cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
HLA-DP, DQ and DR gene expression in Graves' disease and normal thyroid epithelium

HLA class II antigen expression by human thyroid epithelium may influence the pathogenesis of autoimmune thyroid disease. HLA-DP, DQ and DR alpha chain-specific RNA probes and monoclonal antibodies specific for the three HLA-D subregion products were used to analyze class II antigen expression in thyroid epithelial cells from normal thyroid tissue and thyroid tissue obtained from patients with Graves' autoimmune thyroid disease. Class II alpha chain RNA transcripts, as well as immunoreactive protein representing all three HLA class II antigens, were detected in Graves' thyroid tissue, and the levels of class II antigen expression appeared to correlate with the degree of lymphocytic infiltration within the gland. Thyroid epithelial cells from normal thyroid glands contained low or absent levels of HLA class II alpha chain mRNA and contained no detectable immunoreactive HLA class II antigen. Thyroid cell monolayer cultures prepared from both Graves' disease and normal thyroid glands exhibited coordinate induction by lectin or human recombinant gamma interferon of HLA-DP, DQ and DR gene expression. These data demonstrate the potential for HLA-DP, DQ and DR antigen expression in thyroid epithelium, and imply a dose relationship between lymphocytic infiltration and coordinate transcription and translation of HLA class II genes.
Maternal and offspring toxicity but few sexually dimorphic behavioral alterations result from nonylphenol exposure

Abstract Nonylphenol ethoxylates are used in the production of surfactants and are found in numerous manufactured substances. para -Nonylphenol (NP) is a suspected endocrine disruptor, exhibiting estrogen-like activity and might cause alterations with developmental exposure. To evaluate such effects, pregnant Sprague–Dawley rats consumed diets containing 0 ( n = 11), 25 ( n = 10), 500 ( n = 10), or 2,000 ( n = 9) ppm NP beginning on gestational day (GD) 7. At postnatal day (PND) 21, offspring continued on the same maternal diets until PND 77 and were evaluated for behavioral alterations (open-field activity at PNDs 22–24, 43–45, 64–66, play behavior at PND 35, running wheel activity at PND 63–77, flavored solution intake at PND 69–75). During pregnancy and lactation, dams in the 25-, 500-, and 2,000-ppm groups consumed 9 to 25% less food, which was associated with a 17% less weight gain during GDs 1 to 21 in dams of the 2,000-ppm group, although this effect was not statistically significant. Gestation duration, birth weight, sex ratio of live pups, and number of live or dead pups per litter did not differ between treatment groups. Offspring body weight and food consumption were decreased in the 2,000-ppm group beginning at PND 28; however, an effect of feed aversion could not be eliminated. Behavioral assessments of offspring indicated no consistent NP-related effects in open-field activity at PNDs 22–24, 43–45, and 65–67 nor in running wheel activity at PNDs 63–75. Play behavior at PND 35 and intake of a 0.3% saccharin-flavored solution at PNDs 69–71 did not differ with respect to treatment groups. However, intake of a 3% sodium-flavored solution at PNDs 73–75 was significantly increased in offspring of the 2,000-ppm group and intake of regular water during this same time was also significantly increased. These results indicate that developmental NP treatment results in maternal and offspring toxicity as evidenced by decreased food intake and weight gain. However, behavioral alterations were evident only in increased intake of a sodium solution.
Correlation functions in c>25 noncritical string theories

Abstract We compute three-point correlation functions in c >25 noncritical strings by extending a recent approach by Goulian and Li. It is shown that only for special kinematic configurations they reduce to simple expressions. Then we discuss another approach in which the cosmological term is modified and introduced in perturbation theory. Unlike c c >25 it defines different theories. In particular, when c =25+6( p − p ') 2 / pp ' the Liouville field takes values on a circle of radius R =√ pp '/2 and it is consistent to truncate the spectrum to that of a minimal model. Some consequences of such an interpretation are discussed.
On-Wafer Crystallization of Ultralow-κ Pure Silica Zeolite Films†

A higher goal: An on-wafer crystallization process to prepare pure silica zeolite (PSZ) MEL-type films that is superior to the previously used hydrothermal process is reported. These striation-free MEL-type films (right, see picture) outperform the traditional spin-on films (left) in terms of the kappa value, mechanical properties, surface roughness, mesopore size, and size distribution.
Belief function model for reliable optimal set estimation of transition matrices in discounted infinite-horizon Markov decision processes

