cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Genetic Architecture of Aluminum Tolerance in Rice (Oryza sativa) Determined through Genome-Wide Association Analysis and QTL Mapping

Aluminum (Al) toxicity is a primary limitation to crop productivity on acid soils, and rice has been demonstrated to be significantly more Al tolerant than other cereal crops. However, the mechanisms of rice Al tolerance are largely unknown, and no genes underlying natural variation have been reported. We screened 383 diverse rice accessions, conducted a genome-wide association (GWA) study, and conducted QTL mapping in two bi-parental populations using three estimates of Al tolerance based on root growth. Subpopulation structure explained 57% of the phenotypic variation, and the mean Al tolerance in Japonica was twice that of Indica. Forty-eight regions associated with Al tolerance were identified by GWA analysis, most of which were subpopulation-specific. Four of these regions co-localized with a priori candidate genes, and two highly significant regions co-localized with previously identified QTLs. Three regions corresponding to induced Al-sensitive rice mutants (ART1, STAR2, Nrat1) were identified through bi-parental QTL mapping or GWA to be involved in natural variation for Al tolerance. Haplotype analysis around the Nrat1 gene identified susceptible and tolerant haplotypes explaining 40% of the Al tolerance variation within the aus subpopulation, and sequence analysis of Nrat1 identified a trio of non-synonymous mutations predictive of Al sensitivity in our diversity panel. GWA analysis discovered more phenotype–genotype associations and provided higher resolution, but QTL mapping identified critical rare and/or subpopulation-specific alleles not detected by GWA analysis. Mapping using Indica/Japonica populations identified QTLs associated with transgressive variation where alleles from a susceptible aus or indica parent enhanced Al tolerance in a tolerant Japonica background. This work supports the hypothesis that selectively introgressing alleles across subpopulations is an efficient approach for trait enhancement in plant breeding programs and demonstrates the fundamental importance of subpopulation in interpreting and manipulating the genetics of complex traits in rice.
A criterion for the stability of heterogeneous swirling flows

Ein hinreichendes Stabilitatskriterium fur reibungsfreie, schraubenformige Stromungen, mit radialabhangiger Dichte, zwischen zwei koaxialen Zylindern wird abgeleitet. Es zeigt sich, dass solche Stromungen gegen willkurliche, kleine Storungen stabil sind, wenn die Zirkulation und die Dichte monoton zunehmende Funktionen der Radialrichtung sind, aber gleichzeitig die Radialableitungen der Geschwindigkeitskomponente klein bleiben.
Influence of Local Field Effects on the Nonlinear Optical Properties of Composite Materials

A review is presented of the role of local field effects in establishing the nonlinear optical properties of materials. Special emphasis is placed on the role of local field effects for the case of composite nonlinear optical materials. There is great need for optical materials that possess large optical nonlinearities while simultaneously possessing other desirable properties such as fast response, low attenuation, and high damage threshold. One avenue for the development of such materials is to form a composite of two or more components in such a manner that the properties of the composite are more desirable than those of their individual components. In this article, we examine how one might do so, especially from the point of view of how local field effects come into play in establishing the response of composite materials. However, before turning our attention to composite materials, we present a brief summary of local field effects for the case of homogeneous materials.
RETHINKING NARRATIVE THERAPY: AN EXAMINATION OF BILINGUALISM AND MAGICAL REALISM

Narrative therapy is often misunderstood as offering a counter story to the dominant story and, in the process, rendering a new single account that eliminates the dominant story as an influence in the client's life. Using bilingualism and the literary genre of magical realism as analogies to rethink this practice, the author argues for the importance of holding both stories simultaneously, preserving the relationship between them. Bilingual speakers are able to cocogitate in two worlds of thought simultaneously, and magical realism authors demonstrate how to expose power differentials by inverting inequalities and undermining authorities. Such skills can be used by narrative therapists to reexamine their work and open new possibilities for clients. The article includes two illustrative therapeutic conversations.
A descriptive study of social responsibility mutual funds

Abstract This paper provides the results of a descriptive study of the socially responsible mutual funds currently existing in the U.S.A. Managers of these funds employ very similar procedures for evaluating firms with social criteria, although there was no one social criterion used unanimously. Sources of social information used varied widely from fund to fund with data provided by firms being the most frequently used. Managers believe a higher priority should be given to requiring public disclosure of data already being produced for limited distribution, e.g. EEO data.
A nitrite-reducing enzyme from Nitrosomonas europaea. Preliminary characterization with hydroxylamine ad electron donor.

