cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Volatile organic compounds in variably aged carrion impacted by the presence of the primary colonizer, Cochliomyia macellaria (Diptera: Calliphoridae)

The attraction and colonization of vertebrate remains by carrion-associated arthropods are processes largely governed by olfaction. As remains decompose, they emit a bouquet of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which in part originate from endogenous and exogenous microbes surrounding the carcass or from the carcass itself. The composition and concentration of VOCs are influenced by the presence and abundance of microbial species and arthropods. Blowfly species, such as Cochliomyia macellaria, play a critical role in nutrient recycling and the decomposition process of carrion. Gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy analysis was used to identify and classify volatile emissions from insect-colonized (with C. macellaria) and uncolonized rat carcasses, as well as a standard Gainesville diet, over a 10-day period. There were significant differences in composition and abundance of compounds present in each treatment, with significant effects of time, and different compound composition between treatments. Notable indicator compounds included, but were not limited to, indole, dimethyl disulfide, and dimethyl trisulfide. A high compound richness, and a low compound diversity, was detected over the 10-day period. The indicator compounds detected across all treatments were found to be of microbial origin, highlighting the importance of microbes in decomposition processes and arthropod attraction to carrion. This study also discusses the significant impact of necrophagous arthropods to the VOC profile of carrion. The results of this study provide insight into the changes in decomposition VOCs over time, with an explanation of compounds in high concentration known to be attractive to carrion-colonizing arthropods.
Association between telemedicine and incidence of status epilepticus during the COVID-19 pandemic.

OBJECTIVE: We aimed to investigate the association between telemedicine and the incidence of status epilepticus (SE) in patients with epilepsy (PWE) during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic using a large population database in the United States. METHODS: We performed a retrospective analysis of a private, cloud-based healthcare platform (Explorys Inc., Cleveland, Ohio, USA). We compared each of the previously reported risk factors for SE, such as child, male, and refractory epilepsy, using the chi-square test or Fisher's exact test in two groups: PWE with SE or without SE. We determined whether telemedicine could be a risk factor for the incidence of SE using multivariate binary logistic regression analysis incorporating statistically significant variables in the chi-square test or Fisher's exact test (pâ¯<â¯0.05). Statistical significance was set at pâ¯<â¯0.05. RESULTS: We identified 1600 PWE with SE and 61,700 PWE without SE from May 2020 to May 2021. The proportion of children, males, refractory epilepsy, and telemedicine was higher in PWE with SE than in PWE without SE (children: 21.9% vs. 17.7%, pâ¯<â¯0.001; male: 52.5% vs. 48.2%, pâ¯=â¯0.001; refractory epilepsy: 20.6% vs. 8.2%, pâ¯<â¯0.001; telemedicine: 42.5% vs. 23.6%, pâ¯<â¯0.001). The multivariate binary logistic regression model identified four significant variables as follows: child (odds ratio [OR], 1.32; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.17-1.50), male (OR, 1.19; 95% CI, 1.07-1.31), refractory epilepsy (OR, 2.44; 95% CI, 2.15-2.77), and telemedicine (OR, 2.29; 95% CI, 2.07-2.54). CONCLUSION: Telemedicine might be associated with an increased risk of SE in PWE during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Differential gene expression patterns in Sorghum bicolor genotypes in response to high vapor pressure deficit

The ability of land plants to partially close their stomata in response to high vapor pressure deficit (VPD), called the limited transpiration trait, is a rare phenomenon in plants. The characteris...
Realism, Ethics and Secularism: Essays on Victorian Literature and Science

1. Introduction Part I. The Subject Broached: Otherness, Epistemology, and Ethics: 1. George Eliot and the hypothesis of reality Part II. Ethics Without God, or, Can 'Is' be 'Ought': 2. Is life worth living? 3. Ruskin and Darwin and the matter of matter 4. Scientific discourse as an alternative to faith 5. In defense of positivism 6. How science isn't literature: the importance of differences Part III. Literature, Secularity, and the Quest for Otherness: 7. Victorian realism 8. Dickens, secularism and agency 9. The heartbeat of the squirrel 10. Real toads in imaginary gardens, or vice versa.
X-Ray Fluorescence Spectrometry for Analysis of Fly Ash Column Leachates

An investigation was conducted to determine the suitability of X-ray fluorescence (XRF) for analyzing the complex mixture of elements in fly ash leachates. XRF analysis was found to provide reasonably accurate measurement with coefficients of variation ranging from 2 to 8% for most elements. Sources of error included interferences by stimulation of fluorescent emissions by strong secondary fluorescent radiation, overlap of emission peaks, and adsorption of fluorescent emission from one element by others. Standardization required preparation of complex mixtures of elements similar in composition to that of leachates. This required considerable preparation time and effort, but once the standards were stored in instrument memory, analysis for as many as 30 elements in leachate specimens required only about 60 min. This study showed that XRF potentially is a valuable tool for analysis of the complex elemental mixtures in fly ash leachates, but additional work is needed to reduce error and increase instrument sensitivity.
Multiple mechanisms for choline transport and utilization in Haemophilus influenzae.

