cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Multiple Facets of Arabidopsis Seedling Development Require Indole-3-Butyric Acid–Derived Auxin

Levels of auxin, which regulates both cell division and cell elongation in plant development, are controlled by synthesis, inactivation, transport, and the use of storage forms. However, the specific contributions of various inputs to the active auxin pool are not well understood. One auxin precursor is indole-3-butyric acid (IBA), which undergoes peroxisomal β-oxidation to release free indole-3-acetic acid (IAA). We identified ENOYL-COA HYDRATASE2 (ECH2) as an enzyme required for IBA response. Combining the ech2 mutant with previously identified iba response mutants resulted in enhanced IBA resistance, diverse auxin-related developmental defects, decreased auxin-responsive reporter activity in both untreated and auxin-treated seedlings, and decreased free IAA levels. The decreased auxin levels and responsiveness, along with the associated developmental defects, uncover previously unappreciated roles for IBA-derived IAA during seedling development, establish IBA as an important auxin precursor, and suggest that IBA-to-IAA conversion contributes to the positive feedback that maintains root auxin levels.
Electrochemical and spectroelectrochemical­characterization of water-soluble, β-pyrrole-­brominated cobalt porphyrins

The electrochemical and spectroelectrochemical characterization of two water-soluble porphyrins, namely the tetrachloro salt of cobalt(II) tetrakis-(N-methyl pyridyl)-β-octabromoporphyrin, [(Br8TMPyP)CoII]Cl4, and the tetrasodium salt of cobalt(II) tetrakis-(4-sulfonatophenyl)-β-octabromoporphyrin, Na4[(Br8TPPS)CoII], under different pH conditions is reported. The investigated porphyrins are highly non-planar and electron-deficient owing to the presence of eight bromides at the β-pyrrole positions and the four meso-aryl substituents. The redox potentials corresponding to the first oxidation and first reduction are shifted positively compared with the redox potentials of the respective unbrominated porphyrin derivatives. Spectroelectrochemical studies reveal the formation of a cobalt(III) complex during the first oxidation of both cobalt porphyrins. The first reduction of Br8TPPS)CoII]4− results in a cobalt(I) complex, while involvement of the peripheral N-methyl pyridyl groups in the case of Br8TMPyP)CoII]4+ is suggested. The peak potentials of the first oxidation corresponding to a CoII/CoIII redox couple of both investigated compounds are found to be pH-dependent. Debromination of the β-pyrrole bromo substituents of Br8TMPyP)CoII]4+ at more negative potentials is observed. The UV-vis spectrum obtained after bulk electrolysis of Br8TMPyP)CoII]4+ at −1.0 V vs Ag/AgCl followed by reoxidation at 0.2 V indicates complete elimination of the bromo substituents of the porphyrin periphery.
Thyroarytenoid Muscle Maintains Normal Contractile Force in Chronic Vocal Fold Immobility

Background Denervation of skeletal muscle typically results in irreversible denervation atrophy over time. This finding has generated controversy as to the efficacy of reinnervation procedures for chronic vocal fold immobility related to recurrent laryngeal nerve injury. Objective To test the hypothesis that chronic vocal fold immobility after recurrent laryngeal nerve injury does not result in diminished maximal isometric force generation in the thyroarytenoid muscle. Study Design Adult random-bred cats underwent either unilateral laryngeal denervation (n = 6) or sham surgery (n = 6). After 6 months, videolaryngoscopy was performed followed by in vitro measurement of maximal isometric tetanic force produced by the thyroarytenoid muscle. Results All animals in the denervation group showed right vocal fold paralysis after the initial denervation operation; none of these animals had return of appropriately phased movement with respiration. Four had intermittent disorganized twitching movements. One had these movements plus an occasional weak adduction, and one had no movement. Normal vocal fold mobility was observed in 6 of 6 animals undergoing sham surgery. The maximal isometric tetanic force measured from the thyroarytenoid muscle in the sham group was 438 mN (±92 mN standard deviation [SD]). The maximal isometric tetanic force measured from the thyroarytenoid muscle in the chronically immobile group was 405 mN (±107 mN SD). Differences were not statistically significant. Conclusion Maximal isometric force in the thyroarytenoid muscle is not diminished in chronic vocal fold immobility after recurrent laryngeal nerve injury. We conclude that the possibility for restoration of contractile force to the chronically immobile thyroarytenoid muscle exists. This finding supports the pursuit of reinnervation procedures in the treatment of chronic vocal fold immobility.
Mass transfer of water from single thoria sol droplets fluidized in 2‐ethyl‐1‐hexanol

The rate at which water is extracted from thoria sols was investigated by fluidizing single thoria sol droplets in 2-ethyl-1-hexanol (2EH) and measuring the diameter of a droplet over a period of time until shrinkage no longer occurred. Diameter data from both water and sol drops were obtained at 25°C. The experimental variables were initial drop diameter (0.1 to 0.2 cm), sol molarity , and water concentration in the 2EH (2–12 mg./cc.). The water and sol droplet data were correlated by Equation (5). The single relationship for the fluidized water and sol drops verified that an organic-phase film surrounding the drop is the rate-controlling resistance. The sphere Reynolds number was based on the approach velocity and varied from 0.4 to 14. The Schmidt number for the system was fixed at 35,700. During the extraction of water, the mass transfer coefficients for fluidized sol drops were found to depend only on the molarity of the sol. By expressing the mass transfer coefficients as a function of the density difference between the aqueous sol and the organic phase, an equation was derived to predict the gelation time required for any initial sol molarity and drop diameter fluidized in 2 EH at 25°C.
Laboratory studies on the effect of several insecticides on Tarentula kochi.

