cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Strong alkalinization in the anterior midgut of larval yellow fever mosquitoes (Aedes aegypti): involvement of luminal Na+/K+-ATPase.

Recently, Na + /K + -ATPase has been detected in the luminal membrane of the anterior midgut of larval yellow fever mosquitoes (Aedes aegypti) with immunohistochemical techniques. In this study, the possible involvement of this ATPase in strong alkalinization was investigated on the level of whole larvae, isolated and perfused midgut preparations and on the molecular level of the Na + /K + -ATPase protein. Ouabain (5 mM) did not inhibit the capability of intact larval mosquitoes to alkalinize their anterior midgut. Also in isolated and perfused midgut preparations the perfusion of the lumen with ouabain (5 mM) did not result in a significant change of the transepithelial voltage or the capacity of luminal alkalinization. Na + /K + -ATPase activity was completely abolished when KCl was substituted with choline chloride, suggesting that the enzyme cannot act as an ATP-driven Na + /H + exchanger. Altogether the results of the present investigation indicate that apical Na + /K + -ATPase is not of direct importance for strong luminal alkalinization in the anterior midgut of larval yellow fever mosquitoes. Strong luminal alkalinization of up to pH values of 12 has been observed in midgut regions of many larvae of endopterygote insects, including members of the orders Coleoptera, Diptera, Trichoptera and Lepidoptera (for references see Clark, '99). Two tissues have been studied especially intensively with regard to their mechanisms and capacities of alkalinization during the past 20 years: the midgut of the tobacco hornworm (Manduca sexta) and the anterior midgut of larval yellow fever mosquitoes (Aedes aegypti). For the lepidopteran larvae, a transport model has been established in which luminal V-type H + -pumps (V-ATPases) energize luminal, electrogenic K + /2H + -exchangers, resulting in active K + secretion and strong luminal
Treatment of erythropoietin deficiency in mice with systemically administered siRNA

Anemia linked to a relative deficiency of renal erythropoietin production is a significant cause of morbidity and medical expenditures in the developed world. Recombinant erythropoietin is expensive and has been linked to excess cardiovascular events. Moreover, some patients become refractory to erythropoietin because of increased production of factors such as hepcidin. During fetal life, the liver, rather than the kidney, is the major source of erythropoietin. In the present study, we show that it is feasible to reactivate hepatic erythropoietin production and suppress hepcidin levels using systemically delivered siRNAs targeting the EglN prolyl hydroxylases specifically in the liver, leading to improved RBC production in models of anemia caused by either renal insufficiency or chronic inflammation with enhanced hepcidin production.
Development of stress field equations and determination of stress intensity factor during dynamic fracture of orthotropic composite materials

Abstract Equations have been developed to determine the dynamic stress field and strain field around a crack moving at a constant velocity in a finite size orthotropic composite material. A simple experimental technique using strain gages has been used to determine the dynamic stress intensity factor for cracks propagating in a unidirectional glass-epoxy composite laminate. Evaluation of the optimum size, orientation and location of the strain gage to minimize errors has been discussed.
Filament-Wound Cylinders with Axial-Symmetric Loads:

A theoretical elastic solution for filament-wound cylinders with any number of layers and any uniform configuration in each layer is presented. The cylinder may have axial, torsional, or pressure l...
Initial Results of a Thoracic Aortic Endovascular Program: Safer in High-Risk Patients

Results are presented from our single-institutional experience with thoracic endovascular aortic repair to confirm that it is safe in patients with significant comorbidities. A retrospective review of all patients undergoing endovascular or open thoracic aortic repair at our institution since 2002 was performed. Main outcome measures included clinical presentation, demographics, preoperative risk factors, operative details, and clinical outcomes. The endovascular group included 37 patients (22 males), whereas the open group included 19 patients (eight males). Eight patients per group were treated emergently for trauma or rupture (22% and 42%, respectively; p = 0.11). Endovascular patients were significantly older with more comorbid conditions ( p p p p = 0.07). Endovascular patients had shorter operative time and length of stay, fewer ventilator days and intensive care unit days, and fewer transfusions. Although the endovascular patients were significantly older with more comorbidities, the complication rate was similar to the open group. Also, there was a trend toward lower mortality in the endovascular group ( p = 0.07). Endovascular repair is the procedure of choice for treating the descending thoracic aorta in high-risk patients even in the emergent setting.
Phosphoinositides in phagolysosome and autophagosome biogenesis.

