cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Protein reliability analysis and virtual screening of natural inhibitors for SARS-CoV-2 main protease (M pro ) through docking, molecular mechanic & dynamic, and ADMET profiling.

Due to an outbreak of COVID-19, the number of research papers devoted to in-silico drug discovery of potential antiviral drugs is increasing every day exponentially. Still, there is no specific drug to prevent or treat this novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) disease. Thus, the screening for a potential remedy presents a global challenge for scientists. Up to date over a hundred crystallographic structures of SARS-CoV-2 Mpro have been deposited to Protein Data Bank. With many known proteins, the demand for a reliable target has become higher than ever, so as the choice of an efficient computational methods. Therefore, in this study comparative methods have been used for receptor-based virtual screening, targeting 9 selected structures of viral Mpro. Reliability analyses followed by re-docking of the specific co-crystallized ligand provided the best reproductivity for structures with PDB ID 6LU7, 6Y2G and 6Y2F. The influence of crystallographic water on an outcome of a virtual screening against selected targets was also investigated. Once the most reliable targets were selected, the library of easy purchasable natural compounds were retrieved from the MolPort database (10,305 compounds) and docked against the selected Mpro proteins. To ensure the efficiency of the selected compounds, binding energies for top-15 hit ligands were calculated using Molecular Mechanics as well as their absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion, and toxicity (ADMET) properties were predicted. Based on predicted binding energies and toxicities, top-5 compounds were selected and subjected to Molecular Dynamics simulation and found to be stable in complex to act as possible inhibitors for SARS-CoV-2. Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.
A Reflective Framework for Performance Management (REFORM) of Real-Time Hybrid Simulation.

Currently, the lack of (1) a sufficiently integrated, adaptive, and reflective framework to ensure the safety, integrity, and coordinated evolution of a real-time hybrid simulation (RTHS) as it runs, and (2) the ability to articulate and gauge suitable measures of the performance and integrity of an experiment, both as it runs and post hoc, have prevented researchers from tackling a wide range of complex research problems of vital national interest. To address these limitations of the current state-of-the-art, we propose a framework named Reflective Framework for Performance Management (REFORM) of real-time hybrid simulation. REFORM will support the execution of more complex RTHS experiments than can be conducted today, and will allow them to be configured rapidly, performed safely, and analyzed thoroughly. This study provides a description of the building blocks associated with the first phase of this development (REFORM-I). REFORM-I is verified and demonstrated through application to an expanded version of the benchmark control problem for real-time hybrid simulation.
Double-trace deformation in open quantum field theory

The Keldysh formalism is capable of describing driven-dissipative dynamics of open quantum systems as nonunitary effective field theories that are not necessarily thermodynamical, thus often exhibiting new physics. Here, we introduce a general Keldysh action that maximally obeys Weinbergian constraints, including locality, Poincar\'e invariance, and two ``$CPT$'' constraints: complete positivity and trace preserving as well as charge, parity, and time reversal symmetry. We find that the perturbative Lindblad term responsible for driven-dissipative dynamics introduced therein has the natural form of a double-trace deformation ${\mathcal{O}}^{2}$, which, in the large $N$ limit, possibly leads to a new nonthermal conformal fixed point. This fixed point is IR when $\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}ld/2$ or UV when $\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}gd/2$ given $d$ the dimensions of spacetime and $\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}$ the scaling dimension of $\mathcal{O}$. Such a UV fixed point being not forbidden by Weinbergian constraints may suggest its existence and even completion of itself, in contrast to the common sense that dissipation effects are always IR relevant. This observation implies that driven-dissipative dynamics is much richer than thermodynamics, differing in not only its noncompliance with thermodynamic symmetry (e.g., the fluctuation-dissipation relation) but its UV/IR relevance as well. Examples including a $(0+1)\text{\ensuremath{-}}d$ harmonic oscillator under continuous measurement and a $(4\ensuremath{-}\ensuremath{\epsilon})\text{\ensuremath{-}}d$ classic $O(N)$ vector model with quartic interactions are studied.
Women's Political Leadership and Adult Health: Evidence from Rural and Urban China

This study examined the role of women's political leadership at the community level in China, a context that has experienced recent political and socioeconomic change and has a distinctive rural-urban divide. Drawing on longitudinal data from the China Family Panel Studies (N range = 40,918-52,406 person-year observations), we found that female community directors outnumbered male directors in urban China but were much less common in rural areas. Female community directors had higher levels of human capital regardless of rural or urban location. Residents living in female-directed communities reported better mental health but not physical health or life satisfaction compared to those living in male-directed communities, and this association was most robust among rural women. For rural women, the mental health benefit of living in female-directed communities was partially explained by reduced personal experience of gender discrimination, suggesting that female leadership fosters ideational change toward women that lowers discriminatory behaviors among constituents.
On the causes of war and the conditions of peace

to an eternal state of war, men organize themselves to reap the greatest benefit from cooperation and to reduce as much as possible conflict and strife. In particular, it is the minimum goal of social organization that the satisfaction of vital interests-usually bodily integrity and survival-should not lead to violent conflict but should, rather, be assured by peaceful methods or, failing these, by the application of supreme coercive power which is socially organized and usually vested in a central authority. The social organization of the state2 is intended to provide adequate means for peaceful adjustment of conflicts and to obviate the need for individual violence. Even when the
Information processing for image sensing under unfavorable photographic conditions

