cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Exact analysis of the cache behavior of nested loops

We develop from first principles an exact model of the behavior of loop nests executing in a memory hicrarchy, by using a nontraditional classification of misses that has the key property of composability. We use Presburger formulas to express various kinds of misses as well as the state of the cache at the end of the loop nest. We use existing tools to simplify these formulas and to count cache misses. The model is powerful enough to handle imperfect loop nests and various flavors of non-linear array layouts based on bit interleaving of array indices. We also indicate how to handle modest levels of associativity, and how to perform limited symbolic analysis of cache behavior. The complexity of the formulas relates to the static structure of the loop nest rather than to its dynamic trip count, allowing our model to gain efficiency in counting cache misses by exploiting repetitive patterns of cache behavior. Validation against cache simulation confirms the exactness of our formulation. Our method can serve as the basis for a static performance predictor to guide program and data transformations to improve performance.
Free will eliminativism: reference, error, and phenomenology

Shaun Nichols has recently argued that while the folk notion of free will is associated with error, a question still remains whether the concept of free will should be eliminated or preserved. He maintains that like other eliminativist arguments in philosophy, arguments that free will is an illusion seem to depend on substantive assumptions about reference. According to free will eliminativists, people have deeply mistaken beliefs about free will and this entails that free will does not exist. However, an alternative reaction is that free will does exist, we just have some deeply mistaken beliefs about it. According to Nichols, all such debates boil down to whether or not the erroneous folk term in question successfully refers or not. Since Nichols adopts the view that reference is systematically ambiguous, he maintains that in some contexts it’s appropriate to take a restrictivist view about whether a term embedded in a false theory refers, while in other contexts it’s appropriate to take a liberal view about whether a token of the very same term refers. This, according to Nichols, affords the possibility of saying that the sentence “free will exists” is false in some contexts and true in others. In this paper I argue that even if we grant Nichols his pluralistic approach to reference, there is still good reason to prefer eliminativism to preservationism with regard to free will. My argument focuses on one important difference between the concept of “free will” and other theoretical terms embedded in false theories—i.e., the role that the phenomenology of free agency plays in reference fixing.
Cellular responses to TGFβ and TGFβ receptor expression in human colonic epithelial cells require CaSR expression and function.

Abstract CaSR and TGFβ are robust promoters of differentiation in the colonic epithelium. Loss of cellular responses to TGFβ or loss of CaSR expression is tightly linked to malignant progression. Human colonic epithelial CBS cells, originally developed from a differentiated human colon tumor, retain CaSR expression and function, TGFβ responsiveness and TGFβ receptor expression. Thus, these cells offer a unique opportunity in determining the functional linkage (if any) between CaSR and TGFβ. Knocking down CaSR expression abrogated TGFβ-mediated cellular responses and attenuated the expression of TGFβ receptors. Ca2+ or vitamin D treatment induced CaSR expression with a concurrent up-regulation of TGFβ receptor expression. Ca2+ or vitamin D, however, did not induce CaSR in CaSR knocked down cells and without CaSR; there was no up-regulation of TGFβ receptor. It is concluded that TGFβ receptor expression and TGFβ mediated responses requires CaSR expression and function.
Vasectomy and Prostate Cancer Characteristics of Patients Referred for Prostate Biopsy

ABSTRACTPurpose: The prospect of an association between vasectomy and prostate cancer has gained widespread attention and has potentially influenced patterns of referral. In patients referred for prostate needle biopsies we compared the incidence and characteristics of prostate cancer in those reporting a history of vasectomy to those denying prior vasectomy.Materials and Methods: A total of 585 consecutive prostate biopsy procedures were performed on 522 veterans during a 42-month period. Upon questioning 101 patients (19.3%) reported prior vasectomy. From the remaining 421 patients 202 consecutive age matched controls were selected. Pre-procedure prostate specific antigen levels, digital examination findings, incidence of prostate cancer, cancer grade and tumor length on biopsy cores were compared between the patients with and without a history of vasectomy.Results: Of the 101 patients who reported a history of vasectomy 46 (45.5%) had prostate cancer compared to 98 (48.5%) of the 202 age matched contro...
GENERALIZATION GRADIENTS OF INHIBITION AFTER DIFFERENT AMOUNTS OF TRAINING1

Five groups of pigeons received seven sessions of variable-interval reinforcement for pecking a blank white key, followed by either 1, 2, 4, 8, or 16 sessions of training on a successive discrimination in which the positive stimulus was the blank white key and the negative stimulus was a black vertical line on the white key. After training, a generalization test was administered along the line-tilt continuum. Relative gradients of inhibition became steeper with increased amounts of training, and reliably nonhorizontal absolute gradients were obtained only from groups of subjects with at least four days of training. Therefore, inhibitory stimulus control improves with added training. Several problems with the concept of “inhibition” are examined and some implications of the results for theoretical analyses of operant discrimination learning are discussed.
Effects of mitomycin C on sister chromatid exchange in normal and Bloom's syndrome cells.

