cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
SHAPE-Seq 2.0: systematic optimization and extension of high-throughput chemical probing of RNA secondary structure with next generation sequencing

RNA structure is a primary determinant of its function, and methods that merge chemical probing with next generation sequencing have created breakthroughs in the throughput and scale of RNA structure characterization. However, little work has been done to examine the effects of library preparation and sequencing on the measured chemical probe reactivities that encode RNA structural information. Here, we present the first analysis and optimization of these effects for selective 2'-hydroxyl acylation analyzed by primer extension sequencing (SHAPE-Seq). We first optimize SHAPE-Seq, and show that it provides highly reproducible reactivity data over a wide range of RNA structural contexts with no apparent biases. As part of this optimization, we present SHAPE-Seq v2.0, a 'universal' method that can obtain reactivity information for every nucleotide of an RNA without having to use or introduce a specific reverse transcriptase priming site within the RNA. We show that SHAPE-Seq v2.0 is highly reproducible, with reactivity data that can be used as constraints in RNA folding algorithms to predict structures on par with those generated using data from other SHAPE methods. We anticipate SHAPE-Seq v2.0 to be broadly applicable to understanding the RNA sequence-structure relationship at the heart of some of life's most fundamental processes.
FIRE: interactive visual support for parameter space-driven rule mining

While significant strides have been made on efficient association rule mining, the usability of mining systems woefully lags behind. In particular, the usability of rule mining systems is limited by the lack of support for interactive exploration of the relationships among rule results produced with various parameter settings. Based on a novel parameter space-driven approach, our proposed Framework for Interactive Rule Exploration (FIRE) addresses the usability shortcoming. FIRE features innovative visual displays and effective interactions that enable analysts to conduct rule exploration at the speed of thought. Particularly, the parameter space view (PSpace) displays the distribution of rules produced for diverse parameter settings. This not only facilitates user parameter selection but also empowers analyst's to understand rule relationships in the parameter space context. Our user study with 22 subjects establishes the usability and effectiveness of the proposed features and interactions of FIRE using benchmark datasets. Overall, this research encompasses significant contributions at the intersection of data mining, knowledge management and visual analytics.
Acute effect of nut consumption on plasma total polyphenols, antioxidant capacity and lipid peroxidation.

Background: Nuts have been shown to have beneficial effects on human health due to the healthy fat content; however, the effect of antioxidants (i.e. polyphenols) in nuts have not been fully investigated. The present study aimed to assess the immediate effect of a polyphenol-rich meal (75% of energy from nuts: walnuts or almonds) and a polyphenol-free meal on plasma polyphenol content, antioxidant capacity and lipid peroxidation in healthy volunteers. Methods: Thirteen subjects participated in a randomized, crossover, intervention study. After an overnight fast, walnuts, almonds or a control meal in the form of smoothies were consumed by study subjects. Each subject participated on three occasions, 1 week apart, consuming one of the smoothies each time. Blood samples were obtained at fasting and then at intervals up to 3.5 h after consumption of the smoothies. Results: There was a significant increase in plasma polyphenol concentration following both nut meals, with peak concentrations being achieved at 90 min, and with a walnut meal having a more sustained higher concentration than an almond meal. The plasma total antioxidant capacity reached its highest point at 150 min postconsumption of the nut meals, and was higher after the almond compared to walnut meal. A gradual significant (P < 0.05) reduction in the susceptibility of plasma to lipid peroxidation was observed 90 min after ingestion of the nut meals. No changes were observed following consumption of control meal. Conclusions: Consumption of both nuts increased plasma polyphenol concentrations, increased the total antioxidant capacity and reduced plasma lipid peroxidation.
Probabilistic roadmaps-putting it all together

Given a robot and a workspace, probabilistic roadmap planners (PRMs) build a roadmap of paths sampled from the workspace. A roadmap node is a single collision-free robot configuration, randomly generated. A roadmap edge is a sequence of collision-free robot configurations which interpolate the path from one roadmap node to another. Queries to the roadmap are (start, goal) pairs. If both the start and goal of a pair can be connected to the same connected component of the roadmap, the query is solved. Many promising variants of the PRM have been proposed, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. We propose a meta-planner for using many PRMs in such a way that the strengths are combined and the weaknesses offset. Our meta-planner will perform the combination in the following manner: i) provide a framework in which different motion planners are available and to which new ones are easily added; ii) characterize subregions (possibly overlapping) based on sample characteristics and connection results; iii) assign subregions to one or more planners which are judged promising; and iv) provide stopping criteria for roadmap construction. We present experimental results for four characterization measures. A general technique we call 'filtering' is presented for keeping roadmaps compact.
Kinematics of axisymmetric vertical slopes at collapse

