cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Rational Expectations, Optimal Control and Information Technology Adoption.

The existing economics and IS literature on technology adoption often considers network externalities as one of the main factors that affect adoption decisions. It assumes that potential adopters achieve a certain level of expectations about network externalities when they have to decide whether to adopt a particular technology. However, there has been little discussion on how the potential adopters reach their expectations. This article attempts to fill a gap in the literature on adoption of information technology (IT), by offering an optimal control perspective motivated by the rational expectations hypothesis (REH) and exploring the process dynamics associated with the actions of decision makers who must adjust their expectations about the benefits of a new technology over time due to bounded rationality. Our model primarily addresses technologies that exhibit strong network externalities. It stresses adaptive learning to show why different firms that initially have heterogeneous expectations about the potential value of a technology eventually are able to arrive at contemporaneous decisions to adopt the same technology, creating the desired network externalities. This further allows the firms to become catalysts to facilitate processes that lead to market-wide adoption. We also discuss the conditions under which adoption inertia will take over in the marketplace, and the related managerial implications.
The Effect of Noise on Computer-Aided Measures of Voice: A Comparison of CSpeechSP and the Multi-Dimensional Voice Program Software Using the CSL 4300B Module and Multi-Speech for Windows

The effect of noise on computer-derived samples of voice was compared across three different hardware/software configurations. The hardware/software systems included a stand-alone A/D converter (CSL Module 4300B) coupled to a custom Pentium PC used in conjunction with the Multi-Dimensional Voice Program (MDVP) software, and a Creative Labs A/D converter coupled to the same custom PC under software control of MDVP/Multispeech and CSpeechSP. Voice samples were taken from 10 female subjects, then mixed with computer fan noise creating three different signal-to-noise (S/N) levels. Mixed signals were analyzed on the three hardware/software systems. Results revealed that fundamental frequency was most resistant to the degradation effect of noise across systems; jitter and shimmer values, however, were more variable across all configurations. Jitter and shimmer values were significantly higher under certain S/N levels for the MDVP 4300B based system as compared to MDVP for Multi-Speech and CSpeechSP. The findings punctuate the need for sensitivity to recording environments, careful selection of hardware/software equipment arrays, and the establishment of minimal recording conditions (>25 dBA S/N) for voice sampling and analysis using computer-assisted methods.
Multi-timescale mechanical coupling between the San Jacinto fault and the San Andreas fault, southern California

Fault interaction is believed to influence seismicity and crustal deformation, but the mechanics of fault interaction over various time scales remain poorly understood. We present here a numerical investigation of fault coupling and interaction over multiple time scales, using the San Andreas fault and the San Jacinto fault in southern California as an example. The San Andreas fault is the Pacific–North American plate boundary, but in southern California, a significant portion of the relative plate motion is accommodated by the subparallel San Jacinto fault. We developed a three-dimensional viscoelastoplastic finite-element model to study the ways in which these two faults may have interacted (1) during and following individual earthquakes, (2) over multiple seismic cycles, and (3) during long-term steady-state fault slip. Our results show that the cluster of nine moderate-sized earthquakes (M 6–7) on the San Jacinto fault since 1899 may have lowered the Coulomb stress on the southern San Andreas fault, delaying the “Big One,” an earthquake of magnitude 7.8 or greater that may result from rupture of much of the southern San Andreas fault. In addition to the static Coulomb stress changes associated with individual earthquakes, variations of seismicity over seismic cycles on one fault can influence the loading rate on the other fault. When the San Jacinto fault experiences clusters of earthquakes such as those in the past century, the loading rate on the San Andreas fault can be lowered by as much as ∼80%. Over longer time scales, these two faults share the slip needed to accommodate the relative plate motion. Hence, an increase in slip rate on one of these two faults causes complementary decrease on the other, which is consistent with geological observations.
The legacy of the Alaska Siberia Medical Research Program: a historical perspective

Background. The Alaska Siberia Medical Research Program was established at the University of Alaska (UA) at a time when there was no research funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) that was concerned with Alaska Native health issues. The program grew out of a dire need for an understanding of the apparently rapidly growing health problems in the Native community. The initial plan included the following objectives. Objectives. The objectives are to develop a self-sustaining infrastructure for biomedical research by gaining support from Alaska Natives, UA, national political leaders, NIH and the Russian Academy of Medical Science (RAMS); to identify researchers committed to helping Alaska Natives; to develop meaningful, Native-driven participatory research; to carry out necessary research to form the foundation for future research; and to develop circumpolar collaborations. Results. The objectives were achieved because of the extraordinary and cheerful contributions by all participants in the program. The collaborative research resulted in some 70 published manuscripts identifying and characterizing research-neglected health problems. Unique risk factors for diabetes, cardiovascular disease, alcoholism and seasonal affective disorders were characterized and institutionalized prevention programs were established. The effort of the program led to U.S. Congressional action establishing the University of Alaska as a minority institution, leading to the funding of a variety of successful NIH-funded research centres and programs at the university that are concerned with Native health problems. Conclusion. A small, visionary investment by the University of Alaska for establishing the program led to a co-operative effort by the UA, RAMS, Alaska Native Health communities and the NIH that resulted in the development of self-sustaining medical research efforts in Alaska and Siberia. The program spawned pilot studies, leading to NIH-funded research that has provided fundamental insights into the etiology of health problems and their reduction by research-based intervention and prevention programs. (Int J Circumpolar Health 2011; 70(5):584-593) Keywords: Inuit, participatory research, diabetes, CVD, international medical research collaboration
Commentary: empirical foundations for the development of behavioral interventions for recurrent abdominal pain.

