The Sm domain is an ancient RNA-binding motif with oligo(U) specificity

Sm and Sm-like proteins are members of a family of small proteins that is widespread throughout eukaryotic kingdoms. These proteins form heteromers with one another and bind, as heteromeric complexes, to various RNAs, recognizing primarily short U-rich stretches. Interestingly, completion of several genome projects revealed that archaea also contain genes that may encode Sm-like proteins. Herein, we studied the properties of one Sm-like protein derived from the archaebacterium Archaeoglobus fulgidus and overexpressed in Escherichia coli. This single small protein closely reflects the properties of an Sm or Sm-like protein heteromer. It binds to RNA with a high specificity for oligo(U), and assembles onto the RNA to form a complex that exhibits, as judged by electron microscopy, a ring-like structure similar to the ones observed with the Sm core ribonucleoprotein and the like Sm (LSm) protein heteromer. Importantly, multivariate statistical analysis of negative-stain electron-microscopic images revealed a sevenfold symmetry for the observed ring structure, indicating that the proteins form a homoheptamer. These results support the structural model of the Sm proteins derived from crystallographic studies on Sm heterodimers and demonstrate that the Sm protein family evolved from a single ancestor that was present before the eukaryotic and archaeal kingdoms separated.

Statistical tests of load-unload response ratio signals by lattice solid model: Implication to tidal triggering and earthquake prediction

Statistical tests of Load-Unload Response Ratio (LURR) signals are carried in order to verify statistical robustness of the previous studies using the Lattice Solid Model (MORA et al., 2002b). In each case 24 groups of samples with the same macroscopic parameters (tidal perturbation amplitude A, period T and tectonic loading rate k) but different particle arrangements are employed. Results of uni-axial compression experiments show that before the normalized time of catastrophic failure, the ensemble average LURR value rises significantly, in agreement with the observations of high LURR prior to the large earthquakes. In shearing tests, two parameters are found to control the correlation between earthquake occurrence and tidal stress. One is, A/(kT) controlling the phase shift between the peak seismicity rate and the peak amplitude of the perturbation stress. With an increase of this parameter, the phase shift is found to decrease. Another parameter, AT/k, controls the height of the probability density function (Pdf) of modeled seismicity. As this parameter increases, the Pdf becomes sharper and narrower, indicating a strong triggering. Statistical studies of LURR signals in shearing tests also suggest that except in strong triggering cases, where LURR cannot be calculated due to poor data in unloading cycles, the larger events are more likely to occur in higher LURR periods than the smaller ones, supporting the LURR hypothesis.

Earthquake statistics in a Block Slider Model and a fully dynamic Fault Model

We examine the event statistics obtained from two differing simplified models for earthquake faults. The first model is a reproduction of the Block-Slider model of Carlson et al. (1991), a model often employed in seismicity studies. The second model is an elastodynamic fault model based upon the Lattice Solid Model (LSM) of Mora and Place (1994). We performed simulations in which the fault length was varied in each model and generated synthetic catalogs of event sizes and times. From these catalogs, we constructed interval event size distributions and inter-event time distributions. The larger, localised events in the Block-Slider model displayed the same scaling behaviour as events in the LSM however the distribution of inter-event times was markedly different. The analysis of both event size and inter-event time statistics is an effective method for comparative studies of differing simplified models for earthquake faults.

Implementation of particle-scale rotation in the 3-d Lattice Solid Model

In this study, 3-D Lattice Solid Model (LSMearth or LSM) was extended by introducing particle-scale rotation. In the new model, for each 3-D particle, we introduce six degrees of freedom: Three for translational motion, and three for orientation. Six kinds of relative motions are permitted between two neighboring particles, and six interactions are transferred, i.e., radial, two shearing forces, twisting and two bending torques. By using quaternion algebra, relative rotation between two particles is decomposed into two sequence-independent rotations such that all interactions due to the relative motions between interactive rigid bodies can be uniquely decided. After incorporating this mechanism and introducing bond breaking under torsion and bending into the LSM, several tests on 2-D and 3-D rock failure under uni-axial compression are carried out. Compared with the simulations without the single particle rotational mechanism, the new simulation results match more closely experimental results of rock fracture and hence, are encouraging. Since more parameters are introduced, an approach for choosing the new parameters is presented.

