cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Gene Therapy for the Treatment of Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Despite advances in surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy, the survival of patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma has not significantly improved over the past several decades. Treatment options for recurrent or refractory oral cancers are limited. Gene therapy for oral cancer is currently under investigation in clinical trials. The goal of cancer gene therapy is to introduce new genetic material into target cells without toxicity to non-target tissues. This review discusses the techniques used in cancer gene therapy for oral squamous cell carcinoma and summarizes the ongoing strategies that are being evaluated in clinical trials.
Use of a tissue culture chamber for developmental studies of aquatic phycomycetes

A mammalian tissue culture chamber was utilized in a developmental study of two aquatic fungi. This apparatus was found to provide a simple system by which aquatic microorganisms could be continuously cultured and their development directly observed under precisely controlled environmental conditions.
Hybrid Concolic Testing

We present hybrid concolic testing, an algorithm that interleaves random testing with concolic execution to obtain both a deep and a wide exploration of program state space. Our algorithm generates test inputs automatically by interleaving random testing until saturation with bounded exhaustive symbolic exploration of program points. It thus combines the ability of random search to reach deep program states quickly together with the ability of concolic testing to explore states in a neighborhood exhaustively. We have implemented our algorithm on top of CUTE and applied it to obtain better branch coverage for an editor implementation (VIM 5.7, 150 K lines of code) as well as a data structure implementation in C. Our experiments suggest that hybrid concolic testing can handle large programs and provide, for the same testing budget, almost 4times the branch coverage than random testing and almost 2times that of concolic testing.
Marginal Fracture vs Mechanical Properties of Amalgam

The clinical marginal fracture characteristics of three commercial dental amalgams were evaluated and compared with a number of their mechanical properties to determine which properties would relate best to clinical performance. It was found that compressive strength, tensile strength, transverse strength, transverse deflection, and flow as determined by ADA Specification No. 1 were ineffective, whereas the rheological properties of dynamic creep, static creep, and slow compressive strength appeared effective in relating to marginal fracture.
Location Matters: Geographic Location and Educational Placement of Students with Developmental Disabilities.

Despite decades of advocacy, most students with developmental disabilities continue to spend the majority of the school day in self-contained special education classrooms. However, there is tremend...
Geographically structured host specificity is caused by the range expansions and host shifts of a symbiotic fungus

The inability to associate with local species may constrain the spread of mutualists arriving to new habitats, but the fates of introduced, microbial mutualists are largely unknown. The deadly poisonous ectomycorrhizal fungus Amanita phalloides (the death cap) is native to Europe and introduced to the East and West Coasts of North America. By cataloging host associations across the two continents, we record dramatic changes in specificity among the three ranges. On the East Coast, where the fungus is restricted in its distribution, it associates almost exclusively with pines, which are rarely hosts of A. phalloides in its native range. In California, where the fungus is widespread and locally abundant, it associates almost exclusively with oaks, mirroring the host associations observed in Europe. The most common host of the death cap in California is the endemic coast live oak (Quercus agrifolia), and the current distribution of A. phalloides appears constrained within the distribution of Q. agrifolia. In California, host shifts to native plants are also associated with a near doubling in the resources allocated to sexual reproduction and a prolonged fruiting period; mushrooms are twice as large as they are elsewhere and mushrooms are found throughout the year. Host and niche shifts are likely to shape the continuing range expansion of A. phalloides and other ectomycorrhizal fungi introduced across the world.
Effects of voltage sags on household loads

Voltage sags form the core of power quality issues gripping the US utility industries for over a decade now. These sags disrupt the sensitive loads in almost every environment such as industrial, commercial, and residential, resulting in significant production outages. These sags have far reaching effects on certain type of loads. This paper presents the effect of voltage sags on household loads such as air-conditioner compressors, lighting loads, and computers. For each of the mentioned loads, experiments have been conducted and are still in process to study the effects of sags on them for different sag depths and durations. For experimental purposes, a sag generator is used to study the effects. A summary of the results have been presented in the paper by the authors in the conclusion. The experimental results for the loads appear to be in harmony with the theoretical investigation.
Bridging the Gap between Fluxomics and Industrial Biotechnology

Metabolic flux analysis is a vital tool used to determine the ultimate output of cellular metabolism and thus detect biotechnologically relevant bottlenecks in productivity. 13C-based metabolic flux analysis (13C-MFA) and flux balance analysis (FBA) have many potential applications in biotechnology. However, noteworthy hurdles in fluxomics study are still present. First, several technical difficulties in both 13C-MFA and FBA severely limit the scope of fluxomics findings and the applicability of obtained metabolic information. Second, the complexity of metabolic regulation poses a great challenge for precise prediction and analysis of metabolic networks, as there are gaps between fluxomics results and other omics studies. Third, despite identified metabolic bottlenecks or sources of host stress from product synthesis, it remains difficult to overcome inherent metabolic robustness or to efficiently import and express nonnative pathways. Fourth, product yields often decrease as the number of enzymatic steps increases. Such decrease in yield may not be caused by rate-limiting enzymes, but rather is accumulated through each enzymatic reaction. Fifth, a high-throughput fluxomics tool hasnot been developed for characterizing nonmodel microorganisms and maximizing their application in industrial biotechnology. Refining fluxomics tools and understanding these obstacles will improve our ability to engineer highlyefficient metabolic pathways in microbial hosts.
Actors are Skilled in Theory of Mind but Not Empathy

