cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
EFFECT OF TYPE II COLLAGEN IN CHONDROCYTE RESPONSE TO TGF-BETA 1 REGULATION

The in vivo role of the extracellular matrix and the manner in which it interfaces with soluble regulators remains unknown. This study reports the modulation by extracellular type II collagen of TGF-beta 1-stimulated DNA synthesis, proteoglycan synthesis, and mRNA expression for alpha 1(II) procollagen and aggrecan core protein in the adult articular chondrocyte. Bovine chondrocytes were isolated and resuspended in alginate beads which contained increasing amounts of type II collagen from 0 to 1.5% (w/v). Cultures were maintained for 7 days in basal, DMEM, TGF-beta 1 (10 ng/ml), or FBS (10%) supplemented medium. DNA and proteoglycan synthesis were determined by radiotracer incorporation. The relative amounts of mRNA were analyzed by Northern blot analysis. Exogenous collagen increased DNA synthesis in all culture conditions beginning at concentrations of 0.75% (w/v). We observed that extracellular type II collagen augments both TGF-beta 1 stimulated increases of aggrecan gene expression up to 400% and alpha 1(II) procollagen gene expression up to 180% in a dose-dependent fashion. This is distinct from cultures which were either basal or FBS supplemented medium which lacked a dose-dependent change in aggrecan gene expression and demonstrated a decrease in alpha 1(II) procollagen gene expression. Exogenous collagen above 0.75% (w/v) increased proteoglycan synthesis significantly in FBS and TGF-beta 1-stimulated cultures but not in basal cultures. We have demonstrated that the alterations in gene expression that occur in response to TGF-beta 1 are modulated by extracellular type II collagen. This modulation is possible through both transcriptional and posttranscriptional regulatory mechanisms.
In vivo and in vitro stimulation of collagenase production by rabbit alveolar macrophages

Abstract Rabbit alveolar macrophages, harvested by lavage, were cultured for 4 days in Dulbecco's modified Eagle medium and the culture fluids assayed for collagenase activity. Stimulation of the macrophages in vivo by injection of Freund's complete adjuvant or vitro by addition of a soluble bovine lymphocyte extract led to a 5–10 fold increase in the production of collagenase. The major part of the collagenase present in the culture fluids was latent and could be activated by brief exposure to trypsin.
Short-range structure of fluorine-modified phosphate glass

Raman and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy are used to characterize the effects of fluorine incorporation on the short range structures of several simple phosphate glasses. Fluorine depolymerizes the chain structure of NaPO3 by replacing bridging POP bonds with terminal PF species. In aluminophosphate glasses with small fluorine contents fluorine is primarily associated with aluminum. When the fluorine to aluminum ratio exceeds three the number of Al-F bonds are maximized and significant numbers of P-F bonds form. 2.
A method to characterize pattern density effects: chemical flare and develop loading

Many recent publications have highlighted pattern density effects as a problem in both electron-beam and optical lithography. These effects are manifested as a systematic variation in critical dimension as a function of position on the wafer. It is becoming an increasing problem as the pattern density and diminishing critical dimensions are needed for production nodes 32nm and beyond. One potential source of pattern density effects is acid volatility, where acid is presumed to redeposit during exposure or bake; here we refer to this effect as chemical flare. Another source of density effects is develop loading which refers to the impact of local depletion of developer in highly exposed regions. Both develop loading and chemical flare can cause deviations in feature size that may be difficult to correct for by adjustment of the exposure process. Here we describe a method that allows the detrimental effects of chemical flare and develop loading to be separately characterized. The method makes use of arrays of 248 nm exposure sites and a controlled develop process within a custom liquid flowcell; this combination enables a systematic study of these effects.
The initial step in human immunodeficiency virus type 1 GagProPol processing can be regulated by reversible oxidation.

Background Maturation of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) occurs upon activation of HIV-1 protease embedded within GagProPol precursors and cleavage of Gag and GagProPol polyproteins. Although reversible oxidation can regulate mature protease activity as well as retrovirus maturation, it is possible that the effects of oxidation on viral maturation are mediated in whole, or part, through effects on the initial intramolecular cleavage event of GagProPol. In order assess the effect of reversible oxidation on this event, we developed a system to isolate the first step in protease activation involving GagProPol. Methodology/Principal Findings To determine if oxidation influences this step, we created a GagProPol plasmid construct (pGPfs-1C) that encoded mutations at all cleavage sites except p2/NC, the initial cleavage site in GagProPol. pGPfs-1C was used in an in vitro translation assay to observe the behavior of this initial step without interference from subsequent processing events. Diamide, a sulfhydral oxidizing agent, inhibited processing at p2/NC by >60% for pGPfs-1C and was readily reversed with the reductant, dithiothreitol. The ability to regulate processing by reversible oxidation was lost when the cysteines of the embedded protease were mutated to alanine. Unlike mature protease, which requires only oxidation of cys95 for inhibition, both cysteines of the embedded protease contributed to this inhibition. Conclusions/Significance We developed a system that can be used to study the first step in the cascade of HIV-1 GagProPol processing and show that reversible oxidation of cysteines of HIV-1 protease embedded in GagProPol can block this initial GagProPol autoprocessing. This type of regulation may be broadly applied to the majority of retroviruses.
Augmented timed petri nets for modeling, simulation, and analysis of robotic systems with breakdowns

