cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Individual Differences in the Relative Reinforcing Effects of 3,4-Methylenedioxypyrovalerone under Fixed and Progressive Ratio Schedules of Reinforcement in Rats

The recreational use of designer drugs, including synthetic cathinones (bath salts), is associated with high levels of abuse and toxicity, and represents a growing threat to public health. 3,4-Methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV) is a cocaine-like monoamine uptake inhibitor, and one of the most widely available and abused synthetic cathinones. The present study used male Sprague-Dawley rats to directly compare: (1) the acquisition of responding for MDPV and cocaine under a fixed ratio (FR) 1 schedule of reinforcement; (2) full dose-response curves for MDPV and cocaine under a FR5 schedule; and (3) progressive ratio (PR) schedules of reinforcement. Self-administration of MDPV and cocaine was acquired at comparable rates, and by a similar percentage of rats. Compared with cocaine, MDPV was ∼10-fold more potent and ∼3-fold more effective at maintaining responding (PR; final ratio completed). Unlike cocaine, for which little variability was observed among rats, the FR5 dose-response curve for MDPV was shifted ∼3-fold upward for a subset of rats (high-responders) relative to other rats with identical histories (low-responders). Compared with low-responding rats, high responders also self-administered more cocaine under the FR5 schedule, and earned significantly more MDPV, cocaine, and methamphetamine under a PR schedule of reinforcement. In addition to functioning as a significantly more effective reinforcer than either cocaine or methamphetamine, MDPV also appears to be unique in its capacity to establish an enduring phenotype in rats, characterized by unusually high levels of drug intake. Although the factors underlying this high-responder phenotype are unclear, they might be related to individual differences in human drug-taking behavior.
Endometrial Stromal Sarcoma Arising from Endometriosis

The malignant transformation of endometriosis is a very uncommon event but can occur in 0.7% to 1% of all cases. Any histological type of tumor found in the endometrium might also occur in endometr...
Public Administration and "Precarious Life"

In Precarious Life: The Powers of Mourning and Violence, Judith Butler reflects on the public responses to "precarious life," the fact that human beings are vulnerable and dependent on each other. She makes a plea for nonviolent responses that are reflective of sadness rather than of anger. Many of the anonymous others that shape public responses and that we all depend on are public administrators. This forum tackles the problem of the otherness of public administrators and those that they serve. The contributors (Sara R. Jordan, Sara Rushing and Eric Austin, and Adriano Udani) examine the problems of anonymity, identity, and the seemingly incommensurable interests of diverse publics within the contexts of crisis management, community decisions about land use, and the experiences of immigrant women.
Murine genetic variance in muscarinic cholinergic receptor antagonism of acquisition and expression of sucrose-conditioned flavor preferences in three inbred mouse strains.

Abstract Conditioned flavor preferences (CFP) are elicited by sucrose relative to saccharin in inbred mice with both the robustness of the preferences and sensitivity to pharmacological receptor antagonists sensitive to genetic variance. Dopamine, opioid and N-methyl- d -aspartate receptor antagonists differentially interfere with the acquisition (learning) and expression (maintenance) of sucrose-CFP in BALB/c and SWR inbred mice. Further, the muscarinic cholinergic receptor antagonist, scopolamine (SCOP) more potently reduces both sucrose and saccharin intake in BALB/c and C57BL/6 relative to SWR inbred mice. The present study examined whether SCOP altered the expression and acquisition of sucrose-CFP in BALB/c, C57BL/6 and SWR mice. In expression experiments, food-restricted mice alternately consumed a flavored (CS+, e.g., cherry, 5 sessions) 16% sucrose solution and a differently-flavored (CS−, e.g., grape, 5 sessions) 0.05% saccharin solution. Two-bottle CS choice tests with the two flavors mixed in 0.2% saccharin solutions occurred following vehicle or SCOP at doses of 1 or 5 mg/kg. SCOP significantly reduced the magnitude of the expression of sucrose-CFP in BALB/c, but not either C57BL/6 or SWR mice. In acquisition experiments, separate groups of BALB/c, C57BL/6 and SWR mice were treated prior to acquisition training sessions with vehicle or 2.5 or 5 mg/kg SCOP doses that was followed by six two-bottle CS choice tests without injections. SCOP dose-dependently reduced (1 mg/kg) and eliminated (2.5 mg/kg) the acquisition of sucrose-CFP in BALB/c mice, and reduced the magnitude of acquisition of sucrose-CFP in SWR mice. In contrast, neither SCOP dose affected the acquisition of sucrose-CFP in C57BL/6 mice. Thus, muscarinic cholinergic receptor signaling is essential for the learning of sucrose-CFP in BALB/c mice, to a lesser degree in SWR mice, but not in C57BL/6 mice. Murine genetic variance differentially modulates muscarinic cholinergic receptor control of sweet intake per se relative to learned conditioned flavor preferences of sweets.
Achieving high freshness and optimal throughput in CPU-limited execution of multi-join continuous queries

