cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
De monarquía de vecinos a nación de ciudadanos: la definición de la ciudadanía en el México borbónico e independiente, 1780-1825

This article explains how, from 1780-1825, local authorities and inhabitants of the city of Puebla defined the modern concept of citizenship by associating it with the traditional Hispanic notion of residence ( vecindad ). It analyzes constitutions, proclamations, catechisms and pamphlets, which reveal different contemporary meanings of citizenship. The study first addresses the conceptual change between vecindad and the enlightened concept of citizenship, while the second part elucidates how the society as a whole assimilated the notion of citizenship in terms of freedom, while the local authorities constructed a concept closely related to the notion of political equality. Thus, this text demonstrates how both the general population and the local authorities reinterpreted the modern juridical and social meaning of citizenship in the early 19 th -century Mexico
Exploring the Feasibility of Using Real-World Data from a Large Clinical Data Research Network to Simulate Clinical Trials of Alzheimer’s Disease

ABSTRACT In this study, we explored the feasibility of using real-world data (RWD) from a large clinical research network to simulate real-world clinical trials of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). The target trial (i.e., NCT00478205) is a Phase III double-blind, parallel-group trial that compared the 23 mg donepezil sustained release with the 10 mg donepezil immediate release formulation in patients with moderate to severe AD. We followed the target trial’s study protocol to identify the study population, treatment regimen assignments, and outcome assessments, and to set up a number of different simulation scenarios and parameters. We considered two main scenarios: (1) a one-arm simulation: simulating a standard-of-care arm that can serve as an external control arm; and (2) a two-arm simulation: simulating both intervention and control arms with proper patient matching algorithms for comparative effectiveness analysis. In the two-arm simulation scenario, we used propensity score matching controlling for baseline characteristics to simulate the randomization process. In the two-arm simulation, higher SAE rates were observed in the simulated trials than the rates reported in original trial, and a higher SAE rate was observed in the 23mg arm than the 10 mg standard-of-care arm. In the one-arm simulation scenario, similar estimates of SAE rates were observed when proportional sampling was used to control demographic variables. In conclusion, trial simulation using RWD is feasible in this example of AD trial in terms of safety evaluation. Trial simulation using RWD could be a valuable tool for post-market comparative effectiveness studies and for informing future trials’ design. Nevertheless, such approach may be limited, for example, by the availability of RWD that matches the target trials of interest, and further investigations are warranted.
Librarians’ Response During COVID-19

The worldwide coronavirus pandemic has caused librarians to rethink how they can contribute to their respective communities. In addition to forcing libraries to shutter their doors and requiring li...
A Ketogenic & Low-Protein Diet Slows Retinal Degeneration in rd10 Mice.

Purpose Treatments that delay retinal cell death regardless of genetic causation are needed for inherited retinal degeneration (IRD) patients. The ketogenic diet is a high-fat, low-carbohydrate diet, used to treat epilepsy, and has beneficial effects for neurodegenerative diseases. This study aimed to determine whether the ketogenic diet could slow retinal degeneration. Methods Early weaned, rd10 and wild-type (WT) mice were placed on either standard chow, a ketogenic diet, or a ketogenic & low-protein diet. From postnatal day (PD) 23 to PD50, weight and blood β-hydroxybutyrate levels were recorded. Retinal thickness, retinal function, and visual performance were measured via optical coherence tomography, electroretinography (ERG), and optokinetic tracking (OKT). At PD40, serum albumin, rhodopsin protein, and phototransduction gene expression were measured. Results Both ketogenic diets elicited a systemic induction of ketosis. However, rd10 mice on the ketogenic & low-protein diet had significant increases in photoreceptor thickness, ERG amplitudes, and OKT thresholds, whereas rd10 mice on the ketogenic diet showed no photoreceptor preservation. In both rd10 and WT mice, the ketogenic & low-protein diet was associated with abnormal weight gain and decreases in serum albumin levels, 27% and 56%, respectively. In WT mice, the ketogenic & low-protein diet was also associated with an ∼20% to 30% reduction in ERG amplitudes. Conclusions The ketogenic & low-protein diet slowed retinal degeneration in a clinically relevant IRD model. In WT mice, the ketogenic & low-protein diet was associated with a decrease in phototransduction and serum albumin, which could serve as a protective mechanism in the rd10 model. Although ketosis was associated with protection, its role remains unclear. Translational relevance Neuroprotective mechanisms associated with the ketogenic & low-protein diet have potential to slow retinal degeneration.
Optimal Smart Grid Operation and Control Enhancement by Edge Computing

