bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
A separable quadratic surrogate total variation minimization algorithm for accelerating accurate CT reconstruction from few‐views and limited‐angle data
Authors: Hou Xiaowen , Teng Yueyang , Kang Yan , Qi Shouliang 
Published: November 2017

PurposeTotal variation minimization (TVM) is a popular and useful method for accurate CT reconstruction from few‐views and limited‐angle data. However, the optimization procedure of previous TVM‐based algorithms is very time‐consuming. The purpose of this paper was to accelerate the high image quality CT reconstruction from few‐views and limited‐angle data.MethodA new optimization algorithm based on the optimization transfer principle is proposed. The proposed algorithm uses TVM as the regularization term of the cost function that ensures the quality of the CT image reconstructed from few‐views and limited‐angle data. Additionally, half of the square of the difference between the original projection and the forward projection is used as the fidelity term. We then proved that the regularization term, i.e., 2‐norm TV, is a convex function. Based on the convexity of the regularization and fidelity terms, a separable quadratic surrogate (SQS) function was proposed to substitute the regularization and fidelity terms. The solution of the cost function can be obtained by minimizing the SQS function and building the next SQS function at the minimum point.ResultsBoth numerical simulations and simulations using real experimental data showed that the proposed algorithm reconstruct high‐quality CT image from few‐views and limited‐angle data. The differences between the image reconstructed by the proposed algorithm and the images reconstructed by the previous algorithms are very small. However, the proposed algorithm required less than 1/10 time of the computational time of the previous algorithms. The image quality is not assessed in a rigorous way.ConclusionThe proposed algorithm can greatly accelerate the accurate CT reconstruction from few‐views and limited‐angle data relative to previous algorithms.
Toward Scintillator High‐Gain Avalanche Rushing Photoconductor Active Matrix Flat Panel Imager (SHARP‐AMFPI): Initial fabrication and characterization
Authors: Scheuermann James R. , Howansky Adrian , Hansroul Marc , Léveillé Sébastien , Tanioka Kenkichi , Zhao Wei 
Published: November 2017

PurposeWe present the first prototype Scintillator High‐Gain Avalanche Rushing Photoconductor Active Matrix Flat Panel Imager (SHARP‐AMFPI). This detector includes a layer of avalanche amorphous Selenium (a‐Se) (HARP) as the photoconductor in an indirect detector to amplify the signal and reduce the effects of electronic noise to obtain quantum noise‐limited images for low‐dose applications. It is the first time avalanche a‐Se has been used in a solid‐state imaging device and poses as a possible solution to eliminate the effects of electronic noise, which is crucial for low‐dose imaging performance of AMFPI.MethodsWe successfully deposited a solid‐state HARP structure onto a 24 × 30 cm2 array of thin‐film transistors (TFT array) with a pixel pitch of 85 μm. The HARP layer consists of 16 μm of a‐Se with a hole‐blocking and electron‐blocking layer to prevent charge injection from the high‐voltage bias and pixel electrodes, respectively. An electric field (ESe) up to 105 V μm−1 was applied across the a‐Se layer without breakdown. A 150 μm thick‐structured CsI:Tl scintillator was used to form SHARP‐AMFPI. The x‐ray imaging performance is characterized using a 30 kVp Mo/Mo beam. We evaluate the spatial resolution, noise power, and detective quantum efficiency at zero frequency of the system with and without avalanche gain. The results are analyzed using cascaded linear system model (CLSM).ResultsAn avalanche gain of 76 ± 5 was measured at ESe = 105 V μm−1. We demonstrate that avalanche gain can amplify the signal to overcome electronic noise. As avalanche gain is increased, image quality improves for a constant (0.76 mR) exposure until electronic noise is overcome. Our system is currently limited by poor optical transparency of our high‐voltage electrode and long integrating time which results in dark current noise. These two effects cause high‐spatial frequency noise to dominate imaging performance.ConclusionsWe demonstrate the feasibility of a solid‐state HARP x‐ray imager and have fabricated the largest active area HARP sensor to date. Procedures to reduce secondary quantum and dark noise are outlined. Future work will improve optical coupling and charge transport which will allow for frequency DQE and temporal metrics to be obtained.
Approximate inversion method for time‐fractional subdiffusion equations
Authors: Lu Xin , Pang Hong‐Kui , Sun Hai‐Wei , Vong Seak‐Weng 
Published: November 2017