Zectran® (4-dimethylamino-3,5-xylyl methylcarbamate), and parathion were very toxic, malathion and carbaryl less toxic, and methoxychlor nontoxic when applied topically to Tarentula kochi Keyserling in the laboratory. The penetration, metabolism, and excretion of a 4-μliter/spider dosage of carbaryl were studied and found to be about 1–5%, 0.1–0.7% and 0.01–0.04% of the applied dosage, respectively, for the N -14C methyl label, and 7%, 2% and 0.8%, respectively, of the applied dosage for the 1-14C naphthyl label. The percent penetration was increased to a range of 11–82% when only 0.2 μg/spider were applied. With all dosages the internal recovery ranged from 0.017 to 0.239 μg/spider, of which 1–30% were conjugated metabolites and about 1–20% of the conjugated metabolites were excreted. When the spiders were fed flies treated with 0.5 μg carbaryl, mortality occurred in 15 minutes to 10 hours, and 0.04–0.08 μg was recovered internally. These feeding studies showed that carbaryl was as toxic as Zectran and parathion, but that penetration had limited its toxicity with topical application.
Reaction of Aziridinones with 2-Lithio-1, 3-Dithiane: Selective Cleavage of the Aziridinone Ring

Abstract The reaction of aziridinones (1a-1d) with tert-butyllithium at room temperature affords α-hydroxy imines (5ax-5dx).1 One possible pathway leading to these products involves the formation of 2 as an intermediate, followed by rearrangement to 3. In fact, under carefully controlled conditions that prevent the rearrange-of 2 to 3, α-amino ketones (4ax-4dx), which arise from the protonation of 2, can be isolated. Other α-amino ketones were synthesized in a like manner from aziridinones by treatment with a variety of alkyllithium reagents.2 Baumgarten and co-workers3 subsequently reported similar products from the reaction of phenyllithium and methyllithium with an aziridinone. In an attempt to extend this study to other organolithium reagents, especially those bearing functional groups, we have investigated the reaction of
Mood Disorders and BDNF Relationship with Alcohol Drinking Trajectories among PLWH Receiving Care.

Background: Despite the excessive rates of Hazardous Alcohol Use (HAU) among people living with HIV (PLWH), although largely speculated, psychological and physiological components associated with HAU, has not been actively measured. Therefore, the present study was geared toward determining: 1) the rates of mood disorders and its relationship with HAU, and 2) to assess the impact of Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF), a well-known regulator of alcohol and mood disorders. Methods: For this study, participants of the longitudinal PADS Study n=400, were followed over time. Alcohol use (Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test –AUDIT- and the Alcohol Dependence Scale –ADS) and moods (depression, anxiety, and stress) were assessed repeatedly. Results: A cluster analyses shows three distinctive trajectories. The first one, revealed a group with increased drinking (Cluster 1: n=140), constant alcohol intake (Cluster 2: n = 60), and one with decreased consumption (Cluster 3: n =120). Analyses discovered higher AUDIT scores across the clusters with Cluster 1 being followed by Clusters 2 and 3 (1: 14.5 ± 8 vs. 2=8.7 ± 7.5 vs. 3= 6.6 ± 4.2, p = 0.001). Women in Clusters 1 and 2 had higher levels of stress (1:21 ± 7.5; 2:19.3 ± 7) and lower BDNF levels (7904 ± 1248 pg/ml and 10405 ± 909 pg/mL) than their counterparts in Cluster 3 (PSS: 3: 16.6 ±5, p = 0.02 BDNF: 10828 ± 1127 pg/mL, p = 0.08). Men in Cluster 1 differed in terms of stress (19.8 ± 7 vs. 21 ± 7.5 score) and BDNF levels (Cluster 1: 5204 ± 818 vs. Cluster 2: 7656 ± 843 pg/ml, p = 0.002) but not in the number of years living with HIV. The proportion of subjects with multiple mood comorbidities was disturbingly higher (26%), and all were members of Cluster 1. Multiple logistic regression analyses indicated that participants reporting high relative to low levels of perceived stress, dual mood comorbidity, altered BDNF levels and low income increased the likelihood of being a member of Cluster 1. Conclusion: This study found that stress and overlaying psychiatric comorbidities are linked with persistent alcohol use. Findings suggest that BDNF and social support seems to be a logical target as it seems to be the bridge linking mood disorders and alcohol consumption.
Comparison between Preamble Sampling and Wake-Up Receivers in Wireless Sensor Networks

