cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Heterogeneity of maize NAD-malate dehydrogenase: generation of multiple forms by incubation at pH 5.0.

Abstract Three isoenzymes of NAD-malate dehydrogenase are constitutive to many strains of maize. Two are mitochondrial and a third is cytosolic. Evidence presented here indicates that additional forms can be generated by pH 5.0 treatment of homogenates, although the purified isoenzymes are insensitive to the treatment.
Inelastic electron tunneling spectroscopy: Intensity as a function of surface coverage

Abstract Inelastic election tunneling spectroscopy (IETS) is a sensitive technique for obtaining vibrational spectra of molecules adsorbed on an oxide surface and incorporated into a metal-oxide-metal tunnel junction. IETS energy data are used routinely. However, IETS intensities contain additional information which, for theoretical and experimental reasons, has not been used systematically. This paper examines the variation of IETS intensity with surface coverage of dopant molecules in the junction, a relationship of practical and theoretical importance. IET spectra are taken using standard experimental techniques and a liquid doping technique which allows the surface coverage to be determined independently. From an analysis of a large number of modes of benzoic acid on alumina, it is found that IETS intensity, defined in the usual way as the normalized change in conductance, Δ σ σ , is a nonlinear function of surface coverage. A physical model is presented which attributes this behavior to a difference in elastic tunneling conductances through empty or filled regions of the dopant layer in a junction with a fraction of a monolayer coverage. In addition, the liquid and vapor doping techniques in common use in IETS are discussed in terms of statistical mechanics and are shown to be manifestations of the same basic phenomenon.
Improved Fermi-Segrè formula for ||(Rn,l/rl)(0)||2 for singular and nonsingular potentials.

The Fermi-Segr\`e formula, which relates the value of a normalized S-state radial wave function at the origin to the derivative ${\mathrm{dE}}_{n}$/dn of the bound-state spectrum in a Schr\"odinger problem, has been used extensively in problems in atomic and quarkonium physics. The extensions which have been proposed for angular momenta lg0 are quite inaccurate for large l for the confining potentials typical of the quarkonium system. We derive modified formulas for arbitrary l which remove this difficulty.
Barriers to cancer pain management: home-health and hospice nurses and patients.

Undertreatment of cancer pain remains a major health-care problem. We utilized focus groups of hospice and home-health nurses and patients to elucidate factors contributing to inadequate pain management and to generate solutions for closing the gap between the current reality and optimal pain management. Focus groups were conducted among hospice and home-health-care nurses (two groups; n=22) and patients (six groups; n=54) using a standardized question guide. Audiotapes were transcribed and analyzed using NUD*IST software. Themes discovered among patients and nurses were analyzed for similarities and differences. Of 22 participants in the two home-health and hospice nurses focus groups, all were white women, the average age was 43 (range 29–64) years, and the average number of years in nursing was 21 (range 8–47) years. Of 54 participants in the six cancer patient focus groups, 80% were women, the average age was 54 (range 25–76) years, and 76% were white. Fifty-four percent of patients reported a history of pain associated with their cancer, and almost 30% had pain that they rated as 8 or higher on the pain scale. Barriers to adequate pain management fell into four categories: fears; attitudes, beliefs, and values; patient and provider behaviors; and structural barriers. Patients and nurses reported similar barriers to pain management; however, patients identified more barriers related to provider behavior and structure of the health care system. This study identified several barriers to cancer pain control not previously identified in the literature. Strategies to improve cancer pain control are suggested.
Onverklaarde klachten: nog veel hiaten in kennis

stand van zaken in de literatuur De indeling in ernstcategorieen in de NHG-Standaard is gebaseerd op aantal, ernst en duur van de klachten bij presentatie aan de huisarts. Deze keus komt voort uit het feit dat verschillende, ernstiger en langer bestaande klachten geassocieerd zijn met een ongunstig beloop. De criteria voor de categorieen zijn echter arbitrair, aangezien er geen empirisch bewijs is voor de gedefinieerde afkappunten. Bestaande studies naar het beloop van SOLK zijn schaars en heterogeen in zowel opzet als uitkomstmaten, waardoor resultaten moeilijk met elkaar te vergelijken zijn.1 Ook is er een gebrek aan kennis van factoren die het beloop van SOLK mogelijk beinvloeden. Er zijn diverse verklarende modellen voor SOLK en het voortduren van de klachten opgesteld. Een bekend voorbeeld is het cognitief gedragsmodel. Dit beschrijft predisponerende, in stand houdende en versterkende factoren van SOLK uit verschillende domeinen. Deze factoren kunnen somatisch zijn, maar kunnen ook te maken hebben met psychologische kwetsbaarheid, ziektebeleving en ziektegedrag. Theoretische modellen als deze zijn echter nog nauwelijks empirisch onderbouwd. Het is dus onbekend welke factoren echt een belangrijke rol spelen bij het persisteren van SOLK.2 Mede doordat we niet goed weten welke factoren het beloop van SOLK het meest beinvloeden, zijn effectieve behandelingen schaars. Mogelijk speelt hierbij ook een rol dat we, bij gebrek aan kennis over de beloopstypes, niet goed kunnen differentieren welke patienten behandeling nodig hebben en welke niet.
Contribution of Extrinsic Factors and Intrinsic Vascular Alterations to Reduced Arteriolar Reactivity with High-Salt Diet and Hypertension

