cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Thermodynamic Characterization of the Binding of Activator of G Protein Signaling 3 (AGS3) and Peptides Derived from AGS3 with Gαi1

Activator of G protein signaling 3 (AGS3) is a guanine nucleotide dissociation inhibitor (GDI) that contains four G protein regulatory (GPR) or GoLoco motifs in its C-terminal domain. The entire C-terminal domain (AGS3-C) as well as certain peptides corresponding to individual GPR motifs of AGS3 bound to G alpha i1 and inhibited the binding of GTP by stabilizing the GDP-bound conformation of G alpha i1. The stoichiometry, free energy, enthalpy, and dissociation constant for binding of AGS3-C to G alpha i1 were determined using isothermal titration calorimetry. AGS3-C possesses two apparent high affinity (Kd approximately 20 nm) and two apparent low affinity (Kd approximately 300 nm) binding sites for G alpha i1. Upon deletion of the C-terminal GPR motif from AGS3-C, the remaining sites were approximately equivalent with respect to their affinity (Kd approximately 400 nm) for G alpha i1. Peptides corresponding to each of the four GPR motifs of AGS3 (referred to as GPR1, GPR2, GPR3, and GPR4, respectively, going from N to C terminus) bound to G alpha i1 with Kd values in the range of 1-8 microm. Although GPR1, GPR2, and GPR4 inhibited the binding of the fluorescent GTP analog BODIPY-FL-guanosine 5'-3-O-(thio)triphosphate to G alpha i1, GPR3 did not. However, addition of N- and C-terminal flanking residues to the GPR3 GoLoco core increased its affinity for G alpha i1 and conferred GDI activity similar to that of AGS3-C itself. Similar increases were observed for extended GPR2 and extended GPR1 peptides. Thus, while the tertiary structure of AGS3 may affect the affinity and activity of the GPR motifs contained within its sequence, residues outside of the GPR motifs strongly potentiate their binding and GDI activity toward G alpha i1 even though the amino acid sequences of these residues are not conserved among the GPR repeats.
Magnesium-Cationic Dummy Atom Molecules Enhance Representation of DNA Polymerase β in Molecular Dynamics Simulations: Improved Accuracy in Studies of Structural Features and Mutational Effects

Human DNA polymerase β (pol β) fills gaps in DNA as part of base excision DNA repair. Due to its small size it is a convenient model enzyme for other DNA polymerases. Its active site contains two Mg2+ ions, of which one binds an incoming dNTP and one catalyzes its condensation with the DNA primer strand. Simulating such binuclear metalloenzymes accurately but computationally efficiently is a challenging task. Here, we present a magnesium-cationic dummy atom approach that can easily be implemented in molecular mechanical force fields such as the ENZYMIX or the AMBER force fields. All properties investigated in this paper, that is, structure and energetics of both Michaelis complexes and transition state (TS) complexes were represented more accurately using the magnesium-cationic dummy atom model than using the traditional one-atom representation for Mg2+ ions. The improved agreement between calculated free energies of binding of TS models to different pol β variants and the experimentally determined activation free energies indicates that this model will be useful in studying mutational effects on catalytic efficiency and fidelity of DNA polymerases. The model should also have broad applicability to the modeling of other magnesium-containing proteins.
Characteristics of an intense neutron source based on the d+Be reaction

Abstract A neutron source designed for fusion-related radiation damage studies has been built based on the d + Be reaction. Using a 40 MeV, 20 μA deuteron beam from the Oak Ridge Isochronous Cyclotron neutron fluxes of (1–2) × 10 12 n/cm 2 ·s are obtained over an area ∼ 50 mm 2 . The design of the source is described, together with time-of-flight and activation foil measurements of the thick target neutron yields from the 9 Be(d, n) reaction for the angular range from 0° to 90°. A dosimetry procedure based on these measurements is presented. In addition time-of-flight measurements of the thick target neutron yields for the Li(d, n) reaction are reported and compared to the 9 Be(d, n) results.
Student Surrogates in Consumer Research

The issue of using students as subjects in consumer research is discussed. Data are collected at both behavioral and attitudinal levels from both student and general population samples, and the results are compared. Results are discussed in light of the practical advantages inherent in student samples.
Single DNA molecule stretching measures the activity of chemicals that target the HIV-1 nucleocapsid protein.

We develop a biophysical method for investigating chemical compounds that target the nucleic acid chaperone activity of HIV-1 nucleocapsid protein (NCp7). We used an optical tweezers instrument to stretch single λ-DNA molecules through the helix-to-coil transition in the presence of NCp7 and various chemical compounds. The change in the helix-coil transition width induced by wild-type NCp7 and its zinc finger variants correlates with in vitro nucleic acid chaperone activity measurements and in vivo assays. The compound-NC interaction measured here reduces NCp7’s capability to alter the transition width. Purified compounds from the NCI Diversity set, 119889, 119911, and 119913 reduce the chaperone activity of 5 nM NC in aqueous solution at 10 nM, 25 nM, and 100 nM concentration, respectively. Similarly, gallein reduced the activity of 4 nM NC at 100 nM concentration. Further analysis allows us to dissect the impact of each compound on both sequence-specific and non-sequence-specific DNA binding of NC, two of the main components of NC’s nucleic acid chaperone activity. These results suggest that DNA stretching experiments can be used to screen chemical compounds targeting NC proteins, and to further explore the mechanisms by which these compounds interact with NC and alter its nucleic acid chaperone activity.
The influence of fiscal information on preferences for city services