Due to high data volumes and unpredictable arrival rates, continuous query systems processing expensive queries in real-time may fail to keep up with the input data streams - resulting in buffer overflow and uncontrolled data loss. We explore join direction adaptation (JDA) to tackle CPU-limited processing of multi-join stream queries. The existing JDA solutions allocate the scarce CPU resources to the most productive half-way join within a single operator. We instead leverage the operator interdependencies to optimize the overall query throughput. We identify result staleness, typically ignored by most state-of-the-art techniques, as a critical issue in CPU-limited processing. It gets further aggravated if throughput optimizing techniques are employed. We establish the novel pathproductivity model and the Freshness predicate. Our proposed JAQPOT approach is the first integrated solution to achieve near optimal query throughput while also guaranteeing freshness satisfiability. JAQPOT runs in quadratic time of the number of streams irrespective of the query plan shape. Our experimental study demonstrates the superiority of JAQPOT in achieving higher throughput than the state-of-the-art JDA strategy while also fulfilling freshness predicates.
Role of the Hippocampus in Reversal Learning of the Rabbit Nictitating Membrane Response

The effect of hippocampal lesions on two-tone discrimination reversal of the rabbit nictitating membrane response was examined. Animals with hippocampal and neocortical damage or just neocortical damage were compared with operated controls. No differences between the three groups were seen in acquisition rates during initial discrimination learning, with all animals reaching criterion within 3–5 training sessions. The effect of hippocampal damage was apparent only during reversal learning. Hippocampal lesioned animals required more than four times as many sessions to reach reversal criterion than did either operated controls or neocortically damaged rabbits. These data show a selective effect of hippocampectomy on reversal learning, and have implications for the functional significance of hippocampal cellular plasticity which takes place during classical conditioning of the nictitating membrane response.
Funktionen und Operatoren

In APL2 werden Daten mit Hilfe von Funktionen bearbeitet. Man unterscheidet: Elementarfunktionen, Systemfunktionen und definierte Funktionen.
The Current Online Face of U.S. Academic Ophthalmology

Purpose To evaluate the comprehensiveness and navigation ease of online content from Web sites of U.S. academic ophthalmology departments. Design Cross-sectional analysis of 117 U.S. academic ophthalmology department Web sites from October 1 to October 31, 2017. Methods Data were obtained on various categories, including: clinical access and subspecialty services, social media, patient support and accessibility, residency and fellowship details, and research and faculty characteristics. Percent of Web sites possessing each feature was calculated. In addition, a comparison of content completeness and navigation metrics of Web sites between the US News and World Report top 13 ranked departments and the remaining 96 that possess an ophthalmology residency was performed. Results Greater than 80% of Web sites list a basic core of information online: address, contact information, resident and faculty characteristics, and clinical expertise. However, only 69.2% have capabilities to donate online and 59.8% supply educational material for common eye conditions. Less than half of institutions list emergency and trauma, oncology, and low-vision rehabilitation services; only 49.6% provide a social network platform. Strikingly, accessibility features are limited; scalable text, changeable color, and multilingual capabilities are available in 20.5, 4.3, and 8.5% of Web sites, respectively. In the comparison of top 13 departments with the remaining 96, the high-ranking departments possess more Web site features, but are just as efficient to navigate. Conclusion U.S. academic ophthalmology departments in 2017 provide a basic foundation of online content, but few contain abundant features from the viewpoints of different users.
The interpretation of statistical power after the data have been gathered

Post-hoc power estimates (power calculated for hypothesis tests after performing them) are sometimes requested by reviewers in an attempt to promote more rigorous designs. However, they should never be requested or reported because they have been shown to be logically invalid and practically misleading. We review the problems associated with post-hoc power, particularly the fact that the resulting calculated power is a monotone function of the p-value and therefore contains no additional helpful information. We then discuss some situations that seem at first to call for post-hoc power analysis, such as attempts to decide on the practical implications of a null finding, or attempts to determine whether the sample size of a secondary data analysis is adequate for a proposed analysis, and consider possible approaches to achieving these goals. We make recommendations for practice in situations in which clear recommendations can be made, and point out other situations where further methodological research and discussion are required.
Neural Correlate of Transition Violation and Deviance Detection in the Songbird Auditory Forebrain.

Deviants are stimuli that violate one's prediction about the incoming stimuli. Studying deviance detection helps us understand how nervous system learns temporal patterns between stimuli and forms prediction about the future. Detecting deviant stimuli is also critical for animals' survival in the natural environment filled with complex sounds and patterns. Using natural songbird vocalizations as stimuli, we recorded multi-unit and single-unit activity from the zebra finch auditory forebrain while presenting rare repeated stimuli after regular alternating stimuli (alternating oddball experiment) or rare deviant among multiple different common stimuli (context oddball experiment). The alternating oddball experiment showed that neurons were sensitive to rare repetitions in regular alternations. In the absence of expectation, repetition suppresses neural responses to the 2nd stimulus in the repetition. When repetition violates expectation, neural responses the 2nd stimulus in the repetition were stronger than expected. The context oddball experiment showed that a stimulus elicits stronger neural responses when it is presented infrequently as a deviant among multiple common stimuli. As the acoustic differences between deviant and common stimuli increase, the response enhancement also increases. These results together showed that neural encoding of a stimulus depends not only on the acoustic features of the stimulus but also on the preceding stimuli and the transition probabilities between them. These results also imply that the classical oddball effect may result from a combination of repetition suppression and deviance enhancement. Classification analyses showed that the difficulties in decoding the stimulus responsible for the neural responses differed for deviants in different experimental conditions. These findings suggest that learning transition patterns and detecting deviants in natural sequences may depend on a hierarchy of neural mechanisms, which may be involved in more complex forms of auditory processing that depend on the transition probabilities between stimuli, such as speech processing.
Lower Extremity Duplex Ultrasound Screening Protocol for Moderate- and High-Risk Trauma Patients.

