cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Regulation of nif expression in Methanococcus maripaludis: Roles of the euryarchaeal repressor NrpR, 2-oxoglutarate, and two operators

The methanogenic archaean Methanococcus maripaludis can use ammonia, alanine, or dinitrogen as a nitrogen source for growth. The euryarchaeal nitrogen repressor NrpR controls the expression of the nif (nitrogen fixation) operon, resulting in full repression with ammonia, intermediate repression with alanine, and derepression with dinitrogen. NrpR binds to two tandem operators in the nif promoter region, nifOR(1) and nifOR(2). Here we have undertaken both in vivo and in vitro approaches to study the way in which NrpR, nifOR(1), nifOR(2), and the effector 2-oxoglutarate (2OG) combine to regulate nif expression, leading to a comprehensive understanding of this archaeal regulatory system. We show that NrpR binds as a dimer to nifOR(1) and cooperatively as two dimers to both operators. Cooperative binding occurs only with both operators present. nifOR(1) has stronger binding and by itself can mediate the repression of nif transcription during growth on ammonia, unlike the weakly binding nifOR(2). However, nifOR(2) in combination with nifOR(1) is critical for intermediate repression during growth on alanine. Accordingly, NrpR binds to both operators together with higher affinity than to nifOR(1) alone. NrpR responds directly to 2OG, which weakens its binding to the operators. Hence, 2OG is an intracellular indicator of nitrogen deficiency and acts as an inducer of nif transcription via NrpR. This model is upheld by the recent finding (J. A. Dodsworth and J. A. Leigh, submitted for publication) in our laboratory that 2OG levels in M. maripaludis vary with growth on different nitrogen sources.
We Make This Road as We Walk Together: Sharing Teacher Authority in a Social Action Curriculum Project.

AbstractThis article investigates issues of teacher authority and student initiations in a classroom-based social action curriculum project. A teacher (the first author of this article) and his fifth-grade, African-American students conceptualized, designed, and carried out a seven-month–long integrated curriculum and campaign to lobby for a sorely needed new school building in their public-housing neighborhood. (A new school had been promised to the community six years earlier by the board of education.) In the current era of high-stakes testing, teachers are often forced to use prescriptive curricula and are certainly not advised to follow student interests or concerns, especially those teaching children living in poverty. The teacher in this study, however, opted for a curriculum designed to not only teach ideas of democracy, but to also practice direct democratic action. Throughout the article we study the particular instructional and pedagogical practices of the teacher. By analyzing the affordances ...
A Canonical Model of Choice with Initial Endowments

We use the revealed preference method to derive a model of individual decision making when the endowment of an agent provides a reference point that may influence her choices. This model generalizes the classical rational choice model, which views choice as a consequence of â€œutility maximizationâ€ . Instead, our model sees choice as arising from â€œpsychologically constrained utility maximizationâ€ , where the constraints are induced by one's initial endowment. In particular, this model produces status quo bias as a natural consequence (but not necessarily the endowment effect). A range of economic applications identify the predictive and explanatory strength of the model. In particular, we demonstrate that the status quo bias phenomenon reduces the size of the substitution effect in problems of consumption choice.
Random drop congestion control

Gateways in very high speed internets will need to have low processing requirements and rapid responses to congestion. This has prompted a study of the performance of the Random Drop algorithm for congestion recovery. It was measured in experiments involving local and long distance traffic using multiple gateways. For the most part, Random Drop did not improve the congestion recovery behavior of the gateways A surprising result was that its performance was worse in a topology with a single gateway bottleneck than in those with multiple bottlenecks. The experiments also showed that local traffic is affected by events at distant gateways.
Male approach and female avoidance as mechanisms of population discrimination in sagebrush lizards

Reproductive isolation and speciation can result from female choice for particular males. Isolation can also result, however, from male mating preferences or from aggressive encounters which then influence mating decisions. In this study, we use laboratory discrimination trials to study the behavioral mechanisms of population discrimination in sagebrush lizards (Sceloporus graciosus). We specifically ask three questions about population-level discrimination: (1) Does it vary in strength in relation to the geographic distance between the populations? (2) Is it more apparent in inter- or intra-sexual interactions? (3) Does it take the form of attraction or avoidance? We ran 890 trials that tested the ability of male and female sagebrush lizards from one population to discriminate their own population from four other populations. In addition, we utilized both sequential and simultaneous-choice designs, which enabled us to distinguish between attraction and avoidance. We found that most population-level discrimination was exhibited by male lizards preferring to associate with particular types of females, as well as female avoidance of particular types of males. The strength and direction of both discriminations depended on the populations compared and on whether the tests were conducted as sequential- or simultaneous-choice tests, producing a complex relationship between geographic distance and behavioral discrimination. Our results suggest that there are roles for male attraction and female avoidance in population discrimination, reproductive isolation, and speciation.
Hypothesis-generating clinical genomics research and predictive medicine

