cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Epitope-Dependent Avidity Thresholds for Cytotoxic T-Lymphocyte Clearance of Virus-Infected Cells

Cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) are crucial for immune control of viral infections. “Functional avidity,” defined by the sensitizing dose of exogenously added epitope yielding half-maximal CTL triggering against uninfected target cells (SD50), has been utilized extensively as a measure of antiviral efficiency. However, CTLs recognize infected cells via endogenously produced epitopes, and the relationship of SD50 to antiviral activity has never been directly revealed. We elucidate this relationship by comparing CTL killing of cells infected with panels of epitope-variant viruses to the corresponding SD50 for the variant epitopes. This reveals a steeply sigmoid relationship between avidity and infected cell killing, with avidity thresholds (defined as the SD50 required for CTL to achieve 50% efficiency of infected cell killing [KE50]), below which infected cell killing rapidly drops to none and above which killing efficiency rapidly plateaus. Three CTL clones recognizing the same viral epitope show the same KE50 despite differential recognition of individual epitope variants, while CTLs recognizing another epitope show a 10-fold-higher KE50, demonstrating epitope dependence of KE50. Finally, the ability of CTLs to suppress viral replication depends on the same threshold KE50. Thus, defining KE50 values is required to interpret the significance of functional avidity measurements and predict CTL efficacy against virus-infected cells in pathogenesis and vaccine studies.
Selective oxidation of the double bonds in the 4-phenyl-1,2,4-triazoline-3,5-dione diels-alder adduct of ergosterol acetate

Methods for oxidations at the 6(7)- and 22(23)-double bonds in the phenyltriazoline adduct of ergosterol acetate (I) are described. KMnO4 and OsO4 were found to react with the 6(7)-double bond to yield the 6,7-glycol and osmate ester, respectively. Other reagents (I2/AgOAc, H2O2, m-chloroperbenzoic acid, HCO3H) formed either isomeric epoxides or glycols with the 22(23)-double bond, with the latter two reagents giving their products in quite high yields.
Status Inconsistency and Party Choice in Canada: An Attempt to Replicate

a high correlation among the various dimensions of the stratification system. That is, a person who is of high status on one dimension will tend to be of high status on others, and vice versa. Since traditional societies also tend to be characterized by ascriptive stratification systems, individuals pass their relative advantages or disadvantages on to their children, and the class structure remains more or less stationary. With the rationalization of economic
Effect of Water-Miscible Preparation of Vitamin D2 on Metamorphosis of Thiourea and Citrate Treated Rana pipiens Larvae:

SummaryAn immersion experiment using hind-limb length increase of R. pipiens tadpoles has shown that although Vit. D2 enhances metamorphosis it does not counteract the effect of thiourea. Addition of citrate reduces the Vit. D2 effect.
1976 Remeasurement of NBS Spectrophotometer‐Integrator Filters

Sets of five colored-glass filters, identified as Standard Reference Materials 2101 through 2105 and intended for checking the performance of spectrophotometer-integrator systems, have been issued by NBS for many years. Highaccuracy transmittance measurements were performed on a set of the colored filters designated Master Set No. 3 by using a reference spectrophotometer constructed at NBS. A comparison of the new values with the original data obtained in 1962 for Master Set No. 3 shows agreement to within the experimental uncertainties of the 1962 measurements.
Historical narrative and the young reader

(1989). Historical narrative and the young reader. Theory Into Practice: Vol. 28, Learning Through Text, pp. 114-119.
Disproportionate Distribution of Burkholderia cepacia Complex Species and Transmissibility Markers in Cystic Fibrosis

Several distinct species (genomovars) comprise bacteria previously identified merely as Burkholderia cepacia. Understanding how these species, collectively referred to as the B. cepacia complex, differ in their epidemiology and pathogenic potential in cystic fibrosis (CF) is important in efforts to refine management strategies. B. cepacia isolates recovered from 606 CF patients receiving care at 132 treatment centers in 105 cities in the United States were assessed to determine species within the B. cepacia complex and examined for the presence of putative transmissibility markers (B. cepacia epidemic strain marker [BCESM] and cable pilin subunit gene [cblA]). Fifty percent of patients were infected with B. cepacia complex genomovar III, 38% with B. multivorans (formerly genomovar II), and 5% with B. vietnamiensis (formerly genomovar V); fewer than 5% of patients were infected with either genomovar I, B. stabilis (formerly genomovar IV), genomovar VI, or genomovar VII. BCESM was found in 46% of genomovar III isolates and not in any other species. Only one isolate, from a patient infected with the ET12 epidemic lineage, contained the complete cblA pilin subunit gene. Our data indicate a differential capacity for human infection among the phylogenetically closely related species of the B. cepacia complex. The low frequency of BCESM and cblA suggests that they are not sufficient markers of B. cepacia virulence or transmissibility.
The contact system: A proinflammatory pathway with antithrombotic activity

Activation of the contact system on bacterial surfaces provides a mechanism by which this cascade of proteolytic enzymes contributes to septic shock and inflammation (pages 298–302).
REID ON RIDICULE AND COMMON SENSE

