bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Voriconazole Therapeutic Drug Monitoring
Authors: Smith J. , Safdar N. , Knasinski V. , Simmons W. , Bhavnani S. M. , Ambrose P. G. , Andes D.
Published: March 2006

We report on 28 patients who underwent voriconazole monitoring because of disease progression or toxicity. A relationship (
P
< 0.025) between disease progression and drug concentration was detected. Favorable responses were observed in 10/10 patients with concentrations above 2.05 μg/ml, while disease progressed in 44% (
n
= 18) of patients with concentrations below 2.05 μg/ml.
Immunotherapy with Tacrolimus (FK506) Does Not Select for Resistance to Calcineurin Inhibitors inCandida albicansIsolates from Liver Transplant Patients
Authors: Reedy Jennifer L. , Husain Shahid , Ison Michael , Pruett Timothy L. , Singh Nina , Heitman Joseph
Published: March 2006

InCandida albicans, calcineurin mediates tolerance to azole antifungal drugs, survival in serum, and virulence. In this study, we examined 24Candidaisolates from liver transplant recipients receiving a calcineurin inhibitor as a component of their immunosuppressive therapy. We were unable to detect a difference in susceptibility to calcineurin inhibitors in combination with fluconazole, serum, or calcium in these isolates.
Ritonavir Increases Plasma Amprenavir (APV) Exposure to a Similar Extent when Coadministered with either Fosamprenavir or APV
Authors: Wire Mary B. , Baker Katherine L. , Jones Lori S. , Shelton Mark J. , Lou Yu , Thomas Greg J. , Berrey M. Michelle
Published: March 2006

To compare the effect of ritonavir on plasma amprenavir pharmacokinetics, healthy adults received either fosamprenavir (700 mg twice a day [BID]) or amprenavir (600 mg BID) alone and in combination with ritonavir (100 mg BID). Ritonavir increased plasma amprenavir pharmacokinetic parameters to a similar extent when coadministered with either fosamprenavir or amprenavir.
Induction of Daptomycin Heterogeneous Susceptibility in
Staphylococcus aureus
by Exposure to Vancomycin
Authors: Sakoulas George , Alder Jeff , Thauvin-Eliopoulos Claudie , Moellering Robert C. , Eliopoulos George M.
Published: March 2006

We studied vancomycin and daptomycin susceptibility in methicillin-resistant
Staphylococcus aureus
from patients exposed to vancomycin, glycopeptide-intermediate
S. aureus
, and
S. aureus
passaged in vancomycin-containing medium. A correlation between vancomycin and daptomycin heteroresistance was noted in some strains, suggesting that exposure of
S. aureus
to vancomycin may affect susceptibility to daptomycin.
New Real-Time PCR Assay Using Locked Nucleic Acid Probes To Assess Prevalence of ParC Mutations in Fluoroquinolone-Susceptible
Streptococcus pneumoniae
Isolates from France
Authors: Decousser Jean-Winoc , Methlouthi Imen , Pina Patrick , Collignon Anne , Allouch Pierre
Published: March 2006

A real-time PCR assay with locked nucleic acid probes was developed to screen mutations at codons 79 and 83 of the
Streptococcus pneumoniae parC
gene. Only silent mutations were detected among 236 French invasive fluoroquinolone-susceptible strains. This test could be useful for some high-risk patients or in national surveys.
Good Clinical Outcomes but High Rates of Adverse Reactions during Linezolid Therapy for Serious Infections: a Proposed Protocol for Monitoring Therapy in Complex Patients
Authors: Bishop Emma , Melvani Sharmila , Howden Benjamin P. , Charles Patrick G. P. , Grayson M. Lindsay
Published: March 2006

We assessed the toxicity and clinical outcomes associated with linezolid therapy (mean duration, 29 ± 28 days; range, 8 to 185 days) in 44 patients with serious gram-positive infections. Although a clinical cure was achieved in 73% of the cases, 28/44 (64%) had adverse reactions (thrombocytopenia,
n
= 13; anemia,
n
= 7; gastrointestinal,
n
= 12; peripheral neuropathy,
n
= 1; serotonin syndrome,
n
= 1), such that a systematic monitoring protocol was developed.
EXTREMAL FUNCTIONS FOR MOSER–TRUDINGER INEQUALITIES ON 2-DIMENSIONAL COMPACT RIEMANNIAN MANIFOLDS WITH BOUNDARY
Authors: YANG YUNYAN
Published: March 2006

Let (M,g) be a 2-dimensional compact Riemannian manifold with boundary. In this paper, we use the method of blowing up analysis to prove the existence of the extremal functions for some Moser–Trudinger inequalities on (M,g).
COHERENT SYSTEMS WITH MANY SECTIONS ON PROJECTIVE CURVES
Authors: BALLICO E.
Published: March 2006

Here we give sufficient conditions for the existence of an α-stable (for all α > 0) coherent system (i.e. a vector bundle together with a linear subspace of its global sections) of type (d,n,k), k > n, on a smooth projective curve.
HARTOGS TYPE THEOREMS ON COVERINGS OF STEIN MANIFOLDS
Authors: BRUDNYI ALEXANDER
Published: March 2006

We prove an analog of the classical Hartogs extension theorem for certain (possibly unbounded) domains on coverings of Stein manifolds.
PSEUDO HARMONIC MORPHISMS ON RIEMANNIAN POLYHEDRA
Authors: APRODU M. A. , BOUZIANE T.
Published: March 2006

