cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
System identification estimation of soil properties at the Lotung site

Abstract Dynamic properties of the soils at the Lotung test site, Lotung, Taiwan, are estimated from seismic vertical array measurements (input–output data sets) using both time-invariant and time-variant parametric modeling methods (system identification). Soil properties are directly mapped from model parameters to an equivalent lumped mass model of the soil interval. Shear stiffness and damping ratios were calculated for 8 events with M L ranging from 4.5 to 7.0. Shear stiffness ranged between 0.5 and 6 MN/m, inversely proportional to PGA. The equivalent viscous damping ratio varied from 2 to 30% of critical damping, proportional to PGA. Degradation of soil behavior, while less pronounced with increasing depth, consistently occurs above a peak input acceleration of 0.07 g. Although “non-linear” behavior is evident above 0.17 g, Event 7 (0.21 g) is accurately predicted using a linear constant parameter model estimated from the smaller Event 8 aftershock ground motions.
A Web Query System for Heterogeneous Government Data

This paper describes a Web-based query system for semantically heterogeneous government-produced data. Geospatial Web-based information systems and portals currently are being developed by various levels of government along with the GIS community. Typically, these sites provide data discovery and download capabilities but do not include the ability to pose DBMS-type queries. One of the main problems in querying distributed government data sources is the difference in semantics used by various jurisdictions. We extend work in schema integration by focusing on resolving semantics at the value level in addition to the schema or attribute level. We illustrate our method using land use data, but the method can be used to query across other heterogeneous sets of values. Our work starts from an XML Web-based DBMS and adds functionality to accommodate heterogeneous data between jurisdictions. Our ontology and query rewrite systems use mappings to enable querying across distributed heterogeneous data.
Pragmatist Metaethics: Moral Theory as a Deliberative Practice

The paper defends a pragmatist account of metaethics that challenges the standard view of justificatory structure at the heart of many rule-based normative ethical theories. The standard view of justificatory structure assumes that deliberation must be constrained by antecedent justificatory procedures. I consider some of the radical implications of the pragmatist idea that deliberation is the conceptual context within which to interpret, evaluate, and explain moral justification.
Polymer Bragg gratings for telecom applications

We present recent significant progress in the fabrication of polymer Bragg gratings suitable for telecom applications. We demonstrate that polymer Bragg gratings can be thermally tuned over 20nm with polarization sensitivity less than 0.05nm. Experimental data are presented to address issues of long-term performance stability, propagation loss, polarization sensitivity and practical wavelength tuning. Polymer Bragg gratings are shown to survive very stringent accelerated aging tests and exhibit long-term stability in both material properties and grating performance. The spectral performance of the gratings and example telecom applications employing polymer Bragg gratings are also discussed.
Minireview: neural signaling of estradiol in the hypothalamus.

Many of the actions of estradiol in the central nervous system (CNS) are mediated via intracellular estrogen receptors (ERs)/transcription factors that interact with steroid response elements on target genes. In addition, there is compelling evidence for membrane-associated ERs in hypothalamic and other CNS neuron; but it is not well understood how estradiol signals via membrane-associated receptors and how these signals impact neuronal excitability and physiological functions. It has been known for some time that estradiol can rapidly alter neuronal activity within seconds, indicating that some cellular effects can occur via membrane initiated events. Thus, estradiol can affect second messenger systems, including calcium mobilization and a plethora of kinases to alter cell excitability and even gene transcription in hypothalamic neurons. Therefore, this minireview will summarize our current knowledge of rapid membrane-initiated and intracellular signaling by estradiol in the hypothalamus, the nature of receptors involved, and how they contribute not only to control of reproduction but other vital homeostatic functions.
Implementation and refinement of a problem-based learning model: a ten-year experience.

Objectives. To evaluate the effectiveness of a problem-based learning (PBL) model implemented in 1995 at the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy. Design. The third-professional (P3) year c...
Molecular aspects of methicillin resistance in Staphylococcus aureus