Abstract 1. A soluble enzyme which catalyzes the reduction of nitrite in the presence of hydroxylamine has been extracted from Nitrosomonas cells and partially purified. 2. The hydroxylamine-nitrite reductase was also able to utilize leuco-pyocyanine as an electron donor. 3. The enzyme had a pH optimum for HNO 2 reduction of 5.75 and approximate K m values for HNO 2 and NH 2 OH of 1.6 mM and 0.24 M, respectively. 4. The net evolution of approx. 1 mole of gas and disappearance of 1.8 moles of hydroxylamine occurred per mole of nitrite utilized during the reaction. The compounds N 2 O and NO were identified as the products of nitrite reduction. 5. Nitrite reduction by hydroxylamine was inhibited 50% by 2 μM diethyl-dithiocarbamate, 8 μM α,α′-dipyridyl, 2×10 −4 M KCN or 1.5 mM NaN 3 . 6. The partially purified enzyme fraction contained mammalian cytochrome c oxidase, hydroxylamine oxidase, hydroquinone oxidase and NH 2 OH-cytochrome c reductase activity and catalyzed the production of HNO 2 from NH 2 OH. 7. The rate of O 2 utilization coupled to hydroxylamine oxidation was inhibited in the presence of nitrite, whereas the rate of aerobic hydroxylamine disappearance was stimulated approx. 100% in the presence of nitrite. 8. Hydroxylamine-nitrite reductase (hydroxylamine:nitrite oxidoreductase) appears to involve the combined action of Nitrosomonas hydroxylamine dehydrogenase and nitrite reductase.
LASER demarcation photocoagulation for rhegmatogenous retinal detachments.

To evaluate demarcation laser photocoagulation (DLP) for macula-sparing rhegmatogenous retinal detachments (RRD) with and without symptoms of posterior vitreous separation or progressive visual field defect. Retrospective, interventional, single surgeon case series of consecutive patients with RRD treated with demarcation laser photocoagulation between March 1999 and February 2008 at an academic center. The null hypothesis was that there exists no difference in the rate of progression for retinal detachment irrespective of the presence (‘symptomatic’) or absence (‘asymptomatic’) of symptoms of posterior vitreous separation or visual field defect at presentation. A total of 27 eyes of 26 patients were included in the study. In all, 22 of the 27 eyes (81.4%) did not require additional treatment and remained attached during mean follow-up of 38.4 months. None of the 14 asymptomatic patients required surgery (0%) whereas 5 out of the 13 patients (38.5%) who were symptomatic at presentation required further intervention (p=0.016): one patient required additional laser only and four patients required scleral buckling or vitrectomy. Pre- and post- DLP logMAR visual acuity was 0.15 and 0.14, respectively. Demarcation laser photocoagulation is an effective alternative to scleral buckling or vitrectomy for treating asymptomatic RRDs. It has a high failure rate among eyes with symptomatic RRD.
Poly(lactic acid)/Aluminum Oxide Composites Fabricated by Sol‐Gel and Melt Compounding Processes

Aluminum-oxide-coated PLA pellets, particles derived from aluminum oxide sol-gel, and calcinated α-Al 2 O 3 powders were used to fabricate PLA/Alo x composites. The formation of aluminum oxide was confirmed by FTIR and EDS. SEM images suggested the melt compounding system provided a fairly homogeneous dispersion of AlO x particles in the PLA matrix. XRD analysis showed PLA and PLA/AlO x composites were both amorphous. The incorporation of AlO x particles did not alter the melting temperature of PLA. However, the shape and intensity of the melting endotherms was significantly changed, suggesting bimodal melting behavior. UV-Vis transmission spectra suggested that PLA/AlO x composites may act as a better UV barrier than neat PLA.
“I’m in a Professional School! Why Are You Making Me Do This?” A Cross-Disciplinary Study of the Use of Creative Classroom Projects on Student Learning

Creative thinking skills are essential for today's workplace. Three faculty members from different professional schools (business, higher education administration, teacher education) examined student responses to the creative assignments in their courses. The assignments exemplify the following criteria: invited taking risks, encouraged innovative thinking, stressed connecting, demonstrated synthesis and transformation of course content. The study examined student responses to creative projects via a Likert-scale survey, open-ended narrative responses, and then scores on a rubric on creativity and integrative learning. Fifty-seven students were surveyed across all three courses. Overall, results indicate that students not only found these assignments worthwhile but also found that they furthered their learning of course content. Implications for practice are included.
Grieving the Loss of Romantic Relationships in Young Adults: An Empirical Study of Disenfranchised Grief:

Grief following lost romantic relationships during early adulthood has been identified as a form of disenfranchised grief. The present study examined several variables associated with the grieving ...
Physical attractiveness, social connectedness, and individuality: an autophotographic study.