The aim of this paper is to extend the notion of pseudo harmonic morphism introduced by Loubeau in [15] (see also [7, 4]) to the case when the source manifold is an admissible Riemannian polyhedron. We define these maps to be harmonic, as in [9], and pseudo-horizontally weakly conformal, see Sec. 3. We characterize them by means of germs of harmonic functions on the source polyhedron (see [13] for a precise definition) and germs of holomorphic functions on the Kähler target manifold, similarly to [15, 7].
EXPORTING AND PRODUCTIVITY: THEORY, EVIDENCE AND FUTURE RESEARCH
Authors: GREENAWAY DAVID , KNELLER RICHARD
Published: March 2006

Intervention to support export initiatives is commonplace in both industralized and developing countries. Such intervention is underpinned by the view that exporting is good for growth, typified by the success of the South East Asian tiger economies. Yet, while the evidence is largely macroeconomic, most intervention is microeconomic, targeted at specific firms or industries. Recently a new literature has developed that is microeconomic and microeconometric, exploring determinants of entry into and survival in export markets. Key within this literature is the relationship between firm productivity and exports. This paper reviews the theoretical and empirical contributions to this literature and evaluates its contribution to our understanding of the factors driving export decisions and the consequences of export market entry from both. In addition to assessing the importance of new insights being generated, this paper speculates on new directions in which the research agenda will evolve.
GROWTH ECONOMETRICS IN THE TROPICS: WHAT INSIGHTS FOR SOUTHEAST ASIAN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT?
Authors: HILL HAL , HILL SAM
Published: March 2006

This paper attempts to distil the key conclusions from the very large literature on the empirics of growth and to apply them to the development record of the five major Southeast Asian economies for which we have reasonably long-term data — Indonesia, Malaysia, The Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. These five display a considerable range of development outcomes, ranging from consistently high growth, to episodes of boom and crisis, and to low average growth. After estimating a series of general empirical models from a large sample of countries, we examine how well these fit the observed outcomes in these particular Southeast Asian countries. Our broad finding is that the average model does reasonably well in explaining outcomes in Singapore and Thailand, but that the residuals for Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines are quite large and persistent across different specifications.
ON THE EXISTENCE OF EQUIVALENT TARIFF VECTORS — WHEN THE STATUS QUO MATTERS
Authors: KEMP MURRAY , WAN HENRY
Published: March 2006

It has long been recognized that, in a restricted world of just two countries and two commodities, any feasible non-distorting international transfer can be replaced by a pair of individually distorting but collectively non-distorting equivalent import duties. In recent years it has sometimes been suggested that equivalence persists in broader contexts and there have been two attempts to provide interesting sufficient conditions for equivalence. Our purpose is three-fold. We first note that the sufficient conditions so far provided relate to the equilibrium values of endogenous variables (like prices) rather than to the given values of exogenous variables (like endowments, technologies and preferences) and that conditions of the former kind may be difficult to empirically justify. It is then shown, by means of a robust example with conditions imposed on exogenous variables only, that equivalence cannot be relied upon when there are more than two countries, even when the countries have no extraordinary features. Finally, we emphasize some of the difficulties in implementing equivalent tariffs even when they do exist.
THE APPROPRIATE CHOICE OF VALUATION MEASURE IN USUAL CASES OF LOSSES VALUED MORE THAN GAINS
Authors: KNETSCH JACK L.
Published: March 2006

People's common propensity to value losses more than otherwise commensurate gains, gives rise to different values of positive and negative changes in entitlements depending on the measure used to assess them. A major implication of the differing valuations is a need to choose an appropriate measure for particular changes. The appropriate choice of measure appears to turn on the reference state that people use to weigh the values of gains and losses: the distinction between the compensating and equivalent variation measures of values. If people view the present state as expected and normal, then the compensating measures apply; the equivalent variation measures are appropriate if they view the changed state as the reference.
INCREASING RETURNS AND THE SMITH DILEMMA
Authors: NG YEW-KWANG , ZHANG DINGSHENG
Published: March 2006

The Smith dilemma refers to the inconsistency ("strictly an error") between the Smith theory on the efficiency of the market based on the absence of increasing returns and the Smith theorem on the facilitation of the economies of specialization (which gives rise to increasing returns) by the extent of the market. This paper argues that, despite the prevalence of increasing returns, Adam Smith was largely right on the efficiency of the invisible hand and hence that the Smith dilemma does not really exist. Ignoring separate issues such as environmental disruption, the market is very efficient in coordinating the allocation of resources even in the presence of increasing returns. The efficiency due to the automatic and incentive-compatible adjustments, free trade and enterprise (entry/exit) largely prevails. The Dixit–Stiglitz model shows that the free-entry market equilibrium coincides with the (non-negative profit) constrained optimum when the elasticity of substitution between products is constant. For non-constant elasticities, the divergences between the market equilibrium and the constrained optimum in output levels, in the numbers of firms and in utility levels are shown to be small.
CAPITAL GAINS: BLUE MACHINES AND RED MACHINES
Authors: AGUIAR-CONRARIA LUÍS , SHELL KARL
Published: March 2006

Capital gains play an essential role in the intertemporal allocation of resources, but they can also fuel self-fulfilling bubbles. The simple case of 2 "identical" capitals is analyzed in an overlapping generations model. The only trajectory in which expectations are realized at every date is the one in which blue machines and red machines have the same price. If ever their prices differ, then there is a "bubble" which must burst in finite time.
LINKING POLICIES FOR BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION WITH ADVANCES IN BEHAVIORAL ECONOMICS
Authors: TISDELL CLEM
Published: March 2006

Global biodiversity loss and its consequences for human welfare and sustainable development have become major concerns. Economists have, therefore, given increasing attention to the policy issues involved in the management of genetic resources. To do so, they often apply empirical methods developed in behavioral and experimental economics to estimate economic values placed on genetic resources. This trend away from almost exclusive dependence on axiomatic methods is welcomed. However, major valuation methods used in behavioral economics raise new scientific challenges. Possibly the most important of these include deficiencies in the knowledge of the public (and researchers) about genetic resources, implications for the formation of values of supplying information to focal individuals, and limits to rationality.