We investigate the problem of image sensing under unfavorable photographic conditions in a wireless image sensor network. In the scenes with deflective and/or reflective medium such as fogs, mirrors, glasses, degraded images are captured by those image sensors. Such degraded images often lack perceptual vividness and they offer a poor visibility of the scene contents. Notably, computation-intensive method to recover a better image based on single image [2] may not be applicable for wireless image sensors due to the limited computation capacities and the limited power resources (batteries) typically equipped at those wireless image sensors. In this paper, we propose a framework to recover better images under unfavorable photographic conditions in a wireless image sensor network, where a light-weighted computation method based on multiple images is employed to recover better images. Toward the realization of the whole system, we have built image sensor prototypes with commodity cameras and we validated our approach by indepth analysis, extensive simulations and field experiments in real-world situations.
Analysis of a Borrelia burgdorferi phosphodiesterase demonstrates a role for cyclic‐di‐guanosine monophosphate in motility and virulence

The genome of Borrelia burgdorferi encodes a set of genes putatively involved in cyclic-dimeric guanosine monophosphate (cyclic-di-GMP) metabolism. Although BB0419 was shown to be a diguanylate cyclase, the extent to which bb0419 or any of the putative cyclic-di-GMP metabolizing genes impact B. burgdorferi motility and pathogenesis has not yet been reported. Here we identify and characterize a phosphodiesterase (BB0363). BB0363 specifically hydrolyzed cyclic-di-GMP with a K(m) of 0.054 microM, confirming it is a functional cyclic-di-GMP phosphodiesterase. A targeted mutation in bb0363 was constructed using a newly developed promoterless antibiotic cassette that does not affect downstream gene expression. The mutant cells exhibited an altered swimming pattern, indicating a function for cyclic-di-GMP in regulating B. burgdorferi motility. Furthermore, the bb0363 mutant cells were not infectious in mice, demonstrating an important role for cyclic-di-GMP in B. burgdorferi infection. The mutant cells were able to survive within Ixodes scapularis ticks after a blood meal from naive mice; however, ticks infected with the mutant cells were not able to infect naive mice. Both motility and infection phenotypes were restored upon genetic complementation. These results reveal an important connection between cyclic-di-GMP, B. burgdorferi motility and Lyme disease pathogenesis. A mechanism by which cyclic-di-GMP influences motility and infection is proposed.
The rotifer jaw: a scanning and transmission electron microscope study. I. The trophi of Philodina acuticornis odiosa.

The trophi of the rotifer Philodina acuticornis odiosa have been studied by a variety of morphological techniques designed to elucidate the complex structure and function of this unusual hard tissue. The scanning electron microscope has been found to be valuable in supplementing observations on thin sections in addition to providing a unique three-dimensional impression of the entire trophi. In contrast to classical concepts, the jaws appear to be composed of intimately associated, essentially fused, components rather than distinct and separate parts which articulate together. Histochemical evidence suggests that the substance of the jaw is composed of acid mucopolysaccharide material and that a mineralized component, probably calcium, may reside in dense granules peripheral to the main body of the jaws.
Introduction to Part Six: Creating a Journal of Group and Community Practice

In this article the author contextualizes and introduces Papell’s report to a committee on the progress that has been made in building the new social group work journal and the plans for the first two issues. The initiation of this journal has already created much interest and has begun to strengthen the professional identity of those who practice social work with groups.
EndRE: an end-system redundancy elimination service for enterprises

In many enterprises today, WAN optimizers are being deployed in order to eliminate redundancy in network traffic and reduce WAN access costs. In this paper, we present the design and implementation of EndRE, an alternate approach where redundancy elimination (RE) is provided as an end system service. Unlike middleboxes, such an approach benefits both end-to-end encrypted traffic as well as traffic on last-hop wireless links to mobile devices.EndRE needs to be fast, adaptive and parsimonious in memory usage in order to opportunistically leverage resources on end hosts. Thus, we design a new fingerprinting scheme called SampleByte that is much faster than Rabin fingerprinting while delivering similar compression gains. Unlike Rabin fingerprinting, SampleByte can also adapt its CPU usage depending on server load. Further, we introduce optimizations to reduce server memory footprint by 33-75% compared to prior approaches. Using several terabytes of network traffic traces from 11 enterprise sites, testbed experiments and a pilot deployment, we show that EndRE delivers 26% bandwidth savings on average, processes payloads at speeds of 1.5- 4Gbps, reduces end-to-end latencies by up to 30%, and translates bandwidth savings into equivalent energy savings on mobile smartphones.
Killer Cell Immunoglobulin-Like Receptors (KIR) Typing By DNA Sequencing

