cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
THE HIDDEN COST OF BARGAINING: EVIDENCE FROM A CHEATING‐PRONE MARKETPLACE

It is widely believed that successful bargaining helps consumers increase their surplus. We present evidence from a field experiment showing that bargaining over price reduces buyer surplus in a marketplace where sellers cheat on the weight whose value may more than offset the price discount. Our results show that bargaining entails hidden costs since sellers cheat significantly more when buyers bargain than not and they cheat significantly more when bargaining succeeds than fails. Overall bargaining reduces buyer surplus than not bargaining. Our result is relevant for credence goods markets where bargaining over prices may induce sellers to “undertreat” more.
Ultra-High-Speed Western Blot using Immunoreaction Enhancing Technology

A western blot (also known as an immunoblot) is a canonical method for biomedical research. It is commonly used to determine the relative size and abundance of specific proteins as well as post-translational protein modifications. This technique has a rich history and remains in widespread use due to its simplicity. However, the western blotting procedure famously takes hours, even days, to complete, with a critical bottleneck being the long incubation times that limit its throughput. These incubation steps are required due to the slow diffusion of antibodies from the bulk solution to the immobilized antigens on the membrane: the antibody concentration near the membrane is much lower than the bulk concentration. Here, we present an innovation that dramatically reduces these incubation intervals by improving antigen binding via cyclic draining and replenishing (CDR) of the antibody solution. We also utilized an immunoreaction enhancing technology to preserve the sensitivity of the assay. A combination of the CDR method with a commercial immunoreaction enhancing agent boosted the output signal and substantially reduced the antibody incubation time. The resulting ultra-high-speed western blot can be accomplished in 20 minutes without any loss in sensitivity. This method can be applied to western blots using both chemiluminescent and fluorescent detection. This simple protocol allows researchers to better explore the analysis of protein expression in many samples.
Comparative Effectiveness of Generic vs Brand-Name Levothyroxine in Achieving Normal Thyrotropin Levels.

Importance Whether the use of generic vs brand levothyroxine affects thyrotropin levels remains unclear. Objective To compare the effectiveness of generic vs brand levothyroxine in achieving and maintaining normal thyrotropin levels among new users. Design, Setting, and Participants This retrospective, 1:1 propensity score–matched longitudinal cohort study used the OptumLabs Data Warehouse administrative claims database linked to laboratory results from commercially insured and Medicare Advantage enrollees throughout the United States. Eligible patients were adults (aged ≥18 years) with thyrotropin levels ranging from 4.5 to 19.9 mIU/L who initiated use of generic or brand-name levothyroxine from January 1, 2008, to October 1, 2017. Data were analyzed from August 13, 2018, to October 25, 2019. Exposure Patients received generic or brand-name levothyroxine. Main Outcomes and Measures Proportion of patients with normal vs markedly abnormal thyrotropin levels ( 10 mIU/L) within 3 months and with stable thyrotropin levels within 3 months after the thyrotropin value fell into the normal range. Results A total of 17 598 patients were included (69.0% female; 74.0% White; mean [SD] age, 55.1 [16.0] years), of whom 15 299 filled generic and 2299 filled brand-name levothyroxine prescriptions during the study period. Among 4570 propensity score–matched patients (mean [SD] age, 50.3 [13.8] years; 3457 [75.6%] female; 3510 [76.8%] White), the proportion with normal thyrotropin levels within 3 months of filling levothyroxine prescriptions was similar for patients who received generic vs brand-name levothyroxine (1722 [75.4%; 95% CI, 71.9%-79.0%] vs 1757 [76.9%; 95% CI, 73.4%-80.6%];P = .23), as was the proportion with markedly abnormal levels (94 [4.1%; 95% CI, 3.4%-5.0%] vs 88 [3.9%; 95% CI, 3.1%-4.7%];P = .65). Among 1034 propensity score–matched patients who achieved a normal thyrotropin value within 3 months of initiation of levothyroxine, the proportion maintaining subsequent normal thyrotropin levels during the next 3 months was similar for patients receiving generic vs brand-name levothyroxine (427 [82.6%] vs 433 [83.8%];P = .62). Conclusions and Relevance Initiation of generic vs brand-name levothyroxine formulations was associated with similar rates of normal and stable thyrotropin levels. These results suggest that generic levothyroxine as initial therapy for mild thyroid dysfunction is as effective as brand-name levothyroxine.
Does DRO type matter?: Cycle versus resetting contingencies in eliminating responding.

