cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The Intracellular Redox Stress Caused by Hexavalent Chromium is Selective for Proteins that Have Key Roles in Cell Survival and Thiol Redox Control

Hexavalent chromium [Cr(VI)] compounds (e.g. chromates) are strong oxidants that readily enter cells where they are reduced to reactive Cr intermediates that can directly oxidize some cell components and can promote the generation of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species. Inhalation is a major route of exposure which directly exposes the bronchial epithelium. Previous studies with non-cancerous human bronchial epithelial cells (BEAS-2B) demonstrated that Cr(VI) treatment results in the irreversible inhibition of thioredoxin reductase (TrxR) and the oxidation of thioredoxins (Trx) and peroxiredoxins (Prx). The mitochondrial Trx/Prx system is somewhat more sensitive to Cr(VI) than the cytosolic Trx/Prx system, and other redox-sensitive mitochondrial functions are subsequently affected including electron transport complexes I and II. Studies reported here show that Cr(VI) does not cause indiscriminant thiol oxidation, and that the Trx/Prx system is among the most sensitive of cellular protein thiols. Trx/Prx oxidation is not unique to BEAS-2B cells, as it was also observed in primary human bronchial epithelial cells. Increasing the intracellular levels of ascorbate, an endogenous Cr(VI) reductant, did not alter the effects on TrxR, Trx, or Prx. The peroxynitrite scavenger MnTBAP did not protect TrxR, Trx, Prx, or the electron transport chain from the effects of Cr(VI), implying that peroxynitrite is not required for these effects. Nitration of tyrosine residues of TrxR was not observed following Cr(VI) treatment, further ruling out peroxynitrite as a significant contributor to the irreversible inhibition of TrxR. Cr(VI) treatments that disrupt the TrxR/Trx/Prx system did not cause detectable mitochondrial DNA damage. Overall, the redox stress that results from Cr(VI) exposure shows selectivity for key proteins which are known to be important for redox signaling, antioxidant defense, and cell survival.
Seeing with your fingers: a transcranial magnetic stimulation investigation of multimodal sensory perception.

The organization of brain function is often pictured as a simple pyramid, with each sensory modality represented separately at the first level but coming together in “higher” cortical areas to become a unified percept. However, a growing body of work reveals direct and early interactions between
The Lockean ‘Enough-and-as-Good’ Proviso: An Internal Critique

A private property account is central to a liberal theory of justice. Much of the appeal of the Lockean theory stems from its account of the so-called ‘enough-and-as-good’ proviso, a principle which aims to specify each employable person’s fair share of the earth’s material resources. I argue that to date Lockeans have failed to show how the proviso can be applied without thereby undermining a guiding intuition in Lockean theory. This guiding intuition is that by interacting in accordance with the proviso persons interact as free and equal, or as reciprocally subject to the ‘laws of nature’ rather than as subject to one another’s arbitrary will. Because Locke’s own and contemporary Lockean conceptions of the proviso subject some persons to some other persons’ arbitrary will, the proviso so conceived cannot function as it should, namely as a principle that restricts interacting persons’ actions reciprocally and thereby enables Lockean freedom under law.
The application of psychodynamic thinking to hypnotic behavior

The thesis of this paper was that psychodynamic variables affect both the induction of hypnosis and behavior after induction. It was, therefore, maintained that psychotherapists should feel comfortable about using the same psychodynamic principles to understand their hypnotized patients that they use to understand patients who are not hypnotized. Clinical situations involving hypnotic induction, behavior during hypnosis, depth of hypnosis, termination of hypnosis, and post-hypnotic behavior, were then presented to illustrate both the explanatory and practical usefulness of the application of psychodynamic thinking to hypnotic behavior.
Spatial dependence of microstrip line properties on artificial substrates

Integration of artificial materials into devices is very difficult due to manufacturing limitations. Recently simplified versions of these materials have been proposed that are far easier to manufacture. However, non-ideal effects are caused by simplification of these materials. In this paper, microstrip lines placed onto artificial material substrates composed of metallic cube and sphere particles are simulated and characterized. Deviations from ideal behavior are quantified and reported.
Health literacy and patient understanding of first and second trimester screening for aneuploidy and neural tube defects

