cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Endogenous monitoring intensity, the period of contractual precommitment, and the slope of the wage-earnings profile

Abstract We consider the determination of the shape of the wage-earnings profile as well as the pattern of monitoring intensity in a model where marginal monitoring cost is positive. Since the contract specifies that a worker detected shirking will be fired immediately, monitoring intensity can be interpreted as the conditional probability of job separation given shirking. We argue that a crucial determinant of the shape of these two profiles is the length of the contractual horizon, and hence, the length of the firm's precommitment to future job rent. The longer this horizon is, the steeper is the rent profile derived from the wage-earnings profile and the more sharply falling with seniority is the monitoring intensity profile. When this contractual horizon is short, both profiles tend to be flat. Thus, the length of contractual horizon may help to reconcile with received theory some recent evidence on the return to seniority.
PUFFING AND JET COOKING AFFECT SOLUBILITY AND MOLECULAR WEIGHT OF BARLEY β‐GLUCANS

Foods containing barley or oats are often marketed as healthy because of the dietary fiber (1→3) (1→4)-β-D-glucan. Processing conditions can affect the molecular structure of these dietary fibers, which in turn affect quality and properties of the products. In this study, the effect of puffing and jet cooking conditions on changes in the solubility and molecular weight of barley β-glucans was investigated. Barley flour was processed in a pasta extruder to produce particles similar in size and shape to rice. These particles were puffed at 230, 250 and 270C for 6, 8 and 10 s in a rice cake machine. Solubility and molecular weight of barley β-glucans were determined by using water extracts (25 or 65C). The amount of β-glucan extracted in water at 25C increased from 41.1% in cakes puffed at 230C/6 s to 69.7% in cakes puffed at 270C/10 s. The amount of β-glucan extracted in water at 65C increased from 63.6% in samples puffed at 230C/6 s to to 99.1 in samples puffed at 270C/ 10 s. The molecular weight of β-glucans in barley was reduced by puffing and jet cooking treatments.
Influence of bound water layer on the viscosity of oxide nanopowder suspensions

Abstract Nanopowder suspensions exhibit much higher viscosities compared to micron size powders. The current viscosity models greatly underestimate the viscosity of nanopowder suspensions and hence are inaccurate. Recently, it was shown that a bound water layer around the particles is partially responsible for the high viscosities of alumina nanopowder suspensions. In the present study, the existence and effect of the bound water layer on suspension viscosity has been validated for other oxide systems such as zirconia, yttria stabilized zirconia and titania. The water melting events were studied by low-temperature differential scanning calorimetry (LT-DSC) to investigate the nature of the bound water and how it varied by different oxide systems. Onset of the bound water for these oxides varied from −1 to −7 °C. The variation in melting behavior of bound water was related to the presence of charged species in solution and gel-like hydroxide formation. The bound water content was estimated and incorporated into a modified Krieger–Dougherty (K–D) equation. The modified equation was employed to interpret the experimental data. Intrinsic viscosity values were estimated as 11.6, 6.6, 5.1 and 3.1 at a shear rate of 50 s −1 for alumina, titania, zirconia and YSZ, respectively. Increasing shear rate predicted lower intrinsic viscosity values. Modified K–D equation could predict the suspension viscosity much better than the other available models in literature while distinguishing the differences between oxide systems.
Coordinate expression of regulatory genes differentiates embryonic and perinatal forms of biliary atresia

The molecular basis for the embryonic and perinatal clinical forms of biliary atresia is largely undefined. In this study, we aimed to: 1) determine if the clinical forms can be differentiated at the transcriptional level, and 2) search for molecular mechanisms underlying phenotypic differences. To this end, we generated biotinylated cRNA probes from livers of age-matched infants with the embryonic (n = 5) and perinatal (n = 6) forms of biliary atresia at the time of diagnosis and hybridized them against the Affymetrix human HG-U133 A and B microarrays containing 44,760 gene products. Data filtering and two-way cluster analysis of the gene expression platform identified 230 genes with an expression profile that is highly distinctive of the clinical phenotypes. Functionally, the profile did not reveal a higher-order function for a specific cell type; instead, it uncovered a coordinated expression of regulatory genes. These regulatory genes were predominantly represented in the embryonic form (45% of genes), with a unique pattern of expression of genes involved in chromatin integrity/function (Smarca-1, Rybp, and Hdac3) and the uniform overexpression of five imprinted genes (Igf2, Peg3, Peg10, Meg3, and IPW), implying a failure to downregulate embryonic gene programs. In conclusion, embryonic and perinatal forms of biliary atresia are distinguished by gene expression profiling. The coordinate expression of regulators of chromatin structure/function and of imprinted genes provides evidence for a transcriptional basis for the pathogenesis of the embryonic form of biliary atresia. Further studies exploring these biological processes are required to determine the significance of these findings.
Monocytosis is an adverse prognostic factor for survival in younger patients with primary myelofibrosis.

