cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Direct and indirect effects of pollinators and seed predators to selection on plant and floral traits

Although flowering traits are often assumed to be under strong selection by pollinators, significant variation in such traits remains the norm for most plant species. Thus, it is likely that the interactions among plants, mutualists, and other selective agents, such as antagonists, ultimately shape the evolution of floral and flowering traits. We examined the importance of pollination vs pre-dispersal seed predation to selection on plant and floral characters via female plant-reproductive success in Castilleja limariaefolia (Scrophulariaceae). C. linariaefolia is pollinated by humming-birds and experiences high levels of pre-dispersal seed predation by plume moth and fly larvae in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, USA, where this work was conducted. We first examined whether female reproduction in C. linariaefolia was limited by pollination. Supplemental pollination only marginally increased components of female reproduction, likely because seed predation masked, in part, the beneficial effects of pollen addition. In unmanipulated populations, we measured calyx length, flower production, and plant height and used path analysis combined with structural equation modeling to quantify their importance to relative seed set through pathways involving pollination vs seed predation. We found that the strength of selection on calyx length, flower production, and plant height was greater for seed predation pathways than for pollination pathways, and one character, calyx length, experienced opposing selection via pollination vs seed predation. These results suggest that the remarkable intraspecific variation in plant and floral characters exhibited by some flowering plants is likely the result of selection driven, at least in part, by pollinators in concert with antagonists, such as pre-dispersal seed predators. This work highlights the subtle but complex interactions that shape floral and vegetative design in natural ecosystems.
Modeling Rough-Surface and Granular Scattering at Terahertz Frequencies Using the Finite-Difference Time-Domain Method

Exploration of the terahertz (THz) portion of the electromagnetic spectrum has recently expanded due to advances in ultrafast optical laser systems. The application of THz imaging to detect explosive materials (and other chemical agents) is a promising potential application because of the unique spectral signatures found for many explosives in the THz band. However, since the wavelength of THz radiation is on the order of tens to hundreds of micrometers, the rough interface between materials and the granular nature of material mixtures (such as explosives) may cause frequency-dependent scattering, which could mask the spectral signature. Thus, to evaluate the effectiveness of THz imaging systems, it is necessary to characterize the combined volume and rough-surface scattering effects. Because of the complexity of the media and the requirement for broadband modeling, the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) formulation is an ideal tool. In this paper, transmission measurements through granular media and reflection measurements from controlled rough surfaces are shown to be in good agreement with FDTD results. Methods for extracting the material spectral peaks from a limited number of measurements are presented and discussed.
Do faunal remains reflect socioeconomic status? An ethnoarchaeological study among Central African farmers in the northern Congo Basin

Abstract Zooarchaeological analyses often draw inferences on socioeconomic status from the composition of bone assemblages associated with houses and other structures in residential sites. In this paper, we test how well faunal assemblages reflect socioeconomic differences among contemporary farmer households in two rural villages in the Central African Republic. Independent measures of wealth are tallied and ranked for six households in each village, including complete inventories of the types and numbers of material goods and the sizes of residential structures and agricultural fields. These data are compared against the associated food bones collected from household trash middens and activity areas, including skeletal abundances, large mammal body part representation, and taxonomic diversity. In most instances larger and more taxonomically diverse faunal assemblages are associated with houses of means and the faunas do, in fact, reflect differences in socioeconomic status. However, faunal “wealth” may be linked to factors unrelated to social or economic inequalities, notably the presence of active hunters. Our analyses suggest that small animals provide useful and important data in assessing socioeconomic means, and comparative studies of wealth in archaeological contexts should not be based on bones alone.
Combining optimization for cache and instruction-level parallelism

Current architectural trends in instruction-level parallelism (ILP) have significantly increased the computational power of microprocessors. As a result, the demands on the memory system have increased dramatically. Not only do compilers need to be concerned with finding ILP to utilize machine resources effectively, but they also need to be concerned with ensuring that the resulting code has a high degree of cache locality. Previous work has concentrated either on improving ILP in nested leaps or on improving cache performance. This paper presents a performance metric that can be used to guide the optimization of nested loops considering the combined effects of ILP, data reuse and latency hiding techniques. We have implemented the technique in a source-to-source transformation system called Memoria. Preliminary experiments reveal that dramatic performance improvements for nested loops are obtainable (we regularly get at least a factor of 2 on kernels run on two different architectures).
Carbon dioxide laser matricectomy.

