cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Direct force balance method for atomic force microscopy lateral force calibration

A new and simple calibration method for atomic force microscopy (AFM) is developed. This nonscanning method is based on direct force balances on surfaces with known slopes. The lateral force calibration is performed during force-distance measurements for normal force calibration. This method requires a substrate with known slopes, the z motion of the piezocalibrated, and the normal spring constant known. This technique determines not only the lateral detector sensitivity (N/V) but also the detector offset (V/m) and off-centering angle (α) for asymmetric cantilever-tip geometries. Because it is nonscanning, the AFM cantilever can be calibrated without dulling the tip.
Gray swans: comparison of natural and financial hazard assessment and mitigation

Even advanced technological societies are vulnerable to natural disasters, such as the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, and financial disasters, such as the 2008 collapse of the US housing and financial markets. Both resulted from unrecognized or underappreciated weaknesses in hazard assessment and mitigation policies. These policies relied on models that proved inadequate for reasons including inaccurate conceptualization of the problem, use of a too-short historic record, and neglect of interconnections. Japanese hazard models did not consider the possibility of multiple fault segments failing together, causing a much larger earthquake than anticipated, and neglected historical data for much larger tsunamis than planned for. Mitigation planning underestimated the vulnerability of nuclear power plants, due to a belief in nuclear safety. The US economic models did not consider the hazard that would result if many homeowners could not pay their mortgages, and assumed, based on a short history, that housing prices would keep rising faster than interest rates. They did not anticipate the vulnerability of the financial system to a drop in housing prices, due to belief that markets functioned best without government regulation. Preventing both types of disasters from recurring involves balancing the costs and benefits of mitigation policies. A crucial aspect of this balancing is that the benefits must be estimated using models with significant uncertainties to infer the probabilities of the future events, as we illustrate using a simple model for tsunami mitigation. Improving hazard models is important because overestimating or underestimating the hazard leads to too much or too little mitigation. Thus, although one type of disaster has natural causes and the other has economic causes, comparison provides insights for improving hazard assessment and mitigation policies. Instead of viewing such disasters as unpredictable and unavoidable “black swan” events, they are better viewed as “gray swans” that—although novel and outside recent experience—can be better foreseen and mitigated.
A passion for extremes: Hollywood's Cold War romance with Russia

AbstractThis article examines images of Russians in Hollywood film from 1939 to 1990, with a focus on romantic narratives depicting Russians and Americans in love. The article traces a pattern of attachment to Russia as a trope that helps reveal the changing and contradictory contours of American myths of nationhood. The author argues that films such as Ninotchka, Moscow on the Hudson and The Russia House refashion such myths by rhetorically orchestrating structures of society and history, gender and sexuality, desire and consumption, towards the manufacture of a democratic consensus that links the private body to the national body, or the fulfillment of private individuals to the fulfillment of the national ideal.
Photocrosslinkable chitosan based hydrogels for neural tissue engineering

Hydrogel based scaffolds for neural tissue engineering can provide appropriate physico-chemical and mechanical properties to support neurite extension and facilitate transplantation of cells by acting as 'cell delivery vehicles'. Specifically, in situ gelling systems such as photocrosslinkable hydrogels can potentially conformally fill irregular neural tissue defects and serve as stem cell delivery systems. Here, we report the development of a novel chitosan based photocrosslinkable hydrogel system with tunable mechanical properties and degradation rates. A two-step synthesis of amino-ethyl methacrylate derivitized, degradable, photocrosslinkable chitosan hydrogels is described. When human mesenchymal stem cells were cultured in photocrosslinkable chitosan hydrogels, negligible cytotoxicity was observed. Photocrosslinkable chitosan hydrogels facilitated enhanced neurite differentiation from primary cortical neurons and enhanced neurite extension from dorsal root ganglia (DRG) as compared to agarose based hydrogels with similar storage moduli. Neural stem cells (NSCs) cultured within photocrosslinkable chitosan hydrogels facilitated differentiation into tubulin positive neurons and astrocytes. These data demonstrate the potential of photocrosslinked chitosan hydrogels, and contribute to an increasing repertoire of hydrogels designed for neural tissue engineering.
Effect of Not Breastfeeding on the Risk of Diarrheal and Respiratory Mortality in Children under 2 Years of Age in Metro Cebu, The Philippines

The effects of not breastfeeding on mortality due to diarrhea and acute lower respiratory infection (ALRI) in children under 2 years of age were examined using data from a 1988-1991 longitudinal study of 9,942 children in Metro Cebu, The Philippines. Cox regression methods were used to study the magnitude of the risks, possible interactions with birth weight and nutritional status, and the effect of additional confounding factors. Not breastfeeding had a greater effect on diarrheal mortality than on ALRI mortality. In the first 6 months of life, failing to initiate breastfeeding or ceasing to breastfeed resulted in an 8- to 10-fold increase in the rate of diarrheal mortality. The rate of mortality associated with both ALRI and diarrhea was increased nearly six times by not breastfeeding, but the rate of ALRI mortality alone was not increased. The data also suggested that the risk of mortality associated with not breastfeeding was greater for low birth weight infants and infants whose mothers had little formal education. After age 6 months, the protective effects of breastfeeding dropped dramatically. These findings underscore the importance of promoting breastfeeding, especially during the first 6 months of life, and of targeting high risk groups such as low birth weight babies and those of low socioeconomic status.
High versus low pressure receptors in modulating the volumetric control of antidiuretic hormone secretion in the monkey.

