Explaining Leibniz equivalence as difference of non-inertial appearances: Dis-solution of the Hole Argument and physical individuation of point-events

“The last remnant of physical objectivity of space–time” is disclosed in the case of a continuous family of spatially non-compact models of general relativity (GR). The physical individuation of point-events is furnished by the autonomous degrees of freedom of the gravitational field (viz., the Dirac observables) which represent—as it were—the ontic part of the metric field. The physical role of the epistemic part (viz. the gauge variables) is likewise clarified as embodying the unavoidable non-inertial aspects of GR. At the end the philosophical import of the Hole Argument is substantially weakened and in fact the Argument itself dissolved, while a specific four-dimensional holistic and structuralist view of space–time (called point-structuralism) emerges, including elements common to the tradition of both substantivalism and relationism. The observables of our models undergo real temporal change: this gives new evidence to the fact that statements like the frozen-time character of evolution, as other ontological claims about GR, are model dependent.     

Comparative aspects of structure and action of molluscan neuropeptides

A number of neuropeptides were isolated from the ganglia and muscles of molluscs, and their actions were examined. Diverse neuropeptides, in addition to several classical neurotransmitters, were suggested to be involved in the regulation of the anterior byssus retractor muscle ofMytilus. A wide structural variety of members of theMytilus inhibitory peptide family was observed in each of the generaMytilus, Achatina andHelix. Gly-Trp-NH₂, the C-terminal dipeptide fragment of the neuropeptide AGPWamide, showed a more potent action than the parent peptide in all of the muscles examined. Peptides related to some molluscan neuropeptides were found to be distributed interphyletically. Some neuropeptides containing ad-amino acid residue were found inAchatina andMytilus. These aspects of molluscan neuropeptides are thought not to be exceptional.     

Short-range linkage relationships, genomic organisation and sequence comparisons of a cluster of five HSP70 genes in Fugu rubripes

Twelve cosmids containing sequences resembling genes encoding members of the 70-kDa heat-shock protein family, HSP70, have been isolated from Fugu rubripes. They can be broadly divided into three groups of overlapping cosmids. Restriction analysis and sequencing of one set of five cosmids have revealed five intronless Fugu HSP70 genes spanning 42 kb, arranged in a combined head-to-head, tail-to-tail and head-to-tail orientation. The levels of DNA and amino acid identity are very high with respect to one another, and are most similar to HSP70 sequences linked to the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) region in other species. Putative heat-shock consensus elements are identified. Non-HSP70 sequences with homology to known genes have been found physically linked to this Fugu HSP70 cluster: the Drosophila melanogaster SOL gene, the Drosophila melanogaster nemo gene, the Caenorhabditis elegans T17E9.1 gene and the sequence encoding the serine protease domain. The linkage relationships described here so far bear no resemblance to those of HSP70 in other organisms. Convergence of mammalian HSP70 and MHC class I and II loci probably occurred after fish had diverged. Received 17 November 1998; received after revision 25 February 1999; accepted 26 February 1999     

Prediction of final data with use of preliminary and/or revised data

In the case of US national accounts the data are revised for the first few years and every decade, which implies that we do not really have the final data. In this paper we aim to predict the final data, using the preliminary data and/or the revised data. The following predictors are introduced and derived from a context of the non-linear filtering or smoothing problem, which are: (1) prediction of the final data of time t given the preliminary data up to time t- 1, (2) prediction of the final data of time t given the preliminary data up to time t, (3) prediction of the final data of time t given the preliminary data up to time T, (4) prediction of the final data of time t given the revised data up to time t -1 and the preliminary data up to time t- 1, and (5) prediction of the final data of time t given the revised data up to time t-1 and the preliminary data up to time t. It is shown that (5) is the best predictor but not too different from (3). The prediction problem is illustrated using US per capita consumption data.     

Alexis Fontaine's ‘Fluxio-differential method’ and the origins of the calculus of several variables

Alexis Fontaine des Bertins (1704–1771) was the first French mathematician to introduce what we would now regard as results in the calculus of several variables. One example is Fontaine's theorem nF = (?F/?x)x + (?F/?y)y of 1737 for homogeneous expressions F of degree n in x and y. Many years later Fontaine indicated this particular result to have been ‘a continuation of the method of solution’ introduced by him in 1734 to solve the problem of the tautochrones. It is tempting to disregard this announcement, since the method applied to the tautochrones was a method of variations and not manifestly an exercise in the calculus of several variables. Do we have just another case of a mathematician's confusion about the origins of his earlier work? In this paper I describe Fontaine's possible intentions in his remarks.     

