cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
Exploiting hierarchical parallelisms for molecular dynamics simulation on multicore clusters

We have developed a scalable hierarchical parallelization scheme for molecular dynamics (MD) simulation on multicore clusters. The scheme explores multilevel parallelism combining: (1) Internode parallelism using spatial decomposition via message passing; (2) intercore parallelism using cellular decomposition via multithreading employing a master/worker model; (3) data-level optimization via single-instruction multiple-data (SIMD) parallelism with various code transformation techniques. By using a hierarchy of parallelisms, the scheme exposes very high concurrency and data locality, thereby achieving: (1) internode weak-scaling parallel efficiency 0.985 on 106,496 BlueGene/L nodes (0.975 on 32,768 BlueGene/P nodes), internode strong-scaling parallel efficiency 0.90 on 8,192 BlueGene/L nodes; (2) intercore multithread parallel efficiency 0.65 for eight threads on a dual quadcore Xeon platform; and (3) SIMD speedup around 2 for problem sizes ranging from 3,072 to 98,304 atoms. Furthermore, the effect of memory-access penalty on SIMD performance is analyzed, and an application-based SIMD analysis scheme is proposed to help programmers determine whether their applications are amenable to SIMDization.
Diffusion due to parametric instability turbulence

Abstract We derive the diffusion coefficient for a weakly turbulent plasma in the presence of a driver field, E 0 cos ω 0 t and find low velocity components due to diffusion at the beat phase velocity, (ω−nω 0 ) k .
Reduction in RNA synthesis following red cell-mediated microinjection of antibodies to RNA polymerase I

Abstract Antibody molecules directed against RNA polymerase I, the enzyme responsible for rRNA synthesis, were introduced into rat hepatoma cells by red cell-mediated microinjection. Access of the antibodies to the nucleolus, the site of rRNA synthesis, was facilitated by microinjecting mitotic cells. Using indirect immunofluorescence, anti-RNA polymerase I immunoglobulins, but not control immunoglobulins, were found localized in the nucleoli of microinjacted cells. To assess whether intracellular antibodies could alter RNA synthesis, cultures were labeled with [3H]uridine at various times after microinjection. Reduction in RNA synthesis, relative to cells microinjected with non-immune immunoglobulins, was observed within three hours. These results demonstrate that antibodies introduced into the cytoplasm of mitotic cells via red cell-mediated microinjection have free access to nuclear components and that they remain functional within the nuclei of living cells.
Color tuning in alert macaque V1 assessed with fMRI and single-unit recording shows a bias toward daylight colors

Colors defined by the two intermediate directions in color space, "orange-cyan" and "lime-magenta," elicit the same spatiotemporal average response from the two cardinal chromatic channels in the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN). While we found LGN functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) responses to these pairs of colors were statistically indistinguishable, primary visual cortex (V1) fMRI responses were stronger to orange-cyan. Moreover, linear combinations of single-cell responses to cone-isolating stimuli of V1 cone-opponent cells also yielded stronger predicted responses to orange-cyan over lime-magenta, suggesting these neurons underlie the fMRI result. These observations are consistent with the hypothesis that V1 recombines LGN signals into "higher-order" mechanisms tuned to noncardinal color directions. In light of work showing that natural images and daylight samples are biased toward orange-cyan, our findings further suggest that V1 is adapted to daylight. V1, especially double-opponent cells, may function to extract spatial information from color boundaries correlated with scene-structure cues, such as shadows lit by ambient blue sky juxtaposed with surfaces reflecting sunshine.
Population Genetic Aspects of Gametophytic Self incompatibility

In gametophytic self-incompatibility, the S-locus encodes an S-protein whose expression results in successful pollination only when the pollen allele differs from both maternal alleles. Analysis of nucleotide and amino acid sequences of a number of S-alleles has revealed extraordinary allelic sequence divergence and an excess of interspecific shared polymorphism. Population genetic theory and analysis of the distribution of the number of shared polymorphic sites verifies that the sequence diversity is consistent with the alleles being extraordinarily old. Theory also predicts that S-alleles will exhibit less population structuring in a subdivided population than will a neutral locus, and data are being collected to test this. Self-incompatibility must involve two features - a pollen component that specifies the identity of the pollen and a pistil component that recognizes and elicits a response to self-pollen. The S-locus clearly determines the pistil component, but lack of expression of S in pollen leaves open the possibility that there may be another pollen factor. Experiments with transgenic plants have demonstrated that the S-protein expression in the pistil is necessary and sufficient to determine the pistil phenotype. However, several lines of evidence suggest that the degree of elimination of self-pollen in plants with gametophytic self-incompatibility depends on additional genetic factors besides the S-locus. Modifiers may affect self-incompatibility by affecting either the pollen component, the pistil component or both. Population genetic models that test the consequences of modification of these two components are reviewed and extended. Conditions for invasion of reduced degree of self-incompatibility depend in part on the level of inbreeding depression.
Agile Values, Innovation and the Shortage of Women Software Developers

