cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Projection of the marginal shell of the anteroventral cochlear nucleus to olivocochlear neurons in the cat.

The marginal shell of the anteroventral cochlear nucleus is anatomically and physiologically different from its central core. Previous studies suggest that neurons in the marginal shell are well suited to encode the intensity of acoustic stimuli. To investigate the projections of the marginal shell, a focal injection (<100 nl) of a mixture of biotinylated dextran amine (BDA) and (3)H-leucine was made into the marginal shell of the cat combined with injection of cholera toxin subunit-B (CTB) into the cochleas. Following a 7-day survival, the cats were perfused. Axons and swellings labeled with BDA and olivocochlear neurons labeled with CTB were immunocytochemically stained black and brown, respectively. (3)H-leucine labels were visualized by autoradiography. Labeled neural structures were examined via light microscopy. We found that swellings labeled with BDA, sometimes doubly labeled with BDA and (3)H-leucine, were in close apposition with dendrites and/or somata of olivocochlear neurons identified with CTB labeling. Double labeling with BDA and (3)H-leucine signifies that the label was anterogradely transported. The results support the conclusion that the anteroventral cochlear nucleus projects to medial olivocochlear neurons bilaterally and to lateral olivocochlear neurons ipsilaterally. Furthermore, the results are consistent with the interpretation that the marginal shell provides a source of the above-mentioned projections. Together with information in the literature, the present anatomical results support a hypothesis that the marginal shell provides information about stimulus intensity as a part of a reflex (or feedback gain control) system comprising the cochlea, cochlear neurons, cochlear nucleus, medial olivocochlear neurons, and cochlear outer hair cells.
Creating a sustainable IT ecosystem: Enabling next-generation urban infrastructures

In this paper, we describe an integrated design and management approach to creating a sustainable IT ecosystem: a physical infrastructure where information technology has been seamlessly interwoven to improve environmental efficiency while achieving lower cost. Specifically, we describe five principles to achieve such integration: ecosystem-scale life-cycle design; scalable and configurable resource microgrids; pervasive sensing; knowledge discovery and visualization; and autonomous control. Application of the approach is demonstrated for the case study of an urban water infrastructure, and we find that the proposed approach could potentially enable reduction of life-cycle energy use by over 15%.
Histone deacetylase inhibitors improve in vitro and in vivo developmental competence of somatic cell nuclear transfer porcine embryos.

Abstract Faulty epigenetic reprogramming of somatic nuclei is likely to be a major cause of low success observed in all mammals produced through somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT). It has been demonstrated that the developmental competence of SCNT embryos in several species were significantly enhanced via treatment of histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACi) such as trichostatin A (TSA) to increase histone acetylation. Here we report that 50 nM TSA for 10 h after activation increased the developmental competence of porcine SCNT embryos constructed from Landrace fetal fibroblast cells (FFCs) in vitro and in vivo, but not at higher concentrations. Therefore, we optimized the application of another novel HDACi, Scriptaid, for development of porcine SCNT embryos. We found that treatment with 500 nM Scriptaid significantly enhanced the development SCNT embryos to the blastocyst stage when outbred Landrace FFCs and ear fibroblast cells (EFCs) were used as donors compared to the untreated group. Scriptaid increa...
Panel on Big Unanswered Questions in Accounting—Genesis

n recent years, prominent accounting scholars speaking at the annual meetings of the American Accounting Association AAA have bemoaned the state of accounting inquiry. The main thrust of the criticisms is that accounting researchers increasingly pursue very small and arrow questions that do not advance professional knowledge. For instance, at the 2006 AAA nnual Meeting, Demski 2007 and Fellingham 2007 questioned whether accounting was even n academic discipline. In a plenary address at the 2006 AAA Annual Meeting, Hopwood 2007 rgued that accounting researchers were shrinking their research boundaries and that the “top hree” U.S. accounting journals are increasingly unlikely to publish truly innovative research. hese commentators agree that “innovation is close to nonexistent” and that “our research is argely derivative, bifurcated, and far from foundational” Demski 2007 . Fellingham 2007 poses he challenge, “What big intellectual ideas have accounting researchers contributed to the niversity?” One reason senior researchers might feel that we are making little progress is that accounting esearchers do not share a common research goal such as particle physicists do in their quest for Grand Unified Theory of the fundamental forces. If we are to make big intellectual contributions o the academy, it would probably help to identify the big unanswered questions that we could ollectively attack, and then work on finding the tools to answer these questions rather than hoosing only the questions that our current research methods can address. At least this is one Imagined World of Accounting,” consistent with the theme of the 2007 AAA Annual Meeting. To elp identify these big-picture questions, I offered to moderate a panel discussion on this topic. But who would make good panelists? Galenson 2005 argues that important innovative ontributions tend to be made by either experimental Old Masters like Rembrandt and Alfred itchcock or conceptual Young Geniuses like Picasso and James Joyce. Berlin 1953 argues that mportant thinkers tend to be either hedgehogs who are guided by one defining idea such as Plato nd Hegel, or foxes who draw on a wide variety of experiences such as Aristotle and Shakespeare. hese perspectives suggest that an ideal panel would consist of innovative accounting researchers ho are at different career stages, some of whom regularly cross methodological and disciplinary arriers while others specialize in a particular research stream. Greg Waymire chair requested the AA Annual Meeting Planning Committee to suggest potential panelists. Greg Waymire, Shyam under AAA’s president , and I then invited several scholars whose research we admire, while rying to balance the coverage of research methodologies, research styles, career stages, panel size,
Agent-based trust model involving multiple qualities