We recently developed a modified Dupriez prognostic scoring system (PSS) that effectively discriminated between high-, intermediate-, and low-risk young patients (age 30 x 10(9)L(-1), and platelet count or =1 x 10(9)L(-1) carries an independent predictive value (p=0.02), for an inferior survival, in addition to that provided by hemoglobin level (p=0.002), platelet count (0.02), and leukocyte count (p=0.16). The inclusion of the monocyte count as a fourth risk factor enabled the construction of a new and improved Mayo PSS; median survival was 173, 61, and 26 months in the absence of all four (low-risk), three (intermediate-risk), or two or less (high-risk) adverse features, respectively (p<0.0001). The independent prognostic value of monocytosis was validated in a separate database of 97 patients with PMF from another institution.
Comments on the EPR Spectrum of Tetravalent Chromium in Ruby

The electron paramagnetic resonance absorption spectrum of tetravalent chromium in ruby is re-examined at X-band wavelengths. Spectral parameters are provided from data obtained at 4.2 K. Among these, the strength of the orthorhombic component to the crystalline electric field is given along with a suggestion of its associated direction. Die paramagnetische Resonanz von vierwertigem Chrom in Rubin wird im X-Band erneut gemessen. Werte der Spektralparameter bei 4,2 K werden angegeben. Unter anderem wird der rhombische Anteil des elektrischen Kristallfeldes und seine Orientierung relativ zu den Kristallachsen bestimmt.
Coupling of Hemodynamic Measurements With Oxygen Consumption During Exercise Does Not Improve Risk Stratification in Patients With Heart Failure

Background Measurement of peak Vo2 has become an accepted method to select patients for cardiac transplantation. Some investigators have suggested that the addition of exercise hemodynamic measurements can further enhance risk stratification because these measurements may identify patients with a noncardiac limitation to exercise. Methods and Results Accordingly, we performed maximal bicycle exercise with respiratory gas analysis and hemodynamic measurements in 65 patients (47 men, 18 women) 53±10 years old (mean±SD) who underwent a transplant evaluation at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center. Skeletal muscle oxygenation of the vastus lateralis during exercise was assessed with near-infrared spectroscopy. Exercise hemodynamic, ventilatory, and muscle oxygenation measurements were obtained in all patients. For each subject, a linear correlation was derived between Vo2 and pulmonary artery saturation (PA Sao2). The slope of this relationship and a theoretical Vo2max at a PA Sao2 of 0% (Vo2 intercept) w...
Determination of cholesterol in dairy products by infrared techniques: 2. FT-NIR method

A Fourier transformed near-infrared (FT-NIR) method for rapid determination of cholesterol in dairy products was demonstrated. FT-NIR spectrum of pure cholesterol was characterized and the region between 3550 and 3650 cm−1 was found to be the most significant in cholesterol content determination. The FT-NIR method was found to accurately predict the cholesterol content in a variety of dairy products with r2 value greater than 0.98 and SEP estimates of less than 1.70. The FT-NIR procedure with suitable multivariate statistical model was further validated by recovery studies and compared with a conventional method. Results indicate that FT-NIR has the potential for rapid estimation of cholesterol.
Free radical and ionic grafting

Advantages and disadvantages of graft copolymer syntheses by free radical and ionic (i.e., anionic and cationic) techniques are compared. Recent significant advances in the field of cationic graft copolymerizations are summarized and discussed. Particular emphasis is placed on cationic syntheses which employ alkylaluminum coinitiators in conjunction with macromolecular initiators which produce unadulterated, pure graft copolymers, e.g., EPM-g-polystyrene, SBR-g-polyisobutylene, chlorobutyl-g-polystyrene. In these systems grafting efficiencies are close to 100%, which demonstrates by direct gravimetric analysis that chain transfer can be completely eliminated in carbenium ion polymerizations. The synthesis of PVC-g-polytetrahydrofuran which involves the grafting of THF from PVC using silver salts also leads to pure graft. Finally, cationic systems which either directly or after selective extraction produce pure grafts and thus allow the examination of physical properties of pure materials will be presented.
Absolute rate constant of the reaction OH + H2O2 yields HO2 + H2O from 245 to 423 K

The absolute rate constant of the reaction between the hydroxyl radical and hydrogen peroxide was measured by using the discharge-flow resonance fluorescence technique at total pressure between 1 and 4 torr. At 298 K the result is (1.64 + or - 0.32) x 10 to the -12th cu cm/molecule s. The observed rate constant is independent of pressure, surface-to-volume ratio, the addition of vibrational quenchers, and the source of OH. The temperature dependence has also been determined between 245 and 423 K; the resulting Arrhenius expression is k cu cm/molecule s is equal to (2.51 + or - 0.6) x 10 to the -12th exp(-126 + or - 76/T).
Repeated Insurance Contracts with Differential Learning