Abstract This article looks at the effects of fiscal information on citizen preferences for city services. We ask the question: Does support for taxes for government services change if citizens are presented with the tax amount? We explore this question using surveys of registered voters in Eugene, Oregon. Understanding how fiscal information sways support for taxes for services could influence how much and what type of information is provided to citizens. That is, less principled individuals could “rig the game” by withholding or providing fiscal information in order affect citizen responses. First, we review the literature about citizen attitudes toward taxes and services. Next, we discuss our methodology followed by our research findings. Finally, we discuss the implications of our findings.
Understanding the importance of gender and leader identity formation in executive coaching for senior women

Within the principles of constructivist grounded theory this study investigates the developmental factors involved in executive coaching for women in senior roles. The paper presents an analysis of the unique experiences of eleven senior women in their executive coaching engagements in Australia. The findings support recent discourse suggesting the need for a gender perspective in coaching senior women – an area currently underexplored in the research literature. The formation of a professional identity as a female leader was a core theme that emerged from the data. Analysis of semi-structured interviews led to the identification of several enabling factors that contributed to their leader identity formation and helped to mitigate the impact of male norms of leadership evident at senior levels. These included the coach as role model, managing motivation at senior levels and leading with authenticity. These enablers were salient in the analysis and reinforced the gender dynamics implicit in the participant...
Using Tenth and Ninetieth Percentiles and the Mode to Characterize Lognormal Distributions

Abstract The lognormal distribution is useful for approximating the distributions of such input variables as costs, sales, market share, etc. required in Monte Carlo simulations of business decisions. An easy way to represent such distributions is by the tenth and ninetieth percentiles and the mode. Such representation, however, does not permit direct calculation of the usual characterizing parameters (θ, γ, and δ). An empirically-determined rational function is given by which the median can be approximated from the mode, which then permits direct calculation of θ, γ, and δ.
Chiral capillary electrophoresis–mass spectrometry of tetrahydroisoquinoline-derived neurotoxins: Observation of complex stereoisomerism

Previous studies have shown that certain 1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinoline derivatives (TIQs) are neurotoxins inducing Parkinsonism. Further, individual enantiomers of these toxins such as (R/S)-N-methylsalsolinol ((R/S)-NMSal) possess distinct neurotoxicological properties. In this work, a chiral capillary electrophoresis (CE) method with electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometric (ESI-MS/MS) detection was developed for the quantification of TIQ enantiomers. Enantioseparation was achieved with sulfated β-cyclodextrin (sulfated β-CD) as chiral selector. To avoid any potential contamination of MS ionization source by the non-volatile chiral selector, partial filling technique was deployed in the CE separation. TIQ derivatives, including (R/S)-6,7-dihydroxy-1-methy-TIQ (salsolinol, Sal), (R/S)-1-benzyl-TIQ (BTIQ), and (R/S)-NMSal, were base-line resolved with resolution values (R) ranging from 3 (for Sal) to 4.5 (for BTIQ), which were much better than those reported previously by HPLC methods. ESI-MS/MS detection of the resolved TIQ enantiomers was specific and sensitive (LOD=1.2 μM for Sal enantiomers). The proposed chiral CE-MS/MS method was used to study in vitro formation of (R/S)-NMSal. It was found that NMSal was formed from the incubation of epinine (a dopamine metabolite) with acetaldehyde (a metabolite of alcohol). More interestingly, four isomers of NMSal were separated and detected in the incubation solution. They were identified as (R)-e.e-NMSal, (R)-e.a-NMSal, (S)-e.e-NMSal, and (S)-e.a-NMSal. This was the first lab evidence that this Parkinsonian neurotoxin exists in multiple isomeric forms.
Light without substrate amendment: the bacterial luciferase gene cassette as a mammalian bioreporter

Bioluminescent production represents a facile method for bioreporter detection in mammalian tissues. The lack of endogenous bioluminescent reactions in these tissues allows for high signal to noise ratios even at low signal strength compared to fluorescent signal detection. While the luciferase enzymes commonly employed for bioluminescent detection are those from class Insecta (firefly and click beetle luciferases), these are handicapped in that they require concurrent administration of a luciferin compound to elicit a bioluminescent signal. The bacterial luciferase (lux) gene cassette offers the advantages common to other bioluminescent proteins, but is simultaneously capable of synthesizing its own luciferin substrates using endogenously available cellular compounds. The longstanding shortcoming of the lux cassette has been its recalcitrance to function in the mammalian cellular environment. This paper will present an overview of the work completed to date to overcome this limitation and provide examples of mammalian lux-based bioreporter technologies that could provide the framework for advanced, biomedically relevant real-time sensor development.
Position‐invariant two‐dimensional image correlation using a one‐dimensional space integrating optical processor: application to security verification

