cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Notch: The Past, the Present, and the Future

Proliferating investigations of the Notch pathway have given rise to the Notch "field," which has grown exponentially over the past 30 years. This field, founded by investigations of embryology and genetics in Drosophila, now encompasses many metazoa, including humans. The increasingly diverse scope of the field has engendered an expanding understanding that normal Notch pathway function is central to most developmental decision-making in animals, and that pathway dysfunction is implicated in many diseases, including cancer. We provide a personal view of the foundations and rapid evolution of the Notch field; and we discuss a variety of outstanding conundrums and questions regarding Notch biology, for which answers will be found and refined during the next 30 years.
Measurement Error in the Reported Reasons for Entry into the Foster Care System

To date, much of the research on foster dependence hinges on the validity of the reasons for entry into the foster care system. Yet, no one has tested these data. Since these reasons for entry help to assess individual differences in foster care children, the purpose of this study is to more closely examine these reasons. Using data from the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis Reporting System, we begin with exploratory factor analysis on the reported reasons for entry. Next, we specify and test a structural measurement error model of reasons for entry. The reported reasons for entry are not mutually exclusive. Rather, there are five significant commonalities across these various indicators. The commonalities are combined across the reported reasons for entry into the foster care system to create a set of mutually exclusive factors that represent reasons. We apply these factors to a model of dependence on the foster care system. Compared to a model that includes all of the individual indicators, we are able to get a better idea of the kinds of children that are at risk for delayed exits from foster care.
Isolation of the global MLT thermal response to recurrent geomagnetic activity

Received 25 May 2009; revised 7 July 2009; accepted 13 July 2009; published 7 August 2009. [1] Recurrent geomagnetic activity at multi-day periodicities (near 5.5, 7 and 9 day subharmonics of solar rotation) have been associated with high speed solar wind stream variations and have recently been shown to induce congruent multi-day periodic responses in the global upper atmosphere. The ability to relate these periodicities in geomagnetic activity to global temperature observations from the TIMED/SABER instrument enables isolation of the global thermal response in the lower thermosphere and mesosphere due to geomagnetic activity. Observations from the TIMED/SABER instrument at altitudes below 120 km clearly show a zonally symmetric (s = 0) modulation in the global temperature field at a 9-day period known to result from recurrent geomagnetic activity forced by corotating interaction regions (CIRs). The temporal variation of this zonally symmetric 9-day perturbation in temperature is strongly correlated to the 9-day variations in the Kp geomagnetic activity index in 2005, with the most significant correlation occurring above 110 km and polewards of 40 latitude in both hemispheres. The temperature amplitude at the 9 day period is in excess of 10 K above 110 km and increasing in amplitude poleward of 40. The phase of the temperature maximum associated with such disturbances is coherent with altitude and hemisphere, with the disturbance occurring first near 110 km and then peaking at altitudes above and below this region hours later. Citation: Chang, L. C., J. P. Thayer, J. Lei, and S. E. Palo (2009), Isolation of the global MLT thermal response to recurrent geomagnetic activity, Geophys. Res. Lett., 36, L15813, doi:10.1029/2009GL039305.
General Temporal-Sequential Processing Capability Required for Reading.

Aux difficultes de la lecture chez les adultes contribue fortement un deficit de traitement non specifique de la vision ou du langage seul. Au moins certains adultes avec des difficultes specifiques de la lecture pourraient presenter une difficulte generale de traitement des structures qui comporte l'immersion d'une structure dans une autre
Socio-Adaptive Systems Challenge Problem Workshop Report

Abstract : Socio-adaptive systems are systems in which human and computational elements interact as peers. The behavior of the system arises from the properties of both types of elements and the nature of their collective reaction to changes in their environment, the mission they support, and the availability of resources they use. The Software Engineering Institute (SEI) held the Socio-Adaptive Systems Challenge Problem Workshop in Pittsburgh, PA, on April 12-13, 2012. The workshop's goal was to identify the challenges associated with resource allocation for warfighters operating at the tactical edge, where networks are often unreliable and bandwidth limited and inconsistent. This report presents a summary of the workshop findings.
From Positivism to Interpretivism and Beyond: Tales of Transformation in Educational and Social Research

From Positivism to Interpretivism and Beyond: Tales of Transformation in Educational and Social Research. Louis Heshusius and Keith Ballard, eds. New York: Teachers College Press, 1996. 197 pp.
In vitro evaluation of the new paulomycin antibiotic paldimycin.

