cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Increasing Mammography and Cervical Cancer Knowledge and Screening Behaviors With an Educational Program

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES To evaluate the effectiveness of using an educational program based on self-efficacy to increase knowledge and create behavior change regarding recommended mammography and Papanicolaou (Pap) test screening guidelines. DESIGN Pretest and post-test, prospective. SETTING An urban county in northern Indiana. SAMPLE 56 women who attended one of four educational programs and 47 women who responded 15 months later. METHODS The one-hour educational programs based on self-efficacy included vicarious experiences and verbal persuasion regarding breast and cervical screening practices. Two programs were offered to local church groups as part of a health fair, and two were offered through health promotion initiatives sponsored by private businesses. MAIN RESEARCH VARIABLES Demographics, knowledge of breast and cervical cancer, and screening behaviors. FINDINGS Knowledge of risk and screening guidelines increased significantly immediately following the educational program (p < 0.001) and did not decrease significantly 15 months later (p = 0.57). Family history and history of human papillomavirus and sexually transmitted diseases were the top known risk factors for breast and cervical cancers, respectively. Participant-reported rates of screening behaviors increased 15 months later for mammography (100%) and Pap test (84%). CONCLUSIONS Educational interventions based on self-efficacy increased knowledge of breast and cervical health and helped increase the rate of mammography and Pap tests. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING Preparing women with strategies to complete a mammogram and Pap test is an important approach to enhancing self-efficacy and increasing screening behaviors.
Age Changes in Nonverbal Decoding as a Function of Increasing Amounts of Information.

Abstract A test of nonverbal decoding skill (the PONS test) was administered to 632 subjects of eight different age levels, ranging from third graders to adults (Ages 8–33 years). Females were more accurate than males, older subjects were more accurate than younger ones, and all samples tended to decode more successfully when more information was available. Three different analyses showed that the increase in accuracy with increasing amounts of information was more pronounced for the older than for the younger groups. This differential effectiveness in the utilization of available information was discussed in terms of processing capacity, effort, and strategies for sampling a diversity of cues.
Laboratory measurements and theoretical calculations of O 2 A band electric quadrupole transitions

Frequency-stabilized cavity ring-down spectroscopy was utilized to measure electric quadrupole transitions within the ^(16)O_2 A band, b^1Σ^+_g ← X^3Σ^-_g(0,0). We report quantitative measurements (relative uncertainties in intensity measurements from 4.4% to 11%) of nine ultraweak transitions in the ^NO, ^PO, ^RS, and ^TS branches with line intensities ranging from 3×10^(−30) to 2×10^(−29) cm molec.^(−1). A thorough discussion of relevant noise sources and uncertainties in this experiment and other cw-cavity ring-down spectrometers is given. For short-term averaging (t<100 s), we estimate a noise-equivalent absorption of 2.5×10^(−10) cm^(−1) Hz^(−1/2). The detection limit was reduced further by co-adding up to 100 spectra to yield a minimum detectable absorption coefficient equal to 1.8×10^(−11) cm^(−1), corresponding to a line intensity of ~2.5×10^(−31) cm molec.^(−1). We discuss calculations of electric quadrupole line positions based on a simultaneous fit of the ground and upper electronic state energies which have uncertainties <3 MHz, and we present calculations of electric quadrupole matrix elements and line intensities. The electric quadrupole line intensity calculations and measurements agreed on average to 5%, which is comparable to our average experimental uncertainty. The calculated electric quadrupole band intensity was 1.8(1)×10^(−27) cm molec.−1 which is equal to only ~8×10^(−6) of the magnetic dipole band intensity.
Antiparallel side-by-side heterodimer for sequence-specific recognition in the minor groove of DNA by a distamycin/1-methylimidazole-2-carboxamide-netropsin pair

The two peptides distamycin A (D) and 1-methylimidazole-2-carboxamide-netropsin (2-ImN) simultaneously bind the five-base-pair sequence 5'-TGTTA-3'. Footprinting experiments indicate that both molecules are necessary for binding to this sequence while affinity cleaving data define the orientations with which each peptide binds to this sequence. The footprinting and affinity cleaving data are consistent with a model wherein the two peptides bind as a side-by-side antiparallel heterodimer in the minor groove of double-helical DNA
Measurement of Li6, He3, and H3 in meteorites and its relation to cosmic radiation

