cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A theoretical study on the rank's dependence with electric size of the inverse finite element matrix for large-scale electrodynamic analysis

The rank of the inverse finite-element matrix is theoretically studied for 1-D, 2-D, and 3-D electrodynamic problems. We find that the rank of the inverse finite-element matrix is a constant irrespective of electric size for 1-D electrodynamic problems. For 2-D electrodynamic problems, the rank grows very slowly with electric size as square root of the logarithm of the electric size of the problem. For 3-D electrodynamic problems, the rank scales linearly with the electric size. The findings of this work are both theoretically proved and numerically verified. They are applicable to problems with inhomogeneous materials and arbitrarily shaped structures.
An assessment of low temperature NOx adsorbers for cold-start NOx control on diesel engines

Abstract Fresh and thermally aged laboratory samples of several low temperature NO x adsorber (LTNA) formulations were evaluated for low temperature NO x storage and release under lean conditions to assess their potential for treating the cold-start NO x emissions on diesel engines before the SCR system becomes operational. Steady-state tests were used to determine the NO x storage capacity as a function of temperature and to determine the minimum temperature for purging the LTNA of stored NO x . The samples were also evaluated on a transient test performed on the reactor that simulated the thermal environment during the first two phases of the light-duty Federal Test Procedure (FTP-75) followed by a Supplemental FTP (US06) test. The Pt-rich LTNAs exhibited low NO x storage performance during the initial 200 s of this transient test due to low storage efficiency of NO and weak NO oxidation capability. A Pd-rich formulation provided efficient storage of NO and C 2 H 4 on the transient test and released most of the stored NO by 350 °C. The presence of C 2 H 4 improved its NO x storage performance after thermal aging. SO 2 poisoned the storage of NO 2 as nitrates at 170 °C, but the storage of NO as nitrites at lower temperatures (e.g., 90–140 °C) was more robust to the SO 2 . A lean desulfation at 750 °C recovered some of the storage performance. The Pd-rich LTNA performed best when highly oxidized. This catalyst demonstrated a gradual loss of NO x storage performance when evaluated on consecutive lean transient tests. This was attributed to the gradual reduction of the palladium oxide from reacting with the feedgas NO and C 2 H 4 to form NO 2 and CO at temperatures near 90 °C. Methane oxidation was used to probe the oxidation state of the palladium oxide and confirmed that the palladium oxide was partially reduced after only two lean transient tests.
Viral entry: a detour through multivesicular bodies

Many viruses and toxins enter the cytoplasm of cells by crossing endosomal membranes. New evidence now suggests that if entry occurs through multivesicular bodies, then they are first delivered into intraluminal vesicles before their final transfer into the cytoplasm via the 'back-fusion' of these vesicles.
Two major isozymes of the protein D-aspartyl/L-isoaspartyl methyltransferase from human erythrocytes

We have been able to separate protein carboxyl methyltransferase activity from human erythrocyte cytosol into two major fractions by DEAE-cellulose chromatography. These isozymes, designated I and II, are characterized by their isoelectric points of approximately 6.6 and 5.5 as determined by isoelectric focusing in polyacrylamide gels. The ratio of the isozymes (II/I) was found to range from 0.52 to 1.2 in blood samples from 14 individuals. We did not detect differences in this ratio between males and females. We also found no differences between freshly drawn and outdated blood samples. Both isozymes catalyzed the methylation of proteins such as ovalbumin as well as synthetic L-isoaspartyl-containing peptides.
Widespread production of novel soluble protein isoforms by alternative splicing removal of transmembrane anchoring domains

We have investigated the effects of alternative splicing on transcripts encoding membrane proteins in 1001 human genes. Out of a total of 464 alternatively spliced genes encoding single-pass transmembrane (TM) proteins, in 188 we observed a splice form that specifically removed the TM domain, producing a soluble protein isoform. For example, in syndecan-4, the new alternative splice form closely parallels the proteolytic ectodomain shedding previously shown in this protein, and recognized as an important regulatory mechanism of receptor function. While many of the soluble isoforms produced by alternative splicing have already been validated, most are novel, and in 57 genes showed a statistically significant association (P-value<0.01) with a specific tissue.
The student‐teacher relationship

(1977). The student‐teacher relationship. Theory Into Practice: Vol. 16, Classroom Dynamics, pp. 285-289.
Optical tomography with structured illumination

We consider the image reconstruction problem for optical tomography with structured illumination. A fast image reconstruction algorithm is proposed that reduces the required number of measurements of the optical field compared to methods that utilize point-source illumination. The results are illustrated with numerical simulations.
Covalent adaptable networks: smart, reconfigurable and responsive network systems.

