cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Delivery of Peptides into the Central Nervous System by Molecular Packaging and Sequential Metabolism as a Method of Altering Neuropeptide Activity during Aging

Abstract The major obstacle to the use of neuropeptides in the pharmacotherapy of brain diseases is their delivery to the CNS. This report presents a novel method for the in vitro molecular packaging of peptides that allows their delivery across the blood-brain barrier (BBB) following systemic administration. The molecular packaging is intended both to disguise the peptide nature of the molecule, thus protecting it from a plethora of vascular and BBB peptidases, and to "lock in" the peptide precursor. The delivered peptide-precursor complex is designed to undergo sequential metabolism, resulting in the release of the active peptide. The proposed method for the CNS delivery of neuroactive peptides results in the brain delivery of the intact peptide sequence, and the delivered peptides exhibit appropriate pharmacological activity. This method may be applicable to delivery of a variety of peptides to the CNS and hence opens the possibility of peptide therapy for CNS diseases that are particularly common in the elderly.
Assaying Multiple Biochemical Variables from the Same Tissue Sample

Experiments often involve multiple analyses, such as assays of neurotransmitters and proteins, and this can require different initial sample preparations. Typically, this is accomplished by using different animals or different tissue samples from the same animal. Either approach renders comparisons between assays more variable and greatly increases the effort and/or cost. Using tissue collected from rat striatum and molecules of special relevance to studies of Parkinson's disease, we show that tissue sonication in water prior to aliquoting into the appropriate concentrated solutions (e.g. HClO(4) and lysis buffers) permits several types of measurements to be made from the same initial samples. Dopamine and its metabolite homovanillic acid, serotonin and its metabolite 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid, tyrosine hydroxylase and its phosphorylation at Ser19 and Ser31, and the dopamine transporter were unaffected. However, phospho-Akt levels fell slightly and phospho-ERK1/2 tended to drop. We also present a simple technique to preserve phosphorylation state of proteins such as ERK1/2 by perfusing animals through the heart with a phosphatase inhibitor, NaF. Dopamine metabolite dihydroxyphenyl acetic acid (DOPAC) levels were raised with both techniques, however. The general principles reported here are likely to apply to other brain regions, facilitate multiple comparisons of variables, increase efficiency, and decrease costs.
Intramolecular antiferromagnetic vs ferromagnetic spin coupling through the biphenyl unit

Two isomeric triarylmethyl-based diradicals, with 3,3‘- and 3,4‘-biphenyl as the spin coupling units, were prepared and studied in frozen solutions by ESR spectroscopy and SQUID magnetometry. The 3,3‘-isomer was found to be the singlet ground state, with a singlet−triplet energy gap of −0.1 kcal/mol. The 3,4‘-isomer was found to be the triplet ground state. This dependence of intramolecular spin coupling (antiferromagnetic vs ferromagnetic) on topology is in agreement with simple theoretical models. The singlet ground state for the 3,3‘-isomer, which has two half-filled nonbonding orbitals, is in formal violation of Hund's rule, as applied to molecules.
Use of peanut and cowpea in wheat-based products containing composite flours

Cowpeas and peanuts are legumes of major dietary and economic importance. They are favored worldwide because of their palatability, contribution to nutritional status, and low cost as a protein source compared to animal protein. Flours processed from cowpeas and peanuts have unique physico-chemical and sensory properties when used in composite flour mixtures. Appropriate blends of cowpea and peanut flours to replace wheat flour in Chinese-type noodles, muffins, and tortillas were determined using modelling and optimization procedures. For noodles, 15% peanut flour and 8% cowpea flour supplementation produced an acceptable product with high protein content (21%). For wheat flour replacement in muffins, up to 43% cowpea and up to 44% peanut flours may be used. However, when wheat flour replacement is 50% or greater, cassava flour should comprise 56 to 72% of the blend with a few exceptions. In tortillas, 24% cowpea and 46% peanut flours produced products similar in quality characteristics to those made from 100% wheat flour. The systematic approach used in these studies is more efficient than the traditional substitution method to optimize sensory qualities of wheat-based products containing composite flours.
Effects of external factors on the measurement of gas-solid reaction rates

The effects of external factors on the overall rate of the gas−solid reactions observed in a thermogravimetric analyzer (TGA) were determined for the reaction involving calcined limestone (i.e., CaO) and hydrogen sulfide. The external factors, which are dependent on the experimental setup, included the sample weight, gas flow rate, particle dispersion, and sample bed geometry. The experiments were conducted using three different sample holder geometries, 10 sample weights (1−500 mg), and two reactant gas flow rates (500 and 850 sccm). The results show that these external factors can lead to measurements of the overall rate of gas−solid reactions that can span over 2 orders of magnitude under identical reaction conditions. The effects of the reactant gas concentration profile and effective interparticle diffusion were determined to calculate the solid-dependent overall reaction rate. The measured and calculated overall reaction rates were compared with data reported in the literature for experiments perfor...
Community College Faculty Motivation for Basic Research, Teaching Research, and Professional Development

