cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Influence of Culture and Education on U. S. and Taiwan Preservice Teachers' Efficacy Beliefs

Abstract Preservice teachers (N = 240) at the beginning and ending points of their teacher-education programs in Taiwan and 231 comparable U.S. preservice teachers completed a revised version of the S. Gibson and M. H. Dembo (1984) Teacher Efficacy Scale. Analyses indicated that the preservice teachers in these 2 countries may have conceptually different expectations of teaching (e.g., parental support, social awareness, individual effort). However, efficacy beliefs of preservice teachers in these 2 countries showed a similar pattern regarding the teachers' ability to adjust their teaching methods to meet the needs of individual children. Results suggest that in both countries, preservice teachers' efficacy beliefs may be influenced by the context of their academic programs, by their increasing competence and experience as teachers, and by cultural perspectives.
P-Glycoprotein, Multidrug Resistance and Protein Kinase C

The multidrug resistant (MDR) phenotype is a well-studied subject that has been recognized as a determinant underlying specific types of drug resistance in human cancer. Although it is clear that the P-glycoprotein plays a major role in MDR, it is not clear whether post-translational modifications such as phosphorylation have any major impact on its modulation. The laboratory of Dr. Bruce Chabner was one of the first to describe increased expression and activity of protein kinase C (PKC) associated with the MDR phenotype. Since that time, a similar correlation has been observed in many other MDR cell lines. Most of these studies have been performed with doxorubicin-selected cells that have acquired MDR and have shown increased PKC activity, mainly for PKC-a isoenzyme. Intrinsic MDR in human renal cell carcinoma lines has been shown to correlate directly with PKC activity, but further studies with intrinsic MDR cell lines are needed before any conclusions can be drawn. More recent evidence suggests that there is a complex biochemical process by which PKC isoenzymes differentially phosphorylate specific serine residues in the linker region of P-glycoprotein which may lead to alterations in P-glycoprotein ATPase and drug-binding functions. To further complicate matters, PKC plays an important role in anti-apoptotic pathways, which can confound the dissection and elucidation of drug-resistance mechanisms. However, these areas are still under active investigation and not fully answered. Further studies are needed to specifically answer the question of whether PKC directly modulates basal and/or drug-stimulated P-glycoprotein function. This manuscript reviews the majority of the literature on PKC and MDR, as well as offers caveats for interpretation of these studies to answer the above questions.
Observations on the Combustion of Pulverized PVC and Poly(ethylene)

Abstract The combustion characteristics of PVC (a chlorinated polymer) and poly (ethylene) (PE) (the non-chlorinated counterpart of PVC) were studied at conditions pertinent to municipal waste incinerators i.e., ambient temperatures in the range of 1050–1400 K and heating rates in the order of 10,000 K/s, in air. Spherical or quasi-spherical particles in the range of 90–250 μm in diameter were used. A three-color near infrared-pyrometer and a high speed cinematographic camera were used to simultaneously monitor the complete combustion of single particles, during their free flight in an electrically-heated drop-tube furnace. In contrast to PVC particles, which burned with large, yellow and very bright envelope flames, PE particles experienced longer ignition delays and burned with faint and bluish flames. Despite their shorter ignition delays, PVC particles experienced higher mass loss prior to ignition (at least 55%) as attested by their lower terminal velocities. Upon extinction of the volatile flames a ...
A Novel Role of Lactosylceramide in the Regulation of Tumor Necrosis Factor α-mediated Proliferation of Rat Primary Astrocytes IMPLICATIONS FOR ASTROGLIOSIS FOLLOWING NEUROTRAUMA

The present study describes the role of glycosphingolipids in neuroinflammatory disease and investigates tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFalpha)-induced astrogliosis following spinal cord injury. Astrogliosis is the hallmark of neuroinflammation and is characterized by proliferation of astrocytes and increased glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) gene expression. In primary astrocytes, TNFalpha stimulation increased the intracellular levels of lactosylceramide (LacCer) and induced GFAP expression and astrocyte proliferation. D-threo-1-phenyl-2-decanoylamino-3-morpholino-1-propanol.HCl (PDMP), a glucosylceramide synthase and LacCer synthase (GalT-2) inhibitor, inhibited astrocyte proliferation and GFAP expression, which were reversed by exogenous supplementation of LacCer but not by other glycosphingolipids. TNFalpha caused a rapid increase in the activity of GalT-2 and synthesis of LacCer. Silencing of GalT-2 gene using antisense oligonucleotides also attenuated the proliferation of astrocytes and GFAP expression. The PDMP and antisense-mediated inhibition of proliferation and GFAP expression was well correlated with decreased Ras/ERK1/2 pathway activation. Furthermore, TNFalpha-mediated astrocyte proliferation and GFAP expression was also inhibited by LY294002, a phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase inhibitor, which was reversed by exogenous LacCer. LY294002 also inhibited TNFalpha-induced GalT-2 activation and LacCer synthesis, suggesting a phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase-mediated regulation of GalT-2. In vivo, PDMP treatment attenuated chronic ERK1/2 activation and spinal cord injury (SCI)-induced astrocyte proliferation with improved functional recovery post-SCI. Therefore, the in vivo studies support the conclusions drawn from cell culture studies and provide evidence for the role of LacCer in TNFalpha-induced astrogliosis in a rat model of SCI. To our knowledge, this is the first report demonstrating the role of LacCer in the regulation of TNFalpha-induced proliferation and reactivity of primary astrocytes.
Quercetin inhibits matrix metalloproteinase-1 expression in human vascular endothelial cells through extracellular signal-regulated kinase.