Abstract The He3 and Li6 contents of six iron and five stone meteorites are measured by neutron activation. Both the iron and the stone meteorites have large He3 contents ranging from 0.13 × 10−6 c.c./g to 9 × 10−6 c.c./g. The stone meteorites have Li6 contents ranging from 1.1 × 1016 Li6 atoms/g to 6.2 × 1016 Li6 atoms/g. The iron meteorites have less than 1014 Li6 atoms/g. There is no uniform relation between the Li6 contents of the meteorites and their He3 contents, indicating that the He3 contents of both the stone meteorites and the iron meteorites are due to spallation caused by high-energy costnic rays rather than slow neutrons and that the average slow-neutron flux has been less than 1 neutron/cm2 sec. The tritium contents of the iron meteorites. Norfork (1918), Para de Minas (1934), and Charcas (1804) are measured. A tritium content of (2.7 ± 0.3) × 106 H3 atoms/g at its time of fall is indicated for the Norfork meteorite and of (5.9 ± 1.2) × 105 H3 atoms at its time of fall is indicated for the Para de Minas meteorite. There is less than 1.2 × 104 H3 atoms/g in Charcas. The tritium and helium-3 content of Norfork combine to give it a cosmic-ray age of 0.9 × 109 years or greater. The tritium and helium-3 content of Para do Minas combine to give it a cosmic-ray age of 1.7 × 109 years or greater. This indicates that if iron meteorites resulted from the breakup of a larger mass, the breakup occurred 0.9 × 109 or more years ago. Small H3 contents but negligible helium-3 contents are found in terrestrial iron samples. The tritium content of the iron meteorites compared with that produced in iron by high-energy proton bombardment gives the average flux of cosmic rays bombarding the meteorite in extraterrestrial space. This flux as determined from the Norfork meteorite, equals the 1954 cosmic-ray flux which does not contain the low energy cutoff; the flux determined from the Para de Minas meteorite is a factor of 3 to 6 lower. This indicates that Para de Minas, which is a 112-kg meteorite, was shielded from cosmic radiation by material ablated during its passage through the atmosphere, or was irradiated by a smaller cosmic-ray flux than Norfork.
Diagnosis and Management of Cryptococcal Disease in Resource-Limited Settings

Cryptococcal meningitis is one of the most important fungal infections in the developing world, where deaths related to this disease are numerous. In resource-limited settings, mortality is high in large part because of difficulties in the diagnosis and management of this infection. This paper outlines many of the realities in many resource-limited settings, and describes priorities for public health action and research.
Elementary School Counseling and Peer Relations

It was the purpose of this study to compare the effects of counseling and selected guidance techniques upon 5th and 6th grade elementary school students' peer relationships. Sociometric status and teacher ratings of their students' social skills were selected as criteria. Subjects were selected from students who were in the lower half of their classes in sociometric status and who indicated that they wanted to get along better with their peers. From each of 7 classrooms an equal number of subjects was randomly assigned to each of 3 treatment conditions: (1) counseling, (2) teacher-guidance, and (3) control. When the treatment conditions were compared, no statistically significant differences were found among them.
Coding of influenza A H1N1 virus calls received by Texas poison centers.

Context. The utilization of poison center data for research and surveillance depends on the complete and accurate coding of the data. Objective. The intent of this study was to describe the coding that Texas poison centers used to identify calls relating to the recent H1N1 outbreak and the extent to which the coding accurately identified the calls. Methods. Cases were all H1N1 calls added to the six Texas poison centers' common database during April 28–September 30, 2009. Cases were selected by identifying all records that had the required H1N1 code or text in the FreeArea1, Substance Verbatim, or PoisIndex code fields or had the terms “swine” or “H1N1” anywhere within the Notes field. The proportion of fields that were coded correctly was determined for each field alone and all three combined and for each of the six poison centers and by 2-month period. Results. Of the 222 H1N1 calls identified, the FreeArea1 field was coded correctly in 67.1% cases, Substance Verbatim field in 73.9%, PoisIndex code fiel...
Comparison of CFD and MRI Flow and Velocities in an In Vitro Large Artery Bypass Graft Model

Bypass graft failures have been attributed to various hemodynamic factors, including flow stasis and low shear stress. Ideally, surgeries would minimize the occurrence of these detrimental flow conditions, but surgeons cannot currently assess this. Numerical simulation techniques have been proposed as one method for predicting changes in flow distributions and patterns from surgical bypass procedures, but comparisons against experimental results are needed to assess their usefulness. Previous in vitro studies compared simulated results against experimentally obtained measurements, but they focused on peripheral arteries, which have lower Reynolds numbers than those found in the larger arteries. In this study, we compared simulation results against measurements obtained using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques for a phantom model of a stenotic vessel with a bypass graft under conditions suitable for surgical planning purposes and with inlet Reynolds numbers closer to those found in the larger arteries. Comparisons of flow rate and velocity profiles were performed at maximum and minimum flows at four locations and used simulation results that were temporally and spatially averaged, key postprocessing when comparing against phase contrast MRI measurements. The maximum error in the computed volumetric flow rates was 6% of the measured values, and excellent qualitative agreement was obtained for the through-plane velocity profiles in both magnitude and shape. The in-plane velocities also agreed reasonably well at most locations.
Psychoneuroimmune Implications of Type 2 Diabetes