Abstract Bloom's syndrome lymphocytes, which are characterized by a high incidence of sister chromatid exchanges (SCE: 80.6 per cell), were treated with mitromycin C (MMC) and the effect of the chemical on SCE frequency compared with that in normal cells. Raising the concentration of MMC from 1 × 10−9 to 1 × 10−7 g/ml led to about 10-fold increase (61.7 SCE per cell) in the SCE frequency over the base line in normal lymphocytes (6.4 SCE per cell), though chromosome aberrations remained at a relatively low frequency. MMC caused about a two-fold rise in SCE in cells of Bloom's syndrome (128.8 SCE at 10−9 g/ml; 139.3 SCE at 10−8 g/ml). The frequency of chromosome aberrations in Bloom's syndrome cells at concentrations of MMC of 1 × 10−9 and 1 × 10−8 g/ml was 0.350 and 0.825 per cell, respectively, and low when compared to the increased number of SCE. The increased frequency of SCE in normal and Bloom's syndrome cells is in contrast to the reported findings with cells from Fanconi's anemia and xeroderma MMC-treated normal cell correlates with that of spontaneous SCE in cells of Bloom's syndrome.
Is one of the ‘peace dividends’ negative? Military expenditure and economic growth in the wealthy OECD countries

Abstract This paper studies the effect of military spending-milex-on economic growth in the wealthy OECD countries. The hypothesis is that increased milex will have a non-linear effect with higher milex associated with faster growth at low levels and slower growth at higher levels. The regression results are consistent with the hypothesis.
Pathophysiology of the gastric dilation‐torsion complex in the dog*

The gastric dilation-torsion complex in the dog involves a series of related pathophysiological changes which may culminate in death if therapy is not promptly initiated. This complex probably starts with gastric dilation which may or may not lead to gastric torsion. Gastric dilation interferes with blood flow through the caudal vena cava as well as the portal vein. Venous return to the heart is decreased, cardiac output decreases, and arterial hypotension ensues. With the onset of this hypotension, the animal is subjected to impairment of tissue perfusion, cellular catabolism, and decreased renal function. In addition, endotoxic shock and disseminated intravascular coagulation may occur. These two processes will likely lead to death of the animal.
Vaccination and passive immunisation against Staphylococcus aureus

Staphylococcus aureus, an important bacterial pathogen in the hospital and the community, has become increasingly resistant to multiple antibiotics. Non-antimicrobial approaches to controlling S. aureus are clearly needed. Because many individuals who are susceptible to staphylococcal infections are not competent to mount an effective immune response, passive as well as active immunisation strategies have been explored. A capsular polysaccharide-based vaccine (StaphVAX) showed promise in an initial phase III trial in haemodialysis patients, but was found to be ineffective in a confirmatory trial. Likewise, a human immunoglobulin G (IgG) preparation known as INH-A21 (Veronate) with elevated levels of antibodies to the staphylococcal surface adhesins ClfA and SdrG made it into phase III testing, where it failed to show a clinical benefit in neonates. A number of novel antigens are in pre-clinical trials, including cell-wall-anchored adhesins, surface polysaccharides and exotoxoids. Given the multiple and sometimes redundant virulence factors of S. aureus that enable it to be such a crafty pathogen, if a vaccine is to prove effective it will of necessity be multicomponent, incorporating a number of surface proteins, toxoids and surface polysaccharides.
Bax is essential for mitochondrion-mediated apoptosis but not for cell death caused by photodynamic therapy

The role of Bax in the release of cytochrome c from mitochondria and the induction of apoptosis has been demonstrated in many systems. Using immunocytochemical staining, we observed that photodynamic therapy (PDT) with the photosensitiser Pc 4 induced Bax translocation from the cytosol to mitochondria, and the release of cytochrome c from mitochondria as early signalling for the intrinsic pathway of apoptosis in human breast cancer MCF-7c3 cells. To test the role of Bax in apoptosis, MCF-7c3 cells were treated with Bax antisense oligonucleotides, which resulted in as much as a 50% inhibition of PDT-induced apoptosis. In the second approach, Bax-negative human prostate cancer DU-145 cells were studied. Following PDT, the hallmarks of apoptosis, including the release of cytochrome c from mitochondria, loss of mitochondrial membrane potential, caspase activation, and chromatin condensation and fragmentation, were completely blocked in these cells. Restoration of Bax expression in DU-145 cells restored apoptosis, indicating that the resistance of DU-145 cells to PDT-induced apoptosis is due to the lack of Bax rather than to another defect in the apoptotic machinery. However, despite the inhibition of apoptosis, the Bax-negative DU-145 cells were as photosensitive as Bax-replete MCF-7c3 cells, as determined by clonogenic assay. Thus, for Pc 4-PDT, the commitment to cell death occurs prior to Bax activation.
Nitric oxide and energy production in articular chondrocytes