A key limitation of current Web services standards is the inability to differentiate service instances at runtime using (nonfunctional) qualities of services (QoS). Such differentiation is necessary to allow for runtime selection and binding to service instances in a manner that continually adapts selected services to the service consumer's preferences and needs. Quality values are volatile, depend on the trust associated with instances and service providers, and also depend on the needs of service consumers. We propose a multiagent framework where agents consider the consumers' QoS preferences, determine trust levels to associate to service instances and providers, and automatically select service instances on a consumer's behalf. The service agents use a trust model that is centered on a shared conceptualization for QoS (ontology) and a QoS preference model that considers consumer's tradeoffs among qualities as well as relationships between qualities. We evaluate our approach via simulations on simplified but realistic service instances and service consumers. Our results show that using these considerations for QoS, service agents are able to determine over time the 'best' service selection for a consumer.
Hypoxia-induced BAX overexpression and radiation killing of hypoxic glioblastoma cells

Abstract Chen, J. K., Hu, L. J., Wang, J., Lamborn, K. R., Kong, E. L. and Deen, D. F. Hypoxia-Induced BAX Overexpression and Radiation Killing of Hypoxic Glioblastoma Cells. Radiat. Res. 163, 644–653 (2005). One major challenge in treating glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) has been the presence of radiation-resistant hypoxic cells. The pro-apoptosis protein BAX has been reported to be a possible radiation sensitizer of cancer cells; however, to our knowledge, no studies have reported on the effects of BAX on radiation sensitivity under hypoxic conditions. Therefore, in this study, we specifically overexpressed murine Bax in hypoxic cells in an attempt to enhance radiation-induced cell killing. We have previously stably transfected U-251 MG and U-87 MG human GBM cells with constructs containing murine Bax under the regulation of nine copies of hypoxia-responsive elements (HREs). During hypoxia, the transcriptional complex hypoxia-inducible factor 1 (HIF1) forms and binds to HRE; this binding facilitates the t...
Olenid trilobites: The oldest known chemoautotrophic symbionts?

Late Cambrian to early Ordovician trilobites, the family Olenidae, were tolerant of oxygen-poor, sulfur-rich sea floor conditions, and a case is made that they were chemoautotrophic symbionts. Olenids were uniquely adapted to this habitat in the Lower Paleozoic, which was widespread in the Late Cambrian over Scandinavia. This life habit explains distinctive aspects of olenid morphology: wide thoraces and large numbers of thoracic segments, thin cuticle and, in some species, degenerate hypostome, and the occasional development of brood pouches. Geochemical and field evidence is consistent with this interpretation. Olenids occupied their specialized habitat for 60 million years until their extinction at the end of the Ordovician.
Classification of Remotely Sensed Data Using Ocr-Inspired Neural Network Techniques

Neural networks have been applied to classifications of remotely sensed data with some success. To improve the performance of this approach, an examination was made of how neural networks are applied to the optical character recognition (OCR) of handwritten digits and letters. A three-layer, feedforward network, along with techniques adopted from OCR, was used to classify Landsat-4 Thematic Mapper data. Good results were obtained. To overcome the difficulties that are characteristic of remote sensing applications and to attain significant improvements in classification accuracy, a special network architecture may be required.
Boulton's Delayed Yield: A Different Context

In 1954, Boulton proposed a delayed yield idealization to account for the dynamic contribution of water from the zone of desaturation during a pumping test in an unconfined aquifer. During the 1970s, the reasonableness of this idealization was questioned by some on the grounds that the exponential function with a constant parameter, used by Boulton to quantify the drainage process, was too simplistic and that the parameter will, in actuality, vary in time and space. Rather than discussing the merit of the delayed yield idealization in regard to an unconfined aquifer, the present work explores a different physical situation of an aquifer in which Boulton's idealization is realistic. Laboratory evidence exists to suggest that the deformation behavior of some aquifer materials is time dependent (creep or strain accumulation). In turn, this time dependence of deformation leads to a time dependence of the compressibility of the aquifer material, and hence, a time dependence of the aquifer's specific storage. In situations where the specific storage of an aquifer may be characterized by such time dependence, and if such time dependence can be reasonably approximated by an exponential function, then the response of such an aquifer to a constant rate pumping test will be described accurately by Boulton's mathematical formulation.
Herd Behavior in Financial Markets: A Review