Studies have shown that intake of quercetin was inversely associated with mortality from coronary heart disease. Since recent studies documented that disruption of atherosclerotic plaques is the key event triggering acute myocardial infarction, and vascular endothelium-derived matrix metalloproteinase-1 (MMP-1) contributes to plaque destabilization, we examined the effect of quercetin on MMP-1 expression in human vascular endothelial cells. Our results showed that quercetin significantly inhibited basal and oxidized LDL (oxLDL)-stimulated MMP-1 expression. Our data also indicated that extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) mediated the basal and oxLDL-stimulated expression of MMP-1, and quercetin is a potent inhibitor of ERK, suggesting that quercetin may inhibit MMP-1 expression by blocking the ERK pathway. Finally, we showed that quercetin stimulated tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1 expression in oxLDL- and PMA-treated cells. In conclusion, the present study demonstrated for the first time that quercetin inhibited MMP-1 expression in vascular endothelial cells, suggesting that quercetin might contribute to plaque stabilization.
Observation of a strong inverse temperature dependence for the opacity of atmospheric water vapor in the mm continuum near 280 GHz

Using atmospheric opacity measurements made at 278 GHz (9.3 cm−1) at McMurdo Station, Antarctica during the austral springs of 1986 and 1987, combined with measurements of water vapor profile and total column density from near-simultaneous balloon flights, we have determined the attenuation per mm of precipitable water vapor (pwv) at this frequency. Our data were taken at significantly lower temperatures than other measurements in the literature for which accompanying water vapor pressure and temperature data are available. The results show a strong inverse dependence with temperature: measured opacity per mm of pwv is roughly a factor of two times greater at −35°C than at −10°C and three times greater than measurements at the same wavelength at +25°C reported by Zammit and Ade. We briefly review various theories proposed to explain excess absorption in continuum regions. Our lowtemperature measurements demonstrate a significantly greater inverse temperature dependence than embodied in several formulations, theoretical or empirical, proposed to represent mm-wave attenuation as a function of temperature and water vapor. The present results are qualitatively similar to observations of strong inverse temperature dependence in the near IR, but if attributed to water vapor dimer formation, imply a greater binding energy for the dimer than generally proposed by others. There is some independent evidence for a local anomaly in temperature dependence as a function of frequency near 280 GHz. It remains to be established whether our own results are strongly frequency dependent or apply generally to the mm-wave continuum.
Snakes and ladders: Localized states in the Swift–Hohenberg equation

The Swift–Hohenberg equation with cubic and quintic nonlinearities exhibits multiple stable and unstable spatially localized states of arbitrary length in the vicinity of the Maxwell point between spatially homogeneous and periodic states. The even and odd states are organized in a characteristic snaking structure and are connected by branches of mixed parity states forming a ladder-like structure. Numerical computations are used to illustrate the changes in the localized solutions as they grow in spatial extent and to determine the stability and wavelength of the resulting states.
Retinoic acid-induced blr1 expression promotes ERK2 activation and cell differentiation in HL-60 cells.

Abstract Retinoids are known to induce the differentiation and cell cycle arrest of human myeloid leukemia cells in vitro. Differential display was used to identify putative early regulatory genes that are differentially expressed in HL-60 human promyelocytic leukemia cells treated with retinoic acid. One of the cDNAs cloned encodes sequences identifying Burkitt's lymphoma receptor 1 (BLR1), a recently described chemokine receptor. Northern blot analysis demonstrates that blr1 mRNA expression increases within 9 h of retinoic acid treatment, well before functional differentiation or G1/G0 growth arrest at 48 h or onset of morphological changes, suggesting a possible regulatory function. The expression of blr1 mRNA is transient, peaking at 72 h when cells are differentiated. blr1 mRNA also is induced by other differentiation-inducing agents, 1α,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 and DMSO. Induction of blr1 mRNA by retinoic acid is not blocked by the protein synthesis inhibitor cycloheximide. In HL-60 cells stably transfected with blr1 cDNA, ectopic expression of blr1 causes an increase in ERK2 MAPK activation and promotes retinoic acid-induced G1/G0 growth arrest and cell differentiation. The early expression of blr1 mRNA during differentiation, its ability to increase ERK2 activation, and its enhancement of retinoic acid-induced differentiation suggest that blr1 expression may be involved in retinoic acid-induced HL-60 differentiation.
On the physiological functions of teichoic acids.