identified three distinct psychosocial profiles that classify adult chronic pain patients and predict treatment needs and outcomes (Turk & Rudy, 1988, 1990). If distinct psychosocial profiles are found to differentiate groups of children with RAP, this information might be used to identify those children who are coping well and need no further intervention than education and reassurance provided by their pediatricins and to match children with various maladaptive responses to abdominal pain with the most appropriate behavioral interventions. Identification of psychosocial profiles of children most likely to benefit from treatment also would help us to educate physicians about which children to refer for behavioral management. Research that examines RAP within a situated context may be helpful in identifying specific targets for behavioral intervention. Most of the research on RAP has focused on child traits (e.g., anxiety, social competence), general measures of family functioning (e.g., cohesion), and stressful life events occurring over a period of a year. A situated approach that focuses on individual episodes of abdominal pain would help to identify the relation of pain episodes to specific stressors, patterns of interpersonal interactions, and child appraisal and coping responses. Observational studies have been useful in identifying these variables in acute pain associated with medical procedures (e.g., Blount, Sturges, & Powers, 1990) but are less practical with conditions such as RAP that involve episodic and unpredictable pain. However, laboratory analogue Journal of Pediatric Psychology, Vol. 24, No. 2, 1999, pp. 129–130
Slip-Resistance Testing: Deriving Guidance from the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS)

It is suggested that recent advances in the measurement of slip resistance be translated into new safety standards. The difficulties which arise in the writing of safety standards are analyzed using the ASTM bathtub slip resistance standard as an example. The need for detailed injury data is indicated and the NEISS system is described. NEISS injury data regarding slips and falls are summarized. Human gait patterns for various age groups are described. It is suggested that information sources such as these be used in the development of effective safety standards.
C. elegans germline-deficient mutants respond to pathogen infection using shared and distinct mechanisms.

Reproduction extracts a cost in resources that organisms are then unable to utilize to deal with a multitude of environmental stressors. In the nematode C. elegans, development of the germline shortens the lifespan of the animal and increases its susceptibility to microbial pathogens. Prior studies have demonstrated germline-deficient nematodes to have increased resistance to Gram negative bacteria. We show that germline-deficient strains display increased resistance across a broad range of pathogens including Gram positive and Gram negative bacteria, and the fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans. Furthermore, we show that the FOXO transcription factor DAF-16, which regulates longevity and immunity in C. elegans, appears to be crucial for maintaining longevity in both wild-type and germline-deficient backgrounds. Our studies indicate that germline-deficient mutants glp-1 and glp-4 respond to pathogen infection using common and different mechanisms that involve the activation of DAF-16.
Recent Developments in Attitudes and Social Structure

A large body of research in social psychology has investigated the links between attitudes and social structure. Efforts have focused on (a) relating attitudes to aspects of the social context and to indicators of location in the social structure; (b) investigating how social structure affects attitudes via such intervening mechanisms of influence as social networks and roles; and (c) identifying the psychological processes through which persons interpret their experiences, and which in turn affect their attitudes (House 1981). This article reviews recent work in these three areas, as well as on the relationship between social structure and attitude change over time. While attitudes often are found to be weakly correlated with socioeconomic status, research on work and personality has continued to make progress in identifying the particular aspects of occupations that influence attitudes. Theories of the intervening mechanisms through which social structure affects attitudes need to be more systematically...
Synthesis of compensators for a non-overshooting nominal step response in linear uncertain plants

Outlines a design methodology for synthesizing control systems for a class of SISO (single-input single-output) systems to guarantee a nonovershooting nominal step response in addition to satisfying standard feedback requirements such as robust stability, disturbance rejection, and sensitivity reduction. Compensators can be synthesized for SISO, stable, and minimum-phase plants with significant plant variations. The basic idea of the technique is to appropriately locate the closed-loop poles with respect to fixed and added zeros. An example illustrating the design procedure is presented. >
Effect of low-complexity regions on protein structure determination