Having a wake-up receiver constantly listening is often seen as a replacement for running a duty- cycled medium access control protocol on a commercial low-power radio chip. Wake-up receivers do offer a better latency while consuming negligible power. Recent wake-up receivers show an impressively low power consumption of 52uW, but at the cost of a sensitivity of -72dBm, 20-30dB higher than the sensitivity of a commercial radio chip. This difference in sensitivity causes the wake-up receiver to have a much smaller communication range than the commercially available low power radio. In practice, this translates into requiring a denser deployment, or having to add an external power amplifier. This paper discusses the applicability of wake-up receivers in low-power wireless multihop networks. We show how, at available sensitivity levels, a wake-up receiver helps reducing the power consumption, but also requires a dramatically higher design or deployment cost.
Changes in Pore Size Distribution upon Thermal Cycling of TATB‐based Explosives Measured by Ultra‐Small Angle X‐Ray Scattering

Hot-spot models of initiation and detonation show that voids or porosity ranging from nanometer to micrometer in size within highly insensitive energetic materials affect initiability and detonation properties. Thus, the knowledge of the void size distribution, and how it changes with the volume expansion seen with temperature cycling, are important to understanding the properties of the insensitive explosive 1,3,5-triamino-2,4,6-trinitrobenzene (TATB). In this paper, void size distributions in the 2 nm to 2 μm regime, obtained from small-angle X-ray scattering measurements, are presented for LX-17-1, PBX-9502, and ultra-fine TATB formulations, both as processed and after thermal cycling. Two peaks were observed in the void size distribution: a narrow peak between 7–10 nm and a broad peak between 20 nm and about 1 mm. The first peak was attributed to porosity intrinsic to the TATB crystallites. The larger pores were believed to be intercrystalline, a result of incomplete consolidation during processing and pressing. After thermal cycling, these specimens showed an increase in both the number and size of these larger pores. These results illuminate the nature of the void distributions in these TATB-based explosives from 2 nm to 2 μm and provide empirical experimental input for computational models of initiation and detonation.
Akt signaling in platelets and thrombosis

Akt is a Ser–Thr kinase with pleiotropic effects on cell survival, growth and metabolism. Recent evidence from gene-deletion studies in mice, and analysis of human platelets treated with Akt inhibitors, suggest that Akt regulates platelet activation, with potential consequences for thrombosis. Akt activation is regulated by the level of phosphoinositide 3-phosphates, and proteins that regulate concentrations of this lipid also regulate Akt activation and platelet function. Although the effectors through which Akt contributes to platelet activation are not definitively known, several candidates are discussed, including endothelial nitric oxide synthase, glycogen synthase kinase 3β, phosphodiesterase 3A and the integrin β3 tail. Selective inhibitors of Akt isoforms or of proteins that contribute to its activation, such as individual PI3K isoforms, may make attractive targets for antithrombotic therapy. This review summarizes the current literature describing Akt activity and its regulation in platelets, inc...
Long-term results of infrainguinal revascularization with polytetrafluoroethylene: a ten-year experience.

Abstract Two hundred fifty-eight patients underwent 322 infrainguinal revascularizations with use of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) between 1978 and 1988. The indication was limb salvage in 190 (59%) reconstructions. Two hundred nineteen (68%) were above-knee, and 75 (23%) were below-knee femoropopliteal bypasses. Twenty-eight (8.6%) were femoral-infrapopliteal bypasses, all done for limb salvage. Follow-up ranged from 24 to 144 months (mean, 66 months). The perioperative mortality rate (1 to 30 days) was 3.4% (9 patients), with no significant difference according to indication (2.9% vs 3.7%). Actuarial primary patency at 8 years for the entire series of femoropopliteal bypasses was 53% (above knee 53%; below knee 39%; p
Proliferation-dependent and cell cycle–regulated transcription of mouse pericentric heterochromatin

Pericentric heterochromatin transcription has been implicated in Schizosaccharomyces pombe heterochromatin assembly and maintenance. However, in mammalian systems, evidence for such transcription is inconsistent. We identify two populations of RNA polymerase II-dependent mouse gamma satellite repeat sequence-derived transcripts from pericentric heterochromatin that accumulate at different times during the cell cycle. A small RNA species was synthesized exclusively during mitosis and rapidly eliminated during mitotic exit. A more abundant population of large, heterogeneous transcripts was induced late in G1 phase and their synthesis decreased during mid S phase, which is coincident with pericentric heterochromatin replication. In cells that lack the Suv39h1,2 methyltransferases responsible for H3K9 trimethylation, transcription occurs from more sites but is still cell cycle regulated. Transcription is not detected in quiescent cells and induction during G1 phase is sensitive to serum deprivation or the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor roscovatine. We demonstrate that mammalian pericentric heterochromatin transcription is linked to cellular proliferation. Our data also provide an explanation for inconsistencies in the detection of such transcripts in different systems.
Measuring Fiber Orientation in Nonwovens: Part II: Direct Tracking