Abstract Following lever-press training on variable-interval 30-s schedules, rats were exposed to three types of schedules designed to eliminate lever pressing. The first two were variations on what is called a differential-reinforcement-of-other-behavior (DRO, “zero rate”, or [target response] omission schedule) schedule. Under both variations, reinforcers were scheduled to occur in different conditions after either fixed or variable inter-reinforcer intervals (IRIs). Under one variation each lever press reset the time interval (i.e., “resetting DRO”) and under the other a reinforcer delivery scheduled at the end of an IRI was cancelled by the first response during the IRI (i.e., “cycle DRO”). In another condition reinforcers were delivered independently of responding after fixed or variable time periods. Each of the DRO procedures reduced response rates quickly and to near zero across ten sessions. The time schedules also reduced responding, albeit at a slower rate. The results extend the analogy of omission training to freeoperant avoidance to shock-deletion avoidance schedules.
Classroom Management and Student Interaction Interventions: Fostering Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging in Undergraduate Economics

The economics profession lacks gender and racial diversity, so interventions at the graduate and professional level have been introduced to minimize the effect of the “leaky pipeline.” Since economic educators lack training in classroom management and student interaction skills, I present interventions to increase diversity and inclusion by developing a sense of belonging at the principles level. I introduce low-cost interventions that target classroom management and student interactions for those who are interested in finding new ways to increase representation in undergraduate economics. To increase diversity in the economics profession we need interventions that will attract more diverse students and minimize attrition by establishing a career path.
Pain in the Emergency Department and Sickle Cell Pain

Acute pain is a common complaint in the emergency department and providers should be versed in providing consultation in these scenarios. While many pain complaints can present, one of the more difficult to treat scenarios is acute pain in patients with sickle cell disease. Emphasis has been placed on overall management of acute pain in this chapter.
Glides are high vowels in onsets and codas: A case of Southern Vietnamese

Glides, /j/ and /w/, are recognized as semivowels in Vietnamese, and they are conventionally and widely written as /i/ and /u/, respectively (Phạm & Mcleod 2016, Tran, Vallee & Granjon 2019). The implication of the conventional transcription of the two semivowels is that they are non-syllabic /i/ and /u/, suggesting that /i/ and /u/ might have similar or nearly identical acoustic properties with the two high vowels /i/ and /u/. As the semivowels are only allowed in onsets and codas, and the vowels are allowed in nuclei (Kirby 2011, Phạm & Mcleod 2016, Brunelle 2017, Tran et al. 2019), the only difference between the two semivowels and the two vowels might be where they can appear. That is, the semivowels might be non-syllabic positional variants of the high vowels that appear in onsets and codas (Levi, 2008). To examine this hypothesis, audio files in which a native female speaker of Southern Vietnamese recites the 200 Swadesh words in her dialect were collected, and the first formant (F1) and the second formant (F2) of each word that contains either /i/, /u/, /i/ or /u/ were measured using Praat (Boersma & Weenink 2020). Analyses on the F1 showed no significant difference on the F1 between /i/ and /i/ ( p = .97) or /u/ and /u/ ( p = .78). Similarly, there was no significant difference on the F2 between /i/ and /i/ ( p = .91) or /u/ and /u/ ( p = .91). The results support that /i/ and /i/ as well as /u/ and /u/ have nearly identical phonetic properties.
Analysis of economic structure in water buffalo breeding by geographical regions in Turkey

In this study, the status of water buffalo breeding in each geographical region in Turkey was examined, and the activities of enterprises were analysed from technical and economic perspectives. Four regions and the cities in these regions where buffalo breeding was concentrated in Turkey were chosen by Purposive Sampling Method, considering the number of water buffaloes, milk production and their share in the buffalo population and buffalo milk production in Turkey. A total of 462 sample enterprises were chosen from these cities by Stratified Random Sampling Method. The research data were collected through the questionnaires administered in face-to-face interviews with the producers. The data collected reflect the buffalo production in Turkey in 2014. The study examined socio-economic structures of the enterprises, revealing their capital structures and annual economic activities. The Marmara region ranked first in the time spent in buffalo breeding (26.62 years). Gross profit income was positive in four regions. Absolute profit and relative profit indicators were negative for farms in the Black Sea region and favourable for farms in other regions. For the development and promotion of buffalo breeding, the breeders should be further educated about better breeding practices; small enterprises should be modernized and expand their operations; efforts for the betterment of breeding practices should be intensified; existing wetlands should be protected and enhanced; the production costs (feed cost etc.) should be reduced; state subsidies should be granted to real producers; the public should be educated about the high nutritional value of water buffalo meat and milk through promotional campaigns, and buffalo producers should be better organized in producer unions.
Accelerating an Iterative Eigensolver for Nuclear Structure Configuration Interaction Calculations on GPUs using OpenACC.

To accelerate the solution of large eigenvalue problems arising from many-body calculations in nuclear physics on distributed-memory parallel systems equipped with general-purpose Graphic Processing Units (GPUs), we modified a previously developed hybrid MPI/OpenMP implementation of an eigensolver written in FORTRAN 90 by using an OpenACC directives based programming model. Such an approach requires making minimal changes to the original code and enables a smooth migration of large-scale nuclear structure simulations from a distributed-memory many-core CPU system to a distributed GPU system. However, in order to make the OpenACC based eigensolver run efficiently on GPUs, we need to take into account the architectural differences between a many-core CPU and a GPU device. Consequently, the optimal way to insert OpenACC directives may be different from the original way of inserting OpenMP directives. We point out these differences in the implementation of sparse matrix-matrix multiplications (SpMM), which constitutes the main cost of the eigensolver, as well as other differences in the preconditioning step and dense linear algebra operations. We compare the performance of the OpenACC based implementation executed on multiple GPUs with the performance on distributed-memory many-core CPUs, and demonstrate significant speedup achieved on GPUs compared to the on-node performance of a many-core CPU. We also show that the overall performance improvement of the eigensolver on multiple GPUs is more modest due to the communication overhead among different MPI ranks.
Psychological agency : theory, practice, and culture