Community college faculty members often find themselves divided between what they want to do and what they can do. Knowing what motivates faculty to engage in professional development and scholarly productive activities provides critical information for administrators. The present study explored the motivational characteristics of community college faculty and the contextual factors that support or thwart their engagement and productivity. It focused on three key professional activities: (a) basic or applied research, (b) classroom action/teaching research, and (c) faculty professional development. Findings indicate that community college faculty are motivated for all three activities primarily by intrinsic and value-related factors rather than by extrinsic or contextual factors. Further, faculty members present somewhat different motivational profiles for the three work activities. Their motivations also demonstrate responsiveness to workplace characteristics as faculty perceive and interpret them. These...
Compensation Film Designs for High Contrast Wide-View Blue Phase Liquid Crystal Displays

The polarization rotation effect of blue phase liquid crystal (BPLC) composite causes light leakage in the dark state, which in turn degrades the contrast ratio. We propose three approaches to compensate the light leakage and thereby improve the contrast ratio and widen the viewing angle of a BPLC display. The merit and drawback of each design are also discussed.
Pharmacokinetics of Amonafide in dogs.

Amonafide, one of a series of imide derivatives of 1,8-naphthalic acid synthesized by Brana et al. [2] has shown significant antitumor activity against a variety of experimental tumors, including L1210 leukemia and P388 leukemia. Along with the clinical trial at our institute, we have studied the disposition of Amonafide in dogs by HPLC and fluorometry. Six dogs received Amonafide i.v. at 5 mg/kg (100 mg/m2) over 15 min; three were sacrificed at 6 h, and three at 24 h. The initial plasma t1/2, of Amonofide was 2.4±0.4 min, the intermediate t1/2, 26.8±3.7 min, and the terminal t1/2, 21.7±4.0 h. the peak plasma concentration achieved was 6.3±1.7 μg/ml. The average apparent volume of distribution was 12.84±0.541/kg, and the total clearance was 0.56±0.161/kg/h. In 24 h, 9.5%±0.2% of the administered dose was excreted in the urine as the parent drug, and 7.4%±1.4% in the bile in 6 h. Amonafide penetrated the CSF readily and achieved the highest concentration 20–25 min after administration, which was 30% of the concurrent plasma level. Amonafide underwent extensive metabolism to at least three major metabolites and two or more minor metabolites. The α and β plasma t1/2 of the major metabolite, an N-oxide derivative, were 24.8 min and 28.6 h, respectively. The 24-h cumulative urinary excretion was 1.4% of the injected dose, and the cumulative biliary excretion was 16.7% in 6 h. At autopsy 6 h after dosing, the liver contained the highest percentage (0.23% of administered dose) of unchanged Amonafide, followed by the stomach (0.11%), lung (0.04%), kidney (0.04%), and pancreas (0.03%). The rest of the major organs retained less than 0.02% of the Amonafide dose. One day after dosing, no detectable amount of Amonafide was found in any of these tissues, indicating that Amonafide appears to be extensively metabolized and not significantly retained in the dog.
Strategies of minority survival: the case of the Gambaga Imams

(1986). Strategies of minority survival: the case of the Gambaga Imams. Institute of Muslim Minority Affairs. Journal: Vol. 7, No. 1, pp. 232-246.
Enhancing measurement accuracy of position sensitive detector (PSD) systems using the Kalman filter and distortion rectifying

Factors affecting measurement accuracy of Position Sensitive Detector (PSD) systems consist of inaccuracies caused by interface circuits, system connection, outside environment change, and the semi-conductive properties of the sensor. The presence of these factors causes noises and distortions that are interpreted as a valid signal by the PSD system. As a result, these inaccuracies heavily degrade the PSD performance and hamper the measurement resolution and accuracy of the PSD system, which greatly limit its applications in micro/nano positioning systems. Our work is to (1) design a Kalman filter for the system that is used to recursively and optimally estimate the laser spot position value of the modeled second-order linear lateral effect PSD sensing system from a series of measurements mixed with these noises and (2) develop a distortion rectifying methodology to collect pincushion-type radial distortion associated with the lateral effect PSD systems, so as to enhance measurement accuracy in a larger active area of the PSD. After implementation, both the developed Kalman filter and distortion rectifying algorithm can greatly improve the measurement accuracy of the PSD systems. It will be very useful in a wide variety of applications that use a PSD embedded system.
Effects of a fish oil diet on the metabolism of endogenous (n−6) and (n−3) fatty acids in rat neutrophils