, This paper addresses the development of an image analysis technique for direct tracking of fibers in an assembly. The algorithms are evaluated using simulated images presented in an earlier part ...
Alterations of the Sympathetic Nervous System in Heart Failure

Recent concepts regarding the pathophysiology of heart failure have focused on neurohumoral abnormalities. The heart failure state is characterized by many abnormalities of the autonomic nervous system including activation of the sympathetic neural system and reduced activity of the parasympathetic nervous system. Many abnormalities of autonomic reflex circulatory control have been demonstrated in heart failure as well. These impaired reflexes include the cardiopulmonary baroreflex, arterial baroreflex, muscle metaboreflex, and chemoreflex. On a cellular level, abnormalities of the receptor-G protein-adenylate cyclase complex are present in heart failure as well. Medications which comprise standard heart failure therapy probably have significant effects on these abnormalities of the autonomic nervous system. These interactions probably have an impact on the therapeutic efficacy of these agents.
Breast cancer screening: potential role of computer-aided detection (CAD).

Four separate studies conducted as blinded retrospective radiologist reviews of screening mammograms where cancer subsequently developed found lesions requiring work-up or biopsy in 25% to 41% of cases. Three non-blinded retrospective reviews by radiologists identified 57% to 75% of cancers. Among breast cancers detected by radiologists on blinded retrospective review in one study, computer aided detection (CAD) would have found 77%. These studies suggest that improved cancer detection rates could result if radiologists who interpret screening mammography were aided by computers.One prospective study initiated on that premise found that CAD increased the screening detection rate by 19.5%. At the current state-of-the-art, CAD performs best for cancers presenting as calcifications, less well for cancers appearing as spiculated masses, and least well for cancers appearing as circumscribed masses. CAD does not seem to increase false positive call back rates for additional imaging work-up or to increase false ...
Si-Ti-C-O Fiber Reinforced SiC Composites Produced by Reaction Bonding

Si-Ti-C-O (Tyranno) fiber reinforced SiC composites were fabricated at 1420°C by reaction bonding from phenolic resin and silicon powder. The flexural strength of the composites is about 200MPa. The flexural strength of the composites oxidized at 1000, 1200, 1300, and 1400°C for 1h in air is about 170, 145, 130 and 130MPa, respectively.
Behavioral interactions among brood parasites with precocial young : Canvasbacks and Redheads on the Delta Marsh

I studied brood parasitism among 110 Aythya nests and filmed 125 interactions at 14 Canvasback (A. valisineria) and 5 Redhead (A. americana) nests to describe hostparasite behavior. Redheads outnumbered breeding Canvasbacks by about 5.4 to 1 on the Delta Marsh, Manitoba, and heavily parasitized Canvasback nests (x ± SE = 7.6 ± 2.8 eggs/nest). High rates of parasitism resulted in delayed host embryo development, up to 23% longer incubation periods, and extended brooding behavior at nests containing unhatched or late-hatching eggs. Females followed potential hosts to locate nests, made prelaying nest visits, and selected active rather than deserted nests to parasitize. Parasitic laying was not markedly deterred by host resistance and occurred at all stages of host laying and incubation, resulting in only 34% of parasitic Redhead eggs hatching in successful Canvasback nests. Laying females aggressively displaced incubating hosts, causing eggs to be accidentally displaced from nests. Host Canvasback eggs were five times as likely to be cracked and twice as likely to be dislodged from nests than were parasitic Redhead eggs. Hosts limited defensive actions to pushing against intruders or pecking at the heads of parasitic females, resulting in some parasitic eggs being deposited outside nest bowls. Incubating females may be constrained from using highly aggressive behavior to deter brood parasites partly because of fitness costs of fighting and breaking or displacing their own eggs. The existence of host defensive behavior suggests that brood parasitism may present significant fitness costs, even among species with nidifugous precocial young, by affecting the critical processes of synchronous hatching and nest exodus.
Nurse Practitioner Autonomy and Satisfaction in Rural Settings

Rural primary care shortages may be alleviated if more nurse practitioners (NPs) practiced there. This study compares urban and rural primary care NPs (classified by practice location in urban, large rural, small rural, or isolated small rural areas) using descriptive analysis of the 2012 National Sample Survey of NPs. A higher share of rural NPs worked in states without physician oversight requirements, had a DEA (drug enforcement administration) number, hospital admitting privileges, and billed using their own provider identifier. Rural NPs more often reported they were fully using their NP skills, practicing to the fullest extent of the legal scope of practice, satisfied with their work, and planning to stay in their jobs. We found lower per capita NP supply in rural areas, but the proportion in primary care increased with rurality. To meet rural primary care needs, states should support rural NP practice, in concert with support for rural physician practice.
Determination of Technical Price and Its Principles in Transfer of Technology

It Discusses the LSLP principle, which is better suited to define the technical price in domestic technology transfer,analyses the fuction which makes the use of profit-method to confirm the LSLP and demonstrates that the project feasibility study is the indispensible term in confirming the LSLP.
An integer programming approach for fuzzy rule-based classification systems

