cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Transitions between smooth and complex stick-slip sliding of surfaces.

Shear measurements were performed on mica surfaces with molecularly thin films of squalane (C30H62) confined between them. Squalane is a branched hydrocarbon liquid that can be in the liquid, glassy, or liquid-crystalline state under confinement. The friction forces, especially the transitions between smooth and intermittent (e.g., stick-slip) sliding, were measured over a wider range of applied loads (pressures), sliding velocities (shear rates), and temperatures than in previous studies. The results reveal that, depending on the conditions, qualitatively different behavior can arise in the same system. These include both abrupt and continuous transitions, both upper and lower critical transition temperatures, short and very long transient effects, and chaotic, sawtooth, or sinusoidal stick-slip that can slowly decay with time or distance sheared. The differences between these branched and simpler, e.g., spherical, unbranched molecules are compared, as well as with unlubricated (dry) surfaces and macroscopic (geological) systems.
The developmental origins of adipose tissue

Adipose tissue is formed at stereotypic times and locations in a diverse array of organisms. Once formed, the tissue is dynamic, responding to homeostatic and external cues and capable of a 15-fold expansion. The formation and maintenance of adipose tissue is essential to many biological processes and when perturbed leads to significant diseases. Despite this basic and clinical significance, understanding of the developmental biology of adipose tissue has languished. In this Review, we highlight recent efforts to unveil adipose developmental cues, adipose stem cell biology and the regulators of adipose tissue homeostasis and dynamism.
The reliability of dominance orders in rats.

Summary Dominance encounters within eight groups of four rats were recorded from the third to the seventeenth week of life. Statistically reliable dominance orders were established in seven groups. The number of encounters declined with age, but the stability of the hierarchies was maintained. Dominance rank correlated with number of encounters and weaning weight.
A Nonlinear High-Gain Observer for Systems With Measurement Noise in a Feedback Control Framework

We address the problem of state estimation for a class of nonlinear systems with measurement noise in the context of feedback control. It is well-known that high-gain observers are robust against model uncertainty and disturbances, but sensitive to measurement noise when implemented in a feedback loop. This work presents the benefits of a nonlinear-gain structure in the innovation process of the high-gain observer, in order to overcome the tradeoff between fast state reconstruction and measurement noise attenuation. The goal is to generate a larger observer gain during the transient response than in the steady-state response. Thus, by reducing the observer gain after achieving satisfactory state estimates, the effect of noise on the steady-state performance is reduced. Moreover, the nonlinear-gain observer presented in this paper is shown to surpass the system performance achieved when using comparable linear-gain observers. The proof argues boundedness and ultimate boundedness of the closed-loop system under the proposed output feedback.
Peptide hormone evolution: functional heterogeneity within GnRH and CRF families.

Recent investigations indicate that the gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) and corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) family of peptides are each composed of at least two functionally discrete paralogous lineages. [His5Trp7Tyr8]GnRH (chicken GnRH-II) is associated with brain neuromodulatory and possibly peripheral endocrine activity, whereas [Arg8]GnRH (mammal GnRH) and its orthologues play major roles as hypothalamic releasing factors. Similarly, CRF appears to be the primary vertebrate ACTH-releasing peptide, whereas the paralogous lineage of urotensin-I-sauvagine has been associated with a variety of diverse peripheral activities. In phylogenetically older species, representatives of both GnRH and CRF family lineages have been characterized. Structural and functional conservation of these peptide systems in vertebrates suggest that additional GnRH-like and CRF-like peptides will be found in the mammal brain.Key words: neuropeptides, evolution, reproduction, HPA axis, stress, receptor–ligand interactions.
"You know more than you think you do": helping participants transfer knowledge

Software training can be challenging, particularly with complicated programs and new users of technology. However, there are ways to help people get over the "fear factor" of trying something new by putting information in a context that makes sense to them. This may be by pointing out commonalities across programs, or by using analogies that make sense to a particular user population. By using visual clues, you can help participants transfer skills and knowledge from one software program to another. While this is especially true across programs from the same vendor (for example, transferring skills from Adobe Photoshop to Adobe Illustrator, or from Microsoft Word to Microsoft PowerPoint), there are also many visuals that are the same across a variety of programs. By making users more aware of the cues with which they are already familiar, you can help them gain confidence and reinforce their skills. Using scaffolding techniques like analogies that strengthen the concept being taught, you can guide participants through new or unfamiliar tools by building on previous knowledge that they may not have realized they possessed. This paper focuses on techniques - including improving visual skills and analogy - that can help your participants get the most out of your one class session.
Altering Cortisol Level does not Change the Pleasurable Effects of Methamphetamine in Humans