The percentage of women software developers in the U.S. has declined from 42% in 1987 to less than 25% today. This is in a software/internet marketplace where women are online in equal numbers to men, directly or indirectly influence 61% of consumer electronics purchases, generate 58% of online dollars, and represent 42% of active gamers. Women avoid careers in software due to hostile environments, unsustainable pace, diminished sense of purpose, disadvantages in pay, and lack of advancement, peers or mentors. Agile Software Development is founded upon values that challenge such dysfunction in order to build self-organizing, collaborative and highly productive teams. In a high functioning Agile practice, developers engage each other, product owners and sponsors in a shared concern for quality, predictability and meeting the needs of end users. Can Agile values and practice drive changes in the workplace to better attract and retain women software developers?
SOMATIC EMBRYOGENESIS AND PLANT REGENERATION FROM IMMATURE ZYGOTIC EMBRYOS OF MUSCADINE GRAPE (VITIS ROTUNDIFOLIA) CULTIVARS

Embryogenic cell lines of Vitis rotundifolia were produced from immature zygotic embryo explants obtained by culturing ovules, harvested at 20 d postanthesis, for 8 wk and then dissecting embryos from them. Ovules cultured on Nitsch and Nitsch medium with naphthoxyacetic acid and benzyladenine (BA) produced a brown exudate, necessitating three transfers to fresh medium at 2-wk intervals during the 8-wk culture cycle. Zygotic embryos that were subsequently isolated from cultured ovules and placed on the same medium produced a heterogenous callus from which eventually emerged embryogenic cell lines. A higher percentage of ovules from cultivars 'Dixie', 'Fry', 'Nesbitt', and 'Welder' produced zygotic embryos (3 1/%-o39%) than did those from 'Carlos' (3%). A higher percentage of 'Fry' ovules produced embryogenic lines from cultured zygotic embryos (6.3%) than did those of the other four cultivars (1/%-1 .6%). Embryogenic cell lines were white and composed of variably sized cell clusters, somatic embryos, and embryonic tissue embedded in a watery matrix. These lines were maintained for over 1 yr on modified Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium lacking growth regulators by transfer of selected cell clusters every 6 wk. White, opaque somatic embryos grew directly from cell clusters and passed through recognizable developmental stages. Germination was induced by transfer of somatic embryos to MS medium with BA. Although 80%/o-. 100% of embryos germinated, plant recovery was low due to poor shoot development.
Ag-Pd alloys for resin-bonded retainers.

Abstract A method for electrolytically etching silver-palladium alloys has been investigated. All the alloys included in the study responded quite favorably to the process. Bond strength values were determined for a composite-resin luting agent as well as a laboratory-cured composite-resin veneer. Bond strengths for the various Ag−Pd alloys in conjunction with the resin-bonding agent ranged from approximately 8–15 MPa. Values for the light-cured composite-resin veneer ranged from 5.5–12.0 MPa.
Biomarkers in heart failure.

Heart failure results not only from cardiac overload or injury but also from a complex interplay among genetic, neurohormonal, inflammatory, and biochemical changes acting on cardiac myocytes, the cardiac interstitium, or both. This review focuses on biomarkers for heart failure other than routinely determined laboratory values and discusses how these might be used in assessing and managing heart failure.
Two-phonon bound states

A sharp peak in the two-phonon Raman spectrum of diamond was first observed by Krishnan and has recently been shown to be at a frequency higher than twice the maximum single-phonon frequency by Solid and Ramdas. We interpret this peak as evidence for the existence of bound states of the two-phonon system. The repulsive anharmonic phonon-phonon interaction which splits the bound states off the two-phonon continuum is estimated for diamond.
Molecular Evidence for Deep Precambrian Divergences Among Metazoan Phyla

A literal reading of the fossil record suggests that the animal phyla diverged in an “explosion” near the beginning of the Cambrian period. Calibrated rates of molecular sequence divergence were used to test this hypothesis. Seven independent data sets suggest that invertebrates diverged from chordates about a billion years ago, about twice as long ago as the Cambrian. Protostomes apparently diverged from chordates well before echinoderms, which suggests a prolonged radiation of animal phyla. These conclusions apply specifically to divergence times among phyla; the morphological features that characterize modern animal body plans, such as skeletons and coeloms, may have evolved later.
A Radiation Hardened Gate Array Family Using an Advanced Di Bipolar Technology

Gate arrays have been used for several years to provide a systems designer with a low cost fast turn option in obtaining custom LSI logic circuits. This paper describes a new family of TTL compatible bipolar arrays which have been optimized for radiation hardness.
Tomorrow's network operators will be programmers (keynote)