REMOORTERE, JUAN E. VARGAS, ALVARO INSUNZA, RICARDO GOMEZ, LUIS MEDINA, AARON B. CAUGHEY, University of California, San Francisco, Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, San Francisco, California, Clinica Alemana de Santiago, Hospital Padre Hurtado, Universidad del Desarrollo, Santiago, Chile, CEDIP, Sotero del Rio Hospital, Puente Alto, Chile OBJECTIVE: The literature has shown that women perceive their birth experience very differently depending on mode of delivery, prenatal care, and the amount of education they receive prior to delivery. Here we investigate how complications in prior pregnancies or a current high-risk pregnancy might influence birth experience as well. STUDY DESIGN: Pregnant women were surveyed in regular and high-risk prenatal clinics in Santiago, Chile over a six month period. They were interviewed regarding prior deliveries and outcomes, their anticpated birth experience during the upcoming delivery, and the maximum amount of pain they expected to feel. Dimensions of birth experience were assessed by Salmon’s item list and measured using a 10 point Likert scale. RESULTS: Of the 643 women surveyed, 152 (23.6%) were patients with high-risk pregnancies and 491 (76.4%) had normal pregnancies. When comparing women with a history of prior complications to those with a history of normal pregnancies, there was no significant difference in the amount of satisfaction or pain anticipated. They did, however, expect to be more anxious (8.08 versus 6.89, p=0.039). Patients with current high-risk pregnancies did not expect more pain, but they anticipated more anxiety (7.62 versus 6.63, p=0.021) and more satisfaction (9.13 versus 8.74, p=0.009). CONCLUSION: Patient’s with a current high-risk pregnancy or a history of complications during a prior pregnancy do not anticipate more pain during delivery, but they do feel more anxious. Interestingly, patients with current high-risk pregnancies also expect more satisfaction with their delivery. These data suggest that women with high-risk pregnancies may actually have more fulfilling birth experiences than women with normal pregnancies.
Enhancement of oxygen transfer in liquid lead and lead–bismuth eutectic by natural convection

The present study carries out numerical analysis of the coupled natural convection and oxygen transfer of low-Prandtl-number (� 0.02) liquid lead and lead–bismuth eutectic (LBE) for testing and calibrating low concentration level oxygen sensors. The analysis is performed on the two-dimensional coordinates in a rectangular container, where the fluid movement is laminar for the purpose of sensor test and calibration. The oxygen supply is from the cover gas at the top of the container. Natural convection and oxygen transfer are examined under three temperature boundary conditions: (a) heated from the lower part and cooled from the upper part of the sidewalls of the container; (b) heated from the sidewalls and cooled from the top of the container; (c) one sidewall heated and the opposing wall cooled. It is found that there are four, two and one convective circulation cells under conditions (a), (b), and (c), respectively. All these flows induced by the natural convection greatly enhance the oxygen transfer in the liquid metal. The most efficient one is under condition (b), in which it takes about 1000 s for the oxygen concentration in the whole field to reach � 90% of the input oxygen concentration from the top, instead of � 10 6 s by the pure diffusion.
Two-microphone source separation algorithm based on statistical modeling of angle distributions

In this paper we present a novel two-microphone sound source separation algorithm, which selects speech from the target speaker while suppressing signals from interfering sources. In this algorithm, which is refered to as SMAD-CW, we first estimate the direction of sound sources for each time-frequency bin using phase differences in the spectral domain. For each frame we assume that the angle distribution is a mixture of two distributions, one from the target and the other from the dominant noise source. For each mixture component we use the von Mises distribution, which is a close approximation to the wrapped normal distribution. The expectation-maximization (EM) algorithm is employed to obtain parameters of this mixture distribution. Using this statistical model, we perform maximum a posteriori (MAP) hypothesis testing in order to obtain appropriate binary masks. We demonstrate that the algorithm described in this paper provides speech recognition accuracy that is significantly better than that obtained using conventional approaches.
The Nature of Contemporary Prejudice: Insights from Aversive Racism

Within the United States, declines in the overt expression of racial prejudice over several decades have given way to near universal endorsement of the principles of racial equality as a core cultural value. Yet, evidence of persistent and substantial disparities between Blacks and Whites remain. Here, we review research that demonstrates how the actions of even well-intentioned and ostensibly non-prejudiced individuals can inadvertently contribute to these disparities through subtle biases in decision making and social interactions. We argue that current racial attitudes of Whites toward Blacks in the United States are fundamentally ambivalent, characterized by a widespread contemporary form of racial prejudice, aversive racism, that is manifested in subtle and indirect ways, and illustrate its operation across a wide range of settings, from employment and legal decisions, to group problem-solving and everyday helping behavior. We conclude by describing research aimed at combating these biases and identify new avenues for future research.
Autoradiographic and chemical localization of 5-hydroxytryptamine in identified neurons in the leech.

The large leech neurons known as Retzius cells contain substantial amounts of 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) stored in granules. Previous studies show that these cells are able to make 5-HT from precursors. The present study, which is a combined chemical and autoradiographic analysis of these cells after the administration of radioactive 5-HT or 5-HTP, confirms that the cells make 5-HT from precursors. In addition, this study shows that the cells can acquire and store 5-HT when it is present in the environment. Thus, if 5-HT is available, these cells need not manufacture this compound from precursors. Furthermore, the newly acquired 5 HT seems to be stored in the granules that characterize these cells. Finally, this study shows that the Retzius acquire or make the 5-HT in vivo.
Differences in aortic arch radius of curvature, neck size, and taper in patients with traumatic and aortic disease