According to Reid, opinions that contradict the principles of common sense are not only false but also absurd. Nature has given us an emotion that reveals the absurdity of an opinion: the emotion of ridicule. An appeal to ridicule in philosophical arguments may easily be discounted as a logical fallacy in the same manner as an appeal to the common consent of people. This essay traces the origins of Reid's defense of ridicule in the works of Addison, Hutcheson, Shaftesbury and Campbell. Reid rejected a non-epistemic view of the sense of ridicule. According to Reid, ridicule includes both a feeling and a particular act of judgment based on the principles of common sense.
Adjustment with growth: The case of Denmark in the 1980s

Abstract This article builds a sectoral equilibrium model of the Danish economy and uses the model to evaluate recent policy reforms. We believe that these policy reforms, with their emphasis on supply-side measures and structural adjustment, is best evaluated with a sectoral medium-term model. The model includes a detailed description of the Danish manufacturing industries. Their technology treats capital as a quasi-fixed factor which gives the model its medium-term horizon and uses a two good output function to make a distinction between the supply of domestic goods and the supply of exports.
A pore scale investigation of crude oil distribution and removal from homogeneous porous media during surfactant-induced remediation

A pore-scale study was conducted to understand interfacial processes contributing to the removal of crude oils from a homogeneous porous medium during surfactant-induced remediation. Synchrotron X-ray microtomography (SXM) was used to obtain high-resolution three-dimensional images of the two-fluid-phase oil/water system, and quantify temporal changes in oil blob distribution, blob morphology, and blob surface area before and after sequential surfactant flooding events. The reduction of interfacial tension in conjunction with the sufficient increase in viscous forces as a result of surfactant flushing was most likely responsible for mobilization and recovery of the two lighter oil fractions. However, corresponding increases in viscous forces as a result of a reduction of interfacial tension were insufficient to initiate and maintain the displacement (recovery) of the heavy crude oil fraction during surfactant flushing. In contrast to the heavy oil system, changes in trapping number for the lighter fraction crude oils were sufficient to initiate mobilization as a result of surfactant flushing. Both light and medium oil fractions showed an increase in the number of blobs and total blob surface area, and a reduction in the total volume after 2 pore volumes (PVs) of surfactant flooding. This increase in surface area was attributed to the change in blob morphology from spherical to more complex non-spherical ganglia shape characteristics. Moreover, the increase in the number of oil blobs from larger to smaller particles after surfactant flushing may have contributed to the greater cumulative oil surface area. Complete recovery of light and medium oil fractions resulted after 5 PVs of surfactant flooding, whereas the displacement efficiency of heavy-oil fraction was severely limited, even after extended periods of flushing. The results of these experiments demonstrate the utility of SXM for quantifying pore-scale interfacial characteristics for specific crude-oil-fraction/porous-medium systems, critical for understanding mobilization/removal relationships in which surfactant-enhanced remediation techniques will be most successful.
Mechanism of Action of Phenolic Disinfectants VI: Effects on Glucose and Succinate Metabolism of Escherichia Coli

A representative group of phenols was examined as to effects on aerobic and anaerobic utilization of glucose and aerobic utilization of sodium succinate. At low concentrations, p -chlorophenol, 2,4-dichlorophenol, p -chloro- o -cresol, and 2,4-dinitrophenol stimulated oxygen uptake with glucose as the substrate; phenol and p -chloro- m -xylenol were inhibitory, and p - tert -amylphenol had no measurable effect. At the higher concentrations used, all compounds except 2,4-dinitrophenol were inhibitory. Anaerobic metabolism of glucose was inhibited by concentrations of the compounds tested similar to those inhibiting glucose oxidation. Oxidation of sodium succinate was stimulated by low concentrations of p -chlorophenol, 2,4-dichlorophenol, 2,4,6-trichlorophenol, p -chloro- o -cresol, dichloro- m -xylenol, and p - tert -amylphenol. All compounds were inhibitory at higher concentrations. In general, sodium succinate oxidation was the most sensitive to phenolics, and glucose oxidation the least sensitive. There was some correlation between phenol coefficients and inhibition of glucose and succinate metabolism. It is hypothesized that the lethal action of phenolic disinfectants is due to damage of permeability mechanisms, the repair of which is prevented by concomitant inhibition of energy-yielding metabolic reactions.
Management Education Goes International: A Model for Designing and Teaching a Study Tour Course

An international business study tour course may be an effective way to bridge theory and practice in management education and to internationalize both students and faculty. Going international creates unique challenges for the professor. This article (a) describes one version of a study tour course, (b) reviews the academic merit of such courses, and (c) proposes a three-phase model and set of recommendations for designing and teaching a rigorous and academically valuable international study tour course.
Spin state control of the hepatic cytochrome P450 redox potential.

