Recent Developments: The Uniform Arbitration Act

This Article is an overview of recent court decisions that interpret state versions of the Uniform Arbitration Act ( U.A.A. ).\u27 Arbitration statutes patterned after the U.A.A. have been adopted by thirty-four states and the District of Columbia. The goal of this project is to promote uniformity in the interpretation of the U.A.A. by articulating the underlying policies and rationales of recent court decisions interpreting the U.A.A

Recent Developments: The Uniform Arbitration Act

This Article is an overview of recent court decisions that interpret state versions of the Uniform Arbitration Act ( U.A.A. ).\u27 Arbitration statutes patterned after the U.A.A. have been adopted by thirty-four states and the District of Columbia. The goal of this project is to promote uniformity in the interpretation of the U.A.A. by articulating the underlying policies and rationales of recent court decisions interpreting the U.A.A

The silence of self-knowledge

Gareth Evans famously affirmed an explanatory connection between answering the question whether p and knowing whether one believes that p. This is commonly interpreted in terms of the idea that judging that p constitutes an adequate basis for the belief that one believes that p. This paper formulates and defends an alternative, more modest interpretation, which develops from the suggestion that one can know that one believes that p in judging that p

Gene-Environment Interaction in the Onset of Eczema in Infancy: Filaggrin Loss-of-Function Mutations Enhanced by Neonatal Cat Exposure

Background Loss-of-function variants in the gene encoding filaggrin (FLG) are major determinants of eczema. We hypothesized that weakening of the physical barrier in FLG-deficient individuals may potentiate the effect of environmental exposures. Therefore, we investigated whether there is an interaction between FLG loss-of-function mutations with environmental exposures (pets and dust mites) in relation to the development of eczema. Methods and Findings We used data obtained in early life in a high-risk birth cohort in Denmark and replicated the findings in an unselected birth cohort in the United Kingdom. Primary outcome was age of onset of eczema; environmental exposures included pet ownership and mite and pet allergen levels. In Copenhagen(n = 379), FLG mutation increased the risk of eczema during the first year of life (hazard ratio [HR] 2.26, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.27–4.00, p = 0.005), with a further increase in risk related to cat exposure at birth amongst children with FLG mutation (HR 11.11, 95% CI 3.79–32.60, p < 0.0001); dog exposure was moderately protective (HR 0.49, 95% CI 0.24–1.01, p = 0.05), but not related to FLG genotype. In Manchester (n = 503) an independent and significant association of the development of eczema by age 12 mo with FLG genotype was confirmed (HR 1.95, 95% CI 1.13–3.36, p = 0.02). In addition, the risk increased because of the interaction of cat ownership at birth and FLG genotype (HR 3.82, 95% CI 1.35–10.81, p = 0.01), with no significant effect of the interaction with dog ownership (HR 0.59, 95% CI 0.16–2.20, p = 0.43). Mite-allergen had no effects in either cohort. The observed effects were independent of sensitisation. Conclusions We have demonstrated a significant interaction between FLG loss-of-function main mutations (501x and 2282del4) and cat ownership at birth on the development of early-life eczema in two independent birth cohorts. Our data suggest that cat but not dog ownership substantially increases the risk of eczema within the first year of life in children with FLG loss-of-function variants, but not amongst those without. FLG-deficient individuals may need to avoid cats but not dogs in early life

Are coastal habitats important nurseries? A meta-analysis

Nearshore‐structured habitats—including underwater grasses, mangroves, coral, and other biogenic reefs, marshes, and complex abiotic substrates—have long been postulated to function as important nurseries for juvenile fishes and invertebrates. Here, we review the evolution of the “nursery habitat hypothesis” and use \u3e11,000 comparisons from 160 peer‐reviewed studies to test whether and which structured habitats increase juvenile density, growth, and survival. In general, almost all structured habitats significantly enhanced juvenile density—and in some cases growth and survival—relative to unstructured habitats. Underwater grasses and mangroves also promoted juvenile density and growth beyond what was observed in other structured habitats. These conclusions were robust to variation among studies, although there were significant differences with latitude and among some phyla. Our results confirm the basic nursery function of certain structured habitats, which lends further support to their conservation, restoration, and management at a time when our coastal environments are becoming increasingly impacted. They also reveal a dearth of evidence from many other systems (e.g., kelp forests) and for responses other than density. Although recent studies have advocated for increasingly complex approaches to evaluating nurseries, we recommend a renewed emphasis on more straightforward assessments of juvenile growth, survival, reproduction, and recruitment

A randomized controlled trial of outpatient CAncer REhabilitation for older adults: The CARE Program