We study finite-state, finite-action, discounted infinite-horizon Markov decision processes with uncertain correlated transition matrices in deterministic policy spaces. To efficiently implement an approximate robust policy iteration algorithm for computing a robust optimal or near-optimal policy, a reliable and tight set estimate of the parameters of the transition matrix is needed in advance. However, observation samples on state transitions may be small. Prior information on the parameter space may be incomplete or unavailable. In such cases, a commonly used maximum a posterior (MAP) model may not provide a reliable optimal set estimate of the parameters. In this paper, using the advantages of Dempster-Shafer theory of evidence over Bayesian theory, a belief function model is proposed based on minimizing the cardinality of a set estimate. This new model can give a more reliable optimal solution to cover the true parameters than the MAP model. It degenerates to the MAP model when prior information on the parameter space is complete or prior information is unavailable but observation samples on state transitions are large enough. Moreover, we create a concept of principle components to characterize large observation samples so that both models result in the same reliable and tight results. The computation complexity of the new model is also discussed.
Reported Outcome Factors for Hepatic Metastasectomy

The following SSAT/AHAPBA symposium summary is based on a more comprehensive review of the topic by Alseidi A, Helton WS, Espat NJ. Does the literature support an indication for hepatic metastasectomy other than for colorectal primary? J Gastrointest Surg in press.
Real-time planning for parameterized human motion

We present a novel approach to learn motion controllers for real-time character animation based on motion capture data. We employ a tree-based regression algorithm for reinforcement learning, which enables us to generate motions that require planning. This approach is more flexible and more robust than previous strategies. We also extend the learning framework to include parameterized motions and interpolation. This enables us to control the character more precisely with a small amount of motion data. Finally, we present results of our algorithm for three different types of controllers.
Carbon electronics — From material synthesis to circuit demonstration

Carbon-based technology offers a viable path for the continued scaling of integrated circuits and has received much attention in recent years as a promising extension to silicon-CMOS due to the excellent intrinsic delay [1]. Carbon nanotube field-effect transistors (CNFETs) are also well-known for their superior current conduction. From simulation, CNFETs are projected to achieve a 5X speed improvement for a four-core processor in comparison with 11nm partially depleted silicon-on-insulator (PDSOI) technology [2]. Graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) and metallic carbon nanotubes are promising candidates for future interconnect technology since they offer low parasitic capacitance for the same resistance [3–4]. In spite of the great performance potentials, many obstacles still exist on the path towards realizing the vision of robust, large-scale commercial carbon-based device technology. In this paper, we review some of our recent progress from material synthesis to VLSI-circuit demonstration for a carbon-based nanoelectronics technology.
Making the case for early medical student education in interventional radiology: a survey of 2nd-year students in a single U.S. institution.

Purpose To examine perceptions of interventional radiology (IR) among a group of second-year medical students and support the case for early exposure to the field in order to increase visibility and, ultimately, recruitment to this specialty. Materials and Methods Sixty-five members of the class of 2011 from a single U.S. institution were anonymously surveyed about their opinions on IR before and after a 1-hour case-based introductory lecture. Results Sixty-four students completed the survey in its entirety. Perception about what IR entails varied, with 52% of the students aware of IR involvement in major and potentially life-saving procedures; however, 34% believed that an interventional radiologist primarily performed “minor” procedures or “read films.” Previous interaction with interventional radiologists was uncommon. Following the single, case-based introductory IR lecture, 74% of the class was eager to learn more about the specialty, with 22% interested in enrolling in a dedicated hands-on elective in IR. The perception and impression of what IR entails changed significantly for the better for 75% of the students. Before the lecture, 19% were considering IR as a career (first or second choice); this increased to 33% after the introductory lecture. Conclusions Although medical students are aware of IR, their exposure and understanding is limited. They are keen to learn more when exposed to it. Reaching out to the medical students early in their career may help in recruiting talent and securing the specialty's growth.
KarmaNET: Leveraging trusted social paths to create judicious forwarders

Many existing problems in distributed systems can be linked to routing being orthogonal to trust and ignoring the social connectivity. This paper introduces a novel and economical protocol, entitled KarmaNET, which binds any routing protocol with trust to build a trusted social path and create judicious forwarders. This creates incentives for nodes to build good karma, and excises any node that has accumulated too much bad karma. KarmaNET requires only local knowledge, cuts off malicious nodes at the source, adapts to dynamic changes in behavior, bounds the number of unwanted messages a node can generate in its lifetime (even in the presence of collusion, part-time spammers, and errors in marking the outcome), and achieves an expected 0 spams received per node in the limit. KarmaNET ostracizes spammers, freeloaders, and minimizes Sybil attacks with negligible false positive and negative rates (less than 0.5%). We theoretically prove bounds on the damage an attacker can cause, that KarmaNET achieves exponentially fast adaptation to a node's dynamic behavior, and show that our simulation matches the theory.
Suppression of quantum interference induced vortices and threshold voltage shift due to the inclusion of inelastic scattering in ultra small fully depleted SOI MOSFETs

The ever shrinking dimensions of semiconductor device technology have placed great importance on quantum interference effects. More interest is focusing upon fully depleted SOI MOSFET, where we find many interesting effects. In this paper, we examine the effect of scattering on the turbulent flow of the electron density in SOI MOSFET devices. Further, we also investigate this effect on the threshold voltage of these ultra small devices. We find that the inclusion of scattering suppresses the vortices that form in the active regions of the device creating a more disordered flow and shifting the threshold voltage to higher levels that previously observed.
Polyesters in Higher Plants

