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As genre fantasy congealed around a Tolkienian core in the middle decades of the 20th century, two fantastical creatures emerged as the dominant emblems of the form: the dragon and the unicorn. Either one might serve to adorn genre labels on the spines of library books, or act as the colophon for a publisher's fantasy line. Dipping in and out of touchstone texts in the fantasy tradition such as Peter S. Beagle's The Last Unicorn and Michael Bishop's Unicorn Mountain, this essay will commence a preliminary exploration of the wider mass cultural adoption of one of these two creatures, the unicorn, with its distinctively fantastic iconography. In the last decade, the unicorn has established itself as a kind of genericized trademark, an instantly recognizable image used to market a variety of products. One can, for example, walk down grocery store aisles lined with unicorn breakfast cereal, unicorn frozen waffles, and unicorn desserts of all kinds, and there is a much longer prehistory behind this commoditization of the unicorn and its connections to fantasy, from the psychedelic rainbow aesthetic of American designer Lisa Frank--which ubiquitously decorated young girl's school supplies in the 1990s--to the explosive global growth of the My Little Pony brand in the early 21st century. I will trace the refraction of the unicorn into such commercial spaces from its various overlapping instantiations in early genre fantasy: indeed, Karen Anderson's 1971 poem 'The Unicorn Trade' uses the image of the commodified unicorn to reflect on the emergence of fantasy publishing itself in the wake of American 'Tolkien-mania' and the launch of the Ballantine Books Adult Fantasy series. In the 1960s, we find that unicorns were simply in the air, appearing prominently in works from writers as different as Angela Carter, Peter Beagle, and Shel Silverstein, and they have never left. Additional Keywords unicorns; fantasy; genre theory; Unicorn Mountain; The Last Unicorn; Unicorns; Beagle, Peter S. The Last Unicorn; Bishop, Michael. Unicorn Mountain; Genre; Popular Culture, 'He saw the unicorn again, the purest embodiment of legend and mystery, moving incomprehensibly through the world, as remote and present as dreams.' --Mark S. Geston, The Siege of Wonder [...]

Age-based stock assessments are sometimes rejected by review panels due to large retrospective patterns. When this occurs, data-limited approaches are often used to set catch advice, under the assumption that these simpler methods will not be impacted by the problems causing retrospective patterns in the age-based assessment. This assumption has never been formally evaluated. Closed-loop simulations were conducted where a known source of error caused a retrospective pattern in an agebased assessment. Twelve data-limited methods, an ensemble of a subset of these methods, and a statistical catch-at-age model with retrospective adjustment were all evaluated to examine their ability to prevent overfishing and rebuild overfished stocks. Overall, none of the methods evaluated performed best across the scenarios. A number of methods performed consistently poorly, resulting in frequent and intense overfishing and low stock sizes. The retrospective adjusted statistical catch-at-age assessment performed better than a number of the alternatives explored. Thus, using a data-limited approach to set catch advice will not necessarily result in better performance than relying on the age-based assessment with a retrospective adjustment. Key words: closed-loop simulation, data-limited methods, management advice, retrospective analysis, Introduction In the US, age-based, integrated, fisheries stock assessment models are frequently used to estimate annual stock abundance (biomass), fishing mortality rates, and management reference points (Maunder and Punt 2013). [...]

A challenge in building useful artificial intelligence (Al) systems is that people need to understand how they work in order to achieve appropriate trust and reliance. This has become a topic of considerable interest, manifested as a surge of research on Explainable Al (XAI). Much of the research assumes a model in which the Al automatically generates an explanation and presents it to the user, whose understanding of the explanation leads to better performance. Psychological research on explanatory reasoning shows that this is a limited model. The design of XAI systems must be fully informed by a model of cognition and a model of pedagogy, based on empirical evidence of what happens when people try to explain complex systems to other people and what happens as people try to reason out how a complex system works. In this article we discuss how and why C. S. Peirce's notion of abduction is a best model for XAI. Peirce's notion of abduction as an exploratory activity can be regarded as supported by virtue of its concordance with models of expert reasoning that have been developed by modern applied cognitive psychologists. KEYWORDS: abduction, Peirce, artificial intelligence, explanation, expert reasoning, training, Artificial intelligence (AI) systems are being applied ever more widely (e.g., helping corrections officers who have to make parole decisions helping financiers who decide about loan applications). A regulation posed [...]

Context.--The coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, caused by the novel coronavirus severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, has resulted in worldwide disruption to the delivery of patient care. The Seattle, Washington metropolitan area was one of the first in the United States affected by the pandemic. As a result, the anatomic pathology services at the University of Washington experienced significant changes in operational volumes early in the pandemic. Objective.--To assess the impact of coronavirus disease 2019 and both state and institutional policies implemented to mitigate viral transmission (including institutional policies on nonurgent procedures) on anatomic pathology volumes. Design.--Accessioned specimens from January to June 2020 were evaluated as coronavirus disease 2019 and institutional policies changed. The data were considered in these contexts: subspecialty, billable Current Procedural Terminology codes, and intraoperative consultation. Comparable data were retrieved from 2019 as a historical control. Results.--There was a significant reduction in overall accessioned volume (up to 79%) from prepandemic levels during bans on nonurgent procedures when compared with 2020 pre-coronavirus disease 2019 volumes and historical controls. The gastrointestinal and dermatopathology services were most impacted, and breast and combined head and neck/pulmonary services were least impacted. Current Procedural Terminology code 88305, for smaller/biopsy specimens, had a 63% reduction during nonurgent procedure bans. After all bans on procedures were lifted, the overall volume plateaued at 89% of prepandemic levels. Conclusions.--A significant decrease in specimen volume was most strongly associated with bans on nonurgent procedures. Although all departmental areas had a decrease in volume, the extent of change varied across subspecialty and specimen types. Even with removal of all bans, service volume did not reach prepandemic levels. doi: 10.5858/arpa.2020-0639-SA, The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by the novel coronavirus severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) outbreak, has had a profound impact on routine operations within health care [...]

