cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Vaccinia topoisomerase and Cre recombinase catalyze direct ligation of activated DNA substrates containing a 3'-para-nitrophenyl phosphate ester.

DNA topoisomerases and DNA site-specific recombinases are involved in a diverse set of cellular processes but both function by making transient breaks in DNA. Type IB topoisomerases and tyrosine recombinases cleave DNA by transesterification of an active site tyrosine to generate a DNA–3′-phosphotyrosyl–enzyme adduct and a free 5′-hydroxyl (5′-OH). Strand ligation results when the 5′-OH attacks the covalent complex and displaces the enzyme. We describe the synthesis of 3′-phospho-(para-nitrophenyl) oligonucleotides (3′-pNP DNAs), which mimic the natural 3′-phosphotyrosyl intermediate, and demonstrate that such pre-activated strands are substrates for DNA ligation by vaccinia topoisomerase and Cre recombinase. Ligation occurs by direct attack of a 5′-OH strand on the 3′-pNP DNA (i.e., without a covalent protein–DNA intermediate) and generates free para-nitrophenol as a product. The chromogenic DNA substrate allows ligation to be studied in real-time and in the absence of competing cleavage reactions and can be exploited for high-throughput screening of topoisomerase/recombinase inhibitors.
Effect of spectral band numbers on the retrieval of water column and bottom properties from ocean color data.

Using an optimization technique, we derived subsurface properties of coastal and oceanic waters from measured remote-sensing reflectance spectra. These data included both optically deep and shallow environments. The measured reflectance covered a spectral range from 400 to 800 nm. The inversions used data from each 5-, 10-, and 20-nm contiguous bands, including Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS), moderate-resolution imaging spectrometer (MODIS), and a self-defined medium-resolution imaging spectrometer (MERIS) channels, respectively. This study is designed to evaluate the influence of spectral resolution and channel placement on the accuracy of remote-sensing retrievals and to provide guidance for future sensor design. From the results of this study, we found the following: (1) use of 10-nm-wide contiguous channels provides almost identical results as found for 5-nm contiguous channels; (2) use of 20-nm contiguous channels and MERIS provides comparable results with those with 5-nm contiguous channels for deep waters, but use of contiguous 20-nm channels perform better than MERIS for optically shallow waters; and (3) SeaWiFS or MODIS channels work fine for deep, clearer waters (total absorption coefficient at 440 nm < 0.3 m-1), but introduce more errors in bathymetry retrievals for optically shallow waters. The inclusion of the 645-nm MODIS land band in its channel set improves inversion returns for both deep and shallow waters.
Cultural adaptation and institutional change: The evolution of vocabularies of corporate governance, 1972–2003

Abstract Drawing on content analysis, text interpretation, and historical analysis, we develop a grounded theory to explain the evolution of vocabularies of corporate governance. The term corporate governance emerged in the 1970s as frame to explain contemporary corporate scandals. While the word has increased in usage and became institutionalized, its meaning has evolved, as other words that co-occur in the vocabulary have shifted both in response to subsequent environmental events and to framing processes. We propose an evolutionary theory of cultural adaptation as meanings evolve through (1) path-dependent conceptual blending (variation); (2) differential adoption shaped by the cultural resonance of words (selection); and (3) increased persistence due to institutionalized theorization (retention). Our evolutionary theory of cultural adaptation posits a recursive relationship between culture and the economy, where cultures adapt to economic change, and the “stickiness” of culture and path dependence results in its relative autonomy as an explanatory force in economic change.
Failure mechanism of smaller substrate bond pad size in flip chip technology

The solution to the increasing demands for miniaturisation could be accomplished through flip chip interconnection technology. It is known that substrate solder resist opening is one of the key designs that govern a product size to increase I/O density. With the reduction of its size, it posed chip joint necking reliability issues. Interaction of substrate solder volume (package), package and die bump void (silicon/chip) was identified as the cause of this issue. The solution for this issue is critical in supporting future product trends of demanding high I/O density design.
Species Richness, Abundance, and Composition of Ground-Dwelling Ants in Northern California Grasslands: Role of Plants, Soil, and Grazing

We examined the role of cattle grazing, plants, and soil attributes on species richness, abundance, and composition of ground-dwelling ants in northern California serpentine and nonserpentine grasslands. In addition, we analyzed the relationship between three numerically dominant ant species and overall ant species richness and abundance. We used pitfall traps to collect worker ants at 80 sites over a 2-wk period in May 2002. Twenty species of ants were identified from a total of 5,149 worker ants; 80% of all individuals belonged to three dominant species: Messor andrei (Mayr), Pheidole californica Mayr, and Solenopsis xyloni McCook. Ant species richness was negatively affected by grazing on nonserpentine soils only. In general, soil chemistry and texture formed the most consistent associations with the ant community. Plants were less important than soil attributes in explaining variation in overall ant species richness and abundance, but the abundance of the three dominant ant species was significantly correlated with plant biomass or plant richness. Based on logistic regression analysis, the presence or absence of each dominant ant species was negatively correlated with the abundance of the other two dominants. However, the three numerically dominant ant species did not correlate with overall ant species richness or abundance.
Individual haplotyping prediction agreements