Experiments were carried out in sixMacaca fascicularis monkeys to determine the relationships between arterial pressure (AP) and plasma arginine vasopressin (AVP) and left ventricular enddiastolic pressure (LVEDP) and plasma AVP in response to a two-step hemorrhage. In response to each hemorrhage, there occurred a significant decline in AP, a significant elevation of plasma AVP and variable but nonsignificant changes in LVEDP. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that in the primate high pressure receptors are more important than low pressure receptors in the volumetric control of AVP secretion.
A survey about blood bank policies and procedures.

A questionnaire about blood bank policies and procedures was prepared and sent out to 170 hospitals across the nation, 50 per cent responded. There is wide variation in both technical and nontechnical policies and procedures. Serum is separated from the original tube within 8 hours by 68 per cent of the hospitals and in 32 per cent serum is never separated from the original tube. Auto-control is included by 66 per cent of hospitals in at least one phase of the antibody testing, 34 per cent do not include auto-control in any phase. Du testing of the recipient is done in 85 per cent of the hospitals and in 15 per cent Rho type is determined by the immediate spin reactions alone. Slide type is the only method used to determine ABO group of cells of the recipients in 10 per cent of the hospitals, 18 per cent use serum-cell suspension, 10 per cent use the applicator stick method and only 62 per cent use washed saline-cell suspension routinely. Compatibility testing between a recipient and a donor vary from a one-tube major crossmatch to a three-tube major crossmatch and minor crossmatch.
Linking manufacturing planning and control to the manufacturingenvironment

A manufacturing planning and control (MPC) system is a major part of the infrastructure used by a firm to enhance its competitive position. Although a clear understanding of the mechanics and benefits of alternative MPC systems exists, very little is known about the relationships between such systems, the strategic environment faced by the user‐firms, and their performance in achieving cost/competitive advantage. Historically, the choice of an MPC system appears to have been made based solely on available in‐house expertise, industry trends, or plain inertia. Reports a summary of the results of a survey conducted to explore empirically the relationship between the environmental characteristics faced by the manufacturing function and manufacturing performance of firms using alternative MPC systems. Presents the results of an analysis of the environment faced by best and worst performers using different MPC systems. The results indicate key linkages between the MPC systems, environment, and performance.
Empirically Validated Treatments: Reality and Resistance

Although not free from methodological problems, the Task Force report represents an important step toward identifying effective treatments for major clinical disorders. The commitment to empirical research that this report embodies is part of what could be an overdue move toward greater accountability in clinical training and practice. The time-honored reliance on therapists' clinical judgments in formulating individual treatment plans needs to be critically examined in the light of their well-documented limitations and the informed use of empirically supported, manual-based treatments. The reality of common factors across different treatments does not conflict with the effectiveness of specific treatments for particular disorders.
A flexible electrophoretic panel driven by organic TFTs

We successfully fabricated 4.7-inch organic thin film transistors array with 320×240 pixels on flexible substrate. The mobility, ON/OFF ratio, subthreshold swing and threshold voltage of OTFT on flexible substrate are: 0.015 cm2/V-s, 1.1 V/dec, 10E6 and -3.2 V. After laminated Sipix electrophoretic media on OTFT array, a panel of 4.7 inch 320×240 OTFT-EPD was fabricated. All of process temperature in OTFT-EPD is lower than 130 . The pixel size in our panel is 300 μm × 300 μm, and the aperture ratio is over than 50 %. The OTFT channel length and width is 20 μm and 200μm, respectively. The operation voltages used on the gate bias is -30 V during the row data selection and the gate bias are 0 V during the row data hold time. The data voltages used on the source bias are -20 V, 0 V, and 20 V during display media operation.
Personal responsibility and middle knowledge: a challenge for the Molinist

In this paper, I develop and discuss an argument intended to demonstrate that the Molinist notion of middle knowledge, and in particular the concept of counterfactuals of freedom, is incompatible with the notion of personal responsibility (for created creatures). In Sect. 1, I discuss the Molinist concepts of middle knowledge and counterfactuals of freedom. In Sect. 2, I develop an argument (henceforth, the Transfer of Negative Responsibility Argument, or TNRA) to the effect that, due to their construal of the concepts of middle knowledge and counterfactuals of freedom, Molinists are not entitled to the notion that individuals are personally responsible—even for those actions that they freely perform. I then discuss the only two promising strategies for rejecting the argument in Sects. 3 and 4. Finally, in Sect. 5, I contend that, although TNRA may be unsuccessful as an internal argument against the Molinist, either of the possible strategies for rejecting TNRA poses a difficulty for the Molinist. Both response strategies force the Molinist into adopting a popular compatibilist strategy for rejecting a common negative argument against compatibilism. Thus, if Molinism represents a libertarian—i.e., incompatibilist—account of human freedom (as, e.g., Flint claims in his recent Divine Providence: The Molinist Account, noting that libertarianism is one of the “twin bases of Molinism”), then the discussion of TNRA poses, if not a dilemma, at the very least a serious challenge for the Molinist.
Surgical reconstruction of single ventricle with interrupted aortic arch using valveless aortic allogeneic tissue: A novel application of the Norwood principle