Abstract Background The purpose of this study was to determine the differences in aortic morphology that would potentially affect the management of thoracic endovascular aneurysm/aortic repair between trauma and aneurysm patients. Materials and methods This was a prospective analysis of the pretreatment digital imaging of 98 traumatic injury patients and 63 aneurysm patients enrolled in multicenter regulatory studies of the Conformable GORE TAG Thoracic Device (CTAG Device) (manufactured by W.L. Gore and Associates, Flagstaff, AZ). A standardized protocol was used to perform an independent assessment of the images and measurements of the radius of curvature and proximal and distal neck diameters. The radius of curvature was measured using axial images and the proximal and distal intimal neck diameter measurements were completed using the orthogonal “centerline” view. Taper was measured over the entire treated aorta and was calculated by subtracting the distal neck diameter measurement from the proximal neck diameter. The results were analyzed with independent t -tests. Results The trauma patients had a significantly smaller radius of curvature than aneurysm patients. There was a significant difference in the aortic neck size, with trauma patients having smaller proximal and distal intimal neck diameters. Taper was noted in trauma patients but not in aneurysm patients. Conclusions The aortic anatomy varies between treated aortic pathologies. Aneurysm patients have a wider arch and larger aortas when compared with trauma patients. Aneurysm patients have less taper than trauma patients. Despite these differences, both of these cohorts of patients are treatable under the broader oversizing ranges of the CTAG Device.
Metal-encased semiconductor nanowires as waveguides for ultrasmall lasers

We show that a semiconductor nanowire encased by a metal offers the smallest laser waveguide, despite the large Joule loss. The TM01 mode immediately above its cut-off is most advantageous for making sub-wavelength lasers.
Fine root demography and morphology in response to soil resources availability among xeric and mesic sandhill tree species

Summary 1 Optimality theory suggests that roots should be kept alive until the efficiency of resource acquisition is maximized (i.e. a maximum ratio of benefits to costs). Because root efficiency may vary with environmental conditions, ecological distributions of plant species may be linked to different patterns of root demography. 2 In a greenhouse study, we investigated fine root turnover (growth and death) for three woody species from the fall-line sandhills of the south-eastern USA. Pinus palustris Mill. is a generalist in this habitat, whereas Quercus marilandica Muenchh. occurs in more fertile, mesic habitats relative to Quercus laevis Walt. Seedlings were grown under four resource treatments (water + nutrients) for 7 months: high resources, low resources, and short-term exposure (last 2 months of the study) to resource enrichment or depletion. 3 Increasing fine root longevity may be optimal in resource-poor sites because root efficiency may be maximized by less root turnover and resource loss. As expected, fine root death and growth was less in species from xeric habitats (Q. laevis), but greater in species from mesic habitats (Q. marilandica). The generalist species P. palustris exhibited high growth but little death of fine roots. 4 When soil resources decrease, less root turnover may reduce resource loss. Fine root growth of all three species decreased at low resources. Fine root death decreased at low resources in Q. marilandica, the only species with significant root death. 5 Demographic responses differed between fine roots and leaves. Although leaf and fine root death were greater in Q. marilandica than in Q. laevis, leaf death, unlike root death, did not change with resource availability. Short-term resource enrichment or depletion affected leaf production but not fine root demography in the Quercus species. 6 Given that fine root morphology affects root maintenance and construction costs, we expected greater fine root growth and death in species with thinner roots of high specific root length (SRL) and low density. However, the species with the greatest root turnover, Q. marilandica, had thick and dense roots of low SRL. 7 Results from our study with woody species indicate that fine root demography, but not fine root morphology, was linked to ecological distribution in a narrow geographical range. Differences in fine root turnover under different resource availability were consistent with the optimality theory, and may reflect trade-offs between tolerance and competitive ability below ground: less root turnover of xeric species under low fertility may conserve resources, whereas faster root growth of mesic species potentially maximizes resource uptake in more fertile soils.
Introduction to genetic algorithms

The Introduction to Genetic Algorithms Tutorial is aimed at GECCO attendees with limited knowledge of genetic algorithms, and will start "at the beginning," describing first a "classical" genetic algorithm in terms of the biological principles on which it is loosely based, then present some of the fundamental results that describe its performance, described using the schema concept. It will cover some variations on the classical model, some successful applications of genetic algorithms, and advances that are making genetic algorithms more useful.
Does Mobility Matter? The Neighborhood Conditions of Housing Voucher Holders by Race and Ethnicity

