cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Using UNPRME to Teach, Research, and Enact Business Ethics: Insights from the Catholic Identity Matrix for Business Schools

We address how the leaders of a Catholic business school can articulate and assess how well their schools implement the following six principles drawn from Catholic social teaching (CST): (1) produce goods and services that are authentically good; (2) foster solidarity with the poor by serving deprived and marginalized populations; (3) advance the dignity of human work as a calling; (4) exercise subsidiarity; (5) promote responsible stewardship over resources; and (6) acquire and allocate resources justly. We first discuss how the CST principles give substantive content and meaning to the Good Goods, Good Work, and Good Wealth framework in The Vocation of the Business Leader (Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace in Vocation of the business leader, Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, Vatican City, 2012) and then discuss their congruencies and tensions with the UNGC and UNPRME principles. Next, we describe the Catholic Identity Matrix, an assessment tool that provides a quantitative and qualitative portrait of how well a Catholic business school integrates, within the scope of its mission and capacities, the three goods and related CST principles in its strategies, policies, activities, and processes. The concluding section discusses implications for ongoing UNGC and UNPRME assessment, reporting, and development efforts, and addresses the generalizability of our approach to business schools who draw their inspiration and moral principles from other faith-based or secular traditions.
An Empirical Puzzle

Scholars of judicial decision-making have mostly coalesced around the idea that an appellate judge’s decision in any given case is a product of legal influences, attitudinal preferences, strategic considerations, or some combination thereof. This chapter provides context for the puzzle implicit in our understanding of judicial decision-making and that motivates this work: What causes one judge to value legal influences more so than their attitudinal preferences? Or, said another way: Why do some judges value good law more so than good policy?
Sex-Based Differences in the Determinants of Old Age Life Expectancy: The Influence of Perimenopause

Studies using the sensitive periods framework typically examine the effects of early life exposures on later life health, due to the significant growth and development occurring during the first few years of life. The menopausal transition (i.e., perimenopause) is similarly characterized by rapid physiological change, yet rarely has been tested as a sensitive window in adulthood. Cohort mortality data drawn from three historic populations, Sweden (1751-1919), France (1816-1919), and England and Wales (1841-1919), were analyzed using time series methods to assess whether conditions at midlife significantly influenced or "programmed" later life longevity. Results indicated a significant inverse association between mortality at ages 45-49, the average age range in which perimenopause occurred, and life expectancy at age 60 among females in all three countries. Study findings suggest a degree of plasticity associated with women's aging and, in particular, the age group correlated with perimenopause.
14-Day thawed plasma retains clot enhancing properties and inhibits tPA-induced fibrinolysis.

Abstract Background Plasma-first resuscitation attenuates trauma-induced coagulopathy (TIC); however, the logistics of plasma-first resuscitation require thawed plasma (TP) be readily available due to the obligatory thawing time of fresh frozen plasma (FFP). The current standard is storage of TP for up to 5 days at 4°C, based on factor levels at outdate, for use in patients at risk for TIC, but there remains a 2.2% outdated wastage rate. However, the multitude of plasma proteins in attenuating TIC remains unknown. We hypothesize that TP retains the ability to enhance clotting and reduce tPA-induced fibrinolysis at 14-day storage. Methods FFP was thawed and stored at 4°C at the following intervals: 14, 10, 7, 5, 3, and 1-day prior to the experiment. Healthy volunteers underwent blood draws followed by 50% dilution with TP stored at previously mentioned intervals as well as FFP, normal saline (NS), albumin, and whole blood (WB) control. Samples underwent tPA-modified (75 ng/mL) thrombelastography (TEG) with analysis of R-time, angle, maximum amplitude (MA), and LY30. Results TEG properties did not change significantly over the thawed storage. 14-day TP retained the ability to inhibit tPA-induced hyperfibrinolysis (median LY30% 9.6%) similar to FFP (5.6%), WB (14.6%), and superior to albumin (59.3%) and NS (58.1%). 14-day TP also retained faster clot formation (median angle, 66.2°) and superior clot strength (MA, 61.5 mm) to albumin (34.8°, 21.6 mm) and NS (41.6°, 32.2 mm). Conclusions TP plasma stored for 14 days retains clot-enhancing ability and resistance to clot degradation similar to FFP. A clinical trial is needed to validate these in vitro results.
Topics in statistical oceanography

The aim of this paper is to review some recent results in Lagrangian analysis. These results concentrate on the very old and classical problem of the transition from Lagrangian statistics, drifter trajectories, to Eulerian data. In this area the number of physics publications is incredibly large, and it is difficult to find formulas which are not already known in the fluid dynamics literature. Orientation in such literature is a problem: when, how and under what additional assumptions can one use a given formula in a specific practical situation?
The effects of varying tympanic-membrane material properties on human middle-ear sound transmission in a three-dimensional finite-element model.