Preclinical studies have linked corticosteroid secretion and levels with drug self-administration by animals. In a double-blind, cross-over study, subjective, physiological, and endocrine responses to intravenous doses of methamphetamine 0.5 mg/kg or placebo were assessed in eight methamphetamine-experienced subjects after three cortisol-modifying premedication conditions: augmenting cortisol level with oral hydrocortisone 50 mg, blocking cortisol response with the corticosteroid synthesis inhibitor metyrapone 1500 mg orally, or no premedication. Although the pharmacologic manipulations produced the expected hormonal changes, subjective response to the methamphetamine showed few differences. Diminishing cortisol response by pharmacologic blockade did not alter the pleasurable effects of methamphetamine. Hydrocortisone did increase self-reported 'bad drug effect' and decreased craving after saline placebo relative to the period following methamphetamine. Metyrapone was associated with significant premature ventricular complexes in two subjects during methamphetamine administration and may not be safe for those who use methamphetamine.
Pathogenesis of deficient serum alpha1-antitrypsin in the type ZZ homozygote.

Why is the serum α 1 -antitrypsin activity in the type ZZ (deficient) individual only one-tenth that of the type MM (normal) individual? To determine whether the explanation is simply decreased concentration or also decreased specific activity, the specific activity was determined for ZZ and MM sera. Four ZZ sera had a mean specific activity of 0.665±0.170 sd mg of trypsin inhibited per milliliter of serum and 20 MM sera had a mean specific activity of 0.573±0.157 sd. Hence the lower activity of ZZ serum is due entirely to its lower concentration of α 1 -antitrypsin. This lower concentration, in turn, could be due to decreased entry into or increased removal from the circulation. Increased removal in ZZ could be due to an increased intrinsic lability or to an accelerated removal mechanism. At acid pH (4.6–6.6) and at elevated temperatures (54–58 C), the activity of ZZ sera was not more labile than that of MM sera. An accelerated removal mechanism may also be unlikely in view of the reported finding that labeled α 1 -antitrypsin had the same removal rate when injected into an MM or a ZZ individual. If the lower concentration is not due to increased removal, it must be due to decreased entry into the circulation. This could be the result of a decreased rate of synthesis or secretion. The fact that antitrypsin accumulates in the hepatic parenchymal cells of the ZZ individual favors a defect in hepatic secretion.
Elevation of factor VII activity and mass in young adults at risk of ischemic heart disease.

Abstract The Northwick Park Heart Study found that elevation of factor VII in middle-aged subjects was an independent risk factor for subsequent ischemic heart disease. The present study was designed to determine whether factor VII elevation is present at a younger age and whether zymogen or activated factor VII is responsible for this elevation. A group of 20 asymptomatic first degree relatives (mean age 34.9 years) of patients with premature ischemic heart disease were compared with 15 age-matched normal subjects at low risk of ischemic heart disease and 15 older subjects with established ischemic heart disease (mean age 49.7 years). Factor VII procoagulant, coupled amidolytic and antigenic assays, as well as fasting serum triglyceride and cholesterol assays, were performed on all three groups. Factor VII antigen and coagulant activity was significantly elevated in first degree relatives, as was factor VII antigen in the patients with ischemic heart disease. The increased factor VII level in these subjects was caused by elevated factor VII zymogen, not activated factor VII. The results of this study, combined with those of previous studies, suggest that factor VII may be a useful additional marker of the risk for ischemic heart disease and merits further investigation.
A Model for Detecting Balance Impairment and Estimating Falls Risk in the Elderly

Traumatic falls are a prevalent and costly threat to elderly adults. Accurate risk assessment is necessary for reducing incidence of falls. The objective of this study was to test the feasibility of a balance impairment detection model using tasks of sample categorization and falls risk estimation. Model design included an artificial neural network and a statistical discrimination method. The first system produced an individual categorization value, which was then assessed in the second system for relative risk of falls, compared to a normative distribution of healthy elderly peers. Input data included leg muscle electromyographic amplitudes, temporal-distance measures of gait, and medio-lateral measures of whole body center of mass motion. These input data were compiled from a sample of healthy elderly adults (n = 19) and a sample with impaired balance (n = 10) to develop and test the model. Accuracy of sample categorization was assessed using a relative operating characteristic (ROC) value. For relative risk estimation, categorical delineation of risk level was adopted. Sample categorization results reached ROC values of 0.890. Relative risk was frequently assessed at high or very high risk for experiencing falls. Temporal-distance measures were most influential in categorization accuracy, producing the most consistent risk estimates. Combined inputs further improved model performance. This model shows potential for detecting balance impairment and estimating falls risk; thereby indicating need for referral for falls prevention intervention.
Yoga Asana sessions increase brain GABA levels: a pilot study

