cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Energy dependence, oil prices and exchange rates: the Dominican economy since 1990

This paper studies the impact that oil prices have had on the floating exchange rate (ER) of the Dominican peso during the 1990–2008 period. The existing empirical literature has documented a link between these two variables for large developed economies and oil-producing countries, always including the 1970s oil crises in their sample periods. Few authors analyze the case of small open economies dependent on oil imports. Since the acceleration of economic growth in the Dominican Republic during the last decade has greatly increased its degree of external energy dependence, this country’s experience presents an ideal case study. We estimate the influence that changes in international gasoline prices have on the real exchange rate between the Dominican peso and the United States dollar. The cointegrated nature of the gasoline price and ER time series are tested and a vector error correction model is developed. Our results indicate that a 10% rise in the price of gas coincides with a 1.2% depreciation of the peso in the long run and that the causality runs from gas prices to the peso.
On the Structure of Vanadium Oxide Supported on Aluminas: UV and Visible Raman Spectroscopy, UV−Visible Diffuse Reflectance Spectroscopy, and Temperature-Programmed Reduction Studies

Vanadia species on aluminas (delta- and gamma-Al2O3) with surface VOx density in the range 0.01-14.2 V/nm2 have been characterized by UV and visible Raman spectroscopy, UV-visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (UV-Vis DRS), and temperature-programmed reduction in hydrogen. It is shown that the alumina phase has little influence on the structure and reducibility of surface VOx species under either dehydrated or hydrated conditions. Three similar types of dispersed VOx species, i.e., monovanadates, polyvanadates, and V2O5, are identified on both aluminas under dehydrated conditions. Upon hydration, polymerized VOx species dominate on the surfaces of the two aluminas. The broad Raman band at around 910 cm(-1), observed on dehydrated V/delta-, gamma-Al2O3 at all V loadings (0.01-14.2 V/nm2), is assigned to the interface mode (V-O-Al) instead of the conventionally assigned V-O-V bond. The direct observation of the interface bond is of significance for the understanding of redox catalysis because this bond has been considered to be the key site in oxidation reactions catalyzed by supported vanadia. Two types of frequency shifts of the V=O stretching band (1013-1035 cm(-1)) have been observed in the Raman spectra of V/Al2O3: a shift as a function of surface VOx density and a shift as a function of excitation wavelength. The shift of the V=O band to higher wavenumbers with increasing surface VOx density is due to the change of VOx structure. The V=O stretching band in dispersed vanadia always appears at lower wavenumber in UV Raman spectra than in visible Raman spectra for the same V/Al2O3 sample. This shift is explained by selective resonance enhancement according to the UV-Vis DRS results. It implies that UV Raman has higher sensitivity to isolated and less polymerized VOx species while visible Raman is more sensitive to highly polymerized VOx species and crystalline V2O5. These results show that a multiwavelength excitation approach provides a more complete structural characterization of supported VOx catalysts.
New designs for high-resistance standard resistors

Discussed are recent efforts undertaken at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to create a new set of high-resistance standards (specifically in the 10 MΩ to 100 MΩ range) using newer, more stable film-type resistors. The history of film-type resistors in high-resistance standards is briefly reviewed. Also examined are the improvements made upon similar resistance standard implementations done by the Instituto Nacional de Tecnologia Industrial (INTI) in Argentina. The new NIST standards use a guarded, highly resistive backbone to reduce leakage currents. Promising results, including reduced settling time and improved stability, are presented.
Nontraditional Knowledge-Based Dairy Youth Activities and Events

Abstract Knowledge quiz bowls have been utilized in various youth programs for over 20 yr. Dairy 4-H quiz bowls have been offered at local, state, and national levels since the late 1970s. The national contest for 4-H members started in 1980 with participation by only seven states, but grew rapidly to a maximum of 22 state teams in the 1993 contest at Louisville, Kentucky. Junior associations of several dairy breeds include quiz bowls as part of their state and national convention agendas, and participation is largest in the Junior Holstein programs. Recent developments in Ohio have led to incorporating “Skillathons” in the Junior Livestock Shows at the Ohio State Fair. The purpose of the dairy cattle skillathon is to provide a learning laboratory that enhances knowledge of the dairy industry and supports the learning that occurs in the youth project work. In 1995, 1141 youths participated in skillathons in seven species areas; 93 youths were in the dairy cattle area. All skillathons are organized around four or five work stations, each emphasizing a different area of knowledge. Participants perform tasks that relate to a specific area, providing a challenging, experiential activity that promotes development of life skills and reinforces the project learning. Each activity is geared by age group to the level of development appropriate for the participant (junior, intermediate, or senior). Individual excellence is recognized as well as overall superiority within each age group. Dairy youth conferences have been utilized to attract dairy interested students to the sciences applied to dairy cattle as well as to further study in higher education.
Trends in structure and reactivity of group 15 alkyls, alkylidenes, and alkylidynes

