cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Picard groups of multiplicative invariants

Let S = kA denote the group algebra of a nitely generated free abelian group A over the eld k and let G be a nite subgroup of GL(A). Then G acts on S by means of the unique extension of the natural GL(A)-action on A. We determine the Picard group PicR of the algebra of invariants R = S G. As an application, we produce new polycyclic group algebras with nontrivial torsion in K0.
RT Prolog: a real time Prolog written in Ada

Prolog is a very powerful language and its declarative nature lends itself quite well to the development of expert systems and natural language interfaces. There are many laboratory situations in which an expert system could help technicians or operators accomplish their task. However, in these same situations there is usually need for a real time capability. A possible scenario would be to have an expert system executing in Prolog which must respond to some external interrupt, either from a sensor or an operator.The expert system should be able to suspend its current processing and service the interrupt. The interrupt might need to be serviced in a procedural manner or it might entail the answering of a different question by the expert system. After the interrupt request has been serviced, the expert system should return to its previous task. The above capability is difficult to obtain in Prolog as it is not designed to be a real time language. It is also difficult for an expert system to stop the search for one answer, answer a second question, and then resume the first quest.We are performing investigative research in the development of a real time Prolog, called RT Prolog, which would have the above capabilities. An expert system written in RT Prolog would have the capability of responding to external interrupts and then resuming its original task. The interrupt can be serviced either in a procedural manner or by another copy of the expert system.To accomplish this, the RT Prolog interpreter will be developed as a TASK in Ada. An interrupt then can activate another TASK as a service routine. This TASK can be a normal procedural service routine or even another copy of the Prolog interpreter. This scheme should provide the needed flexibility to handle both the expert system and real time aspects of the problem.RT Prolog is being developed on an IBM AT using the Janus/Ada compiler from RR Software. The first step in the development was to build a small Prolog interpreter in Ada. This interpreter will then be made into a TASK TYPE, so that other copies can be spawned, if needed. The last step will be to test the interrupt capability of the system by using a data acquisition system.
The imprecision in rates of down syndrome by 1‐year maternal age intervals: A critical analysis of rates used in biochemical screening

Current algorithms to determine eligibility for prenatal cytogenetic diagnostic services depend critically on the accuracy and precision of the underlying rates of cytogenetic abnormality used in the calculations. We examine the maternal age-specific rates of Down syndrome livebirths in eight studies of European-origin populations, pooled rates from which are widely used for baseline calculations in biochemical screening. These studies vary significantly in such factors as methods of ascertainment of cases, likelihood of complete ascertainment, and methods of correction, if any, for underascertainment. Restriction of analysis to those two studies among the eight whose methods suggest the greatest likelihood of complete ascertainment for Down syndrome generates rates significantly higher than those in widespread use. Confidence intervals about previously reported and currently derived rates indicate that even with large-scale data, there is considerable residual uncertainty in derived rates.
Ethical considerations in allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation for children with slowly fatal conditions.

Ethical considerations in allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation for children with slowly fatal conditions
SU-E-T-486: Volume and Location Dependence on the Difference Between Monte Carlo and Pencil Beam Dose Calculations for Lung Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy.

Purpose: Stereotactic body radiotherapy has been an efficacious treatment modality for early stage non‐small cell lungcancer. The accuracy of dose calculations is in question due to the presence of inhomogeneity. It was required in several clinical trials to calculate dose without heterogeneity correction. However, to better correlate the outcomes with the planned dose, accurate dose calculation with heterogeneity correction is highly desirable. Methods: We compared the recalculated dose with Monte Carlo(MC) algorithm to the original Pencil Beam (PB) calculations for clinical lungSBRT plans. Thirty‐one clinical plans that followed protocol guidelines were retrospectively investigated. Dosimetric parameters D1, D95 and D99 for the PTV and D1 for organs at risk were compared. Correlations of mean lungdose and V20 of lungs between two calculations were investigated. Results: Compared to the PB calculations without heterogeneity correction in clinical plans, we found that in terms of D95 of PTV, (1) the two calculations resulted in similar D95 for edge tumors with volumes greater than 25.1cc; (2) an average overestimation of 5% in PB calculations for edge tumors with volumes less than 25.1cc; and (3) an average overestimation of 9% or underestimation of 3% in PB calculations for island tumors with volumes smaller or greater than 22.6 cc, respectively. With heterogeneity correction, the PB calculation resulted in an average reduction of 23.8% and 15.3% in D95 for island and edge lesions respectively compared to the MC calculation. For organs at risks, no clinical meaningful differences were found among all the comparisons. Excellent correlations for mean dose and V20 of lungs were observed between the two calculations. Conclusions: Using a single scaling factor to account for the differences in using heterogeneity correction may not be sufficient. To understand dose‐response relation in LungSBRT, accurate dose calculation such as the Monte Carlo algorithms is highly recommended.
RADIOIODINE IN THE BIOSPHERE DURING 1968.