The comparative in vitro activity of paldimycin, a new antibiotic, was evaluated against 215 gram-positive bacteria. Activity of the compound was greater in nutrient agar of pH 6.8 than in Mueller-Hinton agar. All strains of staphylococci, streptococci, enterococci andListeria monocytogeneswere inhibited at concentrations ⩽ 2 μg/ml. Activity of the new drug was generally comparable to that of vancomycin.
Declines in Major League Batting Performance as a Function of Game Pressure: A Drive Theory Analysis1

Zajonc's (1965) drive theory explanation argues that greater arousal tends to impair performance on difficult tasks. The hypothesis that arousal generated by “pressure situations” during major league baseball games would hinder batting performance—a difficult task—was tested by examining such performance during the 1989 season. Six “pressure situations” were identified, some occurring during the late innings of close games and others occurring throughout the game when there were two outs. Two measures of batting performance (batting average and slugging average) were employed. Results indicated broad support for the hypothesis. Reasons for this pattern are discussed, as are possible alternative explanations for these findings.
Cranial Sonography in Very-Low-Birth-Weight Infants: Do All Infants Need to Be Screened?

The objective of the study was to develop clinical screening criteria to diagnose infants with intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) and cystic periventricular leukomalacia (PVL). We performed a case-control investigation of two cohorts of very-low-birth-weight infants (n=505, combined cohorts). Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed from data obtained in cohort 1 to develop screening criteria for IVH and cystic PVL. The screening criteria were then applied to cohort 2. The screening criteria for IVH had a sensitivity of only 51 %, a specificity of 62%, a positive predictive value of 31 %, and a negative predictive value of 79%. Screening criteria for cystic PVL had a sensitivity of only 22%, a specificity of 58% a positive predictive value of 2%, and a negative predictive value of 95%. These data suggest that using clinical criteria to determine which infants should receive screening cranial sonography for IVH and cystic PVL would miss a substantial number of infants with these conditions. Clin ...
Fractionation of human erythrocytes on the basis of their age.

HUMAN erythrocytes have a life-span in the circulation of approximately 120 days1. They are incapable of cell division and consequently leave no progeny. These characteristics make them attractive subjects for the study of biochemical changes incident to normal maturation and senescence, assuming it were possible to separate them into groups of old, middle-aged, and young cells without the use of artificial haematopoietic stimuli2. This communication presents a method of red cell fractionation which complies with these criteria.
Prevention of cold inactivation of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme a reductase by NADPH

Solubilized 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase (EC 1.1.1.34) from rat liver microsomes has been reported to be reversibly inactivated by temperatures below 19 degrees C. Cold inactivation has now been found to be completely prevented by NADPH and by NADP+ at a concentration of 3 mM. NADPH, however, was more active than NADP+ at lower concentrations and prevented 50% of the cold inactivation at 0.2 mM, whereas a 1.1 mM NADPH+ without effect and the substrate 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A prevented only 30% of the cold inactivation at a concentration 50 times greater than the Km value.
Environmental correlates of species and genetic richness in lungless salamanders (family plethodontidae)

Abstract Biological diversity is distributed across the planet in non-random, organised ways. At the species level, numerous environmental variables have been proposed to explain this non-random distribution with available energy and habitat heterogeneity receiving the most empirical support. With regard to genetic organisation, environmental stress and habitat heterogeneity have been widely supported. However, few studies have addressed if these two scales of biological organisation are structured via similar processes. Here, we tested whether or not the distributional organisation of genetic and species richness were driven by similar environmental variables for salamanders of the family Plethodontidae across North America. In general, we found that those environmental variables related to energy, particularly energy made accessible to salamanders via the actions of available moisture, were the primary determinants of both genetic and species richness. This finding is consistent with both the “more individuals hypothesis” of species richness and neutral-theory expectations for genetic richness. Additionally, greater habitat heterogeneity, as measured by increased topographic variance, was of secondary importance in positively influencing species richness, although its effects on genetic richness were far more variable. In total, our results suggest that both of these scales of biological organisation are influenced by similar environmental variables, even though increased genetic richness at the population-level does not always translate into greater species richness.
The Impact of Public Housing on Social Networks: A Natural Experiment

Objectives. We assessed whether 2 types of public housing—scattered among market-rate housing developments or clustered in small public housing projects—were associated with the perceived health and health behaviors of residents’ social networks.Methods. Leveraging a natural experiment in Montgomery County, Maryland, in which residents were randomly assigned to different types of public housing, we surveyed 453 heads of household in 2011. We asked residents about their own health as well as the perceived health of their network members, including their neighbors.Results. Residents in scattered-site public housing perceived that their neighbors were more likely to exercise than residents of clustered public housing (24.7% of network members vs 14.0%; P < .001). There were no significant differences in the proportion of network members who were perceived to have major health problems, depressed mood, poor diet, or obesity. Having more network members who smoked was associated with a significantly higher lik...
Computer literacy in automated assessment: challenges and future directions

Summary The following paper addresses significant questions and challenges to defining and pursuing computer literacy in the realm of assessment. This includes attention to practitioner concerns as well as validity and ethical issues. The paper concludes with discussion of promising future directions, including capitalizing on the unique characteristics of the computer and qualitatively different assessment paradigms. A balanced recognition of both the promise and the potential pitfalls of computer-assisted assessment is advocated here, as well as initiative by practitioners to assume leadership roles in shaping the synthesis of computers and clinical practice.
A likelihood based estimator for vector autoregressive processes

