cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Spatial organization of the white-fronted bee-eater

White-fronted bee-eaters (Merops bullockoides, order Coraciiformes) have one of the most complex societies recorded among birds. These birds are highly gregarious, roosting and breeding in large colonies of up to several hundred individuals. They are also cooperative breeders, with over one-half of all breeding pairs being assisted by one or more helpers at the nest1. Each colony is subdivisible into several smaller, tightly interacting social units, each consisting of several pairs and helpers—these units we term clans. Here we report that each bee-eater clan defends a group foraging territory that may be located as many as 7km from the colony site. Each group territory is subdivided into several partially overlapping home ranges belonging to different members of the clan. These home range clusters remain spatially fixed despite periodic shifts from one colonial roosting and breeding site to another. We suggest that the spatial segregation of feeding territories and breeding colonies may have contributed to the complexity of the societal structure of these birds.
Characterization of Newcastle Disease Viruses Isolated from Cormorant and Gull Species in the United States in 2010

SUMMARY. Newcastle disease virus (NDV), a member of the genusAvulavirus of the family Paramyxoviridae ,i s the causative agent of Newcastle disease (ND), a highly contagious disease that affects many species of birds and which frequently causes significant economic losses to the poultry industry worldwide. Virulent NDV (vNDV) is exotic in poultry in the United States; however, the virus has been frequently associated with outbreaks of ND in cormorants, which poses a significant threat to poultry species. Here, we present the characterization of 13 NDV isolates obtained from outbreaks of ND affecting cormorants and gulls in the states of Minnesota, Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, and Maryland in 2010. All 2010 isolates are closely related to the viruses that caused the ND outbreaks in Minnesota in 2008, following the new evolutionary trend observed in cormorant NDV isolates since 2005. Similar to the results obtained with the 2008 isolates, the standard United States Department of Agriculture F-gene real-time reverse-transcription PCR (RRT-PCR) assay failed to detect the 2010 cormorant viruses, whereas all viruses were detected by a cormorant-specific F-gene RRTPCR assay. Notably, NDV-positive gulls were captured on the eastern shore of Maryland, which represents a significant geographic expansion of the virus since its emergence in North America. This is the first report of vNDV originating from cormorants isolated from wild birds in Maryland and, notably, the first time that genotype Vv NDV has been isolated from multiple wild bird species in the United States. These findings highlight the need for constant epidemiologic surveillance for NDV in wild bird populations and for consistent biosecurity measures to prevent the introduction of the agent into domestic poultry flocks.
Development of Adjacent-Level Ossification in Patients with an Anterior Cervical Plate

Background: It has been our experience that ossification occurs adjacent to anterior cervical plates. Our hypothesis was that the closer the plate is to the adjacent disc space, the greater the ossification. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the lateral radiographs of the cervical spine of 118 patients who had a solid fusion following an anterior cervical arthrodesis with a plate for the treatment of a degenerative cervical condition; none of the patients had had cervical spine surgery prior to the index arthrodesis. The plate-to-disc distance was measured on the postoperative lateral radiograph and was used to divide the patients into two groups for each of the two adjacent disc spaces. In group A the plate-to-disc distance was <5 mm, and in group B it was ≥5 mm. The mean duration of follow-up was 25.7 months. The severity of the ossification at the two adjacent disc spaces was classified on a scale ranging from grade 0 (no ossification) to grade 3 (complete bridging). Eighteen patients were excluded from the measurement of the severity of the caudal ossification because overlapping by the bone of the shoulder precluded adequate visualization of the caudal level. Results: Ossification developed in seventy (59%) of the 118 cephalad adjacent disc spaces and twenty-nine (29%) of the 100 caudal adjacent disc spaces (p < 0.001). The mean cephalad plate-to-disc distance was shorter than the mean caudal plate-to-disc distance (p < 0.001). The rate of ossification was higher in group A than in group B, both at the cephalad adjacent disc spaces (67% compared with 24%) and at the caudal adjacent disc spaces (45% compared with 5%) (both p < 0.001). In addition, 93% (twenty-six) of the twenty-eight cases of moderate-to-severe ossification developed in group A. Conclusions: We found a positive association between adjacent-level ossification following anterior cervical plate procedures and the plate-to-disc distance. We now strive to place anterior cervical plates at least 5 mm away from the adjacent disc spaces in order to decrease the likelihood of moderate-to-severe adjacent-level ossification. Level of Evidence: Therapeutic Level III. See Instructions to Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.
PRELIMINARY ENZYMATIC EVENTS IN ASPARAGINE-DEPENDENT DENITRIFICATION BY PSEUDOMONAS PERFECTOMARINUS.