THE northern and southern hemispheres were contaminated with iodine-131 during 1968. Most of the contamination correlated with announced tests of nuclear weapons in the atmosphere, but some additions of 131I have not been accounted for. Thyroid glands have been collected continuously in various parts of the world for the past 16 yr, and at regular intervals between ten and twenty fresh glands have been preserved in paraformaldehyde and received at this laboratory within 2–8 days of slaughter. The gamma emission between 0.30 and 0.40 MeV has been measured with a coefficient variability of ±20 per cent for radioactivity less than 0.6 pCi/g and ±5 per cent for activity more than 1.5 pCi/g. The total weight of non-goitrous bovine thyroids averaged 15.8 g and the ovine glands 1.7 g. The bovine thyroids from Colombia were, on average, 490 per cent larger than those from areas free from goitre and the sheep from New Zealand had thyroids 50 per cent larger than the other sheep. The average concentration of 131I was expressed as pCi/g of thyroid and the accumulated data are shown in Fig. 1.
Effect of residual field gradients on pulsed-gradient NMR diffusion measurements☆

Abstract The effects of exponentially decaying short-term residual magnetic field gradients on the spin-echo attenuation during a conventional large-pulsed-gradient diffusion experiment using ferromagnetic pole pieces are treated analytically. Experiments and numerical simulations of the echo attenuation show that extremely large spurious increases in the apparent diffusion coefficients D app may be produced at short diffusion times and low D true . It is demonstrated how these effects may be predicted and corrected for, or greatly reduced, and suggested that certain apparently non-Fickian diffusion in polymer systems reported in the literature may be attributable to this cause. These findings have application to polymer dynamics and NMR imaging and may be relevant in the treatment of analogous eddy current effects.
Factors affecting automated syndromic surveillance

Objective:: The increased threat of bioterroristic attacks and epidemic events requires the development of accurate and timely outbreak detection systems for early identification of anomalies in public health data. Material and methods:: We propose an automated outbreak detection system based on syndromic data. This system uses an autoregressive model with seasonal components to monitor, online, the daily counts of chief complaints for respiratory syndromes at the emergency department of two major metropolitan hospitals. We evaluate this system by estimating the false positive rate in real data under the assumption that there were no outbreaks of disease, and the true positive rate in real baseline data in which we injected stochastically simulated outbreaks of different shape and size. We then use directed graphical models to account for the effect of exogenous factors on the detection performance of the system. Results:: Our study shows that for a week-long outbreak, our model has an overall 84.8% true detection accuracy across all shapes of outbreaks, while the outbreak size influences the earliness to detection. The false and true positive rates are also associated with the exogenous factors and knowledge about these factors can help to improve the detection accuracy. Conclusion:: This study suggests that the integration of multiple data sources can significantly improve the detection accuracy of syndromic surveillance systems.
The geographic effects of US airline alliances

Abstract Code-share agreements in the airline industry allow participants the opportunity to offer service to destinations they do not physically serve. This paper concentrates on the recently proposed domestic code-share agreements between United/Delta, Continental/Northwest, and American/US Airways, six of the largest commercial carriers in the United States. Changes in destinations served as well as geographic regions of dominance based upon market share are examined. The result is a clearer view of regions of dominance for each alliance in the United States. The proposed United/Delta alliance shows an expansion across the entire United States. The Continental/Northwest alliance allows the carriers to compete with the “Big Three”. The American/US Airways proposed alliance appears to benefit US Airways (US) more than American.
Liver disease complicating the management of acute leukemia during remission

Eight adults who developed persisting liver function abnormalities during remission from acute leukemia (6 acute nonlymphoblastic leukemia and 2 acute lymphoblastic leukemia) are reported. These patients constituted 20% of the adults with acute leukemia attaining remission over the time period studied. Although we were unable to be absolutely certain of the etiology of the liver dysfunction, the following findings characterize the problem: 1) onset following red blood cell and platelet transfusions in all cases; 2) minimal symptoms and signs except for transient episodes of jaundice; 3) fluctuating, but often marked, increases in liver transaminases; 4) no other consistent laboratory abnormalities; 5) liver biopsies showing varying degrees of inflammation; 6) a consistent decrease in transaminase levels following pulse chemotherapy; 7) absence of progression of abnormalities during the observation period. This group of patients did not have a worse prognosis than patients with normal liver function. We feel that it is important to recognize this entity and to not withhold antileukemic therapy.
Rapid evolution of protein kinase PKR alters sensitivity to viral inhibitors

Protein kinase PKR (also known as EIF2AK2) is activated during viral infection and phosphorylates the alpha subunit of eukaryotic translation initiation factor 2 (eIF2), leading to inhibition of translation and viral replication. We report fast evolution of the PKR kinase domain in vertebrates, coupled with positive selection of specific sites. Substitution of positively selected residues in human PKR with residues found in related species altered sensitivity to PKR inhibitors from different poxviruses. Species-specific differences in sensitivity to poxviral pseudosubstrate inhibitors were identified between human and mouse PKR, and these differences were traced to positively selected residues near the eIF2alpha binding site. Our findings indicate how an antiviral protein evolved to evade viral inhibition while maintaining its primary function. Moreover, the identified species-specific differences in the susceptibility to viral inhibitors have important implications for studying human infections in nonhuman model systems.
Problems of flow simulation in wind tunnels.