Abstract Compounds containing metal-carbon bonds, H 2 ECH 3 , HECH 2 , and ECH (E=As and Sb) were investigated with nonempirical molecular orbital calculations. In comparisons with the phosphorus analogues, AsC and SbC bond distances are predicted to be 1.79 and 2.01 A, respectively, while AsC and SbC bond distances are predicted to be 1.66 and 1.88 A, respectively. Phosphorus, arsenic, and antimony alkylidene and alkylidyne compounds are all predicted to undergo analogous chemical reactions; however, the chemical reactivity of these species increases in the sequence E = P, As, and Sb.
Place names as the traditional Navajo's title-deeds, border-alert system, remote sensing, global positioning system, memory bank, and monitor screen

The Navajo (Dine) of the US Southwest speak an Apachean, or Southern Athabascan, language. Navajo names for natural landscape features are very largely both fully translatable and physically descriptive. Despite an initially small, scattered population of migrants from western Canada, over a few centuries, Navajos filled their new habitat with a dense network of place names, which served several purposes. One was to declare hegemony over what was perceived as Navajo territory, to state and stake its boundaries, and in some sense to control that territory and its frontiers. This was furthered by the culture's mythic stories—which involved long quest journeys—being set in real geography, with lengthy recitations of the named places that protagonists passed. This allowed the tales to act as way-finding mnemonic devices that facilitated human travel and resource-control and -acquisition. Finally, being points of attachment to the land for mythological, historical, and personal stories, geographic names served...
Soil magnesium level, corn (Zea mays L.) yield, and magnesium uptake

Abstract The exchangeable soil Mg level recommended for agronomic crop production by different soil testing services ranges from 25 to over 180 ppm (?10% saturation of the cation exchange capacity). In some cases the justification for high soil Mg recommendations is to ensure that forage Mg concentrations are high enough to prevent hypomagnesemia in ruminants consuming it. There has been very little research on determining the minimum amount of soil Mg needed to produce optimum corn (Zea mays L.) grain yields. Some soil testing services recommend adding Ca to soils having high exchangeable Mg contents in spite of little published evidence to support the efficacy of this practice. In 1980, field experiments were initiated on two low and one high exchangeable Mg soils in Pennsylvania to determine: 1) the high and low critical soil Mg levels for corn grain production, 2) how well several soil test methods for determining Mg availability predicted Mg uptake by corn, and 3) the exchangeable soil Mg levels need...
Physicochemical properties of carbons prepared from pecan shell by phosphoric acid activation.

Abstract Activated carbons were prepared from pecan shell by phosphoric acid activation. The pore structure and acidic surface groups of these carbons were characterized by nitrogen adsorption, Boehm titration and transmittance Fourier infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) techniques. The characterization results demonstrated that the development of pore structure was apparent at temperatures ⩾250 °C, and reached 1130 m 2 /g and 0.34 cm 3 /g, respectively, at 500 °C. Impregnation ratio and soaking time at activation temperature also affected the pore development and pore size distribution of final carbon products. At an impregnation ratio of 1.5, activated carbon with BET surface area and micropore volume as high as 861 m 2 /g and 0.289 cm 3 /g was obtained at 400 °C. Microporous activated carbons were obtained in this study. Low impregnation ratio (less than 1.5) and activation temperature (less than 300 °C) are favorable to the formation of acidic surface functional groups, which consist of temperature-sensitive (unstable at high temperature) and temperature-insensitive (stable at high temperature) two parts. The disappearance of temperature-sensitive groups was significant at temperature ⩾300 °C; while the temperature-insensitive groups are stable even at 500 °C. FTIR results showed that the temperature-insensitive part was mostly phosphorus-containing groups as well as some carbonyl-containing groups, while carbonyl-containing groups were the main contributor of temperature-sensitive part.
The Grid 2: Blueprint for a New Computing Infrastructure

Preface Foreword 1. Grids in Context 2. Computational Grids I Applications 3 Distributed Supercomputing Applications 4 Real-Time Widely Distributed Instrumentation Systems 5 Data-Intensive Computing 6 Teleimmersion II Programming Tools 7 Application-Specific Tools 8 Compilers, Languages, and Libraries 9 Object-Based Approaches 10 High-Performance Commodity Computing III Services 11 The Globus Toolkit 12 High-Performance Schedulers 13 High-Throughput Resource Management 14 Instrumentation and Measurement 15 Performance Analysis and Visualization 16 Security, Accounting, and Assurance IV Infrastructure 17 Computing Platforms 18 Network Protocols 19 Network Quality of Service 20 Operating Systems and Network Interfaces 21 Network Infrastructure 22 Testbed Bridges from Research to Infrastructure Glossary Bibliography Contributor Biographies
Dense, Shaped Ceramic/Metal Composites at lessthan equal to1000°C by the Displacive Compensation of Porosity (DCP) Method