It has been previously shown that protein sequences containing a quasi-repetitive assortment of amino acids are common in genomes and databases such as Swiss-Prot but are under-represented in the structure-based Protein Data Bank (PDB). Structural genomics groups have been using the absence of these "low-complexity" sequences for several years as a way to select proteins that have a good chance of successful structure determination. In this study, we examine the data deposited in the PDB as well as the available data from structural genomics groups in TargetDB and PepcDB to reveal interesting trends that could be taken into consideration when using low-complexity sequences as part of the target selection process.
Statistical properties of L-band sea clutter measured with a polarimetric synthetic aperture radar

The limiting factor affecting the performance of most airborne radar systems in detecting targets on or near the surface of the sea is return echoes from the sea surface or sea clutter. The objective of this paper is to provide an analysis of the statistics of Australian sea clutter for an L-band VV-polarised airborne radar system from sampled measured values. Polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (POLSAR) image of the North-West region of Australia, acquired in 1996 by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) was used to study, the backscattered statistics of the sea surface. Using this POLSAR image, a number of different candidate distribution functions have been investigated, and their goodness-of-fit have been carried out using the Kolmogorov Smirnov goodness-of-fit test. The log-normal, Weibull and K-distributions have been applied to model the statistical properties of multi-look polarimetric SAR sea clutter. The K-distribution has been found to have good agreement with the observed sea clutter intensity distributions.
Unfalsified control: a behavioral approach to learning and adaptation

Unfalsified control theory facilitates the representation of adaptive processes of control law discovery from evolving information flows and noisy data. In the paper, the theory of unfalsified adaptive control is examined from the behavioral perspective of Willems (1991). An abstract, but parsimonious, min-max optimization problem formulation is developed that describes and unifies direct adaptive control, learning theory and system identification problems in a common behavioral setting based on the concept of controller/model unfalsification. Thus, adaptive control is seen to be firmly and directly linked to, and to conceptually unified with, the growing body of knowledge on behavioral approaches to model validation and unfalsified system identification. The results elucidate and underscore the fertile conceptual links that exist between adaptive control theory and the rich theory of system identification.
Abundance and distribution of mammals in Katavi National Park, Tanzania

Ground transects were used to determine densities of 24 larger mammals in Katavi National Park. The Park consists of miombo woodland habitat and two seasonal lakes. Mammalian biomass was extremely high due primarily to large numbers of buffalo. The highest mammal densities were found around Lake Chada to the south-east of the Park. Contrary to earlier reports, species’ densities did not differ significantly between dry, wet and intermediate seasons, suggesting that, aside from elephant and warthog, mammals did not enter or leave the Park in large numbers. Similarly, aside from zebra and waterbuck, sightings of species in different vegetation types did not change markedly between seasons. Thus, seasonal lakes in Katavi National Park support very high local concentrations rather than acting as dry season refuges for mammals outside the Park. Resume On a determine la densite de 24 grands mammiferes du Parc National de Katavi au moyen de transects terrestres. Le parc presente un habitat forestier a Miombo et deux lacs temporaires. La biomasse de mammiferes est extremement elevee a cause surtout du grand nombre de buffles. On a releve les plus fortes densites de mammiferes autour du lac Chada, au sud-est du parc. Contrairement a ce que disent des rapports anterieurs, le nombre d’especes ne change pas significativement entre la saison seche, la saison des pluies et les saisons intermediaires, ce qui laisse entendre que, a part les elephants et les phacocheres, les mammiferes n’entrent pas ou ne quittent pas le parc en grand nombre. De meme, a part les zebres et les waterbucks, l’observation des especes dans differents types de vegetation ne varie pas vraiment entre les saisons. On peut donc dire que les lacs saisonniers du Parc National de Katavi soutiennent des concentrations locales tres elevees plutot que de servir, en saison seche, de refuges pour les mammiferes de l’exterieur du parc.
Burnishing Versus Grinding for Automotive Parts

Burnishing is a chipless finishing method, which employs a rolling tool in order to achieve a plastic deformation of the surface layer of metallic parts. Some particular features of this process make it a good cheap alternative for other finishing methods in certain applications. Burnishing of soft metals (up to 45 HRC) has been a field extensively studied, unlike burnishing of hard heat-treated steels. This article describes a method of burnishing of hard steel surfaces (about 60 HRC) by means of a hard ball. The related tooling, based on a hydrostatic principle, is also presented. Experiments are exposed, together with the results and conclusions. In this stage, only the roughness was tracked, as a measure of burnishing performance. Influence of main burnishing parameters against final surface roughness is shown in diagrams. As a general conclusion, burnishing of hardened metallic surfaces proved to be a viable alternative for finishing.
Adenocarcinoma of the endometrium. Twenty-five years' experience in private practice.

