cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The teratogenicity of Nω-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME), a nitric oxide synthase inhibitor, in rats

Exposure of gravid rats to the nitric oxide synthase inhibitor N(omega)-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME) in drinking water or by implanted osmotic minipumps significantly elevates maternal blood pressure, reducing uteroplacental perfusion. Administration by either route causes fetal growth retardation, but oral exposure also causes hind limb reduction malformations. The present study employed both oral and intraperitoneal routes to determine the period of sensitivity to developmental toxicity, dose-response, and possible fetotoxic mechanisms. Hind limb hemorrhage occurred only in litters from dams exposed to oral doses of 1 to 2 mg/mL from gestational days 15 through 17. In contrast to oral exposure, single intraperitoneal injections caused both fore and hind limb reductions at doses of 25 mg/kg and above administered on gestational day 16 and later. Many other exposures that reduce uteroplacental perfusion have been associated with vascular disruptive dysmorphogenesis. These exposures include phenytoin, calcium channel inhibitors, cocaine, and uterine vascular clamping. Limb hemorrhage induced by these exposures is usually limited to distal structures, typically phalanges, and the incidence of affected fetuses rarely exceeds 50%. By contrast, hemorrhage caused by L-NAME frequently involves entire limbs, extending into adjacent flank in severe instances, and 100% of fetuses from treated dams may be affected. The basis of this difference and the differing defect patterns associated with the various routes of exposure are unclear, but the generation of reactive oxygen species during resumption of normal perfusion may play a role in this vascular disruption.
Aqueous alteration in five chondritic porous interplanetary dust particles

Results are presented on AEM observations carried out on chondritic porous (CP) interplanetary dust particles (IDPs), which include data on alkali-rich layer silicates and new observations of nonstoichiometric plagioclase and alkali feldspars in individual CP IDPs. The compositional similarities found between the feldspar minerals and the layer silicates suggest that the latter have formed from these feldspars during low-temperature aqueous alterations at a stage of diagenesis in the CP IDP parent bodies. Small, but persistent, amounts of layer silicates, carbonates, and barite found in several nominally anhydrous CP IDPs support the suggestion of incipient aqueous alterations in their parent bodies, which may include short-period comet nuclei and outer-belt asteroids.
Trajectory Prediction of a Lane Changing Vehicle Based on Driver Behavior Estimation and Classification

Accurate trajectory prediction of a lane changing vehicle is a key issue for risk assessment and early danger warning in advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS). This paper proposes a trajectory prediction approach for a lane changing vehicle considering high-level driver status. A driving behavior estimation and classification model is developed based on Hidden Markov Models (HMMs). The lane change behavior is estimated by observing the vehicle state emissions in the beginning stage of a lane change procedure, and then classified by the classifier before the vehicle crosses the lane mark. Furthermore, the future trajectory of the lane changing vehicle is predicted in a statistical way combining the driver status estimated by the classifier. The classifier is trained and tested using naturalistic driving data, which shows satisfactory performance in classifying driver status. The trajectory prediction method generates different trajectories based on the classification results, which is important for the design of both autonomous driving controller and early danger warning systems.
Recurrent pregnancy loss and obstetric outcome.

In patients with recurrent losses, the prognosis for pregnancies having passed the viability threshold (24 weeks) is controversial [1–4]. Drawing on a large state-wide perinatal database allowed us to investigate the relationship between a history of previous repeat pregnancy losses and risk of preterm delivery. Data in the perinatal database collected from the state of Schleswig–Holstein, Germany, during the years 1991 until 1997 containing 170,254 women 59,386 nulliparas with singleton pregnancies were analyzed. Data included information pertaining to maternal sociodemographic characteristics and risk factors including the number of pregnancy losses, course of the pregnancy, delivery outcomes, neonatal outcome and postpartum maternal complications. The analysis included only nulliparous women who did not have any voluntary termination of pregnancy. Patients who were induced before term for various pregnancy complications were excluded to avoid overestimation of the rate of spontaneous preterm deliveries. Among the 59,386 (38%) nulliparous patients included, 5973 (10.1%) had a history of one miscarriage, 908 (1.5%) had a history of two previous miscarriages, and 225 (0.4%) had a history of three or more previous miscarriages.
The Tetrahymena thermophila genome sequence. 2. Relating macronuclear sequence scaffolds to corresponding macronuclear chromosomes

Tetrahymena's highly fragmented macronuclear genome contains ∼300 chromosomes that have recently been whole-genome-shotgun sequenced at TIGR. We had genetically mapped Random Amplified Polymorphic DNAs (RAPDs) to Tetrahymena's micro- and macronuclear genomes. We sized the MAC chromosomes that carry RAPDs by cloning and labeling RAPD DNA and probing Southern blots of macronuclear DNA separated by pulsed-field electrophoresis. We now report using cloned RAPD sequences to blastn-search the TIGR Tetrahymena scaffold database (http://www.tigr.org/tdb/e2kl/tgg/); each RAPD sequence matched a sized scaffold. Comparison of physical sizes of MAC chromosomes (as determined by hybridization) to corresponding scaffold sizes showed that: • Every complete scaffold (assembled from telomere to telomere) matches in size with its corresponding MAC chromosome within 10% experimental error. • No incomplete scaffolds (telomere-capped at one or neither end) exceeded the size of its corresponding MAC chromosome. This work is allowing us to relate the genetic, physical and sequence maps of the micro-and macronuclear genomes to one another. It has also provided strong evidence for the quality and accuracy of the Tetrahymena genome sequencing and assembly carried out at TIGR. (Supported by NIH grant RR02931 and contract to TIGR NIGMS Tetrahymena genome sequencing grant. Sequence data were obtained from The Institute for Genomic Research website.)
Snail Promotes the Cell-Autonomous Generation of Flk1+ Endothelial Cells Through the Repression of the microRNA-200 Family