The Displacive Compensation of Porosity method for fabricating dense, shaped ceramic/metal composites at modest temperatures is demonstrated. In this process, liquid-metal/solid-ceramic displacement reactions are used to generate more ceramic (by volume) than is consumed, so that pores within a ceramic preform can be filled with the new ceramic phase (i.e., densification without sintering). Dense, lightweight MgO/Mg-Al composites (74–86 vol% oxide) and higher-melting, co-continuous MgAl2O4/Fe-Ni-Al-bearing composites (42–59 vol% oxide) have been produced via the pressureless infiltration and reaction of magnesium-bearing liquids with porous preforms of Al2O3 and NiAl2O4+Fe, respectively, at temperatures of 900°−1000°C. The composites are relatively tough and retain the shapes and dimensions (to within a few percent) of the starting preforms.
k-nearest neighbor estimation of entropies with confidence

We analyze a k-nearest neighbor (k-NN) class of plug-in estimators for estimating Shannon entropy and Renyi entropy. Based on the statistical properties of k-NN balls, we derive explicit rates for the bias and variance of these plug-in estimators in terms of the sample size, the dimension of the samples and the underlying probability distribution. In addition, we establish a central limit theorem for the plug-in estimator that allows us to specify confidence intervals on the entropy functionals. As an application, we use our theory in anomaly detection problems to specify thresholds for achieving desired false alarm rates.
The assessment and enhancement of skin flap viability

One of the most difficult tasks facing the reconstructive surgeon is the successful transfer of skin flaps. Despite recent dramatic advances in the application of skin flaps and despite the skill and experience of the surgeon, flaps still fail. This review discusses the methods regarded as most accurate in assessing skin flap viability, and the techniques used to augment flap survival.
Memory Segmentation to Exploit Sleep Mode Operation

Sleep mode operation and exploiting it to minimize the average power consumption are of great importance. In this paper, we formulate the memory segmentation/partitioning problem to exploit sleep mode operation and show that the problem is NP-complete. We present polynomial time algorithms for special classes of the problem. Some generalizations of the problem are discussed. Preliminary experiments are conducted to show the effectiveness of the algorithms and applicability of the approach. The experimental data confirm that a careful partitioning allows up to 40% more sleep time which could be exploited to minimize the average power consumption. Directions for further research in this area are presented.
Geochemical Analysis of Stream Sediments as a Tool for Environmental Monitoring: A Pigyard Case Study

A geochemical analysis of 11 chemical elements in stream sediments in the vicinity of a pig farm shows that geochemical exploration methods can be used for regional environmental monitoring of organic pollution. In a 5-sq-mi (12.95 km 2 ) area in southern Ontario, contaminated stream sediments showed definite increases in Mg, Ca, Na, K, and Zn. Changes in Cu content were inconclusive; Pb, Co, Ni, Fe, and Mn showed background averages. The study showed that stream sediments are affected by large-scale agricultural operations within a short period of time. It is conclusive that ground water will be affected as contamination continues.
On the T-matrix for scattering by small obstacles

Acoustic scattering by bounded obstacles is considered, in both two and three dimensions. Relations between the T-matrix and the far-field pattern are derived, and then used to obtain new approximations for the T-matrix for small obstacles. The problem of scattering by a pair of small sound-soft circular cylinders is also solved, in the Rayleigh approximation, using bipolar coordinates.
Toward Plot Units: Automatic Affect State Analysis

We present a system called AESOP that automatically produces affect states associated with characters in a story. This research represents a first step toward the automatic generation of plot unit structures from text. AESOP incorporates several existing sentiment analysis tools and lexicons to evaluate the effectiveness of current sentiment technology on this task. AESOP also includes two novel components: a method for acquiring patient polarity verbs, which impart negative affect on their patients, and affect projection rules to propagate affect tags from surrounding words onto the characters in the story. We evaluate AESOP on a small collection of fables.
The effect of dipole moment and electron deficiency of analytes on the chemiresistive response of TiO2(B) nanowires

Nanostructured TiO2(B) thin films were found to have strong and fast chemiresistive response to nitro-aromatic and nitro-amino explosives recently. In this study, the effects of dipole moment and electron deficiency of the analyte molecules on the chemiresistive response are explored to understand the details of molecular interactions of analytes with the sensor surface which lead to charge depletion and the chemiresistive effect. It was found that the speed of the response is dominated by the polarity of the analytes and molecules with larger dipole moments produce faster responses. The degree of the response was found to be dominated by the electron deficiency of the analytes and molecules with greater electron deficiency produce stronger chemiresistive responses.
Finding Optimal Travel Routes with Uncertain Cost Data

Geospatial data analysis techniques are widely used to find optimal routes from specified starting points to specified destinations. Optimality is defined in terms of minimizing some impedance value over the length of the route – the value to be minimized might be distance, travel time, financial cost, or any other metric. Conventional analysis procedures assume that impedance values of all possible travel routes are known a priori, and when this assumption holds, efficient solution strategies exist that allow truly optimal solutions to be found for even very large problems. When impedance values are not known with certainty a priori, exact solution strategies do not exist and heuristics must be employed. This study evaluated how the quality of the solutions generated by one such heuristic were impacted by the nature of the uncertainty in the cost database, the nature of the costs themselves, and the parameters used in the heuristic algorithm. It was found that all of these factors influenced the qualities of the solutions produced by the heuristic, but encouragingly, an easily controlled parameter of the heuristic algorithm itself played the most important role in controlling solution quality.
The role of composite sequential bypass in the treatment of multilevel infrainguinal arterial occlusive disease.