Summary Haemophilus influenzae obtains choline from either its growth medium or host cell membrane lipids and expresses it on its lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in the form of phosphorylcholine (ChoP), which contributes to its pathogenesis by mimicry of host cell molecules. Two genes (licB and betT) revealed by whole genomic analysis as encoding potential choline transporters were tested for their role in LPS-ChoP synthesis. The betT gene in H. influenzae is similar to betT in Escherichia coli, which functions in choline transport for the generation of betaine in osmoprotection. The licB gene has homology to bacterial permeases including betT and is encoded in the lic1 locus, which is essential for the expression of LPS-ChoP. In the presence of high concentrations of choline, neither licB nor betT were necessary for expression of LPS-ChoP raising the possibility that other unidentified choline uptake mechanisms may exist in this species. However, under choline limiting conditions, including growth in human nasal airway surface fluid, the licB, but not betT, gene was required for choline transport and synthesis of LPS-ChoP suggesting that LicB functions as a high affinity choline permease. The betT, but not licB, gene was shown to function in osmoprotection in H. influenzae, similar to the role of betT in E. coli. Further analysis demonstrated growth condition dependent differences in the regulation of transcription of the licB and betT genes. We conclude that H. influenzae may have multiple mechanisms for choline uptake and distinct pathways for choline utilization in LPS-ChoP biosynthesis and osmoregulation.
Cardiovascular Disease Is Associated with Greater Incident Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate Decline in the Oldest Old: The Cardiovascular Health Study All Stars Study

Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and its sulfated ester (DHEAS) are the most-abundant sex steroid hormones that the adrenal glands produce. Because 99% of DHEA is sulfated before it leaves the adrenals, DHEAS represents the majority of circulating hormone in the body.1 DHEAS peaks at age 20 and declines rapidly after age 25.2 By age 80, DHEAS levels are 10% to 20% of those in younger individuals.3 This strong correlation suggests that DHEAS could be an etiological or nonetiological biomarker of aging. Previous studies have investigated the outcomes that DHEAS predicts and sought to define its association with mortality independent of age. Data supportive of this are conflicting.4 Earlier studies reported no association with mortality in women, whereas later studies indicated that higher DHEAS is associated with lower all-cause mortality and cardiovascular-specific mortality in men.4 More-recent reports indicate that low DHEAS is associated with greater mortality in men and women.5–7 One study found that low and high DHEAS each confer greater mortality in disabled older women (U-shaped association) and that the slope and variability of DHEAS change, rather than baseline DHEAS level, is associated with greater mortality.8,9 These reports suggest that a disordered neuro-endocrine axis or altered homeostasis increases mortality rather than a unidirectional shift in hormone levels. Despite these previous findings, the cause of DHEAS decline remains unknown. Identifying predictors of DHEAS change would help clarify whether DHEAS reflects normal aging, certain pathophysiological processes, or extreme longevity and thus help redefine DHEAS as a potential biomarker of aging. Perhaps DHEAS decline is a consequence rather than a predictor of age-related decline. It was hypothesized that specific age-related factors would be associated with greater or lesser DHEAS decline. To define predictors and correlates of DHEAS change, DHEAS change was measured in the Cardiovascular Health Study All Stars (CHS-All Stars) cohort.
Drug effects on catalase activity in the mammalian cell. The role of the cell in drug action.

Abstract Porphyria-inducing derivatives of allylisopropylacetic acid depress catalase activity in rat liver in vivo. The availability of the mammalian cell culture technique has made it possible to investigate the action of these drugs on catalase activity of cells of a single type isolated in vitro from the influence of cells of other types. This report describes the results of studies of the effect of allylisopropylacetylcarbamide (AIC) and allylisopropylacetamide (AIA) on two mammalian cell lines derived from carcinomas of widely differing tissues: RPMI 2402, from the intestine in the hamster, and H4-II-E-C3 cells, derived from a minimal-deviation hepatoma in the rat. It has been shown that 7·10 × 10−3 M AIA, sufficient to inhibit the growth of both these cell lines by 40–50 per cent, exerted two different effects on their catalase activity. In the case of the 2402 cells, it provoked a continued increase in the specific activity of this enzyme over 4 days of growth to a value up to 70 per cent greater than that of the first day. With the H4 cells, however, the presence of the drug caused a progressive decrease in the specific activity, as it did in the rat in vivo, to a mean level that was 65 per cent of the control by the fourth or fifth day. These observations reflect the multiplicity of enzyme patterns seen in the studies of Potter et al. and of Rechcigl et al. with a series of minimal-deviation hepatomas. They support the hypothesis that the specificity of drug action may reside in part in the cell receptor and may not be entirely a property of the agent itself.
Socratic Epistemology: Presuppositions and Other Limitations of Inquiry