Abstract The management of patients with interrupted aortic arch and single ventricle can be very frustrating because of the absence of viable tissue with which to reconstruct the arch. This brief paper describes a novel modification of the Norwood procedure using an aortic allograft as valveless conduits to reconstruct the aortic arch.
cBrother: relaxing parental tree assumptions for Bayesian recombination detection

Summary: Bayesian multiple change-point models accurately detect recombination in molecular sequence data. Previous Java-based implementations assume a fixed topology for the representative parental data. cBrother is a novel C language implementation that capitalizes on reduced computational time to relax the fixed tree assumption. We show that cBrother is 19 times faster than its predecessor and the fixed tree assumption can influence estimates of recombination in a medically-relevant dataset. Availability: cBrother can be freely downloaded from http://www.biomath.org/dormanks/ and can be compiled on Linux, Macintosh and Windows operating systems. Online documentation and a tutorial are also available at the site. Contact: kdorman@iastate.edu
Hendrik Albertus and his ex-slave Mey: A drama in three acts

This essay draws on documents relating to a single extraordinary episode, and on supporting materials, to illustrate aspects of the mentalites of slaves, slave-owners, and Protectors of Slaves in the British South African colony of the Cape of Good Hope. The narrative follows the story of a slave, Mey, who was harshly beaten twice within six days in 1832. Mey, and several other slaves who had been whipped for the same offence, accepted the first punishment; Mey complained about the second, which he alone suffered, to a colonial official called the Protector of Slaves. The Protector vigorously investigated the complaint. Mey's master, Hendrik Albertus van Niekerk, co-operated only reluctantly with the investigation. As the Protector pursued the case, van Niekerk suddenly brought it to an end by manumitting Mey, giving cash compensation to the other slaves he had whipped, and paying legal fines. The behaviour of each of the men fails to conform to the roles conventional wisdom has prepared for masters, slaves, and colonial officials. The essay demonstrates that the men were not eccentric, but that they were both rational and representative of their class. Mey acted as he did because the slaves had developed a ‘moral economy of the lash’ and because the second beating fell outside the boundaries of acceptable punishment by those standards. The Protector prosecuted van Niekerk with determination because he believed the punishment had been brutal and capricious and because Mey was a good slave who had been wronged. Hendrik Albertus freed Mey and compensated the other slaves because he refused to accept the legitimacy of the Protector. He settled the case before he was forced to visit the Protector's office or face Mey in court. To have honored the law and to have answered Mey's charge directly would have been to dishonor himself. He would have compromised the power and authority on which his honor as a slave-owner rested. Hendrik Albertus valued his honor more highly than one slave and a few pounds Sterling.
Binding of proflavin to T2L bacteriophage and its DNA.

We have measured the binding equilibria of proflavin to T2L bacteriophage, in both “slow” and “fast” sedimenting forms, and to free T2L DNA. Measurements were carried out by difference spectroscopy at 430 nm at temperatures from 13 to 43°C and at pH 5.6 and 7.6. We found no significant difference in the binding parameters of the two phage forms. Also, the fraction of nucleotides available as binding sites for proflavin was the same for both free and intraphage DNA. However, the binding constant is about an order of magnitude lower for encapsulated than for free T2L DNA, due to the decreased exothermicity of the binding reaction within the phage head.
Anomalous insertion of the papillary muscle causing left ventricular outflow obstruction: Visualization by real-time three-dimensional echocardiography

Anomalous insertion of the papillary muscle (PM)/chordae tendineae is a rare but important cause of dynamic left ventricular outflow tract (LVOT) obstruction in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy or cardiac amyloidosis. These anomalies are often challenging to diagnose with 2-D Echo, yet accurate diagnosis is critical in determining whether to proceed with an extended septal myectomy instead of a standard septal myectomy for relief. We report two cases of anomalous insertion of the PM causing LVOT obstruction with diagnosis facilitated by real-time 3-D echocardiograms.
Response in soil of Cupriavidus necator and other copper-resistant bacterial predators of bacteria to addition of water, soluble nutrients, various bacterial species, or Bacillus thuringiensis spores and crystals

