cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Privilege and Participation: On the Democratic Implications and Social Contradictions of Bottom-Up Urbanisms

This chapter complicates some common assumptions about the social value of bottom-up urbanism, arguing that, in practice, it is not always the democratizing force it is often heralded to be in progressive planning circles. The phenomenon ultimately embodies many of the contradictions of the neoliberal city. Drawing from a database of recent cases from across the United States, the author examines both wholly unauthorized or illegal interventions and those that are formally sanctioned but are nonetheless informal and participatory in implementation. The realities of who can and does take part in both types of streetscape intervention, and the types of spaces that typically result, reveal persistent social inequalities in urban space and participatory citizenship.
Gender, Family Norms, and Male-Factor Infertility in Japan: An Analysis of Internet Blogs:

This study analyzes blogs about male-factor infertility posted on a Japanese blogsite on a certain day in April 2014. It focuses on an understudied topic and is the first study of Japanese male inf...
Enhancing Accumulation and Penetration of HPMA Copolymer–Doxorubicin Conjugates in 2D and 3D Prostate Cancer Cells via iRGD Conjugation with an MMP-2 Cleavable Spacer

To enhance the accumulation and penetration of nanomedicines in tumor tissue, we developed and evaluated the biological properties of matrix metalloproteinase 2 (MMP-2)-responsive N-(2-hydroxypropyl)methacrylamide (HPMA) copolymer drugs and tumor-penetrating peptide conjugates (P-DOX-PLGLAG-iRGD). Two different spacers were used in the design: a lysosomally (cathepsin B) cleavable tetrapeptide GFLG spacer conjugated doxorubicin (DOX) to HPMA copolymer, and an MMP-2-degradable linker (PLGLAG) connected tumor-homing and -penetrating cyclic peptide iRGD to HPMA copolymer. The accumulation of DOX in P-DOX-PLGLAG-iRGD-treated monolayer (2D) and multilayer (3D) DU-145 prostate cancer cells was higher than that of control groups (P-DOX and P-DOX + iRGD). The cell cycle arrest analysis and cytotoxicity data demonstrated that P-DOX-PLGLAG-iRGD produced a higher G2/M arrest and possessed stronger cytotoxicity against DU-145 cells than P-DOX + iRGD or P-DOX, which was consistent with the drug uptake results. Similar...
Exact Variance-Reduced Simulation of Lattice Continuous-Time Markov Chains with Applications in Reaction Networks

We propose an algorithm to reduce the variance of Monte Carlo simulation for the class of countable-state, continuous-time Markov chains, or lattice CTMCs. This broad class of systems includes all processes that can be represented using a random-time-change representation, in particular reaction networks. Numerical studies demonstrate order-of-magnitude reduction in MSE for Monte Carlo mean estimates using our approach for both linear and nonlinear systems. The algorithm works by simulating pairs of negatively correlated, identically distributed sample trajectories of the stochastic process and using them to produce variance-reduced, unbiased Monte Carlo estimates, effectively generalizing the method of antithetic variates into the domain of stochastic processes. We define a method to simulate anticorrelated, unit-rate Poisson process paths. We then show how these antithetic Poisson process pairs can be used as the input for random time-change representations of any lattice CTMC, in order to produce anticorrelated trajectories of the desired process. We present three numerical parameter studies. The first examines the algorithm's performance for the unit-rate Poisson process, and the next two demonstrate the effectiveness of the algorithm in simulating reaction network systems: a gene expression system with affine rate functions and an aerosol particle coagulation system with nonlinear rates. We also prove exact, analytical expressions for the time-resolved and integrated covariance between our antithetic Poisson processes for one technique.
Electrical Only Calibration of Barometric Pressure Sensors Using Machine Learning

This paper reports a novel, rapid and economical approach to calibrate barometric micromechanical capacitive pressure sensors via electrical measurement only using a machine learning approach. Conventional calibration approaches that use physical means are time consuming and require specialized equipment. We proposed and experimentally validated an electrical only approach through machine learning to calibrate the pressure sensor over a wide range of pressures. Using this novel approach, the experimental results show an average absolute accuracy of 1.74hPa within 600hPa to 1100hPa pressure range. The typical absolute accuracy falls well within the ±1hPa. This approach reduces the test time by more than 85%.
Minimizing Blood Loss in Spine Surgery

Study Design:Broad narrative review.Objective:To review and summarize the current literature on guidelines, outcomes, techniques and indications surrounding multiple modalities of minimizing blood ...
The Bacterial Guide to Designing a Diversified Gene Portfolio

