cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
“Tan Divina Amazona”: The Legend of Isabel the Catholic Queen in Luis Vélez de Guevara’s La serrana de la Vera

In La serrana de la Vera (1613), Luis Velez de Guevara provides an updated take on the medieval serrana, a lustful and dangerous mountain woman. He sets her legendary actions during the reign of Isabel I of Castile, and the play follows the protagonist Gila’s degeneration from an impressively strong labradora to a demonic man-murderer who boasts of over two thousand kills. Critics have noted the strong affinity between Queen Isabel and the serrana Gila and have focused on the play as an exemplum for curbing female behavior that exceeds the norms imposed by a patriarchal society. While the play creates a mirroring effect whereby Gila adopts and emulates Isabel’s masculine traits, I maintain that Gila’s virile behavior and starry-eyed admiration of Isabel entail more than a warning for women; her portrayal questions and challenges Isabel’s legend as presented in writings and remembrances of the queen. At the heart of this play, beyond the ambiguous gender of Gila, is the playwright’s challenge to the official mythic construction of royal personas. Velez de Guevara takes an already legendary serrana character from popular folklore and links her with the queen, emphasizing how Isabel’s history approximates and in many instances is indistinguishable from myth. La serrana de la Vera ends as a tragedy, thus emphasizing the untenability of Isabel’s dehumanizing legend.
Open Repair of Ruptured Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Complicated by Pancreatitis and Duodenal Obstruction

Patient developed acute pancreatitis with duodenal obstruction following open repair of ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm. Patient was re-explored for persistent obstruction and underwent lysis of adhesions. Pancreatitis and duodenal obstruction are uncommon complications of open repair of ruptured AAA, and most patients can be managed nonoperatively.
Assessment of Human-Likeness and Anthropomorphism of Robots: A Literature Review

Robots are a human-like product. To address the challenge of measuring responses to an object perceived as part product – part entity, researchers have evaluated robot appearance based on human-likeness. This review presents research that views human-likeness through the lens of the psychological construct of anthropomorphism. This review also briefly considers contributions of two related psychological construct of human-likeness: media equation and uncanny valley.
Mapping oscillating magnetic fields around rechargeable batteries

Abstract Power storage devices such as batteries are a crucial part of modern technology. The development and use of batteries has accelerated in the past decades, yet there are only a few techniques that allow gathering vital information from battery cells in a nonivasive fashion. A widely used technique to investigate batteries is electrical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), which provides information on how the impedance of a cell changes as a function of the frequency of applied alternating currents. Building on recent developments of inside-out MRI (ioMRI), a technique is presented here which produces spatially-resolved maps of the oscillating magnetic fields originating from the alternating electrical currents distributed within a cell. The technique works by using an MRI pulse sequence synchronized with a gated alternating current applied to the cell terminals. The approach is benchmarked with a current-carrying wire coil, and demonstrated with commercial and prototype lithium-ion cells. Marked changes in the fields are observed for different cell types.
Applying a leverage points framework to the United Nations climate negotiations: The (dis)empowerment of youth participants

Young people are both among the generations to be most affected by climate change and critical advocates for climate action. In the face of growing urgency surrounding the climate crisis, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has become an important institutional framework for political progress. We developed a community-based participatory action research project centered on youth involved in the COP climate negotiations. A “leverage points” approach guided our research; this paper is the first time the framework has been applied in an international negotiations context. Our findings point to the structural power, networks, and paradigms that youth might engage with for international climate justice work. We identify actionable leverage points through which youth organizers might increase their social power in the COP process to bring about climate action. Many of these leverage points are rooted in dynamics of power, which we expand upon and connect to broader literature. Moving forward, these findings can benefit and inform the strategies of youth as they participate in the COP process.
When Voters Regulate Business: Capture Theory in Reverse?

This paper shows that when voters regulate business directly by referendum, the overall picture looks nothing like traditional capture theory. To contrary, based on both qualitative and quantitative evidence, citizen-initiated laws typically appear to transfer wealth from businesses, and are less favorable than laws proposed by legislators. Key findings include: (i) anti-business laws substantially outnumbered pro-business laws among the 2,610 citizen initiatives in the U.S. states since 1904; (ii) business contributions to California ballot measures during 2000-2020 were typically defensive, seeking to prevent passage of hostile laws rather than gain passage of favorable laws; (iii) both proposed and approved laws were more likely to be anti-business when originating with citizens rather than the legislature; and (iv) corporations experienced significant abnormal stock returns associated with passage/failure of propositions that they or their competitors supported/opposed, indicating that real wealth transfers were at stake.
Key challenges for drugs in clinical development for cholangiocarcinoma.

Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) is a highly morbid cancer with rising incidence and few approved standard therapies. The main anatomical sites of cholangiocarcinoma are intra-hepatic (iCCA), perihilar, an...
Asymmetric response of interfacial water to applied electric fields

Our understanding of the dielectric response of interfacial water, which underlies the solvation properties and reaction rates at aqueous interfaces, relies on the linear response approximation: an external electric field induces a linearly proportional polarization. This implies antisymmetry with respect to the sign of the field. Atomistic simulations have suggested, however, that the polarization of interfacial water may deviate considerably from the linear response. Here we present an experimental study addressing this issue. We measured vibrational sum-frequency generation spectra of heavy water (D2O) near a monolayer graphene electrode, to study its response to an external electric field under controlled electrochemical conditions. The spectra of the OD stretch show a pronounced asymmetry for positive versus negative electrode charge. At negative charge below 5 × 1012 electrons per square centimetre, a peak of the non-hydrogen-bonded OD groups pointing towards the graphene surface is observed at a frequency of 2,700 per centimetre. At neutral or positive electrode potentials, this ‘free-OD’ peak disappears abruptly, and the spectra display broad peaks of hydrogen-bonded OD species (at 2,300–2,650 per centimetre). Miller’s rule1 connects the vibrational sum-frequency generation response to the dielectric constant. The observed deviation from the linear response for electric fields of about ±3 × 108 volts per metre calls into question the validity of treating interfacial water as a simple dielectric medium. Experimental measurements of vibrational sum-frequency generation spectra indicate that the dielectric response of water near an electrode may be strongly asymmetric, with different responses to positive and negative electrode charge.
A protocol for transdifferentiation of human cardiac fibroblasts into endothelial cells via activation of innate immunity.

Summary Endothelial cells (ECs) have emerged as key pathogenic players in cardiac disease due to their proximity with cardiomyocytes. Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) have been employed to generate ECs. However, it may be more clinically relevant to transdifferentiate fibroblasts into ECs directly without introducing pluripotent or virally driven transcription factors. Here, we present a protocol that describes the direct conversion of human cardiac fibroblasts into ECs by leveraging the innate immune system. Our protocol produces bona fide human ECs with 95%–98% purity by first passage. For complete details on the use and execution of this protocol, please refer to Liu et al. (2020) and Sayed et al. (2015) .
Allelopathy as an evolutionarily stable strategy

In plants, most competition is resource competition, where one plant simply pre-empts the resources away from its neighbours. Interference competition, as the name implies, is a form of direct interference to prevent resource access. Interference competition is common among animals who can physically fight, but in plants, one of the main mechanisms of interference competition is Allelopathy. allelopathic plants release of cytotoxic chemicals into the environment which can increase their ability to compete with surrounding organisms for limited resources. The circumstances and conditions favoring the development and maintenance of allelochemicals, however, is not well understood. Particularly, it seems strange that, despite the obvious benefits of allelopathy, it seems to have only rarely evolved. To gain insight into the cost and benefit of allelopathy, we have developed a 2 x 2 matrix game to model the interaction between plants that produce allelochemicals and plants that do not. Production of an allelochemical introduces novel cost associated with synthesis and detoxifying a toxic chemical but may also convey a competitive advantage. A plant that does not produce an allelochemical will suffer the cost of encountering one. Our model predicts three cases in which the evolutionarily stable strategies are different. In the first, the non-allelopathic plant is a stronger competitor, and not producing allelochemicals is the evolutionarily stable strategy. In the second, the allelopathic plant is the better competitor and production of allelochemicals is the more beneficial strategy. In the last case, neither is the evolutionarily stable strategy. Instead, there are alternating stable states, depending on whether the allelopathic or non-allelopathic plant arrived first. The generated model reveals circumstances leading to the evolution of allelochemicals and sheds light on utilizing allelochemicals as part of weed management strategies. In particular, the wide region of alternative stable states in most parameterizations, combined with the fact that the absence of allelopathy is likely the ancestral state, provides an elegant answer to the question of why allelopathy rarely evolves despite its obvious benefits. Allelopathic plants can indeed outcompete non-allelopathic plants, but this benefit is simply not great enough to allow them to go to fixation and spread through the population. Thus, most populations would remain purely non-allelopathic.
Student Results and Feedback

In this chapter, our students will have a voice. We present our analysis through quotes from our focus group participants. First, we will discuss the most and least beneficial learning activities and processes that students identified. We analyzed our students’ responses on this topic and identified a clear pattern in the kinds of activities they preferred and viewed as most useful. Second, we will examine the effects of student learning. Once the assessments are graded, the course complete, and the memory of specific class activities has faded, what will our students take with them from our courses? Overwhelmingly, our students reported that the cultural knowledge and intercultural competence that they learned as a result of the hybrid course was the learning they were most likely to remember.
Binding of Diffusible Molecules by Macromolecules: Rapid Measurement by Rate of Dialysis

A rapid technique for the determination of the dissociation constant and the number of binding sites of an enzyme-substrate complex has been developed. The method is based on measuring the rate of dialysis of radioactive substrate from an enzyme-substrate equilibrium mixture. Accurate results can be obtained quickly, thus permitting studies with somewhat labile substances.
Airborne Particles and Mortality

