cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Assessment of calcium addition on the removal of U(VI) in the alkaline conditions created by NH3 gas

Abstract Remediation of uranium (U) contamination in the deep vadose zone (VZ) sediments abundant in calcite mineral is a challenging task considering the formation of highly stable and mobile uranyl complexes with carbonate and calcium in pore water composition. There is a concern that uranium contamination in the VZ can serve as a continued source for groundwater pollution, creating a risk to human health and the environment through the groundwater pathway. This requires in-situ remediation of the radionuclide-contaminated VZ to convert soluble U species to low solubility precipitates that are stable in the natural environment. Injection of reactive gasses (e.g., NH3) is a promising technology to decrease U mobility in the unsaturated zone without the addition of liquid amendments. The NH3 injection creates alkaline conditions that can alter the sediment pore water composition due to a release of elements from minerals (via desorption and dissolution) that are present in the sediment. However, it is not known how VZ pore water constituents (Si, Al3+, HCO3−, and Ca2+) would affect U(VI) removal/precipitation in alkaline conditions. This study quantified the role of major pore water constituents typically present in the arid and semi-arid environments of the western regions of the U.S and identified solid uranium-bearing phases that could potentially precipitate from solutions approximating pore water compositions after pH manipulations via ammonia gas injections. Triplicate samples were prepared using six Si (5, 50 100, 150, 200, and 250 mM), six HCO3− (0, 3, 25, 50, 75, and 100 mM), and two Ca2+ (5 and 10 mM) concentrations. The concentration of aluminum and uranium was kept constant at 5 mM and 0.0084 mM, respectively, in all synthetic formulations tested. Results showed that the percentage of U(VI) removal was controlled by the Si/Al molar ratios and Ca2+ concentrations. Regardless of the bicarbonate concentration tested, the percentage of U(VI) removed increased as the Si/Al ratios were increased. However, higher Ca concentrations correlated with higher U(VI) removal, ranging between 96% and 99%, at low Si/Al ratios. The SEM images of dried precipitates displayed dense amorphous regions high in silica content, where EDS elemental analysis unveiled higher U atomic percentages. The formation of uranyl silicate and carbonate minerals was also predicted by the speciation modeling. XRD analysis revealed the presence of uranyl carbonate mineral phases (andersonite, grimselite); however, uranyl silicates predicted (Na-boltwoodite) were not identified experimentally, possibly due to the amorphous nature of the silica solid phases observed in our experiments.
A Comparison of the Effectiveness of Bilateral Resection to Unilateral Marginal Myotomy and Resection for Correcting Residual Esodeviations

A review of patients with infantile esotropia that re-developed an esodeviation following a symmetrical recession of the medial recti was performed to determine the effectiveness of two methods for...
Neurocognitive Mechanisms of Error-Based Motor Learning

One mechanism for acquiring new motor skills is minimization of errors from one practice trial to the next. A substantial body of literature supports a role for cerebellar pathways in such adaptive motor error minimization processes. A region in the medial prefrontal cortex, including the anterior cingulate cortex, has been linked to performance monitoring and error detection processes for cognitive tasks. Recent findings support the notion that this region is also sensitive to the commission of motor errors. Furthermore, the basal ganglia nuclei also exhibit neural activity which varies with both errors and rewards. Here, we review the literature supporting a potential role for each of these networks in error-based motor learning, focusing on both feedback and feedforward control processes. We also speculate about the relative independence versus interactivity of their respective functions.
Hôpital de Pontoise

In 2010, Andre Razafindranaly, Managing Director of a large French public hospital, considers which organizational structure will help them adjust to the changing health sector environment. The move from global budget to activity-based funding has led his and many other public hospitals to suffer losses in recent years. Appointed two years previously, Razafindranaly introduced increasing financial control and encouraged organizational changes such as multidisciplinary wards differentiated by patients' lengths of stay. To what extent should he (and can he) reinforce these measures, which have increased efficiency and reduced the deficit, but also generated push-back from his doctors and staff?Learning Objective:To introduce students to the challenge faced by public health institutions in a changing regulatory and competitive environment.
Frozen-thawed cumulus-granulosa cells support bovine embryo development during coculture

Objective To evaluate the ability of bovine cumulus-granulosa cells to survive cryopreservation and subsequently support bovine embryo development during coculture. Design In vitro-matured and -fertilized bovine embryos (two- to four-cell) were allotted randomly to one of three treatment groups: [1] control medium alone consisting of Medium 199 containing 10% fetal bovine serum and antibiotics, [2] cocultured on fresh bovine cumulus-granulosa cells in control medium, or [3] cocultured on frozen-thawed cumulus-granulosa cells in control medium. Embryo development was assessed on days 7 and 8 after IVF. Results Coculture improved embryo development on days 7 and 8 compared with the control group. However, embryo development on days 7 and 8 did not differ among coculture groups. Conclusions Frozen-thawed cumulus-granulosa cells enhance embryo development similar to fresh cells during in vitro coculture.
Soft-obstacle Avoidance for Redundant Manipulators with Recurrent Neural Network