The idea that type 2 diabetes is associated with augmented innate immune function characterized by increased circulating levels of acute phase reactants and altered macrophage biology is fairly well established, even though the mechanisms involved in this complex interaction still are not entirely clear. To date, the majority of studies investigating innate immune function in type 2 diabetes are limited to the context of wound healing, atherosclerosis, stroke, and other commonly identified comorbidities. Several important recurring themes come out of these data. First, type 2 diabetes is associated with a state of chronic, subclinical inflammation. Second, in macrophages, type 2 diabetic conditions enhance proinflammatory reactions and impair anti-inflammatory responses. Third, after acute activation of the innate immune system in type 2 diabetes, recovery or resolution of inflammation is impaired. The consequences of type 2 diabetes-associated inflammatory alterations on PNI processes have been recognized only recently. Given the impact of diminished emotional well-being on the quality of life in patients who have type 2 diabetes, diabetes-induced exacerbation of PNI responses should be considered a serious complication of type 2 diabetes that warrants further clinical attention.
Susceptibility of Fanconi's anaemia fibroblasts to chromosome damage by carcinogens

INDIVIDUALS with certain genetic syndromes associated with chromosome damage show markedly increased incidence of cancer1. In one such syndrome, Fanconi's anaemia (FA), chromosomal breakage and rearrangement has been found in lymphocytes and fibroblasts2,3 years before the development of malignant tumours. There is some evidence that cells from FA patients are especially sensitive to oncogenic agents. FA fibroblasts are abnormally susceptible to SV40 transformation4, and lymphocytes from patients show increased chromosome aberrations after exposure to ionising radiation5, or to alkylating agents6,7. In these reports, however, evaluation was based on cells which entered metaphase during brief and possibly toxic exposures to chemicals. We report here experiments in which FA fibroblasts were exposed to a direct-acting mutagen or carcinogen for a period of 6 d, ensuring chronic exposure of the cells during one or more cell cycles, until increased cell density inhibited further cell division. After subculture we could then assay chromosome damage in cells capable of entering a new cycle of cell division after removal from the chemical. We found that viable FA fibroblasts showed increases in chromosome aberrations after exposure to the mutagen or carcinogen at concentrations that had no effect in other cell strains tested. Since fibroblasts can be maintained in serial passage, their use in this protocol makes it possible to examine residual and possibly lasting effects of the treatment.
Double-Resonance Plasmon Substrates for Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering with Enhancement at Excitation and Stokes Frequencies

We report a surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrate with plasmon resonances at both excitation and Stokes frequencies. This multilayer structure combines localized surface plasmons on the nanoparticles with surface plasmon polaritons excited on a gold film. The largest SERS enhancement factor for a gold device is measured to be 7.2 x 10(7), which is more than 2 orders of magnitude larger than that measured on a gold nanoparticle array on a glass substrate. The largest SERS enhancement for a silver device is measured to be 8.4 x 10(8).
Social interactions as predictors of children's likability and friendship patterns: A multiple regression analysis

The concurrent and predictive validity of four qualitative behavioral classes of social interaction (initiating and receiving positive and negative social interaction) was investigated using sociometric measures of peer acceptance (ratings) and friendship (nominations). Correlational analyses showed significant relationships between behavioral and sociometric measures supporting previous work with preschool populations. Stepwise multiple regression analyses suggested that receiving social interaction from peers best predicted overall acceptance, whereas initiating social interactions best predicted children's friendship patterns. Tentative implications for the behavioral assessment of children's social skills were discussed.
Sounds of Power and Deference: Acoustic Analysis of Macro Social Constraints on Micro Interaction

In Goffinan's introduction to Interaction Ritual, he implores sociologists "to identify the countless patterns and natural sequences of behavior occurring whenever persons come into one another's immediate presence." This article, in addressing Goffman's entreaty, amalgamates a number of sociological theories on interaction ritual from Durkheim and Goffmnan with others in contemporary literatures in the sociology of emotions and social psychology to describe a set of "patterns and natural sequences of behavior" imbedded in voices of interaction partners. These patterns are shown to establish an element of social structure, and this research describes an objective method of identifying and measuring this element that previously was known on a qualitative basis alone. A social status ordering pattern founded upon intrpersonal deference and power relations is identified through analysis of acoustic energy levels in voices of interview partners. Nonverbal measures are performed using a dual-channel Fast Fourier Transform analyzer and results are explained usinga carrierspectrum modeL This report sets forth an interesting new way of objectively measuring the macro social constraints on micro interaction.
Jobs and skills: A multivariate structural approach

Abstract In this paper, we illustrate a multivariate structural approach to explaining inequalities in job skills. We argue that skill differences are produced by work structures operating at several levels of analysis, including organizations, occupations, technology, and unions. In addition, background characteristics of individuals are important for allocating men and women to positions in the technical division of labor. We derive measures of two dimensions of job skills (substantive complexity and autonomy) from questionnaires completed by 4567 workers, managers, and supervisors of 54 plants in 7 manufacturing industries in south-central Indiana. We supplement these questionnaire data with information on work structures obtained from interviews with key informants in each plant, which yielded information on the organizational and technological correlates of skill; and measures of occupational activities from the Dictionary of Occupational Titles (3rd ed., U.S. Bureau of the Census, U.S. Govt. Printing Office, Washington, DC 1965) . Our contextual models provide evidence that the different work structures have distinct impacts on the two dimensions of job skills.
Inflammatory Papillitis in Uveitis: Response to Treatment and Use of Optic Nerve Optical Coherence Tomography for Monitoring.

