cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Faunal Extinction in an Island Society: Pygmy Hippopotamus Hunters of Cyprus

Faunal Extinction in an Island Society: Pygmy Hippopotamus Hunters of Cyprus. Alan H. Simmons and Associates. New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers, 1999. 381 pp.
Auditory hallucinations associated with migraine: Case series and literature review.

ObjectiveThe objective of this review is to describe auditory hallucinations (paracusias) associated with migraine attacks to yield insights into their clinical significance and pathogenesis.Backgr...
High-Accuracy Compact MacCormack-Type Schemes for Computational Aeroacoustics

Using MacCormack-type methods, a new class of highly accurate compact MacCormack-type schemes is derived which does not require a tridiagonal matrix inversion to obtain the spatial derivatives. Two examples are shown, and results of these schemes for three linear and nonlinear CAA Benchmark Problems are presented.
Meningiomas: MR and histopathologic features.

The magnetic resonance (MR) appearances of 40 biopsy-proved meningiomas were blindly evaluated and correlated with their predominant histologic pattern--fibroblastic, transitional, syncytial, angioblastic, or mixed. T1-weighted images were not particularly useful in discriminating pathologic subtype, because most tumors were isointense with or hypointense to cortex regardless of histologic type. Signal intensity and features on T2-weighted images strongly correlated with histopathologic findings in over 75% of cases, however. Meningiomas markedly hypointense to cortex on T2-weighted images (seven of 40 cases) were composed predominantly of fibroblastic or transitional elements, while markedly hyperintense meningiomas (14 of 40 cases) demonstrated predominance of syncytial or angioblastic elements. Consideration of secondary features visible at MR imaging (degree of edema, cyst formation, presence of calcium aggregates) led to a more specific histologic prediction in over half of the remaining isointense t...
Web Services for Negotiation and Bargaining in Electronic Markets: Design Requirements and Implementation Framework

Information systems researchers continue to develop Web services hoping that, in a near future, these services will be offered in the e-marketplace. Perhaps the most foreseeable mechanism to enable the web services market is the use of WSDL, SOAP, XML, UDDI and the like that allow posting of existing services. Posting services does not, however, necessarily lead to market transactions. In this paper, we propose a set of web services that provide negotiation and bargaining support to facilitate the matching of supply and demand of web services. As a market broker, these web services would help (a) discover the supply/demand of web services; (b) find the most appropriate available service for a given request; (c) request services be modified if needed to satisfy users needs; (d) arbitrate the pricing mechanism with the recourse to bargaining whenever necessary; and (e) generate a contract.
Designing warnings to compensate for age-related changes in perceptual and cognitive abilities

A variety of individual difference variables affect whether or not someone notices, encodes, comprehends, and complies with a warning. Failures at any of these stages reduce the effectiveness of warnings. Development of effective warnings must be based on understanding the characteristics of the product user. As the population grows older, consideration of age-related changes in perceptual and cognitive abilities becomes more relevant to the warning designer. For example, aging researchers have identified a variety of changes in the visual system (e.g., acuity, contrast sensitivity, and color discrimination) and cognitive function (e.g., working memory and reading comprehension). By considering the abilities of the product user, the impact of these age-related changes may be minimized. The goal of this article is to describe findings from research on aging and to make recommendations about how designers can increase the effectiveness of warnings for the older adult. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Accountability in the Medical Profession

The history of physician practice has evolved from a time when the physician’s word was simply accepted as truth to a time when fallibility is viewed as an opportunity. Numerous societal factors contribute to the way in which healthcare providers deliver care and the ways in which they take responsibility for that care. Society looks to providers to lead efforts for improving safety. Advances in technology and education position physicians and other providers to foster innovation and create fair mechanisms for accountability.
New sequestrate fungi from Guyana: Jimtrappea guyanensis gen. sp. nov., Castellanea pakaraimophila gen. sp. nov., and Costatisporus cyanescens gen. sp. nov. ( Boletaceae, Boletales )

Jimtrappea guyanensis gen. sp. nov., Castellanea pakaraimophila gen. sp. nov., and Costatisporus cyanescens gen. sp. nov. are described as new to science. These sequestrate, hypogeous fungi were collected in Guyana under closed canopy tropical forests in association with ectomycorrhizal (ECM) host tree genera Dicymbe (Fabaceae subfam. Caesalpinioideae), Aldina (Fabaceae subfam. Papilionoideae), and Pakaraimaea (Dipterocarpaceae). Molecular data place these fungi in Boletaceae (Boletales, Agaricomycetes, Basidiomycota) and inform their relationships to other known epigeous and sequestrate taxa within that family. Macro- and micromorphological characters, habitat, and multi-locus DNA sequence data are provided for each new taxon. Unique morphological features and a molecular phylogenetic analysis of 185 taxa across the order Boletales justify the recognition of the three new genera.
Practice and Innovative Design of the Key Links in the Process of College Fundamental Computer Course Teaching Reform