Communications networks remain incredibly difficult to manage, troubleshoot, and secure. Network management challenges exist in all kinds of networks. In this talk, I will describe how Software Defined Networking (SDN), which decouples logical network control from the underlying network infrastructure, can simplify many network management tasks in different types of networks and may ultimately provide a means by which network operators (and home users) can make their networks more predictable, manageable, and secure. I will first present Kinetic, a new programming language and runtime for SDNs that we have developed, implemented, and deployed (in both home networks and on a large campus network) and describe how it allows network operators to express and implement complex policies in a simple and high-level control framework. Current SDN controller platforms typically offer little domain-specific support for programming changes to data-plane policy over time (dynamic policy). Links are provisioned and fail; users arrive and depart; traffic demands change; and hosts are compromised and patched. Today’s controller platforms offer SDN programmers little guidance on how to encode dynamic policies, which makes the resulting programs difficult to write and analyze. Kinetic encodes dynamic policies and realizes them in the underlying network. It offers novel Finite State Machine (FSM)-based abstractions for encoding dynamic policies that are expressive and intuitive, efficient for programmers to write, and amenable to automated verification. To prevent state explosion, we develop a new type of runtime policy that reactively generates only the required portions of the FSM abstractions that correspond to received events. I will then describe how we are applying new SDN abstractions and control to help approach longstanding problems in interdomain routing in a framework called SDN. To date, SDN has not affected how we interconnect separately administered networks as we do today through BGP. Because many of the current failings of the Internet are due to BGP’s poor performance and limited functionality, it behooves us to explore incrementally deployable ways to leverage SDN’s power to improve interdomain routing. Towards this goal, this project exploits the re-emergence of Internet eXchange Points (IXPs) to create Software Defined eXchanges (SDXs). Although the SDX approach does involve deploying SDN technology at IXPs, the improvements we describe involve fundamental changes to network control. I will describe how improved network control can realize the potential of SDN-capable functions at Internet exchange points.
Utilitarianism and the wrongness of killing

Richard Henson has argued that hedonistic-average-act-utilitarianism has the extremely counter-intuitive consequence that certain individuals ought to be killed simply because they are unhappy and because their deaths would raise the average level of happiness. It is argued that Henson's criticisms are correct and that they can be extended to other versions of utilitarianism: total (as opposed to average) utilitarianism, non-hedonistic versions of utilitarianism, and those versions of act-utilitarianism that have originated in the recent controversy about population control.
The cDNA sequence of a type II cytoskeletal keratin reveals constant and variable structural domains among keratins

We present the cDNA and amino acid sequences of a cytoskeletal keratin from human epidermis (Mr = 56K) that belongs to one of the two classes of keratins (Type I and Type II) present in all vertebrates. In these two types of keratins the central approximately 300 residue long regions share approximately 30% homology both with one another and with the sequences of other IF proteins. Within this region, all IF proteins are predicted to contain four helical domains demarcated from one another by three regions of beta-turns. The amino and carboxy termini of the Type II keratin are very different from those of microfibrillar keratins and other nonkeratin IF proteins. However, they contain unusual glycine-rich tandem repeats similar to the amino terminus of the Type I keratin. Thus the size heterogeneity among keratins appears to be a result of differences in the length of the terminal ends rather than the structurally conserved central region.
Walter Benjamin's Urban Thought: A Critical Analysis:

In this paper I offer an introductory survey of Walter Benjamin's writings on cities and urbanism in order to explore the potential value of his insights for urban studies, I address the following issues: the complexity and variety of Benjamin's urban writings; the status of Benjamin's theory of modern urban experience in his thought; the distinct textual strategics developed in his urban writings; and the relationship between memory, the built environment, and historical processes. I argue that Benjamin's concept of ‘aura’ can be used to place his interest in cities and urbanisim in context, I conclude with the suggestion that these notions can usefully inform current writings in urban studies.
Preliminary support for gender differences in response to fluoxetine for generalized anxiety disorder

Women have a higher prevalence of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) than do men, but few studies have assessed gender differences in response to pharmacotherapy. In this study we examined gender as a correlate of response to 6 weeks of open, prospective fluoxetine treatment in 23 men and 22 women with a primary diagnosis of GAD. There was no difference by gender in age or prevalence of mood and anxiety comorbidity; however, GAD onset occurred at a significantly younger age in women compared with men. Despite a lack of difference in baseline severity measures, women had a significantly poorer response to fluoxetine as measured by both the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM-A) and Clinician Global Impression-Severity Scale (CGI-S). In multivariate analyses, there was a significant interaction between age of onset and gender: men with younger age of onset and women with older age of onset exhibited poorer response on the HAM-A. These data, though limited in sample size and by the post hoc nature of our analyses, offer preliminary support that women with GAD, particularly those with a later age of onset, may have a poorer response to the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) fluoxetine. Larger placebo-controlled trials are needed to more definitively examine gender and treatment response in anxiety disorders.
Do bipolar magnetic regions exist on the surfaces of early-type stars?

