cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
An economic analysis of the gap between desired and actual fertility: The case of Spain

Family size is the outcome of sequential decisions influenced both by preferences and by ongoing changes in the environment where a family lives. During the last two decades, the gap between the number of children women prefer and their actual fertility has widened in Spain. The paper uses the 1985 and 1999 Spanish Fertility Surveys to study whether the tightening of the labor market and worsening of economic conditions in Spain during the last 20 years are important determinants of this change. I find that women facing high unemployment rates in their mid-twenties tend to restrict their fertility below their ideal level. Among women in the labor force, the stability of a public sector job lessens the difficulties of balancing employment and family and of achieving preferred fertility. Temporary contracts work in the opposite direction. Findings are robust to the inclusion of controls for within-couple discrepancies in either preferences or religious affiliation.
Thirty Years of Socialistic Health Care: Dentistry in Hungary

The present status of dentistry in Hungary can be understood better through the country's political and economic history. Circumstances led to the development of a primarily socialistic form of health care. However, the mere existence of the private practice of dentistry in the system attests to the incomplete success of socialism in providing for the dental health needs of its citizens. As Americans confront national health issues, an examination of other modes of health care delivery is important to minimize mistakes and optimize benefits.
Deconstructing School Choice: Problem Schools or Problem Students?

School choice has developed into one of the most contentious policy debates in K–12 education. Proponents argue that choice leads to competition among schools, thereby raising school quality for all students, while opponents claim that school choice often results in racial segregation and worsens inequity. The findings of this study, collected from qualitative interviews with school administrators and quantitative analysis of school performance and enrollment data, suggest that a common form of school choice, intradistrict transfer, may not always have the desired impacts on administrators, particularly with regard to intradistrict transfer programs. In addition, the author finds important differences in criteria that shape transfer decisions at different grade levels, and in the factors that shape the decision to transfer away from a school versus those that influence decisions about which school to transfer into.
Aspheric doublets and precision adjustable fold mirrors for 20 K operation in CLAES

A cooled, infrared spectrometer is required to operate in earth orbit. The spectrometer performance requirements are discussed to show how package volume constraints and the stressing environment of cryogenic operation affect the detailed design of spectrometer components such as relay imaging optics and fold mirrors. Design steps are described that were taken to insure that the spectrometer would perform well in orbit, with components that are easily manufactured, readily aligned and stable in operation. This design procedure has produced two components of special interest, fast doublets suitable for use at 20 K over the wavelength band from 3.5 to 12 microns, and fold mirrors that can be adjusted to arc second tolerances.
The ontogeny of echinulation (spines) in uredospores of Puccinia sparganioides

Spine development in Puccinia sparganioides uredospores was studied by means of scanning and transmission electron microscopy to develop a proposed sequence of stages in spine ontogeny. Conical spines initated between the plasmalemma and the smooth primary wall were encased by inward growth of the secondary spore wall, producing a papillate inner surface. During or immediately following centripetal encasement, sunken lucent areas of primary wall appeared at the spine tips. With SEM the lucent areas appeared as circular patches and early spine evagination was followed by the formation of a depression and a collar around each spine base. During this same period, polygonal ridges of primary wall formed on the spore surface, and the inner secondary wall remained papillate. In later development, these ridges were reduced to wrinkles, while the collars and depressions increased in prominence. In mature spores, the inner wall surface was smooth, not papillate, and the spines were fully extended. The collars and depressions were faintly visible around the spines, and the surface appeared slightly irregular between the spines. Spore expansion, wall stretching, and lysis are all considered important factors in shaping mature spore morphology.
On-line solution of a stochastic pursuit-evasion game

In this paper, the concepts of prior-commitment and delayed-commitment strategies for zero-sum, linear-quadratic differential games with noise-corrupted measurements are applied to a detailed example of a pursuit-evasion game. Quasilinearization is used to solve the nonlinear two-point boundary-value problem of the prior-commitment game. A closed form solution is obtained for the delayed-commitment strategies. Comparison of the payoff functionals confirms the relationships discussed in Ref. 1.
Quantification of respiration-induced abdominal tumor motion and its impact on IMRT dose distributions

Abstract Purpose The treatment of moving targets with intensity-modulated radiotherapy may introduce errors in dose delivery. The motion of tumors in the abdomen was studied using quantitative fluoroscopic analysis, and the effect on dose delivery to the target was studied. Methods and materials Fluoroscopy sessions for 7 patients with pancreas or liver tumors and fiducial clips were recorded, converted to digital format, and analyzed to quantify the characteristics of tumor motion. Intensity-modulated radiotherapy plans were generated for 3 patients (a total of five plans), and the dose–volume histograms for the target volume were compared between plans with and without tumor motion. Results The average magnitude of the peak-to-peak motion for the 7 patients in the craniocaudal and AP directions was 7.4 mm and 3.8 mm, respectively. The clip motion varied widely, because the maximal clip excursions were about 47% greater than the average clip excursions for each patient. The inclusion of tumor motion did not lead to a significant degradation in the target dose–volume histogram for four of five treatment plans studied. Conclusion The amount of tumor motion for most patients in this study was not large but could, in some instances, significantly degrade the planned target dose–volume histogram. For some patients, therefore, motion mitigation or intervention during treatment may be necessary.
Civil Military Relations in South Asia: Pakistan, Bangladesh and India . By Veena Kukreja. New Delhi: Sage Publications, 1991. 306 pp. $35.00.

