cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Illicit Drug Traffic: Implications for South American Source Countries*

Students of the drug abuse problem may begin their analyses either at home or abroad. One observer might view the importing nation as the source of the problem, arguing that without its demand/ profit structure there would be no need for another country to grow, or to ship, illicit drugs. A second analyst might, with equal logic, contend that demand is a given, hence the producing country has the obligation, as a member of the family of nations and as signatory to international narcotics conventions, to eliminate domestic trafficking in, and production of, illegal narcotics. Regardless of whether one approaches the problem from the standpoint of either the chicken or the egg, the unassailable fact is that the illicit narcotraffic carries multiple impacts for the source countries.- social, economic and political.
Temperature effects on the blood oxygen affinity in sharks.

In fish, regional endothermy (i.e., the capacity to significantly elevate tissue temperatures above ambient via vascular heat exchangers) in the red swimming muscles (RM) has evolved only in a few marine groups (e.g., sharks: Lamnidae, Alopiidae, and teleosts Scombridae). Within these taxa, several species have also been shown to share similar physiological adaptations to enhance oxygen delivery to the working tissues. Although the hemoglobin (Hb) of most fish has a decreased affinity for oxygen with an increase in temperature, some regionally endothermic teleosts (e.g., tunas) have evolved Hbs that have a very low or even an increased affinity for oxygen with an increase in temperature. For sharks, however, blood oxygen affinities remain largely unknown. We examined the effects of temperature on the blood oxygen affinity in two pelagic species (the regionally endothermic shortfin mako shark and the ectothermic blue shark) at 15, 20, and 25 °C, and two coastal ectothermic species (the leopard shark and brown smooth-hound shark) at 10, 15, and 20 °C. Relative to the effects of temperature on the blood oxygen affinity of ectothermic sharks (e.g., blue shark), shortfin mako shark blood was less affected by an increase in temperature, a scenario similar to that documented in some of the tunas. In the shortfin mako shark, this may act to prevent premature oxygen dissociation from Hb as the blood is warmed during its passage through vascular heat exchangers. Even though the shortfin mako shark and blue shark occupy a similar niche, the effects of temperature on blood oxygen affinity in the latter more closely resembled that of the blood in the two coastal shark species examined in this study. The only exception was a small, reverse temperature effect (an increase in blood oxygen affinity with temperature) observed during the warming of the leopard shark blood under simulated arterial conditions, a finding that is likely related to the estuarine ecology of this species. Taken together, we found species-specific differences in how temperature affects blood oxygen affinity in sharks, with some similarities between the regionally endothermic sharks and several regionally endothermic teleost fishes.
Opening the Eyes of Students: The First Step Toward Service-Learning

Educators face ongoing challenges of how to motivate students and inspire them to make a difference in their communities. Trying to tackle this challenge all at once is just not practical. Service-...
Triple Helix Innovation Model: Linking the Academia, the Business Sector and the Government, Case Study of Macedonia

Innovation has become a key factor to sustainable growth and knowledge economy creation, having impact on the national competitiveness in the regional and global economy.Innovation systems in small, landlocked developing countries are, inherently problematic, characterized by poor business and governance conditions, low educational levels and meritocratic infrastructure. This raises particular challenges for introducing structured innovative models in small developing countries such as Macedonia. The aim of this paper is to touch upon certain anomalies of the Macedonian innovation system and, at the same time, to entice the much needed debate on the triple helix innovation system formation in Macedonia.
Macroeconometric model of the Thai economy

Thailand is an agricultural country in Southeast Asia. She always faces the same problems as other developing countries, such as high growth rate of population, low income per capita, unequal income distribution, and low productivity of labor. Thus, government attempts to solve these problems through the national development planning. The first national development planning was adopted in 1960. It did not achieve as expected due to lack of good statistical data and trained manpower. The Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives was assigned to make a plan for agriculture. In 1973, there was a joint project between the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives (through its division of agricultural economics), Iowa State University, and United States Overseas Mission/Thailand. The objective of this project was to apply agricultural economic research in supporting development of Thailand's Fourth Five-Year Development Plan for the period 1977-1981. National linear programming and other analyses were constructed except a macroeconometric model. Until 1974, it was felt that the macroeconometric should be included in order to obtain a complete picture of Thai economy. Therefore, the Thai macroeconometric model was constructed. When the model was built, there were some difficulties in terms of econometrics and computer programming. Thus, the equations in the model were estimated by Ordinary Least Squares. Two Stage Least Squares could not be applied directly. These problems led to further study in this dissertation. The objective of this research is to construct a model which can describe the Thai economy in a more extensive and disaggregate manner.;The estimated model in this study consists of 91 equations which contain 68 behavioral equations and 23 identities. The model contains 89 endogenous variables and 107 predetermined variables. The estimation of the model was done by the method of two stage principal component (2SPC). Short time series data from 1963 to 1978 were used in the estimation of coefficients in all sectors except in the compensation of employee equation where the data used range from 1967 to 1978. The model simulation uses the Gauss-Seidel algorithm procedure.;In the model, there remain weaknesses, especially in the investment sector, income distribution sector, and the balance of payment equation. Therefore, the model should be revised. It is hoped that these weaknesses can be reduced in the future.
Methods for the Identification of Data Outliers in Interactive SQL