This paper discusses the kinematic admissibility of axisymmetric velocity fields for the upper bound stability analysis of slopes surrounding cylindrical openings in frictional materials. The governing kinematic equations for two corner regimes of the Mohr–Coulomb yield condition are analysed. Although the equations can be solved by the method of characteristics, the characteristics and the characteristic relations for each regime differ significantly, for the Haar–von Karman regime the characteristics are non-orthogonal and strong discontinuities are admissible, whereas for the other regime the characteristics are orthogonal and strong discontinuities must be excluded. Examples of simple velocity fields and the corresponding stability numbers are, given and compared with the partial collapse mechanisms. The solutions are verified against certain inequalities which must be satisfied for kinematical admissibility of axisymmetric velocity fields.
Conjoint Analysis: A Pedagogical Model

This article discusses the concept of conjoint analysis and provides a model that can successfully integrate the analysis into prescribed research curricula. The model can be used in a traditional seminar or project analysis. A hypothetical example based on the testing of a widget is developed. Tables and instructions are provided to assist those with little quantitative skill in using conjoint analysis with readily available software.
One Issue Leads to Another: Issue Spirals and the Sino-Vietnamese War

Rather than competition over one issue or another (such as territory or status) leading to war, in this study it is argued that war is often likely the result of an issue spiral —a dynamic process in which tension increases as multiple issues accumulate. Once an initial issue disagreement is established, the development of enemy images may cause states to view the “other's” behavior and intentions in relation to additional issues as threatening. States may subsequently seek to gain an advantage on a new issue in order to prevent one's competitor from doing so, or in order to gain leverage on other issues. A state's aggressive actions in relation to new issues tend to reinforce their rival's perceptions that the state has aggressive intentions in relation to earlier established disagreements, further increasing tension. Issue accumulation, furthermore, increases the stakes of competition, which increases the likelihood that states will be willing to bear the costs of war seeking favorable issue settlement. As tension heightens and the rationality of engaging in large-scale militarized conflict increases, a state may initiate war if a rival presses its demands on an issue fearing that failure to demonstrate resolve will lead one's competitor to press its demands on other issues as well. An examination of relations between China and Vietnam in the 1970s reveals that an issue spiral, in which one issue led to another and the accumulation of issues contributed to the deterioration of relations, precipitated the 1979 Sino-Vietnamese War.
Specific binding to intracellular proteins determines arterial transport properties for rapamycin and paclitaxel

Endovascular drug-eluting stents have changed the practice of medicine, and yet it is unclear how they so dramatically reduce restenosis and how to distinguish between the different formulations available. Biological drug potency is not the sole determinant of biological effect. Physicochemical drug properties also play important roles. Historically, two classes of therapeutic compounds emerged: hydrophobic drugs, which are retained within tissue and have dramatic effects, and hydrophilic drugs, which are rapidly cleared and ineffective. Researchers are now questioning whether individual properties of different drugs beyond lipid avidity can further distinguish arterial transport and distribution. In bovine internal carotid segments, tissue-loading profiles for hydrophobic paclitaxel and rapamycin are indistinguishable, reaching load steady state after 2 days. Hydrophilic dextran reaches equilibrium in several hours at levels no higher than surrounding solution concentrations. Both paclitaxel and rapamycin bind to the artery at 30–40 times bulk concentration. Competitive binding assays confirm binding to specific tissue elements. Most importantly, transmural drug distribution profiles are markedly different for the two compounds, reflecting, perhaps, different modes of binding. Rapamycin, which binds specifically to FKBP12 binding protein, distributes evenly through the artery, whereas paclitaxel, which binds specifically to microtubules, remains primarily in the subintimal space. The data demonstrate that binding of rapamycin and paclitaxel to specific intracellular proteins plays an essential role in determining arterial transport and distribution and in distinguishing one compound from another. These results offer further insight into the mechanism of local drug delivery and the specific use of existing drug-eluting stent formulations.
Calculated values for low-density lipoprotein cholesterol in the assessment of lipid abnormalities and coronary disease risk

Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol concentrations are most commonly estimated by the formula LDL cholesterol = total cholesterol - [triglycerides (TG)/5 + high-density lipoprotein cholesterol], although alternative factors such as TG/6 have also been used. Using standardized, automated, enzymatic lipid assays, we analyzed 4797 plasma samples from normal and dyslipidemic adults, to compare LDL cholesterol concentrations obtained after ultracentrifugation with those calculated by several such methods (i.e., TG/4-TG/8). or TG concentrations less than or equal to 0.50 g/L, TG/4 agreed best with the direct assay; for TG of 0.51-2.00 g/L, TG/4.5 was best; and for TG of 2.01-4.00 g/L, TG/5 was best. Differences in estimated values were generally small, however. At TG greater than 4.00 g/L, none of the factors tested allowed a reliable estimate of LDL cholesterol. When TG were less than or equal to 4.00 g/L, 86% of estimated LDL cholesterol values were properly classified according to National Cholesterol Education Program cutpoints when the factor TG/5 was used. We conclude that a convenient direct method for measuring LDL cholesterol is needed but, until one is available, use of the factor TG/5 will assure that most individuals with TG less than or equal to 4.00 g/L, as measured in a standardized laboratory, can be reasonably well classified for risk of coronary artery disease.
Hematoporphyrin as a photosensitizer of tumors.