These issues are explored for stated-preference techniques of valuation (e.g., contingent valuation) as well as revealed preference techniques, especially the travel cost method. They are illustrated by Australian and Asian examples. Taking into account behavioral and psychological models and empirical evidence, particular attention is given to how elicitation of preferences, and supply of information to individuals, influences their preferences about biodiversity. Policy consequences are outlined.
CHINA'S NEW EXCHANGE RATE POLICY: WILL CHINA FOLLOW JAPAN INTO A LIQUIDITY TRAP?
Authors: MCKINNON RONALD I.
Published: March 2006

Todays' American mercantile pressure on China to appreciate the renminbi against the dollar is eerily similar to the American pressure on Japan to appreciate the yen that began over 30 years ago. There are some differences between the two cases, but downward pressure on Chinese interest rates from foreign exchange risk could lead China into a zero interest rate liquidity trap much like the one that Japan has suffered since the mid-1990s.
ESTIMATING A LINEAR SIMULTANEOUS EQUATION MODEL WITH PANEL DATA
Authors: PARK SOO-BIN
Published: March 2006

In this paper we consider a class of the GMM estimators for a linear simultaneous equation model with panel data. The model is characterized by the presence of unobserved individual effects as part of structural disturbances and by the correlation of certain time-varying and time-invariant exogenous variables with the individual effects. A class of single-equation and system GMM estimators is proposed on the basis of a class of instruments as a unifying theme. Small-sample performance of this class of estimators is also investigated by a series of sampling experiments.
ECONOMIC THEORY AND THE EAST ASIAN REGION
Authors: YAH LIM CHONG
Published: March 2006

This paper attempts to explain why growth rates and why growth levels differ so much among the 17 economies in East Asia. The EGOIN theory, the Triple C Theory and the S Curve Theory are used in the explanation. The three hypotheses in the three cognate theories are also tested for their general validity against the growth experiences of the 17 economies. Four statistical tables and six specially prepared graphs are used to support the author's presentation.
FERMIONIC VECTOR MODEL SOLITONS IN THE LARGE-N LIMIT
Authors: FERRER PHIL
Published: March 2006

The large-N limit of fermionic vectors models is studied using bilocal variables in the framework of a collective field theory approach. The large-N configuration is determined completely using only classical solutions of the model. Further, the Bethe–Salpeter equations of the model are cast as a Green's function problem. One of the main results of this work is to show that this Green's function is in fact the large-N bilocal itself.
A SLOWLY ROTATING CHARGED BLACK HOLE IN FIVE DIMENSIONS
Authors: ALIEV A. N.
Published: March 2006

Black hole solutions in higher dimensional Einstein and Einstein–Maxwell gravity have been discussed by Tangherlini as well as Myers and Perry a long time ago. These solutions are the generalizations of the familiar Schwarzschild, Reissner–Nordström and Kerr solutions of four-dimensional general relativity. However, higher dimensional generalization of the Kerr–Newman solution in four dimensions has not been found yet. As a first step in this direction we shall report on a new solution of the Einstein–Maxwell system of equations that describes an electrically charged and slowly rotating black hole in five dimensions.
DIRECT ESTIMATE OF THE GLUON POLARIZATION IN THE NUCLEON
Authors: ELLIS JOHN , KARLINER MAREK
Published: March 2006

We make a first crude direct estimate of the net gluon polarization in the proton, ΔG, combining data on the asymmetries in high-pT hadron production from the HERMES, SMC and COMPASS collaborations. Although these data sample a restricted range of x, they provide no hint that ΔG is large. Fixing the normalizations of different theoretical parametrizations using the hadron asymmetry data, we find typical central values of ΔG ~ 0.5, with uncertainties of similar magnitude. Values of ΔG≥2 are disfavored by Δχ2 ~ 9 to 20, depending on the parametrization used.
ARE Z-BURSTS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE SUPER-GZK ULTRA HIGH ENERGY COSMIC RAYS?
Authors: LAI KWANG-CHANG , CHEN PISIN
Published: March 2006

We show that the cascade limit on ultra high energy cosmic neutrino (UHECν) flux imposes a lower bound on the neutrino mass, provided that super-GZK events of ultra high energy cosmic rays (UHECRs) are produced from Z-bursts. Based on data from HiRes and AGASA, the lower bound obtained on neutrino mass violates its existing cosmological upper bound. We conclude that Z-bursts cannot be the dominant source for the observed super-GZK UHECR events. This is consistent with the recent ANITA-lite data.
FILAMENTATIONS FOR VIRTUAL LINKS
Authors: SCHELLHORN WILLIAM J.
Published: March 2006

In 2002, Hrencecin and Kauffman defined a filamentation invariant on oriented chord diagrams that may determine whether the corresponding flat virtual knot diagrams are non-trivial. A virtual knot diagram is non-classical if its related flat virtual knot diagram is non-trivial. Hence filamentations can be used to detect non-classical virtual knots. We extend these filamentation techniques to virtual links with more than one component. We also give examples of virtual links that they can detect as non-classical.
SOME NUMERICAL INVARIANTS OF FLAT VIRTUAL LINKS ARE ALWAYS REALIZED BY REDUCED DIAGRAMS
Authors: KADOKAMI TERUHISA
Published: March 2006