Actors must imagine themselves in a different world: they must adopt the perspective of multiple characters, grasp their beliefs and intentions, and feel their emotions. In this study we tested the hypothesis that actors have unusually sharp mind-reading abilities and unusually strong empathy. In Study 1, adolescent actors outperformed adolescents without acting experience in their ability to imagine the mental states expressed by pictures of peoples' eyes (a theory of mind measure), but did not excel on empathy as measured by a self-report scale. In Study 2, we replicated these findings with young adults using a different measure of theory of mind. These findings show that adolescent and adult actors are skilled in reading others' mental states, but do not report above average levels of empathy. Thus, strength in theory of mind can exist independently of strength in empathy.
Happiness and Work: Portuguese Peasants, British Laborers, African Contract Workers, and the Case of São Tomé and Príncipe, 1901–1909*

In the first decade of the twentieth century, the allegation that slaves were harvesting cocoa off the west coast of Africa on the Portuguese island colony of Sao Tome and Principe became an international scandal, not only because slavery had long been outlawed, but also because one of the major purchasers of that cocoa was the Quaker chocolate company, Cadbury Brothers. The Portuguese denied the charge of slavery and claimed that African workers on the islands were not only happier than Portuguese peasants, but also more content than many European workers. This article explores this claim and argues that the conflicting interpretations of what the British called the crisis over “slave cocoa” and the Portuguese called “the English cocoa controversy” can be explained by differing perspectives about work.
Two-fluid spin-up in a centrifuge

The behaviour of the interface between two immiscible fluids of different density and viscosity in a centrifuge is investigated both analytically and experimentally. The study includes the interfacial shape and behaviour during both steady and transient operation of the centrifuge. The interface shape is investigated for rigid-body rotation and during slow steady acceleration or deceleration of the centrifuge. The dependence of the interface shape on time is investigated during a rapid spin-up to a slightly different value of the angular velocity, which then remains constant. Some aspects of interface stability are also reported.
Juvenile-onset Leigh syndrome with an acute polyneuropathy at presentation.

Subacute necrotizing encephalomyelopathy or Leigh syndrome can be associated with a polyneuropathy. By far, the most commonly encountered neuropathy is a chronic neuropathy with features of demyeli...
Nonlinear Feedback Control of Surface Roughness Using a Stochastic PDE: Design and Application to a Sputtering Process

In this work, we develop a method for nonlinear feedback control of the roughness of a one-dimensional surface whose evolution is described by the stochastic Kuramoto-Sivashinsky equation (KSE), a fourthorder nonlinear stochastic partial differential equation. We initially formulate the stochastic KSE into a system of infinite nonlinear stochastic ordinary differential equations by using Galerkin’s method. A finite-dimensional approximation of the stochastic KSE is then derived that captures the dominant mode contribution to the surface roughness. A nonlinear feedback controller is then designed based on the finite-dimensional approximation to control the surface roughness. An analysis of the closed-loop nonlinear infinite-dimensional system is performed to characterize the closed-loop performance enforced by the nonlinear feedback controller in the closed-loop infinite-dimensional system. The effectiveness of the proposed nonlinear controller and the advantages of the nonlinear controller over a linear controller resulting from the linearization of the nonlinear controller around the zero solution are demonstrated through numerical simulations. Finally, a successful application of a stochastic KSE-based nonlinear feedback controller to the kinetic Monte Carlo model of a sputtering process is also demonstrated.
Coulomb excitation of the giant dipole resonance in light-ion inelastic scattering from /sup 208/Pb

A coupled-channel calculation including Coulomb excitation has been done for excitation of the isovector giant dipole resonance in light-ion inelastic scattering from $^{208}\mathrm{Pb}$ at forward angles. It is found that the predicted cross sections for excitation of the giant dipole resonance with alpha inelastic scattering, calculated including Coulomb excitation, are much smaller than the experimental isoscalar giant monopole resonance cross section at incident energies around 100 MeV. The predicted cross section for Coulomb excitation of the giant dipole resonance increases rapidly with increasing incident energy, and the giant dipole and monopole resonance cross sections become comparable above ${E}_{\ensuremath{\alpha}}=300$ MeV. For inelastic scattering of $^{3}\mathrm{He}$, deuterons, and protons at forward angles, Coulomb excitation of the giant dipole resonance is found to be comparable to the giant monopole resonance cross section at $100l{E}^{\mathrm{lab}}l200$ MeV. Coulomb excitation of the giant dipole resonance is strongly inhibited by momentum mismatch between incident and outgoing waves due to the large negative $Q$ values. This mismatch is reduced for lighter projectile masses and higher incident energies. As the giant monopole and dipole resonances are almost coincident, giant dipole resonance excitation must be properly accounted for in studies of the giant monopole resonance.NUCLEAR REACTIONS Coupled-channel calculation of $\ensuremath{\sigma}(\ensuremath{\theta})$; for Coulomb excitation of isovector dipole resonance in $^{208}\mathrm{Pb}$; from ($\ensuremath{\alpha}$,${\ensuremath{\alpha}}^{\ensuremath{'}}$), ($^{3}\mathrm{He}$, $^{3}\mathrm{He}$'), ($d$,${d}^{\ensuremath{'}}$), and ($p$,${p}^{\ensuremath{'}}$) scattering.
High-Q capacitors implemented in a CMOS process for low-power wireless applications