A multidisciplinary exploration of agency as a central psychological phenomenon based on the affective, embodied, and relational processing of human experience. Agency is a central psychological phenomenon that must be accounted for in any explanatory framework for human action. According to the diverse group of scholars, researchers, and clinicians who have contributed chapters to this book, psychological agency is not a fixed entity that conforms to traditional definitions of free will but an affective, embodied, and relational processing of human experience. Agency is dependent on the biological, social, and cultural contexts that inform and shape who we are. Yet agency also involves the creation of meaning and the capacity for imagining new and different ways of being and acting and cannot be entirely reduced to biology or culture. This generative potential of agency is central to the process of psychotherapy and to psychological change and development. The chapters explore psychological agency in theoretical, clinical and developmental, and social and cultural contexts. Psychological agency is presented as situated within a web of intersecting biophysical and cultural contexts in an ongoing interactive and developmental process. Persons are seen as not only shaped by, but also capable of fashioning and refashioning their contexts in new and meaningful ways. The contributors have all trained in psychology or psychiatry, and many have backgrounds in philosophy; wherever possible they combinetheoretical discussion with clinical case illustration. Contributors John Fiscalini, Roger Frie, Jill Gentile, Adelbert H. Jenkins, Elliot L. Jurist, Jack Martin, Arnold Modell, Linda Pollock, Pascal Sauvayre, Jeff Sugarman
The Unfulfilled Promise: Public Subsidy of the Arts in America

Preface 1. The Problem 2. What Are the Stakes? The Value of Artistic Experience * Art Experience and the Problem of a Mass Society * Art Experience as a Catalyst for Social Change * Art Patronage as Social Capital * The Philosophical Conflict 3. Elite Domination of the National Endowment for the Arts A Theoretical Formulation of Agency Cooptation * Budget Analyses * The Hanks Years * Legislative Oversight * Report of the Surveys and Investigations Staff * Conclusion * A Word on the Reagan Administration 4. State Arts Agencies The Pennsylvania Council on the Arts * Characteristics of State Arts Councils * (Washington, Texas, Wyoming, Ohio, North Carolina, Louisiana, New Mexico, Indiana, Idaho, California) * Concluding Observation 5. Achieving Cultural Democracy Aid to the Creative Artist * Fostering Community Arts * Some Conclusions Notes Index
Monitoring kidney function in the pediatric intensive care unit

The kidneys play a principle role in homeostatic balance. Acute kidney injury (AKI) carries numerous sequelae both obvious and subtle which, in combination, increase the morbidity and mortality of pediatric patients. Recent standardization of diagnostic criteria has resulted in a heightened awareness of AKI, increased AKI incidence, and recognition of the deleterious impact of AKI. Since no singular therapy for established AKI exists, a determinant of effective AKI therapy is expeditious diagnosis. In critically ill children, these therapies and the institution of concurrent supportive and preventive care depends on the ability to accurately monitor the kidney and specifically detect the presence of kidney dysfunction. Unfortunately, diagnosis of AKI is traditionally reliant on numerous tests and monitors of kidney function which carry different degrees of precision and accuracy. Additionally, delay in AKI diagnosis can render potential AKI therapy ineffective and significantly limit alternative treatment options. In this chapter we will describe the epidemiology of AKI in pediatrics, the classic serum and urinary markers of kidney dysfunction, the impact of fluid overload, the limitations of classic markers of kidney function and several emerging AKI biomarkers, AKI risk stratification using renal angina, and the future of monitoring kidney function. Understanding these concepts is crucial to delivery of effective care for the critically ill child with AKI.
Part II Overview

This section provides an overview of five chapters that discuss the general principles of pathogen evolution (chapters 8 and 9) and the mechanisms by which specific bacterial virulence determinants may have evolved (chapters 10, 11, and 12). The discussion on environmental settings that provided selection pressures for the evolution of certain virulence determinants focuses on soil (chapter 8) and the human gut (chapter 9). To begin to analyze complicated and dynamic microbial communities and how they contribute to health and disease will certainly necessitate the development of approaches quite different from those developed to specifically focus on bacterial pathogenesis. While the first two chapters focus on the selective pressures that drive the evolution of factors that can contribute to disease, the third chapter focuses on the mechanistic question of how one class of bacterial virulence determinants (exotoxins) evolved and moved between different microbial species. There are several systems that microbes utilize to solve the problem of translocating macromolecules across their two membranes. Apart from acquisition of antibiotic resistance mechanisms by horizontal gene transfer, the authors describe the rise of antibiotic-resistant strains by mutation. The frequency with which strains with increased rates of mutation are isolated upon challenge with antibiotics is also discussed.
The history of science as oxymoron: from scientific exceptionalism to episcience.