— The ability of hematoporphyrin (Hp) to act as a photosensitizer of cells in vitro or in vivo is a matter of dispute, while hematoporphyrin derivative (Hpd), a mixture of porphyrins including hematoporphyrin, has been consistently found to be an effective photosensitizer both in vitro and in vivo. Until recently the actual component of the Hpd mixture responsible for these effects had not been identified. We have found that those preparations of Hp which contain, as an impurity, a porphyrin similar to that found to be responsible for the tumor photosensitizing ability of Hpd, may be effective photosensitizers of tumors but are generally of low efficacy. This material accounts for the entire photosensitizing activity of both Hp and Hpd in the SMT-F mammary carcinoma in DBA/2 HeHa mice.
Why I Am a Presentist

Both geologists and historians study the past, but they have divergent views of the present. Geologists are unambiguously presentist. They believe that the observable present is a crucial resource in understanding the past, because in the observable present we can see and study the processes that have occurred in the unobservable past. For geologists, it is largely uncontroversial that the past not only can but should be interpreted with reference to the present.
Can Large Simple Trials Help Us Understand When and How to Use Generic Drugs for Uncommon Diseases

Treatment of interstitial lung disease associated with connective tissue disease (CTD-ILD) is an area of high unmet medical need. A 1-year cyclophosphamide (CYC) treatment regimen improved scleroderma (SSc)-associated ILD (SSc-ILD) in a randomized placebo-controlled trial1, but failed to sustain improvement after 2 years2. A second multicenter trial of 6 months of CYC for SSc-ILD did not demonstrate efficacy3. Even given a possible modest benefit, CYC is undesirable for chronic or repetitive use due to its toxicity, making the ascertainment of other treatments for CTD-ILD a high priority. In this issue of The Journal , Fischer, et al 4 report apparent broad utility of mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) in the treatment of CTD-ILD. MMF has been gaining acceptance for treatment of CTD-ILD based on earlier small studies, including those of the authors5 and others6,7,8,9,10,11 and a recent metaanalysis12. This body of work suggests that MMF can confer stability or modest improvement in pulmonary function tests (PFT). The Scleroderma Lung Study-II (SLS-II) [a US National Institutes of Health (NIH)-sponsored randomized, blinded comparison of 2-year treatment with MMF versus 1-year treatment with CYC, plus 1-year followup for SSc-ILD] completed enrollment of about 140 subjects (http://clinicaltrials.gov/show/NCT00883129). It will be 2 more years, however, before analysis of SLS-II is completed. The Fischer, et al study, although neither randomized nor blinded, has several important strengths. First, it comprises the largest published groups of MMF-treated patients with SSc-ILD as well as other CTD-ILD. Second, there appears to be broad benefit of MMF, irrespective of the specific CTD diagnosis, or of ILD histologic subtype. The study benefits from relatively uniform dosing of MMF at 2 grams per day … Address correspondence to Dr. Molitor; E-mail: jmolitor{at}umn.edu
Evaluation of an inexpensive depth camera for passive in-home fall risk assessment

We present an investigation of a new, inexpensive depth camera device, the Microsoft Kinect, for passive fall risk assessment in home environments. In order to allow older adults to safely continue living in independent settings as they age, the ability to assess their risk of falling, along with detecting the early onset of illness and functional decline, is essential. Daily measurements of temporal and spatial gait parameters would greatly facilitate such an assessment. Ideally, these measurements would be obtained passively, in normal daily activity, without the need for wearable devices or expensive equipment. In this work, we evaluate the use of the inexpensive Microsoft Kinect for obtaining measurements of temporal and spatial gait parameters as compared to an existing web-camera based system, along with a Vicon motion capture system for ground truth. We describe our techniques for extracting gait parameters from the Kinect data, as well as the advantages of the Kinect over the web-camera based system for passive, in-home fall risk assessment.
Role of Importance and Distinctiveness of Semantic Features in People with Aphasia: A Replication Study.

Previous studies suggest that people with aphasia have incomplete lexical-semantic representations with decreased low-importance distinctive (LID) feature knowledge. In addition, decreased LID feature knowledge correlates with ability to discriminate among semantically related words. The current study seeks to replicate and extend previous research that identified patterns of feature knowledge in people with aphasia. Ten adults with aphasia sorted high-, mid-, and low-importance common and distinctive features. Participants formed two groups based on accurate discrimination of semantically related foils. ANOVA results showed significant main effects for feature importance, feature distinctiveness, and group. Participants with difficulty discriminating among related foils had greater difficulty with the identification of LID features as compared with the other group. Previous findings were replicated demonstrating impaired LID feature knowledge in people with aphasia. Careful examination of semantic featur...
Nonlinear Organic Liquid-Cored Fiber Array for All-Optical Switching and Sensor Protection Against Short-Pulsed Lasers