Expression of the transcription factor Snail is required for normal vasculogenesis in the developing mouse embryo. In addition, tumors expressing Snail have been associated with a more malignant phenotype, with both increased invasive properties and angiogenesis. Although the relationship between Snail and vasculogenesis has been noted, no mechanistic analysis has been elucidated. Here, we show that in addition to inducing an epithelial mesenchymal transition, Snail promotes the cell-autonomous induction of Flk1+ endothelial cells in an early subset of differentiating mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells. Cells that become Flk1+ in response to Snail have a transcriptional profile specific to Gata6+primitive endoderm, but not the early Nanog+epiblast. We further show that Snail's ability to promote Flk1+ endothelium depends on fibroblast growth factor signaling as well as the repression of the microRNA-200 (miR-200) family, which directly targets the 3′ UTRs of Flk1 and Ets1. Together, our results show that Sna...
Monte Carlo simulation of high-pressure phase equilibria in aqueous systems

We have used Gibbs ensemble and histogram-reweighting Monte Carlo techniques to obtain the phase behavior of water and aqueous mixtures at high pressures. These calculations are relevant for the design of high-pressure separation processes, such as supercritical fluid extraction and supercritical water oxidation. In particular, we have obtained the phase behavior of several simple point charge models of water, as well as polarizable versions of these models. None of the models studied reproduce the experimentally observed phase behavior and critical parameters of water. The binary mixture water/carbon dioxide at high pressures has also been studied. Good agreement for this mixture has been obtained without use of any adjustable parameters for the mixture interactions, thus suggesting that the predictive power of molecular-based methods is greater than that of purely phenomenological approaches, even when using imperfect pure component intermolecular potential models.
Taylor-series and Monte-Carlo-method uncertainty estimation of the width of a probability distribution based on varying bias and random error

Uncertainties are typically assumed to be constant or a linear function of the measured value; however, this is generally not true. Particle image velocimetry (PIV) is one example of a measurement technique that has highly nonlinear, time varying local uncertainties. Traditional uncertainty methods are not adequate for the estimation of the uncertainty of measurement statistics (mean and variance) in the presence of nonlinear, time varying errors. Propagation of instantaneous uncertainty estimates into measured statistics is performed allowing accurate uncertainty quantification of time-mean and statistics of measurements such as PIV. It is shown that random errors will always elevate the measured variance, and thus turbulent statistics such as . Within this paper, nonlinear, time varying errors are propagated from instantaneous measurements into the measured mean and variance using the Taylor-series method. With these results and knowledge of the systematic and random uncertainty of each measurement, the uncertainty of the time-mean, the variance and covariance can be found. Applicability of the Taylor-series uncertainty equations to time varying systematic and random errors and asymmetric error distributions are demonstrated with Monte-Carlo simulations. The Taylor-series uncertainty estimates are always accurate for uncertainties on the mean quantity. The Taylor-series variance uncertainty is similar to the Monte-Carlo results for cases in which asymmetric random errors exist or the magnitude of the instantaneous variations in the random and systematic errors is near the ?true? variance. However, the Taylor-series method overpredicts the uncertainty in the variance as the instantaneous variations of systematic errors are large or are on the same order of magnitude as the ?true? variance.
Fritz Pollard: Pioneer in Racial Advancement

This is the inspiring story of an African American whose athletic and entrepreneurial achievements -- from being the first black quarterback and head coach in the National Football League to founding one of the first all-black investment securities companies -- were equaled by his courage in confronting racial barriers.
Causation and Its Relation to ‘Causal Laws’

Many have found attractive views according to which the veracity of specific causal judgements is underwritten by general causal laws. This paper describes various variants of that view and explores complications that appear when one looks at a certain simple type of example from physics. To capture certain causal dependencies, physics is driven to look at equations which, I argue, are not causal laws. One place where physics is forced to look at such equations (and not the only place) is in its handling of Green's functions which reveal point-wise causal dependencies. Thus, I claim that there is no simple relationship between causal dependence and causal laws of the sort often pictured. Rather, this paper explores the complexity of the relationship in a certain well-understood case.1Introduction2The Causal Covering-Law Thesis3The Laws of String Motion4Green's Functions and Causation5Green's Functions and Boundary Conditions6The Green's Function as a Violation of the Wave Equation6.1The Green's Function and other Senses of ‘Causal Law’: Temporal Propagation and Local Propagation7The Distributional Wave Equation8Why is not the Green's Function a ‘Causal Law’?9Conclusion
Modulation of dADAR-dependent RNA editing by the Drosophila fragile X mental retardation protein