Abstract A onestep estimator, which is an approximation to the unconditional maximum likelihood estimator (MLE) of the coefficient matrices of a Gaussian vector autoregressive process is presented. The onestep estimator is easy to compute and can be computed using standard software. Unlike the computation of the unconditional MLE, the computation of the onestep estimator does not require any iterative optimization and the computation is numerically stable. In finite samples the onestep estimator generally has smaller mean square error than the ordinary least squares estimator. In a simple model, where the unconditional MLE can be computed, numerical investigation shows that the onestep estimator is slightly worse than the unconditional MLE in terms of mean square error but superior to the ordinary least squares estimator. The limiting distribution of the onestep estimator for processes with some unit roots is derived.
Extending Bilingualism in U.S. Secondary Education: New Variations

This article challenges 20th century ways of conceptualizing bilingualism, arguing that they are no longer applicable to the linguistic heterogeneity of the 21st century. Using case studies of two small high schools in New York City, this article re-imagines the possibilities of bilingual education to more accurately reflect the realities of bilingual students. Rather than imposing a top-down process, these two schools, although very different demographically and pedagogically, attempt in different ways to create language education policy through a collaborative process that incorporates bilingual students' hybrid practices and gives students agency in negotiating their linguistic repertoires. These two schools provide a window into new and innovative ways of approaching bilingual education for the 21st century.
Biliary stents in malignant obstructive jaundice due to pancreatic carcinoma: a cost-effectiveness analysis.

Biliary stents in malignant obstructive jaundice due to pancreatic carcinoma: a cost-effectiveness analysis
Sex, MHC and complement C4 in autoimmune diseases

Autoimmune diseases are estimated to affect 10–50 million people in the United States, and untold millions worldwide. Nearly 80% of all people with autoimmune diseases are women, and a strong association of these diseases with MHC genes has been known for some time. However, very little is known about what causes autoimmune diseases or the factors that lead to disease recurrence. The sex-associated differences in multiple sclerosis (MS) and the mouse model of MS, experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), are associated with MHC genetic background, sex hormone levels and cytokine production. The implication of these factors has aided the identification of new autosomal genetic susceptibility loci. Complete deficiencies of early complement components are strongly associated with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) but the role of complement proteins in SLE is not yet clear. Recent data suggest that quantitative and qualitative diversities of the MHC-linked complement C4 among different ethnic groups can be important in the susceptibility and disease severity of SLE.
Homotopic, but Not Heterotopic, Fetal Cortical Transplants Can Result in Functional Sparing following Neonatal Damage to the Frontal Cortex in Rats

Experiments involving the heterotopic transplantation of neocortex during development have indicated that the efferent connections maintained by the transplant as well as other organizational features are appropriate to the transplant's regional locale within the host cortex, rather than to its site of origin within the donor cortex. These findings would seem to be consistent with the idea that developing cortical neurons lack any rigid regional specification. To examine this further, we made lesions in the rostral cortex of newborn rats and placed pieces of either rostral or occipital fetal cortex into the lesion site. Additional cases with similar lesions, but with no transplants, were also prepared. When the animals matured, behavioral testing was done to identify any residual deficits. Compared with lesioned animals that had received no transplants, animals with homotopic transplants show a substantial sparing in certain forelimb placing and somatosensory tasks. In marked contrast, animals with heterotopic transplants did not show any sparing. Indeed, when placing reactions were elicited by vibrissal stimulation (vibrissae-->forelimb placing; extinction-placing) the animals with heterotopic transplants showed a greater impairment than the lesioned animals that received no transplants. These results indicate that while homotopic fetal cortical transplants may help ameliorate behavioral deficits that normally follow neonatal lesions of the rostral cortex, heterotopic transplants do not, and may in fact exacerbate the deficits, despite the fact that such heterotopic transplants have been shown to maintain projections that seemingly are appropriate to their locale.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
“Interdural” oculomotor neurinoma: report of two surgically treated cases

Dural relationships and their possible implications on surgical treatment of oculomotor nerve neurinomas are discussed on the basis of surgical experience with two cases. We describe two cases with large oculomotor neurinomas that probably arose from the precavernous sinus segment of the nerve. Both tumors were located entirely within the confines of dura or were “interdural.” Operating within the limits set and protection afforded by the dura, the tumors could be excised relatively easily and safely. While the third nerve function recovered completely in one patient, the other continued to have complete third nerve palsy. The duration of follow-up in two cases was 52 and 24 months. Even the intracranial component of large oculomotor neurinoma can be covered entirely by dura. Understanding of the dural relationship can assist in planning and conduct of surgery.
Infrared conductivity in superconductors with a finite mean free path.