Covalently crosslinked materials, classically referred to as thermosets, represent a broad class of elastic materials that readily retain their shape and molecular architecture through covalent bonds that are ubiquitous throughout the network structure. These materials, in particular in their swollen gel state, have been widely used as stimuli responsive materials with their ability to change volume in response to changes in temperature, pH, or other solvent conditions and have also been used in shape memory applications. However, the existence of a permanent, unalterable shape and structure dictated by the covalently crosslinked structure has dramatically limited their abilities in this and many other areas. These materials are not generally reconfigurable, recyclable, reprocessable, and have limited ability to alter permanently their stress state, topography, topology, or structure. Recently, a new paradigm has been explored in crosslinked polymers – that of covalent adaptable networks (CANs) in which covalently crosslinked networks are formed such that triggerable, reversible chemical structures persist throughout the network. These reversible covalent bonds can be triggered through molecular triggers, light or other incident radiation, or temperature changes. Upon application of this stimulus, rather than causing a temporary shape change, the CAN structure responds by permanently adjusting its structure through either reversible addition/condensation or through reversible bond exchange mechanisms, either of which allow the material to essentially reequilibrate to its new state and condition. Here, we provide a tutorial review on these materials and their responsiveness to applied stimuli. In particular, we review the broad classification of these materials, the nature of the chemical bonds that enable the adaptable structure, how the properties of these materials depend on the reversible structure, and how the application of a stimulus causes these materials to alter their shape, topography, and properties.
Metabolic modulation of disuse osteopenia: Endocrine-dependent site specificity of bone remodeling

The remodeling response of bone tissue to disuse in four normal adult male turkeys and four adult males metabolically altered by castration was compared by functionally isolating the left ulna of each animal via transverse epiphyseal osteotomies. The right ulna in each animal was left intact and served as a control. After 8 weeks, the animals were euthanized, the ulnae harvested, and 100 microns undecalcified cross sections of the midshaft microradiographed. Areal properties, osteon mineral apposition rates from in vivo fluorochrome labels, and the number and ratios of bone-forming and bone-resorbing foci were quantitated. Compared to their control ulnae, the magnitude of bone resorbed from the functionally isolated ulnae of normal versus castrated males was not significantly different (-12.8 +/- 3.7 versus -10.7 +/- 3.5%, respectively). However, in the functionally isolated ulnae of normal birds, 94% of the total bone loss resulted from expansion of the corticoendosteal envelope, and 97% of the decrease in cross-sectional areas of the ulnae in the castrated birds was due to intracortical porosity. Furthermore, there was a significant interaction between disuse and castration, increasing the total number of intracortical remodeling events (9.4 +/- 0.9) when compared to disuse alone (4.7 +/- 1.4, p less than 0.01), or to the intact ulnae of castrated (2.1 +/- 0.5) and normal adult males (2.0 +/- 1.1). This work emphasizes that the manner in which the bone tissue responds to local changes in its physical environment is directly dependent on the status of the organism's metabolic milieu.
Orofacial dermal fillers: foreign body reactions, histopathologic features, and spectrometric studies.

Objective The aim of this study is to assess the different histopathologic presentations of dermal filler materials-induced foreign body reactions by spectrometric analyses. Study Design Sixteen cases of dermal filler foreign body reactions in the orofacial region were retrieved from the 2006-2013 period. The histologic features were evaluated and categorized into 5 groups (I to V). Unstained deparaffinized sections of representative tissue from one case in each of groups I to IV were sent for spectrometric analysis, along with samples of 2 popular dermal fillers (Juvederm and Radiesse). Results With the help of spectrometric analysis, we were able to correlate the histopathologic presentations with the specific type of dermal filler used.
Walsh Diagrams: Molecular Orbital and Structure Computational Chemistry Exercise for Physical Chemistry

The increasing importance of computational chemistry in modern chemistry provides an impetus to increase the incorporation of computational exercises in the undergraduate chemistry curriculum. Herein, a computational chemistry exercise that can be used in a physical chemistry course is described. In this exercise, students build a series of AH2 molecules in the computational chemistry software Spartan and construct Walsh diagrams for the molecules from calculations of the molecular orbital energies as a function of bond angle. The Walsh diagrams are then used to predict the bond angle of the ground state of each molecule. The exercise focuses on creating a connection between molecular orbital theory and molecular structure and investigating the effects of using different methods and basis sets on the molecular orbital energies. This exercise provides a means for students to visualize and explore the molecular orbitals of small molecules.
Industrial and non-food uses for carrageenan

Abstract Industrial and non-food uses of carrageenan are discussed in relation to the properties of carrageenan. Specific areas that are covered include slurry stabilization and suspension, interaction with polyols, and entrapment/immobilization. The applications range from dentrifrice preparations to anti-icers.
A measurement error model with a Poisson distributed surrogate

We study a linear model in which one of the covariates is measured with error. The surrogate for this covariate is the event count in unit time. We model the event count by a Poisson distribution, the rate of which is the unobserved true covariate. We show that ignoring the measurement error leads to inconsistent estimators of the regression coefficients and propose a set of unbiased estimating equations to correct the bias. The method is computationally simple and does not require using supplemental data as is often the case in other measurement error analyses. No distributional assumption is made for the unobserved covariate. The proposed method is illustrated with an example from the Wisconsin Sleep Cohort Study.
Explicit inversion formulae for the spherical mean Radon transform

We derive explicit formulae for the reconstruction of a function from its integrals over a family of spheres, or for the inversion of the spherical mean Radon transform. Such formulae are important for problems of thermo- and photo-acoustic tomography. A closed-form inversion formula of a filtrationbackprojection type is found for the case when the centres of the integration spheres lie on a sphere in R n surrounding the support of the unknown function.
Yellow fever virus NS2B-NS3 protease: characterization of charged-to-alanine mutant and revertant viruses and analysis of polyprotein-cleavage activities.