The national electric power grid is being transformed into a smart grid through deploying a huge number of distributed sensors across the network, a two-way communication system, intelligent control and optimization algorithms, and advanced hardware components. An increasing volume of data are collected by the sensing system, and transfer of these data to a central location for centralized processing poses burden to the communication system and the central computing system. Edge computing, a distributed computing paradigm, processes data and makes proper decisions locally, stores data locally and provides selected, processed data to a higher level, and thus may significantly relieve communication burden and reduce response time of certain control applications. This paper explores possible applications of edge computing to enhance distributed optimization and control of smart grid, including power system asset management, distributed charging scheme and microgrid protection.
Filling the Due Process Donut Hole: Abuse and Neglect Cases between Disposition and Permanency

A state child protection agency removes a child from his mother and convinces a family court judge to rule that the child’s mother neglected him and to place the child in foster care. The judge orders the agency to work with the mother to remedy the conditions that led her to neglect him with the plan of reunifying the child with her. One year later the family returns to court. The social worker files a report asserting that the mother has not cooperated with the agency’s efforts to help her and remains incapable of taking care of the child. The mother says that she now can take care of her child, but the social worker has never liked her and has not given her a fair chance, nor has the worker given her credit for the progress she has made. She says she tried to work with the social worker, but the worker only referred her to other agencies that did not provide useful help. How does the family court decide what happens next? A series of factual disputes exist that are distinct from the ruling that the court has already issued regarding the mother’s past neglectful conduct. These factual disputes are tied to legal questions - what will the child's permanency plan be, that is, will the judge order the agency to continue efforts to reunify the child with his mother or will the judge order the agency to work to have the child adopted by another family. This case is thus ripe for time tested adversarial adjudication through an evidentiary hearing. Yet in most states do not require permanency hearings to be based on evidence, and appeals of permanency hearing decisions are not permitted or do not occur. Federal law - which shapes much state law practice - provides vague and insufficient guidance to courts which must make decisions in thousands of cases like this. This article argues that this due process donut hole - the absence of procedural safeguards at child abuse and neglect permanency hearings, the hearings held regularly between an initial abuse or neglect adjudication and disposition and a later termination of parental rights or other permanency trial - must be filled. Constitutionally, the rights at stake - those of parents and children to maintain family integrity - are fundamental, the risk of error from sloppy procedures great, and the state interest in avoiding stricter procedures small. From a policy perspective, ensuring better permanency hearing decision-making will help avoid children drifting through foster care for years. Providing a right to appeal permanency hearing decisions will both improve trial court decision-making and help clarify difficult questions of law that will not be resolved through other appeals. Alternative methods of providing due process checks - especially early termination of parental rights trials - would create significant other problems, including the unnecessary termination of parental rights for tens of thousands of children. State courts and state and federal policy makers should work to ensure permanency hearing decisions are made via evidentiary hearings and that parties may appeal adverse rulings.
A Population-Level Assessment of Smoking Cessation following a Diagnosis of Tobacco- or Nontobacco-Related Cancer among United States Adults

Introduction Smoking cessation after a cancer diagnosis can significantly improve treatment outcomes and reduce the risk of cancer recurrence and all-cause mortality. Aim We sought to measure the association between cancer diagnosis and subsequent smoking cessation. Methods Data was sourced from the Population Assessment of Health and Tobacco (PATH) study, a representative population-based sample of United States adults. Our analytic sample included all adult smokers at Wave I, our baseline. The exposure of interest was either a tobacco-related cancer diagnosis, nontobacco-related cancer diagnosis, or no cancer diagnosis (the referent) reported at Wave II or III. The primary outcome was smoking cessation after diagnosis, at Wave IV. Results/Findings. Our sample was composed of 7,286 adult smokers at the baseline representing an estimated 40.9 million persons. Smoking cessation rates after a diagnosis differed after a tobacco-related cancer (25.9%), a nontobacco-related cancer (8.9%), and no cancer diagnosis (17.9%). After adjustment, diagnosis with a tobacco-related cancer was associated with a higher odds of smoking cessation (OR 1.83, 95% CI 1.00-3.33) compared to no cancer diagnosis. Diagnosis with a nontobacco-related cancer was not significantly linked to smoking cessation (OR 0.52, 95% CI 0.48-1.45). Conclusion Diagnosis with a tobacco-related cancer is associated with greater odds of subsequent smoking cessation compared to no cancer diagnosis, suggesting that significant behavioral change may occur in this setting.
Arrhythmias in Mitral Valve Prolapse

First described in 1966, mitral valve prolapse (MVP) has been as a recognized clinical syndrome for over 50 years. The initial report of Barlow and Brosman included five patients with midsystolic clicks and late systolic murmurs, confirmed by phonocardiography. Using left ventricular “cineangiocardiography” in four patients, the authors demonstrated that these clinical findings were linked to “aneurysmal” protrusion of the posterior mitral leaflet into the left atrium due to abnormalities of the mitral tendinous chords—all before the first application of echocardiography to diagnose MVP in 1971.
Facilitators and Barriers to Healthy Eating Among American Indian and Alaska Native Adults with Type 2 Diabetes: Stakeholder Perspectives.