The choline-containing teichoic acids of pneumococci can be modified by biosynthetic replacement of the choline residues with certain structural analogues, such as ethanolamine (EA) or the N-monomethyl- (MEA) and N-dimethyl- (DEA) amino derivatives of ethanolamine. Cells containing such analogues in their teichoic acids develop pleiomorphic alterations in several physiological properties, which include resistance to detergent-induced lysis and inhibition of cell separation (chain formation). We report here the results of physiological studies on the mechanism of these two phenomena. Our results are summarized in the following: (a) Pneumococci grown on various amino alcohols produce cell walls of identical amino sugar and amino acid composition. (b) Both choline- and EA-containing teichoic acids seem to follow the same conservative pattern of segregation during growth and cell division. (c) Lysis sensitivity of pneumococci requires the juxtaposition of lysissensitive (choline-containing) cell walls and endogenous autolysin at the cell wall growth zone. (d) Upon readdition of choline to ethanolamine-containing cells, lysis sensitivity and catalytically active (C-type) autolysin reappear in the bacteria with the same kinetics. (e) The chains of EA-grown pneumococci contain fully compartmentalized cells and normal cross walls.
Fatigue crack deflection and fracture surface contact: Micromechanical models

The variation of cyclic crack propagation rates, under thecombined influence of crack kinking (deflection) and fracture surface contact (closure), is estimated from simple linear elastic analyses of tilted cracks. The predictions of the models are consistent with the experimental results of linear and kinked crack advance in high strength aluminum alloys testedin vacuo. Examples of crack deflection in various engineering alloy systems and some generalizations ofaverage deflection parameters based on microstructural and mechanical factors are discussed. The individual contributions to overall growth rates from deflection and closure processes are evaluated for different mechanical and metallurgical conditions. The significance, implications, and limitations of the models are outlined.
Octave landry: Guillain-Barré syndrome

Abstract The clinical features of Guillain-Barre syndrome were initially described by Octave Landry in 1859. Subsequently, Guillain, Barre and Strohl described a similar syndrome that also displayed a marked increase in cerebrospinal fluid albumin without an increase in white blood cells-an “elbuminocytologic dissociation.” The hallmark clinical findings in Guillain-Barre syndrome are symmetrical ascending paralysis and areflexia. The differential diagnosis is large, and early cases are often misdiagnosed. Of importance to the emergency physician are the various spinal cord compression syndromes that may present in similar fashion. Acute therapy includes hospitalization and frequent assessment of vital capacity to determine the need for ventilatory assistance.
Wide-frequency range, dynamic matching network and power system for the “Shoelace” radio frequency antenna on the Alcator C-Mod tokamak

A wide-frequency range (50–300 kHz) power system has been implemented for use with a new RF antenna – the “Shoelace” antenna – built to drive coherent plasma fluctuations in the edge of the Alcator C-Mod tokamak. A custom, dynamically tunable matching network allows two commercial 1 kW, 50-Ω RF amplifiers to drive the low-impedance, inductive load presented by the antenna. This is accomplished by a discretely variable L-match network, with 81 independently selected steps available for each of the series and parallel legs of the matching configuration. A compact programmable logic device provides a control system that measures the frequency with better than 1 kHz accuracy and transitions to the correct tuning state in less than 1 ms. At least 85% of source power is dissipated in the antenna across the operational frequency range, with a minimum frequency slew rate of 1 MHz/s; the best performance is achieved in the narrower band from 80 to 150 kHz which is of interest in typical experiments. The RF frequency can be run with open-loop control, following a pre-programmed analog waveform, or phase-locked to track a plasma fluctuation diagnostic signal in real time with programmable phase delay; the amplitude control is always open-loop. The control waveforms and phase delay are programmed remotely. These tools have enabled first-of-a-kind measurements of the tokamak edge plasma system response in the frequency range and at the wave number at which coherent fluctuations regulate heat and particle transport through the plasma boundary.
Urine neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin is an early marker of acute kidney injury in critically ill children: a prospective cohort study

Introduction Serum creatinine is a late marker of acute kidney injury (AKI). Urine neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (uNGAL) is an early marker of AKI, where the timing of kidney injury is known. It is unknown whether uNGAL predicts AKI in the general critical care setting. We assessed the ability of uNGAL to predict AKI development and severity in critically ill children. Methods This was a prospective cohort study of critically ill children. Children aged between 1 month and 21 years who were mechanically ventilated and had a bladder catheter inserted were eligible. Patients with end-stage renal disease or who had just undergone kidney transplantation were excluded. Patients were enrolled within 24 to 48 hours of initiation of mechanical ventilation. Clinical data and serum creatinine were collected daily for up to 14 days from enrollment, and urine was collected once daily for up to 4 days for uNGAL measurement. AKI was graded using pRIFLE (pediatric modified Risk, Injury, Failure, Loss, End Stage Kidney Disease) criteria. Day 0 was defined as the day on which the AKI initially occurred, and pRIFLEmax was defined as the worst pRIFLE AKI grade recorded during the study period. The χ2 test was used to
Characterization of inverse-Gaussian and gamma distributions through their length-biased distributions

