cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Orexin/hypocretin receptor modulation of anxiolytic and antidepressive responses during social stress and decision-making: Potential for therapy

Hypothalmic orexin/hypocretin (Orx) neurons in the lateral and dorsomedial perifornical region (LH-DMH/PeF) innervate broadly throughout the brain, and receive similar inputs. This wide distribution, as well as two Orx peptides (OrxA and OrxB) and two Orx receptors (Orx1 and Orx2) allow for functionally related but distinctive behavioral outcomes, that include arousal, sleep-wake regulation, food seeking, metabolism, feeding, reward, addiction, and learning. These are all motivational functions, and tie the orexin systems to anxiety and depression as well. We present evidence, that for affective behavior, Orx1 and Orx2 receptors appear to have opposing functions. The majority of research on anxiety- and depression-related outcomes has focused on Orx1 receptors, which appear to have primarily anxiogenic and pro-depressive actions. Although there is significant research suggesting contrary findings, the primary potential for pharmacotherapies linked to the Orx1 receptor is via antagonists to block anxious and depressive behavior. Dual orexin receptor antagonists have been approved for treatment of sleep disorders, and are likely candidates for adaptation for affect disorder treatments. However, we present evidence here that demonstrates the Orx2 receptors are anxiolytic and antidepressive. Using a new experimental pre-clinical model of anxious and depressive behavior stimulated by social stress and decision-making that produces two stable behavioral phenotypes, Escape/Resilient and Stay/Susceptible, we tested the effects of intracerebroventricular injections of Orx2 agonist and antagonist drugs. Over ten behavioral measures, we have demonstrated that Orx2 agonists promote resilience, as well as anxiolytic and antidepressive behavior. In contrast, Orx2 antagonists or knockdown kindle anxious and pro-depressive behavior plus increase susceptibility. The results suggest that the Orx2 receptor may be a useful target for pharmacotherapies to treat anxiety and depression.
The Stigma of Tenure Denied: An Exploration of Individual and Institutional Implications

Although tenure denial is a familiar feature of the faculty profession, the dearth of specific research on the subject indicates that it is a phenomenon not sufficiently understood. The analyses that do exist are largely a-theoretical and unsystematic. In this qualitative study, we employed Goffman’s social psychological concepts of stigma and moral career to examine whether tenure denial is stigmatizing, and if so, how individuals navigate the personal, social, and professional implications of this undesirable label. Findings highlight the implicit burden of responsibility placed solely on individuals for their tenure denial, the challenge of managing social and professional situations, and the factors that contribute to or mitigate against the establishment of a new sense of self. We argue that just as the profession is learning that non-tenure track faculty should be treated with respect without regard for their non-traditional professional status, so tenure denial, although painful, need not be stigmatic. Rather, individuals may become advocates, activists, and employees (faculty or otherwise) who are able to serve with greater professional clarity and self-understanding as a result of their tenure denial experience.
Tick Bite Risk and Tick‐Borne Disease Perceptions of School District Administrators in the Mid‐Atlantic United States

Background Lyme disease is a common tick-borne disease in the northeastern and midwestern United States. School-aged children aged 5-15 years are at high risk for contracting Lyme disease. Many school campuses in the mid-Atlantic United States are in areas that are near, or border with, wooded habitat. Methods We surveyed school administrators to determine the perception of risk of tick encounters and tick control methods implemented on school campuses in the mid-Atlantic. Results Responses from Pennsylvania and New Jersey districts indicate school district administrators had knowledge of Lyme disease and blacklegged ticks, but knowledge of other tick species and tick-borne diseases was limited. Overall, the results suggest that targeted communication of educational information regarding ticks and tick control to school districts could encourage increased participation in organized tick control or other preventative measures. Conclusions Overall, respondents were aware of ticks and Lyme disease, but were not aware or had limited awareness of many other tick-borne diseases, and how tick bite risk could be reduced. Targeted communication of educational information regarding ticks and tick control to school districts could provide a framework for reducing tick-borne disease risk in mid-Atlantic school districts.
Active Listening Skills as Predictors of Success in Community College Students

Current research on employability skills in higher education tends to focus on communication and critical thinking as being key to that success in the classroom and the workforce. The research on a...
Crumbling Walls, Crumbling Roles: Metatheatricality and Gender Performativity in Héctor Mendoza’s La dama boba (1981)

AbstractDespite his prodigious output, the work of the Mexican dramaturge, playwright, and director Hector Mendoza has been little studied academically. Those who have examined his works have dismi...
Recent advances in bio-orthogonal and dynamic crosslinking of biomimetic hydrogels

