cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
The Role of Capsaicin in Dermatology

Neurogenic pain and pruritus are the common chief complaints at dermatology office visits. Unfortunately, they are also notoriously difficult conditions to treat. Topical capsaicin used as a single therapy or as an adjuvant offers a low-risk option for patients who do not achieve control on other therapies. This chapter presents the evidence behind topical capsaicin use in dermatologic conditions characterized by neurogenic pain or pruritus, including postherpetic neuralgia, notalgia paresthetica, brachioradial pruritus, lichen simplex chronicus, prurigo nodularis, pruritus ani, pruritus of hemodialysis, aquagenic pruritus, apocrine chromhidrosis, lipodermatosclerosis, alopecia areata, and psoriasis. It presents the most common capsaicin formulations, dosages, and durations of treatment for each condition. Additionally, the chapter addresses various adverse effects and limitations in the use of topical capsaicin in dermatology.
Assessing student characteristics in palliative care education research: a literature review

Background: Assessing characteristics in educational research is important to describe a student sample. However, consistency in measuring student characteristics is lacking, particularly in palliative and end-of-life (PEOL) care education research. Methods: A literature review was conducted to determine the primary characteristics to assess in PEOL education research, the corresponding level of measurement and associated statistical analyses to perform with the data. Results: Key characteristics to measure include: age, previous PEOL healthcare experience, previous personal experience with death/loss, previous PEOL education, program of enrolment and religion. Gender, ethnicity/race and living situation/place of residence were not supported as key characteristics to assess. Best methods by which to measure characteristics remain unclear and the utilisation of characteristics in research is inconsistent. Conclusion: Identified characteristics should be measured in PEOL education research at the highest le...
Synthesis of Polyisobutylene Bottlebrush Polymers via Ring-Opening Metathesis Polymerization

Polyisobutylene (PIB)-based bottlebrush polymers were synthesized via ring-opening metathesis polymerization (ROMP) of norbornene- and oxanorbornene-terminated PIB macromonomers (MM) initiated by Grubbs third-generation catalyst ((H2IMes2)(pyr)2(Cl)2Ru═CHPh) (G3). While both MMs reached greater than 97% conversion as measured by 1H NMR, the rate of propagation of PIB norbornene was measured to be 2.9 times greater than that of PIB oxanorbornene MMs of similar molecular weight (MW). The slower rate of propagation of the oxanorbornene MM was attributed to interaction between the electron-rich oxygen bridge and the metal center of G3, which slowed but did not inhibit polymerization. Both types of MMs demonstrated controlled/“living” polymerization behavior, and brush polymers with MWs up to ∼700 kg/mol with narrow dispersity (Đ ≤ 1.04) were achieved.
Response to Letter to the Editor: Psychiatric Disease Among Patients with Takotsubo Syndrome.

Author(s): Nayeri, Arash; Rafla-Yuan, Eric; Farber-Eger, Eric; Blair, Marcia; Ziaeian, Boback; Cadeiras, Martin; McPherson, John A; Wells, Quinn S
Using natural language processing to assess palliative care processes in cancer patients receiving venting gastrostomy tube.

7Background: Natural Language Processing (NLP) presents a novel method of extracting text-embedded information from the electronic health record (EHR) to improve routine assessment of palliative qu...
Ankle Arthroscopy for Diagnosis of Full-thickness Talar Cartilage Lesions in the Setting of Acute Ankle Fractures

Purpose To delineate the prevalence of chondral lesions, in particular full-thickness talar dome lesions, with concurrent arthroscopy in acute ankle fracture open reduction–internal fixation (ORIF) and evaluate the impact on clinical outcomes. Methods We conducted a retrospective chart review of prospectively collected registry data at our institution from 2012 to 2016. Consecutive patients who underwent acute ankle fracture ORIF with concurrent arthroscopy were identified. Charts were reviewed to determine the prevalence and grade of chondral lesions, fracture type, and associated factors. Clinical outcomes with a minimum of 1 year of follow-up were assessed using the Foot and Ankle Outcome Score. Results The study included 116 consecutive patients undergoing acute ankle fracture ORIF with concurrent arthroscopy. A chondral lesion was identified in 78% (90 of 116). A full-thickness talar dome chondral lesion was identified in 43% of these patients (39 of 90). Patient age was a significant predictor, with patients younger than 30 years being less likely to have a chondral injury than those aged 30 years or older (59% vs 85%, P = .0077). Of the patients who sustained a dislocation at the time of injury, 100% had a chondral lesion ( P = .039). Patients with complete syndesmosis disruption and instability were also more likely to have a chondral lesion (96% vs 73%, P = .013). Patients with chondral lesions had statistically significantly worse clinical outcomes than those without them (Foot and Ankle Outcome Score, 81.2 vs 92.1; P = .009). Conclusions Ankle arthroscopy performed concomitantly with ankle ORIF is a useful tool in diagnosing chondral injuries. Chondral lesions are common with ankle fractures. An ankle with a dislocation at presentation or a syndesmotic injury may be more likely to present with a chondral lesion and should thus prompt evaluation. The presence of a talar chondral injury may be associated with a negative impact on clinical outcomes. Level of Evidence Level IV, therapeutic case series.
Geophysical constraints on the reliability of solar and wind power in the United States