The advent of affordable genome and exome sequencing provides incredible opportunities and poses significant challenges for clinical research and clinical care. For the first time, it is technically feasible to access the entire genetic architecture of a phenotype. The dissection of this genetic architecture of disease will yield unprecedented insights into molecular pathophysiology and provide numerous therapeutic targets. Soon, the primary etiology of all Mendelian traits will be elucidated and modifiers will follow. Translating this genetic architecture into diagnostics and therapeutics will be feasible and will require creative, aggressive and thoughtful approaches to numerous challenges. One of the first applications will be predictive medicine, which should initially focus on high-penetrance Mendelian phenocopies of common diseases and disorders with effective interventions. These include cancer susceptibility syndromes, cardiomyopathies and dysrhythmias, malignant hyperthermia, dyslipidemias, and a host of other disorders. These approaches will require improved abilities to predict phenotype from genotype and a clinical paradigm shift that supports a disease screening approach (as distinct from a differential diagnosis approach). As well, researcher and clinicians will need to develop creative approaches to dealing with data overload - no physician (research or clinical) can address three million variations. Prioritizing these variants into clinically appropriate categories is urgent, as is developing an unbiased assessment of penetrance in variable expressivity. I will give examples of several of these approaches and their attendant challenges from the ClinSeq project in the intramural NIH.
Chromosomal location of genes controlling flavonoid production in hexaploid wheat.

ABSTRACT Two-dimensional paper chromatography was performed on methanol extracts of leaves of hexaploid bread wheat, Triticum aestivum L. em. Thell. cultivar Chinese Spring, and of the available nullisomic-tetrasomic compensating lines, the tetrasomic lines and the ditelocentric lines. The chromatograms had 27 spots identified as flavonoids and six representing phenolic acids. Some of the areas were complex and contained more than one compound. Four flavonoids were identified as under the control of gene(s) on chromosome arms 1DS, 4DL, 5AS and 6BS . A phenolic glycoside was concluded to be controlled by a gene(s) on chromosome arm 7BL . Gene(s) on chromosome arm 4DL affected the amount of compounds in two other spots, and gene(s) on chromosome arm 4BS reduced the level of all flavonoid compounds. The individual compounds in some of the complex spots may be under the control of gene(s) on homoeologous chromosomes.
Engaging Students in a Bioinformatics Activity to Introduce Gene Structure and Function

Bioinformatics spans many fields of biological research and plays a vital role in mining and analyzing data. Therefore, there is an ever-increasing need for students to understand not only what can be learned from this data, but also how to use basic bioinformatics tools. This activity is designed to provide secondary and undergraduate biology students to a hands-on activity meant to explore and understand gene structure with the use of basic bioinformatic tools. Students are provided an “unknown” sequence from which they are asked to use a free online gene finder program to identify the gene. Students then predict the putative function of this gene with the use of additional online databases.
NF-κB Signaling Differentially Regulates Influenza Virus RNA Synthesis

The NF-κB signaling pathway has previously been shown to be required for efficient influenza A virus replication, although the molecular mechanism is not well understood. In this study, we identified a specific step of the influenza virus life cycle that is influenced by NF-κB signaling by using two known NF-κB inhibitors and a variety of influenza virus-specific assays. The results of time course experiments suggest that the NF-κB inhibitors Bay11-7082 and ammonium pyrrolidinedithiocarbamate inhibited an early postentry step of viral infection, but they did not appear to affect the nucleocytoplasmic trafficking of the viral ribonucleoprotein complex. Instead, we found that the levels of influenza virus genomic RNA (vRNA), but not the corresponding cRNA or mRNA, were specifically reduced by the inhibitors in virus-infected cells, indicating that NF-κB signaling is intimately involved in the vRNA synthesis. Furthermore, we showed that the NF-κB inhibitors specifically diminished influenza virus RNA transcription from the cRNA promoter but not from the vRNA promoter in a reporter assay, a result which is consistent with data obtained from virus-infected cells. The overexpression of the p65 NF-κB molecule could not only eliminate the inhibition but also activate influenza virus RNA transcription from the cRNA promoter. Finally, using p65-specific small interfering RNA, we have shown that p65 knockdown reduced the levels of influenza virus replication and vRNA synthesis. In summary, we have provided evidence showing, for the first time, that the NF-κB host signaling pathway can differentially regulate influenza virus RNA synthesis, which may also offer some new perspectives into understanding the host regulation of RNA synthesis by other RNA viruses.
Novel UWB transmitted reference schemes