Climate can impact fish population dynamics through changes in productivity and shifts in distribution, and both responses have been observed for many fish species. However, few studies have incorporated climate into population dynamics or stock assessment models. This study aimed to uncover how past variations in population vital rates and fishing pressure account for observed abundance variation in summer flounder (Paralichthys dentatus). The influences of the Gulf Stream Index, an index of climate variability in the Northwest Atlantic, on abundance were explored through natural mortality and stock-recruitment relationships in age-structured hierarchical Bayesian models. Posterior predictive loss and deviance information criterion indicated that out of tested models, the best estimates of summer flounder abundances resulted from the climate-dependent natural mortality model that included log-quadratic responses to the Gulf Stream Index. This climate-linked population model demonstrates the role of climate responses in observed abundance patterns and emphasizes the complexities of environmental effects on populations beyond simple correlations. This approach highlights the importance of modeling the combined effect of fishing and climate simultaneously to understand population dynamics. Le climat peut avoir un impact sur la dynamique des populations de poissons par le biais de modifications de la productivity et de la repartition, ces deux types de reactions ayant ete observes pour de nombreuses especes de poissons. Peu d'etudes ont toutefois integre le climat a des modeles de dynamique des populations ou d'evaluation des stocks. La presente etude avait pour objectif de determiner l'incidence de variations passees d'indices vitaux de populations et de la pression de la peche sur les variations observees de l'abondance de cardeaux d'ete (Paralichthys dentatus). Les influences de l'indice du Gulf Stream, un indice de variabilite du climat dans le nord-ouest de l'ocean Atlantique, sur cette abondance ont ete examinees par l'entremise de relations entre la mortalite naturelle et le recrutement au stock dans des modeles bayesiens hierarchiques structures par age. La perte predite a posteriori et le critere d'information associe a la somme des carres des ecarts indiquent que, des modeles mis a l'essai, les meilleures estimations des abondances des cardeaux d'ete sont obtenues du modele de mortalite naturelle dependant du climat qui integre des reactions log-quadratiques a l'indice du Gulf Stream. Ce modele de population relie au climat demontre le role des reactions au climat dans les motifs d'abondance observes et souligne la complexite des effets environnementaux sur les populations au-dela de correlations simples. L'approche fait ressortir l'importance de modeliser simultanement l'effet combine de la peche et du climat pour comprendre la dynamique des populations. [Traduit par la Redaction], Introduction Water temperatures are increasing globally (Lozier et al. 2008; Belkin 2009; Hansen et al. 2010; GISTEMP Team 2018) and global climate models indicate that this warming is likely to [...]

The efficiency of survey gear is an important measure that can be used to estimate the absolute scale of populations in assessment models. We develop a general hierarchical model for estimating the efficiency of a New Bedford-style sea scallop (Placopecten magellanicus) survey dredge from paired dredge and Habcam camera system tows. Habcam data for each tow consist of multiple images that give information on within-tow variability of scallop density. The model accounts for these multiple observations as well as the possibility of differences between the true densities in dredge and Habcam pairs due to the pairs not covering exactly the same ground. We fit several models with alternative assumptions to observations on Atlantic sea scallops and compare the relative performance using Akaike's information criterion. The best performing model estimated higher dredge efficiency on fine substrates than on coarse ones (approximately 0.40 and 0.27, respectively). Our results inform the scale of annual abundance estimates from dredge surveys and reduce uncertainty in the sea scallop stock assessments. L'efficacite des engins de releve est une importante mesure pouvant etre utilisee pour estimer l'ampleur absolue de populations dans des modeles d'evaluation. Nous elaborons un modele hierarchique pour estimer l'efficacite d'une drague de releve de type New Bedford pour le petoncle geant (Placopecten magellanicus) a partir de traits de la drague et d'un systeme de camera Habcam jumeles. Les donnees du systeme Habcam pour chaque trait consistent en de multiples images qui fournissent de l'information sur la variabilite de la densite de petoncles au sein d'un meme trait. Le modele tient compte de ces multiples observations ainsi que de l'eventualite de differences entre les densites reelles obtenues des paires de drague et Habcam du fait que les zones couvertes ne sont pas exactement les memes. Nous avons cale plusieurs modeles reposant sur differentes hypotheses sur des observations relatives aux petoncles geants de l'Atlantique et compare leur performance relative a l'aide du critere d'information d'Akaike. Le modele qui donne les meilleurs resultats estime une efficacite de la drague plus grande sur des substrats fins que sur des substrats grossiers (d'environ 0,40 et 0,27, respectivement). Nos resultats fournissent de l'information sur la magnitude des abondances annuelles estimees tirees de releves a la drague et reduisent l'incertitude dans les evaluations des stocks de petoncles geants. [Traduit par la Redaction], Introduction Absolute scale of fish stock abundance is determined in stock assessment models by estimating catchability of relative abundance indices (Megrey 1989; Arreguin-Sanchez 1996). Most stock assessments estimate absolute abundance [...]

