cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Does the racial-ethnic variation in prostate cancer risk have a hormonal basis?

One of the most intriguing features of prostate cancer epidemiology is the marked international and racial-ethnic variation in risk. There is a 30-50-fold difference in risk between African American men, at the highest end of this racial-ethnic spectrum of risk, and native Japanese and Chinese men, at the lowest end of this spectrum. Because of their important growth regulatory effects on prostate cells, there has been widespread interest in the role of androgens in prostate cancer pathogenesis. The authors have been evaluating systematically whether population variations in secretion and metabolism of androgens and/or regulation of androgen activity can explain the marked racial-ethnic diversity in prostate cancer incidence. Differences in hormonal patterns among groups have been demonstrated in a manner predicted by their underlying prostate cancer incidence, and a series of studies have been initiated to determine if genetic control of androgen regulation among racial-ethnic groups also may be important in determining prostate cancer risk.
Efficient Replication of Epstein-Barr Virus-Derived Plasmids Requires Tethering by EBNA1 to Host Chromosomes

The EBNA1 protein of Epstein-Barr virus enables plasmids carrying oriP both to duplicate and to segregate efficiently in proliferating cells. EBNA1 recruits the origin recognition complex (ORC) to establish a replication origin at one element of oriP, DS (dyad symmetry); at another element, FR (family of repeats), EBNA1 binds to an array of sites from which it tethers plasmids to host chromosomes for mitotic stability. We report experiments leading to the conclusion that tethering by EBNA1 to host chromosomes is also needed within interphase nuclei in order for plasmids to be replicated efficiently from oriP. The DNA-binding domain of EBNA1, which lacks chromosome-binding ability, was found to support weak, DS-specific replication in HEK293 cells after transient transfection, being 17% as active as wild-type EBNA1. The low efficiency of replication was not due to the failure of the DNA-binding domain to retain plasmids within nuclei, because plasmids were recovered in similar amounts and entirely from the nuclear fraction of these transiently transfected cells. A derivative of EBNA1 with its chromosome-tethering domains replaced by a 22-amino-acid nucleosome-binding domain was fully active in supporting oriP functions. The implication is that EBNA1's DNA-binding domain is able to recruit ORC to DS, but either this step or subsequent replication is only efficient if the plasmid is tethered to a host chromosome. Finally, with some cell lines, DS can hardly support even transient plasmid replication without FR. A loss of plasmids lacking FR from nuclei cannot account for this requirement, suggesting that the stronger tethering to chromosomes by FR is needed for plasmid replication within the nuclei of such cells.
Fluorine-contained photoacid generators (PAGs) and corresponding polymer resists

Abstract A new series of fluorinated anionic photoacid generators (PAGs) (F4-MBS-TPS, F4VBzBS-TPS, F4-IBBS-TPS, CF3 MBS-TPS, MTFBS-TPS and VBzTFBS-TPS), and corresponding PAG bound polymeric resists (HS-EA-PAG) based on hydroxystyrene (HOST) and 2-ethyl-2-adamantyl methacrylate (EA), (GB-EA-PAG) based on γ-butyrolactone methacrylate (GBLMA) and 2-ethyl-2-adamantyl methacrylate (EA) were prepared and characterized. The acid generating efficiency of PAG bound polymers (HS-EA-PAG) series was in the range of 54–81%, which agrees well with the electron withdrawing effect of the substituents. With regard to the referenced F4-PAG bound polymer with 68% acid generating efficiency, and our previously reported EUVL results of F4-MBS-TPS bound polymer photoresists, these new PAG bound polymers should be effective resists for 193 nm or EUV lithography.
Adaptability of non-genetic diversity in bacterial chemotaxis

Bacterial chemotaxis systems are as diverse as the environments that bacteria inhabit, but how much environmental variation can cells tolerate with a single system? Diversification of a single chemotaxis system could serve as an alternative, or even evolutionary stepping-stone, to switching between multiple systems. We hypothesized that mutations in gene regulation could lead to heritable control of chemotactic diversity. By simulating foraging and colonization of E. coli using a single-cell chemotaxis model, we found that different environments selected for different behaviors. The resulting trade-offs show that populations facing diverse environments would ideally diversify behaviors when time for navigation is limited. We show that advantageous diversity can arise from changes in the distribution of protein levels among individuals, which could occur through mutations in gene regulation. We propose experiments to test our prediction that chemotactic diversity in a clonal population could be a selectable trait that enables adaptation to environmental variability.
The effectiveness of a behavioral treatment to increase in-home compliance of an adopted adolescent boy with multiple psychiatric diagnoses.