. We have performed a total of 13 matricectomies in 9 patients utilizing the carbon dioxide laser. To date, there have been no complications and minimal morbidity from this technique. With follow-up ranging from 8 to 24 months, no patient has experienced regrowth of nail at the treated site. In conclusion, we believe that carbon dioxide laser ablation is an effective technique for performing nail matricectomy.
Adults with Chromosome 18 Abnormalities

The identification of an underlying chromosome abnormality frequently marks the endpoint of a diagnostic odyssey. However, families are frequently left with more questions than answers as they consider their child' sf uture. In the case of rare chromosome conditions, a lack of longitu- dinal data often makes it difficult to provide anticipatory guidance to these families. The objective of this study is to describe the lifespan, educational attainment, living situation, and behavioral phenotype of adults with chromosome 18 abnormalities. The Chromosome 18 Clinical Research Center has enrolled 483 individuals with one of the following conditions: 18q-, 18p-, Tetrasomy 18p, and Ring 18. As a part of the ongoing longitudinal study, we collect data on living arrangements, educational level attained, and employment status as well as data on executive functioning and behavioral skills on an annual basis. Within our cohort, 28 of the 483 participants have died, the majority of whom have deletions encompassing the TCF4 gene or who have unbalanced rear- rangement involving other chromosomes. Data regarding the cause of and age at death are presented. We also report on the living situation, educational attainment, and behavioral pheno- type of the 151 participants over the age of 18. In general, educational level is higher for people with all these conditions than implied by the early literature, including some that received post-high school education. In addition, some individuals are able to live independently, though at this point they represent a minority of patients. Data on executive function and behavioral phenotype are also presented. Taken together, these data provide insight into the long-term outcome for individuals with a chro- mosome 18 condition. This information is critical in counseling families on the range of potential outcomes for their child.
Nondestructive Prediction of Moisture and Sodium Chloride in Cold Smoked Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar)

ABSTRACT: Salt and moisture contents in cold-smoked salmon were determined using short-wavelength near-infrared (SW-NIR) reflectance spectroscopy (600 to 1100 nm). Partial least square (PLS) regression models yieldedthe best results among 3 linear regression methods tested. Back-propagation neural networks (BPNN) exhibited asomewhat better capability to model salt and moisture concentrations (Salt: R 2 = 0.824, RMS = 0.55; Moisture:R 2 = 0.946, RMS = 2.44) than PLS (Salt: R = 0.775, RMS = 0.63; Moisture: R 2 = 0.936, RMS = 2.65). Selection of samplesfrom different axial locations on a fish did not affect the prediction error for salt or WPS but affected the predictionerror for moisture.Keywords: near-infrared, linear regression, artificial neural networks, smoked salmon, nondestructive analysis Introduction C URED AND / OR SMOKED FISH PRODUCTS ARE among the highest-value aquatic foodproduct categories in global markets. Cul-tured and wild-caught salmon harvests areabout 2 million metric tons (Johnson 2001)per year and about 15% of this salmon isconverted into cured and smoked products,with a value of 2000 to 3000 million dollars atthe first sale.Two basic procedures, cold-smoking andhot-smoking, are used to prepare smokedfish products. Cold-smoked fish products arelightly preserved (Gram and Huss 2000) andare defined under Codex Alimentariusguidelines as products subjected to smoke ata temperature at which incomplete heat co-agulation of protein occurs (Codex Alimenta-rius Commission 1979). Recommendationsfor cold-smoked products are for producttemperatures not to exceed 90 to 95 °F (32.2to 35 °C). In addition, the product must notbe exposed to temperatures above 50 °F(10 °C) for more than 12 h or to temperaturesabove 70 °F (21.1 °C) for more than 4 h (FDA2001). Hot-smoking applies both heat andsmoke to cook the product (Hilderbrand1992). Current FDA guidelines indicate thathot-smoked fish should be subjected to athermal process equivalent to 145 °F(62.8 °C) for at least 30 min, effectively pas-teurizing the product (FDA 2001).Cold-smoked fish products are not pas-teurized and may pose food safety risks.Growth of
Short-Term Tolvaptan Increases Water Intake and Effectively Decreases Urinary Calcium Oxalate, Calcium Phosphate and Uric Acid Supersaturations

Purpose: Some patients cannot effectively increase water intake and urine volume to prevent urinary stones. Tolvaptan, a V2 receptor antagonist, blocks water reabsorption in the collecting duct and should decrease urinary supersaturation of stone forming solutes, although this action has never been proved.Materials and Methods: We conducted a double-blind, randomized, placebo controlled, crossover study of 21 calcium urinary stone formers stratified into majority calcium oxalate (10 patients) and calcium phosphate (11) groups. Patients received 45 mg tolvaptan per day or placebo for 1 week, followed by a washout week and crossover to tolvaptan or placebo for week 3. A 24-hour urine sample was collected at the end of weeks 1 and 3.Results: Tolvaptan vs placebo decreased urinary osmolality (mean ± SD 204 ± 96 vs 529 ± 213 mOsm/kg, p <0.001) and increased urinary volume (4.8 ± 2.9 vs 1.8 ± 0.9 L, p <0.001). The majority of urinary solute excretion rates, including sodium and calcium, did not change significa...
Norms, Learning and Law: Exploring the Influences on Workers' Legal Knowledge

