Treating another's actions as one's own: Children's memory of and learning from joint activity.

Children often overestimate their contribution to collaborative activities. Across 2 studies, the authors investigated whether this memory bias supports internalization of the actions of others in the context of joint exchanges. After taking turns with (high collaborative condition; Studies 1 and 2) or working independently of (low collaborative condition; Study 2) an adult experimenter to create a series of novel toys, children's agent memory and reconstruction ability were assessed. Children in the high collaborative condition but not the low collaborative condition systematically overclaimed the actions of their social partner, more frequently reporting having completed steps performed by the experimenter than vice versa. This "I did it" bias was related to learning performance: high collaborative children outperformed low collaborative children both during an immediate reconstruction task and 4 months later, and the strength of the bias predicted children's independent toy-building accuracy. It is argued that the "I did it" bias may emerge as part of a general process of learning from others and is supported by a common framework for representing self-actions and other actions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Optical Frequency Metrology of an Iodine-Stabilized He-Ne Laser Using the Frequency Comb of a Quantum-Interference-Stabilized Mode-Locked Laser

We perform optical frequency metrology of an iodine-stabilized He-Ne laser using a mode-locked Ti:sapphire laser frequency comb that is stabilized using quantum interference of photocurrents in a semiconductor. Using this technique, we demonstrate carrier-envelope offset frequency fluctuations of less than 5 mHz using a 1 s gate time. With the resulting stable frequency comb, we measure the optical frequency of the iodine transition [¹²⁷I₂ R(127) 11-5 i component] to be 473 612 214 712.96 ± 0.66 kHz, well within the uncertainty of the CIPM recommended value. The stability of the quantum interference technique is high enough such that it does not limit the measurements.     

Effect of Heat Processing on IgE Reactivity and Cross‐Reactivity of Tropomyosin and Other Allergens of Asia‐Pacific Mollusc Species: Identification of Novel Sydney Rock Oyster Tropomyosin Sac g 1

1 Scope

Shellfish allergy is an increasing global health priority, frequently affecting adults. Molluscs are an important shellfish group causing food allergy but knowledge of their allergens and cross‐reactivity is limited. Optimal diagnosis of mollusc allergy enabling accurate advice on food avoidance is difficult. Allergens of four frequently ingested Asia‐Pacific molluscs are characterized: Sydney rock oyster (Saccostrea glomerata), blue mussel (Mytilus edulis), saucer scallop (Amusium balloti), and southern calamari (Sepioteuthis australis), examining cross‐reactivity between species and with blue swimmer crab tropomyosin, Por p 1.

2 Methods and results

IgE ELISA showed that cooking increased IgE reactivity of mollusc extracts and basophil activation confirmed biologically relevant IgE reactivity. Immunoblotting demonstrated strong IgE reactivity of several proteins including one corresponding to heat‐stable tropomyosin in all species (37–40 kDa). IgE‐reactive Sydney rock oyster proteins were identified by mass spectrometry, and the novel major oyster tropomyosin allergen was cloned, sequenced, and designated Sac g 1 by the IUIS. Oyster extracts showed highest IgE cross‐reactivity with other molluscs, while mussel cross‐reactivity was weakest. Inhibition immunoblotting demonstrated high cross‐reactivity between tropomyosins of mollusc and crustacean species.

3 Conclusion

These findings inform novel approaches for reliable diagnosis and improved management of mollusc allergy.     

Perturbed quantization steganography

In this paper, we use the recently proposed wet paper codes and introduce a new approach to passive-warden steganography called perturbed quantization. In perturbed quantization, the sender hides data while processing the cover object with an information-reducing operation that involves quantization, such as lossy compression, downsampling, or A/D conversion. The unquantized values of the processed cover object are considered as side information to confine the embedding changes to those unquantized elements whose values are close to the middle of quantization intervals. This choice of the selection channel calls for wet paper codes as they enable communication with non-shared selection channel. Heuristic is presented that indicates that the proposed method provides better steganographic security than current JPEG steganographic methods. This claim is further supported by blind steganalysis of a specific case of perturbed quantization for recompressed JPEG images.     

The predictive utility of hypnotizability: The change in suggestibility produced by hypnosis.

Objective: The predictive utility of hypnotizability, conceptualized as the change in suggestibility produced by a hypnotic induction, was investigated in the suggested reduction of experimental pain. Method: One hundred and seventy-three participants were assessed for nonhypnotic imaginative suggestibility. Thereafter, participants experienced hypnotic and nonhypnotic imaginative analgesia suggestions, counterbalanced for order. Hypnotic suggestibility was then assessed. Results: Hypnotizability, operationalized as hypnotic suggestibility with imaginative suggestibility statistically controlled (Braffman & Kirsch, 1999), predicted intraindividual differences in responding to the hypnotic and imaginative analgesia suggestions. Higher hypnotizability was associated with relatively greater response to the hypnotic analgesia suggestion than to the imaginative analgesia suggestion. Conclusions: Operationalized in this way, hypnotizability may be a useful predictor of the effect of adding a hypnotic induction to a specific imaginative suggestion. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Characterising the effect of interoperability on healthcare work: a novel framework

Successful design and implementation of interoperable health IT requires an understanding of specific technological capabilities of systems, as well as how these systems impact clinical workflow. Several existing frameworks classify interoperability levels, but none focus on the impact on clinical work, particularly at the task level. A synthesis of existing interoperability frameworks from select interoperability frameworks in the literature about both medical and non-medical systems is presented and a new, 7-level framework in order to characterise the effect of varying levels of interoperability on the users’ work based upon qualitative data collected in a field study of the use of health information exchange in 12 ambulatory practices is proposed. The lowest level describes paper-based tasks completed with no access to electronic information from other institutions; the highest level describes interoperable systems in which data elements from other institutions are integrated into the patient's record seamlessly and in a computable format.     