Background American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) adults have a higher prevalence of type 2 diabetes (T2D) and related complications than non-AI/AN adults. As healthy eating is a cornerstone of diabetes self-management, nutrition education plays an important role in diabetes self-management education. Objective To understand stakeholder perspectives on facilitators and barriers to healthy eating for AI/AN adults with T2D in order to inform the cultural adaptation of an existing diabetes nutrition education curriculum. Methods Individual interviews were conducted with 9 national content experts in diabetes nutrition education (e.g. registered dietitians, diabetes educators, experts on AI/AN food insecurity) and 10 community-based key informants, including tribal health administrators, nutrition/diabetes educators, Native elders, and tribal leaders. Four focus groups were conducted with AI/AN adults with T2D (n = 29) and 4 focus groups were conducted with their family members (n = 22). Focus groups and community-based key informant interviews were conducted at 4 urban and reservation sites in the USA. Focus groups and interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim. We employed the constant comparison method for data analysis and used Atlas.ti (Mac version 8.0) to digitalize the analytic process. Results Three key themes emerged. First, a diabetes nutrition education program for AI/ANs should accommodate diversity across AI/AN communities. Second, it is important to build on AI/AN strengths and facilitators to healthy eating (e.g. strong community and family support systems, traditional foods, and food acquisition and preparation practices). Third, it is important to address barriers to healthy eating (e.g. food insecurity, challenges to preparation of home-cooked meals, excessive access to processed and fast food, competing priorities and stressors, loss of access to traditional foods, and traditional food-acquisition practices and preparation) and provide resources and strategies for mitigating these barriers. Conclusions Findings were used to inform the cultural adaptation of a nutrition education program for AI/AN adults with T2D.
Gender differences in meat consumption and openness to vegetarianism.

Abstract Understanding gender differences in meat consumption can help strengthen efforts to improve the sustainability of eating patterns. Compared to women, men eat more meat and are less open to becoming vegetarian. Simply considering between-gender differences, however, may overlook meaningful within-gender heterogeneity in how masculine and feminine identities associate with eating behavior. Distinguishing between specific types of meat is also important, given that some meats (e.g., beef) pose greater challenges to sustainability than do other meats. Through a highly powered, preregistered study (N = 1706), we investigated the predictive value of traditional gender role conformity and gender identity centrality for meat consumption frequency and openness to becoming vegetarian. Greater conformity to traditional gender roles predicted more frequent consumption of beef and chicken and lower openness to vegetarianism among men but offered no predictive value among women. No effects were observed for pork or fish consumption. Among women, greater traditional gender role conformity and gender identity centrality were associated with openness to becoming vegetarian for health reasons. Among men, lower traditional gender role conformity was associated with openness to becoming vegetarian for environmental reasons. These findings suggest that understanding meat consumption calls for greater distinctions between specific types of meat as well as deeper consideration of within-gender heterogeneity.
The Promise of Things to Come: Anticipatory Warrants in Texas

While the U.S. Supreme Court has settled the question of the constitutionality of anticipatory search warrants, Texas has no statutory provision regulating the issuance of such warrants. Similarly, state appellate courts have contributed almost nothing to the question of whether such warrants are acceptable under Texas procedural law or, if they are, under what circumstances. As the use of such warrants grows in the state, these issues require attention. This article begins that discussion, reviewing existing law and proposing interpretations of current statutes as well as proposing others.
Effect of farm structure on rural community well-being

Abstract The current crisis in US agriculture has seen a growing number of farm bankruptcies. The result has been a “hollowing out” of the middle in the distribution of farm size, with growth in the number of both very large and small farms. A growing number of farms are operated by part-time farmers whose primary occupation is no longer farming. What are some implications of these changes for the well-being of rural communities? Using U.S. non-metropolitan (rural) county level data, we explore how the changing nature of farming has affected community well-being as understood through seven diverse measures. In general, we find conflicting evidence on the impact of farm structure on community well-being. In the end our results suggest that the logical conclusion of what has become known as the Goldschmidt hypothesis line of thinking that the movement to fewer and larger farms will necessarily harm the well-being of the larger community is not supported by the data.
Error Bounds for Tree Codes, Trellis Codes, and Convolutional Codes with Encoding and Decoding Procedures