In London in December 1952, a combination of adverse weather conditions and soot in the atmosphere produced one of the most lethal smogs in history, resulting in thousands of deaths. Similar events had occurred earlier in the Meuse Valley in Belgium in 1930, and in Donora, Pennsylvania in 1948. They focused attention on the need to avoid excessive levels of soot in the atmosphere. In Britain, the Clean Air Act of 1956, which, among other things, placed severe restrictions on the use of coal for home heating, resulted in a tenfold reduction in soot levels in London by the late 1960s. In the United States, the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the passing of successive Clean Air Acts by Congress led to the enforcement of air pollution standards which have laid down strict controls on levels of ozone and particulate matter in the atmosphere. Nevertheless, a series of studies since the late 1980s have suggested that current standards are by no means strict enough. The New York Times (July 19, 1993) reported that up to 60,000 people a year are dying prematurely in the United States as a result of particulate matter pollution which for the most part lies within current EPA standards. A similar calculation in the British science magazine The New Scientist (March 12, 1994) concluded that 10,000 people die prematurely each year in England and Wales, as a result of atmospheric particulates. Such reports, backed up by many papers in the scientific literature, naturally led to calls for action, and in November 1996, the EPA issued new draft standards for ozone and particulate matter.
Nonlinear nodal analysis of varactor-tuned microwave filters

A nonlinear nodal analysis method is introduced to study the effects of high input power on varactor-tuned filters. Analysis is performed in the lowpass domain by calculating the nonlinear reactance deviation at each node using an iterative approach and nonlinear filter response is calculated by simple matrix inversion. Comparison of theoretical results with harmonic balance simulations shows good agreement. The proposed method has potential application in the design of highly linear tunable filters.
Study of Static Classification of Social Spam Profiles in MySpace.

Reaching hundreds of millions of users, major social networks have become important target media for spammers. Although practical techniques such as collaborative filters and behavioral analysis are able to reduce spam, they have an inherent lag (to collect sufficient data on the spammer) that also limits their effectiveness. Through an experimental study of over 1.9 million MySpace profiles, we make a case for analysis of static user profile content, possibly as soon as such profiles are created. We compare several machine learning algorithms in their ability to distinguish spam profiles from legitimate profiles. We found that a C4.5 decision tree algorithm achieves the highest accuracy (99.4%) of finding rogue profiles, while naive Bayes achieves a lower accuracy (92.6%). We also conducted a sensitivity analysis of the algorithms w.r.t. features which may be easily removed by spammers.
Congress summary: the organismal perspective

This report is intended to summarize several of the major advances presented at the Knoxville meeting and to provide context and implications for readers out of their specialty. The primary focus here will be findings related to establishment of the Rhizobium symbiosis. A range of special advances in this area justify such a focus. Readers should consult the accompanying article by Professor Burris for a summary of advances in areas where I have no useful expertise.
Evidence for hygroscopic mineral dust particles from the Intercontinental Transport and Chemical Transformation Experiment

[1] Two collocated, eight-stage rotating drum impactors were deployed at Trinidad Head (California) during the spring of 2002 as part of the Intercontinental Transport and Chemical Transformation 2002 (ITCT 2K2) experiment. One of the samplers operated at ambient relative humidity while the other was operated at a relative humidity of 55%. The impaction substrates from these samplers were analyzed using synchrotron X-ray fluorescence (SXRF) to provide continuous measurements of the size-resolved aerosol elemental composition with 3-hour time resolution. The aerosol elemental composition data identified three significant mineral dust episodes near the beginning of the time series. The backward air mass trajectory calculations from the Hybrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory (HYSPLIT) model and the PM10 to PM2.5 elemental mass ratios are consistent with the long-range transport of mineral dust from Asian sources. The data from the paired ambient relative humidity and low-relative-humidity samplers show that the aluminum, silicon, and iron elemental mass distributions are a function of relative humidity. In each case, the elemental mass distributions shifted toward smaller sizes as the relative humidity was reduced. This behavior indicates that the mineral dust transported from Asia to the west coast of the United States is somewhat hygroscopic upon its arrival. The hygroscopic nature of the aged mineral dust should increase its ability to nucleate cloud droplets (i.e., act as cloud condensation nuclei). Measurements of transported Asian mineral dust made at a high-elevation mountain site in Oregon (i.e., Crater Lake National Park) during the spring of 2002 show a strong correlation between the silicon and sulfur elemental mass concentrations. The ratio of calcium to sulfur makes it unlikely that this coarse sulfur is derived from gypsum (i.e., CaSO4). Instead, it indicates that the coarse mineral dust most likely accumulates sulfate coatings either near the source region or during transport across the Pacific Ocean.
Effect of the Surrounding Polymers of a Polymer Radical on Its Termination Rate

