cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Development and Robustness Characterization of a Digital Material Assembly System

Abstract Digital material structures are lattices composed of discrete elements that are connected to create assemblies that can exhibit high performance mechanical characteristics. This paper presents the development and robustness characterization of a system, called Gantry Autonomous Robotic Integrator (GARI), which is designed to automatically assemble these structures. The relative positioning tolerance for connecting elements and methods to increase the reliability of automated assembly of these structures are specifically described. A compact end-effector design is presented, which shows high precision and adjustability, and calibration procedures for the build plate are defined. The bolting reliability for this end-effector is analyzed to identify tolerance requirements and establish performance benchmarks for component feed stations. Two extremal cases to test the bolting reliability of the end-effector are explored, one case with a well-constrained target voxel and the other case with a minimally constrained target voxel. The resulting bolting success tolerance maps are described, which indicate greater than 95% successful bolting probability within 0.254 mm in all directions from nominal target placement.
A Robust and Efficient Defense against Use-after-Free Exploits via Concurrent Pointer Sweeping

Applications in C/C++ are notoriously prone to memory corruptions. With significant research efforts devoted to this area of study, the security threats posed by previously popular vulnerabilities, such as stack and heap overflows, are not as serious as before. Instead, we have seen the meteoric rise of attacks exploiting use-after-free (UaF) vulnerabilities in recent years, which root in pointers pointing to freed memory (i.e., dangling pointers). Although various approaches have been proposed to harden software against UaF, none of them can achieve robustness and efficiency at the same time. In this paper, we present a novel defense called pSweeper to robustly protect against UaF exploits with low overhead, and pinpoint the root-causes of UaF vulnerabilities with one safe crash. The success of pSweeper lies in its two unique and innovative design ideas, concurrent pointer sweeping (CPW) and object origin tracking (OOT). CPW exploits the increasingly available multi-cores on modern PCs and outsources the heavyweight security checks and enforcement to dedicated threads that can run on spare cores. Specifically, CPW iteratively sweeps all live pointers in a concurrent thread to find dangling pointers. This design is quite different from previous work that requires to track every pointer propagation to maintain accurate point-to relationship between pointers and objects. OOT can help to pinpoint the root-causes of UaF by informing developers of how a dangling pointer is created, i.e., how the problematic object is allocated and freed. We implement a prototype of pSweeper and validate its efficacy in real scenarios. Our experimental results show that pSweeper is effective in defeating real-world UaF exploits and efficient when deployed in production runs.
Level-2 Large Deviations for I.I.D. Random Vectors

Theorem II.4.3 stated the level-2 large deviation property for i.i.d. random vectors taking values in ℝ d . This theorem follows from the results contained in Donsker and Varadhan (1975a, 1976a), which prove level-2 large deviation properties for Markov processes taking values in a complete separable metric space.1 In Chapter VIII, we will give an elementary, self-contained proof of Theorem I1.4.3 in the special case of i.i.d. random variables with a finite state space. This version of the theorem was applied in Chapter III to study the exponential convergence of velocity observables for the discrete ideal gas with respect to the microcanonical ensemble [Theorem III.4.4].
Localization of liver lesions in abdominal CT imaging: II. Mathematical model observer performance correlates with human observer performance for localization of liver lesions in abdominal CT imaging

Determination of the effect of protocol modifications on diagnostic performance in CT with human observers is extremely time-consuming, limiting the applicability of such methods in routine clinical practice. In this work, we sought to determine whether a channelized Hotelling observer (CHO) could predict human observer performance for the task of liver lesion localization as background, reconstruction algorithm, dose, and lesion size were varied. Liver lesions (5 mm, 7 mm, and 9 mm) were digitally inserted into the CT projection data of patients with normal livers and water phantoms. The projection data were reconstructed with filtered back projection (FBP) and iterative reconstruction (IR) algorithms for three dose levels: full dose (liver CTDIvol = 10.5 ± 8.5 mGy, water phantom CTDIvol = 9.6 ± 0.1 mGy) and simulated half and quarter doses. For each of 36 datasets (3 dose levels × 2 reconstruction algorithms × 2 backgrounds × 3 sizes), 66 signal-present and 34 signal-absent 2D images were extracted from the reconstructed volumes. Three medical physicists independently reviewed each dataset and noted the lesion location and a confidence score for each image. A CHO with Gabor channels was calculated to estimate the performance for each of the 36 localization tasks. The CHO performances, quantified using localization receiver operating characteristic (LROC) analysis, were compared to the human observer performances. Performance values between human and model observers were highly correlated for equivalent parameters (same lesion size, dose, background, and reconstruction), with a Spearman's correlation coefficient of 0.93 (95% CI: 0.82-0.98). CHO performance values for the uniform background were strongly correlated (ρ = 0.94, CI: 0.80-1.0) with the human observer performance values for the liver background. Performance values between human observers and CHO were highly correlated as dose, reconstruction type and object size were varied for the task of localization of patient liver lesions in both uniform and liver backgrounds.
A new species of Eimeria Schneider, 1885 (Apicomplexa: Eimeriidae) from the eastern gray squirrel, Sciurus carolinensis (Rodentia: Sciuridae: Sciurinae: Sciurini) from Oklahoma, USA.