Addition of human, recombinant interleukin-1 beta (hrIL-1 beta) to cultures of lapine articular chondrocytes provoked a delayed increase in the production of both nitric oxide (NO) and lactate. These two phenomena followed a similar time course and shared a parallel dose-response sensitivity to hrIL-1 beta. A causal relationship is suggested by the ability of N-monomethyl-L-arginine (NMA), an inhibitor of NO synthase, to blunt the glycolytic response to hrIL-1 beta. Furthermore, addition of S-nitroso-N-acetylpenicillamine (SNAP), which spontaneously generates NO in culture, increased lactate production to the same degree as IL-1. However, 8-Br-cGMP and isobutylmethylxanthine (IBMX) had no effect either in the presence or absence of IL-1. Even under standard, aerobic, cell culture conditions, chondrocytes consumed little oxygen, either in the presence or absence of IL-1 or NMA. Furthermore, cyanide at concentrations up to 100 microM had no effect upon NO synthesis or lactate production. Thus, the increases in glycolysis under study were not secondary to reduced mitochondrial activity. Although cells treated with IL-1 had increased rates of glycolysis, their concentrations of ATP fell below those of untreated chondrocytes in a time-dependent, but NMA-independent, manner. Transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) and synovial cytokines (CAF) also increased lactate production. However, TGF-beta failed to induce NO, and its effect on glycolysis was independent of NMA. Furthermore, cells treated with TGF-beta were not depleted in ATP. These data are consistent with hypotheses that rates of proteoglycan synthesis are, in part, regulated by the intracellular concentration of ATP or by changes in pericellular pH. These two possibilities are not mutually exclusive.
Energy considerations in hysteresis models

The energy dissipated by a magnetic material is computed for both a single particle and an assembly of particles represented by a generalized Preisach model. For an isolated particle, the two components of the energy loss are due to sudden change in the irreversible magnetization and due to the change in the ability of the magnetization to store energy because of the change in state. The former loss is equal to the product of the permeability, the applied field, and the discontinuous magnetization change. It is noted that the size of the discontinuous change in magnetization is generally not equal to the difference of the two remanent magnetizations. These energy loss components carry over into the computation for an assembly of particles. >
Professional environment for knowledge workers: employers' responsibilities

Knowledge workers, including engineers and computer professionals, are recognized as being among the most valuable assets of high-technology employers. The employers' responsibilities in establishing and maintaining a mutually rewarding relationship are discussed. The value of adequate facilities, tools, and support personnel for ensuring competitive productivity by knowledge workers is considered. The employers' responsibility for assisting knowledge workers in avoiding technical obsolescence through programs to maintain technical competence is examined. The total compensation package is discussed along with alternate career paths to be made available. The responsibility of the employer to maintain high moral and ethical standards is stressed. >
Resisting Removal: The Impact of Community Mobilization in Rio de Janeiro

The experiences of communities in Rio de Janeiro under threat of removal through gentrification or mega-event construction present an opportunity to review the process and impact of urban community mobilization. This article assesses the determinants of community strategies, the challenges to implementation, and the impact of mobilization on outcomes for such communities. It reviews the case of Vila Autodromo, detailing the dynamic influence of both rational expectations and the “right to the city” ideology in developing resistance strategies and providing evidence to confirm the importance of social capital and civic capacity for community efficacy. The analysis updates theorizing beyond the politics of clientelism and contributes to understanding how the urban regime approach may apply to the Latin American context, while demonstrating the continued relevance of the political opportunity structure for determining policy outcomes.
The law and who can expose dental radiographs

Abstract Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which untrained, unlicensed, and unregulated auxiliary dental personnel are permitted by law to expose radiographs. Study Design: A survey questionnaire was mailed to the agencies regulating dental practice of the 50 US and 3 regional jurisdictions. Information was requested regarding agency laws regulating who was permitted to prescribe dental radiographs, who was permitted to expose dental radiographs, and who, if anyone, was specifically prohibited. Results: Survey data show that 47.3% of the US population live in jurisdictions that have no regulations prohibiting untrained, unregulated auxiliary dental personnel from exposing patients to ionizing radiation. Conclusions: The clinical implications for private dental practice in this era of expanding use of auxiliary personnel are that the need exists for increased training and formal licensing of all auxiliary personnel involved in dental radiography. (Oral Surg Oral Med Oral Pathol Oral Radiol Endod 2000;90:663-6)
Fast food/organic food: Reflexive tastes and the making of 'yuppie chow'

Organic food consumption is one of several new trends in eating read as active opposition to industrialized food provision. While fast food consumption is characterized by compulsive gluttony, manifest in fat bodies, alternative consumption practices are seen to be driven by conscious reflexivity, such that consumers monitor, reflect upon and adapt their personal conduct in light of its perceived consequences. The purpose of this paper is two-fold. One is to examine the evolution of organic food from what Belasco called the ‘counter-cuisine’ to what organic growers call ‘yuppie chow’, to show how organic salad mix was the carrier of major changes in the organic system of provision, thereby calling into question the notion that organic food is necessarily an antidote to industrialized food. The other is to problematize the facile dichotomies between fast and slow, reflexive and compulsive, fat and thin, and, hence, good and bad eaters, to show where there is slippage and instability in these categories, in addition to a troubling politics of class and gender. To these ends, I showcase the changing provision of a particular organic commodity (salad mix, or mesclun) in California.
Serving Generation 1.5 Learners in the University Writing Center.