A series of 46 charged-to-alanine mutations in the yellow fever virus NS2B–NS3 protease, previously characterized in cell-free and transient cellular expression systems, was tested for their effects on virus recovery. Four distinct plaque phenotypes were observed in cell culture: parental plaque-size (13 mutants), reduced plaque-size (17 mutants), small plaque-size (8 mutants) and no plaque-formation (8 mutants). No mutants displayed any temperature sensitivity based on recovery of virus after RNA transfection at 32 versus 37 °C. Most small plaque-mutants were defective in growth efficiency compared with parental virus. However not all small plaque-mutants had defective 2B/3 cleavage, with some showing selective defects at other non-structural protein cleavage sites. Revertant viruses were recovered for six mutations that caused reduced plaque sizes. Same-site and second-site mutations occurred in NS2B, and one second-site mutation occurred in the NS3 protease domain. Some reversion mutations ameliorated defects in cleavage activity and plaque size caused by the original mutation. These data indicate that certain mutations that reduce NS2B–NS3 protease cleavage activity cause growth restriction of yellow fever virus in cell culture. However, for at least two mutations, processing defects other than impaired cleavage activity at the 2B/3 site may account for the mutant phenotype. The existence of reversion mutations primarily in NS2B rather than NS3, suggests that the protease domain is less tolerant of structural perturbation compared with the NS2B protein.
Measures of hearing threshold and temporal processing across the adult lifespan.

Psychophysical data on hearing sensitivity and various measures of supra-threshold auditory temporal processing are presented for large groups of young (18–35 y), middle-aged (40–55 y) and older (60–89 y) adults. Hearing thresholds were measured at 500, 1414 and 4000 Hz. Measures of temporal processing included gap-detection thresholds for bands of noise centered at 1000 and 3500 Hz, stimulus onset asynchronies for monaural and dichotic temporal-order identification for brief vowels, and stimulus onset/offset asynchronies for the monaural temporal masking of vowel identification. For all temporal-processing measures, the impact of high-frequency hearing loss in older adults was minimized by a combination of low-pass filtering the stimuli and use of high presentation levels. The performance of the older adults was worse than that of the young adults on all measures except gap-detection threshold at 1000 Hz. Middle-aged adults performed significantly worse than the young adults on measures of threshold sensitivity and three of the four measures of temporal-order identification, but not for any of the measures of temporal masking. Individual differences are also examined among a group of 124 older adults. Cognition and age were found to be significant predictors, although only 10–27% of the variance could be accounted for by these predictors.
Evolutionary underpinnings of excessive alcohol consumption

Given our close phylogenetic relatedness, non-human primates, in principle, could serve as an ideal model for alcoholism. Indeed, many studies in both humans and rhesus macaques show relationships between excessive alcohol consumption, aggression and serotonergic function, as measured by concentrations of the principal metabolite of serotonin, 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA) in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). An important behavioral predictor of excessive alcohol consumption in both humans and rhesus monkeys is the propensity toward impulsivity. Integrating behavioral and neuroendocrine data from captive and semi-free-ranging rhesus macaques, we posit that benefits derived from impulsive and aggressive behaviors in some contexts might contribute indirectly to the maintenance of traits involved in alcoholism and excessive alcohol intake.
D/H variation in terrestrial lipids from Santa Barbara Basin over the past 1400 years: A preliminary assessment of paleoclimatic relevance

We analyzed D/H ratios of common terrestrial leaf wax lipids in a 1400 year sediment core from the Santa Barbara Basin (SBB) to test whether they accurately record terrestrial climate in Southern California. The D/H ratios of long chain n-alkanes vary substantially with depth, but are poorly correlated with other terrestrial climate proxies. Interference from fossil hydrocarbons may be at least partly responsible. Long chain n-alkanoic acids exhibit nearly constant downcore D/H ratio values. This constancy in the face of known climatic shifts presumably reflects a substantial residence time for leaf wax compounds in terrestrial soil and/or on the basin flanks. Alternatively, the isotopic composition of meteoric waters in Southern California may not covary with climate, particularly aridity. However, the δD values of n_(-C22) and n_(-C24) fatty acids, commonly attributed to terrestrial aquatic sources, are partially correlated with Southern California winter Palmer Drought Severity Index, a tree ring-based climatic proxy (R^2 0.25; p < 0.01) on multi-centennial scales with an inferred ca. 215 year time lag. The improved correlation of these biomarkers can be explained by the fact that they are not stored in terrestrial soil nor are subject to interference from fossil hydrocarbons. Our study indicates that the SBB is unlikely to preserve high resolution leaf wax D/H records that can serve as quantitative paleoclimate proxies, though some qualitative information may be retained. More generally, the sources of lipids in marginal marine basins need to be carefully evaluated prior to attempting paleoclimate reconstruction based on the leaf wax D/H proxy.
A method for the computation of finite frequency body wave synthetic seismograms in laterally varying media

