cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Comparing streambed light availability and canopy cover in streams with old-growth versus early-mature riparian forests in western Oregon

Light availability strongly influences stream primary production, water temperatures and resource availability at the base of stream food webs. In headwater streams, light is regulated primarily by the riparian forest, but few studies have evaluated the influence of riparian forest stand age and associated structural differences on light availability. In this study, we evaluated canopy cover and streambed light exposure in four second-order streams within paired reaches of primary old-growth versus second- growth mature riparian forests. Stand age class was used as a proxy here for canopy complexity. We estimated stream canopy cover using a spherical densiometer. Local streambed light exposure was quantified and compared within and between reaches using fluorescein dye photo- degradation. Reaches with complex old-growth riparian forests had frequent canopy gaps which lead to greater stream light availability compared to adjacent reaches with simpler second-growth riparian forests. We quantified light exposure at relatively high resolution (every 5 m) and also found greater variability in stream light along the reaches with old-growth riparian forests in three of the four streams. Canopy gaps were particularly important in cre- ating variable light within and between reaches. This work demonstrates the importance of the age, developmental stage, and structure of riparian forests in controlling stream light. The highly variable nature of light on the stream benthos also highlights the value of multiple measurements of light or canopy structure when quantifying stream light.
The crystal structure of GCAP3 suggests molecular mechanism of GCAP-linked cone dystrophies

Absorption of light by visual pigments initiates the phototransduction pathway that results in degradation of the intracellular pool of cyclic-GMP (cGMP). This hydrolysis promotes the closing of cGMP-gated cation channels and consequent hyperpolarization of rod and cone photoreceptor cell membranes. Guanylate cyclase-activating proteins (GCAPs) are a family of proteins that regulate retinal guanylate cyclase (GC) activity in a Ca 2+ -dependent manner. At high [Ca 2+ ], typical of the dark–adapted state (∼500 nM), GCAPs inhibit retinal GCs. At the low [Ca 2+ ] (∼50 nM) that occurs after the closing of cGMP-gated channels, GCAPs activate retinal GCs to replenish dark-state cGMP levels. Here, we report the crystal structure of unmyristoylated human GCAP3 with Ca 2+ bound. GCAP3 is an EF-hand Ca 2+ -binding protein with Ca 2+ bound to EF2, 3 and 4, while Ca 2+ binding to EF-hand 1 is disabled. GCAP3 contains two domains with the EF-hand motifs arranged in a tandem array similar to GCAP2 and members of the recoverin subfamily of Ca 2+ -binding proteins. Residues not involved in Ca 2+ binding, but conserved in all GCAPs, cluster around EF1 in the N-terminal domain and may represent the interface with GCs. Five point mutations in the closely related GCAP1 have been linked to the etiology of cone dystrophies. These residues are conserved in GCAP3 and the structure suggests important roles for these amino acids. We present a homology model of GCAP1 based on GCAP3 that offers insight into the molecular mechanism underlying the autosomal dominant cone dystrophies produced by GCAP1 mutations.
A liquid thermistor

A liquid thermistor consisting of a salt-triethylamine-water solution shows a resistance increase of 100% per degree centigrade over a range of 8°C. Outside this specific temperature range, the resistance changes slowly. The altered resistance results from the phase change at the critical solution temperature. While devices of this type can show major hysteresis and are restricted to specific temperatures, their response is faster than a millisecond.
Analytic Hierarchy Process and Geographic Information Systems to Identify Optimal Transit Alignments

Honolulu, Hawaii, like other urbanized centers, is struggling to solve problems of transportation supply and demand. One proposed solution is construction of a fixed-rail transit system along the east-west corridor, to connect the western part of the county to the downtown work zones. Setting up a transit alignment that meets technical, social, economical, and environmental considerations is a challenge. This study coupled the technologies of analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and geographic information systems (GIS) to assist in the decision-making process of determining optimal transit alignment between the competing Salt Lake and Airport alignments in Honolulu. The goal of the AHP structure was to determine the location for the transit alignment: technical, social, economical, and environmental considerations are the criteria, and suitability levels are the alternatives. A uniform grid structure was developed: thematic maps related to the independent variables were converted into a 0.1-square-mile grid m...
Precursor Cells in Mouse Islets Generate New β-Cells in Vivo during Aging and after Islet Injury

Whereas it is believed that the pancreatic duct contains endocrine precursors, the presence of insulin progenitor cells residing in islets remain controversial. We tested whether pancreatic islets of adult mice contain precursor beta-cells that initiate insulin synthesis during aging and after islet injury. We used bigenic mice in which the activation of an inducible form of Cre recombinase by a one-time pulse of tamoxifen results in the permanent expression of a floxed human placental alkaline phosphatase (PLAP) gene in 30% of pancreatic beta-cells. If islets contain PLAP(-) precursor cells that differentiate into beta-cells (PLAP(-)IN(+)), a decrease in the percentage of PLAP(+)IN(+) cells per total number of IN(+) cells would occur. Conversely, if islets contain PLAP(+)IN(-) precursors that initiate synthesis of insulin, the percentage of PLAP(+)IN(+) cells would increase. Confocal microscope analysis revealed that the percentage of PLAP(+)IN(+) cells in islets increased from 30 to 45% at 6 months and to 60% at 12 months. The augmentation in the level of PLAP in islets with time was confirmed by real-time PCR. Our studies also demonstrate that the percentage of PLAP(+)IN(+) cells in islets increased after islet injury and identified putative precursors in islets. We postulate that PLAP(+)IN(-) precursors differentiate into insulin-positive cells that participate in a slow renewal of the beta-cell mass during aging and replenish beta-cells eliminated by injury.
The tangled-1 mutation alters cell division orientations throughout maize leaf development without altering leaf shape