All clinical methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) isolates examined so far contain the mecA gene, a 2130bp stretch of DNA of non-staphylococcal origin which, together with a larger block (up to 40-60 Kb) of 'foreign' DNA, is incorporated into the staphylococcal chromosome. mecA encodes for the 78 Kd penicillin-binding protein (PBP) 2A, which has very low affinity for beta-lactam antibiotics. The sequence of the mecA gene contains structural motifs characteristic of cell wall synthetic transpeptidases. It is generally assumed that the mecA gene product (PBP 2A) acts as a surrogate enzyme which takes over the task of cell wall synthesis from the normal complement of staphylococcal PBPs, since the latter are inhibited by relatively low (e.g. methicillin) concentrations of beta-lactam antibiotics. While direct biochemical evidence for a transpeptidase activity in PBP 2A is still missing, the essentiality of an intact mecA gene for the expression of high-level methicillin resistance has been clearly established by transposon inactivation experiments. On the other hand, it was already noted some time ago that an intact mecA and its gene product PBP 2A alone cannot be fully in control of the resistant phenotype, since all MRSA isolates, irrespective of their MIC values (from as low as 3 mg/L or as high as 1600 mg/L), were found to contain comparable amounts of PBP 2A. Such major disparities between cellular amounts of PBP 2A and the antibiotic MIC values suggested that a factor or factors of unknown nature ('factor X') other than the mecA gene product also played an essential role in the phenotypic expression of resistance. The same conclusion was reached in early genetic studies in which methicillin resistance could be reduced by insertional inactivation of a chromosomal site (omega 2003) within the so-called femA gene--(factor essential for the expression of methicillin resistance) outside the mecA determinant. More recently, several additional chromosomal sites were identified outside the mecA gene in which transposon inactivation reduced the level of beta-lactam resistance. The importance of these genes becomes clear if one realizes that it is the appropriate functioning of these determinants (in the genetic background of MRSA) rather than the quantity of PBP 2A in the cells that seems to determine the MIC value of an MRSA isolate. It is not clear at the present time how many such 'auxiliary genes' exist and exactly how these gene co-operate with the mecA gene in bringing about high-level beta-lactam resistance.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Ixodes (Ixodes) scapularis (Acari:Ixodidae): redescription of all active stages, distribution, hosts, geographical variation, and medical and veterinary importance.

The blacklegged tick, Ixodes (Ixodes) scapularis Say, 1821, is redescribed, based on laboratory reared specimens originating in Bulloch County, Georgia. Information on distribution, host associations, morphological variation, and medical/veterinary importance is also presented. A great deal of recent work has focused on this species because it is the principal vector of the agent of Lyme disease (Borrelia burgdorferi Johnson, Schmidt, Hyde, Steigerwaldt & Brenner) in eastern North America. Its distribution appears to be expanding, and includes the state of Florida in the southeastern United States north to the provinces of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island, Canada, west to North and South Dakota, United States, and south to the state of Coahuila, Mexico. Although I. scapularis feeds on at least 125 species of North American vertebrates (54 mammalian, 57 avian, and 14 lizard species), analysis of the U.S. National Tick Collection holdings show that white-tailed deer, Odocoileus virginianus (Zimmermann), cattle, Bos taurus L., dogs, Canis lupus L., and other medium-to-large sized mammals are important hosts for adults as are native mice and other small mammals, certain ground-frequenting birds, skinks, and glass lizards for nymphs and larvae. This tick is a polytypic species exhibiting north-south and east-west morphological clines. Analysis of variance and Student-Newman-Keuls multiple comparisons revealed significant interpopulational variation that is expressed most significantly in the nymphal stage. Nymphs from northern (Minnesota, Massachusetts, Maryland) populations had relatively larger basis capituli with shorter cornua (except Maryland) than southern (North Carolina, Georgia) populations. Midwestern populations (Minnesota, Missouri) differed from eastern populations (Massachusetts, Maryland, North Carolina, Georgia) in idiosomal characters (broader scuta, larger coxae III, and IV). In addition to Lyme disease, this tick is also a primary vector of the agent of human and rodent babesiosis, Babesia microti Franca. Under laboratory conditions it has transmitted the agents of deer babesiosis, Babesia odocoilei Emerson & Wright, tularemia, Francisella tularensis McCoy & Chapin, and anaplasmosis, Anaplasma marginale Theiler. Moreover, I. scapularis can reach pest proportions on livestock, and females can cause tick paralysis in dogs.
National immunization advisory committees of the World Health Organization's European Region.

Abstract This study sought to understand the prevalence, structure and decision-making process of national immunization advisory committees (IACs) among the 53 member countries of the World Health Organization (WHO)’s European region. Of the 47 countries responding to the electronically administered questionnaire, 37 (72%) have an IAC. The majority of committees have a legislative basis while just over half have formal terms of reference. Fewer than half have experts in health economics. The vast majority of countries do not allow the public to attend committee meetings nor distribute publicly the minutes of their meetings. Countries should partner with financial experts early in the process of immunization policy decision-making and should examine their policies regarding conflicts of interest and public access to meetings, as financial strategy and public trust are essential to the successful implementation of new vaccines.
Orientation of GTP and ADP within their respective binding sites in glutamate dehydrogenase