The stunning ability of bacteria to evolve and adapt has contributed to the success of these single cells, which have inhabited the Earth for billions of years and play vital roles in the environment and in human health. The goal of this chapter is to present and discuss the population-level organizational scheme of bacterial pangenomes, wherein genes are distributed among the strains of a species, such that each individual strain encodes only a subset of the genes available at the population level. Genes from the accessory/distributed genome (those present only in a subset of strains within a species) impart diverse functions or variations on a conserved function to strains. Moreover, horizontal gene transfer generates novel gene combinations. The maintenance and spread of any given gene arrangement are influenced by fitness. Further, the extent of genomic plasticity is regulated by restriction modification systems, phage-defense systems, and Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR)—associated proteins (CRISPR-Cas). The combination of a pangenome structure and genomic plasticity reveals a successful strategy for bacterial adaptation to ever-changing environments. From a clinical perspective, pangenome analyses inform the selection of therapeutic targets, designed to focus either on an entire species or on virulence features within a species. Further, they provide a framework for modeling the efficacy of drugs and vaccines. In summary, following the explosion in sequencing technology, pangenome studies have revealed remarkable genomic organizations at the levels of species, with important implications to our understanding of evolution, and our ability to design therapeutics and predict their long-term outcomes.
Histology-Independent Signature Distinguishes Kikuchi-Fujimoto Disease/Systemic Lupus Erythematosus-Associated Lymphadenitis From Benign and Malignant Lymphadenopathies.

Objectives Kikuchi-Fujimoto disease (KFD) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) are benign entities with histologic features that raise concern about malignancy and infection. We searched for a histology-independent KFD/SLE signature relying on only immunophenotype and basic clinical characteristics. Methods A histology-independent KFD/SLE signature was generated using 975 excised lymph nodes with flow immunophenotyping, including 16 cases of KFD/SLE. This signature was then evaluated in 1,198 fine-needle aspiration (FNA) specimens. Results The top flow cytometry discriminant for KFD/SLE was uniform CD38+ expression on CD19+ events. Immunohistochemistry demonstrated nodules of IgD+, IgM- B cells surrounding necrotizing and activated T-cell areas. A signature combining 6 flow cytometry criteria with age and sample site had a positive predictive value of 88% for KFD/SLE, which had a prevalence of 1.6%. All 4 signature-positive FNA cases with follow-up excision were KFD/SLE. At a second institution, 4 of 5 KFD/SLE cases passed the top discriminant. Conclusions A flow cytometry signature combined with age and biopsy site identifies KFD/SLE independent of histology, suggesting a shared immune composition and independently confirming that KFD/SLE represents a distinct entity. Unexpectedly, an IgD+CD38+ small B-cell population is a distinctive feature of KFD/SLE, suggesting a possible pathologic role for anergic/autoreactive B cells.
Nanolipoprotein mediated Her2 protein transfection induces malignant transformation in human breast acinar cultures

Her2 overexpression is associated with an aggressive form of breast cancer and malignant transformation. We sought to determine if a nano-carrier system could introduce Her2 protein to non-malignant cells and determine the effects on cell phenotype and transcriptome. With stimulation with Her2-NLPs, we observed uptake of Her2 protein and a decreased probability of individual non-malignant cells forming polar growth arrested acinar-like structures. The NLP delivery system alone or Her2-NLPs plus trastuzumab showed no effect on acinar organization rate. Transcriptomics revealed essentially no effect of empty NLPs versus untreated cells whereas Her2-NLPs versus either untreated or empty NLP treated cells revealed upregulation of several factors associated with breast cancer. Pathway analysis also suggested that known nodes downstream of Her2 were activated in response to Her2-NLP treatment. This suggests that Her2-NLPs are sufficient for malignant transformation of non-malignant cells and that this system offers a new model for studying cell surface receptor signaling without genomic modification or transformation techniques.
Inter-facility transfer for patients with acute large vessel occlusion stroke receiving mechanical thrombectomy.

Abstract Background Mechanical thrombectomy (MT) is the preferred treatment for large vessel occlusion (LVO) ischemic stroke, and neurological outcome improves with earlier treatment. Patients with LVO frequently require inter-facility transfer to access MT but delays at transferring EDs may worsen neurological outcomes. Methods We conducted a retrospective observational study to evaluate the association of time spent and transferring EDs with 90-day neurological outcomes among patients who were transferred from an outside ED to the Comprehensive Stroke Center and received MT. Time intervals at transferring EDs were examined descriptively, and multivariable logistic regression modeling was used to examine the association of time spent in the ED with 90-day neurologic outcome (modified Rankin Scale; good ≤2, poor ≥3). Results Among 111 patients transferred to a stroke center for MT between 2013 and 2017, the time between CT scan and the stroke center transfer request was 44 (IQR 27,65) minutes, or 47% of transferring ED total duration. Duration at the transferring ED was not significantly associated with 90-day outcome. Only NIH Stroke Scale at the time of arrival to the stroke center was associated with good 90-day neurological outcome (aOR 0.84, 95%CI 0.77, 0.92, p Conclusions Among LVO patients transferred for MT, the total time spent at transferring EDs was not associated with 90-day neurologic outcome in patients with LVO. As therapies and their associated effectiveness improves over time, future investigations should further characterize the time between CT and transfer request to identify targets for process improvement and clinical outcomes.
Stateful Dynamic Partial Order Reduction for Model Checking Event-Driven Applications that Do Not Terminate.