Any flat virtual link has a reduced diagram which satisfies a certain minimality, and reduced diagrams are related one another by a finite sequence of a certain Reidemeister move. The move preserves some numerical invariants of diagrams. So we can define numerical invariants for flat virtual links. One of them, the crossing number of a flat virtual knot K, coinsides with the self-intersection number of K as an essential geodesic loop on a hyperbolic closed surface. We also show an equation among these numerical invariants, basic properties by using the equation, and determine non-split flat virtual links with the crossing number up to three.
NON-TRIVIALITY OF GENERALIZED ALTERNATING KNOTS
Authors: OZAWA MAKOTO
Published: March 2006

In this article, we consider alternating knots on a closed surface in the 3-sphere, and show that these are not parallel to any closed surface disjoint from the prescribed one.
JONES POLYNOMIAL INVARIANTS
Authors: FISH ANDREW , KEYMAN EBRU
Published: March 2006

The Jones polynomial is a well-defined invariant of virtual links. We observe the effect of a generalised mutation M of a link on the Jones polynomial. Using this, we describe a method for obtaining invariants of links which are also invariant under M.

The Jones polynomial of welded links is not well-defined in ℤ[q1/4, q-1/4]. Taking M = Fo allows us to pass to a quotient of ℤ[q1/4, q-1/4] in which the Jones polynomial is well-defined. We get the same result for M = Fu, so in fact, the Jones polynomial in this ring defines a fused isotopy invariant. We show it is non-trivial and compute it for links with one or two components.
SMALL CURVATURE SURFACES IN HYPERBOLIC 3-MANIFOLDS
Authors: LEININGER CHRISTOPHER J.
Published: March 2006

In a paper of Menasco and Reid, it is conjectured that there exist no hyperbolic knots in S3for which the complement contains a closed embedded totally geodesic surface. In this note, we show that one can get "as close as possible" to a counter-example. Specifically, we construct a sequence of hyperbolic knots {Kn} with complements containing closed embedded essential surfaces having principal curvatures converging to zero as n tends to infinity. We also construct a family of two-component links for which the complements contain closed embedded totally geodesic surfaces of arbitrarily large genera. In addition, we prove that a closed embedded surface with sufficiently small principal curvatures is not only quasi-Fuchsian (a result of Thurston's), but it is also either acylindrical or the boundary of a twisted I-bundle.
NUMERICAL METHOD FOR VOICE GENERATION PROBLEM BASED ON FINITE ELEMENT METHOD
Authors: KAKO TAKASHI , TOUDA KENTAROU
Published: March 2006

In this paper, we consider the numerical method for the voice generation problem. The basic mathematical model for the voice generation is the Helmholtz equation in an unbounded region. Introducing an artificial boundary, we divide the unbounded region into a bounded region and the rest unbounded one with a simple shape. We apply the finite element method for the equation in the bounded region imposing an artificial boundary condition given through the Dirichlet to Neumann (DtN) mapping on the artificial boundary. We then compute the frequency response function or the formant curve by which we can simulate the voice generation process for various vowels. The complex eigenvalues related to the Helmholtz equation control the peaks of the frequency response function known as formants. We give the variational formulas for the complex eigenvalues with respect to the variation of vocal tract boundary.
ON THE PARALLEL SOLUTION OF LARGE INDUSTRIAL WAVE PROPAGATION PROBLEMS
Authors: GIRAUD L. , LANGOU J. , SYLVAND G.
Published: March 2006

The use of Fast Multipole Methods (FMM) combined with embedded Krylov solvers preconditioned by a sparse approximate inverse is investigated for the solution of large linear systems arising in industrial acoustic and electromagnetic simulations. We use a boundary element integral equation method to solve the Helmholtz and the Maxwell equations in the frequency domain. The resulting linear systems are solved by iterative solvers using FMM to accelerate the matrix-vector products. The simulation code is developed in a distributed memory environment using message passing and it has out-of-core capabilities to handle very large calculations. When the calculation involves one incident wave, one linear system has to be solved. In this situation, embedded solvers can be combined with an approximate inverse preconditioner to design extremely robust algorithms. For radar cross section calculations, several linear systems have to be solved. They involve the same coefficient matrix but different right-hand sides. In this case, we propose a block variant of the single right-hand side scheme. The efficiency, robustness and parallel scalability of our approach are illustrated on a set of large academic and industrial test problems.
A STUDY OF HIGHER-ORDER DISCONTINUOUS GALERKIN AND QUADRATIC LEAST-SQUARES STABILIZED FINITE ELEMENT COMPUTATIONS FOR ACOUSTICS
Authors: HARARI ISAAC , TEZAUR RADEK , FARHAT CHARBEL
Published: March 2006

One-dimensional analyses provide novel definitions of the Galerkin/least-squares stability parameter for quadratic interpolation. A new approach to the dispersion analysis of the Lagrange multiplier approximation in discontinuous Galerkin methods is presented. A series of computations comparing the performance of [Formula: see text] Galerkin and GLS methods with Q-8-2 DGM on large-scale problems shows superior DGM results on analogous meshes, both structured and unstructured. The degradation of the [Formula: see text] GLS stabilization on unstructured meshes may be a consequence of inadequate one-dimensional analysis used to derive the stability parameter.
TIME-DOMAIN PARALLEL SIMULATION OF HETEROGENEOUS WAVE PROPAGATION ON UNSTRUCTURED GRIDS USING EXPLICIT, NONDIFFUSIVE, DISCONTINUOUS GALERKIN METHODS
Authors: BERNACKI MARC , LANTERI STEPHANE , PIPERNO SERGE
Published: March 2006