SummaryThe finite‐difference method applied to the time‐fractional subdiffusion equation usually leads to a large‐scale linear system with a block lower triangular Toeplitz coefficient matrix. The approximate inversion method is employed to solve this system. A sufficient condition is proved to guarantee the high accuracy of the approximate inversion method for solving the block lower triangular Toeplitz systems, which are easy to verify in practice and have a wide range of applications. The applications of this sufficient condition to several existing finite‐difference schemes are investigated. Numerical experiments are presented to verify the validity of theoretical results.
Planning of sequential binomial tests for various risk ratios
Authors: Michlin Yefim Haim , Shaham Ofer 
Published: November 2017

AbstractThe Sequential Probability Ratio Test (SPRT) is widely used in the field of reliability and quality control. This paper is a continuation and a significant extension of the authors' earlier paper; it is dedicated to various risk ratios (α/β) and will lead to the increased use of the Sequential Probability Ratio Test for practical and research needs. The sample number (SN) until the test stops is a random value, and its distribution tails can be extremely long relative to the average SN (ASN). This is not suitable for practical use; therefore, truncation is required, usually by a pair of lines whose intersection, denoted as the Truncation Apex (TA), determines the maximum SN (maxSN). The optimality of the test is determined by the minimality of the SN (by means of maxSN and ASN) for a given Operating Characteristic. Presented are formulas and an algorithm for the TA and other parameters of the optimal test stopping boundaries for various α/β. This methodology also shortens the test planning process. Displacement of the TA from the optimal location results in a significant increase in ASN.The study was implemented in the Israeli standard SI‐61123. Revision of IEC 61123 and IEC 61124 (for exponential distributed data), by this study, has been accepted to the work plan of TC‐56 of IEC. The proposed methodology can be the basis for the improvement of additional standards, for example, in ISO 8422:2006.
Extracellular matrix remodeling in 3D: implications in tissue homeostasis and disease progression
Authors: Ford Andrew J. , Rajagopalan Padmavathy 
Published: November 2017

The extracellular matrix (ECM) plays a critical role in regulating cell behavior during tissue homeostasis and in disease progression. Through a combination of adhesion, contraction, alignment of ECM proteins and subsequent degradation, cells change the chemical, mechanical, and physical properties of their surrounding matrix. Other contributing factors to matrix remodeling are thede novosynthesis of ECM proteins, post‐translational modifications and receptor‐mediated internalization. In this review, we highlight how each of these processes contributes to the maintenance of homeostasis and in disease conditions such as cancer and liver fibrosis.This article is categorized under:Implantable Materials and Surgical Technologies > Nanotechnology in Tissue Repair and Replacement
Charmed baryon weak decays with SU(3) flavor symmetry
Authors: Geng C. Q. , Hsiao Y. K. , Liu Chia-Wei , Tsai Tien-Hsueh 
Published: November 2017

Abstract

We study the semileptonic and non-leptonic charmed baryon decays with SU(3) flavor symmetry, where the charmed baryons can be B