S writers attending U.S. colleges and universities generally fall into one of three groups: 1. EFL writers who were educated in their mother tongue (L1) and are learning English as their L2 (often referred to as foreign or international students) 2. ESL writers who are recent immigrants to the United States, often with educational backgrounds in their L1 3. Generation 1.5 writers who are long-term U.S. residents and English learners fluent in spoken English. Harklau, Losey, and Siegal (1999), in their book, titled Generation 1.5 Meets College Composition: Issues in the Teaching of Writing to U.S.-Educated Learners of English, describe the third group as follows:
Cytochrome C-Mediated Apoptosis

Apoptosis, or programmed cell death, is involved in development, elimination of damaged cells, and maintenance of cell homeostasis. Deregulation of apoptosis may cause diseases, such as cancers, immune diseases, and neurodegenerative disorders. Apoptosis is executed by a subfamily of cysteine proteases known as caspases. In mammalian cells, a major caspase activation pathway is the cytochrome c-initiated pathway. In this pathway, a variety of apoptotic stimuli cause cytochrome c release from mitochondria, which in turn induces a series of biochemical reactions that result in caspase activation and subsequent cell death. In this review, we focus on the recent progress in understanding the biochemical mechanisms and regulation of the pathway, the roles of the pathway in physiology and disease, and their potential therapeutic values.
Fluphenazine-Induced Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome in a Schizophrenic Patient

OBJECTIVE:To report a case of neuroleptic malignant syndrome (NMS) associated with fluphenazine in a schizophrenic patient and review the literature related to this condition.CASE SUMMARY:A 21-year-old African American male with schizophrenia came to our medical intensive care unit from the crisis intervention unit (CIU). He was hyperthermic (oral temperature 40.6 °C), diaphoretic, tachycardic (heart rate 140 beats/min), and tachypneic (respiratory rate 22 breaths/min), with severe muscle rigidity and shaking tremors. He had an extensive psychiatric history significant for schizophrenia and multiple past hospital admissions, starting at age 14 years. Two days prior to admission to the CIU, he had been given 25 mg of fluphenazine decanoate injection intramuscularly in addition to his regular psychotropic regimen of thioridazine and haloperidol after reportedly making several verbal threats and displaying aggressive behavior toward the personnel at the group home where he resided. Laboratory studies showed ...
Not second class: the first class II MHC crystal structure.

Classical MHC proteins come in two flavors: class I and class II. In some ways, it can seem that class I MHC molecules have lots of advantages over class II: class I molecules are expressed on almost all cells instead of just a subset of immune cells and are recognized by exciting and dangerous “killer” T cells, whereas class II molecules are targeted by seemingly more benign “helper” T cells. However, class II MHC molecules have their own story to tell, and the first crystal structure of a class II MHC protein (1), solved in 1993, was no exception.
Substorm onset timing via traveltime magnetoseismology

[1] This letter introduces a traveltime magnetoseismic technique that can estimate the substorm onset time in the magnetotail from multi-point observations of Pi 2 pulsations. The arrival time of Pi 2, which is defined as the first peak in Pi 2 amplitude, observed by ground magnetometers presents a strong function of latitude. Using the Tamao traveltime as the forward model, the magnetoseismic inversion from the observed Pi 2 arrival time infers that the onset of the 22 July 1998 substorm in the magnetotail started at X ∼ −20 RE at 6:53:10 UT, or 1–3 minutes earlier than the Pi 2 onset time conventionally identified in ground records. The magnetoseismic result is further compared with the observations of auroral brightening, revealing a clear sequence of events during this substorm.
Overworked Individuals or Overworked Families? Explaining Trends in Work, Leisure, and Family Time

Although debates over the growth of work-family conflict tend to center on the experiences of employed parents and dual-earner couples, analyses of trends in working time typically focus on individ...
Effective shear and extensional viscosities of concentrated disordered suspensions of rigid particles.

