cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Support for Simulation-based Surgical Education through American College of Surgeons – Accredited Education Institutes

The American College of Surgeons (ACS) recently launched a new program to provide regional support for simulation-based surgical education through the establishment of a consortium of accredited education institutes. The goals of the program are to enhance surgical patient safety, support efforts of surgeons to meet the requirements for Maintenance of Certification, address the core competencies that all surgeons and surgical residents need to achieve and demonstrate, and enhance access to contemporary surgical education. The ACS-accredited institutes will comprehensively address the needs of a broad spectrum of learners and advance the science of simulation-based surgical education. Accreditation is being offered at two levels—Level I (Comprehensive) and Level II (Basic)—based on three standards that focus on the learners served, the curricula offered, and the technological support and resources available. Initial plans of the consortium of ACS-accredited Education Institutes include development and dissemination of innovative curricula, peer review of new educational programs and products, sharing of limited educational resources, and pursuit of collaborative research and development. This program should be of great value in supporting the professional activities of surgeons, surgical residents, medical students, and members of the surgical team, and in delivering surgical care of the highest quality.
Not all physics simulators can be wrong in the same way

Transferring designs in evolutionary robotics from simulation to reality remains problematic. It has been addressed by using quasi-static physics simulators, adding noise to encourage robustness, and evolving primarily in simulation then evolving on actual hardware for fine-tuning. This paper experiments with this idea: All physics simulators have errors, but if the errors are distinct, one might profitably use multiple simulators to detect unrealistic physical behavior in simulation. Two physics simulators are used to evolve a controller for quadruped locomotion. Preliminary results validate some assumptions and further work is suggested.
N-Acylphosphatidylethanolamine Synthesis in Plants: Occurrence, Molecular Composition, and Phospholipid Origin

Abstract We have identified a microsomal phospholipid as Nacylphosphatidylethanolamine (NAPE) that was radio-labeled following incubation of 1-day-old cotyledons of cotton seedlings with [ 14 C]ethanolamine. Radiolabeled NAPE comigrated with commercially available L-α-dipalmitoyl phosphatidyl( N -palmitoyl)ethanolamine (stdNAPE) in one- and two-dimensional TLC. This NAPE comprised 7.2 ± 1.0% (by weight) of microsomal phospholipids when hot isopropanol was used to inactivate endogenous phospholipases prior to extraction of lipids. In vitro degradation of putative cottonseed radiolabeled NAPE by Streptomyces chromofuscus phospholipase D resulted in production of a ninhydrin-reactive, radiolabeled lipid which comigrated with N -acylethanolamine (NAE) that was produced from a similar enzymatic cleavage of std-NAPE. Transmethylation of cottonseed radiolabeled NAE yielded radiolabeled ethanolamine and fatty acid methyl esters, nearly all of which were saturated (myristate, palmitate, and stearate together were 92% of the acyl components of cottonseed NAE). Positional analysis and relative abundance of the O -acyl groups of cottonseed microsomal NAPE were determined following a double enzymatic cleavage with Trimeresurus flavoviridis venom (phospholipase A 2 activity) and S. chromofuscus phospholipase D. We substantiated our identification of cottonseed NAPE by 1 H NMR spectroscopy and by mass spectrometry (fast-atom-bombardment ionization and tandem MS, FAB-MS/MS). Radiolabeled NAPE was synthesized in vivo in varying amounts from [ 14 C]ethanolamine applied to maturing seeds of cotton and soybean, cotyledons of dark-grown cotton and soybean seedlings, cotyledons of light-grown okra, cotton and soybean seedlings, endosperm tissue of castor bean, and suspension cell cultures of rice. In pulse-chase radiolaheling experiments in cotyledons of 1-day-old cotton seedlings, radiolabeled NAPE increased and radiolabeled phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) decreased over a 12-h chase period (in the dark or light), suggesting that NAPE was synthesized from PE in vivo . In vitro , the synthesis of NAPE from PE (radiolabeled in vivo ) proceeded in a linear fashion in microsomes of cotton cotyledons with or without 1 mM EGTA and with or without 1 mM CaCl 2 for 90 min. NAPE was synthesized in vitro from PE synthesized by the exchange pathway (microsomes preincubated with [ 14 C]ethanolamine) and from PE synthesized by the nucleotide pathway (microsomes preincubated with [ 14 C]CDPethanolamine). Collectively, our data indicate that (a) NAPE is a widespread, natural phospholipid component of plants, (b) NAPE is synthesized in vivo under normal physiological growth conditions in cotyledons of cotton seedlings, (c) NAPE is localized and synthesized in cottonseed microsomes, and (d) NAPE is likely synthesized by a direct acylation of PE.
Culturally Customizing Websites for U.S. Hispanic Online Consumers