This article describes a study in which a 13-year-old adopted adolescent boy who had been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), and borderline intellectual functioning was taught to take personal responsibility for completing tasks by doing them himself instead of waiting for someone else to do them. Using frequency data collection and a multiple baseline across tasks with changing criteria research design, it was demonstrated that a simple in-home intervention involving prompting, reviewing steps, sequencing, and monetary reinforcers was successful in teaching the young adolescent boy to make his own afternoon snack and complete daily chores, while maintaining this effect, with the continued use of monetary reinforcement.
Regulation of Hypothalamic Neuronal Sensing and Food Intake by Ketone Bodies and Fatty Acids

Metabolic sensing neurons in the ventromedial hypothalamus (VMH) alter their activity when ambient levels of metabolic substrates, such as glucose and fatty acids (FA), change. To assess the relationship between a high-fat diet (HFD; 60%) intake on feeding and serum and VMH FA levels, rats were trained to eat a low-fat diet (LFD; 13.5%) or an HFD in 3 h/day and were monitored with VMH FA microdialysis. Despite having higher serum levels, HFD rats had lower VMH FA levels but ate less from 3 to 6 h of refeeding than did LFD rats. However, VMH β-hydroxybutyrate (β-OHB) and VMH-to-serum β-OHB ratio levels were higher in HFD rats during the first 1 h of refeeding, suggesting that VMH astrocyte ketone production mediated their reduced intake. In fact, using calcium imaging in dissociated VMH neurons showed that ketone bodies overrode normal FA sensing, primarily by exciting neurons that were activated or inhibited by oleic acid. Importantly, bilateral inhibition of VMH ketone production with a 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA synthase inhibitor reversed the 3- to 6-h HFD-induced inhibition of intake but had no effect in LFD-fed rats. These data suggest that a restricted HFD intake regimen inhibits caloric intake as a consequence of FA-induced VMH ketone body production by astrocytes.
Resolving boundary problems among therapists

When several psychotherapists work with the same client, the various domains and responsibilities of the therapists can be so unclear and confusing as to hinder the therapeutic process. The author presents a case example of a woman who was involved with 13 theraplsts of varying educational and theoretical backgrounds. Although the confusion and power struggles that occurred within this multiple-therapist system were eventually resolved, the situation caused the patient unnecessary distress. Suggestions related to clarifying therapeutic system boundaries and defining and ordering therapeutic power hierarchies are presented with the intent of facilitating more functional therapeutic systems.
Increasing growth temperature reduces the stimulatory effect of elevated CO2 on photosynthesis or biomass in two perennial species

We examined how anticipated changes in CO2 concentration and temperature interacted to alter plant growth, harvest characteristics and photosynthesis in two cold-adapted herbaceous perennials, alfalfa (Medicago sativa L. cv. Arc) and orchard grass (Dactylis glomerata L. cv. Potomac). Plants were grown at two CO2 concentrations (362 [ambient] and 717 [elevated] μmol mol−1 CO2) and four constant day/night temperatures of 15, 20, 25 and 30°C in controlled environmental chambers. Elevated CO2 significantly increased total plant biomass and protein over a wide range of temperatures in both species. Stimulation of photosynthetic rate, however, was eliminated at the highest growth temperature in M. sativa and relative stimulation of plant biomass and protein at high CO2 declined as temperature increased in both species. Lack of a synergistic effect between temperature and CO2 was unexpected since elevated CO2 reduces the amount of carbon lost via photorespiration and photorespiration increases with temperature. Differences between anticipated stimulatory effects of CO2 and temperature and whole plant single and leaf measurements are discussed. Data from this study suggest that stimulatory effects of atmospheric CO2 on growth and photosynthesis may decline with anticipated increases in global temperature, limiting the degree of carbon storage in these two perennial species.
Missing value estimation for DNA microarray gene expression data: local least squares imputation

Motivation: Gene expression data often contain missing expression values. Effective missing value estimation methods are needed since many algorithms for gene expression data analysis require a complete matrix of gene array values. In this paper, imputation methods based on the least squares formulation are proposed to estimate missing values in the gene expression data, which exploit local similarity structures in the data as well as least squares optimization process. Results: The proposed local least squares imputation method (LLSimpute) represents a target gene that has missing values as a linear combination of similar genes. The similar genes are chosen by k-nearest neighbors or k coherent genes that have large absolute values of Pearson correlation coefficients. Non-parametric missing values estimation method of LLSimpute are designed by introducing an automatic k-value estimator. In our experiments, the proposed LLSimpute method shows competitive results when compared with other imputation methods for missing value estimation on various datasets and percentages of missing values in the data. Availability: The software is available at http://www.cs.umn.edu/~hskim/tools.html Contact: hpark@cs.umn.edu
The Role of Mental Simulation in Judgments of Likelihood

Abstract This research examined how people simulate causal scenarios. Several factors affect the perceived likelihood of a given causal scenario. In particular, generating one, several, or multiple causal scenarios affects the perceived probability of the focal causal scenario. In experiment 1, the perceived likelihood of the focal causal scenario was affected by the number of causal scenarios the participant constructed. Experiment 2 manipulated the likelihood of the scenarios the participants constructed; the judged probability of the focal causal scenario was affected by the likelihood of the scenarios constructed by the participants. The results of both experiments suggest that participants use several scenario-evaluation mechanisms to “prune” the set of causal scenarios under consideration. These mechanisms involve consistency checking and searching for leading contenders.
Media and Children's Aggression, Fear, and Altruism

