cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of mass-transfer and kinetic parameters for Rhodospirillum rubrum in a continuous stirred tank reactor

The photosynthetic bacteriumRhodospirillum rubrum has been evaluated for its ability to produce hydrogen from carbon monoxide and water in a continuous stirred tank reactor according to the watergas shift reaction. An assessment of mass-transfer parameters and reaction kinetics was made for this sparingly soluble substrate system. Experiments were conducted in a nonsteady-state fashion with continuous liquid and gas flow, which allowed for separation of the mass-transfer and kinetic-limited regions. Based on the data obtained, mass-transfer coefficients for the system were determined, and a mathematical expression for the reaction kinetics was formulated. The results showed that the hydrogen production was inhibited by elevated levels of dissolved carbon monoxide in the liquid.
Theodore Burr’s Trenton Bridge

AbstractTheodore Burr built several very important bridges of various designs across the Hudson and Mohawk Rivers; however, none was as large as his bridge across the Delaware River in Trenton, New Jersey. The overall length of the five-span bridge was 1,008 ft with a width of 36 ft (1 m=3.28 ft). It was a unique bridge, with the deck suspended from arches and with partial covering. Construction started in 1804 and the structure opened as a toll bridge on January 30, 1806. With renovations and expansions, it served until 1875. The next bridge to cross the Delaware was Timothy Palmer’s bridge in Easton, Pennsylvania, which opened in late 1806.
Nocturnal seizures and the effects of anticonvulsants on sleep

Epilepsy is a common condition that affects up to 1% of the population. Patients with epilepsy are particularly sensitive to the adverse effects of sleep disruption. Failure to recognize and treat sleep disturbances can lead to worsening of attention, cognitive functioning, and quality of life, and can increase seizures. Anticonvulsant agents have the potential to either improve or worsen sleep and sleep disorders in patients with epilepsy. Therefore, awareness of the implications of sleep disorders and anticonvulsants is critical for the optimal care of patients with epilepsy.
A Phased Array RFIC With Built-In Self-Test Capabilities

An X-Band phased-array RF integrated circuit with built-in self-test (BIST) capabilities is presented. The BIST is accomplished using a miniature capacitive coupler at the input of each channel and an on-chip I/Q vector receiver. Systematic effects introduced with BIST system are covered in detail and are calibrated out of measurements. The BIST can be done at a rate of 1 MHz with 55 dB signal-to-noise-ratio and allows for the measurement of an on-chip array factor. Measurements done with BIST system agree well with S-parameter data over all test conditions. To our knowledge, this is the first implementation of an on-chip BIST with high accuracy.
Effect of Metabolic Acidosis on the Potassium Content of Bone

Metabolic acidosis induces resorption of cultured bone, resulting in a net efflux of calcium (Ca) from the bone and an apparent loss of mineral potassium (K). However, in these organ cultures, there is diffusion of K between the medium and the crystal lattice, causing difficulty in interpretation of the acid-induced changes in mineral ion composition. To determine the effects of acidosis on bone mineral K, we injected 4-day-old neonatal mice with pure stable isotope 41K, equal to approximately 5% of their total body K. Calvariae were dissected 24 h later and then cultured for 24 h in medium without added 41K, either at pH approximately 7.4 (Ctl) or at pH approximately 7.1 (Ac), with or without the osteoclastic inhibitor calcitonin (3 x 10(-9) M, CT). The bone isotopic ion content was determined with a high-resolution scanning ion microprobe utilizing secondary ion mass spectrometry. 41K is present in nature at 6.7% of total K. The injected 41K raised the ratio of bone 41K/(39K+41K) to 9.8+/-0.5% on the surface (ratios of counts per second of detected secondary ions, mean+/-95% confidence interval) but did not alter the ratio in the interior (6.9+/-0.4%), indicating biological incorporation of the 41K into the mineral surface. The ratios of 41K/40Ca on the surface of Ctl calvariae was 14.4+/-1.2, indicating that bone mineral surface is rich in K compared with Ca. Compared with Ctl, Ac caused a marked increase in the net Ca efflux from bone that was blocked by CT. Ac also induced a marked fall in the ratio of 41K/40Ca on the surface of the calvariae (43+/-0.5, p < 0.01 vs. Ctl), which was partially blocked by CT (8.2+/-0.9, p < 0.01 vs. Ctl and vs. Ac), indicating that Ac causes a greater release of bone mineral K than Ca which is partially blocked by CT. Thus, bone mineral surface is rich in K relative to Ca, acidosis induces a greater release of surface mineral K than Ca, and osteoclastic function is necessary to support the enriched levels of surface mineral K in the presence of acidosis.
Trends in U.S. Economics Majors: Why the Decline in the 1990s?

