cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The origin of the reticulo-olivary projection in the rat: A retrograde horseradish peroxidase study

Abstract Electrophoretic injections of horseradish peroxidase were made in different parts of the rat inferior olivary complex using a ventral approach. Data from these injections provide anatomical evidence for the existence of a projection to the inferior olive which takes origin from reticular nuclei in the brainstem. The majority of reticulo-olivary neurons are located in the nucleus raphe obscurus and nucleus raphe pallidus. Other reticular nuclei which contribute to this projection include the nucleus reticularis ventralis and nucleus reticularis gigantocellularis. Analysis of injections confined to specific parts of the olivary complex reveals a topographical pattern in the reticulo-olivary projection. Caudal parts of the complex receive input primarily from the nucleus reticularis ventralis. As more rostral and medial parts of the inferior olive are included in the injection, there is concomitant shifting of labeled neurons to the nucleus reticularis gigantocellularis and the raphe nuclei. The reticulo-olivary neurons may serve several non-mutually exclusive roles in olivary circuitry. They may be the source of serotonin and/or substance P to the nucleus. Physiologically, they may provide the inhibitory input observed in the nucleus. Finally, some of these neurons may be the brainstem relay of the lateral funiculus and dorsolateral funiculus spino-olivo-cerebellar pathway proposed by Larson and his co-workers ( J. Physiol., Lond . 203 , 611–640, 641–649).
A high speed low power modulo 2 n +1 multiplier design using carbon-nanotube technology

Modulo 2n+1 multiplier is one of the critical components in the area of digital signal processing, residue arithmetic, and data encryption that demand high-speed and low-power operation. In this paper, a new circuit implementation of a high-speed low-power modulo 2n+1 multiplier is proposed. It has three major stages: partial product generation stage, partial product reduction stage, and the final adder stage. The proposed structure introduces a new MUX-based compressor in the partial product reduction stage to reduce power and increase speed, and in the final adder stage, the Sparse-tree-based inverted end-around-carry adder reduces the number of critical path circuit blocks, also avoids wire interconnection problem. The proposed multiplier is implemented using both 32nm CNTFET (Carbon-Nanotube FET) and bulk CMOS technology for performance comparison. The CNTFET-based design dramatically decreases the PDP (Power Delay Product) of the circuit. The simulation results demonstrate that the power consumption of CNTFET-based multiplier is at average 5.72 times less than its CMOS counterpart, while the PDP of CNTFET is 94 times less than the CMOS one.
Stochastic moment problem and hedging of generalized Black-Scholes options

In mathematical finance one is interested in the quadratic error which occurs while replacing a continuously adjusted portfolio by a discretely adjusted one. We first study higher order approximations of stochastic integrals. Then we apply the results to quantify quadratic error which occurs in estimating the discretely adjusted hedging risk in pricing European options in a generalized Black-Scholes market.
Entitlements, missing markets, and environmental uncertainty: Reply

Abstract At one level Dore and Ward seem intent on immunizing received doctrine. They say that I did not prove that rights violated Nozick's principles of justice, and that I did not prove that missing markets were the problem. More telling, they allege I did not prove that my story was better than the particular story favored by Dore and Ward. That is, they argue that : “ … there is an alternative approach, based on the theory of public economics, which is indeed operational.”3 They then use the bulk of their comment to explain and defend this alternative model. They hope to convince the reader that the model of “public economics” survives intact in the face of my alternative model. To the extent that their model allows one to define the problem away, it is not difficult to see why they find it so compelling. More seriously, Dore and Ward fail to make a coherent argument about the concept of rights and duties and the logic of a particular rights structure that happens to prevail. They seem concerned that my article was tampering with some sacred social construct—the status quo rights structure—and that my article threatened the received wisdom of both “public economics” and Paretian-Walrasian bliss. Indeed, theirs seems to be a genuine fear that if economists release their grip on the certitude of received orthodoxy the floodgates will be open to all manner of bumbling regulators seeking to shift rights and wealth positions across generations. My article is apparently threatening because it seems to suggest that the received wisdom may, at times, be misleading.
Heat removal in the orifice pulse-tube

Abstract Heat removal in the orifice pulse-tube (OPT) is analyzed using a thermodynamic model. The cycle considered has four distinct steps: 1) the pressure is increased (`compression') 2) there is leakage through the orifice out of the pulse tube (`orifice outflow') 3) the pressure is decreased (`expansion') 4) there is leakage through the orifice into the pulse tube (`orifice inflow'). Leakage through the orifice during the compression and expansion steps is neglected. The pressure is assumed to be uniform during the entire cycle. For each step of the cycle, the relevant gas temperature profiles are derived analytically. Both the compressor-driven and the linear-motor-driven OPT are considered. For the former, the nondimensional cyclic heat removal Q c is found to be kL o ( π − π ( k −1)/ k ), where k is the ratio of specific heats, L o the volume of gas passing through the orifice, and π the compression ratio. The results for Q c in the case of the linear-motor-driven OPT are somewhat smaller due to the pressure drop during orifice outflow. Corrections to Q c for finite values of the length L h of the heat exchanger at the orifice end are found to be small for cases of practical interest. The results obtained are in good agreement with experiment.
Adjuvant chemotherapy and the role of chemotherapy resistance testing for stage I non-small cell lung cancer.