Abstract Mobility is one mechanism used to address the federal goals of deconcen‐trating poverty and minorities. The Housing Choice Voucher Program relies on participants to make residential location decisions consistent with these goals. Our research investigates the level and impact of mobility on the neighborhood quality of voucher holders, their neighborhood conditions by race and ethnicity, and perceived obstacles to mobility within the jurisdiction of a Southern California housing authority. About one‐third of the sample moved during the study, and moving resulted in improved neighborhoods for only one subset of movers. Minorities live in more impoverished, overcrowded neighborhoods than nonminorities, even when controlling for mobility status, contract rent, and other factors. Further, most voucher holders see the lack of rental units as a major obstacle to mobility. These findings suggest that current policy is not uniformly achieving deconcentration and that real and perceived barriers to mobilit...
OBJECTIVE EVALUATSON OF TEXTURE OF MINCED BLACK ROCKFISH (Sebastes spp.) DURING FROZEN STORAGE

Objective measurements (shear values and drip loss) were made to characterize changes in texture of frozen binder-modified blocks of minced black rockfish as a part of a continuing study. Effect of variation in water content on sensory texture scores of washed-modified blocks was also determined. Objective measurements correlated with sensory evaluation of texture of fillets and minced products. Varying moisture content of the washed-modified product up to 4.5% above normal moisture content did not significantly affect texture, but lowering it to 1.6% below significantly reduced texture scores. Washing minced flesh before freezing into blocks resulted in higher shear values and cooked drip. Addition of a binder containing NaCl and sodium tripolyphosphate resulted in improved texture and lower shear values and cooked drip.
Trends in the United States in the treatment of distal radial fractures in the elderly.

Background: Traditionally, distal radial fractures in the elderly have been treated nonoperatively with casting. However, since the introduction of the volar locking plating system in 2000, there has been an interest in the use of more aggressive treatment methods. The purpose of the present study was to assess changing trends in the treatment of distal radial fractures in elderly patients in the United States. Methods: We evaluated a 5% sample of Medicare data from 1996 to 1997 and a 20% sample from 1998 to 2005. Information on four treatment methods (closed treatment, percutaneous pin fixation, internal fixation, and external fixation) was extracted from the dataset. Other available data were diagnosis, physician specialty, and patient age, sex, and race. We calculated frequencies and rates to compare the utilization of different treatments over time. Results: Over the ten-year time period examined, the rate of internal fixation of distal radial fractures in the elderly increased fivefold, from 3% in 1996 to 16% in 2005. Closed treatment, however, remained the predominant method (used for 82% of the fractures in 1996 and 70% in 2005). Fractures in patients with an age of eighty-five years or more were significantly more likely to be treated in a closed fashion (p < 0.0001). There was a large variation among physician specialties with regard to the fixation methods that were used. Orthopaedic surgeons were significantly more likely to use closed treatment than hand surgeons were, whereas hand surgeons were significantly more likely to use internal fixation than orthopaedic surgeons were. Conclusions: Since 2000, although the majority of distal radial fractures are still treated nonoperatively, there has been an increase in the use of internal fixation and a concurrent decrease in the rate of closed treatment of distal radial fractures in the elderly in the United States.
Neuropsychological performance across symptom dimensions in pediatric obsessive compulsive disorder

Background Few studies have examined neuropsychological functioning among youth with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), with inconclusive results. Although methodological differences may contribute to inconsistent findings, clinical factors may also account for differential performance. Symptom dimensions are associated with specific patterns of genetic transmission, comorbidity, and treatment outcome, and may also be uniquely associated with neuropsychological performance. This study examined differences in cognitive sequelae and neurocognitive impairment across symptom dimensions among youth with OCD. Method Participants included 93 treatment-seeking youth diagnosed with OCD. A trained clinician administered the Children's Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (CY-BOCS) to parents and children together. Afterward, youth completed a battery of neuropsychological tests that assessed nonverbal memory and fluency, verbal memory, verbal fluency, verbal learning, processing speed, and inhibition/switching. Results Across five symptom dimensions, youth exhibiting Hoarding symptoms (χ2 = 5.21, P = .02) and Symmetry/Ordering symptoms had a greater occurrence of cognitive sequelae (χ2 = 4.86, P = .03). Additionally, youth with Symmetry/Ordering symptoms had a greater magnitude of cognitive impairment (Mann–Whitney U = 442.50, Z = –2.49, P < .02), with specific deficits identified on nonverbal fluency (P < .01), processing speed (P < .01), and inhibition and switching (P < .02). Conclusions Neuropsychological deficits identified in youth with Hoarding and Symmetry/Ordering symptoms may suggest that these symptoms have characteristics specific to neurocognitive impairment. Alternatively, symptoms associated with these dimensions may impede youth's performance during testing. Findings advise neuropsychological testing for youth with symptoms on either of these dimensions when concerns about neuropsychological and/or academic impairment are present.
A numerical investigation of 3-D flow regimes in a toroidal natural convection loop