One of the anomalies of coding theory has been that while block parity-check codes form the subject for the overwhelming majority of theoretical studies, convolutional codes have been used in the majority of practical applications of “error-correcting codes.” There are many reasons for this, not the least being the elegant algebraic characterizations that have been formulated for block codes. But while we may for aesthetic reasons prefer to speculate about linear block codes rather than convolutional codes, it seems to me that an information-theorist can no longer be inculpably ignorant of non-block codes. It is the purpose of these lectures to provide a reasonably complete and self-contained treatment of non-block codes for a reader having some general familiarity with block codes.
Flexible Routing Architecture Generation for Domain-Specific Reconfigurable Subsystems

Reconfigurable hardware is ideal for use in Systems-on-a-Chip, as it provides hardware speeds as well as the benefits of post-fabrication modification. However, not all applications are equally suited to any one reconfigurable architecture. Therefore, the Totem Project focuses on the automatic generation of customized reconfigurable hardware. This paper details our first attempts at the design of algorithms for automatic generation of customized flexible routing architectures. We show that these algorithms provide results with a low area overhead compared to the custom-designed RaPiD routing architecture, as well as the flexibility needed to handle some application modifications.
A Model of the Relation Between Technology and North-South Income Distribution

The macro-economic model described here is one part of a larger study with a broader interdisciplinary methodology.' Other aspects of the work are described later in the report.' This presentation represents a progress report of the first part of a longer-term effort. The main body of the work consists of the evaluation of North-South linked strategies founded on technology policies and satisfaction of basic needs ofthe majority of the population. These experiments use the model as an intermediary tool to project future possible scenarios of the world economy.
Grassmannian differential limited feedback for interference alignment

Interference alignment (IA) can use channel state information (CSI) to precode, align, and reduce the dimension of interference at each of the receivers, enabling systems to achieve their maximum multiplexing gain. CSI, estimated at the receivers, can be shared with the transmitters by limited feedback. The number of channels to be shared grows with the square of the number of users creating too much overhead in conventional feedback methods. This paper proposes Grassmannian differential feedback to take advantage of temporal correlation in the channel and reduce overhead. Grassmannian differential feedback uses two manifold tools, tangent spaces and geodesic paths, to track the evolution of CSI on the manifold. Simulation results show that the proposed feedback strategy allows IA to perform well over a wide range of Doppler spreads, and to approach perfect CSI performance in slowly varying channels.
Partial oxidation of methane to synthesis gas in a fast flow membrane reactor

Publisher Summary Despite the impressive results achieved in partial oxidation, a major difficulty still exists. For autothermal behavior to be attained a low methane/oxygen ratio mixture must be fed to the reactor. When such mixture contacts a high temperature surface, the potential for an explosion exists. This chapter describes the design of a reactor that will allow a low methane/oxygen ratio mixture to be fed at high flow rates, while separating the methane and oxygen feeds. The reactor consists of a porous permeable ceramic membrane tube placed concentrically inside a quartz reactor. Methane is fed to the reactor on the shell side and flows in the annular space between the membrane tube and the reactor wall. Oxygen is fed to the tube side and flows exclusively inside the membrane tube as the upper portion has been made impermeable by a ceramic glaze. The end at the lower portion of the membrane tube is closed, leaving the permeable length at the bottom of the membrane tube as the only exit for the oxygen. The first variable studied was the effect of catalyst loading. In these experiments, methane and oxygen feed rates were maintained at 500 and 250 cc/min, respectively. The results show that methane conversion remains fairly constant around 60% and decreases only slightly even when the amount of catalyst was almost doubled. Oxygen conversion remains constant at 100%. CO selectivity also remains nearly constant at around 80%, being highest, reaching 90%, when using 60 mg of catalyst. As with the fixed bed results, 100% oxygen conversion was achieved in every experiment and there was no evidence of hydrocarbon production. Upon ignition, the temperature of the reactor increased until it reached a steady state value that depended on the operating conditions.
Global foot-and-mouth disease surveillance using bioportal

The paper presents a description of the FMD BioPortal biosurveillance system (http://fmd.ucdavis.edu/bioportal/) that is currently operating to capture, analyze, and disseminate global data on foot-and-mouth (FMD) disease. The FMD BioPortal makes available to users world-wide FMD-related data from the Institute for Animal Health at Pirbright, England. The system's tools include those for tabulating and graphing data, performing spatio-temporal cluster analysis of outbreak cases of FMD, and analyzing genomic changes in FMD viruses. The FMD BioPortal also includes the FMD News (http://fmd.ucdavis. edu/index.php?id=1), which is a near real time web search to identify and capture FMD-related news items appearing worldwide. Major systems components include a communication backbone for secure, real-time data transfer, a data analysis module that can run analytical programs to assess spatial-temporal clustering, and an interactive visualization tool for integrated analysis and display of epidemiological and genomic data.
Genetic Defects in Chediak–Higashi Syndrome and the beige Mouse