Compressing soft-obstacles secondary to a controlled motion task is common for human beings. While these tasks are nearly trivial for teleoperated robots, they remain a challenging problem in robotic autonomy. Addressing the problem is significant. For example, in Minimally Invasive Surgeries (MISs), safely compressing soft tissues ensures the surgical safety and decreases tissue removal, thus dramatically decreases surgical trauma and operating room time, and leads to improved surgical outcomes. In this work, we define the problem of soft-obstacle avoidance and project the safety motion constraints into the task space and the velocity space. We illustrate the significance of addressing this problem in the robotic surgery scenario. We present a Recurrent Neural Networks (RNNs) based solution, which formulates the problem as an inequality constrained optimization problem and solves it in its dual space. The application of the proposed method was demonstrated in the Raven II surgical robot. Experimental results demonstrated that the proposed method is effective in addressing the soft-obstacle avoidance problem.
Implementing Environmental Policy and Regulations: Where the Rubber Meets the Road

Crucial to understanding environmental policy on the front-lines is investigating how environmental policy is implemented. This chapter turns to the regulatory environment and begins by discussing the nature of command and control regulations and how they endeavor to implement environmental policy. In particular, we draw connections from earlier chapters as we discuss the governing and economic contexts that shape the implementation of environmental policy. In this chapter, we highlight the role of environmental inspectors, particularly those inspectors at the state level. These inspectors are the governmental officials who are responsible for the implementation of environmental regulation every day. We look at who these individuals are, what their experiences are like, and their challenges. This discussion helps illustrate the individuals who are responsible from protecting the environment on a daily basis.
“No Amount of Baths Is Gonna Make You Feel Better”: Seeking Balance, Wholeness, and Well-being in Everyday Self-Care

Recently, the concept of “self-care” has shifted from the sphere of biomedicine into popular discourse; rather than indicating the practice of maintaining physical health, the term has come to represent a set of broader and more commonplace practices aimed at achieving balance, wholeness, and overall well-being. Drawing from interviews and participant observation with young adult respondents both in college and recently graduated, this study explores what it means to practice this type of “everyday self-care.” Those who practice everyday self-care do so to seek out a holistic sense of happiness and well-being; they value self-care that engages their “whole” self – one conceptualized as made up of both mind and body. They strive for balance in tensions between self-control and indulgence, long-term well-being and immediate gratification, and selfishness and community. Self-care cannot be summed up in a list of activities or practices; rather, it necessitates an ongoing production of moral, economic, and social meanings.
Pattern of Ly49A Receptor Downregulation in Low-Level Prenatal Allogeneic Chimeras Suggests Threshold of Chimerism Needed for Long-Term Engraftment.

Despite clinical success with in utero hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in immunodeficient recipients, only microchimerism ( H2 d ) fetuses into 14 dpc B6 ( H2 b ) fetuses by IP injection. Using flow cytometry, peripheral blood chimerism in the pups was first assessed at 3 weeks and followed for one year. At 12 weeks, following the acquisition of mature NK inhibitory receptors, the level of H-2 d alloreactive Ly49A, C, F, G, and I receptor expression among host splenic NK cells was measured. The mean fluorescence intensity for each receptor relative to age-matched controls (rMFI) was plotted against chimerism and the Pearson correlation coefficient (r) calculated for comparison. Chimerism ranged from 0.1 – 5.0% without GVHD (n=13). As shown in figure 1, B6 recipient NK cells exhibited a dramatic negative correlation of Ly49A expression with increasing chimerism (rMFI = 38 –118%, r = −0.87) without change in the frequency of Ly49A+ NK cells (18–26%, r=0.37). No significant change in the expression of Ly49C, F, G, or I was seen within the range of chimerism analyzed. Five mice reached 12 months and were sacrificed for a repeat NK analysis to determine the stability of Ly49A expression, see table 1. In four mice, chimerism and Ly49A expression levels did not change significantly. However, chimerism was lost in one animal with a corresponding upregulation in Ly49A expression. The initial chimerism level was in a range where we find that very few mice maintain long-term chimerism in this system ( Table 1. Expression of Ly49A at 3 months and 1 year
The Historical Relationship Between Nonlinear Optics and Condensed Matter