Abstract We have measured the oxidation-reduction potential of isolated and partially purified cytochrome P450 from uninduced rat liver, both in the presence and absence of Type I substrates. Native P450 is found to have a potential of −300 mV with respect to the standard hydrogen electrode, while the addition of benzphetamine or hexabarbital increases the redox potential to −237 mV and −225 mV respectively. Quantitation of the thermally induced S = 1 2 to S = 5 2 spin transition of the ferric heme iron for this P450 preparation both substrate free as well as with bound benzphetamine and hexabarbital indicate an increase in the high spin ( S = 5 2 ) fraction on the binding of Type I substrates. The relevant oxidation-reduction equilibria of the heme chromaphore are presented in terms of a thermodynamic model for the control of the observed cytochrome P450 redox potential through this modulation of the spin configuration of the five d-electrons of the ferric heme iron induced by the binding of Type I substrates.
Excitation transfer between localized magnetic impurities in insulators

We have examined the contribution of the linear diagonal ion-lattice interaction to the excitation transfer process between paramagnetic impurities in insulators in the limit of weak ion-ion interaction. The impurity ion-lattice interaction is treated in the adiabatic aprroximation. This approximation together with the procedure of defining an effective initial- and final-state Hamiltonian allows us to eliminate the electronic excitation operators. Treating the electronic interaction between the ions as a perturbation, we have derived an expression for the excitation transfer rate which takes into account the linear diagonal ion-lattice interaction exactly. The transfer rate for both the case where the transitions for the two ions being considered involve the same electronic excitation energy (energy-matched transfer) and the case where the electronic energies are different (energy-mismatched transfer) are derived in the same formalism. For either case we find that the transfer rate is substantially modified by the vibrational overlap effect ${e}^{\ensuremath{-}\ensuremath{\Phi}(T,0)}$, which is much less than unity, if the excited states of the two ions under consideration are more strongly coupled to the lattice vibrational modes than their ground states are. The quenching effect is expected physically because of the shift in the potential minimum of the excited state relative to that of the ground state in the configurational coordinate diagram. In addition we find that if the ions are coupled to the same vibrational modes, the vibrational overlap modifies the dependence of the transfer rate on the separation between the ions significantly. This is caused by the presence of the terms in $\ensuremath{\Phi}(T,0)$, which represent the phase relationship between the vibrating impurity ions. Based on our formulation, the energy-matched transfer rate in the low-temperature and weak-ion-lattice-coupling limit is estimated for the $^{4}A_{2}\ensuremath{\leftrightarrow}^{4}T_{2}$ transition in KMg${\mathrm{F}}_{3}$:${\mathrm{V}}^{2+}$. We find that the orbitally dependent exchange is the most dominant interaction that causes transfer. Assuming the ions are coupled to continuous phonon modes and in the Debye approximation, we find that for the collinear arrangement ${\mathrm{V}}^{2+}$-${\mathrm{F}}^{\ensuremath{-}}$-${\mathrm{Mg}}^{2+}$ -${\mathrm{F}}^{\ensuremath{-}}$-${\mathrm{V}}^{2+}$, the vibrational overlap increases the `bare' transfer time from roughly a value of 4 \ensuremath{\mu}sec to 16 \ensuremath{\mu}sec. In addition it is found that in KMg${\mathrm{F}}_{3}$:${\mathrm{V}}^{2+}$ the modification of the distance dependence of the transfer rate by $\ensuremath{\Phi}(T,0)$ does not follow an exponential or a power law in both the Debye and Einstein approximations.
Reinforcement and Personality Factors in Verbal Conditioning

(1961). Reinforcement and Personality Factors in Verbal Conditioning. The Journal of Psychology: Vol. 52, No. 2, pp. 379-402.
Reliable Communication on Cube-Based Multicomputers

We consider a distributed unicasting algorithm for hypercubes with faulty nodes (including disconnected hypercubes) using the safety level concept. The safety level of each node in ann-dimensional hypercube is an approximated measure of the number and distribution of faulty nodes in the neighborhood and it can be easily calculated throughn−1 rounds of information exchange among neighboring nodes. Optimal unicasting between two nodes is guaranteed if the safety level of the source node is no less than the Hamming distance between the source and the destination. The feasibility of an optimal or suboptimal unicasting can be easily determined at the source node by comparing its safety level, together with its neighbors’ safety levels, with the Hamming distance between the source and the destination. The proposed scheme is also the first attempt to address the unicasting problem in disconnected hypercubes. The safety level concept is also extended to be used in hypercubes with both faulty nodes and links and in generalized hypercubes.
Placental mesenchymal dysplasia

Placental mesenchymal dysplasia is a rare placental lesion characterized by stem villous cystic dilation and vesicle formation, placentomegaly, and vascular abnormalities. It can be associated with growth restriction, stillbirth, Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome, and some chromosomal abnormalities, and needs to be distinguished from its main differential diagnosis, hydatidiform mole.
Strain gauge measurement of rein tension during riding: a pilot study

