Reputational Externality and Self-Regulation

Professional associations and other producer groups often complain that their reputation is damaged by other groups providing a similar but lower-quality service and that the latter should be regulated. We examine the conditions under which a common regulatory regime can induce Pareto-improvements by creating a common reputation for quality among heterogeneous producers, when the regulator cannot commit to a given quality. A common reputation can be created only if the groups are not too different and if marginal cost is declining. High cost groups and small groups benefit most from forming a common regime

William Morris and the Study of Material Culture

Bibliography/Essa

A Phylogenetic Analysis of the African Plant Genus Palisota (family Commelinaceae) based on Chloroplast DNA Sequences

The plant genus Palisota (family Commelinaceae, or spiderwort family) consists of approximately 20 species and is distributed throughout the forests of tropical Africa. The genus exhibits several unusual morphological characteristics, and as a result has been difficult to classify based on morphology. Molecular phylogenetic studies have placed it near the base of Commelinaceae, but the exact placement of Palisota within the family is not clear. As the African continent has become more arid in recent geological times, the forests have receded, reducing the habitat for Palisota species and potentially impacting speciation and extinction rates within the genus. The goal of this study is to sequence the chloroplast-encoded gene rbcL in several additional species of Palisota and its relatives in order to: 1) determine the phylogenetic relationship of the genus with respect to other members of Commelinaceae; 2) evaluate phylogenentic relationships among species of Palisota; and 3) infer relative speciation/extinction rates within the genus. Additionally, we are exploring the use of other molecular regions for phylogenetic analysis with the genus

Activity Analysis of the Fragile X Mental Retardation Protein Isoforms 1, 2 and 3: Recombinant Bacterial Expression and Purification with Subsequent Quantitative Analysis of Binding to in vivo Target G quadruplex Forming Ribonucleaic Acids and Regulation of Translation

The loss of expression of the fragile X mental retardation protein (FMRP) leads to fragile X syndrome. Fragile X syndrome is the most prevalent inheritable mental retardation. FMRP has two types of RNA binding domains, two K-homology domains and an arginine-glycine-glycine box domain, and is proposed to act as a translation regulator of specific mRNA. Despite extensive research, the mechanism by which FMRP loss leads to the fragile X syndrome remains unclear. Thus, there is high interest to produce sufficient quantities of pure recombinant FMRP for biochemical and biophysical studies of the protein function. However, the recombinant bacterial expression of FMRP has had limited success, and subsequent recombinant eukaryotic and in vitro systems may produce FMRP which is posttranslationally modified, as phosphorylation and arginine methylation have been shown to occur on FMRP. In this study, we have successfully isolated the conditions for recombinant expression, purification and dialysis of full-length FMRP using Escherichia coli, with a high yield. The expression of FMRP using E. coli renders the protein devoid of the posttranslational modifications of phosphorylation and arginine methylation, allowing for the further study of the direct effects of these modifications individually and simultaneously. Additionally, FMRP has been shown to undergo alternative splicing, with one of the splicing sites in close proximity to the FMRP domain shown to be involved in binding G quadruplex mRNA with high affinity and specificity. We have analyzed how naturally occurring truncations in the FMRP sequence affect its RNA binding affinity, by applying the expression, purification and dialysis process to the second and third longest FMRP isoforms, followed by subsequent analysis of the G quadruplex mRNA binding properties by fluorescence spectroscopy. Our results show that as FMRP gets truncated by alternative splicing, its mRNA binding affinity increases. To test a model we proposed for FMRP translation regulation activity, we developed a luciferase reporter gene construct that contains the G quadruplex structure in the mRNA 5\u27-untranslated region. Using luminescence spectroscopy to analyze luciferase translation, we showed that low levels of full-length FMRP reduces luciferase translation, and as the concentration of full-length FMRP increases the luciferase translation increases

Toward Critical Theory for Public Folklore: An Annotated Bibliography

Resource

Swallowing Mexico without any grease : The absence of controversy over the feasibility of annexing all Mexico, 1847--1848

This study contributes to the historiography of the all Mexico movement by showing that America\u27s ability to annex its southern neighbor was never a part of the all Mexico debate. The thesis argues that common American perceptions of the United States and Mexico during the Mexican-American War undermined any grounds on which to challenge the achievability of annexation. Chapter I shows that no politician, regardless of his stance on the value of absorbing Mexico, questioned the feasibility of doing so. Chapter II then demonstrates that portrayals of the United States and Mexico in American newspapers supported confidence in the American ability to dominate its enemy. Finally, chapter III reveals that even American soldiers who came face to face with the realities of the occupation held similar perceptions and shared the common confidence in American capability