It is often assumed that in plants, where the relative positions of cells are fixed by cell walls, division orientations are critical for the generation of organ shapes. However, an alternative perspective is that the generation of shape may be controlled at a regional level independently from the initial orientations of new cell walls. In support of this latter view, we describe here a recessive mutation of maize, tangled-1 (tan-1), that causes cells to divide in abnormal orientations throughout leaf development without altering overall leaf shape. In normal plants, leaf cells divide either transversely or longitudinally relative to the mother cell axis; transverse division are associated with leaf elongation and longitudinal divisions with leaf widening. In tan-l mutant leaves, cells in all tissue layers at a wide range of developmental stages divide transversely at normal frequencies, but longitudinal divisions are largely substituted by a variety of aberrantly oriented divisions in which the new cell wall is crooked or curved. Mutant leaves grow more slowly than normal, but their overall shapes are normal at all stages of their growth. These observations demonstrate that the generation of maize leaf shape does not depend on the precise spatial control of cell division, and support the general view that mechanisms independent from the control of cell division orientations are involved in the generation of shape during plant development.
Efficiency dispersion in production of crystalline-Si solar cells by numerical simulation

Efficiency dispersion in crystalline-Si solar cells is a major contributor to the high cost of Si PV systems. A comprehensive sensitivity analysis for efficiency dispersion in the production of crystalline-Si solar cells is presented based on numerical simulations. Various process variables are considered, including temperature variation in the diffusion furnace, wafer resistivity and finger electrode width. The simulation provides a quantitative estimation for efficiency variation due to each of these process variables. It is suggested that temperature variations in the diffusion furnace are the biggest cause for efficiency dispersion, when a 60°C temperature variation results in an efficiency drop of almost 6% absolute. To understand the effect of diffusion temperature, factors related to diffusion such as contact resistivity, emitter resistance and emitter recombination are also investigated to reveal their individual effect on cell efficiency. Resistive losses in the emitter are primarily responsible for the efficiency variation. Remedies for efficiency dispersion are proposed.
Cave Biodiversity and Ecology of the Sierra de El Abra Region

The general ecology and biodiversity of fish caves in the Sierra de El Abra region is discussed with details about the ecology of four examples. Sotano de Yerbaniz is a deep, violently flooding swallet (stream-capture cave) with the largest catchment area in the El Abra region, 16 km 2 . Yerbaniz is hydrologically related to two other caves nearby. Cueva Chica, the original cave in which the Mexican cavefish was found in 1936, is a shallow walk-in cave with a series of four pools containing hybrid cavefishes, then more and more river fishes toward the end; Chica is sometimes backflooded by the Rio Tampaon. Cueva de Los Sabinos is a large system hydrologically connected to Sotano del Arroyo and Sotano de la Tinaja. Sotano de Soyate is a deep fissure with a large, deep lake reaching below the regional base level. The potential prey of the hardy cavefishes include swimming crustaceans, but the cavefish subsists mainly on bat guano, other fishes, floating animals, and flood debris. Large populations of cavefishes thrive in some of the 29 known, semi-isolated caves, while small populations subsist in shallow pools. Conservation of the cavefishes must begin, perhaps by including their caves in the two major biosphere reserves in the region.
A new inclination instability reshapes Keplerian discs into cones: application to the outer Solar system

Disks of bodies orbiting a much more massive central object are extremely common in astrophysics. When the orbits comprising such disks are eccentric, we show they are susceptible to a new dynamical instability. Gravitational forces between bodies in the disk drive exponential growth of their orbital inclinations and clustering in their angles of pericenter, expanding an initially thin disk into a conical shape by giving each orbit an identical 'tilt' with respect to the disk plane. This new instability dynamically produces the unusual distribution of orbits observed for minor planets beyond Neptune, suggesting that the instability has shaped the outer Solar System. It also implies a large initial disk mass (1-10 Earth masses) of scattered bodies at hundreds of AU; we predict increasing numbers of detections of minor planets clustered in their angles of pericenter with high inclinations.
Awkwardly hysterical: theorizing black girl awkwardness and humor in social media

This paper explores the intersections of digital media and black women's identities using the concept of ‘black girl awkwardness’, a concept made popular by writer and comedienne Issa Rae. Rae's viral Web series, The Mis-Adventures of Awkward Black Girl, that stars Rae as a J, a social introvert trying to navigate her love life and career. J's self-proclaimed awkwardness signifies the possibility of black women's normalcy and humanity by showcasing her social ineptitudes in common situations. Black girl awkwardness serves as a cultural indicator of how black women navigate race and identity in twenty-first century popular culture. Unlike ‘quirky’, a term used to identify white women in comedy, awkwardness is racialized and political, a tool for black women to both identify and work through the social–cultural discomfort surrounding their bodies. Black girl awkwardness in social media humor serves as a cultural workspace to address not only their personal anxieties but the African American community at lar...
Interaction of fragment III of rabbit gamma globulin and guinea pig complement.