In a foundry 0.8-/spl mu/m CMOS process, low-cost capacitors with a measured Q factor of around 50 at 3 GHz and high intrinsic capacitance/area (/spl sim/200 nF/cm/sup 2/) were demonstrated. When extrapolated to 900 MHz, the Q factor is greater than 100. The capacitors use a poly-to-n-well MOS structure which has been commonly dismissed for high-Q applications due to the high n-well sheet resistance (/spl sim/1 k/spl Omega///spl square/). Utilizing the structure, a low-noise amplifier (LNA) with a resonant frequency of 960 MHz, power gain of 16.2 dB, 1-dB compression point (P/sub 1 dB/) of -5 dBm, and noise figure of 3.5 dB was demonstrated. Using a rule of thumb, the third-order harmonic intercept point (P/sub IP3/) was estimated to be 5 dBm from the P/sub 1 dB/ data. Despite concerns for nonlinearity of the capacitors, these results suggest that this capacitor structure could be used in LNA's with a large dynamic range.
LEGISLATORS, BUREAUCRATS, AND LOCATIONAL DECISIONS

Our government allocates an ever increasing proportion of the national output. National, state, and local government appropriate directly over one third of the Gross National Product. Indirectly, they affect how a considerable proportion of the rest is allocated, by means of extensive regulations and prohibitions and through positive inducements offered in the tax code. The expanding size and scope of governmental activities impel social scientists to develop better explanatory models of government behavior. Understanding how and why governments make the choices they do is increasingly important for understanding everything from the performance of the national economy to the changing fortunes of businesses, cities, and regions. This paper investigates the world of government spending. Specifically, it explores how the federal government makes decisions about the geographic allocation of expenditures. The central questions are: Does it make any difference how such decisions are made? Do legislators make significantly different decisions from bureaucrats? Does it matter whether one employs allocational formulas rather than making individual case-by-case decisions? Decisions about geographic allocation may appear peripheral and insignificant compared to obviously central decisions, such as the proper ends of government, appropriate means to those ends, priorities among competing programs, and the relative sizes of the public and private sectors. This view is mistaken. First, geographic decisions are important in their own right. Federal expenditures have an enormous impact on the fortunes of localities and regions, on the health of their economies, and on the quality of life for their inhabitants. Since the federal government spends nearly a quarter of national output, the differential geographic effects of that spending cannot be ignored any more than one could ignore its differential effects by income or race. Second, decisions about ends, means, priorities, and governmental size are not made independently from decisions about geographic allocation. In fact, choices about the former are often impossible without simultaneously resolving issues about the geographic allocation of benefits. Some have argued
The Effect of Probabilistic and Stochastic Valuationsversus a Deterministic Valuation of Securitized SeniorLife Settlements on the Level of Liquidity Facility

This article attempts to demonstrate the importance of modeling cash flows at each point in time, generated by a securitized pool of senior life settlements, when establishing a liquidity facility and its level. The liquidity facility is a critical component of credit enhancement in the securitization of senior life settlements. There are three main methods when valuing senior life settlements. The first uses a deterministic approach; the second, a probabilistic approach; and the third, a stochastic approach (Monte Carlo model). Although obtaining similar values with the three different methods is possible, we show how critical the chosen method is for establishing the level of liquidity facility in the process of securitizing senior life settlements.
Five New Transits of the Super-Neptune HD 149026b

We present new photometry of HD 149026 spanning five transits of its "super-Neptune" planet. In combination with previous data, we improve on the determination of the planet-to-star radius ratio: Rp/R = 0.0491+ 0.0018−0.0005. We find the planetary radius to be 0.71 ± 0.05 RJup, in accordance with previous theoretical models invoking a high metal abundance for the planet. The limiting error is the uncertainty in the stellar radius. Although we find agreement among four different ways of estimating the stellar radius, the uncertainty remains at 7%. We also present a refined transit ephemeris and a constraint on the orbital eccentricity and argument of pericenter, ecos ω = − 0.0014 ± 0.0012, based on the measured interval between primary and secondary transits.
Moderate sleep apnoea: a “silent” disorder, or not a disorder at all?