ABSTRACTThis essay argues that historians of science who seek to embody our oxymoronic self-description must confront both contradictory terms that define our common enterprise—that is, both “history” and “science.” On the history/methods side, it suggests that we embrace the heterogeneity of our institutional arrangements and repudiate the homogeneous disciplinary model sometimes advocated by Thomas Kuhn and followed by art history. This implies that rather than treating the history of science as an end in itself, we consider it a means to a variety of historical ends, think of ourselves as a tool-making community, and jettison moralistic assertions of scientific exceptionalism. To do so, this essay argues—on the science/subject side—that we rebrand the subject of our historical inquiry as “episcience,” a neologism that stands in relation to “science” as the new field of epigenetics does to the old genetics. Episcience encompasses both the material activities of the relevant sciences and their “surround”...
Small signal modulation of a single mode photonic crystal vertical cavity surface-emitting laser

Small signal modulation of a vertical cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) incorporating a photonic-crystal vertical waveguide structure for lateral confinement was carried out. A record 9-GHz bandwidth was achieved under single lateral mode operation.
Yeast Killer Mutants with Altered Double-Stranded Ribonucleic Acid

Abstract Killer strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae contain two species of double-stranded ribonucleic acid (dsRNA) with molecular weights estimated at 2.5 × 106 (L) and 1.4 × 106 (M). The M component appears to have a high adenine content. All mutants of killer which are defective for both the toxin and immunity functions lack the M dsRNA. One of these mutants has a novel dsRNA with a molecular weight of 5 × 105. Another class of killer mutants contains strains which are defective for either the toxin or the immunity function. They include temperature-sensitive killers, superkillers, and immunity-minus strains. The dsRNA profile of temperature-sensitive killers resembles that of the standard killer. The superkiller has 2.5 times more of the M dsRNA (1.4 × 106 daltons) than does the standard killer. Immunity-minus killers have, in addition to the two dsRNAs species of standard killer, a novel dsRNA with a molecular weight of 2.5 × 105. The data are consistent with the hypothesis that the M RNA controls toxin production. In addition, the two RNAs, L and M, seem to be regulated together. When the M RNA is missing, the amount of L is either greatly elevated or greatly reduced.
A figure-of-merit for evaluating the gain-bandwidth product of microstrip patch antennas

A figure-of-merit for evaluating gain-bandwidth limitations of microstrip patch antennas is proposed and applied to several different geometries. This figure-of-merit has been found to be useful for predicting the requisite properties of artificial materials which might be used to achieve electrically small antennas with remarkable gain-bandwidth performance.
All-Transition Metal Aromaticity and Antiaromaticity

Though aromaticity in compounds containing a transition-metal atom has already been discussed for quite a long time, aromaticity in all-transition metal systems have been recognized only recently. There are examples of σ-, π-, and δ-aromaticity based on s-, p-, and d-AOs. We derived the counting rules for σ −, π-, δ-, and ϕ-aromaticity/antiaromaticity for both singlet/triplet coupled model triatomic and tetratomic systems so that one could use those to rationalize aromaticity and antiaromaticity in all-transition metal systems. These rules can be easily extended for any cyclic systems composed out of odd or even number of atoms. We elucidated the application of these rules to the all-transition metal cyclic systems: Au3 +/Au3 −, Na2Zn3, Hg4 6 −, Mo3O9 2 −, Sc3 −, Hf3, and Ta3 − clusters. We believe that the use of concepts of aromaticity, antiaromaticity and conflicting aromaticity can be an important theoretical tool for deciphering chemical bonding in various known and novel chemical compounds containing transition metal atoms.
Perceived movement in depth as a function of luminance and velocity

The ability of subjects to perceive movement in depth of a luminous object in an otherwise stimulus-free surround has been studied. This research resulted from an analysis of anticipated visual skills required in certain manned space vehicle operations. This stimulus object subtended a visual angle of 40 min of arc at the onset of movement. Luminance was varied from 0.001 to 1.0 ft-Lambert. The speed of movement was varied so that the change in visual angle of the stimulus varied from approximately 1/4 min of arc per sec to approximately 2 min of are per sec. Both monocular and binocular viewing conditions were used. Detection of movement improved as the luminance increased from 0.001 to 0.1 ft-Lambert. A. further increase in luminance to 1.0 ft-Lambert did not affect performance significantly. Rate of movement interacted with the threshold criterion level; the higher rates of movement were superior for the higher threshold criteria. Binocular viewing was superior to monocular. Under optimum conditions 75...
Anatomic contribution to differences in rabbit colonic muscle contraction