We describe a 1-D space integrating optical processor that can perform position-invariant 2-D image correlation by 1-D scanning the input image over a 2-D reference image along a coordinate axis, which we shall refer to as the x axis in a Cartesian coordination system. The 2-D reference function is a position-invariant filter that is designed using distortion-invariant pattern recognition techniques to provide tolerance to misalignments along the y axis between the input image and the reference function during the 1-D spatial correlation. Applications of this system to phase-encoded image recognition and fingerprint recognition are described.
A critique of Bernstein’s beyond objectivism and relativism: science, hermeneutics, and praxis

This analysis comments on Bernstein’s lack of clear understanding of subjectivity, based on his book, Beyond Objectivism and Relativism: Science, Hermeneutics, and Praxis. Bernstein limits his interpretation of subjectivity to thinkers such as Gadamer and Habermas. The authors analyze the ideas of classic scholars such as Edmund Husserl and Friedrich Nietzsche. Husserl put forward his notion of transcendental subjectivity and phenomenological ramifications of the relationship between subjectivity and objectivity. Nietzsche referred to subjectivity as “perspectivism,” the inescapable fact that any and all consciousnesses exist in space and time. Consciousness is fundamentally constituted of cultural, linguistic, and historical dimensions.
GATA2 is epigenetically repressed in human and mouse lung tumors and is not requisite for survival of KRAS mutant lung cancer.

Introduction: GATA2 was recently described as a critical survival factor and therapeutic target for KRAS mutant non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, whether this role is affected by epigenetic repression of GATA2 in lung cancer is unclear. Methods: GATA2 expression and promoter CpG island methylation were evaluated using human and mouse NSCLC cell lines and tumor-normal pairs. In vitro assays were used to study GATA2 repression on cell survival and during tobacco carcinogen-induced transformation. Results: GATA2 expression in KRAS wild-type ( n = 15) and mutant ( n = 10) NSCLC cell lines and primary lung tumors ( n = 24) was significantly lower, 1.3- to 33.6-fold ( p = 2.2 × 10 9 ), compared with corresponding normal lung. GATA2 promoter was unmethylated in normal lung (0 of 10) but frequently methylated in lung tumors (96%, 159 of 165) and NSCLC cell lines (97%, 30 of 31). This highly prevalent aberrant methylation was independently validated using The Cancer Genome Atlas data for 369 NSCLC tumor-normal pairs. In vitro studies using an established carcinogen-induced premalignancy model revealed that GATA2 expression was initially repressed by chromatin remodeling followed by cytosine methylation during transformation. Similarly, expression of GATA2 in NNK-induced mouse lung tumors ( n = 6) and cell lines ( n = 5) was fivefold and 100-fold lower, respectively, than normal mouse lung. Finally, siRNA-mediated knockdown of GATA2 in KRAS mutant (human [ n = 4] and murine [ n = 5]) and wild-type (human [ n = 4]) NSCLC cell lines showed that further reduction of expression (up to 95%) does not induce cell death. Conclusion: GATA2 is epigenetically repressed in human and mouse lung tumors and its further inhibition is not a valid therapeutic strategy for KRAS mutant lung cancer.
Fathers' Contributions to Housework and Childcare and Parental Aggravation Among First-Time Parents.

This study investigated the associations between fathers’ contributions to housework and childcare and both spouses’ parenting aggravation. It was hypothesized that greater father contributions to domestic labor would be associated with more paternal aggravation but less maternal aggravation. Data are from a four-wave study of 178 married couples undergoing the transition to first parenthood. Dyadic growth-curve models revealed gender differences in aggravation trajectories over the first year of the child’s life. Fathers were higher in initial aggravation, but mothers’ aggravation grew at a faster rate over time. The primary hypothesis was only partially supported. Fathers’ contributions to childcare were associated with significantly lower maternal aggravation levels, but only among more religious mothers. Child fussiness and unpredictability were consistently significant predictors of higher aggravation for both parents. Depressive symptomatology was positively related to aggravation for fathers, whereas love for the spouse was associated with lower aggravation for mothers, controlling for other factors.
THE EFFECT OF GENDER ON THE DECISION TO INCARCERATE BEFORE AND AFTER THE INTRODUCTION OF SENTENCING GUIDELINES

The present study explores the relationships between gender and imprisonment decisions in Minnesota before and after the introduction of sentencing guidelines. Results from a series of logistic regression models indicate that gender alone did not have a significant impact on the likelihood of imprisonment, but women with dependent children were significantly less likely to be imprisoned before sentencing guidelines and in the years subsequent to their implementation. The findings suggest that despite the introduction of sentencing reforms, court officials tend to return to issues of substantive justice, and they appear unable to shed their individual or organizational ideas of fairness in sentencing.
Midsummer Energy Balance for the Southern Seas

