cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A performance curve for assessing change in Percentage of Consonants Correct Revised (PCC-R).

Purpose Interpreting the rapidly changing speech skills of young children recovering from neurological injury is difficult because developmental expectations are generally available only at relatively lengthy intervals (e.g., 6 or 12 months). In this research note, the authors describe the process of generating a Percentage of Consonants Correct–Revised (PCC-R; L. D. Shriberg, D. Austin, B. A. Lewis, J. L. McSweeny, & D. L. Wilson, 1997a) performance curve and illustrate some of its applications for assessing change in performance over time. Method The authors compiled mean PCC-R scores from 16 samples of typically developing children (18–172 months) and used curve fitting to test more than 11,000 statistical models of monthly growth in PCC-R. They selected a parsimonious and developmentally plausible model with R2 = .9839 (p < .0005) and used it to generate the PCC-R, standard deviation, and standard error expected at each monthly age. Results The PCC-R performance curve distinguished among 65 children (...
Intravenous/oral ciprofloxacin therapy of infections caused by multiresistant bacteria

Sixty patients were treated with ciprofloxacin: 19 received only intravenous ciprofloxacin, 41 received intravenous followed by oral ciprofloxacin. The mean duration of therapy was 28 days in the intravenous only group and 10 days intravenously and 80 days orally in the intravenous/oral group. Ten (17 percent) patients received 200 mg intravenously every 12 hours and 49 (82 percent) 300 mg every 12 hours. The overall clinical response was 85 percent, with a bacteriologic response of 70 percent. The lowest bacteriologic response (38 percent) occurred in the 13 patients treated for Pseudomonas respiratory infection. Clinical response occurred in 24 of 26 patients with soft-tissue infection, and 10 of 13 patients with respiratory infection. Of three patients with endocarditis, therapy failed in two with resistance developing in Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus. Overall, 19 percent of 26 P. aeruginosa isolates developed resistance to ciprofloxacin. Toxicity was minor, with phlebitis and nausea most commonly reported. Intravenously administered ciprofloxacin or intravenous followed by oral ciprofloxacin is a safe, effective therapy for serious infections due to multiply resistant gram-negative bacteria, including P. aeruginosa and S. aureus.
Band Structure and Optical Properties of Silicon Dioxide

The mixed-basis method has been used to compute the energy bands of an idealized $\ensuremath{\beta}$-cristobalite form of silicon dioxide. A direct-forbidden optical-absorption edge is predicted. Peaks in observed x-ray emission and optical-absorption spectra identified with critical points in the densities of states.
When HIV spread afar.

Since the first cases of AIDS were described in the United States in 1981, the origin of this devastating disease has intrigued scientists and the general public alike. This fascination is reflected in the numerous theories put forth for the emergence of HIV, the most infamous of which involves the alleged use of HIV-contaminated oral polio vaccine in Africa during the late 1950s (1). Thankfully, a steady stream of virological data and phylogenetic analyses now means that the oral polio vaccine theory has rightly been assigned to the back shelves of science fiction (2). The article by Gilbert et al. in this issue of PNAS (3) similarly uses an elegant combination of virology and phylogeny to shed light on another key moment in the history of HIV: its spread from an origin in Africa to the Americas.
Education, poverty, and structural change in Africa: Lessons from Côte d'Ivoire

Abstract This article argues that the focus on government expenditure, present in many assessments of the impact of structural adjustment on the social sectors, is misplaced. A case study of Cote d'Ivoire shows that during a period of structural change, the poorest segments of the population suffered a significant deterioration in access to education and educational achievement. Yet, countrywide indicators were stable or declined only slightly, and government expenditure indicators even showed an upward trend. Reliance on the latter would lead to the wrong policy conclusion and the failure to note the needed reorientation of government expenditure and retargeting of education services towards the poorest.
Phosphorylation state of Olig2 regulates proliferation of neural progenitors.

SUMMARY The bHLH transcription factors that regulate early development of the central nervous system can generally be classified as either antineural or proneural. Initial expression of antineural factors prevents cell cycle exit and thereby expands the pool of neural progenitors. Subsequent (and typically transient) expression of proneural factors promotes cell cycle exit, subtype specification, and differentiation. Against this backdrop, the bHLH transcription factor Olig2 in the oligodendrocyte lineage is unorthodox, showing antineural functions in multipotent CNS progenitor cells but also sustained expression and proneural functions in the formation of oligodendrocytes. We show here that the proliferative function of Olig2 is controlled by developmentally regulated phosphorylation of a conserved triple serine motif within the amino-terminal domain. In the phosphorylated state, Olig2 maintains antineural (i.e., promitotic) functions that are reflected in human glioma cells and in a genetically defined murine model of primary glioma.
The pathophysiology of restricted repetitive behavior