Using principal-agent and insurance models, several authors recently have shown that inefficiencies arising from asymmetric information between economic agents can be eliminated if the relationship between the agents is enduring and the future is not heavily discounted (Dionne (1983), Radner (1985), Radner (1986), Rubinstein (1979), Rubinstein and Yaari (1983)). In those models the efficient actions of the parties are common knowledge or it is common knowledge that the party with the private information knows the efficient actions. The efficient outcomes are implemented by a statistical scheme comparing realized outcomes with what should have arisen if the efficient actions had been taken. This paper studies an insurance model in which the full-information efficient actions are not known. Neither the insurer nor the customer knows the customer's risk characteristics. However, over time the customer learns about his characteristics and may pass this information on to the insurer, though the insurer cannot verify the truthfulness of these reports. A customer has "good" days and "bad" days; on "good" days it is easier for the customer to prevent accidents. The customer's "type" is the probability with which he has a "good" day. Efficient risk-sharing between such a risk-averse customer and a risk-neutral insurer would protect the customer against the randomness in his "ability" and against loss due to an accident. However, the insurer appears to be disadvantaged since it cannot observe the customer's actions (a moral hazard problem) and the customer may become better informed about his own type (an adverse selection problem). One wonders whether the customer might hide behind a cloak of ignorance about this type in order to exploit his informational advantage. In fact, I show that in the infinitely repeated model the insurer writing a "good-faith" policy for the customer does implement the full-information competitive outcome. The insurer takes as true the customer's ability reports and updates its beliefs about the agent's type. If the customer's record with the insurer is satisfactory, then the insurer offers to this customer the best full-information zero-profit contract for a customer whose type is given by the mean of these updated beliefs; otherwise, a high premium is charged until a satisfactory record is regained. The martingale version of the Law of the Iterated
Indirect dopamine agonists augment the locomotor activating effects of the ?-opioid receptor agonist U-50,488 in preweanling rats

kappa-Opioid receptor agonists (e.g., enadoline or U-50,488) increase the locomotor activity of preweanling rats, while the same drugs depress the locomotor activity of adults. Curiously, direct stimulation of dopamine (DA) D2-like receptors fully attenuates the U-50,488-induced locomotor activity of preweanling rats. The purpose of the present study was to determine whether indirect DA agonists (i.e., cocaine, methylphenidate, and amphetamine) would also attenuate U-50,488's behavioral effects. In two experiments, 17-day-old rats were injected with saline or U-50,488 (5 mg/kg, sc) and locomotor activity and stereotyped sniffing were assessed. After 20 min, the saline- and U-50,488-pretreated rats were injected with saline, cocaine (5, 10, or 20 mg/kg, i.p.), methylphenidate (10 or 20 mg/kg, i.p.), amphetamine (2.5 or 5 mg/kg, i.p.), or the direct D2-like receptor agonist NPA (1 mg/kg, i.p.). As expected, U-50,488 dramatically enhanced the locomotor activity of 17-day-old rats, while attenuating the stereotyped sniffing caused by indirect and direct DA agonists. All three indirect DA agonists augmented U-50,488's locomotor activating effects across the initial 10 min of testing and then activity declined to U-50,488 control values. Direct stimulation of DA receptors produced nearly opposite effects because NPA attenuated U-50,488-induced locomotor activity across the entire testing session. It is uncertain why direct and indirect DA agonists affected U-50,488-induced locomotor activity differently, but the relative amount of DA D1-like receptor activation is probably not responsible.
Change in health status and mortality as indicators of outcomes: comparison between the Medicare Advantage Program and the Veterans Health Administration.

Comparing health outcomes with adequate methodology is central to performance assessments of health care systems. We compared the Medicare Advantage Program (MAP) and the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) with regard to changes in health status and mortality. We used the Death-Master-File for vital status and the Short-Form 36 to determine physical (PCS) and mental (MCS) health at baseline and at 2 years. We compared the probability of being alive with the same or better (than would be expected by chance) PCS (or MCS) at 2 years and mortality, while adjusting for case-mix. Given the geographic variations in MAP enrollment, we did a regional sub-analysis. There were no significant differences in the probability of being alive with the same or better PCS except for the South (VHA 65.8% vs. MAP 62.5%, P = .0014). VHA patients had a slightly higher probability than MAP patients of being alive with the same or better MCS (71.8% vs. 70.1%, P = .002) but no significant regional variations. The hazard ratios for mortality in the MAP were higher than in the VHA across all regions. With the use of appropriate methodology, we found small differences in 2-year health outcomes that favor the VHA.
Indolent neutrophil response to endotoxin in newborn rats.

Summary: The blood neutrophil response to endotoxin challenge was determined in one-day-old and young adult rats to test the hypothesis that the neonate is unable to mobilize neutrophils from bone marrow to the peripheral circulation at a rate similar to adults. Adult animals responded to endotoxin with a brief neutropenia followed rapidly by marked neutrophilia. The maximum adult neutrophil count occurred at 11 hr after challenge and returned to baseline values by 28 hr. In contrast, one-day-old rats showed a prolonged neutropenia after a comparable injection. Peak neutrophil counts in neonates occurred later than those seen in adults (16 versus 11 hr) and were also lower. However, neutrophilia, once established in the neonates, persisted considerably longer than in adults.
Late cenozoic evolution of the Cape Coast between Knysna and Cape St. Francis, South Africa

