cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Thermodynamics of Cation Binding and Transport by Gramidicin

The thermodynamic parameters for the binding and transport of metal cations have been determined by NMR spectroscopy. A combination of Tl-205 NMR spectroscopy and competitive binding was used to determine the enthalpy and entropy of binding monovalent and divalent cations to the channel entrance of gramicidin A. These thermodynamic parameters are related to the corresponding quantities for the transfer of the Ions from an aqueous to an amide solution. Rates and thermodynamic parameters for the transport of monovalent cations through the channel of gramicidin analogs have been obtained using metal ion NMR spectroscopy.
Calculating the Effect of Altered Respiratory Parameters on Capnographic Indices

Capnography, the monitoring of exhaled CO2, has been clinically utilized as a noninvasive measure of alveolar ventilation. The shape of the capnogram is significantly altered in patients with lung disease or hemodynamic instability. Shape indices obtained from the capnogram provide an indication of dead space ventilation, ventilation/perfusion status, and the extent of rebreathing. In this study, the quantitative relationship between physical respiratory parameters and capnographic shape indices was determined using a mathematical model of CO2 exchange in a tidally ventilated lung. This relationship may provide clinicians with guidance for physiological interpretation of capnograms.
Impacts of students' experimentation using a dynamic visualization on their understanding of motion

This study examines how students' experimentation with a dynamic visualization contributes to their understanding of science. We designed a week-long, technology-enhanced inquiry module on car collisions. The module uses new technologies that log student interactions with the visualization. Physics students (N=148) in six diverse high schools studied the module and responded to pretests, posttests, and embedded assessments. We scored students' experimentation using three methods: total number of trials, how widely students changed variables between trials (variability), and how well students connected content knowledge to experimentation strategies (validity). Students made large, significant overall pretest to posttest gains. Regression models showed that validity was the strongest predictor of learning when controlling for prior knowledge and other experimentation measures. Successful learners employed a goal-directed experimentation approach that connected their experimentation strategy to content knowledge.
Incentivizing improvement or imposition? An examination of the response to gubernatorial school takeover and statewide turnaround districts

Although state-run school districts and gubernatorial school takeover have become popular turnaround strategies among some states, little is known about how district and school leaders perceive and respond to these changes in educational governance. Using Georgia as a case study, this paper employs sensemaking and exit, voice, and loyalty as frameworks to examine how district and school leaders interpret and respond to the threat of state takeover. Similar to prior studies, results indicate that urban schools and districts largely populated by low-income students and students of color are most likely to be affected by state takeover. Several themes emerge from district and school leaders’ interpretation of state takeover policy, including: (a) principals and teachers are to blame, (b) too many changes, too little time to reflect, (c) lack of trust between school districts and the state, and (d) market-based reforms and the illusion of choice. Although a non-trivial number of teachers and principals have expressed their intent to leave for charter schools or leave the teaching profession in response to the threat of state takeover, voice was the more common response, particularly among teachers in takeover-eligible schools who were more experienced and had students performing well on state tests. There are also noteworthy differences in the response of district and school leaders based on the eligibility for state takeover.
Fertility counseling before cancer treatment and subsequent reproductive concerns among female adolescent and young adult cancer survivors

Author(s): Young, Katie; Shliakhtsitsava, Ksenya; Natarajan, Loki; Myers, Emily; Dietz, Andrew C; Gorman, Jessica R; Martinez, Maria Elena; Whitcomb, Brian W; Su, H Irene | Abstract: BackgroundFertility counseling before cancer treatment has been advocated by clinical guidelines, though little is known about its long-term impact on the unique reproductive concerns of female adolescent and young adult (AYA) cancer survivors. The goal of this study was to measure the association between fertility counseling by fertility specialists before cancer treatment and subsequent reproductive concerns.MethodA cross-sectional analysis was performed among 747 AYA survivors aged 18-40 years who had been recruited from cancer registries and physician and advocacy group referrals between 2015 and 2017. Participants self-reported information on past fertility counseling at cancer diagnosis, cancer type and treatment, and current reproductive concerns, as measured using the multidimensional Reproductive Concerns After Cancer scale. Multivariable log-binomial regression models tested associations between fertility counseling and reproductive concerns.ResultsThe mean age of the cohort was 33.0 years (standard deviation, 5.1 years), and the mean period since diagnosis was 7.7 years (standard deviation, 5.0 years). Seventy-three percent of participants were white, and 24% were Hispanic. Fertility counseling was reported by 19% of survivors; moderate to high overall reproductive concerns were reported by 44% of participants. In adjusted analysis, fertility counseling was significantly associated with moderate to high reproductive concerns (risk ratio, 1.22; 95% confidence interval, 1.02-1.45) and not modified by exposure to fertility-threatening treatments (Pinteraction = .23).ConclusionA large proportion of AYA cancer survivors across cancer types and treatment exposures reported moderate to high reproductive concerns, suggesting that there is a need to address these cancer-specific reproductive health concerns after treatment. Higher concerns, even with counseling, suggests the need to improve the quality of fertility counseling throughout the cancer continuum.
A simple vortex approach to complex two-wing unsteady flapping problems in 2D applied to insect flight study

