cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Discovery of Plant MicroRNAs and Short-Interfering RNAs by Deep Parallel Sequencing

Endogenous small RNAs, including microRNAs (miRNAs) and small interfering RNAs (siRNAs), play important regulatory roles in development, hormone signaling, stress responses, and genome stability. These small RNAs induce transcriptional or posttranscriptional gene silencing by guiding heterochromatin formation, mRNA degradation, or translational inhibition. In this chapter, we describe the methods for small RNA discovery in plants by small RNA cloning and deep parallel sequencing. We compare two methods of small RNA library construction: the 5' phosphate (P)-independent and 5' phosphate (P)-dependent methods. Deep parallel sequencing of small RNA libraries is discussed by comparing among 454, SBS, and SOLiD technologies.
David Shapiro’s Characterology and Complex Systems Theory

David Shapiro’s work, most notably Neurotic Styles (1965), has influenced ­generations of psychologists, psychiatrists, and other students of the mind from diverse theoretical orientations. His broad appeal is typically thought to rest in his rich phenomenological description of various character styles. While true, careful reading of Neurotic Styles and Shapiro’s (1981, 1989, 2000) subsequent body of work reveals a holistic, systemic theory of character that has theoretical and clinical importance. Shapiro describes neurotic character as a self-regulating dynamic system that diminishes the individual’s conscious experience of autonomy (sense of separateness from the external world) and self-direction (sense of acting in accord with conscious aims or intentions). From within this framework, Shapiro then sees symptoms as consequences, and defenses as conspicuous expressions, of these same restrictive, self-regulating dynamics.
Suppression of tumor promotion by inhibitors of poly(ADP)ribose formation.

Tumor promoters, such as phorbol esters or hormones, cause many biological effects which may contribute to the expression of cancer. The mechanism of cancer expression may have a common theme. One method of learning about this common mechanism is the identification of chemicals that interfere with tumor development. That there is actually a common theme between very different substances, such as inflammatory skin tumor promoters and estradiol causing breast cancer, was shown by the fact that both skin and breast cancers are suppressed by the same agents, e.g., protease inhibitors and retinoids. In addition to skin and breast, protease inhibitors suppress colon, bladder, and liver cancers. The substances that crossed over in suppressing many varieties of cancer were found to inhibit oxygen radical formation by tumor promoter-activated neutrophils and ras oncogene expression in NIH 3T3 cells. Poly(ADP)ri— bose polymerase (PADPR polymerase) may serve as the connecting link between oxygen radicals that cause its activation and oncogene expression. PADPR polymerase is inhibited by retinoids, antioxidants, and some protease inhibitors. Benzamide, an inhibitor of PADPR polymerase, is also a chymotrypsin inhibitor which suppresses oxygen radical formation by tumor promoter-activated neutrophils. The inhibition of PADPR polymerase causes the expulsion of some oncogenes from NIH 3T3 cells at definite times after oncogene transfection. Further work is required to find what are the contributions of PADPR polymerase to tumor promotion and of its inhibitors to suppression of oncogene expression.
Scarring and scarless wound healing

Abstract: In contrast to adult wound healing, the early-gestation fetus has the remarkable ability to heal skin wounds without scar formation. Over the past several decades, an intensive research effort has greatly increased our understanding of scarless fetal wound healing. This chapter discusses the differences that exist between the extracellular matrix (ECM), inflammatory response, cellular mediators, stem cell function, and gene expression profiles of fetal and postnatal wounds. This chapter then reviews the currently available treatment options for scars and concludes with a discussion of future trends in scar treatment.
A Self-Environmental Systems Model and Its Implications for Behavior Change

Psychologists who are interested in basic research and psychologists who are interested in applied research often do not communicate well; they often talk at one another rather than with one another. Such a tendency is particularly unfortunate in the field of psychology. For example, “rat runners” and “behavior therapists” have a great deal to offer one another, precisely because of their different perspectives on the same general subject matter. If the two branches of psychology were to get “divorced” on the grounds of irreconcilable differences, it would surely be the case that the applied branch would have to develop a basic science capability, for effective application is based on scientific discovery. In a similar vein, the basic science branch would have to develop an applied capability, because basic science without application is sterile and wasteful. It would be a shame to go through all that work and conflict just to end up in the same places.
Picosecond Polarization Studies of Protein Relaxation

Protein relaxation in myoglobin (Mb) following the photoelimination of CO from carbonmonoxymyoglobin (MbCO) is examined using picosecond time resolved circular dichroism (CD) and magnetic circular dichroism (MCD) spectroscopies. The transient CD signal reveals a relaxation process which requires several hundred picoseconds. Comparison with optical absorption studies on the Q-band and near infrared absorption of Mb and linear dichroism studies of the Soret optical absorptions suggest that the CD dynamics reflect a conformation relaxation of the surrounding protein structure.
Quantitation of activated factor VII levels in plasma using a tissue factor mutant selectively deficient in promoting factor VII activation