Abstract Flexible manufacturing and assembly systems consists of machines, robots, and automated guided vehicles aimed at meeting dynamically changing market needs. Numerous asynchronous concurrent actions involved in these systems make analysis of them difficult. Breakdowns of system components further complicate investigation of issues related to design, performance optimization, and control. This paper proposes a new class of modeling tools called augmented timed Petri nets (ATPNs) for modeling and analyzing robotic assembly systems with breakdowns. These models aid designers in better understanding the concurrency, synchronization, and sequential relations involved in breakdown handling and in system simulation for performance analysis. A flexible assembly system consisting of three robots with various breakdown rates is used to illustrate modeling, simulation, and analysis with ATPNs. ATPN models for breakdown handling are presented and analyzed for estimating system performance and for designing the optimum number of assembly fixtures. ATPN models can also be used for real-time system control. Finally, possible extensions to this study are discussed.
A note on individual choice models of migration.

Abstract In this paper individual probabilistic choice models are developed for the decision to migrate and the choice among alternative destinations. The models are developed to investigate how characteristics of decision makers and of alternative destinations affect choice. Several migration models in the literature (e.g., mover-stayer models) are shown to be special cases, their behavioral assumptions are made explicit, and a framework for testing these assumptions is provided.
What is the link between nonlocalizing sestamibi scans, multigland disease, and persistent hypercalcemia? A study of 401 consecutive patients undergoing parathyroidectomy

Background We hypothesized that nonlocalizing sestamibi scans would correlate with multigland disease and persistent primary hyperparathyroidism. Methods We reviewed records for 401 consecutive patients who underwent parathyroidectomy from 1999 to 2004. Gender, age, preoperative imaging, surgical findings, gland weight and volume, and 6-month calcium levels (Ca) were examined. Results We identified 289 women and 112 men, 297 of whom had a preoperative sestamibi scan localized to a single gland (localized group; LG). Ninety-six percent of the LG were found to have single-gland disease, and 4% had multigland disease (MGD). In the nonlocalized group (NLG), 76% had single-gland disease and 24% MGD. Mean gland weight was greater in the LG than in the NLG (1128 mg vs 699 mg; P Conclusions Nonlocalizing sestamibi scans were more common in primary hyperparathyroidism with MGD and were associated with smaller-volume abnormal glands found at operation. Preoperative sestamibi scan-results did not predict HCa at 6 months.
Transforming genes of carcinomas and neuroblastomas introduced into mouse fibroblasts

We have previously demonstrated that DNA of mouse fibroblasts transformed by 3-methylcholanthrene (3-MC) induced foci of transformed cells when applied to monolayer cultures of NIH3T3 cells, which indicates that at least a part of this phenotype is encoded in DNA sequences. However, our conclusions were confined to the effects of DNAs of 3-MC-transformed mouse fibroblasts on recipient NIH3T3 cells, also of mouse fibroblast origin. To elucidate this phenomenon further, we have prepared DNAs from a series of mouse and non-mouse tumour lines of non-fibroblastic origin and investigated whether tumour transforming genes can act across tissue and species barriers to transform NIH3T3 cells. We find that DNAs obtained from human, rabbit and mouse bladder carcinoma lines, a lung carcinoma line and rat neuroblastoma and mouse glioma lines, are able to induce transformation of NIH3T3 cells on transfection.
Language choice and national development: A typology for Africa

The choice of an official language of politics and administration for African states is a good focal point from which to view other aspects of politics. A typology of language choice, based on whether the polity is linguistically homogeneous or heterogeneous; and on whether an indigenous or a non‐indigenous language is official, discriminates among four different language structures. Vignettes of language policy in Tanzania, Kenya, Senegal and Ethiopia elucidate each language structure. Data is presented to show that different political tasks are associated with different language choices, and that the differential ramifications of language situation, for limiting group demands, inducing social mobilization and managing international dependency are, depending on language situation, important.
Does living with smokers make quitting cigarettes more difficult

Abstract To test the assumptions that living with smokers and having housemates with low interest in one's stopping smoking would make quitting cigarettes difficult, successful stoppers were compared with non-stoppers for housemates' smoking and attitudes. Subjects were 147 people who attended several American Cancer Society Stop Smoking Clinics. Chances of stopping smoking were not enhanced by living either with non-smokers or with people believed to have high interest in one's stopping regardless of how close their relationship was. Giving up a smoking addiction seems to require inner motivation from the smoker, with external cues for smoking and support having minimal influence in a clinic stopping process.
A direct comparison of extraction and homogeneous binding constants as predictors of efficacy in alkali metal cation transport