Loss of FMR1 gene function results in fragile X syndrome, the most common heritable form of intellectual disability. The protein encoded by this locus (FMRP) is an RNA-binding protein that is thought to primarily act as a translational regulator; however, recent studies have implicated FMRP in other mechanisms of gene regulation. We found that the Drosophila fragile X homolog (dFMR1) biochemically interacted with the adenosine-to-inosine RNA-editing enzyme dADAR. Adar and Fmr1 mutant larvae exhibited distinct morphological neuromuscular junction (NMJ) defects. Epistasis experiments based on these phenotypic differences revealed that Adar acts downstream of Fmr1 and that dFMR1 modulates dADAR activity. Furthermore, sequence analyses revealed that a loss or overexpression of dFMR1 affects editing efficiency on certain dADAR targets with defined roles in synaptic transmission. These results link dFMR1 with the RNA-editing pathway and suggest that proper NMJ synaptic architecture requires modulation of dADAR activity by dFMR1.
Determining Interbrand Substitutability through Survey Measurement of Consumer Preference Structures

The authors develop a survey approach to determine cross-price elasticities and switching matrices for brands in a prespecified product class. The survey determines for each household whether to el...
Resolution of non-activated and activated androgen receptors based on differences in their hydrodynamic properties

This study shows that cytosolic androgen receptor of rat ventral prostate sediments at 10–11 S on conventional low salt sucrose density gradients (SDG), and at 4.6 S on high salt SDG, whether it is activated or not; inclusion of 10mM Na2MoO4 in all buffers does not alter these sedimentation coefficients. In the presence of 50 mM Na2MoO4 non-activated and activated androgen receptors sediment in high salt SDG at 7–8 S and 4.6 S, respectively. Thus the presence of high concentrations of molybdate during centrifugation inhibits the KCl induced disaggregation of receptor into subunits. Similar effects are observed on Sephacryl-S200 gel filtration; in 50 mM MoO42− and 0.4 M KCl non-activated receptor has an estimated Stokes radius of 67 A; this value decreases to 52 A upon activation in the presence of proteolysis inhibitors; omission of molybdate during chromatography yielded 52 A and 27 A entities. Estimated mol. wts are 198,000 Daltons for the non-activated 67 A form and 98,000 Daltons for the activated 52 A receptor. Sodium molybdate (50 mM) prevents temperature (18°C) and high ionic strength (0.4 M KCl) induced receptor activation. This inhibition was overcome by removing molybdate by centrifugal gel filtration, or by increasing the KCl concentration to 0.8 M. The inhibitory effects of molybdate on salt induced receptor disaggregation into activated subunits are no longer observed at pH 7.4 or after chemical modification of sulfhydryl groups. Once androgen receptor has been disaggregated into its activated subunits the activated state is maintained even upon reassociation to 10–11 S aggregates in low salt. The relative concentrations of KC1 and molybdate are critical; thus, 10 mM Na2MoO4/0.4M KCl and 50 mM Na2MoO4/0.8–1.2M KCl did not differentiate activated from non-activated androgen receptor based on their hydrodynamic properties. In the presence of 0.4 M KCl and 50 mM molybdate, however, the hydrodynamic properties of androgen receptor can be correlated with receptor activation.
A new cGMP phosphodiesterase isolated from bovine platelets is substrate for cAMP‐ and cGMP‐dependent protein kinases: Evidence for a key role in the process of platelet activation

The biochemical differences among cGMP phosphodiesterases in platelets have not been thoroughly examined, primarily due to the lack of sufficient purified material. This report describes a simple method developed to isolate a specific bovine platelet cGMP phosphodiesterase. This enzyme is cytosolic in its native form and was purified to an apparent homogeneity by ion-exchange chromatography, affinity chromatography, and density gradient centrifugation. Cyclic GMP binds to a "pseudo-site" when the catalytic site is deprived of Mg++. The affinity for cGMP at alkaline pH in presence of EDTA and IBMX (Kd = 60 nM) suggests that the removal of Mg++ by EDTA converts the catalytic site to a binding site. A ligand affinity chromatography was designed to take advantage of these features. The core enzyme has a molecular weight 190,000 composed of 2 subunits (MW 95,000) and has a specific activity of 2.5 mumol/min/mg. Moreover, this enzyme was phosphorylated by cAMP- and cGMP-dependent protein kinases, suggesting that its activity could be indirectly regulated by cyclic nucleotides. Agents elevating cGMP and cAMP inhibit platelet activation by inhibiting protein kinase C and thrombin induced hydrolysis of phosphatidylinositol 4,5 diphosphate. The antiaggregating properties of some of these agents might therefore be attributed to the fact that they are inhibitors of phosphodiesterases.
Cruelty, Kindness, and Unnecessary Suffering

The ideas of cruelty, kindness, and unnecessary suffering play prominent roles in the growing debate over our treatment of animals. An index of how pervasive these ideas are, is that a philosopher who does not rely on them, or not all of them, or who argues in ways that give other ideas a place of prominence, might none the less be viewed as resting his case against, say, vivisection or factory farming on these very ideas. Thus, for example, Renford Bambrough, in his editorial in the October 1978 issue of Philosophy,1 by way of contrasting the essays in that issue with the work of Peter Singer and myself, writes that '(t)he emphasis of Peter Singer and Tom Regan has been on animal suffering and human cruelty'. For obvious reasons it is not part of my task to consider how accurate a characterization of Singer's position this is.2 As for my own, two comments at least are in order. The first is that, even if it were true that I place emphasis on 'animal suffering and human cruelty', it would not be true that my position centred on just these two ideas. Equally central, for good or ill, is my attempt, successful or otherwise, to understand whether it is wrong to kill animals and, if so, why, independently of questions of suffering or cruelty.3 But, second, it is not true that cruelty is central to my thinking.
Addition of Pt(PBut3) to osmium-tin cluster complexes.

