cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A behavioral logic underlying aggression in an African cichlid fish

Abstract Social rank in a hierarchy determines which individuals have access to important resources such as food, shelter, and mates. In the African cichlid fish Astatotilapia burtoni, rank is under social control, such that larger males are more likely than smaller males to be dominant in rank. Although it is well known that the relative size of A. burtoni males is critical in controlling social rank, the specific behavioral strategies underlying responses to males of different sizes are not well understood. In this research, our goal was to characterize these responses by performing resident-intruder assays, in which aggressive behaviors were measured in territorial males in response to the introduction of unfamiliar males that differed in relative standard length (SL). We found that the relative SL of intruders played an important role in determining behavioral performance. Resident males exposed to larger (>5% larger in SL) or matched (between 0 and 5% larger or smaller in SL) intruder males performed more lateral displays, a type of non-physical aggression, compared to resident males exposed to smaller (>5% smaller in SL) intruder males. However, physical aggression, such as chases and bites, did not differ as a function of relative SL. Our results suggest that A. burtoni males amplify non-physical aggression to settle territorial disputes in response to differences in relative SL that were not previously considered to be behaviorally relevant. Highlights Relative size determines social rank in the African cichlid Astatotilapia burtoni Resident male A. burtoni respond differently to small size differences in intruder males Residents perform more non-physical aggression against larger intruders Residents do not alter physical aggression as a function of differently sized intruders Distinct behavioral strategies are used against different intruders
The Role of Culture and Moral Responsibility in Facilitating a Sustainable Bioeconomy

Economics influences and is influenced by culture; in turn, culture is both influenced by and influences the sustainability of the environment. Furthermore, to the extent that moral judgment encompasses human and non-human life, the environment and its sustainability are given significance within the economic system. At present, there is increasing discussion of the implementation of a bioeconomy within the present economic framework. This chapter discusses the role of culture and education in promoting a moral perspective of the human responsibility in establishing sustainable economic growth. The argument made is that a bioeconomy can promote sustainability only if consumption choices implicitly consider holistic impacts and are motivated by cultural values that are based in moral judgement. Otherwise, sustainable economic growth may be limited to the production process alone and fail to promote overall sustainability in economic outcomes.
COVID-19 Sources of Information, Knowledge, and Preventive Behaviors Among the US Adult Population.

CONTEXT: The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in more than 20 million cases and 350 000 deaths in the United States. With the ongoing media coverage and spread of misinformation, public health authorities need to identify effective strategies and create culturally appropriate and evidence-based messaging that best encourage preventive health behaviors to control the spread of COVID-19. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to understand the relationship between COVID-19 sources of information and knowledge, and how US adults' knowledge may be associated with preventive health behaviors to help mitigate COVID-19 cases and deaths. DESIGN AND SETTING: For this cross-sectional study, survey data pertaining to COVID-19 were collected via online platform, Qualtrics, in February and May 2020. PARTICIPANTS: Data responses included 718 US adults from the February survey and 672 US adults from the May survey-both representative of the US adult population. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Sociodemographic characteristics, COVID-19 knowledge score, COVID-19 reliable sources of information, and adherence to COVID-19 preventive health behaviors. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: The main findings showed that disseminating COVID-19 information across various sources, particularly television, health care providers, and health officials, to increase people's COVID-19 knowledge contributes to greater adherence to infection prevention behaviors. Across February and May 2020 survey data, participants 55 years and older and those with higher educational background reported a higher average COVID-19 knowledge score. In addition, among the racial and ethnic categories, Black/African American and Native American/Alaska Native participants reported a lower average COVID-19 knowledge score than white participants-signaling the need to establish COVID-19 communication that is culturally-tailored and community-based. Overall, health care authorities must deliver clear and concise messaging about the importance of adhering to preventive health behaviors, even as COVID-19 vaccines become widely available to the general public. Health officials must also focus on increasing COVID-19 knowledge and dispelling misinformation.
In Defense of Chain Migration