An effect of the surrounding polymers of a polymer radical on its termination rate has been studied in the radical polymerization of methyl methacrylate. The surrounding polymers were prepared by prepolymerization at a temperature T during time t. After t, the temperature was changed to T* and the polymerization was continued to obtain the kinetic data. When the chain length n of the surrounding polymers was smaller than that n* of the polymer radical, termination rate was found to be kt∝1/n at n≤nc and kt=const. at n>nc where nc≃300 c−2 (c, polymer concentration). When n>n*, k is independent of n. On the basis of the above results, the onset of the gel effect is defined to be the point at which kt changes abruptly at nc. This point was found explicitly to be the critical conversion at which n–x curve (x, conversion) and nc cross each other.
Cholinergic kindling of the amygdala requires the activation of muscarinic receptors

Abstract Daily injections of subconvulsive amounts of carbamylcholine into the rat's amygdala resulted in progressive kindling of epileptic seizures. This kindling was dose dependent and was blocked by muscarinic blockers and not by nicotinic blockers, suggesting that in this model the first step in the induction of kindled seizures involves the activation of muscarinic receptors.
Correlates of elevated interleukin-6 and C-reactive protein in persons with or at high risk for HCV and HIV infections

BACKGROUND HIV and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections may increase interleukin-6 (IL-6) and C-reactive protein (CRP). However, relationships between inflammatory biomarkers, chronic viral infections, clinical factors, and behavioral factors remain poorly understood. METHODS Using linear regression, we modeled cross-sectional associations between loge IL-6 or loge CRP levels and HCV, HIV, injection drug use, and comorbidity among 1191 injection drug users. RESULTS Mean age was 47 years, 46.0% reported currently injecting drugs, 59.0% were HCV monoinfected, and 27% were HCV/HIV coinfected. In multivariable models, higher loge IL-6 was associated with HCV monoinfection [β = 0.191, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.043 to 0.339] and HCV/HIV coinfection (β = 0.394, 95% CI: 0.214 to 0.574). In contrast, HCV monoinfection (β = -0.523, 95% CI: -0.275 to -0.789) and HCV/HIV coinfection (β = -0.554 95% CI: -0.260 to -0.847) were associated with lower CRP. Lower CRP with HCV infection was independent of liver fibrosis severity, synthetic function, or liver injury markers; CRP decreased with higher HCV RNA. Increased injection intensity was associated with higher IL-6 (P = 0.003) and CRP (P < 0.001); increasing comorbidity (P < 0.001) and older age (P = 0.028) were associated with higher IL-6; older age was associated with higher CRP among HCV-uninfected participants (P = 0.021). CONCLUSION HIV and HCV infections contribute to chronic inflammation; however, reduced CRP possibly occurs through HCV-mediated mechanisms. Findings highlight potentially modifiable contributors to inflammation.
A simple microeconomic foundation for a Tobit model of consumer demand

Abstract A simple microeconomic foundation is provided for a Tobit model of consumer demand subject to corner solutions.
Immune sensitization to syngeneic organ-specific intestinal antigens in the Lewis rat☆

Abstract In human chronic inflammatory bowel disease involving mucosal epithelium, sera and lamina propria mononuclear cells are reactive with cell surface components isolated from gut epithelial cells. To define a model system in which the disease-inducing potential of such immune factors could be rigorously evaluated, we sought (1) to immunologically sensitize inbred murine strains to syngeneic colonic epithelial cell-associated components (ECAC-C), (2) to define precise in vivo and in vitro conditions to optimize ECAC-C reactivity, and (3) to initially explore whether such cells could elicit tissue injury in epithelium after adoptive transfer to naive animals. Following footpad immunization, Day 42 lymph node cells but not splenocytes were reactive with syngeneic ECAC-C, as shown by a linear increase in [ 3 H]thymidine incorporation over a wide range of antigen concentration (0.5 to 100 μg/ml). A subsequent 48-hr exposure to ECAC-C and/or interleukin 2 resulted in a more restricted responsiveness, proliferation occurring only in the presence of ECAC-C or mitogen and not to a coimmunogen (PPD). Further evidence that lymph node cells from ECAC-C/CFA immunized animals were indeed sensitized to syngeneic ECAC-C included (1) ability of donor animals to mount highly significant earlobe DTH responses to ECAC-C, indicating the presence of antigen-specific T-DTH cells, and (2) the failure of polymyxin B, in doses sufficient to inhibit LPS-induced mitogenesis, to reduce lymph node cell responsiveness to ECAC-C, known to be contaminated with LPS. ECAC-C-specific circulating antibody and T-cytotoxic cells were not detected. Adoptive transfer of Day 42 lymph node cells, sensitized in vivo and conditioned in vitro , was not associated with tissue injury in syngeneic recipients in preliminary experiments. This model system, with antigen-specific cells analogous to those present in diseased mucosa of human chronic inflammatory bowel disease, may be an important means to determine the pathophysiologic significance of anti-epithelial cell immune responses in these disorders.
Synthetic studies toward the haouamines.