Decadal-scale climate variability and change can cause trends in oceanographic conditions that impact demographic rates. Rebuilding scenarios, therefore, developed assuming constant demographic rates may not be realistic. Winter flounder (Pseudopleuronectes americanus) is an important commercial and recreational species that has declined in the southern portion of its range despite reduced exploitation. Laboratory and mesocosm studies suggest that stock productivity is reduced under warmer conditions and that rebuilding to historical levels may not be possible. Our goal was to examine the rebuilding potential of winter flounder in the face of regional warming. We integrated winter temperature into a population model to estimate environmentally driven stock-recruitment parameters and projected the stock into the future under different climate and fishing scenarios. The inclusion of winter temperature had minor impacts on the estimates of current abundance, but provided greater understanding of the drivers of recruitment. Projections that included the environment suggest that rebuilding the stock to historical levels is unlikely. The integration of both fishing and the environment has the potential to provide more realistic expectations of future stock status. La variability et les changements climatiques decennaux peuvent produire des tendances dans les conditions oceanographiques qui influencent les taux demographiques. Aussi, les scenarios de reconstitution elabores en presumant des taux demographiques constants pourraient ne pas etre realistes. La plie rouge (Pseudopleuronectes americanus), une espece importante pour la peche commerciale et sportive, est en baisse dans la partie sud de son aire de repartition, malgre une reduction de son exploitation. Des etudes en laboratoire et en mesocosme donnent a penser que la productivity du stock diminue dans des conditions plus chaudes et que le retablissement des niveaux historiques pourrait ne pas etre possible. Notre objectif consistait a examiner le potentiel de reconstitution du stock de plie rouge etant donne le rechauffement regional. Nous avons incorpore la temperature hivernale dans un modele de population afin d'estimer les parametres de recrutement au stock modules par des facteurs ambiants et avons etabli des projections du stock pour differents scenarios climatiques et de peche. L'integration de la temperature hivernale a des effets mineurs sur les estimations de l'abondance actuelle, mais permet une meilleure comprehension des facteurs qui modulent le recrutement. Les projections qui integrent les conditions ambiantes indiqueraient que le retablissement des niveaux historiques du stock est improbable. L'integration de la peche et des conditions ambiantes pourrait produire des previsions plus realistes de l'etat futur du stock. [Traduit par la Redaction], Introduction With the reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, rebuilding plans were implemented in the United States to provide a legally binding time line to reduce overfishing (NOAA1996). For many species [...]

Mutations in superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) are responsible for 20% of familial ALS. Given the gain of toxic function in this dominantly inherited disease, lowering SOD1 mRNA and protein is predicted to provide therapeutic benefit. An early generation antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) targeting SOD1 was identified and tested in a phase I human clinical trial, based on modest protection in animal models of SOD1 ALS. Although the clinical trial provided encouraging safety data, the drug was not advanced because there was progress in designing other, more potent ASOs for CNS application. We have developed next- generation SOD1 ASOs that more potently reduce SOD1 mRNA and protein and extend survival by more than 50 days in [SOD1.sup.G93A] rats and by almost 40 days in [SOD1.sup.G93A] mice. We demonstrated that the initial loss of compound muscle action potential in [SOD1.sup.G93A] mice is reversed after a single dose of SOD1 ASO. Furthermore, increases in serum phospho-neurofilament heavy chain levels, a promising biomarker for ALS, are stopped by SOD1 ASO therapy. These results define a highly potent, new SOD1 ASO ready for human clinical trial and suggest that at least some components of muscle response can be reversed by therapy., Introduction Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is caused by the loss and dysfunction of neurons in motor pathways and leads to severe weakness, stiffness, and ultimately death in 3-5 years. Approximately [...]

State-space models explicitly separate uncertainty associated with unobserved, time-varying parameters from that which arises from sampling the population. The statistical aspects of formal state-space models are appealing and these models are becoming more widely used for assessments. However, treating natural mortality as known and constant across ages continues to be common practice. We developed a state-space, age-structured assessment model that allowed different assumptions for natural mortality and the degree of temporal stochasticity in abundance. We fit a suite of models where natural mortality was either age-invariant or an allometric function of mass and interannual transitions of abundance were deterministic or stochastic to observations on Gulf of Maine--Georges Bank Acadian redfish (Sebastes fasciatus). We found that allowing stochasticity in the interannual transition in abundance was important and estimating age-invariant natural mortality was sufficient. A simulation study showed low bias in annual biomass estimation when the estimation and simulation model matched and the Akaike imformation criterion accurately measured relative model performance, but it was important to allow simulated data sets to include the stochasticity in interannual transitions of abundance-at-age. Les modeles d'espace d'etats separent explicitement l'incertitude associee aux parametres variables dans le temps non observes de celle qui decoule de l'echantillonnage de la population. Les aspects statistiques des modeles d'espace d'etats formels sont attrayants et ces modeles sont de plus en plus frequemment utilises pour les evaluations. Cependant, il demeure courant de traiter la mortalite naturelle comme etant connue et ne variant pas selon l'age. Nous avons developpe un modele devaluation d'espace d'etats structure par age qui permet differentes hypotheses concernant la mortalite naturelle et le degre de stochasticite temporelle de l'abondance. Nous avons cale une serie de modeles dans lesquels la mortalite naturelle soit ne varie pas selon l'age ou est une fonction allometrique du poids, et les transitions interannuelles de l'abondance sont deterministes ou stochastiques, sur des observations sur le sebaste acadien (Sebastes fasciatus) dans le golfe du Maine--banc de Georges. Nous avons constate que le fait de permettre la stochasticite de la transition interannuelle de l'abondance est important et que l'estimation de la mortalite naturelle non variant pas selon l'age est suffisante. Une etude de simulation a demontre un faible biais dans l'estimation de la biomasse annuelle quand l'estimation et le modele de simulation coincident et que le critere d'information d'Akaike mesurent avec exactitude la performance relative du modele, mais il etait important de permettre l'inclusion dans les ensembles de donnees simules de la stochasticite dans les transitions interannuelles d'abondance selon l'age. [Traduit par la Redaction], Introduction Age-structured models for stock assessments have evolved from deterministic methods such as virtual population analysis to stochastic models such as statistical catch at age (SCAA) and more formal state-space [...]