This paper identifies factors that are important in explaining recent trends in undergraduate economics majors. The decline in economics majors during the 1990s has caused concern in the profession because the declining trend had been attributed to a general decrease in student interest in the economics major. This study uses least squares regression techniques to explain trends in economics bechelor degrees granted by 20 New Jersey colleges and universities during the 1979–2000 period, with implications for the national level. The results show that trends in economics majors are primarily a function of demographic trends, business cycle conditions, and the desire to attend post-graduate professional school. None-the-less, the authors conclude that the declining trend in economics majors in the 1990s is still cause for concern because understanding economic principles is important in the development of a globally competitive workforce.
Factor VIIa and tissue factor – from cell biology to animal models

Binding of factor VIIa (FVIIa) to tissue factor (TF) and the subsequent initiation of the clotting cascade is essential for hemostasis. However, the aberrant expression of FVIIa-TF contributes to thrombosis. Despite the tremendous progress made in the past 25years in understanding the molecular mechanisms involved in the interaction between FVIIa and TF, there is less known about the cell biology of these proteins. Availability of hemophilic mice (by specific knock-out of FVIII or FIX genes) and novel TF transgenic mice has allowed us in recent years to investigate the importance of TF-FVIIa-induced coagulation from wound healing to sepsis. This supplement explores new aspects of TF-FVIIa biology, with a particular focus on structural biology, cell biology and animal models.
Plastic Deformations of Impulsively Loaded, Rigid-Plastic Beams

Rigid body dynamics is used to determine the deformation of a fixed-end, rigid-plastic beam subjected to uniformly distributed impulsive loading. The proposed solution methodology allows calculations of deformations at plastic hinges and can be used to establish rigid-plastic fracture criteria for rigid-plastic beams. Unlike previous solutions to this problem, rotary inertia and the shear deformations at the support are considered. The solution for beam deformations is described in three phases: shear, bending, and membrane. Each phase ends when the corresponding component of the strain rate vector vanishes. The initial shear phase is completed when the transverse shear velocity at the support vanishes. The beam then undergoes only rigid body rotation and axial stretching at plastic hinges in the bending phase. The bending phase ends when the angular velocity vanishes. In the membrane phase, the beam acts like a string until the transverse velocity vanishes. It has been found that beams subjected to low impulse velocity attain permanent deformation in the bending phase, while beams subjected to high impulse velocity reach permanent deformation in the membrane phase. The predictions of the beam deflections using the proposed methodology are within 15% of the experimental results.
Ruptured anterior nucleus pulposus between T1 and T2 causing a discrete esophageal defect and minimal dysphagia.

Abstract 1. 1. An unusual case of esophageal defect is reported due to rupture of the nucleus pulposus between T1 and T2. The only symptoms were a vague pressure sensation in the neck and slight difficulty in swallowing saliva. 2. 2. Review of the literature fails to reveal a similar case. 3. 3. This type of esophageal defect must be rare but should be listed in the differential diagnosis of extrinsic defects of the esophagus.
Fourier decomposition of properly elliptic boundary value problems in a half-plane

For a general class of second-order elliptic boundary value problems in the lower half-plane, we show that the existence and uniqueness of solutions in Lp Sobolev spaces is reduced to the invertibility of the ordinary differential operators obtained by Fourier decomposition. This terminology refers to the partial Fourier series expansion in the case of horizontally periodic solutions and to the partial Fourier transform otherwise. The problem is straightforward when p = 2 and, in the periodic case, the same question on a strip with finite width can also be quickly settled by indirect arguments irrespective of \({p \in (1, \infty )}\). However, in the half-plane, the infinite depth raises serious difficulties when p ≠ 2. These difficulties are overcome by writing the problem as a first-order system and using existing abstract results about operator valued Fourier multipliers. In that approach, the randomized boundedness of the resolvent becomes the central issue.
Heparin binding, internalization, and metabolism in vascular smooth muscle cells: II. Degradation and secretion in sensitive and resistant cells.

Smooth muscle cell (SMC) proliferation plays a critical role in several pathological states, including atherosclerosis and hypertension. Heparin suppresses SMC proliferation in vivo and in culture, but the mechanism of action is still poorly understood. In an accompanying article in this issue (Letourneur et al. [1995] J. Cell Physiol., 165:676–686), we observed that heparin binding was up-regulated in heparin-sensitive SMC but was rapidly down-regulated in heparin-resistant SMC continuously exposed to heparin. In this communication, we examine the degradation and secretion of internalized heparin in sensitive and resistant SMC, using gel filtration chromatography to analyze heparin degradation products. Pulse-chase experiments using radiolabeled heparin indicate that sensitive and resistant SMC secrete heparin during the first few hours after exposure. Experiments in which cells are continuously exposed to heparin indicate that degradation and secretion occur in both sensitive and resistant SMC for approximately 5–8 hr. After that time, however, binding and internalization in resistant SMC rapidly decrease and degradation and secretion stop. In contrast, heparin binding and uptake continue in sensitive SMC; degradation and secretion also continue. Chloroquine prevents degradation in both sensitive and resistant SMC, suggesting that catabolism occurs in the lysosomal compartment. The results presented in this and the accompanying article (Letourneur et al. [1995] J. Cell. Physiol., 165:676–686) suggest that heparin acts to upregulate its receptors, and that increased binding of heparin is required for the antiproliferative response. Degradation and secretion kinetics parallel the internalization kinetics and appear to be strongly linked to the binding process. © 1995 Wiley-Liss Inc.
849 EFFECTS OF SERUM IRON AND TRANSFERRIN CN BACTERIOSTAS-IS: IN VIVO-IN VITRO DIFFERENCES