Best, Audrey N. (University of Georgia, Athens), and W. J. Payne. Preliminary enzymatic events in asparagine-dependent denitrification by Pseudomonas perfectomarinus. J. Bacteriol. 89:1051–1054. 1965.—The initial events leading to denitrification by Pseudomonas perfectomarinus grown anaerobically in the presence of NO3− were investigated. Conversion of asparagine to malic acid was demonstrated. The nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate-linked malic acid dehydrogenase in this bacterium was shown to have a dependence for a divalent cation. A transhydrogenase was demonstrated. Oxaloacetic acid, a likely intermediate in conversion of malic to pyruvic acid, was rapidly decarboxylated by enzymes in cell-free extracts. We were not able to show reversible formation of malic acid with oxaloacetic acid and reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate, nor of oxaloacetic acid with pyruvic acid and CO2.
Risk factors for serious infection during treatment with cyclophosphamide and high‐dose corticosteroids for systemic lupus erythematosus

OBJECTIVE To determine risk factors for serious infection during treatment with cyclophosphamide (CYC) and high-dose corticosteroids in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). METHODS Records of 100 SLE patients who had received CYC were examined for documentation of serious infections that occurred during CYC therapy and the subsequent 3 months. RESULTS Infection occurred in 45 of 100 patients during CYC therapy. Patients with infection were more likely to have multiple organ disease (49% versus 29%; P = 0.04), a lower nadir in the white blood cell (WBC) count (2,818 versus 3,558 cells/microliter; P = 0.02), and a higher maximum corticosteroid dose (195 versus 73 mg; P < or = 0.01) than patients without infection. Infection occurred with equal prevalence in those who received intravenous (IV) (39%) or oral (40%) CYC, but was more common with use of sequential IV and oral therapy (68%). By multivariate analysis, the strongest association with infection was a WBC nadir < or = 3,000 cells/microliter (odds ratio [OR] 2.8, 95% confidence interval [95% Cl] 1.4-5.5) and use of sequential IV and oral CYC (OR 2.3, 95% Cl 1.2-4.3). Infection occurred in more CYC-treated patients taking concomitant steroids than in those treated with high-dose steroids alone (45% versus 12%; P = 0.001). Fatal and opportunistic infections during CYC therapy were associated with a low WBC nadir and a high maximum corticosteroid dose. CONCLUSION The risk of serious infection in patients with SLE is influenced by the inclusion of CYC in the treatment regimen. The likelihood of infection in this setting is enhanced by CYC-induced reductions in the total WBC count < 3,000 cells/microliter and by sequential IV and oral therapy. Both of these factors may be indicators of aggressive cytotoxic treatment, underscoring the need for close observation during treatment to minimize the risk of serious infection.
Novel antibiotics as inhibitors for the selective respiratory inhibition method of measuring fungal:bacterial ratios in soil

The use of the selective inhibition (SI) method for measuring fungal:bacterial ratios may be limited due to biocide selectivity and the overlap of antibiotic activity. This study evaluated novel pairs of antibiotics for their specificity in soils of different origins and their potential reduction in inhibition of non-target organisms. Four soils selected for this study were from a semi-arid shrub-steppe, a loblolly pine forest and two grassland sites (restored and farmed prairie plots). Three bactericides were tested: oxytetracycline hydrochloride, streptomycin sulphate, and bronopol. Three fungicides were tested: captan, ketoconazole, and nystatin. The inhibitor additivity ratio and fungal:bacterial ratios were calculated from control and treated soils where inhibition was measured as CO2 respiration reduction with biocides. We were able to minimize non-target inhibition by the antibiotics to <5% and thus calculate reliable fungal:bacterial ratios using captan to inhibit fungi in all four soils, and bronopol to inhibit bacteria in three of the four soils. The most successful bactericide in the restored prairie was oxytetracycline-HCl. Our results demonstrate that application of novel antibiotics is not uniformly successful in soils of different origin and that the SI technique requires more than just optimization of antibiotic concentration; it also requires optimization of antibiotic selection.
DISTRIBUTION OF THE WHITE-ANKLED MOUSE (PEROMYSCUS PECTORALIS) IN NEW MEXICO

The white-ankled mouse (Peromyscus pectoralis) was previously known only from Carls- bad Caverns National Park and nearby areas in extreme southeastern New Mexico. I discovered 15 new localities for P. pectoralis, which extend its distribution 225 km north-northwest. This new distribution does not represent a recent northward expansion of P. pectoralis in New Mexico but reflects the lack of mammalian surveys in the region and misidentification of museum specimens from past surveys. At present, the distribution of P. pectoralis in New Mexico includes the Guada- lupe Mountains and lowland habitats between the Sacramento Mountains and Pecos River. R ESUMEN Previamente, el raton de tobillo blanco (Peromyscus pectoralis )s olo se conocia en el Parque Nacional de las Cavernas de Carlsbad y localidades adyacentes en el extremo sureste de Nuevo Mexico. Descubri ´ 15 localidades nuevas para P. pectoralis que extienden su distribucion 225 km hacia el nor-noreste. Esta nueva distribucion no representa una expansion reciente de P. pectoralis en Nuevo Mexico sino que refleja la falta de muestreos de mamiferos en la region y la mala identificacion de especimenes en museos de muestreos anteriores. Hoy en dia, la distribucion de P. pectoralis en Nuevo Mexico incluye las Guadalupe Mountains y los habitats de tierras bajas entre las Sacramento Mountains y el Pecos River.
Relentless progress: ASCO responds.