Increased activity in perivascular fibroblasts could precede motor-neuron degeneration and be a predictor of shorter survival in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis., Author(s): Collin J. Kreple [sup.1] , Kathleen M. Schoch [sup.1] , Timothy M. Miller [sup.1] Author Affiliations: (1) Department of Neurology, Hope Center for Neurological Disorders, Washington University in St. [...]

The state-space model framework provides a natural, probabilistic approach to stock assessment by modeling the stochastic nature of population survival and recruitment separately from sampling uncertainty inherent in observations on the population. We propose a state-space assessment model that is expanded to simultaneously treat environmental covariates as stochastic processes and estimate their effects on recruitment. We apply the model to southern New England yellowtail flounder (Limandaferruginea) using data from the most recent benchmark assessment to evaluate evidence for effects of the mid-Atlantic cold pool and spawning stock biomass on recruitment. Based on Akaike's information criterion, both the cold pool and spawning stock biomass were important predictors of recruitment and led to annual variation in estimated biomass reference points and associated yield. We also demonstrate the effect of the stochasticity of the mid-Atlantic cold pool on short-term forecasts of the stock size, biomass reference point, and stock status. Le cadre des modeles d'espaces d'etats offre une approche probabiliste naturelle a revaluation des stocks par la modelisation du caractere stochastique de la survie et du recrutement au sein de populations, separement de l'incertitude associee a l'echantillonnage inherente aux observations sur la population. Nous proposons un modele d'espaces d'etats pour l'evaluation qui est elargi pour traiter simultanement de covariables environnementales en tant que processus stochastiques et estimer leurs effets sur le recrutement. Nous appliquons ce modele a la limande a queue jaune (Limandaferruginea) du sud de la Nouvelle-Angleterre en utilisant des donnees issues de la plus recente evaluation des points de reference pour evaluer les indices d'eventuels effets de la goutte froide medio-atlantique et de la biomasse du stock reproducteur sur le recrutement. Sur la base du critere d'information d'Akaike, les effets tant de la goutte froide que de la biomasse du stock reproducteur sur le recrutement constituent d'importants predicteurs du recrutement et ont entraine des variations annuelles des points de reference estimes relativement a la biomasse et au rendement associe. Nous demontrons egalement l'effet de la stochasticite de la goutte froide medio-atlantique sur les previsions a court terme de la taille du stock, du point de reference relatif a la biomasse et de l'etat du stock. [Traduit par la Redaction], Introduction A primary goal of the stock assessment process is to estimate the productivity of a given stock and how current abundance and harvest compare with reference points. It is [...]

Selectivity and catch comparison studies are important for surveys that use two or more gears to collect relative abundance information. Prevailing model-based analytical methods for studies using a paired-gear design assume a binomial model for the data from each pair of gear sets. Important generalizations include nonparametric smooth size effects and normal random pair and size effects, but current methods for fitting models that account for random smooth size effects are restrictive, and observations within pairs may exhibit extra-binomial variation. I propose a hierarchical model that accounts for random smooth size effects among pairs and extra-binomial variation within pairs with a conditional beta-binomial distribution. I compared relative performance of models with different conditional distribution and random effects assumptions fit to data on 16 species from an experiment carried out in the US Northwest Atlantic Ocean comparing a new and a retiring vessel. For more than half of the species, conditional beta- binomial models performed better than binomial models, and accounting for random variation among pairs in the relative efficiency was important for all species. Les etudes sur la selectivity et la comparaison des prises sont importantes pour les evaluations faisant appel a au moins deux types d'engins pour la collecte d'information sur l'abondance relative. Les methodes d'analyse basees sur la modelisation les plus repandues pour les etudes par paire d'engins reposent sur l'hypothese d'un modele binomial pour les donnees issues de chaque paire d'engins. Parmi les generalisations importantes figurent les effets de taille lissee non parametriques et les effets de paire et de taille aleatoires normaux, mais les methodes actuelles d'ajustement de modeles qui tiennent compte des effets de taille lissee aleatoires sont restrictives, et les observations pour une meme paire peuvent presenter des variations extrabinomiales. Je propose un modele hierarchique qui tient compte des effets de taille lissee aleatoires entre paires et des variations extrabinomiales au sein de paires avec une distribution beta-binomiale conditionnelle. J'ai compare la performance relative de modeles reposant sur differentes hypotheses de distribution conditionnelle et d'effets aleatoires ajustes a des donnees sur 16 especes tirees d'une experience menee dans le nord-ouest de l'ocean Atlantique au large des Etats-Unis et visant a comparer un vaisseau neuf et un vaisseau mis a la retraite. Pour plus de la moitie des especes, les modeles beta-binomiaux conditionnels etaient plus performants que les modeles binomiaux, et la prise en consideration des variations aleatoires entre paires pour ce qui est de l'efficacite relative etait importante pour toutes les especes. [Traduit par la Redaction], Introduction Paired-gear studies provide a means to infer the ratio of catch rates, or relative catch efficiency, of two gears, which is important for surveys providing time series of relative [...]

Crawford Gribben. Evangelical Millennialism in the Trans-Atlantic World, 1500-2000. Basingstoke, England: Palgrave Macmillan, 2011. 202 pp. Cloth, 50.00 [pounds sterling], ISBN 978-0-230-00825-0. In 2011 an American Christian radio broadcaster named [...]