For the case where Y is a length-biased random variable corresponding to a random variable X having an inverse-Gaussian or gamma distribution, it is shown that Y can be written as a linear combination of X and a chi-square random variable and, conversely, X can be characterized through this relationship. Finally, the Wald distribution is characterized. >
Determination of elastodynamic errors in joints of industrial robots

Presentation d'une methode de formation et de resolution automatiques des equations dynamiques du mouvement d'un manipulateur a articulations elastiques et segments rigides
Early palliative care and integration of palliative care models in modern oncology practices

The current issue of Annals of Palliative Medicine features a collection of manuscripts dedicated to early palliative care (1). The guest editors for this focused issue, Jan Gaertner, Stephen Lutz and Edward Chow, who leaders of the Palliative Radiotherapy Column for Annals of Palliative Medicine (2,3), have assembled articles from leading palliative medicine physician, nurses, and allied healthcare providers for this early palliative care issue.
Public Health Surveillance

The term surveillance, derived from the French word meaning “to watch over,” may be defined as a system of close observation of all aspects of the occurrence and distribution of a given disease through the systematic collection, tabulation, analysis, and dissemination of all relevant data pertaining to that disease.(1) The preferred term is public health surveillance, which emphasizes the focus of surveillance as discussed in this chapter to develop data that results in a public health preventive action. This distinguishes public health surveillance from other types of surveillance.(2) Although the methodology of surveillance is basically descriptive, its function is more than merely collective and archival. Surveillance must be dynamic, current, purposeful, and result in a public health action. This action frequently results in the establishment of a new or the reinforcement of an existing public health policy. It is fundamental for the prompt and effective control and prevention of disease. Traditionally, surveillance was first applied to the acute communicable diseases in the mid-1800s.(3) Since then, the science of surveillance has been extended to cover a large number of infectious diseases,(1) a wide variety of noninfectious diseases, and also other health-related events such as environmental hazards, injuries, immunizations, the distribution of biological products, and health care delivery.
The Bond Scheduling Problem of the Multi-Subsidiary Holding Company

This paper presents a decision-theoretic model of the bond scheduling problem faced by a multi-subsidiary holding company such as AT&T or GTE. The objective is to minimize the total cost of bond flotations across all subsidiaries, where total cost is the sum of the yield paid to investors, the flotation expense associated with the preparation of each issue and the opportunity expense to each subsidiary of not meeting its request at the desired time. Our model suggests that the timing of bond issues is primarily a problem in trading off the diseconomies of issuing many bonds in one month with the penalty costs of delay. An efficient dynamic programming algorithm for solving the problem is also presented along with an example.
An alpha derivative formulation of the Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman equation Of Dynamic Programming

The time scales calculus, which includes the study of the alpha derivative, is an emerging key area in mathematics. We extend this calculus to Approximate Dynamic Programming. In particular, we investigate application of the alpha derivative, one of the fundamental dynamic derivatives of time scales. We present a alpha-derivative based derivation and proof of the Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman equation, the solution of which is the fundamental problem in the field of dynamic programming. By drawing together the calculus of time scales and the applied area of stochastic control via Approximate Dynamic Programming, we connect two major fields of research.
Developing rapport with children in forensic interviews: Systematic review of experimental research.

The vast majority of guidelines recommend that developing rapport with children is essential for successful forensic child interviewing; however, the question remains as to whether there is a sufficient body of scientific research to generate evidence-based guidelines for developing rapport with children in legal contexts. To answer this question, we conducted a systematic review of the literature to identify experimental studies of the effects of rapport-building methods on the reliability of children's reports. Independent raters applied 12 exclusion criteria to the 2,761 potentially relevant articles located by electronic and hand searches of the literature. Experimental studies were few. Although studies to date are a beginning, the overall scientific base is weak regarding even basic issues such as how to best define rapport and the efficacy of common rapport-building techniques. This systematic review highlights what we know, what we do not know, and how much more we need to know to create evidence-based best practice. Recommendations for reshaping the research agenda are discussed.
The female leadership advantage: An evaluation of the evidence

Abstract Journalists and authors of trade books increasingly assert a female advantage in leadership, whereby women are more likely than men to lead in a style that is effective under contemporary conditions. Contrasting our analysis of these claims with Vecchio's [Leadersh. Q. 13 (2002) 643] analysis, we show that women have some advantages in typical leadership style but suffer some disadvantages from prejudicial evaluations of their competence as leaders, especially in masculine organizational contexts. Nonetheless, more women are rising into leadership roles at all levels, including elite executive roles. We suggest reasons for this rise and argue that organizations can capture the symbols of progressive social change and modernity by appointments of women in key positions.
Import, Export, and Regional Consent in the Inter-American Court of Human Rights