c
= (Ξ

c

0
, Ξ

c

+
, Λ

c

+
), B

c

′
= (Σ

c

(++,+,0)
, Ξ

c

′ (+,0)
, Ω

c

0
), B

cc
= (Ξ

cc

+ +
, Ξ

cc

+
, Ω

c

+
) or B

cc
= Ω

ccc

+ +
. With B

n

(′)
denoted as the baryon octet (decuplet), we find that the B

c
→ B

n

′
ℓ
+
ν

ℓ
decays are forbidden, while the Ω

c

0
→ Ω−
ℓ
+
ν

ℓ
, Ω

cc

+
→ Ω

c

0
ℓ
+
ν

ℓ
, and Ω

ccc

+ +
→ Ω

cc

+
ℓ
+
ν

ℓ
decays are the only existing Cabibbo- allowed modes for B

c

′
→ B

n

′
ℓ
+
ν

ℓ
, B

cc
→ B

c

′
ℓ
+
ν

ℓ
, and B

ccc
→ B

cc

(′)
ℓ
+
ν

ℓ
, respectively. We predict the rarely studied B

c
→ B

n

(′)
M decays, such as

$$ \mathrm{\mathcal{B}}\left({\Xi}_c^0\to {\Lambda}^0{\overline{K}}^0,{\Xi}_c^{+}\to {\Xi}^0{\pi}^{+}\right)=\left(8.3\pm 0.9,\ 8.0\pm 4.1\right)\times {10}^{-3}\kern0.5em \mathrm{and}\kern0.5em \mathrm{\mathcal{B}}\left({\Lambda}_c^{+}\to {\Delta}^{++}{\pi}^{-},{\Xi}_c^0\to {\Omega}^{-}{K}^{+}\right)=\left(5.5\pm 1.3,\kern0.5em 4.8\pm 0.5\right)\times {10}^{-3} $$

ℬ

Ξ
c
0

→

Λ
0

K
¯

0

,

Ξ
c
+

→

Ξ
0

π
+

=

8.3
±
0.9
,

8.0
±
4.1

×

10

−
3

and

ℬ

Λ
c
+

→

Δ

+
+

π
−

,

Ξ
c
0

→

Ω
−

K
+

=

5.5
±
1.3
,

4.8
±
0.5

×

10

−
3

. For the observation, the doubly and triply charmed baryon decays of

$$ {\Omega}_{cc}^{+}\to {\Xi}_c^{+}{\overline{K}}^0,{\Xi}_{cc}^{++}\to \left({\Xi}_c^{+}{\pi}^{+},{\varSigma}_c^{++}{\overline{K}}^0\right),\kern0.5em \mathrm{and}\kern0.5em {\Omega}_{ccc}^{++}\to \left({\Xi}_{cc}^{++}{\overline{K}}^0,{\Omega}_{cc}^{+}{\pi}^{+},{\Xi}_c^{+}{D}^{+}\right) $$

Ω
cc
+

→

Ξ
c
+

K
¯

0

,

Ξ
cc

+
+

→

Ξ
c
+

π
+

,

Σ
c

+
+

K
¯

0

,

and

Ω

c
c
c

+
+

→

Ξ
cc

+
+

K
¯

0

,

Ω
cc
+

π
+

,

Ξ
c
+

D
+

are the favored Cabibbo-allowed decays, which are accessible to the BESIII and LHCb experiments.
A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, proof-of-concept trial of creatine monohydrate as adjunctive treatment for bipolar depression
Authors: Toniolo Ricardo Alexandre , Silva Michelle , Fernandes Francy de Brito Ferreira , Amaral José Antonio de Mello Siqueira , Dias Rodrigo da Silva , Lafer Beny 
Published: November 2017

AbstractDepressive episodes are a major cause of morbidity and dysfunction in individuals suffering from bipolar disorder. Currently available treatments for this condition have limited efficacy and new therapeutic options are needed. Extensive research in the pathophysiology of bipolar disorder points to the existence of mitochondrial and bioenergetic dysfunction. We hypothesized that creatine monohydrate, a nutraceutical that works as a mitochondrial modulator, would be effective as an adjunctive therapy for bipolar depression. We conducted a double-blind trial in which 35 patients with bipolar disorder type I or II in a depressive episode by DSM-IV criteria and in use of regular medication for the treatment of this phase of the disease were randomly allocated into two adjunctive treatment groups for 6 weeks: creatine monohydrate 6 g daily (N = 17) or placebo (N = 18). Primary efficacy was assessed by the change in the Montgomery–Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS). We did not find a statistically significant difference in the comparison between groups for the change in score on the MADRS after 6 weeks in an intention-to-treat (ITT) analysis (p = 0.560; Cohen’s d = 0.231). However, we found significant superiority of creatine add-on vs. placebo when we considered the remission criterion of a MADRS score ≤ 12 at week 6 analyzing the outcome of the 35 randomized patients on ITT (52.9% remission in the creatine group vs. 11.1% remission in the placebo group) and of the 23 completers (66.7% remission in the creatine group vs. 18.2% remission in the placebo group) (p = 0.012; OR = 9.0 and p = 0.036; OR = 9.0, respectively). Two patients who received creatine switched to hypomania/mania early in the trial. No clinically relevant physical side-effects were reported or observed. This proof-of-concept study, aiming to restore brain bioenergetics using an adjunctive mitochondrial modulator, is not conclusive on the efficacy of creatine add-on for bipolar depression, but suggests that this compound may have a role in the adjunctive treatment of this phase of the illness. Further investigation through randomized controlled trials with larger samples should be conducted to verify the efficacy of creatine supplementation for bipolar depression and also for subsyndromal depressive symptoms.
The Legal Education of the First Chinese American Admitted to the New York Bar in the Twentieth Century and his Crusade to End Discrimination Against Ethnic Chinese in America
Authors: Chen Li 
Published: November 2017