Aiming at the problems existing in the teaching of the course Fundamental of Computer,such as the uneven capability of the students,different requirements for specialties and so on,we carry out innovative design of the teaching reform in line with the training target,centering on the key teaching links,including course system,teaching mode,teaching means,teaching method,etc. We propose the basic idea of overall design in curriculum reform which takes strengthening student’s information education as the core,developing computer application ability as the main line,constructing two relatively independent system of theoretical teaching and practical teaching as the platform,highlighting creative ability training and student’s sustainable development as the goal.
Surveillance of Food-borne Pathogens in Jingmen City from 2006 to 2008

[Objective]To understand food pollution caused by pathogens in Jingmen City,to identify high-risk types of food,to prevent or reduce the occurrence of food poisoning.[Methods]The test was based on "National Food-borne Disease Surveillance Manual" [Results]A total of 145 samples of food were monitored during 2006-2008,18 pathogens were isolated,with the total detection rate of 12.41%.The detection rate of Salmonella,Listeria monocytogenes,Staphylococcus aureus,Vibrio parahaemolyticus was 2.07%(3/145),6.90%(10/145),6.06%(2/33),15.79%(3/19),respectively.No campylobacteria and intestinal hemorrhagic Escherichia coli(O157) were detected.[Conclusion]Food-borne pathogens exist widely in various kinds of food,it is necessary to pay attention to food hygiene and to prevent food poisoning.
Analysis of microbiological test results in health-related products during 2006-2009

Objective:To investigate the microbial contamination of health-related products in Hunan Province.Methods:Analysis the microbiological test results in food(including health food),cosmetics,bottles(barrels) drinking-water during 2006-2009 in Hunan Province.Results:Inspecting 1770 health-related food products,1549 samples were qualified,87.5 percents of samples meeting standards.There are 1301 food samples with a pass rate of 88.3%;197 cosmetics samples with a pass rate of 97.5% and 272 drinking Water samples with a pass rate of 76.5%.There are statistically significant in the difference of different types of product qualification rate.Conclusion:There is wide-ranging quality on hygienic quality of three types of health-related products in Hunan Province;the supervision departments should strengthen the sanitation management of drinking water and food.
Correcting current imbalances in three-phase four-wire distribution systems

This paper presents the analysis and control of a current imbalance compensator designed to eliminate upstream negative- and zero- sequence current components caused by single-phase loads in three-phase four-wire systems. The proposed compensator significantly reduces the fundamental-frequency current component in the neutral conductor and can potentially be used to eliminate harmonic currents. The Matlab/Simulink™ simulations are based on a 3-MVA radial feeder case study and a scaled-down 10-kVA test setup used to validate the proposed ideas. Three TMS320F28335 DSPs are used to implement the control system and the results of both the simulations and the prototype testing are shown and discussed. Results from testing of the prototype demonstrate the ability of the compensator to reduce the current in the neutral conductor.
Remeasurement of the π+ lifetime☆

Abstract New data on the π + → μ + + ν decay lifetime give a value of 26.04 ± 0.05 nsec. A reanalysis of part of the data of a previous experiment which yielded 26.40 ± 0.08 nsec has disclosed previously unseen systematic drifts.
The Conception of Abstraction

Aristotle’s core conception of abstraction ( Open image in new window ) is: selective attention . Although he at times uses ‘abstraction’ in the sense of ‘subtraction ’ of the Greek mathematicians, Aristotle extends the use to other cases where certain aspects of an object are focused upon and selected out. Aristotle then allows for these aspects to be treated in the sciences as if they were subjects in their own right, in a way to which Frege would object. Unlike the later British empiricists, Aristotle takes abstraction to isolate real aspects of objects and not to construct concepts pertaining only to how we think of the world.
A Quadrupled Nd:FAP laser at 1.126 µm for a Hg+ Optical Frequency Standard

A single-frequency, narrowband, quadrupled diode-pumped Nd:FAP laser at 1.126 µm was developed as the local oscillator for an optical frequency standard based on the 199Hg+ S-D quadrupole transition at 281.5 nm.
Investigation on chatter stability of thin-walled parts in milling based on process damping with relative transfer functions

Chatter usually occurs in cutting of thin-walled workpiece due to poor structural stiffness, which results in poor surface quality and damaged tool. Aiming at process damping caused by interference between a tool flank face and a machined surface of thin-walled part, the dynamic model and critical condition of stability are proposed by the relative transfer functions, when both the tool structure and the machined workpiece have similar dynamic behaviors in this paper. Using the frequency method to solve the stability of the cutting chatter, it can be seen that the process damping can significantly improve the stability of the low speed region. Moreover, the stability domain is different and more exact than the one that derives from the simple superposition of the tool and the workpiece lobe diagrams. The correctness of the model is validated by experiments. These conclusions provide a theoretical foundation and reference for the milling mechanism research.
Hans Eysenck: Personality theorist

Abstract Hans Eysenck was the leading personality and individual differences theorist of the 20th century. His goal was to combine the best theories and practices of experimental psychology with the best measurement techniques of individual differences. From his earliest analyses of the dimensions of individual differences, through multiple iterations at theory building to his lasting achievements in building a paradigm for personality research he left a legacy of broad and rigorous research. He strove to integrate behaviour genetics, psychophysiology, cognitive psychology, aesthetics, and psychometrics into a unified theory of personality and individual differences. Although best known for his biological theory of extraversion, his impact upon the field was much more than that and cannot be summarized in a brief article. I review his major theoretical contributions and relate them to modern personality theory and show how his many contributions continue to shape current personality research.
Relationship Between Body Positioning, Muscle Activity, and Spinal Kinematics in Cyclists With and Without Low Back Pain: A Systematic Review.

