mathematical problem solving, and perception of problem difficulty are presented and discussed. Additionally, the interaction of affect and cognition and the implications of this interaction for assessing and teaching mathematical problem solving to students with learning disabilities are discussed.
Designing optimal sequential experiments for a Bayesian classifier

As computing power has grown, the trend in experimental design has been from techniques requiring little computation towards techniques providing better, more general results at the cost of additional computation. This paper continues this trend presenting three new methods for designing experiments. A summary of previous work in experimental design is provided and used to show how these new methods generalize previous criteria and provide a more accurate analysis than prior methods. The first method generates experimental designs by maximizing the uncertainty of the experiment's result, while the remaining two methods minimize an approximation of the variance of a function of the parameters. The third method uses a computationally expensive discrete approximation to determine the variance. The methods are tested and compared using the logistic model and a Bayesian classifier. The results show that at the expense of greater computation, experimental designs more effective at reducing the uncertainty of the decision boundary of the Bayesian classifier can be generated.
Incorporation of novel underwater thrusters into vehicle control systems

A new type of underwater thruster is studied which is inspired by the natural locomotion of squid and other cephalopod. The thruster is similar to synthetic jet actuators used for flow control studies, but operates on different length and frequency scales. A hybrid simulation experiment has been designed to test the performance of this thruster in a static environment, under dynamic, unsteady driving signals. The hybrid simulation implements actual thrust production on a virtual vehicle model and attempts to control the trajectory of that vehicle. It was determined that this type of thruster being controlled with a basic PD control algorithm demonstrates excellent position tracking in a wide range of maneuvers. The thruster showed that it could produce controlling forces accurately on several scales of thrust. However, the maneuvering system was subject to an appreciable position overshoot at high vehicle oscillation frequencies, due to unmodeled thruster settling time.
Striatal Cholinergic Neurotransmission Requires VGLUT3

It is now clear that many neuronal populations release more than one classical neurotransmitter, yet in most cases the functional role of corelease is unknown. Striatal cholinergic interneurons release both glutamate and acetylcholine, and vesicular loading of glutamate has been shown to enhance acetylcholine content. Using a combination of optogenetics and whole-cell recordings in mice, we now provide physiological evidence that optogenetic stimulation of cholinergic interneurons triggers monosynaptic glutamate- and acetylcholine-mediated currents in striatal fast-spiking interneurons (FSIs), both of which depend on the expression of the vesicular glutamate transporter 3 (VGLUT3). In contrast to corticostriatal glutamatergic inputs onto FSIs, which are mediated primarily by AMPA-type glutamate receptors, glutamate release by cholinergic interneurons activates both AMPA- and NMDA-type glutamate receptors, suggesting a unique role for these inputs in the modulation of FSI activity. Importantly, we find that the loss of VGLUT3 not only markedly attenuates glutamatergic and cholinergic inputs on FSIs, but also significantly decreases disynaptic GABAergic input onto medium spiny neurons (MSNs), the major output neurons of the striatum. Our data demonstrate that VGLUT3 is required for normal cholinergic signaling onto FSIs, as well as for acetylcholine-dependent disynaptic inhibition of MSNs. Thus, by supporting fast glutamatergic transmission as well as by modulating the strength of cholinergic signaling, VGLUT3 has the capacity to exert widespread influence on the striatal network.
PLA2 dependence of diaphragm mitochondrial formation of reactive oxygen species

Contraction-induced respiratory muscle fatigue and sepsis-related reductions in respiratory muscle force-generating capacity are mediated, at least in part, by reactive oxygen species (ROS). The subcellular sources and mechanisms of generation of ROS in these conditions are incompletely understood. We postulated that the physiological changes associated with muscle contraction (i.e., increases in calcium and ADP concentration) stimulate mitochondrial generation of ROS by a phospholipase A(2) (PLA(2))-modulated process and that sepsis enhances muscle generation of ROS by upregulating PLA(2) activity. To test these hypotheses, we examined H(2)O(2) generation by diaphragm mitochondria isolated from saline-treated control and endotoxin-treated septic animals in the presence and absence of calcium and ADP; we also assessed the effect of PLA(2) inhibitors on H(2)O(2) formation. We found that 1) calcium and ADP stimulated H(2)O(2) formation by diaphragm mitochondria from both control and septic animals; 2) mitochondria from septic animals demonstrated substantially higher H(2)O(2) formation than mitochondria from control animals under basal, calcium-stimulated, and ADP-stimulated conditions; and 3) inhibitors of 14-kDa PLA(2) blocked the enhanced H(2)O(2) generation in all conditions. We also found that administration of arachidonic acid (the principal metabolic product of PLA(2) activation) increased mitochondrial H(2)O(2) formation by interacting with complex I of the electron transport chain. These data suggest that diaphragm mitochondrial ROS formation during contraction and sepsis may be critically dependent on PLA(2) activation.
The influence of pregnancy and oral contraceptive steroids on the concentration of plasma proteins: Studies with a quantitative immunodiffusion method