The U.S. Hispanic online market consists of the most affluent and educated members of the U.S. Hispanic population. The segment is large, increasing in size, and its members prefer culturally-adapted marketing messages. Currently, no frameworks are available to help marketers culturally customize websites for U.S. Hispanics. The objective of this study is to address this gap. The goals are to identify the ways in which Hispanic preferences for web design elements differ, and to explore how these preferences vary based on acculturation. The results indicate that Hispanics have culturally-rooted preferences for web content and that acculturation levels are important segmentation variables.
The role of mathematics in the computer science curriculum

There has been much debate in the past few years about the appropriate mathematics requirements for an undergraduate computer science major. The discussion has focused primarily on two issues: (1) the underlying mathematical content of computer science courses and (2) the content of mathematics courses which would serve as appropriate cognate requirements for computer science major programs. While this discussion has been helpful, it has been too narrowly focused--it has not started from an understanding of the relationship between the disciplines of mathematics and computer science, but rather has sought to identify mathematical prerequisites that computer science majors need in order to take existing computer science courses. This paper is a small step in seeking to apply an understanding of the relationship between the disciplines of mathematics and computer science to the undergraduate computer science curriculum.
Comparison of technical support for open source software versus proprietary software

In this poster proposal we present results from an IMLS funded research project to compare technical support for open source software with proprietary software for Integrated Library Systems (ILS). The complete research project is being carried in three phases over a period of three years, in this poster we present the overall project plan and the results from the first phase of research. The poster describes the project approach by presenting the complete project plan and presents results from two survey conducted to identify expectations of librarians for technical support of the ILS that they use and then second survey was conducted to assess the effectiveness of the current technical support methods in solving the technical problems faced by librarians.
Refusal of cancer therapy in testicular cancer: Recognizing and preventing a significant problem

Of 244 patients with testicular cancer who were treated at our medical center between 1970 and 1987, 7 (2.9%) refused all or a portion of their cancer therapy. All refusers died of cancer, and 6 of the 7 deaths were directly attributable to the refusal. Refusers were compared with the remaining patients; whereas there was no significant difference in age, race, and pathology of the tumor between the two groups, the more advanced initial stage of disease in the refusers approached significance (P=0.073), and the history of untreated cryptorchidism was more prevalent in that group (P=0.034). Combination chemotherapy was the treatment modality most often refused; however, refusal was not simply due to chemotherapeutic side effects but was a multifactorial problem. Characteristics common in the refusers included lower educational and employment status, higher religiosity, a more dependent personality and life-style, as well as other character deficits. In the current era of high cure rates in testicular cancer patients, refusal and refusal deaths are highly clinically significant and efforts to identify likely refusers and thus avert refusal episodes are necessary.
Dichroic Ratio Measurements in the Infrared Region

An analysis of conventional optical arrangements for the measurement of dichroic ratios in the infrared region reveals that such measurements may be in error by factors up to 3 or more. These errors result from failing to account for the effects of prism polarization and of the imperfection of polarization in the transmitted beam of multiple plate AgCl polarizers. Elimination of the effect of prism polarization by a method proposed by Elliot, Ambrose, and Temple is shown to be relatively ineffectual when a transmission polarizer is employed. The magnitude of the error varies with the true dichroic ratio and with the optical density of the sample for polarized radiation parallel to one of the optic axes. A frequency dependent parameter is found to account for relatively isotropic intensity losses resulting from absorption and scattering by the AgCl in the polarizers; observed values of this parameter are given for three wavelengths, 1.67μ, 3.85μ, and 4.80μ.
Thermally‐Induced Changes in Bonding Properties of C60 on Si(100)‐2×1 Surfaces

The co-adsorption of pre- and post-annealed C60 molecules on Si(100)-2×1 surfaces has been investigated using scanning tunneling microscopy in ultrahigh vacuum. The images reveal that the adsorption characteristics of the post-annealed adsorbates are different from their pre-annealed counterparts. The post-annealed C60 molecules bond either to the top of the dimer rows or to the missing dimer defects, while the pre-annealed molecules predominantly occupy the four-dimer sites in the troughs. The apparent size and height of post-annealed C60 molecules are smaller than those of the pre-annealed ones. Our observations suggest that the post-annealed C60 molecules are chemisorbed on the surface, because the molecules covalently bond to Si atoms during the sample annealing. In contrast, the adsorption of the pre-annealed C60 molecules can be explained by a dipole-induced-dipole interaction between the molecules and the Si(100) surface, i.e., physisorption.
Ebola Virus Protein VP35 Impairs the Function of Interferon Regulatory Factor-Activating Kinases IKKε and TBK-1