An anatomically based three-dimensional finite-element human middle-ear (ME) model is used to test the sensitivity of ME sound transmission to tympanic-membrane (TM) material properties. The baseline properties produce responses comparable to published measurements of ear-canal input impedance and power reflectance, stapes velocity normalized by ear-canal pressure (PEC), and middle-ear pressure gain (MEG), i.e., cochlear-vestibule pressure (PV) normalized by PEC. The mass, Young's modulus (ETM), and shear modulus (GTM) of the TM are varied, independently and in combination, over a wide range of values, with soft and bony TM-annulus boundary conditions. MEG is recomputed and plotted for each case, along with summaries of the magnitude and group-delay deviations from the baseline over low (below 0.75 kHz), mid (0.75–5 kHz), and high (above 5 kHz) frequencies. The MEG magnitude varies inversely with increasing TM mass at high frequencies. Increasing ETM boosts high frequencies and attenuates low and mid freq...
Induction machine design for dynamic loss minimization along driving cycles for traction applications

Classical induction machine design generally focuses on achieving high steady state efficiency. In contrast, automotive applications consist of almost continuous transients, where the flux linkage is varied along the driving cycle to save energy. With conventional induction machines designed for high steady state efficiency, higher peak current and excessive machine losses can occur during the transient with varied flux linkage. Therefore, this paper focuses on the transient machine losses occurring during the highly dynamic driving cycle typically encountered by electric vehicle traction motors. The induction machine design methodologies that are most compatible to loss minimizing control are developed. The effect of magnetizing inductance and leakage inductance on rotor flux dynamics and transient and steady state losses are evaluated. The effect of changes in rotor slot dimensions on machine parameters is evaluated and losses along driving cycles are compared using the previously developed dynamic loss minimization control method. It has been found that the increased magnetizing inductance has a larger effect on loss reduction than a decreased leakage inductance. Unlike common guideline to minimize the leakage inductance, the leakage inductance can be appropriately increased for a higher magnetizing inductance to achieve a higher effective electromagnetic field coupling for lower losses along driving cycles.
Correlates of human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination initiation and completion among 18-26 year olds in the United States.

Purpose: To examine correlates of HPV vaccination uptake in a nationally representative sample of 18–26-year-old adults.Methods: Young adults aged 18–26 years were identified from the 2014 and 2015...
Preclinical MRI: Studies of the irradiated brain

Radiation therapy (RT) plays a central role in the treatment of primary brain tumors. However, despite recent advances in RT treatment, local recurrences following therapy remain common. Radiation necrosis (RN) is a severe, late complication of radiation therapy in the brain. RN is a serious clinical problem often associated with devastating neurologic complications. Therapeutic strategies, including neuroprotectants, have been described, but have not been widely translated in routine clinical use. We have developed a mouse model that recapitulates all of the major pathologic features of late-onset RN for the purposes of characterizing the basic pathogenesis of RN, identifying non-invasive (imaging) biomarkers of RN that might allow for the radiologic discernment of tumor and RN, systematic testing of tumor and RN therapeutics, and exploring the complex interplay between RN pathogenesis and tumor recurrence. Herein, we describe the fundamental clinical challenges associated with RN and the progress made towards addressing these challenges by combining our novel mouse model of late-onset RN and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). MRI techniques discussed include conventional T1- and T2-weighted imaging, diffusion-weighted imaging, magnetization transfer, and measures of tissue oxygenation. Studies of RN mitigation and neuroprotection are described, including the use of anti-VEGF antibodies, and inhibitors of GSK-3β, HIF-1α, and CXCR4. We conclude with some future perspectives on the irradiated brain and the study and treatment of recurrent tumor growing in an irradiated tumor microenvironment.
Reminiscences of Michel Jouvet.

Abstract Bill, please write a short abstract in this location to conform to the format of Sleep Medicine. Three or four sentence would, I believe, suffice. The maximum allowed is 200 words and no references can be cited in the abstract.
"There has never been anything like a classical child analysis". Clinical discussions with Anna Freud, 1970-1971.

(2013). “There Has Never Been Anything Like a Classical Child Analysis”: Clinical Discussions with Anna Freud, 1970–1971. The Psychoanalytic Study of the Child: Vol. 67, No. 1, pp. 173-193.
Mother-Scholars Maternalize the “Public” Sphere

Mother-scholars nuance the binary of intellect/affect by maternalizing the public sphere, in this case academia. Academia, for the most part, has been hostile to mothers. Upon investigating a diverse range of professions (e.g., medicine, law, business and government service), Crittenden (2001) found that although women were entering all of these professions in record numbers, few of them held senior level positions and most of them were childless.
A Scalable High-Precision and High-Throughput Architecture for Emulation of Quantum Algorithms

Quantum hardware emulators using field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) have been demonstrated to efficiently exploit the inherent parallelism of quantum algorithms and perform better than sequential software simulators. However, one key problem in mapping quantum circuits on FPGAs is the exponential increase in resource requirements with the increase in the number of quantum bits (qubits). As a result, the precision of hardware emulators is often reduced to save resources and accommodate larger quantum circuits which results in lower accuracy and lower throughput. In this paper, we present a full precision FPGA quantum emulator that uses 32-bit floating-point arithmetic and has a fully pipelined architecture. Our emulator is capable of emulating an entangled 4-qubit quantum system performing Quantum Fourier Transform, Grover's Search algorithms on a single FPGA node. Our experimental work was conducted on a highly scalable multi-node (multi-FPGA) state-of-the-art high-performance reconfigurable computer (HPRC). Experimental results show that our emulator is functionally accurate and has a higher operating frequency relative to other emulators. For emulating larger-scale circuits we propose using a multi-node architecture scheme with low latency, high bandwidth inter-node communication.
ATRIAL ABLATION OUTCOMES IN PATIENTS WITH HEART FAILURE: A NATIONWIDE INPATIENT SAMPLE ANALYSIS