During a ship voyage from Tasmania to Antarctica in summer 2000/01, radiative and meteorological measurements were continuously made, from which the surface energy budget was calculated. Sea conditions throughout the voyage ranged from open water to broken pack and finally to snow-covered unbroken sea ice in McMurdo Sound. The global radiation increased on average during the trip (to higher latitudes) as we travelled poleward. The net radiation, which was positive (toward the surface) on average, decreased however, mostly due to the increase in surface albedo. For open water, most of the net radiation is used for evapouration (61%), while for broken sea-ice conditions, nearly all energy is used for melting of the sea ice or heating of the ocean (96%). For unbroken snow-covered sea ice, the net radiation lies close to zero, due to the high surface albedo, which reached a mean value of 0.81. The sensible heat flux becomes the largest heat source and nearly all the energy is used for warming of the surface. Finally, a Radarsat image, on which the ship track was visible, was used to compare the ship observations with satellite derived ice types.
Error Budget Analysis for an Adaptive Optics Optical Coherence Tomography System

The combination of adaptive optics (AO) technology with optical coherence tomography (OCT) instrumentation for imaging the retina has proven to be a valuable tool for clinicians and researchers in understanding the healthy and diseased eye. The micrometer-isotropic resolution achieved by such a system allows imaging of the retina at a cellular level, however imaging of some cell types remains elusive. Improvement in contrast rather than resolution is needed and can be achieved through better AO correction of wavefront aberration. A common tool for assessing and ultimately improving AO system performance is the development of an error budget. Specifically, this is a list of the magnitude of the constituent residual errors of an optical system so that resources can be directed towards efficient performance improvement. Here we present an error budget developed for the UC Davis AO-OCT instrument indicating that bandwidth and controller errors are the limiting errors of our AO system, which should be corrected first to improve performance. We also discuss the scaling of error sources for different subjects and the need to improve the robustness of the system by addressing subject variability.
It Varies From State to State: An Examination of Sex Crime Laws Nationally

Sex crime laws seemingly have proliferated recently as part of a national "get tough" shift in criminal justice policy. However, to date, there exists no systematic account of these state-level legislative changes. Accordingly, the "tough on sex crime" characterization of states may be understated or incorrect. It may also gloss over variability in the types of laws enacted and the implications such variability has for the generalizability of assessments of these laws. Drawing on an analysis of state laws, we identify considerable variation in the type, intensity, and design of sex crime laws among states. Results suggest that not all states have uniformly embraced these reforms, that considerable caution is warranted when generalizing from evaluations of particular laws, and that the continuing expansion of sex crime policy making will make it increasingly difficult, especially in the absence of a commensurate body of empirical research, to identify the effects of specific policies. Language: en
Effect of Sleep Deprivation on Response Threshold for Signal Detectability Parameter, β

In the typical experiment on signal detectability (Green & Swets, 1966), a subject is asked to decide on each of many trials whether or not a near-threshold stimulus, e.g., a tone, a light, etc., was presented within a prescribed interval. It is assumed that the subject's environment always produces some background stimulation, or noise, the effect of which is variable and Gaussian. Further, it is assumed that the effect of a signal added to the noise is also variable and Gaussian. Thus, in the experiment a subject decides on each trial whether he receivcd only noise or signal-plus-noise. Because "signal" can be variously operationalized, these ideas have been applied to a number of areas besides sensory psychophysics, including learning, memory, artention, and clinical psychology (Pastore & Scheirer, 1974). The experiment in signal detection yields two statistics, d', a measure of sensitivity which is equal to the distance between the means of the signal-plus-noise and noise distributions in standard normal deviates, and p, a measure of response threshold or caution which is equal to the ratio of the ordinates of the cwo distributions at the criterion, i.e., "Yes-No" threshold. These statistics are empirically derived from the observed proportion of hits (the subject says "Yes" on signal-plus-noise trials), misses (the subject says "No" on these trials), correct rejections (the subject says "No" on noise trials), and false alarms (the subject says "Yes" on noise trials). At least three studies have yielded a significant decrease in d' following sleep de
HIV gp120 Induces, NF-κB Dependent, HIV Replication that Requires Procaspase 8

BACKGROUND HIV envelope glycoprotein gp120 causes cellular activation resulting in anergy, apoptosis, proinflammatory cytokine production, and through an unknown mechanism, enhanced HIV replication. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS We describe that the signals which promote apoptosis are also responsible for the enhanced HIV replication. Specifically, we demonstrate that the caspase 8 cleavage fragment Caspase8p43, activates p50/p65 Nuclear Factor kappaB (NF-kappaB), in a manner which is inhibited by dominant negative IkappaBalpha. This caspase 8 dependent NF-kappaB activation occurs following stimulation with gp120, TNF, or CD3/CD28 crosslinking, but these treatments do not activate NF-kappaB in cells deficient in caspase 8. The Casp8p43 cleavage fragment also transactivates the HIV LTR through NF-kappaB, and the absence of caspase 8 following HIV infection greatly inhibits HIV replication. CONCLUSION/SIGNIFICANCE Gp120 induced caspase 8 dependent NF-kappaB activation is a novel pathway of HIV replication which increases understanding of the biology of T-cell death, as well as having implications for understanding treatment and prevention of HIV infection.
Genetic Inactivation of the α-Galactosidase Locus in Carriers of Fabry's Disease