Objectives: The aim of this study was to compare changes in brain γ-aminobutyric (GABA) levels associated with an acute yoga session versus a reading session. It was hypothesized that an individual yoga session would be associated with an increase in brain GABA levels. Design: This is a parallel-groups design. Settings/location: Screenings, scan acquisitions, and interventions took place at medical school–affiliated centers. Subjects: The sample comprised 8 yoga practitioners and 11 comparison subjects. Interventions: Yoga practitioners completed a 60-minute yoga session and comparison subjects completed a 60-minute reading session. Outcome measures: GABA-to-creatine ratios were measured in a 2-cm axial slab using magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging immediately prior to and immediately after interventions. Results: There was a 27% increase in GABA levels in the yoga practitioner group after the yoga session (0.20 mmol/kg) but no change in the comparison subject group after the reading session ( −0.00...
THE MOLECULES OF MECHANOSENSATION

▪ Abstract Mechanosensation, the transduction of mechanical forces into a cellular electrochemical signal, enables living organisms to detect touch; vibrations, such as sound; accelerations, including gravity; body movements; and changes in cellular volume and shape. Ion channels directly activated by mechanical tension are thought to mediate mechanosensation in many systems. Only one channel has been cloned that is unequivocably mechanically gated: the MscL channel in bacteria. Genetic screens for touch-insensitive nematodes or flies promise to identify the proteins that constitute a mechanosensory apparatus in eukaryotes. In Caenorhabditis elegans, the mec genes thus identified encode molecules for a candidate structure, which includes a “degenerin” channel tethered to specialized extracellular and intracellular structural proteins. In hair cells of the inner ear, evidence suggests that an extracellular tip link pulls on a channel, which attached intracellularly to actin via a tension-regulating myosin ...
STYLOLITIC POROSITY IN CARBONATES: A CRITICAL FACTOR FOR DEEP HYDROCARBON PRODUCTION

Petrographic and petrophysical studies were completed on cores from Atokan (Pennsylvanian) carbonate gas reservoirs at depths in excess of 4,000 m in the Chapman Deep field, Delaware Basin, Texas. Porosity concentration is in pure carbonate microfacies of Donezella algal mound, upper inner slope, oolitic shoal and lagoon of a platform depositional model, which are characterized by sutured, medium- to high-amplitude stylolites. The porosity is predominantly stylolitic, enlarged and surrounded by halos of oomoldic, biomoldic, cement-moldic and vuggy types. Non-sutured, low-amplitude stylolites, confined to argillaceous carbonate microfacies, have no influence on porosity development.
Content-based retrieval and data mining of a skin cancer image database

Skin cancer is the most common type of cancer in the USA. A large, shared skin cancer image database on the Internet would be quite valuable to both medical professionals and consumers. In this paper, such a database is created using a three-tier system: a client application implemented in Java applets, a Web server and a back-end database server. JDBC-ODBC is used for the Web server to communicate with the database server. Various browsing and content-based retrieval methods are supported for the skin cancer image database through Web-based graphical user interfaces. A data mining algorithm for finding association rules between different features of the skin cancer images is also implemented.
The Caenorhabditis elegans Synthetic Multivulva Genes Prevent Ras Pathway Activation by Tightly Repressing Global Ectopic Expression of lin-3 EGF

The Caenorhabditis elegans class A and B synthetic multivulva (synMuv) genes redundantly antagonize an EGF/Ras pathway to prevent ectopic vulval induction. We identify a class A synMuv mutation in the promoter of the lin-3 EGF gene, establishing that lin-3 is the key biological target of the class A synMuv genes in vulval development and that the repressive activities of the class A and B synMuv pathways are integrated at the level of lin-3 expression. Using FISH with single mRNA molecule resolution, we find that lin-3 EGF expression is tightly restricted to only a few tissues in wild-type animals, including the germline. In synMuv double mutants, lin-3 EGF is ectopically expressed at low levels throughout the animal. Our findings reveal that the widespread ectopic expression of a growth factor mRNA at concentrations much lower than that in the normal domain of expression can abnormally activate the Ras pathway and alter cell fates. These results suggest hypotheses for the mechanistic basis of the functional redundancy between the tumor-suppressor-like class A and B synMuv genes: the class A synMuv genes either directly or indirectly specifically repress ectopic lin-3 expression; while the class B synMuv genes might function similarly, but alternatively might act to repress lin-3 as a consequence of their role in preventing cells from adopting a germline-like fate. Analogous genes in mammals might function as tumor suppressors by preventing broad ectopic expression of EGF-like ligands.
MMAPPR: Mutation Mapping Analysis Pipeline for Pooled RNA-seq