Flow simulation on wind tunnel test models for aerodynamic characteristics of aircraft design, discussing boundary layer and external flow coupling
1H Nuclear magnetic resonance based targeted profiling of metabolic responses induced by DNA damaging agents and PARP inhibition in MCF-7 cells

Background Maintaining DNA integrity is essential for cell survival and proper functioning. Therefore, many cancer therapies, including radiotherapy and several chemotherapeutic drugs, induce damage to the DNA leading to genomic instability [1]. There are several DNA damage responses (DDRs) which can be activated depending on the type and the extent of DNA damage [1]. These responses involve detection of the damage by several proteins including, poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP), which can directly or indirectly affect metabolism [1].
The Basic Helix–Loop–Helix Domain of the E47 Transcription Factor Requires Other Protein Regions for Full DNA Binding Activity

Most transcription factors are believed to be composed of independently functioning modules [A. D. Frankel and P. S. Kim (1991) Cell 65, 717-719]. Basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcription factors appear to fit this model, with the HLH domains mediating dimerization, the basic regions mediating DNA binding, and other modules controlling other functions such as transcriptional activation. We tested predictions of this model using forced dimers of bHLH proteins including E47 homodimers and MyoD:E47 heterodimers and found that protein dimers containing complete bHLH domains but lacking other regions of E47 have only 20% of the DNA binding ability and transcriptional transactivation activity of wild-type dimers. These results demonstrate that the bHLH domains do not function as completely independent DNA binding modules. In addition, these results demonstrate that the transcriptional activation domains from a single bHLH protein are sufficient to activate transcription.
Psychotherapy for bipolar depression: a phase‐specific treatment strategy?

Objectives: The depressive phase of bipolar disorder is particularly difficult to treat. Pharmacologic strategies for bipolar depression are often inadequate. We therefore review the literature on the role of psychotherapy as an adjunct to medication in the treatment of bipolar depression. Methods: With one exception, there are no descriptions of psychotherapies employed specifically for the treatment of bipolar depression. We therefore reviewed published reports of psychotherapy for bipolar disorder in general and extracted from these reports relevant data or impressions about the specific effects of the therapies on the depressive phase of the disorder. Results: Described psychosocial approaches to bipolar disorder include psychoeducation, group therapy, cognitive-behavioral therapy, couples therapy, family therapy, and interpersonal psychotherapy. Only cognitive-behavioral therapy has been tested in a pilot study for the treatment of bipolar depression specifically. Results from randomized controlled trials of family therapy and interpersonal and social rhythm therapy suggest that these treatments may be more efficacious in the treatment and prevention of depression relative to mania. Conclusions: A limited number of well-designed studies and preponderance of case reports limit definitive conclusions about the role of psychotherapy in the treatment of bipolar depression. However, converging reports suggest that cognitive-behavioral therapy, family therapy, and interpersonal and social rhythm therapy may be particularly useful for bipolar depression. We propose a novel approach to the treatment of bipolar disorder that includes the use of phase-specific sequenced psychotherapies delivered in variable patterns and linked to fluctuating mood states.
Cognitive-behavioral treatment of panic disorder with agoraphobia triggered by AICD implant activity.

Received January 24, 1997; revised June 18, 1997; accepted July 8, 1997. From the Department of Psychiatry, State University of New York (SUNY) Health Science Center at Brooklyn. Address reprint requests to Dr. Smith, Box 1203, 450 Clarkson Avenue, SUNY Health Science Center at Brooklyn, Brooklyn, NY 11203. Copyright 1998 The Academy of Psychosomatic Medicine. The use of automatic implantable cardioverter defibrillators (AICDs) has been successful in reducing the incidence of sudden arrhythmic mortality in high-risk patients to less than 3% per year. However, in addition to the stress associated with chronic cardiac disease, AICD patients face unique problems, such as device dependency and fear of unpredictable shocks, which make them particularly vulnerable to anxiety, depression, and other psychological disturbances. As many as 50% of these patients have been shown to develop a psychiatric disorder: 30% adjustment disorder–mixed type, 15% major depression, and 5% panic disorder. Supportive treatment, often within a group setting,and the use of psychotropic medications (primarily benzodiazepines) are common treatment modalities. Cognitive–behavioral therapy (CBT) in particular can be helpful in managing anxiety and fatigue, maximizing physical and social activity, and reframing the meaning of the AICD from the center of one’s life to a neutral medical intervention designed to enhance and prolong life. Although CBT is mentioned in most articles addressing the psychiatric management of patients with AICDs, no detailed account of its specific application or effectiveness has been reported. We will describe the psychological reaction and comprehensive case management of a client with an AICD.
Induction of Conjugation in Paramecium Bursaria Among Animals of One Mating Type by Fluid from Another Mating Type.