Event-driven architectures are broadly used for systems that must respond to events in the real world. Event-driven applications are prone to concurrency bugs that involve subtle errors in reasoning about the ordering of events. Unfortunately, there are several challenges in using existing model-checking techniques on these systems. Event-driven applications often loop indefinitely and thus pose a challenge for stateless model checking techniques. On the other hand, deploying purely stateful model checking can explore large sets of equivalent executions. In this work, we explore a new technique that combines dynamic partial order reduction with stateful model checking to support non-terminating applications. Our work is (1) the first dynamic partial order reduction algorithm for stateful model checking that is sound for non-terminating applications and (2) the first dynamic partial reduction algorithm for stateful model checking of event-driven applications. We experimented with the IoTCheck dataset: a study of interactions in smart home app pairs. This dataset consists of app pairs originated from 198 real-world smart home apps. Overall, our DPOR algorithm successfully reduced the search space for the app pairs, enabling 69 pairs of apps that did not finish without DPOR to finish and providing a 7X average speedup.
Long-term risk of radionecrosis and imaging changes after stereotactic radiosurgery for brain metastases.

Radionecrosis is a well-characterized effect of stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) and is occasionally associated with serious neurologic sequelae. Here, we investigated the incidence of and clinical variables associated with the development of radionecrosis and related radiographic changes after SRS for brain metastases in a cohort of patients with long-term follow up. 271 brain metastases treated with single-fraction linear accelerator-based SRS were analyzed. Radionecrosis was diagnosed either pathologically or radiographically. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression was performed to determine the association between radionecrosis and clinical factors available prior to treatment planning. After median follow up of 17.2 months, radionecrosis was observed in 70 (25.8%) lesions, including 47 (17.3%) symptomatic cases. 22 of 70 cases (31.4%) were diagnosed pathologically and 48 (68.6%) were diagnosed radiographically. The actuarial incidence of radionecrosis was 5.2% at 6 months, 17.2% at 12 months and 34.0% at 24 months. On univariate analysis, radionecrosis was associated with maximum tumor diameter (HR 3.55, p 1 cm.
Network complexity and learning efficiency of constructive learning algorithms

Connectionist constructive learning dynamically constructs a network to balance the complexity of the network topology with the complexity of the function specified by the training data. In order to evaluate the quality of a constructive learning algorithm, not only the learning efficiency of the algorithm need to be measured, but also the topological complexity of the constructed network has to be examined. This paper discusses both the learning speeds and the network sizes of constructive learning algorithms. As the backprop requires more nodes than necessary for the network to converge, it is used as a reference to measure the complexity of constructive networks. Experiments using two constructive algorithms, cascade correlation and stack, indicates that the network built by constructive learning algorithms can have less complexity than the network required by the backprop algorithm. >
A combined water balance and tree ring approach to understanding the potential hydrologic effects of climate change in the central Rocky Mountain region

[1] Models suggest that average temperatures in the central Rocky Mountains will increase by >3°C over the next century, while precipitation may remain within late Holocene boundaries. This study investigates the potential hydrologic effects of such warming when combined with the full range of precipitation variability experienced over the past millennium. Using the upper Yellowstone drainage as a test case, a water balance model is constructed to estimate river discharge from precipitation and temperature inputs (r = 0.85 versus observed). The model then was run using tree ring precipitation estimates for 1177–1910 and 1911–1995 A.D. combined with (1) average observed temperatures 1896–1995; (2) reconstructed Northern Hemisphere temperatures since 1177; or (3) Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change temperature projections for 2025, 2050, and 2100. Discharge estimates generated by driving the model with tree ring precipitation for 1911–1995 and observed temperatures served as a baseline for comparisons with other climate runoff scenarios. All combinations of the various temperature scenarios and pre-1911 precipitation resulted in mean discharge below the gauge period baseline. Projected temperatures for 2050 and 2100 produced the lowest mean discharge at 85% and 76% of baseline, respectively. Combining observed temperatures with the paleoprecipitation scenarios created numerous multidecadal periods with discharge <85% of baseline. Discharge during these same multidecadal droughts declined an additional 16–34% under the 2025–2100 temperature regimes. Likewise inherent multidecadal precipitation variability adds a large degree of nonstationarity to the climate change responses seen in discharge estimates. While this combined tree ring and water balance scenario exercise does not provide precise forecasts for future conditions, these results suggest that a 1°–3°C warming could have major negative effects on water availability in the upper Yellowstone. These results also indicate that twentieth-century observations paint an incomplete and potentially overly optimistic picture of regional water supplies.
Detecting spam email by radial basis function networks