Presuppositions as a Crucial Limitation of Inquiry Socrates was right. All rational knowledge-seeking can be conceptualized as a questioning process, with question–answer steps interspersed with logical inference steps. “Rational” here means “capable of epistemological evaluation.” This is what I have argued in Hintikka 1998. Here I will not review the arguments for this view of “inquiry as inquiry,” as I have called it, but instead examine some of its implications. In any case, I am not the first philosopher by a long shot to defend the omnipresence of questioning in our knowledge-seeking. Aristotle modeled both his methodology and his logic on the different aspects of the Socratic questioning process, or elenchus . One of the better known—albeit not one of the best appreciated—later representatives of similar views is R. G. Collingwood, who went even further and asserted that “[e]very statement that anybody ever makes is made in answer to a question.” (Collingwood 1940, p. 23.) Or is Collingwood perhaps merely echoing Aristotle according to whom all the propositions used as dialectical premises originate from questions? (See Topics I, x.) In any case, Collingwood had something of an ulterior motive in conceiving of all propositions as answers to questions. This ulterior motive is a legitimate one. He wanted in this way to subject to philosophical examination the limitations that characterize a certain line of inquiry or the thought of some individual thinker or even the intellectual stance of an entire era.
Computer Simulation of “Special” Grain Boundaries in Metals and Ionic Materials

In recent years a set of lattice statics computer codes has been developed which permits one to determine the energies, structures, and point-defect properties of grain boundaries in metals and predominantly ionic ceramic materials. In contrast to metals, long-range Coulomb forces between the ions have to be considered in ionic bicrystals. The selection criteria for the identification of “special” (i.e., low-energy) grain boundaries (GBs) is discussed with particular emphasis on (a) the role of the GB plane, (b) the influence of the planar unit-cell area, and (c) the effect of the interatomic potential on the predicted energies and structures of GBs in metals and ionic materials.
The Evolution of Online Investment Banking

When companies are considering an IPO they must first evaluate the financial issues to decide whether it is a viable financing option, and second they must identify which channel(s) they wish to use to distribute the IPO. In this article we focus on the second decision.
The China Girl on the Margins of Film

The “China Girl” has appeared in more films than any actress, but she is almost never seen. Used in industrial film laboratories since the late 1920s, this image-nearly always a woman positioned next to color swatches and patches of white, gray, and black—is clipped to the leader of a film reel and used throughout the processing, developing, and printing of photochemical film to determine the desired exposure, density, and ideal appearance of the human body. This article addresses the China Girl's essential but often overlooked role in film history, specifically as it pertains to questions of race, gender, and visibility. It also surveys the work of various experimental filmmakers, including Owen Land, Morgan Fisher, Barbara Hammer, Sandra Gibson and Luis Recoder, Cecile Fontaine, and Mark Toscano, who have used the China Girl image to explore issues of celluloid materiality, the behind-the-scenes workings of the film industry, and the often marginal role of women both in front of and behind the camera.
A coupled states calculation of accurate quantum rate constants for H + H2

In this article we present the results of converged quantum reactivescattering calculations of thermal rate constants for H + H2 using the Liu-Siegbahn-Truhlar-Horowitz (LSTH) potential energy surface. These calculations are based on the coupled states (CS) approximation wherein rotational states having different body fixed angular momentum projection quantum numbers are decoupled. By comparision with accurate coupled channel results on the Porter-Karplus No. 2 (PK2) potential surface, we estimate that the maximumerror in thermal rate constants arising from both this approximation and from other numerical approximations in the calculation is less than 25%. We also show that the sum over projection quantum numbers Ω associated with the CS calculation may be approximated quite accurately in terms of the Ω = 0 rate constants by assuming that the |Ω| > 0 rate constants differ from Ω = 0 by a shift in activation energy, which reflects the vibrationally adiabatic bending energy associated with each Ω. Comparison of the LSTH rate constants with experiment indicates average errors of 16% and 24% relative to the two modern measurementsof the rate constants for H + H2. These errors are reduced to 18% and 9% if the CS rate constants are multiplied by exp(0.0065 eV/kT). The expected error (based on recent quantum structure calculations) associated with the 0.425 eV barrier of theLSTH potential surface is 0.0065 eV. Overall, the agreement of either the LSTH or modified LSTH rate constants with experiment is within the 32% maximum disagreement between the two experimental measurements at all butthe lowest temperature that has been studied. Comparison of our CS rate constants with the results from simpler theories is considered using both the LSTH and PK2 potential surfaces. The best overall agreement is with transition state theories that use accurate dynamical methods to calculate tunnelling factors. These include reduced dimensionality quantum dynamics methods and variational transition state theory using either the Marcus-Coltrin or least action ground-state tunnelling paths. Comparison with the results of quasiclassical trajectory calculations indicates substantial errors at low temperatures.
The Multi-Period Cost-Benefit Rule with Mobile Capital and Distorted Labor

Lind (1990) argues that capital mobility should be incorporated into the discussions of the social discount rate. He finds that when labor market distortion is ignored in that context, the appropriate discount rate for both project benefits and costs is the net rate of return, and the gross rate of return does not enter into the rule. Taking into account the labor market distortion, we find that a project’s impacts on government receipts should be incorporated into its evaluation and that costs should be multiplied by a marginal cost of funds (MCF) before being compared with benefits. Although the net rate continues to be the correct discount rate to use, the gross rate enters into the rule by having effects on the project’s receipt impacts and the MCF.
Positive almost periodic solutions of some delay integral equations