mouse ovaries. This introduces a method that could be used for the gen-' etic identification of some lethals and certain types of embryos that have to be killed for examination. It should prove of value in studies on differences in maternal environments, in experiments on the relation of hormonal and other factors to the development and functioning of the ovary and possibly for investigations on the origin of the germ cells. An extension of the method over successive generations, to produce animals descended from any number of unborn direct female ancestors, would provide still further possibilities for research.
Cardiac Progenitor Cell Commitment Is Inhibited by Nuclear Akt Expression

Rationale: Stem cell therapies to regenerate damaged cardiac tissue represent a novel approach to treat heart disease. However, the majority of adoptively transferred stem cells delivered to damaged myocardium do not survive long enough to impart protective benefits, resulting in modest functional improvements. Strategies to improve survival and proliferation of stem cells show promise for significantly enhancing cardiac function and regeneration. Objective: To determine whether injected cardiac progenitor cells (CPCs) genetically modified to overexpress nuclear Akt (CPCeA) increase structural and functional benefits to infarcted myocardium relative to control CPCs. Methods and Results: CPCeA exhibit significantly increased proliferation and secretion of paracrine factors compared with CPCs. However, CPCeA exhibit impaired capacity for lineage commitment in vitro. Infarcted hearts receiving intramyocardial injection of CPCeA have increased recruitment of endogenous c-kit cells compared with CPCs, but neither population provides long-term functional and structural improvements compared with saline-injected controls. Pharmacological inhibition of Akt alleviated blockade of lineage commitment in CPCeA. Conclusions: Although overexpression of nuclear Akt promotes rapid proliferation and secretion of protective paracrine factors, the inability of CPCeA to undergo lineage commitment hinders their capacity to provide functional or structural benefits to infarcted hearts. Despite enhanced recruitment of endogenous CPCs, lack of functional improvement in CPCeA-treated hearts demonstrates CPC lineage commitment is essential to the regenerative response. Effective stem cell therapies must promote cellular survival and proliferation without inhibiting lineage commitment. Because CPCeA exhibit remarkable proliferative potential, an inducible system mediating nuclear Akt expression could be useful to augment cell therapy approaches.
Innovation and Competitive Advantage: What We Know and What We Need to Learn

Innovation, technology advances, and competitive advantage are connected by complex and multidimensional relationships. This article begins by examining four factors that shape the relationship between innovation and competitive advantage. Routes to corporate entrepreneurship (research and development units, intrapreneurshiplinternal ventures, external joint ventures and acquisition) are compared in terms of these criteria. The debates and questions that set the stage for further research in this area conclude the article.
Passivity analysis of sampled-data interactive systems

A method for passivity analysis of a class of nonlinear systems is described. For linear plants controlled by sampled-data controllers, the resulting interaction admittance is nonlinear. It is shown that satisfying the linear requirements for passivity is insufficient to guarantee passivity of the nonlinear system. To analyze such plants, we first show that if a waveform constituting a counter-example of passivity exists, then a counter-example may also be found within a limited class of functions. By restricting attention to this class of functions, a numerical passivity evaluation is feasible. Examples using the method are presented.
Acute, Reversible Left Ventricular Dysfunction in Status Asthmaticus

Three cases of rapidly reversible severe myocardial depression are described in patients with status asthmaticus. Initial echocardiograms obtained within 1 day of hospital admission revealed global left ventricular hypokinesis with ejection fractions of 11 to 34%. Follow-up echocardiograms obtained only 3 to 8 days later revealed marked improvement of left ventricular function. Possible mechanisms responsible for the observed rapidly reversible myocardial depression and the clinical implications of this finding are discussed.
Low-Dimensional Lattices V. Integral Coordinates for Integral Lattices