Abstract Background Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) remains a significant cause of morbidity after injury. Lower extremity duplex ultrasound screening (LEDUS) is designed to identify early, asymptomatic DVTs in moderate and high risk patients. We sought to describe when thrombus is detected and identify which trauma patients benefit from LEDUS. Materials and methods A retrospective review was conducted on trauma patients who were moderate or high risk for venous thromboembolism based on risk assessment profile (RAP) scoring. Patients with RAP scores ≥5 underwent LEDUS on hospital Day 4 and then weekly. We defined moderate venous thromboembolism risk as an RAP score of 5-9 and high risk as an RAP score of ≥10. Demographics, injury characteristics, and chemoprophylaxis type and timing were analyzed. Results A total of 579 trauma patients underwent a total of 820 ultrasounds in 1 y. Eighty-eight acute DVTs were identified. There was only one progression of a below- to above-the-knee DVT. Patients with RAP scores ≥10 had significantly higher rates of DVTs compared with patients with lower RAP scores in addition to longer lengths of stay and time to DVT prophylaxis. Moderate- and high-risk patients had similar rates of pulmonary embolism. Two-thirds of all DVTs were diagnosed on the first screening examination. The rate of DVTs in patients with RAP scores 7-9 was 15.4% compared with 6.1% of those with RAP scores of 5-6. Conclusions LEDUS allows for early identification of asymptomatic DVTs. Moderate-risk patients with RAP scores of ≥7 should be considered for LEDUS, given higher rates of DVT.
VCAN Canonical Splice Site Mutation is Associated With Vitreoretinal Degeneration and Disrupts an MMP Proteolytic Site.

Purpose To gain insight into the pathophysiology of vitreoretinal degeneration, the clinical course of three family members with Versican Vitreoretinopathy (VVR) is described, and a canonical splice site mutation in the gene encoding for versican (VCAN) protein was biochemically analyzed. Methods A retrospective chart review, human eye histopathology, Sanger DNA sequencing, protein structural modeling, and in vitro proteolysis assays were performed. Results The proband (II:1), mother (I:2), and younger sibling (II:2) suffered retinal degeneration with foveal sparing and retinal detachments with proliferative vitreoretinopathy, features that were confirmed on histopathologic analysis. All affected members carried a heterozygous adenine to guanine variant (c.4004-2A>G) predicted to result in exon 8 skipping or the deletion of 13 amino acids at the beginning of the GAGβ chain (VCAN p.1335-1347). This deleted region corresponded to a putative MMP cleavage site, validated using fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET)-based proteolysis assays. Proteomic network analysis identified 10 interacting partners in the human vitreous and retina linked to retinal detachment and degeneration. Conclusions VVR causes significant ocular disease, including retinal detachment and retinal dystrophy. The intronic VCAN mutation removes an MMP cleavage site, which alters versican structure and results in abnormal vitreous modeling. Disruption of a versican protein network may underlie clinicopathologic disease features and point to targeted therapies.
A Re-imagining of Evaluation as Social Justice: A Discussion of the Education Justice Project

While efforts to increase access to higher education for incarcerated populations are laudable, the prominent discourse, rationale, and examined outcomes are narrowly defined. Too often program evaluations, especially those within criminal justice contexts, implicitly prescribe values and condone oppressive policies, while claiming neutrality through methodology. What is needed are evaluation frameworks and theories born in opposition to the current ‘gold standard’, which currently fails to consider conditions linked to the many structural inequities of society, and misses the opportunity to advocate for social justice. This paper presents a restorative justice approach to evaluation, conceptualized to address the complex socio-political and cultural dynamics of educational programs within prisons, and as way to bring stakeholders together to generate new meaning and understanding. Vignettes are utilized to illustrate what a restorative justice approach to evaluation might look like within the case example of the Education Justice Project, a higher education program within prison.
Combining Learned Representations for Combinatorial Optimization

We propose a new approach to combine Restricted Boltzmann Machines (RBMs) that can be used to solve combinatorial optimization problems. This allows synthesis of larger models from smaller RBMs that have been pretrained, thus effectively bypassing the problem of learning in large RBMs, and creating a system able to model a large, complex multi-modal space. We validate this approach by using learned representations to create ``invertible boolean logic'', where we can use Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) approaches to find the solution to large scale boolean satisfiability problems and show viability towards other combinatorial optimization problems. Using this method, we are able to solve 64 bit addition based problems, as well as factorize 16 bit numbers. We find that these combined representations can provide a more accurate result for the same sample size as compared to a fully trained model.
Bacterial Killers Engineered to Exterminate Pathogenic Microbes