A pilot study was performed using a strain gauge transducer intercalated between the bit and the left rein to measure rein tension dynamically during riding. The strain patterns consisted of a series of spikes with frequencies corresponding to two per stride in walk and trot and one per stride in canter. The highest tension recorded in each gait was 43 N at walk, 51 N at trot and 104 N in canter. Based on the results of this study, it is recommended that the methodology should be adapted so that both reins are instrumented simultaneously, data are transmitted telemetrically to eliminate the need for a tether connecting the horse to the computer, and kinematic data are synchronized with the rein tension recordings.
Library instruction and information literacy 2007

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide a selected bibliography of recent resources on library instruction and information literacy.Design/methodology/approach – The paper identifies and annotates periodical articles, monographs, and audiovisual material, in the area of library instruction and information literacy.Findings – The paper provides information about each source, discusses the characteristics of current scholarship, and describes sources that contain unique scholarly contributions and quality reproductions.Originality/value – The information in the paper may be used by librarians and interested parties as a quick reference to literature on library instruction and information literacy.
Evaluation of radiometric measurements from the NASA Multiangle Imaging spectroradiometer (MISR): Two- and three-dimensional radiative transfer modeling of an inhomogeneous stratocumulus cloud deck

In December 1999, NASA launched the Terra satellite. This platform carries five instruments that measure important properties of the Earth climate system. One of these instruments is the Multiangle Imaging Spectroradiometer, or MISR. This instrument measures light reflected from the Earth at a spatial resolution of 275-1100 m, at four wavelengths (446, 558, 672, and 866 nm), and at nine different viewing angles that vary from +70 to -70 degrees along the direction of flight [Diner et al., 2002]. These multiangle data have the potential to provide information on aerosols, surface, and cloud characteristics that compliments traditional single-view-direction satellite measurements. Before this potential can be realized, the accuracy of the satellite radiance measurements must be carefully assessed, and the implications of the radiometric accuracy on remote-sensing algorithms must be evaluated. In this article, we compare MISR multiangle measurements against two-dimensional (2-D) and 3-D radiative transfer calculations from an inhomogeneous cloud scene. Inputs to the radiative transfer code are based entirely on independently gathered data (ground-based radar, lidar, microwave radiometer, in situ aircraft data, etc.). The 2-D radiative transfer calculations compare favorably near nadir and in most of the forward scattering directions, but differ by as much as 10% in themore » backscattering directions. Using 3-D radiative transfer modeling, we show that this difference is due to the 3-D structure of the cloud deck, including variations in the cloud top height on scales less than 275 m, which are not resolved in the 2-D simulations. Comparison of the 2-D calculations to the MISR measurements, after accounting for the 3-D structure, show residual differences that are less than 4% at all angles at the MISR blue and green wavelengths. The comparison also reveals that the MISR measurements at the red and near-infrared wavelengths are too bright relative to measurements in the blue and green bands. On the basis of the results of this study, along with results from five other comparisons, the MISR calibration is being adjusted to reduce the red and nearinfrared Radiances.« less
An automated telephone-based smoking cessation education and counseling system

Automated patient education and counseling over the telephone is a convenient and inexpensive method for modifying health-related behaviors. A computer-controlled, telecommunications technology called Telephone-Linked Care (TLC) was used to develop a behavioral intervention to assist smokers to quit and to prevent relapse. The education and counseling is offered through a series of interactive telephone conversations which can take place in the smoker's home. The system's automated dialogues are driven by an expert system that controls the logic. The content is derived from the Transtheoretical Model of behavioral change, principles of Social Cognitive Theory, strategies of patient-centered counseling and recommendations of clinical experts in smoking cessation. The system asks questions, provides information, gives positive reinforcement and feedback, and makes suggestions for behavioral change. Information that the patient communicates is stored and is used to influence the content of subsequent conversations.
MULTISCALE MODEL OF CRISPR-INDUCED COEVOLUTIONARY DYNAMICS: DIVERSIFICATION AT THE INTERFACE OF LAMARCK AND DARWIN

The CRISPR (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats) system is a recently discovered type of adaptive immune defense in bacteria and archaea that functions via directed incorporation of viral and plasmid DNA into host genomes. Here, we introduce a multiscale model of dynamic coevolution between hosts and viruses in an ecological context that incorporates CRISPR immunity principles. We analyze the model to test whether and how CRISPR immunity induces host and viral diversification and the maintenance of many coexisting strains. We show that hosts and viruses coevolve to form highly diverse communities. We observe the punctuated replacement of existent strains, such that populations have very low similarity compared over the long term. However, in the short term, we observe evolutionary dynamics consistent with both incomplete selective sweeps of novel strains (as single strains and coalitions) and the recurrence of previously rare strains. Coalitions of multiple dominant host strains are predicted to arise because host strains can have nearly identical immune phenotypes mediated by CRISPR defense albeit with different genotypes. We close by discussing how our explicit eco-evolutionary model of CRISPR immunity can help guide efforts to understand the drivers of diversity seen in microbial communities where CRISPR systems are active.
Global Society and Information Technology Social Science Challenges in the 21st Century