Polyesters occur in higher plants as the structural component of the cuticle that covers the aerial parts of plants. This insoluble polymer, called cutin, attached to the epidermal cell walls is composed of interesterified hydroxy and hydroxy epoxy fatty acids. The most common chief monomers are 10, 16-dihydroxy C16 acid, 18-hydroxy-9, 10 epoxy C18 acid, and 9, 10, 18-trihydroxy C18 acid. These monomers are produced in the epidermal cells by ω hydroxylation, in-chain hydroxylation, epoxidation catalyzed by P450-type mixed function oxidase, and epoxide hydration. The monomer acyl groups are transferred to hydroxyl groups in the growing polymer at the extracellular location. The other type of polyester found in the plants is suberin, a polymeric material deposited in the cell walls of a layer or two of cells when a plant needs to erect a barrier as a result of physical or biological stress from the environment, or during development. Suberin is composed of aromatic domains derived from cinnamic acid, and aliphatic polyester domains derived from C16 and C18 cellular fatty acids and their elongation products. The polyesters can be hydrolyzed by pancreatic lipase and cutinase, a polyesterase produced by bacteria and fungi. Catalysis by cutinase involves the active serine catalytic triad. The major function of the polyester in plants is as a protective barrier against physical, chemical, and biological factors in the environment, including pathogens. Transcriptional regulation of cutinase gene in fungal pathogens is being elucidated at a molecular level. The polyesters present in agricultural waste may be used to produce high value polymers, and genetic engineering might be used to produce large quantities of such polymers in plants.
Gβγ Subunits Mediate Mitogen-activated Protein Kinase Activation by the Tyrosine Kinase Insulin-like Growth Factor 1 Receptor

The receptors for insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF1) and insulin are related heterotetrameric proteins which, like the epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor, possess intrinsic ligand-stimulated tyrosine protein kinase activity. In Rat 1 fibroblasts, stimulation of mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase via the IGF1 receptor and the Gi-coupled receptor for lysophosphatidic acid (LPA), but not via the EGF receptor, is sensitive both to pertussis toxin treatment and to cellular expression of a specific Gβγ subunit-binding peptide. The IGF1, LPA, and EGF receptor-mediated signals are all sensitive to inhibitors of tyrosine protein kinases, require p21ras activation, and are independent of protein kinase C. These data suggest that some tyrosine kinase growth factor receptors (e.g. IGF1 receptor) and classical G protein-coupled receptors (e.g. LPA receptor) employ a similar mechanism for mitogenic signaling that involves both tyrosine phosphorylation and Gβγ subunits derived from pertussis toxin-sensitive G proteins.
Thirty Years of Scholarship and Science on Environment— Society Relationships:

By 2008, “environmental sociology” had become a well-established and well-recognized field of sociology, but exactly 30 years earlier, in 1978, it was essentially nonexistent. That was the year that saw the publication of the first two articles that, along with later work by Riley Dunlap and William Catton, began to make possible the subsequent development of the field. At the time, many of the leading figures in sociology—specifically including those who called themselves “human ecologists”—were actively hostile to the idea that sociological work would include attention to environmental variables. The hostility was particularly acute for work that focused on what an important book of the time called Limits to Growth. Fortunately, these pioneers moved forward, and in doing so, they helped to change the entire field of sociology. If the earlier degree of hostility toward work on environmental problems and variables is difficult to imagine today, a significant fraction of the credit needs to go to Drs. Catt...
A NEW, LARGE, LATE PLEISTOCENE DEMOSPONGE FROM SOUTHEASTERN FLORIDA

Spectacular exposures of large, upright, vase- to barrel-shaped, late Pleistocene sponges are dramatically exposed as part of the Miami Limestone along margins of the C-100C Canal in east-central Miami-Dade County, southeastern Florida. The discovery of this sponge reef by K. J. Cunningham was made in 2004, during a routine drive across the bridge above the C-100C Canal on S.W. 97th Avenue in Miami-Dade County, southeastern Florida. A second location, where comparable sponges are exposed in walls of a burrow lake, was also discovered by K. J. Cunningham in 2004 upon visiting the site after personal communication with L. Noblick, Montgomery Botanical Center, and S. Zona, Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, about similarly shaped geologic structures. Subsequently, the C-100C Canal location was documented and some of the sponges were collected and thin sections and samples were sent to J. K. Rigby for examination and evaluation. This paper, on the description and possible taxonomy of the sponges, is a result of that joint effort. Sponges reported here were collected from banks of Canal C-100C, of the Cutler Drain System, near the bridge of S.W. 97th Avenue, which crosses over the canal. That site is at 25°38′58.9″ North Latitude, and 80°21′02.3″ West Longitude, referenced to the North American Datum of 1983. At this location the sponge reef is exposed on the north bank of the canal. Completion of construction of the bridge on S.W. 97th Avenue over the canal was in 1966 so, presumably, the sponge reef has been exposed there for almost 40 years, at least. Unfortunately, detailed coordinate positions of all the sponge samples were not taken as they were collected. However, they would have come from only a few meters east of the SW 97th Avenue bridge, on either the northern or southern bank of the canal, or up to 250 …
Qualitative Development of the PROMIS® Pediatric Stress Response Item Banks