Civil-Military Relations in Developing Countries The Military in Praetorian Pakistan Three Military Regimes in Pakistan Strategies and Tactics of Survival and Legitimisation Military in Bangladesh Military Regimes of Zia and Ershad Strategies and Tactics of Survival and Legitimisation Civilian Control of the Military in India Summary and Conclusions
From Phenotype to Genotype Enter Genomics and Transformation of Primary Health Care around the World

The progress in phenotype descriptions, measurements, and analyses has been remarkable in the last 50 years. Biomarkers (proteins, carbohydrates, lipids, hormones, various RNAs and cDNAs, microarrays) have been discovered and correlated with diseases and disorders, as well as physiological responses to disease, injury, stress, within blood, urine, and saliva. Three-dimensional digital imaging advanced how we "see" and utilize phenotypes toward diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis. In each example, scientific discovery led to inform clinical health care. In tandem, genetics evolved from Mendelian inheritance (single gene mutations) to include Complex Human Diseases (multiple gene-gene and gene-environment interactions). In addition, epigenetics blossomed with new insights about gene modifiers (e.g., histone and non-histone chromosomal protein methylation, acetylation, sulfation, phosphorylation). We are now at the beginning of a new era using human and microbial whole-genome sequencing to make significant healthcare decisions as to risk, stratification of patients, diagnosis, treatments, and outcomes. Are we as clinicians, scientists, and educators prepared to expand our scope of practice, knowledge base, integration into primary health care (medicine, pharmacy, nursing, and allied health science professions), and clinical approaches to craniofacial-oral-dental health care? The time is now.
All GOD's creatures got dedicated mucosal immunity

Mucosal IgA regulates the composition of gut microbiota. IgT in bony fish is now shown to have—via convergent evolution—the same properties as IgA, demonstrating strong evolutionary pressure to preserve both systemic and mucosal immunity.
A Literature Review of the Experiences of African American and Caucasian TANF Women Transitioning from Welfare to Work

This study examined African American women's perceptions of their adolescent children's well-being since gaining employment. This study departed from other studies that focused on the entire Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) population and/or compared subgroups within the population. In this study, the sample population is composed of all African American mothers and all of the mothers receive Temporary Assistance to Needy Families benefits and have gained employment. The study explored the relationship between adult supervision of adolescent children that resided in distressed communities and adolescent overall well-being as measured by academic well-being, emotional well-being, and social well-being.
An Experimental Model of Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia in Mice

Autoimmune hemolytic anemia was induced in C57Bl/6J mice by multiple injections of syngeneic erythrocytes coated with Influenza A (PR8) virus. Coombs positive erythrocytes and erythrocyte-binding immunoglobulins were demonstrated by the method of antiglobulin agglutination. Viable virus was not required to induce the response, although it was more effective than inactivated preparations, and presensitization to the virus was not a prerequisite. The induced disease was mildly hemolytic. Reactive anti-erythrocyte immunoglobulins were of the IgG class, and unlike those in sera of New Zealand strain mice, they were both strain- and species-specific. These results support the concept of a viral etiology for acquired hemolytic anemia. However, the response seen in the experimental model differs from the natural response in New Zealand mice in the persistence of the anemia and the specificity of the autoantibodies. The Gross leukemia virus, being indigenous to the New Zealand strain, may persist and induce inher...
Blue Pr 3+ -doped ZBLAN fiber upconversion laser

We demonstrate blue laser emission from a direct semiconductor laser-diode-pumped Pr3+-doped upconversion fiber laser. This laser produced more than 1 mW of power at a wavelength of 492 nm from pump lasers operating at 830 and 1020 nm.
Decoupling Ionic Conductivity from Structural Relaxation: A Way to Solid Polymer Electrolytes?

Using broadband dielectric spectroscopy, we studied the temperature dependence of ionic conductivity and structural relaxation in a number of polymers. We demonstrate that temperature dependence of ionic conductivity can be decoupled from structural relaxation in a material specific way. We show that the strength of the decoupling correlates with the steepness of the temperature dependence of structural relaxation in the polymer, i.e., with its fragility. We ascribe the observed result to stronger frustration in chain packing characteristic for more fragile polymers. We speculate that employment of more fragile polymers might lead to design of polymers with higher ionic conductivity.
EPR ligand superhyperfine interactions in mononuclear Mo(V) complexes: Implications for Mo enzymes☆