Restricted, repetitive behaviors (RRBs) are heterogeneous ranging from stereotypic body movements to rituals to restricted interests. RRBs are most strongly associated with autism but occur in a number of other clinical disorders as well as in typical development. There does not seem to be a category of RRB that is unique or specific to autism and RRB does not seem to be robustly correlated with specific cognitive, sensory or motor abnormalities in autism. Despite its clinical significance, little is known about the pathophysiology of RRB. Both clinical and animal models studies link repetitive behaviors to genetic mutations and a number of specific genetic syndromes have RRBs as part of the clinical phenotype. Genetic risk factors may interact with experiential factors resulting in the extremes in repetitive behavior phenotypic expression that characterize autism. Few studies of individuals with autism have correlated MRI findings and RRBs and no attempt has been made to associate RRB and post-mortem tissue findings. Available clinical and animal models data indicate functional and structural alterations in cortical-basal ganglia circuitry in the expression of RRB, however. Our own studies point to reduced activity of the indirect basal ganglia pathway being associated with high levels of repetitive behavior in an animal model. These findings, if generalizable, suggest specific therapeutic targets. These, and perhaps other, perturbations to cortical basal ganglia circuitry are mediated by specific molecular mechanisms (e.g., altered gene expression) that result in long-term, experience-dependent neuroadaptations that initiate and maintain repetitive behavior. A great deal more research is needed to uncover such mechanisms. Work in areas such as substance abuse, OCD, Tourette syndrome, Parkinson’s disease, and dementias promise to provide findings critical for identifying neurobiological mechanisms relevant to RRB in autism. Moreover, basic research in areas such as birdsong, habit formation, and procedural learning may provide additional, much needed clues. Understanding the pathophysioloy of repetitive behavior will be critical to identifying novel therapeutic targets and strategies for individuals with autism.
Measuring Topological Congruence by Extending Character Techniques

A measure of topological congruence which is an extension of the Mickevich–Farris character incongruence metric (i.e., ILD; Mickevich and Farris, 1981) is proposed. Group inclusion characters (1 = member of a clade; 0 = not a member) are constructed for each topology to be considered. The sets of characters derived from the topologies are then compared for character incongruence due to data set combination. Each homoplasy signifies a disagreement among topological statements. The value is normalized for potential maximum incongruence to adjust values for unresolved topologies. This measure is compared to other topological and character congruence techniques and explored in test data.
Spectral estimation techniques for the spectral calibration of a color image scanner

Several methods of spectral sensitivity estimation for color image scanners are developed and evaluated. The estimation procedure involves response measurements of the scanner through a set of spectrally selective filters. These measurements form the observations for generalized inverse, smoothing, and Wiener estimation processes. Wiener estimation is found to provide the best results.
Efficacy of Standards vs. Incentives for Managing the Environmental Impacts of Agriculture

The environmental impacts of agriculture depend on both the long-run and short-run production decisions of farmers. In the long-run, technologies and quasi-fixed factors are selected and put in place through investment. In the short-run, production plans are made and implemented conditionally upon available technologies and quasi-fixed factors. An important implication is that the environmental effects of agricultural activities result from an integration of economic decisions, private good production practices and biophysical processes. Viewed from a system perspective, these processes transform a set of private and environmental inputs into a set of private good and environmental outputs. It follows from this logic that the environmental impacts or performance of agriculture result not only from the nature of available technologies, but also how those technical opportunities are exploited in response to market and public policy incentives and constraints. This paper presents results of an application of such an integrated model of biophysical and economic processes to evaluate the potential responsiveness of water quality impacts of agricultural field crop practices to changes in economic incentives.
Survival and Reproduction of Pen-Reared vs Translocated Wild Pheasants Phasianus colchicus

We compared vital rates of two different ring-necked pheasant Phasianus colchicus stocks (pen-reared and wild) and assessed effects of predator control on these pheasants released into current range. Wild (31 males and 112 females) and pen-reared (230 males and 1,059 females) ring-necked pheasants were released in spring into two areas in southern Idaho during 2000–2001 to augment low resident populations. Wild female survival (value ± 95% CI) from 1 March-1 October was significantly greater than that of pen-reared females in both 2000 (0.40 ± 0.14, N = 62 vs 0.04 ± 0.07, N = 49) and 2001 (0.43 ± 0.16, N = 40 vs 0.08 ± 0.10, N = 40). Of 134 documented deaths of radio-marked female pheasants, 54% were due to unknown predation, 26% to mammalian predators, 12% to avian predators, 4% to natural causes, and 4% were human caused. Wild females had a 0.23 ± 0.09 (N=88) nesting rate and pen-reared females 0.28 ± 0.18 (N = 25). During 2001, predators were removed within our study areas. Survival of wild male pheasa...
Hydraulic properties of coarsely and finely ground woodchips