DNG1, a Dictyostelium homologue of tumor suppressor ING1 regulates differentiation of Dictyostelium cells

dng1 is a Dictyostelium homologue of the mammalian tumor suppressor ING gene. DNG1 protein localizes in the nucleus, and has a highly conserved PHD finger domain found in chromatin-remodeling proteins. Both dng1 disruption and overexpression impaired cell proliferation. In dng1-null cells, the progression of differentiation was delayed in a cell-density-dependent manner, and many tiny aggregates were formed. Exogenously applied cAMP pulses reversed the inhibitory effect caused by dng1 disruption on the aggregation during early development, but formation of tiny aggregates was not restored. dng1-overexpressing cells acquired the ability to undergo chemotaxis to cAMP earlier and exhibited enhanced differentiation. These phenotypes were found to be coupled with altered expressions of early genes such as cAMP receptor 1 (car1) and contact site A (csA). Furthermore, disordered histone modifications were demonstrated in dng1-null cells. These results suggest a regulatory role of dng1 in the transition of cells from growth to differentiation.Received 29 December 2004; received after revision 24 May 2005; accepted 26 May 2005     

Forecasting for the generation of trading signals in financial markets

In this paper we show that optimal trading results can be achieved if we can forecast a key summary statistic of future prices. Consider the following optimization problem. Let the return r_i (over time i=1, 2, ..., n) for the ith day be given and the investor has to make investment decision d_i on the ith day with d_i=1 representing a ‘long' position and d_i=0 a ‘neutral' position. The investment return is given by r=Σⁿ_i=1r_id_i−cΣⁿ⁺¹_i=1∣d_i−d_i−1∣, where c is the transaction cost. The mathematical programming problem of choosing d₁, ..., d_n to maximize r under a given transaction cost c is shown to have an analytic solution, which is a function of a key summary statistic called the largest change before reversal. The largest change before reversal is recommended to be used as an output in a neural network for the generation of trading signals. When neural network forecasting is applied to a dataset of Hang Seng Index Futures Contract traded in Hong Kong, it is shown that forecasting the largest change before reversal outperforms the k‐step‐ahead forecast in achieving higher trading profits. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Ammotragus lervia: Progenitor of the domesticated sheep or specialized offshoot of caprine evolution?

Summary Data on haemoglobin do not support suggestions that the aoudadAmmotragus lervia is close to a hypothetical ancestor to the genusOvis in general or to the domesticated sheepOvis aries in particular.Ammotragus haemoglobin is more like that from the domestic goatCapra hircus than that from the domestic sheepOvis aries, but also shows some unique characteristics, perhaps more specialized than primitive.     

Modulation of connexin signaling by bacterial pathogens and their toxins

Inherent to their pivotal tasks in the maintenance of cellular homeostasis, gap junctions, connexin hemichannels, and pannexin hemichannels are frequently involved in the dysregulation of this critical balance. The present paper specifically focuses on their roles in bacterial infection and disease. In particular, the reported biological outcome of clinically important bacteria including Escherichia coli, Shigella flexneri, Yersinia enterocolitica, Helicobacter pylori, Bordetella pertussis, Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Citrobacter rodentium, Clostridium species, Streptococcus pneumoniae, and Staphylococcus aureus and their toxic products on connexin- and pannexin-related signaling in host cells is reviewed. Particular attention is paid to the underlying molecular mechanisms of these effects as well as to the actual biological relevance of these findings.     

Variance to mean ratio and the spatial distribution of animals

Summary Biological and statistical aspects of the application of variance to mean ratio to describe spatial distribution of animals are discussed. It is shown that the parameterb inTaylor's power laws ²=a m ^b shows intra-specific variation depending on the distribution of the constituent units of the population.a andb are only parameters of a very empirical way of describing the relation between variance and mean, which itself is an indicator for spatial distribution. Hence,a andb depend on the distribution behaviour of the animals, and not vice versa.Acknowledgments: The work was developed whilst I was at the Department of Entomology, University of Nairobi. I am grateful to ProfessorT. R. Odhiambo for his interest. I thank the referee for comments.     

Karyological pattern of two Chilean lizards species of the genusLiolaemus (sauria; iguanidae)

Summary The karyotypes of Chilean lizardsLiolaemus pictusandLiolaemus cyanogaster is described for the first time. Both species possess 34 chromosomes; 6 pairs of macrochromosomes and 11 pairs of microchromosomes. Karyologically it is possible to differenciate this species because the pair No. 2 is metacentric (m) inL. pictusand submetacentric (sm) inL. cyanogaster. It is shortly discussed the signification of formule 2n=34 for the species ofLiolaemus analized karyologically and its possible mechanism of acquisition.     