The vast majority of immigrants to the United States enter through categories set forth in a statutory selection system that emphasizes family reunification. However, since the early 1980s, attacking those family immigration categories has become a popular political sport played every few years. The most recent version of the sport is embodied by the introduction of the RAISE Act and statements condemning so-called “chain migration” by President Trump. The assault on family immigration generally is framed in terms that would replace family categories with those that would enable “skilled” immigrants to immigrate instead. The President, like many others, derides the so-called “chain migration” system as enabling one person to bring in “32 people. . . . You come in and now you can bring your family and then you can bring your mother and your father, you can bring your grandmother.” The claim is that the family-based system allows entry to “virtually unlimited numbers of distant relatives.” Instead, critics of family migration argue that the system should focus more on “merit” rather than family, and assign points to prospective immigrants based on factors like age, education and English skills. Critics of family immigration and I have different starting points when it comes to priorities in the admissions system. The so-called “merit” proponents claim that to help the economy, more jobs and skill-based criteria should be used. My position is that the nation and its employers would continue to do quite well economically by expanding the family numbers throughout all categories. Furthermore, we do well to look beyond economic values and to consider the values that are important to us as a nation in terms of human rights, moral obligations, and social responsibility. Somehow those of us who favor not only maintaining but expanding family-based immigration opportunities are viewed as soft on immigration. However, the experiment that we call America is a test of our character and our willingness to believe that we can have a strong country that is caring and diverse. Showing compassion and fairness in our immigration policies is not a sign of weakness. Rather, those traits demonstrate a confidence in a strong rule of law and system of government, but understand that moral obligations and family reunification are essential elements of a civil society. While these traits of a civil society may benefit individuals, they benefit us as a common community as well. For when an individual and their relatives have been enabled to become contributing members of society, we all benefit—socially, psychically, and economically.
Stock Options and Credit Default Swaps: A Joint Framework for Valuation and Estimation

We propose a dynamically consistent framework that allows joint valuation and estimation of stock options and credit default swaps written on the same reference company. We model default as controlled by a Cox process with a stochastic arrival rate. When default occurs, the stock price drops to zero. Prior to default, the stock price follows a jump-diffusion process with stochastic volatility. The instantaneous default rate and variance rate follow a bivariate continuous process, with its joint dynamics specified to capture the observed behavior of stock option prices and credit default swap spreads. Under this joint specification, we propose a tractable valuation methodology for stock options and credit default swaps. We estimate the joint risk dynamics using data from both markets for eight companies that span five sectors and six major credit rating classes from B to AAA. The estimation highlights the interaction between market risk (return variance) and credit risk (default arrival) in pricing stock options and credit default swaps. (JEL: C13, C51, G12, G13)
Role of Multiple Sensor Kinases in Cell Cycle Progression and Differentiation in Caulobacter crescentus

Publisher Summary Caulobacter crescentus, an asymmetrically dividing, gram-negative, α-proteobacterium, has been a fruitful system for studying the mechanism of cell differentiation. Internal cell cycle cues drive morphogenesis in these cells, with stages of the cell division cycle acting as checkpoints for successive developmental events. Various studies show that signal transduction pathways mediated by essential two-component system proteins regulate the cell cycle and couple the developmental program to cell cycle progression. This chapter considers the organization of these pathways with particular attention to the multiple histidine protein kinases and how they regulate signal transduction. Pathways initiated by the histidine protein kinases DivJ, CckA, DivL, and PleC regulate the initiation of DNA synthesis, flagellum biosynthesis, cell division, and motility, among other cell cycle-regulated events. Results of genetic and biochemical experiments argue strongly that an essential transcription factor, CtrA, is the common downstream target regulated by these sensor kinases. Three of the kinases are localized dynamically either to the flagellated cell pole or to the stalked cell pole, apparently at times corresponding to their function in the cell cycle..
Quantitative analysis of cardiovascular modulation in respiratory neural activity

We propose the ‘δ2-statistic’ for assessing the magnitude and statistical significance of arterial pulse-modulated activity of single neurones and present the results of applying this tool to medullary respiratory-modulated units. This analytical tool is a modification of the η2-statistic and, consequently, based on the analysis of variance. The η2-statistic reflects the consistency of respiratory-modulated activity on a cycle-by-cycle basis. However, directly applying this test to activity during the cardiac cycle proved ineffective because subjects-by-treatments matrices did not contain enough ‘information’. We increased information by dividing the cardiac cycle into fewer bins, excluding cycles without activity and summing activity over multiple cycles. The analysed neuronal activity was an existing data set examining the neural control of respiration and cough. Neurones were recorded in the nuclei of the solitary tracts, and in the rostral and caudal ventral respiratory groups of decerebrate, neuromuscularly blocked, ventilated cats (n= 19). Two hundred of 246 spike trains were respiratory modulated; of these 53% were inspiratory (I), 36.5% expiratory (E), 6% IE phase spanning and 4.5% EI phase spanning and responsive to airway stimulation. Nearly half (n= 96/200) of the respiratory-modulated units were significantly pulse modulated and 13 were highly modulated with δ2 values exceeding 0.3. In 10 of these highly modulated units, η2 values were greater than 0.3 and all 13 had, at least, a portion of their activity during expiration. We conclude that cardiorespiratory interaction is reciprocal; in addition to respiratory-modulated activity in a subset of neuronal activity patterns controlling the cardiovascular system, pulse-modulated activity exists in a subset of neuronal activity patterns controlling the respiratory system. Thus, cardio-ventilatory coupling apparent in respiratory motor output is evident and, perhaps, derived from the neural substrate driving that output.
CLONING AND MRNA EXPRESSION OF HUMAN UNCONVENTIONAL MYOSIN-IC : A HOMOLOGUE OF AMOEBOID MYOSINS-I WITH A SINGLE IQ MOTIF AND AN SH3 DOMAIN