Abstract Reaction of Mo2O4(S2CNEt2)2 or Mo2O4(S2PPr2i)2 with thiol-containing ligands leads to the preparation of mononuclear Mo(V) complexes which display EPR absorption. For example, Mo2O4(S2CNEt2)2 reacts with o-NH2·C6H4·SH to yield Mo(S2CNEt2)(S·C6H4·NH)2. In a like manner Mo(S2CNEt2)(NR·C6H4·S)2 (R = D, Me), Mo(S2CNEt2)(S·C6H4· S)2 and Mo(S2PPr2i)(NH·C6H4· S)2 were prepared. Mo(S2CNEt2)(NH·C6H4· S)2 displays an EPR spectrum with superhyperfine splitting from 14N (2.4 G) and 1H (7.4 G). EPR spectra of the N-methyl and N-deutero complexes confirm these assignments. The anion [Mo(NH·C6H4·S)3]− generated in situ from Mo(NH·C6H4·S)3 shows A( 1 H ) 6.4 and A( 14 N ) 2.1 G. Splitting from 31P is seen in the dithiophosphinato complexes Mo(S2PPr2i)(NH·C6H4·S)2 and MoO(S2PPr2i)(O·C6H4·S). Variable temperature studies are required for the maximum resolution of ligand superhyperfine structure. The ligand splittings are qualitatively correlated with the symmetry of the orbital bearing the unpaired electron. These results show that substantial 1H superhyperfine splitting is possible for protons on coordinated ligands and establish the feasibility of a similar assignment for proton splittings in Mo enzymes.
Media Effects, Selective Exposure, and Fahrenheit 9/11

With increasing media choice and diverse media outlets, people have more opportunities to engage in selective exposure. The present study investigates this phenomenon by looking at the widely viewed anti–President George W. Bush documentary Fahrenheit 9/11. Using survey data gathered from a national sample before and after the opening of Fahrenheit 9/11, this study investigates the degree of selective exposure and the potential media effects occurring as a result of exposure to the film. The data provide evidence that selective exposure occurred—the audience for the film held more negative attitudes toward President George W. Bush. This study then turns to evaluating whether the film had political effects. Results suggest that those who viewed the film had significantly more negative attitudes toward Bush compared to those who intended to view the film, even after controlling for demographic, political, and media use differences between the groups. Results also suggest that political discussion with frien...
Direct contribution of the cytotrophoblast to the syncytiotrophoblast in the diffuse labyrinthine endotheliochorial placenta of the bat.

In the molossid bat, Tadarida brasiliensis cynocephala, there is a prominent diffuse endotheliodichorial placenta over the parietal area of the uterus prior to mid-gestation. During the neural groove stage the syncytium rapidly increases in quantity, and cells from the cytotrophoblast have been observed being contributed to the syncytium. The transitional cells become swollen and the plasma membranes between the syncytium and the transitional cell fuse, become porous, and rupture. The contents of the transitional cell then “flow” into the syncytial area.
The feasibility of a discrepant approach in assessing job attitudes

Abstract Responses to various job characteristics concerning both their importance and perceived presence for two large samples of engineers and scientists were factor analyzed and the resulting dimensions emerging from the two response instructions were compared using congruency coefficients. Importance and presence factor “components” on the same attitudinal dimension were found to be highly congruent within both professional groups. A general satisfaction factor was found to be more allied with the perceived presence of these characteristics than their value or importance. Replication of factors across samples was best in the areas of Job Security, Job Autonomy, Job Status, and Supervisory Relations and poorest in areas of Professional Recognition and Challenge. Structural discrepancies were attributed to population characteristic differences between a university alumni sample and a national survey. Similarities found. between work value structure and the presence of job characteristics suggest a feasible basis for utilizing an interactionist framework in a reformulation of job satisfaction theory.
Optical coherence tomography (OCT) of collagen in normal skin and skin fibrosis

Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a non-invasive imaging modality that is transforming clinical diagnosis in dermatology and other medical fields. OCT provides a cross-sectional evaluation of the epidermis and dermis and allows in vivo imaging of skin collagen. Upregulated collagen content is a key feature of fibrotic skin diseases. These diseases are often managed by the practitioner’s subjective assessment of disease severity and response to therapies. The purpose of this review is to provide an overview of the principles of OCT and present available evidence on the ability of OCT to image skin collagen in vivo for the diagnosis and management of diseases characterized by skin fibrosis. We review OCT studies that characterize the collagen content in normal skin and fibrotic skin diseases including systemic sclerosis and hypertrophic scars secondary to burn, trauma, and other injury. We also highlight several limitations of OCT and suggest enhancements to improve OCT imaging of skin fibrosis. We conclude that OCT imaging has the potential to serve as an objective, non-invasive measure of collagen’s status and disease progression for use in both research trials and clinical practice. The future use of OCT imaging as a quantitative imaging biomarker of fibrosis will help identify fibrosis and facilitate clinical examination in monitoring response to treatment longitudinally without relying on serial biopsies. The use of OCT technology for quantification of fibrosis is in the formative stages and we foresee tremendous growth potential, similar to the ultrasound development paradigm that evolved over the past 30 years.
A Design Perspective for Real-Time Task Control in Distributed Systems