Context:Low back pain is reported by more than half of cyclists. The pathomechanics and association of risk factors of lumbar spine overuse injuries in cycling are not clearly understood.Objective:To determine whether relationships exist between body positioning, spinal kinematics, and muscle activity in active cyclists with nontraumatic low back pain.Data Sources:In August of 2015 and April of 2016, a comprehensive search of the PubMed, CINAHL, Ovid MEDLINE, and Scopus databases was performed independently by 5 reviewers.Study Selection:Included articles consisted of biomechanical studies examining factors relating to low back pain in cyclists as agreed upon by group consensus.Study Design:Systematic review.Level of Evidence:Level 4.Data Extraction:Five reviewers appraised by consensus each article using the Downs and Black checklist.Results:Eight studies met criteria for this review. There is evidence that cyclists with lower handlebar heights displayed increased lumbosacral flexion angles during cyclin...
People and entity retrieval in implicit social networks

Online social networks can be viewed as implicit real world networks, that manage to capture a wealth of information about heterogeneous nodes and edges, which are highly interconnected. Such abundant data can be beneficial in finding and retrieving relevant people and entities within these networks. Effective methods of achieving this can be useful in systems ranging from recommender systems to people and entity discovery systems. Our main contribution in this paper is the proposal of a novel localized algorithm that operates on the sub graph of the social graph and retrieves relevant people or entities. We also demonstrate how such an algorithm can be used in large real world social networks and graphs to efficiently retrieve relevant people/entities.
Phase I study of pazopanib plus TH-302 in advanced solid tumors.

To define the maximum tolerated dose (MTD), recommended phase II dose (RPTD), and assess safety and tolerability for the combination of pazopanib plus TH-302, an investigational hypoxia-activated prodrug (HAP), in adult patients with advanced solid tumors. This was an open-label, non-randomized, single-center, phase I trial consisting 2 stages. Stage 1 was a standard “3 + 3” dose escalation design to determine safety and the RPTD for TH-302 plus pazopanib combination. Stage 2 was an expanded cohort to better describe the tolerability and toxicity profile at the MTD. Pazopanib was orally dosed at 800 mg daily on days 1–28 for all cohorts. TH-302 was administered intravenously on days 1, 8 and 15 of a 28-day cycle at doses of 340 mg/m2 (cohort 1) or 480 mg/m2 (cohort 2). Dose limiting toxicity (DLT) was assessed in the first 28-day cycle. Efficacy was assessed every 2 cycles. Thirty patients were enrolled between December 2011 and September 2013. In the dose escalation stage, 7 patients were enrolled in the 340 mg/m2 TH-302 cohort and 6 patients in the 480 mg/m2 TH-302 cohort. Ten patients were evaluable for DLT. DLTs included grade 2 intolerable esophagitis (n = 1) in the 340 mg/m2 TH-302 cohort, and grade 3 vaginal inflammation (n = 1) and grade 3 neutropenia with grade 3 thrombocytopenia (n = 1, same patient) in the 480 mg/m2 TH-302 cohort. The 340 mg/m2 TH-302 cohort was determined to be MTD and RPTD. The most common treatment-related adverse events were hematologic (anemia, neutropenia, and thrombocytopenia), nausea/vomiting, palmar-plantar erythrodysesthesia syndrome, constipation, fatigue, mucositis, anorexia, pain, and hypertension. Partial response (PR) was observed in 10% (n = 3) of patients, stable disease (SD) in 57% (n = 17), and progressive disease (PD) in 23% (n = 7). Due to toxicity, 3 patients were discontinued from study drug prior to first radiographic assessment but were included in these calculations. Disease control ≥6 months was observed in 37% of patients (n = 11). The RPTD for this novel combination is pazopanib 800 mg daily on days 1–28 plus TH-302 340 mg/m2 on days 1, 8 and 15 of each 28-day cycle. Preliminary activity was seen in treatment-refractory cancers and supports potential value of co-targeting tumor angiogenesis and tumor hypoxia.
Modeling molecular interactions of sodium montmorillonite clay with 3D kerogen models