Abstract The complete deduced amino acid sequence and MRNA expression of human unconventional myosin-IC (HuncM-IC) are described. Sequencing of overlapping cDNA clones reveals a message of 4666 nucleotides with a single open reading frame predicted to encode a 127 Kda protein of 1109 amino acids. HuncM-IC is composed of three discrete regions: a characteristic N-terminal myosin head with predicted actin and ATP-binding sites; a neck domain with an "IQ motif", predicted to bind a single light chain; and a C-terminal tail with a putative membrane-binding site. In addition, the tail contains an src-homology 3 domain. The presence of a single IQ motif and an src-homology 3 domain is reminiscent of "long-tailed" myosins-I from amoeboid organisms, a supposition confirmed by multiple sequence alignment. Northern blot analysis of human tissues shows that HuncM-IC is ubiquitously expressed, with the highest levels in kidney prostate, colon, liver and ovary. The results show that "amoeboid" myosins-I are not restricted to amoeboid organisms, rather they are expressed in the metazoa as well.
Caveat innovator: Strategic and structural characteristics of new product introductions

Abstract The assumptions underlying models of strategic behavior by incumbents are evaluated using a case study of a ground coffee product introduction. The assumption underlying earlier strategic models, that the entrant does not know the incumbent's payoffs after strategic have been tested, does not appear to apply. Instead, strategic behavior is observed to hinge on ex ante uncertainty about the structure of the payoff matrix and the incremental decision making which this uncertainty spawns. In this environment, strategies which create noise can slow learning and delay entry.
Analysis of the G1 arrest position of senescent WI38 cells by quinacrine dihydrochloride nuclear fluorescence. Evidence for a late G1 arrest.

Abstract Senescence of the human diploid fibroblast-like cell line, WI38, is characterized by a loss of proliferative activity and an arrest of cells with a 2C DNA content (G1 or G0). To examine the specific region within G1 in which senescent cells arrest, senescent cells were stained with quinacrine dihydrochloride (QDH) and their nuclear fluorescence was compared with that of young cultures arrested in early and late G1 by serum deprivation and hydroxyurea exposure, respectively. Release of these G1-arrested young cultures from their blocking conditions and timing the kinetics of their entry into the S phase by autoradiographic detection of [3H]thymidine incorporation revealed that serum-deprived cells entered the S phase within 15–18 h, whereas hydroxyurea-exposed cells entered the S phase within 1.5 h, thus confirming their relative G1-arrest positions. QDH-stained, serum-deprived and hydroxyurea-exposed young cells exhibited relative nuclear fluorescence intensities of 51.7 and 23.9, respectively. Senescent cells exhibited a relative nuclear fluorescence intensity of 17.4, closely resembling the fluorescence of young cultures arrested in late G1 by hydroxyurea exposure. These data support the concept that senescent cells are arrested from further progression in the cell cycle in late G1.
Dermal exposure to the commonly used antimicrobial chemical triclosan promotes allergic responses in skin and lung (HYP7P.317)

There has been a dramatic increase in the incidence of allergies and asthma in the U.S. thought to be influenced by environmental exposures. The antimicrobial chemical triclosan is found in countless products such as soap, lotion, toothpaste and kitchen utensils (0.1-1%). Triclosan is detected in the urine of the majority of Americans and recent epidemiological studies have found a positive association between urinary triclosan levels and allergic disease. Interestingly, exposure to triclosan, a non-sensitizer, enhanced allergic responses in a mouse ovalbumin (OVA) asthma model. To help elucidate the mechanisms behind the augmented allergic responses, triclosan (0-3%) was applied to the dorsal surface of the ears of BALB/c mice sensitized to OVA. Analysis of skin revealed infiltration of leukocytes and a dramatic increase in thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP) expression even after a single dose. Analysis of cells in the draining LN of triclosan-exposed mice revealed a peak cell response at 7 days, including increased numbers and frequencies of GATA-3+ IL-4+ CD4 T cells, and CD11b+ CD80+ CD86+ MHC class II+ dendritic cells. Mice exposed to triclosan and challenged with OVA via airway aspiration also showed increased Th2 responses and OVA+ APC in their BAL fluid. These results suggest that triclosan augments allergic responses in skin and lung in part through mechanisms that involve TSLP and enhanced Th2 responses.
Do endorphin residues of beta lipotropin in hormone reinforce reproductive functions