Five fumigation treatments (a conventional methyl bromide - chloropicrin application and four reduced-rate alternative fumigant treatments) and a nonfumigated treatment were evaluated at two forest nurseries in Oregon and one forest nursery in Washington for their effects on soil pathogen populations, weeds, and seedling morphology during a 2-year study. The effect of plastic tarp composition on fumigant efficacy was also evaluated (virtually impermeable film versus high-density polyethylene). All fumigant treatments reduced soil populations of Fusarium and Pythium for up to 7 months after fumigation and resulted in seedlings with significantly less pathogen colonization than those from the nonfumigated treatment. All fumigant treatments were more effective against pathogen inoculum buried at 15 cm rather than at 30 cm. Fusarium commune Skovgaard, O'Donnell et Nirenberg, Fusarium oxysporum Schlect. emend. Snyder & Hansen, isolates from the Gibberella fujikuroi Saw. complex, Pythium irregulare Buisman, Pythium aff. spiculum B. Paul 2006, Pythium sylvaticum Campbell & Hendrix, and Pythium 'vipa' Hermansen & Klemsdal were the most commonly isolated pathogens. Weed biomass and weeding times were significantly reduced by fumigation, but only at the Washington nursery with high weed pressure. No significant differences were observed in efficacy between the conventional methyl bromide - chloropicrin treament and any of the reduced rate fumigants or between the two types of plastic tarp. Conifer seedling height, diameter, shoot volume, and root volume were significantly greater in all fumigated treatments compared with the nonfumigated treatment. Resume: Cinq traitements de fumigation (une application conventionnelle de bromure de methyle et de chloropicrine et quatre autres traitements de fumigation a taux reduit) ainsi qu'un traitement sans fumigation ont ete evalues dans deux pepinieres forestieres en Oregon et une autre pepiniere forestiere dans l'Etat de Washington. L'etude a dure deux ans et a porte sur l'effet des traitements sur les populations de pathogenes du sol, les mauvaises herbes et la morphologie des semis. L'effet de la composition de la bache en plastique sur l'efficacite du fumigant a aussi ete evalue (pellicule pratiquement imper-meable versus polyethylene haute densite). Tous les traitements de fumigation ont reduit les populations de Fusarium et de Pythium pendant une periode dont la duree pouvait aller jusqu'a sept mois apres la fumigation et les semis etaient significa-tivement moins colonises par les pathogenes que ceux qui n'avaient pas ete fumiges. Tous les traitements de fumigation ont ete plus efficaces contre l'inoculum des pathogenes enfoui a 15 cm plutot qu'a 30 cm. Fusarium commune Skovgaard, O'Donnell et Nirenberg, Fusarium oxysporum Schlect. emend. Snyder & Hansen, des isolats appartenant au complexe Gibberella fujikuroi Saw., Pythium irregulare Buisman, Pythium aff. spiculum B. Paul 2006, Pythium sylvaticum Campbell & Hendrix et Pythium ≪ vipa ≫ Hermansen & Klemsdal sont les pathogenes qui ont ete le plus souvent isoles. La fumigation a reduit de facon significative la biomasse des mauvaises herbes et la duree du desherbage mais seulement dans la pepiniere de l'Etat de Washington ou la pression des mauvaises herbes etait forte. Aucune difference significative d'efficacite n'a ete observee entre le traitement conventionnel, avec le bromure de methyle et la chloropicrine, et n'importe quel des traitements de fumigation a taux reduit, ni entre les deux types de bache en plastique. La hauteur, le diametre, le volume des pousses et le volume des racines des semis de conifere avaient des valeurs significativement plus elevees dans tous les traitements de fumigation comparativement au traitement sans fumigation. [Traduit par la Redaction], Introduction Forest nurseries of the Pacific Northwest (PNW) of the United States (Oregon, Washington, and Idaho) produce field-grown bareroot tree seedlings to regenerate lands that have been harvested or destroyed [...]

Rebecca Reider. Dreaming the Biosphere: The Theater of All Possibilities. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 2009. 310 pp. Paper, $27.95, ISBN: 978-0-8263-4674-2. Arising from the Arizona desert in the [...]

Mutations in superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) cause familial ALS. Mutant SOD1 preferentially associates with the cytoplasmic face of mitochondria from spinal cords of rats and mice expressing SOD1 mutations. Two-dimensional gels and multidimensional liquid chromatography, in combination with tandem mass spectrometry, revealed 33 proteins that were increased and 21 proteins that were decreased in [SOD1.sup.G93A] rat spinal cord mitochondria compared with [SOD1.sup.WT] spinal cord mitochondria. Analysis of this group of proteins revealed a higher-than-expected proportion involved in complex I and protein import pathways. Direct import assays revealed a 30% decrease in protein import only in spinal cord mitochondria, despite an increase in the mitochondrial import components TOM20, TOM22, and TOM40. Recombinant [SOD1.sup.G93A] or [SOD1.sup.G85R], but not [SOD1.sup.WT] or a Parkinson's disease-causing, misfolded [alpha]-[synuclein.sup.E46K] mutant, decreased protein import by >50% in nontransgenic mitochondria from spinal cord, but not from liver. Thus, altered mitochondrial protein content accompanied by selective decreases in protein import into spinal cord mitochondria comprises part of the mitochondrial damage arising from mutant SOD1. motor neuron disease | proteomic | neurodegenerative disease | amyotrophic doi/ 10.1073/pnas.1014862107

The classic study of the water entry of a body has applications ranging from hydroballistics to behavior of basilisk lizards. The availability of Russian supercavitation theory in recent years has allowed for an even greater understanding, and was used to develop a model to predict the dynamic size, shape, and pressure of a naturally of artificially produced underwater cavity. This model combines supercavitation theory, rigid body dynamics, and hydrodynamic theory into a comprehensive model capable of determining the motional behavior of underwater objects. This model was used as the basis for modeling the vertical water entry of solid objects into a free water surface. Results from simulation of water entry of various-sized thin disks compared favorably with published experimental data from the technical literature. Additional simulated data support a disk radius dependence on a relative object depth at cavity closure that was not previously recognized. Cavity closure times are also presented. [DOI: 10.1115/1.4001487]

Frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) are neurodegenerative diseases that show considerable clinical and pathologic overlap, with no effective treatments available. Mutations in the RNA binding protein TDP-43 were recently identified in patients with familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and TDP-43 aggregates are found in both ALS and FTLD-U (FTLD with ubiquitin aggregates), suggesting a common underlying mechanism. We report that mice expressing a mutant form of human TDP-43 develop a progressive and fatal neurodegenerative disease reminiscent of both ALS and FTLD-U. Despite universal transgene expression throughout the nervous system, pathologic aggregates of ubiquitinated proteins accumulate only in specific neuronal populations, including layer 5 pyramidal neurons in frontal cortex, as well as spinal motor neurons, recapitulating the phenomenon of selective vulnerability seen in patients with FTLD-U and ALS. Surprisingly, cytoplasmic TDP-43 aggregates are not present, and hence are not required for TDP-43-induced neurodegeneration. These results indicate that the cellular and molecular substrates for selective vulnerability in FTLD-U and ALS are shared between mice and humans, and suggest that altered DNA/RNA-binding protein function, rather than toxic aggregation, is central to TDP-43-related neurodegeneration. dementia | motor neuron disease | neurodegeneration | protein aggregation www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.0908767106

Byline: Thomas A. Hanson (Jacobs Technology Inc., NASA Johnson Space Center White Sands Test Facility, Las Cruces, NM 88004, USA); Nadir Yilmaz (Department of Mechanical Engineering New Mexico Institute of [...]

FXYD5, also known as dysadherin, belongs to a family of tissue-specific regulators of the [Na.sup.+]-[K.sup.+]-ATPase. We determined the kinetic effects of FXYD5 on [Na.sup.+]-[K.sup.+]-ATPase pump activity in stably transfected Madin-Darby canine kidney cells. FXYD5 significantly increased the apparent affinity for [Na.sup.+] twofold and decreased the apparent affinity for [K.sup.+] by 60% with a twofold increase in [V.sub.max] of [K.sup.+], a pattern that would increase activity and [Na.sup.+] removal from the cell. To test the effect of increased [Na.sup.+] uptake on FXYD5 expression, we analyzed MadinDarby canine kidney cells stably transfected with an inducible vector expressing all three subunits of the epithelial [Na.sup.+] channel (ENaC). [Na.sup.+]-[K.sup.+]-ATPase activity increased sixfold after 48-h ENaC induction, but FXYD5 expression decreased 75%. FXYD5 expression was also decreased in lung epithelia from mice that over-express ENaC, suggesting that chronic [Na.sup.+] absorption by itself downregulates epithelial FXYD5 expression. Patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) display ENaC-mediated hyperabsorption of [Na.sup.+] in the airways, accompanied by increased [Na.sup.+]-[K.sup.+]-ATPase activity. However, FXYD5 was significantly increased in the lungs and nasal epithelium of CF mice as assessed by RT-PCR, immunohistochemistry, and immunoblot analysis (P < 0.001). FXYD5 was also upregulated in nasal scrapings from human CF patients compared with controls (P < 0.02). Treatment of human tracheal epithelial cells with a CFTR inhibitor (I-172) confirmed that loss of CFTR function correlated with increased FXYD5 expression (P < 0.001), which was abrogated by an inhibitor of NF-[kappa]B. Thus FXYD5 is upregulated in CF epithelia, and this change may exacerbate the [Na.sup.+] hyperabsorption and surface liquid dehydration observed in CF airway epithelia. [Na.sup.+]-[K.sup.+]-ATPase; sodium transport

Mutations in copper/zinc superoxide dismutase (SOD1) are causative for dominantly inherited amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Despite high variability in biochemical properties among the disease-causing mutants, a proportion of both dismutase-active and -inactive mutants are stably bound to spinal cord mitochondria. This mitochondrial proportion floats with mitochondria rather than sedimenting to the much higher density of protein, thus eliminating coincidental cosedimentation of protein aggregates with mitochondria. Half of dismutase-active and [approximately equal to] 90% of dismutase-inactive mutant SOD1 is bound to mitochondrial membranes in an alkali- and salt-resistant manner. Sensitivity to proteolysis and immunoprecipitation with an antibody specific for misfolded SOD1 demonstrate that in all mutant SOD1 models, misfolded SOD1 is deposited onto the cytoplasmic face of the outer mitochondrial membrane, increasing antigenic accessibility of the normally structured electrostatic loop. Misfolded mutant SOD1 binding is both restricted to spinal cord and selective for mitochondrial membranes, implicating exposure to mitochondria of a misfolded mutant SOD1 conformer mediated by a unique, tissueselective composition of cytoplasmic chaperones, components unique to the cytoplasmic face of spinal mitochondria to which misfolded SOD1 binds, or misfolded SOD1 conformers unique to spinal cord that have a selective affinity for mitochondrial membranes. degeneration | motor neuron disease | superoxide dismutase