Objective:To determine whether the impaired relaxation of skeletal muscle arterioles of rats on high-salt diet or with reduced renal mass hypertension (RRM-HT) represents intrinsic alterations to microvessels alone, or whether extravascular influences also contribute to reduced dilator responses. Methods:Normotensive (NT) Sprague-Dawley rats were fed low-salt (LS) or high-salt (HS) diets, and RRM-HT rats were fed HS diet for 4–6 weeks. In situand isolated cremaster muscle first-order arterioles (1A) were examined using television microscopy, and a video micrometer was used to measure diameter changes in response to acetylcholine (ACH), cholera toxin (CT), and sodium nitroprusside (SNP). Results:Compared to normotensive low-salt (NT-LS) rats, responses of 1A to the agonists were reduced in normotensive high-salt (NT-HS) and RRM-HT rats. Arteriolar reactivity to the agonists in NT-LS rats and in NT-HS rats was not different between in situand in vitroenvironments. However, in RRM-HT rats, the reactivity of ...
Al-Jazeera English and global news networks: clash of civilizations or cross-cultural dialogue?

This article examines the role of the global news media in either furthering the balkanization of the global news environment or moving towards a globally connected and engaged aggregation of publi...
Stray light correction for microspectrophotometric determination of intracellular ion concentration.

Abstract A simple correction for the effect of stray light on absorbance measurements from cells filled with indicator dyes is described.
NERVE GROWTH FACTOR: SUBUNIT INTERACTIONS IN THE MOUSE SUBMAXILLARY GLAND 7S COMPLEX

Sedimentation velocity analyses of the isolated subunits of mouse 7S nerve growth factor (NGF) and their binary complexes have been performed. The 2.5S (beta) form of NGF binds 2 alpha subunits independent of the presence of gamma subunits. Two gamma subunits are also complexed by 2.5S NGF; however, this interaction is dependent on the presence of a carboxyl terminal arginine residue on the beta polypeptide chain. The partial loss of this residue in 2.5S NGF preparations results in a ternary complex(es) with a reduced sedimentation coefficient(s). The two binary complexes formed (alpha 2-beta and beta-gamma 2) show markedly different pH stability profiles. The alpha and gamma subunits do not form a demonstrable complex, but apparently can interact in the ternary complex to render it more stable than the sum of the alpha-beta and beta-gamma interactions.
A molecular analysis of transformer, a gene in drosophila melanogaster that controls female sexual differentiation

The transformer (tra) gene regulates all aspects of somatic sexual differentiation in Drosophila melanogaster females and has no function in males. We have isolated the tra gene as part of a 200 kb chromosomal walk. The 25 kb region around tra contains four genetically identified complementation groups and at least six transcriptional units. Germ-line transformation experiments indicate that a fragment of 2 kb is sufficient to supply tra+ function. Mapping of cDNAs from tra and from the adjacent genes indicates that the tra+ transcription unit is 1.2 kb or less. This transcription unit gives rise to a 1.0 kb RNA that is female-specific and a 1.2 kb RNA that is present in both sexes. tra+ and the gene at the 3' side overlap slightly in the 3' ends of their RNA coding sequences. These results suggest that tra+ function is regulated at the level of production of the female-specific tra RNA. The fact that a tra transcript is found in males raises interesting possibilities for how tra expression is controlled.
Electronic relaxation processes in benzene and related molecules

Abstract A brief summary is presented of the results of recent theoretical studies of electronic relaxation in benzene and other conjugated molecules. the discussion considers the evaluation of single vibronic level decay rates, the role of promoting modes benzene's “channel three” decay, triplet yields in aromatics, collision induced intersystem crossing, and photodissociation processes.
THE BLAME-TAKER’S DILEMMA: ACTIONS AND REACTIONS IN THE WAKE OF ORGANIZATIONAL FAILURE

In the wake of negative organizational events, research directs the involved actors to apologize. However, “apologies” often communicate two, distinct messages: responsibility (they take blame) and...
Selection biases that emerge when age meets gender

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the interactive effects of gender and age on evaluations of job applicants. Given the double jeopardy hypothesis, the authors might anticipate that older women would be denigrated most in hiring evaluations. However, given expectations of normative gender behavior, the authors might anticipate that older men would be penalized most for not already having stable employment. This study aims to examine which hypothesis best describes selection biases based on age and gender. Design/methodology/approach – Stimuli depicting male and female job applicants at the various ages were developed. The stimuli were standardized by collecting facial photos of older White men and women at ages 20, 40, and 60, and morphing these faces onto standardized bodies using Adobe Photoshop. Participants viewed six stimuli, one from each age by gender combination, and made evaluations across job relevant dimensions. Findings – Results showed an interaction between age and gender, su...
Forage and Nitrogen Yield of Barley—Pea and Oat—Pea Intercrops

Barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) and oat (Avena sativa L.) have been intercropped with field pea [Pisum sativum subsp. sativum var. arvense (L.) Poir.] to increase forage yield and quality. Our objective was to evaluate the effects of two barley and two oat cultivars and seeding rates of cereal-pea intercrop on forage production, crude protein (CP) concentration, and N yield. A field experiment was conducted in 1993 and 1994 under dryland management in both fallowed and continuously cropped, no-tillage environments. 'Bowman' and 'Horsford' barley, and 'Dumont' and 'Magnum' oat, were each sown at 93, 185, and 278 kernels m -2 with 'Trapper' pea at 40, 80, and 120 seeds m -2 , in all possible rate combinations. The cereal cultivars also were sown alone at 185 kernels m -2 . Cultivars developed for forage production (Horsford, Magnum) produced as much or more forage than cultivars developed for grain production (Bowman, Dumont) across sole-crop and intercrop plots (P ≤ 0.05). Forage yield was unaffected by intercropping when the cereal crop was sown at the sole-crop or greater rate. Less forage was produced by intercrops when the cereal component was sown at half the sole-crop rate. Forage yield was not affected by the pea seeding rate, but CP concentration increased with increasing seeding rate of pea in three of four environment-years. Forage N yield was unaffected by intercropping. These data indicate that the cereal component in barley-pea and oat-pea mixtures should be sown at a sole-crop or greater seeding rate for maximum forage production. Forage CP concentration can be increased as the relative proportion of pea seed to cereal kernels sown in a mixture is increased, but forage N yield may not be affected, since the cereal component contributes more to yield than the pea component.
Availability to plants and soil extraction of americium-241 as influenced by chelating agent, lime, and soil type

Abstract The availability to crop seedlings of 241 Am was studied using soils from the Dothan and Troup soil associations of the Savannah River Region (U.S.A.) to which applications of lime and/or a chelating agent, DTPA (diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid) were added. In addition, 5 soil extractants were evaluated for their ability to correlate plant 241 Am with soil 241 Am. Data suggest that the availability of soil-applied 241 Am to 2 crop seedlings was influenced by inherent soil properties, crop species, soil pH, and DTPA. Americium-241 was more available from the sandy loam Troup soil than from the sandy clay loam Dothan soil and was readily taken up by bush bean ( Phaseolus vulgaris ) seedlings which resulted in plant concentrations one order of magnitude higher than for corn ( Zea mays ) seedlings. Application of lime only suppressed and minimized uptake of 241 Am. The use of the chelating agent DTPA in both limed soils significantly increased 241 Am concentrations in plants. DTPA in unlimed soils slightly promoted 241 Am uptake, indicating that the 241 Am-DTPA complex was not stable under these conditions. The results indicate that lime alone immobilized 241 Am in the soil, making it unavailable for plant uptake. The 1 N NH 4 OAc extractant was superior in correlating 241 Am plant concentrations with extractable soil 241 Am to either the dilute-acid (0·1 N HCl and 0·1 N HNO 3 ) or chelating agent [0·01 M EDTA-1 M (NH 4 ) 2 CO 3 and 0·001 M DTPA] extractants. The 1 N NH 4 OAc appears to be a good soil extractant for estimating the pattern of uptake from 241 Am-contaminated environments with soils having similar properties and amendments to the ones we studied.
Reliability and Practicality of Measuring Waist Circumference to Monitor Cardiovascular Risk Among Community Mental Health Center Patients

The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical utility of measuring waist circumference (WC) in obese individuals with severe psychiatric disabilities. Reliability of the measure and researchers' comfort were assessed. Thirty outpatients with a diagnosis of schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder were recruited from an urban community mental health center and WC was measured using two methods by three different raters. Inter- and intra-rater reliability was calculated. Raters reported on their comfort with obtaining WC. There was good inter-rater reliability and an acceptable rate of error independent of measurement location. Overall, raters were not comfortable with the WC measurement process for multiple reasons and reported difficulty with the measurement process. Our findings suggest that non-medical staff can reliably and validly measure WC within a typical outpatient mental health treatment setting, but discomfort with the procedure and difficulty with the measurement process may interfere with this practice as part of usual care.
Wheat kernel dormancy and +abscisic acid level following exposure to fluridone

Summary Detached spikes from soft white winter wheat ( Triticum aestivum L.) cultivars that produce caryopses with high dormancy levels (Brevor) or low dormancy levels (Greer) were cultured from anthesis in basal media and media amended with fluridone or fluridone plus ABA. Effects of fluridone and exogenous ABA on kernel development and dormancy acquisition and maintenance were assessed by measuring fresh and dry mass of embryos and caryopses, ABA content in embryos and caryopses, and kernel post-desiccation dormancy levels. Caryopses and embryos exposed to fluridone accumulated very little ABA. Detached spike culture increased ABA concentration and reduced fresh and dry mass in both caryopses and embryos. Fluridone did not affect fresh and dry mass. Addition of ABA to culture media slightly reduced media uptake by detached spikes. During desiccation, ABA and dry matter decreased in caryopses whereas embryos continued to accumulate both. After 2d, 95 % of Greer kernels exposed to fluridone germinated while only 80 % of Brevor kernels were germinated after 4 d. Culture of detached spikes in media amended with fluridone and ABA induced higher dormancy levels in Brevor than in Greer. Results from this study support the hypothesis that ABA may be involved in acquisition of dormancy as well as maintenance of dormancy in wheat kernels.
Isolation and preliminary genetic and biochemical characterization of temperature-sensitive mutants of reovirus.