The reactions of the osmium−tin cluster complexes Os3(CO)12(μ3-SnPh)Ph, 9, and Os4(CO)16(μ4-Sn), 10, with Pt(PBut3)2 have been investigated. Two products, PtOs3(CO)12(Ph)(PBut3)(μ3-SnPh), 11, and Pt2Os3(CO)12(μ2-Ph)(PBut3)2(μ3-SnPh), 12, were obtained from the reaction of 9 with Pt(PBut3)2. These are mono- and bis-Pt(PBut3) adducts of 9 formed by the addition of a Pt(PBut3) group to the Os−Os bond in 11 and the Os−Os bond and Os−C bond to the σ-bonded phenyl group in 12. A PBut3 derivative of 11, Os2(CO)8(μ3-SnPh)Os(CO)3(PBut3)Ph, 13, was obtained by treating 12 with PBut3. The reaction of 10 with Pt(PBut3)2 provided the bis-Pt(PBut3) adduct Os4(CO)16[Pt(PBut3)]2(μ4-Sn), 14, that was formed by the addition of a Pt(PBut3) group across the Os−Os bond of both Os2(CO)8 groups in 10. All four new compounds 11−14 were characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis.
Distance preserving ramsey graphs

We prove the following metric Ramsey theorem. For any connected graph G endowed with a linear order on its vertex set, there exists a graph R such that in every colouring of the t-sets of vertices of R it is possible to find a copy G* of G inside R satisfying: distG*(x, y) = distR(x, y) for every x, y ∈ V(G*); the colour of each t-set in G* depends only on the graph-distance metric induced in G by the ordered t-set.
Anisotropic Hardy spaces and wavelets

In this paper, motivated in part by the role of discrete groups of dilations in wavelet theory, we introduce and investigate the anisotropic Hardy spaces associated with very general discrete groups of dilations. This formulation includes the classical isotropic Hardy space theory of Fefferman and Stein and parabolic Hardy space theory of Calderon and Torchinsky. Given a dilation A, that is an n × n matrix all of whose eigenvalues λ satisfy |λ| > 1, define the radial maximal function M φf(x) := sup k∈Z |(f ∗ φk)(x)|, where φk(x) = | detA|φ(Ax). Here φ is any test function in the Schwartz class with ∫ φ 6= 0. For 0 < p < ∞ we introduce the corresponding anisotropic Hardy space H A as a space of tempered distributions f such that M φf belongs to L (R). Anisotropic Hardy spaces enjoy the basic properties of the classical Hardy spaces. For example, it turns out that this definition does not depend on the choice of the test function φ as long as ∫ φ 6= 0. These spaces can be equivalently introduced in terms of grand, tangential, or nontangential maximal functions. We prove the Calderon-Zygmund decomposition which enables us to show the atomic decomposition of H A. As a consequence of atomic decomposition we obtain the description of the dual to H A in terms of Campanato spaces. We provide a description of the natural class of operators acting on H A, i.e., Calderon-Zygmund singular integral operators. We also give a full classification of dilations generating the same space H A in terms of spectral properties of A. In the second part of this paper we show that for every dilation A preserving some lattice and satisfying a particular expansiveness property there is a multiwavelet in the Schwartz class. We also show that for a large class of dilations (lacking this property) all multiwavelets must be combined minimally supported in frequency, and thus far from being regular. We show that r-regular (tight frame) multiwavelets form an unconditional basis (tight frame) for the anisotropic Hardy space H A. We also describe the sequence space characterizing wavelet coefficients of elements of the anisotropic Hardy space. 2000 Mathematics Subject Classification. Primary 42B30, 42C40; Secondary 42B20, 42B25.
Performance of a Structure-Detecting SpMV Using the CSR Matrix Representation

Sparse matrix-vector multiplication (SpMV) is an important building block for many scientific applications. Various formats exist to store and represent sparse matrices in the computer's memory. The compressed row storage format (CRS or CSR) is typically a baseline to report a new hybrid or an improved representation of sparse matrices. In this paper, we describe the implementation and performance benefit of a structure-detecting SpMV algorithm using the CSR format. Our implementation detects contiguous rows in the sparse matrix representation to improve the performance of the computation by making better use of the available memory bandwidth. Applications with mixed or a-priori unknown matrix structures can take advantage of the runtime structure detection. We show that the additional control flow needed does not degrade performance, but may deliver up to twice the performance of the traditional SpMV algorithm.
Suppression of glycogen synthase kinase activity is not sufficient for leukemia enhancer factor-1 activation.