The Ebola virus (EBOV) VP35 protein antagonizes the early antiviral alpha/beta interferon (IFN-alpha/beta) response. We previously demonstrated that VP35 inhibits the virus-induced activation of the IFN-beta promoter by blocking the phosphorylation of IFN-regulatory factor 3 (IRF-3), a transcription factor that is crucial for the induction of IFN-alpha/beta expression. Furthermore, VP35 blocks IFN-beta promoter activation induced by any of several components of the retinoic acid-inducible gene I (RIG-I)/melanoma differentiation-associated gene 5 (MDA-5)-activated signaling pathways including RIG-I, IFN-beta promoter stimulator 1 (IPS-1), TANK-binding kinase 1 (TBK-1), and IkappaB kinase epsilon (IKKepsilon). These results suggested that VP35 may target the IRF kinases TBK-1 and IKKepsilon. Coimmunoprecipitation experiments now demonstrate physical interactions of VP35 with IKKepsilon and TBK-1, and the use of an IKKepsilon deletion construct further demonstrates that the amino-terminal kinase domain of IKKepsilon is sufficient for interactions with either IRF-3 or VP35. In vitro, either IKKepsilon or TBK-1 phosphorylates not only IRF-3 but also VP35. Moreover, VP35 overexpression impairs IKKepsilon-IRF-3, IKKepsilon-IRF-7, and IKKepsilon-IPS-1 interactions. Finally, lysates from cells overexpressing IKKepsilon contain kinase activity that can phosphorylate IRF-3 in vitro. When VP35 is expressed in the IKKepsilon-expressing cells, this kinase activity is suppressed. These data suggest that VP35 exerts its IFN-antagonist function, at least in part, by blocking necessary interactions between the kinases IKKepsilon and TBK-1 and their normal interaction partners, including their substrates, IRF-3 and IRF-7.
Methods for Random Modularization of Biological Networks

Biological networks are formalized summaries of our knowledge about interactions among biological system components, like genes, proteins, or metabolites. From their global topology and organization one can learn nontrivial, systemic properties of organisms. In studies of biological network organization empirical networks are typically compared to random network models, and features are identified as important if they are statistically "unusual," i.e. occur surprisingly often or seldom. Naturally, more representative random models result in better feature identification. Since biological networks exhibit a modular structure (mostly pertaining to their hierarchical functional organization), random network models need be modular similarly. In this work we consider the problem of generating random network models that incorporate network modularity. Theoretically, the problem is equivalent to generating random decompositions of a graph into a given number of connected components. Here we describe two methods we have developed to do that and illustrate their utility on pertinent systems biology problems of feature scaling.
Governing through the Market: Neoliberal Environmental Government in Belize

In this analysis, I demonstrate how two aspects of neoliberalism that are often treated separately—the devolution of responsibility for governing from states to nonstate entities and the commodification of new spheres of life—articulate with one another. If “government,” in the Foucauldian sense, shapes human conduct indirectly, by reconfiguring the contexts that channel human decisions, neoliberal forms of “government” privilege markets as mechanisms of indirect rule. In this study from Belize, the state assigned responsibility for managing a wildlife sanctuary and nearby Maya communities to a conservation NGO. However, through ecotourism, management of both the sanctuary and surrounding villages devolved to become more fundamentally the purview of “the market”: as villagers became incorporated into global ecotourism markets, they came to apply market rationalities to govern their own conduct in relation to the sanctuary. This analysis has relevance beyond environmental contexts, as the logics of devolution and commodification have oriented policies across a range of arenas. [market, ecotourism, neoliberalism, conservation, Maya, Belize]
A generalized ECG simulator: an educational tool

A description is given of general-purpose personal-computer- (PC-) based simulation software developed to generate normal and abnormal ECG waveforms. The waveforms can be displayed on the PC monitor as well as output through a serial port of the digital-to-analog-converter card of the PC. The generated ECG has a Gaussian distribution with user-specified mean and standard deviation. The selection of a given waveform from a bank of ECGs is determined by the assigned probability of occurrence. The simulator produces realistic ECG with the possibility of including other biological signals, e.g. blood pressures. This program can be used as a teaching tool as well as for testing ECG monitors. >
Prior heavy exercise increases oxygen cost during moderate exercise without associated change in surface EMG.

Abstract The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that prior heavy exercise results in a higher oxygen cost during a subsequent bout of moderate exercise due to changes in muscle activity. Eight male subjects (25 ± 2 yr, ±SE) performed moderate–moderate and moderate–heavy–moderate transitions in work rate (cycling intensity, moderate = 90% LT, heavy = 80% VO2 peak). The second bout of moderate exercise was performed after 6 min (C) or 30 s (D) of recovery. Pulmonary gas exchange was measured breath-by-breath and surface electromyography was obtained from the vastus lateralis and medialis muscles. Root mean square (RMS) and median power frequency (M d PF) were computed. Prior heavy exercise increased Δ V ˙ O 2 / Δ WR (C: +2.0 ± 0.8 ml min−1 W−1, D: +3.4 ± 0.8 ml min−1 W−1; P d PF was slightly elevated (∼2%) during the second bout of moderate exercise, but M d PF was not correlated with V ˙ O 2 (r = 0.17). These findings suggest that the increased oxygen cost during moderate exercise following heavy exercise is not due to increased muscle activity as assessed by surface electromyography.
The N170 to Angry Faces Predicts Anxiety in Typically Developing Children Over a Two-Year Period