Summary Recent evidence suggests that leachate from woodchips stockpiled at recycling facilities could negatively impact water quality. Models that can be used to simulate water movement/leachate production require information on water retention and hydraulic conductivity functions of the stockpiled material. The objectives of this study were to (1) determine water retention and hydraulic conductivity functions of woodchips with particle size distributions (PSDs) representative of field stockpiled material by modeling multistep outflow and (2) assess the performance of three pore structure models for their ability to simulate outflow. Six samples with contrasting PSDs were assessed in duplicate. Samples were packed in cylindrical columns (15.3 cm high, 12.1 cm wide) to measure saturated hydraulic conductivity ( K s ), cumulative outflow and water content at equilibrium with pressure potentials of −2, −10 and −40 cm. Water retention at pressure potentials between −200 and −10,000 cm were obtained using pressure plate extractors and used to supplement data from the outflow experiment. Hydraulic parameters of the pore models were derived from these measurements using HYDRUS-1D run by DREAM (ZS) . K s was independent of PSD with values between 55 and 80 cm/h. Cumulative outflow at each pressure potential was correlated with the PSD geometric mean diameters, and was best predicted by a model having two interacting pore domains, each with separate hydraulic conductivity and water retention functions (DPeM). Unsaturated conductivities were predicted to drop on an average to 0.24 cm/h at −10 cm and 3 × 10 −3 cm/h at −50 cm for the DPeM model, suggesting that water would move slowly through stockpiles except during intense rainfalls.
Optimal nonimaging integrated evacuated solar collector

A non imaging integrated evacuated solar collector for solar thermal energy collection is discussed which has the lower portion of the tubular glass vacuum enveloped shaped and inside surface mirrored to optimally concentrate sunlight onto an absorber tube in the vacuum. This design uses vacuum to eliminate heat loss from the absorber surface by conduction and convection of air, soda lime glass for the vacuum envelope material to lower cost, optimal non imaging concentration integrated with the glass vacuum envelope to lower cost and improve solar energy collection, and a selective absorber for the absorbing surface which has high absorptance and low emittance to lower heat loss by radiation and improve energy collection efficiency. This leads to a very low heat loss collector with high optical collection efficiency, which can operate at temperatures up to the order of 250 degree(s)C with good efficiency while being lower in cost than current evacuated solar collectors. Cost estimates are presented which indicate a cost for this solar collector system which can be competitive with the cost of fossil fuel heat energy sources when the collector system is produced in sufficient volume. Non imaging concentration, which reduces cost while improving performance, and which allows efficient solar energy collection without tracking the sun, is a key element in this solar collector design.© (1993) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Active photo-physical processes in the pulsed UV nanosecond laser exposure of photostructurable glass ceramic materials

We have performed experiments in which sample coupons of a commercial photostructurable glass ceramic (PSGC) material have been carefully exposed to various photon doses by pulsed UV nanosecond lasers at λ = 266 nm and λ = 355 nm. Following UV laser irradiation, the samples were analyzed by optical transmission spectroscopy to investigate the latent image and identify the photo-induced trapped (defect) state. The irradiated samples were thermally processed and the quenching of this trapped state and the concurrent growth of a spectral band associated with the formation of nanometer-scale metallic clusters was then observed using optical transmission spectroscopy. The results show that exposure at λ = 266 nm generates a defect state distribution that is markedly broader compared with the defect state distribution that is generated via λ = 355 nm excitation. The defect concentration formed with λ = 266 nm radiation is also much larger compared with the defect concentration associated with λ = 355 nm exposure. The results reveal that the metallic cluster concentration saturates with increasing laser irradiance, while the defect state concentration does not saturate. These studies have identified two precursor states of the exposed PSGC material that are tractable via spectroscopic techniques and could be used to refine the laser exposure and thermal processing of PSGC materials.© (2004) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Complexes of benzo-15-crown-5 with protonated primary amines and diamines ☆

Three complexes of benzo-15-crown-5 (B15C5) with protonated primary amines [PhCH 2 NH 3 (B15C5)](ClO 4 ), [ p -C 6 H 4 (CH 2 NH 3 ) 2 (B15C5) 2 ](ClO 4 ) 2 , and [(CH 2 ) 4 (NH 3 ) 2 (B15C5) 2 ](SCN) 2 were isolated and studied in acetonitrile solutions by NMR, and in the solid state by X-ray crystallography. In all complexes, one B15C5 molecule was bound with each R-NH 3 + moiety with characteristic small separation of 1.84–1.86 A between the nitrogen of the R-NH 3 + group and the O 5 mean plane of the crown residue. No sandwich-type complexes with a 1:2 R-NH 3 + /B15C5 stoichiometry were observed. Binding affinities of B15C5 in acetonitrile were similar for all ammonium cations studied: K 1 =550±10 M −1 for [PhCH 2 NH 3 ] + ; K 1 =1100±100 and K 2 =400±30 M −1 for [ p -C 6 H 4 (CH 2 NH 3 ) 2 ] 2+ ; and K 1 =1100±100 and K 2 =300±30 M −1 for [H 3 N(CH 2 ) 4 NH 3 ] 2+ . The complexation is primarily enthalpy-driven (Δ H °=−4.9±0.5 kcal/mol, Δ S °=−3.8±1.0 eu for PhCH 2 NH 3 + –B15C5), as determined by variable temperature 1 H NMR titrations.
Use of the erythrocyte sedimentation rate in chronically III, elderly patients with a decline in health status