The secrets of the flapping of insects with two pairs of wings, primarily dragonflies, have been revealed experimentally and numerically. Although there exist many excellent experimental studies, n...
An Essay on Legal Writing in Plain English

This essay is addressed to law students, lawyers, law professors, legislators, and judges who write in English. It offers tips on writing clearly, concisely, and engagingly in the plain English style. This is the style taught in U. S. law schools and in continuing legal education programs for U. S. lawyers and judges. And federal law requires federal agencies to use the plain English style when they write regulations and other public documents. It is offered here to encourage you to use the plain English style when your goal is to communicate efficiently and effectively.
Competing for Tomorrow’s Customers: A View from the Future

This paper includes a compilation of the most important activities that marketers will need to perform in order to be competitive in the coming years. As changes occur and new competitive processes or practices are developed, practitioners often create acronyms that come into general use as a type of shorthand. This paper will discuss several acronyms that have become central to competing for tomorrow’s customers. The purpose of this investigation is to provide marketing professionals with important information about where they will need to focus their efforts, update their knowledge, and continue to build their marketing skill sets if they are to succeed in the future and to provide business professors with leading edge information so that they can best prepare their marketing students to be highly competitive when they graduate and enter the business world.
Morphogenesis in the slime mold Dictyostelium discoideum. 1. The accumulation and erasure of "morphogenetic information".

Abstract When developing cultures of the cellular slime mold Dictyostelium discoideum are disaggregated and morphogenesis immediately reinitiated, they recapitulate the morphogenetic scheme, but at an increased rate. Employing this feature of the system, we have identified time periods when “information” accumulates for specific morphogenetic events. In this case, we have defined “morphogenetic information” as the reduction in time for the appearance of a particular morphology during morphogenetic recapitulation . Accumulated information can be erased by disaggregating developing cultures and reinoculating them into liquid growth medium. Erasure occurs as a discrete event and can be blocked by inhibiting protein synthesis. By comparing morphogenesis in log-phase and stationary-phase cultures, at least two parallel timers have been distinguished, one specific for aggregation and one or more specific for morphogenetic events following aggregation. Approaches to the molecular identity of morphogenetic information and morphogenetic timers are discussed.
Fetal echocardiographic assessment of cardiovascular impact of prolonged support on EXTrauterine Environment for Neonatal Development (EXTEND) system.

Objective EXTrauterine Environment for Neonatal Development (EXTEND) is a system to support ongoing fetal growth and organ development in an extrauterine environment, utilizing a pumpless low-resistance oxygenator circuit. The aim of this study was to evaluate hemodynamics and cardiac function in fetal sheep sustained on the EXTEND system. Methods This was a prospective study of fetal sheep supported for a minimum of 3 weeks on EXTEND. Hemodynamic parameters were assessed weekly and included heart rate, mean arterial pressure (MAP), Doppler-echocardiography-derived cardiac output (CO), pulsatility indices (PIs) of the fetal middle cerebral artery (MCA), umbilical artery (UA) and ductus venosus and cardiac function, as assessed by speckle-tracking-derived global longitudinal strain and strain rate in the right (RV) and left (LV) ventricles. Parameters were compared at 0 days and 1, 2 and 3 weeks following placement on EXTEND. Results Of 10 fetal sheep enrolled, seven survived for 3 weeks and were included in the analysis. Median gestational age at cannulation was 107 (range, 95-109) days. Heart rate decreased and MAP increased significantly, but within acceptable ranges, during the study period. The quantities and relative ratios of right and left CO remained stable within the anticipated physiological range throughout the study period. Vascular tracings and PIs appeared to be similar to those seen normally in the natural in-utero state, with MCA-PI being higher than UA-PI. UA tracings demonstrated maintained abundant diastolic flow despite the absence of placental circulation. In both the RV and LV, strain decreased significantly at 1 and 2 weeks relative to baseline but returned to baseline values by week 3. Conclusions The EXTEND mechanical support system replicates natural physiology and creates a stable and sustainable cardiovascular construct that supports growth over a 3-week period. However, there is a period of depressed contractility within the first week with subsequent improvement by week 3. This may reflect a period of physiological accommodation that warrants further investigation. This study lays the foundation for further exploration as the EXTEND system moves towards human application. © 2019 The Authors. Ultrasound in Obstetrics & Gynecology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of the International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology.
Prospective assessment of fibrinolysis in morbid obesity: tissue plasminogen activator resistance improves after bariatric surgery.