Soil was incubated with various species of bacteria, Bacillus subtilis, or Bacillus thuringiensis spores and crystals. These were added to serve as potential prey for indigenous, copper-resistant, nonobligate bacterial predators of bacteria in the soil. Alternatively, the soil was incubated with soluble nutrients or water only to cause potential indigenous prey cells to multiply so the predator cells would multiply. All of these incubation procedures caused excessive multiplication of some gram-negative bacteria in soil. Even greater multiplication, however, often occurred for certain copper-resistant bacterial predators of bacteria that made up a part of the gram-negative response. Incubation of the soil with copper per se did not give these responses. In most cases, the copper-resistant bacteria that responded were Cupriavidus necator, bacterial predator L-2, or previously unknown bacteria that resembled them. As was the case for C. necator and L-2, these new bacteria did not use glucose, had white colonies, produced copper-related growth initiation factor (GIF), and attacked B. thuringiensis spores on laboratory media. The results were different, however, when B. thuringiensis spores and crystals per se were added to the soil. The copper-resistant bacterial response in the soil did not, to any extent, include C. necator-like bacteria. Instead, the main copper-resistant bacterial predators that developed had yellow colonies and did not resemble C. necator or L-2 in other ways. They were not seen before, and they did not develop on the addition of B. subtilis spores to soil. Apparently, they could not produce a C. necator-like GIF. Nevertheless, they did respond very quickly to B. thuringiensis spores and crystals in soil, as if a GIF of some sort were involved. These results suggest that, under various conditions of soil incubation, gram-negative bacterial predators of bacteria multiply and that several copper-resistant types among them can be detected, counted, and isolated by plating dilutions of the soil onto media containing excess copper.
Coronary heart disease, stroke, and aortic aneurysm.

Data were obtained from a prospective epidemiological study of over 1,000,000 men and women who were traced for approximately six years after they answered detailed questionnaires. The analysis was confined to the records of 804,409 of the subjects who at the time of enrollment met the qualifications: age 40 to 79; no history of heart disease or stroke; no history of cancer diagnosed within the preceding five years; and not sick. During the course of the study, 14,819 of the subjects died of coronary heart disease, 4,099 died of stroke (cerebrovascular lesions), and 519 died of nonsyphilitic aortic aneurysm. Death rates from these three diseases were analyzed in relation to sex, age, diabetes, high blood pressure, body weight, change in weight, exercise, cigarette smoking, sleep, and nervous tension.
Intercropping, Statistical Issues In

Intercropping is defined as the simultaneous or sequential growing of more than one crop on the same area of land. It may involve intermixing the plants of the crops, growing them in alternate rows, or growing them sequentially through time. When dealing with a cropping system, it is necessary to study the response for each component of the mixture (when available) as well as for the combined data for the mixture. This will involve statistical procedures not found in standard statistics textbooks. A popular statistical procedure for analyzing results from experiments involving several intercropping treatments is a relative yield ratio or land equivalent ratio (LER). The yields of the individual crops in a mixture need to be available in order to compute a LER. An LER is defined as the sum of the ratios of the yield of the ith crop in a mixture to its yield as a sole crop.
Rational growth of branched and hyperbranched nanowire structures

Branched and hyperbranched nanowire structures were synthesized via a multistep nanocluster-catalyzed vapor-liquid-solid approach. Scanning electron microscopy studies of silicon nanowire structures prepared in this way confirmed the formation of branched nanostructures and showed that the branch density could be controlled by the nanocluster catalyst concentration. This same approach was also used to grow branched gallium nitride nanowires. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy studies of the branched silicon nanowire structures revealed that the branches grew epitaxially as single-crystal nanowires from the silicon nanowire backbone. In addition, hyperbranched silicon nanowire structures were prepared in a controlled manner by repeating the catalyst deposition and nanowire growth steps. The ability to prepare rationally branched and hyperbranched nanowires should open up new opportunities for both fundamental research and applications, including three-dimensional nanoelectronics.
Genetic variants and risk of lung cancer in never smokers: a genome-wide association study

Summary Background Lung cancer in individuals who have never smoked tobacco products is an increasing medical and public-health issue. We aimed to unravel the genetic basis of lung cancer in never smokers. Methods We did a four-stage investigation. First, a genome-wide association study of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) was done with 754 never smokers (377 matched case-control pairs at Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA). Second, the top candidate SNPs from the first study were validated in two independent studies among 735 (MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA) and 253 (Harvard University, Boston, MA, USA) never smokers. Third, further replication of the top SNP was done in 530 never smokers (UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA). Fourth, expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) and gene-expression differences were analysed to further elucidate the causal relation between the validated SNPs and the risk of lung cancer in never smokers. Findings 44 top candidate SNPs were identified that might alter the risk of lung cancer in never smokers. rs2352028 at chromosome 13q31.3 was subsequently replicated with an additive genetic model in the four independent studies, with a combined odds ratio of 1·46 (95% CI 1·26–1·70, p=5·94×10 −6 ). A cis eQTL analysis showed there was a strong correlation between genotypes of the replicated SNPs and the transcription level of the gene GPC5 in normal lung tissues (p=1·96×10 −4 ), with the high-risk allele linked with lower expression. Additionally, the transcription level of GPC5 in normal lung tissue was twice that detected in matched lung adenocarcinoma tissue (p=6·75×10 −11 ). Interpretation Genetic variants at 13q31.3 alter the expression of GPC5 , and are associated with susceptibility to lung cancer in never smokers. Downregulation of GPC5 might contribute to the development of lung cancer in never smokers. Funding US National Institutes of Health; Mayo Foundation.
Natural IgM: beneficial autoantibodies for the control of inflammatory and autoimmune disease