SummaryFragment III derived from papain digestion of rabbit gamma globulin inhibits immune hemolysis primarily by its ability to interact with gp C′ and to some extent by interacting with sheep erythrocytes. Peptic digests of normal and antipertussis rabbit gamma globulins do not inhibit immune hemolysis. Peptic digests of rabbit antisheep erythrocyte gamma globulins are capable of agglutinating sheep erythrocytes at a slower rate when compared to that of the intact antibodies. The latter digests will not lyse sheep erythrocytes in the presence of gp C′, because they fix less complement than intact antibody.
Proposed Coherent Trapping of a Population of Electrons in a C 60 Molecule Induced by Laser Excitation

This Letter demonstrates the possibility of generating coherent population trapping in ${\mathrm{C}}_{60}$. Similar to a three-level $\ensuremath{\Lambda}$ system, ${\mathrm{C}}_{60}$ has a forbidden transition between the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) ($|a⟩$) and the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) ($|c⟩$), but a dipole-allowed transition between HOMO and $\mathrm{LUMO}+1$ ($|b⟩$) and between $|b⟩$ and $|c⟩$. We employ two cw laser fields, one coupling and one probe. The strong coupling field is switched on first to resonantly excite the transition between $|b⟩$ and $|c⟩$. After a delay, the probe is switched on; the coherent interaction between the coupling and probe fields traps the population in $|a⟩$ and $|c⟩$. This forms a partially dark state in ${\mathrm{C}}_{60}$, analogous to that in atomic vapors. Turning off the coupling field restores ${\mathrm{C}}_{60}$'s absorption. Pulsed lasers work as well. We use two pulses to steer the system into a dark state; when we send in a cw probe field, the electric polarization of ${\mathrm{C}}_{60}$ plunges by five times, in comparison with the noncontrol case. This should be detectable experimentally.
Directionally Variable Stiffness to Reduce Actuation Requirement in Airfoil Camber Morphing

This paper explores a new design for an airfoil whose chordwise bending stiffness depends on the direction of load. By designing the region aft of the spar to be very stiff under upward load, uncommanded camber deformation under aerodynamic pressure can be minimized. At the same time, a much higher compliance under a reversed load reduces actuation requirement to achieve a desired downward camber deformation. A rigid cantilever extending from the rear of the spar toward the trailing-edge, and flush with the lower skin, is used to realize this goal. Under upward (aerodynamic pressure) load the rigid cantilever engages and its added stiffness minimizes deformation. But under downward (actuation) load, the lower skin breaks contact with the cantilever, and camber deformation can be achieved at low actuation effort. ABAQUS TM finite element simulations were conducted for a variable camber NACA 0012 airfoil. For a cantilever extending over the entire length of the conformable section (between the leading-edge D-spar and the trailing-edge section), the effective stiffness under upward loading was calculated to be 15.43 times the stiffness under downward loading, but the maximum downward camber deformation was limited to 10 deg due to contact between the cantilever and the upper skin. Reducing the cantilever length increased the maximum downward camber deformation achieved but with a smaller increase in stiffness under upward load.
Optimal placement and sizing of microgrids in composite reliability of a deregulated power system

With the advent of small-scale power system that interconnect local generation, storage and loads, termed microgrids, investigating their impact on power system operation, control and planning is attracting a great deal of attention among power researchers. In this paper, we focus on optimising the placement and sizing of microgrids in composite reliability of a deregulated power system to mitigate cascading failures leading to blackouts. To this end, we apply sequential Monte Carlo simulation that accounts for the optimal coordination among the three energy sources within microgrids, namely renewable energy conversion, energy storage and micro-turbine generation. Optimal placements under different system scenarios are determined subject to fixed investment budget. The performance of the approach is evaluated on the Roy Billinton test system (RBTS) and the IEEE reliability test system (RTS). Simulation results show that in both power systems, microgrids contribute to the improvement of system reliability and the decrease of the risk of cascading failure.
The Bmi-1 oncoprotein interacts with dinG and MPh2: the role of RING finger domains

Experimentally-induced mutations in the C3HC4 RING finger domain of the Bmi-1 oncoprotein block its ability to induce lymphomas in mice. In this report, the role of the Bmi-1 RING finger in mediating protein-protein interactions is examined using the yeast two-hybrid system. Bmi-1 interacts directly with the RING finger protein dinG/RING1B. Heterodimerization of the two proteins requires the intact RING finger structures of both Bmi-1 and dinG. Although the RING finger domains are necessary for dimerization, they are not sufficient for this process as residues outside the C3HC4 motif are also required. Thus, binding specificity may be partly conferred by residues outside the RING motif. Both Bmi-1 and dinG interact with the Polyhomeotic protein MPh2 through binding domains apart from the RING finger. The data suggest a model whereby Bmi-1, dinG, and MPh2 form a stable heterotrimeric complex in which each protein contributes to the binding of the others.
Fas, ceramide and serum withdrawal induce apoptosis via a common pathway in a type II Jurkat cell line