In a sample of 125 college students, the author tested the hypothesis that, relative to less attractive peers, the physically attractive participants would depict greater social connectedness in self-descriptive photo essays. To document discriminant validity, the author also hypothesized that the correlation between physical-attractiveness ratings and the richness (i.e., individuality ratings) of photo essays would be near zero. The results confirmed both predictions and supported the convergent and discriminant validity of information from autophotographic essays. Thus, the attractive participants depicted themselves as very socially connected; however, they were neither more conventional-superficial nor more individualistic-creative than their less attractive peers in their photo essays.
Storage temperature and duration affect Steinernema scarabaei dispersal and attraction, virulence, and infectivity to a white grub host

The entomopathogenic nematode Steinernema scarabaei has exceptional potential for the control of many white grub species. Initial studies suggested this species to have a widely ranging foraging strategy based on its attraction to hosts in soil columns, however, with a generally low but very variable dispersal rate even in the presence of hosts. The objective of this study was to develop a better understanding of the dispersal behavior of S. scarabaei IJs and the influence of storage conditions on its dispersal and infectivity. We found that storage temperature and duration had a strong effect on S. scarabaei IJ dispersal, virulence, and infectivity. But even under conditions conducive to movement only a small proportion of IJs moved towards a host. IJ dispersal declined with storage time by a factor of around 100 between 1 week and 12 weeks of storage whether the IJs were stored at room temperature or 8°C; however, the decline was more than twice as fast after storage at 8°C. Host attraction also diminished with storage duration. IJ virulence and infectivity declined with storage time for IJs stored at room temperature. In contrast, for IJs stored at 8°C virulence remained high and infectivity increased over time. The decrease in dispersal and infectivity when stored at room temperature may reflect an adaptation to conserve energy in the absence of hosts since S. scarabaei IJs have to persist through extended periods in summer during which infections are unlikely to occur. The even faster decrease in dispersal rate when stored at 8°C may suggest a cold-induced dormancy that may serve as an overwintering strategy. The parallel increase in infectivity, however, seems to contradict such a strategy. Future studies should examine whether and how S. scarabaei IJs 'inactivated' by the absence of hosts can be 'reactivated' and whether this behavior could be used to improve the efficacy of nematode applications against insect pests.
An Analysis of Perceived Competence Among Managers in Human Service Organizations

The purpose of the research was to survey managers in social service organizations to study the extent and nature of thier perceived competence, with emphasis given to determining the degree to which several demographic variables serve as antecedents in explaining perceptions of self-competence. Based on responses from 299 managers, the results reveal that the managers see themselves as competent individuals in the work setting. Further, no significant differences were found on any of the four competence subscales for the demographic variables of sex, position in agency, organizational level, education, and education major. However, for three of the subscales significant perceptual differences were noted for the demographic variables of age and length of service in present position.
Optical absorption spectra of carbon 60 thin films from 0.4 to 6.2 eV

Abstract The optical absorption spectrum for thin films of sublimed C 60 is presented. Both transmission spectroscopy and photothermal deflection spectroscopy are used to obtain the spectrum over a wide energy range (0.4 to 6.2 eV) for the same film. The optical gap is ≈ 1.6 eV and the corresponding transition appears to be optically forbidden given the weakness of the absorption. Structure is observed on the “gap edge” which can be attributed to vibronic transitions. The gap region can be described in terms used for amorphous semiconductors, having features such as an Urbach edge, and sub-gap defect (“dangling bond”) absorption. The similarity suggests that the nature of C 60 thin films may be analogous to amorphous silicon and carbon films.
Contextualization and strategic international human resource management approaches: the case of Central America and Panama

This article extends previous work on international human resource management by contextualizing an integrated model based on the practice of human resource management (HRM) in Central America and Panama. Based on research and insights contributed by a panel of expert HRM scholars and practitioners, the article begins with a description of the regional socio-economic factors that influence this function and of the institution of HRM in Central America and Panama. Case studies provide examples of adaptive and exportive HRM approaches. After viewing the model from a Central America perspective, we propose modifications to reflect (1) a more embedded, interactive approach, (2) the reality of hybrid models rather than pure HRM approaches and (3) the necessity of viewing regional HRM as an institutional system.
Effect of multiple scattering on radiation transmission in absorbing-scattering media

A successive approximation procedure is developed to determine the scattering correction to the Beer-Lambert law in the evaluation of the geometric mean transmittance in a general multidimensional absorbing and scatter- ing medium. At each step of the approximation, the evaluation of an upper and lower bound of the scattering correction requires only a single integral over the volume of the scattering medium. This represents a great reduc- tion in mathematical complexity as compared to the direct numerical approach. Results for a two-dimensional rectangular absorbing and scattering medium are presented. The procedure is shown to converge rapidly in the optically thin limit. The lower-order results are useful for engineering application to media with arbitrary optical thickness. Some interesting conclusions concerning the qualitative physical behavior of the scattering correction are also generated. EASUREMENT of radiative transmission is a common experimental technique for many engineering applica- tions. In remote sensing, transmission measurements in dif- ferent atmospheric absorption windows are used to determine surface temperatures, surface emissivity, and other important geographical data.1 In the study of thermal insulation, transmission measurements are used to determine effective radiative properties of many porous insulating materials.2 In combustion, radiative transmission measurements are often used to determine flame properties. Most of the existing data reduction works assume that the transmissivity and the medium's optical thickness are related by the Beer-Lambert (B-L) law. The B-L law, however, fails for media that scatter as well as absorb radiation because the scattering process can- not be lumped together with the absorption process without a separate description. The accuracy of the conventional data reduction procedure for scattering media is thus uncertain. In some recent works,3'5 the deficiency of the B-L law assumption for scattering media is recognized. But almost without exception, all of the existing works consider only in- finite or semi-infinite scattering media with a parallel slab geometry. For many practical situations, in which the scatter- ing medium is finite, the applicability of the numerical results and the solution techniques developed in these works appears doubtful. The objective of this work is to present a successive approximation procedure, based on which the scattering cor- rection to the B-L law for media with general geometry can be estimated to within an arbitrary degree of accuracy. Only isotropic scattering is considered. Generalization of the pres- ent work to media with anisotropic scattering is quite straightforward and will be presented in future works. Specifically, successively improved estimates of the upper and lower bound of the scattering correction can ge generated by the present technique with little mathematical complexity. Unlike a straightforwar d numerical computational approach involving multiple-variable integration, which are time con-
Social norms, arbitrariness of frustration, and status of the agent of frustration in the frustration-aggression hypothesis.