The purpose of this paper is twofold. First, the paper discusses the importance of identifying data outliers (that is, extremely unusual values) for three major purposes in the management of database systems: (1) data validation, (2) statistical analysis, and (3) extreme point recognition. Outliers are defined following the original approach developed by Tukey for use in Exploratory Data Analysis. Second, the paper develops two outlier identification procedures that can be directly inserted into relational database systems through the nonprocedural relational database language SQL (Structured Query Language). The first procedure, the Hinge Procedure, follows exactly Tukeyâ€™s definition of outliers, but requires the creation of an additional base table. The second procedure, the Quartile Procedure, provides only a close approximation to Tukeyâ€™s definition, but can be implemented solely through views. The development of these procedures was non-trivial due to the rather limited number of available mathematical functions in SQL. The advantages and disadvantages of the two procedures are discussed in the paper.
Expanding Learning-Focused Leadership in US Urban Schools

This chapter describes the results of an intensive, qualitative study of US urban school leaders’ work, in 15 schools across four states. The study examined leaders with supervisory authority (principals, assistant principals, department heads) and their nonsupervisory counterparts (teacher leaders) who were engaged in individual and collective efforts to improve the quality of teaching and learning in their schools. The schools in this study were finding ways to support progress among a diverse student clientele, share the leadership work among various staff members, and align resources with a shared agenda for improving learning across the school. This chapter suggests lessons and provides images of possibility for schools, and for those who support the work of educators in schools, concerning the ways that leadership can be focused on the learning of students, staff, and the entire school community. The study findings suggest several ways of thinking about and exercising learning-focused leadership in these schools that may help to explain why they are doing well, and how others could do so. In particular, the chapter portrays: (1) what it means for leaders to work within a demanding environment; (2) what supervisory and nonsupervisory leaders do in these kinds of settings; and (3) what their work implies for the new learning they will need to do.
Estimating Intrinsic Images from Image Sequences with Biased Illumination

We present a method for estimating intrinsic images from a fixed-viewpoint image sequence captured under changing illumination directions. Previous work on this problem reduces the influence of shadows on reflectance images, but does not address shading effects which can significantly degrade reflectance image estimation under the typically biased sampling of illumination directions. In this paper, we describe how biased illumination sampling leads to biased estimates of reflectance image derivatives. To avoid the effects of illumination bias, we propose a solution that explicitly models spatial and temporal constraints over the image sequence. With this constraint network, our technique minimizes a regularization function that takes advantage of the biased image derivatives to yield reflectance images less influenced by shading.
Determination of S(q,ω) by Inelastic Electron and X-ray Scattering

One of the major efforts involved in studying many particle systems is the discovery of the effective force between the particles. In atomic and condensed matter physics the underlying force is the Coulomb potential. Due to the presence of many particles simultaneously interacting the net potential between any pair of particles is never just the pure 1/r potential discovered by Coulomb, but is strongly modified, usually being reduced. This phenomenon is called screening. Let us begin with a classical example which is easily described. We shall see that even here there are surprises.
In vitro maturation of Arbacia punctulata oocytes and initiation of heavy body formation. An ultrastructural study.

An ultrastructural study of in vitro maturation of A. punctulata oocytes was undertaken to determine when heavy body formation was initiated. No heavy bodies were seen in germinal vesicle oocytes or in oocytes undergoing germinal vesicle breakdown or polar body formation. Heavy bodies were only observed in ova examined one to two hours after pronuclear formation. Several small heavy bodies were seen in sections of eggs fixed as early as three hours after the pronucleus had formed. The number of these structures in the egg cytoplasm increased with time. Therefore it is concluded that heavy body formation in sea urchin ova is a phenomenon following nuclear maturation.
PET imaging reveals lower kappa opioid receptor availability in alcoholics but no effect of age.