Human serum inhibits the growth of a variety of microorganisms, including many pathogens. To a large extent, bacteriostasis is due to serum transferrin (Tr), which binds iron tightly, making it unavailable to bacteria which require the metal for nucleoprotein synthesis and growth. Addition of exogenous iron to serum abolishes its bacteriostasis. Weinberg's hypothesis of “nutritional immunity” postulates that unsaturated Tr is protective against infection and cautions that iron treatment might reduce host resistance by increasing serum iron. In most reported studies, iron has been added to serum in vitro rather than employing sera with varying intrinsic iron contents. We confirmed that normal heat-treated human serum inhibited growth of two pathogenic E. coli isolates. Addition of iron to saturate Tr abolished the bacteriostatic properties. In contrast, we found no differences in the rates of growth of a standardized inoculum of E. coli in sera from 3 iron-deficient, 17 normal, and 13 iron-overloaded individuals (serum Fe 26-349 μg/dl, Tr saturation 6-100%). Iron added to serum in vitro is probably non-specifically bound to several proteins from which bacteria can easily extract it. However, in vivo, the metal is completely and firmly complexed to Tr and hence non-available. The contention that ordinary iron treatment predisposes children to infection is not supported by a body of epidemiological evidence. Our studies provide experimental data which cast further doubt on “nutritional immunity” as an important host defense mechanism.
Nonlinear Dynamics in the Geosciences

In the past, “nonlinearity” has been used as the catchall phrase to describe processes in the geosciences that we could not understand, and is often used in this manner in current peer-reviewed literature and conference presentations. My graduate students often complain that their professors (me included) use nonlinearity to avoid answering difficult questions. However, during the course of the past 20 years there have been significant breakthroughs in our understanding of nonlinear dynamics that have been enabled by advances in high-speed computing but that reach far beyond simply solving nonlinear equations numerically. Understanding how regime transitions are possible without a change in the governing law is perhaps one of the best examples of how nonlinear dynamics has improved our understanding of geophysical phenomena.
Extrageniculostriate vision in the monkey. IV. Critical structures for lightvs. no-light discrimination

Abstract The purpose of the study was to determine which brain structures were critical for the capacity to perform a gross luminous flux discrimination in the absence of striate cortex. Fourteen monkeys were trained to a criterion of successful performance, set at 90% correct responses in 30 consecutive trials, on a light vs. no-light discrimination test, using specially designed automatic equipment which allowed predetermination of Gellerman schedules. All monkeys were able to relearn the test after complete bilateral excision of striate cortex and partial ablation of areas 18 and 19 (histologically verified). Additional bilateral lesions of the temporal neocortex, or posterior parahippocampal and retrosplenial allocortex, or pulvinars, or superior colliculi did not interfere significantly with the relearned habit. Instead, when the additional damage involved the superior colliculi and medial pretectum, there was a major discrimination deficit, but eventually these monkeys could reach the criterion level. Only when the lateral pretectal region was included in the latter lesion was there a failure to master the test in 6000 trials of postoperative testing. The effective damage caused bilateral severe degeneration of the nucleus of the accessory optic tract. Findings indicate that the mesodiencephalic junction contains critical structures for extrageniculostriate vision in the monkey and suggest that the accessory optic system could be one main source of visual input for the capacity to perform luminous flux discrimination tests in the absence of striate cortex.
Effect of the human immunodeficiency virus epidemic on mortality from opportunistic infections in the United States in 1993.

To measure the effect of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) epidemic on mortality from opportunistic infections (OIs) in 1993, national multiple-cause death certificate data were examined using two approaches. First, for each OI, the percentage of deaths with HIV infection reported as the underlying cause was calculated. Second, the age-adjusted rate of death per million population was compared with the rate predicted from a model of rates in 1970-1980 or 1979-1981, as available. The percentage of deaths with HIV as the underlying cause and the ratio of observed to predicted death rates were as follows: toxoplasmosis, 91% and 86 (5.24/0.06); cryptosporidiosis/ isosporiasis, 90% and infinite (1.61/0.00); progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy, 87% and 19 (2.58/0.13); pneumocystosis, 82% and 18 (15.44/0.87); cytomegalovirus disease, 82% and 17 (12.60/ 0.74); nontuberculous mycobacteriosis, 79% and 18 (15.51/0.84); cryptococcosis, 76% and 4 (5.80/ 1.35); and histoplasmosis, 68% and 6 (1.36/0.23). Thus, the HIV epidemic has greatly increased mortality from several OIs.
Photoregulation of Cellular Morphology during Complementary Chromatic Adaptation Requires Sensor-Kinase-Class Protein RcaE in Fremyella diplosiphon