Abstract A set of temperature-sensitive mutants of reovirus type 3 has been isolated. The mutagens used were nitrous acid, nitrosoguanidine, and proflavine. Thirty-five mutants have been tested for their ability to recombine following pairwise infection. Five recombination groups have been detected. Twenty-nine mutants fall into one group, four into another, and three mutants recombine efficiently with every other mutant tested. Recombination frequencies are either zero or in excess of 2%. This result supports chemical evidence that the genome of reovirus consists of a number of segments. The mutants have been tested for their ability to induce the formation of virus-specific RNA at the nonpermissive temperature. The classification of mutants according to this criterion agrees exactly with that deduced from recombination tests.
CHARACTERIZING EFFECTS OF CATIONIC SURFACTANT ON ELECTRO-OSMOTIC MOBILITY AND ANION MIGRATION IN CAPILLARY ELECTROPHORESIS

The analysis of anions by capillary electrophoresis (CE) with bare silica capillary often uses cationic surfactant to modify the electro-osmotic mobility (EOM) to ensure anions migrating to anode and being detected. The effect of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) concentration in phosphate background electrolyte (BGE) with various ionic strength and pH on the migration of analytes was investigated and reported. A concentration of 0.08 mM CTAB in the BGE starts to reverse cathodic EOM into anodic EOM, and a concentration of 0.30 mM CTAB in the BGE maximizes anodic EOM. Lower EOM is obtained in BGE of higher phosphate concentration while the CTAB concentration and pH are kept constant. Under conditions of constant CTAB and phosphate concentration, higher cathodic EOM was obtained in the BGE of higher pH and lower anodic EOM was obtained in the BGE of higher pH. Although the effect of CTAB concentration, pH, and phosphate concentration on the migration of aromatic anions is complex, the result indicates ...
Purification of arylsulfatase A from human urine.

Summary The purification of arylsulfatase A from human urine is described. The enzyme was isolated by ammonium sulfate precipitation, acetone fractionation, affinity chromatography, Sephadex G200 chromatography and preparative polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The enzyme migrates as a single band in both acid and alkaline polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The enzyme has a pH optimum of 4.75; the amino acid composition is presented.
Reactive Attachment Disorder and Cognitive, Affective and Behavioral Dimensions of Moral Development

This study investigated the relationship between reactive attachment disorder (RAD) and the three dimensions of moral development: cognitive, affective and behavioral. Case vignettes were used to assess moral development of typical children (n = 35), and children with a history of adoptive or foster care who did (n = 20) and did not (n = 18) meet the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR; APA, 2000) diagnostic criteria for RAD. Several multivariate analyses of variance (MANOVAs) were conducted with group (RAD, Non-RAD, and control) and the dimensions of moral development. Results indicated that children with RAD exhibit more concern for external punishment and find unrealistic solutions to transgressions compared to the control group. Results are explained utilizing attachment theory, children’s temperament and characteristics of RAD.
Evolution of morphologic changes after intravitreous injection of gentamicin

Gentamicin shows retinal toxicity in rabbits, monkeys, and humans, but its mechanism of toxicity is not understood. Pig eyes, which are anatomically similar to human eyes, were examined with ophthalmoscopy, fluorescein angiography, and light and electron microscopy at time points ranging from 3 to 72 hours after intravitreous injection of 3 mg of gentamicin or vehicle to observe the sequence of toxicity-related changes that occur in the retina. The first ophthalmoscopic changes were retinal hemorrhages at 3 hours, followed by retinal whitening and thickening and vascular nonperfusion detected by fluorescein angiography 48 hours after injection. Vacuolization in the nerve fiber layer and perivascular swelling were seen at 6 hours, and subsequently, extended deeper into the retina. Vascular endothelial cells, photoreceptors, and the retinal pigment epithelium appeared to be spared from the toxic effects of gentamicin. At 48 and 72 hours after injection, numerous large and small retinal vessels showed congestion and leukocyte margination. These changes could not be prevented by increasing the pH of gentamicin to 7.2. These data suggest that gentamicin toxicity is not simply a pH-related phenomenon, that the primary targets of gentamicin toxicity are neurons and glia of the inner retina, and that retinal infarction occurs secondarily, possibly due to leukocytic plugging.
The (Il)Logical Problem of Heritage Speaker Bilingualism and Incomplete Acquisition

This Forum challenges and problematizes the term incomplete acquisition, which has been widely used to describe the state of competence of heritage speaker (HS) bilinguals for well over a decade (see, e.g., Montrul, 2008). It is suggested and defended that HS competence, while often different from monolingual peers, is in fact not incomplete (given any reasonable definition by the word incomplete), but simply distinct for reasons related to the realities of their environment.
Problems in Search of Solutions: Health and Canadian Aboriginals