Opioid receptors are implicated in alcoholism, other addictions, withdrawal, and depression, and are considered potential pharmacological targets for treatment. Our goal in the present study was to compare the availability of kappa opioid receptors (KOR) between an alcohol-dependent cohort (AD) and a healthy control cohort (HC). Sixty-four participants—36 AD and 28 HC—underwent PET scans with [11C]LY2795050, a selective kappa antagonist tracer. Partial-volume correction was applied to all PET data to correct for atrophy. Volume of distribution (VT) of the tracer was estimated regionally as a measure of KOR availability. VT values of AD versus HC were compared for 15 defined ROIs. Multivariate analysis showed a main effect of group on VT across these 15 ROIs. Post hoc tests showed that AD had significantly lower VT and thus a lower KOR availability than HC in amygdala and pallidum (corrected for multiple comparisons). Exploratory analysis of change in VT with age was conducted; VT was not found to vary significantly with age in any region. Our findings of lower VT in AD versus HC in multiple regions are in contrast to findings in the mu and delta opioid receptor systems of higher VT in AD versus HC. Although age-related decline in receptors has previously been observed in the mu opioid receptor system, we found that KOR availability does not change with age.
Using Text Messages To Encourage Meaningful Self-Assessment Outside of the Classroom

Recent articles in this Journal have advocated for focusing instruction on core ideas of the discipline and moving assessment beyond content knowledge to also eliciting evidence about what students can do with their knowledge. Yet, the deep connected learning supported by this kind of instruction and assessment requires students to engage in meaningful learning activities both within and outside of the classroom. We can structure learning activities within our classes that require students to use and apply their knowledge, construct explanations and arguments, and engage in discussion with others; however, we have less control of what students do outside of the classroom. Further, meaningful engagement of students with these types of assessments outside the classroom requires a means for closing the assessment loop, using student responses to inform instruction and support learning and development of these skills. This paper describes a free and easy to use system, combining Remind and Google Forms, that ...
Evaluation of the effects of formulation, food, or a proton-pump inhibitor on the pharmacokinetics of glasdegib (PF-04449913) in healthy volunteers: a randomized phase I study.

Purpose To demonstrate the bioequivalence of the planned maleate salt-based commercial glasdegib tablet formulation [International Council for Harmonization (ICH) glasdegib] to the clinical di-hydrochloride (di-HCl) salt-based glasdegib formulation (di-HCl glasdegib). Additionally, to estimate the effects of a high-fat, high-calorie meal and proton-pump inhibitor (PPI) on the pharmacokinetics of ICH glasdegib.
Commuting-projector Hamiltonians for two-dimensional topological insulators: Edge physics and many-body invariants

Inspired by a recently constructed commuting-projector Hamiltonian for a two-dimensional (2D) time-reversal-invariant topological superconductor [Z. Wang et al., Phys. Rev. B 98, 094502 (2018)], we introduce a commuting-projector model that describes an interacting yet exactly solvable 2D topological insulator. We explicitly show that both the gapped and gapless boundaries of our model are consistent with those of band-theoretic, weakly interacting topological insulators. Interestingly, on certain lattices our time-reversal-symmetric models also enjoy $\mathcal{CP}$ symmetry, leading to intuitive interpretations of the bulk invariant for a $\mathcal{CP}$-symmetric topological insulator upon putting the system on a Klein bottle. We also briefly discuss how these many-body invariants may be able to characterize models with only time-reversal symmetry.
A Social Network Analysis of Friendship and Spiritual Support in a Religious Congregation

Religious congregations are social settings where people gather together in community to pursue the sacred (Pargament, 2008). Such settings are important to understand as they provide a context for individuals to develop relationships, share ideas and resources, and connect individuals to larger society (Todd, 2017a). Yet, research to date has not deeply examined the inherently relational nature of religious congregations. Thus, in this study, we used social settings theory (Seidman, 2012; Tseng & Seidman, 2007) to develop and test hypotheses about relationships within one Christian religious congregation. In particular, we used social network analysis to test hypotheses about relational activity, popularity, and homophily for friendship and spiritual support types of relational links. Our findings demonstrate how relational patterns may be linked to participation in congregational activities, occupying a leadership role, a sense of community and spiritual satisfaction, stratification, socialization, and spiritual support. Overall, this advances theory and research on the relational aspects of religious congregations, and more broadly to the literature on social settings. Limitations, directions for future research, and implications for theory and religious congregations also are discussed.
Vaporizing foil actuator welding

Vaporizing foil actuator welding is a form of impact welding, which can be carried out without the use of chemical explosives. Operating at smaller length scales, but with similar driving pressures as explosive welding, vaporizing foil actuator welding is capable of welding a wide variety of advanced and dissimilar metal combinations. With negligible heating developing during the process, thermal distortion does not occur, and the base-metal properties are retained in the weld. In this article, vaporizing foil actuator welding of an automotive grade aluminum and steel pair is discussed. A currently functional and complete welding system that can be used for research as well as low volume production is also discussed.
TRPML1 Promotes Protein Homeostasis in Melanoma Cells by Negatively Regulating MAPK and mTORC1 Signaling