Summary Noting that the social and emotional experiences of American children today often heavily involve electronic media, Barbara Wilson takes a close look at how exposure to screen media affects children’s well-being and development. She concludes that media influence on children depends more on the type of content that children find attractive than on the sheer amount of time they spend in front of the screen. Wilson begins by reviewing evidence on the link between media and children’s emotions. She points out that children can learn about the nature and causes of different emotions from watching the emotional experiences of media characters and that they often experience empathy with those characters. Although research on the long-term effects of media exposure on children’s emotional skill development is limited, a good deal of evidence shows that media exposure can contribute to children’s fears and anxieties. Both fictional and news programming can cause lasting emotional upset, though the themes that upset children differ according to a child’s age. Wilson also explores how media exposure affects children’s social development. Strong evidence shows that violent television programming contributes to children’s aggressive behavior. And a growing body of work indicates that playing violent video games can have the same harmful effect. Yet if children spend time with educational programs and situation comedies targeted to youth, media exposure can have more prosocial effects by increasing children’s altruism, cooperation, and even tolerance for others. Wilson also shows that children’s susceptibility to media influence can vary according to their gender, their age, how realistic they perceive the media to be, and how much they identify with characters and people on the screen. She concludes with guidelines to help parents enhance the positive effects of the media while minimizing the risks associated with certain types of content.
White paper whiteout

The recent flurry of white paper activity from the Department of Health1–3 looks like yet another attempt to invite us to milk those parts of the NHS sacred cow from which milk was never meant to flow.4 Isn't now the time to unite and synthesize the solution which generations of politicians have failed to deliver? A tough call, particularly when you realize that hospital consultants are not included in the Government's consultative process! It is difficult to know whether our exclusion is because of our previous avaricious expressions of self-interest which preceded the final NHS Act in 1948, or because the Government has understandably forgotten that doctors are supposed to be the champions of healthcare delivery. Either way, we need to get back into the driving seat and, without any preconditions, give this every ounce of energy that our brains can muster.
Survey of respiratory therapists' attitudes and concerns regarding terminal extubation.

BACKGROUND: There is little published information on the role of respiratory therapists in the process of withdrawal of mechanical ventilatory support. METHODS: We surveyed practicing respiratory therapists at 6 acute-care hospitals in a large urban area and asked about particular concerns and attitudes regarding terminal extubation. RESULTS: One hundred nineteen questionnaires were analyzed. The majority of respiratory therapists had participated in terminal extubation, but most were not regular participants in the decision-making process leading to withdrawal. CONCLUSIONS: Practicing respiratory therapists expressed a desire for a role in the decisionmaking process, education regarding terminal care, and more definitive orders for terminal extubation.
Addressing Difficult Issues in the HRM Bubble

In 2012, a Forbes Magazine article by Sylvia Verhauser-Smith claimed that there is no organizational practice more broken than performance management. A big statement, but with the ring of truth. T...
The All-American Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL): A Review of Literature and Its Reflection of Gender Issues

The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL) was the first, and to date, the only women’s professional baseball league in United States history. Yet many people are unaware of the league’s existence. The purposes of this paper are to (1) review the historical and research literature on the AAGPBL, (2) examine the reflections on gender issues within this literature, and (3) discuss how these issues contributed to the success and failure of the AAGPBL. The published historical documentation and archived artifacts of the AAGPBL are quite thorough; however, research on the league is limited. Gender issues, such as the female apologetic, marginalization, and feminist reconstruction of sport are evident throughout the league’s existence. These issues enhanced the league’s success, but also contributed to its demise. The pioneering efforts of the women of the AAGPBL created a new vision of opportunity for girls and women in sport that still resonates today.
Vital exhaustion: ready for prime time?

This editorial refers to ‘Ranking of psychosocial and traditional risk factors by importance for coronary heart disease: the Copenhagen City Heart Study’, by P. Schnohr et al. on page doi:10.1093/eurheartj/ehv027 Popular and widespread beliefs associate emotions and environmental factors with cardiovascular diseases. Over 2000 years ago, the Roman physician Celsus noted, ‘fear and anger, and any other state of mind may often be apt to excite the pulse’. William Harvey in 1628 wrote, ‘every affection of the mind that is attended by either pain or pleasure, hope or fear, is the cause of agitation whose influence extends to the heart’. These and many other observations became established as scientists in the 20th century began to explore associations of psychosocial factors with the genesis of acute and chronic cardiovascular diseases. As shown in Figure 1 , numerous individual and environmental factors are proposed, and many are found to predict increased disease outcomes. These factors range from natural disasters such as earthquakes to social conditions to personality disorders to emotions. However, while there are many strong associations between psychosocial measures and cardiovascular diseases, after adjustment for known classical risk factors, psychosocial measures have never reached a status requiring physician measurement and treatment. Figure 1 Psychosocial factors associated with cardiovascular disease. The potential reasons for this disconnect between observational studies with significantly increased relative risks and therapeutic interventions are several, including the following. …
Dielectric interface effects in subsurface microscopy of integrated circuits