The beta-endorphin residue of pituitary beta-lipotropin hormone, which regulates utilization and storage of body fat, is several times more potent than morphine in raising pain tolerance. It also produces habituation and dependency behavior. Recently it was found to be present in amniotic fluid and to be a releaser of prolactin. It now appears that the placenta is a rich source of endorphins. These findings may open a new chapter in understanding molecular determinants of behavior patterns responsible for natural selection and survival of vertebrate species. Clinical application of basic information and new concepts relating endorphins to maternal behavior patterns and neonatal physiology is the purpose of this communication. A brief review of the literature, some data from [3H]opiate-binding assays, observation of maternal performance, and reports of maternity patients' feelings and motivations suggesting that these hormone molecules mediate formation of affectional attitude, appetitive systems, and maternal behavior will be presented.
Monoclonal versus polyclonal antibody radioimmunoassay against the β-subunit of human chorionic gonadotropin in patients with gestational trophoblastic neoplasia

The level of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) in series of sera from eight patients with gestational trophoblastic neoplasia was measured by monoclonal antibody and polyclonal antibody radioimmunoassay. A comparative analysis was performed. Three commercially available monoclonal anti-beta-subunit of hCG (beta-hCG) antibodies were evaluated and the most specific and sensitive one was chosen to develop a quantitative beta-hCG radioimmunoassay. beta-hCG radioimmunoassay kits from Nuclear Medical Systems, Inc., and Clinical Assays served as polyclonal antibody assays. Results obtained with the monoclonal antibody radioimmunoassays demonstrated a high degree of correlation (r greater than 0.95, p less than 0.01) with those obtained by the polyclonal antibody techniques; however, the sera from one patient continuously demonstrated a low level of hCG in the monoclonal antibody radioimmunoassay while registering undetectable levels in the polyclonal antibody assays. Although the monoclonal antibody radioimmunoassay appears to be specific and fairly sensitive, the results indicate that, with current technology, there is no special advantage to employing this assay to measure hCG in patients with gestational trophoblastic neoplasia.
Airway evaluation in obstructive sleep apnea

The prevalence of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in the general adult population is approximately 3%-7% for men and 2%-5% for women; however, variability in definitions may lead to underestimation of the true burden of the disease and postponing of the treatment. Thus, the first step in the management of OSA is the accurate evaluation of the severity of the problem and also the level of obstruction. Different modalities such as clinical examination and videoendoscopy have been used to detect OSA and its severity. However, the importance of these diagnostic tests is based on the specificity and the sensitivity of tests and their positive and negative predictive values. These tests are discussed in detail in this article.
Selenium Levels in Biota from Irrigation Drainwater Impoundments in the San Joaquin Valley, California

ABSTRACT Waterfowl, fish, invertebrates, and plants were collected from impoundments used for evaporating subsurface irrigation drainwater in Kings and Kern counties, California. Specimens were analyzed for trace elements with emphasis on selenium. Dry weight concentrations of total selenium ranged from 2.5 to 17 μg/g in wigeongrass, Ruppia maritima; 7.6 to 30 μg/g in water boatmen, Corixidae; 12 to 40 μ/g in mosquitofish, Gambusia affinis; 86 to 100 μg/g in eared grebe, Podiceps niqricollis, livers; 14 to 120 μg/g in ruddy duck, Oxyura jamaicensis, livers; and 6.8 to 48 μg/g in northern shoveler, Anas clypeata, livers. Concentrations of dissolved selenium ranged from less than 1 to 37 μg/L during a 12-month period for inflows to the drainwater evaporation ponds.
Management of acute febrile illness.

Chez un enfant febrile il faut considerer la toxicite, l'etat immunitaire et l'âge. L'approche du diagnostic et le traitement general sont abordes
Middle Stone Age human fossils from Die Kelders Cave 1, Western Cape Province, South Africa

Die Kelders Cave 1 (DK1) preserves a thick series of Middle Stone Age (MSA) horizons that date to a fairly short temporal interval sometime between about 60 and 80 ka ago. Twenty-seven human fossils, comprising 24 isolated teeth, a mandibular fragment, and two manual middle phalanges derive from seven of the 12 layers. The vast majority are children, and all may have come from sub-adult individuals. The entire assemblage may represent a minimum of ten individuals. As might be expected for teeth of such antiquity, most of the DK1 crowns tend to be large in comparison to recent African homologues. They tend to be smaller than, albeit more similar in size to, the teeth of penecontemporaneous archaic populations from Eurasia. The majority of morphological variants displayed by the DK1 crowns characterize the teeth of recent sub-Saharan Africans, and the DK1 crowns resemble those of recent Africans in a number of traits that have been used to define a sub-Saharan African regional complex. The morphological similarities between the DK1 MSA and recent African teeth, however, do not necessarily signify a close evolutionary relationship between them, because these crowns variants appear to be plesiomorphic.
Our Objectives and a Plan for Their Better Distribution