The delay integral equation x(t) = ∝tt − τ f(s, x(s)) ds which arises in models for the spread of epidemics, is studied with the aim of establishing the existence of positive almost periodic solutions for large values of τ when f(t, x) is uniformly almost periodic in t for x in compact subsets of R+. Under reasonable assumptions on f it is shown that there exist two positive numbers τ∗ τ0 they do exist. A priori bounds on the set of positive solutions and uniqueness results are also obtained.
Comparing patterns of sedimentation in some modern and ancient submarine canyons

Abstract In this study, an attempt is made to compare probable submarine canyon deposits of Tertiary age well exposed in the French Maritime Alps with the Pleistocene-Holocene sediment fill of the Gully submarine canyon on the continental margin off Nova Scotia, Canada. Similarities in geometry, stratification, texture, and assemblages of sedimentary structures in these fossil and modern deposits are remarkable. A comparison of modern and fossil analogs provides marine geologists with an additional tool for better interpreting the mechanism of sediment dispersal in modern canyons which remain logistically difficult to study, and enables stratigraphers to recognize submarine valley deposits preserved in the fossil record.
Stranger in a strange land: roles of glycogen turnover in adipose tissue metabolism

Triglyceride storage in adipose tissue comprises the principal energy reserve in mammals. Additionally glucose can be stored as glycogen in the fed state, primarily in liver and skeletal muscle, for mobilization during times of energy deficit. Adipose tissue also contains glycogen stores albeit at very low levels. The physiological role of glycogen metabolism in adipocytes remains unclear. However, both classical literature and more recent work demonstrate that the dynamic regulation of adipose glycogen may serve as an energy sensing modality in the coordination of glucose and lipid metabolism in adipose tissue, especially during the fasted to fed transition.
The Frozen Potential Approach to Separate the Photocurrent and Diode Injection Current in Solar Cells

The principle of superposition is commonly utilized in the analysis of current transport under dark and light conditions for several different types of solar cells. However, this principle assumes that the photocurrent is voltage independent and that the diode injection current is generation independent, which restricts its validity. Indeed, the superposition principle cannot be applied to most thin-film solar cells because the above mentioned assumptions are not generally valid. In order to address this issue, a novel numerical modeling approach is described that allows independent computation of the photocurrent and of the diode injection current as components of the total current under illumination. Then, using several test cases, where the principle of superposition breaks down, the usefulness of this modeling approach is demonstrated.
Vascular endothelial growth factor receptor Flt-1 negatively regulates developmental blood vessel formation by modulating endothelial cell division

Mice lacking the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) receptor flt-1 die of vascular overgrowth, and we are interested in how flt-1 normally prevents this outcome. Our results support a model whereby aberrant endothelial cell division is the cellular mechanism resulting in vascular overgrowth, and they suggest that VEGF-dependent endothelial cell division is normally finely modulated by flt-1 to produce blood vessels. Flt-12/2 embryonic stem cell cultures had a 2-fold increase in endothelial cells by day 8, and the endothelial cell mitotic index was significantly elevated before day 8. Flt-1 mutant embryos also had an increased endothelial cell mitotic index, indicating that aberrant endothelial cell division occurs in vivo in the absence of flt-1 . The flt-1 mutant vasculature of the cultures was partially rescued by mitomycin C treatment, consistent with a cell division defect in the mutant background. Analysis of cultures at earlier time points showed no significant differences until day 5, when flt-1 mutant cultures had increased b-galactosidase1 cells, indicating that the expansion of flt-1 responsive cells occurs after day 4. Mitomycin C treatment blocked this early expansion, suggesting that aberrant division of angioblasts and/or endothelial cells is a hallmark of the flt-1 mutant phenotype throughout vascular development. Consistent with this model is the finding that expansion of platelet and endothelial cell adhesion molecule1 and VE-cadherin1 vascular cells in the flt-1 mutant background first occurs between day 5 and day 6. Taken together, these data show that flt-1 normally modulates vascular growth by controlling the rate of endothelial cell division both in vitro and in vivo. (Blood. 2002;99:2397-2407)
Avitaminosis K and the Lack of Heart Lesions in Poultry

Abstract Poultry susceptibility to avitaminosis K-induced granulomatous endocardial lesions was studied in broiler and layer chicks. They were fed either a practical corn-soybean meal diet with and without added vitamin K (vit K), or a 61% raw sugar-isolated soybean protein diet (RS-IS) with no added vit K for 10 weeks. Heart lesions were not found in birds fed any of the experimental diets. Mortality, body weight gain, and prothrombin time did not differ significantly between birds fed the practical diet regardless of vit K supplementation. In contrast, the RS-IS diet significantly increased mortality, prothrombin time, and markedly decreased growth. Furthermore, more than a third of the birds fed the high sugar diet had subcutaneous edema, which resembled exudative diathesis. Compared with swine, poultry are apparently less susceptible to granulomatous endocardial lesions induced by a vit K deficiency.
The politics of efficiencies, the efficiencies of politics: States vs. markets in environmental protection