This paper proposes an ultra-wideband (UWB) transmitted reference (TR) signaling method to transmit and detect information in a multiuser multipath environment using a simple transceiver structure and the single user performance is analyzed. This TR scheme is a generalized model which combines the traditional TR and differential TR techniques Y.L. Chao et al., (2003) to increase power efficiency and improve bit error probability (BEP). In addition, this novel TR scheme can transmit data using either binary or M-ary modulation. In the binary system, transmitted signals are designed so that the noise level in a correlator template can be reduced within a restrictive receiver complexity. The M-ary modulation approach with a conventional correlation receiver can enhance the BEP performance by transmitting data bits through block codes other than the repetition code. Results show that orthogonal and biorthogonal codes outperform the repetition code in the bit error probability sense.
Class Projects as a Form of Instruction

The use of the case method in marketing courses has become commonplace, and perhaps automatic, without much consideration of its intended role. While the case method is appropriate for educating marketing managers and subordinates who may gather and analyze data, business firms are not likely to hire undergraduate marketing students as managers. Therefore the undergraduate needs exposure to activities more like those to be experienced at entry-level positions. This article considers several innovative teaching techniques and suggests that the class projects offer a worthwhile solution.
Transparent optical protection ring architectures and applications

This paper reviews recent progress in optical protection rings with the focus on transparent optical protection rings. Different optical protection ring architectures, such as dedicated and shared protection rings, in both the optical-channel (OCh) layer and the optical multiplex section (OMS) layer, are described. In particular, OCh shared protection rings (OChSPRINGs) are discussed in detail including node-architecture designs, ring protocols, triggers, and messaging channels. Feasibility studies and experimental results from Corning Inc. and other companies are reviewed. The paper also discusses how protection-switching times scale with number of nodes and number of wavelengths, and shows examples of applications using the scaling rules for practical optical networks such as metro, regional, and long-haul ring networks. The cost benefits of transparent optical protection rings are analyzed using a typical metro network. Finally, the paper discusses remaining issues and future developments in the optical protection ring area.
Performance measurement of amorphous and monocrystalline silicon PV modules in Eastern U.S. Energy production versus ambient and module temperature

This paper reports new data and findings related to the decreased performance of a mono-crystalline silicon (c-Si) photovoltaic (PV) system in the northeastern United States when compared with an amorphous silicon (a-Si), thin film system. These findings are based on a kWh per installed kW basis during a warm summer period with relatively high ambient temperatures. Electric utilities will become increasingly dependent upon the performance of renewable energy systems during peak demand periods to meet their renewable portfolio standard obligations to public utility commissions as their investments in these systems expand. At present there is little data available to correlate the performance of lower efficiency thin film PV modules with higher efficiency mono-crystalline modules in a side-by-side test environment. The research findings demonstrate that while amorphous (a-Si) PV systems are generally regarded as inferior (due to their lower overall efficiency on a kW/m2 basis) their performance on a kWh/kW basis during periods of high ambient temperature is shown herein to be superior to higher efficiency single crystal silicon modules. These performance measurements, completed over the summer of 2008, provide a detailed analysis of energy and temperature measurements on an hourly basis during the higher demand periods for summer peaking electric utilities. The summary data shows a clear correlation where a-Si modules outperform mono-crystalline PV modules when ambient conditions lead to increased operating cell temperatures above ca. 30°C. Below this temperature threshold single crystal PV materials performance generally exceeds that of the thin film devices. At present, the cost differentials between the two technologies make a-Si more attractive for many utility scale applications and these findings indicate that PV power plants of this construction will outperform their more efficient competitors during the typical weather conditions of many summer peaking utility systems.
Accounting for uncertainty in simultaneous task and motion planning using task motion multigraphs

This paper describes an algorithm that considers uncertainty while solving the simultaneous task and motion planning (STAMP) problem. Information about uncertainty is transferred to the task planning level from the motion planning level using the concept of a task motion multigraph (TMM). TMMs were introduced in previous work to improve the efficiency of solving the STAMP problem for mobile manipulators. In this work, Markov Decision Processes are used in conjunction with TMMs to select sequences of actions that solve the STAMP problem such that the resulting solutions have higher probability of feasibility. Experimental evaluation indicates significantly improved probability of feasibility for solutions to the STAMP problem, compared to algorithms that ignore uncertainty information when selecting possible sequences of actions. At the same time, the efficiency due to TMMs is largely maintained.
Basis pursuit for spectrum cartography

A nonparametric version of the basis pursuit method is developed for field estimation. The underlying model entails known bases, weighted by generic functions to be estimated from the field's noisy samples. A novel field estimator is developed based on a regularized variational least-squares (LS) criterion that yields estimates spanned by thin-plate splines. Robustness considerations motivate well the adoption of an overcomplete set of basis functions, together with a sparsity-promoting regularization term, which endows the estimator with the ability to select a few of these bases that “better” explain the data. This parsimonious field representation becomes possible because the sparsity-aware spline-based method of this paper induces a group-Lasso estimator of the thin-plate spline basis expansion coefficients. The novel spline-based approach to basis pursuit is motivated by a spectrum cartography application, in which a set of sensing cognitive radios collaborate to estimate the distribution of RF power in space and frequency. Simulated tests corroborate that the estimated power spectrum density atlas yields the desired RF state awareness, since the maps reveal spatial locations where idle frequency bands can be reused for transmission, even when fading and shadowing effects are pronounced.
Validation of 3D radiographical image distortion correction and calibration algorithms