Abstract The concentrations of 11 plasma proteins were determined in 25 women in the third trimester of pregnancy, 31 women who had taken oral contraceptive agents containing synthetic estrogens and progestins for 3 months or longer, and 31 women of comparable ages who served as controls. Sera from fasting subjects were used to determine, by means of quantitative immunodiffusion assay, the level of each individual protein. Pregnancy and treatment with oral contraceptives produced increased mean serum levels of the following proteins: ceruloplasmin, α 1 -antitrypsin, transferrin, and β 1A -globulin. The following proteins were decreased in concentration: α 1 -acid glycoprotein, haptoglobin, and albumin. The slight decrease in the mean concentration of serum albumin produced by oral contraceptives was not statistically significant. The concentrations of γA-globulin, γM-globulin, and α 2 -macroglobulin were not significantly altered by pregnancy or by treatment with oral contraceptives. γG-globulin was significantly reduced in pregnant woman. The effects of oral contraceptives on the concentrations of plasma proteins, although less marked, generally paralleled those produced by late pregnancy. The most striking alterations were noted in serum proteins that are known to be synthesized by the liver, an observation consistent with the significant influences which sex hormones exert on various metabolic activities of this organ.
Generational Change and Redefining Identities: Post-Conflict Peacebuilding in Northern Ireland

This paper focuses on how peacebuilding in Northern Ireland is a slow process based primarily on generational replacement. Because Northern Ireland did not experience a Truth and Reconciliation Commission or a formal process of reconciling those who experienced “The Troubles,” older cohorts have not redefined their identities or are as likely to change their identities as younger cohorts. However, especially among Protestants, there is evidence of significant generational differences in identity emerging in Northern Ireland. This paper will highlight how the peace process itself counted on this process of intergenerational change in Northern Ireland and how it offers the best hope for transforming historically sectarian conceptions of identity into less reactionary or hostile identities that open up aspirations for new relations across the sectarian divide in Northern Ireland. Thus, the slow process of reconciliation may accelerate in future decades and residual support that continues to exist for republican dissidents and loyalist paramilitaries slowly dissipate over time. Of course, many potential intervening events (i.e. period effects) could overwhelm this slow process of social and identity change in Northern Ireland.
Developments in Korean Corporate Governance: Progress toward 21st Century Standards in an Emerging Economic Powerhouse

Corporations in the Republic of Korea are continuously developing into significant forces in the global economy. The United States business community is taking note and participating with Korean firms through collaborative deals; actively pursuing Korean companies in share acquisitions; and selling massive business units to Korean entities. U.S. foreign direct investment in Korea is on the rise, and foreign investors are pumping more and more money into the Korean stock market. Opportunities for foreign investment in Korea continue to increase as the government moves rapidly in privatizing government owned businesses. Korea's continued emergence as a global economic powerhouse is evolving just 10 years after the Asian Financial Crisis. Since that time, the corporate governance standards and laws in Korea have been the topic of concern and debate. In the early 2000's, the World Bank and the Institute of International Finance, Inc. ("IIF") dispatched task forces to evaluate corporate governance in Korea and to make recommendations for Korea's future development. Both assessments were concluded in 2003. This note is a critical link in updating the legal literature on developments in Korean corporate governance since the 2003 reports. The note begins by displaying the recent impact Korean corporations have had on global business and finance. It then sets forth the 5 most significant elements of Korean corporate governance that were categorized as in need of further development by the World Bank and IIF corporate governance assessments. The remaining portion of the note establishes that Korea has answered the call of the economic development organizations by instituting corporate governance best practices in the 5 areas via a variety of interventional techniques from various groups and constituencies.
Optical crystallographic properties of organic compounds II. Aliphatic dicarboxylic acids