OBJECTIVE To describe the qualitative development of the Patient-Reported Outcome Measurement Information System (PROMIS®) Pediatric Stress Response item banks. METHODS Stress response concepts were specified through a literature review and interviews with content experts, children, and parents. A library comprising 2,677 items derived from 71 instruments was developed. Items were classified into conceptual categories; new items were written and redundant items were removed. Items were then revised based on cognitive interviews (n = 39 children), readability analyses, and translatability reviews. RESULTS 2 pediatric Stress Response sub-domains were identified: somatic experiences (43 items) and psychological experiences (64 items). Final item pools cover the full range of children's stress experiences. Items are comprehensible among children aged ≥8 years and ready for translation. CONCLUSIONS Child- and parent-report versions of the item banks assess children's somatic and psychological states when demands tax their adaptive capabilities.
Unsupervised annotation of usability test videos

Usability test videos are one of the results of usability tests. They are used for future reference, documentation, and detailed analysis. However, analysis of videos demands concentration and is time consuming. This paper contributes with a method to annotate usability test videos based on logs of UI events, indicating usability problems and providing specialists new ways of analyzing usability test videos. From the presented results, one expects to support practitioners in the task of using usability test videos in post-test phases.
Acute feTal behavioral Response to prenatal Yoga: a single, blinded, randomized controlled trial (TRY yoga).

Background In 2012, yoga was practiced by 20 million Americans, of whom 82% were women. A recent literature review on prenatal yoga noted a reduction in some pregnancy complications (ie, preterm birth, lumbar pain, and growth restriction) in those who practiced yoga; to date, there is no evidence on fetal response after yoga. Objectives We aimed to characterize the acute changes in maternal and fetal response to prenatal yoga exercises using common standardized tests to assess the well-being of the maternal-fetal unit. Study Design We conducted a single, blinded, randomized controlled trial. Uncomplicated pregnancies between 28 0/7 and 36 6/7 weeks with a nonanomalous singleton fetus of women who did not smoke, use narcotics, or have prior experience with yoga were included. A computer-generated simple randomization sequence with a 1:1 allocation ratio was used to randomize participants into the yoga or control group. Women in the yoga group participated in a 1-time, 1 hour yoga class with a certified instructor who taught a predetermined yoga sequence. In the control group, each participant attended a 1-time, 1 hour PowerPoint presentation by an obstetrician on American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommendations for exercise, nutrition, and obesity in pregnancy. All participants underwent pre- and postintervention testing, which consisted of umbilical and uterine artery Doppler ultrasound, nonstress testing, a biophysical profile, maternal blood pressure, and maternal heart rate. A board-certified maternal-fetal medicine specialist, at a different tertiary center, interpreted all nonstress tests and biophysical profile data and was blinded to group assignment and pre- or postintervention testing. The primary outcome was a change in umbilical artery Doppler systolic to diastolic ratio. Sample size calculations indicated 19 women per group would be sufficient to detect this difference in Doppler indices (alpha, 0.05; power, 80%). Data were analyzed using a repeated-measures analysis of variance, a χ 2 , and a Fisher exact test. A value of P Results Of the 52 women randomized, 46 (88%) completed the study. There was no clinically significant change in umbilical artery systolic to diastolic ratio ( P = .34), pulsatility index ( P = .53), or resistance index ( P = .66) between the 2 groups before and after the intervention. Fetal and maternal heart rate, maternal blood pressure, and uterine artery Dopplers remained unchanged over time. When umbilical artery indices were individually compared with gestational age references, there was no difference between those who improved or worsened between the groups. Conclusion There was no significant change in fetal blood flow acutely after performing yoga for the first time in pregnancy. Yoga can be recommended for low-risk women to begin during pregnancy.
Injury by Hyalaphora cecropia (Lepidoptera: Saturniidae) and Photosynthetic Responses of Apple and Crabapple