Natural IgM are highly represented in the circulation at birth, and these often autoreactive antibodies have been postulated to have innate-like properties and play crucial roles in apoptotic cell clearance, tissue homeostasis, and immune modulation. This review summarizes the known properties of these IgM autoantibodies, and the evidence that these anti-apoptotic cell IgM natural antibodies can regulate inflammatory responses through ancient pathways of the innate immune system that first arose long before the initial emergence of the adaptive immune system. While the regulatory contributions of these natural IgM autoantibodies are certainly not an essential and fundamental component of host defenses, these provide an additional layer to further protect the host. More importantly, these IgM antibody responses are highly inducible and their up-regulation can be a powerful means for the host to survive in a setting of chronic inflammation. The observed beneficial clinical associations for cardiovascular disease and autoimmunity, as well as opportunities for potential therapeutic implications are discussed.
Investigations to remove domes from plastic shells by polishing

A problem often observed for thick wall plastic targets is the presence of surface domes. We have been successful in applying mechanical polishing to remove isolated surface domes from thick wall 2...
Effects of concurrent negative feedback on performance of two motor tasks.

The effects of stress on state anxiety and on HR of male high school Ss were investigated using two psychomotor tasks. In the Stress Condition, Ss received negative feedback about performance; Ss in the Nonstress Condition were given rest intervals. Ss in the two conditions showed similar pretask, p> .05, A-State and HR measures. However, during the tasks the groups showed differing regression lines. The Nonstress Group maintained the same A-State level across the tasks with increased HR occurring as a result of the motor task. The Stress Group increased in A-State and HR measures. The two groups were significantly different, p<.01, in all within-task measures. The Stress Group performed better on the two motor skill tasks.
Teaching ethics in the context of the medical humanities

Careful reading of imaginative literature teaches an attentiveness fundamental to the care of the sick.
Design and analysis of area-IO DRAM/logic integration with system-in-a-package (SiP)

The paper presents a cost-effective area-IO DRAM (aDRAM)/logic integration implemented with CLC (chip-laminate-chip)-based system-in-a-package (SiP) technology. By inserting 512 area-IOs into the aDRAM, the bandwidth of the area-IO DRAM can achieve 10 GB/s when working under 166 MHz. An interface module with configurable IO width was also developed to make this implementation platform adoptable by various applications. A performance analysis, including bandwidth and power, is also presented. It is demonstrated that area-IO DRAM/logic integration with SiP technology provides a significant cost-effective implementation methodology compared with embedded DRAM and off-chip DRAM.
The Fakability of Bar-On's Emotional Quotient Inventory Short Form: Catch Me if You Can

This study investigated the fakability of the Emotional Quotient Inventory Short Form (EQ-i:S), a mixed-model emotional intelligence test developed by Bar-On (2002). A sample of 229 undergraduate students from a southeastern university completed a battery of selection and assessment measures in both an honest and faking good condition. When responded to honestly, the EQ-i:Sis predicted by The Big Five with a multiple correlation of .79. Therefore, the EQ-i:S can be viewed as an aggregation of The Big Five constructs. When faking, respondents were able to improve scores on the EQ-i:S, each of its subtests, and each of The Big Five measures. Respondents improved scores on the EQ-i:S by .83 SD. Faking on the EQ-i:S was primarily predicted by cognitive ability and agreeableness. The relative ease with which respondents can substantially raise their scores limits the value of the EQ-i:S as an applicant screening tool. The substantial extent to which the EQ-i:S is predicted by The Big Five casts doubt on the co...
Efficacy and environmental fate of imazapyr from directed helicopter applications targeting Tamarix species infestations in Colorado

BACKGROUND Aerial imazapyr applications are the most common and cost-effective method for controlling invasive tamarisk, but few studies have investigated whether or how infestation and site characteristics influence control and non-target impacts. This study used vertical stands with filter papers, plus soil and tree canopy sampling, to investigate how tamarisk canopies affected retention of applied imazapyr, soil herbicide residues and tree mortality. RESULTS Tamarisk canopies captured 71% of aerially applied imazapyr, resulting in significantly lower soil residues beneath the tree canopy. Although initial imazapyr soil residue levels outside the tree canopy were 4 times greater than those inside, soil degradation occurred 2.4 times faster outside the tamarisk canopy and resulted in lower herbicide residues. Tamarisk mortality within 3 years was 70%, but variability in control appeared to be affected by non-linear stand boundaries and tall site obstructions. These same factors also increased variability in the actual quantity of herbicide applied, exacerbating collateral impacts on desirable understory species. CONCLUSION While aerial imazapyr applications are highly effective in controlling tamarisk, our study provides evidence for the importance of evaluating overall site suitability for this management strategy so the probability of unintended ecological effects can be minimized. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry
Epitopes in the P2 domain of norovirus VP1 recognized by monoclonal antibodies that block cell interactions.

