cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Epistat : a computer program for identifying and testing interactions between pairs of quantitative trait loci

We describe a computer program, Epistat, which combines statistical methods and color-graphic displays to facilitate the analysis of interactions between pairs of quantitative trait loci (QTLs). Epistat organizes genetic-mapping data and quantitative-trait values into graphic displays which illustrate the individual effects of single loci as well as the interactions between any two loci. Keyboard commands allow the user to search the data set for individual QTLs and to test for interactions between QTLs. For a given trait, the program displays the effects of the alleles at each of two loci on the quantitative-trait value, as well as the effects of the interactions between these alleles. Loglikelihood ratios are used to compare the likelihood of explaining the effects by null, additive, or epistatic models. Examples of interactions in soybean are presented for near-infrared transmittance (NIT), seed number, and reproductive period. Epistat has been used to find numerous interactions between QTLs in soybean in which trait variation at one locus is conditional upon a specific allele at another.
A potential source of error in the enzymatic diagnosis of the neurolipidoses when radiolabelled sphingolipids are used as substrates

High specific activity 3H-labelled glucocerebroside, galactocerebroside and sphingomyelin but not 3H-labelled ceramide, have been found to bind to the wall of glass scintillation vials thereby greatly decreasing the counting efficiency. The binding of the lipids was largely eliminated by counting samples in scintillation fluid containing methanol (6-10%, v/v). To avoid possible errors in the enzymatic diagnosis of the neurolipidoses, it is suggested that the latter solvent should be routinely incorporated into scintillation fluid used for counting labelled sphingolipids.
Selective lipid hydrolysis by Geotrichum candidum NRRL Y-553 lipase

A crude preparation of lipases from the fungusGeotrichum candidum NRRL Y-553, which shows specificity toward cis-9 unsaturated fatty acids, was used to hydrolyze natural fats and oils, with the goal of producing industrially useful fatty acid and/or mono- and diacylglycerols products. Tallow and soy oil were hydrolyzed, producing free fatty acids high in oleic or cis-9 unsaturates, respectively. Hydrolysis of rapesced oil produced acylglycerols enriched in erucic acid.
5.2.2 Normative and Descriptive Models for Test & Evaluation of Unmanned and Autonomous Systems of Systems

The United States Department of Defense (DoD) has purchased and deployed many unmanned autonomous systems and is expected to do so at an ever-increasing rate in the years to come. These autonomous systems are often expected to operate in system of systems environments. Our research aims to address a number of questions posed by members of DoD's acquisition workforce regarding test and evaluation of these systems. In this paper we present a small set of normative (ideal) and descriptive (actual) models for test and evaluation. We describe test strategies used in the DARPA Grand Challenge competition and the SPHERES test bed, and extract lessons learned from each case study. We will use these models as a step toward identifying prescriptive models for testing unmanned and autonomous systems of systems. The prescriptive models will be implemented within PATFrame (Prescriptive and Adaptive Testing Framework), the decision support system that we are developing.
Fusaric acid : A secondary fungal metabolite that synergizes toxicity of cooccurring host allelochemicals to the corn earworm,Heliothis zea (Lepidoptera).

The ability of naturally occurring levels of theFusarium spp. fungal metabolite fusaric acid to synergize the toxicity of the allelochemicals gossypol, a saponin, and 6-methoxy-2-benzoxazolinone to larvae ofHeliothis zea (Boddie) was tested. Levels of fusaric acid comparable to those found near the fungus increased mortality ofH. zea to gossypol, the saponin, and 6-methoxy-2-benzoxazolinone, and decreased the development rate of surviving larvae exposed to gossypol and 6-methoxy-2-benzoxazolinone. Some effect was also noted for levels of fusaric acid found generally distributed throughout infected plants. The chemical properties of fusaric acid suggest that it synergizes the toxicity of the allelochemicals by inhibiting oxidative enzymes responsible for detoxification. Production of the biosynthetically simple fusaric acid may be a fungal strategy for conserving resources as compared to those fungi that produce biosynthetically complex toxins of their own.
The surface tension of liquid silicon

Abstract The surface tension of liquid silicon has been measured as a function of temperature in purified argon atmospheres using the sessile drop technique. The measurements show the surface tension is sensitive to low levels of an impurity which is probably oxygen. The highest surface tension values obtained under conditions which minimized the oxygen levels in the apparatus are in good agreement with an isolated previous measurement in pure hydrogen. The surface tension decreases linearly with increasing temperature and has a temperature coefficient of -0.28 mJ/m 2 ·K.
The pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of ketamine in dogs anesthetized with enflurane.