BACKGROUND : In this study, the efficacy of composite sequential bypass is compared to that of standard in situ bypass, and to alternate prosthetic graft systems which have been used for the treatment of multilevel infrainguinal arterial occlusive disease in the absence of suitable autogenous vein. PATIENTS AND METHODS : A retrospective review of graft patency and limb salvage included 197 patients undergoing 211 bypass procedures consisting of in situ femoral-tibial (IS ; n = 119) ; composite sequential (CS ; n = 35), prosthetic femoropopliteal with single (PFP-1 ; n = 30) or no vessel runoff (PFP-O ; n = 9), and prosthetic femoral-tibial (PFT ; n = 18) bypass. RESULTS : By life-table analysis, IS bypass provided superior primary (P < 0.005) and secondary (P < 0.0005) patency over the other groups. CS bypass was similar to PFP-1, with a 2-two year primary patency of 35% and 44% (NS), respectively, and limb salvage rates of 60% and 80% (P = 0.01). PFP-O and PFT bypass procedures did considerably worse, with a 1-year patency of 19% and 22%, respectively, and associated limb salvage rates of 25% and 41% (NS). CONCLUSIONS : Composite sequential bypass is an acceptable procedure for infrainguinal arterial reconstruction when absence of autogenous vein prevents either in situ or secondary vein graft bypass procedures.
SEXUAL COERCION IN THE SALAMANDER PLETHODON CINEREUS: IS IT MERELY A RESULT OF FAMILIARITY?

Previously published studies concerning the social behavior of red-backed salamanders (Plethodon cinereus) reported that in the forest (1) some male-female pairs co-inhabit territories even during the summer noncourtship season, and that in laboratory experiments (2) these pairs act as if they are socially monogamous, (3) males aggressively punish female partners that become polyandrous, and (4) females aggressively punish male partners that become polygynous. Past studies suggest that males and females freely choose their pair-partners in the forest and that sexual intimidation functions to keep partners monogamous. However, this inference is based on several underlying assumptions, which we test in the present study. We performed a series of experiments using randomly established pairs to test the assumptions that ‘natural’ pairs are more than an effect of familiarity between individuals and that extended housing as ‘pairs’ in the laboratory does not account for pair-like behavior. We found no evidence ...
Local adaptation to temperature conserves top-down control in a grassland food web

A fundamental limitation in many climate change experiments is that tests represent relatively short-term ‘shock’ experiments and so do not incorporate the phenotypic plasticity or evolutionary change that may occur during the gradual process of climate change. However, capturing this aspect of climate change effects in an experimental design is a difficult challenge that few studies have accomplished. I examined the effect of temperature and predator climate history in food webs composed of herbaceous plants, generalist grasshopper herbivores and spider predators across a natural 4.8°C temperature gradient spanning 500 km in northeastern USA. In these grasslands, the effects of rising temperatures on the plant community are indirect and arise via altered predator–herbivore interactions. Experimental warming had no direct effect on grasshoppers, but reduced predation risk effects by causing spiders from all study sites to seek thermal refuge lower in the plant canopy. However, spider thermal tolerance corresponded to spider origin such that spiders from warmer study sites tolerated higher temperatures than spiders from cooler study sites. As a consequence, the magnitude of the indirect effect of spiders on plants did not differ along the temperature gradient, although a reciprocal transplant experiment revealed significantly different effects of spider origin on the magnitude of top-down control. These results suggest that variation in predator response to warming may maintain species interactions and associated food web processes when faced with long term, chronic climate warming.
A Benchmark to Evaluate Mobile Video Upload to Cloud Infrastructures

The number of mobile devices (e.g., smartphones, tablets, wearable devices) is rapidly growing. In line with this trend, a massive amount of mobile videos with metadata (e.g., geospatial properties), which are captured using the sensors available on these devices, are being collected. Clearly, a computing infrastructure is needed to store and manage this ever-growing large-scale video dataset with its structured data. Meanwhile, cloud computing service providers such as Amazon, Google and Microsoft allow users to lease computing resources with varying combinations of computing resources such as disk, network and CPU capacities. To effectively use these emerging cloud platforms in support of mobile video applications, the application workflow and resources required at each stage must be clearly defined. In this paper, we deploy a mobile video application (dubbed MediaQ), which manages a large amount of user-generated mobile videos, to Amazon EC2. We define a typical video upload workflow consisting of three phases: (1) video transmission and archival, (2) metadata insertion to database, and (3) video transcoding. While this workflow has a heterogeneous load profile, we introduce a single metric, frames-per-second, for video upload benchmarking and evaluation purposes on various cloud server types. This single metric enables us to quantitatively compare main system resources (disk, CPU, and network) with each other towards selecting the right server types on cloud infrastructure for this workflow.
Effect of Bacillus thuringiensis in Cattle Manure on House Fly Larvae