We study effective shear viscosity � ⋆ and effective extensional viscosity λ ⋆ of concentrated non-colloidal suspensions of rigid spherical particles. The focus is on the spatially disordered arrays, but periodic arrays are considered as well. We use recently developed discrete network approximation techniques to obtain asymptotic formulas for � ⋆ and λ ⋆ as the typical interparticle distance δ tends to zero, assuming that the fluid flow is governed by Stokes equations. For disordered arrays, the volume fraction alone does not determine the effective viscosity. Use of the network approximation allows us to study the dependence of � ⋆ and λ ⋆ on variable distances between neighboring particles in such arrays. Our analysis, carried out for a two-dimensional model, can be characterized as global because it goes beyond the local analysis of flow between two particles and takes into account hydrodynamical interactions in the entire particle array. Previously, asymptotic formulas for � ⋆ and λ ⋆ were obtained via asymptotic analysis of lubrication effects in a single thin gap between two closely spaced particles. The principal conclusion in the paper is that, in general, asymptotic formulas for � ⋆ and λ ⋆ obtained by global analysis are different from the formulas obtained from local analysis. In particular, we show that the leading term in the asymptotics of � ⋆ is of lower order than suggested by the local analysis (weak blow up), while the order of the leading term in the asymptotics of λ ⋆ depends on the geometry of the particle array (either weak or strong blow up). We obtain geometric conditions on a random particle array under which the asymptotic order of λ ⋆ coincides with the order of the local dissipation in a gap between two neighboring particles, and show that these conditions are generic. We also provide an example of a uniformly closely packed particle array for which the leading term in the asymptotics of λ ⋆ degenerates (weak blow up).
Police Sector Design Incorporating Preferences of Interest Groups for Equality and Efficiency

This paper proposes and illustrates by example a decision model for a resource allocation problem in urban management---the design of service areas for police mobile units. Estimates of the performance of alternative designs are given by existing analytic models of spatially distributed emergency service systems. Using multiattribute utility theory, alternatives are evaluated according to the preferences for efficiency and equality of service of three interest groups: citizens, police, and administrators. Meaningful measures of inequality are developed and an algorithm is created for generating improved sector designs.
Embodiments of “Struggle”: The Melancholy, Loss, and Interactions with Print of Two “Struggling Readers”

This article examines the significance of the “struggling reader” identity on students' classroom experiences. Drawing upon sociocultural theories of literacy, performance theories of education, and psychosocial qualities of identity, I argue that such an identity is felt, lived, and embodied throughout students' daily interactions. Once identified as struggling readers, students internalized a sense of loss and exclusion while reading in the classroom and attempted to reposition themselves as readers through various embodied performances with print.
From Paris to the Paris of the East and Back: Workers As Citizens in Modern Shanghai

Workers have figured prominently in a series of political confrontations that have changed the face of modern China. From the May Fourth Movement of 1919 to the June Fourth Massacre of 1989, working-class participation has proven critical. Although these famous milestones in Chinese history are, for good reason, usually regarded as student—rather than labor—protests, the involvement of members of the working class was far from incidental. The spectacle of workers marching outside their factory gates to engage in protest not simply as laborers, but also as citizens, has been a notable feature of Chinese contentious politics at critical junctures throughout the twentieth century. This phenomenon, moreover, carries implications that extend beyond the borders of China itself. Worker participation in the watersheds of Chinese political history turn out to hold international ramifications as well.
A Critical Examination of the Environmental Mastery Scale

The Psychological well being Inventory (PWBI) is a multidimensional instrument that has enjoyed widespread use in a variety of research initiatives, from small-scale studies to national surveys. Recent empirical investigation of the measure has raised questions about its validity. This study examines the factorial validity of the Environmental Mastery Scale of the PWBI, a construct that receives much attention in mental health research. The results of a confirmatory factor analysis did not support the unidimensional factor structure of the measure. Correlated uniqueness models were also examined, which did not reveal evidence of a method effect. There are problems with the measure at the item level, which also raises significant questions about the underlying theory of its parent measure.
The Influence of Probe-Tone Parameters on the Shape of Psychophysical Tuning Curves in Normal-Hearing Listeners

Psychophysical tuning curves have become increasingly important in furthering the interpretation of traditional masking data. Although a substantial amount of relatively new information is availabl...
A Critical Evaluation of the Status of Crinoids Studied by Dr. Gerard Troost (1776–1850)

The systematic position of taxa from the work of Gerard Troost has been confused and many have not been properly credited. Complete synonymy listings of Troost names indicate that the author and date of many names need revision, including several taxa that can finally be credited to Troost.
Resolution Costs and the Business Cycle

There are a number of factors that may contribute to the cost of resolving a failed bank. In this paper we study the behavior of the costs of resolving a failed bank as those costs change over the business cycle. We find evidence that the costs are related to the state of the business cycle. Both the contraction and the expansion that preceded it appear to be important in explaining the loss that the FDIC experiences when a bank fails. In addition, a number of other bank-specific variables appear to be linked to loss rates for a failed institution.
SPECT Imaging of 2-D and 3-D Distributed Sources with Near-Field Coded Aperture Collimation: Computer Simulation and Real Data Validation