We analyze 36 years of global, hourly weather data (1980–2015) to quantify the covariability of solar and wind resources as a function of time and location, over multi-decadal time scales and up to continental length scales. Assuming minimal excess generation, lossless transmission, and no other generation sources, the analysis indicates that wind-heavy or solar-heavy U.S.-scale power generation portfolios could in principle provide ∼80% of recent total annual U.S. electricity demand. However, to reliably meet 100% of total annual electricity demand, seasonal cycles and unpredictable weather events require several weeks’ worth of energy storage and/or the installation of much more capacity of solar and wind power than is routinely necessary to meet peak demand. To obtain ∼80% reliability, solar-heavy wind/solar generation mixes require sufficient energy storage to overcome the daily solar cycle, whereas wind-heavy wind/solar generation mixes require continental-scale transmission to exploit the geographic diversity of wind. Policy and planning aimed at providing a reliable electricity supply must therefore rigorously consider constraints associated with the geophysical variability of the solar and wind resource—even over continental scales.
Student Understanding of Global Warming Implications for STS Education beyond 20001

Many experts believe humans are imperiling the ecology of the earth by enhancing the natural greenhouse effect, which may result in global warming. Others suggest, however, that we do not yet fully understand all the factors operating in the earth’s system and their complex interactions, so it is possible that the warming observed during the past century may be due to natural variation. Whether or not there is a discernible human influence on global climate, global warming is an STS issue that will continue to be debated far into the next century. The potential significance of global warming makes it the STS issue that will shape STS education as STS enters the new millennium.
Acute vitreoretinal trauma and inflammation after traumatic brain injury in mice

Objective Limited attention has been given to ocular injuries associated with traumatic brain injury (TBI). The retina is an extension of the central nervous system and evaluation of ocular damage may offer a less-invasive approach to gauge TBI severity and response to treatment. We aim to characterize acute changes in the mouse eye after exposure to two different models of TBI to assess the utility of eye damage as a surrogate to brain injury. Methods A model of blast TBI (bTBI) using a shock tube was compared to a lateral fluid percussion injury model (LFPI) using fluid pressure applied directly to the brain. Whole eyes were collected from mice 3 days post LFPI and 24 days post bTBI and were evaluated histologically using a hematoxylin and eosin stain. Results bTBI mice showed evidence of vitreous detachment in the posterior chamber in addition to vitreous hemorrhage with inflammatory cells. Subretinal hemorrhage, photoreceptor degeneration, and decreased cellularity in the retinal ganglion cell layer was also seen in bTBI mice. In contrast, eyes of LFPI mice showed evidence of anterior uveitis and subcapsular cataracts. Interpretation We demonstrated that variations in the type of TBI can result in drastically different phenotypic changes within the eye. As such, molecular and phenotypic changes in the eye following TBI may provide valuable information regarding the mechanism, severity, and ongoing pathophysiology of brain injury. Because vitreous samples are easily obtained, molecular changes within the eye could be utilized as biomarkers of TBI in human patients.
Time-dependent electrical properties of liquid crystal cells: unravelling the origin of ion generation

An understanding of possible sources of ion generation in liquid crystal materials is of utmost importance to ensure uncompromised performance of modern liquid crystal devices. In this paper, time-dependent electrical properties of filled liquid crystal cells are used to reveal important information about often overlooked source of ion generation in liquid crystals. This source of ions originates from the ionic contamination of substrates of the liquid crystal cell. Ionic contaminants can be inherently present in the alignment layers or can be induced by external factors such as mechanical rubbing or irradiation with light. The model of this ion generation process is presented and tested using existing experimental data.
The Boy–Gauss–Bonnet Theorems for C∞-Singular Surfaces with Limiting Tangent Bundle

Using C∞-singularity theory, we describe natural conditions on nonimmersivemappings of a compact orientable 2-manifold into Euclidean 3-space (e.g., theexistence of a global limiting tangent bundle). These conditions are weaker thanthose of caustic theory and imply that the image is a CW-complex. In general, the domainmanifold is not homeomorphic to the image CW-complex. We then adapt classical methods to this setting. (This adaptation is simplified by freely moving betweenthe Gauss, Cartan, and Kozul formulations for surface theory.) As an application,we show that part of the extrinsic topology of the image is determined by the firstfundamental form, i.e., a global `theorem egregium'.
An OO Approach to Designing Business Intelligence Systems