Abstract A family of 16 new lipophilic 12-, 15-, and 18-membered ring, ester and amide-sidearmed lariat ethers has been prepared, characterized, and studied. It is found that alkali metal cation transport in a bulk CHCl 3 membrane correlates well with both log K s determined in CH 3 OH and with picrate extraction constants determined in the membrane solvent mixture.
In situ ATR/FTIR study of mesoporous silicate syntheses

Abstract Real time, in situ ATR/FTIR monitoring of M41S-type mesoporous silicate syntheses were performed which enabled the observation of simultaneous changes in both the organic and inorganic phases of the reaction mixtures. The spectra are dominated by incompletely polymerized, surfactant/silicate composites which form in the solution and/or gel phases, and coexist with the precipitated solid product. The majority of the observed spectral changes take place during the initial heat up stage of the syntheses. The hydrocarbon tail section of the surfactant exhibits increasing packing disorder as the temperature rises. Increased headgroup ordering is observed during the M41S formation which can be attributed to silicate anionic exchange with hydroxide ions, and the expulsion of water of hydration from the headgroup region as condensation of the encapsulating inorganic sheath proceeds. Using a gel composition which generates the D4R cubic octomer, Si8O208− species, the strong surfactant ordering ability of this polyanion is seen in the early stages of the synthesis. The rapid decomposition of this silicate species is accompanied by a sudden increase in the packing disorder of the hydrophobic region of the micelle. These results illustrate the great utility of in situ ATR/FTIR in probing the synergies of this dual phase system.
Crack patterns in thin films

A two-dimensional model of a film bonded to an elastic substrate is proposed for simulating crack propagation paths in thin elastic films. Specific examples are presented for films subject to equi-biaxial residual tensile stress. Single and multiple crack geometries are considered with a view to elucidating some of the crack patterns which are observed to develop. Tendencies for propagating cracks to remain straight or curve are explored as a consequence of crack interaction. The existence of spiral paths is demonstrated.
Cell biology: autophagy and cancer.

Autophagy is the degradation of redundant or faulty cell components. It occurs as part of a cell's everyday activities and as a response to stressful stimuli, such as starvation. Connections with cellular life-and-death decisions and with cancer are now emerging.
Lacinilene C methyl ether (LCME) constricts tracheal smooth muscle

Lacinilene C methyl ether (LCME) is a constituent of the cotton plant and has been implicated as a causative agent of byssinosis. The effect of synthetic LCME on the behavior of isolated strips of canine tracheal smooth muscle (TSM) was examined in tissue bath experiments. LCME (0.64-6.6 x 10(-4) M) caused slowly developing but strong and sustained contractions of TSM strips. Blockade of acetycholine, 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT), and histamine H1 receptors with atropine, methysergide, and pyrilamine, respectively, had no effect on constrictions induced by LCME. In contrast, the calcium channel antagonist, verapamil, significantly reduced the response to LCME. Moreover, addition of the beta receptor agonist, isoproterenol, at the peak of LCME-induced contractions relaxed tissues in a concentration-dependent manner. We conclude that LCME elicits contraction of TSM by enhancing the movement of calcium through potential-dependent channels of smooth muscle cell membranes. This mechanism of action does not require activation of specific membrane receptors for acetylcholine, 5-HT, and histamine.
Perfect reconstruction filter banks with rational sampling rates in one and two dimensions

Multirate filter banks with integer sampling rate changes are used widely in subband coding and transmultiplexing. A more general scheme is obtained when one allows arbitrary rational sampling rate changes, leading to non-uniform division of the frequency spectrum. This paper shows how to obtain arbitrary non-uniform perfect reconstruction filter banks by building trees of divisions into two (possibly unequal) channels. The construction uses the commutativity of subsampling and upsampling. The commutativity result, which is well known in one dimension, is then extended to two dimensions.© (1989) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
[n.1.1]-(2,6)-Pyridinophanes: A New Ligand Type Imposing Unusual Metal Coordination Geometries

A series of new ligands with three pyridines linked into a macrocycle by various CH(2), CMe(2), and CH(2)CH(2) groups at all sites ortho to the pyridine nitrogen have been synthesized and attached to PdCl(2) or PtMe(2). The ligands bind to them through only two nitrogens, and the third pyridine is constrained in close proximity to the planar complex with a filled d(z)2 orbital. Rapid reversible migration of PdCl(2) or PtMe(2) to the unused pyridine nitrogen is observed at 20 degrees C in the case of the CH(2)-bridged macrocycle and does not occur in the case of the CMe(2)-bridged analogue, and the mechanism of this fluxionality has been established by NMR and computational techniques.
Fluidization characteristics of two- and three-dimensional fluidized beds