The influence of arthropods on plant gas exchange processes, such as photosynthesis, water-vapor transfer, and respiration is important to characterize because these processes are crucial determinants of plant growth, yield, and fitness. Studies were conducted from 1992 through 1994 to characterize the gas exchange responses of apple, Pyrus malus L., ('Jonathan') and crabapple, Pyrus coronaria L. ('Liset' and 'spring Snow'), to simulated and actual leaf mass consumption larvae of the cecropia moth, Hyalophora cecropia (L.). Photosynthetic rates of injured crabapple leaves were not significantly different from uninjured leaves. Further, Spring Snow and Liset did not seem to respond differently to injury ; leaves of both varieties were unaffected by injury. Photosynthetic rates of injured crabapple leaves were not significantly different from uninjured leaves 3, 27, or 75 h after the cessation of injury. Photosynthetic rates of injured apple leaves were not significantly different from uninjured leaves 3 or 24 h after the cessation of injury. Similarly, stomatal conductance and transpiration rates were not significantly different among treatments. Therefore, the principal effect of leaf mass consumption on photosynthetic responses of apple and crabapple was to reduce leaf area, not photosynthetic rates. Our results are consistent with other studies on different plant species that indicate gross leaf tissue removal does not affect photosynthetic rates of remaining leaf tissue. However, our findings contradict previously published results on apple. The potential reasons for these differences, particularly the role of intrinsic and extrinsic factors, are discussed.
Culturing the Lesser Peachtree Borer

The lesser peach tree borer, Synanthedon pictipes (Grote and Robinson) was successfully reared through multiple generations on an artificial diet. This alleviated the problems of cost, supply, storage, handling, and contamination encountered when rearing the larvae on thinning apples.
The Roles of Departmental and Position Power in Job Evaluation

Applying macro-level research on power and resource allocation to job evaluation in a university setting, the authors tested whether job evaluation outcomes were affected by departmental power. The...
The handbook of neuroendovascular surgery

Edited by Eric M Deshaies, Christopher S Eddleman, Alan S Boulos. Published by Thieme, pp 496 (paperback). 2011. ISBN-10: 1604063009; ISBN-13: 978-1604063004. The Oxford Concise English Dictionary defines a handbook as ‘a book giving information such as facts on a particular subject’. The authors of The handbook of neuroendovascular surgery go to some lengths to make the point that this text is just that—a handbook, a quick reference guide and intended for the labcoat pockets of the newly minted attending, fellow or other practitioner. This is prudent, because it sets an appropriate level of expectation for the book's content. The book is edited by neurosurgeons, and the foreword by Dr Robert Rosenwasser, the Chairman of Neurological Surgery at Jefferson Medical Center, is unabashedly directed at a neurosurgical audience. However, radiologists and neurologists practicing neurological intervention should not be discouraged from reading further, as the viewpoints espoused within the text are balanced ones. A total of 28 contributors (from various training backgrounds) are credited for their work in over 21 chapters and two appendices. Appendix A is a summary of the tables contained in other portions of the book, with vascular anatomy plates and the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale, while appendix B contains high quality illustrations. In the style of other recent publications from the Thieme stable, additional online content is available at http://www.mediacenter.thieme.com through use of an access code provided under a scratch panel on the book's first page. The online content consists of electronic versions of appendix B in the book, with stated application for patient education and Powerpoint presentations. The contribution of this section to the education of the average reader is small, and should not influence purchase of the text. The book is organized logically into three sections, progressing from basic concepts through advanced techniques. The first section, ‘Introduction’, focuses on fundamentals of cranial and spinal vascular anatomy, coagulation and anesthesia for endovascular cases. The information presented …
Analysis of detection results of hepatitis A,hepatitis E and ALT among employees in Kaili city in 2012

Objective To know the positive rates of HAV-IgM,HEV-IgM in health employees in Kaili. Methods The vein blood serum was collected from healthy employees to detect the IgM antibody of hepatitis A and hepatitis E by enzyme linked immunosorbent detection( ELISA),and ALT by modified reitman-frankel method. Results Totally 3511 employees were involved to detect the IgM antibody of hepatitis A and hepatitis E,the positive rates were 0. 11% and 0. 40%. There was no statistical difference between the positive rates of hepatitis E and hepatitis A in different sexes,ages,profession and education. From 2009 to 2012,a total of 14356 employees were detected the ALT,the abnormal detection rate of ALT was 1. 55%,and there were significant statistical differences between different ages and sexs,but not among different professions and education backgrounds. Conclusion In order to block the transmission of HAV and HEV,comprehensive prevention and control measures should be strengthened on health education,health supervision and management.
Dance, Philosophy, and Somaesthetics

This essay examines the question whether dance can do philosophy by considering the manner in which dance processes used in the studio can advance philosophical investigations of human embodiment. Two contemporary improvisation techniques are discussed, Gaga technique developed by Ohad Naharin and Contact Improvisation developed by Steve Paxton.
Important Causes of Delayed Projects in Saudi Arabia vs. PIPS: A University Campus Case Study

Saudi Arabia has been facing issues with completing construction projects on time and on budget. It has been documented that 70% of public construction projects are delayed. A case study was performed, at a University campus in northern Saudi Arabia, identifying the major causes of project delays. The University was experiencing delays from 50% to 150%. The delay factors were gathered from the University Projects Director and five engineers. The University delay factors were then compared to delay factors experienced on Saudi construction projects, identified by performing a literature research. The comparison identified nine causes of delays that both studies documented. The study also proposes a solution to minimize the nine major delay factors. A literature research identified one construction management method, the Performance Information Procurement System (PIPS), has documented multiple times its ability to improve project performance and minimize delays.
Evaluating MIS design principles