An initial survey of workers in Missouri documented widespread misunderstanding of the default rule of employment at will. This paper presents additional data, collected in New York and California, confirming previous findings that workers consistently overestimate their legal rights, erroneously believing that the law affords them protection akin to a just cause contract, when in fact they can be dismissed at will. The patterns of responses by workers in each of the three states are remarkably similar, despite wide variations in the states' laws. Although the three states differ significantly as to what situations fit the public policy exception to the at-will rule, and what circumstances are sufficient to overcome the at-will presumption, the state-by state variations in responses to the survey questions do not appear to correlate with these variations in state law. Multivariate regression analyses further suggest that experiential factors such as past union representation, responsibility for hiring and firing of other employees, the experience of being fired oneself and length of workforce experience do not significantly affect the accuracy of workers' perceptions of their legal protections. Contrary to the predictions of a rational actor model, these findings suggest that workers' erroneous beliefs about the law are not influenced by variations in state law and are resistent to change through experience. This paper advances the theory that worker confusion of norms and law best explains the pattern of responses observed in this study. Drawing on theories of the internal labor market, it describes how common employer practices and policies for governing internal employment patterns might give rise to a fairness norm forbidding employee discharges without cause. The results of this study suggest that such a fairness norm strongly shapes worker expectations of their legal rights, overshadowing most demographic and experiential factors in their influence on those expectations. Thus, it appears that workers do not readily distinguish between informal norms and enforceable legal rights, between what they believe the law should be, and what it actually is.
Addictive Characteristics of the Behavior of Self-Mutilation

Self-mutilation has numerous characteristics that also have been identified in the self-destructive behavior of addiction; these characteristics include similarities in origin, in emotions experienced, in family structure and in the repetitive nature of tension-release responses. Clinicians must deal with the various obstacles when trying to provide care to patients with self-mutilation behaviors, including the lack of information and a preferred treatment and the fact that self-mutilation is an act that occurs in isolation and privacy. The advanced clinician can utilize knowledge of the processes of self-mutilation and addiction to assist unit staff in understanding potential needs of these particular clients and provide resource information to the staff, which may assist in resolving some of the fear and frustration in interacting with self-destructive clients.
Measurement of velocity fluctuations in microfluidics with simultaneously ultrahigh spatial and temporal resolution

Although unsteady and electrokinetic flows are widely used in microfluidics, there is unfortunately no velocimeter today that can measure the random velocity fluctuation at high temporal and spatial resolution simultaneously in microfluidics. Here we, for the first time, theoretically study the temporal resolution of laser induced fluorescence photobleaching anemometer (LIFPA) and experimentally verify that LIFPA can have simultaneously ultrahigh temporal $$({\sim } 4\,\upmu \hbox {s})$$ and spatial $$({\sim }203\,\hbox {nm})$$ resolution and can measure velocity fluctuation up to at least 2 kHz, whose corresponding wave number is about $$6\times 10^6\,{/}\hbox {m}$$ in an electrokinetically forced unsteady flow in microfluidics.
Nature Cure and Ayurveda: Nationalism, Viscerality and Bio-ecology in India

Nationalism can be closely associated with powerful feelings about the relationship among cultural heritage, identity and embodied experience. Almost by definition this relationship is expressed in terms of continuity, distinctiveness and the purity of tradition, to an extent that nationalistic sentiments can be said to be ‘visceral.’ Contrasting the way in which the body is implicated in nature cure and Ayurveda, two forms of medicine closely linked to nationalism in India, this article presents an analytical perspective on the embodiment of viscerality to provide a more nuanced understanding of how these experiences blur distinctions of cultural continuity and how an ecology of the body shapes the cultural politics of tradition in India.
Studies with human coronaviruses. II. Some properties of strains 229E and OC43.

SummaryWhen the human coronaviruses, OC43 and 229E, are grown in the absence of calf serum, they have similar thermal inactivation rates and similar UV inactivation rates. When they are grown in the presence of serum, the thermal inactivation rate of OC43, and the UV inactivation rate of both OC43 and 229E are reduced, and evidence suggests this is because the viruses are in aggregates. The UV inactivation rate of serum-free OC43 and 229E is very similar to that of influenza A2 suggesting that the genomes are of comparable size. The shutoff temperatures for OC43 and 229E are 35-36° and 36-37°, respectively.The authors wish to thank Mr. A. R. Kalica for preparing and examining the electron microscope specimens.
Murine red blood cell fragility is not affected by either vitamin E depletion or supplementation.