DNA sequencing is a powerful technique for identifying allelic variation within the natural killer cell immunoglobulin-like receptor genes. Because of the relatively large size of the KIR genes, each locus is amplified in two or more overlapping segments. Sanger sequencing of each gene from a preparation containing one or two alleles yields a sequence that is used to identify the alleles by comparison with a reference database.
Coordination of multiple robots via supervisory control

A supervisory control problem for coordination of multiple robots is addressed. The coordination control strategies developed were applied to two IBM 7540 SCARA robots. A digital computer program operable on an IBM PS/2 System 80 provided multiple concurrent programming of the two robots. An interactive control strategy and a master-slave control strategy were designed, implemented, optimized, and tested. The results showed excellent trajectory adherence and repeatability for both control schemes. >
Quantitative and compositional changes in monogalactosyl and digalactosyl diglycerides during light-induced formation of chloroplasts in Euglena gracilis

The formation of chloroplasts in dark-grown cells of Euglena gracilis was induced by exposing the cells to con- stant illumination. Following a lag, the cells accumulated chlorophyll and galactosyl diglycerides simultaneously at al- most linear rates. The monogalactosyl diglyceride content rose from approxi- mately 2 pmoles in 100 mg of dark-grown cells to 27 pmoles in fully green cells; the digalactosyl diglyceride content increased from 1 pmole to 11 pmoles. The digalacto compounds in- creased more rapidly than the monogalacto compounds at first, but their rate of accumulation began to diminish long before greening of the cell was complete. The sole exception was the digalactosyl diglyceride fraction that contained hexa- decadienoic (16 : 2) fatty acid. This fraction increased continu- ously during greening. As accumulation of the digalacto com- pounds diminished, that of the monogalacto compounds in- creased. Towards the end of greening, the major fatty acids were 16:2, 16:3, 16:4, 1812, and 18:3 in the monogalacto and 16 : 2 in the digalacto compounds. The results of this study suggest that monogalactosyl and di- galactosyl diglycerides that contain particular fatty acid com- ponents have a function in the assembly of chloroplasts.
Isolated Spinal Metastasis with Spinal Cord Compression Leads to a Diagnosis of a Follicular Thyroid Carcinoma.

Introduction: Thyroid carcinoma initially presents with clinical symptoms due to metastatic lesions in less than 5% of cases. Spinal cord compression from an epidural metastatic lesion as a first symptom is extremely rare. One would expect such a presentation to occur much later in the course of the disease.
Introduction to KM and Security: Protecting Intellectual Property Minitrack

This is the first year for the KM and Security: Protecting Intellectual Property Minitrack at HICSS and it has attracted a total of four papers of which two were accepted for presentation. It is expected that future years will see the minitrack grow as it expands into the KM and security research communities. The two papers are: A Formal Analysis of Fraud in Banking by Partha Saha, Nandan Parameswaran, Binay Bhushan Chakrabarti, and Ambuj Mahanti and Assessing Knowledge Loss Risk of Departing Employees by Murray Jennex and Alexandra Durcikova. A Formal Analysis of Fraud in Banking investigates knowledge gained in investigating frauds that can be used to identify and prevent fraud from occurring. Assessing Knowledge Loss Risk of Departing Employees provides a methodology for prioritizing efforts within an organization to capture knowledge from departing employees.
DT diaphorase [NAD(P)H: (Quinone acceptor) oxidoreductase] facilitates redox cycling of menadione in channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) cytosol

Characteristics of DT diaphorase (NAD(P)H: (quinone acceptor) oxidoreductase, DTD) activity in Ictalurus punctatus and the effect of DTD activity on menadione (MND)-mediated reduction of acetylated cytochrome c (AcC) were examined. DTD activity in cytosols of four organs followed a distinct gradient in the order stomach > gill > liver > posterior kidney. A similar gradient was observed in organ-specific rates of in vitro AcC reduction in the presence of either NADH or NADPH as reducing equivalent. A greater proportion of the AcC reduction rate was sensitive to inhibition by dicoumarol (DC) in organs with relatively high DTD specific activity (e.g., stomach) than in organs with low DTD activity (e.g., kidney). No such trend was observed in the superoxide dismutase (SOD)-sensitive proportion of AcC reduction rates. DTD was observed to contribute to MND-mediated superoxide production to a greater extent in organs with high DTD activity than in organs with low DTD activity. DC-sensitive (i.e., DTD-mediated) AcC reduction was observed to increase with organ-specific DTD activity, and the majority of the AcC reduction rate was inhibitable by SOD. These findings demonstrate a direct contribution by DTD activity to MND-mediated superoxide production in this in vitro system. The role of I. punctatus DTD as a possible deleterious agent in quinone metabolism and implications regarding the traditional conception of DTD as a detoxifying enzyme are discussed.
Prostaglandin D2, its metabolite 15-d-PGJ2, and peroxisome proliferator activated receptor-γ agonists induce apoptosis in transformed, but not normal, human T lineage cells