Policymakers often express concern that herding by financial market participants destabilizes markets and increases the fragility of the financial system. This paper provides an overview of the recent theoretical and empirical research on herd behavior in financial markets. It addresses the following questions: What precisely do we mean by herding? What could be the causes of herd behavior? What success have existing studies had in identifying such behavior? And what effect does herding have on financial markets?
Substantial biologically mediated phosphorus depletion from the surface of a Middle Cambrian paleosol

Despite recent work, a comprehensive understanding of pre-Devonian terrestrial ecosystems remains elusive, resulting in frequent speculation about their composition. Terrestrial microbial mats are known from the Precambrian paleosol record, and bryophytes are known from the Middle Ordovician palynological record. The intervening time, however, remains enigmatic, although recent studies indicate a progressive "greening" of the Precambrian prior to the first unambiguous fossil evidence for land plants. In this study, an older than 503 Ma, heavily weathered, clay-rich soil was identified and provides a window to a probable Cambrian terrestrial landscape. The paleosol developed on the ancient continent of Laurentia in a dry, subtropical climate. Mobilization of Si, Al, and P indicate the influence of organic acids. Apatite, a recalcitrant mineral present throughout the majority of the weathered section, is notably absent from the top 30 cm of the paleosol. Few secondary phosphates and a complete absence of oxide- or carbonate-bound P indicate that once biologically weathered, P remained in an ecosystem-available form during the lifetime of this paleosol. The zone of apatite dissolution coincides with intense argillan development, indicating clay flocculation in the presence of soil solutions rich in labile Ca 2+ . Enhanced P weathering coupled with high Ca 2+ concentrations as a result of in situ apatite dissolution is a biosignature previously linked to the activities of mycorrhizal fungi. Biosignatures of mycorrhizal fungi in a Middle Cambrian paleosol add further evidence to the notion that there was an important terrestrial fungal presence prior to the first unequivocal evidence for terrestrial land plants.
Effect of the 14 July 2000 solar flare on Earth's FUV emissions

[1] An X-class solar flare occurring on 14 July 2000 (Bastille Day) marked the initiation of events which led to a powerful geomagnetic storm on 15 July. At the time of the flare the NASA-IMAGE spacecraft was near apogee and observed a global-scale transient increase in far ultraviolet (FUV) emissions of the thermosphere in both the N2 Lyman-Birge-Hopfield (LBH) band and the O I 135.6-nm line and also in geocoronal emissions of H I at 121.6-nm. Comparison with the solar x-ray flux measured by GOES 10 shows the delayed response of the FUV emissions compared to the peak in x-rays. This lag is attributed to a later peak in EUV emissions, which drive the photoelectron flux in the energy range which is, in turn, most effective in producing N2 LBH and O I 135.6-nm emissions. Measurements of solar EUV input by Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) Charge, Element, and Isotope Analysis System (CELIAS)/Solar Extreme-Ultra-Violet Monitor (SEM) confirm the close correlation between solar EUV and terrestrial FUV emissions. A comparison of the flare-time variation in the signal in each channel of the instrument allows one to (1) determine the variation in resonantly scattered solar emissions and (2) differentiate between emissions created through photodissociation by solar EUV and those driven by terrestrial photoelectron impact. The latter provides a means for positively identifying the dayglow emissions observed in the SI-12 instrument.
Edge detection and linear feature extraction using a 2-D random field model

The edge-detection problem is posed as one of detecting step discontinuities in the observed correlated image, using directional derivatives estimated with a random field model. Specifically, the method consists of representing the pixels in a local window by a 2-D causal autoregressive (AR) model, whose parameters are adaptively estimated using a recursive least-squares algorithm. The directional derivatives are functions of parameter estimates. An edge is detected if the second derivative in the direction of the estimated maximum gradient is negatively sloped and the first directional derivative and a local estimate of variance satisfy some conditions. Because the ordered edge detector may not detect edges of all orientations well, the image scanned in four different directions, and the union of the four edge images is taken as the final output. The performance of the edge detector is illustrated using synthetic and real images. Comparisons to other edge detectors are given. A linear feature extractor that operates on the edges produced by the AR model is presented. >
Effect of Interfacial Space‐Charge Polarization on the Ionic Conductivity of Composite Electrolytes

An enhanced carrier concentration within the interfacial space-charge layers has been proposed as one possible mechanism leading to the enhanced ionic conductivity observed for a variety of composite electrolytes containing a dispersed second phase of fine insulating particles such as Al2O3. This study tests this proposal by estimating the maximum space-charge polarization that might reasonably occur at interfaces of nominally pure AgCl, US -AgI, and LiI. The resulting interface conductances are used in effective medium calculations of the total conductivity of a randomly distributed composite of these salts with Al2O3 particles. Comparison of the results with published conductivities for the composites shows that the modest enhancement found for AgCl/Al2O3 can be accounted for by the interfacial space-charge polarization. However, the large (50- to 500-fold) enhancements found for US -AgI/Al2O3 and LiI/Al2O3 must be attributed to another mechanism.
Early afterdepolarizations and triggered activity in rabbit cardiac Purkinje fibers recovering from ischemic-like conditions. Role of acidosis.