This article describes the current clinical application of in vitro chemotherapy resistance testing of patient tumors. The frequency of in vitro chemotherapy resistance in non–small cell lung cancer is extraordinary; however, its clinical relevance remains unproved. Future studies on the use of the extreme drug resistant assay and its integration into clinical trials is justified. The staggering prevalence of non-small cell lung cancer in vitro tumor resistance is reviewed, and the potential role of the extreme drug resistant assay in both clinical and laboratory investigations are discussed.
The Ergonomics of Economics is the Economics of Ergonomics

Several reasons for the failure of business and government decison-makers to more adequately recognize the benefits of human factors/ergonomics and strongly support and endorse its application are reviewed. In particular, the failure of members of our profession to more consisistently and adequately document and publicize the cost-benefits of their ernonomic applications is noted. To support the notion that good ergonomics is good economics, a variety of actual ergonomic applications, and the documented cost-benefits of each, are described.
The Processing and Transport of Peptide Hormones Across Endothelial Cell Barriers

Transcytosis is the transcellular transport of substances from one side of the cell to the other side within vesicles. Transported substances are taken up by endocytosis at one plasma membrane surface and are released via exocytosis at a different surface, which allows these substances to bypass intercellular junctions. The term was originally proposed for vesicular transport across endothelial cells (1), where the transcellular route is the main route of vesicle traffic, especially in capillaries with a continuous endothelium like those of skeletal and cardiac muscle, and brain. Transcytosis is also observed in many other types of cells, such as the transport of IgG from the lumen of the intestine to the perivascular space in the newborn rat (2), and the transport of IgA from the vascular front to the bile capillary front by hepatocytes (3,4).
Sintering and Grain Growth of Alumina

The sintering and grain growth of alumina as a function of the type of impurity (oxide) added was studied. One weight per cent of the impurity was added to a commercial Be-grained alumina or was coprecipitated with iilcl3 to form hydroxides. Fired shrinkage, bulk density, and apparent porosity measurements were used to correlate sintering with grain growth as observed by the petrographic and electron microscope. Some additives which increased grain growth were believed to enter into solid solution with alumina and to strain the lattice sufficiently to increase material transport greatly. Other additives were believed to produce a glassy phase which would greatly increase surface difusion and resulting grain growth. Some additives decreased grain growth because of the relatively large vapor phase produced by the impurity upon heating which may have been sorbed on the alumina; other additives may have Wed anion vacancies to reduce material transport or may have produced complex anions whose flow or diffusion may have been impeded.
Amplification and superradiant emission from a 33.3 GHz free electron laser with a reversed axial guide magnetic field

A new regime of free-electron laser (FEL) operation using a helical wiggler field and a reversed axial guide magnetic field is reported. The orientation of the axial field is such as to oppose the electron rotation imparted by the helical field. The 33.3-GHz FEL amplifier is driven by a mildly relativistic electron beam (750 kV 300 A, 30 ns) and generates 61 MW of radiation with a 27% conversion efficiency. The results are compared with those obtained when the axial guide field is in its conventional orientation, where considerable loss of power and efficiency is observed. >
The role of iron in the growth and hemolysin (Streptolysin S) production in Streptococcus pyogenes

Four strains of Streptococcus pyogenes were propagated at 37 degrees C in a reduced iron medium supplemented with Fe3+-citrate to give concentrations of 1 through 11 micrograms per milliliter, in order to observe the effects of iron on growth and on the vitro production of Streptolysin S. Both growth and hemolysin production were observed to be influenced by medium iron concentration of which 1.2 micrograms per ml of iron was critical. Hemolysin was produced during the exponential phase of the growth cycle with maximum yield as the organism entered the stationary phase. Hemolytic activity (which was accepted as the ability of the hemolysin to lyse sheep erythrocytes) fell below detectable levels as the organisms entered fully into the stationary phase (9-10 hours post incubation). Serum (bovine, human, chicken) was observed to have a high stabilizing effect on the hemolysin.
Caspofungin in the Treatment of Symptomatic Candiduria