Recent randomized controlled study suggested improved outcomes after atrial ablation in patients with HFrEF. We utilized the 1999-2014 National Inpatient Sample(NIS) database to study early effects of AF ablation in patients with HFrEF and HFpEF. We identified patients with HFrEF or HFpEF, who were
Electro-osmosis treatment techniques and their effect on dewatering of soils, sediments, and sludge: A review

Abstract Electro-osmosis is an established method of dewatering fine soils, sediments, and sludge (SSS). The efficiency of electro-osmotic treatment is controlled by the electrical resistance of the system. Due to an increase in SSS resistance during treatment, its cost efficiency is reduced, limiting the widespread use of this technique. The aim of this paper is to discuss the main reasons for the increase in SSS resistance during treatment and then to analyze the most recent and widely spread modifications to classical electro-osmotic treatment that attempt to combat these issues and improve the efficiency of the technique. These modifications to electro-osmotic treatment are polarity reversal, an intermittent current, the injection of chemical solutions at the electrodes, and the use of geo-synthetics. The paper discusses the relevant research on the above adaptations, and the advantages and disadvantages of each are evaluated and compared using the available laboratory and field tests in the literature on electro-osmotic dewatering research. All four methods of modification are shown to provide significant improvements and can be successfully translated to the field for greater use. However, the improvements they bring about may not be sufficient to warrant their general use in geotechnical applications.
Technical Note: Coccygeal vein catheterization for sampling of reproductive tract-derived products from the uterine–ovarian drainage

Blood sample collection from the caudal vena cava at the site of uterine-ovarian drainage provides a more exact evaluation of the concentration and pattern of secretion of uterine or ovarian secreted products for studies of reproductive processes in cyclic and pregnant cattle compared with samples collected from general circulation. This paper describes a thorough and updated procedure for cannulating the coccygeal vein into the caudal vena cava for the collection of serial blood samples at or near the site of uterine-ovarian drainage. Concentrations of progesterone were quantified in cows of different reproductive tract sizes with an active corpus luteum to assess the distance for proper catheter placement compared with circulating concentrations collected from the jugular vein. This procedure has a low risk for side effects, can be used effectively in pregnant animals with no major consequence to the viability of the pregnancy, and provides means for frequent collections up to 12 d.
Assessing Pre-Service Teachers’ Offensive Basketball Game Performance: A Validation Study: 對體育教學專業生籃球進攻技戰術測評的效度研究

LANGUAGE NOTE | Document text in English; abstract also in Chinese. The purpose of this study was to design and validate the Basketball Offensive Game Performance Instrument (BOGPI) that assessed an individual player’s offensive game performance competency in basketball while watching a videotaped game play. Twelve physical education teacher education (PETE) students playing two 10-minute, 3 vs. 3 basketball games were videotaped at end of a basketball unit in a secondary methods course. Two investigators independently coded each player’s offensive game behaviors with the BOGPI. The results of the experts’ judgment, the independent t-tests, and the inter-rater reliability indicated that the BOGPI was a valid and reliable instrument for assessing the pre-service teachers’ basketball offensive game ability. 本研究目的旨在制定“籃球進攻技戰術能力測評表”並對其信度與效度進行檢驗。通過觀看比賽錄影，利用測評表對每位隊員的籃球進攻能力進行測評。在教法課籃球單元結束之時，研究人員對12名教學專業生參加2場3打3教學比賽錄了相。然後，兩名研究人員用該測評表對每位隊員的進攻比賽能力做了測評。專家鑒定，t-檢驗，及測評人員之間信度的結果表明該測評表具備可信性及有效性。
Sleep modulates alcohol toxicity in Drosophila