A new study reports a synthetic bacterium that uses conjugation to transfer toxic genes that selectively kill pathogenic cells. The work represents a novel strategy for targeting pathogens, which could be the basis for a new generation of precision antimicrobials.
Education in the Early Revolutionary and Early National Periods (1776–ca. 1820s)

This chapter begins with the philosophical examination of idealist and realist origins before detailing the educational founding fathers and beginnings of federal and state support. It argues that the work of Jefferson, Webster, and others was significant in providing the blueprint for our contemporary system of public schools. It concludes with a discussion on the educational legacies of this period and recommendations for further reading.
Comparative function of Spanish vowels and consonants in lexical and socioindexical processing tasks using auditory discrimination

A series of speech perception experiments involving lexical decision and talker identification tasks shows that Spanish-speaking listeners rely heavily on consonants to identify words and vowels to identify talkers. The study replicates a similar study for English. Participants were 94 native Spanish-speaking undergraduate students who performed a same-different auditory discrimination (forced choice) task to detect a word (Version A) or a speaker (Version B). Listeners heard pairs of isolated nonsense words produced by speakers of Venezuelan Spanish. In Experiment 1, a control group heard unaltered stimuli. Experiments 2 and 3 followed the same design was but with vowels excised (Experiment 2) or consonants excised (Experiment 3). Results showed that overall discrimination was best with the unaltered stimuli (Experiment 1, as predicted), followed by vowel-only stimuli (Experiment 3). Furthermore, it was shown that listeners relied more heavily on consonants to perform the lexical decision task relative to the talker identification task (Experiments 2 and 3). These findings confirm results from previous studies using English-speaking participants, showing a minimal role for crosslinguistic variation. Current results contribute to the body of knowledge on speech universals and have implications for the dual functions of lexical and socioindexical processing across languages.
Revamping Breastfeeding Education for Pediatric Residents: A Quality Improvement Initiative towards Breastfeeding Friendly Practices in an Inner-City Hospital

Goal: This quality improvement (QI) study is focused on improving breastfeeding rates in an inner-city hospital by improving Pediatric Resident education on the subject. Methodology: A survey of mothers in the postpartum period at an inner city hospital was performed to estimate the baseline rate of breastfeeding and identify areas for potential intervention. A QI cycle was then carried out with the intent to improve Pediatric Resident training for better advocacy of breastfeeding in the community. A one hour teaching lecture for Pediatric residents with pre- and post-intervention surveys was conducted to gauge the level of comfort pediatric residents had with counseling new mothers on breastfeeding and to …
Evaluating MPI Message Size Summary Statistics

The Message Passing Interface (MPI) remains the dominant programming model for scientific applications running on today’s high-performance computing (HPC) systems. This dominance stems from MPI’s powerful semantics for inter-process communication that has enabled scientists to write applications for simulating important physical phenomena. MPI does not, however, specify how messages and synchronization should be carried out. Those details are typically dependent on low-level architecture details and the message characteristics of the application. Therefore, analyzing an applications MPI usage is critical to tuning MPI’s performance on a particular platform. The results of this analysis is typically a discussion of average message sizes for a workload or set of workloads. While a discussion of the message average might be the most intuitive summary statistic, it might not be the most useful in terms of representing the entire message size dataset for an application. Using a previously developed MPI trace collector, we analyze the MPI message traces for a number of key MPI workloads. Through this analysis, we demonstrate that the average, while easy and efficient to calculate, may not be a good representation of all subsets of application messages sizes, with median and mode of message sizes being a superior choice in most cases. We show that the problem with using the average relate to the multi-modal nature of the distribution of point-to-point messages. Finally, we show that while scaling a workload has little discernible impact on which measures of central tendency are representative of the underlying data, different input descriptions can significantly impact which metric is most effective. The results and analysis in this paper have the potential for providing valuable guidance on how we as a community should discuss and analyze MPI message data for scientific applications.
The Moderating Role of Descriptive Norms on Construal-Level Fit: An Examination in the Context of “Less Plastic” Campaigns

This study explored descriptive norms as a moderator of the impact of the fit between construal level and social distance on attitudes toward advertisements and intentions to perform conservation b...
Patterns and correlates of mis-implementation in state chronic disease public health practice in the United States.