Abstract Fuzzy rule-based classification systems (FRBCSs) have been successfully employed as a data mining technique where the goal is to discover the hidden knowledge in a data set in the form of interpretable rules and develop an accurate classification model. In this paper, we propose an exact approach to learn fuzzy rules from a data set for a FRBCS. First, we propose a mixed integer programming model that extracts optimal fuzzy rules from a data set. The model’s embedded feature selection allows absence of insignificant features in a fuzzy rule in order to enhance its accuracy and coverage. In order to build a comprehensive Rule Base (RB), we use this model in an iterative procedure that finds multiple rules by converting the obtained optimal solutions into a set of taboo constraints that prevents the model from re-finding the previously obtained rules. Furthermore, it changes the search direction by temporarily removing the correctly predicted patterns from the training set aiming to find the optimal rules that predict uncovered patterns in the training set. This procedure ensures that most of the patterns in the training set are covered by the RB. Next, another mixed integer programming model is developed to maximize predictive accuracy of the classifier by pruning the RB and removing redundant rules. The predictive accuracy of the proposed model is tested on the benchmark data sets and compared with the state-of-the-art algorithms from the literature by non-parametric statistical tests.
How many lightbulbs does it take to change the financial system? Economic ideas and financial regulation, 1846–2007:

Ideas may impact economic policy change, but their specific effects are difficult to untangle. Material factors may influence both ideational change and policy change. In order to study these compl...
Handling large data sets for high-performance embedded applications in heterogeneous systems-on-chip

Local memory is a key factor for the performance of accelerators in SoCs. Despite technology scaling, the gap between on-chip storage and memory footprint of embedded applications keeps widening. We present a solution to preserve the speedup of accelerators when scaling from small to large data sets. Combining specialized DMA and address translation with a software layer in Linux, our design is transparent to user applications and broadly applicable to any class of SoCs hosting high-throughput accelerators. We demonstrate the robustness of our design across many heterogeneous workload scenarios and memory allocation policies with FPGA-based SoC prototypes featuring twelve concurrent accelerators accessing up to 768MB out of 1GB-addressable DRAM.
Abstract A14: Cellular immunotherapy for refractory hematological malignancies: Haploidentical donor lymphocyte infusions generate an allogeneic effect that targets leukemia.

Background/Objective: Allogeneic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT) is an effective treatment modality for leukemia and lymphoma that exerts much of its therapeutic benefit via a graft versus tumor response. Its applicability is limited by toxicity from preconditioning chemoradiation and graft versus host disease. We present data from a Phase II IRB and FDA approved clinical trial in which haploidentical allogeneic cells are infused into patients with refractory hematologic malignancies without prior chemotherapy or radiation. The goal is to generate a robust allogeneic response created via donor cell rejection that breaks host tumor tolerance without the toxicity profile seen in allo-SCT. Methods: Eligible patients have refractory acute leukemias and aggressive systemic lymphomas without curative options. HLA haploidentical donors are identified then undergo leukapheresis without stem cell mobilization. 1-2x108 CD3+ cells/kg are infused unprocessed immediately following collection. Peripheral blood samples collected 1, 24, 48, 72 and 168 hours after infusion are examined for effector cell populations, stimulatory/inhibitory signals, and cytokine release profiles. Results: Three patients have been infused haploidentical cells. Two developed hyperpyrexia following treatment that persisted for 48 hours. One of three patients demonstrated a decrease in peripheral blood and bone marrow blast counts following therapy (Reduction in peripheral absolute blast count from 3900/uL to 1200/uL and bone marrow blasts from 43% to 21% four weeks post therapy). No Grade 3 or 4 toxicities or durable chimerism was seen. Host T cells demonstrated cytolytic effector molecule expression but little cytolytic activity, possibly secondary to rapid up-regulation of PD-1 and PD-1 ligands by host CD8+ cells and leukemia cells, respectively. Discussion: Haploidentical donor cellular infusions are well tolerated and demonstrate biological activity in relapsed leukemia. Lab correlative studies suggest potential future mechanisms to augment response involving PD-1 blockade. Our method provides a true bench to bedside approach utilizing adoptive immunotherapy created via a host allogeneic rejection response. Citation Format: John L. Reagan, Loren D. Fast, Martha Nevola, Andrew Schumacher, Kayla Rosati, Howard Safran, Matt I. Quesenberry, Eric P. Winer, James N. Butera, Peter J. Quesenberry. Cellular immunotherapy for refractory hematological malignancies: Haploidentical donor lymphocyte infusions generate an allogeneic effect that targets leukemia. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on Hematologic Malignancies: Translating Discoveries to Novel Therapies; Sep 20-23, 2014; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Clin Cancer Res 2015;21(17 Suppl):Abstract nr A14.
Decentralized Authentication Mechanisms for Object-based Storage Devices