Although the majority of factor VII (FVII) circulates in the zymogen form, low levels of activated factor VII (FVIIa) have been postulated to exist in plasma and to serve a priming function for triggering of the clotting cascade. However, direct measurement of plasma FVIIa has not previously been possible. We have quantified plasma FVIIa levels using a novel, highly sensitive assay that is free from interference by FVII. Specificity of this clot-based assay results from the use of a mutant tissue factor that is selectively deficient in promoting FVII activation, but retains FVIIa cofactor function. In normal adults, FVIIa was found to be present in plasma (mean: 3.6 ng/mL) with considerable variation between individuals (range: 0.5 to 8.4 ng/mL). FVIIa levels were only loosely correlated with FVII coagulant activity, but were elevated in pregnancy and reduced with oral anticoagulant therapy. Incubation of plasma on ice in glass containers (cold activation) resulted in substantial FVIIa generation. Measurement of plasma forms of factor VII is of potential clinical importance because elevated FVII coagulant activity has been implicated as a significant risk predictor for ischemic heart disease. Clinically, this new assay will now permit direct assessment of the role of plasma FVIIa in thrombotic disorders.
Immune Control of HIV-1 Replication

Over 30 million persons are infected with HIV-1 worldwide, and over 8000 new infections occur every day1. Although there have been enormous advances in antiretroviral therapy against this retrovirus, economic constraints mean that over 90% of infected persons will never benefit from these therapies. The only solution for the global epidemic is the development of an effective vaccine. Such development is predicated on the assumption that this virus can be contained by immune responses. Recent evidence now supports the contention that effective immunity can be generated in natural infection, and this provides encouragement for accelerated vaccine efforts.
Pharmacoeconomic impact of an alternative workflow process for stroke

Abstract Objective The objective of this study was to evaluate a new multidisciplinary process in which intravenous alteplase (tPA) waste, used for acute ischemic stroke (AIS), was salvaged in an attempt to maximize cost effectiveness without impacting door-to-needle (DTN) administration times. Design This was a retrospective cohort between May 2017 and February 2018. The primary endpoint evaluated for this study was the total tPA salvaged and total cost savings in U.S. dollars. Secondary endpoints evaluated included overall DTN time in minutes. Setting Emergency department of a primary stroke center. Patients A convenience sample of sequential adult (>18 years) patients who received tPA in the ED for AIS were included for analysis. Interventions New stroke process which involved bedside mixing of tPA and salvaging of excess waste in the main central pharmacy. Measurements and main results A total of 50 patients were included in the final analysis. There were 25 patients included in the new process and old process groups respectively. A total of 605 mg of alteplase was salvaged from 25 patients in the new process group which was associated with an estimated cost savings of over $120,000 annually. Patients in the new process group had statistically faster average (52 min vs. 60 min; p = 0.01) and median (50 min vs. 58 min; p = 0.03) DTN administration times. Conclusion Preliminary data, in this pilot study, utilizing a multidisciplinary model for tPA administration led to significant cost savings of tPA and decreases in overall DTN administration times.
Considerations for revision cervical spine surgery

Abstract Elective spine surgery becomes more popular every year. Unfortunately, a significant number of these patients report persistent or recurrent symptoms, and/or develop late sequelae. Revision spinal surgery can be a complex and risky endeavor, and this patient population represents a challenge to spine care teams. Indications for cervical revision surgery can include pseudarthrosis, adjacent segment disease, incomplete decompression, failure of instrumentation, and progressive deformity. Determining whether or not a patient is a candidate for revision surgery is crucial. This chapter reviews the patient evaluation and treatment strategies for conditions that require cervical spine surgery.
STABILITY OF ALPHA -HELICES

Publisher Summary This chapter focuses on the mechanism of helix formation in an isolated peptide and the factors that determine the stability of a peptide helix. Helix propensities are considered together with N-cap and C-cap propensities, because measurement of helix propensities requires knowing values of the N-cap and C-cap propensities, and vice versa. The chapter considers side-chain interactions: these include both the interaction of a charged side chain with the helix macrodipole and specific interactions between a particular pair of side chains, such as ion pair and H-bond interactions. Measurement of these interactions is of interest for two reasons: their values are needed to relate the stability of a peptide helix to its amino acid composition and sequence; and peptide helices provide one of the best systems, and probably the most sensitive system, for quantifying the energetics of side-chain interactions. It also considers briefly the present status of the Chou-Fasman hypothesis and the relation between the mechanism of α-helix formation in peptides and proteins. It is necessary to use helix-coil transition theory to understand the populated intermediates and to analyze the energetics of helix formation. The two closely related theories of α-helix formation are the Zimm-Bragg theory and the Lifson-Roig theory.
Talking About the Rhetorical Situation of Classroom Problem Documentation