AbstractPurpose: To describe the clinical course of uveitis-associated inflammatory papillitis and evaluate the utility and reproducibility of optic nerve spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT). Methods: Data on 22 eyes of 14 patients with uveitis-related papillitis and optic nerve imaging were reviewed. SD-OCT measure reproducibility was determined and parameters were compared in active vs. inactive uveitis. Results: Papillitis resolution lagged behind uveitis resolution in three patients. For SD-OCT measures, the intraclass correlation coefficients were 99.1–100% and 86.9–100% for intraobserver and interobserver reproducibility, respectively. All SD-OCT optic nerve measures except inferior and nasal peripapillary retinal thicknesses were significantly higher in active vs. inactive uveitis after correction for multiple hypotheses testing. Mean optic nerve central thickness decreased from 545.1 to 362.9 µm (p = 0.01). Conclusions: Resolution of inflammatory papillitis can lag behind resolut...
“Can't Nobody Sleep” and Other Characteristics of Culturally Responsive English Instruction

In this article the author presents a collective case study of two English teachers identified as particularly successful with Black students. Through the use of ethnographic techniques, the study provides a snapshot of how these teachers facilitated academic gains in urban high schools through their use of culturally responsive English instruction.
Psychotropic Drugs in Pregnancy and Lactation

Objective:This article reviews the literature on the use of psychotropic drugs in pregnancy and lactation.Method:Medline search yielded more than five hundred titles. Articles were reviewed and ninety-one were selected for reference.Results:Fetal physiology and teratogenicity are discussed and the effects of specific drugs on the fetus and newborn are presented. When possible, recommendations for use or non-use are presented.Conclusions:Though no controlled studies have ever been done in pregnant women to truly prove their safety, it appears that most, but not all, current psychotropic drugs appear fairly safe for use in pregnancy.
Superiority of rapamycin over tacrolimus in preserving nonhuman primate Treg half-life and phenotype after adoptive transfer.

Many critical issues remain concerning how best to deploy adoptive regulatory T cell (Treg) immunotherapy to the clinic. These include a determination of their pharmacokinetic characteristics, their optimal dose, their phenotypic stability and the best therapies with which to pair Tregs. By performing a CFSE-labeled autologous Treg pulse experiment, we determined that the accessible peripheral blood Treg pool in rhesus macaques is quite large (75 ± 11 × 10(6) Tregs/kg). Pharmacokinetic analysis revealed that Tregs have two phases of elimination: an α phase, with a T1/2 in the peripheral blood of 32.4 ± 11.3 h and a β phase with a T1/2 of 120.4 ± 19.7 h. In addition to their short initial half-life, Tregs underwent rapid phenotypic shifts after infusion, with significant loss of both CD25 and FoxP3 by day +6. While tacrolimus stabilized CD25 expression, it did not improve T1/2 , nor mitigate the loss of FoxP3. In contrast, rapamycin significantly stabilized both CD25 and FoxP3, and supported an increased half-life, with an α phase of 67.7 ± 6.9 h and a β phase of 252.1 ± 54.9 h. These results suggest that rapamycin may be a necessary addition to Treg immunotherapy, and that tacrolimus may be deleterious to Treg integrity posttransfer.
Depressive symptoms as a risk factor for osteoporosis and fractures in older Mexican American women.

Despite higher rates of depression, lower hormone replacement therapy (HRT) use, and inadequate knowledge of factors associated with osteoporosis, Mexican Americans have been understudied with regards to the association between depression, osteoporosis, and fractures. We hypothesized that depression increases the risk for osteoporosis and fractures among older Mexican American women. Seven years of prospective data (1993–2001) from the Hispanic Established Populations for Epidemiologic Studies of the Elderly were analyzed for 1,350 women in the Southwest United States who had complete data for at least the first follow-up interview. Respondents (mean age:75) were generally poorly educated, had low income, and reported poor or fair health. High levels of depressive symptoms were reported by 31%, while new diagnosis of osteoporosis and new fractures were reported by 18 and 13%, respectively. Logistic regression analyses showed that predictors of newly diagnosed osteoporosis included age, high school (HS) education, ever having been an alcoholic, early menopause, hormone replacement therapy, and high levels of depressive symptoms. Factors predictive of new fractures included age, HS education, diabetes, early menopause, and high levels of depressive symptoms. Depressive symptoms were associated with increased risk of osteoporosis and new fractures, even after controlling for other predictive factors.
Observations of Open-Ocean Deep Convection in the Labrador Sea from Subsurface Floats*