The plasma concentration vs. anesthetic effect relationships for ketamine are not well known. It is desirable to establish stable and predictable drug concentrations in plasma (and brain) in order to define such relationships. As a prelude to pharmacodynamic studies, we investigated ketamine pharmacokinetics in eight dogs anesthetized with enflurane and correlated ketamine concentration in plasma (KET) with its ability to reduce the enflurane concentration required for anesthesia (enflurane EC50: MAC-the endtidal concentration at which half the dogs moved in response to damping of the tail and half did not move). Four dogs (Group 1) received ketamine 10 mg/kg iv over 30 sec. Blood for determination of KET was collected repeatedly over the 5-h period following injection. Based on the pharmacokinetic parameters determined for Group I, four dogs in Group 2 received ketamine as a continuous infusion of 300 μg·kg−1·min−1 for 5hr accompanied by an initial loading dose (26 mg/kg administered over 20 min) designed to produce a stable KET of 20 μg/ml of plasma. Enflurane MAC and KET were determined regularly during the infusion and for 5 hr after discontinuation of the infusion. There were no significant differences in the following pharmacokinetic parameters determined for Group 1 vs. Group2: $$t_{\mathop 2\limits^ \bot \beta } $$ =122±9 vs. 141±40min ( $$\bar x$$ ±SD) and CL±8.1±5.9 vs. 13.9±2.5ml·kg−1min−1, respectively. When administered as a continuous infusion (Group 2), KET remained relatively stable at 22.1±4.6 μg/ml for 5hr. The degree of MAC reduction remained relatively stable at 73% during the continuous infusion. Finally, the enflurane MAC reduction vs. KET was established over a wide range of plasma concentrations in 4 additional dogs (Group 3). This study determined that the pharmacokinetics of ketamine were consistent under two different experimental conditions and demonstrated the relationship between plasma concentration and anesthetic effect in the dog.
Optimum Test Procedure Under Stress

A means of scheduling a test procedure is presented when one component, for example, out of n has failed. Each component has a given probability of failure. The time to examine each component is a random variable with known probability distribution. However, there is only a limited amount of time available for search. What test procedure should be utilized to maximize the probability of locating the failed component within the given time? The problem is solved using some renewal theory results and the functional equation approach of dynamic programming.
Computational Investigation of Vicinal Disulfoxides and Other Sulfinyl Radical Dimers

The structure and energetics of the simplest vic-disulfoxide CH3S(O)S(O)CH3 and its key isomers are reported. Computational methods include a CASSCF[2,2] treatment with a large basis set on sulfur and oxygen, followed by multireference MP2 refinement, and also the hybrid density functional B3LYP. Calculations at the G3 level were also carried out. In contrast to previous reports, a weak bond does exist for both vic-disulfoxide diastereomers. A bond enthalpy near 20 kcal mol-1 is reported. The isomeric sulfenylsulfinate is slightly lower in energy than the vic-disulfoxide. The B3LYP structure obtained for 5,5-di-t-butyltetrathiolane-2,3-dioxide reproduces the essential structural parameters of the one experimentally known vic-disulfinyl compound, 5-(1-adamantyl)-5-tert-butyltetrathiolane-2,3-dioxide.
High frequency spontaneous mutations to agrocin 84 resistance in Agrobacterium tumefaciens and A. rhizogenes

Abstract The rate of mutation of Agrobacterium turrufaciens to agrocin 84 resistance in vitro was 4·2 x 10 −4, 2·6 × 10−4 and 2·0 × 10−4 for strains C58, K24 and B234, respectively, and 2·5 x 10−3 for A. rhizogenes A4. The mutations were shown to be spontaneous for C58 by a replica-plating technique. The percentages of resistant mutants that were avirulent were 68, 80, 28 and 100% for strains C58, K24, B234 and A4 respectively. Most of the avirulent mutants had lost the tumor-inducing (Ti) plasmid, which carries genes for agrocin sensitivity, but a few had large deletions from the Ti-plasmid. When selecting resistant mutants from plates containing agrocin 84, the largest colonies retained the Ti-plasmid and the smallest colonies had lost the plasmid. The high rate of mutation to resistance accompanied by plasmid loss suggests that the Ti-plasmid is not very stable in these strains. The large number of resistant mutants that were still virulent emphasizes the need for alternatives to A. radiobacter K84 for biological control.
Research and Application of Equipment Fault Diagnosis Based on Cloud Computing

Research on remote fault diagnosis of wind power has great significance of protecting grid security and secure operation of wind farm This paper presents the remote fault diagnosis system of wind power based on cloud computing and thoroughly analyzes construction demands and functional structure. Experimental results show that this system can effectively analyze mass monitored data and accurately assess equipment failure. This provides a new idea for cloud computing applied to wind farm fault diagnosis.
Urban and land surface effects on the 30 July 2003 mesoscale convective system event observed in the southern Great Plains