Noroviruses cause the majority of epidemic outbreaks of acute viral gastroenteritis worldwide. Human norovirus strains do not grow in cell culture, but recent carbohydrate binding, sequence and structural analyses have begun to define functional domains in the norovirus capsid that may be conserved among multiple antigenic types. The purpose of this study was to localize domains and define sequences in the major capsid protein VP1 that are important for cell interactions. Monoclonal antibodies to genogroups GI.1 and GII.2 reference strains Norwalk virus and Snow Mountain virus, respectively, were generated that blocked binding of recombinant virus-like particles to Caco-2 intestinal cells and inhibited haemagglutination. Peptides that mimicked the mAb binding epitopes were selected from a phage-displayed random nonapeptide library. Anti-recombinant Norwalk virus mAb 54.6 and anti-recombinant Snow Mountain virus mAb 61.21 recognized epitopes located in the protruding P2 domain of VP1. The epitope recognized by mAb 61.21 contained amino acids that are completely conserved among norovirus strains across genogroups, including strains isolated from swine, bovine and murine species. This study identifies the first epitope involved in inhibition of norovirus–cell interactions and supports increasing evidence that interactions between noroviruses and host cells rely on structures in the P2 domain of VP1.
Hybridizing and coalescing load value predictors

Most well-performing load value predictors are hybrids that combine multiple predictors into one. Such hybrids are often large. To reduce their size and to improve their performance, this paper presents two storage reduction techniques as well as a detailed analysis of the interaction between a hybrid's components. We found that state sharing and simple value compression can shrink the size of a predictor by a factor of two without compromising the performance. Our component analysis revealed that combining well-performing predictors does not always yield a good hybrid, whereas sometimes a poor predictor can make an excellent complement to another predictor in a hybrid. Performance evaluations using a cycle-accurate simulator running SPECint95 show that hybridizing can improve non-hybrids by thirty to fifty percent over a wide range of sizes. With fifteen kilobytes of state, our coalesced-hybrid yields a harmonic mean speedup of twelve and fifteen percent with a re-fetch and a re-execute mis-prediction recovery mechanism, respectively, which is higher than the speedup of other predictors we evaluate, some of which are six times larger.
Toward a Terminology for Functional Recovery in Schizophrenia: Is Functional Remission a Viable Concept?

Recovery in schizophrenia is receiving increasing attention. Part of the increased focus is based on the recent working criteria for clinical remission in schizophrenia and the realization that many people with schizophrenia meet these criteria for remission. In this article, we consider whether functional disability can also be evaluated in a "remission" model. In so doing, we evaluate the concept of clinical remission, evaluate the possibility of remission of other generally stable features of schizophrenia such as negative symptoms, and make some heuristic terminological recommendations. We also propose a "level and breadth" model for the definition of functional remission and examine some of the alternate influences that could produce suboptimal everyday functioning, including effort, motivation, and societal barriers toward functional achievement.
Butterfly proboscis: combining a drinking straw with a nanosponge facilitated diversification of feeding habits

The ability of Lepidoptera, or butterflies and moths, to drink liquids from rotting fruit and wet soil, as well as nectar from floral tubes, raises the question of whether the conventional view of the proboscis as a drinking straw can account for the withdrawal of fluids from porous substrates or of films and droplets from floral tubes. We discovered that the proboscis promotes capillary pull of liquids from diverse sources owing to a hierarchical pore structure spanning nano- and microscales. X-ray phase-contrast imaging reveals that Plateau instability causes liquid bridges to form in the food canal, which are transported to the gut by the muscular sucking pump in the head. The dual functionality of the proboscis represents a key innovation for exploiting a vast range of nutritional sources. We suggest that future studies of the adaptive radiation of the Lepidoptera take into account the role played by the structural organization of the proboscis. A transformative two-step model of capillary intake and suctioning can be applied not only to butterflies and moths but also potentially to vast numbers of other insects such as bees and flies.
Question Wording and the House Vote: Some Experimental Evidence