Forward genetic screens in model organisms are vital for identifying novel genes essential for developmental or disease processes. One drawback of these screens is the labor-intensive and sometimes inconclusive process of mapping the causative mutation. To leverage high-throughput techniques to improve this mapping process, we have developed a Mutation Mapping Analysis Pipeline for Pooled RNA-seq (MMAPPR) that works without parental strain information or requiring a preexisting SNP map of the organism, and adapts to differential recombination frequencies across the genome. MMAPPR accommodates the considerable amount of noise in RNA-seq data sets, calculates allelic frequency by Euclidean distance followed by Loess regression analysis, identifies the region where the mutation lies, and generates a list of putative coding region mutations in the linked genomic segment. MMAPPR can exploit RNA-seq data sets from isolated tissues or whole organisms that are used for gene expression and transcriptome analysis in novel mutants. We tested MMAPPR on two known mutant lines in zebrafish, nkx2.5 and tbx1, and used it to map two novel ENU-induced cardiovascular mutants, with mutations found in the ctr9 and cds2 genes. MMAPPR can be directly applied to other model organisms, such as Drosophila and Caenorhabditis elegans, that are amenable to both forward genetic screens and pooled RNA-seq experiments. Thus, MMAPPR is a rapid, cost-efficient, and highly automated pipeline, available to perform mutant mapping in any organism with a well-assembled genome.
Immobilized aza-bis(oxazoline) copper catalysts on alkanethiol self-assembled monolayers on gold: Selectivity dependence on surface electronic environments

Aza-bis(oxazoline) copper complexes have been immobilized onto alkanethiol self-assembled monolayers on gold utilizing five background tail groups with different electronic characteristics. The catalyst was tested in the standard cyclopropanation reaction of ethyl diazoacetate and styrene. The five different tail groups were hydroxyl, bromine, carboxylic acid, ester, and nitrile. Enantioselectivity improved to 95% when the surrounding tail groups were hydroxyl- and bromine-terminated surfaces. The carboxylic acid and ester tail groups reduced the enantioselectivity compared to the homogeneous phase. Additionally, the homogeneous cyclopropanation reaction was performed in methanol, acetonitrile, ethyl acetate, and acetic acid to determine whether similar trends in selectivity could be obtained by varying the homogenous electronic environment. However, the cyclopropanation reaction in these solvents gave greatly reduced selectivity and yield of the cyclopropane products demonstrating the positive aspects of immobilization of self-assembled monolayer supports.
The effect of performance support and training as performance interventions

For decades, training has been one of the most common interventions used by organizations to improve the performance of their employees and teach them new ideas and skills. But owing to the cost of developing and delivering training, organizations have adopted alternative ways to enable employee performance while reducing the cost and minimizing the time users spend away from the job. One alternative is electronic performance support systems (EPSS). The present study examined the effect of EPSS and training on user performance, time on task, and time in training. Results revealed that participants receiving only EPSS and those receiving training and EPSS performed significantly better on a tax preparation procedure than participants who received only training. Training-only users also spent significantly more time completing the procedural task than their counterparts in other treatment groups, leading to a negative correlation between time on task and performance. The implications of these findings for the design and development of performance support and training interventions are discussed.
Organized Medicine on Trial: The Federal Trade Commission vs. the American Medical Association

During the 1970s, the Federal Trade Commission took on the powerful American Medical Association, hastening the end of the medical profession's domination of the health-care industry. The pivotal confrontation was the FTC's administrative action (the “FTC proceeding”), commenced in 1975, against the AMA. According to the FTC, ethical restrictions on physician advertising, solicitation, and contract practice bore no reasonable relationship to procompetitive concerns, the touchstone of the FTC's public-interest calculus. By eliminating these restraints, FTC commissioners and attorneys cut the ties that bound rank-and-file physicians to their national, state, and local medical societies, thereby undermining the structure of organized medicine. Stripped of its organizing principles and enforcement mechanisms, the medical establishment weakly resisted the formation of large-scale provider networks and the integration of insurance products and delivery systems, known as health maintenance organizations or HMOs.
The faculty course assessment report

The faculty course assessment report (FCAR) is a work in progress that presents a methodology that allows assessment reports to be written in a format conducive for use in ABET Criterion 3 program outcomes assessment. In addition to traditional assessment reporting, the FCAR lists modifications incorporated into the course, reflection on the part of the instructor as to what was effective, and suggestions for further improvements. To assist in program outcomes assessment, additional information is collected in certain specified areas. This facilitates program-level assessment in that, instead of processing raw data, assessors review the pertinent sections of an appropriate set of FCARs, thereby reducing the assessment workload. Reports are collected and disseminated to allow instructors to inspect prior offerings of specific courses and adopt the suggestions presented in the report, thereby improving the course with each offering. This methodology has been found to be effective as part of our assessment reporting process.
An Examination of Future Primary Teachers Attitudes About the Teaching of Mathematics: An International Perspective

In this paper we explore the dynamics of teacher beliefs about mathematics with a special focus on future primary teachers. After reviewing earlier research about teacher beliefs, with special attention to the MT21 study and other work based on TEDS data, we examine the relationship among the different dimensions of teacher beliefs and the extent to which these beliefs are associated with teacher knowledge. We find considerable average variation in teacher beliefs about teaching and learning mathematics across countries, but find that most of the variation in beliefs is at the individual level. By contrast, teacher preparation programs appear to play little role in shaping beliefs. Employing multi-level modeling, we also find that teacher beliefs have a statistically significant and substantively important association with future primary teachers’ knowledge of mathematics. Finally, our results raise questions about the cross-national validity of a sharp constructivist-traditionalist dichotomy.
Gauge Trimming of Neutrino Masses