In recent years, dynamic, ‘click’ hydrogels have been applied in numerous biomedical applications. Owing to the mild, cytocompatible, and highly specific reaction kinetics, a multitude of orthogonal handles have been developed for fabricating dynamic hydrogels to facilitate ‘4D’ cell culture. The high degree of tunability in crosslinking reactions of orthogonal ‘click’ chemistry has enabled a bottom-up approach to install specific biomimicry in an artificial extracellular matrix. In addition to click chemistry, highly specific enzymatic reactions are also increasingly used for network crosslinking and for spatiotemporal control of hydrogel properties. On the other hand, covalent adaptable chemistry has been used to recapitulate the viscoelastic component of biological tissues and for formulating self-healing and shear-thinning hydrogels. The common feature of these three classes of chemistry (i.e., orthogonal click chemistry, enzymatic reactions, and covalent adaptable chemistry) is that they can be carried out under ambient and aqueous conditions, a prerequisite for maintaining cell viability for in situ cell encapsulation and post-gelation modification of network properties. Due to their orthogonality, different chemistries can also be applied sequentially to provide additional biochemical and mechanical control to guide cell behavior. Herein, we review recent advances in the use of orthogonal click chemistry, enzymatic reactions, and covalent adaptable chemistry for the development of dynamically tunable and biomimetic hydrogels.
Dexterous Force Estimation during Finger Flexion and Extension Using Motor Unit Discharge Information

With the development of advanced robotic hands, a reliable neural-machine interface is essential to take full advantage of the functional dexterity of the robots. In this preliminary study, we developed a novel method to estimate isometric forces of individual fingers continuously and concurrently during dexterous finger flexion and extension. Specifically, motor unit (MU) discharge activity was extracted from the surface high-density electromyogram (EMG) signals recorded from the finger extensors and flexors, respectively. The MU information was separated into different groups to be associated with the flexion or extension of individual fingers and was then used to predict individual finger forces during multi-finger flexion and extension tasks. Compared with the conventional EMG amplitude-based method, our method can obtain a better force estimation performance (a higher correlation and a smaller estimation error between the predicted and the measured force) when a linear regression model was used. Further exploration of our method can potentially provide a robust neural-machine interface for intuitive control of robotic hands.
Low-cost double pendulum for high-quality data collection with open-source video tracking and analysis

Abstract The double pendulum is a system that manifests fascinating non-linear behavior. This made it a popular tool in academic settings for illustrating the intricate response of a seemingly simple physical apparatus, or to validate tools for studying nonlinear phenomena. In addition, the double pendulum is also widely used in several modeling applications including robotics and human locomotion analysis. However, surprisingly, there is a lack of a thoroughly documented hardware that enables designing, building, and reliably tracking and collecting data from a double pendulum. This paper provides comprehensive documentation of a research quality bench top double pendulum. The contributions of our work include (1) providing detailed CAD drawings, part lists, and assembly instructions for building a low friction double pendulum. (2) A new tracking algorithm written in Python for tracking the position of both links of the double pendulum. This algorithm measures the angles of the links by examining each frame, and computes uncertainties in the measured angles by following several trackers on each link. Additionally, our tracking algorithm bypasses the data transmission difficulties caused by instrumenting the bottom link with physical sensors. (3) A derivation of the equations of motion of the actual physical system. (4) A description of the process (with provided Python code) for extracting the model parameters—e.g., damping—with error bounds from physical measurements.
Influence of Nutrient Intake on 24 Hour Urinary Hydration Biomarkers Using a Clustering-Based Approach.

Previous work focusing on understanding nutrient intake and its association with total body water homeostasis neglects to consider the collinearity of types of nutrients consumed and subsequent associations with hydration biomarkers. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to analyze consumption patterns of 23 a priori selected nutrients involved in osmotic homeostasis, as well as their association with 24 h urinary hydration markers among fifty African–American first-year college students through a repeated measures observation in a daily living setting. Through application of hierarchical clustering, we were able to identity four clusters of nutrients based on 24 h dietary recalls: (1) alcohol + pinitol, (2) water + calcium + magnesium + erythritol + inositol + sorbitol + xylitol, (3) total calories + total fat + total protein + potassium + sodium + zinc + phosphorous + arginine, and (4) total carbohydrates + total fiber + soluble fiber + insoluble fiber + mannitol + betaine. Furthermore, we found that consumption of nutrients in Cluster #2 was significantly predictive of urine osmolality (p = 0.004); no other clusters showed statistically significant associations with 24 h urinary hydration biomarkers. We conclude that there may be some nutrients that are commonly consumed concomitantly (at the day level), across a variety of settings and populations, and that a limited subset of the clustering of these nutrients may associate with body water status.
The Millennial Marriage

This essential text explores the concept of "Me-Marriage"—a marital relationship that blends individualized life goals and interests—and draws from research on the current benefits and costs of marriage to consider how to achieve success, both individually and relationally. Chapters explore the larger patterns at play and identify the trends about what a modern "healthy marriage" looks like for this new generation. Brian J. Willoughby combines a review of the latest social science research on the benefits and costs of marriage with new quantitative and qualitative data from married and single adults. The book explores how marriage has fundamentally shifted in the Western world due to the changing values and approaches to relationships by the Millennial generation that is now largely transitioning to marriage. This book is an ideal text for clinicians and practitioners (particularly those working with young married populations) looking for guidance on how to understand the increasingly complex ways that adults are navigating their relationship landscape, as well as students and scholars in the fields of psychology, family studies, and sociology and those interested in individual development, relational development, and demographic trends on the family.
Teach as I Say, Not as I Do: How Preservice Teachers Made Sense of the Mismatch between How They Were Expected to Teach and How They Were Taught in Their Professional Training Program