Background Because the urine concentrations achieved by echinocandin antifungal agents are low, drugs from this class are excluded from consideration when candiduria treatment is selected. Methods We performed a retrospective view (sponsored by Merck Research Laboratories) of case records of patients participating in phase II-III clinical studies of caspofungin to identify patients with candiduria. Results Of 12 case records collected by Merck Research Laboratories, 6 met the criteria for significant candiduria, allowing the evaluation of caspofungin therapy as judged by J.D.S. Three reported cases of candiduria secondary to hematogenous renal candidiasis were promptly eradicated. Of greater significance are 3 cases of complicated, ascending Candida glabrata infection (i.e., C. glabrata infection plus renal insufficiency), which were successfully treated with caspofungin. Conclusions Caspofungin may have a role in treating complicated Candida urinary tract infections, especially when the infection is caused by non-albicans species of Candida.
Response of idealized Hadley circulations to seasonally varying heating

[1] The response of Hadley circulations to displacements of the latitude of maximum heating is investigated in idealized axisymmetric and eddy-permitting models. Consistent with an earlier study and with theory for the nearly inviscid limit (Lindzen and Hou, 1988), the strength of the Hadley circulation is sensitive to displacements of heating: the winter cell strengthens and summer cell weakens when the maximum heating is displaced off the equator. However, in conflict with the nearly inviscid limit but consistent with observations of Earth's atmosphere, the strength of an annually averaged Hadley circulation is comparable to the Hadley circulation driven by an annually averaged heating. The disagreement between these results and the nearly inviscid limit is ascribed to vertical diffusion of momentum and dry static energy in the axisymmetric model and to baroclinic eddy fluxes in the eddy-permitting model. Nonlinear amplification of the annually averaged Hadley circulation is only seen near the upper boundary in simulations with a rigid lid near the tropopause, suggesting that the amplification is an artifact of the upper boundary condition.
Delay Bounds for Random Linear Coding in Parallel Relay Networks

We consider the problem of transmitting a collection of packets from a source node to a destination node across a relaynetwork. We analyze a simple random network coding scheme where each node transmits a random linear combination of packets each time it has an opportunity to transmit. The main result of this paper is an upper bound on the expected time to transmit ageneration of packets across the network. We show that the expected time is bounded by the generation size divided by the capacityof the minimum cut separating the source from the destination, plus a term that grows as the square root of the generation size. We then use this bound to provide a queueing analysis of a strategy that dynamically creates generations as packets arrive in a queue at the network’s source node. To facilitate our analysis, we model the relay network by a continuous-time Markov chain. Our primaryanalytical tool is a general method for computing upper bounds on hitting times associated with continuous-time Markov chains. We believe that this approach also provides a method for analyzing transmission times associated with more general network topologies.
Proof-of-Concept Flowsheet Tests for Cesium Removal from Tank Waste by Caustic-Side Solvent Extraction

A caustic-side solvent extraction (CSSX) process to remove cesium from Savannah River Site (SRS) high-level waste has been developed through a joint program with Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), the Savannah River Technical Center (SRTC), and Argonne National Laboratory (ANL). The CSSX solvent consists of four components: (1) an extractant, a calixarene crown, calix[4]arene-bis(tert-octylbenzo-crown-6) designated BOBCalixC6, (2) a modifier, an alkyl aryl polyether, 1-(2,2,3,3,-tetrafluoropropoxy)-3-(4-sec-butylphenoxy)-2-propanol, also called Cs-7SB, (3) a suppressant, an alkyl amine, trioctylamine (TOA), and (4) a diluent, Isopar®L. The solvent composition is 0.01M BOBCalixC6, 0.50M Cs-7SB, and 0.001M TOA in Isopar®L. In this program we have developed and demonstrated a flowsheet that can be used to process SRS tank waste. To this end, a series of flowsheet tests were completed using simulated waste in a 2-cm centrifugal contactor at ANL. Three short-term (3-4 hours) tests were completed to demonstrate various aspects of the flowsheet. These tests were followed by a 71-h test where the solvent was recycled 42 times. In each case, we met or exceeded the key process goals: (1) cesium removal from the waste with a decontamination factor greater than 40,000, (2) concentration of cesium in the aqueous strip effluent by a factor of 15 using dilute nitric acid, and (3) stripping the solvent sufficiently to allow it to be recycled many times. The results from the 71-h test are discussed.
A new category of business negotiation primitives for bilateral negotiation agents and associated algorithm to find Pareto optimal solutions

How to conduct automated business negotiation over the Internet is an important issue for agent research. In most bilateral negotiation models, two negotiation agents negotiate by sending proposals and counterproposals back and forth. Proposals and counterproposals usually use a set of negotiation primitives to define the contents. These primitives deal with complete proposals or the whole negotiation process. With these primitives, a negotiation agent can issue a call-for-proposal (CFP), reject or accept the received proposal, propose a new proposal, or terminate the whole negotiation process. However, there is no primitive about individual attributes within proposals. In this paper, we propose a new category of negotiation primitives that have finer granularities than existing primitives do. They are in the attribute level instead of the proposal level, as other primitives are. These messages can help negotiation agents to find Pareto optimal solutions if both sides agree to use them. In order to eliminate non-Pareto optimal solutions, these primitives should be used before the actual negotiation (bargaining) begins. Pareto optimal solutions help both sides to reduce the negotiation effort and time, and these solutions are theoretically preferable to non-Pareto optimal solutions.
Disruption of CD8+ Treg Activity Results in Expansion of T Follicular Helper Cells and Enhanced Antitumor Immunity

