cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
125 Changing Environmental Conditions and Changes in the Abundances of Rocky Intertidal Seaweeds on Southern California Shores

Environmental conditions have changed along the southern California coast during the past five decades. The human population has greatly expanded, and coastal habitats have become increasingly influenced by human activities. In addition, coastal waters have been subjected to shifts in ocean climate, including the regime shift of the 1970s that affected coastal plankton, fish, and sea bird populations. Changes in the abundances of intertidal seaweeds during this nearly fifty-year period are less well known. The earliest available data for tracking seaweed abundances were obtained by E. Y. Dawson in the late 1950s. During the mid-1970s, Mark Littler and colleagues performed a series of more intensive ecological studies at additional southern California sites. We re-sampled fourteen of these rocky intertidal sites between 1998 and 2002 to determine changes in seaweed abundances since the mid-1970s. All sites were sampled using line transect or plot-based methods similar to those used by earlier investigators. Our abundance data were then compared with values reported from the late 1950s through the mid-1970s for the same study sites. We found that macrophyte communities at many of our sites have become increasingly dominated by low-producing, crustose and articulated coralline algae and turf-forming seaweeds. During this same period, cover of several larger, and more productive, frondose algae declined. These shifts in seaweed abundances appear to have changed the structure and functioning of southern California intertidal communities through changes in the principal contributors to community primary productivity and reductions in the availability of habitat provided by algal canopies.
Physician specialty is significantly associated with hormone replacement therapy use.

Abstract Objective To compare the characteristics of postmenopausal women seen by gynecologists versus family physicians and to determine factors associated with current hormone replacement therapy (HRT) use. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional study of 426 postmenopausal women seen for their annual examination at university clinics. Logistic regression was used to identify predictors of current versus never HRT use. Results Overall, 60% of women recruited in family practice clinics and 69% in gynecology clinics were current HRT users. Significant, positive, multivariable predictors of HRT use were gynecology versus family practice clinic attendance (odds ratio [OR] 2.6, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.4, 4.6), surgical menopause (OR 2.3, 95% CI 1.2, 4.6), history of depression (OR 2.3, 95% CI 1.2, 4.7), at least two live births (OR 2.1, 95% CI 1.1, 4.0), and current alcohol use (OR 1.8, 95% CI 1.04, 3.2). Significant, negative, multivariable predictors were increasing age (60–70 years versus less than 60 years, OR 0.4, 95% CI 0.2, 0.8; 70 years or older versus less than 60 years, OR 0.4, 95% CI 0.2, 0.9) and history of breast cancer (OR 0.04, 95% CI 0.01, 0.14). Sociodemographic factors, smoking status, number of self-reported medical conditions, number of prescription medications besides HRT, oral contraceptive use, history of hypertension, and exercise level were tested as covariates and did not enter the model. Conclusion Although current HRT use rates between clinics were similar and higher than national averages, we found that the adjusted odds of current HRT use among women receiving care from gynecologists was 2.6 times that among women receiving care from family physicians. This practice variation may reflect physicians’ uncertainty surrounding the preventive value of HRT.
Evening hyperphagia and food motivation: a preliminary study of neural mechanisms.

Evening hyperphagia (EH; consumption of ≥ 25% of total daily calories after the evening meal) is a circadian delay in the pattern of daily food intake and is a core criterion of night eating syndrome (Allison et al., 2010). This preliminary study examined the brain response to food cues using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in seven obese adults with EH compared to seven obese adults without EH. When contrasting food to non-food and blurry baseline images pre-meal, groups differed in brain activation in the inferior frontal gyrus, precentral gyrus, cingulate gyrus, superior temporal gyrus and cerebellum. At post meal, groups differed in brain activation in the fusiform gyrus, inferior frontal gyrus, inferior parietal lobule and the cerebellum. Significant interactions between time (pre-meal, post-meal) and group (EH, control) when contrasting food to non-food images were also noted in the inferior frontal gyrus and the superior temporal gyrus. Further research is necessary to replicate these findings and determine if they have a mechanistic role in the development of circadian delayed eating behavior in obese adults with EH.
Analysis of Flexibility and Hotspots in Bcl-xL and Mcl-1 Proteins for the Design of Selective Small-Molecule Inhibitors

Although Bcl-xL and Mcl-1, two antideath Bcl-2 members, have similar, flexible binding sites, they can achieve high binding selectivity to endogenous binding partners and synthetic small-molecule inhibitors. Here, we employed molecular dynamic (MD) simulations and hotspot analysis to investigate the conformational flexibility of these proteins and their binding hotspots at the binding sites. Backbone flexibility analyses indicate that the highest degree of flexibility in Mcl-1 is the α4 helical segment as opposed to the α3 helix in Bcl-xL among four helical segments in their binding sites. Furthermore, common and unique binding hotspots at both proteins were identified using small-molecule probes. These analyses can aid the design of potent and specific small-molecule inhibitors for these proteins.
Three-Dimensional Simulation of Liquid Water Distribution in a PEMFC with Experimentally Measured Capillary Functions