Background Morbid obesity is associated with an increased risk of thrombotic events, which has been attributed to increased thrombotic activity. Multiple mechanisms have been proposed to explain this increased risk, including an inflammatory state with upregulation of procoagulant and antifibrinolytic proteins. We therefore hypothesize that patients with morbid obesity are hypercoagulable and will revert to normal after bariatric surgery. Objectives To evaluate changes in the hypercoagulable state after bariatric surgery. Setting University Hospital, Bariatric Center of Excellence, United States. Methods Thromboelastography (TEG) data were collected on 72 subjects with morbid obesity, with 36 who had 6 months of follow-up after bariatric surgery. TEG data of 75 healthy subjects (HS) without obesity, recent trauma or surgery, acute infection, or chronic conditions (e.g., liver, cardiovascular, or kidney disease; cancer; diabetes; autoimmune or inflammatory disorders; and disorders of coagulation) were used for comparison. TEG was performed alone and with the addition of 75 and 150 ng/mL tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) to quantify fibrinolysis resistance (tPA-challenged TEG). Results The bariatric surgery cohort had a median age of 40.5 years, a median body mass index of 44.6 kg/m2, and 90% female patients. Median body mass index reduced significantly 6 months post surgery but remained elevated compared with the HS group (31.4 versus 25.4 kg/m2, P Conclusions Patients with morbid obesity form stronger clots more rapidly and are more resistant to fibrinolysis than subjects without obesity. Bariatric surgery significantly improved the hypercoagulable profile and fibrinolysis resistance of morbid obesity.
FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS OF SERPULINA HYODYSENTERIAE HEMOLYSIN LYTIC ACTIVITY

Swine dysentery (SD) is a disease caused by an anaerobic spirochete, Serpulina hyodysenteriae and is characterized by a mucohemorrhagic diarrhea. Spirochetes isolated from the colon of pigs are identified on the basis of their hemolytic activity on blood agar with pathogenic Serpulina hyodysenteriae producing a complete hemolytic zone and nonpathogenic S. innocens producing an incomplete hemolysis. Recently, the hemolysin gene (tlyA) of S. hyodysenteriae which encodes for a 26–27 kDa protein has been cloned and expressed in E. coli (Muir et al., 1992) and hemolysin negative mutant strains of Serpulina hyodysenteriae have been produced (terHuune et al., 1992).
What Persons Are: Identity, Personal Identity, and Composition

Since asking which person is involved in some action (“Who is the responsible person?”) invites elaboration of the contours of a conception of persons as responsible agents, and hence of some details of our mastery of this conception, that elaboration will require us to address the nature of persons in the light of the completeness and definiteness of the “dazzling image” science offers us. Discussion of our common sense notion of the person in the context of the philosophical question of personal identity—while noting that any reply must be responsive to everyday debates about (for instance) inheritance—permits a brief defence of David Wiggins’ view of persons as material continuants with psychological properties, as well as casting light on the philosophical strategy of deploying thought-experiments.
Graphic method for retrieval of quantitative data from computer-mapped qualitative information, with a NASA video as an example

In Earth science, original data elaboration is often very complex and the results are generally provided in the form of (computer-made) maps, a qualitative representation. The aim of this paper is to illustrate a graphic method of analysis that allows the reverse: tracing back, on scientific bases, quantitative data from computer-mapped information, by using widely-available graphic tools, including an estimate of the precision of the numerical outcomes. That may be needed, e.g., for independent evaluation of published data or, for comparison with new elaborations. A NASA video was used as an example, reconstructing the maps of the Earth surface yearly from 1998 to 2017. Static frames were extracted from it and used to obtain numerical data on the evolution of the min/max snow/ice-covered land/sea surfaces, separately for the two hemispheres. The use of the proposed method allows concerned scientists to obtain the quantitative values of the relevant data, including an uncertainty estimate, e.g., in order to compare them with those found in the literature and on websites. The paper focuses on the map-analysis method, and on the metrological evaluation of the uncertainty of the retrieved data. Finally, some quantitative results are commented and found consistent with literature data on the same subject matter.
Surgical and endoscopic management of a pericardioesophageal fistula after radiofrequency pulmonary vein isolation.

INTRODUCTION The most feared complication of pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) is an atrioesophageal fistula (AEF). While rare (0.1-0.25%), primary surgical closure (as opposed to esophageal stenting) is associated with lower mortality. Pericardioesophageal fistula (PEF) may present prior to fistulization into the atrium. Unfortunately, data on the optimal management of PEFs are lacking. CASE REPORT Seventy-one-year-old male with AF presented with chest pain 3 weeks after radiofrequency PVI. Computed tomography angiography (CTA) chest and echocardiogram showed pneumopericardium. Barium esophagram showed extravasation from esophagus into the pericardium without connection to the left atrium. Sternotomy with mediastinal exploration exposed the pericardial defect, over which a CorMatrix patch was placed. The fistula was then stented endoscopically with endosuture fixation. Poststent esophagram did not show barium leak, and the patient was discharged home. One week later, the patient returned with enterococcal and candida bacteremia and an acute right parietal/occipital lobe infarct. Barium esophagram showed contrast extravasation into the pericardium. The patient rapidly succumbed to his illness and died. Autopsy revealed pericardial abscess posterior to the LA in communication with the esophagus. Extension to the LA was not seen. CONCLUSION While the surgical treatment of AEF is relatively well established, there is no consensus in the management of PEF. While prior small series have suggested PEF may be managed with esophageal stenting, our case illustrates the limitations of this approach.
Efficiently supporting dynamic task parallelism on heterogeneous cache-coherent systems