Large numbers of older adults (aged 65 years or older) are surviving cancer; however, many survivors report decreased quality of life (QOL) and limitations in activities of daily living (ADL) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) both during and after treatment [1–3]. Occupational and physical therapy (OT/PT) are services focused on improving functional status and QOL that are largely unexplored and underutilized in cancer survivorship care [4, 5]

Dynamically Driven Evolution of the Interstellar Medium in M51

We report the highest-fidelity observations of the spiral galaxy M51 in CO emission, revealing the evolution of giant molecular clouds (GMCs) vis-a-vis the large-scale galactic structure and dynamics. The most massive GMCs (so-called GMAs) are first assembled and then broken up as the gas flow through the spiral arms. The GMAs and their H2 molecules are not fully dissociated into atomic gas as predicted in stellar feedback scenarios, but are fragmented into smaller GMCs upon leaving the spiral arms. The remnants of GMAs are detected as the chains of GMCs that emerge from the spiral arms into interarm regions. The kinematic shear within the spiral arms is sufficient to unbind the GMAs against self-gravity. We conclude that the evolution of GMCs is driven by large-scale galactic dynamics --their coagulation into GMAs is due to spiral arm streaming motions upon entering the arms, followed by fragmentation due to shear as they leave the arms on the downstream side. In M51, the majority of the gas remains molecular from arm entry through the inter-arm region and into the next spiral arm passage.Comment: 6 pages, including 3 figures. Accepted, ApJ

Lifetime determination of excited states in Cd-106

Two separate experiments using the Differential Decay Curve Method have been performed to extract mean lifetimes of excited states in 106 Cd. The inedium-spin states of interest were populated by the Mo-98(C-12, 4n) Cd-106 reaction performed at the Wright Nuclear Structure Lab., Yale University. From this experiment, two isomeric state mean lifetimes have been deduced. The low-lying states were populated by the Mo-96(C-13, 3n)Cd-106 reaction performed at the Institut fur Kernphysik, Universitat zu Koln. The mean lifetime of the I-pi = 2(1)(+) state was deduced, tentatively, as 16.4(9) ps. This value differs from the previously accepted literature value from Coulomb excitation of 10.43(9) ps

Evaluation of a Field-Deployable Reverse Transcription-Insulated Isothermal PCR for Rapid and Sensitive On-Site Detection of Zika Virus

Background: The recent emergence of Zika virus (ZIKV) in Brazil and its precipitous expansion throughout the Americas has highlighted the urgent need for a rapid and reliable on-site diagnostic assay suitable for viral detection. Such point-of-need (PON), low-cost diagnostics are essential for ZIKV control in vulnerable areas with limited resources. Methods: We developed and evaluated a ZIKV-specific field-deployable RT-iiPCR reagent set targeting the E gene for rapid detection of ZIKV in ZIKV-spiked human and mosquito specimens, and compared its performance to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) RT-qPCR assays targeting the E and NS2B genes, respectively. Results: These assays demonstrated exclusive specificity for ZIKV (African and Asian lineages), had limits of detection ranging from 10 to 100 in vitro transcribed RNA copies/μl and detection endpoints at 10 plaque forming units/ml of infectious tissue culture fluid. Analysis of human whole blood, plasma, serum, semen, urine, and mosquito pool samples spiked with ZIKV showed an agreement of 90% (k = 0.80), 92% (k = 0.82), 95% (k = 0.86), 92% (k = 0.81), 90% (k = 0.79), and 100% (k = 1), respectively, between the RT-iiPCR assay and composite results from the reference RT-qPCR assays. Overall, the concurrence between the ZIKV RT-iiPCR and the reference RT-qPCR assays was 92% (k = 0.83). Conclusions: The ZIKV RT-iiPCR has a performance comparable to the reference CDC and PAHO RT-qPCR assays but provides much faster results (~1.5 h) with a field-deployable system that can be utilized as a PON diagnostic with the potential to significantly improve the quality of the health care system in vulnerable areas

The relationship between sensory sensitivity and autistic traits in the general population.

Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs) tend to have sensory processing difficulties (Baranek et al. in J Child Psychol Psychiatry 47:591–601, 2006). These difficulties include over- and under-responsiveness to sensory stimuli, and problems modulating sensory input (Ben-Sasson et al. in J Autism Dev Disorders 39:1–11, 2009). As those with ASD exist at the extreme end of a continuum of autistic traits that is also evident in the general population, we investigated the link between ASD and sensory sensitivity in the general population by administering two questionnaires online to 212 adult participants. Results showed a highly significant positive correlation (r = .775, p &#60; .001) between number of autistic traits and the frequency of sensory processing problems. These data suggest a strong link between sensory processing and autistic traits in the general population, which in turn potentially implicates sensory processing problems in social interaction difficulties