AbstractMale ICR mice were pair-fed semipurified diets containing 0, 55 (control), and 500 IU/kg of vitamin E. Plasma and hepatic concentrations of vitamin E were determined and found to parallel the vitamin E levels in the diet. Even though plasma vitamin E levels were virtually zero in mice fed the depleted vitamin E diet for up to 304 days, there was no statistical difference in the red blood cell fragility between these animals and controls, as determined by a hypoosmotic fragility test. The diet with enriched vitamin E concentrations also did not affect the fragility of the red blood cell (RBC). Even after 300 days of zero dietary vitamin E, mice appeared healthy, demonstrating neither neurologic dysfunction nor failure to thrive. The data indicates that mice, unlike several other species, are more resistant to vitamin E depletion and may have other mechanisms to compensate for loss of this important antioxidant.
Screening of Adsorbents for Boron in Brine

Boron adsorptivity was measured on 46 kinds of inorganic and 12 kinds of organic adsorbents, using the residual brine after salt production from seawater. Hydrous cerium oxide, hydrous zirconium oxide, and N-glucamine type resin with N-methyl (polyhydroxyl) amino group each showed a high adsorptive capacity (above 5 mg/g) for boron. Adsorption isotherms of boron on these samples suggested that hydrous cerium oxide and glucamine type resin had adsorption sites selective for boron in a diluted solution. A column adsorption study of the resin showed that boron was effectively removed from the brine by passing it through the resin at a space velocity of 4 h-1. The adsorbed boron could be effectively eluted by using a 2 M HCl solution as an eluent.
Invasive fungal infections: laboratory and emerging aspects

Over the past 20 years medical mycology has undergone rapid changes on a global basis, largely as a result of the dramatic increase of opportunistic fungal infections associated with AIDS and other immunosuppressed patients. Although the ‘Great Toe Nail Wars’ came to a climax in 1999 with the publication of the LION study, controversy still continues with the taxonomy of the dermatophytes. On the basis of recent molecular studies, I suspect that we may have over classified many dermatophytes, and there may only be a handful of species? In this decade, we have witnessed the full impact of the haematology and transplant patient, with the concomitant emergence of non-albicans yeasts and the dominance of the moulds, like Aspergillus, Scedosporium and Fusarium. We have seen the introduction of new antifungals, like voriconazole, posaconazole and the echinocandins, of new rapid non-invasive diagnostic tests, like galactomannan and PCR, of new imaging technology, like high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and positron emission tomography (PET) scanners, and the publication of new consensus treatment guidelines and protocols. In the laboratory, we are currently undergoing a transition between morphological to molecular identification, with an ever-changing fungal taxonomy and greater demand for antifungal susceptibility testing. We live in an exciting time for medical mycology.
Relaxation Dynamics of Nanoparticle-Tethered Polymer Chains

Relaxation dynamics of nanoparticle-tethered cis-1,4-polyisoprene (PI) are investigated using dielectric spectroscopy and rheometry. A model system composed of polymer chains densely grafted to spherical SiO2 nanoparticles to form self-suspended suspensions facilitates detailed studies of slow global chain and fast segmental mode dynamics under surface and geometrical confinement—from experiments performed in bulk materials. We report that unentangled polymer molecules tethered to nanoparticles relax far more slowly than their tethered entangled counterparts. Specifically, at fixed grafting density we find, counterintuitively, that increasing the tethered polymer molecular weight up to values close to the entanglement molecular weight speeds up chain relaxation dynamics. Decreasing the polymer grafting density for a fixed molecular weight has the opposite effect: it dramatically slows down chain relaxation, increases interchain coupling, and leads to a transition in rheological response from simple fluid ...
Special Article: Summary of All Phases of Bladder Carcinoma

AbstractA brief summary of problems with clinical bladder cancer, relative to selected aspects of diagnosis and clinical staging, conservative versus aggressive treatment, end results and causes of treatment failure, forms the basis for a formulation of some more important goals to improve the current picture.
Religious Pluralism and Absolute Claims

The topic that I am going to pursue under this title is that of the absolute claims made by one religion over against others. Such a claim might be concerned with knowing and teaching the truth or with offering the final good of salvation/liberation. I suggest that in fact the truth-claim and the salvation-claim cohere closely together and should be treated as a single package. The valuable contents of this package, the goods conveyed, consist in salvation or liberation; and the packaging and labelling, with the identifying of the sender and the directing of the package to the recipient, are provided by the doctrine. Thus doctrines are secondary, and yet essential to the vital matter of receiving salvation, somewhat as packaging and labelling are secondary and yet essential to transmitting the contents of a parcel.
Diffusion into New Markets: Economic Returns Required by Households to Adopt Rooftop Photovoltaics.