Engineering degree programs train students to become skilled in classroom-style problem solving. A correct answer is usually the goal—the result of a prescribed procedure with appropriate diagrams and a few correctly applied equations. This style of documentation brings students into a discourse community. Students are comfortable here, but don’t see how rhetorical ideas inform their documentation habits. This brief paper shows a way of talking to students about the often unstated rhetorical situation of classroom problems and the expected solution documentation. I present strategies for explicitly talking about the rhetorical situation of engineering work in the wording, structure, and assessment of classroom problem assignments.
Evidence of nighttime production of organic nitrates during SEAC4RS, FRAPPE, and KORUS-AQ

Organic nitrates (RONO) are an important NO sink. In rural environments dominated by biogenic emissions, nocturnal NO-initiated production of RONO is competitive with daytime OH-initiated RON...
Oaths of Office in American States: Problems and Prospects:

Upon assuming office, executive, legislative, and judicial officials swear an oath as evidence of dedication, commitment, and duty to the Constitution. As such, they play a quintessential role in u...
AFP's Approach to COVID-19

AFP is adapting to meet reader needs and has developed a new COVID-19 resource page. We are also continuing to cover a variety of topics to meet the needs of the specialty of family medicine.
Emerging roles of long non-coding RNAs in the p53 network.

Transcription factor p53 is activated in response to numerous stress stimuli in order to promote repair and survival or death of abnormal cells. For decades, regulatory mechanisms and downstream ta...
Thermal-emission engineering: active control and advanced temperature sensing

There is a growing interest in engineering of thermal emitters using metamaterials concepts for applications in energy harvesting, radiative cooling, and thermal camouflage. This talk will describe our efforts to achieve ultrafast control of thermal emission via engineered free-carrier dynamics in semiconductors, resulting in the generation of thermal pulses on nanosecond and picosecond scales. Then, this talk will introduce a metrology method that can remotely measure the three-dimensional temperature distributions of target objects, based on careful analysis of light thermally emitted from that object.
Emerging environmental contaminants (silver nanoparticles) altered the catabolic capability and metabolic fingerprinting of microbial communities

Microbial community functional diversity enhances the degradation of organic matter and pollutants in the environment, but there is a growing concern that these ecosystem services may be altered by the introduction of emerging environmental contaminants including silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) into aquatic systems. We added 0, 25, 50, 75, 100, and 125 mg L-1 (nominal concentrations) of citrate-AgNP and polyvinylpyrrolidone-AgNP (PVP-AgNP) each to freshwater sediment and examined their antimicrobial effects on microbial communities using community-level physiological profiling. The results showed that citrate-AgNP decreased the overall microbial catabolic activity by 80% from 1.16 ± 0.02 to 0.23 ± 08 while PVP-AgNP decreased the catabolic activity by 51% from 1.25 ± 0.07 to 0.61 ± 0.19 at 125 mg L-1. Citrate-AgNP and PVP-AgNP caused a statistically significant reduction in substrate richness and substrate diversity that decreased microbial functional diversity. AgNPs decreased microbial catabolic capability and functional diversity at concentrations ranging from 0.12 ± 0.04 to 0.43 ± 0.07 mg Ag kg-1 which are lower than the predicted concentrations in freshwater sediment. To our knowledge, this is the first study to demonstrate inhibition of microbial functional diversity by citrate-AgNP and PVP-AgNP in a pathogen impaired stream. Citrate-AgNP caused greater inhibition of carbon substrate utilization but amino acids, carbohydrates, and carboxylic acids were the most affected carbon groups which led to a shift in the metabolic fingerprint pattern of the microbial community. AgNPs decreased the catabolic capability and the ability of the microbial community to degrade organic matter and a variety of pollutants in the environment.
Value CMR: Towards a Comprehensive, Rapid, Cost-Effective Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Abstract CMR is considered the gold standard for measuring heart function, including cardiac volumes and mass. Further, in a single CMR exam, information about cardiac function, structure, tissue composition, and blood flow could be obtained. Nevertheless, CMR is underutilized due to long scanning times, the need for multiple breath-holds, use of a contrast agent, and relatively higher cost compared to echocardiography. In this study, we propose a rapid CMR exam based on recent developments in imaging sequences. The proposed exam is both rapid and provides comprehensive cardiovascular information without the need for a contrast agent or multiple breath-holds. The developed exam includes advanced sequences for evaluating global and regional cardiac functions, myocardial tissue characterization, and flow hemodynamics in the heart, valves, and large vessels. Time-consuming conventional sequences have been replaced by advanced sequences, which resulted in reducing scan time from > 1 hour with conventional CMR exam to In conclusion, we propose a rapid, contrast-free, and comprehensive cardiovascular exam that does not require repeated breath-holds or a cardiac experienced operator to run the exam, which would result in improving cost effectiveness of CMR and increasing its adoption in clinical practice.
Revealing Research Themes and Trends in 30 Top-ranking Accounting Journals: A Text-mining Approach