Ceramide is a key mediator of apoptosis, yet its role in Fas-mediated apoptosis is controversial. Some reports have indicated that ceramide is either a primary signaling molecule in Fas-induced cell death, or that it functions upstream of Fas by increasing FasL expression. Other studies have suggested that ceramide is not relevant to Fas-induced cell death. We have approached this problem by studying ceramide-induced apoptosis in unique Jurkat cell clones selected for resistance to membrane-bound FasL-induced death. Resistance of the mutant Jurkat cells was specific for FasL killing, since the mutant clones were sensitive to other apoptotic stimuli such as cycloheximide and staurosporine. We tested the effects of serum withdrawal, one of the strongest inducers of ceramide, and of exogenous ceramide on apoptosis of both wild-type and FasL-resistant clones. Wild-type Jurkat cells were remarkably sensitive to serum withdrawal and to exogenous ceramide. In contrast all FasL-resistant mutant clones were resistant to these apoptosis-inducing conditions. In contrast to previous work, we did not detect an increase in FasL in either wild-type or mutant clones. Moreover activation of stress-activated protein kinases (JNK/SAPKs) after serum withdrawal and exogenous ceramide treatment was detected only in the wild-type and not in the resistant clones. Because of the parallel resistance of the mutant clones to Fas and to ceramide-induced apoptosis, our data support the notion that ceramide is a second messenger for the Fas/FasL pathway and that serum withdrawal, through production of ceramide, shares a common step with the Fas-mediated apoptotic pathway. Finally, our data suggest that activation of JNK/SAPKs is a common mediator of the three pathways tested.
Probing the Surface of Colloidal Nanomaterials with Potentiometry in Situ

Colloidal nanomaterials represent an important branch of modern chemistry. However, we have very little understanding of molecular processes that occur at the nanocrystal (NC) surface during synthesis and post-synthetic modifications. Here we show that potentiometry can be used to study the surface of colloidal NCs under realistic reaction conditions. Potentiometric titrations of CdSe and InP nanostructures provide information on the active surface area, the affinity of ligands to the NC surface, and the surface reaction kinetics. These studies can be carried out at different temperatures in polar and nonpolar media for NCs of different sizes and shapes. In situ potentiometry can provide real-time feedback during synthesis of core–shell nanostructures.
Disabling Discipline: Locating a Right to Representation of Students with Disabilities in the Americans with Disabilities Act

This Note addresses a novel statutory solution to part of the problem by asking whether existing procedural protections in the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) can be applied to restrict the diversion of disabled students from schools in suspensions and expulsions. The ADA claim will be analyzed under a theory that certain students with disabilities require accommodations in disciplinary proceedings to participate meaningfully in those hearings. The answer to this question depends both on the likelihood that courts and administrators will recognize a role for ADA protections in evaluating the appropriateness of diversionary school discipline for disabled youth and on the risk of overly judicializing schools in service of an only partial remedy that leaves nondisabled juveniles behind.
CAD/CAPP SYSTEM DESIGN OF SWITCHING JOINT BASED ON Pro/E

Switching joint (SJ) of drill-string is a sort of standard component, but many types for the different usages. The structural database was created according to the features of SJ, and CAD/CAPP System software Design of SJ was developed with VB as programming tool, Pro/E and AutoCAD as developing platform. The software with Pro/PROGRAM can carry out parameterization design of SJ to automatically create 3-D solid, 2-D drawing, processing procedure cards and processing sequence cards of SJ.
268 EFFECTS OF METALLOPORPHYRINS ON SURVIVAL OF MICE FOLLOWING ORAL SALMONELLA INFECTION

Heme oxygenase (HO) is the rate-limiting enzyme in the degradation pathway of heme producing biliverdin, carbon monoxide (CO), and iron. There are two well-described isozymes of HO, the constitutive HO-2 and inducible HO-1. HO-1 is induced by heme, stress, lipopolysaccharide (LPS), and heavy metals and reported to mediate anti-inflammatory processes. However, the exact role of HO-1 in mediating host response to infection is unknown. In addition, clinical trials have begun evaluating the safety and efficacy of metalloporphyrins (Mps), competitive inhibitors of HO, as potential therapeutic compounds for the treatment of neonatal jaundice. In this study, we evaluated whether the administration of Mps prior to oral infection with Salmonella typhimurium affects susceptibility and/or alters the course of infection. 6-wk old adult FVB mice were administered 150 μL of vehicle or 30 μmol/kg body weight of SnMP or ZnBG by gavage feeding 3 hours prior to oral inoculation with a lethal dose of 107 colony-forming units of S. typhimurium SL1344 (n = 15 - 20). Morbidity and mortality of mice was then followed for 21 days and Kaplan-Meier plots were constructed. Using the logrank sum (Mantel-Cox) test, we found that survival rates in mice treated with SnMP or ZnBG were significantly poorer than that of infected control mice (p ≤ 0.05). These results demonstrate that Mp treatment may increase susceptibility and alter the course of infection due to its inhibition on tissue HO and heme degradation. These observations suggest that HO-1 may play a protective role in host response. More importantly, it also raises concerns about the routine or repetitive use of Mps in human newborns for the treatment of neonatal jaundice, especially in those infants, who are infected.
Recent strategies for drug development in fibromyalgia syndrome