While the U.S. residential solar market is growing quickly, costs for acquiring customers are high--and this indicates the value of efforts to identify new market segments and predict areas ripe for adoption. To better understand how the next wave of solar diffusion could occur, we explore the range of economic thresholds that households without PV would require to consider solar adoption, finding that these households require more attractive payback times by 1-3 years to achieve comparable market share as current adopters. In contrast, non-adopters indicate they would be satisfied with equal or lower returns when the benefits of solar are expressed in terms of their monthly bill savings—as is the case for third-party owned systems. If true, this suggests that the leasing model fundamentally inverts the assumption that later adopters require higher economic benefits. Adopters, both buyers and leasers, are compared to their non-adopting peers across a range of demographic and attitudinal factors. We find that leasers appear to be more highly influenced by installer advertising (radio, TV) and marketing, while buyers were more influenced by personal contacts. Environmental concern, once a preeminent reason for adopting is decreasing in relative importance, whereas lowering total electricity costs and protecting one’s household from future increases in prices are now the two more important reasons. Understanding these dynamics, and how they are changing, offers installers low-cost opportunities to attract new customers and expand their market base.
HIV/AIDS Knowledge Among Lourdesians: Implication for Health Programs in Lourdes College, Cagayan De Oro City

Acquired immune-deficiency syndrome (AIDS) has emerged as a global pandemic. The aim of this study was (i) to explore HIV/AIDS knowledge among undergraduate students'; (ii) HIV prevention strategies in the Philippines; and (iii) to provide suggestions for school HIV/AIDS education. A random sampling technique was employed in this study. The data were gathered using a survey instrument. The instrument was earlier constructed and was later modified with the use of pre-test results to address the objectives of the study. Respondents’ age ranged from16 to 30 years old, with 329 undergraduate students. This study identifies students who were currently in college for 3-10 years and in middle-class family. This study reveals that knowledge of the students was quite satisfactory for prevention of HIV/AIDS transmission e.g. maintenance of healthy diet, abstinence from sex, use of condom, and unused needle. Furthermore, students conveyed that fluids such as blood, semen, vaginal and breast milk can transmit HIV effectively; while saliva is an insufficient fluid for transmission. However, data in this study -perhaps more than half- believed that HIV began with homosexuals. Lastly, students believed that HIV can only be transmitted sexually and women who have sex with women do not have any risk of HIV transmission while birth control pills are efficient in preventing HIV transmission.In general, the study recommended that school authorities and stakeholders should design and strengthen school-based programs for the benefit of the students so as to help them develop proper understanding of HIV/AIDS, its spread, and prevention.
Futurescope 2020: Global Management Support Systems in the Knowledge Age

The rapid evolution of information technology (IT) has drastically changed organizational problem-solving and decision-making. Innovation and the free flow of information are considered the primary drivers of the accelerating pace of change in the global business environment, an environment characterized by great uncertainties ignited by opportunities and threats. The environmental forces of change have altered the rules of management to utilize information and knowledge in lieu of data in problem-solving and decision-making.1 Managers face challenges as they strive to add value to their organizations’ bottom lines. The gut instinct management style is history. Today’s business leaders must acquire real-time information across many time zones, adopt algorithmic decision-making techniques and use highly sophisticated technology to run their organizations effectively and efficiently.
Fully integrating remote students into a traditional classroom using live-streaming and TeachBack

This paper proposes a simple method to add optional live-streaming to a highly interactive class in a way that reduces the number of students physically present in the classroom and doesn't hurt student performance. The effect of allowing live-streaming was analyzed by running an experiment where partway through the semester students in a flipped advanced level Computer Graphics class were given the option to attend the class remotely using a live-stream of the class with required use of a multi-featured audience response system (TeachBack). The results show that allowing remote attendance with TeachBack decreased the number of students attending physically from 93% to 75% of registered students and had no effect on unexcused absences. Students believed that their remote attendance was just as effective for their learning as attending classes face-to-face and analysis of the data confirmed their beliefs; they did however generally prefer being physically present in class. Our results suggest that appropriate use of live-streaming coupled with an Audience Response System can reduce some of the demand for large lecture halls by allowing a self-selected subset of students to attend some or all of the classes remotely. A large percentage of the students in the class felt that a live-streaming option should be added to most classes and this paper demonstrates that this goal is feasible and pedagogically justifiable.
Electrical Impedance Measurements of PZT Nanofiber Sensors