Abstract A decline in health status in a chronically III, elderly patient could mean the progression of a known disease, depression, or the development of a new disease. The value of the erythrocyte sedimentation rate in selecting patients in whom the likelihood of a new disease is high enough to warrant a diagnostic evaluation was studied. Subjects included long-term residents of a chronic-care hospital over age 65 in whom the erythrocyte sedimentation rate was determined because of a nonspecific, subacute change in health status (n = 98) or new, unexplained musculoskeletal complaints (n = 44). The target erythrocyte sedimentation rate-elevating diseases included infections, connective tissue diseases, and malignancies. Among the group with subacute deterioration, post-test probabilities (incorporating clinical data with test results) of a new disease ranged from 7 percent in those with an erythrocyte sedimentation rate below 20 mm per hour to 66 percent in those with a rate of 50 mm per hour or more. The comparable probabilities among the group with musculoskeletal complaints were 3 percent and 57 percent. The erythrocyte sedimentation rate, an inexpensive test, although nonspecific, appears useful in deciding when to pursue expensive, and sometimes uncomfortable or hazardous, diagnostic evaluations. The erythrocyte sedimentation rate is most useful among patients in whom the probability of disease is moderate (neither very high nor very low) following initial history-taking and examination.
Division of labor for oncogene BCL6

In this issue of Blood , Parekh and colleagues provide the first evidence that BCL6 uses different corepressor proteins for different functions. BCL6 requires the Mta3 corepressor to control B-cell differentiation, but not to control cell proliferation and survival. BCL6 is tightly linked to the pathogenesis of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, and this work has implications for the development of therapies that target BCL6 function.
Dopamine D1 and μ-opioid receptor antagonism blocks anticipatory 50 kHz ultrasonic vocalizations induced by palatable food cues in Wistar rats

Fifty kilohertz ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs) have been sometimes shown to reflect positive affective-like states in rats. Rewarding events, such as access to palatable food or drugs of abuse, increase the number of anticipatory 50-kHz USVs. However, little is known about the predictability of USVs, subtypes of USVs involved, and underlying neurobiological mechanisms. We examined whether cue-induced anticipatory 50-kHz USVs predict palatable food intake and tested the effects of dopamine D1 and μ-opioid receptor antagonism on anticipatory USVs. Food-restricted rats received repeated sessions of a 2-min cue light immediately followed by a 5-min access to palatable food. Ultrasonic vocalizations were recorded during cue presentation. After 24 pairing sessions, the rats were pretreated with the D1 receptor antagonist SCH 23390 (5, 10, and 20 μg/kg) and μ-opioid receptor antagonist naltrexone (0.03, 0.06, 0.13, 0.25, 0.5, and 1 mg/kg) in a Latin-square design, and USVs were recorded during cue presentation. Rats emitted 50-kHz USVs during cue presentation, and the number of USVs increased across sessions with robust and stable interindividual differences. Escalation in USVs was subtype-dependent, with nontrill calls significantly increasing over time. Palatable food intake was positively correlated with anticipatory 50-kHz USVs. Moreover, anticipatory USVs were dose-dependently prevented by antagonism of D1 and μ-opioid receptors. These findings demonstrate that anticipatory 50-kHz USVs represent a stable phenotype of increased motivation for food, and dopamine and opioid systems appear to mediate anticipatory 50-kHz USVs.
Weight-related attitudes and beliefs of obese African-American women

Abstract Results from the attitude and belief components of a questionnaire administered to obese African-American women are described. Subjects were 181 women recruited via flyers placed in churches, clinics, and community centers. Women met six criteria: (1) defined themselves as African-American or black; (2) had body mass indices (BMI; kg/m2) of at least 28; (3) stated that they weighed too much; (4) stated that they wanted to lose at least 20 pounds; (5) stated that someone in their household was employed; and (6) were between 40 and 65 years of age. Each woman completed a structured interview and her weight and height were measured. Most women had a BMI of 36 (severely obese), a yearly income of $18,000 to $24,000, completed some college, relied primarily on family and friends for social support, knew what to eat more and less of, and believed that people can lose weight and that being overweight is unhealthy. They perceived themselves to be too heavy, wanted to be rather thin, and believed that men would find thin women most attractive. Finally, they saw receiving help from a professional and ease of program participation as central to their involvement. Thus, among these women, obesity was not an obvious result of a general lack of nutritional knowledge, inaccurate self-perceptions of body size, or the desire for a plump figure.
Market Forces in Education

L'auteur presente une vue generale des arguments avances en faveur d'une augmentation des activites de marche en education et etablit un bilan general des cas ou une approche de marche a ete implantee en education. Ces theories souvent rejetees par les pedagogues et educateurs, peuvent aider a ameliorer l'efficacite du systeme educatif, quand ces forces de marche sont utilisees de facon adequate dans ce contexte et ne vont pas a l'encontre des objectifs et precepts sociaux de l'education.
Heat transfer in beds of fine particles (heat transfer perpendicular to flow)