Study ObjectivesAlcohol abuse is a significant public health problem, particularly in populations in which sleep deprivation is common as such as shift workers and aged individuals. Although research demonstrates the effect of alcohol on sleep, little is known about the role of sleep in alcohol sensitivity and toxicity. We investigated sleep as a factor modulating alcohol toxicity using Drosophila melanogaster, a model system ideal for studies of sleep, alcohol and aging. MethodsFollowing 24 hours of sleep deprivation using mechanical stimulation, Drosophila were exposed to binge-like alcohol exposures. Behavioral sensitivity, tolerance, and mortality were assessed. The effects of chronic sleep deprivation on alcohol toxicity were investigated using a short sleep mutant insomniac. Pharmacological induction of sleep for prior to alcohol exposure was accomplished using a GABAA-receptor agonist, 4,5,6,7-tetrahydroisoxazolo(5,4-c)pyridin-3-ol (THIP) to determine if increased sleep mitigated the effects of alcohol toxicity on middle-aged flies and flies with environmentally disrupted circadian clocks mimicking groups more vulnerable to the effects of alcohol. ResultsAcute sleep deprivation increased alcohol-induced mortality following alcohol exposure. However, sleep deprivation had no effect on alcohol absorbance or clearance. Sleep deprivation also abolished functional tolerance measured 24 hours after the initial alcohol exposure, although tolerance at 4 h was observed. Pharmacologically increasing sleep prior to alcohol exposure decreased alcohol-induced mortality. ConclusionsSleep quantity prior to alcohol exposure affects alcohol toxicity with decreased sleep increasing alcohol toxicity and dampened 24-hour alcohol tolerance. In contrast, increased sleep mitigated alcohol-induced mortality even in vulnerable groups such as aging flies and those with circadian dysfunction. Statement of significanceWith the growing incidence of sleep deprivation and sleep disorders across adolescents and adults, it is important to understand the role of sleep in alcohol toxicity to develop future therapies for prevention and treatment of alcohol-induced pathologies. Using Drosophila melanogaster, an established model for both sleep and alcohol research, we found that acute and chronic sleep deprivation increased alcohol toxicity and eliminated long-term functional alcohol tolerance. In contrast, increased sleep prior to binge-like alcohol exposure mitigated alcohol-induced mortality even in vulnerable groups with higher susceptibility to alcohol toxicity.
Fast and memory-efficient scRNA-seq k-means clustering with various distances

Single-cell RNA-sequencing (scRNA-seq) analyses typically begin by clustering a gene-by-cell expression matrix to empirically define groups of cells with similar expression profiles. We describe new methods and a new open source library, minicore, for efficient k-means++ center finding and k-means clustering of scRNA-seq data. Minicore works with sparse count data, as it emerges from typical scRNA-seq experiments, as well as with dense data from after dimensionality reduction. Minicore's novel vectorized weighted reservoir sampling algorithm allows it to find initial k-means++ centers for a 4-million cell dataset in 1.5 minutes using 20 threads. Minicore can cluster using Euclidean distance, but also supports a wider class of measures like Jensen-Shannon Divergence, Kullback-Leibler Divergence, and the Bhattacharyya distance, which can be directly applied to count data and probability distributions. Further, minicore produces lower-cost centerings more efficiently than scikit-learn for scRNA-seq datasets with millions of cells. With careful handling of priors, minicore implements these distance measures with only minor (k-means++, localsearch++ and mini-batch k-means can cluster a 4-million cell dataset in minutes, using less than 10GiB of RAM. This memory-efficiency enables atlas-scale clustering on laptops and other commodity hardware. Finally, we report findings on which distance measures give clusterings that are most consistent with known cell type labels. Availability: The open source library is at https://github.com/dnbaker/minicore. Code used for experiments is at https://github.com/dnbaker/minicore-experiments.
Jitter in regenerative detectors

A method for finding an equivalent noise bandwidth for a regenerative detector which allows the accurate prediction of period jitter with no fitted parameters is reported. The analysis reported is new in several ways. First, the model includes the time constant of the amplifier around which the detector is built ( tau /sub OUT/), even for predicting the oscillator's noise-free period. With tau /sub OUT/ nonzero, the delay between each threshold-crossing and the detector's response lengthens the oscillator's period by the excess period (about four times the delay). Simulations of an emitter-coupled oscillator (ECO), in excellent agreement with measurements, show that the excess period is roughly proportional to tau /sub OUT//sup 2/3/. Second, the noise analysis avoids small-signal bandwidths by using the pulse sensitivity. >
Fundamentals of Biomechanics and Qualitative Analysis

In Chapter 1 we found that biomechanics provides tools that are needed to analyze human motion, improve performance, and reduce the risk of injury. In order to facilitate the use of these biomechanical tools, this text will emphasize the qualitative understanding of mechanical concepts. Many chapters, however, will include some quantitative examples using the algebraic definitions of the mechanical variables being discussed. Mathematical formulas are a precise language and are most helpful in showing the importance, interactions, and relationships between biomechanical variables. While more rigorous calculus forms of these equations provide the most accurate answers commonly used by scientists (Beer & Johnson, 1984; Hamill & Knutzen, 1995; Zatsiorsky, 1998, 2002), the majority of kinesiology majors will benefit most from a qualitative understanding of these mechanical concepts. So this chapter begins with key mechanical variables and terminology essential for introducing other biomechanical concepts. This chapter will emphasize the conceptual understanding of these mechanical variables and leave more detailed development and quantitative examples for later in the text. Next, nine general principles of biomechanics are introduced that will be developed throughout the rest of the text. These principles use less technical language and are the tools for applying biomechanical knowledge in the qualitative analysis of human movement. The chapter concludes by summarizing a model of qualitative analysis that is used in the application section of the book.
Lysis of Bacterial Protoplasts and Spheroplasts by Staphylococcal α-Toxin and Streptolysin S