Electrical Impedance Measurement of PZT Nanofiber sensors are performed and material properties including resistivity and dielectric constant are derived from the measurements. Nanofibers formed by electro-spinning with diameters ranging from 10 to 150 nm were collected and integrated into sensors using microfabrication techniques. The nanosensor impedance was extremely high at low frequencies and special matching circuitry was fabricated to detect output. The resulting impedance measurements are also compared with those of individual nanofibers that were tested using Scanning Conductive Microscopy (SCM) and Conductive AFM.Copyright © 2016 by ASME
Genome amplification and promoter mutation expand the range of csgD-dependent biofilm responses in an STEC population

Expression of the major biofilm components of E. coli, curli fimbriae and cellulose, requires the CsgD transcription factor. A complex regulatory network allows environmental control of csgD transcription and biofilm formation. However, most clinical serotype O157 : H7 strains contain prophage insertions in the csgD regulator, mlrA, or mutations in other regulators that restrict csgD expression. These barriers can be circumvented by certain compensating mutations that restore higher csgD expression. One mechanism is via csgD promoter mutations that switch sigma factor utilization. Biofilm-forming variants utilizing RpoD rather than RpoS have been identified in glycerol freezer stocks of the non-biofilm-forming food-borne outbreak strain, ATCC 43894. In this study we used whole genome sequencing and RNA-seq to study genotypic and transcriptomic differences between those strains. In addition to defining the consequences of the csgD promoter switch and identifying new csgD-controlled genes, we discovered a region of genome amplification in our laboratory stock of 43894 (designated 43894OW) that contributed to the regulation of csgD-dependent properties.
Associations Between Lone Motherhood and Depression: A Co-twin Control Study

Prior research has documented an association between lone motherhood and depression using traditional analysis tools. Such an association, however, is insufficient for establishing a causal effect. There are many possible non-causal confounds of this association, including a shared genetic background, or a shared influence by the same socioeconomic factors. We introduce a useful approach for studying behavioural data, and one that has never been used in the study of lone motherhood: twin research. Twin research is useful for the investigation of non-experimental associations because it allows observed associations to be decomposed into between-pair (lone motherhood associated with depression across pairs) and within-pair (the member of discordant pairs who is a lone mother is also more depressed). We then use this method to examine whether the relation between lone parenthood and depression is causal, or the result of genetic and shared environmental confounds. The study uses the Swedish Twin Registry, the largest twin dataset in the world. Our results show that even when controlling for genetic and shared-environmental confounds, there is still a significant association between lone motherhood and depression. Finally, we present conclusions and recommendations based on our results in the context of existing public policies.
From Ion Current to Electroosmotic Flow Rectification in Asymmetric Nanopore Membranes

Asymmetrically shaped nanopores have been shown to rectify the ionic current flowing through pores in a fashion similar to a p-n junction in a solid-state diode. Such asymmetric nanopores include conical pores in polymeric membranes and pyramidal pores in mica membranes. We review here both theoretical and experimental aspects of this ion current rectification phenomenon. A simple intuitive model for rectification, stemming from previously published more quantitative models, is discussed. We also review experimental results on controlling the extent and sign of rectification. It was shown that ion current rectification produces a related rectification of electroosmotic flow (EOF) through asymmetric pore membranes. We review results that show how to measure and modulate this EOF rectification phenomenon. Finally, EOF rectification led to the development of an electroosmotic pump that works under alternating current (AC), as opposed to the currently available direct current EOF pumps. Experimental results on AC EOF rectification are reviewed, and advantages of using AC to drive EOF are discussed.
Transradial Percutaneous Coronary Intervention... Works Great! Less Billing!

See Article by Mamas et al In randomized clinical trials percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) via transradial access (TRA) has been shown to have substantial advantages over the traditional transfemoral approach (TFA). These advantages are most evident in acute coronary syndrome patients and women—subgroups with higher than average bleeding risk.1 In addition, observational studies based on national registry data have shown an association between increased TRA adoption and a reduction in PCI-related adverse events.2,3 Despite these advantages, however, TRA utilization in the United States has remained relatively low, with rates only recently beginning to exceed 25% nationally in the last 2 years.4 The superiority of TRA compared with TFA with respect to clinical outcomes cannot be understated. In a meta-analysis of >22 000 patients enrolled in contemporary prospective randomized clinical trials comparing TRA with TFA, all-cause mortality, major adverse cardiac events (composite of death, stroke, and myocardial infarction), bleeding, and vascular complications were all substantially lower with the radial approach.1 Although the implications of these findings for patient care are fairly obvious, the economic implications are less intuitive. Nonetheless, several studies based on both randomized trial and observational data have suggested that the use of TRA results in lower costs than TFA.5–7 In this issue of Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes , Mamas et al8 have added to the body of literature demonstrating the economic advantages of the TRA approach. Using the data from the British Cardiovascular Intervention Society database, they estimated hospital costs for all patients undergoing PCI (including emergent, urgent, and elective procedures) in the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2014. Although the British Cardiovascular Intervention Society database contains a large number of data elements, many aspects of procedural resource utilization (including procedure duration and specific numbers of single-use …
From Mass to Elite Protests: News Coverage and the Evolution of Antigovernment Demonstrations in Brazil