A concise synthetic approach toward the haouamines based on Stork−Danheiser alkylation and Friedel−Crafts chemistry is described. A novel electrophilic aromatic substitution with concomitant formation of an enol triflate is reported.
Comparison of albedos computed by land surface models and evaluation against remotely sensed data

The albedos of two land surface models, the Biosphere-Atmosphere Transfer Scheme (BATS) and the NCAR Land Surface Model (LSM), are compared with remotely sensed data and each other. The model albedos differ primarily because of their assumptions about and model differences in soil moisture content, soil color, snow albedo, shading of snow by canopy, and prescribed parameters for each land cover type. Global albedo maps for February and July 1995, developed from the advanced very high resolution radiometer (AVHRR) data, are used to evaluate model albedos. The models display a high bias as compared to the remotely sensed values in desert and semidesert regions. Over North Africa, LSM, whose albedos were previously tuned to data from the Earth Radiation Budget Experiment (ERBE), has the highest albedos. Elsewhere, and overall, BATS has the highest bias for desert and semidesert regions. Both models demonstrate a high bias over regions of winter snow, where the AVHRR data are expected to have a negative bias. LSM has especially high winter albedos, apparently because of intercepted snow increasing its canopy albedo.
Transactional and Cascading Relations between Early Spanking and Children's Social-Emotional Development.

The authors tested a series of models linking spanking and child social-emotional outcomes using a sample of 3,870 families from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing study. Spanking was measured by the number of times the focal child was spanked by the mother at ages 1, 3, and 5. Internalizing and externalizing symptoms were assessed using the Child Behavior Checklist at ages 3 and 5. Child emotionality was used to index child behavior at age 1. A series of nested transactional and cascade models was tested through structural equation modeling. The final model supported transactional effects between spanking and child externalizing behaviors over child ages 1, 3, and 5. In addition, one cascade effect was found: Spanking at age 1 was related to greater externalizing behavior at age 3, which was related to greater internalizing behavior at age 5. Implications for family theory and future research are discussed.
A quantitative categorical analysis of metadata elements in image-applicable metadata schemas

This article reports on a quantitative categorical analysis of metadata elements in the Dublin Core, VRA Core, REACH, and EAD metadata schemas, all of which can be used for organizing and describing images. The study found that each of the examined metadata schemas contains elements that support the discovery, use, authentication, and administration of images, and that the number and proportion of elements supporting functions in these classes varies per schema. The study introduces a new schema comparison methodology and explores the development of a class-oriented functional metadata schema for controlling images across multiple domains.
Suppression of thermal convection and of similar types of fluid streaming by an electromagnetic force field.

Abstract A method is described for increasing the stability of a fluid column against convection (such as thermal or electromagnetic convection) by superimposing upon a stabilizing vertical density gradient a parallel gradient of electromagnetic force density. The latter gradient is generated by creating a gradient of electrical conductivity concomitant with the vertical density gradient and maintaining at right angles to this gradient electric current traversed by a perpendicular homogeneous magnetic field. To obtain a stable column, one must choose the directions of the current and the magnetic field such as to make the electromagnetic force vector point in the direction of increasing electrical conductivity. Conditions under which the stability of a density gradient is reinforced, diminished or neutralized are considered as well as the engendering of instability by electromagnetic forces in a column stabilized by a density gradient.
How will B-cell-receptor-targeted therapies change future CLL therapy?

For many years there has been considerable disassociation between the understood biology of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and the therapeutics used to treat this disease. With the introduction of the first targeted CD20 antibody rituximab and its addition to chemotherapy came the first observation that minimal residual disease–negative (MRD-negative) complete responses (CRs) could be obtained with dramatically improved progression-free survival and overall survival. This advance was soon to be surpassed by the introduction of therapeutics that target B-cell receptor (BCR) signaling. New data show that BCR-inhibiting agents are very active for the treatment of relapsed CLL, despite the lack of MRD-negative CR, with durability of response being considerably more impressive than previously observed with other agents not producing MRD-negative CRs. This perspective provides a view of where these agents may take us in the future as CLL therapy evolves with this exciting new class of drugs.
In vivo screening of haloalkane dehalogenase mutants

Abstract Haloalkane dehalogenase (DhlA) from Xanthobacter autotrophicus GJ10 catalyzes the dehalogenation of short chain primary alkyl halides. Due to the high K m and low turnover, wild type DhlA is not optimal for applications in bioremediation. We have developed an in vivo screen, based on a colorimetric pH indicator, to identify DhlA mutant with improved catalytic activity. After screening 50,000 colonies, we identified a DhlA mutant with a lower pH optimum. Sequence analysis of the mutant revealed a single substitution, alanine 149 to threonine, which is located close to the active site of DhlA. Replacement of alanine 149 via site-directed mutagenesis with threonine, serine or cysteine retained the mutant phenotype. Other substitutions at position 149 show little or no activity.
Post-training administration of GABAergic antagonists enhances retention of aversively motivated tasks