This review of the records of 165 patients evaluates the trends in diagnosis and management of adenocarcinoma of the endometrium in a private practice from 1946 through 1970. The 5 year over-all survival rate was 84 per cent for the 104 patients treated from 1946 through 1965, while the 10 year over-all survival rate was 61 per cent for the 56 patients treated from 1946 through 1960, The survival rates and recurrences are correlated with the stage of the disease and type of therapy. An evaluation of the 61 patients treated during the past 5 years reveals a larger number of early lesions and indicates that recent systems of clinical staging make possible more rational individualization of treatment.
The Age of Enlightenment

Until far into the eighteenth century the Republic continued to pose as a great power. Amsterdam, the financial centre of the world, maintained its economic predominance in shipping tonnage and trade. Both Ceylon and the whole island of Java subordinated themselves to the authority of the United East-India Company. The prosperity was easily visible to everyone and was reflected in the stately residences along the canals in many Dutch cities. They appear on the townscapes of Jan de Beyer, and are still partly standing today. In Holland, Zeeland and Groningen important land reclamations took place.
The influence of winter cloud on summer sea ice in the Arctic, 1983–2013

Arctic sea ice extent has declined dramatically over the last two decades, with the fastest decrease and greatest variability in the Beaufort, Chukchi, and East Siberian Seas. Thinner ice in these areas is more susceptible to changes in cloud cover, heat and moisture advection, and surface winds. Using two climate reanalyses and satellite data, it is shown that increased wintertime surface cloud forcing contributed to the 2007 summer sea ice minimum. An analysis over the period 1983-2013 reveals that reanalysis cloud forcing anomalies in the East Siberian and Kara Seas precondition the ice pack and, as a result, explain 25% of the variance in late summer sea ice concentration. This finding was supported by Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer cloud cover anomalies, which explain up to 45% of the variance in sea ice concentration. Results suggest that winter cloud forcing anomalies in this area have predictive capabilities for summer sea ice anomalies across much of the central and Eurasian Arctic.
Methylation of conserved CpG sites neighboring the beta retinoic acid response element may mediate retinoic acid receptor beta gene silencing in MCF-7 breast cancer cells.

We investigated the mechanism of retinoic acid receptor (RAR) β2 gene silencing in breast cancer cells. Transfection experiments indicated that MCF-7 cells transactivate an exogenous β2 promoter (−1470/+156) to the same extent as MTSV1.7 breast epithelial cells, which express endogenous RARβ2. This was true even in the context of replicated chromatin, suggesting a cis-acting rather than a trans-acting defect. Cytosine methylation, a cis-acting DNA modification, has been implicated in RARβ2 silencing in cancer cells. Upon bisulfite genomic sequencing, we found that 3 CpG sites in the β2 RARE region were variably methylated in MCF-7 cells but were not methylated in MTSV1.7 cells or in 2 MDA-MB-231 subclones that differed in RARβ2 expression (high in clone A2, low in clone A4). However, the 5′-UTR region was hypermethylated in clone A4 relative to clone A2 cells. Following 5-azacytidine treatment, RA and trichostatin A markedly induced RARβ2 expression in MCF-7 cells but not in MDA-MB-231 clone A4 cells. A β2 RARE reporter construct in which the methylation-susceptible cytosines in the sense strand were replaced by thymine displayed marked loss of activity in a replicated chromatin-dependent manner. We conclude that cytosine methylation contributes to RARβ2 gene silencing in MCF-7 cells and that methylation of the RARE region may be particularly important.
A Historical Study of Chinese Physicists' Visits at the Niels Bohr Institute of Denmark in the 1960s

In 1962,the Danish physicist Aage Bohr visited China and reached an agreement with the Chinese Academy of Sciences,in which the latter would send two young physicists to his Institute for Theoretical Physics( later named after his father Niels) at the University of Copenhagen for collaborative research. Following a national competition in 1963,Zhang Li of Tsinghua University and Yang Fujia of Fudan University were selected for the purpose,but their journey to Copenhagen was delayed due to a controversy over the source of Danish funding and their productive visits were marred by restrictions due to international politics of the Cold War. This paper examines the above episode as a case of China seeking to broaden its international scientific contacts with Europe at a time when such connections were cut off from both the US and the Soviet Union and the impact of the Cold War on transnational scientific interactions.
Findings From A Us State Department Of Health Workforce Assessment Survey