Modeling of liquid water distribution in polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) is challenged by uncertainties in characterizing the two-phase transport properties of the porous transport layer (PTL) and the catalyst layer (CL). Capillary pressure, representing both pore structures and wetting features of the porous media, is a key factor in controlling liquid water transport and distribution in the porous electrode of PEMFCs. By incorporating experimentally measured capillary pressure functions, a single-domain, three-dimensional, and two-phase transport model was developed to predict liquid water saturation in the PTL and CL of a PEMFC with long straight channels, where the two-phase flow complications were minimized at practical stoichiometry. In the cathode CL, the liquid water saturation was found to be higher under the channel than that under the ribs at high current densities. In the cathode PTL, however, the liquid water saturation level was observed to be lower under the channel than that under the ribs. At high current densities, the average water saturation levels are insensitive to current density and fall in the range of 0.4-0.5 in the CL and 0.2-0.3 in the PTL. Finally, the effects of liquid water on oxygen transport and cell performance were investigated.
Self-efficacy enhancing intervention increases light physical activity in people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

This is a copy of an article published in the International Journal of COPD © 2014 Dove Medical Press.
Construct Validity of the PASS Theory and CAS: Correlations With Achievement.

The relationship among Planning, Attention, Simultaneous, and Successive (PASS) processing scores of the Cognitive Assessment System (CAS) and the Woodcock-Johnson Revised Tests of Achievement (WJ-R) were examined with a sample of 1,559 students aged 5-17 years. Participants were part of the CAS standardization sample and closely represented the U.S. population on a number of important demographic variables. Pearson product-moment correlation between CAS Full Scale and the WJ-R Skills cluster was .71 for the Standard and .70 for the Basic CAS Battery scores, providing evidence for the construct validity of the CAS. The CAS correlated with achievement as well if not better than tests of general intelligence. The amount of variance in the WJ-R scores the CAS accounted for increased with age between 5- to 13-year-olds. The 4 PASS scale scores cumulatively accounted for slightly more of the WJ-R variance than the CAS Full Scale score.
Mass transfer in the core-annular and fast fluidization flow regimes of a CFB

Abstract In gas–solid reactors, particularly circulating fluidized beds (CFB) it is becoming increasingly more important to be able to predict the conversion and yield of reactant species given the ever rising cost of the reactants and the ever decreasing acceptable level of effluent contaminants. As such, the development and use of predictive models for the reactors is necessary for most processes today. These models all take into account, in some manner, the interphase mass transfer. The model developer, unless equipped with specific experimentally based empirical correlations for the reactor system under consideration, is required to go to the open literature to obtain correlations for the mass transfer coefficient between the solid and gas phases. This is a difficult task at present, since these literature values differ by up to 7 orders of magnitude. The wide variation in the prediction of mass transfer coefficients in the existing literature is credited to flow regime differences that can be identified in the cited literature upon careful inspection. A new theory is developed herein that takes into account the local hydrodynamics. The resulting model is compared with data generated in the NETL cold flow test facility and with values from the literature. The new theory and the experimental data agree quite well, providing a fundamentally based mass transfer model for predictive reactor simulation codes.
Gene therapy for meniscal injury: enhanced synthesis of proteoglycan and collagen by meniscal cells transduced with a TGFβ1gene

Objective To determine whether meniscal cells can express a TGFbeta(1)transgene delivered by a retroviral vector, and respond to the gene product by increasing matrix synthesis. Methods Monolayer cultures of human and canine meniscal cells were infected with retroviruses carrying either a human TGFbeta(1)cDNA or marker genes. Conditioned media were assayed for the presence of TGFbeta(1). Biosynthesis assays using radiolabeled precursors were employed to determine the effects of the transgenes on the synthesis of proteoglycan, collagen and noncollagenous proteins. Collagen phenotyping was performed by SDS-PAGE. Results Media conditioned by canine and human meniscal cells transduced with the TGFbeta(1)gene, accumulated several nanograms/10(6)cells of TGFbeta(1)during a 48 h incubation. Media conditioned by control cells contained very little TGFbeta(1). Transduction with the TGFbeta(1)gene, but not marker genes, increased the synthesis of collagen and proteoglycan by 8-15-fold. The synthesis of noncollagenous proteins was enhanced more modestly. Monolayers of meniscal cells synthesized types I, III, V and VI collagen. The TGFbeta(1)gene increased the synthesis of all types of collagen without altering the ratios between them. Conclusions Meniscal cells are readily transduced by retroviral vectors and respond to the transfer of a TGFbeta(1)cDNA by greatly increasing matrix synthesis. These findings encourage the further development of genetic approaches to the healing of meniscal lesions.
Culturally and Linguistically Relevant Readalouds

The teacher readaloud is an instructional tool established in its ability to foster children's language and literacy development. Increasing cultural and linguistic diversity and changing standards place pressure on teachers to provide literacy and language instruction relevant to children's everyday lives and learning. This article presents a framework for conducting culturally and linguistically relevant readalouds within two essential components, talk and text, in terms of developing cultural competence, maintaining high academic expectations, and fostering a critical stance. Particular attention is given to the interactive nature of these readalouds and how they can be used to promote children's active co-construction of textually-based meaning.
The composition and structural state of feldspar from chondritic meteorites