The optical crystallographic properties of nine aliphatic dicarboxylic acids and one hydrate have been determined. Of these, the data on five of the acids have not previously been recorded. Certain additions and corrections have been made to existing data. A relationship between the melting points of the acids in this series and the values for theβ index of refraction has been found. Theβ index of refraction follows the same well known pattern when plotted against the number of carbon atoms as is shown when the melting points of the acids are plotted against the number of carbon atoms. The same relationship is evident when\(\sqrt[3]{{\alpha \beta \gamma }}\) is plotted against the number of carbon atoms in this series. No explanation for this behavior can be suggested at present.
Nonequilibrium Crystal Growth during Pulsed Laser Annealing

Solidification of the melted region during pulsed laser annealing occurs under conditions that are far from equilibrium at the interface. Studies of laser annealing of ion implanted silicon can be used to provide a wealth of information on nonequilibrium crystal growth phenomena.
Disability discrimination and Parker v. Metropolitan Life: separate, but equal?

In August 1997, the Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruled that disability insurance obtained as an employment benefit is not a "physical place" protected by Title III of the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA). The majority held that because benefits were obtained from an employer instead of from an insurance office, the insurance plan's disparity between mental health benefits and benefits for physical disabilities did not constitute "discrimination" as defined by Title I of the ADA. Other circuit courts have held that illness-specific discrimination in disability insurance coverage is indeed prohibited under Title III. The conflict between the circuit courts may ultimately work its way to the U.S. Supreme Court.
An OLSR Protocol Based on α-β Filtering in Highly Dynamic Networks

Aiming to the continuous trajectory and memorial movement state of node in aero highly dynamic UVA( unmanned aerial vehicle) networks,a 3D Gauss-Markov mobility model which has this kind of characteristic is used to simulate performance of the OLSR protocol. Considering the memorial movement of UVA and the link detecting of periodic HELLO messages in OLSR,an OLSR protocol based on α-β filtering algorithm is proposed to predict the quality of neighbor node link. The proposed algorithm use received signal intensity to acquire the measured values which can predict the distance and relative velocity to overcome the effect of unstable links. The simulation results show that the proposed protocol provides an effective method of improving packet delivery rate and reducing networks overload compared with the traditional OLSR protocol.
The Diagnostic Value of Brain Natriuretic Peptide and Neuropeptide Y for Heart Failure in Children with Severe Pneumonia

Objective:To determine the levels of brain natriuretic peptide(BNP) and neuropeptide Y(NPY) in heart failure(HF) secondary to severe pneumonia in a group of pediatric cases,and to see whether these data may support the diagnostic value of BNP and NPY in children with such condition.Methods: We retrospectively studied the levels of BNP and NPY in 41 pediatric cases of severe pneumonia before and after treatment in our hospital.Changes in these data were compared using statistical approach.Results:Compared with non-HF complicating patients(P0.01) and healthy controls(P0.01),which showed no difference between each other,children with concurrent severe pneumonia and heart failure experienced higher levels of BNP and NPY.Conclusion: Detection of serum BNP and NPY may help diagnosis or prediction of heart failure secondary to severe pneumonia in children.BNP test as an early objective measure for diagnosis prove to be practical and reliable.
The recollective qualities of adolescents’ and adults’ narratives about a long-ago tornado

The recollective qualities of autobiographical memory are thought to develop over the course of the first two decades of life. We used a 9-year follow-up test of recall of a devastating tornado and of non-tornado-related events from before and after the storm, to compare the recollective qualities of adolescents' (n = 20, ages 11 years, 11 months to 20 years, 8 months) and adults' (n = 14) autobiographical memories. At the time of the tornado, half of the adolescents had been younger than age 6. Nine years after the event, all participants provided evidence that they recall the event of the tornado. Adults also had high levels of recall of the non-tornado-related events. Adolescents recalled proportionally fewer non-tornado-related events; adolescents younger than 6 at the time of the events recalled the fewest non-tornado-related events. Relative to adolescents, adults produced longer narratives. With narrative length controlled, there were few differences in the recollective qualities of adolescents' and adults' narrative reports, especially in the case of the tornado; the recollective qualities were stronger among adolescents older at the time of the events. Overall, participants in both age groups provided evidence of the qualities of recollection that are characteristic of autobiographical memory.
Local time variations of high-energy plasmaspheric ion pitch angle distributions