BACKGROUND The mechanisms underlying repetitive activity during reperfusion of ischemic myocardium are thought to include triggered responses elicited at short pacing cycle lengths. The potential to generate repetitive responses at longer pacing cycle lengths under similar conditions, however, has not been explored. Thus, the present study examined the role of cycle length on the cellular electrical changes produced during recovery from ischemic-like conditions and identified the major component precipitating nondriven, repetitive activity. METHODS AND RESULTS Transmembrane potentials were recorded in vitro from isolated rabbit Purkinje fibers exposed to hypoxia (defined as PO2 less than 30 mm Hg, high [K+]o, and zero glucose) plus lactic acidosis (pH 6.7) for 45 minutes and during recovery in normal Tyrode9s solution (pH 7.4). Compared with control, action potential duration (90% repolarization) during recovery increased transiently by 40.9 +/- 11.8 and 241.0 +/- 51.1 msec at respective basic cycle lengths of 1,000 and 3,000 msec (both p less than 0.005). In 81% of preparations, action potential prolongation was accompanied by early afterdepolarizations and triggered activity generated from low (positive to -40 mV) or high (negative to -40 mV) membrane potentials. In 62% of experiments, brief periods of abnormal automaticity also occurred. Triggered responses were 1) unaffected by 1 microM ryanodine, 2) abolished by pacing at short basic cycle lengths or by exposing tissues to 2.5 micrograms/ml lidocaine, and 3) more easily induced at long basic cycle lengths or by superfusing 2.5 micrograms/ml quinidine. When tissues were conditioned with hypoxia alone (pH 7.4), action potential prolongation on recovery was comparatively small, and nondriven responses did not develop. Conversely, addition of 10-20 microM amiloride to the hypoxic, acidic test solution augmented recovery-induced action potential prolongation. CONCLUSIONS We conclude that acidosis, as a component of ischemia, plus slow pacing frequencies may mediate the genesis of early afterdepolarizations and triggered activity in Purkinje fibers on recovery, long after extracellular pH has been restored to normal. These data may have clinical relevance to the mechanisms of reperfusion arrhythmias in the intact human heart.
Data Quality Oriented 3D Laser Scan Planning

Point clouds collected by laser scanners have been used in various architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) projects. Effective uses of laser scanners on job sites require reducing the interferences of data collection with field activities while ensuring the data quality. Existing laser scan planning methods focused on visibility analysis with limited considerations about the level of detail (LOD) of collected point clouds, even though LOD is a function of factors other than visibility. This limitation leads to insufficient LOD of certain features in point clouds for decision support. This paper presents a laser scan planning approach that integrates geometric feature clustering and data quality checking methods for addressing this limitation. The inputs of this approach include an as-designed model integrating LOD requirements of geometric features. The algorithm first clusters geometric features to reduce the computational complexity of scan planning. It then uses a sensor model of laser scanning to generate a “feasible space” for scanning each cluster of features. After that, it assesses the number of features covered at candidate scanning locations, and pinpoint scanning positions covering more features with less scans. The results in a case study show that this approach outperforms manual scan planning in data’s LOD.
The soluble sema domain of the RON receptor inhibits macrophage-stimulating protein-induced receptor activation.

RON is a receptor tyrosine kinase of the MET family that is involved in cell proliferation, cell survival, and cell motility in both normal and disease states. Macrophage-stimulating protein (MSP) is the RON ligand whose binding to RON causes receptor activation. RON is a trans-membrane heterodimer comprised of one and one -chain originating from a single-chain precursor and held together by several disulfide bonds. The intracellular part of RON contains the kinase domain and regulatory elements. The extracellular region is characterized by the presence of a sema domain (a stretch of 500 amino acids with several highly conserved cysteine residues), a PSI (plexin, semaphorins, integrins) domain, and four immunoglobulin-like folds. Here we show that a soluble, secreted molecule representing the sema domain of RON (referred to as ronsema) has a dominant negative effect on the ligandinduced receptor activation and is capable of inhibiting RON-dependent signaling pathways and cellular responses. Results suggest that the sema domain of RON participates in ligand binding by the full-length receptor. The ability of ron-sema to suppress growth of MSPresponsive cells in culture, including cancer cells, points to a potential therapeutic use of this molecule, and forced expression of it could potentially be used as a gene therapy tool for treating MSP-dependent types of cancer. The human receptor tyrosine kinases MET and RON (MST1R) (and their respective orthologs in other species) form a unique, two-member gene family that encodes proteins with identical modular structure that may perform similar functions. Oncogenic activating mutations of MET were discovered in hereditary renal carcinoma of the papillary type (1, 2) and a variety of common cancers (3). Oncogenic amplification and overexpression of MET were also reported previously (3). The involvement of RON in carcinogenesis is much less understood. We have recently discovered that RON is negatively controlled by the tumor suppressor protein HYAL2 and becomes activated in a ligand-independent mechanism upon HYAL2 removal, leading to cell transformation (4). An oncogenic function of
Drought-induced saltwater incursion leads to increased wetland nitrogen export