While standard accounting needs tend to be relatively static, the demand for corporate managers to be constantly aware of changing business dynamics is ever present. Consequently, support systems, technical or otherwise, must be up to the challenge of responding to the demands of their users by incorporating available accounting data. This chapter explains how organizations can use object-oriented analysis and design techniques to more effectively create systems to respond to escalating business intelligence needs. Towards this end, we discuss the differences between business intelligence systems and operational accounting systems. We explain basic object-oriented software principles and how data and procedures are viewed within the object-oriented paradigm. We demonstrate how object-oriented systems can evolve more quickly in response to changing business intelligence needs than systems developed using more traditional (structured) methods. Finally, we provide an example demonstrating the application of these principles. The example demonstrates how the collection of retail sales data and the separate recording of advertising expenditures can be combined to address specific business intelligence questions. This allows us to demonstrate how data collected for specific accounting purposes can be rapidly manipulated and combined, to be used in a decision support, as opposed to the regulatory reporting, role.
Trading zones, Normative Scenarios, and Service Science

This chapter will consider how service science could transform socio-technical systems in beneficial ways. The term socio-technical system is used in the science and technology studies (STS) literature to refer to the way in which technological and human activity are tightly coupled (M. E. Gorman , 2008). Beneficial here refers both to improvements in quality of life and to increasing revenue for services—complementary objectives, because adding social value is one way of creating sources of revenue.
Human-AI Interaction in Symbolic Problem Solving

Despite the increasing need for computer assistance in solving problems involving complex systems and large amount of data, professional mathematicians, scientists, and engineers currently avoid the use of computer algebra systems during creative problem-solving phases of their work due to problems with transparency, familiarity, and inflexibility in input. I have designed and prototyped a new approach to interaction with computer algebra systems that is compatible with current working styles, flexible in its input and output. I propose a user study to validate this tool, and tool extensions to allow creative problem solvers to interactively define their own notation as they work.
High-Temperature (200 °C) Operation of 7.4 μm Distributed Feedback (DFB) Quantum Cascade Laser

We report a successful high-temperature operation up to 200 °C of a DFB-QCL under pulse condition. The DFB-QCL maintained a single-mode operation between −40 °C and 200 °C without a mode-hopping, leading to wide wavelength shift of 123 nm for a single-stripe chip.
Push it to the limit: comparing periodic and local approaches to density functional theory for intermolecular interactions

With the aim of systematically comparing two popular approaches to density functional theory – all-electron calculations with local basis sets, and periodic calculations employing plane wave basis ...
Missing dependent variables in fixed-effects models

Abstract This paper considers estimation of linear fixed-effects models in which the dependent variable may be missing. For cross-sectional units with dependent variables missing, use of covariate information from all time periods can provide efficiency gains relative to complete-data methods. A classical minimum distance (CMD) estimator based upon Chamberlain (1982, 1984), which is consistent under a missing-at-random (MAR) type assumption, is proposed for the static fixed-effects model. In certain circumstances, it is shown that “within” variation in the dependent variable is not even required for identification of the model parameters. The CMD estimation approach is extended to the case of (autoregressive) fixed-effects models with lagged dependent variables. Monte Carlo simulations investigate the performance of the CMD approach relative to existing methods. Extensions to models with sequential exogeneity and missing covariates are also discussed.
Optimization of 3D printing parameters for BaTiO3 piezoelectric ceramics through design of experiments

Paste extrusion is an additive manufacturing technique that deposits paste through a nozzle in a layer-by-layer fashion to form a three-dimensional object. This technique can be used to fabricate piezoelectric ceramics with complex geometries and excellent material properties to fabricate sensors, capacitors, and energy storage devices with a high level of customization. Different factors can affect the quality of piezoelectric ceramics when using the paste extrusion technique, for example, the composition of the paste and printing parameters. This paper presents a study to optimize the piezoelectric coefficient, relative density, dielectric permittivity and dimensional accuracy of BaTiO3 by using design of experiments with a 2k-1 design. Results indicated that the factors having a significant impact on the end-product outputs were the BaTiO3 particle size and the binder concentration on the paste formulation. Using the optimal levels makes it possible to achieve a piezoelectric coefficient higher than 200 pC/N and a density of 90% of the theoretical value of pure BaTiO3.
Pellet Softening Process for the Removal of the Groundwater Hardness; Modelling and Experimentation

A lab scale pellet reactor (PR) was designed and fabricated to carry out extensive investigations on the removal efficiency of the hardness of groundwater. The groundwater of 2200 – 2600 mg/L hardness was collected from Abdulla Ibnalhassan wells area located at the west desert of Al-Shinafiyah district (70 km to the southwest of Al-Dewaniyah city, Iraq). Both hydrodynamic parameters of the pellet reactor (porosity and fluidized bed height) and the parameters of calcium carbonate crystallization process (calcium carbonate equilibrium, pellet size, and density) were modeled and compared with the experimental results of the lab scale pellet reactor. The comparison showed that fair agreement between modeled and measured results was observed. The removal efficiency of both calcium and magnesium ions were 62.5-99% and 83-99% respectively. The removal efficiency was found to be strongly dependent on pH and the ratio of NaOH solution flow rate to the groundwater flow rate in the pellet reactor.
Performance-based funding for higher education: how well does neoliberal theory capture neoliberal practice?