Abstract The occurrence and extent of deep convection in the Labrador Sea in winters 1996/97 and 1997/98 is investigated from measurements of over 200 neutrally buoyant subsurface Profiling Autonomous Lagrangian Circulation Explorer (PALACE) and Sounding Oceanographic Lagrangian Observer (SOLO) floats. In addition to providing drift velocity data and vertical profiles of temperature and salinity, 55 floats are equipped with vertical current meters (VCMs). Time series of vertical velocity (derived from measured pressure and vertical flow past the float) and temperature are obtained from the VCM floats. Mixed layer depths estimated from profile measurements indicate that convection reached depths greater than 1300 m in 1997, but no deeper than 1000 m in 1998. Deep mixed layers were concentrated in the western basin, although a number of deep mixed layers were observed southwest of Cape Farewell and also north of 60°N. The highest variance in vertical velocity and the lowest mean temperatures were found in t...
A two-stage head pose estimation framework and evaluation

Head pose is an important indicator of a person's focus of attention. Also, head pose estimation can be used as the front-end analysis for multi-view face analysis. For example, face recognition and identification algorithms are usually view dependent. Pose classification can help such face recognition systems to select the best view model. Subspace analysis has been widely used for head pose estimation. However, such techniques are usually sensitive to data alignment and background noise. In this paper a two-stage approach is proposed to address this issue by combining the subspace analysis together with the topography method. The first stage is based on the subspace analysis of Gabor wavelets responses. Different subspace techniques were compared for better exploring the underlying data structure. Nearest prototype matching with Euclidean distance was used to get the pose estimate. The single pose estimate was relaxed to a subset of poses around it to incorporate certain tolerance to data alignment and background noise. In the second stage, the pose estimate is refined by analyzing finer geometrical structure details captured by bunch graphs. This coarse-to-fine framework was evaluated with a large data set. We examined 86 poses, with the pan angle spanning from -90^@? to 90^@? and the tilt angle spanning from -60^@? to 45^@?. The experimental results indicate that the integrated approach has a remarkably better performance than using subspace analysis alone.
The amorphous FPGA architecture

This paper describes the Amorphous FPGA, an innovative architecture attempting to optimally allocate logic and routing resource on per-mapping basis. Designed for high performance, routability, and ease-of-use, it supports variable-granularity logic blocks, dedicated wide multiplexers, and variable-length bypassing interconnects with a symmetrical structure. Due to its many unconventional architectural features, the amorphous FPGA requires several major modifications to be made in the standard VPR placement/routing CAD flow, which include a new placement algorithm and a modified delay-based routing procedure. It is shown that, on average, an FPGA with the amorphous architecture can achieve a 1.35 times improvement in logic density, 9% improvement in average net delay, and 4% improvement in the critical-path delay for the largest 20 MCNC benchmark circuits over an island-style baseline
Stretch-induced nerve conduction deficits in guinea pig ex vivo nerve

Abstract In the current communication, we characterized supraphysiologic elongations that elicited short-term nerve dysfunction. This was accomplished by assessing the electrophysiology of guinea pig tibial and peroneal nerves at predetermined elongation magnitudes. Results showed that a longitudinal supraphysiological stretch of λ = 1.05 caused a 16% reduction in the mean compound action potential (CAP) amplitude. Upon relaxation to physiologic length, a full recovery in the CAP was observed. At λ = 1.10 , the CAP decreased by 50% with an 88% recovery after relaxation. For a supraphysiologic stretch of λ = 1.20 , severe conduction block with minimal acute recovery was observed. Latency also increased during periods of stretch and was proportional to the stretch magnitude. Additional studies showed some electrophysiological recovery during the sustained stretch phase. This attribute may be related to internal stress relaxation mechanisms. Since whole nerve elongations are averaged global deformations, we also used an incremental digital image correlation (DIC) technique to characterize the strain at the micro-tissue level. The DIC analysis revealed considerable heterogeneity in the planar strain field, with some regions exhibiting strains above the macroscale stretch. This non-uniformity in the strain map arises from structural inconsistencies of the nerve and we presume that zones of high local strain may translate into the observed conduction deficits.
Probabilistic maximum error modeling for unreliable logic circuits

Reliability modeling and evaluation is expected to be one of the major issues in emerging nano-devices and beyond 22nm CMOS. Such devices would have inherent propensity for gate failures due to the underlying device variabilities. Many of these failures would be transient in nature, necessitating the need for probabilistic logic base danalysis. Current research in this area is concerned with computing error bounds, but they do not account for circuits structures or are usually derived for specific logic gate types. In addition, the usual focus is on computing the average error behavior. In this work, we propose an exact probabilistic error model to compute the maximum error in a circuit-specific manner and can handle various types of logical components in the same circuit. We model the error estimation problem as a maximum a posteriori estimate (MAP) over the joint error probability function of the entire circuit. Using this model, we can not only compute the maximum error, but can also identify the input vector that cause the maximum output error. We demonstrate this model using MCNC and ISCAS circuits. We observe that for some circuits, maximum error probabilities are significantly larger than the average likelihood error, thus making acase for the consideration of maximum error metric as an essential design guideline rather than just average-case estimates. We also find that the error estimates depend on the specific circuit structure. Lastly, we observe that the maximum error probabilities are sensitive to the individual gate failure probabilities.
Hearts of darkness: ‘perpetrator history’ and why there is no why