This study reveals themes and trends in accounting research over the past 20 years by utilizing natural language processing and text‐mining techniques. We generated a corpus consisting of over 40,000 articles through multiple searches in EBSCOhost Business Source Premier, Scopus, and ScienceDirect to gather data from 30 highly ranked (A* and A) journals that were listed and categorized by the Australian Business Deans Council (ABDC) as the top accounting journals. Based upon predetermined inclusion and exclusion criteria, we eliminated 24,474 non‐empirical articles and those with no abstracts, resulting in 16,449 abstracts. The text‐mining analyses reveal 15 distinct clusters, with five clusters showing downward trends, six trending upward, and four maintaining stability. The downward trending clusters are: (1) capital markets; (2) financial reporting; (3) accounting education, careers, and diversity; (4) earnings/markets; and (5) accounting history and capitalism. Trending upward are: (1) critical accounting; (2) auditing; (3) corporate governance; (4) corporate social responsibility; (5) debt financing; and (6) financial markets and forecasting. Stable clusters are: (1) managerial accounting; (2) international accounting standards; (3) taxation; and (4) governmental accounting. This study introduces an innovative method for discerning themes and trends in accounting research and offers a guide to neophyte accounting faculty for determining publishing outlets for research. In utilizing our findings to drill down and provide more detailed knowledge, it also serves as a reference point for future text‐mining studies.
The first genotypic fitness network in a vertebrate reveals that hybridization increases access to novel fitness peaks

Abstract Estimating the complex relationship between fitness and genotype or phenotype (i.e. the adaptive landscape) is one of the central goals of evolutionary biology. Empirical fitness landscapes have now been estimated for numerous systems, from phage to proteins to finches. However, adaptive walks connecting genotypes to organismal fitness, speciation, and novel ecological niches are still poorly understood and the process by which fitness valleys are crossed remains controversial. One outstanding system for addressing these connections is a recent adaptive radiation of ecologically and morphologically novel pupfishes (a generalist, molluscivore, and scale-eater) endemic to San Salvador Island, Bahamas. Here, we leveraged whole-genome sequencing of 139 hybrids from two independent field fitness experiments to identify the genomic basis of fitness, visualize the first genotypic fitness networks in a vertebrate system, and measure the accessibility of adaptive walks on the fitness landscape. We identified 132 SNPs that were significantly associated with fitness in field enclosures. Six fitness-associated regions contained differentially expressed genes and fixed SNPs between trophic specialists; one gene (mettle21e) was also misexpressed in hybrids, suggesting a potential intrinsic genetic incompatibility. We then constructed genotypic fitness networks from adaptive alleles and showed that scale-eating specialists are most isolated on these networks. Furthermore, only introgressed and de novo variants, not standing genetic variation, increased the accessibility of genotypic fitness paths from generalist to specialists. Our results suggest that adaptive introgression and de novo mutations provided key connections in adaptive walks necessary for crossing fitness valleys and triggering the evolution of novelty during adaptive radiation. Significance The fitness landscape describes the complex relationship between genotype or phenotype and fitness and is the conceptual bridge between micro- and macroevolution. There are many studies of phenotypic fitness landscapes across a range of animal and plant taxa, but studies of the genotypic fitness landscape remain limited to microbial systems and the function of individual proteins. Here, we conducted the first study investigating the genotypic fitness landscape for organismal fitness in an exceptionally young vertebrate adaptive radiation including a generalist algivore, molluscivore, and scale-eating pupfish. We show that hybridization and de novo mutations increase the availability of accessible pathways to new fitness peaks on the fitness landscape, enabling the evolution of novelty.
Drug-induced Changes in the Subcellular Distribution of Serotonin in Rat Brain with Special Reference to the Action of Reserpine

Publisher Summary The mode of action of reserpine (and tetrabenazine) on 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) in the brain is more complex than a simple shift of the amine from a bound to an unbound form. It is felt that other agents, which influence the metabolism of monoamines in the brain, may have multiple sites of action on the subcellular level, and studies of their influence on the subcellular distribution of the amines may reveal similar complexities in their action. It is well known, for example, that α-methyldihydroxyphenylalanine not only inhibits the decarboxylase, but also leads to a release of 5-HT. Certain inhibitors of monoamine not only inhibit that enzyme, but also exert an action on the storage granule, which is manifested in an antagonism to the 5-HT releasing action of reserpine.
Review of unintentional non-fire-related carbon monoxide poisoning morbidity and mortality in Florida, 1999-2007.