Tumor growth is associated with the inhibition of host antitumor immune responses that can impose serious obstacles to cancer immunotherapy. To define the potential contribution of Qa-1-restricted CD8 regulatory T cells (Treg) to the development of tumor immunity, we studied B6.Qa-1 D227K mice that harbor a point mutation in the MHC class Ib molecule Qa-1 that impairs CD8 Treg suppressive activity. Here, we report that the growth of B16 melanoma is substantially delayed in these Qa-1-mutant mice after therapeutic immunization with B16 melanoma cells engineered to express granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor compared with Qa-1 B6-WT controls. Reduced tumor growth is associated with enhanced expansion of follicular T helper cells, germinal center B cells, and high titers of antitumor autoantibodies, which provoke robust antitumor immune responses in concert with tumor-specific cytolytic T cells. Analysis of tumor-infiltrating T cells revealed that the Qa-1 DK mutation was associated with an increase in the ratio of CD8(+) T effectors compared with CD8 Tregs. These data suggest that the CD8(+) T effector-Treg ratio may provide a useful prognostic index for cancer development and raise the possibility that depletion or inactivation of CD8 Tregs represents a potentially effective strategy to enhance antitumor immunity.
An efficient merging scheme for prescribed skew clock routing

In ultra-deep submicron very large-scale integration (VLSI) designs, clock network layout plays an increasingly important role on determining circuit quality indicated by timing, power consumption, cost, power-supply noise, and tolerance to process variations. In this brief, a new merging scheme is proposed for prescribed nonzero skew routings which are useful in reducing clock cycle time, suppressing power-supply noise, and improving tolerance to process variations. This technique is simple and easy to implement for practical applications. Experimental results on benchmark circuits with both buffered and unbuffered routings exhibit large improvement on wirelength and buffer cost compared with other existing works.
A Scalable, Digital BIST Circuit for Measurement and Compensation of Static Phase Offset

An on-chip circuit to measure static phase offset between a reference signal and the feedback signal of a PLL (phase-locked loop) is designed using only digital elements. It is demonstrated in a 65 nm, 1.0 V CMOS technology. It has a measured resolution of 2ps and a range of more than +/- 100ps of phase offset and, and consumes 3mW of power at 1 GHz. It uses an on-chip calibration referred to the reference clock frequency. The measured results are reported through digital scan chains.
Cross-Linkage of Nucleophosmin in Tumor Cells by Nitrogen Mustard

Abstract Mouse leukemia (P388) cells were incubated in cell culture medium containing nitrogen mustard [2-chloro- N -(2-chloroethyl)- N -methylethanamine] for 4 h. The nucleophosmin immunoband with a molecular weight of 37,000 (p37; other molecular weights are similarly designated) was observed in both control and nitrogen mustard-treated cells. Three additional immunobands with molecular weights of 80,000 (p80), 120,000 (p120), and 230,000 (p230) were identified in the drug-treated cells. The same results were observed with melphalan, but were not detected when mitomycin C, cis -platinum, Adriamycin, or actinomycin D were used. Treatments with DNase and RNase did not alter the molecular weights of these immunobands. These results indicate that the cross-linked products of nucleophosmin were not linked to DNA or RNA. The pI of p80, p120, and p230 is 5.1, which is the same as that of nucleophosmin (p37). The iodinated tryptic peptide map of p80 is identical to that of nucleophosmin. This result indicates that p80 is a dimer cross-linked by nitrogen mustard. The p80 and p120 immunobands were observed in Novikoff hepatoma and in hypertrophic rat liver, but were not detected in normal liver under the same conditions. These results indicate that tumor or proliferating cells have hexameric nucleophosmins which can be cross-linked by nitrogen mustards.
Caribbean coral diseases: primary transmission or secondary infection?