The US Federal Drug Administration (FDA) approved 3 medications for treating fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS). There have been no additional FDA approvals since January 2009 and the efficacy of the FDA-approved medications for FMS has been questioned. Areas covered: The "search for studies" tool using clinicaltrials.gov and PubMed were employed. The term, "fibromyalgia" was used for clinicaltrials.gov. The terms employed for PubMed were "Name-of-Drug Fibromyalgia", "Fibromyalgia Treatment" or "Fibromyalgia Drug Treatment." Clinical trials were reviewed if they were prospective and blinded, and if they employed a comparator, either placebo or another pharmaceutical. Expert commentary: Progress toward standardizing the outcome measures for FMS clinical trials have been made but challenges remain. Several pharmaceutical candidates for FMS have been tested since 2009. The results of these studies with potential novel targets for drug development for FMS were reviewed including the results of trials with sodium oxybate, quetiapine, esreboxetine, nabilone, memantine, naltrexone, and melatonin.
For Immunoglobulin Light Chains, It's Time to Fly!

Multiple myeloma represents only approximately 10% of all hematopoietic malignancies but it is unusual in one respect: it announces itself early. Many years before the disease begins to cause symptoms, the tumor's calling card—its unique monoclonal protein—can be seen in the patient's serum. It takes some time for this monoclonal immunoglobulin to emerge from the normal polyclonal background and, even when it does, it can be easily overlooked. But we now know that low-concentration monoclonal gammopathies of undetermined significance (MGUS)2 represent disorders that will, in a significant percentage of cases, eventually become malignant diseases (1). For decades, the clinical laboratory has exploited the clonal nature of the immune response to detect myeloma and MGUS by using serum protein electrophoresis (SPE). When serum from a healthy patient undergoes electrophoretic separation, the fraction containing the patient's immunoglobulin shows a gaussian distribution, representing the products of thousands of different plasma cell clones, each with a unique electrophoretic mobility. When the serum is from a patient with multiple myeloma, however, every medical student knows that a spike appears instead of the normal diffuse pattern, because one monoclonal protein with only one electrophoretic mobility predominates. We now have new therapies for myeloma, so it is increasingly important to identify patients with MGUS as early as possible. We usually find them only by chance when astute caregivers request an SPE test in patients with vague signs and symptoms. M-components in MGUS are often easy to see. But how can we catch those really early ones that are still hiding, sometimes in plain sight? Over the past decade, we have tried several new approaches to protein electrophoresis in the hope that we can better detect small abnormal monoclonal immunoglobulins. High-resolution agarose gels (with enhanced electroendosmosis) and capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE) provide better separation of the …
The Right Kind of “Islam”: News media representations of US-Saudi relations during the Cold War

Scholarship on the representation of Islam in the media has rightly focused on its negative dimensions, particularly since the events of 9/11. However, “Islam” has not always been a negative constr...
Impact of Hepatitis B Core Antibody Seropositivity on the Outcome of Autologous Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation for Multiple Myeloma

Abstract Hepatitis B core antibody (HBcAb) seropositivity has been associated with a higher rate of hepatitis B virus (HBV) reactivation after chemotherapy, even in patients who are hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) negative. However, little is known about the risk of HBV reactivation after autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (auto-HCT). We evaluated the incidence of HBV reactivation, liver toxicity, and survival in patients with multiple myeloma (MM) who received auto-HCT at our institution. We retrospectively identified 107 MM patients with resolved HBV infection (HBcAb positive, HBsAg negative) and 125 patients with negative HBV serology (control subjects) who were matched for age, timing of auto-HCT from diagnosis, cytogenetics, disease status at transplant, induction therapy, and preparative regimen. All patients underwent auto-HCT between 1991 and 2013. Primary endpoints were HBV reactivation, defined as HBsAg positivity or ≥10-fold increase in HBV DNA, and hepatotoxicity, as defined in the U.S. National Cancer Institute Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events v3.0. In the resolved HBV infection group, 52 patients (49%) were HBsAb positive and 24 (22%) had detectable HBV DNA before auto-HCT. Only 1 patient with resolved HBV infection received pre-emptive antiviral therapy with lamivudine, whereas 4 patients received lamivudine (n = 3) or tenofovir (n = 1) at reactivation after auto-HCT for a median duration of 12 months. HBV reactivation occurred in 7 of 107 patients (6.5%) in the resolved HBV group. Median time to HBV reactivation from auto-HCT was 16 months. The cumulative incidence of grade 2 or greater hepatotoxicity was 30% in the resolved HBV infection group and 22% in the control group (hazard ratio, 1.3; 95% confidence interval, .7 to 2.3; P = .4). Nonrelapse mortality for the 2 groups was not statistically different at 2 years (P = .06), although it trended higher in the control group than in the resolved HBV infection group (8% versus 1%). The median progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) durations in the resolved HBV infection and control groups were 21 versus 18 months (P = .5) and 53 versus 67 months (P = .2), respectively. Our data suggest that resolved HBV infection in patients undergoing auto-HCT for MM is associated with a low risk of HBV reactivation and hepatotoxicity; these complications were reversible and did not adversely affect the PFS or OS.
Sirtuin 2 Regulates Microvascular Inflammation during Sepsis.