Skin fibroblasts from a patient with Fabry's disease showed deficient activity of alpha-galactosidase. Fibroblasts from his mother and sister had two distinct clonal populations, one with enzymatic activity and the other enzyme deficient. This provides evidence of genetic inactivation at the alpha-galactosidase locus and makes possible the detection of carriers of Fabry's disease even when the enzymatic activity in their leukocytes and uncloned fibroblasts is within the range of controls.
Brainstem Circuitry Regulating Phasic Activation of Trigeminal Motoneurons during REM Sleep

Background Rapid eye movement sleep (REMS) is characterized by activation of the cortical and hippocampal electroencephalogram (EEG) and atonia of non-respiratory muscles with superimposed phasic activity or twitching, particularly of cranial muscles such as those of the eye, tongue, face and jaw. While phasic activity is a characteristic feature of REMS, the neural substrates driving this activity remain unresolved. Here we investigated the neural circuits underlying masseter (jaw) phasic activity during REMS. The trigeminal motor nucleus (Mo5), which controls masseter motor function, receives glutamatergic inputs mainly from the parvocellular reticular formation (PCRt), but also from the adjacent paramedian reticular area (PMnR). On the other hand, the Mo5 and PCRt do not receive direct input from the sublaterodorsal (SLD) nucleus, a brainstem region critical for REMS atonia of postural muscles. We hypothesized that the PCRt-PMnR, but not the SLD, regulates masseter phasic activity during REMS.
Vaccines and pregnancy: Past, present, and future

Vaccination during pregnancy with certain vaccines can prevent morbidity and mortality in pregnant women and their infants. However, previous recommendations often focused on the potential risks of vaccines to the fetus when used during pregnancy. In recent years, additional data have become available on the absence of increased risks for adverse events associated with vaccines when administered during pregnancy and on their benefits to mothers and infants. Currently two vaccines - (i) inactivated influenza, and (ii) tetanus toxoid, reduced diphtheria toxoid and acellular pertussis (Tdap) - are recommended for use by all pregnant women by the United States Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. Here we review the history of vaccination during pregnancy, the current status of recommendations for vaccination during pregnancy in the USA, and the potential for future advances in this area, including key barriers that must be overcome to accommodate these advances.
High-field fast-risetime pulse failures in 4H- and 6H-SiC pn junction diodes

We report the observation of anomalous reverse breakdown behavior in moderately doped (2–3×1017 cm−3) small‐area micropipe‐free 4H‐ and 6H‐SiC pn junction diodes. When measured with a curve tracer, the diodes consistently exhibited very low reverse leakage currents and sharp repeatable breakdown knees in the range of 140–150 V. However, when subjected to single‐shot reverse bias pulses (200 ns pulsewidth, 1 ns risetime), the diodes failed catastrophically at pulse voltages of less than 100 V. We propose a possible mechanism for this anomalous reduction in pulsed breakdown voltage relative to dc breakdown voltage. This instability must be removed so that SiC high‐field devices can operate with the same high reliability as silicon power devices.
Advances in accelerator based analysis techniques

Various ion beam techniques (E≥1 MeV/amu) are compared from the standpoint of their analytical capabilities: Charged Particle Activation Analysis (CPAA), Particle Induced X-Ray Emission (PIXE), Ion Induced γ-Ray Emission for bulk analysis, Prompt Reaction Analysis (PRA), Rutherford Backscattering Spectrometry for surface layer characterization and ion absorptiometry for microscopic analysis. With CPAA and PIXE≥70 elements can be detected with sub-ppm sensitivity. The scope of CPAA is being extended with heavy ion beams for radioactivation of H, He, Li, Be, B, C isotopes. In surface layer characterization recent developments in PRA and RBS also involve heavy ion beams. In RBS they can significantly enhance mass resolution for M>50 in comparison with α scattering. For example,63Cu and65Cu can be quantitatively identified in surface films using a 1 MeV/amu40Ar beam. In microscopic analysis, the nuclear microprobe can provide atom-specific signals from quantities ≥10−12 g on spots of a diameter ≥2 μm. Ion absorptiometry techniques can sense density variations as low as ±0.5% in 1 μm3 or less of sample volume.
A unifying lifting collocation penalty formulation including the discontinuous Galerkin, spectral volume/difference methods for conservation laws on mixed grids

Recently a new high-order formulation for 1D conservation laws was developed by Huynh using the idea of ''flux reconstruction''. The formulation was capable of unifying several popular methods including the discontinuous Galerkin, staggered-grid multi-domain method, or the spectral difference/spectral volume methods into a single family. The extension of the method to quadrilateral and hexahedral elements is straightforward. In an attempt to extend the method to other element types such as triangular, tetrahedral or prismatic elements, the idea of ''flux reconstruction'' is generalized into a ''lifting collocation penalty'' approach. With a judicious selection of solution points and flux points, the approach can be made simple and efficient to implement for mixed grids. In addition, the formulation includes the discontinuous Galerkin, spectral volume and spectral difference methods as special cases. Several test problems are presented to demonstrate the capability of the method.
Communication Competence and Feeling Caught: Explaining Perceived Ambiguity in Divorce-Related Communication