Over the last 40 years, disease outbreaks have significantly reduced coral populations throughout the Caribbean. Most coral-disease models assume that coral diseases are contagious and that pathogens are transmitted from infected to susceptible hosts. However, this assumption has not been rigorously tested. We used spatial epidemiology to examine disease clustering, at scales ranging from meters to tens of kilometers, to determine whether three of the most common Caribbean coral diseases, (i) yellow-band disease, (ii) dark-spot syndrome, and (iii) white-plague disease, were spatially clustered. For all three diseases, we found no consistent evidence of disease clustering and, therefore, these diseases did not follow a contagious-disease model. We suggest that the expression of some coral diseases is instead a two-step process. First, environmental thresholds are exceeded. Second, these environmental conditions either weaken the corals, which are then more susceptible to infection, or the conditions increase the virulence or abundance of pathogens. Exceeding such environmental thresholds will most likely become increasingly common in rapidly warming oceans, leading to more frequent coral-disease outbreaks.
Giving Lipid a Shot

Many medicines contain adjuvants—agents that can modify the effect of the primary medicine. One critical use of adjuvants is as the “dirty little secret” in vaccines: Adjuvants serve as additional stimulants to improve the vaccination immune response so an immune system can best respond to the pathogen in question. Although immunological adjuvants can work through a variety of mechanisms, the most common adjuvants function by prolonging antigen delivery (for example, aluminum salt). However, new experimental adjuvants are being tested that directly stimulate the innate immune system. Needham et al. now show that bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS) can be modified to serve as a biologically derived adjuvant. The authors began by modifying the Lipid A fraction of LPS from E. coli using combinations of enzymes and subsequently probed for several immunogenic responses. First, two strains of Escherichia coli were altered to produce a homogeneous, bis-phosphorylated Lipid A to use as a starting material. Then, 61 new variations of Lipid A were generated through coexpression of the homogeneous Lipid A with different combinations of six modifying enzymes from other bacterial species. These compounds were then examined for their ability to stimulate the innate immunity toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) and several humoral immunity indicator cytokines [tumor necrosis factor–α (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6), IL-1β, and IL-8]. They successfully induced a wide variety of TLR4 agonist activities and cytokine induction responses. Last, Needham et al. tested the ability of these compounds to serve as adjuvants in vivo. Indeed, mice immunized with several of these Lipid A variants produced substantial vaccine-specific immunoglobulin-G (IgG) titers, suggesting that these molecules could function as suitable adjuvants. This demonstration of reengineering bacterial LPS is very promising. This LPS-modification strategy has the potential to be used for purposes beyond substituting for traditional aluminum-based adjuvants, as demonstrated in this study. Bacteria presenting a modified, less toxic Lipid A could be further modified to target specific tissues, stimulate beneficial immune responses in certain cancers, or negate inflammatory responses that occur with other adjuvants or bacteria. B. D. Needham et al. , Modulating the innate immune response by combinatorial engineering of endotoxin. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 110 , 1464–1469 (2013). [[Abstract]][1] [1]: http://www.pnas.org/content/110/4/1464.abstract
Automated Analysis of Tertiary Amines

An automated method for the analysis of tertiary amines has been developed using a basic automatic analyzer arrangement. The method is based on a modification of the familiar dye complex extraction method for amines. The method is simple and is not subject to adsorption of the dye on components of the analytical train. A new technique for automated extraction is also described as part of the method. The specificity of the method can be highly controlled by suggested changes in the dye reagent formulation enabling certain amines to be analyzed in the presence of other amines. The method has been designed for the analysis of solid samples.
AmericAn Three-Toed Woodpecker response To Burn severiTy And prey AvAilABiliTy AT mulTiple spATiAl scAles

We evaluated American three-toed woodpecker (Picoides dorsalis) response to spatial heterogeneity of burn severity and prey availability over multiple scales at the 56 000 ha Hayman Fire (2002) located in the Colorado Front Range. In 2003 and 2004, we quantified the response of three-toed woodpeckers to burn severity, beetle occurrence, and tree size at three levels: home-range scale (36 ha), foraging patches (∼1 ha), and trees within foraging patches. We used the differenced normalized burn ratio (dNBR) to quantify burn severity at the home range scale. Woodpecker response to burn severity was strongly scale dependent. Three-toed woodpeckers generally established territories in moderately burned areas containing patches of live and dead trees, and were less common in unburned forests and in large severely burned areas lacking live trees. Woodpeckers disproportionately foraged in patches with a higher proportion of severely burned trees than were available in moderately burned areas, but rarely foraged in severely burned patches within severely burned areas. Burn severity was similar among trees within foraging patches and was not useful for predicting woodpecker use at this scale. Three-toed woodpecker response to beetle occurrence and tree size also varied across scales. Tree size and beetle occurrence were both greater in foraging patches compared to available trees. At the largest scale (home range), burn severity best accounted for three-toed woodpecker use, whereas tree size and beetle occurrence played a stronger role at the smallest scale (individual trees). At the intermediate scale (foraging patches), all factors were important in explaining woodpecker use. Our results indicate that the scaling of burn severity patterns can affect the woodpecker’s use of burned forests and demonstrate the importance of evaluating burn severity across multiple spatial scales. The prevalence of breeding three-toed woodpeckers in mixed-severity areas with both lightly and severely burned trees highlights the importance of mixed-severity regimes to such fire-dependent species and the need for fire management that includes a range of fire behaviors, including high-severity fires.
Fiber-optic Michelson-Gires-Turnois interferometer based multifunctional optical filter for microwave photonic applications