Enhanced threat processing has been associated with elevated anxiety in adults, but less is known about how threat processing influences the developmental trajectory of anxiety in children. We used the N170 to measure threat (angry faces) processing in relation to child anxiety over a 2-year period. Participants were 27 typically developing 5-to-7-year-olds (13 females). Higher anxiety when children were aged 5 to 7 was associated with higher anxiety 2 years later, but only for children showing larger N170 amplitudes to angry versus happy faces. The N170 captures individual differences in threat processing that may characterize children at enhanced risk for anxiety.
Electrical stimulation for restoration of function

Electrical stimulation is a promising method for restoration of muscle and limb function for individuals with a variety of motor disabilities. Rehabilitation applications of functional electrical stimulation (FES) include restoration of standing and gait, activation of rudimentary grasp, motor retraining and bladder management. Simple standing and gait systems are technically feasible and have been demonstrated in the laboratory and with at least one commercial product. Further development must address fatigue, control, and ease-of-use challenges. Systems to restore grasp can have a significant impact on the ability of an individual with quadriplegia to live independently. A variety of systems that use surface, percutaneous and implanted hardware are commercially available. Individuals with motor disabilities as a consequence of stroke represent the largest potential target population for FES systems. To date, applications have been limited because of the difficulty of demonstrating the efficacy in motor retraining or other applications when compared to conventional physical therapy methods. Recent research and development efforts have led to renewed activity in stroke applications and FES approaches to bladder management for those with spinal cord injury reveal great potential. First-generation implanted systems are in use and second generation systems are being researched. Many challenges must be addressed before FES systems can be used by large numbers of individuals with motor impairments. Among these challenges are the rapid fatigue of stimulated muscle, the limited pool of candidates who meet all of the ideal selection criteria for FES systems, and the need to demonstrate efficacy so that health insurance providers will cover FES systems.
Production of Depleted Chicks by Feeding Maternal Diets Deficient in Unidentified Growth Factors

Abstract MANY investigators have demonstrated that the nutritional wellbeing of a newly-hatched chick depends to a considerable extent upon the nourishment of its dam (Bird et al., 1946; Csonka and Olsen, 1949; Hill et al., 1954; and others). Vitamin B12, for instance, is stored in the body of the chick and tenaciously held (Jackson et al., 1953). Study of this vitamin, therefore, is facilitated by the use of a deficient maternal diet. In considering the well-known, but usually unpublished, difficulties in studying unidentified chick growth factors, it seemed likely that one of these is due to the presence of large reserves of these factors in the tissues of newly-hatched chicks of normally fed dams. Menge et al. (1952) and Patterson and McGinnis (1954) obtained evidence that the chick’s growth response to certain supplements containing unidentified factors is decreased by the presence of the supplements in the maternal diet. Conversely, Fisher et al. …
Detrital Zircon Geochronology of the Adams Argillite and Nation River Formation, East-Central Alaska, U.S.A.

ABSTRACT The Cambrian Adams Argillite and the Devonian Nation River Formation are two sandstone-bearing units within a remarkably complete Paleozoic stratigraphic section in east-central Alaska. These strata, now foreshortened and fault-bounded, were originally contiguous with miogeoclinal strata to the east that formed as a passive-margin sequence along the northwestern margin of the North American continent. Seventy-five detrital zircon grains from the Adams Argillite and the Nation River Formation were analyzed in an effort to provide constraints on the original sources of the grains, and to generate a detrital zircon reference for miogeoclinal strata in the northern Cordillera. Thirty-five single zircon grains from a quartzite in the Adams Argillite yield dominant age clusters of 1047-1094 (n = 6), 1801-1868 (n = 10), and 2564-2687 (n = 5) Ma. Forty zircons extracted from a sandstone in the Nation River Formation yield clusters primarily of 424-434 (n = 6), 1815-1838 (n = 6), 1874-1921 (n = 7), and 2653-2771 (n = 4) Ma. The Early Proterozoic and Archean grains in both units probably originated in basement rocks in a broad region of the Canadian Shield. In contrast, the original igneous sources for mid-Proterozoic grains in the Adams Argillite and 430 Ma grains in the Nation River Formation are more difficult to identify. Possible original sources for the mid-Proterozoic grains include: (1) the Grenville Province of eastern Laurentia, (2) the Pearya terrane along the Arctic margin, and (3) mid-Proterozoic igneous rocks that may have been widespread along or outboard of the Cordilleran margin. The 430 Ma grains may have originated in: (1) arc-type sources along the Cordilleran margin, (2) the Caledonian orogen, or (3) a landmass, such as Pearya, Siberia, or crustal fragments now in northern Asia, that resided outboard of the Innuitian orogen during mid-Paleozoic time.
A robotic device for minimally invasive breast interventions with real-time MRI guidance