Abstract We investigate the defocus and image quality affected by a dielectric interface on high numerical aperture focusing of linearly polarized illumination in aplanatic mode. Theoretical and experimental demonstration is performed on subsurface backside microscopy of silicon integrated circuits, showing that the high longitudinal magnification provided by solid immersion lens microscopy allows the observation of significant astigmatism. It is shown that a 50 micron longitudinal displacement of the objective lens with respect to the sample is necessary to achieve maximum resolutions in two directions.
KIT oncogene inhibition drives intratumoral macrophage M2 polarization

Tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) are a major component of the cancer microenvironment. Modulation of TAMs is under intense investigation because they are thought to be nearly always of the M2 subtype, which supports tumor growth. Gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) is the most common human sarcoma and typically results from an activating mutation in the KIT oncogene. Using a spontaneous mouse model of GIST and 57 freshly procured human GISTs, we discovered that TAMs displayed an M1-like phenotype and function at baseline. In both mice and humans, the KIT oncoprotein inhibitor imatinib polarized TAMs to become M2-like, a process which involved TAM interaction with apoptotic tumor cells leading to the induction of CCAAT/enhancer binding protein (C/EBP) transcription factors. In human GISTs that eventually developed resistance to imatinib, TAMs reverted to an M1-like phenotype and had a similar gene expression profile as TAMs from untreated human GISTs. Therefore, TAM polarization depends on tumor cell oncogene activity and has important implications for immunotherapeutic strategies in human cancers.
Cover algorithms and their combination

This paper defines the cover of a formula φ with respect to a set of variables V in theory T to be the strongest quantifier-free formula that is implied by ∃V : φ in theory T. Cover exists for several useful theories, including those that do not admit quantifier elimination. This paper describes cover algorithms for the theories of uninterpreted functions and linear arithmetic. In addition, the paper provides a combination algorithm to combine the cover operations for theories that satisfy some general condition. This combination algorithm can be used to compute the cover a formula in the combined theory of uninterpreted functions and linear arithmetic. This paper motivates the study of cover by describing its applications in program analysis and verification techniques, like symbolic model checking and abstract interpretation.
Prevalence of left ventricular regional dysfunction in arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia: a tagged MRI study.

Background— Although arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia (ARVD) predominantly affects the right ventricle (RV), genetic/molecular and histological changes are biventricular. Regional left ventricular (LV) function has not been systematically studied in ARVD. Methods and Results— The study population included 21 patients with suspected ARVD who underwent evaluation with MRI including tagging. Eleven healthy volunteers served as control subjects. Peak systolic regional circumferential strain (Ecc, %) was calculated by harmonic phase from tagged MRI based on the 16-segment model. Patients who met ARVD Task Force criteria were classified as definite ARVD, whereas patients with a positive family history who had 1 additional minor criterion and patients without a family history with 1 major or 2 minor criteria were classified as probable ARVD. Of the 21 ARVD subjects, 11 had definite ARVD and 10 had probable ARVD. Compared with control subjects, probable ARVD patients had similar RV ejection fraction (58.9±6.2% versus 53.5±7.6%, P =0.20), but definite ARVD patients had significantly reduced RV ejection fraction (58.9±6.2% versus 45.2±6.0%, P =0.001). LV ejection fraction was similar in all 3 groups. Compared with control subjects, peak systolic Ecc was significantly less negative in 6 of 16 (37.5%) segments in definite ARVD and 3 of 16 segments (18.7%) in probable ARVD (all P <0.05). Conclusions— ARVD is associated with regional LV dysfunction, which appears to parallel degree of RV dysfunction. Further large studies are needed to validate this finding and to better define implications of subclinical segmental LV dysfunction. Received September 22, 2009; accepted February 16, 2010. # CLINICAL PERSPECTIVE {#article-title-2}
Algorithms for Elasto‐Plastic‐Creep Postbuckling

This paper considers the development of an improved constrained time stepping scheme which can efficiently and stably handle the pre-post-buckling behavior of general structure subject to high temperature environments. Due to the generality of the scheme, the combined influence of elastic-plastic behavior can be handled in addition to time dependent creep effects. This includes structural problems exhibiting indefinite tangent properties. To illustrate the capability of the procedure, several benchmark problems employing finite element analyses are presented. These demonstrate the numerical efficiency and stability of the scheme. Additionally, the potential influence of complex creep histories on the buckling characteristics is considered.
Complete Repair of Transposition of the Great Arteries with Pulmonary Stenosis A Review and Report of a Case Corrected by Using a New Surgical Technique

Complete surgical correction of transposition of the great arteries associated with subvalvular pulmonary stenosis carries a high mortality rate. A new surgical technique that achieves redirection of the ventricular outflows and relieves pulmonary stenosis by bypassing it, was successfully used to repair complete transposition of the great arteries associated with ventricular septal defect (VSD) and valvular and subvalvular pulmonary stenosis in a 14½-year-old patient. The repair consists of (1) division of the pulmonary artery, the cardiac end of which is oversewn, (2) repair of the VSD with a patch in such a way as to connect the left ventricle with the aorta, and (3) reconstruction of the pulmonary artery with an aortic homograft, including the aortic valve, which is anastomosed between the distal end of the pulmonary artery and the right ventricle. A review of the cases in which the current techniques were used indicates that the location and nature of the obstruction in the left ventricular outflow t...
What Does Democracy Mean? Correlates of Adolescents' Views.