An optical filter architecture based on Michelson Gires-Turnoir Interferometer (MGTI) platform is proposed and analyzed through simulations for applications in microwave photonic applications. The optical filter has a variety of transfer functions that can be used to suppress optical side bands, shape the amplitude of optical comps, and perform spectral slicing for signal processing in the microwave domain. The unique feature of this approach is the use of fiber loop mirrors (FLM) with polarization controllers that operate as partial and/or fully reflective elements within the MGTI structure. Unlike other reflective elements, the FLMs have the ability to achieve high dynamic range in the reflectivity (e.g., 0% to 100%), which provides the multi-functional transfer functions of the MGTI.
Positive Aspects of Family Caregiving for Dementia: Differential Item Functioning by Race

Objectives. Due to increasing interest in the positi ve experiences associated with family caregiving, potential demographic group differences were examined on the Positive Aspects of Caregiving (PAC) scale at both the item and scale levels. Method. F amily caregivers (N = 642) completed the PAC as part of their participation in the Resources for Enhancing Alzheimer’s Caregiver Health (REACH II) clinical trial. Multiple indicators, multiple causes models were used to examine potential differential item functioning (DIF) across demographic subgroups. Results. Overall P AC scale scores indicated that both Hispanics and African Americans experienced more PAC than Whites. Two items with statistically significant (p 2.0) DIF were found for African American caregivers. After controlling for the underlying unidimensional construct, African Americans reported that caregiving gave them “a more positive attitude toward life” and enabled them to “appreciate life more” than either Whites or Hispanics. No instances of meaningful DIF were found between Hispanics and Whites, women and men, or spouses and nonspouses. Discussion. P AC scores differ significantly by race. In addition, 2 items with meaningful race DIF identify content areas that are particularly relevant to the cultural experiences of African American caregivers.
Phase separation in biology; functional organization of a higher order

Inside eukaryotic cells, macromolecules are partitioned into membrane-bounded compartments and, within these, some are further organized into non-membrane-bounded structures termed membrane-less organelles. The latter structures are comprised of heterogeneous mixtures of proteins and nucleic acids and assemble through a phase separation phenomenon similar to polymer condensation. Membrane-less organelles are dynamic structures maintained through multivalent interactions that mediate diverse biological processes, many involved in RNA metabolism. They rapidly exchange components with the cellular milieu and their properties are readily altered in response to environmental cues, often implicating membrane-less organelles in responses to stress signaling. In this review, we discuss: (1) the functional roles of membrane-less organelles, (2) unifying structural and mechanistic principles that underlie their assembly and disassembly, and (3) established and emerging methods used in structural investigations of membrane-less organelles.
Are America’s public mass shooters unique? A comparative analysis of offenders in the United States and other countries

ABSTRACTPublic mass shooters are often assumed to be an exceptionally American problem, but little is known about what proportion of global offenders attack in the United States, or how America’s offenders compare to those in other countries. The present study offers the first quantitative analysis of all known offenders from 1966 to 2012 who attacked anywhere on the globe and killed a minimum of four victims. The results suggest that public mass shooters in the United States are significantly more likely to arm themselves with multiple weapons and attack at school and workplace settings, while offenders from other countries are more likely to strike at military sites. These differences may be partially attributable to America’s national gun culture and its particular set of social strains.
Bacterial Effector Nanoparticles as Breast Cancer Therapeutics.

Bacterial pathogens trigger cell death by a variety of mechanisms, including injection of effector proteins. Effector proteins have great potential as anticancer agents because they efficiently subvert a variety of eukaryotic signaling pathways involved in cancer development, drug resistance, and metastasis. In breast cancer, MAPK and NFκB pathways are known to be dysregulated. YopJ, an effector from Yersinia pestis, downregulates MAPK and NFκB pathways to induce cell death in specific cell types. We expressed YopJ in Escherichia coli as a fusion protein with glutathione S-transferase (GST), forming self-assembled protein nanoparticles with diameters of 100 nm. YopJ-GST nanoparticles efficiently delivered protein to cells, replacing the need for the pathogen secretion mechanism for effector delivery to cells. These nanoparticles induced dose and time dependent death in SKBR-3 breast cancer cells. After 72 h, 97% of cells died, significantly more than with the same molar dose of doxorubicin. Treatment with...
THE HESSIAN FLY ATTACKING TIMOTHY

When examining some stems of timothy grass taken from a wheat field in Prince Edward Island, where this year's crop had been badly infested with Hessian Fly, I found two of the stems of timothy which bore the undoubted flax-seed-like puparia of the Hessian Fly.
The Internet in Kinesiology and Physical Education

Throughout America the click of computer keys is replacing the scratch of pencils. Properly used, technology increases students' learning opportunities, motivation, and achievement; it helps students acquire skills that are rapidly becoming essential in the workplace; and it breaks the barriers of time and space, enabling students in any community to have access to high-quality instruction. The Internet is developing at an astounding rate. It will become the primary means of communication in the 21st century. An overview of the Internet, with applications in kinesiologylphysical education, is presented in this paper. The following topics are discussed: (a) What is the Internet; (b) The origin of the Internet; (c) Elements of the Internet; and (d) Emerging technologies.
Tailoring of morphology and surface properties of syndiotactic polystyrene aerogels.