The Inter-American Court of Human Rights has elaborated a signifi cant body of human rights jurisprudence through interpretation of regional human rights conventions and the adaptation of European and global precedents and global soft law. The Inter-American Court has also aspired to infl uence outside its region by offering innovative interpretations of human rights and by identifying norms as jus cogens. The Court's methodology in recent years has appeared to give insuffi cient consideration to the consent of the regional community of states as a factor in the evolutive interpretation of a human rights treaty. The article illustrates and criticizes that trend, and contends that greater attention to indicia of regional consent could improve the acceptance and effectiveness of the inter- American human rights system.
NEURO-NAV: a neural network based architecture for vision-guided mobile robot navigation using non-metrical models of the environment

The authors describe a vision-guided mobile robot navigation system, called NEURO-NAV, that is human-like in two senses. The robot can function with non-metrical models of the environment in much the same manner as humans. It does not need a geometric model of the environment. It is sufficient if the environment is modeled by the order of appearance of various landmarks and by adjacency relationships. Also, the robot can response to human-supplied commands. This capability is achieved by an ensemble of neural networks whose activation and deactivation are controlled by a supervisory controller that is rule-based. The individual neural networks in the ensemble are trained to interpret visual information and perform primitive navigational tasks such as hallway following and landmark detection. >
Distributed Space-Time Cooperative Schemes for Underwater Acoustic Communications

In resource limited, large scale underwater sensor networks, cooperative communication over multiple hops offers opportunities to save power. Intermediate nodes between source and destination act as cooperative relays. Herein, protocols coupled with space-time block code (STBC) strategies are proposed and analyzed for distributed cooperative communication. Amplify-and-forward type protocols are considered, in which intermediate relays do not attempt to decode the information. The Alamouti-based cooperative scheme proposed in [1] for flat-fading channels is modified in order work in the presence of multipath, which is a main characteristic of underwater acoustic channels. A time-reversal distributed space-time block code (TR-DSTBC) is employed, which extends the classical TR-STBC approach from [2] to a cooperative communication scenario. We show that, just like in the multi-antenna STBC case, TR along with the orthogonality of the DSTBC essentially allows for decoupling of the vector ISI detection problem into separate scalar problems, and therefore significant complexity reduction.
Supervisory control of Petri net languages

The authors study the supervisory control problem in the setting of Petri net languages. They show that the problem of determining controllability for Petri net languages is reducible to the reachability problem of Petri nets. They also show that the problem of synthesizing the maximally permissive supervisor so that the closed system generates the supremal controllable sublanguage is reducible to a forbidden marking problem. In particular, one can directly identify the set of forbidden markings without having to construct the reachability tree. A method for generating the supremal controllable sublanguage is developed using this reduction. >
The Demand for Local Public Goods: The Case of Public School Quality:

The demand for public school quality is estimated. Unlike previous studies, the price of a unit of public school quality in the demand estimation is measured by both the tax price and the implicit price calculated from a house price hedonic. Identification, endogeneity, and Tiebout bias are addressed. The tax price elasticity of the demand for public schooling is -.17; the implicit price elasticity of demand is -.11. Both estimates are more inelastic than previously reported elasticities. The income elasticity of demand is .32. The positive relationship between constant-quality house price and public school quality is confirmed.
20-Year Trends in Dietary and Meal Behaviors Were Similar in U.S. Children and Adolescents of Different Race/Ethnicity

Recent survey data reveal persistent race/ethnic disparities in prevalence of adiposity in U.S. children and adolescents. We examined race/ethnic differentials in time trends in dietary behaviors of Americans 2–19 y of age to understand if these trends track those observed for body weight. We used dietary data from the NHANES 1988–1994, 1999–2002, and 2003– 2008 (n = 24,131) to examine changes in reported energy intake, amount of foods and beverages, number of eating occasions, and percent of energy from foods and beverages, among non-Hispanic white, non-Hispanic black, and Mexican American 2–19 y olds. Multivariable regression analyses appropriate for complex surveys were used to examine these associations. The secular increase in mean number of eating occasions was significant (P-trend , 0.0001) in all age and race/ethnic groups; however, a corresponding increase in the amount of foods and beverages, or total energy intake was not observed. In non-Hispanic black and Mexican American 2–5 and 12–19 y olds, the secular increase in number of eating occasions, and in non-Hispanic black 12–19 y olds, the increase in percent of energy from all beverages or non-nutritive beverages were greater relative to non-Hispanic whites. In conclusion, the observed race/ethnic differences in trajectory of changes in dietary behaviors over past 20 y were modest and were not accompanied by a significant increase in energy intake. Cautious interpretation is urged due to potential underreporting of dietary intake in national surveys. There was a suggestion of convergencein some race/ethnic differentials in dietary behaviors due to greater relative changes in possibly adverse behaviors in non-Hispanic blacks, especially adolescents. J. Nutr. 141: 1880–1888, 2011.
Contemporary Women’s Adaptation to Motherhood: The First 3 to 6 Weeks Postpartum