A challenge for teacher educators is providing preservice teachers with the opportunity to develop the confidence and efficacy required to address their future students’ sociocultural, academic, an...
Simple approach to characterizing band topology in bosonic pairing Hamiltonians

We revisit the problem of characterizing band topology in dynamically stable quadratic bosonic Hamiltonians that do not conserve particle number. We show this problem can be rigorously addressed by a smooth and local adiabatic mapping procedure to a particle-number-conserving Hamiltonian. In contrast to a generic fermionic pairing Hamiltonian, such a mapping can always be constructed for bosons. Our approach shows that particle-nonconserving bosonic Hamiltonians can be classified using known approaches for fermionic models. It also provides a simple means for identifying and calculating appropriate topological invariants. We also explicitly study dynamically stable but non-positive-definite Hamiltonians (as arise frequently in driven photonic systems). We show that in this case, each band gap is characterized by two distinct invariants.
Real-Time CDC Consultation during the COVID-19 Pandemic-United States, March-July, 2020.

Context: In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC) clinicians provided real-time telephone consultation to healthcare providers, public health practitioners, and health department personnel. Objective: To describe the demographic and public health characteristics of inquiries, trends, and correlation of inquiries with national COVID-19 case reports. We summarize the results of real-time CDC clinician consultation service provided during 11 March to 31 July 2020 to understand the impact and utility of this service by CDC for the COVID-19 pandemic emergency response and for future outbreak responses. Design: Clinicians documented inquiries received including information about the call source, population for which guidance was sought, and a detailed description of the inquiry and resolution. Descriptive analyses were conducted, with a focus on characteristics of callers as well as public health and clinical content of inquiries. Setting: Real-time telephone consultations with CDC Clinicians in Atlanta, GA. Participants: Health care providers and public health professionals who called CDC with COVID-19 related inquiries from throughout the United States. Main Outcome Measures: Characteristics of inquiries including topic of inquiry, inquiry population, resolution, and demographic information. Results: A total of 3154 COVID-19 related telephone inquiries were answered in real-time. More than half (62.0%) of inquiries came from frontline healthcare providers and clinical sites, followed by 14.1% from state and local health departments. The majority of inquiries focused on issues involving healthcare workers (27.7%) and interpretation or application of CDC’s COVID-19 guidance (44%). Conclusion: The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a substantial number of inquiries to CDC, with the large majority originating from the frontline clinical and public health workforce. Analysis of inquiries suggests that the ongoing focus on refining COVID-19 guidance documents is warranted, which facilitates bidirectional feedback between the public, medical professionals, and public health authorities.
The Myth of Mind Uploading

It’s fashionable to maintain that in the near future we can become immortal by uploading our minds to artificial computers. Mind uploading requires three assumptions: (1) that we can construct realistic computational simulations of human brains; (2) that realistic computational simulations of human brains would have conscious minds like those possessed by the brains being simulated; (3) that the minds of the simulated brains survive through the simulation. I will argue that the first two assumptions are implausible and the third is false. Therefore, we will not upload our mind to computers and, most likely, we will not upload anything resembling our mind to computers.
The Utility of Differential Scanning Calorimetry Curves of Blood Plasma for Diagnosis, Subtype Differentiation and Predicted Survival in Lung Cancer

Early detection of lung cancer (LC) significantly increases the likelihood of successful treatment and improves LC survival rates. Currently, screening (mainly low-dose CT scans) is recommended for individuals at high risk. However, the recent increase in the number of LC cases unrelated to the well-known risk factors, and the high false-positive rate of low-dose CT, indicate a need to develop new, non-invasive methods for LC detection. Therefore, we evaluated the use of differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) for LC patients' diagnosis and predicted survival. Additionally, by applying mass spectrometry, we investigated whether changes in O- and N-glycosylation of plasma proteins could be an underlying mechanism responsible for observed differences in DSC curves of LC and control subjects. Our results indicate selected DSC curve features could be useful for differentiation of LC patients from controls with some capable of distinction between subtypes and stages of LC. DSC curve features also correlate with LC patients' overall/progression free survival. Moreover, the development of classification models combining patients' DSC curves with selected plasma protein glycosylation levels that changed in the presence of LC could improve the sensitivity and specificity of the detection of LC. With further optimization and development of the classification method, DSC could provide an accurate, non-invasive, radiation-free strategy for LC screening and diagnosis.
Modernism and the Ideology of History: Literature, Politics, and the Past