The present study was carried out to define more precisely how dietary (n-3) fatty acids mediate leukotriene and phospholipid metabolism in neutrophils. Neutrophils from chow-fed rats did not synthesize detectable levels of LTB5 or 5-hydroxyeicosapentanenoic acid. The ratio of esterified 20:4(n-6)/20:5(n-3) in the phospholipids of neutrophils from rats fed a corn oil/fish oil diet was 4.6. The ratio of LTB4/LTB5 made by these cells was 2.6, thus suggesting that 20:5(n-3) release and/or subsequent metabolism was somewhat more efficient than for 20:4(n-6). When tritiated lyso-platelet activating factor was added to neutrophils from chow-fed rats, it was deactivated primarily by acylation with arachidonic acid. With the fish oil-fed animals both arachidonic acid and 20:5(n-3) were transferred to deactivate lyso-platelet activating factor. Molecular species analysis of the resulting radioactive 1-O-alkyl-2-acyl-sn-glycerol-3-phosphocholine showed that 20:5(n-3) pairs with the same 1-O-alkyl groups and in approximately the same ratio as does arachidonate. Collectively, these studies show that once 20:5(n-3) is incorporated into neutrophil lipids it is metabolized in a similar way as is arachidonate.
H‐2 I alloantigens and recall of memory cytotoxic responses

AQR mice were immunized with H-2K and H-2 I encoded alloantigens presented by (Ax6R)F1 splenocytes. Spleen cells from these alloimmune mice were subsequently restimulated in vitro with B10.A lymphocytes and/or B10.T(6R) lymphocytes, thus presenting them with the immunizing H-2K and H-2 I alloantigens independently. When stimulated with B10.A lymphocytes, alloimmune lymphocytes develop significant cytotoxicity against the immunizing H-2K target antigens. When stimulated with a similar number of B10.T(6R) spleen cells, alloimmune lymphocytes undergo a prominant proliferative response, but develop little, if any, cytotoxicity against the immunizing H-2 K target antigens. The most efficient restimulation of cytotoxicity occurs when the alloimmune spleen cells are simultaneously restimulated by B10.A and B10.T(6R) lymphocytes. Stimulation with the immunizing H-2 I alloantigens alone is not sufficient for regeneration of detectable cytotoxic responses from alloimmune spleen populations. Stimulation with the immunizing H-2K alloantigens alone appears to be both necessary and sufficient to stimulate alloimmune cytotoxic responses. Although the immunizing H-2 I alloantigens are apparently not required to generate alloimmune cytotoxic responses, they markedly potentiate the cytotoxic responses induced by the immunizing H-2K alloantigens.
Finding canonical behaviors in user protocols

While the collection of behavioral protocols has been common practice in human-computer interaction research for many years, the analysis of large protocol data sets is often extremely tedious and time-consuming, and automated analysis methods have been slow to develop. This paper proposes an automated method of protocol analysis to find canonical behaviors --- a small subset of protocols that is most representative of the full data set, providing a reasonable "big picture" view of the data with as few protocols as possible. The automated method takes advantage of recent algorithmic developments in computational vision, modifying them to allow for distance measures between behavioral protocols. The paper includes an application of the method to web-browsing protocols, showing how the canonical behaviors found by the method match well to sets of behaviors identified by expert human coders.
THE INITIAL CONFIGURATION OF YOUNG STELLAR CLUSTERS: A K-BAND NUMBER COUNTS ANALYSIS OF THE SURFACE DENSITY OF STARS

We present an analysis of stellar distributions for the young stellar clusters GGD 12-15, IRAS 20050+2720, and NGC 7129, which range in far-IR luminosity from 227 to 5:68 ; 10 3 Land are all still associated with their natal molecular clouds. The data used for this analysis include near-IR data obtained with FLAMINGOS on the MMTand newlyobtainedwide-field 850 � memissionmaps from SCUBA ontheJCMT.Clustersizeandazimuthal asymmetry are measured via azimuthal and radial averaging methods, respectively. To quantify the deviation of the distribution of stars from circular symmetry, we define an azimuthal asymmetry parameter, and we investigate the statistical properties of this parameter through Monte Carlo simulations. The distribution of young stars is compared to the morphology of the molecular gas using stellar surface density maps and the 850 � m maps. We find that two of the clusters are not azimuthally symmetric and show a high degree of structure. The GGD 12-15 cluster is elongated and is aligned with newly detected filamentary structure at 850 � m. IRAS 20050+2720 is composed of a chain of three subclusters, in agreement with Chen and coworkers, although our results show that two of the subclusters appear to overlap. Significant 850 � m emission is detected toward two of the subclusters but is not detected toward the central subcluster, suggesting that the dense gas may already be cleared there. In contrast to these two highly embedded subclusters, wefind an anticorrelation of the stars and dust in NGC 7129, indicating that much of the parental gas and dust has been dispersed. The NGC 7129 cluster exhibits a higher degree of azimuthal symmetry, a lower stellar sur- face density, and a larger size than the other two clusters, suggesting that the cluster may be dynamically expanding following the recent dispersal of natal molecular gas. These analyses are further evidence that embedded, forming clusters are often not spherically symmetric structures but can be elongated and clumpy and that these morphologies may reflect the initial structure of the dense molecular gas. Furthermore, this work suggests that gas expulsion by stellar feedback results in significant dynamical evolution within the first 3 Myr of cluster evolution. We estimate peak stellar volume densities and discuss the impact of these densities on the evolution of circumstellar disks and protostellar envelopes.
Morphology, Replacement Mechanisms, and Functional Conservation in Dental Replacement Patterns of the Bobcat (Felis rufus)