The open-ended responses of 701 7th to 12th graders to the question “What does democracy mean to you?” were analyzed. In logistic regressions, age, parental education, political discussions, and participation in extracurricular activities distinguished youth who could define democracy (53%) from those who could not. Case clustering revealed three emphases in youths’ definitions: individual rights (30%), representative rule (40%), and civic equality (30%). These clusters did not vary by parental education or ethnicity, but several values that youth endorsed varied by parental education. Controlling for parental education, there were significant differences in adolescents’ reports of familial and personal values in the three clusters. Scheffe tests revealed that the equality cluster endorsed less materialism than other clusters, more environmental responsibility than the individual rights cluster, and more social responsibility than the representative rule cluster. In contrast, the individual rights cluster...
Observations of Strongly Nonlinear Internal Motion in the Open Sea Using a Range-Gated Doppler Sonar

Abstract A Doppler sonar has been developed at the Marine Physical Laboratory for the remote measurement of the upper ocean velocity field. The sonar transmits a 1° beam at 87.5 kHz, with 3 KW peak power. The sound scatters off drifting plankton, as well as other organisms in the upper ocean. From the Doppler shift of the backscattered sound, the component of water velocity parallel to the beam can be determined at many ranges. During an early test of this system, from FLIP in May 1975, two large propagating events were observed. The events had peak velocity >20 cm s−1, scale wavelength <20 m, and a phase velocity of 40 cm s−1. The horizontal strain rate associated with their passage exceeded 0.01 s−1. Estimates of the Doppler spectral width of the backscattered sound were significantly higher within the core of the events. These events could be internal solitary waves propagating on a high-density gradient layer in the thermocline. Efforts to compare the observations to existing theoretical predictions o...
The Disulfide Bonds within BST-2 Enhance Tensile Strength during Viral Tethering

Human BST-2/tetherin is a host factor that inhibits the release of enveloped viruses, including HIV-1, HIV-2, and SIV, from the cell surface by tethering viruses to the host cell membrane. BST-2 has an α-helical ectodomain that forms disulfide-linked dimers between two monomers forming a coiled coil. The ectodomain contains three cysteine residues that can participate in disulfide bond formation and are critical for viral tethering. The role of the disulfides in viral tethering is unknown but proposed to be for maintaining the dimer. We explored the role of the disulfides in the structure of BST-2 using experimental, biophysical methods. To understand the role of the disulfides in viral tethering, we used a new approach in viral tethering, steered molecular dynamics. We find that the disulfides coordinate the unfolding of the BST-2 monomers, which adds tensile strength to the coiled coil. Structural differences between oxidized and reduced BST-2 are apparent during unfolding, showing the monomers slide past each other in the absence of the disulfides. We found no evidence to support dissociation of the dimer upon reduction of the disulfide bonds. Moreover, the structure of BST-2 in the absence of the disulfides is similar to that of the oxidized form of BST-2, supporting previous X-ray crystallography and cellular work that showed the disulfides are not required for expression of BST-2. These data provide new insights into viral tethering by using novel techniques in the analysis of BST-2 to give amino acid level insight into functions of BST-2.
LARGE-ANGLE KINEMATICS FOR THE CONTROL OF SATELLITE RELATIVE MOTION

Relative motion between satellites is viewed on a unit sphere on which distances are equivalent to direction cosines. The inter satellite range vector is expressed in terms of Euler parameters. Relative angular velocity vector and orientation of one satellite with respect to another are also derived using the differences in the respective orbital elements and their rates. The required rates of the mean element differences are determined using various kinematic control laws for formation maintenance as well as reconfiguration. The solutions for the required differences in the rates of the orbital elements are not unique and are strongly influenced by the time of initiation of the control action as related to the position of the controlled satellite in its orbit.
Check and Assess of the Quality of Biosafety Cabinetry

Objective:The anther aims to ensure the safety of the lab staff by analyzing the quality of the biosafety cabinetry.Methods:The anther probes into the operation of the biosafety cabinetry by identifying,checking and assessing the defects of the biosafety cabinetry.Results:The biosafety cabinetry have the defect of noise.Conclusions:The conclusion is that there live some defects in the biosafety cabinetry.The lab should build up an affection administration system to offer necessary protection facilities and protection methods to ensure the safety of lab staff.
לצאת מהמקרר: מרכיב האזרחות בחינוך לקיימות