We used wild-type UTEX481; SF33, a shortened-filament mutant strain that shows normal complementary chromatic adaptation pigmentation responses; and FdBk14, an RcaE-deficient strain that lacks light-dependent pigmentation responses, to investigate the molecular basis of the photoregulation of cellular morphology in the cyanobacterium Fremyella diplosiphon. Detailed microscopic and biochemical analyses indicate that RcaE is required for the photoregulation of cell and filament morphologies of F. diplosiphon in response to red and green light.
Deciding to Defect The Effects of Video-Game Violence on Cooperative Behavior

This experiment examined the effect of video-game violence on cooperative decision making. Participants (N= 48) were randomly assigned to play either a violent or a nonviolent version of the video game Doom in dyads. Following the video-game task, participants were separated and given an opportunity to choose to cooperate with their partner for mutual gain, withdraw from the interaction, or exploit their partner for their own benefit. Participants in the violent condition were significantly more likely to choose to exploit their partners than participants in the nonviolent condition. These findings suggest that playing violent video games may undermine prosocial motivation and promote exploitive behavior in social interactions.
Between School and Work: The Literacies of Urban Adolescent Females.

This article argues for a broader conception of both school and work literacies. I present the writing and narratives of adolescent females in their senior year of an urban high school to begin a dialogue about the ways schools and communities can support youth to both imagine and plan for their futures. Ethnographic research methods were used to collect narratives and construct case studies of four young women. In their nuanced pictures of youth, these narratives will inform educators, policy makers, and researchers as they write about and make decisions concerning the futures of these young people.
Neurogenetic studies of alcohol addiction

Neurogenetic studies of alcohol dependence have relied substantially on genetic animal models, particularly rodents. Studies of inbred strains, selectively bred lines and mutants bearing genes whose function has been targeted for over or under expression are reviewed. Studies focused on gene expression changes are the most recent contributors to this literature, and some genetic effects may work through epigenetic mechanisms. In a few instances, interesting parallels have been revealed between genetic risk in humans and studies in non-human animal models. Future approaches are likely to be increasingly complex.
Using mixins to build flexible widgets

When it comes to software that runs on devices as varied as cell phones, PDAs and desktops, one size does not fit all. This paper describes how mixin layers, a kind of nested generic type, can be used to implement a graphical user interface library that can be configured to run on platforms with widely dissimilar capabilities. We describe the language support needed to incrementally build software in layers, and we describe how crosscutting concerns can be encapsulated within a layer. We then show how layers can be reconfigured to meet changing requirements. We also show how a new design pattern, the Sibling pattern, can be used with mixin layers to coordinate changes to multiple classes in the same inheritance hierarchy. When used appropriately, the Sibling pattern increases our ability to separate design concerns and to reuse code.
Computation of shock wave reflection by circular cylinders

The nonstationary shock wave diffraction patterns generated by a blast wave impinging on a circular cylinder are numerically simulated using a second-order hybrid upwind method for solving the two-dimensional inviscid compressible Euler equations of gasdynamics. The diffraction was followed through about 6 radii of travel of the incident shock past the cylinder. A broad range of incident shock Mach numbers are covered. The complete diffraction patterns, including the transition from regular to Mach reflection, trajectory of the Mach triple point, and the complex shock-on-shock interaction at the wake region resulting from the Mach shocks collision behind the cylinder are reported in detail. Pressure-time history and various contour plots are also included. Comparison between the work of Bryson and Gross, which included both experimental schlieren pictures and theoretical calculations using Whitham's ray/shock theory, and results of the present finite-difference computation indicate good agreement in every aspect except for some nonideal gas and viscous effects that are not accounted for by the Euler equations.
Multiresolution analysis in non-homogeneous media

Summary form only given, as follows. Various versions of wavelet analysis valid in a non-translation-invariant setting are described. Here, the scale is allowed to change at various points in space, as well as the analyzing wavelets. Such a generalized time (space) frequency analysis could find uses in a variety of signal and image processing contexts, as well as in the study of partial differential operators with variable coefficients arising in a nonhomogeneous medium, and gives rise to fast numerical algorithms. This multiresolution analysis, say for an edge detection problem, takes into account the variable geometry and sensitivity of the receptors. >
Data, Models, and Decisions in U.S. Marine Fisheries Management: Lessons for Ecologists

▪ Abstract Ecological and fisheries approaches to population modeling share many common tools and issues, yet they have developed quite independently over the past decades. The Sustainable Fisheries Act has pushed fisheries modeling into forecasting for management decision-making, which is an area where ecological modeling appears to be headed. We summarize how marine fisheries are managed in the United States, and how data and models are used to make the required forecasts. The recent management deliberations of red grouper in the Gulf of Mexico provide a case study of the sensitive relationship among data, models, and management decisions. We use the U.S. marine fisheries experience and the case study to discuss six lessons that ecologists should consider as they proceed toward forecasting for management. The need for forecasting is accelerating both in ecology and fisheries, while the margin for mistakes is getting smaller.
Rheology of PVC; part IV: Particulate flow