Effective thermal conductivites were evaluated for beds of fine glass beads from experimental data on heat transfer perpendicular to the direction of fluid flow. Results were obtained for a bead size range of 29 to 940 μ and for carbon dioxide, nitrogen, helium, and a C7 hydrocarbon liquid. The results showed that over the range of flow rate studied 0 to 80 lb./(hr.sq.ft.), or modified Reynolds number from 0 to 6.6, there was no effect of flow on the conductivity. Hence the measured stagnant conductivity k°e also satisfactorily represented heat transfer for flowing conditions. In view of this result, methods of predicting the stagnant conductivity were re-examined and a revised prediction method proposed. The equations are based upon a model which supposes energy to be transferred through a continuous fluid phase and through the solid particles by a solid-fluid series mechanism. The equations are compared with the data available in the literature.
Measuring Qualitative Aspects of Teaching in Physical Education

Abstract Few systematic observation instruments are available in physical education for measuring qualitative aspects of the teaching process. This article describes an instrument designed to measure the qualitative aspects of teaching in physical education. This instrument can be used to collect information about lesson introductions, task presentations, and lesson closures and is designed to be used with preservice and/or inservice teachers to improve quality of teaching.
β-endorphin and methionine-enkephalin levels in discrete brain regions, spinal cord, pituitary gland and plasma of morphine tolerant-dependent and abstinent rats

The effect of morphine tolerance-dependence, protracted and naloxone-precipitated abstinence on the levels of beta-endorphin and methionine-enkephalin in discrete brain regions, spinal cord, pituitary gland and plasma was determined in the male Sprague-Dawley rats. Among the brain regions examined, the levels of beta-endorphin in descending order were: hypothalamus, amygdala, midbrain, hippocampus corpus striatum, pons and medulla and cortex. The levels of beta-endorphin in midbrain, hypothalamus, and pituitary of morphine tolerant-dependent rats were decreased significantly. During protracted withdrawal beta-endorphin levels were decreased in amygdala, spinal cord and pituitary. During naloxone-precipitated abstinence beta-endorphin levels were increased in corpus striatum, midbrain and cortex. In addition, in naloxone-precipitated abstinence beta-endorphin levels were decreased in pituitary gland and hippocampus but increased in plasma. The levels of methionine-enkephalin in brain regions in decreasing order were: corpus striatum, pons and medulla, amygdala, hypothalamus, midbrain, hippocampus and cortex. The levels of methionine-enkephalin in pons and medulla, amygdala, hippocampus and pituitary gland were decreased in morphine tolerant-dependent rats. During protracted abstinence from morphine, methionine-enkephalin levels in spinal cord, amygdala, pons and medulla, midbrain, cortex, corpus striatum and pituitary gland were decreased. The levels of methionine-enkephalin in hypothalamus and corpus striatum of naloxone-precipitated abstinent rats were increased but were decreased in amygdala and pituitary gland. These results suggest that during morphine tolerance-dependence and during protracted abstinence beta-endorphin and methionine-enkephalin levels in discrete brain regions and pituitary gland are decreased.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Enlargement of the optic disk in childhood optic nerve tumors.

Two children, a 9-year-old girl and an 8-month-old girl, were first examined because of unilateral proptosis. Both children were found to have unilateral optic nerve glioma, accompanied in the second case by neurofibromatosis. Two years after Patient 1 was first examined, the initial findings of thin vertical retinal striae and a gray opacification of the peripapillary retina had resolved. The enlarged left optic disk had an average diameter of 2 mm while that of the normal right optic disk was 1.6 mm. The disk-arteriolar ratio was R.E.: 16:1 and L.E.: 20:1. Four years later, the patient's visual acuity was still 20/20 in both eyes and the only visual field abnormality was an enlarged blind spot corresponding to the enlarged left optic nerve head. Fundus photographs, orbital echography, and computed tomography showed no change in the size or location of the optic nerve glioma during the six-year follow-up period. In Case 2, the initial intraocular pressure was higher in the proptotic right eye than in the left eye (25 vs 19 mm Hg), but subsequent intraocular pressures were within normal limits and approximately equal in the two eyes. The disk-arteriolar ratio was R.E.: 21:1 and L.E.: 18:1 and the cup-disk ratio was R.E.: 0.7 and L.E.: 0.3. Computed tomography disclosed an enlarged right retrobulbar optic nerve, a superior orbital fissure that was much larger on the right than on the left, and a larger cavernous sinus on the right. The right sphenoid bone was partially absent. Despite mild developmental delay, the patient's visual acuity apparently remained normal and the ophthalmologic findings did not change significantly during the 18-month follow-up period.
Amplitude analysis of single-wavelength time-dependent absorption data does not support the conventional sequential mechanism for the reduction of dioxygen to water catalyzed by bovine heart cytochrome c oxidase.