The first operating laser, developed by Maiman in 1960, utilized the energy levels of the Cr3+ ion in ruby. The high light intensity available in focused ruby laser pulses led to the creation of a new subfield of physics. This field, known as nonlinear optics, concerns itself with the optical properties of matter at high light intensity. The pioneering experiment by Franken and coworkers in 1961, utilizing a quartz crystal, demonstrated second harmonic generation of light. In the same year, two-photon optical absorption of ruby light was demonstrated by Garrett and Kaiser in a crystal of CaF2 with Eu2+ ions. Many other nonlinear optical phenomena were also demonstrated first in condensed matter. The history of the generalization of the optical laws of reflection (Hero of Alexandria), refraction (Snell), and Fresnel’s laws to the nonlinear regime will be reviewed. The phenomenon of conical refraction, characteristic of biaxial optical crystals, also has an interesting nonlinear counterpart.
Drawing as Ethnographic Practice: Miguel Covarrubias's Balinese Drawings & Sketches as Visual Anthropology

espanolEn anos recientes el uso y significado del dibujo como un metodo de estudio para registrar informacion etnografica ha sido sometida a un renovado analisis por antropologos. Sus intereses han variado, desde un enfoque del estatus epistemologico de la linea hasta las dimensiones dialogicas del dibujo como una practica social. Mientras que los historiadores del arte han celebrado el trabajo de Covarrubias en terminos del “dibujo de una linea cosmopolita” y los arqueologos han reconocido la importancia de sus dibujos sobre los olmecas para la arqueologia mesoamericana, los antropologos culturales han pasado por alto su papel como antropologo visual. Sus dibujos en La isla de Bali (1937), asi como sus bocetos en el archivo, son una importante contribucion a los registros etnograficos de la cultura balinesa, en un momento signi-ficativo de la transformacion de su sociedad. En particular, sus bocetos ofrecen un rico corpus de informacion cultural en torno a la vida cotidiana en Bali a principios de los anos treinta; asi como informacion etnografica acerca de la dimension no verbal de los balineses, que complementa los analisis de otros antropologos sobre la cultura balinesa. En contraste con otras imagenes mucho mas orientalistas que realizo para murales, mapas y pinturas, los dibujos y bocetos de Covarrubias aseguran una nueva apreciacion como documentos etnograficos y antropologia visual. EnglishIn recent years the use and significance of drawing as a research meth-od for recording ethnographic information has undergone renewed analysis by anthropologists. Their interests have ranged from a focus on the epistemological status of the line to the dialogical dimension of drawing as social practice. While art historians have celebrated Covarrubias’s work in terms of his “drawing a cosmopolitan line” and archaeologists have acknowledged the importance of his Olmec draw-ings to Meso-American archaeology, cultural anthropologists have over-looked Covarrubias as a visual anthropologist. His drawings in Island of Bali (1937) as well as his archived sketches are important contributions to the ethnographic record of Balinese culture at a significant moment in the transformation of Balinese society. His sketches, in particular, offer a rich corpus of cultural information on everyday life in Bali in the early 1930s, as well as ethnographic information about non-verbal dimensions of the Balinese that complements other anthropologists’ analyses of Balinese culture. In contrast to the more Orientalist images he produced for murals, maps, and paintings, Covarrubias’s drawings and sketches warrant new appreciation as ethnographic documents and visual anthropology.
Civic Debate and Self-Care: Black Women’s Community Care Online

The public sphere has historically structured some discourses and identities as highly visible, while backgrounding others. As a result, it can be very demanding for women of color to participate in online political dialogue. Using focus groups, this chapter examines the strategies of care that Black women who engage in online political debates employ for themselves and each other. Results show that when faced with dominant structures of oppression (such as erasure/invisibility and outright attacks), these women create safe spaces for discussion and mutual support. The chapter elaborates on how Black Twitter can be understood as a counter to the mainstream, how these women network to have their views asserted, and how they labor to support different Black identities.
Transfer of Life Between Earth and Venus with Planet-Grazing Asteroids

Recently, phosphine was discovered in the atmosphere of Venus as a potential biosignature. This raises the question: if Venusian life exists, could it be related to terrestrial life? Based on the known rate of meteoroid impacts on Earth, we show that at least $\sim 6 \times 10^5$ asteroids have grazed Earth's atmosphere without being significantly heated and later impacted Venus, and a similar number have grazed Venus's atmosphere and later impacted the Earth, both within a period of $\sim 10^5$ years during which microbes could survive in space. Although the abundance of terrestrial life in the upper atmosphere is unknown, these planet-grazing shepherds could have potentially been capable of transferring microbial life between the atmospheres of Earth and Venus. As a result, the origin of possible Venusian life may be fundamentally indistinguishable from that of terrestrial life.
Seamless Knitted Sports Bra Design: A Responsive System Design Exploration

The transition of sports bras’ uses, from an active lifestyle to resting activities, requires adaptable comfort properties of the design (Quinn, 2010). In the current age of technological revolution, the sports bra industry is still not offering an adaptable and responsive sports bra, which supports the body during high impact sports while feeling soft and comfortable during rest (Hansman, 2017). Moreover, the current commercial sports bras are made using all synthetic yarns and using garment dyeing processes that are not ecological sustainable (McCann, 2005).Thus, the two-fold purpose of this study was to: (a) analyze the materials and processes used in the product development stages of seamless sports bras, and (b) propose a biomimetic design solution for a seamless sports bra that offers responsive breast support during running versus resting activities.
From Pre-service to Professional Teaching: A Longitudinal Study of Two LGBTQ+-identifying First-year Elementary Teachers' Experiences.