Abstract Glycogen synthase kinase-3 (GSK) can be regulated by different signaling pathways including those mediated by protein kinase Akt and Wnt proteins. Wnt proteins are believed to activate a transcription factor leukemia enhancer factor-1 (LEF-1) by inhibiting GSK, and Akt was shown to phosphorylate GSK and inhibit its kinase activity. We investigated the effect of an activated Akt on the accumulation of cytosolic β-catenin and LEF-1-dependent transcription. Although the activated Akt, mAkt, clearly inhibited the kinase activity of GSK, mAkt alone did not induce accumulation of cytosolic β-catenin or activate LEF-1-dependent transcription. On the contrary, coexpressed Wnt-1 and Frat activated LEF-1 but did not show significant inhibition of GSK-mediated phosphorylation of a peptide substrate. However, mAkt could act synergistically with Wnt-1 or Frat to activate LEF-1. In addition, the interaction of GSK for Axin appeared to decrease in the presence of mAkt, whereas the interaction for Frat remained unchanged. Consistently, a GSK mutant with substitution of a Phe residue for residue Tyr-216, which showed one-fifth of kinase activity of the wild-type GSK, exhibited a reduced association for Axin than the wild-type GSK. These results suggest that inhibition of GSK kinase activity is not sufficient for activation of LEF-1 but may facilitate the activation by reducing the interaction of GSK for Axin. The additional mechanism for LEF-1 activation may require dissociation of GSK from Axin as Frat facilitates the dissociation of GSK from Axin.
Agglomerative clustering for feature point grouping

The objective of this paper is to group feature points on different planes as a means of semantic image segmentation and understanding. The methodology is based on the ability to estimate planar homographies from grouped feature points spanning different unknown number of planes. This paper proposes an alternative to the J-linkage method, which was shown to have benefits in terms of accuracy over other multiple model estimation techniques. J-linkage is an agglomerative clustering technique that uses a set representation of support for a set of possible planar homographies and the Jaccard measure to determine the distance between support sets. The technique proposed in this paper uses a frequency vector to represent the support for a model. This formulation promotes clustering even in the presence of noise and prevents the order in which agglomerative clustering is performed from influencing the results. The feature vector representation requires an alternative distance measure to Jaccard to be exercised, that of cosine similarity. Hence, the method proposed here is called C-linkage. The results show that, compared to the J-linkage method, the proposed technique correctly classifies more points on each plane, and results in less over-segmentation while providing higher Normalized Mutual Information scores for a range of multiple model estimation problems on different datasets.
Relationship between Tropical Heating and Subtropical Westerly Maxima in the Southern Hemisphere during SOP-1, FGGE

FGGE Level III-b analyses, produced by the Goddard Laboratory for Atmospheres, NASA, are used to investigate the relationship between tropical heating and subtropical westerly maxima in the Southern Hemisphere during SOP-1 (January 5 - March 4, 1979). The mean state of two 15-day periods is examined, as well as day-to-day variations for the entire 59-day period. In Period 1 (January 6-20), the central South Pacific was extremely active convectively, while in Period 2 (February 3-17), convective activity over the western Indian Ocean was enhanced. Episodes of strong outflow in the tropics, as measured by the upper tropospheric velocity potential, were found to be well correlated with the strengthening and propagation of westerly wind maxima in the subtropics. The average location of the westerly maximum over the South Pacific and Indian oceans was about 16 deg latitudes south, and slightly east, of its corresponding heat source. For a cyclone case study which is presented, however, this distance was considerably less. The response time between the upper level tropical outflow and subtropical westerly enhancement appears to be less than 12 hours; however, an exact temporal scale was difficult to identify.
Thyroid plasmacytoma mimicking medullary carcinoma: A potential pitfall in aspiration cytology

Extramedullary plasmacytoma (EMP), a malignant neoplasm of the soft tissues composed of plasma cells, may occur either as a solitary plasma-cell tumor (primary EMP) or as a manifestation of multiple myeloma (secondary EMP). We report on the aspiration cytology findings of an intriguing case of EMP of the thyroid that was initially misinterpreted as medullary carcinoma on clinical and cytologic examination. A major contributing cause for the cytologic misinterpretation was the presence of amyloid in the aspirate and the clinical impression of a “thyroid mass.” Based on this experience, we suggest that EMP should be considered in the differential diagnosis of a neck mass that yields discohesive cells associated with amyloid/amyloid-like material. Clinical correlation and immunocytochemistry are crucial in avoiding pitfalls in this situation. Diagn. Cytopathol. 2000;23:354–358. © 2000 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Why do people support gun control? Alternative explanations of support for handgun bans

Many scholars have suggested that Americans' positions on gun control are the product of culture conflicts. This assertion has been largely based on associations of gun control opinion with membership in social groups believed to be hostile, or favorable, towards gun ownership, rather than with direct measures of the cultural traits thought to mediate the effects of group membership on gun control opinion. Data from a 2005 national telephone survey were analyzed to test competing theories of why people support handgun bans. Instrumental explanations, which stress belief in a policy's likely effectiveness, accounted for less than 25 percent of the variation in support. The results supported the culture conflict perspective. Those who endorsed negative stereotypes about gun owners, and who did not believe in the need to defend their own homes against crime (versus relying on the police) were more likely to support handgun bans.
Self-reported rates of interpersonal conflict vary as a function of questionnaire format: why age-related trends in disagreement (and other events) may not be what they seem.

