HD-RNAS: An Automated Hierarchical Database of RNA Structures

One of the important goals of most biological investigations is to classify and organize the experimental findings so that they are readily useful for deriving generalized rules. Although there is a huge amount of information on RNA structures in PDB, there are redundant files, ambiguous synthetic sequences etc. Moreover, a systematic hierarchical organization, reflecting RNA classification, is missing in PDB. In this investigation, we have classified all the available RNA structures from PDB through a programmatic approach. Hence, it would be now a simple assignment to regularly update the classification as and when new structures are released. The classification can further determine (i) a non-redundant set of RNA structures and (ii) if available, a set of structures of identical sequence and function, which can highlight structural polymorphism, ligand-induced conformational alterations etc. Presently, we have classified the available structures (2095 PDB entries having RNA chain longer than nine nucleotides solved by X-ray crystallography or NMR spectroscopy) into nine functional classes. The structures of same function and same source are mostly seen to be similar with subtle differences depending on their functional complexation. The web-server is available online at http://www.saha.ac.in/biop/www/HD-RNAS.html and is updated regularly

ORAL RABIES VACCINATION: REDUCING ECONOMIC UNCERTAINTY VIA RESPONSE SURFACE ANALYSIS

Economic uncertainty surrounds the distribution of Raboral V-RG7 as an oral rabies vaccine (ORV) bait for the containment or elimination of raccoon-variant rabies in the United States. This paper describes a costs-savings model of ORV. It also describes Excel XP7 code that was prepared to compute potential net savings (NS) and benefit-cost ratios (BCRs) associated with Raboral V-RG7 bait distributions. Currently, baits and bait distributions are relatively expensive; individual baits are produced at a cost of $1.27 for federal use and typically dispensed at \u3e75 baits/km2. Distribution is estimated at$8.62/km2, $15.80/km2, and$33.30/km2 for fixed-winged (FW), ground (Gnd), and rotary-winged (RW) applications, respectively. Although many assumptions are required, iterative runs of the code allow plotting NS and BCR response surfaces for diverse scenarios based on 6 ORV variables: area (km2), bait-price (US/vaccine bait), bait-density (#/km2), application frequency (n), mode-of-delivery [US for % fixed-winged (FW), % rotarywinged (RW), and % ground-dispensed (Gnd)], and effectiveness (% seropositive titer conversion). Using a raccoon-rabies-epizootic-containment scenario for parts of Pennsylvania and a modest epizootic cost estimate of $40 million, the greatest NS ($6.4 to 38.4 million) and BCR (2.85 to 25.76) indices occurred for a one-time bait distribution involving FW aircraft over a fourth of the state with a $0.90/bait price. As expected, greater reliance on the more expensive RW and Gnd modes of bait distribution compared to FW aircraft, coupled with higher bait prices and higher bait densities, decreased NS and BCR indices. The utility of the approach to economic forecasting and decision making of ORV effects are discussed

Tactics and Economics of Wildlife Oral Rabies Vaccination, Canada and the United States

Progressive elimination of rabies in wildlife has been a general strategy in Canada and the United States; common campaign tactics are trap–vaccinate–release (TVR), point infection control (PIC), and oral rabies vaccination (ORV). TVR and PIC are labor intensive and the most expensive tactics per unit area (≈$616/km2 [in 2008 Can$, converted from the reported $450/km2 in 1991 Can$] and ≈$612/km2 [$500/km2 in 1999 Can$], respectively), but these tactics have proven crucial to elimination of raccoon rabies in Canada and to maintenance of ORV zones for preventing the spread of raccoon rabies in the United States. Economic assessments have shown that during rabies epizootics, costs of human post-exposure prophylaxis, pet vaccination, public health, and animal control spike. Modeling studies, involving diverse assumptions, have shown that ORV programs can be cost-efficient and yield benefit:cost ratios \u3e1.0

A Workshop on Using NASA AIRS Data to Monitor Drought for the U.S. Drought Monitor