Abstract Experiments have been conducted with particles of sand ( d p = 1,421 μ m, silica sand ( d p = 171 μ m), glass beads ( d p = 2,745 μ m) and wax pellets ( d p = 5,476 μ m) in two- and three-dimensional fluidized beds. In both beds, measurement of pressure drop as a function of superficial air velocity are taken and employed to determine the minimum fluidization velocity and the variation of bed voidage with superficial air velocity. Data analysis has made it possible to understand the nature of frictional forces that the front and back bounding walls of two-dimensional fluidized beds caused on bed particles, as well as their dependence on particle shape. Information useful in the design of fluidized beds has been generated.
Global sediment fluxes to the Earth's coastal ocean

A river’s sediment load is influenced by the rates of chemical and physical erosion within the drainage basin. These erosion rates are in turn influenced by the location of a river basin (geography), the geological and tectonic setup conditions, and the magnitude and vector of human influence. Scaling analysis is an important tool for understanding this magnitude and variability of a river’s load.
Animating the big middle

Abstract A Consumer Culture Theory (CCT) perspective captures the motivating social and cultural contexts of retail patronage and purchase behaviors and the myriad motivating factors behind the retail purchase decision. A CCT perspective complements behavioral decision theory and social cognition research in retailing. For consumers, retailers represent a field in which operant resources interact. In these marketspaces, firms and consumers exert a mutual gravitational pull. Firms compete for a role in the culturally constituted projects that consumers pursue by offering certain resource combinations. A CCT-based approach to retailing strives to account for co-creation, namely, how consumers deploy their own cultural resources, aided by retailer-provided resources, to accomplish the pursuit of their personal identity and communal projects. The paper discusses strategic orientations for retail firms that spring from a resource view, four types of firm supplied operant resources, suggests some mechanisms through which consumers animate cultural resources and their motivations to do so, and offers suggestions for future research.
A complete method for the quantitative analysis of planar, mono, and diortho PCB's, polychlorinated dibenzo-dioxins, and furans in environmental samples

Abstract A novel method is presented for the separation and quantitative determination of planar (non-ortho), mono-ortho, di-ortho PCB's, polychlorinated dibenzo-dioxins (PCDD's) and dibenzo-furans (PCDF's) in environmental samples. The procedure, which combines the advantages of acid-silica and alumina cleanup is then complemented by the separation, of the targeted analytes, by selective elution from an AX-21 Activated Charcoal/ Silca gel cromatographic column based on the “relative planarity” of the molecules. The protocol allows for an independent estimate of the compounds responsible for more than 99% of the “dioxin-like” toxicity by analizing four different fractions using high resolution gas chromatography with electron capture detection and isotopic dilution high resolution gas chromatography/high resolution mass spectrometry. The procedure allows the selective determination of AHH active PCB's, Planar PCB's, Dioxins and Furans at the parts per tillion levels.
Enhancing SVT Discrimination in Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillators Using MEMS Accelerometers

Sudden cardiac death (SCD) accounts for over 325,000 deaths in the United States per year. Implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs), about 100,000 of which are implanted each year, are used to diagnose and treat cardiac arrhythmias in patients that are at risk for sudden cardiac death due to ventricular fibrillation. Upon detection of an arrhythmia, the ICD has several treatment options, all of which deliver varied amounts of electric current to the myocardium. Detection of ventricular tachycardia (VT) or ventricular fibrillation (VF) prompts the ICD to administer high-energy defibrillation shocks, which can exceed 30J. The current method for sensing arrhythmias is the use of electrodes implanted in the myocardium which are capable of detecting electric potentials. The extensively studied algorithms that analyze electrogram sensor data have allowed ICD’s to achieve a 0% false negative rate for detection of fibrillation. The drawback, however, is the high false positive rate of over 22%. False positives result in inappropriate shocks which have detrimental effects on patient health and quality of life [1].Copyright © 2007 by ASME
Transport of methotrexate into LNCaP human prostate cancer cells

Uptake of methotrexate into the LNCaP human prostate cancer cells was linear for the first 60 min. The initial rate of methotrexate uptake was highest at extracellular pH 4.5 and decreased markedly until pH 7.0 to 8.0. Transport of methotrexate into LNCaP cells showed two components, one saturable -K(m) = 0.13 +/- 0.06 microM and V(max) = 1.20 +/- 0.16 pmol x 45 min(-1) x mg(-1) protein at low concentrations and the other apparently not saturable up to 10 microM. Uptake of methotrexate was inhibited by structural analogs with the K(i) values being 6.53, 12.4, and 85.6 microM for 5-formyltetrahydrofolate, 5-methyltetrahydrofolate, and folic acid, respectively. Uptake of methotrexate into LNCaP cells was not inhibited by the energy poisons in contrast to methotrexate uptake into PC-3 prostate cancer cells. Uptake was inhibited by increasing concentrations of sulfate and phosphate ions and by the organic anions probenecid and DIDS, suggesting that methotrexate may be transported by an anion-exchange mechanism. These results show that methotrexate is transported into LNCaP prostate cancer cells by a carrier-mediated process.
Soluble antibody affinity chromatography technique investigated with ultratrace [125I]thyroxine.