Information technology will greatly influence the quality of life in the 21st century. The challenge is to use the technology to help overcome numerous global, regional, and local problems that threaten the quality of life. These problems include global overpopulation, intense and potentially socioeconomically destructive global economic competition, continued pressures on the global environment, increasing levels of regionalized armed conflicts, regional water shortages and other regional environmental problems, and local transportation congestion, poverty, crime, and drug abuse. Social scientists mustbecome aggressively involved and accept leadership roles in the conceptualization, development, and implementation of computer-based systems that have broad social impact.
Thialfi: a client notification service for internet-scale applications

Ensuring the freshness of client data is a fundamental problem for applications that rely on cloud infrastructure to store data and mediate sharing. Thialfi is a notification service developed at Google to simplify this task. Thialfi supports applications written in multiple programming languages and running on multiple platforms, e.g., browsers, phones, and desktops. Applications register their interest in a set of shared objects and receive notifications when those objects change. Thialfi servers run in multiple Google data centers for availability and replicate their state asynchronously. Thialfi's approach to recovery emphasizes simplicity: all server state is soft, and clients drive recovery and assist in replication. A principal goal of our design is to provide a straightforward API and good semantics despite a variety of failures, including server crashes, communication failures, storage unavailability, and data center failures. Evaluation of live deployments confirms that Thialfi is scalable, efficient, and robust. In production use, Thialfi has scaled to millions of users and delivers notifications with an average delay of less than one second.
Surface Waves for Material Characterization

Analyses are presented for the propagation of harmonic surface waves on a transversely isotropic layer rigidly bonded to a transversely isotropic substrate of different material. The layer-substrate system is also assumed to be in contact with a liquid and inviscid space. The propagation takes place along an axis of symmetry of both the layer and the substrate. Exact closed-from solutions for the characteristic dispersion relations are presented. Numerical results are presented for material combinations of three classes of centrifugally cast stainless steel material
Hepatic Involvement and Portal Hypertension Predict Mortality in Chronic Granulomatous Disease

Background & Aims: Chronic granulomatous disease (CGD) is a rare genetic disorder, predisposing affected individuals to recurrent infectious complications and shortened survival. Liver involvement in CGD includes vascular abnormalities, which may lead to noncirrhotic portal hypertension. Methods: To evaluate the impact of noncirrhotic portal hypertension on survival in CGD, all records from 194 patients followed up at the National Institutes of Health with CGD were reviewed. Cox proportional hazards regression was used to determine factors associated with mortality. Results: Twenty-four patients died, all from infectious complications. By Cox regression, factors associated with mortality were as follows: (1) decreases in platelet count (>9000/μL/y; hazard ratio, 4.7; P = .007), (2) alkaline phosphatase level increases (>0.25/y; hazard ratio, 4.5; P = .01) and (3) history of liver abscess (hazard ratio, 3.1; P = .03). By regression analysis, decreasing platelet count was associated with increasing portal vein diameter, splenomegaly, increased serum immunoglobulin G level, and increasing number of alanine aminotransferase increases; greater number of alkaline phosphatase level increases and abscess were both associated with increasing age and number of infections. Prospective evaluation revealed increased hepatic-venous pressure gradients in 2 patients with progressive thrombocytopenia, suggestive of portal hypertension. Conclusions: These data suggest mortality in patients with CGD is associated with the development of noncirrhotic portal hypertension, likely owing to injury to the microvasculature of the liver from repeated systemic and hepatic infections. The slope of decline in platelet count may be a useful measure of progression of portal hypertension over time. Furthermore, the data illustrate the potential independent effect of portal hypertension on clinical outcome outside the setting of cirrhosis.
Relationships among varying sampling distance and the IBI in warmwater, headwater streams of the Eastern Corn Belt Plain.

Single-pass electrofishing was used to define the most efficient sampling distance to assess stream condition using the index of biotic integrity (IBI) methodology in headwater (<36 km2 drainage area), warmwater streams in the Eastern Corn Belt Plain ecoregion. Based on wetted widths (1–3.3 m) of sampled reaches, we defined effort based on increased area (range 50–555 m2). Sampled area necessary to capture a representative fish assemblage increased until 167-m2 distance, which is equivalent to a minimum sampling distance of one habitat cycle. No significant difference in metric actual observed value response was found with increasing habitat cycle. Increased effort is required in smaller streams widths (≤1 m) to achieve the recommended sample area. The effect of rare fish on the IBI was tested using a modified Walford method. A significant decrease in IBI score was observed when 10 % of the rare data were removed. The presence of rare fish did not influence individual IBI metrics or scores for either the increased effort or reduced effort calibrations until greater than 3 % of the data was removed for number of species, 15 % removal of data for number of minnow species, and 5 % removal of data for catch per unit effort (CPUE). Increased effort did not affect any metric or IBI score, while reduced effort influenced the number of darter, madtom, and sculpin species and catch per unit effort metric scores but did not affect IBI score.
A Transportable Atmospheric Testing Suite

A Transportable Atmospheric Testing Suite (TATS) consisting of sensors to monitor atmospheric turbulence and meteorological parameters over both direct and retroreflected free space optical links is described.
Tad, a Neurospora LINE-like retrotransposon exhibits a complex pattern of transcription.