The effect of sub-convulsive doses of GABAergic antagonists on the retention of two aversively motivated tasks, inhibitory avoidance (IA) and Y-maze discrimination (YMD), was investigated in CFW mice. In the IA task, post-training intraperitoneal injections of picrotoxin and bicuculline induced a dose-dependent enhancement of retention measured 24 h after the training, while retention was not affected by bicuculline methiodide (a GABA receptor antagonist that does not readily cross the blood-brain barrier). In the absence of footshock on the training day, post-training administration of picrotoxin and bicuculline did not affect retention test latencies. In the YMD task, the discrimination was reversed on the retention test and errors made on the reversal trials served as the index of retention of the original training. The reversal error scores of mice given post-training injections of picrotoxin or bicuculline, but not bicuculline methiodide, were significantly higher than those of saline-treated controls. These findings extend previous observations that GABAergic antagonists enhance retention of aversively motivated tasks and suggest the involvement of central GABAergic processes on memory consolidation.
Letting ME Do It

“But how do we change our workflow to make the best use of this new cataloging tool?” This was the question we asked when the OCLC Cataloging Micro Enhancer software (CAT ME) appeared in the catalog department at Oregon State. A new whiz kid had joined the OCLC family, and we wanted to become acquainted with its strengths and limitations. But we didn't want to introduce changes in our cataloging procedures that would result in more book and printout shuffling rather than less.
Do perceived pioneering advantages lead to first-mover decisions?

Abstract First-mover literature suggests several pioneering advantages and disadvantages. This study investigates how managerial perceptions of these pioneering advantages affect first-mover decisions by service provider managers. According to the literature on mental models, managers will make first-mover decisions based on their perceptions of pioneering advantages and disadvantages formed from their own personal beliefs; however, little research so far links these perceptions to how first-mover decisions are made. This study tests several hypotheses regarding how perceived pioneering advantages and disadvantages affect the likelihood of making a first-mover decision in selected service industries, using a dataset from 334 senior executives in service industries over a four year period. The empirical results suggest that mental model formation does affect the first-mover decision by service pioneering managers. The study concludes with a discussion of our theoretical contribution and managerial implications.
Validity of self-reported fear☆

Abstract This study investigated the relationship between a self-report fear measure and several measures of fear made in the fear-arousing situation. Subjects at three levels of self-reported fear of spiders (mild, moderate and intense) were found to differ on most of the situational measures from subjects who had professed no spider fear. Subjects who initially reported different levels of spider fear did not differ among themselves on the situational measures. It was concluded that self-report paper and pencil measures of fear can be valid, though gross, indicators of fear behavior in an actual situation.
Celebration of Gerry

I recall my long association with Gerald Guralnik and discuss his pioneering contributions to elementary-particle theory.
The experimenter's museum: GenBank, natural history, and the moral economies of biomedicine.

ABSTRACT Today, the production of knowledge in the experimental life sciences relies crucially on the use of biological data collections, such as DNA sequence databases. These collections, in both their creation and their current use, are embedded in the experimentalist tradition. At the same time, however, they exemplify the natural historical tradition, based on collecting and comparing natural facts. This essay focuses on the issues attending the establishment in 1982 of GenBank, the largest and most frequently accessed collection of experimental knowledge in the world. The debates leading to its creation—about the collection and distribution of data, the attribution of credit and authorship, and the proprietary nature of knowledge—illuminate the different moral economies at work in the life sciences in the late twentieth century. They offer perspective on the recent rise of public access publishing and data sharing in science. More broadly, this essay challenges the big picture according to which the ...
Product Realization in the Age of Mass Collaboration

There has been a recent emergence of communities working together in large numbers to develop new products, services, and systems. Collaboration at such scales, referred to as mass collaboration , has resulted in various robust products including Linux and Wikipedia. Companies are also beginning to utilize the power of mass collaboration to foster innovation at various levels. Business models based on mass collaboration are also emerging. Such an environment of mass collaboration brings about significant opportunities and challenges for designing next generation products. The objectives in this paper are to discuss these recent developments in the context of engineering design and to identify new research challenges. The recent trends in mass collaboration are discussed and the impacts of these trends on product realization processes are presented. Traditional collaborative product realization is distinguished from mass collaborative product realization. Finally, the open research issues for successful implementation of mass collaborative product realization are discussed.
Log-multiplicative association models as item response models