Abstract Transient laminar natural convection regimes occurring in a thermal convection loop heated from below and cooled from above are investigated numerically for a wide range of Rayleigh numbers spanning the interval from 10 3 to 2.6 × 10 7 . In the model system, the lower half of the loop is heated and maintained at a constant high temperature, while the upper half is cooled and maintained at a constant low temperature. A three-dimensional numerical model based on the finite volume method is used to solve the system of governing flow equations. Simulations are performed using water as the working fluid (Pr = 5.83) and detailed numerical results are presented and discussed for conduction, steady convection, and unsteady flow regimes. Although this subject has attracted researchers for decades, there have been no detailed three-dimensional numerical simulations of the dynamics of flow in the thermal convection loop. The objective of the present study is to fill this gap by presenting the temporal evolution of the velocity and temperature fields at key locations within the system. Emphasis is given to the analysis of dynamical behavior of the flow during the unsteady regime. The complexity of flow in the loop, which is characterized by vertical structures and flow recirculation, is visualized for the first time by performing detailed 3-D numerical simulations.
Learning to Recognize Video-Based Spatiotemporal Events

A key research issue in activity recognition in real-world applications, such as in intelligent transportation systems (ITS), is to automatically learn robust models of activities that require minimal human training. In this paper, we contribute a novel approach for learning sequenced spatiotemporal activities in outdoor traffic intersections. Concretely, by representing the activities as sequences of actions, we contribute a semisupervised learning algorithm that learns activities as complete stochastic context-free grammars (SCFGs), namely, the grammar structure and the parameters. Our approach has been implemented and tested on real-world scenes, and we present experimental results of the grammar learning and activity recognition applied to data collection and traffic monitoring applications using video data.
Influence of a Chicken Transport Cage-Washing System on Wastewater Characteristics and Bacteria Recovery from Cage Flooring

SUMMARY A study was conducted to determine the effectiveness of an automated commercial washing system designed to clean chicken transportation cages. Surface swabs of flooring in chicken transport cages were collected before and after washing and again after sanitizer application and evaluated for recovery of bacteria. Cage wash water samples (CWW) were collected and assessed chemically and microbiologically. Washing cages significantly reduced levels of total aerobic bacteria, coliforms, and Escherichia coli recovered from flooring by 1.3, 1.6, and 1.5 log10 cfu/cm 2 , respectively. Levels of total aerobic bacteria, coliforms, and E. coli on flooring were further reduced by 0.7, 0.6, and 0.7 log10 cfu/cm 2 after sanitizer application. Prevalence of Salmonella on unwashed flooring (1/27 positive), washed and sanitized flooring (0/27 positive), and in the CWW (1/9 positive) was low. Prevalence of Campylobacter (7/27 positive) on unwashed flooring decreased significantly when cages were washed and sanitized (2/27 positive). Counts of total aerobic bacteria, coliforms, and E. coli in CWW ranged from 2.0 to 4.0 log10 cfu/mL, and 1 of 9 CWW was positive for Campylobacter. Although the CWW collected from the second washing station appeared darker than the CWW collected from the first washing station, there was no statistical difference in total solids, total suspended solids, total dissolved solids, and chemical oxygen demand. The present study demonstrates that washing and sanitizing chicken transport cages reduces, but does not completely eliminate, bacterial contamination on the flooring surface.
Hormonal Regulation of Pseudocholinesterase Activity in Cultured Rat Hepatocytes

Plasma pseudocholinesterase (PsChe) activity was examined in adult female rat hepatocytes isolated by collagenase perfusion and maintained in a chemically defined medium supplemented with dimethyl sulfoxide. Time course studies on PsChe activity in cultured hepatocytes indicate that cells maintained in a chemically defined medium lacking human GH and 17 beta-estradiol (E2) exhibit a decrease in activity after the first 3 days in culture followed by a stabilization of PsChe activity for up to 15 days. GH (0.02, 0.2, and 2 micrograms/ml) increased PsChe activity in a dose-dependent manner. Addition of E2 (10(-5)-10(-7) M) alone to hepatocyte cultures did not cause an increase in PsChe activity. The increases produced by both the 2 micrograms/ml and 0.2 micrograms/ml GH doses plus E2 (10(-7) M) were significantly greater than controls and similar to the increase produced by GH alone. The ability of the hepatocytes to express PsChe activity was not dependent upon the continuous exposure of the cells to GH, since control cultures, maintained for 12 days in medium lacking GH, were able to express a high level of PsChe activity after the addition of GH (2 micrograms/ml) on day 12. This increase was observed in hepatocytes in culture for 30 days. These results indicate that GH plays a pivotal role in the regulation of PsChe activity in vitro, and that under the conditions used in this study, E2 does not influence the ability of hepatocytes in culture to express this enzyme.
Patterns of Water, Heat, and Solute Flux through Streambeds around Small Dams