A new species of Eimeria Schneider, 1885 is described from an eastern gray squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) from McCurtain County, Oklahoma, USA. Oocysts of Eimeria lukfataensis n. sp. are ellipsoidal with a rough pitted bi-layered wall, measure 23.8 × 14.9 µm, and have a length/width (L/W) ratio of 1.6; a micropyle is absent but an oocyst residuum and polar granule(s) are present. Sporocysts are ellipsoidal and measure 12.5 × 6.1 µm, L/W 2.0; Stieda and sub-Stieda bodies are present, but para-Stieda body is absent. The sporocyst residuum is composed of small indistinct granules along the edge or in the center of the sporocyst. This is the first species of coccidian reported from S. carolinensis from Oklahoma and only the fourth species from the sciurid tribe Sciurini with oocysts possessing an oocyst residuum.
A multidimensional perspective on microbial interactions

Beyond being simply positive or negative, beneficial or inhibitory, microbial interactions can involve a diverse set of mechanisms, dependencies and dynamical properties. These more nuanced features have been described in great detail for some specific types of interactions, (e.g. pairwise metabolic cross-feeding, quorum sensing or antibiotic killing), often with the use of quantitative measurements and insight derived from modeling. With a growing understanding of the composition and dynamics of complex microbial communities for human health and other applications, we face the challenge of integrating information about these different interactions into comprehensive quantitative frameworks. Here, we review the literature on a wide set of microbial interactions, and explore the potential value of a formal categorization based on multidimensional vectors of attributes. We propose that such an encoding can facilitate systematic, direct comparisons of interaction mechanisms and dependencies, and we discuss the relevance of an atlas of interactions for future modeling and rational design efforts.
Empirical evaluation of regional scale marine reserves and the groundfish trawl fishery

This Sea Grant project responded to a call from the California Sea Grant Strategic Plan 2001- 2005, which stated a need to model the performance of area closures from a resource management standpoint (including assessment of reserve size and the response of commercial and recreational fisherman to creation of reserves and the economic and conservation implications of reserves). Analyzing responses to spatial management, for example marine reserves, has been a topic recently in the literature on marine resource economics. This project made an important contribution to that literature (Dalton and Ralston, 2004), which extended previous work on dynamic models of fishing effort. Previous work treated abundance, ex-vessel prices, and climate as uncertain factors with a testable hypothesis, known as rational expectations, of how fishermen forecast future values of these variables.
Abstract 775: MicroRNA-1205 regulation of FRYL in neuroendocrine prostate cancer

High mortality rates of prostate cancer (PCa) are associated with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) due to the maintenance of androgen receptor (AR) signaling despite androgen deprivation therapies (ADTs). Resistance to second generation ADTs further leads to progression to neuroendocrine PCa (NEPC), which is observed in nearly 1 in 5 men with mCRPC and is associated with low survival rates. The molecular mechanisms of progression to NEPC are, however, still unclear. Further understanding of molecular mechanisms of NEPC is critical to improving patient outcomes. The 8q24 chromosomal locus is a highly susceptible PCa region that carries high risk genetic variants associated with PCa incidence. This region also carries frequent amplifications of the PVT1 gene, a non-protein coding gene that encodes microRNA-1205 (miR-1205). We have previously reported that miR-1205 is underexpressed in PCa tissues in comparison to normal prostate tissue, and is also underexpressed in vitro in CRPC cells in comparison to non-CRPC cells. We also demonstrated that exogenous miR-1205 significantly inhibited tumor volume in CRPC tumor xenografts in mice, and that miR-1205 directly targets the putative oncogene, Fry-like (FRYL). FRYL is predicted to regulate dendritic branching leading to the hypothesis that FRYL plays a role in NEPC. To test this hypothesis, we first examined miR-1205 expression levels in PCa tissues with Gleason scores ≥8 and Citation Format: Michelle K. Naidoo, Olorunseun Ogunwobi. MicroRNA-1205 regulation of FRYL in neuroendocrine prostate cancer [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2019; 2019 Mar 29-Apr 3; Atlanta, GA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2019;79(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 775.
Candida Albicans FRE8 Encodes a Member of the NADPH Oxidase Family that Produces a Burst of ROS Important for Morphogenesis