Abstract The interactions of kerogen with charged mineral entities such as clays in oil shale are important for the development of new processes for extraction of kerogen from oil shales. In this work, the complex 3D structure of Green River Type I kerogen was developed from its seven components or fragments using Siskin’s two-dimensional (2D) structure. Sodium (Na)-montmorillonite, one of the minerals identified in the Green River oil shale, was chosen for kerogen and clay mineral interaction study. The seven fragments of the kerogen structure vary in complexity with moities ranging from aliphatic, aromatic and olefinic hydrocarbons to nitrogenous aromatic, aliphatic and ammonical structures. The molecular orientation of each fragment was evaluated using Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations indicating significant non-bonded interactions between clay and kerogen. The simulation results also illustrate the significant non-bonded interactions of Na-montmorillonite clay preferentially with fragments 4, 5, 6, and 7 as compared to fragments 1, 2, and 3. The quantitative values of interactions were compared in the context of the molecular nature and differences between the fragments. These interactions were primarily predominated by van der Waals energy. Also, fragment 7 has the highest interaction with clay. At the same time, when kerogen interacts with clay minerals, there were also strong attractive non-bonded interactions between the kerogen fragments. Fragments 5 and 7 and fragments 6 and 7 have higher interactions between them than other fragments. These interactions were primarily electrostatic in nature. These studies represent a comprehensive analysis of the interactions of the complex 3D structure of kerogen with montmorillonite. The interactions between kerogen and clay mineral and within kerogen fragments provide insight for researchers to develop new methodologies to extract the kerogen economically, efficiently, and environmentally friendly from Green River oil shale.
Association Between Cardiovascular Health and Endothelial Function With Future Erectile Dysfunction: The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis.

BACKGROUND The association of Cardiovascular Health (CVH; defined by the American Heart Association by assigning points for health-related behavioral and clinical factors) with endothelial and erectile dysfunction has not been reported, although endothelial and erectile dysfunction have been associated with components of CVH. METHODS Data were collected in 1,136 men in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis at baseline and erectile dysfunction status (measured by survey or medication use) at exam 5. CVH was determined with 7 health metrics. Endothelial function was measured with brachial artery flow-mediated dilation (FMD). Poisson regression was used to determine associations between CVH and erectile dysfunction across categories of CVH (low, moderate, and high). RESULTS Age and proportion of Black or Latino participants decreased while proportion of Chinese-American participants increased with higher CVH category. FMD was higher in men without erectile dysfunction and higher in men with high vs. low CVH. Erectile dysfunction prevalence was lower with better CVH; 58% in men with low CVH, 41% with moderate CVH, and 33% with high CVH (P < 0.001). CVH was associated with erectile dysfunction; prevalence ratio = 0.75 (95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.66, 0.84) with moderate CVH and 0.68 (95% CI = 0.49, 0.94) with high CVH (vs. men with low CVH) and 0.93 (95% CI = 0.91, 0.96) for every 1-point higher CVH score in a fully adjusted model, including FMD, age, education, depression score, use of antidepressant or beta-blocker medications, chronic disease, heavy drinking, and race. CONCLUSION CVH is associated with future erectile dysfunction, even after adjustment for baseline FMD. Maintaining high CVH may improve quality of life for men.
Improving performance of automatic program repair using learned heuristics

Automatic program repair offers the promise of significant reduction in debugging time, but still faces challenges in making the process efficient, accurate, and generalizable enough for practical application. Recent efforts such as Prophet demonstrate that machine learning can be used to develop heuristics about which patches are likely to be correct, reducing overfitting problems and improving speed of repair. SearchRepair takes a different approach to accuracy, using blocks of human-written code as patches to better constrain repairs and avoid overfitting. This project combines Prophet's learning techniques with SearchRepair's larger block size to create a method that is both fast and accurate, leading to higher-quality repairs. We propose a novel first-pass filter to substantially reduce the number of candidate patches in SearchRepair and demonstrate 85% reduction in runtime over standard SearchRepair on the IntroClass dataset.
Growing Economic Inequality Sustains Health Disparities

The article discusses the authors' claim that health disparities in America are being sustained by continued economic inequality as of 2017, and it mentions the historical efforts to prevent health disparities, as well as information about the relationship between population health and income gaps. U.S. public health research is addressed, along with America's Health and Retirement Survey and reductions in HIV infections and tobacco-use in the country.
Sleep Disorders and Upper Airway Obstruction in Adults