Industrial control systems have unique system requirements which often require diverse systems of cooperating components to achieve system goals. System requirements may be specified in the form of tasks which must be executed in sequential order. This paper presents a design perspective in which such problems can be decomposed and implemented by a distributed system in a modular-fashion. A System Scheduler is responsible for all flow control functions. Loosely coupled Task Processors respond to instructions from the scheduler to perform the control algorithm Parallelism, redundancy, and distributed control are presented as methods of improving system performance and reliability.
Suppression of constitutive SOS expression by recA4162 (I298V) and recA4164 (L126V) requires UvrD and RecX in Escherichia coli K‐12

Sensing DNA damage and initiation of genetic responses to repair DNA damage are critical to cell survival. In Escherichia coli, RecA polymerizes on ssDNA produced by DNA damage creating a RecA― DNA filament that interacts with the LexA repressor inducing the SOS response. RecA filament stability is negatively modulated by RecX and UvrD. recA730 (E38K) and recA4142 (F217Y) constitutively express the SOS response. recA4162 (I298V) and recA4164 (L126V) are intragenic suppressors of the constitutive SOS phenotype of recA730. Herein, it is shown that these suppressors are not allele specific and can suppress SOS c expression of recA730 and recA4142 in cis and in trans. recA4162 and recA4164 single mutants (and the recA730 and recA4142 derivatives) are Rec + , UV R and are able to induce the SOS response after UV treatment like wild-type. UvrD and RecX are required for the suppression in two (recA730,4164 and recA4142,4162) of the four double mutants tested. To explain the data, one model suggests that recA c alleles promote SOS c expression by mimicking RecA filament structures that induce SOS and the suppressor alleles mimic RecA filament at end of SOS. UvrD and RecX are attracted to these latter structures to help dismantle or destabilize the RecA filament.
Phase Transitions of Dirac Electrons in Bismuth

The Dirac Hamiltonian, which successfully describes relativistic fermions, applies equally well to electrons in solids with linear energy dispersion, for example, in bismuth and graphene. A characteristic of these materials is that a magnetic field less than 10 tesla suffices to force the Dirac electrons into the lowest Landau level, with resultant strong enhancement of the Coulomb interaction energy. Moreover, the Dirac electrons usually come with multiple flavors or valley degeneracy. These ingredients favor transitions to a collective state with novel quantum properties in large field. By using torque magnetometry, we have investigated the magnetization of bismuth to fields of 31 tesla. We report the observation of sharp field-induced phase transitions into a state with striking magnetic anisotropy, consistent with the breaking of the threefold valley degeneracy.
Gene Signatures of 1,25‐Dihydroxyvitamin D3 Exposure in Normal and Transformed Mammary Cells

To elucidate potential mediators of vitamin D receptor (VDR) action in breast cancer, we profiled the genomic effects of its ligand 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 (1,25D) in cells derived from normal mammary tissue and breast cancer. In non-transformed hTERT-HME cells, 483 1,25D responsive entities in 42 pathways were identified, whereas in MCF7 breast cancer cells, 249 1,25D responsive entities in 31 pathways were identified. Only 21 annotated genes were commonly altered by 1,25D in both MCF7 and hTERT-HME cells. Gene set enrichment analysis highlighted eight pathways (including senescence/autophagy, TGFβ signaling, endochondral ossification, and adipogenesis) commonly altered by 1,25D in hTERT-HME and MCF7 cells. Regulation of a subset of immune (CD14, IL1RL1, MALL, CAMP, SEMA6D, TREM1, CSF1, IL33, TLR4) and metabolic (ITGB3, SLC1A1, G6PD, GLUL, HIF1A, KDR, BIRC3) genes by 1,25D was confirmed in hTERT-HME cells and similar changes were observed in another comparable non-transformed mammary cell line (HME cells). The effects of 1,25D on these genes were retained in HME cells expressing SV40 large T antigen but were selectively abrogated in HME cells expressing SV40 + RAS and in MCF7 cells. Integration of the datasets from hTERT-HME and MCF7 cells with publically available RNA-SEQ data from 1,25D treated SKBR3 breast cancer cells enabled identification of an 11-gene signature representative of 1,25D exposure in all three breast-derived cell lines. Four of these 11 genes (CYP24A1, CLMN, EFTUD1, and SERPINB1) were also identified as 1,25D responsive in human breast tumor explants, suggesting that this gene signature may prove useful as a biomarker of vitamin D exposure in breast tissue. J. Cell. Biochem. 9999: 1–19, 2015.
Stereotactic radiosurgery-radiotherapy: Should Monte Carlo treatment planning be used for all sites?