Interconversions of phosphoinositides play a pivotal role during phagocytosis and at the subsequent stages of phagosomal maturation into the phagolysosome. Several model systems have been used to study the role of phosphoinositides in phagosomal membrane remodelling. These include phagosomes formed by inanimate objects such as latex beads, or pathogenic bacteria, e.g. Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The latter category provides naturally occurring tools to dissect membrane trafficking processes governing phagolysosome biogenesis. M. tuberculosis persists in infected macrophages by blocking Rab conversion and affecting Rab effectors. One of the major Rab effectors involved in this process is the type III phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase hVPS34. The lipid kinase hVPS34 and its enzymatic product PtdIns3 P are critical for the default pathway of phagosomal maturation into phagolysosomes. Mycobacteria block PtdIns3 P production and thus arrest phagosomal maturation. PtdIns3 P is also critical for the process of autophagy, recently recognized as an effector of innate immunity defenses. Induction of autophagy by pharmacological, physiological, or immunological means, overcomes mycobacterial phagosome maturation block in a PtdIns3 P generation dependent manner and eliminates intracellular M. tuberculosis. PtdIns3 P and PtdIns3 P -dependent processes represent an important cellular nexus where fundamental trafficking processes, disease causing host–pathogen interactions, and innate and adaptive immunity defense mechanisms meet.
The maturation of indoleamine metabolism in the lateral eye of the mouse.

Abstract 1. 1. The eyes of CFW albino strain mice were measured in vitro for the enzyme tryptophan 5-hydroxylase (T5-H) using a 14 C precursor; the intermediates, 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) and 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA), were isolated by differential extraction methods. 2. 2. No detectable T5-H could be measured throughout the maturational period. 3. 3. S-HT and 5-HIAA showed radical and characteristic changes during the first postnatal week; generally by the end of week 1, there is a levelling off. 4. 4. In spite of being an outgrowth of the brain, the eye has a separate, distinctly different pattern of indoleamine metabolism. 5. 5. In the mouse eye, T5-H does not appear to be the controlling factor in pathway maturation.
The Logarithmic Spiral: Mathematical Aspects and Modeling in Turbulence

We consider mathematical aspects of the logarithmic spiral and its utility in turbulence modeling. We consider mathematically the set of point crossings resulting from a linear intersection through the center of a logarithmic spiral. We derive analytically the fractal dimension as a function of scale for this set of crossings. We also derive analytically the power spectrum of the thresholded function corresponding to these point crossings. Our mathematical results have implications for turbulence modeling which are motivated by experimental observations of logarithmic spiral structures of scalar fields in turbulence.
Infrared internal reflectance spectroscopic studies of protein-polysaccharide interactions

Abstract Comparison of infrared attenuated total reflectance (IR-ATR) and transmission spectra of thin films of neutral and anionic polysaccharides showed that the ATR reflectivity technique resolved the OH deformation mode of the polysaccharides to a greater extent than the corresponding transmission spectra. In addition, the SO stretch band of fucan was a broad band at 1247 cm −1 in the transmission spectrum whereas the ATR spectrum split the band into a doublet at 1256 cm −1 and 1218 cm −1 . Interactions between polysaccharides and between polysaccharides and gelatin were detected by noting decreases in intensities and shifts in the frequencies in the OH deformation bands of the polysaccharides, and, in the presence of gelatin, with concomitant shifts in the frequencies of the Amide I and II bands of the protein. Complex formation in which hydrogen bonding was involved was detected in thin films of the following biopolymeric mixtures: glycogen—gelatin, glycogen phosphate—gelatin, glycogen—fucan, fucan—gelatin, and fucan—gelatin in the presence of glycogen.
Zur Reizintervall-Abhangigkeit Akustisch Evozierter Potentiale

AbstraktDie Abhangigkeit der N1-P2-Amplitude und der Latenzen akustisch evozierter Potentiale vom Reizinter-vall (0,2 s-10 s) wurde bei den Reizstarken 20, 30, 50, 70 und 90 dB u. S. gemessen. Im untersuchten Intervall-bereich erreichen die Amplituden (auser der 20-dB-Kurve) noch nicht ihren Hochstwert. Jedoch zeigt eine Extrapolation der Kurven uber 10 s hinaus, das bereits bei 10 s mindestens 90 % der Maximal-Amplitude erreicht werden. Die prozentuale Amplitudenabnahme bei kur-zeren Intervallen (bezogen auf den Wert bei 10 s) ist fur alle Reizstarken etwa gleich. Durch Umzeichnen der Amplituden-Meswerte wird eine Reizstarke - Erre-gungskennlinienschar mit der Intervalldauer als Parameter erhalten. Mit der Intervalldauer steigen die N-1 und p2 Latenzen signifikant an, tLp2 starker als tLN1. Bei kurzen Intervallen durchlaufen beide Kurvenscharen ein Minimum. Eine Anderung des Schallpegels bewirkt im wesentlichen nur eine Parallelverschiebung der Kurven, deren Ausmas eine Funktion des Schallpegels ist. Inf...
Constriction of Hard Direction Hysteresis Loops in Thin Permalloy Films

According to single domain theory, thin Permalloy films with uniaxial anisotropy should have straight hard direction M-H loops without hysteresis. Practically, however, the M-H loops of almost all films are open, when the ac field is applied exactly in the hard direction and the earth’s magnetic field is carefully compensated. Moreover, films thicker than about 800 A often show hard direction hysteresis loops which are constricted at the origin.
Phenotypic and Genotypic Characteristics of Clinical Isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa: Rate of Occurrence and Distribution of Different Serotypes, Antimicrobial Susceptibility Profiles, and Molecular Typing