The reactions of fully reduced and mixed-valence bovine heart cytochrome c oxidase with dioxygen have been reinvestigated in the absence and presence of metal ions (Zn2+, Ni2+, and Cd2+) by time-resolved optical absorption spectroscopy using the CO flow-flash technique. The time-resolved data were recorded on a microsecond to millisecond time scale at 442, 610, and 820 nm and subjected to quantitative amplitude analysis based on a conventional unidirectional sequential mechanism. The amplitudes of the sequential intermediates are derived from the absorbance changes associated with the different exponentials and from the kinetic equations of the sequential scheme. The general relationship between the pre-exponential factors and the absorbance of the successive intermediates in the sequential scheme is presented. A comparison of the experimental amplitudes of the individual intermediates with the model amplitudes at the three wavelengths indicates that the low spin heme a is incompletely oxidized during the...
Comparison of four human studies of perinatal exposure to methylmercury for use in risk assessment

Newer data from human epidemiologic studies of methylmercury (MeHg) poisoning in which perinatal exposure occurred are available from four distinct populations. The results of an Iraqi grain-consuming population are compared to results from studies performed in fish-consuming groups in the Faroe Islands, the Seychelles Islands and in Peruvian fishing villages. A comparison of the results indicate that the Iraqi population does not represent a sensitive subpopulation within a perinatal group, but rather the relative lower threshold identified from this study was the result of confounders. Use of this benchmark dose for regulatory purposes may place a severe limitations upon fish consumption in the United States that is not fully supported by the scientific data.
Habitat Availability Is a More Plausible Explanation than Insecticide Acute Toxicity for U.S. Grassland Bird Species Declines

Grassland bird species have experienced substantial declines in North America. These declines have been largely attributed to habitat loss and degradation, especially from agricultural practices and intensification (the habitat-availability hypothesis). A recent analysis of North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) “grassland breeding” bird trends reported the surprising conclusion that insecticide acute toxicity was a better correlate of grassland bird declines in North America from 1980–2003 (the insecticide-acute-toxicity hypothesis) than was habitat loss through agricultural intensification. In this paper we reached the opposite conclusion. We used an alternative statistical approach with additional habitat covariates to analyze the same grassland bird trends over the same time frame. Grassland bird trends were positively associated with increases in area of Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) lands and cropland used as pasture, whereas the effect of insecticide acute toxicity on bird trends was uncertain. Our models suggested that acute insecticide risk potentially has a detrimental effect on grassland bird trends, but models representing the habitat-availability hypothesis were 1.3–21.0 times better supported than models representing the insecticide-acute-toxicity hypothesis. Based on point estimates of effect sizes, CRP area and agricultural intensification had approximately 3.6 and 1.6 times more effect on grassland bird trends than lethal insecticide risk, respectively. Our findings suggest that preserving remaining grasslands is crucial to conserving grassland bird populations. The amount of grassland that has been lost in North America since 1980 is well documented, continuing, and staggering whereas insecticide use greatly declined prior to the 1990s. Grassland birds will likely benefit from the de-intensification of agricultural practices and the interspersion of pastures, Conservation Reserve Program lands, rangelands and other grassland habitats into existing agricultural landscapes.
MODELS FOR SCOPOLAMINE, ATROPINE AND AMPHETAMINE EFFECTS ON AN ALTERNATE BAR PRESSING PARADIGM

A hypothetical neural network is presented to account for errors made by food-deprived albino-rats in a bar-pressing situation (Carlton, 1964). The rats were required to press alternately on two bars in order to activate a device that releases milk to them. When-ever an animal pressed consecutively on the same bar, no milk was released and the animal was scored as having committed an error. In the first part of the paper, a time-independent neural network, part of which is equivalent to the psychophysical discrimination network of H. D. Landahl (1938), is used to interpret the effects on the animals’ performances of the drugs amphetamine, scopolamine and atropine. Suggestions for further experiments are made on the basis of the initial form to the model. In the second part of the paper, certain parameters of the initial form of the model are assumed to be time-dependent and a further generalization occurs through the introduction of the interresponse time distribution. It is shown that, under specified conditions, the second form of the model reduces to the first. The time-dependent form of the model allows certain features to be discussed that could not be discussed in the time-independent form [e.g. P. Dew’s (1961) notion of a possible mode of action for a variety of the behavioral effects of amphetamine]. Furthermore, experiments of an essentially different type from those discussed in the first part can be proposed to aid in the development of a theory for this kind of behavioral situation.
Alcohol synthesis in a high-temperature slurry reactor

Abstract A family of hydrocarbon liquids has been discovered that is stable at temperatures up to about 400°C in the presence of synthesis gas. The performance of a commercial, ‘zinc chromite’, ‘high pressure’ methanol synthesis catalyst was evaluated in a slurry reactor using two of these liquids, decahydronaphthalene and tetrahydronaphthalene, to suspend the catalyst. The evaluation covered a range of temperatures from 275° to 425°C, total pressures from 6.9 to 17.2 MPa, H2/CO ratios from 0.5 to 2.0 and space velocities from 1500 to 10 000 sl kg(catalyst)−1 h−1. Methanol was the only significant product at the lower end of this temperature range. The methanol synthesis reaction was close to equilibrium at the highest temperature, and there were significant quantities of dimethyl ether, olefins, methane and carbon dioxide in the product. Catalyst performance was sensitive to the composition of the slurry liquid, but was relatively stable in decahydronaphthalene over a long period of time.
Aging of membrane transport mechanisms in the central nervous system — high affinity choline transport in rat cortical synaptosomes

Abstract High affinity choline transport has been studied in cortical synaptosomes from rats ranging from 2 months to 30 months of age. Initial velocities were measured as a function of both choline and sodium concentration. These data give similar fits to a kinetic model which was previously found to give minimal best fit to data from 2-month-old animals. Thus, aging has apparently not altered the fundamental mechanism by which carrier, sodium, and choline interact in the process pf uptake. Although some small differences in initial velocities were found between data from young and older animals, these differences showed no pattern and were not statistically significant. It is concluded that the choline transporter is unaffected by age, in contrast to the transporters for GABA and glutamic acid, whose transport capacities were found to decline with age.
Filamentous organization of molluscan muscles.