The purpose of this paper is to explore the health status of Canadian Aboriginals, along with their perceived community health problems and proposed solutions to these issues. Data are drawn from the 1991 Aboriginal Peoples Survey (APS), which is a weighted random sample of the Aboriginal population. Comparisons were made with respect to group identity (North American Indian, Metis and Inuit) and geographic location (reserve, urban, rural and North) and across a series of health status and health care use indicators. Analysis reveals that geographic location, as compared with Aboriginal identity, appears to have a large impact with respect to health status and use of physician services. On-reserve Aboriginals, for example, reported a lower likelihood of having seen a physician and were more likely to rank their health as fair or poor. Location also influenced perceived community health problems and solutions. Self-identified problems included drugs, cancer and arthritis, while corresponding solutions included education, counseling and service access. Although the problems and solutions were relatively consistent across space, they too varied in their importance. In general, the results tend to reinforce the determinants of health framework, suggesting that the provision of health services is insufficient to remove health disparities on its own. Instead, broader social-welfare provisions must be considered.
Suicidal Asian American College Students’ Perceptions of Protective Factors: A Qualitative Study

This study addresses the paucity of knowledge on protective factors associated with Asian American college students’ suicidal behavior. Participants were 58 Asian American college students who seriously considered suicide within the past 12 months and responded to open-ended online survey questions about what was helpful during their suicide crisis. A phenomenological analysis of participants’ narratives revealed the following protective factors: (a) a desire not to hurt or burden others, (b) social support, (c) fear, (d) self-reliance, and (e) insight. These findings can guide culturally informed clinical interventions by mental health professionals.
A Pattern Mining Approach for Classifying Multivariate Temporal Data

We study the problem of learning classification models from complex multivariate temporal data encountered in electronic health record systems. The challenge is to define a good set of features that are able to represent well the temporal aspect of the data. Our method relies on temporal abstractions and temporal pattern mining to extract the classification features. Temporal pattern mining usually returns a large number of temporal patterns, most of which may be irrelevant to the classification task. To address this problem, we present the minimal predictive temporal patterns framework to generate a small set of predictive and non-spurious patterns. We apply our approach to the real-world clinical task of predicting patients who are at risk of developing heparin induced thrombocytopenia. The results demonstrate the benefit of our approach in learning accurate classifiers, which is a key step for developing intelligent clinical monitoring systems.
Reductions in entree energy density increase children's vegetable intake and reduce energy intake

The energy density (ED; kcal/g) of an entree influences children's energy intake (EI), but the effect of simultaneously changing both ED and portion size of an entree on preschool children's EI is unknown. In this within-subject crossover study, 3- to 5-year-old children (30 boys, 31 girls) in a daycare facility were served a test lunch once/week for 4 weeks. The amount and type of vegetables and cheeses incorporated into the sauce of a pasta entree were manipulated to create two versions that varied in ED by 25% (1.6 or 1.2 kcal/g). Across the weeks, each version of the entree was served to the children in each of two portion sizes (400 or 300 g). Lunch, consumed ad libitum, also included carrots, applesauce, and milk. Decreasing ED of the entree by 25% significantly (P<0.0001) reduced children's EI of the entree by 25% (63.1+/-8.3 kcal) and EI at lunch by 17% (60.7+/-8.9 kcal). Increasing the proportion of vegetables in the pasta entree increased children's vegetable intake at lunch by half of a serving of vegetables (P<0.01). Decreasing portion size of the entree by 25% did not significantly affect children's total food intake or EI at lunch. Therefore, reducing the ED of a lunch entree resulted in a reduction in children's EI from the entree and from the meal in both portion size conditions. Decreasing ED by incorporating more vegetables into recipes is an effective way of reducing children's EI while increasing their vegetable intake.
Discovering hidden structure in factored MDPs

Markov Decision Processes (MDPs) describe a wide variety of planning scenarios ranging from military operations planning to controlling a Mars rover. However, [email protected]?s solution techniques scale poorly, limiting [email protected]? practical applicability. In this work, we propose algorithms that automatically discover and exploit the hidden structure of factored MDPs. Doing so helps solve MDPs faster and with less memory than state-of-the-art techniques. Our algorithms discover two complementary state abstractions - basis functions and nogoods. A basis function is a conjunction of literals; if the conjunction holds true in a state, this guarantees the existence of at least one trajectory to the goal. Conversely, a nogood is a conjunction whose presence implies the non-existence of any such trajectory, meaning the state is a dead end. We compute basis functions by regressing goal descriptions through a determinized version of the MDP. Nogoods are constructed with a novel machine learning algorithm that uses basis functions as training data. Our state abstractions can be leveraged in several ways. We describe three diverse approaches - GOTH, a heuristic function for use in heuristic search algorithms such as RTDP; ReTrASE, an MDP solver that performs modified Bellman backups on basis functions instead of states; and SixthSense, a method to quickly detect dead-end states. In essence, our work integrates ideas from deterministic planning and basis function-based approximation, leading to methods that outperform existing approaches by a wide margin.
Mycobacterium paratuberculosis: A Potential Food-Borne Pathogen?