Abstract Electron microprobe analysis and X-ray diffraction techniques were used to determine the chemical compositions and structural states of feldspar in recrystallized (Type 6) chondritic meteorites from the L, LL, H, and E Groups. The feldspar in these meteorites is a secondary reerystallization product and is commonly partially or wholly converted to maskelynite. The feldspars are rich in the albite (Ab) end-member, containing small amounts of anorthite (An) and orthoclase (Or). Their compositions cluster near Ab82An12Or6 for H Group chondrites, Ab84An10Or6 for L Group chondrites, and Ab81An15Or4 for Enstatite chondrites. The compositional clusters for these three groups are essentially discrete and non-overlapping; ±1 mole per cent ranges on the An and Or contents will include most chondrites belonging to any given group. This compositional uniformity of feldspar within a single group reflects the bulk chemical uniformity of chondrites within a group, and the differences in feldspar composition from group to group are probably due to primary elemental fractionations. The feldspar from LL Group chondrites also has a narrow range of An content (10.0–10.5 mole per cent), but has a range in Or content from 0.9 to 5.2 mole per cent that is a consequence of varying bulk potassium contents within this group. X-ray diffraction patterns of crystalline feldspar from chondrites yield values of [2θ(131) –2θ(1 3 1)] = 1.75 ± 0.10° indicating a high-intermediate structural state. Unit cell refinements were carried out for some samples, and consideration of the cell angle γ puts the structural state in the high to high-intermediate range. Although such structural states are indicative of high equilibration temperatures (650–850°C), the fact that chondritic feldspars are still in the high-temperature state does not preclude cooling of these meteorites over 106-108 yr within asteroidal sized bodies. Finally, all of our observations and data are consistent with earlier suggestions that maskelynite is produced by shock.
The DOE Accelerated Strategic Computing Initiative: Challenges and opportunities for predictive materials simulation capabilities

In response to the unprecedented national security challenges derived from the end of nuclear testing, the Defense Programs of the Department of Energy has developed a long-term strategic plan based on a vigorous Science-Based Stockpile Stewardship (SBSS) program. The main objective of the SBSS program is to ensure confidence in the performance, safety, and reliability of the stockpile on the basis of a fundamental science-based approach. A central element of this approach is the development of predictive, full-physics, full-scale computer simulation tools. As a critical component of the SBSS program, the Accelerated Strategic Computing Initiative (ASCI) was established to provide the required advances in computer platforms and to enable predictive, physics-based simulation technologies. Foremost among the key elements needed to develop predictive simulation capabilities, the development of improved physics-based materials models has been universally identified as one of the highest-priority, highest-leverage activity. We indicate some of the materials modeling issues of relevance to stockpile materials and illustrate how the ASCI program will enable the tools necessary to advance the state-of-the-art in the field of computational condensed matter and materials physics.
A brief intervention reduces hazardous and harmful drinking in emergency department patients.

Study objective Brief interventions have been shown to reduce alcohol use and improve outcomes in hazardous and harmful drinkers, but evidence to support their use in emergency department (ED) patients is limited. The use of research assessments in studies of brief interventions may contribute to uncertainty about their effectiveness. Therefore we seek to determine (1) if an emergency practitioner-performed Brief Negotiation Interview or a Brief Negotiation Interview with a booster reduces alcohol consumption compared with standard care; and (2) the impact of research assessments on drinking outcomes using a standard care-no-assessment group. Methods We randomized 889 adult ED patients with hazardous and harmful drinking. A total of 740 received an emergency practitioner–performed Brief Negotiation Interview (n=297), a Brief Negotiation Interview with a 1-month follow-up telephone booster (Brief Negotiation Interview with booster) (n=295), or standard care (n=148). We also included a standard care with no assessments (n=149) group to examine the effect of assessments on drinking outcomes. Primary outcomes analyzed with mixed-models procedures included past 7-day alcohol consumption and 28-day binge episodes at 6 and 12 months, collected by interactive voice response. Secondary outcomes included negative health behaviors and consequences collected by telephone surveys. Results The reduction in mean number of drinks in the past 7 days from baseline to 6 and 12 months was significantly greater in the Brief Negotiation Interview with booster (from 20.4 [95% confidence interval {CI} 18.8 to 22.0] to 11.6 [95% CI 9.7 to 13.5] to 13.0 [95% CI 10.5 to 15.5]) and Brief Negotiation Interview (from 19.8 [95% CI 18.3 to 21.4] to 12.7 [95% CI 10.8 to 14.6] to 14.3 [95% CI 11.9 to 16.8]) than in standard care (from 20.9 [95% CI 18.7 to 23.2] to 14.2 [95% CI 11.2 to 17.1] to 17.6 [95% CI 14.1 to 21.2]). The reduction in 28-day binge episodes was also greater in the Brief Negotiation Interview with booster (from 7.5 [95% CI 6.8 to 8.2] to 4.4 [95% CI 3.6 to 5.2] to 4.7 [95% CI 3.9 to 5.6]) and Brief Negotiation Interview (from 7.2 [95% CI 6.5 to 7.9] to 4.8 [95% CI 4.0 to 5.6] to 5.1 [95% CI 4.2 to 5.9]) than in standard care (from 7.2 [95% CI 6.2 to 8.2] to 5.7 [95% CI 4.5 to 6.9] to 5.8 [95% CI 4.6 to 7.0]). The Brief Negotiation Interview with booster offered no significant benefit over the Brief Negotiation Interview alone. There were no differences in drinking outcomes between the standard care and standard care–no assessment groups. The reductions in rates of driving after drinking more than 3 drinks from baseline to 12 months were greater in the Brief Negotiation Interview (38% to 29%) and Brief Negotiation Interview with booster (39% to 31%) groups than in the standard care group (43% to 42%). Conclusion Emergency practitioner–performed brief interventions can reduce alcohol consumption and episodes of driving after drinking in hazardous and harmful drinkers. These results support the use of brief interventions in ED settings.
Computer professionalism: myth or fact