Some of the conditions under which frustration will produce aggression are further specified. Pastore's work with the role of arbitrariness in the frustration-aggression hypothesis is considered, in addition to two other variables, the effect of social norms, and the social position of the agent of frustration. Based on a sample of 60 college women, less aggression appears when (1) the instructions are designed to stress ideal behavior, (2) the situation is non-arbitrary, (3) the agent of frustration is an authority figure rather than a peer. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved)
Educational Access for Women in the United States.

Women were denied the right to an education for many years in the United States. This paper investigates the history of women in American higher education to identify points of access on the basis of this investigation, and to arrive at implications for women now and for the future. The paper contains a survey of the literature regarding women and higher education. Emphasis is placed on colleges for women, specifically Bryn Mawr and Wellesley. Comparisons between the two schools are made, and both are contrasted with Oberlin and the University of Michigan. Access for women at the community college level is discussed, because this is the entry point to higher education to which most women today have access.
The Engaged Intellectual: Calvino's Public Self-image in the 1960s

AbstractThis article analyses Calvino's editing of his autobiography as a thinker and an artist from the late 1950s through the 1960s. By creating and then reaffirming the perception that change had occurred within continuity, Calvino successfully established the criteria by which his works have been judged, thus guiding readings and exegeses of his works and perpetuating his image of a coherent, committed intellectual. Integral parts of this strategy are the complex literary games for which Calvino is well known. One such game centres on his contention that works of fiction and also of non-fiction transcend and exist independently of their authors: he, the empirical author, and the narrating voice he uses in his non-fictions and fictions are not one and the same. Such games are of a piece with Calvino's refusal of authority over his writings and of the need to deflect responsibility for their content away from himself. These games are also re-occurrences of regressive behaviour learned in childhood, a be...
The structure of poly(ethylene oxide) liquids: comparison of integral equation theory with molecular dynamics simulations and neutron scattering

Polymer reference interaction site model (PRISM) calculations and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations were carried out on poly(ethylene oxide) liquids using a force field of Smith, Jaffe, and Yoon. The intermolecular pair correlation functions and radius of gyration from theory were in very good agreement with MD simulations when the partial charges were turned off. When the charges were turned on, considerably more structure was seen in the intermolecular correlations obtained from MD simulation. Moreover, the radius of gyration increased by 38% due to electrostatic repulsions along the chain backbone. Because the partial charges greatly affect the structure, significant differences were seen between the PRISM calculations (without charges) and the wide angle neutron scattering measurements of Annis and coworkers for the total structure factor, and the hydrogen/hydrogen intermolecular correlation function. This is in contrast to previous PRISM calculations on poly (dimethyl siloxane).
Primary resection of cutaneous malignancies of the head and neck

Cutaneous malignancies, which commonly occur in the head and neck, are the most common cancers in the United States, and are composed primarily of the nonmelanoma skin cancers, basal cell carcinoma, and squamous cell carcinoma. Mohs micrographic surgery is often preferred over wide local excision for these nonmelanoma skin cancers of the head and neck. However, wide local excision is still the preferred method of primary resection for specific cutaneous malignancies of the head and neck. The purpose of this article is to describe the indications, preoperative workup, and technique for the primary surgical resection of cutaneous malignancies of the head and neck.
Projecting “Normals” in a Nonstationary Climate

AbstractClimate “normals” are statistical estimates of present and/or near-future climate means for such quantities as seasonal temperature or precipitation. In a changing climate, simply averaging a large number of previous years of data may not be the best method for estimating normals. Here eight formulations for climate normals, including the recently proposed “hinge” function, are compared in artificial- and real-data settings. Although the hinge function is attractive conceptually for representing accelerating climate changes simply, its use is in general not yet justified for divisional U.S. seasonal temperature or precipitation. Averages of the most recent 15 and 30 yr have performed better during the recent past for U.S. divisional seasonal temperature and precipitation, respectively; these averaging windows are longer than those currently employed for this purpose at the U.S. Climate Prediction Center.
Fetal head and abdominal circumferences: Effect of profile shape on the accuracy of ellipse equations