This study evaluates a method for rendering syndiotactic polystyrene (sPS) aerogels hydrophilic using polyethylene oxide (PEO) of different molecular weights. The highly porous sPS aerogels are inherently hydrophobic although applications involving absorption of moisture and removal of particulate solids may benefit from the high surface area of sPS aerogels provided some degree of hydrophilicity is induced in these materials. In this work, sPS gels are prepared by thermo-reversible gelation in tetrahydrofuran in the presence of PEO. The gels are dried under supercritical conditions to obtain aerogels. The aerogels are characterized by scanning electron microscopy, nitrogen-adsorption porosimetry, helium pycnometry, and contact angle measurements. The data reveal that the pore structures and surface energy can be controlled by varying the concentration and molecular weight of PEO and using different cooling rates during thermo-reversible gelation. In the first case, sPS aerogels, aerogels containing PEO o...
Low TCE Polyimides from Polyamic Acid Blends and Copolymers: Preparation and Characterization Studies

A series of polyimides prepared from BPDA-PDA and BTDA-PDA polyamic acid blends and the corresponding (BPDA-PDA)x-(BTDA-PDA)y copolymers have been investigated for the mechanical properties, the thermal expansion, and the residual stress in films cured on silicon wafers. To determine the effect of inclusion of a highly flexible chain segment into BPDA-PDA structure, a BPDA-PDA/BDAF copolyimide has also been characterized. The experimental data are correlated with the chemistry and the composition of the blends and the copolyimides.
Do the Same Factors Affect use and Non-Use of Safety Equipment?:

Safety equipment is often specified by human factors engineers/ergonomists, but it is not always used in practice. Thus, safety belts in cars and patient transfer devices in nursing homes are not universally used despite proofs of their effectiveness and (at times) rules governing their usage. This study was performed in several nursing homes and hospitals to determine whether similar reasons were given for Use or Non-Use of patient transfer equipment by nurses. We tested 30 nurses in the first phase to determine typical reasons for Use and Non-Use, followed by testing 47 nurses using rating scales for the reasons given in a second phase. We also measured actual use of patient transfer equipment, which was low at 40%, nurse demographics and reported back pain. The main finding was that different factors were reliably associated with Use versus Non-Use of the equipment. The strongest factor in Use was enforcement of requirements. Speed of operation was the weakest factor in the Non-Use decision. Such disso...
Flow analysis of a jet emanating from a flexible membrane nozzle using particle image velocimetry

The study of flow control using pulsatile jets has been a prominent area of research in the recent years due to its many applications. The current study aims to study the near-field characteristics of flow field associated with an incompressible circular jet generated by a self oscillating flexible membrane nozzle. The jet was self-excited and produced a pulsatile flow due to the motion of the flexible membrane. The dynamic characteristics of the jet are studied using time-averaged and phase-locked 2D PIV measurements in different planes relative to the flexible membrane nozzle in an attempt to study the complex three dimensional features of the jet. As illustrated in Reference 1, two different kinds of flow could be excited depending on the tension applied to the flexible nozzle that is pointed as nozzle parameter or strain % (change in length/original length) of the flexible nozzle and mass flow through it. The first was a flapping mode that is related to the alternate shedding of vortices and the second was a symmetric mode that is related to the generation of counter rotating vortex pairs. The first mode initiates a strong steering of the jet to either side and turbulence was much larger in the measured plane for the first mode compare to the second mode. The experiments were conducted by attaching strings at the flexible nozzle’s exit to impart tension to the nozzle. This allows a certain length of the flexible nozzle upstream of the string location to conform flexibly to the jet. In the current study, focus has been on the three dimensionality of the jet in the near field of a symmetric mode. The formation of counter rotating vertical structures is symmetrical in the middle plane compared to the other planes as the flow is extremely sensitive to the initial conditions at the exit of the nozzle.
Turning Mindless Eating into Healthy Eating

Package size, plate shape, lighting, socializing, and variety are only a few of the environmental factors that can influence the volume of food consumed far more than most people realize. While education and increasing awareness might appear to be the solution to environmentally-stimulated overeating, a meta analysis of these studies show that it is unlikely to work. Using lessons from the National Mindless Eating Challenge, this chapter underscores how the Laboratory of Life – the real world – suggests key principles that academics, industry, and government can use when partnering to make tangible health-related changes in the lives of individuals.
Respiratory pathogens mediate the association between lung function and temperature in cystic fibrosis