The behavior of polyvinyl chloride, (PVC), formulation changes drastically with the temperature and the method of sample preparation. In the steady state shear mode, upon a decrease of the rate of deformation, the data may show either a steady increase of the shear viscosity or leveling off to a Newtonian plateau. In the dynamic test mode, the storage modulus, G′, shows a viscoelastic behavior, whereas the loss modulus, G″, shows the yield. Only at temperatures above 210°C are normal flow curves for polymer melts obtained. Rigid PVC wire coating formulation was examined at 140 to 220°C using serrated parallel plates, 2.5 cm in diameter. The data at frequencies ω = 10−2 to 102 rads/s were recorded. The results were analyzed in terms of the relation, derived for polymeric composites, in which the yield stress was explicitly incorporated. It was found that G″ (but not G*) could be easily understood in terms of the model, provided that the yield stress was allowed to vary with the temperature. Three distinct flow zones were observed with the two border-temperatures at about 180 and 210°C, assigned respectively as due to gel and crystalline melting. These findings were supported by earlier results of the dielectric measurements. In conclusion, treating PVC as a composite provides a simple and effective means of data interpretation.
NITROGEN LIMITATION AND TROPHIC VS. ABIOTIC INFLUENCES ON INSECT HERBIVORES IN A TEMPERATE GRASSLAND

Plant resources, predators, and abiotic conditions represent three major fac- tors that potentially influence insect herbivore abundance in terrestrial ecosystems. In ni- trogen (N)-limited environments the potential for bottom-up (plant resource) control is strong because plant quality may limit herbivore abundance. However, extremes in abiotic conditions, such as temperature and moisture, can mask such effects. I tested these hy- potheses in an 8-yr field experiment that measured responses of plants and grasshoppers (Orthoptera) to N addition and exclusion of bird predators in an N-limited old-field prairie in east-central Minnesota. Plant biomass increased by 150-400%, and plant tissue N in- creased by 78% in response to N addition of 17 g·m 22 ·yr 21 . Total grasshopper density responded positively to N addition following warm years. However, multiple regressions suggested that grasshopper densities were related much more strongly to thermal conditions than to soil N. Bird exclusion yielded weak effects that varied over time and may have been influenced by compensatory responses of other grasshopper predators to bird exclo- sures. Grasshopper feeding guilds differed in the relationship between their in vivo dry- matter digestibility (DMD) and plant tissue N, and this physiological difference explained their drastically different responses to N addition. Plant quality (in vivo DMD) increased with plant tissue N for mixed-feeding grasshoppers, and accordingly, their density was positively correlated with soil N. Plant quality did not change with plant tissue N for grass feeders, and their densities were negatively correlated with soil N. Both guilds responded positively to warmer thermal conditions, but mixed-feeder densities were negatively related to previous year's precipitation, and grass-feeder densities were not affected by precipi- tation. These results support the hypothesis that bottom-up influences of insect herbivores can be important in N-limited systems but do not support the hypothesis that more productive environments necessarily support greater top-down influences. Thermal conditions may interact with or eliminate bottom-up effects. Furthermore, different guilds within the her- bivore trophic level may be influenced differently by N addition, predators, and abiotic conditions. These results suggest that exploring the mechanisms of interaction between abiotic and trophic influences within components of food webs is likely to yield many new insights into the regulation of herbivore communities.
Fast Distance Preserving Level Set Evolution for Medical Image Segmentation

Accurate and fast image segmentation algorithms are of paramount importance for a wide range of medical imaging applications. Level set algorithms based on narrow band implementation have been among the most widely used segmentation algorithms. However, the accuracy of standard level set algorithms is compromised by the fact that their evolution schemes deteriorate the signed distance level set functions required for accurate computation of normals and curvatures. The most common remedy is to use an ad-hoc reinitialization step to rebuild the signed distance function frequently. Meanwhile, complex upwind finite difference schemes are required for stable evolution. They together make the overall computation expensive. In this paper, we propose a novel fast narrow band distance preserving level set evolution algorithm that eliminates the need for both reinitialization and complex upwind finite difference schemes. This is achieved by incorporating into a variational level set formulation with a signed distance preserving term that regularizes the evolution. As a result, stable, accurate, fast evolution could be obtained using a simple finite difference scheme within a very narrow band, defined as the union of all 3times3 pixel blocks around the zero crossing pixels. Also, our method allows the use of larger time step to speed up the convergence while ensuring accurate result, as well as the use of more general and computational efficient initial level set functions rather than the signed distance functions required by standard level set methods. The proposed algorithm has been applied on both synthetic and real images of different modalities with promising results
Plant Immune Responses Against Viruses: How Does a Virus Cause Disease?