Tad is a LINE-like element from Neurospora. Inactive Tad elements have been found in all strains of Neurospora examined; however, active copies of Tad were initially found in a single strain (Adiopodoume) collected from nature. Active Tad elements can be transferred to laboratory strains by means of crosses, heterokaryons or by transformation with cloned active elements. We have analyzed the pattern of transcripts from Tad elements present in strains derived from Adiopodoume containing either high or low copy numbers of active Tad. In both kinds of strains we found a complex set of discrete polyadenylated transcripts. As expected, a full-length transcript was detected with 5′ and 3′ ends that coincide with the consensus 5′ and 3′ ends of the Tad element. Two additional transcripts with the same polarity as the full-length transcript were identified. One of these plus-strand transcripts is 2.0 kb in length with a 5′ end identical to that of the full-length transcript and an internal polyadenylation site. The other (4.2 kb) has an internal start site with termination occurring at the 3′ consensus end of the element. The 2.0-kb transcript encodes all of ORF1. The 4.2 kb transcript could encode a 5′ truncated version of ORF2. Two minustrand transcripts were also consistently identified. These represent overlapping transcripts from the 3′ tail of Tad. These transcripts share a small intron and 3′ polyadenylation site. Their 5′ start sites are both internal to the consensus 3′ end of Tad. Possible functions of this complex array of transcripts are discussed.
Evolution and formation of North Atlantic Eighteen Degree Water in the Sargasso Sea from moored data

Abstract Two profiling subsurface moorings were deployed as part of the CLIvar MOde Water Dynamics Experiment (CLIMODE) to study the formation and evolution of Eighteen Degree Water (EDW) from November 2006 to November 2007. Both moorings were deployed south of the Gulf Stream in the EDW outcrop region, the northwestern part of the subtropical gyre of the North Atlantic. The two moorings captured the seasonal evolution of EDW characterized by gradual mixed layer deepening and wintertime outcrop, rapid restratification from May to June and slower dissipation during the rest of the year. Superimposed on this seasonal cycle, the moored records are characterized by high frequency passing of eddies with a characteristic time scale of ∼10 days, i.e. it took about 10 days for eddies to pass the mooring sites. The net impact of these eddy fluxes is evaluated by analyzing one-dimensional heat and salt budgets of the upper ocean at the moorings and comparing them to the local air–sea fluxes. It is shown that oceanic lateral fluxes converge heat and salt into the formation region during winter thus offsetting the heat loss to the atmosphere and influencing the formation of EDW. A comparison with results from a one-dimensional model shows that without the lateral fluxes EDW would outcrop earlier and it would be colder and fresher. The warm, salty waters transported into the region originate from the Gulf Stream and this suggests that frontal processes likely play a fundamental role in EDW formation and its evolution.
Role of metabolic programming in the pathogenesis of β-cell failure in postnatal life

Intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR) has been linked to later development of type 2 diabetes in adulthood. Human studies indicate that individuals who were growth retarded at birth have impaired insulin secretion and insulin resistance. Multiple animal models of IUGR demonstrate impaired beta-cell function and development. We have developed a model of IUGR in the rat that leads to diabetes in adulthood with the salient features of most forms of type 2 diabetes in the human: progressive defects in insulin secretion and insulin action prior to the onset of overt hyperglycemia. Decreased beta-cell proliferation leads to a progressive decline in beta-cell mass. Using this model, we have tested the hypothesis that uteroplacental insufficiency disrupts the function of the electron transport chain in the fetal beta-cell and leads to a debilitating cascade of events: increased production of reactive oxygen species, which in turn damage mitochondrial (mt) mtDNA and causes further production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). The net result is progressive loss of beta-cell function and eventual development of type 2 diabetes in the adult. Studies in the IUGR rat also demonstrate that an abnormal intrauterine environment induces epigenetic modifications of key genes regulating beta-cell development; experiments directly link chromatin remodeling with suppression of transcription. Future research will be directed at elucidating the mechanisms underlying epigenetic modifications in offspring.
The overlapping RNA-binding domains of p33 and p92 replicase proteins are essential for tombusvirus replication.

Abstract Two of the five viral-coded proteins of tombusviruses, which are small, nonsegmented, plus-stranded RNA viruses of plants, are required for replication in infected cells. These replicase proteins, namely, p33 and p92, of cucumber necrosis virus are expressed directly from the genomic RNA via a readthrough mechanism. Their overlapping domains contain an arginine/proline-rich RNA-binding motif (termed RPR, which has the sequence RPRRRP). Site-directed mutagenesis of p33 expressed in Escherichia coli, followed by a gel shift assay, defined two of the four arginines as required for efficient RNA binding in vitro. In vivo testing of 19 RPR motif mutants revealed that the RPR motif, and therefore the ability to bind RNA, is important for the replication of tombusviruses and their associated defective interfering (DI) RNAs. Mutation within the RPR motif also affected the ratio of subgenomic versus genomic RNAs in infected cells. To test whether the RPR motif is essential for the function of either p33 or p92 in replication, we used a two-component system developed by Oster et al. (1998 , J. Virol. 5845–5851), in which p92 was expressed from the genomic RNA of a tombusvirus, while p33 was expressed from a DI RNA. The protoplast experiments with the two-component system revealed that the RPR motif is essential for the replication function of both proteins. Interestingly, mutations within the RPR motif of p33 and p92 had different effects on RNA replication, suggesting different roles for the RNA-binding motifs of these proteins in tombusvirus replication.
Who is mistaken about priming in “recognition/identification” experiments? A reply to tulving and hayman