Abstract The aim of this study was to determine if differences in the force of contraction in different regions of the rabbit colon are associated with variations in the histology of the corresponding muscle tissues. Circular and longitudinal muscles were isolated from strips of proximal and distal colonic muscle. Muscle strips stretched to L0 were either stimulated to contract or were processed for electron microscopy. Cross-sections of the smooth muscle cells of the taenia coli had a larger perimeter (P
Human Ezrin-Moesin-Radixin Proteins Modulate Hepatitis C Virus Infection

Host cytoskeletal proteins of the ezrin-moesin-radixin (EMR) family have been shown to modulate single-stranded RNA virus infection through regulating stable microtubule formation. Antibody engagement of CD81, a key receptor for HCV entry, induces ezrin phosphorylation. Here we tested the role of EMR proteins in regulating HCV infection and explored potential therapeutic targets. We show that HCV E2 protein induces rapid ezrin phosphorylation and its cellular redistribution with F-actin via spleen tyrosine kinase (SYK). Therapeutically blocking the functional roles of SYK or F-actin reorganization significantly reduced Huh7.5 cell susceptibility to HCV J6/JFH-1 infection. Using gene regulation, real-time quantitative PCR, western blot and fluorescent microscopy analysis, we found that proteins of the EMR family differentially regulate HCV infection in the J6/JFH-1/Huh7.5 cell system. Moesin and radixin, but not ezrin, expression were significantly decreased in chronic HCV J6/JFH-1 infected Huh7.5 cells and HCV infected patient liver biopsies compared to controls. The decreases in moesin and radixin in HCV J6/JFH-1 infected Huh7.5 cells were associated with a significant increase in stable microtubules. Ezrin knockdown inhibited immediate post-entry events in HCV infection. Over-expression of moesin or radixin significantly reduced HCV protein expression. In contrast, transient knockdown of moesin or radixin augmented HCV infection. Making use of the Con1 HCV replicon system, we tested the effect of EMR proteins on HCV replication. We found that transient knockdown of moesin increased HCV RNA expression while over-expression of EMR showed no significant effect on HCV replication. Our findings demonstrate the important role of EMR proteins during HCV infection at the post-entry level and highlight possible novel targets for HCV treatment.
Interrogating the Intramolecular Charge-Transfer State of a Julolidine−Anthracene Donor−Acceptor Molecule with Femtosecond Stimulated Raman Spectroscopy

The nature of the lowest-energy charge-transfer (CT) excited state of the donor−acceptor molecule, 3,5-dimethyl-4-(9-anthracenyl)julolidine (DMJ−An) is investigated using femtosecond stimulated Raman spectroscopy. Transient Raman spectra are presented with subpicosecond time resolution, and peaks are assigned based on the published Raman modes of the reference molecule phenyl anthracene. The results indicate that the CT excited state is dominated by a fully charge separated radical ion pair state with minimal contribution from the local anthracene π−π* state.
Small ice cap instability in the presence of fluctuations

Phenomena associated with small ice cap instability (SICI) are investigated using a general circulation model (GCM: NCAR Community Climate Model version 0) and a noise-forced nonlinear energy balance model (EBM). Both make use of idealized boundary conditions consisting of an all-land planet without topography and mean annual insolation. Ice is prescribed to exist on surface areas for which the instantaneous temperature lies below freezing. The adjustable parameters of the EBM were chosen to match the GCM solutions. For the regions in parameter space where SICI might occur we do not find the corresponding icefree steady state solution with the GCM. Our simulations with the EBM show that SICI phenomena in the presence of fluctuations are strongly dependent on the amplitude of the noise forcing. When the strength of noise forcing is adjusted to match the fluctuations in the GCM, we do not find a SICI in the EBM. With weaker levels of forcing the SICI reappears. In all cases steady stable ice caps smaller than a critical size are not found to exist.
The spin up of a stratified fluid

The process by which a stratified, viscous fluid adjusts to small changes in the rotation rate of its container is studied. This paper treats the cases of homogeneous layers of different densities, as well as fluids which are continuously stratified.It is shown that in several important cases the spin-up process, especially in the continuously stratified case, has a time scale which is very much longer than for homogeneous fluids, and that diffusion is the governing mechanism in the adjustment process.In all cases the detailed problem, including a discussion of the side-wall boundary layers, is presented. Some novel features of the side-wall layers are discussed for the continuously stratified fluids, while in one case it is shown that no boundary layers appear during the transient approach to equilibrium.
Hate Crimes Against African Americans The Extent of the Problem

This article addresses hate crime against African Americans in the United States. The author looks at the data that the Federal Bureau of Investigation has gathered from 1990 to 1996 regarding hate...
Work in progress — Introduction to innovation modules: A multi-faceted approach to introducing innovation to freshman engineering students

The role of innovation and design is a key factor in differentiating leading engineers from their peers. Current engineering curriculum does not address this. We are currently using a variety of educational methods to introduce innovation as a concept throughout the engineering curriculum. A series of video podcasts on innovation have been generated which students can watch at their leisure. These video podcasts work together with in-class lectures that are more discussion based and open the door for insightful conversations regarding innovation. Utilizing online videos along with class discussion has enabled us to present innovation to all engineering students across disciplines by guest lecturing their each disciplines ‘Introduction to Engineering’ course. In addition, in-class exercises designed to encourage lateral thinking, as well as creative problem solving are used to teach basic design and innovation. All of the exercises are group projects that require the students to work in areas outside their area of expertise and encourage exploratory based learning. The curriculum for teaching education is still under development and in this paper we will present the initial curriculum and the results from the first semester this material was taught.
A Study of College Student Attrition Via Probabilistic Approach