Hyporheic exchange, enhanced by complex stream channel morphology, can influence biogeochemical processing in the streambed. These processes chemically alter water passing temporarily through the streambed, which eventually returns to the stream channel and can potentially affect surface water quality. To assess the degree of biogeochemical cycling induced by complex streambed morphology, we instrumented two 20-m reaches of Red Canyon Creek, Wyoming, each containing a small log dam, with in-stream minipiezometers and temperature data loggers. We simultaneously observed pore water geochemistry and streambed temperature dynamics in several bedforms located upstream or downstream of the dams. We modeled seepage flux into the streambed using heat transport modeling. Upstream of the dams, low-permeability sediments have settled out in low-velocity pools, and enhanced anaerobic biogeochemical cycling occurred in the streambed. Rapid flux into the streambed occurred in glides immediately above the dams, where streambed temperature dynamics and geochemistry were nearly identical to the stream. In riffle sequences downstream of the dams, the streambed was oxygen rich, showed evidence of nitrification, and temperature dynamics indicated high connectivity between the streambed and the stream. Further downstream, streambed pore water geochemistry indicated ground water discharge occurring at the pool-riffle transition. Assessing streambed biogeochemical cycling may be facilitated by coupling streambed temperature measurements with pore water geochemistry and can aid in understanding how hyporheic exchange contributes to overall stream biogeochemistry.
Brand Image Evaluations: The Interactive Roles of Country of Manufacture, Brand Concept, and Vertical Line Extension Type

AbstractCountry-of-origin research has provided inconsistent findings about how the country of manufacture (COM) affects brand image evaluations. The authors examine how the COM, vertical line extension (VLE) type, and brand concept interactively affect brand image evaluations after brands introduce products in their existing product categories. The authors draw on schema congruity theory to develop a conceptual framework and confirm it using experimental methods. Results from a sample of U.S. consumers demonstrate that the COM’s influence on brand image should be considered in conjunction with the type of VLE strategy and the intended conceptual meaning of a brand. Manufacturing in a country with a favorable image does not always improve brand image evaluations. Functional brands can improve their image with an upward VLE regardless of the COM; however, if these brands pursue a downward VLE, the COM has little to no effect. For prestige brands, downward VLEs result in lower postextension brand image rega...
“We've toiled without end”: Publicity, Crisis, and the Suicide “Epidemic” in Greece

This paper addresses the rising suicide rate in Greece since the economic crisis began in 2008. By 2011, Greek and international media were reporting the Greek suicide rate as the fastest rising in Europe; dozens of “spectacular” public suicides were taken as symptoms of an “epidemic.” In this paper, I explore different accounts of this “epidemic”: statistical studies and press reports on suicide since the crisis; notes written by people who committed or attempted suicide in public during the crisis; and narratives of suicidality from psychiatric patients before the crisis, in dialogue with local psychiatric epidemiologies. These accounts summon three axes of comparison around suicide in Greece: historical difference, defined by the economic crisis and the time before; locale, contrasting the public sphere of media coverage and consumption with a particular region distinguished by its “suicidogenic” features; and evidence, moving from the public discourse on suicide to clinical ethnographic research that I conducted in northeastern Greece a decade ago. I show that each way of accounting for suicide challenges the epistemologies and evidence at work in the others; the tensions and the interactions among them are signs of indeterminacy in suicide itself, taken as an object of inquiry. In the public discourse on the Greek crisis, the many meanings of suicide have been condensed and fixed as a politics of protest. Yet, I argue, comparison among epistemologies of suicide and recognition of its indeterminacy generate a space for thinking about suicide beyond the publicity of the crisis.
The Economics of Rape: Will Victims Pay for Police Involvement?

In 2006, approximately 49% of violent crimes were not reported to police. Being the victim of sexual assault is expensive; each incident imposes an external cost of over $100k on the victim. However, recent estimates of the total social cost are an order of magnitude larger suggesting that from a social welfare standpoint rape is likely to be underreported if the victim's demand for reporting is price elastic. In spite of the centrality of victim reporting in the functioning of the criminal justice system, to date there is very little systematic evidence on what governments can do to encourage victims to report crimes. We estimate the sensitivity of victims to the cost of reporting in an Alaskan city between 1993 and 2006, during which time a chief of police publicly supported a policy of charging victims of sexual assault for medical procedures required to collect evidence against their attackers. Using a triple differences approach that compares trends in reported sexual assaults to other index crimes over time and across Alaskan cities, we estimate that this shift in cost of approximately $1,200 from the city government to victims reduced the number of reported rapes by between 50 and 80%. This large response highlights the importance of public policies which reduce the private cost of reporting crime.
Measuring international migration: theory and practice.