Background: In the current investigation, 167 clinical isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa obtained from a Northwest Ohio hospital were tested for phenotypic diversity using serotyping and antibiotic susceptibility testing. The genetic diversity of the selected strains was determined by DNA fingerprinting. Methods: The isolates were serotyped by slide agglutination. The susceptibility was measured by disk diffusion. To analyze genetic variability, 96 strains (serotypes O:1, O:2, O:6, and O:11) were studied by polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based single primer DNA fingerprinting.
Serum and Subcutaneous Chamber Fluid Dynamics of Penicillins After Single Large Parenteral Doses

Serum and subcutaneous chamber fluid (CF) dynamics of penicillin G, ampicillin, and amoxicillin were studied in rabbits after single large parenteral doses comparable to doses used in treating gonorrhea and endocarditis. The effects of parenteral probenecid and of injection of an antibiotic directly into a subcutaneous chamber (“intrachamber” injection) also were studied. Peak serum antibiotic concentrations exceeded peak CF concentrations and occurred sooner. Antimicrobial activity persisted longer in CF than in serum. Percent penetration [100 × (CF peak/serum peak)] of CF was least after intramuscular ampicillin and amoxicillin, was greatest after intrachamber ampicillin and intrąmuscular aqueous procaine penicillin G, and was related to duration of antibiotic concentration gradients from serum to CF. Intramuscular aqueous crystalline penicillin G resulted in higher serum and CF penicillin G concentrations than intramuscular aqueous procaine penicillin G, which prolonged the duration of penicillin G in serum and CF. Amoxicillin diffused into CF more readily than ampicillin. Probenecid resulted in higher early serum and CF antibiotic concentrations, but had little or no effect on duration of antibiotic activity. Intrachamber ampicillin resulted in more prolonged serum and CF ampicillin activity than intramuscular ampicillin, but much lower peak serum concentrations. The data suggest a possible means by which probenecid improves the efficacy of gonorrhea therapy with aqueous procaine penicillin G. Intrachamber administration of penicillins could be useful in treating experimental infections requiring prolonged therapy.
Structure-function studies of the herpes simplex virus type 1 DNA polymerase.

Abstract The analysis of the deduced amino acid sequence of the herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) DNA polymerase reported here suggests that the polymerase structure consists of domains carrying separate biological functions. The HSV-1 enzyme is known to possess 5'-3'-exonuclease (RNase H), 3'-5'-exonuclease, and DNA polymerase catalytic activities. Sequence analysis suggests an arrangement of these activities into distinct domains resembling the organization of Escherichia coli polymerase I. In order to more precisely define the structure and C-terminal limits of a putative catalytic domain responsible for the DNA polymerization activity of the HSV-1 enzyme, we have undertaken in vitro mutagenesis and computer modeling studies of the HSV-1 DNA polymerase gene. Sequence analysis predicts that the major DNA polymerization domain of the HSV-1 enzyme will be contained between residues 690 and 1100, and we present a three-dimensional model of this region, on the basis of the X-ray crystallographic structure of the E. coli polymerase I. Consistent with these structural and modeling studies, deletion analysis by in vitro mutagenesis of the HSV-1 DNA polymerase gene expressed in Saccharomyces cerevisiae has confirmed that certain amino acids from the C terminus (residues 1073 to 1144 and 1177 to 1235) can be deleted without destroying HSV-1 DNA polymerase catalytic activity and that the extreme N-terminal 227 residues are also not required for this activity.
Multiphase flow in porous media

Multiphase flows in porous media represent fluid dynamics problems of great complexity involving a wide range of physical phenomena. These flows have attracted the attention of an impressive group of renowned researchers and have spawned a number of classic problems in fluid dynamics. These multiphase flows are perhaps best known for their importance in oil recovery from petroleum reservoirs, but they also find application in novel areas such as hydrofracturing for natural gas recovery. In a recent article, Zinchenko & Davis (J. Fluid Mech. 2013, vol. 725, pp. 611–663) present computational simulations that break new ground in the study of emulsions flowing through porous media. These simulations provide sufficient scale to capture the disordered motion and complex break-up patterns of individual droplets while providing sufficient statistical samples for estimating meaningful macroscopic properties of technical interest.
Effects of Deep Brain Stimulation on Adaptive Control of Reaching

Lesion or degeneration of the cerebellum can profoundly impair adaptive control of reaching in humans. Computational models have proposed that internal models for motor action form in the cerebellum and influence planned motor output through the cerebello-thalamo-cortical pathway. However, lesions in the cerebellar thalamus have not been consistently shown to result in motor adaptation impairment. To elucidate the role of the cerebellar thalamus in humans, we studied a group of essential tremor (ET) patients with deep brain stimulation (DBS) electrodes placed in the cerebellar thalamus. The stimulation can be turned on or off remotely, and is thought to reduce tremor by blocking the spread of the pathological output from the cerebellum. We found that while thalamic DBS resulted in a dramatic reduction in ET, it also led to impaired motor adaptation in the patients. Thus, human adaptive reaching motor control depends on the integrity of the thalamic nucleus that relays cerebellar output to the cerebral cortex
A computer model of intracranial dynamics integrated to a full-scale patient simulator