Abstract Findings of stochastic independence between successive explicit and implicit memory measures are commonly interpreted as evidence that the two measures reflect the operation of separate memory systems. Ostergaard (1992) showed that often the contribution of memory to performance on one of the measures is small and that this may severely constrain the degree of dependence that the memory-related variance can produce in the overall contingency analysis of performance. Ostergaard (1992) developed the model of Maximum Memory Dependence (MMD) to estimate the consequences for the overall contingency analysis of maximum dependence between the components of the two measures that can be attributed to the prior study episode. The model was applied to a number of published studies and it was concluded that in most cases the memory-related variance could have produced only small and often insignificant effects on the overall contingency analysis. Tulving and Hayman (1993) claim that Ostergaard made a mistake...
Power dependence of reflectivity of metallic films.

The reflectivity of vacuum-deposited gold films on quartz glass substrates was studied as a function of 10.6-μm radiation power density. A simple linear model of the temperature dependence of the absorptivity of the gold film is developed. This temperature dependence is coupled with a three-dimensional heat flow analysis and fits the experimental data well. The absorptivity α is written as α0(1 + βT) and the values of α0 and β are determined, respectively, as (0.88 ± 0.01) × 10−2 and 12 × 10−4/°C.
Composition of Gum Turpentines of Pinus Aristata, P. balfouriana, P. flexilis, and P. parviflora

The composition of gum turpentines from each of four species of Pinus has been determined. Each sample was fractionated and the per cent of volatile oil and its components was investigated. The results of the study are reported.
Agmatine protects against cell damage induced by NMDA and glutamate in cultured hippocampal neurons

Agmatine is a polyamine and has been considered as a novel neurotransmitter or neuromodulator in the central nervous system. In the present study, the neuroprotective effect of agmatine against cell damage caused by N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) and glutamate was investigated in cultured rat hippocampal neurons. Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity assay, beta-tubulin III immunocytochemical staining and terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated deoxyuridine triphosphate (dUTP) nick end-labeling (TUNEL) assay were conducted to detect cell damage. Exposure of 12-day neuronal cultures of rat hippocampus to NMDA or glutamate for 1 h caused a concentration-dependent neurotoxicity, as indicated by the significant increase in released LDH activities. Addition of 100 microM agmatine into media ablated the neurotoxicity induced by NMDA or glutamate, an effect also produced by the specific NMDA receptor antagonist dizocilpine hydrogen maleate (MK801). Arcaine, an analog of agmatine with similar structure as agmatine, fully prevented the NMDA- or glutamate-induced neuronal damage. Spermine and putrescine, the endogenous polyamine and metabolic products of agmatine without the guanidine moiety of agmatine, failed to show this effect, indicating a structural relevance for this neuroprotection. Immunocytochemical staining and TUNEL assay confirmed the findings in the LDH measurement. That is, agmatine and MK801 markedly attenuated NMDA-induced neuronal death and significantly reduced TUNEL-positive cell numbers induced by exposure of cultured hippocampal neurons to NMDA. Taken together, these results demonstrate that agmatine can protect cultured hippocampal neurons from NMDA- or glutamate-induced excitotoxicity, through a possible blockade of the NMDA receptor channels or a potential anti-apoptotic property.
Uptake and internal distribution of exogenously supplied amino acids in the Pacific oyster, Crassostrea gigas (Thunberg)☆

Abstract A technique is described in which irrigation of the mantle cavity of oysters, Crassostrea gigas , induces pumping at steady rates. Simultaneous net influx of 10 amino acids (asp, glu, asn, ser, gly, tau, ala, val, phe, lys) is observed by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Individual amino acids exhibit first-order exponential depletion from an initial medium concentration of 2.0 μM. Influx of radiolabeled alanine corresponds very closely to net entry of alanine as estimated by HPLC. Therefore, net entry of alanine from dilute solution (5 μM) occurs. The entry of alanine is well described by Michaelis-Menten kinetics with a maximum influx ( J max ) of 1.76 μmol g −1 h −1 ±0.028 (SD) and a half-saturation constant ( K t ) of 33.70 μM ±1.15 (SD). Amino acids taken up from solution are distributed rapidly to the internal tissues of the animal. This is demonstrated for alanine and glutamate and for the amino acid analogues, cycloleucine and α-amino- n -butyric acid (ABA). HPLC analysis of the free amino acid pools of mantle, gill, adductor muscle and hemolymph of C. gigas demonstrates variability in total concentration and in details of FAA composition.
A reconsideration of the willoughby personality schedule with psychiatric inpatients