We have developed a device to perform minimally invasive interventions in the breast with realtime MRI guidance for the early detection and treatment of breast cancer. The device uses five computer-controlled degrees of freedom to perform minimally invasive interventions inside a closed MRI scanner. Typically the intervention would consist of a biopsy of the suspicious lesion for diagnosis, but may involve therapies to destroy or remove malignant tissue in the breast. The procedure proceeds with: (a) conditioning of the breast along a prescribed orientation, (b) definition of an insertion vector by its height and pitch angle, and (c) insertion into the breast. The entire device is made of materials compatible with MRI, avoiding artifacts and distortion of the local magnetic field. The device is remotely controlled via a graphical user interface. This is the first surgical robotic device to perform real-time MRI-guided breast interventions in the United States.
High accuracy UWB localization in dense indoor environments

UWB communication and localization systems have many inherent advantages for robust performance in dense, indoor multipath environments. Although UWB systems have been designed for numerous industrial applications, there exists the need for short range (i.e. 5-10 m) UWB localization systems with accuracy an order of magnitude higher (i.e. mm-range) than existing commercial systems. Many system level challenges must be overcome to achieve accuracy on the order of tens of picoseconds, such as high Rx sampling rate, Tx-Rx LO phase noise, Tx-Rx pulse repetition frequency clock phase noise, Rx-induced jitter from sequential sampling, Rx-side calibration of phase offsets in I and Q channels, multipath interference due to dense indoor environments, etc. A detailed system level simulation is setup in order to quantify the contribution of these effects on overall system accuracy. Simulation results are used to highlight these system level errors and show how they can be mitigated.
Epo on demand

The development of safe and effective gene therapy poses many formidable challenges. Some biomedical applications such as the hemoglobinopathies require that the gene product be expressed in a specific cell type, for example, erythroid progenitors. No such constraint pertains when the gene product
Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) Security Models

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix CHAPTER 1. SOA Security Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 1.
Dispersion characteristics of metamaterial slow-wave coupled lines

A novel coupled line structure based on two inter-wound right-handed metamaterial transmission lines is investigated. The basic approach is to compress, twist, and fragment (CTF) metal strips or discs periodically in a multi-layer structure to form a four port structure that carries the feature of a large slow-wave factor with a band selection capability. Dispersion characteristics of both odd and even modes are investigated with emphasis on phase equalization and impedance design. A specific metamaterial couple-lines structure is designed, fabricated and tested as an example. The measured results of the slow-wave factor and line impedance are in good agreement with those of simulated results. Potential applications of the proposed coupled line structure are also discussed.
Measurement of amide proton exchange rates and NOEs with water in 13C/15N-enriched calcineurin B

A rapid and sensitive 2D approach is presented for measuring amide proton exchange rates and the NOE interaction between amide protons and water. The approach is applicable to uniformly 13C/15N-enriched proteins and can measure magnetization exchange rates in the 0.02 to >20s−1 range. The experiments rely on selective excitation of the water resonance, coupled with purging of underlying Hα resonances, followed by NOESY-or ROESY-type transfer to amide protons, which are dispersed by the amide 15N frequencies in an HSQC-type experiment. Two separate but interleaved experiments, with and without selective inversion of the H2O resonance, yield quantitative results. The method is demonstrated for a sample of the calcium-binding protein calcineurin B. Results indicate rapid amide exchange for the five calcineurin B residues that are analogous to the five rapidly exchanging residues in the ‘central helix’ of the homologous protein calmodulin.
Search of a God for Evolution: Paul Tillich and Pierre Teilhard de Chardin

Pierre Teilhard de Chardin challenged theology to reach for an understanding of God that would take into account the reality of evolution. Paul Tillich's notion of New Being goes a long way toward meeting this challenge, and a theology of evolution can gain a great deal from Tillich's religious thought. But Teilhard would still wonder whether the philosophical notion of being, even when qualified by the adjective new, is itself adequate to contextualize evolution theologically. To Teilhard a theology attuned to a post-Darwinian world requires nothing less than a revolution in our understanding of what is ultimately real. It is doubtful that Tillich's rather classical theological system is radical enough to accommodate this requirement. For Teilhard, on the other hand, a metaphysics grounded in the biblical vision, wherein God is understood as the future on which the world rests as its sole support, can provide a more suitable setting for evolutionary theology.
Seeds of Memory: Botanical Legacies of the African Diaspora

The decades following 1492 launched an era of European overseas expansion, which led to an unprecedented intercontinental exchange of plant and animal species. Literature on the Columbian Exchange emphasizes the New World and Asian crops that revolutionized the food systems of Africa but ignores the role of African crops in the New World tropics. This chapter draws attention to the neglected African components of the Columbian Exchange. The movement of African plant and food animals across the Atlantic Ocean in the initial period of plantation development depended on the transatlantic slave trade for their dispersal. Plants and animals arrived on slave ships together with African captives for whom the species were traditional dietary staples, medicinals, and food animals. A proper appreciation of African contributions to New World agricultural systems requires a new perspective on plantation societies, one that shifts standard research from the export commodities that slaves grew to the plants they cultivated for their own needs. This in turn draws attention to the significance of African species as a vital logistical support of the transatlantic slave trade and to the agency of enslaved Africans in pioneering cultivation of familiar dietary plants in their dooryard gardens and food fields.
Effect of cover-cropping systems on invertebrate seed predation