The observations of relatively narrow absorption components of the UV resonance lines in the spectra of early-type stars are reviewed, and some new observational data are presented for Rho Leo (B1 Ib). It is shown that the discrete components which are seen in the UV resonance lines of early-type stars are a result of ejection from local spots above the photospheres of hot stars. It is suggested that localized ejection is caused by magnetic flux lines associated with a bipolar magnetic region on the surface of the star.
The rex genes of bacteriophage lambda can inhibit cell function without phage superinfection

Abstract The rexA and rexB genes of bacteriophage λ are expressed from the prophage and cause the exclusion of many superinfecting mutant phages. We cloned the rexA and rexB genes into a multicopy plasmid so that they were overexpressed from the inducible tac promoter. No obvious phenotypes were associated with overex-pressing both rexA and rexB or overexpressing rexA in the absence of rexB expression. However, induction of rexA in the presence of limiting rexB activity caused an immediate cessation of cell growth. All macromolecular synthesis abruptly ceased and amino acid transport was severely inhibited. Intracellular levels of adenosine 5'-triphosphate also dropped. These phenotypes are similar to those observed after phage superinfection, leading us to propose that at least some of the exclusion caused by the Rex proteins could be due to a change in their ratio following superinfection.
Graded bioassay for demonstration of brain rescue from experimental acute ischemia in rats.

This study explored the correlation between duration of focal ischemia and infarct volume in spontaneously hypertensive rats as a measure of outcome after neuroprotective intervention.We used 2,3,5-triphenyltetrazolium chloride staining to discriminate infarcted tissue and calculate infarct volume 24 hours after temporary tandem common carotid/middle cerebral artery occlusion lasting 5 to 150 minutes. We used a graded bioassay described by logistic function and executed by computer program (ALLFIT) to evaluate changes in infarct volume after increasing durations of ischemia. The method allowed us to calculate the maximal infarct volume (Volmax) and the duration of ischemia before reperfusion producing half-maximal infarct size (T50). Hypothermia and the N-methyl-D-aspartate antagonist CNS-1102 begun after the onset of ischemia were tested for their ability to reduce Volmax and prolong T50 as analyzed by ALLFIT.Volmax was 180.6 +/- 22.4 mm3 and T50 was 45.9 +/- 5.8 minutes in control rats. Hypothermia (30 ...
Ion beam implantation and cross-sectional TEM studies of lanthanide titanate pyrochlore single crystals

We have performed ion implantations in bulk samples of single crystal lanthanide titanate pyrochlores A{sub 2}Ti{sub 2}O{sub 7} (A = Sm, Eu, Gd, Dy and Er) using 1.0 MeV Kr{sup +} at room temperature at an ion fluence of 5 x 10{sup 14} ions/cm{sup 2}. Er{sub 2}Ti{sub 2}O{sub 7} was also implanted by 1 MeV Kr{sup +} at an ion fluence of 1.74 x 10{sup 14} ions/cm{sup 2}. Ion implantation-induced microstructural evolution has been examined using cross-sectional TEM. For Er{sub 2}Ti{sub 2}O{sub 7} irradiated by 1 MeV Kr{sup +} at a dose of 1.74 x 10{sup 14} ions/cm{sup 2}, a highly damaged layer consisting of nano-sized disordered fluorite domains was observed; while, a complete amorphous layer starting from surface was created by 1 MeV Kr{sup +} implantation at a fluence of 5 x 10{sup 14} ions/cm{sup 2}. The critical amorphization doses of different titanate pyrochlore single crystals implanted with 1 MeV Kr{sup +} were determined by comparing the experimental damage profiles with those simulated using SRIM-2000. The critical amorphization doses generally increase as the A-site cation changes from Sm{sup 3+} to Er{sup 3+}, suggesting that the radiation resistance of titanate pyrochlores increases with the decreasing ionic radius of A-site cations.
Associations Between Types of Combat Violence and the Acquired Capability for Suicide

Research suggests that combat exposure might increase risk for suicide. The interpersonal-psychological theory of suicide (IPTS) proposes that exposure to painful and provocative experiences such as combat contribute to fearlessness about death and increased pain tolerance, which serve to enhance the individual’s capability to attempt suicide. Violent and aggressive combat experiences, in particular, should demonstrate relatively stronger associations to this capability. The current study tests this proposition in a sample of deployed active duty combatants. Results indicate that all types of combat exposure independently contribute to capability for suicide. Consistent with the IPTS, when considering all types of combat simultaneously, combat characterized by violence and high levels of injury and death are associated with relatively stronger associations to this capability.
A Poetics of Absence: Kabbalist Allegory in the Poetry of Paul Celan, Edmond Jabès, and David Meltzer

This paper is an exploration of Kabbalist ideas in the work of three Jewish poets, Paul Celan, Edmond Jabes, and David Meltzer. Their poetry recovers the central dialectic of exile and redemption, absence and presence, embedded in Jewish thought and experience. But more, the breach of the Holocaust comes to undermine and transform this dialectic that was maintained throughout the Diaspora. Especially for Celan and Jabes, who experienced the disruption of the Holocaust, the dialectic becomes a question of faith at all. A huge question mark at the center of being. The answer for Celan, the exiled Rumanian, is a poetics of negative transcendence in his role as a witness. The answer for Jabes, the exiled Egyptian Jew, is an endless Talmudic questioning. Despite his own ruminations over modern lower-case holocausts, Meltzer, an American born in the late thirties, develops a passionate devotional poetics based on his studies in Kabbalah. Each of these poets attempts to secure the illumination of allegorically higher ground. Their poetry is the testament of their struggle.
An architecture of a threaded many-to-many remote procedure call