The OSA syndrome, described over 100 years ago, was rediscovered in 1966. It is a common disorder, especially among fat, middle-aged men. Stentorian snoring and diurnal somnolence are the cardinal manifestations and should always lead to an examination during sleep. That examination (polysomnography) can demonstrate the pathognomonic events--repetitive apneas occurring in sleep--which signal the failure of the sleeping brain to maintain the patency of the supraglottic airway. All evidence points to the problem being an abnormal pharyngeal airway, one which has a shape or size or compliance that allows inspiratory collapse as the normal loss of pharyngeal dilator muscle tone occurs with sleep. The apneas are asphyxic events terminated by arousals which fragment sleep continuity and lead to the daytime sleepiness. Because the snoring occurs during sleep, the arousals are unremembered, and the sleepiness can develop so gradually that the patient may forget what normal alertness is like. It is important to interview the patient's spouse or partner. Besides obesity and maleness, other risk factors for OSA are diseases that have an impact on the configuration or effective compliance of the pharyngeal passageway. Recent studies support the clinical intuition that sleep apnea is undesirable. Sleepiness leads to accidents. The hypoxemia occurring during apnea can lead to potentially fatal cardiac dysrhythmias. A number of reports suggest that snoring and sleep apnea are associated with an increased risk of stroke, myocardial ischemia, and infarction. Finally, there are now two papers showing a significantly decreased probability of 5-year survival in patients with symptomatic sleep apnea. The good news is that treatment with tracheostomy or NCPAP improves mortality rates to normal. Approximately 90 per cent of patients can tolerate a night's initial trial with CPAP. Long-term acceptance of CPAP has now been reviewed in a number of studies, and it appears to be about 65 to 70 per cent.
Veracity in big data: How good is good enough.

Veracity, one of the five V’s used to describe big data, has received attention when it comes to using electronic medical record data for research purposes. In this perspective article, we discuss ...
Associating pedestrian crashes with demographic and socioeconomic factors

Abstract In the last decade, the concept of walkable neighborhoods has emerged as a topic of great interest. However, it is still unclear about the influence of socioeconomic and demographic factors on pedestrian crashes. This study proposed a methodology for pedestrian crash analysis that combines Geographic Information System (GIS) methods and statistical analysis to study the influence of socioeconomic and demographic factors on the occurrence of pedestrian crashes. The analysis was based on statewide crash data collected in Tennessee from 2008 to 2012. First, GIS kernel density technique was proposed to identify high concentration of pedestrian crash clusters and results were presented using cases studies of Davidson and Hamilton counties. GIS analysis identified pedestrian crash clusters among block groups with a high population who walk to work and block groups with a high number of housing units with no vehicles. A negative binomial model was applied using a statewide data to test the statistical significance of explanatory variables. As expected, model results indicated that population density, population from 15 to 64 years of age, high population of neighborhoods commuting to work by walking (without adequate facilities supporting pedestrians such as sidewalks and crosswalks) and high population of neighborhoods of housing units with no vehicles significantly increase the number of pedestrian crashes. However, blocks whose streets have adequate presence of median, shoulders, and sidewalks had negative coefficients hence their presence tends to decrease pedestrian crashes. Furthermore population commuting to work by private cars and high median household income significantly reduces pedestrian crash frequency. The findings from Kernel density and statistical modeling are relatively identical in the sense that all found household vehicle availability to be a factor in influencing frequency of pedestrian crashes. The findings of this study can assist in implementation of proactive pedestrian safety strategies.
Rethinking the Ethic of Human Dominance

My purpose in this chapter is to articulate a morally defensible alternative to the ethic of human dominance. Drawing lessons from different versions of, and challenges to, the ethic of human dominance, I show that finding an acceptable alternative to this ethic depends on rethinking the metaphysical divide between humanity and nature. “Might makes right” is an illegitimate moral principle, but we must also look more closely at the metaphysical claim that humans have “might” over animals.
Supratentorial CAPNON associated with WHO grade II meningioma: A case report.

Calcifying pseudoneoplasm of the neuraxis (CAPNON) is a rare benign tumor of uncertain etiology, arising in the craniospinal axis. CAPNON typically arises in isolation, with only two prior reports of a concurrent second neoplasm. Here, we report the case of a male 17-year-old who presented with new-onset seizures. MRIs revealed a 2 cm extra-axial solid-cystic mass, arising at the left temporo-occipital junction and abutting the dura with marked surrounding parenchymal vasogenic edema. The solid components demonstrated dense calcification and avid enhancement. Gross total surgical resection was performed. Histopathological examination revealed central regions showing characteristic features of CAPNON. Toward the periphery, the CAPNON was intimately associated with and sharply demarcated from a meningioma, which showed up to five mitoses per 10 high-power fields and had invasion into the adjacent brain parenchyma, warranting a WHO grade II designation. This is the first report of CAPNON arising in association with a meningioma. The coexistence of these two tumors raises the possibility of a reactive/dysplastic etiology for CAPNON.
Single-Molecule Analysis of a Viral Fusion Protein Illuminates a Fusion-Active Intermediate State.

The influenza virus hemagglutinin (HA) fusion glycoprotein mediates viral entry into host cells through its receptor binding and membrane fusion activities. In this issue of Cell, Das et al. use single-molecule Forster resonance energy transfer (smFRET) to monitor HA conformational dynamics. Their study reveals this prototypical class I fusion protein to be a highly dynamic molecule capable of reversibly sampling multiple states, including on-pathway fusion intermediates between pre-fusion and post-fusion endpoints. These findings challenge long-held ideas for how HA functions and move the field closer to obtaining a mechanistic understanding of how class I fusion proteins mediate membrane fusion.
Alteration of freshwater ecosystem services under global change – A review focusing on the Po River basin (Italy) and the Red River basin (Vietnam)