We show that under a new U(1) gauge symmetry, which is non-anomalous in the presence of one ''right-handed neutrino'' per generation and consistent with the standard model Yukawa couplings, the most general fermion charges are determined in terms of four rational parameters. This generalization of the B-L symmetry with generation-dependent lepton charges leads to neutrino masses induced by operators of high dimensionality. Neutrino masses are thus naturally small without invoking physics at energies above the TeV scale, whether neutrinos are Majorana or Dirac fermions. This ''Leptocratic'' Model predicts the existence of light quasi-sterile neutrinos with consequences for cosmology, and implies that collider experiments may reveal the origin of neutrino masses.
Water requirements for emergence of buffelgrass (Pennisetum ciliare)

Abstract The ability of an invasive species to acquire and use a limiting resource during critical life history stages governs its ability to establish and persist within an environment. Arid environments are generally considered more resistant to invasion and are defined by low and sporadic precipitation. Warm-season grasses are most susceptible to mortality during seedling emergence, but water requirements for emergence are rarely known. We examined the ability of the often invasive warm-season grass, buffelgrass, to emerge given a range of simulated precipitation delivered on 2, 3, and 4 consecutive days with the use of a line-source irrigation system in a glasshouse. The minimum amount of water required for buffelgrass emergence was observed to be 6.3 mm (3.14 mm on 2 consecutive days). With the use of probit analysis, the median emergence response (0.5 emergence probability) was predicted to require 17.4–19.9 mm of water. Emergence was concentrated within the first 5 days following initial simulated ...
Physiological host range of Ceratapion basicorne, a prospective biological control agent of Centaurea solstitialis (Asteraceae)

Ceratapion basicorne (Coleoptera: Apionidae) is a weevil native to Europe and western Asia that is being evaluated as a prospective classical biological control agent of Centaurea solstitialis (yellow starthistle) in the United States. Host plant speciWcity of the insect was evaluated in no-choice oviposition experiments. Feeding on leaf tissue by adult females was highly correlated to oviposition rate, both of which occurred primarily on plants in the tribe Cardueae, and especially those in the monophyletic subtribe Centaureinae. The highest rates of larval development occurred on Ce. solstitialis and Centaurea cyanus (bachelor’s button, garden cornXower), and there was signiWcant development on Centaurea melitensis (Napa starthistle, tocalote), Cnicus benedictus (blessed thistle), Carthamus tinctorius (saZower), and Crupina vulgaris (common crupina). All the plants that supported some larval development are within a monophyletic clade within the Centaureinae. No native North American plants appear to be at risk of signiWcant damage by this insect. Additional testing of saZower and bachelor’s button under choice conditions should complement these results to help determine the degree to which these plants are at risk.
Pilot trial on the use of etanercept and methylprednisolone as primary treatment for acute graft-versus-host disease

Abstract Clinical and preclinical data indicate that tumor necrosis factor (TNF)–α is an important mediator of acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD) after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation. We completed a study using etanercept, a fusion protein capable of neutralizing TNF-α, for the initial treatment of aGVHD. Etanercept (25 mg subcutaneously) was administered twice weekly for 16 doses, along with methylprednisolone (2 mg/kg) and tacrolimus for biopsy-proven aGVHD. Twenty patients with a median age of 47 years (range, 8–63 years) were enrolled. Fourteen patients with grade II aGVHD (11 family donors and 3 unrelated donors) and 6 patients with grade III aGVHD (3 family donors and 3 unrelated donors) were treated. Twelve patients completed 16 doses of therapy, and 8 received 5 to 15 doses. Reasons for not completing all doses of etanercept included progression of aGVHD (n = 4), relapsed leukemia (n = 2), progression of pulmonary and central nervous system lesions (n = 1), and perforated duodenal ulcer (n = 1). Fifteen (75%) of 20 patients had complete resolution of aGVHD within 4 weeks of therapy. Increasing levels of soluble TNF receptor 1 plasma concentration during the first 4 weeks of therapy indicated progression of aGVHD in 5 patients. In contrast, for 15 responding patients, soluble TNF receptor 1 plasma concentration levels returned to baseline. These data demonstrate the feasibility of using cytokine blockade in the early treatment of aGVHD.
A Cortically-Plausible Inverse Problem Solving Method Applied to Recognizing Static and Kinematic 3D Objects