Since 1978, the vote reported for House incumbents in the American National Election Studies (NES) has been significantly higher than the actual incumbents' vote in the districts surveyed; in NES surveys before 1978, the reported vote was much closer to the actual vote. The prime suspect for the source of this bias is the new question format introduced in 1978 and used in all subsequent studies. We document the problem and review the results of several question-wording experiments that confirm the superior accuracy of a format that does not mention the candidates' names over the ballot format currently in use. We also find evidence that a modified version of the ballot format may reduce the pro-incumbent bias, so that improvement may be possible without a major interruption of the post 1978 NES times series.
Genetic determinants of depression: recent findings and future directions.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES After participating in this activity, learners should be better able to: 1. Evaluate current evidence regarding the genetic determinants of depression 2. Assess findings from studies of gene-environment interaction 3. Identify challenges to gene discovery in depression Depression is one of the most prevalent, disabling, and costly mental health conditions in the United States and also worldwide. One promising avenue for preventing depression and informing its clinical treatment lies in uncovering the genetic and environmental determinants of the disorder as well as their interaction (G × E). The overarching goal of this review article is to translate recent findings from studies of genetic association and G × E related to depression, particularly for readers without in-depth knowledge of genetics or genetic methods. The review is organized into three major sections. In the first, we summarize what is currently known about the genetic determinants of depression, focusing on findings from genome-wide association studies (GWAS). In the second section, we review findings from studies of G × E, which seek to simultaneously examine the role of genes and exposure to specific environments or experiences in the etiology of depression. In the third section, we describe the challenges to genetic discovery in depression and promising strategies for future progress.
The Occurrence of Sleep-Disordered Breathing among Middle-Aged Adults

Background Limited data have suggested that sleep-disordered breathing, a condition of repeated episodes of apnea and hypopnea during sleep, is prevalent among adults. Data from the Wisconsin Sleep Cohort Study, a longitudinal study of the natural history of cardiopulmonary disorders of sleep, were used to estimate the prevalence of undiagnosed sleep-disordered breathing among adults and address its importance to the public health. Methods A random sample of 602 employed men and women 30 to 60 years old were studied by overnight polysomnography to determine the frequency of episodes of apnea and hypopnea per hour of sleep (the apnea-hypopnea score). We measured the age- and sex-specific prevalence of sleep-disordered breathing in this group using three cutoff points for the apnea-hypopnea score (≥ 5, ≥ 10, and ≥ 15); we used logistic regression to investigate risk factors. Results The estimated prevalence of sleep-disordered breathing, defined as an apnea-hypopnea score of 5 or higher, was 9 percent for w...
Inflammasome Activation Can Mediate Tissue-Specific Pathogenesis or Protection in Staphylococcus aureus Infection.

Staphylococcus aureus is a Gram-positive coccus that interacts with human hosts on a spectrum from quiet commensal to deadly pathogen. S. aureus is capable of infecting nearly every tissue in the body resulting in cellulitis, pneumonia, osteomyelitis, endocarditis, brain abscesses, bacteremia, and more. S. aureus has a wide range of factors that promote infection, and each site of infection triggers a different response in the human host. In particular, the different patterns of inflammasome activation mediate tissue-specific pathogenesis or protection in S. aureus infection. Although still a nascent field, understanding the unique host–pathogen interactions in each infection and the role of inflammasomes in mediating pathogenesis may lead to novel strategies for treating S. aureus infections. Reviews addressing S. aureus virulence and pathogenesis (Thammavongsa et al. 2015), as well as epidemiology and pathophysiology (Tong et al. 2015), have recently been published. This review will focus on S. aureus factors that activate inflammasomes and their impact on innate immune signaling and bacterial survival.
Development of a countermeasure to enhance sensorimotor adaptation to altered gravity levels

Astronauts experience several gravitational transitions during their journey into space, and they must adapt their sensorimotor capabilities to perform their tasks safely and successfully. A decrement in orientation perception ability or motor skills during a critical mission phase such as landing or docking may lead to catastrophic consequences. The overall objective of this research effort is to investigate and quantify sensorimotor adaptation to altered gravity levels using a short-radius centrifuge. Individual differences, the effect of pre-training in a different gravity environment, and the effect of promethazine in reducing sensorimotor impairment and space motion sickness are of particular interest. The hypotheses are: (1) individual differences exist in the ability to adapt to altered gravity environments and these differences can be predicted for hypo-gravity by measuring adaptability in a hyper-gravity environment, (2) training in one altered gravity environment will improve sensorimotor adaptation in another altered gravity environment, and (3) promethazine will reduce motion sickness, but will have no influence on either basic vestibular perceptual function or sensorimotor adaptation. We are using two tasks to characterize performance decrements and subsequent adaptation that reduces errors: orientation perception and manual control. A series of experiments utilizing these tasks are being conducted on our short-radius centrifuge. For the perception task, subjects report their orientation during a series of roll tilts, while for manual control task, subjects attempt to null a pseudo-random roll tilt disturbance to keep themselves upright using a joystick. We describe preliminary results showing an initial disruption in ability to do both tasks in an altered gravity environment, followed by a learning process to reduce errors. We also tested whether promethazine impacts basic vestibular function by conducting a double-blind, within-subject study with 10 subjects, in which we compared vestibular perceptual thresholds measured with the administration of promethazine or a placebo. Results indicate that promethazine has little effect on perceptual thresholds. Since perceptual measurements can have some inherent measurement variability, we combined subject testing with Monte Carlo simulation tools we developed to evaluate how precisely adaptation rate can be measured. This approach allowed us to optimize experimental design to ensure that precise measures of adaptation rate will be determined. Experimental results show that subjects can, on average, report tilt with a precision of 2°. Simulations show that this corresponds to a coefficient of variation on adaptation time constant of around 20%.
“Tighter fit” theory—physiologists explain why “higher altitude” and jugular occlusion are unlikely to reduce risks for sports concussion and brain injuries

recent studies claim that the incidence of sports-related concussions may be reduced ([16][1], [25][2]) at “higher altitudes.” The proposed mechanism of protection is rooted in the “tighter fit” theory, such that altitude exposure causes the brain to swell, which leaves less room for it to
Potential for evolution of complex defense strategies in a multi-scale model of virus-host coevolution