OBJECTIVE: Previous Florida evaluations of carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning have been disaster focused. The majority of prevention messages and risk-factor identification efforts have revolved around hurricane season (June-November). We evaluated the prevalence, risk factors, and causes of CO poisoning within Florida throughout the year to produce a more complete presentation of the burden of CO poisoning. METHODS: We obtained data from death certificates, hospital discharge records, and emergency department records. We limited our analysis to unintentional poisonings, calculating rates for age, gender, race, and ethnicity, and reviewing poisoning chronology, location, and exposure situation. RESULTS: From 1999 to 2007, 493 people were hospitalized, and 230 individuals died as a result of non-fire-related CO poisoning. From 2005 to 2007, 781 people visited emergency departments for non-fire-related CO poisoning. Rates of severe poisoning resulting in hospitalization or death were highest among the elderly (0.56 visits and 0.63 deaths per 100,000 Floridians). Acute poisoning rates were highest among people 25-34 years of age (2.48 visits per 100,000 Floridians). Poisonings were primarily due to motor vehicle exhaust (21%-69%) and generator exposure (12%-33%), and the majority (50%-70%) occurred within the home. A large number of poisonings (25%-29%) occurred during the winter months, outside of hurricane season. CONCLUSION: The findings of this study indicate a need for additional prevention strategies in conjunction with current activities to more effectively reduce the number of CO poisonings in Florida. Prevention activities should be conducted year-round, and additional strategies should include public awareness of the hazards of motor vehicle exhaust. Language: en
Tinkering with the Machinery of Life

Recent adjustments by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Transportation (DOT) to their cost–benefit analysis procedures could cause tremendous changes to federal regulation. For decades, federal agencies have calculated the value of a statistical life (VSL) and have used that number when evaluating the costs and benefits of proposed regulations. If a regulation was expected to save lives, the number of lives saved could be multiplied by the VSL to monetize the benefits. Because, however, lives saved in the future were given the same nominal value as lives saved in the present, the real value of future lives was substantially eroded by discounting to present value, generally at annual rates of 3 and 7 percent. In other words, if a life saved today is worth $8 million, a life saved in ten or twenty years would be worth far less. A discount rate of 7 percent erodes half the value of a life expected to be saved in 2022 and three-quarters of one expected to be saved in 2032. This process hinders the regulation of slow-acting perils, such as workplace carcinogens and global climate change.Now the EPA and the DOT have begun inflating VSLs when calculating the benefits of regulations. Before subjecting lifesaving benefits to the same discounting applied to other costs and benefits, the agencies adjust the values upward to reflect the expected higher income (and associated willingness to pay to avoid risks of harm) enjoyed by future persons. This seemingly minor procedural change can radically alter the expected benefits of major regulations, and the regulated community will likely oppose the agencies’ efforts to more accurately calculate future benefits. Observers of federal regulation should track this battle carefully and contact other federal agencies as they decide whether to adopt the “VSL inflation” procedure.
Learning-Oriented Assessment: The Affective Dimension

As elucidated by Purpura and Turner in their presentation at the Teachers College Columbia University Round Table in Second Language Studies (TCCRISLS) 2014 conference, languageoriented assessment (LOA) emphasizes the centrality of learning when the interrelatedness between instruction, assessment, and learning are examined. The LOA framework is composed of seven dimensions: the contextual dimension, the elicitation dimension, the proficiency dimension, the learning dimension, the instructional dimension, the interactional dimension, and the affective dimension. This article will explore the affective dimension as it surfaced in the papers presented at the TCCRISLS conference.
Evo-Devo and an Expanding Evolutionary Synthesis

Biologists have long sought to understand which genes and what kinds of changes in their sequences are responsible for the evolution of animal anatomy and morphological diversity. Advances in molec...
The School Voucher Debate After Zelman: Can States Be Compelled to Fund Sectarian Schools Under the Federal Constitution?

The U.S. Supreme Court in al man v. Simmous-Hanis held in June 2002 that a state does not violate the Establishment Clause by providing funding to a religiously affiliated school if the program meets certain criteria outlined in that opinion. One of the questions that remains after &Nan, however, is whether a state, once it has initiated some form of tuition voucher program that includes non-sectarian private schools, can be compelled under the federal Constitution to include sectarian schools in its program. This Note analyzes this question under two lines of U.S. Supreme Court precedent—the limited public forum cases and the government-as-speaker cases—and concludes that Zebnan does not require a state to include religiously affiliated schools in its school voucher program. This Note then applies this reasoning to the Maine school voucher program that is currently the focus of two lawsuits, and concludes that the Maine program, which excludes sectarian schools, does not violate the federal Constitution.
Responding to Terrorism? Human Rights Organization Shaming and Terrorist Attacks

ABSTRACTWhy do Human Rights Organizations (HROs) target or “shame” countries for human rights abuses? The literature using country-level factors to explain why one country is likely to be targeted over another is growing but many questions still remain. Terrorist activity in a country should have a positive effect on the amount of shaming directed at a country. HROs are in the publicity business and have organizational interests to shame states already receiving attention. Findings show that there is a connection between certain types of transnational terrorist incidents occur in a country and the amount of HRO shaming of governments, even after accounting for the human rights practices within the state.
A necessary and sufficient condition for a Baire α function to be a product of two Darboux Baire α functions