Images of 122 fetal heads and abdomens were obtained with ultrasound for the determination of head and abdominal circumferences. The profile shapes were characterized by the cephalic or abdominal index (D1/D2 x 100), D1 and D2 being the shortest and longest diameters of either the head or abdomen. The mean of the cephalic index was 79.1% +/- 5.2%, and that of the abdominal index was 89.1% +/- 7.0%. All equations were equally accurate in calculating head and abdominal circumferences regardless of the profile shape. Therefore, the simplest equation, (D1 + D2) x 1.57, should be utilized when calculating circumferences except in situations of extreme dolichocephaly.
Atmospheric compensation of thermal infrared hyperspectral imagery with the emissive empirical line method and the in-scene atmospheric compensation algorithms: a comparison

The in-scene atmospheric compensation (ISAC) algorithm of Young et al. (2002) [14] (and as implemented in the ENVI® software system [16] as 'Thermal Atm Correction') is commonly applied to thermal infrared multi- and hyperspectral imagery (MSI and HSI, respectively). ISAC estimates atmospheric transmissivity and upwelling radiance using only the scene data. The ISAC-derived transmissivity and upwelling radiance are compared to those derived from the emissive empirical line method (EELM), another in-scene atmospheric compensation algorithm for thermal infrared MSI and HSI data. EELM is based on the presence of calibration targets (e.g., panels, water pools) captured in the spectral image data for which the emissivity and temperature are well known at the moment of MSI/HSI data acquisition. EELM is similar in concept to the empirical line method (ELM) algorithm commonly applied to visible/near-infrared to shortwave infrared (VNIR/SWIR) spectral imagery and is implemented as a custom ENVI® plugin application. Both ISAC and EELM are in-scene methods and do not require radiative transfer modeling. ISAC and EELM have been applied to airborne longwave infrared (LWIR; ~7.5 μm to ~13.5 μm) HSI data. Captured in the imagery are calibration panels and/or water pools maintained at different temperatures facilitating the application of EELM. Overall, the atmospheric compensation parameters derived from the two methods are in close agreement: the EELM-derived ground-leaving radiance spectra generally contain fewer residual atmospheric spectral features, although ISAC sometimes produces smoother ground-leaving radiance spectra. Nonetheless, the agreement is viewed as validation of ISAC. ISAC is an effective atmospheric compensation algorithm that is readily available to the remote sensing community in the ENVI® software system. Thus studies such as the present testing and comparing ISAC to other methods are important. The ISAC and EELM algorithms are discussed as are the airborne LWIR and simulated HSI data to which they are applied. Also presented are analyses and comparisons of the retrieved transmissivity and upwelling radiance terms.
The melting pressure of helium-3 at very low temperatures

The melting pressure of3 He at very low temperatures was shown earlier to be determined overwhelmingly by the solid phase. Using an extended solid3He model based on isotropic effective first-neighbor-pair antiferromagnetic and second-neighbor-pair ferromagnetic exchange interactions, the melting process is reinvestigated here. One of its motivating aspects may be said to be tied to its possible use, suggested by us earlier, for the establishment of a thermodynamic temperature scale at very low temperatures. As a consequence of the assumed multineighbor interactions, spin ordering is accelerated and, at the same temperature, the extended-model solid entropy falls below that of the simpler nearest-neighbor-pair interaction model. Equivalently, the spinordering critical transition temperature is raised over that associated with the simpler interaction scheme. The overall result is a decrease in the melting pressure variations at very low temperatures below those arising from the simple solid model. In the absence of a reliable experimental temperature scale at very low temperatures, only a qualified and cursory comparison is justified with recent experimentally estimated melting pressures. Discrepancies arise between theory and preliminary data on the temperature derivatives of the melting pressure or the entropy of the solid at melting. They might be due in part to the tentative experimental temperatures, which appear shifted toward too low temperatures when compared with the theoretical temperature scale implicit in the treatment of the generalized solid model. However, from the viewpoint which accepts the rather preliminary, scarce, very low temperature melting pressure data at face value, failure of the extended exchange model of solid3He at those temperatures must be kept in mind.
Subsensitivity of adenylyl cyclase-coupled receptors on mononuclear leukocytes from drug-free inpatients with a major depressive episode