The question that I'd like to put before you this morning is that of computing as a profession.
C 2-Symmetric ligands containing hydrogen bond donors: synthesis and properties of Cu(II) complexes of 2,6-bis[N,N′-(2-carboxamidophenyl)carbamoyl]pyridine

The synthesis of the new tridentate ligands 2,6-bis[N,N′-(2-acetamidophenyl)carbamoyl]pyridine (H41Me) and 2,6-bis[N,N′-(2-ferrocenylamidophenyl)carbamoyl]pyridine (H41Fc), and their corresponding CuII complexes is described. In the crystalline phase, H41Fc has a helical structure, which is maintained by a network of intramolecular hydrogen bonds. X-Ray diffraction studies on [CuH21Me(OAc)·Cl]2−, [CuH21Me(Cl)·Cl]2−, and [CuH21Fc(OAc)·Cl]2− reveal that the [H21R]2− ligands bind meridionally. One additional ligand (either OAc− or Cl−) binds trans to the pyridyl nitrogen to complete coordination in the equatorial plane. The remaining chloride ion (Cl(1)) binds to a second sphere-binding site, which is formed by two convergent hydrogen bonding amide groups. Long Cu⋯Cl(1) bonds distances of >2.75 A are observed. Electrochemical measurements show a 65 mV cathodic shift in the half-wave potential for [CuH21Fc(OAc)·Cl]2− compared to the free ligand H41Fc.
Analysis of hybrid fuel-cell/stirling-engine systems for domestic combined heat and power

High-temperature solid-oxide fuel cells offer high conversion efficiency from heat to electricity. The exhaust from such systems is also attractive as a high-temperature heat source for a Stirling-cycle convertor. An economic and technical analysis is presented illuminating the prospects for adoption of such systems as domestic, distributed energy generators.
Seasonality of phytoplankton in northern tundra ponds

Thermokarst ponds are the most abundant type of water body in the arctic tundra, with millions occurring in the coastal plains of Alaska, Northwest Territories and Siberia. Because ice covers of at least 2 m in thickness are formed at these latitudes, tundra ponds freeze solid every winter As a result, the growing season is shortened to a range of 60 to 100 days, during which time the photoperiod is altered to a prolonged light phase. Tundra ponds are generally close to neutral in pH and low in ions, contain dissolved gases near saturation and are nutrient poor. In low arctic ponds there are two phytoplankton biomass and primary production peaks, whereas they may be only one in the high arctic. Nanoplanktonic flagellates of the Chrysophyceae and Cryptophyceae dominate the maxima. The mid-summer decline in phytoplankton in the low arctic can be attributed to a combination of phosphorus limitation and heavy grazing pressure. The cryptomonad Rhodomonas minuta Skuja is one of the most widespread phytoplankters in tundra ponds. Because of the altered photoperiods, many species do not form resting spores prior to ice formation but survive freezing in the vegetative state.
Percutaneous embolic occlusion of an inadvertent surgical aortocoronary vein fistula.

The previously recommended approach to inadvertent surgically placed aortocoronary vein fistula has been patient observation or surgical closure with rebypass. A third alternative, percutaneous embolic occlusion, is reported here and is recommended for use by those experienced with embolic techniques in situations where repeat bypass is not necessary and the existence of the fistula is felt to be detrimental to the patient's condition.
Accumulation of copper, chromium, and arsenic in blue mussels (Mytilus edulis) from laboratory and field exposures to wood treated with chromated copper arsenate type C