Dynamic Roentgen Stereogrammetric Analysis (DRSA) provides a highly accurate research and clinical tool in human movement sciences. Essential for the respective DRSA measurements is proper alignment and calibration of the device. An improved method for determining the sufficiency of those preparations is introduced and discussed.
pH and Redox Buffering Mechanisms in a Glacial Drift Aquifer Contaminated by Landfill Leachate

The KL Landfill in Kalamazoo County, Michigan was closed in June 1979 because of ground-water contamination. Study of water analyses from a monitoring-well network has provided insight into a variety of pH and pe buffering reactions within the contaminant plume. The reactions occur when contaminated ground water containing dissolved organic acids from the landfill reacts with carbonate minerals and other solid phases in a glacial drift aquifer. Concentrations of Total Inorganic Carbon (TIC) in the plume, measured as the difference between Total Carbon (TC) and Total Organic Carbon (TOC), are lower than those obtained by alkalinity titrations. The difference results from the dissociation of organic acids in solution, producing organic anions that are included in the erroneously high titration alkalinity values. Organic acids cause dissolution of carbonate minerals in the drift and increased concentrations of calcium, magnesium, and bicarbonate in the plume. Geochemical modeling using WATEQF indicates that the plume is supersaturated with respect to calcite, dolomite, and siderite. The dissolution reactions buffer pH in the plume at near background levels. Redox potentials are below the level of sulfate reduction in the contaminant plume. Therefore, redox buffering mechanisms, reactions that inhibit changes in redox potential in the presence of a strong reducing agent, are much less effective than pH buffering in this system. Possible redox reactions occurring along the flow path include oxidation of organic compounds coupled with reduction of nitrate to ammonium and reduction of ferric iron in oxyhydroxide phases to ferrous iron. WATEQF simulations indicate that dissolved iron concentrations in the plume are well above saturation levels with respect to sulfide phases, moderately above saturation with respect to siderite, and below saturation with respect to iron hydroxide. It is likely that iron precipitates as sulfide phases until the dissolved sulfide is consumed. The concentration of dissolved iron is subsequently controlled by precipitation of siderite, which occurs when moderate levels of supersaturation are reached. These redox buffering reactions are insufficient to maintain high pe levels, and pe values drop to the level of sulfate reduction in the contaminant plume. Together, pH and redox buffering reactions control the concentrations of most major chemical species in the KL Landfill contaminant plume.
Alcohol Use Disorders Affect Antimicrobial Proteins and Anti-pneumococcal Activity in Epithelial Lining Fluid Obtained via Bronchoalveolar Lavage

Aims : Our overall objective was to examine whether characteristics of epithelial lining fluid (ELF) from subjects with alcohol use disorders (AUDs) obtained via bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) contribute to their predisposition to pneumococcal pneumonia. We sought to compare the anti-pneumococcal activity of acellular human BAL from subjects with AUDs to matched controls. Further, differences in BAL lysozyme activity and lactoferrin concentrations between these two groups were examined to determine the effect of AUDs on these antimicrobial proteins. Methods: BAL was performed in subjects with AUDs and matched controls. Acellular BAL was used at varying concentrations in an in vitro killing assay of Streptococcus pneumoniae , type 2, and the percent kill of organisms per microgram per milliliter total BAL protein was ascertained. Lysozyme activity and lactoferrin concentrations were measured in BAL from subjects and controls at measured concentrations of BAL protein. Results: AUD subjects ( n = 15) and controls ( n = 10) were enrolled in these investigations who were balanced in terms of smoking history. Using a mixed effect model, across the range of BAL protein concentrations, killing of pneumococcus tended to be less potent with BAL fluid from AUD subjects. Additionally, lysozyme activity and lactoferrin concentrations were significantly lower in the AUD group. Conclusions: The predisposition for pneumococcal pneumonia among those with AUDs may be in part mediated through effects of alcohol on substances within ELF that include antimicrobial proteins. Clarifying the composition and activity of ELF antimicrobial proteins in the setting of AUDs via investigations with human BAL fluid can help establish their contribution to the susceptibility for pulmonary infections in these individuals.
On the Stages of Istanbul: Atatürk and the New Young Turks

What is the relationship of an artwork to the sociopolitical context in which that work was created? James Westcott discusses how Thomas Hirschhorn in Superficial Engagement reproduces the violence of war propaganda. Magda Romanska analyzes the trial in Poland of Dorota Nieznalska, accused of “offending religious feelings” with her work Passion. Ilka Saal reports on the 15th International Istanbul Theater Festival where emerging artists break with both the state and aging Western notions of the avantgarde.
Chinese Outbound Tourists’ Destination Image of America Part II