A better understanding of the process of adaptation to motherhood should enhance nurses' ability to prepare women for the transition to motherhood and to provide care following childbirth. Knowledge about women's adaptation to motherhood was developed primarily from the 1960s to the 1990s. Cesarean birthing was a special focus of research throughout the late 1970s and the 1980s, followed by functional status, and more recently, depression and stress associated with birth and postpartum. Adaptation to motherhood in the context of the early 21st century has received limited attention in nursing research, creating an assumption that the process of adaptation is universal and context-free rather than evolving within the life and societal context of women across generations. Although becoming and being a mother has been described as a normative transition rather than a stressor by some, knowledge development about adaptation to motherhood also has been constrained by the limited use of a unified perspective of transition as a process of adaptation. Therefore, the purposes of this exploratory study were to describe contemporary women's physical, emotional, functional, and social adaptation to motherhood and to examine the relations of selected demographic and perinatal variables to adaptation to motherhood in the first 3 to 6 weeks of the postpartum.
Momentum Transfer Between Polydisperse Particles in Dense Granular Flow

We perform molecular dynamics (MD) simulations (based on the soft-sphere model) of a model dry granular system consisting of two types of spherical particles differing in size and/or density to characterize particle-particle momentum transfer (solid drag). The velocity difference between two types of particles is specified in the initial conditions, and the evolution of relative mean velocity and the velocity fluctuations in terms of granular temperature are quantified. The dependence of the momentum transfer is studied as a function of volume fraction, size and density ratio of the two types of particles, inelasticity, and friction coefficient. An existing continuum model of particle-particle momentum transfer is compared to the MD simulations. A modified continuum solid drag model is suggested for a limited range of parameters.
Metatranscriptomic Analysis of Sulfur Oxidation Genes in the Endosymbiont of Solemya Velum

Thioautotrophic endosymbionts in the Domain Bacteria mediate key sulfur transformations in marine reducing environments. However, the molecular pathways underlying symbiont metabolism and the extent to which these pathways are expressed in situ are poorly characterized for almost all symbioses. This is largely due to the difficulty of culturing symbionts apart from their hosts. Here, we use pyrosequencing of community RNA transcripts (i.e., the metatranscriptome) to characterize enzymes of dissimilatory sulfur metabolism in the model symbiosis between the coastal bivalve Solemya velum and its intracellular thioautotrophic symbionts. High-throughput sequencing of total RNA from the symbiont-containing gill of a single host individual generated 1.6 million sequence reads (500 Mbp). Of these, 43,735 matched Bacteria protein-coding genes in BLASTX searches of the NCBI database. The taxonomic identities of the matched genes indicated relatedness to diverse species of sulfur-oxidizing Gammaproteobacteria, including other thioautotrophic symbionts and the purple sulfur bacterium Allochromatium vinosum. Manual querying of these data identified 28 genes from diverse pathways of sulfur energy metabolism, including the dissimilatory sulfite reductase (Dsr) pathway for sulfide oxidation to sulfite, the APS pathway for sulfite oxidation, and the Sox pathway for thiosulfate oxidation. In total, reads matching sulfur energy metabolism genes represented 7% of the Bacteria mRNA pool. Together, these data highlight the dominance of thioautotrophy in the context of symbiont community metabolism, identify the likely pathways mediating sulfur oxidation, and illustrate the utility of metatranscriptome sequencing for characterizing community gene transcription of uncultured symbionts.
Thymosin β4 Is Cardioprotective after Myocardial Infarction

Heart disease is a leading cause of death in newborns and in adults. Efforts to promote cardiac repair by introduction or recruit- ment of exogenous stem cells hold promise but typically involve isolation and introduction of autologous or donor progenitor cells. We have found that the G-actin-sequestering peptide thymosin � 4 promotes myocardial and endothelial cell migration in the embryonic heart and retains this property in postnatal cardiomyocytes. Survival of embryonic and post- natal cardiomyocytes in culture was also enhanced by thymosin � 4. We found that thymosin � 4 formed a functional complex with PINCH and integrin-linked kinase (ILK), resulting in activation of the survival kinase Akt/PKB, which was necessary for thymosin � 4's effects on cardiomy- ocytes. After coronary artery ligation in mice, thymosin � 4 treatment resulted in upregulation of ILK and Akt activity in the heart, enhanced early myocyte survival, and improved cardiac function. These findings suggest that thymosin � 4 promotes cardiomyocyte and endothelial mi- gration, survival, and repair and may be a novel therapeutic target in the setting of acute myocardial damage.
The stability of hygroscopic compounds in orb-web spider viscous thread