Coastal wetlands have the capacity to retain and denitrify large quantities of reactive nitrogen (N), making them important in attenuating increased anthropogenic N flux to coastal ecosystems. The ability of coastal wetlands to retain and transform N is being reduced by wetland losses resulting from land development. Nitrogen retention in coastal wetlands is further threatened by the increasing frequency and spatial extent of saltwater inundation in historically freshwater ecosystems, due to the combined effects of dredging, declining river discharge to coastal areas due to human water use, increased drought frequency, and accelerating sea-level rise. Because saltwater incursion may affect N cycling through multiple mechanisms, the impacts of salinization on coastal freshwater wetland N retention and transformation are not well understood. Here, we show that repeated annual saltwater incursion during late summer droughts in the coastal plain of North Carolina changed N export from organic to inorganic forms and led to a doubling of annual NH4 + export from a 440 hectare former agricultural field undergoing wetland restoration. Soil solution NH4 + concentrations in two mature wetlands also increased with salinization, but the magnitude of increase was smaller than that in the former agricultural field. Long-term saltwater exposure experiments with intact soil columns demonstrated that much of the increase in reactive N released could be explained by exchange of salt cations with sediment NH4 + . Using these findings together with the predicted flooding of 1661 km 2 of wetlands along the NC coast by 2100, we estimate that saltwater incursion into these coastal areas could release up to 18 077 Mg N, or approximately half the annual NH4 + flux of the Mississippi River. Our results suggest that saltwater incursion into
Design of a Medium Access Control Protocol for Dynamic Spectrum Access Networks

In this paper we present a design of a medium access control protocol that allows the utilization of unused licensed spectrum of deployed wireless cellular systems (Primary System) by an overlaid multi-hop ad hoc network (Secondary System). The basic design principle is that the secondary operates in a non-intrusive manner and does not interact with the primary. We address a number of architectural challenges pertinent to this networking environment, and evaluate the performance of the MAC. Our performance evaluation results show that, in a single-hop ad hoc network, the proposed MAC transparently utilizes 75% of the bandwidth left unused by the primary, while, in the multi-hop cases, due to spatial reuse, the bandwidth utilization can be significantly higher.
Optimum placement of controls for static deformations of space structures

Many large space structures, such as large antennas, have to maintain a fairly exact shape to operate satisfactorily. Such structures require active and passive controls to maintain their accurate shape under disturbances. The present paper is concerned with optimum placement of controls for correcting static deformations. Both force actuators and heaters are considered for controls. A formulation of design against the worst disturbance is derived. A beam example is employed to demonstrate the procedure.
Can an hour or two of sun protection education keep the sunburn away? Evaluation of the Environmental Protection Agency's Sunwise School Program

Background: Melanoma incidence is rising at a rate faster than any other preventable cancer in the United States. Childhood exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light increases risk for skin cancer as an adult, thus starting positive sun protection habits early may be key to reducing the incidence of this disease. Methods: The Environmental Protection Agency's SunWise School Program, a national environmental and health education program for sun safety of children in primary and secondary schools (grades K-8), was evaluated with surveys administered to participating students and faculty. Results: Pretests (n = 5,625) and posttests (n = 5,028) were completed by students in 102 schools in 42 states. Significant improvement was noted for the three knowledge variables. Intentions to play in the shade increased from 68% to 75%(p < 0.001) with more modest changes in intentions to use sunscreen. Attitudes regarding healthiness of a tan also decreased significantly. Conclusions: Brief, standardized sun protection education can be efficiently interwoven into existing school curricula, and result in improvements in knowledge and positive intentions for sun protection.
Correlates of Mortality in an Exploited Wolf Population

We investigated the influence of habitat use on risk of death from hunting and trapping of 55 radiocollared gray wolves (Canis lupus) from an exploited insular population in Southeast Alaska, USA. We compared mortality rates for resident and nonresident wolves and used Cox proportional hazards regression to relate habitat composition within 100-m circular buffers around radiolocations to risk of death of resident and nonresident wolves. In addition, we included covariates representing distances to roads, logged stands, and lakes and streams in those analyses. We also compiled harvest data from 31 harvest units within the study area to compare densities of roads and distances from human settlements with rates of harvest. During our study 39 wolves died, of which 18 were harvested legally, 16 were killed illegally, and 5 died from natural causes. Legal and illegal harvest accounted for >87% of the mortality of radiocollared resident and nonresident wolves. Mean annual survival was 0.54 (SE = 0.17) for all wolves. Annual survival was 0.65 (SE = 0.17) for resident wolves and 0.34 (SE = 0.17) for nonresidents. Very few (19%) nonresident wolves survived to colonize vacant territories or join existing wolf packs. Roads, muskegs, and distances from lakes and streams were covariates positively associated with death of resident wolves. Clear-cuts were positively associated with risk of death of nonresident wolves. Rate of harvest increased with density of roads; however, road densities >0.9 km/km2 had little additional effect on harvest rates. Harvest rates decreased with ocean distances from nearest towns or settlements. Roads clearly increased risk of death for wolves from hunting and trapping and contributed to unsustainable rates of harvest. Wildlife managers should consider effects of roads and other habitat features on harvest of wolves when developing harvest recommendations. They should expect substantial illegal harvest where wolf habitat is accessible to humans. Moreover, high rates of mortality of nonresident wolves exposed to legal and illegal harvest may reduce or delay successful dispersal, potentially affecting linkages between small disjunct wolf populations or population segments. We conclude that a combination of conservative harvest regulations and large roadless reserves likely are the most effective measures for conserving wolves where risks from human-caused mortality are high.
Crowding Out Conscience: The Perils of Material Incentives