Recent studies indicate that drought indicators based on near-surface air relative humidity (RH), air temperature (T), and air vapor pressure deficit (VPD), derived from the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) instrument aboard NASA’s Aqua satellite can detect the onset of drought earlier than other drought indicators, specifically standardized precipitation index (SPI), which is widely used for drought onset detection. A recent study showed that standardized relative humidity index (SRHI) can detect drought signals earlier than SPI (Farahmand et al. 2015). Relative humidity is a climate variable defined as the ratio of air vapor pressure to saturated vapor pressure. Precipitation and relative humidity are related to each other in the sense that significant precipitation is not expected at low relative humidity. SRHI detected drought onset earlier or at the same time as SPI with a global average of approximately 0.6 (i.e., 60% of all events) and the mean lead time of 1.9 months. Also, SRHI successfully detected the early signs of the 2012 Midwestern drought, the 2011 Texas drought, and the 2010 Russian drought (Farahmand et al. 2015). In another study, standardized vapor pressure deficit (SVPD) and standardized temperature (ST) indicators from the AIRS mission have been shown to detect drought earlier or at the same time as SPI with an average lead time of 1.5 months and in 60% of events in the CONUS (Behrangi et al. 2016). VPD is an important climate variable, incorporating elements of both temperature and relative humidity. VPD is also a major controlling factor of evapotranspiration demand. With increasing air aridity, VPD increases which in turn indicates greater evaporation stress. Studies show that VPD reported increases during the formation and rapid intensification of drought conditions during the 2011 and 2012 drought events, suggesting that remotely sensed VPD holds considerable potential for drought early warning and assessment (Behrangi et al. 2015; Farahmand et al. 2021)

Editorial: special issues in Business History

No abstract available

Experiments in farmers' collectives in Eastern India and Nepal: Process, benefits, and challenges

Do farmers' collectives, which pool land, labour, capital, and skills to create medium-sized production units, offer a more viable model of farming for resource-constrained smallholders than individual family farms? A participatory action research project in Eastern India and Nepal provides notable answers. Groups of marginal and tenant farmers, catalysed by the project, evolved into four different collective models with varying levels of cooperation, gender composition, and land ownership/tenancy status. Based on 3 years of action research, this paper examines how the models evolved and their differential outcomes. All groups have gained from cultivating contiguous plots in their efficiency of labour and machine use for land preparation and irrigation, and from economies in input purchase. Several collectives of tenant farmers have also enhanced their bargaining power vis-a-vis an entrenched landlord class and thus been able to negotiate lower rents and refuse long-standing feudal obligations. However, the models differ in their extent of economic gain and their ability to handle gender inequalities and conflicts over labour sharing. The paper explores the historical, regional, and cultural factors that could explain such differences across the models. It thus offers unique insights into the processes, benefits, and challenges of farmers' collectives and provides pointers for replication and further research

Editorial

With the first issue of the 56th volume of Business History, a new editorial team has taken over responsibility for direction and management of the journal. Led by executive editor Ray Stokes (University of Glasgow), the team includes as co-editors Andrea Colli (Bocconi University), Stephanie Decker (Aston University), Paloma Fernández Pérez (University of Barcelona), Abe de Jong (Erasmus University Rotterdam) and Neil Rollings (University of Glasgow), who will also serve as deputy editor. In addition, the book review editorship has been expanded. Joining Kevin Tennent (York University), who has acted as sole book review editor over the past years, will be Veronica Binda (Bocconi University). Veronica Binda will be primarily responsible for books published in, or reviewed by, authors from Italy, Spain, France, and Portugal

An Open Source Software Culture in the Undergraduate Computer Science Curriculum

Open source software has made inroads into mainstream computing where it was once the territory of software altruists, and the open source culture of technological collegiality and accountability may benefit education as well as industry. This paper describes the Recourse project, which seeks to transform the computer science undergraduate curriculum through teaching methods based on open source principles, values, ethics, and tools. Recourse differs from similar projects by bringing the open source culture into the curriculum comprehensively, systematically, and institutionally. The current state of the project is described, and initial results from a pilot exercise are presented