Each of the droplets that form an orb-weaving spider's viscous capture thread are composed of a viscoelastic glycoprotein glue core that is surrounded by an aqueous layer and supported by a pair of protein axial fibers. Low molecular weight organic and inorganic compounds within the aqueous layer confer droplet hygroscopicity, thereby maintaining the glycoprotein's adhesion and extensibility and ensuring that the axial fibers remain supercontracted. These materials also cause droplet volume to change in response to ambient humidity. This study examined the viscous threads of Argiope aurantia Lucas 1833, a species found in exposed, low humidity habitats, and Neoscona crucifera (Lucas 1838), a nocturnal species found in high humidity forest edge habitats. An earlier study showed the former species' threads to be more hygroscopic than those of the latter. When aged and exposed to chemical fixatives, the hygroscopicity of A. aurantia threads decreased, while that of N. crucifera threads was unaffected. Fixation eliminated the extensibility of both species' droplets. However, droplet adhesion, as measured by the deflection angle of a thread's axial lines just prior to droplet extension or, in the case of fixed droplets, droplet pull-off, was unaffected. These findings indicate that the compounds that confer greater hygroscopicity to A. aurantia viscous threads are more susceptible to chemical fixatives than those in the aqueous layer of N. crucifera droplets.
The utility of mock oral examinations in preparation for the American Board of Surgery certifying examination.

Abstract Background Determine the utility of mock oral examinations in preparation for the American Board of Surgery certifying examination (ABS CE). Methods Between 2002 and 2012, blinded data were collected on 63 general surgery residents: 4th and 5th-year mock oral examination scores, first-time pass rates on ABS CE, and an online survey. Results Fifty-seven residents took the 4th-year mock oral examination: 30 (52.6%) passed and 27 (47.4%) failed, with first-time ABS CE pass rates 93.3% and 81.5% ( P = .238). Fifty-nine residents took the 5th-year mock oral examination: 28 (47.5%) passed and 31 (52.5%) failed, with first-time ABS CE pass rates 82.1% and 93.5% ( P = .240). Thirty-eight responded to the online survey, 77.1% ranked mock oral examinations as very or extremely helpful with ABS CE preparation. Conclusions Although mock oral examinations and ABS CE passing rates do not directly correlate, residents perceive the mock oral examinations to be helpful.
Scalpel or Straitjacket: CRISPR/Cas9 Approaches for Muscular Dystrophies

Versatility of CRISPR/Cas9-based platforms makes them promising tools for the correction of diverse genetic/epigenetic disorders. Here we contrast the use of these genome editing tools in two myopathies with very different molecular origins: Duchenne muscular dystrophy, a monogenetic disease, and facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy, an epigenetic disorder with unique therapeutic challenges.
Not a Simple 'You are Fired!' – or the Importance of Proper Challenges Procedures in International Courts and Tribunals

International courts and tribunals play an increasingly fundamental role in the maintenance of peace and stability, economic development, and the protection of human dignity. Indeed, the cases they hear and resolve originate and touch upon such diverse spheres as boundary disputes, the use of force, the regulation of trade and investment, and violations of human rights. With increased visibility and relevance, however, also comes increased scrutiny. Issues of scrutiny have included and highlighted concerns related to the procedures to remove judges and arbitrators, as a fundamental principle of due process. Indeed, robust and effective challenges procedures of judges and arbitrators are fundamental control mechanisms, and are of vital importance to guarantee the legitimacy of international courts and tribunals. Yet, challenges of judges and arbitrators in international courts and tribunals remain an understudied subject. This article seeks to correct this unbalance by making three novel contributions. First, it compares for the first time challenges procedures across a variety of international courts and tribunals, including both permanent and ad hoc institutions. Second, it provides unique data on challenges, purposefully collected for this article, and analyses their outcome in details. Third, it suggests the use of two specific challenges procedures, namely for decisions on challenges to be taken by an external or semi-external institution, and the adoption of a common standard of review based on a reasonable third-party observer.
Antibody response of people of different ages to two doses of uncentrifuged Japanese B encephalitis vaccine.

SummaryThirty-five people, aged 18 to 56, whose prevaccination sera were without any antiviral effect on Japanese B encephalitis virus, received 2 doses, 2 cc each, 3 days apart, of a fluid, uncentrifuged, formalinized vaccine with a 50% immunogenic dose for mice of about 0.005 cc. Two weeks after the first dose of vaccine, 43% had antibodies with intracerebral neutralization indexes of 50 to 1,000, and 54% were positive if the equivocal indexes of 10 or more are included. The incidence of antibody development appeared to be higher among the younger adults (18 to 35 years) than among the older ones (36 to 56 years) but this requires confirmation. Neutralization of the formalin with NaHSOs immediately before injection of the vaccine had no effect on the development of antibodies.
Creation and Verification of Reference Intervals

Reference intervals remain the most common means of determining whether an observed value suggests the presence of disease. When creating reference intervals, one must look at the requirements for the preanalytic, analytic, and postanafytic phases. For the preanalytic phase, investigators use exclusion and partition criteria to create the sample population. During the analytic phase, the investigator should use control charts to ensure that the system is in good control. During the postanafytic phase, the investigator uses the nonparametric approach, which involves establishing the 2.5 and 97.5 percentiles reference limits. This is the fourth and final article in a continuing education series on statistics. Other articles in this series dealt with control charts, the use of linear regression to compare methods, and linearity assessment in the laboratory. The exam follows this article.
Force Measurements and Computational Validation of a Transonic Wing-Tip Flow