Manycore processors, with tens to hundreds of tiny cores but no hardware-based cache coherence, can offer tremendous peak throughput on highly parallel programs while being complexity and energy efficient. Manycore processors can be combined with a few high-performance big cores for executing operating systems, legacy code, and serial regions. These systems use heterogeneous cache coherence (HCC) with hardware-based cache coherence between big cores and software-centric cache coherence between tiny cores. Unfortunately, programming these heterogeneous cache-coherent systems to enable collaborative execution is challenging, especially when considering dynamic task parallelism. This paper seeks to address this challenge using a combination of light-weight software and hardware techniques. We provide a detailed description of how to implement a work-stealing runtime to enable dynamic task parallelism on heterogeneous cache-coherent systems. We also propose direct task stealing (DTS), a new technique based on user-level interrupts to bypass the memory system and thus improve the performance and energy efficiency of work stealing. Our results demonstrate that executing dynamic task-parallel applications on a 64-core system (4 big, 60 tiny) with complexity-effective HCC and DTS can achieve: $7 \times$ speedup over a single big core; $1.4 \times$ speedup over an area-equivalent eight bigcore system with hardware-based cache coherence; and 21% better performance and similar energy efficiency compared to a 64-core system (4 big, 60 tiny) with full-system hardware-based cache coherence.
Rock-Hosted Subsurface Biofilms: Mineral Selectivity Drives Hotspots for Intraterrestrial Life

The continental deep subsurface is likely the largest reservoir of biofilm-based microbial biomass on Earth, but the role of mineral selectivity in regulating its distribution and diversity is unclear. Minerals can produce hotspots for intraterrestrial life by locally enhancing biofilm biomass. Metabolic transformations of minerals by subsurface biofilms may occur widely with the potential to significantly impact subsurface biogeochemical cycles. However, the degree of impact depends upon the amount of biofilm biomass and its relationship to host rock mineralogy, estimates that are currently loosely constrained to nonexistent. Here, we use in situ cultivation of biofilms on native rocks and coupled microscopy/spectroscopy to constrain mineral selectivity by biofilms in a deep continental subsurface setting: the Deep Mine Microbial Observatory (DeMMO). Through hotspot analysis and spatial modeling approaches we find that mineral distributions, particularly those putatively metabolized by microbes, indeed drive biofilm distribution at DeMMO, and that bioleaching of pyrite may be a volumetrically important process influencing fluid geochemistry at this site when considered at the kilometer scale. Given the ubiquity of iron and sulfur-bearing minerals at this site and globally, and the amount of biomass they can support, we posit that rock-hosted biofilms likely contribute significantly to subsurface biogeochemical cycles. As more data becomes available, future efforts to estimate biomass in the continental subsurface should incorporate host rock mineralogy.
Games as a Teaching and Learning Tool in Medical Education

Medical educators have called for innovative and active learning methods that either complement or supplement the traditional lecture format. Medical education involves didactic and pedagogic strategies using a variety of active learning tools in order to enhance medical knowledge, self-directed learning and decision-making skills. Educational games can be considered as one such teaching methodology that can improve medical knowledge and self-directed learning skills. Educational games differ from other learning strategies in that they are competitive in nature and constrained by rules and procedures. While traditional lectures may not reflect on the levels of complexity of real-life situations in medicine, educational games can help to clarify difficult-to-understand medical issues (in a simpler process) and, when played in a competitive manner, may have the potential to engage and motivate trainees.
How Birds During Migration Maintain (Oxidative) Balance

Animals dynamically adjust their physiology and behavior to survive in changing environments, and seasonal migration is one life stage that demonstrates these dynamic adjustments. As birds migrate between breeding and wintering areas, they incur physiological demands that challenge their antioxidant system. Migrating birds presumably respond to these oxidative challenges by up-regulating protective endogenous systems or accumulating dietary antioxidants at stopover sites, although our understanding of the pre-migration preparations and mid-migration responses of birds to such oxidative challenges is as yet incomplete. Here we review evidence from field and captive-bird studies that address the following questions: (1) Do migratory birds build antioxidant capacity as they build fat stores in preparation for long flights? (2) Is oxidative damage an inevitable consequence of oxidative challenges such as flight, and, if so, how is the extent of damage affected by factors such as the response of the antioxidant system, the level of energetic challenge, and the availability of dietary antioxidants? (3) Do migratory birds ‘recover’ from the oxidative damage accrued during long-duration flights, and, if so, does the pace of this rebalancing of oxidative status depend on the quality of the stopover site? The answer to all these questions is a qualified ‘yes’ although ecological factors (e.g., diet and habitat quality, geographic barriers to migration, weather) affect how the antioxidant system responds. Furthermore, the pace of this dynamic physiological response remains an open question, despite its potential importance for shaping outcomes on timescales ranging from single flights to migratory journeys. In sum, the antioxidant system of birds during migration is impressively dynamic and responsive to environmental conditions, and thus provides ample opportunities to study how the physiology of migratory birds responds to a changing and challenging world.
Mammalian in vitro splicing assays.