Over the years, various spam email filtering technology and anti-spam software products have been developed and deployed. Some are designed to stop spam email at the server level, and others apply machine learning algorithms at the client level to identify spam email based on message content. In this paper, a new spam filtering model, RBF-SF, is proposed that detects and classifies email messages by a radial basis function (RBF) network. The model utilizes the valuable email discriminative information from training data and can incorporate additional background email in its learning process. The empirical results of RBF-SF on two benchmark spam testing corpora and a performance comparison with several other popular text classifiers have shown that the model is capable of filtering spam email effectively.
Cycling through Cyberspace

Students at the University of Brasilia set out to build a better exercise bike. The Web extra at http://youtu.be/NCSb_sDJL7c is a video demonstration of the Bike-X simulator, a virtual cycling experience designed by engineering students at the University of Brasilia's Gama Campus.
Anterior bladder tube for continence in neurogenic bladder: Experimental study

Abstract Experimental studies designed to evaluate the anterior bladder tube as a method of maintaining continence in the neurologically deprived bladder achieved a 50 to 60 per cent success rate. This success rate is not sufficient to warrant its clinical use.
Probabilistic insight into the application of image processing to the mapping of clutter and noise regions in a radar surveillance volume

In a non Gaussian radar detection problem the choice of a signal processing algorithm depends upon whether the target is embedded in weak background noise (a strong signal problem) or strong clutter (a weak signal problem). This paper gives probabilistic insight into the use of image processing for partitioning a radar surveillance volume into clutter and noise regions. An example the supports the argument presented in this paper is presented. >
Modern meetings: Participation, democracy, and language ideology in Brazil's MST landless movement

In the democratic cosmology of Brazil's MST landless movement, a meeting must occur before a decision can be reached—even if the decision was set before the meeting. I examine MST speech habits in an effort to understand the meeting as a symptomatically modern method for producing authoritative discourse. I identify four properties of MST meeting speech: (1) a lexicon that highlights verbs of speech, (2) the enforcement of tight semantic linkages between utterances, (3) the equal availability of one speech act to all participants, and (4) the generation of a distinctive species of collective voicing. By virtue of these properties, the meeting becomes a crucial site for the construction of equality and participation as political values. It is these values that are ultimately in play when a speaker mobilizes other people's words to make—or prevent—a decision.
Autocatalytic processing of the streptococcal cysteine protease zymogen: processing mechanism and characterization of the autoproteolytic cleavage sites.

The autocatalytic processing of the streptococcal cysteine protease zymogen (proSCP) to active streptococcal cysteine protease (SCP) was investigated in vitro using purified protein from Streptococcus pyogenes strain B220. It was found that the autocatalytic maturation of the zymogen proceeds through the sequential appearance of at least six intermediates, five of which were characterized through a combination of N-terminal sequencing and MS. Intermediates were identified as resulting from cleavages after Lys26, Asn41, Lys101, Ala112, and Lys118. Time-course studies of the proSCP processing gave a sigmoidal activity profile and indicated that proSCP catalyses its own transformation, mainly via an intermolecular processing mechanism. A similar sequential appearance of intermediates was observed when inactive Cys192Ser proSCP was treated with native, enzymatically active SCP, thus demonstrating that the maturation can exclusively proceed by a bimolecular mechanism. It was shown that proSCP, but not mature SCP, immobilized on a Sepharose resin is capable of liberating itself from the column, indicating that the zymogen is also capable of intramolecular processing. In order to test whether the amino acid sequences at the processing sites could be used for developing new, specific substrates, 3-amino benzoic acid octapeptide derivatives based on all five characterized amino acid sequences from the autoprocessing cleavage sites were synthesized and tested for activity. The 3-amino benzoic acid derivatives have kcat/KM values ranging from 1200 to 7700·m−1·s−1, making them very good endopeptidase substrates for SCP.
Associations Between Antibullying Policies and Bullying in 25 States.

IMPORTANCE: Bullying is the most widespread form of peer aggression in schools. In an effort to address school bullying, 49 states have passed antibullying statutes. Despite the ubiquity of these policies, there has been limited empirical examination of their effectiveness in reducing students' risk of being bullied. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effectiveness of antibullying legislation in reducing students' risk of being bullied and cyberbullied, using data from 25 states in the United States. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: A cross-sectional observational study was conducted using a population-based survey of 63 DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: 635 adolescents in grades 9 to 12 from 25 states participating in the 2011 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System study (September 2010-December 2011). Data on antibullying legislation were obtained from the US Department of Education (DOE), which commissioned a systematic review of state laws i DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: n 2011. The report identified 16 key components that were divided into the following 4 broad categories: purpose and definition of the law, district policy development and review, school district policy components (eg, responsibilities for reporting bullying incidents), and additional components (eg DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: , how policies are communicated). Policy variables from 25 states were linked to individual-level data from the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System on experiencing bullying and cyberbullying. Analyses were conducted between March 1, 2014, and December 1, 2014. EXPOSURE: State antibullying legislation. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Exposure to bullying and cyberbullying in the past 12 months. RESULTS: There was substantial variation in the rates of bullying and cyberbullying across states. After controlling for relevant state-level confounders, students in states with at least 1 DOE legislative component in the antibullying law had a 24% (95% CI, 15%-32%) reduced odds of reporting bullying and 20% (95% CI, 9%-29%) reduced odds of reporting cyberbullying compared with students in states whose laws had no DOE legislative components. Three individual components of antibullying legislation were consistently associated with decreased odds of exposure to both bullying and cyberbullying: statement of scope, description of prohibited behaviors, and requirements for school districts to develop and implement local policies. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Antibullying policies may represent effective intervention strategies for reducing students' risk of being bullied and cyberbullied in schools. Language: en
Analyzing copy number variation using SNP array data: protocols for calling CNV and association tests.

High-density SNP genotyping technology provides a low-cost, effective tool for conducting Genome Wide Association (GWA) studies. The wide adoption of GWA studies has indeed led to discoveries of disease- or trait-associated SNPs, some of which were subsequently shown to be causal. However, the nearly universal shortcoming of many GWA studies—missing heritability—has prompted great interest in searching for other types of genetic variation, such as copy number variation (CNV). Certain CNVs have been reported to alter disease susceptibility. Algorithms and tools have been developed to identify CNVs using SNP array hybridization intensity data. Such an approach provides an additional source of data with almost no extra cost. In this unit, we demonstrate the steps for calling CNVs from Illumina SNP array data using PennCNV and performing association analysis using R and PLINK. Curr. Protoc. Hum. Genet. 79:1.27.1-1.27.15. © 2013 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Keywords: copy number variations (CNV); CNV calling; genome-wide association studies; SNP genotyping array; association study; burden analysis
VAN method lacks validity

Varotsos and colleagues (the VAN group) claim to have successfully predicted many earthquakes in Greece. Several authors have refuted these claims, as reported in the May 27,1996, special issue of Geophysical Research Letters and a recent book, A Critical Review of VAN [Lighthill 1996]. Nevertheless, the myth persists. Here we summarize why the VAN group's claims lack validity. The VAN group observes electrical potential differences that they call “seismic electric signals” (SES) weeks before and hundreds of kilometers away from some earthquakes, claiming that SES are somehow premonitory. This would require that increases in stress or decreases in strength cause the electrical variations, or that some regional process first causes the electrical signals and then helps trigger the earthquakes. Here we adopt their notation SES to refer to the electrical variations, without accepting any link to the quakes.
Identification of a novel human papilloma virus in cutaneous warts of meathandlers.

Abstract Papillomavirus DNA from common skin warts of four meathandlers has been characterized and compared to the DNA genomes of known human cutaneous papillomaviruses. Virus was purified from one of the human papilloma samples and was found to exhibit a restriction endonuclease cleavage pattern distinct from those of known human papillomaviruses (HPV). Moreover, viral DNA extracted from papillomas from the other three patients exhibited sequence homology and restriction endonuclease cleavage patterns similar to this novel viral DNA. In addition to this unique HPV, one of the patients also contained a second species of HPV which was related to, yet distinct from, HPV-2, a species of HPV associated with common cutaneous warts in man. Finally, employing the Southern transfer procedure and stringent hybridization conditions, each meathandler HPV DNA studied was found to be unrelated to the major species of bovine papillomavirus, types 1 and 2.
STUDY OF EUTECTIC FLUXES IN SEMIVITREOUS AND VITREOUS WHITEWARE BODIES

Frits of oxides of lithium, barium, calcium, and magnesium combined with calcined alumina and pulverized flint were substituted for feldspar in a dry-press whiteware body. Three series of bodies were studied which contained (1) about one half the normal RO content, (2) the normal RO content, and (3) about three times the normal RO content. Firing behavior and mechanical properties of the various bodies in the vitreous and semi-vitreous range were determined, and the results are reported in this paper.
Racial diversity, is it a blessing to an organization? Examining its organizational consequences in municipal police departments:

The present study, with a focus on ethnic and racial diversity, tested an implicit assumption of diversity studies that diversified workforces perform better and bring more benefits to organizations. Using data from 464 police departments of cities with more than 50,000 residents, this study found decreased crime control performance and increased employee turnover as workforces became more diversified. According to the findings in this study, managers are advised to consider introducing diversity management practices to reduce negative results of being diverse while protecting and increasing the benefits derived from diversity to make diversified workforces help enhance organizational productivity.Points for practitionersAccording to the findings in this study, managers are advised to consider introducing diversity management practices to reduce negative results of being racially diverse while protecting and increasing the benefits derived from racial diversity to make diversified workforces help enhance ...
CDMA-based analog network coding through interference cancellation for underwater acoustic sensor networks

The performance of multi-hop underwater acoustic network is known to be limited by the long propagation delays and by the limited bandwidth of the underwater acoustic (UW-A) channel. Recent work on analog network coding (ANC) has shown that significant throughput gains can be achieved in multi-hop wireless networks. However, implementing ANC for UW-A communications is very challenging as the UW-A channel is severely affected by multipath. In this paper, we propose CE-CDMA, a collision-enabling direct-sequence code-division multiple-access scheme for multi-hop underwater acoustic sensor networks (UW-ASNs). In CE-CDMA two nodes, separated by two hops, are assigned the same code-division channel (i.e., spreading code) to communicate concurrently. The transmission of packets by the two nodes will therefore collide at the intermediate (relay) node. However, we show that by exploiting a priori information, i.e., the interfered packet previously received from one of the nodes, and an adaptive RAKE receiver that jointly estimates the two multipath-affected channels, the relay node can cancel the interference before decoding the packet of interest. Experiments demonstrate that for a 1--2dB tradeoff in signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) the proposed scheme can potentially improve the channel utilization of a unidirectional multi-hop linear network by up to 50%. We also outline the basic functionalities of a MAC protocol (CE-MAC) designed to support the proposed scheme.
Introns in the 3'-untranslated region can inhibit chimeric CAT and β-galactosidase gene expression

The expression of a cyc::cat [cytochrome c/chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT)] chimeric gene was stimulated 100-fold by the inclusion of a cyc intron in the 5'-untranslated region. In contrast, a single intron in the 3'-untranslated region was at best only slightly stimulatory, and surprisingly, inhibited expression of cat when an intron was also included in the 5'-untranslated region. This inhibition was independent of the identity of the downstream intron, occurring when either the simian virus 40 (SV40) small t intron or a cyc intron was located downstream from the cat coding region. Analysis of CAT mRNA levels, using a riboprobe spanning the 5' end of the CAT message, revealed that the stimulatory effect of a 5'-noncoding region intron were manifest at both the protein and RNA levels, whereas the inhibitory effects of 3'-noncoding region introns were detectable only at the protein level. The effects of intron position on chimeric gene expression were observed in both primate and rodent cell lines and also when the beta-galactosidase coding region was substituted for that of cat. Therefore, the common placement of an intron in the 3'-noncoding region is not the most beneficial to the expression of cyc chimeric genes. The position of introns within a transcriptional unit is a major factor to be considered when optimizing the efficiency of animal cell expression vectors.
Lake-landscape connections at the forest-tundra transition of northern Manitoba

To better understand aquatic–terrestrial linkages in the sub-Arctic, and specifically the relative importance of landscape position versus land cover, we surveyed lakes, soils, land cover, and lake/basin characteristics in a 14 000 km 2 region of acidic forest–tundra landscape near northern Manitoba, Canada (59.56°N, 97.72°W) in 2009. We analyzed 39 different biological, chemical, and physical variables for lakes and soils. We used a remote-sensing– based classification to determine that the landscape was 21% water, 46% peat-forming lowland, and 24.9% open tundra, and we assigned lake order to all lakes based on the order of the outlet stream for each lake. Lakes were oligotrophic to mesotrophic (median total phosphorus: TP = 11.8 µg L −1 ), N-limited (median dissolved inorganic nitrogen: TP = 1.6), acidic (median pH 5.7), and had moderate amounts of dissolved organic carbon (median DOC = 5.2 mg L −1 ). We identified 2 principle groups of variables represented by DOC and conductivity/ cations, respectively, that captured major axes of lake variation. DOC, 2 measures of DOC quality (a 250 /a 365 [a proxy for molecular weight and aromaticity] and specific ultraviolet absorbance), and Fe and were significantly correlated with percent cover of lowland forest, but conductivity/cations were not correlated with variation in land cover. Soils were generally acidic (pH 2.7–4.4) and nutrient-poor, and wetland soils contained more carbon and higher concentrations of calcium, magnesium, and other cations than upland open tundra. Landscape position of lakes (measured as lake order) did not capture systematic differences in land cover or lake biogeochemistry. Our results highlight the importance of lowland export of DOC to lakes and further suggest the need for additional regional studies of aquatic–terrestrial connections in Arctic and sub-Arctic landscapes.
Sex differences in the Ilia of a known sex and age sample of fetal and infant Skeletons

Ilia from a known sex, race, and age sample of fetal and infant skeletons from the collections of the Smithsonian Institution were evaluated for six metric and one nonmetric characters. Three indices calculated from the measurements were analyzed. The nonmetric trait was examined for fit with known sex. The three indices failed to show significant sex differences. The nonmetric trait, Auricular Surface Elevation, proved dependable (91% accurate) for the male Fetal and Six Month age groups.
The Differential Diagnosis of Dicarboxylic Aciduria

Various types of dicarboxylic aciduria are known, most of them are accompanied by non-ketotic hypoglycaemia. For the differential diagnosis of these conditions several methods of investigation have been used: (1) analysis of urinary organic acids in both native and hydrolysed samples, (2) analysis of free and esterified carnitine, the latter by means of chromatographic separation and identification of acyl moieties, (3) analysis of plasma organic acids, including the so-called free fatty acids, (4) a prolonged fasting test with serial measurements of the aforementioned parameters and close monitoring of the blood glucose and (5) an oral loading test with medium chain triglycerides accompanied by the same measurements as those named in item (4).
Children of alcoholics, negative life events, and early experimentation with drugs

Questionnaires were completed by sixth-grade students and their parents in order to assess differences between children of alcoholics (COAs) and their peers, as well as the relations between family environment and children's experimentation with alcohol, drugs, and tobacco. Social competence and problematic behavior were also explored. The best predictors of early experimentation with alcohol, drugs, and tobacco were the experience of negative life events, family conflict, and lack of family cohesion, but not COA status per se. Differences were found between COAs and non-COAs in respect to family structure, parent education levels, and family environment. COAs were found to be significantly more likely than their peers to experiment with tobacco, but not alcohol or drugs. They also had a tendency to engage more frequently in delinquent behavior. Recommendations for future research and implications for preventive activities are discussed.
Knowledge, Attitude and Practice Survey Tool for Intellectual Disability (KAP-ID)

Background: Community based rehabilitation approach is very popular in providing rehabilitation services to the people with intellectual disability in low and middle income countries. It is useful to assess level of knowledge, attitude and practices of parents and relatives of people with intellectual disabilities for strategic planning of the program. Method: series of meetings, focus groups and in-depth interviews with the professionals employed in community based rehabilitation project and workers, and community members were conducted. Common questions around the issues related with intellectual disabilities were collected and discussed. These questions were refined with consultation, references with existing literature and field testing. Result: We have developed and tested a Knowledge, Attitude and Practice survey tool for Intellectual Disability (KAP-ID) in a resource poor setting of a middle income country, India. This tool contains fifteen questions. Conclusion: This brief survey tool is helpful in assessing knowledge, attitude and practices of parents, relatives and also of the community on intellectual disabilities. Information gained through the survey on KAPID found to be useful in designing the behavioral, awareness, educational, health promotional, and interventional program for the population with intellectual disabilities in rural poor settings. Nepal Journal of Medical Sciences | Volume 03 | Number 01 | January-June 2014 | Page 22-25 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/njms.v3i1.10345
Ingestion and sublethal effects of physically and chemically dispersed crude oil on marine planktonic copepods

Planktonic copepods play a key function in marine ecosystems, however, little is known about the effects of dispersants and chemically dispersed crude oil on these important planktonic organisms. We examined the potential for the copepods Acartia tonsa, Temora turbinata and Parvocalanus crassirostris to ingest crude oil droplets and determined the acute toxicity of the dispersant Corexit(®) 9500A, and physically and chemically dispersed crude oil to these copepods. We detected ingestion of crude oil droplets by adults and nauplii of the three copepod species. Exposure to crude oil alone (1 µL L(-1), 48 h) caused a reduction of egg production rates (EPRs) by 26-39 %, fecal pellet production rates (PPRs) by 11-27 %, and egg hatching (EH) by 1-38 % compared to the controls, depending on the species. Dispersant alone (0.05 µL L(-1), 48 h) produced a reduction in EPR, PPR and EH by 20-35, 12-23 and 2-11 %, respectively. Dispersant-treated crude oil was the most toxic treatment, ~1.6 times more toxic than crude oil alone, causing a reduction in EPR, PPR and EH by 45-54, 28-41 and 11-31 %, respectively. Our results indicate that low concentrations of dispersant Corexit 9500A and chemically dispersed crude oil are toxic to marine zooplankton, and that the ingestion of crude oil droplets by copepods may be an important route by which crude oil pollution can enter marine food webs.
Determination of trace amounts of p-toluenesulfonic acid in organic materials

p-toluenesulfonic acid is separated from the sample (e. g. glucose, glycollic acid, lactic acid, lactose, maltose) by extraction using liquid ion-exchanger Alamine 336 (tricaprylamine) and quantitated by liquid chromatography. Precision at the 5 ppm level characterized by a standard deviation is 0.458 ppm. Recoveries average 66.13% forp-toluenesulfonic acid determination in glucose, and 71.99% in glycollic acid. Calibration curves constructed by the aid of spiked samples are linear in the region studied, i. e. 1.4–13.3 ppm and can be used for evaluation in routine analysis. When only an occasional check for the presence ofp-toluenesulfonic acid is needed, one spiked sample is analyzed as a reference standard.
Reframing the Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan: new communication and mobilization strategies for the Twitter generation

The USA and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) have been waging war against the Taliban in Afghanistan for more than a decade, with territorial gains by coalition forces often proving to be ephemeral. This paper traces the origins and evolution of the current Afghan insurgency and explores the framing of the Taliban movement's discourse on Twitter and other interactive websites. The paper postulates that Taliban activists are utilizing social media to disseminate their views and frame their movement in the phraseology of militant Islamism, traditional Pashtun folklore, anti-imperialism, social justice, and universal human rights. Taliban militants are attempting to align their discursive frames with various transnational ideologies that resonate not only with prospective recruits and supporters in Central and South Asia and the Middle East, but also potentially receptive audiences in the West. Such frame alignments are essential components in the micro-mobilization of movement participants. Taliban...
Postmortem high-resolution 3-dimensional imaging of the primate brain: blockface imaging of perfusion stained tissue

Modern anatomy of the brain is primarily concerned with visualizing contrast between tissue elements and with 3-dimensional (3-D) reconstruction. The first objective relies on specific neuroanatomical and imaging protocols, the latter on proper alignment of serial cross-sectional anatomy. We present a method that meets these goals at a resolution that allows for the structural delineation in the primate central nervous system. Methylene blue was administered by perfusion to the intact brain of three rhesus macaques thereby staining the neuropil in the cortex and gray nuclei of the brain in situ. Subsequent dissection and serial sectioning revealed excellent contrast in the tissue and showed clear boundaries between anatomical structures. We captured sequential images of the block surface of the brain before each serial section was cut from the specimen by means of a digital camera mounted directly over the microtome stage and the brain. We developed a suite of algorithms to automate the alignment, segmentation, normalization, and intensity correction for the series of blockface images. These digital images were the basis for 3-D reconstruction of the brains.
Studies on the capacity of mazindol and dita to act as uptake inhibitors or releasing agents for 3H-biogenic amines in rat brain tissue slices

Abstract The effects of the anorexic and stimulant agents mazindol and dita on 3 H-biogenic amine uptake and release were determined. Mazindol and dita were very potent inhibitors of 3 H-norepinephrine uptake into rat brain occipital cortex slices with ED 50 values (point of 50% inhibition of uptake) of 1.5 × 10 −9 M and 3.2 × 10 −9 M, respectively. Mazindol (ED 50 of 2.8 × 10 −7 M) and dita (ED 50 value of 8.5 × 10 −7 M) were also potent inhibitors of 3 H-dopamine uptake into rat neostriatal slices and of 3 H-serotonin uptake into whole brain slices (ED 50 values of 5.5 × 10 −7 M and 5.1 × 10 −7 M for mazindol and dita respectively). Both compounds proved however to be extremely weak releasing agents for the 3 H-biogenic amines in the respective brain areas. The effects of mazindol and dita on uptake may help to explain some of their pharmacological properties.
Oncogenic Fusion Protein EWS/FLI1 Down-regulates Gene Expression by Both Transcriptional and Posttranscriptional Mechanisms

Ewing family tumors are characterized by a translocation between the RNA binding protein EWS and one of five ETS transcription factors, most commonly FLI1. The fusion protein produced by the translocation has been thought to act as an aberrant transcription factor, leading to changes in gene expression and cellular transformation. In this study, we investigated the specific processes EWS/FLI1 utilizes to alter gene expression. Using both heterologous NIH 3T3 and human Ewing Family Tumor cell lines, we have demonstrated by quantitative pre-mRNA analysis that EWS/FLI1 repressed the expression of previously validated direct target genes at the level of transcript synthesis. ChIP experiments showed that EWS/FLI1 decreases the amount of Pol II at the promoter of down-regulated genes in both murine and human model systems. However, in down-regulated target genes, there was a significant disparity between the modulation of cognate mRNA and pre-mRNAs, suggesting that these genes could also be regulated at a posttranscriptional level. Confirming this, we found that EWS/FLI1 decreased the transcript half-life of insulin-like growth factor binding protein 3, a down-regulated direct target gene in human tumor-derived Ewing's sarcoma cell lines. Additionally, we have shown through reexpression experiments that full EWS/FLI1-mediated transcriptional repression requires intact EWS and ETS domains. Together these data demonstrate that EWS/FLI1 can dictate steady-state target gene expression by modulating both transcript synthesis and degradation.
Determination of rubidium by isotope dilution—inductively-coupled plasma mass spectrometry as an alternative to thermal ionization mass spectrometry

Abstract The combined techniques of inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and isotope dilution yield as much as a three-fold improvement in precision for trace-level rubidium determinations in geological materials over conventional isotope dilution using thermal ionization mass spectrometry (TIMS). Rubidium determinations by TIMS, precise to 0.6% (1 s.d.), are hindered by uncorrectable fractionation effects, whereas fractionation can be monitored during ICP-MS determinations, providing results as precise as 0.17% (1 s.d.). Precise rubidium data are critical for high-precision RbSr geochronology.