The ability to visualize intracranial dynamics during simulated clinical scenarios is a valuable tool for teaching brain physiology and the consequences of different medical interventions on the brain. Studies have isolated physiologic variables and shown their effects on brain dynamics. However, no studies have shown the combined effects of these variables on intracranial dynamics. This brain model offers one approach that brings all these relationships together and shows how they affect the dynamics of the brain. The brain model obtains its physiologic inputs from a full-scale patient simulator which responds to clinical interventions. This integration allows individuals working on the patient simulator to see the effects of their actions on brain dynamics. The brain model gives a real-time display of intracranial events (cerebral metabolic rate, cerebral blood flow, cerebral blood volume, cerebral perfusion pressure, and intracranial pressure) and responds to changes in the pulmonary and cardiovascular condition of the patient simulator.
Bulk optical parameters of porcine skin dermis at eight wavelengths from 325 to 1557 nm

We introduce a method with which to obtain accurately the bulk optical parameters of fresh biological tissues in vitro by combining measurements of the sample surface profiles, reflectance, and transmittances with Monte Carlo-based inverse calculations. The bulk optical parameters of fresh porcine dermis tissue were determined at eight wavelengths from 325 to 1557 nm and were found to be much different from those determined without consideration of surface roughness.
Radioimmunoassay determination of luteinizing hormone during the estrous cycle of the rat.

The concentrations of luteinizing hormone (LH) in sera and pituitary glands from normal female rats were measured by radioimmunoassay. In both 4- and 5-day cycling rats, concentrations of serum LH were at least 50-fold greater on the afternoon of proestrus than at any other time in the estrous cycle. No significant elevation in serum LH concentration was observed during the afternoon of diestrus. In animals exsanguinated on the afternoon of proestrus, elevated concentrations of serum LH were found as early as 1:00 PM and as late as 8:00 PM, but the highest incidence of elevated concentrations was observed between 3:00 and 6:00 PM. In individual rats bled repeatedly by cardiac puncture on the afternoon of proestrus, concentrations of serum LH increased and decreased at about the same rate with the period of maximal LH release occurring over a 1–3 hr interval. In some animals, the rate at which serum LH concentrations decreased approximated the disappearance rate for endogenous LH in the hypophysectomized p...
French Colonial Expansion in West Africa, The Sudan, and the Sahara

The conclusion of a definite treaty of diplomatic alliance between France and Morocco, in February, 1910, marks one of the last steps in a long series of moves to establish for France a vast colonial empire in the Dark Continent. Between the years 1830 and 1850, France acquired the whole of Algeria and Constantine. In 1881 she annexed Tunisia; and, in the ten years that followed, she participated with Germany, Great Britain and Italy, in the race for territory in Africa. But it is only within the past twenty years that she has successfully created a great colonial state there. French colonial enterprise in Africa began in 1637, when Claude de Rochefort built fort St. Louis at the mouth of the Senegal river on the west coast and explored the interior for 100 miles. He was followed during the 18th and early 19th centuries by other intrepid explorers who made settlements at Millicourie on the Guinea coast and at Assinie and Grand Bassam on the Ivory Coast, and who penetrated further and further into the interior until the valiant Rene Caille, after marvelous adventures, reached Timbuktu, near the Upper Niger, in 1837. The French holdings on the Senegal were extended and consolidated into an effective base for future operations by the energetic General Faidherbe from 1854 to 1865, who added the Oulof country as far south as Cape Verde and the kingdom of Cayore, and built the harbor at Darkar. He was the first to recognize the possibilities of West Africa as a colonial center. “Our possession on the West Coast,” he wrote to the Colonial Office, “is possibly the one of all our colonies that has before it the greatest future; and it deserves the whole sympathy and attention of the Empire.”
LDPC code design for OFDM channel: graph connectivity and information bits positioning

We present an optimized channel coding scheme for OFDM transmission. In the future wireless standards such IEEE 802.11n, frame error rates (FER) as low as 0.0001 are targeting. Irregular LDPC codes have excellent performance at moderate computational complexity: they are strong candidates for channel coding in such systems. In the context of an OFDM transmission, Mannoni et al. (2002) proposed to optimize the graph connectivity of the irregular LDPC code accordingly to the channel spectrum. However, their codes did not have good performance for a FER range of 0.001-0.0001. In this paper, we propose to optimize the LDPC code in two steps: first, we optimize the graph connectivity in order to get a minimum operational average SNR and therefore excellent FER; then we optimize the information bits placement accordingly to the channel. By simulation, we show that our approach provides substantial performance gain in term of FER over the existing methods (1 dB or more for FER equal to 10/sup -4/).
High Frequency Signal Propagation in Solid Dielectric Tape Shielded Power Cables