Neoliberal theories—whether the new public management, principal-agent theory, or performance management—have provided the rationale for sweeping reforms in the governance and operation of higher education. This paper expands our understanding of neoliberal theory and practice by examining a leading neoliberal reform: performance-based funding (PBF) for higher education in the USA, Europe, Canada, Australia, and elsewhere. Our analysis of PBF examines not only its impacts but also its origins and implementation. Neoliberal theory has been used not only prospectively to design and argue for certain public policies but also retrospectively to analyse the origins and implementation of neoliberal policy. Hence, this paper examines this retrospective neoliberal analysis in order to determine how well neoliberal theory helps us understand the origins and implementation of neoliberal policy: in this case, the socio-political forces that gave rise to PBF; and the political and organizational features of the processes by which PBF was implemented.
A Fatigue Life Model for Predicting Crack Nucleation at Inclusions in Ni-Based Superalloys

Engineering alloys such as Ni-based alloys, Al-alloys, and steels often contain non-metallic inclusions in their microstructures. These inclusions, which include oxide particles, carbides, and intermetallic particles, are introduced during component manufacturing processes such as casting, powder-metallurgy, or additive manufacturing methods. The presence of inclusions in the microstructure can promote fatigue crack nucleation by competing against slipband nucleation and reduce fatigue life performance of an engineering component. While it has been reported in many occasions, the competition between fatigue crack nucleation at inclusions and slipbands is still not well understood. In this article, the conditions for the concurrent occurrence of fatigue crack nucleation at inclusions and slipbands are analyzed theoretically. The analysis indicates that there exists a critical inclusion size (diameter) below which there is no fatigue life debit due to crack initiation at inclusions and above which a transition from slip-induced to inclusion-induced crack nucleation occurs. The low-cycle fatigue life model is applied to Ni-based superalloys and the model predictions are compared against experimental data from the literature to assess the dependence of the critical inclusion size on the slip morphology, grain size of the matrix, and the shear modulus of the inclusion.
Exploring the Use of Problem-Based Learning for Developing Collaborative Leadership Skills.

This paper examines the implementation of two Problem-Based Learning (PBL) seminars at a university administrative credential program for graduate students preparing to become administrators. PBL i...
Tailoring Programs to Best Support Low-Income, First-Generation, and Racially Minoritized College Student Success:

This article draws on a five-year mixed methods study and focuses on the way staff tailor support within a comprehensive college transition program to meet the needs of low-income, first-generation...
Consumer Perceptions of CPA WebTrustSM Assurances: Evidence of an Expectation Gap

The AICPA/CICA has established WebTrustSM to respond to consumer concerns about the risks of making purchases over the Internet. While WebTrustSM provides assurances related to Internet vendors' business and security practices, it does not provide assurances with respect to product or service quality. This paper examines perceptions of the assurances provided by WebTrustSM and the effect of WebTrustSM on the willingness to make Internet purchases by asking 106 accounting majors to complete a case concerning a company engaging in electronic commerce. Results suggest that, while WebTrustSM provided no additional assurances with respect to business and security practices, it resulted in higher perceived product quality. This paper also finds that product quality is the most important determinant of subjects' willingness to purchase from a Web site displaying the WebTrustSM seal. The results suggest an expectation gap and suggest that the AICPA/CICA should examine closely the value added by WebTrustSM and better communicate its purpose.
PLEXUS: A Pattern-Oriented Runtime System Architecture for Resilient Extreme-Scale High-Performance Computing Systems

For high-performance computing (HPC) system designers and users, meeting the myriad challenges of next-generation exascale supercomputing systems requires rethinking their approach to application and system software design. Among these challenges, providing resiliency and stability to the scientific applications in the presence of high fault rates requires new approaches to software architecture and design. As HPC systems become increasingly complex, they require intricate solutions for detection and mitigation for various modes of faults and errors that occur in these large-scale systems, as well as solutions for failure recovery. These resiliency solutions often interact with and affect other system properties, including application scalability, power and energy efficiency. Therefore, resilience solutions for HPC systems must be thoughtfully engineered and deployed.In previous work, we developed the concept of resilience design patterns, which consist of templated solutions based on well-established techniques for detection, mitigation and recovery. In this paper, we use these patterns as the foundation to propose new approaches to designing runtime systems for HPC systems. The instantiation of these patterns within a runtime system enables flexible and adaptable end-to-end resiliency solutions for HPC environments. The paper describes the architecture of the runtime system, named Plexus, and the strategies for dynamically composing and adapting pattern instances under runtime control. This runtime-based approach enables actively balancing the cost-benefit trade-off between performance overhead and protection coverage of the resilience solutions. Based on a prototype implementation of PLEXUS, we demonstrate the resiliency and performance gains achieved by the pattern-based runtime system for a parallel linear solver application.
Environmental Determinants of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Since the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 outbreak in China in late 2019 turned into a global pandemic, numerous studies have reported associations between environmental factors, such as weather conditions and a range of air pollutants (particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide, ozone, etc.) and the first wave of COVID-19 cases. This review aims to offer a critical assessment of the role of environmental exposure risk factors on SARS-CoV-2 infections and COVID-19 disease severity. In this review, we provide a critical assessment of COVID-19 risk factors, identify gaps in our knowledge (e.g., indoor air pollution), and discuss methodological challenges of association and causation and the impact lockdowns had on air quality. In addition, we will draw attention to ethnic and socioeconomic factors driving viral transmission related to COVID-19. The complex role angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) plays in COVID-19 and future promising avenues of research are discussed. To demonstrate causality, we stress the need for future epidemiologic studies integrating personal air pollution exposures, detailed clinical COVID-19 data, and a range of socioeconomic factors, as well as in vitro and in vivo mechanistic studies.
Examining the Coding Strength of Object Identity and Nonidentity Features in Human Occipito-Temporal Cortex and Convolutional Neural Networks