NADPH oxidase (NOX) enzymes, which produce reactive oxygen species (ROS), were until recently thought to occur only in multicellular organisms. ROS have important physiological effects such as acting as signaling molecules in biological processes or as defense mechanisms against invading microbes through oxidative damage. In this work, we demonstrate that the unicellular fungus Candida albicans is capable of producing an extracellular ROS burst using a member of the NOX enzyme family identified as Fre8. C. albicans is an opportunistic human fungal pathogen which undergoes morphologic transition between yeast, pseudohyphal, and hyphal forms. During morphogenesis, FRE8 is induced to produce ROS specifically at the growing tip of the polarized cell. The extracellular superoxide dismutase, Sod5, is also induced during morphogenesis and our findings are consistent with a model in which Sod5 acts as a partner for Fre8, converting Fre8-derived superoxide to the diffusible hydrogen peroxide molecule. Fre8∆/∆ mutants exhibit a morphogenesis defect in vitro and are specifically impaired in the development or maintenance of elongated hyphae in high density cultures. A fre8∆/∆ defect in hyphal formation was similarly observed in a disseminated candidiasis model. Moreover, in a rat catheter model, C. albicans fre8∆/∆ mutants showed deficiencies in biofilm formation. Together these studies demonstrate that like multicellular organisms, the unicellular C. albicans expresses NOX to produce ROS and this signal helps drive fungal morphogenesis in the animal host.
The 2nd to 4th digit ratios (2D:4D) in patients with bipolar disorder.

Abstract Background The ratio of the index finger to the ring finger (2D:4D) is a reflection of the intrauterine hormonal environment and a lower ratio has been shown to be associated with male gender, impulsive behaviors, substance abuse, and aggression. Bipolar illness is characterized by increased impulsivity and increased rates of co-morbid substance abuse, but the 2D:4D ratios have not been examined in this disorder. Methods We measured digit length of both hands in subjects with bipolar disorder and age- and gender-matched non-bipolar controls (n = 50 in each group). Diagnosis was confirmed with structured diagnostic interviews (MINI) and all subjects also completed Barratt Impulsivity Scale-version 11. Results The patients did not vary significantly from the controls in demographic variables. Subjects with bipolar disorder had a higher right hand 2D:4D ratio compared to controls (0.967 ± .029 vs. 0.953 ± .035, t = 2.18, p = .03). Despite clearly higher measures of impulsivity in the bipolar group, no relationship could be documented between digit ratio and measures of impulsivity in either group. However, the right hand 2D:4D ratios and total impulsivity scores predicted bipolar disorder diagnosis status. Limitations The predominantly white racial composition of the study sample may limit generalizability to other groups. Only three patients were diagnosed with bipolar type 2, limiting the generalizability of the findings to all bipolar disorder types. Conclusions The data confirm previous observations of increased measures of impulsivity in euthymic bipolar individuals, and suggest that the mechanism of this increased impulsivity is different than in impulsivity seen in other conditions such as personality disorders.
Regulation of Sex Pheromone Titer in Mated Gypsy Moth Females

Females of gypsy moth, Lymantria dispar, produce a sex pheromone, cis-2-decyl-3-(5-methylhexyl) oxirane, or disparlure, to attract their mates. After successful mating the females become nonreceptive to other males and commence oviposition. In Heliothis zea, it was reported that mating caused a rapid decline in the pheromone titer of the females but that the titer increased again on subsequent nights following the night of mating (Raina et al., 1986). The present study was initiated to investigate the fate of the sex pheromone in mated gypsy moth females and to determine the mechanism through which the switch from virgin to mated behavior operated.
The trajectory of patterns of light and sedentary physical activity among females, ages 14-23.

Purpose Light physical activity (LPA) and patterns of sedentary behavior influence cardio-metabolic health independently of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. Understanding the trajectory and determinants of these activity levels over time may provide insights relevant to public health practice. Methods We measured a cohort of young women recruited in middle school (age 14) using accelerometry for 1 week and remeasured them in high school (age 17) and again at age 23 (n = 385). We assessed changes in LPA and patterns of sedentary behavior by hours in a day. We examined the association of social and contextual factors, including employment status, screen time, and neighborhood context with LPA and sedentary behavior patterns. Results The amount of LPA decreased over time, while the length of LPA bouts tended to increase. Sedentary bout durations increased over time and sedentary breaks decreased. Sedentary time and bout length were correlated with internet use, rather than with TV or videogaming. Employment was associated with less sedentary time; being a student was associated with longer sedentary time and bouts. Conclusions Because LPA and sedentary breaks can be protective for cardio-metabolic health, and the duration of sedentary bouts increase as women age from adolescence to young adulthood, worksites and college campuses should remind employees and students to take frequent activity breaks when they use computers and the internet for long stretches.
Intrauterine Device Removal

IUD removal can be easily accomplished at the time of reinsertion or during a preventive visit. Following patient counseling, once the patient and provider have together formulated a decision to remove the device, retrieval of the apparatus can often be accomplished in a short office visit.
A 59-Year-Old Man With Chronic Kidney Disease After Kidney Transplantation Presents With Chronic Dyspnea.