We discuss the form of the infrared conductivity and reflectivity in strong-coupling superconductors with a finite mean free path. We restrict attention to the local limit, in which the London penetration depth is much larger than the coherence length. We further assume that the fluctuations responsible for electronic pairing may be treated within a conventional Eliashberg approximation. The conductivity typically exhibits two onsets: one at 2${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}}_{0}$ and another at 2${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}}_{0}$+${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\omega}}}_{0}$, with ${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\omega}}}_{0}$ a typical fluctuation energy. The strength of the latter onset relative to the one at 2${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}}_{0}$ increases as the ratio of the mean free path to the coherence length increases, and in an extremely clean system (2${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}}_{0}$\ensuremath{\gg}${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\tau}}}^{\mathrm{\ensuremath{-}}1}$) becomes the dominant feature in both the conductivity and reflectivity.
Receipt-mode trust negotiation: efficient authorization through outsourced interactions

In trust negotiation approaches to authorization, previously unacquainted entities establish trust in one another gradually via the bilateral and iterative exchange of policies and digital credentials. Although this affords resource providers with an expressive means of access control for open systems, the trust negotiation process incurs non-trivial computational and communications costs. In this paper, we propose Receipt-Mode Trust Negotiation (RMTN) as a means of mitigating the performance penalties on servers that use trust negotiation. RMTN provides a means of off-loading the majority of the trust negotiation process to delegated receipt-generating helper servers. RMTN ensures that helpers produce correct trust negotiation protocol receipts, and that the helpers are incapable of impersonating the resource server outside of the RMTN protocol. We describe an initial implementation of our RMTN protocol on a Linux testbed, discuss the security of this protocol, and present experimental results indicating that the receipt-mode protocol does indeed enhance the performance of resource servers that rely on trust negotiation approaches to authorization.
Malate decarboxylation in isolated mitochondria from the crassulacean acid metabolism plant Sedum praealtum

Abstract Mitochondria isolated from the Crassulacean acid metabolism plant Sedum praealtum were demonstrated to decarboxylate added malate at basal rates of 30–50 μmol mg−1 original chlorophyll h−1. The basal rate could be stimulated markedly by the addition of ADP, oxaloacetic acid, an uncoupler of oxidative phosphorylation, or NAD, with maximum rates of 70–100 μmol mg−1 original chlorophyll h−1 observed. These observed rates were high enough to account for a large proportion of the estimated rate of malate decarboxylation in vivo. The major products of malate oxidation by the mitochondria in most cases were found to be pyruvate and CO2, indicating that malate oxidation in these mitochondria proceeds mainly through NAD malic enzyme rather than NAD malate dehydrogenase. Under conditions employed little of the pyruvate formed was further oxidized, suggesting a fate other than oxidation (conversion to starch) for this pyruvate. Malate decarboxylation by mitochondria and by partially purified NAD malic enzyme was markedly inhibited by NaHCO3. A possible physiological role is suggested for this inhibition as a feedback control on the enzyme.
A Direct Electrical Measure of Adsorption on Electrodes

ELECTRICAL measurement of the impedance of electrode–solution interfaces involves experimental determination of the impedance of the whole electrochemical cell and correction for the ohmic drop across the internal cell-resistance that is in series with the interface under study. This ohmic drop is not negligible in investigations of redox processes (alternating current polarography1) or of adsorption–desorption reactions (tensammetry1).
Kinetic studies of the in vivo exchange of ribosome subunits in Bacillus megaterium

Abstract We have studied the kinetics of [ 3 H]uridine labeling of native 30 and 50 s ribosomal subunits and of 70 s ribosomes in growing Bacillus megaterium . The labeling patterns were used to calculate the time required for an average ribosome to complete the functional cycle of protein synthesis. We calculate the over-all time for a pair of ribosomal subunits to join, traverse the polysome, and dissociate, to be seven to ten minutes at 37 °C. This time is considerably longer than present estimates for the time of synthesis of individual protein molecules, suggesting that the average messenger RNA molecule is polycistronic. B. megaterium accumulates significant quantities of ribonuclease-resistant labeled particles which sediment more slowly in sucrose gradients than 30 and 50 s ribosomal subunits. Our kinetic observations indicate that these particles are intermediates in the assembly of mature 30 and 50 s subunits. Such particles seem to be unique to our bacterial system and have not been reported in studies of other bacteria.
Assessing invasive plant infestation and disturbance gradients in a freshwater wetland using a GIScience approach