New ERJ study adds to the evidence casting doubt on the utility of recommended cut-offs for sleep apnoea treatment http://ow.ly/VgjBL
Peroxide Natural Products from Plakortis zyggompha and the Sponge Association Plakortis halichondrioides–Xestospongia deweerdtae: Antifungal Activity against Cryptococcus gattii

Cryptococcus gattii is a human pathogen and causative agent of a pernicious, sometimes fatal, disseminated fungal disease. Investigation of antifungal extracts of the marine sponge association Plakortis halichondrioides–Xestospongia deweerdtae and the sponge Plakortis zyggompha from the Bahamas led to the discovery and isolation of 6-epi-7,8-dihydroplakortide K (1), plakortide AA (2), and three new plakinic acids, N–P (4–6; unstable 1,2-dioxolanes bearing benzyl-substituted conjugated dienes), along with known plakinic acids L, K, and M.5 Chiroptical comparisons and DFT calculations of 13C NMR chemical shifts were used to assign the absolute stereostructure of 4. The stereospecific base-promoted rearrangement–saponification of 1 to 10 was briefly investigated and showed tight kinetic control and stereospecific formation of the new C-2 stereocenter with inversion at C-3. Plakinic acid M and plakortides 9 and 11 exhibited antifungal activity against C. gattii (MIC90 = 2.4 to 36 μM), but plakinic acids N–P w...
The Effects of State Comprehensive Tobacco Control Programs on Smoking Initiation, Relapse and Cessation among Teenagers and Young Adults

This article uses the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 to study the effects of state comprehensive tobacco control programs on smoking initiation, relapse and cessation among teenagers and young adults. We find that comprehensive tobacco control programs significantly prevent smoking initiation and relapse among young population, and states should raise their expenditure on these programs to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommended level.
Cross-Disciplinary Approaches in Cancer Research Using an evolutionary lens to expand the arsenal

D a decades-long “war on cancer,” the disease remains the second leading cause of death in the United States. Now, there is emerging international interest in the interface between cancer research and many other disciplines not typically associated with the health sciences, including ecology, evolutionary biology, comparative zoology, animal behavior, and veterinary medicine. Could bringing new approaches to the complex problem of human cancer reveal innovative avenues for future research and therapeutic interventions? That is a question scientists are keen to explore.
Oncogenesis in Human Acute Leukemia

By selecting, for discussion, some aspects of oncogenesis in human acute leukemia, we hope to focus attention on areas of current interest which promise to provide important advances in our knowledge and understanding of human neoplasia, and, in time, may lead us nearer to the goal of disease control and eventual eradication.
Setting the stage: ultralumnous galaxies in a cosmological context

I will try to put the ultraluminous galaxy phenomenoninto a broad cosmological context. Viewed from this perspective,the significance of ultraluminous galaxies and the `starburstvs. monster' debate becomes clear. Ultraluminous galaxiesare fascinating in their own right, allow detailedstudy of the processes by which massive spheroids were builtand the IGM was heated and polluted, and resemble the mostluminous and dustiest galaxies at high-redshift. Ultraluminous galaxieswere apparentlyfar more common at z ∼ 3 than today. Recentinventories in the local universe of the cumulative effect of nuclear burning(metal production)and of monster-feeding (compact dark objects in galactic nuclei)imply that either stars ormonsters could have generated the observed far-IR cosmic background.The starburst vs. monster debate has global, as well as localimportance.
Isotope Effect on the Electronic Structure of Hydrogen in Metals

The effect of the isotopic mass on the redistribution of electron charge and spin density around a light impurity such as hydrogen in metals has been studied. Considered in this review are: (a) the magnetic hyperfine coupling to the hydrogen nucleus and the effect of isotopic mass, (b) the isotope effect in hydrogen impurity resistivity, (c) the reverse isotope effect in superconducting PdH(D) and (d) the thermally induced detrapping of hydrogen from the vicinity of solute sites in metallic hosts.
Preliminary imaging results with 18F-2-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose.

Transverse section imaging with /sup 18/F-2-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose (2FDG) is of considerable interest because quantitative values of regional glucose metabolism may be obtained. We present preliminary results using 2FDG produced by the Brookhaven National Laboratory and imaged with the PCII at the Massachusetts General Hospital. Three studies are reported showing the distribution in dog, monkey, and in brain of an essentially normal patient.
Dewatering Characteristics of Precipitated Egg Solids

Abstract Various procedures were compared for efficient removal of egg solids from processing plants waste water. Coagulant aids were not productive because they failed to produce a stable floc and resulted in less egg protein (TKN) being removed. The use of on-line centrifugation appears to be limited due to the fragility of the floe. High TKN removals would require prior settling and decanting of liquids. The high cost of equipment may not be justified based on the small amount of product gained from the relatively dilute wastewater. Vacuum filtration exhibited good TKN removal but produced low solids yield, which was discouraging as far as equipment efficiency. This process also appears to require prior settling of floc and decanting and, therefore, could not be used continuously on-line. The most promising process was foamation. High TKN removals were attained with simple equipment that could be used continuously on-line. The most critical problem was the rapid transfer of heat to the liquid which causes the foam to be produced. If the heat transfer problem could be overcome on a plant scale, this process would be the choice for the efficient removal of egg solids from the relatively dilute wastewater stream.
The relationship of stress and the molecular weight distribution in polymeric electrical insulation