We say that an n-dimensional (classically) integral lattice $\Lambda$ is s-integrable, for an integer s, if it can be described by vectors $s^{- \frac{1}{2}}(x\_1, ..., x\_k)$, with all $x\_i \in \mathbb{Z}$, in a euclidean space of dimension $k \geqslant n$. Equivalently, $\Lambda$ is s-integrable if and only if any quadratic form f(x) corresponding to $\Lambda$ can be written as s$^{-1}$ times a sum of k squares of linear forms with integral coefficients, or again, if and only if the dual lattice $\Lambda^*$ contains a eutactic star of scale s. This paper gives many techniques for s-integrating low-dimensional lattices (such as E$\_8$ and the Leech lattice). A particular result is that any one-dimensional lattice can be 1-integrated with k = 4: this is Lagrange's four-squares theorem. Let $\phi$(s) be the smallest dimension n in which there is an integral lattice that is not s-integrable. In 1937 Ko and Mordell showed that $\phi$(1) = 6. We prove that $\phi$(2) = 12, $\phi$(3) = 14, 21 $\leqslant$ $\phi$ (4) $\leqslant$ 25, 16 $\leqslant \phi$(5) $\leqslant$ 22, $\phi$(s) 4$\leqslant$ 4s + 2 (s odd), $\phi$(s) $\leqslant$ 2$\pi$es(1 + o(1)) (s even) and $\phi$(s) $\geqslant$ 2 $\ln \ln$ s/$\ln \ln \ln$ s(1 + o(1)).
Femoral Deformity in Tibia Vara

Background: Previous studies have suggested that compensatory valgus deformity of the femur is common in patients with tibia vara, or Blount disease. The availability and routine use of standing long-cassette radiographs of the lower extremities to assess angular deformities has allowed quantitative evaluation of this hypothesis. Methods: The cases of all patients with tibia vara, two years of age or older, seen at our institution prior to treatment, over a thirteen-year period, were reviewed. Seventy-three patients with a total of 109 involved lower limbs were identified and were classified as having either infantile tibia vara (thirty-seven patients with fifty-six involved limbs) or late-onset tibia vara (thirty-six patients with fifty-three involved limbs). Standardized standing radiographs of the lower extremity were examined to assess the deformity at the distal part of the femur and the proximal part of the tibia by measuring the lateral distal femoral angle and the medial proximal tibial angle. Results: The distal part of the femur in the children with infantile tibia vara either was normal or had mild varus deformity, with a mean lateral distal femoral angle of 97° (range, 82° to 129°). The mean medial proximal tibial angle in these children was 72° (range, 32° to 84°). Older children with infantile tibia vara were noted to have little distal femoral deformity, with no more than 4° of valgus compared with either normal values or the contralateral, normal limb. Children with late-onset tibia vara had a mean lateral distal femoral angle of 93° (range, 82° to 110°) and a mean medial proximal tibial angle of 73° (range, 52° to 84°). On the average, the varus deformity of the distal part of the femur constituted 30% (6° of 20°) of the genu varum deformity in these patients. Conclusions: Patients with infantile tibia vara most commonly had normal alignment of the distal parts of the femora; substantial valgus deformity was not observed. Distal femoral varus constituted a substantial portion of the genu varum in children with late-onset disease. When correction of late-onset tibia vara is planned, the surgeon should be aware of the possibility that distal femoral varus is a substantial component of the deformity.
The history and future of DSPs in consumer audio equipment-part I: history and current conditions

The introduction of DSPs into consumer audio/video receivers was for media format decoders such as Dolby Digital and DTS decoding. To achieve greater functionality than decoding alone, additional processors were required, as decoding processes alone commanded virtually all the available capacity of DSPs of the time. Thus additional functions were limited to relatively expensive equipment that could use more than one processor. With the growth in hardware capability has come the ability to do more things. These papers trace how the rate of hardware and software development leads to increased audio capabilities, and proposes how to employ added capacity of DSP in the future.
Measurement of a cost function for US airlines: restricted and unrestricted translog models

This paper continues and expands several themes from previous studies of commercial airline cost functions. A well specified industrial cost function reveals characteristics about the market players, such as economies of scale and the cost elasticities with respect to operational styles. Using a translog specification, and its restricted first-order form, this paper updates previous parameter estimates, reworks the experimental design, and gives new analysis to describe the spectrum of choices facing airline firms in recent years. The translog model in this paper allows the energy cost share to interact with other variables and illuminate what factors may exacerbate cost sensitivity to energy prices, an advance in this specific area of interpretation. The result shows that fuel cost shares tend to be higher with older equipment, smaller fleet sizes, and to be increasing in aircraft size and seating density. The restricted first-order model indicates that older aircraft designs are more costly to operate, even accounting for operational style. This may imply that airlines with poorer access to capital suffer a cost disadvantage, particularly during a fuel spike – also a new contribution of the paper. Finally, the first-order model does not reject constant returns to scale (CRS) for fleet expansion, or increasing returns to scale (IRS) in aircraft size, which are the expected results.
Operating Without a Safety Net Gay Male Adolescents and Emerging Adults’ Experiences of Marginalization and Migration, and Implications for Theory of Syndemic Production of Health Disparities