Background Much of the disease burden in the United States is preventable through application of existing knowledge. State-level public health practitioners are in ideal positions to affect programs and policies related to chronic disease, but the extent to which mis-implementation occurring with these programs is largely unknown. Mis-implementation refers to ending effective programs and policies prematurely or continuing ineffective ones. Methods A 2018 comprehensive survey assessing the extent of mis-implementation and multi-level influences on mis-implementation was reported by state health departments (SHDs). Questions were developed from previous literature. Surveys were emailed to randomly selected SHD employees across the Unites States. Spearman's correlation and multinomial logistic regression were used to assess factors in mis-implementation. Results Half (50.7%) of respondents were chronic disease program managers or unit directors. Forty nine percent reported that programs their SHD oversees sometimes, often or always continued ineffective programs. Over 50% also reported that their SHD sometimes or often ended effective programs. The data suggest the strongest correlates and predictors of mis-implementation were at the organizational level. For example, the number of organizational layers impeded decision-making was significant for both continuing ineffective programs (OR=4.70; 95% CI=2.20, 10.04) and ending effective programs (OR=3.23; 95% CI=1.61, 7.40). Conclusion The data suggest that changing certain agency practices may help in minimizing the occurrence of mis-implementation. Further research should focus on adding context to these issues and helping agencies engage in appropriate decision-making. Greater attention to mis-implementation should lead to greater use of effective interventions and more efficient expenditure of resources, ultimately to improve health outcomes.
Assessment of Down Syndrome-Associated Arthritis: A Survey of Down Syndrome Clinic Providers

Down syndrome (DS) is one of the most common birth defects in the United States1 and is characterized by a heterogenous phenotype that results from a dosage imbalance of genes on human chromosome 21.2 This results in an increased incidence of infections, malignancy, autoinflammatory, and autoimmune conditions.3 Due to the heterogenous phenotype and complex needs of the child with DS, the American Academy of Pediatrics put out a clinical report for the health supervision of children with DS.4 This report gives information and guidance on when to screen for specific conditions and when to refer to specialty care for evaluation. Inflammatory arthritis in children with DS was first described in 19845 and is termed Down syndrome-associated arthritis (DA). Studies have shown that DA is under-recognized with a 19-month average delay in diagnosis,6 and most patients present with polyarticular (5 or more joints with arthritis), rheumatoid factor (RF), and anti-nuclear antibody (ANA) negative disease.6 There are reports that DA is more prevalent than juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA),7,8 which is the most common pediatric rheumatologic disease.9 Despite this the American Academy of Pediatrics does not mention arthritis or screening for arthritis in the clinical report for health supervision of children with DS. In a survey of pediatric rheumatologists asked how they evaluate for DA, it was found that most use a combination of clinical history, physical exam, laboratory tests, and imaging studies,10 however, there is currently no standardized approach for the assessment of DA. Additionally, it is unclear how primary care providers assess for DA prior to presentation to subspecialty care. Our objective was to describe the current practices of Down syndrome clinic providers approach to assessment and diagnosis of DA.
Late Permian soil-forming paleoenvironments on Gondwana: A review

Abstract Paleosols represent fossil records of paleolandscape processes, paleobiotic interactions with the land surface, and paleoclimate. Paleosol-based reconstructions have figured prominently in the study of significant changes in global climate and terrestrial life, with one of the more highly studied examples being the end-Permian extinction (EPE). The EPE was once thought to consist of synchronous extinctions in the marine realm and the terrestrial realm, with the latter displaying a lower magnitude extinction of vertebrate, insect, and plant life. However, emerging stratigraphic records, anchored by high-precision U Pb ages, and compilations of fossil taxa indicate that the terrestrial realm on Gondwana experienced an asynchronous extinction record with the marine realm; and, at the global-scale, possibly the lack of a true mass extinction for plant and vertebrate communities. Moreover, paleosol-based interpretations of the EPE on Gondwana typically focus on one depositional basin and extrapolate those finding to assess the potential for global paleoenvironmental/paleoclimatic change. This review compiles observations of paleosols, sedimentology, stratigraphy, and geochemical data across Gondwana during the Late Permian in order to critically assess these interpretations of global change in the lead up to the EPE.
Blockade of satiety factors by central injection of neuropeptide Y in sheep.

The ability of neuropeptide Y (NPY) to stimulate feed intake was tested in combination with two treatments known to depress feed intake in sheep. Six ewe and three wether lambs (mean BW = 40 kg) fitted with lateral cerebral ventricular guide cannulas and ruminal cannulas had free access to a nutritionally complete, pelleted diet. Balloons placed into the rumen were filled with either 0, 30 or 60 ml of water/kg BW and left in place for 6 h; intake was measured. Based on the decline in feed intake observed with increasing balloon volume in the rumen, Exp. 2 was designed to test effects of NPY injection (0 or 3.0 nmol) into the lateral cerebral ventricle and ruminal distension (0 or 35 ml/kg BW) for 6 h. During the 6-h test period, feed intake was depressed (P less than .05) by intraruminal balloon distension, but feed intake was increased by NPY injection (P less than .05); no interaction between NPY and distension was detected. Ruminal evacuation revealed that digesta occupied only 43% of the rumen's total volume capacity. Balloons occupied 14% of capacity, whereas meal size in control sheep following a 1.5-h fast equaled 7% of capacity. In Exp. 3, intraruminal infusion of 8 mmol/min of propionate depressed (P = .11) feed intake, whereas NPY injection enhanced (P less than .05) intake. There was no interaction between NPY and propionate infusion. In none of these experiments was cumulative feed consumption at 24 h influenced. We conclude that NPY is a versatile feeding stimulant. It promotes feed intake in feed-satiated, ruminally distended and propionate-infused sheep.
Operation cleansweep in Florida: extension's role in an environmentally friendly program opportunity.