To determine the level of public health competency and training in the existing Tennessee Department of Health (TDH) workforce, an anonymous survey was implemented electronically. Questions were based on the Council on Linkages Core Public Health Competencies, a consensus set of skills identified by the Council on Linkages Between Academia and Public Health Practice as being desirable for the delivery of the Essential Public Health Services. All 5,178 active TDH employees were eligible to participate in the survey. In each of the core competency areas Leadership Level respondents scored consistently higher than Management Level or Entry Level, and Management Level respondents scored higher than Entry Level respondents. However, overall findings indicate that the eight core competency areas are not fully integrated into the TDH, and that there are clear training needs with high priority. Needs scores were calculated by dichotomizing responses into ‘Unaware/Aware’ and ‘Knowledgeable/Proficient’, with the ‘Unaware/Aware’ category indicating a training need in that area. When considering responses from all three Tiers, needs scores greater than 50% were found for six of the eight core competency areas. These results identify opportunities for improvements through a coordinated training strategy. Findings also highlight the need for deliberate planning activities related to diversity and hiring, as a significant percentage of employees are predicted to retire in the near future. Given resource constraints within TDH, training activities should be directed to increase competencies that are likely to have the greatest impact on the mission of the Department of Health.
Light/multicomponent dark matter: A minimal model and detection prospects

We present a minimal extension of the standard model that gives rise to post-sphaleron baryogenesis by introducing colored scalar fields. The model can accommodate a fermionic dark matter candidate of &#x1d4aa;(GeV) mass whose stability is tied to proton stability. The supersymmetric extension of this model is straightforward and can lead to a realizion of multicomponent dark matter scenario. We discuss possible direct and indirect detection signals of the dark matter candidate(s) in this model.
Soluble VEGFR1 reverses BMP2 inhibition of intramembranous ossification during healing of cortical bone defects

BMP2 is widely used for promotion of bone repair and regeneration. However, bone formation induced by BMP2 is quite variable. Bone forming progenitor cells in different locations appear to respond to BMP2 in different ways, and repair outcomes can vary as a consequence of modulating effects by other factors. In this study, we have examined the effects of VEGF on BMP2-induced repair of a cortical bone defect, a 1 mm diameter drill hole, in the proximal tibia of mice. Treatment of the defect with either a bolus of PBS or soluble VEGFR1 (sVEGFR1), a decoy receptor for VEGF, had the same effects on bone formation via intramembranous ossification in the defect and cartilage formation and injured periosteum, during the healing process. In contrast, treatment with BMP2 inhibited intramembranous bone formation in the defect while it promoted cartilage and endochondral bone formation in the injured periosteum compared with mice treated with PBS or sVEGFR1. The inhibitory effect of BMP2 on bone formation was unlikely due to increased osteoclast activity and decreased invasion of blood vessels in the defect. Most importantly, co-delivery of BMP2 and sVEGFR1 reversed the inhibition of intramembranous bone formation by BMP2. Furthermore, the decreased accumulation of collagen and production of bone matrix proteins in the defect of groups with BMP2 treatment could also be prevented by co-delivery of BMP2 and sVEGFR1. Our data indicate that introducing a VEGF-binding protein, such as sVEGFR1, to reduce levels of extracellular VEGF, may enhance the effects of BMP2 on intramembranous bone formation. © 2016 Orthopaedic Research Society. Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Orthop Res 35:1461-1469, 2017.
Efficient Energy Management System Based on GA and Classical Boolean Approach

In this paper, two intelligent strategies for energy management unit for a home integrated with smart grid are proposed. The strategies are based on classical Boolean and genetic algorithm (GA). The objective is to optimize the cost saving for the end consumer. The price of energy varies by the hour depending on the load on the grid. The two strategies predict when and by how much the storage unit installed in the house should charge and release for 24 h of the day, satisfying the constraint that the load demand of the house at any particular hour should always be met. The strategies were tested by real time data collected by the Department of Energy for a typical house in the Chicago, Illinois region for the year 2013. Both the strategies achieve cost savings; however, it has been found that GA-based strategy results in higher cost saving. The impact of the capacity of the energy storage unit (ESU) on the cost saving has been analyzed for a GA strategy and cost saving obtained when the capacity of ESU is 1.5 times and 2 times the house hold load at any given hour is presented.
Autonomous control and navigation of a lab-scale underground mining haul truck using LiDAR sensor and triangulation - feasibility study

Mines are one of the most labor-intensive and hazardous industries, and automation by all means in this industry has been significantly considered to improve sustainability and mine-site health and safety. Due to the more complex nature and larger scale of underground mines in recent years, companies are actively looking for new automation methods, particularly in haul trucks to effectively enhance productivity and safety in mine operations. In this investigation, a lab-scale and cost-effective automated haul truck was designed and developed to enhance the research and development capacity in this area. This autonomous haul truck is capable of navigating its path along an underground tunnel/environment by using a microcontroller. The microcontroller includes the navigation algorithm which is based on a light detection and ranging (LiDAR) sensor, and the control algorithm which is based on a proportional-integral-differential (PID) controller and a multiple-point path tracking approach. Simulation results also confirm the effectiveness of the developed navigation and control algorithms.
E-Mail as Spectroscopy: Automated Discovery of Community Structure within Organizations