אנשים רבים מייחסים לחינוך (ובצדק) תפקיד חשוב בהתמודדות עם המשבר הסביבתי ועם אתגר הקיימות, המחייבים את האנושות לשנות את דרכיה ואת אורחותיה. לצורך כך מדגישות תכניות חינוכיות רבות את מרכיב האזרחות הפעילה במעשה החינוכי. עם זאת, מושג האזרחות הינו מושג בעל פרשנויות שונות שנובעות מתפיסות עולם נפרדות, היכולות להכתיב תכניות חינוכיות שונות. היות והקיימות היא תפיסת עולם רחבה הקשורה לטוב משותף ואינה מצטמצמת רק לחסכנות במרחב הפרטי והצרכני ולהתייעלות טכנית בהגנה על הסביבה, הרי שמרכיב האזרחות בחינוך לקיימות צריך לשקף זאת. המאמר טוען כי תפיסת האזרחות המתאימה והראויה בהקשר של קיימות ושל חינוך לקיימות היא התפיסה המעוגנת במסורת הרפובליקנית, המבוססת על שיח של אחריות, ולא התפיסה המעוגנת במסורת הליברלית, המתבססת על שיח של זכויות. ומה הקשר למקרר? זה יוסבר במאמר.
Pharmacological Characterization of 30 Human Melanocortin-4 Receptor Polymorphisms with the Endogenous Proopiomelanocortin-Derived Agonists, Synthetic Agonists, and the Endogenous Agouti-Related Protein Antagonist,‡

The melanocortin-4 receptor (MC4R) is a G-protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) that is expressed in the central nervous system and has a role in regulating feeding behavior, obesity, energy homeostasis, male erectile response, and blood pressure. Since the report of the MC4R knockout mouse in 1997, the field has been searching for links between this genetic biomarker and human obesity and type 2 diabetes. More then 80 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) have been identified from human patients, both obese and nonobese controls. Many significant studies have been performed examining the pharmacological characteristics of these hMC4R SNPs in attempts to identify a molecular defects/insights that might link a genetic factor to the obese phenotype observed in patients possessing these mutations. Our laboratory has previously reported the pharmacological characterization of 40 of these polymorphic hMC4 receptors with multiple endogenous and synthetic ligands. The goal of the current study is to perform a similar...
The Office Guidelines Applied to Practice program improves secondary prevention of heart disease in Federally Qualified Healthcare Centers.

The burden of cardiovascular disease (CVD) among minority and low-income populations is well documented. This study aimed to assess the impact of patient activation and shared decision-making (SDM) on medication use through the Office-Guidelines Applied to Practice (Office-GAP) intervention in Federally Qualified Healthcare Centers (FQHCs). Patients (243) with diabetes and CHD participated in Office-GAP between October 2010 and March 2014. Two-site (FQHCs) intervention/control design. Office-GAP integrates health literacy, communication skills education for patients and physicians, decision support tools, and SDM into routine care. Main measures: 1) implementation rates, 2) medication use at baseline, 3, 6, and 12 months, and 3) predictors of medication use. Logistic regression with propensity scoring assessed impact on medication use. Intervention arm had 120 and control arm had 123 patients. We found that program elements were consistently used. Compared to control, the Office-GAP program significantly improved medications use from baseline: ACEIs or ARBs at 3 months (OR 1.88, 95% CI = 1.07; 3.30, p < 0.03), 6 months (OR 2.68, 95% CI = 1.58;4.54; p < 0.01); statin at 3 months (OR 2.00, 95% CI = 0.1.22; 3.27; p < 0.05), 6 months (OR 3.05, 95% CI = 1.72; 5.43; p < 0.01), Aspirin and/or clopidogrel at 3 months OR 1.59, 95% CI = 1.02, 2.48; p < 0.05), 6 months (OR 3.67, 95% CI = 1.67; 8.08; p < 0.01). Global medication adherence was predicted only by Office-GAP intervention presence and hypertension. Office-GAP resulted in increased use of guideline-based medications for secondary CVD prevention in underserved populations. The Office-GAP program could serve as a model for implementing guideline-based care for other chronic diseases.
Translating the essence of healing: Inscription, interdiscursivity, and intertextuality in U.S. translations of Chinese Medicine

This paper examines the translation of Chinese medicine (CM) texts into English. In what I here call “living translation,” written translation in CM is approached as an ongoing process of reading, writing, communicating, and practicing that works to encode multiple dialogues with past, present and future actors. Translation in this framework is presented as a “conversation in motion,” an unfolding event in which authors draw upon morally grounded notions of medicine, personhood, and self in order to create CM through extended translations. In entering directly into the stream of these conversations, observing how different authors and translators approach the interdiscursivity of CM at the level of textual translation, I discuss the possibilities that this dialogic view of translation opens up for understanding textual translation as a living practice that directly mediates the ways in which CM is practiced in English-speaking populations.
Autonomous identification of local agents in multi-agent robotic swarms