Author's summary.— Pedagogical principles and educational policy dictate concentration on, and completion of, one skill at a time: a) a speaking knowledge of the foreign language in the high school; b) an adequate academic reading knowledge in the first college course; and c) a substantial course in literature in the second college year.
Economic Analysis of Coal Waste Disposal: Research Considerations for Environmental Regulation

In 2002, the National Academy of Sciences of the United States published a study of coal waste impoundments. This study outlined several economic and environmental research issues that remain unknown to regulators and policymakers. In response to the National Academy report, this paper outlines economic considerations regarding the commercial, social and environmental issues surrounding coal waste disposal in the United States. Of particular emphasis is the absence of estimates regarding the level of regulation currently in place concerning coal slurry impoundments. Optimal regulatory interventions should, we argue, be founded upon an understanding of market structure and the incremental net benefits that may be achieved by regulatory change. We review issues in market structure and in estimation processes for environmental evaluation of coal waste impoundments in the United States. We recommend three broad areas of research. First, we suggest a comprehensive evaluation of existing coal slurry impoundment...
The Lipid Droplet Protein Hypoxia-inducible Gene 2 Promotes Hepatic Triglyceride Deposition by Inhibiting Lipolysis

The liver is a major site of glucose, fatty acid, and triglyceride (TG) synthesis and serves as a major regulator of whole body nutrient homeostasis. Chronic exposure of humans or rodents to high-calorie diets promotes non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, characterized by neutral lipid accumulation in lipid droplets (LD) of hepatocytes. Here we show that the LD protein hypoxia-inducible gene 2 (Hig2/Hilpda) functions to enhance lipid accumulation in hepatocytes by attenuating TG hydrolysis. Hig2 expression increased in livers of mice on a high-fat diet and during fasting, two states associated with enhanced hepatic TG content. Hig2 expressed in primary mouse hepatocytes localized to LDs and promoted LD TG deposition in the presence of oleate. Conversely, tamoxifen-inducible Hig2 deletion reduced both TG content and LD size in primary hepatocytes from mice harboring floxed alleles of Hig2 and a cre/ERT2 transgene controlled by the ubiquitin C promoter. Hepatic TG was also decreased by liver-specific deletion of Hig2 in mice with floxed Hig2 expressing cre controlled by the albumin promoter. Importantly, we demonstrate that Hig2-deficient hepatocytes exhibit increased TG lipolysis, TG turnover, and fatty acid oxidation as compared with controls. Interestingly, mice with liver-specific Hig2 deletion also display improved glucose tolerance. Taken together, these data indicate that Hig2 plays a major role in promoting lipid sequestration within LDs in mouse hepatocytes through a mechanism that impairs TG degradation.
The effect of communication modality on cooperation in online environments

One of the most robust findings in the sociological literature is the positive effect of communication on cooperation and trust. When individuals are able to communicate, cooperation increases significantly. How does the choice of communication modality influence this effect? We adapt the social dilemma research paradigm to quantitatively analyze different modes of communication. Using this method, we compare four forms of communication: no communication, text-chat, text-to-speech, and voice. We found statistically significant differences between different forms of communication, with the voice condition resulting in the highest levels of cooperation. Our results highlight the importance of striving towards the use of more immediate forms of communication in online environments, especially where trust and cooperation are essential. In addition, our research demonstrates the applicability of the social dilemma paradigm in testing the extent to which communication modalities promote the development of trust and cooperation.
Dislocation reduction in GaN crystal by advanced-DEEP

Abstract Extremely low-dislocation density in GaN crystal was realized by a new method taking advantage of a polarity difference. Dot patterned layer and stripe patterned layer with periodicity were formed on GaAs initial substrates, respectively. Thick GaN crystals were grown on them by hydride vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE). In most area GaN was grown with Ga-polarity but only on the patterned layer GaN with N-polarity was grown. We call this area with N-polarity a core. At the core the GaN crystal always forms concave shape because of lower growth rate of N-polarity. So, inverse pyramidal pits or V-shaped valleys were formed placing cores at the bottom. The position of the pits and valleys was fixed by the cores during the growth. As the growth proceeds, dislocations existing on the facet plane of pit or V-shaped valley propagate to the core. Thus, dislocation density was drastically reduced. Treading dislocation density lower than 6×10 3 cm −2 was obtained between the cores. This process is improved process of dislocation elimination by the epitaxial-growth with inverse-pyramidal pits (DEEP) already we have proposed, so we call this new process as advanced-DEEP (A-DEEP).
Conjugal transfer of transposon Tn1545 into the cellulolytic bacterium Eubacterium cellulosolvens

is a Gram-positive, cellulolyticanaerobic ruminal bacterium. While rarely encountered inRuminants consume large volumes of plant material, a majorruminant microbial populations in the United States, thiscomponent of which is cellulose. As ruminants are totallyorganism appears to be prominant in European cattle (vandependent on microbial activity to degrade this poly-Gylswyk 1990). Strains of this organism are able to degradesaccharide, there has been much study of the physiologicalcrystalline cellulose and can be readily cultivated in the lab-features of anaerobic cellulolytic bacteria. This has led to theoratory.Thus,itprovidesanappropriatemodelforthestudyrealization that bacterial cellulolytic systems are far moreof ruminal bacterial cellulose degradation.complexthansimplytheproductionofextracellularcellulases(Be´guin and Lemaire 1996). However, it is unlikely that thecomplex features of ruminal cellulolytic bacteria will be fully
Scattering in a Pekeris waveguide from a rough bottom using a two-way coupled mode approach