High frequency signal propagation in shielded power cable is important to many cable diagnostic techniques including time domain reflectometry, partial discharge location, etc. The signal propagation characteristics, including electromagnetic propagation velocity, cable characteristic impedance, and attenuation are well studied in power cables with concentric neutral wires or solid metallic shield. However, high frequency signal propagation in tape shielded cable is more complicated as conduction at the tape laps tends to decrease with cable aging, which forces more of shield current to spiral down the tape shield. The cable inductance increases with the fraction of the shield current in circumferential direction, which affects all the signal propagation characteristics. High frequency signal propagation characteristics of tape shielded power cable were studied using a custom manufactured 15 kV cable sample which has a PET tape intercalated with the copper tape shield to eliminate conduction at the overlap, which simulates the effects of corrosion in aged tape shielded cables. The inductance of the cable sample was computed as a function of fraction of shield current following a spiraling path along the cable, as were the signal propagation velocity, and the cable characteristic impedance, all of which are in reasonable agreements with measurements. Calculations and measurements of high frequency attenuation indicate that large eddy current and “transformer effect” losses in the ground shield semicon dominate once a substantial fraction of shield current spirals down the tape.
Development of Immunodeficiency of Pituitary Dwarf Mice

Autosomal recessive pituitary dwarf mutants of the Snell-Bagg and Ames mouse strains develop severe immunodeficiency of the thymus-dependent (T cell) system which frequently leads to a fatal wasting syndrome. The ontogenetic development of the T cell system is already subnormal soon after birth as evidenced by diminished responsiveness of thymus and spleen cells to phytohemagglutinin and concanavalin A. The immunodeficiency of the dwarf mouse is a consequence of defective pituitary influences which will cause (i) an inadequate production of immunocompetent cells due to a central developmental defect primarily affecting the thymus, and (ii) the inability of immunocompetent cells to undergo a rapid and efficient antigen-induced proliferation and differentiation into antibody-forming cells. The lack of epinephrine-induced stimulation of adenylate cyclase activity in dwarf spleen and thymus cells suggests that the impaired lymphoid cell proliferation in dwarf mice may be due to inadequate stimulation of cyclic AMP production.
Insulinoma-Associated Antigen-1 Zinc-Finger Transcription Factor Promotes Pancreatic Duct Cell Trans-Differentiation

Insulinoma-associated antigen-1 (INSM1/IA-1) is a unique zinc-finger transcription factor restrictedly expressed in pancreatic beta-cells during early pancreas development. INSM1 is transiently activated by the islet-specific endocrine factor neurogenin 3, and it subsequently regulates downstream target genes NeuroD1 and insulin during beta-cell maturation. Here, we examined how the INSM1 transcription factor contributes to endocrine cell differentiation using a defined serum-free medium-primed pancreatic duct cell model. We showed that ectopic expression of INSM1 can promote Panc-1 cell trans-differentiation. INSM1 up-regulates two islet transcription factors (ITFs), paired box 6 and homeodomain transcription factor 6.1, whereas other ITFs, including pancreatic duodenal homeobox-1 (Pdx-1), homeodomain transcription factor 2.2, NeuroD1, paired box 4, and neurogenin 3, were either down-regulated or absent. The result suggests that INSM1 is capable of regulating multiple ITFs and the insulin gene either directly or indirectly. When we overexpressed three ITFs, INSM1/Pdx-1/NeuroD1, in the Panc-1 differentiation model, higher insulin expression was observed in parallel with the activation of an additional ITF, neurogenin 3, signifying endocrine cell activation. Insulin expression from the three ITFs stimulation was readily detected by immunostaining and increased 40% as compared with the insulin-transferrin-selenium-LacZ control. Furthermore, we examined the differential chromatin acetylation patterns within the insulin promoter region using the chromatin immunoprecipitation assay. INSM1 alone can selectively enhance acetylation of histone H4, whereas NeuroD1 and Pdx-1 favor the acetylation of histone H3. Both H3 and H4 histone acetylations facilitate insulin gene expression. The consistent functional effect of INSM1, either with or without other ITFs, promotes pancreatic duct cell differentiation as well as induces Panc-1 cell cycle arrest.
First Record of the Aridland Cicada, Beameria venosa, in Arkansas

Abstract The grassland-adapted cicada Beameria venosa is reported for the first time from Arkansas, from Terre Noire Natural Area, a prairie remnant in southwestern Arkansas. This observation extends the known range of the species approximately 200 km southeastward.
Biogeographic barriers, connectivity and homogenization of freshwater faunas: it's a small world after all