Attribution Theory's contention that perceptions of another person's behaviors explain relational closeness and psychological well-being was tested. Specifically, young adult children's perceptions of parents’ communication competence and the extent to which young adults felt caught between parents were tested as possible contextual moderators affecting the relationship between perceived parental ambiguity regarding divorce-related stressors and post-conversation relational quality and psychological well-being. Following a pre-conversation questionnaire, young adults and their parents discussed a divorce-related stressor, and then young adults reported their perceptions of parents’ ambiguity during the conversation, relational closeness, and psychological well-being. Perceptions of parents’ communication competence moderated the effects of perceived ambiguity on relational closeness. Feeling caught moderated the effects of perceived ambiguity on psychological well-being.
Culture, Self and Identity: Interactivist Contributions to a Metatheory for Cultural Psychology

A complete and thorough grasp of culture eludes psychology because of the pervasive dualism that pervades psychology and Western thought more broadly. Drawing on interactivism, a process model for human phenomena, we make two main points: first, culture cannot be reified, seen as distinct from the self, nor can it be treated as something objective or subjective; and, second, agency and culture are intertwined and distributed across levels of knowing. We explore how interactivism provides powerful resources for modeling the relationship between culture and the person and indicate how interactivism is generally compatible with social practice, hermeneutic, dialogical and narrative insights but situates them within a developmental ontology. We consider implications of interactivism for existing theories like internalization, self-construal theory and individualism—collectivism.
When parameters collide: a warning about categorization models.

Similarity-choice (S—C) models of categorization contain two principal mathematical transformations: an exponential-decay similarity function and a choice rule. However, there is a tension between the psychological processes that models emulate and the mathematics they use to do so. To illustrate this, I show that in these models an unappreciated interaction occurs between the mathematical transformations so that the stages of the model essentially cancel each other out. The result is that the model’s output reflects its input linearly. This cancellation phenomenon has potentially serious implications regarding the interpretation and use of S—C models. The phenomenon also raises questions about the simplification and psychological grounding of categorization models. Modelers broadly might benefit from an internal analysis of their models, such as that described here.
Evidence for ultra-short-loop feedback in ACTH-induced interrenal steroidogenesis in coho salmon: acute self-suppression of cortisol secretion in vitro.

Abstract Interrenal tissues from coho salmon ( Oncorhynchus kisutch ) were incubated in a defined medium under blood-gas atmosphere at 17°. Rates of cortisol secretion by tissues incubated in media containing 50 mU/ml porcine-ACTH were initially much greater than those of resting tissues in hormone-free media, but after 3 to 6 hr returned to resting rates. The time course of cortisol accumulation in ACTH-containing media was the same when tissues were incubated in different volumes; the final concentrations of cortisol in these incubations were similar to each other and resembled peak in vivo concentrations in juvenile coho subjected to acute stress. Cortisol secretion rates of tissues sequentially transferred to fresh ACTH-containing media every 6 hr did not return to resting levels but remained elevated for at least 24 hr. Cortisol secretion in response to ACTH was attenuated or completely abolished in tissues incubated in media containing exogenous cortisol; this effect was reversible and dose-dependent. Our results suggest that in coho salmon, cortisol may exert ultra-short-loop negative feedback directly at the level of the interrenal gland to effect self-suppression.
Characterization of the adsorption-fouling layer using globular proteins on ultrafiltration membranes

Abstract The mechanisms of membrane fouling and the effects of properties and structure of the adsorbed-protein layer on membrane fouling were studied using bovine serum albumin (BSA) and β-lactoglobulin (β-LG) as test proteins, and poly(vinylpyrrolidone)-coated polycarbonate (PC) and regenerated cellulose (RC) as membranes. Ultrafiltration (UF) experiments were modeled with a 3-parameter resistance model to separately determine resistances due to osmotic pressure and adsorption. An analytical method was also developed to determine protein loadings under UF and static conditions. The dynamic behavior of osmotic pressure or interfacial concentration is discussed on the basis of the material balance around the interface. Derjaguin-Landau and Verwey-Overbeek (DLVO) theory and the concept of a rate-limiting step are applied to phenomena that occur at the interface during protein adsorption. A steric hindrance repulsion due to PVP tails on the PC membrane has a pronounced effect on protein loading. The hydrophilic matrix of RC may act as a water reservoir that maintains continuous hydration of the adsorbed layer, which can be dehydrated during protein adsorption. We believe that hydration results in a lower fouling resistance. Additionally, the size of the pores relative to the protein molecule has a pronounced effect on the properties and structure of the adsorbed layer and its fouling resistance.
A counterexample for two conjectures about stability

One measure of the stability of a matrix A is the distance to the nearest unstable matrix B . Recently Van Loan presented an algorithm to compute B which depended on a conjecture about the location of its eigenvalues. We provide a counterexample to this conjecture which shows that the algorithm may overestimate the distance to B by an arbitrary amount. The same counterexample invalidates another conjecture and algorithm of the author.
Changes in students' dietary behavior during a college nutrition course