Recent neurophysiological evidence suggests the ability to interpret biological motion is facilitated by a neuronal "mirror system" which maps visual inputs to the pre-motor cortex. If the common architecture and circuitry of the cortices is taken to imply a common computation across multiple perceptual and cognitive modalities, this visual-motor interaction might be expected to have a unified computational basis. Two essential tasks underlying such visual-motor cooperation are shown here to be simply expressed and directly solved as transformation-discovery inverse problems: (a) discriminating and determining the pose of a primed 3D object in a real-world scene, and (b) interpreting the 3D configuration of an articulated kinematic object in an image. The recently developed map-seeking method provides a mathematically tractable, cortically-plausible solution to these and a variety of other inverse problems which can be posed as the discovery of a composition of transformations between two patterns. The method relies on an ordering property of superpositions and on decomposition of the transformation spaces inherent in the generating processes of the problem.
THE BROKEN WHEEL: THE INSEPARABILITY OF AUTONOMY AND CONTROL IN INNOVATION WITHIN ORGANIZATIONS

There is an ambiguity at the centre of our understanding of innovation in large, specialized organizations. The literature is split as to whether individual autonomy or hierarchical control leads to an increase in innovative activity. In this article, I argue that this uncertainty is the result of an inappropriate conceptualization. In my view, autonomy and control are inseparable aspects of managerial action, not independent empirical phenomena. Innovation in an organization requires the simultaneous regulation of autonomy and control in order to promote creativity and experimentation but still produce results that can be manufactured and marketed or institutionalized. I develop an interpretive concept of culture to analyse the relationship between autonomy and control, and I apply this conceptual framework to managers and engineers in an electronics company as they attempt to innovate. Four general conclusions emerge. First, autonomy and innovation can never be ends in themselves but always depend on a context of control for their relevance to the organization. Second, under conditions in which innovation is required and autonomous behaviour is important, general management control is needed as a sort of switching station to regulate interaction and set and enforce priorities. Third, when control and autonomy are not in balance a vicious circle can develop which undermines commitment to an organization's goals. Fourth, innovation in organizations requires participants to have a highly developed sense of the legitimate possibilities of autonomy in organization.
Obesity, diets, and social inequalities

Obesity and type 2 diabetes follow a socioeconomic gradient. Highest rates are observed among groups with the lowest levels of education and income and in the most deprived areas. Inequitable access to healthy foods is one mechanism by which socioeconomic factors influence the diet and health of a population. As incomes drop, energy-dense foods that are nutrient poor become the best way to provide daily calories at an affordable cost. By contrast, nutrient-rich foods and high-quality diets not only cost more but are consumed by more affluent groups. This article discusses obesity as an economic phenomenon. Obesity is the toxic consequence of economic insecurity and a failing economic environment.
Decomposition of Moebius graph networks using sliding sets

The author investigates the different properties of the Moebius graphs by using the concept of sliding sets. The author also computes different decompositions of Moebius graphs into various kinds of sliding sets, providing insight into the rich structure of these graphs. It is shown that any Moebius graph can be decomposed as a vertex disjoint union of sliding sets. The author attempts to generalize the concept of sliding sets and presents some interesting open problems. >
Beliefs alter holistic face processing ... if response bias is not taken into account.

The composite paradigm is widely used to quantify holistic processing (HP) of faces, but there is debate regarding the appropriate design (partial vs. complete) and measures in this task. Here, we argue that some operational definitions of HP are problematic because they are sensitive to top-down influences, even though the underlying concept is assumed to be cognitively impenetrable. In Experiment 1, we told one group of participants that the target face half would remain the same on 75% of trials, and another group that it would change on 75% of trials. The true proportion of same/different trials was 50% - groups only differed in their beliefs about the target halves. In Experiment 2, we manipulated the actual proportion of same/different trials in the experiment (75% of trials were same for one group, 75% of trials were different for another group), but did not give explicit instructions about proportions. In both experiments these manipulations influenced response biases that altered partial design measures of HP while the complete design measure was unaffected. We argue that the partial design should be abandoned because it has poor construct validity.
Vector and parallel methods for the direct solution of Poisson's equation

Abstract: Recent developments in the area of fast direct Poisson solvers are examined in the context of parallel computing. The growing gap that exists between peak and actual performance of contemporary architectures is attributed to internal communication requirements that do not contribute to performance as measured in m flops. For this reason, we focus on algorithms for parallel communication as well as parallel computation. Parallel algorithms for transposition, binary-reflected orderings, and index permutations in support of parallel methods for fast direct solvers are discussed. Both fine and medium grain computations are considered for: the “complete” Fourier method, partial matrix decomposition, parallel cyclic reduction with partial fraction expansion, and parallel approximate cyclic reduction.
Global Sustainable Development Starts With Investment in the Early Brain Development of Children

* Abbreviations: AAP — : American Academy of Pediatrics MDG — : Millennium Development Goal SDG — : Sustainable Development Goal At least 200 million children living in poverty in low- to middle-resource countries <5 years of age fail to reach their cognitive and socioemotional developmental potential.1 Although nutritional deficiencies play a role, inadequate stimulation in the first 5 years of life is critical.2 A growing body of evidence from studies in the United States documents the negative effect of poverty on early brain development.3–6 The quality of caregiving by the parent is central.5,7 Differences in language development based on parent language interactions are present from the time children utter their first words,8,9 and these effects impact school readiness and long-term academic achievement. Research on home visiting programs in the United States has shown that they can improve parenting skills and the quality of the home environment, as well as improve intellectual development among children.10 These factors, as well as the potential impact of home visiting interventions to help at-risk children, are likely to be as or more important in the developing world. In this issue of Pediatrics , Bann et al11 present the … Address correspondence to Benard P. Dreyer, MD, 550 First Ave, NBV 8 East 11, New York, NY 10016. E-mail: benard.dreyer{at}nyumc.org
Cu2–xS1–ySey Alloy Nanocrystals with Broadly Tunable Near-Infrared Localized Surface Plasmon Resonance

We report facile methods for synthesizing monodisperse Cu2–xS1–ySey alloy nanocrystals (NCs) with tunable composition and size. The near-infrared (NIR) localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) in these self-doped Cu2–xS1–ySey alloy NCs can be tuned over a broad range from 975 to 1650 nm. The LSPR shifted to longer wavelength with increasing sulfur content and with increased concentration of oleic acid used in the synthesis. This method provides new possibilities for broadly tuning LSPR wavelength by controlling the anion composition, cationic vacancy concentration, and surface ligands in heavily doped Cu2–xS1–ySey alloy NCs. This opens up access to LSPR absorbance across a broad portion of the near-IR using small colloidal quasi-isotropic NCs.
Electron microscope studies on structure of mitotic figure.

SummaryThe metaphase spindle of the maturation division in the crayfish testis seems to be composed largely of longitudinally oriented “chromosomal fibers” measuring about 1500–2500 A in width. These fibers appear to be compound, i.e., made up of smaller fibers of about 300–600 A in width. Both the “chromosomal fibers” and their smaller fibrous components may at times show banding, which is possibly the result of irregular contraction during fixation. The centrioles appear relatively dense, are irregular in outline, and are probably not homogeneous bodies. The “chromosomal fibers” and astral rays lose their usual orientation at the periphery of the centriole. “Interzonal fibers” are relatively small in the late anaphase stages of the crayfish testis. Though “continuous fibers” were not clearly observed, we do not wish to claim that such fibers may not exist. Astral rays are composed of fibers, oriented as described in the past. The coagulated cytoplasm presents the appearance of a sponge-like reticulum, w...
The effects of antineoplastic agents of the respiratory activity of murine lymphocytic leukemia L1210

On a evalue des effets de plusieurs agents antineoplastiques sur la consommation d'oxygene des lymphocytes leucemiques L1210 de la souris et on les a mis en correlation avec l'activite antitumorale de chaque composition. Cette etude indique qu'il n'y a pas de rapport apparent entre ces deux parametres de l'action des drogues.
Toward a Scientific Understanding of International Conflict: A Personal View

A scientific understanding of international conflict is best gained by explicit theorizing, whether verbal or mathematic, grounded in axiomatic logic, from which hypotheses with empirical referents may be extracted, followed by rigorous empirical analysis (whether quantitative or not) in which assumptions and procedures are explicitly stated. Such research should be careful to note whether the hypotheses stipulate necessary, sufficient, necessary and sufficient, or probabilistic relations among variables. Where, as will generally be the case, individual researchers lack all the skills required by the above research agenda, collaboration should be emphasized. Knowledge will best be gained when those with the ‘traditionalist’ skills for evaluating patterns within individual events, those with the ‘behavioralist’ training in the analysis of general patterns, and those with the skills of the axiomatic theorist communicate and cooperate with each other to move the discipline forward.
Novel Heterocyclic Analogues of Firefly Luciferin

Five novel firefly luciferin analogues in which the benzothiazole ring system of the natural substrate was replaced with benzimidazole, benzofuran, benzothiophene, benzoxazole, and indole were synthesized. The fluorescence, bioluminescence, and kinetic properties of the compounds were evaluated with recombinant Photinus pyralis wild type luciferase. With the exception of indole, all of the substrates containing heterocycle substitutions produced readily measurable flashes of light with luciferase. Compared to that of luciferin, the intensities ranged from 0.3 to 4.4% in reactions with varying pH optima and times to reach maximal intensity. The heteroatom changes influenced both the fluorescence and bioluminescence emission spectra, which displayed maxima of 479–528 and 518–574 nm, respectively. While there were some interesting trends in the spectroscopic and bioluminescence properties of this group of structurally similar substrate analogues, the most significant findings were associated with the benzoth...
Effects of Temperature and Photoperiod on the Reproductive Biology and Diapause of Oobius agrili (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae), an Egg Parasitoid of Emerald Ash Borer (Coleoptera: Buprestidae).