Splicing reactions are typically carried out using nuclear extracts, S100 extracts complemented with SR proteins, or partially purified fractions derived from the crude extracts. The extract preparation procedures are described in Chapter 24. Extracts derived from HeLa cells are used most commonly (see Note 1). The pre-mRNA substrates are usually prepared by in vitro runoff transcription with a bacteriophage polymerase (see Chapter 1). The intermediates and products of splicing are most conveniently visualized by urea/polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (urea-PAGE) and autoradiography, which requires the use of labeled pre-mRNA substrate. The protocols provided here are based on ref. 1, with modifications introduced in refs. 2,3, and have been routinely used in our laboratory for many years.
The Diterpene Alkaloids: General Introduction

Publisher Summary This chapter introduces diterpene alkaloids. The diterpene alkaloids are derived from tetracyclic or pentacyclic diterpenes in which carbon atoms 19 and 20 are linked with the nitrogen of a molecule of β-aminoethanol, methylamine, or ethylamine to form a heterocyclic ring. These alkaloids may be divided into two broad categories. The first group comprises the highly toxic ester bases that are heavily substituted by methoxyl and hydroxyl groups. The second group includes a series of comparatively simple and relatively nontoxic alkamines that are modeled on a C 20 -skeleton. One of the distinguishing chemical features of this group is the formation of phenanthrenes when subjected to selenium or palladium dehydrogenation. A few compounds of this class occur in the plant as monoesters of acetic or benzoic acid.
Protein Synthesis Directed by an RNA− Temperature-Sensitive Mutant of Sindbis Virus

The structural proteins of wild-type Sindbis virus were shown to arise by posttranslational cleavage of larger precursors. The proteins synthesized in wildtype infection were compared with those specified by ts-11, a temperature-sensitive mutant unable to synthesize viral RNA at the restrictive temperature. Abnormally large, virus-specific proteins were found in the mutant-infected cells after the shift from 28 C to 41.5 C. These large polypeptides were presumably precursors which were cleaved too rapidly to be detected in the wild-type infection. The largest had a molecular weight of 133,000 and was the same size as the apparent precursor detected during infection with a group of Sindbis mutants which could not form nucleocapsids at the nonpermissive temperature. The stability of ts-11-specific RNA synthesis, after shift from permissive to restrictive conditions, differed from that in cells infected by wild-type virus, indicating that the virus had a genetic lesion in an enzyme involved in RNA synthesis. This mutation might have caused the precursor to fold incorrectly so that it could not be cleaved. The possibility cannot be excluded, however, that a second lesion in an uncharacterized viral function, such as a protease, was the cause of the accumulation of the precursors.
The Cost of Compliance: Signaling, Credible Commitments and Compliance with International Human Rights Tribunals

Over the past decade, the growing caseloads and prominence of international human rights tribunals have posed a challenge to skeptics who believe that human rights law is unenforceable and that human rights institutions are nothing but paper tigers. Today, we see that states increasingly comply with the tribunals’ rulings, even when that means changing their domestic policies and practices. This paper seeks to explain when and why states comply with human rights tribunals and the effects that these tribunals have on domestic politics. Using a newly constructed dataset on compliance with the rulings of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, I suggest that states comply with international human rights tribunals in order to signal to domestic audiences their commitment to human rights, the rule of law and democratization. This research challenges the existing literature on compliance and suggests that not only is compliance with international human rights tribunals more frequent than previously suggested but also that compliance with the tribunals’ rulings happens in even the least likely places, particularly unconsolidated democracies with weak human rights provisions. Understanding the increasingly important role that international human rights tribunals play in shaping domestic politics and consolidating democratic gains makes important contributions to the international relations literature by challenging existing theories of compliance, filling an empirical gap on the growth of human rights tribunals, and providing policy-relevant analyses of regional human rights instruments.
The Anthropologist As Progressive Reformer: Franz Boaz and the Scientific Battle Against American Racism

This paper discusses Franz Boas's legacy as an anthropologist and progressive social reformer in battling racism in early twentieth-century America. The study affirms that Boas, "the father of American anthropology", developed the science of anthropology with the progressive goal of building scientific support for the cultural values of equal opportunity and cultural pluralism. The study concludes that Boas was first and foremost a prolific scientist who dedicated his life to an objective search for the truth. In his quest for scientific truth, Boas worked to create through anthropology a compelling counterweight to the scientific and cultural forces supporting American racism in the early twentieth-century. In so doing, Boas steadily evolved from a scientist to a powerful and persuasive progressive social, cultural, and political reformer whose views and writings continue to provide a prescription for combating American racism in the twenty-first century.
Calculation of Displacements