The imaging of distributed sources with near-field coded aperture (CA) remains extremely challenging and is broadly considered unsuitable for single-photon emission computerized tomography (SPECT). This study proposes a novel CA SPECT reconstruction approach and evaluates the feasibilities of imaging and reconstructing distributed hot sources and cold lesions using near-field CA collimation and iterative image reconstruction. Computer simulations were designed to compare CA and pinhole collimations in two-dimensional radionuclide imaging. Digital phantoms were created and CA images of the phantoms were reconstructed using maximum likelihood expectation maximization (MLEM). Errors and the contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) were calculated and image resolution was evaluated. An ex vivo rat heart with myocardial infarction was imaged using a micro-SPECT system equipped with a custom-made CA module and a commercial 5-pinhole collimator. Rat CA images were reconstructed via the three-dimensional (3-D) MLEM algorithm developed for CA SPECT with and without correction for a large projection angle, and 5-pinhole images were reconstructed using the commercial software provided by the SPECT system. Phantom images of CA were markedly improved in terms of image quality, quantitative root-mean-squared error, and CNR, as compared to pinhole images. CA and pinhole images yielded similar image resolution, while CA collimation resulted in fewer noise artifacts. CA and pinhole images of the rat heart were well reconstructed and the myocardial perfusion defects could be clearly discerned from 3-D CA and 5-pinhole SPECT images, whereas 5-pinhole SPECT images suffered from severe noise artifacts. Image contrast of CA SPECT was further improved after correction for the large projection angle used in the rat heart imaging. The computer simulations and small-animal imaging study presented herein indicate that the proposed 3-D CA SPECT imaging and reconstruction approaches worked reasonably well, demonstrating the feasibilities of achieving high sensitivity and high resolution SPECT using near-field CA collimation.
Cross analysis of whole genome deep sequencing data reveals over-presence of nonintronic insertions and deletions (INDELs)

The advent of high-throughput whole genome/exome sequencing has provided opportunities in studying genetic variations and diseases at the individual nucleotide level. A number of approaches have been published describing methods that align next-generation sequencing reads and identify genetic variants. However, existing variant calling and annotation algorithms have limitations in reporting true variants for an individual genome due to their insufficient functionalities and features. Given the high importance of variants that map to exons and promoters or to nonintronic variants, we developed a ranking score function (R-Score) pipeline to prioritise nonintronic variants across multiple samples or individuals by taking into consideration sequencing coverage, homozygosity, and base calling quality of identified variants. By analysing deep high-throughput sequencing data for 17 members of the Coriell CEPH/UTAH 1463 family pedigree using the R-Score pipeline, we examined the prevalence of scored nonintronic insertions and deletions (INDELs) across multiple individuals.
Size and shape characterization of thermoreversible micelles of three-armed star elastin-like polypeptides.

Three-armed star elastin-like polypeptides are shown to have the capability of self-assembling into micellar constructs at certain environmental conditions. Here, a study of the size distribution, shape, and molecular weight of these micelles at different salt concentrations and pH values is presented. Multiangle dynamic light scattering was used to study the formation, reversibility, and size of the micelles at different environmental conditions. On the basis of the salt concentration of the solution, two distinct size distribution regimes and a transition region were observed. Static light scattering was performed to study the molecular weight and geometrical anisotropy of the micelles in each regime. The anisotropic behavior and elongation of the particles were independently confirmed by depolarized dynamic light scattering, and a model for micelles at each regime was proposed. The size and molecular weight of the micelles were verified using viscosity measurements. The results of this study suggest th...
Lattice Mismatch Effects in Gaas Epitaxy on Si and GaP

GaAs has been grown on (100) and (111) Si and GaP substrates by MOCVD during the same run at a substrate temperature of 550°C. The defect structure of the interface and the epitaxial GaAs layers has been analysed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Depending on the substrate type and orientation different defects and defect orientations were observed which can be attributed to different types of misfit dislocations and the thermal mismatch between the two materials.
Efficient Gene Transfer and Durable Transgene Expression in Grafted Rabbit Veins

Abstract Venous bypass grafts are useful treatments for obstructive coronary artery disease. However, their usefulness is limited by accelerated atherosclerosis. Genetic engineering of venous bypass grafts that prevented atherosclerosis could improve long-term graft patency and clinical outcomes. We used a rabbit model of jugular vein-to-carotid interposition grafting to develop gene therapy for vein-graft atherosclerosis. Rabbit veins were easily transduced in situ with a first-generation adenoviral vector; however, most transgene expression (∼80%) was lost within 3 days after arterial grafting. This rapid loss of transgene expression was not prevented by transducing veins after grafting or by prolonged ex vivo transduction. However, delaying vein-graft transduction for 28 days (after the vein had adapted to the arterial circulation) prevented this early loss of transgene expression. We used the delayed transduction approach to test the durability of expression of a therapeutic transgene (apolipoprotein ...
Entrepreneurial Team Diversity and Performance: An Investigation of What and How