Parallel 3D Simulation of a Fault Gouge using the Lattice Solid Model

Despite the insight gained from 2-D particle models, and given that the dynamics of crustal faults occur in 3-D space, the question remains, how do the 3-D fault gouge dynamics differ from those in 2-D? Traditionally, 2-D modeling has been preferred over 3-D simulations because of the computational cost of solving 3-D problems. However, modern high performance computing architectures, combined with a parallel implementation of the Lattice Solid Model (LSM), provide the opportunity to explore 3-D fault micro-mechanics and to advance understanding of effective constitutive relations of fault gouge layers. In this paper, macroscopic friction values from 2-D and 3-D LSM simulations, performed on an SGI Altix 3700 super-cluster, are compared. Two rectangular elastic blocks of bonded particles, with a rough fault plane and separated by a region of randomly sized non-bonded gouge particles, are sheared in opposite directions by normally-loaded driving plates. The results demonstrate that the gouge particles in the 3-D models undergo significant out-of-plane motion during shear. The 3-D models also exhibit a higher mean macroscopic friction than the 2-D models for varying values of interparticle friction. 2-D LSM gouge models have previously been shown to exhibit accelerating energy release in simulated earthquake cycles, supporting the Critical Point hypothesis. The 3-D models are shown to also display accelerating energy release, and good fits of power law time-to-failure functions to the cumulative energy release are obtained.

A comparative study of bayesian models for unsupervised sentiment detection

This paper presents a comparative study of three closely related Bayesian models for unsupervised document level sentiment classification, namely, the latent sentiment model (LSM), the joint sentiment-topic (JST) model, and the Reverse-JST model. Extensive experiments have been conducted on two corpora, the movie review dataset and the multi-domain sentiment dataset. It has been found that while all the three models achieve either better or comparable performance on these two corpora when compared to the existing unsupervised sentiment classification approaches, both JST and Reverse-JST are able to extract sentiment-oriented topics. In addition, Reverse-JST always performs worse than JST suggesting that the JST model is more appropriate for joint sentiment topic detection.

A simplified implementation of the least squares solution for pairwise comparisons matrices

This is a follow up to "Solution of the least squares method problem of pairwise comparisons matrix" by Bozóki published by this journal in 2008. Familiarity with this paper is essential and assumed. For lower inconsistency and decreased accuracy, our proposed solutions run in seconds instead of days. As such, they may be useful for researchers willing to use the least squares method (LSM) instead of the geometric means (GM) method.

Solving the Least Squares Method problem in the AHP for 3 X 3 and 4 X 4 matrices

The Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) is one of the most popular methods used in Multi-Attribute Decision Making. The Eigenvector Method (EM) and some distance minimizing methods such as the Least Squares Method (LSM) are of the possible tools for computing the priorities of the alternatives. A method for generating all the solutions of the LSM problem for 3 × 3 and 4 × 4 matrices is discussed in the paper. Our algorithms are based on the theory of resultants.

Solution of the Least Squares Method problem of pairwise comparison matrices

The aim of the paper is to present a new global optimization method for determining all the optima of the Least Squares Method (LSM) problem of pairwise comparison matrices. Such matrices are used, e.g., in the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). Unlike some other distance minimizing methods, LSM is usually hard to solve because of the corresponding nonlinear and non-convex objective function. It is found that the optimization problem can be reduced to solve a system of polynomial equations. Homotopy method is applied which is an efficient technique for solving nonlinear systems. The paper ends by two numerical example having multiple global and local minima.

A influência da relevância social no viés de grupo

Behaviors found in every culture, general human tendencies, are knew in Evolutionary Psychology as evolved psychological mechanisms. Those behaviors date back the Environment of Evolutionary Adaptedness, and a well know example of such behavior is the group bias (or intergroup bias). This bias consists of recognizing members of your own group and favor them, while disregarding or even harming outsiders. This behavior was and still is extensively studies, among the most important conclusions about this phenomenon is the Minimal Groups Paradigm, in which it was discovered that the group bias could trigger even when the groupings were done in following very arbitrary criteria. In the current study, our goal was to test if the participants, when playing an economic game, would behave in a similar fashion under a minimal group situation and real groups, with social meaning. With this in mind we made two experimental conditions, a Low Social Meaning one (LSM) where the groups were represented by letters (H, B, O and Y) in which participants would be ramdomly assorted to each group; and the High Social Meaning condition (HSM) in which religion was used as a group marker, containing the two most dominating religious groups in Brazil, catholic and evangelic, another group containing all the other affiliations e the fourth and last group representing atheists and agnostics. The ratio of donations in-group/out-group was roughly the same across both conditions. However, the amount of wafers donated to ingroup was significantly bigger in the HSM condition. By verifying which aspects of the individual best predicted the observed group bias, we discovered that the in-group Entitativity perception as well as the Group Identification were the most relevant variables, however, only in the HSM condition. Simultaneously, by verifying the generosity, biased or not, we observed that the agreeableness personality factor was the only variable able to predict it, and only in the LSM condition. We conclude that our generosity, or the lack of it, is for most part defined by our personality, the Agreeableness factor in particular. But this very generosity can be biased by the social meaning of the involved groups and that, if the social meaning is big enough, even people who, thanks to their personality, normally wouldn’t show generosity, are able to do so when the receiver is an in-group member.