Abstract Purpose To evaluate a Monte Carlo (MC) treatment planning system for CyberKnife treatments of cranial and extracranial lesions and determine whether it is necessary for all treatment sites. Dose distributions are compared to those calculated with a ray-tracing algorithm. Maximum doses and dose-volume histograms for the target and selected critical structures are analyzed. Methods and Materials The CyberKnife is used for stereotactic radiosurgery-radiotherapy of intracranial lesions (91) as well as stereotactic body radiotherapy for lesions in the spine (24), lung (58), and pelvis (36). The Multiplan system is an inverse treatment planning system which uses an effective path length (EPL) algorithm (sometimes referred to as ray-trace) for dose calculations. In addition, an MC algorithm became clinically available in late 2007. Results The maximum doses calculated by the EPL to targets in the lung were uniformly larger than the doses calculated by MC by up to a factor of 1.32. In addition, large differences in target and critical organs' dose coverage were observed. In general, more beams traversing larger distances through low density lung are associated with larger differences. For other sites such as brain and pelvis targets the differences in maximum doses and tumor coverage were generally less than 5% between the 2 calculation methods. Conclusions The MC algorithm should be consistently used for treatment plans of lung lesions and lesions near large air cavities, but the faster EPL algorithm is adequate for treatment sites with less tissue heterogeneity.
E-Mail Worm Detection Using Data Mining

This work applies data mining techniques to detect e-mail worms. E-mail messages contain a number of different features such as the total number of words in message body/subject, presence/absence of binary attachments, type of attachments, and so on. The goal is to obtain an efficient classification model based on these features. The solution consists of several steps. First, the number of features is reduced using two different approaches: feature-selection and dimension-reduction. This step is necessary to reduce noise and redundancy from the data. The feature-selection technique is called Two-phase Selection (TPS), which is a novel combination of decision tree and greedy selection algorithm. The dimension-reduction is performed by Principal Component Analysis. Second, the reduced data is used to train a classifier. Different classification techniques have been used, such as Support Vector Machine (SVM), NaA¯ve Bayes, and their combination. Finally, the trained classifiers are tested on a dataset containing both known and unknown types of worms. These results have been compared with published results. It is found that the proposed TPS selection along with SVM classification achieves the best accuracy in detecting both known and unknown types of worms.
Reactivity to object and spatial novelty is normal in older Ts65Dn mice that model Down syndrome and Alzheimer's disease.

Ts65Dn mice, a model for Down syndrome and Alzheimer's disease, have a spontaneous age-related reduction of cholinergic markers in medial septal neurons, hippocampal abnormalities, and an age-related learning deficit in a task that requires an intact hippocampus. Others have shown that when normal rodents explored an open field with objects, they detected the displacement of some of the familiar objects within the arena (spatial novelty) and the presence of a new object (object novelty); whereas rodents with hippocampal, fornix, or neonatal selective basal forebrain cholinergic lesions were impaired in detecting spatial, but not object, novelty. In this study, both control and Ts65Dn mice responded to both the spatial and object changes. This unexpected finding could have several explanations. One may be related to recent studies that suggest that only rats with neonatal, but not adult, basal forebrain cholinergic 192 IgG-saporin lesions are impaired in reacting to spatial novelty.
An acid-etch study of the Kapoeta achondrite: Implications for the argon-36/argon-38 ratio in the solar wind

Abstract— Noble gases were measured in the Kapoeta achondrite by means of step-wise closed-system acid-etching with H2SO3. Isotopic ratios indicate that He, Ne and Ar are primarily solar in origin, although elemental abundance ratios indicate that the He and Ne have been significantly depleted relative to the Ar. Xenon is dominated by a typical trapped meteoritic component, and the same is probably true for Kr. The initial 11% of the Ar released from the sample by acid etching has a cumulative 36Ar/38Ar ratio of 5.58 ± 0.03, which indicates that the solar wind at some time in the past had a 36Ar/38Ar ratio significantly above previous values suggested for this ratio.
Autoradiographic measurement of regional brainstem blood flow: occlusion of the anterior inferior cerebellar artery

Autoradiography was used to measure regional brainstem blood flow in Wistar rats following permanent left anterior inferior cerebellar artery (AICA) occlusion. With the AICA occluded, blood flow to the left vestibular nucleus decreased 31% while flow to the left cochlear nucleus decreased 47% when compared to the right (unobstructed) side. In the rat, the median pontine branch of the basilar artery was found to provide the principal blood supply to the vestibular nucleus. Electrocochleography was also used to measure the action potential (AP), summating potential (SP) and cochlear microphonics (CM) during left AICA occlusion. The AP disappeared completely after at least 7 min, while the SP polarity changed from negative to positive. Findings also showed that CM2 did not disappear completely in pre-mortem animals.
Neuromotor Effects of Whole Body Horizontal Vibration

Low back disorders are very common affecting up to 80% of the population in their lifetime [1]. Whole body vibration (WBV) exposure has long been identified as an important risk factor for low back disorders in industrial workers [2]. A potential mechanism has been proposed by which vibration may lead to injury. Namely, vibration-induced losses in proprioception may lead to inappropriate stabilization and poor dynamic control of the lumbar spine [3]. Increases in proprioceptive errors and in delays in neuormotor response have been demonstrated with 5 Hz, vertical seatpan vibration [3]. While vertical vibration exposure is a common occupational exposure, in some cases, such as off road vehicles and construction vehicles horizontal (fore-aft) vibration may dominate [4]. In this study, the objective was to investigate how the whole body, horizontal, seatpan vibration affects muscle response and to compare these results with the previously studied whole body vertical vibration.Copyright © 2008 by ASME
Elasticity and Rupture of a Multi-Domain Neural Cell Adhesion Molecule Complex