SUMMARY 1. Historically, biogeographic barriers to the movement of aquatic organisms existed at multiple spatial scales and contributed to the development of unique regional faunas. At increasing spatial scales, these barriers consisted of waterfalls and cascades; catchment divides; major mountain ranges and oceans. This hierarchy of movement barriers produced increasingly distinct aquatic biotas at larger drainage units. 2. Humans have provided a variety of pathways by which aquatic species can circumvent historical biogeographic barriers. These include both authorised and unauthorised stocking, construction of canals and water conveyance systems, transport in ship ballast water, fishing and angling gear (including boats) transferred among water bodies and intentional release of ornamental and other captive species. 3. One consequence of human-aided breaching of biogeographic barriers has been the spread of noxious species that have altered aquatic ecosystems and fisheries in ways that are undesirable to humans. 4. Another consequence of human-aided breaching of biogeographic barriers has been the homogenization of aquatic biotas. Homogenization occurs when a few cosmopolitan species come to dominate communities at the expense of unique native species. Among aquatic organisms this phenomenon is best documented for fish faunas where a small set of species introduced for sport fishing, aquaculture, or ornamental purposes have become widespread throughout the world. 5. Slowing biotic homogenization will require slowing the rate at which species breach biogeographic barriers. This will involve implementing regulations that limit stocking opportunities; increasing the public’s awareness about the consequences of releasing nonnative species and developing technological solutions that prevent movement of aquatic organisms or eliminate them before they become established. 6. River restoration can influence homogenization of aquatic biotas through two major mechanisms: by removing barriers to movement and by restoring natural habitat conditions. Removal of movement barriers may facilitate the spread of non-native species and thus contribute to biotic homogenization. Restoration of natural flow regimes and habitat conditions may reduce biotic homogenization by favouring regional native species over cosmopolitan, non-native species.
D1 and D2 dopamine receptors differentially mediate the activation of phosphoproteins in the striatum of amphetamine-sensitized rats.

Rationale Extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK), cAMP response element binding protein (CREB), and protein kinase B (PKB or Akt) in the striatum are differentially activated by acute and repeated amphetamine (AMPH) administration. However, the dopamine receptor subtypes that mediate transient vs. prolonged phosphorylation changes in these proteins induced by AMPH challenge in AMPH-sensitized rats are unknown.
Problem-based Learning applied to Team Environments: A Visual Literature Review

The purpose of the literature review is to document observations and research findings about the value of problem-based learning (PBL) experiences, especially for programs in Information Technology education. The focus reveals ways that facilitated PBL exercises benefit virtual teams who are collaborating, designing and producing an effective solution. This paper shares some relevant published evidence that active problem solving by learning teams contributes to critical thinking and effective team communications, which can be carried forward into professional roles in the work place. The curiosity and inspiration that inspired this conference paper was a research question "How does facilitated problem-based learning benefit a team of distributed learners when collaborating on designing and producing a practical solution?" This paper accompanies a visual literature review presentation to prepare for a live break out session to consider the complex problem of BYOD (bring-your-own-device) to a learning event. What is the Agenda for Problem-Based Learning (PBL)? A significance of a literature review and research design for Problem Based Learning (PBL) is leveraging learning accomplished in higher education with the talents needed in the workplace for technology professionals. Knowing how to think about problems and solve them is a key. According to Yeo, a "juxtaposition of complexity and systematization is realized in the dynamics subsumed within each distinct phase of problem solving" (Yeo, 2008, p. 324). As illustrated in Figure 1, Yeo's composite framework reflex the Kolb framework, marked with an X in the middle of overlapping domains of knowledge, to reveal that "strategy ultimately helps to create for the workplace an intrinsic source of competitive advantage" (Yeo, 2008, p. 322). The insight, which Yeo offers, is that, in the real-world, explicit knowledge is translated into a set of defined competencies and capabilities enabling individuals to approach multifaceted problems. The design of PBL lessons strengthens ways of thinking about problems in all four phases of a problem context.
FawkesCoin: A Cryptocurrency Without Public-Key Cryptography (Transcript of Discussion)

This is joint work with Andrew Miller from Maryland. This started as kind of a thought experiment: could we do Bitcoin, or a Bitcoin-like crypto currency, without using any public key crypto?
Minimizing the Risk of Opportunity Loss in the Social Security Claiming Decision

The optimal age to claim Social Security benefits is often defined as that which maximizes expected lifetime benefits. Expectations are not always met however, and this optimal claim age is unlikely to be that which would have maximized lifetime benefits received by the eventual age at death. The optimal claim age then carries the potential for an opportunity loss, or the risk of receiving less than the maximum possible, which varies with age at death. This study evaluates the claiming decision by first computing and presenting the maximizing claim age for each possible death age over the retirement horizon, and then determining the actual opportunity loss for each death age for claiming at the otherwise optimal claim age. The potential for opportunity loss over the retirement horizon is then computed for the optimal claim age. If a participant can target a period within the retirement horizon for which the values total lifetime benefits higher than the remainder, the optimal claim age for that target period will entail less risk, or less potential for opportunity loss, than that for optimizing over the entire retirement horizon. Such a strategy could effectively address gaps in a retirement income portfolio.
Contextualizing Female Infanticide: Ming China in Early Modern European Travelogues

One of the essential components of the early modern European response to China was an emphasis on the fabulous wealth and social organization of Chinese society. Despite their knowledge of the wide-scale abandonment and killing of newborns within the society, and despite the categorization of infanticide as a great moral sin by the early Christian church, the European travelers to China commented on infanticide dispassionately, without any moral revulsion, and continued to project an image of China as a virtual utopia for its residents. One reason for the detached descriptions of abandonment of children and infanticide in China might be the fact that conditions with regard to children in Europe were no superior to those in China and were probably far worse; the vast numbers of abandoned and dead children in Europe blunted the edge of criticism with regard to Chinese customs. Another might be that infanticide was practiced within Europe contemporaneously, even though the killing of newborn children there was practiced much more surreptitiously, and public opinion had firmed up connections among single women, illegitimacy, concealment, and murder. However, the dire social circumstances within their own countries had not prevented the Europeans from soundly criticizing and morally reproving cannibalism or infanticide in other cultures. In order to understand their acceptance of this “sinful” practice in China, we must look elsewhere.
Timing Insecticide Applications for Pink Bollworm (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae) Management: Comparison of Egg and Larva Treatment Thresholds