Objective. Sepsis and septic shock, the leading causes of death in noncoronary intensive care units, kill more than 200,000/year in the US alone. Circulating cell-endothelial cell interactions are the rate determining factor in sepsis inflammation. Sirtuin, a seven-member family of proteins (SIRT1–7), epigenetically controls inflammation. We have studied the roles of SIRTs 1, 3, and 6 in sepsis previously. In this project, we studied the role of SIRT2 on sepsis-related inflammation. Methods. Sepsis was induced in C57Bl/6 (WT), SIRT2 knockout (SIRT2KO), and SIRT2 overexpressing (SIRT2KI) mice by cecal ligation and puncture (CLP). We studied leukocyte/platelet adhesion using intravital microscopy and E-selectin/ICAM-1 adhesion molecule expression in the small intestine with immunohistochemistry (IHC) six hours post-CLP/sham surgery. We also studied 7-day survival rates in WT, SIRT2KO, and SIRT2KI sepsis mice. Results. Compared to WT mice, SIRT2KO mice show exaggeration while SIRT2KI mice show attenuation of cellular adhesion with sepsis in the small intestine. We also show that the small intestinal E-selectin and ICAM-1 expressions increased in SIRT2KO and decreased in SIRT2KI mice versus those in WT sepsis mice. We show that the 7-day survival rate is decreased in SIRT2KO and increased in SIRT2KI sepsis mice. Conclusion. SIRT2 modulates microvascular inflammation in sepsis and affects survival.
What can GIS + 3D mean for landscape archaeology?

Abstract Until recently Geographic Information Systems (GIS) have held center stage in the archaeologist's geospatial toolkit, and there is no doubt that archaeologists have moved beyond the map—but into what? In the early years, criticisms voicing GIS as environmentally-deterministic were abundant. What methods and tool have archaeologists used to overcome these criticisms? New geospatial technologies such as airborne lidar and aerial photogrammetry are allowing us to acquire inordinate amounts of georeferenced 3D data— but do these 3D technologies help overcome criticisms of environmental determinism? Together—GIS + 3D— can link georeferenced 3D models to underlying data adding a ground-based humanistic perspective lacking in the bird's eye view of traditional GIS. This paper situates GIS and 3D within a semiotic framework to offer some ideas on using 3DGIS to intertwine environmental and cultural factors to work toward new approaches for landscape archaeology.
Stepping off the Page: Teaching Literature with a Pedagogy of Place

The study of place implies a multi-sensory, interdisciplinary approach to learning, and pedagogies of place invite students to consider multiple facets of a location to accommodate a wide range of goals. This chapter explores the extent to which the experience of a place can inform students’ reading and interpretation of a literary text. The approach envisioned differs from literary tourism in that the latter risks seeing places in literary texts as mere simulacra of their real-world equivalents. Teaching literary places from an interdisciplinary, experiential perspective presents place as an open, living entity, providing a helpful interpretive frame that deepens students’ understanding of literature.
Society, Business Values, and the Social Contract

By examining decades of social contract reasoning in the business and society field, this chapter highlights the society aspect of the book’s 3S approach. This examination shows that the field has whittled away at the separation between business and society by presenting these sectors as interpenetrating value systems. The trajectory of this research leads Swanson to conclude that business has institutional legitimacy if it provides its stakeholders with value-defined economic, social, and environmental benefits. Her integrative model of corporate social performance illustrates that socially responsible executives seek to discover how to activate the organizational values that make such triple bottom line impacts possible. Accordingly, amoral management can be understood as a fallacy of separation consciousness that partitions facts from values in decision making. Conversely, the social contract calls for enlightened executives to understand that values define the symbiotic relationship between business and society and that value-free decisions do not exist.
Deriving the average-case performance of bandwidth-like interfaces for tasksets with infinite minimum inter-arrival time, equal task density, uniformly distributed deadlines, and infinite number of tasks