Previous studies have demonstrated blunted beta-adrenergic responsivity in leukocytes from depressed patients. We sought to determine if this blunted cyclic adenosine monophosphate (AMP) response is specific for beta-adrenergic receptors (homologous), or whether other adenylyl cyclase-coupled receptors are also involved (heterologous), in order to localize this effect at the level of the receptor versus the coupling protein or the transducer, adenylyl cyclase. We studied adenylyl cyclase-mediated responses in peripheral blood mononuclear cells from 95 drug-free patients with a major depressive episode and 69 healthy controls. We found a similar degree of decrease in the peak cyclic AMP response to activation of the beta-adrenergic receptor (28%) and the prostaglandin receptor (34%) in the depressed patients, which indicated heterologous desensitization. Forskolin cyclic AMP responses were not blunted. Blunting of cyclic AMP responses to isoproterenol did not appear to correlate with levels of plasma norepinephrine and epinephrine or hypothalamic—pituitary—adrenocortical function. The absence of a decrease in the peak forskolin-generated cyclic AMP response, which involves direct activation of adenylyl cyclase, suggests an abnormality at the level of the coupling protein in these adenylyl-coupled receptors in depressed patients. Future studies need to determine whether this leukocyte signal transduction defect in depression also involves brain adenylyl cyclase-coupled receptors.
Solvable groups of finite Morley rank

Abstract We prove the following theorem: The commutator subgroup of a solvable connected group of finite Morley rank is nilpotent.
Presentation of Nitric Oxide Regulates Monocyte Survival through Effects on Caspase-9 and Caspase-3 Activation

In the absence of survival factors, blood monocytes undergo spontaneous apoptosis, which involves the activation of caspase-3. Although nitric oxide can block caspase-3 activation and promote cell survival, it can also induce apoptosis. We hypothesized that nitrosothiols that promote protein S-nitrosylation would reduce caspase-3 activation and cell survival, whereas nitric oxide donors (such as 1-propamine 3-(2-hydroxy-2-nitroso-1-propylhydrazine (PAPA) NONOate and diethylamine (DEA) NONOate) that do not target thiol residues would not. Using human monocytes as a model, we observed that nitrosothiol donors S-nitrosoglutathione and S-nitroso-N-acetylpenicillamine suppressed caspase-9 and caspase-3 activity and DNA fragmentation. In contrast, PAPA or DEA NONOate did not promote monocyte survival events and appeared to inhibit monocyte survival induced by macrophage colony-stimulating factor. The caspase-3-selective inhibitor DEVD-fluoromethyl ketone reversed DNA fragmentation events, and the caspase-9 inhibitor LEHD-fluoromethyl ketone reversed caspase-3 activity in monocytes treated with PAPA or DEA NONOate in the presence of macrophage colony-stimulating factor. These results were not caused by differences in glutathione levels or the kinetics of nitric oxide release. Moreover, S-nitrosoglutathione and S-nitroso-N-acetylpenicillamine directly blocked the activity of recombinant caspase-3, which was reversed by the reducing agent dithiothreitol, whereas PAPA or DEA NONOate did not block the enzymatic activity of caspase-3. These data support the hypothesis that nitrosylation of protein thiol residues by nitric oxide is critical for promoting the survival of human monocytes.
A segmentation approach for solving buffer allocation problems in large production systems

Buffer space allocation is an important step in production line design. In this paper, we focus on maximising the profit rate of a line subject to a production rate constraint. We describe a newly observed property of production line optimisation. The property is that the production rate constraint, if it is effective, allows an original line to be decoupled into several short lines for optimisation. An approximation method is developed from this property. Instead of optimising a long line, the method divides it into several short lines, optimises them separately and combines their optimal buffer distributions to find the optimal or near optimal buffer distribution of the original line. The method greatly improves the computation efficiency for solving buffer allocation problem for long lines, while ensuring the accuracy of the optimal buffer distribution. A heuristic explanation is proposed. Numerical experiments are provided to show the accuracy and efficiency of the method. The effect of the number and...
Bricks, clicks, and pix: apparel buyers' use of stores, internet, and catalogs compared

– To compare and contrast clothing buyers who buy in stores, on the internet, and through catalogs so as to better understand these behaviors., – We surveyed 805 US consumers. They reported attitudes and shopping behaviors. These were compared among those who shopped chiefly in stores, on the internet, and through catalogs., – Consumers who shopped more and spent more for clothing did so via all three shopping modes. Buying on the internet was more highly related to buying by catalog than it was to store buying. Heavy buyers of clothing by all three shopping modes were more involved with fashion, more fashion innovative, and more innovative regarding online buying than light and medium buyers regardless of the shopping mode. Fashion opinion seeking and reliance on sales associates for information were unrelated to amount of buying for all three shopping modes., – The findings are limited to US consumers and the convenience sample. Other limitations include the specific measures used, and the cross‐sectional survey method prevents us from making causal statements. The effects of other, unmeasured variables could not be assessed. Future studies could avoid these limitations by using data from several countries, representative samples, and additional variables., – Brick and mortar stores have less to fear from the internet than often thought. Catalogs are more likely to lose sales to the internet than are stores. The most profitable apparel companies might be catalogs or physical retailers who add/build web sites, while pure play companies may have a more difficult time achieving profitability. Apparel managers should focus research attention on learning more about the psychology of their buyers. While involvement with clothing leads to buying more via all three shopping modes, it is more important for store buying than buying by catalog or internet. Remote buyers of clothing are less fashion involved. Catalogs and apparel web sites might wish to feature new fashions, but they may be more successful in selling “standard” or normal clothing online than the latest fashions. They might broaden the selection of fabrics and colors to offer buyers more choices in the styles they already like. Clothing innovators shop more frequently via all three modes, but are most strongly drawn to stores., – Little research compares shopping across modes. Because modern clothing retailing involves all three modes, the study provides an unusual picture of this shopping behavior.
Flowability Properties of Commercial Distillers Dried Grains with Solubles (DDGS)