Laboratory and field experiments were conducted to examine the uptake of Cu, Cr, and As leached from southern yellow pine (SYP) treated with chromated copper arsenate type C (CCA-C), as well as effects on mortality and growth, in blue mussels (Mytilus edulis). Mussels were exposed to CCA-C-treated wood at a preservative retention of 40 kg/m3 and control (nontreated) SYP in laboratory flow-through sea table and field exposure experiments for 9 months in 1994 and 3 months in 1995. Mussels were sampled at regular intervals to evaluate possible short- and long-term exposure effects. Individual mussels were measured to determine the length, dry weight, and condition index. Mussel tissues were then analyzed for Cu, Cr, and As. Results showed few significant differences in condition index, dry weight, and length between CCA-C-exposed and control mussels. In addition, no statistically significant differences in mortality were found between the mussels exposed to CCA-C-treated and nontreated SYP in the laboratory flow-through sea table and field exposure experiments. Significant differences in Cu, As, and Cr contents in mussel tissues between treatments were few, and generally cannot be attributed to exposure to CCA-C-treated SYP. The lack of Cu, Cr, and As uptake from CCA-C-treated SYP was attributed to the low, although continuous, rate of release of these elements from CCA-C-treated wood and to the experimental design, which allowed continuous flushing, prohibiting the accumulation of these elements in the water surrounding the mussels.
A peptide inhibitor of exportin1 blocks shuttling of the adenoviral E1B 55 kDa protein but not export of viral late mRNAs

The human subgroup C adenoviral E1B 55 kDa and E4 Orf6 proteins are required for efficient nuclear export of viral late mRNAs, but the cellular pathway that mediates such export has not been identified. As a first step to develop a general approach to address this issue, we have assessed the utility of cell-permeable peptide inhibitors of cellular export receptors. As both E1B and E4 proteins have been reported to contain a leucine-rich nuclear export signal (NES), we synthesized a cell-permeable peptide containing such an NES. This peptide induced substantial inhibition of export of the E1B protein, whereas a control, non-functional peptide did not. However, under the same conditions, the NES peptide had no effect on export of viral late mRNAs. These observations establish that viral late mRNAs are not exported by exportin1, as well as the value of peptide inhibitors in investigation of mRNA export regulation in adenovirus-infected cells.
Low-temperature heat capacity and ac magnetic susceptivility of the re-entrant ferromagnetic superconductor Ho1.2Mo6S8

Abstract Thermal hysteresis in the ac magnetic susceptibility and a spike-shaped anomaly in the heat capacity, superimposed on a feature due to ferromagnetic ordering, have been observed at the coupled superconducting to normal-ferromagnetic transition in Ho1.2Mo6S8.
Modernism, male friendship, and the First World War

Acknowledgements Introduction: 1. Argument: the organization of intimacy 2. Definitions and choices: modernism, modernity, literary authority 3. Structure: four sites of masculine bonding Part I. Victorian Dreams, Modern Realities: Forster's Classical Imagination: 4. Hellenism and the beautiful body: Carpenter, Pater, Symonds 5. The fall of Hellenism: Forster's modern disaffection 6. A Passage to India and the failure of institutions Part II. Conradian Alienation and Imperial Intimacy: 7. Friendship's dramatic demise: Heart of Darkness and Under Western Eyes 8. From system to solipsism: Lord Jim 9. Homoerotic heroics, domestic discipline: Conrad and Ford's Romance Part III. 'My Killed Friends are with me where I go': Friendship and Comradeship at War: 10. War discourse: friendship and comradeship 11. The major war poets: intimacy, authority, alienation 12. Post-war articulations: lost friends and the lost generation Part IV. 'The Violence of the Nightmare': D. H. Lawrence and the Aftermath of War: 13. Bodies of men: the landscape of post-war England, 14. Desire and devastation: male bonds in D. H. Lawrence Notes Index.
Lomefloxacin Clinical Pharmacokinetics

Lomefloxacin is a quinolone antibiotic with chemical and microbiological properties similar to most commercially available agents of this class. There are differences, however, between lomefloxacin and other quinolones in activity against specific micro-organisms, a situation that is typical of most antibiotic classes. The pharmacokinetics of lomefloxacin support once- or twice-daily dosage, depending on the pathogen or site of infection. This is a result of its relatively high serum concentrations and long half-life. The outstanding pharmacokinetic features of lomefloxacin are its high degree of tissue distribution, lack of significant metabolism (and, therefore, no competitive drug interactions with other metabolised drugs showing a common metabolic pathway), and good oral absorption. Like most fluoroquinolones, lomefloxacin can chelate with heavy metals. However, this interaction can be eliminated by administering lomefloxacin 2h before the cation-containing products. Dosage adjustments are required in patients with renal dysfunction. However, patients with liver disease do not require alterations in lomefloxacin dosage regimens. The safety profile, lack of significant drug interactions and convenience of administration make lomefloxacin a useful agent in specific clinical settings.
THE CELTS IN EASTERN EUROPE

Summary This article deals with the Celtic penetration of eastern Europe on the basis of archaeological evidence, and particularly the typology of bronze objects, and the light which it throws on an inscription from Olbia. It examines the relationship between cultural groupings and ethnic descriptions, and sets the problem in an historical context.
A Component Based Deformable Model for Generalized Face Alignment