In The Political Limits of Environmental Regulation: Tracking the Unicorn, Bruce Yandle identifies some of the key weaknesses of federal environmental regulation, including its regressive effects, its tendency to better serve selected political interests than the cause of environmental protection, and the EPA's failure to follow sensible priorities. Additional problems may also be cited, including the tendency to exclude citizens’ voices from deliberations regarding the degree of pollution control. But Yandle's conclusion regarding the likely superiority of decentralized and market‐sensitive alternatives to centralized regulation is overstated. Any such alternatives necessarily will continue to be grounded in relatively uniform national standards. Moreover, in the context of American political economy, market‐based controls would continue to deny many citizens real voice and choice. The quest continues to be for the combination of controls that best preserves both the environment and liberty.
Maximizing area-constrained partial fault tolerance in reconfigurable logic

As field programmable gate arrays find increasing use in aerospace and terrestrial applications, a number of methods of fault tolerance have been developed to ensure reliable operation. Most current techniques output the required circuit area based on the desired level of fault tolerance with some techniques increasing the area by over 200%. In deployed systems, however, the FPGA is fixed and the area available for adding fault tolerance is limited. As a consequence, protecting an updated, larger circuit using the same fault tolerance scheme may result in a design that no longer fits in the deployed FPGA. This situation dictates the need for techniques that can trade fault tolerance for lower area penalties. Area constrained approaches accept available hardware resources as an input and outputs a partially fault tolerant circuit. The open question with these approaches is selecting the circuit subset to protect which will maximize the fault coverage. This paper presents several methodologies for selecting subsets and analyzes their performances on several circuits based on fault coverage provided and additional delay.
Nuclear Data Sheets for (odd-A) A = 249 through A = 263

Abstract Experimental data pertaining to the nuclear structure nuclei with all mass numbers A = 249 through A = 263 have been compiled and evaluated (the even mass chains, A = 246 through A = 262 were published in Nucl. Data Sheets 32, 87 (1981)). In many cases where data are lacking, systematics developed by 72E121 were used to obtain the needed values.
A High-Resolution, High-Speed, Superconducting Tunnel Junction X-ray Spectrometer for Synchrotron Science

X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) is widely used at every synchrotron to characterize the electronic structure of materials. For XAS on dilute samples, the partial fluorescence yield (PFY) from the element of interest is typically recorded as a measure of absorption. This requires an X-ray detector with sufficient solid angle coverage to capture as much of the weak fluorescence signal as possible, with sufficient energy resolution to separate this fluorescence from the X-ray background due to other elements in the sample, and with sufficient speed to handle the total X-ray fluorescence at modern synchrotron beam lines.
Preparation and structure of [TPyA=tris(2-pyridylmethyl)amine] possessing terminal and bridging fluorides

Abstract Reaction of [CrIII(NCMe)6](BF4)3 with tris(2-pyridylmethyl)amine (TPyA) in MeCN results in a fluoride abstraction from BF 4 - yielding the formation of the unexpected [ Cr 2 III F 3 ( TPyA ) 2 ] ( BF 4 ) 3 that has a linear, symmetric F− bridging two CrIII ions with each CrIII ion also having a terminal fluoride. Antiferromagnetic coupling is observed between the two CrIII ions with a J/kB of −19 K (−13 cm−1) (H = −2JSa · Sb), and this is an order of magnitude stronger than expected for two bent fluoride linkages.
The early formation of the corpus callosum: a light and electron microscopic study in foetal and neonatal rats

A light and electron microscopic study of the developing corpus callosum was carried out in foetal and neonatal rats in order to determine the mode of growth of the earliest callosal axons across the midline and to investigate the potential role played by non-neuronal cells during the formation of the tract. The axons of the corpus callosum first cross the midline between the 18th and 19th days of gestation by traversing the anterodorsal aspect of the pre-existing hippocampal commissure. Prior to the appearance of the callosal axons at the midline, there is an aggregation of astrocyte processes anterior and dorsal to the hippocampal commissure. Careful examination of these processes in different planes of section shows that they are not organized in any obvious way that would provide a clearly defined path for the growing axons; nor are there any preferentially oriented extracellular spaces at the midline. No specialized membrane contacts could be seen between non-neuronal cell processes and the early callosal axons. Thus, there is no overt morphological evidence for an active role of non-neuronal cells in axon guidance in the initial formation of the corpus callosum. The development of the corpus callosum is accompanied by the formation of a temporary cavum septi pellucidi, which is always closed to the subarachnoid space. The cavum persists during the first postnatal week, after which time it becomes populated by cells of the lateral septal nuclei. Macrophages are present within the cavum and may play a role in its formation. Macrophages are also found within parts of the corpus callosum. No obvious degeneration of axons is seen in the corpus callosum during its early development.
Bilinear programming and structured stochastic games