Prostaglandin D2 (PGD2) is abundantly produced by mast cells, platelets, and alveolar macrophages and has been proposed as a key immunoregulatory lipid mediator. 15-Deoxy-Δ12,14-PGJ2 (15-d-PGJ2), a key PGD2 metabolite, is under intense study as a potential anti-inflammatory mediator. Little is known about PGD2 or the role of 15-d-PGJ2, if any, in regulating the activities of human T lineage cells. In this report we demonstrate that both PGD2 and 15-d-PGJ2 have potent antiproliferative effects, and in fact kill human T lymphocyte lines derived from malignant cells by an apoptotic mechanism. Interestingly, normal human T cells were not similarly affected. Although the T lymphocyte lines express mRNA for the PGD2 receptor (DP-R), a potent DP receptor agonist, BW245C, did not inhibit the proliferation or viability of the cells, suggesting an alternative mechanism of action. PGD2 and 15-d-PGJ2 can bind to the peroxisome proliferator activated receptor-γ (PPAR-γ) which is implicated in lipid metabolism and apoptosis. Exposure to synthetic PPAR-γ ligands (e.g. ciglitazone, troglitazone) mimicked the inhibitory responses of PGD2 and 15-d-PGJ2, and induced apoptosis in the transformed T cells consistent with a PPAR-γ-dependent mechanism. These observations suggest that PPAR-γ ligands (which may include PGD2) provide strong apoptotic signals to transformed, but not normal T lymphocytes. Thus, the efficacy of utilizing PPAR-γ and its ligands as therapeutics for human T cell cancers needs to be further evaluated.
Disconfirmation processes and consumer evaluations in product usage

Abstract Recent works on satisfaction theory have shown that disconfirmation plays a major role in the determination of satisfaction levels. Less, however, is known about the mental process used by consumers to form disconfirmation cognitions. This study operationalized and tested the role of two types of disconfirmation, inferential and overall (perceived), on the satisfaction of appetite suppressant users after first trial and repeat usage situations. Results showed that overall perceptions mediated the relationship between inferred disconfirmation and satisfaction in both time frames, as hypothesized.
Propensity scores for confounder adjustment when assessing the effects of medical interventions using nonexperimental study designs

Treatment effects, especially when comparing two or more therapeutic alternatives as in comparative effectiveness research, are likely to be heterogeneous across age, gender, co-morbidities and co-medications. Propensity scores (PSs), an alternative to multivariable outcome models to control for measured confounding, have specific advantages in the presence of heterogeneous treatment effects. Implementing PSs using matching or weighting allows us to estimate different overall treatment effects in differently defined populations. Heterogeneous treatment effects can also be due to unmeasured confounding concentrated in those treated contrary to prediction. Sensitivity analyses based on PSs can help to assess such unmeasured confounding. PSs should be considered a primary or secondary analytic strategy in nonexperimental medical research, including pharmacoepidemiology and nonexperimental comparative effectiveness research.
Differential item functioning in a Spanish translation of the Beck Depression Inventory.

Brief and culturally compatible measures of depression are necessary, yet most depression scales are translated without regard for cultural biases. In this study, 292 medical outpatients completed an English or a Spanish-translated and back-translated version of the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). The BDI items were analyzed for bias between Spanish and English-speaking patients to determine the equivalence of the scale. A Differential Item Function (DIF) using a Mantel Haenszel Approach for Ordered Response Categories was used to analyze how likely subjects in the two ethnic groups were to endorse each response category. The results suggest that regardless of level of depression, Latinos are more likely to endorse items reflecting tearfulness and punishment, and less likely to endorse inability to work. Cultural interpretations and recommendations for use of the BDI are discussed. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Clin Psychol 57: 355–365, 2001.
TREATMENT OF DERMATOMYOSITIS WITH METHOTREXATE

Abstract Four patients with dermatomyositis were treated with intravenous methotrexate. Three of them were refractory to corticosteroids, and one had received no other treatment. Each patient was bedridden by severe muscular weakness before treatment, and one was in the terminal phases of the disease. All patients responded to methotrexate with improvement of muscular strength to normal or near-normal and disappearance of the rash. Concomitantly, laboratory abnormalities indicative of muscle disease disappeared.
Neonatal alcohol impairs the context preexposure facilitation effect in juvenile rats: dose-response and post-training consolidation effects.

Alcohol exposure on postnatal days (PND) 4-9 in the rat adversely affects hippocampal anatomy and function and impairs performance on a variety of hippocampus-dependent tasks. Exposure during this developmental window reveals a linear relationship between alcohol dose and spatial learning impairment in the context preexposure facilitation effect (CPFE), a hippocampus-dependent variant of contextual fear conditioning. The purpose of the current report was to examine the effect of a range of alcohol doses administered during a narrower window, PND7-9, than previously reported (Experiment 1) and to begin to determine which memory processes involved in this task are impaired by developmental alcohol exposure (Experiment 2). In Experiment 1, rats pups received a single day binge alcohol dose of either 2.75, 4.00, 5.25 g/kg/day or were sham-intubated (SI) from PND7-9. Conditioned freezing during the test day was evident in all dosing groups, except for Group 5.25 g, indicating no graded dose-related behavioral deficits with alcohol exposure limited to PND7-9. In Experiment 2, rat pups were exposed to the highest effective dose from Experiment 1 (5.25 g/kg/day) or were sham intubated over PND7-9. During training, rats remained in the conditioning context for 5-min following immediate shock delivery. During this test of post-shock freezing, both SI and alcohol-exposed rats given prior exposure to the conditioning context showed comparable freezing levels. Since alcohol-exposed rats showed normal post-shock freezing, deficits by these rats on the test day likely reflect a failure to consolidate or retrieve a context-shock association, rather than a deficit in hippocampal conjunctive processes (consolidation, pattern completion) that occur prior to shock on the training day. These findings illustrate the value of the CPFE for characterizing the separable memory processes that are impaired by neonatal alcohol exposure in this task.
Frequency of eating occasions and dietary supplement use in competitive brazilian jiu-jitsu athletes: preliminary results of an ongoing study

Background Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) is a dynamic martial art that can potentially tax both the anaerobic and aerobic metabolic systems of the body. Although BJJ has been practiced for decades in Brazil, it has only been practiced in the United States for ~ 20 years and has steadily increased in popularity since that time. There is a lack of research describing the physiological profiles and nutritional habits of advanced BJJ practitioners.
IN VITRO STUDIES CONCERNING FLUORIDE ABSORPTION.

SummaryIn vitro studies were conducted on gastrointestinal segments from albino rats in an attempt to elucidate factors involved in the mechanism of fluoride absorption. The results of these studies suggested that no active transport system is involved since fluoride would not travel against a concentration gradient across the intestinal wall nor was the diffusion rate influenced appreciably by enzyme poisons or temperature changes. In addition, the rate of diffusion varied with the diffusion area as was expected and diffusion was inhibited by physiological concentrations of calcium and magnesium.
Re-formation of xanthan/chromium gels after shear degradation

Studies were conducted on the re-formability of xanthan-gum/chromium gels that have been degraded by shear. The regelation study of xanthan/chromium gels showed that gels that have been sheared take longer to re-form than to gel initially and that the original gel strength ofter was not recovered after shearing. The weaker the gel at the time of shearing, the more likely it is that it will obtain the ultimate strength of an unsheared gel on the same formulation
Molecular Mechanisms of Silibinin-Mediated Cancer Chemoprevention with Major Emphasis on Prostate Cancer

Despite advances in early detection, prostate cancer remains the second highest cancer mortality in American men, and even successful interventions are associated with enormous health care costs as well as prolonged deleterious effects on quality of patient life. Prostate cancer chemoprevention is one potential avenue to alleviate these burdens. It is a regime whereby long-term treatments are intended to prevent or arrest cancer development, in contrast to more direct intervention upon disease diagnosis. Based on this intention, cancer chemoprevention generally focuses on the use of nontoxic chemical agents which are well-tolerated for prolonged usage that is necessary to address prostate cancer’s multistage and lengthy period of progression. One such nontoxic natural agent is the flavonoid silibinin, derived from the milk thistle plant (Silybum marianum), which has ancient medicinal usage and potent antioxidant activity. Based on these properties, silibinin has been investigated in a host of cancer models where it exhibits broad-spectrum efficacy against cancer progression both in vitro and in vivo without noticeable toxicity. Specifically in prostate cancer models, silibinin has shown the ability to modulate cell signaling, proliferation, apoptosis, epithelial to mesenchymal transition, invasion, metastasis, and angiogenesis, which taken together provides strong support for silibinin as a candidate prostate cancer chemopreventive agent.
Using the atmel AVR (arduino microcontroller) as the foundation of beginning computer organization course (abstract only)

This poster describes our experiences, materials and plans using the Atmel AVR, a RISC microprocessor, for teaching beginning computer organization at the college level. In particular, we use this microprocessor, typically packaged into the Arduino, to give hands-on experience with: (1) Assembly language programming, including ISA (16 bit instructions), multiple types of branches, multiple addressing modes, (2) C language programming, (3) interrupt programming, (4) I/O programming, and (5) programming on-board components, e.g., timers/counters.Because I/O pins are exposed, it is easy to use logic analyzer or oscilloscope to observe actual signals. Students are charmed and motivated by the physicality of the platform. It is an easy to use platform with a large and enthusiastic user community.
Effects of Teaching Strategy, Relevant Knowledge, and Strategy Length on Learning a Contrived Mathematical Concept.

The effects of teaching strategy, relevant knowledge, and strategy length on students' ability to learn a contrived mathematical concept were studied with 326 high school students randomly assigned to 1 of 18 treatment groups characterized by the type and length of teaching strategy and students' level of exposure to subordinate concepts and relationships. The teaching strategy and relevant knowledge effects on concept acquisition were significant; the strategy-length effect was not. Specifically, characterization strategies were more effective than exemplification strategies, and students' test performance increased as levels of relevant knowledge increased. Furthermore, exemplification moves were more effective for students with low relevant knowledge, and characterization moves were more effective for students with high relevant knowledge. The results supported John Kolb's model of concept-teaching strategies.
The effect of prefeeding on fixed-ratio pausing is jointly determined by past and upcoming reinforcer magnitudes

Abstract Pausing within multiple fixed-ratio schedules differing in reinforcer magnitude is jointly controlled by both past and upcoming conditions of reinforcement. Abrupt shifts from a just-received large reinforcer to a signaled upcoming small reinforcer (i.e., a negative incentive shift) produce marked disruptions in responding, as indexed by extended pausing. The purpose of this experiment was to determine if reducing the level of food deprivation via prefeeding enhanced these disruptive effects. Five Long Evans rats lever-pressed according to a fixed-ratio schedule. Half of the components ended in a relatively large reinforcer (three 45-mg food pellets) and half ended in a relatively small reinforcer (one pellet). Components alternated irregularly, yielding four transitions between reinforcers: small–small, small–large, large–small (the negative incentive shift), and large–large. During five, 1-session prefeeding probes, rats were given 12 g of food in their home cages 1 h prior to the start of the session. Under steady-state conditions, negative incentive shifts engendered the longest pausing. Prefeeding produced large absolute and relative increases in pausing during negative incentive shifts, and small increases in pausing in the other transitions. The results are interpreted within a resistance to change framework.
The Metabolizable Energy of Linear Paraffins for the Chick

Abstract Linear hydrocarbons (C14 to C17) were incorporated in the diet of young chicks in amounts as high as 12 percent. The diets were highly palatable and had no apparent adverse effects on growth, feed efficiencies and serum levels of free fatty acids, cholesterol and total carotenoids. Metabolizable energy values were 2.17 kcal./g. when the hydrocarbons were tested at levels above 7% of the diet. The M.E. value increased to 5.6 kcal./g. when the hydrocarbons were reduced to 3% of the ration. This reasonably high utilization of linear hydrocarbons, and the normal absorption of dietary carotenoids, indicate a distinct species difference. Further research is indicated to establish a possible commercial value for the hydrocarbons in poultry diets.
Current Thyroglobulin Autoantibody (TgAb) Assays Often Fail to Detect Interfering TgAb that Can Result in the Reporting of Falsely Low/Undetectable Serum Tg IMA Values for Patients with Differentiated Thyroid Cancer

A comparison of four thyroglobulin autoantibody methods found that the use of manufacturer-recommended cut-offs was unreliable for detecting interfering thyroglobulin autoantibodies.
“The Simulacra of Morality”: Islamic Veiling, Religious Politics and the Limits of Liberalism

On December 17, 2003, French President Jaques Chirac went on television to explain the immediate necessity of passing a law recently proposed by the Stasi commission. This commission had been empowered to explore the failures of the last thirty years of French immigration policy in terms of integration. It had also been specifically instructed to investigate threats to the concept of laicite, the rigorous French version of secularism and the separation of the Church and the State. Chirac explained that, following the commission’s advice as well as that of numerous experts, he had centered on a policy to deal with these issues:
Pressure dependence of deep levels in GaAs

The derivatives with respect to hydrostatic pressure of the deep energy levels associated with substitutional point defects in GaAs are evaluated and are found to be considerably smaller than the corresponding derivative of the fundamental band-gap energy. A deep level can be driven out of the gap by pressure, depending on its site, symmetry, and nearness to a band edge. The pressure dependence can be used to identify the site of a defect and the symmetry of its deep levels. A combination of the energy of a deep level, its pressure dependence, a theory of deep-level energies (which need be no more accurate than \ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.6 eV), and the present theory eliminates all but a few point defects as candidates for producing a given level. In GaAs, $E$ 2 is assigned to an As vacancy, $E$ 3 and $E$ 4 are probably associated with defect complexes, and $\mathrm{EL}$ 2 is very likely caused by either substitutional oxygen on an As site or As on a Ga site.
Health Effects of Atmospheric Acid Aerosols: A Model Problem in Inhalation Toxicology and Air Pollution Risk Assessment

A symposium entitled, Health Effects of Atmospheric Acid Aerosols: A Model Problem in Inhalation Toxicology and Air Pollution Risk Assessment, was held at the 30th Annual Meeting of the Society of Toxicology (SOT) in Dallas, Texas. The symposium was sponsored by the Inhalation Toxicology Specialty Section of SOT, and was organized to integrate evidence from various disciplines concerning health effects from acid aerosols in ambient air.
Drug Effect Prediction by Computer

The mass of information available about effects of chemical substances (drugs) on behavioral, biochemical, and physiological systems of living organisms is so extensive as to defy traditional methods of analysis. A procedure that provides automated, computerized searches for patterns among these effects has been developed and has been applied to a data base constructed of medical and chemical information from The Merck Index. One promising result is the development of new hypotheses about mechanisms of drug action.
A General Approach to the Diagnosis of Cutaneous Lymphomas and Pseudolymphomas

Both pathology and dermatology rely heavily on a visual approach to learning, generating differential diagnoses, and making diagnoses. Pattern recognition and the development of diagnostic frameworks are essential elements in this process. In addition to images, several algorithms and summaries are presented in this article to provide a practical approach to the diagnosis of cutaneous lymphoproliferative disorders. The critical importance of clinical pathologic correlation is also emphasized.
Curtisite, idrialite and pendletonite, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon minerals: Their composition and origin

Abstract The rare polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon minerals curtisite, pendletonite and idrialite have been analyzed by chromatography, and ultraviolet and mass spectrometry. Pendletonite is nearly pure coronene; the other minerals contain over 30 homologous series of CH, CHS and CHN compounds, with the total number of chemical components well above one hundred. The chemistry of the contributing compounds reflects the origin of the minerals in medium-temperature pyrolysis of organic matter. The components were further modified by extended equilibration at elevated temperatures in the subsurface and by recrystallization during migration. In this last step the high-melting pendletonite achieved its exceptional purity.
Potential for conflict of interest in the evaluation of suspected adverse drug reactions: a counterpoint.

HEALTH CARE PRACTITIONERS AND PATIENTS SEEK safe and effective drugs. However, no drug is completely safe; all drugs have toxic effects that must be balanced with their benefits in deciding whether they should be marketed or used in any given person. To inform such decisions, the United States relies on a drug approval system whereby preclinical studies precede 3 phases of clinical studies. Collectively, these usually include 500 to 3000 exposed patients and 2 or more confirmatory trials, demonstrating before marketing that a drug is effective and reasonably safe for its recommended use. Thus, adverse reactions occurring in 1% or more of exposed patients are usually well described upon marketing. However, rarer adverse reactions are not well characterized until after marketing. This reflects a deliberate societal decision to balance delays in access to new drugs with delays in information about rare adverse reactions. To provide the missing information, the United States maintains a postmarketing surveillance system including passive collection of spontaneous reports of adverse drug reactions (ADRs) to generate signals of possible adverse drug events. This is supplemented by formal pharmacoepidemiology studies testing those hypotheses, confirming or disproving potential signals from the spontaneous reporting system (SRS). Cerivastatin uniquely challenged this system. It is now well known that cerivastatin, when combined with gemfibrozil, poses an increased risk of rhabdomyolysis. In fact, a rhabdomyolysis warning was included in the original cerivastatin label upon its US launch, along with a warning against use with fibrates, based on experiences with previously released statins. Postmarketing reports of rhabdomyolysis soon after marketing were therefore neither unexpected nor alarming. Thus, the normally difficult decision to act more aggressively on spontaneous reports, always subjective, was even more difficult here. I share the concern by Psaty et al that drug manufacturers have an inherent conflict of interest in making such decisions. However, cerivastatin presents a unique opportunity to highlight SRS limitations, and its potential misuse, and provides insights into how to improve the US drug monitoring program. This commentary will not consider issues of the ongoing litigation, including manufacturer conduct, timelines of company memos, the litany of legal exhibits, or the accusations made by Psaty et al regarding those issues. Rather, it will discuss the scientific and policy issues raised by Psaty et al, describe the SRS in some detail, and discuss appropriate uses of SRS data and organizational implications of its limitations. Cerivastatin serves as an instructive example. The company response addresses the cerivastatin legal issues elsewhere in this issue.
Mnm-a novel technique for iterative solution of matrix equation arising in the method-of-moments formulation

This article introduces a simple and efficient technique for generating the initial guess for iterative solutions of a large dense system of linear equations arising in the method-of-moments (MoM) formulation of electromagnetic (EM) problems. The proposed approach is based on an extrapolation of the solution vector from those generated at previous frequencies. The extrapolated solution is further refined, if required, by using the conjugate gradient (CG) technique. Questions regarding the accuracy of the solution, as well as its dependency on the stopping criterion and the frequency step size, have been investigated for a large class of EM problems, and representative results are presented. The superiority of the present technique over existing approaches for generating the initial estimate of the solution is demonstrated. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 33: 74–78, 2002; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/mop.10243
Chiral quark model of nucleon spin-flavor structure with SU(3) and axial-U(1) breakings

The chiral quark model with a nonet of Goldstone bosons can yield an adequate description of the observed proton flavor and spin structure. In a previous publication we have compared the results of an SU(3) symmetric calculation with the phenomenological findings based on experimental measurements and SU(3) symmetry relations. In this paper we discuss their SU(3) and axial U(1) breaking corrections. Our result demonstrates the broad consistency of the chiral quark model with the experimental observations of the proton spin-flavor structure. With two parameters, we obtain a very satifactory fit to the $F/D$ ratios for the octet baryon masses and for their axial vector couplings, as well as the different quark flavor contributions to the proton spin. The result also can account for not only the light quark asymmetry $\ifmmode \bar{u}\else \={u}\fi{}\ensuremath{-}\overline{d}$ but also the strange quark content $\overline{s}$ of the proton sea. SU(3) breaking is the key in reconciling the $\overline{s}$ value as measured in the neutrino charm production and that as deduced from the pion nucleon $\ensuremath{\sigma}$ term.
Shared and Private Variability in the Auditory Cortex

The high variability of cortical sensory responses is often assumed to impose a major constraint on efficient computation. In the auditory cortex, however, response variability can be very low. We have used in vivo whole cell patch-clamp methods to study the trial-to-trial variability of the subthreshold fluctuations in membrane potential underlying tone-evoked responses in the auditory cortex of anesthetized rats. Using methods adapted from classical quantal analysis, we partitioned this subthreshold variability into a private component (which includes synaptic, thermal, and other sources local to the recorded cell) and a shared component arising from network interactions. Here we report that this private component is remarkably small, usually about 1-3 mV, as quantified by the variance divided by the mean of the ensemble of tone-evoked response heights. The shared component can be much larger, and shows more heterogeneity across the population, ranging from about 0 to 10 mV. The remarkable fact that, at least 5 synapses from the auditory periphery, this variability remains so small raises the possibility that the intervening neural circuitry is organized so as to prevent private noise from accumulating as neural signals propagate to the cortex.
Considerations for the use of neonicotinoid pesticides in management of Bactericera cockerelli (Šulk) (Hemiptera: Triozidae)

Abstract Bactericera cockerelli is a pest on multiple solanaceous crop plants and is the sole vector for the bacteria Candidatus Liberibacter psyllaurous. When the pathogen is present, feeding by these psyllids results in ‘vein greening’ disease in peppers and tomatoes, and “zebra chip” disease in potatoes. Currently, management is based entirely on the application of pesticides, including two neonicotinoid compounds. Populations of B. cockerelli collected in southern Texas in 2006 and 2012 were examined for reduced susceptibility and behavioral responses to imidacloprid. Tests comparing imidacloprid and thiamethoxam demonstrated that both can reduce nymph numbers in the field, but retention and effective periods vary among application methods and compounds. In addition, imidacloprid and thiamethoxam are both sensitive to the amount of water applied during irrigation. Collectedly, these results suggest that imidacloprid is unlikely to be effective in controlling B. cockerelli in south Texas. Moreover, its use needs to be carefully considered in other locations even where resistance has not yet been detected. Finally, thiamethoxam may be useful, but careful attention must be paid to irrigation and rainfall level, application method, and timing of application.
The Larder: Food Studies Methods from the American South John T. Edge, Elizabeth Engelhardt, and Ted Ownby, Editors. Athens: University of Georgia Press, 2013.

The Larder: Food Studies Methods from the American South John T. Edge, Elizabeth Engelhardt, and Ted Ownby, Editors. Athens: University of Georgia Press, 2013.The Larder brings together some of the most recognized names in Southern food studies into a collection of essays that is bound to become required reading for any student of Southern culture. Edited by Elizabeth Engelhardt (A Mess of Greens: Southern Gender and Southern Food [2011]), Ted Ownby (Director of the Center for the Study of Southern Culture at the University of Mississippi), and John T. Edge (Director of Southern Foodways Alliance), The Larder includes work from contributors who individually have authored some of the first and best texts on Southern foodways. The collection's stated mission is to encourage Southern food scholars to "claim a national leadership role," to stop "fretting about the legitimacy of the field," and to "focus on how to grow and strengthen scholarship and methodologies" (3). Certainly, this book follows through on that promise, showing that the field of food studies in America is no longer emerging but has indeed arrived.The collection's four sections have been organized methodologically. The first part, "Cookbooks and Ingredients," suggests that the study of food texts and food stuffs is one entry-point into food studies. Highlights in this section thus include two chapters on texts (Rien T. Fertel's examination of a century of The Picayune Creole Cook Book; Rebecca Sharpless's reading of fundraising cookbooks from St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Waco, Texas) and two more on foodstuffs (David Shields's history of the economic forces that drove cooking oil development and Wiley C. Prewitt's analysis of the class divisions reified by the legislating, hunting, and eating of game meat). "People and Communities" offers examples of food studies methods influenced by ethnography, quantitative research, and oral history. The essays in this section generate a complicated picture of the experience of ethnicity in Southern foodways from the influence of Native Americans on foodways in the southern colonies (Reyna Green) to the variety of ethnic food available in suburban Charlotte today (Tom Hanchett). Part three gives examples of studies that take their approach from "Spaces and Technologies," examining the significance of food production and consumption spaces. Angela Jill Cooley and Katie Rawson illustrate the aftereffects of Jim Crow which attached great meaning to where individuals ate and how they were served. …