Previous studies have identified the guanine and adenine binding domains of the GTP and ADP binding sites of GDH. In this study the peptide sequences within or near to the terminal phosphate-binding domains of the GTP and ADP binding sites of bovine liver glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) were identified using photoaffinity labeling with the benzophenone nucleotide derivatives, [γ-32P]GTPγBP and [γ-32P]ATPγBP. Without activating light, GTPγBP exhibited inhibiting effects on the GDH reaction similar to GTP; ATPγBP, as expected, produced activating effects similar to those of ADP. Photoinsertion into GDH by both probes exhibited saturation effects in agreement with the respective kinetic effects. Specificity of labeling was supported by specific and effective reduction of photoinsertion of [γ-32P]GTPγBP and [γ-32P]ATPγBP into GDH by GTP and ADP, respectively. Using a combination of immobilized Fe3+-chelate affinity chromatography and reversed-phase HPLC, photolabeled peptides located within or near the phosphate-binding domains of the GTP and ADP sites were isolated. Sequence analysis showed that GTPγBP primarily modified a peptide near the middle of the GDH sequence, Asn135–Lys143 and Glu290–Lys295. However, ATPγBP modified a single peptide corresponding to the sequence Met411–Arg419 near the C-terminal domain. Using these results and the data from the previously identified base-binding domain peptides the orientation of GTP and ADP within their respective binding sites in the catalytic cleft of GDH is proposed and explained on the basis of a proposed three-dimensional schematic model structure derived from the bacterial enzyme.
Evolution of cadmium resistance in Daphnia magna.

A diverse laboratory population of Daphnia magna Straus was established by combining individuals from eight sources. Artificial selection for increased resistance to the acute toxic effects of cadmium was performed, and after eight generations, the average median effective concentration increased from 61 to 180 μg/L. No differences in life span, offspring production, time to first brood, number of offspring in the first brood, or intrinsic rate of population increase (r) were observed between the cadmium-adapted population and the controls under ideal conditions or under conditions of temperature or feeding ration stress, but cadmium-adapted daphnids were smaller. Control and cadmium-adapted populations were equally sensitive to copper and malathion, but the cadmium-adapted population was less sensitive to lead and more sensitive to phenol. Analysis of amplified fragment-length polymorphisms indicated a significant decrease in genetic diversity in the cadmium-adapted population. Although the evolved cadmium resistance would allow adapted populations to exist in areas where cadmium concentrations would be toxic to unadapted populations, the decreased genetic diversity, smaller size, and increased sensitivity to at least one other toxicant could reduce the probability of long-term survival even in the absence of future cadmium exposure.
Compass: optimizing the migration cost vs. application performance tradeoff

We investigate methodologies for placement and migration of logical data stores in virtualized storage systems leading to optimum system configuration in a dynamic workload scenario. The aim is to optimize the tradeoff between the performance or operational cost improvement resulting from changes in store placement, and the cost imposed by the involved data migration step. We propose a unified economic utility based framework in which the tradeoff can be formulated as a utility maximization problem where the utility of a configuration is defined as the difference between the benefit of a configuration and the cost of moving to the configuration. We present a storage management middleware framework and architecture Compass that allows systems designers to plug-in different placement as well as migration techniques for estimation of utilities associated with different configurations. The biggest obstacle in optimizing the placement benefit and migration cost tradeoff is the exponential number of possible configurations that one may have to evaluate. We present algorithms that explore the configuration space efficiently and compute a candidate set of configurations that optimize this cost-benefit tradeoff. Our algorithms have many desirable properties including local optimality. Comprehensive experimental studies demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed framework and exploration algorithms, as our algorithms outperform migration cost-oblivious placement strategies by up to 40% on real OLTP traces for many settings.
Training students to administer and defend computer networks and systems

The security of computer systems, networks, and the Internet is becoming more critical by the day. Attacks on corporations, banks, schools, and government and international agencies are becoming more and more frequent, and the amount of damage that results is also rising rapidly. Despite these facts, few educational institutions offer courses that teach students the practical knowledge and skills needed to administer and defend computer networks and systems. We describe a semester-long Secure Operations course, which offers a unique laboratory experience that makes each student fully responsible for the configuration, administration, defense, and secure operation of his/her own Internet-based server on a 24/7 basis for the entire semester.
Numerical Analysis of Deep Drawing Process for Thermoplastic Composite Laminates

A numerical analysis including flow, heat transfer and residual stress is developed to simulate the deep drawing process of composite laminates with woven fabric microstructures. The governing equations and material properties of thermoplastic composites at the forming temperature are obtained by the homogenization method based on the assumption of instantaneously rigid solid fibers suspended in a viscous non-Newtonian polymer melt. The processing rheology of the composites is characterized by a power-law constitutive model for this anisotropic, non-isothermal and shear thinning fluid. To simulate the thermoforming and cooling stages of the entire forming process, the three-dimensional finite element method incorporating a fiber orientation model of woven-fabric microstructures is developed. This global-local numerical methodology is capable of predicting macroscopic and microscopic deformation mechanics during the thermoforming process. As an illustration, a comparison between the fiber orientation prediction and experimental data for a deep drawn cup is presented.
Regulation of pyr Gene Expression in Mycobacterium smegmatis by PyrR-Dependent Translational Repression