A commercial formulation of Bacillus thuringiensis Berliner, Biotrol BTB 183-25 W, was fed to dairy cattle in an attempt to control house fly, Musca domestica L., larvae in the feces. A maximum lanai mortality of 32% was obtained when cows were fed 3200 ppm of this formulation. In an in vitro experiment, complete control of home fly larvae was obtained at a level of 12,800 ppm of feces.
Independent evaluation of the anatomical and behavioral effects of Taxol in rat models of spinal cord injury

The goal of the current manuscript was to replicate published data that show intrathecal infusions of Taxol® (paclitaxel), an anti-neoplastic microtubule stabilizing agent, reduce fibrogliotic scarring caused by a dorsal spinal hemisection (DHx) injury and increase functional recovery and growth of serotonergic axons after moderate spinal contusion injury. These experiments were completed as part of an NIH-NINDS contract entitled "Facilities of Research Excellence in Spinal Cord Injury (FORE-SCI) - Replication". Here, data are presented that confirm the anti-scarring effects of Taxol after DHx injury; however, Taxol did not confer neuroprotection or promote serotonergic axon growth nor did it improve functional recovery in a model of moderate spinal contusion injury. Thus, only partial replication was achieved. Possible explanations for disparate results in our studies and published data are discussed.
Drying affects artemisinin, dihydroartemisinic acid, artemisinic acid, and the antioxidant capacity of Artemisia annua L. leaves.

There is limited information on how postharvest drying of Artemisia annua affects artemisinin (ART) biosynthesis and A. annua antioxidant capacity. Antioxidants may boost the bioactivity of ART and the crop commercial value. We evaluated the effect of freeze, oven, shade, and sun drying, time of drying, and light intensity on the leaf concentration of ART, dihydroartemisinic acid (DHAA), artemisinic acid (AA), and on the leaf antioxidant capacity. Freeze-dried samples had the lowest ART concentrations as compared to the other drying methods. However, the ferric reducing antioxidant power assay showed that freeze- and oven-dried samples had similarly high antioxidant activities, which declined significantly after plants were shade- and sun-dried. Shade drying for 1, 2, and 3 weeks, under ambient or low light, did not change the ART content but significantly decreased the leaf antioxidant activity, mainly if sun-dried. A significant decrease (82% average) in DHAA was observed for all drying procedures as compared to freeze drying, with a simultaneous, significant increase in ART (33% average). The average bioconversion of DHAA to ART was 43% for ovenand shade-dried plants and 94% for sun-dried plants, reiterating the hypothesis that DHAA, not AA, is the main biosynthetic precursor of ART and suggesting that sun drying improves the bioconversion from DHAA to ART. Data also indicate that oven drying for 24 h at 45 C can provide good levels of both ART and antioxidants in leaves. These findings are valuable for the commercial production of ART and of bioactive antioxidants that might synergize with the antimalarial and anticancer effects of ART when combined in traditional preparations to improve human and animal health.
Graphical representation for the density matrix in nonlinear optics

A technique for describing the time evolution of the density matrix by diagrams is developed. When applied to time harmonic optical mixing problems, the method allows one to write down the required matrix elements by inspection of the graphs. This allows a significant reduction in the calculations in addition to illustrating the physics of the processes.
Neuro-immune dysfunction during brain aging: new insights in microglial cell regulation

Microglia, the resident immune cells of the brain, are at the center of communication between the central nervous system and immune system. While these brain-immune interactions are balanced in healthy adulthood, the ability to maintain homeostasis during aging is impaired. Microglia develop a loss of integrated regulatory networks including aberrant signaling from other brain cells, immune sensors, and epigenetic modifiers. The low-grade chronic neuroinflammation associated with this dysfunctional activity likely contributes to cognitive deficits and susceptibility to age-related pathologies. A better understanding of the underlying mechanisms responsible for neuro-immune dysregulation with age is crucial for providing targeted therapeutic strategies to support brain repair and healthy aging.
Effect of vaccinations with recombinant fusion proteins on Ancylostoma caninum habitat selection in the canine intestine.