I'll be talking about the relationship between pro-social behavior and considerations of personal cost, and about how over-relying on material incentives to motivate people often has the perverse result of encouraging antisocial behavior.
Hoarding Disorder and a Systematic Review of Treatment with Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Until recently, compulsive hoarding has been treated as a type of obsessive-compulsive disorder with mixed results. Little research exists on the efficacy of behavioral interventions specifically designed to treat hoarding disorder, and most existing research is limited with regard to the numbers of participants, their ethnic and cultural diversity, and study replication; therefore, the generalizability of findings is limited. This article reviews the prevalence of hoarding disorder, cognitive behavioral therapy treatment approaches, and measurement of symptoms. A systematic review compares the efficacy of various CBT methods, with particular attention to comparing therapy that is traditionally used to treat OCD with those designed specifically to treat hoarding disorder. Only clinical studies using CBT interventions designed to treat hoarding associated with OCD or hoarding disorder were included. Studies included participants of all ages, and articles were published in peer-reviewed journals. Case studies were excluded. After a comprehensive search and removing duplicates from databases and references, 65 articles were reviewed, of which 12 met criteria for review. Preliminary results demonstrate improvement in hoarding symptoms with CBT interventions that are both for OCD and those designed to specifically treat hoarding disorder; however, when compared to each other, the efficacy of these treatments is inconclusive, thus more research is needed.
A highly parallel AES-GCM core for authenticated encryption of 400 Gb/s network protocols

The Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) together with the Galois Counter Mode (GCM) of operation has been approved for use in several high throughput network protocols to provide authenticated encryption. However, the demand for continued increase in network bandwidth has not abated and we anticipate the need for continual performance improvement of AES-GCM in hardware. Additionally, as data interfaces become wider and segmented, existing methods of GCM parallelization become inefficient. This paper presents a novel scalable architecture for highly parallel implementations of AES-GCM that can process multiple separately-keyed packets simultaneously every clock cycle. We demonstrate throughputs of 482 Gb/s in a single Xilinx Virtex Ultrascale FPGA and describe how the architecture can be used to achieve over 800 Gb/s in a system comprising multiple FPGAs.
The challenge of pelvic discontinuity: Cup-cage reconstruction does better than conventional cages in mid-term

The use of ilioischial cage reconstruction for pelvic discontinuity has been replaced by the Trabecular Metal (Zimmer, Warsaw, Indiana) cup-cage technique in our institution, due to the unsatisfactory outcome of using a cage alone in this situation. We report the outcome of 26 pelvic discontinuities in 24 patients (20 women and four men, mean age 65 years (44 to 84)) treated by the cup-cage technique at a mean follow-up of 82 months (12 to 113) and compared them with a series of 19 pelvic discontinuities in 19 patients (18 women and one man, mean age 70 years (42 to 86)) treated with a cage at a mean follow-up of 69 months (1 to 170). The clinical and radiological outcomes as well as the survivorship of the groups were compared. In all, four of the cup-cage group (15%) and 13 (68%) of the cage group failed due to septic or aseptic loosening. The seven-year survivorship was 87.2% (95% confidence interval (CI) 71 to 103) for the cup-cage group and 49.9% (95% CI 15 to 84) for the cage-alone group (p = 0.009). There were four major complications in the cup-cage group and nine in the cage group. Radiological union of the discontinuity was found in all successful cases in the cup-cage group and three of the successful cage cases. Three hips in the cup-cage group developed early radiological migration of the components, which stabilised with a successful outcome. Cup-cage reconstruction is a reliable technique for treating pelvic discontinuity in mid-term follow-up and is preferred to ilioischial cage reconstruction. If the continuity of the bone graft at the discontinuity site is not disrupted, early migration of the components does not necessarily result in failure. Cite this article: Bone Joint J 2014;96-B:195–200.
Monolithic integration of a laser and modulator and use in Q-switched lasers

The integration of active laser devices with transparent waveguides is an important capability for the realization of III—V advanced optoelectronics. Impurity-induced disordering (IID) has demonstrated its utility in the formation of buried heterostructure lasers,1 and recently there has been work studying the optical waveguiding properties of the waveguides formed by IID.2,3 We present results on a dual-cavity laser with the cavities coupled by a low-loss waveguide. The entire structure is planar, and both the buried heterostructure gain region and the waveguide region are readily fabricated using IID techniques. Figure 1 shows the overall structure of the device. In the waveguide region, the IID enabling Si diffusion has been allowed to disorder the entire active region beneath a masking stripe.
Dexamethasone inhibition of DMSO-induced transglutaminase activity and differentiation of leukemic cells.