Researchers have documented that being an LGBTQ+-identifying teacher can present particular challenges and marginalizing experiences. This longitudinal, qualitative study is a follow-up to a year-long endeavor documenting the experiences of one gay and one lesbian-identifying preservice teachers as they navigated school and a professional job search. In this study, we followed these same two teachers as they entered their first year of professional teaching in academic year 2015-2016, and we present the experiences, difficulties, challenges, and navigation of these two LGTBQ+-identifying elementary teachers. The two participants also recently (2020) reflected back on their first year of professional teaching some four years prior, and we used their insights to chronicle another layer of reflection on their professional experiences. With these elementary teachers' experiences at the center, this study offers implications for school systems about how to recognize, support, and advocate for LGBTQ+-identifying teachers, particularly those new to the profession.
Statistics and Pseudorandom Numbers

There are many applications that find it is useful to be able to generate random numbers. Moreover, there are a number of common ways to generate random numbers. A computer should always give the same result when carrying out the same calculation (unless the computer is broken!). As a result, it is difficult to use a computer to generate truly random numbers. To get around this limitation, methods have been developed to generate what are called “pseudorandom numbers.” A good pseudorandom number generation algorithm will produce numbers with the desired distribution —such as uniform or normal and the right statistical properties, no serial correlation. To generate a sequence of pseudorandom numbers, the pseudorandom number algorithm must start with a numerical value called a “seed.” A good way to select a relatively random number for the seed is to use the computer's system clock. Unless the program is run many times, the precise instant at which a calculation starts should be a nearly random event. This chapter covers basic descriptive statistics and pseudorandom number generation in Interactive Data Language (IDL). IDL has built-in functions to handle many descriptive statistics and significance testing problems. IDL also includes functions to generate pseudorandom numbers from a variety of different distributions.
TU-AB-201-03: A Robot for the Automated Delivery of An Electromagnetic Tracking Sensor for the Localization of Brachytherapy Catheters

Purpose: To present a programmable robotic system for the accurate and fast deployment of an electromagnetic (EM) sensor for brachytherapy catheter localization. Methods: A robotic system for deployment of an EM sensor was designed and built. The system was programmed to increment the sensor position at specified time and space intervals. Sensor delivery accuracy was measured in a phantom using the localization of the EM sensor and tested in different environmental conditions. Accuracy was tested by measuring the distance between the physical locations reached by the sensor (measured by the EM tracker) and the intended programmed locations. Results: The system consisted of a stepper motor connected to drive wheels (that grip the cable to move the sensor) and a series of guides to connect to a brachytherapy transfer tube, all controlled by a programmable Arduino microprocessor. The total cost for parts was <$300. The positional accuracy of the sensor location was within 1 mm of the expected position provided by the motorized guide system. Acquisition speed to localize a brachytherapy catheter with 20 cm of active length was 10 seconds. The current design showed some cable slip and warping depending on environment temperature. Conclusion: The use of EM tracking for the localization of brachytherapy catheters has been previously demonstrated. Efficient data acquisition and artifact reduction requires fast and accurate deployment of an EM sensor in consistent, repeatable patterns, which cannot practically be achieved manually. The design of an inexpensive, programmable robot allowing for the precise deployment of stepping patterns was presented, and a prototype was built. Further engineering is necessary to ensure that the device provides efficient independent localization of brachytherapy catheters. This research was funded by the Kaye Family Award
An open-ended computational evolution strategy for evolving parsimonious solutions to human genetics problems

In human genetics a primary goal is the discovery of genetic factors that predict individual susceptibility to common human diseases, but this has proven difficult to achieve because these diseases are likely to result from the joint failure of two or more interacting components. Currently geneticists measure genetic variations from across the genomes of individuals with and without the disease. The association of single variants with disease is then assessed. Our goal is to develop methods capable of identifying combinations of genetic variations predictive of discrete measures of health in human population data. "Artificial evolution" approaches loosely based on real biological processes have been developed and applied, but it has recently been suggested that "computational evolution" approaches will be more likely to solve problems of interest to biomedical researchers. Here we introduce a method to evolve parsimonious solutions in an open-ended computational evolution framework that more closely mimics the complexity of biological systems. In ecological systems a highly specialized organism can fail to thrive as the environment changes. By introducing numerous small changes into training data, i.e. the environment, during evolution we drive evolution towards general solutions. We show that this method leads to smaller solutions and does not reduce the power of an open-ended computational evolution system. This method of environmental perturbation fits within the computational evolution framework and is an effective method of evolving parsimonious solutions.
A performance analysis of Xen and KVM hypervisors for hosting the Xen Worlds Project

Virtualization of the operating system has become an important consideration in the cloud, corporate data center, and academia. With the multitude of available virtualization platforms, careful consideration is needed for selecting the right solution for a specific virtualization application. This research focuses on an analysis of two open source virtualization platforms or hypervisors: Xen and Kernel-based Virtual Machine (KVM). Evaluations are conducted on the basis of overall performance and throughput, virtual machine performance isolation and scalability for use as a host for the Xen Worlds Project. In doing so, the existing Xen Worlds Project infrastructure, middleware, and virtual machines are migrated to KVM to provide a test bed for the evaluation using a benchmark suite and a set of scripts to simulate user behavior.
Redefining the future of trauma surgery as a comprehensive trauma and emergency general surgery service.