Laboratory dogs were vaccinated subcutaneously with 3 different recombinant fusion proteins, each precipitated with alum or calcium phosphate. The vaccinated dogs were then challenged orally with 400 third-stage infective larvae (L3) of the canine hookworm, Ancylostoma caninum. The 3 A. caninum antigens selected were Ac-TMP, an adult-specific secreted tissue inhibitor of metalloproteases; Ac-AP, an adult-specific secreted factor Xa serine protease inhibitor anticoagulant; and Ac-ARR-1, a cathepsin D–like aspartic protease. Each of the 3 groups comprised 6 male beagles (8 ± 1 wk of age). A fourth group comprised control dogs injected with alum. All of the dogs vaccinated with Ac-TMP or Ac-APR-1 exhibited a vigorous antigen-specific antibody response, whereas only a single dog vaccinated with Ac-AP developed an antibody response. Dogs with circulating antibody responses exhibited 4.5–18% reduction in the numbers of adult hookworms recovered from the small intestines at necropsy, relative to alum-injected do...
Occupational Status and Husband-Wife Social Participation

This paper investigates husband-wife social participation by occupational status in Greensboro, North Carolina. The major conclusions include the following: (1) In the sample as a whole, churchgoing and kin-visiting are the dominant activities, with family and commercial recreation also widespread and frequent. (2) Upper-middle-class professional and managerial couples most closely approximate the popular notion of "togetherness," as evidenced by their frequent participation in commercial recreation, churchgoing, and family entertaining and recreation. (3) Working-class couples' major social involvement is in kin-visiting. (4) The ideas of both a status continuum and the white-collar-blue-collar dichotomy are useful in interpreting the data, although the highest and lowest white-collar categories are difficult to account for by either of these conceptions.
Model-Discretization Sizing and Calculation Verification for Multipoint Simulations over Large Parameter Spaces 1

This paper examines and illustrates issues and procedures associated with appropriate sizing of computational-model mesh and solver resolutions for cost-effective multipoint simulations over large parameter spaces. This involves calculation verification of not just one simulation, but the ensemble of simulations. Such multipoint simulations occur in, e.g., randomized Monte Carlo sampling and/or structured sampling from experimental designs used in uncertainty/sensitivity analysis, optimization procedures, and response-surface generation. The material presented here is drawn from recent experiences employing large thermal models in uncertainty, sensitivity, and risk analyses. Since large and expensive computational physics and chemistry models and a multitude of calculations were involved, methods were developed and exercised for arriving at a reasonable balance between the two competing objectives of small numerical convergence error in the simulations and low relative computational cost of the simulations. 1. Introduction, Background, Motivation A previous paper ([1]) described some recent experiences, issues, and needs concerning large-scale uncertainty/sensitivity and risk analysis of phenomologically complex coupled systems (i.e., assessment of weapon safety in fire environments). Very large and expensive computational physics and chemistry models, calculations, and integrated analyses were involved. The paper discussed the topics of: - phenomenological coupling, and model decoupling and linking - model validation, conditioning, and mapping of validation results to application analyses - uncertainty propagation and sensitivity analysis with complex physics models - non-probabilistic (transformed) assertion of risk and qualification margins. Because of paper size constraints, many important topics could not be addressed in that paper. Accordingly, this paper addresses the very important topic of appropriate sizing of computational-model mesh and solver resolutions for cost effective multipoint simulations over broad parameter spaces. This involves calculation verification of not just one simulation, but the ensemble of simulations. Such multipoint simulations occur in, e.g., randomized Monte Carlo sampling and/or structured sampling from experimental designs used in uncertainty/sensitivity analysis, optimization procedures, and response surface generation. When expensive computational models and a multitude of calculations are involved, procedures must be developed and exercised for managing the cost/accuracy tradeoff associated with numerical convergence error in the simulations, as this paper describes.
Chapter 43 – Strategies in Operating on Patients with Tumor-Related Epilepsy

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses strategies in operating on patients with tumor-related epilepsy. Presence of a structural lesion near or within eloquent areas may be a contraindication for surgical resection. Neurophysiological techniques and intraoperative mapping of motor strip may enable the surgeon to carry out a more aggressive resection in cases of glioma with less morbidity. It is shown that the tumor removal by stereotactic tumor lesionectomy produced a favorable outcome in the majority of patients. The surgical approach might have to be limited to the epileptogenic region alone in cases where the epileptogenic zone and tumor are not co-localized and the tumor is relatively inaccessible. Dual pathology refers an extrahippocampal lesion such as a tumor associated with hippocampal sclerosis. The neuronal cell loss was positively correlated with proximity of the lesion to the mesial temporal structures and earlier seizure onset. It is found that ictal EEG onset started in or first propagated to the mesial temporal contacts in 94% of lesion patients. These findings indicate that mesial structures may be capable of generating independent seizures. It is suggested that the mesial structures be resected along the tumor in patients with mesial temporal lesions and early seizure onset.
The speculative shadow over timberland values in the U.S. South

In well-functioning markets, forestland prices capture a wealth of information regarding current as well as anticipated usesofland and resources contained on it. They reflect the valuation of currentuses and incorporate infomafion regarding productivity, standing timber capital, and the effects of taxes that applyto land and production. Land prices are speculative by definition, so they also incorporate information regarding anticipated future uses of the land and resources. Astudy of spatial patterns of assessed forestland prices in Georgia shows rising nontimber values in certain locations and suggests shifts in thefuture use of land and resources. As expected,land prices anticipate future development of forested land at the periphery of urbanizing areas. Rising timberland values also portend changes in land uses in some more rural counties. In these areas, it appears that low-density residential growth and recreational values are having an impact on the uses of timberland that is greater than previously thought. These findings provide some insights into the causes of ongoing shifts in ownership of forested land between industry, individuals, and equity concerns. Anticipated population and income growth in the South could hold important implications for both the supply of timber and the conditions of forestland in a large portion of the region.
Recruitment of polysynaptic connections underlies functional recovery of a neural circuit after lesion