Summary. Body wave synthetic siesmograms for laterally varying media are computed by means of a slowness implementation of the extended WKBJ (EWKBJ) theory of Frazer & Phinney. An EWKBJ seismogram is computed by first tracing rays through a particular model to obtain conventional ray information (travel time, ray end point, ray slowness) and then using these data in the finite frequency integral expression for the EWKBJ seismogram. The EWKBJ seismograms compare favourably to geometrical ray theory (GRT) seismograms but are significantly better because of the finite frequency nature of the EWKBJ calculation. More realistic behaviour is obtained with EWKBJ seismograms at normal seismic frequencies near caustics, where the GRT amplitude is infinite, and within geometrical shadow zones where GRT predicts zero amplitudes. In addition the EWKBJ calculation is more sensitive than GRT to focuses and defocuses in the ray field. The major disadvantage of the EWKBJ calculation is the additional computer time over that of GRT, necessary to calculate one seismogram although an EWKBJ seismogram costs much less to compute than a reflectivity seismogram. Another disadvantage of EWKBJ theory is the generation of spurious, non-geometrical phases that are associated with rapidly varying lateral inhomogeneities. Fortunately the amplitudes of these spurious phases are usually much lower than that of neighbouring geometrical phases so that the spurious phases can usually be ignored. When this observation is combined with the moderately increased computational time of the EWKBJ calculation then the gain in finite frequency character significantly outweighs any disadvantages.
Fracture, aging, and disease in bone

From a public health perspective, developing a detailed mechanistic understanding of the well-known increase with age in fracture risk of human bone is essential. This also represents a challenge from materials science and fracture mechanics viewpoints. Bone has a complex, hierarchical structure with characteristic features ranging from nanometer to macroscopic dimensions; it is therefore significantly more complex than most engineering materials. Nevertheless, by examining the micro-/nanostructural changes accompanying the process of aging using appropriate multiscale experimental methods and relating them to fracture mechanics data, it is possible to obtain a quantitative picture of how bone resists fracture. As human cortical bone exhibits rising ex vivo crack-growth resistance with crack extension, its fracture toughness must be evaluated in terms of resistance-curve (R-curve) behavior. While the crack initiation toughness declines with age, the more striking finding is that the crack-growth toughness declines even more significantly and is essentially absent in bone from donors exceeding 85 years in age. To explain such an age-induced deterioration in the toughness of bone, we evaluate its fracture properties at multiple length scales, specifically at the molecular and nano dimensions using vibrational spectroscopies, at the microscale using electron microscopy and hard/soft x-ray computed tomography, and at the macroscale using R-curve measurements. We show that the reduction in crack-growth toughness is associated primarily with a degradation in the degree of extrinsic toughening, in particular involving crack bridging, and that this occurs at relatively coarse size scales in the range of tens to hundreds of micrometers. Finally, we briefly describe how specific clinical treatments, e.g., with steroid hormones to treat various inflammatory conditions, can prematurely damage bone, thereby reducing its fracture resistance, whereas regulating the level of the cytokine Transforming Growth Factor-β can offer significant improvements in the stiffness, strength, and toughness of bone and as such may be considered a therapeutic target to treat increased bone fragility induced by aging, drugs, and disease.
A Web Access SHaping method to improve the performance of congested servers

This paper proposes WASH, a Web Access SHaping method, to realize overload-tolerant and highly accessible web sites. Due to the explosive spread of the Internet and emerging sophisticated web applications, servers will become the bottlenecks of the Web. WASH works as a reverse proxy with load balancing and improves the service quality of popular servers. WASH provides two innovative mechanisms: load control with active process limit and application-aware request scheduling. Comparative experiments against current load balancers demonstrate the following superiority of WASH in handling heavy congestion: a) WASH keeps the response time for single page display to below 5 seconds and b) WASH maximizes the throughput of completed page displays and sessions.
Effectiveness Of Economic Sanctions: Empirical Research Revisited