The fact that no observable change in molecular weight distribution had occurred in the samples stressed at 60°C and 90° C seems inconsistant with the results reported previously. While there is no way to quantitatively extrapolate the results obtained at higher temperatures by Holstrom and the others previously mentioned, one would qualitatively expect some change, especially at 90° C.
Kinetics and mechanisms of the oxidation of cobalt at 600–800°C

Two-phase layered scales comprising CoO and Co3O4 formed on cobalt during oxidation at 600°, 700°, and 800°C and at oxygen partial pressures in the range 0.001–1 atm. The kinetics, which were obtained by thermogravimetric analysis, obeyed a parabolic rate law after an initial, non-parabolic stage of oxidation. The monoxide consisted of relatively large grains (∼10 μ) and the spinel comprised small grains (⪝3 μ) for all conditions of oxidation. Grain boundary diffusion of cations played a significant role in the growth of the spinel layer. Thermogravimetric data and the steady-state ratio of the oxide layer thicknesses were employed to calculate the rates of thickening of the individual oxide layers and the rate of oxidation of CoO to Co3O4.
Effect of Different Planting Densities on Rice Yield in Cold Waterlogged Paddy Field

A field test for the effects of five different planting densities on the agronomic characters and yield of early rice and late rice in cold waterlogged paddy field in central and southern Jiangxi was conducted. The results indicated that the optimal planting density of both early rice and late rice was 337500 plants / hm2because the ideal yield could be gained.
Prolonged Tp–e Interval and Tp–e/QT Ratio in Children with Mitral Valve Prolapse

Although it is considered to be a benign condition, previous studies have shown that a subset of patients with mitral valve prolapse (MVP) may be at risk of ventricular arrhythmia and sudden cardiac death (SCD). Previous studies have suggested that the interval between the peak and the end of the T wave (Tp–e) can be used as a marker for the transmural dispersion of repolarization. Increased Tp–e interval and Tp–e/QT ratio are associated with ventricular arrhythmias and SCD. The aim of this study was to assess alterations in ventricular repolarization by using the Tp–e interval and Tp–e/QT ratio in children with MVP and to investigate their relationships with the degree of valvular regurgitation. This study prospectively investigated 110 children with MVP and 107 age- and sex-matched healthy control subjects. Tp–e interval, Tp–e/QT ratio, and QT and QTc dispersions were measured from a 12-lead electrocardiogram and compared between groups. QT and QTc dispersions, Tp–e interval, and Tp–e/QTc ratio were found to be significantly higher in patients with MVP. A positive correlation was found between Tp–e/QTc ratio and increase in the degree of mitral regurgitation (MR) (p 0.05). Individuals with MVP may be more prone to ventricular arrhythmias due to prolonged QTd, QTcd, and Tp–e interval and increased Tp–e/QT and Tp–e/QTc ratios. Therefore, due to their longer life expectancy, children with MVP should be followed up on regarding life-threatening arrhythmias.
Transgression and Atonement

This paper presents an approach to modeling social transgressions in agent based systems. The approach is intended to be abstract enough that it may be used with many different theories of transgression, apology, forgiveness, etc. In the first half of the paper, we consider what features of transgressions, people's emotional reactions to transgressions, and forgiveness are important, primarily by surveying social sciences literature. In the second half, we discuss an implementation of our approach in PMFserv, an agent based socio-cognitive modeling framework.
Spinal Vascular Diseases

Spinal vascular diseases are rare diagnostic entities but important differential diagnoses for patients presenting with myelopathy. The spinal cord is supplied by the anterior and posterior spinal arteries, reinforced by multiple segmental arteries at variable levels. Ischemic diseases cause cord infarction. Spinal vascular malformations can result in cord edema or hemorrhage. MRI/MRA is the noninvasive diagnostic modality of choice, while DSA remains the reference standard for characterizing the spinal vascular malformations.
The Cracked Cookie Jar: HTTP Cookie Hijacking and the Exposure of Private Information