This exploratory paper proposes a probabilistic approach to investigating college student attrition. Through the use of attributable risk, the top risk factors for attrition are identified and ranked. Then the issue of confounding risk between two risk factors is addressed by the means of relative attributable risk. Though it is only illustrated by the eight-year attrition data collected at a private institution, the proposed technique is comparatively simple for institutional researchers to test on their own data.
Bilateral symmetry in human mandibular apical tooth growth

Oblique oriented cephalometric radiographs of 263 children, age 4–12 yr, were examined at 4 month intervals to study apical tooth growth increments and the symmetry of growth of antimere permanent mandibular canine and premolar teeth. Thirty-eight of these children were followed longitudinally at 4 month intervals for 3 or more successive intervals. The prevalance of relative symmetry in apical tooth growth increments between antimere teeth was contrasted with the asymmetry of their intra-bony eruption. Increments of apical tooth growth were regular and constant for a cross-sectional population of 263 children. Mean antimere differences were, on the average, no greater than 0.7mm. Thirty-eight children followed longitudinally generally grew at the same rate every 4 months as did the mean rate of growth for the larger cross-sectional sample of 263 children. The left quadrant of mandibular teeth grew at a slightly, but not significantly, faster rate than did their antimere teeth of the right quadrant. The observation that 39 of the 263 children demonstrated incremental differences between left and right antimere teeth greater than the rest of the sample, may be explained on the basis of pulpotomies, caries or infection in their overlying primary teeth. The greater constancy of incremental apical tooth length growth, as contrasted to the relative irregularity of intrabony tooth eruption rates, suggests that a more stringent mechanism controls tooth growth per se in contrast to the mechanisms governing eruption. The relative constancy of apical tooth length growth suggests its value as an index to dental developmental age and more appropriate for comparison with bone age. This report is one of a series designed to provide a base line for the future evaluation of tooth development in those experiments of nature that produce congenital asymmetries in jaw development.
Predictors of Intimacy in Couples' Discussions of Relationship Injuries : An Observational Study

The interpersonal process model of intimacy (H. T. Reis & P. Shaver, 1988) proposes that self-disclosure and empathic responding form the basis of intimate interactions. This study examined this model in 102 community couples who completed intimacy measures following videotaped discussions about relationship injuries occurring both within and outside the relationship. Observational assessments of self-disclosure and empathic responding, as well as their respective components, were related to self-reported ratings of post-interaction intimacy. Men's own disclosure and empathic responding predicted their feelings of intimacy, whereas women's intimacy was predicted by their partner's disclosure and empathic responding. Self-disclosure and empathic responding appear to be important behavioral determinants of intimate feelings, but the manner in which they influence intimacy differs according to gender.
Viscous fingering in chromatography visualized via magnetic resonance imaging

Abstract Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and chromatographic peak shape analysis have been used to study the elution of bovine serum albumin (BSA) and glycerol in size-exclusion chromatography columns. Chromatograms of BSA samples show evidence of dramatic fingering at concentrations above 30–50 mg/ml. However, MRI of BSA samples reveals eluent fingers invading the sample band inside the column at concentrations as low as 10 mg/ml. Growth rates of fingers increase with protein concentration and the impact of fingering on chromatograms at lower concentrations is reduced because of dispersion. MRI analysis of glycerol samples demonstrates similar behavior, although finger widths are larger. Fingering in high concentration samples of glycerol causes portions of a sample to trail and separate from the main sample band. Nonuniform flow at the inlet and a self-correcting leading edge of the sample band were noted and attributed to viscous effects.
Persistence of a curvilinear Scatchard plot for insulin binding despite correcting for degradation

We evaluated whether correcting for insulin degradation products (both cell-associated and those recovered in the media) in the analysis of insulin binding to rat hepatocytes linearized the Scatchard plot. In the presence of bacitracin, the average amount of intact insulin in the cell pellet increased from 68% to 90% and in the media from 21% to 69% when assayed by G-50 Sephadex separation. However, using only the amount of intact insulin in Scatchard analysis still resulted in a curvilinear form whether bacitracin was present or not. Persistence of curvilinear Scatchard plots is probably due to the fact that binding of insulin to hepatocytes in our system is over twice as high as in the cells used in the two studies which reported linearization of the Scatchard plot when these corrections were made. Because of the relatively low binding in those studies, corrections for insulin degradative products resulted in an amount of bound insulin that fell on the initial linear portion of the typical curvilinear Scatchard plot. Bacitracin significantly inhibited insulin degradation and correcting for the amount of insulin degradation in Scatchard analysis does not yield a linear plot.
Metal oxide solubility behavior in high temperature aqueous solutions