MIS design approaches call for managers to specify their information needs to be used as requirements in the design process. To explore the merits of th is practice, managers from organizations across the United States were interviewed. The managers were asked to indicate their preference for personal, interactive, report, and analytic types of information for various stages of decision making and decision familiarity. These preferences were assessed to determine of they were influenced by managers' personal characteristics (such as psychological makeup and experience), by the decision task, or both. Analysis found that preferences were not influenced by manager characteristics but were influenced by the decision task. The managers demonstrated an understanding of information uses consistent with the decision support literature, providing support for user specification of MIS information requirements.
A Social Constructivism Decision-Making Approach to Managing Incidental Findings in Neuroimaging Research.

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is a powerful tool used in cognitive neuroscientific research. fMRI is noninvasive, safe, and relatively accessible, making it an ideal method to draw inferences about the brain–behavior relationship. When conducting fMRI research, scientists must consider risks associated with brain imaging. In particular, the risk of potentially identifying an abnormal brain finding in an fMRI research scan poses a complex problem that researchers should be prepared to address. This article illustrates how a social constructivism decision-making model can be used as a framework to guide researchers as they develop protocols to address this issue.
Hepatitis C Virus Resistance Testing in Genotype 1: The Changing Role in Clinical Utility.

Objective: To review the role and utility of baseline resistance testing with currently available and pipeline genotype 1 hepatitis C virus (HCV) treatment. Data Sources: Authors reviewed liver mee...
Embracing the Language‐Educational Challenge of FL Departments: Reflections on Ways Forward

The article responds to the issue article "Making Change Happen: The New Mission and Location of Language Departments" by Rogelio Minana. Topics include the relation of foreign language (FL) departments to interdisciplinarity, the role of FL departments in the context of the humanities, and the role of integration in curriculum development.
Violence, Corruption, and Demand for Law

Throughout the world, firms employ a variety of strategies to secure property rights. As recognized since Macaulay's (1963) pioneering work, many of these strategies do not rely on formal legal institutions. Firms turn to litigation or law enforcement only as a last resort, preferring instead to resolve conflicts on the basis of personal relationships and informal norms. But under certain conditions, firms eschew formal legal institutions in favor of more nefarious strategies – strategies that utilize violence or corruption. During the California Gold Rush of 1848, for instance, Umbeck (1981, p. 100) found that “the ability to use violence was the basis for all property rights” and therefore “every miner carried at least one gun.” In a more contemporary setting, De Soto (2003, p. 155) documents howmany Peruvian firms rely on “the protection that local bullies or mafias are willing to sell them.” In Indonesia, private security companies not only fulfill the more prosaic tasks of guarding land and buildings but also offer a wide range of services, including “the intimidation of a client's business rivals” (Wilson, 2010, p. 255). Even in some of the world's most developed economies, firms rely extensively on private coercion. According to Milhaupt and West's (2000, p. 66) analysis of Japan, “the influence of organized crime is readily apparent in bankruptcy and debt collection, property development, dispute settlement, shareholders’ rights, and finance.” And in post-Soviet Russia, the primary focus of this book, violence in the 1990s reached such proportions that approximately two-fifths of surveyed enterprise managers reported personally facing coercion or threats of physical harm in the course of doing business (Radaev, 1999, pp. 36–40). In addition to violence, firms frequently rely on corruption to secure property, offering informal payments to state officials in exchange for protection or for illicit raids against competitors. Wank (2004, p. 113) finds evidence in China of “entire [government] bureaus defining their practical policies and operating procedures to support private firms in ways of varying legality.” Meanwhile, in Uganda elected officials serving on Local Councils collect informal fees to resolve property disputes, despite government efforts to move such conflicts into formal adjudicatory institutions provided by the state (Joireman, 2011, pp. 62–66).
Enactors of horizontal violence: The pathological bully, the self-justified bully and the unprofessional co-worker.

Aim To suggest an alternative approach to improving recognition of horizontal violence using enactor types identified in a study exploring nurses’ perceptions of horizontal violence. Background Horizontal violence is an umbrella term used to describe a range of aggressive behaviors between nurse colleagues. It is suggested that nurses do not recognize the phenomenon when they witness or experience it, contributing to its perpetuation. Design This was a qualitative, descriptive study undertaken to inform theory development and the design of future interventions to address horizontal violence. Method Observation, document review and semi-structured interviews took place in two inpatient hospital units in the Northeastern United States between June and November 2012. Ongoing analysis identified three distinct types of enactors of horizontal violence. Findings Nurse participants rarely used terms from hospital policies or nursing literature to describe behaviors associated with horizontal violence but identified behaviors by describing the attributes of the enactor and the situation. Three enactor types were disaggregated from the data: the Pathological Bully, the Self-Justified Bully and the Unprofessional Co-worker. Conclusion Findings support previous research suggesting nurses do not recognize aggressive behaviors when they witness or experience them and do not have a name for those who enact these behaviors. This disaggregation of enactors of horizontal violence into recognizable types introduces an alternative approach to addressing the phenomenon. Development of instruments to identify these enactors, as well as testing of these instruments, is required to establish the utility of this disaggregation in nursing practice and in designing future interventions. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Political science: Moral dialogues and our understanding of American politics