Case Presentation A 59-year-old man presented to the ED with a chief complaint of shortness of breath. His past medical history was significant for end-stage renal disease secondary to lithium toxicity, immunosuppression subsequent to cadaveric renal transplantation, bipolar disorder, and hypertension. His shortness of breath had begun 6 months previously and was initially intermittent; it then progressed to constant shortness of breath over the few weeks before presentation. He had no fever, hemoptysis, or chest pain. The patient was admitted to hospital for further evaluation.
Boundary Aware Tug-of-War with Noise: Case p ∈ (2, ∞)

This chapter improves on the construction of the Tug-of-War game in Chap. 3 and proves convergence of its values to p-harmonic functions, in the simplified nondegenerate case. This first convergence theorem is shown both via probabilistic and analytic techniques. Additionally, we continue discussing the relation to Brownian motion in case p = 2, begun in Chap. 3.
Should abbreviated breast MRI be compliant with American College of Radiology requirements for MRI accreditation

Abstract Objective To evaluate non-inferiority and diagnostic performance of an American College of Radiology compliant abbreviated MRI protocol (AB-MRI) compared with standard-of-care breast MRI (SOC-BMRI) in patients with increased breast cancer risk. Material and methods Women with increased lifetime breast cancer risk by American Cancer Society guidelines underwent breast MRI at a single institution between October 2015 and February 2018. AB-MRI was acquired at 3.0 T with T2-weighted extended fast spin echo triple-echo Dixon and pre- and post-contrast 3D dual-echo fast spoiled gradient echo two-point Dixon sequences with an 8-channel breast coil 1–7 days after SOC-BMRI. Three readers independently reviewed AB-MRI and assigned BI-RADS categories for maximum intensity projection images (AB1), dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) images (AB2), and DCE and non-contrast T2 and fat-only images (AB3). These scores were compared to those from SOC-BMRI. Results Cancer yield was 14 per 1000 (women-years) in 73 women aged 26–75 years (mean 53.5 years). AB-MRI acquisition times (mean 9.63 min) and table times (mean 15.07 min) were significantly shorter than those of SOC-BMRI (means 19.46 and 36.3 min, respectively) (p Conclusion AB-MRI was acquired significantly faster than SOC-BMRI and its diagnostic performance was non-inferior. Inclusion of T2 and fat-only images was necessary to achieve non-inferiority by multireader evaluation.
Wrestling with the Presidency: How Donald Trump Uses Wrestling and Theatrical Tactics in the Public Sphere

This chapter looks at the theatrical elements of wrestling (including kayfabe) and how Donald Trump has used them within his campaign and administration. It explores the appeal of wrestling and its tactics to audiences and how Donald Trump has used that to his advantage. His long-standing relationship with professional wrestling has allowed him to use tools like hyperbole and verbal aggression in very specific ways. His use of these tactics has allowed behaviors often contained within theatrical spaces to be released into society leading to confusion over acceptable public behaviors.
Decentralized Control Schemes for Stable Quadrupedal Locomotion: A Decomposition Approach from Centralized Controllers *

Although legged robots are becoming more nonlinear with higher degrees of freedom (DOFs), the centralized nonlinear control methods required to achieve stable locomotion cannot scale with the dimensionality of these robots. This paper investigates time-varying decentralized feedback control architectures based on hybrid zero dynamics (HZD) that stabilize dynamic legged locomotion with high degrees of freedom. By conforming to the natural symmetries present in the robot's full-order model, three decentralization schemes are proposed for control synthesis, namely left-right, front-hind and diagonal. Our approach considers the strong nonlinear interactions between the subsystems and relies only on the intrinsic communication of the body's translation and rotational data that is readily available. Further, a quadratic programming (QP) based feedback linearization is employed to compute the control inputs for each subsystem. The effectiveness of the HZD-based decentralization scheme is demonstrated numerically for the stabilization of forward and inplace walking gaits on an 18 DOF robot.
Development of a novel clinical scoring system for bovine respiratory disease (BRD) in weaned dairy calves

Bovine respiratory disease (BRD) continues to impact the welfare of dairy calves and the economics of dairy production. As a common cause of morbidity and mortality among dairy calves, BRD was responsible for 46.5% of deaths after weaning and was observed in 11.2% of weaned animals on heifer-raising operations. Costs involved with the disease reach beyond the treatment of clinically ill animals and include reduced growth, reduced milk production, impaired fertility, and premature culling in the first lactation. The prompt and correct diagnosis of BRD is challenging on farms, especially in weaned dairy calves. Weaned dairy calves are typically housed in larger group pens where there is often a lack of restraint and where it is more difficult to monitor them closely. As a result of challenges in correctly diagnosing BRD, cases often become neglected until they are more severe. Several clinical scoring systems to detect BRD in calves have been published. However, available BRD scoring systems for weaned dairy calves are mostly based on data from calves experimentally infected with specific pathogens. The objective of the present study was to develop and validate a scoring system for weaned dairy calves housed in group pens in an on-farm setting that minimizes calf handling.
Growth phase-specific evaporative demand and nighttime temperatures determine Maize (Zea Mays L.) yield deviations as revealed from a long-term field experiment