The neural cell adhesion molecule (NCAM) plays an important role in nervous system development. NCAM forms a complex between its terminal domains Ig1 and Ig2. When NCAM of cell A and of cell B connect to each other through complexes Ig12(A)/Ig12(B), the relative mobility of cells A and B and membrane tension exerts a force on the Ig12(A)/Ig12(B) complex. In this study, we investigated the response of the complex to force, using steered molecular dynamics. Starting from the structure of the complex from the Ig1-Ig2-Ig3 fragment, we first demonstrated that the complex, which differs in dimensions from a previous structure from the Ig1-Ig2 fragment in the crystal environment, assumes the same extension when equilibrated in solvent. We then showed that, when the Ig12(A)/Ig12(B) complex is pulled apart with forces 30–70 pN, it exhibits elastic behavior (with a spring constant of ∼0.03 N/m) because of the relative reorientation of domains Ig1 and Ig2. At higher forces, the complex ruptures; i.e., Ig12(A) and Ig12(B) separate. The interfacial interactions between Ig12(A) and Ig12(B), monitored throughout elastic extension and rupture, identify E16, F19, K98, and L175 as key side chains stabilizing the complex.
Do employment and type of exit influence child maltreatment among families leaving Temporary Assistance for Needy Families

Abstract Research has documented that the transition from Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) can be a critical period that results in elevated stress for families. The present study utilizes administrative data to examine the experiences of families exiting TANF and factors that influence subsequent child maltreatment, with particular focus on type of exit from TANF and earned income from employment. Families in the study are 18,023 female-headed households from an urban Ohio county who exited TANF between January 1, 1999 and December 31, 2002. Of these families, 894 (4.96%) experienced an indicated or substantiated finding of maltreatment within two years of their initial exit from TANF. Cox proportional hazard models identified several significant predictors of child maltreatment. Findings indicate that families with an involuntary exit from TANF were at increased risk of a substantiated or indicated finding of maltreatment while families with higher earnings from employment were at a reduced risk of maltreatment. These findings suggest that policy makers and program staff may need to reconsider their approach with these families to ensure the well-being of children. Strategies to improve employment opportunities and limit involuntary exits are discussed.
Voltage gain of signal transfer from retinal rods to bipolar cells in the tiger salamander.

1. Intracellular recordings of the voltage responses of rods and both functional classes of bipolar cell were made in the isolated, perfused retina of the tiger salamander, Ambystoma tigrinum. 2. Brief, dim flashes of 519 nm light delivered to the receptive-field centres were used to measure the flash sensitivities of twenty-one on-centre bipolar cells and thirty-six off-centre cells. In each experiment the flash sensitivity of a rod was also measured using diffuse illumination of the same duration and wave-length. 3. The mean flash sensitivity of the rods (fifty-nine cells) was 4.47 mV photon-1 micron 2 flash. The mean flash sensitivity of the off-centre bipolar cells was 35.4 mV photon-1 micron 2 flash (thirty-six cells). The mean flash sensitivity of the on-centre bipolar cells was 12.5 mV photon-1 micron 2 flash. 4. The ratio of the flash sensitivity of the bipolar cell to that of a rod recorded in the same retina defined the gain of voltage transfer from rod to bipolar cell. For signal transfer to on-centre bipolar cells the mean value of the voltage gain was 5.05 +/- 1.34 (S.E. of mean). For signal transfer to the off-centre bipolar cells, the mean value of the gain was 10.4 +/- 1.29. 5. The on-centre cell gain in the salamander was smaller by a factor of 27 than that of the on-centre cells in the dogfish retina (Ashmore & Falk, 1980 a), while the off-centre cell gain was comparable in the two species. Possible reasons for the large difference between the voltage gains of on-centre cells in the dogfish and salamander are considered.
Architecture of Clinical Information and Prediction of Service Utilization and Cost

The state of the art in predicting service utilization and cost in general medical care and psychiatry is reviewed. Diagnosis-related groups (DRCs) and measures of illness severity are specifically examined. Building on this experience and searching for other promising informational elements, key components of clinical information schemas are considered. The interface between patient and treatment domains is examined by using multiaxial classifications connected with the upcoming Tenth Revision of the International Classification of Diseases and the European International Classification of Mental Health Care. Within this framework, univariate and multivariate approaches to the prediction of service utilization and cost are outlined.
Nonlinear finite element analysis of concrete structures using new constitutive models

Abstract Nonlinear finite element analysis was applied to various types of reinforced concrete structures using a new set of constitutive models established in the fixed-angle softened-truss model (FA-STM). A computer code FEAPRC was developed specifically for application to reinforced concrete structures by modifying the general-purpose program FEAP. FEAPRC can take care of the four important characteristics of cracked reinforced concrete: (1) the softening effect of concrete in compression, (2) the tension-stiffening effect by concrete in tension, (3) the average (or smeared) stress–strain curve of steel bars embedded in concrete, and (4) the new, rational shear modulus of concrete. The predictions made by FEAPRC are in good agreement with the experimental results of beams, panels, and framed shear walls.
Discovering sequence-structure patterns in proteins with variable secondary structure