Three theories contend as explanations of perpetrator behavior in the Holocaust as well as other cases of genocide: structural, intentional, and situational. Structural explanations emphasize the sense in which no single individual or choice accounts for the course of events. In opposition, intentional/cutltural accounts insist upon the genocides as intended outcomes, for how can one explain situations in which people ‘step up’ and repeatedly kill defenseless others in large numbers over sustained periods of time as anything other than a choice? Situational explanations offer a type of behavioral account; this is how people act in certain environments. Critical to the situational account as I discuss it is the ‘Asch paradigm’, i.e. experimentally attested conditions for eliciting conformityof behavior regardlesss of available evidence of prior beliefs. In what follows, I defend what I term above a version of situational explanations of perpetrator behavior. Moreover, I maintain that the factors that expla...
Capital flows and domestic market integration in China

This paper examines whether reforms have created a substantial commercial sector with market characteristics in China's financial system. Many studies conclude that the operation of China's capital markets lacks market features, resulting in fragmentation. Yet, this lack of integration coincides with rapid and continuous economic growth. We study the dynamic pattern of domestic capital mobility with a unique data set on provincial savings and investment, which allows us to examine components as well as aggregates. After stripping out foreign and officially influenced funds, we find that the behavior of capital flows in what we define as China's commercial sector looks increasingly like that of interstate flows in the US and other advanced nations. Tracking the direction and size of capital flows also highlights the different behavior of commercial and non-commercial funds transfers in China. This result undercuts the widespread view of China's economy as lacking domestic integration.
Intraclonal competition inhibits the formation of high-affinity antibody-secreting cells.

Protective immunity requires a diverse, polyclonal B cell repertoire. We demonstrate that affinity maturation of the humoral response to a hapten is impaired when preexisting clonally restricted cells recognizing the hapten are dominant in the B cell repertoire. B1-8i+/− mice, which feature a high frequency of B cells with nitrophenyl (NP)-binding specificity, respond to NP-haptenated proteins with the production of NP-specific Abs, but affinity maturation is impaired due to insufficient generation of high-affinity Ab-producing cells. We manipulated the frequency of NP-specific B cells by adoptive transfer of B1-8 B cells into naive, wild-type recipients. Remarkably, when 104 B1-8 B cells were transferred, these cells supported efficient affinity maturation and plasma cell differentiation. In contrast, when 106 B1-8 cells were transferred, affinity maturation did not occur. These data indicate that restricting the frequency of clonally related B cells is required to support affinity maturation.
The effect of composition on the tableting indices of binary powder mixtures.

ABSTRACTThe purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of the composition of a binary powder mixture on the bonding index, the brittle fracture index, and the strain index, as defined by Hiestand. The studies involved tensile strength and dynamic indentation hardness determinations of square compacts, the solid fractions of which were 0.83. The mixtures were such that both components consolidated by plastic deformation, both components consolidated by brittle fracture, or one component was brittle while the other was plastic. The measured quantities were then used to compute the bonding index, the brittle fracture index, and the strain index. The bonding indices and tensile strengths of the individual plastic materials were greater than those of the individual brittle materials. It was concluded that the bonding indices were linearly related to composition when both materials consolidated by the same mechanism. It was further concluded that the bonding indices were related to compact composition ...
Does butterfly diversity predict moth diversity? Testing a popular indicator taxon at local scales

Indicator taxa are often proposed as efficient ways of identifying conservation priorities, but the correlation between putative indicators and other taxa has not been adequately tested. We examined whether a popular indicator taxon, the butterflies, could provide a useful surrogate measure of diversity in a closely related but relatively poorly known group, the moths, at a local scale relevant to many conservation decisions (10 0 –10 1 km 2 ). We sampled butterflies and moths at 19 sites representing the three major terrestrial habitats in sub-alpine Colorado: meadows, aspen forests, and conifer forests. We found no correlation between moth and butterfly diversity across the 19 sites, using any of five different diversity measures. Correlations across only meadow sites (to test for correlation within a single, species-rich habitat) were also not significant. Butterflies were restricted largely to meadows, where their host plants occur and thermal environment is favorable. In contrast, all three habitats contained substantial moth diversity, and several moth species were restricted to each habitat. These findings suggest that (1) butterflies are unlikely to be useful indicators of moth diversity at a local scale; (2) phylogenetic relatedness is not a reliable criterion for selecting appropriate indicator taxa; and (3) a habitat-based approach would more effectively conserve moth diversity in this landscape and may be preferable in many situations where indicator taxa relationships are untested. # 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
Reciprocal Encoding of Signal Intensity and Duration in a Glucose-Sensing Circuit

Summary Cells continuously adjust their behavior in response to changing environmental conditions. Both intensity and duration of external signals are critical factors in determining what response is initiated. To understand how intracellular signaling networks process such multidimensional information, we studied the AtRGS1-mediated glucose response system of Arabidopsis . By combining experiments with mathematical modeling, we discovered a reciprocal dose and duration response relying on the orchestrated action of three kinases (AtWNK1, AtWNK8, and AtWNK10) acting on distinct timescales and activation thresholds. Specifically, we find that high concentrations of D-glucose rapidly signal through AtWNK8 and AtWNK10, whereas low, sustained sugar concentration slowly activate the pathway through AtWNK1, allowing the cells to respond similarly to transient, high-intensity signals and sustained, low-intensity signals. This "dose-duration reciprocity" allows encoding of both the intensity and persistence of glucose as an important energy resource and signaling molecule.
Role of Pneumography and Esophageal pH Monitoring in the Evaluation of Infants With Apparent Life-Threatening Event A Prospective Observational Study