Dental morphology of Felis rufus is highly specialized for prey-killing and meat-shearing functions, and only three cheek teeth occur in each jaw of the adult. Replacement mechanisms have evolved to allow functional maintenance through the lacteal-permanent transitional period. Permanent incisors erupt posterior to the lacteals and in a sequence preserving the nip function. Erupting permanent canines appear to one side of the lacteals, so that lacteal loss is gradual and permanent canines are functional prior to actual lacteal loss. Deciduous carnassials are formed by dP3/dP4 but permanent carnassials are formed by P4/M1 Permanent carnassials are erupted and functional prior to lacteal loss. Adult carnassials are more posteriorly located in the jaw than are lacteal carnassials, and provide greater shear force in adults due to proximity to the angle of the jaw. Dominant cusps of replacement teeth are drastically different from dominant cusps of lacteal counterparts, but positions of cusps and eruption sequence prevents malocclusion during transition.
Leveling the playing field in adult heart transplantation

More individuals with congenital heart disease (CHD) are surviving into adulthood than ever before. With their youth often characterized by numerous palliative surgical procedures to alleviate symptoms, many of these challenging children ultimately enter adulthood with compromised cardiac function and heart failure symptoms, with few options for medical or surgical alleviation. Cardiac transplantation remains the Holy Grail for adults with CHD seeking improved quality of life and longevity.
Luminescence due to impurity traces in silicate glasses

Abstract In a high purity soda-silica glass melted in platinum which appears completely transparent in absorption measurements at wavelengths longer than about 220 nm, the existence of weak absorption is demonstrated by luminescence under ultraviolet radiation. Samples melted in air luminesce red due to the presence of the Pt4+ ion. Melting in a reducing atmosphere yields a yellow luminescing glass due to copper and sulfur impurities. Some similar luminescent effects are found in more complicated silicate glasses. A new yellow luminescence produced by doping with platinum and carbon is reported.
Veterans' welfare, the GI Bill and American demobilization.

This essay examines World War II's health consequences in the United States by looking at postwar welfare debates about the GI Bill. She reveals how citizens came to expect a robust postwar welfare state to address the health legacies of their warfare state.
The shield defense of the sumac flea beetle, Blepharida rhois (Chrysomelidae: Alticinae)

Both adults and larvae of the sumac flea beetle, Blepharida rhois (Forster), are dietary specialists that feed on smooth sumac, Rhus glabra, on Long Island, NY. Instead of discarding their feces, B. rhois larvae retain it on their backs to form fecal 'shields'. We observed that ants attacking shielded larvae retreated and groomed vigorously, indicating the possible presence of chemical deterrents. To examine whether shields were chemical rather physical barriers against predation, we employed a generalist ant predator as a bioassay. Shields of larvae reared on R. glabra thwarted ants while larvae that had their shields removed were readily taken. Moreover, larvae reared on a substitute diet of lettuce were defenseless. However, protection was restored after their lettuce-derived shields were replaced with shields obtained from larvae reared on R. glabra. We then extracted and fractionated shields in order to locate active deterrents. To determine whether larvae synthesized defensive compounds or obtained them from the host, leaves were also analyzed and compared to the chemicals found in shields. The shield defense was a mixture of three fatty acids, a suite of tannins, their metabolites and phytol. All shield compounds or their precursors were obtained entirely from the host plant. Pure standards of shield compounds were found to be deterrent when assayed. This is one of the first instances of an insect using a mixture of primary and secondary substances for defense against predators.
Description versus evaluation of medical interviews.

In many areas of medicine, an intervention can be evaluated using the same measures and terms as are used to describe it. What is good that is, what is effective in producing medical benefit -can be characterized as specifiable amounts of particular actions or substances delivered under specifiable conditions. Research that develops a more precise description of the intervention leads directly to a more precise description of what should be done to maximize benefit. The situation is different in the case of interviewing. As illustrated in the other editorials in this series (Rimondini & Del Piccolo, 2002; Putnam, 2002), precise descriptions of the interview process often fail to yield comparably precise specifications of how interviews should be conducted. What is happening here? In this editorial, I suggest that the complicating factor is the intricate responsiveness of human interaction, in which the participants continually adjust their actions to achieve desirable outcomes. Although it is possible to describe interviews with considerable precision and to evaluate interviews with acceptable reliability, different measures are used for description and evaluation. I will try to explain why.
Systematics of Avrainvillea (Bryopsidales, Chlorophyta) in the tropical western Atlantic

Twenty-one specific and infraspecific taxa of the genus Avrainvillea from the tropical western Atlantic are treated. Six new species (Avrainvillea digitata, A. fenicalii, A. fulva, A. hayi, A. silv...
Why People Don't Ask: Understanding Initiation Behavior in International Negotiations