The client-agent-server architecture, which serves as a flexible mechanism for many-to-many remote procedure calls, is discussed. The architecture provides a transparent view of the server to a client. The client accesses the server group through the agent while retaining only an abstract view of the server. The call primitives for the client, agent groups, hook construction and primitives (hooks are basic building block which a server group provides to the agent group), and server groups used in the architecture are described. Implementation issues are reviewed. >
Effects of physiological versus pharmacological β-carotene supplementation on cell proliferation and histopathological changes in the lungs of cigarette smoke-exposed ferrets

There remains a remarkable discordance between the results of observational epidemiological studies and intervention trials using beta-carotene as a potential chemopreventive agent. One question that needs to be examined is whether the adverse outcomes of human beta-carotene trials are related to the large doses of beta-carotene that were administered. In the present study, ferrets were given a physiological (low) dose or a pharmacological (high) dose of beta-carotene supplementation (0.43 mg versus 2.4 mg/kg body wt/day, which is equivalent to 6 mg versus 30 mg/day in humans) and exposed to cigarette smoke for 6 months. We investigated the effects of these doses of beta-carotene on retinoid concentrations, expression of retinoic acid receptors (RARs), activator protein 1 (AP-1; c-Jun and c-Fos), cyclin D1, proliferating cellular nuclear antigen (PCNA), and histopathological changes in the lungs of both normal and cigarette smoke-exposed ferrets. Thirty-six male ferrets were treated in six groups-control, smoke-exposed (SM), low-dose beta-carotene (LBC), high-dose beta-carotene (HBC), low-dose beta-carotene plus smoke exposure (LBC+SM) or high-dose beta-carotene plus smoke exposure (HBC+SM)-for 6 months. Retinoic acid concentration and RAR beta gene expression, but not expression of RAR alpha and RAR gamma, was reduced in the lung tissue of HBC+SM, HBC, SM and LBC+SM ferrets, but not in that of LBC ferrets, as compared with the control group. Expression of AP-1 and PCNA was greater in HBC+SM, HBC, SM and LBC+SM ferrets, but not in the LBC ferrets, as compared with the control group. Increased amounts of cyclin D1 and keratinized squamous metaplasia were observed in the lung tissue of HBC+SM, HBC and SM groups but not in that of the LBC+SM, LBC or control groups. These data suggest that, in contrast with a pharmacological dose of beta-carotene, a physiological dose of beta-carotene in smoke-exposed ferrets has no potentially detrimental effects and may afford weak protection against lung damage induced by cigarette smoke.
Dynamic parameters of the wrist

Wrist response has been widely evaluated in order to classify the sources of wrist related disorders, or to evaluate the risk involved on wrist loading activities. These studies have been focused on a qualitative approach of the wrist response. The current study quantifies the wrist response based on a single degree of freedom model. The natural frequency and the damping were estimated from the data gathered during the experiments. The stiffness was calculated based on the model definition. No variation of the damping is related to the loading conditions or muscular activity. Both natural frequency and stiffness increase as muscle activity increases. However, these two model parameters values tend to level off at higher muscle activity levels.
Health burden and funding at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Background The relationship between domestic funding for selected conditions to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the burden of disease and disability in the United States was assessed systematically. Methods Using mortality, years of potential life lost (YPLLs), disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), hospital days, hospital discharges, and direct medical costs of conditions, 34 high-burden conditions addressed by CDC programs were identified, and information was collected about the funds spent on each by CDC during fiscal year (FY) 2003. The 34 conditions were grouped into 15 categorical areas, and the relationship between budget and burden was analyzed using correlation and regression methods for each of the categorical areas and for each measure of burden. Results Of CDC’s total FY 2003 budget of $6.9 billion, 62% ($4.3 billion) of funding was allocated to one of the 34 conditions studied. A positive relationship between budget and burden was identified for all measures of burden, although the correlations varied for the different conditions. Conclusions Although examination of the relationship of CDC’s budget to burden measures provides insight into the agency’s portfolio of investments, this exercise also highlights a number of limitations with this approach and the currently available burden measures. Assessment of key public health functions such as emergency preparedness and the collection of vital statistics require development of metrics different from the burden measures used in this analysis. Investment in the development of such metrics warrants consideration.
Complete Endobronchial Occlusion by Kaposi's Sarcoma in the Absence of Cutaneous Involvement

Bronchopulmonary Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) occurs in 20 percent of AIDS patients with cutaneous involvement; however, complete endobronchial occlusion is uncommon. Moreover, bronchopulmonary KS is infrequent in the absence of cutaneous manifestations. We report a case of documented complete endobronchial obstruction by KS without cutaneous involvement.
Overseas Consultation: A Case History

The challenge of overseas consulting is viewed from the perspective of a novice. These challenges are viewed within the context of pre-entry issues, entry, relationship building, problem identifica...
Multiobjective particle swarm optimization for parameter estimation in hydrology