Mycobacterium paratuberculosis commonly infects dairy cattle, leading to Johne's disease, which is also known as paratuberculosis. The infection is chronic, progressive, and incurable. As the infection progresses, excretion of M. paratuberculosis in feces and milk occurs, and the bacterium spreads through the blood to multiple internal organs. Consequently, raw products originating from cattle may harbor M. paratuberculosis. Thermal treatments, such as pasteurization, are commonly relied on to kill food-borne bacterial pathogens that can infect humans. The small number of studies conducted to determine the thermal resistance of M. paratuberculosis suggest that it is less susceptible to destruction by heat killing than are milkborne zoonotic bacterial pathogens such as Listeria spp. or Mycobacterium bovis. Published reports concerning the thermal resistance of M. paratuberculosis in milk are reviewed herein, and key issues concerning the efficacy of pasteurization for elimination of M. paratuberculosis from milk are summarized.
Hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor promotes a switch from E- to N-cadherin in chick embryo epiblast cells.

Epiblast cells downregulate E-cadherin and upregulate N-cadherin as they ingress through the primitive streak and when placed in culture. The factors that promote the alteration in cadherin expression during gastrulation are unknown. The effects of hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor (HGF/SF) on cadherin expression were tested in cultures of prestreak epiblast cells. HGF/SF decreased the expression of E-cadherin and increased the percentage of cells with N-cadherin and sarcomeric myosin. Cells with N-cadherin but not E-cadherin differentiated into skeletal muscle. HGF/SF also stimulated proliferation and the formation of cellular aggregates. Sensitivity to HGF/SF in vitro depended on the original position of cells within the epiblast. More cells from the lateral epiblast switched cadherins and proliferated in response to HGF/SF than medial epiblast cells. HGF/SF may affect gastrulation by altering cadherin expression, modulating cell adhesion, and stimulating proliferation within the epiblast.
Entering into politics: Interdiscursivity, register, stance, and vernacular in northern Italy

This article focuses on how specific types of language use connect socially, geographically, and temporally distant speakers and span face-to-face and mediated language contexts. It examines one variety of political language (the Northern League register in Italy) in order to analyze how the interdiscursive potentials of register and stance-taking enable such connections. It also presents the metapragmatic effects of engaging in types of talk such as political language, which are less about individual expression or political participation, but are rather part of a complex of stance-taking and alignment of self within local and national political debates. Based on long-term ethnographic and linguistic research in Bergamo, Italy, this article introduces the concept of the interdiscursive trap , showing how the Northern League register functions in this capacity, forging indexical links to particular ideas and stances that some speakers find undesirable. (Political language, interdiscursivity, register, stance, Italy, Europe, Northern League, media) *
Training Coordination Proxy Agents

Delegating the coordination role to proxy agents can improve the overall outcome of the task at the expense of cognitive overload due to switching subtasks. Stability and commitment are characteristics of human teamwork but must not prevent the detection of better opportunities. In addition, coordination proxy agents must be trained from examples as a single agent but must interact with multiple agents. We apply machine learning techniques to the task of learning team preferences from mixed-initiative interactions and compare the outcome results of different simulated user patterns. This paper introduces a novel approach for the adjustable autonomy of coordination proxies based on the reinforcement learning of abstract actions.
On the Uniqueness of the Phase Retrieval Problem From Far Field Amplitude-Only Data

The phase retrieval problem has gained considerable attention since the wave phase is lost or impractical to measure in several applications in Electromagnetic Engineering. Quite a few approaches have been proposed recently for the extraction of phase from amplitude-only data; however few of them investigate the uniqueness of the problem prior to the solution. In this communication, the problem of the uniqueness of the phase retrieval problem from far field amplitude-only data is examined in detail. It is shown that uniqueness is guaranteed if two experiments can be performed that differ by a quadratic term in the phase. Conversely, experiments creating only linear phase differences in the data do not guarantee uniqueness. This result is demonstrated by considering the problems of a scattering target illuminated in two experiments differing by a quadratic phase shift, corresponding to two different values of defocusing of the incident wave.
Rabbit model of Guillain‐Barré syndrome

In acute motor axonal neuropathy (AMAN), immunoglobulin (Ig) G is deposited on the axolemma of the spinal anterior roots. This indicates that IgG, which binds effectively with complement, is an important factor in the development of AMAN. Patients who developed AMAN subsequent to Campylobacter jejuni enteritis had IgG antibodies against GM1, and their autoantibody titers decreased with the clinical course. Various ganglioside immunization protocols were examined to refine the procedure for establishing an animal model of AMAN. The most effective was subcutaneous injection of an emulsion of 2.5 mg of bovine brain ganglioside (BBG) mixtures, keyhole lympet hemocyanin (KLH) and complete Freund’s adjuvant (CFA), to Japanese white rabbits, with repeated injections at 3-week intervals. Under that protocol, all the rabbits developed marked flaccid paralysis associated with increased plasma anti-GM1 IgG antibody levels. Secondary breakdown of axons under severe demyelination in Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS) patients has been reported. Electrophysiological evaluations were made for three rabbits inoculated with BBG, seven with GM1, eight with galactocerebroside (GalC), and seven control animals. In the AMAN rabbit model, despite marked limb weakness in the acute phase of the illness, neither compound muscle action potential amplitudes nor motor conduction velocities showed obvious changes, indicating that distal motor nerve conduction was preserved. Intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) is effective for GBS in shortening recovery time, but the mechanism of action has yet to be clarified. Anti-idiotypic antibodies in IVIG may affect antibody production by sending negative signals to B cells.
Excess placental soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase 1 (sFlt1) may contribute to endothelial dysfunction, hypertension, and proteinuria in preeclampsia