In 2013, small demonstrations against bus fares evolved into a series of large protests expressing generalized dissatisfaction with leftist president Dilma Rousseff in Brazil. Communication researc...
Epigenetic Effects of Persistent Hepatitis C Virus Infection and Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is associated with an increased risk for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Following the initial acute phase of HCV infection, a majority of patients develop a chronic infection that may be without symptoms for many years. During this time, the virus infection causes progressive damage to the liver, eventually leading to cirrhosis, liver failure and cancer. The mechanisms underlying the progression of HCV infection to cancer remain poorly defined and the lack of a small animal model for HCV infection has hampered understanding of how HCV infection promotes development of HCC. Unlike other viruses that are associated with cancer, HCV has an RNA genome and an exclusively cytoplasmic lifecycle. Indirect mechanisms including chronic inflammation with associated oxidative stress and the potential for DNA damage are likely to contribute to carcinogenesis. Several lines of evidence suggest that viral factors may also contribute to carcinogenesis. Transgenic mice expressing HCV proteins develop cancer in the absence of inflammation. Several HCV proteins have been shown to directly interact with host proteins that have cell cycle regulatory and tumor suppressor activities. The consequences of these interactions for development of cancer are not clear but may contribute to HCC development by modulating host cell pathways that control cell growth, apoptosis and response to stresses such as oxidative DNA damage.
Pharmacology Effects and Side Effects

Publisher Summary Currently there are no well-established, biologic therapies to effect clinically significant improvement in the core features (language and social impairments) of autism spectrum disorders (ASD). However, clinicians who specialize in the medical management of these individuals are often called upon to treat impairing behaviors associated with the disorder, which in many instances are highly similar to the symptoms of conventional child psychiatric syndromes. This chapter primarily focuses on instruments for assessing response to psychotropic medication for impairing behaviors in both research and everyday clinical settings. It addresses measures of repetitive behaviors and motor movements because they are responsive to certain medications. In all cases, drug therapies are palliatives; they do not alter underlying pathophysiology in such a way as to “cure” the behavioral disturbance. Therefore, drug discontinuation is often (but not always) associated with some degree of behavioral deterioration in the absence of alternative compensatory intervention. This chapter first addresses several variables and general concepts relevant to either the development or selection of assessment instruments for use in research and everyday clinical settings. Following this, the types of behavior and emotional problems experienced by individuals with ASD and the prevalence of use of psychotropic medicines are described. Finally descriptions of a number of measures that could be used to assess drug response as well as side effects are presented. The spotlight is mainly on clinician- and caregiver-completed rating scales, owing to the fact that little has been done with self-report measures or direct observations. Instruments were selected based on their track record, unique features, or potential with this population.
Deriving Business Value from IT Applications in Product Development: A Complementarities-Based Model

Many companies that have made considerable investments in IT applications to support their product development activities have realized limited value from such efforts. In this chapter, we argue that a deep understanding of the complementarities that exist in the product development context is critical to ensure that business value is derived from the IT applications. We propose a multi-level complementarities-based model of IT innovation and business value to explain the factors that shape the success of IT-enabled product development. Our model posits that firms will obtain more value from innovative IT investment initiatives when the resulting IT applications are fitted into a system of initiative or product development context-specific complementary organizational elements (strategies, structures, processes, etc.). Further, firms will get more value from IT initiatives when investment is combined with certain firm-level elements such as a business strategy that is especially amenable to IT support, strong IT capabilities, and a modern organizational architecture that incorporates a cluster of practices associated with “digital” organizations. The model can guide researchers and managers in identifying the firm-level pre-conditions for realizing value from investments in IT to support product development and specifying necessary complementary investments in organizational change associated with product development.
The On-site Measurement Research of Converter Transformer Harmonic Losses Based on Harmonic Power Source

HVDC converter transformer is a highly nonlinear transmission of harmonic source, which produces large amounts of harmonic current during the operation. The harmonic losses caused by harmonic current share more than half of converter stations’ losses, and affect temperature rise and load capacity of converter transformer. For safe and economic operation of the converter transformer, accurately measuring the converter transformer’s harmonic losses has a great significance. This paper propose a method of converter transformer measurement based on harmonic power source by applying the 1/2 rated harmonic current on the AC side of converter transformer. According to comparison of calculation and test result, this paper finds that the calculation method recommended by IEC 61378.2 and GB/T 18494.2 can’t give out the accurate harmonic losses of converter transformer. With the test data, this paper gets the harmonic losses’ frequency characteristic of converter transformer and the harmonic loss coefficient $K_{r,h}$.
Nonverbal cognition across genetic and environmentally informative kinships: The case for opposite-sex twin pairs and virtual twins