A general Discontinuous Galerkin framework is introduced for symmetric systems of conservations laws. It is applied to the three-dimensional electromagnetic wave propagation in heterogeneous media, and to the propagation of aeroacoustic perturbations of either uniform or nonuniform, steady solutions of the three-dimensional Euler equations. In all these linear contexts, the time evolution of some quadratic wave energy is given in a balance equation, with a volumic source term for aeroacoustics in a nonuniform flow. An explicit leap-frog time scheme along with centered numerical fluxes are used in the proposed Discontinuous Galerkin Time Domain (DGTD) method, in order to achieve a discrete equivalent of the balance equation for the wave energy. The scheme introduced is genuinely nondissipative. Numerical first-order boundary conditions are developed to bound the domain and stability is proved on arbitrary unstructured meshes and discontinuous finite elements, under some CFL-like stability condition on the time step. Numerical results obtained with a parallel implementation of the method based on mesh partitioning and message passing are presented to show the potential of the method.
A DISTRIBUTED ALGORITHM FOR FLOW INDUCED ACOUSTICS
Authors: LAI C.-H. , WANG Z. K. , DJAMBAZOV G. S. , PERICLEOUS K. A.
Published: March 2006

Sound waves are propagating pressure fluctuations and are typically several orders of magnitude smaller than the pressure variations in the flow field that account for flow acceleration. On the other hand, these fluctuations travel at the speed of sound in the medium, not as a transported fluid quantity. Due to the above two properties, the Reynolds averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) equations do not resolve the acoustic fluctuations. Direct numerical simulation of turbulent flow is still a prohibitively expensive tool to perform noise analysis. This paper proposes a distributed algorithm, based on the acoustic correction method, which leads to an efficient method for computational aeroacoustics and noise analysis. Software issues and advantages are discussed. Numerical experiments on a flow induced noise problem are included.
MDS-BASED METHODS FOR AD HOC NETWORK LOCALIZATION
Authors: AHMED AHMED A. , SHANG YI , SHI HONGCHI , HUA BEI
Published: March 2006

Recently, multidimensional scaling (MDS) techniques have been successfully applied in the MDS-MAP method to the node localization problem of ad hoc networks, such as wireless sensor networks. MDS-MAP uses MDS to compute a local, relative map at each node from the distance or proximity information of its neighboring nodes. Based on the local maps and the locations of a set of anchor nodes with known locations, the absolute positions of unknown nodes in the network can be computed. In this paper, we investigate the effects of several variants of MDS on the accuracy of localization in wireless sensor networks. We compare metric scaling and non-metric scaling methods, each with several different optimization criteria. Simulation results show that different optimization models of metric scaling achieve comparable localization accuracy for dense networks and non-metric scaling achieves more accurate results than metric scaling for sparse networks at the expense of higher computational cost.
smartAR: A PSEUDO- END-TO-END APPROACH FOR IP MICRO-MOBILITY
Authors: DE MARCO GIUSEPPE , BAROLLI LEONARD , LONGO MAURIZIO
Published: March 2006

Nowadays, we can count several proposals about the micro-mobility problem in IP networks. In this paper, we try to summarize current proposals by means of a general classification scheme. Our taxonomy permits to identify pros and cons of current IP micromobility protocols. This classification should help understanding that e2e solutions do not cope with simultaneous movements of mobile nodes, and thus a mixed scheme would be better. Here, we design a new scheme, namely the smartAR scheme, which reduces network complexity and endures both single and simultaneous movements scenario. Moreover, we provide the classification of the IP micro-mobility protocols with a simple analysis of the hand-off latencies.
DELAY-ENERGY AWARE ROUTING PROTOCOL FOR HETEROGENEOUS WIRELESS AD HOC NETWORKS
Authors: DURRESI ARJAN , PARUCHURI VAMSI , DURRESI MIMOZA , BAROLLI LEONARD
Published: March 2006

We present Delay-Energy Aware Routing (DEAP) a novel protocol for heterogeneous wireless ad hoc networks. DEAP is a crosslayer scheme that: first, manages adaptively the energy control by controlling the wakeup cycle of sensors based on the experienced packet delay; and second, rout packet in each hoc by distributing the load a group of neighboring nodes. The primary result of DEAP is that it enables a flexible and wide range of tradeoffs between the packet delay and the energy consumption. Therefore, DEAP supports delay sensitive applications of heterogeneous networks that include sensors and actors. DEAP is scalable to the change in network size, node type, node density and topology. DEAP accommodates seamlessly such network changes, including the presence of actors in heterogeneous sensor networks. Indeed, while DEAP does not count on actors, it takes advantage of them, and uses their resources when possible, thus reducing the energy consumption of sensor nodes. Through analysis and simulation evaluations, we show that DEAP improves the packet delay and network lifetime compared to other protocols.
ON A NETWORK SENSING PROBLEM
Authors: GU WEIZHEN , HSU D. FRANK , JIA XINGDE
Published: March 2006