This study compares the U.S. destination image of four groups of Chinese travelers with different travel horizons. The authors attempt to explore new and effective ways of comparing qualitative image information using methodological approaches from other disciplines. Specifically, they introduce and examine the concepts of destination image richness, evenness, and dominance, analogous to such concepts in biology as species richness, species evenness, and species dominance. Furthermore, the pattern of destination image distribution for the four groups is also explored from a perspective of a power law distribution often used in economic analyses. The obtained results partially support the travel horizon proposition. By applying ideas from other disciplines to the study of destination image, the authors hope that this study contributes both to the image literature and interdisciplinary research on tourism in general.
Recent advances in pathophysiology and treatment of spinal cord injury

Thirty years ago, patients with spinal cord injury (SCI) and their families were told “nothing can be done” to improve function. Since the SCI patient population is reaching normal life expectancy ...
Is basic personality related to violent and non-violent video game play and preferences?

Abstract Based on the uses and gratifications perspective, personality was expected to relate to violent video game play frequency and game preferences. Participants completed measures of personality and frequency of violent video game play, and identified their most frequently played video games. Results indicate that individuals higher in openness but lower in agreeableness played violent video games more frequently. In addition, more open and extroverted but less agreeable and neurotic individuals generally preferred to play video games that are more violent. Results suggest personality may be more predictive of violent video game use than traditional media use, though the predictive personality dimensions may be consistent across media types.
Jim Crow 2.0? Why States Consider and Adopt Restrictive Voter Access Policies

Recent years have seen a dramatic increase in state legislation likely to reduce access for some voters, including photo identification and proof of citizenship requirements, registration restrictions, absentee ballot voting restrictions, and reductions in early voting. Political operatives often ascribe malicious motives when their opponents either endorse or oppose such legislation. In an effort to bring empirical clarity and epistemological standards to what has been a deeply-charged, partisan, and frequently anecdotal debate, we use multiple specialized regression approaches to examine factors associated with both the proposal and adoption of restrictive voter access legislation from 2006–2011. Our results indicate that proposal and passage are highly partisan, strategic, and racialized affairs. These findings are consistent with a scenario in which the targeted demobilization of minority voters and African Americans is a central driver of recent legislative developments. We discuss the implications of these results for current partisan and legal debates regarding voter restrictions and our understanding of the conditions incentivizing modern suppression efforts. Further, we situate these policies within developments in social welfare and criminal justice policy that collectively reduce electoral access among the socially marginalized.
STRUCTURAL AND STRATEGIC FAMILY THERAPY: A BASIS FOR MARRIAGE, OR GROUNDS FOR DIVORCE?*

In reaction to a current move toward eclecticism in family therapy, the Structural and Strategic schools of therapy are examined. Both a conceptual and practical framework for relating these two, often contradictory, schools to one another is presented through the use of some of Gregory Bateson's recently presented views. The therapist's dilemma in trying to integrate these two approaches is discussed in the light of self-fulfilling prophecies and the necessity for second-order change as related to the therapist's actions. A conclusion is reached that conceptual integration of the approaches may be possible at a higher level, yet practical integration of the two by the practitioner may be difficult, if not impossible, due to the different units of analysis and subsequent action commanded by each approach.
Haraway's monsters. Review of simians, cyborgs, and women, the reinvention of nature, by Donna J. Haraway. New York, Routledge, 1991, x + 287 pp., $55.000, cloth, $16.95, paperback

Inhabiting these pages are odd boundary creatures—simians, cyborgs, and women—all of which have had a destabilizing place in the great Western evolutionary, technological, and biological narratives. These boundary creatures are, literally, monsters.
PHYLOGENY OF PHYLLOSTOMID BATS (MAMMALIA: CHIROPTERA): DATA FROM DIVERSE MORPHOLOGICAL SYSTEMS, SEX CHROMOSOMES, AND RESTRICTION SITES

Abstract Phyllostomidae is a large (> 140 species), diverse clade of Neotropical bats. Different species in this family feed on blood, insects, vertebrates, nectar, pollen, and fruits. We investigated phylogenetic relationships among all genera of phyllostomid bats and tested monophyly of several genera (e.g., Micronycteris, Mimon, Artibeus, Vampyressa) using 150 morphological, karyological, and molecular characters. Results of parsimony analyses of these combined data indicate that all traditionally recognized phyllostomid subfamilies are monophyletic and that most taxa that share feeding specializations form clades. These results largely agree with studies that have used a taxonomic congruence approach to evaluate karyological, immunological, and limited sets of morphological characters, although our finding that Phyllostominae is monophyletic is novel. Our results indicate that several genera (Micronycteris, Artibeus, and Vampyressa) are not monophyletic. We propose a new classification for Phyllostomi...
Goldberg, Lewis R. (b. 1932)