Proteins that share a similar function often exhibit conserved sequence patterns. Sequence patterns help to classify proteins into families where the exact function may or may not be known. Research has shown that these domain signatures often exhibit specific three-dimensional structures. We have previously shown that sequence patterns combined with structural information, in general, have superior discrimination ability than those derived without structural information. However in some cases, divergent backbone configurations and/or variable secondary structure in otherwise well-aligned proteins make identification of conserved regions of sequence and structure problematic. In this paper, we describe improvements in our method of designing biologically meaningful sequence-structure patterns (SSPs) starting from a seed sequence pattern from any of the existing sequence pattern databases. Improved pattern precision is achieved by including conserved residues from coil regions that are not readily apparent from examination of multiple sequence alignments alone. Pattern recall is improved by systematically comparing the structure of all known true family members and to include all the allowable variations in the pattern residues.
The APOE ∍4 allele Is Associated with Decline on Delayed Recall Performance in Community-Dwelling Older Adults

OBJECTIVE This study investigated whether the Apolipoprotein (APOE) epsilon4 allele was associated with cognitive decline in community-dwelling older adults. DESIGN Longitudinal cognitive performance of older adults with the epsilon3/epsilon4 genotype was compared with that of older adults with the epsilon3/epsilon3 genotype. SETTING Aging Clinical Research Center, Stanford University. PARTICIPANTS One hundred community-dwelling older adults were recruited from a pool of 531 individuals who had participated in a memory training study 4 to 5 years earlier. These individuals were concerned about their memory functioning and were recruited through newspaper advertisements and contacts with local senior centers. The 100 individuals who agreed to participate in the follow-up investigation were between 59 and 95 years of age. MEASUREMENTS At both baseline and follow-up, subjects were administered a battery of seven cognitive tests that examined verbal and spatial memory, attention, speed-of-processing, and language abilities. APOE genotype was determined at follow-up. RESULTS Individuals with the epsilon3/epsilon4 APOE genotype were significantly younger than individuals with the APOE epsilon3/epsilon3 genotype. No significant differences were observed between the two groups on measures of attention, speed-of-processing, vocabulary, immediate verbal memory, and immediate spatial memory. However, those older adults with the epsilon3/epsilon4 genotype exhibited significantly greater decline in performance on delayed recall of verbal material than did those with the epsilon3/epsilon3 APOE genotype. CONCLUSION These findings are consistent with previous studies, which suggest that the APOE epsilon4 allele predicts decline on measures of delayed recall.
Incidence rates and trends for oral and pharyngeal cancer in North Carolina: 1990-1999

This study describes the incidence of oral and pharyngeal cancer (OPC) in North Carolina (NC) from 1990 to 1999. OPC cases 1990-1999 from the NC Central Cancer Registry were included. Variables included date of diagnosis, county of residence, anatomical site, histology, age at diagnosis, sex, race, stage at diagnosis, grade, tumor behavior, and laterality. The overall average annual rate of OPC was 10.6 cases per 100,000 population. OPC incidence was highest for African-American males and for eastern NC; there was no significant trend in the overall annual incidence rate. Squamous cell carcinoma of the lip increased for white females and other oral cancers decreased among all females. With a few specific exceptions, NCCCR rates were similar to SEER rates. North Carolina continues to have substantial OPC incidence and substantial racial disparities persist.
Developmental Responses of Early Turkey and Chicken Embryos to Preincubation Holding of Eggs: Inter-and Intra-Species Differences

Abstract CONSIDERABLE research interest has existed over the years in factors that affect the viability of avian embryos during the preincubation storage. The detrimental effect of such storage on the hatchability of chicken eggs has been demonstrated repeatedly (Jackson, 1912; Waite, 1919; Scott, 1933; Funk, 1934, 1949; Olsen and Haynes, 1948; Byng and Nash, 1962). Despite the earlier contrary conclusion of Scott (1933), storage also reduced the hatchability of the eggs of turkeys (Sampson and Wilson, 1944; Asmundson, 1947; Becker, 1963). Similar conclusions have been drawn from studies of the eggs of geese (Merritt and Claridge, 1959) and Coturnix quail (Wilson et al., 1961). On the intra-species basis, heredity has been found to be a factor that is involved in determining the ability of embryos in unincubated eggs to survive storage. Funk et al. (1950) and Olsen (1951) concluded that individual variation in avian blastoderms is an important factor in the …
Generational Differences in the Structure of the CES-D Scale in Mexican Americans