Operation Cleansweep is a free pesticide disposal program that has operated in Florida since 1995. The program is open to commercial facilities, including agricultural production establishments, golf course operators, and pest control companies. Since its inception, the program has had more than 1,700 participants and collected more than 1,000,000 pounds of unused pesticides. University of Florida Extension's role with the program has been to serve as a member of the steering committee and promote and market Operation Cleansweep through normal Extension channels.
General Law in Federal Court

Conventional wisdom maintains that the Supreme Court banished general law from federal courts in 1938 in Erie Railroad Co. v. Tompkins when the Court overruled Swift v. Tyson. The narrative asserts that Swift viewed the common law as a “brooding omnipresence,” and authorized federal courts to disregard state common law in favor of general common law of their own choosing. The narrative continues that Erie constrained such judicial lawmaking by banishing general law from federal courts. Contrary to this account, Swift and Erie represent compatible conceptions of federal judicial power when each decision is understood in historical context. At the time Swift was decided, federal courts applied general commercial law only in circumstances in which states applied general commercial law. The ensuing “Swift doctrine” ran into constitutional difficulties over time because states gradually abandoned general commercial law in favor of local state law, while federal courts steadily expanded the application of general law beyond its traditional bounds. In Erie, the Supreme Court rejected the federal courts’ practice of applying general law in lieu of state law when they had no basis in the Constitution or an act of Congress for doing so. But Erie did not banish general law from federal court under all circumstances. Under Erie, federal judicial application of general law is problematic only when it disregards governing state law with no basis in the Supremacy Clause for doing so. Erie does not prohibit federal courts from applying principles derived from general law when necessary to uphold or implement basic features of the constitutional structure that lie beyond the regulatory authority of the states.
Job Stress Survey

Negative effects of stress in the workplace on the health and well-being of workers have been observed throughout human history. The phrase “mad as a hatter” came into the English language long before anyone knew that mercury in the materials used in making hats affected the central nervous system (Kahn, 1981). In the nineteenth century, descriptions of the “black lung” disease of coal miners recognized a causal link between a hazardous work environment and a particular physical disorder. The World Health Organization has noted that “…occupational health and the well-being of working people are crucial prerequisites for productivity and are of utmost importance for overall socioeconomic and sustainable development” (2000, p. 2). In a recent survey by Northwestern National Life, many employees viewed their jobs as the number one stressor in their lives. Keywords: JSS; job stress; job pressure; organizational support
Nucleon form factors

Measurements of the electric and magnetic form factors have been carried out by means of scattering of polarized electrons from vector-polarized hydrogen and deuterium. The experiment used the longitudinally polarized stored electron beam of the MIT-Bates South Hall Ring along with an isotopically pure, highly vector-polarized internal atomic hydrogen and deuterium target provided by an atomic beam source, and the symmetric Bates Large Acceptance Spectrometer Toroid (BLAST) with enhanced neutron detection capability. The measurements are at low momentum transfers (Q 1 (GeV/c), an experiment under development using BLAST and an unpolarized internal hydrogen target will measure electron-proton and positron-proton elastic scattering.
Endogenous Selection and Moral Hazard in Executive Compensation Contracts

The two major paradigmsin the theoretical agency literature aremoral hazard (i.e., hidden action)and adverseselection (i.e., hiddeninformation). Prior research typically solves these problemsin isolation, as opposed to simultaneouslyincorporating both adverseselection and moral hazard features. We formulate two complementary generalized principal-agent models thatincorporate features observedin real world contracting environments (e.g., agents with power utilityand limited liability, lognormal stock price distributions,and stock options) as mathematical programs with equilibrium constraints (MPEC). We use state-of-the-art numerical algorithms to solve the resulting models. We find that many of the standard results no longer obtain when wealth effects are present. We also develop a new measure ofincentives calculated as the changein the agent's certainty equivalent under the optimal contract for a changein action evaluated at the optimal action. This measure facilitatesinterpretation of the resulting contractsand allows us to compare contracts across different contracting environments.
Duration of streptozotocin-induced diabetes differentially affects p38-mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) phosphorylation in renal and vascular dysfunction

Background In the present study we tested the hypothesis that progression of streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetes (14-days to 28-days) would produce renal and vascular dysfunction that correlate with altered p38- mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38-MAPK) phosphorylation in kidneys and thoracic aorta.
Linear fractional transformations and spectral factorization

A spectral factorization algorithm based on linear fractional transformations is presented.
Attitudes of school personnel and parents toward a school‐based fluoride mouthrinse program

A study was conducted to assess the attitudes of school personnel and parents toward a school-based fluoride mouthrinse (FMR) program. The responses were obtained by administering a questionnaire to school personnel and parents of an urban school system. The responses of the school personnel indicate that they support the FMR program as it is currently structured; they perceive that the program does not interfere with the education of the students and they have willingly participated in the program. The school personnel do not oppose governmental participation in such a program, but they believe that parents should be responsible for their children's oral health. Parents are supportive of the FMR program as a means of preventing dental problems and improving children's oral health. The parents do not object to governmental involvement and funding of the program. They do not perceive the cost of operating the program as excessive in relation to the expected benefits.
CHALLENGES TO HUMAN EQUALITY