We screen ion channels and transporters throughout the genome to identify those required by human melanoma cells but not by normal human melanocytes. We discover that Mucolipin-1 (MCOLN1), which encodes the lysosomal cation channel TRPML1, is preferentially required for the survival and proliferation of melanoma cells. Loss of MCOLN1/TRPML1 function impairs the growth of patient-derived melanomas in culture and in xenografts but does not affect the growth of human melanocytes. TRPML1 expression and macropinocytosis are elevated in melanoma cells relative to melanocytes. TRPML1 is required in melanoma cells to negatively regulate MAPK pathway and mTORC1 signaling. TRPML1-deficient melanoma cells exhibit decreased survival, proliferation, tumor growth, and macropinocytosis, as well as serine depletion and proteotoxic stress. All of these phenotypes are partially or completely rescued by mTORC1 inhibition. Melanoma cells thus increase TRPML1 expression relative to melanocytes to attenuate MAPK and mTORC1 signaling, to sustain macropinocytosis, and to avoid proteotoxic stress.
Minimally Invasive Surgical Considerations for the Obese Patient

Video Objective This objective of this video is to review surgical considerations for the obese patient undergoing minimally invasive surgery. Setting The obese patient is the patient considered. This video addresses risks of laparoscopic surgery, differences in patient counseling, prophylactic measures, patient positioning, laparoscopic entry, management of the panniculus, and prevention of conversion to an open procedure. Interventions Interventions for prophylactic measures include placement of an orogastric/nasogastric tube prior to intubation, increased dose of antibiotic prophylaxis, and optimization of hemoglobin A1c for diabetic patients. Interventions for optimizing patient positioning include allotting extra time for procedures, utilizing bariatric beds and stirrups, anti-skid material and padding during surgery, tucking the patient's arms, and applying a chest strap. Interventions for laparoscopic entry include utilization of bariatric trocars, placing trocars more laterally and cephalad, left upper quadrant or supraumbilical entry, and inserting ports at a 90 degree angle to the abdomen. Interventions for panniculus management and prevention of conversion to an open procedure include limiting the use of steep Trendelenberg, decreasing the insufflation pressure, mechanically retracting the panniculus, and performing a tilt test. Conclusion Gynecologic surgeons will inevitably be operating on more obese patients with coming years given the rising prevalence of obesity. Thus, they should be prepared for preoperative evaluation of the obese patient, surgical preparation, patient counseling, and surgical optimization to prevent conversion to an open procedure, all of which are addressed in this video. Preventing conversion is a balancing act between improving surgical visualization and maintaining stable cardiac and respiratory status of the patient. With increasing volume of cases, gynecologic surgeons can become proficient at minimally invasive surgery for the obese patient, thus, decreasing their operative morbidity and post-surgical quality of life.
Testimonies by Chinese Survivors and Witnesses

As soon as Japanese troops committed atrocities in Nanjing, some of the atrocity survivors and eyewitnesses provided testimonies to give first-hand accounts. The earliest testimonies were made known to posterity through the American missionaries and German businessmen who chose to stay in the besieged city and organized the International Committee for Nanjing Safety Zone to provide shelter and food for the refugees. Many of the Chinese testimonies were collected as atrocity cases in the documents of the International Committee; while some were retold by the American missionaries and German businessmen in their diaries, personal letters, reports and other documents. A small fraction of the American missionaries’ original accounts were published in 1938 through Harold John Timperley’s What War Means: Japanese Terror in China, and Shu-hsi Hsu’s The War Conduct of the Japanese. Documents of the Nanking Safety Zone, edited by Shuhsi Hsu, appeared in print in Shanghai in 1939. This publication contains 399 of the 470 cases the International Committee had filed. The missing 71 cases, which Shuhsi Hsu failed to obtain in 1939, were included in the third chapter of Suping Lu’s They Were in Nanjing: The Nanjing Massacre Witnessed by American and British Nationals, which was published in 2004 in Hong Kong.
Gastrointestinal Bleeding in ECMO Patients: Incidence and Outcomes

Purpose Extra corporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) indications and usage has remarkably progressed over the past decade. While the newer technology has improved durability compared to earlier generations, increased frequency in some complications has been seen, including gastrointestinal bleeding (GIB). We discuss the incidence and outcomes of GIB in patients receiving ECMO. Methods From September 2014 to September 2019, 468 patients required ECMO support for different indications (VA: 302, VV: 133, Combined: 33). We retrospectively reviewed the medical records and identified 48 (10.3%) patients diagnosed with GIB after being placed on ECMO. Their pre-cannulation characteristics and outcomes were then compared to the remaining patients (no GIB group). Fisher's exact test was used to test significance in categorical variables, and t-test for continuous variables. Results A total of 48 patients (mean age 59±14, male 35) were diagnosed with GIB post ECMO, of those 31 patients (65%) had upper GIB, 9 (19%) had lower GIB and 3 (6%) had combined. In 5 patients (10%) bleeding was unspecified. The mean time from ECMO initiation to the presentation of the event was 11 days (±11) and ranged from same day of cannulation to up to 60 days. Thirty-one patients (65%) were in the VA ECMO group, and 8 (17%) on VV ECMO. The remaining 9 (19%) patients were in the combined ECMO group. As seen in table 1, the mean duration of ECMO support and pre- cannulation SOFA score were significantly higher in the GIB group (p Conclusion Our data shows that GIB is a frequent complication (10.3%) in ECMO patients. However, there was no impact on the outcomes. Further studies are required to investigate and help better understand the etiology of GIB in those patients.
Stability of steady state solutions in a predator-prey model with density-dependent diffusion

The main result in this note establishes that the positive steady state solutions of a spatial extension for the Rosenzweig-MacArthur model correspond to a branch of a transcritical bifurcation. In the model under discussion, prey move to avoid crowding via a density-dependent diffusion and it incorporates the existence of a refuge zone, where predators cannot consume prey. Saturation in prey consumption is also included through a Holling type II functional response.
1.13 – Residual Stresses

Thermal residual stresses in cemented carbide composites are large, interact with applied stresses, and affect deformation and toughness. Their magnitudes are high (e.g., +2 GPa for Co and −0.4 GPa for WC in WC-10 wt.% Co) and their distributions are complex. Magnitudes depend on expansion coefficients, binder content, and particle size; distribution depends on particle angularity, and is quite broad. The response of WC-based cemented carbides to applied uniaxial compression and tension has been extensively studied. It accounts for long-observed non-linearity at very low strains, plasticity-induced relaxation, unusual Poisson's ratio behavior, and changes in density with loading. It is also asymmetric, i.e., a function of load direction. The response to cyclic loading gives insight into the role of thermal residual stresses in the toughness of these materials, known for their high toughness considering their high hardness. Results for WC-Co and WC-Ni systems are presented and performance implications discussed. These studies required the use of neutron diffraction. Diffraction enables each phase to be independently observed while being loaded and unloaded; neutrons are required due to their low absorption by the heavy element tungsten and the bulk, volumetric nature of the thermal residual stresses.
Suicide: Years in the Making:

In this autoethnographic article, the author struggles to recognize the past in her present, through the discovery of loss and grief in the history of her family and herself. The story of her mothe...
A semi-parametric bootstrap-based best linear unbiased estimator of location under symmetry

In this note we provide a novel semi-parametric best linear unbiased estimator (BLUE) of location and its corresponding variance estimator under the assumption the random variate is generated from ...
How to better support Black trainees in the biomedical sciences.

The relentless violence against Black people takes an overwhelming emotional toll on Black trainees. In those we continue to lose, we see our families, our friends and our own lives being taken.
Autonomic Control of Coronary Blood Flow

Activation of parasympathetic fibers to the heart results in bradycardia, a fall in blood pressure with a concomitant decrease in myocardial oxygen consumption, that results in a decrease in coronary blood flow by a local metabolic mechanism. If the heart is electrically paced at a constant rate, then a clear increase in coronary blood flow is observed during parasympathetic activation. Baroreflex parasympathetic cholinergic coronary vasodilation has been demonstrated in response to carotid sinus hypertension, and carotid body chemoreceptor activation by hypoxia results in transient parasympathetic coronary vasodilation. Coronary vasodilation secondary to the intracoronary infusion of acetylcholine depends upon functioning endothelial cells to produce endothelium-derived relaxing factor. Normal human epicardial coronary arteries dilate with acetylcholine infusions, but vessels in patients with atherosclerosis constrict, suggesting that the loss of endothelial function is an early marker for atherosclerosis.
Parallel Progress: US-Taiwan Relations During an Era of Cross-Strait Rapprochement

This study examines the progress in US-Taiwan relations during an era of cross-Strait rapprochement. In order to place the issue in the proper historical context, the paper begins with a brief overview of bilateral relations during the administration of President Chen Shui-bian (2000-2008). The study next discusses improvements in Taipei’s relations with Beijing and shows how Washington supports the cross-Strait rapprochement. In conclusion, the author suggests that, despite arguments to the contrary, it is clear that US-Taiwan relations have moved forward in parallel with improvements in Taiwan-Chinese mainland relations since 2008.
Psychodynamic Psychotherapy for the Treatment of Substance Use Disorders

An understanding of addiction to drugs and alcohol and their treatment is reviewed from a modern-day psychodynamic perspective drawing on ego/self-psychology and object relations and attachment theory. The author places emphasis on addictions as a self-regulation disorder. Deficits in regulating emotions, self-esteem, relationship, and self-care interact variably and cause individuals so affected to relieve their pain and suffering associated with these deficits with addictive substances and to become addicted to them. The author considers addictive drugs to be appealing not so much as pleasure producing but rather as agents that create and foster comfort and contact for individuals who are discomforted and disconnected. Alcohol and drugs, short term, relieve and/or change states of anhedonia, dysphoria, and unbearable painful emotional states. Individuals so affected discover that depending on the particular emotional pain with which they suffer, they discover a preference for a particular class of drugs. The action of each class of drugs is linked to how individuals discover these specific effects in relation to the suffering associated with their self-regulation problems. Appreciating these vulnerabilities and in contrast to outmoded psychoanalytic modes of detachment, passivity, and more strictly interpretive approaches, the author considers, from a contemporary perspective, important therapeutic elements and attitudes necessary to address the vulnerabilities such as being more interactive and to incorporate attitudes of kindness, support, empathy, respect, patience, and instruction in order to build and maintain a strong therapeutic alliance.
Referral, Assessment, and Placement Practices Used in Rural School Districts with Native American Students in Special Education

Considerable information is available regarding the cultural bias inherent in assessment instruments and the disproportionately high placement of minority students within special education classroo...
High-affinity binding to the GM-CSF receptor requires intact N-glycosylation sites in the extracellular domain of the β subunit

The human granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) receptor consists of 2 glycoprotein subunits, GMR and GMRβ. GMR in isolation binds to GM-CSF with low affinity. GMRβ does not bind GM-CSF by itself, but forms a high-affinity receptor in association with GMR. Previously, it was found that N-glycosylation of GMR is essential for ligand binding. The present study investigated the role of N-glycosylation of the β subunit on GM-CSF receptor function. GMRβ has 3 potential N-glycosylation sites in the extracellular domain at Asn58, Asn191, and Asn346. Single mutants and triple mutants were constructed, converting asparagine in the target sites to aspartic acid or alanine. A single mutation at any of the 3 consensus N-glycosylation sites abolished high-affinity GM-CSF binding in transfected COS cells. Immunofluorescence and subcellular fractionation studies demonstrated that all of the GMRβ mutants were faithfully expressed on the cell surface. Reduction of apparent molecular weight of the triple mutant proteins was consistent with loss of N-glycosylation. Intact N-glycosylation sites of GMRβ in the extracellular domain are not required for cell surface targeting but are essential for high-affinity GM-CSF binding.
Ideological Accommodation and Reconciliation in a Croatian Community

The world has watched with horror while post-World War Two Yugoslav federalism, rationalized and reinforced with Marxist ideology and the political/philosophical debates creating and critiquing that federal political economy, has collapsed through ethnic strife, confrontation, declarations of independence, and finally the terrible chaos, destruction and death of war. With ethnic nationalism, hegemony and war destroying the federal Marxist socialist experiment, one realizes that this recent federalism and ideology was only an illusion of political unity built upon an historically inappropriate union of ethnic and religious identities following World War One. Ethnic hatred and irredentism created and manipulated by illegitimate and irresponsible political leadership and the rapidity of events leading to war came as a shock to me.
Rational expectations, supply shocks and the stability of the inflation-output tradeoff: Some time series evidence for the United Kingdom 1957–1977

Abstract The Lucas (1973) supply curve is modified to incorporate both specific and aggregate supply shocks in addition to demand shocks. A time series test of the Rational Expectation Natural Rate (RENR) hypothesis is derived. Monthly data for the United Kingdom 1957–1977 are split into periods based on a moving variance procedure. Utilizing Zellner-Palm transfer functions it is shown that a significant reduction in the short-run inflation-output tradeoff is associated with an increase in the variance of the unanticipated price level. This provides evidence in favor of the RENR hypothesis. Moreover, the worsened tradeoff is shown to have been caused by higher supply side rather than demand side volatility.
The effects of telephone transmission degradations on speaker recognition performance

The two largest factors affecting automatic speaker identification performance are the size of the population and the degradations introduced by noisy communication channels (e.g., telephone transmission). To examine experimentally these two factors, this paper presents text-independent speaker identification results for varying speaker population sizes up to 630 speakers for both clean, wideband speech and telephone speech. A system based on Gaussian mixture speaker models is used for speaker identification and experiments are conducted on the TIMIT and NTIMIT databases. This is believed to be the first speaker identification experiments on the complete 630 speaker TIMIT and NTIMIT databases and the largest text-independent speaker identification task reported to date. Identification accuracies of 99.5% and 60.7% are achieved on the TIMIT and NTIMIT databases, respectively. This paper also presents experiments which examine and attempt to quantify the performance loss associated with various telephone degradations by systematically degrading the TIMIT speech in a manner consistent with measured NTIMIT degradations and measuring the performance loss at each step. It is found that the standard degradations of filtering and additive noise do not account for all of the performance gap between the TIMIT and NTIMIT data. Measurements of nonlinear microphone distortions are also described which may explain the additional performance loss.
Maximum likelihood detection with a linear array for synchronous DS/CDMA systems

Direct sequence code division multiple access (DS/CDMA) technology is attractive in cellular and personal communications systems because of potential capacity increases, anti-narrowband-interference capability, and soft handoff. We derive a maximum likelihood (ML) linear array receiver for a synchronous DS/CDMA Gaussian channel. We present an ML decision rule, utilizing the spatial information of users such as angles-of-arrivals, and corresponding receiver structure which consists of a bank of matched filters at each array element and a decision algorithm. We also derive an expression of the bit error rate (BER) of a user and show an example of BER for a two-element array with two users. For this particular example, an ML two-element linear array receiver achieves significant improvement in BER over a single antenna ML detection.
Alzheimer disease paired helical filament core structures contain glycolipid.

Abstract The core structures of sodium dodecyl sulfate extracted, pronase digested paired helical filaments of Alzheimer disease were solubilized by heating in dimethyl sulfoxide. Electron microscopy revealed that after heating in dimethyl sulfoxide, intact paired helical filaments were no longer present in the dimethyl sulfoxide soluble fractions or in the insoluble lipofuscin-containing fractions. Enzyme-linked immunosorbant assays of the various fractions with the monospecific antibody A128 to paired helical filaments demonstrated 96% of the immunoreactivity to be in the dimethyl sulfoxide soluble fraction, and only 4% in the dimethyl sulfoxide insoluble fractions. Lyophilization of the dimethyl sulfoxide soluble supernatant and resuspension in water failed to reassociate the paired helical filaments, but did result in an insoluble precipitate. Analysis of the dimethyl sulfoxide solubilized paired helical filament fraction by nuclear magnetic resonance revealed it to be composed of glycolipid in a form that was distinct from similar fractions isolated from normal aged control brains. The aggregation of an altered glycolipid to form paired helical filaments in Alzheimer disease could explain their insolubility.
Degenerate elliptic systems whose coefficient matrix has a group inverse

Reduction of higher order elliptic equations to first order systems appears to destroy the ellipticity of the equation. Lllipticity can sometimes be restored by adding consistent equations; however, in this case an overdetermined elliptic system arises. In the present work it is shown how such overdetermined systems in the plane may lead to a natural function theory. This occurs when the coefficient matrix of the system, in normal form, has a group inverse.
Social reference and digital reference: Online question answering practices in two diverse communities

This panel brings together researchers who focus on Q A sites, those that focus on digital reference, and those who bridge between the two, into what we believe will be a lively discussion.
Measured forest soil C stocks and estimated turnover times along an elevation gradient

Abstract The purpose of this research was to measure forest soil C stocks and estimate turnover times along a 1.3 km rise in elevation in the southern Appalachian Mountains. Turnover times were calculated based on estimated soil C inputs and near steady state soil C stocks in the O-horizon and the mineral soil to a 30-cm soil depth. Monte Carlo methods were used in the calculations to accommodate uncertainties in model parameterization. Measured mean stocks and calculated median turnover times of soil C ranged from 4.4 to 12.2 kg C m− 2 and 11 to 31 years, respectively. The predicted turnover times reflect a high proportion of labile soil C over the selected sampling depth. Both forest soil C stocks and the predicted turnover time of soil C increased with altitude. There were no consistent trends for stand basal area and forest soil C inputs along the elevation gradient suggesting that altitudinal changes in soil C stocks and turnover times could be attributed to different rates of soil organic matter decomposition. Soil respiration flux did not vary significantly with altitude, but soil respiration normalized for existing soil C stocks indicated decreasing rates of soil organic matter decomposition with increasing elevation. Measured soil N stocks and differences in O-horizon litter chemistry indicated increasing N availability from low-elevation to high-elevation forests. Soil C storage and turnover time increased from warmer, drier, less N-rich forests to colder, wetter, more N-rich forests. Considered together, these data support assumptions of a declining rate of soil organic matter decomposition with increasing elevation in the southern Appalachian Mountains. Representative characterization of long-term litter C inputs is one of the most challenging aspects of the present analysis.
Local delivery of an antithrombin inhibits platelet-dependent thrombosis.

BACKGROUNDPlatelet-dependent thrombosis can be effectively inhibited by intravenous administration of direct thrombin antagonists. However, an increased propensity for abnormal bleeding has been associated with systemic administration of these agents. The goal of this study was to determine whether local delivery of a potent thrombin inhibitor, D-Phe-L-Pro-L-Arg chloromethyl ketone (PPACK), could inhibit platelet-dependent thrombosis without altering systemic hemostatic function.METHODS AND RESULTSThrombus formation was measured by quantitative imaging of 111In-labeled platelet deposition on segments of thrombogenic vascular graft interposed in arteriovenous shunts in a porcine model. Intravenous administration of PPACK inhibited platelet deposition at a dose of 12.5 micrograms/kg per minute, which was associated with significant prolongations of both template bleeding times and activated partial thromboplastin times. By contrast, local infusion of PPACK at a dose of 0.02 micrograms/kg per minute (ie, a 6...
Q&A: systems biology.

How complex are the systems that systems biologists study? That depends. Some people focus on networks at the ‘omics’-scale: whole genomes, proteomes, or metabolomes. These systems can be represented by graphs with thousands of nodes and edges (see Figure 1). Others focus on small subcircuits of the network; say a circuit composed of a few proteins that functions as an amplifier, a switch or a logic gate. Typically, the graphs of these systems possess fewer than a dozen (or so) nodes. Both the large-scale and smallscale approaches have been fruitful.
Expression of AT1‐R in Marmoset Whole Adrenal Glands and Adrenocortical Cells in Culture

The marmoset adrenal is interesting as it is developmentally similar to humans and other primates, but in adulthood 17,20-lyase activity is very low. One possible explanation is an altered regulation of P450c17 expression by AT1-R. We investigated the expression and zonal distribution of the AT1-R in marmoset adrenal glands and adrenocortical cells in culture since it is known that AT1-R is a regulator of P450c17 expression and activity. AT1-R was expressed strongly in the ZG and to diminishing degrees through the remainder of the cortex. There was negative expression in a putative ZI. Dispersed adrenocortical cells retained AT1-R protein as detected by ICC. Cells cultured for several days and treated in serum-free media for 48 h maintained AT1-R expression, as measured by western. However, at that 48 h time point, treatment with Forsk, AII, TPA, or the combination of A+F or T+F did not appear to effect AT1-R expression. We conclude that marmoset adrenals express AT1-R similarly to humans and other higher mammals, adrenocortical cells retain AT1-R expression in culture, and consistent with other adrenal cell culture models, AT1-R expression is not lost in response to agonists long term.
The Joint Determination of Marginal Rate of Return and Interest Adjusted Cost for Whole Life Insurance

Linear programming is applied to measurement of whole life insurance to obtain a functional relationship between interest adjusted cost of insurance protection and rate of return on policy equity. For comparative purposes, policy differences related to premium rates, dividends and cash-values are controlled by maintaining identical insurance requirements and constant levels of wealth for the insured. Marginal discount factors, obtained from the dual variables for the wealth constraints, demonstrate the importance of policy holder wealth. The interest adjusted cost measure currently used by the insurance industry is shown to be a special case when the linear programming approach is used. The method used in this paper is sufficiently flexible to incorporate different patterns of time preference for insurance. Finally, it is demonstrated that the trade-off between interest adjusted cost of insurance and rate of return on policy equity is sensitive to the external rate of return.
Host gene control of endogenous avian leukosis virus production.

Abstract Chick embryo cell supernates or sera of young line 100 chickens, which were susceptible to avian leukosis-sarcoma viruses of subgroup E, contained large amounts of an avian leukosis virus. This virus had biological, chemical and physical properties identical with RAV-O, an endogenous subgroup E virus of the chicken. Line 100 cells homozygous for a recessive gene for cellular resistance ( tvb r ) did not produce significant amounts of RAV-O naturally, but did produce this virus on cocultivation with cells which were susceptible to subgroup E. Crosses of line 100 or related inbred line 7 with other lines showed that the dominant I e gene, which inhibits susceptibility to subgroup E, did not block RAV-O production, but merely restricted its spread from cell to cell. These data suggest that lines 7 and 100 carry dominant genes for RAV-O production which act independently from the known genes controlling resistance to subgroup E viruses. The phenotype associated with RAV-O production is called V + .
The Role of Adoption Communicative Openness in Information Seeking Among Adoptees From Adolescence to Emerging Adulthood

Adoption Communicative Openness was examined as a predictor of information seeking from adolescence to emerging adulthood in a group of adoptees who did not have direct contact with birth relatives during adolescence. Changes in information seeking intentions and behaviors between adolescence and emerging adulthood were also examined. Data from 119 infant-placed adoptees and their adoptive mothers were used from Waves 2 (1996-2000) and 3 (2005-2008) of the Minnesota-Texas Adoption Research Project (Grotevant & McRoy, 1998). Adoptive mothers' Communicative Openness was positively associated with degree of information seeking in emerging adulthood. Degree of information seeking between adolescence (Wave 2) and emerging adulthood (Wave 3) increased for the majority of adoptees (62.2%). Approximately 16% of adoptees experienced no change in information seeking and 22% of adoptees experienced a decrease in information seeking. Females were more likely to exhibit a greater increase in information seeking change between Waves 2 and 3 and information seeking at Wave 3 than males. Results suggest that adoptee information seeking is a dynamic process that takes place over several life stages and that open communication about adoption within the adoptive family supports adoptee information seeking.
Transistor-embedded acousto-optic and nonlinear metamaterials

We present experimental results showing the application of transistor-embedded metamaterials to realize nonlinear and acousto-optic metamaterials. Due to their nonlinear properties, transistors can be used to realize a large variety of useful radio frequency (RF) functions and applications. These include switches, oscillators, amplifiers, tunable resistors and capacitors, and other devices. Metamaterials provide a natural platform for embedding circuit elements at RF to implement useful functionality. The useful properties of transistors can be exploited by embedding transistors within metamaterial unit cells. We will demonstrate how transistors allow the realization of acousto-optic and nonlinear metamaterials.