This paper reexamines economic sanctions research and identifies explanatory variables used by many previous theoretical and empirical research studies on the effectiveness of voluntary and non-voluntary economic sanctions since World War I. A normative legal, political, and economic methodology is used to measure effectiveness of economic sanctions as a random walk process. The paper concludes that choosing a target and imposing economic sanctions is a random process that occurs when a sender is faced with a real or perceived threat. Sanctions are imposed as an alternative to inaction or going to war. The theory and research on effectiveness of sanctions has been a mere exercise in running regressions on a series of random numbers and do not shed any light to guide policymaking.
Differential Effects of Dorsal and Ventral Hippocampal Lesions

Several studies have demonstrated that dorsal, but not ventral, hippocampus is critical for spatial memory. The mnemonic role of the ventral hippocampus remains unclear. The existence of relatively direct connections between hypothalamic nuclei and ventral hippocampus suggests that the ventral hippocampus may be involved in acquisition of information regarding internal cues (e.g., hunger). Male Long-Evans rats received ibotenic acid-induced lesions of either dorsal or ventral hippocampus or underwent sham surgeries. After a 3 week recovery, subjects were tested on delayed alternation in a T-maze and on a task in which food-deprivation state was used as a contextual cue (Davidson and Jarrard, 1993). Rats with dorsal, but not ventral, lesions were impaired in delayed alternation, consistent with previous findings, but both groups were impaired in the learning of the internal state-shock association task.
The early social environment of premature and fullterm infants

Abstract The behaviors of 10 mothers of prematures and 29 mothers of fullterms were compared from 7-h observations made in the home when the infants were 2, 3, 4 and 5 weeks post-term. The observation day was divided into four mutually exclusive interactional contexts that together made up the total day: feeding time, changing or bathing time, time when the mother and infant were in physical contact but the mother was not caretaking, and time the infant was alone. Measures of ten maternal behaviors were also compared: moving, rocking, patting, caressing, talking, looking, engaging in vis-a-vis with the baby, holding or carrying, smiling or laughing, and stimulating the baby to suck. Mothers of prematures left their infants alone more and changed them less than mothers of fullterms. In addition, mothers of prematures moved their infants less often, talked to their infants less, looked at their infants less, and held their infants less. These results indicate that, over the 7-h day, prematures receive markedly less stimulation than fullterms. Since the neurobehavioral characteristics of premature and fullterm infants are known to differ [15], it is suggested that these differences in maternal behaviors may be in response to infant cues and appropriate for the infants.
Asymptotic capacity of randomly-failing relay networks with DF strategy

In this paper, we investigate the asymptotic capacity of a half-duplex large fading relay network, which consists of one source node, one destination node, and N relay nodes. The relay nodes are assumed to be randomly deployed in a given area and subject to independent random failures (e.g., due to fatal random physical attacks) with probability p. With a total power constraint on all the nodes, we examine the performance of the decode-and-forward (DF) strategy when N tends to infinity, assuming zero or perfect forward link channel state information (CSI) at the relays, respectively. For the noncoherent relay scheme, we study the e-outage capacity. The multiple access (MAC) cut-set upper bound and the achievable rate (i.e, the lower bound) are derived with the optimal power allocation between the source and relays. It is proved that the DF strategy is asymptotically optimal as the outage probability goes to zero. Given the random attacks, it is shown that there is less than a p-fraction achievable rate loss in the low SNR regime and a constant loss in the high SNR regime. For the coherent relay scheme, we study the ergodic capacity. It is shown that the capacity upper bound scales as O (log (SNRN)), while the DF achievable rate scales as O (log (SNRlog(N))). Finally, we discuss the optimal power allocation strategy among the relays.
Effects of porous coating and collar support on early load transfer for a cementless hip prosthesis

We used a new postprocessing method with the results from a three-dimensional finite element analysis to describe the general load transfer patterns for a cementless hip arthroplasty in the early postoperative situation, and to determine the effects of porous coating [full, partial (2/3), and none] and calcar-collar support (ideal initial contact with separation allowed upon loading, no collar) on this early load transfer. No-tension interfaces were modeled over the entire bone-prosthesis interface, with an upper bound on the Coulomb-friction over coated surfaces, and zero friction over smooth surfaces to accentuate the frictional effects of the coating. The results indicate that the anteroposterior, mediolateral, and axial forces acting on each cross section of the bone were substantially different from the corresponding homeostatic (no prosthesis) forces for the fully coated device with collar support. The frontal bending moments acting on the bone were substantially less than the homeostatic values all along the prosthesis, while the sagittal bending and torsional loads were relatively similar to the homeostatic values. By far, the largest change in these loading patterns occurred with the loss of collar support, where axial loads acting on the bone were so low that over half the bone was in net tension because appreciable transfer of the compressive head force did not occur until well below the lesser trochanter. Both axial and torsional loads were transferred more distally for devices with more coating, and torsional loading of the bone was also sensitive to the degree of collar support. The frontal bending moments acting over most of the bone were insensitive to the coating or collar support. The strain energy density in the endosteal bone was most sensitive to these design variables in the proximal region, and the largest values occurred without a collar and without coating. These findings indicate that all load components acting on the proximal bone in the early postoperative situation (no bone-ingrowth or fibrous tissue at the interface) are altered by the frictional coefficient of the bone-prosthesis interface (i.e. the presence of porous coating or some other surface treatment) and the degree of collar support, while only the axial and torsional loads are altered in the distal bone. From a prosthesis design perspective this implies that surface treatments and collar support can be used to control the axial forces and the torsional moments acting all along the bone. By contrast, the distal frontal bending moment, which dominates stresses in the diaphysis, cannot be altered by these design variables.
Reliability Prediction Techniques for Complex Systems