The widespread demand for online privacy, also fueled by widely-publicized demonstrations of session hijacking attacks against popular websites, has spearheaded the increasing deployment of HTTPS. However, many websites still avoid ubiquitous encryption due to performance or compatibility issues. The prevailing approach in these cases is to force critical functionality and sensitive data access over encrypted connections, while allowing more innocuous functionality to be accessed over HTTP. In practice, this approach is prone to flaws that can expose sensitive information or functionality to third parties. In this paper, we conduct an in-depth assessment of a diverse set of major websites and explore what functionality and information is exposed to attackers that have hijacked a user's HTTP cookies. We identify a recurring pattern across websites with partially deployed HTTPS, service personalization inadvertently results in the exposure of private information. The separation of functionality across multiple cookies with different scopes and inter-dependencies further complicates matters, as imprecise access control renders restricted account functionality accessible to non-session cookies. Our cookie hijacking study reveals a number of severe flaws, attackers can obtain the user's home and work address and visited websites from Google, Bing and Baidu expose the user's complete search history, and Yahoo allows attackers to extract the contact list and send emails from the user's account. Furthermore, e-commerce vendors such as Amazon and Ebay expose the user's purchase history (partial and full respectively), and almost every website exposes the user's name and email address. Ad networks like Doubleclick can also reveal pages the user has visited. To fully evaluate the practicality and extent of cookie hijacking, we explore multiple aspects of the online ecosystem, including mobile apps, browser security mechanisms, extensions and search bars. To estimate the extent of the threat, we run IRB-approved measurements on a subset of our university's public wireless network for 30 days, and detect over 282K accounts exposing the cookies required for our hijacking attacks. We also explore how users can protect themselves and find that, while mechanisms such as the EFF's HTTPS Everywhere extension can reduce the attack surface, HTTP cookies are still regularly exposed. The privacy implications of these attacks become even more alarming when considering how they can be used to deanonymize Tor users. Our measurements suggest that a significant portion of Tor users may currently be vulnerable to cookie hijacking.
Nations, institutions, and technological development

Differences in national structures account for technological outcomes. Technology is a tool for comparativists to analyse the differences in national structures. Does technology drive society, and force an economy's institutions to adapt, or does the character of a society's community and institutional arrangements shape the character of technology? These are not necessarily competing hypotheses, but deeply intertwined stones that reflect the process by which technology recreates itself as it drives adaptations in the society at large. Embedding technological and economic development within institutions with historical roots in the nation improves upon the purely economical approach to explaining technological growth.
The Later Life and Legacy of Sir Francis Galton

Galton remained preoccupied by his work and by his need to ensure he remained at the center of intellectual thought, however controversial, within the London social scientific circles at the time. He spent little time at home, and he and Louisa failed to have children together.
Working for Change: Reflections on the Issue of Sustainability and Social Change

Reading George Glasson’s paper, I was transported back to the days when I used to work in a science education reform effort in India. This effort, known as the Hoshangabad Science Teaching Program (HSTP), developed, sustained, and disseminated an innovative inquiry-oriented, place-based framework of science teaching at the middle-school level. It was a collaborative effort that brought people on the ground – the teachers, students, and activists – on a common platform with educators and scientists in universities and research centers – quite like the effort so well-documented by George Glasson. And just like what George Glasson and his intrepid colleagues have initiated in Malawi, HSTP too started small, though in 16 schools and not one, and not recently but way back in 1972. By 2002, the program had grown to cover about 1000 middle schools in Hoshangabad, and 14 other districts of the central state of Madhya Pradesh in India. However, as often happens with reform efforts in education, the program was unceremoniously shut down in 2002, and the schools that had been successfully teaching science through an inquiry and place-based curriculum for decades quietly went back to teaching ­science the traditional way. Now when I look back at this unique effort in the history of education in India, I find that HSTP was largely successful in developing an alternative way to teach and learn science. However, even after a long run of 30 years, the program’s accomplishments in terms of its ability to sustain itself and influence the dominant paradigm in science education were comparatively ­somewhat muted.
Including Coding Questions in Video Quizzes for a Flipped CS1

In an effort to improve student performance in a flipped classroom environment, this paper explores the impact of including auto-graded coding questions in gate check quizzes associated with videos for a flipped CS1 course. Previous work showed that having students complete multiple choice questions that were intended to verify that they had done the preparation work did not have a statistically significant impact on outcomes as measured through written quizzes and exams. In an attempt to engage higher-level processing of learned information, this work builds on top of that by adding questions that require students to write short segments of code for most of the quizzes in addition to doing some multiple choice questions. We found that students who were given these coding video quizzes performed better on written assessments, especially for the final exam.
Renal Vein and Inferior Vena Cava Tumor Thrombus: Presentation and Mapping of Venous Extension with Color Duplex Ultrasound:

IntroductionRenal cell carcinoma (RCC) has a unique tendency toward intravascular growth into the renal vein (RV), inferior vena cava (IVC), or even into the heart. To determine the operative appro...
A hybrid communication topology for modular multilevel converter

Modular multilevel converter with large number of modules is a potential topology for many applications such as high-voltage DC (HVDC) and solid state transformers (SST). However, the communication between the controller and the modules becomes complex if the number of modules is high. If conventional star topology communication where the controller has direct connection to all the modules is used, the wiring can be cumbersome and the cost can be high. Another possible solution is ring topology communication. Because the modules are connected in series and each module imposes some delay, ring topology has a limited communication speed. In this paper, we proposed a hybrid communication topology to combine star and ring topology. The proposed communication topology reduces the cycle time by 30% compared to ring topology for MMC with 30 modules while increases negligible cost.
Assessment of blood pressure discrepancies in third-trimester hypertensive gravidas.