This entry describes the scientific contributions of Lewis R. Goldberg (b. 1932). Goldberg's most influential work includes (a) explaining the rationale for lexical studies of the structure of personality attributes; (b) the Big Five model of personality attribute structure, its bases in the lexicon, and the optimal way to measure it; (c) the development of a large public domain item pool as a resource for measuring the full range of personality tendencies; (d) examinations of the comparative validity of varying assessment methods; and (e) earlier work on clinical inference and judgments. Keywords: comparative validity; Eysenck, Hans; judgment and decision-making; lexical studies; personality structure; psychometric testing; language; personality traits
Seizure in a patient on Wellbutrin: a case report -

We are reporting the case of drug-induced seizure in a 32-year-old Hispanic female who was taking wellbutrin for major depression. Our patient was taking 300 mg/day of wellbutrin when she had one episode of generalized seizure. Wellbutrin uses, side effects, and contraindications are discussed in this case report. Moreover, the factors that make individuals more vulnerable to seizures, as a side effect of wellbutrin, are also highlighted. Interestingly, wellbutrin also has addiction potential hence its abuse is becoming increasingly common that makes it crucial for the clinicians to rule out any history of substance abuse before prescribing it. Literature review has shown a reported case of seizure as a side effect of wellbutrin. Our patient remained seizure free after wellbutrin was discontinued making it the possible cause for her seizure episode .
Time for a Hail Mary? With Bleak Prospects of Being Aided by a College Version of the NFL's Rooney Rule, Should Minority College Football Coaches Turn Their Attention to Title VII Litigation?

Over the past several years member teams of both the National Football League ("NFL") and the National Collegiate Athletic Association ("NCAA") have been criticized for employing too few head football coaches who are minorities. The problem has gained attention as non-whites now comprise a majority of the players at both levels of competition. In 2003, the NFL instituted a rule - the Rooney Rule - that is widely credited with significant improvements in the number of minority coaches employed within the professional league. Over the same period, the college head coaching ranks remain almost entirely devoid of non-white head coaches. This note analyzes whether the NCAA is in a position to emulate the Rooney Rule despite opposition from athletic directors, university presidents, conference commissioners, and others. The author further examines whether an over-looked minority job candidate could successfully sue a university for discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 - an avenue advocated by several of the interest groups responsible for convincing the NFL to adopt the Rooney Rule.
Corruption, Provision of Public Good, and Share of Government Expenditure: Evidence from Emerging Economies

The paper examines the impact of corruption on the share of government expenditure, related to the provision of public goods in health, education, and military sectors. The paper introduces a theoretical model that applies “the Samuelson rule of public good provision” to illuminate how corruption increases the cost of providing public goods and hypothetically leads to the underprovision of public goods in some specific sectors. The paper then provides an empirical investigation on how an increase in corruption can influentially mislead the share of government expenditure, focusing on 39 emerging market countries during the period of 1999 – 2010. The results suggest that corruption stimulates the expenditure share on military while lowering the share of spending in health and education. These results are significant and robust across a variety of specifications, and are consistent with the findings of previous studies.
Respiratory illness in the construction trades: I. The significance of asbestos-associated pleural disease among sheet metal workers

To assess the rate of roentgenographic and lung function abnormalities in asbestos-exposed construction workers, the authors studied 314 white male members of a local sheet metal workers union. Health outcomes were assessed by questionnaire, simple spirometry, and chest roentgenography; data were collected and interpreted following guidelines of the American Thoracic Society and the International Labor Office. Analyses of union records showed the tested population to be representative of all those eligible for testing. Pleural abnormalities were common, increasing to a prevalence of approximately 70% in workers with more than 30 years employment. Roentgenographic evidence of pleural disease was significantly correlated with decreased forced vital capacity (p = 0.027) after controlling for the potential confounding effects of age, height, cigarette consumption history, and employment duration. In contrast, forced expiratory volume in 1 s showed a stronger association with amount smoked (p = 0.022) than with pleural abnormality (p = 0.316). Logistic regression analyses showed that cigarettes act to increase the effect of asbestos in causing pleural disease among exposed workers. Cigarettes, in the absence of significant asbestos exposure, do not appear to cause pleural disease. The authors conclude that construction workers, such as those described herein, have a considerably increased rate of pleural disease, which has functional significance in view of the correlations noted with forced vital capacity measurements. Therefore, pleural disease in asbestos-exposed workers is not only an indicator of exposure but also an indicator of early impairment of pulmonary function.
Incorporating Groupwork into Performance Assessments: Psychometric Issues

Organizations increasingly rely on groups or teams to carry out many types of tasks. To assess individuals’ capabilities in working with others and the performance or productivity of groups, groupwork must be incorporated into performance assessments. The purpose of this chapter is to enumerate and describe the challenges that emerge in performance assessments that include groupwork, and to offer suggestions for addressing the challenges and identify areas for future research. One set of challenges is that groups may function differently and in ways that do not align well with the goal of the assessment. Group dynamics influencing assessment scores include the nature of task-related interaction with others, lack of involvement of one or more team members, uncoordinated group communication, social-emotional processes, and division of labor. Another set of challenges is the large number of sources of measurement error that are unique to groupwork or that operate in new and different ways in groupwork settings. These sources, which have implications for validity and reliability, include variation due to group composition, role assignment in the group, task and type of task, occasion of observation, rater and type of rating or rating scale, and automatic coding and scoring. This chapter describes strategies for investigating and addressing the complexity involved in assessing groupwork performance, and describes implications for practice.
Lack of carcinogenic effects of isonicotinic acid hydrazide in the Syrian golden hamsters.