Efforts by the American Society of Clinical Oncology to keep oncologists apprised of the latest developments in cancer research, including its new interactive website CancerProgress.net and its Quality Oncology Practice Initiative, are highlighted.
Minimal deviation melanoma

Minimal deviation melanomas (MDM) are poorly characterized, uncommon naevomelanocytic tumours that are thought to represent part of the continuum from benign atypical naevi to frank malignant melanomas. Exactly where on that continuum they stand and who is most affected remains controversial. The few studies classifying MDM pointed to a less aggressive nature. Furthermore, it is thought that MDM affects patients in the fourth and fifth decades of life. In a recent review conducted at our institution, medical records of all patients with melanoma diagnosed at a tertiary care university medical center between January 1997 and May 2000 were reviewed to identify those with MDM. Those with MDM were examined to determine subtype, age and sex distributions, and location of tumour and findings were compared to those in the published literature. Unlike previous studies, the mean age of patients with MDM was 27 years with 20/31 being under 30 years old. Our results support prior findings that MDM is less aggressive than typical malignant melanomas in that only 1/5 undergoing lymphatic mapping had a positive node. Despite its description more than 30 years ago, MDM remains a poorly understood pathologic entity. Further study in such techniques as sentinel lymph node mapping and determination of angiogenesis factors is warranted to give insight as to what features predict an aggressive nature and to identify prognostic factors.
Male courtship pheromones suppress female tendency to feed but not to flee in a plethodontid salamander

Female sexual receptivity is a behaviour at the crux of mechanistic and evolutionary perspectives of reproductive behaviour. To gain insight into the general processes by which a male persuades a female to mate with him, we tested whether the courtship pheromones of the red-legged salamander, Plethodon shermani, dampened female defensive or ingestive behaviours. Females did not sprint significantly shorter distances to evade startling stimuli when experimentally treated with pheromone solution compared to a control. However, females did consume 25% fewer fly larvae when treated with pheromone compared to a control. The female’s maintenance of normal defences suggests a behavioural state that is unresponsive or resistant to pheromone stimulation, but the change in feeding activity indicates that suppression of female hunger is beneficial to male mating success. Together, these results indicate that male courtship pheromones may augment female receptivity by modulating the expression of other competing or inhibitory motivated behaviours. 2009 The Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Venous oxygenation mapping using velocity-selective excitation and arterial nulling.

A new MRI technique to map the oxygenation of venous blood is presented. The method uses velocity-selective excitation and arterial nulling pulses, combined with phase sensitive signal detection to isolate the venous blood signal. T2 of this signal along with a T2–Y calibration curve yields estimates of venous oxygenation in situ. Results from phantoms and healthy human subjects under normoxic and hypoxic conditions are shown, and venous saturation levels estimated from both sagittal sinus and gray matter–based regions of interest are compared with the related techniques TRUST and QUIXOTIC. In addition, combined with an additional scan without arterial nulling pulses, the oxygen saturation level on arterial side can also be estimated. Magn Reson Med, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Growth form and distribution of introduced plants in their native and non‐native ranges in Eastern Asia and North America

There is a growing interest in understanding the influence of plant traits on their ability to spread in non-native regions. Many studies addressing this issue have been based on relatively small areas or restricted taxonomic groups. Here, we analyse a large data base involving 1567 plant species introduced between Eastern Asia and North America or from elsewhere to both regions. We related the extent of species distributions in each region to growth form and the distinction between upland and wetland habitats. We identified significant relationships between geographical distribution and plant traits in both native and exotic ranges as well as regional differences in the relationships. Range size was larger for herbaceous graminoids and forbs, especially annuals compared to perennials, than for woody species, and range size also was larger for plants of wetland compared to upland habitats. Distributions were more extensive in North America than in Eastern Asia, although native plants from both regions had broader distributions than non-natives, with exotics from elsewhere intermediate. Growth form and environment explained more of the variance in distribution of plants in North America than in Eastern Asia. The influence of growth form and habitat on distribution suggests that these traits might be related to tolerance of ecological conditions. In addition, the smaller extents of species in non-native compared to native areas suggest roles for dispersal limitation and adaptation to region-specific ecological conditions in determining distribution.
Dynamic simulation of spheroid motion between two parallel plane walls in low-Reynolds-number Poiseuille flow