Regulation of pyrimidine biosynthetic (pyr) genes by a transcription attenuation mechanism that is mediated by the PyrR mRNA-binding regulatory protein has been demonstrated for numerous gram-positive bacteria. Mycobacterial genomes specify pyrR genes and contain obvious PyrR-binding sequences in the initially transcribed regions of their pyr operons, but transcription antiterminator and attenuation terminator sequences are absent from their pyr 5' leader regions. This work demonstrates that repression of pyr operon expression in Mycobacterium smegmatis by exogenous uracil requires the pyrR gene and the pyr leader RNA sequence for binding of PyrR. Plasmids containing the M. smegmatis pyr promoter-leader region translationally fused to lacZ also displayed pyrR-dependent repression, but transcriptional fusions of the same sequences to a lacZ gene that retained the lacZ ribosome-binding site were not regulated by PyrR plus uracil. We propose that PyrR regulates pyr expression in M. smegmatis, other mycobacteria, and probably in numerous other bacteria by a translational repression mechanism in which nucleotide-regulated binding of PyrR occludes the first ribosome-binding site of the pyr operon.
Corrective Measures for Compromised Oxygen Delivery During Endotracheal Tube Cuff Deflation With High-Frequency Percussive Ventilation

OBJECTIVE: To determine the effect of endotracheal-tube cuff deflation on airflow and FIO2 during high-frequency percussive ventilation (HFPV), and explore methods of correcting the cuff-deflation-associated decrease in mean airway pressure and FIO2 at the carina. METHODS: Using a mechanical lung model in our respiratory research laboratory, we measured circuit pressure near the connection to the endotracheal tube (Pvent), mean airway pressure (Paw), pulsatile tidal volume (VT), and FIO2 at the artificial carina. During cuff deflation we manipulated the pulsatile frequency, pulsatile flow, and the HFPV integral nebulizer. We then assessed 4 methods of correcting the decreased FIO2 and airway pressure during cuff deflation: (1) oxygen delivery at the inspiratory fail-safe valve, (2) oxygen delivery at the T-piece between the HFPV and the endotracheal tube, (3) continuous activation of the HFPV9s integral nebulizer, and (4) oxygen insufflation into the suction channel of the endotracheal tube. RESULTS: Cuff deflation reduced Pvent, Paw, pulsatile VT, and FIO2. Increasing the pulsatile flow and decreasing the pulsatile frequency further reduced FIO2 during cuff deflation. Injecting supplemental oxygen at the inspiratory fail-safe valve provided the best FIO2 increase. Injecting oxygen at the T-piece provided the second best FIO2 increase. Continuous activation of the integral nebulizer provided the third best FIO2 increase. Oxygen insufflation to the suction channel was least effective in correcting the FIO2 decrease caused by cuff deflation. CONCLUSION: Cuff-deflation-associated FIO2, Paw, and pulsatile VT compromise can be partially corrected by any of the 4 methods we studied. Injecting supplemental oxygen at the inspiratory fail-safe valve is the most effective method.
Design of an adaptive speed controller for DC brushless motors

DC brushless motors are popular in direct-drive robotics. These motors exhibit small torque ripples at low speeds. Those torque ripples cause speed fluctuations that are unacceptable for applications requiring high precision. An adaptive controller based on the self-tuning regulator technique is presented in this paper to correct for those low speed torque ripples.
Two Steps Forward, One Step Back: Uncertainty in Local Economic Development:

The Reese and Rosenfeld analysis of the conventional wisdom about economic development is important and timely. They correctly argue that research has not yielded a set of unequivocal laws, general truths, or first principles regarding local economic development. However, in their enthusiasm to arrive at their conclusion, they overstate the problem, and they overlook methodological advances in the field. Over the past 15 years, researchers have produced findings that clarify and fine-tune a dynamic and complex process. Furthermore, the Reese and Rosenfeld prescription—to focus on the unique civic culture of a community as the explanatory variable—takes inquiry in the wrong direction.
A channel resource management framework for cellular networks

Cellular networks provide efficient bandwidth management by allowing frequency reuse. In cellular networks, the radio connection between mobile nodes and base stations, termed 'channel', can be viewed as a logic link. The focus of this research is on the management of such logical channels. A lot of research has been conducted in the area of channel resource management. Most of them combine interference prevention and channel management strategies. We propose a framework of channel resource management which is analogous to OS resource management. This framework consists of three layers, where the lower layer provides services to the higher layer while concealing the implementation details. Based on the proposed framework, we commence with several channel borrowing approaches in the highest layer. However, alike in operating systems resource management research, we expect much more detailed studies to be forthcoming in this area.
Identity-based motivation: Implications for action-readiness, procedural-readiness, and consumer behavior