A nonlinear fiber array capable of large-field-of-view visible image transmission and all-optical switching of subnano and nanoseconds laser pulses is described. The transparent fiber core liquid is found to possess large effective nonlinear absorption coefficients arising from two-photon and excited state absorptions. These multiphoton absorption characteristics are further enhanced by the fiber geometry to enable low threshold and large dynamic range of operation to clamp the transmission of short laser pulses to below the maximum-permissible-exposure levels of sensors.
Decentralization, Agency, and Dynamic Oligopoly

Repeated price competition in a duopoly is analyzed when the pricing decision is delegated to managers who are (1) privately informed of the stochastically evolving demand conditions in the industry and (2) are subject to moral-hazard on revenue-enhancing effort. In contrast to the standard repeated price-competition results, the presence of agency makes equilibrium tacit collusion infeasible for any discount factor that is less than one. Symmetric optimal strategies that are incentive compatible with respect to both the agents and the owners are characterized for various discount factors. These strategies exploit the private information of managers of rival firms regarding the past pricing behavior of the firm's own managers. Furthermore, (1) prices may be optimally rigid in the face of changing demand conditions, (2) the stochastically evolving marginal agent-types may earn rents, and (3) there may be under-or-over provision of managerial effort relative to the complete information arrangement. It is also shown that price rigidity is more likely to emerge in a monopoly than in an oligopoly.
A cross-sectional internet-based patient survey of the management strategies for gout

Almost half of the patients with gout are not prescribed urate-lowering therapy (ULT) by their health care provider and >50 % use complementary and alternative therapies. Diet modification is popular among gout patients due to known associations of certain foods with gout flares. The interplay of the use of dietary supplements, diet modification, and ULT adherence in gout patients is not known. Despite the recent interest in diet and supplements, there are limited data on their use. Our objective was to assess ULT use and adherence and patient preference for non-pharmacological interventions by patients with gout, using a cross-sectional survey. People who self-reported physician-diagnosed gout during their visit to a gout website ( http://gouteducation.org ) were invited to participate in a brief anonymous cross-sectional Internet survey between 08/11/2014 to 04/14/2015 about the management of their gout. The survey queried ULT prescription, ULT adherence, the use of non-pharmacological interventions (cherry extract, diet modification) and the likelihood of making a lifelong diet modification for gout management. A total of 499 respondents with a mean age 56.3 years were included; 74 % were males and 74 % were White. Of these, 57 % (285/499) participants were prescribed a ULT for gout, of whom 88 % (251/285) were currently taking ULT. Of those using ULT, 78 % (97/251) reported ULT adherence >80 %. Gender, race, and age were not significantly associated with the likelihood of receiving a ULT prescription or ULT adherence >80 %. Fifty-six percent of patients with gout preferred ULT as a lifelong treatment for gout, 24 % preferred cherry extract and 16 % preferred diet modification (4 % preferred none). Men had significantly lower odds of preferring ULT as the lifelong treatment choice for gout vs. other choices (p = 0.03). We found that 38.3 % participants were highly motivated to make a lifelong dietary modification to improve their gout (score of 9–10 on a 0–10 likelihood scale). Older age was significantly associated with high level of willingness to modify diet (p = 0.02). We found that only 57 % of gout patients reported being prescribed ULT. 40 % of gout patients preferred non- pharmacological interventions such as cherry extract and diet modification for gout management. The latter finding requires further investigation.
Theorizing Gender in the Wake of Feminist Waves: An Open Letter to the Association

Prologo al numero especial / Prologue to the Special Issue: Hacia una redefinicion del feminismo y los estudios de genero en el siglo XXI / Toward a Redefinition of Feminism and Gender Studies in the Twenty-First Century Editoras invitadas / Guest Editors: Margaret G. Frohlich Ana Corbalan
First Order Perturbation and Local Stability of Parametrized Systems

A problem frequently encountered in geometric constraint solving and related settings is to ascertain sensitivity of solutions arising from a well constrained input configuration. This is important for tolerancing and motion planning, for example. An example would be determining lines simultaneously tangent to four given spheres (which originates as a line-of-sight problem); how much does a perturbation of the input affect the positioning of these lines. Once translated to an algebraic setting one has a system of polynomial equations with some coefficients parametrized, and wants to determine the solutions and a good approximation of their sensitivity to changes in the parameters. We will compute this sensitivity from first order changes in an appropriate Grobner basis. We demonstrate the applicability on several examples. We also discuss a more global form of stability, wherein one wants to know about perturbations that might change the character of the solution space e.g. by having fewer than the generic number of solutions.
Next big thing: integrating medical scribes into academic medical centres