Chediak-Higashi syndrome (CHS) is a rare, autosomal recessive, multisystem disorder in which severe immune deficits are accompanied by abnormalities of pigmentation, blood clotting, and neurologic function. There is no specific treatment, and without bone marrow transplantation, most patients succumb to frequent bacterial infections or to a lymphoproliferative syndrome that appears to result principally from lack of natural killer cell function. Disorders similar to human CHS occur in many mammalian species, the most important being the beige mouse, long considered a likely homologue of human CHS. This supposition has recently been confirmed by the mapping, cloning, and mutation analysis of the homologous human CHS1 and mouse beige genes. Identification of the human CHS1 gene, and the availability of a ready mouse model for human CHS, will likely facilitate investigation of the disease pathophysiology and the development of novel and specific treatments for the disorder.
Geometric criteria for the nonexistence of cycles in Gause-type predator-prey systems

The global stability of a multi-species interacting system has apparently important biological implications. In this paper we study the global stability of Gause-type predator-prey models by providing new criteria for the nonexistence of cycles and limit cycles. Our criteria have clear geometrical interpretations and are easier to apply than other methods employed in recent studies. Using these criteria and related techniques we are able to develop new results on the existence and uniqueness of cycles in Gause-type models with various growth and response functions.
Three-dimensional organization of otolith-ocular reflexes in rhesus monkeys. III. Responses To translation

The three-dimensional (3-D) properties of the translational vestibulo-ocular reflexes (translational VORs) during lateral and fore-aft oscillations in complete darkness were studied in rhesus monkeys at frequencies between 0.16 and 25 Hz. In addition, constant velocity off-vertical axis rotations extended the frequency range to 0.02 Hz. During lateral motion, horizontal responses were in phase with linear velocity in the frequency range of 2-10 Hz. At both lower and higher frequencies, phase lags were introduced. Torsional response phase changed more than 180 degrees in the tested frequency range such that torsional eye movements, which could be regarded as compensatory to "an apparent roll tilt" at the lowest frequencies, became anticompensatory at all frequencies above approximately 1 Hz. These results suggest two functionally different frequency bandwidths for the translational VORs. In the low-frequency spectrum ( 90 degrees at frequencies <0.2 Hz). No consistent dependence on static head orientation was observed for the vertical response components during up-down motion and the horizontal and torsional response components during lateral translation. The frequency response characteristics of the translational VORs were fitted by "periphery/brain stem" functions that related the linear acceleration input, transduced by primary otolith afferents, to the velocity signals providing the input to the velocity-to-position neural integrator and the oculomotor plant. The lowest-order, best-fit periphery/brain stem model that approximated the frequency dependence of the data consisted of a second order transfer function with two alternating poles (at 0.4 and 7.2 Hz) and zeros (at 0.035 and 3.4 Hz). In addition to clearly differentiator dynamics at low frequencies (less than approximately 0.5 Hz), there was no frequency bandwidth where the periphery/brain stem function could be approximated by an integrator, as previously suggested. In this scheme, the oculomotor plant dynamics are assumed to perform the necessary high-frequency integration as required by the reflex. The detailed frequency dependence of the data could only be precisely described by higher order functions with nonminimum phase characteristics that preclude simple filtering of afferent inputs and might be suggestive of distributed spatiotemporal processing of otolith signals in the translational VORs.
Whole Endometrial Fragments Form Characteristics of In Vivo Endometriosis in a Mesothelial Cell Co-Culture System: An In Vitro Model for the Study of the Histogenesis of Endometriosis:

OBJECTIVE:We have previously reported on the effects of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-1 (IL-1) on the adhesion of human endometrial stromal cells to peritoneal meso thelial cells in vitro. The relevance of this co-culture system to in vivo endometriosis remains to be established. We contrasted endometrial fragments with endometrial stromal cells to determine their relevance.METHODS:Human mesothelial cells were isolated from peritoneal fluid from four normal women via Ficoll-Paque gradient centrifugation at 400 × g for 30 minutes and grown in M199 medium containing epidermal growth factor (10 ng/mL) and 10% fetal calf serum. The homo geneous cells were cultured on collagen-coated plates until a monolayer formed. Endometrial stromal cells or whole endometrial fragments, isolated from endometrial tissue of four normal women, were put on the mesothelial monolayer and cultured at 37°C for 24 days. After fixation, the samples were incubated with monoclonal antibody to epithelial membrane antig...
Comparisons of RFLP and PCR-based markers to detect polymorphism between wheat cultivars.