[1] The urban canopy of excess heat, water vapor, and roughness can affect the evolution of weather systems, as can land vegetative processes. High-resolution simulations were conducted using the Coupled Ocean/Atmosphere Mesoscale Prediction System (COAMPS®) to investigate the impact of urban and land vegetation processes on the prediction of the mesoscale convective system (MCS) observed on 30 July 2003 in the vicinity of Oklahoma City (OKC), Oklahoma. The control COAMPS model (hereinafter CONTROL) used the Noah land surface model (LSM) initialized with the Eta Data Assimilation System and incorporates an urban canopy parameterization (UCP). Experiments assessed the impact of land vegetative processes by (1) adding a canopy resistance scheme including photosynthesis (GEM) to the Noah LSM and (2) replacing the UCP with a simpler urban surface characterization of roughness, albedo, and moisture availability (NOUCP). The three sets of simulations showed different behaviors for the storm event. The CONTROL simulation propagated two storm cells through the OKC urban region. The NOUCP also resulted in two cells, although the convective intensity was weaker. The GEM simulation produced one storm cell west of the downtown region, whose intensity and timing were closer to the observed. To understand the relative roles of the urban and vegetation interaction processes, a factor separation experiment was performed. The urban model improved the ability to represent the MCS, and the enhanced representation of vegetation further improved the model performance. The enhanced performance may be attributed to better representation of the urban-rural heterogeneities and improved simulation of the moisture fluxes and upstream inflow boundaries.
The Deliberation-Without-Attention Effect Evidence for an Artifactual Interpretation

Proponents of unconscious-thought theory assert that letting the unconscious "mull it over" can enhance decisions. In a series of recent studies, researchers demonstrated that participants whose attention was focused on solving a complex problem (i.e., those using conscious thought) made poorer choices, decisions, and judgments than participants whose attention was distracted from the problem (i.e., those purportedly using unconscious thought). We argue that this finding, rather than establishing the existence of a deliberation-without-attention effect, is explained more compellingly in terms of the well-established distinction between on-line and memory-based judgments. In Experiment 1, we reversed the recent finding by simply changing participants' on-line processing goal from impression formation to memorization. Experiment 2 provided a replication and further established that some cognitive effort appears necessary to produce both the original pattern of results and its reversal, suggesting that such judgments are ultimately a product of conscious, rather than unconscious, thinking.
Further results on essential Nash equilibria in normal-form games

A Nash equilibrium $$x$$ of a normal-form game $$G$$ is essential if any perturbation of $$G$$ has an equilibrium close to $$x$$ . Using payoff perturbations, we identify a new collection of games containing a dense, residual subset of games whose Nash equilibria are all essential. This collection covers economic examples that cannot be handled by extant results and subsumes the sets of games considered in the literature.
Composition of Semivolatiles from Roasted Tobacco

In order to examine the applicability of the exhaust gas components from the tobacco-roasting process as cigarette flavor ingredients, a preliminary study on the composition of the semivolatiles included in the volatiles from roasted tobacco was conducted. A relatively large quantity of sugar pyrolysates (furans, volatile ketones and lactones) in addition to lower fatty acids and the components of essential oils were found in the condensate of the volatiles from roasted flue-cured tobacco. The condensate from roasted burley tobacco contained nicotine and neophytadiene as major components, and a number of other components of essential oils were also found. The above mentioned compounds in the condensate from flue-cured tobacco were assumed to contribute to its burnt-sugar like aroma. A sweet note of the condensate from burley tobacco might be attributable to the high concentration of the components of essential oils.
The isolation and properties of porcine ferritin and apoferritin

Abstract Porcine ferritin and apoferritin were purified to a greater degree of homogeneity than has been reported previously. Porcine ferritin was insoluble in the absence of a reducing agent, possessed a high content of iron, with an average Fe N ratio of ~2.5, and contained almost no detectable endogenous apoferritin. The amino acid composition, ultraviolet-absorption spectrum, and ultraviolet-circular dichroism spectrum of porcine apoferritin are very similar to the respective parameters of equine apoferritin. The native and subunit molecular weights of porcine apoferritin are 503,000 and 20,000, respectively.
The incidence of classified property taxes in a three-sector model with an imperfectly mobile population

Abstract This paper analyzes the incidence of a classified property tax, imposing different effective tax rates on residential, commercial, and industrial property, as compared to a uniform property tax, taxing capital and land in all sectors at the same rate. Our model includes three sectors, commercial, industrial and residential, and three factors of production, land, labor, and capital. Capital is assumed to be perfectly mobile, but we consider varying degrees of labor mobility, allowing the possibility that part of a classified property tax may be shifted to workers through lower wages.
Characterization Of Logic Devices With Photoconductively Generated Picosecond Pulses

Photoconductive picosecond electrical pulse generators and photoconductive sampling gates are ideally suited to the characterization of high speed logic devices, particularly silicon devices, and of VLSI wiring structures. We review in this paper the fabrication of photoconductive switches compatible with the silicon device technologies and some of their applications to the characterization of high speed devices.
The geophysical significance of radio measurements of the ionized layer

I have been asked to summarize the extent of our present knowledge of the relations which are known or thought to exist between radio measurements of the ionized layer and other geophysical problems, and to refresh the minds of those of you who may have forgotten some of the details of such measurements and their interpretation. Geophysical data may be classified in two groups, namely, data from physical analysis and data from statistical analysis. Physical analysis can establish the existence of a geophysical condition or entity. Statistical analysis can establish relations between geophysical variables. I shall divide this talk similarly. First let me remind you very briefly of the basis of the physical analysis in the problem under consideration.
Digitization requirements in mammography: Effects on computer-aided detection of microcalcifications