Choices are often identity-based but the linkage to identity is not necessarily explicit or obvious for a number of reasons. First, identities feel stable but are highly sensitive to situational cues. Second, identities include not only content but also readiness to act and to use procedures congruent with the identity. Third, identities can be subtly cued without conscious awareness. Fourth, what an accessible identity means is dynamically constructed in the particular context in which it is cued. Because identities carry action- and procedural-readiness, the outcome of an identity-based motivation process may be similar to or different from the choices an individual would have made in another setting. Moreover, once an identity is formed, action and procedural-readiness can be cued without conscious awareness or systematic processing, resulting in beneficial or iatrogenic outcomes.
Tachykinins and calcitonin gene-related peptide enhance release of endogenous glutamate and aspartate from the rat spinal dorsal horn slice

The effects of dorsal root stimulation and of substance P (SP), neurokinin A (NKA), and calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) on the basal release of 9 endogenous amino acids, including glutamate (Glu) and aspartate (Asp), have been investigated using the rat spinal cord slice-dorsal root ganglion preparation and high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorimetric detection. High-intensity repetitive electrical stimulation of a lumbar dorsal root produced a Ca2(+)-dependent increase in the basal release of Asp, Glu, glycine (Gly), serine (Ser), and threonine (Thr). Low concentrations of SP (2 x 10(-7) M) caused a selective increase in the rate of basal release of Glu, whereas higher concentrations (1-5 x 10(-6) M) produced, in addition, an increase in the basal release of Asp. The SP-induced increase of Glu persisted in the absence of external Ca2+, but the effect was blocked by (D-Arg1, D-Pro2, D-Trp7,9, Leu11)-SP, an SP analog claimed to be an antagonist of the synthetic SP. NKA (5 x 10(-7) - 10(-6) M), a related tachykinin coexpressed with SP in primary sensory neurons, enhanced the basal release of Gly. CGRP (10(-7) M) caused a significant, largely Ca2(+)-independent increase in the basal release of Glu and Asp and a decrease in asparagine. SP and CGRP potentiated the electrically evoked release of Glu and Asp. Neonatal capsaicin treatment did not significantly alter the basal efflux of 9 endogenous amino acids from the spinal slices, but it prevented the dorsal root stimulation-evoked release of Asp, Glu, Gly, and Thr and the SP-induced increase in the basal release of Glu. However, the effect of CGRP was not significantly modified by the capsaicin treatment. These results indicate that tachykinins (SP and NKA) and CGRP are capable of modulating the basal and electrically evoked release of endogenous Glu and Asp, and these actions may provide an important mechanism by which the peptides contribute to the regulation of the primary afferent synaptic transmission. The enhancement of the basal and the dorsal root stimulation-evoked release of Glu and Asp by tachykinins and CGRP may have important physiological implications for strengthening the synaptic connections in the spinal dorsal horn.
Using eye reflections for face recognition under varying illumination

Face recognition under varying illumination remains a challenging problem. Much progress has been made toward a solution through methods that require multiple gallery images of each subject under varying illumination. Yet for many applications, this requirement is too severe. In this paper, we propose a novel method that requires only a single gallery image per subject taken under unknown lighting. The method builds upon two contributions. We first estimate the lighting from its reflection in the eyes. This allows us to explicitly recover the illumination in the single gallery images as well as the probe image. Next, we exploit the local linearity of face appearance variation across different people. We represent the gallery images as locally linear montages of images of many different faces taken under the same lighting (bootstrap images). Then, we transfer the estimated combination of bootstrap images to synthesize each subject's face under tile probe lighting to accomplish recognition. Finally, we show through tests on the CMU PIE database that we can achieve better recognition results using our lighting estimation method and locally linear montages than the current state-of-the-art.
Presence of Anelastic Strains in High Lead Solders at Ambient and High Temperatures

We had reported last year that cyclically tested Pb/Sn solders of different compositions exhibited a complicating anelastic effect. The storage and recovery of anelastic strains suppresses damaging creep strain from being stored thus causing non-conservative life prediction estimates and results in complications with respect to accelerated testing. These complications were at that time believed to be characteristic of only eutectic solders at near ambient temperatures. We now find that said complications exist for high end Pb solders and at higher temperatures. Strain rate behavior of high lead solders indicate that a different failure mechanism might exist at temperatures where the material exists as a two phase and in regimes where it exists as a solid solution. Experiments conducted to determine the effect of grain size on accelerated cycling indicated that recrystallization of large grains occurs due to cycling at high temperatures. At ambient temperature, which is greater than half the absolute melting temperature of 90/10 Pb/Sn, it was observed that large grains suppress creep.
Histological Analysis of the Kidney Tumor-Parenchyma Interface