Abstract Introduction Mean annual ambient temperature is a replicated environmental modifier of cystic fibrosis (CF) lung disease with warmer temperatures being associated with lower lung function. The mechanism of this relationship is not completely understood. However, Pseudomonas aeruginosa , a pathogen that infects the lungs of CF individuals and decreases lung function, also has a higher prevalence in individuals living in warmer climates. We therefore investigated the extent to which respiratory pathogens mediated the association between temperature and lung function. Methods Thirteen respiratory pathogens observed on CF respiratory cultures were assessed in multistep fashion using clustered linear and logistic regression to determine if any mediated the association between temperature and lung function. Analysis was performed in the CF Twin-Sibling Study ( n =1730; primary population); key findings were then evaluated in the U.S. CF Foundation Data Registry ( n =15,174; replication population). Results In the primary population, three respiratory pathogens ( P. aeruginosa , mucoid P. aeruginosa , and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus ) mediated the association between temperature and lung function. P. aeruginosa accounted for 19% of the association ( p =0.003), mucoid P. aeruginosa for 31% ( p =0.001), and MRSA for 13% ( p =0.023). The same three pathogens mediated association in the replication population (7%, p p =0.002; and 4%, ( p =0.002), respectively). Conclusions Three important respiratory pathogens in CF mediate the association between lower lung function and warmer temperatures. These findings have implications for understanding regional variations in clinical outcomes, and interpreting results of epidemiologic studies and clinical trials that encompass regions with different ambient temperatures.
The politics of being a woman: feminism, media and 21st century popular culture

In their edited collection, The Politics of Being a Woman: Feminism, Media and 21st Century Popular Culture, Heather Savigny and Helen Warner argue that our current discussions of contemporary medi...
Abstract 5039: Co-targeting polo-like kinase 1(Plk1) and the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway in castration-resistant prostate cancer

The Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway has been identified as one of the predominantly upregulated pathways in castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). However, whether targeting the β-catenin pathway will prove effective as a CRPC treatment remains unknown. Polo-like kinase 1 (Plk1) is a critical regulator in many cell cycle events and is significantly elevated upon castration of mice carrying xenograft prostate tumors. Indeed, inhibition of Plk1 has been shown to inhibit tumor growth in several in vivo studies. Here, we show that Plk1 is a negative regulator of Wnt/β-catenin signaling. Plk1 inhibition or depletion enhances the level of cytosolic and nuclear β-catenin in human prostate cancer cells. Furthermore, inhibition of Wnt/β-catenin signaling significantly potentiates the anti-neoplastic activity of the Plk1 inhibitor BI2536 in both cultured prostate cancer cells and CRPC xenograft tumors. Mechanistically, Axin2, a negative regulator of the β-catenin pathway, serves as a substrate of Plk1 and Plk1 phosphorylation of Axin2 facilitates the degradation of β-catenin by enhancing the binding between GSK3β and β-catenin. Plk1 phosphorylated Axin2 also exhibits resistance to Cdc20-mediated degradation. Overall, this study identifies a novel Plk1-Wnt signaling axis in prostate cancer, offering a promising new therapeutic option to treat CRPC. Citation Format: Jie Li, Xiaoqi Liu. Co-targeting polo-like kinase 1(Plk1) and the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway in castration-resistant prostate cancer. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 107th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2016 Apr 16-20; New Orleans, LA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(14 Suppl):Abstract nr 5039.
Introduction to Superstrings

This chapter introduces the technical details of the quantization of the closed superstring, prerequisite for subsequent chapters. Beginning with the closed superstring action, discussion quickly progresses to conformal invariance and nonzero conformal anomaly. It is then shown that, upon gauge fixing and the associated introduction of ghost fields, we can eliminate the anomaly if spacetime is 10 dimensional. Once the conformal anomaly is dealt with, modular invariance and BRST quantization are addressed. We conclude with discussion of the GSO projection, the mechanism that projects out the tachyonic ground state in the NS sector of the theory.
Relationship Between Metabolic Syndrome and Cognitive Abilities in U.S. Adolescents.

Abstract Background: Metabolic syndrome is increasingly common in U.S. adolescents and has been linked to cognitive dysfunction. Purpose of this study is to explore associations between metabolic syndrome and cognitive impairment in U.S. adolescents using population-based data. Study Design: Participants included adolescents aged 12–16 years who participated in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) III. The main outcome measures included assessments of cognitive function using Wide Range Achievement Test-Revised (WRAT-R) and Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised (WISC-R) tools. The WRAT-R consisted of mathematics and reading tests. The WISC-R consisted of block design test, which measures spatial visualization and motor skills, and digit span test, which measures working memory and attention. Linear regression models were used to examine associations between metabolic syndrome and cognitive function. We used education levels of the family reference person, while controll...