Abstract Two studies examine whether self-reports of interpersonal conflict differ as a function of how the question is asked. In Study 1, 56 U.S. college students ( M = 20.7 years) completed different versions of a questionnaire, four times, at one week intervals. Participants reported more conflicts with the aid of memory prompts than without, an effect that was especially strong when questions focused on events from the previous day. In Study 2, 123 middle-school students ( M = 11.08 years) and 128 primary school students ( M = 8.2 years) from the same region completed one of two questionnaires describing conflict during the previous day. Children reported more conflicts with memory prompts than without. The effect was twice as strong for younger children than older children. The findings suggest that increases in reports of conflict across the transition into adolescence may be due to improvements in the ability to recall and recount events in the absence of memory cues.
IDENTIFYING TRUCK CORRESPONDENCE IN MULTI-FRAME IMAGERY

Abstract This paper develops a model for automated matching of vehicles between aerial photos. We exploit the overlap from frame-to-frame in a sequence of aerial photos. The problem, in essence, is to determine if vehicles A, B, C, … in one photo, match vehicles X, Y, and Z in a temporally lagged second photo. The method is specifically applied to large trucks (tractor–trailer combinations). If a match can be established, the trucks can be joined to form trajectories. The need for an automated algorithm is pressing in view of the likely stream of data from various new aerial platforms (video, tethered balloons, unmanned airborne data collection systems) and the development of tools to automate the extraction of trucks from these images. In the first step, manual air photo interpretation is used to determine the exact match of the real trucks. Digitized points in the images represent observations of unique trucks, each of which is seen a number of times. A distance matrix is computed between all pairs of points (trucks) on the network. Then, a linear program is used to select matching trucks. A total of 10 pairs of photos incorporating 85 potential matches are described. Reasonable results are found, especially for implied speed estimates, which can be compared to the actual speeds from the true matches. Challenges for future extensions to more complex situations are explained.
Weyl quantization of symmetric spaces. I. Hyperbolic matrix domains

Abstract It is shown that the generalized Weyl calculus on the hyperbolic matrix domains (defined by integration over a field of symmetries) leads to bounded operators when the symbol is “Laplace-bounded,” i.e., remains bounded after certain invariant differential operators (higher Laplacians) are applied.
Efficient second-harmonic generation into the UV by using optically encoded silicate glasses.

Silicate glasses have been optically encoded to produce quasi-phase-matched second-harmonic generation with wavelengths as short as 340 nm. The effect is shown to be insensitive to the preparation wavelength over the range 686 to 766 nm. Readout of the encoded second-harmonic generation as a function of the fundamental wavelength detuning confirms that a periodic χ(2) grating is encoded into the glass. Experimental results show that the peak conversion efficiency occurs for readout wavelengths detuned slightly from the encoding wavelength. This is explained by absorption-induced index changes during the encoding process.
Low Lactose Yogurts and Milk Beverages by Ultrafiltration

Abstract Skim milk retentates from ultrafiltration, containing approximately 20% protein, were diluted with water to 3.3 to 4.6% protein, standardized with cream to 1.38 to 2.60% fat, and homogenized pasteurized. Such cooled milk beverages displayed good flavor and low lactose. Yogurts made from these low lactose milk beverages contained .31 to .61% lactose, a smooth viscous texture, and firm body with clean, acid, slightly flat flavor. Samples were lower in mineral elements and calories than standard commercial yogurts. One low lactose yogurt contained 22mg sodium and 31cal per 100g. Titratable acid and pH were comparable to fresh standard commercial yogurts but storage for 6 wk at 5C showed no significant change in acidity. Bitterness occurred after the 1st wk in some lots of low lactose yogurt.
Apomixis and Sexuality in Some Paspalum Species

Paspalum is a large genus that contains several important forage and turf grasses. Little or no information is available concerning the cytology and reproductive behavior of many of these species. The objectives of this study were to determine the cytology, method of reproduction, and fertility of accessions of eight different Paspalum species. Paspalum modestum Mez., P. monostachyum Vasey, P. repens Bergius, and one P. alcalinum Mez. accession were sexual diploids with 2n = 2x = 20 chromosomes. Meiosis was regular with primarily bivalent pairing. Even though P. modestum was sexual, the female gametophyte deteriorated in 43% of the ovules. Two P. alcalinum, one P. falcatum Nees, two P. paucifolium Swallen, three P. polyphyllum Nees, and one P. unispicatum (Scribn. et Merr.) Nash accessions were tetraploids with 2n = 4x = 40 chromosomes. During meiosis their chromosomes associated primarily as bivalents, quadrivalents, and univalents. Regardless of the species, all tetraploids were facultative aposporous apomicts. One P. alcalinum accession was a pentaploid with 50 chromosomes. Meiosis was irregular with the chromosomes associating as univalents, bivalents, trivalents, and quadrivalents. This accession reproduced as an obligate aposporous apomict. Seed set in P. modestum and P. monostachyum was very low but was high enough in the other species that they could be propagated by seed. These findings demonstrate the cytological and reproductive diversity within this large complex genus.
Interrelationships between crime, substance abuse, and aggressive behaviours among persons with traumatic brain injury