One-step algorithms are presented for two classes of structured stochastic games, namely, those with additive rewards and transitions and those which have switching controllers. Solutions to such classes of games under the average reward criterion can be derived from optimal solutions to appropriate bilinear programs. The validity of using bilinear programming as a solution method follows from two preliminary theorems, the first of which is a complete classification of undiscounted stochastic games with optimal stationary strategies. The second of these preliminary theorems relaxes the conditions of the classification theorem for certain classes of stochastic games and provides the basis for the bilinear programming results. Analogous results hold for the discounted stochastic games with the above special structures.
Effect of sampling method on diatom composition for use in monitoring and assessing large river condition

Multiplediatomsamplingmethods existfortheassessment ofloticsystemsbutfewcomparisonsoftheirapplicationefficaciesin monitoring have been conducted. In this study 60 sites were sampled on four large, non-wadeable rivers in Ohio and Kentucky, USA, which varied in depth, flow rate, surrounding land use and hydrologic modification. Four algae sampling methods were tested: three methods U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program (EMAP), U.S. Geological Survey (USGS QUAL and USGS QUAN) collected algae from rocks, debris and sediment in the littoral zonealonga 1‐2kmreach, whileone method (USGSPHYTO)consisted of threecross-riverphytoplankton grabsamples collected from a boat. Physical and chemical data were also collected. Little difference in diatom assemblage composition was found among the EMAP, QUAL and QUAN methods. Although compositionally similar, the PHYTO method collected a substantial proportion of relatively unique diatoms compared to the littoral zone methods. Two disturbancegradientswere calculated, one based on 1km upstream land usewithin a 500mbuffer,and theother based on principal component analysis dimension reduction of measured water parameters (PCAWQ). Metrics, generally indicators of eutrophication, were calculated for each sampling method and correlated with the disturbance gradients. After Bonferroni corrections, the EMAP method had six metrics correlated with the PCAWQ, while the PHYTO and QUAL methods each had four correlated metrics. Two QUAN metrics were correlated with the PCAWQ. Few metrics were correlated with the land use measure of disturbance. While the EMAP method had the most correlated metrics, this method, along with QUAL and QUAN methods are time and labour intensive (>1h), relative to the phytoplankton method (<20min). Resource managers may desire to weigh the benefits of two additional metrics with the EMAP method versus the costs associated with increased sampling time and effort. Published in 2007 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Conserved serines in simian immunodeficiency virus capsid are required for virus budding.

Abstract The simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) capsid protein (CA), a constituent of the Pr55 Gag polyprotein, is phosphorylated in virions but not in virus-producing cells (Rue, S.M., Roos, J.W., Tarwater, P.M., Clements, J.E., Barber, S.A., 2005. Phosphorylation and proteolytic cleavage of gag proteins in budded simian immunodeficiency virus. J. Virol. 79 (4), 2484–2492.). Using phosphoamino acid analysis of CA, we show that serine is the primary phosphate acceptor. A series of substitution mutants of serines in the CA domain of Pr55 Gag were constructed in the infectious viral clone SIVmac239. These virus mutants were examined for defects in virus replication and virion infectivity, release, and morphology, as well as alterations in phosphorylation of CA-containing proteins. Although the virus mutants exhibited a number of replication defects, none of these defects could be directly attributed to aberrant CA phosphorylation. A novel defect was a block in early budding, which was common among several virus mutants with substitutions in the CA N terminus. Together, these results indicate that certain residues in the CA N terminus are crucial for early budding events.
VAPOR PHASE SYNTHESIS OF AL-DOPED TITANIA POWDERS

The role of aluminum as dopant in gas phase synthesis of titania powders was experimentally investigated in an aerosol flow reactor between 1300 and 1700 K. Titania was produced by vapor phase oxidation of titanium tetrachloride in the presence of dopant aluminum trichloride vapor. The presence of aluminum altered the particle morphology from polyhedral to irregular crystals. Energy dispersive analysis and transmission electron microscopy indicated that the powders were mixtures of crystalline titania and amorphous alumina. Analysis by XPS indicated significant enrichment of aluminum on the particle surface. Some aluminum titanate (up to 17% by volume) was formed at 1700 K when a high concentration of AlCl3 was used (AlCl3/TiCl4 ≥ 0.07). Measurements of lattice parameters by x-ray diffraction indicated that aluminum formed a solid solution in titania. While titania synthesized in the absence of aluminum was about 90% anatase, the introduction of aluminum resulted in pure rutile at AlCl3/TiCl4 = 0.07. The effects of aluminum on titania phase composition and morphology are explained by the creation of oxygen vacancies in the titania crystallites and by the enhancement of the sintring rate of titania grains.
Structures of purine 2'-deoxyribosyltransferase, substrate complexes, and the ribosylated enzyme intermediate at 2.0 A resolution.