Abstract This commentary focuses on the connection between Etzioni’s moral dialogues conception and the concepts of social capital, civil society and the ultimate outcome to be anticipated from the election of Donald Trump in 2016. The optimist view that a progressive social movement is in the making is called somewhat into question given the well documented decline in the very institutions and trust-based norms essential for the moral dialogues in question to transpire.
VirTect: a computational method for detecting virus species from RNA-Seq and its application in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

Next generation sequencing (NGS) provides an opportunity to detect viral species from RNA-seq data on human tissues, but existing computational approaches do not perform optimally on clinical samples. We developed a bioinformatics method called VirTect for detecting viruses in neoplastic human tissues using RNA-seq data. Here, we used VirTect to analyze RNA-seq data from 363 HNSCC (head and neck squamous cell carcinoma) patients and identified 22 HPV-induced HNSCCs. These predictions were validated by manual review of pathology reports on histopathologic specimens. Compared to two existing prediction methods, VirusFinder and VirusSeq, VirTect demonstrated superior performance with many fewer false positives and false negatives. The majority of HPV carcinogenesis studies thus far have been performed on cervical cancer and generalized to HNSCC. Our results suggest that HPV-induced HNSCC involves unique mechanisms of carcinogenesis, so understanding these molecular mechanisms will have a significant impact on therapeutic approaches and outcomes. In summary, VirTect can be an effective solution for the detection of viruses with NGS data, and can facilitate the clinicopathologic characterization of various types of cancers with broad applications for oncology.
Context matters: Social cognition task performance in psychometric schizotypes.

Abstract Patients with schizophrenia show performance deficits on tasks requiring empathy-related social cognition. The extent to which empathy impairments are observed in psychometric schizotypy is unclear. We compared accuracy and reaction time in three groups of individuals characterized by positive schizotypy (n = 79), negative schizotypy (n = 123), or low schizotypy group (n = 137). On a social cognition task that provided context, namely, the Emotion Perspective Taking Task, the positive schizotypes showed poorer performance than the negative schizotypy and control groups. These results suggest that some schizotypes differ in their ability to make use of context (e.g., social cues from the environment) to affect their social cognitive performance. However, on the Affective Responsiveness Task, in which no context was given, both groups of psychometric schizotypes displayed lower performance than the controls. These findings highlight the importance of assessing multiple groups of schizotypes as well as the value of including several social cognition tasks in order to reveal relative performance deficits.
MyD88 Deficiency Protects Against Dry Eye–Induced Damage

Purpose Dry eye disease (DED) is a multifactorial disease associated with ocular surface inflammation. Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are integral in the initiation of inflammatory signaling. Therefore, we evaluated the effect of TLR-deficiency on dry eye-related ocular surface damage and inflammation using a mouse model of experimental dry eye (EDE). Methods C57BL/6 wild-type (WT), MyD88-/-, and IL-1R-/- mice were exposed to EDE conditions for 5 days. Tear production was measured by phenol red thread test and ocular surface damage assessed with fluorescein staining. Corneal homogenates were obtained for matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) and cytokine expression analysis by Luminex assay and quantitative PCR. In addition, whole eyes and eyelids were dissected and goblet cells and Meibomian glands were imaged, respectively. Results Following 5 days of EDE, WT mice had extensive ocular surface staining, while MyD88-/- mice had no increased staining above non-EDE conditions. Similarly, MyD88-/- mice did not have increased corneal MMP-2, 3, or 8 concentrations, as seen with WT mice. MyD88-deficiency also resulted in decreased corneal cytokine levels. In addition, MyD88-/- mice had significantly lower conjunctival goblet cell counts compared with both WT (EDE) and IL-1R-/- (non-EDE) mice. However, there was no difference in Meibomian gland morphology between WT, IL-1R-/-, and MyD88-/- mice. Conclusions These studies demonstrate the importance of TLR signaling in dry eye development. Mice lacking TLR signaling, MyD88-/-, were protected from EDE-induced ocular surface damage and inflammatory mediator expression, warranting further investigation into TLR inhibition as a potential therapeutic for DED.
Neural Network Estimation of Atmospheric Thermodynamic State for Weather Forecasting Applications