Haplotype problems find important applications in various fields of human genetics. Modern sequencing technologies have significantly improved accuracy of reconstruction using individual's DNA short fragments. The objective of individual haplotype reconstruction algorithms is to design algorithms that rebuild the most likely copies of each chromosome from a set of given short fragments. The performance of the haplotype algorithms are often measured by comparing the reconstructed haplotypes with the original short fragments, using Minimum Error Correction measurement. Yet, there is no evidence in the literature about the level of agreement in all the solutions to the individual haplotyping problem. In other words, it is unknown if different haplotype algorithms coincide on the reconstructed/predicted haplotypes. In this paper, we investigate the problem of haplotyping prediction agreement by comparing the haplotypes produced by a number of well-known haplotype reconstruction algorithms.
A Low-Profile Three-Dimensional Silicon/Parylene Stimulating Electrode Array for Neural Prosthesis Applications

This paper describes a low-profile three-dimensional silicon/parylene microelectrode array as basis for practical neural prostheses for use in the central nervous system. The circuit areas of the silicon probes, containing mixed-signal CMOS circuitry for neural stimulation/recording, can be folded over to reduce the overall height of the microassembled array above the cortical surface. The low-profile structure is implemented using multiple gold beams spaced by orthogonal silicon braces. An integrated silicon/parylene batch process is introduced to encapsulate these interconnects and achieve high yield
Multidimensional Numerical Simulation of Ammonium-Perchlorate-Based Propellant Combustion with Fine/Ultrafine Aluminum

This paper presents a computational investigation on the deflagration of composite ammonium-perchlorate-based propellant with fine/ultrafine aluminum. The model relies on an Eulerian representation of the particle cloud formed by the ejected aluminum and a gray-medium approximation of the radiative field supported by the emitting particles. The aluminum oxidation is modeled by means of an experimentally evaluated diameter power law valid for constant-ambient conditions. The energetic consequences of the addition of nanoscale aluminum are analyzed, with particular emphasis on the contributions of radiative transport and aluminum oxidation heat release. The model is validated versus experimental measurements of burn rates for both one-dimensionally (fine ammonium perchlorate) and three-dimensionally (monomodal and bimodal coarse ammonium perchlorate) supported combustion fields. The burn rate and surface shape of two-dimensional laminate propellant is also considered, and the particle consumption time is related to experimental observations.
Guest Editorial—Alesse ® : Leading the shift to 20 μg

Healthcare providers and consumers want 3 things from a contraceptive. First, the contraceptive must be effective. Second, there should be few or no serious or significant adverse effects. Third, any side effects that may be related to the method are minimal and should be tolerated by the consumer. To address these issues the pharmaceutical industry and the healthcare delivery system has among its strategic aims the reduction in dosage of the hormones (estrogen and progestin) used in combination oral contraceptives. This strategy has been predicated on the hypothesis that it is the dose of estrogen that is related to cardiovascular disease, specifically myocardial infarction, stroke, and venous thromboembolism.1 The reduction in the estrogen dose has allowed us to arrive at the current availability of what is known as “ultra low-dose estrogen” oral contraceptives, products that contain ￻ 20 μg ethinyl estradiol in their formulation. This supplement to the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology is designed to present to the clinician and healthcare provider the results of a large multicenter prospective, randomized trial with an ultra low-dose estrogen oral contraceptive. This particular formulation, Alesse (Wyeth-Ayerst Laboratories, St Davids, Pa), contains 20 μg ethinyl estradiol and 100 μg levonorgestrel. An interim data analysis of the efficacy of this oral contraceptive preparation has been published previously.2 The final data from all participants in the clinical trial have been brought together and are presented for the reader in this supplement. The current epidemiologic literature suggests that by reducing the dose of estrogen in oral contraceptive formulations one can reduce the risk of cerebral thrombosis or hemorrhage (stroke) and also reduce the incidence of venous thromboembolism.1,3 These 2 conditions have well-supported evidence of a dose-response relationship with estrogen. It should be pointed out that for both thrombotic and hemorrhagic stroke recent evidence has suggested that cigarette smoking, rather than the use of the oral contraceptive formulations, is a major risk factor.4, 5 This same conclusion has also been reached in relationship to myocardial infarction and oral contraceptive users, among whom smoking appears to be a greater risk factor than does the use of the oral contraceptive preparation.5-7
Evaluating Hardware Support for Reference Counting Using Software Configurable Processors

Reference counting is an incremental garbage collection technique that yields nearly unnoticeable pause time but can suffer from high processing overhead. Previous attempts to use hardware to reduce this overhead have shown successes but limited applicability. With recent discovery that reference counting can be well suited for Java embedded devices, it is worthwhile to rethink hardware solutions that can further improve its performance by leveraging current trends in embedded computing. In this paper, we introduce a custom instruction solution that is (i) more practical because it only provides hardware support for the expensive but straight-forward software function-reference count update; the existing complex runtime functions such as memory allocation and liberation remain unchanged and (ii) better positioned for widespread adoption because it is designed to leverage readily available configurable logics in many embedded processor cores. As a proof-of-concept, we implement two reference counting algorithms that utilize the proposed custom instructions on Stretch S5000 software reconfigurable processors. We then analyze the performance impacts on the execution time as well as the architectural behavior. The results show that we can achieve as much as 70% performance gain over pure software implementation.
Thiotepa/topotecan/carboplatin with autologous stem cell rescue in recurrent/refractory/poor prognosis pediatric malignancies of the central nervous system.