Bernheimer, Alan W. (New York University School of Medicine, New York, N.Y.), and Lois L. Schwartz. Lysis of bacterial protoplasts and spheroplasts by staphylococcal alpha-toxin and streptolysin S. J. Bacteriol. 89:1387-1392. 1965.-Protoplasts of Bacillus megaterium, Sarcina lutea, and Streptococcus pyogenes, and spheroplasts of Escherichia coli were lysed by staphylococcal alpha-toxin, whereas spheroplasts of Vibrio metschnikovii and V. comma were not. In the spectrum of its lytic action, streptolysin S qualitatively resembled staphylococcal alpha-toxin except for failure to lyse S. pyogenes protoplasts. In contrast to the two foregoing agents, streptolysin O did not lyse protoplasts and spheroplasts. The observations are interpreted in relation to similarities and differences in lipid composition of bacterial and mammalian cell membranes.
Harnessing personal data from Internet of Things: Privacy enhancing dynamic information monitoring

The Internet of Things (IoT) brings significant potential to enable many applications ranging from smart metering to remote health monitoring. The amount of personal or sensitive information collected in devices and sensors is constantly growing. There is an increasing need to harness and aggregate such data in real time for monitoring and analytics while ensuring data integrity and guaranteeing privacy and security of the data.
Pierre Gassendi and the Birth of Early Modern Philosophy

Introduction 1. Gassendi's life and times 2. Gassendi's philosophical opponents 3. Skepticism, perception and the truth of the appearances 4. Cognition, knowledge and the theory of signs 5. Space and time 6. Atoms and causes 7. Bodies and motion 8. Generation, life and the corporeal soul 9. The metaphysics of body 10. Faith, reason and the immaterial soul.
The Dynamics of Public Attention: Agenda‐Setting Theory Meets Big Data

Researchers have used surveys and experiments to better understand communication dynamics, but confront consistent distortion from self-report data. But now both digital exposure and resulting expressive behaviors (such as tweets) are potentially accessible for direct analysis with important ramifications for the formulation of communication theory. We utilize “big data” to explore attention and framing in the traditional and social media for 29 political issues during 2012. We find agenda setting for these issues is not a one-way pattern from traditional media to a mass audience, but rather a complex and dynamic interaction. Although the attentional dynamics of traditional and social media are correlated, evidence suggests that the rhythms of attention in each respond to a significant degree to different drummers.
MIMCAP dynamic leakage impact to switched-capacitor sigma-delta converters in deep-submicron digital CMOS processes

This paper describes the performance of sigma-delta analog-to-digital converters in a 130nm CMOS digital process and the impact of the dynamic leakage of metal-insulalor-metal capacitor (MIMCAP). A second-order sigma-delta analog-to-digital converter (ADC) for voice applications is built in a 130nm digital CMOS process. The leakage effect from the MTMCAP is investigated and correlated with idle-channel noise (ICN) performance. Dithering is applied to reduce the idle-channel tones and improve the linearity of the ADC.
Diazepam effect during early neonatal development correlates with neuronal Cl(.).

Objective Although benzodiazepines and other GABAA receptors allosteric modulators are used to treat neonatal seizures, their efficacy may derive from actions on subcortical structures. Side effects of benzodiazepines in nonseizing human neonates include myoclonus, seizures, and abnormal movements. Excitatory actions of GABA may underlie both side effects and reduced anticonvulsant activity of benzodiazepines. Neocortical organotypic slice cultures were used to study: (1) spontaneous cortical epileptiform activity during early development; (2) developmental changes in [Cl−]i and (3) whether diazepam's anticonvulsant effect correlated with neuronal [Cl−]i. Methods Epileptiform activity in neocortical organotypic slice cultures was measured by field potential recordings. Cl− changes during development were assessed by multiphoton imaging of neurons transgenically expressing a Cl-sensitive fluorophore. Clinically relevant concentrations of diazepam were used to test the anticonvulsant effectiveness at ages corresponding to premature neonates through early infancy. Results (1) Neocortical organotypic slices at days in vitro 5 (DIV5) exhibited spontaneous epileptiform activity. (2) Epileptiform event duration decreased with age. (3) There was a progressive decrease in [Cl−]i over the same age range. (4) Diazepam was ineffective in decreasing epileptiform activity at DIV5-6, but progressively more effective at older ages through DIV15. (5) At DIV5-6, diazepam worsened epileptiform activity in 50% of the slices. Interpretation The neocortical organotypic slice is a useful model to study spontaneous epileptiform activity. Decreasing [Cl−]i during development correlates with decreasing duration of spontaneous epileptiform activity and increasing anticonvulsant efficacy of diazepam. We provide a potential explanation for the reports of seizures and myoclonus induction by benzodiazepines in newborn human neonates and the limited electrographic efficacy of benzodiazepines for the treatment of neonatal seizures.
An automaton analogue of unicellularity