We present recent work using neural network estimation techniques to process satellite observation of the Earth’s atmosphere to improve weather forecasting performance. A novel statistical method for the retrieval of atmospheric temperature and moisture (relative humidity) profiles has been developed and evaluated with sounding data from the Atmospheric InfraRed Sounder (AIRS) and the Advanced Microwave Sounding Unit (AMSU) on the NASA Aqua satellite and the Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI) and AMSU on the EUMETAT MetOp-A satellite. The present work focuses on the cloud impact on the AIRS and IASI radiances and explores the use of stochastic cloud clearing mechanisms together with neural network estimation. The algorithm outputs are ingested into a numerical model, and forecast information and decision support tools are then presented to a meteorologist. We discuss the underlying physical problem, the algorithmic framework, and the interaction with forecaster.
The Emergence of Mathematical Modeling Competencies: An Investigation of Prospective Secondary Mathematics Teachers

A study with prospective teachers without prior mathematical modeling experience sheds light on how their newly developed conceptual understanding of modeling manifested itself in their work on the final task of a modeling module within a pedagogy course in secondary mathematics curriculum and assessment. The main purpose of the module was to provide opportunity for the prospective teachers to experience the Common Core Mathematical Practice Model with Mathematics and begin to develop competency in modeling. Their work and reflections displayed a range of proficiency in several competencies associated with the modeling process. Examples of their work illustrating these ranges are provided. The prospective teachers expressed both struggle and rewards during the process, and reflected on challenges for teaching modeling. The results suggest that infusing modules in existing courses can be an effective way to elevate prospective teachers from unfamiliarity with modeling to noticeable levels of profic...
Reading Ahead by Hedging Our Bets on Seeing the Future: Eye Tracking and Electrophysiology Evidence for Parafoveal Lexical Processing and Saccadic Control by Partial Word Recognition

Abstract How can cognition influence reading speed (i.e., the timing of saccades–eye fixations) when language processing (i.e., word recognition) seems so much slower? This paper suggests that the answer to this question requires two assumptions: (1) the triggering of saccades is based on partial, rather than complete, word recognition and (2) readers preview words in parafoveal vision prior to fixating them, allowing for a head-start on linguistic processing. I propose a novel theoretical framework about the use of parafoveal preview in reading (i.e., a hybrid account of forced fixations and trans-saccadic integration) and provide evidence for that framework from eye tracking studies, electrophysiology studies, and computational models.
Abstract 4165: Myc vs. Akt therapy in RapidCap, a GEM model for metastatic prostate cancer

We describe our efforts to determine the effect of MYC and PI3K inhibition in a genetically engineered mouse model of naive and castration-resistant metastatic prostate cancer. Metastasis is a major driver of mortality and morbidity in prostate cancer, the most common cancer type in men and the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the western world. To recapitulate the metastatic process in genetically engineered mice, we have developed the RapidCaP system, which uses prostate-directed viral infection to trigger focal loss of Pten and Trp53. Using luminescence and fluorescence, the RapidCaP system allows us to track disease progression in real-time and isolate metastases in distant tissues. This system provides a powerful platform for the identification and validation of candidate driver genes and for the efficient testing of novel therapeutics. Using this system, we have recently identified Myc as a critical, spontaneously activated driver in Pten-negative metastatic prostate cancer. Preliminary trials indicate that the Myc-suppressing Brd4 inhibitor JQ1 is ineffective towards primary disease, but induces metastatic regression. This specificity correlates with a switch from AKT-driven primary disease to MYC-driven metastatic disease. Our current efforts seek to determine how, when and why targeting of Myc using JQ1 and the PI 3-Kinase pathway using NVP-BKM120 can be best used to treat naive and castration-resistant metastatic prostate cancer. In addition, we are examining changes to the transcriptome and epigenetic alterations that characterize Pten-negative metastatic prostate cancer, with the goal of understanding the mechanisms of progression toward a metastatic state and establishing new therapeutic targets. Citation Format: Carlos E. Stahlhut, Alexandra J. Ambrico, Kaitlin E. Watrud, Hyejin Cho, Lily Wang, Jun Qi, Lewis C. Cantley, James Bradner, Lloyd Trotman. Myc vs. Akt therapy in RapidCap, a GEM model for metastatic prostate cancer. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 107th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2016 Apr 16-20; New Orleans, LA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(14 Suppl):Abstract nr 4165.
I’ll be there: Promises in the field

Abstract As promises are non-binding, they can be either fulfilled or broken. Previous lab and field research mostly examines the factors that explain fulfillment, as promising itself is difficult to randomly assign. We design a novel natural field experiment where subtle changes of words in an invitation email shifts the level of promise making among our subjects to test the causal effect of promises. Promises are positively related to experimental attendance, and using the invitation treatment as an instrumental variable, we recover a positive but imprecisely measured causal impact of promise making on behavior.
Access to Employment, Volunteer Activities, and Community Events and Perceptions of Age-Friendliness: The Role of Social Connectedness.

The aim of this study was to investigate the direct and indirect effects of access to employment, volunteer opportunities, and community events on older adults’ perception of age-friendliness and f...