Live traffic flow information can help improve the efficiency of a communication network. There are many ways available to monitor the traffic flow of a network. In this paper, we propose a very efficient monitoring strategy. This strategy not only reduces the number of nodes to be monitored but also determines the complete traffic information of the entire network using the information from the monitored nodes. The strategy is optimal for monitoring a network because it reduces the number of monitored nodes to a minimum. Fast algorithms are also presented in this paper to compute the traffic information for the entire network based on the information collected from the monitored nodes. The monitoring scheme discussed in this paper can be applied to the internet, telecommunication networks, wireless ad hoc networks, large scale multiprocessor computing systems, and other information systems where the transmission of information needs to be monitored.
REPLICA LOCATION MANAGEMENT FOR DATA SHARING IN MOBILE AD HOC NETWORKS
Authors: HARA TAKAHIRO
Published: March 2006

To improve data accessibility in ad hoc networks, we have proposed a few methods of replicating data items on mobile hosts by considering the data access frequencies from mobile hosts to each data item and the network topology. In this paper, we address techniques to manage locations of data items or replicas and efficiently forward access requests to the locations. In order to manage locations of data items efficiently, a key issues is predicting the locations of data items that dynamically change. To predict the locations of data items, we use the information on replica allocation at every relocation time and the logs of past data accesses.
Compact Genetic Algorithm for Performance Improvement in Hierarchical Sensor Networks Management
Authors: Jin Ming-Hui , Hsu D. Frank , Kao Cheng-Yan
Published: March 2006

This paper introduces a novel scheduling problem called the active interval scheduling problem in hierarchical wireless sensor networks for long-term periodical monitoring applications. To improve the report sensitivity of the hierarchical wireless sensor networks, an efficient scheduling algorithm is desired. Therefore, in this paper, we propose a compact genetic algorithm (CGA) to optimize the solution quality for sensor network maintenance. The experimental result shows that the proposed CGA brings better solutions in acceptable calculation time.
INTERCONNECTING 802.15.4 CLUSTERS IN MASTER-SLAVE MODE USING GUARANTEED TIME SLOTS AND ACKNOWLEDGED TRANSFERS: QUEUEING THEORETIC ANALYSIS
Authors: MIŠIĆ JELENA , MIŠIĆ VOJISLAV B. , FUNG CAROL J.
Published: March 2006

Individual IEEE 802.15.4 clusters with separate coordinators can be interconnected to form larger sensor networks. In this paper, we investigate the performance of two 802.15.4 beacon enabled clusters interconnected in a master-slave manner. In this setup, the cluster coordinator of the source cluster periodically visits the sink cluster as an ordinary node, thus performing the bridging function. The bridge delivers its data to the sink coordinator using the dedicated slots allocated by the sink coordinator. We investigate the performance of the cluster, in particular the impact of the number of packet lanes allocated to the bridge.
LOCAL DETECTION OF SELFISH ROUTING BEHAVIOR IN AD HOC NETWORKS
Authors: WANG BO , SOLTANI SOHRAAB , SHAPIRO JONATHAN , TAN PANG-NING
Published: March 2006

Reputation mechanisms for detecting and punishing free-riders in ad hoc networks depend on the local detection of selfish behavior. Although naive selfish strategies based on dropping data packets are readily detected, more sophisticated strategies that manipulate ad hoc routing protocols present a greater challenge. In this work we develop a method to distinguish selfish peers from cooperative ones based solely on local observations of AODV routing protocol behavior. Our approach uses the finite state machine model of locally observed AODV actions to build up a statistical description of the behavior of each neighbor. We apply a series of well-known statistical tests to features derived from this description to partition the set neighboring nodes into a cooperative and selfish class. Simulation results for a non-mobile ad hoc network show that our approach can detect two different types of routing manipulation while maintaining a low rate of false positives.
AUTOMATIC GEOMETRY-DRIVEN OFDM QUALITY-OF-SERVICE ANALYSIS FOR INDOOR ENVIRONMENTS
Authors: WU HSIAO-CHUN , CHEN JI , DURRESI ARJAN , ZHOU HUAIBEI
Published: March 2006

This paper introduces a novel geometry-based simulation technique for the arbitrary indoor OFDM quality-of-service (QoS) analysis. This automatic geometry-driven approach integrates electromagnetic radio propagation modeling, channel characterization, and OFDM interference analysis to quantify the indoor OFDM performance through the off-site computer–aided procedures. Essential OFDM quality-of-service measures, such as signal-to-interference ratios (SIR) and bit error rates (BER) can be generated by this new analysis tool. The resulting QoS measure contours can be used by service providers and OFDM communication system designers to quantify the system performance and determine the optimal accessing locations for any indoor geometry.
Safe Quality of Service Aware Management of Heterogeneous Sensor Networks
Authors: Younis Mohamed , Youssef Waleed , Eltoweissy Mohamed , Olariu Stephan
Published: March 2006

Wireless networked sensors are envisioned to play a vital role in the emerging pervasive service platforms that will instrument a wide range of next generation civil and military applications. Recently, we have proposed ANSWER: AutoNomouS Wireless sEnsor netwoRk as a service platform whose mission is to provide dependable information services to in-situ mobile users while satisfying their quality-of-service (QoS) requirements. Alongside with the stationary tiny sensors, the network employs more powerful mobile devices referred to as aggregation and forwarding nodes (AFNs). ANSWER exploits AFN mobility to support QoS requirements. However, as an AFN moves closer to an event (for example, a hazardous spill), it may be at risk (for example, due to potential damage). In this paper, we present a quantitative analysis of the interplay and balance between QoS support and asset safety. We propose a new scheme, called SAFER (for SAFEty-aware Relocation), which pursues relocation of the AFN in order to boost network performance without unnecessarily compromising AFN safety. For the relocation process to take place, SAFER uses historical data on detected events and employs an evolutionary neural network to assess the risk involved and predict good quality new position(s). Experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of SAFER.
METHODS OF ELECTROCHEMICAL NOISE ANALYSIS FOR INVESTIGATION OF CORROSION PROCESSES
Authors: SMULKO JANUSZ
Published: March 2006