There is presented in outline form an abstract model of a cell in an evolutionary context. The design is based on an elaboration of John Holland's one-dimensional, abstract universe recently posed for the study of the emergence of self-replicating systems. Eight new ingredients constitute the elaboration. They suggest how compartmentation of a set of "molecules" in a one-dimensional universe can be achieved and how a suitable, compartmentalized set of molecules can replicate in a manner analogous to real cell replication, i.e., there is segregation and semi-conservative replication of the genetic material, and there is division of the compartment through the construction of an "inner membrane". The approach to self-replication of a spatially delimited entity exemplified by this design differs from the abstract models of replication of the von Neumann or Laing type. In these the replicating entity constructs a copy external to itself and does not undergo any essential replacement of any of its parts. Also, while in these models the concern is primarily with questions of the "logical" type, our design has in mind features identifiable with both energy and information considerations. Thus, the rules which define the underlying "physics and chemistry" imply that the self-replicating entity is a dissipative structure. A constant flux of energy is required to maintain the system far from thermodynamic equilibrium in order to account for multiple steady states, and hence dynamic structure.
Effects of habitat complexity, prey type, and abundance on intraguild predation between larval odonates

Intraguild predation is an important interaction in which predators feed on a shared prey as well as on each other. It occurs frequently between larval odonates in freshwater lentic communities, and understanding the factors influencing this interaction remains an important objective. An experiment carried out in mesocosms and utilizing a factorial design investigated the strength of intraguild interactions between the dragonfly, Sympetrum vicinum, and the damselfly, Enallagma civile, under two levels each of habitat complexity (high or low), prey abundance (high or low) and prey type (amphipods or blackworms). Effects of treatments on size, mortality and emergence of larval odonates were evaluated. Shared prey abundance had little impact on intraguild interactions, affecting only the mass of the intraguild prey E. civile. Habitat complexity affected the size of E. civile damselflies, as length and wet mass were significantly greater in low complexity mesocosms. Prey type seemed to be the most important factor in the experiment, influencing all response variables measured. When shared prey consisted of larger, more active blackworms, intraguild predation decreased, and E. civile damselflies experienced lower mortality, achieved greater length and mass, and had greater emergence success. Results of this study suggest that prey type and habitat complexity can be more important than prey abundance in mediating intraguild predation.
IQ Similarity in Twins, Siblings, Half-Siblings, Cousins, and Random Pairs.

Abstract A classic child-development IQ dataset collected by Fels Research Institute contains data on a number of different kinship categories. The present study analyzed IQ scores from five kinship categories of 7–12-year-old children into genetic and environmental components. The common environmental effects were larger for older children than younger children. Overall, the Genetic and Common Environment Sources each accounted for approximately 40% of the IQ variability in these data, leaving 20% of the variability for nonshared environmental effects and for measurement error.
Diurnal Frequency Variation and Refraction Index

THE existence of a daily variation in either the relative frequency of two caesium clocks some distance apart or, alternatively, a variation in the frequency of the 100 kHz (Loran C) electromagnetic waves used for comparing the clocks has been demonstrated by Sadeh and Au1. The daily variation found was shown to be correlated with local sunrise and to have an amplitude during one day of the order of Δf/f ≃ 10−11. It is stated that the variations are apparently not due to any weather conditions along the propagation path or to the ionosphere. In this communication, I shall show that there is a possible connexion between the observed variation and weather activity along the propagation path.
The Effect of National Culture on Partner Buyouts in Cross-Border Biotechnology Alliances

Abstract This study examines how national culture influences the likelihood and rate of buyouts among R&D equity alliances and joint ventures in the biotechnology industry. We hypothesize that the interaction of specific national culture attributes and cultural differences between alliance partners have an impact on: (1) the amount of endogenous uncertainty surrounding the potential integration of the target firm and (2) the marginal rate of learning in hierarchical versus collaborative governance. Applying a competing hazard model to a sample of 173 joint ventures and minority equity collaborations in the biotechnology industry, we found that investing firms from high power distance and high uncertainty avoidance countries are more likely to buy out their alliance partners. Furthermore, greater cultural distance between alliance partners increases the likelihood of partner buyout when investing firms are from high power distance countries.
Undecaprenyl pyrophosphate synthetase from Lactobacillus plantarum: A dimeric protein

a++Undecaprenyl pyrophosphate synthetase has been purified from Lactobacillus plantarum. It catalyzes the formation of a C55 polyprenyl pyrophosphate having isoprene residues with cis stereochemistry. The enzyme was shown to be an acidic protein (pI = 5.1), which can be partially purified by preparative gel electrophoresis and Blue-agarose column chromatography. The Km's of the enzyme for its substrates t,t-farnesyl pyrophosphate and isopentenyl pyrophosphate were determined to be 0.13 and 1.92 microM, respectively. The molecular weight of the enzyme was estimated by molecular sieve chromatography and gradient centrifugation to be 56,000 +/- 4000. Analysis by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis indicated that the protein was composed of a dimer of 30,000-Da subunits. The enzyme was inactivated by the arginine-specific reagents phenylglyoxal, butanedione and, cyclohexanedione, but this inactivation was not prevented by either of the substrates.
A comparison of tactile spatial sensitivity on the palm and fingerpad