As electronic systems continue to evolve into more and more complex structures, the search for better and more efficient reliability prediction techniques naturally takes on added momentum. Needed are not only systematic methods of mathematical model building that will simplify the procedures involved but also noncomplex ways of obtaining solutions to many practical problems. This paper illustrates the applicability of transition diagram in describing the state space of a complex system, repairable or nonrepairable, and shows the methodology of writing the set of first-order linear differential equations representing the system performance by inspection of the transition diagram. A discussion of some applicable properties of linear signal-flow graphs is included. Methods of solving problems by inspection techniques are clearly explained and specific examples are given to illustrate the concepts. The mean time Tm for a system to pass for the first time from its initial state to a failed state is usually a statistic of prime interest. Certain properties of Laplace transform are used to illustrate how Tm of a general complex system, repairable or nonrepairable, can be obtained by solving a set of simultaneous algebraic equations. Flow graph techniques of solution by inspection are shown to be a valuable tool in obtaining analytical solutions for Tm of many practical systems.
Past Experience, Quest for the Best Forum, and Peaceful Attempts to Resolve Territorial Disputes

Does a state’s past win/loss record affect its subsequent choices of peaceful dispute resolution methods in territorial disputes? We present a theory that portrays attempts at peaceful resolution as a strategic process, by which states search for the most favorable forum. During the process of decision making, a state strategically chooses between several methods of peaceful resolution; its final choice is based on the state’s past experience with this particular method. Empirical analysis of all attempts at peaceful resolution of territorial disputes from 1945 to 2003 shows that challenger states use their own record of victories and failures, as well as the win/ loss record of the target as indicators of the probability of winning in a subsequent dispute. This pattern is especially strong for the binding third-party methods, arbitration, and adjudication.
The Impact of International Trade on Wages. Edited by Robert C. Feenstra. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000. Pp. ix, 406. $62.00.

The Impact of International Trade on Wages is a volume of ten papers, along with remarks by discussants, which were originally presented at a National Bureau of Economic Research conference in early 1998. In general, the papers have a strong empirical orientation, and they are focused squarely on the experience of the United States over the last thirty years or so. Although economic historians cannot expect to learn anything about the international economy prior to 1960 from this volume, they might learn a great deal about different methodological approaches to the study of international trade and factor prices.
On the Identity of Plociopterus variegatus Sharp (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae)

Abstract Nordus horni (Bernhauer) and Plociopterus belti Sharp are recognized for the first time as junior subjective synonyms of Plociopterus variegatus Sharp. Lectotypes are here designated for N. horni and P. variegatus. The taxonomic history is given for the species.
Lone Star Power

Lone Star Power was a midsize power-generation and power-distribution company. The company's new chief investment officer must evaluate a number of financial-reporting issues raised by an outside analyst. Those issues relate to (1) revenue recognition, (2) consistency of accounting policies, (3) expense timing, (4) classification of reported line items, (5) supplemental interpretive guidance from management, and (6) interim voluntary disclosures. Using a very simple setting, the case blends issues of financial transparency, financial accounting, SEC reporting requirements, and Reg. FD disclosures.
Breeding for sterility in invasive ornamental plants.

INTRODUCTION Invasive plants are introduced species that can thrive in areas beyond their natural range of dispersal (USDA-NISIC, 2014). They naturalize over large areas, displace native plants, and disrupt natural ecosystems (Ranney, 2004). In Florida, over 1.5 million acres (approximately 600,000 ha) of public conservation lands have been invaded by introduced plant species (Fig. 1), and approximately USA$7 million was spent on management and control of invasive upland plants in 2011 (FFWCC, 2011). In the USA, control costs and production losses due to weeds was estimated at US $30.6 billion per year (Cusack et al., 2009). For example, purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria), was introduced from Europe to USA in the early 1800s. Purple loosestrife is now found in all continental states except Florida (Blossey, 2002) and accounts for USA$50 million per year in control costs and forage losses. Mexican petunia, Ruellia simplex (previously also known as R. brittoniana, R. coerulea, R. malacosperma, and R. tweediana), was introduced to Florida from Mexico sometime before 1940 (Hupp et al., 2009) and has now naturalized throughout the state, plus six other southern USA states, Puerto Rico, the USA Virgin Islands and Hawaii (USDA-NRCS, 2014). It is considered as a Category I invasive species in Florida because it is altering native plant communities by displacing native species and changing community structures or ecological functions (FLEPPC, 2013). However, there is no evidence that it is hybridizing with native species (Freyre and Tripp, 2014). Sales of R. simplex ‘Purple Showers’ in Florida were ranked third for herbaceous perennials after pentas and lantana (Rick Brown, Riverview Flower Farms, pers. comm.), so a breeding program aiming to develop sterile, non-invasive cultivars was established at the University of Florida in 2007 (Freyre et al., 2012a). This species will be described in more detail in this paper.
Comparison of several methods for isolation of rat peritoneal mast cells.

