Integration of multi-scale biosimulation models via light-weight semantics

Currently, biosimulation researchers use a variety of computational environments and languages to model biological processes. Ideally, researchers should be able to semi- automatically merge models to more effectively build larger, multi-scale models. How- ever, current modeling methods do not capture the underlying semantics of these models sufficiently to support this type of model construction. In this paper, we both propose a general approach to solve this problem, and we provide a specific example that demon- strates the benefits of our methodology. In particular, we describe three biosimulation models: (1) a cardio-vascular fluid dynamics model, (2) a model of heart rate regulation via baroreceptor control, and (3) a sub-cellular-level model of the arteriolar smooth mus- cle. Within a light-weight ontological framework, we leverage reference ontologies to match concepts across models. The light-weight ontology then helps us combine our three models into a merged model that can answer questions beyond the scope of any single model

U.S. Firm outsourcing/offshoring practices and plans: an update

A study of U.S. firm outsourcing and offshoring practices and future plans regarding supply chain activities provides an update for supply chain managers. Specifically, the reported information provides supply chain managers of manufacturing/ merchandising firms with a competitive benchmark; facilitates third party logistics manager strategic planning efforts and provides an input to U.S. transportation planners who determine future transport and infrastructure requirements. The study reports the responses of 151 Chief Purchasing Officers from U.S. firms. Firms are benefiting from outsourcing logistics and production activities and over one-third of the firms plan to increase outsourcing spend. In addition, 60 percent of firms outsource offshore, and of these firms, 41 percent will increase their offshore spending, some by more than 50 percent

Using artificial neural networks for transport decisions: Managerial guidelines

One information technology that may be considered by transportation managers, and which is included in the portfolio of technologies that encompass TMS. is artificial neural networks (ANNs). These artificially intelligent computer decision support software provide solutions by finding and recognizing complex patterns in data. ANNs have been used successfully by transportation managers to forecast transportation demand, estimate future transport costs, schedule vehicles and shipments, route vehicles and classify earners for selection. Artificial neural networks excel in transportation decision environments that are dynamic, complex and unstructured. This article introduces ANNs to transport managers by describing ANN technological capabilities, reporting the current status of transportation neural network applications, presenting ANN applications that offer significant potential for future development and offering managerial guidelines for ANN development

New Evidence of a Post-Laurentide Local Cirque Glacier on Mount Washington, New Hampshire

As global temperatures warmed and the last North American continental ice sheet receded there were several climate reversals during which time mean temperatures in New England were significantly reduced. Decreased temperatures in combination with increased precipitation may have supported the formation or reactivation of local mountain glaciers in pre-existing cirques on Mt. Washington, New Hampshire. Evidence supporting the existence of a local cirque glacier would provide important constraints on climatic conditions during the late-glacial Holocene transition. Preliminary mapping done in the area has identified a potential terminal moraine associated with a local valley glacier in the Great Gulf, the largest cirque-like feature on Mount Washington. The presence of this landform is significant because any pre-Wisconsin evidence of valley glaciers in the Great Gulf would likely have been expunged by the presence of continental ice. In order to determine the origins of the terminal moraine, representative samples of the till composing the moraine were collected by digging five test pits across the feature, sampling ~50 hand-sized stones from each pit, and determining the provenence of individual stones. Results indicate that the landform is composed of unsorted clasts with provenances of both local and regional origin. Clasts sourced within the Great Gulf support the interpretation that they were deposited by processes dependent on the presence of a local mountain glacier during a post-Wisconsin climate reversal. Stones of more distant origins may be attributed to residual till, associated with a continental ice mass that occupied the cirque at the time of local glacier reactivation. This data shows that the landform was deposited from processes taking place within the Great Gulf, and the pronounced topography and volume of the landform would support its interpretation as a terminal moraine. By reconstructing the glacier using the feature as terminus, a paleo-ELA was calculated and climate conditions necessary to promote the growth of an icemass were ascertained. Comparing this climate to the contemporary allows us to evaluate the magnitude of late-Pleistocene climate reversals in the White Mountains

How agricultural cooperatives are taxed (1995)

The development of cooperative tax law represents attempts over the past few decades to bring together a set of tax rules that reflects the reality of, the cooperative business world. The principle sources of cooperative tax law are located in the Internal Revenue Code, which we will call the "Code" in this guide. The sections covering cooperative taxation are Section 521 and Sections 1381-1833 in Subchapter T of the Internal Revenue Code. Corresponding Treasury Regulations are 1.521 and 1.1381-1.1388. This guide presents an overview of how agricultural cooperatives are taxed. Always seek competent tax and legal counsel for specific advice.New 3/86, Reprinted 3/95/5M

Basics of Missouri agricultural cooperatives

In 1983, 105 locally owned agricultural cooperatives operated in Missouri. But although they strongly support the idea of cooperatives, farmers may not fully understand their role in the cooperative or the unique features of cooperatives. They have many questions about members' rights and director and corporate responsibilities. The state cooperative statutes provide a source of authority when dealing with these questions. Missouri has two separate agricultural cooperative statutes: Chapter 274 and Chapter 357 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri. In this guide, we will call a cooperative incorporated under Chapter 274 a '274 cooperative,' and a cooperative incorporated under Chapter 357 a '357 cooperative.' This publication will provide information about certain statutory provisions for agricultural cooperatives.New 3/86, Reprinted 3/95/5M

Member control of cooperatives : what it means and how it is exercised (1995)

One of the fundamental principles of cooperatives is that they are controlled democratically by the members who use them. 'Democratic' is defined as one vote per member, regardless of investment in or volume of business conducted with the cooperative. Farmers have indicated in surveys that they recognize and support the concept. At the same time, however, farmers often charge that cooperatives are not member controlled. This publication was designed to help members and managers understand what control means and how it is exercised.New 4/86, Reprinted 3/95/5M

Secondary succession in an experimentally fragmented landscape: community patterns across space and time

Secondary succession reflects, at least in part, community assembly—the sequences of colonizations and extinctions. These processes in turn are expected to be sensitive to the size of the site undergoing assembly and its location relative to source pools. In this paper we describe patterns of succession over 18 years in an experimentally fragmented landscape created in eastern Kansas, USA, in 1984. The design of the experiment permits one to assess the influence of patch size and landscape position on successional dynamics. The general trajectory of succession follows that typical of succession in much of the eastern United States. In the initial years of the study, there was relatively little effect of patch size or distance to sources. Here we show that spatial effects in this system have become increasingly evident with time, as gauged both by repeated-measures ANOVA and ordination techniques. Woody plants have colonized more rapidly (per unit area) on large and nearby patches. Species richness at a local (within-quadrat) scale in general has increased, with slightly greater richness in large than in small patches later in the study. Temporal stability in community composition has generally been greater in large patches. Spatial heterogeneity in community composition has increased during succession, but with different patterns in large and small patches. This long-term experiment suggests that landscape structure influences many aspects of community structure and dynamics during succession, and that such effects become more pronounced with the passage of time

Landsat Data Continuity Mission - Launch Fever

The year 2013 will be an exciting period for those that study the Earth land surface from space, particularly those that observe and characterize land cover, land use, and the change of cover and use over time. Two new satellite observatories will be launched next year that will enhance capabilities for observing the global land surface. The United States plans to launch the Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM) in January. That event will be followed later in the year by the European Space Agency (ESA) launch of the first Sentinel 2 satellite. Considered together, the two satellites will increase the frequency of opportunities for viewing the land surface at a scale where human impact and influence can be differentiated from natural change. Data from the two satellites will provide images for similar spectral bands and for comparable spatial resolutions with rigorous attention to calibration that will facilitate cross comparisons. This presentation will provide an overview of the LDCM satellite system and report its readiness for the January launch

The alpha1 subunit of the GABA(A) receptor modulates fear learning and plasticity in the lateral amygdala.

Synaptic plasticity in the amygdala is essential for emotional learning. Fear conditioning, for example, depends on changes in excitatory transmission that occur following NMDA receptor activation and AMPA receptor modification in this region. The role of these and other glutamatergic mechanisms have been studied extensively in this circuit while relatively little is known about the contribution of inhibitory transmission. The current experiments addressed this issue by examining the role of the GABA(A) receptor subunit alpha1 in fear learning and plasticity. We first confirmed previous findings that the alpha1 subunit is highly expressed in the lateral nucleus of the amygdala. Consistent with this observation, genetic deletion of this subunit selectively enhanced plasticity in the lateral amygdala and increased auditory fear conditioning. Mice with selective deletion of alpha1 in excitatory cells did not exhibit enhanced learning. Finally, infusion of a alpha1 receptor antagonist into the lateral amygdala selectively impaired auditory fear learning. Together, these results suggest that inhibitory transmission mediated by alpha1-containing GABA(A) receptors plays a critical role in amygdala plasticity and fear learning