Background Thiotepa and carboplatin are known to be active in central nervous system tumors. Topotecan potentiates the anti-cancer effects of alkylators and crosses the blood–brain barrier. We present ten patients with recurrent or progressive central nervous system malignancies treated on a myeloablative regimen using these drugs. Methods Treatment included: Thiotepa 300 mg/m2 on days −8, −7, and −6; topotecan 2 mg/m2 on days −8, −7, −6, −5, and −4; and carboplatin ∼500 mg/m2 (Calvert formula—area under the curve = 7) on days −5, −4, and −3. Stem cell rescue was on day 0. Results Age at study entry ranged from 2.5 to 20 years old (median age 8.7 years). Five had medulloblastoma (MB), four had high grade glioma (HGG), and one had trilateral retinoblastoma/pineoblastoma (tRB/PB). Prior treatment for all patients included surgery and chemotherapy (1–7 regimens, median 2). Nine patients received radiotherapy; one patient did not receive radiotherapy pre-study. Three patients had residual disease at the time of transplant. There were two toxic deaths. Four patients are event-free survivors at a median of 6 years (range 2.8–7.6 years) after treatment including 2/5 MB patients, 1/4 HGG patients, and the tRB/PB patient. Four of the seven patients with no evidence of disease/minimal residual disease status at the time of stem cell rescue are long-term survivors versus 1/3 with measurable disease. Conclusion Thiotepa/topotecan/carboplatin may help consolidate remission of poor prognosis pediatric central nervous system tumors. Diagnosis and extent of disease prior to stem cell rescue may have an impact on outcome. Pediatr Blood Cancer 2010;54:591–595. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Amphetamine-induced sensitization and spontaneous stereotypy in deer mice.

Stereotyped behavior is commonly observed in neurodevelopmental disorders (e.g., autism, intellectual and developmental disability) and in a wide variety of animal species maintained in restricted environments. Stereotyped behavior can also be induced by psychostimulants, an effect potentiated by repeated intermittent exposure to these drugs (behavioral sensitization). The present study evaluated whether similar neuroadaptations in cortical–basal ganglia circuitry underlie the expression and development of spontaneous stereotypy and psychostimulant-induced sensitization. Sensitization was induced in deer mice with the degree of sensitization being dependent on housing condition but not age or environmental context. Environmentally enriched animals showed the least behavioral sensitization. Despite demonstrating robust sensitization in both older and younger animals, independent of context, behavioral sensitization was not associated with any alteration in the development or expression of spontaneous stereotypy in deer mice. Moreover, the frequency of baseline spontaneous stereotypy did not predict response to amphetamine challenge in either sensitized or non-sensitized mice. Thus, the present findings do not support the notion that sensitization-related neuroadaptations in cortical–basal ganglia circuitry are similar to those neuroadaptations that underlie spontaneous or environmentally linked stereotypy.
WHICH CRIMINOGENIC NEED CHANGES ARE MOST IMPORTANT IN PROMOTING DESISTANCE FROM CRIME AND SUBSTANCE USE

Andrews and Bonta identified the following criminogenic needs as important to reducing offending: substance use, antisocial cognition, antisocial associates, family and marital relations, employment, and leisure and recreational activities. This study examines dynamic criminogenic need changes across a 12-month period and identifies which need changes are the best predictors of criminal offending and illicit drug use among a sample of drug-involved probationers who participated in an intervention (N = 251). Probationers had significant changes in several need areas, and treatment participation moderated some changes. Probationers who had reductions in criminally involved family members they associate with, improved work performance, and decreased alcohol use had the greatest reductions in offending. Those who increased time spent engaged in leisure and recreational activities were less likely to self-report subsequent drug use. These findings suggest that certain dynamic need changes may be more important than others, and designing interventions to impact these needs might improve outcomes.
A complex measure of non-regular languages for discrete-event supervisory control

The measure of regular languages, recently introduced in technical literature, has been the driving force for quantitative analysis and synthesis of discrete-event supervisory (DES) control systems dealing with finite state automata (equivalently, regular languages). This paper extends the signed real measure of regular languages, to a complex measure of non-regular languages, generated by linear context free grammars; the concept is illustrated by an example. The complex measure becomes equivalent to the signed real measure if the linear context free grammar is degenerated to a regular grammar.
Heterogeneity and load balance in distributed hash tables