Extracellular Vesicles in Osteosarcoma: Antagonists or Therapeutic Agents?

Osteosarcoma (OS) is a skeletal tumor affecting mainly children and adolescents. The presence of distance metastasis is frequent and it is localized preferentially to the lung, representing the main reason for death among patients. The therapeutic approaches are based on surgery and chemotherapeutics. However, the drug resistance and the side effects associated with the chemotherapy require the identification of new therapeutic approaches. The understanding of the complex biological scenario of the osteosarcoma will open the way for the identification of new targets for its treatment. Recently, a great interest of scientific community is for extracellular vesicles (EVs), that are released in the tumor microenvironment and are important regulators of tumor proliferation and the metastatic process. At the same time, circulating extracellular vesicles can be exploited as diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers, and they can be loaded with drugs as a new therapeutic approach for osteosarcoma patients. Thus, the characterization of OS-related EVs could represent a way to convert these vesicles from antagonists for human health into therapeutic and/or diagnostic agents.     

Entrepreneurship and the carbon market: opportunities and challenges for South African entrepreneurs

The Kyoto Protocol and its implementation brought forward issues of climate change and its mitigation strategy by national measures through the creation of market mechanisms in carbon trading. The trading of emission certificates has become an important trade commodity worldwide, and its markets have diversified. While this opportunity has created new markets for entrepreneurs and actors that range from farmers to brokers, unequal involvement in most developing countries is noted. This has been mostly observed in those countries where entrepreneurship is often regarded as the cornerstone of economic growth and social improvement. South Africa has spearheaded other African countries in its implementation of Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects leading to carbon trading. Based on our research on South African entrepreneurship and its involvement in the carbon market, we conclude that albeit a number of opportunities, the biggest challenge for entrepreneurial participation in the carbon market remains in the nature and processes of CDM project implementation, the lack of a clear supportive system, limited access to financing and—more importantly—general ignorance of the trading opportunities by entrepreneurs. The complex nature of CDM projects themselves limits participation due to lack of the necessary skills on the national level leading to uneven distribution of CDM projects on provincial levels in South Africa. Recommendations are provided to overcome the obstacles and to promote entrepreneurial activity in the carbon market.     

The Key Enzyme of the Sialic Acid Metabolism Is Involved in Embryoid Body Formation and Expression of Marker Genes of Germ Layer Formation

The bi-functional enzyme UDP-N-acetyl-2-epimerase/N-acetylmannosamine kinase (GNE) is the key enzyme of the sialic acid biosynthesis. Sialic acids are negatively charged nine carbon amino sugars and are found on most glycoproteins and many glycolipids in terminal positions, where they are involved in a variety of biological important molecular interactions. Inactivation of the GNE by homologous recombination results in early embryonic lethality in mice. Here, we report that GNE-deficient embryonic stem cells express less differentiation markers compared to wild-type embryonic stem cells. As a result, GNE-deficient embryonic stem cells fail to form proper embryoid bodies (EB) within the first day of culture. However, when culturing these cells in the presence of sialic acids for three days, also GNE-deficient embryonic stem cells form normal EBs. In contrast, when culturing these cells in sialic acid reduced medium, GNE-deficient embryonic stem cells proliferate faster and form larger EBs without any change in the expression of markers of the germ layers.     

Ecological Example of Conditioned Flavor Aversion in Plant–Herbivore Interactions: Effect of Terpenes of Eucalyptus Leaves on Feeding by Common Ringtail and Brushtail Possums

We investigated the hypothesis that feeding deterrence of common ringtail possums (Pseudocheirus peregrinus) and common brushtail possums (Trichosurus vulpecula) by Eucalyptus terpenes (in this case 1,8-cineole) is a result of a conditioned flavor aversion (CFA), due to the association of terpenes with postingestive effects of another group of Eucalyptus toxins, the diformylphloroglucinol compounds (DFPCs). Wild-caught common ringtail and common brushtail possums showed a dose-dependent reduction in food intake when 1,8-cineole was added to the diet. However, after continued exposure over 12 days to increasing amounts of cineole in the diet, both species substantially increased their intakes of cineole relative to control animals. This indicated that the aversion to cineole was a conditioned response rather than a physiological limitation in their ability to detoxify terpenes. Subsequent exposure to a diet including both cineole and jensenone (a simple DFPC also found in Eucalyptus and considered to cause postingestive emesis) in corresponding amounts was able to recondition the dose-dependent aversion. Consequently, animals that had been given jensenone showed an aversion to cineole-rich diets that matched the behavior of animals in the control group. This supported our hypothesis that the effect of terpenes on feeding of these marsupial folivores on Eucalyptus is due to a CFA. Possums can cope with levels of terpenes in the diet that far exceed those occurring naturally. The role of terpenes in marsupial folivore–Eucalyptus interactions appears to be to act as a cue to levels of toxic DFPCs in the leaves, rather than acting as toxins in their own right.