Plants respond to pathogens using elaborate networks of genetic interactions. Recently, significant progress has been made in understanding RNA silencing and how viruses counter this apparently ubiquitous antiviral defense. In addition, plants also induce hypersensitive and systemic acquired resistance responses, which together limit the virus to infected cells and impart resistance to the noninfected tissues. Molecular processes such as the ubiquitin proteasome system and DNA methylation are also critical to antiviral defenses. Here, we provide a summary and update of advances in plant antiviral immune responses, beyond RNA silencing mechanisms—advances that went relatively unnoticed in the realm of RNA silencing and nonviral immune responses. We also document the rise of Brachypodium and Setaria species as model grasses to study antiviral responses in Poaceae, aspects that have been relatively understudied, despite grasses being the primary source of our calories, as well as animal feed, forage, recreation, and biofuel needs in the 21st century. Finally, we outline critical gaps, future prospects, and considerations central to studying plant antiviral immunity. To promote an integrated model of plant immunity, we discuss analogous viral and nonviral immune concepts and propose working definitions of viral effectors, effector-triggered immunity, and viral pathogen-triggered immunity.
Evaluating the Work Preference Inventory and its Measurement of Motivation in Creative Advertising Professionals

Abstract The Work Process Inventory (WPI; Amabile, Hill, Hennessey & Tighe 1994) measures motivation to work; but the instrument has not been used in the field of advertising. This study evaluates the WPI by testing it with working creative advertising professionals. Generally, the results were consistent with its developmental research, but reliability and validity measures indicate that more work needs to be done to achieve a truly useful tool. Eighteen external influencers of motivation, relevant to the creation of advertising, were also tested. Data analyses determined that two factors showed promise, and a new set of scales is proposed.
Comparison of Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicle Battery Life Across Geographies and Drive Cycles

In a laboratory environment, it is cost prohibitive to run automotive battery aging experiments across a wide range of possible ambient environment, drive cycle and charging scenarios. Since worst-case scenarios drive the conservative sizing of electric-drive vehicle batteries, it is useful to understand how and why those scenarios arise and what design or control actions might be taken to mitigate them. In an effort to explore this problem, this paper applies a semi-empirical life model of the graphite/nickel-cobalt-aluminum lithium-ion chemistry to investigate impacts of geographic environments under storage and simplified cycling conditions. The model is then applied to analyze complex cycling conditions, using battery charge/discharge profiles generated from simulations of PHEV10 and PHEV40 vehicles across 782 single-day driving cycles taken from Texas travel survey data.
Intersectionality: An Approach to the Study of Gender, Marriage, and Health in Context

Changes in marriage rates and in the definition of marriage require a comprehensive and flexible conceptual framework that can accommodate these changes and also reveal new and useful knowledge about the health benefits of marriage across diverse populations. This chapter discusses trends in marriage over the last few decades, including increased rates of unmarried adults and same-sex marriages as well as changing gender roles. These trends serve as phenomena with important implications for studies of marriage and health. Intersectionality is introduced as a useful framework for examining and understanding the influence and interactions of multiple statuses on stress exposure, marital dynamics, and health.
Oxidative Stress Parameters and Erythrocyte Membrane Adenosine Triphosphatase Activities in Streptozotocin-induced Diabetic Rats Administered Aqueous Preparation of Kalanchoe Pinnata Leaves.

Background: Diabetes mellitus is a chronic metabolic disease that according to the World Health Organization affects more than 382 million people. The rise in diabetes mellitus coupled with the lack of an effective treatment has led many to investigate medicinal plants to identify a viable alternative. Objective: To evaluate red blood cell (RBC) membrane adenosine triphosphatase (ATPase) activities and antioxidant levels in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats administered aqueous preparation of Kalanchoe pinnata leaves. Materials and Methods: Diabetes mellitus was induced in rats by a single administration of streptozotocin (60 mg/kg). Diabetic rats were then treated with aqueous K. pinnata preparation (three mature leaves ~ 9.96 g/70 kg body weight or about 0.14 g/kg body weight/day) for 30 days. Serum glucose, RBC membrane ATPase activities, and antioxidant levels were determined. Results: We noted weight loss and reduced food consumption in the treated diabetic group. Serum glucose levels were reduced in the treated diabetic group compared to the other groups. Superoxide dismutase activity and glutathione levels were not significantly elevated in the treated group compared to the diabetic group. However, serum catalase activity was significantly ( P P 2+ ATPase activity and a nonsignificant increase in Na + /K + ATPase activity in the RBC membrane of the treated diabetic group compared to the diabetic group. Conclusion: The consumption of aqueous preparation of K. pinnata may accrue benefits in the management of diabetes by lowering oxidative stress often associated with the disease and improving the availability of cellular magnesium through an increase in the magnesium ATPase pump in the RBC membrane for increased cellular metabolism of glucose through the glycolytic pathway.
Precision Medicine: Genetic Repair of Retinitis Pigmentosa in Patient-Derived Stem Cells

Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) generated from patient fibroblasts could potentially be used as a source of autologous cells for transplantation in retinal disease. Patient-derived iPSCs, however, would still harbor disease-causing mutations. To generate healthy patient-derived cells, mutations might be repaired with new gene-editing technology based on the bacterial system of clustered regularly interspersed short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/Cas9, thereby yielding grafts that require no patient immunosuppression. We tested whether CRISPR/Cas9 could be used in patient-specific iPSCs to precisely repair an RPGR point mutation that causes X-linked retinitis pigmentosa (XLRP). Fibroblasts cultured from a skin-punch biopsy of an XLRP patient were transduced to produce iPSCs carrying the patient’s c.3070G > T mutation. The iPSCs were transduced with CRISPR guide RNAs, Cas9 endonuclease and a donor homology template. Despite the gene’s repetitive and GC-rich sequences, 13% of RPGR gene copies showed mutation correction and conversion to the wild-type allele. This is the first report using CRISPR to correct a pathogenic mutation in iPSCs derived from a patient with photoreceptor degeneration. This important proof-of-concept finding supports the development of personalized iPSC-based transplantation therapies for retinal disease.
Korean unification: a solution to the challenges of an increasingly elderly population?

South Korea experienced below replacement fertility for the first time in 1983, which also marked the point from which fertility rates continued to decline over the next 20 years to reach a low of 1.2 in 2003. In spite of recent pronatalist policies, the fertility rate has remained near this level and has not increased appreciably. The reasons for sustained low fertility in South Korea are complex and solutions remain elusive. One option that has been suggested is reunification with North Korea, which could address the eventual decline in the population and mitigate the increasing proportion of the elderly. Although the conditions surrounding the German reunification experience were vastly different than what Korea will likely undergo, it is informative to look at Germany as a guide to the demographic parameters of reunification. Three projection models for 2015–2050 are presented; even the highest fertility models show that reunification will not be the answer to population restructuring already underway...
HOT JET ETCHING THROUGH STENCIL MASKS.

This article contains a description of hot jet etching through stencil masks. The dry etching technique does not damage the stencil mask, but anisotropically etches GaAs at rates as high as 10 μm min−1. Resolution less than 50 nm has been demonstrated. At present the etched surfaces are rough, but improvement of the etching technique may result in smooth surfaces.
Host Plants and Seasonal Distribution of the Tarnished Plant Bug (Hemiptera: Miridae) in the Delta of Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi

Sweep-net samples taken at monthly intervals on wild and cultivated host plants at 15 locations in the delta of Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi, were utilized to study the host plants and seasonal distribution of the tarnished plant bug, Lygus lineolaris (Palisot de Beauvois). Tarnished plant bugs were collected on 169 host plant species found in 36 plant families. The plant family having the largest number of host plant species was the Asteraceae, and 26.5% of all tarnished plant bug host plant species were in this family. Adult tarnished plant bugs were active on wild host plants each month of the year. The highest populations were found during May and June, and during September and October. Adult migration to cotton and soybeans in June and July was partly caused by a decrease in the number and maturation of many wild host plant species.
Medicare. An administrative viewpoint.

Abstract Medicare was the first significant legislation that provided a health insurance program for a segment of our nation's population, initially for the elderly population and then expanded to include other chronically ill patients that in a sense are high risk. It provided a recognition for the special services of doctors of podiatric medicine as equivalent to the services provided by other practitioners. What we fail to recognize many times is that Congress, as representatives of the people, projected a need for podiatric care in this particular entitlement program. It provides a scope of practice for podiatrists that is governed by state law, which also is a mandate of the people. The individual state practice acts are again the will of the people through their state legislatures, which established the need and recognition for podiatric care. The system designed by Medicare provides for fiscal intermediaries, who are the insurance carriers that administer the program. Each carrier then establishes its own guidelines to deal with the medical policies of the program. The local guidelines for each state or area are additional documents that need to be reviewed for local modifications of the Medicare regulations. There are four options for patient payment: assignment, direct payment by the patient, billing the patient followed by patient payment upon receipt of his or her Medicare payment, or the selection of a health maintenance organization or similar private insurance option. Under this fourth option, the patient gives up his or her right to direct podiatric care, which is clearly a violation of the intent of the legislation that added podiatric medicine to Medicare in 1967. Given the changes that take place in any system, the original intent of Medicare was to provide an availability and access for podiatric care as required by the patient. To modify the system to change that intent without a change in law is morally, ethically, and legally questionable.
Analysis of the Effect on the Multimedia Physical Chemistry Instruction

Faced with the 21st century, it is the fourth revolution that teachers apply the Multimedia Computer Based Education (MCBE) to their instruction activities .The author has been applying Multimedia Computer Aided Instruction (MCAI) to the development and application of Physical Chemistry instruction on the base of the education reform. Through one year instruction trial on the 2000 grade of powder engineering major, the good effect has been achieved. the advantage and disadvantage of the method had also been discovered on a poll,which would do good to Physical Chemistry instruction later.
Sym Plasmids in RhizobiumJaponicum