Previously chromosome 3A of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) was reported to carry genes influencing yield, yield components, plant height, and anthesis date. The objective of current study was to survey various molecular marker systems for their ability to detect polymorphism between wheat cultivars Cheyenne(CNN) and Wichita (WI), particularly for chromosome3A. Seventy-seven `sequence tagged site' (STS), 10simple sequence repeat (SSR), 40 randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers, and 52 restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) probes for wheat homoeologous group 3 chromosomes, were investigated. Three (3.9%) STS-PCR primer sets amplified polymorphic fragments for the two cultivars, of which one was polymorphic for chromosome 3A. Sixty percent of SSR markers detected polymorphism between CNN and WI of which 50% were polymorphic for chromosome 3A. Twenty percent of RAPD markers detected polymorphism between CNN and WI in general, but none of these detected polymorphism for chromosome 3A. Of the fifty-two RFLP probes, 78.8% detected polymorphism between CNN and WI for group 3 chromosomes with one or more of seven restriction enzymes and 42% of the polymorphic fragements were for chromosome 3A. These high levels of RFLP and SSR polymorphisms between two related wheat cultivars could be used to map and tag genes influencing important agronomic traits. It may also be important to reconsider RFLP as the most suitable marker system at least for anchor maps of closely related wheat cultivars.
Cohort effects in a genetically determined trait: eye colour among US whites

Background : While the inheritance of eye colour is likely polygenic, blue eye colour is thought to follow an inheritance pattern similar to that of a recessive trait. Consequently, age-related differences in the prevalence of blue eye colour would be unanticipated. Aim : This study explores the finding and explanation for birth cohort differences in the prevalence of blue eye colour in the US white population. Subjects and methods : Data from the first (1971-1975) and third (1988-1994) US National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES-I and NHANES-III), nationally representative surveys of the US population, were analysed. Trends in eye colour prevalence by birth cohort were analysed together with mortality rates according to eye colour. US census data (1980) were examined to explore cohort differences in ancestry and assortative mating by ancestry. Results : The prevalence of blue eye colour among non-Hispanic whites in NHANES-III was 57.4% (95% CI: 50.1-64.7) for individuals born between 189...
Gaussian OS-positive processes

Gaussian processes satisfying Osterwalder-Schrader positivity are studied. A representation of the (generalized) covariance function of an OS-positive process as the Laplace transform of an operator-valued probability measure is given. It is shown that every Gaussian OS-positive process has a unique Gaussian canonical Markov extension. An explicit application is made to the generalized free Euclidean fields.
Cervical Total Disc Arthroplasty

Symptomatic adjacent segment degeneration of the cervical spine remains problematic for patients and surgeons alike. Despite advances in surgical techniques and instrumentation, the solution remains elusive. Spurred by the success of total joint arthroplasty in hips and knees, surgeons and industry have turned to motion preservation devices in the cervical spine. By preserving motion at the diseased level, the hope is that adjacent segment degeneration can be prevented. Multiple cervical disc arthroplasty devices have come onto the market and completed Food and Drug Administration Investigational Device Exemption trials. Though some of the early results demonstrate equivalency of arthroplasty to fusion, compelling evidence of benefits in terms of symptomatic adjacent segment degeneration are lacking. In addition, non-industry-sponsored studies indicate that these devices are equivalent to fusion in terms of adjacent segment degeneration. Longer-term studies will eventually provide the definitive answer.
Visual perceptual issues of the integrated helmet and display sighting system (IHADSS): four expert perspectives

The Integrated Helmet and Display Sighting System (IHADSS) helmet-mounted display (HMD) has been flown for over a quarter of a century on the U.S. Army's AH-64 Apache Attack Helicopter. The aircraft's successful deployment in both peacetime and combat has validated the original design concept for the IHADSS HMD. During its 1970s development phase, a number of design issues were identified as having the potential of introducing visual perception problems for aviators. These issues include monocular design, monochromatic imagery, reduced field-of-view (FOV), sensor spectrum, reduced resolution (effective visual acuity), and displaced visual input eye point. From their diverse perspectives, a panel of four experts - an HMD researcher, a cognitive psychologist, a flight surgeon, and a veteran AH-64 aviator - discuss the impact of the design issues on visual perception and related performance.
EPR in Triplet States of the Self-Trapped Exciton

A microwave-optical double-resonance technique has been used to investigate the selftrapped exciton in KBr and Cs Br. Electron and hole orbitals for triplet states are characterized on the basis of observed zero-field splittings and hyperfine parameters.
Support vector-based unsupervised behavior evaluation method for heterogeneous trustworthy network