Freshwater ecosystem services are negatively affected by factors such as climate change (e.g. changes in temperature, precipitation, and sea level rise) and human interventions (e.g. agriculture practices, impoundment of dams, and land use/land cover change). Moreover, the potential synergic impacts of these factors on ecosystems are unevenly distributed, depending on geographical, climatic and socio-economic conditions. The paper aims to review the complex effects of climatic and non-climatic drivers on the supply and demand of freshwater ecosystem services. Based on the literature, we proposed a conceptual framework and a set of indicators for assessing the above-mentioned impacts due to global change, i.e. climate change and human activities. Then, we checked their applicability to the provisioning services of two well-known case studies, namely the Po River basin (Italy) and the Red River basin (Vietnam). To define the framework and the indicators, we selected the most relevant papers and reports; identified the major drivers and the most relevant services; and finally summarized the fundamental effects of these drivers on those services. We concluded that the proposed framework was applicable to the analyzed case studies, but it was not straightforward to consider all the indicators since ecosystem services were not explicitly considered as key assessment endpoints in these areas. Additionally, the supply of ecosystem services was found to draw much more attention than their demand. Finally, we highlighted the importance of defining a common and consistent terminology and classification of drivers, services, and effects to reduce mismatches among ecosystem services when conducting a risk assessment.
Binocular Summation for Reflexive Eye Movements: A Potential Diagnostic Tool for Stereodeficiencies

Purpose Stereoscopic vision, by detecting interocular correlations, enhances depth perception. Stereodeficiencies often emerge during the first months of life, and left untreated can lead to severe loss of visual acuity in one eye and/or strabismus. Early treatment results in much better outcomes, yet diagnostic tests for infants are cumbersome and not widely available. We asked whether reflexive eye movements, which in principle can be recorded even in infants, can be used to identify stereodeficiencies. Methods Reflexive ocular following eye movements induced by fast drifting noise stimuli were recorded in 10 adult human participants (5 with normal stereoacuity, 5 stereodeficient). To manipulate interocular correlation, the stimuli shown to the two eyes were either identical, different, or had opposite contrast. Monocular presentations were also interleaved. The participants were asked to passively fixate the screen. Results In the participants with normal stereoacuity, the responses to binocular identical stimuli were significantly larger than those induced by binocular opposite stimuli. In the stereodeficient participants the responses were indistinguishable. Despite the small size of ocular following responses, 40 trials, corresponding to less than 2 minutes of testing, were sufficient to reliably differentiate normal from stereodeficient participants. Conclusions Ocular-following eye movements, because of their reliance on cortical neurons sensitive to interocular correlations, are affected by stereodeficiencies. Because these eye movements can be recorded noninvasively and with minimal participant cooperation, they can potentially be measured even in infants and might thus provide an useful screening tool for this currently underserved population.
Accommodating Plan Revisions with Multiple Agents for Local Search in Road Networks

In planning operations involving searching all nodes in a networks, one is interested in determining an optimal search. Optimal searches aim to use all available agents to find the quickest allocations and paths to search all nodes. However, problems arise when an agent is dropped during the search process; for example in a search and rescue mission an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) might be tasked to stay at a location after finding survivors while the remaining agents search the rest of the map. When such situations occur, plan revision must be used to re-plan the search on the remaining unsearched nodes with the remaining agents. This work develops various plan revision strategies with application to two real road networks. Results are considered and evaluated for varying numbers of agents.
Actual memory as a mediator of the amyloid-subjective cognitive decline relationship

ABSTRACT Introduction Amyloid pathology in cognitively normal adults is associated with subjective cognitive decline, potentially reflecting awareness of Alzheimer's-related memory deficits. To clarify the mechanism underlying this relationship, we used mediational analyses to determine the role of depression, anxiety, and actual memory performance. Methods To assess amyloid deposition, we imaged 85 cognitively normal adults with florbetapir positron emission tomography imaging. Subjective cognitive decline was measured using a multidimensional instrument that assessed seven subjective memory domains. Mediational measures included assessments of actual memory performance (current and retrospective longitudinal change), depression, and anxiety. Results The relationship between amyloid and subjective cognitive decline was mediated by poorer memory performance and greater retrospective memory decline, not depression or anxiety. The mediational roles were significant for domains associated with memory function and memory-related anxiety. Discussion In individuals harboring amyloid, self-reported beliefs of declining memory likely indicate early self-awareness of actual worsening function rather than depression or anxiety.
Network Structure and Substantive Dimensions of Improvised Social Support Ties Surrounding Households during Post-Disaster Recovery

AbstractInformal social support plays a crucial role in post-disaster recovery, but are there systematic patterns of inequality in individuals’ mobilization of social support? This study examines t...
Assessing the reach of MyPlate in the U.S. population: An analysis using NHANES data

ObjectiveThe Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) serves as a basis for developing federal nutrition education materials in the U.S. The MyPlate icon was released in 2011 as a tool to communicate...
Femto-Seq: A New Nonlinear Microcopy Approach for Elucidating Chromatin Structure at the Single Gene Level