Professionals have suggested that aggressiveness, substance abuse, and criminality contribute to poor outcomes after brain injury. There is considerable research regarding post-injury aggressive behaviour, but limited information concerning criminal behaviour and alcohol use patterns. With a sample of 327 patients varying in severity of traumatic brain injury, the present investigation examined alcohol use patterns, arrest histories, behavioural characteristics, and psychiatric treatment histories. Relative to the uninjured population, analysis revealed relatively high incidence of heavy drinking, both pre- and post-injury, among patients with a history of arrest. Increases in abstinence rates were found regardless of arrest history. In addition, a history of arrest was associated with a greater likelihood of psychiatric treatment. Findings also indicated relatively high levels of aggressive behaviours. Discussion focuses on implications for evaluation, rehabilitation, and future research.
Host specificity testing and examination for plant pathogens reveals that the gall‐inducing psyllid Calophya latiforceps is safe to release for biological control of Brazilian peppertree

Brazilian peppertree, Schinus terebinthifolia Raddi (Anacardiaceae), is one of the worst upland exotic weeds in Florida, USA. Foreign exploration for natural enemies led to the discovery of a pit-galling psyllid, Calophya latiforceps Burckhardt (Hemiptera: Calophyidae), in the state of Bahia, Brazil, in 2010. Crawlers of C. latiforceps stimulate the formation of galls on the leaves of S. terebinthifolia resulting in leaf discoloration and in some cases leaf abscission. To determine whether C. latiforceps is a safe candidate for biological control of S. terebinthifolia, host specificity and the presence of selected plant pathogens were examined. Adult oviposition, gall formation, and adult survival of C. latiforceps were examined on 89 plant species under no-choice and choice conditions. We found that C. latiforceps laid eggs on plants in seven families; however, crawlers stimulated gall formation and completed development to adult only on S. terebinthifolia. All crawlers on non-target plants died, likely due to starvation caused either by the absence of a feeding stimulus or by a hypersensitive plant response. Under no-choice conditions, 10% of adults lived for 19 days on the target weed, but adult survival was reduced to <3 days on non-target plants. Choice testing revealed that females preferred to oviposit on S. terebinthifolia compared to non-target plants. Molecular methods and indicator host inoculations did not detect the presence of ‘Candidatus Liberibacter solanacearum’, ‘Ca. L. asiaticus’, ‘Ca. L. americanus’, ‘Ca. L. africanus’, or plant viruses in adult C. latiforceps. We conclude that releasing C. latiforceps in the USA will have extremely low risk to non-target plants, and provides another tool for the management of S. terebinthifolia.
Quinacrine fluorescence of specific chromosome regions. Late replication and high A: T content in Samoaia leonensis.

The pattern of intense fluorescence of interphase nuclei and metaphase chromosomes after staining with quinacrine is described in Samoaia leonensis. Autoradiographic analysis of interphase nuclei after pulse labeling with tritiated thymidine indicates that there is little or no overlap in the time of replication of the intensely fluorescing and weakly fluorescing regions. Autoradiographic analysis of metaphase figures after continuous labeling with tritiated thymidine shows that the intensely fluorescing regions are late replicating and establishes their order of replication. Autoradiographic analysis of interphase nuclei after pulse labeling with tritiated deoxycytidine and of metaphase figures after continuous labeling with this tracer show that there is little, if any, incorporation of deoxycytidine into those chromosome regions which fluoresce intensely after staining with quinacrine and quinacrine mustard. These results indicate that such chromosome regions are characterized chemically by an extremely high, if not exclusive, content of adenine and thymine.
Analysis of Elder Abuse Statutes Across the United States, 2011–2012

The purpose of this article is to describe the state elder abuse statutes in the United States and Washington DC during 2011–2012. The last review of elder abuse statutes occurred in 2001; thus, a reexamination is warranted given the increased awareness of elder abuse at the state and national level and the growing number of older adults in the United States. This descriptive study analyzed the following components of elder or dependent abuse statutes: definitions, reporting requirements, training, and consequences for failure to report. It was determined that differences remain in how states respond to elder abuse at the community-based level.
Quinones in electron transport. 1. Coenzymatic activity of plastoquinone, coenzyme Q and related natural quinones.

Abstract Coenzyme Q10, plastoquinone, vitamins K1 and K2, and the diethoxy homolog of coenzyme Q10 have been compared in their ability to restore succinic cytochrome c reductase and succinoxidase activity in mitochondria from which coenzyme Q10 has been removed by solvent extraction. Only coenzyme Q10 and closely related dimethoxybenzoquinones have been found active in all extracted systems tested. Plastoquinone restores the activity of particles extracted with isooctane but not of particles extracted with other solvents. The diethoxy homolog of coenzyme Q10 is an inhibitor of succinic cytochrome c reductase activity, and its inhibitory effects can be reversed by addition of coenzyme Q10. All other quinones tested are inactive or in some cases produce irreversible inhibition.
Risks and benefits of drugs used in the management of postoperative nausea and vomiting.

Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) is an age-old problem; more so since the blooming of ambulatory or day surgery centres within the last 2 decades. The aetiology of PONV is multifactorial. The incidence of PONV is usually higher in women and children than in men. PONV not only causes patient discomfort, anxiety in mild cases, and serious complications in severe cases, it also decreases cost efficiency. The benefits and risks of old and new antiemetic drugs used worldwide to treat PONV are discussed in this article, including the newly developed serotonin 5-hydroxytryptamine 3 (5HT3) antagonists. All the medications currently used to treat PONV have both advantages and disadvantages. If used indiscriminately to treat patients who have no problems with PONV, the risks of adverse effects often outweigh the benefits. The patient’s history and the nature of the surgery are good indicators for defining those at risk from PONV; for patients at risk preventive treatment is essential. However, it is almost impossible to pick one agent or one combination as the therapy of choice using the present available data. A patient history of a favourable response to a previously used antiemetic would make that drug the agent of choice, So far, the newcomers, the 5HT3 antagonists, have fewer reported adverse effects.
Reactive Astrocytosis from Excitotoxic Injury in Hippocampal Organ Culture Parallels That Seen In Vivo

Reactive astrocytes influence not only the severity of brain injury, but also the capacity of brain to reshape itself with learning. Mechanisms responsible for astrogliosis remain unknown but might be best studied in vitro, where improved access and visualization permit application of modern molecular and cellular techniques. We have begun to explore whether gliosis might be studied in hippocampal organotypic cultures (HOTCs), where potential cell-to-cell interactions are preserved and the advantages of an in vitro preparation are still realized. Following HOTC exposure to N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA), dose-dependent changes occurred in the optical density (OD) values for the astrocytic immunohistochemical [immunostaining (IS)] markers glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and vimentin. Exposure of HOTCs to NMDA (10 microM) caused selective death in the CA1 hippocampal region and the dentate gyrus. It also significantly increased GFAP IS and vimentin IS OD values in these regions. Increased GFAP IS and vimentin IS OD values were also seen in CA3, a hippocampal region that displayed no cell death. Light microscopic examination revealed hypertrophied GFAP and vimentin IS cells, characteristic of reactive astrocytes. Cellular proliferation, as assessed by proliferating cell nuclear antigen IS, was also significantly increased in all three of these hippocampal regions. In contrast, exposure of HOTCs to a noninjurious level of NMDA (1 microM) caused only minor changes in GFAP IS and vimentin IS OD values but a significantly reduced cellular proliferation in all HOTC regions. These results show that reactive astrocytosis from excitotoxic injury of HOTC parallels changes seen in vivo after global ischemia. Furthermore, since resting astroglia within HOTCs are also similar to their counterparts in vivo, HOTCs may be used to examine mechanisms by which these cells are transformed into reactive species within tissue that resembles intact brain.
A structural model for the northwestern Adirondacks based on leucogranitic gneisses near Canton and Pyrites, New York: Summary

INTRODUCTION The origin and structural relationships of leucogranitic gneiss bodies in the Adirondack Lowlands represnnt controversial problems in the Adirondacks. Most of the early published work, as later summarized by Buddington (1939) suggested that these bodies were unconnected intrusive igneous bodies later affected by penetrative deformation and metamorphism. Granitic magma was intruded into the axial zones of major folds to form lens-shaped, concordant masses that he labeled “phacoliths.” A subsequent idea, credited to Bloomer by Engel and Engel (1963), suggested a metasedimentary origin for these bodies. In this model, the granitic masses represent metamorphosed, transformed, layered rocks occupying specific stratigraphic positions in the Adirondack Lowlands. Wynne-Edwards (1967), Lewis (1969), and Carl and Van Diver (1971, 1975) shared this opinion, Foose and Carl (1977) proposed an integrating model to explain the structural setting of the “alaskite” bodies of the Adirondacks Lowlands as parts of a single, extensive, folded sheet.
Heterosocial anxiety and direction of attention in high school boys

This study was based upon a cognitive-attentional model of heterosocial shyness, hypothesizing that shyness would be related to self-evaluative attention, while confidence would be associated with task-focused attention. Subjects were 35 heterosocially shy and 37 confident high school boys who conversed with a female confederate under one of three instructional manipulations of attention: self-evaluative, task-focused, or naturalistic. While neither shy/confident status nor the instructional manipulation significantly affected focus of attention during the conversation, correlational support was found for the model. Shy boys had significantly higher levels of public self-consciousness than confident boys. The focus of subjects' thoughts during the conversation was related to self-ratings and judges' global ratings of skill and anxiety, and to actual conversational behavior. In addition, cognitive and behavioral differences between shy and confident subjects were found.
Reliable election in broadcast networks

Abstract Election in a computer network is an operation in which one process is selected from among a group of processes to perform a particular task. An election is characterized by (1) the capacities of the candidates, and (2) the agreement reached by all processes to elect the master. In this paper, we show that election is in fact a very general style of computation. Many problems in computer networks can be solved by means of election. We then examine the election problem in computer networks with broadcast support. Basic design issues of election algorithms are addressed, and a number of election algorithms are presented based on various environments. These algorithms allow all nonfaulty processes to elect one and only one process as the master, and, by changing the definition of the capacities, they can be applied to a variety of problems.