Health disparities among gay men (HIV, substance use, depression) have been described as a mutually occurring “syndemic” that is socially produced through two overarching dynamics: marginalization and migration. Although the syndemic theory proposes a developmental trajectory, it has been largely based on epidemiological studies of adult gay men and has not been examined using qualitative data from gay male adolescents and emerging adults describing their developmental experience. We conducted interviews with 54 HIV-positive gay and bisexual male adolescents and emerging adults at four sites in the United States. This study provides examples of developmental trajectories that help explain the early onset of socially produced health disparities among some gay male adolescents and emerging adults, but also the development of risk factors that may follow some gay men into adulthood.
The heterogeneous nucleation of microcellular foams assisted by the survival of microvoids in polymers containing low glass transition particles. Part I: Mathematical modeling and numerical simulation

The existing models based on classical nucleation theory are not able to explain satisfactorily the nucleation phenomenon of microcellular foams in thermoplastics. Here, we extend the analysis of Kweeder (24), who developed a new model that considers the presence of microvoids, resulting from the thermal processing history of the polymer, as potential nucleation sites. The nucleation model “concentrates” on the stresses and thus void formations in the rubber particles. Since these are pre-existing microvoids, bubble nucleation depends on the survival of these voids to grow rather than the formation of a new phase as modeled by classical nucleation theory. The population of viable microvoids with a sufficiently large radius to survive and overcome surface and elastic forces has been modeled to yield the cell density. A log-normal distribution, which relates to the rubber particle size, has been used to model the distribution of microvoids in the polymer composite material. The model depends on various process parameters such as saturation pressure, foaming temperature, concentration of nucleating agents, solubility of the blowing agent in the polymer, and the modulus. High impact polystyrene (HIPS) was added to polystyrene to obtain polymers with different concentrations of rubber gel particles, the nucleating agent, and used here for this study.
A National View of Promising Programs and Practices for Culturally, Linguistically, and Ethnically Diverse Gifted and Talented Students

The low representation of culturally, linguistically, and ethnically diverse (CLED) and high-poverty students in gifted and talented programs has long been an area of concern. This qualitative study investigated meth- ods to increase successful participation of CLED students in gifted programs across the nation. Twenty-five programs were selected for inclusion in the study. Of those, 7 programs were selected for in-depth site visits that included inter- views with administrators and teachers, as well as observations. Data suggested five categories that contributed to the successful identification and participation of CLED students in gifted programs. These categories included modified identification procedures; program support systems, such as front-loading (identifying high-potential children and providing opportunities for advanced work prior to formal identification); selecting curriculum/instructional designs that enable CLED students to succeed; building parent/home connections; and using program evaluation practices designed to highlight avenues to CLED students' success. Putting the Research to Use: This article describes identification and programming strategies designed to foster the successful inclusion of students from all cultural groups and all ages and geographic locations in gifted pro- grams. The strategies have been implemented in various types of programs and reflect a variety of approaches, including acceleration, enrichment, mentorships, and combinations of curricular and instructional approaches. These approaches can be implemented before identification has taken place to help prepare students for more chal- lenging content (a strategy called front-loading) and after students have been identified to help them succeed in the program. It is our responsibility to cultivate the talents of all young people, including those from groups his- torically overlooked for gifted programs. The relative success of the programs described in this article suggests that educators seeking to create more inclusive gifted programs may look to creative identification and support strategies to help them reach this end.
Structure and Struggle in Egalitarian Groups Dimensions of Power Relations

This study looks closely at how inequality operates in egalitarian groups. It is well-established in the literature that some type of unequal power dynamic always occurs in democratic organizations, but there is little information on the structure of those dynamics. By using a multiple case study participant observation approach, it was discovered that democratic groups have a fluid orientation toward equality that moves them across two dimensions of power : structure, the extent to which the power relationships are formalized, and struggle, the extent to which the relationships are contested.
40 Gbps SiGe pattern generator IC with variable clock skew and output levels

A single-chip 40 Gbps pattern generator design in 0.18 /spl mu/m SiGe BiCMOS technology is described. An on-chip 128/spl times/128 bit RAM with an access time of 3 ns stores the data pattern. A hybrid 128:1 CMOS/ECL multiplexer increases the output data rate from the RAM to 40 Gbps. The output driver is back terminated with 50 ohms and provides programmable levels in the range -2 V to 2 V into a 50 ohm load. The pattern dependent jitter is under 1 ps at all output levels. The clock can be delayed by a programmable number of clock cycles plus a vernier delay of up to 50 ps in 0.2 ps steps. Power dissipation is up to 550 mW depending on the output amplitude and termination voltage.
Fatigue in chronic dialysis patients