A novel boundary-integral algorithm is used to study the general, three-dimensional motion of neutrally buoyant prolate and oblate spheroids in a low-Reynolds-number Poiseuille flow between parallel plates. Adaptive meshing of the spheroid surface assists in obtaining accurate numerical results for particle–wall gaps as small as 1.3% of the spheroid's major axis. The resistance formulation and lubrication asymptotic forms are then used to obtain results for arbitrarily small particle–wall separations. Spheroids with their major axes shorter than the channel spacing experience oscillating motion when the spheroid's centre is initially located in or near the midplane of the channel. For both two-dimensional and three-dimensional oscillations, the period length decreases with an increase in the initial inclination of the spheroid's major axis with respect to the lower wall. These spheroids experience tumbling motions for centre locations further from the midplane of the channel, with a period length that decreases as the spheroid is located closer to a wall. The transition from two-dimensional oscillating motion to two-dimensional tumbling motion occurs for an initial centre location closer to a wall as the initial inclination of the major axis is increased. For these spheroids, the average translational velocity along the channel length for two-dimensional oscillating motion decreases for an increase in the initial inclination of the major axis, and the average translational velocity for two-dimensional tumbling motion decreases for a decrease in the initial centre location. A prolate spheroid with its major axis 50% longer than the channel spacing and confined to the ( $x_2$ , $x_3$ )-plane (where $x_2$ is the primary flow direction and $x_3$ is normal to the walls) cannot experience two-dimensional tumbling; instead, the spheroid becomes wedged between the walls for initial centre locations near the midplane of the channel when the initial inclination of the large spheroid's major axis is steep, and experiences two-dimensional oscillations for initial centre locations near a wall. When this spheroid's major axis is not confined to the ( $x_2$ , $x_3$ )-plane, it experiences three-dimensional oscillations for initial centre locations in or near the midplane of the channel, and three-dimensional tumbling for initial centre locations near a wall.
The ummah as nation: a reappraisal in the wake of the ‘Cartoons Affair’†

. In the wake of the 2006 ‘Cartoons Affair’ which saw international protests by Muslims against the publication of cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad, it is clear that identity based on membership in the Islamic ummah goes far beyond simple religious affiliation. This essay presents a novel argument for treating the ummah (the transnational community of Muslim believers) as a nation. I begin with a theoretical treatment of the ummah as nation which employs historic and current interpretations of what constitutes nationhood. I then turn to the current state of the ummah; my findings present a potent nexus of information and communications technology (ICT), emergent elites, and Muslim migration to the West that has facilitated a hitherto impossible reification of the ummah. I also discuss how globalisation, Western media practices, and the nature of European society allow ‘ummahist’ elites to marginalise other voices in the transnational Muslim community. Based on the global events surrounding the Danish cartoons controversy of 2005–06, I conclude that there is need to recognise ummah-based identity as more than just a profession of faith – it represents a new form of postnational, political identity which is as profound as any extant nationalism.
Anhedonia in schizophrenia: Distinctions between anticipatory and consummatory pleasure ☆

Research on anhedonia in schizophrenia has revealed mixed results, with patients reporting greater anhedonia than healthy controls on self-report measures and semi-structured interviews, but also reporting comparable experiences of positive emotions in response to pleasurable stimuli. Basic science points to the importance of distinguishing between anticipatory and consummatory (or in-the-moment) pleasure experiences, and this distinction may help to reconcile the mixed findings on anhedonia in schizophrenia. In two studies, we tested the hypothesis that anhedonia in schizophrenia reflects a deficit in anticipatory pleasure but not consummatory pleasure. In Study 1, we used experience sampling methodology to assess reported experiences of consummatory and anticipated pleasure among schizophrenia patients and controls. In Study 2, schizophrenia patients and controls completed a self-report trait measure of anticipatory and consummatory pleasure and interviews that assessed negative symptoms, including anhedonia, and community functioning. In both studies, we found evidence for an anticipatory but not a consummatory pleasure deficit in schizophrenia. In addition, anticipatory pleasure was related to clinical ratings of anhedonia and functional outcome. Clinical and research implications of these findings are discussed.
Characterization of a Nosocomial Clostridium difficile Outbreak by Using Plasmid Profile Typing and Clindamycin Susceptibility Testing

The mean number of cases of Clostridium difficile diarrhea at the Minneapolis Veterans Administration Medical Center increased to 17.3 per month in June-August 1985, compared with 7.1 per month in the previous 17 mo. Plasmid profiles and clindamycin susceptibility were used as markers to evaluate the increase in cases. Ninety clindamycin-resistant and 22 clindamycin-susceptible isolates of C. difficile from 1985 were examined for plasmids. A clindamycin-resistant organism contained a cryptic plasmid of 3.1 kilobases (kb). None of the clindamycin-susceptible isolates contained the 3.1-kb plasmid, as compared with 40 of 90 clindamycin-resistant isolates (P less than .005). Restriction endonuclease digestion and Southern blot hybridization were used to confirm the identity of the 3.1-kb plasmid between strains. Isolates retained clindamycin resistance after plasmid curing. It could not be determined if the organism responsible was an indigenous C. difficile strain that acquired a plasmid or was a new strain introduced from outside the hospital.
Asymmetrical Stimulus Generalization following Differential Fear Conditioning