Oobius agrili Zhang and Huang (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae) is a solitary egg parasitoid of the invasive emerald ash borer, Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire (Coleoptera: Buprestidae), and has been introduced to the United States for classical biological control. We characterized the weekly survivorship, fecundity, and diapause patterns of both diapaused and nondiapaused populations of O. agrili under four different temperature–photophase combinations: 30°C (warm) and 20°C (cold) temperatures with both long-day (16 h) and short-day (8 h) photophase. Results of this study showed that regardless of the length of photophase, parental parasitoids of both diapaused and nondiapaused O. agrili survived significantly longer at 20°C than at 30°C. Both populations also laid their eggs faster at 30°C compared with those at 20°C. Higher proportions of the progeny produced by both populations of O. agrili were induced into diapause by short-day (8 h) photophase, regardless of rearing temperature. In addition, the diapaused parasitoids in the short-day photophase treatment at both warm and cold temperatures produced increasing proportions of diapaused progeny over time, whereas no significant differences were observed in the proportions of diapaused progeny by the nondiapaused parasitoids over different sampling times. These findings suggest that O. agrili should be continuously reared under warm temperature and long-day photoperiod (to avoid diapause for increased reproduction). In addition, we recommend that diapaused adults be used for field releases in early summer when temperatures are still relatively low (∼20°C) and host eggs are available so that they can produce multiple generations prior to overwintering.
Bullous pemphigoid in a child: a case report

A 20-month-old child presented with general bullous lesions. The vesicles and bullae showed tense wall and negative Nikolsky sign. Histopathology showed subepidermal bullae and immunopathology proved linear deposition of IgM and C3. The patient got satisfactory result after corticosteroid therapy.
Denial of health care and informed consent in English and American law.

Health care rationing has gained greater visibility in the United States and the United Kingdom, for quite different reasons. As patients in both countries become more aware that potentially beneficial medical services can be denied them on economic — as opposed to purely medical — grounds, they are beginning to seek help from the judiciary. This Article contends that as rationing becomes more explicit, the doctrine of informed consent will come under increased pressure. The Article suggests that courts and legislatures consider imposing a legal obligation on physicians to inform their patients when potentially effective treatment is to be withheld for economic or other non-clinical reasons.
Effect of insulin on thyroid gland microhistometric studies.

Conclusions and summaryWistar strain male adult rats weighing from 90 to 125 g received 0.5 unit of insulin twice a day for 8 days while at normal temperature (24–26°C), and in the cold room (3°C). At normal temperature the insulin-treated animals showed a significant increase in mean acinar cell height of the thyroid, giving a picture of hypertrophy of the thyroid gland. When the insulin treated animals were exposed to cold the thyroid glands showed a decrease in average mean acinar cell heights, as compared with the cold controls.
Enhanced near-field thermal radiation and reduced Casimir stiction between doped-Si gratings

Based on the scattering theory, simultaneously enhanced energy transport and suppressed momentum exchange are demonstrated by patterning doped-silicon surfaces in the near field. The radiative heat flux between doped-silicon gratings exceeds that between planar surfaces and can be one or even two orders of magnitude higher than what is predicted by the geometry-based Derjaguin proximity approximation (PA). The underlying mechanism is interpreted as due to the excitation of broadband hyperbolic modes that facilitate photon tunneling, especially when the period is small. This is confirmed by a comparison of the results from the scattering theory with those from the effective-medium theory. The Casimir force, which may cause stiction and even failure of mesoscopic devices, is reduced with the grating structures as predicted by both the scattering theory and PA. However, depending on the separation distance, the PA may over- or underpredict the Casimir force.
Numerical Methods Systems of ODEs

This chapter discusses MatLab tools for the solution of systems of linear ODE. Particular attention is payed to phase plane plotting tools. As an example, a system of two interacting proteins is studied as well as a two box climate model.
Phobia of Deflation

It is hard to believe that once upon a time — in fact as recently as the 1920s and 1930s — periods of price level rises were just as frequent as those of price level falls. Some of these periods were short, others were long. Sometimes the cumulative price fall would be large, at other times small. Over the very long run (meaning several decades) the price level was stable. (If the price level were measured as of today to take account of continuing quality improvements — for example, a constant quoted price for a computer treated under ‘hedonic’ accounting as a fall in price to reflect an increase in computing power — then there would have been some long-run downward drift). That was the situation for the group of countries which were on the gold standard. (It was only for around 40 years before the First World War that the gold standard could be described as almost global.)
Le Page&#8217;s theoretical and applied legacy in sociolinguistics and creole studies

This paper reviews Robert B. Le Page’s contributions to creole linguistics, sociolinguistics, and applied linguistics, combining a critical and academic viewpoint with the personal perspective of a sociolinguist whose career and work have been deeply influenced by Le Page. The conclusion reflects on how linguists and educators can ideally build on Le Page’s legacy. Following his example, we can make our most useful contributions by continuing to make sociolinguistic research bear on curricula in schools and universities. Meanwhile, the field of Caribbean sociolinguistics continues to offer vast opportunity for original empirical research and theoretical thinking that should develop and supersede Le Page’s most lasting contribution in this area, the Acts of Identity model.