It is proved that a real-valued Baire α function on a real interval is a product of two Darboux Baire α functions if and only if the function has a zero in each subinterval in which it changes sign.
Relations Among Chronic Peer Group Rejection, Maladaptive Behavioral Dispositions, and Early Adolescents' Peer Perceptions

Adolescents' perceptions of peers' relational characteristics (e.g., support, trustworthiness) were examined for subtypes of youth who evidenced chronic maladaptive behavior, chronic peer group rejection, or combinations of these risk factors. Growth mixture modeling was used to identify subgroups of participants within a normative sample of youth (N = 477; 50% female) for whom data had been gathered from fifth grade (Mage = 10.61) through eighth grade (Mage = 13.93). Results revealed that both enduring individual vulnerability (i.e., chronic withdrawn or chronic aggressive behavioral dispositions) and interpersonal adversity (i.e., chronic peer group rejection) were linked with either differences or changes in adolescents' perceptions of their peers' supportiveness and trustworthiness across the early adolescent age period.
Digital drumming: a study of co-located, highly coordinated, dyadic collaboration

Collaborative drumming is a creative human activity that requires a high degree of coordination among the participants. In this study, inexperienced drummer and experienced drummer participants were paired with a computer or experienced human drummer counterpart and given the task of producing musical rhythms on the fly. We found differing patterns of music production across the computer and human conditions. Participants intentionally and unintentionally assumed leadership roles depending on the dyad dynamic. Also noted were differences in the needs of inexperienced and experienced participants for visual and verbal cues for coordination. In our study, participants did not treat computers as other humans, but seemed to engage a more complex evaluation of the situation. This study contributes to the growing body of knowledge on how people respond to and interact with technology to accomplish complex, collaborative tasks.
Role of Galvanic Interactions in the Bioleaching of Duluth Gabbro Copper-Nickel Sulfides

Abstract The role of galvanic interactions in the bioleaching of Duluth gabbro copper-nickel sulfides is discussed with reference to (a) selective leaching of bulk flotation copper-nickel concentrates (b) environmental leaching of Duluth gabbro and flotation tailings. There appears to be a significant, combined galvanic-bacterial oxidation effect on the rate of iron and nickel dissolution from the copper-nickel sulfide ores, bulk flotation concentrates and flotation tailings in the presence of Thiobacillus ferrooxidans. Specially adapted nickel and copper tolerant strains of Thiobacillus ferrooxidans were found to enhance the nickel and copper dissolutions from bulk flotation concentrates and the nickel-tolerant strains could be used advantageously in selective leaching.
Isolation and culture of sheep bronchial artery endothelial cells

Methods are described for the isolation of endothelial cells from sheep bronchial artery by treatment with collagenase. Cells obtained from the perfusate of the collagenase-treated vessel are cultured. Identified by their cobblestone morphology, endothelial cell colonies of approximately 50 cells are selected by a cloning cylinder and subcultured using trypsin. Endothelial cells are characterized by the formation of vessel-like tubes on basement membrane and by incorporation of DiI-acetylated-low density lipoprotein.
Simulation of Optical Negative-Index Materials

We present simulation results for 3D array of paired gold-nanorods. The results are in good agreement with experiments and demonstrate negative-index. We also propose a 2D nanostrip structure as an efficient design for negative-index materials.
Emerging opportunities for binary tools

In recent years, binary instrumentation and optimization tools have been used effectively to understand and improve performance of significant programs. However, new opportunities are emerging in the distributed computing model of the Internet that has strong requirements for reliability and performance. These systems demand continuous operations in presence of open-ended design where some parts may be operated by third party services. Because we cannot reproduce the scale and complexity of this environment on our desktops or in our labs, our traditional testing-based approaches to correctness and performance optimization will prove insufficient; these tasks must extend beyond the traditional idea of product development.In the past, compilation has been about turning source code into executables, balancing compilation speed against code optimization. Binary tools "hacked" their way into the compilation process by intercepting and transforming executables; binary modification stage was not designed to be part of the compilation process. In the new environment, the definition of compilation must broaden: compilation will start very early---perhaps when we write the specification of a program---and continues very late---perhaps through all the program's various executions on the client machines.This dynamic and heterogeneous environment provides great challenges and opportunities to expand the role of binary tools. This talk discusses the new opportunities and requirements for binary tools. It also describes Vulcan, a second generation technology that is designed to address some of these challenges. Vulcan has both static and dynamic code modification capabilities. It can provide system level analysis with heterogenoeus programs. Vulcan works in the Win32 environment and can process x86, IA64, and MSII binaries. Vulcan can process large commercial applications and has been used to improve performance and reliability of Microsoft products in a production environment.
“I walk weeping in pangs of a mothers torment for her children”: Women's laments in the poetry and prophecies of William Blake

Cross-cultural scholarship in ritual studies on women’s laments provides us with a fresh vantage point from which to consider the function of women and women’s complaining voices in the epic poems of William Blake. In this essay, I interpret Thel, Oothoon, and Enitharmon as strong voices of experience that unleash some of Blake’s most profound meditations on social, sexual, individual, and institutional forms of violence and injustice, offering what might aptly be called an ethics of witness. Tracing the performative function of Enion, Jerusalem, Vala, and Erin in Blake’s later epics, The Four Zoas and Jerusalem, I argue for the close connection between the female laments and the possibility of redemption, though in Blake such “redemption” comes at the cost of the very voices of witness themselves.
Some Correlates of Net Gain Resultant from Answer Changing on Objective Achievement Test Items.