Rodent ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs) are ethologically critical social signals. Rats emit 22kHz USVs and 50kHz USVs, respectively, in conjunction with negative and positive affective states. Little is known about what controls emotional reactivity to these social signals. Using male Sprague-Dawley rats, we examined unconditional and conditional freezing behavior in response to the following auditory stimuli: three 22kHz USVs, a discontinuous tone whose frequency and on-off pattern matched one of the USVs, a continuous tone with the same or lower frequencies, a 4kHz discontinuous tone with an on-off pattern matched to one of the USVs, and a 50kHz USV. There were no differences among these stimuli in terms of the unconditional elicitation of freezing behavior. Thus, the stimuli were equally neutral before conditioning. During differential fear conditioning, one of these stimuli (the CS(+)) always co-terminated with a footshock unconditional stimulus (US) and another stimulus (the CS(-)) was explicitly unpaired with the US. There were no significant differences among these cues in CS(+)-elicited freezing behavior. Thus, the stimuli were equally salient or effective as cues in supporting fear conditioning. When the CS(+) was a 22kHz USV or a similar stimulus, rats discriminated based on the principal frequency and/or the temporal pattern of the stimulus. However, when these same stimuli served as the CS(-), discrimination failed due to generalization from the CS(+). Thus, the stimuli differed markedly in the specificity of conditioning. This strikingly asymmetrical stimulus generalization is a novel bias in discrimination.
Proteomics of Herpes Simplex Virus Replication Compartments: Association of Cellular DNA Replication, Repair, Recombination, and Chromatin Remodeling Proteins with ICP8

In this study, we have used immunoprecipitation and mass spectrometry to identify over 50 cellular and viral proteins that are associated with the herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) ICP8 single-stranded DNA-binding protein. Many of the coprecipitating cellular proteins are known members of large cellular complexes involved in (i) DNA replication or damage repair, including RPA and MSH6; (ii) nonhomologous and homologous recombination, including the catalytic subunit of the DNA-dependent protein kinase, Ku86, and Rad50; and (iii) chromatin remodeling, including BRG1, BRM, hSNF2H, BAF155, mSin3a, and histone deacetylase 2. It appears that DNA mediates the association of certain proteins with ICP8, while more direct protein-protein interactions mediate the association with other proteins. A number of these proteins accumulate in viral replication compartments in the infected cell nucleus, indicating that these proteins may have a role in viral replication. WRN, which functions in cellular recombination pathways via its helicase and exonuclease activities, is not absolutely required for viral replication, as viral yields are only very slightly, if at all, decreased in WRN-deficient human primary fibroblasts compared to control cells. In Ku70-deficient murine embryonic fibroblasts, viral yields are increased by almost 50-fold, suggesting that the cellular nonhomologous end-joining pathway inhibits HSV replication. We hypothesize that some of the proteins coprecipitating with ICP8 are involved in HSV replication and may give new insight into viral replication mechanisms.
Automatic adaptation of fingerprint liveness detector to new spoof materials

A fingerprint liveness detector is a pattern classifier that is used to distinguish a live finger from a fake (spoof) one in the context of an automated fingerprint recognition system. Most liveness detectors are learning-based and rely on a set of training images. Consequently, the performance of a liveness detector significantly degrades upon encountering spoofs fabricated using new materials not used during the training stage. To mitigate the security risk posed by new spoofs, it is necessary to automatically adapt the liveness detector to new spoofing materials. The aim of this work is to design a scheme for automatic adaptation of a liveness detector to novel spoof materials encountered during the operational phase. To facilitate this, a novel-material detector is used to flag input images that are deemed to be made of a new spoofing material. Such flagged images are then used to retrain the liveness detector. Experiments conducted on the LivDet 2011 database suggest (i) a 62% increase in the error rate of existing liveness detectors when tested using new spoof materials, and (ii) upto 46% improvement in liveness detection performance across spoof materials when the proposed adaptive approach is used.
Complete method to determine transmission and reflection characteristics at a planar interface between arbitrarily oriented biaxial media

The general case of monochromatic plane-wave reflection and refraction at oblique incidence from a planar biaxial–biaxial interface is presented for arbitrary principal-axes orientation in each region. A complete, systematic methodology is provided for calculating all properties of the transmitted and reflected light waves. The singularities that arise when one or both regions are taken to be isotropic are addressed, to our knowledge for the first time. Example calculations are presented for all cases. Finally, the methodology yields all wave parameters, including phase-velocity indices of refraction, angles of refraction and reflection, polarization angles, walk-off angles, and Poynting-vector relative magnitudes. Some common applications of this theory include multilayer structure analysis and the determination of internal angles for second-harmonic generation.
Subjective-Well-Being Inequality and Per Capita Income: Evidence from the World Values