Fatigue is common in chronic hemodialysis (HD) patients and impacts on daily living, impairs significantly the quality of life, increases the risk of cardiovascular events and negatively influences survival. Although numerous social, demographic, clinical, and laboratory variables have been associated with fatigue, the causes of this symptom are often unclear. In the absence of an underlying, treatable disorder, the results of therapeutic intervention are typically frustrating. So far, none of the drugs tested can be recommended for preventing and treating fatigue in chronic HD patients. There is some evidence that exercise may significantly improve fatigue in dialysis patients; however, this requires confirmation through large, prospective, randomized studies.
Keynote Address: Security Protocols and the Swiss Army Knife

Keynote address is an unnecessarily grand term for what I’m about to do, and I don’t particularly guarantee to go on for long — leaving more time for more interesting things. The original theme that was stated for this workshop was broadening the horizons for security protocols and (as is traditional) nobody has said anything about that topic whatever in their papers, so I thought I would see if I could say something about it now so that the theme is not totally overlooked.
Optimizing initial chemotherapy for metastatic pancreatic cancer

The two combination chemotherapy regimens FOLFIRINOX and gemcitabine plus nab-paclitaxel represent major breakthroughs in the management of metastatic pancreatic cancer. Both regimens showed unprecedented survival advantage in the setting of front-line therapy. However, their application for treatment of patients in the community is challenging because of significant toxicities, thus limiting potential benefits to a narrow population of patients. Modifications to the dose intensity or schedule of those regimens improve their tolerability, while likely retaining survival advantage over single-agent chemotherapy. Newer strategies to optimize these two active regimens in advanced pancreatic cancer are being explored that can help personalize treatment to individual patients.
Improving documentation

The following report focuses on some of the documentation problems faced by many data centers as well as some proposed solutions.Many of the difficulties experienced at today's data centers stem from the need to better motivate programmers to generate accurate and useful documentation, and to simplify and standardize documentation tasks.This report presents four recommendations to solve these problems. The recommendations are:1) the creation of a computerized documentation system,2) the use of matching labels in source code and documentation,3) the use of tiered documentation formats,4) the creation of the post of documentation administrator.
Simulation of UHF Electromagnetic Wave Propagation for Oil-immersed Transformers with Partial Discharge

The structure of large oil-immersed transformer is very complicated.Therefore,it is difficult for discharge calibration and location of partial discharge source in process of ultra high frequency(UHF) electromagnetic waves propagation.The exact simulation model is established with actual transformer structure.Then the effects of internal components(reflection and refraction yielded by compound insulating oiled paper,metallic conductor reflection and absorption attenuation) on the propagation characteristics of UHF electromagnetic wave are discussed through the numerical simulation technique.At the same time,the position relationship between signal intensity,discharge source and ultra high frequency sensor is studied.Finally,the time domain,spectrum and cumulative energy characteristics of different position and type discharge are comparative analysis.Thus,the study has made significantly contributions to the on-line monitoring of UHF transformers with partial discharge.
Supervisory logic for control of networked process systems with event-based communication

This paper presents a methodology for supervisory event-based control of networked process systems subject to uncertain dynamics and communication constraints. The proposed methodology aims to balance the overall plant stability with the local performance needs of the component subsystems, while simultaneously optimizing the extent of information transfer between the distributed control systems. Initially, a quasi-decentralized networked control structure is developed consisting of a set of local model-based controllers that communicate with each other over a shared network at discrete times. Using Lyapunov techniques, appropriate thresholds on both the local model estimation errors and the local control Lyapunov functions are then derived and used as triggers for communication with a higher-level supervisor. In the event that either threshold is breached, an alarm signal is sent by the local controller to the supervisor which keeps track of all the alarm signals reported by the various units and then decides which subsystems should communicate with one another. The supervisory logic is designed to take the behavior of both the local and composite control Lyapunov functions into account, in order to meet both the stability and local performance requirements. Finally, the proposed methodology is illustrated using a networked chemical process example.
Mechanotransduction to Epigenetic Remodeling

Biophysical factors such as mechanical cues and micro/nano features of extracellular matrix regulate a variety of cell functions, including signal transduction from the cell surface to nucleus. Recent studies indicate that biophysical factors not only modulate immediate mechanotransduction and signaling, but also exert long-term effects on phenotypic changes, including stem cell differentiation and cell reprogramming. Both cell differentiation and reprogramming involve epigenetic state changes such as DNA methylation and histone methylation and acetylation, each of which affects gene expression independent of DNA sequence. There is emerging evidence that biophysical factors, in addition to transcriptional factors and biochemical factors, can regulate the epigenetic state of the cells and thus its phenotypic changes. This chapter will highlight the potential mechanisms through which mechanotransduction may lead to epigenetic modifications.
Putting logic in modeling of biological neuron: a new framework