Few teachers include test-taking strategies as part of their curricula. Nevertheless, students do acquire strategies to use against their recurring enemy-the objective achievement test. One tactic of test-taking strategy deals with answer changing behavior; whether to change a response after deliberation, or not to change it, is the student's dilemma. Many students do change answers, but research indicates that students generally believe that changing answers is an unwise tactic (Foote & Belinky, 1972; Mathews, 1929). In a graduate level educational measurement course, the authors found that 64 percent of the students believed that changing answers would tend to lower a student's total score; 36 percent believed that changing answers would neither raise nor lower total score. None believed that changing answers would increase scores. Contrary to students' expectations, research studies report that most students gain in total score by changing answers (Bath, 1967; Jacobs, 1972; Reiling & Taylor, 1972). A small percentage of the students in the above mentioned studies did, however, decrease their total scores as a consequence of changing answers. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship of sex, answer-changing incidence, and total score to net changes in total score resulting from changing answers, by examining the answer-changing behavior of a large number of graduate students responding to achievement test items.
Opposing early inhibitory and late stimulatory effects of insulin-like growth factor-I on myogenin gene transcription.

Insulinlike growth factors (IGFs) stimulate skeletal muscle cell differentiation in association with an increase in the mRNA of myogenin, a member of the MyoD family of skeletal muscle-specific transcription factors that plays an essential role in the differentiation process. However, this is a relatively late effect, requiring treatment periods of >24 h. In contrast, IGFs initially inhibit skeletal muscle cell differentiation, associated with a marked reduction in myogenin mRNA. The mechanisms by which IGF-I initially inhibits and subsequently stimulates myogenin expression are unknown. In the first 24 h, we find that IGF-I inhibits myogenin gene transcription by >80% but has no effect on myogenin mRNA stability. Similarly, in the first 24 h, IGF-I markedly inhibits myogenin promoter activity; the sequence -145 to -9 of the myogenin gene is sufficient to confer this inhibitory effect of IGF-I. In contrast, 48 h of treatment with IGF-I results in an increase in myogenin promoter activity that parallels the increase in myogenin steady-state mRNA. This increase in promoter activity is completely prevented in constructs lacking the sequence -1,565 to -375 of the myogenin gene. These data indicate that the early inhibitory and late stimulatory effects of IGF-I on myogenin expression are mediated at the level of transcription, and that these time-dependent, opposing effects of IGF-I on myogenin transcription are mediated by distinct regions of the myogenin gene. To our knowledge, this is the first demonstration of a gene whose promoter activity is initially inhibited and subsequently stimulated by IGF-I.
Towards Building Scalable Grid Computing Environments for Reservoir Simulation

Standard high performance clusters (HPC) are being extensively used for solving computationally intensive problems in various scientific fields, one of which is the field of reservoir simulation. In our work, we expand the conventional HPC systems to run larger reservoir simulations on a heterogeneous grid of HPCs. This expansion is accomplished by developing a unique domain decomposition technique to achieve higher load balancing and computational efficiency on the grid. The decomposer works as an adaptive detector of the available hardware resources on the grid, learns about the different processor speeds and adjusts its load distribution among the CPUs. As a result, our grid implementation for reservoir simulation outperforms the conventional methods of domain decomposition, which are designed to run on homogenous set of processors in a cluster.
Queue decomposition & finite closed queueing network models

Closed, finite queueing networks are applicable to many different manufacturing and service system settings. The incorporation of material handling and transportation networks in finite buffer closed queueing networks is studied. A novel queue decomposition approach using state dependent queues to capture the buffer of finite M/M/1/K queues is shown to be a viable approach for modelling these systems. Each M / M / 1 / K queue is replaced with a coupled state dependent queue plus an M/M/1 queue. An extended mean value analysis (MVA) algorithm is employed to demonstrate the integration of the state dependent queues for the buffers in the approach. Under certain restrictions concerning the network population, finite queueing networks with the state dependent queues acting as buffers should have a product form distribution. This paper focuses on M/M/1/K queues and their transformation while future papers will treat the multi-server case. Several different closed series (i.e. cyclic), merge, and split topological systems of finite queues are analyzed and presented.
Geometrical exponents of contour loops on random Gaussian surfaces.