We have developed a computerized method for detection of microcalcifications on digitized mammograms. The program has achieved an accuracy that can detect subtle microcalcifications which may potentially be missed by radiologists. In this study, we evaluated the dependence of the detection accuracy on the pixel size and pixel depth of the digitized mammograms. The mammograms were digitized with a laser film scanner at a pixel size of 0.035 mm ×0.035 mm and 12‐bit gray levels. Digitization with larger pixel sizes or fewer number of bits was simulated by averaging adjacent pixels or by eliminating the least significant bits, respectively. The SNR enhancement filter and the signal‐extraction criteria in the computer program were adjusted to maximize the accuracy of signal detection for each pixel size. The overall detection accuracy was compared using the free response receiver operating characteristic curves. The results indicate that the detection accuracy decreases significantly as the pixel size increases from 0.035 mm × 0.035 mm to 0.07 mm × 0.07 mm (P<0.007) and from 0.07 mm × 0.07 mm to 0.105 mm × 0.105 mm (P<0.002). The detection accuracy is essentially independent of pixel depth from 12 to 9 bits and decreases significantly (P<0.003) from 9 to 8 bits; a rapid decrease is observed as the pixel depth decreases further from 8 to 7 bits (P<0.03) or from 7 to 6 bits (P<0.02). Although the results are expected to depend on the noise and spatial resolution properties of the x‐ray screen‐film system and the film digitizer, as well as on the image processing methods, this study demonstrates that very high spatial resolution (a pixel size of 0.035 mm × 0.035 mm or smaller) will be required for digital mammographicsystems in order to capture the very subtle microcalcifications detectable on screen‐film mammograms.
Introduction: law in Habermas's theory of communicative action:

L'A. expose les tenants de la theorie de Habermas sur l'action communicative dans le cadre de ses conceptions du droit moderne vu comme rationalisation de la loi et du cadre de vie de la societe
The fellowship match process: the history and a report of the current experience.

Beginning in 2007, there was substantial movement from the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) and the American Orthopaedic Association (AOA) to promote a coordinated match process for orthopaedic fellowships. It is estimated that at least 90% of all orthopaedic surgery residents participate in a year of fellowship training1. The results of a survey at the 2007 AOA Symposium on Fellowships found that 79% of attendees believed that the current process was unacceptable and 87% believed that the process was unfair to residents2. The situation of those disciplines that were not in an organized match process was compared with problems often seen in a decentralized labor market2. A survey of residents indicated that 80% of residents were in favor of an organized match for fellowship and wanted a later date in their fourth postgraduate year for the decisions2. The problems of the fellowship process at that time were obvious, with no formal match process. There were multiple subspecialties competing and applicants were asked to commit to a position as early as their third postgraduate year, sometimes without full exposure to all subspecialties. In some instances, residents were forced to accept or decline an offer, during or shortly after an interview. This did not allow the resident to have an opportunity to compare programs. The benefits of a fellowship match include optimal consideration of all options by both the applicant and the program. The purpose of this article is to review the history of the fellowship match process, to report on four years (2010 to 2013) of the formalized orthopaedic fellowship match process, and to provide information for applicants, residency, and fellowship programs on the match. Specifically, we will report on the information accumulated regarding fellowship applications and positions, as well as data …
Shaker bath adaptation to the environmental protection agency's cadmium column reduction method (method 353.3) for the determination of nitrate in water samples

Nitrate is found as a drinking water contaminant in nearly every state in the United States. Fertilizer use and the microbial degradation of biotic and abiotic nitrogen -containing compounds also contribute to nitrate contamination (Spaulding & Exner 1991). Nitrate is a growthlimiting nutrient for marine phytoplankton (Morris & Riley 1963) and many photosynthetic autotrophs (American Public Health Association, 1975). The nitrate ion is highly mobile in water and therefore a potential source of ground and surface water contamination.
Near-UV photo-induced modification in isoreticular metal–organic frameworks

A series of isoreticular metal–organic frameworks (IRMOFs) have been prepared using two different ligands protected with photolabile groups: 2-((2-nitrobenzyl)oxy)terephthalic acid (L1) and 2-((4,5-dimethoxy-2-nitrobenzyl)oxy)terephthalic acid (L2). Irradiation at either 365 or 400 nm results in postsynthetic deprotection (PSD), removing the nitrobenzyl protecting groups from these ligands and generating phenolic groups in the pores of the MOF (55–83% yield). The photochemical behaviour of the ligands in the IRMOFs was not wholly predicted by their reactivity in solution (i.e. free ligand). A mixed ligand approach was used, by combining L1 or L2 with NH2-BDC to produce mixed ligand IRMOFs with 30–40% incorporation of the NH2-BDC. These mixed-ligand IRMOFs were then subjected to both postsynthetic modification (PSM) and PSD. Two routes to achieve both PSM and PSD were explored: PSM followed by PSD (route 1) and PSD followed by PSM (route 2). When using 365 nm light for the PSD reaction, route 1 was superior due to absorption of NH2-BDC at 365 nm. Irradiation at 400 nm gave fewer differences between route 1 and route 2, but the PSD reaction was less efficient (30–40%) for all systems. By combining PSD and PSM, MOFs with highly functionalized pores can be obtained through a combination of pre- and postsynthetic methods.
Functional Characterization of the re-Face Loop Spanning Residues 536―541 and Its Interactions with the Cofactor in the Flavin Mononucleotide-Binding Domain of Flavocytochrome P450 from Bacillus megaterium