ABSTRACT Distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS), the major coproduct from the corn-based fuel ethanol industry, is primarily used as livestock feed. Due to high protein, fiber, and energy contents, there is a high demand for DDGS. Flowability of DDGS is often hindered due the phenomenon of caking. Shipping and handling of DDGS has thus become a major issue due to bridge formation between the DDGS particles. The objective of this investigation was to measure flowability characteristics of DDGS samples from five ethanol plants in the north central region of the United States. Carr and Jenike tests were performed and the resulting data were mathematically compared with a previously developed empirical model. The largest particles had an average geometric mean diameter (GMD) of 1.19 mm, while the lowest particle size had an average GMD of 0.5 mm. Soluble solid levels were ≈10.5–14.8% (db). The effective angle of friction (δ) was 43.00–57.00°. Additionally, a few parameters exhibited fairly high linear c...
Change of the Age of Puberty in Albino Rats by Selective Mating.

SummaryIn this paper evidence is given which clearly indicates the possibility that lowering of the mean age of puberty in rat colonies during the past 30 years may have been due, in part, to selective breeding of early pubescent stock.
Clinical Assessment of Mirror Artifacts in Spectral-Domain Optical Coherence Tomography

PURPOSE. To investigate the characteristics of a spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) image phenomenon known as the mirror artifact, calculate its prevalence, analyze potential risk factors, measure severity, and correlate it to spherical equivalent and central visual acuity (VA). METHODS. OCT macular cube 512 x 128 scans taken between January 2008 and February 2009 at the New England Eye Center were analyzed for the presence of mirror artifacts. Artifact severity was determined by the degree of segmentation breakdown that it caused on the macular map. A retrospective review was conducted of the medical records of patients with artifacts and of a random control group without artifacts. RESULTS. Of 1592 patients, 9.3% (148 patients, 200 eyes) had scans that contained mirror artifacts. A significantly more myopic spherical equivalent (P < 0.001), worse VA (P < 0.001), longer axial lengths (P = 0.004), and higher proportions of moderate to high myopia (P < 0.001) were found in patients with mirror artifacts than in patients without artifacts. Worse VA was associated with increased artifact severity (P = 0.04). CONCLUSIONS. In all scans analyzed, a high prevalence of mirror artifacts was found. This image artifact was often associated with patients with moderate to high myopia. Improvements in instrumentation may be necessary to resolve this problem in moderately and highly myopic eyes. Operators should be advised to properly position the retina when scanning eyes. In cases in which peripheral abnormalities in topographic measurements of retinal thickness are found, corresponding OCT scans should be examined for the presence of mirror artifacts.
Resonant Power Processors, Part II-Methods of Control

The nature of resonant converter control is discussed. Employing the state portrait, different control methods for series resonant converter are identified and their performance evaluated based on their stability, response to control and load changes and range of operation. A new control method, optimal trajectory control, is proposed which, by utilizing the state trajectories as control laws, continuously monitors the energy level of the resonant tank. The method is shown to have superior control properties, especially under transient operation.
Postjunctional membrane specialization at cholinergic myoneural junctions in the leech.

Myoneural junctions are described in the body musculature of the leech. Although similar to cholinergic junctions elsewhere, these exhibit a distinctive postjunctional membrane specialization consisting of discrete, concave patches, occupying a small proportion of the total postjunctional area, at which both the inner and outer surfaces of the membrane appear to be coated. The outer coating consists of a hexagonal array of projections which arise from the outer dense lamina of the plasma membrane and extend into the junctional cleft. The projections are spaced at intervals of ∼ 150 A and are thickened at their tips. The inner dense lamina of the membrane is coated by an amorphous cytoplasmic material. Details of this specialization show up well in specimens that have not been post-osmicated but are stained (in sections) with permanganate and uranyl acetate. It is hypothesized that the morphologically specialized patches are composed of units containing the acetylcholine receptors.
Enhanced electrokinetic dissolution of naphthalene and 2,4-DNT from contaminated soils.