Objective. To determine if a positive result on pneumography, diagnosis of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), or nontreatment of those diagnosed with GERD with antireflux medications predicts an increased recurrence risk of apparent life-threatening event (ALTE) over the first 4 weeks of follow-up. Methods. Secondary analysis of a prospective, observational study of 300 infants diagnosed with ALTE. Results. The relative risk of recurrent ALTE was 1.26 (95% confidence interval = 0.47-3.38) among infants with an abnormal versus normal result on pneumography, 1.98 (1.02-3.86) among those diagnosed with GERD versus those not, and 0.46 (0.20-1.03) among those with GERD and started on antireflux medications versus those not started on such medications. Conclusions. Positive pneumography for apnea or reflux does not predict an increase in recurrence rate of an ALTE. Infants diagnosed with GERD are more likely to have recurrent ALTE; treatment with antireflux medications may reduce this risk.
Structural and functional consequences of coenzyme binding to the inactive asian variant of mitochondrial aldehyde dehydrogenase: roles of residues 475 and 487.

The common mitochondrial aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH2) ALDH2*2 polymorphism is associated with impaired ethanol metabolism and decreased efficacy of nitroglycerin treatment. These physiological effects are due to the substitution of Lys for Glu-487 that reduces the kcat for these processes and increases the Km for NAD+, as compared with ALDH2. In this study, we sought to understand the nature of the interactions that give rise to the loss of structural integrity and low activity in ALDH2*2 even when complexed with coenzyme. Consequently, we have solved the crystal structure of ALDH2*2 complexed with coenzyme to 2.5A. We have also solved the structures of a mutated form of ALDH2 where Arg-475 is replaced by Gln (R475Q). The structural and functional properties of the R475Q enzyme are intermediate between those of wild-type and the ALDH2*2 enzymes. In both cases, the binding of coenzyme restores most of the structural deficits observed in the apoenzyme structures. The binding of coenzyme to the R475Q enzyme restores its structure and catalytic properties to near wild-type levels. In contrast, the disordered helix within the coenzyme binding pocket of ALDH2*2 is reordered, but the active site is only partially reordered. Consistent with the structural data, ALDH2*2 showed a concentration-dependent increase in esterase activity and nitroglycerin reductase activity upon addition of coenzyme, but the levels of activity do not approach those of the wild-type enzyme or that of the R475Q enzyme. The data presented shows that Glu-487 maintains a critical function in linking the structure of the coenzymebinding site to that of the active site through its interactions with Arg-264 and Arg-475, and in doing so, creates the stable structural scaffold conducive to catalysis.
The role of uric acid in the pathogenesis of hypertension in the young.

J Clin Hypertens (Greenwich). 2012; 14:346–352. ©2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Uric acid has been suspected to be a risk factor for hypertension since the 1870s. Numerous epidemiological studies demonstrate an association between uric acid and both incident and prevalent hypertension in diverse populations. Studies in elderly patients have had more variable results, raising the possibility that uric acid may be more significant to hypertension in the young. Animal models support a two-phase mechanism for the development of hyperuricemic hypertension. Initially, uric acid induces vasoconstriction by activation of the renin-angiotensin system and reduction of circulating nitric oxide, which can be reversed by lowering uric acid. Over time, uric acid uptake into vascular smooth muscle cells causes cellular proliferation and secondary arteriolosclerosis that impairs pressure natriuresis, causing sodium-sensitive hypertension. Consistent with the animal model data, small clinical trials performed in adolescents with newly diagnosed essential hypertension demonstrate that at least in certain young patients, reduction of serum uric acid can mitigate blood pressure elevation. While more research is clearly necessary, the available data suggest that uric acid is likely causative in some cases of early-onset hypertension.
Fuel minimization in flight vehicle attitude control

The problem of designing a single-axis rigid-body flight vehicle attitude controller to minimize control fuel consumption is formulated in the framework of system optimization theory. A performance measure which consists of the integral-square position and rate errors plus control fuel expended, with arbitrary relative weighting factors, is employed. The Pontryagin Maximum Principle is invoked to show that the controller which minimizes this measure is of the bang-off-bang type. The calculations are carried through and an explicit design solution given for the problem of a minimum-fuel space-vehicle attitude control.
PHOSPHORUS SORPTION CAPACITY AND EXCHANGE BY SOILS FROM MITIGATED AND LATE SUCCESSIONAL BOTTOMLAND FOREST WETLANDS