Sampling of pink bollworm, Pectinophora gossypiella (Saunders), eggs was evaluated during 1987 as an alternative to conventional sampling of larvae for making insecticide treatment decisions. Eight cotton, Gossypium hirsutum L., fields, ≈16 ha each, were managed using a treatment threshold of 4-6% egg-infested bolls. The remaining eight fields were managed by pest control advisers and treated when 5% of susceptible green bolls were infested with one or more larvae. Total insecticide applications in the egg and larva threshold fields averaged 6.26 and 8.13 per field, respectively. Despite the significant 23% reduction ( P ≤ 0.05) in insecticide use and significantly higher larval infestations in the egg threshold fields (8.8 compared with 4.6% in larva threshold fields) ( P ≤ 0.05), there were no significant differences in yield ( P = 0.49 for lint weight) between the fields assigned to each management scheme. Results are discussed in light of previous studies on pink bollworm treatment thresholds.
Regulation of epithelial chloride channels by protein phosphatase

A combination of planar bilayer and patch-clamp techniques was used to determine whether apical membrane Cl- channels of shark (Squalus acanthias) rectal gland (SRG) were regulated by a phosphorylating and dephosphorylating cycle. In channel reconstitution studies, apical membrane vesicles of SRG were purified, incubated in ATP-Mg2+ and the presence or absence (control) of catalytic subunit of adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (cAMP)-dependent protein kinase (cAMP-PK) and incorporated into planar lipid bilayers. In the presence of cAMP-PK, two distinct Cl- channels were found when imposing either 450/50 or 300/50 mM KCl (cis/trans) gradients. The most frequently observed channels (G beta 1) were open greater than 80% at all potentials between -60 and +20 mV (trans ground) and were inactivated by alkaline phosphatase added to the cis chamber. The single-channel conductance of G beta 1 was 42 pS between -60 and +20 mV with a 300/50 mM KCl gradient. The second channel (G beta 2) was always observed in pai...
Non-native Chinese mystery snail (Bellamya chinensis) supports consumers in urban lake food webs

Non-native species are widely regarded as threats to ecosystem structure and function; however, these species may also provide benefits to ecosystems that have lost former functions to environmental degradation. This study evaluated whether non-native species provide prey resources or induce trophic cul-de-sacs (by diverting basal energy away from higher trophic levels) in developed ecosystems where native prey are in decline. We used stable isotopes of 13C, 15N, and 2H to assess whether non-native Chinese Mystery snail (Bellamya chinensis) provides a prey resource to consumers, and maintains the integration of benthic resources into food webs of lakes subjected to lakeshore development. Regardless of Bellamya presence, consumers in undeveloped lakes were supported primarily by benthic resources, and lakeshore development dramatically reduced consumer reliance on these resources. This was at least partly due to a reduction in the availability of native snails, a high-quality prey item, to the dominant littoral consumer, molluscivorous pumpkinseed sunfish (Lepomis gibbosus). In developed lakes with non-native Bellamya, generalist yellow perch (Perca flavescens) and piscivorous largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) consumed benthic resources in proportions similar to undeveloped lakes, and pumpkinseed sunfish consumed Bellamya in higher proportions than in undeveloped lakes. Thus, Bellamya provided a prey substitute in developed lakes where native snail populations were depressed; and Bellamya's influence extended to higher trophic-level consumers. Our study provides evidence that non-native species can ameliorate some effects of environmental degradation, and we suggest that future research considers how the effects of non-native species, either positive or negative, may vary across human-modified landscapes.
Implications of altered brain ganglioside profiles in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)

Rapport et al. (11) reported that marked aberrations in brain ganglioside profiles were present in 17 of 21 patients with ALS. The aberrations were detected both in motor cortex and in unexpected regions such as frontal, temporal, and parahippocampal gyrus cortex. These results suggest that some underlying pathological process in ALS also occurs in some neurons that are less vulnerable than motor neurons to consequent deterioration. Since gangliosides are major membrane constituents whose carbohydrate residues establish structural configurations on the external face of the cell membrane, it is highly probable that aberrant ganglioside patterns reflect alterations in receptor structure and function. Receptors are inherently cell specific and the specificity would account for differences in response of sensory and motor neurons to the pathological process in ALS. An apparent absence of similar ganglioside aberrations in spinal cord suggests that the primary pathology is in the brain. Such aberrations are not seen in Alzheimer's disease. If receptor functions are altered in ALS, what ligands might be involved? A major consideration is neurotrophic hormones (2). Gangliosides are known to modulate the effect of nerve growth factor in some in vitro systems and very recent evidence implicates protein kinase activation as an important mechanism.
Comparison of response of bovine and porcine pulmonary arterial endothelial cells to monocrotaline pyrrole.