In entrepreneurship research there is growing interest in the diversity of entrepreneurial teams because of their potential to shape new business growth. However, research on the relationship between different type of team diversity and entrepreneurial team performance remains inconsistent and inconclusive; especially empirical studies exploring the effect of personality diversity on entrepreneurial team performance are very rare. Using 144 teams in a university entrepreneurial park, this study investigated: (1) what type diversity affects entrepreneurial team performance; and (2) how does the effect occur. Three major findings emerged from this study. First, functional specialty diversity can improve entrepreneurial team performance. Skill diversity can improve entrepreneurial team performance only when leadership is shared among team members. Second, team members’ personalities matter; the effects of personality on entrepreneurial team diversity differ across the Big-5 personality traits. Third, shared ...
Assessing the Real-to-Artificial Generalizability of Multiattribute Attitude Models in Tests of New Product Designs:

The authors investigate the neglected problem of generalizing from multiattribute attitude models based on data for actual brands of real products to reach conclusions on affective responses toward...
College students tuberculosis,AIDS KAP characteristics research

Objective To understand the disease awareness of both AIDS and tuberculosis( TB) in college students,and to provide basis for efficiently carrying out infectious disease healthcare education and promotion in colleges and universities.Methods Doing questionnaire investigation in 181 college students. Results The disease awareness of TB and AIDS has not been achieved the control goal of 85% and 90%,respectively,according to relevant laws and regulations in college students.Conclusion The education of TB and AIDS remains need to be further implemented. In order to form healthy behavior and facilitate controlling infectious disease,we should increase the infectious disease awareness in colleges in accordance with the relevant requirements. We also should strengthen the cooperation with the healthcare sectors,cover healthcare education activities,create a healthy campus environment,and reduce the incidence of TB and AIDS in colleges and universities.
The tensions between facts and fantasy

Essay Review of: Laura Snyder, Eye of the Beholder: Johannes Vermeer, Antoni van Leeuwenhoek, and the Reinvention of Seeing (New York: W. W. Norton 2015) ISBN 0393077462, 448 pp, ill., $ 27.95.
EFFECTS OF PRECIPITATION AND AIR TEMPERATURE ON NITROGEN DISCHARGES FROM RHODE RIVER WATERSHEDS

We studied discharges of total-N, nitrate, ammonium, and total organic-N from seven contiguous small watersheds on the Atlantic Coastal Plain in Maryland for up to 25 yr. These watersheds have perched aquifers so all groundwater discharges as well as surface runoff were measured at V-notch weirs which included volume-integrating flow-proportional samplers. Interannual variations in annual and seasonal precipitation during this study spanned approximately the range of 160 yr weather records in the region. Annual total-N area yields from the overall watershed varied nine-fold, correlations of all N-parameter discharges with precipitation were highly significant, and power function regressions of precipitation vs N-discharge explained from 36 to 59% of the variance. Nitrogen fluxes from a cropland watershed were much higher and more variable with volume of precipitation, while fluxes from a forested watershed were much lower and were primarily composed of organic-N. Correlations of N-fluxes with precipitation were higher in the winter and spring. Annual and seasonal N-concentrations also often increased significantly with precipitation. Variations in seasonal air temperature sometimes explained significant amounts of variance in N-discharges, especially ammonium. A model composed of regressions was used to construct graphical and tabular summaries.
Climate Change, Development and Mitigation

In previous chapters, I have argued against some of the skeptical challenges to the idea that principles of egalitarian distributive justice apply globally. Two prominent kinds of challenges have especially concerned me, the claims of coercion theorists in Chapter 2 and the claims of cultural pluralists in Chapter 4. My criticisms of these views in the earlier chapters focused on the extent to which principles of egalitarian justice could be applied globally in light of increasing global economic integration. The case against inequality is, however, much stronger than those arguments acknowledged. Anthropogenic climate change has created a context in which questions of the justice of global burden sharing cannot plausibly be ignored. Indeed, I shall argue that anthropogenic climate change is important to global justice both because of the effects that climate change will have on the poor and vulnerable of the world and because of the threat that a treaty to mitigate climate change poses to the development aims of the developing and underdeveloped world.
An approach to studying the neural correlates of reserve.

The goal of this paper is to review my current understanding of the concepts of cognitive reserve (CR), brain reserve and brain maintenance, and to describe our group’s approach to using imaging to study their neural basis. I present a working model for utilizing data regarding brain integrity, clinical status, cognitive activation and CR proxies to develop analyses that can explore the neural basis of cognitive reserve and brain maintenance. The basic model assumes that the effect of brain changes on cognition is mediated by task-related activation. We treat CR as a moderator to understand how task-related activation might vary as a function of CR, or how CR might operate independently of these differences in task-related activation. My hope is that this presentation will spark discussion across groups that study these concepts, allowing us to come to some common agreement on definitions, methodology and approaches.
Fundamental ontological structure: an argument against pluralism