This paper presents a component based deformable model for generalized face alignment, in which a novel bi-stage statistical framework is proposed to account for both local and global shape characteristics. Instead of using statistical analysis on the entire shape as in previous alignment work, we build separate Gaussian models for shape components to preserve more detailed local shape deformations. In each model of components the Markov Network is integrated to provide simple geometry constraints for our search strategy. In order to make a better description of the nonlinear interrelationships over the shape components, the Gaussian process latent variable model is adopted to obtain enough control of full range shape variations. Furthermore, we propose an illumination-robust feature to lead the local fitting of every shape point when light conditions change dramatically. Based on this approach, our system can generate optimal shape for images with exaggerated expressions and under variable illumination, as evidenced by extensive experimentation.
Searching parameter spaces with noisy linear constraints

The authors develop a theoretical framework to facilitate rapid search of high-dimensional spaces. The basic method is predicated on some invariant properties of affine transformations and on the course-to-fine search paradigm. The parameter space is divided into overlapping ellipsoidal cells. The goodness or validity of a cell is measured by the number of constraint surfaces passing through the cell and a heuristic estimate of the probability that the cell contains a solution point satisfying most of the constraints. The natural advantages of the ellipsoidal cell divisions are discussed. Experimental results show that the method has superior search efficiency compared to other currently known algorithms. >
Embeddedness and local food systems: notes on two types of direct agricultural market☆

Direct agricultural markets, predicated on face-to-face ties between producers and consumers, are often seen as central components of local food systems. Activists and academic analysts often assume that trust and social connection characterize direct agricultural markets, distinguishing local food systems from the ‘global food systema. This article examines that premise about direct agricultural markets, using the concept of social embeddedness from economic sociology to analyze the interplay of the economic and the social. Speci"cally, it draws on Block’s (1990) elaboration of the concepts of marketness and instrumentalism to qualify the concept of social embeddedness. Taken together, and augmented by consideration of how they relate to power and privilege, these concepts provide an analytical framework that more accurately describes the social relations of two types of direct agricultural markets * the farmers’ market and community supported agriculture. In providing an alternative market, farmers’ markets create a context for closer social ties between farmers and consumers, but remain fundamentally rooted in commodity relations. In attempting to construct an alternative to the market, as re#ected in an explicit emphasis on community and in the distinctive ‘sharea relationship, community supported agriculture moves closer towards the decommodi"cation of food. Nonetheless, in both types of direct markets, tensions between embeddedness, on the one hand, and marketness and instrumentalism, on the other, suggest how power and privilege may sometimes rest more with educated, middle-class consumers than with farmers or less-advantaged consumers. Recognizing how marketness and instrumentalism complicate social embeddedness is critical for understanding the viability, development and prospects of local food systems. ( 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
Beyond the endless frontier: the future of research university in the digital age

The basic structure of today's academic research enterprise was set out fifty years ago in the seminal report, Science, the Endless Frontier, produced by a post-war study group chaired by Vannevar Bush. The central theme of the document was that the nation's health, economy, and military security required continual deployment of new scientific knowledge and that the federal government was obligated to ensure basic scientific progress and the production of trained personnel in the national interest. It insisted that federal patronage was essential for the advancement of knowledge.The resulting partnership between the federal government and the nation's universities has had extraordinary impact. It has made America the world's leading source of fundamental scientific knowledge. It has also produced the well-trained scientists and engineers capable of applying this new knowledge. This academic research enterprise has played a critical role in the conduct of more applied, mission-focused research in a host of areas including health care, agriculture, national defense, and economic development.Unfortunately, in recent years the basic principles of this extraordinarily productive research partnership have begun to unravel. Scientists and universities are questioning whether they can depend on the stable and solid relationship they had come to trust and that has paid such enormous dividends in initiative, innovation, and creativity.At the same time powerful forces, including obsolete cost structures, changing societal demand, and rapidly evolving information technology, are driving a massive restructuring of the American higher education enterprise, similar to that occurring in other critical industries such as health care, telecommunications, and energy. Although the great diversity of our colleges and universities will dictate an array of different strategies in the years ahead, all must cope with a future of unprecedented change, presenting both unusual challenges and opportunities. This era of change will pose a particular challenge to the dominant institutional form of the 201h Century, the American research university.
The effects of fulfilling and violating group members' expectations about leadership style

Abstract Twelve groups with five subjects per group were used. Six groups were told that their leader would be participative. Three of these groups received a participative leader; three received an authoritarian leader. Six groups were told that their leader would be authoritarian. Three of these groups received an authoritarian leader; three received a participative leader. All groups solved Maier's New Truck Dilemma and completed four attitude scales. In general, participative leadership resulted in attitudes that were more positive and less variable than the attitudes resulting from authoritarian leadership regardless of whether expectations were fulfilled or violated. The results also indicated that violated expectations resulted in a contrast affect.
Conjugate Heat Transfer From a Heated Disk to a Thin Liquid Film Formed by a Controlled Impinging Jet