The assessment of aquatic ecosystems requires information on biological and disturbance gradients in order to evaluate quality. As a result decision makers need improved monitoring tools for characterizing relationships between invasive species infestation and disturbance to make informed choices regarding wetland condition and management plans. The overarching goal of this research was to assess invasive plant infestation and disturbance gradients using a GIScience approach. The study was conducted in a fresh-water, coastal wetland in the Muskegon River watershed, Michigan, USA. Airborne hyperspectral imagery (20 bands, 440–880 nm) was classified for Phragmites australis distribution using the Spectral Angle Mapper algorithm. Indicator semivariograms were utilized to define landscape structure and associated spatial scales, and assist in creating a transect scheme to generate landscape pattern metrics quantifying valued ecosystem attributes. Hydrological modifications, as measured by an area-weighted fractal dimension index, served as a proxy for human disturbance and was found to moderately influence Phragmites percent cover (R 2 = 0.4, n = 40), mean patch size (R 2 = 0.5), and patch shape (R 2 = 0.5). A general conclusion was that increased hydrological disturbances were correlated with increased infestation magnitude. The systematic approach executed in this study outlined how geospatial monitoring tools can be used as an assessment framework to provide more meaningful information that lends itself to comprehensive wetlands assessment.
Reproducibility study of posterior subcapsular opacities on the NEI retroillumination image analysis system.

Reproducibility study of posterior subcapsular opacities on the NEI retroillumination image analysis system
Arte, documento y fotografía: prolegómenos para una reformulación del campo fotográfico en Chile (1977-1998)

Este articulo aborda los espacios discursivos de la fotografia en Chile en el periodo de la Dictadura y la Transicion. A partir de algunos planteamientos de Regis Durand, Rosalind Krauss y Jacques Ranciere, se sugiere la necesidad de redefinir «lo fotografico» para, primero, poder repensar la division que se da en las practicas fotograficas del periodo en relacion a los usos y valores asignados a la fotografia «documental» y la fotografia «creativa» y, segundo, reflexionar sobre la irrupcion del aparato fotografico dentro del territorio de las artes visuales y de la critica.
An Approximate Method for Loss Sensitivity Calculation in Unbalanced Distribution Systems

Recent studies have shown that locational marginal pricing (LMP) model can be extended to the electric distribution system to create better economic and operational signals. Loss sensitivity calculation is an important requirement for calculating distribution LMP. This letter proposes a novel approximate approach for calculating nodal loss sensitivities for large unbalanced radial distribution networks. The method has been further validated through perturbation studies performed with the IEEE 8500-node model. The results from this work can help facilitate further studies and implementation of distribution LMP in practical electrical distribution systems.
A story: unpaired adenosine bases in ribosomal RNAs.

In 1985 an analysis of the Escherichia coli 16 S rRNA covariation-based structure model revealed a strong bias for unpaired adenosines. The same analysis revealed that the majority of the G, C, and U bases were paired. These biases are (now) consistent with the high percentage of unpaired adenosine nucleotides in several structure motifs. An analysis of a larger set of bacterial comparative 16 S and 23 S rRNA structure models has substantiated this initial finding and revealed new biases in the distribution of adenosine nucleotides in loop regions. The majority of the adenosine nucleotides are unpaired, while the majority of the G, C, and U bases are paired in the covariation-based structure model. The unpaired adenosine nucleotides predominate in the middle and at the 3' end of loops, and are the second most frequent nucleotide type at the 5' end of loops (G is the most common nucleotide). There are additional biases for unpaired adenosine nucleotides at the 3' end of loops and adjacent to a G at the 5' end of the helix. The most prevalent consecutive nucleotides are GG, GA, AG, and AA. A total of 70 % of the GG sequences are within helices, while more than 70 % of the AA sequences are unpaired. Nearly 50 % of the GA sequences are unpaired, and approximately one-third of the AG sequences are within helices while another third are at the 3' loop.5' helix junction. Unpaired positions with an adenosine nucleotide in more than 50 % of the sequences at the 3' end of 16 S and 23 S rRNA loops were identified and arranged into the A-motif categories XAZ, AAZ, XAG, AAG, and AAG:U, where G or Z is paired, G:U is a base-pair, and X is not an A and Z is not a G in more than 50 % of the sequences. These sequence motifs were associated with several structural motifs, such as adenosine platforms, E and E-like loops, A:A and A:G pairings at the end of helices, G:A tandem base-pairs, GNRA tetraloop hairpins, and U-turns.
Practical flood frequency estimates

The best information on which to base estimates of future flood frequencies is records of past flood events. Where there is a substantial record at the location for which estimates are desired the estimation process is generally straighforward, although a variety of methods is used and there is major uncertainty in the estimates. In general, the frequency of future events is assumed to be indicated by the observed frequency of past events under constant controlling watershed conditions.
AIR POLLUTION AND MORBIDITY REVISITED: A SPECIFICATION TEST

Abstract Since little is known about the correct specification of the relationship of air pollution and morbidity, it is difficult to draw any solid inferences from any set of regressions based on one single data set. It is important, therefore, to replicate whenever possible the regression results for other similar data sets. In this light, this paper replicates earlier analysis using the 1976 Health Interview Survey to relate morbidity—measured as either days of work loss, restricted activity or respiratory-related restricted activity—to particulate matter. The analysis, which uses 6 years of the annual Health Interview Survey, also uses data on fine particulates, a more relevant measure of exposure to particulate matter than total suspended particulates, which is traditionally used.
The Influence of Accessibility of Source Likability on Persuasion