Abstract Electrokinetic soil remediation has been proven to remove heavy metals and polar organics from low hydraulic conductivity subsurface environment. In this study, carboxymethyl-β-cyclodextrin (CMCD) was used as a carrier to assist electrokinetic treatment for removal of low polarity organic contaminants from soils (2.2% organic carbon content). Naphthalene and 2,4-dinitrotoluene (2,4-DNT) were selected as the test compounds. The results from columns experiments showed that 46 and 43% of naphthalene and 2,4-DNT, respectively, were removed using 0.01N NaNO 3 flushing solution with 40 V electrical potential while 70 and 72% of naphthalene and 2,4-DNT were removed using 2 g/L CMCD solution. Naphthalene and 2,4-DNT removal was enhanced to 83 and 89%, respectively, by using 2 g/L CMCD with 40 V electrical potential. Findings from this study also demonstrated that cyclodextrin assisted electrokinetics can enhance the removal rate of naphthalene and 2,4-DNT. Electric potential applied has more influence on the contaminant removal than the amount of CMCD used. Higher voltage application caused increase in the removal rate of naphthalene and 2,4-DNT, and appeared to be one of the critical factors in obtaining higher contaminant removal while increasing CMCD solution concentration above 2 g/L appeared to have little effect on the contaminant removal.
Asset Choice and Supplier Performance in Two Organizations-US and Japanese

The problem of vertical integration is a venerable but increasingly important focus of attention in profit-seeking organizations. Over the past ten years, many industries have seen increased cooperation between buyers and suppliers to achieve more difficult goals caused by rising product market competition. In many firms, this cooperation is balanced against the putative advantages of diminishing but still substantial in-house operations. One way to compare the performance of cooperative suppliers with in-house operations is to focus on the buyer's choice of assets used to produce the inputs needed for the final product. For strategic reasons, some of these assets will be highly specialized and others standardized. The question this paper asks is whether this choice of specialized or standard assets influences the performance of the supplier, controlling for whether it is in the market or in-house. The hypothesis is that the choice of specialized assets, for strategic reasons, is associated with lower supplier conformance with the buyer's target price for the input. In other words, for these assets the supplier's price, which is higher than the buyer would have liked to pay, reflects some of the strategic value of the input to the buyer. The supplier is simply appropriating some of this value, since it can raise its price with a low threat of termination by the buyer. For standard assets, in contrast the threat of termination is omnipresent, so that the choice of assets is irrelevant for supplier price performance. The test is performed using data on both in-house operations and market suppliers from a quite large US manufacturing firm and on market suppliers to a very successful Japanese manufacturing firm. Interestingly, there is no difference between these firms in the applicability of the hypothesis. Also, in-house and market suppliers differ in price performance only for standard assets, market suppliers performing better. Organizations can therefore gain quite a bit from outsourcing the production of less specialized inputs but achieve roughly the same performance from in-house and market suppliers for more specialized inputs. This last result is controversial and should bc tested repeatedly using other micro-level data. This study therefore addresses three sides of the current debate surrounding modern questions of vertical integration. First, does the strategic value of the input make a difference in supplier performance? The answer is yes, but only for specialized inputs. Second, do in-house and market suppliers differ in their performance? The answer is yes, but only for standardized inputs. Third, do US and Japanese firms differ in the performance of their suppliers, given variation in asset specialization and strategic importance? The answer is no, at least for the two firms studied here. All caveats regarding the generalizability of results from small sample studies apply.
What is Portfolio Diversification

There is considerable controversy concerning what exactly portfolio diversification is and under what circumstances is it beneficial to investors, particularly in the wake of the most recent financial crisis in 2008. This paper gathers the various approaches on portfolio diversification throughout history, placing a higher emphasis on recent developments. The goal of this paper is not to provide an exhaustive list of diversification strategies, but rather to highlight the most commonly used ones, provide the motivation behind each approach, and show how they compare with real data.
Computer science accessibility for students with visual disabilities

Students with visual disabilities face unique challenges in learning to be computer scientists. These challenges can be overcome, however, with the use of specialized software tools and hardware equipment, collectively called assistive technology. In this paper, we discuss the environment we are using for three students with visual disabilities who are starting in our programs this year. This environment includes a collection of commercial assistive technology and a programming tool that we have developed in-house.
Distinguished Scholar Invited Essay: Reflections on the Role of Character in Business Education and Student Leadership Development

The study of character is a legitimate and beneficial topic for organizational analysis. Through the lens of character and character-based leadership, and incorporating the 3-H (“head,” “heart,” an...
Asperger syndrome in children.

Purpose To review Asperger syndrome characteristics, assessment tools, interventions, outcomes, and the role of the nurse practitioner in diagnosing and caring for children with Asperger syndrome. Data sources Review of published literature on and diagnostic criteria of the condition. Conclusions Asperger syndrome is a pervasive developmental disorder or an autism spectrum disorder that is thought to have an incidence higher than that of autism. Asperger syndrome is different from autism, with a lack of delayed language as the most distinct difference between Asperger syndrome and autism. Implications for practice Because of the importance of early diagnosis of Asperger syndrome for outcome improvement, screening at all well-child visits from infancy on is of utmost importance to primary care pediatric nurse practitioners. With early diagnosis, timely intervention is possible, which is proven to show improvement in outcomes.