Scattering from a rough ocean bottom is described numerically with a two-way coupled-mode formalism that contains scattering effects to all orders and provides an exact solution to the wave equation. Both scattered field and direct blast components are computed within the formalism framework. A comparison of the scattered component solution from the coupled mode with the Born approximation (BA) solution for scattering from a rough bottom Pekeris waveguide shows that the BA predicts correctly the scattered field levels but not detailed structure. The transition from direct blast to scattered field dominance is identified in the total field time series.
Bankers' Alliances and Economic Policy Patterns Evidence from Mexico and Brazil

This article suggests an organizational or institutional explanation of economic policy patterns which differs significantly from state- or society-centered explanations and those based on international factors. Bankers' alliances, defined as interest coalitions of public and private financiers, play an important role in shaping economic policy. The stronger the bankers' alliance, the more likely that long-run economic policy patterns will feature orthodox policies such as tight monetary policy and limited government intervention in financial or foreign exchange markets. The historical organization of state economic agencies, and of capital, create national environments more or less conducive to formation of strong bankers' alliances. The three key variables center on: (a) the timing and actors involved in central bank formation, (b) the relationship between the central bank and other state economic policy-making agencies, and (c) the extent of conglomeration between industrial and financial enterprises a...
Flocking of wheeled vehicles in the presence of large communication delay through a potential functional approach

This paper studies the flocking problem for a multi-agent system, where each agent is a vehicle with nonholonomic dynamics. In particular, we consider the case where the agents are subjected to an arbitrarily large communication delay. A distributed low gain control law is derived based on the gradient of an artificial potential function. We demonstrate using the Lyapunov functional approach that the proposed control law drives the multi-agent system into the stable flocking behavior. The effectiveness of the proposed control law is verified in numerical simulation.
Concrete spalling: controlled fire tests and review

The relationship of various fire conditions to the explosive removal of concrete chips from the surface of slabs (spalling) is explored by a review of the literature and controlled fire experiments. The review includes the many causes of spalling and the constituents of concrete as they relate to spalling. New experiments show that when up to two litres of gasoline are poured onto a slab and ignited, no spalling results. Conversely, small fires of normal construction materials result in extensive spalling accompanied by darkened areas at the perimeter of the spall. Explanations for these results are offered.
We Scream for Nano Ice Cream.

ABSTRACT There is a wide range of new products emerging from nanotechnology, and “nano ice cream” is an easy one that you can use to teach topics from surface area to volume applications. In this activity, students learn how ice cream can be made smoother and creamier tasting through nanoscience. By using liquid nitrogen to cool the cream mixture, students can sample nano ice cream and investigate how decreasing the size of the ice crystal affects the taste and texture of the ice cream.
Device implications of spin-transfer torques

This article examines spin-transfer torques from the perspective of three technological applications: hard disk drives, magnetic random access memory (MRAM), and current-tunable high-frequency oscillators. In hard disk drives, spin-transfer torques are a source of noise, and we discuss the implications spin-transfer noise will have on future sensor designs. For MRAM, we evaluate the feasibility of spin-transfer-driven switching. Finally, we discuss the possibility of GHz communication applications enabled by nanoscale spin-transfer oscillators.
International Earthquake Hazard Program underway

Over a year into the International Decade of Natural Disaster Reduction (IDNDR), significant steps were taken at the International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics (IUGG) assembly in Vienna last August to develop major activities in a number of associations. In particular, a broad program on the reduction of earthquake hazards was adopted by the International Association of Seismology and Physics of the Earth's Interior (IASPEI). First, a major IASPEI report on the proposed goals and activities of the association, “Minimizing Earthquake Vulnerability” (IASPEI Committee for IDNDR, 29 pp., 1991), was adopted. This report sets out program goals and an organization for dealing with proposals and allocating resources. It contains twenty-two recommendations that cover all aspects of seismological risk reduction and associated research and education. At the IUGG assembly, a keynote lecture on the decade and its relation to seismological work was given by R. Hamilton, director, United Nations-IDNDR Secretariat in Geneva.
Thin Film Acousto-Optic Devices