Multidimensional liquid chromatography in combination with tandem mass spectrometry has been used to analyze a variety of biological structures including protein complexes. Incorporating this approach with autosampling devices presents a number of problems including decreased sensitivity due to exposure to extra surfaces, carryover from run to run, and increased dead volume. We developed a device, termed Radial Column Array for Distribution and Automation (RCADiA), to automate multiple MuDPIT experiments while eliminating many of these problems and maintaining a high resolution and sensitive analysis. The design, which places each sample downstream of any common fluid path, presents a low risk of carryover between successive analyses. Beyond the convenience of automation, the RCADiA platform also produces data of similar quality to the standard method of performing individual MuDPIT experiments. We demonstrate this device by performing a comparative analysis of mitochondria enriched from rat liver and spinal cord.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal, progressive paralysis arising from the premature death of motor neurons. An inherited form is caused by a dominant mutation in the ubiquitously expressed superoxide dismutase (SOD1). SOD1 mutant expression within motor neurons is a determinant of onset and early disease, and mutant accumulation within microglia accelerates disease progression. Muscle also is a likely primary source for toxicity, because retraction of motor axons from synaptic connections to muscle is among the earliest presymptomatic events. To test involvement of muscle in ALS, viral delivery of transcription-mediated siRNA is shown to suppress mutant SOD1 accumulation within muscle alone but to be insufficient to maintain grip strength, whereas delivery to both motor neurons and muscle is sufficient. Use of a deletable mutant gene to diminish mutant SOD1 from muscle did not affect onset or survival. Finally, follistatin expression encoded by adeno-associated virus chronically inhibited myostatin and produced sustained increases in muscle mass, myofiber number, and fiber diameter, but these increases did not affect survival. Thus, SOD1-mutant-mediated damage within muscles is not a significant contributor to non-cell-autonomous pathogenesis in ALS, and enhancing muscle mass and strength provides no benefit in slowing disease onset or progression. siRNA | adeno-associated virus | motor neuron | G93A SOD1 | myostatin

Abstract: Bycatch estimation for sensitive species is becoming increasingly important with the shift toward an ecosystem-based approach to fisheries management. Incidental mortalities for various seabird species occur on longline vessels [...]

Neurotoxicity from accumulation of misfolded/mutant proteins is thought to drive pathogenesis in neurodegenerative diseases. Since decreasing levels of proteins responsible for such accumulations is likely to ameliorate disease, a therapeutic [...]

Abstract: Age and size structure are attributes of fishery stocks important for predicting future productivity. As such, estimating age and length composition of catches has long been an important fisheries [...]

Historians recognize that during the High Middle Ages--from shortly after 1000 to 1300 A.D.--Western Europe experienced a period of unparalleled growth. Populations tripled; first schools and then universities flourished; new [...]

Osteogenic differentiation of osteoprogenitor cells in three-dimensional (3D) in vitro culture remains poorly understood. Using quantitative real-time RT-PCR techniques, we examined mRNA expression of alkaline phosphatase, osteocalcin, and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in murine preosteoblastic MC3T3-E1 cells cultured for 48 h and 14 days on conventional two-dimensional (2D) poly(L-lactide-coglycolide) (PLGA) films and 3D PLGA scaffolds. Differences in VEGF secretion and function between 2D and 3D culture systems were examined using Western blots and an in vitro Matrigel-based angiogenesis assay. Expression of both alkaline phosphatase and osteocalcin in cells cultured on 3D scaffolds was significantly downregulated relative to 2D controls in 48 h and 14 day cultures. In contrast, elevated levels of VEGF expression in 3D culture were noted at every time point in short- and long-term culture. VEGF protein secretion in 3D cultures was triple the amount of secretion observed in 2D controls. Conditioned medium from 3D cultures induced an enhanced level of angiogenic activity, as evidenced by increases in branch points observed in in vitro angiogenesis assays. These results collectively indicate that MC3T3-E1 cells commit to osteogenic differentiation at a slower rate when cultured on 3D PLGA scaffolds and that VEGF is preferentially expressed by these cells when they are cultured in three dimensions. gene expression; osteogenesis; angiogenesis

Donald B. Kraybill, ed. The Amish and the State. 2nd ed. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins UP, 2003. xv + 351 pp. $19.95 (paper) One strain of utopianism yearns for a perceived [...]

This unique, interdisciplinary study utilises demographic data as well as interviews to identify patterns of the forced migration and experiences of Haitians and Dominicans of Haitian descent who left the [...]

Nonstrategic nuclear weapons (NSNW) have posed serious military and political concerns for nearly two generations. (1) While many security analysts and the general public assumed that this issue disappeared with [...]

This article elaborates on the need to recognize two major types of watersheds, groundwater and surface water, their interconnections and interrelationships in developing water-management strategies and policies aiming at accomplishing the golas of the Clean Water Act. Research shows that soils, geology and hydrology influence the exchanges between groundwater and surface water.

Water contamination from point sources such as discharges of sewage and industrial waste has been substantially reduced thanks to the Clean Water Act of 1972. Despite the gains, 40 percent [...]

Lee and Carter (LC) published a new statistical method for forecasting mortality in 1992. This paper examines its actual and hypothetical forecast errors, and compares them with Social Security forecast errors. Hypothetical historical projections suggest that LC tended to underproject gains, but by less than did Social Security. True [e.sub.0] was within the ex ante 95% probability interval 97% of the time overall, but intervals were too broad up to 40 years and too narrow after 50 years. Projections to 1998 made after 1945 always contain errors of less than two years. Hypothetical projections for France, Sweden, Japan, and Canada would have done well. Changing age patterns of mortality decline over the century pose problems for the method.

The impact of immigration on taxes is examined, and taxes for nonimmigrants are likely to be raised initially and then lowered as a result of immigration.

This paper describes a new method for indirect sensing of the rotor position in switched reluctance motors (SRM's) using pulsewidth modulation voltage control. The detection method uses the change of the derivative of the phase current to detect the position where a rotor pole and stator pole start to overlap, giving one position update per energy conversion. As no a priori knowledge of motor parameters is required (except for the numbers of stator and rotor poles), the method is applicable to most SRM topologies in a wide power and speed range and for several inverter topologies. The method allows modest closed-loop dynamic performance. To start up the motor, a feedforward stepping method is used which assures robust startup (even under load) from standstill to a predefined speed at which closed-loop sensorless operation can be applied. Experimental results demonstrate the robust functionality of the method with just one current sensor in the inverter, even with excitation overlap, and the sensorless operation improves with speed. The method is comparable to the back-EMF position estimation for brushless dc motors in principle, performance, and cost. A detailed operation and implementation of this scheme is shown, together with steady-state and dynamic transient test results. Index Terms - Adjustable-speed drives, sensorless control, switched reluctance motors.