Treatment of the Friend erythroleukemic (FL) cell line GM979 with dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) or n-butyric acid induced erythroid differentiation. Transglutaminase (TGase) activity also increased in these treated cells. Glucocortical steroids, i.e., dexamethasone (DEX) and triam- cinolone acetonide, when added to the cultured medium, inhibited the DMSO-induced hemoglobin synthesis but not n-butyric acid-induced hemoglobin synthesis. Similarly, these steroids inhibited DMSO-increased TGase activity but not n-butyric acid-increased TGase activity in intact FL cells. Neither the differentiation-inducing agents nor the steroids had any effect on TGase activity when they were directly added to cell lysates. These results support the view that the increase of TGase activity may be related to erythroid differentiation of FL cells and of its possible role of this enzyme in FL cell-induced differentiation.
Sociodemographic Characteristics and Health Status of Lifetime Abstainers, Ex-Drinkers, Bingers, and Nonbingers Among Baby Boomers and Older Adults

ABSTRACTBackground: Health risks associated with abstention from alcohol drinking in previous studies may have been exaggerated because the pool of abstainers in many studies included both lifetime abstainers and ex-drinkers, including sick-quitters. Objectives: This study compared sociodemographic and health statuses among lifetime abstainers, exdrinkers, bingers, and nonbingers in the 50–64 age group (baby boomers) and the 65+ age group. Methods: Data are from the 2008 to 2012 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (N = 18,443 for the 50–64 age group and N = 11,191 for the 65+ age group). Descriptive statistics and multinomial and binary logistic regression analyses were used to examine the study questions. Results: 10% of the 50–64 age group and 20% of the 65+ age group reported lifetime abstention, and 21% and 28% of each group, respectively, reported being ex-drinkers (i.e., last used alcohol more than 12 months ago). In both age groups, lifetime abstainers, exdrinkers, and bingers had lower socioeco...
An adaptive simplex cut-cell method for high-order discontinuous Galerkin discretizations of multi-material and multi-physics problems

In this paper we present a new approach for high-order discretizations of multi-material and multi-physics problems on non-geometry-conforming meshes. The approach consists of a discontinuous Galerkin (DG) discretization, a simplex cut-cell technique, and an outputbased adaptive scheme. With the cut-cell technique, the interface definition is completely separate from the mesh generation process, and no assumption is made on the interface shape (other than Lipschitz continuity). We demonstrate our solution strategy through several numerical examples, including a conjugate heat transfer problem.
Lactacin B, A Bacteriocin Produced by Lactobacillus Acidophilus

Numerous reports prior to the discovery of lactacin B in 1983 suggested that Lactobacillus acidophilus produces antimicrobial agents (presumably proteins) inhibitory to undesirable intestinal flora (Vincent et al., 1959; Vakil & Shahani, 1965; Gilliland & Speck, 1977; Shahani & Ayebo, 1980). Of those described, the agent most like a bacteriocin was the broad-spectrum inhibitor lactocidin from aged liver veal agar cultures of intestinal isolates of L. acidophilus (Vincent et al., 1959). Crude lactocidin was extractable from agar cultures adjusted to below pH 5.0 or above pH 7.8, but not to pH 7.0. Unlike lactic acid or hydrogen peroxide, crude lactocidin was non-dialyzable, insensitive to treatment with catalase, and active at pH 7.0 against Gram-negative and Gram-positive cultures, including several pathogens. The activity of lactocidin against Salmonella enteritidis, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Staphylococcus aureus led Vincent et al (1959) to speculate that L. acidophilus producer strains were essential in controlling undesirable flora in the intestinal tract. However, antibacterial activity at pH 7.0 was lost with further purification (Vincent et al., 1959) and subsequent characterization of lactocidin is noticeably absent from the literature. This report and the controversy regarding broad-spectrum antagonists produced by L. acidophilus led Barefoot & Klaenhammer (1983) to survey the species for production of inhibitory proteins.
The Design Applications About Threaded Aonnectors of the Micro- car Chassis

Discusses the design applications about four major Threaded connectors of the micro-car chassis,summarizes the experience of design applications,raises the problems in the existing criteria.
110 MANAGEMENT OF TRANSIENT HYPERGLYCEMIA IN VERY LOW BIRTH WEIGHT INFANTS WITH CONTINUOUS INSULIN INFUSION AND ITS EFFECT ON LACTIC ACID LEVELS.