According to liberal egalitarian morality, all human beings are one another's moral equals. Nonhuman animals, by contrast, are not considered to be our moral equals. This essay considers two challenges to the liberal egalitarian view. One is the ``separation problem,'' which is the challenge to identify a morally significant intrinsic difference between all human beings and all nonhuman animals. The other is the “equality problem,” which is to explain how all human beings can be morally equal when there are some human beings whose psychological capacities (and, in some cases, their psychological potentials as well) are no higher than those of certain nonhuman animals. The focus throughout is on the ethics of killing but the arguments are of broader relevance. The essay reaches a skeptical conclusion about our ability to meet these challenges.
Process development and demonstration of coal and biomass indirect liquefaction to synthetic iso-paraffinic kerosene

Abstract To demonstrate coal- and biomass-to-liquid (CBTL) hydrocarbon fuel technology, a supported, iron-based Fischer–Tropsch (FT) catalyst was developed. The catalyst preparation procedure was optimized and then scaled up to produce 2 kg of catalyst to fill a pilot-scale FT reactor system. Synthesis gas was produced from a fluidized-bed gasification system that is capable of processing up to 9 kg/h of coal and biomass. Impurities from the raw syngas such as sulfur, tars, and particulate matter were reduced to levels that would not significantly diminish FT catalyst performance. The gasification and FT reactor systems were operated continuously for 5 days on feed stocks consisting of sub-bituminous coal and blends of coal and various biomass sources such as olive pits, switchgrass, and dried distillers' grain. Liquid and wax hydrocarbon products were collected and subsequently upgraded into synthetic isoparaffinic kerosene, which used elements of a proprietary process for converting crop oils into jet fuel. The finished fuel very nearly met specifications for synthetic military-grade isoparaffinic kerosene.
An accuration delay modeling technique for switch-level timing verification

A new delay modeling technique for accurate timing verification of digital MOS circuits is presented. The technique is based on the ELogic approach and provides the user with a continuous speed-accuracy trade-off in addition to more accurate timing information than available with existing switch-level timing verifiers. The new technique has been implemented in the Crystal timing analyzer and experimental results comparing this method with those used in Crystal are included. Comparisons indicate that the ELogic-based approach, while slower than present approaches, provides a more robust and more accurate delay analysis at the switch level.
Effects of moxifloxacin in zymogen A or S. aureus stimulated human THP-1 monocytes on the inflammatory process and the spread of infection

Abstract Antimicrobial agents have been reported to exhibit immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory activities, both in vivo and in vitro (e.g., in human lymphocytes, macrophages and monocytes). The effects of moxifloxacin on cytokine immunomodulatory mediators, free radical generation and hydrolytic enzyme activities in zymogen A-stimulated human THP-1 monocytes were evaluated. An increase in c-AMP levels, protein kinase C activity, and the release of nitric oxide and hydrogen peroxide with a decrease in pH occurred within the first hour. Further, the effects of moxifloxacin were reduced by agents which blocked the oxygen burst, lysosome-phagosome fusion, and the energy generation within the cell. After 4 h, there was a decrease in NAG and cathepsin D activities, lipid peroxidation and the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines. These data indicate that moxifloxacin may modify the acute-phase inflammatory responses through inhibition of cytokine release in monocytes. Moxifloxacin inhibited the release of TNFα, IL-1, IL-6, and IL-8 in a concentration-dependent manner across a range of 0.004 to 4 μg/mL. After 4 h, there was a decrease in the release of these cytokines, thus interfering with the inflammation process to reduce infection and its spread. The effects of moxifloxacin appear initially to activate monocytes to kill bacteria through the innate immune process by releasing ROS and lysosomal hydrolytic enzymes as well as phagocytosis of the organism. At a later time the bacteria are killed through a Bacterialstatic mechanism of protein synthesis inhibition and there is a reversal of the effects of moxifloxacin on cytokine release, free radical generation and hydrolytic enzymes so that lipid peroxidation and tissue destruction by the infection process is suppressed.
Boundedness and Persistence of the nonautonomous lyness and max equations

We study the boundedness and persistence of the positive solutions of the nonautonomous Lyness equation and of the positive solutions of the nonautonomous Max equation with nonnegative coefficients and . Among other results, we find sufficient conditions to insure that every positive solution of the nonautonomous Lyness equation and every positive solution of the nonautonomous Max equation is bounded and persists. However, in contrast to the autonomous case, we find examples for the nonautonomous equations where these notions are independent of each other.
Bifunktionelle Fettalkohole, III. Lävulinsäure als Ausgangsprodukt zur Darstellung längerkettiger Alkandiole-1,4