In the smooth muscles of molluscs two types of filamentous structures were found; thick filaments with diameters of 250–1500 , and thin filaments with diameters of about 50 . The thick filaments showed the 145 periodicity associated with paramyosin and it is proposed that they are constituted mostly from paramyosin, while actomyosin is localized in the thin filaments. The striated adductor of pecten is divided into myofibrils of about 1–3 micron diameter each surrounded by membrane. This muscle contains little paramyosin if any and its filamentous organization is similar to skeletal muscle, though the primary filaments are about 200–250 thick.
Incidence of Gastrointestinal Bleeding After Percutaneous Coronary Intervention: A Single Center Experience.

Background: Gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding is a hemorrhagic complication after percutaneous coronary intervention in patients with acute myocardial infarction. The purpose of the study is to determine predictors of GI bleeding and impact of GI bleeding on the patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention. Methods: GI bleeding occurred in 6 (7.1%) of 84 patients with STEMI/NSETMI (ST-segment elevated myocardial infarction/Non ST-segment elevated myocardial infarction) undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention. Results : Univariate analysis demonstrates that patients with GI bleeding had a significantly higher previous GI bleeding (16.66% vs. 8.6%, P < 0.001). Higher Killip classification at presentation was associated with higher incidence of GI bleeding (61% vs. 18%, P < 0.01). The use of proton pump inhibitors did not reduce the risk of GI bleeding. The GI bleeding in these patients was associated with higher mortality and morbidity in the post percutaneous coronary intervention period. Conclusion: Although, GI bleeding in patients with MI significantly increases mortality and morbidity, previous GI bleeding and higher Killip class are associated with higher incidence of GI bleeding. High-risk patients for GI bleeding can be identified at presentation. Cardiol Res. 2014;5(1):8-11 doi: http://dx.doi.o rg/10.14740/cr322 w
Criteria that forbid a large, nonlinear food-web model from having more than one equilibrium point

Abstract Mathematical models of great complexity are being developed to help in understanding the behavior of ecosystems, but succinct conclusions for large models are difficult to obtain. In this report, criteria are introduced that guarantee that a given food-web model has no more than one equilibrium point. These criteria consist of biologically reasonable constraints on the behavior of the growth rates of the species as functions of population density plus the restriction of the food web to loops of lengths 1 and 2. While this last condition probably does not hold for most real food webs, the theorem may be robust enough to apply over a large range of cases. Our analysis also suggests that increasing complexity in food-web models might be accompanied by a greater number of equilibrium points. Therefore, the chance of a system having at least one stable equilibrium point could increase as complexity increases, a conclusion of interest in the current debate over the relationship between stability and complexity.
Legally Tripping: A Qualitative Profile of Salvia Divinorum Use Among Young Adults

During recent years, there has been increasing interest in "legal highs" among youth and young adults. Salvia divinorum is a legally available hallucinogenic plant, primarily utilized in smokable form, that produces a brief but intense hallucinogenic experience for the user. Data are presented from an ethnographic project to provide a qualitative profile of salvia use among young adults. Most users report primarily using in home settings such as apartments and houses, although a significant minority report use in environments such as parks, bars, and parties. The intense nature of the substance creates a differential subjective experience. Some describe the intensity of the hallucinogenic experience in positive ways. Others find the experience so intense that they would not continue to use the substance. With regard to the health effects of salvia, most young adults report no significant negative health effects from salvia use, although some report a mental cloudiness. Beyond their own experiences, users did not report any negative health events among peers. The lack of reports of negative effects may reinforce social norms favorable towards salvia use. Overall, young adults report a relatively low risk profile for salvia divinorum, which may be influenced, in part, by its legal status.
A Chromatin Insulator-Like Element in the Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1 Latency-Associated Transcript Region Binds CCCTC-Binding Factor and Displays Enhancer-Blocking and Silencing Activities