Monocrotaline (MCT)-induced vascular injury in liver and lung may be caused by interaction of MCT metabolites such as monocrotaline pyrrole (MCTP) with vascular cells. Responses of bovine and porci...
Understanding the 1990s: A long-run perspective

Introduction The twentieth century both opened and closed with a bang: the belle epoque before 1914 and the “roaring nineties” (Stiglitz, 2003) just past. It was only after the First World War that people looked back at the 1895–1914 period with nostalgia as a “beautiful era” of spreading prosperity, peaceful technical progress, low inflation, and modest financial instability. The 1990s, on the contrary, were seen as the “best of times” (Johnson, 2001) by many of those who lived through the decade – at least, those in the United States. Will future historians confirm this view? If the twentieth century is any guide, much will depend on how the twenty-first century unfolds. If peace again prevails, if productivity growth continues apace at the economic center and spreads to the periphery, if means are found to govern the international economy in ways that make the costs of globalization socially acceptable, then the 1990s may well be remembered as a moment in human history when the foundations were laid for a long period of sustainable growth. If, on the other hand, social, political, and economic instability prevails, as it did after the First World War, then people may indeed look back at the 1990s as “the best of times,” creating the myth of another belle epoque . Posterity will magnify the virtues of the last decade in the twentieth century and ignore its shortcomings.
Remedying the Remedy: Johnson v. Uribe and Determining Prejudice for Sixth Amendment Claims

On November 5, 2012, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals declined to rehear Kennard G. Johnson’s habeas petition en banc, thus upholding the appellate panel’s decision to vacate his guilty plea for want of effective assistance of counsel, which overturned the district court’s resentencing remedy. The panel worked within the standard of review to establish prejudice during the plea negotiations, which provided not only an appropriate remedy but also a pragmatic framework for lower courts to assess similar claims of ineffective assistance of counsel. In dissent to the denial of rehearing en banc, Chief Judge Alex Kozinski reasoned that the appellate panel abused its own discretion by not showing the proper deference to the district court’s findings and misapplying the test for ineffective assistance of counsel. Ultimately, the Ninth Circuit panel provided a workable Sixth Amendment framework for the lower courts to follow. This framework diminishes the chance that future indigent defendants, like Johnson, will have to suffer the injustice of receiving ineffective assistance of counsel with an inadequate remedy on appeal.
Representations of the General Linear Lie Superalgebra in the BGG Category \(\mathcal{O}\)

This is a survey of some recent developments in the highest weight repesentation theory of the general linear Lie superalgebra \(\mathfrak{g}\mathfrak{l}_{n\vert m}(\mathbb{C})\). The main focus is on the analog of the Kazhdan–Lusztig conjecture as formulated by the author in 2002, which was finally proved in 2011 by Cheng, Lam and Wang. Recently another proof has been obtained by the author joint with Losev and Webster, by a method which leads moreover to the construction of a Koszul-graded lift of category \(\mathcal{O}\) for this Lie superalgebra.
Protein Clustering Shapes Polarity Protein Gradients

In this issue of Developmental Cell, Dickinson et al. (2017) and Rodriguez et al. (2017), along with Wang et al. (2017) in Nature Cell Biology, show how PAR protein oligomerization can dynamically couple protein diffusion and transport by cortical flow to control kinase activity gradients and polarity in the C. elegans zygote.
Spatial Modeling for Resources Framework (SMRF): A modular framework for developing spatial forcing data for snow modeling in mountain basins

Abstract In the Western US and many mountainous regions of the world, critical water resources and climate conditions are difficult to monitor because the observation network is generally very sparse. The critical resource from the mountain snowpack is water flowing into streams and reservoirs that will provide for irrigation, flood control, power generation, and ecosystem services. Water supply forecasting in a rapidly changing climate has become increasingly difficult because of non-stationary conditions. In response, operational water supply managers have begun to move from statistical techniques towards the use of physically based models. As we begin to transition physically based models from research to operational use, we must address the most difficult and time-consuming aspect of model initiation: the need for robust methods to develop and distribute the input forcing data. In this paper, we present a new open source framework, the Spatial Modeling for Resources Framework (SMRF), which automates and simplifies the common forcing data distribution methods. It is computationally efficient and can be implemented for both research and operational applications. We present an example of how SMRF is able to generate all of the forcing data required to a run physically based snow model at 50–100 m resolution over regions of 1000–7000 km 2 . The approach has been successfully applied in real time and historical applications for both the Boise River Basin in Idaho, USA and the Tuolumne River Basin in California, USA. These applications use meteorological station measurements and numerical weather prediction model outputs as input. SMRF has significantly streamlined the modeling workflow, decreased model set up time from weeks to days, and made near real-time application of a physically based snow model possible.
Large Deviation Preliminaries

This chapter contains some basic definitions and results from abstract large deviation theory. As before, no background other than graduate-level probability and functional analysis is required, and the discussion is limited to the minimum required for the monograph.