The structure of class I N-deoxyribosyltransferase from Lactobacillus helveticus was determined by X-ray crystallography. Unlike class II N-deoxyribosyltransferases, which accept either purine or pyrimidine deoxynucleosides, class I enzymes are specific for purines as both the donor and acceptor base. Both class I and class II enzymes are highly specific for deoxynucleosides. The class I structure reveals similarities with the previously determined class II enzyme from Lactobacillus leichmanni [Armstrong, S. A., Cook, W. J., Short, S. A., and Ealick, S. E. (1996) Structure 4, 97−107]. The specificity of the class I enzyme for purine deoxynucleosides can be traced to a loop (residues 48−62), which shields the active site in the class II enzyme. In the class I enzyme, the purine base itself shields the active site from the solvent, while the smaller pyrimidine base cannot. The structure of the enzyme with a bound ribonucleoside shows that the nucleophilic oxygen atom of Glu101 hydrogen bonds to the O2‘ atom...
Experimental Design Interrogation of Network Simulation Models of U.S. Army Command and Control Centers

Using a task network computer simulation previously developed by the U.S. Army to investigate workload conditions in a command and control center, this project developed new methodologies to use computer simulations to predict conditions for optimal human performance. By using an experimental design to interrogate the model to see what the decision makers in the work team deemed to be important, predictions were made about how the work domain could be optimized for the most efficient human performance. An augmented fractional-factorial design was developed that allowed an analysis of the main effect for each independent variable along with predictions of higher order components that might exist in each main effect. A major study finding was the extent to which battalion commanders focused their attention on establishing and maintaining situational awareness during combat operations and the need to present information to the commander in a way that supported rather than detracted from situation understanding.
The Collision of Public Policy with Belief-Based Values

In his classic treatise on Civil Service reform, Woodrow Wil son defined the scope of administrative theory by defining the proper scope of administrative study: "It is the object of admin istrative study to discover, first, what government may properly and successfully do, and, secondly, how it can do these proper things with the utmost possible efficiency and at the least possi ble cost either of money or of energy."1 To support his principle, Wilson identified three periods of growth and argued that all sophisticated governing systems either had experienced or would experience them in order to manage the society they were charged to govern. First, nations experienced absolute rule, with governments oriented toward an individual authority. Then, nations tended, as part of the natural growth pattern, to dispense with absolute rulers in favor of popular control. With power diffused throughout the pop ulation, however, administration suffered, and some form of compact relationship became necessary to stabilize social orga nizations. Such compacts eventually took the form of a constitu tion. On Wilson's viewpoint, this middle step of nation-building was a mixed blessing. Any measure a society gained in liberty and shared authority was inversely proportional to the amount of efficiency possible in administering it. Wilson argued: Once a nation has embarked in the business of manufacturing constitu tions, it finds it exceedingly difficult to close out that business and open for the public a bureau of skilled, economical administration. There seems to be no end to the tinkering of constitutions. Your ordinary constitution will last you hardly ten years without repairs or additions; and the time of ad ministrative detail comes late.2
Adolescent social anxiety as an outcome of inhibited temperament in childhood.

ABSTRACT Objective Chess and Thomas suggested that temperament might make a contribution to social phobia and other forms of extreme social anxiety. This study provides the first investigation of the outcomes in adolescents who had been inhibited (subdued to and avoidant of novelty) or uninhibited (approaching novelty) in the second year of life, utilizing both direct interview and direct observation. Method Seventy-nine subjects, aged 13 years, who had been classified as inhibited or uninhibited in the second year were assessed with both standardized interview and direct observation. Results There was a significant association between earlier classification of a child as inhibited and generalized social anxiety at adolescence, but no association with specific fears, separation anxiety, or performance anxiety. The adolescents who were classified as socially anxious made fewer spontaneous comments than those without social anxiety; no relation was seen between any other type of fear and the number of spontaneous comments. Adolescent girts who had been inhibited as toddlers were more likely to be impaired by generalized social anxiety than boys. Conclusions The interview and observational data indicate that important aspects of an inhibited temperament are preserved from the second year of life to early adolescence, which predispose an adolescent to social anxiety. J. Am. Acad. Child Adolesc. Psychiatry , 1999, 38(8):1008–1015.
Concentration of prostaglandins F in uterine venous plasma of anesthetized mares during the estrous cycle and early pregnancy.

Abstract Prostaglandins F were quantitated by radioimmunoassay in uterine venous plasma of anesthetized mares on day 7 of estrus, days 2, 6, 10, 14 or 18 of diestrus and days 10, 14 or 18 of pregnancy. The PGF concentration was greater (P
Treating emotion dysregulation in a couples context: a pilot study of a couples skills group intervention.

This article reports the development of a couple-based intervention in which at least one partner had experienced chronic difficulties in emotion regulation, operationalized as having participated in a yearlong dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) skills training group. Integrating dialectical behavior therapy and cognitive-behavioral couple therapy, this group intervention taught couples emotion regulation, communication, and problem-solving skills, and led them through an exploration of how strong feelings affect and are affected by their relationship. The effects of treatment were evaluated in terms of relationship satisfaction and individual well-being. Sizeable treatment effects were found in several domains, including a reduction in DBT graduates’ depressive symptoms and emotion dysregulation, and an increase in their partners’ relationship satisfaction and confidence in their graduate spouses’ ability to regulate emotions.
Comment on the carbon-hydrogen stretching region of vibrational raman spectra of phospholipids