A previous study demonstrated that the latency-associated transcript (LAT) promoter and the LAT enhancer/reactivation critical region (rcr) are enriched in acetyl histone H3 (K9, K14) during herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) latency, whereas all lytic genes analyzed (ICP0, UL54, ICP4, and DNA polymerase) are not (N. J. Kubat, R. K. Tran, P. McAnany, and D. C. Bloom, J. Virol. 78:1139-1149, 2004). This suggests that the HSV-1 latent genome is organized into histone H3 (K9, K14) hyperacetylated and hypoacetylated regions corresponding to transcriptionally permissive and transcriptionally repressed chromatin domains, respectively. Such an organization implies that chromatin insulators, similar to those of cellular chromosomes, may separate distinct transcriptional domains of the HSV-1 latent genome. In the present study, we sought to identify cis elements that could partition the HSV-1 genome into distinct chromatin domains. Sequence analysis coupled with chromatin immunoprecipitation and luciferase reporter assays revealed that (i) the long and short repeats and the unique-short region of the HSV-1 genome contain clustered CTCF (CCCTC-binding factor) motifs, (ii) CTCF motif clusters similar to those in HSV-1 are conserved in other alphaherpesviruses, (iii) CTCF binds to these motifs on latent HSV-1 genomes in vivo, and (iv) a 1.5-kb region containing the CTCF motif cluster in the LAT region possesses insulator activities, specifically, enhancer blocking and silencing. The finding that CTCF, a cellular protein associated with chromatin insulators, binds to motifs on the latent genome and insulates the LAT enhancer suggests that CTCF may facilitate the formation of distinct chromatin boundaries during herpesvirus latency.
Toward a Liberal Conception of School Communities Community and the Autonomy Argument

This article addresses the question of whether schools that are communities erode autonomy, by being grounded in a religion or comprehensive doctrine. I argue, first, that religions and comprehensive doctrines are not to be identified with ways of life. They provide criteria for judging choices, but admit diversity both in membership and in what may be chosen. Second, I claim that autonomy requires that children be provided with some evaluative framework and that the question of whether a school that gives a privileged place to some religion or comprehensive doctrine promotes or inhibits autonomy has more to do with the character of the doctrine and of the virtues it encourages than it has to do with the mere fact that a doctrine is privileged. Finally, I argue that it is unlikely that public schools will encourage the virtues required by autonomy.
The Interferon-Signature of Sjögren's Syndrome: How Unique Biomarkers Can Identify Underlying Inflammatory and Immunopathological Mechanisms of Specific Diseases.

Innate immune responses direct the nature and specificity of downstream adaptive responses in autoimmune diseases. One of the strongest markers of innate immunity is the up-regulated expression of interferon (IFN) and IFN-responsive/stimulated genes (IRGs/ISGs). While multiple IRGs are induced during the innate phase of host responses, transcriptome data suggest unique IRG-signatures for different diseases. Sjogren's syndrome (SjS) is characterized by chronic immune attacks against exocrine glands leading to exocrine dysfunction, plus strong up-regulated expressions of IFN IRG transcripts. Genome-wide transcriptome analyses indicate that differentially expressed IRGs are restricted during disease development and therefore define underlying etiopathological mechanisms. Here we review the innate immune-associated IFN-signature of SjS and show how differential gene expressions of IRG/ISG sets interact molecularly and biologically to identify critical details of SjS etiopathogenesis.
Effects of prior contractions on muscle microvascular oxygen pressure at onset of subsequent contractions.

In humans, pulmonary oxygen uptake (VO2) kinetics may be speeded by prior exercise in the heavy domain. This ‘speeding’ arises potentially as the result of an increased muscle O2 delivery (QO2) and/or a more rapid elevation of oxidative phosphorylation. We adapted phosphorescence quenching techniques to determine the QO2-to-O2 utilization (QO2/VO2) characteristics via microvascular O2 pressure (PO2,m) measurements across sequential bouts of contractions in rat spinotrapezius muscle. Spinotrapezius muscles from female Sprague-Dawley rats (n= 6) were electrically stimulated (1 Hz twitch, 3–5 V) for two 3 min bouts (ST1 and ST2) separated by 10 min rest. PO2,m responses were analysed using an exponential + time delay (TD) model. There was no significant difference in baseline and ΔPO2,m between ST1 and ST2 (28.5 ± 2.6 vs. 27.9 ± 2.4 mmHg, and 13.9 ± 1.8 vs. 14.1 ± 1.3 mmHg, respectively). The TD was reduced significantly in the second contraction bout (ST1, 12.2 ± 1.9; ST2, 5.7 ± 2.2 s, P 0.1). The shortened TD found in ST2 led to a reduced time to reach 63 % of the final response of ST2 compared to ST1 (ST1, 28.3 ± 3.0; ST2, 20.2 ± 1.8 s, P < 0.05). The speeding of the overall response in the absence of an elevated PO2,m baseline (which had it occurred would indicate an elevated QO2/VO2) or muscle blood flow suggests that some intracellular process(es) (e.g. more rapid increase in oxidative phosphorylation) may be responsible for the increased speed of PO2,m kinetics after prior contractions under these conditions.
Caregiver–Adolescent Dyadic Disagreement and Problem Behaviors of Adolescents in the Child Welfare System

Parents and adolescents often provide different ratings of youths' behavior problems, yet few studies have examined such disagreement and its effect on later adjustment, especially among at-risk adolescents. The purpose of this study was to investigate, among a sample of adolescents in foster care, whether the degree of caregiver–adolescent disagreement on adolescents' internalizing problems would be associated with adolescent externalizing problem behaviors over time. Two measures of adolescent caregiver agreement, the Pearson's r and intraclass correlations, were used with data drawn from a nationally representative study of children on foster care. Growth curve analyses of 180 adolescents revealed that the higher adolescent and caregiver agreement on adolescents' internalizing problems at Wave I, the slower the increase in externalizing problems over time.