In recent years, a hierarchical view of reality has become extremely influential. In order to understand the world as a whole, on this view, we need to understand the nature of the fundamental constituents of the world. We also need to understand the relations that build the world up from these fundamental constituents. Building pluralism is the view that there are at least two equally fundamental relations that together build the world. It has been widely, though tacitly, assumed in a variety of important metaphysical debates. However, my primary aim in this paper is to argue that this has been a mistake. I will show that serious problems concerning the relationship between building and fundamentality afflict pluralism and are likely fatal to it. I claim that, for better or worse, our best hope is building singularism, the view that there is a single most fundamental building relation. I conclude by examining the advantage that singularist accounts enjoy over their pluralist rivals.
The design and development of the shieldless vacuum interrupter concept

This paper briefly discusses the design and development of the shieldless vacuum interrupter concept as conceived by Vacuum Interrupters Limited (VIL) in London in the early 1980?s. The introduction of the shieldless concept was a radical departure from all previous designs and was driven by a change in design philosophy. Previously vacuum interrupter designs were complex and used a complicated multistage manufacturing process. The new design philosophy reduced the man-hours required to manufacture a vacuum interrupter by over 50% and reduced the number of components to be assembled (excluding braze material) from 16 to 7 . The success of the design is shown by the fact that over a quarter of a million devices have been manufactured to date by GEC (later ALSTOM, then AREVA) plants around the world, and after twenty years the shieldless design is still in manufacture, unchanged.
Venous thromboembolism in pediatric trauma patients: Ten-year experience and long-term follow-up in a tertiary care center.

Background Pediatric trauma patients are at high risk for development of venous thromboembolism (VTE). Our objective is to describe incidence, risk factors, and timing of development of VTE, anticoagulation complications, and long-term VTE outcomes in a critically injured pediatric population. Procedure We did a retrospective review of pediatric (0–17 years) trauma admissions to intensive care unit from 2005 to 2014. Our center employs VTE screening and prevention protocols for high-risk patients based on hypercoagulable history, age, injuries, and medical interventions. We collected demographics, VTE prevention measures, VTE incidence, therapeutic anticoagulant use, and outcomes including postthrombotic syndrome (PTS) and clot resolution. Analysis included Wilcoxon rank–sum, Fisher exact, and logistic regression modeling. Results Seven hundred fifty-three subjects were analyzed. No patients on chemical prophylaxis (21/753) developed VTE. Overall incidence of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) was 8.9%; pulmonary embolism (PE) was 0%. Time to diagnosis was median (interquartile range [IQR]) 10.5 (6.5–14.5) days, with 63% of clots being symptomatic. Risk factors for VTE development included severe traumatic brain injury (TBI), acute traumatic coagulopathy (defined by elevated admission international normalized ratio), age less than or equal to 3 or age 13 years or more, injury severity, and child abuse mechanism. At a median (IQR) follow-up of 13 (6–19) months, 52.1% had persistent clot and 15.8% had PTS. Therapeutic anticoagulation was not associated with clot resolution or prevention of PTS. Conclusion TBI therapy is closely linked to the development of DVT. Coagulopathy on admission is associated with hypercoagulability in the postinjury period, suggesting a patient phenotype with systemic coagulation dysregulation. Treatment was not associated with improved VTE outcomes, suggesting that pediatric protocols should emphasize VTE prevention and prophylaxis strategies.
Radiative Exchange Between Partially Specular Gray Surfaces

In the previous two chapters it was assumed that all surfaces constituting the enclosure are—besides being gray—diffuse emitters as well as diffuse reflectors of radiant energy. Diffuse emission is nearly always an acceptable simplification. The assumption of diffuse reflection, on the other hand, often leads to considerable error, since many surfaces deviate substantially from this behavior. Electromagnetic wave theory predicts reflection to be specular for optically smooth surfaces, i.e., to reflect light like a mirror. All clean metals, many nonmetals such as glassy materials, and most polished materials display strong specular reflection peaks. Nevertheless, they all, to some extent, reflect somewhat into other directions as a result of their surface roughness. Surfaces may appear dull (i.e., diffusely reflecting) to the eye, but are rather specular in the infrared, since the ratio of every surface's root-mean-square roughness to wavelength decreases with increasing wavelength.
Optimizing multi-image sort-last parallel rendering

Sort-last parallel rendering can be improved by considering the rendering of multiple images at a time. Most parallel rendering algorithms consider the generation of only a single image. This makes sense when performing interactive rendering where the parameters of each rendering are not known until the previous rendering completes. However, in situ visualization often generates multiple images that do not need to be created sequentially. In this paper we present a simple and effective approach to improving parallel image generation throughput by amortizing the load and overhead among multiple image renders. Additionally, we validate our approach by conducting a performance study exploring the achievable speed-ups in a variety of image-based in situ use cases and rendering workloads. On average, our approach shows a 1.5 to 3.7 fold improvement in performance, and in some cases, shows a 10 fold improvement.