In this paper, thin film acousto-optic devices are discussed in terms of (1) the unique features in theoretical calculations which arise from the use of guided wave structures, (2) the possible device configurations which may improve efficiency and speed, (3) the thin film material and fabrication problems, (4) the transducer efficiency bandwidth trade-off, and (5) a comparison with bulk acousto-optic devices and thin film electro-optic devices. Recent experimental results for thin film acousto-optic modulators and convolvers are included.© (1976) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Enhanced light absorption in thin-film silicon solar cells by scattering from embedded dielectric nanoparticles

We investigate the light-trapping effects of dielectric nanoparticles embedded within the active semiconductor layer of a thin-film solar cell. The baseline model consists of a 1.0 μm slab of crystalline silicon on an aluminum back contact topped with a 75 nm Si 3 N 4 anti-reflective coating. Using finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) simulations, we calculate the absorption gain due to a periodic array of SiO 2 nanospheres with characteristic depth, diameter, and pitch. Under optimal conditions, spectrally integrated absorption gain due to embedded spheres can reach as high as 23.4 % relative to the baseline geometry. Using a geometry with an Au-core and SiO 2 shell, it is even possible to reach 30 % after accounting for Ohmic losses. We also discuss the trade-offs between broadband scattering efficiency, poor absorption at long-wavelengths, and semiconductor displacement due to the embedded nanospheres.
Variation in Adenovirus Receptor Expression and Adenovirus Vector-Mediated Transgene Expression at Defined Stages of the Cell Cycle

Detailed investigations have addressed the infection pathway of recombinant adenovirus (Ad) gene transfer vectors, but little attention has been paid to the influence of cell physiology on the outcome of Ad infection. Based on observations that Ad infection of clonal cell populations show cell-to-cell variability in the extent of capsid binding, we hypothesized that the cell cycle may influence the outcome of Ad infection. To address this hypothesis, we evaluated Ad association with cells in both unsynchronized and pharmacologically synchronized cell populations. In unsynchronized cell populations, elevated Ad association with cells correlated with expression of cyclin B1, a marker of entry into the M phase of mitosis. The same analysis conducted on cell populations that were synchronized at M phase (using paclitaxel or nocodazole) or at S phase (using aphidicolin) confirmed that M phase cells bound three- to sixfold more capsid compared with unsynchronized cells, which are primarily in the G1 and G2 phases. The elevated association of vectors with cells translated into 2.5- to 4-fold greater transgene expression 24 hours after infection. Assessment of cell surface expression of Ad receptors demonstrated that both the high-affinity coxsackie-adenovirus receptor for Ad fiber protein and the low-affinity αv inte-grin receptor for Ad penton base protein showed increased cell surface expression at M phase (1.5-fold and 2- to 3-fold increases, respectively). These data demonstrate that Ad infection of a homogenous population of cells can vary depending on the cell cycle stage, with enhanced Ad binding and expression correlating with the enhanced expression of Ad receptors during M phase. These observations have relevance to understanding the mechanisms of gene transfer by Ad vectors and should help in the design of in vivo gene transfer strategies.
Acute enlargement of the tongue

Acute enlargement of the tongue can present as an emergency. The problems of management in the acute situation and the diagnosis of the underlying condition are discussed and illustrated with reference to four unusual cases. There is a case for a simple classification and such a classification is presented.
Data mining for multiagent rules, strategies, and fuzzy decision tree structure

A fuzzy logic based resource manager (RM) has been developed that automatically allocates electronic attack resources in real-time over many dissimilar platforms. Two different data mining algorithms have been developed to determine rules, strategies, and fuzzy decision tree structure. The first data mining algorithm uses a genetic algorithm as a data mining function and is called from an electronic game. The game allows a human expert to play against the resource manager in a simulated battlespace with each of the defending platforms being exclusively directed by the fuzzy resource manager and the attacking platforms being controlled by the human expert or operating autonomously under their own logic. This approach automates the data mining problem. The game automatically creates a database reflecting the domain expert's knowledge. It calls a data mining function, a genetic algorithm, for data mining of the database as required and allows easy evaluation of the information mined in the second step. The criterion for re- optimization is discussed as well as experimental results. Then a second data mining algorithm that uses a genetic program as a data mining function is introduced to automatically discover fuzzy decision tree structures. Finally, a fuzzy decision tree generated through this process is discussed.© (2002) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Choosing printers for the office

Abstract The printers needed in the automated office differ greatly from those in DP. They must be of better quality, quiter, capable of similar speeds but not similar volumes and able to handle graphics. Technologies being used for office printers are thermal transfer, inkjet printing and laser printing.
Combinatorial knot contact homology and transverse knots