This volume is the result of the collaboration between the International Migration Review2 and two of the scientific committees of the International Union for the Scientific Study of Population (IU...
Design and Implementation of a Virtual Home Ramble System Based on Virtools

The system breaks the current home design mode of effect picture,uses the 3d scene ramble technology into home design,constructs a 3d indoor scene and indoor furniture models,and realizes the ramble interaction of the 3d home ramble scene by the scene ramble technology,Meanwhile,the system adopts the collision detection technology to ensure the real ramble effect. The ramble effect of the system can satisfy the client's need of knowing home layout furthest,enhance the client's satisfaction degree of home fitment,and reduce the burden and pressure of home designer's amending effect picture once and again.
Research and Application of Online Security Pre-warning and Decision-making Support System for Provincial Power Grid

The general object of online security pre-warning and decision-making support system for provincial power grid is proposed, and the overall framework and hardware structure are designed. Taking the online security pre-warning and decision-making support system for Sichuan Power Grid for example, the main functions and application modes for online security analysis and decision-making support subsystem, the offline-study subsystem are elaborated respectively. Solutions to the key problems related to the development and applications are provided.
Cancer of the Bladder in Spinal Cord Injury Patients

AbstractSince 1963, 10 cases of bladder carcinoma have been detected in 1,052 new admissions to our center. A high percentage of these patients had squamous cell carcinoma and/or squamous elements. This relatively high incidence stimulated a prospective study of 81 spinal cord injury patients either maintained on intraurethral catheter drainage for 10 years or an external appliance for 15 years. There were changes of squamous metaplasia in 19 per cent of the cases but no cancer was detected. It remains undetermined if squamous metaplasia is a pre-malignant lesion. However, the incidence of squamous metaplasia and squamous cell carcinoma in paraplegics with chronically infected bladders is not uncommon.Any spinal cord injury patient with hematuria needs a complete bladder evaluation and any long-term paraplegic with chronic infection should undergo cystoscopy and Papanicolaou smears as part of the yearly checkup.
A glass wool matrix for roller tube tissue cultures.

SummaryA simple tissue culture technic is described in which a thin glass wool mat, either alone or in combination with a plasma clot, is employed. The use of glass wool as a matrix for supporting growing tissue fragments circumvents some of the objections to a plasma clot in roller tube cultures.
Susceptibility of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) fed with dietary sodium chloride to nitrite toxicity

Juvenile Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) were fed with diets supplemented with 0 or 6% NaCl for 10 weeks. Tilapia were exposed to approximately 21 mg/l nitrite-N after 5 and 10 weeks of feeding to determine the effect of dietary NaCl supplementation on resistance to nitrite toxicity. Fish were sampled before (baseline, pre-exposure) and after 24 h nitrite exposure to determine the effects of dietary NaCl on mortality, hematology (hematocrit, hemoglobin, and methemoglobin), and plasma electrolyte dynamics (nitrite, chloride, sodium, and potassium). After 10 weeks of feeding, tilapia were also challenged with Streptococcus iniae to determine the effect of sodium chloride on immunity. Tilapia fed with the NaCl-supplemented diet had significantly higher weight gain compared with the control group, which was associated with a significant increase in feed intake in the NaCl group. Mortality from nitrite exposure was lower in tilapia fed with the NaCl-supplemented diet compared with the control group at 5 and 10 weeks, but the differences were not significant. However, dietary NaCl supplementation caused a significant decrease in plasma nitrite levels after nitrite exposure. The dietary reduction in nitrite may be related to the increase in plasma chloride in the 6% NaCl-supplemented fish. A direct link between the effects of dietary NaCl supplementation on methemoglobin (MetHb) could not be established. Tilapia in this study were subjected to acute nitrite toxicity. Dietary sodium chloride may be more effective in protecting against nitrite toxicity at lower levels of nitrite, but the conditions at which it proves to be effective may be limited and requires further investigation. Feeding NaCl to tilapia did not affect susceptibility to S. iniae or immune function, but nitrite exposure cause a stress-related reduction in non-specific immune function. This is the first study to examine the effects of dietary salt on nitrite toxicity in tilapia.
Recall and Believability of the Tips From Former Smokers Campaign Among University Students.

Background: Tobacco media campaigns are effective, but less is known regarding the impact on college students. Purpose: The purpose was to test the effects of an on-campus Tips television campaign on frequency and believability of ads recalled and to assess demographic and personal factors associated with believability. Methods: A quasi-experimental pre–post design was used to assess the 8-week campaign with 3 Tips ads. Two randomly selected cohorts of college students (N = 1593) from a large public university completed online surveys pre- and postcampaign. Group comparisons using chi-square tests, 2-sample t tests, and logistic regression, controlling for residence or cohort, and predictors of believability using proportional odds modeling were examined. Results: Ads were recalled by significantly more students (68%) postcampaign. Believability for one or more ads was lower for males, undergraduates, those belonging to fraternity/sorority, and current polytobacco users (P < .05). Believability was greate...
Multi-feature based benchmark for cervical dysplasia classification evaluation