Electrochemical corrosion processes can be investigated by observation of charge flows between the electrolyte and the corroding metal. Usually, the charge flows are observed as spontaneous current and voltage fluctuations (electrochemical noise) in a three-electrode setup. Different types of corrosion processes can be recognized by electrochemical noise analysis. Uniform corrosion rate can be evaluated by estimation of polarization resistance between the metal and electrolyte. Local corrosion events (breakdowns of the passive layer) that produce characteristic transients observed in noise can be detected as well. Different methods of electrochemical noise analysis are presented in a brief review. The limitations and advantages of the proposed methods for corrosion monitoring and research are underlined. The experimental results are also discussed.
INFERRING PHYLOGENETIC RELATIONSHIPS AVOIDING FORBIDDEN ROOTED TRIPLETS
Authors: HE YING-JUN , HUYNH TRINH N. D. , JANSSON JESPER , SUNG WING-KIN
Published: March 2006

To construct a phylogenetic tree or phylogenetic network for describing the evolutionary history of a set of species is a well-studied problem in computational biology. One previously proposed method to infer a phylogenetic tree/network for a large set of species is by merging a collection of known smaller phylogenetic trees on overlapping sets of species so that no (or as little as possible) branching information is lost. However, little work has been done so far on inferring a phylogenetic tree/network from a specified set of trees when in addition, certain evolutionary relationships among the species are known to be highly unlikely. In this paper, we consider the problem of constructing a phylogenetic tree/network which is consistent with all of the rooted triplets in a given set [Formula: see text] and none of the rooted triplets in another given set [Formula: see text]. Although NP-hard in the general case, we provide some efficient exact and approximation algorithms for a number of biologically meaningful variants of the problem.
UNIQUE PEPTIDE IDENTIFICATION OF RNaseA SUPERFAMILY SEQUENCES BASED ON REINFORCED MERGING ALGORITHMS
Authors: PAI TUN-WEN , SU BO-HAN , WU PEI-CHIH , CHANG MARGARET DAH-TSYR , CHANG HAO-TENG , FAN TAN-CHI , LIU SHI-HWEI
Published: March 2006

Human ribonuclease A (RNaseA) superfamily consists of eight RNases with high similarity in which RNase2 and RNase3 share 76.7% identity. The evolutionary variation of RNases results in differential structures and functions of the enzymes. To distinguish the characteristics of each RNase, we developed reinforced merging algorithms (RMA) to rapidly identify the unique peptide motifs for each member of the highly conserved human RNaseA superfamily. Many motifs in RNase3 identified by RMA correlated well with the antigenic regions predicted by DNAStar. Two unique peptide motifs were experimentally confirmed to contain epitopes for monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) specifically against RNase3. Further analysis of homologous RNases in different species revealed that the unique peptide motifs were located at the correspondent positions, and one of these motifs indeed matched the epitope for a specific anti-bovine pancreatic RNaseA (bpRNaseA) antibody. Our method provides a useful tool for identification of unique peptide motifs for further experimental design. The RMA system is available and free for academic use at and .
PRIMA: PEPTIDE ROBUST IDENTIFICATION FROM MS/MS SPECTRA
Authors: LIU JIAN , MA BIN , LI MING
Published: March 2006

In proteomics, tandem mass spectrometry is the key technology for peptide sequencing. However, partially due to the deficiency of peptide identification software, a large portion of the tandem mass spectra are discarded in almost all proteomics centers because they are not interpretable. The problem is more acute with the lower quality data from low end but more popular devices such as the ion trap instruments.

In order to deal with the noisy and low quality data, this paper develops a systematic machine learning approach to construct a robust linear scoring function, whose coefficients are determined by a linear programming. A prototype, PRIMA, was implemented. When tested with large benchmarks of varying qualities, PRIMA consistently has higher accuracy than commonly used software MASCOT, SEQUEST and X! Tandem.
Heterogeneity of class I INS VNTR allele association with insulin secretion in obese children
Authors: Le Fur Sophie , Auffray Cédric , Letourneur Franck , Cruaud Corinne , Le Stunff Catherine , Bougnères Pierre
Published: March 2006

On the basis of the near-complete linkage disequilibrium of the insulin variable number of tandem repeats ( INS VNTR) allele with the neighboring −23Hph1 A/T single-nucleotide polymorphism, previous studies have documented the association of class I (“short”) and class III (“long”) INS VNTR alleles with metabolic parameters, including circulating insulin levels. Using a new method to sequence class I alleles, we revisited this association in 346 obese children. Class I alleles are made of several types of repeats, whose repartition determines subclasses IC and ID. Fasting insulin was found to be higher in obese children with ID/ID genotypes (135 ± 12 pmol/l, n = 64) than with ID/IC or IC/IC genotypes (91 ± 5 pmol/l, n = 97, P = 0.0005). In response to oral glucose, peak insulin levels and insulin-to-glucose area under the curve ratios were higher in ID/ID (872 ± 122 pmol/l and 109 ± 15, respectively) than in ID/IC or IC/IC patients (586 ± 42 pmol/l and 76 ± 5, P = 0.02 and P = 0.04, respectively). Fasting and postglucose insulin levels were comparable in carriers of IC and of class III alleles. Our results support that the molecular structure of the VNTR allele, not only its overall length, is associated with variations of insulin secretion. ID/ID homozygosity appears responsible for the increased insulin levels previously attributed to the whole class I VNTR group. It will be important to test the ramifications of this observation for class I association with Type 1 (susceptibility) and Type 2 diabetes (protection).
Increased Sympathetic Nerve Activity Correlates With Neurovascular Compression at the Rostral Ventrolateral Medulla
Authors: Sendeski Mauricio M. , Consolim-Colombo Fernanda Marciano , Leite Claudia Costa , Rubira Marcelo Custódio , Lessa Patricia , Krieger Eduardo Moacyr
Published: March 2006