AbstractThis article attempts to reveal how a typical first generation Chinese American activist set out to go to law school to learn the skill set to help fight against racial prejudice directed at the Chinese in the early twentieth century. It examines how Hua Chuen Mei, a first-generation Chinese American lawyer was educated and trained in America; it primarily traces his undergraduate and law school education at Columbia and New York University Law School from 1910–1914 to show how he overcame the odds and excelled academically to complete his undergraduate and law degree programs with flying colors. It revisits his extracurricular activities to understand what motivated early Chinese immigrants like him to seek legal education, and what issues were uppermost in the mind of a typical Chinese American law student in that era.
Neoclassical, semi-collisional tearing mode theory in an axisymmetric torus
Authors: Connor J. W. , Hastie R. J. , Helander P. 
Published: November 2017

A set of layer equations for determining the stability of semi-collisional tearing modes in an axisymmetric torus, incorporating neoclassical physics, in the small ion Larmor radius limit, is provided. These can be used as an inner layer module for inclusion in numerical codes that asymptotically match the layer to toroidal calculations of the tearing mode stability index, $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6E5}^{\prime }$. They are more complete than in earlier work and comprise equations for the perturbed electron density and temperature, the ion temperature, Ampère’s law and the vorticity equation, amounting to a twelvth-order set of radial differential equations. While the toroidal geometry is kept quite general when treating the classical and Pfirsch–Schlüter transport, parallel bootstrap current and semi-collisional physics, it is assumed that the fraction of trapped particles is small for the banana regime contribution. This is to justify the use of a model collision term when acting on the localised (in velocity space) solutions that remain after the Spitzer solutions have been exploited to account for the bulk of the passing distributions. In this respect, unlike standard neoclassical transport theory, the calculation involves the second Spitzer solution connected with a parallel temperature gradient, because this stability problem involves parallel temperature gradients that cannot occur in equilibrium toroidal transport theory. Furthermore, a calculation of the linearised neoclassical radial transport of toroidal momentum for general geometry is required to complete the vorticity equation. The solutions of the resulting set of equations do not match properly to the ideal magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) equations at large distances from the layer, and a further, intermediate layer involving ion corrections to the electrical conductivity and ion parallel thermal transport is invoked to achieve this matching and allow one to correctly calculate the layer $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6E5}^{\prime }$.
Correlatives in earlier English: Change and continuity in the expression of interclausal dependencies
Authors: Links Meta , van Kemenade Ans , Grondelaers Stefan 
Published: November 2017

AbstractA construction very widely used in Old English and Old Germanic more broadly are correlatives introduced by an adverbial or conditional subclause, as inWhen you've done your homework, (then) you can come back(Old English: ‘…, then can you come back’). Correlatives originate from a paratactic clause structure, making use of resumptive adverbs such asthenbelonging to the Old Germanic series of demonstrative adverbs, whose syntactic niche was the clause-initial position, particularly in Verb Second main clauses. Paratactic structure in correlatives is diagnosed by the presence of a resumptive adverb. We show that the correlative use of resumptive adverbs is sensitive to both clause-internal and clause-external variables: mood, subclause-internal particles, negation, subject type, subclause weight, text type, translation. Correlatives decline from late Old English onward. Although it may seem tempting to attribute this to the loss of Verb Second in English, it resulted primarily from the loss of the original Germanic resumptive adverbs.
Grammatical and lexical factors in sound change: A usage-based approach
Authors: Bybee Joan 
Published: November 2017