Many solutions for composability and compositionality rely on specifying the interface for a component using bandwidth. Some previous works specify period (P) and budget (Q) as an interface for a component. Q/P provides us with a bandwidth (the share of a processor that this component may request); P specifies the time granularity of the allocation of this processing capacity. Other works add another parameter, deadline, which can help to provide tighter bounds on how this processing capacity is distributed. Yet other works use the parameters α and Δ where α is the bandwidth and Δ specifies how smoothly this bandwidth is distributed. It is known [4] that such bandwidth-like interfaces carry a cost: there are tasksets that could be guaranteed to be schedulable if tasks were scheduled directly on the processor, but with bandwidth-like interfaces, it is impossible to guarantee the taskset to be schedulable. It is known that this penalty can be infinite, i.e., the use of bandwidth-like interfaces may require the use of a processor that has a speed that is k times faster, and one can show this for any k. This brings the following question: "What is the average-case performance penalty of bandwidth-like interfaces?" A previous paper [5] has partially answered this question by stating an expression on this penalty as a function of taskset parameters and then randomly generated tasksets to obtain a probability distribution of this penalty. In this paper, we answer this question analytically for the case that the taskset has tasks with infinite minimum inter-arrival time, equal task density, uniformly distributed deadlines, and the number of tasks approaches infinity. For this specific case, we derive an expression; if deadlines are uniformly distributed in [0,1], then we find that the penalty is two. We also run experiments to explore systems with these assumptions but for finite number of tasks. From these experiments, we conclude that (i) the larger the number of tasks is, the larger the penalty is, (ii) the larger the number of tasks is, the less skewed the probability distribution is, and (iii) the larger the number of tasks is, the smaller the variance of the penalty is. We are currently working on the case where deadlines follow other distributions.
Maize domestication and gene interaction.

Contents Summary 395 I. Introduction 395 II. The genetic basis of maize domestication 396 III. The tempo of maize domestication 401 IV. Genetic interactions and selection during maize domestication 401 V. Gene networks of maize domestication alleles 404 VI. Implications of gene interactions on evolution and selection404 VII. Conclusions 405 Acknowledgements 405 References 405 SUMMARY: Domestication is a tractable system for following evolutionary change. Under domestication, wild populations respond to shifting selective pressures, resulting in adaptation to the new ecological niche of cultivation. Owing to the important role of domesticated crops in human nutrition and agriculture, the ancestry and selection pressures transforming a wild plant into a domesticate have been extensively studied. In Zea mays, morphological, genetic and genomic studies have elucidated how a wild plant, the teosinte Z. mays subsp. parviglumis, was transformed into the domesticate Z. mays subsp. mays. Five major morphological differences distinguish these two subspecies, and careful genetic dissection has pinpointed the molecular changes responsible for several of these traits. But maize domestication was a consequence of more than just five genes, and regions throughout the genome contribute. The impacts of these additional regions are contingent on genetic background, both the interactions between alleles of a single gene and among alleles of the multiple genes that modulate phenotypes. Key genetic interactions include dominance relationships, epistatic interactions and pleiotropic constraint, including how these variants are connected in gene networks. Here, we review the role of gene interactions in generating the dramatic phenotypic evolution seen in the transition from teosinte to maize.
X-chromosome gene order in different Mus species crosses.

The advent of molecular genetics heralds a new era in linkage analysis. It is now possible to map any locus and define its linkage relationship within the mammalian genome using a single set of informative offspring. This new mapping methodology, which has been used successfully to map both autosomal genes (Roberts et al., 1985; Bucan et al., 1986; Heidmann et al., 1986; Nadeau et al., 1986; Reeves et al., 1987; Seidin et al., 1987) and sex-linked loci (Amar et al., 1985; Avner et al., 1987a; Avner et al., 1987b; Brockdorff et al., 1987; Chamberlain et al., 1987; Heilig et al., 1987), utilizes naturally occurring polymorphisms at the level of the nucleotide sequence between inbred strains of mice and those derived from the wild speciesMus spretus and Mus musculus (Brown, 1985; Guenet, this publication).
Performance and stability limitations of admittance-based haptic interfaces

In this paper, we describe an analytical model developed to investigate the performance limitations of admittance-based haptic interfaces. The model is used to investigate the effects that position control bandwidth and outer loop delay have on the stability and rendering range of an admittance-based interface. We show that the performance, as defined by both the minimum renderable mass and the rendering frequency range, is directly related to the closed-loop bandwidth of the inner-position loop and the amount of additional delay in the outer rendering loop. In addition, we show that the minimum renderable mass is directly proportional to the damping provided by the user which implies a stronger grip, with a higher damping, decreases the stable rendering region of the admittance-based haptics device as opposed to an impedance-based device where increased damping enhances stability. Our results are validated using a one degree-of-freedom admittance-based device.
Litter decomposition of three lignin-deficient mutants of Sorghum bicolor during spring thaw

Abstract Decomposition of plant litter during the freeze-thaw season has recently gained attention as having a significant role in nutrient cycling in many cold ecosystems. However, few studies have examined decomposition of crop remnants during the freeze-thaw season in an agronomic setting when microbial activity is presumably low. We examined decomposition of four cultivars of sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) leaves in a field in Southern Minnesota, USA using the litterbag method. Three of the four cultivars we examined expressed the brown midrib (bmr) mutation which have altered/reduced levels of lignin in their secondary cell walls compared to the wild-type (WT). Litter was buried in the fall and harvested during the spring thaw. After 160 d the bmr mutants lost 57–62% of their initial mass, compared to 51% in the WT. Mass loss agreed with presumed initial litter quality, as the bmr litter had higher initial N, and holocellulose:lignin and lower lignin, C:N and lignin:N values compared to the WT. The increased decomposition of the bmr cultivars appears to be related to increased loss of hemicellulose and holocellulose (cellulose+hemicellulose) or higher initial N concentrations. Alterations in cell-wall deposition in the bmr cultivars may increase accessibility of microbial cell-wall degrading enzymes that accelerate mass loss. Our results demonstrate that alterations in initial lignin chemistry may influence decomposition of sorghum litter in an agronomic setting.
A Comparison of Methods for the Probabilistic Determination of Vertebrate Extinction Chronologies