Abstract Background Dwindling operative opportunities in trauma care may have a detrimental impact on career satisfaction among trauma surgeons and on career attractiveness to surgical trainees. Addition of emergency general surgery may alleviate some of these concerns. Study design The trauma service at our institution incorporated nontrauma emergency general surgery over a 3-year period. The institution's trauma registry and hospital perioperative database were queried. The changes in operative caseload are described. Current trauma faculty anonymously completed a Web-based questionnaire about the addition of emergency general surgery to the trauma service. Results Operations for trauma decreased in 2002 compared with 1999, despite a higher number of penetrating injuries and total trauma contacts. Nontrauma general surgery operations performed by trauma faculty increased in proportion to coverage provided by the trauma service. In 2002, 57% of all cases performed by trauma surgeons were emergency general surgery, which accounted for 32% to 74% of an individual surgeon's caseload. In anonymously completed Web-based questionnaires, current trauma faculty expressed satisfaction with the combined trauma and emergency general surgery model. Conclusions The combined trauma and nontrauma surgery service increased operative caseloads and improved satisfaction of trauma surgeons. A comprehensive trauma and emergency general surgery service may be an attractive model for the future of trauma surgery and provide logistical and medical advantages to the emergency general surgery patient population.
A single OpAmp 2 nd -Order ΔΣ ADC with a double integrating quantizer

Time-to-digital converters are an attractive topology for quantization because they rely on mostly digital blocks that benefit from scaling of transistors. Time-to-digital converters inherently need a time-domain input, but the input to analog-to-digital converters is primarily in the voltage-domain. Therefore, a voltage-to-time converter is necessary to use time-to-digital converters in analog-to-digital converters. Previously, circuit modifications have allowed voltage-to-time converters to provide an extra order of quantization noise shaping when used within a delta-sigma analog-to-digital converter. This work proposes another method that allows the voltage-to-time converter to function as an integrator. When combined with previous methods, this allows for an extra two orders of noise shaping to result from the quantizer.
Tumor bearer T cells suppress BCG-potentiated antitumor responses: I. Requirements for their effect☆☆☆

Abstract Mice bearing established syngeneic tumors fail to reject them when immunized according to protocols based on optimal conditions for BCG potentiation of specific delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) and antitumor immunity. Serum factors from mice bearing either the poorly immunogenic mastocytoma, P815 (MA), or the more antigenic sarcoma, Meth A, have been shown to depress both DTH and antitumor immunity. This report demonstrates that lymphoid cells adoptively transferred from these tumor-bearing hosts also can suppress the efferent and afferent phases of DTH to tumor-specific antigens in both BCG-primed and unprimed syngeneic hosts. Suppressor cells (SC) were detected in spleen, thymus, and lymph nodes draining the tumor site, but not in distant superficial lymph nodes. Maximal suppressor activity apeared 6 days after tumor implantation and waned by 18 days. Suppression of the afferent phase of both the BCG-primed and unprimed responses was antigen specific; suppression of the efferent phase of the BCG-primed response was also specific but SC could partially suppress the unprimed responses to sheep red blood cells (SRBC). Amputation of 6-day-old tumors resulted in the disappearance of splenic SC within 2 days but did not affect SC in draining lymph nodes. SC suppressed DTH in a dose-dependent manner but even the highest doses tested did not totally eliminate the response. Depression of the peak DTH reaction was not accompanied by significant abrogation of antitumor activity. If, however, SC were transferred during the ongoing antitumor response, immunity was partially suppressed. Efferentphase SC were sensitive to treatment with anti-Thy 1 sera and complement but were unaffected by B-cell depletion.
Inhibition of cAMP Response Element-Binding Protein or Dynorphin in the Nucleus Accumbens Produces an Antidepressant-Like Effect

The cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB) is a critical integrator of neural plasticity that is responsive in a brain region-specific manner to a variety of environmental and pharmacological stimuli, including widely prescribed antidepressant medications. We developed inducible transgenic lines of mice that express either CREB or a dominant-negative mutant of CREB (mCREB) in forebrain regions and used these mice to determine the functional significance of this transcription factor in the learned helplessness paradigm, a behavioral model of depression. We also use a complementary viral-mediated gene transfer approach to directly test the effect of mCREB in the nucleus accumbens, a brain region important for motivation and reward. The results demonstrate that blockade of CREB by overexpression of mCREB in transgenic mice or by viral expression of mCREB in the nucleus accumbens produces an antidepressant-like effect, whereas overexpression of CREB in transgenic mice results in the opposite phenotype. In addition, mCREB expression was colocalized with and decreased the expression of prodynorphin in nucleus accumbens medium spiny neurons, and antagonism of dynorphin in the nucleus accumbens was sufficient to produce an antidepressant-like effect similar to that observed after blockade of CREB. Together, the results demonstrate that nucleus accumbens CREB-dynorphin influence behavior in the learned helplessness model and suggest that this signaling cascade may contribute to symptoms of depression.
Off-line recognition of signatures using revolving active deformable models