Introduction Transient hyperglycemia (TH) develops in preterm infants on continuous glucose infusion despite receiving glucose infusion rates that matches their basal requirements. This has been attributed to a partially defective processing of proinsulin to insulin and relative insulin resistance requiring higher levels of insulin to achieve euglycemia. Treatment with insulin under euglycemic hyperinsulinemic clamp conditions in 4 clinically stable preterm infants has been shown to result in lactic acidosis. Objective To evaluate the effect of continuous insulin infusion during TH in sick, very low birth weight (VLBW) infants receiving total parenteral nutrition on lactic acidosis. Study Design Prospective, observational study of VLBW infants on continuous insulin infusion for TH with measurement of lactate levels. Results Values are expressed as mean and range. Seven VLBW infants with mean birth weight 738 g (538-1,263) and mean gestational age 26 wks (range 24-30) were on continuous insulin infusion for TH. All infants were on parenteral nutrition receiving protein and intralipids in addition to glucose initiated within 12 to 24 hours of life. Mean blood sugar level was 235 mg/dL (180-334) prior to start of insulin infusion at a mean dose of 0.04 U/kg/hr (0.01-0.05). Mean glucose infusion rate was 6.9 mg/kg/min (4.7-10.5). Mean lactate level prior to start of insulin infusion was 3.2 (0.7-8.1mmol/L) and mean lactate levels post insulin was 1.5 (0.5-3.8 mmol/L). Four of the 7 infants required 2 to 4 courses of insulin infusions for TH. One of the 4 neonates was septic with a congenital E. coli infection, and 3 were severely compromised at birth, requiring the use of pressors to stabilize their blood pressure. All infants received 1-3 insulin boluses of 0.1 unit/kg/dose prior to starting the insulin infusion. In all instances, the post-insulin infusion lactic acid levels were lower. None of the infants developed hypoglycemia during insulin infusion. Conclusions The use of continuous insulin infusion with or without an initial bolus dose for transient hyperglycemia in sick, VLBW infants is not associated with the development of lactic acidosis but may actually improve the preexisting acidosis. Our results are in favor of insulin infusion to correct the transient metabolic abnormalities and to maintain biological levels of insulin to achieve euglycemia during TH.
Priorities assessment for studies of mutagen production in cooked foods.

This article concerns the assessment of dietary practices in the United States for the purpose of setting priorities for food items to be tested for possible mutagen formation when cooked.
Catalytic Mechanism and Efficiency of Methane Oxidation by Hg(II) in Sulfuric Acid and Comparison to Radical Initiated Conditions

Methane conversion to methyl bisulfate by HgII(SO4) in sulfuric acid is an example of fast and selective alkane oxidation catalysis. Dichotomous mechanisms involving C–H activation and electron transfer have been proposed based on experiments. Radical oxidation pathways have also been proposed for some reaction conditions. HgII is also of significant interest because as a d10 transition metal it is similar to d10 main-group metals that also oxidize alkanes. Density-functional calculations are presented that use both implicit and a mixture of implicit/explicit solvent models for the complete HgII catalytic cycle of methane oxidation to methyl bisulfate. These calculations are consistent with experiment and reveal that methane is functionalized to methyl bisulfate by a C–H activation and reductive metal alkyl functionalization mechanism. This reaction pathway is lower in energy than both electron transfer and proton-coupled electron transfer pathways. After methane C–H functionalization, catalysis is comple...
Comparative Analysis of Lipid Extracts and Imaging Mass Spectrometry for Evaluating Cerebral White Matter Biochemical Pathology in an Experimental Second-Hand Cigarette Smoke Exposure Model.

Background: White matter injury and degeneration are common features of developmental and aging-associated diseases, yet their pathobiological bases are poorly understood. However, recent advances in Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption Ionization (MALDI) instruments and chemistry have provided critical tools for myelin-lipid analytical research. Design: This study characterizes Cigarette Smoke (CS) exposure effects on frontal lobe lipid ion profiles in adult male A/J mice that had been exposed to air for 8 weeks (A8), CS for 4 (CS4) or 8 weeks (CS8), or CS8 followed by 2 weeks recovery (CS8+R). MALDI data acquired by analysis of lipid extracts plated onto a ground steel target (high through-put) were compared with Imaging Mass Spectrometry (IMS). Results: MALDI-time-of-flight (TOF) detected 120 lipid ions with m/z’s of 600 to 1300 (phospholipids and sulfatides) in samples plated onto the steel target or analyzed by IMS, but just 25 ions (18%) were detected by both methods. IMS more effectively detected ions in the highest m/z range, whereas the extracts had abundant middle-range m/z ions. The experimental groups were better discriminated by PCA and R-generated heat map hierarchical clustering of IMS data than lipid extract data. On the other hand, both methods clearly delineated the CS4, CS8 and CS8+R experimental groups from control. Conclusions: MALDI analysis of brain lipid extracts plated onto a ground steel target for high through-put studies, or imaged directly in tissue can be used to assess biochemical pathology of white matter neurodegeneration and responses to treatment.