Previous studies have associated hypertension with discrepancies between right arm and left arm blood pressure (BP) measurements. The purpose of this study was to determine if there were clinically (defined as > or = 10 mm Hg disparity) and statistically significant differences between right arm and left arm BP measurements (systolic, diastolic, or mean) in 34 third-trimester hypertensive gravidas. Thirty-four third-trimester normotensive gravidas were used as controls. No subjects were in active labor. This study used a cross-sectional, 2-group design with convenience sampling. The protocol for BP measurement followed guidelines of the American Heart Association and the instrument manufacturer. The results showed a greater range in BP differences between arms for the hypertensive group in the systolic (0.67-26.67 mm Hg) and mean (0.25-67 mm Hg) pressures compared with the normotensive group (systolic, 0-14.33 mm Hg; mean, 0-12 mm Hg). The mean difference in BP between arms was greater for the hypertensive group compared with the normotensive group. Using a 1-tailed t test, the mean difference was statistically significant (P or = 10 mm Hg) was greater for the hypertensive group than for the normotensive group (13 vs 4). These differences in frequencies were not statistically significant with chi-square analysis (systolic, P = .074; diastolic, P = .303; mean, P = .303). These findings indicated BP discrepancies between arms exist in both normotensive and hypertensive gravidas, with a greater range and frequency of differences in the hypertensive group. This study supports the American Heart Association's recommendation of bilateral BP assessment.
The Impact of Changes in Population Health and Mortality on Future Prevalence of Alzheimer’s Disease and Other Dementias in the United States

Objectives We assessed potential benefits for older Americans of reducing risk factors associated with dementia. Methods A dynamic simulation model tracked a national cohort of persons 51 and 52 years of age to project dementia onset and mortality in risk reduction scenarios for diabetes, hypertension, and dementia. Results We found reducing incidence of diabetes by 50% did not reduce number of years a person ages 51 or 52 lived with dementia and increased the population ages 65 and older in 2040 with dementia by about 115,000. Eliminating hypertension at middle and older ages increased life expectancy conditional on survival to age 65 by almost 1 year, however, it increased years living with dementia. Innovation in treatments that delay onset of dementia by 2 years increased longevity, reduced years with dementia, and decreased the population ages 65 and older in 2040 with dementia by 2.2 million. Conclusions Prevention of chronic disease may generate health and longevity benefits but does not reduce burden of dementia. A focus on treatments that provide even short delays in onset of dementia can have immediate impacts on longevity and quality of life and reduce the number of Americans with dementia over the next decades.
Regulation of stringent factor by branched-chain amino acids.

When faced with amino acid starvation, prokaryotic cells induce a stringent response that modulates their physiology. The stringent response is manifested by production of signaling molecules guanosine 5′-diphosphate,3′-diphosphate (ppGpp) and guanosine 5′-triphosphate,3′-diphosphate (pppGpp) that are also called alarmones. In many species, alarmone levels are regulated by a multidomain bifunctional alarmone synthetase/hydrolase called Rel. In this enzyme, there is an ACT domain at the carboxyl region that has an unknown function; however, similar ACT domains are present in other enzymes that have roles in controlling amino acid metabolism. In many cases, these other ACT domains have been shown to allosterically regulate enzyme activity through the binding of amino acids. Here, we show that the ACT domain present in the Rhodobacter capsulatus Rel alarmone synthetase/hydrolase binds branched-chain amino acids valine and isoleucine. We further show that the binding of these amino acids stimulates alarmone hydrolase activity both in vitro and in vivo. Furthermore, we found that the ACT domain present in Rel proteins from many diverse species also binds branched-chain amino acids. These results indicate that the cellular concentration of amino acids can directly affect Rel alarmone synthetase/hydrolase activity, thus adding another layer of control to current models of cellular control of the stringent response.
Understanding How African-American Middle School Students Cope with Peer Victimization: A Mixed-Methods Approach

Understanding How African-American Middle School Students Cope with Peer Victimization: A Mixed-Methods Approach By Suzanne Camou Linkroum, B. A. A Thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science at Virginia Commonwealth University. Virginia Commonwealth University, 2006 Major Director: Albert D. Farrell, Ph.D. Associate Professor, Department of Psychology A mixed-methods approach was used to determine how African-American middle school students cope with peer victimization and to identify factors that inhibit and promote the use of prosocial coping strategies. In a previous study, participants had been categorized into four social clusters: well-adjusted, rejected, passively-victimized, or aggressively-victimized based on a cluster analysis of self-reported psychosocial variables. Interviews with a sub sample of 80 students focusing on identifying both how students thought they would respond and how they thought they should respond to hypothetical situations involving peer victimization were analyzed. Interviews also elicited factors that would support or impede the use of the coping responses generated by the participants. Qualitative analysis identified 15 coping responses that students X would use, and categorized each individual response as prosocial, aggressive, or avoidant based on emotional, cognitive, and behavioral criteria. In addition, 13 coping responses were identified as strategies youth thought they should do. Ten supports, and ten barriers to prosocial coping responses were identified, representing a range of internal and interpersonal factors. Results of logistic regression models did not support the central hypothesis that the type of coping response generated (e.g., prosocial, aggressive, avoidant) would depend on social cluster. However, significant gender results were found, suggesting that girls were more likely than boys to identify prosocial coping strategies. Implications for violence prevention programs are discussed.
PHOTOASSISTED SOLID-CATALYZED REDUCTION OF AIR BY AQUEOUS ORGANIC MATERIALS: A POTENTIALLY PRACTICAL METHOD OF FIXING NITROGEN