The broad, environmentally sensitive 2935-2910 cm-1 feature in the vibrational Raman spectra of phospholipids originates primarily from methylene symmetric carbon-hydrogen (C-H) stretching modes. For ordered acyl chains exhibiting local C2h symmetry at low temperatures, the infrared active methylene C-H asymmetric stretching modes become increasingly apparent at higher temperatures in the Raman spectrum as intramolecular chain disorder (trans-gauche isomerization) leads to a loss of chain symmetry. The 2935 cm-1 shoulder, assigned to the acyl chain methyl group C-H symmetric stretching vibration, is difficult to distinguish as a separate spectral transition in the chain disordered state. An ordering of lipid fluidity for several phospholipids is presented in terms of the intensities of features in the 3000-2800 cm-1 region with particular emphasis upon the 2935-2910 cm-1 contour.
Cytochrome P450 2E1 contributes to ethanol‐induced fatty liver in mice

Cytochrome P450 2E1 (CYP2E1) is suggested to play a role in alcoholic liver disease, which includes alcoholic fatty liver, alcoholic hepatitis, and alcoholic cirrhosis. In this study, we investigated whether CYP2E1 plays a role in experimental alcoholic fatty liver in an oral ethanol-feeding model. After 4 weeks of ethanol feeding, macrovesicular fat accumulation and accumulation of triglyceride in liver were observed in wild-type mice but not in CYP2E1-knockout mice. In contrast, free fatty acids (FFAs) were increased in CYP2E1-knockout mice but not in wild-type mice. CYP2E1 was induced by ethanol in wild-type mice, and oxidative stress induced by ethanol was higher in wild-type mice than in CYP2E1-knockout mice. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha (PPARalpha), a regulator of fatty acid oxidation, was up-regulated in CYP2E1-knockout mice fed ethanol but not in wild-type mice. A PPARalpha target gene, acyl CoA oxidase, was decreased by ethanol in wild-type but not in CYP2E1-knockout mice. Chlormethiazole, an inhibitor of CYP2E1, lowered macrovesicular fat accumulation, inhibited oxidative stress, and up-regulated PPARalpha protein level in wild-type mice fed ethanol. The introduction of CYP2E1 to CYP2E1-knockout mice via an adenovirus restored macrovesicular fat accumulation. These results indicate that CYP2E1 contributes to experimental alcoholic fatty liver in this model and suggest that CYP2E1-derived oxidative stress may inhibit oxidation of fatty acids by preventing up-regulation of PPARalpha by ethanol, resulting in fatty liver.
Interaction of sample dimension and sample-comparison mapping on pigeons' performance of delayed conditional discriminations

Coding strategies developed in the acquisition of delayed conditional discriminations can be assessed by independently manipulating sample and comparison memory load. Two stimulus dimensions that can affect memory load were examined: Number of stimuli in the sample and comparison sets (two vs. four) was manipulated between groups in a 2×2 design, and discriminability of sample and comparison stimuli (hues vs. lines) was manipulated between counterbalancing subgroups and within subjects. The results indicated large effects of sample discriminability but not of comparison discriminability, evidence for retrospective coding. There was also a significant effect of number of stimuli in the comparison set (although only with hard-to-discriminate samples) but not of number of stimuli in the sample set, evidence for prospective coding. These findings suggest evidence for retrospective coding with easy-to-discriminate samples, independently of number of stimuli in the comparison set, and evidence for prospective coding with hard-to-discriminate samples.
The effects of age upon the main nucleus of the inferior olive in the human.

The neuronal population of the main inferior olivary nucleus was determined by complete cell counts of this structure in 18 human subjects of various ages. The age groups represent a progression from an immature infant of 23 weeks gestation to an 89 year old. The cell population was found to be lowest in the most immature infant (233,360), increasing in number up to the time of birth, the neo-natal values being 327,330 for the three day old and 380,460 for the three month old. While minor cell fluctuations were noted in the specimens selected from the first to ninth decades, all values were relatively close to a post-natal mean value of 363,784. A low value of 317,600 was found in an 82 year old and a high value of 405,580 in a 73 year old. Within comparable age groups the cell populations showed a similar pattern of distribution throughout the length of the nucleus. The structural evolution of the inferior olive during the lifespan is characterized by a period of growth from a calculated length of 7.1 mm before nine years of age to the 14.5 mm calculated average length for all the specimens in the series beyond the nine year stage.
Does antigenic overload exist? The role of multiple immunizations in infants ☆

Many parents are concerned that the administration of multiple vaccines will overwhelm and weaken the immune system of infants and children and lead to deleterious effects. This article attempts to provide healthcare practitioners with information that can be used to allayparental concerns regarding routine childhood vaccinations. The following issues are discussed: (1) the development of the infant immune system and differences between adult and infant immune systems that impact childhood vaccinations, (2) the role of combination vaccines and potential complicationsoftheiruse,(3)thecapacityoftheimmune systemtodealeffectively with multiple vaccines, (4) the risk for infection after vaccination, and (5) the response to vaccines during illness. Background Simultaneous administration of multiple vaccines to infants and children is becoming routine. The large number of recommended childhood vaccines necessitates combining them to ensure that children receive all their shots. In the 1920s, the only vaccination was inoculation with vaccinia to prevent smallpox. By 1985,