We describe a method for the automatic identification of communities of practice from e-mail logs within an organization. We use a betweenness centrality algorithm that can rapidly find communities within a graph representing information flows. We apply this algorithm to an initial e-mail corpus of nearly 1 million messages collected over a 2-month span, and show that the method is effective at identifying true communities, both formal and informal, within these scale-free graphs. This approach also enables the identification of leadership roles within the communities. These studies are complemented by a qualitative evaluation of the results in the field.
Depletion/enhancement-mode β-Ga 2 O 3 on insulator field-effect transistors with drain currents exceeding 1.5/1.0 A/mm

Recently, β-Ga 2 O 3 has shown its great promise for next generation high power device applications due to its ultra-wide bandgap of 4.6–4.9 eV [1]-[5]. Despite the very early development stage, β-Ga 2 O 3 metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs) have demonstrated a high blocking voltage of 0.75 kV and a breakdown field of 3.8 MV/cm [2][4]. However, a crucial disadvantage of this material is its low thermal conductivity of 0.1–0.3 W/cm-K. One of the approaches to solve this issue is to introduce a high thermal conductivity substrate with β-Ga 2 O 3 on insulator (GOOI) structure rather than the β-Ga 2 O 3 native substrate. It is questionable whether β-Ga 2 O 3 based FETs can compete with existing GaN or SiC technologies in terms of drain current (I dmax ) and on-resistance (R on ). Meanwhile, whether β-Ga 2 O 3 can also be applied in large-signal RF power devices remains to be answered, although β-Ga 2 O 3 suffers from relatively low electron mobility (μ). In this abstract, we have fully explored the device potentials and demonstrated that depletion/enhancement (D/E)-mode GOOI FETs can achieve a record high I DMAX of 1.5/1.0 A/mm and high estimated virtual source velocity v=7.3 × 106 cm/s.
Analysis of X-Ray and Gamma Ray Scattering Through Computational Experiments

A series of computational experiments are performed for gaining insight into scattering phenomena in industrial radiography. First of all, simulation code results are benchmarked against MCNP Monte Carlo code for verification purpose. Following this, various aspects of scattering phenomena in industrial radiography are studied through simulations. Impact of X-ray tube voltage, energy of gamma photons, volume of the scattering object, object material, scattering object to detector distance are among the parameters observed in these computational experiments. Impact of scattering on energy spectrum of the total flux is observed as well. Spatial distribution of scattered photons are displayed for plates and geometrically complicated objects.
Studies of Hypervelocity Impact Phenomena As Applied to the Protection of Spacecraft Operating in the MMOD Environment

Abstract In keeping with the tradition of the Hypervelocity Impact Society, this paper is a written version of the keynote address I presented at the start of 2015 Hypervelocity Impact Symposium as the recipient of the Society’s Distinguished Scientist Award. It covers the highlights of my nearly 30 year career working in the area of hypervelocity impact phenomenology, mainly as it is applied to the protection of humans and spacecraft that work an operate in the micrometeoroid and orbital debris (MMOD) environment.
CHARACTERIZATION OF POLYMER NETWORKS BY ELASTICITY MEASUREMENTS

Crosslinking of linear polymers is commonly thought to occur homogeneously throughout the reacting material, yielding networks of chains which are considered to be in the unperturbed state. This hypothesis forms one of the bases for the classical theory of rubber-elasticity from Gaussian chain statistics. A review is given of Gaussian and non-Gaussian network models leading to constitutive equations for rubbery behavior. It is shown that current knowledge of rubber elasticity has been insufficient to characterize polymer networks. Therefore, a new theory has been developed, based on excluded volume and molecular anisotropy considerationsa, to describe rubbery response in extension as well as in compression. This treatment can be used to characterize polymeric networks adequately.
Chiral electric separation effect in Weyl semimetals

We study the chiral electric separation effect (CESE) in Weyl semimetals (WSM). Within the model based on the kinetic equation we show that there is a nonzero chirality current in external electric and magnetic fields. We distinguish longitudinal, in-plane transverse, and Hall components of the CESE. It is shown that the first two components are quadratic in electric field and linear in magnetic field, while the Hall component is quadratic in both the electric and magnetic fields. All three are due to the chiral anomaly. In WSMs the chirality current can be associated with the bulk spin density.
Berel Lang on the Viability of the Concept of Genocide

Berel Lang has addressed, in the course of his long and distinguished career, a wide range of philosophical issues. His numerous books and articles about the Holocaust and the phenomenon of genocid...
Measurement of plasma norepinephrine and 3,4-dihydroxyphenylglycol: method development for a translational research study