Flavocytochrome P450BM-3, a bacterial monooxygenase, contains a flavin mononucleotide-binding domain bearing a strong structural homology to the bacterial flavodoxin. The flavin mononucleotide (FMN) serves as the one-electron donor to the heme iron, but in contrast to the electron transfer mechanism of mammalian cytochrome P450 reductase, the FMN semiquinone state is not thermodynamically stable and appears transiently as the anionic rather than the neutral form. A unique loop region comprised of residues (536)Y-N-G-H-P-P(541), which forms a type I' reverse turn and provides several interactions with the FMN isoalloxazine ring, was targeted in this study. Nuclear magnetic resonance studies support the presence of a strong hydrogen bond between the backbone amide of Asn537 and FMN N5, the anionic ionization state of the hydroquinone, and for a change in the hybridization state of the N5 upon reduction. Replacement of Tyr536, which flanks the flavin ring, with a basic residue (histidine or arginine) did not significantly influence the redox properties of the FMN or the accumulation of the anionic semiquinone. The central residues of the type I' turn (Asn-Gly) were replaced with various combinations of glycine and alanine as a means of altering the turn and its interactions. Gly538 was found to be crucial in maintaining the type I' turn conformation of the loop and the strong H-bonding interaction at N5. The functional role of the tandem Pro-Pro sequence which anchors and possible "rigidifies" the loop was investigated through alanine replacements. Despite changes in the stabilities of the oxidized and hydroquinone redox states of the FMN, none of the replacements studied significantly altered the two-electron midpoint potentials. Pro541 does contribute to some degree to the strength of the N5 interaction and the formation of the anionic semiquinone. Unlike that of the flavodoxin, it would appear that the conformation of the FMN rather than the loop changes in response to reduction in this flavoprotein.
Design of deadlock prevention supervisors using Petri nets

This paper proposes a methodology to synthesize supervisors for a class of sequential resource allocation system for flexible manufacturing systems. The type of Petri nets are called S3PR, where deadlocks are related to emptied siphons. In a former paper (Huang et al., IEEE Trans Syst Man Cybern, 2007), a deadlock prevention policy was proposed based on Petri nets siphons for the type of Petri nets. Since all minimal siphons should be controlled, the deadlock prevention policy is very time-consuming when the system is large. In this research, a concept of the elementary siphon is used to reduce the number of control places. A new siphon-based policy of deadlock prevention for the type of Petri nets is presented. This policy consists of two main stages: The first stage, called elementary siphons control, adds control places to the original net model to prevent elementary siphons from being emptied. The second stage, called generalized siphons control, adds control places that adopt a conservative policy of controlling only the release of parts into the system are used. Compared to the existing approaches, the new deadlock prevention policy can obtain a structurally compact deadlock prevention supervisor by adding only a few control places. Finally, numerical experiments under reachable states illustrate that the proposed algorithm appears to be more permissive than the closely related approaches.
Static SIMS Detection of Gold and Gold Cyanide Complexes on Carbon Using Crown Ether Enhancement

Determination of the nature of adsorbed gold cyanide species on activated carbon is difficult with presnetly available surface analysis techniques. Efforts toward the development of new, more specific analytical techniques are described in this paper. It is shown that static secondary ion mass spectrometry can be used for the detection of gold on carbon surfaces and for the identification of cyanide species present. The method described relies on two features: (1) the instrumentation employed utilizes pulsed secondary ion extraction, which mitigates the buildup of surface charge (a major problem in the bombardment of carbon) and permits the acquisition of the anion and cation spectra during the same analysis; (2) the surface of the carbon samples is doped with a crown ether, which results in the facile observation of Au(CN){sub 2}{sup -}, [M + crown]{sup -} (where M is Na{sup +} or K{sup +}), and in some cases Au. It is hypothesized that the crown ether facilitates the formation of gold cyanide ions by forming complexes with Na{sup +} and K{sup +} present on the surface of the charcoal, thereby loosening or freeing the Au(CN){sub 2}{sup -}. 25 refs., 5 figs.
Distributed Averaging Algorithms Resilient to Communication Noise and Dropouts

In this paper, we consider the problem of distributed average computation over communication networks whose channels are non-ideal, but noisy and/or intermittent. Channel intermittency captures randomness of network interconnections and packet-drop links. Based on input-output properties of feedback systems, we propose novel iterative algorithms that incorporate a networked feedback compensator to mitigate effects of the unreliable communication on distributed averaging. The new algorithms are time-invariant and do not suffer from the random walk behavior to additive noise of other average consensus algorithms. Moreover, the use of the link state information at the receiver leads to a new algorithm, which computes averages approximately correctly in the presence of intermittent communication and additive noise, under certain conditions.
Pro-survival Effects of 17β-Estradiol on Osteocytes Are Mediated by Nitric Oxide/cGMP via Differential Actions of cGMP-dependent Protein Kinases I and II

