In recent years, there has been a significant increase in the number of completely sequenced plant genomes. The comparison of fully sequenced genomes allows for identification of new gene family members, as well as comprehensive analysis of gene family evolution. The aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) gene superfamily comprises a group of enzymes involved in the NAD+- or NADP+-dependent conversion of various aldehydes to their corresponding carboxylic acids. ALDH enzymes are involved in processing many aldehydes that serve as biogenic intermediates in a wide range of metabolic pathways. In addition, many of these enzymes function as ‘aldehyde scavengers’ by removing reactive aldehydes generated during the oxidative degradation of lipid membranes, also known as lipid peroxidation. Plants and animals share many ALDH families, and many genes are highly conserved between these two evolutionarily distinct groups. Conversely, both plants and animals also contain unique ALDH genes and families. Herein we carried outgenome-wide identification of ALDH genes in a number of plant species—including Arabidopsis thaliana (thale crest), Chlamydomonas reinhardtii (unicellular algae), Oryza sativa (rice), Physcomitrella patens (moss), Vitis vinifera (grapevine) and Zea mays (maize). These data were then combined with previous analysis of Populus trichocarpa (poplar tree), Selaginella moellindorffii (gemmiferous spikemoss), Sorghum bicolor (sorghum) and Volvox carteri (colonial algae) for a comprehensive evolutionary comparison of the plant ALDH superfamily. As a result, newly identified genes can be more easily analyzed and gene names can be assigned according to current nomenclature guidelines; our goal is to clarify previously confusing and conflicting names and classifications that might confound results and prevent accurate comparisons between studies.

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Abstract. Job search has profound implications for both the extent and duration of unemployment and hence for the efficient allocation of human resources. Yet, little is known about the relative effectiveness of alternative methods of job search. This study uses the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth Labor Market Experience to examine whether different methods influence the duration of job search and job satisfaction. Methods of search do seem to differ significantly in influencing duration of job search but not so in respect of job satisfaction, contrary to a widely held view. Some have held that informal channels of job search convey a particular type of qualitative information which makes for better and more efficient job choice and that this largely explains their extensive usage, but the data do not support this position. Both findings have potentially important implications for job search theory and government intervention in the labor market.

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Our society has b e c o m e conscious of the risks and costs of not dealing effectively with c o m p l e x public disputes, but we have not adopted n e w methods for reaching solutions. Some of these disputes are so c o n v o l u t e d -the storage of hazardous waste, for e x a m p l e --t h a t m a n y officials avoid dealing with them. In some cases parties go to court or argue adversarial positions before regulatory bodies. They turn their interests over to lawyers or g o v e r n m e n t administrators, who, whatever their professional competence m a y be, have no direct stake in the outcome. The courts are overw h e l m e d with an ever-increasing load of cases, m a n y of which are so complex and technical that judgments based on points of law only exacerbate the problems.Frustrations over the consequences of delay, the failure to involve the public effectively, and the uncertainty and cost of litigation has led individuals and organizations around the country to explore better ways of dealing with conflict. For over a decade, ACCORD has been in the business of designing and applying alternative procedures to resolve large-scale public disputes and environmental controversies. We have adapted to our w o r k lessons learned in international peacemaking, c o m m u n i t y dispute settlement, and interpersonal conflict resolution. Problems we have dealt with range from municipal water supply to air quality standards, land acquisition, forest access, coal leasing, and urban development. All of these controversies are as m u c h social and economic as they are "environmental." Our intervention activities m a y take anywhere from a few days to several years depending on the nature of the conflict and the n u m b e r of parties. We have w o r k e d with all levels of government, private industry, and public-interest groups.Individuals w h o get caught up in conflict fall prey to an apparently universal p h e n o m e n o n : as the conflict progresses, they b e c o m e less capable of using c o m m o n sense. This paper will examine seven principles which, in our experience, are c o m m o n l y violated by well-intentioned managers of c o m p l e x issues. While our illustrations are drawn from our experiences with natural resources, the principles are applicable to other fields of dispute resolution activities. We provide an example of what happens w h e n a principle is ignored and describe at least one alternative procedure.

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We present a case of focal increased intrahepatic radiotracer activity on 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) in a patient with lymphoma and superior vena cava (SVC) obstruction, a false positive for malignancy. Contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) demonstrated an enhancing region of geographic focal hypoattenuation in the liver along the falciform, corresponding to the region of increased radiotracer activity on FDG-PET, with marked narrowing of the superior vena cava and resultant collateral venous pathways to the portal vein via paraumbilical veins. CT followup demonstrated stability of the hepatic abnormality, and no lesion was evident on ultrasound, suggesting that the finding on PET-CT represented a false positive for malignancy in this patient with known SVC obstruction. In patients with SVC obstruction, radiologists should consider this phenomenon of anomalous hepatic uptake along the falciform as a source of possible false positives for malignancy on PET.