Femto-Seq is a new nonlinear optical methodology that provides a means to determine the chromatin environment at the base-pair level at and around any site in the nucleus that can be identified by imaging.
How Sleep Shapes Emotion Regulation

Research has begun to characterize the negative emotional consequences of sleep deprivation, which suggests that adequate sleep is crucial for appropriate emotional functioning. For example, individuals who report insufficient sleep often report irritability, increased frustration, and mood swings. However, it is still unclear why sleep loss is associated with emotional disturbance, or how sufficient sleep protects us from dysfunction. In the following chapter, we will discuss the most recent research demonstrating the effects of sleep loss and supplementary sleep on mood, and explore two ways in which sleep may affect our emotional wellbeing, by the way in which we process emotional information, and by the way in which we regulate our emotions. We will then specifically look at the component processes associated with emotional regulation, and examine how sleep may affect each of these processes. We will conclude with future directions including a discussion of compelling unanswered questions.
Did Proust predict the existence of episodic memory

Cognitive psychologists have often discussed the idea that when Proust used in his books the concept of involuntary memories, which could be retrieved by an odor or a taste, he was in fact predating the notion of modern episodic memory. Since the publication of his famous "In Search of Lost Time", considerable progress has been made on our understanding of various types of memory and of the mechanisms involved in different brain circuits and synapses responsible for their long-term storage. This review will focus on the role of hippocampus in episodic memory, including its role in encoding time and various elements of episodes, in particular olfactory information. Our conclusion is that Proust did indeed predict the existence of episodic memory, although he did not realize that, in addition to remembering things past, memory is also used to predict the future.
Biomedically Relevant Applications of Bolaamphiphiles and Bolaamphiphile-Containing Materials

Bolaamphiphiles (BAs) are structurally segmented molecules with rich assembly characteristics and diverse physical properties. Interest in BAs as standalone active agents or as constituents of more complex therapeutic formulations has increased substantially in recent years. The preorganized amphiphilicity of BAs allows for a range of biological activities including applications that rely on multivalency. This review summarizes BA-related research in biomedically relevant areas. In particular, we review BA-related literature in four areas: gene delivery, antimicrobial materials, hydrogels, and prodrugs. We also discuss several distinguishing characteristics of BAs that impact their utility as biomedically relevant compounds.
Simultaneous measurement of optical spectroscopic signatures from ultrafast laser-produced plasmas

We performed simultaneous measurement of absorption, emission, and laser-induced fluorescence spectroscopic signatures for determining femtosecond laser-produced plasma’s physical properties throughout its lifecycle.
Incentives for Contract Designers

This paper examines the optimal provision of incentives for contract designers. A principal hires an agent to draft a contract that is incomplete because the ex-ante specified design might not be appropriate ex-post. The degree of contract incompleteness is endogenously determined by the effort exerted by the agent, who can manipulate the principal's beliefs because his effort may not be observable (moral hazard), and he might be better informed at the outset (adverse selection). We characterize the optimal incentive scheme for the agent and discuss implications for the degree of buyer-seller contract incompleteness and the optimal prices. Without adverse selection, the principal-seller contract is more incomplete and is coupled with a smaller price in a better environment. If the adverse selection problem is severe enough, the principal-seller contract is less incomplete and is coupled with a higher price in a better environment.
The Binding Mechanisms of Antibodies to DNA from Healthy Subjects and Patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: The Role of Monogamous Bivalency and Fc Dependence.

Abs to DNA (anti-DNA) are a unique population of Abs that bind structural determinants on the DNA molecule. In systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), anti-DNA Abs bind to conserved antigenic determinants, with the phosphodiester backbone being the most likely. In contrast, otherwise healthy subjects (HS) express anti-DNA that bind selectively to nonconserved sites on certain bacterial and viral DNA. As shown previously, SLE anti-DNA bind by a mechanism termed Fc-dependent monogamous bivalency. In this mechanism, both Fab sites interact with determinants on the same extended DNA molecule, reflecting the low affinity of each Fab site; the requirement for the Fc region suggests some contribution of the C region to increase avidity. In this study, we investigated whether anti-DNA from HS also bind to bacterial DNA by Fc-dependent monogamous bivalency. For this purpose, we compared the activity of intact IgG with Fab and F(ab′)2 fragments prepared from the plasmas of SLE patients and HS using ELISAs with DNA from calf thymus or Micrococcus luteus. These studies showed that Fab fragments from all plasmas tested, both SLE and HS, failed to bind significantly to DNA compared with intact IgG. By contrast, some, but not all, F(ab′)2 preparations from both SLE patients and HS showed binding to M. luteus DNA; F(ab′)2 fragments from SLE plasmas, however, did not bind significantly to calf thymus DNA. Together, these findings suggest that although anti-DNA Abs, whether from SLE or HS, bind by monogamous bivalency, binding to bacterial DNA does not require the Fc region.
Mineral parageneses, regional architecture, and tectonic evolution of Franciscan metagraywackes, Cape Mendocino‐Garberville‐Covelo 30′ × 60′ quadrangles, northwest California