Abstract We give a combinatorial treatment of transverse homology, a new invariant of transverse knots that is an extension of knot contact homology. The theory comes in several flavors, including one that is an invariant of topological knots and produces a three-variable knot polynomial related to the A -polynomial. We provide a number of computations of transverse homology that demonstrate its effectiveness in distinguishing transverse knots, including knots that cannot be distinguished by the Heegaard Floer transverse invariants or other previous invariants.
Contextual influences on the sequential congruency effect

The sequential congruency effect (SCE) refers to the reduction in the size of the congruency effect following incongruent, relative to congruent, trials. Prior evidence indicated that the SCE does not generalize across tasks or different conflict-producing feature dimensions. We present results from a Stroop task showing that when the local list context is such that all colors and words appear in the same proportion of congruent trials, the SCE is present, but when those same items vary in the proportions congruent, the SCE is absent. We suggest that if stimuli are sufficiently consistent in the informativeness of their dimensions for the responses, individuals will attempt to track such information and weight the dimensions accordingly. In this way, the SCE reflects sequential adjustments to the weights given to individual stimulus dimensions in an attempt to track this information.
Abstract B41: Proteomic characterization of carboplatin resistance in ovarian cancer cells

The analysis of quantitative protein expression is necessary for the determination of actual biochemical protein concentrations that can lead to a more accurate description of cellular function. A knowledgebase of cancer function founded on cellular protein levels can more directly implicate potential gene candidates for the detection and treatment of disease. Therefore, we analyzed iTRAQ (Isobaric tag for relative and absolute quantification) data from 11 serous ovarian cancer cell lines and 2 normal ovarian surface epithelial cell lines. We profiled cellular protein abundance in over 2600 proteins with 746 proteins common to all 13 cell lines. Of the 746, 52 proteins exhibited elevated expression and 46 proteins had diminished expression in the cancerous cells when compared to the two normal cell lines. We identified the 300 most variable iTRAQ expressed proteins based on median absolute deviation within 8 carboplatin sensitive and resistant cell lines. Using iTRAQ protein expression profiles from these 300 we successfully segregated the cell lines based on carboplatin sensitivity and resistance measurements. Next, we further examined correlations among iTRAQ protein expression, individual gene RNA expression and DNA methylation data. There was no substantial correlation between protein abundance and RNA expression or epigenetic data. Furthermore RNA expression and DNA methylation data alone did not show any significant discrimination for chemosensitivity or resistance. Our clustering proteomics-based profile used to identify chemotherapy response contained proteins involved in homologous recombination and repair, specifically RPA, MCM2/MCM5 and PALB2. We therefore present the potential of proteomics based discovery for carboplatin response in ovarian cancer and also identify putative gene candidates that may be functionally responsible for chemotherapy response which otherwise would not have been predicted by other singular whole genome data sources. Citation Format: Kazimierz O. Wrzeszczynski, Gaofeng Fan, Cexiong Fu, Darryl J. Pappin, Robert Lucito, Nicholas K. Tonks. Proteomic characterization of carboplatin resistance in ovarian cancer cells. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on Advances in Ovarian Cancer Research: From Concept to Clinic; Sep 18-21, 2013; Miami, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Clin Cancer Res 2013;19(19 Suppl):Abstract nr B41.
Biologic Skin Substitutes

background. The ideal skin substitute should closely approximate the skin in function. The substitute should be readily available, easily sterilized and stored, and relatively inexpensive. objective. To describe recent developments in the area of biologic skin substitutes. results. Considerable advances have been made in keratinocyte and fibroblast culturing when used in conjunction with a biodegradable material as a substrate. conclusion. There is no skin substitute that perfectly mimics autologous skin. However, recent developments show promise.
Singlet carbenes as mimics for transition metals: synthesis of an air stable organic mixed valence compound [M2(C2)+˙; M = cyclic(alkyl)(amino)carbene]

A cyclic C-bromo-iminium bromide reacts with lithium trimethylsilyl acetylide to afford the title compound 2+˙ in 40% yield. In contrast to other organic mixed valence compounds, this radical cation can be stored in air. Oxidation and reduction of 2+˙ afford the corresponding dication 2++ and neutral cumulene 2, respectively, in good yields.
Employee buyouts: causes, structure, and consequences

Abstract This paper investigates the motivations for and consequences of including a broad group of employees in leveraged buyouts by comparing employee buyouts (EBOs) to transactions where only top level managers participate, or management buyouts (MBOs). We examine the implications of including employees in a buyout from a labor contracting, financing, and management control point of view. A major finding is that employee participation helps to finance the buyout. The EBO allows firms to gain access to excess pension assets by converting employees' defined benefit pension capital into equity claims, thus freeing the excess assets in the pension plan to help fund the buyout. Also, employee participation substitutes equity claims for cash labor compensation costs and therefore allows the firm to borrow more than otherwise would be possible. There is also evidence consistent with managers including employees to maintain or enhance incumbent management's control.