Earlier research found that increasing the accessibility of a source's likability from memory results in greater agreement with a message attributed to that source. Three explanations were proposed for that earlier finding. Accessible liking toward the source of a message may result in increased likelihood of (a) biased central processing, (b) using a likability heuristic, or (c) motivated central processing. This experiment demonstrated that when the message is counterattitudinal and included weak arguments, participants were more likely to critically scrutinize the message as the accessibility of the source's likability increased from memory. As a consequence, attributing the message to a likable source reduced the persuasiveness of the message.
Recursive identification using feedforward neural networks

The paper is concerned with the identification of an unknown nonlinear dynamical system when only the inputs and outputs are accessible for measurement. Under certain assumptions it is shown that, generically, the system can be realized by a recursive input-output model. Furthermore, relying on the approximation properties of neural networks and the existence of effective training algorithms, it is demonstrated how an effective identification model can be constructed. Simulation results are presented to complement the theoretical discussions.
TRENDS IN DIAGNOSIS OF STAGE T1A-B PROSTATE CANCER

AbstractPurpose: Stage T1a-b prostate cancer comprised about 44% of newly diagnosed local prostate cancer cases in the United States before the advent of medical and minimally invasive treatments for symptomatic benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and before the widespread use of prostate specific antigen (PSA) testing in men with BPH. Information about the impact of these advances on detection of T1a-b cancer is not available.Materials and Methods: Prevalence of T1a-b prostate cancer was determined in 1,554 consecutive men who underwent surgical prostatectomy for suspected BPH at a Veterans Affairs Medical Center from 1985 through 1996. Since 1991 a PSA blood test was obtained routinely before surgery and patients with PSA greater than 4.0 ng./ml. usually underwent ultrasound guided prostate biopsy.Results: The number of T1a-b cancer cases was relatively stable during 1985 to 1990 but declined from 36 in 1990 to 9 in 1996. There were no temporal trends in proportion of prostatectomy patients with T1a-b ca...
Drug advertisements and the medicalization of unipolar depression in women

Unipolar depression occurs twice as frequently among women as among men, and the pharmacological industry maintains a massive advertising campaign that encourages psychiatric professionals to rely on antidepressant medication as the solution to this problem. The pictorial content of drug advertisements shows women as victims of depression. The social problems and situational stresses associated with unipolar depression are never shown, and depression is assumed to be a personal and biological illness, its etiology decontextualized. In these advertisements, women are not offered a choice between medical and nonmedical treatment and are not empowered to become more active participants in their health decisions. Therapists are urged to become alert to this oversimplification.
Team dispersion, information technology, and project performance

The impact of information technology (IT) on the performance of distributed projects is not well understood. Although prior research has documented that dispersion among project teams has an adverse effect on project performance, the role of IT as an enabler of communication to bridge the spatial distance among team members in distributed networks has not been empirically studied. We focus on the role of IT as a moderator of the relationship between team dispersion and project performance using projects as the unit of analysis. We find that IT mitigates the negative effect of team dispersion on project performance, especially in high information volume projects. Our central contribution is the development of an empirically tested model to improve the understanding of the operational impact of IT as a vehicle to bridge spatial dispersion among distributed teams that are engaged in knowledge-intensive work.
Group theoretical classification of two-dimensional lattice vibrations

Tables of the group theoretical classification of all possible two-dimensional lattice vibrations are presented, using the labeling of the irreducible representations of the two-dimensional space groups. As an example of their use, the group theoretical labeling of the phonon dispersion curves of methane physisorbed on graphite is given.
Long-term changes in fear conditioning and anxiety-like behavior following nicotine exposure in adult versus adolescent rats

Adolescent nicotine exposure is associated with long-term use, and it has been suggested that this vulnerability to addiction may relate to lasting anxiogenic effects of the drug. However, few studies have addressed long-term effects of adolescent nicotine, and fewer yet have compared adolescent to adult exposure. Male and female Long-Evans rats continuously received nicotine bitartrate or sodium tartrate via osmotic mini-pumps over 15 days either during adolescence (p28-42) or adulthood (p85-99). Initial nicotine dose (free base) was either low (1 mg/kg/day) or high (2 mg/kg/day). Open field behavior and fear conditioning were assessed in adulthood, 1 month post-dosing. Animals pretreated with nicotine during adolescence showed less center time in a novel open field than sham controls. Conversely, the two nicotine doses differentially affected fear conditioning. Animals pretreated with low nicotine during adolescence demonstrated superior acquisition of the task compared to sham control animals; however, unlike either high nicotine-pretreated or sham control animals, they failed to extinguish the learned behavior. In contrast, animals pretreated during adulthood did not behave significantly different from sham controls on either task. Overall, nicotine-pretreatment during adolescence induced effects on behaviors related to fear and anxiety in adulthood, while comparable pretreatment during adulthood failed to produce significant residual effects.
The parity of elementary particles