Isonicotinic acid hydrazide (INH) was administered as a 0.3 % solution for 42 weeks intermittently and as a 0.2 and 0.1 % solutions continuously in the drinking water for the lifespan of adult Syri...
A Murine 5-Fluorouracil-Based Submyeloablation Model for the Study of Bone Marrow-Derived Cell Trafficking in Reproduction

Bone marrow (BM)-derived cells (BMDCs) contribute to endometrial regeneration. Our objective was to develop a nongonadotoxic mouse BM transplant (BMT) model using 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) for investigating BMDCs trafficking in reproduction. Female C57BL/6J mice received either single (CTX-1) or paired (CTX-2) 5-FU (150 mg/kg) dose, or single (CTX-1+SCF) or paired-dose (CTX-3+SCF) 5-FU with stem cell factor (SCF). Control mice received BMT only or saline. BM cells (20 × 106) from transgenic green-fluorescent protein (GFP) mice were injected iv. For fertility experiment, mice were mated on day 28 after BMT. Alternatively, mice were killed 1 month after BMT and BMDCs recruitment to the uterus was determined. Mice receiving 5-FU ± SCF showed intact ovarian function and fertility. CTX-3+SCF resulted in greatest BM donor chimerism at 1 month (∼45%). Flow cytometry analysis demonstrated that 6.6% of total uterine cells in CTX-3+SCF mice were GFP+ BMDCs. Remarkably, this was about 40- and 80-fold greater than BMDCs in uterus of CTX-1 or BMT only mice (6.6% vs 0.16% vs 0.08%, respectively, P < .001). Immunohistochemical analysis showed that BMDCs in the uterus were mostly localized to the endometrial stroma (71.8%). The majority of endometrial BMDCs colocalized with the pan-leuokocyte CD45 marker (58.5%), but 41.5% were CD45-negative. Cytokeratin and CD31 staining showed that the GFP+CD45- cells were not epithelial or endothelial, confirming their stromal identity. We demonstrate that paired-dose 5-FU regimen results in efficient BM donor chimerism while maintaining ovarian function and fertility. This model could be used for studying BMDCs trafficking to the uterus in various reproductive physiological and pathological conditions.
Strategies and Challenges in Clinical Trials Targeting Human Aging

Interventions that target fundamental aging processes have the potential to transform human health and health care. A variety of candidate drugs have emerged from basic and translational research that may target aging processes. Some of these drugs are already in clinical use for other purposes, such as metformin and rapamycin. However, designing clinical trials to test interventions that target the aging process poses a unique set of challenges. This paper summarizes the outcomes of an international meeting co-ordinated by the NIH-funded Geroscience Network to further the goal of developing a translational pipeline to move candidate compounds through clinical trials and ultimately into use. We review the evidence that some drugs already in clinical use may target fundamental aging processes. We discuss the design principles of clinical trials to test such interventions in humans, including study populations, interventions, and outcomes. As examples, we offer several scenarios for potential clinical trials centered on the concepts of health span (delayed multimorbidity and functional decline) and resilience (response to or recovery from an acute health stress). Finally, we describe how this discussion helped inform the design of the proposed Targeting Aging with Metformin study.
Dielectric strength characteristics of experimental extruded DC cables

The Wire and Cable Business Department of the General Electric Company is performing research directly toward development of hvdc cable with extruded insulation. This work is jointly sponsored by the Energy Research and Development Administration and the Electric Power Research Institute.
Role of Zoledronic Acid in the Apoptotic Cell Death of Oral Fibroblasts and Epithelial Cells: A Mechanism of Bisphosphonate-Associated Osteonecrosis