So far, we have restricted attention to the calculation of stresses and to problems in which the boundary conditions are stated in terms of tractions or force resultants, but there are many problems in which displacements are also of interest. For example, we may wish to find the deflection of the rectangular beams considered in Chapter 5, or calculate the stress concentration factor due to a rigid circular inclusion in an elastic matrix, for which a displacement boundary condition is implied at the bonded interface.
Markov Switching Models in Finance

Since their introduction into economics by Hamilton (1989), Markov switching models have become very popular in both applied and theoretical works in finance. Keywords: Markov switching models in finance
Nonlinear elasticity registration and sobolev gradients

We propose Mooney-Rivlin (MR) nonlinear elasticity of hyperelastic materials and numerical algorithms for image registration in the presence of landmarks and large deformation. An auxiliary variable is introduced to remove the nonlinearity in the derivatives of Euler-Lagrange equations. Comparing the MR elasticity model with the Saint Venant-Kirchhoff elasticity model (SVK), the results show that the MR model gives better matching in fewer iterations. To accelerate the slow convergence due to the lack of smoothness of the L2 gradient, we construct a Sobolev H1 gradient descent method [13] and take advantage of the smoothing quality of the Sobolev operator (Id-Δ)-1. The MR model with Sobolev H1 gradient descent (SGMR) improves both matching criterion and computational time substantially. We further apply the L2 and Sobolev gradient to landmark registration for multimodal mouse brain data, and observe faster convergence and better landmark matching for the MR model with Sobolev H1 gradient descent.
ISOLATION OF RAT PITUITARY GRANULES AND THE STUDY OF THEIR BIOCHEMICAL PROPERTIES AND HORMONAL ACTIVITIES

A simple and rapid method is described for the isolation of the acidophilic and basophilic granules from the anterior pituitary gland of the rat. The method involves chromatography of pituitary particulates on columns of No. 545 Celite equilibrated and developed with 0.25 M sucrose. Mitochondria are retained quantitatively on the column. The granules and microsomes which are not retained on the Celite are further fractionated on a discontinuous density sucrose gradient and by differential centrifugation. Essentially homogeneous populations of acidophilic and basophilic granules were obtained as indicated by 1) extensive electron microscopic studies, 2) enzymatic determinations, and 3) fatty acid and RNA analyses on the granule pellets. Microfiltration studies indicated that the acidophilic granules were smaller than 450 mµ, but greater than 300 mµ in diameter. They were found, unlike the basophilic granules, to be partially stable to extraction with water, but were unstable on incubation in 1 mM EDTA at 37°. Magnesium ions were not detected in the granules. The acidophilic and basophilic granules contained, respectively, 5 and 8 per cent of the protein present in the whole homogenate. Extensive hormone studies showed that growth and lactogenic hormones were associated with the acidophilic granules, while thyroid-stimulating hormone and gonadotropin were associated with the basophilic granules. ACTH was not present in significant amounts in either of the granule fractions, but was localized in a particulate fraction which contained microsomes and small granules. The association of the pituitary hormones with specific granules and cell types is discussed.
PICK1 Interacts with ABP/GRIP to Regulate AMPA Receptor Trafficking

Summary PICK1 and ABP/GRIP bind to the AMPA receptor (AMPAR) GluR2 subunit C terminus. Transfer of the receptor from ABP/GRIP to PICK1, facilitated by GluR2 S880 phosphorylation, may initiate receptor trafficking. Here we report protein interactions that regulate these steps. The PICK1 BAR domain interacts intermolecularly with the ABP/GRIP linker II region and intramolecularly with the PICK1 PDZ domain. Binding of PKCα or GluR2 to the PICK1 PDZ domain disrupts the intramolecular interaction and facilitates the PICK1 BAR domain association with ABP/GRIP. Interference with the PICK1-ABP/GRIP interaction impairs S880 phosphorylation of GluR2 by PKC and decreases the constitutive surface expression of GluR2, the NMDA-induced endocytosis of GluR2, and recycling of internalized GluR2. We suggest that the PICK1 interaction with ABP/GRIP is a critical step in controlling GluR2 trafficking.
Electrochemical oxidation of 9-methylxanthine

Abstract The electrochemical oxidation of 9-methylxanthine proceeds via four voltammetric oxidation peaks at the pyrolytic graphite electrode. The first voltammetric oxidation peak (peak I a ) is a 1 e reaction giving a radical which dimerizes to 8,8′-bi-9-methyl-9 H -purine-2,6-(1 H , 3 H )-dione. Peak II a is a further 2 e electrooxidation of the peak I a dimer to another yellow dimer 8,8′-bi-9-methyl-9 H -purine-2,6-(1 H )-dione-3,5-(3 H )-diiminylidene. This dimer is not very stable and it hydrolyzes to 1-methyl allantoin. Peak III a is an adsorption pre-peak to peak IV a which corresponds, overall, to a direct 4 e −4 H + electrooxidation of 9-methylxanthine to an unstable diimine of 9-methyluric acid. Hydrolysis of this diimine leads to a variety of ultimate products.
Moving From the Old to the New: Insecticide Research on Bed Bugs since the Resurgence