Network-attached object-based storage separates data-path from control-path and enables direct interaction between clients and the storage devices. Clients interact with the file manager only to acquire the meta-data information and some cryptographic primitives, for example, access keys. Most of the current schemes rely on a centralized file manager to support these activities. This paper presents security mechanisms for decentralized authentication for object-based storage. The schemes are novel in several ways. First of all, they reduce the load on the file manager and free the system from central point of failure and denial of service attacks. We exploit Role-based Access Control (RBAC) to provide scalability and design authentication schemes that efficiently utilize RBAC. In most of the cases, the client needs to acquire only one access key from the file manager, which can be used by the client to further derive role-keys for the roles that he/she is permitted to play within an organization. Further, the number of cryptographic keys required for the purpose of authentication in these schemes is less as compared to the existing schemes. Finally, we also present two simple schemes that enable the clients to access objects stored on any device on the network using a single identity key.
Seasonal variation in growth of Berkshire pigs in alternative production systems

OBJECTIVE The objective of the present study was to investigate the effects of farrowing month (FM), parity and sex on the growth performance of Berkshire swine raised in alternative production systems. METHODS A total of 40 farrowing records from 27 sows and 1,258 body weight (BW) records from 274 piglets collected over a two-year period were used for the analysis. The BWs were recorded at birth, weaning (28 d), 56, 84, 112, and 140 days. Any BW not recorded on schedule was recalculated to conform the days of age among corresponding BW records, using growth curves drawn with polynomial functions whose power was determined by the number of existing observations for each individual. RESULTS The mean parity (±standard deviation) of the sows was 3.42±2.14. The sows that farrowed in June had the lowest number of total born with an average of 6.25±2.22 piglets per sow. However, the lowest average number of piglets weaned at day 28 was found in sows that farrowed in May, as well as the highest number recorded for the stillborn piglets with an average of 2.67 piglets per sow. Moreover, the smallest increase in weight from birth to weaning occurred in piglets that were farrowed in May, which also corresponds with the average daily gain (ADG) of 0.29 kg and the last recorded weight measurement on day 140 of 41.69±1.45 kg. Contrastingly, the highest growth rate was found among pigs farrowed in June, with the largest increase in weight of 7.55 kg from birth to weaning, the highest ADG of 0.51 kg from birth to 140 day of age and the highest BW of 74.70±1.86 kg recorded on day 140. CONCLUSION Pigs farrowed in June also had the least number of piglets that died between birth and weaning. The zone of thermal comfort found in sows reared in indoor confinement systems did not improve the reproductive performance of the sows reared in an outdoor, alternative production system, while the growth performance of the piglets was improved when the ambient temperature was consistently hot or consistently cold.
An Empirical Investigation of the Perceived Benefits of Agile Methodologies Using an Innovation-Theoretical model

There is little doubt that agile software development ASD methods have gained widespread acceptance in industry. Despite the attention these methods have received, there is little empirical affirmation of the benefits that accrue to those who use agile methodologies. Grounded in the conceptual foundations of innovation diffusion and agile philosophy of development, the authors' study validates a model to assess the perceived advantage of an iterative approach to software development. Consistent with their predictions, the results suggest that evolutionary development-the cornerstone of agile development-is perceived to be less complex and more compatible with the work habits of developers. Further, the findings support the hitherto unsubstantiated claim that iterative development yields benefits to software developers. However, process flexibility, yet another important characteristic of agile development, had no significant impact on complexity, compatibility, and relative advantage. The implications of the study for academics and practitioners, and directions for future research are discussed.
Transparent Computing

The guest editor highlights the topics touched on in the articles in this special issue. As we enter the Internet-of-Things era, in which lightweight mobile devices become the main online terminals in daily life, transparent computing promises great opportunities as well as new challenges.
Social Pressures in Informal Groups by L. S. Festinger, S. Schacter and K. Back

(1952). Social Pressures in Informal Groups by L. S. Festinger, S. Schacter and K. Back. International Journal of Group Psychotherapy: Vol. 2, No. 3, pp. 297-298.
A review of The Political Origins of Inequality: Why a More Equal World is Better for Us All By Simon Reid-Henry.

The problem is that a more equal world is not better for everyone, even as it would be better for the vast majority of us. This seems an obvious point, but it is the critical fulcrum of arguments i...
Depressive symptomatology and fall risk among community-dwelling older adults.

Abstract Rationale Falls are common among older adults and may be related to depressive symptoms (DS). With advancing age, there is an onset of chronic conditions, sensory impairments, and activity limitations that are associated with falls and with depressive disorders. Prior cross-sectional studies have observed significant associations between DS and subsequent falls as well as between fractures and subsequent clinical depression and DS. Objective The directionality of these observed relationship between falls and DS is in need of elaboration given that cross-sectional study designs can yield biased estimates of the DS-falls relationship. Methods Using 2006–2010 Health and Retirement Study data, cross-lagged panel structural equation models were used to evaluate associations between falls and DS among 7233 community-dwelling adults ages ≥65. Structural coefficients between falls and DS (in 2006→2008, 2008→2010) were estimated. Results A good-fitting model was found: Controlling for baseline (2006) physical functioning, vision, chronic conditions, and social support and neighborhood social cohesion, falls were not associated with subsequent DS, but a 0.5 standard deviation increase in 2006 DS was associated with a 30% increase in fall risk two years later. This DS-falls relationship was no longer significant when use of psychiatric medications, which was positively associated with falls, was included in the model. Conclusion Using sophisticated methods and a large U.S. sample, we found larger magnitudes of effect in the DS-falls relationship than in prior studies—highlighting the risk of falls for older adults with DS. Medical providers might assess older individuals for DS as well as use of psychotropic medications as part of a broadened falls prevention approach. National guidelines for fall risk assessments as well as quality indicators for fall prevention should include assessment for clinical depression.
3D sensors for the rest of us