The rapid emergence of medical scribes in the electronic medical record (EMR) era is changing the practice of medicine. Medical scribes are trained to record clinical documentation in real time for physicians providing patient care. While the use of scribes as a means to improve physician efficiency in emergency departments has been reported as early as the 1970s,1 ,2 it is only recently that the popularity of scribes has skyrocketed and captured the attention of the medical community.3–5 The American College of Emergency Physicians estimated that in 2011, more than 400 physician groups at over 1000 US hospitals were using scribes.6 These numbers are projected to increase exponentially as the use of scribes expands beyond emergency departments into the outpatient setting of both small and large healthcare delivery systems across the country.7–10 Scribes have been hailed as ‘the next big thing’ in modern medicine,11 and credited for increasing physician efficiency and productivity,12 improving both physician and patient satisfaction,13 increasing revenue and creating returns on investment,14 and providing scribes—most of whom are students in premedical training—the opportunity to gain real-world experience that is invaluable for their future careers in medicine. While there is a growing body of literature demonstrating the benefits of medical scribe programmes for all stakeholders—patients, physicians, healthcare systems and students in training—they have been mostly limited to the private sector. The vast majority of US hospitals that are using scribes are non-academic institutions. These hospitals hire scribes trained and managed by for-profit companies like ScribeAmerica, PhysAssist Scribes, Elite Medical Scribes and at least 19 other companies.15 In comparison, academic medical centres have been slow to adopt the use of medical scribes, even though they potentially stand to gain the most from new models of care that directly address …
Route of administration determines induction of T-cell-independent humoral responses to adeno-associated virus vectors

Vectors based on adeno-associated viruses (AAV) type 2 show promise for treating chronic diseases because transgene expression appears to be stable. This study evaluated the impact of humoral immunity to the capsid proteins on vector uptake by hepatocytes following an intravascular approach. Route of vector administration in mice had a qualitative effect on antivector B cell responses. Administration of vector into the tail vein resulted in T-cell-dependent (TD) B cell responses that were completely inhibited with depleting CD4 antibody. Delivery of vector into the portal circulation via the spleen yielded B cell response that were partially T cell independent (TI) rendering strategies based on T cell inhibition ineffective in allowing vector readministration. The TI B cell response was short lived in comparison to the TD response. Rhesus monkeys produced a B cell memory response to intraportal vector which appeared to be T cell dependent based on Ig isotypes. Gene therapy strategies that require AAV vector readministration should consider vector biodistribution and its impact on B cell activation.
Application of the Thermomechanical Wear Transition Model to Layered Media

Sliding surfaces in contact produce a stress field and frictional heat source which may induce severe wear from material yielding. The initiation of such thermomechanical wear will be influenced by a surface film, possessing different thermal and mechanical properties than those of the substrate. Conditions for layered systems that can be treated as monolithic, and therefore amenable to the application of the current thermomechanical wear transition model, are discussed considering thermal and isothermal effects. A range of layer thickness and material combinations are presented, such that when coupled with the conditions of operation can be used for design guidance. As an example, steel coated with titanium nitride is examined by comparing calculated data, based on the thermomechanical wear model, with experimental results.
Abstract B45: Epigenetic signature of human breast cancer subtypes

Gene expression profiling has been used to extend classification of human breast cancers into five main sub‐types having distinct clinical outcomes. The established prognostic markers ER, PR and HER‐2 remain prominent components of this refined scheme that delineates luminal (luminal A, luminal B and HER‐2) from non‐luminal (basal/BRCA1 mutant and normal‐like) breast cancers. Gene expression combined with immunohistochemical localization of various tumor markers in the normal mammary gland support the hypothesis that luminal and non‐luminal breast tumors originate from different cell types. In the current study we explore epigenetic determinants of the different breast cancer sub‐types using the genome‐wide DNA methylation patterns (Illumina Infinium) of fifty human breast cancer cell lines. Principal component analysis of baseline gene expression profiles (Agilent) showed a clear separation between the luminal and non‐luminal sub‐types in agreement with previously published studies using a largely overlapping panel of breast cell lines. Comparative marker selection analysis using the GenePattern analysis package was then performed independently on the DNA methylation and gene expression datasets. When the results of these two analyses were compared, a statistically significant reciprocal overlap of the selected markers was observed. These results strongly suggest that a large fraction of the most robust luminal gene expression classifiers are silenced by promoter methylation in non‐luminal cells, and conversely that many of the best non‐luminal classifiers are silenced in luminal cells. The classifier genes indentified in the breast cancer cell line panel include the most highly referenced luminal (KRT8, ESR1, AR, TFF1, TFF3, TOB1 and XBP‐1) and non‐luminal markers (DSC3, VIM, SFRP1, KRT5, KRT16, KRT17, and RUNX3 that have been used to classify primary breast cancers. These striking differences in DNA methylation patterns strengthen the hypotheses that luminal and non‐luminal sub‐types arise from different precursor cells and that their transcriptional programs may be largely established during the process of cell specification in the mammary epithelial bi‐layer. Since CpG island methylation is stable and robustly preserved in archival tissues, it is likely that a methylation signature comprised of a few key genes could be used to, for example, identify poor‐prognosis, basal‐type breast cancers. It is also possible that such a test would be more quantitative, accurate and reproducible than the “triple‐negative” diagnosis currently based on the absence of immumohistochemical staining for ER, PR and HER‐2. Citation Information: Cancer Res 2009;69(23 Suppl):B45.
Optical Properties of Cu-doped Ga_2O_3 Thin Films

Polycrystalline Ga2O3 and Cu-doped Ga2O3 thin films are prepared by RF magnetron sputtering and N2 ambient annealing.The X-ray diffractometer,UV-VIS spectrophotometer,fluorescent spectrometer are used to characterize and analyze the structural and optical properties.The experimental results show that the crystal quality deteriorates,the transmittance decreases,the absorption increases,and the effective optical band gap shrinks for Ga2O3 films with Cu impurity doping.The UV,blue and green characteristic emission bands of intrinsic Ga2O3 films are observed.The UV and blue emission are enhanced by Cu-doping and a new emission peak centred at 475 nm appears for the Cu-doped Ga2O3 films.
On the Learnability of Causal Domains: Inferring Temporal Reality from Appearances.

We examine the feasibility of learning causal domains by observing transitions between states as a result of taking certain actions. We take the approach that the observed transitions are only a macro-level manifestation of the underlying microlevel dynamics of the environment, which an agent does not directly observe. In this setting, we ask that domains learned through macro-level state transitions are accompanied by formal guarantees on their predictive power on future instances. We show that even if the underlying dynamics of the environment are significantly restricted, and even if the learnability requirements are severely relaxed, it is still intractable for an agent to learn a model of its environment. Our negative results are universal in that they apply independently of the syntax and semantics of the framework the agent utilizes as its modelling tool. We close with a discussion of what a complete theory for domain learning should take into account, and how existing work can be utilized to this effect.
Murine polycystic kidney epithelial cell lines have increased integrin-mediated adhesion to collagen

Polycystic kidney disease (PKD), in which epithelial cysts arise from or instead of normal renal tubules, is one of the most common genetic diseases. It has both autosomal dominant and autosomal recessive inheritance in humans and in experimental animals. Epithelial cells lining the cysts have an increased rate of proliferation, abnormal polarity of Na-K-adenosinetriphosphatase, which is localized to apical and sometimes lateral membrane domains, and an abnormal extracellular matrix. One hypothesis that explains the simultaneous acquisition of these characteristics as the result of several different genetic mutations is that cell-matrix interactions, which are known to regulate cell proliferation and cell polarity, are altered in PKD. I have created immortalized renal epithelial cell lines from C57Bl/6Jcpk mice with PKD, an autosomal recessive trait in these animals, and from their phenotypically normal littermates. Using these cell lines, I show that polycystic cells have increased adhesion to collagens and laminin mediated by an integrin. These results demonstrate that cell-matrix interactions are defective in PKD and suggest that these interactions may be involved in the abnormalities of cell polarity and cell proliferation seen in these disorders.
Chemical analogies: two kinds of explanation

Analogies are often used to help provide explanations of unfamiliar phenomena by comparing them to familiar phenomena. Analogical explanations are of two kinds: ones that provide systematic clarification, and ones that give a causal account of why something happened. We describe a theory and implementation of analogical mapping that applies to both kinds of explanation. The theory says that the elements of one analog are mapped onto the elements of another on the basis of structural, semantic, and pragmatic constraints. Our program ACME (Analogical Constraint Mapping Engine) uses localist networks of units representing mapping hypotheses to determine the correspondences between analogs. This paper describes ACME'S application to eight analogies that have been used by chemistry teachers.
Metformin induces degradation of mTOR protein in breast cancer cells

Activation of mTOR is implicated in the development and progression of breast cancer. mTOR inhibition exhibited promising antitumor effects in breast cancer; however, its effect is compromised by several feedback mechanisms. One of such mechanisms is the upregulation of mTOR pathway in breast cancer cells. Despite the established role of mTOR activation in breast cancer, the status of total mTOR protein and its impact on the tumor behavior and response to treatment are poorly understood. Besides, the mechanisms underlying mTOR protein degradation in normal and cancer breast cells are still largely unknown. We and others found that total mTOR protein level is elevated in breast cancer cells compared to their nonmalignant counterparts. We have detected defective proteolysis of mTOR protein in breast cancer cells, which could, at least in part, explain the high level of mTOR protein in these cells. We show that metformin treatment in MCF-7 breast cancer cells induced degradation of mTOR and sequestration of this protein in a perinuclear region. The decrease in mTOR protein level in these cells correlated positively with a concomitant inhibition of proliferation and migration potentials of these cells. These findings provided a novel mechanism for the metformin action in breast cancer treatment. Understanding the proteolytic mechanism responsible for mTOR level in breast cancer may pave the way for improving the efficacy of breast cancer treatment regimens and mitigating drug resistance as well as providing a basis for potential novel therapeutic modalities for breast cancer.
Teoria do método e filosofia da prática de Vygotsky: implicações para metodologia trans/formativa

Vygotsky’s project needs to be grasped as a yet unnamed type of an approach which, in continuing the revolutionary spirit of Marxism, moved beyond the old divide between theory and practice and instead, embodied their unity in a peculiar blend with distinct philosophical, theoretical and ethical/ideological underpinnings. The goal of creating new psychology for a society that itself needed to be created on principles of social justice and equality guided this approach and turned it into a critical-practical project of social transformation and change. The main argument advanced in this paper is that at the core of Vygotsky’s method is the novel transformative onto-epistemology, coupled with the socio-political ethos of equality and justice, which challenge ideology of adaptation and control. I discuss this set of issues in light of a transformative activist stance that puts premium on researchers’ commitments and value orientations.
Daniel J. Povinelli1

An interview with comparative psychologist Daniel Povinelli, based upon three years of ethnographic conversations between Povinelli and his Indiana University colleague Brandon Barker.
O filme Kids e a política de demonização da juventude

Um dos filmes mais controvertidos sobre a sexualidade adolescente a aparecer em 1995 foi Kids. Flutuando na superficie de um cinismo sem saida, o filme de Clark deixa de investigar onde esta localizada a identidade para os/as jovens urbanos/as que ele representa. O realismo de Clark atua muito facilmente para definir as turbulentas experiencias dos/as adolescentes que ele representa, nao a partir de sensiveis consideracoes historicas e sociais, mas a partir de evocacoes estilizadadas de choque e transgressao. A confianca de Clark na verossimilhanca de uma narrativa tipo "documentario", ao jogar com os medos e ansiedades da plateia e colocar a sexualidade e o hedonismo como forcas impulsionadoras da agencia entre jovens urbanos, revela o conservadorismo ideologico que sustenta Kids. Vistos como nao possuindo qualquer capacidade critica, os/as jovens sao definidos primariamente por uma sexualidade que e vista como fora de controle, exigindo vigilância, restricao legal e outras formas de poder disciplinar.
Reentrainment of the circadian pacemaker during jet lag: East-west asymmetry and the effects of north-south travel.

Abstract The normal alignment of circadian rhythms with the 24-h light-dark cycle is disrupted after rapid travel between home and destination time zones, leading to sleep problems, indigestion, and other symptoms collectively known as jet lag. Using mathematical and computational analysis, we study the process of reentrainment to the light-dark cycle of the destination time zone in a model of the human circadian pacemaker. We calculate the reentrainment time for travel between any two points on the globe at any time of the day and year. We construct one-dimensional entrainment maps to explain several properties of jet lag, such as why most people experience worse jet lag after traveling east than west. We show that this east-west asymmetry depends on the endogenous period of the traveler’s circadian clock as well as daylength. Thus the critical factor is not simply whether the endogenous period is greater than or less than 24 h as is commonly assumed. We show that the unstable fixed point of an entrainment map determines whether a traveler reentrains through phase advances or phase delays, providing an understanding of the threshold that separates orthodromic and antidromic modes of reentrainment. Contrary to the conventional wisdom that jet lag only occurs after east-west travel across multiple time zones, we predict that the change in daylength encountered during north-south travel can cause jet lag even when no time zones are crossed. Our techniques could be used to provide advice to travelers on how to minimize jet lag on trips involving multiple destinations and a combination of transmeridian and translatitudinal travel.
Sport-Related Concussions: Symptom Recurrence After Return to Exercise

Background:Current guidelines dictate a gradual exercise progression after a concussion; however, it is unclear what proportion of athletes experience a recurrence of symptoms once they are symptom free at rest. Estimating the proportion of athletes and predictors of symptom recurrence would help shape return-to-play protocols.Purpose:To determine the proportion and associated risk factors of athletes who have a recurrence of concussion symptoms with exercise after being symptom free at rest.Study Design:Case-control study; Level of evidence, 3.Methods:Between October 1, 2009 and July 31, 2011, we studied patients from a sport concussion clinic located within a tertiary care regional children’s hospital. Patients were queried at every visit using a standardized questionnaire. Our main outcome variable was recurrence of symptoms with exercise after being symptom free at rest at some point in their recovery. Cofactors included age, sex, loss of consciousness with injury, prior concussion (diagnosed and undi...
Obama Delivers for Kenya: On Business

Initially, it seemed as though President Obama was chiefly concerned about how to improve Kenya’s governance standards. Misunderstandings about the US’s true intentions shaped relations between Kenya and the US in Obama’s first term. Later, Obama’s long-term legacy project for Africa emerged and matters of security and economic growth took precedence. This chapter makes two broad arguments about Obama’s legacy in Kenya. First, in the short term, President Obama was instrumental in reviving Kenya–US economic relations. Second, Obama’s long-term legacy will be defined by the success or failure of his signature legacy project in Africa, the Power Africa Initiative. Beyond this, Obama will be remembered for shifting the ideational and financial foundations of US–Kenya relations from the humanitarianism exemplified by PEPFAR to a more productive sector minded model where US grants are directed to vitalizing business and entrepreneurship.
Abstract 19685: Noxa1-Dependent Regulation of Nox1 NADPH Oxidase Activity in the Development of Angiotensin II-Induced Hypertension and an Early Phase of Renal Na+ Retention