Estrogens promote bone health in part by increasing osteocyte survival, an effect that requires activation of the protein kinases Akt and ERK1/2, but the molecular mechanisms involved are only partly understood. Because estrogens increase nitric oxide (NO) synthesis and NO can have anti-apoptotic effects, we examined the role of NO/cGMP signaling in estrogen regulation of osteocyte survival. Etoposide-induced death of MLO-Y4 osteocyte-like cells, assessed by trypan blue staining, caspase-3 cleavage, and TUNEL assays, was completely prevented when cells were pre-treated with 17β-estradiol. This protective effect was mimicked when cells were pre-treated with a membrane-permeable cGMP analog and blocked by pharmacological inhibitors of NO synthase, soluble guanylate cyclase, or cGMP-dependent protein kinases (PKGs), supporting a requirement for NO/cGMP/PKG signaling downstream of 17β-estradiol. siRNA-mediated knockdown and viral reconstitution of individual PKG isoforms demonstrated that the anti-apoptotic effects of estradiol and cGMP were mediated by PKG Iα and PKG II. Akt and ERK1/2 activation by 17β-estradiol required PKG II, and cGMP mimicked the effects of estradiol on Akt and ERK, including induction of ERK nuclear translocation. cGMP induced BAD phosphorylation on several sites, and experiments with phosphorylation-deficient BAD mutants demonstrated that the anti-apoptotic effects of cGMP and 17β-estradiol required BAD phosphorylation on Ser136 and Ser155; these sites were targeted by Akt and PKG I, respectively, and regulate BAD interaction with Bcl-2. In conclusion, 17β-estradiol protects osteocytes against apoptosis by activating the NO/cGMP/PKG cascade; PKG II is required for estradiol-induced activation of ERK and Akt, and PKG Iα contributes to pro-survival signaling by directly phosphorylating BAD.
Are USA payers moving beyond pharmaceutical budget impact models and embracing cost–effectiveness analysis?

The Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy (AMCP) issued revised guidelines (version 2.1) for formulary submissions to managed care for the appraisal of new medical interventions to be reimbursed in Apri...
Estimation of parameters in the presence of outliers for a burr XII distribution

This paper deals with an unweighted least squares (LS) estimation of the parameters of a two-parameter Burr XII distribution and compares the results with the maximum likelihood (ML) and maximum product of spacings (MPS) methods. The performance of these estimators is examined with and without outliers through simulation studies. Also, we obtain approximate confidence intervals for the parameters c and k. We propose that the LS method when data, yi are generated by using log log [n/(n — i -f 0.5)) for small n be preferred over the ML and MPS methods, while for large samples the ML method has a slight edge over the LS method in terms of root-mean squared error (RMSE). However, the amount of computer time required by the ML method in solving the simultaneous equations negates this advantage.
Heterarchies of Value in Manhattan-Based New Media Firms

This article develops a sociology of worth that blurs the traditional disciplinary divide between economic value and social values. Through ethnographic study of a new media startup in Manhattan's ...
Prostate specific antigen levels and prostate cancer detection rates in patients with end stage renal disease.

Purpose: Patients with end stage renal disease plus prostate cancer are ineligible to receive a renal transplant at most centers until an acceptable cancer-free period is demonstrated. To our knowledge previously established prostate specific antigen reference ranges have not been validated in patients with end stage renal disease. We determined age stratified 95th percentile prostate specific antigen reference ranges and the prostate cancer detection rate at specific prostate specific antigen intervals for patients with end stage renal disease.Materials and Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the records of 775 male patients with end stage renal disease on the waiting list for a renal transplant who had undergone a serum prostate specific antigen test. Prostate specific antigen was stratified by age at the time of the blood test and 95th percentile reference ranges were calculated for each decade. A total of 80 patients underwent prostate biopsy for increased prostate specific antigen and/or abnormal di...
The effects of diclofop-methyl on root growth of wild oat

Diclofop-methyl severely reduced the growth of seminal roots of wild oat (Avena fatua L.) when applied in hydroponics at 0.01 and 0.05 μM. Lateral roots emerged closer to the seminal root apex than in the controls, but coronal root number and length were unaffected at 0.01 μM. However, doses of 0.05 to 0.1 μM induced more but shorter coronal roots to emerge than for controls. At 1 μM the number and length of coronal roots were less than for controls. Root-applied diclofop-methyl at 1 μM inhibited emerging second leaf growth to the same extent as a foliar dip in 1 μM diclofop-methyl without causing chlorosis as foliar treatment does. Because of limited basipetal transport of foliarly-applied diclofop-methyl, shoot treatment was ineffective in inducing abnormal root morphogenesis of the seminal and lateral root systems, although it caused abnormalities of the coronal root system. Time course studies were initiated to examine the effect of root-applied diclofop-methyl at 0.05 μM. Seminal root growth was inhibited (by diclofop-methyl) soon after treatment, while controls continued elongating. The distance between the seminal root apex and the first lateral primordia increased in the controls within one day after treatment, but decreased in the herbicide-treated roots. The distance between the seminal root apex and the first emerged lateral root was reduced by three days after treatment. The number of lateral primordia and emerged roots was unaffected three days after treatment. These dose-response and kinetic results suggested that diclofop-methyl caused a loss of apical dominance in the seminal root.
Moral Education in the Zone of Proximal Development