Louise Williams explores the nature of historical memory in the work of five major Modernists: Yeats, Pound, Hulme, Ford and Lawrence. These Modernists, Williams argues, started their careers with historical assumptions derived from the nineteenth century. But their views on the universal structure of history, on the abandonment of progress and the adoption of a cyclical sense of the past, were the result of important conflicts and changes within the Modernist period. Williams focuses on the period immediately before World War I, and shows in detail how Modernism developed and why it is considered a unique intellectual movement. She also revisits the theory that the Edwardian age was a difficult period of transition to the modern world. Finally, she illuminates the contribution of non-Western culture to the literature and thought of the period. This wide-ranging and inter-disciplinary study is essential reading for literary and cultural historians of the modernist period.
THE 'HIGH' CONCENTRATIONS OF ENZYMES WITHIN THE CHLOROPLAST

In addition to the well documented circumstances associated with ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase, calculations suggest that there are several other enzymes of the photosynthetic carbon reduction cycle (i.e. glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase, aldolase, phosphoribulokinase, transketolase) whose stromal concentrations could readily approach or exceed the concentrations of one or more of their substrates. Such circumstances have extensive ramifications ranging from the alterations of enzyme kinetic behavior and the binding of metabolites to the generation of stromal microenvironments that could facilitate channeling or influence the distribution of metabolites. Consideration of the relative concentrations of all enzymes of the photosynthetic carbon reduction cycle will likely prove essential to a complete understanding of its operation and regulation.
Broadwell: A family of IA 14nm processors

Intel Core™ M and 5th generation of Core™ processors (code named Broadwell) are fabricated on an optimized 14 nm process technology node resulting in a 49% reduction in feature-neutral die area. 14nm created a new optimized process flavor for Core™ M to improve energy efficiency for mobile devices. Techniques and optimizations were implemented to deliver 2.5x TDP reduction coupled with up-to 60% higher graphics performance. New process technology combined with various design techniques reduced the minimum voltage of operation by 50 m V. Broadwell introduces the second generation of Fully Integrated Voltage Regulator with better droop control and parallel boot LVR along with other power-reduction features resulting in 35% reduction in active and standby power over first generation. 3DL inductor technology introduced for the first time in Broadwell, enables 30 % reduction in package thickness and improved low-load efficiency. IO re-partitioning of the SOC and a major re-design of DDR system resulted in 30% reduction in I/O power. Shutting down various parts of the SOC die in various idle states (C∗ states) resulted in 60% reduction in the idle power. New software controlled co-optimization methods were implemented such as duty-cycle control and dynamic display support to improve the energy efficiency of the graphics and the display subsystem.
Sarcoplasmic reticulum. 8. Use of 8-anilino-1-naphthalene sulfonate as conformational probe on biological membranes.

Abstract The fluorescence of 8-anilino-1-naphthalene sulfonate (ANS) 3 is enhanced by skeletal muscle microsomes and micellar dispersions of phospholipids. The magnitude of the enhancement is a unique function of the ionic composition, rising with the concentration of cations according to a titration curve. The effect of cations might reflect the increased hydrophobic character of the membrane or the increased binding of ANS, induced by cations. The optimum pH for the ANS fluorescence in the presence of microsomes or lecithin is at pH 1–4 and at pH 7.3 a complex temperature dependence was observed with indications of a transition at 35–40 °. Treatment of microsomes or lecithin with phospholipase C causes a decrease of ANS fluorescence while trypsin digestion had little or no effect. Polymyxin B, a circular polypeptide, inhibits the ATPase activity and Ca 2+ transport of muscle microsomes accompanied by a large increase in fluorescence enhancement in the presence of ANS. Tyrocidine also inhibited the biochemical functions while gramicidin was less effective. Polyene antibiotics were generally without effect. These observations indicate that caution is required in the evalution of ANS fluorescence data in terms of conformational changes in membrane proteins alone, since the contribution of phospholipids to the fluorescence is significant.
Performance and Irregular Behavior of Adaptive Task Partitioning

We study the effect of irregular function behavior and dynamic task partitioning on the parallel performance of the adaptive multivariate integration algorithm currently incorporated in PARINT. In view of the implicit hot spots in the computations, load balancing is essential to maintain parallel efficiency. A convergence model is given for a class of singular functions. Results are included for the computation of the cross section of a particle interaction. The adaptive meshes produced by PARINT for these problems are represented using the PARVIS visualization tool.
Relationships of space utilization by children with selected aspects of behavior.

Abstract Fifty-four kindergarten age boys and girls were filmed while at play on the school playground. Space utilization was based on 10-min. film segments taken on each of six randomly selected days covering a period of seven weeks. Additional behavioral data were collected from the children on perceptual-motor development, body image, body size concept, fine motor skill, and space utilization in graphic production. Data for these variables were derived by administering the Bender Visual-Motor Gestalt Test, three performance subtests of the Wechsler Preschool Primary Scale of Intelligence, a body image test, a body size concept test, and a self-drawing task. Results of the study lend support to the concept that young children can be differentiated by the amount of space each uses while engaged in self-initiated nonstructured locomotor movement. Also, relationships of space utilization by children with selected aspects of behavior were found.
Sequential methods of analysis for genome scans.