An experimental and numerical study of the heat transfer from a heated horizontal disk to a thin film of liquid is described. The liquid was delivered to the disk by a collar arrangement such that the film thickness and radial velocity were known at the outer radius of the collar. This method of delivery is termed as a controlled impinging jet. Flow visualization tests were performed and heat transfer data were collected along the radius of the disk for different volumetric flow rates and inlet temperatures in the supercritical and subcritical regions. The heat transfer coefficient was found to increase with flow rate when both supercritical and subcritical regions were present on the heated surface. A numerical simulation of this free surface problem was performed, which included the effects of conjugate heat transfer within the heated disk and the liquid. The numerical predictions agree with the experimental results and show that conjugate heat transfer has a significant effect on the local wail temperature and heat transfer coefficient.
Echocardiographic and Hemodynamic Predictors of Mortality in Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis

Background Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) can lead to the development of pulmonary hypertension, which is associated with an increased risk of death. In pulmonary arterial hypertension, survival is directly related to the capacity of the right ventricle to adapt to elevated pulmonary vascular load. The relative importance of right ventricular function in IPF is not well understood. Our objective was to evaluate right ventricular echocardiographic and hemodynamic predictors of mortality in a cohort of patients with IPF referred for lung transplant evaluation. Methods We performed a retrospective cohort study of 135 patients who met 2011 American Thoracic Society/European Respiratory Society criteria for IPF and who were evaluated for lung transplantation at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. Results Right ventricle:left ventricle diameter ratio (hazard ratio [HR], 4.5; 95% CI, 1.7-11.9), moderate to severe right atrial and right ventricular dilation (HR, 2.9; 95% CI, 1.4-5.9; and HR, 2.7; 95% CI, 1.4-5.4, respectively) and right ventricular dysfunction (HR, 5.5; 95% CI, 2.6-11.5) were associated with an increased risk of death. Higher pulmonary vascular resistance was also associated with increased mortality (HR per 1 Wood unit, 1.3; 95% CI, 1.1-1.5). These risk factors were independent of age, sex, race, height, weight, FVC, and lung transplantation status. Other hemodynamic indices, such as mean pulmonary artery pressure and cardiac index, were not associated with outcome. Conclusions Right-sided heart size and right ventricular dysfunction measured by echocardiography and higher pulmonary vascular resistance by invasive hemodynamic assessment predict mortality in patients with IPF evaluated for lung transplantation.
Selection of the best with stochastic constraints

When selecting the best design of a system among a finite set of possible designs, there may be multiple selection criterion. One formulation of such a multi-criteria problem is minimization (or maximization) of one of the criterions while constraining the others. In this paper, we assume the criteria are unobservable mean values of stochastic outputs of simulation. We propose a new heuristic iterative algorithm for finding the best in this situation and use a number of experiments to demonstrate the performance of the algorithm.
Managing clinical research permissions electronically: A novel approach to enhancing recruitment and managing consents

BackgroundOne mechanism to increase participation in research is to solicit potential research participants’ general willingness to be recruited into clinical trials. Such research permissions and consents typically are collected on paper upon patient registration. We describe a novel method of capturing this information electronically.PurposeThe objective is to enable the collection of research permissions and informed consent data electronically to permit tracking of potential research participants’ interest in current and future research involvement and to provide a foundation for facilitating the research workflow.MethodsThe project involved systematic analysis focused on key areas, including existing business practices, registration processes, and permission collection workflows, and ascertaining best practices for presenting consent information to users via tablet technology and capturing permissions data. Analysis was followed by an iterative software development cycle with feedback from subject ma...
Potential Energy Surfaces for the Reaction of O Atoms with CH3I: Implications for Thermochemistry and Kinetics

The geometries of IO, HCIO, ICH2O, CH3IO, CH3OI, CH2IOH, and ICH2OH have been obtained at the HF and MP2(FU)/6-31G(d) levels of ab initio theory, and the HF/6-31G(d) frequencies are compared with experimental assignments where these are available. The Gaussian-2 method was used to provide thermochemical data for use in atmospheric and combustion modeling. Transition states that connect these species have also been characterized, and the results were used to develop the singlet and triplet potential energy surfaces for the reaction O(3P) + CH3I. These surfaces explain the complex behavior of this reaction, and a QRRK analysis over 200−2000 K gave good accord with recent kinetic and product studies by Gilles et al. [J. Phys. Chem. 1996, 100, 14005]. IO is predicted to be the dominant product below about 2000 K. Other likely products are OH and the collisionally stabilized adducts CH3IO and ICH2OH, and the latter's fragmentation products that include H and HI.
Corporate Earnings: Facts and Fiction