Abstract An amount of 10 pg of [ 125 I]thyroxine was subjected to DEAE agarose chromatography and then complexed with an antibody. Recycling of the [ 125 I]thyroxine now as a complex with the antibody through a second DEAE agarose column under the same conditions gave a change in the retention of the [ 125 I]thyroxine that potentially constitutes a specific shift away from co-eluting interferences from the first column. The [ 125 I]thyroxine was then dissociated from the antibody and subjected to a third DEAE agarose column for additional shifting of its chromatographic retention. Since the overall recovery of the [ 125 I]thyroxine is 36%, this soluble antibody affinity technique potentially is useful for sample clean-up in labeling analysis of ultratrace solutes such as thryoxine.
Building a Sustainable Future for Animal Agriculture: An Environmental Virtue Ethic of Care Approach within the Philosophy of Technology

Agricultural technologies are non-neutral and ethical challenges are posed by these technologies themselves. The technologies we use or endorse are embedded with values and norms and reflect the shape of our moral character. They can literally make us better or worse consumers and/or people. Looking back, when the world’s developed nations welcomed and steadily embraced industrialization as the dominant paradigm for agriculture a half century or so ago, they inadvertently championed a philosophy of technology that promotes an insular human-centricism, despite its laudable intent to ensure food security and advance human flourishing. The dominant philosophy of technology has also seeded particular ethical consequences that plague the well-being of human beings, the planet, and farmed animals. After revisiting some fundamental questions regarding the complex ways in which technology as agent shapes our lives and choices and relegates food and farmed constituents into technological artifacts or commodities, I argue that we should accord an environmental virtue ethic of care—understood as caretaking—a central place in developing a more conscientious philosophy of technology that aims at sustainability, fairness, and humaneness in animal agriculture. While technology shapes society, it also is socially shaped and an environmental virtue ethic of care (EVEC) as an alternative design philosophy has the tools to help us take a much overdue inventory of ourselves and our relationships with the nonhuman world. It can help us to expose the ways in which technology hinders critical reflection of its capacity to alter communities and values, to come to terms with why we may be, in general, disengaged from critical ethical analysis of contemporary agriculture and to consider the moral shape and trajectory and the sustainability of our food production systems going into the future. I end by outlining particular virtues associated with the ethic of care discussed here and consider some likely implications for consumers and industry technocrats as they relate to farming animals.
Using interactive technology to teach information literacy concepts to undergraduate students

Purpose – The purpose of the paper is to measure the effectiveness of a highly interactive animated tutorial that aims to teach basic information literacy concepts to undergraduates and to determine which factors enhance online learning.Design/methodology/approach – The tutorial was evaluated using 30 undergraduate students. Each test consisted of a pre‐tutorial questionnaire and a post‐tutorial questionnaire.Findings – Data from the evaluative testing of the tutorial shows that the tutorial is effective in imparting information literacy concepts to undergraduate students. Students responded positively to the interactivity and game‐like nature of the tutorial.Originality/value – The high degree of interactivity and the game‐like quality of the tutorial are key factors in its success. Thus, developers should aim to incorporate these elements into future online tutorials for undergraduate students.
Altered theca and cumulus oocyte complex gene expression, follicular arrest and reduced fertility in cows with dominant follicle follicular fluid androgen excess.

Aspiration of bovine follicles 12–36 hours after induced corpus luteum lysis serendipitously identified two populations of cows, one with High androstenedione (A4; >40 ng/ml; mean = 102) and another with Low A4 (<20 ng/ml; mean = 9) in follicular fluid. We hypothesized that the steroid excess in follicular fluid of dominant follicles in High A4 cows would result in reduced fertility through altered follicle development and oocyte maternal RNA abundance. To test this hypothesis, estrous cycles of cows were synchronized and ovariectomy was performed 36 hours later. HPLC MS/MS analysis of follicular fluid showed increased dehydroepiandrosterone (6-fold), A4 (158-fold) and testosterone (31-fold) in the dominant follicle of High A4 cows. However, estrone (3-fold) and estradiol (2-fold) concentrations were only slightly elevated, suggesting a possible inefficiency in androgen to estrogen conversion in High A4 cows. Theca cell mRNA expression of LHCGR, GATA6, CYP11A1, and CYP17A1 was greater in High A4 cows. Furthermore, abundance of ZAR1 was decreased 10-fold in cumulus oocyte complexes from High A4 cows, whereas NLRP5 abundance tended to be 19.8-fold greater (P = 0.07). There was a tendency for reduction in stage 4 follicles in ovarian cortex samples from High A4 cows suggesting that progression to antral stages were impaired. High A4 cows tended (P<0.07) to have a 17% reduction in calving rate compared with Low A4 cows suggesting reduced fertility in the High A4 population. These data suggest that the dominant follicle environment of High A4 cows including reduced estrogen conversion and androgen excess contributes to infertility in part through altered follicular and oocyte development.
High-Occupancy Toll Lanes and Public Transportation