SummarySeveral dense media were compared for suitability for isolation of rat peritoneal mast cells. Mast cells isolated in 35% Ficoll (a synthetic polysaccharide) or in 37% bovine serum albumin solutions did not lose histamine during the isolation procedure or during a short period of incubation in an isosmotic medium. They responded normally to the histamine releasing action of compound 48/80 or antigen. In contrast, cells isolated in three types of sucrose media lost much of their histamine during isolation and during subsequent incubation in an isotonic medium. Histamine release induced by compound 48/80 or antigen was less than in mixed peritoneal cell suspensions. It is concluded that concentrated sucrose solutions damage mast cells, probably as a result of the hypertonicity of the media.
Ixodes dammini (Acari: Ixodidae) in Maryland, USA, and a preliminary survey for Babesia microti.

In 1980–1981, immature and adult ticks generally conforming to published descriptions of Ixodes dammini were found within the Maryland section of Assateague Island. Previously this tick, the principal vector of human babesiosis and Lyme disease, had not been identified south of New Jersey. Adult specimens also were collected at other localities in eastern Maryland. Peromyscus leucopus was host to immature I. dammini and Dermacentor variabilis. Adult D. variabilis and Amblyomma americanum were taken at CO2 trapping sites and by flagging on the island. No direct evidence of Babesia microti was detected in tick or mouse populations. However, indirect fluorescent antibody tests performed on P. leucopus sera indicated a possibility of previous natural mouse exposure to this hemoparasite.
Photoinduced Reaction at TiO2 Particles. Photodeposition from NiII Solutions with Oxalate

In a photoinduced reaction, an intermediate produced by the reaction of a reductant R with photogenerated holes can promote a reduction reaction that is not observed in the absence of R. We illustrate this scheme by considering the reduction of NiII at TiO2. In this case NiII, which is not deposited on illuminated TiO2, can be reduced by the intermediate CO2•- produced from the anodic oxidation of oxalate ion (C2O42-) at irradiated TiO2 in water. Irradiation of an aqueous NiII solution containing 10 μg Ni/mL in the presence of TiO2 particles led to 85% removal of the Ni from the solution. The mechanism of the reaction was probed by measurement of current-doubling effects for oxalate solutions at a single-crystal TiO2 electrode.
Effects of psychotropic drugs on DNA synthesis in cultured lymphocytes.

SummaryCommonly used psychotropic drugs in concentrations of 10−6-10−4M exert an inhibitory effect on DNA synthesis as measured by 3H thymidine uptake into cultured lymphocytes. This effect is correlated with the octanol water partition coefficient (liposolubility) of these drugs (p < 0.001). It is suggested that this inhibition of macromo-lecular synthesis is a general effect exerted on all cells and requires micro to millimolar concentrations which may be reached only during chronic consumption. By contrast, the stereo selective effect of these compounds is exerted with nanomolar concentration on the receptor sites of biomembranes of the central nervous system.
Optimal catheter placement during sonohysterography: a randomized controlled trial comparing cervical to uterine placement.

OBJECTIVE: To estimate whether the position of the catheter placement into either the uterus or cervix during the saline infusion sonohysterography affected the magnitude of pain. METHODS: A clinical trial was conducted with women undergoing saline infusion sonohysterogram randomized to intracervical or intrauterine balloon catheter placement. The primary outcome end points were the degrees of pain experienced after initial inflation and then after deflation of the balloon catheter at the completion of the saline infusion sonohysterogram. Pain was quantified with a 10-point visual analog pain scale. Secondary end points included total time for the saline infusion sonohysterogram and the total volume of infused saline necessary for adequate visualization of the endometrial cavity. RESULTS: Thirty-five patients were randomly assigned to intracervical balloon placement and 34 to intrauterine placement. After initial inflation there was significantly less pain with intracervical than intrauterine balloon placement (1.8 compared with 3.0, P=.02), although there was no difference in pain at the end of the procedure after deflation of the balloon (P=.66). Significantly less infused saline was required with intracervical catheter placement (19 mL compared with 40 mL, P=.001). Nulliparous women had significantly more pain than did parous women, both after initial balloon inflation and at completion of the saline infusion sonohysterogram (P<.05). CONCLUSION: Intracervical catheter placement results in significantly less pain during an saline infusion sonohysterography and also requires half the saline volume to perform the saline infusion sonohysterogram. Therefore, routine intracervical balloon placement should be considered for saline infusion sonohysterogram. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.Gov, www.clinicaltrials.gov, NCT00534963 LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: I.
Fiber path optimization of a symmetric laminate with a cutout for thermal buckling, using a novel finite element algorithm