In determining the intrinsic parities of elementary particles, the invariance of the interactions under gauge transformations makes the relative parity of certain groups of particles a matter of convention. On the other hand, charge independence puts definite restrictions on the relative parities of the members of isotopic multiplets. The interplay of these conventions and restrictions is analysed and the general considerations applied to the known particles.
Collison avoidance for automated inspection

In certain automated inspection systems, computer controlled sensors are required to move arbitrarily close to the objects under inspection, whose geometries and positions may be unknown. There exists a potential for collisions which can cause damage to the sensor and the objects. A method based upon two representations is presented which ensures collision-free motions of the sensor and positioning apparatus. The sensed environment is modelled as a discrete volumetric grid called a voxel map, which is incrementally maintained as range data is acquired. The sensor and all moving attachments are modelled as sets of spheres. The method provides a conservative underestimate of the minimum distance between the surfaces of the sensor system and all workspace obstacles within a known error bound. The conditions are derived for which a continuous collision-free trajectory exists between two configurations. These are two operational modes where collision avoidance is useful. In direct teleoperation mode, the operator has joystick control over the position of the sensor, and potential collisions are detected and averted in real-time. In autonomous mode, the sensor path is planned automatically, and collision-free motions are generated by invoking the collision detection method within an enumerative search routine. The method has been implemented and tested using a scanning laser range camera as the sensor and a Puma 560 manipulator as the positioning apparatus.© (1997) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Inhibition of the hepatic cytochrome P-450-dependent monooxygenase system by rubratoxin B in male mice.

Abstract The in vivo effects of rubratoxin B on hepatic mixed-function oxidase enzymes in male mice were examined. Animals were exposed to a single ip dose of 0.25, 0.5, 1.0, or 1.5 mg rubratoxin B/kg or daily doses of 0.5 mg/kg rubratoxin B for 14 days. Rubratoxin B (1 mg/kg) markedly inhibited the hepatic cytochrome P -450-dependent monooxygenase system when measured 1, 16, 48, 72, and 96 hr after a single exposure. At 48 hr, dose levels as low as 0.25 mg rubratoxin B/kg inhibited pentobarbital hydroxylase and ethylmorphine demethylase. These same enzymes, along with cytochrome P -450 content and NADPH-dependent dehydrogenase, continued to be depressed to about the same degree when animals were exposed to rubratoxin B for 14 days. NADPH-cytochrome c reductase was not affected by rubratoxin B on single or multiple exposure. These studies demonstrated that a single exposure to rubratoxin B caused a depression in activity of the cytochrome P -450 dependent monooxygenase enzyme system and that after maximum inhibition by a single dose at 48 hr, the trend was for the enzymes to return to control values.
Long-term, homologous prolactin, administered through ectopic pituitary grafts, induces hypothalamic dopamine neuron differentiation in adult Snell dwarf mice.

Pituitary prolactin (PRL) secretion is inhibited by dopamine (DA) released into the portal circulation from hypothalamic tuberoinfundibular DA (TIDA) neurons. Ames (df/df) and Snell (dw/dw) dwarf mice lack PRL, GH, and TSH, abrogating feedback and resulting in a reduced hypophysiotropic TIDA population. In Ames df/df, ovine PRL administration for 30 d during early postnatal development increases the TIDA neuron number to normal, but 30 d PRL treatment of adult df/df does not. The present study investigated the effects of homologous PRL, administered via renal capsule pituitary graft surgery for 4 or 6 months, on hypothalamic DA neurons in adult Snell dw/dw mice using catecholamine histofluorescence, tyrosine hydroxylase immunocytochemistry, and bromodeoxyuridine immunocytochemistry. PRL treatment did not affect TIDA neuron number in normal mice, but 4- and 6-month PRL-treated dw/dw had significantly increased (P ≤ 0.01) TIDA (area A12) neurons compared with untreated dw/dw. Snell dwarfs treated with PRL f...
Juvenile hormone action to suppress gene transcription and influence message stability

Proteins normally expressed in high abundance only at larval-pupal metamorphosis in Trichoplusia ni were examined in a comparative analysis of the role and level of hormonal control of their expression. Some related proteins in the hemocyanin-superfamily (i.e., an acidic protein [AJHSP1] and two basic proteins [BJHSP1, BJHSP2]) were shown by nuclear run-on analysis to be specifically transcriptionally suppressed by juvenile hormone (JH), while transcription of another member of that family which is also metamorphosis-associated (arylphorin) was not specifically sensitive to JH. The stability of the mRNA for those members transcriptionally down-regulated by JH appeared to decrease under high JH conditions. While each protein was resorbed to some extent by the prepupal fat body, only the two basic proteins were quantitatively cleared from prepupal hemolymph. The JH-sensitive proteins studied appear to be encoded in single copy genes not immediately juxtaposed in the genome. These and previous studies now permit a more comprehensive understanding of the different combinations of mechanisms involving transcription, mRNA stability, translation, and protein clearance that operate to regulate these metamorphosis-associated proteins. © 1993Wiley-Liss, Inc.
State Power, Institutional Change, and the Politics of Privatization in Russia