Log-multiplicative association (LMA) models, which are special cases of log-linear models, have interpretations in terms of latent continuous variables. Two theoretical derivations of LMA models based on item response theory (IRT) arguments are presented. First, we show that Anderson and colleagues (Anderson & Vermunt, 2000; Anderson & Bockenholt, 2000; Anderson, 2002), who derived LMA models from statistical graphical models, made the equivalent assumptions as Holland (1990) when deriving models for the manifest probabilities of response patterns based on an IRT approach. We also present a second derivation of LMA models where item response functions are specified as functions of rest-scores. These various connections provide insights into the behavior of LMA models as item response models and point out philosophical issues with the use of LMA models as item response models. We show that even for short tests, LMA and standard IRT models yield very similar to nearly identical results when data arise from standard IRT models. Log-multiplicative association models can be used as item response models and do not require numerical integration for estimation.
A simulation study of two-sample inference based on one-sample nonparametric confidence iintervals

Hettmansperger (1984) developed two-sample inference on population medians based on disjointness of one-sample confidence intervals. Due to the discrete nature in the confidence coefficient of non-parametric sign confidence intervals, the desired test size may not be available. Consequently, confidence intervals based on interpolated adjacent order statistics or various approximations of the asymptotic distribution of the sample median can be used to achieve the desired test size. An evaluation, via simulation, of five methods for constructing confidence intervals (normal approximation to binomial, direct linear, Hettmansperger-Sheather nonlinear, McKean-Schrader, and Hall-Sheather) are made for a variety of underlying distributions. Some recommendations for choice of interpolation method are given in an assortment of experimental settings. Sample size is discussed. Based on these recommendations, further simulation discusses level and power.
Identification and Assay of an Organosilicon Contaminant in Unleaded Gasolines

Inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy is used to determine the concentration of a silicon impurity that appeared in some samples of unleaded fuel from a metropolitan area in 1984 and 1985. Silicon-29 NMR is used to identify the contaminant as the cyclic silicone, octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane. This silicone tetramer is also observed in the NMR of a commercial coating, a xylene solution of linear and cyclic silicones, used as a moisture barrier in the electronics industry.
Role of prostaglandin E2 EP receptors and cAMP in the expression of connective tissue growth factor

Abstract Wild-type (WT) Rat-1 fibroblasts express undetectable quantities of the prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) EP1, EP2, and EP3 receptor types and detectable amounts of the EP4 receptor. In the WT Rat-1, PGE2 enhances connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) mRNA. PGE2 does not stimulate cAMP production in these cells. However, forskolin induces cAMP production and ablates TGFβ-stimulated increases in CTGF mRNA. A similar pattern of CTGF expression in response to PGE2 and forskolin is observed in neonatal rat primary smooth muscle cell cultures. When WT Rat-1 cells are stably transfected with the EP2 receptor, PGE2 causes a sizable elevation in intracellular cAMP and ablates the TGFβ-stimulated increase in CTGF mRNA. PGE2 does not have this effect on cells expressing the EP1, EP3, or EP4 receptor subtypes. These results demonstrate the importance of the EP2 receptor and cAMP in the inhibition of TGFβ-stimulated CTGF production and suggest a role for PGE2 in increasing CTGF mRNA levels in the absence of the EP2 receptor. Involvement of inositol phosphate in this upregulation of CTGF expression by PGE2 is doubtful. None of the cell lines containing the four EP transfectants nor the WT Rat-1 cells responded to PGE2 with inositol phosphate production.
Effects of streptozotocin in the male guinea pig: a potential animal model for studying diabetes.

Abstract The effects of acutely administered streptozotocin in the male guinea pig were studied for a period of 18 days following treatment. A single intracadiac injection of streptozotocin (150 mg/kg) was administered on Day 0. On Day 2, plasma glucose concentrations were not significantly different from control levels. On Day 7 and 18, an oral glucose tolerance test was performed with streptozotocin-treated animals receiving an acute injection of either insulin (18 U/kg, i.m.) or saline 90 minutes prior to glucose loading. On Day 7, streptozotocin-treated animals receiving saline had significantly elevated plasma and urine glucose concentrations at 3 hours after glucose loading when compared to controls. Streptozotocin-treated animals receiving insulin however, had significantly lower plasma glucose concentrations at 3 hours while urinary glucose was equal to control values. The second glucose tolerance test performed on Day 18 yielded similar results. Necropsies were performed on animals that died after Day 6. Lesions found in the streptozotocin-treated animals included: 1) small and irregular pancreatic islets, pyknotic nuclei and degranulation of beta cells, 2) renal proximal tubule swelling and vacuolization, 3) adrenal cortical hyperplasia, 4) hepatocyte vacuolization, and 5) visceral fat atrophy. Animals surviving until Day 18 were sacrificed and found to have significantly elevated kidney and adrenal weights compared to controls. These changes illustrate the effectiveness of streptozotocin in the acute chemical induction of diabetes in an animal model (guinea pig) which, like humans, requires a dietary source of ascorbic acid.
Preparation and characterization of MgO thin films deposited by spray pyrolysis of Mg(2,4-pentanedionate)2