A NACA 0012 wing tip was tested at Mach 0.75 and chord Reynolds number of 3 million at incidences from −4 to 7 deg in a transonic Ludwieg tube. The Mach and Reynolds numbers are representative of full-scale rotorcraft blades. Because of the short test time of 0.1 s and high impulse loads, a dynamic calibration was applied to a conventional sidewall force balance to compensate for stress waves propagating within the force balance and test article. Numerical simulations of the entire test section were accomplished to provide data for comparison. The compensated, experimental lift and drag data compared well with the numerical results. This suggests that dynamic calibration improved the experimental data. This comparison demonstrates the feasibility of using complex models for calibrating short-duration wind tunnels in concert with numerical simulation.
Research on Daily Operation Mode and Peak Load Regulation Scheduling Based on Generation Simulation of Multi-State Renewable Energy Resources

Grid-connection of large-scale wind farms makes the peak load regulation of power grid more and more severe, so it is necessary to research the rationality of power structure by analyzing daily operation modes. Based on traditional method for electric power and energy balance, a daily operation mode and an algorithm for peak load regulation scheduling based on the simulation of multi-state renewable energy power generation are proposed to analyze and verify the operational feasibility of the scheme to put renewable energy source into operation. Based on Markov process, the time-sequential multi-state modeling of wind power output is performed by the proposed algorithm, and the wind power output distribution as well as the transition matrix at the initial time are obtained from historical data of wind power output. On the basis of equivalent energy function method, an efficient multi-state load modifying method is put forward, and a deterministic production simulation method is utilized to further research the electric power and energy balance and the peak-load regulation, thus in the premise of ensuring the economy and the reliability of energy resource construction scheme the related demands on operational feasibility are also met. The effectiveness and practicability of the proposed model and algorithm are validated by analysis on examples.
Evaluation of laminates for high temperature electrical/mechanical applications

Many applications in the electrical industry require the use of materials that must sustain a mechanical load as well as provide electrical insulation. Applications such as these are electromechanical in nature, and include the armature bar support system in the stator, and the slot liner, blocking and retaining ring insulation in the rotor. In order to fill both the electrical and mechanical requirements of these applications, compromises have traditionally been necessitated in one of the material properties. The development of new materials has reduced the need for these compromises, as it has provided materials with increased mechanical strength without sacrificing insulating properties.
HISTOPATHOLOGIC SPECIFICITY OF SYSTEMIC VASCULITIS

SUMMARY A definitive diagnosis of vasculitis almost always requires histologic documentation of a true inflammatory disease of the blood vessels. Although each major type of systemic vasculitis may have its own characteristic and unique features, variability and overlaps still exist, and histopathologic specificity is rarely an absolute discriminator. The correct interpretation of biopsy specimens for the diagnosis of vasculitis remains more an art than a science; it is subject to such variables as the examining pathologist's interest and expertise, tissue selection and sample size, the age of the disease from onset to the time of biopsy, and whether there was drug treatment prior to the biopsy.
The Assault on My Lai

In the following selections, American and South Vietnamese participants and witnesses describe what happened on the morning of March 16, 1968, in My Lai village. Their testimony raises a number of compelling moral and psychological issues. As you read the documents, you will discover that some of the troops, without question, obeyed Lieutenant William Calley’s order to kill civilians. There is little doubt about the reality of such orders, but in your opinion, are the troops who obeyed guilty of murder and war crimes? Other members of Calley’s platoon knew immediately that such orders were illegal, and they refused to obey. But even those who disobeyed Calley’s orders did not actively engage in stopping the killing. They simply refused to participate. To what extent might they be accomplices to the slaughter? Also, they did not report the alleged war crimes to higher authorities as required by the Geneva conventions. Did such behavior render them guilty of participating in the cover-up of the massacre? Only Hugh Thompson, a helicopter pilot, actively worked to protect Vietnamese civilians from the American troops. He even threatened to fire on his own men if they continued the slaughter. Was he right or wrong in his actions? In addition, Thompson was the only American at My Lai that day to report the massacre to superior officers.
A Tour of the Regulatory Sprawl

Chapter 2 indicated that to demonstrate the potential for aggregate impacts from regulation, one must show regulation either effects a large number of markets directly, has indirect or spillover effects on a large number of markets, and/or has important long term or time-dependent spillover effects. This chapter establishes empirical support for the micro to macro link, especially with regard to regulation’s extensive presence in a large number of markets.
Review of Double Beta Decay Experiments

This is a short review of the status of double beta decay. It includes discussion of results on neutrinoless, two-neutrino, and majoron-induced decays.
Emerging Markets Politics and Financial Institutions

Over the past 30 years, there has been a strong push across many countries toward financial liberalization – both in the matter of opening up the domestic financial sector to market forces and removing restrictions on inflows and outflows of international capital. But these movements toward greater liberalization also differ considerably across countries and regions in their timing, speed, and magnitude.