Investors’ cone dence in the quality and integrity of corporate e nancial reports has been seriously shaken of late. The ever-increasing procession of headlines about fraudulent earnings, ine ated asset values and understated liabilities reported by erstwhile leading companies— the likes of Enron, Tyco, WorldCom, Xerox and a host of lesser household names, all audited by major accounting e rms— suggests systematic dee ciencies in the accounting standards and governance systems that generate e nancial information of public companies, not to mention in the regulatory systems overseeing them. Both aggregate data and cross-sectional research cone rm the anecdotal evidence that the correspondence to reality of reported earnings deteriorated throughout the 1990s. For example, the gap between aggregate earnings and taxable corporate income, which abstracts according to Internal Revenue Service rules from most estimates and provisions often used to manipulate earnings, has been continuously widening throughout the 1990s (Desai, 2002). Also increasing during the 1990s was the gap between earnings and the corporate proe ts reported in the national income and product accounts, which are based on e rms’ taxable income adjusted for current values of inventory and depreciation. While part of the difference between earnings and taxable income is probably due to increasing corporate sophistication of tax management, manipulation of earnings played a major role in the widening gap (Lev and Nissim, 2002a). Firm-specie c data corroborate the increasing vulnerability of earnings to manipulation. The number of earnings restatements by public companies, often in the wake of admitted reporting improprieties, has skyrocketed in the last three to four years (Wu, 2002). Also, the frequency of e rms beating analysts’ forecasts of
Pulsars as Probes of Relativistic Gravity, Nuclear Matter, and Astrophysical Plasmas

Pulsars are rotating neutron stars (NSs) that provide unique information about their interiors, about the relativistic plasma physics of their magnetospheres, and about the intervening media through which pulses emitted by these objects must propagate. NS spins represent the clock mechanism that underlies usage of pulsars as precise timekeepers for their motions. This last topic is the final aim of this chapter, namely using pulsars to probe gravity in binary stellar systems — particularly those involving a pulsar and another compact star (white dwarf [WD], NS, or black hole [BH])— and also to probe gravitational wave backgrounds that affect the location of both the pulsar and the Earth. Pulsars also provide exquisite opportunities for probing neutron stars and their magnetospheres through a variety of techniques. To set the stage, I will describe the historical and scientific background and the phenomenology needed to understand the capabilities and limitations of using pulsars as clocks. The four main sections of this chapter are:
Craft Knowledge as an Intangible Cultural Property: A Case Study of Samarkand Tiles and Traditional Potters in Uzbekistan

Reverse engineering past craft technologies involves using the basics of materials science and engineering to a new end: their preservation and continuation. Examples are presented of the glazed tile technologies of Samarkand, Bukhara and other Silk Route cities of Uzbekistan that date from the thirteenth century A.D. but that continue to the present. The UNESCO charter for the preservation of Intangible Cultural Properties has enlightened the goals and results of the research and has linked together archaeological materials research and conservation science in an exciting new partnership.
Speaker Verification Using Support Vector Machines and High-Level Features

High-level characteristics such as word usage, pronunciation, phonotactics, prosody, etc., have seen a resurgence for automatic speaker recognition over the last several years. With the availability of many conversation sides per speaker in current corpora, high-level systems now have the amount of data needed to sufficiently characterize a speaker. Although a significant amount of work has been done in finding novel high-level features, less work has been done on modeling these features. We describe a method of speaker modeling based upon support vector machines. Current high-level feature extraction produces sequences or lattices of tokens for a given conversation side. These sequences can be converted to counts and then frequencies of n-gram for a given conversation side. We use support vector machine modeling of these n-gram frequencies for speaker verification. We derive a new kernel based upon linearizing a log likelihood ratio scoring system. Generalizations of this method are shown to produce excellent results on a variety of high-level features. We demonstrate that our methods produce results significantly better than standard log-likelihood ratio modeling. We also demonstrate that our system can perform well in conjunction with standard cesptral speaker recognition systems.
Um estadista na academia: Joaquim Nabuco na Universidade de Yale

Um estudo das conferencias academicas que pronunciou Joaquim Nabuco, embaixador do Brasil em Washington, D.C., na Universidade de Yale e mais cinco universidades americanas durante o periodo 1908-1909. Nabuco volta a Camoes como exemplo do amor a uma lingua e uma cultura, das quais o Brasil seria a maior realizacao, e aproxima o espirito do nacionalismo das duas grandes nacoes como exemplos para a politica do pan-americanismo da epoca.
Dual lumen transducer probes for real-time 3-d interventional cardiac ultrasound

We have developed dual lumen probes incorporating a forward-viewing matrix array transducer with an integrated working lumen for delivery of tools in real-time 3-D (RT3-D) interventional echocardiography. The probes are of 14 Fr and 22 Fr sizes, with 112 channel 2-D arrays operating at 5 MHz. We obtained images of cardiac anatomy and simultaneous interventional device delivery with an in vivo sheep model, including: manipulation of a 0.36-mm diameter guidewire into the coronary sinus, guidance of a transseptal puncture using a 1.2-mm diameter Brockenbrough needle, and guidance of a right ventricular biopsy using 3 Fr biopsy forceps. We have also incorporated the 22 Fr probe within a 6-mm surgical trocar to obtain apical four-chamber ultrasound (US) scans from a subcostal position. Combining the imaging catheter with a working lumen in a single device may simplify cardiac interventional procedures by allowing clinicians to easily visualize cardiac structures and simultaneously direct interventional tools in a RT3-D image.