The scarcity of bed bugs in many countries over the last 50 years has resulted in a lack of modern research into the toxicology of this pest. Although bed bugs resurged in the late 1990s, published research related to insecticides has lagged behind and only began to appear in 2006. The difficulty in controlling bed bugs triggered the interest of both private and academic sectors to determine the value of currently available insecticides. What follows, is updated information on effectiveness of products, studies on insecticide susceptibility, identification of mechanisms of insecticide resistance and chemical strategies proposed to overcome resistance in modern bed bug populations.
Initially and eventually dominating nonoscillatory solutions in integro-differential difference equations

Abstract For the system T′(t) + p(t) T(t) + q(t) T(t − τ) = ∝0t K(t − μ) T(μ) dμ for t ⩾ 0, T(t) = g(t) for t ∈ [−τ, 0], conditions have been obtained which ensure that a solution of this system is dominated by a nonoscillatory solution in the interval ¦τ, ∞).
Simultaneous pure and simple shear: the unifying deformation matrix

Abstract Any simultaneous combination of finite simple shear and finite pure shear is a linear transformation which can be expressed as a single transformation matrix. For two dimensions, the matrix is upper triangular with an off-diagonal term, Γ, called the effective shear strain. Γ is a simple function of the pure and simple shear components. For three dimensions, a simultaneous combination of thrusting in the x direction, thrusting in the y direction, and a wrench in the x direction, in addition to 3 orthogonal components of coaxial strain, can also be represented by a 3 × 3, upper triangular matrix. Here, three off-diagonal terms (Γxy, Γx,y, and Γy,z) occur. Γxy is a simple function of the horizontal coaxial strain values and thrusting in the x direction, Γyz depends on the coaxial strain components in the y and z directions and the thrusting in the y direction, while Γxz is related to all six strain components. The matrix also allows for volume change, either homogeneously or preferentially in a single direction. A method of decomposing the deformation matrix into a series of incremental deformation matrices, where each incremental deformation records the same kinematic vorticity number as the finite deformation is shown. The orientation and magnitude of the finite-strain ellipsoid (ellipse) is easily and accurately found at any increment during the deformation.
Dimensional stabilization of wood with water soluble fire retardant bulking chemicals compared with polyethylene glycol-1000

Mono and diammonium acid phosphate, ammonium sulfamate, and sodium silicate were compared with polyethylene glycol-1000 as bulking dimension stabilizing agents using Engelmann spruce cross sectional wafers. Limiting antiswell efficiencies are equal to the volume fraction of chemical in a saturated solution. The experimental antiswell efficiencies due to bulking are the percent increase in the dry cross sectional area of the wafers caused by deposition of dry chemical within the cell walls divided by the percent swelling in water. These values for the phosphates, the sulfamate, and the polyethylene glycol approach the limiting values from solubility indicating that chemical continues to diffuse into the cell walls as the wood is dried to virtually attain a saturated solution within that structure. The sodium silicate gave an apparent negative antiswell efficiency as collapse of the fibers on drying exceeded the actual bulking. Antiswell efficiencies between 0 and 30% relative humidity, 0 and 90% relative humidity and 30 and 90% relative humidity were in general still lower. This is largely due to the treated systems taking up more water than the controls, especially at the higher relative humidity. Antiswell efficiencies for the mono ammonium acid phosphate ranged from 20 to 27%, for the diammonium acid phosphate from 28 to 37%, the ammonium sulfamate from 51 to 66% and the polyethylene glycol from 63 to 77%.
Comparative Consumer Research: The Next Frontier?

Comparative consumer research is one of the neglected areas of marketing and consumer behaviour. This article advocates the importance and contribution of comparative consumer research to the field of consumer behaviour. Following a brief discussion of the “emic”, “etic”, and hybrid approaches to comparative consumer behaviour, the article focuses on the major considerations in the design of comparative consumer studies. It concludes with a brief discussion of the consumer behaviour and marketing areas which can benefit most from a comparative perspective.
A non‐mass‐dependent oxygen isotope effect in the production of ozone from molecular oxygen: The role of molecular symmetry in isotope chemistry

It was previously reported that the reaction products from the synthesis of ozone in an electric discharge through molecular oxygen display a non‐mass‐dependent (NoMaDic) oxygen isotope effect. In this paper, we report a detailed characterization of the isotope effect, including the effect of molecular oxygen pressure, and the presence of a chemically inert third body (helium). The NoMaDic effect is due to an isotopically selective stabilization of the O3 formation reaction intermediate, possibly resulting from the ability of the different isotopomers to exhibit different molecular symmetries.
Incidence, coverage and employee knowledge of participation in financial incentive schemes: evidence from US cases