Automated fiber placement (AFP) technology has pushed for the need to explore nonconventional fiber paths in laminated composites. This paper investigates optimal spatially varying fiber paths in a symmetric linear orthotropic laminate which could increase the critical buckling temperature under uniform applied thermal loads. The key idea here is to achieve gains in buckling performance, yet focus on manufacturability of the obtained optimal fiber path. The subject of this study is a four layer symmetric orthotropic laminated plate, with a central circular cutout that is clamped on all the edges. A novel Finite Element algorithm is proposed which imposes a condition on the definition of discrete fiber angles within each element. The main objectives of the proposed finite element approach are to maintain continuity of the fiber paths, and to use a computationally efficient model by reducing the number of optimization variables.
The Dimensions of Religiosity

The multidimensional approach to the sociology of religion has been heralded as "one of the most significant advances of the past two decades." However, it suffers from a grave lack of precision in its concepts, e.g., belief, creed, experience, practice, etc. On the one hand, it supposes various dimensions, such as cult, knowledge and creed where there exists only one dimension of religion, viz., faith, and its various composites such as ritual and doctrine. The results of this confusion are high coefficients of correlation which suggest that there is really only one dimension. The other fundamental shortcoming is the failure to distinguish between the domain of subjective values, ideals and commitments (viz., solidarity, ideology and morality) on the one side and objective, value-neutral culture systems (viz., the arts, sciences and religion) on the other side. In this case, as the two domains tend to cancel each other out, results remain insignificant and inconclusive. In addition, each dimension is marked by polar opposites, or "pattern variables", which delimit the alternatives between which the individual has to choose such as mysticism and asceticism,empiricism and rationalism, conservatism and radicalism, etc. It is the combinations of alternativesfrom various dimensions which constitute clusters such as the "Protestant" and the "Catholic" ethic.
Analysis of Brucellosis Surveillance in Recent Three Years in Shaanxi

ObjectiveTo analyze the surveillance results of human surveillance place for Brucellosis from 2005 to 2007 and know epidemic situation developments and forecast epidemic situation trends of shaanxi province.MethodsAccording to the work preliminary plan of shaanxi surveillance place for Brucellois. ResultsIn serum examination,the average positive rate of human of threes years was 6.44% ,which fluctulate in 3.49% to 8.79%. The rate of infection was 6.31% and a strain of Brucella was isolated.ConclusionThe Brucellosis of human is rising obviously. Some areas are active and break out.
Age-Related Decline in Immunological Resistance to Infection

The health problems of the world’s elderly population are now, and will continue to be, of global concern. According to World Health Organization (WHO) data, the population of elderly people will grow faster among the populations of the developing, rather than the developed, nations during the foreseeable future. Many of those developing nations may be referred to as “tropical”; in those nations, parasitic diseases have long been a major health problem. Is the prevalence of a parasitic diseases likely to be a significant factor affecting the health of emerging elderly populations in developing tropical countries? There is very little information with which to formulate an answer to that question. There has been almost no interest in the matter of parasitic infections in the aged; it was considered to be of moderate theoretical interest at best. Now, however, it appears that it could become a matter of considerably greater interest, both theoretical and pragmatic.
Understanding health characteristics and cancer screening rates in three urban counties in Tennessee

A4 The purpose of The Meharry Medical College Community Health Centers (CHCs)-Community Networks Program (CNP) is to reduce cancer health disparities among African Americans by conducting community-based participatory research, education, and training in three urban communities in Tennessee (Nashville, Chattanooga, and Memphis). To better understand the cancer-related needs of these communities, data pertaining to health characteristics and behaviors, and cancer preventive tests were compiled from the CDC’s Tennessee Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. Data for the counties containing Nashville (Davidson County), Chattanooga (Hamilton County), and Memphis (Shelby County) were aggregated from 2001 to 2004. The study sample consisted of 3654 residents in these three counties with 39% being African Americans and 69% being female. The results indicated that for all three counties, African Americans had higher rates of obesity (p
Sterics vs Electronics: Revisiting the Catalytic Regioselective Hydrodebromination of 2,3,5-Tribromothiophene

The application of sterically hindered palladium catalysts to the regioselective hydrodebromination of 2,3,5-tribromothiophene has been studied in detail, including the effects of catalyst choice, solvent, reaction time, and temperature, as well as the method of NaBH4 addition and the role of chelating additives to effect NaBH4 solubility. Ultimately it was determined that the background reaction between NaBH4 and bromothiophenes is too facile to allow both total conversion and high selectivity. Optimized conditions finally allowed a selectivity of ca. 16:1 with overall conversion of 100%. However, complications of overdebromination under these conditions still limit the yield of the desired 2,3-dibromothiophene to 65%.