Purpose: During enucleative partial nephrectomy excision is performed adjacent to the tumor edge. To better determine the oncologic propriety of enucleative partial nephrectomy we histologically examined the tumor-parenchyma interface.Materials and Methods: Archived hematoxylin and eosin stained slides of 124 nephrectomy specimens were rereviewed. We evaluated representative sections of tumor abutting the renal parenchyma and overlying pseudocapsule/perirenal fat were selected at 4 mm2 sectors apportioned 1, 2, 3 and 4 mm, respectively, from the tumor edge.Results: Median tumor size was 3.5 cm. Of the tumors 111 were malignant (90%) and 119 (96%) had a pseudocapsule with a median thickness of 0.6 mm. Of malignant and benign tumors 82% and 31%, respectively, had an intrarenal pseudocapsule (p <0.001). Pseudocapsule invasion was noted in 45% of cancers and 15% of benign tumors (p <0.04). Of pT1a cancers 36% showed intrarenal pseudocapsule invasion. No patient had positive surgical margins. Intrarenal pseudo...
Nonedited 1H NMR lactate/n-acetyl aspartate ratios and the in vivo determination of lactate concentration in brain

The 1H lactate/n-acetyl aspartate ratio is commonly used for the quantitation of brain lactate under pathological conditions. We demonstrate that the intensity of the lactate methyl region in water-suppressed, nonedited 1H spectra increases following mild brain trauma as a result of factors other than lactate accumulation.
Family nursing research, theory and practice

The absence of critical dialogue regarding what constitutes family nursing prevents the further development of the specialty area of family nursing. In this essay, the author issues nine challenges faced by those who would contribute to the development of family nursing.
The “sensational” power of movement in plants: A Darwinian system for studying the evolution of behavior

Darwin ’ s research on botany and plant physiology was a landmark attempt to integrate plant movements into a biological perspective of behavior. Since antiquity, people have sought to explain plant movements via mechanical or physiological forces, and yet they also constructed analogies between plant and animal behavior. During the Renaissance and Enlightenment, thinkers began to see that physiochemical explanations of plant movements could equally apply to animal behavior and even human thought. Darwin saw his research on plant movements as a strategic front against those who argued that his theory of evolution could not account for the acquisition of new behavioral traits. He believed that his research explained how the different forms of plant movement evolved as modifi ed habits of circumnutation, and he presented evidence that plants might have a brain-like organ, which could have acquired various types of plant sensitivity during evolution. Upon publication of The Power of Movement in Plants , his ideas were overwhelmingly rejected by plant physiologists. Subsequently, plant biologists came to view the work as an important contribution to plant physiology and biology, but its intended contribution to the fi eld of evolution and behavior has been largely overlooked.
TREATMENT OF A URETEROILIAC ARTERY FISTULA WITH AN INTRALUMINAL ENDOVASCULAR GRAFT

Ureteroiliac artery fistulas have been increasingly reported during the last 10 years and have been associated with pelvic irradiation, vascular pathology, ureteral stenting and prior pelvic surgery.' We report the endovascular management of this life threatening treatment dilemma. CASE REPORT
Colony-Stimulating Factor-1 Plays a Major Role in the Development of Reproductive Function in Male Mice

Colony-stimulating factor-1 (CSF-1) is the principal regulator of cells of the mononuclear phagocytic lineage that includes monocytes, tissue macrophages, microglia, and osteoclasts. Macrophages are found throughout the reproductive tract of both males and females and have been proposed to act as regulators of fertility at several levels. Mice homozygous for the osteopetrosis mutation (csfm[op]) lack CSF-1 and, consequently, have depleted macrophage numbers. Further analysis has revealed that male csfm(op)/csfm(op) mice have reduced mating ability, low sperm numbers, and 90% lower serum testosterone levels. The present studies show that this low serum testosterone is due to reduced testicular Leydig cell steroidogenesis associated with severe ultrastructural abnormalities characterized by disrupted intracellular membrane structures. In addition, the Leydig cells from csfm(op)/ csfm(op) males have diminished amounts of the steroidogenic enzyme proteins P450 side chain cleavage, 3beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase, and P450 17alpha-hydroxylase-lyase, with associated reductions in the activity of all these steroidogenic enzymes, as well as in 17beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase. The CSF-1-deficient males also have reduced serum LH and disruption of the normal testosterone negative feedback response of the hypothalamus, as demonstrated by the failure to increase LH secretion in castrated males and their lack of response to exogenous testosterone. However, these males are responsive to GnRH and LH treatment. These studies have identified a novel role for CSF-1 in the development and/or regulation of the male hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis.
A Consumer's Guide to Superorganisms

The organism, like the molecule, the cell, and the species, is one of the fundamental levels in our hierarchical classification of life and its components. The units ranked at these levels, being concrete, particular things, are individuals in the broadest philosophical sense. But in a much narrower and more familiar sense, individual means an individual organism. Like species , the term individual is hard to define, but in most biological discourse it has meant the unit of philosophical autonomy. Some authors have attempted to revise this terminology, restricting individual to organisms, and redefining organism to include families and other units. Such semantic surgery is unnecessary if the goal is merely to justify selection at more than one level. Analogies between levels may be interesting, but many of them do not deserve to be taken seriously.
Habitual snoring and depressive symptoms during pregnancy