[1] The Franciscan Complex is a classic subduction-zone assemblage. In northwest California, it comprises a stack of west vergent thrust sheets: westernmost Eastern Belt outliers; Central Belt melange; Coastal Belt Yager terrane; Coastal Belt Coastal terrane; Coastal Belt King Range/False Cape terranes. We collected samples and determined P-T conditions of recrystallization for 88 medium-fine-grained metasandstones to assess their subduction-exhumation histories and assembly of the host allochthons. Feebly recrystallized Yager, Coastal, and King Range strata retain clear detrital features. Scattered neoblastic prehnite occurs in several Coastal terrane metasandstones; traces of possible pumpellyite are present in three Yager metaclastic rocks. Pumpellyite ± lawsonite ± aragonite-bearing Central Belt metasandstones are moderately deformed and reconstituted. Intensely contorted, thoroughly recrystallized Eastern Belt affinity quartzose metagraywackes contain lawsonite + jadeitic pyroxene ± aragonite ± glaucophane. We microprobed neoblastic phases in 23 rocks, documenting mineral parageneses that constrain the tectonic accretion and metamorphic P-T evolution of these sheets. Quasi-stable mineral assemblages typify Eastern Belt metasandstones, but mm-sized domains in the Central and Coastal belt rocks failed to achieve chemical equilibrium. Eastern Belt slabs rose from subduction depths approaching 25–30 km, whereas structurally lower Central Belt melanges returned from ∼15–18 km. Coastal Belt assemblages suggest burial depths less than 5–8 km. Eastern and Central belt allochthons sequentially decoupled from the downgoing oceanic lithosphere and ascended into the accretionary margin; K-feldspar-rich Coastal Belt rocks were stranded along the continental edge without undergoing appreciable subduction, probably during Paleogene unroofing of the older, deeply subducted units of the Franciscan Complex in east-vergent crustal wedges.
Prospects for long-wavelength X-ray microscopy and diffraction

Our purpose in the first part of this talk is to call attention to certain advantages of the soft (λ = 10-100A) x-ray photon in the imaging of biological material, which are not shared by other particles. The second part will briefly survey the status of some of the problems which arise in the use of these photons for this purpose.
Study of Potential Cost Reductions Resulting from Super-Large-Scale Manufacturing of PV Modules: Final Subcontract Report, 7 August 2003--30 September 2004

Hewlett Packard has created a design for a ''Solar City'' factory that will process 30 million sq. meters of glass panels per year and produce 2.1-3.6 GW of solar panels per year-100x the volume of a typical, thin-film, solar panel manufacturer in 2004. We have shown that with a reasonable selection of materials, and conservative assumptions, this ''Solar City'' can produce solar panels and hit the price target of $1.00 per peak watt (6.5x-8.5x lower than prices in 2004) as the total price for a complete and installed rooftop (or ground mounted) solar energy system. This breakthrough in the price of solar energy comes without the need for any significant new invention. It comes entirely from the manufacturing scale of a large plant and the cost savings inherent in operating at such a large manufacturing scale. We expect that further optimizations from these simple designs will lead to further improvements in cost. The manufacturing process and cost depend on the choice for the active layer that converts sunlight into electricity. The efficiency by which sunlight is converted into electricity can range from 7% to 15%. This parameter has a large effect on the overall price per watt. There are othermore » impacts, as well, and we have attempted to capture them without creating undue distractions. Our primary purpose is to demonstrate the impact of large-scale manufacturing. This impact is largely independent of the choice of active layer. It is not our purpose to compare the pro's and con's for various types of active layers. Significant improvements in cost per watt can also come from scientific advances in active layers that lead to higher efficiency. But, again, our focus is on manufacturing gains and not on the potential advances in the basic technology.« less
Some properties of low-vapor-pressure braze alloys for thermionic converters

Density, dc electrical resistivity, thermal conductivity, and linear thermal expansion are measured for arc-melted rod-shaped samples of binary eutectics of Zr, Hf, Ru, Nb, Ir, Mo, Ta, Os, Re, and W selected as very-low-pressure braze fillers for thermionic converters. The first two properties are measured at 296 K for Zr-21.7 at% Ru, Zr-13 wt% W, Zr-19 wt% W, Zr-22.3 at% Nb, Nb-66.9 at% Ru, Hf-25.3 wt% Re, Zr-25.7 at% Ta, Hf-22.5 at% W, and Nb-35 wt% Mo. The last property is measured from 293 K to 2/3 melting point for specified alloys of different compositions. Resistivities of 0.000055 to 0.000181 ohm-cm are observed with the alloys having resistivities about ten times that of the less resistive constituent metal and about three times that of the more resistive constituent metal, except for Zr-19 wt% W and Nb-35 wt% Mo (greater resistivities). Thermal expansion coefficients vary from 0.000006 to 0.0000105/K. All brazes exhibit linear thermal expansion near that of their constituent metals.