The extent to which prenatal intrauterine testosterone affects cognitive development in females has been of interest. Previous twin research has, however, been limited in its attempts to disentangle prenatal and psychosocial environmental factors influencing cognitive development. The current study applied a novel approach to addressing this concern. Specifically, the nonverbal cognitive performances of female opposite-sex dizygotic co-twins (DZOSfs) and female opposite-sex virtual co-twins (same-age unrelated siblings or VTOSfs) were compared to separate the biological and environmental influences on the nonverbal IQ score and its component subtests. The DZOSf twins showed a trend toward outperforming the younger VTOSf twins on the Block Design subtest only. Using these biologically and environmentally informative kinships offers a novel approach to understanding sex differences in nonverbal cognition. Including VTOSfs as a comparison group creates an experimental design that eliminates confounds and spurious associations left unaddressed in prior twin research.
Microstructure Development of 308L Stainless Steel During Additive Manufacturing

In situ high-energy X-ray diffraction measurements were completed during deposition of 308L stainless steel wire onto a 304L stainless steel substrate. Attempts were made to extract microstructural features such as phase fraction and internal stress, as well as temperature evolution immediately following the deposition. The limited data that could be collected during deposition and rapid solidification are critically examined. High-energy X-rays coupled with relatively slow detectors were utilized to enable determination of orientation-dependent lattice parameters accurately enough to comment on phase strain evolution between austenite and ferrite. Information about the hydrostatic and deviatoric stress states of the constituent phases was determined on time scales that are relevant to their development. However, the time resolution of the technique was insufficient to monitor phase evolution during the solid–solid phase transformation and, more so, during solidification. Moreover, the accurate and absolute determination of inherently statistical parameters, such as phase fraction, depends critically on the ability to sample a statistically significant numbers of grains in the microstructure.
Feminist design thinking: a norm-creative approach to communication design

This paper recommends a norm-creative approach to the design process by intersecting aspects of feminist theory and design thinking methodology. It explores a two-step innovation strategy that cultivates critical understanding of social norms and supports more inclusive ways of problem solving through design.
Mergers and coordinated effects

Abstract A merger is said to have coordinated effects if it results in more collusive outcomes. I review the theory of collusion, and the role played by communication in coordination. Mergers can affect the enforcement and participation constraints for a collusive agreement, and the selection from the equilibrium set of outcomes. I describe some recent empirical studies of the effects of mergers on collusion, and the underlying measurement issues associated with identifying the degree of coordination. I also discuss some recent cases in which coordinated effects were a concern, including both merger reviews and ex post investigations.
Activation of neuronal Ras-related C3 botulinum toxin substrate 1 (Rac1) improves post-stroke recovery and axonal plasticity in mice.

Long-term disability after stroke is common but the mechanisms of post-stroke recovery remain unclear. Cerebral Ras-related C3 botulinum toxin substrate (Rac) 1 contributes to functional recovery after ischemic stroke in mice. As Rac1 plays divergent roles in individual cell types after central neural system injury, we herein examined the specific role of neuronal Rac1 in post-stroke recovery and axonal regeneration. Young male mice were subjected to 60-min of middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). Inducible deletion of neuronal Rac1 by daily intraperitoneal injection of tamoxifen (2 mg/40 g) into Thy1-creER/Rac1-floxed mice day 7-11 after MCAO worsened cognitive (assayed by novel object recognition test) and sensorimotor (assayed by adhesive removal and pellet reaching tests) recovery day 14-28 accompanied with the reduction of neurofilament-L (NFL) and myelin basic protein (MBP) and the elevation of glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) in the peri-infarct zone assessed by immunostaining. Whereas the brain tissue loss was not altered assayed by cresyl violet staining. In another approach, delayed overexpression of neuronal Rac1 by injection of lentivirus encoding Rac1 with neuronal promotor into both the cortex and striatum (total 4 μl at 1 × 109 transducing units/mL) of stroke side in C57BL/6J mice day 7 promoted stroke outcome, NFL and MBP regrowth and alleviated GFAP invasion. Furthermore, neuronal Rac1 over-expression led to the activation of p21 activating kinases (PAK) 1, mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase (MEK) 1/2 and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) 1/2, and the elevation of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) day 14 after stroke. Finally, we observed higher counts of neuronal Rac1 in the peri-infarct zone of subacute/old ischemic stroke subjects. This work identified a neuronal Rac1 signaling in improving functional recovery and axonal regeneration after stroke, suggesting a potential therapeutic target in the recovery stage of stroke.