Norepinephrine (NE), a sympathetic neurotransmitter, is often measured in plasma as an index of sympathetic activity. To better understand NE dynamics, it is important to measure its principal metabolite, 3,4-dihydroxyphenylglycol (DHPG), concurrently. Our aim was to present a method, developed in the course of a translational research study, to measure NE and DHPG in human plasma using high performance liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection (HPLC-ED). After pre-purifying plasma samples by alumina extraction, we used HPLC-ED to separate and quantify NE and DHPG. In order to remove uric acid, which co-eluted with DHPG, a sodium bicarbonate wash was added to the alumina extraction procedure, and we oxidized the column eluates followed by reduction because catechols are reversibly oxidized whereas uric acid is irreversibly oxidized. Average recoveries of plasma NE and DHPG were 35.3 ± 1.0% and 16.3 ± 1.1%, respectively, and there was no detectable uric acid. Our estimated detection limits for NE and DHPG were approximately 85 pg/mL (0.5 pmol/mL) and 165 pg/mL (0.9 pmol/mL), respectively. The measurement of NE and DHPG in human plasma has wide applicability; thus, we describe a method to quantify plasma NE and DHPG in a laboratory setting as a useful tool for translational and clinical research.
Targeted Tubulysin B Hydrazide Conjugate for the Treatment of Luteinizing Hormone-Releasing Hormone Receptor-Positive Cancers

The targeted delivery of chemotherapeutic agents to receptors that are overexpressed on cancer cells has become an attractive strategy to concentrate drugs in cancer cells while avoiding uptake by healthy cells. Luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone receptor (LHRH-R) has attracted considerable interest for this application, since LHRH-R is upregulated in ∼86% of prostate cancers, ∼80% of endometrial cancers, ∼80% of ovarian cancers, and ∼50% of breast cancers, but virtually absent from normal tissues. Although LHRH and related peptides have been used to deliver cytotoxic drugs to LHRH-R overexpressing cancer cells, they have suffered from off-target delivery of the therapeutic agents to the liver and kidneys. To reduce such unwanted uptake by peptide scavenger receptors in the liver and kidneys, we have explored the use of a nonpeptidic LHRH-R antagonist (NBI42902) to construct an LHRH-R targeted tubulysin conjugate (BOEPL-L3-TubBH). In vitro studies with BOEPL-L3-TubBH demonstrate that the conjugate can ...
Impact of wall boundary condition on scaling film cooling performance from near ambient to engine temperatures

Abstract The present work computationally examines the scaling of a fan-shaped hole's film-cooling performance from a near ambient temperature to an engine temperature on a flat plate. Heat flux distributions for both film-cooled and non-film-cooled cases were computed for several isothermal boundary conditions. Cases with engine representative freestream temperatures and near ambient temperatures were examined. This study first shows that the adiabatic wall temperatures interpolated from the isothermal results were higher than those measured directly using an adiabatic wall boundary condition. This was due to the presence of a thermal boundary layer in the isothermal results, which would not develop for the adiabatic case. As a result, the adiabatic effectiveness found with adiabatic models will not represent the true thermal condition found in the engine. Finally, this study shows that both the adiabatic effectiveness interpolated from the isothermal results and Net Heat Flux Reduction can be scaled from low temperature to high temperature by proper non-dimensional matching.
Working Memory Training and Transfer: Theoretical and Practical Considerations

The study of transfer and brain plasticity is currently one of the hot topics in cognitive science. Transfer refers to performance improvements in tasks that were not part of an intervention. In this chapter, we will provide evidence for the efficacy of several working memory (WM) interventions developed in our laboratories and review the emerging literature from other groups. We will discuss data that demonstrate transfer to non-trained tasks throughout the lifespan, that is, in young adults, in older adults, in typically developing children, as well as children with Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). We will also briefly discuss the neural correlates that underlie improvements as a function of WM training. In addition to describing successful instances of transfer, we will also point out that transfer effects can be elusive, and that some of the effects do not seem to be easily replicated. We argue that instead of taking inconsistencies as a proof for a lack of efficacy, researchers need to develop innovative approaches to move the cognitive training literature beyond the simple question of whether or not training is effective, and to address questions of underlying mechanisms, individual differences, and training features and parameters that might mediate and moderate the efficacy of training.
Late 19th century accounts of Indian yellow: The analysis of samples from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

Abstract Indian yellow has always been a mysterious pigment. In 1883, an eye-witness account of its production described it as a urinary sediment from cows fed a mango leaves rich diet; this same account describes a set of manufacturing materials and samples sent to the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (England). Most of these original materials were recovered in 2016 from the Economic Botany Collection at Kew, and analyzed alongside known reference materials, to characterize the pigment materials, and to search for evidence of an animal origin. Component characterization and identification was performed using py (TMAH)-GC-MS, LC-MS, FTIR, Raman Spectroscopy, SEM-EDS, UVA-induced visible fluorescence, and polarized light microscopy. All the materials were shown to contain variable ratios of reported components of Indian yellow (euxanthic acid, euxanthone, and a sulfo-derivative of euxanthone), and some presented hippuric acid, a ruminant metabolite found in urine. This is the first substantial link between animal urine and the pigment Indian yellow. When possible, the interior and exterior of the pigment-balls were characterized, and a higher amount of euxanthone was consistently detected on the exposed exterior of the ball. It is proposed, that euxanthone may be a chemical marker for the degradation of Indian yellow. A laboratory prepared euxanthone was used for comparison; this paper presents the characterization data for euxanthone, much of which is the first time it has been reported in the literature.
Use of In Vitro Models in Drug Development and Issue Resolution