This paper presents a novel approach to the problem of signature recognition. We introduce the use of revolving active deformable models as a powerful way of capturing the unique characteristics of a signature's silhouette. Experimental evidence shows that the silhouette of a signature uniquely determines the signature in the majority of cases. The objective of our method is to recognize signatures based on the spatial properties of the signature boundaries. Our active deformable models originate from the snakes introduced to computer vision by Kass et al. (1987), but their implementation has been tailored to the task at hand. These computer-generated models interact with the virtual gravity field created by the image gradient. Ideally, the uniqueness of this interaction mirrors the uniqueness of the signature's silhouette. The proposed method obviates the use of a computationally expensive segmentation approach and yields satisfactory results regarding performance, without compromising the accuracy rate. Interestingly, the active deformable models have been implemented in such a way, that the method is potentially fully parallelizable. The experiments performed with a signature database show that the proposed method is promising. >
Leucine and Calcium Regulate Fat Metabolism and Energy Partitioning in Murine Adipocytes and Muscle Cells

Dietary calcium modulation of adiposity is mediated, in part, by suppression of calcitriol, while the additional effect of dairy products is mediated by additional components; these include the high concentration of leucine, a key factor in the regulation of muscle protein turnover. We investigated the effect of leucine, calcitriol and calcium on energy metabolism in murine adipocytes and muscle cells and on energy partitioning between adipocytes and skeletal muscle. Leucine induced a marked increase in fatty acid oxidation in C2C12 muscle cells (P < 0.001) and decreased FAS expression by 66% (P < 0.001) in 3T3-L1 adipocytes. Calcitriol decreased muscle cell fatty acid oxidation by 37% (P < 0.001) and increased adipocyte FAS gene expression by threefold (P < 0.05); these effects were partially reversed by either leucine or calcium channel antagonism with nifedipine. Co-culture of muscle cells with adipocytes or incubation with 48-h adipocyte conditioned medium decreased muscle fatty acid oxidation by 62% (P < 0.001), but treating adipocytes with leucine and/or nifedipine attenuated this effect. Leucine, nifedipine and calcitriol also modulated adiponectin production and thereby exerted additional indirect effects on fatty acid oxidation in C2C12 myotubes. Adiponectin increased IL-15 and IL-6 release by myotubes and partially reversed the inhibitory effects of calcitriol. Comparable effects of leucine, calcitriol and adiponectin were found in myotubes treated with conditioned medium derived from adipocytes or co-cultured with adipocytes. These data suggest that leucine and nifedipine promote energy partitioning from adipocytes to muscle cells, resulting in decreased energy storage in adipocytes and increasing fatty acid utilization in muscle.
Surface properties of Sr- and Co-doped LaFeO3

Abstract The surface properties of Fe-based perovskite-type oxides with the formula La 0.6 Sr 0.4 Co y Fe 1− y O 3− δ for y = 0.1 , 0.2, and 0.3 were investigated. Using methanol as a probe molecule, the amounts of basic and Lewis surface sites were determined. The types of sites were confirmed using DRIFTS. The surface basicity, as well as the reducibility, oxygen storage capacity, transition metal surface concentration, and methanol oxidation activity, were found to progress through an extrema for the intermediate Co level; that is, the behavior and performance of the samples are nonlinear with respect to increasing Co content. An electronic structural transition is proposed as the explanation for the observed trends.
The philosophical legacy of Meehl (1978): confirmation theory, theory quality, and scientific epistemology

Abstract The reach and impact of Paul Meehl’s work is extraordinary. Focusing on his “Theoretical Risks and Tabular Asterisks”, I trace three consequences of his findings. The first is the influence of his work on confirmation theory in the philosophy of science, in which he provided a more sophisticated alternative to Popperianism, despite some affinities with it. The second is a clear focus on the evaluation of theory quality as an explanation for the success of hard vs. soft theories. The third is a very deep critique of the practices of contemporary epistemology; his research recommends the replacement of demonstrably unreliable, subjective judgments about justification and knowledge with simple predictive models that outperform human experts. This is an impressive array of intellectual contributions to psychology and philosophy. As influential as his work was, it is just now beginning to receive attention commensurate with its merits.
On the generalized Luneburg lenses

The class of spherically symmetric but radially inhomogeneous dielectric lenses which image a sphere onto a sphere is considered. An approximate formula is obtained for the explicit dependence of the refractive index on the radial distance.
Rule-based Management of Large Unorganized Data Sets