Recent observations from the Van Allen Probes Helium Oxygen Proton Electron (HOPE) instrument revealed a persistent depletion in the 1–10 eV ion population in the postmidnight sector during quiet times in the 2 < L < 3 region. This study explores the source of this ion depletion by developing an algorithm to classify 26 months of pitch angle distributions measured by the HOPE instrument. We correct the HOPE low energy fluxes for spacecraft potential using measurements from the Electric Field and Waves (EFW) instrument. A high percentage of low count pitch angle distributions is found in the postmidnight sector coupled with a low percentage of ion distributions peaked perpendicular to the field line. A peak in loss cone distributions in the dusk sector is also observed. Here, these results characterize the nature of the dearth of the near 90° pitch angle 1–10 eV ion population in the near-Earth postmidnight sector. This study also shows, for the first time, low-energy HOPE differential number fluxes corrected for spacecraft potential and 1–10 eV H+ fluxes at different levels of geomagnetic activity.
Internationalization in Teacher Education in the US: Innovative Programs and Practices to Meet the Global Challenges of Tomorrow’s Schools

With the formation of the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) in 2013, and key policy changes initiated by the United States Department of Education, the landscape of teacher education in the United States has dramatically changed. This chapter provides an overview of international education initiatives that have impacted teacher education and the crucial roles that nongovernmental organizations and foundations have played in broadening opportunities for faculty and students. The pioneering work of several colleges in ensuring global perspectives are foundational to the teacher preparation curriculum and are described as a detailed case study of one university’s innovative practices.
Comprehensive Characterization of 10-kV Silicon Carbide Half-Bridge Modules

This paper provides a comprehensive characterization of an example medium-voltage dc-based (MVDC) silicon carbide (SiC) MOSFET module of the type recently developed under Department of Defense (DoD) programs. As shown in this paper, these modules are capable of switching inductive loads very rapidly (<100 ns), with minimal overshoot and manageable parasitic-induced ringing. The transient analysis contained herein demonstrates a total per-cycle switching losses of 2.5 mJ at a bus voltage of 2 kV and a load current of 20 A. This figure is approximately two orders of magnitude lower than values recorded in the literature for commercially available silicon Insulated-Gate Bipolar Transistor modules with multikilovolt ratings at similar operating conditions (but which have lower blocking capability than the MVDC SiC module under study). These results corroborate the excellent switching performance of these MVDC SiC MOSFET modules, which has been only sparsely documented in the literature to date. In addition, this paper provides a comprehensive analysis of the static characteristics of these modules, including forward conduction, transfer characteristics, capacitance-voltage measurements, and quantization of parasitic impedances within the module housing. Technical challenges associated with making accurate and repeatable measurements with SiC modules of this scale are identified and explained, along with the details of the identified solutions. Finally, this paper includes a detailed description of the transient characterization test stand designed in support of this paper, which offers support for safely demonstrating the high-performance transient characteristics of MVDC SiC MOSFET modules at reasonable cost.
The Stress-Response MAP Kinase Signaling in Cardiac Arrhythmias

Stress-response kinases, the mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) are activated in response to the challenge of a myriad of stressors. c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERKs), and p38 MAPKs are the predominant members of the MAPK family in the heart. Extensive studies have revealed critical roles of activated MAPKs in the processes of cardiac injury and heart failure and many other cardiovascular diseases. Recently, emerging evidence suggests that MAPKs also promote the development of cardiac arrhythmias. Thus, understanding the functional impact of MAPKs in the heart could shed new light on the development of novel therapeutic approaches to improve cardiac function and prevent arrhythmia development in the patients. This review will summarize the recent findings on the role of MAPKs in cardiac remodeling and arrhythmia development and point to the critical need of future studies to further elucidate the fundamental mechanisms of MAPK activation and arrhythmia development in the heart.
Disclosure and Strategic Restraint: The Appropriateness of Bias in Medical and Business Contexts

Conflicts of interest provide an incentive for professionals to give biased advice. Disclosing, or informing, consumers about the conflict is a popular solution for managing conflicts of interest. ...
INVITED EDITORIAL COMMENT: Finance as an Industrial Science

1. Marcos Lopez de Prado 1. is a senior managing director at Guggenheim Partners in New York, NY, and a research fellow in the Computational Research Division at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in Berkeley, CA . (lopezdeprado{at}lbl.gov) 1. To order reprints of this article
Clinical characteristics and outcomes for patients with thymic carcinoma: Evaluation of Masaoka staging.

7603 Background: Thymic carcinomas (TC) are rare cancers with limited data regarding outcomes, particularly for those patients (pts) with advanced disease. Methods: We identified pts with TC diagno...