Purpose: Osteonecrosis of the jaw is reported in patients receiving IV zoledronic acid (ZA). The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of ZA on oral mucosal cells using an in vitro model as an alternative mode for the induction of bone necrosis. Experimental Design: Human gingival fibroblast and keratinocyte cell lines were exposed to different concentrations (0.25–3μM) of ZA and siRNA versus caspase 3 or 9, using 1μM as the expected baseline concentration. Apoptotic effects were determined by TUNEL and Annexin V studies. Effects on cell proliferation were determined by Coulter Counter and MTS assay. Validation of the apoptotic effects of ZA were obtained via RT2 Profiler PCR Arrays of human apoptosis and Western blot. Results: A dose response effect on apoptosis and cell proliferation was observed with increasing ZA concentrations; both reversed using siRNA against caspase 3 or 9. Initial apoptotic effects were observed microscopically at 8 hours, with increasing apoptotic events measured out to 24 hours. Gene expression analysis demonstrated the differential expression of multiple genes involved in apoptosis including: TNF, Bcl-2, caspase, IAP, TRAF, and death domain families. Western blot analysis confirmed the presence of activated forms of caspase 3 and 9 and underexpression of survivin protein expression. Conclusions: This study demonstrates that low concentrations of ZA rapidly and directly affect the oral mucosal tissues though the induction of a gene-regulated apoptotic process. These findings provide the establishment of an oral cell based model supporting a soft tissue mechanism in the pathogenesis of osteonecrosis.
Event-driven random backpropagation: Enabling neuromorphic deep learning machines

An ongoing challenge in neuromorphic computing is to devise general and computationally efficient models of inference and learning which are compatible with the spatial and temporal constraints of the brain. The gradient descent back-propagation rule is a powerful algorithm that is ubiquitous in deep learning, but it relies on the immediate availability of network-wide information stored with high-precision memory. However, recent work shows that exact backpropagated weights are not essential for learning deep representations. Here, we demonstrate an event-driven random backpropagation (eRBP) rule that uses an error-modulated synaptic plasticity rule for learning deep representations in neuromorphic computing hardware. The rule is very suitable for implementation in neuromorphic hardware using a two-compartment leaky integrate & fire neuron and a membrane-voltage modulated, spike-driven plasticity rule. Our results show that using eRBP, deep representations are rapidly learned without using backpropagated gradients, achieving nearly identical classification accuracies compared to artificial neural network simulations on GPUs, while being robust to neural and synaptic state quantizations during learning.
Repression of NFAT1 Protein Expression by MicroRNA-184 in Umbilical Cord Blood-Derived CD4+ T-Cells as a Mechanism Underlying Lower Incidence of aGVHD

Clinical benefits of umbilical cord blood (UCB) grafts include lower incidence of acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD) following allogeneic transplantation. The dramatically lower expression of the transcription factor Nuclear Factor of Activated T-cells 1 (NFAT1) in UCB-derived CD4+ T-cells compared to adult blood (AB) results in reduced production of inflammatory cytokines following stimulation, in part underlying this advantage. Here we present a novel mechanism by which NFAT1 protein expression is restrained in these cells. Importantly, NFAT1 mRNA (NFATc2) is not significantly reduced in UCB CD4+ T-cells. Gradient separation and cellular fractionation reveal that NFAT1 is indeed translationally repressed in UCB through early stimulation timepoints, which we hypothesized might be due to the activity of microRNA. A search of known microRNA species reveals that miR- 184 is strongly predicted to bind to the NFATc2 3′ untranslated region (UTR). We have confirmed this interaction through luciferase expression and Western Blot analysis. First, luciferase expression vectors containing the short miR-184 binding sequence or the cloned 3′ UTR were constructed and transfected into UCB and AB CD4+ T-cells. In UCB, insertion of the miR-184 binding sequence alone reduced luciferase expression to 38% of control. The cloned 3′ UTR vector exhibited 60% expression compared to control. Both these negative effects were fully reversible by cotransfection with an excess of blocking antisense to miR- 184. Likewise, the miR-184 site did not impact luciferase expression in AB CD4+ T-cells, but expression was reduced by 61% in AB upon cotransfection with miR-184 mimic. miR-184 mimic produced a 23% decrease in luciferase activity from vector containing the NFATc2 3′ UTR. Both these effects were attenuated by cotransfection with an excess of blocking antisense to miR-184. Blocking antisense increased endogenous NFAT1 protein expression in UCB CD4+ T-cells by 86% as measured by quantified Western Blot, without producing a significant change in NFATc2 mRNA quantity. Conversely, miR-184 mimic produced a 31% decrease in NFAT1 protein expression by AB CD4+ T-cells. We confirmed by quantitative RT-PCR (qRT-PCR) that miR-184 exhibited an average of 58.4-times greater expression in UCB than in AB CD4+ T-cells (p=0.005). We have additionally demonstrated via gain-of-function and loss-of-function analyses that the effects on NFAT1 expression by miR-184 are sufficient to affect transcription of the NFAT-dependent pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-2 through 16 hours of in vitro stimulation. This study comprises the first identification of miR-184 activity in primary human lymphocytes and reveals its function in repressing NFAT1 protein expression uniquely in UCB CD4+ T-cells. These findings hold important implications for our further understanding of GVHD, autoimmunity, and neonatal lymphocyte development, and suggest miR-184 as a useful biomarker or target of ex vivo graft analysis.