Rhizobiumjaponicum strains PRC191 and PRC193 are fast-growing strains that were isolated in the People’s Republic of China (H. Keyser et al., 1982). Recently it was shown that these strains have nif and nod genes on large plasmids (P. Masterson et al., 1982, and unpublished).We have introduced Tn5 into the Sym plasmids of PRC191 and PRC 193. The Sym plasmids are not self-transmissible. Therefore, we introduced a helper plasmid, pRL180 (P.J.J. Hooykaas et al., 1982), into these strains to promote plasmid mobilization to other Rhizobia and Agrobacterium strains.
Interactions Between the Basal Ganglia and the Cerebellum and Role in Neurological Disorders

The cerebellum and the basal ganglia are critically important for motor control, and their cooperation is crucial to generate the motor signals necessary for proper motor execution and coordination. For decades, direct and functionally relevant communication between these structures was thought to be unlikely due to the lack of corroborating anatomical or functional data. More recent novel methodologies have uncovered the presence of a pathway connecting the output of the basal ganglia to the cerebellum and a disynaptic connection from the cerebellum to the input of the basal ganglia via the thalamus in both rodents and primates. In particular, the disynaptic connection allows for a rapid communication between the cerebellum and the basal ganglia and is capable of modulating synaptic plasticity between the basal ganglia and the motor cortex. These mechanistic insights have helped determine how aberrant activity in the cerebellum can dynamically affect the basal ganglia. Cerebellar-induced dystonia is a clear example in which erratic cerebellar burst firing significantly alters normal basal ganglia activity causing dystonia. Further understanding of this impaired interaction will promote the development of novel therapeutic approaches to target defective networks in multiple pathologies.
Thiamine Acquisition Strategies Impact Metabolism and Competition in the Gut Microbe Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron.

Thiamine (vitamin B1) is an essential cofactor for all organisms. Humans primarily acquire thiamine through their diet, and thiamine deficiencies have adverse neurological effects. However, the role gut microbes play in modulating thiamine availability is poorly understood, and little is known about how thiamine impacts the stability of microbial gut communities. To investigate thiamine's role in the gut, we utilized the model gut microbe Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron. Transcriptome sequencing (RNA-seq) revealed a global downregulation of thiamine and amino acid biosynthesis, glycolysis, and purine metabolism when thiamine was present. Using genetic mutants with thiamine biosynthesis and transport locus mutations, we determined both systems were critical for growth in thiamine-deficient medium. The defect in the double transport mutant suggests an uncharacterized feedback mechanism between thiamine transport and biosynthesis in B. thetaiotaomicron. Mutant phenotypes were recapitulated during pairwise competitions, reinforcing the importance of encoding versatile thiamine acquisition mechanisms when thiamine concentrations are variable. In addition, liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) analyses corroborate that exogenous thiamine levels affect the internal thiamine pool of B. thetaiotaomicron. Furthermore, we computationally examined the ability of other gut microbes to acquire thiamine and identified lineage-specific differences in thiamine acquisition strategies. Among the Bacteroidetes, the capacities for both thiamine transport and biosynthesis are common. Together, these data show that thiamine acquisition mechanisms used by B. thetaiotaomicron not only are critical for its physiology and fitness but also provide the opportunity to model how other gut microbes may respond to the shifting availability of thiamine in the gut. IMPORTANCE Variation in the ability of gut microbes to transport, synthesize, and compete for vitamin B1 (thiamine) is expected to impact the structure and stability of the microbiota, and ultimately this variation may have both direct and indirect effects on human health. Our study identifies the diverse strategies employed by gut Bacteroidetes to acquire thiamine. We demonstrate how the presence or absence of thiamine biosynthesis or transport dramatically affects the abundance of B. thetaiotaomicron in a competitive environment. This study adds further evidence that altering the presence or concentrations of water-soluble vitamins such as thiamine may be an effective method for manipulating gut community composition. In turn, targeted thiamine delivery could be used therapeutically to alter dysbiotic communities linked to disease. Author Video: An author video summary of this article is available.
Making new words: Morphological derivation in English

Reviewed by Edward J. VajdaThis analysis of contemporary English derivation patterns covers the formal and functional properties of over 200 derivational affixes (about 90 prefixes and 110 suffixes...
Epidemiology of dog bites: a community-based study in India

Rabies is a deadly disease with no cure which is mainly caused by dog bites. Data on dog bites and knowledge, attitude and practices (KAP) related to dog bites are not generally available to rural communities.We made a cross-sectional study of a rural community of ten villages served by a primary health centre selected by random sampling. Ten per cent of households selected by systematic random sampling were interviewed for KAP regarding dog bites.The dog bite rate was 25.7/1000 population per year. The rate for males was higher than for females; half of the bites were in summer; 40% did not go for any prophylaxis; half of the victims treated their wounds with chilli powder. Eighty per cent of the bites were class II or III and leg bites were most common. The majority of the community knew dog bites can cause death but they did not know the correct incubation period. Most knew that injections were available to prevent rabies. Only half said they would visit a hospital for treatment. Around 50% received te...