Abstract Thin films of magnesia (0.1 – 0.5 μm) were deposited by a spray pyrolysis method. Aqueous and alcoholic solutions of magnesium (2,4-pentanedionate) 2 were ultrasonically nebulized and thermally decomposed onto a variety of substrates at temperatures between 400 and 540°C. Strong (100) orientation of MgO was observed on alumina soated sapphire as deposited from alcoholic solutions at 470°C. In addition, strong (100) orientation was observed on samples prepared from thermally decomposing aqueous solutions on sapphire followed by oxygen anneals at 700 and 93°C.
Sense of timing: A skill deficit in heterosocially anxious women

Groups of heterosocially competent and incompetent undergraduate women were selected using both a self-report measure of social anxiety and judges' ratings of both anxiety and skill in a simulated first-date interaction. Selected subjects viewed a videotape of a male speaker discussing various aspects of his life and were asked to press a switch whenever they thought a response would communicate understanding or rapport. The results tentatively extended the evidence for the response timing-placement phenomenon to socially competent and incompetent women as well as men. While socially competent and incompetent women did not differ in the frequency of their responses, they did tend to differ in the timing, placement, or distribution of their responses. The results suggest that previous social skills training and research may have emphasized response acquisition and frequency to the detriment of response synchronization to partner cues.
Buying and maintaining microcomputer systems

The purchase and maintenance of new and used mini- and microcomputers require knowledge of the comparative advantages and disadvantages of available systems, sources of discounted and used computers, and a set of strategies and techniques for maintaining the operation of the computers throughout their useful life. This paper addresses each of these areas and suggests sources of additional information.
Minimally Invasive versus Open Transforaminal Lumbar Interbody Fusion for Degenerative Spondylolisthesis: Comparative Effectiveness and Cost-Utility Analysis

Background Minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (MIS TLIF) for lumbar spondylolisthesis allows for the surgical treatment of back/leg pain while minimizing tissue injury and accelerating the patient's recovery. Although previous results have shown shorter hospital stays and decreased intraoperative blood loss for MIS versus open TLIF, short- and long-term outcomes have been similar. Therefore, we performed comparative effectiveness and cost-utility analysis for MIS versus open TLIF. Methods A total of 100 patients (50 MIS, 50 open) undergoing TLIF for lumbar spondylolisthesis were prospectively studied. Back-related medical resource use, missed work, and quality-adjusted life years were assessed. Cost of in-patient care, direct cost (2-year resource use × unit costs based on Medicare national allowable payment amounts), and indirect cost (work-day losses × self-reported gross-of-tax wage rate) were recorded, and the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio was calculated. Results Length of hospitalization and time to return to work were less for MIS versus open TLIF ( P = 0.006 and P = 0.03, respectively). MIS versus open TLIF demonstrated similar improvement in patient-reported outcomes assessed. MIS versus open TLIF was associated with a reduction in mean hospital cost of $1758, indirect cost of $8474, and total 2-year societal cost of $9295 ( P = 0.03) but similar 2-year direct health care cost and quality-adjusted life years gained. Conclusions MIS TLIF resulted in reduced operative blood loss, hospital stay and 2-year cost, and accelerated return to work. Surgical morbidity, hospital readmission, and short- and long-term clinical effectiveness were similar between MIS and open TLIF. MIS TLIF may represent a valuable and cost-saving advancement from a societal and hospital perspective.
Effect of Alendronate on Endosseous Implant Integration: An In Vivo Study in Rabbits

Purpose Alendronate sodium (Fosamax; Merck, Whitehouse Station, NJ) is a second-generation bisphosphonate used widely in osteopenic individuals for decreasing bone resorption and increasing bone density. The ability of alendronate to affect systemic bone remodeling raises natural questions about the drug’s influence on dental implant osseointegration. Current knowledge regarding the effect of systemic bisphosphonates, specifically alendronate, on all 3 phrases of osseointegration is incomplete and only a few studies have started to investigate peri-implant bone responses to alendronate-coated implants. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of systemic alendronate therapy on osseointegration of dental implants based on torque-removal values in rabbits. Materials and Methods Identical titanium dental implants were placed using a standardized surgical protocol in the bilateral distal femur and proximal tibia of 20 New Zealand white rabbits (79 implants total). One week before implant placement, 10 rabbits were given doses of alendronate and continued on weekly dosing for 5 weeks until euthanized. The other 10 rabbits were untreated controls. Torque-removal values were determined using a Tohinichi 15-BTG torque wrench (Tohinichi Mfg Co, Ltd, Tokyo, Japan) for all implants. Results Analysis of torque data showed no statistical differences between the alendronate and control groups in both femur and tibia sites. A statistically significant difference, however, was noted in torque removal values between femur and tibia sites regardless of drug or non-drug groups. Conclusions In summary, orally dosed alendronate administration in rabbits had no significant effect on dental implant torque-removal values 6 weeks after endosseous placement in femur and tibia.