In this paper, we discuss various frameworks used for modeling communications among biological neurons and their networks. We also present a novel framework in which a neuron is viewed as a node in a heterogeneous network of neuron clusters. In the proposed framework, we view a neuron as constituting organelles that together generate a composite signal (action potential) consisting of physiological and logical groups of signals. These groups are responsible for specific tasks, such as physiological signaling, signal routing and mental function coding (neural code) with 'standard' interfaces between signal groups. We contend that despite the variety of signals that a neuron processes, the interfaces between same signal groups are standardized for all communications. The benefits of such a framework are that (i) it assumes that the mental function is coded in only a subset of the neuronal signals that suggests that research on mental functions could be restricted to certain parts of neuronal signals, and (ii) it assume standardized interfaces between logical signal groups that makes it possible to have common models of different mental functions, such as cognition, memory, neuro-muscular and audiovisual functions. We will present various experimental set ups possible for deriving quantitative models under this framework.
Interference channels with source cooperation in the strong cooperation regime: Symmetric capacity to within 2 bits/s/Hz with Dirty Paper Coding

The capacity region of the Gaussian interference channel with two source-destination pairs where the sources can cooperate is not known. Prabhakaran and Viswanath showed that the sum-rate capacity can be achieved to within 19 bits/s/Hz by using a combination of superposition coding and zero-forcing. This paper only focuses on the symmetric capacity, i.e., the maximum equal rate point that the two sources can simultaneously achieve in a Gaussian interference channel with symmetric channel gains, in the strong cooperation regime, i.e., when the cooperation link is stronger than either the direct link or the interference link. In this setting, it is showed that the “binning+superposition” achievable scheme of Yang and Tuninetti, implemented with Gaussian codebooks and Dirty Paper Coding, achieves the symmetric capacity to within 2 bits/s/Hz-thereby considerably reducing the previously known gap. The extension of this gap-result to other regimes is also discussed.
Chance and Necessity in Zhu Xi's Conceptions of Heaven and Tradition

Discussion of the relationship between chance and necessity in the West goes back at least to Democritus in the fifth century BCE , and was highlighted again in the twentieth century by Jacques Monod in Chance and Necessity. Monod contrasted “teleonomic” (directional but not directed) biological evolution with “teleologic” (purpose-driven) Biblical theology. This article uses that distinction in examining Zhu Xi’s concepts of Heaven (in particular the “mandate” or “givenness” of Heaven) and tradition (focusing on the normative Confucian tradition, the “succession of the Way” or daotong). The result sheds light on the unique combination of rationality and transcendence in Neo-Confucian thought.
Music History Beyond the Classroom: Active Learning through Local History

This paper demonstrates the benefits of studying music through the lens of local history. Using the example of a Civil War concert performed by a music history class, I show that tangible historical objects and physical spaces help students to build a direct connection to the past. Furthermore, interactive community-based projects exemplify active learning techniques and serve as a means of teaching students to empathize and understand others ’ perspectives through history. Finally, I weigh the concerns and benefits of spending significant class time on such a specific project in a music history survey course.
Influence of discharge timing and diagnosis on outcomes of pediatric laparoscopic cholecystectomy.

Background This study evaluated the influence of discharge timing (same day versus other) on 30-day hospital readmissions after laparoscopic cholecystectomy in pediatric patients. Wound complication and readmission rates also were evaluated among patients with different operative indications. Methods The database of the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program-Pediatric (2012–2015) was queried for patients Results From 2012–2015, 5,046 patients underwent cholecystectomy (75.0% female; median age 13.7 years). Postoperative diagnoses included cholelithiasis (69.6%), cholecystitis (16.3%), biliary dyskinesia (12.3%), and pancreatitis (1.8%); all other diagnoses were excluded from analysis. Same-day discharge occurred in 1,061 patients (21.0%). Overall rate of readmission was 3.6% (3.9% among patients discharged on postoperative day 1 or 2 and 2.1% for patients discharged on the same day as the operation, P = .003). When compared according American Society of Anesthesiologists classification, patients of class 3 and class 4 were associated with increased odds of 30-day hospital readmission when compared with class 1 (odds ratio 2.27, 95% confidence interval 1.32–3.89, P = .003 and odds ratio 7.62, 95% confidence interval 1.47–39.70, P = .02, respectively). Similarly, patients with hematologic comorbidities compared with those without comorbidities also had increased odds of 30-day readmission (odds ratio 1.88, 95% confidence interval, 1.19–2.96, P = .007). Same-day discharge was not associated with increased readmission (odds ratio 0.60, 95% confidence interval, 0.38–0.94, P = .03) when compared with later discharge. Reasons for readmission did not differ between the same-day and later discharge groups. None of the demographic or clinical characteristics, including discharge timing, indication or operation, and preoperative duration of stay, were associated with increased odds of wound complications. Conclusion In pediatric patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy, same-day discharge is not associated with increased 30-day hospital readmission rates or wound complications when compared to discharge in 1 or 2 days. Same-day discharge seems safe and may be an applicable quality indicator for pediatric patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy.