A dynamic systems approach to infant facial action

Journal ArticleWhat does it mean when a baby smiles? Is it an expression of enjoyment, a signal to a partner that rewards effective caretaking, or simply a muscular contraction? Do physically different types of smiles indicate different things? Should the social context in which an infant smiles inform our understanding of the smile? To address these questions, we apply insights and ideas from a dynamic systems perspective to anatomical, social interactive, and neurophysiological data on the development of infant facial action (Fogel, 1993; Fogel & Thelen, 1987; Thelen, 1995; Thelen & Smith, 1994)

Polarization Properties of A Broadband Multi-Moded Concentrator

We present the design and performance of a non-imaging concentrator for use in broad-band polarimetry at millimeter through submillimeter wavelengths. A rectangular geometry preserves the input polarization state as the concentrator couples f/2 incident optics to a 2pi sr detector. Measurements of the co-polar and cross-polar beams in both the few-mode and highly over-moded limits agree with a simple model based on mode truncation. The measured co-polar beam pattern is nearly independent of frequency in both linear polarizations. The cross-polar beam pattern is dominated by a uniform term corresponding to polarization efficiency 94%. After correcting for efficiency, the remaining cross-polar response is -18 dB

The characterisation of AOP2: a gene associated with the biosynthesis of aliphatic alkenyl glucosinolates in Arabidopsis thaliana

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Glucosinolates, a group of nitrogen and sulfur containing compounds associated with plant-insect interactions, are produced by a number of important <it>Brassicaceae </it>crop species. In <it>Arabidopsis </it>the <it>AOP2 </it>gene plays a role in the secondary modification of aliphatic (methionine-derived) glucosinolates, namely the conversion of methylsulfinylalkyl glucosinolates to form alkenyl glucosinolates, and also influences aliphatic glucosinolate accumulation.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>This study characterises the primary structural variation in the coding sequences of the <it>AOP2 </it>gene and identifies three different <it>AOP2 </it>alleles based on polymorphisms in exon two. To help determine the regulatory mechanisms mediating <it>AOP2 </it>expression amongst accessions, <it>AOP2 </it>5' regulatory regions were also examined however no major differences were identified. Expression of the <it>AOP2 </it>gene was found to be most abundant in leaf and stem tissue and was also found to be light dependent, with a number of light regulatory elements identified in the promoter region of the gene. In addition, a study was undertaken to demonstrate that the <it>Arabidopsis AOP2 </it>gene product is functional <it>in planta</it>. The over-expression of a functional <it>AOP2 </it>allele was found to successfully convert the precursor methylsulfinyl alkyl glucosinolate into the alkenyl form.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The expression of the <it>AOP2 </it>gene has been found to be influenced by light and is most highly expressed in the photosynthetic parts of the <it>Arabidopsis </it>plant. The level of <it>AOP2 </it>transcript decreases rapidly in the absence of light. <it>AOP2 </it>exists as at least three alleles in different <it>Arabidopsis </it>accessions and we have demonstrated that one of these, <it>AOP2-2</it>, is functionally able to convert methylsulfinyl glucosinolates into the alkenyl form. The demonstration of the <it>in planta </it>functionality of the <it>Arabisopsis AOP2 </it>gene is an important step in determining the feasibility of engineering glucosinolate profiles in food plants.</p

A preliminary characterization of the spatial variability of precipitation at Yucca Mountain, Nevada

Isohyetal maps of precipitation and numerical models for simulating precipitation are needed to characterize natural infiltration at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. The objective of this study was to characterize the spatial variability of precipitation within the domain of the natural catchments overlying the potential repository, and to define preliminary geostatistical models based on differences in storm type for the numerical simulation of precipitation

Generation and Characterization of Anti-AA Amyloid-Specific Monoclonal Antibodies

AA amyloidosis results from the pathologic deposition in the kidneys and other organs of fibrils composed of N-terminal fragments of serum amyloid A protein (SAA). Given that there are only limited means to visualize these deposits, we have developed a series of mAbs, 2A4, 7D8, and 8G9, that bind specifically with nanomolar affinity to a carboxy-terminal epitope generated following proteolysis of SAA that yields the predominant component of AA amyloid deposits. Notably, these antibodies do not recognize native SAA, they retain their immunoreactivity when radiolabeled with I-125 and, after injection into AA amyloidotic mice, localize, as evidenced by autoradiography and micro-single photon emission computed tomography imaging, to histologically confirmed areas of amyloid deposition; namely, spleen, liver, and pancreas. The results of our in vitro and in vivo studies demonstrate the AA fibril-selectivity of mAbs 2A4, 7D8, and 8G9 and warrant further investigation into their role as novel diagnostic agents for patients with AA amyloidosis

Determinants of Discard of Expanded Criteria Donor Kidneys: Impact of Biopsy and Machine Perfusion

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/73820/1/j.1600-6143.2008.02157.x.pd

The Primordial Inflation Polarization Explorer (PIPER)

The Primordial Inflation Polarization Explorer (PIPER) is a balloon-borne cosmic microwave background (CMB) polarimeter designed to search for evidence of inflation by measuring the large-angular scale CMB polarization signal. BICEP2 recently reported a detection of B-mode power corresponding to the tensor-to-scalar ratio r = 0.2 on ~2 degree scales. If the BICEP2 signal is caused by inflationary gravitational waves (IGWs), then there should be a corresponding increase in B-mode power on angular scales larger than 18 degrees. PIPER is currently the only suborbital instrument capable of fully testing and extending the BICEP2 results by measuring the B-mode power spectrum on angular scales $\theta$ = ~0.6 deg to 90 deg, covering both the reionization bump and recombination peak, with sensitivity to measure the tensor-to-scalar ratio down to r = 0.007, and four frequency bands to distinguish foregrounds. PIPER will accomplish this by mapping 85% of the sky in four frequency bands (200, 270, 350, 600 GHz) over a series of 8 conventional balloon flights from the northern and southern hemispheres. The instrument has background-limited sensitivity provided by fully cryogenic (1.5 K) optics focusing the sky signal onto four 32x40-pixel arrays of time-domain multiplexed Transition-Edge Sensor (TES) bolometers held at 140 mK. Polarization sensitivity and systematic control are provided by front-end Variable-delay Polarization Modulators (VPMs), which rapidly modulate only the polarized sky signal at 3 Hz and allow PIPER to instantaneously measure the full Stokes vector (I, Q, U, V) for each pointing. We describe the PIPER instrument and progress towards its first flight.Comment: 11 pages, 7 figures. To be published in Proceedings of SPIE Volume 9153. Presented at SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation 2014, conference 915

Wet scavenging of soluble gases in DC3 deep convective storms using WRF-Chem simulations and aircraft observations

We examine wet scavenging of soluble trace gases in storms observed during the Deep Convective Clouds and Chemistry (DC3) field campaign. We conduct high-resolution simulations with the Weather Research and Forecasting model with Chemistry (WRF-Chem) of a severe storm in Oklahoma. The model represents well the storm location, size, and structure as compared with Next Generation Weather Radar reflectivity, and simulated CO transport is consistent with aircraft observations. Scavenging efficiencies (SEs) between inflow and outflow of soluble species are calculated from aircraft measurements and model simulations. Using a simple wet scavenging scheme, we simulate the SE of each soluble species within the error bars of the observations. The simulated SEs of all species except nitric acid (HNO_3) are highly sensitive to the values specified for the fractions retained in ice when cloud water freezes. To reproduce the observations, we must assume zero ice retention for formaldehyde (CH_2O) and hydrogen peroxide (H_2O_2) and complete retention for methyl hydrogen peroxide (CH_3OOH) and sulfur dioxide (SO_2), likely to compensate for the lack of aqueous chemistry in the model. We then compare scavenging efficiencies among storms that formed in Alabama and northeast Colorado and the Oklahoma storm. Significant differences in SEs are seen among storms and species. More scavenging of HNO_3 and less removal of CH_3OOH are seen in storms with higher maximum flash rates, an indication of more graupel mass. Graupel is associated with mixed-phase scavenging and lightning production of nitrogen oxides (NO_x), processes that may explain the observed differences in HNO_3 and CH_3OOH scavenging