College students are an appropriate target audience for nutrition education because their dietary practices often are poor and their lives are in transition. Change often occurs at such transition points; thus, the potential for positive, planned change is opportune. College students frequently have been included in nutrition education research studies because researchers have easy access to them through classes and through college food service operations. However, most studies report only descriptive data and are based on the assumption that better understanding of a population will increase the effectiveness of subsequent nutrition education programs. Thus, although much is known about the nutrition knowledge, attitudes, and dietary behavior of college students, the effectiveness of college nutrition courses beyond the cognitive domain has not been documented in the literature. This study was designed to determine if changes in dietary behavior occurred during enrollment in an introductory nutrition course for non-majors and if reported changes matched the primary emphases in the course
Cutaneous T-cell lymphoma associated with ileostomy: Management of uncommon stomal complication

Abstract Purpose Cutaneous T-cell lymphoma involvement of an ileostomy is a rare stomal complication. Methods We present the case of a 54-year-old man who presented with peristomal skin breakdown associated with fevers and chills. Results The stoma was taken down, and the surrounding skin debrided. A new ileostomy was created in left abdominal wall. Pathology specimens of the debrided skin, subcutaneous tissue, and stoma returned positive for cutaneous T-cell lymphoma. Conclusions The medical treatment of the underlying T-cell lymphoma can give a good diagnosis when it is diagnosed early, but late-stage identification is less encouraging. The surgical treatment involves debridement and careful planning for ileostomy formation.
Introduction to the special issue on runtime verification

Runtime verification is a research area that is concerned with monitoring and dynamic analysis of evolving executions with respect to precisely specified properties. The primary motivation for this field of study, at its inception over a decade ago, was to overcome the scalability limitations of exhaustive design-time formal verification. Traditionally, model checking techniques suffer from state explosion that limits the size of systems that can be verified. Moreover, model checkers operate on models and thus introduce additional proof obligations on the correctness of abstraction or model creation. On the other hand, verification based on theorem proving usually involves a significant amount of manual effort that, effectively, limits the size of the system that can be verified. By concentrating on the current execution of the actual system, runtime verification techniques allow us to have automatic analysis that is less dependent on the size of the system and, at the same time, does not require as much abstraction. Early efforts in the runtime verification community focused on characterizing properties suitable for checking at run time [2], on the generation of efficient monitors for properties specified in a variety of formal languages [7, 8] and on improving efficiency of monitoring by static analysis [3]. These efforts led to the development of mature tools, such as the MOP framework [9], within less than one decade of runtime verification research. A somewhat separate line of research was concerned with “specification-less” monitoring, which targets runtime checking algorithms for a set of common and well-defined problems. Typically, these algorithms are related to concurrency within the system, such as freedom from race conditions [5], atomicity [11], serializability [4], etc. The runtime verification domain has seen an increased interest over the recent years, generating enough traction for the community to form its own international conference. This
High DC power 325 nm emission deep UV LEDs over sapphire

Flip-chip 325 nm emission LEDs over sapphire with powers of 0.84 and 6.68 mW at 180 mA DC and 1 A pulsed pump currents are reported. A thermal management study shows the DC output power to be limited by the package heat dissipation.
Vasculitis of the breasts.

A unique case of a 66-year-old white woman with multiple tender lumps in both breasts due to vasculitis has been presented. The features differentiating this case from giant cell arteritis and superficial thrombophlebitis of the chest wall (Mondor's Disease) are reviewed.
Nitrogen Addition Could Shift Plant Community Composition in a Restored California Salt Marsh

At a salt marsh restoration site, fertilizer trials to improve height growth of Spartina foliosa (a C 4 perennial grass that can reach 140 cm) appeared to favor Salicornia bigelovii (an annual C 3 succulent under 40 cm tall) where the two species co-occurred on the marsh plain. This observation prompted a field experiment to examine the potential for nitrogen (N) addition to shift community composition. Without N addition, total stem length and stem density of S. foliosa did not respond to the presence or absence of S. bigelovii. But where N was added, S. foliosa growth increased only where S. bigelovii was removed from plots. S. bigelovii responded strongly to fertilizer, with mean heights matching those of S. foliosa and 600% increases in biomass, branching, and seed production (to more than 1 million seeds/m 2 ). Soil N also increased seasonally where S. bigelovii was present, suggesting that this species may aid accumulation of N at restoration sites with poor soils. S. foliosa growth is greatest at lower elevations along tidal creeks where it occurs alone. Beyond creek edges, where S. bigelovii and other potential competitors occur, S. foliosa is unlikely to grow tall even with N addition. Thus, there is little point in trying to force mixed-species stands to provide tall S. foliosa for nesting by an endangered bird, Rallus longirostris levipes (the Light-footed Clapper Rail). A marsh construction design that maximizes tidal creek edges is thus recommended when restoration goals include providing habitat for clapper rails.
LH: Linear Hashing for distributed files