Much effort has been directed toward determining the extinction dates of late Quaternary megafaunal mammals, usually in the context of testing models of anthropogenic “overkill” or terminal Pleistocene climatic change. These studies have typically relied on searching for the youngest reliable date (e.g., Long and Martin, 1974), or on matching the mode of a sequence of dates to the time of presumed anthropogenic impact (e.g., Martin, 1986). Little attention appears to have been paid to the determination of vertebrate extinctions dates by probabilistic methods, although a number of authors have treated the related problem of determining invertebrate fossil taxon ranges in biostratigraphical analysis (e.g., Hay, 1972; Strauss and Sadler, 1989; Gilinsky and Good, 1991), and Badgley (1990) has addressed the importance of statistical evaluation of the relationship between sample size and apparent extinctions in the Eocene vertebrate record. Here, I use Monte Carlo simulation to compare the performance of two published probabilistic techniques and a third technique developed here that is based on median stratigraphic gap length in estimating the 95% confidence interval relative to a known extinction date. When applied to a sample of the published record of radiocarbon dates, these techniques indicate that the current database is inadequate to constrain the “late Pleistocene” megafaunal extinction event(s) to the narrow chronological window required by the “blitzkrieg” anthropogenic overkill model (but see Alroy, this volume; Martin and Steadman, this volume). Although this result is not disconfirmatory of the blitzkrieg model, it does argue for the necessity of continuing to improve the data base of published radiocarbon dates.
Kinetics and osmoregulation of Na+- and Cl--dependent betaine transporter in rat renal medulla

Betaine is one of the major organic osmolytes that accumulate in the renal medulla in response to high extracellular tonicity. Recent studies in MDCK cells have shown that betaine is taken up by an Na(+)- and Cl(-)-dependent transporter located on the basolateral membrane. We demonstrate here the presence of Na(+)-Cl(-)-dependent betaine transporter(s) in tubule suspensions prepared from the rat outer and inner medulla. The betaine transport activity was two to three times higher in the inner medulla compared with the outer medulla. The removal of Na+ and Cl- reduced betaine uptake in the outer medullary tubules by 86% and 82%, respectively. The betaine uptake was decreased by 39% in hypotonic buffer (189 mosmol/ kgH2O) and increased by 82% in hypertonic buffer (545 mosmol/kgH2O), compared with isotonic buffer (308 mosmol/ kgH2O). Kinetic studies of Na(+)-dependent betaine uptake in the outer medullary tubules revealed both a low- and a high-affinity component as follows: low-affinity and high volume component with Michaelis constant (K(m)1) of 8.6 mM and maximal uptake rate (Vmax1) of 112 pmol.microgram protein-1.h-1; and a low-volume and high-affinity component with K(m)2 of 0.141 mM and Vmax2 of 10 pmol. microgram protein-1.h-1. To investigate whether the Na(+)-Cl(-)-dependent betaine transporter is regulated by tonicity in vivo, we quantitated its mRNA in rat renal cortex and outer and inner medulla using both canine and rat Na(+)-Cl(-)-dependent betaine transporter cDNA probes. A single band of 3.0 kb was seen in the Northern blots prepared from both outer and inner medulla, but not in the cortex. Water deprivation for 3 days increased the abundance of this mRNA in the outer and inner medulla by 140% and 170%, respectively, but did not affect its expression in the cortex. In conclusion, Na(+)-Cl(-)-dependent betaine transporter(s) is present in rat outer and inner medullary tubules, and betaine transporter mRNA abundance is regulated by the hydration state in vivo.
Stabilization of Unstable Limit Cycles in Systems with Limited Controllability: Expanding the Basin of Convergence of OGY-Type Controllers

The underlying geometric structure of the standard OGY control scheme is analyzed. Some of the main mechanisms that under certain conditions lead to failure of the control algorithm are revealed. The limited controllability available in a system is investigated and it is shown that it may lead to serious problems that will significantly enlarge the state space region of failure of the standard OGY controller. A minimal distance algorithm is analyzed and shown to be, for some problems, more advantageous than the standard OGY technique. Nevertheless, for a broad category of problems, the minimal distance scheme is also shown to fail. As a solution for these problems, two new techniques are proposed: the penalized minimal distance and the multi-step OGY-type scheme. The standard OGY and minimal distance algorithms are particular cases of the new techniques proposed. Finally, we give a necessary condition that estimates the region of controllability under the multi-step OGY-type control. We demonstrate a significantly improved basin of convergence for the new multi-step OGY-type algorithm.