Studies of tactile spatial pattern perception have, for the most part, been carried out using the fingerpad. On the basis of these studies, models have been developed linking spatial pattern identification and resolution with underlying neural structures. It has been suggested that with appropriate scaling, these models would apply to the processing of spatial patterns presented to other sites on the body. Spatial sensitivity was examined on another site on the body, the palm, using two measures, letter identification and grating orientation. The results from these measures were compared with results from similar studies conducted on the fingerpad and with estimates of the density of innervation of the fingerpad and palm. To produce levels of performance similar to those on the fingerpad required letters on the palm 50 mm in height, seven to nine times larger than those used on the fingerpad. Gratings had to be six to more than seven times larger on the palm to produce the same levels of performance achieved on the fingerpad. For the two types of receptor systems sensitive to spatial information, the ratio of density of innervation between the fingerpad and the palm is estimated to be 5.7: 1 and 8.8: 1. Performance of spatial tasks on the palm can be predicted quantitatively from fingerpad data with a moderate degree of accuracy. Qualitative comparisons between the palm and fingerpad data indicate that spatial patterns are processed similarly at the two sites.
Titanium dioxide electron-selective interlayers created by chemical vapor deposition for inverted configuration organic solar cells

We demonstrate the use of chemical vapor deposition (CVD) to create unique thin (12–36 nm) and conformal TiO2 interlayers on indium-tin oxide (ITO) electrodes, for use as electron collection contacts in inverted bulk heterojunction P3HT/PC61BM organic photovoltaics (OPVs). Optimized CVD formation of these oxide films is inherently scalable to large areas, and may be a viable non-contact alternative to electron-selective interlayer formation. Oxide-based electron-selective interlayers, such as TiO2, need to be thin, conformal and sufficiently electronically conducting films without sacrificing electron harvesting selectivity. Using volatile titanium-tetraisopropoxide (TTIP) precursors in a flowing N2 gas stream, the CVD process provides nanometer control of film thickness to produce 12–36 nm thickness device-quality films. The best performing CVD films, processed at substrate temperatures of ca. 210 °C, characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were found to be amorphous but stoichiometric TiO2. Solution electrochemistries (voltammetry) of probe molecules were shown to be easily accessible indicators of film porosity and are predictive for electron harvesting selectivity (and hole-blocking) in an inverted configuration OPV platform. Small molecules whose redox potentials placed them energetically above the conduction band edge energy (ECB) were reduced/oxidized at nearly the same rates as for bare ITO. Probe molecules whose redox potentials place them energetically within the band gap region, below ECB, show almost complete blocking of their oxidation/reduction processes, for optimized conformal (and nonporous) TiO2 films. In addition, background oxidation current densities for solution probe molecules correlate inversely with the shunt resistance (RP) measured in OPVs. OPVs with the configuration: ITO/CVD-TiO2/P3HT:PC61BM/MoO3/Ag, using TiO2 films of 12, 24 and 36 nm, were evaluated for short-circuit photocurrent (JSC), open-circuit photopotential (VOC), and fill-factor (FF), versus bare ITO. OPVs using amorphous, conformal 24 nm TiO2 interlayers showed the highest fill factors, lowest RS, highest RP and power conversion efficiencies of ca. 3.7%.
Elevated agonist binding to α2-adrenoceptors in the locus coeruleus in major depression

Abstract Background Recent postmortem studies demonstrate disrupted neurochemistry of the noradrenergic locus coeruleus (LC) in major depression (MD). Increased levels of tyrosine hydroxylase and decreased levels of norepinephrine transporter implicate a norepinephrine deficiency in the LC in MD. Here we describe a study of α 2 -adrenoceptors in the LC and raphe nuclei of subjects with MD compared with psychiatrically normal control subjects. Methods The specific binding of p-[ 125 I]iodoclonidine to α 2 -adrenoceptors was measured at multiple levels along the rostrocaudal extent of the LC in postmortem tissue from 14 control and 14 MD subjects. In addition, p-[ 125 I]iodoclonidine binding was measured in the dorsal and median raphe nuclei in the same tissue sections. Results The specific binding of p-[ 125 I]iodoclonidine to α 2 -adrenoceptors was significantly elevated throughout the LC from MD compared with matched control subjects. No significant differences were observed in p-[ 125 I]iodoclonidine binding to α 2 -adrenoceptors in the raphe nuclei comparing MD and control subjects. Conclusions Given that α 2 -adrenoceptors are upregulated in laboratory animals by treatment with drugs that deplete norepinephrine, our findings implicate a premortem deficiency of brain norepinephrine in the region of the locus coeruleus in subjects with MD.
Induction of endogenous murine retrovirus by hydroxyurea and related compounds

Abstract Hydroxyurea and two related compounds, carbamoyloxyurea and formamidoxime, induce endogenous retrovirus expression in AKR mouse embryo cells. Only the induction of ecotropic (N-tropic) virus was detected. The ability of each compound to induce shows a linear dose-response over a limited range of concentrations which correlate with the cytotoxicity of each of the compounds. The data suggest that these compounds may induce virus expression via damage to cellular DNA.
The genesis of the Mississippi Valley type deposits, USA

Die Streitfrage um die Genese der Mississippi-Valley-Pb-Zn-Lagerstatten wird zugunsten einer syngenetischen und hypogenen Entstehung aus hydrothermal-exhalativen, grossenteils kolloidal sedimentierten Erzlosungen entschieden. Diese drangen entlang uralten, immer wieder aufgebrochenen rhegmagenen Bruchsystemen auf.
Tissue similarity maps (TSMs): A new means of mapping vascular behavior and calculating relative blood volume in perfusion weighted imaging