The solubility behavior of metal oxides in sub- and super-critical aqueous solutions is quantified using thermodynamic concepts. Three physicochemical phenomena are discussed: (1) metal oxide solid phase stability; (2) metal oxide dissolution reaction equilibria; and (3) metal ion hydroxocomplex formation. Thermochemical properties of metal oxides/ions representative of the most common constituents of construction metal alloys, i.e., elements having atomic numbers between 22 (Ti) and 30 (Zn), are summarized on the basis of metal oxide solubility studies conducted at General Electric and elsewhere.
The Effects of Rival Male Interaction On Courtship and Parental Care in the Fourspine Stickleback, Apeltes Quadracus

Rival male interruptions in aggregate breeders are often responsible for prolonged courtship and reduced spawning success. This study was conducted to examine the effects of rival male interference on courtship and parental care in the relatively nonaggressive, vegetation-nesting fourspine stickleback, Apeltes quadracus. Specifically, the timing of seven sequential courtship behavior patterns was recorded and the intervals between them were calculated in both rival and solitary male situations. Time to first nest attention after spawning, time from trial start to first nest approach by the female, and overall courtship length were also scored. Of the seven courtship intervals only one, that between the female's first push into the nest and Iher entry, took significantly longer in the presence of a rival male. Overall, courtship duration was only marginally longer in rival versus solitary situations. The effects of rival male interference were most pronounced in post-courtship nest attention. Males took longer to begin post-spawning nest repairs in the presence of a rival male than when alone. In addition, limited nest attention is probably the cause of reduced hatching success in rival male tanks although reduced care due to uncertain paternity cannot be ruled out. The lack of difference in courtship duration between rival and solitary treatments is probably due to two factors: (1) females were introduced in glass jars five minutes prior to trial start during which time they seemed to form a distinct preference for one male; (2) fourspine stickleback males use female mimicry to sneak over to neighbors' nests and rarely attempt to enter the nest until after the female has spawned and left. Future research on sneaking in the fourspine stickleback should include DNA fingerprinting of offspring to determine paternity in nests fertilized by both the owner and a sneaker(s).
Establishment and Evolution of Satellite-Satellite Resonances

Recent papers by Greenberg and Sinclair have lent support to Goldreich's tidal hypothesis which provides an explanation for the existence of several orbit-orbit resonances among the satellites of Saturn and Jupiter. In this paper I show that near resonance the two-body interaction appropriate to the three resonances observed in Saturn's system can be adequately described by a one dimensional Hamiltonian. A slow variation in the semimajor axes is then introduced to provide the evolution. First I determine the specific relationship between the initial inclination/eccentricity and the masses, etc., which separate direct capture (a la Greenberg) from a probabilistic capture (a la Sinclair). Once a resonance is established, I show that the action integral can be used to analytically follow the evolution of the libration amplitude as a function of the change in the semimajor axes, as was first done by Allan for the Mimas-Tethys case. The secular changes in the semimajor axes suggested by the presently observed libration amplitude are compared with their maximum tidal change using Goldreich's value forQ. I find that the tidal mechanism is insufficient only in the Titan-Hyperion case. I discuss the possibitility that satellite accretion may have produced the requisite evolution in Titan's orbit. Finally I show that both the stability and capture mechanisms for the three-body resonance among Jupiter's inner satellites depend on the observed near commensurability of the inner and outer pairs of satellites.
RNASEL Arg462Gln polymorphism and prostate cancer in PLCO

BACKGROUND The Gln allele of the Arg462Gln polymorphism in RNASEL results in a threefold decrease in enzymatic activity, a reported deficiency in apoptotic response, and has been associated with prostate cancer in some high-risk family studies. The relationship of this variant to sporadic prostate cancer remains uncertain. METHODS We conducted a nested case-control study of 1,317 prostate cancer cases and 1,842 controls from the screening arm of the prostate, lung, colorectal, and ovarian (PLCO) cancer screening trial. Conditional logistic regression was used to evaluate the association between the RNASEL Arg462Gln polymorphism and prostate cancer. RESULTS No statistically significant association was observed between the Arg462Gln polymorphism and prostate cancer (compared to Arg/Arg, Gln/Arg: OR= 0.99 95% CI 0.84–1.16; Gln/Gln: OR= 0.95 95% CI 0.74–1.21), although slight non-significant differences in risk were observed among men with the Gln/Gln genotype by stage and grade. CONCLUSIONS These results suggest that the RNASEL Gln/Gln genotype does not play an important role in the etiology of prostate cancer in the general population. Prostate 67: 849–854, 2007. Published 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Capturing the Spectrum of Interaction Effects in Genetic Association Studies by Simulated Evaporative Cooling Network Analysis

