Introducing spatial information into predictive NF-kappa B modelling - an agent-based approach

Nature is governed by local interactions among lower-level sub-units, whether at the cell, organ, organism, or colony level. Adaptive system behaviour emerges via these interactions, which integrate the activity of the sub-units. To understand the system level it is necessary to understand the underlying local interactions. Successful models of local interactions at different levels of biological organisation, including epithelial tissue and ant colonies, have demonstrated the benefits of such 'agent-based' modelling [1-4]. Here we present an agent-based approach to modelling a crucial biological system the intracellular NF-kappa B signalling pathway. The pathway is vital to immune response regulation, and is fundamental to basic survival in a range of species [5-7]. Alterations in pathway regulation underlie a variety of diseases, including atherosclerosis and arthritis. Our modelling of individual molecules, receptors and genes provides a more comprehensive outline of regulatory network mechanisms than previously possible with equation-based approaches [8]. The method also permits consideration of structural parameters in pathway regulation; here we predict that inhibition of NF-kappa B is directly affected by actin filaments of the cytoskeleton sequestering excess inhibitors, therefore regulating steady-state and feedback behaviour

Synopsis of current satellite snow mapping techniques, with emphasis on the application of near-infrared data

The Skylab EREP S192 Multispectral Scanner data have provided for the first time an opportunity to examine the reflectance characteristics of snowcover in several spectral bands extending from the visible into the near-infrared spectral region. The analysis of the S192 imagery and digital tape data indicates a sharp drop in reflectance of snow in the near-infrared, with snow becoming essentially nonreflective in Bands 11 (1.55-1.75 micron) and 12 (2.10-2.35 micron). Two potential applications to snow mapping of measurements in the near-infrared spectral region are possible: (1) the use of a near-infrared band in conjunction with a visible band to distinguish automatically between snow and water droplet clouds; and (2) the use of one or more near-infrared bands to detect areas of melting snow

ANALYSIS OF FOOD STAMP PROGRAM PARTICIPATION AND FOOD EXPENDITURES

A two equation model is developed to examine jointly the determinants of household food stamp program participation and program effects on food expenditures. The model is unique in that it postulates that the participation decision is based on a cost-benefit ratio, selected socioeconomic characteristics, and the potential for increasing both food and nonfood expenditures. Data from the 1977-78 USDA Nationwide Food Consumption Survey Supplemental Low Income Sample is used to estimate the model. Findings suggest that households, in making the participation decision place equal value on the potential for increasing their food and nonfood expenditures. However, at the margin, bonus stamp income is found to have more than twice the impact of money income on food expenditures. The model's potential for policy analysis is also examined.Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety,

BOX-COX TRANSFORMATIONS AND ERROR TERM SPECIFICATION IN DEMAND MODELS

This paper analyzes the influence of error-term specification and functional form on a quarterly demand model for beef. The Box-Cox transformation is used to generalize the functional form while the equation error term is postulated to be both heteroskedastic and autoregressive. Results indicated that both functional form and error-term specification can play a major role in elasticity estimation, elasticity behavior, and hypothesis testing.Demand and Price Analysis,

AN ALTERNATIVE APPROACH TO DEFINING AND ASSESSING POVERTY THRESHOLDS

This paper introduces a new method for defining poverty lines based on an individual' s self-evaluation of the household's present situation. The proposed method focuses on the minimum household income necessary to purchase food supplies evaluated by society to be barely adequate. The method is especially useful for evaluation and comparing poverty thresholds derived from different methods. It is also valuable for comparing the official U.S. poverty guidelines across households of different sizes. The approach can be extended to include estimation of thresholds differentiated by various household characteristics and comparison of thresholds across these characteristics.Food Security and Poverty,

Rising Infant Formula Costs to the WIC Program: Recent Trends in Rebates and Wholesale Prices

The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) provides participating infants with free infant formula. This study estimated that between 57 and 68 percent of all infant formula sold in the United States was purchased through WIC, based on 2004-06 data, and that formula costs to the WIC program have increased. Typically, WIC State agencies receive substantial rebates from manufacturers for each can of formula provided through the program. Each WIC State agency, or group of agencies, awards a contract to the manufacturer offering the lowest net wholesale price, defined as the difference between the manufacturer’s wholesale price and the State agency’s rebate. After adjusting for inflation, net wholesale prices increased by an average 73 percent for 26 fluid ounces of reconstituted formula between States’ contracts in effect in December 2008 and the States’ previous contracts. Most (72 percent) of the increase in real net wholesale prices was due to higher wholesale prices, the rest (28 percent) was due to lower rebates. As a result of the increase in real net wholesale prices, WIC paid about $127 million more for infant formula over the course of a year.Infant formula, Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children, WIC, infant formula maximum daily allowance, Economic Research Service (ERS), U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural and Food Policy,

Review of \u3ci\u3eWill Rogers: A Biography\u3c/i\u3e By Ben Yagoda

Ben Yagoda has produced an excellent biography of Oklahoma\u27s Will Rogers, the All American Common Man who spoke for the dispossessed and lowly, while poking fun at the rich and powerful. Yet what helps make Yagoda\u27s study a good one may well cause controversy. Most of the previous works on Will Rogers, perhaps even my own, have tended to let him evolve into a legendary, almost mythical, character, glorifying his saintly virtues and ignoring his vices. Will represented an old West where manly virtues abounded. Born the son of an Indian rancher, he grew up in the Cattle Kingdom that flourished on the Great Plains and areas on its periphery. He even knew the outlaws who once raided his father\u27s ranch. Will also acquired all the skills of a real cowboy, including riding, roping, and branding, in addition to learning how to care for stock. He knew how to work and work hard; he was faithful, loyal, true, and god-fearing. He committed no wrongs. Yet as Yagoda makes clear, Rogers was but a man. During his days performing with Wild West shows in his early adult years, for example, Rogers and some of his co-stars would get all booze[dl up ... and they\u27d ride in an automobile up and down the streets, whooping and yelling like prairie wolves at a kill. ... They took in all the leg shows, drank everything in sight, and prized up hell in general whenever the notion struck them. Yagoda also says that Will was quite a lady\u27s man before his marriage to Betty Blake, his first and only wife. In addition to correcting the record about a less-than-saintly Will, the author provides the balanced coverage of the entertainer\u27s private and public lives that one expects in a good biography. And in Yagoda\u27s account the real Rogers still shines through as a great man but one with a more human face. The author\u27s research appears to be impeccable. He mined all of the most important primary and secondary works on Will, including Oklahoma State University\u27s twenty-one volume series on the writings of Will Rogers. Overall, Yagoda\u27s work is a grand one that should be studied by all who want to know more about the real Will Rogers

Preliminary report on the cytology of molluscan nerve cells

n/

The Effects of Negative Publicity on the Performance of Professional Baseball Athletes.

This study researched the effects of negative publicity on the performance of professional baseball athletes. Four athletes’ performance statistics were evaluated before a scandal that produced negative publicity, during the height of the negative publicity and after the scrutiny tapered off. Chipper Jones, Wade Boggs, Alex Rodriguez and David Justice were the athletes chosen for the study, and all four athletes experienced a similar scandal and negative publicity about their personal and professional lives. The results showed an effect on performance, but it was not always negative and could not be definitively linked to the negative exposure in the media. This suggests that further research is needed and should be continued on a broader scale