Depression is frequently observed in patients with untreated sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) in the general population. Pregnant women are particularly vulnerable since pregnancy increases the risk of both SDB and depressive symptoms. However, no study has investigated whether SDB symptoms prior to or in early pregnancy are associated with such mood problems. A retrospective chart review of pregnant women. Women were included if they attended prenatal clinics between June 2007 and July 2010, were ≥18 years old, pregnant with a single fetus, and had been screened for habitual snoring as well as depressive symptoms using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scales (EPDS). In total, 362 women were included and 32.3% reported habitual snoring. Twenty-nine percent of women had an EPDS score ≥10. Significantly more snoring women, compared to non-snorers, had an EPDS score ≥10 (42.7% vs. 22.9%, p < 0.001) despite the mean EPDS values not reaching statistical significance (6.1 ± 4.9 vs. 5.4 ± 5.0, p = 0.2). In a logistic regression model controlling for parity, the presence of pre-pregnancy obesity, presence of a partner, sleep quality, African American race, maternal educational level, pre-eclampsia, and diabetes, snoring was independently associated with a prenatal EPDS score ≥10 (O.R. 2.0, 95%CI 1.13-3.46; p = 0.023). Maternal snoring may be a risk factor for prenatal depressive symptoms. Further investigation of the temporal relationship between maternal snoring and depressive symptoms is warranted.
Regional Variation of Transient Precipitation and Rainless-day Frequency Across a Subcontinental Hydroclimate Gradient

Extreme daily and transient precipitation events have been on the rise in the continental United States. These changes have the potential to disrupt human and natural systems. Tree rings can reconstruct annual estimates of past climate, but have limitations in reconstructing extreme precipitation events. We analyzed instrumental records to evaluate patterns in daily, weekly, and seasonal precipitation in four regions spanning a climatic gradient in the eastern United States. Relationships between tree-ring reconstructions of hydroclimate and precipitation events were analyzed to characterize extreme years over the last 1000 years. From 1944–2013, the Hudson Valley and Ohio Valley regions have experienced wetter summers as well as an increase in the frequency of daily rainfall. Coinciding with these increases, half or more of the extreme wet years in these two regions have occurred in the last 20 years. Significant differences in the structure of weekly growing-season precipitation between extreme wet and ...
Methods for Developing Flexible Technical Knowledge in Architectural Education

Building technology is often the focus of required courses in architecture programs where there is an expectation that technical knowledge will help inform a student’s design process. The authors’ surveys of architecture faculty suggest programs desire students to integrate skills from technology courses into the studio setting, yet research reveals poor to mixed results. Research in other technical academic fields suggests traditional lecture course formats result in lower student retention of course content. Evidence shows content learned via lecture methods alone tends to be highly compartmentalized and inflexible, thus reducing the successful application of technical knowledge to other contexts, such as the technical courses and design studios found in architecture education. This paper examines active learning methodologies used in other technical academic curricula and considers how they may be applied to technical curricula in architecture. The paper proposes student’s difficulty in applying technical knowledge to design can be attributed to passive teaching methodologies used in lecture-based technology courses. To explore this proposition the authors reviewed pertinent literature from other disciplines and surveyed instructors experienced in employing laboratory type activities in their curriculum. The results of this research suggest hybridized problem-based learning (PBL) methodologies can be integrated into high content technical curricula to increase students’ problem solving skills with the aim of developing long-term flexible knowledge. The research also examines the architecture curriculum at the researchers’ institution. There, building technology courses were traditionally passive and lecture-based but the curriculum is currently under revision. The research considers class size, student-faculty ratios, course content, accreditation requirements and assessment methods to propose incorporation of PBL-type activities into existing lecture-based courses. The paper concludes by proposing a methodology for pre- and post- class learning assessment to evaluate the success of curriculum changes.
THE GALWAY PACKET-BOAT CONTRACT AND THE POLITICS OF PUBLIC EXPENDITURE IN MID-VICTORIAN IRELAND

This article argues that political considerations, economic theory, attitudes toward public finance, and concerns about regional development all influenced contemporary responses to the Galway packet-boat contract of 1859–64. Though historians have conventionally depicted the dispute over the contract as an episode in Victorian high politics, it maintains that the controversy surrounding the agreement between the Galway Company and the state cannot be understood solely in terms of party manoeuvre at Westminster. In the context of the Union between Britain and Ireland, the Galway contract raised important questions about the role of the British government in fostering Irish economic development through public expenditure. Politicians and opinion-makers adopted a variety of ideologically informed positions when addressing this issue, resulting in diverse approaches to state intervention, often across party lines. While political calculation and pressure from interest groups certainly affected policy, the substantive debate on the contract helped to shape the late Victorian Irish policy of both British parties by clarifying contemporary ideas about the economic functions appropriate to the Union state.
Hippocrates and Socrates: Professional Obligations to Educate the Next Generation