This paper examines the impacts on public transportation services and ridership levels that have resulted from the expansion of high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes to high-occupancy toll (HOT) lanes. The experience with bus services operating on the HOV and HOT lanes on I-15 in San Diego, California; I-394 in Minneapolis, Minnesota; and I-25 in Denver, Colorado is explored. The Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) allows increased flexibility for state departments of transportation and other agencies to maximize the use of HOV lanes, including use by tolled single-occupant or lower-occupancy vehicles. As a result, the potential impacts on bus services and ridership levels represent important factors when expanding HOV lane user groups to include tolled vehicles. The three projects provide different perspectives on the potential impacts on public transportation from expanding HOV lanes to include HOT vehicles, as well as the use of transit buses t...
Bevacizumab increases the risk of arterial ischemia: a large study in cancer patients with a focus on different subgroup outcomes

Abstract Background Bevacizumab, a humanized monoclonal antibody targeting the vascular endothelial growth factor, is a therapeutic agent used in a variety of neoplasms. We did a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials to fully characterize the arterial thromboembolic events (ATEs) risk with bevacizumab in certain patients' subgroups. Materials and Methods We carried out a literature search on Medline for randomized trial reported from January 1966 to December 2009. Abstracts presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology held between 2004 and 2009 were also searched for relevant clinical trials. Summary incidence, relative risks (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using random-effects or fixed-effects models based on the heterogeneity of included studies. Results A total of 13 026 patients from 20 randomized trials were included in the meta-analysis. Overall RR for ATE with bevacizumab-based therapy versus controls was 1.46 (95% CI 1.11–1.93, P = 0.007). On subgroup analysis, no significant risk differences were found based on the type of malignancy, type of clinical trial (phase II or III trials), type of publication (full papers versus presentations), high- versus low-dose bevacizumab and early versus advanced disease trials. When stratified by concomitant therapies, we found that gemcitabine-based regimens had a significant lower ATE risk compared with non-gemcitabine regimens (P = 0.01). Conclusions Bevacizumab treatment is associated with a significant increase in the risk of arterial thrombosis. Our results seem to be generalizable to the vast majority of patients receiving bevacizumab in multiple settings.
Adolescent marijuana users have elevated risk-taking on the balloon analog risk task:

OBJECTIVE: Adolescents who engage in regular marijuana use may have a higher propensity to take unsafe risks despite the possible negative consequences. We compared adolescents with a history of regular marijuana use to non-using teens on a behavioral measure of risk-taking. Given the involvement of the pre-frontal cortex in both risk-taking and executive functioning, we also examined whether risk-taking was associated with measures of executive functioning. METHOD: Fifty-eight demographically similar community youth (ages 17-20; 29% female), including 24 marijuana users and 34 non-using controls, completed the computerized Balloon Analog Risk Task (BART; Lejuez et al., 2002) and measures of substance use and executive function. Primary BART outcome measures included total number of popped balloons and average adjusted pumps (mean pumps excluding popped balloons). RESULTS: Marijuana users had more popped balloons than controls (pCONCLUSIONS: Our finding of elevated risk-taking among marijuana users is consistent with previous research that substance users may have impaired risk processing. Further, our results suggest that risk-taking is not always associated with executive dysfunction, implying the involvement of distinct neural subsystems. Language: en
A New Way of Doing Time on the Outside Sex Offenders’ Pathways In and Out of a Transitional Housing Facility

Although housing has been highlighted as a key element of successful reentry experiences, little research has considered the perspectives of sex offenders living in transitional housing upon release from prison. This topic is important given the increasing legal restrictions faced by this offender population. The current study utilizes qualitative data to explore the pathways from prison to transitional housing, the experience of residing in these facilities, and how transitional housing is perceived to affect the overall reentry experience. In general, results suggest that sex offenders reside in the facility because of lack of access to a suitable home, and report a need for service provisions. However, most view their experiences in the transitional facility (TF) as contrary to the rehabilitative ideal, and some indicate that this type of programming has collateral consequences for reentry. The proliferation of sex offender restriction laws has only exacerbated the challenges faced by sex offenders living in the TF.
Ionospheric pulse time dispersion including effects of Earth's magnetic field

For frequencies above 100 MHz, the distortion due to ionospheric dispersion has been evaluated in the past for the assumption that the earth's magnetic field can be neglected. It is shown that for noncircularly polarized signals, conditions can exist at even L -band where the ionosphere distortion due to the presence of the earth's magnetic field can be significant. A simple expression relating the Faraday rotation to the ionospheric dispersion due to the earth's magnetic field is given. An example is presented which shows that the Faraday rotation can be as much as 145\deg at L -band.
A new barrier to participation: Heterogeneous application of voter identification policies