This article consists only of a collection of slide images from the author's conference presentation.
45–110 GHz Quad-Ridge Horn With Stable Gain and Symmetric Beam

A quad-ridge horn antenna with stabilized gain and minimum difference between E- and H-plane half-power beamwidths (HPBWs) is demonstrated for operation over 45–110 GHz bandwidth. Multistep flaring and corrugations on a finite ground plane are applied to obtain stable radiation patterns with 16-dBi minimum gain over the entire range. The computational studies are validated through measurements of a 3-D printed prototype using the direct metal laser sintering (DMLS) process. Accurate fabrication with achieved surface roughness of $ of the fabricated antenna is verified with digital microscope. The obtained gain variation, VSWR, and HPBW variation with rotation and over 45–110 GHz bandwidth are below 1.7 dB, 1.7:1, and 9°, respectively. This work demonstrates that the DMLS is a viable fabrication process for wideband horn antennas at millimeter-wave frequencies.
The relationship between access and stage at diagnosis of breast cancer in African American and Caucasian women.

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES To identify the relationships among potential access, realized access, and stage at diagnosis of breast cancer in African American and Caucasian women receiving care within an equal economic access healthcare system. DESIGN Descriptive-comparative design. SETTING Department of Defense Military Health System. SAMPLE 62 African American and 573 Caucasian women (ages 25-97) diagnosed with breast cancer over a 10-year period. METHODS Secondary analysis using tumor registry records data. MAIN RESEARCH VARIABLES Economic, potential, and realized access and stage at diagnosis of breast cancer. FINDINGS When compared to Caucasian women, African American women were diagnosed at later stages, were younger when diagnosed, were from a lower socioeconomic status, had a higher percentage of incidental breast self-examination-discovered abnormalities, and had a lower percentage of mammogram-discovered abnormalities. CONCLUSIONS Economic access to care did not always result in early diagnosis. Other factors such as age, race, socioeconomic status, and means of discovery influenced diagnosis outcomes. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE Interventions aimed at increasing participation in breast health programs also should focus on noneconomic aspects of access such as help-seeking behaviors and perceptions of access to care. Additional studies should be conducted to evaluate adherence to breast cancer screening guidelines by women receiving care within equal economic access healthcare systems.
A regression framework for assessing covariate effects on the reproducibility of high‐throughput experiments

The outcome of high-throughput biological experiments is affected by many operational factors in the experimental and data-analytical procedures. Understanding how these factors affect the reproducibility of the outcome is critical for establishing workflows that produce replicable discoveries. In this article, we propose a regression framework, based on a novel cumulative link model, to assess the covariate effects of operational factors on the reproducibility of findings from high-throughput experiments. In contrast to existing graphical approaches, our method allows one to succinctly characterize the simultaneous and independent effects of covariates on reproducibility and to compare reproducibility while controlling for potential confounding variables. We also establish a connection between our model and certain Archimedean copula models. This connection not only offers our regression framework an interpretation in copula models, but also provides guidance on choosing the functional forms of the regression. Furthermore, it also opens a new way to interpret and utilize these copulas in the context of reproducibility. Using simulations, we show that our method produces calibrated type I error and is more powerful in detecting difference in reproducibility than existing measures of agreement. We illustrate the usefulness of our method using a ChIP-seq study and a microarray study.
Risk of cancer death by comorbidity severity and use of adjuvant chemotherapy among women with locoregional breast cancer.

Abstract Objectives To examine the associations of comorbidity and chemotherapy with breast cancer- and non-breast cancer-related death. Materials and methods Included were women with invasive locoregional breast cancer diagnosed in 2004 from seven population-based cancer registries. Data were abstracted from medical records and verified with treating physicians when there were inconsistencies and missing information on cancer treatment. Comorbidity severity was quantified using the Adult Comorbidity Evaluation 27. Treatment guideline concordance was determined by comparing treatment received with the National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines. Kaplan–Meier method and multivariable Cox proportional hazards regressions were employed for statistical analyses. Results Of 5852 patients, 76% were under 70 years old and 69% received guideline concordant adjuvant chemotherapy. Comorbidity was more prevalent in women age 70 and older (79% vs. 51%; p Conclusions Findings suggest that, compared to women with no comorbidity, patients with breast cancer age 70 and older with severe comorbidity are at increased risk of dying from breast cancer, even after adjustment for adjuvant chemotherapy and other tumor and treatment differences. This information adds to risk–benefit discussions and emphasizes the need for further study of the role for adjuvant chemotherapy in these patient groups.
Mechanisms of Physiologic Pain