By using new linked firm and individual data for cases in one US region, including firms in banking, we contribute to three issues concerning the incidence of financial incentive (FI) schemes: (1) firm-level data reveal the existence of substantial differences in incidence across firms in similar industries in this region and provide weak evidence of a role for urban versus regional location in accounting for differences in implementation of FIs; (2) individual-level data, gathered from face-to-face surveys for almost 900 employees in the cases, show substantial within-firm heterogeneity concerning the distribution of particular FIs among employees, although probit estimates do not uncover consistent evidence concerning the key determinants of the reasons behind these mainly managerial choices for all FIs; (3) the individual data also indicate the existence of substantial within-establishment heterogeneity in employee knowledge of the coverage of FIs. In accounting for the determinants of this variation i...
Changes in the Osteoblastic and Mitochondrial Population of Aging Periosteum

EARLY investigators1–4 interested in the physiology of bone have described filamentous, rod- and granular-shaped mitochondria in osteoblasts from a variety of animals both in vivo and in vitro. An apparent relation between the number of mitochondria and osteoblastic activity was also pointed out. Pritchard5 arrived at the same conclusion. Within the past decade numerous biochemists have revealed a good many of the substrates and enzymes involved with intermediary metabolism associated with mitochondria. More recently, cytochrome oxidase and succinic dehydrogenase activity of the periosteum was studied in normal and traumatized rat femora from birth to old age6,7. The results showed high levels of activity of respiration becoming more elevated at the period of maximum rate of bone formation. Following this period of intense activity (5 weeks of age), a sharp drop occurred to a low level, which was maintained throughout the life of the animal. Trauma to the femora stimulated a response of respiratory activity, however, the response becoming progressively less with increasing age. Changes in respiratory enzyme-levels are fundamental to the activity of cells in general, because these enzymes are part of the aerobic hydrogen transport system from which rich-energy-bond phosphate is generated.
Universal imaging: revolutionizing desktop support

Lehigh University has recently implemented a new PC deployment model which is built around the Universal Imaging Utility, a product of Big Bang, LLC. This model has allowed Lehigh to provide a consistent configuration on all desktops while reducing computer setup time significantly. The increased efficiency not only benefits the Lehigh IT staff, but also reduces downtime for end-users.The Universal Imaging Utility allows Lehigh to create a single image that can be deployed to any PC regardless of make, model, or configuration. Not only has Lehigh been able to reduce new PC setup time by fifty percent, they have also reduced operating system reinstall time by seventy-five percent. Lehigh has managed to save considerable amounts of time by using the Universal Imaging Utility and is excited to share their insight with other higher education institutions.
A Comparison of Risk Estimates for the Effect of Short-Term Exposure to PM, NO2 and CO on Cardiovascular Hospitalizations and Emergency Department Visits: Effect Size Modeling of Study Findings

Although particulate matter (PM), nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and carbon monoxide (CO) typically exist as part of a complex air pollution mixture, the evidence linking these pollutants to health effects is evaluated separately in the scientific and policy reviews of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). The objective of this analysis was to use meta-regression methods to model effect estimates for several individual yet correlated NAAQS pollutants in an effort to identify factors that explain differences in the effect sizes across studies and across pollutants. We expected that our consideration of the evidence for several correlated pollutants in parallel could lead to insights regarding exposure to the pollutant mixture. We focused on studies of hospital admissions for congestive heart failure (CHF) and ischemic heart disease (IHD), which have played an important role in the evaluation of the scientific evidence communicated in the PM, NO2, and CO Integrated Science Assessments (ISAs). Of the studies evaluated, 11 CHF studies and 21 IHD studies met our inclusion requirements. The size of the risk estimates was explained by factors related to the pollution mixture, study methods, and monitoring network characteristics. Our findings suggest that additional analyses focusing on understanding differences in effect sizes across geographic areas with different pollution mixtures and monitor network designs may improve our understanding of the independent and combined effects of correlated pollutants.
Revisions in the theory and practice of moral development

A questioning of old beliefs that moral stages can provide the sole basis for moral education and that moral indoctrination is necessarily invalid, as well as new views of the moral role of the community and the status of stage 6.
Using Time Series to Estimate Rates of Population Change from Abundance Data

Assessing the dynamics of wild populations often involves an estimate of the finite rate of population increase (λ) or the instantaneous rate of increase (r). However, a pervasive problem in trend estimation is that many analytical techniques assume independent errors among the observations. To be valid, variance estimates around λ (or r) must account for serial correlation that exists in abundance data. Time series analysis provides a method for estimating population trends and associated variances when serial correlation of errors occurs. We offer an approach and present an example for estimating λ and its associated variance when observations are correlated over time. We present a simplified time series method and variance estimator to account for autocorrelation based on a moving average process. We illustrate the procedure using a spectacled eider (Somateria fischeri) data set of estimated annual abundances from aerial transect surveys conducted from 1957 to 1995. The analytic variance estimator provides a way to plan future studies to reduce uncertainty and bias in estimates of population growth rates. Demographic studies with policy implications or those involving species of conservation concern should especially consider the correlated nature of population trend data.