Abstract It has been a goal of the pharmaceutical industry to provide drugs with as few side effects as possible. In vitro off-target pharmacology assay, which includes receptors, enzymes, and ion channels, is a cost-effective way to increase efficiency in the drug discovery process to achieve that goal. Early in a project, the chemical scaffolds of interest are subjected to a panel of assays. The panel includes not only closely related targets but also targets that are known to have adverse or intolerable side effect in the patient population. The number of assays to include in the panel can get quite extensive and cost-prohibitive, but scientific expertise and experience can help limit the panel to targets that have been shown to be more promiscuous. In addition, the development of in silico modeling using 3-D structures of targets and chemical similarity searches can be used to identify targets of concern. Once the panel for a particular project is identified, the typical approach is to screen the targets using receptor binding. To verify the interactions are truly pharmacological, the hit need to be followed-up with full concentration response curves and functional assays to eliminate false positives. Early in the development process, the prudent use of in vitro pharmacology assays is of significant value to identify selective compounds for the intended target-limiting potential adverse side effects.
Effects of Occupational Licensing and Unions on Labour Market Earnings in Canada

Using longitudinal data from the Canadian Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics from 1999 to 2011, the article compares the pay and benefits of licensed and unionized workers. In a cross section of respondents and using ordinary least squares estimates, it finds a pay premium of 0.155 log points for those with an occupational licence compared to those without one; the comparable union wage premium is slightly more than half, that is 0.085 log points. Fixed‐effects estimates go in the opposite direction (0.028 and 0.046 log points for licensing and unionization, respectively), suggesting the existence of unobservable factors correlated with licensing and union status. Unionized workers are more likely to access standard benefits, such as medical insurance and pension plans, but licensed workers benefit little from their licensing status in access to benefits. Finally, union workers are significantly less likely to receive incentive pay, such as profit sharing, while the association between occupational licensing and incentive pay is close to zero and statistically insignificant.
Advances in Computer Vision-Based Civil Infrastructure Inspection and Monitoring

Abstract Computer vision techniques, in conjunction with acquisition through remote cameras and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), offer promising non-contact solutions to civil infrastructure condition assessment. The ultimate goal of such a system is to automatically and robustly convert the image or video data into actionable information. This paper provides an overview of recent advances in computer vision techniques as they apply to the problem of civil infrastructure condition assessment. In particular, relevant research in the fields of computer vision, machine learning, and structural engineering is presented. The work reviewed is classified into two types: inspection applications and monitoring applications. The inspection applications reviewed include identifying context such as structural components, characterizing local and global visible damage, and detecting changes from a reference image. The monitoring applications discussed include static measurement of strain and displacement, as well as dynamic measurement of displacement for modal analysis. Subsequently, some of the key challenges that persist toward the goal of automated vision-based civil infrastructure and monitoring are presented. The paper concludes with ongoing work aimed at addressing some of these stated challenges.
Flexible gaze-following in rhesus monkeys

Humans are characterized by complex social cognitive abilities that emerge early in development. Comparative studies of nonhuman primates can illuminate the evolutionary history of these social capacities. We examined the cognitive skills that rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) use to follow gaze, a foundational skill in human social development. While rhesus monkeys can make inferences about others’ gaze when competing, it is unclear how they think about gaze information in other contexts. In study 1, monkeys (n = 64) observed a demonstrator look upwards either in a barrier condition where a box was overhead, so that monkeys could not see the target of her gaze, or a no barrier condition where nothing blocked her view. In study 2, monkeys (n = 59) could approach to observe the target of the demonstrator’s gaze when the demonstrator looked behind a barrier on the ground or, in the no barrier condition, behind a window frame in the same location. Monkeys were more likely to directly look up in study 1 if they could initially see the location where the demonstrator was looking, but they did not preferentially reorient their bodies to observe the out-of-view location when they could not see that location. In study 2, monkeys did preferentially reorient, but at low rates. This indicates that rhesus monkeys can use social cognitive processes outside of competitive contexts to model what others can or cannot see, but may not be especially motivated to see what others look at in non-competitive contexts, as they reorient infrequently or in an inconsistent fashion. These similarities and differences between gaze-following in monkeys and children can help to illuminate the evolution of human social cognition.