We used microneurography to measure muscle sympathetic nerve activity (MSNA) in 25 hypertensive subjects and correlated these results with the presence or absence of signs of neurovascular compression (NVC) at the rostral ventrolateral (RVL) medulla on MRI. Subjects were divided into 3 groups based on MRI findings: NVC
−
, no MRI evidence of NVC (N=9); NVC+contact, image showing artery in contact but not compressing the RVL medulla (N=8); and NVC+compression, image showing arterial compression of the RVL medulla (N=8). The MSNA measurements were performed at rest, after a hypothermic stimulus, and during isometric exercise. The MSNA during rest in the NVC+compression group was significantly higher than that in the NVC+contact and NVC
−
groups (30.4±3.4 versus 17.5±1.1 and 21.4±3.2 spikes per minute, respectively). However, the blood pressure in the NVC+compression group was slightly but not significantly higher than that in the other 2 groups (183±7/115±8, 174±6/108±7, and 171±5/110±5 mm Hg, respectively). The increases in MSNA, blood pressure, and heart rate during the cold pressor and isometric exercise tests were similar. Our results show that, although resting MSNA is elevated in patients with true NVC of the RVL medulla, patients without NVC or with arterial contact but not overt compression of the RVL medulla have similar MSNA. These findings are important for identifying, among hypertensive patients with NVC, individuals who may have associated physiological repercussions, such as increased sympathetic activity.
Association of the Ghrelin Receptor Gene Region With Left Ventricular Hypertrophy in the General Population
Authors: Baessler Andrea , Kwitek Anne E. , Fischer Marcus , Koehler Martina , Reinhard Wibke , Erdmann Jeanette , Riegger Guenter , Doering Angela , Schunkert Heribert , Hengstenberg Christian
Published: March 2006

Growth hormone (GH) can influence left ventricular myocardial growth, structure, and function. The GH secretagogue receptor (GHSR, ghrelin receptor) is known to be involved in GH release and is expressed in the myocardium. We hypothesized that genetic variants within the
GHSR
are associated with parameters of left ventricular mass (LVM) and geometry. Ten single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) covering the gene region were genotyped in 1230 members of the general population (Monitoring Trends and Determinants on Cardiovascular Diseases Augsburg Echocardiographic Substudy). Linkage disequilibrium analysis revealed a linkage disequilibrium block consisting of 5 SNPs forming 2 common haplotypes. One haplotype was found significantly more often in subjects without left ventricular hypertrophy ([LVH] 69% versus 59%; permutated
P
=0.0015), whereas the second haplotype was significantly more frequent in individuals with LVH (32% versus 26%;
P
=0.019). Homozygous subjects presented with an increase of risk with respect to all heart size parameters. A significantly increasing frequency of the risk haplotype could be observed from the lowest (20.9%) to the highest quintile (31.0%) of gender-specific LVM distributions (
P
=0.0096). We found association of the minor alleles of individual single nucleotide polymorphisms contributing to the haplotypes with higher LVM indices, septal wall thickness, and different LVH criteria consistent in men and women in matched cases and controls (LVM, women: 144.8±30.9 [noncarrier] versus 171.3±36.0 [homozygous],
P
=0.001; men: 186.7±42.4 versus 236.3±64.5,
P
=0.002). These data suggest that common variants in the
GHSR
region are associated with parameters of LVM and geometry independent of blood pressure and body mass in the general population and, thus, may be involved in the pathogenesis of LVH.
Telmisartan But Not Valsartan Increases Caloric Expenditure and Protects Against Weight Gain and Hepatic Steatosis
Authors: Sugimoto Ken , Qi Nathan R. , Kazdová Ludmila , Pravenec Michal , Ogihara Toshio , Kurtz Theodore W.
Published: March 2006

The potential effects of angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs) on adipose tissue biology and body weight are of considerable interest, because these agents are frequently used to treat hypertension in patients who are prone to visceral obesity, the metabolic syndrome, and diabetes. In rats fed a high-fat, high-carbohydrate diet, we compared the effects of 2 ARBs, telmisartan and valsartan, on body weight, food intake, energy expenditure, fat accumulation, fat cell size, and hepatic triglyceride levels. Telmisartan, but not valsartan, promoted increases in caloric expenditure and protected against dietary-induced weight gain. In the telmisartan-treated rats, absolute food intake, but not food intake adjusted for body weight, was lower than in valsartan-treated rats or controls. Telmisartan reduced the accumulation of visceral fat and decreased adipocyte size to a much greater extent than valsartan and was also associated with a significant reduction in hepatic triglyceride levels. Moreover, telmisartan, but not valsartan, increased the expression of both nuclear-encoded and mitochondrial-encoded genes in skeletal muscle known to play important roles in mitochondrial energy metabolism. Thus, in addition to a class effect of ARBs in modulating adipocyte size, these findings raise the possibility that certain molecules, like telmisartan, may have a particularly strong impact on fat cell volume and fat accumulation, as well as distinctive effects on energy metabolism, that may help protect against dietary-induced visceral obesity and weight gain.