A visual object is characterized by multiple visual features, including its identity, position and size. Despite the usefulness of identity and nonidentity features in vision and their joint coding throughout the primate ventral visual processing pathway, they have so far been studied relatively independently. Here in both female and male human participants, the coding of identity and nonidentity features was examined together across the human ventral visual pathway. The nonidentity features tested included two Euclidean features (position and size) and two non-Euclidean features (image statistics and spatial frequency (SF) content of an image). Overall, identity representation increased and nonidentity feature representation decreased along the ventral visual pathway, with identity outweighing the non-Euclidean but not the Euclidean features at higher levels of visual processing. In 14 convolutional neural networks (CNNs) pretrained for object categorization with varying architecture, depth, and with/without recurrent processing, nonidentity feature representation showed an initial large increase from early to mid-stage of processing, followed by a decrease at later stages of processing, different from brain responses. Additionally, from lower to higher levels of visual processing, position became more underrepresented and image statistics and SF became more overrepresented compared with identity in CNNs than in the human brain. Similar results were obtained in a CNN trained with stylized images that emphasized shape representations. Overall, by measuring the coding strength of object identity and nonidentity features together, our approach provides a new tool for characterizing feature coding in the human brain and the correspondence between the brain and CNNs. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT This study examined the coding strength of object identity and four types of nonidentity features along the human ventral visual processing pathway and compared brain responses with those of 14 convolutional neural networks (CNNs) pretrained to perform object categorization. Overall, identity representation increased and nonidentity feature representation decreased along the ventral visual pathway, with some notable differences among the different nonidentity features. CNNs differed from the brain in a number of aspects in their representations of identity and nonidentity features over the course of visual processing. Our approach provides a new tool for characterizing feature coding in the human brain and the correspondence between the brain and CNNs.
Basic Writing Skills

Basic writing skills begin with idea development, which includes creative musing and accumulation of data. Before putting words on paper, the careful medical writer plans the structure of the article or chapter, using a classical outline or other organizing system, such as a list or series of questions to be answered. This chapter also presents what successful writers need to know about paragraph development, sentence structure, punctuation, phrases, and word choice.
User-Defined Functions for HDF5.

Scientific datasets are known for their challenging storage demands and the associated processing pipelines that transform their information. Some of those processing tasks include filtering, cleansing, aggregation, normalization, and data format translation -- all of which generate even more data. In this paper, we present an infrastructure for the HDF5 file format that enables dataset values to be populated on the fly: task-related scripts can be attached into HDF5 files and only execute when the dataset is read by an application. We provide details on the software architecture that supports user-defined functions (UDFs) and how it integrates with hardware accelerators and computational storage. Moreover, we describe the built-in security model that limits the system resources a UDF can access. Last, we present several use cases that show how UDFs can be used to extend scientific datasets in ways that go beyond the original scope of this work.
The Detection of the Thermal Processes’ Variations into Rotary Cement Kilns by Thermographic Imaging of the Kiln Outer Shell

The fabrication process of the cement in rotary cement kilns involves chemical, transport, combustion and thermodynamic interdependent processes. Monitoring and controlling these processes are essential for both the quality of the final product – the clinker - and for the energetic efficiency of the kiln. Modern rotary cement kilns are provided with infrared cameras for monitoring the burning processes inside the kiln and laser scanners for monitoring the outer shell of the kiln for the detection of faults at the outer shell. In this paper we propose using the images of the outer shell’s thermal spectrum provided by the laser scanner to extract information about the variations of the thermal processes inside the kiln. The method consists in the implementation of a second degree polynomial approximation of the 2D image of the scans - the analytical model, - and estimating the image of the differences between the observed image and its analytical model. The variations within the thermal processes inside the kiln reflect in both the model’s parameters, and mainly in the image of the differences. For the selection of the principal information regarding the variations within the thermal processes, we propose implementing the null hypothesis test of similarity between these images. The experimental results presented in this work prove that the proposed method identifies the variations of the thermal processes inside the kiln, in numerical values suitable for both faults detection and control of the kiln.
Value and Virtue in a Godless Universe