Immunological comparison between albumins of three species of mice (genusMus)

Summary Three closely related species of short-tailed mice (Mus musculus musculus, M. spretoides andM. spicilegus) were tentatively discriminated using immunological techniques based on albumin cross-reactivity. Different fractionations of crude albumin antisera allowed the recovery of antibody populations specific to theM. m. musculus albumin, whereas antibody population differences do not seem to exist betweenM. spicilegus andM. spretoides. Moreover, immunoreactivities tested with native and S-carboxymethylated albumins revealed that species-specific antibodies correspond to antigenic determinants depending on the amino acid sequence (sequential determinants). The observed immunological differences are related to species divergence and albumin sequences.     

Monogenic determinants of familial Alzheimer's disease: presenilin-2 mutations

Presenilin-2 (PS2) is one of three genes [amyloid precursor protein (APP), presenilin-1 (PS1) and PS2] shown to cause familial Alzheimer's disease (FAD), and is highly homologous to PS1. Currently demonstrated functions of PS2 include interactions with APP and Aβ, and participation in apoptotic pathways. PS2 FAD mutations influence APP processing in a manner predicted to promote amyloid formation and also enhance the proapoptotic effect of wild-type PS2. Other possible functions of PS2 are related to its homology to Notch pathway genes in Caenorhabditis elegans, suggesting it may have a developmental role. PS2-associated AD is the most reminiscent of the sporadic form of the disease in terms of older age of onset and longer disease duration. Since PS2 mutations are incompletely penetrant and age of onset in carriers is highly variable (40 – 88 years), elucidation of PS2 mechanisms may reveal factors which modify AD and are therapeutically relevant to sporadic AD.     

EGF-induced programmed cell death of human mammary carcinoma MDA-MB-468 cells is preceded by activation of AP-1

MDA-MB-468 is a human mammary adenocarcinoma cell line that overexpresses the epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor and undergoes programmed cell death (apoptosis) in response to EGF treatment. Programmed cell death was shown to be greatly enhanced when cells were growth-arrested prior to EGF treatment. Apoptosis was characterized by an initial rounding up and detachment of the cells from their substrate starting about 12 h after EGF treatment, followed by chromatin condensation, nuclear fragmentation and oligonucleosomal fragmentation of the DNA at about 24 to 48 h. Cell death was dependent on de novo protein synthesis. We found a rapid induction of c-fos, c-jun and junB at the mRNA level after about 30 min of EGF treatment and a more delayed upregulation of fosB and fra-1. The junD gene was expressed in the absence of EGF, and it was moderately induced within 30 min of growth factor addition. The increase of the different fos and jun mRNAs were paralleled by an increase of activator protein-1 (AP-1) DNA binding activity. A characterization of the AP-1 complex revealed similar levels of several Fos and Jun proteins. Based on the kinetics of AP-1 accumulation and cell death, it seems likely that AP-1 contributes to the apoptotic cell death of EGF receptor-overexpressing MDA-MB-468 cells. Received 21 July 1997; received after revision 6 November 1997; accepted 6 November 1997     

Systematics and evolution of holarctic Pierinae (Lepidoptera). An enzyme electrophoretic approach

Summary Enzyme electrophoretic data show a remarkably high degree of genetic similarity within the European group ofnapi s.l. whereas genetic differences exist at several loci between the European and the North American taxa ofnapi s.l. It is concluded that the European taxa did not differentiate to the species level and form a phylogenetically young group. The North American taxa included in this study are specifically distinct from Europeannapi and separated much earlier. Within these North American taxamarginalis, oleracea andvirginiensis did undergo speciation. The data show a splitting of the genusPieris into three species groups, each genetically differentiated to the same level. The splitting ofPieris into two genera, as suggested by earlier investigators, is not supported here.     

Extreme temperatures reduce encapsulation of insect parasitoids in their insect hosts

Low (0°–4°C) and high (40°–48°C) temperatures to which two scales insects:Saissetia coffeae (Walker) andCoccus hesperidum L. (Homoptera: Coccidae) were subjected, before exposure to the encyrtidMetaphycus aff.stanleyi (Compere), reduced egg encapsulation of the parasitoid in the two hosts. Consequently the mass rearing ofM. aff.stanleyi was greatly improved.