Abstract As the preceding chapters illustrate, now that whole-genome scan analyses are becoming more common, there is considerable disagreement about the best way to balance between false positives and false negatives (traditionally called type I and type II errors in the statistical parlance). Type I and type II errors can be simultaneously controlled, if we are willing to let the sample size of analysis vary. This is the secret that Wald 1947 discovered in the 1940s that led to the theory of sequential sampling and was the inspiration for Newton Morton in developing the lod score method. We can exploit this idea further and capitalize on an old, but nearly forgotten theory: sequential multiple decision procedures (SMDP) Bechhoffer, et al. 1968, which generalizes the standard “two-hypotheses” tests to consider multiple alternative hypotheses. Using this theory, we can develop a single, genome-wide test that simultaneously partitions all markers into “signal” and “noise” groups, with tight control over both type I and type II errors ( Province, 2000 ). Conceiving this approach as an analysis tool for fixed sample design (instead of a true sequential sampling scheme), we can let the data decide at which point we should move from the hypothesis generation phase of a genome scan (where multiple comparisons make the interpretation of p values and significance levels difficult and controversial), to a true hypothesis-testing phase (where the problem of multiple comparison of multiple comparison has been all but eliminated so that p values may be accepted at face value.
"Occult" rib fractures diagnosed on computed tomography scan only are still a risk factor for solid organ injury.

Introduction: Prior to the widespread use of computed tomography (CT) scan imaging, lower rib fractures diagnosed on chest X-rays (CXRs) were considered a risk factor for abdominal solid organ injury (ASOI). However, CXRs miss about 50% of the rib fractures that are detected on CT scans. We hypothesized that these occult rib fractures would not be predictive for ASOI. Materials and Methods: Retrospective review of a level I trauma center's database identified all adult blunt trauma patients (n = 11,170) over a 5-year period. Data were abstracted for demographics, injury severity score, presence of ASOI, extremity, pelvic and spine fractures as well as presence and location of rib fractures. Results: Rib fractures correlated with the presence of ASOI, regardless of whether they were diagnosed by CXR or CT scan alone (P < 0.01). Middle (3-7) and lower (8-12) rib fractures, especially, correlated with the presence of ipsilateral ASOI (P < 0.0001). Discussion: Although CT scan detects more rib fractures than CXR, rib fractures remain a marker for increased likelihood of ASOI regardless of the modality by which they are diagnosed. Patients with rib fractures also have a greater incidence of spine and pelvic fractures. As the trauma community debates moving away from routine whole-body CT imaging towards a more selective approach, these results suggest that any clinical suspicion of rib fractures, despite a negative CXR, may warrant further investigation.
Host virus interactions in the initiation of bacteriophage lambda DNA replication. Recruitment of Escherichia coli DnaB helicase by lambda P replication protein.

The bacteriophage lambda P protein promoters replication of the phage chromosome by recruiting a key component of the cellular replication machinery to the viral origin. Specifically, P protein delivers one or more molecules of Escherichia coli DnaB helicase to a nucleoprotein structure formed by the lambda O initiator at the lambda replication origin. Using purified proteins, we have examined the features of the pivotal host virus interaction between P and DnaB. These two proteins interact in vitro to form a P.DnaB protein complex that can be resolved by sedimentation or by chromatography on DEAE-cellulose from the individual free proteins. The sedimentation coefficient of the P.DnaB complex, 13 S, suggests a size larger than that of free DnaB hexamer (Mr = 313,600). The P.DnaB complex isolated by glycerol gradient sedimentation contains approximately three protomers of P/DnaB hexamer, consistent with a molecular weight of 393,000. The isolated P.DnaB complex functions in vitro in the initiation of lambda DNA replication. Interaction of P with DnaB strongly suppressed both the intrinsic DNA-dependent ATPase activity of DnaB, as well as the capacity of DnaB to assist E. coli primase in the general priming reaction. Formation of a P.DnaB protein complex also blocked DnaB from functioning in the initiation of E. coli DNA replication in vitro. The physical and functional properties of lambda P protein suggest that it is a viral analogue of the E. coli DnaC replication protein. Like P, DnaC also binds to DnaB (Wickner, S., and Hurwitz, J. (1975) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A. 72, 921-925), but unlike P, DnaC stimulates DnaB-mediated general priming. When viral P and bacterial DnaC replication proteins were placed in direct competition with one another for binding to DnaB, the viral protein was clearly predominant. For example, a 5-fold molar excess of DnaC protein only partially reversed the inhibitory effect of P on general priming. Furthermore, when a preformed DnaC.DnaB protein complex was incubated briefly with P protein, it was readily converted into a P.DnaB protein complex and the bulk of the bound DnaC was released as free protein. It is likely that the capacity of the lambda P protein to outcompete the analogous host protein for binding to the bacterial DnaB helicase is the critical molecular event enabling infecting phage to recruit cellular replication proteins required for initiation of DNA synthesis at the viral origin.
Bulk viscoelastic contribution to the wet‐sliding friction of rubber compounds