[1] Modeling of complex hydrologic processes has resulted in models that themselves exhibit a high degree of complexity and that require the determination of various parameters through calibration. In the current application we introduce a relatively new global optimization tool, called particle swarm optimization (PSO), that has already been applied in various other fields and has been reported to show effective and efficient performance. The PSO approach initially dealt with a single-objective function but has been extended to deal with multiobjectives in a form called multiobjective particle swarm optimization (MOPSO). The algorithm is modified to account for multiobjective problems by introducing the Pareto rank concept. The new MOPSO algorithm is tested on three case studies. Two test functions are used as the first case study to generate the true Pareto fronts. The approach is further tested for parameter estimation of a well-known conceptual rainfall-runoff model, the Sacramento soil moisture accounting model having 13 parameters, for which the results are very encouraging. We also tested the MOPSO algorithm to calibrate a three-parameter support vector machine model for soil moisture prediction.
Software tool for simulation of Brillouin precursors in dispersive dielectrics

It has been long known that propagation through dispersive media give rise to Brillouin and Sommerfeld type precursors. The mathematical model to represent these precursors, in most dispersive media, results in mathematically intractable complex differential and integral equations. However, modern asymptotic theory of pulse propagation through dispersive media gave rise to closed-form formulations for Brillouin type precursors [1–3]. There are, however, very few experimental studies [4] reported in the literature to experimentally observe the existence of the precursors and characterize the evolution of these precursors in a given dispersive media.
N 2 rotational temperature analysis by laser induced fluorescence following resonant enhanced multiphotonion ization

It has been demonstrated that the rotational temperature of molecular nitrogen at atmospheric pressure can be determined by direct optical probing of the N2 (X, v=3D0) ground state with subsequent analysis of the rotational state distribution. A tunable probe laser was scanned over resonant enhanced multi-photon ionization transitions initiating from various N2 (X, v=3D0, J) states. At atmospheric pressure, the laser photo-ionization also induced nitrogen fluorescence bands. Analysis of the relative fluorescence as a function of laser wavelength produced a calculated N2 (X, v=3D0, J) rotation state distribution and the assignment of a rotational temperature.
Experiences with Three-Dimensional Scatterplots

Abstract This article is a brief, subjective account of my experiences with various implementations and uses of three-dimensional scatterplots.
Reformulation of a Methodological Concept in Grounded Theory

Although the grounded theory method was not designed with nursing science in mind, it is one of the most prevalent and theory-producing qualitative methods in nursing. Changes in the grounded theory methodology have been debated in numerous articles. What has not received much attention, however, is a central idea of the grounded theory method—the basic social process. The goal here is to raise for consideration the idea that change is needed in nurse researchers' understanding of the basic social process; there is a need to reformulate this substantive concept of the grounded theory method so as to render it more congruent with nursing ontology and productive of nursing knowledge.
Topographic signatures and a general transport law for deep‐seated landslides in a landscape evolution model

A fundamental goal of studying earth surface processes is to disentangle the complex web of interactions among baselevel, tectonics, climate, and rock properties that generate characteristic landforms. Mechanistic geomorphic transport laws can quantitatively address this goal, but no widely accepted law for landslides exists. Here we propose a transport law for deep-seated landslides in weathered bedrock and demonstrate its utility using a two-dimensional numerical landscape evolution model informed by study areas in the Waipaoa catchment, New Zealand, and the Eel River catchment, California. We define a non-dimensional landslide number, which is the ratio of the horizontal landslide flux to the vertical tectonic flux, that characterizes three distinct landscape types. One is dominated by stochastic landsliding, whereby discrete landslide events episodically erode material at rates exceeding the long-term uplift rate. Another is characterized by steady landsliding, in which the landslide flux at any location remains constant through time and is greatest at the steepest locations in the catchment. The third is not significantly affected by landsliding. In both the “stochastic landsliding” and “steady landsliding” regimes, increases in the non-dimensional landslide number systematically reduce catchment relief and widen valley spacing, producing long, low angle hillslopes despite high uplift rates. The stochastic landsliding regime captures the frequent observation that deep-seated landslides produce large sediment fluxes from small areal extents while being active only a fraction of the time. We suggest that this model is adaptable to a wide range of geologic settings and is useful for interpreting climate-driven changes in landslide behavior.
How insects fly [aerodynamic aspects and robot design]

Summary form only given. Engineers have long been mocked for their inability to explain how a bumblebee flies. This paradox arose because conventional aerodynamic theory predicts that the wings of bees and other insect's forces should generate forces that are too low to keep an animal aloft. Recent work using high speed imaging, supercomputers, and giant robotic insects has finally resolved this enigma by identifying a palette of novel mechanisms that insects use to hover and maneuver. Now that the aerodynamics of insect flight are well understood, this knowledge is being used to help engineers design fly-sized flapping robots.
Bounds for Trigonometric Polynomials

Two methods for finding the maximum and minimum of a given trigonometric polynomial are described and studied. They are then applied to randomly generated polynomials. The resulting data suggest that one of the methods is superior to the other.
Photochemistry of Terrestrial Exoplanet Atmospheres