Fabrication and characterization of SSZ tape cast electrolyte-supported solid oxide fuel cells

A 10 mol%Sc₂O₃, 1 mol%CeO₂ stabilized-ZrO₂ (SSZ) powder was successfully prepared using the sol-gel method. Subsequent SSZ electrolyte pellets were prepared by tape casting technique and sintered at 1400 °C, 1450 °C, 1500 °C, 1550 °C and 1600 °C. These were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). SSZ showed a pure cubic phase after sintering, the grain size of SSZ increased with the increase of sintering temperature. The SSZ sintered at 1550 °C showed the highest ion conductivity. The maximum power densities of Ni-SSZ/SSZ/La_0.8Sr_0.2MnO_3-δ (LSM)-SSZ single cells sintered at 1550 °C were 0.18, 0.36, 0.51 and 0.72 W cm^-2 at 650, 700, 750 and 800 °C, respectively. The polarization resistance (R_p) of the single cell attained 0.201 Ω cm² at 800 °C.

Literacia em saúde mental acerca da depressão e abuso de álcool de adolescentes e jovens Portugueses

RESUMO Objetivo: Este estudo tem como objetivos comparar a literacia em saúde mental dos adolescentes e jovens portugueses, relativamente à depressão e ao abuso de álcool e analisar o padrão de respostas em termos de consistência e concordância para ambas as perturbações. Método: A amostra é constituída por 4938 adolescentes e jovens, 43,0% do sexo masculino e 56,7% do sexo feminino, com uma média de idades de 16,75 anos (desvio padrão = 1,62 anos), que frequentam as escolas do 3.º ciclo do ensino básico e do ensino secundário, pertencentes à Direção Regional de Educação do Centro. Para a colheita de dados foi utilizado o QuALiSMental (LSM). Resultados: Os resultados revelam um nível de LSM modesto na generalidade das componentes. Ainda que se encontrem diferenças estatisticamente significativas (p < 0,05) em 88,0% dos itens da LSM, o que indicia diferentes formas de encarar ambos os problemas de saúde mental, os resultados revelam consistência, em termos das componentes conhecimentos e competências para prestar a primeira ajuda e apoio aos outros e conhecimentos acerca do modo de prevenção das perturbações mentais. ABSTRACT Objectives: This study aims to compare mental health literacy of adolescents and young Portuguese in what concerns depression and alcohol abuse and analyzes the pattern of responses in terms of consistency and agreement for both disorders. Method: The sample consisted of 4938 adolescents and young people, 43.0% males and 56.7% females with a mean age of 16.75 years (standard deviation = 1,62 years), who attend schools of the 3rd cycle of basic education and secondary school, belonging to the Regional Education Directorate – Center. For data collection was used QuALiSMental (MHL). Results: The results showed a modest level of MHL in most components. Although there are statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) in 88.0% of the items of MHL, suggesting different ways of looking to both mental health problems, the results show consistency in terms of the components of knowledge and skills to providing first aid and support to others and knowledge about the prevention of mental disorders.

Chorume de suíno no controle da rizoctoniose em beterraba

The fungus Rhizoctonia solani is a soil borne pathogen that causes damage to various crops. The chemical control, when managed incorrectly, can be harmful to the environment, which makes the study of alternative control important. This study aimed to evaluate the ability of different doses of Liquid swine manure (LSM), with and without the retention of gases, at different soil pH levels, to control R. solani in beet. An inoculum of the fungus R. solani was on rice grains, which had been previously sterilised. The experiments were set up in a greenhouse in a completely randomised block design, arranged in a three-factor 2 x 2 x 5 scheme, comprising of soil pH levels (4.8 and 7.2) x with and without gas retention x LSM dose (0, 5, 10, 15 and 20%), with four replications per treatment. To setup the experiments, 4 kg of soil of each pH level were packed separately into plastic bags. Subsequently, the soil of each bag was infested with 15 g of fungus inoculum/kg of soil, and moistened as necessary. After seven days of infestation of the soil with the pathogen the different doses of LSM were incorporated separately into the bags, the bags designated as the gas retention treatment were closed, while those designated as the gas release treatment were left open. After seven days, part of the soil from each bag was packed separately into 16 cells of 128 cell Styrofoam trays, which were then seeded with two beet seeds per cell. The other part of the soil was placed in 2 litre pots, to conduct the quantification of microbial activity, through the method of CO2 release, 21 days after the experiment was setup. Seedling emergence and damping-off evaluations were performed daily for 21 days consecutively. The data was submitted to analysis of variance, and when significant were submitted to regression analysis or Tukey at 5% probability of error. The experiments were repeated twice. According to the results obtained, there was a suppressive effect of LSM on R. solani. For the variable emergence, the 10% dose of LSM resulted in the largest number of emerging plants in the two soil pH levels studied, whether or not gas was retained. Seedling dampingoff decreased with increasing volumes of LSM incorporated into the soil. The soil with the pH level of 7.2 presented less seedling damping-off than the soil with a pH level of 4.8. The retention of gases provided greater control of R. solani in the higher LSM doses and in soil with a pH level of 7.2. Also noted in this study that there was a significant increase in microbial activity with increasing doses of LSM when applied to soil with pH levels of 4.8 and 7.2. Based on these results, it was concluded that the 10% dose of LSM provided the best control of R. solani without harming seedling emergence.