ABSTRACT Photoassisted solid-catalyzed reduction of nitrogen (pure or in air) to ammonia has been observed using metal oxides as catalysts and liquid or gaseous water as reductant. With alpha-Fe 2 O 3 and Cr 2 O 3 , if dissolved ammonia remains in contact with illuminated aqueous suspensions of catalyst, the system achieves a steady concentration of ammonia. When methanol, formaldehyde, glucose or glycerol was dissolved in aqueous suspensions of alpha-Fe 2 O 3 or several other catalysts, or cellulose was suspended in the slurry, up to 30-fold increases in yields of ammonia were obtained upon illumination for 15–34 hrs. When dissolved ammonia remained in contact with illuminated suspensions of alpha-Fe 2 O 3 which contained organic compounds, the rate of production of ammonia increased with time to a maximum and then declined; finally ammonia decayed and disappeared entirely. A maximum rate of production of ammonia per incident photon which has been observed over alpha-Fe 2 O 3 is one fifth of the rate calculated for solar fixation over this catalyst sufficient to supply the nitrogen needs of rice or corn.
Augmentation of 1968-1972 Winter Storms in New Mexico

Scientific studies on winter orographic cloud seeding were conducted in the Jemez Mountains of northern New Mexico during the winters of 1968-1969 through 1971-1972. The objective specific components and accomplishments of the project are summarized. The meteorological partitioning technique used in conjunction with the nonparametric statistical analysis indicated that future projects in northern New Mexico should use the 700-mb equivalent potential temperature optimum window until a more refined criteria can show better results in overall snowpack increase. This assumed optimum window resulted in a net seasonal increase of precipitation of about 28% or 14.5cm of equivalent water in 4 yr. Assuming an affected area of about 1,300 km², this increase would be about 49,000,000 m³ (40,000 acre-ft. of additional water on the ground per year of winter cloud seeding.
Murder and Death Penalty

tion of the question, Bedau9 argues that most criminologists skeptical of capital punishment have not come to this conclusion by a critical examination of the evidence, but rather because of their adherence to a general theory of violent crimes that excludes the influence of the threat of punishment.'0 Furthermore, careful examination of the literature reveals the evidence usually cited as questioning the death penalty to be less than conclusive. With few exceptions, these investigations suffer from a number of serious theoretical and methodological shortcomings." Before examining these shortcomings and the scope of the present investigations, it is necessary to review the available evidence.
THE IDENTITY OF AMERICAN CATHOLIC HIGHER EDUCATION: A HISTORICAL OVERVIEW

American Catholic higher education has faced and overcome challenges, both from American higher education and Vatican officials, in its long and rich history. Georgetown College’s founding in 1789 was the first of several Catholic higher education institutions created in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The 20th century brought the challenges of accrediting agencies and mixed communication with The Vatican, including Pope John Paul II’s (1990) Ex Corde Ecclesiae. This document attempts to clarify the nature of a Catholic institution’s identity.
Metabolomic Profiling of Bile Acids in an Experimental Model of Prodromal Parkinson's Disease.

For people with Parkinson’s disease (PD), considered the most common neurodegenerative disease behind Alzheimer’s disease, accurate diagnosis is dependent on many factors; however, misdiagnosis is extremely common in the prodromal phases of the disease, when treatment is thought to be most effective. Currently, there are no robust biomarkers that aid in the early diagnosis of PD. Following previously reported work by our group, we accurately measured the concentrations of 18 bile acids in the serum of a prodromal mouse model of PD. We identified three bile acids at significantly different concentrations (p < 0.05) when mice representing a prodromal PD model were compared with controls. These include ω-murichoclic acid (MCAo), tauroursodeoxycholic acid (TUDCA) and ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA). All were down-regulated in prodromal PD mice with TUDCA and UDCA at significantly lower levels (17-fold and 14-fold decrease, respectively). Using the concentration of three bile acids combined with logistic regression, we can discriminate between prodromal PD mice from control mice with high accuracy (AUC (95% CI) = 0.906 (0.777–1.000)) following cross validation. Our study highlights the need to investigate bile acids as potential biomarkers that predict PD and possibly reflect the progression of manifest PD.