Terrestrial exoplanets are exciting objects to study because they could be potential habitats for extraterrestrial life. Both the search and the characterization of terrestrial exoplanets are flourishing. Particularly, NASA’s Kepler spacecraft has discovered Earth-sized planets receiving similar amount of radiative heat as Earth. Central in the studies of terrestrial exoplanets is to characterize their atmospheres and to search for potential biosignature gases (the atmospheric components that indicate biogenic surface emissions). To achieve this goal, a deep understanding of the key physical and chemical processes that control the atmospheric composition and the atmosphere-surface interaction is pivotal.
Argentina’s ICSID Arbitrations and the UNCC Experience: Consistency and Capability in Mass Claims

When Argentina moved to restructure its sovereign debt, it triggered a flood of claims by foreign investors that risked overwhelming the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), which hosts the arbitrations. It seems likely that, whatever is decided for the Argentina claims, mass claims will continue to arise in arbitration as a logical consequence of globalization, the judicialization of disputes, and referral of disputes to arbitration in numerous bilateral and multilateral agreements. This paper considers how the United Nations Compensation Commission (UNCC) planned and then adopted mechanisms to deal with two different types of mass claims that resulted from the 1991 Gulf War, draws comparisons to the Argentina investment arbitrations, and makes some observations of where the UNCC experience provides a useful comparative case study in responding to mass claims with flexibility and inventiveness.
Optimization of Wind Turbine Airfoils Subject to Particle Erosion

An optimization of wind turbine airfoils subject to particle erosion is investigated. The erosive damage to the surface was represented by sand grains colliding with the blade leading edge. The optimization was performed by using a genetic algorithm approach (GA). A newly-written GA code was coupled with a two-dimensional inviscid flowfield solver (XFOIL) and with a particle dynamics code (BugFoil). The chosen scheme of the GA was based on random tournament selection. Each geometry was evaluated through a figure of merit that represented the airfoil fitness to damage and to aerodynamic performance when the airfoil is damaged. Multiple approaches to the optimization were taken. The initial step of this study involved optimization through geometry perturbations of the leading edge by means of Bezier curves. It was found that the leading edge shape modifications of existing airfoils increase the fitness of the airfoils subject to erosion. The second approach involved a crossover of existing airfoil geometries along with leading edge shape mutations, in order to expand the design space. The fitness of such airfoils was improved with respect to the first approach. However, for both these approaches the airfoil aerodynamic performance was disregarded, as they were intended to give insight on the optimal airfoil shapes. The final step of the study made use of an inverse airfoil design method (PROFOIL) to widen the design space even further. In this approach the aerodynamic performance of the airfoil was evaluated, and the GA became a two-objective optimization process (maximum lift-to-drag ratio, and erosive figure of merit). It was observed that bulbous upper leading edges, and slanted, flat lower leading edges allowed for best erosion performance. Moreover, it was seen that the airfoils with a positive camber required a smaller angle of attack to operate at the same lift coefficient, hence reducing the erosive damage experienced for sand grain impacts. The airfoils obtained from the inverse design GA algorithm were characterized by a lift-to-drag ratio greater than 310 for a Reynolds number of 5.84×106.
Epidemiological characteristics of communicable diseases in an urban village of Shenzhen from 2009 to 2013

Objective To analyze the prevalent of communicable diseases in an urban village of Shenzhen from 2009 to2013 and provide reference for communicable diseases control. Methods All kinds of infectious diseases reporting data of the urban village from 2009 to 2013 were statistically analyzed by descriptive epidemiology. Results 24 kinds of communicable diseases with 3 813 cases were reported in 2009-2013 and the average annual incidence rate was 1 841.83 /105, which was significantly higher than non-urban villages. Infectious diseases of the village were mainly concentrated in the age group under 15 years, with intestinal infectious diseases and respiratory diseases, accounting for 68.11% of the total cases. Class B infectious diseases declined, while Class C infectious diseases was on the rise. The incidence among the top five of the communicable diseases were HFMD, other infectious diarrhea, acute hemorrhagic conjunctivitis,chickenpox and mumps successively, cumulative incidence was 2 551 cases, accounting for 66.90%. Conclusions Major infectious risks faced by the residents of villages were HFMD,other infectious diarrhea, acute hemorrhagic conjunctivitis,chickenpox and mumps.Government should pay attention,coordinate different departments,and adopt comprehensive measures to prevent and control communicable diseases.
Spectrum analysis of hand,foot and mouth disease in Guangzhou in 2011

Objective To identify the pathogens causing hand,foot and mouth disease(HFMD) in Guangzhou in 2011 and the distribution of their genotypes.Methods Specimens of suspected HFMD were collected.Partial VP1 genes were amplified by Real-Time RT-PCR or nested RT-PCR and then sequenced.Phylogenetic trees were constructed for correlation analysis.Results A total of 2 067 suspected HFMD cases were found.Enterovirus was identified in 1 139 cases,including 15 enteroviruses such as EV71,CoxA16,CoxA6,CoxA10,CoxA9,HEV96 and CoxB.CoxA16(39.2%),EV71(32.6%) and CoxA6(18.5%) were the major pathogens causing HFMD.There were 3 fatal cases and 6 severe cases caused by EV71.3 severe cases were caused by CoxA6.Phylogenetic analysis indicated that all pathogens identified in this study could be classified into HEV-A(97.2%),HEV-B(2.5%) and HEV-C(0.3%).No HEV-D was found.Conclusion EV71,CoxA16 and CoxA6 were the major pathogens causing HFMD.They all belong to HEV-A.There were sporadic cases caused by HEV-B(CoxA9,EC,CoxB) and HEV-C(CoxA24).
Ultra Vires: The Eurozone Crisis and the European Central Bank's Lost Independence