We derive the universal geometrical exponents of contour loops on equilibrium rough surfaces, using analytical scaling arguments (confirmed numerically): the fractal dimension ${D}_{f}$, the distribution of contour lengths, and the probability that two points are connected by a contour. This is sufficient to calculate exact critical exponents in certain nontrivial two-dimensional spin models that can be mapped to interface models. The novel scaling relation between ${D}_{f}$ and the roughness exponent that we find can be used to analyze scanning tunneling microscopy images of rough metal surfaces.
Failure of Braided Composite Cylinders under Biaxal Tension

Braided preforms of advanced fiber composites are being considered for structural applications with potential cost and through-the-thickness strength advantages relative to conventional laminates. However, the in-plane strength properties of braided preforms are relatively unknown. The present study reports on biaxial tension tests on AS4 braided preformsthat were resin transfer molded with 1895 resin, in four different sets of braiding parameters. The fiber direction failure strain was observed to be independent of the baxial stress state in the failure tests. Accordingly a maximum fiber direction strain failure criterion was used to correlate the results of this study. Failure properties of these materials appear to be sensitive to the material processes from which they are produced, and scatter of the current results was observed to be relatively large. Examination of the specimen surfaces as well as the braiding parameters has provided clues regarding the inconsistent material performance. The specimens were observed to be sensitive to parameters which influence yarn straightness. Braider coverage and preform bulk are believed to be primary among these parameters. Scatter of the experimental data make comparison difficult, but in general the data are in good agreement with the failure envelopes
On the profile design of transmission splines and keys

Splines and keys are machinery components placed at the interface between shafts and hubs of power-transmitting elements. A spline (or key) is usually machined (or attached) onto the shaft of a power-transmitting pair, and the corresponding groove is cut into the hub. The influence of spline profiles on the performance of power transmission is investigated in this paper. The optimal design of spline profiles for three different design criteria is presented. The method of calculus of variation is used to determine profile functions for maximum value. Analytical results are successfully obtained. They show that the splines with involute profiles lead to uniform deformation on the hub, in addition they can carry the maximum transmission load capacity. On the other hand, radial straight profiles result in optimum transmission efficiency. We think that these findings are worthy reporting and also believe that this approach could be used for the spline design with other performance criteria imposed.
Changes Accompanying Practice upon Successive Samples of Verbal Material

Resume Quatre groupes, chacun de 80 sujets, ont appris selon la methode d'anticipation 7 listes de 10 adjectifs jusqu'a un criterium de 3 epreuves parfaites de suite. On a appris cinq autres listes jusqu'a 10 repetitions chacune, mais on ne considere que les resultats des 7 listes principales. Le nombre d'epreuves necessaires pour l'apprentissage est beaucoup plus petit pour la deuxieme liste que pour la premiere, mais diminue plus lentement apres. La diminution totale est les deux tiers du nombre necessaire pour l'apprentissage de la premiere liste. Les anticipations moyennes pour chaque epreuve s'accroissent, mais de plus petites quantites. La variabilite relative des epreuves ne montre aucune alteration reguliere avec l'exercice continu. Il y a une relation assez constante entre le nombre d'epreuves necessaires pour atteindre les criteriums d'une epreuve parfaite et de trois epreuves parfaites. Il faut un peu plus que les deux tiers du nombre d'epreuves pour apprendre jusqu'au criterium inferieur qu'il...
Automotive Headlighting: Effect of Foreground Illumination

Described are studies of the relationship between the level of foreground illumination provided by automotive headlamps and the driver's eye-fixation pattern and ability to identify objects ahead of the car. Analysis indicates that the driver's eye fixations tended to move further from the car at high levels of foreground illumination. There were no differences in distance of target identification as a function of level of foreground illumination.
Characterization of chicken liver dihydrofolate reductase after purification by affinity chromatography and isoelectric focusing.

Abstract Chicken liver dihydrofolate reductase purified to apparent homogeneity by affinity chromatography contains tightly bound dihydrofolate. The most effective method for removal of the bound substrate is by electrofocusing. This procedure also removes previously unsuspected contaminants. In addition, the isoelectric profile revealed as many as four distinct peaks of enzyme activity. The major peak (pI = 8.4) represents 60–75% of the total activity, is devoid of bound substrate, and exhibits an A 280 A 260 ratio approaching 1.9 and a specific activity of 14 units/mg. The peak of activity at the isoelectric point of 7.4 contains bound dihydrofolate. The major isoelectric band is shown to be homogeneous by the usual criteria. Notable features of the amino acid composition include a single cysteine, three tryptophans, and an excess of acidic residues. The N-terminal residue is valine. The molecular weight as determined by sedimentation equilibrium is 22,474. The s20,w0 is 2.07. A frictional coefficient of 1.2 indicates that the enzyme approximates a sphere. Circular dichroism measurements suggest a low α-helical content and a high degree of β-structure. The molar extinction coefficient was determined to be 28,970.