The field of “Happiness Research” has grown markedly. A central question is whether economic growth increases mean Subjective Well Being (SWB), one measure of which is happiness.Cross-sectional analysis clearly indicates that there is a positive relationship between income and SWB. However, in time series this relationship may vanish (the Easterlin Paradox). In this paper, we examine the relationship between economic growth and SWB inequality using data from the World Values Survey and World Development Indicators. The results indicate that economic growth is inversely related to SWB inequality in cross-sectional analysis. There is also evidence that for most countries – 23 out of 26 in the dataset – greater economic growth is associated with a greater decrease in SWB inequality.
It Happened to Me: Sharing Personal Value Dilemmas to Teach Ethics

This article builds on prior scholarship which recognizes the value of storytelling in teaching legal ethics. The thesis is that sharing personal value dilemmas is an even more effective way to teach legal ethics, coining the term value dilemma to describe the myriad dilemmas that lawyers face during all stages of their careers. The article details the steps required to create and present effective value dilemmas in a Lawyering Skills class.
Effect of O-Linked Glycosylation on the Equilibrium Structural Ensemble of Intrinsically Disordered Polypeptides.

Glycosylation is one of the most common post-translational modifications (PTMs), which provides a large proteome diversity. Previous work on glycosylation of globular proteins has revealed remarkable effects of glycosylation on protein function, altering the folding stability and structure and/or altering the protein surface which affects their binding characteristics. Intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) or intrinsically disordered regions (IDRs) of large proteins are also frequently glycosylated, yet how glycosylation affects their function remains to be elucidated. An important open question is, does glycosylation affect IDP structure or binding characteristics or both? In this work, we particularly address the structural effects of O-linked glycosylation by investigating glycosylated and unglycosylated forms of two different IDPs, tau174–183 and human islet amyloid polypeptide (hIAPP), by all-atom explicit solvent simulations. We simulate these IDPs in aqueous solution for O-linked glycosylated an...
Femtosecond degenerate four-wave-mixing measurements of electronic dephasing times in amorphous semiconductors

Transient degenerate four-wave mixing is a powerful technique for studying the ultrafast phase relaxations of photoexcited carriers. We report here the measurements of dephasing times of hydrogenated amorphous Si (a-Si:H), a-Ge:H, a-As2S2, a-As2Se2, a-Se, and polysilane [a-(SiH2)n]. The ultrafast dephasing time is measured by the two-beam self-diffraction technique (see Fig. 1).1,2 The advantage of this technique is that dephasing times much less than the laser pulse width can be readily measured. For the measurements we used an amplified colliding-pulse mode-locked (CPM) laser with a pulse duration of 80 fs, energy per pulse of 5 μJ, and wavelength of 620 nm (2 eV).
Karma and Fatalism

A common criticism of the doctrine of karma is that it entails fatalism. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan writes, ‘Unfortunately, the theory of Karma became confused with fatality in India when man himself grew feeble and was disinclined to do his best’.1 Another philosopher writes, ‘If we are justified in our acceptance of the causal dogma, there does not seem to be any legitimate way to avoid fatalism. If the present is determined by the past, so as to admit of an accurate prediction of the past (the failure of accuracy being due solely to our ignorance of the data), how can we avoid the conclusion that the future is similarly determined by the past and the present?’2 And A.B. Keith echoes the same theme: The conception of Karman serves indeed in an excellent way to defend and protect the established order of things, but it is essentially fatalistic; and fatalism is not for a normal mind a good incentive to moral progress. If, on the one hand, the doing of an evil deed is restrained by the thought that it will be punished in another life, it is equally true that reflection shows that the actor has really no option in his act and is an absolutely predetermined person, whose former acts produce his present motive and reasonings without the possibility of intervention of any kind on his part.3
Form, Representation, Presence

Young argues that in the evolution of human consciousness ‘the critical stage was the acquisition of the power to make symbolic representations by language of concepts indicating the distinction between self and other’. That this distinction, in man—machine terms, may be confused by metaphors that extend self into other (‘face of a clock’) is fairly obvious, but that it also may be confused less comfortably by metaphors that extend other into self is less recognized though commonly observable. Technological man must be very canny about how he conceives himself, by this second kind of metaphor, as an extension of the environment of his artefacts, mind as an imitation of machine (an inversion that has engaged Derrida); for, as Young notes, ‘as man devises tools to substitute for the functions of his body he also creates new language to describe these very functions…’, a language almost invariably derived, by a perverse McLuhanism, from the terminology of the substitute. So a more specific caveat emerges: ‘We cannot hope to describe in detail how the brain works by looking at the bits of metal and minerals inside a computer.’ (The physical machine is not the simulation: the simulation is the computation of the consequences of a theory expressed as a program that more or less approximates what it models.) Rather, ‘What we have to use is the understanding of the principles….’1
Autonomous Technologies: Applications That Matter