Abnormal renal function, a major contributor to hypertension (HTN), in conjunction with oxidative stress, enhances the risk for renal failure and the development of cardiovascular disease. Increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels, resulting from the activation of NADPH oxidases, in the renal vascular and tubular cells have been implicated in pathophysiology of angiotensin II (Ang II)- and high salt (HS)- induced HTN. We previously reported that the deletion of NoxA1 subunit of Nox1 NADPH oxidase decreased ROS levels in the aortic smooth muscle cells and vasculature under pathophysiologic conditions. In this study, we investigated the importance of NoxA1-dependent Nox1 activity in the regulation of renal Na + excretion and blood pressure (BP). Chronic Ang II infusion (500ng/kg/min) for 2 weeks increased systolic BP (DSI telemetry) by 33 mmHg in the wild-type (WT) (p -/- mice. BP was unchanged in mice infused with saline. After 4 weeks of L-NAME-induced hypertension and recovery for 1 week, HTN induction by HS for 2 weeks increased BP by 17 mmHg in WT (p -/- mice. Na + excretion was measured in metabolic cages for 8 hr in response to an acute salt load (10% body weight of isotonic saline injected ip) before and during HTN. The rate of Na + excretion was similar in WT and systemic NoxA1 -/- mice before and 14 days after Ang II infusion. However, WT excreted Na + at a slower rate than NoxA1 -/- mice, with a smaller fraction (P + excretion was noted in WT vs. systemic NoxA1 -/- mice during the development of HTN 2-4 days after initiation of HS diet. This is consistent with the notion that relative positive renal Na + balance related to ROS generation is a causative factor of HTN. Supporting this, Ang II infusion increased NoxA1 protein levels in the cortex and medulla and ENaC protein levels in the medulla. These findings indicate that Ang II activation of NoxA1/Nox1 signaling in the kidney increases ROS levels, causing reduced Na + excretion, presumably due to renal vasoconstriction and/or enhanced tubular Na + reabsorption, which leads to increased BP.
CuWO4 as a photocatalyst for room temperature aerobic benzylamine oxidation.

The aerobic photochemical oxidation of benzylamine was carried out on the ternary oxides CuWO4 and BiVO4 as a test proton-coupled-electron-transfer reaction in acetonitrile. Both oxides give the coupled imine product, N-benzylidenebenzylamine, in near quantitative (98–99%) yield, with rate constants of 0.34 h−1 g−1 and 0.70 h−1 g−1 for CuWO4 and BiVO4, respectively.
Theory Use in Counseling Practice: Current Trends

The purpose of this study was to explore current trends in counseling practice. The authors surveyed a randomly selected, U.S. national sample of American Mental Health Counselors Association members (N = 140) regarding which theoretical approaches influenced their current practice and which counseling skills were most often used in their current practice. Cognitive behavioral, person-centered, strengths-based, and solution-focused were the most influential theoretical approaches reported. Cognitive-behavioral theory was reported as having at least some minor influence for all participants completing the survey. The most frequently used counseling skills were demonstrating empathic understanding, general encouraging, encouraging self-care, conveying genuineness, and demonstrating unconditional positive regard. Implications for the field of counseling and future research are discussed.
Ergodicity vs. Integrability

The description of ergodic theory — its main theorems, its hierarchy and some of its explicit models — given in Sect. 7.2 and Chap. 8 was intended to show that a solid mathematical edifice has been erected. Yet, one may be reminded of a whimsical remark Einstein once made, albeit about another area of mathematical physics: For the moment, my feeling for this theory is like that of a starved ape, who after a long search, has found an amazing coconut, but cannot open it; so he doesn’t even know whether there is anything inside. [Cartan and Einstein, 1979]. In our case the search had been motivated by the need to provide a perspective deeper than that available to Boltzmann or Maxwell — Sect. 7.1 — towards the problem of the putative usefulness of the concepts of ergodic theory for the foundations of statistical mechanics. We saw already that there do exist Hamiltonian systems that are ergodic. In particular, Models 1 and 6 of Chap. 8 were already well assimilated by the end of the 1930s, and a wide domain of applications for the general theory was expected by the best authorities of the time, see e.g. [Wiener and Wintner, 1941, Birkhoff, 1942]. This optimism was reinforced by a theorem [Oxtoby and Ulam, 1941] to the effect that ergodicity is generic for a specified class of topological dynamical systems. The Reader is referred to Appendix D for the topological notions assumed in the account presented below.