Abstract Weather impacts on crop productivity have emerged as a significant research area, and agroecosystems globally have been evaluated for these impacts. However, only a limited body of research relies on experimental determination of field-scale impacts, relative to coarser-scale estimations. Experimental frameworks can control confounding factors that potentially undesirably affect coarser-scale assessments. Here, we employ a long-term (31-year) experimental trial to investigate weather-related signatures on rainfed maize (Zea Mays L.) yield in the western Corn Belt, at seasonal and sub-seasonal scales. Among all the weather indices evaluated [(maximum, minimum, and average air temperatures (Tmax, Tmin, Tavg), precipitation (Pcp), incoming shortwave radiation (Rs), wind speed (u2), relative humidity (RH), vapor pressure deficit (VPD), alfalfa-reference evapotranspiration (ETr), and aridity index (AI)], ETr accounted for the most (⁓50%) yield variance, followed by Tavg, Tmax, VPD, Rs, Tmin, Pcp, u2, RH, and AI. Weather indices most effectively accounted for yield variance during the late reproductive (R) phase, followed by early R phase, late vegetative (V) phase and lastly, early V phase. While seasonal ETr was responsible for highest yield sensitivity (-0.69 s.d. s.d.−1), sub-seasonal weather indices were also identified for highest yield sensitivity (u2, Tavg, ETr, Tmax during early V, late V, early R, and late R, respectively). Among all possible combinations, a multiple linear regression model consisting of ETr and Tmin best predicted yield deviations (R2=0.64) at the seasonal scale, while a sub seasonal model consisting of early V ETr, early R ETr, and late R Tmin performed the best (R2=0.66). Both models were validated for five independent counties to predict USDA estimates of rainfed maize yield deviations. Recent advances in mechanistic understanding of nighttime warming (increasing Tmin) and evaporative demand impacts on crop performance concur with our experimental inference of importance of ETr and Tmin for rainfed maize yields.
Designed architectural proteins that tune DNA looping in bacteria

Architectural proteins alter the shape of DNA. Some distort the double helix by introducing sharp kinks. This can serve to relieve strain in tightly-bent DNA structures. Here, we design and test artificial architectural proteins based on a sequence-specific Transcription Activator-like Effector (TALE) protein, either alone or fused to a eukaryotic high mobility group B (HMGB) DNA-bending domain. We hypothesized that TALE protein binding would stiffen DNA to bending and twisting, acting as an architectural protein that antagonizes the formation of small DNA loops. In contrast, fusion to an HMGB domain was hypothesized to generate a targeted DNA-bending architectural protein that facilitates DNA looping. We provide evidence from Escherichia coli Lac repressor gene regulatory loops supporting these hypotheses in living bacteria. Both data fitting to a thermodynamic DNA looping model and sophisticated molecular modeling support the interpretation of these results. We find that TALE protein binding inhibits looping by stiffening DNA to bending and twisting, while the Nhp6A domain enhances looping by bending DNA without introducing twisting flexibility. Our work illustrates artificial approaches to sculpt DNA geometry with functional consequences. Similar approaches may be applicable to tune the stability of small DNA loops in eukaryotes.
A Narrative Review of Slow Medicine Outcomes.

Background: Primary care practice in the United States suffers from short consultation duration and distracting electronic health record tasks. This leads to patient and physician dissatisfaction and physician burnout, as well as potentially unnecessary referrals and interventions. Slow medicine – providing longer and higher-quality consultations – has been proposed to improve medical care quality and patient outcomes. However, definitive outcome data for US settings are lacking. Methods: Following a structured narrative approach, we identified, reviewed, and synthesized existing reports (peer-reviewed and grey) to determine if there is sufficient evidence to support systematic evaluation of slow medicine in the US. We assessed whether longer versus shorter face-to-face primary care consultations were associated with quantitative patient outcomes including utilization; prevention; visit elements; medication adherence and prescription volume; mortality; and costs. Results: We found suggestive evidence of substantial savings in hospital use and costs in varied geographic and clinical settings. However, this evidence lacks investigative rigor such as convincing prospective or natural randomization. Conclusions: With potentially significant health and financial benefits from slow medicine and little risk to subjects, randomized trials, natural experiments, and mixed methods evaluations are strongly indicated. We discuss the need for modified payment practices to facilitate a slow medicine approach.
Molecular Mining of Follicular Fluid for Reliable Biomarkers of Human Oocyte and Embryo Developmental Competence

The occurrence of an intrafollicular biochemistry that can be used to relate oocyte developmental competence with quantitative and qualitative aspects of specific components of ­follicular fluid aspirated at ovum retrieval has been a goal of research in clinical IVF for decades. As a complex mixture of bioactive molecules, some produced in situ and others serum borne, there is no shortage of candidates for investigation. This chapter focuses on current methods of high-resolution biochemical analysis that can be applied to follicular biochemistry, which candidates may be the most promising in this regard, and specific investigational approaches that may have the greatest potential to fulfill this goal. In particular, emphasis is placed on whether there is a need to know both the target(s) and function(s) of candidate molecules as related to the developmental biology of the oocyte.
Evaluation of the Child with Febrile Seizures