Advanced Analytical Microscopy at the Nanoscale: Applications in Wide Bandgap and Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Materials

The atomic-level structure and chemistry of materials ultimately dictate their observed macroscopic properties and behavior. As such, an intimate understanding of these characteristics allows for better materials engineering and improvements in the resulting devices. In our work, two material systems were investigated using advanced electron and ion microscopy techniques, relating the measured nanoscale traits to overall device performance. First, transmission electron microscopy and electron energy loss spectroscopy (TEM-EELS) were used to analyze interfacial states at the semiconductor/oxide interface in wide bandgap SiC microelectronics. This interface contains defects that significantly diminish SiC device performance, and their fundamental nature remains generally unresolved. The impacts of various microfabrication techniques were explored, examining both current commercial and next-generation processing strategies. In further investigations, machine learning techniques were applied to the EELS data, revealing previously hidden Si, C, and O bonding states at the interface, which help explain the origins of mobility enhancement in SiC devices. Finally, the impacts of SiC bias temperature stressing on the interfacial region were explored. In the second system, focused ion beam/scanning electron microscopy (FIB/SEM) was used to reconstruct 3D models of solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) cathodes. Since the specific degradation mechanisms of SOFC cathodes are poorly understood, FIB/SEM and TEM were used to analyze and quantify changes in the microstructure during performance degradation. Novel strategies for microstructure calculation from FIB-nanotomography data were developed and applied to LSM-YSZ and LSCF-GDC composite cathodes, aged with environmental contaminants to promote degradation. In LSM-YSZ, migration of both La and Mn cations to the grain boundaries of YSZ was observed using TEM-EELS. Few substantial changes however, were observed in the overall microstructure of the cells, correlating with a lack of performance degradation induced by the H2O. Using similar strategies, a series of LSCF-GDC cathodes were analyzed, aged in H2O, CO2, and Cr-vapor environments. FIB/SEM observation revealed considerable formation of secondary phases within these cathodes, and quantifiable modifications of the microstructure. In particular, Cr-poisoning was observed to cause substantial byproduct formation, which was correlated with drastic reductions in cell performance.

Surface Activity and Bulk Defect Chemistry of Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Cathodes

In the first half of this thesis, a new robotic instrument called a scanning impedance probe is presented that can acquire electrochemical impedance spectra in automated fashion from hundreds of thin film microelectrodes with systematically varied properties. Results from this instrument are presented for three catalyst compositions that are commonly considered for use in state-of-the-art solid oxide fuel cell cathodes. For (La_0.8Sr_0.2)_0.95Mn_O3+δ (LSM), the impedance spectra are well fit by a through-the-film reaction pathway. Transport rates are extracted, and the surface activity towards oxygen reduction is found to be correlated with the number of exposed grain boundary sites, suggesting that grain boundaries are more surface-active than grains. For La_0.5Sr_0.5Co_O3-δ (LSC), the surface activity degrades ~50x initially and then stabilizes at a comparable activity to that of previously measured Ba_0.5Sr_0.5Co_0.8Fe_0.2O3-δ films. For Sr_0.06Nb_0.06Bi_1.87O₃ (SNB), an example of a doped bismuth oxide, the activity of the metal-SNB boundary is measured.

In the second half of this thesis, SrCo_0.9Nb_0.1O_3-δ is selected as a case study of perovskites containing Sr and Co, which are the most active oxygen reduction catalysts known. Several bulk properties are measured, and synchrotron data are presented that provide strong evidence of substantial cobalt-oxygen covalency at high temperatures. This covalent bonding may be the underlying source of the high surface activity.