Acknowledgements Introduction Part I. God and the Meaning of Life: 1. The meanings of life 2. Four arguments that life lacks internal meaning without God 3. Richard Taylor's way out: creating your own meaning 4. Peter Singer's way out: meaning through eliminating pain 5. Aristotle's way out: intrinsically good activity Part II. God and Morality: 6. God as the omnipotent creator of ethics 7. Criticism of the strong position 8. Criticism of the weak position 9. An alternative account 10. God as divine commander Part III. The Divine Guarantee of Perfect Justice: 11. Why be moral? 12. First answer: because morality and self-interest coincide 13. Second answer: because you ought to 14. The divine guarantee of perfect justice and Kant's moral argument 15. Divine justice, self-sacrifice, and moral absurdity 16. Absolute evil and moral faith 17. Where we are now Part IV. Ethical Character in a Godless Universe: 18. A new assumption 19. The fall of man: pride and disobedience 20. Humility, Christian and naturalistic 21. From humility to charity 22. Hope and heroism 23. Moral education and science Part V. Creeds to Live By: 24. To believe or not to believe? 25. A creed we can live by? Notes References.
Capabilities and Impact on Wind Analyses of the Hurricane Imaging Radiometer (HIRAD)

The Hurricane Imaging Radiometer (HIRAD) is a new airborne microwave remote sensor for hurricane observations that is currently under development by NASA Marshall Space Flight Center in partnership with the NOAA Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory/Hurricane Research Division, the University of Central Florida, the University of Michigan, and the University of Alabama in Huntsville. The instrument is being test flown in January and is expected to participate in or collaborate with the tropical cyclone experiment GRIP (Genesis and Rapid Intensification Processes) in the 2010 season. HIRAD is designed to study the wind field in some detail within strong hurricanes and to enhance the real-time airborne ocean surface winds observation capabilities of NOAA and USAF Weather Squadron hurricane hunter aircraft currently using the operational Stepped Frequency Microwave Radiometer (SFMR). Unlike SFMR, which measures wind speed and rain rate along the ground track at a single point directly beneath the aircraft, HIRAD will provide images of the surface wind and rain field over a wide swath (approx.3 x the aircraft altitude) with approx.2 km resolution. See Figure 1, which depicts a simulated HIRAD swath versus the line of data obtained by SFMR.
Recent developments in equilibria algorithms

Nash proved in 1951 that every game has a mixed Nash equilibrium [6]; whether such an equilibrium can be found in polynomial time has been open since that time. We review here certain recent results which shed some light to this old problem. Even though a mixed Nash equilibrium is a continuous object, the problem is essentially combinatorial, since it suffices to identify the support of a mixed strategy for each player; however, no algorithm better than exponential for doing so is known. For the case of two players we have a simplex-like pivoting algorithm due to Lemke and Howson that is guaranteed to converge to a Nash equilibrium; this algorithm has an exponential worst case [9]. But even such algorithms seem unlikely for three or more players: in his original paper Nash supplied an example of a 3-player game, an abstraction of poker, with only irrational Nash equilibria.
Aspergillus flavus Infection and Aflatoxin Production in Fig Fruits

Immature fig fruits did not support colonization and aflatoxin production by Aspergillus flavus Lk. but became susceptible when ripe. While sun-drying on the tree, fruits were particularly vulnerable to fungal infection and colonization. Aflatoxin accumulation equaled levels frequently reported for such seeds as peanuts and cereal grains.
Optimal granularity and degree of multiprogramming in a distributed database system

The optimal choices of granularity (size of a physical lock) and the degree of multiprogramming (maximum number of transactions allowed to run concurrently) for a single-site database system (SDBS) using a locking mechanism for concurrency control have been investigated by many researchers, but the case for a distributed database system (DDBS) has not been examined. Using a simulation model, we study the problem for a DDBS in various application and system environments. In particular, we have considered: the preclaim, and the claim-as-needed locking policies; three different granule placements; two different transaction sizes; and two different communication delays. Conclusions concerning the optimal choices of granularity and the degree of multiprogramming in different environments are then drawn to provide guidelines in achieving good performance in a DDBS.
Indian Poverty Estimates: How Great is the Debate?