Publisher Summary Febrile seizures result from age-dependent brain hyperexcitability that is induced by fever. Though there are important genetic influences that render a child with fever more likely to develop seizures, it is the fever that causes the seizure. In a child who is convulsing with fever, it is important to consider that something in addition to the fever has caused the child to have a seizure. Based on the specifics of each case, the diagnostic evaluation of the child with a febrile seizure can be very limited or moderately comprehensive. A febrile seizure is defined as a seizure in association with a febrile illness in the absence of a central nervous system infection or acute electrolyte imbalance in children without prior afebrile seizures. Many laboratory studies have been shown to be unhelpful in the management of a child with febrile seizures, except when specific symptoms or signs exist. Electroencephalography is probably most helpful in those children in whom it is uncertain whether a febrile seizure has occurred. Meningeal signs may be absent very often in young children and occasionally in older ones with meningitis.
Method for 315/433 MHz Remote Keyless Entry sensitivity and range statistical analysis for automotive applications

The paper describes methodology for modelling and simulative estimation of sensitivity and range of ISM band Remote Keyless Entry transmitter-receiver system for automotive applications. The method is based on electrical simulation including PCB extraction data and parameters statistical distribution to evaluate best- and worst case scenarios. Both transmitter and receiver circuits are considered, as well as link environmental conditions. Examples of results are given for presented methodology.
SEAT BELT USAGE AND RISK TAKING IN DRIVING BEHAVIOR

This study tested the hypothesis that seat belt usage is related to driver risk taking in car-following behavior. Individual vehicles on a Detroit area freeway were monitored to identify seat belt users and nonusers. Headways between successive vehicles in the traffic stream were also measured to provide a behavioral indicator of driver risk taking. Results showed that nonusers of seat belts tended to follow other vehicles closer than did users. Users were also less likely than nonusers to follow other vehicles at very short headways (one second or less). The implications of these findings for occupant safety in rear end collisions are discussed.
Impact of Eligibility Criteria on Phototherapy Program Size and Cost

To determine the effect of eligibility criteria on phototherapy program size and cost, 786 births in a large Health Maintenance Organization were prospectively studied. Four sets of criteria were compared, including those of the American Academy of Pediatrics and the health maintenance organization9s own criteria. With all criteria sets, hospital-based phototherapy treatment was indicated for 13 (1.7%) infants and no phototherapy was indicated for 687 (87.4%) infants. Treatment varied substantially according to criteria set for the remaining 86 (10.9%) infants. From 14% to 100% of these infants would have received treatment, depending on the criteria applied; of those potentially treated, from 30% to 80% would have received home treatment. Estimated annual discretionary phototherapy costs (1985 dollars) ranged from $15 168 with the health maintenance organization criteria to almost five to six times this amount ($70 232 to $90 800) with the other criteria. Differences in costs were due mainly to the number of infants treated. This study illustrates the way in which modest variation in standards of care can potentially have a relatively large effect on medical care costs. As a case study of how health maintenance organizations reduce costs, the study shows that although the health maintenance organization anticipated costs savings due to substituting outpatient care for hospital care, most savings occurred because of a reduction in the number of infants treated.
WHAT DOES RESPECT FOR THE PATIENT'S AUTONOMY REQUIRE?

Personal autonomy presupposes the notion of rationality. What is not so clear is whether, and how, a compromise of rationality to various degrees will diminish a person's autonomy. In bioethical literature, three major types of threat to the rationality of a patient's medical decision are identified: insufficient information, irrational beliefs/desires, and influence of different framing effects. To overcome the first problem, it is suggested that patients be provided with information about their diseases and treatment choices according to the objective standard. I shall explain how this should be finessed. Regarding the negative impact of irrational beliefs/desires, some philosophers have argued that holding irrational beliefs can still be an expression of autonomy. I reject this argument because the degree of autonomy of a decision depends on the degree of rationality of the beliefs or desires on which the decision is based. Hence, to promote patient autonomy, we need to eliminate irrational beliefs by the provision of evidence and good arguments. Finally, I argue that the way to smooth out the framing effects is to present the same information in different perspectives: it is too often assumed that medical information can always be given in a complete and unadorned manner. This article concludes with a cautionary note that the protection of patient autonomy requires much more time and effort than the current practice usually allows.
Ultrastructure of Pseudomonas saccharophila at early and late log phase of growth.

Description of the fine structure of Pseudomonas saccarophila at the early log phase and the late log phase of growth, such as shown by electron microscopy with the aid of various techniques of preparation. The observations reported suggested that, under the experimental conditions applied, P. saccharophila multiplies by the method of constrictive division.
Assessment of two multilocus sequence typing (MLST) schemes available for Streptococcus mutans.