Abstract The recruitment of additional neurons to neural circuits often occurs in accordance with changing functional demands. Here we found that synaptic recruitment plays a key role in functional recovery after neural injury. Disconnection of a brain commissure in the nudibranch mollusc, Tritonia diomedea , impairs swimming behavior by eliminating particular synapses in the central pattern generator (CPG) underlying the rhythmic swim motor pattern. However, the CPG functionally recovers within a day after the lesion. The strength of a spared inhibitory synapse within the CPG from Cerebral Neuron 2 (C2) to Ventral Swim Interneuron B (VSI) determines the level of impairment caused by the lesion, which varies among individuals. In addition to this direct synaptic connection, there are polysynaptic connections from C2 and Dorsal Swim Interneurons to VSI that provide indirect excitatory drive but play only minor roles under normal conditions. After disconnecting the pedal commissure (Pedal Nerve 6), the recruitment of polysynaptic excitation became a major source of the excitatory drive to VSI. Moreover, the amount of polysynaptic recruitment, which changed over time, differed among individuals and correlated with the degree of recovery of the swim motor pattern. Thus, functional recovery was mediated by an increase in the magnitude of polysynaptic excitatory drive, compensating for the loss of direct excitation. Since the degree of susceptibility to injury corresponds to existing individual variation in the C2 to VSI synapse, the recovery relied upon the extent to which the network reorganized to incorporate additional synapses.
Every isochronous potential is shear-equivalent to a harmonic potential

Harmonic oscillations are isochronous, but so are oscillations in any potential that is shear-equivalent to a harmonic potential. We demonstrate the converse: that every possible isochronous potential is shear-equivalent to a harmonic potential. To do this we show that every potential is shear-equivalent to a unique symmetric potential, and that every isochronous symmetric potential is harmonic. Shearing is thus the only possible period-preserving transformation for potentials with fixed energy.
Introduction: The Road to Regency

Otto III’s succession to the German throne in 983 provoked a crisis, one that the Ottonian dynasty was able to weather, Jestice argues, because the Ottonian rulers of Germany consciously enhanced the power and authority of their spouses as a tool of government, a tool that then served the dynasty well in face of this challenge to the succession. The introduction to this study of Ottonian queenship introduces the main women studied—Mechtild, Adelheid, and Theophanu. It also explores the major chronicles, histories, charters, and letters available from tenth-century Germany to assess their careers and significance.
Building Collaborative Digital Government Systems

Successful digital government policies and applications often depend on the ability of multiple organizations to collaborate toward shared objectives. Despite compelling benefits, these efforts are fraught with problems, and often fail. The developmental experiences of 18 collaborative digital government initiatives in New York State reveal five systemic constraints that account for the common difficulties: divergent roles, multiple missions, operational diversity, changing technology, and limited ability to adapt to change. The project experiences also offered ten guiding principles that can help make collaborative systems more successful. These focus on purpose, stakeholders, partnership, leadership, managing complexity, skills, resources, communication, work processes, and explicit design methods.
The Effect of Aggression on Dispersal and Related Statistics in Microtus Ochrogaster Populations in Eastern Kansas

In this study we tested the hypothesis that aggression is a stimulus for dispersal in the prairie vole, Microtus ochrogaster. A population of prairie voles was established in each of two 1-ha enclosures equipped with exit traps; live trapping ensued for 20 months. Sixty percent of subadult males captured were implanted either with testosterone capsules to increase their aggressiveness (treatment enclosure) or with oil capsule shams (control enclosure). Wounding of males in the treatment enclosure was significantly higher than in the control enclosure. Dispersal rates from the treatment population were three times higher than in the control population, but these differences were not statistically significant. From these results we suggest that aggression by males is a proximate stimulus for dispersal.
Design and Conduct of the Thorough Phase I ECG Trial for New Bioactive Drugs

Drug-induced prolongation of the QTc interval, when excessive and in conjunction with the right risk factors, can degenerate into torsades de pointes (TdP), a frequently fatal form of polymorphic ventricular tachycardia. While it is clear that the QT interval on the electrocardiogram (ECG) may not be highly correlated with the risk of TdP, change in the QTc duration is the one relied upon by drug developers and regulatory authorities as the best predictor of a new drug’s cardiac safety. As commented on by Dr. Robert Temple from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in an FDA co-sponsored public meeting in Shady Grove, MD, in January 2003, if a drug prolongs the QT interval this effect is the commonest cause of new drug development delays, disapprovals, or removal from the market. Such drugs have come from many different therapeutic groups and from many different, related, and unrelated chemical structures. Some examples include the antihistamine terfenadine; the antibiotic grepafloxacin; the antispasmodic terodiline; the calcium channel blocker lidoflazine; the atypical antipsychotic sertindole; the opioid levomethadyl; and the gastric prokinetic agent cisapride.
Evolutionäre Prozesse und universelle Mechanismen