In democratic societies there is a tension between maximizing ballot access and minimizing voter fraud. Since the 2000 presidential election, this tension has been central to discussions about election reform at the national, state, and local level. We examine this tension by focusing on the implementation of voter identification laws in one state that has experienced significant issues in recent elections, and that is currently implementing election reform: New Mexico. We hypothesize that Hispanic voters are more likely to show some form of identification than other types of voters. Using a voter data set from New Mexico's First Congressional District in the 2006 election, we find that Hispanic, male and Election Day voters are more likely to show some form of identification than non-Hispanic, female and early voters. In addition, using an overlapping study of Bernalillo County 2006 poll workers, which almost entirely overlaps with the First Congressional District, we find no evidence that differences in poll worker partisanship or ethnicity produce differences in voter identification procedures. Our findings suggest that broad voter identification laws, which may be applied unequally, may be perceived as discriminatory.
Cohesin proteins load sequentially during prophase I in tomato primary microsporocytes

Proteins of the cohesin complex are essential for sister chromatid cohesion and proper chromosome segregation during both mitosis and meiosis. Cohesin proteins are also components of axial elements/lateral elements (AE/LEs) of synaptonemal complexes (SCs) during meiosis, and cohesins are thought to play an important role in meiotic chromosome morphogenesis and recombination. Here, we have examined the cytological behavior of four cohesin proteins (SMC1, SMC3, SCC3, and REC8/SYN1) during early prophase I in tomato microsporocytes using immunolabeling. All four cohesins are discontinuously distributed along the length of AE/LEs from leptotene through early diplotene. Based on current models for the cohesin complex, the four cohesin proteins should be present at the same time and place in equivalent amounts. However, we observed that cohesins often do not colocalize at the same AE/LE positions, and cohesins differ in when they load onto and dissociate from AE/LEs of early prophase I chromosomes. Cohesin labeling of LEs from pachytene nuclei is similar through euchromatin, pericentric heterochromatin, and kinetochores but is distinctly reduced through the nucleolar organizer region of chromosome 2. These results indicate that the four cohesin proteins may form different complexes and/or perform additional functions during meiosis in plants, which are distinct from their essential function in sister chromatid cohesion.
Augmenting mobile 3G using WiFi

We investigate if WiFi access can be used to augment 3G capacity in mobile environments. We rst conduct a detailed study of 3G and WiFi access from moving vehicles, in three different cities. We find that the average 3G and WiFi availability across the cities is 87% and 11%, respectively. WiFi throughput is lower than 3G through-put, and WiFi loss rates are higher. We then design a system, called Wiffler, to augments mobile 3G capacity. It uses two key ideas leveraging delay tolerance and fast switching -- to overcome the poor availability and performance of WiFi. For delay tolerant applications, Wiffler uses a simple model of the environment to predict WiFi connectivity. It uses these predictions to delays transfers to offload more data on WiFi, but only if delaying reduces 3G usage and the transfers can be completed within the application's tolerance threshold. For applications that are extremely sensitive to delay or loss (e.g., VoIP), Wiffler quickly switches to 3G if WiFi is unable to successfully transmit the packet within a small time window. We implement and deploy Wiffler in our vehicular testbed. Our experiments show that Wiffler significantly reduces 3G usage. For a realistic workload, the reduction is 45% for a delay tolerance of 60 seconds.
Adaptive power management using reinforcement learning

System level power management must consider the uncertainty and variability that comes from the environment, the application and the hardware. A robust power management technique must be able to learn the optimal decision from past history and improve itself as the environment changes. This paper presents a novel online power management technique based on model-free constrained reinforcement learning (RL). It learns the best power management policy that gives the minimum power consumption for a given performance constraint without any prior information of workload. Compared with existing machine learning based power management techniques, the RL based learning is capable of exploring the trade-off in the power-performance design space and converging to a better power management policy. Experimental results show that the proposed RL based power management achieves 24% and 3% reduction in power and latency respectively comparing to the existing expert based power management.
Genetic and environmental contributions to retrospectively reported DSM-IV childhood attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