Objective Two multilocus sequencing typing (MLST) schemes are currently available for Streptococcus mutans. The first, introduced by Nakano et al. in 2007, consists of 8 conserved housekeeping genes. The second, introduced in 2010 by Do et al., includes 6 housekeeping genes and 2 putative virulence genes. The purpose of the current study was to compare the two MLST schemes for use in validating repetitive extragenic palindromic polymerase chain reaction (rep-PCR) genotypes.
The Queer Thing about Neoliberal Pleasure: A Foucauldian Warning

Through a careful reading of Foucault’s 1979 lectures on neoliberalism alongside Volumes 1 and 2 of The History of Sexuality , I argue that scholarship on both neoliberalism and queer theory should heed Foucault’s framing of both neoliberalism and sexuality as central to biopolitics. I thus offer two correctives to these fields of scholarship: for scholarship on neoliberalism, I locate a way to address the ethical bankruptcy of neoliberalism in a manner that Marxist analyses fail to provide; for scholarship in queer theory, I warn that the longstanding embrace of non-conformity as a mode of resistance to normalization is suspiciously neoliberal. I conclude with the possibility of rehabilitating the concept of jouissance as a non-fungible limit to the enterprising rationality of neoliberalism that, if historicized and especially racialized, might offer a meaningful response to the increasing ethical collapse wrought by the neoliberalization of our lives.
MULTIPLE COMMITMENTS AND CONFLICTING LOYALTIES IN INTERNATIONAL JOINT VENTURE MANAGEMENT TEAMS

International joint ventures (IJV) management teams exhibit organizational commitment to multiple organizations: to the IJV, to the domestic parent, and to the foreign parent. Conflicting loyalties occur when there is an unbalanced commitment to these entities. An empirical study found that almost one third of the IJV managers sampled perceived conflicting loyalties in the IJV management team. The negative consequences of conflicting loyalties are discussed, and suggestions are offered for mitigating their effects.
Intergranular fracture in iron due to the presence of sulfur segregation and permanent hydrogen damage

The grain boundary segregation of impurity elements such as oxygen, phosphorus, sulfur, etc. can cause intergranular fracture in iron at low temperatures. However, the information correlating the grain boundary strength directly to the amount of impurity segregation is very limited. Recently, the authors examined the effect of sulfur and hydrogen segregation on the grain boundary strength of iron and found that both elements significantly decreased the grain boundary strength of iron. It was found that the deleterious effects of sulfur and hydrogen on the grain boundary strength appeared to be additive in cases in which hydrogen produced either a reversible effect or a permanent effect. In the present study, the effect of sulfur segregation on grain boundary strength was separated from the permanent hydrogen effect by quenching the specimens from various temperatures in two different atmospheres, high purity argon and hydrogen. The nature of permanent hydrogen damage and the combined effect of sulfur segregation and permanent hydrogen damage were examined.
Understanding BGP misconfiguration

It is well-known that simple, accidental BGP configuration errors can disrupt Internet connectivity. Yet little is known about the frequency of misconfiguration or its causes, except for the few spectacular incidents of widespread outages. In this paper, we present the first quantitative study of BGP misconfiguration. Over a three week period, we analyzed routing table advertisements from 23 vantage points across the Internet backbone to detect incidents of misconfiguration. For each incident we polled the ISP operators involved to verify whether it was a misconfiguration, and to learn the cause of the incident. We also actively probed the Internet to determine the impact of misconfiguration on connectivity.Surprisingly, we find that configuration errors are pervasive, with 200-1200 prefixes (0.2-1.0% of the BGP table size) suffering from misconfiguration each day. Close to 3 in 4 of all new prefix advertisements were results of misconfiguration. Fortunately, the connectivity seen by end users is surprisingly robust to misconfigurations. While misconfigurations can substantially increase the update load on routers, only one in twenty five affects connectivity. While the causes of misconfiguration are diverse, we argue that most could be prevented through better router design.
Steady state axisymmetric deformations of a thick elastic-thermoviscoplastic target

Abstract We study thermomechanical deformations of a thick elastic-viscoplastic target being penetrated by a rigid long cylindrical rod, and assume that target deformations as seen by an observer situated at the penetrator nose tip are steady. We presume that the target response can be adequately modeled by the Brown-Kim-Anand flow rule. We analyze the effect of different material parameters on the deformations of the target in order to elucidate their relative importance, and hence enumerate more critical ones. We also study the effect of the penetrator nose shape and the penetrator speed on the deformations of the target.
Automated Identification of Cardiac Conduction Tissue in L-TGV and Ebstein's Anomaly

Abstract The specialized cardiac conduction tissue was identified quickly and easily at operation in 2 patients with corrected transposition (l-TGV) and 1 with Ebstein's anomaly. In each of the former cases the tissue was located along the upper rim of the VSD, beneath the pulmonary outflow tract; in neither patient was there a disturbance in cardiac rhythm as a result of operation. In the patient with Ebstein's anomaly the bundle of His descended onto the ventricular septum more directly than was anticipated. There was only a transitory disturbance in atrioventricular conduction following tricuspid valve replacement. Accurate identification of the cardiac conduction tissue is a prerequisite to the safe repair of certain forms of complex congenital heart disease.
Retention and Recovery of Habituated Territorial Aggressive Behavior in the Three-Spined Stickleback (Gasterosteus Aculeat Us L.) : the Roles of Time and Nest Reconstruction