Over the years, the DARPA Challenges in the United States have galvanized interest in autonomous cars, making them a real possibility in the mind of the public, but autonomous and unmanned vehicles have been increasingly employed in many roles on land, in the water, and in the air. Military applications have received a great deal of attention, with weaponized unmanned aircraft (drones) being the most prominent. However, unmanned vehicles with varying degrees of autonomy already have many civilian applications. Some of these are quite familiar (such as the Roomba autonomous vacuum cleaner), while others remain largely out of the public eye (such as autonomous farm equipment). Additional applications and more capable vehicles are rapidly coming to the markets in the years ahead. This book examines a number of economically important areas in which unmanned and autonomous vehicles, also understood here as autonomous technologies, are already used or soon will be. Co-published by SAE International and AUVSI, Autonomous Technologies: Applications That Matter will assist the reader in identifying profitable opportunities and avoiding costly misconceptions with respect to civilian applications of autonomous vehicle technologies as it brings together chapters on how air, water, and ground vehicles are becoming ever more used and appreciated.
Effects of incentives for naltrexone adherence on opiate abstinence in heroin-dependent adults

Aim To test whether an incentive-based intervention that increased adherence to naltrexone also increased opiate abstinence. Design Post-hoc combined analysis of three earlier randomized controlled trials that showed individually that incentives for adherence to oral and to extended-release injection naltrexone dosing schedules increased naltrexone adherence, but not opiate abstinence. Setting Out-patient therapeutic work-place in Baltimore, MD, USA. Participants One hundred and forty unemployed heroin-dependent adults participating from 2006 to 2010. Interventions Participants were hired in a model work-place for 26 weeks and randomized to a contingency (n = 72) or prescription (n = 68) group. Both groups were offered naltrexone. Contingency participants were required to take scheduled doses of naltrexone in order to work and earn wages. Prescription participants could earn wages independent of naltrexone adherence. Measures Thrice-weekly and monthly urine samples tested for opiates and cocaine and measures of naltrexone adherence (percentage of monthly urine samples positive for naltrexone or percentage of scheduled injections received). All analyses included pre-randomization attendance, opiate use and cocaine use as covariates. Additional analyses controlled for cocaine use and naltrexone adherence during the intervention. Findings Contingency participants had more opiate abstinence than prescription participants (68.1 versus 52.9% opiate-negative thrice-weekly urine samples, respectively; and 71.9 versus 61.7% opiate-negative monthly urine samples, respectively) based on initial analyses [thrice-weekly samples, odds ratio (OR) = 3.3, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.7–6.5, P < 0.01; monthly samples, OR = 2.6, 95% CI = 1.0–7.1, P = 0.06] and on analyses that controlled for cocaine use (thrice-weekly samples, OR = 3.9, 95% CI = 3.3–4.5, P < 0.01; monthly samples, OR = 3.4, 95% CI = 1.1–11.1, P = 0.04), which was high and associated with opiate use. The difference in opiate abstinence rates between contingency and prescription participants was reduced when controlling for naltrexone adherence (monthly samples, OR = 1.1, 95% CI = 0.7–1.7, P = 0.84). Conclusions Incentives for naltrexone adherence increase opiate abstinence in heroin-dependent adults, an effect that appears to be due to increased naltrexone adherence produced by the incentives.
A Wandering Mind Cannot Resolve Conflicts in Displayed Information

Human minds often wander around while performing a task. When the mind wanders, attention drifts away from task-relevant perceptual information, leading to deteriorated performance on the task at hand. The current study aims to examine how mind-wandering is associated with different aspects of attentional functions that are critical for perceptual processing of displayed information. Participants completed the Attention Network Task that assessed efficiencies of alerting, orienting, and executive functions of attention. During this task, participants reported their state of mind (focusing on the task or mind- wandering). The results showed that mind-wandering was particularly associated with impairments on executive function, which suggests that an ability to resolve conflicts in displayed information can be impaired when a mind wanders. Our findings suggest that, in work environment where mind-wandering is more likely to occur, tasks requiring conflict resolution in displayed information may be significa...
Phase II trial of bevacizumab, irinotecan, cisplatin, and radiation as preoperative therapy in esophageal adenocarcinoma.

67 Background: Preop chemo and radiotherapy (RT) with weekly irinotecan (I), cisplatin (C) and 5040 cGy is tolerable and active [Cancer, in press]. Bevacizumab (B) + weekly I/C in advanced esophagogastric cancer increased response rate and PFS without an increase in toxicity [JCO 24: 5201; 2006]. In a phase II trial in esophageal adenocarcinoma (EA) we combined B + I/C + RT as preop therapy. A toxicity analysis after 10 patients (pts) undergoing surgery indicated no unexpected toxicity with B [JCO 27: Abstract 4573; 2009]. We completed a planned accrual of 33 pts. Methods: Pts had resectable Siewert’s I or II EA, T2-3 or N1 staged by EUS, PET, and CT scan. Induction chemo: I 50-65 mg/m2 + C 30 mg/m2 weeks 1,2,4,5, B 7.5 mg/kg weeks 1 and 4; Chemort: 180 cGy daily fractions to 5040 cGy, I/C weeks 7,8,10,11+ B weeks 7,10. Esophagectomy was planned 6-8 weeks after RT. Postop: B 7.5 mg/kg every 3 weeks for 8 cycles. Results: 33 pts were enrolled. 26 male: 7 female; 13 Siewert I (39%): 20 Siewert II (61%); 21 ...
Key Drivers and Trends of Urban Greenhouse Gas Emissions