Evidence from human genetic studies of several disorders suggests that interactions between alleles at multiple genes play an important role in influencing phenotypic expression. Analytical methods for identifying Mendelian disease genes are not appropriate when applied to common multigenic diseases, because such methods investigate association with the phenotype only one genetic locus at a time. New strategies are needed that can capture the spectrum of genetic effects, from Mendelian to multifactorial epistasis. Random Forests (RF) and Relief-F are two powerful machine-learning methods that have been studied as filters for genetic case-control data due to their ability to account for the context of alleles at multiple genes when scoring the relevance of individual genetic variants to the phenotype. However, when variants interact strongly, the independence assumption of RF in the tree node-splitting criterion leads to diminished importance scores for relevant variants. Relief-F, on the other hand, was designed to detect strong interactions but is sensitive to large backgrounds of variants that are irrelevant to classification of the phenotype, which is an acute problem in genome-wide association studies. To overcome the weaknesses of these data mining approaches, we develop Evaporative Cooling (EC) feature selection, a flexible machine learning method that can integrate multiple importance scores while removing irrelevant genetic variants. To characterize detailed interactions, we construct a genetic-association interaction network (GAIN), whose edges quantify the synergy between variants with respect to the phenotype. We use simulation analysis to show that EC is able to identify a wide range of interaction effects in genetic association data. We apply the EC filter to a smallpox vaccine cohort study of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and infer a GAIN for a collection of SNPs associated with adverse events. Our results suggest an important role for hubs in SNP disease susceptibility networks. The software is available at http://sites.google.com/site/McKinneyLab/software.
Relative oscillator strengths for lines of Tb I

Abstract Relative oscillator strengths are derived for 250 lines of the first spectrum of terbium by using the relative intensities from the Tables of Spectral-Line Intensities by Meggers, Corliss and Scribner and the line classifications by Klinkenberg.
Cardiovascular science: opportunities for translating research into improved care

Cardiovascular research is progressing on many fronts, as highlighted in the collection of Reviews in this issue of the JCI. MicroRNAs that regulate cardiac function have been implicated in cardiac disorders, and efforts to develop therapeutic antagomirs are underway. The genetic bases of several cardiac disorders, including cardiomyopathies that cause heart failure and channelopathies that underlie cardiac arrhythmias, have been elucidated. Genetic testing can identify asymptomatic individuals at risk, potentially leading to effective preventative measures. Growing evidence supports the role of chronic inflammation in atherosclerosis, providing new opportunities for therapeutic intervention. For heart failure, recent work suggests that cardiac regeneration using stem/progenitor cells, gene transfer, new drugs that restore normal Ca2+ cycling, and agents that reduce reperfusion injury following myocardial infarction are all viable new approaches to managing disease. Cumulatively, it seems likely that the clinical advances emerging from ongoing research will, in the foreseeable future, reduce the number of deaths in the industrialized world from cardiovascular disease.
Characterization of carbonated serpentine using XPS and TEM

With the increasing concentration volume of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, there has been an increasing interest in carbon dioxide sequestration. One method is to store the carbon dioxide in mineral form, reacting solution dissolved CO2 to precipitate carbonates. In order to understand whether or not such an endeavor is feasible, the carbonation reaction must first be understood. In this study, the surface of ground serpentine, untreated, heat treated and following a carbonation experiment, has been characterized using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The results indicate that the mechanism for the reaction involves dissolution of the serpentine through the formation of an amorphous phase and subsequent precipitation of magnesite. The rate limiting step appears to be the diffusion of Mg out of the amorphous phase.
Older and Younger Drivers' Reliance on Collision Warning Systems

Older and younger drivers' responses to different forward-collision warning systems and their subjective evaluations were studied in a simulated driving task. The systems differed in the settings o...
Finite-Element Modeling of Hybrid Composite Beam Bridges in Missouri

AbstractThree bridges were recently constructed in Missouri using a new type of hybrid composite beam (HCB) incorporated within traditional RC deck systems. These HCBs are comprised of three main subcomponents: a composite shell, compression reinforcement, and tension reinforcement. The compression reinforcement is a self-consolidating concrete (SCC) arch that is tied at the ends by high-strength galvanized steel strands. The compression and tension reinforcements are encapsulated in a glass fiber–reinforced polymer (GFRP) box, and the voids are filled with polyisocyrunate (polyiso) foam. This unique configuration aims to optimize the structural performance of the HCB constituents, hence optimizing the overall performance of the beam. However, because of the novelty of the HCB, its structural behavior is not yet completely understood. Consequently, the finite-element (FE) modeling of this new type of beam is crucial for providing deeper insight into its structural behavior and validating the current desig...
Electrochemical deposition of high Tc superconducting thin films

Thin films of quaternary metal oxides, that are superconducting at temperatures above 77°K, were prepared by electrodeposition of the cations from aqueous electrolytes. The resulting deposits were thermally annealed . We will report the procedure for the electrodeposition of YBa2Cu3O7_delta (The "1-2-3" compound). X-ray diffraction demonstrates clearly the predominant presence of the 1-2-3 phase with minor contamination from other oxides. Conductivity measurements show a transition to the superconducting state around 98°K. Magnetic susceptibility measurements show a transition to a diamagnetic phase around 50°K. Scanning Electron Microscopy shows that the films are porous.