Abstract Contrasting cover-cropping systems were compared to determine whether fundamental differences in cover-cropping strategies affect weed seed predators and resulting seed predation. We conducted typical “feeding” trials in which 25 seeds of each of six weed species, including velvetleaf, wild mustard, yellow foxtail, common lambsquarters, redroot pigweed, and hairy galinsoga, were placed in the field. Exclosures showed that the majority of seed predation could be attributed to invertebrates: 43% out of a total of 56% seed predation for 11 d in 2002 and 40% out of a total of 58% seed predation for 4 d in 2003. The predominant invertebrate seed predator across all entry points of four cropping systems was a ground-dwelling carabid beetle, Harpalus rufipes, which was more abundant in vegetated treatments, particularly red clover, compared with treatments recently tilled and planted to a fall cover crop. In the absence of vertebrates, H. rufipes activity–density was positively correlated with mean seed...
Functional morphology of the muscles in Philodina sp. (Rotifera: Bdelloidea)

Whole-mounts of Philodina sp., a bdelloid rotifer, were stained with fluorescent-labeled phalloidin to visualize the musculature. Several different muscle types were identified including incomplete circular bands, coronal retractors and foot retractors. Based on the position of the larger muscle bands in the body wall, their function during creeping locomotion and tun formation was inferred. Bdelloid creeping begins with the contraction of incomplete circular muscle bands against the hydrostatic pseudocoel, resulting in an anterior elongation of the body. One or more sets of ventral longitudinal muscles then contract bringing the rostrum into contact with the substrate, where it presumably attaches via adhesive glands. Different sets of ventral longitudinal muscles, foot and trunk retractors, function to pull the body forward. These same longitudinal muscle sets are also used in `tun' formation, in which the head and foot are withdrawn into the body. Three sets of longitudinal muscles supply the head region (anterior head segments) and function in withdrawal of the corona and rostrum. Two additional pairs of longitudinal muscles function to retract the anterior trunk segments immediately behind the head, and approximately five sets of longitudinal retractors are involved in the withdrawal of the foot and posterior toes. To achieve a greater understanding of rotifer behavior, it is important to elucidate the structural complexity of body wall muscles in rotifers. The utility of fluorescently-labeled phalloidin for the visualization of these muscles is discussed and placed in the context of rotifer functional morphology.
Benign isolated histiocytosis mimicking chicken pox in a neonate: report of two cases with ultrastructural study.

Two cases of benign isolated cutaneous histiocytosis X in newborn infants are reported. Clinically, the lesions mimicked chicken pox, and the histologic findings in skin biopsies were indistinguishable from those described in infantile Letterer-Siwe disease. Electron microscopy showed Langerhans' cells with the classical trilaminar, racket-shaped granules. Our cases as well as 10 of the 21 previously reported cases showed spontaneous resolution of the skin lesions. Since this is a benign spontaneous resolving histiocytosis, we recommend that no therapy be given provided that no other signs of systemic involvement are found.
Preventing rhesus isoimmunization: Antepartum Rh immune globulin prophylaxis versus a sensitive test for risk identification

The controversial proposal to use Rho (D) immune globulin (human) prophylactically in pregnancy should not detract from the most expedient approach to further reduction of Rh disease; that is, to ensure that every eligible woman is given Rho (D) immune globulin (human) after delivery, abortion, or ectopic pregnancy. Family planning by Rh-negative women at risk and limiting the number of pregnancies in women already immunized will be additional effective ways to reduce the current incidence of hemolytic disease in most communities. Present evidence shows that blanket antepartum Rho (D) immune globulin (human) prophylactic treatment will be very costly and will place many subjects at potential risk while offering benefit to only a few. Sensitive and practical laboratory testing for fetomaternal hemorrhage is presently only a research tool but will soon be clinically available to provide new data on fetomaternal hemorrhage. In the near future, pregnant women truly at risk for Rh isoimmunization may be identified by analysis of their blood, and this will be a rational basis for antepartum Rho (D) immune globulin (human) treatment. There are compelling advantages in cost, risks, and benefits for an approach of selective antepartum Rho (D) immune globulin (human) therapy as opposed to routine prophylaxis for all Rh-negative gravid women.
The Bankruptcy of Due Process: Nationwide Service of Process, Personal Jurisdiction and the Bankruptcy Code