LH* generalizes Linear Hashing to parallel or distributed RAM and disk files. An LH* file can be created from objects provided by any number of distributed and autonomous clients. It can grow gracefully, one bucket at a time, to virtually any number of servers. The number of messages per insertion is one in general, and three in the worst case. The number of messages per retrieval is two in general, and four in the worst case. The load factor can be about constant, 65-95%, depending on the file parameters. The file can also support parallel operations. An LH* file can be much faster than a single site disk file, and/or can hold a much larger number of objects. It can be more efficient than any file with a centralized directory, or a static parallel or distributed hash file.
Optimal quantization for finite state channels

Optimal scalar quantizer design for transmission over a finite-state channel is considered. The objective Is to minimize the mean-squared error when the channel is in the normal mode of operation, while guaranteeing a minimum fidelity when the channel is in the "bad" state. An optimal quantizer design algorithm for the general case where noisy state information is available both at the receiver and at the transmitter is derived. It is shown that using mixed strategies is necessary in order to achieve the optimal performance. Finally, the case where the observation is noisy is considered and it is shown that the optimal scheme in this case is to apply the algorithm for the "no observation noise" to the mean-squared estimate of the desired random variable from the noisy data.
Inherited NUDT15 Variant Is a Genetic Determinant of Mercaptopurine Intolerance in Children With Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia

Purpose Mercaptopurine (MP) is the mainstay of curative therapy for acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). We performed a genome-wide association study (GWAS) to identify comprehensively the genetic basis of MP intolerance in children with ALL. Patients and Methods The discovery GWAS and replication cohorts included 657 and 371 children from two prospective clinical trials. MP dose intensity was a marker for drug tolerance and toxicities and was defined as prescribed dose divided by the planned protocol dose during maintenance therapy; its association with genotype was evaluated using a linear mixed-effects model. Results MP dose intensity varied by race and ethnicity and was negatively correlated with East Asian genetic ancestry (P < .001). The GWAS revealed two genome-wide significant loci associated with dose intensity: rs1142345 in TPMT (Tyr240Cys, present in *3A and *3C variants; P = 8.6 × 10−9) and rs116855232 in NUDT15 (P = 8.8 × 10−9), with independent replication. Patients with TT genotype at rs1168...
Sensor Selection in High-Dimensional Gaussian Trees with Nuisances

We consider the sensor selection problem on multivariate Gaussian distributions where only a subset of latent variables is of inferential interest. For pairs of vertices connected by a unique path in the graph, we show that there exist decompositions of nonlocal mutual information into local information measures that can be computed efficiently from the output of message passing algorithms. We integrate these decompositions into a computationally efficient greedy selector where the computational expense of quantification can be distributed across nodes in the network. Experimental results demonstrate the comparative efficiency of our algorithms for sensor selection in high-dimensional distributions. We additionally derive an online-computable performance bound based on augmentations of the relevant latent variable set that, when such a valid augmentation exists, is applicable for any distribution with nuisances.
Energy-optimized high performance FFT processor

This paper proposes an ultra low energy FFT processor suitable for sensor applications. The processor is based on R4MDC but achieves full utilization of computational elements. It has two parallel datapaths that increase throughput by a factor of 2 and also enable high memory utilization. The proposed design is implemented in 65nm CMOS technology and post-layout simulation including parasitic capacitances shows it achieves 9.25x higher energy efficiency than state-of-the-art FFT processors and high throughput relative to past subthreshold circuit implementations.
On approximate phasor models in dissipative bilinear systems

Dynamic phasors models capture transients in (main) harmonic coefficients of periodically dominated systems, and their utility in state approximations is supported by machine and power systems case studies. The author explores analytical plausibility arguments, and inherent restrictions of such approximations in dissipative systems with quadratically nonlinear lossless components.
Response to the Letter Regarding Article “Chronic Glucagon-like Peptide-1 Infusion Sustains Left Ventricular Systolic Function and Prolongs Survival in the Spontaneously Hypertensive, Heart-Failure Prone Rat”

We appreciate the questions raised and the interpretations offered by our colleagues and respond as follows. First, we provided data on the ratio of sarcolemmal to total glucose transporter (GLUT)-4 as an accepted and standard method for establishing insulin mediated GLUT-4 translocation. There was no difference in the total GLUT-4 protein expression between control and glucagon-like peptide (GLP)-1–treated groups. Therefore, the ratio reflects insulin-mediated translocation. This is consistent with the increase in Akt-phosphorylation at both the catalytic and regulatory subunits. The ratio of …
A study of the fibrous components of the vitreous body of the electron microscope.

Summary1. Electron micrographs have been obtained of a fibrous fraction separated from fragmented fresh vitreous humor of cattle eyes by centrifugation, which reveal the presence of three morphologically distinct fibril types. 2. The least numerous species is represented by a fibril 500-800 A in width having an axial periodicity of about 640 A and intraperiod structure characteristic of collagen. 3. A second fibrous component measuring 150-200 A in width is characterized by a repeating axial period averaging about 610 A. 4. A third and most abundant element is a fibril averaging 250 A in width exhibiting only a suggestion of a very fine axial repeating period.