Rule-based systems have been studied for nearly two decades in applications such as geographical information systems (GIS) and metadata catalog systems. Recovering large data sets that are not well organized is a challenge that imposes constraints on applications. These constraints include utilizing huge amounts of memory, consuming excessive amounts of time, and the risk of exceeding these resources, thus causing instability. This work examines a novel approach to provide a large unorganized data set by deriving a rule-based system that regulates web page generation thereby improve cache performance and query generation. The trade-offs imposed by rule-based systems in terms of time to deliver content, memory consumption, and fault tolerance are also analyzed.
Interplanetary magnetic field variations and the electromagnetic state of the equatorial ionosphere

The Esq phenomena were selected in order to examine the effect of the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) on the ionospheric plasma and to obtain insight into the interplanetary ionospheric coupling processes. January-March 1973 interplanetary magnetic field data of Explorer 43, Huancayo ionograms, and surface equatorial magnetograms were used. The IMF observations from Explorer 43 in the form of 15-sec averages were examined around the time of disappearance of the Esq. The IMF z-component was observed to change from a negative to a positive value before the disappearance of the Esq in four events where simultaneous data were available. The general explanation is that the induced electric field becomes westward from a previous eastward direction, coinciding with the IMF z-component reversal. Thus, just before the Esq disappears, the magnetosphere is subjected to the westward electric field. If this field is impressed to the low-latitude ionosphere, the resultant electric field in the equatorial ionosphere changes from eastward (westward) to westward (eastward) in the daytime (nighttime).
Some Results on Factorization in Integral Domains

The M-graded domains , which are almost Schreier are classified under the assumption that the integral closure of R is a root extension of R, where M is a torsion-free, commutative, cancellative monoid. In the case that D[M] is a commutative monoid domain it is shown that if M conical and is a root extension, then D[M] is almost Schreier if and only if M and D are almost Schreier. If R=ℤ[nω] is an order in a quadratic extension field of ℚ, it is shown that the conditions; R[X] is IDPF; R[X] is inside factorial; R[X] is almost Schreier; is a root extension; and every prime divisor of n also divides the discriminant of the extension K/ℚ; are equivalent conditions.
GENERAL EDUCATION TEACHER JUDGMENTS OF THEIR LOW-PERFORMING STUDENTS' SHORT-TERM READING PROGRESS

This study investigated the accuracy of classroom teachers’ judgments of the reading progress of their low-performing students. Participants were 36 second grade teachers and students in their lowest reading groups (n = 150). Student progress was monitored weekly using readingcurriculum-based measurement (R-CBM) procedures. After 6 weeks, teachers were asked to rate their students’ progress. Expert judges later reviewed the teachers’ R-CBM graphs and rated the individual and group progress based on the graphs. Teacher ratings did not correlate with expert ratings or the R-CBM slope estimates. Expert ratings correlated highly with slope estimates. Teachers’ estimates of progress were significantly higher than expert judges’ ratings, indicating that teachers may overestimate student progress. Implications for practice and future research are discussed. C � 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Will simulation survive the arrival of intelligent control systems

Abstract Intelligent, decision-making control systems are on the horizon. (We are discussing those control systems which can intelligently control an operation, process, etc. without human intervention.) Expert systems, AI, fuzzy systems and object oriented simulation programming technologies provide the vehicles by which these systems can be built.
A content-aware collaborative accessing model in ad hoc networks

Reducing the transmission cost is one of the most important issues in multi-hop ad-hoc networks. Considerable research has been done on efficient routing and data accessing algorithms. However, most previous research on routing schemes focus on topological structures, and not much attention has been made to data content distributions in ad-hoc networks. The exponential emergence of multimedia applications puts further challenges to the routing schemes. Due to the restrictions of ad-hoc networks and the volume of multimedia data, efficient data accessing schemes are needed for various applications. Within the scope of ad-hoc network paradigm, a semantic-based framework - extended summary schemas model (ESSM) - is presented and analyzed. Within the scope of this new framework several techniques are further proposed to optimize the cost of searching multimedia data in ad-hoc networks. The proposed model is simulated and the simulation results are analyzed.
Relationship between aesthetic motivation and preferences for aggressive and nonaggressive sports.

Two studies were designed to replicate the finding that people scoring high on aesthetic motivation, as measured by Warm's Sport Fan Motivation Scale, tend to prefer nonaggressive sports. Study 1 correlated 75 college students' scores on aesthetic motivation with their enjoyment of watching aggressive sports. Study 2 correlated 44 college students' scores on aesthetic motivation with their enjoyment of watching a series of aggressive football plays. Neither study replicated the previous finding that people high on aesthetic motivation tend to prefer nonaggressive sports, suggesting that the earlier finding was an artifact of the method used.
Simulation of optical projection with polarization- dependent stray light to explore the difference between dry and immersion lithography