This study introduces a new processing means that uses the original signal (rather than contrast agent concentration) from dynamic susceptibility contrast (DSC) perfusion weighted imaging (PWI) to calculate a relative cerebral blood volume map and a tissue similarity map (TSM). Ten healthy volunteers and eight multiple sclerosis (MS) patients were studied using high resolution PWI. The TSM is found by choosing a reference region in one slice and comparing its signal in a mean squared error sense to the signal from every pixel in all images throughout the brain. The TSMs provide a means to determine which tissues have similar flow characteristics with high contrast and signal-to-noise ratios. The effective blood volume measured from this approach is nearly identical to that from conventional relative cerebral blood volume (rCBV) maps but with better signal-to-noise. Of interest is the fact that choosing one MS lesion as the reference tissue appears to be enough to find nearly all lesions throughout the brain. That is, these lesions all behave the same from a vascular point of view. The TSM results are robust within and across slices properly nulling the same type of tissue throughout the brain for a given reference region. TSM derived rCBV agrees well with the conventional derived rCBV using contrast agent concentration. TSM may provide a new means to study similarities between blood flow patterns in tissue in the brain and in better diagnosing vascular differences between tissues and lesions.
Norplant: what health educators need to know.

Abstract In December, 1990, the most exciting new contraceptive device since oral contraceptives was approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Norplant is a slow release subdermal contraceptive implant for women that is effective for five years. Although research has not yet provided a clear demographic profile of the “typical” Norplant user in the United States, useful information is available. Increasingly, health educators will be called upon to teach and counsel about this contraceptive option. To be effective in educating and counseling about Norplant, health educators need to know what it is and how it works. In addition, they must be familiar with Norplant's effectiveness, its side effects, its advantages and disadvantages, and what the limited published research on U.S. women using Norplant reveals. This article reports the current information available on Norplant. Health educators can use the basic information presented here as a guide to educating and counseling about Norplant in school and...
Validation of dynamic MLC-controller log files using a two-dimensional diode array.

Intensity-modulated radiation therapy(IMRT)delivered with multi-leaf collimator(MLC) in the step-and-shoot mode uses multiple static MLC segments to achieve intensity modulation. For typical IMRTtreatment plans, significant numbers of segments are delivered with monitor units (MUs) of much less than 10. Verification of the ability of the linear accelerator(linac) to deliver small MU segments accurately is an important step in the IMRT commissioning and quality assurance (QA) process. Recent studies have reported large discrepancies between the intended and delivered segment MUs. These discrepancies could potentially cause large errors in the delivered patient dose. We have undertaken a systematic study to evaluate the accuracy of the dynamic MLC log files, which are created automatically by our commercial MLC workstation after each delivery, in recording the fractional MU delivered in the step-and-shoot mode. Two linac models were evaluated with simple-geometry leaf sequences and delivered with different total MUs and different nominal dose rates. A commercial two-dimensional diode array was used for the measurement. Large discrepancies between the intended and delivered segment MUs were found. The discrepancies were larger for small MU segments at higher dose rate, with some small MU segments completely undelivered. The recorded fractional MUs in the log files were found to agree with what was delivered within the limits of our experimental uncertainty. Our results indicate that it is important to verify the delivery accuracy of small MU segments that could potentially occur in a patient treatment and that the log files are useful in checking the integrity of the linacdelivery once validated. Thus validated log files can be used as a QA tool for general IMRTdelivery and patient-specific plan verification.
Colchicine does not provide a sustained blockage of collagen and plasma protein secretion by rat hepatocytes.

Abstract Colchicine has been reported to disrupt microtubules and thereby inhibit collagen secretion. Because of this “Canti-collagen” activity, colchicine has been suggested for use in the treatment of hepatic fibrosis. Using biochemical and immunohistochemical techniques, our laboratory has identified the hepatocyte as one possible source of collagen in the liver. The present study examined the direct effect of colchicine on collagen secretion by hepatocytes in culture. Parenchymal cells were isolated from the livers of adult rats four days following a two-thirds hepatectomy. Total collagen and the fraction secreted into the medium were quantitated as incorporation of [3H]proline into bacterial collagenase-sensitive protein. Treatment of the hepatocytes with 100[,M colchicine (2-3 hours) resulted in a substantial inhibition of collagen secretion. However, upon longer exposure of the hepatocytes to the drug (24 hours and 8 days), the inhibitory effect on collagen secretion was abolished. The anti-protein secretion activity of the colchicine in the conditioned medium removed from the hepatocytes was still present as verified by a 2.5 hour fibroblast-collagen secretion bioassay. The secretion of the plasma proteins albumin, fibrinogen and the third component of complement was not altered by the presence of colchicine. We conclude that the hepatocyte is a highly efficient secretory cell, and is not entirely dependent upon microtubules as organelles for protein secretion. Therefore, to the extent that hepatocytes may contribute to hepatic fibrosis, the therapeutic use of colchicine to block collagen secretion might be expected to have only limited effectiveness.