Abstract In this paper the outlines of an explicitly “Vygotskian” perspective on moral education are sketched. I begin by briefly reviewing and critiquing the two most well‐known and widely used approaches to moral education‐‐the cognitive‐developmental approach and the character education approach‐‐and I suggest that a Vygotskian/socio‐cultural perspective has the potential to address many of the problems faced by contemporary moral educators. Vygotsky's ideas about the “zone of proximal development” are then summarised and those ideas are extended to the domain of moral education, focusing on an excerpt from the film, Boyz ‘n the Hood. Narrative and story‐telling are considered briefly as an example of how the zone of proximal development works to facilitate moral development in a way that is markedly different from that described by contemporary character educators, and I conclude with some brief reflections on questions left unanswered, and speculations about future directions for both theory and prac...
Web-Based Case Conferencing for Preservice Teacher Education: Electronic Discourse from the Field

The purpose of this study was to foster preservice teacher learning of educational psychology by creating a Web-based learning community using actual case situations these future teachers had experienced during their field observations. In this study, 146 undergraduate educational psychology students were randomly assigned to two different electronic conferencing groups where they generated teaching vignettes related to their early field experiences and reacted to the cases of their peers. As a counterbalanced research design, half of these students received heavy scaffolding (HS) during the first three weeks of electronic case conferencing and weak scaffolding (WS) during the following three weeks; the other half received the opposite. Within these conferences, there were a total of 229 cases generated for discussion with 1,320 replies. While there were 20 percent more postings in the first three weeks, the cases and responses generated in the second three weeks were lengthier. Importantly, HS fostered 1...
Fiber grating sensor based internet of things for intelligent substations

n ABSTRACT Accur ate and real-time online monitoring of substation equipments is of vital importance to the reliability of intelligent substations. Optical fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors and Internet of Things (loT) are key enablers to achieve accurate , real-time and intelligent online monitoring. In this paper we present a highly reliable and extensible online monitoring system built upon FBG sensors and loT technologies. Future research work is also presented.
The dynamics of responder behavior in ultimatum games: a meta-study

Using data aggregated from seven papers that study repeated play in standard ultimatum games with either stranger or absolute stranger matching, we show that the behavior of responders changes with experience. High offers are more likely to be accepted with experience and low offers are more likely to be rejected. At the individual level, there is a negative relationship between the likelihood that a given offer is accepted and the size of the preceding offer. We compare the results with predictions generated by static models of distributional preferences, implicitly dynamic models of preferences with reciprocity, and explicitly dynamic models of adaptive learning. The data is most consistent with models of preferences with reciprocity.
Autoregulation of the DNA replication gene dnaA in E. coli K-12.

Abstract The dnaA gene in E. coli K-12 is required for the initiation of DNA replication. Although the specific function of the dnaA protein is unknown, it has been suggested that it is a regulator of the frequency of initiation. In this paper we report that the expression of both a dnaA-lacZ translational fusion and a dnaA-trpA-lacZ transcriptional fusion in vivo are sensitive to changes in the level of functional dnaA protein. Overproduction of the dnaA gene product leads to a reduction in expression from both fusions while introduction of dnaA − alleles results in an increased expression. Results from a deletion analysis of the dnaA promoter/regulatory region suggest that both dnaA promoters are regulated by the dnaA gene product and that a site between the two promoters is responsible for the regulation. DNAase protection experiments showed that the dnaA protein binds to DNA in the region of the two dnaA promoters. Our results indicate that the dnaA gene product regulates its own synthesis by inhibiting transcription from both of its promoters.
Soviet Science in the Scientific World System Was It Autarchic, Self-Reliant, Distinctive, Isolated, Peripheral, Central?

Autarchy, self-reliance, and distinctiveness of an intellectual tradition in a society can be expected to be promoted by isolation of the society. Until the early 1990s, geopolitical constraints made science in the Soviet Union a case of comparatively high isolation. Measures derived from the publications by Soviet scientists and their responses to questionnaires, however, show that, in considerable degrees, their selection of problems was influenced by Western literature, their solutions to selected problems relied on results from the West, and they emulated, deferred to, and valued recognition from peers in the West. Although Soviet science was a regional center within the Eastern Bloc, it was also—and is increasingly more so—a periphery attached to the Western centers of scientific influence.
A novel group of interferons associated with the early ovine and bovine embryo.