When imaging at high incident angles to the resist, both the reflected light from the resist surface and the image forming process of the transmitted light into the resist are polarization dependent. The transmitted TM component and the reflected TE and TM components tend to induce stray light as a function of the incident angle. In this work, these components are analyzed and evaluated quantitatively. The polarization-dependent stray light (PDS) and the system stray light found in regular optical imaging systems are incorporated into a simulation program for diffracted intensity distribution to construct exposure-defocus (E-D) trees and windows to evaluate the exposure latitude and depth of focus (DOF) of typical circuit elements. The DOF of line-space pairs and contact holes with and without PDS are compared in the cases of two- and three-beam interference, first- and second-order beams, binary intensity masks, and phase shifting masks. Even though the 193-nm immersion system is shown to be better than 157- and 193-nm dry systems, using polarized illumination can improve DOF, particularly in low k1 situations, and in other situations when the stray-light-free image contrast is low.
Adiponectin – journey from an adipocyte secretory protein to biomarker of the metabolic syndrome

Adiponectin is an adipocyte-derived hormone that was discovered in 1995. Unlike leptin, which was identified around the same time, the clinical relevance of adiponectin remained obscure for a number of years. However, starting in 2001, several studies were published from different laboratories that highlighted the potential antidiabetic, antiatherosclerotic and anti-inflammatory properties of this protein complex. Methods to measure the protein with high throughput assays in clinical samples were developed shortly thereafter, and as a result hundreds of clinical studies have been published over the past 3 years describing the role of adiponectin in endocrine and metabolic dysfunction. Furthermore, adiponectin research has expanded to include a role for adiponectin in cancer and other disease areas. Although it is an impossible task to summarize the findings from all these studies in a single review, we aim to demonstrate the utility of circulating adiponectin as a biomarker of the metabolic syndrome. Evidence for this relationship will include how decreased levels of plasma adiponectin ('hypoadiponectinaemia') are associated with increased body mass index (BMI), decreased insulin sensitivity, less favourable plasma lipid profiles, increased levels of inflammatory markers and increased risk for the development of cardiovascular disease. Therefore, adiponectin levels hold great promise for use in clinical application serving as a potent indicator of underlying metabolic complications.
Loss of mannosyl phosphoryl polyisoprenol synthesis upon conversion of reticulocytes to erythrocytes.

Abstract Reticulocyte membranes transfer [ 14 C]mannose from GDP[ 14 C]mannose to an endogenous lipid forming a compound that has the characteristics of β-mannosylphosphoryldolichol. The lipid co-chromatographs with hen oviduct mannosylphosphoryldolichol, is stable to mild alkali and labile to mild acid, and strong base releases mannose phosphate. Formation of the [ 14 C]mannosyl lipid by reticulocyte membranes is stimulated by the addition of exogenous dolichylphosphate. The transfer of mannose from GDPmannose to the lipid fraction is reversible upon the addition of GDP, but not GMP. The apparent K m for GDP-mannose, in the formation of the mannosyl lipid, is 0.56 μM. Erythrocyte membranes transfer less than 5% as much mannose from GDP-mannose to endogenous acceptors as do assays of reticulocyte membranes. However, assays in the presence of exogenous dolichylphosphate reveal the presence of a mannosyltransferase capable of forming a [ 14 C]mannosyl lipid that co-chromatographs in two solvent systems, on SG-81 paper, with hen oviduct and reticulocyte mannosylphosphoryldolichol. The mannosyltransferase activities from reticulocyte and erythrocyte membranes exhibit similar behavior toward divalent cations, Ammonyx detergent and dolichylphosphate. Thus, the enzymes may be identical, and the apparent absence of mannosyl phosphoryl polyisoprenol synthesis in erythrocyte membranes may be accounted for by the absence of endogenous acceptor molecules.
Aberrant conduction in supraventricular extrasystoles eliminated by exercise.

Abstract A patient with premature supraventricular systoles associated with aberrant conduction of the right bundle branch type was exercised. The increase in the heart rate caused the aberrancy to disappear showing that the patient had a normal conduction system. This indicated that the aberration was the manifestation of a normal physiologic phenomenon and not an early sign of disease.
The Brauer group of an affine rational surface with a non-rational singularity

Abstract The object of study is the family of normal affine algebraic surfaces defined by equations of the form z n = ( y − a 1 x ) ⋯ ( y − a n x ) ( x − 1 ) . Each surface X in this family is rational and contains a non-rational singularity. Using an explicit resolution of the singularity, many computations involving Weil divisors and Azumaya algebras on X are completely carried out. The Picard group and Brauer group are shown to depend in subtle ways on the values a 1 , … , a n . For an odd prime n, and for a general choice of X, the Picard group and the Brauer group are computed.
E-Metrics and Library Assessment in Action

Digital resources play an increasingly important role in academic libraries, which must demonstrate their value to the institution and their impact on student learning outcomes in new and more compelling ways. This study examines 5 years of vendor-supplied e-resource usage data in conjunction with other library and institution measures. Results are compared to major findings from other researchers, with examples of how e-metrics can be incorporated into a broader assessment of the library's success in meeting the needs of its users.