Bei der Annahme bestimmter universeller Eigenschaften fur alle Zellen hat man immer wieder versucht, die Gultigkeit universeller Systeme nachzuprufen. Abgesehen von bestimmten Ausnahmen, bei denen verschiedenartige biochemische Mechanismen in unterschiedlichen Zellen beobachtet wurden, fand man zahlreiche weitere Fakten, die die These der universellen Mechanismen bestatigen.
Meso-Scaled Structure and Membrane Mimetic Chemistry

A meso-scaled structure can fill the gap between the microstructure (fine structure) of atomic and chemical properties and the macrostructure (bulk structure) of mechanical and rheological properties. A meso-scaled structure is especially useful for large macromolecules. As an example, three discussions are made with the meso-scaled structure of asphaltene which is a native multipolymer from petroleum. These are I. dislocation and disclination; II. viscoelasticity and III. metal fixation, all of which are part of the meso-scaled structure.
The impact of type and level of automation on situation awareness and performance in human-robot interaction

In highly autonomous robotic systems, human operators are able to attend to their own, separate tasks, rather than directly operating the robot to accomplish their immediate task(s). At the same time, as operators attend to their own, separate tasks that do not directly involve the robotic system, they can end up lacking situation awareness (SA) when called on to recover from automation failure or from an unexpected event. In this paper, we describe the mechanisms of this problem, known as the out-of-the-loop performance problem, and describe why the problem may still exist in future robotic systems. Existing solutions to the problem, which focus on the level of automation, are reviewed. We describe our current empirical work, which aims to expand upon taxonomies of levels of automation to better understand how engineers of robotic systems may mitigate the problem.
Variation in Scottish Gaelic preaspirated stops: Across speech styles and in connected speech

This paper examines variation in preaspiration in Scottish Gaelic, an endangered language spoken in Scotland. Previous studies (Clayton 2011; Nance & Stuart-Smith 2013) have examined Gaelic preaspiration in careful speech. The present study investigates whether 1. Preaspiration patterns similarly in casual speech as previously attested in careful speech and 2. If variation in preaspiration resembles processes of stop reduction, or sound change in progress. Preaspiration is examined in casual speech across speakers, and across different speech styles within one speaker. Preaspiration is measured for duration, as well as band-pass filtered zero crossing rates, developed by Gordeeva & Scobbie (2010) and adapted for Scottish Gaelic by Nance & Stuart-Smith (2013). Results confirm that variation in preaspiration pattern similarly to previous studies: preaspiration is longer and has higher change in zero crossings for /k/ and in words with a preceding short vowel. This study contributes to the existing literature in that it shows that preaspiration is shortest in words that are phrase medially. This study shows that preaspirated stops are not heavily reduced, and that variation in preaspiration patterns like an ongoing sound change. This study highlights the importance of carefully investigating variation in typologically rare phenomena in endangered languages.
Core Principles to Improve Primary Care Quality Management

Quality management in American health care is in crisis. Performance measurement in its current form is costly, redundant, and labyrinthine. Increasingly, its contribution to achieving the Quadruple Aim is under close examination, especially in the domain of primary care services, where the burden of measurement is heaviest. This article assesses the state of quality management in primary care in the United States, particularly the 2015 Medicare Access and Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act, in comparative perspective, drawing lessons from the Quality and Outcomes Framework in the United Kingdom. The health care delivery function specific to primary care is pivotal to crossing the quality chasm, yet prior efforts to improve the quality of this function have failed more often than succeeded. These failures are the result of quality programs unguided by core principles of primary care. Quality management in primary care requires a more disciplined approach, adherent to 4 foundational principles: optimizing holistic patient and population health; harnessing the Quadruple Aim as a dynamic whole; applying measurements as tools for quality, not outcomes of quality; and prioritizing therapeutic relationships. These principles serve as the foundation for a bridge to high-functioning primary care that will lead American health care closer to the Quadruple Aim.
The Marketing Challenges of the Newly Independent Republics: Product Competitiveness in Global Markets

This article focuses on the entry of Central and Eastern European republics into the mainstream of global markets, which are highly competitive. For the new republics of the former East Bloc to gai...
Crigler–Najjar Syndrome

In 1952 (Crigler, J., and Najjar, V. 1952), the initial report of a congenital abnormality of the liver-conjugating system was first described by the two investigators whose name the disorder carries. This paper reports seven patients, all descendents of two people, six generations back. Five of the patients were studied directly, one was in another hospital, and one was diagnosed by a careful history, but not examined by the authors. Complete genetic studies were not completed at the time of publication. It was suggested that 15 probable cases existed out of 105 family members over the six generations.