The wet-sliding friction characteristics of rubber compounds made of high cis-polybutadiene were examined with a British pendulum skid tester at room temperature. Three series of compounds were prepared—unfilled or filled with carbon black at two different levels. The bulk viscoelastic properties as characterized by the bulk glass-transition temperature for the compounds were systematically adjusted by changing the crosslinking density via sulfur vulcanization. In fact, the dynamic mechanical glass-transition temperature for the compounds ranges between approximately −100 and 20 °C. Consequently, the wet-sliding friction of these rubber compounds is dramatically affected. With increasing compound glass-transition temperature, the wet-sliding friction increases to a maximum and then decreases. However, the rate of increase or decrease varies with the amount of filler in the compounds. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 41: 757–771, 2003
Opioids act at μ-receptors to hyperpolarize arcuate neurons via an inwardly rectifying potassium conductance

Abstract Intracellular recordings were made from 48 hypothalamic arcuate (ARC) neurons under current- and voltage-clamp in slices prepared from female guinea pigs which had been ovariectomized and pretreated with estradiol. Twenty ARC neurons were silent (RMP: -62 ± 2 mV) and 28 cells were spontaneously active (7.3 ± 1.1 Hz; threshold-57 ± 1 mV). The input resistance ( R in ), determined in the potential range between −60 and −80 mV, was 358 ± 30 M μ ( n = 38) and ARC neurons showed inward rectification at potentials negative to the equilirbium potential for potassium. The selective μ-opioid agonist Tyr- D -Ala-Gly-MePhe-Gly-ol (DAGO) was applied by pressure pipette application at concentrations of 10 or 20 μM. DAGO decreased spontaneous firing and it hyperpolarized 26 of 31 neurons (9.6 ± 0.8 mV; range 3–21 mV). Concomitant with the hyperpolarization, DAGO caused a decrease in R in of 32±3, and the reversal potential, measured from current-voltage plots, was −94 ± 2 mV. These effects wre mimicked bny batgh concentrations of 0.5–1.0 μM DAGO. In voltage clamp, DAGO caused an outward current to flow at −60 mV (range 50–185 pA, n =6). This current reversal at −92±2 mV ( n = 6) and exhibited inward rectification. An additional 6 ARC neurons were tested with DAGO in varying extracellular concentrations of K + (2.5, 5 and 10 mM) and the reversal potential for the effect of DAGO shifted by 58 mV per decade change in extracellular K + concentration. DAGO decreased spontaneous postsynaptic potentials in some cells, but TTX (1 μM) had no effect on the ability of DAGO to hyperpolarize the membrane. The hyperpolarization and decrease in R in induced by DAGO were blocked by the opioid antagonist naloxone (100 nM−1 μM). DAGO responsive cells were unaffected by a κ-opioid agonist (trans-(±)-3,4-dichloro- N -methyl- N -[2-(1-pyrrolidinyl)cyclohexyl] benzeneacetamide methanesulphonate; U50,488H), however, 2 of 5 cells also were hyperpolarized by a selective σ-receptor opioid agonist (Tyr- D -Pen-Gly-Phe- D -Pen; DPDPE). The effects of DPDPE, but not DAGO, were blocked by a σ-antagonist (ICI 174,864; 1 μM). The present results indicate that activation of ARC μ-receptors leads to an increase in an inwardly rectifying potassium conductance and a subsequent hyperopolarization of most ARC neurons. We suggest that this μ-receptor-induced hyperpolarization of ARC neurons may inderlie the opiod inhibition of reproductive events in the mammal.
Positively charged ligands. The donor properties of the 1,1,4-trimethylpiperazinium(+1) cation

Abstract The 1,1,4-trimethylpiperazinium(+1) cation (L + ), which has a tertiary N-atom available for coordination, acts as a ligand in a number of transition metal complexes of the type [MX 3 (L + ], where M = Co II , Ni II , Cu II , and Zn II , and X = Cl, Br, and I. However, the donor properties of this cation are relatively weak, and under slightly different conditions the salts (L + ) 2 [CoCl 4 ] and (L + ) 2 [MnX 4 ] (X = Cl, Br, I) are formed. With traces of water present in the reaction mixture, protonation of the N-tertiary atom occurs, and salts of the type (LH 2+ )[MX 4 ] are obtained (M = Mn II , Ni II , Cu II ; X = Cl, Br).
Increased binding of concanavalin a to α2-macroglobulin, IgM and IgG from cystic fibrosis plasma

Summary Alpha2-macroglobulin from patients with cystic fibrosis was shown to have significantly increased binding of fluorescein conjugated concanavalin A as compared to that from healthy controls or from patients with chronic lung diseases other than cystic fibrosis (t=5.2; p
Reducing real exchange rate variability and drift: Mexico on the way to North American monetary union?