We review The Great Indian Poverty Debate edited by Angus Deaton and Valerie Kozel. The volume has great value as a survey of the complex issues involved in estimating poverty in India, which have recently been the subject of substantial controversy. However, the volume has notable omissions. The official poverty lines presently applied in India are of doubtful value, especially in the assessment of poverty trends. We propose an alternative approach to defining and updating poverty lines for India, by anchoring them in the real requirements of achieving elementary human capabilities.
Postprandial Changes in the Plasma Concentration of α- and γ-Tocopherol in Human Subjects Fed a Fat-Rich Meal Supplemented with Fat-Soluble Vitamins

The plasma concentrations of alpha (alpha)- and gamma (gamma)-tocopherol in 10 male and 15 female subjects (n = 14) received 1 g fat/kg body wt as soybean oil, and the meal was supplemented with 100% of the RDA for fat-soluble vitamins. In expt. 2, the subjects (n = 11) received 1 g fat/kg body wt as 50% soybean oil + 50% cream, and the meal was supplemented with 200% of the RDA for fat-soluble vitamins. The ratio of gamma- :alpha-tocopherol given in the test meal of expt. 1 was 2.8:1 and in expt. 2 was 0.9:1. Blood samples were obtained 0, 3, 6, 9 and 12 h after the meal. Tocopherol concentration was measured in plasma and lipoprotein fractions. In both studies, plasma triglyceride concentration increased significantly after the meal (P less than 0.001). Mean plasma cholesterol and alpha-tocopherol concentrations were unchanged, but plasma gamma-tocopherol concentration was significantly increased at 6, 9 and 12 h after the meal (P less than 0.05). The increase in plasma gamma-tocopherol was due to increases within the triglyceride-rich lipoprotein (TRL) fraction (d less than 1.006 g/ml) at earlier timepoints, followed by a sustained increase within low density lipoprotein (LDL) and high density lipoprotein (HDL) fractions at later timepoints. In contrast, alpha-tocopherol in LDL and HDL decreased postprandially, concomitant with a rise in TRL alpha-tocopherol. Our results are consistent with the concept that there are differences in the distribution of alpha- and gamma-tocopherol in postprandial lipoproteins.
Galactic Streams of Cosmic-ray Electrons and Positrons

Isotropy is a key assumption in many models of cosmic-ray electrons and positrons. We find that simulation results imply a critical energy of ~10-1000 GeV above which electrons and positrons can spend their entire lives in streams threading magnetic fields, due to energy losses. This would restrict the number of electron/positron sources contributing at Earth, likely leading to smooth electron and positron spectra, as is observed. For positrons, this could be as few as one, with an enhanced flux that would ease energetics concerns of a pulsar origin of the positron excess, or even zero, bringing dark matter into play. We conclude that ideas about electron/positron propagation based on either isotropic diffusion or turbulent fields must be changed.
Recruitment and Job Choice Research: Same as It Ever Was?

This chapter reviews the extant literature on employee recruitment and suggests directions for future research. More specifically, the chapter reviews how organizational context, recruitment activities and practices, and recruitment processes relate to job seekers' attraction to organizations, application intentions, job choices, and organization-level recruitment outcomes. In addition, the chapter suggests that recruitment researchers begin to investigate the use of social media and crowdsourcing as means of attracting human resources. Keywords: recruitment; recruiting; organizational attraction; crowdsourcing; job choice
Spontaneously Occurring Bacterial Transformations in Mice

In 1963, it was reported that deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)-mediated transformations could take place spontaneously between genetically distinguishable pneumococci growing in a living host, the mouse. It was found in the present study that such transformations could be increased in frequency if infected animals were treated with a drug which kills only one of the two infecting strains. The frequency of in vivo transformations was also increased if the infection was prolonged. Interspecific transformation between pneumococci and streptococci without the addition of purified DNA was demonstrated both in vitro and in vivo. These results make it seem more likely that DNA-mediated transformations occur in nature. Images
Use of Recirculating Ventilation With Dust Filtration to Improve Wintertime Air Quality in a Swine Farrowing Room

The performance of a recirculating ventilation system with dust filtration was evaluated to determine its effectiveness to improve the air quality in a swine farrowing room of a concentrated animal feeding operation (CAFO). Air was exhausted from the room (0.47 m3sec−1; 1000 cfm), treated with a filtration unit (Shaker-Dust Collector), and returned to the farrowing room to reduce dust concentrations while retaining heat necessary for livestock health. The air quality in the room was assessed over a winter, during which time limited fresh air is traditionally brought into the building. Over the study period, dust concentrations ranged from 0.005–0.31 mg m−3 (respirable) and 0.17–2.09 mg m−3 (inhalable). In-room dust concentrations were reduced (41% for respirable and 33% for inhalable) with the system in operation, while gas concentrations (ammonia [NH3], hydrogen sulfide [H2S], carbon monoxide [CO], carbon dioxide [CO2]) were unchanged. The position of the exhaust and return air systems provided reasonabl...
Niching in an ES/EP context