Detection of environmental threats and noxious stimuli is vital to an organism’s survival and well-being. Without this ability, protective behaviors could not be formed against potentially harmful situations, which may become life threatening. The role of nociceptors as specialized sensory neurons is to detect the environmental threats presented as intense stimuli and relay the information to neural circuits to formulate a reaction to avoid them. Nociceptive pain serves as an alarm system. Acute nociceptive pain serves not only to trigger early withdrawal responses and enhance wound healing but also to initiate affective responses and modify future behaviors. Perception of pain is a complex experience, involving transduction of various noxious environmental stimuli (thermal, mechanical, environmental, and chemical) through polymodal peripheral receptors; action potentials ensue and relay the signal to the central nervous system to be processed into cognitive and emotional experiences by the brain. Noxious stimuli generating nociceptive pain are generally temporary. However, persistent pain beyond the resolution of initial stimuli and tissue healing is maladaptive and could lead to chronic pain. Intense and prolonged pain transmission associated with chronic pain is associated with sensory neuronal plasticity which results in changes in pain transmission pathways of both the peripheral and central nervous systems. This chapter focuses on the neurophysiology of pain transmission and processing. Particular emphasis is directed to receptors, sensory neurons, and mechanisms modulating noxious stimulation.
Examining gender differences in the correlates of psychopathy: A systematic review of emotional, cognitive, and morality-related constructs

Abstract Previous research examining the correlates of psychopathy has often focused on males. However, research on female psychopathy has increased over the past twenty years, and we are gaining more information about the similarities and differences in psychopathy in males and females. The purpose of this systematic review is to discuss the current research on gender differences in the correlates of psychopathy. The research to date largely relies on measures based on the Psychopathy-Checklist-Revised and includes studies examining various types of emotional and cognitive processes, as well as moral judgment, a construct involving both emotional and cognitive processing. Research suggests that both males and females higher in psychopathy show similar deficits in emotional modulation of the startle reflex, but females do not display some of the emotional processing deficits to the same extent as males higher in psychopathy. Because of limited research, it is less clear if there are gender differences in the relationship between psychopathy and cognitive processes. Females with psychopathic traits have not been found to demonstrate response perseveration or passive avoidance errors, but the relationship between psychopathy and other cognitive processes such as error processing seems to be similar in males and females. There also may be differences in how males and females higher in psychopathy process moral information, including how they respond to unfairness and moral violations. More studies directly comparing males and females within the same sample are needed to further examine gender differences in the correlates of psychopathy.
Highway to Hell: The Great National Highway Debate of 1830 and Congress as Constitutional Interpreter

This Article focuses on the role of the Constitution in the 1830 Congressional debate over the Buffalo to Washington to New Orleans National Road. It takes as its inspiration David Currie's monumental study of the ante-bellum Congress as constitutional interpreter. It moves beyond Currie, however, in the intensity of its focus on a single congressional debate.The debate over the National Road was largely a proxy for the larger struggles over slavery and sectionalism. The Road's supporters generally represented Northern or Western states and took a nationalist view of the Constitution. They understood the Union as an organic entity, a single nation, comprising a single People, united to attain large and shared objectives. They understood the Constitution as facilitating these objectives. They were bold in the various creative if not novel constructions they placed on the Constitution. They paid little heed to arguments about states' rights or limited and enumerated constitutional powers.The opposition was centered in the South although it drew support from some Northern sympathizers. They viewed the highway as a threat to the Southern slave-based economy and mustered various constitutional objections to it. The Constitution was one of limited and enumerated powers, they argued, and it did not include the authority to construct highways. Similarly, they argued, the Constitution created a loose "confederacy" of sovereign states, united for only a few specifically identified purposes. States' rights was, on this analysis, the central organizing principle of the Constitution. In all of this, the great concern was with the preservation of an "agricultural" way of life, understood by all to refer euphemistically to plantation slavery.It becomes apparent that the contest over slavery, which was certainly the greatest constitutional debate of the nineteenth century - and very possibly the greatest constitutional struggle of all time - was playing out principally outside the purview of the judiciary. It was taking place, rather, in the halls of Congress and the court of public opinion.
Airway Pathology in Lung Transplants

The histologic diagnosis of lung transplant rejection is based on the assessment of perivascular mononuclear cell inflammation, airway inflammation and fibrosis, and vasculopathic changes. This chapter describes the pathologic features of acute and chronic rejection of the small airways (i.e., lymphocytic and obliterative bronchiolitis). As transbronchial lung biopsy is the mainstay for the assessment of rejection, a brief discussion of some of the limitations of this technique is provided from the pathologist’s perspective. Several important and common entities that can mimic airway rejection are described with practical guidance for distinguishing these potential confounders on transbronchial biopsy. The non-rejection findings that are discussed include the normal biopsy, nonspecific forms of chronic bronchiolitis, cytomegalovirus and pneumocystis pneumonia, bronchiolitis obliterans-organizing pneumonia, and aspiration pneumonia.