Abstract This article seeks to identify the optimal type of currency and exchange arrangement for Mexico to the extent this can be done from a study of the past and prospective behavior of its real exchange rate with the U.S. dollar alone. Analyzing five distinct episodes from 1957 to 1992 and the transition crises between them, we first decisively reject the now fashionable view that the nature of the regime governing the nominal exchange rate is immaterial to the variability of the real rate. Rather, fixed or preannounced exchange-rate paths have a clear advantage in this regard over floating. Indeed, during one recent episode of fixing, the variability of the real exchange rate between Mexico and the United States was about as low as within the United States, between Chicago and Los Angeles. Nevertheless, within any fixed-rate regime, whether exchange rates are rigidly pegged or, as now, set on a sliding scale beforehand, there has been a recurring tendency for progressive real appreciation until the peg breaks. Within any such regime, real exchange-rate drifts thus appear to have been destabilizing. Monetary union and seignorage sharing with the United States and Canada, as the capstone of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), may prove to be a superior arrangement although the desirability of monetary union for either Canada or the United States is not analyzed.
Arousal transfer: The influence of fear arousal on subsequent sexual arousal for subjects with high and low sex guilt ☆

Abstract Male subjects ( N = 128) with high or low sex guilt either were or were not threatened with shock (fear arousal manipulation) and then viewed either an erotic or a neutral film (sex arousal manipulation). Then all subjects viewed and rated slides of attractive women and slides of landscapes (neutral control slides). If fear arousal was specifically transferred to sexual arousal as is often predicted rather than simply causing a general increase in arousal, then it would be expected that subjects who had been exposed to the threat would show high arousal in response to the slides of women and low arousal to the slides of landscapes, whereas subjects who had not been threatened would show low arousal to both the slides of women and landscapes. Physiological (pulse rate, skin resistance), self-report, and word association measures consistently indicated that (a) both of the arousal manipulations were effective, (b) the slides of women were arousing, (c) sex guilt influenced responses as would be expected from previous research, but (d) did not indicate support for arousal transference. These findings (a) provide information concerning the influence of guilt on drives, (b) raise questions about the transfer of arousal that was noted in less controlled investigations, and (c) highlight the need for additional controls in research of this type.
Technique of cholangiography and cystic-duct choledochoscopy at the time of laparoscopic cholecystectomy for laser lithotripsy

We report our technique for intraoperative cholangiography and for the management of common duct stones at the time of laparoscopic cholecystectomy using a simple cholangiogram technique that can be extended into common duct exploration.
Proscar@ (Finasteride) inhibits 5α-reductase activity in the ovaries and testes of Lytechinus variegatus Lamarck (Echinodermata: Echinoidea)

Recent investigations into the steroid metabolic pathway in the echinoid Lytechinus variegatus demonstrated the capacity of the gonads to convert androstenedione, the classical mammalian precursor to bioactive androgens, into testosterone and a variety of 5 alpha-reduced androgens including 5 alpha-androstane-3 beta, 17 beta-diol and 5 alpha-androstane-3 alpha, 17 beta-diol. The synthesis of these steroids, which requires 5 alpha-reductase activity, varies with sex and reproductive state in L. variegatus, suggesting that these steroids may be involved in reproductive processes. The classical method of castration followed by steroid replacement therapy to determine the biological role of steroids in the gonads of higher vertebrates is not possible in echinoids. Therefore, this study was designed to determine the efficacy of finasteride, a selective 5 alpha-reductase inhibitor in the mammalian prostate gland, on 5 alpha-reductase activity in the gonads of L. variegatus. Finasteride inhibits echinoid 5 alpha-reductase in a dose-dependent manner with IC50 approximately 2.7 microM for both ovaries and testes. These echinoid IC50s are significantly higher than those reported for humans and rats. In addition, oral administration of finasteride to the echinoids appeared to inhibit 5 alpha-reductase with no apparent stress (no spine loss) to the animals. These data suggest that finasteride may be used to selectively and chemically ablate 5 alpha-reduced androgen synthesis in the gonads of L. variegatus.
Practical aspects of ultrahigh pressure capillary liquid chromatography

A novel pressure-balanced injection valve was evaluated for use with ultrahigh pressure liquid chromatography (UHPLC) at pressures up to 120 MPa (1,200 bar). Fused-silica capillaries (30-33 cm x 100 microm I.D.) packed with nonporous 1.5 microm isohexylsilane-modified (C6) silica particles were employed to study maximum pressure, injection reproducibility, injection time, and sample amount consumed for an injection. The new valve was more reproducible, convenient, and required much less sample than previously used injection systems. The effect of column diameter on efficiency and sensitivity was studied. The 100 microm I.D. columns demonstrated approximately 40% lower efficiency but 10-fold higher sensitivity than the 29 microm I.D. columns. Columns packed with nonporous C6 particles produced higher efficiencies than columns packed with a 1.5 microm porous octadecylsilane-modified (C18) material.
Mother-tongue education in schools in Kenya: Some hidden beneficiaries