Niching or speciation is a particularly appropriate for multimodal function optimization. An irony in EC research is that genetic algorithms (GAs) are not touted primarily as function optimizers yet all reported niching research is in the GA context. Evolution strategies (ES) and major variants of evolutionary programming are better suited by design for global optimization. Borrowing methods that have been reported for niching in GAs, we have applied them to an EC algorithm that resembles ES in structure. We have found that the selection methods in ES, e.g., (/spl mu/+/spl lambda/), interact satisfactorily with niching strategies used in GAs. On the other hand, adapting selection methods such as SUS that minimize bias does not lead to favorable results. This is counter to expectations but can be reconciled with prevailing theories. We conclude with a conjecture concerning a lower bound on population size for multimodal optimization.
Utility of diabetes-associated autoantibodies for classification of new onset diabetes in children and adolescents

Objective To determine whether measuring diabetes-associated autoantibodies (DAA) in pediatric new onset diabetes (NODM) can be restricted to patients with equivocal diabetes type. Research design and methods Retrospective analysis of all patients with NODM admitted to Boston Children's Hospital from 1 October 2007 to 1 July 2013 who had measurement of DAA [glutamic acid decarboxylase, insulin, insulinoma-associated antigen 2 (IA-2)]. Data collection included initial diagnosis of diabetes type before DAA results and at follow-up. We used logistic regression to predict type 1 diabetes (T1D) and developed a clinical score to classify diabetes type. Results Of 1089 patients (45.4% female, 76.7% White, age 10.6 ± 4.5 yr), initial diagnosis was 1021 (93.8%) T1D, 42 (3.9%) type 2 diabetes (T2D), and 26 (2.4%) other. Of 993 patients with clinical T1D, 78 (7.9%) were DAA−, and of 42 patients with clinical T2D, 12 (28.6%) were DAA+. Type of diabetes was reclassified at follow-up in less than 6% of patients. Data from a subset of 736 patients were used to develop a scoring system to predict T1D. Using weight z-score, age, and race, the scoring system had 91.7% sensitivity, 82% specificity, and a positive predictive value of 98.6%, and suggested DAA measurement was unnecessary in 85.3% of patients. Findings were similar in a validation cohort of 234 patients. Conclusions Application of a simple scoring system may reduce to ∼15% the number of DAA measurements needed to classify diabetes type, resulting in substantial cost savings. Clinical judgment should guide the decision to measure DAA.
Quantum information primitives using linear optics

We report on two experiments implementing quantum communications primitives in linear optics systems: a secure Quantum Random Bit Generator (QRBG) and a multi-qubit gate based on Two-Photon Multiple-Qubit (TPMQ) quantum logic. In the first we use photons to generate random numbers and introduce and implement a physics-based estimation of the sequence randomness as opposed to the commonly used statistical tests. This scheme allows one to detect and neutralize attempts to eavesdrop or influence the random number sequence. We also demonstrate a C-SWAP gate that can be used to implement quantum signature and fingerprinting protocols. A source of momentum-entangled photons, remote state preparation, and a C-SWAP gate are the ingredients used for this proof-of-principle experiment. While this implementation cannot be used in field applications due to the limitations of TPMQ logic, it provides useful insights into this protocol.
The ideal ocular prosthesis: analysis of prosthetic volume.

PURPOSE An ocular prosthesis should complement the volume of the intraconal implant to achieve complete replacement of the volume that is removed by enucleation. This study investigates the limitations on the prosthetic volume in achieving this goal. METHODS Prosthetic volume and thickness were measured in 70 patients who underwent enucleation. Patients in group 1 (n = 17) were adults enucleated in childhood, and patients in group 2 (n = 53) were enucleated as adults. Clinical problems after enucleation were documented to determine problems potentially related to prosthetic volume. RESULTS None of the ocular prostheses in this patient series was greater in volume than 4.2 ml (range, 0.75-4.2 ml). The average prosthetic volume for patients with implant diameters of 14 mm to 22 mm was 2.2 ml. A prosthetic volume > or =1.8 ml provided an anterior to posterior dimension of 7 mm. Anterior malposition of the implant and the presence of severe socket contraction were noted in patients with the smallest and the thinnest prostheses. In group 2, larger prostheses were associated with ptosis and lower eyelid laxity (p < 0.05; p < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS One should not depend on the ocular prosthesis to supply more than 4.2 ml of volume in the anterior compartment of the socket. Adult patients with normal bony development, noncontracted sockets, and an average axial length should not receive implant sizes <20 mm, if one intends to achieve complete replacement of the volume removed by enucleation. Children should receive the largest implant possible.
The effect of depth on summer growth of Laminaria saccharina (Phaeophyta, Laminariales)

Abstract Mature Laminaria saccharina sporophytes transplanted to seven depths between 1 and 21 m below mean low water showed different rates of blade growth during July. A maximum rate of 1·15 cm day−1 occurred at 9 m. Elongation proceeded about 40% as rapidly in transplants at 1 and 3 m and in undisturbed plants on shore at 0 m. Growth was much reduced below 17 m. Low levels of nitrate and high temperatures near the surface and attenuated illumination at depth are suggested as limiting factors. A quantitative survey of subtidal kelp beds around the study site showed that L. saccharina dominates L. digitaca and Agarum cribrosum in abundance and biomass between 2 and 8 m.