Do professionals have an ethical obligation to educate new members of their profession? The ancient Hippocratic oath recognized such a commitment, requiring all doctors “to give a share of precepts and oral instruction and all the other learning...to pupils who have signed the covenant.” Contemporary theories of professionalism point to the same result, identifying intergenerational education as an essential feature of professional status. Moral theory and economic policy, finally, underscore this outcome: In return for the exclusive right to practice a profession, established members of the profession must agree to share their knowledge, skills, and other expertise with newcomers.The rules of professional conduct governing lawyers, sadly, do not mention this duty to educate. Equally unfortunate, mounting evidence suggests that neither law schools nor the practicing bar are fulfilling their ethical obligation to educate new members of the profession. This Article explores both the nature of that ethical gap and ways that law schools could restore their ethical commitment to educate new members of the bar. To provide background for that discussion, Part I of the Article examines the historical, social, moral, and economic roots of a professional obligation to educate. Part II then analyzes the status of this obligation within the legal profession. Part III, finally, proposes six ways that legal educators can improve our ethical commitment to educating new lawyers.
Reversible association of half-molecules of ovotransferrin in solution. Basis of co-operative binding to reticulocytes.

In the present paper, gel-filtration studies of diferric-ovotransferrin (Fe2OTf), the individual half-molecules of ovotransferrin (OTf) and equimolar mixtures of half-molecules have been interpreted according to the Gilbert theory as developed by Ackers & Thompson [(1965) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 53, 342-349]. The data indicate that the half-molecules associate reversibly in solution and allow determination of a dissociation constant, Kd' = 8.0 (+/- 2.7) microM. Equilibrium binding studies have been performed using NH4Cl to block removal of iron from equimolar differentially iodine-labelled half-molecules (125I and 131I), in order to evaluate the binding of each to chick-embryo red blood cells under identical conditions. The amount of associated half-molecules over a range of concentrations has been calculated using the constant derived from the gel-filtration experiments described above. A computerized non-linear least-squares regression analysis of the data leads to determination of Kd* (the apparent dissociation constant for the interaction between OTf or half-molecules and the transferrin (Tf) receptors of chick-embryo red blood cells) and Bmax (binding at infinite free-ligand concentration) for the half-molecules similar to those found for Fe2OTf. Recent reports confirm that the two iron-binding domains of both OTf and human lactotransferrin associate non-covalently in solution. Our work shows that the isolated half-molecules of OTf are able to reassociate in solution and that this reassociation has functional significance by allowing the complex to be recognized by the Tf receptor.
Patient question set proliferation: scope and informatics challenges of patient question set management in a large multispecialty practice with case examples pertaining to tobacco use, menopause, and Urology and Orthopedics specialties

Health care institutions have patient question sets that can expand over time. For a multispecialty group, each specialty might have multiple question sets. As a result, question set governance can be challenging. Knowledge of the counts, variability and repetition of questions in a multispecialty practice can help institutions understand the challenges of question set proliferation. We analyzed patient-facing question sets that were subject to institutional governance and those that were not. We examined question variability and number of repetitious questions for a simulated episode of care. In addition to examining general patient question sets, we used specific examples of tobacco questions, questions from two specialty areas, and questions to menopausal women. In our analysis, there were approximately 269 institutionally governed patient question sets with a mean of 74 questions per set accounting for an estimated 20,000 governed questions. Sampling from selected specialties revealed that 50 % of patient question sets were not institutionally governed. We found over 650 tobacco-related questions in use, many with only slight variations. A simulated use case for a menopausal woman revealed potentially over 200 repeated questions. A group practice with multiple specialties can have a large volume of patient questions that are not centrally developed, stored or governed. This results in a lack of standardization and coordination. Patients may be given multiple repeated questions throughout the course of their care, and providers lack standardized question sets to help construct valid patient phenotypes. Even with the implementation of a single electronic health record, medical practices may still have a health information management gap in the ability to create, store and share patient-generated health information that is meaningful to both patients and physicians.
Reconstruction of the Orbit

There are numerous methods for reconstruction of the orbit. The choices depend on the patient’s age, the type of tumor, and the specific anatomic and functional demands required. Three-dimensional reconstructions, including bone and soft-tissue, and the particular needs of the ocular system must be considered, especially when subtotal or globe preservation procedures are used.
Cysts of the Ducts of Cowper’s Glands

AbstractWe describe 4 patients, 3 of whom were children, with cysts in the ducts of Cowper’s glands. Presenting symptoms were testicular pain and urethritis. Voiding urethrography with dilute contrast medium is the best diagnostic aid short of urethroscopy. The cysts were effectively treated by avulsion with a bent wire.
Stages of group work in CS1

In CS1, students have a limited set of programming skills and they often represent a wide range of experience levels; this combination can make group work especially challenging. This paper provides a review of pair programming and group work with a focus on CS1. The paper then briefly describes guidelines for selecting group work projects and suggestions for forming groups and assigning roles. Finally, the paper provides a detailed description of stages for a typical CS1 group project.