With the emergence of swarm intelligence and evolutionary algorithms, system designers are creating robotic swarms of continuously increasing sizes. As the size of a swarm increases, it is imperative to have a uniform program collectively downloaded on all the agents in it. These uniform programs impede the designer's ability to designate distinct identities for various agents in the swarm. In this work we propose an algorithm that, when implemented in a robotic swarm, allows the locally interacting agents to autonomously designate unique identifications to each other at run time. The results show that when used on a small swarm of autonomous robots, running the algorithm led to a steady state where every agent in a local neighborhood was assigned a unique identification value.
In vivo Ebola virus infection leads to a strong innate response in circulating immune cells

Ebola virus is the causative agent of a severe syndrome in humans with a fatality rate that can approach 90 %. During infection, the host immune response is thought to become dysregulated, but the mechanisms through which this happens are not entirely understood. In this study, we analyze RNA sequencing data to determine the host response to Ebola virus infection in circulating immune cells. Approximately half of the 100 genes with the strongest early increases in expression were interferon-stimulated genes, such as ISG15, OAS1, IFIT2, HERC5, MX1 and DHX58. Other highly upregulated genes included cytokines CXCL11, CCL7, IL2RA, IL2R1, IL15RA, and CSF2RB, which have not been previously reported to change during Ebola virus infection. Comparing this response in two different models of exposure (intramuscular and aerosol) revealed a similar signature of infection. The strong innate response in the aerosol model was seen not only in circulating cells, but also in primary and secondary target tissues. Conversely, the innate immune response of vaccinated macaques was almost non-existent. This suggests that the innate response is a major aspect of the cellular response to Ebola virus infection in multiple tissues. Ebola virus causes a severe infection in humans that is associated with high mortality. The host immune response to virus infection is thought to be an important aspect leading to severe pathology, but the components of this overactive response are not well characterized. Here, we analyzed how circulating immune cells respond to the virus and found that there is a strong innate response dependent on active virus replication. This finding is in stark contrast to in vitro evidence showing a suppression of innate immune signaling, and it suggests that the strong innate response we observe in infected animals may be an important contributor to pathogenesis.
Complications of subdural and depth electrodes in 269 patients undergoing 317 procedures for invasive monitoring in epilepsy.

SummaryObjective Intracranial monitoring is fundamental to epilepsy surgery, with reported complication rates of 3–17%. We aimed to assess the differences in complication rates between subdural and depth electrodes. Methods We conducted a retrospective review of 317 electrode implantation procedures. All documented abnormal postoperative findings were recorded in our study. Those that resulted in a significant alteration of treatment course, including neurologic deficit, long-term medication use, reoperation, or hospital readmission, were deemed clinically significant. When possible, findings were attributed to a particular electrode type based on relative location to each electrode. Results Postoperative abnormalities were associated with SDE placement in 152 (47.9%) procedures and 40 (25.2%) DE placements (p < 0.001). Twenty-nine (9.1%) clinically significant complications were seen in the subdural electrode (SDE) group compared to 10 associated with DEs (6.3%, p = 0.37). SDEs were associated with increased rates of any postoperative hemorrhage (p < 0.001) or extraaxial collection (p = 0.007). Subdural grid placement was associated with an increased risk of any extraaxial collection (odds ratio [OR 2.42), as well as clinically significant collections (OR 9.47). Previous craniotomy was found to be associated with any abnormal postoperative finding (OR 1.71) as well as radiographic hemorrhage (OR 1.99). Concurrent resection is also associated with abnormal findings (OR 1.83) and extraaxial collections (OR 2.37). The overall complication rate was 9.1%, with 13 procedures (4.1%) resulting in neurologic deficit. However, only two patients (0.6%) had permanent neurologic sequelae resulting from lead placement. Significance Subdural electrodes appear to have an increased rate of abnormal postoperative findings, including hemorrhage and extraaxial collections; however, there was no difference in clinically significant findings. Subdural grids also appear to be associated with symptomatic extraaxial collections, and previous craniotomy increases the risk of hemorrhage. Overall, intracranial monitoring remains a safe and effective procedure for localization of operative seizure foci. Patient selection and risk education for various modalities is an essential aspect of preoperative evaluation.
HIV Infection and Neurodevelopment

The mental and motor development of 24 children with vertically transmitted human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection in the first 30 months of life was compared to 27 HIV exposed but uninfected children at the Boston City Hospital and Boston University Medical Center, MA.
Outcomes and utilization of postmastectomy radiotherapy for T3N0 breast cancers

Abstract Background The role of postmastectomy radiotherapy (PMRT) for women with pT3N0M0 breast cancer is controversial. We sought to determine the benefit of PMRT in this cohort using the National Cancer Database (NCDB). Methods We analyzed women with pT3N0M0 breast cancer who received mastectomy with or without PMRT between 2004 and 2012. We excluded men, women ≤18 years, neoadjuvant or unknown radiation or chemotherapy status, unknown estrogen or progesterone receptor status, unknown surgical margin status, histology other than invasive ductal or lobular carcinoma, and if death occurred Results Of the 4291 women analyzed, 2030 (47%) received PMRT. On MVA, PMRT (HR 0.72, p Conclusions PMRT was associated with improved OS in women with pT3N0M0 breast cancer, which strongly suggests PMRT may provide a survival advantage and should be considered.
Methyl Formate Formation during Methanol Conversion over the (111) Ceria Surface