Negotiation is an interactive process that is important to all aspects of organizational success, a process that begins with communicating one's wants or needs. For many individuals, engaging others and asking for what one wants (i.e., initiating a negotiation) is a challenging task, made more difficult in an international context. Yet due to the integration of world markets, this is exactly the type of environment that many organizational representatives are facing with increasing regularity. This article offers an overview of the personal characteristics and situational factors that influence an individual initiating a negotiation (engaging a counterpart, making a request, and optimizing that request), with specific attention to seven cultural factors that must be understood to be most effective in international settings. The ways in which these cultural factors are likely to affect one's decision to engage a counterpart and style of delivery are illustrated for three countries: the United States, China, and Brazil. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Signals, resistance to change, and conditioned reinforcement in a multiple schedule

The effect of signals on resistance to change was evaluated using pigeons responding on a three-component multiple schedule. Each component contained a variable-interval initial link followed by a fixed-time terminal link. One component was an unsignaled-delay schedule, and two were equivalent signaled-delay schedules. After baseline training, resistance to change was assessed through (a) extinction and (b) adding free food to the intercomponent interval. During these tests, the signal stimulus from one of the signaled-delay components (SIG-T) was replaced with the initial-link stimulus from that component, converting it to an unsignaled-delay schedule. That signal stimulus was added to the delay period of the unsignaled-delay component (UNS), converting it to a signaled-delay schedule. The remaining signaled component remained unchanged (SIG-C). Resistance-to-change tests showed removing the signal had a minimal effect on resistance to change in the SIG-T component compared to the unchanged SIG-C component except for one block during free-food testing. Adding the signal to the UNS component significantly increased response rates suggesting that component had low response strength. Interestingly, the direction of the effect was in the opposite direction from what is typically observed. Results are consistent with the conclusion that the signal functioned as a conditioned reinforcer and inconsistent with a generalization-decrement explanation.
The international trade and fishery management of spiny dogfish: A social network approach

The management of the spiny dogfish (Squalus acanthias) is a matter of international concern, as this species was a candidate for inclusion in lists for trade regulation. The major demand for its meat is from the European Union (EU) market, with the US and Canada as its two major contributors. The US has yet to support a spiny dogfish listing, although the US Atlantic stock is under a fishery management plan (FMP) that proved to be successful in providing a certified sustainable fishery. We employed a cumulative sum technique to compare trade data for frozen spiny dogfish export from US and Canada to the EU in relation to the FMP adoption. We also constructed a social network to visualize changes in the European trade scenario for spiny dogfish after adoption of the FMP and to predict future trade flow potentially affecting the conservation status of regional dogfish stocks in relation to recent management measures introduced in Europe. The social network analysis revealed that the exclusion of spiny dogfish from trade regulation lists eventually will affect the conservation status of dogfish stocks in Africa, Asia, South America, and the Mediterranean and Black Seas. Our results suggest that the species listing would provide an economic benefit for the US Northwest Atlantic fishery, and will eventually foster the conservation status of other regional stocks worldwide and the search for a more sustainable global exploitation of spiny dogfish.
Trends in QconCATs for targeted proteomics

Abstract Targeted proteomics has received much attention because of the highly-sensitive, quantitative detection of proteins and post-translational modifications (PTMs). Quantification by targeted proteomics relies on mass spectrometry and isotope-labeled internal standards. In addition to traditional standards comprised of recombinant proteins or synthetic peptides, artificial proteins composed of concatenated peptides (QconCATs) were recently introduced as a conceptually new material for use as an internal standard. The design, the expression, the characterization, and the application of QconCATs have been thoroughly reviewed elsewhere. The focus of this review is to describe two new trends in the use of QconCATs as internal standards: (1) the need of natural flanking sequences for every Q-peptide included in the QconCAT; and, (2) the benefits of stoichiometric incorporation of PTMs in the QconCAT. These developments in QconCATs have not received much attention so far, but show great promise for future advances in targeted proteomics.
The aryl hydrocarbon receptor influences transplant outcomes in response to environmental signals

The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) is a cytosolic transcription factor with numerous endogenous and xenobiotic ligands, most notably 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD). Recent data suggests that TCDD may induce regulatory T cells, while a second AHR ligand, FICZ, promotes Th17 differentiation. The aim was to examine whether injection of recipient mice with either TCDD or FICZ altered skin allograft rejection in a fully mismatched model. TCDD or FICZ was given to recipient C57BL/6 mice intraperitoneally (IP). Twenty-four hr later, donor skin was grafted from BALB/c mice. An additional dose of FICZ was given on day 3. Treatment with TCDD delayed graft rejection for more than 4 weeks while FICZ treatment accelerated rejection by 1 - 2 days. In vivo exposure with TCDD led to a rise in the frequency of FoxP3(+) CD4(+) T cells in the spleen, while FICZ increased IL-17 secretion by splenocytes from treated animals. Activation of the AHR receptor by different AHR ligands in vivo resulted in opposing effects on skin graft survival. AHR serves as a sensor to environmental signals, with effects on the acquired immune system that may alter outcomes after organ transplantation. This model will be useful to further delineate direct effects of the environment on the immune system and outcomes of organ transplantation.
The natal dispersal of tree swallows in a continuous mainland environment