Factors involved in the recovery and reinstatement of a territorial resident's aggression directed at an intruder after habituation were studied in the Three-spined Stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus). In the first experiment it was demonstrated that following initial habituation to the intruder, there was no recovery of response after 3-5 days, but there was virtually complete recovery after 14 days. It was further shown that if the stickleback's nest is removed and he rebuilds the nest between the first habituation session and the test, there is complete recovery following nest reconstruction. A second series of experiments shows that the recovery following nest removal and reconstruction is prevented if the fish is prevented from reconstructing the nest. It was further found in two additional sub-experiments that allowing post-habituation nest reconstruction appeared to re-set memory for the habituated stimulus such that the intruding stimulus fish appears novel to the territorial resident, thus abolishing the stimulus specific nature of such habituation.
A Secure Migration Protocol for Mobile Agent Systems

This paper describes a secure migration process of mobile agents between agencies. Mobile-C is an IEEE Foundation for Intelligent Physical Agents (FIPA) standard compliant multi-agent platform for supporting C/C++ mobile and stationary agents. This secure migration process is inspired from Secure Shell (SSH). Before migration, both agencies authenticate each other using public key authentication. After successful authentication, an encrypted mobile agent is transferred and its integrity is verified. Mobile-C is specially designed for mechatronic and factory automation systems where, for correct system operations, agencies must accept mobile agents from trusted agencies. For this reason, the emphasis is on strong authentication of both agencies involved in migration process. Security aspects of other popular mobile agent systems are described briefly. A comparison study with SSH protocol is performed and future work is elaborated.Copyright © 2009 by ASME
Infiltrating lobular carcinoma: mammographic patterns with pathologic correlation

Of the five identified radiographic patterns of ILC, the most common was a poorly defined asymmetric density with architectural distortion. Areas of ILC frequently are of low density, not much greater than that of the surrounding parenchyma. The mammographic appearance may reflect the behavior of ILC tumor cells, which travel in linear array ("single file") along and around the arborizing ducts that serve as scaffolding for these small, malignant cells that permeate the parenchyma without a central nidus. This feature of ILC may also help explain why tumors may be palpable as areas of vague induration or thickening rather than as discrete masses. When tumors are hidden in dense breast tissue (pattern 3) and not well imaged by mammography or when there are subtle mammographic changes (pattern 1), sonography may help confirm the presence of a solid mass. Most of the suspected tumors imaged by sonography were palpable as discrete masses or areas of induration.
An M/G/1 vacation model of an FDDI station

The author defines and analyzes an M/G/1 vacation model that can be used to describe a single station in the fiber distributed data interface (FDDI). The M/G/1 model uses a service discipline called the exhaustive limited with limit variation discipline. According to this discipline, the server provides service until either the system is emptied or a randomly chosen limit of l frames has been served. The server then goes on a vacation before returning to service the queue again. The model can be used to gain insight into how the varying (timer-controlled) limit on the number of frames that can be transmitted during token visit at a station affects the mean waiting time in the timed-token protocol of FDDI. The analytical results of the M/G/1 vacation model are applied to an FDDI simulation example. >
The functional basis of steady-state thermal energy use in air-side HVAC equipment

A proper understanding of the functional basis of energy use in residences has been crucial in spurring energy conservation in such building stock. In commercial buildings, however, such understanding is lacking, partly because there are numerous possible HVAC system types and control strategies, an partly because the detailed algorithms available to simulate energy use in various types of HVAC systems provide little insight into identifying ways of saving energy in existing buildings. The objective of this paper is to derive closed-form steady-state functional relations for air-side cooling and heating thermal energy use of for four of the most widespread HVAC system types, namely terminal reheat and dual-duct, both under constant air volume and under variable air volume operation. Expressions are derived for hourly energy use as a function of climatic variables, building characteristics, and system parameters. The effects of economizer cycle and deck reset schedules are also treated. The expressions derived could be utilized to develop functionally accurate regression models of monitored energy use for retrofit savings determination and to ascertain whether the HVAC system is operating properly, as well as for parameter estimation from either short-term or long-term monitoring and for sensitivity analyses of how various physical and operatingmore » parameters affect energy use.« less
Design Process Error-Proofing: Development of Automated Error-Proofing Information Systems

This paper presents a framework for representing and deploying error-proofs (poka-yoke) in the product development process. Information technology (IT) already plays a key role in product development through tools such as numerical computation, CAD, simulations, and process planning. Information management for error-proofing in manufacturing is also quite common in many industries. However, experts agree that many field failures and quality problems stem back to errors in engineering design. While there are many case studies on design process error-proofing, one must deploy them through leveraging engineering information systems for them to be effective. Towards this goal, this paper proposes the use of quality function deployment (QFD) to characterize potential design errors, evaluate the risks, identify effective error proofing elements, and prioritize their implementation.Copyright © 2003 by ASME