This article reviews recent events in Russia and demonstrates that future progress in developing private property rights will require not only sound economic policies but also more robust state institutions capable of carrying out economic transformation. In January 1992 Russia's first postcommunist government launched a comprehensive economic program to transform the Soviet command system into a market economy. Privatization constituted one of the key components of this program. Two years later, however, privatization in Russia had failed to create real private property rights. By the summer of 1993 insiders had acquired majority shares in two-thirds of Russia's privatized and privatizing firms, state subsidies accounted for 22 percent of Russia's GNP, little if any restructuring had taken place within enterprises, and few market institutions had been created. Progress toward creating private property rights in Russia was impeded by the particular constellation of political institutions in place after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. The set of political institutions comprising the first postcommunist Russian state was not capable of either dismantling Soviet institutions governing property rights or creating or supporting new market-based economic institutions regarding private property.
Canopy temperature and stomatal conductance of water-stressed dormant and nondormant alfalfa types.

(...) The effects of continuous deficit irrigation produced by a line-source sprinkler system on Vernal' (dormant type), Vernema' (intermediate dormancy type), and CUF 101' (nondormant type) were investigated at Proser, WA, on a Warden loam (coarse-silty, mixed, mesic Xerollic Camborthids). Water stress was expressed as the Crop Water Stress Index (CWSI), a canopy-temperature (T c ) based indicator of water stress (...)
Two-Dimensionally Self-Arranged Protein Nanoarrays on Diblock Copolymer Templates

Novel methods for creating protein arrays with two-dimensional control can significantly enhance basic biological research as well as various bioarray applications. We demonstrate that the structural variety and chemical heterogeneity of self-assembled, hexagonal polystyrene-b-poly(vinylpyridine) micelles can be successfully exploited as templates for easy and rapid fabrication of functional protein arrays over a large scale. Spontaneous formation of such polymeric template-guided protein molecules yields high-density protein arrays that exhibit repeat spacings in a nanoscopic dimension. The ensuing self-assembled protein molecules in the array maintain their natural conformation and activity over a very long time period. By tuning the size of the underlying block copolymer templates, our amphiphilic diblock copolymer-based approach to create high-density protein patterns also permits spatial control over two-dimensional repeat spacings of protein nanoarrays. These unique advantages of polystyrene-b-poly(vinylpyridine) templates make the spontaneously constructed protein nanoarrays highly suitable as functional protein sensor substrates. Therefore, our novel two-dimensional protein assembly method can be greatly beneficial for high-throughput proteomic assays and multiplexed high-density protein sensing applications.
Management of appendiceal mass in children

During a 5-year period 1072 children were treated for appendicitis. Of these, 112 (10.5%) had an appendiceal mass at presentation that was discovered in 32 cases on clinical examination, in 3 on ultrasound, and in 77 (69%) on examination under anaesthesia. All patients were treated conservatively initially; 98 (87.5%) had uneventful resolution of the appendiceal mass and were discharged after a mean hospital stay of 10.5 days. Fourteen (12.5%) failed to respond to conservative management: 10 showed worsening of symptoms during hospitalisation and required drainage of an appendiceal abscess and 4 were readmitted with recurrence of symptoms 2, 4, 4, and 11 days respectively following discharge. These were managed by appendicectomy. Interval appendicectomy was performed after a mean 6.8 weeks following discharge with a complication rate of 3%. Microscopic examination of appendices removed at interval appendicectomy revealed that over one third of specimens showed evidence of acute or subacute inflammation. There were no deaths in this series. Our results show that conservative management of appendiceal masses is a safe and effective method of treatment.
New approaches to demystifying insight.

After a person has become stuck on a problem, they sometimes achieve a clear and sudden solution through insight – the so-called Aha! experience. Because of its distinctive experience, the origins and characteristics of insight have received considerable attention historically in psychological research. However, despite considerable progress in characterizing insight, the underlying mechanisms remain mysterious. We argue that research on insight could be greatly advanced by supplementing traditional insight research, which depends on a few complex problems, with paradigms common in other domains of cognitive science. We describe a large set of mini-insight problems to which multiple methods can be applied, together with subjective reports to identify insight problem-solving. Behavioral priming and neuroimaging methods are providing evidence about what, where, and how neural activity occurs during insight. Such evidence constrains theories of component processes, and will help to demystify insight.