Preeclampsia, a syndrome affecting 5% of pregnancies, causes substantial maternal and fetal morbidity and mortality. The pathophysiology of preeclampsia remains largely unknown. It has been hypothesized that placental ischemia is an early event, leading to placental production of a soluble factor or factors that cause maternal endothelial dysfunction, resulting in the clinical findings of hypertension, proteinuria, and edema. Here, we confirm that placental soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase 1 (sFlt1), an antagonist of VEGF and placental growth factor (PlGF), is upregulated in preeclampsia, leading to increased systemic levels of sFlt1 that fall after delivery. We demonstrate that increased circulating sFlt1 in patients with preeclampsia is associated with decreased circulating levels of free VEGF and PlGF, resulting in endothelial dysfunction in vitro that can be rescued by exogenous VEGF and PlGF. Additionally, VEGF and PlGF cause microvascular relaxation of rat renal arterioles in vitro that is blocked by sFlt1. Finally, administration of sFlt1 to pregnant rats induces hypertension, proteinuria, and glomerular endotheliosis, the classic lesion of preeclampsia. These observations suggest that excess circulating sFlt1 contributes to the pathogenesis of preeclampsia.
Decays of Heavy Higgs Bosons

We consider the possible decay modes of a heavy Higgs boson in the mass range ${M}_{W}(\ensuremath{\sim}80 \mathrm{Gev})\ensuremath{\le}{M}_{H}\ensuremath{\le}1$ TeV within the standard model of Weinberg and Salam. For ${M}_{H}g2{M}_{W, Z}$ we find the decay modes $H\ensuremath{\rightarrow}{W}^{+}{W}^{\ensuremath{-}} or {Z}^{0}{Z}^{0}$ to dominate the usual fermion-antifermion decay $(\mathrm{ff})$; for ${M}_{W,Z}\ensuremath{\le}{M}_{H}\ensuremath{\le}2{M}_{W, Z}$ we find the Higgs-boson width still dominated by $\overline{f}f$ although new decays such as $H\ensuremath{\rightarrow}{W}^{\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}}+\overline{f}{f}^{\ensuremath{'}}$ and $H\ensuremath{\rightarrow}{Z}^{0}+\overline{f}f$ are present. These new decay modes are significantly phase-space suppressed and are found to contribute with branching ratios less than 1%.
Reconfigurable BDD based quantum circuits

We propose a novel binary decision diagram (BDD) based reconfigurable logic architecture based on split-gate quantum nanodots using III-V compound semiconductor-based quantum wells. While BDD based quantum devices architectures have already been demonstrated to be attractive for achieving ultra-low power operation, our design provides the ability to reconfigure the functionality of the logic architecture. This work proposes device and architectural innovations to support such reconfiguration. At the device level, a unique programmability feature is incorporated in our proposed nanodot devices which can operate in 3 distinct operation modes: a) active b) open and c) short mode based on the split gate bias voltages and enable functional reconfiguration. At the architectural level, we address programmability and design fabric issues involved with mapping BDDpsilas into a reconfigurable architecture. By mapping a set of logic circuits, we demonstrate that our underlying device and architectural structure is flexible to support different functions.
Designing the market game for a trading agent competition

The authors discuss the design and operation of a trading agent competition, focusing on the game structure and some of the key technical issues in running and playing the game. They also describe the competition's genesis, its technical infrastructure, and its organization. The article by A. Greenwald and P. Stone (2001), describes the competition from a participant's perspective and describes the strategies of some of the top-placing agents. A visualization of the competition and a description of the preliminary and final rounds of the TAC are available in IC Online (http://computer.org/internet/tac.htm).
Twilight of Sovereignty or the Emergence of Cosmopolitan Norms? Rethinking Citizenship in Volatile Times

This essay examines recent debates concerning the emergence of cosmopolitan norms such as those pertaining to universal human rights, crimes against humanity as well as refugee, immigrant and asylum status. What some see as the spread of a new human rights regime and a new world order others denounce as the “spread of empire” or characterize as “law without a state”. In contrast, by focusing on the relationship of global capitalism to deterritorialized law this essay distinguishes between the spread of human rights norms and deterritorialized legal regimes. Although both cosmopolitan norms and deterritorialized law challenge the nation-state and threaten to escape control by democratic legislatures, it argues that cosmopolitan norms enhance popular sovereignty while many other forms of global law undermine it. It concludes by pleading for a vision of “republican federalism” and “democratic iterations”, which would enhance popular sovereignty by establishing interconnections across the local, the national ...
When There Is Conflict: Interparental Conflict, Parent–Child Conflict, and Youth Problem Behaviors