This study examines differences in the structure of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CES-D) scale across three generations of Mexican Americans. The covariance structure of the items was viewed as a function of several parameter matrices. Factorial invariance was evaluated by testing a series of hypotheses involving equivalence constraints on one or more parameter matrices. The findings revealed that the proposed 12-item model fits the data within each of the three generations adequately. Although no generational differences in factor loadings were revealed, structural variations of the CES-D in measurement error variances were found. Measurement error variances associated with certain items in the older generation are significantly greater than those in the middle-aged and young generations. In addition, socioeconomic characteristics, acculturation, and health status fail to explain the observed differences in the structure of the CES-D among the three generations.
Detrusor underactivity is prevalent after radical prostatectomy: A urodynamic study including risk factors

Introduction: The objective was to determine the prevalence of, and factors that predict, detrusor underactivity (DU) in patients presenting with incontinence or lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) following radical prostatectomy (RP). We also determined the prevalence of bladder outlet obstruction (BOO) and detrusor overactivity (DO) in this population. Methods: Patients who underwent urodynamics post-RP were identified. Detrusor underactivity was defined as a maximum flow rate (Qmax) of ≤15 mL/s and detrusor pressure (Pdet) Qmax <20 cmH20 or maximum Pdet <20 cmH20 during attempted voiding. Abdominal voiding (AV) was defined as sustained increase in abdominal pressure during voiding. Bladder outlet obstruction and DO were identified using the Abrams-Griffiths nomogram and the International Continence Society criteria. Univariate logistic regression was used to determine factors predicting DU. The following factors were analyzed: age, year of RP, procedure type (minimally-invasive surgery [MIS] or open), postoperative radiation, nerve-sparing, clinical stage, biopsy Gleason grade and interval between RP and evaluation. Results: Between 2005 and 2008, 264 patients underwent urodynamics post-RP. Detrusor underactivity was observed in 108 patients (41%; 95% CI 35%, 47%), of whom 48% demonstrated AV. Overall, BOO and DO were present in 17% (95% CI 12%, 22%) and 27% (95% CI 22%, 33%), respectively. On univariate analysis, only MIS RP was predictive of DU (univariate odds ratio 2.05 for MIS vs. open; p = 0.009). Conclusions: Detrusor underactivity and AV are common in patients presenting for evaluation of incontinence or LUTS following RP. The etiology of DU in this setting is likely related to the surgical approach. Because DU may affect the success of male incontinence treatment with the male sling or artificial urinary sphincter, it is useful to document its presence prior to treatment. More studies are needed to elucidate the influence of DU on treatment success for male urinary incontinence following RP.
Effects of procedural variables upon reversal and interdimensional shift performance: I

College Ss accomplished a reversal (R) shift faster than an interdimensional (IRD) shift over three different methods of problem presentation, when no cue cards were present. With cue cards present there was no difference between Rand IRD shifts. The latter finding reflects an increase in the difficulty of the R shift resulting from the necessity for S to sort contrary to cue cards whenever a R shift is made.
Soybean kinome: functional classification and gene expression patterns

The protein kinase (PK) gene family is one of the largest and most highly conserved gene families in plants and plays a role in nearly all biological functions. While a large number of genes have been predicted to encode PKs in soybean, a comprehensive functional classification and global analysis of expression patterns of this large gene family is lacking. In this study, we identified the entire soybean PK repertoire or kinome, which comprised 2166 putative PK genes, representing 4.67% of all soybean protein-coding genes. The soybean kinome was classified into 19 groups, 81 families, and 122 subfamilies. The receptor-like kinase (RLK) group was remarkably large, containing 1418 genes. Collinearity analysis indicated that whole-genome segmental duplication events may have played a key role in the expansion of the soybean kinome, whereas tandem duplications might have contributed to the expansion of specific subfamilies. Gene structure, subcellular localization prediction, and gene expression patterns indicated extensive functional divergence of PK subfamilies. Global gene expression analysis of soybean PK subfamilies revealed tissue- and stress-specific expression patterns, implying regulatory functions over a wide range of developmental and physiological processes. In addition, tissue and stress co-expression network analysis uncovered specific subfamilies with narrow or wide interconnected relationships, indicative of their association with particular or broad signalling pathways, respectively. Taken together, our analyses provide a foundation for further functional studies to reveal the biological and molecular functions of PKs in soybean.
An efficient approximation of the forward-backward algorithm to deal with packet loss, with applications to remote speech recognition

This paper proposes an efficient approximation of the forward-backward (FB) algorithm, for the purpose of estimating missing features, based on downsampling statistical models. The paper discusses the role of hidden Markov models (HMMs) in the estimation process, and presents an approximation to the FB method by developing HMMs based on lower resolution quantizers, which are obtained through a tree-structure mapping of quantizer centroids. To illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed method, we apply it to the problem of error concealment in remote speech recognition, using the Aurora-2 database. The FB approximation provides comparable word recognition accuracy results relative to the standard FB method, while reducing the computational load by a large factor (> 250 in this case).
The superiority of the time-to-event continual reassessment method to the rolling six design in pediatric oncology Phase I trials

Background The rolling six design (RSD) is currently being used by the Children’s Oncology Group (COG) as their standard design for Phase I trials. Because the COG has large multi-center trials wit...