Durch δ-Kondensation von Lavulinsaureestern mit Aldehyden entstehen Δ5-ungesattigte Ketocarbonsaureester mit 9 bis 13 Kohlenstoffatomen. Hydrierung derselben in Gegenwart von Kupferchromit-Katalysatoren bei 230° bis 240° C liefert neben geringen Mengen von 2-substituierten Tetrahydrofuranen und γ-substituierten γ-Butyrolactonen primare mono- bzw. primar sekundare bifunktionelle Fettalkohole mit γ-standigen Hydroxyl-gruppen in Ausbeuten von 55 bis 85% d. Th. Bifunctional Fatty Alcohols III. Levulinic Acid as Starting Material for the Preparation of Long Chain Alkandiols-1,4 Δ5-unsaturated ketoesters of carboxylic acids with 9 to 13 carbon atoms are formed by δ-condensation of levulinic acid esters with aldehydes. Hydrogenation of the same in presence of copper chromite catalysts at 230° to 240° C yields besides small amounts of 2-substituted tetrahydrofurans and γ-substituted γ-butyrolactones 55 to 85% of theoretical amounts of primary mono- and primary-secondary bifunctional fatty alcohols with hydroxyl groups in γ-position.
Activation by anoxia of latent lactic acid dehydrogenase isozymes in insect intersegmental muscles (Manduca sexta, sphingidae)

Abstract 1. An isozyme of lactic dehydrogenase is activated within 30 min in muscles of Manduca sexta larvae when the insects are exposed to anoxia. 2. The activated enzyme is lost when the insects are returned to air; returning them to 100% oxygen causes more rapid inactivation. 3. The enzyme is not activated or inactivated in vitro, nor does cycloheximide block activation or inactivation. 4. Prolonged exercise also activates the enzyme. 5. Apparently the intersegmental muscles are hypoxic when working. 6. The appearance of the enzyme shortly before the muscles involute suggests that the muscle is hypoxic at that time.
Rejection of mouse melanoma elicited by local secretion of interleukin-2: implicating macrophages without T cells or natural killer cells in tumor rejection.

Tumor cells transduced with cytokine genes provide a model to study host-effector mechanisms involved in tumor rejection. Local IL-2 production within a tumor site mimics a specific helper-T-cell response, bypassing an immunization phase. Growth of mouse B16F10 melanomas transduced with interleukin-2 (IL-2) in syngeneic hosts were significantly delayed. IL-2-producing B16F10 cells were super-transduced with inter-feron-γ to up-regulate expression of major-histocompatibility-complex (MHC) antigens. Expression of class-1- or class-11-MHC molecules did not augment tumor rejection of IL-2-secreting tumor cells. Rejection of IL-2-transduced B16F10 cells in syngeneic mice was unaffected by depletion of CD8+ T-cell and NK1.1+ natural-killer (NK) cell populations. Tumor rejection occurred in SCID mice even after depletion of NK1.1+ cells, confirming that T cells and NK cells were not required for tumor rejection. Histologic examination of sites of tumor rejection showed inflammation, characterized by infiltrates of macrophages, occasional neutrophils, and areas of necrosis. When mice were treated systemically with macrophage-colony-stimulating factor to expand monocyte pools, tumor rejection was significantly augmented further. This study shows that in situ IL-2 production can result in tumor rejection mediated by inflammatory events, possibly involving macrophages, and mimicking a delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) response even in the absence of T cells and NK cells. Furthermore, tumor rejection can be enhanced by systemic administration of a cytokine to expand potential inflammatory cell populations. © 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Catalytic Hydrodechlorination of CCl4over Silica-Supported PdCl2-Containing Molten Salt Catalysts: The Promotional Effects of CoCl2and CuCl2

Abstract The hydrodechlorination of CCl4with H2was tested over several silica-supported PdCl2-containing molten salt catalysts. The base catalyst was PdCl2–(C4H9)4NCl/SiO2; CoCl2, CuCl2, or both were doped into the catalyst as promoters to modify its activity, product selectivity, and catalyst longevity. The catalysts converted CCl4into C1–C5paraffins and C2–C4olefins, CH2Cl2, CHCl3, CCl2CCl2, and CHClCCl2. Doping CoCl2into the PdCl2–(C4H9)4NCl/SiO2catalyst enhances its initial CCl4conversion from 85 to 99.3%, shifts reaction products toward more hydrocarbons, and also prolongs the life of the catalyst. Addition of CuCl2to the PdCl2–(C4H9)4NCl/SiO2catalyst also improves the initial CCl4conversion to 94.5% and has an even stronger stabilizing effect on the catalytic activity, while shifting reaction products toward C1-chlorocarbons. When both CoCl2and CuCl2are added to the base catalyst, the promoted catalyst exhibits the highest CCl4initial conversion of 99.5% and the greatest longevity among all four catalysts. The corresponding specific activities for the above catalysts were of 0.636 × 10−3, 1.154 × 10−3, 1.139 × 10−3, and 1.184 × 10−3mol CCl4/g cat min at 130°C, respectively. The promotional and product distribution effects were attributed to the presence of CoCl2, CuCl2, or both as additional Lewis acidic sites for activation of CCl4molecules and to the interaction of these additives with the Pd-containing active centers in supported molten salt media.