Cervical cancer is one of the most common types of cancer in women worldwide. Most deaths due to the disease occur in less developed areas of the world. In this work, we introduce a new image dataset along with expert annotated diagnoses for evaluating image-based cervical disease classification algorithms. A large number of Cervigram images are selected from a database provided by the US National Cancer Institute. For each image, we extract three complementary pyramid features: Pyramid histogram in L*A*B* color space (PLAB), Pyramid Histogram of Oriented Gradients (PHOG), and Pyramid histogram of Local Binary Patterns (PLBP). Other than hand-crafted pyramid features, we investigate the performance of convolutional neural network (CNN) features for cervical disease classification. Our experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of both our hand-crafted and our deep features. We intend to release this multi-feature dataset and our extensive evaluations using seven classic classifiers can serve as the baseline. HighlightsA new image dataset is introduced for evaluating cervical disease classification.The pyramid feature descriptor encodes complementary hand-crafted features.The deep convolutional neural network automatically learns features from images.Results using seven classic classifiers serve as the baseline for future research.
Examining the Role of Preoperative Positron Emission Tomography/Computerized Tomography in Combination with Ultrasonography in Discriminating Benign from Malignant Cytologically Indeterminate Thyroid Nodules.

Background: Cytologically defined indeterminate thyroid nodules are a diagnostic challenge. Surgical lobectomy remains the gold standard for definitive diagnosis. However, 70–85% of nodules are ultimately benign. The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the negative predictive value (NPV) of F18-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission computed tomography (PET/CT) in excluding cancer among cytologically indeterminate thyroid nodules within the authors' institution using surgical pathology as the gold-standard reference. In addition, a systematic review was performed of published prospective studies on the NPV of PET/CT in evaluating indeterminate thyroid nodules. Methods: A retrospective review was performed of all patients aged ≥18 years seen at the Mayo Clinic between January 1, 2000, and December 31, 2014, with cytologically defined indeterminate thyroid nodules (suspicious for Hurthle cell neoplasm or follicular neoplasm; N = 858), who had a PET/CT within one year of fine-needle aspiratio...
Functional scaling beyond ultimate CMOS

Scaling of CMOS technology is rapidly approaching inviolate limits of size and speed determined by fundamental physics and device density determined by limits of heat dissipation. An analysis presented in this paper shows that the notion of using adiabatic computing ideas suggested by some as a means to lower energy dissipation of charge-based switches is not a viable approach.
Efficient Generation of Skeletal Myogenic Progenitors from Human Pluripotent Stem Cells

The rapid progress of research involving pluripotent stem cells in recent years provides an unprecedented opportunity to develop new and efficient cell replacement therapies for the treatment of degenerative diseases, such as muscular dystrophies. Nevertheless, the directed differentiation of pluripotent stem cells into a specific lineage is challenging, particularly the skeletal myogenic lineage which is poorly recapitulated during the in vitro differentiation of pluripotent stem cells. As demonstrated by our previous work, this limitation can be overcome by controlled expression of PAX7, which forces the commitment and expansion of human skeletal myogenic progenitors. Since variation in paraxial mesoderm formation among different human pluripotent stem cell lines/clones can affect the ability of PAX7 to induce the skeletal myogenic lineage, here we describe the optimization of our previously published protocol for deriving skeletal myogenic progenitors from these cells. This method takes advantage of the ability of the GSK3β inhibitor to induce paraxial mesoderm commitment in differentiating cells. In addition, upon flow cytometry purification, human PAX7-induced skeletal myogenic progenitors can be propagated and differentiated into skeletal myotubes. The following protocol will enable researchers to derive skeletal myogenic progenitors from pluripotent stem cells for disease modeling as wells as therapeutic purposes.
Stress and Posttraumatic Stress in Mothers of Children With Type 1 Diabetes.

The onset of acute and chronic illness in children frequently triggers episodes of stress and posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) in mothers. Mothers of children with type 1 diabetes (T1D) consistently report high levels of stress and PTSS. The purpose of this integrative review was to review and synthesize the published empirical research. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines were used to conduct this integrative literature review. A total of 19 studies were identified from a sample of 128. Stress and PTSS were prevalent in mothers of youth with T1D. While PTSS was most severe at disease onset, symptoms often persisted 1 to 5 years after diagnosis. The diagnosis of T1D in a child was traumatic for mothers. Stress and PTSS in mothers adversely affected children’s health. Management of stress symptoms in mothers may lead to improved behavioral and metabolic outcomes in children.
Active Families in the Great Outdoors: A Program to Promote Family Outdoor Physical Activity.

ABSTRACTThis study evaluated a 4-week program to increase the time families spent engaging in outdoor activity. Parents were provided strategies to increase family outdoor activity and locations to be active. Sixteen families completed the program. Duration and number of family outdoor activity bouts per week, type of activities, locations, and family member attendance were measured using logs. Pre/post surveys were conducted to determine the usefulness of providing educational resources and maps. Compared to baseline (216.1±127.3 min/week), family outdoor activity for weeks 1 (316.1±180.2 min/week), 2 (351.1±209.1 min/week), and 4 (317.5±186.8 min/week) were significantly greater at follow-up. At follow-up, parents reported increased regular exercise and encouragement for their child to be active. Children reported adults engaged in physical activity with them and increased transportation to places to be active. This novel program increased family outdoor activity levels and contributes to limited resear...