This chapter focuses on the anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emission trends from urban energy systems and the drivers of urban energy-related GHG emissions. As much as possible, quantitative information on GHG emissions in cities are compiled and key insights are shared on why and how they vary within and across cities. Place-based case studies from global cities are also used to provide relevant context. Although this section is not intended to replace a comprehensive literature review or the wealth of research and information developed and under development, it does aim to gather the current state of knowledge on urban GHG drivers. The synthesis is organized into five sections reflecting current knowledge on urban energy-related GHG emissions: (1) drivers, (2) trends, (3) potential transitions, (4) accounting, and (5) governance. Such background helps to explore three principal questions: (1) What are the drivers and variances for these GHG emissions? (2) What are the sources and types of GHG emissions as a result of urban energy systems and their transitions? (3) What role do various societal actors and governance systems have in shaping transitions in urban energy and GHG emissions?
Synergetic Determination of Thermodynamic and Kinetic Signatures Using Isothermal Titration Calorimetry: A Full-Curve-Fitting Approach

Thermodynamic and kinetic signatures are pivotal information for revealing the binding mechanisms of biomolecules, and they play an indispensable role in drug discovery and optimization. While noncalorimetric methods measure only a part of these signatures, isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) is considered to have the potential to acquire full signatures in an experiment. However, kinetic parameters are generally difficult to extract from ITC curves, as they are inevitably affected by the instrument-response function and the collateral heat of associated process during titrations. Thus, we herein report the development and validation of a full-curve-fitting method to resolve thermal power curves and to maximize the signal extraction using ITC. This method is then employed to quantify the dilution of an aqueous n-propanol solution and examine the inhibition of carbonic anhydrase by 4-carboxybenzenesulfonamide using a commercial instrument with a long apparent response time of ∼13 s.
Abstract LB-217: Microenvironment mediated mechanisms of resistance to HER2 inhibitors differ between HER2+ breast cancer subtypes

Clinical responses of HER2+ breast cancers to tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) are often limited by de novo and acquired resistance. Recent studies have shown that the tumor microenvironment has a substantial capacity to generate signals and create niches that enable otherwise sensitive cells to avoid therapeutic control. We describe here the use of MicroEnvironment MicroArrays (MEMAs) to identify specific signals from the tumor microenvironment that reduce sensitivity to small molecule HER2 targeted TKIs. We show here that responses to these signals differ between HER2+ cells that express transcriptional signatures associated with basal (HER2E) or luminal (L-HER2+) HER2+ subtypes. Specifically, we show that HER2E cell lines are rescued from the TKIs lapatinib and neratinib by hepatocyte growth factor (HGF), while L-HER2+ cell lines are rescued by neuregulin1-β1 (NRG1β). We further show that these divergent responses are due to differential use of the PI3K and MAPK pathways, and expression of receptors HER3 and MET. This is supported by transcriptomics of human tumors performed by The Cancer Genome Atlas. HGF and NRG1β are expressed in the stroma of primary mammary tumors, but can also be highly expressed in common sites of both HER2E and L-HER2+ metastasis. We show that NRG1β mediated resistance in L-HER2+ lines is reversed by inhibiting HER2-HER3 dimers with pertuzumab, while HGF mediated resistance in HER2E lines is reversed with the MET inhibitor crizotinib. These studies suggest that L-HER2+ and HER2E tumors should be treated as separate diseases and that treatments should be tailored to counter microenvironment mediated resistance mechanisms that may differ between metastatic locations based on local production and action of growth factors. Citation Format: Spencer Watson, Joe Gray, James Korkola, Mark Dane, Laura Hesier, Koei Chin, Gordon Mills. Microenvironment mediated mechanisms of resistance to HER2 inhibitors differ between HER2+ breast cancer subtypes [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2017; 2017 Apr 1-5; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2017;77(13 Suppl):Abstract nr LB-217. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2017-LB-217
Dynamic Reorganization of Neuronal Activity Patterns in Parietal Cortex

Summary Neuronal representations change as associations are learned between sensory stimuli and behavioral actions. However, it is poorly understood whether representations for learned associations stabilize in cortical association areas or continue to change following learning. We tracked the activity of posterior parietal cortex neurons for a month as mice stably performed a virtual-navigation task. The relationship between cells' activity and task features was mostly stable on single days but underwent major reorganization over weeks. The neurons informative about task features (trial type and maze locations) changed across days. Despite changes in individual cells, the population activity had statistically similar properties each day and stable information for over a week. As mice learned additional associations, new activity patterns emerged in the neurons used for existing representations without greatly affecting the rate of change of these representations. We propose that dynamic neuronal activity patterns could balance plasticity for learning and stability for memory.