We study methyl formate formation during methanol conversion on the fully oxidized and partially reduced ceria (111) surface using density functional theory. Starting from methanol and formaldehyde adsorbed on the surface, we consider two pathways of methyl formate production. Pathway 1 consists of formaldehyde dehydrogenation followed by oxygen–carbon bond formation. Along pathway 2, the oxygen–carbon bond is established prior to intermediate dehydrogenation. Formaldehyde production is observed at elevated temperature at which we expect both pathways to be energetically attainable on the fully oxidized surface. However, the probability of both reactants being adsorbed next to each other is low. This probability can be increased by the reduction of the surface. The partially reduced ceria surface is modeled by the introduction of an oxygen vacancy in the surface. If formaldehyde adsorbs over a vacancy, both pathways potentially contribute to methyl formate formation. In contrast, if methoxide that is obta...
Systematic deficiency of aftershocks in areas of high coseismic slip for large subduction zone earthquakes

Fault slip during plate boundary earthquakes releases a portion of the shear stress accumulated due to frictional resistance to relative plate motions. Investigation of 101 large [moment magnitude (Mw) ≥ 7] subduction zone plate boundary mainshocks with consistently determined coseismic slip distributions establishes that 15 to 55% of all master event-relocated aftershocks with Mw ≥ 5.2 are located within the slip regions of the mainshock ruptures and few are located in peak slip regions, allowing for uncertainty in the slip models. For the preferred models, cumulative deficiency of aftershocks within the central three-quarters of the scaled slip regions ranges from 15 to 45%, increasing with the total number of observed aftershocks. The spatial gradients of the mainshock coseismic slip concentrate residual shear stress near the slip zone margins and increase stress outside the slip zone, driving both interplate and intraplate aftershock occurrence near the periphery of the mainshock slip. The shear stress reduction in large-slip regions during the mainshock is generally sufficient to preclude further significant rupture during the aftershock sequence, consistent with large-slip areas relocking and not rupturing again for a substantial time.
Concentrated Solar Power Plants Capacity Factors: A Review

Here we review the latest design and operating data of concentrated solar power (CSP) plants, both solar power tower (SPT) and parabolic troughs (PT). We consider solar plants with or without boost by natural gas (NG) combustion. We finally examine the novel trends to produce better capacity factors and a better matching of production and demand.
Italy's first postcolonial novel and the end of (neo)realism

In this article, I argue that Ennio Flaiano's Tempo di uccidere (A Time to Kill, 1947) is both the first Italian postcolonial novel and a highly complex literary work that should be acknowledged as...
Optimization of Recombinant Protein Expression in the Chloroplasts of Green Algae

Through advances in molecular and genetic techniques, protein expression in the chloroplasts of green algae has been optimized for high-level expression. Recombinant proteins expressed in algae have the potential to provide novel and safe treatment of disease and infection where current, high-cost drugs are the only option, or worse, where therapeutic drugs are not available due to their prohibitively high-cost to manufacture. Optimization of recombinant protein expression in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii chloroplasts has been accomplished by employing chloroplast codon bias and combinatorial examination of promoter and UTR combinations. In addition, as displayed by the expression of an anti-herpes antibody, the C. reinhardtii chloroplast is capable of correctly folding and assembling complex mammalian proteins. These data establish algal chloroplasts as a system for the production of complex human therapeutic proteins in soluble and active form, and at significandy reduced time and cost compared to existing production systems. Production of recombinant proteins in algal chloroplasts may enable further development of safe, efficacious and cost-effective protein therapeutics.
An Analytical Angular Integration Technique for Generating Multigroup Transfer Matrices

Many detailed multigroup transport calculations require group-to-group Legendre transfer coefficients to represent scattering processes in various nuclides. These (fine-group) constants must first be generated from the basic data. An alternative technique for generating such data from the total scattering cross section of a particular nuclide on a pointwise energy basis, sigma(E'), and some information regarding the angular scattering distribution for each initial energy point is outlined. The evaluation of generalized multigroup transfer matrices for transport calculations requires a double integration extending over the primary and secondary energy groups, where, for a given initial energy, the integration over the secondary energy group may be replaced by an integral over the possible scattering angles. In the present work, analytic expressions for these angular integrals are derived which are free of truncation error. Differences between the present method (as implemented in ROLAIDS) and other methods (as implemented in MINX and NEWXLACS) are explored. Of particular interest is the fact that, for hydrogen, the angular integration is shown to simplify to the point that, for many weight functions, the integration over the primary energy group might also be performed analytically. This completely analytic treatment for hydrogen has recently been implemented in NEWXLACS. 1 figure.