BackgroundA variety of methodologies and techniques converge on the notion that adults and children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have similar deficits, but there is limited knowledge about whether adult retrospective reports reflect similar genetic and environmental influences implicated in childhood ADHD.MethodDSM-IV ADHD symptoms were collected retrospectively from 3896 young adults participating in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. Responses from this genetically informative sample of same- and opposite-sex twins and siblings were used to determine the magnitude of genetic and environmental influences. Possible gender differences in these effects were also examined. The degree of familial specificity of the genetic and environmental influences on the Inattentive and Hyperactive-Impulsive symptom dimensions was also determined.ResultsAdditive genetic effects contributed moderately to DSM-IV Inattentive, Hyperactive-Impulsive and Combined ADHD subtypes (heritability estimates of 0.30–0.38). Individual-specific influences accounted for the remaining proportion of the variance. Both genetic and individual-specific environmental effects contributed to the covariation of Inattentive and Hyperactive-Impulsive symptomologies.ConclusionsResults from our genetic analyses agree with previous findings based on self-assessment of current and retrospectively reported ADHD symptoms in adolescents and adults. Large individual-specific environmental influences as identified here suggest that current questionnaires used for retrospective diagnoses may not provide the most accurate reconstruction of the etiological influences on childhood ADHD in general population samples.
From the school yard to the squad car: school discipline, truancy, and arrest.

Since the 1990’s, implementation of zero tolerance policies in schools has led to increased use of school suspension and expulsion as disciplinary techniques for students with varying degrees of infractions. An unintended consequence of zero tolerance policies is that school suspension or expulsion may increase risk for contact with the juvenile justice system. In the present study, we test how forced absence from school via suspension or expulsion and chosen absence from school (truancy) are associated with the likelihood of being arrested. Using month-level data from 6,636 months from a longitudinal study of delinquent adolescents (N = 1,354; 13.5 % female; 41.5 % Black, 33.5 % Hispanic-American, 20.2 % White), we compare the likelihood of being arrested, within individuals, for months when youth were and were not suspended or expelled from school and for months when youth were and were not truant. Finally, we test if these associations were moderated by stable demographic characteristics (sex, race, age, history of problem behaviors) and time-varying contextual factors (peer delinquency, parental monitoring, and commitment to school). Being suspended or expelled from school increased the likelihood of arrest in that same month and this effect was stronger among youth who did not have a history of behavior problems and when youth associated with less delinquent peers. Truancy independently contributed to the likelihood of arrest, but this association was explained by differences in parental monitoring and school commitment. Thus, school disciplinary action places youth at risk for involvement in the juvenile justice system and this may be especially true for less risky youth.
Discussion---Mathematics, Realism and Management Sciences

In a paper which appeared in the 1957 edition of this journal Weinwurm, Ernest H. 1957. Limitations of the scientific method in management science. Management Sci. April 225--233., Professor Weinwurm suggests that the use of mathematics in management science may so dominate a given model as to cause the disregard of vital human values. He cites Professor Bodenhorn who warns that the trend toward mathematical frameworks in economics may be associated with an application of good mathematical assumptions but poor economics Bodenhorn, Diran. 1956. The problem of economic assumptions in mathematical economics. J. Political Econom. February 25--32.. In some dispute with Professor Flood's philosophy Flood, Merrill M. 1956. The objective of TIMS. Management Sci. January 178--183., he feels that we cannot ignore the nonquantitative factors in human relations.
Non-tuberculous mycobacteria presenting as an obstructing endobronchial mass in an immunocompetent infant

Summary In immunocompetent children, non-tuberculous mycobacteria infections commonly present as cervicofacial lymphadenitis and seldom cause endobronchial lesions. A 10-month-old presented with unilateral wheezing and radiographic findings of air trapping. During endoscopy, granulation tissue obstructing the left main bronchus was removed, and eventually Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare complex was identified. Serial surgical debridement and prolonged systemic antimicrobials were effective therapeutic interventions.
The Economics of Export-Performance Requirements

This paper analyzes the resource-allocation and welfare effects of export-performance requirements imposed on foreign investors. It argues that a satisfactory analysis must consider the presence of tariff distortions and oligopolistic behavior in host-country markets. These create a second-best environment in which an evaluation of the welfare effects of such requirements is no longer straightforward. It is concluded that export requirements can improve home welfare by reducing payments to foreign capital, reducing the output of commodities which are being overproduced, and shifting profits toward domestically owned firms.
Predicting Predatory Outcomes in the Context of Carryover Effects: Interactions between Juvenile Frogs and Spider Predators

As representatives of organisms with complex life histories, frogs provide an ideal system to study predator-induced carryover effects: how the risk of predation in one life stage can impact predator–prey interactions in a later stage. Invertebrate predation on frogs has been widely reported, although studies of the behavioral mechanisms underlying their interactions in the terrestrial stage have been lacking. We made detailed observations of interactions between a wolf spider (Tigrosa helluo) and Blanchard's cricket frog (Acris blanchardi) to determine factors that predict capture success and to evaluate potential carryover effects from aquatic predation risk. Juvenile frogs, reared with or without dragonfly predator cues, were placed in an arena with or without spider cues and allowed to interact with a spider. Spiders captured frogs, and an interaction between frog size and activity predicted frog survival. We found no evidence that either aquatic or terrestrial cues altered frog behavior or survival. By preying upon a demographically important life stage, spiders may contribute to population dynamics in frogs.