Abstract A central tenet of wetland mitigation is that replacement wetlands can sequester nutrients and perform other functions at the same level as natural wetlands. This study evaluated phosphorus (P) sorption capacity and P exchange in flooded soil microcosms obtained from eight early successional (ES) mitigated and eight late successional (LS) bottomland forest wetlands in western Kentucky, USA. The LS soils had three times greater capacity to remove and retain soluble inorganic P than ES soils, which was mostly due to higher amounts of amorphous aluminum (Al) oxides (oxalate extractable), organically-bound Al (CuCl2 extractable), and organic carbon in LS soils. Phosphorus exchange rates between the soil and water column were not significantly different in LS and ES microcosms, but rates in both systems were strongly related to the molar ratio of Mehlich III extractable P to Al + Fe in the soil (r2=0.64). Relationships between P sorption/exchange and organic C, Mehlich III- and oxalate-extractable for...
Thermoelectric properties of Zn-doped Ca5In2Sb6.

The Zintl compound Ca5Al2Sb6 is a promising thermoelectric material with exceptionally low lattice thermal conductivity resulting from its complex crystal structure. In common with the Al analogue, Ca5In2Sb6 is naturally an intrinsic semiconductor with a low p-type carrier concentration. Here, we improve the thermoelectric properties of Ca5In2Sb6 by substituting Zn2+ on the In3+ site. With increasing Zn substitution, the Ca5In2−xZnxSb6 system exhibits increased p-type carrier concentration and a resulting transition from non-degenerate to degenerate semiconducting behavior. A single parabolic band model was used to estimate an effective mass in Ca5In2Sb6 of m* = 2me, which is comparable to the Al analogue, in good agreement with density functional calculations. Doping with Zn enables rational optimization of the electronic transport properties and increased zT in accordance with a single parabolic band model. The maximum figure of merit obtained in optimally Zn-doped Ca5In2Sb6 is 0.7 at 1000 K. While undoped Ca5In2Sb6 has both improved electronic mobility and reduced lattice thermal conductivity relative to Ca5Al2Sb6, these benefits did not dramatically improve the Zn-doped samples, leading to only a modest increase in zT relative to optimally doped Ca5Al2Sb6.
Sex differences in the association of fasting and postchallenge glucose levels with grip strength among older adults: the Rancho Bernardo Study

Objective Persons with diabetes have accelerated muscle loss. The association of fasting and postchallenge glucose levels per se to grip strength, a clinical marker of poor physical function, and potential sex differences in this relationship has not been previously described. Design Longitudinal cohort. Setting USA. Participants Participants were community-dwelling older adults (mean age 71.3 years) without self-reported diabetes and/or use of diabetes medication with glucose measured at baseline (1992–1996). Measurements Fasting plasma glucose (FPG) was measured in 1019 women and 636 men. Two-hour glucose (2HG) levels after a 75 g oral glucose tolerance test were also available (women, n=870; men, n=559). Dominant hand grip strength was assessed using a hand-held dynamometer at 3.0±1.6 visits over a median 7.0 years. Mixed linear models examined the association of baseline glucose levels with grip strength, accounting for repeated visits, and adjusting for covariates. Results Sex-specific FPG quartiles were associated with unadjusted differences in grip strength among women (p=0.03) but not men (p=0.50). However, in men, adjusting for age, education, height, weight, peripheral neuropathy, physical activity, and comorbidities, each SD (SD=17 mg/dL) higher FPG was associated with persistently lower grip strength (−0.44±0.22 kg, p=0.049); 2HG (SD=50 mg/dL) was unrelated to grip strength (−0.39±0.25 kg, p=0.13). In women, neither FPG (SD=16 mg/dL) nor 2HG (SD=45 mg/dL) was associated with grip strength (0.02±0.12 kg, p=0.90; and −0.20±0.14 kg, p=0.14; respectively) after adjustment. The rate of change in grip strength did not differ across FPG or 2HG quartiles in either sex. Conclusions In age-adjusted analyses, elevated fasting glucose levels are associated with persistently lower grip strength in older men, but not women. Future studies are needed to elucidate reasons for these sex differences and may provide further insight into accelerated loss of muscle function as a complication of diabetes in older adults.
Dating and publication of the Encyclopédie Méthodique (1782– 1832 ) , with special reference to the parts of the Histoire Naturelle and details on the Histoire Naturelle des Insectes

The background and publication history of Charles-Joseph Panckoucke’s Encyclopedie Methodique are presented. The Encyclopedie Methodique represents one of the major scientific publication achievements of all time. Its publisher Panckoucke recruited series editors and contracted contributors, authored and edited contributions, coordinated the first 12 years of production with up to 18 printing presses and 90 staff, and sold the results to subscribers despite financial difficulties, political upheavals, and the inevitable tardiness and even unfortunate demise of contributing authors. Because the Encyclopedie Methodique is essential to the knowledge of systematics since its natural history dictionaries contained some of the first syntheses of taxonomic knowledge since Linnaeus’ Systema Naturae , this paper presents for the first time accurate dates of publication of all 102 parts comprising the entire Encyclopedie Methodique . Also included are lists of authors of each dictionary, list of editors of each dictionary, and lists of the original printers contracted to produce the first parts.