AbstractThe question of whether or not grammatical factors can condition or block sound change has been discussed from many perspectives for more than a century without resolution (Melchert, 1975). Here we consider studies of sound change in progress which show that words or phrases that are used frequently in the phonetic environment for change undergo the change before those whose use is less frequent in these contexts. Because words of different categories and with different structures also have different distributions, they may occur preferentially in certain phonetic environments. Thus, some apparent cases of influence by grammatical and lexical factors can be explained by phonetic factors if we expand our notion ofphonetic environmentto include frequency within the environment for change, which includes the segmental environment as well as factors that affect the degree of prominence a word receives in context.
The Emergence of an Ecstatic-materialist Perspective as a Cross-genre Tendency in Experimental Music
Authors: Wanke Riccardo 
Published: November 2017

This article proposes a perspective on certain practices within experimental music based on a particular understanding of sonic materialism. By tracing correlations and marking divergences between post-spectralism, minimalism, electroacoustic music, glitch and IDM’s offshoots, this article reflects onsound-in-itself, the conception of space and time in music, poietics, perceptual and cultural factors, and suggests that there is a particular understanding of sonic materialism – which I termecstatic-materialism– that is rooted in a synthesis of perception, theory and embodied actions.This perspective explores a new expressivity of sound in which the sound itself is the point of convergence for creative impulses and perceptual motives, sound being the common territory between composer and listener. By developing the idea of an ecstatic-sonic-materialism, various works across different genres can be brought together according to this mutual convergence on sound that embodies acoustic properties, intimate traces, external and corporeal experiences.
Synthesis of structurally controlled hyperbranched polymers using a monomer having hierarchical reactivity
Authors: Lu Yangtian , Nemoto Takashi , Tosaka Masatoshi , Yamago Shigeru 
Published: November 2017

AbstractHyperbranched polymers (HBPs) have attracted significant attention because of their characteristic topological structure associated with their unique physical properties compared with those of the corresponding linear polymers. Dendrimers are the most structurally controlled HBPs, but the necessity of a stepwise synthesis significantly limits their applications in materials science. Several methods have been developed to synthesize HBPs by a one-step procedure, as exemplified by the use of AB2 monomers and AB′ inimers under condensation and self-condensing vinyl polymerization conditions. However, none of these methods provides structurally controlled HBPs over the three-dimensional (3D) structure, i.e., molecular weight, dispersity, number of branching points, branching density, and chain-end functionalities, except under special conditions. Here, we introduce a monomer design concept involving two functional groups with hierarchical reactivity and demonstrate the controlled synthesis of dendritic HBPs over the 3D structure by the copolymerization of the designed monomer and acrylates under living radical polymerization conditions.
NDP52 activates nuclear myosin VI to enhance RNA polymerase II transcription
Authors: Fili Natalia , Hari-Gupta Yukti , dos Santos Ália , Cook Alexander , Poland Simon , Ameer-Beg Simon M. , Parsons Maddy , Toseland Christopher P. 
Published: November 2017

AbstractMyosin VI (MVI) has been found to be overexpressed in ovarian, breast and prostate cancers. Moreover, it has been shown to play a role in regulating cell proliferation and migration, and to interact with RNA Polymerase II (RNAPII). Here, we find that backfolding of MVI regulates its ability to bind DNA and that a putative transcription co-activator NDP52 relieves the auto-inhibition of MVI to enable DNA binding. Additionally, we show that the MVI–NDP52 complex binds RNAPII, which is critical for transcription, and that depletion of NDP52 or MVI reduces steady-state mRNA levels. Lastly, we demonstrate that MVI directly interacts with nuclear receptors to drive expression of target genes, thereby suggesting a link to cell proliferation and migration. Overall, we suggest MVI may function as an auxiliary motor to drive transcription.
Manipulation of charge transport in thermoelectrics
Authors: Zhang Xinyue , Pei Yanzhong 
Published: November 2017

AbstractWhile numerous improvements have been achieved in thermoelectric materials by reducing the lattice thermal conductivity (κL), electronic approaches for enhancement can be as effective, or even more. A key challenge is decoupling Seebeck coefficient (S) from electrical conductivity (σ). The first order approximation - a single parabolic band assumption with acoustic scattering - leads the thermoelectric power factor (S2σ) to be maximized at a constant reduced Fermi level (η ~ 0.67) and therefore at a given S of ~167 μV/K. This simplifies the challenge of maximization of σ at a constant η, leading to a large number of degenerate transport channels (band degeneracy, Nv) and a fast transportation of charges (carrier mobility, μ). In this paper, existing efforts on this issue are summarized and future prospectives are given.