The introduction of the European single currency, the euro, in 2000 was intended to unite Europe's diverse cultures and economies into a global economic powerhouse that could compete against the U.S. dollar as the world's reserve currency. In the first decade of the euro, however, the European Union largely ignored the institutional building blocks needed to balance key legal issues in its fledgling currency union.The protean events of the last seven years have fully exposed these structural flaws. In lieu of establishing a responsive political decision-making structure that could continue to function under market stress, the European Central Bank (ECB or "the Bank") has filled this gap and evolved into a body that is largely immune from democratic accountability. Assuming ultra vires authority for a monetary overseer, the Bank has wielded its influence over the last six years to effect political change in recalcitrant Member States. Understanding that Europe continues to persist in economic depression today, Part II of this Note will analyze the ongoing Eurozone crisis, establishing Europe's separation of powers relationship and the ECB's independence, while connecting events of the crisis. Through the ECB's actions in forcing the resignation of key leaders and threatening nations with bankruptcy, Part III will demonstrate how the Bank's ultra vires actions have vitiated its mandate as a politically neutral monetary overseer. Finally, Part IV concludes by arguing that reform and democratic legitimacy are necessary to restore the Bank's legitimacy and give it the tools necessary to ensure the euro can weather current storms.
Development of siloxane-based amphiphiles as cell stabilizers for porous shape memory polymer systems.

Abstract Hypothesis Polyurethane foaming surfactants are cell stabilized at the polymer-gas interface during foam blowing to prevent bubble coalescence. Siloxane-based surfactants are typically used to generate a surface tension gradient at the interface. The chemical structure of the hydrophobic and hydrophilic units affects surfactant properties, which can further influence foam morphology. Experiments Siloxane-polyethylene glycol (PEG) ether amphiphiles were synthesized in high yield via hydrosilylation to serve as surfactants for shape memory polymer (SMP) foams. Hydrophobic units consisted of trisiloxane and polydimethyl siloxane, and PEG allyl methyl ether (n = 8 or 25) was the hydrophilic component. Upon confirming successful synthesis of the surfactants, their surface tension was measured to study their suitability for use in foaming. SMP foams were synthesized using the four surfactants, and the effects of surfactant structure and concentration on foam morphology were evaluated. Findings Spectroscopic data confirmed successful siloxane-PEG coupling. All surfactants had a low surface tension of 20–21 mN/m, indicating their ability to reduce interfacial tension. SMP foams were successfully fabricated with tunable cell size and morphology as a function of surfactant type and concentration.
Ultrastructural Identification and Colocalization of Interacting Proteins in the Murine Cochlea by Post-Embedding Immunogold Transmission Electron Microscopy.

Verification of the presence and location of a protein within tissue can be accomplished by western blotting and immunohistochemistry, using either paraffin or frozen sections. Affinity purification by reciprocal coimmunoprecipitations using the tissue of interest can demonstrate the existence of an interacting pair of proteins. Ultimately, the ability to visualize the interaction at the cellular level is desired. Precise location(s) of interacting proteins in situ can be accomplished by ultrastructural localization with high-quality primary antibodies and small-particle-size Au-conjugated secondary antibodies. Visualization can be obtained with a transmission electron microscope fitted with a high-resolution camera permitting magnifications that exceed 2 × 10(5), and, to date, resolution capability of 20+ Mpixels, thus enabling localization of the target protein to within nanometers of the actual location. Here, we report the method by which immunolocalization at the level of the electron microscope is accomplished using the post-embedding technique, i.e., performing antibody labeling of proteins on ultrathin sections of tissue embedded in acrylic resin.
Cultural Evolution and Social Epistemology: A Darwinian Alternative to Steve Fuller’s Theodicy of Science

AbstractKey to Steve Fuller’s recent defense of intelligent design is the claim that it alone can explain why science is even possible. By contrast, Fuller argues that Darwinian evolutionary theory posits a purposeless universe leaving humans with no motivation to study science and no basis for modifying an underlying reality. I argue that this view represents a retreat from insights about knowledge within Fuller’s own program of social epistemology. I argue for a Darwinian picture of science as a product of cultural evolution building upon biological capabilities and liabilities bequeathed to us by biological evolution. Dual Inheritance or Gene-Culture Coevolution Theory can help us understand how complex social institutions emerged out of distinct, if connected, processes of biological and cultural evolution. Only by understanding how the unnatural nature of modern science emerged through cultural evolution can we consider where modern science functions well or poorly.