Summary 1. To minimize study-area artefacts in a study of natal dispersal distances in tree swallows, we intensively banded nestlings and adults in nest-boxes in upstate New York and recruited and trained 70 volunteer banders within a 400 km radius of Ithaca. We banded 26 567 nestlings in the years 1985 through 1998, and captured 4774 adults at the nest, 630 of which had been banded as nestlings and were recaptured the year after fledging. 2. To correct for spatial variation in capture intensity, we resampled the distribution of all boxes where an adult capture was made under uniform, exponential and Cauchy null hypotheses. Compared to the null distributions, the frequency of observed dispersal events was significantly higher at 0‐10 km and lower for all larger dispersal distances. The Cauchy distribution came closest to approximating the observed dispersal distance distribution. 3. Dispersal distances were sensitive to the distribution of nesting sites, and all measurements of dispersal distance distributions must be seen as being habitat-specific. We could detect no effect of dispersal distance on the subsequent timing of breeding and no effect of the timing of fledging on dispersal distance. The sexual differences in raw mean dispersal distances (8·38 km for females, 2·44 km for males) are similar to those reported for other species. 4. While it is tempting to conclude that studies in smaller areas have not missed a great deal, even a study area of 10 km extent (substantially larger than most) would have missed 11% of the dispersing birds detected and 95% of the range of distances recorded. Despite this sizeable component that would have been missed with a smaller study area, the relatively low frequencies of long-distance dispersal overall reinforce the conclusion that tree swallows, and probably most other migratory passerines, generally disperse much less far from their natal sites than the distances of their annual migrations might lead one to expect.
Molecular Determinants of Mechanical Properties of V. cholerae Biofilms at the Air-Liquid Interface

Biofilm formation increases both the survival and infectivity of Vibrio cholerae, the causative agent of cholera. V. cholerae is capable of forming biofilms on solid surfaces and at the air-liquid interface, termed pellicles. Known components of the extracellular matrix include the matrix proteins Bap1, RbmA, and RbmC, an exopolysaccharide termed Vibrio polysaccharide, and DNA. In this work, we examined a rugose strain of V. cholerae and its mutants unable to produce matrix proteins by interfacial rheology to compare the evolution of pellicle elasticity in real time to understand the molecular basis of matrix protein contributions to pellicle integrity and elasticity. Together with electron micrographs, visual inspection, and contact angle measurements of the pellicles, we defined distinct contributions of the matrix proteins to pellicle morphology, microscale architecture, and mechanical properties. Furthermore, we discovered that Bap1 is uniquely required for the maintenance of the mechanical strength of the pellicle over time and contributes to the hydrophobicity of the pellicle. Thus, Bap1 presents an important matrix component to target in the prevention and dispersal of V. cholerae biofilms.
The Katmai Scientific Drilling Project, surface phase: Investigation of an exceptional igneous system

Explosive volcanism is the response of magma to rapid decompression. Inherent complexity of volcanoes and lack of observations at depth in young systems are impediments to proper understanding of this important phenomenon. The Katmai Scientific Drilling Project is an interdisciplinary surface and drilling investigation of an exceptionally large and relatively simple explosive volcanic event that occurred in Alaska's Aleutian Range in 1912. The surface phase of the project is now largely complete, and results are presented in the papers that follow.
Detection of coherence-disrupting and coherence-conferring alterations in text.

In a study phase, subjects were presented with sentence pairs which were either coherent or anomalous. In a subsequent recognition test, each sentence pair was presented either in its original form or with one word changed. The changed word either disrupted the coherence of a previously coherent sentence pair or conferred coherence on a previously anomalous sentence pair. Alterations were more accurately detected if they were coherence-disrupting than if they were coherence-conferring. In a coherence-conferring alteration, the altered sentence can be assimilated to one of the abstract cognitive units activated by the studied sentence pair, whereas in a coherence-disrupting alteration, the altered sentence cannot be so assimilated. Analogous asymmetries have been observed for musical sequences that are coherent or anomalous with respect to tonality and rhythm. These parallels suggest that principles of cognitive organization that are responsible for our intuitions of coherence cut across propositional and nonpropositional domains.
Arsenic in drinking water and mortality from vascular disease: an ecologic analysis in 30 counties in the United States.

Chronic arsenic consumption can cause vascular diseases. Adverse vascular effects of arsenic in drinking water in the United States have not been studied. This study investigated the ecological relationship between the population-weighted mean arsenic concentration in public drinking water supplies and mortality from circulatory diseases in 30 U.S. counties from 1968 to 1984. Mean arsenic levels ranged from 5.4 to 91.5 micrograms/l. Standardized mortality ratios (SMRs) for diseases of arteries, arterioles, and capillaries (DAAC) (ICD 8th/9th revision, 440-448) for counties exceeding 20 micrograms/l were 1.9 (90% confidence interval [CI] = 1.7-2.1) for females and 1.6 (90% CI = 1.5-1.8) for males. The SMRs for the three subgroups of DAAC--arteriosclerosis, aortic aneurysm, and all other DAAC--tended to be elevated. With respect to the same arsenic group, the SMRs for congenital anomalies of the heart (ICD-8/9, 746/745-746) and circulatory system (ICD-8/9, 747) also tended to be elevated. Two competing interpretations emerge as possibilities: either there are spurious associations resulting from invalid outcome data or causal associations.
Green Water and Global Food Security

It is widely understood that crop production must increase at least twice as fast as human population growth during the coming 40 yr to meet global food demand. Tested strategies for achieving this goal have not yet emerged, but some stipulations to guide in the search for them can be made. Adverse ecological impacts of land conversion to agricultural use and freshwater withdrawals for irrigation will strongly limit the viability of these two traditional approaches to increasing crop production, whereas abundant opportunity exists for optimizing soil water availability to and consumption by rainfed crops to increase their yields by twofold or more. This optimization, however, will require major campaigns in multidisciplinary basic research on positive plant–soil feedbacks that increase crop biomass by influencing the rhizosphere, through which 40% of the global freshwater flow passes annually.
Cross-training of student consultants

This paper describes the training sessions developed at Syracuse University Academic Computing Services to train the student consultants who work at one of five remote sites around campus. Students must consult on any number of questions involving both mainframes and microcomputers. There are several different systems and many software packages which the consultants must also be familiar with.Most student consultants will choose to work at either a microcomputer or a mainframe site, though some will chose hours at both types of sites. For these students cross training is essential. Since there are often times when students must find someone to replace them when they are unable to work, it is desirable to have a large group of students who know enough about each site to work there effectively.
Peanut as a source of protein for human foods.

Peanut has traditionally been used as a source, of oil; however, its worldwide annual protein harvest has reached nearly 4.5 million tons. India followed by China and the United States are the major producers of peanut. In recent years, several cereals and legumes-based foods using peanuts as protein supplements have been developed to alleviate protein caloriesmalnutrition problem. Peanut in the form of flour, protein isolates, and meal in a mixed product have been found to be very desirable from a sensory quality point of view. Peanut protein is deficient with respect to certain essential amino acids, but its true digestibility is comparable with that of animal protein. Even though various processing methods influence the nutritional and sensory quality of peanut fortified human foods available information on these aspects have been reviewed and summarised in this paper in order to optimize the utilization of peanut protein to increase protein value of cereal-based foods in developing countries of the peanut growing regions, of the world.
Farnesyl Diphosphate Analogues with ω-Bioorthogonal Azide and Alkyne Functional Groups for Protein Farnesyl Transferase-Catalyzed Ligation Reactions

Eleven farnesyl diphosphate analogues, which contained ω-azide or alkyne substituents suitable for bioorthogonal Staudinger and Huisgen [3 + 2] cycloaddition coupling reactions, were synthesized. The analogues were evaluated as substrates for the alkylation of peptide cosubstrates by yeast protein farnesyl transferase. Five of the diphosphates were good alternative substrates for farnesyl diphosphate (FPP). Steady-state kinetic constants were measured for the active compounds, and the products were characterized by HPLC and LC-MS. Two of the analogues gave steady-state kinetic parameters (kcat and Km) very similar to those of the natural substrate.
Fluxless Tin and␣Silver-Indium Bonding Processes for␣Silicon onto␣Aluminum

The high thermal conductivity, light weight, and low cost of aluminum (Al) make it a promising material for use in high-power electronic packaging. The challenges are its high coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) of 23 × 10−6/°C and difficulty in soldering. In this research, we surmounted these challenges by bonding large Si chips to Al boards using fluxless Sn and Ag-In processes, respectively. Despite the large CTE mismatch, the bonded structures were strong as determined by fracture force measured by shear test machine. The reference is the fracture force specified in MIL-STD-883H method 2019.8. The microstructure and composition of the joints were examined using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive x-ray (EDX) analysis. The resulting Sn joint is almost pure Sn with thin intermetallic layer. The Ag-In joint consists of Ag/(Ag)/Ag2In/(Ag)/Ag that has a melting temperature higher than 695°C even though the bonding process was performed at 180°C. These bonding processes are entirely fluxless. The fluxless feature greatly helps reduce voids in the joints, which in turn increases the joint strength. These preliminary but encouraging results should open up new applications of Al boards in electronic packaging where Al was avoided because of its high CTE and difficulty in bonding.
Liquid crystalline nonlinear optical metamaterials with low-loss tunable negative-zero-positive refractive indices

We describe a class of liquid crystalline photonic metamaterials that exhibit tunable negative-zero-positive refractive indices. As a result of the extreme sensitivity of the nematic liquid crystal constituent, these metamaterials also exhibit extraordinarily large optical nonlinearities associated with the optical field induced director axis reorientation and birefringence change. Incorporation of a gain medium such as laser dye reduces losses of the metamaterial.
Selective Oxidation of Methane to Methanol and Formaldehyde with Nitrous Oxide in a Dielectric-Barrier Discharge−Plasma Reactor

The partial oxidation of CH4 with N2O in Ar has been investigated at atmospheric pressure in a dielectric-barrier (silent) discharge plasma induced by low input power in a range from 0.27 to 7.71 W...
Surface reconstructions for InAs(001) studied with density-functional theory and STM

The stability of different surface reconstructions on InAs~001! is investigated theoretically and experimentally. Density-functional theory calculations predict four different surface reconstructions to be stable at different chemical potentials. The two dominant reconstructions are the b2 ~234! for high As, and the a2 ~234! for low As overpressure. This trend is confirmed by scanning tunneling microscopy of carefully annealed InAs~001! surfaces. A similar behavior is predicted for GaAs~001!.
A Constitutional Right to Secede? Basque Nationalism and the Spanish State

This article analyzes the strategic parameters of a constitutional right to secede. It argues that these parameters help to qualify the right as a potentially effective alternative to either status quo symmetrical arrangements or a constitutional right to national territorial autonomy. To frame the right in this way is a little like decriminalizing drugs. If we legalize secession under certain conditions, we also eliminate much of the volatile tension underlying the demand for secession. Granted, it is possible that such a right might encourage the Basques to secede. However, this is precisely why we need to frame the right to secede in a highly restrictive manner, so that we can strengthen the accountability of this right under public law and redress the residual link between violence and the demand for secession.
CPF and CPFL, two related gene families encoding cuticular proteins of Anopheles gambiae and other insects

Cuticular proteins (CPs) are structural proteins of insects as well as other arthropods. Several CP families have been described, among them a small family defined by a 51 amino acid motif [Andersen, S.O., Rafn, K., Roepstorff, P., 1997. Sequence studies of proteins from larval and pupal cuticle of the yellow meal worm, Tenebrio molitor. Insect Biochem. Mol. Biol. 27, 121-131]. We identified four proteins of this family in Anopheles gambiae that we have named CPF. We have also identified CPFs from other insects by searching databases. Alignment of these CPF proteins showed that the conserved region is only 44 aa long and revealed another conserved motif at the C-terminus. A dendrogram divided the CPF proteins into four groups, one basal and three specialized. We also identified several proteins of another CP family, CPFL, which has similarities to CPFs. CPFs and CPFLs share some protein motifs. Expression studies with real-time qRT-PCR of the A. gambiae CPFs and CPFLs showed that the four CPFs and one CPFL gene are expressed just before pupal or adult ecdysis, suggesting that they are components of the outer layer of pupal and adult cuticles. The other CPFLs appear to contribute to larval cuticle. Recombinant CPF proteins did not bind to chitin in the assay we used.
Effectiveness of Distal and Proximal Goals as Transfer-of-Training Interventions: A Field Experiment.

The effectiveness of distal outcome goals, proximal plus distal outcome goals, and being urged to “do your best” interventions on self-efficacy and transfer was investigated in a field experiment involving government employees (N = 72). Six weeks after the training session took place, both participants who were urged to do their best and those who set proximal plus distal goals had increased transfer (that is, generalization and maintenance) relative to those who set outcome goals. There was no significant difference in the transfer level of participants urged to do their best and those who set proximal plus distal goals.
Two Additional Loci underlying Durable Field Resistance to Soybean Sudden Death Syndrome (SDS)

Severe losses of soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] grain yield occur as a result of the disease sudden death syndrome (SDS), caused by Fusarium solani (Mart.) Sacc. f. sp. phaseoli (Burk.) Snyd. & Hans., type A. Selection for resistance to SDS is currently the most efficient means of yield protection. This study was undertaken within adapted soybean germplasm to identify and characterize loci underlying useful field resistance to SDS. One hundred eleven polymorphic DNA markers were compared with SDS disease response among 100 recombinant inbred lines derived from a cross between a durably SDS resistant cultivar, 'Forrest', and a SDS susceptible cultivar, 'Essex'. SDS disease incidence (DI) and disease severity (DS) were determined in replicated, F.solani infested field-test sites during 4 yr encompassing five locations. Four separate chromosomal segments were strongly associated with mean SDS DI across 5 locations (P < 0.001). In a previous report using the same genetic materials tested in the same environments two of these quantitative trait loci (QTL) had been identified. With the further analysis with 40 additional markers, two more QTL were detected. The two new QTL were stably associated with SDS resistance within each of five F. solani infested locations (P < 0.007). These two loci were identified by RAPD markers OI03 450 and OG13 490 and by OE04 450 and OE02 1000 . The alleles that conferred resistance were both derived from Forrest. Jointly, the four QTL accounted for about 65% of total phenotypic variability in mean DI and 50% in mean DS. DNA markers can be used to define alleles conferring resistance to SDS. Selection for the SDS resistance QTL may allow efficient selection of resistant genotypes with good yield potential in F. solani infested fields.