Congress' power to legislate is not unlimited and federal courts have an obligation to monitor Congress' exercise of its authority. In creating the current Fifth Amendment analysis, federal courts have fallen woefully short in defining the scope of congressional authority. Courts must develop an analytical framework that recognizes and responds to the varying strengths of the federal interest. This Article contends that in the bankruptcy context, the nature of the claim being litigated alters the balance under the Fifth Amendment analysis and acts as a limitation on Congress' otherwise broad power to authorize bankruptcy courts to exercise personal jurisdiction based on nationwide service of process. Specifically, when a bankruptcy court resolves a dispute that arises under state law, the federal interest is arguably at its lowest ebb and the defendant's liberty interests protected by the due process clause are brought to the forefront. In such instances, the bankruptcy court is enforcing state substantive rights not a federally-created right and thus the interests of the sovereign are diminished as are its coercive powers. In these circumstances, the current, one-size-fits-all Fifth Amendment analysis is ill-suited to protect the individual liberty interests at stake.
Dual Energy Transport Model with Coupled Lattice and Carrier Temperatures

A Dual Energy Transport (Dual ET) model was developed, that includes Poisson’s equation, carrier continuity equations and the energy balance and thermal diffusion equation. Six variables (electric potential, electron and hole concentrations, electron and hole temperatures, and lattice temperature) can be obtained, describing all electro-thermal effects in the electrons, holes and lattice subsytems. Results for diode breakdown are shown.
Effect of low-expression gene filtering on detection of differentially expressed genes in RNA-seq data

We compare methods for filtering RNA-seq lowexpression genes and investigate the effect of filtering on detection of differentially expressed genes (DEGs). Although RNA-seq technology has improved the dynamic range of gene expression quantification, low-expression genes may be indistinguishable from sampling noise. The presence of noisy, low-expression genes can decrease the sensitivity of detecting DEGs. Thus, identification and filtering of these low-expression genes may improve DEG detection sensitivity. Using the SEQC benchmark dataset, we investigate the effect of different filtering methods on DEG detection sensitivity. Moreover, we investigate the effect of RNA-seq pipelines on optimal filtering thresholds. Results indicate that the filtering threshold that maximizes the total number of DEGs closely corresponds to the threshold that maximizes DEG detection sensitivity. Transcriptome reference annotation, expression quantification method, and DEG detection method are statistically significant RNA-seq pipeline factors that affect the optimal filtering threshold.
A Report on the State of the Moroccan Archives

A gradual transformation is taking place in Morocco in the ease with which it is possible to have access to archives. In a year and a half in Morocco my research in the archives both of Rabat and of the town of Essaouira was expedited by the administrators and ministries responsible in a way that approached what is current in England, for example. Those who have done archival research in Morocco will recognize the significance of such a change. This report begins with a discussion of living accommodations in Morocco that may be of interest to those wishing to do research in the archives. Following this section I have tried to set out, first, the types of archives to be found, as well as their accessibility, and, second, the sorts of archival material likely to be found in each archive. Finally, I have appended a few suggestions about getting permission to do research in these archives. I can speak with accuracy for Rabat and Essaouira and, though it may be unwise to say they are representative of large and small towns, at least the two examples may be of some general significance. Those who can afford to stay at the Rabat Hilton may skip this section because it is targeted to those who cannot or would prefer not to spend that much money. A fairly inexpensive hotel, yet one that a North American would feel comfortable in, is fairly easy to find in most of the major cities or towns of Morocco. These would run about $20 to $30 a night for two people. In Rabat two possibilities are: BELERE (33, Av. Moulay Youssef) and LES OUDAYAS (4, Rue Tobrouk). Both are within an easy walk of the Royal Archives and the Archives of the Bibliotheque Generale.
Suitability of the rufiventer marmoset as a host animal for human hepatitis A virus.

SummaryThe rufiventer marmoset, which closely resembles marmosets designated as S. labiatus, Marikina labiata, and Jacchus rufiventer, proved to be an equally satisfactory host animal as S. mystax for studies of human hepatitis A virus. C. jacchus, C. argentata, S. weddelli, and S. oedi-pus marmosets were not satisfactory. Rufiventer marmosets were highly susceptible to infection with hepatitis A virus. Following viral adaptation, livers of rufiventer marmosets produced satisfactory CR326 virus antigen for IA tests in terms of both amount and specificity. Importantly, rufiventer marmosets inoculated with rufiventer-adapted CR326 virus showed enzyme elevations and high titers of viral antigen in their livers as early as 7 days after virus inoculation. These findings may be of importance in understanding the pathogenesis of hepatitis A, indicating that a primary viral infection can cause hepatitis without need for a secondary autoimmune response to liver tissue.We gratefully acknowedge the expert technical ...
Acid infusion does not affect intraesophageal balloon distention-induced sensory and pain thresholds.