Abstract In 1998, the adult literacy outlook in the semi-desert Tharaka district of Kenya was bleak. That was before mother-tongue education arrived on the scene, specifically targeting Tharaka-speaking children. A Tharaka mother-tongue programme inherently possessed three strategic assets: highly motivated educators, a captive audience of over 20 000 learners (in early primary schools alone) and 152 schools. The potential for bringing literacy to the schoolchildren became feasible. A noteworthy result of this programme is the impact it has had upon literacy for the Tharaka adult community. The author briefly outlines the plan she developed together with her Kenyan colleagues for teacher training and supervision, literacy materials, and implementation of the programme, including the chronological process of implementation from pilot programme through expansion to 152 schools in four grade levels. While teacher training is a means toward literacy development for children, it has additional rewards, because...
Putting the ‘me’ in ‘method’: perspective, positionality and embodied knowledge in media industry research

One of my undergraduate instructors, a modernist thinker heavily influenced by Stanley Cavell, regularly asserted: ‘A good film tells you everything you need to know about it.’ This thought drove h...
Interleukin-6 Contributes to Age-Related Alteration of Cytokine Production by Macrophages

Here, we studied in vitro cytokine production by splenic macrophages obtained from young and aged BALB/c wild type (WT) and IL-6 knockout (IL-6 KO) mice. Relative to macrophages obtained from young WT mice given lipopolysaccharide (LPS), those from aged WT mice had decreased production of proinflammatory cytokines. In contrast, when compared to macrophages from young IL-6 KO mice, LPS stimulation yielded higher levels of these cytokines by cells from aged IL-6 KO mice. Aging or IL-6 deficiency did not affected the percentage of F4/80
Real-time closed-loop tracking of an unknown number of neural sources using probability hypothesis density particle filtering

Probability hypothesis density (PHD) filtering, implemented using particle filters, is a Bayesian technique used to non-linearly track multiple objects. In this paper, we propose a new approach based on PHD particle filters (PHD-PF) to automatically track the number of magnetoencephalography (MEG) neural dipole sources and their unknown states. In particular, by separating the MEG measurements using independent component analysis, PHD-PF is applied in a closed-loop to first estimate the number of sources and then recover their amplitude, location and orientation. We also reduce the processing time and computational complexity by employing window-based processing and multi-channel decomposition. We simulate the overall system using synthetic data and show that the proposed algorithm has tracking performance similar to existing approaches with significantly fewer number of particles. We also map the algorithm on to a Xilinx Virtex-5 field-programmable gate array (FPGA) platform. The processing period for one iteration using 3,200 particles is only about 314 μs, which makes this implementation suitable for real-time tracking.
Teleshopping versus shopping: a multicriteria network equilibrium framework

This paper proposes a network equilibrium framework for the conceptualization, modeling, and analysis of consumers' selection of teleshopping versus shopping for a frequently purchased product. The shoppers or consumers are assumed to be multicriteria decision-makers with each class of consumer characterized by a finite number of criteria which may include, for example, time, cost, opportunity cost, as well as security/safety, among other criteria. We construct the network structure of the consumers' choices with an explicit identification of the nodes, links, paths, and origin/destination pairs, and allow each class of consumer or shopper to weight his criteria in an individual manner on each link of the shopping network. The framework is the first to capture teleshopping versus shopping alternatives with predictive equilibrium flows.
Comparison of satellite total ozone measurements with the distribution of tropospheric ozone obtained by an airborne UV-DIAL system over the Amazon Basin

During July and August 1985, an extensive field program was conducted throughout the Amazon Basin in Brazil to characterize the chemical composition of the atmosphere in this region of the world. Using the NASA Electra aircraft, a comprehensive picture of the distribution of tropospheric ozone was obtained during this 3-week experiment. The data indicate that substantial gradients of tropospheric ozone can be present on a horizontal scale of 100 km and a vertical scale of less than 1 km. Throughout this period. the integrated amount of ozone in the lowest 3-4 km of the atmosphere more than doubled because of the photochemical reactions associated with the polutants emitted to the atmosphere as a result of widespread biomass burning that was present during the latter portions of the field experiment. This study compares this comprehensive tropospheric ozone data set with a set of satellite total ozone measurements. These comparisons indicate that the spatial and temporal variability in the total ozone satellite data is closely related to the variability in the observed distributions of tropospheric ozone, even though the troposphere contains less than 15% of the total ozone in the atmosphere. Additional data obtained from a series of ozonesonde launches and other satellite measurements confirm that the increase in total ozone amounts over this period was a result of ozone increases in the troposphere. DOI: 10.1111/j.1600-0889.1988.tb00112.x
The growing flood of technetium-99m myocardial perfusion agents. More water ... or more mud?

“Ol’ man river, dat ol’ man river, He must know sumpin’, but don’t say nothin’, He just keeps rollin’, he keeps on rollin’ along.” Ol’ Man River —Oscar Hammerstein II © 1927 T.B. Harms Co. Copyright renewed.
Building Stone Treasure Troves

Cities large and small have a treasure trove of building stones both local as well as imported from various regions of the country as well as foreign sources. Many of them contain fossils which are easily available for teachers to utilize for class field trips. For some areas guidebooks exist which are listed in the attached appendix. Even for localities where no guidebook exists these published guides can be helpful especially if they are illustrated. Field trips are a useful learning tool and teachers are encouraged to create various lesson plans utilizing this generally unrecognized resource.