Although the Willoughby Personality Schedule appears to be widely used to assess interpersonal anxiety, there are few studies of its clinical validity or psychometric properties. The purpose of this study was to investigate the factor analytic structure of the Willoughby Schedule in an inpatient psychiatric population. It also explored the relationship of the Willoughby Personality Schedule to the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), the Gambrill-Richey Assertion Inventory and patient perception of treatment outcome. In contrast to three Willoughby Schedule factors previously reported in research with outpatients, six factors were found in this study. These were moderately correlated with scores on the BDI and the Assertion Inventory discomfort scale. Two Willoughby factors were related to the Assertion Inventory probability of assertive response scale and only one Willoughby factor was related to patient perception of treatment outcome. The overall results raise questions as to the usefulness of the Willoughby Schedule with inpatient populations.
The Relation of Partner Entrepreneurial Characteristics to Strategic Alliance Success: A Comparative US-China Study

Strategic alliances are most often entrepreneurial ventures. The task of finding an effective entrepreneurial multinational alliance partner involves identifying (1) entrepreneurial requirements in the situation under study; (2) ways to find, match and select partners that fit these requirements; and (3) ways to build an effective alliance management structure that suits all partners and strategic and operational business requirements. Based on work done in developing alliances and conducting executive workshops in China, and established entrepreneurship theory, this article identifies ways to improve chances of success when entering multinational strategic alliances in China through more effective partner selection, nurturing and management.
Effect of grain size on the distribution and transport of deep‐seated fluids and melts

Because permeability increases with the square of the grain size for a given fluid fraction, it is commonly assumed that porous flow of fluids and melts is more effective in coarse-grained domains of deep-seated rocks. This relative behavior is accurate, however, only as a description of two systems operating in isolation. We demonstrate that if coarse- and fine-grained domains are in chemical communication, then equilization of pore-wall curvature across the system results in concentration of fluid or melt in domains of finer grain size. Because of this localization of fluid, the permeability of the finer-grained domains will match or exceed that of domains with coarser grains. Fluid focussing due to differences in grain size has potentially important implications for grain-scale transport of metamorphic fluids — including those released from subducting slabs into the sheared mantle wedge — and also for partial melts in the mantle and deep crust.
A study of sustainable assessment theory in higher education tutorials

A study of sustainable assessment theory in nine tutorial courses at four colleges demonstrated that three long-term learning outcomes improved: Independence, Intellectual Maturity and Creativity. Eight of 10 traits associated with these outcomes were validated through internal reliability, faculty and student rubrics, and faculty case studies reporting pedagogic innovations and improvements of student abilities in self-assessment. The findings suggest that sustainable assessment theory should be applied using methods encompassing a strong commitment to equity, including shared criteria for long-term learning outcomes and faculty and student monitoring of student progress towards outcomes through periodic rubrics and reflective sessions.
Microbiology and Minimum Inhibitory Concentration Testing for Mycobacterium avium Complex Prophylaxis

The focus of the management of Mycobacterium avium disease in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected persons has shifted from treatment to prevention with the identification of effective prophylactic agents such as azithromycin, clarithromycin, and rifabutin. It is believed that M. avium disease is preceded by an ill-defined period of M. avium colonization of the respiratory tract or, probably more commonly, the gastrointestinal tract. It is most likely that disease occurs when the level and/or complexity (number of strains with perhaps different levels of virulence) of M. avium colonization reaches a critical threshold in combination with the development of a critical immunodeficiency, which places a patient at risk for infection. Indeed, the relationship between HIV infection and M. avium infection is unclear, and the combined effect of the two infections may influence the course and severity of each. The mechanism(s) of action of prophylactic agents for M. avium are also ill-defined, and the occurrence of breakthrough disease with strains of M. avium that are susceptible to the inhibitory effects of macrolides or rifabutin suggests that the subinhibitory effects of these agents may be important for a prophylactic effect. Nevertheless, a significant percentage of breakthrough does occur with strains that are resistant to clarithromycin (58%) or azithromycin (11%), and the rapid and accurate detection of these strains is important for the successful management of M. avium disease. Resistance to azithromycin has been defined as a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) ≥256 μg/mL, while resistance to clarithromycin has been defined as a MIC ≥32 μg/mL. The in vitro susceptibility of M. avium to azithromycin and clarithromycin can be reliably determined using a radiometric (Bactec) broth macrodilution assay. In addition, a molecular assay has been described that is both highly sensitive and specific for detecting mutations that are the primary cause of macrolide resistance.
AN OPTIMAL ALGORITHM FOR COMPUTING CENSUS FUNCTIONS IN MESSAGE-PASSING SYSTEMS

We consider a message-passing system of n processors, each of which initially holds one piece of data. The goal is to compute an associative and commutative census function f on the n distributed pieces of data and to make the result known to all processors. To perform the computation, processors communicate with each other by sending and receiving messages in specified communication rounds. We describe an optimal algorithm for this problem that requires the least number of communication rounds and that minimizes the time spent by any processor in sending and receiving messages.