Recently, two proteins, ovine trophoblast protein-1 (oTP-1) and bovine trophoblast protein-1 (bTP-1), that are major products of the preimplantation ovine and bovine embryo, respectively, have been shown to be interferons (IFNs). Both proteins belong to an IFN-α subfamily whose polypeptide chains are 172 amino acids long
EPITAXIAL FREE ENERGY AND STABILITY UNDER EPITAXIAL STRAIN

First-principles ground-state total-energy calculations show that tetragonal crystals generally have two structures at which the energy is a minimum, which are appropriately called tetragonal phases in equilibrium. The calculations also show that a small isotropic two-dimensional (epitaxial) strain in the basal plane of a tetragonal phase produces a first-order phase transition to another tetragonal phase, By defining and calculating a special free energy for the states produced by epitaxial strain, the stability limits of each phase and the occurrence of a first-order phase transition between them are clearly demonstrated. Epitaxially strained states and the epitaxial free energy are calculated for vanadium. The epitaxial free energy as a function of the epitaxial stress for these strained states is shown to be similar to free-energy curves calculated for other first-order phase transitions which have analytic descriptions.
A Bayesian Group Sequential Approach for Multiple Endpoints

ABSTRACT Making decisions regarding overall treatment effectiveness can be problematic when one considers multiple outcomes, especially if the treatment effects are discordant across the profile of outcomes. A typical example involves a case where a treatment has both increased efficacy in one endpoint (e.g., improved disease-free survival) and increased side effects (e.g., more acute toxicities). Often a study is designed to test one primary hypothesis while other outcomes vital to the decision-making process are not formally incorporated into the study design. We describe a Bayesian approach that provides a mechanism for combining information from two normally distributed endpoints and accounts for the magnitude of those effects. This procedure is implemented for the case of comparing two different treatments to each other and allows for multiple looks at the data. Information from more than one endpoint is combined through the use of utility functions. Our group sequential procedure is demonstrated for...
Crizotinib: A New Treatment Option for ALK-Positive Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

OBJECTIVE:To review the characteristics and clinical trial data of crizotinib in ALK-positive non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).DATA SOURCE:A literature search using PubMed/MEDLINE (up to December 2012) was performed using the terms crizotinib, ALK-positive, non-small cell lung cancer, and PF-02341066.STUDY SELECTION/DATA EXTRACTION:Phase 1, 2, and 3 trials evaluating the safety and efficacy of crizotinib in a cohort of patients with ALK rearrangements and advanced NSCLC were evaluated. All peer-reviewed articles with clinically relevant information were reviewed.DATA SYNTHESIS:ALK rearrangement results in an aberrant EML4-ALK fusion oncogene that constitutively activates ALK tyrosine kinase, resulting in inhibition of apoptosis and promotion of tumor cell proliferation. Approximately 3–5% of NSCLC exhibit this rearrangement. Crizotinib is an oral selective inhibitor of ALK and mesenchymal epithelial growth factor tyrosine kinases. Early phase trials with crizotinib showed improved response rates of 50–5...
Performance evaluation of silicon and gallium nitride power FETs for DC/DC power converter applications

Detailed performance evaluation of silicon and GaN power FETs is presented for chip-scale DC/DC converter applications. It is shown that improved GaN power FETs and silicon MOS power diodes can potentially lead to nearly 90% power conversion efficiency when switched at 5 MHz in a synchronous buck converter topology.
Charges, outcomes, and complications: a comparison of magnetic sphincter augmentation versus laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication for the treatment of GERD

Background Magnetic sphincter augmentation (MSA) is approved for uncomplicated GERD. Multiple studies have shown MSA to compare favorably to laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication (LNF) in terms of symptom control with results out to 5 years. The MSA device itself, however, is an added cost to an anti-reflux surgery, and direct cost comparison studies have not been done between MSA and LNF. The aim of the study was to compare charges, complications, and outcome of MSA versus LNF at 1 year.
Minimum variance estimates of gyroscopic drift parameters.

Minimum variance estimation for gyroscopic drift parameters, discussing optimal estimation procedure and noise model
Editorial Comment: Challenging conventional wisdom

Cost effective, patient-centered care, with excellent outcomes has become an imperative in health care. The pressure to address these concerns forces us to think creatively and challenge accepted dogma. Changing conventional treatment to meet these standards is then justified. Ueda et al. [1] do just that in questioning the need for ‘routine’ chest tube after thoracoscopic pulmonary resection. They have developed a technique to seal leaks and a test to determine whether a chest tube is needed in the operating theatre and to remove all chest tubes based on the results. A high percentage of patients had chest tubes removed before leaving the operating theatre. This suggests that it can be done on certain patients without need for reinsertion. Doing so did not reduce the length of stay compared with controls (12.5 vs 13.3). Cost was presumably not significantly different. Pain was reduced only on the operative day but the same thereafter. What is not known is the fate of pleural effusion and need for thoracentesis. Challenging conventional wisdom is essential today. Changing treatment plans must be for justifiable reasons. Health care systems where the length of stay is tightly controlled may benefit from an approach similar to Ueda et al. Further testing of this hypothesis is required.