Host resistance and viral pathogenicity are determined by molecular interactions that are part of the evolutionary arms race between viruses and their hosts. Viruses are obligate intracellular parasites and entry to the host cell is the first step of any virus infection. Commonly, viruses enter host cells by binding cell surface receptors. We adopt a computational modeling approach to study the evolution of the first infection step, where we consider two possible levels of resistance mechanism: at the level of the binding interaction between the host receptor and a virus binding protein, and at the level of receptor protein expression where we use a standard gene regulatory network model. At the population level we adopted the Susceptible-Infected-Susceptible (SIS) model. We used our multi-scale model to understand what conditions might determine the balance between use of resistance mechanisms at the two different levels. We explored a range of different conditions (model parameters) that affect host evolutionary dynamics and, in particular, the balance between the use of different resistance mechanisms. These conditions include the complexity of the receptor binding protein-protein interaction, selection pressure on the host population (pathogenicity), and the number of expressed cell-surface receptors. In particular, we found that as the receptor binding complexity (understood as the number of amino acids involved in the interaction between the virus entry protein and the host receptor) increases, viruses tend to become specialists and target one specific receptor. At the same time, on the host side, the potential for resistance shifts from the changes at the level of receptor binding (protein-protein) interaction towards changes at the level of gene regulation, suggesting a mechanism for increased biological complexity. Host resistance and viral pathogenicity depend on quite different evolutionary conditions. Viruses may evolve cell entry strategies that use small receptor binding regions, represented by low complexity binding in our model. Our modeling results suggest that if the virus adopts a strategy based on binding to low complexity sites on the host receptor, the host will select a defense strategy at the protein (receptor) level, rather than at the level of the regulatory network - a virus-host strategy that appears to have been selected most often in nature.
A Ketogenic Diet in Rodents Elicits Improved Mitochondrial Adaptations in Response to Resistance Exercise Training Compared to an Isocaloric Western Diet.

Purpose: Ketogenic diets (KD) can facilitate weight loss, but their effects on skeletal muscle remain equivocal. In this experiment we investigated the effects of two diets on skeletal muscle mitochondrial coupling, mitochondrial complex activity, markers of oxidative stress, and gene expression in sedentary and resistance exercised rats. Methods: Male Sprague-Dawley rats (9-10 weeks of age, 300-325 g) were fed isocaloric amounts of either a KD (17 g/day, 5.2 kcal/g, 20.2% protein, 10.3% CHO, 69.5% fat, n=16) or a Western diet (WD) (20 g/day, 4.5 kcal/g, 15.2% protein, 42.7% CHO, 42.0% fat, n=16) for 6 weeks. During these six weeks animals were either sedentary (SED, n=8 per diet group) or voluntarily exercised using resistance-loaded running wheels (EXE, n=8 per diet group). Gastrocnemius was excised and used for mitochondrial isolation and biochemical analyses. RESULTS: In the presence of a complex II substrate, the respiratory control ratio (RCR) of isolated gastrocnemius mitochondria was higher (p<0.05) in animals fed the KD compared to animals fed the WD. Complex I and IV enzyme activity was higher (p<0.05) in EXE animals regardless of diet. SOD2 protein levels and GLUT4 and PGC1α mRNA expression were higher (p<0.05) in EXE animals regardless of diet. CONCLUSION: Our data indicate that skeletal muscle mitochondrial coupling of complex II substrates is more efficient in chronically resistance trained rodents fed a KD. These findings may provide merit for further investigation, perhaps on humans.
Residual Nitrite Concentration and Total Plate Counts in White and Dark Chicken Patties.

Effects of formulated nitrite (initial nitrite concentration added to patties) and muscle type on the residual nitrite concentration in raw and cooked chicken patties were studied. Microbiological determinations were done on raw chicken patties. Residual nitrite concentration in raw (104 ppm) and cooked (85 ppm) dark meat was higher than raw (90 ppm) and cooked (65 ppm) white meat after storage at 4 to 5°C. Cooking reduced the residual nitrite content of both white and dark meat. Formulated nitrite concentrations of 100 and 150 ppm lowered the total number of aerobic microorganisms developing in raw white meat patties by 102 and 104 colony-forming units/g, respectively, but were not effective in raw dark meat patties. A nitrite concentration of 400 ppm was required to repress the growth of aerobic microorganisms in raw dark meat for 6 d.