The southeastern coast of South Africa's Cape Province underwent complex geomorphic evolution during the late Cenozoic, leaving a variety of erosional forms and a detailed, complementary record of distinctive sediments. The latter include several new lithostratigraphic units and paleosol horizons. An almost ubiquitous planation surface, the 200-m Coastal Platform, is associated with the fanglomeratic and deltaic Keurbooms Formation (late Tertiary?). A major sea level at +120 m truncated a laterite paleosol and was followed by accumulation of land rubble and littoral deposits to 101 m, constituting the Formosa Formation. Then follow sea level stages at +60, +30, and +15–20 m, as well as several generations of weathered eolianite, including the Brakkloof Formation with the deep superposed Brakkloof Soil. Beaches at +5–12 m, with thermophile mollusca and C 14 dates of 40,000 yr mark the Swartkops horizon, probably of Eem interglacial age. Next are cryoclastic screes and cave deposits, and ultimately the podsolic Brenton Soil of the Wurm Interpleniglacial. Transgressive eolianites and coastal dunes after 16,000 BP were interrupted by pedogenesis ca. 7500 BP and stabilized after 4200 BP when sea level reached +2.5 m. Geomorphic instability in stream valleys after 1000 BP was followed by man-induced activation of the coastal dunes, since the late 18th century. Environmental patterns accompanying this succession at various times included (1) semiarid pediplanation, (2) interior dune formation, and (3) intensive, cold-climate denudation, all under open vegetation in what is now closed, humid forest; by contrast, some of the more aberrant paleosols indicate warmer, perhumid conditions.
UHV/CVD growth of Si and Si:Ge alloys: chemistry, physics, and device applications

The fundamental chemical principles underlying ultra-high-vacuum chemical vapor deposition (UHV CVD) are described in this overview. A variety of unique devices and structures, e.g. high-speed graded-bandgap heterojunction bipolar transistors and n-type resonant tunneling diodes, are discussed. The role of fundamental interface chemistry in making such structures possible is considered. >
The Semiotics of Collective Memories

This review outlines the conceptual foundations of collective memory research from social scientific and semiotic perspectives. It locates collective memories in publicly circulating signs, merging a semiotic orientation with Nora's (1989) notion of memory sites. It elucidates how collective memories are made, remade, and contested through circulation enabled by semiotic processes of entextualization and erasure that produce cartographies of communicability. It shows how recent analytic work in linguistic anthropology focused on temporality can be mobilized to understand the concrete semiotic and discursive mechanisms by which the past is selectively brought into the present for strategic ends. It concludes by highlighting two promising directions for further inquiry in collective memory research: the role of expert knowledge and the importance of embodied performance. Overall, the review suggests that a semiotic perspective offers an analytically precise way of mapping the processes by which representati...
Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis in affected sibpairs.

OBJECTIVE To describe the demographics and clinical disease in affected sibpairs (ASPs) with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA), and to compare JRA as it occurs in ASPs with that from non-ASP JRA populations described in the literature. METHODS A rare disease research registry was established with a focus on JRA ASPs to facilitate accrual of patients for genetic, epidemiologic, and clinical studies. Physicians likely to care for patients with JRA were made aware of the registry and its goals by a variety of methods and asked to refer patients for entry. RESULTS To date, 71 ASPs have been registered and complete information has been obtained. These affected sibs differed in age by a mean of 4.1 years (SD 3.4) and in age at disease onset by 2.8 years (SD 3.0). The actual time difference between onset in sib 1 versus sib 2 averaged 4.4 years (SD 4.2). Sixty-three percent of the sibpairs were concordant for sex, and 76% for JRA onset type. Onset type within sibpairs did not appear to be random, based upon comparisons with non-ASP populations. Greater than expected concordance was seen among those with pauciarticular-onset and polyarticular-onset JRA. Seventy-nine percent of the pairs were concordant for course type. Seven sets of twins were included (approximately 10% of the total), all were concordant for onset and course type (6 sets with pauciarticular, 1 set with polyarticular), and disease onset was separated by a mean of only 3.3 months. Within the onset and course types, the clinical disease, such as the female:male ratio, age at onset, and serologic findings, in ASPs resembled that which has been described in the literature. CONCLUSION A higher than expected degree of concordance for onset type of JRA exists between sibpairs, indicating that genetic influences play a role. Affected sibs do not tend to develop their disease at approximately the same point in time, except for the twin sets. Clinical features of the disease within the various subtypes appear similar to those in non-ASP populations.
Temporal Change in the Density of State Interest Communities: 1980 to 2007

Two very different kinds of models—cross-sectional models based on the logic of island biogeography and time series models of density dependence—are used to understand interest system density. While they share much in common, it is not at all clear how results derived from cross-sectional models are to be understood in terms of the temporal focus of the time series approach. Thus, the first purpose of this article is to more thoroughly think through how these two modeling strategies and their empirical findings are related to each other. We empirically assess several theoretical conjectures about the relationship of the two modeling strategies by adding a temporal element to the typical cross-sectional analysis of state interest systems via modeling density dependence pooled across four cross-sections from 1980, 1990, 1997, and 2007. By doing so, we add to the literature on state interest system density by examining how it has changed since 1980. Finally, we discuss the nature of this change and what it i...
Machine Translation System Combination using ITG-based Alignments

Given several systems' automatic translations of the same sentence, we show how to combine them into a confusion network, whose various paths represent composite translations that could be considered in a subsequent rescoring step. We build our confusion networks using the method of Rosti et al. (2007), but, instead of forming alignments using the tercom script (Snover et al., 2006), we create alignments that minimize invWER (Leusch et al., 2003), a form of edit distance that permits properly nested block movements of substrings. Oracle experiments with Chinese newswire and weblog translations show that our confusion networks contain paths which are significantly better (in terms of BLEU and TER) than those in tercom-based confusion networks.
On “A Call for Clarity in Infant Breast and Bottle‐Feeding Definitions for Research”

Unclear and inconsistent infant-feeding definitions have plagued much of breastfeeding research. To determine accurate health outcomes associated with infant feeding, it is imperative that different types of feedings be explicitly described. Definitions must be based on content, not mode of milk delivery. Five new definitions for infant feeding are provided. These definitions are operationally useful for breastfeeding researchers, allowing for the inclusion of almost every infant into an appropriate sample group.
The NICE project: learning together in a virtual world

This paper describes the NICE project, an immersive learning environment for children implemented in the CAVE and related multi-user virtual reality (VR) technologies. The NICE project provides an engaging setting where children construct and cultivate simple virtual ecosystems, collaborate via networks with other remotely-located children, and create stories from their interactions in the real and virtual world.
The G Quotient: Why Gay Executives Are Excelling as Leaders … and What Every Manager Needs to Know

By Kirk Snyder San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, 2006. 240 pp. ISBN 978-1-118-43898-5. $24.95 Reviewed by Irene F. Stein, PhD
Constructive feedback in cross-race interactions

In two experiments, White college students provided a local high-school student with feedback on her substandard college admissions essay, via electronic mail. Motivation to provide appropriate feedback was manipulated by alleging comparison to experts or novices. Experiment 1 compared feedback to White versus Black recipients, with the expectation that accountability would attenuate previously observed positivity biases in cross-race feedback. Experiment 2 manipulated concern about being prejudiced by providing false scores on an Implicit Associations Task (IAT)-type task; this experiment examined whether accountability plus attenuated concern about prejudice could encourage feedback to Blacks that was objectively helpful. Feedback characteristics included evaluative connotation, communication style, subjective feedback helpfulness and objective feedback quality. Findings generally supported these hypotheses. We discuss the implications of our findings for intergroup contact situations, including the potential pitfalls that face feedback-givers responding to superior performance.
Direct Versus Indirect Suggestions: A Conceptual and Methodological Review

Abstract The article reviews the literature on the effects of direct versus indirect hypnotic suggestions. A conceptual and methodological analysis of direct versus indirect suggestions is also provided. Three conclusions follow from the review: (a) Contrary to views of Ericksonian hypnotists, suggestion style has little effect on objective responding to hypnotic test items; (b) studies of clinical- and laboratory-induced pain and other measures of subjective experience have yielded contradictory results—however, the best controlled studies have not indicated that indirect suggestions are superior to direct suggestions; and (c) there is insufficient evidence to conclude that hypnotizability level and suggestion wording interact, such that low hypnotizable subjects are particularly responsive to indirect suggestions. Methodological and conceptual problems in defining and studying hypnotic communications, the lack of rigorous experimental controls, and research issues and directions are highlighted.
Cryopreserved Homologous Saphenous Vein: Early and Late Patency in Coronary Artery Bypass Surgical Procedures

Autologous saphenous vein has proved to be a satisfactory conduit for use in coronary artery bypass grafting. Unfortunately, it is not always available, and substitute material must sometimes be used. When satisfactory autologous veins were not available and the internal mammary arteries were unsuitable, cryopreserved homologous saphenous veins were used in 28 patients. A total of 76 grafts were constructed. Cryopreserved homologous veins were used for 61 grafts, autologous saphenous veins for 11 grafts, and the internal mammary artery for 2 grafts. Coronary angiography was performed 8 to 12 days postoperatively in 16 patients. Of the 31 homografts studied, 8 were occluded (26%), 3 were stenotic (9%), and 20 were normal (65%). The one internal mammary artery and six autologous veins studied were all patent. Six patients underwent late catheterization 6 to 12 months postoperatively. Thirteen homografts were studied at late catheterization: 11 were occluded, 1 was severely stenotic, and 1 was mildly stenotic. At late catheterization, the one internal mammary artery studied was patent, and the one autologous saphenous vein was 95% occluded. Results of both early and late catheterization performed on 18 patients demonstrated that of the 35 homografts studied, 17 (49%) were occluded, 3 (9%) had greater than 70% stenosis, 1 (3%) had mild disease, and 14 (40%) were free of disease. One year follow-up data obtained on 26 patients revealed that 4 patients (15%) died of cardiac causes, 2 patients (8%) died of noncardiac causes, 11 patients (42%) have recurrent angina, and 9 (35%) are asymptomatic. It is concluded that use of cryopreserved homologous saphenous veins for coronary artery bypass grafting should be avoided if at all possible.
Evaluation of DNA Fragment Sizing and Quantification by the Agilent 2100 Bioanalyzer

Capillary electrophoresis (CE) achieves efficient separation of molecular species by the application of high voltages to samples in solution (1). Commercial CE units, available for slightly more than a decade, have found numerous applications (2)(3)(4)(5)(6), but are expensive (∼$60 000) and require substantial user training and experience. Recent advances have allowed CE to be performed on microchip devices (7)(8)(9)(10)(11). We evaluated the Agilent 2100 Bioanalyzer (Agilent Technologies), which represents a new generation of CE instruments that use this technology. The Bioanalyzer is relatively inexpensive (∼$18 000) and is simple to operate, requiring only routine pipetting and basic computer skills. Typically, 12 nucleic acid samples can be sized and quantified on a disposable chip within 30 min. Chips are fabricated from glass and comprise an interconnected network of fluid reservoirs and microchannels, which must be filled with a gel-dye mixture. Each chip contains 16 wells: 3 for loading the gel-dye mixture, 1 for a molecular size ladder, and 12 for experimental samples. The movement of nucleic acids through the microchannels is controlled by a series of electrodes, each of which is independently connected to a common power supply. The Bioanalyzer displays data as both migration-time plots and as computer-generated virtual gels. Traditional CE operating variables [temperature, voltage, capillary material, and pH, ionic strength, and viscosity of buffer (12)] cannot be modified. The instruments costs ∼$18 000, and chips cost ∼$12–18 per chip ($1–1.50 per sample). The gel-dye mixture consists of a linear polymer and a fluorescent, intercalating dye. The marker mixture consists of a buffer along with lower and upper molecular size markers, which the Bioanalyzer uses as references when sizing DNA fragments. The upper marker is also used as a reference for calculating the …
Evaluation of HYCOM in the Kuroshio Extension region using new metrics

[1] A high resolution (0.08° at equator) HYbrid Coordinate Ocean Model (HYCOM) simulation is evaluated using observations for the period 1993–2003 for a western Pacific region containing the Kuroshio Extension (KE) (25–45°N and 135–180°E). Comparisons are made for the KE path and strength and for the upper ocean heat budget. The mean strength and path agree well with observations, except near the KE separation point, where the jet is as much as 2° of latitude too far south. However, the model path variations are considerably more energetic than observed, and this likely obscures the observed tendency for weaker meandering when the KE is strong. The model accurately reproduces seasonal variations of upper ocean heat content, but the long-period (about 10-yr) variations of heat content and KE strength clearly differ in the region upstream of 150°E. The long-period variations in model SSH do not show the same relationship to wind forcing that is seen in the observations and in a low-resolution ocean model simulation. The HYCOM upper ocean heat budget is similar to a diagnostic heat budget inferred from observations in that the dominant contribution is from lateral fluxes (advection); however, advection fluctuations (again primarily in the upstream region) are much larger in the model. This evaluation of HYCOM shows realistic mean quantities and realistic variations away from the separation region. However, an overly energetic jet upstream of 150°E can obscure the longer period variability and its contribution to the upper ocean heat budget.
Double-Loop Learning: A Concept and Process for Leadership Educators

Double-loop learning is an educational concept and process that involves teaching people to think more deeply about their own assumptions and beliefs. It was created by Chris Argyris, a leading organizational trainer, in the mid-1980’s, and developed over the next decade into an effective tool. Double-loop learning is different than single-loop learning which involves changing methods and improving efficiency to obtain established objectives (i.e., “doing things right”). Double-loop learning concerns changing the objectives themselves (i.e., “doing the right things”).
Enhancing beneficial jitter using phase-shifted clock distribution

Clock jitter is generally considered undesirable but recent publications have shown that it can actually improve the timing margin. This paper investigates the "beneficial jitter" effect and presents an accurate analytical model which is verified with HSPICE. Based on our model, a phase-shifted clock distribution technique is proposed to enhance the beneficial jitter effect. By having an optimal phase shift between the supply noise and the clock period, the timing margin can be improved by 2.5X to 15% of the clock period. The benefit of the proposed technique is equivalent to that of having a 5X larger decoupling capacitor.
The Gap Between Science and Policy in The Bell Curve

In The Bell Curve, Richard Herrnstein and Charles Murray sketch various social policy reforms that they take to be suggested or implied by their purported scientific findings concerning IQ, race, class, and social structure. By and large, scientists have done a fine job of drawing attention to the many empirical inadequacies and flaws in The Bell Curve. This, of course, significantly undermines the case for many of Hernnstein and Murray's social policy recommendations. Yet there is another obvious strategy for resisting many of the astonishing recommendations. One might concede, just for the sake of argument, all the major empirical assumptions that Herrnstein and Murray wish to make concerning IQ and its causal role in social behavior, then examine what policy recommendations are then entailed. By adopting this strategy, one sees that even under very generous empirical assumptions, Herrnstein and Murray are a long way from having a solid case for their social policy recommendations. In other words, there...
Electromagnetic Fields Induced Inside Arbitrarily Shaped Biological Bodies

A theoretical method has been developed to determine the electromagnetic field induced inside heterogeneous biological bodies of irregular shapes. A tensor integral equation for the electric field inside the body was derived and solved numerically for various biological models.
DEPRESSION OF THE SERUM CHOLESTEROL LEVEL IN MYXEDEMATOUS PATIENTS BY AN ORAL DOSAGE OF SODIUM DEXTROTHYROXINE WHICH HAS NO EFFECT ON THE BASAL METABOLIC RATE OR ELECTROCARDIOGRAM

ABSTRACT In the previous studies, it was found that high dosage (10 mg. daily) of sodium dextro-thyroxine raised the metabolic rate and lowered the serum cholesterol level without an initial effect on the electrocardiogram. This was taken as pharmacologic evidence that the dextro-thyroxine was actually free of contamination by the levo-isomer. From 1 to 2 mg. a day, in 3 successive cases of untreated myxedema lowered the serum cholesterol level in three or four weeks from 500 to 300, 330 to 215 and 375 to 280 mg. per 100 ml., without raising the basal metabolic rates, which were, at the end of the study, respectively, –36, –40 and –40 per cent. The electrocardiograms also remained unchanged. These results suggest that the metabolic pathway by which dextrothyroxine or its products produces the reduction in serum cholesterol concentration is independent of that by which it raises the BMR or potentiates the ECG.
Effect of Processing Methods on Utilization of Feather Meal by Broiler Chicks

Abstract In rations containing an adequate protein level (22 or 20%), chicks were able to utilize five differently processed feather meals well, (except for the “standard” processed) when the feather meals provided protein at 2.5, 5 or 6%. Methionine and lysine supplementation was not necessary when feather meal protein provided 2.5% of the diet. These two amino acids should be supplemented to the diet when feather meals provide 5% or more protein in the diet. Feather meals processed with intermittent agitation at higher temperatures, or for longer periods than what is considered “standard,” tended to increase the chick’s biological response throughout this series of experiments. Older chicks utilized feather meal more efficiently. When comparing the “standard” feather meal (35 p.s.i. for 30 min. with constant agitation) and a “new” feather meal (50 p.s.i. for 60 min., with intermittent agitation) with the basal diet, the further-processed feather meal than what is considered “standard” today has more of its amino acids available for utilization. The process that resulted in the best biological responses was: Feathers cooked at 50 pounds steam pressure for 60 minutes with intermittent agitation (agitate 1 min. stop 1 min.), dry and grind.
A framework for reconfiguring mobile applications

The increasing presence of mobile and ubiquitous applications has created a need for distributed systems and applications that are dynamic and can efficiently adapt to changes in quality of service (QoS), resource availability, user requirements and location of mobile nodes. This is done by dynamically reconfiguring system components. Reconfiguration should be done with minimal effect on system performance. A crucial issue is to determine what types of changes and how much change characterizes the need for reconfiguration, and what is the cost (in terms of resource usage) incurred on the system. We propose a reconfiguration framework based on policies and illustrate our initial prototype.
Can We Identify Genes with Increased Phylogenetic Reliability

Topological heterogeneity among gene trees is widely observed in phylogenomic analyses and some of this variation is likely caused by systematic error in gene tree estimation. Systematic error can be mitigated by improving models of sequence evolution to account for all evolutionary processes relevant to each gene or identifying those genes whose evolution best conforms to existing models. However, the best method for identifying such genes is not well established. Here, we ask if filtering genes according to their clock-likeness or posterior predictive effect size (PPES, an inference-based measure of model violation) improves phylogenetic reliability and congruence. We compared these approaches to each other, and to the common practice of filtering based on rate of evolution, using two different metrics. First, we compared gene-tree topologies to accepted reference topologies. Second, we examined topological similarity among gene trees in filtered sets. Our results suggest that filtering genes based on clock-likeness and PPES can yield a collection of genes with more reliable phylogenetic signal. For the two exemplar data sets we explored, from yeast and amniotes, clock-likeness and PPES outperformed rate-based filtering in both congruence and reliability.
The Branded Arena: Ugandan 'Traditional' Dance in the Marketing Era

Brand marketing in its latest global advances offers ideologies of public participation and the audience-'provider' relationship that many in the developing world are finding compelling, even when consumer capitalism fails to produce its promised rewards immediately. Strategies of 'branding' are being explored in combination with older performance strategies, with new syncretic branded arenas emerging as a result. In Africa, music and dance have always been important for establishing certain arenas and mediating transactions within them. In the era of post-independence nationalism, 'traditional' dances were itemized and made more disciplined and spectacular to give new states an aura of inclusiveness, rigour and historical depth. As the image of a powerful African state declines, these same dance traditions are being hitched to commercial brands, and to the globalized consumerist/entreprenurial dream. This article considers the Senator National Cultural Extravaganza, an annual traditional music-and-dance competition sponsored by East Africa Breweries Ltd, which requires participants to compose 'local' songs and dances in praise of Senator Extra Lager. It focuses on the spatial and temporal architectures of events and the way these channel, and are complicated by, the energies and significances of dance. The 'textbook' brand-consumer relationship does not, it is argued, survive wholly intact. Resume: Dans ses dernieres evolutions mondiales, le marketing de la marque presente des ideologies de participation publique et la relation public-fournisseur que beaucoup dans les pays en developpement trouvent seduisante, meme lorsque le capitalisme de consommation ne produit pas immediatement les gratifications promises. L'article examine les strategies de marque en parallele avec des strategies de spectacle plus anciennes, un examen dont emerge de nouveaux champs de marque syncretiques. En Afrique, la musique et la danse ont toujours ete importantes pour la mise en place de certains champs et la mediation des transactions au sein de ces champs. A l'epoque du nationalisme post-independance, les danses « traditionnelles » ont ete repertoriees et ont gagne en discipline et en spectaculaire pour donner aux nouveaux Etats un air d'ouverture, de rigueur et de richesse historique. Au fur et a mesure que decline l'image de l'Etat africain puissant, ces memes traditions de danse sont hissees au rang de marques commerciales, et de reve consumeriste/entrepreneurial globalise. Cet article examine un concours annuel de musiques et danses traditionnelles parraine par East Africa Breweries Ltd., intitule Senator National Cultural Extravaganza, qui demande aux participants de composer des chansons et des danses « locales » louant les qualites de la biere Senator Extra Lager. Il se concentre sur les architectures spatiales et temporelles des manifestations et sur la facon dont cellesci canalisent (et sont complexifiees par) les energies et les dimensions de la danse. La relation marque-consommateur « classique » n'en ressort pas tout a fait indemne, selon l'auteur.
A New Specimen of Pinacosaurus grangeri (Dinosauria: Ornithischia) from the Late Cretaceous of Mongolia: Ontogeny and Phylogeny of Ankylosaurs

Abstract Here we report the occurrence of a juvenile ankylosaur from the Upper Cretaceous locality Ukhaa Tolgod in southern Mongolia. The locality is well known for its exquisitely preserved theropods, mammals, and squamates, but until now has not yielded diagnostic ankylosaur material, although ankylosaur specimens are common at the site. The new specimen consists of a nearly complete skull with associated mandible and osteoderms that exhibits the following ankylosaurid synapomorphies: two pairs of osteodermal “horns” projecting from the quadratojugals and squamosals; a wide, triangular skull; a premaxillary beak edge that is not continuous with the maxillary tooth row; and absence of premaxillary teeth. We refer the specimen to Pinacosaurus grangeri based on the presence of a large premaxillary sinus, a quadrate not co-ossified with the paroccipital process, and several pairs of accessory openings in the narial region. The new specimen differs from the holotype and other specimens in having five pairs o...
The Relative Salience of Physiognomic Cues in Differentiating Faces: A Methodological Tool

This research utilized a novel methodology to explore the relative salience of facial cues to age, sex, race, and emotion in differentiating faces. Inspired by the Stroop interference effect, participants viewed pairs of schematic faces on a computer that differed simultaneously along two facial dimensions (e.g., race and age) and were prompted to make similarity judgments about the faces along one of the dimensions (e.g., race). On a second round of trials, judgments were made along the other dimension (e.g., age). Analysis of response speed and accuracy revealed that participants judged the race of the faces more quickly and with fewer errors compared to their age, gender, or emotional expression. Methodological and theoretical implications for studying the role of facial cues in social perception are discussed.
YAP Nuclear Localization in the Absence of Cell-Cell Contact Is Mediated by a Filamentous Actin-dependent, Myosin II- and Phospho-YAP-independent Pathway during Extracellular Matrix Mechanosensing

Cell-cell contact inhibition and the mechanical environment of cells have both been shown to regulate YAP nuclear localization to modulate cell proliferation. Changes in cellular contractility by genetic, pharmacological, and matrix stiffness perturbations regulate YAP nuclear localization. However, because contractility and F-actin organization are interconnected cytoskeletal properties, it remains unclear which of these distinctly regulates YAP localization. Here we show that in the absence of cell-cell contact, actomyosin contractility suppresses YAP phosphorylation at Ser112, however, neither loss of contractility nor increase in YAP phosphorylation is sufficient for its nuclear exclusion. We find that actin cytoskeletal integrity is essential for YAP nuclear localization, and can override phosphoregulation or contractility-mediated regulation of YAP nuclear localization. This actin-mediated regulation is conserved during mechanotransduction, as substrate compliance increased YAP phosphorylation and reduced cytoskeletal integrity leading to nuclear exclusion of both YAP and Ser(P)112-YAP. These data provide evidence for two actin-mediated pathways for YAP regulation; one in which actomyosin contractility regulates YAP phosphorylation, and a second that involves cytoskeletal integrity-mediated regulation of YAP nuclear localization independent of contractility. We suggest that in non-contact inhibited cells, this latter mechanism may be important in low stiffness regimes, such as may be encountered in physiological environments.
Performance of adaptive cluster sampling estimators in a multivariate setting

Adaptive cluster sampling has been proven to perform well in a univariate setting, but it may not perform well when there are several parameters of interest. The efficiency of adaptive sampling when there are several variables of interest depends on the relationship of the variables with one another.