Trustworthy network is an inevitable trend in the development of high trusted computing and Internet. Behavior evaluation is an important research topic in trustworthy network. Till now, most effect focuses on the validity of host's and user's identity, such as integrity measurement and access control, which could not guarantee the trustworthiness of valid user's behavior. In this paper, we proposed an unsupervised method for evaluating user's network behavior and trustworthiness grades in a local heterogeneous network. First, we collected network behavior samples as more as possible. Then, they were tagged with different trustworthiness grades. According to the graded sample data, our method constructed a support vector machine to evaluate user's latter network behavior. The system can be deployed in a corporation indicated that our method could evaluate trustworthiness of users based on their network behaviors.
The Werner Syndrome Helicase/Exonuclease Processes Mobile D-Loops through Branch Migration and Degradation

RecQ DNA helicases are critical for preserving genome integrity. Of the five RecQ family members identified in humans, only the Werner syndrome protein (WRN) possesses exonuclease activity. Loss of WRN causes the progeroid disorder Werner syndrome which is marked by cancer predisposition. Cellular evidence indicates that WRN disrupts potentially deleterious intermediates in homologous recombination (HR) that arise in genomic and telomeric regions during DNA replication and repair. Precisely how the WRN biochemical activities process these structures is unknown, especially since the DNA unwinding activity is poorly processive. We generated biologically relevant mobile D-loops which mimic the initial DNA strand invasion step in HR to investigate whether WRN biochemical activities can disrupt this joint molecule. We show that WRN helicase alone can promote branch migration through an 84 base pair duplex region to completely displace the invading strand from the D-loop. However, substrate processing is altered in the presence of the WRN exonuclease activity which degrades the invading strand both prior to and after release from the D-loop. Furthermore, telomeric D-loops are more refractory to disruption by WRN, which has implications for tighter regulation of D-loop processing at telomeres. Finally, we show that WRN can recognize and initiate branch migration from both the 5′ and 3′ ends of the invading strand in the D-loops. These findings led us to propose a novel model for WRN D-loop disruption. Our biochemical results offer an explanation for the cellular studies that indicate both WRN activities function in processing HR intermediates.
Methylating agents and DNA repair responses: methylated bases and sources of strand breaks

The chemical methylating agents methylmethane sulfonate (MMS) and N-methyl-N'-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine (MNNG) have been used for decades as classical DNA damaging agents. These agents have been utilized to uncover and explore pathways of DNA repair, DNA damage response, and mutagenesis. MMS and MNNG modify DNA by adding methyl groups to a number of nucleophilic sites on the DNA bases, although MNNG produces a greater percentage of O-methyl adducts. There has been substantial progress elucidating direct reversal proteins that remove methyl groups and base excision repair (BER), which removes and replaces methylated bases. Direct reversal proteins and BER, thus, counteract the toxic, mutagenic, and clastogenic effects of methylating agents. Despite recent progress, the complexity of DNA damage responses to methylating agents is still being discovered. In particular, there is growing understanding of pathways such as homologous recombination, lesion bypass, and mismatch repair that react when the response of direct reversal proteins and BER is insufficient. Furthermore, the importance of proper balance within the steps in BER has been uncovered with the knowledge that DNA structural intermediates during BER are deleterious. A number of issues complicate the elucidation of the downstream responses when direct reversal is insufficient or BER is imbalanced. These include inter-species differences, cell-type-specific differences within mammals and between cancer cell lines, and the type of methyl damage or BER intermediate encountered. MMS also carries a misleading reputation of being a radiomimetic, that is, capable of directly producing strand breaks. This review focuses on the DNA methyl damage caused by MMS and MNNG for each site of potential methylation to summarize what is known about the repair of such damage and the downstream responses and consequences if the damage is not repaired.
Dimensions of perceptions of social-sexual behavior in a work setting

Although sexual harassment has become an important and controversial topic in social science research in recent years, little research has been done regarding the factors involved in the perception of a single ambiguous social-sexual incident. Furthering the analysis of Gutek, Morasch, and Cohen (1983), factor analytic, cluster analytic, and multidimensional scaling techniques were supplied to a set of 19 questions which were used to evaluate some ambiguous vignettes that could have been considered instances of sexual harassment. These analyses yielded four major clusters: (1) variables relating to the interpersonal relationship between the individuals in the vignette, (2) personal aspects of the incident, (3) questions relating specifically to sexual harassment, and (4) questions regarding the likelihood of the incident. Questions about “sexual” and “harassing” aspects of the incident were less central to its evaluation by college students than were those about the incident's personal qualities and about the relationship between the two people.
Central hemangioma of the mandible and maxilla: review of a vascular lesion.