Existing solutions to balance load in DHTs incur a high overhead either in terms of routing state or in terms of load movement generated by nodes arriving or departing the system. In this paper, we propose a set of general techniques and use them to develop a protocol based on Chord, called Y/sub 0/, that achieves load balancing with minimal overhead under the typical assumption that the load is uniformly distributed in the identifier space. In particular, we prove that Y/sub 0/ can achieve near-optimal load balancing, while moving little load to maintain the balance and increasing the size of the routing tables by at most a constant factor. Using extensive simulations based on real-world and synthetic capacity distributions, we show that Y/sub 0/ reduces the load imbalance of Chord from O(log n) to a less than 3.6 without increasing the number of links that a node needs to maintain. In addition, we study the effect of heterogeneity on both DHTs, demonstrating significantly reduced average route length as node capacities become increasingly heterogeneous. For a real-word distribution of node capacities, the route length in Y/sub 0/ is asymptotically less than half the route length in the case of a homogeneous system.
Functional and Morphological Studies on Isolated Leydig Cells: Purification by Centrifugal Elutriation and Metrizamide Fractionation

Rat interstitial cells were fractionated by centrifugal elutriation to facilitate the purification of Leydig cells for analysis of mechanisms of gonadotropin action in vitro. By this procedure, 109 collagenase-dispersed interstitial cells from adult rat testes were separated into 12 fractions in about 1 h. Fractions 1–7 (sedimentation velocities, 1.9–12 mm/h.g) comprised 80–85% of the total cells applied, including erythrocytes, lymphocytes, germinal cells, macrophages, endothelial cells, damaged Leydig cells, and contained less than 4% intact Leydig cells. Fractions 8–12 (sedimentation velocities, >12 mm/h.g) comprised 15–20% of the original cells and contained 90–95% intact Leydig cells. Despite their different sedimentation velocities, the Leydig cell-rich fractions were similar in their LH receptor content (mean ± sd, 36,115 ± 4,815 sites/cell) and showed similar 5-fold increases above the original cell preparation in testosterone and cAMP responses to hCG. The pooled Leydig cell-rich fractions (8–12)...
The Goldilocks effect

Modest overexpression of an epigenetic regulatory protein in a developmental disorder alters T helper cell differentiation and causes immune defects.
Configuration Space Theory of "Truly Three-Body" Scattering Rates

Configuration space theory of nonrelativistic three body scattering covering transition amplitudes of three-three chemical reaction rates
Traffic aided opportunistic scheduling for wireless networks: algorithms and performance bounds

In multiuser wireless networks, opportunistic scheduling can improve the system throughput and thus reduce the total completion time. In this paper, we explore the possibility of reducing the completion time further by incorporating traffic information into opportunistic scheduling. More specifically, we first establish convexity properties for opportunistic scheduling with file size information. Then, we develop new traffic aided opportunistic scheduling (TAOS) schemes by making use of file size information and channel variation in a unified manner. We also derive lower bounds and upper bounds on the total completion time, which serve as benchmarks for examining the performance of the TAOS schemes. Our results show that the proposed TAOS schemes can yield significant reduction in the total completion time. The impact of fading, file size distributions, and random arrivals and departures, on the system performance, is also investigated. In particular, in the presence of user dynamics, the proposed TAOS schemes perform well when the arrival rate is reasonably high.
Vegetative and Atmospheric Corrections for the Soil Moisture Retrieval from Passive Microwave Remote Sensing Data: Results from the Southern Great Plains Hydrology Experiment 1997

Abstract A radiative transfer model and data from the Southern Great Plains 1997 Hydrology Experiment were used to analyze the dependency of surface emissivity retrieval at 19 GHz on atmospheric and vegetative effects. Volumetric soil moisture obtained from ground measurements in the Central Facility area that show a dynamic range of 25% was highly correlated with the corresponding L-band electronically steered thinned array radiometer (ESTAR) 1.4-GHz and Special Sensor Microwave Imager 19-GHz brightness temperatures. For the Little Washita area, only the ESTAR measurements were well correlated with volumetric soil moisture. Atmospheric corrections, which were calculated from collocated radiosonde measurements, did not improve the soil moisture retrieval significantly. However, a sensitivity study at 19 GHz using a larger dataset of 241 radiosonde ascents indicates that the variability in integrated atmospheric water vapor introduces variations of 0.023 in surface emissivity. This value is ∼36% of the var...
Native Diseases of California Mediterranean Forest Angiosperms

Disease is an interaction with host plants and their environment and a biotic agent (pathogen) which changes host physiology resulting in symptoms of changes in growth, reproduction or longevity. While the pathogenic agent can be in the form of bacteria, mollicute, nematode, parasitic algae, parasitic seed plant, virus, or fungus, not all of these agents result in the formation of diseases that significantly limit populations of woody plants. Fungi are dominant pathogens of Mediterranean Forests. Fungi cause disease in all parts of woody plants but their impact can be summarized by examining the disease they cause in the major organs of trees. This chapter discusses important diseases of the foliage, shoots, periderm (cankers) and woody systems (main stem) and root systems of trees. In each section, a detailed description of the disease category is given along with descriptions of symptoms, diagnostics and etiology of the pathogens. Each disease category is accompanied by an introductory section that reviews environmental conditions that facilitate disease development. Adaptations of fungi to the Mediterranean climate of California are mentioned throughout the chapter.
PROMOTION PHENOMENON FOR THREE PARTICLE EXCHANGE.

In the two particle exchange, it has been shown [1] that the asymptotic form of the scattering amplitude at high energies behaves differently for t = 4µ2 and t ≠ 4µ2. In this paper, the three particle exchange is considered for t = 9µ2 and t ≠ 9µ2. For t near but not equal to 9µ2 in the three particle exchange, the asymptotic behavior of the scattering amplitude is also discussed.
John Clare's World

ABSTRACTThis essay puts the work – both poetry and prose – of the English Romantic peasant-poet John Clare in dialogue with exciting and timely recent work in continental philosophy and ecocritical theory regarding the (in)existence of “the World” as a closed, unified totality that contains all possible domains. The challenge in the wake of such work is to think interconnectedness without totality; this paradigm, I argue, is especially fitting for revisiting Clare and his chief concerns. Informed in particular by the work of Timothy Morton, Bruno Latour, and Jean-Luc Nancy, I shall examine the hitherto mostly undetected ontological implications of such prominent critical lynchpins as Clare's localism and his resistance to enclosure. My contention is that going back to Clare and reading him alongside contemporary thinkers can help us better analyze and ultimately confront urgent intellectual and material challenges posed to us by globalization – that regime of abstract equivalence and massive act of modern...
Coping in a Constrained Economy

Abstract Direct service providers are faced with enormous challenges in today's volatile political and economic climate. A comparative study of human service organizations in California, Michigan, and North Carolina was undertaken to explore the strategies adopted to maintain mission integrity. One hundred twelve (112) organizations participated in the study. It was hypothesized that multiple strategies would be used and these would differ by geographic location and principal program focus. Results showed that a broad range of internal and external strategies were used, most meeting or exceeding expectations, but task and processing demands appeared to dictate the choice of strategies to achieve both effectiveness and efficiency.
Abstract 1193: A single phosphorylation site mutant of the Retinoblastoma protein blocks apoptosis induced by UV

The Retinoblastoma protein (Rb) is important in the control of cell proliferation and apoptosis. Its activity is controlled by reversible phosphorylation on several serine and threonine residues. When Rb is hypophosphorylated, it inhibits proliferation by preventing passage through the G 1 - S phase transition. Hyperphosphorylated Rb promotes cell cycle progression. The role of Rb phosphorylation in the control of apoptosis is largely unknown, although several apoptotic stimuli result in dephosphorylation of Rb. It may be the case that dephosphorylation of specific amino acids may signal apoptosis versus cell cycle arrest. Using glutamic acid mutagenesis, we have generated 15 single phosphorylation site mutants from serine/threonine to glutamic acid, to mimic the phosphorylated state. By calcium phosphate transfection mutant plasmids were introduced into C33A Rb-null cells and apoptosis was induced using UV. Apoptosis was measured by ELISA detection of degraded DNA and by immunoblotting to assess proteolytic cleavage of PARP. We found that only threonine-821 when mutated to glutamic acid blocked apoptosis by 50% whereas other sites tested had little effect. In addition, endogenous Rb is dephosphorylated on threonine-821 when cells are undergoing apoptosis. Experiments to determine the effect of this mutation in response to additional apoptotic stimuli are underway. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 103rd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2012 Mar 31-Apr 4; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2012;72(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 1193. doi:1538-7445.AM2012-1193
Tissue Culture Cytopathic and Plaque Assays for Mouse Hepatitis Viruses

SummaryClone NCTC 1469 tissue culture line of C3H mouse liver, maintained in chicken serum-containing medium, was found to provide sensitive assay systems, based on production of plaques and cytopathic changes, for laboratory adapted and recently isolated strains of mouse hepatitis viruses, as well as for some naturally occurring strains in mouse feces.
Cerebral fat embolism detection with susceptibility-weighted images in sickle cell disease

Cerebral fat embolism is a known but feared complication of sickle cell disease, which leads to significant morbidity. Although trauma-related fat embolism is more frequent and its diagnosis is straightforward, fat embolism secondary to bone infarcts after vaso-occlusive events can be unrecognized. Lack of criteria make the clinical diagnosis of sickle cell disease related fat embolism challenging. The neuroimaging findings are helpful to support the clinical diagnosis. Magnetic resonance imaging findings of fat embolism have been described including those seen on susceptibility-weighted imaging. Even though susceptibility-weighted imaging has been used for the diagnosis of cerebral fat embolism due to trauma, to the best of our knowledge its use has not been described in patients with sickle cell disease. We report an uncommon case of a 60-year-old woman with sickle cell disease who developed cerebral fat embolism and in which the findings on susceptibility-weighted imaging were characteristic and established the diagnosis.
Privacy-Preserving Spatiotemporal Matching for Secure Device-to-Device Communications

Device-to-device (D2D) communications are emerging due to the explosive growth of smartphones and tablets. Given the possible presence of attackers, a fundamental challenge in secure D2D communications is to develop sound mobile authentication techniques whereby mobile users can select the most trustworthy D2D communication partners from possibly many candidates. This paper tackles this open challenge and proposes spatiotemporal matching as a promising enabler for secure D2D communications. Spatiotemporal matching is built upon the location-aware capability of D2D devices. In particular, a mobile user could very easily maintain his spatiotemporal profile recording his continuous whereabouts in time, and the level of his spatiotemporal profile matching that of the other user can be translated into the level of trust they two can have in each other. Since spatiotemporal profiles contain very sensitive personal information, privacy-preserving spatiotemporal matching is needed to ensure that as little information as possible about the spatiotemporal profile of either matching participant is disclosed beyond the matching result. Toward this end, we propose two novel privacy-preserving spatiotemporal matching protocols, which are thoroughly analyzed and evaluated through detailed simulation studies driven by experimental data.
A Pink-Colored form of Polyporus Sulphureus and its Probable Relationship to Root-Rot of Oaks

For several years a very conspicuous polypore has been found associated with living oak trees on the campus of the University of Arkansas. Most of these trees represent native wild plants that existed prior to the present use of the land, and are over fifty years of age. A number have been cut down and the same polypore noted near the stumps. While one may expect trees that are seventy-five years old or older to show some weakening, yet the marked signs of debility shown by some of them in the form of large, dead limbs and portions of trunks indicate that these trees are probably suffering from additional
VisualDx Clinical Decision Support Software

Logical Images, Inc. 3445 Winton Place, Suite 240 Rochester, NY 14623 800-357-7611, [www.logicalimages.com][1] VisualDx is a software program that provides assistance in the identification of dental and medical diseases. In this review, we focus on the Oral Lesions module of VisualDx Version 4.0,
Pornographic Fiction, Implicature, and Imaginative Resistance

Having discussed issues of methodology in Chapter 1 and introduced the requisite philosophy of language in Chapter 2, we are now ready to pursue the central arguments of the book, the arguments to the conclusions that (1) the Reformation in its Puritan form was, in Weber’s language, an “adequate cause” of the emergence of pornographic narrative fiction as a distinct genre in the modern West and (2) that this genre constitutes a self-deceptive vehicle for sexual or blood-lustful arousal. (Here we shall confine ourselves to sexual pornography. The phenomenon of violent pornography will be addressed in Chapter 4.) An adequate cause according to Weber, it is essential to recall, is a causal condition that is neither necessary nor sufficient, but raises the probability of some event’s occurrence. We begin in Section 3.2 by considering the uneasy relationship between pornographic literature and Anglo-American law. Section 3.3 takes up Erich Auerbach’s influential idea of Stiltrennung, or “separation of styles,” in the literature of the West and its relations to Christianity, Protestant Christianity, the modern novel, and pornographic writing. Section 3.4 explicitly ties the concerns of the present chapter to the issues of conversational implicature and perceptive equilibrium broached in Chapter 2 by introducing the important notion of imaginative resistance. Section 3.5 uses results gleaned in these discussions to frame John Cleland’s Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure as the first genuinely pornographic Western literary work. Section 3.6 considers the relationship between pornography and prostitution, and Section 3.7 summarizes the chapter and poses a question concerning pornography as cultural construction or psychological universal, a question taken up in detail in the following and final chapter.
Islamic Societies to the Nineteenth Century: The Safavid Empire

The origins of the Safavids Iran had a profound historical tradition of imperial regimes and cultures. The Saljuq governments of the eleventh and twelfth centuries were built on prior ʿAbbasid and Sasanian and more ancient institutions. The Mongol and Timurid invasions continued many of the political and cultural achievements of the past but brought lasting demographic, economic, and political changes to Iranian societies. In the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, large numbers of Turkish and Mongol peoples settled in northwestern Iran and eastern Anatolia, and, by the fourteenth century, a large Turkish population was also established in eastern Iran and in the Oxus region. Ever since, Turkish peoples have constituted about one-fourth of the total population of Iran. The Turkish presence radically changed the economy of Iran. Substantial territories were turned from agriculture into pasturage. Villagers were induced to take up a migratory existence, farming in valley bottoms and pasturing sheep in adjacent mountain highlands. Only in the reign of Ghazan (d. 1304) did the Ilkhans attempt to develop a more balanced relationship between agricultural and pastoral activities and a system of property organization that maintained the position of both agricultural and pastoral peoples. The Ilkhans began to stabilize the division of Iran into two economic and cultural worlds – one, the world of the sedentary village; the other, that of the pastoral camp.
Real-Time In Vivo Biodistribution of Multipotent Adult Progenitor Cells (MAPC): Role of the Immune System in MAPC Resistance in Non-Transplanted and Bone Marrow Transplanted Mice.

MAPC are non-hematopoietic stem cells derived from adult BM with the potential for a wide differentiation pattern in vitro and in vivo. MAPCs are MHC class I and thus may be a target of natural killer (NK) cell mediated elimination in the syngeneic setting. To determine whether MAPC are susceptible targets for NK mediated killing, splenocytes from poly I:C (an inducer of NK activity) treated C57BL/6 mice were mixed with Yac-1 (H2a; a NK sensitive target) or MAPC (from C57BL/6J-rosa26) in a chromium release assay. Effector:target ratios indicated that MAPC were susceptible to NK lysis albeit less so than Yac-1 cells. To assess in vivo immune responses to MAPC, we infused MAPC into mice with various degrees of T-, B-, and NK- cell immune competence. To follow biodistribution of MAPC in live animals with whole body imaging (WBI), we labeled MAPC with red fluorescent protein DsRed2 and luciferase, using Sleeping Beauty transposons. MAPC (106) were co-nucleofected (Amaxa) with 5mcg of each pT/CAGGS-DsRed2 and pT/CAGGS-Luciferase and an SB transposase-encoding plasmid (p/CMV-HSB2) at a 1:50 ratio. Selected double transgenic MAPC (MAPC DL) clones were euploid, and maintained their characteristic trilineage differentiation. MAPC DL (106) were injected IV into cohorts (n=5–6) of adult C57BL/6 (B6), Rag2−/− (T- and B-cell deficient) and B6 Rag2/IL-2Rgc (T-, B- and NK deficient mice). Additional cohorts of B6 and Rag2−/− were given anti-NK1.1 mAb 2x/wk to deplete NK cells. In B6 mice, MAPC DL were detected on d4 but not d14 or d30. In Rag2−/− mice, MAPC DL were detected throughout the 30d period. NK depletion did not substantially increase MAPC DL number in B6 mice. However, in Rag2/IL-2Rgc mice MAPC DL were persistent and in 50% of mice they increased in number from d4‡d30. Post-mortem analysis revealed MAPC DL cells in all but B6 wild type mice: Rag2/IL-2Rgc ≥ Rag2−/− with NK depletion>> Rag2−/−. These data suggest that endogenous NK cells and T cells resist MAPC DL. Interestingly, in vitro studies indicate that MAPCs suppress an allogeneic mixed lymphocyte reaction (MLR) culture. Therefore, the T cell resistance to MAPC may be due to an immune response generated to the multiple foreign reporter proteins expressed by these cells. Since MAPCs may be useful as cellular therapies for the treatment of regimen-related toxicity, studies were performed in which B10.BR mice were lethally irradiated (TBI) and given B6 BM ± MAPC DL (106). MAPC DL were seen in the chest, abdomen, face, and paws on d4, d7, d10 and d28 at high numbers suggesting that TBI conditioning overcomes both NK and T cell mediated resistance resuting in a widespread homing/migration of MAPC. These data are the first to illustrate the immune responses to MAPCs and indicate that TBI conditioning may be advantageous in the long-term survival and widespread homing of MAPCs.
Is There a Philosophy of Science? (1973)

Medawar’s Induction and Intuition in Scientific Thoughtis an extraordinary book. First of all, it is well printed in black ink with a plain, legible type on good white paper, with running heads and page numbers where they belong, decent margins, paragraphs properly indented, a centered and dignified title page, and a sober yet clearly stamped binding. Such bookmaking is nearly extinct. It deserves a laurel wreath.
A 2MASS/AllWISE Search for Extremely Red L Dwarfs: The Discovery of Several Likely L Type Members of β Pic, AB Dor, Tuc-Hor, Argus, and the Hyades

Young brown dwarfs share many properties with directly imaged giant extrasolar planets. They therefore provide unique laboratories for investigating the full range of temperature and mass encompassed by the growing collection of planets discovered outside our Solar System. Furthermore, if they can be tied to a particular group of coeval stars, they also provide vital anchor points for low-mass empirical isochrones. We have developed a novel procedure for identifying such objects based on their unique 2MASS and AllWISE colors. Using our search criteria, we have identified 50 new, late-type L dwarf candidates, 47 of which are spectroscopically confirmed as L dwarfs with follow-up near-infrared spectroscopy. We evaluate the potential membership of these objects in nearby, young moving groups using their proper motions, photometric distance estimates, and spectroscopic indicators of youth, and find seven likely L-type members belonging to the β Pictoris moving group, the AB Doradus moving group, the Tucana-Horologium association, or the Argus association, in addition to several lower probability members. Also found are two late-type (L5 and L6) potential members of the nearby Hyades cluster (WISEA J043642.75+190134.8 and WISEA J044105.56+213001.5).
EFFECT OF CASH TRANSPORT ON THE FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE OF COMMERCIAL BANKS IN KENYA

Purpose: The main aim of the study was to assess the effect of cash transport on the financial performance of commercial banks in Kenya. Methodology: The research was carried out through a descriptive survey research design. The study population was all the 43 commercial banks registered and licensed to operate in Kenya. A multi stage sampling approach was used. In the first stage, a census of all the 43 commercial banks was conducted, that is, the units of analysis were the commercial bank. In the second stage, purposive sampling was used where two respondents from every organization were taken. The study used both primary and secondary data for analysis. Primary data was collected using questionnaires while secondary data was obtained using secondary data collection template. A multiple linear regression model was used to link variables. Findings: The study findings indicated a positive correlation between cash transport and financial performance of commercial banks. Cash transport was positively and significantly related to ROA. The study concluded that cash reconciliation is positively and significantly related to financial performance of commercial banks in Kenya, Unique contribution to theory, practice and policy: The study recommends that commercial banks and other financial institutions involved in handling of cash should have a cash transport policy which clearly stipulates how cash in transit should be handled, regularly review the contracts of companies which transport cash for them so as to avoid known routines, have tracking devices in the vehicles that transport cash, engage administrative police in security arrangements when transporting cash and invest in cash in transit measures like chase cars. The study recommended further studies to establish the effect of cash handling practices on financial performance of other financial institutions other than commercial banks. This will be crucial in comparison of the results and identification of more research gaps for future studies.
Roman Ingarden and the Venus of Milo

Ingarden visited Paris as often as circumstances allowed. Besides being attracted by the inspiring cultural qualities of the city itself, he was particularly drawn to the Louvre and its prominently displayed and world-famous statue called the Venus of Milo. This more than life-size marble statue of a female figure was found in the Mediterranean Sea in 1820 off the coast from the island of Milo or Melos, in the Aegean Sea south of Greece.
Allocating group housing

We study mechanisms for allocating objects to pairs of agents when agents may have nontrivial preferences over objects and pairings. In this environment, the mechanism may distort agents’ preferences over pairings. Compared to certain distortive mechanisms, a non-distortive one always has a stable allocation in our model, and selects stable outcomes that are ex ante preferred by all students under a regularity condition on the distribution of pair values.
Connecting the Dots: An Interdisciplinary Diabetes Quality Improvement Initiative

IN BRIEF "Quality Improvement Success Stories" are published by the American Diabetes Association in collaboration with the American College of Physicians, Inc., and the National Diabetes Education Program. This series is intended to highlight best practices and strategies from programs and clinics that have successfully improved the quality of care for people with diabetes or related conditions. Each article in the series is reviewed and follows a standard format developed by the editors of Clinical Diabetes. The following article describes a collaborative effort to improve the care of patients with diabetes, with a particular focus on scheduling annual diabetic eye exams, attending to recommended quality metrics, and improving the availability of blood glucose monitoring data during appointments.
Proper balance of solvent-solute and solute-solute interactions in the treatment of the diffusion of glucose using the Drude polarizable force field

Motivated by underestimation of the diffusion constant of glucose in aqueous solution at high glucose concentrations we performed additional optimization of the Drude polarizable hexopyranose monosaccharide force field. This indicated aggregation of the glucose at higher concentrations, which is a concern for studies of complex glycan systems such as the HIV Envelope where high effective concentrations of sugars are present. High-level quantum mechanical calculations were undertaken on water monohydrate-glucose interactions, on water cluster-glucose interactions and on glucose-glucose dimers in stacked (parallel) and perpendicular orientations. Optimization of the nonbond and dihedral parameters targeting these data yielded a revised model that showed improved agreement with experimental aqueous diffusion data. However, limitations in the diffusion constants were still present. These were due to the SWM4-NDP inherently overestimating the diffusion constant of water, a problem that was validated by calculation of the aqueous diffusion constants using the SWM6-NDP water model. In addition, results show the water diffusion constant to be significantly overestimated at high glucose concentrations though the glucose diffusion is in satisfactory agreement with experiment. These results indicate the subtle balance of water-sugar, water-water and sugar-sugar interactions that needs to be properly modeled to account for the full range of aqueous behavior of sugars in aqueous solution.
Maintenance of Carbapenemase-Producing Enterobacteriaceae in a Farrow-to-Finish Swine Production System

Abstract Carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae (CPE) threaten both agriculture and public health. While carbapenems are restricted in food-producing animals, other β-lactams, such as ceftiofur...
Harmonization, heterogeneity and regulation: CESL, the lost opportunity for constructive harmonization

The central bargain of CESL is to provide firms that do business throughout the European Union the protection of a set of uniform rules that will override the many local laws that now govern consumer and small business transactions. The price for that protection is that firms that opt into CESL must accept an onerous set of mandatory terms intended to protect consumers and SMEs. In practice that price is too steep. The key objective of all contractual arrangements is to secure mutual gains from trade for both sides. That objective is hampered by insisting on intrusive mandatory terms that make contracting more costly and less efficient that it ought to be. A far better approach, fully consistent the principle of subsidiarity, allows any firm to pick its preferred standardized terms for any given class of transactions. That approach has been adopted in the American decision in Carnival Cruise v. Shute. It should work equally well in the European context.