This study examined direct and indirect associations between overt and covert interparental conflict (IPC), parent—child conflict, and their links to youth problem behaviors. Data were collected from a sample of 641 school-age youth, ages 12 to 18 years, using a school-based survey. Analyses yielded direct positive linkages from overt IPC to antisocial behavior and from covert IPC to depression and antisocial behavior. When parent—child conflict was added to the model, significant direct associations were again observed between covert conflict and depression, with significant indirect effects through increased parent—child conflict. Likewise, significant direct associations were observed between overt conflict and antisocial behavior, with significant indirect effects through increased parent—child conflict. Although there was little variance in the findings when contextualized, youth ratings of religiosity were moderately and negatively associated with antisocial behavior. These findings document distinc...
Cyberaide Creative: On-Demand Cyberinfrastructure Provision in Clouds

As demand for grid and cloud computing solutions increases, the need for user oriented software to provide access to theses resources also increases. Until recently the use of computing resources was limited to those with exceptional knowledge of the system design and configuration. With the advent of grid middleware projects this started to change allowing for new users not familiar with the complex grid infrastructure and client software to use the systems for their own research. The Cyberaide Gridshell demonstrated this by developing a user friendly interface to submit jobs to a grid. Following this theme it is our objective to create a tool that will take another step further by abstracting the creation and configuration of the infrastructure and system software away from the end-user. This will be achieved through the use of cloud resources provided by VMware virtualization and deployment via a web interface. We will show the benefits of deploying cyber infrastructures, like clusters and grids, on a cloud design by demonstrating the ease of cyber infrastructure deployment and the versatility of the systems that can be spawned on demand.
Host Suitability of Phaseolus lunata for Trichoplusia ni (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) in Controlled Carbon Dioxide Atmospheres

Elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) levels of 1,000 parts per million (ppm) significantly increased consumption of foliage by Trichoplusia ni (Hubner) and significantly enhanced growth of Phaseolus lunata L. when compared with ambient levels of 340 ppm. Mean pupal weight was less under treatments with elevated atmospheric CO2 under a high fertilization regime, but larval survival and percent nitrogen content of pupae were not affected by level of CO2 treatments at high, medium, or low fertilizer rates. Regardless of CO2 concentration, larval survival and pupal weight were reduced in absence of fertilizer. Nitrogen and protein consumption increased with fertilization rate. Because percent leaf area of plants consumed by T. ni larvae was not affected by CO2 concentration, this study suggests that increased plant growth resulting from elevated atmospheric CO2 may benefit the plant proportionately more than the insect.
A genetic approach to standard cell placement using meta-genetic parameter optimization

The genetic algorithm applies transformations on the chromosonal representation of the physical layout. The algorithm works on a set of configurations constituting a constant-size population. The transformations are performed through crossover operators that generate a new configuration assimilating the characteristics of a pair of configurations existing in the current population. Mutation and inversion operators are also used to increase the diversity of the population, and to avoid premature convergence at local optima. Due to the simultaneous optimization of a large population of configurations, there is a logical concurrency in the search of the solution space which makes the genetic algorithm an extremely efficient optimizer. Three efficient crossover techniques are compared, and the algorithm parameters are optimized for the cell-placement problem by using a meta-genetic process. The resulting algorithm was tested against TimberWolf 3.3 on five industrial circuits consisting of 100-800 cells. The results indicate that a placement comparable in quality can be obtained in about the same execution time as TimberWolf, but the genetic algorithm needs to explore 20-50 times fewer configurations than does TimberWolf. >
Screening for depression.

In the United States, depression affects up to 9 percent of patients and accounts for more than $43 billion in medical care costs. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends screening in adolescents and adults in clinical practices that have systems in place to ensure accurate diagnosis, effective treatment, and follow-up. It does not recommend for or against screening for depression in children seven to 11 years of age or screening for suicide risk in the general population. The Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ)-2 and PHQ-9 are commonly used and validated screening tools. The PHQ-2 has a 97 percent sensitivity and 67 percent specificity in adults, whereas the PHQ-9 has a 61 percent sensitivity and 94 percent specificity in adults. If the PHQ-2 is positive for depression, the PHQ-9 should be administered; in older adults, the 15-item Geriatric Depression Scale is also an appropriate follow-up test. If these screening tests are positive for depression, further evaluation is needed to confirm that the patient’s symptoms meet the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders’ criteria for diagnosis.
Bamba Merci: the intersections of political and spiritual graffiti in Senegal

AbstractIn the summer of 2013, ‘Bamba Merci’ became an omnipresent slogan on public walls throughout Senegal; it was a social movement started by a prominent leader of the Murid Sufi order. With both political and religious meanings, the graffiti pointed to the intertwined relationships between political and religious lives. Senegal’s secular postcolonial state policies allow and encourage open religious dialogue. A state-maintained open public sphere created the possibility for this religious and social movement; a society supportive of social movements, religious expression and public art created the welcoming forum for the expression. By placing the Bamba Merci graffiti in the context of the secular state and also recent popular social movements in Senegal, this article shows how public expression can illuminate the intersections between political and religious lives. The essay concludes by questioning whether this recent graffiti is a contrast to other ethnographic examples of graffiti.