Abstract Central hemangiomas of the jawbones are rare lesions. However, even though the diagnosis of hemangioma may appear to be a very remote possibility, any questionable cystic lesion that has peculiar characteristics or for which a direct causal reason for its existence is not known should be suspect and a needle biopsy should be performed. Oozing bluish gingivae, with or without related cystic defects, seem to be the initial clinical finding. Aggressive examination without proper knowledge of the involved area may lead to exsanguination with possible death. This article presents two central hemangiomas—one located in the maxilla and the other in the mandible. This represents the total series of central hemangiomas of the jawbones presently on file since 1964 at the M. D. Anderson Hospital and Tumor Institute.
Assessing toxic hazard as it relates to overall fire hazard

A framework is proposed for assessing hazards associated with the spread of smoke and hot gases from fires in buildings, and the current predictive capabilities for each component of that framework are described. Particular attention is given to the significance of the toxicity of the combustion products of a material in relation to its other fire properties. The prediction of the onset of hazardous conditions in a three room residential arrangement with upholstered furniture as the burning object is presented to illustrate the usefulness of the National Bureau of Standards (NBS) smoke transport computer code, a key component of the framework.
Blood acid-base status of an awake heterothermic rodent, Spermophilus tereticaudus.

Abstract The desert ground squirrel Spermophilus tereticaudus is shown to show both reptilian style alphastat regulation and the pH-stat regulation typical of mammalian hibernation, depending upon the range of body temperature and the state of vigilance. Temperature corrected arterial pH and P CO 2 of torpid squirrels (Tb 11–28 ° C) were indepedent of Tb and about equal to euthermic values at 37 ° C. Torpid squirrels show a progressive respiratory acidosis as Tb is lowered. In awake heterothermic squirrels (Tb 30–42.5 ° C), blood acid-base status is like that of many ectothermic verterbase: from 30 to 40 ° C Δ pHa Δ Tb was −0.0121, Δ PaCO 2 Δ Tb was 1.057 and [HCO 3 − ] remained about constant. Arterial blood from awake heterothermic squirrels measured at standard temperature (37 °C) showed no significant change with Tb, similar to blood undergoing anaerobic temperature change in vitro . In vitro , the Δ pH Δ T of blood of constant C CO 2 was — 0.014. Constant blood pH with change in Tb is thus not a general feature of mammalian acid-base regulation but appears in this species to be a feature of the respiratory and metabolic poise of torpor.
Brain dystrophin, neurogenetics and mental retardation

Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) and the allelic disorder Becker muscular dystrophy (BMD) are common X-linked recessive neuromuscular disorders that are associated with a spectrum of genetically based developmental cognitive and behavioral disabilities. Seven promoters scattered throughout the huge DMD/BMD gene locus normally code for distinct isoforms of the gene product, dystrophin, that exhibit nervous system developmental, regional and cell-type specificity. Dystrophin is a complex plasmalemmal-cytoskeletal linker protein that possesses multiple functional domains, autosomal and X-linked homologs and associated binding proteins that form multiunit signaling complexes whose composition is unique to each cellular and developmental context. Through additional interactions with a variety of proteins of the extracellular matrix, plasma membrane, cytoskeleton and distinct intracellular compartments, brain dystrophin acquires the capability to participate in the modulatory actions of a large number of cellular signaling pathways. During neural development, dystrophin is expressed within the neural tube and selected areas of the embryonic and postnatal neuraxis, and may regulate distinct aspects of neurogenesis, neuronal migration and cellular differentiation. By contrast, in the mature brain, dystrophin is preferentially expressed by specific regional neuronal subpopulations within proximal somadendritic microdomains associated with synaptic terminal membranes. Increasing experimental evidence suggests that in adult life, dystrophin normally modulates synaptic terminal integrity, distinct forms of synaptic plasticity and regional cellular signal integration. At a systems level, dystrophin may regulate essential components of an integrated sensorimotor attentional network. Dystrophin deficiency in DMD/BMD patients and in the mdx mouse model appears to impair intracellular calcium homeostasis and to disrupt multiple protein-protein interactions that normally promote information transfer and signal integration from the extracellular environment to the nucleus within regulated microdomains. In DMD/BMD, the individual profiles of cognitive and behavioral deficits, mental retardation and other phenotypic variations appear to depend on complex profiles of transcriptional regulation associated with individual dystrophin mutations that result in the corresponding presence or absence of individual brain dystrophin isoforms that normally exhibit developmental, regional and cell-type-specific expression and functional regulation. This composite experimental model will allow fine-level mapping of cognitive-neurogenetic associations that encompass the interrelationships between molecular, cellular and systems levels of signal integration, and will further our understanding of complex gene-environmental interactions and the pathogenetic basis of developmental disorders associated with mental retardation.