Induction motor (IM) design represents a complex multivariable optimization mathematical problem with constraints. Even recent advanced mathematical tools do not guarantee a global optimum. Based on a nonlinear analytical field-circuit model, this paper introduces a novel practical approach structured in two stages, the optimal lamination and the longitudinal optimization. The first stage, divided into three substages, produces a unique optimal lamination cross section for a given external stator diameter and number of poles, based on the criterion of maximum airgap flux density for given airgap and magnetization MMF. With only the external diameter and current density as independent variables, in the second stage, the chosen optimization objective function is minimized (maximized) in a straightforward iterative manner. Numerous practical examples have produced a global optimum. Index Terms - Induction motors, optimal design.

This paper formulates the objectives associated with high-grade torque control of switched reluctance motors (SRM's). Low torque ripple is a natural outcome of high bandwidth torque control. Smooth torque operation is only uniquely defined together with a secondary objective, such as maximum efficiency, maximum torque-speed capability, maximum power factor, etc., as the SRM does not enjoy the inherent distribution between phases that characterizes ac drives. By introduction of the fluxangle parameter, operation at any point between maximum torque-current ratio and maximum torque-flux ratio is possible. A systematic approach to waveform design is developed and is evaluated using both simulation and experimental testing of an SRM servo-drive system. This approach, which can be regarded as a functional equivalent of ac vector control, starts from machine parameters and gives smooth torque operation with maximized torque-speed range and/or efficiency. Excellent dynamic performance is obtained for speed and position control, together with optimized low torque ripple operation. Index Terms - Reluctance motor drives, torque control.

BAX is a member of the BCL-2 family of proteins which have been linked with the modulation of cell death in multicellular organisms. Bax has been shown to be essential in inhibiting apoptosis in developing sensory and central nervous system neurons in mice. Specifically, Bax is required for programmed cell death (PCD), but not excitotoxic cell death, of cerebellar granule cells. Bax is necessary for the downstream changes in glucose uptake, protein synthesis and mRNA levels, and the upstream activation of caspase.

An estimate-and-subtract algorithm is presented for the real-time digital suppression of radio frequency interference (RFI) in ultrawideband (UWB) synthetic aperture radar (SAR) systems used for foliage- and ground-penetrating imaging. The algorithm separately processes fixed- and variable-frequency interferers. Excision of estimated targets greatly reduces bias in RFI estimates, thereby reducing target energy loss and sidelobe levels in SAR imagery. Performance is demonstrated on data collected with the Army Research Laboratory's UWB rail SAR.

A new brushless doubly-salient permanent-magnet machine called the flux-reversal machine is described. Design, analysis, construction, and experimental results for a prototype machine built as a single-phase, high-speed generator are presented. Qualitative comparisons are made with the other types of brushless machines in its class, using the flux-MMF diagram technique. An elementary CAD program developed for designing flux-reversal machines and the associated drive electronics is also described. Index Terms - Doubly-salient permanent-magnet machines, permanent-magnet generators.

Acoustic noise in the switched reluctance motor (SRM) is caused primarily by the deformation of the stator lamination stack. Acoustic noise is most severe when the periodic excitation of the SRM phases excites a natural vibration mode of the stack. The natural vibration modes and frequencies of a four-phase, 8/6 SRM are examined. Structural finite element analysis is used to compute the natural modes and frequencies. Impulse tests on the stator stack verify the calculations and show which modes are excited. Heuristic arguments are developed to predict the operating conditions that will excite the natural modes. Measurement of vibration while the machine is under load shows which operating conditions excite the natural modes and verifies the predictions. An approximate formula is derived to predict the frequency of the fundamental vibration mode in terms of lamination dimensions and material properties. The formula is validated by comparison with finite element calculations for several laminations, and hence is shown to be useful in design trade-off studies. Index Terms - Acoustic noise, noise, switched reluctance, and vibration

The flux-MMF diagram has recently been used to predict torque ripple in different machine types. This paper describes a simple and elegant method, based on this technique, for predicting the effect of skew on torque ripple in permanent-magnet machines. Although it is well known that skewing minimizes torque ripple, the paper quantifies the difference in the extent of minimization between the electromagnetic torque ripple and the cogging torque. Index Terms - Skew, cogging, torque ripple.

An improved approach to predicting cogging torque in permanent magnet motors using the flux-MMF diagram technique is presented and validated. A brief review of cogging torque calculation and minimization techniques is included. It is shown that the flux-MMF diagram can be constructed for any one pole of a permanent magnet machine using the demagnetization characteristic of the permanent magnet; then by applying the principle of virtual work, cogging torque can be predicted. It is also shown that the flux-MMF diagram technique is a truly universal technique of cogging torque prediction and gives greater insight into many of the methods used for cogging torque minimization.

This paper uses the flux-MMF diagram to compare and contrast the torque production mechanism in seven common types of electric motor. The flux-mmf diagram is a generalized version of the flux-linkage versus current ([Psi]-i) diagram for switched-reluctance motors. It is illustrated for switched-reluctance, synchronous-reluctance, induction, brushless ac, brushless dc, interior PM and dc commutator motors. The calculated flux-MMF diagrams for motors with the same electromagnetic volume, airgap, slotfill, and total copper loss are shown and are used to compare the low-speed torque and torque ripple performance. The motor designs used were reasonably optimized using a combination of commercially available motor CAD packages and finite-element analysis.