Objective: We sought to evaluate the potential interaction between acid-sensitive chemoreceptors and pressure-sensitive mechanoreceptors. Methods: Twenty-one normal control subjects underwent esophageal balloon distention with a commercially produced combined-manometry, acid-infusion, balloon-distention catheter. The intraesophageal balloon was localized 10 cm above the lower esophageal sphincter. With a mechanical pump, sensory and pain thresholds were determined by using sequentially increasing balloon volumes (range 0-23 cc, increment 1 cc). A 15-min acid infusion (0.1 N HCl at 6-8 cc/min) or a 0.9 N saline infusion was then applied just proximal to the distending balloon, followed by a second determination of sensory and pain thresholds. The results of the trials before and after acid and placebo were compared. Results: All subjects tolerated the procedure. The initial mean volume-to-sensory threshold was 9.1 ml (range 5-16), decreasing to 6.2 (range 4-11) after acid infusion (p < 0.005). The sensory threshold also decreased from 9.8 ml (range 6-16) to 6.8 ml (range 4-14) after saline infusion (p = 0.06). The mean volume-to-pain threshold was 16.0 (range 14-21) before and 15.2 (range 11-23) after acid infusion and 15.8 (range 12-20) before and 14.0 (range 10-20) after saline infusion (NS). Conclusion: We conclude that infused acid has no effect on pain threshold and has a nonspecific effect on sensory threshold induced by esophageal balloon distention.
Interactions of PTH with Receptors and Signaling

The mechanisms by which parathyroid hormone (PTH) binds to its receptor on target cells and activates signaling responses that ultimately lead to changes in bone and mineral metabolism have been a focus of much experimental study, starting at least since the demonstration of bioactivity in parathyroid gland extracts. The development of synthetic PTH peptide fragment analogs led to the knowledge that the key determinants of receptor binding affinity and receptor activation reside in the amino- and carboxy-terminal portions of the fully active PTH(1–34) fragment, respectively, and hence the design of PTH antagonist peptides that either lack the key amino-terminal signaling residues, e.g., PTH(7–34), or have amino-terminal substitutions, e.g., Bpa2-PTH(1–34). The cloning of the receptor from bone and kidney cell lines revealed the seven-helical transmembrane architecture of the G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) super-family, but it was at once realized that the PTH receptor (PTHR1), together with the several other peptide hormone receptors, formed a distinct GPCR subgroup, called the family B receptors. Extensive mutational and photo-affinity crosslinking studies, as well as more recent X-crystallography approaches, have revealed a common “two-site” mode of ligand binding used by each of these family B receptors. A recent and surprising finding for the PTHR1 is that it can form highly stable complexes with certain PTH ligand analogs and thereby mediate markedly prolonged signaling responses in cells and in animals. Understanding the molecular mechanisms by which these and other ligands interact with the PTHR1 could lead to improved modes of therapy for PTH-related diseases, such as hypoparathyroidism and osteoporosis.
Three-dimensional deformation response of a NiTi shape memory helical-coil actuator during thermomechanical cycling: experimentally validated numerical model

Shape memory alloy (SMA) actuators often operate under a complex state of stress for an extended number of thermomechanical cycles in many aerospace and engineering applications. Hence, it becomes important to account for multi-axial stress states and deformation characteristics (which evolve with thermomechanical cycling) when calibrating any SMA model for implementation in large-scale simulation of actuators. To this end, the present work is focused on the experimental validation of an SMA model calibrated for the transient and cyclic evolutionary behavior of shape memory Ni49.9Ti50.1, for the actuation of axially loaded helical-coil springs. The approach requires both experimental and computational aspects to appropriately assess the thermomechanical response of these multi-dimensional structures. As such, an instrumented and controlled experimental setup was assembled to obtain temperature, torque, degree of twist and extension, while controlling end constraints during heating and cooling of an SMA spring under a constant externally applied axial load. The computational component assesses the capabilities of a general, multi-axial, SMA material-modeling framework, calibrated for Ni49.9Ti50.1 with regard to its usefulness in the simulation of SMA helical-coil spring actuators. Axial extension, being the primary response, was examined on an axially-loaded spring with multiple active coils. Two different conditions of end boundary constraint were investigated in both the numerical simulations as well as the validation experiments: Case (1) where the loading end is restrained against twist (and the resulting torque measured as the secondary response) and Case (2) where the loading end is free to twist (and the degree of twist measured as the secondary response). The present study focuses on the transient and evolutionary response associated with the initial isothermal loading and the subsequent thermal cycles under applied constant axial load. The experimental results for the helical-coil actuator under two different boundary conditions are found to be within error to their counterparts in the numerical simulations. The numerical simulation and the experimental validation demonstrate similar transient and evolutionary behavior in the deformation response under the complex, inhomogeneous, multi-axial stress-state and large deformations of the helical-coil actuator. This response, although substantially different in magnitude, exhibited similar evolutionary characteristics to the simple, uniaxial, homogeneous, stress-state of the isobaric tensile tests results used for the model calibration. There was no significant difference in the axial displacement (primary response) magnitudes observed between Cases (1) and (2) for the number of cycles investigated here. The simulated secondary responses of the two cases evolved in a similar manner when compared to the experimental validation of the respective cases.
Theories of Evil Personhood

In this chapter, I describe and critique a number of prominent theories of evil proposed by philosophers in recent years. These theories are divided into roughly four categories: extremity theories, action-based theories, desire-based theories, and affect-based theories. For each type of theory, I describe an example or two of a theory of that type, and explain why it does not do an adequate job of accounting either for our intuitions about evil, or for some of the psychological data gathered in Part I of the book.